22: Tario

It's been two days since we've started our journey towards Tario and everybody is really on edge. Kira is tired from driving the carriage, Tano is worried to death about his wife who's still unconscious, Jack is anxious ever since the attack started, and Sachi won't get any sleep. At the rate we're going everyone's going to fall apart.

I crawl my way up to the front where Kira is still driving the carriage. Her eyes look dead, but also still focused somehow.

"Hey, do you need me to help out? I don't know much about driving a carriage, but if you show me how to I can–" I say, as Kira puts her finger over my mouth.

"Don't worry about my Crow. When I was your age sometimes I had to stay awake for weeks at a time. You guys think times are tough right now, back in the day it was way worse." Kira says, as she grabs a drink and chugs it down.

"Really? And you probably shouldn't be drinking that!" I say as I pull her drink away from her.

"The Guild Wars, one of the darkest periods in Frodian History… By the time it was all said and done all of the money I made didn't fill the empty void I felt from losing my friends." Kira says, her voice full of pain.

"I'm sorry to hear that, that sounds rough." I say as Kira sighs.

"The only thing I can do is move forward, that's what all of my loved ones would want me to do… " Kira says.

Out of nowhere, I notice a large town on the Horizon

"Hey, Kira look over there!" I say as I point at the town.

"Finally, we made it!" Kira says, her voice full of excitement.

We ride the carriage close to the town and there are two guards waiting at the town's gate. One of the guards is a Mardian and the other is a Windian.

"Sweet Adora! You guys have definitely seen better days!" The Mardian says as she examines our carriage.

"We got attacked by a pack of goblins on the way here! We'd appreciate it if you'd hurry up and let us in! We have a passenger who needs immediate medical attention!" Kira says, her voice full of panic.

"Now wait a minute, are you sure we can trust these two Scavs? What is your business here?" The Windian says as he looks at us skeptically.

"My name is Kira Jane of Umbra sent here by Master Elyon! I'm here with the Chosen Children of Adora, and we've all been sent here to eliminate the goblin threat surrounding your village! Here's the seal for proof!" Adora says as she hands the guards the stamped piece of paper.

"Hmm, I don't know… This could be fake! They could be trying to destroy our beautiful town! They could be the ones controlling the Goblins!" The Windian says, his voice full of pure ignorance.

"You two don't seem very bright, so I'll try to put this in terms you can understand! Move out of the way, people's lives are on the line and I won't let them die because of you!" I say as I pull out my dagger and Taqa starts emanating from my body.

"Crow! Relax!" Kira says, as she gently grabs my hands.

"Marco you idiot, do you not see the tattoo on that kid's arm! He really is a Half-Blood, no one else has a tattoo like that in all of Goliath." The Mardian says as the tension is finally gone.

"Oh… I messed up didn't I Maya?" Marco says as he slaps his face.

"Come on in! We've been waiting for you!" Maya says, as we finally go through the gate.

The city of Tario looks so nice that you'd never expect that goblins have been attacking here lately. The buildings are large and there are statues of Mother Adora all around them. In the middle of the town, we can see a large church where a crowd of people seems to be praying right now. We park our carriage on the side and help Tano find a hospital for his wife.

"Thank Adora, that we made it here. You did a good job keeping her alive Mari!" Kira says as we walk around the pious city.

"I'd feel horrible if she died, I'm just glad she'll be okay." Mari says.

"For a trade city, this place feels really–" I say.

"Religious, right? This town is said to be the sacred land where Adora was first born. Thus, the Church of Adora originated here." Kira says.

"I've been so focused on school that I forgot there was a church in the middle of the capital. Some of them have asked me to come in but once they saw my tattoo they scurried off like they were scared of me." Sachi says.

"Where are we even going?" Jack asks.

"We're meeting with the leader of this town, Almar of Azul." Kira says as we all stop in front of a giant mansion towards the back of the town.

Out of nowhere, a tall Mardian Man comes out with two beautiful Mardian women with their arms wrapped around his.

"Man, your quite a sight for sore eyes, Kira Jane of Umbra! What has been, 10 years now since we last saw each other?" The Mardian Man says, with a cocky grin on his face.

"I wish I didn't have to see your ugly grin ever again Almar, but here I am." Kira says as all of us look really surprised.

"Wait, you know him?" Jack asks.

"Oh yeah, Kira and I go way back! We met on the battlefields of the Guild Wars. She was such a feisty one back then!" Almar says, his voice full of nostalgia.

"All of that aside, can we please get to business. We're all exhausted and are looking for an inn to stay at!" Kira says.

"Oh no, you all are guests of honor! There's no way I can have you staying at some crappy inn when you've brought the Chosen Children with you. I insist all of you stay here in my mansion! Please come in!" Almar says.

"Crap, that sly little… We don't have to stay here if you guys don't want to!" Kira says as it's clear she really doesn't like Almar.

"Come on Kira! We've been stuck in a carriage the last couple of days! We deserve something after all of that!" Jack says.

"I hate to say it but I agree with Jack! We might as well use him to our advantage." Mari says begrudgingly.

"I'm too tired to argue… " Sachi says, her voice full of exhaustion.

"Hope they have a hot spring in here!" I say as we all walk into the mansion.

"Ugh, fine!" Kira says as she pouts.

The mansion is almost as big as Master's Elyon's Manor. It has hundreds of rooms, a beautiful backyard with a garden, a hot spring on the side, and a giant dining room. After looking around for a bit, we all go into Almar's study to discuss our mission. We explain to him what happened on our trip over here.

"Yikes, that's quite a way for you four to start your first job. But at least you now know the reality of the situation. We have to do something about scummy creatures before our economy starts to suffer!" Almar says, his voice full of frustration.

"You seem a little bit too concerned about the economy rather than the fact that a lot of the people in this town are going missing!" Kira says, her voice full of anger.

"Both are of equal importance Kira, I think even you know that deep down inside." Almar says, his voice full of apathy.

"Glad to see you haven't changed a bit you jerk!" Kira says sarcastically as she hits his desk with her fist.

"Likewise, still as feisty as ever!" Almar says as he smiles.

"Do you have any idea where they are coming from sir?" I ask.

"Well, there have been a couple of troubling rumors but nothing concrete yet. Every time we send a party out to try to find out where the damn things are coming from, they never return. It's almost as if they know we're coming… " Almar says, his voice full of intrigue.

"Sir, we've come to the conclusion that someone must be controlling them! Goblins are intelligent for sure, but not bold enough to attack our kind!" Mari says.

"Wow, that is quite a conclusion you've come up with. Well, in any case, we need them gone. There's a dark forest just north of the village where we've been spotting them lately. I'd start there first if I were all of you!" Almar says confidently.

"Alright kiddos, starting tomorrow we begin our search for their base!" Kira says.

"Understood!" We all say in unison.

"Anyways, enough of the boring stuff! All of you should enjoy yourselves! We've prepared the hot springs for you and dinner! Malnio, get in here!" Almar says assertively.

"Yes, Master Almar." A young Scavian boy says as he enters the room with a suit on.

"I need you to take care of them during their stay! Do anything they request!" Almar says, as Malnio bows.

"Hello, Kira of Umbra and Chosen Children of Adora. My name is Malnio and I'm at your service!" Malnio says as it's clear he's been doing this for a while.

"Damn Almar, he's pretty young to be a butler, isn't he?" Kira asks.

"I'm just giving the boy a chance to settle a couple of debts and also gain some work experience! There's nothing wrong with that is it?" Almar asks as he stares at Malnio intensely.

"Of course sir!" Malnio says, as he bows.

Something isn't right about this situation…

We all leave the study, enjoy the hot springs, eat dinner, and enter our bedrooms. Sachi, Mari, and Kira are all staying in another room down the hall. Jack and I are in our own room just a couple of doors down.

"After everything we went through the last couple of days, we really needed that." Jack says as he looks really relaxed.

"Yeah, seeing that lively couple go into despair so quickly just shows how cruel this new world really is." I reply.

"I'm just happy we saved them, it would've left a bad taste in my mouth if we didn't." Jack says, as all of a sudden we hear a knock on the door.

"Huh? Come on in!" I say, as Malnio opens the door.

"Hello Master Crow and Master Jack! Is there anything you guys need before bed?" Malnio asks.

"Nah, we don't need anything from you little man. But do you mind if I ask you some questions instead?" Jack says, his voice full of warmth.

"Of course, what would you like to know Master Jack!" Malnio asks.

"What does have against you? I can tell you aren't here because you want to be here. He has something on you doesn't he?" Jack asks, as Malnio already looks pretty uncomfortable.

"I'm sorry sir, I can't really answer that question… " Malnio says, as he tries to avoid eye contact with us.

"Don't worry little man, we aren't going to rat you out. Just tell us what's going on!" Jack says, as he kneels down and pats Malnio's shoulder lightly.

"He promised… He promised he would try to save my sister if I worked for him!" Malnio says.