I breathed in deep through my nose, slling the ocean air. I hadnt spent much ti by the oceanfront in my life so far, so this was a welco change. The salty air, the gentle rocking of the boat and the calm sea breeze It made for a rather calming experience, I thought.
The first leg of our journey had seen us pass through the river that separated the Roa and Ergo from Alterian. The aptly nad Argo river was a heavily monitored body of water that Ergo only allowed Roa to use because of a trade agreent. Without it, Roa would be completely landlocked, and the rulers of Ergo knew it.
My thoughts were interrupted by a sudden bout of movent that I noticed in the corner of my eye. A white figure ran by and, upon reaching the railing, leaned over the side of the ship.
Wueeergh!! I heard, the belching sound waking from my musings.
Are you all right? I asked Eri. This is the third ti in just a few minutes that youve needed to relieve your stomach into the ocean. Are you going to survive until we reach Aho? I asked in jest.
She moved to reply, lifting a finger. Not a wueergh!! she began, before stopping midway through her sentence to puke so more. Not a hah hah word, Arthur. She finished, heaving from the exertion.
Wisely, I shut up. I had a sneaking suspicion that any more japes would result in her dumping my dead body overboard, along with this mornings breakfast.
Still, I felt justified in getting on her case. After the realization that we had only a single bed for the entire 8-days journey, I had been the one forced to sleep on the wooden floor of the ship, with only a sleeping bag to soften it. I could hardly set up my tent inside of a ship, after all.
Eri had slept well on the comfy bed the first few nights, yet now that we were hitting rougher waves, she would be hard-pressed to get another night of comfortable sleep.
I think I should take the bed tonight, since you might just soak the mattress with your sick. I tried hesitantly, only to be t with a swift fist to the nose, which sent sprawling on the deck.
Oh well. It was worth a try
Our ship sailed along the coast for the latter half of the journey. The shallow waters ant fewer waves and less puking from Eri, which was much appreciated during the night-ti. That fourth night had left a trauma Id rather not recollect and resulted in a stern talking-to from the captain.
Thankfully, Eris mood started to improve once we had returned to the calr waters, which did wonders for my own physical health as well. At this point, she was starting to tolerate my jokes and teasing again, allowing my nose to figuratively recover from the repeated beatings.
On the seventh day, the tropical forest that had been a continuous sight on the coast started to thin visibly. Tall, looming trees were replaced by smaller, wider trees with thin yet large canopies. Eventually, even those started to recede once the ground turned brown, then yellow. The undergrowth beca limited to the occasional desert bush or cactus.
Not long after that, we finally reached our destination. A gap in the dunes revealed a small town made up of yellowish buildings made out of sand. The architecture was very different from what I was used to as well, because the houses were mostly square, with flat roofs. Only a few houses had dos and roofs, and they were usually the larger ones.
The only wooden structure that I could see were the docks, which stuck out into the bay and just enough room for our large trading vessel and a smattering of fishing ships tied to the poles scattered around.
Despite its small size, the town seed rather busy. Perhaps because of our arrival, the whole town seed to be present at the edge of the docks, watching us like hawks. Once we made port, workers disembarked from the ship carrying wooden crates and tarps. Within minutes, the small port was turned into a de facto market, with stalls arrayed neatly, displaying various wares that ranged from food to clothes, to magically engineered artifacts.
Only after everything was set up and the captains crew was ready to start conducting business were the passengers allowed off the ship.
Other than Eri and I, a handful of other passengers entered the market, though it was already swamped by the townsfolk. We wandered from stall to stall for a while, until we noticed an interesting arrangent of wares.
A bearded man wearing a turban was looming over a dozen or so bronze artifacts. Random cogs and magical crystals adorned every piece, though each one looked distinctly different from the other.
Interested? he eventually grunted disinterestedly.
Sowhat I replied neutrally, before pointing to one of the artifacts. What does this one do?
Draws in heat to power up a fire-affinity skill, don it? he spoke as if he was telling , rather than asking. I held back a chuckle and pointed to a different piece. And that one?
Steadies the ground youre walkin on. Itll turn loose sand into solid rock for a few minutes, if you want it to. Only the stuff thas nearby, though. He added as an afterthought.
Do you have anything that can gather water? Eri asked. I turned to her and nodded appreciatively. Without Cerion, such a task would be impossible, and considering we were heading into a desert We had prepared for the dessert by buying an ungodly amount of concentrated water pellets, but it never hurt to be prepared.
The man grunted in affirmation and pointed to a cube that had a single transparent tube sticking out and a few cocks slowly ticking on the outside of its fra. This onell gather a flasks worth in about two hours. Longer if yer in the desert, though.
Well take it. Eri replied hastily. If you have more, well buy those, too.
The man nodded mutely and pulled out a second concentrator, before sliding them over the counter toward us. 24 gold for the two of em. I opened my mouth to haggle, but Eri had already put the gold on the counter before I could say a word. The salesperson had, similarly, scooped up the coins before I could protest.
I scoffed, yet put one of the concentrators in my pouch anyway, before handing Eri half of what she had paid.
A few minutes later, we found ourselves at the town square, which looked deserted. The entire town had turned up in force to welco the trading ship, and nothing was open as a result. Even the local adventurers guild, which you could always count on being open, had a sign in front of its closed door, saying Away for business. Praise Helios.
Strangely, every single shop and inn had a similar sign out front, each praising Helios in so form.
Awfully religious bunch, arent they? I comnted idly.
Alterian is the ho of the Helios church. What did you expect?
I nodded, seeing Eris point. Roa was fairly religious. So much so, in fact, that people of different beliefs were scoffed at sotis. Alterian, however, seed to take their faith to a whole new level.
So, since were here to do one of those pilgrimage things, why dont you decide on what to do and where to go? Do you want to rest for a night before taking off, or?
Eri shook her head. No, I feel fine, thank you. She said, blushing as she rembered her state on the ship. The first temple we have to visit at the start of our pilgrimage lies in the center of Caltians scorch. She explained.
Ah, right! The dessert supposedly made by the firebreath of the dragon Caltian, right? I rembered.
Eri nodded. Indeed, though we wont be facing any dragons if luck is on our side. She said half in jest.
A I was looking forward to the dragon! I joked back.
Shut up, silly. She replied, chuckling, before leading us out of the town. We were at the eastern border of Alterian, which ant that we would need about two weeks to reach the temple on foot. The journey was not only a lengthy one, but also an arduous one. For the sake of proving our faith to Helios, we would be sweating during the day and freezing at night.
Sothing told Helios had had a sadistic streak when he was mortal, because no benevolent god would force his followers to trek through the desert just to visit a statue.
That, or soone at the church was the one with the an streak. Either way, I was not looking forward to this. Not at all.
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