Descent Into Darkness (Book 2) Page 9

  "I will, thanks." Ean certainly had no desire to get tossed around by a bunch of thugs, so he would happily avoid the temple. He would avoid all of them while he was in the city if he could help it. Let other people spend all their time praying and showing off to the gods. He had no need of them.

  As they slowly moved down the hill, Ean was able to see clearly past the wall and into the city. To the left of the entrance were a few larger buildings and many smaller ones. Most of those looked to be made of the same smaller stones that the caravan was hauling. Streets curved and stretched in every direction, the buildings growing more packed together as the roads ran deeper into the city.

  Circling the lake on the left side of the river were the docks. Small wooden houses sat clumped together tightly, while a long expanse of wooden piers stretched out over the lake. Almost a dozen small crafts sat in the water--boats were what Wil had called them--or were tied up to the wooden floor. They bobbed slightly in the water, with the boats that were tied closer to the river bouncing more.

  Just off the docks, where the lake emptied out into the river, a large stone bridge arched high over the water connecting the two sides. Past the bridge on the right side of the river, three large buildings sat close to the lake's edge with another one larger than even the Sawmill in Rensen or anything Ean had ever seen before.

  From the side visible to Ean, it was a huge domed structure made entirely of stone. The dome itself was made of what appeared to be a dark white stone, almost grey in color, while the rest of the building was pitch black. There were no windows or doors anywhere Ean could see, unless the opposite side was different from the rest of the building.

  "Wil, how about that building. What is that one?"

  "The larger of the two is known as the Endless Tombs. There is a smaller building attached to it on the other side that you can't see. That's the temple of Kaz'ren. The Endless Tombs are the resting place of the dead, where the Soulbearers live. You've seen a Soulbearer before, right?"

  "Yes, I saw a procession of them on their way to Rensen after the bandit attack. Even talked with one of them, a man named Kel."

  Wil's eyebrows raised and the man turned to better face Ean. "In all my years, I've never heard of a Soulbearer talking to anyone. They stop talking as soon as they put on those robes. Sure you can talk at them and they listen, maybe respond with a nod or shake of their head, but I was always under the impression that they never spoke. You sure he was a Soulbearer and not someone that just happened to be traveling in the same direction?"

  "I'm sure. He had on the same outfit and everything. The whole line of them stopped while he talked to us and then started moving again once he was done."

  "I see..." Wil was staring at Ean now in a way that made him feel very uncomfortable. It was as if Wil was looking at a snake and trying to determine if it was poisonous or not. "Well," the man finally said, "I've been wrong about things before. If you don't mind, I think I'll relax a bit. Lots of work to do once we get down there, so I should take advantage of my free time now."

  Without another word, the older man gave him one more strange look before turning his attention back to the road. Ean, meanwhile, was trying to figure out how he always seemed to put his foot in his own mouth. He continued to ponder this until the wagons came to a jarring stop. They had arrived at the entrance.

  Wil told Ean to remain seated, while he and the rest of his family tended to the oxen and basic wagon maintenance. It was going to take a while for the guards to take down the names of all new arrivals, inspect their inventory, and take statements as to the nature of their visit.

  Only a quick jog away now, Ean could see that the majority of men and a few women outside the temple were hunters. He noted that they wore animal skin shirts and pants and thick leather boots with padded soles. The majority carried a bow or had one leaning nearby, and each had at least one knife strapped to his or her belt. The tents around the temple also gave the telltale signs of hunters: skins laid out on drying racks, unskinned animals strung up to drain, and multiple fires cooking nothing but racks of meat.

  There were a few people moving about the camps that clearly were not hunters. Ean's attention was immediately captured by a woman with an unusual dark red complexion. She had short black hair streaked with a thick strand of red the same shade as her skin. Standing a head taller than most men, she moved confidently amongst the group. She wore a loose fitting gray shirt and thick leather pants. A variety of small blades hung around her waist.

  Ean thought he knew everything possible about the human anatomy, but he had never heard or read anything about humans having crimson skin. There was something slightly off with her mouth as well, but at this distance he couldn't quite make out what it was. The woman was fascinating, something completely new and unexpected, and Ean couldn't help but stare. Until he realized that she was staring back at him. And fingering one of her knives.

  Snapping his head quickly back around after being caught staring, he cursed himself for already failing to follow Wil's advice. The man had said that many of Avien'zia's followers tended to take the most innocent gestures as a challenge. Shaking his head, Ean slowly counted to ten before turning to see if the woman was on her way over to give him trouble.

  It took a few moments to find her, but she was heading in the opposite direction, her short hair swaying as she moved around the tents. He couldn't see her face, but he watched men take one look at her and quickly get out of her way. Ean couldn't blame them. The stare she had directed at him from so far away had made him flinch. Best to keep his attention off those around the temple of Avien'zia, and just wait until he could enter the city.

  That wait turned out to be most of the day. By the time one of the guards or bookkeepers or whatever they were called got to his wagon, the sun was already starting to make its decent into the western horizon. The man that arrived asked him questions that Ean found pointless, and then finally let him go.

  Saying his goodbyes quickly to Wil and his family, Ean hopped down off the wagon, eager to explore the large city. He could faintly feel both Zin and Azalea ahead of him, the two already past the construction of the walls and somewhere in the city. Hopefully neither one was getting into any trouble.

  Walking around the wagons still waiting to be inspected and those that were moving off to the side to unload the stone, Ean couldn't help but marvel at how much larger the city looked now that he was finally right outside of it. He couldn't even see the lake now with all of the buildings in the way. Quickening his pace, he walked through the open gate and fully entered the city.

  He moved quickly past a large building to his left, a fenced in home with armed men lounging around the gate, and rows of homes on his right. Lining the rest of the street were smaller two-story stone buildings, with barely enough room between them to fit a person. They were all built the same--a small door on the right at the front of the house and two windows up on the second floor. The buildings were set a few paces back from the street, allowing room in front for landscaping.

  Continuing along the main street, he eventually came to a crossroads. Up on the right corner sat a large building, a sign with a big, white horse swung above a huge set of wooden doors. That must be the High Horse Inn, according to what Wil had told him, and Ean couldn't even afford a meal there, let alone a room.

  To his left, the street ran past an open field before entering a highly congested area of both people and buildings. Wil had said that way led to the Merchant's Circle where all kinds of shops and peddlers were set up. The street ran in a circle of stores with the temple of Drenks sitting right in the middle. That was where most of the Hawkpurse families had their stores as well.

  To his right the road lead to another residential area, where the individual homes were a mix of wood and stone. Wil had said that was where most of the common workers lived; the wagon crews, shop aides, guards, and anyone else that had been able to put together a little bit of money to own homes of their own

 
If he followed the road straight ahead, he would eventually reach the Water Market and the Docks. Wil had told him that the poorest of the city lived there, some in shacks, some in less, and some without anything for shelter. It was in that direction he needed to go, as an inn called the Old Barnacle sat close to the water. The rooms there were said to be cheap, or at least cheap enough that Ean could afford a few nights with the little money he had from working with the caravan.

  Adjusting the strap of his bag as it hung from his shoulder, Ean made his way past the High Horse Inn towards the Docks. As he crossed in front of the large double doors, he could hear the sound of rowdy patrons and even some music. He was about to move when the doors burst open and Azalea stumbled out, a stupid grin on her face.

  "Ean, there you are!" She said, the warmth of her voice throwing Ean off slightly. He was more used to scorn and the occasional sarcasm. "I was wondering when you would finally make your way into the city. I LOOOVE it here."

  She slowly made her way over to him, wobbling to the left and right, unable to move straight. As she collapsed into his arms, her eyes were half open and seemed to be glazed over. He did his best to hold her up, but she wasn't helping at all.

  "Ean," she stammered into his chest. "You must come inside. There are so many wonderfully horrible people in that inn. I thought I might burst from all of the jealousy and greed and lust that were pouring out of the patrons in there. It was like Ze'an built the place just for me." She pulled back slightly, looking up at him with an expression of glee. Then she hiccupped twice, laughed, and buried her face back into his shirt.

  Lifting her out in front of him so he could see her face, still in its flawless and delicate human form, he gave her a gentle shake. "Pull yourself together, Azalea, and come with me to my room."

  "Ean," she punched him playfully on the arm. "You'd like that, wouldn't you, you horn dog, you."

  Rolling his eyes and losing his patience, he replied, "You know my intentions toward you are completely platonic, pseudo sister of mine. I'm going to rent us a room at the Old Barnacle Inn, where you can sleep this off in peace and quiet."

  Grimacing, she pushed him away and almost fell backwards. A smile touched her lips for a moment, but then the scowl returned. "Old Barnacle Inn? That does not sound like a place I would enjoy. Knowing you, it's probably some dirty hole in the ground where the people are boring and old and poor. No, thank you!"

  Azalea went to push him again and ended up missing him completely. Ean grabbed her and struggled to keep her from hitting the ground. She flailed about a bit in his arms, but eventually just went limp, burying her face in his chest again.

  "Anyway," she mumbled. "I already got us a big room here."

  Moving awkwardly to get a better hold of her, Ean almost dropped her at her announcement. "What do you mean you got us a room here? How did you afford...ohhhh. Azalea you didn't."

  Before she could answer, a huge man stumbled out of the inn door, his head almost hitting the top of the doorframe as it swung open, looking around for something. He swayed a bit and eventually had to put a hand on the inn wall to steady him. When his gaze landed on Azalea, he smiled for the briefest moment and then scowled as he saw her in Ean's arms.

  "Hey!" he yelled, storming over to them as fast as his unsteady feet could move him. "What's going on here?"

  The man towered over Ean, who was still shuffling Azalea in his arms, but he wasn't tall enough for Ean to avoid smelling the alcohol wafting out of his mouth. The patched clothing of various animal skins he wore didn't smell too fresh either. If Ean wasn't struggling to hold Azalea up, he would have moved back a few paces from the man just so he could get some fresh air. Instead he had to stand there and hold his breath while the man continued to talk.

  "I've been buying this girl drinks all day, and now I catch her with another man? Bal Grogan is not a man you should try and take advantage of, girl!"

  "It's not like that--" Ean tried to say, but Azalea of course chose that opportunity to speak.

  "I had to take your drinks just so I could handle your smell, you Brayurat-faced pile of dung." She lifted her head enough to sniff at the air then wrinkled her nose. "But I guess I didn't drink enough because you still smell horrible."

  Ean had no idea what a Brayurat was, and he doubted this Bal fellow did either, but the man apparently knew an insult when he heard one. Puffing up his chest, the man swung at Ean with a fist twice the size of his own. Ean did his best to dodge the blow, which involved falling backwards with Azalea landing on top of him. Even with her lithe frame, she was all dead weight and knocked a bit of air out of him. She just giggled.

  Trying to regain his breath, Ean rolled Azalea off of himself as gently as he could. She rolled arond a bit on the stone road, still giggling. Ean wished he could find the situation as funny. With her weight off of him he tried his best to push himself up, but Bal beat him to it. Grabbing him by the shirt with two large hands, the large man hoisted Ean up and held him dangling in the air.

  "So, you and your girl just think this is a joke, do you?" Bal was holding Ean close to his face. The man's breath alone was knocking the wind out of him now. "We'll see how funny you both think it is when I beat my money's worth out of you."

  "It's not what you think," Ean tried again, his voice raspy from his struggle to get air. "She is my sister."

  The man's face scrunched up in disgust as he removed one hand from Ean's shirt, still easily holding him up with the other one. "You sleep with your own sister? Disgusting!"

  "No I didn't mean--" the sudden force of the man's fist driving deep into Ean's stomach cut him off. Two more rapid blows in the same spot almost made him double up in the air. Bal then hit him a fourth time in the stomach before tossing him roughly back down onto the ground.

  Landing hard on the stone of the road, Ean struggled to stay conscious. He also struggled with the idea of wanting to stay conscious. It might just be easier on him if he passed out, maybe the large man would leave him alone then. He certainly couldn't try and use his power to defend himself in the city with so many people around. Any thoughts he was having quickly left his head and were replaced by pain as a thick leather boot caught him in the stomach and lifted him off the ground. Ean rolled a few times from the blow and came to rest face up, his breaths coming in shallow wheezes.

  Staring straight up at the sky, oddly focusing on how the fading light of the late afternoon was making the sky a dark blue, Ean could hardly move. Why did he let Azalea get him into these situations? It made him angry. Angry was good. Anger might get him moving, help him--

  Again he was lifted into the air, the horrible smell coming off Bal shocking him more awake and making him want to throw up at the same time. The man gave Ean a rough shake before laughing at him.

  "You must be regretting trying to pull a fast one on Bal now, eh little man?"

  The subsequent pain in his jaw woke him up. His face couldn't take much more abuse. A few more hits and he might end up with a broken jaw. Grabbing the man's hand, Ean struggled to get free.

  "No escape for you, little rat. I'm going to knock out any thought of you ever trying to take advantage of... arrrrghhhhh!"

  Bal let out a yell and dropped him to his feet. Stumbling on impact, Ean fell onto his backside with a grunt, while Bal collapsed to both knees. It took a moment for Ean to realize that Azalea had Bal's arm pinned behind his back. Still half-drunk, she let out a hiccup.

  "Excuse me," she said, giggling as if it were the funniest thing in the world.

  "I'm glad someone is having fun," Ean retorted, while Bal let out a string of obscenities.

  "Let me go, you stupid bimbo. And I'll forget this whole thing every happened."

  "I'm sure you'd like to forget getting your ass kicked by a woman," Azalea said. "So how about you apologize to me and my brother before I tear your arm off and beat you over the head with it?"

  "Now you best be letting me go, girl," Bal said through clenched teeth. "I won't rough your brot
her up anymore. But if you keep annoying me--." He cut off with a groan as Azalea twisted his arm almost completely around.

  "You'll do what? Moan like a little baby?" She twisted his arm again, getting that exact response out of him. "I think it's you who needs to be taught a lesson, and since I don't have all day to teach you about basic hygiene, I'll have to just focus on teaching you what real pain feels like. Lesson one."

  With a sharp jerking motion, she pulled back and up on his arm. A loud popping sound came from his shoulder, immediately followed by a yell out of Bal's mouth. The man's free hand gave out, and Azalea let go of his other arm as he fell face first to the ground. He hit hard and immediately rolled onto his side, at first gripping his head with his uninjured arm and then grabbing at his dislocated shoulder. Ean just watched, his mouth hanging open.

  Circling the downed man, Azalea was grinning widely now, every now and then her tongue darting out and licking her lips. "So, what should our second lesson be? A broken bone? A torn off finger? How about a few missing teeth?"

  Stopping at his side, Azalea reached over and grabbed the man by his hair and jerked his head back. With her free hand, she grabbed his jaw and forced his mouth open slowly. His eyes opened wide and started to dart about while he tried and failed to speak. All that came out of his mouth was a gurgling sound.

  "Oh, you want to say something? Had enough lessons already?" Releasing his mouth and head, Azalea moved around and knelt in front of the man.

  "Yes, please, no more." From the sound of Bal's voice, Ean imagined he was using all of his willpower to keep from openly crying. "Just let me go."

  Ean watched as Azalea remained quiet. She began tapping her chin with her finger. The longer she went without moving or saying a word, the more nervous the large man seemed to become. Not knowing what the slightly dazed Yulari might do, Ean was growing more and more nervous as well. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Azalea nodded.