Vampire Girl

I spin around, my heart pounding. "I'm sorry, I thought I was alone."

Before me stands a tall, lithe man with long white hair and a long white beard. He wears white robes with symbols embroidered into them in silver thread. His face is unlined, though his eyes and hair give the impression of agelessness. And his ears are pointed. He looks different than the Shade. Less vampire and all Fae.

"You are never alone in here," he says. "This is my domain."

I hold out my hand. "I'm Arianna Spero."

He looks at my hand, but does not reach for it. Instead, he bows deeply. "It is an honor to meet you, Princess. I am Kal'Hallen, the Keeper of the Castle, at your service. You may call me Kal. Or Keeper."

"What does a Keeper do?" I ask.

He frowns at my question. "Why, he Keeps, of course."

Right. Obviously.

"I'm looking for information about the slave contracts in this realm. And anything I can find about how the slave trade works in this kingdom."

He nods and begins to walk down aisles while I follow. Balls of white light illuminate the large room. I point to one. "I've seen these everywhere. They are powered by magic?"

"Yes," he says.

"By you?" I guess.

His eyes widen. "How did you know?"

I shrug. "You look like the castle wizard."

His face pinches in distaste. "No. I am the Keeper of the Castle. Not a... " He flicks his wrist as if trying to get dog shit off his fingers... "wizard."

"But you are magic? You are Fae?"

He nods. "I am."

"Does that mean you too are a slave?"

He purses his lips. "There are no free Fae save for the Shade, and to call them free would be to play with the truth. All Fae are slaves to one degree or another in this world."

"And yet you are in a position of authority here?" He wears that authority in every step he takes.

"I am. Prince Fenris has bestowed upon me a great honor." We stop in front of a set of shelves lined with scrolls. "Now, what kind of information do you require, Princess?"

I tell him what I'm up to and he frowns again, but helps me. We spend the afternoon looking through books and scrolls and talking about the slave force in Inferna and how it's been exploited. "Why can't I just make it so Kara and Julian are paid?"

"Where would the money come from?" he asks.

"I don't know. Where does any of the money come from?"

"Each realm has its specialty. For Stonehill it is lumber and defense. For the Prince of Gluttony's realm it is food and herbs. There are also taxes on the cities and villages."

"So can't they be paid from those?"

He shakes his head. "The majority of our labor force are enslaved Fae. If we had to pay them all, there would not be enough funds to survive."

I shake my head. "There is a way. It might mean a disruption in the economic functioning of this kingdom for a time, but it is possible." I think of my own world, of how it must have been for the South to transition from slave labor to paid labor.

"You are talking about war, Princess. A disruption like that would lead to war, death, and the collapse of our government."

I sigh, frustrated, and close the book I have in front of me. "If I can't fix it for everyone, can I at least pay my own girls?"

Kal shrugs. "It would be up to you to find the funds. You are unlikely to pry it from the Prince. He keeps a firm hold on finances, particularly as winter nears."

"Why do the Fae not rebel? You speak of them as if they are not your people? But don't all Fae have magic?"

He leans in to whisper, as if to even speak of such things is treasonous. "Magic is strictly forbidden unless commissioned by a Prince directly, and even then only under supervision. Even I, Keeper of the Castle, cannot perform magic without Prince Fenris giving me a direct order to do so. Under penalty of death."

"But the only way that kind of rule works is if... "

Kal nods his head, and I frown.

The only way that kind of rule works is if the Fae have been put to death for using magic so often, they gave up trying.

It's late in the afternoon, and I need to stretch and get something to eat. I thank Kal for his help and promise I'll be back the next day for more research, then I head down to the kitchen to find a snack before I seek out Kayla.

I find her in her forge, working over the blazing fire while shaping a sword. I wait, watching, until she notices me and puts her work down.

She pulls off thick gloves and smiles to me. "Arianna! I hoped you'd come by."

"I wanted to see your work." It's not a small workspace, but it feels cramped with so much equipment, and hot with the fire blazing. Hanging from a wall and sitting on tables are swords, daggers, lances, arrow heads and armor and shields.

She walks over to me. "It's not much, but it'll do. I'm in the process of fulfilling Fen's sword order. The first step is turning iron into steel through carburization."

"Carburization?"

She holds up a large hammer and iron tongs. "I add a small amount of carbon through heat and hammering. Iron is malleable and ductile and can be easily welded and forged at high temperatures. Steel, though, is very tough and, once tempered, very hard and elastic. Perfect for making weapons."

I nod, taking it all in. "I have a favor to ask you," I say. My palms are sweaty and I'm not sure if it's nerves or the heat from the forge.