Sphere of Chaos Ch. 01

Singear, all of nineteen years of age, was trekking across the variegated landscape. She was surefooted, experienced, and rugged. She always had the same sort of base expression on her face-exhausted, but with a crazed look in her dark green eyes. She was fairly tall, but lithe. She had long, brunette hair that she kept loosely constrained with bits of leather. There were numerous scars across her tanned body, which was ever-so-slightly clothed in a makeshift uniform of light leather armor.

Singear stopped momentarily to hoist her knapsack up on her shoulders, and that was when she saw it—the flashing orb of light shooting through the sky. Singear knew that there was a mages' college in the town nearby. Perhaps she could glean information from somebody there. She wasn't sure how to go about finding answers to her questions, since she was fearful of drawing attention to herself being discovered after she had been on the run for so long. But she was dangerously curious by nature. She took quick inventory of the small arsenal she maintained on her person, and then headed into town.

Others in the town took notice of the orb of light shooting through the sky. Practically everyone in town had seen it, and for those that didn't, word shot off quickly with stories spreading like a wildfire to reach every ear. One of those to actually see it from the rooftop of one of the tallest buildings went by the name Abris. She stayed up at top of the roof, almost as though she had been expecting the sight all day. She watched as the orb descended quickly out of sight before standing up and stretching her arms over her head.

Abris was perhaps in her early twenties with long auburn hair that trailed loosely past her shoulders and dark lilac-colored eyes. She was garbed in traditional clothing, normal for city-dwellers, consisting of a slit skirt that fell past her ankles, an olive-colored wrap about her waist, and a modest, breezy blouse with a scarf around her neck.

She was about to head down when she caught sight of something else—something she hadn't been expecting. In the distance, she could just make out an unusual character making her way past the clusters of people already telling tall tales about the fallen orb and what it could mean. Abris stayed still, observing for just a moment longer before stepping through the open window that lead to the rooftop to get back inside. She went down a few floors to get to the second floor and then threw back the shutters from there, eyes quickly scanning to fall upon the stranger. "Hey you! Welcome to Anreaj," she called out to Singear, her expression warm and bright with something like amusement. "Are you lost? Do you need a place to stay tonight?"

Singear jolted at the sound of the woman's voice, looking like she was ready for anything, including a fight. However, she didn't sense any animosity from the voice that wafted through the air, the sound of which she quickly tracked back to Abris. Singear wasn't used to generosity, however. She had a hard edge that seemed to rub everybody the wrong way.

Singear pointed up at the sky, which was now clear of any trace of that strange orb. "I saw that giant ball of light, and I knew that there was a mages' college here in Anreaj." Singear glanced around a bit, getting a sense of the town. She had known of it for years, but had never actually been there before. "I thought that maybe someone there might know what in the hell that was. Can you tell me where I can find the college?"

Abris smiled and nodded, leaning her arms on the windowsill as she peered over. "It's that way," she responded politely and pointed. "But you're not from around here, are you? You might get lost. Here, I can show you the way." Before Singear could refuse, Abris jumped back out of sight to come down and join her, rushing downstairs before the other woman could get away. By the sight of Abris's clothing, one might have figured that she was a merchant's daughter or something of that sort—wealthy but not of noble lineage, formal but not scholarly.

She met Singear and pointed again the way she had indicated before, starting off at a steady pace. "So where are you from, then?" she asked casually, as if she was used to making this sort of chit chat. She wasn't exactly prying, and not exactly making small talk either.

Singear reeled back a bit. Usually people would cross the street just to get away from her. Now this woman was getting close and personal. She gave Abris a bewildered look before following the outlined path with her eyes. Singear seemed uncomfortable with Abris's question, but the other woman seemed like she could be trusted with an answer or two. "You ever hear of a place called Graymoor?" It was almost a rhetorical question. Everybody knew about Graymoor. It was known for being an absolute shithole, dominated by a few obscenely rich and corrupt merchants. While all of those merchants were human, they had effectively enslaved both humans and halflings alike.

"Graymoor?" Abris repeated with some excitement in her tone. "Yes, of course I've heard of it! I have met a few others from there too. I bet you have a lot of stories from such a place." She looked back a moment and tilted her head at Singear. "You look like you have a lot of stories." Rather than sounding cruel or sarcastic, she sounded attentive, almost like a little kid, and thus her tone almost sounded like a solicitation. Perhaps making conversation in Abris's mind meant hearing such stories, but as to what kind she might have been expecting was another thing. "Oh, that's right!" she said suddenly, as though interrupting herself. "My name is Abris. I work around here. What about you, warrior of Graymoor?"

"I am not sure I have many stories from Graymoor. It seems more like I have one story—the story of my life. Certainly not the story of a warrior." Singear took a few more steps before acknowledging the second part of Abris's solicitation. "My name is Singear, but I have always gone by Sin." She waited a few moments to see if the name seemed at all familiar to the woman. Had word gotten out this far from Graymoor? All of the neighboring towns hated Graymoor because of how corrupt it was, and Sin had to wonder if the notoriety of her hometown had aided in her anonymity. At least Abris didn't seem to recognize Sin's name or Sin's face. "So, Abris, what is it you do here? Is everybody in this place as friendly and helpful as you?"

Abris continued onwards without missing a step, leading into one of the more advanced parts of town. The roads were clean and cobbled and the buildings stuccoed in multicolored clays. The people around them were all babbling in discussion about the fallen orb, and Abris and Singear could easily pick out pieces of it as they passed, including those that felt—as some always would—that it was a sign of the end of the world. Abris paid those sudden shouts no heed either. Whatever it was that fell, Abris certainly didn't think it meant danger. Sin certainly got the impression that the flying orb was something of a bad omen, but in her mind, Armageddon was certainly just crazy talk of the masses. Put a group of people together, and she supposed you were bound to get those doomsayers. But what was that orb all about anyway? What was it made of?

"My family owns an inn not far from here, so I just sort of help out with that." That particular tidbit explained why she had asked Singear if she needed a place to stay, as well as her ease in conversation. It had to be a part of her duties with helping patrons. Abris had to laugh a little at Sin's assertion that she was 'friendly' though, and Abris's amusement came out in a musical giggle. "I wouldn't say that everyone is as friendly as me, though. And I only am so to the right people anyway."

"So I guess since you work at an inn, you're pretty on top of bounties that people have on their heads, right?"

"Bounties...? I guess so," Abris said, a mite dismissively. Apparently bounties did not hold much interest for her, but then again, she was clearly no bounty hunter. Based on looks alone, she seemed to be much the normal human woman, perhaps even with no special abilities or knowledge. Sin was just glad that Abris paid little heed to the question of bounties, but she had been gauging the woman for just this type of information.

Abris turned a corner at a dark maroon building and the street there ended in a dead-end, where she halted. "It's up that way." Sure enough, there was a scholarly looking building that made up the entire end of the street. It had peaked rooftops and stained-glass windows, along with a mystic sort of aura to it to indicate its status. Sin stopped suddenly to gaze upward at the towering building. It was definitely intimidating, and even demoralizing to look at it.

"As far as friendly people go though... The mages are perhaps not the friendliest. A lot of them are snobs and judge by appearance," Abris said in a neutral tone, just giving a fair warning.

Sin sighed softly. "Do you even think they will talk to me about that orb? And what do you suppose that thing even was?" If they judged on appearances, she would never get her answer. She wasn't even sure they would let her into the building with the way she looked. She peered over at Abris, who looked, for lack of a better term, normal. Maybe the mages would talk to her if they wouldn't talk to Sin?

Abris perked up. "Well, it did look magical in origin... Powerful, too. I'm not quite sure what it could be though. You're right to come here. The magi may know more, if they're even available to speak now." She noticed the look that Sin was giving her and it made her giggle anew. "How about this... You can stay over at my inn and we can get you all cleaned up. Perhaps some of my clothing will even fit you. Then, we can come back tomorrow to see what they've found out. There may even be a public announcement of some sort. Right now, I doubt they want to sit and speculate with every civilian, after all... What do you think?"

Sin looked down at her own body. She was muddy, with scratches covering the patches of skin that were not covered by her leather armor. She was hungry, too, she noticed. Ravenous, as a matter of fact. Probably dehydrated. Her water canteen could use a refill anyway, and she was running low on the ale that she carried in her bag. "I would really appreciate that. I guess I didn't notice how bad of shape I was in today. I've been trekking for so long."

"It won't be free though..." Abris started, unable to keep the mischievousness out of her voice. She turned and started leading the way again back the way they had come, though took a different turn this time. "You're going to have to tell me more about your adventures in exchange. Like why you have been trekking for so long?" Though she was persistent in her questions, it all seemed innocent enough, as she was asking out of personal interest rather than any ulterior motive. People always came and went in taverns, from all over, and there were always new places to hear about and new tales to hear. It seemed like she was more interested in hearing about the journeys of others than the very chaos unfolding before her now. She acted like someone who had never left the city before, but even then, one would think she would be just as invested in speculation as the next passerby.

"I wouldn't expect anything to be free. I'm from Graymoor, remember? What would you like to know of my adventures? I don't know how much I can tell you, honestly."

"How much you can tell me..." Abris repeated thoughtfully, taking it to be more a matter of will than of ability. She smiled to herself and dropped the subject for the time being. There would be more time for it once Sin was fed and rested.

Sin wondered why this woman stayed in Anreaj if she was so interested in life outside of the town. Was she here involuntarily? Did she have obligations or debts in the city? "You seem like you would be suited to a life of travel and exploration. Why don't you leave here?"

Abris continued to lead the way, taking a route that was less crowded than the busier streets around the mages' college. Those streets were getting more packed by the second with others that had the very same idea as Sin—to ask what the mages knew. Anytime now, guards would probably have to bar the way and close the doors until a determination was made. Fortunately, the offshoot roads designed for commerce were more peaceful as they traveled through. "Well, I've always dreamed of leaving the city, but my family has need of me. City-dwellers are often tied to that, I'm sure you know. So I sort of just live vicariously through those that stop by and hear what they say."

"Sometimes leaving your family behind is the best thing you could possibly do for them," Sin responded cryptically. She carefully scanned the neatly cobbled streets, more or less memorizing pathways in case she needed to recall them at a later time.

After a few more turns, they made it to the inn that Abris had referred to, though they were still located within the wealthier part of town. The tavern was well-kept, with a burnt-orange exterior and a sign that proclaimed it to be 'The Strider's Sunset.' The downstairs portion had a bar as well as a raised platform for bards and other performers, which was currently empty, but the tables did have some groups of people milling about in deep discussion. Stairs lined the wall and obviously led to the rooms.

Abris kept on going to the stairs without stopping to speak with anyone, taking Sin right to an empty room at the end of the hall. It had clean accommodations, including a bed and a four-legged tub, as well as a small writing desk and a chest for storing goods and clothing. "Go ahead and get started. I can get food brought up to you, and fresh garments too. You can head back downstairs if you want to mingle anytime though, of course."

Sin almost wept when she saw her accommodations. A tub?! She couldn't remember the last time she had been able to bathe herself. It was probably sometime around the last rainstorm, about two months beforehand. "Thank you, Abris. I would greatly appreciate food and some clothes. And I really need to bathe. It's...been a long time," she said sheepishly. This was probably the first sign of embarrassment that she had exhibited about her appearance. She was so used to building up a tough shell of an exterior. Perhaps she was truly sensitive on the inside after all.

Abris quirked a small smile. "I'll be back soon, so take the time you need." She exited and shut the door behind her to give Sin some time to herself.