The Call of the Beachwick

Chapter 5: The Device

Aurelia boarded the train's platform in disbelief. Something was clearly going on that involved her daughter and the man she worked with, but what eluded her. As she tried to put the pieces together of what little she knew about the man and the upcoming Liberation Day celebration, a sickening feeling started to settle in the pit of her stomach. If Bidant had put Kesi up to taking the coins, then Aurelia had assumed the worst in her daughter. Gradually, the feeling grew worse. Trying to figure out what to do, she replayed their earlier conversation in the ancestral home as the synapsis in her brain feebly attempted to connect the dots.

If Kesi and Bidant were working together for some grand scheme, why did Kesi go along with it? Aurelia couldn't imagine Bidant threatening Kesi with her job, but she couldn't conceive why the two of them didn't just tell her what was going on. Clearly, it involved her. Frustrated, she let out an exasperated sigh that carried on the back of the wind through the jungle trees, then made her way towards the exit of the station.

The station itself, was small but quaint. The platform consisted of palm hardwoods that stretched across a hundred-foot path. Its length was just deep enough for the four carriages of the train to allow people to enter and exit its interior. In times of rain or overbearing sunshine, passengers were provided with a canopy crafted from woven palm fronds that stretched across the platform in all directions.

What Aurelia found special about the platform was its care, or really its lack thereof. Unlike the platforms leading into the Beachwick and Mythwood, very few people cared about its upkeep save for the miners who tirelessly boarded its planks day in and day out. As a result, delicate vines entwined gracefully with the architecture, that created a symbiotic relationship between nature and Saintian. It was proof of what she had told her daughter earlier in the day. Left to its own devices, the jungle would always win.

As she walked towards the mine, a number of people followed. A few she recognized as fellow workers of its depths, but still there was more she didn't know. Some of the humans and satyrs that passed by greeted her, but most treated Aurelia with indifference. It wasn't that any of the workers didn't like her. In fact, if she had put any effort in getting to know them, she thought they could have been friends. Their indifference was just the way of the mine. 

Like the jungle would have its way with time, the mine had a way of sucking life out of the soul. The physical strain and mental acuity of the daily routine had driven many a Saintian mad. To protect themselves, most of the workers found their early mornings mentally preparing for what had been adeptly called 'the mine-numbing.' It was a chance for them to clear their heads and know there was a reason they came here every day. As Aurelia prepared by allowing her mind to go blank, she was caught completely unaware by a creature that jumped on her back and covered her eyes.

"Guess who?" said the squeak of a feminine voice. Its well familiar tone brought a smile to her heart.

"Xara!" she squealed. It was a rather youngling squeal, but at the moment she didn't care. In a pinch, she flipped Xara around, set her on her feet, and happily hugged her. "I'm so happy to see you!"

"Me too," Xara exclaimed. "It's good to be home. There's just something about the smell of the jungle you can't find anywhere else in all of Sainta. The smell of petrichor after rain, the salty spray of the ocean, the bouquet of the flowers, not to mention the friendly satyr that works the mine, it's all just perfect. The mainland may have its towering cities, but nothing compares to what the Isle of Asha has to offer."

Aurelia released her friend and took a good look at her. In contrast to the majority of Asha's natives, Xara belonged to the Gayak race, whom Aurelia regarded as a peculiar people. Unlike the familiar halflings, satyrs, humans, and elves that still adorned the landscape of Sainta, Gayaks possessed ears that gracefully adorned the tops of their heads. Their bodies were ensconced in a layer of hair that resembled fur, while elongated tails extended from their forms, providing them with a natural poise.