Tales of the Tormented
27th of Fall, 512 A.V.
27th of Fall, 512 A.V.
The old inn was bustling with people today. Mostly travelers with dirt-covered clothes, worn boots and saddle soars. They came with their hardy wild tales of a dangerous journey that probably need happened and shared it with the whole building. Barmaids with skimpy outfits slipped past the cramped sweaty bodies of middle-aged men as they passed around foods and beers. In the center of it all were the innkeepers - a man and women in their mid-thirties with matching dirty aprons and a mop of oily blonde hair. The pair of twin was laughing along with their customers.
Floor boards creaked painfully as people moved across its weak structure. The wooden walls were starting to rot but the Jaena Twins were too cheap to replace them. The sad fireplace sagged on a wall, barely warming anyone. Yet, the place was flooded with customers anyway.
But underneath all those loudness and brightness, Levissa spied the darker world hidden under. The one she was more comfortable with. This place was filled with so many people that she could barely felt the chill of the dead, but she focused on them anyway. As soon as she willed it, the see through figures were all she could see. The dead mingled with the living, their translucent body passed through unknowingly. Ghosts filled this place almost as much as the living. Those restless souls who refused to follow the cycle wandered in this world – their numbers much more than anyone could imagine.
As much as the young Spiritist wanted to help them all, she knew she could not. It was just not possible. Dealing with a single ghost could take days or even weeks. What about tens? Hundreds? They were just too much and for now, the girl would pay no attention to them.
“You better pay your rent soon or you can move your pretty little ass to another inn,” Boris Jaena snapped at her as he slammed his big hand on the table. The weak thing groaned and Levi guessed it would break down at any second. “You better have the money, girly.” The sudden appearance of the man had surprised her, breaking her out of her own trance.
Boris Jaena was a big, plump man. He was quite the opposite of her sister who was as slender as any of the other barmaids. A scruff of beard decorated rather misshapen face. He probably thought it made him look tough – it didn’t. His stomach was threatening to burst from his trousers and Levi could never understand why he insisted on wearing the obviously small pair of pants.
Levi looked at the man critically and she could sense the hesitation in his eyes. She knew she had that effect with most people. Her encounters with the dead were reflected in he gray eyes, and any man who wasn’t blind would be able to see it. It was not like she was doing it on purpose. “You know I will. I always do. I am sure you can wait for a couple more days.”
“A couple more days?! Girl, I have a handful of wealthy travelers eyeing that little cottage you’re sleeping in and sweetheart, if you weren’t one my faithful customers, I would’ve kicked you out.”
The girl shrugged. “But I am and I promise you, a job will come to me sooner or later.” Levi turned her attention away from the innkeeper as the inn lowered its volume for the moment. It took her another moment to see what it was all about.
An old woman with snow-white hair entered the inn with a younger man with blonde hair. Of course, that was not what surprised her. It was their obviously expensive clothing that had succeeded to raise some questioning eyebrows. Those from the upper-class do not visit inns such as these – Levissa herself was an exception. Activities surged back in the room but she knew full well that a handful of these people were keeping their eyes on the rich pair. Foolish. Did they plan on getting jumped on? There were probably more than enough thieves and cutpurses in this building to rob them blind.
The pair scanned the room as if they were looking for someone in particular. And then, the young man laid eyes on the small figure of Levissa Certier and said something to the older woman. The woman tensed and immediately looked her way.
Levi smiled sweetly at the big-bellied man. “It appears that the job had come sooner.” Boris grumbled under his breath as the peculiar pair approached her. They both seemed a bit confused and unsure, like they were not even sure that coming here was such a good idea.
“Can I help you?” Levi offered with a raised eyebrow. She sat up straighter in her chair, having already guessed what business they might want in here.
The young man cleared his throat and narrowed his eyes at her. She did not understand what was his problem. “You are Levissa Certier?” Already, Levi decided she did not like the boy who barely looked older than her. “You're very . . . young.”
Levi folded her arms in front of her chest and leaned on the table. “Yes, I am. No need to sound so incredulous. And I’m quite surprised that you found me in the middle of all this mess.” It was not a new reaction to her. People said that
Now that they were close enough, Levi was even more astounded by the amount of lavishness they were showing. Were they trying to make a statement of some sort? A golden choker hung down from the woman’s neck while the man was wearing a colorful set of rings.
A crease formed between his light eyebrows. She swore she could see a pulse on his temple. “It wasn’t so hard finding you amongst these brutes,” the young man said rudely. He certainly had a death wish.His words did turn a few heads
The old lady gave a warning glance at him before she turned back to Levi. “Please do not mind my nephew. He likes to speak his mind without thinking. I am Ulna Hollar and he is Vatel Hollar.” The two people shared a glance before her face turned serious. She reached for the draping sleeves of her velvet red dress and fingered it nervously. “There are some disturbing ghosts in our old mansion and we hope you might be able to help us. They had been very disruptive of the activities we held there – ruining parties and whatnots. Not to mention, scaring our servants into quitting.”
“We need you to throw them out,” Vatel shot quickly. He shifted uncomfortably. He seemed really eager in leaving the place as soon as he could.
“How long had these ghosts been in your mansion?” Levi asked curiously. This seemed like the cases she usually dealt with. Some random old house with some previous residents who happened to refuse moving out.
Ulna fidgeted uncomfortably. “A few years.”
Levi could not help but raised an eyebrow at this statement. “And you’ve just decided to do something about it now? Why not long ago? Why now?”
“We . . . used to think that the ghosts would bring no trouble if we let them be.” An obvious lie. Levi was not good at the detecting lies but this one was just too obvious. A part of her wanted to find out what was these people hiding, but the professional part of her knew it was not her business. It didn't really matter to her. At least not now. She might need to find out about it if she wanted to get this work done.
All the while, Vatel was watching her oddly with a cool face, showing no emotion at all. It was quite disturbing if she had to admit - and Levi was used to handling some very disturbing things.
Ulna could probably sense Levi’s hesitation, for she abruptly added, “I am willing to pay for your services.” As the woman finished her sentence, the young man pulled out a small leather pouch and tossed it to the ghost hunter. Levissa gingerly opened the small bag. Her eyes widened the slightest bit. She hadn’t even started her job and they were giving her fifty gold mizas? Just how desperate were they? “There will be more if you succeed.”
“Let me get this right, you’re willing to pay me this much even though you had no idea whether I’m good at what I’m doing or not? I really appreciate the money, but I can’t help wondering.”
“Look, do you want this job or not?” snapped Vatel.
The young girl sighed. There was something fishy about all this but it was not like she had any choice. Ghost hunting doesn’t bring as much money as other normal jobs do and her money was thinning. She needed this. Even if there was some kind of secret behind it all. “It’s a deal.”
