“Step right up! Nyie got some interesting equipment for sale! You won’t find these anywhere in Stusis!”
Having to fully recovered, Tama immediately set up shop with her wares all spread onto a mat. Sabers, daggers, tools, trinkets, armor of steel and leather, equipment not traditionally from Stusis were all available. Many curious bystanders browsed and inquired the origin of strange weapons they never saw before. Of course, Stusis historically don’t value money and instead traded goods for goods.
With her discerning eyes, Tama was able to profit from her sales. She settled with many rare commodities exclusive to Stusis. Her aim was mainly herbs and spices difficult for other races to gather in the harsh volcanic areas. Selling them would yield great earnings in other countries.
“Grumpy one, some of the items you request did come through.” Tama pushed several small crates towards Kihet. “Have a looksie and pick meowt anything that piques your interest.”
They were neatly divided up of their category. The first boxes contained ores, scales or hide, unpolished gemstones Priqet requested, anything for crafting. The second boxes contained herbs, spices and strange berries Kihet never saw before.
Among the crate containing edibles, something caught his attention.
“Are these… fruit?”
“One can say that.”
Kihet picked up a branch with many red berries dangling off it and took a whiff. It smelled sweet and had similar appearances as cherries except it lacked long stems. Curious, he plopped one in his mouth. He thought it was something like a grape, but instantly bit onto the seed which was nearly the size of the whole berry.
A sweet refreshing taste lingered in his mouth, but his tooth ached and instantly spat out its seed. “What are these? The seeds are way too big to be eaten.”
“Grumpy one, those seeds are useful!” Tama swiped the branch before Kihet could toss it into a pit of fire. “Pamalyarians would pay quite the sum for barrels of them!”
“You guys would eat this?”
“No! The seeds are the real treasure! They first have to be browned. Niye heard from an alchemist if one adds hot water and lets it drip into a cup, they create a concoction. It gives a strong kick and erases any tiredness from one’s mind.”
“So, it’s a stamina potion?”
“Hmm… not quite. Nyie drank it once. I feel as if my senses were heightened, and a flow of energy rushed through my body. The earthy flavor was to my liking. It was rich. It would be a treat if I could drink it again, but Nyie don’t know how to brew it.”
“Do you think after roasting the seeds, I can just eat them?”
“No clue. If you’re taking this branch off my paws, I’ll charge you a hefty amount. Ny’m planning to sell my stock when I return to Pamalyra. Douglas would love em in his shop!”
“How about a few berries for experimenting?”
“Nyi’ll add a few for free depending on how generous your spending is.”
As usual, Kihet couldn’t win against Tama and her antics. Tama had a way with words, which the result of the overall exchange out bargained Kihet for most items. She simply knew her wares and way to appeal to her customers too well.
Originally Kihet thought Tama would try to retrieve the important Kukri knife he borrowed from her. To his surprise, the Werecat never once laid eyes on the blade on his waist, but she didn’t forget about it.
“Nyie know what you’re thinking. That Mythril Kukri may be one of the meowst expensive items I own. As long as you honor our contract, I’ll let you use it for as long as you need. Don’t damage it.”
“I’ll try not to.” He heaved a box. “How’s your body?”
“All healed up! And I scored information of Scalemen’s medical treatment first handed! Their mud mix works wonders. If I happen to make a contract with the healers, how much could I sell methods of their practice to Pamalyrian doctors?”
“You’re too obsessed with money.”
“Nyahaha! I’m a stray! Riches only bring me joy!” Tama purred, rubbing the side of her face with a bag of silver. “Anyhow, time to nab some grub! I sure worked up an appetite from all that trading!”
Kihet watch Tama stuff her earnings into her large trusty bag and bounced away. To think a week ago, she was bed ridden. How could she carry such baggage that was triple, maybe quadruple her size after all of that?
He looked at the shadow casted by a nearby superstructure and noticed the sun had reached its zenith. He remembered the Chieftains had invited him to discuss about plans to enter the Tower.
Looking out to the courtyard, the Scalemen gathered many logs neatly stacked at the center. They had a giant stone cauldron sitting atop of it, that was being filled with pales of water. The tables nearby were full of them cutting up their harvest and livestock.
Kihet scaled the side of the mountain using [Ribbon] to pull himself up a cliff. Draigh, Lily, Aten, Carmyn, Hilaqi, Yizdra and the three chieftains were there, waiting. They had best view looking down at the festival being prepared at the courtyard.
“Yo, Kihet! You’re late!” Draigh waved to him. “We started drinking already!”
“By a few minutes at most, right?”
“Kihet, sit over here!” Lily patted at a spot on an empty rug next to her. “I thought you said you’d be here early. Where did you go?”
“Tama had a sale. I went to see what she had.” He sat at the edge of the round straw woven mat and looked at the map laid in front of him shined by a lantern. It looked like the Scalemen had vague ideas of how to clash against the Dragonkins.
After clearing the valleys, the Scalemen would reach the soon to be battlefield where the base of the Azure Tower waited. Defensive wise, they would set base at the mouth of the valley and lookout outposts at the top of the two hills to monitor the enemies.
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The attacking Scalemen forces were about three thousand strong. If not for the Culling, the Scalemen could have easily exceeded ten thousand. Thankfully the Dragonkins were estimated to be one third of their numbers. The concern was the Tower with infinite supply of Shadowed Creatures at its beckon.
“Oracle, if I may forward a question.” With Kihet’s approval, the Lizardmen chieftain continued. “Will you be entering the Tower?”
“That’s the plan. The enemy said their Oracle will challenge it as well and it might come down to whoever conquers the Tower, will have control over Stusis. That means I won’t be able to contribute to your fight against the Dragonkins directly.”
The three chieftains muttered to themselves. If the Dragonkins, backed by Crimson and its Wrath conquered Stusis, they would without a doubt exile or kill all Scalemen. The only reason why the Scalemen held off in a stalemate against the Dragonkins was because of the Tower Monsters plaguing many lands they conquered and taking attention away from their impending genocide.
Where would they flee? Pamalyra, where there were high chances of being enslaved? Easul, where they would be deemed Demons and hunted to extinction? Sanctuary, where they would be immediately blocked off from entering the country? Rozzosea, where they would be forced to participate as fodder in their wars?
Xu and Vivrus were located on the other side of the continent. Traveling in large numbers would only attract masses of Tower Monsters to massacre them.
“Are we able to win?” The Naga chieftain questioned.
The other two also voiced out similar concerns but they were met with silence. The chance of victory was not zero. Everyone knew that, but it wasn’t overwhelming in their favor. They had numbers, the Tower had more. They had unity, but the Dragonkins were more devoted.
Draigh slammed the side of his fist into the rough stone wall.
He wasn’t angry at the chiefs for losing hope, but he wanted to realize their efforts weren’t in vain. Just a few months ago, he had the same mentality as them until a friend of his village saved more people than he ever could.
“There’s been something I wanted to say to the Chiefs.” Draigh stood up and slightly lowered his upper half. “I know I failed the Scalemen for unable to stop the Dragonkins to turn against Stusis. If I weren’t so powerless, maybe I could’ve also saved them, and we would be fighting the Tower together.”
His heart ached for how many lives taken from their families as a result of his inaction. Even though he made a difficult choice to abandon the Dragonkins at that time, he didn’t think Stusis would fall as low as it was today.
“I deeply apologize for everything and take responsibility for the tragedy you all suffered as a result of my choice. I will not ask for forgiveness, and I’m not in a position to ask you to keep fighting, but I hope you and the Scalemen will follow Kihet and help him.”
“You are not all at fault, Holy Draigh.” The Tortoise Chieftain was the first to answer. “We are simply to blame for we posed a difficult choice onto you.”
“It wasss a difficult time.” Hilaqi hissed. “I would also be unable to withssstand such pressure myself.”
“You are selfless and have always looked out for us Scalemen.” Yizdra added. “It would be a shameful to disregard your heroism for all the deeds you’ve done for us.”
The air was temporarily filled with nothing but the Scalemen’s gratitude. However, that pleasant atmosphere was quickly ended by Kihet.
“You couldn’t have chosen another day to say that? You should’ve used the time to make contingency plans in case things goes south. There’s a chance we can still lose.”
“Man, Kihet. You really don’t hold back. Can’t you give some encouraging words instead?”
“I’ll abstain. I want to hear what’s been decided so I can plan my movements.”
And so, due to Kihet’s complaint, the briefing hurriedly proceeded and went on till evening.
when large shadows casted by mountains surrounding them, the Scalemen have gathered together around the large cauldron cooking above a large bonfire. Usually, they would sit in groups at designated areas to cook their own food, but today everyone sat around it. Food was being distributed and some Scalemen were already telling stories. Some played tambourines, others played the Hang. Some dressed themselves in colorful feathers and wore beautifully carved wooden masks.
[Special day today?] Aten lifted a sign and faced it to everyone while pointing down towards the crowd.
“It’s the firekeeping ceremony.” Yizdra answered. “It’s usually held at the end of every season, but it’s also celebrated by individual tribes as a custom to remember their ancestors before a big hunt or event.”
“Big? As in the upcoming battle?” Carmyn inquired. “I thought celebrations happen after victories.”
“The purpossse of this act, isss to inspire those who fight today with ssstories of our ancestorsss. We Ssscalemen hope to make our predecessorsss proud and leave our mark for the future generationsss to follow as they did.”
While others chattered among themselves, Kihet rummaged through his box of goods. He was about to pull out a kit to craft curatives until he felt jeers on both sides. Knowing he be unable to quietly work, he grabbed knickknacks out of the crate and laid it in front of him.
They were puzzles. The goal was to remove the ring off loose part without damaging it.
“Oh! Wooden puzzles!” Lily lunged for one, rattling it. “I haven’t seen these for a long time. Did Tama sell them?”
“I figure I could use them to pass the time. Or a distraction.”
“What was the last part?”
“Pass the time?”
Lily made it looked easier than done as she quickly separated the ring from the jumbled part in a blink of an eye. Curious, Kihet made an attempt with a different one. Before he knew, he was completely absorbed to solve it.
The puzzle also piqued Aten and the Tortoise Chieftain’s interest. Aten inspected how well crafted they were while the Tortoise fiddled it briefly before passing the puzzle off to Lily to show him how to solve it.
“Oracle, how has progress been in regard to the Herald?”
“He’s improving, but not fast enough. Ainig won’t be able to face Alc’Bruk by the time the battle starts. That’s not to say he’ll be a burden. In fact, he’s agreed to tag along to the tower.”
It wasn’t as if Ainig was the only one capable of challenging Alc’Bruk. Kihet, Draigh and Aten could compete with Alc’Bruk’s ferocity if not for the other Oracle’s companions. The opposing side had just as competent individuals as Kihet’s group.
Unfortunately, Kihet knew of people on the other side like Elius, Salith, Irvan. The Lycanthrope from Pamalyra also requested his brother to be brought back alive that was said to be working with the Dragonkins.
There was the other issue about the Acolyte guarding the Azure Tower’s core. Kihet didn’t have enough information to narrow down which of Elenora’s friends waited for them.
“We’re as ready as we can be.”
“I May not be participating the battle directly, but I will pray the Ash Dragon’s veil shall lead you to the path of victory, Oracle.” The Tortoise Chieftain thanked Lily after she presented the solution to the puzzle piece and moved back to his spot beside the other Chieftains.
Kihet’s almond sized pupils stared at the puzzle piece in his unmoving hands as if he was in deep thought.
The bonfire in front of him continued to crackle under the burning slate cooking up a meal. He could see the people sitting by him somehow less anxious and wondered how could they smile without a care? There was no denying the battle to come would have many casualties and unlike him, those who would be killed had no do overs.
Everything before him was just the calm before the storm.
And the storm began. The ground quaked and after it subsided, people were staring into the direction of Stusis’ Grand Volcano erupting.
A column of ashes rose into the sky, large volumes of magma spat in the air and rained all around it. Luckily, the Scalemen were far from the site to be hit, but everyone was baffled by the sudden eruption after being dormant for all these years.
“An earthquake?”
“No, look! There’s something at the volcano!”
That was until a gigantic creature climbed out of the top and grandly spread its majestic wings. Magma dripped off its lucent crimson body glowing underneath the darkened sky.
“That’s the Crimson Dragon!”
Its unexpected appearance sparked unrest among the Scalemen. Many thought they were under attacked and quickly rallied to take up arms.
After hearing its thundering roar and watching the spectacle of the rupturing volcano, no one could remove their gaze off it.
“Hear me entirety of Stusis, for I bear a divine message from the Dragon God! It has been decided for whom conquers the Tower, shall be given the right to rule over the Mountains and lands of Stusis!"
It was the same message the Pale Dragon foretold.