Селеста / Сelesta: Глава 12

Chapter12

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 08:50

Two days had passed since the unsuccessful attempt to examine the house of the leader of the light-worshippers. Having recovered from her injury, Celeste felt ready for new achievements. In other words, she was about to carry out her plan to set up an underground laboratory. She had no qualms about it - she had long ago decided that all was good for survival, so she acted vigorously. Of course, if she had her way, she would have preferred to sell something safer than drugs - Andrew had seen what a junkie could do for a dose - but the legal ways of making money were still closed to her. Decent people didn't want anything to do with ghouls. The remnants of conscience resented the decision, but they were quickly overwhelmed by the excuse that dope was relatively safe for health.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 15:40

A room for production was found quickly, and a morvanite alchemist named Stasz managed to produce a test batch. The "stuff" presented to Fakasius passed the quality test, and the fat "mafioso" agreed to take care of the sale for measly three-quarters of the price.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 15:42

"Don't kid me, Holiness." The ghoul's face didn't let the shadow of a smile slip across it. "One does cost the whole dinar. Every tenth dose goes to the dealer, half to the wholesaler, and the price of four stays with the manufacturer. What are you talking about?"

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 15:47

Celesta, as always, wanted to be on the safe side. She did a little market research beforehand on the potential business.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 15:47

"It's dangerous," said Fakasius with a wave of his hands. "Ignar was selling dope - and where is Ignar now? He feeds fish in the sea. Salty went into business - now he's shoveling in the village. Lisny, a poor man, only wanted to earn a little money, and what happened to him? The poor guy got his legs bitten off!"

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 15:49

"And we both know by whose orders," the girl replied. "I admire you; the effect has been amazing."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 16:07

"How could I! Do you really blame me for the tragedy that happened!" The fat man gasped with indignation.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 16:21

"Well, no, so no. Let's get back to the money. Now there are two laboratories in town, and they deliver the goods steadily and at high prices. The clients of your brothels are wealthy bastards, they pay, and they don't pucker up. And they'll keep on paying, they're not going anywhere."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 16:22

The list of drugs sold in Taleya did not shine with variety. The old supplies had long ago expired, and the raw materials were in short supply, so the recipe was simple and primitive in its technology. Almost all of the drugs were versions of "pea" - those who took it were sent to the afterlife rather quickly because of the mass of side effects - or "whitewater" - transparent water, which induced a slight euphoria for a short time, usually added to alcohol. The local craftsmen have not yet been able to produce anything else of principle due to the lack of qualified personnel and suitable material. And the drug was becoming more expensive every month because of the decreasing supply of raw materials. A funny situation: people who wanted to kill their health agreed to pay a lot of money, the authorities, in principle, did not interfere with production, but the total amount of stuff was decreasing. The criminal circles were constantly striving to find new recipes, even experimenting with mutant animals, but so far they had no success.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 16:36

The ghouls were lucky to have an alchemist. Stash was a local, and he knew where the purchased mineral used to make the drug was kept. It used to be used to make lemonade, but clever heads quickly figured out that adding this ingredient to a solution of salt and the juice of a garden shrub had a rather interesting effect. Stash traded in this very mineral and had a license to do so. Immediately after the catastrophe began, he prudently stashed away the last batch he had bought, swearing that the good storage conditions had not affected the quality of the raw materials at all. It would appear so since the tests of the resulting product passed successfully. The mineral was not much, and there were plenty of sacks in the secret warehouse, so Celesta counted on a good and long-term business.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 16:41

"I don't intend to argue about those points, my dear," Fakasius said bashfully. "There's just one more thing. The Spiders look after all the laboratories, they have a small share of their own. Why do they need a competitor?"

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 16:43

Celesta thought for a moment, glaring at her interlocutor. I don't think he was lying about the Spiders. So not only did the Duke's security service work more closely with the city's bandits than it wanted to show, but they also had complete control over all of Taleya's drug business. That's interesting news.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 16:44

"You know, if the Spiders find out that I'm not only buying from them, they may be offended and upset," Holiness continued. - The frustration of the gentlemen from these structures sometimes takes fatal forms. Very, very rude people, real savages. No, I'm not saying no, but understand me: the standard prices are inappropriate here."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 17:01

"I'll think about it."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 17:02

Little was known about the security service. The people whispered that there was one, and tried hard to frighten each other with fantastic slanders. Those more knowledgeable knew little more about Spiders - a spider weaving a web was the symbol of the service from the old days: the names of the management and a couple or three agents, for instance. Fakasius, in an uncharacteristic fit of candor, told me that there was at least one snitch in every hundred guards or department of officials. The bandit had been receiving advice that sounded like orders through a petty port official like himself, and he was diligently carrying out the instructions - he was aware of the fate of those who ignored the "advice".

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 17:05

"So the deal was off?" Medea contemplated her long, strong fingernails, wondering whether they should be trimmed. She'd suggested from the start that they sell the raw materials they'd found and not go through the trouble of making stuff themselves.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 17:07

"Why should I? It's just an extra factor that complicates things a bit, that's all. I'll see what I can get out of the fat man."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 17:14

"Then we'd better get going." The woman slid off the bed and pulled out her leather pants with apparent reluctance. There was no reason to wear a dress in weather like this.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 17:16

Tonight the ghouls intended to take the equipment they had ordered from the blacksmith, who was making money on the side. The blacksmith was charging a fortune, taking advantage of his monopoly position and the customers' desire to remain incognito. Cauldrons, serpentines, strange scales, and other alchemical tools cost a hundred dinars. Celesta was ready to kill the man - he was saved by a willingness to barter. The smith didn't ask how the girls had obtained a pile of high quality armor, but the ghouls sold their loot for a decent price and got a promise to buy more if they turned up.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 17:19

The workshop was in a very unusual place for a craftsman's neighborhood. The blacksmith had come to Taleya on some business of his own just before the catastrophe, along with his family, and he stayed. What made him drag nearly two dozen people into town, he didn't say; as a matter of fact, no one asked him. In the same way, it was not customary to ask how the man survived the next two years, what he did for a living. Suffice it to say that Master Tarrasch made and sold armor and weapons for all the neighborhood bandits until the moment when the Duke ended his voluntary isolation and began to restore order in the city. The blacksmith and his household were unharmed in the short but bloody war that followed: the new authorities promised him protection and privileged food and other benefits, in return for providing work, work, and more work. If the guards were aware of his connections with criminals, they looked the other way - minor violations of the law were forgiven to valuable workers.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 17:21

Why Tarrasch, who has a stable income and a sufficiently weighty position in society, would risk it all for a dubious opportunity to earn extra dinir, Celesta did not understand. Apparently, he had his own reasons. Or maybe he was just greedy.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 17:22

"It's not a house, it's a fortress," Medea said.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 17:23

The master settled in a fenced three-story house, the former homestead of some eccentric rich man. People lived in the main building and a small outbuilding in the backyard, and several other buildings were used as warehouses and storerooms. Although the work had been done here infrequently in recent days, the neighbors could barely hear the clanging and other accompanying noises. The rulers of the city moved the main production close to the barracks: it was easier to keep track of the finished product, and it was considered safe to walk through the streets. Previously, before the Duke's arrival, a few hundred paces away from home risked one's life, but now guards patrolled the streets constantly.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 17:31

"Fakasius is better guarded," Celesta shrugged.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 17:33

"By the way, when are you going to introduce me to him? I'm tired of listening to the ramblings of fanatics, I want to talk to an intelligent man."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 17:34

"This intelligent man wouldn't hesitate to place you in one of his brothels if he could find a way to capture you. It's so exotic. A ghoul whore, the local perverts will lay out any money."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 17:38

"But he doesn't touch you," Medea sulked.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 17:44

"Because he's not sure if he can handle me. And he knows for sure that the first attempt will be his last. Besides, we have common affairs and he appreciates my services. Last time he asked me to steal the paper from Count Lash's office: the man would have failed the task for sure." Andrew thought for a moment. Fakasius must have had a lot of money on that document - they say the Count was furious and put a huge bounty on the thief's head. The theft drew unnecessary attention. On the other hand, the order was well paid, it added to his reputation... "And don't forget about appearance. There are enough girls with my figure and face - I am pretty, at best just nice. You make men go crazy just by one look."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 17:52

Medea smiled flatteredly and remarked:

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:01

" Now I believe you have the soul of a man. A woman would never say that."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:02

"It depends on what kind of woman."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:03

"You said bad things about Richard, too, but no trouble came from him."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:04

"He's used to us. Don't doubt, at the first opportunity the bandit will sell us out."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:04

At the last meeting two weeks ago, the gang leader had successfully bargained for a place in the guard, extracting more and more promises from the officials. In the future, he hoped to gain possession of the land, which had yet to be cleared of any trash, and permission to own a merchant ship. Right now he did not have enough money to build one, but Richard seriously hoped to earn a lot of money. He had his reasons: plans for the summer campaign were being openly discussed in officer circles. Large and medium-sized gangs would either join Duke Dinir's ranks or be wiped out, the pariahs living in the Pit would be added to the number of settlers. Smart people were in a hurry to tie their fate to the victors beforehand.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:06

"We'll see," Medea smiled slyly. "I think he's got a serious crush on me. You should have heard the compliments he said the last time we met!"

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:12

"Compliments?"

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:12

"Oh, yes! "Mistress of the night," "eyes like stars," that sort of thing. By the way, he was trying to find out what we were up to."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:15

"Is that it? Why this interest?"

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:15

"It's ambition, I suppose. Richard hopes to become something more than a mere nobleman in the service of a ruler or a vassal in the retinue of an aristocrat. I think he hopes one day to have a title. Our help in court intrigue could be useful to him."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:17

"I'd call his chances slim." Celesta was skeptical. "Mash, with his hundred blades, could expect to get an appropriate allotment in exchange for his oath, but not the leader of a medium-sized gang."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:18

The system of ranks was confusing and had a huge number of contradictory laws, and not every specialist could make sense of them. And each rank had its duties and privileges, on ceremonial occasions wore clothes of a certain cut and color, ate from the appropriate dishes, and exhibited exactly the number of soldiers at the request of the lord, which was clearly fixed by the customs.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:19

The strangest thing is that these archaisms did not affect the quality of the functioning of the state and government: the system worked. Perhaps because the nobility was divided into three unequal categories: the ordinary nobility, who had nothing but a string of ancestors, the titled nobility, and the so-called "blessed" - the higher aristocracy. To become blessed is impossible: they must be born. History has recorded no more than a dozen cases where a person was accepted into the highest caste, always for exceptional merit and with the direct blessing of the gods - in other words, had tremendous magical powers. To get a title seemed to be a difficult act, but real: at one time personal titles were given quite often. More difficult was the situation with the rights that could be inherited, which were necessarily accompanied by large land grants. Much depended on one's mercy in ascending the caste pyramid.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:22

Dinir, like all descendants of Derkana the Changeling, was entitled to four families of first rank servants (counts) and sixteen families of second rank servants ( barons), no more. Also he could award clothes of dark blue color, enter the names of distinguished soldiers in a special register and assign honorary nicknames, which gave people or their families various benefits. A clan whose members received such distinctions for several generations in a row automatically raised their hereditary status. It must be said that the Duke was distinguished by conservatism and was in no hurry to give out baronial hats even to old associates, so the hopes of Richard would be more correct to call it a dream.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:26

A knock on the gate was answered at once. At first, a gloomy face appeared in the small window, peering intently at the figures who had come out of the shadows on purpose. Celesta was recognized, or the two girls did not seem dangerous to the observer, but no questions followed. The door swung open hospitably, and the ghouls quickly slipped inside, trying to ignore the rattle of the massive deadbolt behind them.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:27

"You've got the wrong porter with you," the bear-like smith muttered, staring at Medea with obvious pleasure.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:38

He met the customers in person, accompanied by two big guys who looked like relatives. Each one would have held at least three Celestas.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:39

"Are you going to check the armor? That's the leftovers, no more yet."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:51

"Show me," the master nodded, shuffling toward the forge. "You might as well check the work too."

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:52

There was nothing to check: Tarrasch vouched for the quality with his head. His wares were renowned. So the ghoul simply checked the completeness of the order, packed the things, and habitually froze, glancing sideways at the men flattering her friend. No problems were foreseen, Medea confidently fooled her admirers. The blacksmith snorted unhappily as he examined the armor, but did not nag.

Camrad_RIP 10.01.22 в 18:53