Chapter 6

The Public Bath

Aria scuttled out of the manhole and into a stone-floored changing room with wet floors and damp walls. She gripped her damp clothes around herself protectively and looked cautiously in all directions, but there was no one - the chamber didn't seem big enough to fit more than herself and her companions, anyway. Wraith stood at the far side of the small room, glancing around a corner - by the sounds emanating from the other side, most of the men were in the next room. By the steam that was coming through the doorway, she imagined the other room to be a kind of a sauna. Hmm cushy.

Aria glanced over at Whisper as he came bobbing out of the tunnel, and winced when she realized a floating ball of light might be somewhat conspicuous. It was already casting a startling glow around the shadowy walls. Hopefully the steam from the next room hid the strange light, but she didn't want to take any chances.

“Do you think you could hide yourself for a while?” she thought to the Wisp, then moved out of the way as Shadow climbed up besides her. Whisper spun for a moment, darting around the corners of the room, then abruptly his light dimmed and he zoomed under a clump of Shadow's rags.

“Not a problem,” he said, once he had completely disappeared. “But I'll be on the lookout. If anything happens to you, I'll be the first to know.”

She nodded, even though he couldn't see her, then turned to Wraith. A small gasp escaped her lips when she saw him. Rather than standing at the entrance to the room as he had been, he was now only a few feet away, and he was pulling his shirt off over his head. In seconds he was standing naked from the waist up. She stared, trying to keep the surprise from her face - and her eyes from roving over his muscled chest. Abruptly something about his skin caught her attention, and she couldn't help but stare - it seemed as though his entire upper body was covered in strange, circular scars. They were as small as pinpricks, and yet decorated his skin in strange patterns, centering around his chest where his heard was. Can't say I've ever seen anything like that before. . . . He caught her staring and abruptly turned his back to her, though it was no less covered in the same patterns. The black glove still occupied his right hand, and she wondered if he ever removed it when he wasn't working magic.

“Cover yourself with this,” he said, and turned to walk swiftly towards her. He pulled his shirt around her abruptly, deftly covering her head and shoulders. The fabric was giant in comparison to her slim frame. Once she was bundled up and adequately obscured, he put a strong arm around her shoulders, hauling her forward briskly.

“We're going to walk through the changing room, keep this over your head and don't say anything. In the women's room you can find a towel to wrap your hair, then head to the baths.”

“And fresh clothes?” she asked, her voice muffled from the cloth.

“Sh! I'll let you figure that out for yourself.”

She frowned, annoyed at the brusque treatment, but already they had left the small changing room and she could feel the steam in the air around her. There were fewer voices now, but she could hear men talking in the distance, and once in a while she got the feeling that she was being stared at. She wondered if Shadow was following them, or if he had stayed behind. How were the Magi treated in the royal city? She hoped no one would question him. The air was hot and steamy and she began to sweat under Wraith's heavy shirt - perhaps even worse, the stench of the sewers was much stronger now that they were in cleaner air.

Suddenly the ground changed from stone to hard wood, and she sensed that they had entered another room, maybe a dividing room between the male and female parts of the baths. She heard a door open, and then her boots were clicking on hard stone again. The men's voices were gone now, and after a quick yank around a corner the black cloth was pulled from her head and she found herself standing in another room similar to the first one.

“You're now in the women's area,” Wraith whispered. “I'm not allowed in here, so I have to leave now. Be quick about it, we don't have much time.”

Aria nodded, still a bit dazed by the quick dash beneath the shirt, but she noticed that she could hear the chatter of women's voices. She had never been in a bath house before; she wanted to ask if she should strip first or find a towel first, if there was a place to stash her soiled clothes, or which direction the baths were in - but already Wraith was ducking out of the alcove. She hadn't seen Shadow or Whisper when they'd arrived; she assumed they were waiting somewhere else.

He winked at her just before he disappeared from view. It wasn't very reassuring.

“There's all kinds of towels lying around,” Whisper peeped up helpfully.

“Thanks,” she thought back, but still felt a bit glum. “Where are you?”

“Taking a bath.”

After that she felt that the little Wisp was distracted, so didn't continue talking. Instead she crept up to the corner of the alcove and glanced around. These rooms were thankfully obscured in steam, and although she could see a few fuzzy womanly forms moving about, she doubted anyone would be able to see the jewel on her head unless they were right in front of her. Better yet, Whisper was right - there was a barrel of clean towels right across from her, in front of the entrance to the changing rooms.

She dashed forward, her boots slippery on the slick stone, and grabbed one of the white towels. This place was obviously of upper class - she had seen bath houses in other towns along the mountain, and they had been too dirty for her to use. She grabbed a towel and deftly wrapped it around her head, just in time for at that moment a woman walked past her, barely a foot away, and gave her a quick once-over. The wry expression on the woman's face made Aria blush, and after a moment she realized that the lady was wearing only a towel wrapped around her figure, while she remained in full clothes. It's probably a bit weird for someone to wrap a towel around their head before they take their clothes off. Plus she probably smelled horrible.

The woman passed, and Aria let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. Then she quickly began to strip, taking off the stained shirt and damp pants, and her equally ruined undergarments. After looking around for a moment, she tossed the clothes in a trash container opposite to the towel barrel - she wouldn't be needing these anymore. Wraith's hint about finding new clothes was now clear to her - there was no way of securing her belongings in this place, so she would have to take someone else's. The idea left her a bit nervous but not too intimidated, she had learned to steal for survival after her parents' deaths. She would just have to rely on her old skills.

Fully naked, she still didn't feel as exposed as when her forehead had been showing, but she quickly grabbed a towel and wrapped herself anyway. Thankfully most of the sewer smell had left her with the cloths, but it was now on to the baths.

It was a quick, confusing scramble around the benches of the changing room for her to finally find the exit into the baths. Much to her surprise, the bathing area was outside, a stone pool hidden by a cloud of steam under the nighttime stars. Her inner clock had been telling her it was still daytime, and here she was outside at night. The pool was separated by from the men's side by a high wooden wall, and potted plants and other luxuries were set up in the corners of the yard, giving it the feeling of some tropical place. There were only a few women in the pool, and they stuck to the opposite side in a small group - at this distance, she guessed it was the woman who had passed her earlier and two or three of her friends.

After a moment of hesitation, Aria let the towel slip off her body and quickly entered the water, letting out a small gasp as her body was enveloped by the steaming waves. Immediately she set to cleaning, her hand finding a bar of soap in a tray at the pool's edge, and she scrubbed from head to toe. The most intimidating part was unwrapping her head towel so she could wash her hair, something that was risky but necessary to do, and she ducked her head under water for the length of time it took her to scrub clean her braids. The benefit of having most of her hair woven into knots was that it didn't get dirty easily.

Within minutes she was finished and wrapping her head in the towel again, then heading back to the changing room.

“Where are you guys?” she wondered, directing the thoughts to Whisper, but there was no reply. After a moment she shrugged and continued on her way - Wraith was a Magi, right? She doubted much harm could come to him, especially in the royal city.

Once she was in the dressing room she began to snoop around the rows of benches, keeping an eye out for any stray belongings, and within a minute she was rewarded by a neat stack of clothes tucked away under a stool. She picked up the clothes and checked them over - the shirt looked a bit big and the pants were long in the leg, but she wasn't in a position to be picky. She dressed quickly, the shirt turning out to be white and billowy, and the pants a soft gray leather. She ripped off one of the sleeves and tied it around her forehead, hiding her identity. Then she set about gathering her belt and boots.

“Hey!” a sudden voice shouted from her right - Aria froze in place, still fumbling with her belt buckle. “She's wearing my shirt!”

Aria whirled, her eyes wide, only to land on the woman who had given her the disdainful look half an hour ago. She was standing with her towel wrapped around her, a look of shock on her face, and her two friends were coming up behind. “What is the meaning of this!” she demanded.

Aria considered replying, thought better of it, and turned around and ran. Her boots skidded crazily on the damp floor, but she managed to make it to the doorway before the trio behind her could react. “Thief! Help, there's a thief!” were the words that reached her ears.

I hope there aren't any soldiers in this place, she thought, heading frantically from the dressing room into a short hallway, probably the one that Wraith had dragged her through earlier. Then she stopped, looking around her wildly, wondering where in hell they kept the exit. There were unmarked doors on every side of the hall here. Taking her best guess, she charged through the one opposite to her just as the ladies spilled out behind her, slamming the door in their faces.

Oh gods, oh gods, she thought, looking around the new room. It wasn't the men's changing room after all, but a storage room, full of towels and boxes of soap. She gulped. There was no way out but the way she had come in.

And now she could hear voices in the hallway - men's voices. It sounded like there was a group of them standing just outside her door.

“A thief you say, miss?”

“Yes, in there, she might be dangerous.”

“Not a problem, ma'am, if you'll just step aside. . . .”

Thinking quick, Aria threw herself behind a giant pile of towels just as the door cracked open. Her heart hammering in her chest, she tried to breathe softly as the door opened inward with a creak and footsteps entered the room.

“Ach, are ya sure she came in here?” a rough, guttural voice asked.

“Yes, we're sure of it!” the woman replied.

“Well. . . lemme see here. . . .” the man stepped farther into the room. “If yer in here, little thief, there ain't no use hiding! We've already summoned the city guards, they'll be here in no time at all. Now if ya come nicely, maybe you can just give the miss back her clothes and all will be forgotten.”

Aria closed her eyes for a moment. And walk around naked? Not bloody likely! Where was Wraith? And Shadow? And. . . . Her eyes shot open. “Whisper!” she screamed in her head. “Whisper, where in hell are you?”

“I'm here, I'm here,” he replied, his voice a huge reassurance. “We're right outside. What's going on?”

Aria glared at the wall. 'I'll be the first to know if anything goes wrong' - yeah, right. The man was now moving deeper into the room, and her pile of towels was right next to the door. A sudden plan popped into her head. “I got caught stealing clothes,” she said. “They're calling the guards!”

“We'll take care of it,” the Wisp replied, then after a moment he asked - “By the way, how can I talk to Wraith? I don't think he can hear me. . . big, stupid lug of flesh. . . .”

Aria winced. Whisper was right, he couldn't communicate her position to Wraith, and if he flew to her now she doubted there was much he could do.

“Alright, just stay put, I'm getting out of here,” she told him, “and once I'm outside, tell me where to go!”

“Alright, we're waiting.”

With that Aria burst from around the stack of towels, using surprise as her best weapon. The men had spread out and were now deep in the room, looking behind boxes and in dark corners - they hadn't expected her to be right next to the door. With a battle cry she shoved her way through the doorway, ramming the women to the ground, and took off sprinting down the hall. Behind her she could hear the surprised shouting of the men.

“Did you see her?”

“She went that way!”

“Quick, don't let her get away!”

The crashing of bodies behind her only lent speed to her step, and fingers-crossed she opened the last door down the hall - hopefully this is the way out. She sprinted through it, surprised when her boots landed on a soft rug. She seemed to have entered some kind of lobby - in relief, she saw a pair of doors leading outside. A woman looked up from the front desk, her eyes hidden behind a pair of thick glasses, and for a split second they stared at each other in equal surprise. Then Aria dove past her and out the front doors into the nighttime street beyond.

The moment her boots hit the cobbles, Aria knew she was in trouble - which way to run? Wraith was nowhere in sight.

“Where are you?” she thought to Whisper, frantically looking in every direction.

“Over here!” he said back.

“Over where?”

Boom!

The door behind her smashed open, hitting Aria in the back, and she was flung forward by the force. Before she could catch her balance a body slammed into her from behind, crashing her to the ground, and her arm was twisted painfully behind her back.

“Got you, ya little wench!” the man yelled, his heavy body keeping her pinned. Aria struggled wildly, but the pressure on her arm was excruciating. Her heart was pounding but it was hard to take a deep breath beneath the weight, and she felt like she was suffocating.

“Let's see the culprit!” another voice called, and two sets of arms grabbed her, hauling her over onto her back. Aria looked up at the faces of her captors, staring at two sets of fat lips and hairy eyebrows. She spit at one of them.

“Vicious thing, isn't she?” the other laughed, then reached down and grabbed her by her hair. “Well she threw away her rights when she became a thief.” The man tried to yank her head back against the stone of the street, but she stiffened her neck, fought one arm loose and managed to scramble onto her side.

The man cursed and twisted her hair, but only managed to rip loose the headband that held the braids in place. Aria cursed, continuing to struggle, as the makeshift cloth fell to the ground and her ears and headstone came into clear view.

At first she didn't know what had happened - one moment there was cursing and shouting, and the next moment there was silence. She stopped struggling and found herself staring at the two men whose mouths were now agape in shock. Then she realized with a cold clenching of her gut that her forehead was naked to the world, and they were staring at her with an expression that was quickly being overcome by pure hatred.

The one holding her let go and abruptly moved back, and the one standing gave her a swift kick to the ribs. Aria was shocked - she hadn't been expecting the quick attack, an curled up in agony as the blow left her winded.

“Dog,” one of them spit. “Of course, one of their kind would steal a decent person's clothes!”

Aria's eyes widened and she realized the situation had just gone from dangerous to deadly.

“I thought your kind understood not to come back to our city,” the other one growled, and Aria saw the blade of a knife glint. Another kick landed in her gut, then one in the small of her back, and she let out a small 'oof' of air.

“Whisper, I could really use you guys right now!” she screamed in her head, and waited desperately for the Wisp to answer her, but there was only silence. Her fear turned to complete dread - she hadn't realized how much she had started relying on Whisper's comforting presence. Now he wasn't speaking. She was alone.

With a burst of energy she tried to leap to her feet; they weren't holding her anymore, but a leg shot out and tripped her just as she came up. She started to fall, but the other man grabbed her from behind and a knife was pressed to her throat. “Filthy wench,” she heard whispered into her ear. They started to drag her backwards, towards an alley at the side of the bath house. Her eyes widened in terror - were they going to kill her?

Suddenly her breathing became uncontrollable and visions flashed before her eyes - a house on fire, screaming, men surrounding the area and sending arrows into anything that left the burning building. She had been twelve at the time, barely old enough to venture by herself into the forest; barely old enough to realize what her parents meant to her. . . .

Bam!

The blow came from nowhere and hit the side of her face, making her senses reel. Apparently the men had become bored of dragging her and were now moving on to different tactics. If only she could fight back, if only she could do something. . . if only I could stop the house from burning. . . .

She had stopped struggling - she didn't even know where she was standing anymore, if she was in the alley right now or still in the street, or if there were people watching. Another blow struck her on the face, then a fist smashed against her ribs, shooting the air from her lungs. She gasped brokenly, unable to draw breath. She was going to die - she would be murdered here in the street, helpless and in stolen clothes. I always wondered how it was going to end. . . .

Shing!

The sudden sound of metal being drawn was quick and fierce, and a moment later blood sprayed the ground. Aria went rigid in shock, watching as one of the men fell to the cobbles before her. The other man whirled to face the oncoming attacking, throwing her to one side. She hit the ground hard, smacking her head against the cobbles.

There was a brief sound of scuffling and then abrupt silence. “By Luz!” her captor cursed, and she raised her head in time to see him suddenly drop to one knee. The world was fuzzy and spinning, but somehow she managed to focus on what was going on. “My Lord Magus!”

Aria struggled to move her limbs, and managed to prop herself up on the ground. She turned to look at her surroundings, sensing that she was no longer in immediate danger. They were just inside the entrance of the alley, one man's body limp and bleeding to her left, the other man trembling on the ground - and there, blocking that entrance to the alleyway, was a man she had never been more relieved to see. Her mouth dropped open when she saw Wraith, dressed again in his formal black robes and cloak, standing as regally as a king. Shadow was by his side, and with a bit of annoyance she saw Whisper hiding behind the being's shoulder.

“We're going to have a long talk later,” she said forebodingly.

The light seemed to shiver.

“What are you doing to this woman?” Wraith asked, and Aria turned back to him, suddenly just as intimidated by his presence as her attacker. The man in question trembled on the ground and bowed even lower.

“My Lord Magus, really, this girl stole the clothes of a lady in the bath house-”

“And that gives you the right to beat her in the street?”

The man paused. “She is Rhathian, My Lord.” The contempt was obvious in his voice.

“I can see that.” Wraith stepped forward angrily, and the man on the ground flinched backwards. “Unluckily for you, I have a fondness for them.”

The man's trembling increased.

Wraith motioned with his hand, and suddenly a troupe of city soldiers marched forward, and grabbed the man who was kneeling on the ground. He looked up in alarm. “Wait - what? But My Lord, she is a thief-”

“I'll deal with her myself,” Wraith said, and Aria's eyes were wide in surprise. Now she could clearly see the aura of command he held, and the way both the guards and the prisoner gave him a wide berth. Both men were collected from the alley floor and the soldiers trouped back out into the street, disappearing from sight. The clanking of their armor could be heard as they moved farther and farther away. Only one soldier stayed behind, a young man with brown hair and obscure hazel eyes. He took his helmet off and approached Wraith with a respectful nod of the head.

“This is the Rhathian?” he asked quietly. Wraith nodded, his blue eyes intense. Aria held her breath, not sure what to expect.

“You are taking her up to the palace?”

A nod.

“Shall I tell the Lady Requiem?”

Another nod.

The man turned with a smart click of his heals and started out of the alley, then he abruptly paused and looked back at her. “Sorry about the trouble, ma'am.” Then he was gone.

Aria was speechless - both from the fight and from the sudden apology. She had never been apologized to in her entire life, and it must have shown on her face, because suddenly Wraith's features melted into the reassuring grin she had grown accustomed to.

“Sorry I took so long,” he said, and walked to her side, offering her a hand up. She took it gladly, though her legs shook slightly. “I heard the commotion and saw the guards coming, and went to talk to them.”

“It's all your fault,” she said, her voice sour. “You told me to steal those clothes.”

“I did not.”

“Yes, you did, and don't try to deny it. You put the suggestion in my head.” She gave him a haughty look and he glanced down at her, raising one eyebrow.

“Alright, I won't deny anything,” he said, then handed her a gray cloak. “Take this, it'll cover you well enough until we reach the palace, then your headstone won't matter anymore.”

Aria stared at him, surprised by his response, and took the cloak as he turned away. “Follow me,” he said, and started off into the street. It was then that she noticed a horse and carriage parked along the sidewalk - she wondered how long it had been there. She had been in too much of a panic to notice it before. As they walked towards it a man dressed in a royal blue uniform leapt from the driver's seat and opened the door, motioning them inside with a polite nod.

Aria entered the carriage, never having ridden in one before, and found it lined on either side by cushioned seats. Shadow came in behind her and sat with his back to the driver - she took the seat next to Wraith, so they were sitting across from Shadow. The moment she was settled the door snapped shut and they were left in almost complete darkness, except for the lights from the shops outside. There was a jolt as the driver took his seat, a few clicking noises, and the carriage started forward with a creak of the wheels.

Whisper appeared from Shadow's clothing, hovering timidly in the air and giving light to the small box.

“I was so worried about you,” he said, her headstone flashing in unison to his words. Aria's eyes narrowed.

“Worried?” she said aloud, needing to voice her frustration. “Where in hells were you? And why didn't you respond to me?”

She could sense his embarrassment. “I was distracted,” he muttered.

“Yeah, distracted, by what?”

For a moment Whisper shimmered in the air, then he zoomed close to her face. “There is a Wisp cave under the castle,” he said, “at the base of Her Majesty. I was speaking to them.”

Aria blinked. “And what did they say?”

“Well they are dying, the ones that do not bond to Rhathians die after a time, and there are none to replace them. Luz will be waking very soon if this doesn't let up.” The Wisp paused for a moment. “Also, the castle has been bringing groups of Rhathians to bond to the Wisps, even though they are weak. There is much tension inside those walls.”

Aria nodded, unsure of how to respond to this news. She knew by now that there would be many Rhathians in the palace, but she still didn't know what part the Wisps played. Normally she would have been more interested in the news, but she was still recovering from her close encounter in the alley. She turned to look at Wraith, who was sitting silently next to her, and noticed that his eyes were locked with Shadow's. Were they communicating? Speaking to each other, somehow? Maybe the same way she spoke to Whisper? She would have to ask him soon about his magic; as soon as she figured out what the hell she was supposed to do at the palace.

“There are many Rhathians at the palace,” Whisper repeated, as though he wanted to get her attention, and Aria turned back to him. She nodded slowly, unsure of what his point was.

“Well, they want one of us to fix this mess, I guess,” she said. “I'm still not sure how it all works.”

“That's the problem,” Whisper replied. “There are many Rhathians in the palace, but none of them are suitable.”

She frowned. “What do you mean, suitable?”

“They cannot song-cast well enough.”

Aria blinked. “I thought you didn't know what song-casting was. What are you talking about?”

Whisper flickered for a moment, and she could sense his hesitation. Finally, he said, “I do not know what song-casting is, but from what the Wisps tell me, the other Rhathians are not suitable. I don't need to know what it is in order to tell that they cannot do it.”

Aria was still confused, but she nodded anyway. It must be a Wisp thing. She was about to ask more questions about the Wisps, though she could sense that his knowledge was limited, when suddenly Wraith turned to her and pointed out the window. “The royal gardens,” he said.

Aria looked out the window and saw that they were indeed passing through some kind of a garden, full of high bushes, fountains, and flowers. Neatly trimmed trees lined the roadway every couple of meters. They had been traveling uphill for a while, but now the land leveled out and they were going directly forward - they must have entered the castle grounds. Everything was alight with a moonlit glow and the white statues took on a silvery cast. The sight was breathtaking, yet somehow cold and lifeless.

After a minute of staring at the neatly organized rows of plants, Aria felt the carriage turn into a cul-de-sac, then they came to a sudden halt.

“We've arrived,” Wraith murmured.

Aria tried to calm the butterflies that had just erupted in her stomach - she was weary and sore from the road, but anyone would be nervous when they were about the enter the king's palace. Anyone except Wraith, that is - her escort had become distant and withdrawn, again wearing the professional facade she had seen him with earlier.

She craned her neck to see out the window, but her side must have been opposite to the palace because all she saw was darkness. After a few moments the driver got down and opened the door for them, and she stepped out into the night - the wind was cold and brisk against her cheeks, and she pulled her hood closer around her face. They had been traveling uphill most of the way, so apparently the king's castle was right at the base of the mountain.

A powerful glow caught her eyes, and she turned to look past the carriage - her jaw dropped.

Yes, they had certainly arrived.

- o - o - o -

Author Replies!

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Toolio: Thanks a lot for the lovely reviews! Yes, I'll be getting more into Shadow and his qualities next chapter, so just hang in there. I hope you like the update. :)

CrimsonSentry: Lol, yes, sewage... nasty stuff... well at least that's over with, haha. I think Ch4 was the hardest to write because I wasn't sure how to make the waterways interesting at all, but at least I made the ending somewhat original. ;) Thanks for the review, and I hope this update didn't take too long!

Neapon: Yes, I'm actually going to be talking a lot about Shadow and Wraith's connection and stuff next chapter, it'll be a fairly important plot development, or so I'm hoping, lol. Anyway thanks a lot for hanging in there between all the spacey updates, right now you guys are almost caught up to where I'm writing, so updates might get more irregular in the future. I apologize in advance!

Pink Blossom: Thanks a lot, and I hope I didn't take too long to update! Writing can be a real chore sometimes, lol!

Mizz Neko: I dearly hope you continue reading:) Thanks for the sweet review!

Wickedly Sinful: Thank you so much, I do try! Let me know if there's anything you can critique on.