Unicorn

Jeremiah moved over to the window ushering his daughter away so he could peek out. Sure enough the small tent the boy had gone in was glowing bright enough to light up the heavy fabric it was made out of. Golden light seeped through the gaps in the tent shining bright and steady. This was not the flickering light of a candle, not that any candle could glow so brightly. Jeremiah was just moving to the door when his cousin Daniel stepped in his brow knitted over his grey eyes. "Jeremiah! Something odd is going on in that boy's tent! I left Eli keeping a watch on it while I came to get you."

Jeremiah started to follow Daniel out but after a few steps returned to the house to reclaim his falchion. He was redoing the bardic as they moved across the open space between the main house and the tents. Eli was standing nearby with his axe in one hand and lantern in the other as he eyed the glowing tent nervously. The three men huddled up to whisper to one another debating on what to do. Eli was for charging in without giving the boy any warning in order to overpower them. Daniel didn't like the idea, afraid it might be a trap of some sort, and wanted to simply torch the tent from a distance. In the end, it was Jeremiah who made the decision to simply demand the boy come out. Both his cousins really disliked the strange glow and fully intended to end the perceived threat.

Stepping close to the tent yet still a safe distance away Jeremiah called out. "Boy… D you in there? Come on out, I need to speak to ya." Jeremiah glanced back and found both his cousins with weapons in hand looking ready for a fight. He mentally sighed and waited knowing it would be pointless to argue with them.

After a few moments, the glow went away from the tent and the flap was pulled back letting the boy once again emerge. His sharp eyes went straight to the armed men and his face settled into a fierce resolved glare. "Talk?" Jeremiah didn't miss how the boy's stance shifted slightly or how he tensed up. Jeremiah could even swear the boy's muscles were starting to bulge and thicken.

"Yes, talk." He accented the last word while only slightly shifting so he was speaking more back to his cousins than the boy. "What was that glow? Your tent was lit up like the noonday sun." Jeremiah questioned.

"I was just placing a ward. I can smother the words glow, it is just wasted effort when not needing to be stealthy." D stated bluntly, then as if that resolved all the issues he moved to head back into the tent.

"Wait, boy! A ward? What kind of ward? You can use magic?" Jeremiah was flabbergasted by the concept and the apparent nonchalance the boy had towards the feat.

D sounded annoyed as he responded. "Yes, Defensive, Yes." Again he tried to return to his tent.

Now it was Eli who spoke up. "You be lying! Ain't no way a mage be out here in the boonies fighting monsters for pennies." Eli looked both angry and scared, for most magic was a mystery. A dangerous deadly mystery that let mages rule over and bully normal folks.

"I ain't a mage." After a short pause, he added. "I'm a Warden." Dean had been the one to nickname him as such, it was a name for a ranger who utilized magic. Though they weren't limited to wards they did have ward in the name. So, Dean thought it was the perfect thing to call D who was training to fight like a ranger and had a natural affinity for wards.

None of the three common men knew what a Warden was but it sounded mysterious and powerful so must also be dangerous. Eli and Daniel both looked ready to rush the boy only held back by the equal fear of what a Warden could do. Jeremiah instead had a thoughtful expression on his face. "What can this defensive ward of yours do?"

"Anyone that tried to take my stuff would have been electrocuted." D explained.

"What's electrocuted?" Daniel asked looking both suspicious and terrified.

"Idiot, it's like when sky fire comes down." Eli snorted.

"Lightning." Jeremiah corrected now, seriously appraising the boy. "Why would a Warden be takin jobs such as this one?" Jeremiah decided the best way to get answers from the boy would be to ask directly.

"You seen any better jobs around here?" D replied, growing annoyed at the questioning.

Jeremiah snorted, unable to refute the boy's logic. "You plan on using magic during the fight?"

D gazed up at the taller man for a while, his mind turning over numbers. "I could… but without a spell quill it's time consuming and costly." D gave him a half truth half lie statement.

All three men actually grew a bit more relaxed at that statement. The idea that the boy was out to make more money was something they could understand. "So you be wanting me to pay extra then I assume."

"Yes." D never even hesitated.

Jeremiah thought for a moment, so far he had only received three responses to his bounty. Normally that wouldn't have been a problem, Lender's Mire was the most secure settlement in all the swamp waste. But, he couldn't shake the feeling something was off. The Bunyips were massing earlier than normal. Based on the signs they had found their numbers were greater too. He'd seen strange totems of driftwood and trash raised up all over the marsh when scouting. He'd lived most of his life here in the swamps, yet he'd never seen anything like it. No one had. While debating something sparked in his mind. He looked down, appraising the boy again, looking him over from a different perspective.

He and his clothes were surprisingly clean, not pristine but compared to most that wandered in out of the swamp he was practically spotless. The boy was blunt yet seemed honest, could use magic, and Jeremiah now expected he'd prove a competent fighter. Amongst any of the Fringe settlements, he would be a rarity, here in the swamp waste he was practically a unicorn.

"A spell quill, that wouldn't happen to be a shiny metal feather quill would it? Kinda transparent?"

D's brow rose in curiosity. "Yes."

"I ain't payin ya extra. But if ya can do real magic, mind ya you need to prove to me ya can. I have what you be needing. It will be yours for payment." Jeremiah gauged the mild expression from the boy still finding him oddly hard to read.

D was thinking over the offer for a while before he nodded. "Deal, but the wards I make won't last forever. Unless you have catalyst as well."

Jeremiah cocked an eyebrow once again, surprised by the boy. He'd not even considered the wards lasting beyond the fight. He knew barely more than other common folks about magic. What he did know came mostly from stories he'd been told as a boy about his grandfather. Had D wanted he could have probably conned them with stories of ever lasting protection, D's honesty raised his appraisal of the boy again. After a short pause, Jeremiah grunted and turned towards the main house. "Come along then boy."

Daniel and Eli shared a look before crowding Jeremiah as he walked. "You gonna let him in the house?" Daniel asked in a shocked whisper.

Eli glanced back at the boy to see how close he was paying attention before whispering to the other two. "What about Dorothy? Want I to run up and have her hide?"

"Naw, this be alright." Jeremiah was already thinking ahead.

Eli and Daniel were both so shocked they stopped walking. Jeremiah took the overprotective father role to whole new levels. It was commonly known and joked about throughout their small extended family. Many joked the girl wouldn't meet a stranger until after her father had already passed. Now, he was letting a stranger into his house… the same house where his precious daughter was? The two men shared concerned looks then glanced at the magic using boy both wondering if he had put a spell on Lender's Mire's leader.

When Dorothy who was peeking out the curtains saw her father returning she let out a bit of a sigh. When she noticed a stranger coming with him she started to panic. It was true that when she'd seen what appeared to be a boy her age entering the walls she'd let her mind wander and daydream. Being stuck in the middle of nowhere was boring, she'd instantly daydreamed that the strange boy was a prince or heroic talented mage or any of a number of childish fantasies. She dreamed that he was there to rescue her from her dull boring life in the swamps, to take her away to a strange faraway place. There was a big difference between fantasies and meeting a stranger. Plus, while she complained about her solitude she also found herself terrified of meeting strangers. After all, she had almost no experience with it. Seeing her father leading the stranger to their home instilled no wonder or joy but fear and nervousness.

Jeremiah stopped at the door to instruct Daniel and Eli to watch the other hunters and the wall respectively. Both men gave him concerned looks and suspicious glances at the boy while questioning his order. Jeremiah didn't like having his orders questioned in his own settlement, but he understood where their concern stemmed from and tempered his response. After reassuring the two men everything was fine he gave the boy a tight lipped smile before leading him into the main house.