The city of Estelhelm looked as though it had been plucked out of a fantasy tale. It came into view as Jade crested a steep hill behind Luis, wading through the fields of waist-high grass that covered the savannah-like quadrant. An enormous sandstone plateau rose from the grassland right where two rivers diverged, as if it were a rock in a stream parting the water. Marble buildings clustered atop the broad pinnacle, spilling down the plateau's sides on various ledges that wound their way down its steep cliffs. Numerous switchbacks were carved into the dusty stone, forming stairs that led between the city proper and the ground far below.
"It's huge." Jade said, stopping at the top of the hill.
She'd expected the city to be maybe twice the size of Lysara, with all the trappings of a normal medieval town. This was something else entirely. A closer look revealed large, elevating platforms making their way up and down the cliff face, bringing people and goods to the city center. Were those magically powered elevators? This was easily the size of a small American city. While the architecture was unfamiliar, this was no primitive settlement.
"Wait until you see Illysport." Aylin said, stepping up beside her. "It's easily twice as large."
"Maybe hold off on my hometown." Fenrin added with a slight grin. "After this, Rimestead is a bit of a disappointment."
Jade was impressed that such a large population, she wouldn't be surprised if the city had more than one hundred thousand residents, could exist in a place as dangerous as the Labyrinth. The rest of their trek to the base of the plateau took them through sprawling farmland, which occupied the majority of the fertile delta between the two forking rivers.
"You should stay disguised until I get things straightened out with the Order." Aylin murmured as they approached one of the moving platforms, queuing up with a small group of other people seeking entry. "Wouldn't want to cause a panic."
Jade grunted an assent. She was already tired of having to hide herself like this everywhere she went, but it was a necessary evil. Hopefully Aylin's good word would forestall any difficulties.
I should've told the director the truth. she thought, waiting impatiently behind a group of merchants carrying boxes of goods. They people were mostly human, although Jade did spot a fair number of elves and fellians as well. The longer I put it off, the harder it'll be to come clean.
Her plan had been to prove herself as helpful before revealing potentially damaging information about herself to the authorities. That by itself wasn't an issue, but the longer she waited the more it would look like she was trying to pull one over on L-Ref. Naomi had mentioned that sentiment during their journey to the gate to Earth, and Jade wished she'd listened.
I'll do it next time we're back.
The platform ground to a halt in front of them, disgorging a group of humans and fellians that were guiding a cart down the ramp and onto the road. The cart was pulled by a large animal that reminded her of an ox, except it was covered in scales and had an arrow shaped head. She watched it pass, stepping aside and craning her neck as the strange beast trundled away.
Before long, it was their turn to board the lift. Aylin pointed out the arcane gemstones powering the contraption, each infused with glowing mana. She joined Fenrin at the railing, leaning out to get a good view as the ground dropped away beneath them.
"I didn't realize so many people lived here." Jade commented. Rolling farmland stretched into the distance as far as the eye could see, dotted with small homesteads. "How do they deal with monsters?"
"Most cities, including Estelhelm, were founded in low density quadrants." Fenrin explained. "No one is sure why, but some parts of the Labyrinth have far smaller monster populations than others. There aren't many nearby, and the ones that do wander in can be guarded against by the militia. When they do show up in numbers, wayfarers or guild members are usually contracted to handle them."
"Guild members?"
"Mercenary outfits. There are a few of them around these parts, mostly made up of retired wayfarers and other warriors. The Onyx Shield is the most well known in Estelhelm, they have a good reputation."
"I met a member on the first floor." Jade commented, remembering the fellian captain that had accompanied lord Ledkin's expedition. "Captain Mar. He was the one who told me to come here to meet the demon priestess of one of the temples here."
"Really? I'm surprised. There usually isn't much of a reason to go down to the first level."
"It was part of some group from Illysport. Some young nobleman tried to extort us to let us through the stairway portal." Jade grinned. "That didn't go so well for him."
"I can imagine." Fenrin said with a slight smile.
"Hopefully that doesn't cause us too many problems when get up there." Jade sighed.
"One thing at a time. We'll need another key fragment before we can ascend, remember? That means buying one, or fighting another boss."
"Are key fragments often sold?" Jade asked, surprised.
"Sure." Fenrin shrugged. "There's a lot of demand for them, but they can be expensive."
"We'll want to fight another boss anyway." Luis said, joining them at the railing. "Those Labyrinth Cores aren't just going to let us break them, right? That's not how these things usually go."
"Usually go?" Jade smirked. "You're an expert on this?"
"We've been here long enough to know how it works." He shrugged. "We'll have to run a gauntlet of monsters and traps just to get to the core, and then there'll be some kaiju thing waiting for us right on top of it."
"You're probably right." Jade sighed. "I hope they at least give good experience."
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It didn't take them long to get into the city proper. With Aylin's Mystic Order membership, the pair of bored-looking guards watching the gate barely even spoke to them. Apparently, her status as a junior councilwoman in the Illysport branch afforded her special privileges, some of which were extended to her travelling companions. Shortly thereafter Aylin brought them into the city's outer district, leading them through orderly streets filled with chaotic mix of carts and foot traffic.
"Is it always so busy?" Naomi asked, clinging to Jade's arm so as to not get lost in the thronging crowds as they pushed their way towards the center of the city.
"It's the end of the day." Fenrin said. The half-elf was bringing up the rear, unbothered by the hubbub. "People are heading home from their work or schooling, or going out for the night."
Fantasy rush hour. Jade snorted. She caught sight of a young man and an older woman having a heated discussion nearby, apparently arguing over a collision between their two carts. Imagine that.
The city was at once familiar and alien. Oil streetlamps flickered to life as the evening sky darkened towards twilight, illuminating the cobblestone roads. Densely packed buildings lined the thoroughfare, from tenements to shops and artisan workshops. There were bars and taverns, inns and cafes, and even a few stores that looked like they dealt in enchanted goods. If it weren't for the variety of species on display, Jade may have been able to imagine herself as being in some distant, exotic city on Earth. Humans, elves, and fellians were the most plentiful people in the streets, but there were others Jade hadn't seen before. A pair of squat, bipedal toad-like creatures trundled right through their group, forcing her to step aside or be bowled over.
"'Scuse me, miss." The larger of the two rotund creatures said, turning to squeeze between her and Fenrin. His, she thought it was a he, voice was surprisingly cultured. She watched them disappear into the crowd, bemused.
"Never seen a rhyssit before?" Fenrin asked. "Friendly folk. Will eat you out of house and home, though."
Jade just shook her head, following Aylin through the streets. The outer buildings had mostly been residences, but more shops were popping up as they continued deeper into town. Despite the density of the city, none of the buildings were more than two or three stories tall. She wondered if there was a practical reason for that, or if it was just some local preference.
"Weapons! Enchanted weapons! Get the best arms in the city here!" One finely dressed man in front of a storefront was shouting out into the throng. He was human, with short brown hair and a finely sculpted beard, and was holding aloft a gleaming sword that sparkled with obvious enchantment. "Protect yourself from the new integration! Prepare for the increased monster populations!"
"Potions! Recovery and enhancement potions!" A fellian woman called out from further down the street, her ears twitching back and forth enthusiastically. "Best prices in the outer ward!"
"Don't bother." Aylin said, grabbing Luis's arm as he made to step towards the weapon shop. "You won't find anything good in this part of town. If you want to shop, do it in the Amber Marketplace."
Jade noticed Siora was lagging a little behind them. She reached out and grabbed her wrist, pulling her closer so she didn't get lost in the crowd. "You okay?"
"Huh? Oh! Yes, sorry." The elf smiled sheepishly, looking a little overwhelmed. "I'm not used to crowds."
That didn't surprise Jade. Lysara's treetop walkways and bridges were serene and peaceful, and even the canopy district marketplace was a tranquil environment compared to this chaos. She empathized, as the abundance of closely packed people, and the turbulent emotional mess projecting from them, was already starting to give her a headache. Jade was slowly getting better at shielding herself from the effects of crowds, but it was a skill that only improved with exposure.
"We'll be out of it soon." Aylin assured them. "Let's get Jade sorted out at the Mystic Order first. Estelhelm's branch is in the Emerald Ward."
"You're sure they're not going to try anything funny, right?" Jade asked. Aylin hadn't taken long to come around, and Jade trusted her, but she hadn't forgotten her initial reaction to learning her identity. If her colleagues reacted the same way, there could be trouble.
"They won't, I have enough sway to see to that." She promised. The mage grimaced, cupping one hand over the bulge in her robes where the sealed relic was tucked away out of sight. "If anything, I'll be the one getting in trouble for walking around with something like this out in the open."
"Was there a better way to get it here?" Luis asked.
"No, but that won't stop them from telling me I should have come up with one."
"Sounds about right."
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"I'm telling you, I saw them!" Tara'lynn pounded her fist on the sturdy wooden desk in frustration. "What do you mean they aren't there?"
The tek'kalla mage stood before two of the Silver Shield, the order of guards kept on retainer by Countess Montrell of Estelhelm. The uniformed men exchanged exasperated glances, and the taller of the two crossed his arms.
"Calm yourself, miss." The man said. He had the rugged appearance of a working man, which was at odds with the finely pressed dark uniform and polished broadsword hanging from his hip. "We sent a team to investigate the area you brought to our attention. It looked like smugglers may have used the place as a hideout in the past, but there were no signs of recent use. Rest assured, we're investigating the matter."
"But the demons-"
"There were no signs of any demons." The other man snapped, annoyed. "I went there myself, spent four hours going through that warehouse. That's a night I'm never going to get back."
"You may have mistook what you saw." The first man cut in, raising a placating hand. "There've been rumors of demonic activity in the city for weeks, but nothing has come of it. People hear tales and the next thing you know, they're seeing evidence of it themselves. You see what you expect to see. This isn't the first time things like this have happened."
"Or maybe, people are reporting demon sightings because there are demons in the city." The tek'kalla pressed. "Have you thought of that?"
How could they be so blind? She'd led them right to the building the imps she'd been tailing had slipped into. The guard had gotten there less than an hour later!
Incompetents. The lot of them.
No, she knew the real reason no one was taking her seriously. Because she was a mistrusted tek'kalla, stirring up trouble. They just wanted her gone, to be someone else's problem.
"We have the city under control." the brusque guardsman said, gesturing towards the door. "Now go on, get going."
"Fine." Tara snapped, pushing off the desk.
Fuming, she stomped towards the door, exiting back onto the quiet streets of the upper-class Emerald District. Part of her wanted to truly speak her mind and rail against the city's useless protectors, but the last thing she needed was to end up arrested for causing trouble. Given the general hostility towards her kind in the city, it wouldn't take much for someone to find an excuse to throw her in the stockade. Tara almost wished they'd try. She was in one of her moods again, the sort that only improved after she blew something up.
The mage stalked across the street, slumping onto a bench in a small park. It was late evening, twilight enveloping the sky in its soft embrace. The pristine streets of the wealthy district were mostly vacant, much quieter than the rest of the city was at this time of night. She preferred this calm, orderly environment to the unregulated chaos of the lower wards. How could anyone live with so little structure?
"Why am I even trying…" Tara groaned, cupping her head in her hands.
All she'd wanted was to find a group to join up with so she didn't have to face her wayfarer trial alone. It didn't matter, no one here would even listen to her, let alone want to team up. Who cared what a group of demons were doing here? If the people of Estelhelm wanted to bury their heads in the sand and ignore her, she should let them.
But Tara had studied history extensively in the expeditionary academy. She was familiar with accounts of the damage lone demons could do, let alone groups of them. If there really was an organized operation of some sort happening here, could she really just walk away?
"Ugh." She grunted in disgust, getting to her feet. "I'll just have to take care of it myself. Like everything else."
First, she'd get some rest. Tomorrow, she would start digging. Once this was over, the people of this city had better be grateful to her.
Like that's ever going to happen.