Chapter Three: The City of Stone and Splendor. [Interstice]

Anju


“Hm,†Anju crossed her arms and pretended to think about the question the way she did every time they made it to a major city, “I think I’m going to look around and maybe get lost.â€


She snapped her fingers and spoke with real enthusiasm, “Maybe I can eavesdrop on people talking in Flametongue.â€


The real answer, lost many months ago to ritual, was Anju had no idea. She didn’t have the skill to be a merchant or acquire goods in a less morally upstanding fashion. Maybe after bothering Dragomir some more she’d terrorize the streets, but then again, maybe not. There was always trying to track down the other Exalts, but they seemed to end up in bars most of the time, which made the whole ‘hunt’ anticlimactic.
 
Kayadin Reeyeh


Kaya gave Adair a satisfied nod and a hefty smack on his back when he made it to the stand. "That was far better than I've seen you run before. You really are getting better." She threw him a cocky grin though. "I'll look forward to the day when you can actually beat me in a footrace. We both know that I can run much farther without wheezing." There was always endless teasing to dole out, but without true malice behind it. She smiled amiably at him while they bought their food.


She murmured her thanks to Adair for paying. The lamb was so hot it burned her fingers, but Kaya ate, quietly now and lost in thought. The spice in the curry stung her nostrils, but she barely paid attention to it. The bowl of food reminded her so much of home. She smiled wryly between slow bites. "You know it's been two years since I was last home. This reminds me so much of it." Two years since she'd left and longer still since she'd seen her father's face. Memories of Neelah, her mother and the rest of her little sisters threatened to make her melancholy again. Kaya pushed the thoughts resolutely aside, gobbling up a good portion of curry. Her nose starting to run slightly from the spice despite her tongue being quite used to it. Rubbing her nose with the back of her hand, she sniffled and glanced up at Adair. "We're going to need a drink after this, that's for sure."
 
To Kaya


Adair nods, wiping his nose with a kerchief he keeps in his back pocket, handing the bowl back to the vendor when done. "Aye, gah...I think I saw them go into the Spinneret. Down-guh-by the wagons where we stopped them on the Avenue." He'll wipe his nose again, shaking his head. "Really good, just making my nose into a damned sieve." He makes a face. "That was in poor taste." He coughs, then looks to you. "You'll make it home again, I'm sure of it. With better tidings following you."


As you two walk back, you'll notice Jonas and Anju standing about. Anju looks lost in thought there beside the wagons as Jonas unloads goods into smaller carts for trade. He'll give you both a wave as you come down the walk. The arcades down this Avenue of Four Thousand Steps is lively and bustling. Great yeddim are pulling wagons down the lane toward the Commerce Block. Their lowing and stench is quite memorable. Messengers, merchants, artisans, common folk, panhandlers, even the odd noble or two stroll past as you both make your way further up the block to this Spinneret Tavern.
 
To Anju


Regardless of the hunt, this is a massive city by most standards. Not a Nexus or a Lookshy, but 90,000 folk crammed into a stone cut city on a plateau is nothing to scoff at. Local priests are out extolling the virtues of their bizarre White Hawk god. This chruch or whatever it was called of the region was known as the Holy See. A few of the kingdoms practice this religion, though to be honest, you're not quite sure what it entails. Just something different like worshipping a field god or a river god or the local elementals. They just have those odd white linen robes and staffs and some of them wear those weird hats.


Though, that aside, in the throngs of folk speaking in Riverspeak, you can hear slivers of Fire- and Airtongue.
 
Anju


The idea of worshiping a ‘White Hawk’ brought a faint smile to her lips as she strolled down the streets. It could easily be a legitimate deity, or elemental since both groups came in great variety, but she had to wonder. After all, she was a leopard with a thousand eyes, though if she made the choices, her followers wouldn’t wear funny hats.


Perking at the familiar and now partially comprehensible sound of Flametongue, Anju altered her course to better hear what was going on. Not conspicuously so, of course, but that’s what the large groups of people were for!
 
Kayadin Reeyeh


She gave Adair a small laugh before returning her own bowl to the vendor. Kaya was still sniffling hard when she fell in next to the Eclipse to walk towards their next destination. "You're just unfailingly optimistic, aren't you? Well, maybe you're right. Maybe someday I can go home again. Funny though how something like scents or flavors just sends memories hurtling through your mind. That food was almost as good as what my mother used to make." Nudging him on his shoulder with hers, she told him softly, "You know what I like about this place? That glass building. It reminds me so much of home. We'll have to see it while we're here."


With a smile and a wave for Jonas and Anju as they passed by, Kaya's gaze wandered as they walked, taking in the sights of the new city and the throng of people walking by. She peered at faces, hoping to catch a glimpse of someone familiar. The yeddim were something she steered clear of, no use getting all that close and having the stench cling to her clothes. It was bad enough that her nose was still running a bit from the curry a few minutes later. "I hope that Kalek's pick of taverns has something strong. I'd like something to clear my nostrils."
 
To Anju


Really, you could simply slip behind these folk and just listen the way they carry on. Most people are wary of cutpurses and so forth, but overall, you can listen in just fine.


Some of these folks truly are Southern, talking of news in the Varang City-States or in Chiaroscuro or in Paragon (first time you've ever heard that city's name, hmm).


"And there were fifteen Dune People around the last bit of the caravan, just hacking and stabbing anything that moved. It was horrifying. One of the freaks started..." The man looks around and continues in a quiet voice. "...one of the damn things began defiling the dead." The other merchants or wayfayers shake their heads or make a sign against the evil eye.


Well, that was charming. One supposes living amongst the deserts and oasis and mountains of the South would be...painfully harsh.


You'll find yourself walking into one of the markets as you pursue these Southerners, trying to eavesdrop.
 
To Kaya


"Oh, I imagine it does, really. If he's a fan of dives, I imagine the local stout will dry it all up quite quickly to be perfectly honest. Spinneret may be on the main road, but I have an itching feeling its where the cheap beer flows. Not that I can complain. Free drinks and food is free drinks and food." Adair will open up the old wooden door of the bar, paint peeling off the front and nudge it open with his toe to keep it open just that much longer as he passes through. Hmm, he's learning.


Inside, you'll find Golgo and Kalek sitting at the bar with a few of the older boys and some of the older girls from the caravan sitting around drinking and talking. Golgo seems to be having a merry time as per usual conversing with the Terrestrial.


A few dozen folk are in the bar having a late lunch or early dinner depending on your choice. Mercenaries and even an knight in his finery and sans armor from one of the nearby kingdoms having a meal with his retainers. An odd evolution of the Shogunate method of landed lords loyal to daimyos.
 
Anju


Thank Luna for his blessings. It didn’t automatically mean she’d win against anything, but she wasn’t a normal girl her age.


Not the most pleasant conversation, but it was interesting. Unless something particularly shiny caught her eye from the vendor tables, Anju had her activity for the day. Or until she was caught, or it wasn’t worth it to follow them any more.


The dead though? That was gross, and even if life was really hard. Just ew.
 
Kalek


Laughing, Kalek motions for the barmaid to bring over another round for this little motley crew. His cloak rests atop his bow (To cover the jade, mostly) at his side, with his hand warily resting near it.


"I don't suppose you dabble in Gateway, Golgo? I haven't played a damn game of it since I le.. erm, retired."
 
Kayadin Reeyeh


Stepping inside the bar and seeing a few people from the caravan already gathered around their "host," Kaya clasped Adair's shoulder. "Well, I managed to get free food from you. Let's see if that Dragon Blood will get us a free drink...or more." She was glad he had finally stopped trying to open doors and things for her. Kaya kept her smile firmly in place even as she eyed the Mercenaries having a meal. They always looked the same no matter where they were, but it was always a good idea to make sure you didn't turn your back on them. Rowdy lot.


She waved towards Golgo and Kalek as they approached and nodded her greeting at the rest. "Hello, boys...ladies. We stopped for a bite to eat, but we heard this was where drinks would be flowing. You know we just had to show up after hearing that." With a friendly thump on Kalek's back, she asked with a broad grin, "So, what are you buying for everyone? Adair and I are sorely in need to quench our thirst. They know how to spice their curry properly around here."
 
Garda


After the bulk of the group hits the bar, I'm going to slip away in the crowd and head back out into the city proper. Scoping out the city and some places of interest, and as always for lucrative opportunities.
 
Kalek


"Hell, I haven't the faintest idea what the brew is- Though its right near the damn most delicious thing I've had in awhile! Please, take a seat- I think I'm just drunk enough to start spilling over with war-stories over a game of Gateway with Gorgo here."


With a wide smile, he raises the mug of (undisclosed liquid) to his lips, taking a long swig to kill it off before the next round arrived.


"You don't dabble in the game, do you?"
 
Lyrik Evensong


Lyrik goes along with the pack, content, as it were, to drink the Dragon Blood's free booze. The tavern picked isn't particularly upscale, but he may still be able to play for some coin. Once he has his drink in front of him, the bard approaches the inn keep.


"Good afternoon, my good man. Lyrik Evensong's the name, and I am an entertainer extraordinaire. Would you have any objections to a lively tune being played for your customers? I daresay it may even draw in custom, at that. Shall I give you a sample, good sir?"
 
To Anju


This market is bustling, surely. Vendors are selling something called bird mash and pepper stew, others are selling Clawstrider tail cooked in cinnamon and cayenne, lamb and curry, little bits of roast pigeon on a stick and more.


For sale in this little market are spices and seeds, crafted furniture in one merchant house, ingots of copper, iron and tin at a nearby supplier by the gross, odd featherdresses from Metagalpa, little cast statues of warriors in lead, dyes, clothing, a few stalls with the signs of the Guild, others with signs saying '20 percent off today!' or 'None can beat our candies!' And those do look like tempting hard candies and brittle. Hmm. Perhaps nagging Jonas for some coin later. The walk way is shaded by trees, tall cypresses, and the ground here tamped earth, the market shaped like a teardrop with stairs leading off to other streets and concourses.


"Little girl! Yes, you! Pretty little thing, come here! Look at my jewelry!" An elderly woman calls to you, waving you over, giving a gap tooth grin. Her hair is thin and her skin looks like leather, but she's got her granddaughters running around behind her little stall and others looking at her wares.
 
To Lyrik


The innkeeps face is the picture of 'dear Gods, another one'. But he'll shrug and smile a bit. "Have at it. Do well, we'll keep you on for a night to bring in business. May even give you some coin. The knight in the corner there likes softer music and that man brings me good business, so keep that in mind, if you would."
 
To Kalek and Kaya


Adair will take a seat next to Golgo and Uli. Uli is getting well-greased by the brew. "Not bad at all! Not at all. Me wife's takin' care of the kids. I'm free for a few hours! Drink!" Maybe a bit more than greased...


Adair laughs and enraptures the man with conversation about Nexus.


Golgo shakes his head, nodding to Kaya and then back to Kalek. "I do play the game, lad. Haven't in a while, but I do. I once won three games in a row over a two day period. We barely slept, pissed in a pot near the game set and hardly ate. It was a rousing game."
 
Kayadin Reeyeh


Smiling at Kalek, she replied with only a slight amount of hesitation as they waited for the next round of drinks. "I've seen it played a time or two. I wouldn't mind trying my hand at it. Golgo can always give me tips." She winked good naturedly at her fellow Southerner, leaning in to mumble a few words in Firetongue. "If I play, I'll likely need your help beating this one."
 
Lyrik Evensong


Lyrik smiles wanly. "You won't be sorry, sirrah. I see you've had 'performers' before. I'm not them. As you'll soon find out. What say you allow me to put down a hat and I'll forgo any remuneration on your part? I'm afraid I haven't caught your name....."
 
To Lyrik


"Name's Devlin. All right, the hat's fine. Just set up where you will. I just ask you stay off the tables. Last fool was a harp player who thought it would be charming to dance on people's tables. He left to the Hospitalers of Jylis with a leg broken and a black eye. Just saying. Have at it, sir." He'll mop his face with a cotton kerchief and nod toward the common floor where the bar and your compatriots are.
 
To Kaya


The older man smiles and nods, taking a drink of his stout, swishing it around in his mouth. "A fine enough ale. I taste a bit of orange and cinnamon. Very fine for the Air seasons." Another drink. "Oh yes, I like it muchly. Please! More for my friends!" He motions to you and Adair.
 
Kalek


Kalek tries to wave the Barmaid back over, shouting up a bit to cut through the general hum of bar sounds


"Pretty miss! If you have a Gateway board anywhere here I would be eternally grateful if you could bring it over for me!"


He sighs, the smile from his face fading slightly as he started up on his next drink


"Well, it takes quite a bit of time regardless of how it's played. So, if you don't mind sitting around and drinking most of the day away you should be able to pick up from watching Golgo and I."
 
Anju


The conversation switched topics and as Anju’s attention wandered she heard the old granny’s voice. Jewelry! Like the older ladies of their caravan? For some reason, Anju wanted to giggle. For the most part, she was pretty happy with her clothing, decorated by sewn down ribbons.


Anju ducked her head respectfully for an instant, “Good day, honorable grandmother. But I can’t afford anything, since I don’t carry any coin.â€


She made a gesture from opening her arms. Maybe if she had some she’d think about it. The other girls certainly seemed to like it well enough, but Anju had her thoughts on the candy.
 
Kayadin Reeyeh


With a drink in hand, Kaya settled down between Golgo and Kalek, aiming to watch the game. Laughing, she raised her mug at the two men. "How could I possibly mind spending the day just sitting around and drinking?" She took a hearty swig of the ale. "I shall be as eager a student as the brew here allows."
 
To Kalek and Kaya


A board will be found in the back, actually. It'll be set up shortly and a table pulled over to the bar for you two to sit down. Pieces shall be set up all along the planes and the elevated areas dusted off after months of disuse.


Golgo looks please. "We have all the pieces. Shall I make the first move or yourself, sir?"
 
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