136. NORTHPORT: RUKU.

Northport looks to be bigger than Obalno but smaller than Kirghiz. There is a strong wall around it, and the harbour has a lot of defensive emplacements. Wiremu is not here, so we cannot get an easy way in or out. My Suction Grip will work, but only for me.

“We will need to establish a hideout here for our gear and bonds,” I told Gwaed.

“There are too many farms here. We will need to be another day away, perhaps near where we camped last night,” she replied.

Esgyn and Pybyr will be too noticeable in the city. Esgyn is probably giving Gwaed a bird's eye view of the city now. In the two weeks it took us to get here, I taught everybody Camouflage. I levelled my Coaching Skill. I also helped everybody improve their Stealth. Except for Esgyn. He can’t learn Stealth, which I guess makes sense. I big black bird flying in the middle of the day. He did learn Camouflage and seemed quite pleased with it, according to Gwaed. He can camouflage himself when he is on the ground or in a tree. He is still a big bird, but it helps. Wai can now camouflage on my arm, and getting him into the city will be easier. Wai is also a few centimetres longer and more intelligent from eating the spiritual fish.

Gwaed, in turn, taught me Poison Blade, which was made easier as I had Poison Water. She also tried to teach me the Haemorrhage Skill. Haemorrhage is more about where the arteries are in the body and targeting strikes there than it is about Blood. I have not learned it yet; she thinks it is because I don’t have Anatomy Lore. Getting Anatomy sounds like a lot of studies.

We backtracked and searched, eventually finding a shallow cave on the side of a hill. It will provide shelter for Pybyr and somewhere for Esgyn to land easily.

“I still think we should swim around the wall,” I said.

“It will be watched and trapped, and not all of us have the skills to avoid those,” she replied. “I will be better going through the gate. I can be a travelling Alchemist, and I have Obfuscate, Improvise, and Conceal to get around most people. I can take some gear for you if you like.”

“I will be fine. I will check the harbour out; if it is too hard, I should be able to go over the wall. Where shall we meet up?” I asked.

“What about the Lore Society? It should be well known.”

“OK. Are you a member?” I asked.

“I’m not, but I would meet their criteria if I chose to join,” she replied.

“Why don’t you? It would be an easy way to get access to their books.”

“The problem is Identification, especially here in the Empire. They are very fond of their pieces of paper.” She said.

“Won't that be your problem at the gate?” I asked.

She shook her head. “Obfuscate.” is all she said.

Now I was confused. I am not sure what that Skill did, but she was relying on it and had obviously done so in the past as well. I decided to leave her to it. I left some of my gear and headed out straight away. If I didn’t get into the city tonight, I would have to wait until tomorrow night. I was just an old Marine with no deception skills as such. As I left, I saw Pybyr marking his territory and Gwaed frowning at him but not stopping him.

It was well after midnight when I got back to the city after a brisk run. I decided I would try the wall first, as a test for Suction Grip combined with Stealth and Camouflage, and also that the harbour was probably another two hours' run away. I was familiar with imperial fortifications and the way they usually enchanted them. We often trained to infiltrate a mock fort. I looked for the spot that had the least points overlooking it and engaged Suction Grip and Camouflage. Suction Grip was Apprentice level, so I could carry my weight with all four, but even with a smooth wall, there were small grips I could use. It was going to be a challenge, especially with the half-full pack I was carrying.

Slow and steady was the name of the game. Stealth would help even though it was barely Journeyman Level. I started the climb. After five minutes, I found a place I could hold on to, so I engaged Camouflage and rested Suction Grip. After a rest, I then started again. I took another rest just below where the enchantments started. All the main defence enchantments wouldn’t engage automatically. They need to be manually started. It was the smaller detect enchantments that would alert the guards to my presence that I was worried about. I knew what they looked like and the way the Spiritual energy flowed around them, so I should be able to avoid them if I was careful. I made sure I was very careful.

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When I got to just below the wall, I sent Wai to check where the guards were. I was envious when I saw him scurry along the side of the wall with no problems. It is a serious effort for me. When he indicated it was all clear, I dashed across the wall and onto the inner face. Then it was just a matter of reversing the process. The Inner wall only had the detect enchantments, making them easier to locate. Wai joined me again, and we got down. Suction Grip levelled twice. We had to wait in camouflage for a patrol to pass and then dashed across to the town. I found a quiet alley in a tradesman part of town and hunkered down to wait for the morning. Once the morning traffic got going, I would then go and buy some local clothes and then find an Inn to settle in for a couple of days. I will probably try and find something down by the dock as I will fit in better down there, and it should be closer to where my tasks were.

Gwaed and Merch were hunting for the Assassin. They would split up and go around the better parts of the city looking for key landmarks and scents from her Scry Skill. Gwaed had also learned Sense Decay from Esgyn. It was only Level 1, but as she said, a city is a good place to level it.

My job is to find out what happened to the Enchanters and Abigail and secure a boat out of here. I hoped we could go by sea, but we need multiple options. We must be able to leave in a hurry if necessary, so I also need to look at the Harbour defences. This undercover spy-type work is not my strength. I am more of a lead-the-assault type of guy.

First, some local clothes and breakfast that is not cooked over an open fire. I waited until the street traffic picked up and then entered the flow. My dirty armour, pack and weapons painted me as a hunter. I was in a poorer part of town, so I didn’t stand out too much. I found a tailor with some ready-made town clothes that should fit me, and he was happy to do the alterations then and there. He also provided a basin of water, and I cleaned up a bit and packed my armour into my pack. I left looking more respectable and headed out to find some food.

I was making my way toward the harbour, but this meant moving through a better part of town. When some of the soldiers on patrol started giving me a second look, I realised a quick wash was not going to be enough. I needed a haircut and a shave as well. I stopped at a street stall and picked up some kebabs with meat and vegetables. There were quite spicy. I found a barber, and he cut my hair. He convinced me to keep the beard and trimmed it into a very smart-looking arrangement. I thought I looked very good.

I was right in that there were very few visible bonds in Northport. What I would need to get used to were the slaves. They were mostly in this richer part of town. Rich people owned slaves. Poor people became slaves. The slaves that I could see were mostly doing menial labour. I tried not to gawk like a foreigner. People here generally ignored the slaves.

I stopped at a bakery and picked up a pork bun and some sweet bread for a treat. I found a reasonable Inn not far into the harbour worker's district. I would need to learn the districts' names, local food, etc. The Inn was called the Harbourview Guest House. I assume they wanted the rich neighbours as customers rather than the harbour workers. It turns out some of the rooms actually had a view of the harbour, and I booked one for a week. It would let me keep an eye on the shipping.

I got directions to the major points of interest in the city from the landlady. She was used to hosting foreign ship officers and assumed that was what I was. That was actually a reasonable cover story. She caught me up on the local rumour mill, and the Navy was apparently gearing up for some sort of action. The rumours suggested that another war with the Kingdom was coming, but nothing official had been announced. Most of the common people were not that happy as war meant all the navy ships would be out at sea for months at a time, depriving the town of over half its usual income. The only ones that were happy were the larger organisations with supply contracts to the Navy.

I wasn’t scheduled to meet Gwaed until tomorrow, so I got some fancier clothes as the Lore Society was in the middle of the city with the other expensive places. The Assassin was likely living in at least a modest part of town and possibly with the elite. I couldn’t see her in a military barracks, fortunately. We will see.

I wandered down to the docks as well to check out the ships. The trader we sailed in was there, but I didn’t go near it. Half the dock area was walled off to civilians, and that half was a frenzy of activity. The Navy making final preparations on their warships. As I watched, one came into the dock and another left. It was a well-organised system.

I decided to go to a tavern in the Dock area and hear the local gossip. There didn’t seem to be any. I went to the bar and asked the bartender some discrete questions. I thought they were discrete. The bartender shut me down quickly.

“You're new in town. It is obvious,” she said, “You get one warning. Don’t ask questions outside your area, especially not about the military, or you will soon find yourself interrogated by an Inquisitor. They offer good coin to be informed about people who ask too many questions.” She turned away to the far end of the bar.

Shit. You hear about the Imperial Inquisitors, but it does not sink in until you are in one of their cities. I had not been to an Empire City before. Here I was infiltrating an imperial city with no Spy, disguise or acting skills. Now I am starting to understand why Sione thought it was a suicide mission. I wondered if my Landlady had already informed on me. I didn’t think so, but what would I know? I grabbed some dinner from a different tavern, but I kept to myself. Then I went back to the Inn. No soldiers were waiting, and my room did not seem disturbed. I had learned Olfaction from Wai, but mine was only Level 1, so I had him check for strange smells. There didn’t seem to be any.

I stayed up late into the night watching the ships come and go with my Darksight / Farsight combo and contemplating my actions and how out of my depth I was. I am operating inside enemy territory with no backup except Gwaed and the bonds.