After a quick breakfast of bacon, eggs, and bread, the party set off again on the road to Chath.

  The morning greeted them well, the sun quickly burning away the rain clouds that tried to push their way over the mountains across the plains. Everyone was heartened by the city, standing tall in the distance. Even the rescued surveyors, so morose from their treatment in the mines, had perked up and regained some of their insufferability from the familiar territory. Jarod was glad they only had a half-day of riding left before they would be rid of them.

  Mostly, Jarod ignored them by thinking through his experience in the mines, and the conversation he’d had this morning with Tex’ana. Even though it made sense, it was hard to think of Tex’ana as a demon. Obviously, he wasn’t like the humans, or any other race of people Jarod had seen before for that matter. But despite his odd appearance and unusual manner of speaking, he’d begun to think of the sight servant as just another travelling companion, in line with how he thought of Nikolao. Not quite a friend, but Jarod didn’t regard everyone in Cleftshire as a friend either, and they got along just fine.

  Tex’ana just didn’t seem like a demon as Jarod thought of them. Not that he’d seen any other in person, of course, but the stories had always described them as horned with red skin and terrible fangs. If ifrithet all looked like Tex’ana, then the fairy tales had been way off. They’d been way off on a demon’s behavior too, although Jarod thought maybe Tex’ana was just one of the good ones.

  Aside from the black-eyed sight servant, there were also the runes he’d seen in the underground mine to keep Jarod’s mind occupied. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that his seemingly unique ability to see the runes that had covered the walls must have something to do with the System. There hadn’t been much time to experiment around with the strange messages he received that must have been connected to it. The answer he’d gotten from the Voice a few nights ago had been helpful for understanding what they meant, but not why he was getting them in the first place, or what it meant for him. He’d have to think more carefully about another question to ask of the Voice for the next time he returned to that strange realm.

  As Jarod continued his contemplations, the horses continued their advance towards the city. The group passed farmlands and villages, growing larger and more dense as they got closer to the great walls of Chath. So too did the stream of traffic on the road begin to grow. Wagons, laden with goods bound to or from the city, rumbled along the worn roads. Foot traffic, of travellers bound to pick up food or find a day’s work, walked in obstructive throngs until one of the surveyors called out for them to make way. All the while, the landscape began the gradual rise up to the hill the city sat upon.

  By shortly after midday, the reinforced gates of Chath sat wide-open before them.

  Nikolao acknowledged the guards keeping watch over the gate, and stopped the party just outside. He turned to address them before they got caught up in the hubbub inside the city. “Excellent work everyone, we’ve arrived with time to spare. We shouldn’t have to deliver our report until this evening, so we’ll have a bit of time to rest and get our story straight before then.”

  “Lyanna and Gideon,” he said, turning to address the other surveyors. “You two are free to go. I’ll send word to your estates what the next steps are. No doubt, we’ll have to get each of your stories on the whole affair, but for now, you are relieved of duty.”

  “As for the others. You three should follow me. I’ll take you to an inn in the Court District where you can stay for as long as it takes us to sort this out. As I said, you shouldn’t expect to be needed until this evening, but I’ll have you stay close enough to the inn. I’ll send a messenger to track you down once it’s time. Tex’ana, you’d best stick with me for now.”

  Nikolao gave a nod to the other two surveyors. Gideon gave a whoop, before tapping his heels hard into his horse’s flanks and setting off at a fast canter through the crowded streets. Lyanna trailed closely behind without delay, a path cleared on the road for her from the passerbys that had jumped out of the way for Gideon. Their insufferability had, indeed, returned.

  Nikolao paid the wild behavior no mind, and led the rest of the group calmly through the city gates.

  Chath was both just as big, and far bigger than Jarod had remembered. His first visit to the city had been very overwhelming, having no idea what to expect other than a lot of people. He remembered the giant city gates from last time, and the crowded jumble of storefronts that greeted you when you first walked into the city.

  He also remembered the businesses they came across here that were so densely packed, it seemed like each store spilled immediately from one into the other. Oftentimes, not even an alleyway would separate a restaurant and a coat shop. This was what had so overwhelmed Jarod on his first trip, that he had walked through the streets with his head down, just trying to block out the noise and visual activity.

  Now that he knew what to expect, Jarod was prepared for the wild roar of the entrance, and walked through, doing his best to take in the myriad sights and sounds. This was what made the city seem so much bigger than before: the realization that the clustered mess of the main gates extended as far as the eye could see in every direction, often up multiple levels of the city.

  Ahead of him, a staircase wide enough to accommodate 10 men abreast followed a rise in the ground up to the next level, where businesses spilled past the edge and onto tall decks that gave patrons a view of the entry square.

  Nikolao led them up a switchback road for horses and carriages to ascend to the next level, but even here, there were stores dug into the hillside. Wooden signs jutted out into the road that proclaimed healing services or magical goods for the home, and forced carriages to take a wide berth around them.

  And then there were the people. Humans were the most prevalent, of course, but also wandering the streets were dwarves, elves, catfolk and dogfolks, and many others Jarod had never seen in Cleftshire. Everyone seemed to be doing something. Whether it was walking with a no nonsense look into a store, loading goods into hand carts, or fiercely discussing business over smokeweed, everyone had their own agenda they were going about.

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  The villagers of Cleftshire were an industrious folk, but if you saw them about town, they always had time to stop and chat with you. As Jarod had remembered, it wasn’t the case here. He caught himself accidentally staring at some of the unfamiliar people around him, and was fully prepared to apologize to them, but they didn’t seem to even notice his gawking, let alone confront him about it.

  “There’s a lot to pay attention to,” Basma said to him.

  He glanced to the side, trying to split his attention between her and keeping his horse on the road, but it was well-trained and dutifully followed Filgrin just ahead. “Yeah, maybe too much.”

  “Oh look, there’s a juggler! You know, I think Hadrin learned to juggle in the city once. I seem to remember him performing in the tavern one night, and then getting so embarrassed when he dropped a ball that he never did it again.”

  It was starting to set in again, that overwhelming sensation he’d felt in his first visit to the city. Everyone around him seemed to crowd in from every direction. The noise, already loud, was turning into an indiscernible roar.

  Jarod felt his breath becoming faster. Tightness in his chest started to build and he felt like he couldn’t get enough air. There was just too much of everything in this unfamiliar city, 100 miles away from his hometown that might not even exist the next time he saw it.

  Willpower check (8)

  [11]

  Success

  He felt these sensations and recognized them as familiar. As the feeling he’d had the last time he was here, when he’d nervously shut out the world, keeping his head down, and running off to a corner of the city. He remembered suddenly the last time he’d been here, when he’d run down an alleyway, just trying to get away from it all. Those years ago, he’d been hunched over, sitting on his heels, nearly vomiting from nerves, when he’d heard a calming voice speak softly beside him.

  Amidst the loud shouts of the city, that voice, nearly a whisper, had told him it would be okay. It told him to focus on his breathing, to hold his breath, then breath out, then breathe out more.

  Back then, that comforting voice, and that instruction to just breathe, had gotten him through the crisis, and calmed him down. Thinking back, he remembered how the voice had sounded, and followed those same instructions. He focused on his breathing, on breathing all the way out. Just like before, he felt himself start to calm down. The tightness in his chest started to fade, and he felt himself come back into the moment.

  “Everything okay?” Basma had ridden close, checking in with compassionate eyes to make sure he was okay.

  Jarod nodded, and swallowed despite a dry mouth. “Yeah, just had to take a moment.”

  “I was asking if you wanted to go to the Crafts District with me tomorrow. It might be fun to check out the blacksmiths there.”

  He had to think about that one. The last time he had gone to see the blacksmiths in Chath, he’d been embarrassed by his own skill, which barely seemed to stack up to the apprentices. He’d certainly improved a lot since then, but he doubted it would be enough to impress any of the masters at their anvils.

  On the other hand, why pass up the chance. It wasn’t like he had anything to prove to them, and it would give him a chance to see what they were working on.

  “Sure,” he said. “It could be fun. Maybe I’ll learn something new I can use back home. Assuming we don’t have to leave too early tomorrow.”

  “Of course. We won’t delay our return trip just so we can see some sweaty men pounding hammers,” Basma said with a sly smile.

  Jarod chuckled and leaned back in his saddle as they rounded the last switchback. He looked around again to take in the sights, just in time to witness a group of schoolchildren being led by their teacher, all with their noses in their books, suddenly collide with the juggler. The juggler stumbled, sending her balls flying high into the air, as she tried to weave in and out of the kids. The small crowd that was watching all laughed at the sudden interference with her act. Their laughter quickly turned into applause as she managed to avoid faceplanting, and caught all but two of her 8 balls in the process. These, she quickly kicked up with her feet, where they landed neatly in her colorful hat. In a moment, they were joined by the other 6 still in the air with an expansive bow.

  Jarod clapped himself with a grin on his face, even though he knew the juggler couldn’t hear him. What strange sights you could see in the city when you had mind enough to pay attention to them. He thought back to his first time in the city, and the kindness he’d been shown. It was thanks to them that he had been able to make it to see the blacksmiths at all, shaken though he might have been. It was their thanks he owed to his calmness now too. He’d have to thank them if he happened to spot them in the city

  Not that it was all that likely in a city this large, but they’d been recognizable enough when he saw them the first time. They were a woman perhaps, though he couldn’t be sure because of their unfamiliar race. The comforting figure had looked almost like a plant, green-skinned with growths like leaves all over. He’d never even gotten their name, or really even known where he was. They’d just pointed him in the direction of the Crafts District when he’d calmed down and then let him wander off.

  It could have been where Nikolao was leading them now, he supposed. The first part of that day had been an amorphous blur, so there was no telling where he’d run to. Certainly the streets here seemed less frenetic than the busy entryway at least. He’d have to pay more attention this time around.

  The group travelled through district after district, through city gardens, residential blocks, and even past a university. Filgrin, Basma, and Jarod made chit-chat along the way, pointing out fun bits and pieces of the city as they came across them. Sights that would have been impossible to see back home.

  Finally, the houses around them began to grow large enough to be properly termed “manors”, complete with well-maintained gardens and even a few statues along the path. They must have arrived at the Court District.

  Nikolao stopped in front of a building even larger than most in the district, complete with stables and carriages parked neatly in a row.

  “You all will stay here for the night. Any expenses you have will be covered by the expedition fund. Just don’t ask for any of the suites, and there shouldn’t be any issues.”

  Jarod was flabbergasted by the arrangement. He’d never stayed anywhere close to as nice as this was. Would they even be able to convince them that they were sent by Nikolao?

  Filgrin was the first to voice a concern. “Not that I’d look a gift horse in the mouth, but ya sure this is the place fer us? We won’t mind staying somewhere a little less… ritzy.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” said Nikolao. “You are appearing before the king after all, we wouldn’t want things to look improper. Besides, they’re used to dealing with nobles unfamiliar with the social customs of our kingdom. They’ll have clothes and everything you need to get ready for this evening.”

  “Oh, and I almost forgot.” Nikolao tossed a coin to Jarod. “Take that down the street a ways, and you’ll get to your promised bathhouse.”