Chapter 2 – Surprised
Raistlin was in Palanthas. He didn't go into the city too often, he usually sent Minos when he needed something. His apprentice was more than happy to do this for him, and Raistlin had a feeling he preferred the light and warmth of the city compared to the dark tower.
Winter was slowly nearing, and Raistlin had gone to the city for no particular reason. He'd grown restless the last couple of days since Minos told him about the wizard he'd encountered in the city.
The market was open and Raistlin wandering aimlessly around. Sometimes he stopped to look at herbs, bowls and similar things of interest, but he didn't buy anything. His mind was anywhere but there with him.
He didn't really reflect upon it, but people discreetly moved out of his way and kept as far away from him as they could. Raistlin was used to it. To the people of Palanthas he was only known as 'The Dark Master'. That was all they needed (and wanted) to know.
He came to the end of the marketplace and stopped briefly. He stood there for a second, not sure what to do next. This wasn't very much like him, but seeing as his journey into the city had no apparent goal, he just stood there.
He looked around for a second and pulled his cloak around his frail body. The shopkeepers nearby and their costumers sometimes shot glances at him, and Raistlin was amused by this. He let his eyes wander for a bit, when he noticed a person clad in a familiar robe over by a little stall on the marketplace.
It was a wizard of the order he belonged to, the black robes. Raistlin was sure this wizard wasn't Minos because firstly, this person had a smaller frame than his apprentice. And secondly, Minos always told Raistlin if he was going into the city.
The wizard was obviously buying something from the stall and the shopkeeper looked more than a little nervous as he handed the goods over. The wizard turned around and noticed him standing there.
This was definitely the wizard Minos had told him about. It was a woman. And not just that, it was a she-elf. Raistlin leaned on his Magius staff and looked at the elf as she neared him slowly.
Her face was beautifully pale and her eyes were without colour, grey as stone and long black hair was flowing out from her hood. She was a dark elf.
Raistlin had only encountered one of these elves once before, his former apprentice Dalamar. He knew all too well what these elves must feel like – cast away by their people in disapproval of their magical powers, cast away by society because commoners were too scared to have dealings with them in fright of upsetting the elves.
The she-elf stopped in front of him. Raistlin stared into her eyes, and strangely – she held his gaze. This amused him, and his faint smile was there flickering again.
"Shalafi," she said and bowed the way lower rank wizards of Krynn do when they meet a higher ranked member of the order. As for the word 'Shalafi', Raistlin knew this word all too well. It was what Dalamar always referred to him as. It was the elven word for 'master'.
Raistlin could tell by her accent that she was from Silvanesti. Peculiar, he thought. Dalamar was from Silvanesti, too.
He greeted her in the language of the elves, and a flicker of surprised rushed over her face for a second.
"You speak the tongue of the elves well, Shalafi," she said, quickly recovering her cold exterior. Raistlin smiled his faint smile at her response.
"And you refer to me as your master, I was being as polite as you were," he replied. "What brings you to Palanthas, dark-elf?"
Her reaction was unexpected. She closed her eyes and her body shivered slightly and when she opened her eyes again, it seemed they were darker.
"I came here to find you," she said. "I believe you knew my brother, Dalamar." Her eyes sparkled with unexpected hostility. Raistlin nodded and bowed slightly.
"He was my apprentice for a year or so," he said. "So Dalamar had a sister, I never knew. You seem to know me, who might you be?"
"I go by the name of Farahel" She bowed slightly at him again.
"Farahel," Raistlin repeated and stared into her eyes. They were deep as bottomless ponds. He saw beauty, age, wisdom, but also pain and loneliness. As if she knew what he was thinking, she looked away.
"Shalafi," she started but Raistlin raised his hand to stop her. She still had her eyes lowered as Raistlin spoke to her.
"I don't possibly see what I can help you with, dark-elf. My apprentice came and told me you'd asked about me. I don't know what you want and my best guess is that you're looking for information on your brother, but I can't give you any because I don't know where he is."
Farahel looked up at him, and Raistlin was surprised to see the sadness in her eyes.
"I don't want information about my brother," she said. "I want to be your apprentice, as he was."