Preparations done, almost all of the fifty idled by the teleporter, waiting for the go-ahead. It had been constructed beside the constabulary station, for one since it made it easier to bar the general public from the area and for two in case anyone or anything unsavoury emerged from the teleporter. This way the officers could react immediately instead of having to cross Riverside to respond to any potential threats.

Two of the fifty, Lina and another officer, had already gone through the teleporter to Brightmoor. These two had the dangerous job of scouting ahead to check if there were any traps awaiting them on the other side. They were supposed to return then and reveal what they had seen. Elise had granted them an hour to do this, and if they were gone for longer, then it would be automatically assumed they had been captured and the whole trip would be called off.

Forty minutes had passed since their departure, and with no signs of their return, Silas was growing increasingly anxious. Until now, he had considered Chloe out of his reach, finding solace only in the fact that it sounded like she was doing well by herself. However, now that an opportunity to find her teased at him from above, he had no choice but to reach out.

Moreover, ever since Lucian’s message, Ethan had become restless and fitful, no doubt since he shared a special bond with his twin that Silas could only imagine of. Despite this, Silas had chosen not to include his brother in this mission, knowing fully well that he could become a burden in Brightmoor given his lacking power. Although cruel, Silas felt he had made the right decision, even though it did place further pressure on him now since he sensed Ethan’s prayers pushing on his back.

Suddenly, Lina and the other officer strode out of the teleporter, their emergence making plopping sounds from the pane of swirling blues and purples. Neither looked worse for the wear, and Silas excitedly moved with the rest of the fifty to meet them.

“Well?” Elise asked. She had her thick-rimmed glasses on, the face underneath dignified with faint signs of age. She wore her brown hair in a severe bun, and she had replaced her usual formal clothes with a full set of armour today.

While the other officer scratched behind their ear with an awkward smile, Lina met the mayor’s gaze head-on. “We’ve determined it’s safe, or at least it should be if we’re to believe what we saw there. But we have to say that their greetings aren’t the most friendly.”

Elise arched a curious eyebrow, looking over Lina’s appearance. “They treated you poorly or?”

“Oh, no, nothing of the sort,” the Blazeblade answered, waving her hands. “Rather, when we emerged, we were right away under the scrutiny of hundreds of nozzles. I don’t think it was for intimidation’s sake either since the floor beneath our boots was slick with blood. But we were shortly allowed to pass, where we explained our situation to the man in charge and inquired about the unconventional greeting.”

“Danger of making their teleporter public, I suppose,” Dom said from beside Elise, wearing his characteristic blue bandana. He didn’t have it on all the time anymore like in the past, but it seemed to Silas that the Black Knight wanted to make good first impressions in Brightmoor. How that translated to donning a bandana again was unclear, but the rest of his appearance was well-groomed with clean, fitting armour and his striking pencil moustache.

“That’s what the man claimed,” Lina said. “Apparently the message about the congress spread far and wide, including to hostile factions and races. They expected this, so the gunners are stationed around the teleporter to accommodate for any invasion attempts.”

“But we should be in the clear?” Elise asked. “You didn’t see any potential issues or the sort?”

“None that would affect us. If anything, the man seemed pleased when I said who was coming from our party, especially when I mentioned Silas,” Lina said, nodding towards him.

Elise and Dom exchanged a quick glance between them, before the Black Knight clapped his hands loudly, grabbing everyone’s attention. “Alright, sounds like the mission’s in the green. Let’s go.”

The fifty moved with trained efficiency, queuing for the teleporter. Its destination was set, and the troopers marched in, all disappearing into it with plops. As Silas passed through, he felt a flash of smarting pain which thankfully blanked out before it became dreadful. He could no longer feel anything at all, although he could still sense the flow of time - whether or not it was accurate was another matter all of itself. Either way, he counted to seventy-three before he became a physical body once more, his vision and taste and hearing all rushing into him at once.

Disoriented, his senses in a blur, he struggled for control over his body even as he felt himself being hoisted up. He had no clue of how long it took for him to find his bearings, but by then he noticed he was in a giant, well-lit hall, supported by Mia who held him up by his shoulders. Glancing about, he saw the other forty-eight from Riverside around him. Directly behind was a truly massive teleporter, at least five or six times the size of the one he had entered, although it shared the same design with the familiar strokes of swirling purple and blue.

On raised platforms around the hall waited soldiers with machine guns pointed at the group, steely gazes watching their every action. Fortunately, Silas couldn’t sense any hostility from them, although they all housed considerable auras. Without warning, the teleporter behind him came alive with plopping once more as another group came through, thankfully also humans, the majority of them appearing European. They showed no signs of teleporter-sickness as they expertly scanned their surroundings, all of them wielding melee weapons with a few guns scattered about their hundred or so strong group.

Curiously enough, they all wore gauntlets, and Silas spotted faint lines on them that suggested hidden compartments. From the way they fingered these compartments while regarding Brightmoor’s soldiers above, he figured the gauntlets held some sort of combat booster. While there were certainly a couple of notable warriors in this group, the most powerful aura belonged to a bookish man in his thirties, dressed in a tweed suit. He had round-eye glasses and thinning brown hair. At the same time that Silas’s eyes found him, the bookish man’s gaze crossed the room to the Duellist, then to the Black Knight, alternating between them with a smile that was too wide to be called totally friendly.

However, before anything could be said, a Brightmoor attendant arrived. “The Riverside group, yes, brilliant,” he said energetically, clearly recognising Lina, “And you’re the… Ah, of course, the Dresden group. Well, it’s lovely to have you all here. If you don’t mind, I’ll now lead you through the customs where they’re going to check your identities and the equipment you’ve brought. Very simple process, I promise. After that, I’ll give you your accommodation and fill you in on how the rest of the day will proceed. Now, if you’ll just follow me, and make sure not to make any sudden moves that’ll make the boys up top nervous.”

Half an hour later, the Riverside group passed through the customs while the Dresden group lingered on. The whole process had been as simple as the attendant had claimed, and the staff hadn’t even bothered confiscating the weapons or equipment they had brought along. In all, Silas was both impressed by the efficiency but also somewhat troubled by the laxness of it all. It suggested to him that either Brightmoor was chaotic outside this hall, or that the city was well-equipped to deal with any trouble they could dish out, the latter being more likely considering this was Lucian Grimes’s settlement.

“Now, let’s see,” the attendant said, quickly flicking through some notes. “Since you have three VIPS and fifty persons in total, I would usually assign you to a hotel but it would appear you’ve got a top 20 ranker. Very exciting. For that, you’re instead going to get a manor all to yourselves, fully staffed and catered, of course. It’s on the edge of Brightmoor proper, but it’ll be easy as pie to return to central using any of the buses that come every few minutes. Anyway, as for your timetable, we’re going to start out real simple today by giving you free rein over the city. Lucian will be giving a welcoming speech at three in the evening today, which I urge you all to make, but other than that feel free to explore at your own pace. The congress will be tomorrow at twelve.”