Lucy stared in complete silence for what felt like an eternity. Huo could see the conflicting emotions on her face across the table. Betrayal, confusion, anger, and something akin to rage. The young mage gulped and nervously waited for a response from their former coworker. Doubt filled their mind as they thought about their father’s letter. As they rose from their chair, Lucy put up a hand.
“Well, if you came all this way to do this, you may as well finish it,” she said. Lucy rubbed her face and motioned for Huo to say something. Unfortunately, the mage was so nervous that they choked. Huo tried to get the right words out, but nothing would come out except for nervous stutters and stumbles.
“I-I, I-don’t even understand what this letter means, Lucy,” they said. “I don’t even know if it’s even true.”
The werewolf shrugged and looked behind her. “I may as well be getting back to work. I need time to understand what you’re even telling me,” she said. Huo looked down in shame and regret.
“I don’t know why you lied or who you even are. I don’t know if I can even trust you.” With that, Lucy stood up and made her way to the front. Huo lingered for longer before Lucy nodded to another waitress.
“Ms. Lucy is going to be busy a while,” she said. “Why don’t you run along and come back later?”
Huo sighed and walked towards the front door, doubt eating away at them inside.
Once they walked outside, Huo unfolded the letter and looked at it for a while. Then Huo suddenly crumbled it into a ball and walked to the trash can. But they couldn’t throw it away, no matter how hard they tried. Sighing, they uncrumbled it and put it into their pocket.
Huo walked along the sidewalk with no idea in particular where to go. If I couldn’t convince my coworker that this is real, how am I supposed to get anyone else on this list? And how do I know this is even from my father? The answer presented itself when they saw a nightclub. Half-Breed Club was its name. Despite the name, many different kinds of beings traversed there. Unicorns, centaurs, dragons, and even young mages for late-night dancing, fence dancing or a cup of apple spirits or spiced mead. Huo had been told by their former coworkers who worked at the tavern about many things that happened behind these closed doors. It was referred to by many as a seedy hot spot if you wanted to make quick money. But it was legendary for having the best drinks in the city.
Despite all this, Huo felt a strange pull to go inside this place. Against their better judgment, they pushed the heavy doors open and stepped inside. The scent of equine urine and smoke hit them in the face, and they nearly went back outside. But something urged them on. Tables and chairs sat tightly packed together, with creatures and mages, chatting loudly. Drinks clinked, a glass breaking when somebody got too much to drink. A thick wisp of smoke surrounded the vicinity, something like sulfur and sweet–sour. Huo put their hand over their nose as they walked towards the front, unsure what they were looking for. The smoke made it almost impossible to make out any distinct features.
“You lost, little lady?”
A voice asked from behind a counter. Huo turned around and tried not to gag. The man stunk like wet dog and human sweat. They tried to speak. But the man spoke up before they could. He grinned widely, his teeth stained with red. Huo could barely make out the hairy ears on him.
“Haven’t seen you around here before. How about something to drink on me?” The young mage tried to refuse, but the man insisted. Huo sighed and sat down, still uncertain why they walked in here. Looking in front of them, directly behind it was a dance floor. What was strange was the large fences staked right in the middle. There were several of them. Huo didn’t understand and barely registered when the bartender gave them their drink. He went away to the back soon after. Huo took a whiff of it, but they didn’t touch it. Suddenly, a screeching sound made them jump, and the table patrons shut up.
Huo had barely enough time to calm down before a loud voice came over the speaker.
“It’s time for the evening Uniladies to do their fence dancing! Featuring the track we all know and love!”
The voice cut out abruptly as a painfully loud song came on.Creatures and people cheered and yelled as hybrid unicorn half breeds walked up to the stage, clad in little or no clothing. Huo decided to leave, feeling like they wasted their time. As they got up, they felt something bump into them. They turned around, and it was a large red and orange bird. A Phoenix. The young mage couldn’t tell anything else about it, but felt a weird connection. Huo wasn’t sure what to think. They got up and began walking away, drink abandoned. The smoke inside the building had increased exponentially, but Huo could barely see the front door. But before they got to it, something ran into them. It looked like a mage. He was wearing a purple hat. He smiled softly at Huo and tried to take their hand. The young mage stepped backwards wildly, nearly falling into the Phoenix. They hurried towards the exit, the doors nearly slamming on them as they did so.
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