When Jet opened his eyes, it was day time again. He looked around and discovered he was in the carriage. He could hear Rujar laughing outside with the driver. They must have been telling stories. Across from him was Heyvl and the girl.

"You're awake," Heyvl said with excitement.

Jet sat up slowly, his eyes blurry from adjusting to the light. "What happened?" he decided to ask.

"You happened!" Heyvl declared, "You sent out a wave of your Element that scared off the rest of the bandits. We were able to continue on the road after that."

"How long have I been out?"

Heyvl peeked outside. Jet could see the sun was already passed the high point. "It'll be evening soon, I think. You've been out for about a day and a half," Heyvl responded.

"Really? Doesn't feel like that long..." Jet almost couldn't comprehend being out for that long.

Jet rubbed his eyes and blinked a few times. The Crystal Elementalist was staring at him. Her face was stern and she looked almost angered by the sight of him. "Thanks for saving me back there," she said.

"Uh...yeah, no problem."

"That's a strange Element you have."

"It's saved my life several times now," Heyvl added in. The girl gave him a strange look, and she looked back to Jet for confirmation. Jet nodded slowly. He didn't want to seem like he was bragging. He still wasn't sure what all his Element could do.

"So what's your name anyways?" Jet asked.

"Irina."

"I'm Jet, nice to meet you."

She smiled in return. Jet could see that Heyvl and her had already had exchanged pleasantries. He wondered how they were getting along.

"We're almost to the capital now, though," Irina said after a while.

"That's good," Heyvl said with a sigh.

"Why are you coming with us if your trade stuff was ruined?" Jet asked.

"Well I need a ride back, and you guys weren't heading that way. Figured I would tag along."

Jet's face grew red. He felt embarrassed that he had forgot about the cart. He decided to look out the window instead to avoid her gaze. "Oh that's right."

The three of them made little conversation as they continued on the way to Shnela. Heyvl had told Irina about Lonava and Lonav. Jet chimed in a few times when Heyvl explained the appearance of a Spirit Elementalist. Heyvl then ranted about the soldiers that had come looking for Jet, and how they hoped Trekthar was okay. Jet added that with them being seen north of the city, the soldiers should have left Lonav. Though they couldn't be sure if they had left Lonava altogether.

The scenery around the carriage was now full of rocky alcoves and quarries. Jet spotted a few caves here and there. He remembered Rujar mentioning about the mining. Jet could only imagine what lay inside the mines and caves.

"Hey, we're almost there!" Rujar's voice shouted from outside. Heyvl and Jet looked out the window to see. In the not-so-far distance, a massive city loomed. Jet could see giant stone walls and tall towers poking out from the top. In the center, he could see a castle. It looked similar to the one in Calbar, but it looked more up kept and had flags of pinks and blues. He assumed that those were the colors of the Crystal Kingdom.

They didn't take much longer to reach the city. Irina remained calm in her stern way, while Jet and Heyvl were both eager to see inside the walls. The guards let them pass through the gates without too much effort, probably at the sight of Rujar. The city was busy. People were everywhere. It reminded Jet of Lonav's trading area. People were moving goods back and forth, while others were simply walking to get somewhere else. The streets were paved with stones, surrounded by green grasses.

The carriage took the four of them to the closest carriage exchange. It looked exactly like the one in Grevale with a large space for carriages and carts to go, with a small booth with a single person inside. Rujar hopped down from the driving bench and opened the door for the others. Jet let the other two go out first before he exited the carriage. He was a bit scared of a whole new capital. He had seen all of them now, and they all were different with many different kinds of people. Heyvl scrambled out before Jet to avoid the horses that were now being tended to.

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"Ah, I see you're working today then Yalt!" Rujar exclaimed as he approached the booth. A woman stood on the inside. She looked almost like a female version of Rerold.

"Back again then, Rujar?" she asked unimpressed by the sight of the ambassador.

"Yes, bringing this lot to the castle. Important business."

"It's always important business with you, Rujar."

Rujar smiled and laughed. Jet wasn't sure what their relationship was, but Rujar seemed to be well acquainted with the carriage exchanges. "Well I'm here from Grevale. Rerold carriage and all," Rujar explained to Yalt.

"Fill this out, please," Yalt said as she handed him a form.

Rujar began to fill it out. Jet watched the driver of their carriage head into a door in the back of the open storage area. He figured they had to supply the drivers with a rest.

It didn't take Rujar long to fill out the form and hand it back to Yalt. "Have a nice day," she replied dully. Rujar gave her a nod and turned back to the others.

"Okay, let's head to the castle."

"Why do we need to go there?" Irina asked.

"Well we have important business to discuss with the leaders of the Kingdom. You can do whatever you want now," Rujar explained.

"Can I come?"

Rujar looked to Jet and Heyvl. They were already nodding, so Rujar just let out a sigh. "I guess. They probably told you what we are doing here anyways, so you're now as much a part of this as they are."

Irina smiled in return. Jet was glad that she was happy after the events that had happened a few nights ago. The four of them all walked together away from the exchange and into the heart of Shnela.

The streets were crowded, but Rujar's presence made people move out of the way for them. Jet knew that an ambassador would hold some sort of respect for the work they did. Rujar walked fast, so the other three did their best to follow him quickly. Jet didn't mind the walking after being cooped up in the carriage for so long.

Shnela gave Jet an Imperial vibe. It didn't seem as industrial, but the buildings and shops looked quite similar. Instead of smoke filling the air, it was a pleasant smell. It was a mix of flowers from the few gardens they passed, and food stores. The roads weren't cluttered with trash or other debris, like they were in the district he lived in Calbar. Shnela was better in every way.

"The castle isn't too far now," Rujar said, looking back at them. "You'll be safe as long as you stick with me."

Jet made a mental note of that. He wasn't sure why, but he felt like even in the Kingdom, he couldn't trust anyone to be a soldier of the Empire. The paranoia made him more alert, so he didn't mind it much.

The castle came quicker than he expected. Shnela was more compact than Lonav. The gray bricks seemed to almost shine in the sunlight. Jet stood in awe as they approached the massive drawbridge.

"Rujar, you're back," one guard had said as they came into view.

"That's right. I have some urgent news to tell the Queen."

"Oh, well go on in. Are these three with you?"

"They are, actually."

The guard examined them carefully but then waved them through. Jet felt safer as they got into the castle. Entering a castle again still seemed to make him feel sick, but he knew had a feeling the Queen wasn't anything like the Emperor.

The entry hall was large and had stairs and doorways going in every direction. The stairs seemed to split away from the focus of the castle, the throne room. The throne room was only up a small ways of the stairs, directly in front of the entrance. Guards stood at both sides of the door. Their uniforms were pink and gold, similar to Rujar's armor. The carpets of the castle were pink as well, with gold and blue trims.

The guards let Rujar lead them into the throne room. Jet was amazed at how large the throne room was. It held enough space for the people of Shnela to watch what the Queen did, as well as house several dozen guards. The Queen was protected alright.

"Rujar!" the Queen shouted. The guards all turned their attention to the four of them. Jet immediately began to feel shy. He stepped back and let Heyvl and Irina lead. Heyvl shot him a look of confusion, but he didn't respond.

"My queen," Rujar announced he knelt in the middle of the carpet path.

Jet peeked around Rujar's body. The queen looked menacing in her throne of gold. Her crown was simple but elaborate with gems that matched the ones in Rujar's armor. Her hair was wrapped up in a strange style that Jet could only assume was royal. The crown seemed to be complemented by the style.

"You have returned at last," she finally spoke, letting Rujar know he could stand. "And you've brought...kids with you."

Irina's hand tightened into a fist. Instinctively, Jet reached out and grabbed her shoulder. The girl jumped slightly, but released her hand tension. Jet gave her a look that said, 'don't do anything rash.' He didn't like being called strange either but he also didn't want their only help to be ruined in a moment. She gave a slight nod, indicating she understood.

"I have, my queen. And these...er...kids are with me because they need the Kingdom's help."

The queen leaned back in her throne. Her royal cloak pressed against the back of the massive chair. "What kind of help would that be?"

"Well, this one here," Rujar said as he stepped to the side to reveal Jet, "is a Spirit Elementalist. He is being hunted by the Empire, possibly due to his past."

"Just that required you to come here? He is safe anywhere in our Kingdom."

Rujar shook his head. "I wish that were it. The Empire has apparently surrounded Lonav because they believe he is still there. Or rather, they did believe he was. That amount of soldiers shouldn't be ignored. They are up to something."

The queen frowned and leaned forward once more. "Tis troubling news indeed. I'll have words sent to some people and we'll discuss this more in private."

"Yes, your majesty," Rujar stated as he knelt once more. After a few seconds he stood up and motioned for the three to follow him out of the throne room.