“Oh, well, excuse me for not knowing the finer points of enchanter’s syntax,” Katryn said.
“You misunderstand me,” Loki said. “As you so frequently do. This is no simple semantic breakdown but an important distinction. If you take a blade of iron and lay upon it certain spells and charms designed to ensure it never breaks, never loses its edge, or never fails to kill, that is a blade that can be said to be magical. But the boy’s knife… or the knife that has come into his possession… is not made of iron or bronze or any other metal as we know it.”
“What is it made of, then?” Katryn asked.
“I already told you,” Loki said. “It’s a magic knife, forged out of pure magic, or something as close to it as I have ever seen… the belt, the sheath, and that raggedy shirt are, as well, though it’s hard to imagine why anybody would have bothered, as they are otherwise unremarkable, especially with regards to the latter. I don’t believe I’ve ever see a garment of flimsier material constructed in more haste, never mind that the fibers are of purest magic and not true cotton.”
“Maybe it came from somewhere where such things aren’t remarkable,” Katryn said.
“I can assure you, such a place is not likely to exist, in this or any other world,” Loki said. “A knife like this, which is not only fashioned of magic but has had spells of enhancement layered upon it, must have been fashioned for some great purpose… we can only surmise that the garment was intended to be worn during the fulfillment of that purpose. Note the plain black color, the shapelessness of it, and its utter uselessness in shielding the wearer from the elements. It clearly was intended to have ritual significance.”
“So you’re saying I could sell this for a lot of tetrae?” Jace asked, looking at the odd knife in awe.
“No, I’m saying Kat should slit your belly with her claws and let your guts fall out on the deck, then keep the knife until its true purpose and value become apparent,” Loki said.
“Oh, but you’d say I should do that even if there wasn’t a knife,” Katryn said.
“If it may be important, I think I’m going to keep it,” Jace said. “We’ll find something else to keep us going.”
“What if the knife is the ’something else’?” Katryn asked. “Montport may be the best place in the northern seas for you to turn it into cash… but it’s kind of big to hide, and the longer you carry it openly the more likely you are to lose it without a tetra to show for it, one way or another.”
“If you’re sure the boy’s just going to lose it anyway…” Loki said, but she ignored him.
“If you’re smart… and I know you’re not, but you can pretend to be… you’ll head straight for a magic shop,” Katryn said. “Walk in like you know what you’re doing, like you know exactly what the knife is. Ask the shopkeeper if he can spot what’s interesting about it. Make it a challenge. If he acts like it’s rubbish or talks to you like you’re some dumb kid, remind him there are lots of mages in Montport.”
“And what am I supposed to do when I’ve got the money?” Jace asked. “If you don’t think I could walk around with the knife and not get robbed, how long do you think I’d last with a fat purse full of tetrae?”
“That’s your problem, not mine… but at least you’re thinking about it now,” Katryn said.
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