The ship sailed for two days, and I remember none of it. The only thing that mattered was the endless rocking of the ship. I spent those two days either staring at the bottom of a bucket or throwing up over the side. I know it stormed the entire trip. I also know it was not the captain’s fault the sea was rougher than normal, but I have officially decided I will never set foot on another ship until the day I die again.
I finally stepped off the planks of the ship and happily collapsed to the ground. The world still felt like it was rocking. My stomach already hates me, and now my nose is filled with the putrid smell of fish.
“Is this Aktaio?” I asked, standing with shaking knees. I looked around curiously. Wooden docks stretched into the water, lined up side by side for as far as the eye could see. Thousands of ships rested at the port, ranging from small fishing rafts to massive warships.
Sailors, fishermen, and merchants roamed the coast by the hundreds. The noise of thousands of people taking simultaneously pounded in my ears. This was a prosperous place, but right now I wished it had been a little more deserted.
“This is the port of Cymba,” replied my mother, “Aktaio is still a two-hour walk inland from here.”
“I’m not sure I am up for walking right now,” I said holding my upset stomach.
“Walking will be better for you than taking a carriage. That will probably just make you sicker.”
My mom took my hand and began leading me through the busy streets. She took a few turns, and even cut down an ally at one point. “Amazing how little has changed,” She said as she led the family around. She stopped at a stall selling food. “I remember when I was a little girl. I would always come down to the docks and get these Tiganites. I loved them.”
I stood on my tiptoes as I looked at the booth she was talking about. It looked like a small minnow, about the size of my finger, battered and fried. “That… still has a head.”
“That’s right, you eat them whole. Do you want to try one?”
“Even if my stomach was not currently trying to kill me, I don’t think I could eat that.”
My mother shrugged. “More for me then. Does anyone else want some?” She asked, ordering a large number of the tiny fish.
Charly cautiously bit into one, and his face lit up. “They are surprisingly really good.”
My father laughed and grabbed a handful of them. “Can’t be worse than the first few years your mother was learning to cook.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to try one?” my mother asked munching down on the fish while scowling at my father.
Sylvie and Nox hoped around excitedly as my mom fed them one each, but I was still hesitant.
“Maybe later,” I mumbled.
We were carefully inspected as we passed through the large stone gate out of the port. The guards seemed to be looking for something small since they went through each and every one of our packs carefully. They even patted each of us down, which was very uncomfortable. Only after the in-depth inspection did they let us pass.
My mother frowned, even while snacking on her fishy treat. “That is new. I used to be able to pass through the gates with barely a nod from the guards.”
“We are all armed.” Pointed out Charly.
Mom shook her head. “This was different from that. It reminds me of… about twenty years ago, when your father and I served in the king’s battalion. There was a drug epidemic. It was an extremely addictive drug people called blackout. It caused a lot of problems for a lot of people.”
“It can’t be Blackout,” My father replied, “There was only ever one supplier of that who knew how to make it, and he was caught and imprisoned by the king.”
“I know, but this reminds me of then.”
With my mother lost in thought, we stepped through the gate. On the other side was not the open field I expected. Instead, either side of the road was well-maintained stone walls. The walls stretched for as far as I could see.
“Cymba is connected to the city of Aktaio by this passageway. It stretches the entire two hours walk inland,” My mother explained, “That is just how important the port is to the city. If one is ever besieged by enemies, this wall allows the easy passage of supplies or reinforcements to the other. Multiple gatehouses line the passageway, so the only real way to take Aktaio by force is to attack both places simultaneously.”
“A lot of effort must go into maintaining something like this,” I mussed.
“It is worth it,” My mother replied, “Forty years ago, chancellor Otto led the Free Cities in revolt against the Novus kingdom. Aktaio was the first city king Sebastion attacked. those were dark days, but when the siege failed, the other cities were inspired to join the cause of freedom.”
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Otto, that was a familiar name. “I remember. Wasn’t Otto a loyal knight under the king’s banner? He had a divine eyes innate talent that was rather useful. He was there the day I was slain. why did he revolt?”
“Officially, it is because of the king’s policies that attempted to supersede the city’s culture. I am fairly sure that is a lie though. Unofficially, I heard a rumor that chancellor Otto had a falling out with the king over a woman. Either way, the chancellor has led the Free Cities to prosperity. He is a well-respected man. He never declared himself king, or as some supreme ruler, despite having the power to. Instead, an elected council runs Aktaio, and by extension the coalition of free cities.”
My mom continued to ramble on about the politics of the Free Cities for the next two hours. Aktaio was a novel place, allowing anyone who owned property to run for the council. It was an oddity, rarely seen in the Endless War since most places were dominated by a single person with extraordinary power. The coalition of the many city-states however, worked very similarly to the Thirteen Divisions on a smaller scale. Each city had its own laws and cultures, but they banded together to fight against a common foe.
Eventually, our walk came to an end. My stomach was feeling better, and I even mustered up the courage to try one of my mom’s fish snacks. They were better than I expected.
Before us towered the city of Aktaio. Towering over the walls was a single building built on a plateau that looked out over the sprawling city. White pillars of the mighty structure gleamed in the midday sun. Down below, a metropolis sprawled down one side of the hill below the plateau. Almost all of the buildings at a higher elevation were built from white marble, making the whole city shine.
Thousands of people moved about their day, standing in stark contrast to when I was in the Novus capital. Nobody here was scared. Children played and laughed. People gather in groups, discussing the latest rumor. The streets were clean, free of filth that normally gathered at city entrances.
My mother stopped at every new building marveling at all the changes she found and every place that remained the same after all the years. She had us get dinner at a building she remembered fondly from her youth. As time dragged on and she stopped at yet another shop, it became obvious she was purposefully delaying. Every so often I would catch her glancing nervously up the hill.
“Honey, it’s time. We cannot sightsee all day. We came here for a reason,” said my dad, placing a hand on her shoulder.
“I know… I just…. I haven’t spoken to them for over twenty-five years, and I did not leave on the best of terms. What if they do not want to see me? What if they don’t agree to help.” my mother looked up the hill, hesitation visible in her eyes.
“We have to go. Unless you know someone else that can help us, we will never be able to meet with the council without them.”
She clenched her fists and took a deep breath. “You are right, of course.”
She was silent the entire walk up the hill. Overhead, I could see a large statue of a man placed on the plateau. A statue of Otto that looked down at us. Watching our every step.
We stopped in front of a pure white mansion. Carefully tended flowers decorated the entirety of the front of the house. They were beautiful, but the sheer amount of them drowned out the house. There was not a single free spot of dirt that did not have flowers growing.
My mother walked up the door with stiff, jerking movements. She hesitated for a moment before knocking heavily on the door.
A few moments passed and a man dressed in servant attire opened the door. He examined us with a critical eye. He squinted when he saw us. I doubt our travel-weary attire did us any favors. None of us were dressed nicely. My father and mother were still even wearing leather armor.
“I am sorry, but we are not hiring any more informants at the moment. You will have to try your luck next season,” said the servant in a flat tone.
“We are not here for a job,” My mother replied curtly, “We are here to see the lord and lady of the house tell them… tell them Tia is here to see them.”
The servant was about to say something when he froze. His expression changed to shock as he carefully looked at my mother. The tone of his voice changed to a high pitch squeak. “Tia... is that really you... Please, come in. I will get Lady Selene right away.”
The servant guided us through a large entrance hall with two massive staircases and into a smaller room with bright blue furniture. The room screamed money. Fur rugs covered the marble floor. Embroidered curtains hung from golden rods. Silver and jeweled decorations were scattered throughout everywhere. Just the wealth in this one room could probably buy our entire village back home.
My mother frowned as she stared at one of the nearby silver decorations. She ran her hand over a wooden table as she began to pace around the room nervously. Nobody spoke, we simply waited in silence.
Time passed, and I began to fidget. My mother glared at me. “Sit up straight and act proper.”
My mouth hung open. Since when did she care? Did she actually want to make a good impression with these people? If so, we should have changed first so we did not look like homeless vagabonds.
Finally, the door opened and a woman walked into the room. She had grey hair and moved slowly in an extravagant red dress. Fresh makeup, still shining in the evening light, covered the wrinkles on her skin. She did not smile when she saw us but instead crossed her arms with a scowl identical to my mom’s.
“Prometia… Twenty-six years, and you could not bother to make yourself presentable before randomly showing up on my doorstep.”
“It is good to see you too mother.” My mom replied with a scowl of her own.
“Are you finally done playing soldier, and ready to come home and act like a proper lady?”
My mom walked up to the woman, face red with anger. “I have not been playing anything. I am retired with honors as a well-respected knight of the land. Not that you would care about something unsophisticated like that." she said turning away from her mother with a huff, “It was a mistake to come here. I should have never expected anything from you!”
“No, wait!” my grandmother said, reaching out with her arm. her expression changed for the first time, and her next words came out as a whisper. “I am happy to see you… and I am sorry for… everything. stay. It has been so long. I do not want us to part like this again.”
I could see the tears in my grandmother’s eyes, as her body shook.