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210 YA
The Bay of Freedom
Gorzhak sighed upon seeing the city. Theirs wasn't the only ship filled with families sailing to the newest territory of the Unified Empire for a new life. He turned around, looking at his wife, son, and daughters.
The empire, led by the Durrandon First Princes and a council of elected men and women, with their God-Queen at the top, offered a new life to the settlers. Houses were given away for free, work was promised for five years with no taxes, and even free food was given to ease the people into their new lives. New Ghis was in a state of decline that even a humble dock worker like him could see why.
With the Valyrian Empire gone, New Ghis had lost its greatest trading partner. The Unified Empire had forbidden any trade with cities involved in the slave trade. Work in the docks had quickly dried up. He only lasted so long because he was good friends with the dock master. Even that wasn't enough. When the roof of his house had come down, he knew it was best to seek his fortunes elsewhere.
Already the steel ships of the empire had sunk more than two hundred pirate and slaver vessels. He didn't know if the God-Queen would start a war to put an end to the slavery, but he didn't wish to be on the other side if she ever did.
He had heard enough of what happened to Volantis.
He would just scoff if it were one person making outlandish claims. When every single trader that sailed through the waters of Volantis said the same thing, he knew it was the truth.
He leaned over the railing, watching one of the steel monstrosities sail closer. True to the rumors, it had no sails, with a dark gray deck and long, wide tubes said to bring the fury of the Almighty God of Thunder on the enemies of the empire. He did not know how it floated or moved.
What he knew was that it could ram through their wooden cog and not even slow down.
The steel ship sailed past, faster than any ship he had seen. Sailors in white uniforms were on its long deck, standing guard, perfectly still. If some of them did not move, he would think they were statues.
He watched the ship grow smaller in the distance and turned ahead as the cog slowed down. The docks were far different from Ghis. Built with a smooth, light gray stone, the ships docked and left without stopping.
The cog came to a full stop.
He turned around, raising the heavy bag to his back, which carried most of their wealth, clothing, and what blankets he could squeeze in. His wife carried a pack, a sheet with all corners tied to a knot in the middle. The food they bought was running out, even with how little they ate. They would have to visit the food market soon.
His son carried their blankets, covered with leather scraps sewn together, while his daughters had whatever else they could afford to take.
"Hurry. It's best if we are the first in line," he said, already having taken the closest place to the gangway. When the sailors lowered it, Gorzhak was the first one through, followed by his family.
He stepped on the gray ground, seeking the nearest city worker. A woman, dressed in a white tunic with pink buttons and pink trousers, of all things, stopped them. She had a purple ornament with three curving dots over her heart and two clashing horns on her right.
"Welcome to Astapor. I am Eleanor. You are from New Ghis, correct?" she asked. Her tongue was not flawless; then again, neither was his.
"We are."
"Great, all of you follow me. I will guide you through."
Gorzhak turned to his wife, clueless, but Mareza just shrugged. They knew the women were treated differently in these lands. It still felt different to him.
He followed the woman with the rest of the settlers. She took them to a building where settlers created long lines outside, each one going through a door with different letters over it. More men and women in the same uniform patrolled between the lines.
Gorzhak didn't know how to read, but he had seen several words enough to know their meaning. The line they were guided to had the word "Ghiscari" over the door. His group wasn't the first one either, with more people waiting before them.
He counted five lines, each one for a different tongue, no doubt.
Eleanor told them to follow the line, where they would get their citizenship cards. He didn't know what these cards were, but if they had to get them first, so be it. His daughters grumbled about being hungry. Since the sun was at the top, his wife began to unfold the sheet.
Cheese, hard bread, and flasks of water were passed around. They wetted the bread with the water, nibbling on it along with the cheese. It didn't hold the place of warm food but was better than hunger.
A smell assaulted his nose, and his stomach grumbled.
"Papa, look," his youngest daughter said, pointing at the back of the line. People in white clothing were pushing along metal carts, topped with bowls and spoons. Behind them came ones carrying bread and, finally, water.
The lines almost broke apart. The guards pushed the settlers back, warning them. The one on their left spoke in Ghiscari well enough to be understood. He said that everyone would be getting food and to stay in their line as the carts moved along.
He pulled Belis back, telling the boy to be quiet. He wanted the food too, just like the rest of his family. Going against the guards wouldn't help them in any way. Back at New Ghis, the guards would have beaten people black and blue for causing a disturbance like this.
Then again, they wouldn't give food out like this.
One man pushed the cart, another held a tray with a bowl, a small loaf of bread, and a glass of water, and the last one filled the bowl with a stew. They worked quite fast, and before long, the carts reached them. He took the first tray, giving it to his son, instructing the boy to sit down. The next one went to Zyra and then to Talla before he and his wife took theirs.
The cooks wished them something they didn't understand and continued to hand out food.
He dipped the steel spoon into the bowl, stirring the thick stew. He was quick to take a spoonful of the mouthwatering dish. The fresh meat, something you did not find so easily unless you were a noble or a trader, melted in his mouth. He took a bite out of the bread. He felt as if he were chewing clouds, a far cry from the rock-hard bread they were just eating.
He finished the bowl before even realizing it, using the last piece of bread to sweep the bowl clean. He washed it all down with the water, marveling at how clear it tasted.
More carts followed from the back, gathering the empty trays.
Gorzhak wondered how much steel the empire produced to be able to make bowls and spoons out of it.
Yet more carts followed, giving out fruits. They were all in different sizes. He recognized some while the others were completely new. The strawberries were huge compared to the ones found in the wild. He pointed at them when the car stopped. The woman nodded, taking a handful of strawberries. She put them on a small device before adding another one to the pile.
She handed him the entire see-through cloth before turning to his wife. She took two long, yellow fruits. Talla chose the purple fruit with a soft fleshy part inside, receiving half of it. Zyra took apples, and Belis finally decided on a handful of small, blue berries.
They shared, each family member getting a taste of what the others chose.
Soon enough all the carts were gone, leaving hundreds of people sated. He silently thanked whomever had arranged this food. The empire's wealth was beyond what he had imagined; they could afford to feed commoners with dishes only the nobility could afford.
The urge to tap his fingers somewhere began to fade away.
The line moved forward once again.
—
Inside, people in similarly colored clothing were standing behind counters. White tunics, golden buttons, and red trousers. They too carried the curved dots but had white fox-head ornaments on the right.
"Name," the young man behind the counter asked. Gorzhak introduced his family one by one. He froze when the young man asked for a last name. Gorzhak was common-born, as was his wife. They did not carry a last name.
The clerk was quick to explain that everyone was expected to have a last name for administrative purposes. He was quick to choose Hazzar. Once the clerk was done, he was told to stand in front of a white square hanging on a wall.
A rectangular device the size of his head was brought before him. There was a snap and a small flash of light. A small piece of paper slipped out of the contraption. The young woman handed it to the clerk, who stamped it on the small plate in his hand.
Then it was the turn of his wife and then Talla.
Each of them was handed the plates, which carried their image on the upper left side.
"Congratulations. You are now citizens of the Unified Empire. Carry these cards with you at all times. Also, there are language classes that will teach you the Common Tongue. You will get your stipend for the first month as you join these classes."
"Stand with that group and wait until you are guided to receive your homes."
He bowed his head, moving to join the group. They too were from New Ghis, with the woman he had seen at the docks leading them.
—
The building they were led to had four floors. The outside was painted with pink petals and purple lightning. Each floor was wide and had four doors. His family had the last one on the top floor. Eleanor said each house was identical in size, built for families of five.
She took them inside, showing many wonders; they never saw anything before to compare. Metal pipes that brought clean water when opened. Stoves that didn't need wood to create fire.
There were four rooms to sleep in, a fifth one for the whole family to be together, and a sixth one, which was for bathing and cleaning. There was also the kitchen and the balcony. They were all small in size but more than enough for him and his family. Each sleeping room had simple beds and closets for clothing.
The walls were too thick for cold to seep in, and windows had actual glass on them. Finally, Eleanor handed him a key for the house after he pressed his thumb on a blue paint first and then on a piece of paper.
There would be a food delivery today to see them through the week and classes on how to operate the machines at home.
When she finally left, Gorzhak sat on his bed, silent. His wife lay next to him, just as quiet. Everything he had seen so far was too much. What kind of wealth did this empire, which had just come out of a war, boast to grant people houses like these?
Tomorrow, he would ask that clerk if he saw her again.
"Dear? What do we do now?" Mareza asked. By now, she would be either cooking, cleaning, sewing, or doing any of the menial jobs that were necessary for their house to survive.
Now, she did not know what to do. She looked at her calloused hands, feeling how light they felt.
"Rest. We are all tired," he said, though he was not tired enough to sleep. Instead, he went to wash himself.
Inside the bathroom, as Eleanor had called it, he stood naked, holding the lever that would allow the metal knob to release hot water. He stood on the side, slowly lifting it, afraid he might break it or do something wrong.
Water did come from the long knob, almost causing him to slip on the white tiles. His jaw fell open. He raised his hand, touching the water to see if it was hot. He pulled his hand back, cursing.
It was boiling hot.
Who would ever wash with this kind of water?
He moved to push the lever down, but something caught his eye. Two sigils lay on either side of the lever. One, where the lever's head was the closest to it, had red flames. The other side carried a blue snowflake.
He held the lever, pushing it to the right side rather than down. Amazingly, the water cooled down as it got closer to the right side. Once in the middle, it reached the perfect heat, not too hot, not too cold.
When he was done, he found a blue, thick piece of fabric to dry himself. He dressed and rushed to his wife, jumping on his feet as he told her how the bath worked.
And most importantly, how clean he felt.
Mareza took the children to the bath first, filling a bucket with hot water before washing them. While she dried the children, Talla went in, returning to the living room with shining eyes. His wife was the last one, who took her time to come out.
Gorzhak looked at his children. The grime and dirt stuck on them due to their lives so far were gone. For the first time in his life, he felt like a human.
—
The next morning, right after they had breakfast, Eleanor had come to gather all the families. She took them outside the building to a small gathering area. She explained that the lessons on Common Tongue would start tomorrow.
Once the parents learned enough, they would be assigned work. Children and unwed men and women would be required to continue learning and teach others once at home. For that purpose, she took them to a building larger than their home, one that could pass as the manse of a noble. Inside were rooms with seats and desks.
As she explained it, these were classrooms where children went to learn. Everyone would be paired with those around their ages for ease of learning and leave the school on the same day.
There would even be free lunch. Depending on how fast they learned the tongue, the quicker they would find work. It wasn't all good, however, as she warned those that tried to take advantage of the God-Queen's generosity by refusing to learn or constantly failing the classes would be exiled from the empire.
Given all they received so far, he figured it was fair. No one liked free loaders.
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Notes: Here is the first epilogue chapter. It will be three chapters long from the eyes of a common-born family from New Ghis, who try to understand how these wonders they are seeing came to be.
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In the next chapter:
Gorzhak squinted his eyes, carefully drawing the letters shown on the board. Their teacher, a young blonde man with sharp green eyes, spoke clear Ghiscari with a slight accent. He and his wife had to learn how to read and write in the Common Tongue and numbers, as well as how the empire worked.
His children had to learn even more.
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