A Month Ago

  ***

  Damien did not like deserts, he decided as he crested a sand dune overlooking the distant walls of Tashin.

  Never in his life would he have thought he'd find himself in this sandblasted land of endless scorched earth soaked in death. The aesthetics alone was a turn off, disheartening, to say the least, and that was discounting the infestation of nightmarish creatures that seemed to exist in every nook and cranny of the land.

  It was unarguably the top two worst places he'd ever been in, only coming second to the Redlands, a continent that was entirely unlivable.

  The Desolate Continent had not always looked like this, Damien understood. In fact, from the records abundant everywhere in the world, it was once a beautiful place—the most beautiful in the world—until something happened that had turned the entire bastion of life and beauty into a scorched landscape of red filled with all sorts of dangerously warped creatures and the occasional wandering storm.

  He was about two miles away from the city, watching as a long line of people trailed in and out of its gate; merchants, pilgrims, and all the other wandering sorts. They rode on creatures that—frankly, in his own opinion—should never have been domesticated, while others led long lines of caravans filled with people and various kinds of goods.

  He noted the number of guards stationed at the gates—some questioning the travellers as they came in, while others simply stood atop the ramparts, weapons in hand as their eyes stared far into the distance—and nodded in understanding.

  While not a cause for heavy concern, the number of guards stationed at the gates would have sent rumors running rampant about a possible war, or worse, an invasion. But that was on the other continents, where the environment wasn't actively trying to kill everyone.

  Damien was led to believe that was not the case here.

  Aside from the dangerous myriad of wandering creatures he'd come across on his way to this place, he'd also—from a distance—caught sight of equally roaming figures, people who in no way looked like they were on a journey of peace. He was fairly certain these guards were probably used to those bands by now.

  At the back of his mind, he felt a sudden pull, like a twinge, the same one that had been throbbing for weeks now, urging him down on a path that now led straight to the gates in the distance.

  He sighed. Hopefully, he'd find what had drawn him here.

  The vast sea of scorching desert burned as he made his way towards the gates. It was already mid day, judging from the position of the sun in the sky, which meant a higher temperature than normal. A bit more focus and he could pick out the brewing haze that suffused the atmosphere, like the surface of a boiling pot of water.

  While the temperature was definitely more than uncomfortable for other people, it failed to have the same effect on Damien. He walked down without a show of discomfort, brushing off the heat as he made his way towards the gate.

  The walls surrounding the desert city rose into the sky like a giant, towering close to fifteen meters in height and far more than that in width. The great double gates, which had been unbarred to allow in travellers going in and out, were made from black steel with throbbing lines of deep red running across their surface.

  The appearance alone looked too gaudy and extravagant for a small city state in the middle of a devastated continent. They didn't look to be struggling, as he'd assumed. Quite the opposite, in fact. And even though they traded with nations outside the continent—which was unlikely considering how completely devoid of resources the entire landmass was—they shouldn't have had enough coins for the extravagance that was being shown here. The energy shield covering the entire city, which emitted a powerful hum to his senses, for one, was more than most city states outside of the continent could afford.

  Damien wrinkled his nose. The only logical answer that he could come up with was a hidden backer, or a group of hidden backers. Which great nation was funding this city?

  He shook his head. It didn't matter. Whatever these people did in the shadows was none of his business. He'd find what he came here for and make his way back out as fast as possible.

  Two guards attended to the lines of people heading in: a human male and a bipedal drake beastkin, who closely resembled a common lizard more than their fiercer cousins. Like the other guards, they were clothed in heavy armor of a similar make to the walls. It also hummed with energy, though at a lower level than the one covering the whole city.

  "Halt!" the drake called out with a thick, raspy voice. "State your name and your reason for visiting Tashin."

  Daimen nodded. "My name is Damien Elason. I'm here for sightseeing."

  Normally, he wouldn't have been so eager to give out his real name, given how quick and easy it would reach the ears of his enemies, but Tashin was a city far in a distant continent in the middle of nowhere. In short, nobody knew him here. There was no reason to withhold his identity.

  The guard studied Damien for a few moments, a look on his face that Damien found hard to transcribe given their difference in race, but he was fairly certain it wasn't anything positive.

  He wanted to roll his eyes but held himself back. He was anonymous here and annoying the first authority he came across, especially one likely drunk on power, was not a good way to stay incognito.

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  He snuck a look through the open gates and with a raised eyebrow, his estimation of the city states went up a notch. It was an Essence grown City. That was more than surprising.

  In the entire world, he could count on one hand how many Essence grown Cities there were. This was a level of wealth some of the most powerful nations lacked. Wanted by all but owned by few. From what he knew, they were formed from the combination of extremely rare essence infused materials and the workings of mindboggling complex formations. And added to the extremely few professionals who could build them and how they were hoarded more tightly than even gold, it made for a near impossible task to create one.

  Damien considered himself rich, but even he wasn't rich enough to build something like this. He'd wreck himself a hundred times before he could come close. The only people with the wealth enough to raise one were the clergy of the various cults, a few of the topmost kingdoms, and powerful families with roots dating back millennia. Which made this all perplexing because this city was largely unknown, with a political reach that ended at the borders of its gate.

  Damien dearly wanted to investigate this, but he forced himself back. Sniffing into the businesses of city states, no matter how small, didn't bode well for anybody.

  The derisive voice of the guard drew him back from his thoughts. "You don't look like someone with enough money to pay for his feedings, let alone for lodgings. I want to see some coins." He stretched a hand tipped with three clawed fingers.

  This time the look on the drake's face was definitely easy enough to decipher.

  Damien raised an eyebrow with a tight smile. Please don't make me do this, please don't make me do this, he prayed. In the end, he let himself loose a little bit.

  "Oh, and what would someone with enough money look like?"

  Looking at the guard, it wasn't hard to tell his type: insecure and hungry for power. Their type liked to assert dominance the moment they saw prey.

  They always learned eventually.

  "Do as ordered, boy, or you'll be seeing the bars of a cell before nightfall. You will show me the coins you intend on spending in the city or you'll be dragged to the cells for a thorough... Investigation," he smirked predatorily, revealing long, sharp canines.

  With a grimace, Damien noted that they were beginning to draw attention, and given the other guard's unconcerned expression, he quickly summed up that he wasn't going to intervene.

  This was not a new thing to them.

  With a regretful sigh, he removed the small pouch that hung from his waist, opening it to reveal the ten gold coins glinting from within.

  A sharp light flashed across the drake's eyes before a neutral expression masked it. It was faster than anyone could have detected, but Damien definitely saw it.

  "You can go. Make trouble in the city and you will see the inside of a cell."

  Damien nodded, happy to be done with minimal issues, before walking past and through the gate, while the back of his head itched from the slitted gaze boring into it.

  Damien paused as he stepped into the city. His eyes widened as he realized the missing piece in the web of mysteries surrounding the desert city. Why was it still standing despite the roaming bands of bandits and the massive, destructive, wandering desert storms?

  It was an Essence Territory.

  Tashin had a backer, alright, and it wasn't any of the ones he'd thought about. This city had the blessings of a higher realm being.

  He shook his head as he realized where all the wealth and prosperity, despite their location in this vast stretch of barren earth, had come from.

  His brain was beginning to ache with the new development. He gazed outward warily. While entering an Essence Territory was not necessarily dangerous, if the city turned against him, he knew he would be at a noticeable disadvantage. Damien was conflicted, mind whirling on whether he should continue in or walk back out.

  "Get out of the way, idiot!" A voice thundered just as a man on a monstrous horse-like creature with two blade tipped tails and fanged mouths rode past him, forcing Damien forward.

  Decision made for him, he continued on.

  His skin tingled and his spiritual perception—constrained as it was— ignited as the dense energy of the place fell upon his skin like strings of cobwebs. Damien breathed in, feeling energy rush down his nostrils in a rush of cold air.

  The city's infrastructures closest to him hummed to his senses, emanating a feeling of extraordinary stability and perseverance, the same with the guards that patrolled with armors much more powerful than a Low-tier Monarch Realm wielder could afford.

  He nodded admiringly at the massive, transparent, energy dome covering the entire city, rising from one end to the other. He could scarcely imagine the immense amount of energy required to constantly maintain it.

  He'd stepped into territories before, and it was mostly considered foolish to fight a wielder in their territory, seeing as their strengths were doubled, which made for a more difficult battle than anyone reasonably wanted. Thankfully, they were not impossible to defeat, just hard.

  He made his way down the sidewalks of the wide central road leading deeper into the city, watching as different buildings came into view, with the large square-like shapes common in almost every city he'd ever visited dominating the city's infrastructure.

  The residents were of a different sort. Humans were the most dominant race on the planet, which raised—in Damien's opinion—a misplaced sense of superiority within them towards the others. This city, unlike the others, showcased great acceptance of the different races. From desert drakes to desert snakes, all creatures of desert origin who had been lucky enough to achieve sapience and human forms seemed to be welcomed.

  As he walked, his nose captured the smells of some of the goods being peddled. Children ran around playing, while their parents called out to them not to go too far. Different commodities were being sold on the streets, with vendors fighting each other for his and the other traveler's attention.

  "Handsome sir, come buy these beautiful dresses for your lady friend!"

  "Try out my latest batch of sizzling Drake meat! Fresh out of the frying pan!"

  "Can you smell my spices? I'm sure your woman would like some. It would put some aroma in your love life!"

  "Sweetbread! Come try some, straight out of the oven. After you taste it, all worries will go away!"

  And then there were the strange ones.

  "Hi, handsome. Come try me, your lady friend doesn't have to know."

  "I'll do you one better. Instead of two hours, we could spend all night. Wouldn't you like that?"

  "Go find another, he's already taken!"

  "He hasn't said yes to you, so he's fair game!"

  "Don't test me, you slut!"

  "Or what?!"

  That was how things devolved into a brawl on the streets, with scratching and screaming. People immediately began to gather, cheering for one person and switching to the other when that one seemed to be losing. Bets were passed around, which the guards saw but chose not to intervene leaving the women to settle their dispute themselves, but that didn't stop them from giving him the stink eye, like it was specifically his fault.

  Promising himself to be more careful, Damien continued down the street, coming up on an inn sitting right at the end of the street. It was a moderate-sized two-storey building, with the drawing of a singing lady and the name 'Singing Lass' written under it.

  Damien couldn't hear any noise inside, meaning the inn's frequent patrons weren't finished with their daily jobs.

  Looking around the street once more, Damien escaped inside.

  Thanks for reading.

  If you have an opinion and want to make it public... the comment section is down there??

  A new voice is always welcome.