Heirs of Hyarch

Opening his front door, Hamond peered back and forth down the street. There were still a handful of people going about their business, but most importantly, no sign of any town watch members.

"Come on," he said quietly, motioning behind him. Edeline followed out the door, also looking around warily. He quickly shut the door behind her.

Originally, Hamond had not especially worried about keeping a low profile. He'd never even bothered with a false name, as there were plenty of Hamonds in the world. He'd actually met a few himself. No one would really give much thought to a healer of Remuati background bearing that name. It was the best disguise in the world, acting as if you had nothing to hide, and one he had made full use of.

But it was looking more and more like that would not be an option for much longer.

He'd been this close to just telling Edeline the full truth, only barely stopping himself. As it was, revealing as much as he had was taking a serious gamble. It wasn't that Hamond didn't trust her, it was...he didn't know how to explain it, not even to himself. Part of him wished he could be open, but logically, he couldn't afford to risk revealing that the Spellking had been his teacher.

Either way, what's done was done, and both of them had more immediate concerns.

The two of them moved quietly down the street. Hamond's hope was that, in the dimming light of the sun setting, no one would be able to recognize Edeline without getting too close. Since no one had apparently recognized her earlier, this would probably be safe enough. At least, as long as none of the town watch approached them.

Staying inconspicuous was key, but this wasn't his greatest area of expertise. Hamond wondered if he needed to get advice from Bradan or Kalvarel about acting stealthily after this. It probably wouldn't hurt to ask, at the least.

"There," Edeline muttered, nudging him. Hamond looked up to see a pair of watchmen turning the corner, just in front of them. With a quick nod to acknowledge her, he continued walking calmly, but keeping them in the edge of his vision.

The two turned and headed past them down the street, paying them no heed. Hamond heard Edeline let out a quiet sigh.

They couldn't celebrate just yet, not until they got there and back again. Turning onto the next street, Hamond and Edeline passed another guard on patrol. Once again, the guard didn't say anything to them. It was starting to look to Hamond like none of them really knew the face of Lady Hallowscroft. If they were lucky, that would apply to nearly the entire town watch, and they could make it safely.

A few streets later, their luck ran out.

Edeline spotted him first. "Captain," she said, gesturing ahead. Hamond saw him instantly. While nowhere near as towering a figure as Linos, the man still stood out with his uniform and stance among a handful of men.

Towering or not, this was a man who definitely would recognize Edeline instantly, and he and his men were between them and Morgivel's house. They could cut around via a different street, but as far as he knew that would require circling back the way they came. And if they ran into more guards along that way...

"Come on," Edeline said, grabbing his hand and dragging him down a side street. Hamond realized he'd stopped and had been staring at the captain. Thankfully, no one seemed to have noticed, but he could not afford to get lost in thought like that.

The side street was mostly empty, with a few people apparently taking advantage of the shade cast by the buildings. It ought to be safe to wait here, at least for a moment, although he doubted they could afford to delay until the captain moved on.

"You alright?" Edeline released his hand, looking concernedly at him.

"My apologies." Hamond wiped his face with his hand, feeling a bit ashamed. "I...wasn't expecting that."

"Well, nothing about this has gone as expected," Edeline wryly noted, "Now what do we do?"

Hamond tried to remember where this street led. If he was correct then...yes, following this street out to the other end, then taking two lefts should bypass the guards. They would need to move quickly, just in case, but this could work out.

"This way then," he said, indicating the street ahead. Stepping ahead of Edeline, he started to move forward.

"Hamond!" a voice called out, one he recognized.

He turned around to see Bradan trotting up, smiling. Of all the people to run into, of course it would be him.

"Bradan," he said in greeting, partially for Edeline's benefit.

"Really good to see you, man." Bradan clapped one hand on Hamond's shoulder, making him flinch. "Can't talk to Alex, probably because he's busy with the whole search for Lady Hallowscroft. And then on top of that, Kal also vanished."

"Kalvarel's missing?" As if this whole situation wasn't complicated enough.

"I was just at his house, but he's not there. He made a delivery yesterday, but I was busy and missed him. There's been not a hair of him since."

"A delivery," Hamond said flatly. Again, he wasn't about to try to pry into their business, but given how often they mentioned minor details like this, it had him wondering just what they were up to.

"Look, I know you may not believe me, but...you know what, forget it. Keeping quiet about the whole thing was Kal's idea, he can curse me out later." Bradan looked at Hamond dead straight. "We're running a bathhouse."

Hamond snorted. "Of all things, that?"

"I thought there was only one bathhouse in Hallowscroft," Edeline cut in, frowning.

"Not anymore," Bradan said, "Oh, and who are you?"

"Eda," she said, before Hamond could speak. It wouldn't have been his first choice of a false name, but it would do.

"Someone in my care," Hamond added quickly, "I was seeing her home." Not entirely a lie, given their ultimate goal. He just didn't want Bradan asking too many questions.

"Eda, then," Bradan said with a smirk, shaking his head. "Don't worry, I'll keep your little affair secret."

Edeline's face turned a deep shade of red, which reflected how Hamond felt. Don't let his teasing get to you, he told himself.

"So secret, not even the two of us knew it, it seems," he retorted.

"Is that so?" Bradan let out a short laugh. "Well, I need to get moving, so hopefully I'll see you for cards in a few days. Just keep an eye out for Kalvarel."

"I'll try," Hamond promised. Not that he could spare too much effort to search for the Elefae, but Hamond knew he could at least make a note if he saw him. It was possible that he would be at the First Ascension.

"Then I'm off." Bradan turned and started to walk off. "Oh, and be sure to to visit the bathhouse some time," he said over his shoulder as he strode back the way he had came.

Hamond let out a breath. He was worried about Alexios more than ever, but he wouldn't find answers here on this street.. And he had a job to get to.

"Tell me he did not just do what I think he did," Edeline said, looking off in the direction Bradan went.

"He's a real joker, yes," Hamond conceded.

"Not that." Edeline shook her head, expression guarded. "He told you to go visit that bathhouse without saying where it was."

"Oh." She was right. Then again, there had been a few times Bradan had struck him as not possessing the greatest common sense, so he supposed this was hardly a surprise.

"Not the most clever sort, I assume," Edeline echoed his thoughts as they set off again.

"Unfortunately, no," Hamond said, "But he's alright. I meet him and a couple of others regularly for nights out at a tavern."

"I see." Edeline smiled slightly, leaving Hamond wondering what she was thinking.

However, he had another matter on his mind. "What did you mean earlier, about there being only one bathhouse?"

Edeline looked around them, obviously wary. "I've seen the tax records. Only one bathhouse was listed on them, and it definitely was not his," she said in a low voice.

Of course. Hamond slapped one hand to his forehead in disgust. His instincts had been right. Those two couldn't do business honestly, even if you offered them a sack full of pikers every day. Moments like this made him want better friends...well, as much as those two could be called friends. At least Alexios wasn't like that, even if he overlooked their behavior too.

"I will assume you did not know of this," Edeline added, her amusement clear.

"I regret many things." Hamond knew his frustration was clearly visible, and didn't care a bit. "What will you do about it later, once, well..."

"I don't know," Edeline admitted, "I shall have to think on it."

Fair enough. The two rounded the corner, and moved along the next street. There were more Elefae here now, no doubt gathering in the area for the ceremony. What he didn't see any of in front of them were guards, a fact that relieved Hamond more than it ought to.

Perhaps he was just overthinking matters. He took a moment to compose himself again, get himself ready for the ceremony. He'd need a steady hand for his work, and he'd hardly have that if he kept worrying over separate matters.

"Excuse me," a voice said behind them.

Hamond spun to see an Elefae man standing there. "Sorry, you startled me," Hamond quickly said, seeing a worried look on the man's face. He was just relieved it was not a watchman.

"No, it's my fault," the man said, looking him over, "You're the healer helping with the First Ascension tonight, right?"

"Yes, I am," Hamond answered.

"My son is going to be going through the rite," the man said, "I just wanted to thank you in advance. I know our healer is getting too old, and with no new healers among us...it's been a little rough."

"I'm happy to help." It would be too rude to mention it, but the coin did not hurt either.

"Right, well, best of fortune to you and your wife," the man said, turning to leave.

Hamond sighed. Bradan teasing him was one thing, but a complete stranger, in all seriousness, making such an assumption was a little too far. Looking at Edeline, her face was reddening again.

"She's not...never mind." The man had already left, blending in with the evening crowd. All Hamond could do was shake his head and move on. Morgivel was waiting for them.