The lower deck of the Silver Maiden was short, and narrow. Its beams were laid such that to move below one had to duck their head. In this place–toward the back where the crew kept their storage–Trenewynn took a small washbasin and filled it with a bit of clean water. The water rolled and shifted slightly with the motion of the ship. It came close to spilling twice. But when Trenewynn had set it up on a stand with tethers, it dangled evenly, barely shaking as it suspended in a net.
He placed his palm to the waters, and waited with a meditative expression. Thrice it rippled, and his brow twitched. When he removed his hand from the water, a sigh escaped his lips.
"She warns me… it seems I must hasten the crew somehow."
He sighed again and drifted to thoughts of his old friend.
"Ramnicus… What are you thinking? What now will you do?"
He shook his head, "no matter. What I must do has not changed. Ramnicus, I pray you do not lose yourself in your resolve."
As twilight fell, the sailors finally took down the dried and drained lizardmen. They cut up the bodies and affixed the long tarsometatarsus bone of the lizardmen to the ends of wooden poles, carving it down to a spearpoint and making a javelin out of it. What scraps remained of the creatures after were tossed overboard as chum for the fish.
When morning came, the captain ordered the crew to make for land. They would be arriving at the port of Sūrë, a city in the Apollicos duchy of the empire. The captain decided to restock supplies and prepare for the next phase of the journey here. They would spend two days gathering what goods were needed, then the captain would make for the free city of Klashkir on the island of Gammosgé'nenoth. That would be the final stop before Argentum.
"Make yer last stop here, sandwalker. We'll be leaving the empire fer good after this. An' be ready to encounter more of those Karfolk from here out!"
Trenewynn nodded as they pulled into the docks.
The ship moved into stone ports, and at the ends of the docks were mounted ballistas ready to fire off below the waterline–to sink any hostile vessels into the bay, if needed. When the galley docked and the lines were cast overboard, a set of soldiers stood at attention with an inspector at the ready. Captain Maxmillian made sure to raise the flag of his merchant union, so there was no confusion or undue hostility shared between them.
The inspector was mostly interested in the cargo, though he noted Trenewynn's exotic appearance compared to the rest of the sailors.
"A stowaway?"
"Nay sir, he paid me a fee to carry him to Argentum. I met him in the proper docks of Anor."
Though the inspector seemed initially suspicious of Trenewynn, having heard that he came from the city proper, the inspector chose to trust in the reputation of Anor, and that they would not let wander a threat through their city.
"You're cleared to dock, captain. The fee shall be fifty bronze or five leads."
Having been cleared, Trenewynn soon walked the gangplank down to the port and beheld ahead the tall walls of Sūrë.
Standing at Hadria Point, and bound to Fort Riesse via the isthmus of Thespia, Sūrë was among the great fortress cities of the imperial south that warded against Kar'kasha. Like many of the great walled cities, t'was first made in the days of Aurumere and fortified by the demigods themselves.
If Anor had Saint Ramnicus, then Sūrë had its Aureite Walls:
A thick layer of bronze covered up to ten feet high, and above it was what appeared to be a continuous slab of granite, as if the city itself was carved around it, rather than the granite being transferred to the walls. A total of twenty bastions encircled the city, each with a tower built into them, and wizards assigned to keep vigil.
Those wizards could harden cracked stone to be like iron or make the soil and sand at Trenewynn's feet into sludge. They were masters of Geomancy and Transmutation magics. Twenty wizards in one city was already quite irregular–unheard of besides in the capital–but the scale of the walls which surpassed thirty drakesfoots made for a fine security force worthy of being called a fortress city.
On the ramparts were soldiers bearing red vests with a symbol of crossed swords behind a solar disc emblazoned on the chest. T'was the crest of Duke Apollocos, or the Dragon of the South, as some knew him. They stood amid banners and mounted ballistas, their brass coated armors gleaming with pale golden light.
As captain Maxmillian negotiated the docking fees, Trenewynn ventured to the city gates, where a set of six guards barred the entrance, checking each who would cross into the city proper for illegal goods.
When his turn in line came, the guards spoke bluntly:
"Entry shall be thirty bronze or three leads, unless you can produce documentation or evidence of dignitary status."
Trenewynn pulled one silver coin bearing the face of King Imperius Aurius, the son of Leonis Aurius, and grandson of Raath. Though faded slightly, the visage was unmistakably one of a handsome king wearing a solar crown.
"This is Aurius silver, there are very few that still remain in the world. Would this suffice to cover my entrance fee?"
Some of the surrounding visitors whispered and gossiped, seeing the rare coin revealed. Although the coin was significantly more expensive than what the fee required, Trenewynn insisted that he would pay with this.
The guards took it and accepted the fee, though the chief among them seemed rather frustrated to receive such a desirable item. He grumbled about calling his superior, though that was of no consequence to Trenewynn.
Only when the exchange was accepted was he permitted to cross the thick arch of the city gates, and enter Sūrë. Waiting beyond the threshold–with a white raven on his shoulder–was a lord dressed in regal attire, bearing crossed swords behind a solar crest upon his chest.
"So, it's you," he said.
"Pardon, my lord. But I'm unsure what you mean."
"A white hawk led me here, to find you. I've followed that hawk here to the city gates–to this very moment–just to find you. Who are you, traveller?"
Trenewynn bowed to the lord, "here, I am called Trenewynn."