Osir

By Start

As Osir looked out his window he noticed tonight's client waiting in the rain. Jacket high in the hopes he’d be able to keep some part of him dry. Osir almost felt bad, he could let him in anytime, but he wanted to ensure he kept the upper hand during their negotiations.

So, Osir waited, slowly shuffling papers while the wind buffeted the windows. It struck him that the effort might be wasted, Rivermen were used to abnormal temperatures.

Finally, he set a candle alight in his window, the signal his patron had been so patiently waiting to see.

After a few moments, the Riverman came straight into Osirs office, not even bothering to knock. The lack of decorum left Osir with a bitter taste. So what if what we’re doing is illegal? It doesn’t mean we can’t act civilly toward one another.

“What’s your name”? Osir, asked.

The man huffed, “I’d thought you knew already. You are the secret taker are you not?”

“I wouldn’t call your name a secret. Anyone connected to the undercurrent of Kahir knows that you’re in a tight spot. I just wanted to confirm I was talking to the right person. Clearly, you are him.”

“Then let us not waste time with stupid questions. What will it take to clear my debt?”

Osir rifled through his drawers until he found a node, a small device meant for sending short messages across bridges. He pushed it toward his client who took it with a look of skepticism.

“What do you expect me to do with this? You know all communications across bridges are monitored.”

“Yes, I know. But what matters is who's monitoring. You’re not the only person I work with. I have someone who will ignore what they see as long as you activate the node at the right times. His schedule will be sent to you tomorrow morning, assuming you agree to these terms?” asked Osir.

“I asked you to not waste time. You know I have no choice.” the Riverman grumbled.

“Excellent”, Osir beamed. “It’s been a pleasure doing business with you. Your debts will be paid this evening.”

And with that, the Riverman left slamming the door on his way out. A brute if Osir had ever seen one.

Osir was delirious. The whole exchange hadn’t lasted more than 5-minutes not including the work he’d done to maneuver the right Riverman into his office. Still, a few thousand magic and the promise to see another day meant he’d be learning about new bridgeworlds from the source. There’d be no need to piece together information from redacted reports or dedicate his life to the Teal Oracles. No, he’d follow Orbeans path the only way that made sense, by trading treasure for knowledge.