Embers in the Dust

Gisela strolled briskly through the streets of Berkton. Through the docks, she passed around the academy and found herself in an upper-scale neighborhood. Turning the corner, she saw a row of businesses and made her way over to them. At the far end, Gisela saw a hanging sign with a depiction of parchment paper rolled into an open scroll. It was a small building but was connected to the large warehouse behind it. The door was open as people moved in and out of the building, so she slipped inside and glanced around.

At first, it would make sense as to why anyone would assume this to be a scroll shop, as the walls were lined with paper of various sizes and hues. She examined the sign above the desk on the opposite wall that said “Cecela, Inc.” Gisela stepped further in, allowing others to pass by her, then walked over to an older halfling gentleman.

“Hello.”

“Hi?” The man responded.

“I’m looking to see if you have any spell scrolls.”

“Wrong place. This is the Cartographer’s Guild. You’re gonna want to go down to The Runesmith. Two streets over.”

“Oh, okay. Thank you!” She said with a smile and a slight wave.

Exiting, she followed the halfling’s instructions and crossed through a couple alleys, where she saw a worn-down store. Gisela could feel the illusion magic that covered the building, and mentally agreed with herself that it was a great way to hide its true intentions. Instead of walking in, she stopped at the door and knocked.

“Come in!” An older, wizened voice called from within.

She opened the door and was shocked by the sight. It was multiple floors in height, which was not represented by the exterior of the building. Walls were lined with shelves, full of items, and glass displays were placed around in a maze-like fashion. Across the room, she saw an old genasi tinkering with an item on his desk.

“Good afternoon, sir. I was told that this would be the place to go for spell scrolls?”

“You are in the right place, miss. We have quite a lot of things here, and scrolls are just one of many. Granted, we only carry lower-level items, as they are mostly created by the students of the academy, and half of the funds go back to their tuition.”

“That sounds like a wonderful way to help those receive an education.”

“It’s an honest living. What are you looking for exactly?”

“Oh,” Gisela answered slowly. “A little of this and that. Do you mind if I look through your wares and bring them up when ready to purchase?”

“That takes away all the fun of selling items, but the chance of sitting here and keeping to my work does sound quite nice,” The genasi’s sarcasm was sharp, but light.

After an hour, she exchanged the weight of her pockets from gold to items, then said her farewell to the owner of The Runesmith. She saw one of the taller buildings for the academy in the distance and walked down the street until she could turn a corner and make a straight path to it. As she walked, she noticed the unease on many of the faces around her. She quickened her pace, and saw her friends entering the large building, which she assumed was the library.