While there is a confirmed difference in the way men and women weave spells—women can usually weave faster and with fewer errors while men can weave patterns with greater complexity—it is rare to see a separation along gender lines in magic guilds. In the case of the Daughters of Ashira and Callium, the reasons for this divide can be found in their tumultuous history rather than in societal norms.

  Excerpt from 'Magic Guilds of Rios: The Age of Enlightenment'

  “He wants us to go where?” Jolene asked incredulously from behind her desk.

  Maria sucked in her cheeks while holding the latest letter from their Callium schemer.

  “The Den of Seven Delights,” she replied.

  Jolene huffed. “You are aware that that place is a brothel, right? And I don't mean like the last place we visited. I mean in a pay-for-pleasure way.”

  Maria rolled her eyes at Jolene. The Den of Seven Delights was the most well-known and expensive brothel in the entire city. There would be few people who had never heard of it.

  “He's testing us,” Maria said, “trying to verify our resolve. If we can't even will ourselves to step into a brothel, then how can we do anything more? It's not a problem to me.”

  Jolene rolled her eyes at Maria in return. “Isn't that convenient? He's probably a regular there.”

  “I'll just go by myself then.”

  “Oh, that's low.”

  “I'm going,” Maria said with determination. “Regardless of how often you tell me it's too suspicious.”

  “It is suspicious,” Jolene bristled. “The vendetta ends and then this guy just falls into our lap from nowhere? Am I really the only one here who thinks that is odd?”

  “You are not,” Maria said. “But as I said before, what would be the point if it isn't real? What could he hope to gain?”

  Jolene threw her hands in the air. “I don't know, defamation? Winning our trust for something else? Executing the plan as described, only with the result that we are the ones being arrested by the Royal Guard?” She shook her head. “We don't even know for certain if that guy really is a Callium magister.”

  Maria placed her elbows on the desk and leant her chin on her hands. This is getting us nowhere.

  She wanted Jolene to come with her. Not because Maria thought it was dangerous, but simply because her best friend's presence would give her comfort; despite her claim to the contrary, she did feel a little uneasy about having to enter a brothel.

  The real problem, however, was that Jolene had become increasingly resistant to the whole endeavour over the past few days. She simply could not believe that the presented opportunity to bring down Callium was real; she thought the sudden appearance of this Callium magister was too coincidental to be true.

  Her opinion stood in sharp contrast with Maria's, who remained adamant that the offer was genuine, a chance born from the chaos and volatility the city had suffered the past few weeks.

  It can't be a trap, either. I can't think of anyone who would hold a grudge against me; besides, if it really is a trap, shouldn't they be far more eager to lure me in? Why send me to a brothel?

  She pored over the letter again. The writing was the same as the previous letter and the dense, flourishing text definitely belonged to a magister.

  But who?

  “Maria,” Jolene said with a raised voice. “Are you listening?”

  With a jolt Maria sat upright in her chair. “I'm sorry, what did you say?”

  “I said that if you insist on this madness, I want to know who it is we are dealing with. If that man really is one of Callium's inner circle, then we need to know.”

  She wonders about the very same thing. “If he is, would you feel it's legitimate?”

  Jolene paused for a moment as she mulled over the question. “I would retain my doubts,” she eventually said, “but I would continue to support you in that case.” She raised a finger. “However, if the person is some random nobody then I'm done, and if you are not, I will tell Magistra Kannados about it.”

  Maria saw the determined look on Jolene's face. It was obvious she felt very strongly about this.

  “That is acceptable,” Maria said. “If our schemer is indeed somebody we have never heard of or if he refuses to reveal himself, I will call the entire thing off.”

  Jolene's shoulders dropped a bit as she relaxed. “I'm glad. Let's get ready then; it's not much longer until midnight.”

  Maria felt glad as well. “I've already prepared most of my things, so we can go shortly.” She stared at her stuffed satchel for a moment. “Though I would like to know where the Den actually is.”

  “You don't know?”

  “Do you?”

  They stared at each other for a moment and then both laughed.

  “This place isn't anything like I imagined,” Jolene said as she inspected the building across the street.

  They had decided to survey the place first before going inside, and were hiding in a dark porch nearby. The Den itself was one of several four-storey houses that were jammed side by side in Seastone Coast, one of the older parts of the city.

  “What did you expect?” Maria asked.

  “I don't know, something more gaudy maybe? This looks like a regular residence. Are you certain this is the right place?”

  “See those lights above the door?” Maria asked, giving a nod towards it. “One small light and a larger one beneath?”

  “Yes?”

  “That's the symbol for a brothel, or at least the more upscale ones.”

  “And you know this how?” Jolene asked, bemused.

  Maria made a throwaway gesture with her hand. “My older brother told me about it when one opened up two doors down from his workshop. He wasn't very pleased with it.”

  “It looks like we will know for certain in a moment,” Jolene said, nodding in the direction of two men approaching the building.

  Maria saw them. They were dressed in common clothing and their bearing betrayed their nervousness.

  When they arrived at the house they swiftly ascended the short stairs that led to the door. Before they had even reached the top step the door swung open, bathing them in light and giving Maria a good look at their faces.

  That's not very anonymous, she thought, though she did not recognize either of them.

  The two men filed inside and the door closed behind them, leaving the street dark again.

  “Well, let's go,” Maria said. “It's almost midnight and if we stand around here much longer we might start to look suspicious.”

  “Might?” Jolene said as she tugged briefly at the hood that covered her auburn hair. “Too late for that.”

  Maria pouted and exhaled before crossing the street with Jolene shadowing her.

  As before, the door swung open before Maria reached it, revealing a well-lit room behind.

  She stepped inside without hesitation and found herself in what appeared to be the reception area of the Den.

  There were several soft pillowed lounge chairs placed in the room, all empty. The men who had entered before them were nowhere to be seen. The only people present were five attractive young people, three women and two men, all dressed in matching soft red tunics with a white shirt beneath. The men wore black trousers and the women knee-length skirts of the same colour.

  It's more spacious and cleaner than I expected, but aren't they dressed too conservatively to be prostitutes?

  “May I take your cloaks?” a sparkling female voice said from behind Maria.

  Maria turned around and saw another young woman, the one who had opened the door. She was dressed in the same way as the other five.

  “Yes please,” Maria said. Both she and Jolene were wearing common dresses underneath instead of their guild robes, as they would have made their identity far too obvious.

  One of the two young men, a light-skinned Duster with blond hair, approached them with a wide smile. “I am Asir,” he said with a curt bow. “Is this your first visit to the Den?”

  “It is,” Maria said, fidgeting nervously with one of her sleeves, “but we are not here for the services this place is known for.”

  Asir moved his arm around in a wide gesture. “We have many services on offer here, and all are known by one or the other. Perhaps you could be more specific?” He again beamed a smile at Maria, who had to keep herself from blushing under his intense green-eyed stare.

  Where do they find handsome guys like this?

  Jolene stepped forward. “We are looking to meet someone here. A man called Dauzon.”

  Maria nodded without saying anything. Dauzon was the name the letter had said they should ask for.

  “A meeting,” Asir nodded. “If you would follow me, then.”

  With a precise step he moved towards a nearby door and opened it, allowing Maria and Jolene to step through before following them.

  Maria gasped at the sight before her.

  Through the door she had stepped onto a balcony, which overlooked a large room lying beneath. Broad pillars supported the ceiling with thick wooden beams running between. The furniture and layout suggested that it was a dining room, although there was nobody present at the moment.

  “Is there a problem, madam?” Asir asked, noticing Maria's reaction.

  “No, no,” Maria said. “I was just surprised by the size of the room.”

  “Ah, yes,” Asir said. “I can see why that would be confusing. The Den is indeed much larger inside than it appears from the outside.”

  The surrounding houses must be part of the Den as well.

  “Is this a ratskeller?” Jolene asked, equally surprised at the sight.

  “Indeed it is,” Asir said. “Though the main kitchen is closed at this hour, I'm afraid.”

  Main kitchen? They have more than one?

  This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

  “I always thought this place was a brothel,” Maria said.

  “It is,” Asir replied, “though that's only one of our services. This is the Den of Seven Delights, after all. Offering only one delight would not do.”

  “I see.”

  “If you are looking for companionship, I can have that arranged for you immediately,” he added suggestively.

  “No, no,” Maria said hastily. “That's alright; we are only here for the meeting.”

  “Of course,” Asir replied with a polite smile. “If you would follow me again, please.”

  They rounded the balcony and then ascended a small stairway that ended in a hallway that ran parallel to the room. Directly opposite the top of the stairs was a small alcove where an elderly woman was seated. She was dressed similarly to Asir, though with a more conservative cut that befitted her age, and the tunic she wore was a deep shade of blue rather than red.

  Asir briefly spoke with the woman and then directed them down the hallway. They passed several doors, each of which was named after a bird with an accompanying hand-painted picture.

  This place isn't at all what I expected. It's almost like I'm inside a huge mansion.

  Asir finally stopped in front of a door depicting a colourful male pheasant and knocked.

  “Who is it?” a male voice called. Maria recognized it. It was the same voice as last time.

  “Your guests have arrived,” Asir replied.

  “Enter.”

  Inside the room Maria was greeted with a similar sight as their last meeting, though this time the contents were a good deal more lavish. The cupboard here was filled with clean glassware and made from solid oak. There were several paintings depicting pheasants spread out over the different walls and even a stuffed one in the corner of the room. The only thing that was unchanged was that the man himself was wearing the exact same outfit as before.

  Doesn't he have any other clothes?

  “If you need anything, just pull this cord,” Asir said, pointing towards a long braided rope with a tassel at the end. He closed the door behind him as he left.

  “Welcome,” the hooded man said. He appeared more at ease than last time.

  Maria and Jolene seated themselves on the opposite side of the table and Maria opened her satchel to retrieve some papers.

  Jolene did the same, only she pulled several scrying stones from her bag.

  The hooded man eyed them with disdain. “I see you still have reservations.”

  “Wouldn't you in our place?” Maria said, placing the last of her papers in front of her.

  The man chuckled. “In your place I would not have come here a second time if I didn't trust it.” He waved his hand. “But forget about that; you are here, so I suppose you have some questions for me.”

  “We do,” Maria said. There were several things she wanted to ask about, but the first thing she needed to do was establish the identity of the hooded man in front of her. Without that, there would be little point in talking about anything else as this entire scheme would come to an end.

  She paused for a moment and drew a deep breath. If he doesn't answer this, the scheme is done.

  “The first thing we need to know is who exactly you are,” Maria said. “I know you are unwilling to reveal your identity, but as you will have to eventually for us to fulfil our end of the deal, we want to know now. If you do not reveal yourself, then we are done here.”

  “Just like that?” the man asked calmly.

  “Yes,” Maria said with determination. “Just like that.”

  “Very well,” the man said. “I suppose this was ultimately unavoidable.” He reached up to his hood. “Keep in mind that there is a reason I chose this place for this meeting. The employees have been instructed to make certain I leave in the same way I came. Alone and unharmed.”

  Maria narrowed her eyes slightly and glanced at Jolene, who had reacted similarly. Why is he so worried about us doing something to him?

  He pulled back his hood and scarf, revealing a man in his late thirties with brown hair that was starting to turn grey. His blue eyes regarded Maria with calm expectation.

  Maria immediately recognized his face, though she was confused about where she had seen him before.

  Then it hit her.

  “You?!” she exclaimed.

  “I'm glad to see you recognize me,” the man said. “Though it would be hard not to, considering the amount of posters with my face spread throughout the city.”

  He's Karan de Ekkar. Maria's world was spinning. She had expected many people underneath that hood, but not him.

  He didn't flee from the city?

  “Well?” Karan asked. “Are you going to continue gawking? Or is my appearance not to your satisfaction?”

  “So that's why you hid,” Jolene said, with a sharp voice. “You're a criminal.”

  “That's a rude thing to say.”

  “You released a ghast on the city!” Jolene retorted, her voice rising. “And you say I'm rude?”

  “You make accusations while knowing little to nothing about the situation. If that's not rude, I don't know what is.” The former Callium magister appeared unmoved by Jolene's anger.

  Maria gave Jolene a short kick beneath the table. Now isn't the time to be indignant.

  “Do you mind us checking you for the presence of glamours or other forms of illusions?” Maria asked. “I want to make certain it is you.”

  “Go ahead, though I want to see your scrying stones before you use them.”

  Maria nodded to Jolene, who brusquely handed Karan the scrying stones before rising and walking around the table.

  “Well,” Karan said to Maria, after finishing his inspection of the stones. “Any more questions apart from who I am?”

  “Yes,” Maria said, as Jolene started scrying. “What happened at the White Candle? You were inside the sanctum, so you must know.”

  “I regret to disappoint you, but I was not inside the sanctum,” Karan said, not sounding sorry at all. “My part in the plan to steal the spelltomes from the sanctum was merely a diversionary one. Anything else you heard are Callium fabrications intended to absolve themselves of responsibility.”

  “You weren't inside? But someone must have been.”

  “My two so-called conspirators were inside, among others. They were the ones who retrieved the tomes.”

  “And the White Candle magistrae?” Maria asked in an almost pleading tone.

  “Gone,” Karan said. “No bodies or anything of the sort. Just that ghast.” He sighed. “Look, the exact details of that night are not pertinent to why we are here. All you need to know for now is that Callium has those tomes.” He lifted some papers and revealed a small tome beneath them. “So to prevent losing any more time over this, here is the validation you are looking for. A spelltome from the White Candle sanctum.”

  He handed Maria the tome and she accepted it with a slightly trembling hand.

  Is this real?

  She quickly thumbed through the tome and confirmed it within the first couple of pages. This is indeed a spelltome!

  “That could be anything,” Jolene said pointedly, still waving a scrying stone around Karan's head.

  “Feel free to take it with you and investigate it in your own time,” Karan said. “I have no use for it myself. You will find, however, that it is genuine.”

  Maria skipped through the pages until Jolene announced she was done with the scrying. “There is no sign of any sigils, wakes or other patterns.” The look on her face, however, showed that she still did not trust the fugitive Callium magister one bit.

  So it really is him, Maria thought. That answers one question at least.

  “Now that you have established that I am who I say I am, can we get started?”

  “Alright,” Maria said as Jolene reseated herself next to her. “Where do we begin?”

  “The list I sent you,” Karan said with a faint smile. “How much of it can you manage to arrange within the next few days?”

  Maria had no idea how long they had been in the room. Jolene had called for a server several times as they emptied the available decanters of sandwine and water. Karan had told them about the place where the spelltomes were hidden in great detail. It was a very secure haunt: wards; warning sigils; traps; and guards, both animal and human. It even had not one, but two means of escape. A tunnel and a blackshift anchor.

  At her own end, Maria had already made some arrangements. She had spoken to several fellow magistras over the past few days, people she could trust and who had fervently supported the vendetta alongside her. Securing the needed runestones, however, was a bit more difficult. While they could always weave a spell instead of casting it, Maria was hesitant to resort to that. Especially considering that several of the magistras in her group were young and trained in an age where runestones were commonplace. Their weaving speed and accuracy would be lacking.

  Even so, Maria felt confident that she could secure the required runes, provided she took some liberties with the guild's supply. A small price to pay.

  All in all, the plan as proposed by Karan was solid and Maria could find no real fault with it. They would keep the haunt under watch; wait until one or more of Callium's inner circle showed up; and then proceed to call in the Royal Guard while preventing anyone from leaving the haunt.

  The only downside was that the plan needed to be executed soon, preferably within the next couple of days lest they risked the spelltomes being moved somewhere else.

  It sounds easy enough, Maria thought as she emptied her cup. Even Jolene's worries seem to have evaporated.

  The atmosphere had become more relaxed as well. It was obvious Magister De Ekkar was an intelligent man and his personality fitted the situation. He was concise, efficient, and didn't allow his mind to wander to other topics.

  If I had to plan something like this with one of the guild's magistras it would have taken three times as long.

  “That's everything, then,” Karan said. He seemed very pleased with himself.

  “It's not everything,” Maria said as she pulled out a map and placed it in front of him. “You still haven't told us where it is.”

  “I will tell you,” he said, “the moment I have your final commitment.”

  Maria already had her mouth open to respond when a kick at her shin caused her to close it. She threw a glance sideways to Jolene.

  What?

  “Can you give us a moment to speak in private?” Jolene said.

  Karan nodded and got up from his chair. “I need to pay a visit to the lavatory anyway.”

  After he left the room, Maria turned to Jolene. “What?”

  “What?” Jolene repeated. “You are asking me what? I want to know if you are going to agree with this.”

  “I see no reason not to; the plan is solid.”

  “I'm not talking about the plan,” Jolene said with a pained expression. “It's you I'm worried about.”

  That surprised Maria. “Why?”

  Jolene paused for a moment. “Because I'm not certain you are in your right mind for this. You are too eager to hurt Callium. I feel it clouds your judgement, causing you to storm ahead without thinking.”

  Maria shook her head in bewilderment. “How is that different from before? My mindset hasn't changed at all. During and before the vendetta, you never mentioned this.”

  “The vendetta was different. That wasn't just you, that was all of us who worked together for that.” She weakly gestured towards the many papers on the table. “But this, I feel this is just you, and the rest of us are only being dragged along.”

  Maria moved from bewilderment to astonishment. Doesn't she see that this is the opportunity of a lifetime? I don't understand at all.

  Jolene continued. “I mean, he wants to execute this plan within a few days. Don't you think that's too soon?”

  “That's more than enough time to prepare,” Maria replied. “It's not like we're going to do anything dangerous.”

  “Aren't we? With so little preparation, can you say with absolute certainty that nobody is going to get hurt?”

  Maria hesitated.

  “No, I can't,” Maria said eventually. “But if we don't move fast, the chance might pass.”

  “And so what if it does? I'm willing to accept that Magister De Ekkar is who he says he is and that he knows a lot of things that could damage Callium. We can use that information and work with it through proper channels rather than going ahead with this.”

  “That won't be enough,” Maria snapped. “They will squirm and spin around everything we throw at them and nothing will change. Don't you remember how they managed to be the ones that were in charge of breaching the White Candle sanctum to begin with? Unless we do this it will not end.” The volume of her voice had increased and she was almost shouting now, her face red and her heart beating rapidly.

  Jolene did not say anything. She just sat there, staring at Maria with wide open eyes, her arms folded in front of her.

  They stayed like this for a few moments until the door opened and Karan re-entered the room. He didn't seem to pick up on the tense atmosphere; he sat down without a care and looked at Maria.

  “So? What shall it be?”

  After one last glance at Jolene, Maria's mouth became a thin line and her gaze intensified. “We commit to doing this.”

  Jolene did not say anything, but Maria did not care. This is the right thing to do. After it is done, she will see I was right.

  “Excellent,” Karan said, turning to the map Maria had lain out earlier. His eyes shifted across it as he noted the pencil-drawn numbers.

  “What are these?” he asked.

  “They're ?ther pressure and volatility levels,” Maria said, annoyed by the distraction. “They're irrelevant. Just tell me where the haunt is.”

  Karan stared at the map a bit longer, glancing from one set of numbers to the next.

  Hurry up, those numbers don't matter.

  With a deliberate gesture, Karan put his finger down near the edge of the city. “Here.”

  Maria looked at the map. “One of the ring mansions?”

  Karan nodded. “Number twelve, to be exact.”

  Maria mirrored his gesture. That makes sense. It's secluded, near the edge of the city, and has enough room to perform experiments. A good location to decrypt the spelltomes in secret.

  “Excellent,” Maria said. “I will make the appropriate arrangements.” She tried to pull the map back towards her, but Karan stopped her.

  “Are these numbers recent?” he asked pointing at one of the sets on the map.

  Why does he care? “Yes, they are. Why?”

  “Nothing in particular. It's just that some of these numbers seem higher than I expected. They are fixed location readings, I assume?”

  “Yes,” Maria said, “but they have been fluctuating up and down and I only started noting them when the vendetta started. The sample size is too small to tell anything.” She glanced at Jolene who sat silently, staring at the map. Her earlier vigour seemed to have left her completely.

  A stab of guilt pierced Maria's heart. Oh Jolene, why can't you trust me in this? It will end years of Callium aggression in one fell swoop. Why can't you understand that it will all be worth it?

  “I see,” Karan said, releasing the map.

  “One more thing,” Maria said as she started to gather her things. “How do we keep in contact? Sending a letter isn't very convenient and draws too much attention.”

  Karan raised his index finger and waved it once. “Right, I forgot about that.” He reached into his tunic and retrieved a pair of runestones. “Do you know how signal stones work?”

  “I do,” Maria replied. “But I'm not particularly familiar with any of the languages used.”

  “Just stick to basic signalling,” Karan said, handing her one of the stones. “I'm not planning on having lengthy conversations through these. If you are in the Seventh District, you should be able to reach me.”

  “You are hiding in the Seventh District?”

  “It's as good a place as any.”

  “Where are you staying?” Maria asked as she stuffed the small spelltome Karan had given her into her satchel.

  Karan let out a stifled laugh. “If only I could remember.”

  Maria raised an eyebrow. What's that supposed to mean?

  She did not press him any further on it, however. It's not like he would just tell me where he hides himself.

  “I will take my leave, then,” Karan said, getting up. “Please wait here for a brief while after I leave the room. The employees of the Den were instructed to stop you if you attempt to follow me.” He held up his signal stone. “I will use this to signal when it's okay to leave.”

  After hiding his face again and bidding them a curt goodbye, he exited the room, leaving Maria and Jolene in an awkward silence.

  “Aren't you going to say anything?” Maria asked.

  “What is there to say?” Jolene said with a tired voice. “It's obvious you've made your decision.”

  “I have,” Maria said. “But that doesn't mean I don't value your advice.”

  Again Jolene did not respond for a short while. “Forget it,” she eventually said. “I just want to sleep now. I'm going to need the rest for the coming days.”

  She isn't happy, but it seems she is going along with it. It's probably because it's late. I'll speak to her again in the morning.

  The signal stone on the table vibrated once and Maria picked it up to send an acknowledgement.

  Soon...