The First City, Part Five

{Xhez}

Every second that Xhez spent with her eyes glued to the book in her hands was like spiritual nourishment. The pages she read constantly filled gaps in her knowledge of humanity that she hadn't known existed.

Mainly, gaps surrounding the concept of "the Old World."

It was a strange idea to think about. An existence before the current paradigm where, apparently, humanity owned much more of the land than they currently did. To Xhez, who felt like humans were one of the most fearful and prevalent kinds of creatures out there, it was hard to think about what the world would look like if there were more of them. If they were even stronger than they were today. However, that was what this book in particular spoke about, in detail.

In the middle of her readings, Dylan's words came to mind. The boy had said that Cradle held many remnants of the Old World. Sights that Xhez had yet to see.

[Wait!] She thought, standing up and closing the book in front of her, all of a sudden. [We will not be here for long, right? I need to go out and look!]

Feeling like she was going to miss this opportunity if she spent the entirety of her time reading, she left the book there and ran out from where she was. Up the stairs and back onto the main floor, Xhez searched for Elisa.

[Where...?]

The front door opened, then. A man dressed in what looked like brown bedsheets walked in. Just behind him, Xhez saw the blonde she was looking for. A grin came up on her face and she quickly jogged through the room toward her.

"H-Hey!" A person called out to her but they went ignored, as Xhez only had one thing on her mind right now.

The sprite all but burst out of the library.

"Huh!?" Elisa flinched. The sunlight-haired woman turned just as Xhez reached her.

Xhez beamed, putting on a wide grin. Their faces were just a few centimeters away from each other.

"Elisa!"

"Yeah?" The woman asked, thoroughly confused.

"We must see the Old World!" Xhez declared, hoping that her voice could convey the importance of the matter. It was imperative, after all, that the sprite saw at least half of what this city had to offer in that regard before they departed.

Elisa just smirked, though.

"W-, Xhez," she chuckled, "I can't exactly turn back time."

"Hm? No," Xhez shook her head. "I mean, the relics! The, ehm, memories? I struggle to find the words, but, I read that there were parts of the Old World that are still in Cradle!"

"Ohhh, okay, calm down, you're talking too loud," Elisa half-scolded her, "I got worried there for a second," Elisa said as she finally gained some understanding. "Well, shit. In that case, take a look around. You're standing in one right now."

"... What?" Xhez asked, pulling back.

"Yeah," Elisa giggled. "Xhez, why do you think this is called the 'Eternal' Library? It's because this place has been around since before the Split."

The moment those words fell on Xhez's ears the girl turned around and her eyes roamed over her surroundings with newfound awe to them.

[Really!?]

"Though," Elisa added, "it's been touched up a bit, but, yeah. For the most part, this library is that old. There are a few other parts of the city that are just as old, though. Wanna go see them? Are you done reading?"

"Yes," Xhez answered to both questions. "Reading about the Old World is nice, but I would like to have more of a... personal look at it."

"Alright, follow me then."

And so, the two of them left, while the librarian yelled in the background about books needing to be placed back on their shelves.

---

The deeper they went into the city, the more Xhez felt like she could finally see the age beginning to show on the buildings around her. They were far less polished than they had been, and their remarkable size began to diminish slightly, showing an architecture that was more humble and quaint.

"Everything around us is pretty old," Elisa told her quietly, so as to not draw much attention to them. There was still the risk of encountering a mage or a guard who could see through her illusion, after all. "There are a few books about the Split that talk about the process of, ehm, 'rediscovering' the city after everything happened, sort of. I'm pretty sure you can find copies of those books back at Libera. I'll check once we're back home."

"Ah, thank goodness."

"Anyway, yeah," Elisa continued. "The Split didn't affect any physical, inanimate objects. That means that a lot of what we're walking through right now was either made after the Split or is over a thousand years old and has been here since the beginning."

Xhez's jaw remained on the floor for the better part of this walk they took. It was simply too astonishing to think about. And yet, it didn't seem like the people around her cared much about this fact. No, whenever Xhez looked at the stern-faced humans, pacing slowly, up and down the street, she saw a complete lack of emotion in their faces.

[Maybe they are just used to it all.]

"Hey," Elisa called out to her. Xhez stopped.

"Yes?"

"Wanna check this store out?" She asked, pointing at the building to her left. "Might be some cool shit in here."

"A store... Where you exchange 'money' for things, right?"

"Yep. This one's kinda special, though," Elisa said with a wink.

"Ah. Sure!"

The shop they entered was small and quiet. There were only a handful of people inside. One old woman to the left, a man behind a desk up front, and another man dressed in armor who was speaking to him. Xhez heard their words from the entrance.

"Alchemist," the man in the armor said. "I require your strongest potions."

"You can't handle them," the man behind the desk replied with an irritated tone. "Leave me alone, already."

[Seems intense.]

"So, yeah," Elisa said, gesturing at their surroundings. "This is an Essence store. You won't find anything here that's as strong as what we've got back at the Academy or any of the guilds, but it's fun to see what's in stock."

"Essence? But," Xhez leaned in and whispered, "will there not be any mages here?"

"Nah. This might seem weird, but the people who run these sorts of places oftentimes don't actually give a shit about Essence. They're more collectors than anything else. And, as for the people buying things here, well, if they were strong, they wouldn't be at a random store like this. They'd be at the Mages Guild. So, don't worry. You're good."

"Ah, I see," Xhez replied. "Do I just... look around?"

"Yep. Don't touch anything, though."

The sprite didn't need any further instructions. She quickly let her eyes roam freely, her gaze landing upon many different books, vials, scrolls, and small weapons. She walked up to a shelf and leaned down a little so that she could read what was on the side.

Before she could do that, however, the front door opened and Xhez glanced over at it.

"Ah," the man behind the desk at the back spoke up, "Tyras, good morning!"

"Good morning, Vel," the newcomer replied. He wasn't alone, though.

The man who just entered the building brought with him one person. A woman dressed in ripped, worn-out rags. Their wardrobes couldn't have contrasted any harder, as the slick-haired brown-eyed man was wearing some flashy robes that matched his irises.

Her clothing wasn't what had really caught Xhez's eyes, though. It was the two animalistic ears on her head that did it.

[Beastborn?] Xhez asked herself as her eyes roamed the girl's figure. They went down from her ears to the collar around her neck. [Slave, as well?]

The beastborn's eyes were half-closed, as though she was just barely keeping herself from falling asleep on the spot.

Another curious thing caught Xhez's eyes then. Elisa looked slightly surprised, as though she'd been blindsided by something.

[Hm?]

When the man's eyes met the adventurer's, some recognition flashed in them and his lips broke into a wide smile.

"Well, well, Elisa. It's been a while," he said, walking up to her. "What brings you to Cradle?"

[They know each other?]

Elisa put on a smile of her own and shook the man's hand.

"Just visiting for a little bit," she replied. "I would love to catch up, but I'm not gonna be here for too long. Have to head back to Libera almost immediately."

"Still as busy as ever, then? I understand," the man replied, bowing. "It's a shame, though. I would have loved to get you something nice to eat."

"Maybe next time," Elisa responded. "A-Actually, I think it's probably best if I head out right now."

"Ah, I see. Goodbye, then. Oh, and, please, give your family my regards."

In a hurry, Elisa walked over to Xhez and grabbed one of her hands.

"Come on," she muttered under her breath.

"B-But..."

She didn't give Xhez any time to contest this motion, however, as she was abruptly pulled out of the shop they'd literally just walked into a couple of minutes ago.

As they exited, Xhez's eyes briefly met the beastborn's own. The utter lack of feeling in them made Xhez's skin feel colder for a second.

As they came back out onto the street, Elisa let out a deep breath.

"Sorry about that," the woman said quickly. "We can, uh... Wait somewhere else and go back in later, or something."

"What happened?" Xhez asked her. "You seem startled."

"That's cause I am," Elisa snapped back quietly. "Don't worry, it's nothing serious, just... I hate being caught off-guard like that."

Xhez raised a brow.

"What do you mean?"

"... It's alright," she shook her head. "Let's just head back to the library. The others might be done with everything soon."