The HaRT Knight Decaverse

Heir of Magic

Chapter 13

The Wandering City

Like a lost soul walking the world in search of peace, Alexander wandered in this endless sea of sand, only resting when exhaustion overpowered his will. The scorching days gave way to ice-cold nights. Hunger and thirst were new enemies, and they were ever-present, threatening to kill him. But his magic sustained him and kept him on the brink of life.
On what was either the fifth or seventh night—he had lost track and his mind was too foggy to help him remember—his body would move no further. He fell to his hands and knees and struggled to stay conscious. He couldn’t remember the last time he had felt so tired. A sweltering wind passed over him and he had to close his eyes to protect them from the sand. It was a mistake. The second he closed his eyes; he fell into an uneasy sleep. He drifted in and out of consciousness for a long while and only managed to prevent himself from returning to oblivion when he heard people talking.
Am I imagining it? Alexander wondered as he continued to listen to the unmistakable sounds of people hustling and bustling through the routine of their daily lives.
A strange animal-like grunt sounded next to him and soft hair tickled his ear before a cold, wet nose pushed against his head.
“Ahoy, hoay, boy. You alive?” a grumbling voice said.
Slowly, Alexander lifted his head and opened his eyes to stare at the person who was talking. But what he saw was not a man. Instead, all he saw was the two large golden eyes of a camel.
“A talking camel?” Alexander grumbled in confusion.
“Don’t be daft, boy,” the voice said. A hand pushed the camel’s head out of the way to reveal the plump man looking down at his confused face. The stranger placed a firm grip on Alexander’s shoulder and lifted him off the ground. “You’re dehydrated. But that’s no excuse to be lying in the middle of the road.”
Alexander’s mind was having trouble focusing; his vision was a montage of distorted images flowing in and out of shape. Eventually—he didn’t know how long it had been—a hand closed around his face and tilted his head back. The most wonderful thing in the world touched his lips: sweet, refreshing water. The small mouthful the man had given him felt like the greatest gift he had ever received. But as he tried to take another sip, the man took it away again.
Why would he do such a thing? How can anyone be so cruel?
“More. More please,” Alexander wheezed.
“No. You seem to have been without it for a long time. You can’t eat or drink too much for a while, or your body will rebel against the only things that can save your life,” the voice explained. “Slowly, and only a little at a time. Here’s some bread. Chew well and swallow.”
Alexander followed the instructions and chewed the small piece of bread. The effort it took to move his jaw was unbearable. Every movement seemed too much for his frail body. With a gulp, he swallowed and breathed deeply as if he had just come from a rather rigorous training session.
“Good,” the disembodied voice said. “Now, lie down and sleep.”
Alexander did not need telling twice. He laid back and instantly dropped into a dreamless sleep. Every now and again, someone would wake him to offer him a piece of bread and a drink of water.
When he regained enough of his wits to comprehend what was happening and where he was, he sat up and took in the small room. There wasn’t much to see in the room. Other than the bed the only things it held was sand and his possessions. His swords in their shared scabbard and his silver dagger were resting on his neatly folded phoenix cloak on the floor next to the bed. Sounds of talking people drifted into the room through the dusty, drawn curtains that hung in front of the only window.
The door of the room opened, and a plump man with a shabby grey beard and bald head entered. His face lit up as he saw Alexander sitting upright.
“You’re awake. How are you feeling?” the old man asked with a friendly tone.
“I feel much better. Thank you. You save me,” Alexander said.
“Yes, I did. Found you out in the road talking to camels. You were as close to death while still alive as I have ever seen. My apprentice and I have been nursing you back to health since I found you,” the man explained.
“Thank you, mister—” Alexander paused.
“My name is Jonah. And it was no trouble. Just repay the favor to someone else one day,” Jonah said.
“Thank you, Jonah,” Alexander said.
“Might I inquire your name?”
“Alexander A—” he cut off as he realized the mistake he almost made. “Alexander Aenor.”
“Well, hello Alexander Aenor. Now that you’re awake, I think we can give you something proper to eat for once.” Opening the door of the room again, Jonah yelled, “Jared. Bring that bread and honey I set out for us.”
“Thank you, but I do not wish to impose. I’ll be on my way and out of yours in no time,” Alexander protested.
“Nonsense. You’re in no condition to go anywhere. Ah Jared, did you bring the honey?” Jonah said as a small figure entered the room carrying a tray with bread, honey, and milk.
Alexander only made the smallest of double-takes as he saw that Jared was a cevarion, just like Bibi. Except, where Bibi was a large warrior with the head of a fox, Jared was a boy with the head of a mouse.
“Would you like me to spread the honey for you, sir?” Jared asked in a polite squeak.
“I think I should be able to handle that myself, thank you.” The small boy handed him the tray and smiled as he stepped back.
“Thank you, Jared. Now our guest is awake. I think you can prepare the camels again. We will set out tomorrow,” Jonah said.
“Yes, sir. I’ll do it right away, sir,” Jared nodded and bowed as he backed out of the room.
“He’s a slave?” Alexander asked, fighting not to show his disapproval. He had never approved of slavery and the way people treated the cevarions had always baffled him.
“Yes, as are most cevarions. But I treat Jared much better than most people treat his kind. He’s bright and profitable for me. His skill at working metal is unmatched,” Jonah said.
“He’s a blacksmith?” Alexander asked before he stuck a large piece of bread in his mouth.
“Aye, and one of some renown. The Silver General himself has extended an offer to the boy to become Pensilisurbis’ royal smith,” Jonah said, sitting down at the foot of Alexander’s bed. “We were getting ready to set off for the city when we found you.”
“I’m sorry for delaying your plans,” Alexander said.
“Not a problem. If we did not help you, you would have died.” Jonah gave his cloak and swords on the floor a look before he asked, “Where were you going when you got yourself lost in the desert, anyway?”
Alexander thought back to the last words Dante had spoken to him before they had been separated and said, “The Wandering City.”
“Well, then you’re in luck. You have reached your destination,” Jonah said.
“We’re in the Wandering City?” Alexander asked, almost choking on a piece of bread.
“You are,” Jonah laughed and slapped Alexander on the back. “But no one ever comes looking for the Wandering City, people just stumble across it. What do you seek here?”
“A friend of mine told me to meet him here. But I’ve lost track of time; that could have been a month ago. He might have passed through here already.”
“I wouldn’t worry about that.” Jonah shook his head. “The last person to enter the city before you, arrived two months ago. Unless you think it might have been that long since you parted ways?”
“I don’t know. How long have I been here?” Alexander asked, doing the math in his head.
“We found you a week ago,” Jonah said, screwing his eyes up to remember.
“I don’t think I’ve been in the desert for more than a week. That means that only two weeks have passed so it couldn’t have been him,” Alexander said, trying to convince himself more than anyone else.
“Then you’re first. The city isn’t an easy place to find, and you might need to wait a while longer for your friend to find it.”
“All the same, I’ll see if he hasn’t passed through unnoticed,” Alexander said.
“Aye, he’ll have a hard time accomplishing that. But as you wish. Will you be okay once Jared and I leave? We can stay a while longer if you’d like?” Jonah offered.
“No. I have been too much of a nuisance to you already. Please, leave as soon as you can,” Alexander said.
“You have no money. You’ll have a hard time surviving here without any,” Jonah noted.
“Do not worry about me. I only regret I have nothing to repay you for the favor you’ve done me.”
“You do not spoil a good deed by paying for it, my boy. That makes it a service, and people only provide services for profit. That is the complete opposite of a good deed.” Jonah smiled. “Now, eat and drink. I’ll have Jared bring you some clean clothes when he finishes with the camels.”
“Thank you again, Jonah,” Alexander said.
The plump man waved his thanks away as he left the room. Alexander stayed in bed the rest of the day. Every now and again, either Jonah or Jared would check up on him to make sure he was comfortable. By dusk, Alexander felt well enough to stand and help his hosts pack their things on the camels. They were poor, with not much to take with them. Jonah even said he had to spend all the money he got for the house on the two camels, but that it would be worth it once they reached Pensilisurbis. The plump man always spoke of Pensilisurbis as some wonderful faraway kingdom where all your dreams would come true. Secretly, Alexander doubted this very much. It had the ring of something too good to be true. But even little Jared assured Alexander of the greatness of Pensilisurbis and her Silver General. It was the last kingdom in the land where all the races lived in peace together, and even cevarions had equal rights.
“It sounds like a wonderful place. I just hope Cain doesn’t tear it down before you get there,” Alexander said.
“I doubt it. Not as long as the Silver General is there,” Jared said with obvious awe and worship in his voice.
“You keep mentioning this Silver General. Who is he?” Alexander asked.
Jared’s eyes went round. “You don’t know about Kohr?”
“Kohr?” Alexander said the name aloud to himself. he had, in fact heard that name before, but not as some Primosi General, but as one of the Golden Spear’s greatest rivals. “Isn’t he the mercenary leader of the Silver Legion from Mag Findargate? What’s he doing in Primoris?”
“He came to Primoris five years ago to fight on the side of the dhaesí in the war the people call Maeve’s Wrath,” Jonah said.
“Kohr never lost a single battle against Cain’s Generals,” Jared said. “He outsmarted them at every turn.”
“All of Primoris had lost hope before then,” Jonah said. “It seemed like we were doomed after the mages were all slaughtered at Inti. But then the dhaesí queen hired Kohr and the Silver Legion, and together, they drove Cain and his generals all the way back into the black city he built on the runes of Tír na Angelus.”
“Are you saying he dishonored the memory of Tír na Angelus by building a city for him and his minions where it once stood?” Alexander asked.
His anger must have been audible in his voice, because Jonah and Jared looked shocked and confused at the emotion they heard. “Yes,” Jared said.
“Goodness me. How could you not know? Everyone knows how Cain tore down the city of light and replaced it with his one of black marble.”
“I’ve been gone for a long time. I’ve spent most of my life at sea. We never got much news from the land,” Alexander explained.
“You were a sailor,” Jared said with excitement. “Did you travel to other faraway lands?”
“Yes, all the time. I spent most of my youth traveling between the Steredenn Islands. I’ve seen the Frostbelt in the middle of the world and sailed through the mist veil. We even spent half a year on an island that turned out to be a giant creature.”
“Wow,” Jared said, his eyes glistening with amazement.
“You’ve seen much of the world,” Jonah said, sounding impressed.
“I have, but none of those lands called to me like this one. This is my homeland. This is where I belong,” Alexander said.
“I understand what you mean,” Jonah nodded, placing his hand on Alexander’s shoulder. “Now come on back inside. I have some ale I keep chilled in an icebox. We can have a few drinks and we’ll catch you up on everything you missed while away on your travels.”
“And maybe you could tell us more stories about your adventures. Like the one about the island that was alive,” Jared blurted.
Alexander smiled at the boy. “Sure, why not.”

The next morning, Alexander awoke at the crack of dawn to find Jared already up and watering the camels.
“Good morning, sir. Did you sleep well?” Jared asked with his usual mousy smile.
“I did, thank you. You’re up early,” Alexander noted.
“Yes, sir. It is good to awake as early as the body will allow,” Jared nodded.
“Sleep for sleep’s sake is a waste,” Alexander smiled at the boy.
“Yes, sir.”
Alexander patted the boy on the head and Jared smiled up at him.
“You are sure you do not wish to accompany us to Pensilisurbis, sir? I am small, and we can share a camel,” Jared said. “You can tell me more stories about your adventures as we ride.”
Alexander shook his head. “I am sorry, Jared, but I can’t. I promised my friend I would wait for him at The Spider’s Den.”
“The Spider’s Den?” the boy said. “If sir is planning on heading to the den, would sir mind doing me a favor?”
“Of course. I think I owe you a favor,” Alexander said with a smile.
“The last smith job I had here was for a man named Merrick. He asked me to mend his silver chains. I did, but he never came to fetch them. It is said he spends many hours in The Spider’s Den. Would sir mind delivering them to Mister Merrick?” Jared asked, presenting Alexander with a large bag. The boy had difficulty lifting it off the ground, so instead, he pulled the bag, leaving a trail behind as it dragged on the ground.
“Sure. What does this man look like?” Alexander asked as he lifted the heavy bag with one hand.
“About as tall as you are, sir. He has long black hair tied back in a ponytail most of the time. The people at the den will know him, sir,” Jared assured Alexander.
“Okay, I’ll make sure he gets his chains,” Alexander assured him, resting the heavy bag on his shoulder.
“Thank you, sir,” Jared said.
“It my pleasure, Jared. And please, just call me Alexander.”
Jared beamed at this. As a cevarion slave it was unlikely that anyone would ever have been so kind to him.
“Ah, Alexander. Off already?” came the voice of Jonah from the doorway of the house. Jonah was already dressed and wore an expression of great excitement at the prospect of his approaching adventure.
“Yes. I was just about to come and say goodbye and thank you one last time for the great favor you have done for me,” Alexander said as he grasped Jonah’s hand.
“It was our pleasure. May the maidens of fate let our paths cross again.”
“They already sent you to me once, I don’t see why they can’t do it a second time,” Alexander said, and for some reason, he didn’t know why, but he felt certain he was speaking the truth.