>>6132968You are happy to go with Sandora’s suggestion. The people around you look at the newcomers with suspicion and — when it comes to the Asterite — a deep-set fear. It reminds you of the way the mariners looked at you when you took off your hood, but this feels much more palpable, in the way they shy away from Sandora’s gaze, from her wavering mantle, from the light in her jade eyes. They know she is an Asterite. And probably the only one they will ever see. Now come to this strange village, to turn its tides.
“People of the Throne,” she starts, opening her arms. “We are passing by. We will bother you not, save for a bit of water and bread, and then we will be on our way. We wish you no harm, as it is customary with the rules of the Throne. Will you allow us passage?”
Rubida rolls her eyes, as if to comment ‘rhetorical question’. While the crowd parts and some even quickly leave for their houses, coming back with jars of water and the like, you and Soralisa join each other to check the stone sculpture.
“What is written over there?” You whisper to her.
“Those are Kiengir characters,” she replies, her hand reaching out to brush against the stone, even as the villagers give her strange looks. “It’s the Twelve Tables, the basis of the Throne’s Codex that’s the foundation for their society. It was supposedly left to them by the Kiengir themselves. The Throne is supposed to work as an extension of the old dominion.”
You glance at the people gathered here. It’s a far cry from the misery and chaos of the Landing Strip, but still… all you can see is gaunt faces, pale hands reaching out for a coin or a slice of bread, chapped lips, and red-eyed children.
“What an endorsement,” you comment.
Sandora and Willow join you as well, carrying the best groceries the villagers were able to give you.
“Why should we take all this,” you ask. “Couldn’t we get what we need from around the Temple?”
“If you can find anything that grows in the middle of the Glass Heath, you will be welcome to try,” Sandora quips. “Besides, these are people the Throne helped relocate from the compromised area. We are just taking back a bit of what we gave; they will be able to go back as soon as things return to normal.”
You two share a heated look. You do not like this — but how much time will you spend arguing? And you do need to be at top form for what is going to happen, for the monster you are going to face.
[cont.]
