I thought I sounded all epic and heroic when I got up from the table and said it was time to go. I really did. But now that Tristan and I were back up in Galden and walking the streets, I had absolutely no idea what we should do next.

"Should we go check out Tinker Town?"

"What's Tinker Town?" I always forgot that she'd spent way more time up in Galden than I had, what with healing people after the Baron's war and all the chaos that happened afterward.

"All of the smithies moved there after Khozad'Thar got turned into the Dregs."

"That's probably as good a place as any to start." Instinctively, I reached to my back, where I'd strapped the black blade. Elise had agreed to let me take after I said it would help us track down leads. Renard wasn't happy about it, but he was never happy. "Where's Tinker Town?"

"It's along the Northern Fang. We can get there in forty-five minutes or so if we walk fast."

Galden was situated in the valley between two mid-sized mountains, called the Fangs of Galden. I'd learned that, while the city had started as a small mining town, over time, it expanded until the structures that made up the city spread out and eventually were built along both of the Fangs' faces. While the majority of Galden's citizens lived in the valley, a significant portion of the city's inhabitants lived on, and in, the mountains themselves. "That makes sense. I'm game."

She took my hand. "It's a fascinating place. I always wanted to take you, so I'm happy I get to go with you now."

I looked over at my partner and couldn't help but admire her. There was a big smile on her face, and her sapphire eyes were sparkling in the orblight. "Then let's do it."

Noticing me looking at her, she gave me a lopsided grin and asked, "What?" She wiped her cheek. "Is there something on my face?"

"No, no. Just admiring you."

Her smile turned into a grin, and with a breathy voice, she asked. "What are you admiring, huh? Is it..." She pressed her chest forward, showing off her lean figure and perky assets.

As lovely as they were, and as much as I knew she was trying to be funny and suggestive, that wasn't what I was feeling. I just... "It's your smile. You look so happy."

Her grin turned into a broad smile. "I..." Her eyes lowered, and she sighed. "I am, actually. Despite everything happening around us." She barked out a laugh. "Despite being embroiled in another fucking conflict, yet again! I'm happy." Her eyes rose to meet mine again. "I'm more than happy, actually."

Squeezing her hand, I said, "I am, too."

"Are you, though?" Her eyes met mine. "Are you really, Alex?"

A wave of bitterness washed over me once again. Those were coming more and more frequently. I wished it could always be like this. "I'm fine, really. And the more time that goes on, the finer I'll be."

She wasn't buying it. "Remember when we talked in the forest outside Goodfield? About your sister?"

I nodded. That was a much-needed emotional release. And I'd learned what I wanted to do in this world then. What I was here for. I was here to protect people. "I do."

"I really appreciated you opening up to me back then. And..." She squeezed my hand. "And I hope you know that you can do that again. Anytime, and about anything. You can always talk to me. I know how important it is to you to be there for people, but I want you to know that I'm here for you."

"That means a lot to me." It did feel hard at times, being the rock that people leaned on. And I loved that she was always there for me, in the best ways she knew how. None of us was perfect, but I knew she always did her best. That's what I admired about her. "And I know. I love that about you. You'll always be the person I turn to when I need someone." But this was my battle. The whole Dark Lord rattling in my head thing... That was my burden to carry. Not hers. Plus, it would kill her to know everything Aerell had done to... to prepare me for the Dark Lord's blessings. She already felt enough guilt. I didn't need to add to it. All I needed to do was grow stronger. Then, she wouldn't have to worry. No one needed to worry about me.

I'd be fine.

She stepped in front of me. Wrapping her arms around me, she pressed her head to my chest. "I know you're grappling with something, and I don't want to push you. Just know that I love you, okay?"

I wrapped my arms around her and kissed the top of her head. "Okay."

Holding me for a long moment, she eventually pushed away, took my hand, and pulled me forward. "Okay, let's go. I've been dying to show you this place. You're going to love it!"

***

When she said Tinker Town was impressive, I figured it would be interesting, but no. It was amazing.

The face of the Northern Fang was opened up in dozens of honeycomb-like openings arranged in a half-dozen distinct tiers. Out of each honeycomb was a metal platform that connected to the others around it with intricate, mazelike scaffolding. From the smoke billowing from hundreds of openings in the mountain's face to the constant ringing of hammers against metal echoing across the valley, the entire mountainside looked alive with activity. There were hundreds of people weaving their way between the platforms, nearly every one of which was carrying various supplies and tools of all shapes and sizes.

"Come on." Tristan pulled my arm and led me to one of the metal staircases that zigzagged up the scaffold. "This is the way up."

The second I stepped onto the staircase, my blood pressure spiked. The stairs had more holes than metal, looking almost like a firm chainlink fence rather than a staircase.

"Watch your step. The metal can get slick."

"Oh, great." I gripped the rail and pulled myself up step by step, keeping my eyes focused upward as we climbed. Luckily, she gave me a nice view, so that made things easier.

After climbing about halfway, she stopped on a landing, gripped the railing, and looked back toward the city. "It's amazing, isn't it?"

I really didn't want to look. Giving the city a glance, I said, "Yeah, totally."

"You didn't even look!"

"Nope..."

"What's wrong?"

"I, uh..." Come on, man. Pull it together, Alex. Don't be a wimp, man! "I..." Damn it! "I don't like heights."

She looked at me seriously for a long moment. Then, with a grin, she snaked her arm around mine and pulled me to her side. "So the big, strong guardian does have a weakness, does he?"

"Yeah. Falling two hundred feet to my death due to the countless OSHA violations we're standing on is one of them."

Snickering, she said, "Don't be a baby."

"When it comes to heights, I'm not just any baby. I'm the biggest baby." Flying? Terrible. Tall buildings? Burn them all down. Teleportation? Basically flying. Horrifying.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

"Well, be brave and look out over the city with me." She turned and pulled me to the railing. "It's beautiful."

With a sigh I could feel in my bones, I turned the direction she was facing and, after a moment of absolute panic and dread, I pulled myself together and looked out over the city. Every hair on my body stood on end, but she was right... It was beautiful.

"See?"

"Yeah..." Once my heart stopped pounding, I could actually feel how impressive it was.

All around us, the city stretched out, sinking deep into the valley and rising up the Southern Fang. In the center, Elise's manor stood tall. Extending from the manor to the east and west, a large road cut the city in half. Far, far to the east, I could see the Great Tower extending high into the sky, the Orb of Light at the top bathing the city in a warm glow. Far to the west, and for the first time, I could see the top of the Tower of the Stars. Just visible at its base, I could make out a white wall. There was an orb atop that tower, too, though that one was much smaller and didn't glow very brightly as the Orb of Light. Instead of looking like the sun, it glowed at about the same intensity as the full moon did back on earth in the daytime. Well, not quite. It was about twice as bright, but that was the closest thing I could think of. Far beyond that tower, the sky grew a dark purple, looking similar to early dusk.

"That darkness out there. Is that where the light doesn't reach? Past the Great Walls?"

Tristan nodded. "Yeah. They call it the Wilds out there. The further you go, the darker it gets."

"The Wilds, huh? I wonder what it's like?" I bet strong monsters were out there. What else, I had no idea.

"I've heard its basically incomprehensible out there. Like, you can travel north but end up going south. Or you can jump into water and find out its not water but tangible air. And there are supposedly monsters out there that make the stuff within the walls look like nothing. What's worse, apparently the Goddess's system stops working if you go far enough. It's incredibly dangerous. Only a few people, mostly adventurers, ever leave the walls, and they never more than a day or two out."

"Huh." Sounded horrifying... but not as bad as this fucking metal staircase. I gripped the railing tight. "Yeah, let's not do that."

"Agreed." She stepped backward and grabbed my hand. "Come on!"

The higher we got, the more impressive the view became. I could actually make out the Solara sea to the east once we reached the first tiers of platform. I'd never seen it before, and it was every bit as beautiful as Arden had said. By the second tier, it was bright and sparkling, and even more visible. Turning, I saw that far to the west, I could make out what looked like lowlands, or maybe a swamp. Past it, to the northwest, there were mountains, high and tall and twice as dramatic as the rocky mountains back on Earth. Every one of them had snow on their peaks. "Wow."

"Yeah." Tristan looked dreamily the way I was looking. "I've always wanted to go to Theroven."

"Then let's do it."

She grinned. "Let's."

Once we made it to the fourth tier, which was way too high up, we stepped onto one of the metal platforms, and Tristan gestured toward the opening nearby. "I think this is the one. Ready?"

I nodded, and we walked through the honeycomb entrance. After twenty or so feet, we stepped into the interior of the hollowed-out mountain.

The space inside took my breath away. The cavern was massive, easily large enough to house a small town, which I supposed it did. It reminded me of Khozad'Thar, what with its stone walls and huge stalactites, but unlike the slowly improving mixture of wealth and squalor that I'd grown used to down in the city far below, this place hummed with productive energy. Forges blazed everywhere I looked, their orange glow casting shadows on the cavern walls. Smelters roared with contained fire, woodworkers sanded and cut at a wide variety of woods I didn't recognize, and the air itself was filled with the rhythmic pounding of hammers and saws. Everywhere I turned, I saw dwarves, humans, halflings, and gnomes working at their crafts. There were even a couple elves here and there!

"This is amazing."

"Right? Renard said that this was what Khozad'Thar used to look like back when he and the Count were kids. Khadrel and Elise want to make it like this again, too."

I shook my head. That would be something. "Crazy to think."

"Yeah, I know right?" She pulled me forward, along a narrow, busy street that took us around the edge of the town.

As we walked, I saw all manner of craftspeople working hard at their crafts. Here, a gnome woman was delicately engraving runes into the blade of a dagger. There, a human man was pulling a glowing horseshoe from a forge with long tongs. Across the street, a dwarf was carefully adjusting the tension on a crossbow. Inside a small stone hut, a group of halflings were drawing away at a scroll. No matter who I saw, or what race was present, every single person here shared the same focused intensity.

"This way," Tristan said, tugging on my hand and guiding me up a cross street. "I want to show you something."

She led me to a section where the cavern opened up even wider. Larger forges dominated this space, and I could see why she'd brought me here first. In front of us was an entire area dedicated to armor-making. Over a dozen smiths worked in perfect coordination. To my left, one was hammering a breastplate into shape while another worked on pauldrons and a third focused on a helm that was just about finished up under his skilled hands. Across from them, a couple were sewing leather into the insides of gauntlets.

"Look at that," I murmured, watching as they worked. The precision of their hammer strikes was incredible. Every hammer blow looked like it was perfectly placed.

"It's amazing, right?" Her eyes were sparkling at me. "Now, look over here." She pulled me toward another area where a lone blacksmith was working on a sword. The blade was already formed, and he was working on the final sharpening. Stroke by stroke, the shing of his wetstone of the blade filled the air. His movements were almost meditative, and it looked to me like each stroke of his file removed just the right amount of metal. Not too much, and not too little. As I watched him work, I wished I could be this good at anything.

"When we have more time, let's pick up a skill like this." Tristan squeezed my hand. "I think we could get really good at something together, and it would be fun."

I laughed. "You think Vral could sit still for long enough?"

Tristan shook her head. "Don't underestimate her. I think, if given the right headspace and some direction, she could do amazing things with those hands of hers. She's so talented."

Shrugging, I said, "I guess we'll find out one day, won't we?"

"Yes." She kissed my cheek. "We will."

When someone bumped into my side, I realized we were holding up the traffic. Then another. And another. As much as I wanted to stay and watch, and to ask questions, I could see how busy everyone was. These weren't people with time for random conversations with dipshit adventurers like us. They had real jobs to do. "They're very focused," I said. "And we're in the way."

"Yeah, they don't really stop for tourists around here," Tristan agreed. "Come on, let's keep looking. Maybe we can find something like that sword in here."

As we made our way deeper into the cavern, I found myself appreciating the atmosphere more and more. There was something pure about it. Everyone here had a purpose, a skill they'd dedicated themselves to mastering. There were no politics or bullshit, just craftsmanship. After all the scheming and maneuvering and shitty nobles I'd been forced to deal with lately, it was refreshing to see the real people doing real work. It also made my heart ache for the temple. Once this was over, I wanted to go home.

A dwarf woman walked past us carrying a bundle of freshly forged arrowheads, each one perfectly identical to the others. When she saw me looking, she gave me a curt nod before brushing past. Acroos the street, a human man tested the flexibility of a bow, his face pure concentration as he made tiny adjustments to the grip, then set the bow on his tillering tree and started sanding on limb.

"Are there any shops around here, or is it all crafting?" I said as we walked. "It would be nice to find someone who has some time to talk."

"There are some shops toward the rear of the cavern," Tristan replied. "All of the workshops are up front, but there are warehouses and shop shops deeper in." She pointed to a nearby street. "That'll be the fastest way, I think."

We went the way she'd pointed, and after ten minutes of walking, she was proven right. As we made our way toward the rear of the large cavern, the individual workshops gave way to larger structures. Warehouses, from the look of them, with wide doors and large open spaces designed for storage and trade set up within.

I spotted what I was looking for near the very back. It was a warehouse. Inside, I could see people moving between countless racks of weapons and armor. A few of the people looked like they were customers perusing the wares, but most looked like laborers doing inventory, oiling gear, and tending to the stock. As I watched, I noticed that the vibe was different here, too. Unlike the focused craftsmen we'd passed earlier, who were raw focus on a singular task, these people seemed to be evaluating, cataloging, tending, and organizing rather than creating.

"Let's try that one," I said, pointing toward the warehouse. "I like how it feels."

"Sounds great."

As we entered, I felt like I'd chosen well. There were weapons of all shapes and sizes filling the interior. I brushed my fingers along a row of partisans as we walked toward the rear, where a dwarf was oiling a pile of axes set on a large workbench. As we approached, he looked up and nodded to us, then returned to his work.

"My good dwarf," I said, walking up to his workbench. "Do you have a minute?"

"Hmm?" He looked up again and furrowed his brows. He was shorter than most dwarves I'd met, but he was built like a stone wall, with arms that looked like they could bend iron bars and hands the size of a bear's. His beard was streaked with gray, and his eyebrows were an untamed jungle that hung down over his eyes.

When he didn't say anything else, I cleared my throat and said, "Would you know of someone who could help us identify a rare weapon we found?"

"Mmm." He looked us over. "You have it?"

I reached back and carefully unslung the black blade from my shoulder. "Here it is." Placing it on the bench, I unwrapped the cloth covering and slid it forward.

The dwarf's eyes immediately locked onto the weapon, and his expression shifted. Stepping closer, his gaze never leaving the blade, but he didn't try to touch it. "Aye," he said quietly, "I know a thing or two about that." He looked up at me, then at Tristan, then back at the sword. "Pick that up and follow me."

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