*Date: 33,480 Third Quarter — Kingdom of Satar Borders*
It had been ten days since they left Safe Hollow, and the odd group had reached an inland lake at the heart of Aethyros. The capital city was circled by this massive body of water, sitting like a jewel at the continent's center.
Demir's internal struggles gnawed at him constantly. The many losses against the goblin horde played through his mind on repeat. Matthis's final stand at the wall. Elandra's arrows flying until her quiver was empty. And worst of all, losing Timmy and Sin's departure. All of it had left marks on Demir that he feared would never heal. For the whole journey, he had mainly answered questions without much thought, going through the motions of survival without truly living.
But he was at least better than Marco. The older game tester was seeing nightmares every night and was on the verge of constant panic attacks. Sometimes Demir would wake to find Marco sitting upright, staring at nothing, muttering apologies to people who could no longer hear them.
At last, finally, they were seeing the other side of the lake. The Capital of Satar, Parthanon, rose from an island in the center of the water. The whole country was built on that single island, housing one giant metropolis of a city.
Parthanon had been the eye candy of the game when it was still just a game. Major fun activities had been hosted there, whether player-organized or developer-organized. And as a result, money had poured into the city over centuries. The Eleven Kingdoms mixed there with almost every race, and mostly with players who sought excitement and fortune.
Alef had explained to Demir on the way that even though it was technically an NPC city, more than two hundred thousand players lived there alongside the native races. He had also explained about the underground leader, Rex Choars, who had been ruling for more than nine hundred years. But now that Rex had lost his monthly visits for youth treatment from the real universe, his age was starting to take its toll. And this might be one of the last tournaments he was sponsoring, if not the very last. So Rex had added a below-level-50 tournament for the first time, in order to watch another competition before the end.
Demir looked at the distance between their shore and Parthanon's shore. It was more than a mile of open water, the surface glittering under the afternoon sun.
"How are we going to get across with our horses and..." He pointed at Asena, who lay in the grass nearby, her silver fur catching the light. "With her?"
Lysara shaded her eyes against the glare. "We're going to have to wait. Alef went to send a signal to the shore fishermen. Normally, the first one to see it comes quickly, hoping to earn coin. But we sent a special signal asking for a bigger vessel."
Marven was sharpening new arrows with obvious boredom. She had seemed to be expecting more excitement when she joined Demir and the high-levelers. But the journey had passed without much happening, other than helping Demir practice combat with random animals they encountered on the road.
"Wait, walk, wait..." Marven sighed. "How long do you think we're going to wait? I might catch some animals to eat."
Demir saw Alef coming back with a grin on his scarred face.
Lysara smiled. "By the looks of it, not much."
Alef reached them, still grinning. "I received a message. They're either going to eat us alive, or a big ship has already departed to get us."
Lysara frowned. "Don't joke about getting eaten alive."
"Normally, this close to a tournament, it's not easy to find a big vessel going to the Capital. Everyone's already booked."
"Do you think something happened?"
"It might be pushed to next week or so. We'll see when we get there."
Alef pointed at Marco, who sat alone on a rock near the water's edge, staring at the waves. "Is he okay? I think he needs help."
Lysara made a hand gesture suggesting they sit beside him. "He's grieving. Let him be." She turned to Demir. "Right, Demir? You're the closest to him."
Demir sighed, not knowing what to say. The past few weeks had carved a hole in him about leadership. He wasn't a leader. He wasn't even a good friend. He didn't know what to say in times like these, and each day Marco's mind seemed to decay further.
"I'm close, but I failed as the leader defending the town. I don't know what to say."
Marven stopped sharpening her arrows. "You also lost friends and fought like a maniac, risking your life. Remember, you and him need each other." She turned toward Marco's solitary figure. "As friends."
Demir bit his lip and walked over to Marco, sitting beside him on the rock. Asena also got up from her comfortable grass and padded over, settling on Marco's other side. The silver wolf's presence seemed to ground the space around them.
Marco gulped, his voice a whisper. "What happened? Did we arrive?"
"No."
"Are we getting attacked?"
Demir smiled despite himself. "No, everything's okay. We're waiting for the ship that can carry us to Parthanon. I'm sure as a game tester you've been there many times."
"Yeah, I have." Marco's voice was hollow, distant.
"Look, I need you in the city. It's a million-population metropolis. If Aris shows up, or in case we have to leave notes so he can find us, we need a plan."
Marco looked at Demir like he didn't understand. "Sorry?"
Demir's idea was leaving notes and descriptions with big vendors and important people, asking them to contact him if someone matching Aris's description showed up. But it was also a futile effort. Because Demir didn't know what Aris looked like at seventeen, nearly eighteen. At the age of thirteen to seventeen, boys changed the most. Their faces filled out, their voices deepened, their bodies stretched and broadened. Demir didn't know how else he was supposed to look for Aris.
"I need a list and locations of reliable local vendors. Alef and Lysara say they mainly worked with player traders."
Marco's eyes focused slightly. "I... I can help any way I can, of course."
Out of nowhere, Asena licked Marco's face. And again. And again. Demir started laughing at every lick, since Marco was getting angrier at the sudden wet attention but was also showing emotions other than despair.
Marven approached, grinning. "What is this? How come I don't get licks, Asena? You don't like me?"
"She didn't even lick me like that," Demir laughed. "This must be special for Marco."
"Asena, please stop!" Marco was trying to push her massive head away, but she was insistent.
Marven snickered. "Oh, I understand now. She's trying to wipe off Marco's stupid face, thinking it was a stain or a fresh wound."
Demir was laughing out loud now, tears forming in his eyes.
"Hey!" Marco protested, but there was the ghost of a smile on his face.
Alef's shout cut through the theatrics. "The ship is visible! Pack your things! Don't leave anything. We're boarding in twenty minutes!"
Demir now felt good. The changing of Marco's mood, and Asena unexpectedly joining and contributing more than him, was amazing. He got up and stroked Asena's neck, feeling the power coiled beneath her silver fur.
"Good girl. Without you, we would have been lost long ago. Thanks again for today as well."
Asena huffed once and turned toward the approaching ship, her golden eyes tracking its progress across the water.