They start hopping down the stairs and towards the City, positively ecstatic about our arrival, yelling with all their might "Gather all, the prophet of Siro has arrived!"

Kara looks at me, suppressing laughter because of the weird squelching sound the fishman makes with every step, and sighs "so much for secrecy. Let's go after them."

I let my gaze wander over the city, looking for anything out of the ordinary like ruins.

We follow along what I assume is the border Guard, quickly descending down the stairs and finding ourselves surrounded by fishmen.

The Border Guard and two similarly dressed fishmen are holding their spears horizontally, keeping the civilians away. "Please remain calm! Let High Priest Am'Hugda decide their fate!" They shout.

The crowd is yelling, voices melding into one continuous stream of noise, upset about something we did or are.

Do they not like Siro?

"Can't you make them shut up?" Kara asks, leaning over so I can hear her.

I grab my already damaged revolver and infuse a combination of Light and Wind into a bullet. I keep my Mana topped up, only putting my Regeneration inside and hoping that light and wind might shut them up, create a flash of light and a burst of wind or something similar.

I raise my revolver high before realising shooting the membrane that's keeping the water out might not be the best idea so I point it at the ground in front of me, pressing the trigger.

A few of the civilians point at me as I pull out a revolver, turning to flee or desperately trying to push past the guards to stop me.

They all stop and grip their heads as a deafening boom sounds out, actually causing my cloak to billow and the Guards to drop their spears.

"Alright," I yell out, mimicking Morgan's tone when Lily is refusing to clean up her room again, "Anyone who is not your High Priest, go back to your business!"

A few of the civilians run away to cover, diving behind barrels or into houses to hide from the outsider with a gun.

The Guards pick up their spears and one turns to me while the other two threaten the remaining crowd.

"Who here dares disturb High Priest Am'Hugdas slumber?!" A booming voice calls out.

The civilians and guards instantly fall to their knees, bowing before the new arrival.

A fishman dressed in a robe made out of algae and completely covered in jewellery. They have tendrils made out of darkness spread around them, curling dangerously towards anyone approaching.

I take a small bow, putting a hand on Karas back so she does the same, before greeting them "Hello, I am Grant, I am here on a mission from Siro."

"Ahh, a fellow prophet!" They call out, "Let us discuss anything further away from prying eyes. I shall call my aids to prepare a feast worthy of someone who managed to gather enough favour from Siro to gain a Divine mission."

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The crowd of people splits up, opening a path for us to follow the High Priest. Total obedience from their followers although I can't figure out if it's fear or respect.

They show us through the street, leading us to the temple while imperiously looking down on any commoner in our way.

We quickly make our way to the temple. Arriving at the plaza in front of it, the temple towers over us, reaching up and almost piercing the membrane.

Honour guards flank the gate, fully decked out in metal armour with spears, inlaid with gems along their handle. They salute us as we walk over the plaza, opening and closing the gate for us.

"So, I've been told to get-"

They raise their fin to silence me. "Let us not speak of your quest until you participated in the ceremonial feast."

[Grant: Siro, how do I get them to skip the pleasantries?]

[Siro: You don't, these pleasantries are essential if you want to get the artefact from her person, you can't just kill her for it.]

There appears to be another part of the message but it cuts off before it appears.

We enter into a huge altar, rows of benches on both sides of the carpet, leading to a raised platform. A huge statue of Siro, made out of marble with tentacles melding into the ceiling that look like they are holding up the roof, stands behind a grand altar. Glowing crystals dot the pillars, filling the temple with gloomy light.

"High Priest Am'Hugda," an acolyte comes over, bowing down, "Who are the surface dwellers with you?"

She bows her head slightly "These are fellow prophets from the surface, on a divine mission to reconcile our tribes after generations of separation."

"Actually," Kara chimes in, "we are on a different quest."

The High Priest ignores Kara, speaking to the Acolyte, "Notify the others, we shall have a feast of honour for our honoured guest from the surface, spare no expense."

The Acolyte rushes off, fins flopping on the wet stone, to prepare a feast.

"As my companion said, we are not here to reconcile any tribes," I tell the High Priest, following her as she walks to the altar, "we are only here to look for an artefact."

"An artefact?" she asks as we reach the altar, "that sounds important but surely you do not intend to strike any deals before your great feast."

This is starting to look more and more like a glorified fetch bounty.

We pass by the altar and into the grand chambers behind. They're filled with lavish decorations, religious paintings and a huge bed.

The high priestess motions to the bed. "Please rest while we prepare a feast in your honour, an acolyte will bring you some appetisers but do keep a healthy appetite, the feast will have our finest."

We get pushed into the chambers, door slamming closed behind us, lock turning.

Kara checks the door but finds it locked. She turns around and walks to the giant bed, dropping onto it "They are weird. Do you think they are scheming something?"

I try the door myself, reassuring myself that it is locked, before walking over to one of the paintings. "I don't think so, we must be the first visitors they've gotten in ages. Siro can always step in and solve any disputes."

It doesn't take long for another fishman to unlock the door and bring in a platter of food. It consists mostly of fish, algae and some grain I don't recognise.

I can't ask the acolyte either as they drop the platter off and leave, locking the door again.

I eat one of the little parcels, finding it very different from what Kara normally cooks. Not bad though.

Kara simply walks over and after tasting one, puts the rest in her [Pantry]. Probably so they can't find any reason to think of us as disrespectful.

"So what now?" Kara asks, sitting back down on the bed.

I sit down on the edge of the bed, sinking into the ridiculously soft mattress and lean my rifle against the post. "There is only one bed," I say, "you should get some rest, you had to take the watch yesterday. I'll take watch today. "

"Nice," she says, loosening some of her belts and flopping down onto the bed. She almost vanishes in the fluff of the bed.