Part the Seventy-Second:
In which: the Sovereignty provides a chilly welcome.
Eva stands on the deck of the Alirria’s Star, watching the smooth roll of the Halmae below. A brisk sea breeze plays in the rigging, and several gulls cluster around the mast. Annika seems to be engaged in an eternal struggle to keep Kiara from climbing up to join them.
By the deck rail on the other side, Lira is engaged in a surprisingly undramatic struggle to blow-off Komatsu. Eva approaches just in time to hear the end of the exchange.
“Don’t take this the wrong way,” Lira is saying, “but you really don’t talk much for a missionary.”
Komatsu does not appear terribly offended. “Would you prefer I try to convert you?’
“No, that’s okay,” Lira quickly assures him. Then, noticing Eva’s approach adds, “If you’ll excuse me?”
“Certainly.” Komatsu gives a small bow, and departs.
“What did he want?” Eva asks.
“Oddly enough,” Lira replies, “he wanted to talk about how I became a Questor.”
“What did you tell him?”
“Not much.” Lira shrugs, and elaborates, “Since my religiousness is closely tied to my being an unholy freak of nature, I usually figure that it isn’t anyone else’s business… There’s something odd about him.”
Eva nods. “He’s been talking to everyone on the ship with a holy symbol, well… everyone except Anvil.”
“What did he want to talk to you about?” Lira asks.
“Anvil,” Eva replies. Then explains, “How much of a hard-ass he is, or isn’t. And he wanted to know how I became a Fortune Rider. I told him some, and he said that if we ever needed help while we were in the Sovereignty we could get in touch with his brothers at the Monastery of the Sharpstone Pass.”
“Well, that’s good to know… I guess. Hopefully we can just get rid of this ogre, find the wizard of the Kuio Valley, and then get out of the Sovereignty as quickly as possible.”
Eva sighs. “I’ll drink to that.”
Benedic joins them at the rail. Lira notices that, speaking of holy symbols, he isn’t wearing his. “Are we close?” she asks.
Benedic nods, leans down to point over her shoulder to a grey smudge on the horizon. “The Captain says that’s Seaward.”
Eva squints. “Is it fogged in?”
“Hard to tell at this distance, but it looks like we’re certainly in for some weather.” He slides a finger around the cord where Lira’s holy symbol hangs around her neck. “Better pack that up.”
Lira slips the medallion under her collar, and buttons her cloak, blushing slightly. Benedic winks. “Well, I’d best tell the others.”
Eva watches him go. Then, she takes off her only holy symbol, wrapping the cord around it. She lets out a long sigh. “Great, just what we need… weather.”
###
The seas grow choppy early the next morning as the ship approaches the shore. At least, Thatch guesses that they’re approaching shore. Really, all they seem to be heading for is a thick grey soup on the horizon. He snags the attention of a passing sailor. “Umm… is that normal?”
The sailor shakes his head, “Not for this time of year, no.” and hurries on.
A few hours later, the ship pulls into dock at Seaward. The city looks as though it has had all the color leached out of it. The buildings have all been weathered to a uniform grey, which perfectly matches the overcast sky and the waters of the harbor. The fog the party saw from shore hovers inland like a wall, and here at water’s edge, everything is soaked by a cold, persistent drizzle.
The party, in their matching cloaks, are no exception. Anvil still wears his holy symbol openly. Lira’s is under her blouse. Eva’s is rolled up in an old pair of socks at the bottom of her pack. Their preparations were well-taken, as the ship is met at dock by a Sovereign official, who introduces himself as Bokuru, a customs inspector.
“What brings you to our lands?” he asks.
Anvil answers for the party according to their pre-arranged plan. “We are here to travel to the lands of Lord Fau Meen to rid them of a troublesome ogre.”
The inspector nods. “Do you carry with you any contraband?”
Anvil blinks. “I know not what you would consider such. Tell me, and I will answer.”
“Few things. Do you have illegal drugs?”
“Such as?”
“Blackroot distillate?”
Anvil shakes his head. “Nothing of that sort.”
Bokuru looks to the rest of the party, and Komatsu. “What about the rest of you?”
Everyone shakes their head.
“Any artifacts or literature of the lesser gods, or that contradicts the Sovereign and Supreme nature of Kettenek?”
The party denies that they carry any such things, and Bokuru seems to believe them. Then, he turns to Komatsu.
“What about him?” he asks Anvil.
“What about him?”
“Why do you travel with one of our citizens?”
“We met him in Dar Karo, he was seeking passage home which our captain granted.”
“Is he part of your group?”
“No.”
Bokuru considers for a moment, then waves them down the gangplank. “That will be all then. May Kettenek’s Blessings be with you.”
“And with you,” Anvil replies. The rest of the party files past silently.
Walking last, Eva just hears Bokuru pulling Komatsu aside as he leaves the ship. She dares to glace back once, and sees that two guards have joined Bokuru and are systematically searching the monk’s luggage. They pass out of sight before she can tell if they find anything.
Once the party reaches the quay they are met by Lord Agasha’s son, Hiru, who has brought horses for their journey inland. He reports that they’ve had quite a bit of snow for this early in the winter, but that it should only take them two days to reach the manor of Lord Fau Meen, where they will meet his father and men-at-arms.
“If there is not anything you need to attend to here,” he concludes, “I suggest we begin our journey as quickly as possible.”
No one has any objections to departing immediately, and the party soon leaves Seaward behind them.
###
The first day is uneventful. There is some light snow on the ground, but nothing to impede their progress. Kiara, they find, has a habit of wandering away from the group to go on scouting missions of her own. Anvil attempts to organize shifts to keep an eye on her, but is met with little enthusiasm for the task.
“She’s okay,” Annika tries to reassure him, “she never goes far, and if she gets into trouble, she’ll let me know.”
Anvil resolves to watch the girl himself.
###
The next day, Hiru leads the group off of the main roads. It’s unclear whether weather patterns are changing farther from the coast, or if lack of travelers have allowed the snow to accumulate, but the drifts become much deeper very quickly. It is cold, and the sky is an unrelenting grey.
The party is just regrouping to continue after a brief break for a noon meal, when Reyu and Benedic almost simultaneously turn their faces to the sky.
“The air—” Reyu begins…
Just as Benedic barks, “Snow.”
Sure enough, flakes are soon falling from the sky, thick and fast. Within two minutes, the party finds itself in the middle of a full-blown blizzard.
