Venidus scowled and brandished the knife handed to him. He tried to look dangerous, but he began to snicker upon realizing how ridiculous he must look. It would have to do though and holding the weapon brought a certain reassurance. Venidus toyed with the idea of smearing some of his own blood on the knife for added effect, but that would come off as more serial killer than guard so he decided against the idea. He tossed the knife up and caught it. He tried to look casual but a moment later and the knife would have taken one of his fingers. “Vizyous Aconitum...” Venidus ran the name through his head. It had been a while since he was in Ravok, but names, especially those of Webs, were still fresh. “He is Web Aconitum’s kid that left a bit before I did. I doubt they were pleased, but my folks were pretty furious too. Staying in Kalinor is too much for some. I see we who leave as kindred spirits.” Maybe I should cut back on the personal information... but all of this was in the past. As long as I don’t divulge any information about my current work in Ravok, I will be safe... and smart. He began speaking of himself in an attempt to gain some information from his unlikely friend, “I couldn’t stay in that subterranean city any longer. I would have been pushed to take a surrogate as my own or go on a harvest! Completely unacceptable... To take the life of an innocent woman would be unfathomable. I say my birth mother is the only innocent person I’ve ever killed... Thinking that every one of my people are born murderers is quite chilling.” By the time he was done talking, they were out of the alley and in a slightly more populated canal area. He had found a nice slow rhythm to walk with that didn’t make him look entirely wounded. As suspicion continued to fade, curiosity began to bloom. Andry was a person from Zeltiva who had traveled to Alvadas and was now in Ravok. One does not simply end up in Ravok on a whim. The Symenestra gave a quizzical glance at Andry, “So what brings someone like you to Ravok? Alvadas is famed for illusions of the senses, but I warn you that Ravok fosters completely different types of illusions. Around you, you will see a city, but it is truly a coffin. You will see people who are happy, but they are merely blind. You will see virtues that are truly vices. Only the wicked and the most righteous find reasons to travel these streets.” |