The next morning, Riuluk woke up with his face on the bar table, still feeling drunk. The tavern was already full of clients eating breakfast, but nobody cared about him. The owner told them he just finished a brooch promise in less than 24 hours, so everybody knew he was a good lad.
“Good Morning, Pegasus Knight’s equal...you really were tired if you slept here the whole night! Ahahah!” laughed the bartender.
“Aaaarrrggggg...” yawned Riuluk,
“You'd better go down and take a shower, you look terrible!” said the bartender, looking at him with a funny smile,
Riuluk looked at himself from head to toe. He had those clothes for days.
“Aye, you must be right! Can I also get some new adventurer clothes from your laundry?” asked Riuluk,
“Sure, which number would you like to have?” asked the bartender,
“Mmmmmh..I want to be cozy but also with some nice colors this time, but not too shiny...” said Riuluk, lowering his voice, he just remembered he probably still had the dark elf following his steps...
“I can suggest to you a number 7 or maybe a 10th?” asked the bartender,
“Yes, I think a 10th should be fine...” replied Riuluk. He then walked down to the showers, undressed, and left the clothes in a compartment called 'used numbers'.
As you may know, Cloud Dwarves are very practical, and they give numbers to foods and beverages; they are also efficient with clothing. Of course, you can dress however you want, but for those who travel a lot like Riuluk, Cloud Dwarves established a system where taverns not only can give you food, drink, and shelter. They will also provide showers and a change of clothes in case you need. The adventurers' clothing is also numbered; some have a special title, of course. But this time Riuluk chose another one, you can’t always dress the same!
About the used clothes, tavern owners clean them, repair them as if they were brand-new, and sell them back to adventurers when they need them.
Riuluk got back from the shower; this time, he had a lot of money in his backpack. He paid the bartender for the new clothes and went back to his room to change. He then walked back into the tavern, had a special breakfast again, like the day before, and then greeted the bartender one last time...
“I do have to say the stay here was incredible!” said Riuluk,
“Oh, thank you...I have prepared your documents, Riuluk, so you can receive the special permission from the brooch promise at the flying towers.”
He handed Riuluk a rolled parchment bearing the tavern's sigil.
“Mmh mhh..this smells like treasure!” said Riuluk, smiling,
“Now that I am leaving, can I ask you if you know someone in this city...someone who will show me the...future? Seems he is quite a funny guy...” asked Riuluk, ashamed,
“Mmmh, what do you mean? I honestly don’t know anyone who can show you your future... You need a Wizard for that! Ahah. And I don’t see one for ages...” replied the bartender,
“Well, I guess, that was such a stupid question...” said Riuluk, whispering to himself...
“Goodbye, customer!” said Roundath behind the bartender,
Riuluk did not notice her there at all! He was so pumped from the talk with the Knight the day before, he almost even forgot she was working there...such a shame, he thought.
“Goo..good bye, Roundath! I will not forget you...” said Riuluk with a forced, ashamed smile.
Riuluk left with his backpack and his plants. That day was so sunny, too bad he had to go around the city all day looking for that person he needed to find...but where to even start? And even worse, now that he saw Roundath...he would have thought all day why he forgot about her, and he stayed all night drinking with her father...
Riuluk thought to look around for this man while doing his stuff for now. He looked at his new adventurer’s clothes, and they looked so nice!
He walked down the streets of Duerth Merkath and stopped by time to time at a tavern or restaurant to ask for a guy who could show his future. Everybody looked at him as stupid or crazy. This thing was starting to be annoying.
He walked the street in the direction of the Northern Market. So once there, he reached the Sphere vendor he had spoken with the day before...
“Good morning, dear customer!” said the vendor,
“Good morning, the auction went very well, so I am glad I can buy my new Sphere!” said Riuluk,
“Oh yes, yes, I do remember your choices...have you made your final choice?” asked the vendor,
“Yes...I have been thinking a lot about them, and I made a decision...I will buy the ‘Lightning Cloud’! But... but I want the ‘Rainy Cloud’ accessory to protect from rain as well. Can you make this modification for me?” asked Riuluk,
“Mmmmh...you are quite an interesting fellow...but, yes. We can make the modification, instead of 70 gold coins, we will make it 77 if it's fine...” said the vendor,
“Make it 80, but has to be prepared by tonight!” said Riuluk, very convincingly,
“Deal!” said the vendor
“Deal!” said Riuluk
They grabbed their fist as a fist fight, and then Riuluk pushed the vendor’s hand down. As Cloud Dwarves tradition.
“Ok, once done, I will need you to park the Sphere at the northern tower. I will pay for the parking and the service once I go back to pick it up”, said Riuluk.
“Excellent!” replied the vendor,
Riuluk walked out of the market while still watching the fantastic Duonor’s Spheres and then went to the Northern tower office.
The tower was huge, and a large, open wooden door at the bottom led to a set of wide stairs to the top. On the left and right sides of the tower, some rudimental elevator where bringing up and down the goods from the Spheres, which were parked at different levels of the tower docks. It looked like one of your parking lots with different levels, but this one had open air from one level to another, and Spheres where parked while still flying.
Riuluk walked up the stairs and stopped at half level of the tower. From the stairs, lots of dwarvish folk were coming up and down, slowly or in a rush. Some had goods, some were on holiday, some were officers, and so on...
The office at half tower level was a complete mess. Tables full of documents, almost 2 meters high, boxes full of books and catalogs. Many Cloud Dwarves were working, finding documents, using a strange mechanical device with a special lens to see better up close. Some of them were driving step ladders with wheels, moving from one pile of documents to the other. Some others had balloons tied to their belts to fly.
“Eeehmm...hello?” asked Riuluk,
“Helloooo?”, asked again with no reply...
He then moved to the center of the hall and took off the document.
“Swissshhhh”...
One of the officers just grabbed it from him while flying...
“Hey! That is mine!” said Riuluk,
“Mblmblbmlbmblbmlb...” said the officer, reading fast the document while still flying...
“Ooook! Give me 20 seconds!” said the officer to Riuluk,
Exactly 20 seconds later, he returned to RIuluk with a brooch.
“Ok, lad. Here is the brooch for the free flying in the southern countries. As you may know, we change brooches every two weeks. So you have free passage with no taxes for the next two weeks, starting in 2 days. In case you do not want the brooch, we can switch it to a document that will allow you to start your journey from today...” said the officer,
If you may not know, showing off a brooch you have obtained with a brooch promise is, as a matter of fact, for Cloud Dwarves and honor, as well as a nice ornament to have. The system of brooches is changed every 2 weeks, so officers can check whether you still have the right to pass without paying taxes. The problem is that you need to accept the 2-week time conditions every time they make a change to it. In case you do not want the brooch (which is really rare for a Cloud Dwarf to not want it...), you can switch it to a document that will allow you to have the bonuses immediately.
“Oh, this one looks so nice! Yes, thank you, I take the brooch...”
This brooch, unlike Riuluk's family brooch, was red. But not that strong red, it was that cozy red from a sunset. In fact, sculpted on it were two clouds, and in the middle a small orange sun, which touched the whole brooch in a wonderful red. Riuluk immediately took it and put it on his new adventurer’s jacket.
“Fine, have a good travel on the sky!” said the officer to Riuluk and left to other business...
Riuluk walked down the stairs of the Northern tower while still looking at his brooch. He needed to find that guy... after all, nobody knew that inside his jacket's pocket he had the stone of fire...
Even if the time in Duerth Merkath has been quite fun, he needed to get back on his quest. He spent the rest of the day asking different folk for a funny guy who would tell him his future... he even went to the military to ask. No answers at all.
It was already sunset, and he was sitting on the street, tired andhungry. He opened his backpack to check for Baka and Burin... once he opened it...
“Hey! What on sky are you doing? Why have you turned back to goblins?” shouted Riuluk,
Baka and Burin were trying to make space from the backpack to get out...
“Nonono, no! They will kill you if they see you like this!” said Riuluk,
“Waka naba chuchuuuu!” said one of the two. The other looked around, full of people...he slapped the other,
“Ennaku shotta nemuu!” said to the other...
“Do not come out! You are green goblins!” said Riuluk,
“Ahaaaaa...shatta lametukka!!” said one to the other, laughing...they both looked at Riuluk and tried to blow with their mouths closed. Their eyes looked even more dumber, and their faces looked terrible. Slowly, their color changed from green to white. They jumped off the backpack while Riuluk was evidently in panic.
Baka and Burin laughed, touched each other's hands, and said...
“Retakke Nashta!”
Riuluk was mouth open. They fused together to form what seemed an elf. Quite ugly for an elf, but still, less looking like a goblin. They took a stone from the ground and said...
“Shenna Lukio”
The stone became armor. They basically turned into some kind of elf warrior with stone-made armor. Their face was covered with a helm. The new entity patted Riuluk on the back...
“Tenna muchuuu! Shitta luuu! Ihihihihih...” said the new form of Baka and Burin,
“You can do this stuff, but you cannot speak?” asked Riuluk,
Luckily, the fusion was quite fast, and no one around saw it.
“Aaaah, he wants us to speak his dwarvish tounge Burin!” said the creature,
“No, do not speak with him, he is a dwarf!” said the same voice,
“Aaaah, but you are speaking now dwarvish!” again the same voice,
“Silence, Baka!”
“No, you silence Burin!”
“I said silence first, Baka..eheheheh!”
“No...I am in contr....”
“Hey, you too! Quit it!” shouted Riuluk,
The creature stopped and made a soldgier salute...
“You stop Burin... no, you stop Baka!” the creature said to himself,
“Can you help me to find this guy? It has been all day, I am looking for him...” asked Riuluk, tired.
“Hehe...let’s help him, no, you help him, no, I help him...” said Baka and Burin...
Riuluk sat down again on the street, depressed.
“Oooooh...ohohohoh!” the creature laughed, grabbed Riuluk, and pointed at his back...
“What on sky...what do you want now?” asked Riuluk, annoyed.
“Shhhhh...look, look..don’t look..look!” said the creature,
Riuluk opened his eyes. On the wall behind him, a great manifesto. It was full of color, with a strange, smiling guy in the middle, his hands open and a fancy, round crystal in front of him. Written on it:
“The Great Magicus! Come to make your dreams come true! The Seer of tomorrow, the Seer of yesterday, the Seer of today! Crystal ball reader, palm reader, and loooove reader...hamlet 86 pink bell! Do not make your future wait!”
