Ebudae by John H. Carroll Page B

and
dealers aren’t known for being honest.”
    “So we need to go talk to the costume maker
again?” Karla asked.
    “Yes. We’ll ask a few extra questions in
order to look for inconsistencies.” Pelya headed toward the
exit.
    “Wait a minute. Where are you going?” Aphry
asked.
    Pelya turned. “To the costume maker’s. You
said it’s Joma’s Costumes in the Carnival Market District. We can
be there in a few minutes.”
    “You are not going with us, young lady. I
won’t put you in danger.” Aphry said. She grabbed a pair of knives
from a small chest and put them on her belt. Ebudae felt Juggles
move from behind her to go to his own chest. Lizor grabbed a couple
of hand weights and put them on his belt. Then he grabbed a long
iron bar normally used to put weights on and leaned on it like a
staff. Glav just grinned and Ebudae figured he already had his
knives hidden.
    Pelya didn’t say anything for a moment. She
looked at Ebudae who shrugged. They both loved adventure and it
sounded interesting, plus they both wanted to help their friends.
When the others were ready to go, Pelya stepped to the side and let
them out. Aphry and Juggles were the last two to go, motioning for
the girls to exit before them.
    Once outside and into the courtyard in front
of the stage, Aphry hugged them each. “Take care of yourselves and
come back anytime.”
    “We will,” Pelya assured her. She grabbed
Ebudae’s hand and started back toward home.
    “We’re just going to leave?” Ebudae
whispered in disappointment. “I want to help and I know you do
too.”
    “Shh. I bet we can get to that shop faster
than they can. I know what questions to ask.” Pelya looked back to
make sure they were out of sight. “Turn here and follow me. We’re
going to run.”
    Ebudae grinned in exhilaration. They were
going to break some rules, do dangerous things and maybe even
rescue someone. When Pelya began running, Ebudae followed behind.
Her friend was stronger and faster than she was, but Ebudae was
extremely fit. Wizards had to be healthy and physically strong in
order to withstand the energies they channeled through their
bodies.
    She cast a small spell while they ran, being
talented enough to do so. It gave them a small boost of endurance
so that they would be able to run longer and recover faster. Pelya
looked back and grinned. Throughout the journey, she constantly
glanced back to see that Ebudae hadn’t fallen behind. They had a
developed a system in the ruins below Dralin. The warrior always
led the way and paced herself to Ebudae’s speed. Navigating through
Carnival was difficult though and Ebudae began to wonder if they
would make it before the others.
    The tents and stages gave way to food
vendors and hawkers in their open stalls. Those gave way to an
assortment of different sized buildings, both stone and wood. The
Carnival Market District was a small District that catered to
Carnies. It ranged from small shops to huge warehouses.
    Within five minutes, they were at the
costume maker’s. They were breathing heavily, but not unduly so.
The heat caused them to sweat profusely though, a feeling that made
Ebudae uncomfortable. She would make it a point to take a bath as
soon as they got back to the manor.
    They walked inside at a normal pace so as
not to spook anyone. A guard just inside the door looked them over
and then dismissed them as no threat. Customers looked through the
rows of costumes, but there were only a few shopping. Pelya went to
the main counter, ignored a tattooed woman leaning on the counter
and headed toward a fat, balding man in garish clothes. He was
brushing lint off a pair of striped leggings.
    “Master Joma, I need to speak to you. It’s
urgent,” Pelya whispered harshly. She looked behind her as though
someone were chasing them. Ebudae played along and looked back
fearfully too.
    “What? What is it?” The costume maker looked
towards the door and then back at the girls with concern written
across his