Seeing the pristine white walls of Galdea again, Alix was suddenly struck by just how different his life was in the castle. He had forgotten what it was like to see a crowd, forgotten the convenience of being within walking distance of anything he might need. The sights and sounds were almost overwhelming at first, but he had a job to do, one that was becoming more urgent by the minute.
As he feared, he had been knocked out after forging Xilian, the ring having imbued him with the knowledge of how to forge the Darknight’s weapon. It also didn’t help that he had spent the morning training so heavily. The result was that he woke up a day later in Mr Bones arms, being carried through the woods towards Galdea.
“How come he gets to be carried like that?” were the first words he heard upon regaining consciousness, whining from Brant he had assumed was part of a bad dream.
“I can carry you if you like,” Alix heard Evory reply, seemingly oblivious to his petulant attitude.
“The lord has agreed to help you find your wife. He deserves to rest as much as he sees fit,” Mr Bones voice came from somewhere above him.
Alix fought through the dregs of sleep to see what was really going on, still unsure if he was dreaming or not. Wherever he was, he wasn’t in Tifayn’s comfortable bed. He opened his eyes to see Mr Bones skull floating above him, bobbing in rhythm with his swift pace.
“You must really be a miserable bastard Brant if even Mr Bones is sick of your shit,” Alix said, signalling to them all that he was awake.
Brant quickly shut his mouth but it took a while longer before Mr Bones finally set him down on the ground. Alix couldn’t bring himself to tell him how uncomfortable it was, instead going with the argument that it made him feel too much like a child.
Could have at least padded his arms or something…
He soon learned why Mr Bones was carrying him in the first place, and just how far from the castle they already were. It turned out Evory had offered to carry him when it became apparent that he wasn’t going to wake up in time to leave, but Tifayn vehemently refused to let that happen, but unless she wanted to take turns with Evory carrying him, she wouldn’t be able to carry him all the way to Galdea herself, so Mr Bones offered to carry Alix until he woke up. When he did, he saw the unfamiliar stars of Babyl shining down on him.
As soon as he was back on his own feet, the first thing he did was to craft a strong tonic to soothe the pain from being carried by a skeleton for so long.
“How long was I out?” Alix asked.
“We left the castle yesterday morning so only about a day and a half. You woke up just in time, we are almost there. We thought it best to travel through the night to reach Galdea by morning, giving you a full day in the city,” Tifayn replied.
Mr Bones soon left to return to the castle, uneasy at leaving it unguarded so long. Now that progress was being made with the restoration, they couldn’t risk anything going wrong.
“Good luck, my lord. I wish you a safe return journey,” Mr Bones said, disappearing off into the dark. It would have been a terrifying sight to him before, a black clad reanimated skeleton stalking the woods at night, but now he was just sorry to see him go so soon.
As they continued on, Alix lost in thought as to what he was getting himself in to, he realised that he had no idea where to find what he was looking for. The time he had spent in Galdea before hadn’t exactly been pleasant, and his recollections of the streets were non-existent.
“You don’t happen to have a map of the city or something, do you Brant?” Alix asked the forever brooding soldier.
Before he could reply, Tifayn pulled out a roll of parchment from the bag she carried.
“I already thought of that. I checked the library while you were asleep and Astrid managed to find this map. It’s very old, but Brant confirmed that the district’s marked on it are generally still correct,” Tifayn said, handing over the map.
Alix unrolled the map as they walked and scanned its contents. As he did, Brant explained the layout.
“Galdea is a fairly simple city to navigate. The Kingdom has always been run by arrogant royalty that consider themselves superior to every other race in Babyl. The city itself is laid out like Babyl itself, with the castle at the centre representing Babyl. The rest of the city is laid out in concentric rings until they reach the outer wall with cardinal entry points. The wall represents the furthest reaches of Babyl, while the river running around it represents the Deadlands. Stick to the Merchants District, the 7th Ring, to do your business, then head to the 3rd Ring to find the Military District. The hospital is in the western part of the ring.”
* Acquired Galdean Map (Archaic)
I guess that’s better than nothing…
The map loaded up into his interface, a circular city surrounded by fog. Now that he had left the castle, a new feature to zoom in and out appeared. A thin line leading from the castle to their current point showed the path they had taken while he was asleep, mostly travelling through the countryside to avoid running into anyone. Compared to Galdea, the castle was a speck. When he returned he would have to find a map of Babyl to see just how big it was, or maybe he could find one in the city. If it wasn’t safe for him to be travelling then he would never manage to clear the fog from the map without buying the information he needed.
Alix spent the time studying the map further. There were eight separate districts that made up Galdea, plus the castle at the centre, named as either their District or Ring.
* 8th Ring – Warehouse District
* 7th Ring – Merchant District
* 6th Ring – Lower District
* 5th Ring – Upper District
* 4th Ring – Guild District
* 3rd Ring – Military District
* 2nd Ring – Artisan District
* 1st Ring – Aristocrat District
* Imperial Ring
Like Brant said, it didn’t look like it would be too difficult to navigate. It looked like they were going to arrive at the East Gate so he planned the route he would take from there, although it would be very hard for him to get lost with the information he already had. The rest of the time he spent Crafting a large stock of potions to sell.
They came upon Galdea as the sun was rising over the grand white walls. From a vantage point on top of a rise he noticed details about the city he hadn’t had a chance to before. The parapet was painted in a yellow that gave the city the appearance of being ringed by gold, as if the sun was rising from the walls themselves. The castle at the city’s centre was easy to see now, as were the circular rings that made up the city’s districts. Despite the early hour, queues were already building at each of the four entry gates, carts loaded with wares heading for the Merchant District, or weary travellers looking for an inn to rest for the night.
“I guess this is it,” Alix said when the silence drew on too long as they all stared down at their objective.
“Do you not want to go over your plan one more time?” Tifayn asked, a look of concern stuck on her face.
“There’s not much more to say really, I only have one choice. I’ll find a merchant to buy my potions, hopefully one with deep pockets, then I’ll find an Armourer and get some proper gear. Then I’ll make my way to the Third Ring and find the army hospital and look for Brant’s men. Then I’ll make my way back here. What are the men’s names again?” Alix asked Brant, realising he had forgotten to ask before.
“Warrick and Durgun,” Brant said.
“Durgun?” Alix exclaimed, barely able to contain himself. “Is that a common name around here?”
“Not really. Why? What do you know?” Brant asked, suddenly tense at Alix’s change in demeanour.
“One of the assholes that drove me to the castle was called Durgun. The other one was called something stupid like Baldo or Dolo or something.”
“Bolo is his brother. You have met them before? They never mentioned such an assignment to me before.” Brant’s face darkened as he began to sense something was amiss.
“I wouldn’t say I met them. They refused to talk to me the whole way and then kicked me off at the castle. I would say they took great relish in seeing me stumbling through the pissing rain into the ruins. I can’t wait to hear what Durgun has to say now.” Alix started to make his way down the wooded slope with a new sense of purpose. “Don’t follow me,” he called back when the others started to follow behind. “Once I take the potion, I don’t want any of you anywhere near me. I need to change as well and I don’t want you all watching me.”
Once he was a ways further into the woods, he found a large crop of bushes to hide behind and change, but first he had to craft the new clothes to change into. From his options, he selected a suit that looked semi formal enough that he wouldn’t be given any trouble, but inconspicuous enough that he wouldn’t attract attention in the wrong place. The Fabric disappeared from his inventory and a new outfit appeared. Selecting it showed an Equip button, which he tapped, and then he felt a rush of wind around him. In an instant it settled, and he looked down at the new set of clothes he was suddenly adorned with.
Alix was worried that the robes he had been given in the castle would be recognised by the wrong person, so he had done away with it and replaced it with a dark green frock over a dark green vest and breeches. Over the whole getup he wore a light black travel cloak, and a simple black tricorne hat, which he chose to spend the extra Fibre crafting so that he could hide his appearance until he had need to use the effects of the potion, which he pulled from his inventory and took a careful sip of. Back in his world it would have been considered opulent, but as he joined the queue waiting to enter the East Gate, he blended right in.
After taking the potion, nothing felt different, and as he drew closer and closer to the front of the line, he began to panic that he hadn’t taken enough. When he saw everyone in front of him passing some sort of paperwork to the soldiers guarding the East Gate, he panicked further. One guard was checking the paperwork while half a dozen others guarded the open gate.
What is everyone giving to the guards? he asked the ring.
Identification Cards. Everyone needs one to enter the city, the ring replied.
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You didn’t think to mention it before now? Alix seethed silently.
Not really, it wouldn’t have done you any good. They are only issued by the Archivist Guild. Their headquarters, the Iron Chapel, is marked on your map but it wont do you any good going there now. Your Identification Card would still say Name: Alix, Job: Darknight, Address: Darknight’s Castle.
What the hell am I supposed to do then?
You are currently the recipient of obscene privilege. Use it.
Suddenly it was Alix’s turn to approach the guards and he did so on unsteady legs.
“Identification and purpose of your visit,” the guard asked gruffly. He wore a steel breastplate with the Imperial emblem over simple leather armour while the others behind him were fully kitted out in plate mail. It didn’t look very comfortable, and it was likely to get worse once the sun had fully risen. It was looking like it was going to be a hot day.
Alix lifted his face from under the brim of his hat and then did his best to sound as natural as possible. “I’m sorry friend, I don’t have my Identification Card on me. Lost it in the woods you see. I was just on my way to the Archivist Guild to get it replaced.”
Alix watched as the look on the guards face turned from utter boredom to furious irritation, but as he raised his head from his board, where he was keeping track of numbers entering and exiting the city, to get a look at the asshole causing him trouble, a look of confusion cut through all the anger.
“Is there a problem?” Alix continued. “I’m not planning on staying long, just a quick in and out.”
“Problem? Of course not, my love- I mean, my lord.” The guard flushed an impressive shade of red. Then he rummaged around in a satchel looped over his shoulder and pulled out a thin piece of wood the size of a credit card. “Please, take this day pass. Is there anything else I can do for you?”
“No, thank you.” Alix took the offered card and stepped past the guard before his behaviour turned to full on grovelling. The effects of the potion were truly terrifying. Alix had barely let the liquid touch his lips, and he already had a soldier risking their job for him.
The line of soldiers behind the guard gave him curious looks as he passed, but he kept his head down and he was allowed to pass without further issue. Alix didn’t breathe a sigh of relief until he had passed under the towering East Gate and slipped into the crowds of the Warehouse District beyond.
It was easy enough to find the Merchant District. The road ran straight from the East Gate up through at least the first two or three rings and he only had to follow it up a slight incline before he left the Warehouse District behind. It was a long row of bland and bulky buildings. In the area immediately around the gate, stables were set up to care for visitors that had ridden their horses to the city. As he walked, his map updated with the curre2nt street names and layout, which were remarkably similar to the map from what had to be hundreds of years prior.
On the second ring, or the seventh depending on how you counted, the buildings changed to a mass of crowded shop fronts. It was overwhelming, suddenly being surrounded by so many people after being alone for so long. He suddenly wished he was back in the castle, where the hardest thing to deal with was the cold draught.
The shops immediately surrounding the East Gate Highway, as it was now called on his map, were all selling fruit and vegetables, bread, meats and every other sort of food he could imagine, the daily necessities that the people living in the upper rings needed. His mouth began to water at the enticing smells of freshly baked pies, ripe fruit and cured meats, but he forced himself to walk past them all. He didn’t have any money anyway.
Alix kept on walking, making sure to keep his head down, until the food stalls were replaced with the shops he was looking for; potion merchants, and other sellers of magical items. In front of one, a man was calling out to passers by to try and entice them into his store.
“You there! You look like you have fine taste. Come inside and I’m sure I will have what you are looking for,” the man called out to Alix as he passed by the shop. He had intended on ignoring it as the tattered looking façade didn’t tell of a wealthy proprietor, but the man seemed earnest enough, if slightly desperate.
“Actually, I was looking to sell,” Alix replied to the man’s call.
“Really? I have never seen you around here before. Are you registered with the Alchemist Guild?” the man replied. Alix took a quick look at the text floating above the man’s head. Rune, Shopkeeper, Lv. 24.
“I’m only passing though,” Alix said to Rune.
“I don’t know where you are from then mister but you aren’t authorised to sell in Galdea unless your merchandise is authenticated by the Alchemist Guild first.”
“That’s a shame. Would you like to see what I’ve got for sale anyway? Maybe something will interest you.” Before Rune could decline, Alix placed a few potions from his inventory into his pocket and then pulled them out for him to see.
Rune put his hands up as if he was about to turn Alix down again, but when he caught sight of the vials glinting in the sun, his attitude quickly changed. Rune looked up and down the street for any sign of anyone else and then dragged Alix into his small shop, sandwiched between a shop that seemed to sell nothing but empty vials and other containers, and another selling books claiming to be ancient grimoires but from the quick look he got at the volumes in the window, they were nothing more than fakes or Herbology texts at best. Rune flipped the Open sign to Closed as he shut the door behind them.
“Where did you get these potions?” Rune asked him once the door was securely locked. At first Alix thought Rune meant to rob him, even though the slight man would have had a hard time doing so, but as his eyes gazed almost lovingly at the vials, Alix knew he had the man hooked.
“I made them myself. This one is a Healing Potion, this one is an Elixir, and this one is my personal favourite, a Nightbringer Draught.” One by one, Alix deposited the vials into Rune’s trembling hands.
Rune took them over to a counter that lined the far end of the shop and placed them down beside a large counter mounted magnifying glass. Both side walls were lined with various potions and ingredients in boxes and jars. With the ring Alix was able to analyse them all and saw that they were all fairly low quality. There wasn’t even a basic healing potion among them, only salves and basic tonics that he doubted would be of much use. The main thing he noticed was that everything seemed to be for sale for very cheap prices. He admittedly didn’t have much experience or knowledge of what constituted expensive or cheap in Babyl, but everything in the shop was priced in copper or silver coins.
“These are of exceptional quality,” Rune said as he examined each one closely under the magnifying glass.
How does the monetary system work her? Alix asked the ring as Rune continued to pour over the vials.
Assuming things haven’t changed recently, there are ten copper coins to a silver, and ten silver coins to a gold. The conversion to ingots and faceted gems is a lot more complicated but you won’t need to know that here.
“They can be yours for a fair price.” Alix was sorely tempted to lean on the effects of the potion to get an even better price, but Rune’s business didn’t look like he wasn’t doing too well. If he couldn’t offer a good enough price, he would just have to try elsewhere.
Rune debated with himself for a few moments, whispering and cursing under his breath, until he finally asked, “How much?”
“I need a gold coin apiece.”
Rune blanched at the cost. For a moment, he went to pick up the vials to return them to Alix, but Alix made the mistake of raising his head too high when he spotted something on a high shelf that was priced in gold instead of silver or copper, the only thing in the shop. He quickly analysed it. Lesser Antidote.
That’s odd. I’ve got dozens of those. Why is it being sold for 10 gold pieces?
“Deal!” Alix heard Rune exclaim, bringing him back to his senses.
Shit.
He dipped his head but it was already too late. Rune was already under the effects of Obscene Privilege.
“Now look Rune, I don’t want you buying these if you can’t afford them,” Alix said, feeling bad that the man had been about to decline his offer, obviously unable to pay the cost.
“How do you know my name? Never mind, I don’t care. It must just be fate. Please wait here, I will get the money.” Luckily for Alix, and Rune, he had only shown him three potions. Rune handed over three gold coins, the most substantial amount of gold Alix had ever held before in his life, and eagerly took possession of the potions. “Please, is there anything else I can do for you?”
“Yes actually, there is. Why is that Lesser Antidote selling for so much money?” Alix asked.
“There is an epidemic in the city at the moment. A poison is spreading, but the cause hasn’t been determined yet. Antidote’s are selling out all over the city. As demand is so high and unable to keep up with the supply, the prices have risen.”
“Do you know a shop that would be interested in purchasing a large quantity of antidotes?”
“I would, I will buy everything you want me to,” Rune burst out.
“Could you afford to Rune? Be truthful.”
“I can’t afford it, but I would find a way.”
“How about this. I will give you a Lesser Antidote for free if you can tell me someone that would buy a hundred off of me.”
“Only Chanters would be able to buy that much at once,” Rune said, the words rushing out of him as if he couldn’t answer Alix’s questions fast enough. “His shop is just around the ring from here, you can’t miss it.”
“Thank you, Rune.” Alix deposited a Lesser Antidote potion on the counter and left the shop before he caused any further damage.
Alix made his way around the ring as quickly as he could, chastising himself for being so careless. He hadn’t come here to ruin the lives of those that couldn’t afford it, but he was sure Rune would be able to sell the potions for a profit anyway, and if not, the Antidote would cover it.
Chanters turned out to be a garish potions shop that almost brought him in line with the South Gate Highway.It was adorned with flags and banners, with its name embossed in gold over the arched entrance. It was still early enough in the morning that he was able to step inside during a quiet moment where he was the only customer, after taking another careful sip of Obscene Privilege.
A large bespectacled man with an even larger black beard stood behind the counter at the centre of the shop, which was in jarring contrast with Rune’s. The shelves were stacked high with glittering and glistening vials of all shapes, sizes and colours. Cauldrons bubbled aromatic smoke in the corners for effect. Alix quickly scanned the shelves and saw nothing priced cheaper than several gold coins.
The man behind the counter, named by the ring as Chanter, Alchemist, Lv. 42, was dressed in robes of a rich blue colour, embroidered with almost cliché stars and runes. Alix half expected him to be wearing a pointed wizards hat to complete the look, but he looked up at Alix from the book he was reading with a half-bored expression.
“The Antidote’s aren’t ready yet, come back tomorrow,” Chanter said in a deep voice, going straight back to his book.
“Actually, I’m here to sell some Antidote’s, if you are interested.” On the way to the shop, Alix had bulked up his supplies, crafted a few crates, and prepared something else special. He placed the crate filled with twenty Lesser Antidotes on the counter, and removed his hat. The crate was a finely crafted display piece by itself.
Chanter repeated the same questions that Rune had just asked him still refusing to lift his eyes from the book. “Never seen you around here before. When did you join the Guild? What’s your membership number?”
“I’m sure these fine potions would serve your customers well,” Alix replied, ignoring the question. He just needed Chanter to raise his eyes…
Finally Chanter put down his book with a sigh and turned his attention towards the crate on his highly polished counter. He lifted a vial from the crate and his brows furrowed.
“Where did you get these? This quality of antidote sold out in the capital weeks ago,” Chanter said, almost to himself.
“I made them myself. I have plenty more, if you would be interested in purchasing them. I see you are selling Lesser Antidote’s for twelve gold apiece. I will sell you these for eight gold apiece, and for every crate of twenty you purchase, I will throw in a Greater Antidote for five gold pieces. That’s twenty Lesser Antidotes, a Greater Antidote and one of these finely crafted display cases for the bargain price of one hundred and sixty five gold pieces.”
Chanter finally raised his eyes to stare as Alix, as if to say he was out of his mind to demand such a price, but as soon as his eyes went wide, Alix knew he had him.
“Yes, a bargain most definitely. How many did you say you have? I will take them all,” Chanter said, his deep voice growing higher and higher until he sounded like an excited boy at Christmas.
Alix bent down below the counter, drew three more cases from his inventory, and then lifted them up beside the first. Chanter didn’t even question where they came from as his eyes lit up. He quickly bent down below his side of the counter and emerged with a small chest, which he unlocked with a key from a chain around his wrist. Inside was a small fortune in gold coins, and from it he quickly began to count out six hundred and sixty gold coins. Each one Alix dropped into a bag he had crafted for the express purpose of holding a large amount of gold.
Alix thought about crafting a few more crates of antidotes and seeing just how many he could get Chanter to buy, but the satchel of gold was already hard enough to carry as it was once it was full.
“Thank you kindly,” Alix said once he had all the gold safely stowed away in his inventory. A handy counter appeared in his interface with his total money.
“Please, come back any time my lord. I would be honoured to purchase anything else you have for sale,” Chanter called, almost bowing down to the ground, as Alix left the shop before any other customers walked in on the odd scene.
With his newfound fortune, it was time he found some armour.