Chapter 2: Night Time Traverses
A few hours following the conversation in the alleyway, The Wolfo was heaving with customers. Wherever one looked in the smoky pub, they would be able to see figures of all shapes and sizes indulging in life's more questionable pleasures. Card games were littered around the tables, some being played for casual odds such as the next round of drinks or simple bragging rights, while others ran the risk of leading to an individual losing, or indeed obtaining, many worldly possessions. All the contestants were drinking, as were those who were in The Wolfo simply for its ambience. On a misty night, especially one after a day as wet as this, there were few better places in town to obtain a decent pint, or pick up the latest local information.
Overseeing this organised chaos was Alfonzo. Standing in his customary position behind the bar, he was in his element, always ready with an anecdote or a word of advice, to shave off ten percent off the price of a drink to his favourite customers, or to those who were moving onto and beyond their fifth pint of the evening. Hearing a loud roar in the corner, Alfonzo swiftly turned to the right, to see a group of particularly rowdy regulars laughing uproariously at their friend. It seemed he had just made the fatal error of attempting to flirt with the new barmaid, Taera, only to be rebuffed with one of her customary stinging putdowns.
Hiring her had been a masterstroke. She was funny, competent, and above all, seemingly obtainable, which made many of the self-styled local young charmers confident enough to believe that, after a few drinks, they would be witty enough to secure themselves a date with the glamorous brunette. They were of course universally rejected. She was, Alfonzo concluded to himself, the best help he'd employed in years. He also realised though that a girl like Taera was bound for greater locales than the Tareian seafront. She would soon outgrow The Wolfo, and she was certainly intelligent enough to make it in Kardopolis. For now though, Taera was his, and Alfonzo was very thankful for it.
He had tried to distance himself from the conversation he had with Horos earlier, but it kept returning, digging into his mind. He had been aware of Alarius' status for a few months now, and had known it was only a matter of time before Horos came to take him away. Even so, now the time was upon him, Alfonzo was almost shocked to think that the young man he had raised for the best part of twenty years was going to leave, and that neither of them would have a chance to say goodbye properly. It was necessary, he knew that, but Alfonzo had grown very fond of Alarius, and in the back of his mind had always been wary of the pain his inevitable departure would cause.
As the barman's mind was drifting, Alarius strolled into the main room. He had slept a few hours in the afternoon and felt sufficiently refreshed. He'd changed his hood so that its colour matched the jet black shade of his robes. All in all, he was quite exciting about his planned escapade with Horos. It had been a while since he'd taken part in any night time activities, minus the odd romantic dalliance. He was also interested to find out more about Horos and his relationship with Alfonzo. As he took his place behind the bar he gave Alfonzo a slight nudge to secure his attention.
"Is everything still planned for tonight?"
"Yes indeed. Horos will be here soon"
"Still no idea what he's got planned?"
"Fraid not"
"Ah well, all the fun is in the mystery I guess"
"Want a drink?"
"No, best not. Just in case things get heated. Makes sense to be fully focused"
Alarius took his place behind the bar, but couldn't keep still. He always got a little nervous before a job, and tonight was no exception. He really hoped that Horos wouldn't keep him long. Luckily for him, Horos swept into The Wolfo just a few minutes later, looking much more serious than he had that morning. The cavalier hat was gone, as was the maroon jacket, replaced with a far less attractive tunic, so that Horos was dressed all in black. As soon as he entered, he made his way to the bar, slipping through the throngs of customers with an elegance which put Alarius' agility to shame. Within seconds, he was at the bar. He smiled at Alarius, raised five fingers to indicate how long he would be, and then began talking in hushed tones to Alfonzo. Alarius decided he was best served waiting outside, so he flung on his coat, raised his hood over his head, and stepped out into the cool night air.
A few minutes later Horos emerged, looking very pensive. Without speaking he jerked his head towards the seafront, and began to move briskly in that direction. Alarius followed, jogging briefly to catch up with his periodic partner in crime. He assumed that Horos was not really in the mood for small talk, and so decided to simply follow the black figure's lead. Not that Alarius particularly minded. He wasn't a man for small talk at the best of times, but this was particularly the case when faced with a job.
As the pair swept through the dark streets towards the seafront, it became harder and harder to remain concealed within the shadows of the dimly lit streets. The reason for this lay in the way in which the city of Tares had been built at its conception. Tares was built almost solely for reasons of trade and exploration, and as such, the waterfront dominated the city. It was a vast area, stretching along the whole length of the city's outer perimeter. As such, all the main roads of the city were built so that they would converge at the waterfront. Eight main roads which spread out of the waterfront, so that goods and traffic could pass back and forth to and from the sea.
Because of the number of roads, many sailors had christened the seafront the "Octo Port". However, while this architectural concept was helpful for many, it meant that as the main roads moved closer to the port, they lost more and more of the little side street and alleyway branches which littered the city's upper levels. As such, hiding places became very scarce, and natural cover was at a minimum, and while Alarius and Horos were at this time not actually doing anything wrong, their clothing, demeanour and presence in what was supposedly a defunct area of business after seven P.M. would not serve them well if they were spotted.
Despite these problems, Horos and Alarius reached the outer perimeter of the Octo Port in good time and without any trouble. They were entering the area via the sixth road from the left, giving them a good view of the area. Slinking behind a set of boxes filled with some fish or another, the two men knelt down and began to take a quick rest. They still hadn't said a word to each since meeting that evening. Horos fiddled with his hood for a second, before looking at Alarius.
"Keeping up ok?" he said lightly, breathing out heavily as he did so.
"Ha, yes, don't worry. This isn't the newest experience to me. You forget that this port has been my backyard for the past twenty years."
"You still haven't asked where I'm taking you tonight". The speed at which Horos said this seemed a little quick to Alarius.
"No. I mean, I assume it's one of the safe houses that are set up around here. One of the warehouses down on the far right is where we do the majority of our business. Though to be honest I didn't really feel it was my place to pry. You'll take me where you take me. Alfonzo trusts you, and that's good enough for me."
"You're a man of absolutes. I like that." This statement made Alarius far more proud (and surprisingly so) than he thought it would, even if he didn't show it. "Even so, I think it's best I run you through the plan for tonight, just in case. We're not headi"
Alarius never heard the end of that sentence, and instead found himself falling backwards onto the hard stone floor. In the same instance he heard a very loud thud, two of them perhaps, just above his head. Looking up at the boxes above him, Alarius' suspicions were confirmed. Protruding from the box which the two men had been hiding behind were two bolts, most likely from a crossbow. With his sense of time and space awry, Alarius found himself being dragged up from the floor and pulled towards the next road along from the one he had entered the port by, presumably by Horos, through Alarius was in no state to confirm this. These events must have taken place in less than a few seconds, but they would remain with Alarius for the rest of his life. The first time someone tried to kill me. Well, the first time I was aware of someone trying to kill me.
As he regained his senses, Alarius felt himself sprinting subconsciously, following Horos, who had brought his hood back over his head. Chancing a backward glance, his suspicions were confirmed. He saw two men armed with crossbows, and dressed in brown, their robes covered with a crisp pattern of thin red and gold lines equidistant width apart from one another. They were chasing after him with a look of cold determination in their eyes. Joining them a few steps behind were at least six others, all of whom were dressed in the same uniform and carrying weapons of various shapes and forms. From both their advanced gear and the fact that weren't massively unfit, Alarius realised immediately that these men were not from the port authorities. In fact, as he thought about it, Alarius clocked that he hadn't seen a single local official either on the streets or at the port throughout his journey. Something was up.
This internal debate was cut short as Alarius kept up the pace alongside Horos. Moving away from the Octo Port, they headed down the main road next to the one they had entered the area in. Despite his age, Horos could move, and it was all Alarius could do to keep up with him. Gradually the gap between the two gaps widened, and Alarius began to be a bit calmer. There was no way these soldiers could run and shoot accurately at this distance in this weather with their crossbows. Moving swiftly into the catacombs of little streets that lay between the main streets, Horos and Alarius managed to get out of sight of their pursuers, and moved into the shadows to rest.
They were silent for a few moments, the only minimal sound that could be heard was that of Alarius' heavy breathing. Spitting out a bit of phlegm, and what tasted like a bit of vomit too, Alarius turned his gaze upon the old man, and before himself blurted out.
"Alright you old bastard, what the fuck is going on?"
"Alarius, I can't ex"
"The fuck you can't. I just risked my life, I still am risking my life probably, and now I deserve to know what for. This isn't some petty bit of smuggling we're undertaking, I can see that. You think I'm stupid? Those men were NOT port authorities, that uniform is NOT from this town, and I'm NOT the kind of moron who you mess around with some half-baked shit about not needing to explain."
As he finished, Alarius expected a rebuke. This man was after all, at least for tonight, his employer. He was much more senior than him, and had just saved his life, if his mental recounting of the crossbow incident was anything to go by. However, Horos looked at him and spoke in a very level tone, without a hint of anger or malice.
"Alarius, your anger is relatively justified. However, I cannot tell you what we are doing, because right now we have to concentrate on getting to where we want to be. Now, within the next thirty seconds, two groups will enter the street next to us from different sides. Our only hope of escape is to vault the wall opposite."
Alarius looked up. The walls of the catacombs would often reach very high levels. Unfortunately for him, this was one of said walls. He opened his mouth to speak.
"We have to lever ourselves over" Horos said, seemingly reading the young man's mind. You can run up against the wall, push off with your left foot across the alleyway, use your right foot on the opposite wall, and launch yourself up onto the wall."
"What? Are you joking? How on"
"You'll do it or have to face those men we just encountered again, plus their comrades. Trust me Alarius, you can do it. It will be easier than you think. When you get to the other side, run straight ahead, and keep on running straight ahead. There will be an exit some two hundred or so yards down. Use it. I shall be alongside you the whole way. Are you ready?"
Alarius felt he could do little more than nod. He tensed his body, and tried to breathe as slowly and deeply as possible. Strangely, as he did so, the nervous terror which had been consuming him for the past couple of minutes began to seep away, and when Horos gave him the shout in order to commence their escape, the only state he felt himself in was one of calm concentration. The shouts on either side of him were muffled, and Alarius moved towards the wall at a serene pace and rhythm. About two feet away from the wall, he jumped, turning his body side-on so that his left leg faced the slippery brick wall.
As he pushed off, Alarius found that his previous misgivings about vaulting the wall had been very much unfounded. He moved as swiftly and as elegantly as a dancer, completing the three way manoeuvre with height to spare. Both of his pushes from the wall felt both graceful and powerful, each one propelling him faster and higher towards the zenith of the wall. With ample time to prepare, and in no danger of failing to reach, Alarius clung onto the wall with minimum effort. As he levered himself over, he heard a small noise and felt a small force behind him. As he chanced a brief look as his body eased itself over the wall, his eyes caught the climax of a bright white flash, and out of the corner of his eye, Alarius saw a figure moving cleanly over the wall. It was Horos, and he seemed to be in the process of completing a backflip. Had he cleared the wall with a single jump? Alarius had no time to concern himself with this, as he dropped himself back down to the relative safety of the street.
As he did so, the sudden calm which had previously absorbed him began to dissipate, and once more, everything began to speed up and get louder. Turning round, Alarius saw that he and Horos were in a narrow street, with semi-regular outlets on either side. As Horos beckoned him forward, he remembered that they were probably still in danger, and began to run as hard as he could. There was a light at the end of the alley, its luminosity heightened by the poor lighting of the street they were in.
The two men ran on, feet pounding the wet cobble streets. Both were quick, and within seconds they were halfway towards the exit. However, about three quarters of the way down, there was an intersection, a narrow crossroads where two alleyways intersected. As Alarius ran, he saw that emerging from the left hand side of the alley were two men wearing the same robes as the others they had encountered that evening. They were not yet fully in the road, and seemed to be unaware of their pretty, but within seconds the would be in a position where they could halt the escape.
Heart pounding, Alarius realised that he had only a matter of seconds to act, particularly as the guards were entering from the side of the alley on which he was running. Willing the calmness to come back, he kept on running headlong into the danger before him. Yet the calmness wouldn't come back. Fifteen metres, ten metres. The guards began to turn. Five metres. Another flash. As Alarius was just about to body check the first guard, who was in mid-turn, a bright flash lit-up before him. Almost blind, Alarius ran headlong into the guard, shoulder charging him with a ferocity which came from the mixture of fear and momentum which Alarius had built up over the last hundred and fifty metres. Although he could not see, Alarius's impact sent the guard off his feet, flying backwards into the wall which lay behind him. Just about keeping his feet, he spun a full three hundred and sixty degrees. He had no idea where the second guard was, and heard very little more than a rip, followed almost instantaneously by the sound of a body hitting the floor.
As his eyes cleared, Alarius was still running. He did not chance a look back, but could see just about enough to confirm that Horos was no longer beside him. He also felt a sudden chill on the left hand side of his chest, and glanced down to see that his robes had a significant sideways gash in them. Before he could inspect his body, he heard a voice.
"I'm here. Behind you. Keep running. A right at the end of this alley, then straight on. You'll know the exit where I want you to go to when you see it".
It was Horos. This solved the mystery posed by the sound of body hitting floor. The second guard. However, there was no time to dwell on this. His eyes clearing, Alarius kept running. As the alleyway ended, he found himself back on one of the main roads. Heeding Horos' instructions, Alarius turned right, and without a second look, sprinted back down towards the Octo Port. There were various voices around him, but Alarius cared little for them.
At a fearsome pace, the two men entered the Octo Port. They were entering once more from the seventh road from the left. Yet there appeared to be nowhere else to go. Why, thought Alarius, has Horos led us here? He said I'd know. He said the exit would be obvi...oh. There it was. At the edge of the Octo Port, leading down towards one of the jetties was a hole, which opened itself up in the wall next to a broken fountain which dominated the area. If ever one were to lean near to the hole, they would hear the sound of running water, for the hole led to the city's underground water system. Cold water, freezing cold no doubt at this time of year and day, freezing cold water which led to lord knows where. This was Horos' plan. Fantastic.
Yet what choice did he have? It was either get very cold and possibly live, or stop running and definitely die. So Alarius continued to run. Although he tried not to, he couldn't help shifting his head from left to right as the hole got closer and closer. The Octo Port was well lit, and Alarius could clearly make out about seven or eight distinct robed figures, at least one of whom was armed with a crossbow, running towards him from various directions. At their head on the left hand side was a man on horseback, though Alarius couldn't make out much of his face.
As he got to within a few metres of the hole, each of Alarius' senses was engaged within a very short period, one after the other. To either side of him, each ear focused on a separate noise. Left, he heard a voice (whom he presumed, correctly, belonged to the man on horseback) shout Horos' name. To his right, the distinctive sound of a crossbow letting loose its deadly bolt. Reacting to this, Alarius decided the rest of the gap was best bridged by sliding. Legs first, he launched himself towards the hole. Just as he was about to do so, the light around him seemed to darken visibly and instantaneously. It remained dark until Alarius' body had passed through the hole that led to the waterways.
Horos was following Alarius. They were almost there. The port was in sight. Reaching out briefly, Horos sensed the presence of figures a short distance beyond them. As they ran into the semi-circular port area, his suspicions were confirmed. Eight men, four on each side, two armed with crossbows. As he looked around, he saw the man on horseback. Would he know where the waterways went? It wasn't worth the risk. As the man saw him, he shouted his name. For all his intelligence, Estefan was prone to state the obvious far too often. Barely slowing down, Horos looked back at him and smiled. He was too far away to stop him now. The only danger were the crossbows, and in this weather he doubted they could shoot at all. Yet he still had to create the doubt, doubt enough to split them.
Gathering in his power, Horos waited. Then, as he saw the crossbowmen draw their weapons back, and as Alarius was about to begin his slide, Horos drew in the light. In an instant, the whole area darkened. The crossbows twanged violently, a sound which suggested the guards had been affected by their loss of sigh. Holding on long enough to slide for the hole, Horos released his mind and pushed his thoughts outward. Though he did not see the result, Horos had mastered his trick well enough to know that the area would be filled with a rush of intense light for a few seconds, accompanied by the illusion of two silhouettes running in various directions away from the port. It would be enough to create the confusion he needed, and to prevent the Guard searching as one.
By the time the light came back into his eyes, Alarius was in the process of falling a good ten feet or so into the water than ran below the city. As he braced himself, Alarius' nose became aware of the salty smell emanating from the torrent below. At least this wasn't a sewage tunnel. His tongue soon confirmed these suspicions as he hit the surface. The cold also was instantaneous. As Alarius was briefly submerged, his whole body reacted to the devilish chill which shot through him. He also felt a horrendous sharp pain in his side, which confirmed that the wound he had suffered in the alleyway had indeed drawn at least some blood. Desperately clawing his way through the water, Alarius swam upwards and broke the surface.
Gasping, Alarius looked around. The water was a good eight feet deep, and the tunnel was wide, set out in an arched style, with several branched tunnels within sight in the distance. Luckily, there were some lamps set up on ledges along the wall, meaning that he would at least have the luxury of sight as he caught pneumonia.
Within a second, Horos appeared, his black hair soaked and scraped back to avoid contact with his eyes. He swam towards Alarius, and began to point towards the right hand side of the tunnel.
"You ok?" Alarius could just about manage a nod. "Alright. We're going to have to swim for a few minutes. Keep to the right of the tunnel. We're going to go through two more crossroads as it were. Follow me the whole time. We're going right, right again and then left. You sure you're ok? Good. Let's go."
Fortunately, the water was flowing in the direction they were swimming, meaning that the main task for each of them was simply to keep their heads above the water. The tide was swift, and in a very short time they entered the third tunnel Horos had mentioned. At this point Horos began to tread water, and motioned to Alarius that he should do the same. With all his strength, Alarius managed to stay afloat.
"Down there is a hole along the left hand side of this wall. It's almost invisible right now, but I'll be able to illuminate the necessary area as we are submerged. Do you want to grab onto my arrrrrrrrrrr ok fine if you don't want to, just follow me".
Alarius dropped his eyebrow and nodded. He was cold, but not that cold. Moving onto the wall, Horos took a deep breath and submerged himself beneath the water. Alarius waited a second or two before following suit. His vision wasn't great, but as promised, there was a light at the bottom of the wall. Swimming with all his might, Alarius pushed his aching body closer and closer and finally through the narrow hall, noticing as he did so that Horos' light was a fish from whose body emanated a clear red light. How Horos had the fish was another question, but right now all Alarius could focus on was being able to take another breath. Forcing himself through the gap, he pushed off from the wall with his legs, and launched himself towards the surface.
When he emerged, he found himself in a small, circular area, where the water was calm and no longer affected by the tidal current. Before him lay a little ledge, with a small ladder fixed upon it. Horos was seated upon the ledge, sweeping his hand through his hair once more. He offered his hand to Alarius, and dragged him up to the ledge. After once again enquiring about Alarius' health, and being given a positive response, Horos beckoned towards the ladder, and pointed upwards. Alarius wanted to argue, to question everything that was going on, but right now all he cared about was getting out of this underground prison.
"What about the fish?" was all that he could stutter before he started climbing.
"What about it?"
"What was it? Where did it come from? Won't it starve if it just stays there in the waterway?"
"Oh no, don't worry, she knows that I only needed her to wait long enough for us to get through"
"But how"
"Later, later. Do you really want to stay here any longer than we need to?"
"Well, no, but"
"Then if you would be so kind" said Horos in a definitive tone, finger pointing up the ladder.
Alarius sighed internally, reminding himself that in the grand scheme of things the fish was relatively low on his list of questions anyway, and reached toward the next rung. At a snail's pace, Alarius moved up the ladder. At the top, he tentatively used his right hand to push the stone which covered the manhole. It moved very slightly. Taking great care not to fall, Alarius gradually levered the stone to one side, and lifted himself back into the world above. Straining his eyes in the overcast night, Alarius looked around. The area was deserted, and had been for a very long time. Although he could not see the whole area, Alarius was standing in the centre of a set of ruins. Lines of formerly proud Doric columns lay crumbled and cropped around the perimeter of the area, whilst a pair of plinths lay empty, their occupants remembered only by two pairs of damaged and deformed feet. Directly behind the statues was a staircase, and though Alarius could not see what was at the top, he had a fairly good idea that it would be in as poor a state as that which lay around him.
Suddenly, it dawned on him. He was in the grounds of the former temple. The place where one of the usurpers had been worshipped in earlier times. Is that why they had been chased? As Alarius' mind was able to concentrate now he was out of immediate peril, more and more things began to come to him. He remembered the uniform of the men who had been chasing them. They were the Kardopolian Emperor Guard! Why on earth were they in Tares? Why were they after Horos? And him? Just what had he been brought into?
With all his previous anger flooding back, Alarius turned towards Horos with a face like thunder.
"I know who those men were." Damn, could he have sounded less authoritative?
"Yes, well, you're a sharp boy"
"Yet not sharp enough to pick up that you're the type of man who's wanted by the highest military authority in the land obviously". Better, better. Return dry humour with sincerity. Show that you're the better man. Avoid swearing.
"Well, I don't really know what to say. What would be the type you were expecting?"
Is this sincerity? Is he serious? Damn. This man just endangered my life, and he's as relaxed as if we'd taken a stroll down the beach together. Oh damn it, just play your cards Alarius.
"I don't know. I don't care. Why should I listen to anything you say? If you're not going to give me answers, why should I put up with you? I've done nothing wrong. What's to stop me leaving this place now and telling the authorities everything I know about you?" Damn it, sounding just like a whiny kid. Tell the authorities? The adult equivalent of telling mummy.
Horos' response to this was to sigh, smile, and to look Alarius straight in the eye. It was only now the young man realised just how deep they were. An endless sea of green, and at that moment, Alarius could tell, laced with sincerity.
"Alarius, I can only apologise once more. The fact is, I expected tonight to run far more smoothly than it has. Those men were, as you seem to have guessed, members of the Emperor's Guard. I knew that my business here would attract them, but I also judged, incorrectly in hindsight, that I was farther ahead of them than I was. I apologise for placing you in danger, and for the path we had to take to arrive here. Yet both you and I know that reporting me is not an option.
Just by being in this place you are in violation of one of this land's most fearsome laws. If you report me, you will inevitably be asked where you saw me last. In addition to this, I imagine you remember that it was not only me that those men tried to kill tonight. The crossbows were aimed at both of us, and that cut of yours was not an accident. If you report me, you will be killed. As will Alfonzo. Of that there is no doubt."
Alarius knew he was right, though he tried not to show it.
"Now, I understand that I have promised much, and have as yet failed to deliver. However, I give you my word that you will soon be given all the information you need, and just to convince you, I'm afraid I shall resort to emotional blackmail. Am I right in assuming that the man that you trust above any in this world is Alfonzo?"
Alarius rolled his eyes, but eventually muttered "Yes".
"Indeed. Now, Alfonzo and I have been friends for some forty years. He is a man I trust with my life, and if you saw us together today, I think you would be hard pressed to argue that he didn't feel the same about me. Now, would you agree that Alfonzo is a good judge of character?"
Again a pause, again a muttered agreement.
"Ok then. So if I tell you that Alfonzo has trusted me for this amount of time, then would you not think that I were a trustworthy man?"
"Ok, fine. Enough with the semi-rhetorical questions. Let's just get this done."
"Good man". Horos smiled briefly, and turned back towards the temple. Alarius had to admit that the man had charm. It was a beautiful smile. Warm, white toothed and sincere-looking, Alarius consoled himself that he was by no means the first person to have been persuaded by this debonair senior. As his anger seeped away once more, Alarius realised that he was still very cold, very wet and wounded. Hugging himself for warmth, Alarius looked over towards Horos so that he could voice his concerns. However, the words stuck in his mouth. The man whose style he had admired throughout the day was now hopping. Hopping between the various stone squares that made up the temple courtyard in a seemingly random manner.
"Um, Horos?" Horos put his finger to his lips and kept hopping.
"But it's freez"
For what seemed like the umpteenth time that evening, Alarius' words stuck in his throat. Upon the completion of his latest hop, the stones Horos had been jumping on began to reverberate. Then, after a few seconds, one of the stones slide itself upwards slightly, and the slab on its immediate right began to shift into the space its ascendancy had created, revealing a concealed staircase. Horos smiled (again!), and elaborately swept his hand towards the hole.
"Down there if you please Alarius. Provisions, warmth and answers await."
For the first time in hours, Alarius was truly happy to do Horos' bidding. With as much energy as he could muster, he trotted towards the staircase. Horos followed just behind, sealing the hole with a snap of his fingers. The staircase was not particularly long, but it was narrow, which made it slightly awkward to walk down. It was however rather warm inside, and there were many attractive blue lanterns set up to elucidate the descent.
At the bottom of the stairs was a spacious circular room. The same shade of blue light was still present, and the room itself was decorated with a vast number of ornaments and trinkets, the types of which Alarius had never seen before. At the far end of the room stood a human-sized marble statue of a man who was not quite middle aged. His attire seemed to consist of a menagerie of different styles. His head was adorned with the traditional cap worn by Tareian sailors, and a thick beard which, combined with the hat, made it very hard to study the man's features from a distance. Upon the torso was a thick coat, the type of which Alarius had never seen before, whilst the man's trousers were also of an unfamiliar style.
Alarius walked slowly around the left hand side of the room, studying the objects which were placed inside carved windows on the wall. Reading the various descriptions, it soon became clear that these items were from all the corners of the earth. Cobble flutes, Paupauin headdresses, even a shield of the Molipei. There also lay a small yet very pretty silver baton, under which was inscribed "As Owned by the Founder of Our Land". The baton rang a mental bell, as did the mention of a Founder, but Alarius could not fully place them.
"Where are we?" he asked, after he had looked round a little more.
"We are currently standing below the easternmost point of the harbour." Horos replied, fiddling around in his pocket as he did so.
"No no. I mean, where are we? What is this place?"
"Ah, well" Horos said as he strode slowly towards a pedestal which stood before the statue, "I am probably not the best man to tell you that". As he finished this sentence, Horos finally brought his hand out from amongst his robes. It was not alone. Clasped in his palm was a compass. As he reached the pedestal, Horos placed this compass snugly into a small hole in the stone structure. Immediately, the statue began to emanate light. As the light intensified, the structure seemed to be expanding and contracting, almost as if it was breathing heavily. The light persisted for a few more seconds, before vanishing as quickly as it had appeared.
As Alarius' eyes readjusted, he saw that the statue was still very much in place. Yet before it now stood a man whose appearance was identical to the monument in front of which he stood. Removing his cap, the figure revealed a cluster of thick, medium length brown hair, and a pair of dark green eyes, which burned with the intensity of a hawk prior to the moment of the kill. He looked around, first at Horos, and then at Alarius. Despite the strange nature of the situation, Alarius felt himself very much calmed as he locked eyes with the third member of this bizarre gathering. After a few seconds, the man spoke.
"You are Horos I presume? Directed here by my guardian Alfonzo?" Alarius found his voice to be even more comforting than his eyes.
"You presume correct sir"
"And your companion? He is the Restorer?"
"We believe so" Horos answered for Alarius.
"In which case I welcome you. It seems that you, good Horos, are already aware of my identity, but the boy looks to be confused. My son, I greet you with great respect. My name is Dorelineus, The Great Explorer. Son of Farore, and God of the Seas and the Oceans."
Dun dun dun! First off, apologies for the wait. This was a very hard chapter to write. I'm not 100% happy with it. The dialogue was really hard to do, the chapter seems a little long, and this is my first real attempt at trying to write action. Anyway, I hope it's fun to read. We're finally starting to get somewhere now. Next chapter will be more words than action, but many things will be explained. BTW, if you're not sure about the significance of the compass, see the prologue and see if you can work it out. Happy reading! Reviews will be very much appreciated.