Ascension (10 page)

Shocked, I looked
at the guard
’
s
cross expression, his hand in Croxley
’
s grip, and then at Croxley.
Turning his head to look behind at me, he held my gaze as he shoved
the guard
’
s
hand down.

“
I think
you
’
ve searched
enough. Are we good to go on?
”
His voice
held a threat, implying that there would be a problem if they held
us any longer. Luckily, things didn
’
t escalate, as the large crowd
demanded the guards
’
attention. We walked through the entrance and I was
relieved to find it much calmer than our previous
setting.

Wagons were being pulled in the
street by the most elegant horses, some so large that their nose
alone was the size of my head. Maidens strolled the city in
extravagant dresses, and merchants had stands set up on every
corner. But most incredible were the buildings. In Cethin, we slept
in dens, with only the most necessary pieces of furniture. We had
no use for walls of wood or stone because the earth provided us
with everything we needed. But here, the buildings were at least
three horses high, packed together so tightly that, had they been
people, would have been standing shoulder to shoulder. Each
building was made of its own material, as they were all in
competition be the most original structure.

Some were made of wood, with
intricate carvings over the doorways, different stains coloring the
wood with unnatural shades of blues and reds. Others were made of
bricks, with shackled roofs that promised a dry head when the rain
came. There were even some buildings made of granite and marble,
most likely mined in Cethin. The marble had been transformed into
pillars and statues, while the granite floors had been polished to
make every individual speck shine.

In awe, I
couldn
’
t help
but wonder how everything was kept so clean. That was, until I saw
a horse relieve itself. From an alley in the building, a manservant
dressed in very plain garb came out unnoticed by everyone, save me.
He quickly scooped up the waste, brushed the area clean, and
returned back to the alleyway. This entire scene played out in less
than a minute, and try as I might, I couldn
’
t keep track of the man after he
walked more than a few steps.

Is this my future, I thought to
myself, to become invisible?

“
When do we see
the King?
”
I asked Croxley, who was
guiding Sir Thunder a few steps ahead of me.

Without turning
around, he answered,
“
Most likely
tomorrow. The King is very busy. We will have to stay in an inn for
the night. Once we check in, I
’
m going to leave and make an
appointment with the King.
”

“
What
’
s
an
‘inn
’
?”
Croxley stopped and turned around, and I shrugged to
indicate my ignorance. He was obviously surprised that I
didn
’
t know
what an inn was, and began to explain.

“
It
’
s a place where you pay to eat
and can oftentimes find a place to stay overnight. Some are very
nice, while others are
…
well, we'll avoid
those ones,
”
he said, turned back
around.
“
Follow me. I know a good
one.
”

As we passed
through the city, I couldn
’
t help but stare at those we
passed. Nearly every citizen appeared special in some way. The
women ranged from small and delicate to large and volumptious, and
even the worst-dressed of them stole your attention. Your eyes
couldn't help but linger on their beauty. The men were equally
varied, with a mix of men of smaller, almost feminine stature to
large, muscular individuals who appeared capable of pulling a
carriage on their shoulders, and all those in between. We walked
south to the plaza and on the corners were performers; women
contorted with their feet curling over their back, men swallowing
swords, instrumentalists, vocalists, a whole menagerie of
impressive feats. Once again, I wondered what would become of me in
this city where I was little more than another face, and a dirty
face at that.

We arrived at the inn, which
happened to be a tall, white building, black and gold trim framing
the doors and the windows. There were windows on both the ground
and higher up on the building, and through a higher one I saw a
face. I wondered how someone managed to get their face all the way
up there.

I noticed a sign atop the door. The
lettering was white on a black background, with gold detail etched
around the edge of each letter. The Golden Inn.

Well that fits.

As we walked in,
a mouthwatering aroma swept over me, and I could barely stand it.
Having finished the last of my food this morning, with only a few
berries to tide me over, I was famished. By the look of
Croxley
’
s
reaction, he was hungry as well. As he spoke to the man at the
front counter, my attention drifted elsewhere. I was hypnotized by
the plates of food that walked out of the kitchen and into the main
room, where groups of people sat at tables waiting to eat. There
were dishes I could recognize, like stew and bread, but never had I
seen such meals so artistically arranged. In addition, there were
plates that had food I hadn
’
t even known existed, trailing
scents behind them that left my stomach growling. Then, when I
thought it couldn
’
t get any better, a dish like no other passed under my nose
and had be salivating. Filled with what looked like my forest
berries was a shallow bowl made of bread, it both looked and
smelled like heaven.

“
Fara. Fara!”
Embarrassed, I realized that Croxley had been calling my
name. I turned towards him.

“
What?
”

“
I
’
m taking our rides to the
stables. Afterwards, I
’
m going to head over to the castle to inform the King of
your impending evaluation. It won
’
t take too long. Now,
”
he said, adjusting the bags and handing them off
to me,
“
if you could take these bags to
our room, it is upstairs, two doors to the left. Here is the
key.
”
He handed me a small, golden key,
which I rotated around in my palm. Even the keys to their doors
were nicer than the finest jewelry we had in Cethin. All of the
gold, jewels, and stones that we mined were immediately sent back
to Ahrenia, and if we were found hoarding any of it, the punishment
was severe.
“We
’
ll meet back in here, and then we can get something to
eat.
”

I turned around
and tried to figure out how to get on the second floor. Having been
distracted by the food, I hadn
’
t noticed the stairs behind the
innkeeper, leading upwards. Carrying our bags, I walked up the
stairs and found our door. I made it to what I assumed was our door
and put the bags down. I tried to open the door, but it was locked.
I pulled and pushed on it, not sure how to work the door. In
Cethin, we only had cloaks and the occasional slab of wood
separating one room from another. This one, however,
wouldn
’
t budge,
no matter how hard I pushed against it. Feeling slightly foolish, I
searched for some hint on how to open it. Then I remembered the key
in my hand, and saw the small round metal knob sticking out of the
door, which had a small whole underneath it. I managed to jam the
key inside the hole and moved it around until the lock finally
clicked and the door swung open. Balancing a bag on my chest, I
couldn
’
t get a
good view of the room, which is why I nearly tripped when I ran
into the bed.

In Cethin, we slept on mats made up
of a few blankets laid over a pile of soft dirt. So when I saw the
bed, lifted off the ground like the clouds that floated in the sky,
I immediately dropped my bags and threw myself upon it. It felt
heavenly, my body sinking into its warmth, the soft sheets
caressing my skin, the pillow cupping my head in its gentle grip.
All troubles forgotten, I could have laid there for the rest of my
life. Eventually, the smell of food wafted up through the
still-open door, and my empty stomach protested against my
immobility. With a groan and a stomach rumble, I dragged myself off
the bed.

Descending the stairs, I scanned for
Croxley.

“
Fara!”
I spotted
him, waving his hand in the air to catch my attention. He was
sitting at a table with a large plate in front of him. I approached
him but stopped when I saw what was on the table. I eyeballed at
the plate expectantly, mesmerized by the duck stuffed with bread,
surrounded by potatoes and carrots.

“
That looks
delicious,
”
I told him, my mouth
watering.

Croxley just
looked at me.
“You don
’
t think I
’
m buying you a plate, do you?
”

“
Oh,
um
…
right. Sorry.
”

Croxley held my
gaze for a few more seconds, and then broke it with a laugh.
“Fara, I
’
m sorry. I
was just kidding. Here, sit down,
”
he
said, pulling out a chair for me. I sat down, my emotions in a
whirl, while Croxley motion a servant over, who came with another
plate of food.
“Dig in,”
he
announced.

And I did.

Chapter
11

After our dinner,
which was by far the greatest thing I
’
d ever eaten, we returned to our
room. Sitting on the edge of the bed, I took off my boots, and then
fell back with a resounding
“
oomph
”
. I rubbed my hands over my
distended stomach, which, for the first time in my life, was full
to the point of bursting. I sighed with pleasure as I felt the soft
mattress curve to the shape of my body. Interrupting my bliss, I
felt the bed shift under Croxley
’
s weight as he sat down beside
me. It was only then that I realized there was one bed, and two
people. My mind unsuccessfully reached for a way to address the
situation, and I squirmed away from Croxley as much as the space of
the bed would allow.

“
Comfortable?
”
He asked me, laying
down next to me.

“
Um, yeah. We
don
’
t have
anything like this in Cethin.
”

“
If you want to
see a real bed, you should try the castle. You could lay five
people in one bed! Talk about a good time.
”
Croxley chucked, but stopped when he saw the concerned
expression on my face.
“
Not that
I
’
m thinking
about that here. Um, I
’
ll take the floor and you can have the bed.
”
With that, he got up, took the top sheet from
the bed, and lay it on the ground.

I felt compelled to offer him the
bed, since he was paying for the room, but the longer I lay on it,
the deeper I sunk, and the harder it was for me to keep my eyes
open. In an effort to stay awake, I rolled on my side, propping
myself up on my elbow to peer over the edge of the bed at Croxley,
who was laying on the floor.

“
Croxley? Are you
still awake?
”

“
Just barely,”
he
replied. I arranged myself into a somewhat seated position,, a
thought buzzing in the back of the head that I knew would keep me
awake all night if I didn
’
t voice
it.

“
What made you
change your mind about me? Why are you suddenly being so,
well
…
kind? I mean, you helped me with the
guard, you bought me dinner, and now you
’
re letting me sleep in this bed
while you sleep on the floor.
”

Croxley rolled
over onto his back, his hands behind his head and his face turned
to the ceiling.
“
Honestly? Because
you
’
ve proved
to me that Nethers are indeed worth more than dirt. At home, they
tell us as children that your people are the cause for all the wars
of our past, the ones to blame for illness, poverty, and sadness.
They describe Ahrenia as it was before the purge and compare it to
the Ahrenia of today. I mean, you saw the city today. It was nearly
spotless, and everyone was content with themselves. And I can tell
you, it gets much nicer as you get to the castle.

With this in
mind, it
’
s no
wonder the guards treat you like trash. Indeed, we know what goes
on down there. But you have to understand, the idea that Nethers
are little better than the worst criminals is one that is shared
among all Ahrenians. It
’
s just how we are raised. But
you
’
ve shown me
that you
’
re the
same as us, if not better. There
’
s no reason that you and your
people should be stuck underground, when you
’
ve done nothing wrong. When I
saw that guard touch you like that, just because he had found out
that you are a Nether
…
I realized that I
had been no different. What I did to you in the cavern,
”
he looked at me and paused,
“
for that, I am sorry.
”