"Whoa, no way! You found an Arc on your first dive?"
"Of course I did," a tall boy with short blonde hair said, a smug look on his face that implied it was inevitable, "My father is not a guild master just for show, talent obviously courses through my blood. With this I'll be able to cut down any monster that dare cross my path in the mouth."
A gaggle of younger boys and girls were crowded around the taller one with gleams in their eyes as he showed off his treasure. It was quite a common scene for first-time divers to parade their lucky finds; they would all eventually learn better. The streets around them bustled with activity as gem traders and adventurers alike bartered and bonded, some from within tents full of wares that they had pitched that morning and others from more established shops.
Heka leaned back into a chair with her feet on top of a table right outside the Silver Sword Guild. Silky, dark grey hair covered her face like a waterfall as she tilted her head down, arms crossed, trying to get some much needed rest. It was usually a pretty idyllic spot, but the downside was that the guild master's son, Lucian, could sometimes be found nearby.
And today, the brat kept prattling on about this and that, his oh so powerful new artifact. Idiot, he probably didn't even know how it worked yet, much less what it even did. It was obviously a navigation tool of some sort but he held like a child who had been given candy for the first time.
Having had enough, Heka set her feet on the ground and shook her hair out of her face in a huff of anger before calling out the boy, "Hey Lucian! Stop being an arrogant prick and showing off daddy's little gift, everyone knows he took you along on a strapped dive and picked you out the first artifact he found."
The group of kids who had been worshipping Lucian suddenly cooled off with their fervor, while the boy struggled to bring back their enthusiasm, "Now now, why should you believe the neighborhood devil? Everyone knows she's scared of the mouth, doesn't even go near it if she can help it. She would probably be less afraid if she had parents to show her the ropes though."
So he had gone for a low blow; most people in these parts knew Heka was an orphan. However, she didn't let that bother her and continued on in a flippant tone, "All I'm saying is, Lucian here probably doesn't even know why his little treasure there is an Arc grade artifact, much less how to use it. He's holding it like a sword yet it could not be further from a weapon. If he tried to attack a crimson hare with that it would burst into a thousand pieces. Now run along all of you, big sis here is trying to get some rest."
The kids awkwardly left one by one, giving excuses to Lucian before squirming away. Most of them were quite intimidated by her, which made Heka grin before putting her feet back on the table triumphantly.
"You really don't know your place do you, rat?"
Lucian had come to hover over Heka with a scowl on his face; she had ruined his little narcissism theater after all. She ignored him calling her 'rat', it was a common derogatory term for orphans in Patala.
"I do know my place, and it's right here at this table, mocking you when you put on airs," Heka said, "I mean really Lucian, you make it too easy. You were holding that thing like it was your cock, waving it around like getting gifted a low rank artifact suddenly means you're an ace diver. From my point of view you are just another spoiled daddy's boy, trying to play at adventure games."
She closed her eyes and leaned back with a smirk, sure he would leave in embarrassment, but instead she sensed movement.
Heka moved instinctively and by the time Lucian had even known what had happened, his shiny new Arc was lying in two pieces on the cobblestone road, he on his back next to it, groaning in pain.
Heka was in stance, with what looked to passerby as a wooden stick clutched in one hand. A few of them stopped as they noticed the commotion and Heka took it as her cue to leave.
She walked briskly down the street towards the fish market pier as Lucian's shouts to stop her wailed from behind.
When Heka decided she'd come far enough, she leaned against a wall and slowly sat down, groaning with annoyance. She should not have done that; it was fun to goad that idiot from time to time but she had forgotten how quick to temper he was, and his habit of holding grudges. Her plan of a lazy afternoon in the sun was now ruined by the permeating stench of fish. The ocean breeze could only do so much to hide it, and since it was nearly afternoon the scent had only worsened.
The outdoor market stretched out in front of her like a maze of wooden stalls and fishnets, lines of people queuing up like ants for scraps. A sort of ingrained dampness kissed the floor around her, it was covered in layers of grime and sand from years of bustle.
An array of women, most who wore nets around their hair, shouted out their daily specials, including rare fish caught from the mouth; those who had divers for husbands came away with these golden eggs. Heka personally thought them fools. Why risk yourself diving when you could simply sell normal fish from the sea? It was a stable enough profession, yet so many still risked their lives with such zeal she thought them to be touched in the head.
It was blind enthusiasm like that which made dupes like Lucian popular, showing off their precious artifacts as if they were a gift from god. No, Heka knew them for what they really were: temptations of the devil, vile machinations that drew curious fools into the mouth.
There would no doubt be trouble now that she had injured Lucian. It wasn't her fault the boy was so weak, despite being only a couple years younger than her. His father, Gehrman, the guild master of Silver Sword, doted on the boy and never took kindly to anyone who flouted him. The guild had an unsavory reputation to boot; controversy followed them like vultures to a dead horse.
In her melancholy, Heka didn't notice a familiar face, "Look at what a sorry state you're in huh?"
Her head shot up, it was Gayle, tall and broad-shouldered with bluish hair. Trails of a wispy beard had already started showing up on the young man's face. A large sword was strapped to his back, giving off a cool vibe that had passerby steer clear of him. He was a vice-captain of an adventurers guild and Heka had helped him out of a spot of trouble a few years prior. Grateful as he was, he had struck up a fast friendship with her.
"What do you want, can't you see I'm busy feeling sorry for myself?"
"Yeah I can see that," he laughed, "Though, for maximum self-pity I would recommend 'ol Walden's place, nothing makes you feel worse about yourself than seeing stable boys who enjoy cleaning up horse dung."
"Ugh, don't remind me of those morons," Heka said as she got up and dusted off her trousers, "They are either mental or Walden whips them so much they start to enjoy that horrid job."
She started walking away and he jogged to catch up, "Wait a second Heka, aren't you going to ask why I'm here?"
"Probably for something stupid no doubt."
"Now hold on, hold on," Gayle said, while he gently grabbed her arm to make her stop, "Contrary to what you think I am here on official business, master has a job for you."
"I didn't think the Bluestone Guild would ever need extra manpower," Heka scoffed, "What happened, a drake took out your main force is that it?"
Gayle wordlessly took out a piece of parchment and handed it to her. She took it with a sigh before scanning it over; it was a request for a guide.
"These two siblings just came into town, looks like from noble background, you know the drill. Fresh new recruits for the mouth, they probably think themselves invincible, that they can breach the depths, bring glory to their homeland, etc, the usual," Gayle said.
Heka was still reading it over. The request concerned two siblings as Gayle had said, from the faraway kingdom of Graemoore. It seemed like they were the children of one Duke Zurwyne, Akira and Airo. The request had been submitted to Bluestone, which was an upstanding guild, known especially for their honor.
"You can't seriously think I'd actually want to do this, can you Gayle?" Heka said, shoving the parchment back into his hands, "You think I have nothing better to do then babysit a couple of greenhorns that will talk about nothing but the mouth? I might need the money but I'd rather eat scraps for another week than guide these two."
"Master thought you might say that, but don't worry, he knows you better than you think. He didn't ask for you just to annoy you, there might be an incentive here."
Heka raised an eyebrow, "Spill it, what do you mean? And why is it so important to him that I take this job?", what incentive could there be for her to give a tour to some naive kids?
"Well let's just say that their mother is a rune maester," Gayle said, "And that they have heard about your 'problem' and are willing to help. She is the foremost maester in all of Graemoore and the two have promised to help you rid yourself of that knotty curse if you help them out, master recommended you after all. As for why he recommended you, I cannot say, master is as hard to read as they come."
Break her curse? Oh please, she had tried for years and nothing had worked. No matter what Heka did she could never leave this godforsaken rock without experiencing excruciating pain. The farthest she had ever gotten was amongst the waves that crashed into the western shore during high tide. In a fit of desperation she had waded out into the water, yet the pain that had come with it had been unbearable. If not for a passing fisherman, she would have drowned.
Heka guessed if she were to push herself far away enough one day, she would simply die. The farther she got from the center of the island, the worse it got. It was a cruel fate to be fettered to a place she loathed.
Patala might have seemed like a paradise of power and virtue to some, but Heka had grown tired of the dread underneath. However, she hadn't given up on leaving just yet, and maybe this was the opportunity she had been waiting for? Heka would have to stomach showing nobles around the mouth but she could live with that. What she couldn't live with was being a caged bird the rest of her life, and this might be a way out.
"Ow!" Gayle yelped as Heka punched him in the shoulder, "What was that for?!"
"That's for telling those kids about my curse," Heka said with a grin, "But also thanks, I appreciate it nonetheless. Even if you did tell total strangers my personal business, I'll forgive it this one time. Buy me a hot meal and we're even."
Gayle shook his head and sighed, "You never change do you?"
Heka only winked at him before dragging him to her favorite inn for food.