A Very Normal Town

Ban

Chapter 41

I’d wanted to stay up, to question our mysterious benefactor. A wall had risen from nowhere in the maze to block our path back, but Dawn had led us onward. If we hadn’t been in such a dire situation, I wouldn’t have been blindly thankful we couldn’t be followed.

What exactly came after that, I didn’t know. I couldn’t remember the journey. Instead, I woke up. I was lying in a comfortable bed in the dark. The sound and scent of my fellows sleeping around me lulled me back down into exhausted slumber.

The second time I woke it was to the scent of bread and roasted vegetables. The late morning sun slanted in through the grease paper of the windows. My body ached in protest, but I managed to get up and found I wasn’t the only, nor the first.

Calen was already sitting at the table outside the sleeping quarters. He looked fine, laughing with his mouth full at something Ewen said. Dawn had helped him, but I’d never thought he’d live.

My legs went out from under me. Panic broke out at the table and soon I was being helped up and to a seat. Worried mummers filled the air.

“Drink this,” Calen said, handing me a bottle full of a clear orange liquid. I accepted it, surprised by the sweet but acidic taste as I drank. Its scent was like flowers, though I couldn’t name which ones. It soothed me, driving away some of the pain I’d been feeling and clearing my head.

“I was soft legged when I first got up too. You’ll be alright after some water and food,” Ewen added, pushing a bowl of some kind of porridge in front of me. I was used to soggy grains but this looked thicker and had berries and milk over it. Looking around I saw everyone eating it without complaint. I wasn’t a picky eater generally but I always balked at new things.

Swallowing down my aversion, I lifted my spoon and tried a bite of it. I picked a plain bit and found it wasn’t far off from what I was used to, it just used oats instead of grain. Comforted, I tried a bite with a berry and found the combination pleasant.

Feeling confident I set to eating the bowl before it grew cold. A feat I accomplished without difficulty or shaming myself with poor manners. The latter I was surprised by, I should have been ravenous. Instead, my appetite was controllable. I ended up eating well, but not enough to sicken myself.

I felt much better after and finally took in my surroundings. I was seated at one table in a group of many beneath a large shelter. It reminded me a bit of a barn but was much nicer and open on all sides. Seated at the tables around me were humans and several other races I couldn’t put a name to.

One was taller with pointed ears. Another shorter and stout but close to human height. The third ones were the height of children but with mature features and larger round ears. If not for their scents, I might have mistaken them for odd variations on humans themselves.

“I don’t remember how we got here. Did I faint? How long was I out?” I asked Ewen quietly.

“When we stopped for a rest, pretty much all of us did,” Ewen said sheepishly. I could recall sitting down for a bit, then nothing. After everything we’d experienced, it didn’t seem strange for us to collapse. Even if something had been amiss since we’d all woken up, I couldn’t help but feel relieved and grateful.

“It’s only been a day, but we slept from late noon yesterday until now,” Ewen added, finishing answering my question. I could only nod, believing that if not for the scent of food I’d have slept even longer.

“Where’s Joss?” I asked after surveying the group around me. I hadn’t seen him in any of the beds when I left. Though I was much calmer now, I still felt anxious about everyone’s well-being. I wanted to keep us all together and get a feel for where we were and the people who’d helped us. Despite our benevolent reception, it didn’t mean the valley would welcome more of us. We didn’t even know if our current number would be allowed to stay once we were well.

“I don’t actually know,” Ewen admitted, looking a bit nervous himself. Joss had been Calen’s best friend since they were kits and I considered him one of my cousins. I looked over at Calen who shook his head as well. If he didn’t know then it meant Joss had wandered off to explore like he usually did. I felt a headache coming on, but sighed instead.

We weren’t in a position to make a poor impression or deal with his potential misadventures. I looked around until I spotted a familiar face. Dawn was seated several tables away from me, chatting with one of the small, 'not a humans’ affectionately. She’d given me a stalwart impression when I’d first met her in the maze. Like someone older than their years who couldn’t be moved easily. Looking at her now I still had the same feeling, but it was less cold.

She was probably hard to rattle in an emergency, but she had likes and dislikes just like anyone else. That made me feel less intimidated as I approached her. I was the leader of my clan, but that hadn’t come about for normal or happy reasons. It left me feeling a bit timid when I had to deal with people who seemed better equipped for leadership than I was. As I approached her table, she looked up at me. Her expression became more temperate but still cheerful.

“Hello again. Please, sit,” Dawn said, gesturing for me to join her. I did so, nodding to her companion which he acknowledged similarly. He had bright blue eyes and a nasty scar that pulled up the corner of his mouth in a perpetual smirk.

“I’m Dawn, this is Icarus,” She said, reintroducing herself which I was glad for. I didn’t remember giving my own name and it let me off the hook for the misstep. Though to be fair I’d been preoccupied with magically appearing rocks at the time rather than trying to be rude.

“I’m Ban. Thank you for everything you’ve done for us,” I said with sincere gratitude. I didn’t question that we’d all be dead if not for her intervention.

“Don’t stand on formality and feel free to ask anyone here if you need anything. Misst- Miss Mayor was happy we could help you all,” Icarus and Dawn nodded in agreement.

“Thank you, but we’ve brought you trouble. The seekers won’t give up on us. If you're caught harboring us they’ll attack you as well,” I said. I was worried about Joss but the big picture came first. He could wait. I had some time before I needed to worry about what he was getting up to.

“Oh, that isn’t a problem. The maze is an ancient relic. When the short path sealed the others became impassable. The Mayor will have to reopen it before anyone can move in or out again,” Dawn assured me. I gave a start, relics of bygone eras were rare. Even fewer of them were something that could be operated by those who found them.

I was starting to understand Hetcha’s reverence about this place. That was a major boon against a possible attack, not to mention the desert surrounding it. The town was truly lucky to possess such a defense. With the concern for the locals’ safety out of the way, I felt it was time to bring up Joss.

“Oh, uhm, one of the men who came with me seems to have wandered off. Joss-” I started to explain only to fall silent when both Dawn and Icarus looked alarmed. A moment later they sighed in tandem like an old married couple.

“Is he in trouble?” I asked, nervous. They’d been treating us well, but we might have been expected to stay put. Since I’d recently woken up, they might not have had time to make those rules clear to anyone else, either.

“Trouble isn’t… It's better if we show you. Feel up to a walk?” Dawn asked, standing up. The first time I’d met her she’d been wearing armor. Now she was wearing a green leather coat I realized was designed to look similar but much lighter. Even so, it was still better than the one I was wearing for both protection and style.

“Yeah. Ewen’s my second, he should come too,” I said, unhappy this incident might affect our future talks. Feeling glum, I didn’t try to chat with Dawn or Icarus on our way into the town. Ewen already knew Joss had wandered off and looked annoyed.

We were both left astonished in short order. As soon as we passed the gates, we were met with a barrage of greetings. Every person on the street stopped a moment to peer at us. If not for Dawn and Icarus they’d have likely tried striking up a conversation as well.

“We haven’t had any visitors who weren’t bandits… ever,” Icarus said by way of explanation. I nodded, unused to such a warm welcome anywhere. Even in my own clan people weren’t so happy to see anyone, even if they were family. If we so much as looked at something for sale in a stall or carried by a street hawker, we were immediately offered it.

When we caught up to Joss he was at a tavern. He was surrounded by patrons who were plying him with food and liquor as they played cards. Everyone asked him questions. Interested in him, not the coppers they were playing for.

I had to blink as I took in Joss himself. Last I’d seen him, he’d been wearing worn out and stained clothes, filthy with sweat and caked in sand. Now he looked fresh scrubbed and was wearing a new cream-colored sleeveless tunic with a kilt.

If I hadn’t experienced it, I would have questioned where he’d got the money for the clothes. Having walked the main street, I understood; all he’d likely had to do was accept when offered them. I wanted to feel vexed, instead, I felt tired.

We had little to offer the townsfolk beyond exchanging labor for room and board. There was no other way for us to get anything without that trade or accepting their kindness. Looking at Joss I also became acutely aware I was still filthy. I felt embarrassed reflexively. It was then Joss noticed he’d lost some of the room's attention and looked over.

“Ban!” he shouted happily. He leapt over the table to hug Ewen and I. Despite our previous moods we both hugged him back. It was good to see he was alright, if drunk.

“Scamp, did you cause these folks trouble?” Ewen demanded in a playful tone.

“Nu-uh, they saw I was awake last night and invited me down,” Joss said, a little unsteady on his feet. He was lucky the ceiling was high, or he’d have cracked his skull in his haste.

“You should have said something,” I scolded him. Everything seemed fine but it might not have gone so well when we woke to find him missing. He needed to start thinking about the consequences.

“As Icarus said, we don’t get visitors much. I’ll have a talk with everyone. They won’t go spiriting your people off like that in the future,” Dawn said with a stern look at the people in the bar. They all studiously turned back to their cards, taking an interest in their games.

“Thank you, Ms. Dawn. You mentioned a Mayor. Do you mind if I ask what your position in the town is?” I asked, realizing I had no idea what sort of authority she had.

“I’m head of the adventurer’s guild,” she replied. I blinked several times, unfamiliar with such a thing. It wasn’t like guilds were unfamiliar to me, though, so I could form an idea of what she meant. Guild leaders were always influential people in their respective territories. That meant she was a high authority.

“The Mayor can’t receive guests right now, but she’d left us instructions to see to your needs,” Icarus said. I nodded. He’d said the mayor could operate the stone maze, she had to be a busy person. With the matter at hand taken care of, we headed back to the place we’d spent the night. I found out it was called the bunkhouse.

Full of booze and stories Joss immediately told everyone about his adventure. Thankfully, he also showed us where the bath was and how to operate it. Instead of bringing hot water inside there was a tank with a stove under it outside feeding a hot spout. Another tank provided cold water. The strangeness didn’t stop there. It was expected we’d clean ourselves under water falling from a pipe before getting in the sitting tubs.

It took a little time to get past our initial reservations, but soon enough we were all relaxing in hot water. It was a strange experience after a life of using damp rags to clean myself. I didn’t mind it though and wished I might share the experience with my wife.

Soon we were all clean and in much better spirits. As we stayed put for a while, curious town folk would come up to spend time in the mess. They were interested in our stories and full of questions. Joss’s fearlessness aside the rest of the band took time to warm up to our visitors. Some of them were too young to remember how things were before our persecution in Stromholt began.

Yet it was hard to keep defenses up under the deluge of gifts and cheerful gazes. By right I was the one who should be most wary, but even I was having a tough time not grinning like a fool. It didn't take long for us to start gathering when we noticed someone coming up to see us.

The townsfolk were interested in us, saying little of themselves. What we did know was how enthusiastic about their trades they were. Like children showing off to a guest, they all loved to bring us the things they had made. Presenting them, they'd watch us inspect their goods with anticipation. The arrangement convinced me they weren’t lying.

Even simple things were of superior quality materials and the craftsmanship was excellent. If this town wasn’t cut off from the world, these would have been sought after items. As it was, my group ended up dressed as finely as lesser nobles, despite the simple nature of our attire. I drew the line at receiving weapons and armor though.

Some things could be accepted out of necessity like food and clothes. We could pay them back once we found work. I would not accept the other such valuable things. Even if we found jobs we wouldn't be able to make enough to buy them.

The blacksmiths were disappointed. They accepted my reasoning after some coaxing. It was a situation I’d never imagined finding myself in. Merchants and craftsmen were shrewd and demanding. They wouldn't fall over themselves to share their goods.

On the third day, some of us started going into town, curious and tired of being cooped up. I refrained, already aware of what would happen. After the first week passed, I was invited to the town hall. It was an odd building, built up one of the gentler of the sloping walls of the valley. This gave it a triangular appearance. The height alone would have been impressive. It was three stories high and I'd never seen anything like it.

Stepping inside my surprise only deepened. Instead of a flat floor, there were what looked like oversized stone steps climbing the slope. It wasn’t until I saw Dawn sitting on the steps that I realized I was looking at raised seating.

“Hello Ban,” A female voice I wasn’t familiar with said. Turning to the side, I found a woman sitting at a writing desk. Even sitting she was tall but filled out instead of lanky. With everything I’d seen already, I had to accept she was real and two to three feet taller than I was.

“Please take a seat,” The woman added, gesturing to a chair in front of her. I accepted, feeling nervous as I peered into her red eyes. Her skin seemed colorless along with her hair, leaving me an impression of her being made of milk. She wore a red and gold tunic with no insignia and tied her hair back simply.

“I’m the Mayor, Quarante Deux. It’s a pleasure to meet you in person,” she said with a smile. I nodded but felt like bowing. I’d never been in the presence of someone so naturally imposing. Particularly someone with an obviously cheerful demeanor.

“The pleasure's mine,” I said, glad the words came out steady. Seeing the mayor, the subtle wrongness of the valley felt beneath notice. What did it matter if things were too nice and designed oddly? They appeared to be ruled by a descendant of the giants. That made the unfamiliar races I’d encountered at the bunkhouse seem tame in comparison. It was no wonder such a being could operate a relic device, giants were as old as the world itself. Even a distant descendant would be privy to all manner of lore and secrets no one else would know.

“How sweet, call me Deux if that’s easier by the way. I’m not one for titles,” Quarante said with a brighter smile than before.

“Besides, I’m hoping you and your people will settle down here. So, I'd like for us to be friends and neighbors in the future,” Quarante added. I stiffened for a moment in shock before I felt a weight lift from my shoulders.

“I’d like that too, how many people would you be willing to take on?” I asked, not bothering to hide my relief. The sorry state of the band was far too obvious. Anyone who'd seen us would know we were in dire straits.

I could only hope Quarante would be willing to allow the rest of my clan to join us. Despite my hope, I knew permitting a hundred newcomers wasn’t a small thing. If the valley only accepted a smaller number, women and children would be prioritized. It would be an ugly thing to break up families. Excluding entire groups outright would be worse. Yet it was better than everyone dying.

“At present, we're able to accept up to four hundred people, give or take,” Quanrante said without missing a beat.

“How many?” I asked, feeling I’d heard wrong.

“Four hundred, or close to that,” Quanrante replied. It took her a moment to realize that Ban had fainted sitting up.