FINAL FANTASY XI
CHAPTER III
Mishap
Magus proceeded as guided into the city, the youthful Elvaan companion that had befallen him a decent living shield from the weary and unpleasant glances of the San D'orian guards. Rydia was stretched out before him, and while not soaring into the sky like a marvel of modern architecture that Hume cities were, it was out as far as he could see on the horizontal. With a touch of rural, the flags of the city waved high and ominously to the mage of opposite origin; a symbol of how far he was from home even not far in the Saruta Baruta borders.
It almost seemed as if the red carpet was rolling out for them, everything was a meager bit to formal for Magus. Even amidst such, he took note that Aadia was seemingly unscathed by the behavior of those about her. She truly was raised of the Elvaan race, born and bred somewhere in this country. At least he would get to the Myst district as he had been, Torukoishi didn't seemed concerned with more than him just doing his job; his studies had been placed on hold all for what? The simple delivery of a package of little intended urgency was all he was asked to do.
"Hey, watch out where you're going!" Aadia remarked sharply, bringing Magus out of the fade of mentality induced by searching for his purpose this far in the rival country. Already it was apparent to the mage by his closeness to her, he had ran too far and collided with the Elvaan warrior, sending her a bit off balance. Magus could only smile weakly, shrugging in hopes of some sort of compensation for his mistake with a path of shear innocence.
"Sorry... Hey, where is the Myst district anyway?" Magus tried to change the subject, but there was a faint trace of glaring in the eyes of his comrade while she turned and pointed to a sign as if it meant anything to him. It would have been fine, had not the books been in Elvaan text only. It was somewhat of a quirk; that each race spoke the same language without a trace of ethnicity, however each race had it's own form of writing. The arabic symbols eluded any meaning to the Hume.
"It says Myst District, what are you illiterate?" Aadia would tap her feet; Magus wished he could be in that mind with her and discover her motives. Unfortunately such was not the case, so Magus would peer into the surrounding buildings, looking for any sign of a shop or facility that might house a Blue Mage, as he was told to look for such. There was such building, with glass windows that allowed him to see the vials and herbs lined along the shelves on sale to keep the rent paid obviously, all similar to what his master Torukoishi had possessed.
Aadia tried the door as Magus admired the selection, however it was locked. Magus could discern pairs of numbers from the door, and from what he could tell the shop didn't open for another two hours. Already it was undecided if he could find his way back, and he turned to see Aadia still turning the doorknob even if it was inaccessible. Impatience, maybe frustration; perhaps Aadia knew she would be guiding the black mage of Gustaberg origin.
"What do you wanna' do 'til it opens?" Aadia made the first move in the quiet, and Magus was surprised she would even offer. It wasn't that he thought she flat out hated him, but that he was an unexpected hassle that she had simply run into by being at the wrong place at the wrong time, like the melody carved of a miss on a piano key. He pondered on where to next; perhaps there was a restaurant they could eat at. Conversation over a good meal would relax them both, and even if it was their last time together feasibly it was no problem to enjoy her company for a little longer even if she was resistant.
"Is there a good restaurant or bar nearby?" Magus couldn't immediately see anything, although all the buildings were marked in the cursive Elvaan text so it didn't matter anyway. Aadia looked up, almost confused; a short pause went by until she pointed to a building where they could even see the shopkeeper enter when they arrived. A cafe, Magus could understand that much by the cup and saucer logo on the building. He would smile and take a few steps, already feeling the presence of Aadia following. He held the door open behind him with one extended arm; already he was learning how to deal with her, at least in his own methods. It would not be proper for him to hold it out in the gentleman fashion, since they were only acquaintances.
She followed in, and the cafe itself was quite busy. Among the expected Elvaan patrons, there were two Mithra; the cat like people of the Ronfaure countryside that lived peacefully under the lead of the Federation of Windurst. There was also a set of Galka, their beast like pride shown true with their rough tidings. Laughing that could be heard throughout the cafe from the Galka, and the quiet conversations of Elvaan rung in Magus's ears. Even if it wasn't an enormous building, the sound carried well.
Before Magus could even think to suggest a place to seat, Aadia pushed out a chair for him from under the table with her foot, kicking it lightly. Magus took such offering, and sat down across from her at a small circular table built just for two occupants. Aadia would hold up a hand, two fingers extended in what Magus usually used as a victory sign, however a bell would ring twice and Magus would watch the slender hand descend. Perhaps she had ordered already without him?
As Magus waited to what he expected to be drinks to come eventually, he stared out the window, waiting like a cat for it's prey in search of the owner of that establishment he had been sent to seek out. There was a die- down of the roaring laughter, so he felt able to think clearly again, the ruckus having ceased. It didn't occur to him that it meant anything until an obelisk of a shadow towered over him and the table, of which Aadia stared into the direction from which it came.
"What is a Hume doing here?" The voice was coarse and deep; a bell of enlightenment signaled in his mind. The Galka had risen from their chairs to pay Magus a visit, and the unwelcome Black Mage could only turn to face them. Three of them, all apparent of a warrior class; each adorning a sheathed sword a their side and knight armor without an air of chivalry. Their fur was dark and all but the face carried markings, the one who spoke was most likely the one closest to Magus, he dawned a mask of his own pale silver fur. Atop all that was a scowl.
"Hey, I'm doing business here! What's it to you?" Magus hoped to sound the least bit intimidating, hoping for nothing but rough words and not any violence. He wasn't a pacifist, but a fight against three ogre- like men could not be that he would win. The Galka would scowl even more so at his words, leaning in at the comparatively tiny man.
"Galka slave trade?" The breath of the man-beast smelled of spiced meat; Magus shuddered. Being at the mercy of a carnivore of such proportion was not going to allow him to finish his errand, Torukoishi wouldn't be pleased if he died so in futility, and less so if the task was not completed. To make matters worse, the Galka had mistaken him for one of the Humes who dealt with Galka mining, under paying the working behemoths and raking in much profit. When rumor of such spread about, Magus had recalled the Galka called it "Slave Trade".
"No, nothing like that at all. " Magus could only shake his head; he wanted to turn back to Aadia for a little advice. She seemed like she could divulge some of her experience had he the leaning space, but if he took his eyes off the oppressive sight of three Galka... Magus decided he might as well write out a will on the bar table, leaving behind what little he had to whom few he could. There was always the hilt of mythril staff fashioned at his belt, able to be swung out to full size with pressure to a metal tab. If he could get to it he would have some sort of physical defense, and there was always his assortment of spells.
"I don't believe it! A Hume doesn't travel all this way just to go sight seeing. " The Galka would growl such harsh words and lean over to meet eye to eye with Magus, narrowing his passage of sight to seem even more intimidating. "Humes don't like traveling." At least he had a point; Magus didn't quite enjoy the strenuous trip out here. From the surprising encounter with Aadia that simply startled him, to this new conflict against the suspicious man beasts.
"Hey, please leave me alone! I'm not doing anything!" Magus knew it was futile, it was in that moment that he seized the opportunity. The Galka was so close to his face, he could kiss him, and that he did with the iron-hard side of the staff hilt, which he pulled free, and quickly from his belt's holster for it. The Galka stumbled back into his brethren, and Magus twirled the piece in his hands about holding the two metal tabs down. It would unfold like a telescope before clicking at the wielder's release, whom pointed it at his enemies with a forced look of rage on his face.
"You're really stupid, you know that?" Aadia remarked over a sip of coffee from one glass, a second in the opposite hand, obviously Magus's. She had taken in the entirety of events from her position in the chair, glancing over now and then to see if the shop across the street had opened. Nothing yet coming to view, she could only amuse her self over her drink and her acquaintance fighting for his life against the trio. It didn't settle well on her conscience, but he had to learn somehow or other to form a foreign policy.
Magus wasn't completely the ambassador; the other Elvaan didn't attempt to stop the fight either. Let foreigner problems be handled by foreigners, it's only polite. Magus recalled hearing a whisper of such under the breath of one of the patrons as he brought his staff up in a horizontal fashion to protect himself from an unsheathed blade. It was heavy; the Galka pushed much weight into it before pulling it downward in hopes of scraping some flesh from Magus. Magus simply jumped in the reverse, hoping not to ruin his complexion by picking up any scars. There was that tattoo streaked down his cheek from similar incident, but he was lucky that it had struck him in such a fashionable area. A plum tear that was sometimes overlooked even by Magus himself.
It was time to get serious, a palm extended protected by those black fingerless gloves. A scowl became his expression, one that deformed the shape of the plum tear on Magus's face. Thus was followed by a slam of his metal rod into the floor, and of course the intense concentration that tore through his harsh gaze. It was all just for show really, but they needed to be scared off just a bit. A spark would show up briefly on the lead Galka's hand, and he panicked, having note of what this was prelude to. As sudden as the spark had come, soon after came flame, and the man beast shook violently. It was perfect; the lead attacker would crash into one of his own allies, of which also caught on fire. The Galka's were covered in hair, which aided the process a bit.
Those two toppled over on to their still fallen third companion, and all three howled and whined as they managed to put out the flame. As the leader stood up, the other two inched towards the opposite end of the cafe, attempting to make an exit. The Galka snorted in contempt; perhaps the single move Magus had executed could have thrown the skirmish completely in his own favor. The turn and run fashion of each Galka made it obvious, as Magus sat down with somewhat of a collapsing thud in the chair opposite Aadia.
"That wasn't too bad, y'know." She actually smiled at him, perhaps there was still some merit left in his deeds. Her approval did help the confidence of Magus, already supplemented greatly by the small brawl that had randomly sought him out. It wasn't terrible fortune to find yourself in a fight you could win, so he thought to himself as he took the cup of coffee off the load of Aadia.
"Well, what can I say?"
"You could say you got really lucky."
"Is that it?"
"Yeah, that's it."
"Hey, I think the shop is opening."
"Then finish up."
***
CHAPTER III
Mishap
Magus proceeded as guided into the city, the youthful Elvaan companion that had befallen him a decent living shield from the weary and unpleasant glances of the San D'orian guards. Rydia was stretched out before him, and while not soaring into the sky like a marvel of modern architecture that Hume cities were, it was out as far as he could see on the horizontal. With a touch of rural, the flags of the city waved high and ominously to the mage of opposite origin; a symbol of how far he was from home even not far in the Saruta Baruta borders.
It almost seemed as if the red carpet was rolling out for them, everything was a meager bit to formal for Magus. Even amidst such, he took note that Aadia was seemingly unscathed by the behavior of those about her. She truly was raised of the Elvaan race, born and bred somewhere in this country. At least he would get to the Myst district as he had been, Torukoishi didn't seemed concerned with more than him just doing his job; his studies had been placed on hold all for what? The simple delivery of a package of little intended urgency was all he was asked to do.
"Hey, watch out where you're going!" Aadia remarked sharply, bringing Magus out of the fade of mentality induced by searching for his purpose this far in the rival country. Already it was apparent to the mage by his closeness to her, he had ran too far and collided with the Elvaan warrior, sending her a bit off balance. Magus could only smile weakly, shrugging in hopes of some sort of compensation for his mistake with a path of shear innocence.
"Sorry... Hey, where is the Myst district anyway?" Magus tried to change the subject, but there was a faint trace of glaring in the eyes of his comrade while she turned and pointed to a sign as if it meant anything to him. It would have been fine, had not the books been in Elvaan text only. It was somewhat of a quirk; that each race spoke the same language without a trace of ethnicity, however each race had it's own form of writing. The arabic symbols eluded any meaning to the Hume.
"It says Myst District, what are you illiterate?" Aadia would tap her feet; Magus wished he could be in that mind with her and discover her motives. Unfortunately such was not the case, so Magus would peer into the surrounding buildings, looking for any sign of a shop or facility that might house a Blue Mage, as he was told to look for such. There was such building, with glass windows that allowed him to see the vials and herbs lined along the shelves on sale to keep the rent paid obviously, all similar to what his master Torukoishi had possessed.
Aadia tried the door as Magus admired the selection, however it was locked. Magus could discern pairs of numbers from the door, and from what he could tell the shop didn't open for another two hours. Already it was undecided if he could find his way back, and he turned to see Aadia still turning the doorknob even if it was inaccessible. Impatience, maybe frustration; perhaps Aadia knew she would be guiding the black mage of Gustaberg origin.
"What do you wanna' do 'til it opens?" Aadia made the first move in the quiet, and Magus was surprised she would even offer. It wasn't that he thought she flat out hated him, but that he was an unexpected hassle that she had simply run into by being at the wrong place at the wrong time, like the melody carved of a miss on a piano key. He pondered on where to next; perhaps there was a restaurant they could eat at. Conversation over a good meal would relax them both, and even if it was their last time together feasibly it was no problem to enjoy her company for a little longer even if she was resistant.
"Is there a good restaurant or bar nearby?" Magus couldn't immediately see anything, although all the buildings were marked in the cursive Elvaan text so it didn't matter anyway. Aadia looked up, almost confused; a short pause went by until she pointed to a building where they could even see the shopkeeper enter when they arrived. A cafe, Magus could understand that much by the cup and saucer logo on the building. He would smile and take a few steps, already feeling the presence of Aadia following. He held the door open behind him with one extended arm; already he was learning how to deal with her, at least in his own methods. It would not be proper for him to hold it out in the gentleman fashion, since they were only acquaintances.
She followed in, and the cafe itself was quite busy. Among the expected Elvaan patrons, there were two Mithra; the cat like people of the Ronfaure countryside that lived peacefully under the lead of the Federation of Windurst. There was also a set of Galka, their beast like pride shown true with their rough tidings. Laughing that could be heard throughout the cafe from the Galka, and the quiet conversations of Elvaan rung in Magus's ears. Even if it wasn't an enormous building, the sound carried well.
Before Magus could even think to suggest a place to seat, Aadia pushed out a chair for him from under the table with her foot, kicking it lightly. Magus took such offering, and sat down across from her at a small circular table built just for two occupants. Aadia would hold up a hand, two fingers extended in what Magus usually used as a victory sign, however a bell would ring twice and Magus would watch the slender hand descend. Perhaps she had ordered already without him?
As Magus waited to what he expected to be drinks to come eventually, he stared out the window, waiting like a cat for it's prey in search of the owner of that establishment he had been sent to seek out. There was a die- down of the roaring laughter, so he felt able to think clearly again, the ruckus having ceased. It didn't occur to him that it meant anything until an obelisk of a shadow towered over him and the table, of which Aadia stared into the direction from which it came.
"What is a Hume doing here?" The voice was coarse and deep; a bell of enlightenment signaled in his mind. The Galka had risen from their chairs to pay Magus a visit, and the unwelcome Black Mage could only turn to face them. Three of them, all apparent of a warrior class; each adorning a sheathed sword a their side and knight armor without an air of chivalry. Their fur was dark and all but the face carried markings, the one who spoke was most likely the one closest to Magus, he dawned a mask of his own pale silver fur. Atop all that was a scowl.
"Hey, I'm doing business here! What's it to you?" Magus hoped to sound the least bit intimidating, hoping for nothing but rough words and not any violence. He wasn't a pacifist, but a fight against three ogre- like men could not be that he would win. The Galka would scowl even more so at his words, leaning in at the comparatively tiny man.
"Galka slave trade?" The breath of the man-beast smelled of spiced meat; Magus shuddered. Being at the mercy of a carnivore of such proportion was not going to allow him to finish his errand, Torukoishi wouldn't be pleased if he died so in futility, and less so if the task was not completed. To make matters worse, the Galka had mistaken him for one of the Humes who dealt with Galka mining, under paying the working behemoths and raking in much profit. When rumor of such spread about, Magus had recalled the Galka called it "Slave Trade".
"No, nothing like that at all. " Magus could only shake his head; he wanted to turn back to Aadia for a little advice. She seemed like she could divulge some of her experience had he the leaning space, but if he took his eyes off the oppressive sight of three Galka... Magus decided he might as well write out a will on the bar table, leaving behind what little he had to whom few he could. There was always the hilt of mythril staff fashioned at his belt, able to be swung out to full size with pressure to a metal tab. If he could get to it he would have some sort of physical defense, and there was always his assortment of spells.
"I don't believe it! A Hume doesn't travel all this way just to go sight seeing. " The Galka would growl such harsh words and lean over to meet eye to eye with Magus, narrowing his passage of sight to seem even more intimidating. "Humes don't like traveling." At least he had a point; Magus didn't quite enjoy the strenuous trip out here. From the surprising encounter with Aadia that simply startled him, to this new conflict against the suspicious man beasts.
"Hey, please leave me alone! I'm not doing anything!" Magus knew it was futile, it was in that moment that he seized the opportunity. The Galka was so close to his face, he could kiss him, and that he did with the iron-hard side of the staff hilt, which he pulled free, and quickly from his belt's holster for it. The Galka stumbled back into his brethren, and Magus twirled the piece in his hands about holding the two metal tabs down. It would unfold like a telescope before clicking at the wielder's release, whom pointed it at his enemies with a forced look of rage on his face.
"You're really stupid, you know that?" Aadia remarked over a sip of coffee from one glass, a second in the opposite hand, obviously Magus's. She had taken in the entirety of events from her position in the chair, glancing over now and then to see if the shop across the street had opened. Nothing yet coming to view, she could only amuse her self over her drink and her acquaintance fighting for his life against the trio. It didn't settle well on her conscience, but he had to learn somehow or other to form a foreign policy.
Magus wasn't completely the ambassador; the other Elvaan didn't attempt to stop the fight either. Let foreigner problems be handled by foreigners, it's only polite. Magus recalled hearing a whisper of such under the breath of one of the patrons as he brought his staff up in a horizontal fashion to protect himself from an unsheathed blade. It was heavy; the Galka pushed much weight into it before pulling it downward in hopes of scraping some flesh from Magus. Magus simply jumped in the reverse, hoping not to ruin his complexion by picking up any scars. There was that tattoo streaked down his cheek from similar incident, but he was lucky that it had struck him in such a fashionable area. A plum tear that was sometimes overlooked even by Magus himself.
It was time to get serious, a palm extended protected by those black fingerless gloves. A scowl became his expression, one that deformed the shape of the plum tear on Magus's face. Thus was followed by a slam of his metal rod into the floor, and of course the intense concentration that tore through his harsh gaze. It was all just for show really, but they needed to be scared off just a bit. A spark would show up briefly on the lead Galka's hand, and he panicked, having note of what this was prelude to. As sudden as the spark had come, soon after came flame, and the man beast shook violently. It was perfect; the lead attacker would crash into one of his own allies, of which also caught on fire. The Galka's were covered in hair, which aided the process a bit.
Those two toppled over on to their still fallen third companion, and all three howled and whined as they managed to put out the flame. As the leader stood up, the other two inched towards the opposite end of the cafe, attempting to make an exit. The Galka snorted in contempt; perhaps the single move Magus had executed could have thrown the skirmish completely in his own favor. The turn and run fashion of each Galka made it obvious, as Magus sat down with somewhat of a collapsing thud in the chair opposite Aadia.
"That wasn't too bad, y'know." She actually smiled at him, perhaps there was still some merit left in his deeds. Her approval did help the confidence of Magus, already supplemented greatly by the small brawl that had randomly sought him out. It wasn't terrible fortune to find yourself in a fight you could win, so he thought to himself as he took the cup of coffee off the load of Aadia.
"Well, what can I say?"
"You could say you got really lucky."
"Is that it?"
"Yeah, that's it."
"Hey, I think the shop is opening."
"Then finish up."
***