Kingdom of Scourge and Shadow (The Sightstone Series #1)

Chapter Forty-Six: Judith

"And God gave to me a vision. Six Sightstones. One Lightbringer. Five Heralds. For the Lightbringer need not stand alone, but has her Heralds to guide and guard her."

-from the Codices of Saint Caroline the Heretic

***

 Allerstad was, without a doubt, the ugliest city Judith had ever seen, she decided, as the Determined docked in the Emissary Harbor between two other vessels flying Caedish flags. The air was damp and cold, and choked thick with coal smoke. Judith's throat tightened as sailors vaulted over the railing and onto the dock, ropes in hand, to secure the ship to her moorings.

"Ugh," Inez said, her nose wrinkling. "Why the hell would anyone want to live in a place like this? It's so... filthy."

"Saints, I already miss Kesseldam," Giselle said glumly. "This has got to be the ugliest city in the world."

Judith, taking in the narrow, leaning buildings, their weatherbeaten facades painted too many bright colors, and the murky water of the harbor and the canals, was inclined to agree. She missed the pristine beauty of Kesseldam, its pale buildings and green parks and gardens. She missed the architecture, beautiful in its simplicity. Allerstad's buildings all seemed too cramped and rickety, as if they were about to fall over, pressing in on each other around messy, winding streets, their layout completely without logic.

Judith's nose wrinkled. People always waxed poetic about Allerstad, extolling its beauty, its luxury, the variety of shops and businesses, but she couldn't understand what people saw in it. As she studied the crowds on the quay, took in their faces and clothes, she found herself thinking that it didn't even have the diversity of Kesseldam, where people from so many cultures all came together.

"Ready, soldiers?" Ensign Keyes asked cheerfully, loping towards them across the deck.

"I think so," Inez replied for them all. "I just hope we haven't forgotten anything."

"What do you think of Allerstad?" he asked, leaning against the railing.

"It's, um, interesting," Catherine said, pausing to clear her throat. "I'm sure it's very nice. Hard to tell from here, though."

Ensign Keyes snorted. "Nah," he drawled. "Mostly it's a shithole. But it grows on you. We'll be sad to see you ladies go, you know. Our return journey will be a hell of a lot longer without you."

Brigid's cheeks flushed delightedly. "We're just glad to have been of service," she said shyly, ducking her head as her red curls were tugged this way and that by the harsh wind. "You've all done so much for us; we wanted to pay it forward."

"Well, we're glad to have had you," Ensign Keyes said with a grin. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go help unload our cargo. Farewell, soldiers, and safe travels!"

As he strode away, hands in his pockets, whistling a cheerful tune, Judith shook her head, bemused, and shouldered her pack. She'd miss the Determined, but mostly she was eager to get to the embassy and pick up the Sightstone. The less time she had to spend in Allerstad, the better. Ensign Keyes was right. It was a shithole.

"Can we go now?" Inez asked impatiently, her hands shoved in her pockets. "This wind is brutal."

There was an escort waiting for them on the dock, a half-dozen soldiers that the ambassador had sent to see them safely to the embassy. They fell in around them, forming a sort of shield from the crowds that thronged the quay, and their leader guided them through the chaos of the harbor and onto a street that followed along a wide, murky canal. One of the soldiers told them it was called St. Roland Straat, and the canal was called Noord Kanal, which translated to–how very original–North Canal.