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Edited by Merribor: 3/15/2022 9:38:23 PM
2
The next day, Ahsante collected Nona and Reke, and they left the Inn after a brief breakfast, courtesy of Ahsante. The Imperial City was quiet for a city; it did not compare to the complete silence on the streets at night, but the hubbub was kept to a minimum. People glided past each other on the edge of the road in slippers, keeping their small conversations hushed and private. Even the mounts pulling carriages, slow, plodding furry beasts with deep chests; short, stubby legs; long, swaying necks; and floppy ears that covered nearly their entire head, quietly bobbed along with the morning crowd. They exchanged pleasant greetings from a few jolly locals, but, for the most part, City folk minded their own business. Ahsante naturally took the role as a tour guide for his companions, and though Reke slept through most of it on Nona’s shoulder saddle, the human gobbled up the information, peppering the old elf with questions. They passed through the Commercial District, a series of long roads with consecutive buildings, broken by intersections that split anywhere from two to even seven more pathways. The buildings were so closely packed together that it seemed like the commercial district was one massive block with the roads cut into them. Most folk lived in the upper story above their business, advertised by the flags, placards, and other small decorations allowed by the City Council. Though he couldn’t see it at night, Nona discovered the network of tiny, lace-like, silver roads that hung above his head for tiny folk, such as Reke. Ornamental cages dangled above Nona’s head, with tiny spiral staircases leading up to the road above. He began to ask Ahsante about them, but a young lycan man in a sturdy leather vest, dyed a brilliant red, ran past them and stopped at one of the cages. He unhooked it from the tinyfolk road, secured it tightly to his vest, and jogged off into the middle of the road, dodging carriages and mounts on the way. As he left, Nona spotted two other cages filled with tiny folk hanging off the back of the runner’s shoulders. The Commercial District was also broken by what Ahsante called Markets, which were open plazas filled with long, one-story buildings except for in the center, which held a fountain surrounded by a small, open common area. Each Market had its own distinct statue in the fountain; this one had an elegantly carved cluster of mushrooms from which the water poured forth, so it was known as Mushroom Market. There were often street performers and newsmen hanging around the Market fountains. Each building was cut with two long windows that spanned almost the entire length of the building on each side, and as many vendors as possible crammed into the longhouses, displaying their wares on the wide sills of the windows. Most folk meandered by the stalls, picking baubles, trinkets, fresh produce, clothes, or whatever else there was to buy. The prices were fair, and there was little arguing or jostling among the vendors. As the left Mushroom Market, Nona thought he saw a familiar blue feather in a large hat, but Ahsante whisked them away towards the center, where glistening domes, towers, and mansions rose above the rest of the City. They arrived at the edge of the Commercial District, where the constant buzz of conversation dropped to a low murmur. The border was marked by a glimmering, silvery wrought iron gate, and beyond was a lush, beautiful garden with bright splashes of color among deep-green bushes. They walked along the gate for a short while until they came to the gatehouse, a short, cylindrical tower of place brick that nestled in the flowing gate. Ahsante opened the wooden door, and the tower was one large chamber, with a spiral staircase climbing up the edge of the wall. One guard, a puppet-like person who seemed to have skin carved of wood, leaned against the edge of an open arch covered in vines. Ahsante breezed by him without so much as a glance, Nona on his heels. The Garden District was like a small pocket of jungle that inserted itself into the City. Instead of people, birds and insects called to one another, fluttering from willowy tree to tree. Even the air seemed lighter, freer, and more tranquil than the hustle and bustle of the cramped City past. Small mammals and other creatures darted across the thin marble path, which was the only sign of civilization in the District. They must have passed by every plant imaginable in the Garden District, and Nona couldn’t help but wonder how much more was beyond, in the deep wood. There were dirt paths that led deeper, but Ahsante stuck to the marble. Rarely they passed by the stewards of the Garden District, flower-headed Pixies whispering lullabies to late bloomers, or the slow, deliberate, wood-carven Dryads with mossy hair that kept a close eye on the travelers, or flighty, winged Sprites that dashed errands that must’ve required swift action. Aside from the gardeners, they also found a handful of elves, who simply enjoyed the small bit of nature in their City, clearing their minds or muttering thoughtful notions to themselves. As they moved closer to the edge of the District, the magnificence of the Mage District peeked out beyond the leaves of giant trees. Soon, they exited the Garden District via another gatehouse, and soon they were in the Mage’s District, the center of the Imperial City and the centerpiece of the Elven Empire. They were on the western side of the District, the residential side, where estates were scattered about to their owner’s liking. Some were quite ostentatious, with as many glittering turrets as they could possibly fit, with skybridges, observatories, and a small army of servants constantly keeping it clean. Others were bizarre, with sideways rooves, and contorted towers twisted in shapes impossible for regular stone, with floating rooms gently spinning above the strange structure. Others still preferred a more natural aesthetic; few structures, but filled with open air pavilions, courtyards, and atriums. One “house,” if it could even be called that, was a giant tree, with rope ladders hanging off its branches and doors dug into its bark. But no matter how strange the buildings were, each home was large enough to dwarf the folks milling about them. Here, Nona felt a great pressure settle down on his chest. It got harder to breath as they moved in deeper, and Nona began to feel light-headed. He stumbled once against Ahsante, and the elf paused, steadying his human companion. Reke nearly slipped off Nona’s shoulder, but the sudden movement woke him, and he was able to grab a fistful of the human’s jacket before he took a tumble. “What the-? Are you ok?” the lizlai exclaimed, scrambling back onto his saddle. “I- I don’t- I don’t know. I feel- quite- ill,” he panted, holding on to Ahsante’s shoulder. The elf tilted his head curiously, then explained, “I see. Your body must be adjusting to Everstone. The whole City is built of it, but Thread is only Spun here in the Mages’ District. Come, we must get you swiftly to the manor.” He threw Nona’s arm over his shoulder and practically carried the human the rest of the way. For the Mage’s District, Ahsante’s manor was small, only a three-story, blocky mansion with a neat lawn in front. The heavy double doors, emblemed with a stylish A opened automatically for Ahsante, opening to a carpeted main hall with two broad staircases curving up to a long second floor balcony. Two golem servants wearing yellow surcoats swiftly arrived to relieve Ahsante of his burden, then helped Nona up the right-hand staircase, disappearing into what Reke assumed to be guest rooms. Before they took off, Nona leapt from Nona’s shoulder to Ahsante’s, then when they were gone, he looked at the elf and said, “I need to ask you a few questions.” Next Chapter: https://www.bungie.net/en/Forums/Post/260763524 Previous Chapter: https://www.bungie.net/en/Forums/Post/260585663?sort=0&page=0
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  • [quote]so he followed the guard’s directions faithfully, preventing Nona from taking no less than five wrong turns[/quote] I'm getting Celica vibes here. Make more scenes where Nona has no clue where he's going; Celica is hilarious. If you aren't familiar, Celica gets lost, like, all the time. There's this super hilarious scene where Ragna is telling her to follow a straight road to a building, and she almost wound up getting lost before Ragna stepped in to help her. I like the city. Kinda feels like Zootopia, where you can cross the wall from one district to the next, and wind up in a completely different place. I'm assuming they'll be spending a good little while here, and the varied scenery makes for a good way to keep things from feeling all samey. I kinda want some chase scene or something, where they go from scampering on top of rooftops in the wild, and crazy mage district, only for their pursuit to suddenly drop into the garden district, and suddenly they go from dancing across crazy magic architecture, to weaving through trees and plants. Super fun. Not really much else to say, as you seemed to primarily just be setting up the city in this part. But good work so far, regardless. I'm enjoying the read!

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  • I may or may not have been basing that getting lost part off of, uh, personal experience, vut i'm glad you're enjoying the read! I know it's not the best, but it feels good to be working hard at this kind of project.

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