The Key: Book 2 The Rose Tree Chronicles

Chapter Three: An Island for the Immoral

Arcor was an ungoverned city where the most dedicated criminals came to smuggle and trade, where the outcasts came to live, and where the bloodiest of pirates came to hire their crew. This gave it a reputation of being the most unpleasant city in the world and it nearly took up the entire island.

Unlike Rein, Empress Renée was unmolested on her way to Arcor and she shored the same day as Rein was carried onto the pirate ship. The empress took cover in a snowed-out wooded area away from civilization as all the ports and beaches seemed to be in constant use by filthy, crazed Arcorians. She kept her light gray cloak wrapped tight around her and pulled her hood on to hide her streaming blonde hair and most of her face. Then she waited in the frozen air of the woods for a while where she struggled to invoke the courage required to enter the city.

Arcor's screams of terror and shouts of rage reached the empress's ears and kept her planted in her chosen spot unable to move. The only solution she could summon was that perhaps she could flow through the streets as a stream, but that would only attract more attention if someone were to spot a shimmering body of water coursing through the grimy roads. Renée paced in the crunchy snow, kicking about the black rune-like patterns the wind blew across the surface.

"What should I do?" she growled, pressing her fists against her temples. "Where should I go? Where do I even start looking?"

Turning back was not among her list of choices. She absolutely had to enter this city to find the merchant who knew where she could locate the Mystery Miracle Worker. She had to prove her friends and the empire wrong about her, and this was the only way she could do that.

After a couple more minutes of pacing and speaking to herself, Renée focused harder to gather the strength to enter Arcor. She cautiously approached the edge of the wood and peeked out from behind a tall, skinny gray tree. She caught sight of the ratty townsfolk arguing, trading, stealing, drinking, fighting, singing, vandalizing, anything and everything that would be considered careless or even lawless anywhere. She hesitated again, then conjured up some water from the snow and formed it into a dagger to keep with her for an emergency. Finally, with a deep breath to calm her frenzied nerves, Renée entered the unholy city of Arcor.

The empress kept to the center of the street where there was less commotion. Every once in while she had to dodge people fighting, people stumbling drunk, people fleeting. She was even almost run down by rampant horses towing a carriage where the product it held was aflame. Death and violence surrounded her and it filled the air with the odors of sweat, rust, and decay. It was clear to Renée that no one bothered to rid the streets of the putrid bodies and rotting trash anymore. The red blood and black muck mingled with the brown snow on the ground and buildings. She had learned through a rumor that whatever rules existed were unwritten and they happened to be mainly trading rules, such as, "I'll give you something if you give me something in return." There was also one peace rule: "Don't bother me, I won't destroy you." But since all who came to Arcor were narcissistic to say the least, these rules were often completely disregarded and she made sure to keep this in mind.

To Renée's surprise, few of these people paid her any mind, but this was probably because many found it easier to snatch the attentions of the willing promiscuous women who coaxed them from the balconies of some of the rarer sturdy buildings. Yet there were a few Arcorians who took a moment from whatever they were doing to stare at Renée suspiciously, but no one bothered to approach her until she passed a tavern where one drunken satyr was thrown out. In a sputter of profanities, he stumbled into Renée and nearly knocked her into the sloshy ground.

"So sorry, my Lady," he slurred. "But you were too delicious to resist. Come with me and I'll show you how to have a good time!"

"How dare you!" Renée spat as she pushed him away.