The morning was swiftly gone and Harken felt no shame in the late start after the fun he’d had. 

As he made his way out the door though, he couldn’t help but indulge his shadier side. He quickly snooped through the office, careful to check if there was any intel he could glean from any paperwork there. But when he found little of interest he instead took a guild request he could tell had been set aside for someone else.

It was a hunter for a pair of crooks, low life thugs he recognized from the image magically shifting on the page. It was the two men who had jumped him last night.

He rerolled the scroll with the signet fingers from each man from his bag and placed it back in his bag.

“No sense in the request for justice going unanswered completely.”

He would have to find a Killer’s Guild chief to turn it in for the reward. The Hunters Guild didn’t pay out on kills for non monsters, but that was fine, a few questions around the next town and he’d pull in a couple gold for the work.

Thanks to~

“Crap, Sparrow.”

He pulled his wand out and waved it, the bands on the wand dark.

After a second though, the ghostly smoke image of the little bird appearing on the wand tip.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to forget you.”

Sparrow didn’t seem to care though, and instead just turned back into smoke and curled away on the wind, the bands on his wand glowing once more as he returned.

Harken thanked Sparrow and slid his wand back up his sleeve amongst his blades. He then made his way out to talk to Moon.

Moon was still there, thankfully as placid as always.

“Thanks for being a good sport old friend.”

Moon raised an eyebrow.

“What?”

“The bargain?”

“Oh, yes, Caloon. I get it, they have one of those Lovenest inns, but, you know it’s not like a brothel? There’s no guarantee you’ll~”

“You just worry about getting a unicorn you can trust mast~ uh, Harken; and I’ll worry about how I spend my gold.”

Harken couldn’t help but chuckle.

“That’s fair, I yield to your sense. Well then, I suppose I shall go bugger off, and look for a unicorn.”

“Geeze, you go bugger all the unicorns you want, I’ll just be here guarding your gear.”

“Not how I meant it,” Harken growled, “But I am off.”

“Go on then, git.”

“Must you have the last word fool?”

“Must I?” The raised eyebrow said all he needed.

Harken already knew he would not win this conversational joust any easier than he did any other argument the two ever had, so he just put up his hands and walked off.

Harken knew Moon well, he knew the old man would pull more than his own weight, and keep his secrets emphatically. That was all he wanted now, someone he could trust.

He made his way then to the dealer he had been told about, carefully taking the major streets and no alleys, while still avoiding crowds where he could.

No ever avoided being an easy target, by standing in a crowd.

He made stops along the way, finding a few things he’d need for the trip, even finding some decently sized pears. They weren’t apples, but Harken knew that Moon liked them, and honestly so did he, so he bought a dozen, stuffing them carefully into his bag and carried on.

He found his way to the stables with only stopping one more time, and was just walking up to the doors when the eleventh bell rung. A few slaves were already at work, not as well kept as the merchandise for sure. Harken almost had to hold his breath as a man walked past, leading a tall looking stallion past into the pen.

“YOU CAN’T MAKE ME!”

The sudden scream made Harken jump, a flourish of his wrists and two blades came to his hands. The slave beside him dropped to his knees, cowering in a ball.

Three huge ogres backed up into the yard, dragging a tall stallion by chains.

The unicorn was black as pitch, coat glossy and shining in the high sun. His horn practically glowed, bright and burnished like solid gold, it wasn’t huge but he was still a more than impressive beast, and his fiery temper carried high.

His slave collar was heavy, and appeared to be actively asserting itself on him, yet he didn’t even flinch, taking the pain in stride and roaring back at it.

He stomped his hooves, but didn’t kick or lash out, just stomped and pulled.

But his resistance didn’t last.

One of the ogres, a woman by her build, stood up tall, letting go of the chains. Her partners were dragged back a few feet before they caught up the black unicorn, who now stopped to watch her.

“Same deal as yesterday,” she growled, her crimped tusks pulling her pouty lips in a perverse smile. But she crossed her muscular arms under her bust. Her nearly see-through tattered top stretched and the young unicorn pranced forward between the other two ogre. She had him, “You behave for the master, an if the boys don tell me the otherwise, I’ll let you nuzzle em.”

A clear motivation.

Though Harken couldn’t say he found all the muscles that appealing, he knew more than a few who did.

“Good lady?!” He called to her.

For a second, she didn’t look, then when no one else appeared fitting that description she turned and addressed him.

She bowed, “The master will be along good sir.”

“That’s fine, I want him.”

“What?” She asked incredulously.

“Yeah,” the unicorn piped up, “What?”

Harken looked around at all the other beasts and unicorns. “I need a stallion, one to haul my gear, one who can also keep up to my mount.”

“Please sir, any of our excellent stock will carry a few things north.”

“I’m heading off to Darkwood, in the Black Forest, and I need to be there in seventeen days.” He pulled out his guild checkbook, “How much.”

“Well,” she looked at the others, all who just shrugged. “See here,” she pulled out a bit of chalk and turned the black unicorn. “He was five fifty yesterday, but the master, he~”

“Will speak for himself, Drummer.”

A sharp whip cracked, and the ogress fell to her knees.

“Ziege, Ziege Trueprice at your service good sir.”

The rotund man could have passed for the mayor’s twin, though this man had more hair; it was so good to see the inbreeding was strong in town.

“I want this unicorn.”

“No, no, no, this son of Mule is not worthy of a master of distinction like you. No, let me show you my other stock. This one’s bound for a breeding farm. A pair of elphine came yesterday to enquire about him.”

“Excellent, then he hasn’t been paid for yet.”

“Well no, but~”

“Well, let me guess, you got offered less than five fifty like you were asking?”

He nodded, then shook his head, “But, they are~”

“Under paying. Now, good Master Ziege, we both know, this beast is worth more. So, for your trouble, I’m willing to give you,” Harken opened his guild checkbook and jotted down half of what he had saved for a good mount.

This halfwit may have had good stock somehow, but he clearly had no clue their worth if he was asking only five fifty for a stallion like this, even an ornery one like he appeared.

The man looked at the check, stunned a bit before handing it to his ogre girl.

“Well, good sir, I can’t say as he’s a good mount, but, it will take a while ta forge a new slave contract, so~”

“Oh, really,” Harken tossed him ten gold, the last of his coin in his pocket, “Might that expedite things?”

Ziege nodded, and disappeared.

The ogress turned to Harken, blood dripping from under her eye.

“That wasn’t smart,” she quietly hissed.

“Why’s that?”

“The breeders, they’re buddies of the two hooligans been running the streets in town. Might mean trouble they see you walking around with their unicorn.” She scrubbed at the chalk on her hands wiping the blood away, “You seem nice.”

“I’m not,” Harken said, and turned away, “But thanks, I’ll keep an eye out.”

Harken turned to face the still stunned looking black unicorn.

“So, what are you called?”

“I am Penumbra,” he said, giving his mane a shake so that his heavy onyx ringlets bounced about glittering with gold flecks. “But you will call me Pen. For I will own that which oppresses me. No pen can hold me, for I~”

Harken stopped listening.

He inspected the fine beast, getting a look at his teeth, his bits, the lot. He was worth ten times what Harken had just spent in any bigger town.

Then he opened his mouth and nearly bit Harken.

“I was trying to say~”

Harken gave his new mount a devil’s gaze, “Shut it!”

Pen’s teeth clicked as he shut his mouth.

He was an uppity breed of unicorn Harken had only heard of before, Anda Midnights’s. As black as night, with thar long hair and that shining gold horn.

“I’ll damn well call you glue if you ever talk to me that way again,” he growled, grabbing the stallion by the halter, “But, Pen it is, till I call you something else.”

Pen’s lip curled back.

“Try me.”

“I’ve heard what you elphine do with unicorns!” Pen growled, “I will not be some slave breeders pet, to parade about on.”

“I’m and adventurer, Harken Nineblades, and I just need a reliable ride;” he leaned in close, whispering quietly, “Nine hells, I’ll set you free at my destination in Darkwood,” he stood up straight, “If you get me there in time.”

“I can get you anywhere in half the time as that nag,” called out another unicorn nearby. Harken looked him over when he was paraded out, a good looking blue, with a massive pearl horn. but the X brand on his hip marked him as a gelding, so while he could handle Harken’s weight he couldn’t handle the gear.

“No, it’s this one; Pen.”

Pen didn’t say a word, just stared side-eyed at Harken.

Then he turned to the Ogress, “Alas my dear, I will not be here to collect my reward, but, will happily take it now?”

“In yer dreams,” she chuckled, slapping Pen on the backside hard, sending up a cloud of dust.

“And in my dreams you shall remain, sweet lady.”

Harken raised an eyebrow at Pen, “You sure you don’t want that breeders position?”

Pen wrinkled his lips in disgust, “Hardly, I prefer the hunt. Any lass worth the bed, had best be a challenge.”

Harken nodded, “I can agree.”

Having just lost the best kind of fight that morning, Harken could more than agree.

Pen looked about, then quietly leaned in to him, “Don’t look now, but those elph from yesterday are here.”

Harken nodded, patting Pen on the cheek, turning about to lean against Pen’s side.

The two elph, a man and a woman wearing a slave collar, approaching, slowed their pace when they saw him, even more so as Harken pulled out one of his many daggers and began to clean his fingernails absently.

But, despite their slowly growing apprehension, they still approached all the same.

“Hall a-a-an-and Hold,” a common elph greeting.

“Harken, of Shadeflower, of Denizensblade.”

The man slipped this hand to his throat, “Oh,” he stammered, then slapped his slave. “You didn’t say who bought the stallion!”

His slave didn’t even flinch, or the man hit like a leaf. But regardless, Harken had had about enough of the rough treatment of slaves around him.

“If you touch her again like that, I will remove your hand, and have it sent to your mother.”

The man turned on him, rage filled eyes stormy till they met Harken’s cold glare and the storm died.

“She has lied to me, and~”

“Did you lie to him?”

“Ye-”

Her words caught in her throat, her slave collar closing tightly on her throat as it detected her lying.

She gasped for breath, turning aside.

“That’s what I thought. Look, you have your pick, Pen here told me why you’re here. And good Master Ziege has already sold to me. Unless you wish to see if you can outbid me.?”

This man had no idea which of the many sons of Denizensblade, Harken was, clearly, or he would have called him on the bluff. Harken was a disgrace to his family, and he was glad for it too. But his mothers surname held a place of power, and Harken took advantage when he could. This man didn’t have to know that outside of the four hundred gold he had left with the guilds holding’s after buying Pen here, he was broke.

“Well?”

The man visibly wilted, “I, Sanole. of Hailstone, and Duskmelon, concede.”

Harken waved him away, and the man followed the ogress to look at other unicorn.

Harken jabbed Pen lightly in the ribs with his elbow, “Any of the other stallions here a real dick?”

“What?”

Harken chuckled, “You heard me.”

“Uh, yeah. Twoflower and Shadow, they’re awful, poor lineage too.”

Harken nodded, giving a shrill whistle,”Oi! Sanole!”

Sanole looked over to him.

“My top picks till I saw this beast were Twoflower and Shadow. Nobel bloodlines there.”

Sanole beamed and immediately gave a foppish wave to one of the stablehands.

“You’re an odd one, uh, Master?”

“Ugh, just Harken, and yes, happily. But listen to what I say, and not what I do, and we will get along great.”

“So, is this a big job?”

“Yes, you’ll be taking my gear, so I can ride my unicorn. He’s a gelding, so while he’s fast, he’s lacking in strength. But if you take the gear, we can make it to Black Forest in time.”

“A gelding, you think a gelding can keep pace with me? Even carrying those three ogres I could run circles around a gel~”

“Not, Moon you couldn’t.”

 Pen, looked at him, “Moon, Moon the Gelding? The, Moon the Gelding?”

Harken had heard he was a bit of a legend with unicorns. “Yup, you get to carry Moon’s and my gear, maybe make a name for yerself too.”

Pen looked a bit more pleased with that, “Well, alright. Always wanted an adventurer name. What’d you say yours was, Harken, something?”

“Just shut up, you talk too much.”

“Oh, buddy, uh, I mean, master, no, uh, Harken, haha, you ain’t heard nothing yet.”

They didn’t have to wait much longer, Ziege returning shortly after with paperwork and an inkwell. Harken dipped his finger in, then drew his seal on the collar, the heavy steely familiar slid to the ground with a hiss, collected up by one of the ogres from before.

“Do you have a collar?”

“Don’t need one; do I Penumbra?”

Pen shook his magnificent hair out, “No master, I follow you now.”

Ziege looked dumbfounded.

“What can I say,” Harken chuckled, “I’ve a way with words.”

He tossed his bag and blanket over Pen’s back and hopped up with the fluid grace of well practiced riding. Then heeled Pen on into a trot and out of the yard.

“Save a good penny on you today, I can actually afford to get you a proper pack rig.” He looked back, “Not there. No need for them to see me haggle and catch on, that I’m not one of the rich sons of Lady Denizensblade.”

“I had a feeling. It’s fine, adventure and the open road and a lass to roll in the hay is all I ask.”

“Well, that last one is up for debate, I may not have collared you, but make no mistake, I own your fleabitten hide till you pay me back for every coin I paid for you.”

Pen shook out his neck, “Fine fine, but it’s not a no, right? I mean, if she says yes, I can pursue my deviancies?”

Harken didn’t want to be a hypocrite, “I mean, on your off time, sure.”

“Perfect. So, where too?”