The Watcher made it up the gentle slope and was greeted by the town of Ra'Kalen that sat on the flat lands before them. A long lined town made of stone houses and wooden huts in four neat rows, they faced the plains to the north and based the extremely steep mountains behind. In the east was a dancing farmland, thick bushels of yellow wheat swayed in the wind. At the west end, primitive stone steps ran up the side of the mountains, zigzagging all the way to the peak.
From behind, Kathleen asked, “Are we there?”
“We're here,” he replied. He turned with an extended hand and helped her up the final climb of the hill. “Sleepy little place, isn't it?” He could hear the sound of children laughing in the distance, but the echo from the mountain side distorted his sense of hearing.
“Peaceful,” she replied, scanning the landscape before pointing across him. “There's the inn!”
The road they were on lead straight through the centre of the town, a wooden sign planted into the dirt welcomed weary travellers with a 'Welcome to Ra'Kalen'. She had pointed to the first building on the left after the sign, a modest two storied wood building with copper lining the supports and edges. Like all the other structures of the town, it had a single diagonal roof. A slanted board above the double doors had the word 'Inn' painted haphazardly in black.
“That seems a little shady,” he noted the rundown sign on the relatively clean building.
Kathleen had already started walking, stating, “It's naught of concern at this point. I just want a nice hot bath.”
He could not help but smile. The girl was obviously not used to the travel, and on the way over, she had more than once claimed both of them of starting to smell like rotting fish. He followed her to the inn and noted how there were no horses that he could see within the stable behind the inn. They stepped out of the light of the day and into the cool dim of the building.
Lighted by lanterns that hung from the ceiling, the floors were plates of wood chequered with slabs of copper. Carved stone tables and chairs were set rather permanently on the metal plates, and the interior walls were of a cool red brick. To their right, a flight of stairs led up, a door installed under it beside the landing. A woman in a flowery dress with the curled white hair of movie grandmothers stood at the bar, cleaning out a mug while a patron slumped asleep at the far stool.
“Welcome to Ra'kalen Inn!” the innkeeper greeted.
The Watcher immediately asked, “What's with the cheap sign outside? This place looks beautiful.”
“Why thank ya. Sadly, we 'ave got some vandals 'ere lately. Took a wack to the old board,” the innkeeper explained. “So, what can I get ya for?”
Kathleen approached her with a smile, “Hello, we'd like rooms please.”
“'Course, we've got a nice couple room for you two.”
Together, they replied, “No, we're not a couple.”
The innkeeper grinned, “Really? Could 'ave fooled me. Da way ya grinnin' as ya walked in.” She laughed as the two felt their cheeks blushed red. Putting down the mug she was cleaning, she reached under the counter and took out two keys. “Rooms are down da corridor 'hind the stairs. Communal baths ta ya left.”
Kathleen stammered, “C-communal?”
“That's right hon', boys and girls.” The innkeeper's smile was sly, as if she had witnessed the same reaction dozens of times and could never get tired of it.
Kathleen looked to The Watcher pleadingly, her face redder than the brick on the wall. Laughing himself, he told her, “Don't worry, you can go first. I want to check out this Enhancer that I've been told so much of.”
She let out a breath of relief. “T-then, I'll settle our rooms and meet up with you later.”
The innkeeper clicked her tongue in disappointment at the outcome, but said, “Da Enhancer? You must be lookin' 'fer Master Hildergard. She's down west, last store before da mountain steps.”
The Watcher thanked the innkeeper for her information and nodded Kathleen goodbye. He headed for the door as Kathleen haggled for the price of accommodations. “Is twenty quints a night fair?” he heard as he exited the inn.
Following the old woman's instruction, he walked the main streets of the town. It was a quiet place and the few villagers on the streets greeted him happily with welcoming messages and warm smiles. He passed by a small park where a group of children ran around and played. The smell of freshly baked bread floated from a nearby bakery, and the sound of a woman haggling the price of meat at a passing butcher echoed to great effect.
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He hated it.
He loved the town, but hated himself being there.
Being in a place of such peace and quiet had never been good for him. People with his kind of background always seemed to attract trouble, which was the reason why he preferred to be on the road of travel, away from settlements like this that would suffer the worst of any misfortune he brought along. He hoped to finish everything he needed to do before the end of the next day. To visit the Enhancer and the Titan Rangers were his order of tasks.
Nevertheless, he enjoyed the atmosphere. Perhaps one day, when the annals of history stops its calling, and the shadow of danger leaves him, he would be able to settle down in a small, quaint, unassuming town somewhere.
It did not take long for him to traverse the small town, and it surprised him that such a place was considered the capital of a state. According to Kathleen, the state of South Marika was the least developed of the City States of The Forum. Because of the protection of the mountain granted to the Titan Hunters, they were not allowed to heavily mine their surroundings for stones, unlike the city of Yogai. They did not produce wood like the Rao'Alliance and was not a port town. They did not have the means of mass production of food like the Grassplains, and had only the town of Dane and city of Valent connected by road. The people of Ra'Kalen thus lead a quiet life. But they had the slight advantage of having one of the four Enhancers in Eltar setting up shop there, receiving a large portion of their income from exporting crystals.
The shop was not hard to find. It was the only building made entirely of red bricks, sticking out sorely at the edge of town against the green plains beyond. Its glass display window was painted with the simple word, 'Enhancer'. The Watcher stepped inside.
The store was lined with two aisles. In the middle, spread out over two long wood tables were weapons and armours of all kind. At first glance, the equipments looked normal. Closer inspection showed each piece to have a crystal embedded into a part of it, and The Watcher could feel power emanating from each of them. Though not to the extend of power that a living being could produce, it was enough to send an intoxicating shiver through his body.
At the side of the shops, against the walls in glass display cases, were the same crystals embedded in the weapons, but put out individually on padded stands. Some were the size of fingernails, while a rare few were that of his palm. The energy coming from the crystals were much stronger than those from the equipments.
“Ah! A customer!” He turned to the counter to see a woman walk out of the back room with a small crate in hand. “Welcome to Hilde's. Looking for something to enhance your magic? I'm your girl!” She placed the crate on the counter.
The Enhancer called Hildergard looked no older than thirty. Her long, shining blonde hair was tied into a neat braid and she had the soft, smooth face of a model. Her smile was something he could only describe as innocent and cute. Wearing a leather workshop apron over long white sleeved shirt, she could have been on a poster for women engineers back on Earth.
He smiled back and said, “I'm looking for something to help stabilize my magic.” He walked up to the counter and, from his coat, retrieved a pouch of quints that Kathleen gave him. “What can I get for these?”
She counted the metal tags and her smile broke away. “Is this a joke? You can't even afford a tier two crystal with this, let alone equipments.” She looked up to him, visibly annoyed. “What kind of crystals are you looking for? Pyro? Hydro? Terra?”
“Chrono,” he stated, deadpan.
Her facade disappeared completely. With none of her previous charm or happiness, she cursed under her breath. “Gearing sod.” Her brows twisted down. “Look, I don't have time for your delusions. If you want to play a mage, go pick out one of those tier one aether crystals from the junk barrel.” She pointed to a barrel at the corner of the room, away from the front of the store.
“Hildergard!” The two turned to the voice from the door that led to the back of the store.
They had not heard the door opening, but standing under the archway, blocking the door with his 1.8 meters tall body was a man of caramel skin and lean built. He had a denim apron on over white shirt and brown linen trousers. Dusts were visibly puffing out from his body, showing that he had just walked out from a workshop behind. His eyes were a deep forest green and his hair short, spiked, and a deep navy blue. His ears were sharp like an elf but small like a human, and he had the same sharp chin that Adelaide and Nadier had, but with a rugged face akin to a man.
A half elf? The Watcher first thought.
Hilde exclaimed, “Grandmaster Miguel!”
Miguel reprimanded, “What did I tell you about treating people without judgement before knowing their abilities?”
“But Grandmaster, this man claimed to be a chronomancer.”
“Does it matter?” Miguel stepped out from the doorway, around the counter, and approached The Watcher. They sized each other up before the Enhancer replied to Hilde, “Can you not sense the magic pouring out of this man? Or were you so blinded by your title that you forgot the basics of your training?”
Hilde turned to The Watcher and squinted. He could feel a sense of energy run over his body as she analysed him and he sent out a pulse of energy back to her. Her eyes widened in surprise soon after and she lowered her head in shame.
Miguel said, “I apologize for my apprentice. She only gained the title of Master last year. She is talented, but young and hot-headed.” He extended his hand in greetings. “Miguel Vallertes, Grandmaster Enhancer of the Kingdom of Aleynonlia.”
“Watcher,” The Watcher replied with a shake, “And there's no trouble at all.” He liked the vibe that Miguel gave off. It was familiar, and almost familial.
“That said, I cannot argue that you do not have enough money to purchase one of her better products as a matter of fair trade. And the fact is, there are only two recorded chronomancers in Tearha, and I happen to personally know both of them.” The Watcher smiled, but nodded in understanding. His tact and elegance never leaving, Miguel continued, “Be that as it may, I will not prod you on the reason for hiding your magical element. Perhaps I can make up for my apprentice's rudeness by helping you select an aether crystal best suited for you? Though they are only tier one, they are still magical items of power.” He gestured the way to the barrel.
“Thank you,” The Watcher smiled and replied. He headed for the barrel of crystals. He looked to Hilde who was still stunned and sulking. He added, “And don't be too hard on the poor girl. After all, 'Every instrument requires to be made by experience'.”
“Leonardo da Vinci. Good quote.” Miguel picked up a crystal from the barrel filled to the brim with them. He examined it briefly and placed it back in the pile, apparently able to discern its quality and compatibility with ease.
They continued sifting through the barrel in silence, Miguel picking up each crystal and putting them back in seconds while The Watcher only looked at the one in his own hand in entranced curiosity.
Then, The Watcher dropped his crystal and took a quick step away from Miguel. The Enhancer materialized a pair of long, curved, reverse daggers in a cloud of frozen air. The Watcher reached for his sword, but before his hand even gripped the handle, the blades of the daggers were already on his neck, but they did not move further into the skin. Miguel held them in steady place. The Watcher could feel a drying cold emitting from the blades and the inside of his throat parched from the freeze.
“Grandmaster!” Hilde exclaimed.
The two ignored her, eyes locked in their stance.
Miguel noted, “You just quoted Leonardo da Vinci.”
The Watcher replied, “And you know who Leonardo da Vinci is.”
“Well, Watcher, you now have my undivided attention.”