Short chapter, I'm still finding my feet with the characters and setting. this feels like a rushed chapter to me. Thoughts?
Chapter 3
I wound my way through the streets, hoping to get to ‘Nallys and start my shift. The School quarter is fairly easy to navigate, with several shops and restaurents to mark the individual streets, even if most of the housings were indistinct. How I got lost after graduation is beyond me
I rounded the corner to come to the bar I worked at, ‘Nallys. To my knowledge no one knew what ‘Nallys was short for, but that’s what was read on the sign hanging in the front. I opened the door, not expecting anyone to be in the room. It was a small bar that couldn’t hold a great many patrons but it drew enough customers to stay afloat, there were a few tables and chairs scattered in the middle of the room and there were several empty booths waiting for tonights visitors. Normally the rea around the door was vacant due to the fact that it was rather heavy and anyone standing near it would likely get a good bruise if they wee near it.
So when I knocked a man the size and shape of a small boulder I was naturally rather shocked. As the man climbed to his feet, cursing all the way, I scanned the room to see Vicky,the bar owner. Vicky was a tall woman five foot eleven, with medium length hair the colour of chestnuts. Her pale, beautiful features were twisted into shock and a little bit of worry. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t somewhat infatuated with her at some point, though that faded as time went by. I began to ask the man if he was alright when he pointed an accusatory finger and started yelling. “What on Earth do you think you’re doing you imbecie!I could have you arrested for LOOKING at me, let alone knocking me to the ground! Do you know who I am?”
My tongue took the initiative “A narcissist?”
This did not help the mans temperament. “I am Girard Trevalus, second cousin to the mayor of Trevalus!” So, basically a low ranking noble. If you weren’t a part of the Mayors immediate family most nobles only had limited power. The man, Girard, turned to Vicky
“Madam, who is this idiot who barged in on our proceedings?” His tone suggested something other than a conversation. As my minor shock faded, I took note of the twos clothing. It looked as though they had just got dressed. What on earth was happening here? Vicky took that moment to speak up, stepping towards me to try to usher me out of the door.
“Your shift doesn’t start for another half an hour” She hissed, though not quiet enough for the man to miss it.
“This fool works here? Miss Gadarne, I demand that you terminate his service immediately, unles you wish to lose my” The slightest of pauses “Support” I began to see what likely happened. For a long time, Vicky had been in debt, barely able to fend off the “Collectors wiht her earnings from ‘Nallys. I desperately wanted to help, but not nly were the collectors Gifted with more combat inclined Gifts, but they also had the law on their side. Vicky had signed a contract, and the men were collecting what they were owned. It seemed Vicky had taken the choice to enlist some help from someone higher up. It wasn’t hard to figure out how she had got that help.
To be fair, Vicky tried to efute him, but her feeble attempts at pacification were thwarted by the mans tatrum. Soon enough it boiled down to an ultimatum. She looked at me with an apologetic look in her eyes. “I’m sorry Darren, but I need this.” Fucking Great
“Fine, but i’ll be talking to you later” The heat in my voice surprised me. It came out harsher than I had expected, rather than the quiet, smouldering anger I had expected. Before anymore could be said, I charged out of the room, my exit as abrupt as my entrance, except for the fact I was leaving jobless. I began walking off to the right, thoughts buzzing in my head. I was feeling slightly numbed, detached now. That had eded far too quickly and that said many things. For one, the fact that Vicky would drop me that fast on the whim of the man she was whoring herself out to that quickly stung. Furthermore, it said that I needed t get ahold of my tongue. An apology and quick exit could have ended that with a much happier resolution. My comment had not helped at all.
I was wandering through the streets , my mind pondering what had happened when I heard a familiar voice. The small figure of Sabrina bounced up to me. “Hey Darren, are you ok?” Sabrina bore a concerned look. I must have really looked sad if she was depressed.
“Yeah, is it okay if I fill you in later?” I wanted to get some more thinking done. the loss of my job had some big implications of my life. For one, I needed a new one quick. My small room was not cheap, despite it’s size. Unfortunately, Sabrina was not easily shaken. her blonde eyebrows furrowed and she grabbed my arm.
“”C’mon. You need a drink.” She lead me through the streets, which had gone full swing into the bustling nature of the streets.. The sun was midway through the sky, Indicating it was noon. She lead me to he own apartment, located near the center of the School quarter, whereas I was near the outskirts of the city itself. She walked to the wooden Ice box where she stored some skins filled with expensive whiskey and brough them out, handing me one. I had only gotten drunk once in my life, and at this point I wanted to experience some of it again.
I took a swig of whiskey, letting the liquid fre burn my worries away, letting the fraying edges of my mind fade slightly.
“I got fired” I blurted out.
“Ok, but there has to be something more than that. You looked like you had been told your hero had been slaughtered”
“Vicky fired me because the man she was asking for money wanted me fired for kncking im on his ass. From what it looked like, when I walked in, they were just done with the negotiations.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“I mean she was done practically selling herself to the fat fuck”
Sabrina promptly called her a whore
I suppose that was her way of supporting me. Sabrina walked over to me and stood directly in front of me, close enough to be uncomfortable, but not close enough to be intimate. She had an uncharacteristically serious look in her eyes.
“Listen to me Darren” She commanded with more force than I‘d ever heard from her. “You will be fine. You jsut need to find something to steady yourself”
I feel I should address that it probably seems I was taking this rather harder than I should have been, but I have to say that it was due to the big change thatt had taken place. I had never been one to easily deal with change. I was sent to the School when I was six and was immediately placed into a strict structure of lessons and curfews that left little room for change. As soon as I left the care of Warrel, I immediaely sought out a routine job. Being unceremoniously dumped from said routine had me confused and disoriented. Where was I supposed to go from there?
Sabrina knew this, and knew just what to say.
I considered her words. It was a good idea, find something to focus on, to devote my attention to. “What would you suggest?”
“Well, a new job would be a start. But I think you” She poked a finger in my chest “ have something to resolve with Vicky” She gave me a wry grin
She was right.