Alain said he could find her. This would help prove whether or not that was true. Her common sense, which seemed to have almost deserted her, kept telling Mari that it would be far better if the Mage never showed up. Better for her, and certainly better for him.
But when he did appear, she couldn’t help smiling happily at seeing him. The Mage was also dressed as a common, and also carrying a bag which doubtless contained his Mage robes. “Good morning,” she said, feeling better.
He nodded back, one corner of his mouth twitching.
Had that been an answering smile? “I guess the thread didn’t break,” Mari added.
“No. It is a remarkable thing,” Alain agreed tonelessly, then he paused and tried to put more emphasis in his voice. “No, it did not break.”
“Great.” Mari held up a piece of paper. “I’ve got a list of places we need to look at. It’ll be a walk to get to the right parts of the city, but at least it’ll be downhill.” Mari pointed ahead, where the city of Dorcastle sloped down to the water in successive terraces of streets and defensive walls. “All of the places are located around the harbor.”
They walked through the crowded streets, having to deal with the unusual problem of commons who did not make way for either a Mechanic or a Mage. But no one cleared a pathway for two more commons. Wagons and carriages rattled by, the horses or mules pulling them one more type of obstacle to progress, and street merchants called out offers to them with an aggressiveness that Mari wasn’t accustomed to. She ignored them, since she wasn’t certain how a common would respond and didn’t want to give herself away as a Mechanic. For the same reason, Mari didn’t talk at all with Alain for fear his emotionless voice would give him away as a Mage. But as they passed commons she started noticing some of the commons giving her and Alain knowing or sympathetic looks. What was that about?
Mari stole a glance at Alain’s totally impassive face as he walked next to her. She knew she looked worn out and probably worried and— Stars above. The commons think Alain and I are a couple who have had a big fight. She felt her face warming with embarrassment. I need to work on that guy’s face. Not just his voice, the face, too. Both projects at once.
Planning that out at least kept her distracted until they reached the harbor.
Mari consulted her map, then led Alain along the waterfront to a section of piers screened by warehouses from the main harbor. They paused, looking at a large section of wooden pier which had been torn and buckled. Harbor workers and sailors passed the wreckage with curious or worried glances. Standing near the wreckage was a middle aged common wearing an old but serviceable chain-mail shirt that strained around a belly which reflected too many meals enjoyed too well. A small dagger and a wooden club hung from the guard’s belt, both as dilapidated as the mail shirt. Mari walked up to the guard with her most winning smile, trying to pretend that the guard was another Mechanic so she wouldn’t start ordering him around. “Is it all right if we look at this?”
The guard waved them toward the wreckage. “Look all you want. I’m just here to make sure no lackwit with his head in the clouds walks into the holes in the pier. Not much to see, though. There’s no dragons around. If there was, I wouldn’t be!” The common chuckled at his own joke.
Mari smiled obligingly and nodded in thanks. She and Alain went closer to the wrecked area. “Something definitely used a lot of strength here.”
The Mage bent down, gazing at the torn wood. “As we saw at the beach. Something has pulled these timbers out and broken them.” He pointed to the indentations of what seemed to be huge claws.
“Wouldn’t something capable of doing this be really large?” Mari asked. “Do you think someone saw it?”
“No one saw it,” the guard remarked. He had come to stand near them.
The familiarity startled Mari, who was used to the deference and distance commons always gave Mechanics. But she managed to cover up her reaction and look interested in the guard’s words.
“The warehouses block the view,” he continued, waving around to indicate the structure.–“But they heard it all right, over the sound of breaking wood. Hissing and moaning like the monster it was.”
“Hissing?” Alain asked.
“Yeah. You feeling all right, fella? Nothing to be scared of here now. Anyway, lots of hissing. These dragons are like big snakes, right?”
Alain made a gesture of ignorance. “Is that what they are?”
“Well, I’m no Mage, but that’s what I hear.” The guard grinned. “Of course, if I was a Mage you couldn’t believe what I was telling you, could you?”
“No, I could not,” Alain agreed, absolutely serious.
“Excuse me,” Mari interjected, trying to break up the conversation before the common figured out why Alain was so unexpressive. “Have you seen any Mechanics down here?”
The guard thought, scratching his head. “A couple, I suppose. Soon after it happened. They just looked around a little and then left. Like it wasn’t their business, you know?”
“They didn’t say anything? Ask any questions?”
“Mechanics? Say anything to the likes of me or you?” The guard laughed.
She hoped she didn’t look too uncomfortable at the guard’s blunt words. “They might’ve given some orders.”
“Orders? Nah.” The guard shook his head. “Like I said, they acted like it wasn’t no affair of theirs. I expect they’re happy seeing the Mages get raked over the coals about this. Why would they worry about whether you or me runs into a dragon or loses their job because the harbor’s closed?”
Mari kept her voice composed. “The Mechanics make a lot of money off the trade through Dorcastle. I understand they’re not happy about the harbor being closed.”
“Is that so? Hard to tell, since whenever one looks at me they’re always looking down, and I don’t figure they care about me any more than a Mage does. You know what I mean?”
“Yes,” Mari said after a moment. “I know exactly how it feels to be looked down upon. Thanks for your information.”
“No problem. Helps pass the time,” the guard replied with another smile.
As they turned to go, Alain faced the guard again. “Hissing? You are certain there was hissing?”
“Clear as could be, son,” the guard assured him. “Maybe you ought to lie down somewhere for a while. You might be sick. You look as blank as a Mage.”
“Come on,” Mari said, grabbing Alain’s arm and pulling him away from the guard. “What was that about?” she asked in a low voice as they walked away. “The hissing stuff?”
“Dragons do not hiss.”
“What do you mean, they don’t hiss?”
“They do not hiss.” The Mage spread his hands as if trying to pantomime something huge. “They are not like snakes at all. They have scales, but otherwise— ”
“Hissing,” Mari broke in. “What about the hissing?”
“They do not. I have been near two dragons, and the breathing sound they make is what you would expect from any very large creature. A big rumbling noise and the sound of the wind rushing in and out of their throats.”
Mari frowned. “Would a dragon hiss if it was working hard at something? Really exerting itself?”
“No. They need even more air when working hard. I know your locomotive creatures hiss at times, but do you know of any other creature which breathes through its teeth when it is in need of more air?”
“How do you know stuff about animals?” Mari asked.
The Mage lowered his gaze to the cobblestones of the street. “The farm I lived on as a young boy. The memories have been coming back to me in the last couple of weeks.”