City of Towers_ The Dreaming Dark - Keith Baker [43]
Daine’s wandering gaze finally fixed on a woman who had just emerged from the inner hall. She was wrapped in a dark, flowing cloak, and only her face was visible. Even that was shadowed under a voluminous hood. What caught Daine’s attention were her eyes—large and green, glowing like emeralds in the magical firelight. She held his gaze for a long moment, a hint of a smile playing over her lips. Then she looked away, and the spell was broken. She knelt and spoke to the innkeeper, then disappeared out the front door.
A moment later Kela arrived at their table, carrying their drinks. Lei was absorbed in her work and didn’t look up when the mug of steaming tal was placed before her. Daine swirled the sludgy korluaat about in the tankard.
“What do we owe you?” he said.
“It’s already been taken care of,” the tiny innkeeper said.
“By …?”
“The lady who just left. I saw you looking at her. I’m afraid I don’t know her name. Kalashtar, I think.”
Kalashtar. Daine had heard of the kalashtar but had never actually met one before. Tales said the kalashtar were possessed, that their ancestors were humans who had sold their bodies to ghosts or spirits from another plane. They were supposed to have unnatural powers over mortal minds. Of course, these same storytellers claimed House Cannith made the warforged by binding the spirits of the dead into shells of wood and metal, and that the dragonmarked houses had actual dragons hidden in their basements. Still, he could see how such stories could arise. Her gaze had been hypnotic. But she was gone, and it was a mystery for another day.
“If the korluaat is free, I’ve got a few crowns to spare,” Daine said, tossing a coin in the air. “Perhaps you could help me do something about that.”
“We aim to please, my lord,” Kela said with a smile. “What’s your pleasure?”
“I’m new to Sharn, and I’m intrigued by these races. ‘Wind-chases,’ is that right?”
“Indeed. If this is your first time to Sharn, I assure you after you’ve seen a windchase, then chariots, horses, and hounds will hold no interest.”
“Well, I’m looking for a mentor, someone who can tell me how the game is played, who to keep an eye on, who’s won in the past. I like to know what I’m getting into before I take risks. Anyone around who might help me with that?”
Kela nodded. “I expect that Dek will be happy to help you, for a few crowns. I’ll see if he’s free.”
Daine tossed her a coin. She deftly caught it and threw it back to him.
“Save it for the games,” she said with a smile, before disappearing into the crowd.
A few minutes later, Daine approached them and sat down. Or so it seemed. “I hear you’re interested in the races?” the newcomer said. While his face was a perfect mirror of Daine’s, his voice was too high and he was dressed in loose brown clothing.
A changeling. Daine hated changelings.
“That’s right,” he said, placing a few crowns on the table. “But I’ve never liked talking to myself.”
His twin passed a hand over the coins, and they vanished. “My apologies. Some people don’t like to see their own faces.” The pigment slowly ran out of his skin, and a white film spread across his eyes. His hair grew out, becoming fair and wispy. His facial features seemed to melt away, leaving only a hint of nose and lips. “It’s the scar, isn’t it? You’re not comfortable with it yet?”
“Let’s stick to the games,” Daine said.
“Touchy. So why don’t you tell me what you want to know, and we’ll see what it’s worth?”
Daine caught Lei’s eye and blinked twice. She pulled out the polished quartz shard. “We don’t have much to offer,” she said shyly, “but we do have this.” She held the stone out toward the changeling, and as he reached for it she muttered a swift triggering incantation. Patterns of light and mist seemed to swirl about in the depths of the stone. With