Chapter 45 – Destination B.

“You’re certain about the destination?” Myne looked at her, her expression unreadable, arms folded across her chest.

“Yup,” Crystal replied. Of that much she was certain. She still had no idea who it was that actually needed their help, but the destination had been very clear. She had been given both an image and the name of the city in her dream or vision the previous night (whatever it actually was) and Rachael had confirmed that they matched when Crystal had told her of what had disturbed their sleep.

Myne looked over at Clocky.

“What? I’m not some quest checking device you know,” he replied with a grin. “But my sixth sense agrees with her. We are needed. And urgently. Of course that puts us on Bowser’s doorstep as well.”

“Fine,” Myne stated, dropping her arms, a smile on her face. “Let’s go see what those trying to mess with us want. I’m just a tourist though.”

The sun was just starting to claw its way above the walls of the valley, a fine morning mist slowly evaporating to its presence. It was a classic setting for a vampire, a perfect backdrop for Myne. Even after the two and a half weeks that they had been training here with her, she was still a terrifying presence. Not as bad as when they had first met her, but something about what she was and her magic just wouldn’t let them forget how powerful she was and how much of a potential threat she was. Whether or not it was deliberate on Myne’s part Crystal wasn’t sure. At the least, it didn’t seem to effect Clocky that much, nor any of Myne’s companions by what he had said.

Crystal internally debated with herself before she finally reached a decision.

“Are you actually going to be able to tag along as an inconspicuous extra?” Crystal asked. “You look more out of place than we do, and your presence alone is probably going to send everyone scrambling away.”

“Of course,” Myne stated. “I’m sure you lot have a cloak here somewhere, and while I can mute the aura, I usually don’t as it takes effort.”

“However if you were to feed me...” she then teased.

“Still a no,” Crystal and Rachael replied simultaneously.

The did indeed have a cloak or three lying around, Clocky producing one and giving it to Myne. It sort of helped when she put it on, and gave her a mysterious quality instead with a hint of allure. But her horns were still visible, just as they were for Crystal and Rachael, so no matter what they group would be standing out. That was of course excluding the addition of the two cat-foxes, who usually went by unnoticed, a curious feature of them, and Ashling, who Crystal assumed did not have such an ability.

Then there was also the issue of getting to the city itself. Perhaps she should have gotten them all up during the night, but tiredness was not conductive to decision-making.

“More importantly, how are we going to enter the city?” Crystal asked. “Ashling will able to be seen from quite a distance away, and landing from outside that and walking in could take us a day or more to cover, unless we wait till tonight, but then we’ve wasted the day.”

“We weren’t just doing to dive bomb Bowser’s fortress?” Myne teased.

Crystal rolled her eyes. That did seem to be Myne’s preferred way of making an entrance.

“What’s your knowledge of train schedules like?” Rachael piped up, looking at Clocky. “I assume that the Port Alexis train is still out, but there were a lot of other lines going into the train station.”

“Hazy at best,” Clocky replied, looking thoughtful. “We should be able to get a good view of the lines from above though, and trains usually come in every other day. Stopping one and getting passage shouldn’t be too hard, but we will be seen.”

“Hopefully by a lot less people though. I’m sure it’ll just add to the drivers co-operation, and to those in the city who do look that way perhaps it can be written off as just a rumour.” Rachael looked keen on the idea.

“And what if there aren’t any trains?” Crystal queried. “It’ll be a long wait till night fall...”

“We switch to Plan B,” Myne said with a growing smile.

Crystal was suddenly worried. “And that would be?”

“The colossal distraction. With Ashling in the picture they won’t notice the rest of us entering the city.”

“Really?”

“Any other ideas that aren’t time consuming?”

Crystal shook her head. She didn’t know anywhere near enough about the city (being almost nothing) to come up with anything else, and the others didn’t seem to have any other ideas. She was going to have to pray that they’d find a train.

“He’ll certainly cause a stir either way, if he hasn’t done so already,” Fairweather observed.

“I get the feeling that it’ll just be the herald of things to come,” Clocky agreed, an amused smile on his face. “Though you did say that he doesn’t like being a taxi. Is Ashling even going to be willing to take us in? Especially after all the trips you lot have been making down into the plains.”

“He’s taken a liking to them,” Myne grumbled. “Dragons...”

She then laughed, to some unheard comment from Ashling.

Crystal leaned back into Rachael, enjoying her warmth, a contrast to the chilly winds that flowed past them. Rachael’s arms were wrapped around her, keeping her close as Crystal likewise held the two two cat-foxes in front of her, the land rushing by underneath them. She was always amazed when Ashling took on his full form, of just how massive the Dragon Familiar was, and that he was only a small portion of Velvet’s magic. Not to mention that he just looked really powerful and cool. Clambering up onto his back had taken some practice, but after a few days she had gotten the hang of it, another part of their training on how to use their magic.

She definitely liked the flying too. The sense of freedom, released from the constraints of the ground. The world opening up again as it had back in their age. Dragon Riders were certainly a lucky group of people, even if they took it for granted. Not that most were the size of Ashling. Passenger transport on dragons was not a thing, according to Myne, and she had reminded them a few times that they were rather privileged to be able to do what they were doing now. Hopefully it wouldn’t be too long before she was confident and skilled enough with her own wings to fly under her own power. It wouldn’t be the same as riding on Ashling’s back, but from what she had seen of Rachael and Myne it looked to be a whole lot of fun and she couldn’t wait. They weren’t anywhere near as fast as Ashling mind you, so long distance travel wouldn’t be a thing, but still oh so useful.

It didn’t take them long to leave the Eastern Teeth mountain range, Ashling flying across a number of peaks before swooping down the slope of one of the outside ones, the mountain goats there bolting in terror. He then swooped back up, climbing back up to a similar height as the mountains themselves, as if to show off, before heading in the direction of Brightswater, the railway line just visible far below.

All the walking that they had done in the mountain range had left Crystal rather disorientated, but it turned out that the Nexus Temple was located right in the middle of the range, between the two highest peaks. The only way to easily access it was via flight or the cave system that they had used to get there initially, and while you could clamber over the valley walls at the top end, the descent on the other side was lengthy and steep. However that descent would have led back to the mountain path that they had been following, though Crystal guessed it would have taken about four hours of trying to not break your neck and or just sliding down sections of it to actually reach the path. It was definitely a one way trip.

Rachael had wondered if the Nexus Temple was connected at all with the Temple that she had awoken in, it was possible with the multiple cave systems the seemed to peel off either, but she didn’t seem to sure of exactly where it was, at least from a top down view.

Ashling was fast, easily capable of outpacing the trains, and Crystal was amazed that none of them got blown off his back. Clocky did some rough calculations, and guesstimated that they’d be in view of Brightswater before the middle of the day. It would certainly be the shortest trip that any of them had had between the two destinations, but there wasn’t much to be done en route. Not that Crystal minded. Training had been full on, and snuggling into Rachael was definitely one of her favourite pastimes.

As if to prove a point Brightswater came into view earlier than Clocky had thought, the sudden change in speed noticeable as Ashling used his wings to slow down. Keeping at height, as they were hopefully less likely to be spotted, Ashling then proceeded to circle around, keeping the city at a fixed distance from them. While they did see a couple of ships making their way up the towards the port on the eastern side of the city, there was no trains visible on any portions of the tracks.

“Damn,” Rachael grumbled as Ashling hovered in the air, Brightswater still in view, but far enough away that they shouldn’t be noticed as anything out of the ordinary. “We should have brought the locomotive with us.”

Crystal chuckled, the image of Ashling carrying the locomotive strangely amusing. He would have been able to do so as well. She had briefly though about floating the idea, but it carried too many potential issues, assuming that it one was even still in the Narrows.

“Plan B it is then,” Myne declared with a sparkle in her eyes, turning to face them.

So much for her being just a tourist. Crystal sighed. It was what it was, and they only had limited time to work with. Exactly how much was still an unknown though.

“So,” Myne then asked of Clocky, “How many gates to the city?”

“Too many, and they’re not really gates as you would think of them. The city has been spilling out onto the plains for as long as it has existed, and from anywhere around it you can pretty much walk into the city if you know where you are going. That’s not to say that there aren’t areas that aren’t watched, such as the port and the business districts, and there are city guard all over the place. But it has never known war, nor has it really been the target of enough Wildlings to pose a threat, especially with the number of armed citizens and the presence of a Channeller.”

Clouds of dust billowed around her as Crystal rolled off the back of Ashling, Spectre held close to her as she slowed her descent with her wings. She then let the wings fade as she free fell the last few meters, landing gracefully on the roof of a building. Making her way to its edge quickly, she located the alley beside the building, dropping down to the ground and landing in a crouch. Infiltration successful.

‘Rachael has also landed safely,’ Spectre informed her as they made their way between the buildings towards the street.

Newer sections of the city had been built in a hurry and not completely finished, which was working to their advantage. The last week had been dry and hot, and Myne quickly pounced on the area when she had been informed that the entire sector that they were in only had dirt roads. It was the perfect backdrop for plan B. Ashling would get spotted, attracting all of the attention while they dropped into the city in his wake, the dust that he agitated providing cover for their descent. Ashling would then of course disappear, taking his small form while still in the dust and then returning to the group as the rest of them also regrouped.

The first phase of it had worked like a treat. They could see the panicked movements as they had approached, Ashling quickly dropping down low and then swooping in, a few strong beats of his wings as he had reached the area creating said dust bowl. Then one by one they had left Ashling, Crystal being the second to last.

“What was that?”

“Freak Storm!”

“Dragon?”

“We’re all doomed, the end is neigh”

“We’re under attack!”

“It’s a demon from Odinsphere!”

“Eh. Shouldn’t have started drinking this early.”

Crystal could hear all of the chaos and the shouts of alarm as she exited onto the street, walking along the street in Rachael’s direction, largely ignoring the people running around her. The comments were amusing and most far from the truth. A brief focus on her bond told her exactly where Rachael was, and once they were united they’d look for Clocky and Fairweather. Myne would have no trouble finding them. While some people were completely terrified, it looked like a lot of them hadn’t seen Ashling and were in disbelief that it was anything other than a twister, or other natural weather event. At least for all of the disturbance that they’d just caused, the worst that the citizens of Brightswater would have to deal with is a thick coating of dust, and perhaps some superficial damage to some buildings (if they hadn’t been built strong enough). There was no actual threat to their lives. Mind you, she really wanted a shower now too, her body also coated in the same dust.

Their landing point had been uphill from the riverside docks, on the eastern side of the city, a few districts from Watergate where Clocky and team made their home. It was a busy area, where a number of people from the more inland cities mingled with the residents of Brightswater, so they shouldn’t have any trouble blending in. She passed by a number of wagons whose loads had been spilled onto the road when their horses had spooked with Ashling’s fly over. One spooked again as she passed by, the empty wagon clattering back down the road to the harbour, the driver cursing from his unceremonious spot on the ground. Okay, so perhaps there would be more clean up than just the dust.

A hundred meters up the road, the cloud of dust finally settling, Crystal located Rachael, just as dust coated as she was, standing by the side of the road and trying to pat some of it out of her clothes. Not with a lot of success. Bounding up to her, she gave Rachael a big dusty hug, earning only a few odd stares. Which she didn’t care about right now.

“Any sign of the others?” Crystal asked.

Rachael shook her head.

The clattering of armour and weapons brought her attention back to the street as a large group of men ran their way down the road towards them, a combination of leather, light chain and breastplate, almost all with swords. All of them sported an insignia on their shoulder, a fisted gauntlet with twin swords. A couple of them stopped, staring at them as the rest continued on past.

“See anything out of the ordinary?” one of them finally asked, a look of suspicion on his face. At least it wasn’t lust this time. Probably due to all of the dust.

Crystal gave her sweetest look. “Something large went that way?” she replied, pointing down the street. It wasn’t a lie per se.

“It was moving fast,” Rachael added, trying to sound as innocent as possible. Also not a lie.

The man gave them a grilling look. “Stay out of trouble,” he finally said, before they both ran off down the street, following the rest of their company. Crystal shrugged with an amused grin. Even here it seems. If only they actually knew the truth of the matter.

“Now the question is,” Rachael mused, “will the crowds flee the area or congregate to it?”

They were passed by another two groups of what she was beginning to guess were guards as they made their way up the slope at a leisurely pace, holding hands and staring at their surroundings. Crystal had seen all the tall buildings in the central sections of the city, remanents of their age, but there were none at all out here, instead a collection of wood and brick homes and buildings that would have fit into any suburban town. They passed a few shop owners, grumbling about the mess that had been made of their wares, Crystal feeling a little bit pity for them, especially when she passed by a fruit stall that looked for like a sandpit at the moment, the canvas covering partway down the street.

Overall the area had a nice homely feel to it all things considered, familiar. But not somewhere that she could call home any longer. As strange as it was, the Nexus Temple seemed to hold that honour at the moment.

They located Clocky and Fairweather at the crest of the hill, the former talking to the leader of another group of guards while the rest of his detail stood off to the side. The leader gave them a suspicious look as they walked up, the others shuffling restlessly.

“They’re new members of my team,” Clocky said as they walked up to him. “They’ve been observing the disturbance.” Which was true again.

The leader still gave them a distrustful look. “What have they learnt?” he asked.

“Nothing beyond what’s already been said,” Rachael answered.

“Hrmpf. Let us know if you learn anything,” he said, turning back to his group, before they all also headed down the hill.

“Are they all going to end up down there chasing rumours?” Crystal asked once they were out of earshot.

“Six details in total I’ve counted,” stated Fairweather. “I doubt there’ll be more than that. Sounds like half the city saw Ashling though.”

“A welcome distraction from the other issues that they’ve been having however.” Clocky looked thoughtful. “Apparently someone has been taking pot shots at Bowser’s employees, and the city guard have been roped into investigating that. Something significant happened last night however, though nothing further has been said yet.”

“They killed Bowser?” Rachael asked.

“No. That’d spread like wildfire if it had happened and anyone found out about it. I doubt that they’re telling the full truth on what’s been happening either. Bowser has an image to maintain.”

“You think it could involve one of the others?” Crystal asked. They did after all all know what had been happening and what their object was.

“That on the other hand is a given. I’m a little surprised that they didn’t arrest us on the spot.”

“We wait for Myne then?”

Clocky nodded. “Once she’s here we’ll grab a ride to Watergate.”

“Do you have baths or showers there?” Crystal queried. The dust had got them into the city, but it was just irritating her now.

Fairweather chuckled. “That we do. I think we’ll all need a clean.”

It seemed like the city didn’t know if it should be terrified or excited at the prospect of a Dragon, or whatever it entailed. In the half an hour that they waited for Myne a wave of people left the area as well as a whole lot arriving, most of them not guards, the group standing off to the side as they surged past. Probably only the beginning as well. The most common murmurings that Crystal heard were that Touched or Wildlings were responsible for the fiasco, a few even blaming Bowser under their breath. She would have expected some comments about the Innerlands, but from what she recalled Clocky saying, most people weren’t really aware of what lay beyond the sea – there just wasn’t any reason to know.

A scream of pain brought her attention back to the street, a young man in decent looking clothes rolling on the ground, clutching his hand, before he got up, looked their way in terror, and pelted off down the street. Myne walked up beside them, rather free of dust, an amused smile on her face. Clocky rose an eyebrow at her, Myne shrugging in return.

“He tried to pick my pockets, and I don’t have pockets...”

Crystal was not going to ask any further.

“Where is Ashling?” Rachael asked, looking around.

Myne pointed above them to the corner of the building, Ashling appearing as its edge and jumping down, landing on Rachael’s shoulder. Rachael absently reached up to give it’s chin a scratch, Ashling happily closing his eyes.

Myne rolled her eyes. “Dragon is served. Let’s be off.”

It didn’t take them long to find a carriage, the current constant stream of people coming and going from the area meaning that there were plenty of empty ones floating around. The driver gave the group a cautious look as they approached, all smiles when Clocky flipped him some coins and informed him of their destination. It was a comfortable enough ride, though a little cramped, and Crystal felt a little guilty for the amount of dust that they left inside of the carriage, though happy to be a little lighter of it on herself.

mogust

Myne does not do stealth. She likes to make an impact (usually literally) and be known. A holdover from her time as a Dragon Rider. ^^ [However she also does not like unnecessary attention either]

Anyways, they have arrived, dust and all. Now they just need to find out why they were called back with urgency.

As always, thanks for reading. Comments welcome.

The next chapter (46 - Grey Lines) will be out early next week.