(RoS) Passing another sea gate - Ch. 65 (Patreon)

“Huh,” Cyll said, intelligently. “I think it might have gotten a little bigger.”

The sea gate was luckily already partially open. There was enough room for a galleon to pass through without having to worry about running into anything. As Wavedance approached the entrance, a small guard boat broke away from the outposts and darted towards them.

“Patty, drop the anchor,” Maya ordered. “I’d like to avoid getting kicked out of a city. For once.”

The puppet nodded. Maya and Humbol set about raising the ships sails as Patty brought Wavedance to a gentle halt. They didn’t have to wait long before the guard boat slipped up beside them. It was little more than an oversized dinghy. Even the Wavedance was larger than the guardship was.

Three guards climbed aboard Wavedance, leaving one man behind on their ship. They all wore clean leather uniforms studded with metal pins. Each man had a saber at their side, and there was a sewn patch on their lapels depicting a cave.

One of the men moved forward slightly more than his companions. Maya noticed he had a thin strip of gold on one shoulder that might have indicated a higher rank.

“Ho there,” the man said, tipping a brown hat slightly. “Welcome to Dredd’s Tomb.”

“Thank you,” Maya replied, stepping forward as well and nodding in greeting. “How can we help you?”

The man’s eyebrows lifted slightly at the bandages covering Maya, but his expression quickly returned to normal.

“Just a cursory introduction. We’ve had a few unsavory sorts passing by recently, so new polices and all that,” the guard said. His gaze swept over the crew before returning to Maya. “Have any of you been to Dredd’s Tomb before?”

“I have,” Cyll said, repressing a chuckle. “It was a long time ago, though.”

“I see,” the guard said when nobody else responded. “Well then, welcome to Dredd’s Tomb. We’ve got quite the setup going, so you’re sure to enjoy yourselves. Judging by your appearance, you’ve come to challenge the dungeon?”

“Why else would anyone come here?” Humbol asked, sliding up to stand beside Maya.

“We’ve developed quite the marketplace in the past year or two,” the lead guard replied. “Many merchants come through to sell their wares to dungeon delvers. Of course, that means we’ve increased security. Judging by the appearance of your boat, crew, and clothing, I assume you are pirates?”

Maya’s crew tensed. She gave the guard a terse nod, preparing to grab the sickle from her side.

“While we have no problem allowing pirates to dock at our city, I am going to have to inform you that any attempts to steal within the city limits will be punished harshly,” the guard said, ignoring the change in atmosphere. “However, we will ensure that your ship is well protected after you dock.”

They all relaxed and Maya chuckled.

“Had me going for a moment,” she said. “We’ll play nice. How are you backing your guarantee of our ship’s safety?”

“We’ll refund you for the entire ship plus anything that was lost,” the guard replied promptly.

“And how much does this service cost?” Maya asked.

“Nothing. However, the city will be extracting an eight percent fee from any loot you find in Dredd’s Tomb. Magical items and Essence are excluded from this tax.”

“Well, now I know how they got so big,” Cyll muttered.

One of the guards heard him and sent the immortal pirate a smug look.

“Works for me,” Maya said, shrugging. “Is there anything else you need?”

“Just your crew name,” the guard replied.

“Goddamn it,” Maya sighed as the entire crew sent a piercing glare at her. She waved her hand dismissively when the guard frowned in confusion. “I haven’t thought up a name for our crew yet. They’re all giving me shit about it.”

“Understandable. In that case, you can head on through. You’re rather hard to miss in the crowd, and your ship isn’t exactly nondescript,” the guard said, laughing. His fellow guards leapt down, leaving him alone on the deck for a moment. “You might want to find a healer once you get past the sea gate.”

He jumped as well. A minute later, his ship darted away once again, this time using oars to bring themselves back to the island. Maya and the crew lowered Wavedance’s sails and raised the anchor. A short while later, the ship was once again moving forward.

They passed through the sea gates without being stopped again. The enormous walls of the city cast a heavy shadow over them, completely blocking out the sun. There was a large passage for ships to pass through directly in front of them. Maya could make out a dock at the other side of the wall.

They all craned their necks up to watch the huge wall pass over them as Cyll expertly maneuvered Wavedance through the passage and towards the docks.

“How much time do you think it took to make this?” Patty asked in awe.

“Depends how much money they ripped off people visiting the tomb,” Humbol said, faking a yawn. “And I think we’ll be finding that out soon.”

The dock was every bit as large as the walls and the sea gate. An enormous row of ships ranging from skippers to enormous galleons lined the front of the city. What must have been hundreds of guards patrolled the area.

Cyll brought them towards an empty spot. They all repressed their awe at the city to properly dock Wavedance. They slid to a smooth stop just feet from the wooden pathways as Patty dropped the anchor and Humbol raised the sails the rest of the way.

Once they’d come to a complete stop, Cyll let out a slow whistle. The city wasn’t as crowded as Bulsen, but it was doing its best attempt to be. Large crowds of people milled about the area.

Almost all of them bore weapons, and many looked like they actually knew how to use them. A young guard approached Wavedance, lifting his hat in the same greeting that the first man had given them.

“Welcome to Dredd’s Tomb,” the man said, his voice slightly deeper than Maya had expected. “We’ll keep good watch over your boat, so feel free to explore the town without fear.”