Black Blood

-B2- Chapter 5

The long green plains sometimes seem endless. The colour starts to become normal after a few days, boring after a few weeks and it becomes boring after a month. Sometimes it seems like we don't take a single step due to the lack of varying views. I have seen so much grass in the last month that I yearn for a bit of forest or stone. Sheep and other livestock are no longer fun to encounter, rather annoying. If I had a coin for every sheep I encountered, I would own several houses now. The plains of Morien are not for me.

I am more than happy when the stone houses of Runcast come into my sight. The largest human city known is feared by mages for many reasons. It is one of the few places where mages do not hold power and sit in government. It is also not on most maps. The bond between humans and mages has never been very good, they prefer to avoid each other. After the Moonlight War between the two camps, the bond has always remained strained.

That makes it the best place to avoid my father, but that's not why we're here. Mages don't generally come here much. That makes it the perfect place for any mage with a secret. Although the people don't like to see magicians, the entrepreneurs take full advantage of the wandering magicians. Brothels, taverns and places to lose your money are abundant.

Novak talked about it a while ago and described it as a city of party, drink, sex and filth. The combination of drink, party and sex will not help in keeping the streets clean. In addition, humans are known to be lazy creatures. They have no magic to put their things in order.

However, they have managed to build a wall around the city, a stone wall. The stones are built up in a herringbone pattern. The weather and time have found their way into the material, taking pieces with them. The missing stone here and there reveals a crack of life within the wall. Beneath the green plants, a glimpse of the original grey material can just be seen. One can see that this two-metre high wall was built without magic. The bricks are anything but straight. The grey-green pile of bricks is more of a curtain than a barrier. If this is an indication of the inside, I understand Novak's judgement.

I turn my head in his direction and look at a broadly greying Novak. His triumphant look tells me enough to know he is convinced he was right. I roll my eyes as I bring my horse to the gate. Even this kind of defence makes me wonder how the war could have lasted for years, how this city was feared. The two large wooden doors are marked with black burn marks, holes and scratches. The wood seems not to have been checked or renovated for quite some time. The two doors are barely held together with a loose lock.

Novak jumps off his horse, walks to the lock and pulls it off. The two red eyes stare at me in amazement as the piece of iron hangs in his hand. I put my hand over my mouth to hold back my laughter. Without effort, Novak pushes open the right door. A long street comes into view.

Slowly we let our horses walk into the village. The sloping streets are narrow, bumpy and crooked. As crooked and uneven as the wall is, the streets are even worse. The stones stick out here and there, are missing or half broken off. People don't seem to need much space. The houses are built so close together that the horses can barely get through. I marvel at the state of the city. Everything is old, broken and crooked.

'Look where you're walking,' shouts a woman I'm trying to wriggle out of. The pile of washing she had in her hands falls onto the half wet street.

'Sorry,' I shout after the woman. We guide the horses through the narrow streets before we seem to end up on the main street. I can catch my breath as soon as the street doubles in width. The smell that enters my nostrils on entering the main street is indescribable. I immediately put my arm in front of my nose as I try to keep out the pungent air. The smell of excrement, rotting food, damp and mould is almost unbearable. I stand still as I stare in amazement at the busy street. Perhaps hundreds of people have passed my sight in the time I have been standing here.