Refuge

"Lady Cassia!"

Kade shouted in reverence.

Lady Cassia was the mind behind the operation. Residents of the slums took note of her being Lady Nephis' strategist and planner.

Her gentle and vulnerable outward appearance gained her a lot of affection and favorability from both men and women in the slum. 

"It's alright Kade. Thank you for guarding the gate for us."

She spoke in a soft and grateful voice. 

This was a large part of the reason why residents adored her. She did not take anyone for granted and always expressed gratitude.

Kade was jubilant that she knew his name. As far as he knew, they had never spoken face to face.

"Follow me"

With that, she turned around and slowly walked into the congregation of destitute buildings and shelters. 

Aldric walked in measured steps. Not overly eager to follow her. 

They walked through the outer settlement. 

Now on the inside of it, Aldric could see that there was a much better atmosphere here compared to the castle. 

The castle had a stench of hopelessness but here. Here there was a wealth of energy. He could see each person: trading, building, cooking, butchering and eating with complete presence. Not worried about other sleepers troubling them. It felt like a tribe.

The heart of this phenomenon was the Changing Star.

Following her first hunt in the Dark City, she offered her spoils to the residents at no cost.

For free.

It was shocking to the sleepers who knew of only bartering or begging in the settlement.

She spoke of humanity and kindness. 

Something they had forgotten in this cursed realm.

With that, she cemented her leadership. She and her cohort continued to provide for the settlement and received undying loyalty in return.

Aldric could only applaud Nephis's machinations. It was disturbing to see the results of her actions in real life. 

This was the biggest reason for his cautious and cynical viewpoint on the story's characters. 

When he first entered this world, he often thought that the cohort could be like his family. The only thing that he knew in this unknown world.

But thinking back to the Forgotten Shore and its conclusion, that naivety was crushed.

It took some time for his mind to process it.

Like when you recognise something is bad for you but you still do it. 

With enough thought, Aldric now firmly believed that he could only completely trust himself.

After all, this was not a fantasy but real life. People were not 2-dimensional characters that would stay loyal for the rest of their lives from one interaction.

People change.

And the worst part is that you do not know until it's too late.

They finally came across a large ramshackle lodge. It was on the outermost edge of the settlement. Most vulnerable to attacks from wandering nightmare creatures.

Most didn't know the intention behind this but he knew.

Cassie stopped at the door and turned to face him.

He could see her pale blue eyes and the vacant look she had. It was visible that she was blind.

All of a sudden, Aldric senses could feel that she was staring at him. Not in a literal sense but as if she was peering into his soul.

It felt very shallow and surface level but Aldric's senses could still feel it.

"I see."

"So that's why."

She whispered softly like she had the greatest epiphany.

She had a large smile on her face. Her eyes were wide as if someone had told her she won the lottery. 

It was strange to see.

What could have caused her to have such a reaction?

Aldric didn't have any time to think as she opened the door with a spring in her step.

Numerous helpers of Nephis were walking around doing things. It was teaming with life.

The lodge acted as a hub for the settlement as they were now unified under Nephis' leadership. 

"Lady Cassia"

"Lady Cassia"

"Lady Cassia"

Cassie was greeted numerous times as they walked through the living space. With reverence and respect. She was the front-facing image of the cohort. She leads the helpers in distributing meals and such.

They took a seat in a quiet corner. 

"Welcome to the outer settlements. We shelter those who can't stay in the Bright Castle for whatever reason. Food and shelter are provided at no charge. We hope you can give a helping hand however you can."

"I'm a hunter so I bring back resources needed."

Cassie nodded.

"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Cassia but you can call me Cassie. I'm part of Lady Changing Star's cohort."

"Nice to meet you, my name is Aldric. I've been in the dream realm since the last winter solstice."

'does that mean he was part of our year group? but Caster said...'

"Same. It's nice to meet a newcomer here." She spoke in an excited voice.

The conversation ventured off onto other things as she showed him around.

He was allocated a small cot near the left side of the room. It lacked a lot of privacy as it was near other sleepers. 

Aldric knew that he needed other accommodation.

She mentioned that the cohort was not present at the moment and that he would see them around. 

He thought about why she was so accommodating to him even though she barely knew him.

'Maybe she saw something'

Through the day and the following day, Aldric slowly settled into the place. He was not anti-social. Smiles were reciprocated and greetings were returned. But he did not go out of his way to seek them. 

----------

It was the afternoon of the next day.

Aldric was studying the large map adorned on the wall. It was drawn up by experienced pathfinders of the Dark City.

He had been doing this all day. 

This was extremely necessary for Aldric as he was planning to hunt. He did not want to join a hunting group that was already set. Given his damage-dealing abilities, he would not fit well in an already-formed group. 

Making up his mind, hunting alone seemed like a better idea. Maybe he could hire a pathfinder to lead him through the city but that was it. 

With his mind resolved, he began to move forward to his first hunt. 

Exiting the lodge, he took a step outside and felt a familiar feeling. 

A feeling of rejection and opposition. 

It was a lot weaker this time but Aldric could only attribute this feeling to one person.

"So you're here."

With steel grey eyes looking straight through him, a soft voice spoke.