“Merc City…” Adam whispered to himself, staring out towards the rge city, the yers of walls separating the various districts like a tiered cake sliced randomly. Adam had no will to explore the city, his eyes barely taking in its intricate details, the rge city so different to the cities in Aldnd and Aswadia, no doubt home to thousands of different spiracies, but Adam’s heart yearned for home.

  The fishy smell filled the air, but thankfully the inn’s food cut through, the menu g anything eveely simir to fish, not even birds, the fish of the skies. Adam rubbed Vonda’s back as the smells tickled her nostrils, threatening tift the meals back to the inn’s floor.

  Adam noted a pair of figures in the er, a young woman with bck hair and dark eyes, and her panion, the tall stilted figure he had seen during their travel to the south. ‘Wasn’t she headed eastward. What’s she doing here?’

  As the ship sailed from the port, Adam he pair had joihe ship’s ranks, the woman staring out towards the sea.

  “What are you looking at?” Adam asked, staring out at the sea, his eyes flowing across the waves.

  “I just wao look at the sea.”

  “They don’t have seas where you’re from?” Adam joked.

  The woman gnced his way, while the figure beside her, covered head to toe, hunched slightly, stared at the half elf through the ask in front of their hat. The figure wore two crossed longswords upon their back, and a pair of shortswords oher side.

  “Not this sea.”

  “Yeah, fair.” Adam stared out towards the sea, the bobbing waves they tore through with swiftness upon their ship. “Not quite like the sea from home, eh?”

  “No,” the woman replied, swallowing slightly. “Not quite.” A bead of sweat ran down the side of her head.

  Adam gowards the figure with the numerous bdes. “Does your friend talk?”

  “He is mute.”

  “Smart. I’ve been told I talk too much. I do, it’s not like I don’t know that, but…” Adam shrugged his shoulders, fshing a smile towards the young woman. “What I do, eh? I wasn’t born with the gift of the gab, but I love yapping away.”

  “Yes?” The woman gnced his way once more, sizing him up once more, noting the axe at his side, and the shield upon his back. “You walk with the Iyrmen?”

  “That I do.”

  “Are they proteg you?”

  “In one way or another, I guess. One of them is my brother, and, I guess they’re proteg my wife more than me?”

  “Your wife is an Iyrman?”

  “No, she’s a Ray.”

  “A Ray of the Order?” the woman asked, her voice full of disbelief.

  “Yeah.”

  The woman raised her brow towards the half elf, sizing him up once more, trying to uand him, especially sidering the amulet against his chest. “How did you e to marry?”

  “She seduced me with her beauty and her personality, and my children adored her and I’m sure if I didn’t marry her, then they’d bully me too much.”

  The woman blinked. ‘He’s queer, even for an fae.’

  “What about you? What’s your story?”

  “I wao adventure while I could, before I have to return baarry.”

  “Ah. You have to marry? Well, I’m sorry to hear that. Unless you like it, in which case gratutions.”

  “You’re a strange one.”

  “I’m very queer, I hear, even for a leaf ear.”

  The woman gasped, reag up to hide her mouth at his fragrant use of the slur. “Excuse me.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “I didn’t expect you to say such a thing.”

  “Say what?”

  “The… words used to describe elves poorly.”

  “Leaf ear?”

  She bowed her head, still shocked he would speak the words again. She wasn’t sure she had ever heard any elf speak the words before, not even those who were only half bloods.

  “Is it such a bad word?”

  “Isn’t it?”

  “I guess so… I don’t know, I guess I don’t take it too seriously since usually people are so envious of me. I’m strong, handsome, rich, I have a beautiful family, a great job, and my family are crazy strong, also a little crazy too. I ’t help but bme them for being so envious, or jealous, or whichever is the right word.”

  Morkarai’s steps creaked towards the trio, also looking out towards the edge. He was followed by Lud Mara, who had taken the roles of the mermen who had left ohey had approached the strait between Aswadasad and Aldnd.

  “Adam.”

  “Yes?”

  “You are stressing the young dy.”

  “How am I stressing anybody? I’m just talking, Lord Morkarai, just talking.”

  ‘Lord Morakrai?’ the woman thought, gng towards the figure she had all but ignored during their inal journey. ‘How did I not guess he was the Prince?’

  “If you are missing your family that much, you should speak with your wife, and annoy her, ah, speak with her of your children. She will gush with you about them too.”

  Adam let out a huff, but he couldn’t deny the fact it was a great idea. “Right, she must be worried because I haven’t annoyed her enough, I mean, spoken to her enough about our adorable children.”

  Morkarai watched as the half elf left, before his eyes returned back to the sea. “It’s a lovely day, isn’t it?”

  “It is.”

  “I am Prince Morkarai of the voloes of Shakador.”

  “I am Jasmihe woman replied, without skipping a beat.

  “I see.” The fire giant’s eyes remained focused on the sea. “Has your journey been safe, miss Jasmine?”

  “It has.”

  “If you wish to tiravelling safely, perhaps you could join us to the business?”

  “The business?”

  “I am currently esc the group back to their business. They work for the Enter, who crafts such wonderful magical items, and the group deal irade.”

  ‘Is he the Enter?’ Jasmihought. “I have my own business.”

  “I will give you my advice as a Prince, and urge you to resider.”

  “…”

  “I will leave you to your thoughts,” Morkarai said, stepping away, with Lud Mara walking away with him, gng back towards the woman and her panion.

  The days on the ship tio pass, with little fanfare, and no trouble with sea serpents, mermen raiders, or pirates. Adam kept an eye on his seatit, Blues, who flew into the sky eagerly, with Hades following the bird to keep an eye on him. If another sea bird started to dart towards Blues, Adam sent out a Fme Bolt as a warning, which scared off most birds, while Hades brought the dead bodies of whichever birds were too stupidly ceous for their own good, a delieal for the sailors.

  The City of a Thousand Creeted the group towards the end of the month, the early afternoon suing down against the roofs. The docks were as lively as ever, with hundreds of burly fellows making their way assisting with loading and unloading crates and barrels, while sier fellows whose muscles were trapped within their skull checked the tents of the barrels aimated the fees for the various items making their way i Port.

  ‘Is it a gold for each bottle and ten gold for the crate, or is it a hundred gold for the crate and a silver per bottle?’ The young ma out a sigh before having his panion, a well built guard, bring out the Book of the Docks.

  “e on, Mustafa,” the half elf said, holding the boy’s hand as they made their way through the docks. “Let’s get you to an inn and then we go grab Elsie.”

  “Feeah! Feeah!” The boy pined, holding his hands up, making to cry, before the half elf lifted him up.

  “Alright, alright,” Adam said, brushing the boy’s hair. “You must be so hungry, yeah? You want some food? Should we buy some fruit?”

  “Fut,” the boy firmed, staring at the various stalls of the docks, the fishy smell permeating the air. He coughed and hid his head against Adam’s chest.

  “Right, right, it smells so weird, doesn’t it?”

  Trick: Tricks

  Adam ted out the words to a spell and waved his hand, a puff of vender filling the air, causing the boy’s head to jerk to the side to find the source of the smell. “What? You like that smell?”

  “Haa?”

  Adam chuckled, followed closely behind by Jaygak, who held the devilkin twins, with Karim, Ali, and Omer following her, while Bil held Zainab as he trailed behind them. Jurot and Kitool fhe trio of boys, while Morkarai, Lucy, Mara, and Vonda followed closely behind, with Vonda wearing a scarf around her face to force away the smell of fish, gd the Captain had inse aboard.

  “No more bird, no more cool water, no more swift sailing,” Captain Rais said, watg the group leave, letting out a sigh. “Shukur, we made old.”

  “Captain, what of the-,”

  “No,” Captain Rais replied, shaking his head. “You are thinking too much. They came onto our ship, paid our , they left our ship. We know no more of any of them.”

  The young sailor raised his brows, unsure of how the Captain knew what he was going to say before he even said it. ‘He’s sailed for that long…’

  Karza she air, gng aside, managing to catch whiffs of all manner of different sts. Her rge form, only a hair taller than the Prince, was still rger than most within the port, and so many gave her a wide berth as she lead the group forward.

  An hour after the group arrived i Port, Adam and Jurot made their way to a particur district withiy, while Jaygak made her way to a different particur district.

  “Elsie!” Adam called out, fshing a wide smile towards the girl, dropping down to a knee as he smiled warmly towards her. “We’re back.”

  “Mister Adam,” the girl said, blinking towards the half elf. “Hello!”

  “Hello, hello! Did the temple treat you well?”

  “Mhmm.”

  “Alright, that’s good to know. I’ll be sure to pay them a lot for looking after you so well, yeah?” Adam fshed a small smile, brushing the girl’s hair. “Look at you in that habit, how adorable.”

  Elsie flushed slightly at Adam’s words, gng down at her clothes, which revealed only her face, just like Vonda.

  “Thank you again, Mother. We’ll have the money sent to you by the end of the year, hopefully with some more to apologise for the time. If you have any need of our services, please do call, we will prioritise you.”

  “I would like to resider taking Elsie. She is a bright girl, and she would thrive within our temple.”

  Adam tio smile towards the mother, his eyes shutting tight, his head pulsing, his jaw tensing up. An aura covered the half elf, who remained silent and still, standing almost like a statue.

  “I appreciate your words, and I’ll take your advice to heart, but I would like to take Elsie with us so that we look after her personally. She is still our VIP, and though we usually wouldn’t leave her within the hands of another, it was too dangerous to take her with us. However, now that we’ve returo nd, I am fident that we’re able to protect her, and provide for her a life that is great, even if it’s not the same life as that which you could provide for her.” Adam’s eyes remained narrowed almost to the point of being shut, yet he remained speaking with as much politeness he could muster.

  The Mother smiled, bowing her head lightly, relenting to the half elf.

  “I like it iemple,” Elsie said.

  “I know.” Adam dropped down to a knee again and rubbed the girl’s cheek. “Ray Vonda is going to miss you if you don’t e along. How about this? You e along with us to the business. You spend your time there and then ter I’ll ask you if you want to spend your time at the business or the temple, and if you want to e back, I’ll bring you back.”

  “Okay…” Elsie squirmed slightly upon all the adult’s gazes.

  Adam bowed his head towards the Mother, before walking away with Elsie, feeling his steps grow heavier and heavier, the warm hand within his own causing him to pause.

  ‘Should I really bring her along? We barely have enough people to protect the other kids…’

  Wait, what? He has a name now?