Two months later:

Astir had managed to get a job as a busboy in a city auberge, which gave them a cheap place to stay . Septem worked as a hunter affiliated to the Guild. This allowed her to provide for their meat needs, but also to keep Gwalarn and Kornog out of town for the majority of the day. 

They made the decision to not talk about the events that had befallen them.

They were saving as much money as they could in order to leave the city before the end of the next mild season, which would be in less than a fortnight.

Septem had come into contact with caravaneers which were travelling down to Commelina, a stopover town on the swamps' edge north of Nasgaär. She meet them through the Guild. They were stopping in Aguilepia to sell fabrics, jewelries and other trinkets, as well as to fill their stock of medicinal herbs comming from the Red Mountains and hardy animals that will fetch a high price further down the plains. The caravaneers had shown great interest in buying Gwalarn and Kornog but Septem cut short their attempts to negotiate.

They intended to travel with them to get closer to a port city. Astir had susceed to bargain for his place as a handyman and Septem got herself hired as a mercenary protecting the convoy.

The days passed quickly as the departure approached. Astir took advantage of his work at the auberge to dry some of the meat that Septem had hunted in the cellar, to stock up on provisions for the journey ahead. Ideally, Septem and the criordes would continue to hunt, but they might pass through desert or dangerous areas that would greatly limit the search for food. The caravaneers was pretty clear about this, everyone provides their own meals. Septem trained herself to recognise and cook the edible plants they might encounter along the way.

Polyphé, the owner of the auberge, had grown attached to these young people which formed an atypical pair. She didn't know their story, but the empty stares they had when they arrived in Aguilepia made her want to help them. They reminded her of her sister's children before they were swept away by their father's killing spree. She accepted them into her auberge and provided them with shelter and work. However, the girl preferred to work as a hunter. She seemed to be suffocating inside the city.

In the end, it suited her, she liked Septem but the dogs they have were really peculiar and made her feel insecure.  She prefered when they were away from her, out of town, letting off steam.

The news of their departure saddened her, she tried to convince them to stay with her but they wanted to leave towards the sea for reasons that were beyond her. She eventually resigned herself to this and even planned to help them gather what they needed to make their journey as smooth as possible. She had assembled two sleeping bags, a small pot, fire stones, some medicinal plants, spices and a small notebook and pencil so that Astir, whom she had taught to write, could continue to practice. She divided the belongings into two backpacks of better quality than the ones the teenagers had.

She concluded that she would give them the day before they left so that they would not have to worry about repaying her.

The second eclipse had just ended, Astir and Septem packed their things the day before, Polyphe had given them travel sets. They had come to appreciate the old lady. This unexpected gift helped them a lot and they felt indebted to her. They promised to come back see her one day, even if it sounded like a hollow promise due to Polyphe's advanced age.

 They were feeling relieve, they stayed only three months in Aguilepia and even if they  grown used to live in the city, they still felt too close to Pratt and the massacre and were eager to put as much distance as possible between them and the village.

The journey to Commelina would take five months as they would stop at Vaccinium, which is situated down east Aguilepia. It was a long journey preparing for its share of adventures. The young Leontopos were in a hurry to leave, they had presented themselves to Taraxac, the leader of the caravan at dawn but he explained them that the preparations for departure would take several hours and would not leave before eleven o'clock. Gwalarn and Kornog were getting impatient, the teeming crowd of merchants and travellers who were chartering around them was a great source of annoyance. Moreover, the young Leontopos had loaded some of the provisions on their backs, something they weren't used to. Septem tried to soothe them with songs when the caravan finally set off at about half past eleven.

The great journey finally begun. They had high hopes for the places they would discover and the knowledge they would earn.