Shadewalker || ONC 2024

Chapter 14: To Know You Better

It was very, very late at night when Iris found herself standing outside the Shadewalker's Guild Hall for the second time that week.

"Remember," whispered Talan, but she didn't give him the chance to finish his thought.

"Yes, I know. No names." Iris huffed an uncomfortable sigh. The guild hall was the most secure place that Talan could think of at the moment. He and his father owned no property. They couldn't. And most of the nicer hotels in Lyndemar had already locked up for the night. They had passed a few seedy looking hostels on the way here, but Talan intended to leave Iris on her own while he investigated Tillerman's, that pub that Tilda Veil had spoken of.

There was one problem with the guild hall, however: all shadewalkers had access to it, including the Veil family. From what Talan had told Iris, she gathered that the Veils rarely dropped by, but it would still be best to keep her identity under wraps to prevent wagging tongues. Especially since the Veil family still had many close friends among those who typically frequented the guild hall.

"And you couldn't simply take me with you and hide me – make me invisible – like you had earlier?" she asked. She was already well aware that Talan's answer would be "no," but it didn't hurt to probe a bit further.

Talan rubbed his temples. "No," he said, as expected. "I doubt I could pull something like that off again tonight." He did look exhausted. Perhaps it was just the nearby gaslight's doing, but his cheeks now seemed hollow, and there was a grim set to his mouth that Iris hadn't noticed before.

The second part to his answer bothered Iris. A light frown tugged at her eyebrows, and she eyed him suspiciously. "How, precisely, does your shadewalker magic work?" she asked. "I'm aware that you manipulate light, but the specifics and limitations are unclear to me." She wanted to ask if he had exhausted his magic, and if it would even be safe for him to go to Tillerman's Pub, but she restrained herself.

"I'm not really sure how to answer that," said Talan. "I guess its like a muscle – it's a part of me that I just know how to use, but I still have to train it. And overuse can be...taxing."

"How taxing?"

"I'm not just a one-trick pony, if that's what you're asking, Iris. Dad leant me a few of his spells, and I'm just checking to see if Tilda is bluffing. I'll be fine on my own, but I wouldn't be able to hide you if you came with. Just promise me that you'll stay here."

Iris pursed her lips. She was still thoroughly unhappy with this arrangement and would much rather go with Talan. But he was right. Tillerman's Pub was clearly set up to be a trap for her, regardless of whether Tilda had her brother or not. And, as neither of them knew where their fathers had gone to search for Erold, it truly would be best for her to remain at the guild hall and direct Adrian to Tillerman's Pub should he return.

"Iris?"

"Yes, yes, I promise," said Iris with a frustrated sigh.

Talan nodded, nudged her forward and into the guild hall. The entrance was empty, but for an old man snoozing at the front desk. Talan held a finger to his lips, silently telling Iris to remain quiet, and led her down the same familiar hallway as Adrian had just days prior. They stopped in front of Adrian's office, and Talan unlocked the door with a worn brass key. He swung it open and gestured for Iris to enter.

Remembering how cluttered the office was with spells, Iris tread carefully and waited for Talan to light the lamp on his father's desk. When it finally came to life and the room brightened, Iris found a seat and scanned the walls, still in awe at the sheer number of spells that Adrian had managed to cram in here.

Talan held up the key once more. "I'm going to lock you in. Dad has the other key, and the door will still open from the inside in case there's an emergency and you need to leave. If Dad shows up again and I'm still gone, let him know where I went."