“That was insane! Who were those guys?!”
Azim had stopped eavesdropping on the group and had returned his attention to Leone, who was trying to piece everything together. The two of them had just seen a deal go down between the men who ran this city in the shadows and a third, unknown party. Leone was unsure whether to step in or not, and then he remembered something. “Hey buddy,” he started. “You said you saw another group like these guys at the other end of the street, yeah?”
“That is correct,” Azim replied astutely.
“I wonder what was being done over there, the guys who showed up here didn’t seem to know anything about them. You think maybe they were an ambushing party? Like just in case things went south?”
“I do not know. However, I can see what I can find from the other group.”
“It’s alright, it’s alright. Since we’re here, let’s just get any other info we can from these guys. Can you listen in one more time?”
The robot turned back to look toward the group of shady men down below and focused his auditory processors on their frequency. Most of the men were mumbling, as well as speaking over each other. It was difficult to make out what any of them were saying. Even isolating one clear piece of dialogue was a challenge. But after a few seconds, Azim picked something up.
“I was unable to extrapolate much of their conversation,” the metal man explained to Azim. However, I did pick up on 2 potentially relevant pieces of information. The men stated both ‘…the girl will be…’, and ‘…Plumrose at 2…’”
Azim’s words gave the young man concern. He had no idea what the men down below could be planning, but there was no way it could be anything good. As the men packed up what little remained of their supplies and headed back to the east tower, Leone struggled with what to do. Surprisingly, the android was the one that calmed him down. Putting a hand on the young man’s shoulder once again, he suggested that the two go check out the other end of the street. Leone and agreed and the two travelers hopped along the city skyline down to where the other group could be seen. Though when they got there, neither a carriage nor a gang member could be found. Azim assured Leone that this was where he had seen them, but the young man was starting to think the robot must have seen things. He knew the robot didn’t lie, but he figured he could have been wrong.
Azim dropped down from the building to get a closer look, as it was much too dark to see any of their surroundings clearly, especially from afar. Leone yelled in a whisper for the metal man not to go, but he did not listen. The android was insistent on finding out what had happened, out of its own curiosity. Approaching where he had seen the men when looking for Leone, Azim noticed markings on the ground. Up ahead, where the city cobblestone faded back into the dirt road of the surveying land, were several streaks that seemed to go on until the horizon. They were faded, and not too deep, but visible enough. Tire tracks. Not only had Azim seen them, but they had left in the middle of the night for an unknown reason.
The robot returned to Leone atop one of the houses and informed him of what he had discovered. “I wonder if that girl, whoever they were talking about, is what they were leaving for,” Leone speculated. “That’s why that Demar guy said it was already being taken care of, because their other group was already leaving. I don’t know what they’re planning, but I think we should check it out. Tomorrow at noon, in Plumrose, wherever that is. Something’s happening to a girl that they seem to have hold of. We need to save her.
“I understand the value in protecting those that need help,” responded Azim. “If someone is in danger, then I would like to stand by their side. I do not mind setting aside our current objective to prioritize this one.”
“Alright then,” agreed Leone. “Let’s get back to Riva, rest up, and head out early. We need to be there before 2.”
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8:30 in the morning. Leone was cursing himself for not waking up sooner. The others were up, too, though they were not as amped up as he was. Azim had explained everything to Riva when they first returned to the hostel. She gave Leone a slap on the back of the head for being so reckless, but he did not worry about it for long because he flopped onto his bed minutes later, trying to maximize how much sleep he received before their big mission tomorrow. The woman had listened intently to Azim’s regaling of the night and was just as passionate about helping as the other two were. Even though, admittedly, all they were going off of was speculation, Riva did not feel comfortable leaving the situation alone when there was a chance a child could be in danger.
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While Leone went to get the horses, Azim went with Riva to ask about a map of the region. The clerk, who was someone else from the kid the previous night, informed her they only had maps of the hostel and the city, neither of which Riva was looking for. She took the city map anyway and walked out with the cloaked android into the city’s morning embrace. “Why did you ask for a map, Riva?” the robot wondered.
“Well, hun’, don’t you want to know where we’re going?” the woman replied charmingly. “I just mean, I’ve never been outside of the small towns, and you’ve never been anywhere. It would probably be a good idea if we had some sense of direction where we were going, don’t you think?”
“I understand,” Azim replied bluntly. “I will assist you in looking for a map.”
“That’s alright, hun’, I don’t want you getting into trouble. I’ll find one, don’t worry.”
A minute later, Leone was ready out front with the horses and carriage. “You ready to go?” he asked impatiently.
“Well, do we even know where we’re going?” Riva questioned. “I was hoping to get a map before we left, but I know we’re in a hurry. I’m sure we could find one in Plumrose, but where even is that?”
“Oh, that girl from last night told me,” the young man replied cheerfully. “She was still here this morning, she helped me with the cart. Apparently it’s a little garden town 15 to 20 miles out of the city. It’s small, but beautiful, and well-connected to Appilus. I don’t know if they’re bringing the girl there or picking her up, but either way, it’s a solid connection.”
So the 3 travelers headed out to Plumrose with little materials, little information, and little time. It would take them roughly 4 hours to get to the garden town, leaving them only a few minutes ahead of whatever was expected to happen. As they rode down the cobblestone trails, they passed the east tower of the city, the one the night clerk had warned them about. Azim looked up at the looming tower and observed its magnificent structure. It was ornate, like the central pillar of a cathedral, and had intricate carvings along the highest, well-lit windows. Looking down to the base of the tower, the android noticed people walking past it like it didn’t exist, not even worrying about what it held inside. Yet oddly enough, when those same passersby made it a reasonable distance away from the tower, they would turn around to see what they had just walked past, as if they hadn’t even realized, and tense up, walking away at a noticeably faster pace. Azim cocked his head slightly to the left, intrigued about the sight before him.
Before long, they made it to the outskirts of Plumrose, the garden town. The area was beautiful. It looked like an oasis amidst the everlasting dirt fields. There was a sizable lake in the center of town, and breezy trees littered about its edges. The huts around the town were simple and minimalistic, but blooming with colored decor. Flowers and fruit covered the entire scenery, and the name Plumrose quickly became well-understood by the group.
Arriving at the entrance, Azim noticed the carriages from the night before down at the other end of town, across the lake. “It appears we were correct in our assumption,” he stated. “Those men have been here for quite some time, and seem to have been setting something up.”
“I wonder what they’re doing,” Riva muttered, almost to herself.
“I’m not sure, but we can piece together some things,” Leone mentioned. “If they’re still here, then that means they didn’t bring the girl with them. If it was some kind of drop off, or simply disposing of her or something, they would be been gone by now. Clearly whatever happens at 2 is something they’re waiting for, not just a deadline that they needed to be done by.”
“So we just wait, too,” responded Riva. “If they’re waiting for the girl to take her back to the city, or to the tower or whatever, we’ll be ready. Though I can’t imagine anyone in this town would be up to something like that.”
“Yeah, I don’t know. Maybe they’re here to take someone from the town? Maybe it’s not a deal, maybe it’s just a kidnapping?”
“But then what would they need to wait for?”
“I don’t know, but maybe-“
Just then they heard the rickety bumbling of a carriage approaching fast. The group rushed into the town and left their carriage next to one of the huts, before hiding amongst the townsfolk and saying “hi” to semi-friendly strangers who gave them acknowledging waves. As they watched the entrance, a single carriage pulled up to the center of the town near the lake, drawn by one pink horse. The crowd made way for the incoming vessel, as if they knew who was inside before anyone made an appearance.
“I think this might be the company we’ve been waiting for,” Leone whispered.
“Whoever they are…,” Azim chimed in, not lowering his intone voice in the slightest. “…They seem to be of importance to the people here.”
“That may be so, buddy,” replied Leone in a whisper. “But I have a feeling these people don’t find whoever’s in that carriage important for a good reason. It’s more likely that they just want to keep a safe distance.”
A moment later, the carriage door creaked open and out stepped three people. The realness of the newcomers’s presence made the entire crowd take another step back. The first to step down was an intimidating man with short, gray hair and matching sideburns, dressed in a navy suit with a gold trim. The second was a tall, scrawny woman with long red hair that reached her waist, who sported a similar suit to that of the man’s but in maroon. The third to step out was a young girl with fair, freckled skin and large, frizzy, red hair tied in a low ponytail. She was dressed in a similar suit to the adults, though it was yellow and had a silver trim instead of gold. Not only that, but the girl was wearing a blindfold and had her hands tied.