Velez-Valar
The eco-quartzites flickered, accompanying the gentle voice announcing the platform arrivals. The usual magical carriages scurried here and there, carrying their varied cargo in and out of the Multicontinental; night still reigned in the sky, and the six guys were starting their journey once again, headed for Rondalla.
—So, let me see again, Jacob… our Jacob is allergic to magic? —Inola asked while pushing the magic carriage next to him.
—Yes, that’s right. Don't let the carriages touch him. —PSSSSt. A thunderbolt lit up the platform.
—What the hell, Inola! —Mina and Ithil could barely contain themselves, while Jacob, toasted next to Inola, was being helped by Lizva.
—I’m sorry, the situation felt so unreal that I didn’t think anything would happen to you… hihihihih —Inola covered his face with his hand, containing his laughter.
—Leo, help Jacob, will you? —Mina gave the huge guy a pat on the back.
—Sure, sister Mina. Up you go, brother Jacob, hehe. We’ll have to be careful with that from now on, don't you think, Inola? —Leo turned to look at Inola, who, along with Mina and Ithil, was barely containing his laughter.
—Magaska, come back! I’ve already registered the bags; we must go up through platform four… Jacob? Oh, you must have touched another one of those carriages. —Magaska gave a soft giggle. Lizva, for her part, materialized next to the guys.
—Young Master Inola! That was rude! —with a pout on her face, Lizva and the others boarded the Multicontinental.
—Over here! —Magaska ran through the halls of the reception carriage; the cheerful image of Varneth was reflected wherever Magaska passed.
—It doesn't bother me, but it's still curious, don't you think, Jacob? —Inola noticed Varneth's reflection.
—Yes, spirits are actually very fickle; they rarely behave as the laws of Massacrax say. —Jacob looked at Lizva, who was floating next to Magaska, appearing as though the three of them were getting along well.
—Ha, at this point we aren't six, we’re nine —Mina counted with her fingers while they headed to the carriage where they would spend the trip.
—Nine? Mina, me, the three dwarfs, Leo, Varneth, Lizva, and… oh, right, Quellis. One moment, we don’t have to pay for spirit tickets, do we?! —Ithil paused for a moment to look at a small notebook in her bag and verify the rules.
—Calm down, guys, we’re almost at the cabin; you can make all the noise you want there! —Mina said to them in a loud voice as the three young women ran through the carriage; these were large, with a garden in the middle that almost always had a fountain or a statue with flower beds.
—Hehe, traveling with luxuries isn't so bad, right, big guy? —Inola addressed Leonidas, who was walking behind them.
—Yes, brother Inola, it’s a pleasant change. —Leo and Inola laughed together for a bit. Ithil turned to look at him and remembered something.
—Ah, by the way, Inola and Leo, Samael sent a letter through Jacob’s nanny; he sent more details about the mission and, to your very great luck, you have good news. —Ithil showed them a letter sealed with green wax and gold reliefs; a raven feather stuck out from the letter.
—Eeh? Are we going to read it in the cabin? —Mina asked, intrigued; the beautiful seal bore the insignia of a ram’s profile.
—Oooh, Nana’s personal seal? Samael and she have become very good friends! She almost never uses it with anyone; I know that only she, I, and my father can use her seal. —Jacob looked at the letter; they had almost reached the carriage.
—You there, stop! —a man in a military uniform approached them with a weapon in hand. The adventurers immediately went on alert.
—What’s wrong? We are adventurers from Thar-Abbys —Ithil addressed the soldier in a firm tone; her uniform showed that she was part of the Multicontinental security.
—And that is exactly what we will verify; please present your medals and registration. —The soldier extended his hand in front of the guys, in a situation they had never encountered.
—What? You must be joking. —Mina took a step forward to keep going, but Ithil stopped her.
—Wait, Mina, we must respect their rules; remember that the Multicontinental is a nation in itself. —Ithil took his medal; without unhooking it from his uniform, he showed it to the guard.
—Thank you for understanding… Excuse me if I sound rude, but lately there have been people traveling with fake medals. —The uniformed man took a device that bore the shield and lens emblem.
—Thar-Abbys provided us with these devices to be able to check the medals. —The medal registered correctly on the device, identifying Ithil by photo and name on the screen.
—Very well, Mr. Ithil, thank you for your cooperation; please, everyone else present your medal in the same way. —The guard proceeded with Magaska, Jacob, and Mina, finally ending with Leonidas; everyone appeared correctly on the device; only Inola was missing.
—You’re the only one left, young lady —the guard addressed Inola.
—Oh, no! —exclaimed Leonidas; the whole group noticed the anger in Inola.
—I won’t do it! —Inola crossed his arms in front of the uniformed man, visibly angry.
—Come on, Inola, it’ll be quick, just put the medal in the device —Jacob said to him, giving a smile and patting his shoulders.
—Magaska did it, you can too, Inola. —Magaska, with a playful tone, tried to soften Inola’s anger.
—Their horrible equipment bears the insignia of the Zelatores; I don’t know what they’re plotting. —Inola turned and gave his medal to Ithil.
—You do it, I won’t. —Inola, angry, sat on a stone bench.
—Well, do you mind if I do it for my friend? —Ithil, with an awkward smile, turned to look at the guard.
—Well, it’s irregular, but very well, I just want to finish this and move on. —With a buzz, Inola’s medal certified his identity.
—Very well, everything matches; I apologize for the trouble; the situation has become difficult lately; we have had several altercations with people impersonating adventurers. —The guard gave a firm salute to Ithil and withdrew.
—Inola, let’s go! Ithil fixed everything. —Magaska jumped in front of Inola.
—Mmm, all right, let’s go, I’m just angry that those types are everywhere. —Inola kicked a ball of paper on the floor; it fell into a nearby trash can.
—Very well, I understand, I understand, let’s go. —Ithil extended his hand to Inola.
—Let’s go! —Inola took Ithil’s hand and pushed himself off to start running to the cabin.
—Haaa, Magaska wanted to get there first! —Magaska ran after him; Varneth’s reflection in the fountain followed closely, and Lizva was right behind.
—Very well, guys, the Multicontinental will only take us as far as Rondalla; there we will take a carriage to Evookia, and from there we must take another one to the border town of Palasquia; once there, it will be the road on foot or horseback, depending on if we can find something in Palasquia.
—Then… on foot? —Jacob said to Ithil on the outskirts of Palasquia. The horses and mounts were exhausted, with no vehicles available. Ithil sighed and feared a long, tiring journey.
—Haaa, yes, on foot; up you go, guys. —Ithil adjusted his clothes and put on a fur hat to protect himself from the sun.
The young adventurers set off; luckily for them, after a few hours of travel, a wagon passed by them and agreed to take them for a while.
—So, Jacob, what do you know about Velez-Valar? —Ithil asked while the Geotechnia wagon slid smoothly along the cobblestone path; crickets and insects sang, paced by the air and occasional gusts of wind; a green mass of trees and ominous greenery could be seen in the distance.
—Well, just as Mina told us last time, it was built before the Era of the Dawning, and the statues on the path seem to go in a constant mathematical structure; it’s not even, but it seems to be multiples of three —Jacob answered Ithil. Suddenly, Inola leaned out from the front of the vehicle.
—I heard they’re a limit! —Inola said, proud to provide extra information.
—Really? Woaa, is that the thing Master Shalona did with you? —Ithil remembered Shalona’s exploits in Nivoria.
—Eee, well, that’s an interesting theory, but… —Jacob, skeptical, crossed his arms.
—What do you mean theory, dwarf! They are in classic disposition according to the Evoker’s contract mantra: “I within myself, twelve seats, four jurors, one desire, three words, six wishes, nine yearnings, eighteen compassions, thirty-six eternals.” They respond to Elliot Serigard’s books in their chapters on spiritual mathematics —Inola snorted, throwing a balled-up rag at Jacob’s head.
—Ah, yes, but we could very well see them over Anuelle Lucine’s theories on ethereal fractals and see that they are just a localization of random elements! —Jacob replied, snorting twice through his nose.
—Magaska doesn't understand, neither does Varneth —Magaska said to Mina, looking at her with large, sleepy eyes.
—Don’t worry, Magaska, sleep, they’ll calm down soon. —Mina turned to the other side; Leonidas looked at her, confused.
—Sister Mina, I don’t understand either —Leo played with his fingers.
—Well, don’t worry, Leo, those are evoker things.
—Well, I understood a little, but I’m already lost —Ithil left Jacob and Inola to argue heatedly about the theories of the place while the old wagoner, who was carrying straw, just laughed.
—Ho, ho, ho, ho… these guys are so energetic. —The stars and crickets accompanied them for the rest of the night.
—Well, guys, I’ll leave you here; I have to leave the straw here to feed the wild horses and Droballos; you must continue ahead. Once you reach Velez-Valar, stay on the path or on the left side; never go to the right side, there is Al-darius grass everywhere; that stuff cuts like a razor and its sap is acidic, so be careful —the man lowered the straw from his wagon with a pitchfork.
—Well, we get off here; still a long way, right? —Jacob looked at the map, verifying their location.
—It seems we are still very far; we will have to walk at least eight more hours. —Mina saw the map that Jacob spread on the floor; helped by his compass, they were able to verify the distance traveled.
—Very well, it seems there are some rock formations ahead; how far do you think they are, Magaska? —Ithil asked. Magaska was already on top of a stone idol that was in the area, looking into the distance.
—Humm, they seem to be at least an hour from here, Ithil; the distance is approximate, it could be an hour and a half. —Magaska answered, sure of herself.
—Very well, everyone is rested and ready, right? —Ithil turned and looked at the group.
—I’m in perfect shape, brother Ithil —Leonidas, smiling, posed with his usual smile.
—All good for me —Mina gave a thumbs up, taking her backpack.
—Magaska and Varneth, at your command! —the little white speck jumped with excitement; the immortal forest was near them, the smell of damp earth and life could be felt in the air.
—Remember, guys, no matter what happens, don’t go into the forest —Jacob reminded them again, just in case.
—I understand, brother Jacob, I will do my best to avoid it. —Leonidas carried a huge backpack that held a large part of the mission’s items; many of these were disposable or consumable.
—…Let’s hope we don’t have to set foot in there; few adventurers dare to enter… even in Rondalla the masters told us: “never enter without special permission.” —Mina walked alongside the guys; her hair, tied back in a braid, was inside a cloth cap, while her head had a straw hat.
—Everyone, LOOK! —Magaska climbed the last dune of the cobblestone path, just before reaching the rock formation.