It was too bad those old wizards hadn’t decided to place the Nexus someplace warmer, but it seemed to be only those of us from the Elemental Plane of Fire who really struggled here. Everybody else got by fine. I was wearing a coat, cloak, scarf, and gloves, and was still freezing, but at least it’d stopped snowing.
There were many ships in the bay. Most had masts and rigging. The ones that didn’t probably utilized magical means of propulsion. The concept of ocean-going ships wasn’t too strange to me. They weren’t that different in principle from the barges I’d grown up on, except these sat on top of water instead of levitating over lava. Seeing all these docked here reminded me of where the barges landed in Fort Silver.
My attention was irresistibly dragged back toward the ocean, because it was just so damned endless. And to think Trax came from an entire realm of this material, and his people lived far beneath its surface. I would have brought Trax with me, and he likely would’ve enjoyed having a nice swim, but people tended toget real nervous around Squalos, and I was here hoping to make friends.
“From the gawking, that’s a man who just came through the gate and never seen the sea before.”
I looked over to see a few men trudging up from the beach, carrying baskets of fish. The baskets were really full, which probably explained their good mood.
“You’d be correct, sir. I’m from Fogo.”
“Ah, a hotlander. We don’t get many of those ’round here.”
“I had a great uncle was from Vuur,” said another of the fishermen.
“We’ve all heard that story, Ted.” Because fish are heavy, they kept walking, and I walked with them. The first one turned his attention back to me. “If you’re looking for work, you’re in luck. It’s common knowledge you hotlanders love to get in fights once you’re in port, but put one of you on a crew and he’ll do the labor of any two regular men by himself.”
It was nice to hear my people be complimented for once. Most Core dwellers focused on our reputation for fiery tempers and left out the dignified, stubborn, hard-working parts. “It’s because when you grow up mining the Red, everything else seems downright safe and restful in comparison.”
“If it’s dock labor you’re interested in, you’ll need to talk to the foreman. For working the boats, best to catch the captains when they’re in the pub and ask.”
“Thank you kindly, but I’m already employed.” Saying this next part made me want to gag. “I’m an adventurer. I’m putting together an expedition to Korthican’s Warning.”
They all had a good laugh at that, not too different a reaction from the one me and my trapper friends would’ve had in Fort Silver when someone asked us about travelling to our deadly, adventurer-consuming ruins.
“Don’t do it. Everybody around here knows to stay away from that place!”
“I’d avoid that isle if I were you, son.” That fisherman was the oldest of the lot. “Brave fools used to take a run at it ever so often, thinking there might still be riches within, but it got picked clean centuries ago, so they all got chewed up and spit out for no reason. It’s been a few years since anyone’s gone back.”
“What do you mean by chewed and spit?”
“Well, gnawed-upon parts of them wash up on shore, so they didn’t get swallowed!”
I couldn’t say I was surprised the place was still infested with some manner of monster. “That’s unfortunate to hear.”
“You sure you don’t want an honest job, lad?” their chief asked. “We’re short-handed.”
That was sorely tempting right now. “Thanks, fellas, but I’ve made a commitment. You got any idea what manner of critters were doing that gnawing?”
“Something with ripping claws. At least I’m guessing claws. Hard to tell when you only get a leg or a torso stuck in your nets. I’ll tell you, it’s a bit of a surprise, thinking you’re hauling up a fish, and instead it’s an adventurer’s boot with his foot still in it.”
It was a good thing they were so forthcoming with the stories, because I didn’t even have enough coin left to buy them a round of drinks. “Being that you’re short-handed, I’ll help you unload your catch, if while we do so you keep telling me what you know about that place.”
“We’re not gonna turn down an extra pair of hands, and maybe once you hear what we have to say, we can talk you out of committing suicide.”
Eight
After getting a few hours’ sleep behind a barn, followed by a busy morning of prying stories out of folks who lived near the bay, I returned to the Under Slump armed with a bit of knowledge and a lot of trepidation.
The dead dirt monster had been shoveled out of the way and placed next to the tower’s edge. Should we ever find a student with any knowledge of life magic, we’d be able to plant a garden there. It would surely take magic, because it wasn’t like anything would grow naturally in this endless shade. I looked up toward the sky of pipes and foundations, and already missed the star-filled sky I’d slept beneath next to the bay. The Slump only descended a few inches a year, and was barely crunching the tops of our tallest buildings, but still, that oppressive weight somehow felt a bit heavier than when I’d left.
It was hard to believe I was embarking on such a dangerous endeavor for this place,but such is life.
Inside the Tube, I was greeted by one nervous student and an angry poltergeist, which threw a rock at me. I’ve got good reflexes, so I caught it, and hurled it back through the shimmering mist floating in the corner. “Fuck off, ghost.”
Thankfully, it vanished, which made the room feel about ten degrees warmer.
“It’s good that you have returned, Mr. Carnavon!” Morton Smorp was our gnome. He was a tiny fellow who only came up a bit over my knee. At forty, he was about twice my age, which meant he was still young by gnomish standards, but the oldest person here. Having tested as a rank two, Morton was supposedly more magically gifted than myself. Except he only knew two spells: a basic light spell—which wasn’t particularly useful since light charms were so common and cheap—and a simple warding that chased off fleas and ticks, which admittedly wasn’t going to win any arena fights, but was incredibly useful when you lived in a shit hole.
