Whispers from the Dark

5. the thief's guild

The tunnel ended a little above the city. You could see the entire city from up here. But only a part of it was illuminated. The rest was still hidden in the dark. There was no light from above, but the torches lit by the inhabitants, made enough light so you could see more then 30 feet in this darkness. The city was built with a strange, grey coloured stone. The white carvings in the wall were the same as the carvings we saw in the tunnels. All the buildings and lanterns had beautiful, organic forms. The streets here were paved with magical silver stones. I bet the city must have been as green as the forest, but here with no sunlight, there grew nothing but strange illuminating blue mushrooms on the walls. The blue mushrooms gave a faint, spooky glow. The stranger, whose name I still didn't know, told me these mushrooms were poisonous. In the northern part of the city stood the biggest building, probably the castle where the noble lord and lady of the city lived. You could see that the earthquake had damaged this beautiful castle. Just like the rest of the city. Walls were cracked, some even lay on the ground, blocking the passage. The ceiling was quite low. Fancy pillars made by elvenkind were elevated and strengthened by our simple stones and cement. Holding up a ceiling of dirty grey, red stone plates, fastened with cement. I thought about what was above here, miles of dirt and then houses of stone. Don't think about it. These people lived here and they wouldn't live here if it wasn't safe. "Beautiful, isn't it?" the man said when he passed me by and started to walk downhill towards the city. I followed him without a sound, Artemis at my heels. I wonder what the city would have looked like in her old days, I send the thought to Artemis.

I bet it would have been the pearl of the Ancestral Region, he answered me.

The streets were clean, what I didn't expect. Many people lived here. Mothers with children, young people, old people. They weren't beggars, but looked healthy and strong. All of them wore dark colours and because of that, were difficult to spot. The houses were inhabited. I could see fires burning inside of them and wondered where all the smoke went to. It was quiet in this city, besides the soft murmuring of human voices in the back. The people we came across all had penetrating looks, even the children looked dangerous. As if they would kill you in your sleep. "There not very fond of newcomers, little fox. I suggest you keep your head low and don't make eye contact," the stranger whispered. I kept my eyes on my feet as I continued following the young man. But I needed to see more of this city. I closed my eyes, and started to breath in deeply. Separating my spirit from my body, but pushing my body to keep moving straight on. I breathed out and opened my eyes. Wolfs eyes. My smell became stronger, my sight became more detailed. Artemis had a far better darkvision than I had. His soft paws made more contact with the floor and I could feel a soft vibration of the life above us. I could also smell the rotten meat of dead rats somewhere in the tunnels, mingled with a sweet sense of the mushrooms and the clear summers' scent of the night saying goodbye to the day. I looked up and saw roosters in the ceiling. I could glimpse the clear sky with her stars. People walked over the rooster and now and then a card rode over it. But that was the place that gave fresh oxygen to this underground city. The ceiling was full of it. I saw the young man walking slower and pulled myself back to my own body. "Don't people from above smell the smoke from here through those roosters? And what if it's raining? Where will the water go?" I asked in a whisper. The young man kept looking ahead when he answered. "There are so many smells in that world above, that they will not notice us. For the rain, that's what the small ditch is for." And he pointed towards the middle of the city. There was a small river there. Ditches, made by men, ended in that river. The river flew downhill to the tunnels where there are no pavements. "We're here." He turned around and grabbed my shoulders. His face closely to mine. "This man knows all. Don't speak when you are not told to speak, don't ask questions. Don't make eye contact. And the most important, keep your head low when you speak unless told otherwise." He let go of me and opened the huge doors to the castle. Inside was a hall that led to a huge square room with two fireplaces in the middle. Two man where leaning against the wall inside, both dressed almost the same as the young man leading me. "What do you want, Spook." One of the men sneered. Now I knew his name. Or at least his nickname.