Legend of Ransera

It felt to Arvalyn as though this journey was a matter of fate- Or fatum, as they called it in the civilisation toward which they were heading. At least that was the nominative conjugation for the noun, but that, as Arry was learning, was one of the peculiarities of the language to pointed ears more accustomed to Common and, to a lesser extent, Mythrasi. He had been studying up on the language casually ever since portraying the role of Aværys Eternal in the eponymous epic play at Kalzasi's Golden Peacock Theatre. His obsession with the piece and, indeed, with excelling in his first leading role had led him down many a research rabbit hole- Some of which only led to places where Common feared to tread. He'd taken a more formal approach to his studies once Finn and he had begun to seriously discuss the possibility of visiting the ancient realm that seemed to be part of Arry's background in ways still undefined. The recent congruence of events that began with Talon's ill-fated wedding and the horrors they'd witnessed there and subsequent premature closing of his play, followed by Aurin's research in Antiris that connected Arry to Solunarium and finally their performance for the so-called 'Emissary of Light and Shadow', all felt like the weavings of... Well, fatum.

In some ways Arry felt overrehearsed for this trip, but in other ways he found himself entirely unprepared- The most salient instance of the latter that was recent on the half-elf's mind was how moved he was at parting from Aurin before embarking on the airship that would take them on the first leg of their journey. He knew it wouldn't be the last time he saw his saviour, and yet who could ever be certain of such things in a world where Gods could bleed on their wedding days when all They expected was Their happily ever afters... So the tears rained from his golden eyes, and Arry forgot the awkwardness of being in the presence of both his present lover and his predecessor at once. It was a scenario he'd dutifully avoided in most cases, but Aurin had been right to insist upon seeing them off, he realised, as he melted into the man before being passed off to Finn for the voyage.

Solunarium had only just opened diplomatic relations with Kalzasi in the aftermath of the presumed Zaichaeri attack, so obviously there were no direct flights to the distant kingdom. Even if such a journey was normal, it was a vasty voyage and stops would need to be made. In their case, this first airship would terminate (after a few stops) at Aur'arnis, before making its return trip to Kalzasi. Arry didn't know whether the route was normal or whether it had changed due to the recent tensions in the North, but whatever the case they had a full day layover in Auris before their next airship would depart for Cathena City.

Here was another area in which Arry found himself underprepared for their journey- He'd forgotten, having spent so much time in the eclectic (some might say chaotic) environs of Kalzasi that he wasn't very well travelled at all. Sure, he'd traipsed all over the globe on stage and enjoyed delicacies from the most distant of climes, met people from all over, but it was a different thing to be a tourist in a foreign land. He knew little of these Southron states, having devoted all of his energies to preparing for their final destination. Still, he was able to enjoy himself taking in the sights and carousing with the locals with feigned accents and fake names and backgrounds just for the fun of it.

After their lengthy layover in Cathena City, they would trade the skies for the seas and lose many of the luxuries they'd enjoyed aboard the two airships that had conducted them this far. The ships that sailed from The Republic of Cathena to the Kingdom of Solunarium were primarily trade ships. They took on what passengers paid their way, but they were designed for transporting cargo rather than people, so the accommodations were spartan at best and the food was more nourishing than it was flavourful.

But Arry had Finn, and Finn had Arry and both had their prospects to distract them, as well as their studies. Both were working at their facility with the Vastian tongue and, whilst Finn toiled at Traversion Arry manipulated his recent Rune of Masquerade. There were more indulgent means of passing the time, but privacy was rare in their bunk and so their intimate diversions were fewer than either of them would have preferred.

It was early one morning when Arry woke with a start, and sat up- pulling unconsciously from the strong arms that enveloped him every night. He wasn't sure why he'd woken so suddenly. He couldn't recall the dream he'd just inhabited, but the question was answered when the source of his wakefulness repeated itself- A deafening bellow that rattled the very boards of the ship.

"What the fuck?" He looked to Finn, to see the human was stirring from the clangour as well but the minstrel was as bleary-eyed and out of his depth as Arry himself. "I'm going up to the deck." He said, rushing to pull a robe over his form as the others who shared bunks in their cabin were roused by the sound. Arry darted up to the deck, his bare feet thudding up the wooden steps toward the blinding sunlight above. Just as he took his first breath of salty air and squinted at the blazing sun above, the light was obscured by a massive silhouette.

"Holy f-..." His expletive was drown out by the same sound that had woken him, but now it was louder- closer and he could see the source. "Is that a fucking dragon?!" He cried out as Finn joined him above decks.

"Zalkyriax." The captain clarified, drawing up to the two foreign passengers as he gazed up- seemingly almost as astonished as Arry was. "The Crownwyrm." He clucked his tongue and shook his head. "Now, that's a rare sight."

"Fatum." Arry smiled,

"Aye," Agreed the captain, grimly, "For good or ill."

But Arry didn't lose his grin as his gaze followed the dragon as it soared directly in between a pair of gigantic statues flanking the entry into a bustling harbour, which he quickly realised must be: "The Colossi at Tertium! Finn!" He reached for his lover's hand and gripped it as tightly as he had the day they fled the assault on the wedding reception. "We've arrived."

Once more the dragon bellowed as it soared West over the Port City of Tertium and into the greater Atraxian Expanse.

As Zalkyriax glided over the harbour beyond the statues, something large, but indiscernible at this distance, tumbled from the dragon's maw to splash into the choppy waters below.

"What was that?" Arry furrowed his brow. The captain, still standing by pursed his lips.

"The rest of the whale." He wasn't a prolix man, and to his mind that seemed information enough to satisfy the tourist at his side. "Ignosce." He said with a tip of his hat, before stepping back toward the helm to prepare for their entry into the port proper.

The harbour was situated in a way that forced all incoming and outgoing vessels to pass between the colossi. Awed by the scope of what lay before them, Arry craned his neck to look up at the founders blocking out the firmament. To the right stood Aværys Imperator. If the towering depiction was made of solid gold, as it appeared to be, it was more of the precious metal than Arry would have thought existed in the world. To the left on their approach loomed Varvara, similarly sized in apparent silver- though the resplendent sun above made both statues glint with blinding refractions that made them difficult to look upon for long. Perhaps, a poetical though crossed Arry's mind, that was what it was like to regard the gods themselves.

Once they'd passed beyond the still, silent sentinels, the harbour felt more familiar. The architecture was strange to Arry's eyes and, though it sat on the coast, seemed to evoke the desert with sandy hued structures that blended with the promontories upon which they stood. Ships and boats of diverse make were anchored and docked throughout the bustling port, and as they drew closer to their berth Arry could hear longshoremen barking out demands and warnings in sundry tongues.

Arry took in the sights- scanning the skies for further evidence of draconic activity, until they drew close enough that the other passengers began to emerge with their belongings.

"We should collect our things..." He noted, drawing Finn back belowdecks to properly dress and gather up their necessaries. At the bottom of the gangplank they were met by a dusky-skinned human dressed in a black uniform trimmed with silver studs and medals. He seemed to recognise them.

"Of Kalzasi?" Even in so few words, his accent was stark.

Arry wondered momentarily whether Finn's observation about the height disparity between himself and the monument was in jest. He'd only ever met the one deity and, while Talon was statuesque, he was not, like these, colossal. After a moment's further thought, he realised it must have been a joke and shuddered slightly.

"Indeed." He said, offering a slightly- distracted chuckle.

Arry just nodded in response to the Sentinel's question, as Finn replied verbally.

"Master Arvælyn." The man inclined his head to Arry with some reverence. He regarded Finn next with a comparable deficit of deference, "And Master Finn." He returned his dark gaze to the elf as he continued,

"I have, by Sentinel Phocion, been sent." He declared sternly. "You have been designated Magnati." He paused, before clarifying in Common- "Important ones." He gestured to the sprawling city behind him,

"Did you wish to spend any span of time exploring Tertium before heading to the capital? I was not, with an itinerary, provided." He said with apparent annoyance.

"Oh..." Arry furrowed his brow, "We'd planned to spend a night or two here at a tav-... At a taberna." He amended, adopting the local terminology. He might have tried a bit more Vastian, but he was taken aback and, being nervous, feared the embarrassment of misspeaking before a native speaker.

"I can arrange superior accommodation. You may be lodged at Sentinel Phocion's family villa, if you wish not to..." He paused, trying to recall the common idiom... "...slum it." He smiled faintly, perhaps pleased with himself for recalling the term or perhaps amused by it.

"We... did not anticipate this, um... amenity." Arry noted, casting a quizzical sidelong glance to Finn.

"Sentinel Phocion did not wish for you to undergo the many pitfalls faced by foreigners in Solunarium. May I collect your things?"

Finn's deference to his Elven companion and to the sentinel himself seemed to put him at ease. The man had met few foreigners- fewer still from as far afield as Kalzasi, and the tales he'd heard were altogether aberrant to his mind. But, if this young human was manservant or even concubine to the ostensible Elf of Aurum, as it seemed might be the case, then the arrangement fit the sense of order he perceived in the world. Whether or not it was noticed, Finn's use of Mesmer seemed to instill a physical sense of relief in the olive-skinned man- like he was soothed by the melody of an old, familiar song.

"I am Vigil Esclepius." He noted, before responding in earnest. "In my estimation, you have what is worth seeing in Tertium already seen. More than most, if you caught sight of Zalkyriax on the hunt..." The man cast his eyes to the skies, searching again for wyrmsign but coming up empty. "But you passed through the greatest and oldest monument in Tertium on your way into harbour: The Colossi." Even at this distance they were formidable.

"This city has been twice destroyed and rebuilt, but the Colossi have never fallen..." He explained with some degree of pride. "The rest of the city is... young and, to my taste, chaotic." It didn't look to be either to Arry's eyes. The architecture had a uniformity that was pleasing to the eye. It didn't look to be a layout with much symmetry, but he'd seen far more chaotic cities in terms of architecture. And even in this port area, things weren't as hectic as one often saw in such districts. It was noisy, it was bustling, but it wasn't what he could consider anything approaching chaos.

"Well..." Arry began, pausing to consider. "Why don't we get settled into our lodgings and figure it out from there?" He checked in with Finn, but Esclepius was already gesturing for two collared, liveried humans who'd been standing by, to collect their belongings.

"Ad Villam Phaedrae." The man instructed sharply, before returning his attentions to the Magnati. "By foot or by litter go we?"

Esclepius' expression softened to the point that he actually adopted a warm smile at Finn's reply.

"It was not always thus, for in antiquity's heart were dragons common seen in Atraxian skies, but today is it regarded auspicious. Particularly so far from Sorokyn." He turned his attention to the Elf of the pair and inclined his head, "And may this mark your visit blessed."

"Thank you..." Arry smiled, a bit overwhelmed. To his surprise he found himself relieved at Finn's suggestion that they travel on foot. The half-elf may have borne a haughty streak half a mile long, but a litter was a bit much even for him. Perhaps there would come a time when he'd seek to be a spectacle in this strange land, but for now he had a sense that it might be wiser to blend in.

"Val'Cithæron?" The Sentinel blanched slightly, his dark eyes widening as he regarded the golden elf with with newfound nerves. He shook it off after a moment and turned to the slaves:

"Ocius!" He barked, and the collared men set themselves to jogging up ahead. Arry accepted Finn's arm, and fell into step behind the Vigil. Esclepius took a more leisurely pace than he demanded of the servants. It was for the comfort of the guests and in case they had questions about anything along the route. The journey was uphill, but the incline wasn't a steep one. And the higher they climbed, the better their view of the greater city. He'd seen bigger, more cosmopolitan places to be sure, but there was an artfulness to the way the architecture was set into the cliffs and crags of the coastal landscape. The lapping ocean was a beautiful shade of blue- lighter than the seas they crossed en route. It might have looked like a painting if it weren't in motion. Perhaps an enchanted one, then.

The journey was not a long, nor an arduous one, and it was nice to have a stroll after the constraints of their sea voyage and preceding airship rides. Such travel by air and sea had been a first for Arry, at least. He'd traveled all the way from Antiris to Kalzasi on foot, so a little hike up a paved path was hardly an inconvenience.

The Phaedryn Villa was set high upon a cliff overlooking greater Tertium to its North with the sea far below to the East. The building was palatial with large, open windows visible. It was constructed of pale stone, lighter than its sandy surroundings. One couldn't tell at a distance, but perhaps it was marble.

"How beautiful..." Arry muttered in a voice as light as the breeze wafting off the waves below.