The next morning Alden sprang up, sputtering about the room as he collected his clothing and various belongings. He hopped down the creaky steps, coming out into the main foyer with a grin smeared across his face. He could see the same waiter from the previous night- Manalla, he was pretty sure- glide around the room taking orders. Humming slightly to himself Alden chuckled as Bob squawked and flapped his wings. He hadn’t provided his usual wake-up call and Alden could tell the guy was feeling it- rubbing his head Alden took a seat at a small table. Manalla made her way over, a bowl already in hand. “Here ya go, Sir Alden. Its venison stew with a dash of rabbit. Enjoy.” With a curtsey and a smile she excused herself, Alden happily digging into his food. He quickly emptied around ¾’s of the bowl before pushing the last of it towards Bob. He squawked before quickly submerging himself in the food. Alden watched with a small smile. About 15 minutes later Alden was on his way out, waving to Maurice as he exited the tavern. The small girl gave him a nod in return as the door swung shut behind him. Breathing in the crisp morning air Alden set out once more on foot. Slowly he began to make his way east, following the earthen path. While it wasn’t the most direct route Alden was far more confident following a well-trodden path than journeying through the wilderness. The occasional traveler passed him, nods and shouted farewells their only communication. The land around him slowly began to change, the land beginning to turn hilly and lightly vegetated. He filled his head with the beauty of the world around him, and contemplations about different spells. At night he would take a small break to write things down in his journal before once again taking off. Every 3rd day or so he would lay down and sleep, letting the darkness carry him to faraway lands. It was after a little over a week that he came to his first major stop. In front of him a low-lying basin was revealed, a massive river snaking its way through the land. Perched on the thinnest section of river was the city of Quil. The distinctive flag- A heavy archer on a purple and white striped shield- flapped in the breeze. He smiled as he trotted down the path, traffic picking up drastically. He mentally ran through what The Treaties of Gelid Cultures had on the city. It was young, having only been established around 20 or so years ago. Despite that it quickly rose in wealth and stature, laying on a key trade route between the west and the east. The Ulgemirsu river served as a natural barrier dividing the east from the west. To the north the formidable Skypiercer mountain range dissuaded any trade caravans. To the south any road risked the fury of the Wild Lands and its savage inhabitants. As such the city was in a prime geographical location and thus, a prime economic location. His mind spiraled as he approached the gates, joining the long line that waited patiently for entry. While the Farmers Collective was the main trader to the west, several others were also fairly prominent. The Alf’ari came to mind, as well as the Jun’ocul. Trade-wise they tied for second, while every other city-state rated far, far behind. Coincidently they were the only two countries with multiple cities within their borders. Alf’ari only had two, but still. Alden stilled as his wandering eyes passed over a caravan in front of him. In it he could see men and women chained to an iron cage. His face froze, before relaxing slightly. The trader was a couple of places in front of him, and they were still far away from the gates. That gave him time. He narrowed his eyes, hand reached up slightly, a spark of purple twirling around it. Frowning he jerked his hand back down to his side, eyes still darting around the caravan. His lips twisted at the picture. It seemed like an enterprising nomad had found 5 or so foreigners from a local village and decided to make a quick coin. Alden sighed before he moved up the line. A few glares were sent his way, and one or two men even began to step forward. That quickly stopped when he approached the slave trader, postures relaxing. Alden walked up to the man, smiling and waving his hand. The tall warrior, easily over 1.8 meters, climbed down from his place on the carriage, nodding at the carriage rider. Alden moved up to meet the man, quirking his lips slightly. “Good to see you friend. I couldn’t help but notice what you’ve got there. Any chance you would be open to selling?” The man chuckled slightly before responding. “Depends on how much you’re willing to pay.” Alden tilted his head slightly. “6 gold.” The other man scoffed, eyebrow twitching. “That’s below market price friend. 4 strong men and a fine woman such that I have? Easily goes for 8 gold in that city.” He jerked his thumb in tune with his words. Alden responded in a steady cadence, still wearing a half-smile. “Yes, but we both know that the more established traders would eat you alive. At best you’d get 4 from one of the traders. At worst you end up in an alley with a knife in your back.” The slaver shifted slightly nose twitching. Alden pounced at the twitch. “Besides, do you really want to pay for them between now and selling them? Who knows how long it will take, and if you starve them, they sell for less. I’ll give you 7 now and you don’t have to deal with it.” The other man paused, biting his lip at the corner before he smiled. “You have a deal friend.” He offered his hand and Alden took it, shaking firmly. As soon as contact was made the man froze. Alden leaned forward whispering in his ear. “You will not sell, buy, or take another slave for any purpose other than to free them.” Alden stepped back, the other man squinting and glancing around. Alden laughed before he clapped his hands onto the slaver’s shoulders. “Let’s get them out of that cage, no?” Nodding slowly the man wobbled towards the cage. Pulling out a key he opened up the cage, swinging it open for Alden to see. 5 pale Defarssi stared at him as the man began to gesture. Slowly they waddled their way forward, eyes still glazed over. Alden could see a small ring of thorns around each of their necks. Glancing at the man beside him Alden saw similar thorns weaved through his cloth in a semi-stylish manner. He hummed and nodded before turning his gaze back to the action. The slaves tumbled onto the ground, the slaver holding out his hand and letting the bands of thorns jump into it. “There you are friend.” A nod later he stepped away and hopped back onto the carriage, slowly rumbling forward. Alden glanced at the slaves, hands flashing at them rapidly in hand-speak. He fell back to his place in line, nodding to the guards he saw on his way. They relaxed even further, each one of them giving him returning nods and smiles. He did, however, see a narrowed glare sent his way. Alden gazed at the emblem on that particular guard’s chest before returning his attention to the line before him. The slaves shuffled quietly behind him, not speaking until they had returned back to their place in line. There they stood, Alden ignoring them as he stroked Bob’s waddles and head. A satisfied cluck rang from the chicken’s mouth as he leaned into the touch. It was the women who spoke first, a wild mane of red hair hanging thickly around her. “Wha’da you want us fo’ ya big bastard? Won’ be doing nothi’ with that cock of yours.” The men around her shifted and fidgeted forward, slightly placing themselves between him and the women. Alden just rolled his eyes as he turned around to face them. “Please. If I wanted the company of the woman there are much more appealing options in that city over there. Most of them I wouldn’t even have to pay for.” One of the men- the shortest one with brown hair- chuckled slightly, the woman shooting him a glare in response. Alden continued, ignoring the byplay. “Besides, I have a much more important task for you.” This time all of them focused on him, their gazes much more… intense. It was the tallest man who spoke next, another mane of fire-red hair draping down his back. “And what task would that be?” Alden smiled before handing him a small piece of paper. He watched intently as the man looked at the paper before glancing back up at him. “I can’t read this.” Alden’s smile widened. “That’s a lie.” The man stared at him. Alden glanced at the rest of them. “You wanna give the rest of your little Band the piece of paper?” They had all gone still now, staring at him. He saw their fingers flex and legs tense as the big man responded. “Have no idea what you’re talking about.” Alden laughed and clapped his hands. “Well thank the High Lord. Because if you knew what I was talking about there would be a lot more trouble. After all you’ve never heard of a Band. Right?” This time his smile faded, and he stared dead in the big man’s eyes. He received a slow nod in return. Alden went to clap his hands- and then stopped- before petting Bob. “Great! Then I’ll tell you what you’ll be doing since you can’t read. I want information. As much as possible, as detailed as possible, and as subtly as possible. I’ll give you money for the job of course, and maybe one or two other things. Are you amenable?” The former slaves stared at each other for a moment, before their leader turned back to Alden. “You have a deal, strange man.” Alden grinned broadly. This trip was already going much better than he had expected.