Melchior’s Grand Tour [2]
A letter from Melchior to his mother Qirina, 8th day of the 1st of Summer.
Mother, please, sit while you read this letter.
I have news that I’m sure will upset you: aunt Berenix is happy and successful. I know this sibling rivalry has always been important to you: both of you have been married to a faraway lord living in remote castles perched over high cliffs. For many years, you have been the one to make the best of your situation, creating a loving family and helping the house grow in prestige and wealth.
I’m sorry to tell you that Berenix’s time to outshine you has come.
Surprisingly, the letters she sent last year were not exaggerations, they may be even a little understated. Kimaris is becoming a vibrant town, a busy port, and numerous merchants and visitors from far away are coming and going.
The harbor village at the base of the cliff, the one around the entrance of the Spiral Staircase, is not the shantytown you described to me but a dynamic village, with shipyards, docks, and warehouses being constructed by the dozen. The uptown is in pristine condition, with a new square in the works. Everything is being renovated.
Aunt Berenix has done some upgrading and renovation on herself too. She has a maid trained in alchemy preparing her chemical cosmetics. I hope you are seated as I suggested you because I must admit she looks younger than you, several years younger.
But it may console you that now I understand the adversarial part of your complex relationship with her. Berenix is a sore winner. I never thought someone could rub their success on the face of others with such violence and glee. She received me dressed in opulent garments made of gnomish gold filigree, and I was browbeaten into fake enthusiasm by backhanded compliments and chirping self-congratulation.
Soon I met the reason for this “reinvigoration”: Lady Oozolina.
This humanoid and intelligent slime is something wondrous, and it’s not a surprise that many came to the out-of-the-way castle of Kimaris to see her.
The slime lady is enigmatic yet charming. She can speak in sign language, and a young shepherd, clearly not used to his fancy clothes, acts as her translator
.A year and a half have passed since she came here, but she still can’t grasp some basic concepts, like colors or cutlery. She sees the world in an idiosyncratic way made of vibrations, consistency, unheard smells, and oblique intuitions.
Part of the dinner entertainment was just to ask her to describe things. A candle on a candlestick is “a piece of the day sitting on mother and sharp”. She said I resemble a “stringless guitar made of seagulls”. Wise words or alien ramblings?
But an oddity that may attract a couple of curious scholars is not enough to turn around a whole city. I think (hold your self mother) that Aunt Berenix and Uncle Woland copied you. You were the one to realize this is an era of adventure: the craving for exploration is a more and more common need, a need that can be satisfied for a price.
As you spread the promises of Ocean’s exploration they did with the caves of Tartarus. Lady Oozolina is a testament that there is still a lot to discover deep in the earth and spelunking an activity worth pursuing. “Dungeonnering”, after centuries of neglect, is back in fashion.
The key was to pique the Dwarves’ interest.
Kimaris was just a pit stop, a brief pause along the south-north routes, but Lady Oozolina and the promises of the Tartarus gave the travelers a reason to stay.
The dwarves, with their magical constructs and advanced mining techniques, can reach depth never explored and take wonders they guard. Also, the artificers of the Federation know ways to exploit the stage metal and unknown substances found in the tunnels. Many accepted.
The land of the Mark of Kimaris has been divided into mining/exploring concessions, a much more profitable use than sheep pasture they were.
Aunt and uncle won’t let me go away for at least ten days, they have a lot of flaunting still to do. Also, they want me to wait for my cousins: they went to the City of Dis to find a composer for an opera about Lady Oozolina (see what I mean when I say they’re copying…).
Since I’m staying, it’s better to keep busy (so I can avoid them).
I fell a little ashamed to have avoided the Forgotten Road and its bandit. I may seek some action and glory GOING ON A DUNGEON EXPLORATION, following one of the Mushroom Rangers who is going to a survey of a concession with a Dwarven Company.
Otherwise, I could HELP THE AUDIOMAGE, a cutting-edge scholar who is trying his modern techniques on Oozolina. He can record sound and even thoughts! He worked with many performers and bards: maybe he is my roundabout way to enter the musical world.
I will soon decide, meanwhile hugs to you and the family,
Mel
