2. Chapter Two

With my hideous coat under one arm, I turned about on my heel and picked the nearest passage and started to walk hastily towards it. I would say that it was the East, or the West or the like, but to be honest, I had long since lost track of which direction was what. And I’m not one of those people with an innate sense of direction. I kind of expected him to grab my arm, or protest. But he didn’t and I stormed off.

Just before I turned around a corner, I looked over my shoulder to his smug face. I scowled and changed my stride to a loud stomp. Soon leaving him out of sight, but not out of mind.

What the hell was going on? I had, of course, heard of Doraster. Who in Seahaven hadn’t? His name was littered through our history books more than almost any other Aartiran for his time period. One of the greatest mages of all time. The one who had discovered the ability to raise his foot on one part of Seahaven and put it down on another. Cross great distances in the blink of an eye. And if the stories are true, made an unholy alliance with the Queen of the Dead in order to receive this knowledge.

Some years later, one of Doraster’s less loyal mistresses (her name was never recorded in the texts) divulged the information to Baron Nero Augustus, a young Seahaven noble eager to move up the ranks. Doraster was put to trial and ordered to either share the secret of wind-walking or be cast out of Seahaven. He choose the latter, never to be seen again.

And it is said that the shop I work– had worked in, had been once his. It was difficult to get the vision of the place crumbling like it was little more than cardboard, out of my head. But despite this, I admit it always used to give me a nice warm fuzzy feeling to think that perhaps, someone who manipulated pure Kha, one of The Greats had once walked the same floor as me. Touched the same shelves, and maybe even dusted the same books.

But the idea that Viscount Doraster was in some way related to me? Ridiculous. Idiocy. He obviously doesn’t know me at all or he would never of suggested such a thing. I once had two wonderful parents who tragically died shortly after I saw my tenth Spring. Neither of which had the surname Doraster. I lived with my Aunt from then on, who cared for me like.. well, for the most part it seemed like I did not exist to her, nor her to me. We rarely crossed paths and I was largely left to my own devices.

I continued walking, lost my thoughts. My feet sloshing through the wet sewer floor when I heard him shout from a distance:

“Keep going that way and you will come across three very large, demon rats. Fangs as big as your hands. Some say they can swallow a person whole. Can’t say I’ve ever seen the like happen, but perhaps I’ll find out tonight.”