The Dark Half of the Sun (The Young Ancients: Timon) (18 page)

"I don't know if you can sell them here or not, but if so..." He shrugged and found her bowing again, this time going much lower.

It was a little embarrassing, so he bowed back quickly and moved back over the building, hoping that they'd be allowed to leave the place quickly. That wasn't going to happen he soon realized, since Petra was having too much fun chatting with Kincaid about clothing. They were both smiling and tying up part of the dining room as people started to come for the next meal. Quavel was smiling, but it was starting to look strained, since he couldn't just tell a Conserina to get out, and possibly not Kincaid either.

"We should leave so that they can get the next meal set up. This is a business after all." Timon said it to Petra directly, interrupting, but knowing that it was only
rude
for him to do it, but not unforgivably so like it would be for a merchant in his shop. "Kincaid... Why don't we make arrangements for you two to meet later and talk? If that's a good idea? I'm not sure about the rules for that kind of thing here."

She moved in and put a hand on his back warmly.

"That sounds wonderful. I can have someone call and arrange that. Let's see... Oh, do you have a compact Conserina Ward?"

Denno held out his own and smiled, the line of people that had been visiting with him had left and he was just waiting on Petra and her new friend.

"They can contact her through me, until we get her one to use while she's here. She'll be staying at my place, as an emissary from Noram, for a while."

Petra beamed and seemed happy about the idea, and looked sidelong at Timon.

"
Miss
Rue is attempting to learn about our land for a part in a... play. It's about Princess Karina and Ali and how they saved Austra from the evil that had plagued it. How anyone here knows about all that I don't know, but she's to be Karina. I was telling her that she should go and visit, to see what it's like."

Which would mean Timon taking her. Probably for free. The whole thing with Austra was going to be a bit of a bust it seemed, costing him a lot more gold than he could ever make back. It was good for the peace effort, if nothing else. Still, he was going to have to be a lot more clever if he didn't want to lose everything, working with the other lands.

"Of course. I've promised to bring in a load of fresh produce and other foods in seven days. Would that be a good time for you to leave? You could spend a week. I... don't know where we can put you for certain. I can definitely get you a room at an inn. My guess is that Alyssa will host you however, but her home isn't mine to offer for certain. I don't have a house yet, but I may by then. You can, of course, stay with me if that's the case." He didn't know for certain, but it felt like he was ending up with more work every time he opened his mouth. That wasn't a bad thing, but he wasn't anywhere near being able to afford school yet, not even for the next year. He'd made twenty-three gold in a day and already committed to spending nearly thirty in the next week. Or more.

The woman next to him stiffened a little, but her face was happy. He almost didn't get it at first, until she mentioned her problems.

"I'd love too, but would it be alright for me to bring a few people with me? If I can get a camera crew as well... How much will your services cost? I can get the studio to cover that, I'm sure. They'll probably want to shoot in Noram if it's allowed. If we could do that... I need to make some calls I think!" She laughed, hugging Timon hard. "I can't promise a part for anyone, but this could be a very good thing. Thanks."

She moved off and started walking toward the door absently, black box to her ear suddenly, talking into it. A moment later she ran back and touched her compact to Denno's who held his out. Then they all moved outside, Quavel escorting them out so that no one would press against them, the line outside being far longer than it had been earlier.

There was even a bunch of people standing around taking pictures of his craft, three rows thick. A lot of them taking pictures of it. Kincaid was left standing at the door, talking on her communications device, distracted it seemed. She finally looked up and waved to him, then looked around, her face baffled. She didn't seem happy for some reason, which Timon feared was a sign that she wasn't to be allowed to go to Noram, which was fair enough. They'd been at war in the last year and if she was as loved in this place as Ken had said, they may not want to risk her in a land of potentially hostile strangers. Moving back toward her, he got ready to comfort the woman and give assurance that he took no offense.

That wasn't the problem at all however. She was just expecting a ride and it hadn't shown up yet.

"New driver. I should get my own, not just the one the studio provides, but I don't live here full time. Over in Wallace you know. This is where the work is, so I have to be willing to make do. I can't get in touch with the man, which is strange. I hope he's alright..." The words were kind enough, on the surface, leaving only a trace of annoyance underneath.

That made sense, because the rain had started again, pelting them lightly. It didn't feel cold to him, but Kincaid started to move back under the awning, even though that meant standing very near the long and growing line of people, some of whom were busily staring at them. The girl looked a little strange, it was true, not wearing clothing that truly looked right for the crowd, but Timon didn't have brightly colored hair or face tattoos, which was at least as big of a deal. No one seemed hostile about it, just curious. As a people, the Austrans seemed to be that way, didn't they?

In his homeland people would have looked at the strangers, but not as openly. In Two Bends they probably would have avoided a woman with piercings on her face for instance, and the bright hair of some of the others would have been interesting, but not stared at half as hard as they were looking at him.

"Well, we can't leave you here. I'll take you home. To your home I mean. Or to your inn, you said you didn't live here full time?" He didn't want to look stupid, but the honest truth was he didn't really know how that worked here. He needed to learn, if he was going to bring in tours of people, which was the plan.

Kincaid blinked and finally nodded at him, "thanks. That would be good I think. He should have been here. He might have had a break down or gotten lost. I put word in with my people, but I can call and let them know I won't need a ride. My hotel isn't that far from here. The Bairds? Which... means nothing to you does it?" Shaking her head she started toward the craft, to find that Petra and Dorgal were both standing outside it, looking fierce, dressed in combat leathers. They also both had force lances in their hands, even though most of the crowd didn't seem to get the idea that the little bits of metal might be dangerous.

The Conserina nodded at them.

"Best we leave I think. No one's offered violence, but three different people have tried to climb in with us. I didn't know what their intentions were, so I asked them to leave. I hope that isn't too rude?"

A man in the crowd, who was dressed in a black outfit that was one piece and who held a large recording box with both hands, snorted.

"Nah. It's your private property. Asking them to get out is fair. If they refuse you can remove them with force, same as anyone else. That's the law." The man turned to address Tim directly. "This lady just asked them to consider not being in the vehicle with them until they were 'better known'. The most polite way I ever heard a person telling someone to bugger off." The crowd laughed at the words a bit, and then had to move as Denno's black wheeled vehicle rolled over, displacing most of the crowd, which headed toward the restaurant, rather than standing to watch them talk about where to go next.

"Is there a problem?" The words held concern and came from Denno, from the back window, his head poking out just a little.

Timon nodded, "I need to get Kincaid back to her inn. A place called 'The Bairds'. Her driver didn't show up for some reason. It's suspicious, and I won't leave her standing out here alone."

Petra nodded and Dorgal actually started scanning the remaining people, looking for threats. It was a little strange, at first, except that a wealthy merchant might need to know what to look for in case of attack.

The Ancient shrugged, which changed the position of his head in the window a little, "we can do that. Follow us."

It took a second to load up and reconfigure the vehicle, adding seats in the back and making the whole thing smaller, the picture on the wall ending up right beside the door. Timon started following carefully, making certain no one jumped in the way again. They drove for several minutes to the inn, which was a large building that was a bit plain on the outside, decorated with a bright awning and a few trees and shrubs in planters near the front. There was a covered area for letting people in and out of their vehicles, which was a great idea. Even the palace didn't have that, or Tor's. A man dressed in red and black, who appeared to be some kind of city guard came out and tried to open the door. Nothing happened since there was no handle like the cars had, so Timon touched the front shelf and focused, causing the door to pop open.

"The doorman will see me in safely. Thanks all. I'll be in touch as soon as possible Petra. Nice meeting you Mr. Sorvee. Timon... can I tell the studio that we have your support on this?"

He nearly just said yes, thinking he understood what that meant, after all, even if it cost him a bit of personal hardship, he could transport people easily enough. Still, something about how she said it was off.

"What do you mean?" Maybe she wanted him to do... something. He didn't know, so he asked, which was the only sensible thing he could do, right?

Kincaid smiled at him and waved, pretending to be listening to someone on the box she suddenly held to her ear. Nodding she turned and walked off, leaving him to feel uneasy. No one else had simply walked away like that here. It was a sign. Probably that the woman had some kind of intrigue planned that involved him. At the door she turned and waved to them, the decently muscular man in the city guard uniform, who apparently protected the door as his area of responsibility, turned to stand outside of it to the side, most likely to bar their way if they tried to follow and demand answers as to what their business was. Like a gate guard, after a fashion.

It wasn't a big deal, as long as Kincaid didn't think that she could trap him that way. He didn't speak for Noram after all and if what she wanted, his "support", was that kind of a thing, she'd just have to be disappointed and hate him for it. There was no way he was going to do anything that the King didn't want, not if he could help it.

The trip back to Denno's went well enough and they were all in bed by one-thirty, which was late for him. It would mean a pretty long day, but at least he didn't have to wake up a moody Countess, which was a treat. The bed was fine enough, being a little too cushioned for comfort, the blankets were soft and though the whole thing had a light tan look to it, he was able to sleep pretty well.

In the morning he noticed that there was a glass front sheet on the wall across from him, with a small blue square in the lower right hand corner. When he touched it the thing sprang to life, showing pictures that moved. It was like looking at the event through a window. There were voices too, which reminded him of listening to a communications device back home.

It didn't take much to realize that the people holding boxes toward them the night before had been doing something like this, even if the scene in front of him was of a small blonde woman wearing skin tight clothing, who was dancing, and apparently trying to get him to do the same. He didn't think she could see him, which meant that she was speaking to anyone watching her, not him personally. Just because it might be a thing in Austra, he tried to follow along until the show ended, some twenty minutes later.

As exercise it wasn't that hard, but he certainly did feel awake by the end of it.

Then there was more music and a pair of people appeared, walking in the lot where he'd parked the night before.

"Welcome to Morning in the City, with your hosts Kolas Moyes and Mitch Richmonde." This was said by a deep voice that sounded manly, but wasn't one of the people standing there. At least their mouths didn't move.

"Last night patrons were treated to an unusual feast here at a local hotspot, the Noram themed eatery called "The Royal Table". Witnesses reported not only seeing Kincaid Rue, but Denorian Brown, as well as several Noram nobles. When asked about the events no one at the establishment would speak on the matter, except to say that they were presenting a new menu with greatly improved gourmet offerings. Sources inside the kitchen informed us that one of the visitors gave the chef nearly twenty thousand credits worth of fresh produce and that this is to become part of the normal fare." The man talking looked at the man speaking looked at the woman and smiled.

"You'll be happy to know that I managed to wrangle an invitation to breakfast. Let's go inside!"

Timon watched, feeling slightly amused as Carlos and Quavel, who turned out to be named Robert in his real life, managed to speak about their "patron" without ever giving away who it was exactly that was delivering the goods for them. That didn't really fool anyone, since his arrival the day before with a load of fruit and vegetables had been seen as well. Still, it was polite of them to have tried, he figured.

After getting a shower and dressing in his work clothing he tried to turn the glass off, which made the images change instead. It took a while to get through them all. There were a few images of his craft even, though not many, over all. He got bored counting at four hundred and fifteen, the different scenes repeating some time after that, he thought.