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Edited by Merribor: 2/20/2022 2:46:04 AM
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Land of Solitha Chapter 5: Business as Usual in the Outskirts

[spoiler]i know, i know, it's been nearly a month, and for that I apologize. I fell off the saddle and ran into some walls stuck with the next part of the story, which is kinda dumb to say because right now I'm a little ahead of you guys. Hopefully, I can get my -blam!- together soon, and we can have at least semi-regular chapter updates. [/spoiler] Fortunately, the lamplighters of the Outskirts were prepared for Nightpass, and almost immediately orange flame flared up along the road. Unfortunately, there were hardly any lamps, and most of them were torches anyway. They stood on tall, thin poles that teetered about; one small bump might send the entirety of the Outskirts ablaze. They wandered around, the faint hope of finding a gate in the moving Wall fading swiftly. Nona quickened his step and stayed in the light; he didn’t like the looks of cloaked and hooded figures gliding about or nor the cross, burly thugs leaning against ramshackle establishments, weapons glittering on their hips. Finally, they reached a large, sudden gap in the road, enough for 6 carriages to pass through with room to spare. He looked to the right and there was a perfect, unobstructed path to the City Walls. There was a huge, tunnel-like arch in the wall, both ends settling down right on the borders of the gap. The arch was covered with a sparkling cyan-fading-down-to-violet sheen, and a faunish guard, shaggy hair and goat legs splaying out from underneath sturdy studded armor, stood behind it, his features wavy and distorted by the barrier. Nona approached the barrier, but he could feel its force pushing back against him the closer he got, while the guard leaned on his spear, smirking. Watching a fool try to push past the main Ward of the Imperial City was the most entertainment he’d probably get all night. Nona didn’t get very far before it knocked him back on his rump, then the guard barked at him, saying that there nobody was allowed in after Nightpass. Giving up, Nona left, entering the other side of the gap, ad began searching for an inn. “You know, I’m really glad we wasted an hour or two chatting it up with Thespians,” Reke muttered sulkily. “But hey, we got some good pants!” Nona said, trying to brighten the mood. “Oh awesome, we got pants! But, in case you haven’t noticed, Nona, we’re on the wrong side of the Wall.” He had a point. In the day, it wasn’t so bad when they could hide in the crowd, but at night, anybody that wandered the streets was a varying degree of sketchy, ranging from the hooded fellow hiding out in the back alley to the cutthroat covered in blades with a hard, compassionless eyes. Occasionally, they stopped to ask the least-threatening looking locals for the best places to stay, which, maybe not the best idea, but between the rapid-fire Outskirt dialect, the incomprehensible road system, and the buildings all sporting the same style of rotten disrepair, it was impossible to find even a single place to stay. Multiple times they stumbled into the wrong places: the lairs of shady arms dealers, smoky rooms of experimental alchemy, and other unsavory sights better left unseen. They did manage to find one inn, at least it sort of resembled an inn in that there were “beds”, but they were pretty much just dusty, moth-ridden cots laid out in unorganized rows. The other bed inhabitants moaned and groaned, most sporting pockmarks, rashes, sallow skin, and other marks indicative of disease. By silent agreement, the travelers thought they could find better arrangements, even in the Outskirts. They considered their next move outside the “inn”, with Nona scratching his head, trying to figure out which direction they came from. Reke, from his perch on the human’s shoulder, kept glancing back at two hoodlums, an Orc and a Lizardfolk, with weapons on their belts. They looked strangely familiar, as if they passed by the same two around more than once. “Were they worth it?” Nona suddenly asked, filling the silence. “What?” “Your new pants. Were they worth it?” Reke tore his gaze away from the strangers. “I would much rather be pantless and be on the other side of the Wall,” he grumbled. “Well, yeah, me too, but are the pants comfortable?” Nona repeated. Reke’s suspected stalkers eased up, carefully sauntering in their direction, cool eyes fixated on easy prey. “That’s beside the point, Nona. We have bigger things to worry about; I’m pretty sure those two guys behind are following us…” “So they are comfortable!” The burly orc calmly loosened the hammer tightly bound to his belt, while the lizardfolk’s tongue greedily licked his lips. “Nona, now is not the time, we need to get going,” the lizlai warned. The human smiled to himself, taking Reke’s sudden change of subject as a sign of defeat. He started walking, letting his feet take him where they pleased, until the long shadows of their two tails began creeping up behind him. He quickened his step, his eyes darting around for any potential exit points. He saw one, a long, dark alley between two wooden buildings; it must lead over to the next row of the town. Nona stuck to the shadows then ducked into it, but, when he got to the edge, there was the back of a canvas tent blocking the way. It was too heavy to push to the side, too stable to sneak under, and too slick to climb, so he whipped around, hoping to escape the trap he set for himself. It was too late. Nona’s throat went dry as the shadows of the two thugs rounded the corner, marching side-by-side. The orc grinned, a single brass incisor gleaming in the darkness, pulling his hammer from his belt, swinging it comfortably by his side. The lizardfolk brandished his pair of small daggers, clicking them together as their slow, deliberate steps crunched the loose sand underneath.

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  • [spoiler]I hate the “swipe down to close” thing. Just deleted my whole comment![/spoiler] I’ve always had a soft spot for goofy assassins, so I loved this guy! I’ve also been in the mood to write a mute character, so seeing one held a bit of charm. I read this during the forum shutdown, so I don’t remember what grammatical errors I saw, but I do remember 2 bigger issues. 1. Nona didn’t seem to care much when the guy was murdered right in front of him. Being an amnesiac, he’d probably not be used to the sight of death, and this is the first time we’ve seen it if I recall. Bit weird he wasn’t freaking out. 2. Each part so far seems to be revolvimg around the introduction of a new character. This isn’t necessarily bad, given the writing prompt, but it does feel a bit weird to get 4 new character introductions who appear & disappear within the span of a chapter or so. I think you should make an effort for some of them to hang out a bit longer, like Condi did. Though, assuming he appears later, Jerome does seem the type to pop in & out without a word (Ha!), and we probably wouldn’t want a chapter focused around Phyllis… Maybe. So, perhaps this won’t be an issue later, once the quick-visit characters are out of the way.

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