Rata Sum. Main city of the Asura since 1173 AE. Inhabitants: approximately 157.000, total area of the Sum-territory: 25 square kilometers. Average life expectancy: 87 years. Main cause of death: downfall of the city surface, planned as well as unplanned, closely followed by explosions and intoxication as a result of lab accidents.
I kept scrolling through the information about Rata Sum for a while with the help of a Data Pod that I had borrowed from the pubic archives the day before. Since Narru had validated me as an official family member in front of the Arcane Council three days ago, I did not only own a permanent permit of residence, but I was allowed every privilege of a normal citizen as well. Meaning I had access to most of the upper archives, got benefits while using Asura Portals and I was allowed to enter a college, as long as I was able to present a suitable project for approval. The last point was still lying far ahead of me, but at least I could dig myself through all kinds of lectures and recordings and learn a bit more about the knowledge that still failed me.
I sat inside the softly swaying hammock with crossed legs, wrapped into one of the softest blankets I had been able to find on the market. It was still early morning, but for whatever reason I hadn't been able to fall asleep again and I didn't even know what had woke me up in the first place. At least nothing had been exploding in the dorms and everything else was quiet too, since every halfway normal Asura would still be peacefully sleeping. If I now tried to lie down again, I would be tired for the rest of the day, which was for sure. But I still couldn't find the right motivation to get up, thus I busied myself in dim light with the development history of Rata Sum.
Other than expected it hadn't been the Asura who built Rata Sum, as they had only repopulated the abandoned city after the old civilization had failed to endure. The details of that civilization couldn't be found in any document, there were no name and no date, but it was clear that the Asura had rebuilt the city and claimed it as their own after being driven from the underground by the Elder Dragons. Down in the depths of the cube, Golems were still busy with clearing and expanding the Rata to make it habitable. Kekk had taken me down to the catacombs of the city once, and they had fascinated me so much I definitely wanted to get down there again as soon as possible.
The catacombs basically were a quite dramatic, but still fitting name for what I had found down there; mostly destroyed stone foundations, overgrown by wild dark-loving plants, waterfalls here and there caused by damaged pipelines and most of all scrap and every kind of trinkets that someone might have lost before. The hot jungle air wasn't present at all down there, it was cold instead and damp and everything had a scary echo. The light source came from the fluorescence of the plants, maybe even radioactive laboratory residues and here and there a glimpse of light from the upper city. It was full of wildlife, and none of it had tried to attack me yet.
Getting back up again was the only hard part about it. Because the catacombs were mostly still undiscovered, the Arcane Council had forbidden anyone to stay there. Of course no one kept that rule, not even some members of the council itself, but because of this law there were no proper possibilities to ascend, no stairs or portals. After the descend hat proven to be more or less easy if you could climb somewhat good, you had to make sure there was someone in the upper city who got you back up with the help of some kind of rope. I'd have to ask Kekk for help if I wanted to get down again. Or maybe I should just make more friends within Rata Sum.
Only a quarter of the population lives inside the central cube, most of them reside in the outer commons of Rata Sum, the Arkentia Valley, the Magus Valley, the Riven Valley or even the neighboring areas of Soren Draa. The center contains mostly laboratories and studying rooms of the three colleges, Statics, Synergetics and Dynamics.
I soon had learned why most of the people avoided living inside the cube. It was loud; things exploded all the time and you had to live with the fear of being exposed to invisible toxins and radiation. The peacemakers assured on a regular base that the filter systems were working flawlessly, but there were rumors maintaining the contrary. Though I didn't have another chance at the moment, since my financial income would never be enough for a proper flat or even a whole house.
During one of my last visits I had asked Zojja how much money such a reputable and gifted Asura like her would make, but I hadn't been given an answer. Although Zojja had given me an invitation to visit her home inside the Magus Valley some day, and now that I knew how high the rent was there, I could imagine how rich you had to be in such a position.
The main focuses of the city are the colleges, which are assigned their own part of the city, even though the numbers of students slightly vary from college to college. Roughly 30% of students in Rata Sum are affiliated to Dynamics, around 46% Synergetics and only 24% Static.
I deactivated the data pod with a sigh and returned it to the other pods and books on my desk. One after another I could hear the other Asura inside the sleeping dorms waking up, as there were footsteps and whispered voices on the floors. I collected an ordinary outfit, a brown shirt with geometric shapes and wide black pants, held around the waist with a broad belt. The shoes that completely covered the toes had proven to be most suitable for travelling, and since I didn't know what would await me on my journey to Nahraija, I choose them. While Kekk had ensured me that Metrica and Caledon would be harmless for travelers as long as you didn't leave the paths and behaved nondescript to everything that could become dangerous, I didn't trust his words completely. According to this I had my armor stowed inside my backpack as I would be able to move way faster if I didn't have to wear it all the time. But my hammer was still fixed at its proper place on my back; it gave me a certain feeling of safety that I didn't want to miss.
Of course I could have simply used the portal in Lion's Arch, but I wanted to learn more about this world that I was in now, and besides I could get to know more people on the way (and save a bit of money by the way that I could need some day).
As I ascended the ramp to the upper levels, the sun was just rising above the sea and painted the sky in a wonderful play of colors. Only a few small clouds slowly rolled by over my head and it didn't look like rain would come for the rest of the day. The weather couldn't have been better for travels. I strolled over to the Synergetics kiosk where only a few Asura sat around this time of day and politely greeted Bromm, who was already preparing everything for the coming inrush inside his small kitchen.
Bromm greeted back, but he avoided looking at me and didn't try to start any other conversation, unlike on my first day in Rata Sum. Oddly enough that gave me a disappointed prickle inside my chest, and again I wondered what had gone so terribly wrong the other morning. I still didn't want to believe that he had only been friendly to me because of Zojja. On the other side, what else could have been the reason for him to kick me out so suddenly after I had revealed my intellectual weakness?
I chose something I could easily eat on the way because I didn't intend to stay here longer than possible. And those sandwiches were not only practical but looked absolutely delicious as well. Bromm might have been unpredictable, but cooking was definitely something he could do.
While I hit the road to the portal to Soren Draa, I went through my plans for today. Depending on how long I would need to get to the Grove, I would have to take the Lion's Arch portal for the way back so I would be ready for my work at the Aquatarium in time, as I had sacrificed my only day off for the training with Aidan. What could prove to be a fatal mistake if he keeps torturing me like this.
Luckily for me, there wasn't much traffic yet at the portal. One after another, all Asura from Metrica and other surrounding areas came to begin their daily work in Rata Sum. Thus the gate monitors were busier with checking the people entering the city and just scanned my tag without further examination. One more benefit of the permanent citizenship, both for the guards and for me. While I had been forced to pay for each transit on-site before, I could now just credit the sums to some kind of bill that had to be paid in regular intervals. That made traveling way faster and simple, while it increased the risk of losing overview over my expanses.
The air in Soren Draa was a bit hotter and oppressive than it had been in Rata Sum, because the wind brought by the sea usually got stuck on the high mountains between Metrica and the main city, causing the air to dam up noticeably. Now in the morning the temperature was still bearable, as it would get really hot around midday when the sun was heating up everything to a maximum. I wasn't that much bothered by the heat – since I had spent a week in the Shiverpeaks I was thankful for every sunbeam that could warm me.
I careered along the streets of Soren Draa with brisk tempo, watched the many labs being booted bit by bit as well as the living homes, where now in the morning every window was widely opened as long as the heat wasn't too strong. The world of the Asura wasn't too different at all from the world I had known. The daily routine was getting up and to work, only to spend time with family and friends in the evening. The only difference was that the technology in Metrica was dimensioned for making your life easier instead of hampering it by inventing unnecessary junk.
Many of the Asuran inventors wouldn't make it far for sure with their creations, but if humans in my world had invented cleaning golems and all that for their cities, life would have been way easier for sure. Asura of course used the additional time to create even more and even better things, quite contrary to all the humans back in my home.
I was driven by conflict again, like every time I compared both worlds with each other. Tyria was a wonderful place as far as I could tell, people had a comfortable standard of living if you ignored the communal showers, and Tyria promised so many adventures and wonderful things that I could have never dreamt of! But on the other side it was full of dangers that I hadn't been prepared for, and the whole land was shaken by the fight against the dragons. Not really something life-extending. And last but not least I simply was a stranger. I was a human, didn't belong here, had no business in this world. Basta. The sooner I could find a way to return home, the better.
Maybe it's a mistake to make new friends while I'm here? Wouldn't that make getting home only harder? Though I'd need contacts to even find a possibility for returning… and as long as I was stuck in this world, I didn't want to relinquish some familiarities.
Finding the way to Caledon was easy. At first, I had to ask for directions on every crossing, but it seemed that the Asura were more friendly on the countryside than they had been in the city, and at the level of Desider Atum I found a small caravan that had the same destination. They were two Sylvari and each of them was leading their own heavily laden ox as they were making their way back home to the Grove again after selling various goods in the small village. I had overheard by chance where they wanted to travel and the female Sylvari, Levinny, had been eager to accept my company for the duration of our short travel.
Sylvari were a fascinating people, and Levinny didn't form an exception. Her bark was blue with slightly violet patterns, and out of her head grew something resembling a shrub that just began to bloom. Her dark eyes glowed, or at least the one that wasn't hidden by a monocle, her face was covered by a never ending smile and her appearance was rounded by a bottom-long leather coat, jackboots and a huge rifle hanging loosely around her shoulder. But the weight of the enormous weapon didn't seem to bother her as she almost danced light-footedly next to her ox and happily told me about everything coming to her mind.
Levinny had woken ten years ago in the Cycle of Day, and she was one of the few Sylvari who hadn't been gifted with a Wyld Hunt (or hadn't been cursed, in her words). The Wyld Hunt, at least so she explained to me, was some sort of inherent quest that wouldn't let go of you and would chase you with an inner unrest until the Hunt was done. Some could complete their Hunt quite fast, while others – such as Pact Marshal Trahearne – were given a seemingly impossible task like cleansing Orr.
"Most see the Wyld Hunt as a great honor, but I am glad that I don't have to mess with something like that. I have enough things to do already, who needs a predefined task on top of that that I maybe wouldn't even want to complete?" Levinny laughed and gave her ox a dab on his hind legs so he would maintain his reasonably quick pace.
The Sylvari next to her only grunted barely hearable, and that was when I noticed that he hadn't said a single word since we had started moving. I let the oxen pass by to get to the other side and examined the Sylvari while we continued walking. He was small, minimum smaller by a head compared to Levinny for sure, but still way taller than me. A night black coat covered him from head to toe and the hood covered most of his face so I could only see a pair of glistening eyes examining me constantly the same way I stared at him. Something about them seemed to say: Go away! Don't look at me; it won't bode well for you!
I grinned at the stranger nonetheless and asked: "And who are you? I can't remember that we have been introduced to each other." But the only answer I got was this pair of glistening eyes that were tapered to small slits only to focus on what lay in front of us again.
Levinny giggled and slightly shifted the weight of the rifle over the shoulder. "Excuse him; he's not much of a talker when it comes to strangers. But he is harmless as long as you don't challenge him for his books."
"The mysterious stranger it is then." I mumbled and kept walking besides the Sylvari for some while longer, hoping that he might speak to me eventually, but his mouth remained closed. Only his eyes kept wandering down to me now and then, and every time I could almost hear his voice inside my head. Go. Back off. Leave me alone.
I gave up after a while and switched to Levinny's side again since a conversation with her promised to be way more comfortable and less one-sided. I admired her hair or at least whatever was growing on her head, most of all how the buds seemed to glow in the twilight of the trees.
"Those things on your head, the buds… Will they blossom some day? And how does it feel to have a shrub on your head?"
Levinny was shaken with laughter and her whole body seemed to glow even though the area around us should have still been too bright for her fluorescent features. She lifted her hands and plucked one of the buds and held it towards me in her open palm. I watched with amazement as it opened slowly to reveal bit by bit a wonderful pink bloom, and its inside glowed the same way Levinny did. She tucked the bloom behind my ear and giggled again because of my confused face.
"It's hard to describe for someone who can't feel it. I suppose plucking one of those feels similar to tear out a strand of hair? But I can't tell for sure. What I know is that we have an effect on the way we grow up to a certain point. I can make those buds blossom whenever I want, and there are Sylvari who create their own clothing just out of flowers and vines that they have grown themselves. In almost the same manner we can influence parts of the nature around us, see?"
I hadn't even noticed that we already had crossed the border to the Caledon-Forest. Only now that Levinny was pointing towards it I could see that the cubic formations had made place for huts and constructions purely made out of plantal materials. People hadn't interrupted the natural way of growth, but had rather created living space together with the surrounding nature, as the houses didn't only seem to have grown out of trees and plants, but they perfectly adjusted to the area and were partly hard to see for the unknowing eye.
The vegetation was the same as in Metrica, after all we were still on the edge to the deep Maguuma jungle, but something had changed. It all seemed to be more peaceful and natural, and judging by the many Sylvari crossing our way, the Grove couldn't be that far away. I felt excitement grow inside of me, for although I had visited the Grove hundreds of times ingame, it had never been in this body and this real. Furthermore the memories of all those places I knew from the game seemed to fade slowly as long as I hadn't visited them as Szallejh, and that made me wonder. The fact that I knew about Tyria's near future had given me hope that I might be able to chance something about it. But now that it all seemed to vanish piece by piece, I feared that I would forget and fail.
Maybe I should write down everything that I could still remember? But what if someone found those notes? What would I say? And what if things would happen different and I would only make a fool out of myself by trying to save something or someone? Or maybe I would make it even worse instead?
"… don't you think?"
Levinny's questioning voice brought me back from my thoughts, and I stared at her in confusion. She laughed and I wondered how someone could laugh that much. Was she like that every day?
"What might possibly happen inside your smart little head right now? I said how calming it is that Sylvari and Asura can live in such close proximity to each other nowadays without having to fear for their lives. It has not always been like that."
I knew that. Back when the first Sylvari had waken and not a single person on Tyria had known about those plant beings, the Inquest had started to kidnap dozens of saplings to perform terrible experiments on them, anatomize them and torture them to death. For a long time there had been hostility between the both races, and there had been plenty of losses on both sides, though mostly on the side of the Sylvari.
"You're right. The Inquest has never had a good reputation, and much less if it comes to your people. Even though it really makes me angry that the stupidity of some has lead to prejudices a whole race still has to deal with. And the losses on your side are never to be compensated."
Levinny didn't need to know that I wasn't only talking about the Inquest. Even in my home there had been similar incidents in history and I could only shake my head over the fact that it seemed to happen again and again and again, no matter in which world you lived.
"Even better that Asura and Sylvari get along so good then nowadays! We have buried our disputes; humans and Charr could learn so much from us. Oh, look, we're almost there!"
Judging by the sun's location, it had to be around midday; we had arrived at the Grove way earlier than I had expected. I stared at the view spreading in front of me speechless, and we hadn't even entered the Grove yet.
Right inside the Caledon forest grew an enormous tree out of the soil, so big that I couldn't see the whole of it, neither in height nor in width. The tree top seemed to disappear between the clouds, and I could see light in most diverse colors from hundreds of gashes and holes. The entrance was made out of a relatively small opening in the bark that we passed now, and from here a path was spiraling to the top in the trees inside. The inner was lit as light as daylight as well, as the bark around us was covered everywhere in plants that gave pulsing light inside the whole color spectrum, covering their surroundings in an unreal, almost fantastic aura.
The path seemed to continue upwards endlessly, but with every step we took, I could more clearly hear a sound that almost sounded like music. It was composed of countless voices that towered each other with their melody, and the play of the wind creating whistles and jingling by blowing through the numerous openings. All of that created a wonderful harmony, as if the most talented musicians in Tyria had gathered only to make music inside the Grove. But those sounds couldn't be copied by any existing instrument in this world; it was the song of something way bigger, of a being that exceeded everything material. This was the song of the Pale Tree who had managed to create thousands of children that were to enrich the world with their peaceful and charming way.
I wondered where that knowledge in my head came from and why I had such thoughts wandering through my head, and obviously I wasn't good at hiding my confusion.
"Don't worry, most of the visitors feel the same the first time they enter the Grove. The Pale Mother knows everything that happens inside her home, and she fathoms the intentions of everyone whose presence isn't known to her yet. She will instantly let you feel when she welcomes you – and when she doesn't." Levinny gave her ox a last gentle push so he would master the last part of our ascend, and after a few more steps we had reached the exit (or entry?).
The surreal singing was now omnipresent, but it didn't bother too much as it was more like a background melody that you'd push to the back of your mind with time, but never completely forget. The Grove itself probably was the most peaceful and colorful place I had ever seen. Plants, lights, complicated structures made of the very same, and in the middle of all of it Sylvari going after their daily lives. There were other visitors too, from humans to Charr and even a few Asura, either trading or getting lost in conversations, and a handful seemed only to have come here because of the view.
Because from the Grove and with good weather, you had a grand view over Caledon forest and even a bit of Metrica, and while little details were impossible to see, if was a picture that had to be seen at least once in a lifetime.
Levinny and the mysterious stranger had started to unload the oxen and gave the empty bags to another Sylvari that came rushing towards us. While I watched the happenings around me with curiosity, I wondered what Sylvari made all day long.
"Hey, Levinny? How do you finance yourself within the Grove?"
Levinny gave me a confused look. "Finance? We don't trade with money in the Grove, at least not amongst ourselves. All that we need we plant, harvest and manufacture and give it to those who need it. In exchange they will give us things that they made, may it be clothes, tools or weapons. No Sylvari has to hold down a steady job, the Grove has enough living space for everyone after all and the Pale Mother would never expect anything in return for it!"
"That makes life inside the Grove quite simple, doesn't it?" Asura would never even think about giving something without having the own profit in mind. Most important was the highest possible enrichment for yourself – nothing more.
"Yeah, it is. If you're satisfied with it." She sighed and the smile in her face disappeared for a short moment.
"What do you mean?"
"Some of us feel the constant presence of the Pale Mother to be unpleasant or even burdensome, so they prefer to distance themselves as far as possible from the Grove. Some even voluntarily join the Nightmare Court or will turn away from Ventari's wisdoms. Others aspire to something bigger that they won't get here. Wisdom, success, power… our sister Ceara is a very good example. The Grove hadn't been enough for her, and that's why she searched for suitable masters all over Tyria. She has been in Hoelbrak, in the Black Citadel, and even the colleges of Rata Sum hadn't been enough for her! She even joined the Inquest. But we haven't heard a thing from her in a while, and that troubles me. She has something on her; not quite something evil, but there is potential. And when it is being wakened by the wrong person, then…"
A familiar voice cause Levinny to pause, and instantly the well-known smile returned to her face as if it had never been gone. But now I could make out a tiny spark of worry in the corner of her eyes that the smile wouldn't reach. The name Cerara sounded familiar, and I had the feeling that Levinny's assumption was right, but before I could think more about it, Nahraija was already hurrying towards us, beaming with joy.
"Draenen, my friend, so good to see you!" She gave the Sylvari a warm hug, and to my surprise he returned it with a tiny grin. Next she turned to Levinny and eventually knelt down to hug me shortly but tightly.
"Szallejh, how unexpected! What leads you to the Grove, and even more in such a company?"
She nodded towards Draenen, who took his leave with a short wink of his hand and led away the oxen together with Levinny.
"I made the decision to visit you yesterday evening, and on my way I've met Levinny and that droll fellow. Since we were headed to the same destination, I have joined them. Thank god I didn't have to search for you first in all this hustle! I wouldn't have known where to start."
Nahraija gave me a weird look. "What god do Asura pray to tho? I always thought the Eternal Alchemy couldn't be compared to any existing deity."
Only then I realized what I had said and my face turned red. Of course didn't Asura pray to any deities! Not even I did that, but I had heard that phrase so many times before in my life that I didn't even think about its meaning anymore.
"Ehh, you know… I didn't grow up in Rata Sum, and, eh.. Where I come from, people just say that. Seems I can't get rid of those habits yet…"
The Sylvari shook her head, but my explanation seemed to satisfy her enough. "You're full of tiny little secrets. And every day you add a new one. I hope that maybe one day you will tell me the secret of your origin."
It's not that simple. You wouldn't believe me.
"I hope that too."
We were silent for a while, but Nahraija cleared her throat eventually and started moving. I just followed her without asking where she was headed.
"You're right of course, Draenen is a interesting one indeed. He isn't that bad actually; just when it comes to strangers he behaves quite weird. Maybe he just wants to convey a certain impression of himself, and I'm sure he just wants to compensate the frustration about his size that way."
Nahraija's laughter was catching and she asked me to report about everything exciting that had happened since we had last seen in Fort Trinity.
While we sat down on a bench at the edge of the upper platform, I told her about the morning after the party, about Bromm's weird behavior, Aidans murderous training and my work in the Aquatarium.
"Maybe I should visit you there once to make sure you're doing it good, hm?" Nahraija clasped her hands behind her head and winked. I sighed.
"That's not necessary; Kekk is already doing that for you."
"Kekk?" With raised brows she looked at me, and she didn't even try to hide her curiosity.
"My neighbor. He came to the Aquatarium twice already just to hold me off from work."
"Well, well, that seems suspicious to me!" Nahraija's open and honest way was one of the reasons why I had embosomed her so soon, but now I rather wanted to curse her for her curious being.
"I'm not sure about that. Zojja has warned me that many male Asura would become interested in me as soon as they learned that Zojja was my aunt. Only because of the status that comes with it, and I'm sure that was the same with Bromm. Only that he probably expected my intellect to resemble the one of Zojja, and I had to disappoint bitterly in that matter."
Nahraija thought about it for a moment. "But does Kekk know about it?"
"No clue. I have never talked to him about that. But we live in Rata Sum, and there's no place on Tyria where news travel faster."
"Maybe it does mean more indeed?" She giggled and slid nearer to me, impatiently waiting for an answer. I blushed hard again and averted my face, instead watching a few Sylvari on the platform beneath us.
"Dunno. But even if, I have just arrived in Rata Sum. I'm not ready for something yet!"
"No reason to pout." She slapped my shoulder so hard that I had problems not to roll over, but that only increased her grin. "Maybe we should talk about something different. You said Aidan introduced you to someone after the last training?"
Cold shudders ran down my spine at the thought of the dinner with Aidan and Arrhakesh.
"Arrhakesh obviously is a good friend of his. He says that's not unusual since Hoelbrak and the Black Citadel are quite close to each other…"
"Oh, a Charr? You have to introduce me to her! I think Charr are so interesting. Animals with such intellect!" Nahraija's eyes were glowing like I hadn't seen before, and I had no doubts that she would be fascinated and excited about Arrhakesh the second she met her. Maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea, at least that would safe me from the big cat's attention.
"Right. I don't know much about her, only that she is a necromancer and loves to eat shrimps. And she loves to put both on display."
"Sounds great! I can't understand why you're making such a fuss."
I sighed and rubbed my eyes. "Kesh is okay, I guess. But when she talks about wanting to eat you while you can see half of her skull exposed… you can't deny that this can be kinda scary."
"Yes, yes, very scary. But you definitely have to introduce that Charr to me! Under all circumstances!"
I couldn't understand at all how such a kind-hearted being like Nahraija could develop such interest in a scary thing like Arrhakesh, but if she wanted to come with me on her own risk, I wouldn't stop her.
"Sure, if you want to. Aidan wants to meet with her again in Lion's Arch after the next training, and you're free to come with us. If you can wait long enough that is."
Nahraija shifted her weight and supported her arms on her thighs. The wind made the dozens of ribbons on her clothes dance, even though she suddenly was completely calm.
"I'm afraid there is a problem. Trahearne is going to travel back to Orr tomorrow to make sure the success of his Wyld Hunt can be permanently guaranteed. While he doesn't have any duties anymore in these lands, he still feels responsible for Orr's complete recovery. And now that Zhaitan is no more, the remaining Undead have to be silenced and even the slightest piece of putrid land has to be cleansed. And I want to help with that."
"Oh… that means you won't be in Maguuma for a while…?"
Nahraija nodded. "I don't know yet how long we will be there. It can be weeks or months. No one can say that so far. Maybe I won't get back at all, who knows… But Trahearne could never stay long in the Grove, and now it's calling him away again. That's why it was a sign of fate that you came to me today. Now I can at least say goodbye to you properly." She smiled at me. "You've become such a good friend to me, after the time in the Shiverpeaks. And I promise you that I'll visit you as soon as I'm back. And then you'll bring me to your cat friend."
"Friend might be the wrong term when it comes to Kesh, but yeah, that sounds like a plan."
I felt a twinge of sadness. Nahraija had been one of the few, maybe the only friend I had in Tyria, and now she was about to leave to Orr for who knew how long. Maybe they would fail and haunt the lands as undead themselves in the end, who could tell? The dragon's corruption was still present, and the hordes of undead roaming Orr were more dangerous than ever. Without the voice of their master they had no aim that they could follow, and like an animal that had become lost and was now fighting everything that crossed its path in its desperation, the Orrians too were more unpredictable and dangerous than in times of Zhaitan's reign.
Besides, who could I talk to if not Nahraija? Of course there was still Zojja, but I didn't want to hear every time that I didn't know enough and was too dumb to understand.
Nahraija jumped on her feet and grabbed my arm, so sudden and unexpected that my heart made a jump too.
"You know what? Since we're going to depart just tomorrow, I can show you around in the Grove a bit if you want."
"Sure. But don't keep me here too long, as I have to get to work again tonight!"
"Don't worry, the Grove is not that big. And if you use the portals, you'll be back in Rata Sum in no time. Why did you take the long way at all this morning? It would have been way easier to travel through the portals."
I only shrugged as an answer. "Didn't want to spend too much money, and I wanted to discover a bit more of Maguuma. Besides I had plenty of time this morning, and on a different way I wouldn't have met Levinny and Draenen."
"I'm sure you wouldn't have missed meeting the droll fellow or how you called him earlier." Nahraija said with a grin and let me down some platforms until we had reached the lowest inhabited area of the Grove. We paused near a group of Sylvari while someone who surprisingly resembled Trahearne a lot asked for Nahraijas attention.
Meanwhile I watched the Sylvari in front of me. It where nine in total, and eight of them sat in a small circle around the last one. They all were sparsely dressed and didn't quite fit to their surroundings. Only one of them didn't stick to the lips of the Sylvari who looked way older and better dressed but stared directly at me. Her lips moved, but I couldn't understand what she was saying. The longer she stared, the bigger grew her eyes and there was even something like fear, as if I had just hurt her. But I had never seen that Sylvari before in my life! Had I?
"Are you alright?" Nahraija had ended her conversation at that point and joined me again. She followed my eyes to the small group and the delicate dark-skinned Sylvari who still seemed to murmur something, but no one else seemed to realize her strange behavior.
"The way she stares at me… Eerie!"
"Of course she does. She has just wakened, and you're the first Asura she's ever seen." With her explanation it all sounded so natural, and maybe that was the reason for the fearful impression in her eyes? I didn't know how the Dream worked, but maybe she had seen the knowledge about the Inquest and their infamous actions and therefore was afraid of me?
"Do you know her?"
Nahraija turned to me with surprise. "No."
"But… How do you know then that she's still so young?"
She laughed. "Just look at her! Like a newborn that has only just started to grasp the world with all its wonders. Besides the Sylvari with them is Malomedies, luminary of the cycle of night. He teaches the saplings of night and equips them with everything they need to know for their knowledge. And he was the very first Sylvari meeting the Asura… and surviving their experiments."
"That must have scarred him for sure. Is this why he wants to take care for the newborn? To warn them about my people?"
"Those times are gone, Szallejh. We Sylvari don't have to be afraid of you anymore. Of course exceptions confirm the rule, but since the Inquest has stopped their experiments, the mass hijackings have stopped too."
A startling thought came to my mind. "And what if they have never stopped? What if they have just become smarter? Manipulate Sylvari to get to them on free will, with false promises? Or if they just go for those who wouldn't be missed afterwards? It doesn't fit the Inquest to just stop with something only because the good part of society tells them to."
Nahraija watched me with worry. "Now don't scare me! I don't know any member of the Inquest in person, and I don't mind if it stays that way. And if you ask me, I want to believe that no experiments are done anymore on Sylvari!" She was almost about to get angry and I was immediately ashamed for what I had said.
"I'm sorry, I didn't want to upset you. It was just a thought, and… Maybe I should shut up next time."
Rule number… where had I been? 3? – Think before you talk!
Nahraija shook herself as if to get rid of the thoughts. "It's alright. You didn't mean it that way."
But I did, actually, because something inside of me told me that I was right. That somewhere, the Inquest was still torturing and murdering to get information. Only that they didn't try to lure Sylvari to the Nightmare Court under certain circumstances, but there was something different, something bigger. It had something to do with corruption, a threat that came from the side of the Sylvari and was endangering the whole people, but like a giant wall there was something blocking the thought so I couldn't get through to it. I knew that there was more. Something that the Inquest had already started to realize, but I couldn't see it clear inside my head. There were just pieces of information, waking a worry inside of me, but giving no answers.
"Is everything okay with you? Do you feel alright?" Nahraija's voice brought me back to reality the second time today now.
"Yes… no. I don't know!" I shook my head in confusion, desperately searching for the right words. I wanted to tell everything so badly; who I was, where I came from, what I knew! And she would listen to me for sure and try to understand, but every time I had that thought, a loud voice inside my head screamed No! It's not the time yet! But when would I know that the time had come? Would that moment ever come after all?
"It's just that I… know things. Or I should know them. But they blur inside my head, more and more, and they leave traces that impend to make me mad. The glimpse of a feeling, but I don't know why and how. It gives me headache, because the knowledge should be there, but it's locked. I can't get access to it… Do you know what I mean?"
She kept silent for long time before answering. "Hmm… No, I'm afraid I don't understand. But something seems to bother you, and if this information is locked from you for some reason, you might have to learn how to let it go. There is way too much going on inside your little heads anyway, you don't need even more to bother."
"But it's something important, that I know! Someone needs this information, and I'm the only one who can provide it. Or not."
"You don't know who, you don't know what, and you don't know how. Why do you let it get to yourself then?" Nahraija put a calm hand upon my shoulder. The sight of it made me grin because she had to kneel down to reach to me, and this position looked quite uncomfortable. "Whoever it is, they have no use of you if you fall into madness. Give yourself a break from thinking, let the dark clouds inside your head move on and maybe you'll get access again with time to whatever is missing?"
I laughed without emotion. "For someone who said she has no clue what I was talking about, you give quite good advice."
She stood up again. "That's what friends are for, aren't they? Now come, I want to show you my favorite place!"
This attribute was something I really admired on Nahraija. Serious one moment, and within the blink of an eye full of life and energy. Beings like her were those who kept being strong in every situation of life, sharing this strength with everyone around them, and nothing could tear them down. For a short moment I wondered if someone like Nahraija ever felt bad.
The Sylvari had meanwhile started walking again and I had to run a short bit to catch up with her. Down here it was darker than in the upper areas, but there were plenty of glowing lamps and plants in every little corner, and fireflies whizzed scurried through the trees and the paths winded through dozens of small ponds glowing with silver light. It really was beautiful here, but almost too idyllic and peaceful in my opinion. The loud and crowded streets of Rata Sum had their very own flair, and mostly at night the Asuran capital could easily keep up with the Grove when it came to the play of colors.
We walked in silence for a while, only greeting other Sylvari now and then, until Nahraija came to a stand eventually next to a wall overgrown with moss, and I could see strands of crystal clear water run down here and there, burbling into a small pond.
"And this is your favourite location?" Slight doubts could be heard in my voice, because the corner we had arrived in had nothing special about it, and I was sure Nahraija had a better taste than that.
She answered with a feint laugh. "No, no, it's not here. Not yet. This is only the entrance. I hope you can swim! And your backpack, is it waterproof?"
Luckily both of it was the case, even though I had to stare at the pond Nahraija had pointed to for a moment with confusion.
"We're supposed to go through THERE? Do you have aqua breathes on you by chance? Because that's something I don't always carry with me."
Nahraija ignored the sarcastic undertone and let herself gently drop into the water, emerging on the surface again only moments later. "Come on, it's not far. You'll be able to hold your breath a bit for sure."
While I still didn't trust her plans, I tucked one foot into the water, and the leather of my shoes soaked completely immediately. Good: the water was warm. Bad: it would take veeeeery long for me to get dry again.
I jumped into the pond with a sigh and the sudden heavy weight of my soaked clothes pulled me under the surface for a while. I emerged one last time to take a deep breath, then followed Nahraija who had already dived down and was now swimming to the bottom of the pond. But shortly before she arrived at the ground, she changed the swimming direction and disappeared inside a small path shortly above ground that I wouldn't even have recognized without her help. The doubts grew bigger the more I ran out on air inside my lungs, but sooner than expected the path made a turn and soon I found myself on the surface again, catching my breath.
Nahraija pulled me out of the water and loudly squeaked as I shook myself right next to her like a wet dog.
"What? You're already soaked too!"
After my fruitless attempts to get rid of some of the water I looked around at the place Nahraija had brought me to. We stood on a small path that had sparsely been covered with stone slabs, and I could see the pond extending to both sides, obviously bigger than I had originally assumed.
This location resembled a small chamber, the high walls covered in moss, but instead of a roof there was the cloudless blue sky all over us. The path led to a kind of natural well, a giant stone where water poured down out of an unknown spring, gathering in a small basin before gushing into the pond eventually. Here and there some maple trees grew out of the ground, some of the trunks so high I couldn't see the treetops, and others proudly made a show of their glorious red leaves. Now I understood why Nahraija liked to visit this place; in its simplicity lay something magical and calming.
"This is… really beautiful here! How comes that no one is here except us? And does this place have a certain purpose? I mean… there won't be such a beautiful chamber for no reason, right?"
"Well, to be honest, only a few Sylvari know of this place. And those who know keep it their secret to preserve its beauty. A pity actually; such beauty should be shared with others. But we're afraid that it loses its magic if it turned into an attraction, do you understand?"
I nodded. Something only remained special if not everyone knew about it or owned it. If the residents of the Grove only came here to keep conversations with others, this place wouldn't be any better than any other spot in the Grove.
"And no one really knows why this well exists. Maybe it has been created by nature while the Grove was growing and growing, maybe the Pale Mother has planned something special for it. We can't tell for sure."
"Why don't you just ask the Pale Tree then?"
Again this wry look. "Would a human simply walk to his queen only to ask if the neighborhood's cat has an owner or not? Getting an audience by Mother is not that simple, and usually there are way more important matters to discuss. Even more if you don't belong to the First- or Secondborn, you will rarely get a chance to see our Mother."
It had been quite easy for me to walk into the Arcane Council and get an audience. But I was sure that Zojja had a status similar to a Firstborn, and with the right contacts it was always easier to get what you wanted.
"Now that you mention it… How old are you actually?" The question sounded dumb the moment I spoke it out loud, but the way Nahraija talked she didn't belong to the first two generations for sure. But she seemed to be too wise to have wakened just a short time ago, so it had to be something in between.
"Younger than I wish and older than you might expect." She said with a mischievous grin.
"What?"
"That might be one of the things I will tell you in course of time. Maybe."
I snorted and tucked away a strand of hair behind my ear before it could fall into my face again. How old was I though? Were there differences between Asura and humans when it came to age calculations? Maybe with twenty I was grown-up for human standards, but would still be considered a child by Asura? Another question I had to ask Zojja next time I saw her.
We spent some more time at the well and Nahraija led me through the living rooms, workshops and gardens of the Grove, but as evening came it was time to say goodbye. Nahraija accompanied me to the portal to Lion's Arch and gave me a tight hug when we arrived there.
Even though I still felt like a child being lifted by an adult, it still made me happy that I had found such a close friend in Nahraija in such a short time. If only she didn't have to leave for so long.
"May you do well on your journey! And may you return healthy and alive, both of you!"
Nahraija grinned. "Don't be afraid of that. Trahearne and I know Orr pretty well by now, and I won't let myself being pushed around by some undead! The Priory has many outposts down there. Just write a letter whenever there is something new, some mail carrier will find its way to me eventually. And most of all when there's news about your men problems, I don't want to be the last to hear them."
Again I felt the urge to push her down from a very high place. She just would not hold back her thoughts in whatever situation, not even in front of the gate monitors that kept grinning to each other.
There was a last wave of goodbye and I stepped through the portal. Lion's Arch was way cooler around this time of day, and I shuddered a bit as I descended the ramp. But the portal to Rata Sum was not even ten steps away, and since the guard monitor knew me already he didn't make me wait long until I found myself back in the hot jungle of Maguuma.
The salty air with its seagull screams and sound of the sea was immediately replaced by the rattling, beeping and yelling of Rata Sum, and I was quickly filled with the familiar feeling to be home. It surprised me that I had gotten used to this place so soon and kept calling it my home, while I was still searching for a way to get back to my old world. But in the end it was better to feel comfortable as long as I had to stay here. The other way every day would have been an unnecessary agony, and if I faced it as some kind of long holiday, I would even be able to enjoy some more of my time here.
I hurried down to the sleeping dorms, put down my backpack and tied up my hair to a huge knot. There had already been a complaint before because someone had found a long red hair on his lobster, and I didn't want to have this kind of trouble again. After I had visited the washing rooms, I hurried towards the Aquatarium where Elynnja, the owner of the restaurant, was already impatiently tapping her foot while she unlocked the doors.
"You're late. Arrange the chairs and clean the aquarium walls, alley-oop. Best before the first guests arrive!"
Elynnja's hurry would have been unnecessary because even after all tables had been arranged and all panes had been cleaned, still no customer had arrived. Though that was not unusual at all; Elynnja always opened long before most Asura even thought about going out for dinner. She had her time schedule that she had to stay on, and for this she took the waiting times with joy.
I followed her will without complaining; she paid quite well after all and I always had some silence before the storm. For just on this evening an extraordinary number of Asura decided to eat in the Aquatarium after night had fallen and soon enough the rest of the evening was nothing but stress. Luckily for me there were no unpleasant incidents such as hair in food or switched orders, as the latter had happened to me many times during my first days.
Shortly before midnight when the tables emptied one after another, Elynnja approached me with her chef's apron around her waist and cooking spoon in her hand.
"You are quick learner, I can't deny that. There won't be many more to come; you can start cleaning the tables now."
That was more praise than I could expect from my employer, and I took tray and rag with a grind and begun to clean the chaos that the customers had left behind. But a "Hey!" let me pause in my work and my eyes fell onto the table next to me, where out of nowhere an Asura with dark messy hair and one red and a green eye had appeared.
"Kekk! What are you doing here?" I asked with mixed feelings, because on the one hand I really liked Kekk and was glad to see him, but on the other it was the third time now that he visited me at work, and I wondered if Nahraija had been right with what she had said after all.
"Well, it might be late, but I am still hungry and thought I could come by and…"
"Kitchen is closed already!" Sounded Elynnjas voice from behind the counter and she kept standing there ostentatiously with her arms crossed across her chest – and the kitchen spoon.
Kekk giggled and his look switched between Elynnja and me. "Okay then, I think a beer will suffice too."
I put down the tray on one of the empty tables and hurried towards the counter to pass Kekk's order. Elynnja still stood there and grimly watched our newest guest.
"That guy comes to my restaurant way too often. At least today he's late and won't keep you from doing your work anymore." She pushed the beer towards me with a scowl and waddled back to the kitchen, where she threw the spoon into one of the sinks. One of the kitchen golems immediately answered with excited beeping and started to clean the spoon.
Kekk politely gave his thanks and took a gulp while I continued to clear up and clean the tables around him.
"You haven't been in Rata Sum today, am I right?"
"You are. Have you been watching me the whole day or why do you know where I keep myself busy?"
He lifted his brows and exposed a row of sharp teeth, though one of whom was missing. I had to admit that it somehow looked cute.
"Wrong. I only know that you were not in Rata Sum. That doesn't mean that I know where exactly you have been."
"All right, all right. I surrender. I have been in the Grove to visit a friend."
"Salad heads, I see. Weird people if you ask me. Prefer mail carriers to messaging golems! I mean, honestly? Such a golem is way more effective and won't bump into the next window it approaches! And why they don't even try themselves on communicators will remain a mystery to me."
His pouting face made me smile and I changed to another table after I had rearranged the chairs. "I don't think any of those are effective. Why can't someone invent something that is as safe as a golem but as fast and fitting for long distances as mail carriers at the same time? Take said friend as an example. She will spend the next weeks and months in Orr, and the only way to get to her is through a mail carrier. Who will take ages to reach the nearest outpost there if they arrive at all, and till the Sylvari has been found and the message has been handed over… In this time she most likely will have returned five times. We could use something better than just a simple mail carrier for such cases."
Kekk dropped the mug and watched me with interest. It seemed like I had mentioned something that really made him curious. He rested his head on his arm and tapped a steady rhythm against the clay jug with his free hand. Tak, tak, tak. Tak, tak, tak. "You don't have something specific in mind by any chance, do you, longear?"
I thought about it for a while. There was an idea indeed, but due to my lack of knowledge I had no idea how difficult or even impossible the realization would be.
"The problems with golems and mail carriers is that the communication goes only one way, right? Other communication devices can be used for dialogue, but the quality is miserable and a wide range impossible. Wouldn't it be possible to develop the communicators further, maybe with signal boosters, to increase the range on a large scale? And wouldn't it be even better, at least for small ranges, if you could transmit a holographic image of the collocutor at the same time with no delay?"
"Longear, this idea is genius! And if we manage to realize that, this could be the success of the decade! My krewe will manage to achieve a breakthrough with it!"
I dropped the rag slightly baffled. "You're in a krewe? I thought you were still studying…"
Kekk emptied his beer and put it on the table together with some coins, and he even gave me an extra tip.
"Sure. Who says I can't do both? Hey, what about I introduce you to my krewe tomorrow and you tell them about what you just told me? Maybe they want you on board with it, and if it's going to be a breakthrough, you will never have to clean tables as a waitress again!"
I grinned. "That sounds like a plan indeed."
"Until tomorrow, then, longear."
Kekk got up, shouted a few more words to Elynnja and successfully evaded the kitchen spoon that came flying towards him immediately after, shortly waved one last time and disappeared through the restaurant's door. For a short moment it seemed as if he would limp a bit, but before I could tell for sure, I had lost sight of him.
With a sigh I lifted the spoon from the floor and brought the full tray back to the kitchen where one of the golems immediately got stuck into cleaning the dirty dishes. While I rearranged the last tables and chairs for the next day, I tried to expand the idea of a modified communicator a bit more. I had no clue how it could be realized, but if Kekk's krewe had the possibilities to do it and I could give the missing input? Maybe we truly could success and if it sold good enough, I could eventually quit this job here.
Though it seemed to be more a dream than reality, because whatever Kekk's krewe would built, it wouldn't be more than a non-functioning prototype and it could take ages to modify the system so it would work good enough to even think about selling it. I'd be bound to this job for a while longer no matter what, but at least I had a slight chance to get taken into a krewe. Unless of course the idea was completely useless or the other krewe members refused to take in someone like me. I couldn't exclude such a thing, as I was a stranger after all, more even one without any graduation or awards.
The one way or another, it was useless to rack my brain with it now and to grow unnecessary hopes or fears. Not that I would have had any time for that, because as soon as the Aquatarium finally closed and I had dropped myself into my comfy hammock, sleep came so fast and without any warning that I didn't even recognize anymore how my head touched the pillow.