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As he traversed the damp, dingy alleyways in the heart of The Trenches, Evan adjusted his hood over his face and gripped his bag closer to his body. He climbs down the steep stairway leading to a dark corner where he faces an old, rusted metal door with a slit and no handle.
Bang, bang, bang.
He slammed his fist against the door repeatedly in a specific rhythm. Not long after, the slit opened to a set of mildly red eyes looking back at him.
Evan puts his hood down to reveal his face. The man recognizes him, the slit slams shut, then after several seconds of the sound of various locks and metal, the door opens, and he steps inside.
As he stepped inside, the sound of loud, blaring music overlaying the bustling, chaotic crowd of punks, gangsters, and rowdies gathered around bars, cage fights, and betting tables. He glances around before heading over to the rickety old cage — old, worn-out sigils poorly taped to the outside to prevent some of the spells from harming the people watching.
He pushes through the sea of people surrounding the arena until he gets a good view of the fight unfolding. He riffles through his bag and takes out his worn leather notebook, skimming to the newest blank page as he begins to observe the hands and motions of the fighters in the cage.
The first fighter swirls his hands in precise motion as a burning red orb of energy articulates before suddenly igniting into a burst of fire, pushing it at his opponent, who quickly deflects with a crystalline shield generated from his hands, causing the fire to disperse and hit the cage walls beside them. The sigils glow bright as they guard the cheering audience from its fury. The second fighter pushes his hands out, sending a crack through their shield, bursting it into sharp blades sent flying at his opponent, who swiftly dodges.
The first fighter raises his fist before slamming it onto the ground, making the ground in the arena shake and crack open. His opponent climbs up the bars of the cage until the ground closes back up. The second fighter drops down as he brings both hands to his chest before pushing them away; he lands and shatters into glass-like shards. The audience gasps in surprise. The first fighter drops his stance and looks around him, when suddenly his opponent reforms behind him and pushes them, using his magic to send the first fighter flying into the bars of the cage.
He falls to the ground as the crowd erupts into a mixture of cheers and groans. Evan finishes the notes in his book and conceals it back into his bag as he maneuvers through the crowd once more towards the exit, when suddenly everyone hears a loud thud! The music immediately cuts off, and everyone goes silent, when the man at the door runs over and yells, “It’s the Knights!” Everyone scrambles, packing their èlixars, money, and other belongings as a loud boom fills the room. Evan looks over and sees the rusted door blown open, and standing in the doorway were the Knights.
erupts as everyone begins to scatter for the exits, and the knights grab, chase, and arrest anyone they could. Evan pulls his hood back over his head as he tries to sneak away, hiding behind tables and bars, only for one of the Knights to spot him. Evan gets up and books it to one of the exits; a small group of Knights following close behind him.
As he runs through the alleyways in a panic, he pulls out his notebook and begins frantically flipping to a random page following the directions he wrote down. First bringing one of his hands up as he warms up his magic, then sloppily swirls his hand, making an orb of white energy before turning and throwing it towards the Knights, making a strong gust of wind that, by mistake, knocks him over, his hood falling back and revealing his face. The Knights grab him and pull him up, “We got you now!” One of them sneers when their eyes suddenly go wide, “Wait, you’re an Ozbane!” They say in shock.
“Shit,” Evan thought to himself, as he sighed, “Yeah, I am.”
“What are you doing down here in The Trenches?” Another one of the Knights asks, giving Evan a skeptical and confused look.
“I was,” Evan pauses, trying to quickly think up a lie, “I was looking for a friend.” He finally says.
“A friend?” The Knight repeats, now even more skeptical.
“Yes! Yes, a friend,” Evan says a little too quickly, “He wanted to show me something cool down in The Trenches; I had no idea it was that kinda place.”
“So, you’re saying you had no idea it was an illegal hot spot?” The first Knight asks gruffly, leaning back and crossing their arms.
“Yes, that is what I’m saying,” Evan sighs, pointing in agreement at the Knight, relieved that they seemed to be buying his story, “I tried to leave as soon as I realized, but that’s when you came in, and I got scared and ran.” He stutters out.
“Uh-huh,” A third Knight speaks up, “and what about that spell that backfired?”
Evan chuckled nervously, “Again, panic. I was just flipping through my book, and that was the first spell I saw, and I didn’t want anyone to get hurt, so I thought it was the best one to use.”
The Knights all looked at eachother then back at Evan, who was sweating and fidgeting with his hands nervously, “Hm, alright then.” The first Knight sighed, “Just don’t do it again.”
Evan sputters in surprise, “You’re letting me go?” He asks, still not completely believing the Knights fell for his shitty made-up lie.
“Yeah, we’re letting go,” The second Knight says, “but you’re not fully off the hook; you’re still expected to pay a fine.” They said bluntly.
“How much is the fine?” Evan asks, shakingly, through gritted teeth.
The first Knight dismissively waves his hand, “Eh, nothing too much that an Ozbane like yourself can’t pay.”
“It’s five thousand Jade chips.” The third Knight says in a casual, almost lazy tone as they snap their fingers, making the fine ticket appear, and hands it to Evan.
“Great,” Evan says, clenching his teeth more, “I can definitely pay that.”
The first Knight nods, “Very well, have a good day, sir.” The Knights walk away, leaving Evan alone in the alleyway. “God damnit!” He thought to himself as he stomped out of the alley and stepped into the dimly lit streets of Willow's Peak. Despite its name, there were hardly any willows or peaks in sight, but it was the place he considered home nonetheless.
“How am I going to afford this?” he grumbled to himself as he walked along the slightly cracked road. “I could barely pay my rent last month!” He dragged his hands down his face in frustration when, suddenly, a pebble landed on his head. “Ouch! What the hell?” He rubbed the back of his head and looked around for the source of the pebble. That’s when he spotted a cardinal perched on one of the roofs. He found it odd since Wilkeshamp doesn’t have the right climate for cardinals. Was it just his imagination, or was it staring at him? Evan watched the cardinal, bewildered by its presence, as it suddenly took off and flew away. He rolls his eyes and sighs, “Y’know what, I need a drink.” He says as he makes his way to the nearest pub.