Chapter 17: City of Legend

  Corin opened his eyes. He found himself in his old room in his home in Bothia. He looked outside his window. The sun was beginning to rise.

  It took him several seconds to feel up to the task of leaving his comfortable bed, but eventually he found the strength to lift himself off his bed and see what the day might have in store for him.

  He wandered out of his room and into the kitchen. He saw no sign of anyone else around. Cyril would always be up before Corin, but Corin still went to his brother’s room to check. The door was open, which meant most of the time that Cyril was not there. But Corin peeked inside his brother’s room just to be sure.

  He looked inside the small, tidy room. He could see no sign of his brother and looked around the house once again.

  “Cyril?” Corin called out.

  Must be out swimming. Maybe he had a bad dream. Should I wait for him?

  Corin began his daily routine, but something nagged him.

  Let me see what Cyril is up to.

  Corin prepared and left his house. He made his way to the shore, only a short walk from his home. The day was beautiful and sunny, there were no clouds out. The breeze blew by, gently stroking his hair, cooling him in an otherwise warm day. He could hear the call of birds in the distance and the calming sounds of the waves breaking onto the shore. But something nagged him to seek his brother out.

  Arriving at the shore, Corin saw his brother’s belongings there, his shirt and sandals. Everything but his brother.

  He is swimming.

  With the sun above the horizon, Corin struggled to look out to the vast blue expanse to find his brother. Cyril loved being on the sea so much that Corin would often call him Cyril the siren.

  But try as he might, Corin could not see a glimpse of his brother. The sun did not help, but usually Corin would spot his brother fairly quickly.

  Where is he? I should have seen him by now.

  He scanned the sea again. Twice. Thrice. No sign of Cyril. His heart rate ticked up.

  I need to go in. But where would I even start?

  Corin, although a proficient swimmer, was nowhere near Cyril’s equal in ability.

  Damn it, Cyril!

  Corin’s heart rate ticked faster. He took off his shirt and his sandals.

  He should be fine. It’s Cyril. He knows his limitations. There is no way he would put himself at risk.

  Corin waded into the water. Every couple of steps, he would stop to look and see if he could spot his brother. He stopped when the water was waist high. No sign of him. Chest height. No sign of him. The water was now at Corin’s neck. He looked around and still saw no sign of his brother.

  Corin’s heart pounded with maximum intensity. He was no longer under any pretense that his brother was safe. Something was wrong, Corin knew it.

  “Cyril!” shouted Corin.

  He swam out into the deep ocean. He had no idea where to go, but he hoped to get a glimpse, a sign, anything that might help him find his brother.

  “Cyril! Answer me!”

  He was deep in the sea now. The shore was far and distant in his view.

  “Corin!” a familiar voice cried out in response “Corin is that you!?”

  “Cyril!” He shouted looking around.

  “I need your help!”

  Corin saw him now in the distance. He swam towards him. As he got closer, he could see Cyril holding onto someone else.

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  “Cyril, what is—” Corin began.

  “I saw him floating at a distance,” Cyril cut Corin off. “I think he is still alive. Help me get him to the shore!”

  Corin did not ask any more questions. He listened to his brother and grabbed the limp body on the opposite side of his brother. The two of them struggled as they swam with the unconscious person. It was hard enough for Corin sometimes to swim in these waters, but carrying this dense furtive made it even more difficult. Corin could even hear his brother struggling, and for Cyril swimming was as natural as breathing. After struggling for what felt like ages, the brothers dragged the furtive back onto land.

  Once they laid down the unconscious furtive, both of them collapsed onto the ground. All they could do was gasp for air. Eventually, Corin and Cyril turned to the unconscious furtive. They were both instantly shocked.

  Corin had never seen any furtive of this kind. He had many human features but was clearly not one. The first giveaway was the fur that covered his body. His entire body was covered in thick fine white hair, aside from his face. His nose was flat, and he had no lips. Corin could also see he had a long tail. Corin looked over the strange being when he considered something.

  “Is he dead?” Corin asked.

  As in response to his question, the unconscious furtive coughed up water.

  “I guess not,” Cyril said.

  Corin noticed his clothes. They were all tattered and seemed to be more of a patchwork of different shirts and pants. The furtive’s black shirt had a sewn on right arm that was a bright blue color that seemed as if it came from a blouse. His pants were in terrible condition, with the pant leg below the right knee a different material than the rest. The bizarre patchwork left Corin confused.

  Corin spotted something that shined near the furtive’s neck, a deep white stone pendant. The craftsmanship of it was unlike anything Corin had ever seen.

  Everything about this creature was foreign to Corin.

  “Where do you think he’s from?” Corin asked Cyril.

  “I don’t know,” Cyril said while looking at the furtive. “But let’s hope he can answer that himself. Let’s get him to our house.”

  ***

  Corin awoke. His head ached. It felt as if his brain was pounding the inside of his skull repeatedly.

  “What happened?” Corin asked as he struggled to keep his eyes open. He felt disoriented and could not get his bearings.

  One of the first things Corin saw as he opened his eyes was the same furtive he and Cyril had rescued over fifteen years ago. He stood over Corin, a sly smile plastered on his face.

  “You alright there, my boy?” Simeon asked Corin.

  “My head,” Corin moaned, “it hurts.”

  He rubbed his temples as he tried to focus on menial tasks such as breathing and keeping his wits about him.

  “Was I poisoned?” Corin asked as his brain continued to pound against his skull. He looked at Simeon but had to close his eyes, because the light hurt.

  “Well, yes, you were!” Simeon replied quickly with zero concern.

  Corin felt alarmed, but that was not even the worst of it. How could Simeon be so nonchalant about this?

  “I did tell you alcohol was poisonous, didn’t I?” Simeon laughed.

  Corin’s recollection of the previous night began to slowly work its way back into his memory. Little by little, he remembered all of it. The bitter drink that Corin started with. Nanaua’s contest of strength. Corin’s second full glass of the bitter drink. His terrible singing and dancing amongst the dwarves. Corin’s third or fourth drink. His improving dance and singing skills. After that, the details became less clear, but he did remember more glasses. How many, Corin would never know.

  Simeon approached Corin with a glass in his hand. It was full of a clear liquid.

  “No more alcohol,” Corin stated, waving Simeon away, holding his other hand onto his temple. He felt that if he let go of his head, the insides would spill out in revenge for what he did yesterday.

  “Ha!” Simeon laughed. “This time, it is just water.”

  Corin struggled to sit up and grabbed the glass from Simeon. He drank it all in one gulp.

  His head still ached. He continued rubbing his temples, attempting to calm his head.

  “What a nightmare,” Corin said eyes still closed.

  “It will pass," Simeon replied while he laughed.

  “The others?” Corin asked while rubbing his temples.

  “I won’t ever have alcohol again,” Zhi replied. She too was focusing all her energy on rubbing her temples and sitting straight.

  Corin saw her sitting on one of the tables. Nanaua and Livia both sat next to her. Livia did not seem to fare better than Zhi or Corin. Nanaua on the other hand seemed ready to go.

  “I knew that alcohol was no good the second it touched my lips!” Nanaua stated.

  Corin looked at the rest of the establishment. Aside from several dwarves who were cleaning up after the previous night, there was not much activity going on.

  Corin slowly got up and went to his wife. He sat next to her, as she slowly raised her head to look at him.

  “Maybe next time more dancing and less drinking?” Livia asked Corin, with one eye closed, her face straining.

  “I think that sounds like a good idea.” He nodded. His head hurt the moment he moved it.

  The couple kissed and embraced each other.

  “Now that you are all awake and well rested, we can continue moving. We have a lot of ground to cover,” Simeon announced.

  The sudden news helped soothe the misery of the group, they all perked up.

  “Belaran? Did you find out where he is?” Nanaua asked.

  “Not quite," Simeon replied. The group left out a defeated sigh.

  “So where are we going?” asked Zhi. She held her head up by her hands as she kept her eyes barely open. Even the slightest light gave her a headache.

  “Yranto,” Simeon said with excitement.

  The group looked at each other. None of them seemed to have any reaction.

  “I see,” Simeon said with a slight tinge of disappointment. “I take it that none of you have ever heard of Yranto.”

  The group all shared the same look of confusion.

  “I am not surprised. I had heard of it many years ago when I still lived on Khorsor. Mostly whispers here and there but never anything conclusive. I had never met anyone who said they had actually seen it with their eyes. That was of course until yesterday.”

  “What is so special about this location?” Nanaua asked, the only one who could voice the group’s questions.

  “Yranto is known as the furtive’s greatest city. Its splendor might rival anything that could be built by a titan,” Simeon said.

  “A furtive city?” Livia asked as if she had misheard, peeking through her hand.

  “That is correct," Simeon replied.

  “But how?”

  “The dwarf I spoke to says it is very well hidden. That is why it is hard for other furtives to find. It is surrounded by many natural barriers, and it is easy to get lost while trying to find it. But he says it is the grandest thing ever built by furtive hands, so impressive that even a titan would be in awe of it.”

  “But how will this help us find Belaran?” Nanaua asked.

  “The legends I have heard tell of Yranto speak of its vast accumulated knowledge,” Simeon said.

  “So you are not sure if they know about Belaran, but you hope they do and that we can find information about him there?” Livia asked.

  “Yes, and I have reason to believe our odds are good. I asked many dwarves yesterday about Belaran and the giants that live in this area. They know all the giants near here, including the one our three friends warned us about. But Belaran is unknown to them,” Simeon said.

  “Therefore Yranto is currently our best chance at finding information about Belaran,” Zhi followed up.

  “I believe so. If Belaran was nearby, the dwarves here would surely know, but it is not so. Someone in Yranto must know, and I’m sure we’ll find where we need to go," Simeon replied.

  “There is one important detail you have yet to divulge about Yranto,” Zhi said as she continued holding her head up by her hands.

  “Which is?” Simeon replied.

  “How far is it?” Zhi asked.

  Simeon hesitated, it was clear it was not good news.

  “Just say it,” Zhi said, burying her head in her hands.

  “The journey is expected to take close to a month of travel,” Simeon said.

  “Oh, this is such a cruel fate!” Zhi responded.

  Corin, who had started to feel the dull ache to fade, felt it hit him full force once again.

  “And this is the only way?” Livia asked.

  “I’m afraid so. Like I said, wherever Belaran is, it is not near here,” Simeon said.

  Corin rubbed his temples once again and got up. “So where do we start?”

  “Well…” Simeon once again hesitated.

  “Just say it,” Livia interjected.

  “I hope you don’t mind cramped spaces, because we will have to go through some mines,” Simeon said.

  Zhi groaned even louder this time.