“Mistress Cythia?” shouted Ari. “Can you tell us about getting into the city? One of the men outside mentioned a citizenship tax?”
“Oh!” said Cythia. “Of course. The Baron demands everyone in the city pay a monthly tax as citizens in order to keep the wall funded and discourage overpopulation.”
“What happens if you don’t pay it?” asked Kerys.
“Well, you end up outside, of course,” said Cythia. “Which is a tough place to be. There’s some work for the farmers, hunters, and collectors to make enough to get back inside and on their feet. Weather scouts too, as correct predictions of oncoming storms are quite coveted. Not much for an old crone like me, though.”
She spoke in a voice that was far cheerier than her words, but Ari still felt a pang of sympathy for her.
“How much is the tax?” asked Ari.
“150 copper tips,” said Cythia. “Or 12 silver tips, or, if a person be truly of wealth, they can pay with a single gold tip. The rarer coins are more valuable, even though the exchange is supposed to always be ten for one.”
“We have some coins, but they’re probably not the same as what the people here use,” said Ari.
He pulled out some of the gold coins from the bottom of his bag. He hadn’t counted them, but he had at least two dozen left, even after losing two thirds of the treasure in the packs that Eva and Kerys had lost to the storm. Cythia picked up her candle and shifted it toward Ari’s hand to get a better look at the currency. Her eyebrows shot up after a few seconds.
“That’s remarkable!” she said. “If those are true gold, they must have at least four or five times as much value as a gold tip. Be careful if you try to pay the tax with those. The guards at the gate might take them, but they might also try to seize them as contraband.”
“We’ll be careful,” said Ari. He looked over at Kerys to see if there was anything else she wanted to ask, but she shook her head. “Thanks for your help.”
“Thanks for what?” asked Cythia. “Oh, you’re not buying anything?”
Ari flipped her one of the coins. “Compensation for your sage advice.”
CHAPTER 45
“If our coins are that valuable, there shouldn’t be any problem,” said Kerys.
They’d passed through the village and onto the well-worn cliff path that led up to the city. A small farm wagon loaded to the brim with freshly harvested melons had arrived ahead of them, and they followed behind it at a leisurely pace as it made its way around the path’s sharp turns.
“There shouldn’t be a problem,” said Ari. “But I do expect that there will be.”
“Are you expecting this to come to violence?” asked Eva.
“No, we won’t be fighting,” said Ari. “But we are going to have to approach this carefully. Kerys, let me do the talking.”
“As though you don’t almost always do the talking,” said Kerys, rolling her eyes. “If you have a plan, of course, go right ahead.”
Ari made sure they were close enough to the wagon in front of them to hear the two guards on gate duty discussing the citizenship tax with the group of farmers, or collectors, or whatever they were. They’d all already paid their fees, apparently, but each of the guards still helped themselves to a melon each. That told Ari all he needed to know about how they did business.
“Odd to see a lone couple traveling outside,” said the guard as the two of them approached. “Are the two of you citizens?”
Both the guards carried spears and wore iron, open-faced helmets and chainmail vests over matching blue uniforms. It looked as though all of their equipment had seen better days, with small flecks of rust in places.
“I am Lord Aristial Stoneblood of Ethereal Tower,” said Ari, in the most pompous voice he could muster. “I come on behalf of my community to discuss trade terms with your Baron. If there is an entrance toll which I am subject to, state the amount.”
“Lord… Aristial Stoneblood?” said the guard. “Who is this, then? Your traveling minstrel?”
He gestured to Kerys, who immediately flushed bright red. Ari drew Azurelight from its sheath with lightning speed and pressed the tip of it to the guard’s neck. Time seemed to freeze for an instant.
“She is my courtesan,” said Ari. “I do not take kindly to insults, be they directed at myself or my companion. Apologize to her, state the entrance fee, and perform your mud damned duty.”
He pulled his sword back and sheathed it, hoping that the outlandish gesture would sell the performance rather than get them killed. Neither of the guards seemed to know how to react. Ari pulled one of the gold coins out of his pocket and flicked it to the man he’d just threatened, who fumbled to catch it without letting go of his spear.
“You threaten one of the Baron’s guards, and you expect to just…” The guard trailed off as he felt the weight of the ancient gold coin.
“I was told by the woman in the shop down below that your currency is different from what we use in Etheria,” said Ari. “It’s still solid gold. That should suffice for us both.”
“Hold on!” said the other guard. “Our orders are to accept nothing less than the Baron’s own coin. We’ll have to confiscate any more of it that we find on you.”
“You will do no such thing!” said Kerys, adding her own, theatrical voice to the mix. “You Baron told my Lord in a letter that there would be no issue of this kind. If you insist on standing in our way, we’ll be offering a detailed description of your faces and mannerisms to your Baron for discipline later this eve.”
The guards seemed caught off guard by that, but still hesitant. Ari tossed another gold coin to the other guard. Both of them glanced at each other, and then shrugged.
“Well then, Lord Stoneblood, here is the necessary documentation. Present that seal to any of the Baron’s men who request it. Your stay is confirmed for the next seventeen days, until the next new double moon.”
Ari gave them both a curt nod as they stepped out of the way. The gate was already open, and as soon as they’d stepped beyond it, they found themselves in what felt like another world.
He’d heard the sound of the crowd while speaking to the soldiers, and he’d caught the intermingled, musky scents of grime, food, and people. It was a completely different matter to pass into it and bear witness to what was, as far as Ari knew, the sole remaining human city.
The streets were crowded, and buildings were packed tightly together, most extending upward several floors. There’d only been a few wooden structures within the entirety of Golias Hollow, but in Cliffhaven, the inverse seemed to be true. Most buildings were made of wood, often times composed of patchwork construction, with thatch or pitch and tile roofs.
The streets were paved with grey cobblestone, though it was crumbled and in disrepair in places. People moved in large, flowing crowds, interspersed with the occasional horse or donkey, with street vendors set up under canopies hanging along the sides. Ari took a tight hold of Kerys’ hand as they stepped forward and out of the way of a group of rough-looking men heading for the gate.
The ambient noise was a chorus of conversation and shouts from a variety of street artisans and merchants attempting to drum up business. Ari slowly made his way forward alongside Kerys, heading down the largest and foremost street until she gave his hand a pull.
“Hold on,” she said. “We shouldn’t just start wandering around. We need to find the Traveler’s Guild Inn, remember? That’s where the Vereshi said we’d meet our contact within the city.”
“Right,” said Ari. He scanned the nearby buildings and establishments, frowning as he appreciated the size of even just the small section of the city they were in. “We should probably ask for directions.”
Kerys nodded and took a step away from him, moving to catch the attention of a rotund-looking woman selling loaves of bread from a cart.
“Excuse me,” said Kerys. “We’re looking for the Traveler’s—”
She let out a small squeal as a young boy brushed by her, interr
upting her question. Ari hurried to her side and immediately recognized the pink, flustered expression on her face.
“He just groped my butt!” snapped Kerys.
Ari let his gaze follow the boy, who already appeared to be stalking a new target.
“I think he was trying to pickpocket you, Kerys,” he said. “Not that your butt isn’t totally worth groping.”
He jokingly reached a hand toward her backside, but the glare Kerys offered in response made him think better of risking a squeeze. Another boy was already approaching them from the left side of the corner of his vision. Ari let out a whistle and unsheathed Azurelight a few inches, showing a flash of polished steel.
“Glad I just sharpened my sword,” he said, in a loud voice. “Seems it might be getting a workout today.”
The exaggerated threat was apparently enough to send the would-be thief in another direction. Kerys was already talking with the baker, and as Ari turned back to her, she gave him a broad smile and pointed down a street to the left.
“She says it’s this way,” said Kerys. “Two streets north from the southern wall, in the southwest quarter. Should be a sign out front.”
“Good work,” he said. “Let’s get moving.”
He kept her close as they found their way. The city bustled with activity, and in some ways, it was as much a shock to Ari’s senses as the first time he’d stepped out onto the surface from within the Hollow. He couldn’t fathom what it would be like to grow up in such a place, surrounded by thousands of people, distracted by endless novelties.
He was also struck by how obvious the stratification between the rich and the poor was, even at a glance. The more well-off citizens of Cliffhaven were easy to spot, most of them traveling in groups or with guards, dressed in clean, colorfully dyed tunics and intricately tailored dresses.
The poorest citizens of the city seemed almost invisible to their fellows. They sat in alleyways, or on street corners, dressed in dirty rags, not actively begging but clearly in need.
Back in the Hollow, even the people working the worst jobs had ultimately been taken care of by the community. Ari had been an orphan and still had never suffered conditions close to what he could see some of the impoverished in Cliffhaven were being subjected to. He saw men and women and even children with gaunt faces, rail-thin bodies, and sunken, hopeless eyes.
“I wasn’t expecting Cliffhaven to be so…” Kerys frowned and seemed to search for the right word. “Crowded, I guess?”
“Yeah,” said Ari, as he pulled on her hand to guide her around a ragged, toothless madman lying across the narrow street. “Crowded. This is just one section of the city, though. It might not be like this everywhere.”
It took them another ten minutes to find the street the baker woman had indicated, and a few more after that to reach the Traveler’s Guild Inn. The southwest quarter of Cliffhaven was clearly one of the rougher sections of the city, which made the clean, wooden architecture and neat stone steps leading up to the inn’s thick wooden door seem out of place.
It had an alleyway on one side and what appeared to be a smithy, complete with a currently inactive forge, on the other. The sign hanging on the inn’s front wall read “TRAVELER’S GUILD INN,” and then underneath, in smaller script, “The Trium’s Light Shines on All.”
“Huh,” said Ari. “I’m surprised that people here worship the Trium. Weren’t those the gods of the Sai?”
“Yeah,” said Kerys. “It’s a little weird, but I guess it makes sense if you consider that most of the people in Cliffhaven were probably descendants of the humans that remained as slaves of the Saidican Empire as it fell.”
Ari furrowed his brow. He hadn’t considered where all of the people in Cliffhaven had first come from. The people of Golias Hollow and the other caverns in the south had all been led to freedom by Dormiar, according to their histories, as a part of the rebellion that’d gripped the Saidican Empire during its mysterious fall. However, it seemed like a fair assumption that not all of the Empire’s slaves had been a part of that movement.
“Anyway, let’s head inside,” said Ari.
He paused outside the door, knocking once before pushing it open. It was heavier than he’d expected it to be and scraped against the floorboards. He only bothered opening it wide enough for him and Kerys to slip through before passing through it.
An old man with a full head of scraggly grey hair and a conjoined beard of the same color stood behind the inn’s counter, scribbling something into a ledger. He looked up and scowled as Ari entered.
“No open rooms, and the bar is closed until evening,” said the man.
Despite his age, he was in good shape, and tall with broad shoulders. There was something about both his posture and the intensity of his gaze that made Ari think that he could both hold his own in a fight and likely had a weapon within arm’s reach under the counter.
“We’re here to meet with Durrien,” said Ari. “The Vereshi of the Ravarians said that you could help us.”
The old man’s eyes went wide, and he grumbled something as he shook his head.
“At least close the blistering door before announcing a thing like that!” he snapped. “Have you no sense, lad?”
Ari grinned and heaved his shoulder against the door to shut it. “You’re Durrien, then?” he said.
“That I am,” said the old man. “Take a seat at the bar. Your friends were just about to give up on you.”
CHAPTER 46
Ari grinned at Rin and Leyehl as they made their way down the stairs into the inn’s tavern room. They both wore baggy grey dresses that went up to the neck and belted at the waist, which did a good job of hiding the contours of their wings underneath.
Leyehl hung back a little bit, but Rin seemed to have no qualms about running up to Ari and wrapping him in a tight hug. She’d braided her hair, and her face was in contrast to Ari’s own somewhat disheveled appearance, but she had no qualms about being in close contact with him.
She kissed him before he could stop her, letting out a soft sigh as she gently ran her hands through his hair. Ari cleared his throat as he extricated herself from her embrace, aware of the fact that Kerys and Eva were watching and more than likely disapproving.
“It’s good to see you too, Rin,” he said.
“I’d thought you dead, chala,” said Rin. “Leyehl and I were planning on abandoning the quest and returning to Varnas-Rav come morning.”
“It’s a good thing we arrived when we did, then,” said Ari.
Leyehl came up next to Rin and set a hand on her shoulder before whispering something in her ear. Rin nodded and furrowed her brow slightly.
“Leyehl is eager to begin putting our plan into action,” said Rin. “Waiting for the three of you has made her… a little impatient.”
“Three?” asked Durrien, who was still standing behind the bar. “I see only two.”
“Oh, right,” said Ari. “Let me make the proper introductions. Durrien, this is Kerys Weaver of Golias Hollow. And this…”
He unsheathed Azurelight and gently hefted it to the side. It flashed with light, and Eva appeared with her arms crossed and a small smile on her face. Durrien let out a shout and nearly fell backward against one of the ale kegs behind him.
“Blood of the Trium!” he said, shaking his head. “Incredible. Your mother would have been absolutely floored by this, Rinaria. She’s always intrigued by the old enchantments.”
“You knew Rin’s mother?” asked Ari.
He furrowed his brow, fitting the pieces together even as Durrien bellowed out a laugh and began explaining.
“Of course I did,” said Durrien. “We were together, for a time. I fathered Rin’s older sister.”
“You mean Tialese?” asked Kerys. “That’s why she was so sure that you could help us, isn’t it? You’re the father of the Vereshi of the Ravarians!”
“It sounds like quite the feat when you phrase it like that,” chuckled Durrien. “We were young and spry, a
nd of course, there was quite a bit of ale involved, along with that spicy liquor the Ravarians are so fond of.”
“Durrien,” said Rin, in an irritated tone. “I assure you that none of us are interested in the exact details.”
“But you aren’t Rin’s father, too?” asked Kerys.
Durrien made a face and scratched his head. “Er, no. It was quite a long time ago, and Belianne and I both went on to be with other people. I did make the trip down to Varnas-Rav a few times to visit, which is when I first met Rinaria, as a child.”
“You visited?” asked Ari. “As in, traveling across the land?”
Durrien nodded, flashing a proud smile. “It was dangerous, true enough. The land is treacherous, but there are, or at least, in my younger days, there were routes that avoided the regions with the harshest weather. Harshest monsters, in that same regard.”
“Did you actually have a guild, then?” asked Ari.
“Of course I did!” snapped Durrien. “It was me, my wife, er, second wife, after Belianne, along with a few old friends who have been lost to the years, unfortunately.”
A few seconds of sympathetic silence followed before Eva moved to stand near the center of the group, drawing the attention of the others.
“We should collect our focus,” she said. “We came here for a reason, did we not?”
“I’m still amazed that you made it here at all.” Rin let out an impressed chuckle and looked at Ari. “How did you survive, chala? We saw what remained of the galleon.”
“Kerys fell in,” said Ari. “I jumped in after her, and Eva brought one of the small boats on the side of the ship to scoop us up.”
“It was close,” said Kerys. “We wouldn’t have made it here in time if not for the speed of the—”
“Current that pushed our boat along!” said Ari, interrupting her.
He shot her a secretive glance. As much as he’d grown to trust Rin and Leyehl as companions, he wanted to keep knowledge of the rune sled to just himself, Kerys, and Eva. He especially didn’t want word of it getting back to the Vereshi, given how excited she’d been to coopt his enchanting skills once before.
Vision Voyage (The Weatherblight Saga Book 2) Page 28