The Lead Crown: Ch 1a, Flintlocked and Loaded (pt 2)
Tranquil Waters: The Lead Crown Ch 1-2, Flintlocked and Loaded
The young dragon followed the prong horn scholar for several blocks in silence, carrying Mr. Severna's rather ample sack of supplies. Kesst spent the time trying to figure out what he was going to say if Tobias asked the wrong sorts of questions but, at the same time, he was trying to understand more about the very proper antelope. In the end, he decided to hazard a fresh question.
"Mr Sev--" but he was cut off.
"Tobias." the prong horn stated, "My name is Tobias-- I don't stand on formality." It seemed a strange comment coming from the well-dressed scholar walking with one of the kinds of canes usually reserved for nobility or the upper class.
"Um..." the dragon's ear sails flickered beneath his cowl in uncertainty, "I'm K--"
"Kesst... yes," the antelope stopped and turned to regard him, leaning against his cane casually, "You already said that, lad."
"Oh..." the young traveler nodded, "Uh.. right. Okay. I was--"
Tobias stopped leaning and pushed his his walking stick out, giving the dragon a light rap on the side of a thigh, "Fix your posture, Kesst... stop cowering." The dragon immediately moved his leg and stood a little taller. The cane came up and pushed gently against his chest, "Stand up straight."
Kesst did so, but only enough to appease the prong horn-- he didn't want his wings to show through his cloak. "Not much for formality?" the words were out the dragon's muzzle before he could stop them, and froze, aghast that he had talked back to his 'benefactor'. He remained stunned when the prong horn responded by laughing.
"This isn't for my benefit, Kesst... it's for yours." and the scholar motioned back to to the road with his cane, "Come... we should talk, lest you explode from your unasked questions."
The prong horn's demeanor seemed oddly in conflict with his words; he seemed both completely casual and entirely professional at the same time. The first of the dragon's questions came easily, "Why do you need all of this?" he motioned with his head toward the large sack of goods he toted around for the antelope.
"I need it for my studies." Tobias responded. Kesst opened his maw to ask a follow up question, but the prong horn beat him to it, "It is both rude and presumptuous to ask a university scholar about his work..." the prong horn glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, "...unless you plan to fund it."
The dragon felt a flush of embarrassment flow through him, followed by a twinge of indignation; the scholar knew that he had money-- was he only being friendly to get his hands on it? No, Kesst realized, there were many easier ways to separate him from his coin, and Tobias had already had the pouch in his grasp and hadn't made any move to take anything. The dragon let out a deep breath to steady himself. "Are you alright, lad?" the scholar asked.
"Fine." he nodded with a half-shrug, "Just... thinking."
"It was an attempt at humor, Kesst." Tobias stated, "In bad taste, apparently. I apologize."
"Okay-- I mean-- no, I wasn't-- I mean..." Kesst fidgeted; between the traveling monk that saw him safely into town and the university scholar who had inconveniently stumbled upon him being mugged, the dragon hadn't spent so much time talking in a long time, "ugh." he breathed out in exasperation.
"Come, Kesst... there's plenty of time to work on your interpersonal skills." the prong horn motioned down a side street, "But, for now I am in need of fish."
Thankful for the reprieve from his own tongue-tied awkwardness, Kesst nodded, and followed after Tobias. He took in a deep breath of the afternoon air, finally able to smell the strong salty scent of a sea breeze. Mesmerized by the aroma and the cool wind, he calmed quickly, and his next question came out much more casually, "Why fish? Doesn't it spoil quickly?
"Not if you treat it." the scholar countered, "I would like to get several bundles of various fish... some for pickling, some for smoking, some for salting... and perhaps a few tins." he spoke the catalog more in a musing tone than a linear list.
"You must like fish." Kesst noted.
Tobias chuckled, "No more than the next man, but it is actually not for me. Fish is well received by the people of the Tribe Lands, and the importance of having enough items to gift and barter cannot be underestimated."
"You work in the Tribe Lands?" the young dragon asked, suddenly understanding more about why the antelope seemed casually formal... or formally casual-- he hadn't decided which yet.
"Let us simply say my studies are both diverse and varied." the prong horn replied, surprising Kesst by resting a hand on his shoulder; the dragon went stiff immediately at the personal contact, fearful that the scholar may have felt his wing.
Tobias immediately removed his hand, "I--" but whatever the antelope was about to say was quickly silenced by the sound of angry shouts coming from the street ahead. "Now what's all this?" the scholar inquired, increasing his pace to move to where a crowd was gathering.
Kesst slowed; it seemed unlikely that Tobias had registered his wing beneath the cloak or else his reaction would have been far more pronounced... but did the dragon want to take that chance, or would escaping while the antelope was distracted be smarter? He realized that the streets Newport was dangerous in their own right, and at least the scholar was someone who knew how to navigate them. Letting out a breath, Kesst ran to catch up, though quickly lost sight of the antelope.
The crowd, as it turned out, was a combination of sailors, dock workers, warehouse staff, and passers-by who had gathered to watch an escalating confrontation between two sets of men. Kesst remained near the back of the crowd, craning his head just enough to see that the gathered men, almost forty in total, met in the middle of the docks; the focal point of the meeting were two men staring one another down.
The taller of the two men, an albatross or a gull of some kind, was dressed in a red and blue uniform, and was backed by a number of other similarly dressed sailors. The other man, a short, slightly portly, fez-wearing pelican was dressed in purplish-pink finery... a robe of some sort with patterns of silver thread sewn into it. Behind him were a collection of other robe-wearers, many of which also adorned with fine-looking hats. The argument between the two birds was escalating.
"Hey." the tone was both distinctive and attention-grabbing, but not hostile; he had heard the voice earlier in the day. Turning quickly, Kesst looked just in time to see the stalwart human sailor that had pulled him free from the trampling crowd on the boardwalk. Kesst recognized the man... Nicholas. "Well aren't you a storm crow?" the man mused.
"No..." Kesst paused, "I'm a dragon."
"It's an expression." the sailor laughed, but did so quickly, and grabbed hold of the dragon's wrist, "It means you bring trouble wherever you go..." and he began pulling him away from the crowd and toward a side street, "Time to move... things are liable to get nasty." He nudged the dragon onward.
"But-- I'm with... someone." Kesst objected.
"I know... the scholar." Nicholas confirmed. The dragon looked in the direction they were going and saw Tobias Severna standing in an alley, waiving them over.
"I found your kid." the human sailor noted, "...second time today, in fact." he glanced toward Kest with a good-humored smirk, "Following me, are you, boy?"
"uh... no." the dragon shook his head.
"Be calm, Kesst." Tobias commented, "Sailors spend enough time on the docks that you're bound to run into them enough times... and dragons aren't exactly a common feature on the boardwalk." the prong horn shot the sailor a glance, "I assume your intentions are innocent, Mister...?"
"Poole." the sailor replied flatly, spitting on the side of the building next to him, "And this is MY part of town, so I should be asking you the same thing." the human crossed his arms gruffly and Kesst could tell right away that his good nature apparently didn't extend to the antelope, "What's a university drone doing down at the docks? Don't you have lackeys to run your errands for you?" the human glanced in Kesst's direction, and the dragon suddenly remembered he was still carrying Tobias' purchases.
"I can't see how I choose to spend my time with my associate is any of your business, Mr. Poole." the prong horn replied curtly.
"Associate?" Kesst heard his voice drowned out by the sailor speaking the same thing. The dragon and human exchanged glances. Kesst continued speaking, "Why don't you like the university?" he asked Nicholas.
"Most of them are crackpot meddlers and a menace." the sailor's eyes returned to the prong horn, "They're usually so busy experimenting on things and trying out new doo-dads that they're a danger to anyone that shares their space."
"I assure you, Mr. Poole, that I neither a meddler nor a menace. I have no interest of any kind in doo-dads, what-cha-ma-gigs, or even thing-a-ma-bobs." the antelope offered calmly, "Though I must admit, I may be a bit of a crackpot but, then again, one would have to be if one were to join the University." Tobias smiled disarmingly and, to Kesst's surprise, it actually worked; the sailor seemed placated.
A loud shout, followed by the sound of a boom put an end to their discussion however and the antelope ducked, pulling Kesst down with him. "What in the--?!" the dragon gasped.
"Bloody perfect." Nicholas murmured. The dragon thought it strange that the curse seemed more suited for a noble than a sailor, but he didn't have time to dwell on it.
"What's going on?" Kesst asked.
"Remember how I said things were about to get nasty?" the human reminded him, "Well... that was 'nasty' showing up." Nicholas pulled out a small wooden rod with a hook on the end, "You'll want to move on-- with Wyranese and Ilysean sailors on the same walkway the docks are more dangerous than usual." Moments later, someone amidst the press of uniformed and robed bodies drew a sword. Another boom sounded, and Kesst ducked back down when a window nearby shattered.
"Blasted Wyranese..." Nicholas spat, "Trust the navy to bring flintlocks to an honest brawl..." the sailor straightened up, "You two, get moving... I have to go help even up the numbers." and the human took a step toward the growing chaos of the massive melee until Tobias reached out and grabbed the sailor by the tunic.
"Mr. Poole... I would advise against that." the scholar suggested, motioning with his head to the side where a large line of Newport City Guard were rapidly approaching. "We both know how the guard deal with sailors."
"I'm not worried about a few guards." the human responded, "Those Wyranese bullies have a little gaff coming." he gave the hooked bar a shake.
"They have swords and pistols." Kesst offered, and made a calculated call with his next words, "Oi-- watch yer gaff."
Nicholas froze at the words, as did Tobias. The antelope covered the end of his muzzle and convulsed with a few polite chuckles, while the human burst out into a full fledged knee-slapping laugh, finishing it up with a hearty hock-ptooi of a mouthful of phlegm. "You are one weird dragon, kid..." he glanced back at the combat on the pier and sighed, "But you're right..." and he stowed the pole.
"Indeed." Tobias confirmed, wincing as another gunshot rang out across the dock, followed immediately thereafter by a scream of pain, "We really should be moving on."
"This way." Nicholas indicated, taking the lead as he moved around the periphery of the gathered crowd. Kesst found it amazing that so many people were staying to watch the goings on despite the obvious danger involved. He was so focused on the flow of the gathering to his right that he completely missed the guards that approached them from the front.
"Hold." the guard at the front of the column spoke, reaching out an arm to block their passage; Kesst ran into Nicholas from behind. The dragon felt his heartbeat increase and he fought to keep his breathing as casual as possible-- he was failing.
"What seems to be the problem, officer?" Tobias inquired calmly.
The guard, a tall, lanky boxer glanced to each of them in turn. Kesst quickly avoided meeting his gaze; it was the wrong thing to do. "You there... dragon..."
"Yes, sir?" Kesst inquired, keeping his head down.
"Come here." the dog ordered.
"My assistant, Officer." the prong horn announced, "I am with the University of Pro--"
"I know where you're from." the guard stated, "and I'm talking to your 'assistant', not you." his words were calm and neutral, but spoken in a tone that suggested arguments would not be well received.
Kesst took a few steps forward and looked up toward the dog's face, but didn't meet his gaze. He was glad that his cloak helped hide his trembling; he had never much cared for guards men... most of them were little more than church pawns.
"What do you have in the bag?" the boxer questioned.
"A variety of goods," Tobias spoke up, "all necessary for my--"
"I'm talking to your assistant." the dog stated aside to the prong horn, "For a learned man you are slow to catch on."
"My apologies." the antelope responded and took a step back, resting a hand on Kesst's shoulder for comfort; for the dragon, it did the exact opposite, but he attempted to keep his cool nevertheless.
"What's in the bag?' the guard repeated his earlier question.
"Everything Mr. Severna purchased today." Kesst responded, "I'm his assistant."
The dog glanced between the dragon and the prong horn, "So I've heard." and his eyes returned to Kesst, staring him down.
"Sir--" one of the other guards spoke up, "The docks..."
The boxer's eyes lingered for a moment longer before migrating to the other guard, "Right... men... move." and the group of armed men moved past them; Kesst held his breath until their road was clear.
"You in trouble, kid?" Nicholas asked in a quiet tone as the party continued onward away from the growing fight behind them.
"What? I... uh... no." the dragon fidgeted, "I haven't done anything wrong." he added quickly, pausing as the sailor kept looking at him, "What?"
"Nobody is that worried about guards unless they're in trouble." the sailor responded, then interrupted Kesst's next excuse, "Relax... everybody has something to hide and it's not my place to dig up old bones... first thing you learn on a ship is that whoever someone was before setting foot on board the deck doesn't matter as long as they're able to watch your back." the human glanced his way, "Fair?" he extended a hand to the young dragon.
Kesst looked at the humans' offered hand and accepted it, "Yea... sure... I guess."