I pulled the wagon along, it was surprisingly light.
We had made a whole box of jewelry that we could sell, and Gethel kept going over our inventory and considering pricing possibilities.
He nodded, and stood up, and on the wagon, just barely reaching my head, “All right, if we Market these well they could go for as much as 10, however it would be smart to sell them at 5.
That already should give us enough to buy enough seeds to start a proper Farm, and enough money to buy enough bowls to hold all the food.”
“Why don’t we just make the bowls ourselves?”
He nodded “That is practical but we don’t have enough wood, and unless our glorious leader wants to go into Darkwood for the sheer purpose of cutting down trees, we should not waste wood on bowls.”
I thought for a second, “yeah, that does make sense.”
As we went on, we came to a checkpoint, and a group of anthropomorphic caterpillars ran it.
“Name.”
“Gethel Rinehouse, and this is my associate Caleb.”
I’d never heard him speak that fancily, it was like looking at a whole other person.
“Ah, Gethel, I thought your town was destroyed.
Been awhile since you passed through here, thought you were dead”
“Indeed, I narrowly escaped with my life, I am aiming towards the town of Deephaven, if my calendar is correct, they’re close to having the festival of order?”
The caterpillar nodded, “yep, just in time, they’re starting the party tomorrow, you can go through.”
We moved on, and I thought to ask, “so, who were they?”
Gethel looked straight, “the Sons of Leshy, really they aren’t his actual kids but they are still related.
They manage the borders into and outside of Darkwood, and have to be aware of all Commerce within the region of the Lands of the Old Faith.
They’re led by Barbatos, Leshy’s strongest General, and his 15th cousin.”
I blink, “Barbatos is Leshy’s cousin?”
He nods, “Yep from very very very far down in descent.
Barbatos, himself, is actually reaching his mid hundreds.
So he will probably be replaced by his son when he actually has children.”
I thought for a moment, “That is actually really cool.”
Gethel nods, “Yep, it’s been stable for thousands of years, despite their patron’s domain.”
As we continue, I see a flourishing city.
It was way larger than the Cult area, and I was amazed because seriously I could not see the other end of the city despite us being on a hill.
“That’s way bigger than the Cult.
It’s more like the size of a city where I come from.”
Gethel smirked, “Yep, Deephaven, the second largest city in Darkwood, second only to the city around Leshy’s Temple.”
We passed down into the valley, and came across guards who were checking all sorts of wagons, some had a variety of products.
Of course, we also saw-
“Stop, wagon, let us check the insides,” the merchant was thrown to the ground, and inside his bag was anti-Leshy propaganda, and the merchant desperately tried to explain, but was dragged off screaming, and his wagon was burnt.
I was frozen, unable to move.
They were going to kill that man…
“Keep moving, or they will suspect us,” Gethel’s voice was grim, but cut through my paralysis.
“We have to help him”
“Impossible, if we try both of us will die.
You’re big and strong, but they have an army.
This city is led by Valefar the Worm.”
“…
a general of Leshy, can’t we simply take him down?
Free the people?
Do anything?”
Gethel snorted, “He’s an ascendant, even speaking a single wrong word in his hearing range could mean instant death.
Listen, you’re nice and all, but step out of line and you’re dead.”
“Do you think he’s stronger than Ceres?”
Gethel paused, “…
yes, as of now… but not for long.”
We reached the gate, and I saw one of the guards tense when looking at me.
He approached, cultist robes covering his features.
“Name and purpose.”
“Um, Caleb, and we’re here to sell stuff.”
The guard looked at me, and sighed, then Gethel moved over, “Listen, you can check our bags, my friend here, this is his first merchant trip, he’s nervous around here.”
The guard analyzed us, “A nervous ascendant?
That’s a first.”
“Um, I’m not an ascendant, my species is just tall.”
The guard paused, “Huh, well that’s something.
Yeah, I can see that.
Hey, kid, word of advice, you see Velethar, keep your head down, he doesn’t like other ascendants, if he thinks you’re one, he may just kill you on the street and say he’s keeping the streets under order.”
“…
thank you.”
The guard finished combing our bags and let us in, his warning worrying me.
As we entered the city there were many people moving around, many different types of people, horses, cats, dogs, wolves, foxes, I even saw someone who looked like a giraffe, just without the long neck.
We moved along and found a spot to set up shop in a market.
I helped set up the stall, while Gethel organized the merchandise.
So, of course, I turn to greet our first customer, a small, reddish worm… … oh no
Valefar looked at me, considering my height, “You’re tall for a non-ascendant, what are you, some kind of ape?”
“I, uh, I um” How was I going to respond, despite not being large, I definitely knew who he was, almost perfectly resembling his in-game cultist form.
Unfortunately, Gethel didn’t, “Oh, this is my associate, Caleb, he’s cool, not sure what he is.
Could I interest you in a necklace?
They have a fine cord and would look beautiful on anyone.”
Valefar examined the necklace, “It is very nice, I’ll take it.”
Gethel smiled, but the surrounding merchants cringed, “that will be 5 gold”
Valefar smiled, “Oh, I never said I’d pay.”
“…
but, you need to pay, this is a-”
“Gethel,” I warn, and the goat looks at me, as does Velethar
“Heh heh, you recognize me, don’t you, large one.
You definitely have potential.”
Gethel was confused, so I spoke simply, and subtly, “it’s berries outside of bowls”
Gethel blinked, then his eyes widened, while Valefar was minorly confused, “what?”
“It’s an… expression.”
“That’s a weird expression.”
Then Gethel moved the necklaces closer to him, “we’ll be on our way” but Valefar’s hand grabbed his wrist.
“Not until I get my necklace,”
So I did something stupid, and grabbed both wrists and separated them, “not until you pay.”
Of course, I had hoped he would be stunned, but instead, he smiled, and all strength left my body, as his eyes showed death.
The merchants surrounding us were near running, and even the guards were backing away.
“Funny, you don’t seem too intelligent, I said, I would take a necklace, and I am Valefar, the ruler of this city”
“Then shouldn’t you follow the rules, as an example to others?!” Gethel bleated, then instantly covered his muzzle.
At this time, the merchants had just frozen in utter terror, and Valefar, well… he was ticked off.
“Oh, really, goat, you think of me as a rule breaker, well, let’s see how many of your rules I can break before you die.”
And I knocked Gethel aside, instinctually, and took a full curse to the chest, knocking me down.
I vomited, it was all blood.
I couldn’t move, I was seizing up.
My vision turned red, not from anger, but from blood pooling in my eyes.
“CALEB!!” Gethel began trying to fill the wound, but I saw Valefar approaching, readying another curse, with a sadistic smile.
“G-gth, Vfr” I gurgled, blood pooling in my throat, I couldn’t breathe, then we heard a trumpet, and a distant voice.
“All hail, bishop Leshy.”
Valefar instantly stomped on the ground, a pillar forming under me, and knocking me into a standing position, smashing against my back, which made a cracking sound, but it also drained blood from my throat.
I could breathe, even if raspy.
Leshy approached, and now that I saw him at full height, he was definitely at least 3 times my height.
He sniffed, “Valefar, are you here?”
Valefar bowed “Yes, my lord, I am your humble servant.”
“I looked for you in your castle, and you weren’t there.”
Valefar smiled, “my dearest apologies, my lord, I was not expecting your arrival.”
I looked slightly, and I saw Gethel frozen, as still as death, and I remembered that he lost his town to the cult, and he now saw the one responsible.
Leshy sniffed, “this is the market, yes?
What are you doing here?”
Valefar smiled at me, “Oh, I was procuring a gift to satisfy you.
But these foul merchants refused to sell me anything”
Leshy’s face darkened and his cloak rose, a presence of pure oppression emanating.
“And why is that?”
Valefar’s eyes became slits with how gleeful he looked, “because-”
“Because… we arn’t a charty, and he tried t’ frce us to gve him our merkandise for fre’.”
I had stumbled forward off the pillar, and my hands stabilized me on the top of the stall, which I gripped hard, as though it would suddenly vanish.
My voice was raspy from the copper taste drying in my mouth.
For a moment, there was only the dripping sound of my own blood, even Valefar had stopped smiling.
Then Leshy spoke, calmly, “I see, Valefar, goods exist to be traded, there is a balance we must maintain, stop this nonsense of taking things.
You, mortal, what are you selling?”
“Necklaces, sr.
Crded with rar materal.”
He smiled, and Valefar was now baffled, “I see, how much”
“5 gold a piece, Lord Bishop.”
Despite my voice being gurgled from the blood, that last line went through clearly, and Leshy tensed, “I see, I’ll take your whole stock,”
I counted the 15 we had, and he gave me, 150 gold coins, “Lord Bishp, you gve us a bit over”
Leshy sniffed the necklaces, “keep it, I have no need for it.”
He walked away, and Valefar was shocked before following Leshy, and he looked at us, no anger, just indifference.
“Caleb and Gethel, I will remember those names.”
Then, I collapsed… adrenaline… gone… I felt the stall break under me.
As I faded…