12.23.07
6: The Slavers
“Two? Didn’t we agree not to settle for less than five?” the blustery-voiced man said.
“Yes, well, when we opened at five thousand in the last three port towns, we were laughed off the stage, weren’t we?” the smooth talker said. “This Tarnach knows his business. Two thousand is in reach… but just barely. People will begin to bid, overjoyed at being offered such a prize at a comparative bargain, and then as they outbid each other they’ll dig deeper and deeper in order to keep that bargain from slipping away.”
“We could have avoided this if we just took her to the market in a major city.”
“Where we would be expected to show papers proving her ownership and provenance,” his companion said. “We’ve been over this before. We can get away with selling common laborers without papers in the cities, but this rare a ‘bird’ would attract too much attention.”
Down below, the bidding had begun, with the relatively well-to-do citizens of the Cove competing with pockets of scoundrels and scalawags who were pooling their resources in an uncommon show of trust and cooperation, but Jace was hardly paying it any mind.
His attention was focused on the conversation between the pair of unseen men immediately below him, and the two startling revelations: they were illegal slavers, and they were the ones selling the feathered princess.
The certain knowledge that she had not been lawfully enslaved only underscored the injustice of her plight and hardened Jace’s desire to see her freed at any cost, even—or perhaps especially—if it resulted in his becoming a fugitive on the run beside her.
“Hmm, yes… and it does seem to be going well,” the first man said, sounding somewhat mollified. “Perhaps this will be the town.”
“I daresay it might, at that,” his companion said pleasantly. “You wouldn’t think it to look at it, but a lot of gold and jewels pass through Keeper’s Cove. Of course, that’s the secret: it passes through, it doesn’t stay. A buccaneer may touch more treasure in his short and bloody life than all but the richest kings will see, but only the very cleverest realize the value of the coins that slip through their fingers.”
“And they retire wealthy while the rest die paupers, eh, Montaldo?”
“Precisely, my rotund friend,” the oily speaker said. “I could not have put it better myself. And yet, I find in my premature dotage, that one can never have too much wealth… and in that regard, I’m still ably served by my ability to recognize the true value of treasure.”
“Quite, quite,” his pompous friend said. “And I count myself lucky to have found you. Five thousand tetrae is a tremendous sum, even split three ways.”
“Two ways,” Montaldo said. “Did I not tell you? Tarnach agreed to work only for a small commission.”
“Why ever would he do that?”
“He said he was looking for something besides gold,” Montaldo said. “He’s an eccentric one… but… I say, is the bidding picking up?”
As one, Montaldo, Jace, and the other man returned their attention to the spectacle below, where the man called Tarnach was waving his long, limber arms wildly and pointing in response to shouts from the audience.
“Five thousand, five hundred,” Tarnach announced down below. “Do I have a better on that? You, sir? Five thousand, six hundred… five, seven… and five, eight… thank you, Madame. Five thousand, nine hundred.”
“Things are going well,” Montaldo said mildly.
“I should say so,” his companion agreed.
Near the stage, a party of hooligans, fur patchy with scars, consulted with each other before announcing, “Seven thousand, eight hundred and ninety-three tetrae!”
“Oh, my,” the unnamed (to Jace) man said.
“See?” Montaldo said. “It’s personal now, and so they’re getting ahead of themselves. This Tarnach knows his stuff.”
“Eight thousand!” the Madame of the brothel announced, before Tarnach could even acknowledge the new bid.
“Eight thousand tetrae, gentles!” Tarnach echoed. “Eight thousand! Who will better?”
“The Governor bids twelve thousand, five hundred tetrae for the girl and anything she has with her,” a strong, carrying voice announced from the back of the square.
Akedhi said,
December 23, 2007 at 9:53 pm
Might I request that a link to the previous and following chapters be added to Three Seas, like Tribe and MU and so on? It’s a little frustrating to navigate when I want to go back and reread or miss an update. (*lazy*)
In relation to the story itself, I find myself more intrigued by Tarnach than by the girl. Possibly this is odd.
Diabolical Furby said,
December 24, 2007 at 12:06 am
Great chapter. The dialogue between the two men makes me very curious as to how they came into possession of such a feathered gem. I find myself eating crow due to my previous comment in which I doubted the likelihood of the denizens of Keeper’s Cove to come up with a sum as large as two thousand tetrae, let alone twelve thousand five hundred tetrae.
Thanks for the update. Happy Holidays.
The Cloaked Stranger said,
December 24, 2007 at 6:36 am
Now, the interesting questions begin.
Who exactly is Tarnach?
What does the Governor have planned for the girl?
Is he going to mind that she’s an illegal slave?
What’s Jace going to do?
If your writing is “crack” as people say, you sure know how to deal it — always leave ‘em wanting more…
Tinstaafl said,
December 27, 2007 at 12:04 am
AE… Though I Love your writing… It must be quite crowded inside that head of yours to have so many and varried Charactors residing there… (Grin).
Tins…