The Ruby Magician

Wyn and Tasha stood by the auction house doors impatiently waiting for John. They all agreed to have lunch and grab the items they wanted to trade before meeting in the trade district, though John was unsurprisingly late.

"I swear, no one is worse than him at being on time," Tasha said. Her arms were folded and she kept pacing a small distance, huffing with deep sighs every few minutes. "Is it really that hard to be punctual?"

Wyn could only smile. He was a bit more patient than Tasha, enjoying the warm early summer air and still marveling at the city. "For some, yes. There was one man in my company who always slept in, was always the last to meetings, and always had to be reminded about times for everything."

"Really? You'd think being in the military would force you to have more initiative. Did you whip him into shape? Scold him? Make him clean the floors and dirty dishes?"

Wyn shook his head. "No, I let him get away with it. He was never that late, and the other soldiers always gave him enough friendly grief about it. It kept moral up and gave them all something to laugh at. I didn't think he needed his commanding officer to rip him and disrupt that."

Tasha stopped pacing. "That's very kind of you, Wyn. I'm sure other officers in your position would've enjoyed having the excuse to put him in his place."

"Probably. But being at war, I didn't want any of us to have another reason to loathe our situation. I'd rather have the respect than resentment."

Tasha took another deep sigh. "I guess you're right. It's not always fair, and it's not like we're pressed on time."

As though on cue, they both spotted John walking up to the trading district. He was looking down on the ground and walking slow.

Wyn immediately thought something was wrong. Normally John was jovial and energetic, but now he seemed down in the dumps. Tasha must've picked up on it, too, because she shifted her posture and her face softened, looking worried more than upset.

"What is it?" Tasha asked John. "Are you okay?"

"I'm not getting my sword from home," John said, his head still lowered facing the ground.

"Really?" Wyn asked. "Why not?"

John managed a deep sigh. "My sister wrote back to me. She was upset I lost her sword and told me I needed to earn my next one. AND to bring her a sword back to replace the one she let me borrow!"

"Oh, John, I'm so sorry," Tasha said. She placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Even the word from the Tower Master didn't help! But what am I going to do now? I was relying on that sword. Now I have nothing."

Wyn pointed to the markets behind them with his thumb. "Good thing we're in a place where we can find you a new one. We can pool our items together for one if we find a good deal."

John waved his hands across his body. "No way. I'm not going to ask you to trade for me a sword."

"John, remember what Wyn told me in the Silver Step?" Tasha asked. "We're a team. You having a magic sword will help push us forward, so that's what we look for. Plus, the item I earned from our first climb doesn't fit me, anyway."

"Me, too," Wyn added. "I was looking to trade the belt I have. If it means getting you a better sword I'm all for it."

John smiled his usual warm, inviting smile. "Alright. I trust you guys. Thank you!" He instantly brightened and hugged both of them before stepping forward to the trading district. When he opened the door to the markets it was as though they opened a portal to a hub deep in the city.

Wyn remembered once helping guard a nobleman's family for an event at their estate. It was an auction of expensive artifacts and items, some even magical, coming from the towers around the world. His company was hired to provide security services for the many royals attending the event, and he thought about how proper the affair was while priceless magical items were exchanged before their very eyes.

Standing here in the markets within the Alestead trading district he felt a very different atmosphere despite a similarly impressive situation.

There were Climbers littered across the many tall tables in the open lobby, and chaos was as close to a descriptive word as Wyn could find. Loud conversations, occasional shouts, frantic hand waving, and even displays of magic all scattered around the large hall. It looked like an auction house but five times larger. Individual areas were being used to trade items, and the rookies had no idea where to even start.

Wyn was intimidated by the Climbers and their gear as they looked even more menacing than the ones he saw during the festival just a few days ago. It looked as though they had slain great beasts in the tower and immediately came to barter and trade afterwards. Large weapons and blood splattered armor covered the various people in the crowd.

Thankfully for the inexperienced Climbers, a row of desks lined the back wall and guild officials were waiting on standby to assist Climbers as needed. The group worked their way through the crowd towards the guild members, hoping to find some direction.

"First time in the house?" The guild official asked, raising his voice to be heard over the noise. He had a smirk on his face and leaned on his elbows on the desk.

"That obvious?" Wyn asked.

The man laughed, but they all saw it rather than heard it. He laughed like Cal more with his body than his voice. "You first time Climbers always have the same bewildered look on your faces. But it's alright, you'll be at the tables arguing and trading in no time!"

Tasha leaned in towards the official and scrunched her face, cupping her hand over her ear. "What did you say?"

"I said, welcome to the trading house! How can I help you?"

Wyn and John couldn't suppress their laughter. Tasha obviously had no idea what he actually said and continued on none the wiser.

"We're looking for some items,” Wyn said.

“Is it always this loud?" Tasha asked.

"Mostly at the start and end of the floor cycle,” the official said. “Are you looking for items directly or from the logs?”

"The what?" Tasha yelled.

The man held up a finger without another word. He reached behind the desk and pulled out a large book. It was easily the largest book Wyn had ever seen, and very obviously magical. The cover was leather with stacks of tiny runes lining the edges, and they all briefly glowed at random times. It looked like miniature lights randomly flickering on and off. The spine was thick with more runes, as it needed to be thick and powerful to hold the hundreds, possibly thousands of pages inside. Wyn instantly assumed that the book was from the tower, but how something that massive could be found was beyond his understanding.

A sudden shout erupted from behind them. Two men squared up to each other, yelling about some trade. They looked like they were about to begin fighting while other Climbers in the house either cheered them on or yelled at them to stop. The place somehow became even more chaotic than before.

Instantly a large, visibly magical barrier appeared around the two separating them from the crowd. The space inside the barrier began to shrink, causing both of the men to fall to their knees as though commanded by their king to bow. The crowd hushed. Another guild official, a woman dressed in their similar attire but carrying both a clipboard and sense of purpose, calmly walked to the troublemakers.

The crowd moved to give her room to walk without any instruction. Her power was purely the gravitas she carried, let alone whatever actual power she possessed. Wyn knew she was someone important as the other Climbers seemed to know her.

“Don’t worry about that,” the man with the log book said. He didn’t need to raise his voice anymore as the trade house was much quieter. “Unfortunately it happens a lot. But what kind of item are you looking for?”

The three Climbers did their best to ignore the situation behind them and focus. John kept staring, though, curious as to the outcome. The woman was muttering something to the Climbers in the barrier who were still on their knees. It looked as though the barrier was causing some form of magical weight on them, as though it took every bit of their strength to even stay on their knees instead of being pushed to the floor. The crowd around them made it hard for him to see or hear what was fully happening.

“We’re looking for a magical sword, preferably a blue rarity one,” Wyn said. “We have some green rarity items to trade for it. Are we allowed to trade several items for one?”

The man smirked again. “You can attempt to trade for anything! It solely depends on if anyone will accept it. I’m merely a middle-man. But let’s sort by blue rarity swords first.” He opened the book with a heave, and then the magic began. The pages began turning by themselves, quickly fluttering by blocks of pages.

Both Wyn and Tasha were mesmerized. They knew magic was intertwined with a fair amount of things in life, especially in the noble courts, but here in Alestead it seemed as though magic was part of literally everything.

In seconds the book fell to an open page. Some words on the page were glowing, and they were all a blue aura.

“Here we go,” the guild official said. “Blue aura swords offered for trade. Would you like to peruse through them to try and find one you like?”

“Sure!” Tasha said. She quickly grabbed the book and began sorting through the lines of description with her finger.

Wyn read the lines along with her. Each one held the name of a sword and a brief description of its effects, and the name glowed blue signifying its rarity. After the description was the name and class of the owner, followed by a short summary of what the seller was seeking for trade.

“John, do any of these catch your eye?” Wyn asked. He turned to see John still watching the group behind them. “John?” Wyn shook John’s shoulders.

“Hmm?” He responded. “Oh, sorry. What?”

Tasha sighed. “Always distracted. Can you look and see if there is a sword you’d want? There’re so many!”

John’s eyes grew wide seeing the magical lines of text. “Wow. All of these are blue rarity swords, I’m assuming?”

“If you were paying attention you’d know the answer to that,” Tasha said.

Wyn smiled. Tasha may have been timid in the tower and in combat, but she was definitely not shy when it came to manners and social etiquette. That was her familiar battleground, always confident and reliable. She likely had more experience in that area than both of the men put together.

The new Climbers took several minutes to debate and search for different swords John would find useful that they could potentially trade for. They discussed swords that cast spells, swords that enhanced skills and martial abilities, and even swords that changed its physical makeup to grow longer or wider. John had a hard time deciding on the magical components.

One in particular caught Wyn’s eye, and it wasn’t because of the sword itself but rather what the seller wanted in exchange. The summary said they wanted 25 Sun Spirals in exchange for a blue rarity sword. Other offers asked for two or three green rarity pieces of equipment, but this was the only description Wyn noticed that asked for a green rarity item that was not a piece of armor, clothing, or weapon.

“Look at this,” Wyn said. He pointed to the line with his finger. “This is the first offer I’ve seen like this.”

“And the sword is pretty good, too,” John said. “The name is Sword of the Elementalist. It says it can change its sword to become any element. That’s incredible!”

“The owner’s name is Cara, class Sorcerer,” Tasha said. “So how do we find Cara? Or make the deal?”

“We can help locate the owner to negotiate,” the guild official said. He was idly standing by while they waited to decide. “Her name is glowing which means she’s here in the trade house. I’ll find her and point you in her direction.”

John fidgeted with his backpack. “It said we need 25 of those flowers. How many do we have?”

“Both Tasha and I have 8,” Wyn said. “So we’re short. But let’s at least talk to her to see if she’ll accept another item or something similar.”

John nodded, satisfied with the answer.

“Here we go,” the man said. “She’s at a back table. Follow me, please.”

The guild official raised a portion of the desk on a hinge that allowed him to walk through. He led the three Climbers through the crowd to a table that was more isolated. The crowd began to grow loud again, though the auction house was large enough that the area they were heading into was more spread out with tables. There were far less Climbers here, too, as it seemed to be less of an active and volatile trading area and more relaxed or professional.

A woman sat at a table by herself reading a large book. She was wearing a tall brimmed black hat and a black mage’s robe with many pockets with gold ornate trimmings on everything. She was obviously a well seasoned Climber.

“This is Cara,” the guild official said. “Cara, here are some potential buyers for one of your trades.” The man bowed to both parties and promptly returned to the desk.

Cara kept reading her book and didn’t even acknowledge the trio. They all looked at each other, then John shrugged.

Tasha cleared her throat. “Excuse me -”

“Yes, yes,” Cara said, cutting Tasha off. She kept reading her book, her eyes not leaving the pages. “You’re here for the Sword of the Elementalist. Do you have the Sun Spirals?”

Tasha blanched, taken aback. “Umm, yes, that’s right. How did you know that?”

Cara sighed. “Don’t ask stupid questions, girl. It’s unbecoming.”

Tasha’s face quickly turned red, and she opened her mouth to respond but Wyn put a hand on her shoulder.

“Let’s get back to the matter at hand,” Wyn said. “Obviously you’re busy. Why are you looking for Sun Spirals?”

Cara looked up at Wyn and then scanned each of them. Her eyes darted from head to toe, randomly and without any pattern. “Sun Spirals are a new herb found in the tower. I’m wanting to continue to research them. Plain and simple.”

Tasha seemed to relax a bit. She looked at Wyn, who nodded back. She knew she couldn’t take offense - this wasn’t a test of politeness or formalities, but a business exchange, pure and simple. She readjusted her robes and held her head high.

Tasha pulled out the flowers from her backpack and held them. “We have 16 Sun Spirals right now, but -”

“Then you don’t have enough,” Cara said. “Good bye.” She returned to her book and flipped the page she was reading.

Tasha didn’t move. “We can get you another 16 by tonight, totaling 32. If you guarantee us the sword now.”

Cara stopped reading and looked back at Tasha. The boys looked at each other, their eyebrows raised. Tasha apparently had some gumption for bartering, too.

“That’s an interesting offer,” the Sorcerer replied. She closed her book with a loud thud and crossed her legs. “32 green rarity items for one blue rarity item doesn’t seem like too good of a deal. For you, at least.”

“These flowers aren’t much use to us at the moment, but the sword is.”

Cara laughed. “So you want the sword for your Fighter. That’s obvious. However, I’m guessing you don’t know the flower’s true power, do you?”

Tasha stood still, determined to appear like she wasn’t completely inexperienced in matters regarding magic and climbing. Cara was playing along, though, much more interested than before.

“Honestly, no, I don’t,” Tasha replied. “But if it doesn’t help me now, why should I care that much? I’d rather have an item that can help me live and climb for today, than something that might help me tomorrow, when no tomorrow is guaranteed.”

Cara stopped smiling and stood up. She stepped around the table and faced Tasha directly, intimidating them by her sheer height alone. She stood taller than Wyn and John, though the boots she wore also had high heels, betraying her actual height. The Climbers thought that Tasha might’ve said something wrong, offending the Sorcerer. Wyn’s heart raced, thinking they just blew their chances when Tasha was gaining ground in the conversation.

“You’re wiser than most rookies, Mage. That mindset will carry you far.” She reached into a pocket on her robe and pulled out the hilt of a sword. The weapon continued to elongate out of the seemingly endless pocket before completely revealing itself. The sheath was basic and unmarked, but when Cara drew the sword it had a brilliantly mirrored sheen to the blade. If he didn’t know any better, it looked more suited to decoration than fighting.

Wyn recognized the sword’s style. It wasn’t a traditional longsword but rather a broadsword, possessing a slightly wider blade closer to the hilt that became more pointed towards the tip. It was more commonly used to slash with the wide blade, but it was still a popular style of sword. The entire weapon from pommel to tip was beautiful, though, and John’s jaw dropped when he saw it.

“This sword is blue rarity because it can become any element you wish,” Cara said. She turned the sword over and showed them the hilt. It appeared to have a socket directly where where the hilt overlaid the blade, though it was currently empty. “If you place a gemstone in the hilt and infuse a bit of your mana into it, it will become the element that represents the gemstone. The elemental magic will be stronger based on the clarity and rarity of the gemstone. With some limitations, of course. You can read the full descriptions on your parchment.” She handed the sword out to John who hesitated before grabbing it.

“Go ahead,” Cara said. “You have a deal.”

John now excitedly grabbed it, inspecting every inch the moment it was in his hands. Wyn knew he was now tuned out of the rest of their conversation, too.

“Meet me here at 9 tonight,” Cara added. “You have until then to bring the rest of the Sun Spirals. Or I will get that sword back, one way or another.”

Tasha put her hand out. “We accept the deal and will meet you tonight.”

“This is better than I could have hoped for!” John said, hugging the sheathed sword. “What monster did you kill for it? Was it the boss on floor nine? Or from a group of champions? In an ancient temple, or maybe a secret underground cavern?”

Cara let go of Tasha’s hand after shaking it and smiled a wickedly sharp smile. “I didn’t find that sword. I made it.”