Diamond Bonds (23 page)

“Zero,” Jem groans.  “It’s definitely rare, but I don’t know who would buy it.  It should fetch a good price from the right person, at least.”

“Well, that’s a start!” Era exclaims enthusiastically.  “I’m sure we’ll find someone to buy it.  In the meantime, we need to get back to Pearl or I’ll be late.”

“We’re not going back yet!” Jem announces while pointing at Era.  “What have you been doing this whole time?  I can smell you from here.  Go back into town and take a bath.”

Era’s jaw drops.  “Wait, you were serious about that?  But where am I going to find a place to do that?”

“Pay someone to use their house for all I care,” Jem says, shooing him away with her hand.  “Go figure something out, Master Thief.”

Era relents and slinks back toward the village.  Jem takes great pleasure in his obedience, but she finds Di giving her a death stare.  “What, you’re still upset?”

“Not about the rune.  You’re too mean to him!”

“He’s my apprentice, so he has to do what I say.  Get over it already.”

“He deserves better than you!  He’s a nice, sweet guy, and he-”

“He’s a
thief
, Di!” Jem heckles.  “Your crush is a
petty thief!
”

Angry, Di sits with a huff.  Satisfied, Jem glances over and says, “You’re being awfully quiet over there, Fire.  Something wrong?”

Fire jumps, snapping back to reality.  “Oh, I… No.”

“You alright?”

“I’m
fine
,” she snaps.  “I’ll scout the path back.”  Without waiting for a response, she runs into the woods, disappearing from view.

Taken aback by the exchange, Jem wonders what has Fire so worked up.  Shrugging it off, she leans against a tree, content to enjoy the peace of the moment as Di continues to give her the silent treatment.

*              *              *

Six o’clock comes and goes, but with his date nowhere to be seen, Era sits on a tree stump and hopes he’s waiting in the right place.  After traveling so much, all the trees blend together, so he can’t be certain he’s in the correct spot.  There’s fortunately still plenty of sunlight, so he’s bound to find Pearl wandering through as long as he’s somewhat close.

Era sniffs his armpits one more time, content with the results of washing in the bathhouse of a tiny inn.  It wasn’t a cheap rental, and he wonders how much this date is going to cost him.  Jem certainly isn’t going to help pay for any of this.

He scans the woods, wondering where the other three are positioned.  The plan is for Jem and Di to follow and watch from a reasonable distance.  Meanwhile, Fire will continuously scout around the area for trouble, since no one is particularly comfortable waiting so long in one place.

“6:15,” he reads to himself, glancing again at his pocket watch.  Eventually, the sound of crunching leaves approaches, and he sees Pearl coming to meet him.  Now wearing a long, brown dress, her hair is tied with a red ribbon, holding most of it up at her neck level.  She grows excited when she finds Era, and he hurries to meet up with her.

“Wow, you sure do look nice,” Era says, impressed with the appearance of his date.  He now feels self-conscious about his own garb, sporting the outfit he wears when performing heists.  His black, cotton shirt fits tightly against his skin, and his dark leather pants are intended to help him blend into the night.  ‘
At least I smell nice
.’

“Thanks, Era!” Pearl exclaims, pleased by the compliment.  “I’m sorry I’m late.  I thought for sure we were meeting back over there.”

As she points back, Era does his best to keep from slapping his forehead as he realizes he’s indeed been waiting in the wrong spot, instead opting to let her take the blame.  “No worries, I’m just glad we were able to meet up.”  He leans toward her, offering his elbow.  “Shall we?”

Pearl nods, placing her hand tenderly onto his arm.  After a helpful pointer from Pearl, Era leads the way, aiding his date over the rough terrain.  The two hike in awkward silence for the better part of the trip.  Still, when Era glances over to Pearl, she seems happy.  He hopes the whole date goes this smoothly.

“So Era,” Pearl starts, breaking the silence, “I know nothing about you.  Tell me about yourself.”

Era eagerly gives her his prepared answer.  “I’m a traveling guard-for-hire.  I’ve been hired by Jem and her sister to-”

“You don’t have to lie,” Pearl interrupts.  “You can tell me if you and your friends all… how do I say this… make a dishonest living?”

Rather than taking offense from the comment, Era beams with a grin that stretches from ear to ear.  “You’re right, I’m a thief!  You could tell?”

His enthusiasm surprises her.  “Well, it’s as much about your companions as anything.  That and your desire for fast transport.  We just don’t get many requests for travel, so I always assume such clients are hiding something.”  Hesitating for a moment, she adds, “We’re not exactly operating cleanly ourselves, you know.”

“So you smuggle?” he asks with interest.

“Is it that obvious?” Pearl asks in alarm.

Era shrugs.  “Well, your operation is in the middle of nowhere.  Even if sky boats are banned from most towns, it seems like you could be located closer to one if you wanted.”  Grinning, he adds, “It’s good to be in the company of a fellow crook.”

Pearl laughs. “Indeed, it is.”

In the presence of a kindred spirit, he asks, “So tell me, since I assume you’re involved with the Merc Market and such, have you ever heard of the Dark Cloak?”

Pearl shakes her head.  “No, what is that?  Some kind of new fashion accessory?”

The excitement disappears from Era’s face.  “It’s not a… well, never mind.  I was just curious.”

Pearl shrugs and keeps walking, holding onto Era’s arm for balance.  She’s glad she decided to wear her traveling boots despite the dress.  Though thrilled to be on a date, she silently wishes it didn’t require hiking through a forest.  ‘
Then I could have worn my cute shoes.
’

*              *              *

Jem watches from a distance as Era and Pearl take their stroll through the woods.  “He’s enjoying himself far too much,” she gripes, annoyed he gets to have a fun evening while she’s stuck babysitting.

Di follows from a designated distance, having been banned from getting close enough to watch Era on his date.  After what seems like an eternity of hiking, Jem beckons for Di to come forward.  Excitedly, she rushes up to Jem, only to find the edge of town.  “Where are they?”

Jem points with her thumb toward the city entrance.  “Already in the restaurant.”

Di scowls at Jem.  “I wanted to see them!”

“All they’ve been doing is talking to each other about nothing.  You didn’t miss a thing.”

“Yes, but what was Pearl wearing?  How was her hair?”

Jem gives Di a blank look.  “Can’t say I noticed.  Maybe a dress, and her hair was… well, I’m not sure. Why do you want to know?”

Di slaps her forehead in dismay.  “Are you even a girl?”

“I’m a girl where it counts!  I don’t get wrapped up in trivial stuff like that.”  Sternly, she adds, “And you shouldn’t, either!  You’re only thirteen.”

“I’m almost
fourteen
,” Di once again insists.

Jem smirks, getting the exact reaction she wanted.  Di plants herself on a log, wondering how long she’ll be waiting in torment for this evening to be over.

*              *              *

“Thank you,” the bartender says, giving a long glance to Era before retreating to the kitchen with their orders.

Pearl notices the man’s look and leans forward, keeping her voice low.  “I think that barkeep was eyeing you.”

Era leans back and grins.  “Well, I should probably confess to you that I was here earlier.  One of my companions and I checked the restaurant out for lunch.”

“Ah,” Pearl says with a frown.  “One of your companions?  Aren’t you traveling with three girls?”

“O-Oh yeah,” Era awkwardly confesses.  “Well, it wasn’t a date, if that’s what you’re implying.”

“But it was just the two of you?” she asks, her face showing a tinge of jealousy.

Era pauses, unsure of how to properly answer the question.  “I think this is a dangerous conversation…”

Pearl gasps.  “Wait, are you courting one of your companions!?”

“N-No!” Era shakes his head vehemently.  “Absolutely not!  I’m just a guardian-for-hire, like I said before.  I’m escorting them back home.”

“You just told me you were a thief.”

Era’s eyes widen as he glances around, wondering if any of the other patrons are listening to their conversation.  “Hey, keep it down about that…”

“Tell me the truth, Era!  I don’t want to be on a date with you if you already belong to someone else.”

Leaning forward, he looks Pearl in the eye and confidently states, “I’m not courting any of my companions, Pearl.  We have a business relationship, that’s it.”

Pearl studies him at length before crossing her arms and blushing, embarrassed by her overreaction.  “V-Very well.  We can continue the date.”

Relieved, Era relaxes.  As the two sit in awkward silence, Era feels like he’s living a normal life.  He’s on a date at a restaurant with an attractive girl, he’s eating food that hasn’t been plucked off a bush or picked off the ground, and he’s even under a roof.  Looking at his date, he asks, “So, are you from this town?”

“Lentien?  No, I’ve traveled around most my life,” she explains.  “I’m from Yugar, originally.”

“So how did you end up out here?”

“Well, my father was in the war, and afterward he didn’t feel any great love for the military, so he didn’t want to move back to his home in Satari.  He actually lived in Canterin for a while, working on a merchant ship.”

“So you lived in Satari during the war?”

Pearl grimaces.  “Sorry, I should have clarified that my father… he isn’t my real dad.  He adopted me just about a year and a half ago.”

Era raises an eyebrow.  “Wait.  How old are you?”

“I’m sixteen now.  It’s abnormal, I know,” she agrees.  “I’ve been an orphan all my life, and I had found a home in a traveling act at a young age.  I bounced among a few groups over the years, and when my father saw my act, he asked if I wanted to work for him in a more lucrative position.”

“Ah, so it’s more of a business arrangement?”

“I suppose,” Pearl agrees.  “Performance was all I had ever known, but the allure of flying through the sky…”  Her gaze wanders as she breathes deeply.  “It’s like nothing else, Era.”

“The romance of the open skies, huh?” he comments, having never before considered such a notion.  “So why the adoption?”

“That was more for my protection, considering the type of clientele he supports.”

Era leans forward with great interest.  “So what act did you do?”

Pearl blushes.  “I-It wasn’t anything great.  I was somewhat of a trapeze artist.”

“Whoa!” Era exclaims.  “That sounds cool!”

Pearl’s face continues to redden.  “I wasn’t that good at the trapeze, though.  I mostly cheated.”

“…cheated?” Era asks, confused.  “How can you cheat the trapeze?”

“I have a talent,” she sheepishly acknowledges.  “I’m a pretty decent air maker.”

Era tries to figure out what she means.  “So, what, you’d blow the trapezes around?”

Pearl laughs at the suggestion.  “No, I mean that I could perform all kinds of tricks just by blowing myself around the arena.  The audience loved it.”

Era’s eyes widen.  “You can fly?”

“Of course not! I just used my making to create strong breezes.  I’d do flips, loops, and all that.  Fake falls but suddenly swoop up and land on my feet…”

“Amazing,” Era says in awe.  “I’ve never heard of people flying.”

“I wasn’t
flying!
” she insists, red from embarrassment.  “It was more like… propelling myself around, I suppose.”

“Well, I guess that makes you an ideal candidate for flying a sky boat,” Era notes.

Pearl nods.  “Sky boats aren’t exactly reliable.  Runes are fragile and there’s no real way to gauge how much power they have left.  Given the cost of the runes, it’s a balance between replacing then only as often as needed, but without pushing them too far.”

“So what happens if you lose a rune?”

Pearl’s eyes drop.  “The talented pilots might be able to land, depending on which rune was lost and what functionality it had.  Most pilots just go down with the ship.  At that point they rely on pressure packs, but those are only so effective in slowing your descent.  All in all, saying it’s a dangerous job is a serious understatement.”  Era now understands why Di dreads riding in a sky boat, and Pearl perks up and explains, “But that’s why I’m a good candidate!  I can survive a fall by mimicking my midair acrobatics.  I can float like a feather from nearly any height.”

Era’s eyes sparkle.  “Incredible!  Have you ever fallen before?”