Bitterbridge Part IV

Alysanne dragged him over to where Alester was chatting animatedly with other merchants. Their somber expressions are giving way to hope, they discuss their idea of a riverside market with much enthusiasm. Damian sees the light filtering through the clouds in their eyes and feels a pang of regret for having to be the one to put out that light.

Hope is a beautiful yet terrifying thing. When your world is tinged with darkness the future seems unreachable and the present a swamp from which one cannot escape, when the temptation to give up torments you because you have already lost all the arguments against yourself and you decided there is no way forward, in those moments a small light is the only thing that prevents you from getting lost in the darkness: hope. In many cases, that light guides you towards tomorrow, helps you overcome yesterday's hardships and gives you strength to keep moving forward, but in other cases it is a deceptive mirage. A beautiful lie that prevents you from seeing the cliff just a few steps ahead, that light blinds you and by the time you realize your mistake you have already fallen.

That is the case of these merchants. They know that if they don't manage to sell their wares they will be ruined, many of them don't have the money to pay for the journey to the next town. In this desperate moment, Alester's idea is a light in the darkness, it is the only thing that will save them from ruin. They do not realize what is hidden on the other side of the light, they do not see the repercussions of their actions.

The Merchant Guild will not allow this rebellion to go unpunished, and to convince them otherwise... Well, Damian is realizing the impossibility of the favor that Alysanne is asking of him. All his arguments are falling on deaf ears, for strangers who don't know him his words are the nonsense of children and even Alester ignores his warnings.

"Alester please listen to your daughter's advice. The Merchant Guild will not sit idly by, this will have repercussions." Damian looks at the stubborn merchant. Alester refuses to listen to them, his words and Alysanne's fall on deaf ears.

"Father, please listen to us." Alysanne's tone is full of urgency and she looks at her father imploring.

Alester's father only managed to save enough coins to become a merchant when his son was about eight or ten years old, and during the first years the trips were very dangerous because he did not have the coins to hire guards, for this reason his son and wife did not join him. Alester didn't start traveling with his father until he was about thirteen years old and at that age he wasn't very enthusiastic about learning his father's trade, he was more interested in girls and adventures. He only started seriously learning how to be a merchant when he returned to Westeros, that was two years ago.

Although he learned a lot and is quite skilled in the trade, he does not have his daughter's experience in dealing with the greedy and dangerous Merchant Guilds.

Alysanne has spent her entire life traveling from town to town with the caravan, she has a lot of experience dealing with the Merchant Guild and most important of all: Alysanne doesn't share her father's optimistic mindset.

Alester doesn't believe that the Merchant Guild is going to act dishonestly, which is why the teenagers' warnings seem paranoid to him.

"My dear child, don't worry." Alester wraps an arm around her and kisses her on the forehead. "Your father is a capable and cautious man, I have already reviewed all the laws of Bitterbridge and there is nothing illegal in our plans. I even spoke to some town guards and they agreed to send some guards to patrol the market and prevent crime."

Alysanne grits her teeth and her bright eyes like summer grass shine helplessly. She wants to contradict her father, tell him that he is being naive but the love she feels for him makes her doubt. She knows of all the difficulties Alester went through in his years as a slave, she knows that those wounds have not yet fully healed and for this reason she always treats her father with great care. That care and love prevents Alysanne from being brutally honest with Alester.

Damian is aware of this, he saw her bite her tongue many times to avoid saying something too biting or harsh.

Alester turns his gaze to Damian.

"Damian I hold you in high esteem and consider you a friend, please don't feel offended when I tell you this: Your warnings are appreciated but unnecessary."

Damian opens his mouth to say something but stops halfway. He's just realized something that should have been obvious from the start: This has nothing to do with him.

Alester, Alysanne and the caravan were his traveling companions for a few weeks, that's all. Their association was one of necessity. He was not kind and cordial with them out of the goodness of his heart, no, Damian behaved like the perfect gentleman because it suited him, to win their favor and acquire more information. Even the friendship he formed with Alysanne was fueled by these motives.

After all, Damian always intended to use them for this or that. Of course, that relationship would also end up greatly benefiting the caravan in the future, but that doesn't change the heart of the matter: the ties between them are not those of genuine friendship.

If Damian gets too involved with them now that Alester is practically declaring war on the Merchant Guild of Bitterbridge then he will become part of the impending conflict.

That would be disastrous, a real catastrophe.

He cannot afford to make enemies with such powerful people, with people with whom he will need to form alliances in the future. In order for the merchant class to increase in power he needs to take control of all the merchant guilds, and in order to do that the first thing he needs is a large capital ergo he will need to become a merchant at some point.

A merchant who is blacklisted by the Merchant Guilds has his career ruined. Alester's actions doom him and his caravan, it will take a miracle to save him, and Damian isn't about to get dragged down with the kind but naive man.

"I see that nothing I can say will change your mind." Damian speaks in a solemn tone, his expression darkens and he looks at Alester with resignation. "Then this is where our paths part, Master Alester."

Alester is taken back because of Damian's tone, he had never heard the boy speak in such a grave tone.

"It has been a pleasure meeting you, I wish you the best of luck." Damian turns around and heads back to the town. `You will need a lot of luck to get out of the storm of your own creation unscathed. Sorry Alysanne, but like Pontius Pilate I have to wash my hands of this matter.`

Damian doesn't stop, as he walks past Benton the guard sees the look on his face and winces.

"You couldn't convince him." Damian doesn't reply and Benton joins him in the short walk to the Bitterbridge gates. They walk in silence and as they cross the bridge the guard places a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Here our paths will separate. I don't think we will meet again in the future."

Benton lets go of Damian's shoulder and shifts a little uncomfortably. Damian sees the shame in his eyes and reads his intentions.

"I still think you're hiding something, your martial training is too advanced, you're too smart and cunning, and sometimes you have a look in your eye that-" Benton shakes his head. "But I don't think you're a bandit."

"You're an arse, your personality is downright horrible." Damian replies. "But I think you are more honorable and decent than you let on."

"...Good luck, boy. The road to Oldtown is treacherous."

"Good luck to you too, your boss's plans will have repercussions." Damian nods and walk into town.

Benton intrigues him, he is a very capable warrior, far more skilled than any of the other guards, he is someone who is used to barking orders and almost instinctively expects others to obey and respect him. According to Alysanne, Benton is just a sellsword they met in Silverhill a few months ago, but Damian is sure that Benton`s backstory is as false as his.

`In the end it doesn't matter, Benton`s story is none of my business. Just like he said, it's highly unlikely that we'll meet again.` Damian may not know what secrets the guard is hiding, but he does know one thing: Benton won't abandon Alester.

Alysanne and Alester having a capable warrior by their side eases him a bit.

`Pontius Pilate made it seem easy, I have to harden the barriers around my heart. I can't genuinely become attached to anyone, strangers and even friends have to be pieces I can dispose of without flinching. If only that were easier...`

***

The next morning Alester and his new business partners set up a market on the banks of the Mander, just across the bridges. They sent several employees to the city to let Bitterbridge` residents know about the market they called Mander Market, a place where they can buy all kinds of goods at very good prices.

The merchants set prices that are significantly lower than those of the merchants within the town to attract the attention of the customers. The lower prices won't even affect their profits because since they are selling their products outside of Bitterbridge they don't have to pay various things.

Apart from the permits to trade within Bitterbridge and the bribes that must be paid to the guards, the merchants have to pay one tenth of their profits to the Merchant Guild and another to the Lord. Lord Caswell will receive his share but the Guild will not, as the contracts make it clear that this payment applies to goods sold within Bitterbridge's walls.

Most of the inhabitants of Bitterbridge aren't exactly rich, they don't have much to spare and when a market appeared where they can buy products 20% cheaper than inside the town they didn't waste any time. Mander Market became quite the sensation and by noon it was packed with customers.

Even some of Lord Caswell's relatives were seen in the market. The combination of good prices and the novelty of a riverside market was extremely popular. So much so that it quickly attracted the attention of the wrong people, people who did not take well to the existence of this new market.

***

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