P. Power - Knight of the Realm

More than once he started to float away and Petra had to reach out and grab his arm, gently pulling him back to their spot in the water. Finally she suggested they swim out past the breakers, which made things a lot easier for him at least. Petra swam easily through the water and he had to kind of copy her, diving into the waves as they came. This kind of thing obviously wasn't new to her, but then she'd grown up in Warden, also right on the water. The same water, Tor realized, if further south and with nicer beaches. The swimming didn't last that long, because Petra stopped after about twenty minutes of moving parallel to the beach, back and forth so they could see the little house he'd put there the whole time… and pointed, single finger coming above the water for a few seconds while she kicked hard enough to raise out of the water a bit, bobbing upwards.

People had come. It looked like everyone. All the people he knew in Printer at least, as long as he didn't count Kevin, or Dan Baker.

Well, great. Holly and Kolb were back, so maybe he'd have his things finally. Of course he was naked and all the girls were standing there and waving to them. Waving them in. Tor stiffened and sank, not moving in mortification.

Yes, drowning would keep him from being embarrassed. He steeled himself wondering if he could force himself to take a breath underwater, which he didn't think he could, so, reluctantly, he kicked back to the surface and sputtered a little. If he couldn't escape that way, what could he do?

Be embarrassed?

As good a plan as any for now, since death didn't seem a good option. Tor readied himself for pointing and laughing, and started to swim along with Petra. It took about five minutes to reach the shore, but then he really wasn't trying for speed himself and Petra didn't go that fast either, waiting for him to catch up.

As he rose from the water, ready to be mocked or at least giggled at, he was met by nothing but stony faces. Varley and Trice kind of looked ticked even. Because he'd gone swimming with Petra? All they'd done was swim, which should have been fairly obvious, she still had a suit on and everything. Kolb passed the towels to them after they got out of the water, so they could get dry, while Varley crossed her arms and glared.

At Countess Printer.

Trice stared at him, her eyes indeed looking lower than was comfortable, but she didn't smile or say anything. She had out her equalizing amulet and it turned a brilliant pink, but had a swirling black inside it at the same time. Whatever that meant. Affection and despair or depression at the same time? She hadn't been happy over all, he knew, losing an arm could do that, but this felt different.

Kolb moved next to Holly and a single chest, one that Tor recognized as his. In fact the one that had held all the little bags with thousands of golds in it, the one Sara Debri had given him that had rope marks on the top, dug into the wood and metal. They'd gotten there when they'd used the chest to save some kids, his left ankle throbbed in remembered pain from that event, but he walked to it anyway. He didn't expect it to have the gold. After all, that was something that people would likely steal, right? Or “borrow” if they found it there like that.

If he made a big deal about that though, it would be like blaming Holly for taking the stuff in the first place. That would be fair, probably, since she'd taken it, but would cause more trouble than it was worth. Really, Tor didn't blame people for making off with the gold. He wouldn't have, but most people seeing that much gold probably couldn't help themselves. He let it go and opened the trunk with a smile. No one else did, except Petra.

Maybe he'd at least have some clean underwear or a shirt that wasn't made of silk? Holly turned away as if not wanting to see his reaction. That or she was worried about his nudity. He had a towel wrapped around him now at least, a big soft one in a cream color.

Instead the chest was nearly empty. It only held three things when he looked in. The towel slipped a bit as he let go of it, holding the lid with slightly white fingers. At least that was soft enough as it settles on his narrow hips. Really it was better than the ones at the palace and certainly nicer than any he'd had at home or school. Tor had to drop into a deep trance to keep the anger from showing on his face, though his pendant still glowed a solid red.

Inside the case was his toothbrush, which should have been a good thing, but the bristles had been coated in a deep brown wax, the kind soldiers used to polish and protect their boots from water. He'd been around enough military people to recognize it, having lived with a few hundred for the last months. The stuff reeked, acidic and harsh smelling at the best of times. Next to that was a single boot, a military one that wasn't his at all. It looked to be several sizes too big and like it had been used by a dog or two as a chew toy. Last there was a single amulet, a light producing one meant for a house, that looked like someone had used a chisel to try and break in two, probably trying to double the field. That got a sudden surge of red from his chest that glowed brightly enough to cast a light visible even in the bright sun.

“They could have at least tried to use a cutter if they wanted to split the field! Who did this and what kind of brain damage do they have?” He asked, spinning on Holly angrily holding the amulet in his right hand so the Countess could see what he meant. She didn't move, but her body reacted as if she expected a blow. That would be silly of course. Sure he could hit at her, but she was wearing a shield and he wasn't. Even if she'd been the smaller person and he the giant, and the Countess wasn't an accomplished fighter, she still would have kicked his butt. Besides, violence never really helped, did it?

Seriously though, who tried to chop a field apart? They had cutters. He knew that for a fact, because he'd had several for personal use in his gear if nothing else. Tor sighed and went to put his clothes on. So angry that he didn't really dry very well and forgot to be embarrassed, facing them all as he did it. Holly kept her eyes downcast, which he could understand, since she was responsible for the training of the people that had done it. That… that butchery!

It wasn't the value of the light of course. Really, given everything that wouldn't make a big difference over all and technically County Printer was supposed to be buying all of them anyway. That included the ones they destroyed or lost. If she wanted to hack them all apart she could, technically. But it was just such a… bonehead move. Tor fumed about it for a minute but didn't say too much. It was too late to fix it now and the person that did it had probably figured out their mistake when it hadn't worked, right? He took several deep breaths and tried to hold his tongue. Acting like a jerk never helped anything either, just like violence, did it?

No, it really didn't.

Obviously if this was all they had for him, his things were gone. Tor literally had nothing. Looking over at the house up the beach a ways, he nodded to himself. A slow and considering movement.

That wasn't really true was it? He had his magic, and while that didn't get him food or clothes directly, he had a place to live that he could take with him now. That and some beach rocks and he could build whatever he needed pretty quickly. Maybe even clothes? Tor didn't know, but after sitting to put his socks on, hard to do with damp feet he discovered, and then his soft leather shoes, Torrance Green Baker decided not to let it get to him. He had a lot more than some people did after all. He had skills. Whining about all he'd lost wouldn't help him rebuild.

Struggling up he grabbed the chest and loaded the bottom of it with about two hundred small stones, selecting them carefully, trying to get somewhat round ones that weren't broken and about the size of a gold coin more or less. It didn't take long, and no one spoke while he worked. They just stared. Then he picked the chest up, feeling a little fatigued from all the swimming, since it had been unaccustomed activity, and carried it to the house. Everyone but Petra blinked when they noticed it, but she just followed him in, towel wrapped over her shoulders and still a little damp in places.