Chapter 55 - Port Maya (Patreon)

The quartet was back on the road and heading to the nearest river crossing along their route as soon as the sun began to rise the following day.  They were all a little tired from the events of the previous day, so nobody was in a particularly talkative mood as they pulled away from the small lakeside town.

Over the next five days, the group fell into a routine, and each member was assigned tasks to accomplish throughout the day.  Violet was always on the last watch of the night and was tasked with cooking breakfast each morning.  When there weren’t any water sources, she filled up the water barrels throughout the day.  Her Cleanse aspect saved them the trouble of boiling water found while on the road.

After the first day, they left the road and traveled on an open grass prairie.  The ground was not completely flat. There were gently rolling hills throughout their trip.  Wildflowers, grass, and a random tree here or there were all that could be seen for miles in any direction.

“Why aren’t there more towns in this area?  It is beautiful here.”  Violet asked Zane while he was driving, and it was her turn to be in the passenger’s seat.

“This is snake country.  They aren’t all venomous, but the ones that are will kill you within a half-hour without anti-venom.  They live in burrows in the ground and hunt the rodents.”

“Hopefully, we won’t need to use it, but I can use Cure Poison on anyone if they are bitten.  Thanks for ruining this prairie for me.  Now all I’ll do is look out and try to see snakes.”

Zane began to chuckle and said, “pleased to be of service, ma’am.” and tipped his hat at her.

“So, what’s your story?  Why is an ancient mage an elite guardsman instead of living the life of a pampered noble?”

After a pause long enough that Violet thought he wouldn't answer the question, he said, “It’s complicated.”

“I won’t pry.  We all have our secrets.”

There was about an hour of comfortable silence after she asked that question before Zane answered her question.  “My family owned a plot of land along the Astresh border.  We weren’t high-ranking nobles, but we made a decent profit off our lands and holdings.”  He paused, looking stuck in some bad memories.  “I was five when our home was attacked and burned to the ground.  When my father knew they would breach our defenses, he took me to a hideout I had carved with Stone Manipulation and told me to fuse the door closed and hide the entrance.  He would come back for me when it was safe.  He never came back.  I sat in that hole for three days until my food and water ran out before I disobeyed my father and left the refuge.”

“I’m so sorry.  I didn't know.  Were your parents not also ancient mages?”  She asked.

“No, I was the first in my line to be born with an ancient symbol.  Anyway, Rick found me and started training me to fight so I would never have to feel helpless again.”

“Darn right, I did,”  Rick spoke from the top of the carriage, startling them both.

“How is it that someone as large as you can move so stealthily?  I didn't even notice the wagon sway when you climbed on top of it.”  Zane demanded.

“Ancient Bearkin secret.”

“Like heck it is!  I’ve seen your kin move, those in the guard. They are nowhere near as stealthy as you can be.” Speaking to Violet, he said, “you see what I have to put up with?  He won’t teach me because he doesn’t want me to be able to sneak up on him.”

The only response from Rick was a grunt followed by a snore a few minutes later.  Rick liked to nap on the wagon’s roof during the day to pass the time.

------------------

The first time they crossed over the Crown River, it was as easy as driving over a large bridge.  Unfortunately, the small city of Alexton did not have a bridge to cross the river.  The quartet needed to hire the services of a ferryman to get over the river.  The man they found owned a boat large enough to fit four of the carriages they had.  This, of course, was the issue because his boat could hold so much. He didn’t want to leave until his ship was at minimum halfway full.

It was Regina’s time to shine.  Without revealing her identity, she managed to haggle that poor ferryman down from charging double his usual fees to giving them a discount.  Rio helped get them the deal.  He had flown across the river and confirmed several wagons on the opposite bank waiting for passage.

Before leaving Alexton, Regina hired a messenger bird to deliver their progress to her mother.  She wanted to do that back at the lakeside town where they dropped the bandits off, but there weren’t any available birds when she asked.

Smaller towns often hosted the birds, but they could usually only lure in a few.  The birds were curious creatures, and the larger cities had more going on in them.  Messenger birds flew messages back and forth because it amused them. There was no way to force a bird to stay if it did not want to.

“The messenger birds are quite chatty with each other.  If it ever becomes known that a bird was held against its will, all messenger birds would refuse to fly to the location of the offense.”  Regina had said when she couldn’t find a bird in the first city.

“I’ve heard rumors that one of Astresh’s gods is in the likeness of a messenger bird.  It is a grave offense to kill any bird in that country.”  Zane piped up.

--------------

After four days of travel, the group was finally in sight of Port Maya.  The ferry ride, their trip was along a well-traveled road patrolled by the guard.  It had taken their mysterious follower two days to catch up with them after they crossed the river.  They still didn't know who was following them, or if it was even the same person, but it was annoying always to feel like they were being watched.

Port Maya was a unique town.  It was built along a cliff face with over one hundred docks reaching out into the bay.  Maya was an ancient earth purist that made it her life’s work to carve a city into the cliffs.  Violet was pleased to hear that Maya was still among the living.

“She is very old these days, but she was blessed with a grandchild who will be taking up her earth purist mantle to continue to grow the city.  We will have to see if we can meet her while we are here.”  Regina said as they stopped at the city gate.

The port city’s gates were seven miles away from the cliff face.  The streets were lined with inns and stores featuring crafted goods.  The few houses that could be seen were wealthy mansions with walls surrounding them.

“Where are all of the houses?”  Violet asked when all she could see were merchants and people offering services.

“This top-level is reserved for wealthy nobles and merchants.  Several floors below us are carved into the rock that hosts most of the community.  Maya’s son is a Nature and Air mage, and he has created some breathtaking green areas below ground.”  Regina said with a smile.

Once the group dropped off their wagon and checked into their rooms at the inn, they split up to explore.  Or rather, Rick went his own way. Zane decided it would be unsafe to leave the two of them unsupervised.

“What if you come back after shopping and poor Raya and Hunter can no longer pull the carriage because it is so weighed down? No way I am leaving you two alone.”  He said very loudly.  Quietly under his breath, he said, “A city like this is far from safe. I will never hear the end of it from your mother if you two get mugged.  Plus, it would blow our cover if you had to use your magic.”

The trio had a fun time entering each of the shops along the main road.  These shops held expensive foreign goods shipped in from all over.  Violet’s favorite shop had delicate glass figurines.  Pigments were added to the glass while it was shaped, so each figure looked lifelike.

Once they got tired of window shopping, they entered the underground portion of the city.  Directly around the staircase, several merchants sold foodstuffs.   There were also several restaurants along the main streets.  On the top level, only citizens were allowed in the housing areas.  The guards were quite firm when they asked that only citizens were allowed, and trespassers would immediately be arrested if found in places they should not be.

“That’s ok, let’s go to the park on this level.  It is my favorite memory from when I visited this place as a young girl.”  Regina said, dragging the two of them in a new direction.

Zane was in guard mode the entire time they had been in the city.  While he did look inside the stores with them, he was more interested in keeping an eye on the people around them instead of what was on the shelves.

They ended up needing to go down another flight of stairs to reach the green area Regina was talking about.  Along the way, mirrors were used to light the underground passageways.  Violet was shocked at how well they lit the place up with light.  There were torches along the walls for when the sun went down, but they were currently unlit.

When they reached the grassy area, both Violet and Zane stood in shock at what they saw.  Flower-covered vines covered the walls around the room.  There had to be at least two football fields worth of space inside the area, and it was all covered with grass.  Fruit trees were lined up in a grove off to one side, and she could see several kids running and playing in them.

“Not something you see every day, eh?”  A random gentleman said from one side.

“No, Gerald, only you could create such a masterpiece,”  Regina replied absently.

“When the guard came to me claiming a royal was in Port Maya, I told him he was mistaken.  A royal would have announced their presence at the gate if that were, in fact, true.  What, my dear Regina, are you doing here?”  He said.

Regina turned pale for a moment and then responded, “Greetings Gerald, we are on an undercover mission and only passing through for the night.”

“My mother would have my head if she knew little Regina was here and didn't see her.  Come along. She is having a rough day and could use a bit of cheer.  If you plan to keep your identities a secret, I would raise your hood.  That red hair of yours can be spotted from a mile away.”

As they followed Gerald, Regina whispered to Zane and Violet.  “Gerald is Maya’s son.”

Gerald opened a secret doorway in the back of one of the restaurants on the main thoroughfare.  It was not exactly like the doors in the ancient ruins, but it was not too far off by Violet’s estimation.  The room they eventually ended up in was directly on the cliff face.  Floor-to-ceiling windows were looking out at the bay.  ‘Sunrises must be amazing in this room,’ Violet thought.

The oldest woman Violet had seen in person was seated in a padded rocking chair that faced the windows.  Her wrinkles had wrinkles.  Magic was likely the only reason this woman was still alive.  “Who did you bring, Gerald?” she said in a low voice.

“Remember little Regina?  I caught her sneaking around the port and figured I should bring her here so you could dish out the punishment.”

For being as old as she was, Maya retained her mental faculties.  “Young lady, come here and tell me about your adventures.”

They spent several hours talking with Maya until they finally begged off to get some rest for the night.  Healing magic could cure many things, but age was not one of them.  Her body was wearing out, and even a purist healer could only prolong life for so long.  She had been a pleasure to talk to.

When they arrived back at the inn, Rick asked if they had gotten lost.  He also wanted to know if they had bought out the city.  It seemed the more you were around the big oaf, the more he decided to speak.

-------------------

AN:

Yay they took my story off that site