what he can take, and thus honour the girl?â
âStrange to you, perhaps. In Staive Cintes any man who takes a girl⦠ravishes her as you say, would have the watch after him, and she would not feel honoured, far from it.â
âI do not understand at all, but I will not be going to this House of Cunt. Corbold, or Huin perhaps, will be able to provide advice.â
âHuin will be seeing to the nymphs. As to Corbold, ask him.â
Iriel turned to see the fat cook coming down the gangplank, his round red face split into a grin, only directed not at her, but at a dumpy Oretean woman who came straight to him, followed by a group of dozen well-fed children.
âCorbold will want to be with his family,â Luides remarked. âAs I will be with mine just so soon as I have my purse. If you wish to meet later, I will be at the House Taepenk, where you may taste black beer, sour bread, olives, honey cake and all the fine things of my land.â
He moved off as Captain Baltrank appeared with a bald old man in a robe of brilliant emerald silk. Iriel looked around, feeling somewhat lost. Aeisla and Cianna were together, with the Navigator Steithes, Yi with a group of riggers, Kaissia nowhere to be seen. At last she went to join the queue, tagging herself on to the very end. After a moment Aeisla called out to her, saying she would be at somewhere called Oxtanâs Yard. Iriel responded with a wave but stayed in the queue, waiting patiently until her turn came.
The bag given to her by Captain Baltrank proved to contain a number of coins, six silver pieces roughly the size of a thalar, five of copper, larger and heavier and a single piece of gold, thick, yet no larger than her thumbnail. Taking herself to one side, she carefully concealed the silver and gold in an inner pocket, put the copper in an outer and returned to the open quay. None of the other girls were visible, and she crossed the quay to the largest of those streets opening onto it, looking around herself in wonder and drinking in the strange sights, sounds and smells.
Everything was bright, intense, the sunlight so strong it hurt her eyes and shining from clear skies, no different from conditions at sea for the last few days but strange now that she was in a city. The scents were also stronger now that she was in the shelter of the street, spice and baking bread, fruit and meat, dung and decay, all so richer by far than in Aegerion. It was also odd to be so much taller than those around her, only the very largest of the men equalling her height, while no women came up to her chin.
As Captain Baltrank had promised, none accosted her, despite numerous curious glances, some admiring, some questioning, some shocked or even fearful. Several times she passed pairs of armed men in neat green and gold uniforms, but otherwise the citizens seem to go without protection, even the men, which seemed highly peculiar, yet none seemed to wish to take advantage.
Walking to the top of the low hill, she paused beneath the high white wall of what seemed to be a keep or palace of some sort and looked back. The street led arrow straight to the quay side, with the sea visible over the rooftops, cut by the masts of ships. Her confidence had increased, also her hunger, and she determined to sample some of the exotic delicacies Luides had spoken of, keen for anything so long as it was not lentils and spiced meat.
Her first enquiry produced only a puzzled glance, and she had to repeat her words several times, the woman she had stopped unable to comprehend her accent although there had been little difficulty with the seamen. At last she was shown towards a building, in the dim cellar of which she consumed two large mugs of the thick, potent black beer Luides had recommended before discovering that she was not in the House Taepenk.
The owner gave her instructions, which only resulted in her getting lost, and twice more she stopped at inns, each time ordering a mug
âStrange to you, perhaps. In Staive Cintes any man who takes a girl⦠ravishes her as you say, would have the watch after him, and she would not feel honoured, far from it.â
âI do not understand at all, but I will not be going to this House of Cunt. Corbold, or Huin perhaps, will be able to provide advice.â
âHuin will be seeing to the nymphs. As to Corbold, ask him.â
Iriel turned to see the fat cook coming down the gangplank, his round red face split into a grin, only directed not at her, but at a dumpy Oretean woman who came straight to him, followed by a group of dozen well-fed children.
âCorbold will want to be with his family,â Luides remarked. âAs I will be with mine just so soon as I have my purse. If you wish to meet later, I will be at the House Taepenk, where you may taste black beer, sour bread, olives, honey cake and all the fine things of my land.â
He moved off as Captain Baltrank appeared with a bald old man in a robe of brilliant emerald silk. Iriel looked around, feeling somewhat lost. Aeisla and Cianna were together, with the Navigator Steithes, Yi with a group of riggers, Kaissia nowhere to be seen. At last she went to join the queue, tagging herself on to the very end. After a moment Aeisla called out to her, saying she would be at somewhere called Oxtanâs Yard. Iriel responded with a wave but stayed in the queue, waiting patiently until her turn came.
The bag given to her by Captain Baltrank proved to contain a number of coins, six silver pieces roughly the size of a thalar, five of copper, larger and heavier and a single piece of gold, thick, yet no larger than her thumbnail. Taking herself to one side, she carefully concealed the silver and gold in an inner pocket, put the copper in an outer and returned to the open quay. None of the other girls were visible, and she crossed the quay to the largest of those streets opening onto it, looking around herself in wonder and drinking in the strange sights, sounds and smells.
Everything was bright, intense, the sunlight so strong it hurt her eyes and shining from clear skies, no different from conditions at sea for the last few days but strange now that she was in a city. The scents were also stronger now that she was in the shelter of the street, spice and baking bread, fruit and meat, dung and decay, all so richer by far than in Aegerion. It was also odd to be so much taller than those around her, only the very largest of the men equalling her height, while no women came up to her chin.
As Captain Baltrank had promised, none accosted her, despite numerous curious glances, some admiring, some questioning, some shocked or even fearful. Several times she passed pairs of armed men in neat green and gold uniforms, but otherwise the citizens seem to go without protection, even the men, which seemed highly peculiar, yet none seemed to wish to take advantage.
Walking to the top of the low hill, she paused beneath the high white wall of what seemed to be a keep or palace of some sort and looked back. The street led arrow straight to the quay side, with the sea visible over the rooftops, cut by the masts of ships. Her confidence had increased, also her hunger, and she determined to sample some of the exotic delicacies Luides had spoken of, keen for anything so long as it was not lentils and spiced meat.
Her first enquiry produced only a puzzled glance, and she had to repeat her words several times, the woman she had stopped unable to comprehend her accent although there had been little difficulty with the seamen. At last she was shown towards a building, in the dim cellar of which she consumed two large mugs of the thick, potent black beer Luides had recommended before discovering that she was not in the House Taepenk.
The owner gave her instructions, which only resulted in her getting lost, and twice more she stopped at inns, each time ordering a mug
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