Aster Fall, Ch 13: At the Gates of Highfold (Patreon)

The road to Highfold was covered in snow. There was only a day left in their journey and it was nearly up to the horses’ knees. Even the sturdy beasts were having trouble breaking through it now.

The level of essence was not decreasing, but fortunately, it was no longer increasing either. It seemed like they’d reached a point where it saturated the area. That made it difficult to pinpoint where it was coming from.

Its presence was a strange and unsettling feeling, as if an enemy were constantly breathing down his neck. It made him uncomfortable, but more than that it raised his anger, as if there were a challenge constantly pressing in around him.

Sam frowned as he looked at the ice-laden peaks around them, searching in each direction for the origin. It had to be up there, somewhere on the higher slopes.

He tried to place himself in the position of an Outsider who loved the snow and ice, and he couldn’t see himself settling into a valley.

No, an Outsider’s innate arrogance would demand that he be at the top. Up on a mountain peak that he’d made his own.

The night before, he’d told his family about the Outsider around, and it had drawn deep concern but it hadn’t been enough to change their plans. They’d already known from Jesar’s group that Outsiders were in the world.

Without more information, they couldn’t change their plans. Highfold was still a good place to live, especially with the ruins around it for Sam to study. It was doing business as normal, which meant it should be safe enough for them.

They just needed to make a home here.

The amulets he’d made would help to protect them and keep them all connected. Now that those were done, some of his worry for their safety had lessened. It would take a concerted effort to break the shields.

They would hopefully see anything like that coming.

Still, as he looked at the snow around him and he felt the presence on his skin, his frown couldn’t help but deepen. His crystal flame lashed out, burning away another drift of snowflakes that tried to land on him.

It was a good place to settle, and his family might be able to live with this presence around them, since they were oblivious to it, but for him....

His eyes couldn’t stop tracking along the slopes of the mountains, searching the peaks for signs of the Outsider’s presence.

It was dangerous, a threat that he could constantly feel, and it left him unable to calm down.

He could feel the urge from the essence stars in his blood, pushing him toward battle, and it was possible that was influencing him, but he couldn’t pull his mind away from the idea that this area was...

His.

A satisfied anger rumbled through his veins with that word. This world and this city were his territory.

He needed to Evolve and to become capable of holding the world together, and of living up to his duty.

That meant there was only one option.

There was a roaring, star-like call in his blood pushing him toward the decision. His knuckles clenched on the reins as the demand rippled through him.

It wasn’t rational to seek out a strong monster immediately, but it didn’t matter. Whatever it was, and no matter how strong it was...

I’m going to kill it.

A flare of crystal flame burned around him like a battle halo as his eyes turned toward another peak.

---

The road to Highfold narrowed as it cut up along the final cliff that led to the city, hugging tight to the shoulder of the mountain that was called Sky Guard, one of the main defenses of Highfold.

It gave way on the open side to a sheer cliff that dropped away like a knife toward the slopes below.

They were so high up that the bottom of the cliff was invisible, covered over by blowing snow and wind. This cliff was also part of the city’s defenses, making sure that no large force could arrive here by foot.

The open sky ahead of him was pierced by the peaks of the neighboring mountains. Between them, he could see the forms of griffins in the air.

Their wide wings and eagle-like heads arced like blades as they flew from peak to peak and down into the valleys below. They were how the city communicated and moved goods quickly from place to place.

Griffins were a strange race, one of several that were halfway between being beasts and civilized. They were intelligent, clever, and powerful.

Sometimes, they even deigned to speak. As they leveled up, they gained the ability for mental speech, usually by the time they were adults.

They didn’t give experience if you killed them, which made them allies of a sort, and the Ice Sylphs here had an agreement with them to support the city.

They were a proud race, but some of them found it profitable to fly things up and down the mountains, something for which they were well rewarded.

He turned his attention back to the road, his eyes moved across a few travelers around them who were also heading to the city.

As usual, they kept their distance.

When they rounded the final curve in the road, there was a tall stone wall ahead of them that sealed the road, stretching from the slope of Sky Guard on the left to the cliff on the right.

The gate in it was open, allowing traffic to flow through freely. There were no guards stationed here, but Sam’s eyes could see the faint pattern of enchantments laid into the stone.

They outlined stone golems resting in hidden alcoves along the front of the wall and in the two towers above the gate.

He could also see enchantments covering the face of Sky Guard, ones that were so old they were almost invisible. The mana in them had long ago begun to merge with the natural patterns of the world.

Each of the golems in the wall was around ten feet tall and half that wide. Their bulky forms were humanoid, but their heads were only a wedge-like protrusion above their torsos, with no neck to be seen.

The city was open to visitors, but it was not undefended.

These golems could spring to life and close the gate at a command from the city, and then take up guard here until a stronger force arrived.

Instead of frightening him, the sight made him want to study the enchantments. Whatever runes were in them, they would be useful.

He forced himself to push aside the desire as they rode through the gates, pulling his hood closer over his face as he felt the ping of his amulet resounding.

There weren’t many travelers on the road, but there were some.

Here at the gate, everyone was being pushed together, and gazes were unavoidable.

Beyond the golems, he didn’t see any alarm or Analysis enchantments on the gate as they rode through. If those existed, they were farther in.

As soon as they were on the other side of the wall, the cliff to the right disappeared, changing to solid ground, and the slope of Sky Guard retreated to the left, giving way to a vast, open valley.

The first impression that struck him was the intensity of the sky.

The clear brilliance of golden sunlight and the reflection of ice brightened the air here, all of which was tinted with emerald from the valley below.

Stretching in front of him for dozens of miles was a verdant, green valley that was sprinkled with interlaced patches of fields and forests.

Drifts of alabaster snow hugged the edges of the valley, and a light breeze of swirling flakes brushed his face as they danced through the air, but the valley was otherwise absent of snow.

In the distance, three mountains that were even taller than Sky Guard soared into the sky, like three kings holding court over the valley in front of him.

The city of Highfold was nestled at the base of those three mountains in a sprawling expanse of buildings, domineering walls, and ice-white towers. It was perhaps twenty miles away from where he was standing, but its enormous size was enough to draw the eye no matter where you stood in the valley.

There was a shining, ice-blue palace at the highest point of the city like a sapphire gem set at the base of a crown. The light reflecting from its walls shone out over the rest of the city and the valley all around.

“Those are the Three Crowns,” Krana said softly, from her position near his shoulder. She was also impressed by the view, but she’d been more prepared for it. “The city is large enough that it covers the base of all three mountains in the valley. It holds nearly a million people.”

From his feet, the slope of the mountain leveled out, running down through a series of interconnected roads and then up again in a gentle curve toward the city itself.

All across the valley, there was a sprawling connection of villages, fields, farms, and tiny houses like wild alpine flowers springing up from the ground.

The weather here was warmer than outside, the cutting force of the ice absent. The fields that stretched across the plain were vibrant with green stalks and fruits. It was like walking from a winter storm into a spring cavern.

Now, he understood how Highfold could exist here. It wasn’t just a city perched on a solitary mountainside. It was a powerful existence in its own right that soared over this valley, protecting its population and producing its own food and culture.

He couldn’t help but feel amazed.

He’d seen Osera and Ebonfar, but Highfold’s position in the Western Reaches was unique. None of this would have been possible without the Ice Sylphs and other races who’d created it. It was their magic that kept this valley green.

“In about a month, the Festival will take place and the moons will align above the three peaks. Then it will truly look like a crown,” Krana continued with a slight smile on her face as she looked up toward the mountains.

“The ruins you want to study are above the city, on those slopes. They are extremely large, even bigger than the city of Highfold itself.”

Sam’s eyes widened further as he took in her words. He’d thought the ruins would be small. Apparently, he was wrong.

“They are also filled with the local monsters and beasts,” Krana continued, as she looked toward the others, pulling them into her explanation as well.

“Ice wraiths, mountain trolls, wyverns, cave goblins, monsters and devils of various sorts...sometimes even an ice drake is seen there, since it covers so much of the higher slopes. They prefer the peaks and claim them as their own.

“The ruins are frequently visited by adventurers looking for ancient treasures as well as enchanters who want to research it,” she concluded. “We should be able to find some maps inside the city to help.”

Aemilia looked forward with a happy smile, and Jeric at her shoulder started to laugh. It was a long, rolling sound as he looked toward the area that would be their new home.

After a moment, Altey joined in, her higher tones sparkling through the air of the valley that was as warm as a new summer day.

They were a group of six tiny figures set against a vast mountainscape, their forms infinitesimal compared to the Western Reaches rising above them.

Hope spread like flame in their hearts as they looked forward.

Only Sam felt the threat that was still hanging in the air, pressing down on the enormous valley ahead of them. All around him on the slopes of the mountains, he could feel the drumbeat of essence burning in his blood.

It was more clear than it had ever been before.

At the same time, a flickering pulse of warning from the back of his hand caught his attention.

The Guardian Star began to burn with a faint, half light. It had been silent before, but now that they’d entered the valley, something had caught its attention.

He waited for the World Law to announce a Flaw in the area, but nothing happened. He looked around, sensing the pull from the star as it tugged his attention toward the slopes around the valley again.

The same place he felt the essence.

---

“I’ll stay out here in this village,” Sam suggested, as he looked at Krana and then toward the small village where they’d just stopped. It was about halfway through the valley and still a dozen miles from Highfold’s walls.

His voice was quiet, even though no one was close enough to overhear, and his hood was pulled around his face again.

Even so, from time to time he felt the ping of his amulet warning him of a passing gaze.

This halfway point was where shops and taverns were starting to appear, ones catering to farmers and merchants who bought grain or other simple goods and sold cloth and necessities to the villages.

Up to now, they’d mostly been riding through scattered fields and forests, sometimes with a few farms around, but now that they were deeper into the valley proper, the villages around them had begun to increase in frequency.

The valley here was as verdant as the rest, holding the taste of magic that was everywhere in the air. He could feel some faint enchantment covering it all.

He wasn’t sure if it was one ancient spell or many, but the echo of power was old and vast, changing the weather here into something pleasant for people.

On the slopes just a few hundred feet above the valley, there were clouds of white-blue mana gathering around the peaks, coating them in snow and ice, but down here the weather was warm and calm.

The breeze that blew through the valley was a strange mix of greenery, pine, and frost. It felt as if it had two sides, one warm and one cold. The threat of frost hung in it with a promise to return.

Whatever the Ice Sylphs had done here, it was impressive. Perhaps they found this constant reminder of the cold refreshing.

“That inn looks promising,” he added, nodding toward one on the edge of the village in front of them.

There was a simple sturdiness to its construction that he liked, as if it had no pretensions.

“That way, I won’t have to deal with the city guards or the wards trying to Analyze me.”

Staying out here in the middle of the valley was best, where it would be hard for him to be noticed.

The village here was a little battered by time, but it would work.

He didn’t want to get too close to the city. Out here, where patrols might not appear very often was the best.

This area was in the middle of it all, just a little ways off the main road, but beyond the sturdy buildings of the village, there wasn’t much remarkable about it.

It was perfect.

He didn’t want a famous shop where he would be well known. He just wanted a quiet place to work.

He could set up a workshop here, as well as a place to live, and then his father could take the items into the city to sell. It required buying two places to live, but it was the best plan he’d come up with.

The sound of faint, icy bells rang through the air, making the party turn towards the city in the distance. They were at different pitches, chiming as if to mark the arrival of winter, and somehow the sound carried out across the miles, ringing even here in the distant villages.

“The Frost Bells,” Krana spoke up as they listened to them. “They mark out the hours of the city and the changing of the guard. They’re one of the better-known magical artifacts in the city. It’s said that they can also aid in its defense.”

“If you’re staying out here, then so are we,” Jeric said as the sound of the bells faded away, turning toward Sam. “I don’t want you to be out here alone.”

“Altey would be safer in the city,” Sam protested. “Monsters might still attack here, outside those wards, even with the enchantments on the weather.”

It had been known to happen, although not too frequently. Only the city of Highfold itself had wards against them.

The city guard patrolled the valley, but not as much as they did the city, and the monsters in the surrounding peaks were always hungry.

“There should be some schools or academies inside for her as well.”

“We’ll stay together,” Aemilia agreed with her husband, looking over to their son as she shook her head. “Once we have a place to stay and perhaps a workshop out here, we can look into a school. A month or two makes no difference to us. A future is built brick by brick, and not by jumping to sudden decisions.”

“I agree. This seems like a good place to settle,” Krana added, as she nodded in agreement. “I’ll need to go into the city to meet my relatives and to see what permits are needed for shops and homes here, if there are any. I can do that alone though.”

“I’ll go with you,” Lesat offered after a moment, as he glanced toward Sam and then Krana. He felt a tug in both directions.

When Sam had given him the Amulet of Swirling Winds, he’d had to hold back hot tears, and it wasn’t because it was a powerful artifact. The amulet was part of a family set, one made to connect people together so they could never be lost.

Giving it to him made him feel like part of this family.

From his childhood, he’d been alone on the streets of Osera. He’d only had a few friends, including Yeres who had died in the Abyssinian Plains.

When he’d chosen to follow Sam, at first it had just been a convenient job, but now.... He looked down toward the amulet on his neck that was the same as everyone else’s.

Now, perhaps it was becoming something more.

He wasn’t sure of everything yet, but he didn’t want to let any of them head into danger if he could help it.

“It’d be best if at least two of us traveled together,” he added slowly to Krana, testing out the new idea. “I wouldn’t like anyone to be alone in a new place. You never know what’ll happen.”

Krana gave him a quick grin in return, before she nodded in agreement.

“Let’s settle in first,” Sam suggested, pulling everyone’s attention back to the present. His head turned toward the inn that was still a couple hundred yards away, where he could see a couple of merchants and some people on foot milling around.

“We can look into all of that once we have a place to stay.”

With a tap of the reins, he sent his horse forward toward the inn. The gelding’s hooves clopped on the stones of the road, ringing out the sound of their arrival.

The inn was just a little distance off the road. There was a large building beside it that was acting as both stables and warehouse. The doors were open and a couple of merchant wagons and some horses could be seen inside.

“Leave me be!”

As they rode toward the front of the inn, a shout pulled Sam’s attention toward one of the merchant wagons that was being loaded near the stables. It was loaded with copper-ringed barrels of different sizes.

A boy was sitting on the bench, holding the reins, and an older man was trying to climb on, apparently to ride away, but three burly humanoids had stepped forward to block him.

The largest of them was nearly ten feet tall. His arms and legs bulged with muscle and his face was slightly misshapen, his forehead and skull meeting with an indented ridge. His nose was flat and broad.

Human-Ice Giant. Warrior. Level 49.

He was a mix between a human and a giant, which was something Sam would have said was impossible if he hadn't seen it.

The giant's huge, pale hand fell on the older man's shoulder, pulling him back from the wagon. The hand was large enough that it covered the man's shoulder and neck, making him gasp with pain as his body locked up.

Human. Merchant-Brewer. Level 32.

The merchant was a late middle-aged man with a short, white beard. He was wearing a faded, brown leather jerkin. The rest of his clothes were plain and had seen better days.

The boy on the wagon was dressed similarly, his level a sign of his young age.

Human. Merchant-Brewer. Level 12.

The other two thugs accosting the merchant looked disreputable and had strange classes. One of them was clearly a melee type, but Sam had never seen his class or subclass before.

He looked mostly like a normal, muscled warrior, but his joints seemed to meet at slightly odd angles and there was something snake-like about him. His race was also…strange.

Human (?). Brawler-Body Transmuter. Level 41.

The last individual was a scruffy-looking, whipcord man with a thin, brown goatee that instantly reminded Sam of Nelgen.

Human. Merchant-Sorcerer. Level 48.

“I’ve told you,” the merchant forced out, his voice rising in strained panic as he looked between them, “I’m not paying your fees. The city guard will take care of you soon enough. This is a peaceful valley and you have no right to interfere with my business.”

“Well, if you don’t want to pay the fee,” the Sorcerer said with a flat smile as a sphere of swirling blue-white frost appeared in his hand, “why don’t you let your boy there come and work for us?

"We’ll waive all of your taxes in the future. I’m sure he’ll do wonderfully as a new initiate for the Iceblood Guild. We could always use a Brewer.”

The Ice Giant hybrid stomped forward, dragging the merchant with one hand as his other reached toward the boy who was sitting on the seat of the wagon.

“No! He’s my grandson!” The merchant tried to struggle against the giant’s grasp, but he was dragged along unwillingly as the giant squeezed tighter around his neck and he let out a sharp gasp of pain. “Leave us alone! Rusel, go...run!”

The boy’s face was paler than the snow as he trembled in place, his hands gripping the horse’s reins, but he was too terrified to flee.

“Help!” the merchant’s half-strangled voice rang out in the air with a note of desperation as he called out for anyone nearby to save him.