‘Othello, what are you doing back so early? Someone told me they had seen you in town,’ came a voice from behind them.
‘I’m just getting patched up, Atilla,’ Othello said. ‘The Pinkertons had another go at me. Lucky I had Fletcher here to help me out.’
Another dwarf stood in the doorway. He looked the spitting image of Othello, almost identical in fact. The dwarf gave Fletcher a look of pure hatred and helped Othello to his feet.
‘The humans will never accept us. We should move out of this goddamned city and create our own settlements, away from here. Look where fraternising with this human has got you,’ Atilla ranted. ‘Get out of here, human, before I do the same to you.’
As if Ignatius could understand the words, he leaped on to the floor and hissed, allowing a thin stream of smoke to waft from his nostrils.
‘Enough! I have had it with your antihuman rhetoric!’ Othello shouted. ‘I will not have you insult my friend in my own home. It is you who needs to leave!’ He coughed with pain at the outburst and leaned on Fletcher. Atilla gave Fletcher another glare and then swept out of the tent, muttering under his breath.
‘You will have to forgive my twin brother. He too passed the testing, but his hate for your people means he will never fight for Hominum, not even as a battlemage. We both desire freedom for the dwarves, but that is where our agreement ends,’ Othello said miserably. ‘I worry about him, what he might do. I can barely remember the number of times I turned myself in when they put out a warrant for his arrest, enduring his punishments. If they tried to arrest him, he might have fought back. Then they would have killed him. What else could I do but go in his stead?’
‘It’s OK. How can I blame him for feeling that way after what I saw today? I hope that I’ll get a chance to change his mind some day. We aren’t all bad.’
‘Aye, you’re all right,’ Othello said with a grin. ‘We’ve been keeping Atilla out of trouble, working with Dad in the workshop. I might as well take you there now. My father will take a look at that sword for you. He’s the best blacksmith in all of Hominum.’
‘The inventor of muskets and pistols? I don’t doubt it,’ Fletcher said, then remembered his manners. ‘I would be honoured if you would allow me to visit your home,’ he said to the two female dwarves, inclining his head.
Othello’s mother’s veil hid her expression, but she nodded after a few moments.
‘I trust my boy’s judgement, and I am glad he has found a friend at the academy. We had feared that he would be unhappy there. My name is Briss. It is a pleasure to meet you.’
‘He has many friends. I am just one of them,’ Fletcher said, patting Othello on the back. ‘I am honoured to meet you, Briss, and you too, Thaissa.’
‘We must seem very strange to you with our veils,’ Thaissa’s voice was shy and hesitant. ‘It is not often that dwarven women meet humans. Why, many still think that dwarf women grow beards and cannot be told apart from the men!’
She giggled and even Briss let out a light, tinkling laugh.
‘I must admit, I was wondering why you wear them. Would it be rude of me to ask?’ Fletcher enquired.
‘Not at all. We wear them so that dwarves marry for love and not out of lust,’ Briss said. ‘Our spouses cannot see us until our wedding night, and so they must love us for our personalities and not our looks. It is also a mark of modesty and privacy, so that we do not flaunt our beauty for everyone to see. That is a privilege reserved for our husbands—’
‘Speaking of husbands, I must take Fletcher to see Father right away,’ Othello interrupted, flustered by his mother’s forthrightness. ‘Come on, Fletcher. He’s downstairs.’
28
The steps opened up into a chamber, as wide and as tall as the tent above. The pipe in the centre contained a crackling fire resting over a grate, the gush of hot air and smoke from below sending sparks rushing upwards. The walls were made of bare earth, propped up by strong oak beams that held the room in place. Small chandeliers with wax candles hung from the ceiling, giving the room a warm orange glow. Seven doors were built into the walls of the round room, each one made of solid steel.
They continued down into a near-identical chamber, this one containing a stone dining table. Instead of a fireplace, the pipe was connected to what looked like a large oven and kiln. Vases and pots of all sizes were stacked against the walls. Each one was painted with an intricate floral pattern.