IGNARUS

The streets of Shellgate were empty. It was a quarter past midnight, the air had the faint chill to it which made the town feel more sinister. Not that it needed any help, the fact that the town was perched on the edge of Dreadfield, a dark forest from where anything might crawl out and attack the unwary was enough to send people running.

Despite the late hour and the ominous aura, there was one place in Shellgate that remained open—a haven for the desperate and the daring.. The Clover's Den was an old rickety tavern, where one could find anything for the right price.

The shady two-story wooden building was built on tall stilts with a tin roof that was faded to a miserable shade of green which was as charming as the agonizing green rot that ate at the wooden doors that threatened to fall off their hinges at a drunken sneeze and a rickety staircase that had nearly been the death of more than one human trying to make their way home after a long night of drinking.

It is as dire inside as it is outside. The tavern was a refuge for those seeking solace or salvation in a glass. Wooden beams support the upper floor and dim lanterns cast feeble shadows across the worn wooden floor, while the air was thick with the scent of stale ale and unspoken secrets. The barkeep, a grizzled figure with a perpetual scowl, poured drinks with practiced indifference, his gaze sliding over the patrons without recognition or regard.

Taking a sip of the ale, I glanced impatiently at my watch. I was sitting in one of the booths in a secluded corner near the entrance. No one was fazed by the fact that a young girl was in place like this, here everyone minded their own business.

Not that I enjoyed hanging out in smoky bars, doing illicit business with people who are the underworld equivalent of drug dealers. Just because I had enough wits to keep a cool facade and act like I knew what I was doing did not change the fact that I was in way over my head. But I couldn't stop now, not when lives depended on me.

Just as I was about to give up and leave, I saw him.

Josef Morello, the short man with shaggy brown hair huffed as he slid into the booth across from me, he wore a shaggy coat which is far to big for him, over a dirt stained fabric that was once a shirt and a tattered scarf around his neck that was wrapped around his face in a way that covered his chin.

"You're late" I said, as he settled in.

"Now don't go biting my head off. I got other business to tend to besides yours you know." was his reply.

I glared at my watch and said "let me remind you that we decided to meet at midnight." annoyed by his attitude.

"I'm sorry, alright? Jesus you're an impatient one." sensing the mood he tried to placate me.

"You're not the only one with places to be." I said, still annoyed.

Giving me a dubious look as if he could not imagine what someone my age had to do that was so important.

"Alright then, let's have a look, where is it? ." he asked.

I took out the small glass vile from my jacket and slid it artfully across the table separating us, making absolutely sure only he would get a glimpse of its contents.

"Half an ounce, as promised." I said in a hushed voice.

Josef narrowed his malt green eyes as he leaned forward to get a better look. Then he straightened and did a quick sweep of the dimly lit tavern before settling back on me.

"Well, let's have it then." he said, making a grab for the vile but before he could, I pulled it out of his reach. "Payment first."

He made a petulant face as he slipped a hand into his coat, however his hand stilled. "This was very hard to come by, you know. How about ..."

"We had a deal, Morello!"

I should have guessed he would try to pull something like this. Not that I was deluded by his antiques. You don't survive in this business by being nice. I just didn't have the time for his games today.

I made a move to slide out of my seat when he asked "what are you doing?"

"What does it look like? If you don't want to do business with me I'll find someone else to do it with "

"Wait." He sighed and pulled out a small package wrapped in a dirty old cloth. Laying the package on the table, he slid it toward me. I did the same with vile. Making the exchange at the same time.

When my fingers closed around the package, I could feel it hum with power. A trait that only a few possessed, I lifted the cloth-wrapped box to my ear and shook it before sniffing it to confirm its contents.

Satisfied, I tucked it into an inside pocket and picked up my glass, taking a long sip of my drink to hide my eagerness to get out of there. It was never wise to appear desperate or hurried to people like Morello, you might as well paint a big red target on your back.

As Morello examined the small glass vile, his eyes glittered with excitement at the sight of the silvery- blue liquid that it contained.

I set my glass back on the table and inclined my head toward the vial. I said "I wouldn't show that off in public too much." But what I really wanted to say was, 'Put that goddamn stuff away before you get us both killed'.

"I don't need you to give me advice about my affairs" his unpleasant demeanor appeared as soon as the deal was done.

Deciding I had stayed long enough I slid out of my seat and turned to leave, when he called "Wait! I have some other items you might be interested in, if you can get more of this stuff, that is."

I stood and put my hand over the small bulge inside my coat. "I got what I came for. If I need anything else, I'll be in touch."

"You know, you're way too serious for a girl your age."

Choosing to ignore that comment I stepped out of the bar's gloomy interior into an equally eerie night, my hands trembled as I pulled up my sleeve to glance at my watch.

"Damn it." cursing Morello for running late. My business with him would all have been for nothing if I stayed here much longer.

Making my way through the streets into the isolated alleyway, I pulled my jacket closer, as the cold air deviously swirled around me making my hair a curly mess, strand of russet and brown sticking everywhere.

My hand still laid on the lump in my pocket and the weight of the responsibility I carried made me feel years older than any girl my age should feel. The purple bags that I've accepted as a permanent feature rest under my green eyes that are dull with tiredness, concealing the blue that normally peaked through.

After walking about twenty minutes, the alley ended near an old brewery that went out of business a few years ago. I climbed and jumped off in front of the padlocked gates. The 'No Trespassing' signs hung along the wire fence and the whole place had a sad, deserted look about it.

Behind the brewery was an assemblage of duplexes and two story houses, most of them needing a fresh coat of paint. What was once a thriving neighborhood, now remained more or less abandoned. Turning right I jogged down an empty street and slipped between the last two houses and ducked under a broken board in the fence of the very last one whose backyard spread out towards the edges of Dreadfield forest.

Slipping inside through the back door. "Noah, you here?" I called out softly.

It was dark in the house except for the dusty old oil lamps that spilled light into a short hallway adjoining the kitchen. I walked further down the hall and on my left was the closed door, I pushed the door and it swung inward on its creaky hinges.

"Noah?" I whispered loudly, trying to see through the dense shadows of the room. Silence greeted me. Where the hell is he?

I spun around to go back the way I'd come "Argh!"

I found myself face-to-face with a pale blue face with large glassy, honey colored eyes and a mop of shaggy gray-brown hair. I stumbled back and he reached for me, grabbing my shoulders in a strong grip that belied his slender build.

"Jesus, Noah!" I placed a hand to my chest as he steadied me.

"Are you trying to give me a heart attack?"

The demon gave me a lopsided grin, revealing a row of short sharp teeth.

"You too young for heart attack," he said with a fierce little smirk that would send a chill through anyone who did not know him.

Noah was a 'Keitha demon', a creature that dwelled in isolated woodlands and forests. Unlike most demon kind, they lived together as a family. The Keitha are considered very dangerous,they prefer to live far away from human habitation and are rarely helpful to humans.

"You late," he chastised.

"I'm sorry. Morello was twenty minutes late and I got here as fast as I could. How are they doing?"

"Not so bad. Tartus worried but I tell him if Mia say she get medicine, she will." He said, giving me an expectant look.

I smiled as I pulled the package from inside my coat to lay it in his eager hands.

Noah immediately turned and headed to the kitchen and I closely followed, curious about the contents of the package that had come at such a high price, I watched as he removed the cloth to reveal a small rectangular wooden box.

He lifted the lid and poured the contents out into a shallow stone bowl, then picked up a smooth rounded stone and began to grind. Moving closer I saw what looked like plain old beans, which left me dumbfounded.

"All this for just beans?" I asked exasperatedly.

He gave me a small smile and then just ignored me. Now more confused than curious now, I kept watching .

As Noah ground the beans into powder the pungent smell of rotten eggs and dried fish, I'd gotten a whiff of earlier grew stronger. I waved a hand in front of my nose. definitely not beans.

Noah called it "kovas" when he asked me to find it, he hadn't been very specific about exactly what it was, just that it came from some place in Avonna, a town near the sea. And that they contain mending properties.

He quickly reduced the beans to powder then he added a few drops of what looked like raw honey in the bowl and stirred the mixture with a wooden spoon to make a smooth, thick paste of the contents.

"Come," he said at last, carrying the heavy bowl along with him and heading for the stairs. I followed him quietly.