The sun peered through the blinders of her window, spewing rays of light in orchestrated columns through the maelstrom of dust in the air. Her head throbbed with intensity, and she wanted to yell at herself for not drinking enough water. She groaned as she tossed the sheets off and sat up, and rubbed her temples to try and alleviate some of the pain. Sighing, she put on her pants and threw her shirt over her tank top, and emerged from her room with squinted eyes.
“Bloody hell, love,” Kamille giggled. Ayela hadn’t even looked at her hair, but she knew it was a mess. “Let’s get you some coffee. We’ll pack your things in a little bit.”
“Thanks,” she groaned with a raspy voice.
“Let’s not dally around too much, though,” Asher said, handing Ayela her coffee before grabbing some more of the trash they left from the night before. She couldn’t even imagine how he wasn’t hungover. Thillan at least looked like everything was too bright and loud for him. Kamille, on the other hand, was chipper and perky, seemingly unphased from any pain she likely felt. Did Ayela really drink more than any of them? It didn’t matter.
She sipped her coffee and took a seat at the table. One by one, the others did the same after pouring themselves some. “We know our plan,” Thillan said with a smirk. “We’re going to really hit the empire where it hurts.”
“Let’s make sure our phones aren’t in the room before we start discussing anything,” Asher ordered. They obeyed.
“Now that we’re all clear, let’s talk about the next few days,” Kamille began. “We’ll pass through the towns along the way quickly, but our driver won’t stop until we reach Cassum. He asked that we help him with some business in town when we arrive, which I told him we obviously would.”
“Naturally,” Asher agreed.
“It’s just a simple delivery. It’s how he keeps his public front as a trucker. Once we finish helping him, we’ll stay in Cassum for the night to go over our mission and objective details. Then, we enter the city and head to Asher’s coordinates. Thillan will go and find a rendezvous point, and we will wait there until we’re sure we can leave without setting off any alarms or triggers.”
“Sounds great, babe, but who’s going in with Ayela?” Thillan asked.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Kamille hesitated to answer for a few moments. “I’m not sure yet. We will make that decision when we need to.”
“Agreed,” Asher assured. “Sound plan, Kamille. Just like we talked about yesterday. Now let’s pack up and go to the east gate. Our ride should be waiting for us now.”
“Make sure to leave the keys to the car you drove with the bartender,” Thillan said before kissing his lover and getting up from his seat.
With another cup of coffee in hand, her third one, they left the inn and made sure the bartender was paid in sigil and with the vehicle. The day was clear and bright, and the warmth of the sun created a perfect harmony with the brisk autumn breeze that passed through the town. Everything was calm and peaceful. Other people passed them by, their casual chatter filling her ears when they were close, while the sounds of cars driving by helped to fill the other voids of sound. The cool sensation of the air gently brushed her skin and aided the smell of the fresh outdoors in her nose. Slowly, the medicine she took and the caffeine she drank numbed the pain of her beaming hangover, and she was able to put herself together nicely and enjoy her day.
They walked for nearly forty minutes before arriving at the eastern gate, and as Kamille promised, their ride was waiting for them in a massive hauler with a long trailer hitched behind it. Their driver was a petite dark elf with greying hair, but she carried herself with the confidence of a young soldier. “You lot ready?” She asked with a thick accent similar to Thillan’s. Ayela was sure the greying hair and slight wrinkles were more from the stresses of her job than anything else.
“Readier than ever,” Kamille chirped.
“Good. You can throw your bags in the back room of the cab and make yourselves at home. This hauler was meant to house a family, so there’s more than enough room. We’ll be at Cassum in three-day’s time, granted there aren’t any detours.”
Ayela turned to look at Shamol one more time, inhaling and exhaling deeply. If there ever was a home she could find in the empire, that town was it. She smiled, and then turned to enter the truck. The door shut behind her, and with roaring engines, the citizens around were made aware of the hauler signaling its departure.
When everyone was comfortable, Ayela looked through her bag for her phone and found an object wrapped up in paper dark enough to go unnoticed for as long as it had been. Curious, she pulled it out, ignoring the joking and casual conversation the rest of her friends were having, and gently unraveled the wrapping. It was a book with a note atop that read, From your friend, Karinth. She set the paper aside and smiled with misty eyes as she looked at the most beautifully designed Alldweii, her sacred scriptures. The cover was a deep indigo with golden trimming, and its pages were colored on the outside with a metallic sage. She swelled with emotion knowing she had such a good friend in him, and returned to the others with a thought repeating over and over in her head…
Thank you, Karinth…
