by Aaron Oster
There was silence for a few more moments as Edmund gathered his thoughts.
“Even if we wanted to compete, the issue still remains as to who will represent us, and who will travel to the West in my stead. I cannot leave the battlefield, especially since my daughter left with all our plans stashed in her brain.”
Simon nodded. He’d been waiting for this.
“I believe I can solve both your problems at once,” he said, trying and failing to keep the growing smile off his face. “I would be more than happy to travel to the West in your stead. As for who to choose for the tournament… I believe that you’ve met my sister, Sing?”
Edmund sat a bit straighter in his chair at that, and nodded, his grim features relaxing just a bit.
“I did not even consider her. I thought she was somewhere in the South at the moment, and too far away to make it back.”
Simon’s grin widened.
“If this were yesterday, it would have been impossible, but Loquin sent me a present just this morning.”
Simon pulled four scrolls from his pocket, along with four glowing blue vials.
“I was going to tell you about them as soon as I had them,” he was quick to add. “But when Loquin called and asked for a meeting, I figured I’d tell you after.”
“What are they?” Edmund asked, taking the scrolls and examining them curiously.
“Portals,” Simon simply replied, noting the gleam of satisfaction from Edmund’s eyes.
Yes, he thought. These were indeed worth becoming excited over. They would change how war was waged for decades to come.
“Very well, let’s get started. The tournament likely won’t start for a few more weeks, and there are still many things we have to take care of before then,” Edmund said, his hard face finally cracking into a smile.
8
Morgan stepped through the portal into the blistering heat of a furnace.
“Holy shit, it’s hot out here!” Sarah complained the moment she emerged.
Morgan didn’t know what she was complaining about. Her armor, unlike his, was sleeveless, leaving a lot less of her skin to bake under an additional layer of clothing, though going uncovered under the desert sun probably wasn’t a good idea.
Morgan realized that the heat wasn’t nearly as intense as it had been in his memories. He attributed that to his much higher Constitution, as well as his tough skin.
“Yes, it’s hot,” Morgan replied, shading his eyes and looking around the sand dunes.
The sun was almost directly overhead, meaning that he couldn’t really gage direction at the moment.
While Sarah grumbled about her delicate skin frying under the sun, Morgan cast around for a stick and a couple of rocks. He then placed the stick upright into the sand and placed the first rock at the end of the shadow it cast.
Finally noticing that he was doing something, Sarah walked over and eyed him curiously.
“What are you doing?”
“Gaging our direction,” Morgan replied, shielding his eyes from the sun and looking up from his crouched position.
“The landscape is vast, and even if I flew up, I doubt I’d see anything other than sand for miles around. This way, I can get a general sense of our direction.”
“How exactly will a stick and some rocks tell you where to go?” she asked, crouching down next to him.
Morgan explained how when the sun moved, so would the shadow the stick cast. Then, by placing the second rock at the tip of that shadow, it would point them in the right direction.
“Huh, never would have thought to do that,” Sarah mused, as Morgan counted the passing time in his head.
After only a few more seconds had passed, he had a pretty good idea of where they should be headed, but he continued waiting the full fifteen minutes, even though he was itching to get moving.
Straightening, he dusted the sand from his pants and motioned in the direction he believed to be west.
“Not sure how long we’ll need to head in that direction, but I don’t wanna fly too high. The landscape is bare out here and anything will stick out like a sore thumb.”
Sarah pouted.
“You’re really gonna make us walk the entire time?”
Morgan grinned at his friend’s apparent laziness.
“You know, ever since I learned I could fly, it seems like I’ve become your pack animal.”
“And a better horsey I’ve never ridden,” she said cheekily, moving around to his back and draping her arms over his shoulders.
Morgan just shook his head, but got a good grip under her thighs and took off into the air. He was careful never to drift more than five feet off the ground, to ensure that the dust and grit would stay out of his eyes, and making sure that they wouldn’t be too easily spotted.
“So how long do you think it’ll take to reach this city?” Sarah asked after only a few minutes of silence.
Morgan was tempted to ignore her. Sarah had many great qualities, but she could never stay quiet for any great amount of time. He knew that if he ignored her, she would become even more persistent, eventually even going so far as to attack him in order to elicit a response.
“No idea. We don’t know where in the West Kingdom we are right now, so all we have to go on is a direction. It’s entirely possible we’ve already missed the city and need to circle back around.”
Sarah shifted around on his back but didn’t otherwise reply. He was prepared for a long flight filled with questions, but, to his complete and utter shock, a town came into view as they crested the next dune.
It was unlike any city Morgan had ever seen before, but it seemed to have the same style of layout as Mitten had in his memories. The houses were mostly made of sandstone, and the town was set out in a series of winding paths instead of the neat rows of the North or Central Kingdom cities.
Most of the houses were also shaped like domes, instead of the square houses and buildings he was used to seeing. He spotted an oasis in the very center of the town, where several people moved about, though he couldn’t make out what they were doing. After a few more seconds of staring, he started to notice a pattern, in what he’d previously thought of as disordered chaos. All of the streets seemed to be moving in a spiraling pattern, all ending at the oasis. This would give everyone easy access to the water, which Morgan knew would be important out here.
“Huh, that was faster than expected,” Sarah said with a snort, snapping him from his examination of the interesting town. “Our luck’s never this good.”
Morgan tended to agree with her. They’d never set out to do something and had an easy time of it.
“Just because we found a town, doesn’t mean they’ll help, or that they’re particularly friendly,” he said, speeding up his pace on the downward slope of the dune.
“Best be cautious not to bring too much attention to ourselves.”
“Yeah,” Sarah replied with a long sigh. “With our shit luck, we’ll run into some thugs the moment we step into town. Then we’ll have the entire West Kingdom on our heels as well.”
Sarah didn’t know how right she was.
It only took another fifteen minutes to reach the town limits, and Morgan landed far enough away so as to avoid being seen by the locals. They trudged through the burning sand, Sarah complaining up a storm, despite the fact that the sun was doing absolutely nothing to her.
Morgan suspected that before her Evolution, the scorching sun would have at least given Sarah a mild sunburn. Now, despite her arms being bared, the sun was doing nothing more than making them feel hot.
It took another thirty minutes for them to reach the town limits, as the shifting sand hampered their progress quite a bit, and while it was not a particularly difficult task to walk through the sand, the constant sinking was really starting to get on his nerves.
If I was born here, I sure am glad I left, Morgan thought as they approached a low wall made of sandstone, manned by two guards dressed in tan cloth armor.
“W
ho are you, and what are you doing here?” one of them asked, staring the both of them down. “You do not look like Westerners.”
The man had a strange accent which Morgan had never heard before, and despite them being clearly unwelcoming, he did his best to be pleasant.
“I was actually born in the West, though I moved away as a child. I’m looking for my hometown. Do you perhaps know where Mi… Ow!” Morgan exclaimed, as Sarah jabbed him sharply in the ribs.
It had actually hurt, as Sarah now had the Strength to cause some serious damage.
He turned to glare at her, but she was staring straight ahead with a smile plastered on her face.
“Sorry about that, we’ve had a long journey getting here, and my friend is eager to get it over with.”
The guard’s eyes narrowed, and he took a threatening step forward.
“Now listen here you… Ow!”
Now it was his turn to cry out, as the other guard clubbed him over the back of the head with the haft of her spear.
“Forgive his rudeness, Doug is just sour at being stuck out in the sun all day. Now what city was it that you were looking for?” she asked, smiling at Sarah in kind.
“We’re not actually sure which city it is, but we were told that it was near Mitten,” Sarah replied, still completely ignoring Morgan’s outraged expression.
“Near the Ruined City, you say,” the woman said, stroking her chin lightly while Doug glared at her.
“There are several cities surrounding Mitten, but none within a hundred miles. You should be able to find someone with a map in town, though it might cost you a pretty penny all the way out here.”
Sarah thanked the woman, then grabbed Morgan by the wrist and dragged him past the still scowling Doug, who was rubbing at the back of his head and glaring at the both of them.
That guy’s gonna be trouble, Morgan noted as they rounded the wall of a building and the guards were lost from sight.
As soon as they were out of the sight of the guards, Morgan pulled his wrist from Sarah’s grip. She turned to give him a questioning look, but he just quirked an eyebrow at her.
Sarah rolled her eyes in response but answered his unasked question all the same.
“We don’t wanna go advertising where you’re from. Remember, everyone in that city was supposed to have died ten years ago.”
Morgan, who had been preparing an angry retort, stopped himself with his mouth half open.
She was right. He had wanted to keep a low profile, and advertising that they were interested in the destroyed city would accomplish the exact opposite. He nodded to show he agreed with her assessment, and her face took on a smug expression.
Why does she always feel the need to gloat whenever she’s right? Morgan wondered as they headed deeper into the town.
The two of them followed the winding road until they emerged out into the center of the town, where the oasis was located. Here, Morgan could see that it was a lot busier than he’d first imagined.
People of all ages were moving about the wide open area, carrying water, food and other goods between shops. The people were all dressed in a similar fashion to the guards at the gates, in loose-fitting sand-colored clothes.
Morgan had to assume that this style was popular due to the lightness of the material. In a scorching landscape like this, it would be important to find ways to remain cool. After standing still for a few moments, Morgan felt Sarah nudge him in the ribs again.
“You really need to stop doing that,” he said, keeping his tone neutral as he turned to see what had gotten her attention now.
“We really should find a change of clothes,” she said out of the side of her mouth. “People are staring.”
Morgan started, then, looking casually around, he noted that people were indeed staring. He mentally berated himself for once again being so careless.
What was going on with him? He was normally the one to warn Sarah about these types of things, not the other way around.
Looking around the open area, Morgan spotted a small, open-fronted booth selling clothes on the other side of the large pool of water. Tilting his head in that direction, Morgan started walking, followed closely by Sarah.
They reached the stall without any trouble, something Morgan was very grateful for.
He was all for fighting, but right now, all he wanted to do was find that city and get some answers.
“How can I help you?” the man behind the stall asked as they approached.
“Hi,” Sarah said, giving the man her best smile. “We’re new around here, so our clothes aren’t exactly suited to the area. Would you perhaps have anything we can wear? Preferably something with a little armor?”
“You got money?” he asked, folding his arms and staring the two of them down.
Sarah pulled a small coin pouch from her waist. They had most of their money stashed in the spatial bag inside Sarah’s armor, but had decided that keeping a small amount of money outside the bag would be more convenient.
She pulled a silver coin from the pouch and waved it before the man’s eyes. The merchant’s expression instantly grew more friendly when he saw the silver coin, and he nodded.
“Of course! Welcome to Luke’s shop. Come around back and I’ll help you find what you’re looking for.”
Morgan and Sarah shared a glance, but he just shrugged and the two of them followed the man around back.
Rounding the shop, Morgan was surprised to see several racks of clothing standing there in neat rows. There was also a small hut which he assumed would be for changing.
“You said you were looking for something with a bit of armor, yes?” the merchant, who Morgan assumed to be named Luke, asked.
“Yes,” he replied. “Something light enough not to impede movement, but durable enough not to tear the first time we get into a fight.”
Luke’s smile wavered just a bit at Morgan’s flat tone, but it was back in an instant as his eyes moved to Sarah again.
“Of course, just give me a moment,” he replied, then scurried off between the racks of clothing to find what he’d asked for.
“You can ask for things nicely, you know,” Sarah said with a wry smile.
“I was nice,” he replied, keeping an eye on the man as he moved along the racks, pulling various articles of clothing down and draping them over an arm.
Sarah let out a long sigh but declined to respond. She knew he couldn’t help acting the way he did. She just really hoped that by the time this entire journey was over with, he might have some answers or a way to heal.
Luke came scurrying out from between the racks a moment later and held out his wares for examination.
“What is this?” Morgan asked, taking a billowy pair of tan pants from the man and examining it.
It felt light as air, but he could feel that the fabric was very tough and assumed that there must be something woven through the material.
“These are pants made of flax,” he replied, tugging nervously at his collar. “The material is light, and is interwoven with the fur of the steel-haired desert goat.”
Morgan nodded to the man, accepting a shirt that tightened on one side with a pair of straps as well. While he went to change in the small hut - something which Sarah had insisted he do - Sarah accepted a similar set from the man.
“I’m sorry about him,” she said to the nervous looking merchant. “He may seem a bit rough, but I promise he means well.”
“Oh, it is no problem,” the merchant replied. “It is none of my business. Come, why don’t you change inside the shop? I have another booth there.”
Sarah nodded, heading inside the shop. She found the smaller booth in question, and proceeded to strip out of the heavier enchanted armor she’d gotten from Katherine. It didn’t take her long to change, and despite the sun not physically burning her, she felt a lot cooler in the lighter material.
It was a looser fit than the armor had been, as that had conformed to her body like a glove, but she found that sh
e preferred this to the armor, despite the armor’s higher quality. She just didn’t feel comfortable walking around in something that did so little to hide her figure. She’d been feeling distinctly uncomfortable since her evolution, as the armor only highlighted the fact that she’d filled out a lot more since then.
She pulled the last buckle tight and folded her armor, before sliding it into the Spatial bag with all their other possessions. She frowned then. Her armor had had a secret compartment where she could stash the bag. Now, she’d be forced to tie it to her belt. Blowing out an annoyed breath, she emerged from the shop to see Morgan talking to the owner.
She had to admit that he did cut an impressive figure. He had been on the short side when they were growing up, and only within the last few months had he reached the same height as her. When he’d evolved, he’d gained a few inches in height, and his chest and shoulders looked a lot more impressive. He was now around five foot nine, still not a giant by anyone’s standards, but he at least didn’t look like a child anymore.
Sarah felt her cheeks coloring lightly as she continued staring, suddenly remembering the kiss they’d shared only a couple of weeks ago.
Okay, they hadn’t exactly shared a kiss, so much as she’d tricked him into it, but still…
She took a deep breath to calm herself before heading over to where Morgan stood, staring down at the merchant, who had actually begun to sweat. He looked up as she approached, and she was once again struck by his bright, violet eyes, each sporting a single ring of gold around the pupils. Sarah had to force down the urge to launch herself into his arms as his gaze landed on her. She wasn’t sure why his presence elicited such a response from her. It hadn’t been nearly this strong only a few months ago, but the longer they traveled together, the stronger it became.
The merchant turned then, and instead of looking relieved as she’d expected, he still seemed quite nervous. She decided to ease his tension by offering him another smile.
“They’re an excellent fit,” she said, interposing herself between him and Morgan. “How much do we owe you?”