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Achiel: A Night on the Town | crazygrue | 1

 

Achiel. The largest city and trading hub of the continent. Crops, lumber, minerals, and manufactured goods found their way through the bazaars and markets of the city, as well as more exotic goods. Slaves, magic items, strange creatures, and peculiar herbs made their way through the city as well. While most of the trade was through legal channels, there were also black markets, backalley vendors, and piratical smugglers to get whatever you needed.

Lydia, of House Veryxas, however, was mostly unaware of the city's undercurrent. Orphaned at a young age by a rival noble house, she was growing to an age where she would soon be expected to take control of House Veryxas from its current steward. Partly out of boredom, partly out of curiosity, and partly because she felt that she needed to understand more about the city than her sheltered upbringing had taught her, she had decided to sneak out with her best friend Holly.

Holly was a slave, belonging to House Veryxas, who had been like a sister to Lydia. She was bought as a child, and, thanks to Veryxas' kind treatment of its slaves, was treated kindly, if expected to do the work of an adult from a young age. Holly was excited to show Lydia the parts of the city that she, as a slave, had been to, that Lydia had been kept away from.

Lydia was waiting nervously in a small garden near a little-used entrance to the House's compound. The sun was setting, and, though she wasn't cold due to Achiel's warm climate, she shivered, wondering if Holly had bailed on her, or had been caught and punished for sneaking out.

But soon enough, Holly appeared in the door to the slave quarters, and, shutting the door quietly behind her, walked up to Lydia. "I was afraid you'd chicken out and say you had to study like last time," she said. "You ready to go?"

Lydia brushed off the remark with a wave of her hand and opened the door, with a mischievous grin. "I was born ready," she replied. The two stepped into the door, through the thick compound wall, and emerged onto the palm-tree lined streets of Achiel. Lydia breathed in the clean, warm air, and watched the lamp-lighters move along the street and zap the street lamps to life with a burst of magical energy from small wands.

"Well," Holly began, clearly impatient to get going. "I know you like to stand around, but I had someplace special in mind to start off the evening."

 

Where are they going first?


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