Morning all and welcome to the Fifteen Minute Novel. Here I take the start of a story idea and work on it for fifteen minutes a day. I started with an old writing prompt that interested me, cleaned it up a bit to fit the basic outline of the story I want to write and then set aside fifteen minutes each week day to see it grow. Each morning’s writing starts with the last sentence of the day before. And so now we have the story of Kasca…
Day 94: Decision made, Kasca ended her scrying and emptied out her bowl.
Decision made, Kasca ended her scrying and emptied out her bowl. Kasca put her bowl away but knew she wasn’t going anywhere until the rain stopped. She also knew she would need rest. There were several villages and towns she would have to pass where the occupants clearly had no desire to see outsiders. While she would like to help people with her cure, she did not want to be decapitated or locked inside a cage as a warning to other visitors.
She wanted to help, but wouldn’t sacrifice herself to do it.
‘Besides, most of those contracting the disease are beyond my help. They will either survive or not on their own.’ She knew the cure she carried was only good before the disease reached a certain stage. ‘And the modified one only really works on those not infected.’
It was something she wanted to work on once she was settled. She was certain that with the right combination of spells and potions she could find something that was effective in other circumstances. She knew that she would need to spend time going through more books and experimenting with different ingredients and balances.
A cave not to far from the coast was not the place to do those experiments. ‘Even if I had the ingredients,’ she reminded herself.
She also knew she would need to conserve her energy. She might not fear the disease any more, but the people here were a danger and she would not be able to lower her shields until she knew she was safe. She would need to scry before she left and determine a safe destination to stop each night ahead of time in order to avoid anyone moving about.
Kasca chuckled softly to herself. Oddly it was not much different than her days being a runner. It was not the beasts sent by the Overlord to patrol this time, but other people, but the rules were the same. Don’t be seen, don’t leave a trail and make sure that nothing you change can be traced back to home.
In this case home was the entire island she left behind instead of Deva. With fears of spreading disease no doubt in people’s thoughts, she couldn’t afford to look as though she came from the island.
While she was certain her speech and mannerisms might give her away, Kasca thought that finding a change of clothes at some point before she dropped her shields would be a good thing. She wa always good with languages and accents came fairly easily as well. As she ate her rations for the night Kasca wondered if she ought to look in some of the accents and mannerisms of those she passed, studying them as well as the terrain.
‘At least to know where they are from and how they view outsiders if I come across them in the city.’
Kasca doubted she would be able to ape anyone’s accent and mannerisms well enough to pretend to be from the location she mimicked, but with luck she could use it to blunt her own accent so that she looked as though she had been here well before the disease struck.
‘An older immigrant and not someone newly arrived.’
Kasca thought that might be the best course of action. For now, she needed to rest so she would be able to slip through the outer areas and reach the city. She finished her meal and opened her pack.
Ten til Midnight 