by Rosie Scott
“No wonder you acted out,” I commented. “If I spent all day in some temple built to a god who didn't give a shit about me and had to be preached to by old priests with nothing better to do, thieving is the least I would do.”
Jakan laughed, his youthful features brightening on his bronzed face. “Yeah, well, I told you I was never as religious as my parents. That temple was not immune from my thievery, and you know what?” The elf grinned. “Ciro never even noticed.”
Four
The village of Darya was tiny and mostly unnoteworthy. It was essentially a dozen or so buildings that sat along the river, and had clearly never gotten a chance to grow given the consistent attacks from the cult in the north. I hoped our battle with the Blades of Meir would offer them some relief.
When we arrived at the small town, builders from T'ahal were preparing to build the wall Hasani had spoken of. Big blocks of tanned sandstone were being imported from farther east on wagons pulled by hyenas which looked mostly bored. A few guards had been sent with the supplies to defend and oversee the construction. The construction crew appeared to be in the planning stages for now, as the sandstone present in the area was barely enough to contain the small town. I wondered if they were planning on just building a wall around the homes already here, or if they would build a bigger wall so they could expand the town. For now, Darya was barely self-sustaining. They were excited to see travelers, and so we traded some of our loot from the cult for supplies, particularly food for Nyx. There was a woman in the village who was offering fried beetles, which Nyx traded for happily. It was a snack unique to Nahara that she had developed a taste for, thanks to Theron the year before.
We left Darya behind the same day we'd come to it, because we had reached it early in the day and there was no reason to stay. Leaving the village meant we were now halfway to Al Nazir. The river continued to cut through the desert before us, leading to the coast.
In the weeks following our departure from Darya, the weather began to cool. In the desert, that meant little more than the change of a few degrees, but it was a relief nonetheless. In the distance, bits of solid white rose up from the mirage that waved over the sands. It appeared like the peaks of mountains, because mountains often had snow nearest the sky. I knew that could not be the case, since the closest mountain range sat far to the north and across the border. Over the next few weeks, as our travels brought us ever closer to our destination, it became evident that what looked like mountains was actually our target city.
Al Nazir was a magnificent city. It was far larger than T'ahal, in both scope and height. The city sat upon a peninsula, but stretched far beyond, spilling out as far as the mouth of the river we'd been following, which was a few hours walk away from the tallest buildings of its center. It reminded me of Sera in many ways. Though the architecture was different, this city was very vertical, its sandstone buildings stretching far into the sky and rivaling the clouds and stars. The sandstone here was closer to a pure white than that in T'ahal. The reflections of the ocean water we could not yet see rippled over the higher white stone in flashes of light, making it seem like the city itself was alive.
Al Nazir's ports must have been gigantic, because the city was bustling with tourists and mercenaries. Some clearly had work or personal matters to deal with here, while others were simply wasting time between assignments. Many tourists were Vhiri, and there were many giants as well, even more so than T'ahal, given we were closer to the coast. The city was evidently used to having to accommodate giants, because some businesses were marked as being giant friendly, and had larger sections of their buildings with doors that stood fifteen feet tall.
Walking into the city gave me a feeling of awe that promised not to fade anytime soon. The peninsula was mostly flat, but even still, the buildings were so tall here that we were continuously cast in shadow, making the desert heat much more bearable. Adding to that was the fact the city was so expansive in all directions. With just a glance down a side street, nothing but stores and apartments stretched into the distance, with crowds of people moving as collective masses to and from destinations.
“You know,” Jakan said, his gray eyes staring up at the massive height of a nearby building, “I said I was too young to remember Al Nazir, but I am overwhelmed with nostalgia right now. It's like...I know I was here. I just have little recollection of it.”
“This would be a hard place to forget,” I sympathized, spinning to look back behind me, where the places we'd already passed stretched behind us. “It's beautiful here. Let's stay for a night or two.”
“Yes!” Nyx exclaimed, jumping up with excitement. A few amused and bewildered glances were thrown her way from passersby. “I hoped you'd say that. We haven't been able to celebrate your birthday in two years.”
“My birthday...?” I trailed off.
Nyx laughed. “Yeah, woman, it's tomorrow. Today's the 59th of High Star. You're not old enough to start forgetting your birthday, so don't try it.”
I sighed, perplexed. “No, I'm not. Lots of things on my plate, is all.” One of Nyx's favorite things to do was treat me for a day out on my birthday, and she was right. For the past two years, we hadn't celebrated. Two years ago, we'd been traveling down a mountain near Whispermere, and last year, we'd been in the middle of the desert on our way to T'ahal. This would be the first time in a while where we'd be in a city for the occasion, and it was a city neither of us had ever been to before.
“Wait,” I spoke up, before glaring at her. “You don't have any money. If you're taking me out on the town, it'll be my gold you'll do it with.”
“Right,” she agreed happily, before tugging me close to her with an arm. “And we will do whatever you want, and go wherever you want. My treat.”
Jakan huffed with amusement. “I don't think you know what that word means.”
“Sure, I know what it means,” Nyx argued light-heartedly. “I'm a treat to be around.”
Both Jakan and I groaned at the terrible joke. Cerin chuckled at our reactions.
We traveled farther into the depths of the city as the sun started rolling toward the western horizon, casting sharply angled shadows through the busy streets. Somewhere off in the distance, I heard the sweet, sweet noise of a mizmar begin to play.
“There's your music,” Jakan commented, nudging me in the side.
“Uggh, yes,” I groaned happily. “Let's go find where it's being played, and see if there's somewhere we can relax nearby.”
“Sounds good,” the Vhiri agreed.
We followed the music until we broke through the opposite end of the city, where the smell of salt and fish wafted to our noses as our eyes set sights upon the ocean, at long last. Many tall buildings cast shadows over the beginning of the port, where thick slabs of sandstone as white as the buildings lined the ocean in a walkway bordering the water. Men and women at work scurried to and from on the docks, pulling crates of cargo off of ships and collecting fees from captains.
Back in Sera, on the clearest of spring and summer days I was sometimes able to see ships sailing the northern Servis from my windows in the university tower. As a little girl, I would often stay by the window and watch until they were no longer in sight, wondering what it was like to be beside one, or on one. Then, in Thornwell two years prior, I was closer to a ship than I'd ever been, but it was more of a trading vessel.
These ships, however—these ships were something special. There were dozens upon dozens of them in the harbor, some docked and some coming or going. There were some trading vessels here, and many of them had golden yellow sails, all of them with a black arcanic design. Given that the majority of the crew on board these ships were Vhiri, I figured the ships came from Eteri. The largest ships in the harbor were large enough to hold a crew of a few hundred men, and swayed gently with reverberating creaks and the pinging of bells. These ships had multiple blood red sails, with an inlay yellow design of a rising sun. Given that Hasani had said no mercenaries were allowed in this harbor,
I figured the larger ships were native to Nahara.
The Naharan ships were massive, and there were all manner of accoutrements upon them, the likes of which I could not place their use. Thick ropes with what appeared to be steel claws hung from railings. There were ropes everywhere, now that I focused on it. Some were criss-crossed in a netted pattern and led from the deck to the tops of thick wooden masts. I was sure all of these things had purpose, but I didn't know enough about ships to understand them. Eteri was a long way from Al Nazir, however. I was sure I would come to learn a lot about the massive transports in the upcoming seasons.
For now, my friends and I took in the sights as we found seats at an outdoor cafe in view of both the band and the dock. The cafe was busy, so we would be waiting awhile to be served. A low murmur set the backdrop for the early evening, though most people kept it down in respect of the music. There were all varieties of people sitting at the tables around us. I found myself comfortable in their presence. Though the city looked rich with its massive monuments of white sandstone, the people here all appeared to be of working class. Many of them were dressed in the ragged clothing of sailors, or the poor yet professional cloths of traders. The atmosphere was a mostly joyous one as people wound down from a long day of travel or work.
Even better, the people here did not recognize me, and they didn't seem to care much about the presence of an Alderi and an orc. We could relax here in peace before seeking out our Naharan transport.
We ate dinner while listening to the beautiful, flowing desert music, the sun slowly setting over the ocean and highlighting the tips of its waves in silver and orange. Our conversations revolved around our plans and thoughts of the upcoming sea travel. Only Jakan had ever been on a ship as big as the one we'd be taking, and other than him, Cerin was the only person who'd even been on the water at all. Jakan told us about sea sickness, and how important it would be for us to stock up on dried fruits to take with us on the trip to avoid becoming malnourished. Nyx in particular would need to buy foods in Al Nazir, since she was tired of fish and it would be the only renewable food source for weeks to come.
The band played far into the night, until the ocean was only visible by the glimmer of the stars and small moon. Most of the people had left the cafe and had gone their own ways, but we stayed. Nyx had drank enough ale throughout the evening to fell half a dozen men, but it had only caused her to become slightly more boisterous. Jakan, on the other hand, was mostly drunk, and clung to Anto in displays of messy affection.
It was nearly time to find an inn for the night, but there was one last subject I wanted to bring up before I convinced my mind to forget it. With my eyes finding Anto's, I commented, “Had things gone differently years ago, you two would be living here.”
Anto nodded, keeping Jakan upright with one muscular arm as the Vhiri leaned tiredly onto his shoulder. “But they went the way they did, and here we are, all the same.”
I twisted my lips in thought, diverting my attention to the small moon of Eran glistening off to the northwest. This was a hard conversation to start. “You know, I greatly treasure our friendship, and I appreciate everything you and Jakan have done for us.” I forced my eyes back to the orc's, because I did not wish to be a coward. “But I do not expect you to follow me to the ends of the earth just because of the events that happened in T'ahal. If you and Jakan wish to stay here in Al Nazir and continue where you both left off, I would understand.”
Nyx cocked her head at me, confused. “Why would they want to do that?”
“I'm not saying they would, Nyx. I'm just saying they have the choice.” I frowned, reflective. “My decisions alone are affecting all of you. I feel like if I didn't at least offer this to you now, while we are here, it wouldn't be right.”
Anto stared at me a moment, conflicted. Jakan turned his face toward me from his lover's shoulder, as if he could partially understand our conversation even through his inebriation. When Anto finally replied, his voice was soft and reserved. “Would you be so quick to offer this if we did not come to face the cult weeks ago?”
My teeth gritted together, but I tried not to change my gaze. Anto knew very well of my reservations since seeing him fight the last time, and I decided there had never been a better time to speak of it. “I don't know, Anto,” I admitted, honestly. “Before you were a gladiator, you lived a peaceful life. It could be there was a reason for that. Perhaps you left your life of bloodshed because you didn't care for it, or perhaps because you confronted powers you could not control. Either way, it conflicts with my own goals. I will be waging many wars in the years to come, and if that is not the life you seek, I don't want to drag you into it.”
Anto nodded slowly, before glancing down to Jakan. The Vhiri smiled back up at him, before pecking a quick kiss on the orc's cheek. The orc chuckled softly, before turning his attention back to me. “It's a good thing Jakan is drunk. If he was of mind, he would have some choice words for you.”
A sharp pain sliced through my gut. “I don't mean to offend, Anto. I'm talking openly and honestly here. If anything, I'm bringing this up because I know how it feels to lose control.”
“I don't get offended,” the orc replied, his voice just as soft as it had always been with me. “And neither does Jakan, really. He's just very protective of me, and he doesn't like to talk about it. I think it scares him. And it brings up some bad memories of my past. Jakan lives in denial.” Looking off to the band, where the musicians had just stopped playing and started packing up, he added, “I do not.”
“My ears and mind are open if you wish to talk about it,” I said.
Anto brought his attention to the table before him, where one thick finger ran subconsciously over the imperfections in the wood. “First things first, I am happy here with you. I lived a peaceful life before the cultists, that is true. And yes, it was mostly to avoid my past. But I will forever view Nahara as my prison, and I long to see other lands. You, Kai,” he said, finally meeting my gaze again, “You freed me, and now you are offering me escape. Jakan longs to see his homeland again, and I would go anywhere to make this man happy. I will ask him tomorrow when he is of mind if he'd like to stay here, and I will abide by his opinions. His happiness is my own. But if it were up to me, I would continue on with you, if you would have me.”
“You and Jakan are our friends,” I told him. “I would love having you both with us until this war is through. I just wanted to make sure you were comfortable.”
Anto cleared his throat, and took a moment to adjust Jakan next to him. The Vhiri had fallen asleep on his shoulder, and was snoring softly beneath his lover's chin. “There have been two times in my life when I have gone berserk,” he said, bluntly. “It does not happen often. You have no reason to fear me.”
“Theron told me it is unable to be controlled,” I stated, before I wondered if I should have admitted that. I did not wish to speak ill of the dead, if that was how Anto would take the statement.
“He was right,” Anto replied. “It cannot be. I see red and it does not subside until my enemies are dead. But I can still tell the difference between friend and foe. You all were unharmed, weeks ago, but all the cultists were dead.”
“All I know about a berserker rage is what Theron taught me,” I admitted. “He mentioned it was similar to my own leeching highs. If that is so, then I still worry. My attack on Sera ended up injuring Nyx. I didn't mean to hurt her, and I did not aim for her, but she was injured nonetheless. It was possible that had she been closer to the impact of my meteor, it would have killed her. I guess what I'm trying to say is that though we may be able to tell the difference between friends and enemies, our powers are immense, and friendly fire is a real concern.”
Anto exhaled in a burst of air. “I see what you're saying. It is possible, I suppose, but I've never had it happen to me. When I'm in a rage, I only have eyes for the enemy. If a friend were to be in the midst of them, I would think it could be possible my blades would reach them.” He hesitated. �
��There is one thing we're neglecting to mention. Orcs have different triggers for their rages. Mine is emotion, which is technically a weakness, given my Celdic blood. But fighting alone does not push me into rages. I was a gladiator for two years and never entered a rage. Now, say something were to happen to one of us, perhaps then I would go berserk. Unless that happens, I don't see it being a problem.”
“So you think your rage weeks ago was due to your past with the cultists.”
Anto glanced down to Jakan, ensuring the elf was still asleep. When he noticed he was, he said, “I have many emotions when it comes to that damn cult. I loved my in-laws, and they were both murdered by them. They tried to kill Jakan, and then they were the cause of my slavery. Jakan's father...” He trailed off, taking a moment to lower his voice. “Jakan's father was overweight. We both learned that the cannibals found fatty meat to be a delicacy, because it is rare. I will forever be haunted by hearing Jakan scream and cry as they ate his father the first night within his view. I couldn't see him, or comfort him, because we were being held separately. I cannot imagine having to sit by and watch someone you love be butchered and treated as meat.”
“I'm so glad we killed all the fuckers,” Nyx blurted beside me.
“Me as well,” Anto admitted. “So when we came face to face with them that night, all these memories and emotions came flooding back to me, and I lost it. I was seeing red as soon as I saw those familiar piercings.”
Cerin joined in the conversation with a question of his own. “Did they mean for Jakan to see it, do you think? Was it a torture tactic?”
“No, I don't think so. I think cannibalism is just so normal to them that they don't think twice. The cultists barely spoke, and when they did, it was with words I could not understand. Over the centuries of isolation, they have lost even the normalcy of language. But the tone is still there, and based on the way they spoke while butchering and eating people, it was a simple and every day occurrence. They probably wouldn't have understood why Jakan was crying at all, other than the fact that he was captured.”