Waking Up and Choosing Violence

 

Onas Fenren was standing at the counter in his store with his daughter, Kerala, while she was talking to several of the staff. Onas should have been paying attention, but his thoughts were elsewhere. 

He had filled the past week and a half with just spending time with his family and handling the affairs of Raafe’s death. His former guard’s remains had arrived in Strathmore before Onas had. So that just left him meeting with the family. They had been understandably upset, but the time between arrivals had allowed most of the immediate grief to pass. Onas had managed to speak with the parents and give them the rest of Raafe’s effects, as well as tell them an account of how their son perished. 

Taenya had met with him about bringing Gwyn to come and meet with his family and to see him again. Apparently, the princess had been asking about him. He had to admit he missed the young girl.

He sighed and refocused on the conversation his daughter was having, gaining a slight glare from her in the process.

“So, Ricard, I need you to meet with the Smithing Guild. We fulfilled their purchase request, however, there were some errors in the funding approval,” Kerala explained, grabbing some documents and handing them to one of the company's esquires. “Basically, they didn’t put any quantities for the items we purchased, nor did they attach the required ducal forms. These are the documents from the approved purchase request. Ms. Sheya over at the Guild is the contact.”

Onas watched as his daughter handled one of the common issues for the company, documentation. The Artisan Guilds facilitated purchasing for all of their affiliated tradesmen, in this case, blacksmiths. Unfortunately, those Guilds were usually short-staffed, and thus many administrative errors arose.

After Ricard left, Onas turned and was about to walk away before Kerala placed her hand on his shoulder. He allowed her to turn him back around and address him. “Father… you didn’t pay attention at all. Did you?”

“You did wonderful, my dear.”

She sighed. “Come on, what’s got you distracted? Is it because Taenya is coming over today?”

“How did you know she was coming?” Onas asked, as his eyes narrowed.

“Dad, you know I have been taking a larger role here.” She rolled her eyes and continued, “Gods, you gave it to me. Not that I’m complaining, but knowing when we’re getting important clients is literally my job now.”

Onas groaned. “Of course, you’re right. You really have been doing wonderfully, but yes, Taenya is bringing the princess today. Admittedly, I am a tad nervous.”

He felt some hands slip around his waist and shifted to look at his wife that peeked around from behind him. “Why would you be nervous, my love? She’s just a child and from what you’ve told me, I think everyone is going to love her.” 

“Mother is correct,” Kerala said. “Plus, it’s Taenya. We all know her. There’s nothing to be nervous about. Well, except to be worried about Kelan making us look bad.”

“Kerala, your brother will be fine. Be nice,” His wife gently admonished as she stepped over to stand next to Onas.

Onas smiled. “Of course, you are both right. Kerala, speaking of your brother, could you please go retrieve both of them?”

Kerala looked back and forth between both of her parents before sighing and answering. “I’ll get them.” She turned and called out to one of the staff at the other end of the long counter, “Jasmin, I’m heading out for a bit. Can you cover the counter, please?” 

“Sure, Ms. Kerala! I’ll handle everything.” the short sun elf responded.

Kerala departed after saying goodbye and thankfully did not seem to mind being utilized as an errand girl. After she walked away, his wife looked up at him. Her turquoise eyes peered into his and she raised a brow. “Onas. Let’s go somewhere private.”

He sighed, but let his wife lead him to his office. Onas shut the door behind them as they entered and took naught two steps before his wife rounded on him. With a steady tone and a piercing gaze, Talani stated, “It’s time you told me what is going on with this princess and why you and Varciel are so interested in her. I’ve been patient, but there’s something you haven’t said.” 

Onas sighed and walked over and poured two glasses of liquor and walked to a pair of chairs to for his wife to join him. She grabbed the glass he held out and sat down, after which he proceeded to tell her everything about Gwyn. He started with how she had arrived, to how she saved them after Raafe died. As he finished that, his wife drained her glass, got up, and poured another. 

She stood in front of him and asked, “So, this girl is capable of casting magic, you think magic is going to start being a thing?” With a shake of her head, she questioned again, “How does this affect us?” 

Onas stood up and walked to his desk, and retrieved a key before unlocking a drawer. He took a deep breath and pulled out a small case.  

“Onas?” His wife questioned.

“This is how.” 

He opened the case and turned it around. Showing her the glowing orbs within. He watched as her ear twitched, her breath caught, and she looked up at him. 

“What are those, Onas?”

“These are from animals. One of our agents purchased them from a local hunter. They give off a feeling. I’ve had some experts look at them. One of those experts? He was able to use the orb to cast magic as Gwyn can. However–”

He grabbed another case from the same drawer and opened it. A larger orb was inside. It was glowing with a swirling yellow mist. He took another deep breath. “Th–This one. This one came from a telv who was injured. It was found when they were trying to save his life. The surgeon removed it, and it killed the man instantly upon removal.”

Talani audibly gasped. “Onas, why do you have this?” 

“The Duke wanted me to use my connections to look into it. He has more.”

His wife stood aghast. “Why? He desecrated bodies?”

Onas sighed. “He needed to know. I am told the bodies were chosen carefully. There were experts from the Royal Academy and Priests of Relena on hand to ensure they did it properly. They believe it’s widespread and that the Flash is what caused it. There have been tests… No one else has been found to utilize magic naturally yet. Definitely, not like Gwyn. However, there seem to have been physical improvements. The Scholars theorize that most changes are physical rather than magical in nature.”

“Naturally?”

He nodded. “The orbs allowed a few to use weak magic. Those that were found were invited to the Academy for more research.”

“Then why–” Talani shook her head, a strand of hair falling in front of her eye before she brushed it away. “Why does the duke need your connections?”

“I have connections throughout Meris, some in Lymtoria, and even Lehelia. You know this. I can have our people interact more discreetly than any official means.” Onas explained. 

His wife scrunched her nose up. And raised a hand. “But… That still doesn’t explain the princess. How does she figure into this? Does the duke know you have made our house beholden to a foreign royal?”

He let out a heavy breath, feeling a bit exasperated. “Of course, he knows, Tali. But the princess? She’s something else. She allows our family to expand outside of this small part of the kingdom. The company can expand throughout the entirety of the kingdom, and I can do it without resorting to immoral means. The princess is at the forefront of this new magical world we live in. She can do things that no one else can right now. Varciel and I are betting that her influence will catapult her to a level that a mere baron and merchant would never even hope to reach.”

The disappointment on his wife’s face made him hesitate. “So it’s just about greed? It’s not about the girl? A girl who lost her mother? Have you even looked into where her mother could be? Or did you leave that to Taenya? Are you only riding the coattails of a child because of what she can do for you?”

“No–Ta–No, of course not. I decided to help her before I knew of the potential.” He stammered.

His wife scoffed. “It sure sounds like it, Onas. That girl is not a tool, because Alos knows everyone else is going to be trying to use her as a puppet for influence.” Talani stepped forward and poked him in the chest. “You need to figure it out. We’re bound to this girl now, and I swear to Tenera, Onas Fenren, that there will be a reckoning if you attempt to use her for your own gain.”

“Tali–”

“Do. Not. Tali. Me. That girl will be here soon. You will get your shit together. We will welcome her, and we will treat her as if she were our own child. We will help her as if she were our own child. Any benefit you gain will be of her own free will. Do you hear me?”

“Yes.”

“I’m sorry?” She pressed.

Onas sighed and leaned back against his desk, running his hand through his hair. “Yes. You’re right. I–I let my excitement get the better of me.”

“That better have been all it was. Now, you are not a bad man, my love. You stumbled. You’re going to fix it.”

“Yes, dear.”

His wife smiled. However, it did not look pleasant and did not rise to her eyes. “Speaking of, dear, we have enough people. You should not be going on your nostalgic routes each year. Clearly, they are too dangerous. Perhaps you need to be here preparing our business for all the changes that you say are coming. Oh, and use all these connections that we know about, to locate this girl’s mother.”

Onas took a deep breath, then responded, “Yes, dear.”

Talani perked up. “Good! Now, come help me prepare for the princess’ arrival.”

“Let me put everything back up. I’ll be right there.” He told his wife.

“Good. I’ll see you shortly.” Talani patted his cheek gently, then said, “We will talk more of magic and Eona shattering revelations later, and why you’ve kept them from me. Your partner in life and business.”

Perhaps Onas hadn’t considered everything thoroughly. 

 

* * *

 

Gwyn was excited. She and Taenya were on the way to Mr. Onas’ shop. They were currently in a carriage and glued her eyes to the window next to her, taking in all the sights. There were so many elves and telv in the city. The buildings all looked so much different from back home. They were made of stone and most had vines and other decorations on them. She thought it looked like something straight out of a movie. You know, it really reminds me of– 

“Gwyn?” Taenya interrupted her thoughts. “What are you thinking about?”

“Huh? Oh, just thinking about how pretty the city is. It’s so much different from back home. Are we almost there?”

Her knight smiled and nodded her head. “Yes, we’re almost there. The guards will stay outside, but you, me, and Keston will all go in to meet Onas and his family.” 

Gwyn nodded. That’s what she had expected. Sabina and Theran had stayed back at the house. They had other things going on. However, if she were, to be honest, Theran was always busy. She barely got time to talk to him. The elf was constantly working with the guards and going out to look for more people to hire for their House. Maybe I can get him to teach me how to use Raafe’s sword. 

Gwyn sat there and continued to look outside as they drove along through the streets until they entered a plaza. There was a large building that took up an entire side. Lots of people were going in and out of the large doors at the front. It was very fancy. There were five large columns at the front. Above them, in big letters, was ‘Fenren Merchant Company.’ In the Common alphabet. That’s still so weird.

The carriage stopped, and one of the guards stepped up and opened the door. Gwyn smiled at Taenya, who motioned for her to exit. She saw Keston standing off to the side while she climbed down the stairs with the help of the guard. Liam, she remembered. 

“Thank you, Liam,” Gwyn said with a smile.

The elf returned the smile with a nod and replied, “My pleasure, Your Highness.”

Gwyn waved at Keston. “Keston! Are you ready? Excited? We haven’t seen Mr. Onas in so long. It feels like ages.”

Her cooking partner laughed. “It’s only been a week and a half, milady! However, yeah. I’m excited.” Keston chuckled. 

Taenya stepped up next to Gwyn and spoke to them, “Let’s go, you two.”

Gwyn followed them to the doors, where two telv guards wore what Sabina called light armor. They don’t look nearly as cool as my guards. One of the telv opened the door and gave Taenya a bow. Wait. That was for me. Crap. 

She hastily faced the man and gave him a nod and a smile, which earned her a smile back. He addressed the group, “Welcome to Fenren Merchant Company, Your Highness.”

“Thank you!” Gwyn replied.

They walked through the door, and Gwyn looked at everything. It impressed her. If I could whistle, I definitely would right now. Nice job, Mr. Onas. 

Inside were a bunch of tables and displays filled with all sorts of things. There were glass cases filled with fancy plates and glass. She saw a central area that had a big case and a counter filled with jewelry. Oh, my gosh. It’s like the fancy stores from Milan back home, but bigger. 

There was a long counter in the back of the room that seemed to be where everyone went to talk business. There was even a spiral staircase to her right that went up to a second floor. Gwyn tried seeing up there and thought she saw what looked like bookshelves with books on them. 

Gwyn smiled. She may have to shop when they were done! She loved getting new things. Oh! Maybe they have art supplies! I love drawing!

She was so engrossed in all the things that Mr. Onas was selling that she didn’t notice him and his family walk up until Taenya nudged her. Gwyn looked at the family and smiled. Mr. Onas had a big family. His wife was a pretty high elf with blonde hair that was holding onto his arm. Gwyn looked over at the kids that Mr. Onas had told her about. However, they didn’t really look like kids. Well… one did. The youngest one looked maybe a little bit older than her. He also looked like he did not want to be there. The oldest was a girl elf with dark hair, just like Mr. Onas. She was also very pretty but definitely looked like her dad. The middle was a boy who, funnily, looked just like his mom. He even had long hair pulled up into a bun. Ha! A man bun, like Aunt Katie’s boyfriend. 

Mr. Onas smiled and said, “Princess Gwyn! It is a pleasure to have you here. We are so happy you could visit us. Taenya, Keston. It’s good to see you both.”

Gwyn smiled. She liked how nice he was. “Thanks, Mr. Onas!” 

Taenya and Keston also greeted their old boss. Then Onas stepped forward and turned slightly so he could put his hand on his wife’s shoulder. 

“Allow me to introduce my family. This is my lovely wife, Talani.” Onas moved slightly and continued, “This is Kerala, my oldest. Relas, and my youngest, Kalen.” He gestured to each in turn, the oldest two bowing to her. 

Gwyn was excited. She hoped to make more friends around her age. “I’m so happy to meet all of you! Mr. Onas talked so much about you–” 

“Mother, do I even need to be here? It’s boring, and I don’t want to meet her.” the youngest, Kalen interrupted with a frown on his face.

Onas and the rest of his family froze. Gwyn’s eyes shot wide. 

What was it that Aunt Katie would say all the time that irritated mom?

Oh yeah…

Gwyn placed a hand on her hip, and with a scowl, addressed the rude boy.

“Excuse me, kid? Are you courting death?”