Orelie

*19*

*19*

"Fresh mackerel! Two seventy a pound!"

"Cold water cat anglers! Three fifteen each!"

"Two forty-seven a pound for tuna-cudas!"

I stared in amazement at all the strange, colorful fish. Some I recognized from Earth, while others seems to be hybrids, or completely new species. It was amazing to see all these new fish and other products. Why hasn't Crae taken me here sooner?

"Kyrene, look!" I turned to see Mystic holding up a silver necklace. "It's a rare protection necklace! It keeps bad spirits and Demons away! The silver acts as a barrier while the pendant has a salt stone. Nothing bad can touch you!" She skipped over to me and clasped it around my neck.

I held up the clear, sparkly pendant. "I love it! Thank you!"

"That will keep the pesky Demon from ever touching you again." She said as she stared at my arm. "Don't ever take that necklace off, you hear?"

I nodded. "Understood."

"Let's keep going." She placed a few coins on a stall for the guy and we left. We headed farther into town, seeing all the sights and street performers this place had to offer. I held onto my staff in awe as two people with very long and pointy ears did tricks with streams of water while balancing on balls of air.

"Breathtaking, isn't it?" All I could do was nod in response. "There's new performers every day. No one knows who's going to show up next. Come on." She pulled me along as one of the performers winked at me. I giggled and looked away. Why was he staring at me?

It took us nearly another hour to reach the edge of town. Millpost is definitely larger than Silver Valley. There's more shops, more people, and more entertainment. There's so much going on in one day.

After a short rest, Mystic brought us to the edge of a wide, clear river.

"Okay," Mystic sat near the edge. "Take a seat. Today is going to be easy for right now. All I'm asking you to do is speed up the current."

I tilted my head in confusion. "Speed up? I don't quite understand."

"It's easy," she stuck her hand in the water, gentle ripples cascaded around it. "Just move your hand a bit in the water, like so." She moved her arm back and pushed it forward. The bubbling of the river grew a bit louder. She pulled her hand out a bit, leaving her finger tips in. After pulling her arm back a bit, she submerged her hand once more and moved it forward. The ripples and the stream moved faster with each pass she did.

Two passes later, she pulled her hand out of the water. "The river will right its current on its own. Just give it a few moments. When you feel you're ready, go ahead and try it out."

"But what about the Merfolk and the Naga?" I asked as I cast a wary eye at the crystal clear water.

"The Merfolk don't come this far inland," she explained with a wave of her hand. "The water is too shallow for them to swim upstream. Stick your staff in real quick."

Cautiously, I stuck it in. The water came half way up my staff. "In order for the Merfolk to swim unhindered, they need at least three times that depth. The Naga are more gentle and won't harm you. They'll be curious, but they won't hurt you."

I nodded slowly and pulled my staff back out. I stuck my other hand in the water and pulled it back. When I swung forward, the current picked up tremendously, almost making me fall in.

Mystic caught me and pulled me back. "Try moving your hand a bit slower. The faster you move, the faster the current."

"Right, sorry..." I felt my cheeks warm up with embarrassment. I have to be careful. I don't want to get accidentally swept away.