Mark looked up at the huge 20 Meter Main Gate towering as it opened up in front of him. Alex had mentioned, when they first caught sight of the city walls, that the Main Gates at each end of the city was made of several pieces of solid Whitewood. The huge gates had originally been stone and metal, but were replaced close to 150 years ago, and time had yet to leave even a mark on them since. Mark had to admit, the almost black walls contracted with the blindingly white gates made for an awe inspiring sight.

As they passed through the gates, the sight that caught Mark’s eyes next stole his breath away. The West gate was raised on a small hill and from it, he could see that the city spread out for close to 5-6 miles. While it was not anywhere close to a “large” city in Mark’s eyes, the densely packed building spreading out like a carpet and the bustling sounds of city life made him feel like he’d stepped into a tiny modern day metropolis.

Mark had to admit to himself, it was beyond his expectations. Especially when it came to the atmosphere of the city; when one thinks of fantasy story, they tend to imagine swords and magic, a Castles and medieval life, but the city in front of Mark seemed more like a part of Victorian Boston had been cut out and plopped down.

The streets were clean and paved, tall light post lining most of the wide major streets, the buildings were brick and mortar and some as tall as 5 stories, and where ever you looked you could see people going about their way. Near the middle of the city was a small island, roughly a square mile in size, surrounded by a moat a quarter of a mile wide. The moat was bridged by two large bridges on the west and east side and split into two wide canals stretching to the north and south. These canals were themselves spanned by four smaller bridges, two to the north and two to the south. On the Island sat dozens of elegant estates, packed onto the island and surrounding a large fortress sitting in the middle.

According to Alex, the city was broken into 5 main districts; The Trade district in the South-West, the Entertainment and Worker’s District in the South-East, the Residential District and the Slums in the North-East, the Manufacturing District North-West, and finally the wealthy Upper-Class District taking up the central island.

[Author’s Note: I’ll have a crude map of Whitewood in this post, to help. Not great at city design, sue me. ROFL]

Their own destination was the Entertainment District. With that in mind, they cut south through the Trader’s district along the main trade route and towards the southern crossing bridges. The Trader’s district had inns and lodging for traders come from the West, they were far more expensive than those found in the Entertainment district, and as the only money they had on them did not belong to them, they agreed to be as conservative as they could. Jonathan had mentioned that he would send someone to help with Merry’s situation, so they would be staying at an Inn near the North West corner of the District that was recommended by him until.

Mark took in the sounds and sights of the City as they drove the carriage through the wide streets. He started to notice something strange as they drove on, however; every so often they would pass by a street vendor or store front and be given a quizzical glance, or a passerby would stare up at Mark and Alex with a strange frown as if seeing something they were not expecting.

Mark gave Alex a nudge in the side as the weird looks continued to increase. The young man simply nodded while keeping his eyes on road, before speaking in a low whisper,

“Ya, I noticed. Any clue what’s going on?”

“Not a one…”

“Are they just surprised to see a merchant wagon, what with the attacks?”

“No, they should still be getting supplies from the East. This feels different, hostile almost.”

As they spoke, Mark noticed a young man, no more than 15-16 years old, standing off to the side of the road. The young man wore loose high-quality closes and carried a large stack of paper in his arms. The boy seemed unaware his simple eyeglass frames resting on his nose were slowly slid down his face, his eyes wide in shock as he watched the carriage drive by. Mark looked back at the boy with a raised eyebrow as they passed; the boy quickly shook his head and readjusted his glasses.

The boy then quickly walked to another similarly dressed youth nearby and began to too hastily discuss something. After a moment, the boy passed off his burden to his companion and dashed through the crowds, towards a large building further down the road. Some distance behind them, Mark could see a crowd gathering, as if following the carriage. Mark could feel his frown deepen as he watched the boy. He turned to Alex and spoke softly,

“Something’s going on. I don’t know what we’ve done to stir them up, but if it comes to it, we may need to run”.

Alex nodded his head while Mark turned around to the back and woke the napping Tsutsuji, informing her of the matter. Despite her half closed in sleep eyes and tired scowl, Mark could feel a sharp readiness coming through his link with Tsutsuji. The tiny Guide had developed a deep bond with the little girl over the last week; the bug may get on his nerves for the most part, but Mark knew he could trust Merry with her when push came to shove.

They drew near to the large building after a few moment, their trailing crowd growing larger as now even random passersby had noticed the strange atmosphere. There was a sudden commotion shortly before passing by the large building; the sound of shouting and muffled arguments before the large sliding doors of the building gave a creak and burst open, torn off their frame as if hit by a huge force.

Alex was forced to quickly stop the carriage while the surrounding crowd gave a sudden yell and backed away. A large older man walked from the small cloud of wood dust near where the doors had been. The man was even taller than Jonathan; no less than 6’7, he was a huge mass of muscle and fat. His face was contorted in rage, eyes bulging and his face a deep red, in stark contrast to his short gray bread and balding head.

In his hand held he held a huge war mace. The weapon was just as massive as its owner; Mark would have believed it if someone told him the large man was simply swinging around one of the lamp posts on the side of the street. Though what really made Mark break out into a cold sweat, was that the fact that this man was holding the mace with one hand like it was a common stick.

Mark’s heart froze in his chest as his eye’s made contact with the large angry man. The large man looked at Mark and Alex, breathing heavily as his gaze flicked back and forth between them and the carriage. Warning signals immediately screamed to life in Mark's brain, but just as he opened his mouth to tell the frozen Alex to run, the large man gave a massive roar that seemed to shake the air. He then raised the huge mace and charged straight at them with a speed that should not have been possible for a man his size.

Mark was barely out of his seat when he saw the shadow of the huge mace descending on them. Someone in the crowd gave a scream of terror when a small shadow suddenly shot from the back of the Carriage. Tsutsuji appeared in a flash before them, hovering in the air as she extended her hand out as if to catch the descending mace.

Mark felt his heart leap into his throat as he watched, but in the next moment, his eyes went wide. The instant before the Mace made contact, a thin translucent barrier spread out from Tsutsuji’s palm. It appeared no thicker than a hair, but when the mace made contact, it rebounded with enough force to push the huge man off his feet. The barrier rippled with a rainbow of colors like a soap bubble as it gave a strange wobbling sound, before shattering with the sound of glass.

As the barrier burst, Mark felt a wave of intense fatigue wash over him, like he’d just ran 10 miles with no rest. He collapsed back into his seat, not even have the energy to support himself anymore as he gasped for breath.

In the same instant, the large man was thrown to the grown, his mace crashing heavily into the road, leaving a crater of broken pavement as it shook the ground. He simply sat there, eyes wide in amazement and disbelief as he looked at the tiny Guide hovering in the Air. Tsutsuji simply looked down at him, arms crossed as she frowned.

______________________________________________

~~~ A few moments later ~~~

Mark watched the strange scene from atop the Driver’s box, still too weak to move much. On the ground near the Carriage, the large man now knelt down, his head as far forward as his large stomach would allow. Alex stood in front of him as he tried to calm down a fuming Tsutsuji flying around the large man. She had been “lecturing” him for the past for moments, the crowd silently gawking, till finally seeming to lose steam she puffed out her cheeks and yelled at the large kneeling man,

“Seriously, what were you thinking?! Just suddenly attacking people, is this how Whitewood treats its guests?”

The man answered back in a deep, thundering voice, not even lifting his head,

“N-no, My Holiness, this was my mistake. They tried to stop me, but I let my anger control me!”

“Mistake? That is what you are going to tell the Grandeur Investigative Unit when it’s reported you attacked not only a Hero but a Spirit as well? That you just made a mistake?”

“Wait, Tsutsuji, there is no need to go that far, at least hear him out.”

Alex quickly interceded, stepping in front of a fuming Tsutsuji. At the mention of Grandeur Investigative Unit, the large man looked up, his face pale as death as his eyes lit up in panic. The crowd surrounding them burst into commotion. Mark raised an eye at the unfamiliar term. Focusing on it in his mind, a small window popped up in his vision,

--------------------------------------------------
Grandeur Investigative Unit
Index Entry: Special Unit formed by Grandeur as a countermeasure against Non-malignant threats. The unit is deployed when there claims that may disrupt normal operations such as; Rouge Heroes, Pixie and Devil sightings or obstruction of Hero or Guardian duties.
The GIU’s influence is enough to quarantine entire Countries and arrest Kings.
--------------------------------------------------

Grandeur. There was that term again. He vaguely remembered seeing it Tsutsuji’s status, and Alex had mentioned it as well, but he’d assumed it was just some town somewhere. Once more focused on the unknown word. The first window closed and another replaced it,

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Land of Origin, Grandeur of the Tearfall
Index Entry: The largest collection of Wisp Pools in the World. Legend holds that this location is where the Tear of Elaos fell, and Magi were born. Grandeur also refers to the Organization based here. Grandeur has existed for thousands of years in response to the Malignant threat. They are also responsible for the training and deployment of Heroes and Spirits throughout the world. Contrary to popular belief, Grandeur holds only very loose ties to the Grand Church of Elaos, and rarely steps into the global political stage; their entire existence and focus are solely on defending against Malignants and miasma. Though that has not stopped many from growing nervous about the organization’s influence and power, there are very few brave or crazy enough to speak out publicly such concerns.
--------------------------------------------------

Mark furrowed his brow in deep thought. He could begin to see why the people would be terrified at the tiny Guide’s threat. Mark looked once more over at Tsutsuji, inspecting her with new eyes. Though he was not completely convinced that she had the power to carry out her threat, the crowd seemed to think she did.

As the crowd grew restless, the large man quickly bellowed out,

“No! Please, the blame is on my head alone! When it was reported strangers had driven Thomas’ carriage into town, I lost myself. I’d thought you’d come to sell it off, or some such thing!”

Alex’s eyes went wide in shock as the man spoke,

“You knew Thomas?”

“Yes, Yes! Thomas was a regular in town; he would often travel between Whitewood and the Western Continent, his prices are always fair and he is a good natured Man, there are many people in the Trade district who know him by face”

[Well, that would explain the stares.]

Mark thought as he started to regain some strength. Tsutsuji gave an angry grunt and quickly flew around Alex and stopped In front of the large man’s face, jamming her finger into his large nose,

“FOOL! And why would Bandits drive their spoils directly into town?”

“That i-is… I mean… I’m Sorry! As I said, it was my mistake alone, I beg you!”

The large man’s pale face went beat red, then he slammed his head back to the ground. Alex quickly pulled Tsutsuji away, before placing his arms under the man’s and urging him to stand, speaking in a voice loud enough to be heard throughout the crowd,

“We understand, we understand, please stand up. There is no reason to take this any further than it has already.”

The large man quickly stood up, a look of relief flooding his face, as an audible sigh swept the crowd. The large man faced three and gave a deep bow that made it seem it would almost topple over again, before speaking in a much lighter voice,

“Thank you! Truly. Let me apologize and reintroduce myself. I am Matthew, Merchant current head of the Trader’s Guild. Again, let me thank you for your mercy and kindness.”

Mark could not help but chuckle a bit in his heart at the man’s reaction. Tsutsuji and Alex’s Good Cop/Bad Cop routine was so spot on he thought he was back home watching a show. As Alex spoke to Matthew, beginning to retell their tale, Mark heard a noise from behind. Turning around, he saw the small figure of a girl huddled up against one of the boxes, shivering. It seemed she had awoken from the commotion. Reaching out his hand to the terrified girl, Mark gently tapped her shoulder. She gave a slight squeal and looked up at him.

Mark gestured for her to move forward when she met his eyes. Still trembling slightly, the girl crawled forward and leaned out of the Carriage. When she saw the large man talking to Mark, her eyes went wide as she gave a strange sound, as if trying to say something. Matthew noticed the sound and looked their way. He froze for a moment in shock, before given a loud bellow and rushing forward,

“Merry!”

The young girl quickly scrambled out of the back onto the driver’s box, and as the man neared, she leaped from it and into his arms, her loud sobs slightly muffled as Matthew held her close to his chest. Matthew simply rocked the crying girl in his arms, speaking in a soft comforting tone as tears fell from down his cheeks,

“Shuuu, it’s all right now little one. It’s over now.”

After a moment, Matthew pulled the young girl from his chest and looked down at her condition. His eyes filled with pain as he noticed the bandages and bruises. His next word came out choked as if he was trying to hold back a thousand,

“Oh, Merry….”

__________________________________________

~~~ About an Hour later, Trader’s Guild Headquarters, Guildmaster’s Office. ~~~

Mark, Alex, and Matthew sat around a large desk while Tsutsuji and Merry sat quietly reading on a nearby cushioned window seat. Several cups of tea sat untouched on the desk, as Mark and Alex recounted their travel so far; the mentioned the initial ambush and Merry’s recovery over the next few days, followed by their travels and the crossroad, before meeting Jonathan at the Military camp. As Matthew listened, his complexion became darker and placing his head between his hands, he massaged his temples, speaking out in a serious voice,

“This does not make any sense. There are no Forest Goblin tribes anywhere near the main trade highway. And even if there were, the Kingdom does inspections every two months. If they’d been there before, we’d have known long in advance. If I recalled, the attacks even started shortly after the last inspection. What is going on?”

Alex looked down at his cooling tea in contemplation and said half to himself,

“So we have Goblins who should not be there, pointless attacks and an unknown objective that may or may not already be complete. Are they even still in the area? Why go through all of this trouble?”

“And who’s behind it….”

Matthew and Alex both looked at Mark with a questioning gaze. Matthew thought for a moment and spoke out half as a question and half as a statement,

“They are not working alone?”

“Unlikely. I don’t know much about Forest Goblins, but they don’t seem bright enough to pull off something like this. This was not some random plan out of boredom or desire. It was carefully planned and organized. You’ve already touched on the biggest clue so far. How did they know when the Inspection was over?”

Alex tilted his head in confusion, before asking,

“Couldn’t they have simply gone off of previous inspections? Or watched and waited for them to leave?”

“No…”

Matthew sat straight up, his face paling as he understood what was being said.

“….The Inspection time and length is randomized every time, to prevent bandits from abusing the schedule. As well as that, the Inspection is a thorough sweep of the trade route; even if they’d waited, there would have been traces to detect.”

Alex sat in shocked silence as the weight of the words sank in. Was someone working with the Goblins? Why? Who? Alex shook his head and asked, slightly queasy at the notion,

“So what, is it someone on the inside? Or an outside influence?”

Matthew thought for a moment and spoke.

“It’s possible that the information was leaked from the Inside, but it’s impossible to tell from what level; were they informed of the time and came after? Or were they already here, but ignored by the Inspection team? If so, why? It’s also possible they outside help to conceal themselves; foreign powers destabilizing trade, greedy merchants taking out competitors? Even…Devils.”

After a moment of dark silence, Matthew stood up and gave a sigh, speaking in a resolved voice,

“For now, it’s too early to tell; too many questions, not enough answers. I’m going to have to report this to the Duchess. For now, I would like to invite you all to stay in the Headquarter; we have a few rooms that are used for special guests, they are far better than you’ll find at some Inn. Besides…..”

As his voice trailed off, Matthew glanced over at the small figure of Merry, silently reading in the fading light, his saw voice too low to reach her from across the room,

“Thomas was….a good man. I’m proud to have called him a close friend. For something like this to happen….”

Mark could hear the sharp cracking of bones and he looked over and saw blood slowly dripped from the big man’s shaking clenched fist. The large man finished his words in a cold voice, a fire burning brightly in his eyes as he looked over at the little girl.

“... You don’t have what it take to hide from me…”

In some unknown place, a dark figure cloaked in shadows, broken out in a cold sweat.

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MAP OF WHITEWOOD