YSJ Anthology 2015

they varied in material from cotton to leather. He even saw a few
constructed from shimmering silk that marked their wearers as
members of the nobility. Telic watched as a young couple exited one
establishment and gradually stumbled away down the street, giggling
whilst they leant on each other in drunken support. They narrowly
avoided a dark haired girl of about Telic’s age who had been
mopping up a pool of sick from the pavement outside one vibrantly
lit pub. She glared after them as they obliviously staggered on.
The road began to curve away from the direction Telic needed to
head, so he reluctantly entered a small alley that cut between two
pubs. Metal bins hugged the walls, although more rubbish littered
the rough cobblestones so Telic was forced to carefully pick his way
through. About halfway down, a door to one of the buildings
slammed open and three young men stumbled out. They each wore
rich – if slightly crumpled – dark suits, and silk eye patches. Telic
went instantly still. Nobles.
“Bastards,” cursed one, fat with a receding hairline. He steadied
himself against the alley wall. “That old geezer was obviously
cheating. Like hell he was lucky enough to get a full pantheon on his
third go.”
“Relax Paln, you’ve drank too much,” said another, tall and blonde.
Although he also swayed on his feet a bit. “That place was a shithole
anyway. The whole North Quarter is. We should go back to the
Cobalt Club, now that is a proper drinking establishment with the
right sort of people too.”
The last man was also tall but heavily built, with short dark hair and
a neatly trimmed beard. Unlike his compatriots he did not look drunk
in the slightest, in fact he looked furious. “Consider your words
carefully, Klarren,” his voice calm despite the evident anger on his
face. “Or need I remind you who got us banned.”
Klarren saw the anger on his friends face and paled visibly. “R-right,
sorry Zarrick,” he gulped nervously. “I’m sure they’ll let us back in
eventually, right Paln?”
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