Aconitum

Chapter 8

The city stretched endlessly in a tangled maze of stone and wood buildings, with towers rising above like silent sentinels bearing proud banners of the human kingdom—a shield with a crown. The smell of seawater and fish mixed with the stench of the canals and the aroma of food and incense.

There were people everywhere, and Glen held her roughly by the wrist, dragging her behind him. They passed the most diverse groups of people – jugglers, street musicians, children wearing colorful masks, and women with wreaths of wheat on their heads. In smaller and larger squares, fires burned in metal baskets, and couples with flushed faces danced to the rhythm of drums or sat by tables full of fruits and various pastries. People bumped into each other, laughed, shouted, called out to each other to make toasts, and poured intoxicatingly fragrant drinks from barrels.

The whirl of sounds and colors made Nita's head spin. The joy radiating from the groups of people was contagious, and for a moment, the girl felt an urge to break free from Glen and join their dance. But Glen held her tight, weaving through the streets of Rovisk with a swift stride. Her feet were filthy from walking the dusty stone streets, and her legs ached, stumbling over each other.

No one stopped them, no one paid them any attention. Who would notice a sailor leading a small child during the Autumn Equinox celebrations?

They had docked two nights ago, but Glen had forbidden her to leave the ship without any further explanation.

He brushed off her questions and simply told her there would be time to journey to the warlocks the day after tomorrow. So, Nita waited on the ship, her restless young mind filled with all sorts of imaginings. In her mind, the figures of the warlocks often resembled Rem, only they were taller, cloaked, and without the greenish skin.

She had pieced together Rem's vague stories of the Elder's magic and their grand residences into a vision of a large and beautiful temple, where people would patiently answer her questions just like Rem did. A place where she would feel welcomed and learn to use magic... She was so close to fulfilling her dream of magic! She, a mere human child, as she often heard. This was her chance to no longer be "just" human.

She had been planning to slip off the ship and find the way to the warlocks on her own without Glen. She thought that since she was born in Rovisk and had lived here as a child, it couldn't be that hard to find way through city. But when she watched the bustling port, resembling a giant anthill, she quickly reconsidered her plan. In the end, she was glad she waited for Glen and didn't leave the ship alone — she was lost and disappointed in the first streets they walked through. She had thought that once they arrived in Rovisk, the city would feel familiar to her. She even hoped a little to find something deep inside that would remind her of "home," some place among humans where she belonged. However, what she saw was entirely different from her memories, and Nita felt only loneliness — she was returning to her own people, yet she was a stranger. But then Glen led her into a crowd of celebrating people, and Nita's curiosity made her forget both her feelings of disappointment and her restless anticipation of the end of her journey.

Occasionally, they passed groups of soldiers who stood aside from the main festivities with serious expressions. Every time she saw them, it stung her heart – the sight of soldiers triggered vague memories of her father and the old refugee's stories about the war. But apart from the presence of soldiers, there was no indication that there was a war anywhere.

Humans wouldn't be celebrating like this if they were at war with the Elders, would they? she wondered. And suddenly, she realized that they hadn't encountered any of the Elders or seen any symbol of the circle during their entire walk.

Out of nowhere, Glen turned sharply into a narrow alley disappearing between two tall stone buildings. The alley was dark and narrow, the kind that would make most people take a detour. But Glen led her on, and the houses changed from open and well-kept to dark, silent buildings, and even the music and joyful shouts were fading away. Nita instinctively pulled her cloak tighter around her body. They reached one of the city's canals, which collected sewage from all over the city. No one was rejoicing here. The sailor continued leading her upstream along the canal until a view of a small square opened before them.