The Dark Half of the Sun (The Young Ancients: Timon) by P.S. Power Read Free Book Online Page B

Different things altogether. I've had a free education already, which means I have what I need to go it alone if I have to. These people didn't get that kind of privilege. We should do it. If Tor wants to charge me for it when he gets back he can. I don't think it will be a problem."
    No one else really thought so either, which was a little strange, but Ali still didn't want to use the gold on it, since it wasn't hers to spend, even if that wasn't true at all. It was clear she thought that spending the gold on it was theft, even if Tor was her husband and had more coin that anyone could ever get rid of.
    He shook his head and sighed. The amulets and items he'd copied were his back up, in case he didn't make enough to pay for his own schooling, but it was clear that these orphans needed it worse than he did. It was a hard thing to consider, since he didn't really care about them, but it was clearly the correct thing to do. Going to the largest of his three floating cases he let it settle down to the floor and started pulling out the acid etched pieces inside. They looked pretty nice, even if they didn't glow and weren't on stone. He said what each one was as he put them onto little cloth coin bags so that they'd stay separate.
    "That's fifty of them, all I have right now. Except for shields, which I can't part with. I can only make five at a time. Take them and sell them. It should be enough to get some kind of school started. I'll try to get more for it as soon as possible." It wasn't fair, since Ali had a lot more gold than he did and it was her program, but life hadn't been easy for these kids. He got how she felt about it anyway. She hadn't earned the coin herself and to her mind Tor had only married her to protect her from her da. An evil beast that made the world a better place by dying like he had.
    Sara went wide eyed and stared at the bags as he handed them over to Ali.
    "That's... almost twenty thousand gold Timon. Conservative resale for the work." She was a merchant by birth, so she knew about things like that. "If you need gold for school, even one of those would be enough."
    " If I had the contacts to make the sales. Which I don't yet. Hopefully I can get the Fast Transport going soon enough that I can attend this year. If not I'll work for a year first. This is more important than my personal comfort." It was true, he knew, even if the idea did leave him feeling a little sad. That was just him being responsive to his plans changing. It wasn't that big of a problem. He could get books that would teach most of what he needed to know, and find a tutor for the rest anyway. A lot of nobles got their educations that way. His mother had suggested it for most of the kids, so they wouldn't have to leave Two Bends.
    It was strange, but everyone in the room bowed toward him then. A sign of respect that the nobility used when they realized they'd been "out nobled" by one of their own. It was easier than trying to outdo them later. Ali clapped a little, happily, and gave him a hug after that.
    "This is perfect. We can do it... Collette, will you help me with it? I still don't really know who to contact." They pulled off to the side to discuss the matter in low tones.
    Timon felt a little breathless rather than good about what he'd just done, but it was the right thing to do, even if it did hurt a little.
    Not to be sidetracked Smythe set out to find the culprits, starting with the supply Sergeant for the base, who was, surprisingly, innocent. Of that at least. He had been letting some of the kids "borrow" extra blankets and had let one boy with very large feet have an old pair of boots that he didn't think anyone would miss. It was peculation, but oddly enough Smythe pretended not to hear the man admit to it. Neither did Major Godfrey. The kids needed blankets and things after all.
    They also needed more food. The military wasn't letting them starve, and that was something that was being paid for by Tor directly, but they