[Mkguild] The road to metamor keep (Digitalpotato)

[Digitalpotato Steele]

Author's notes: It is not yet established when in the timeline this takes place. I have to warn you that this is long, and that there is no TF as of yet. And if it shows up twice or more like it did when it (finally) went through to the TSA list a week or so ago, I apologize...for some reason my eMails keep being sent to the same place your socks go in the dryer. (Fourth time trying to send this through!!)


Metamor Keep is © the authors (who I am too lazy to list)

    Mountains and forests seemed to run across the landscape, forming somewhat of a bottleneck in the valley. They weren't like the mountains the wagon had to cross before, nobody could go through them by themselves. After hearing all of the talk of the beings up north...is it any wonder this valley was such a strategic location?
    "Wooooooooow, this is beautiful!" A young voice said, breaking the silence.
    Immediately, the man who seemed to be the head of the cart looked down at the voice. Salim, his twelve-year-old son, bursting with energy at the seams like a Fennec Fox climbed on top of a rock and set his hand to his forehead, looking through the valley.
    "Don't get too far away from us, Salim," the man warned, "remember what happened the last time?"
    The energetic kid ran right back to the wagon obediently, still as excited as ever. The man looked over at the other people walking with him - His daughter, Rafah also looked ahead at the valley with anticipation. Maybe it was the sight of the keep in the distance, or maybe it was the same thing that was going through Salim's indefatigable mind. 
    The Baeshans, all the people accompanying the wagon were the newcomers to the keep valley - well, at least the new visitors. Their plans were to try selling their wares in the valley - as far north as they could get without risking their lives any further by Lutins and other such monstrosities. After trying to make some money and spreading some goods that may have been seen as "Exotic" to northerners, they planned to head back.
    That is, if they decided to. Despite how energetic Salim was, it was highly evident that everyone else was starting to show the warning signs of ennui. Almost everyone was perked up by the sight of the valley, with the exception of the elderly Kaliq, who was still asleep in the wagon. 
    "We should head on in," The apparent leader of the party said, "we can make our way to a town by noon if we don't dawdle."
    "Or lose Salim again!" Rafah suddenly blurted out.
    "RAFAH!" A woman old enough to be her mother scolded. 

####

    Although it wasn't as large as some of the wagons that regularly visited the valley for whatever purpose, the Baeshan's wagon was still highly visible to the men in the guard towers. It didn't seem to be of anything...that unusual, although it was rather early for most wagons to be reaching the valley. It had to have been maybe an emigrant's wagon...it didn't look like they came directly from Midtown to the valley, they must have come from further south.
    "I wonder who these guys could be," One of the tower guards said, "they're here rather early for merchants."
    "Well," A second person said, looking past his ally, "Maybe they're emigrants...? I see children."
    "Boy, I hope they know what they're in for, They must have come a long way."

####

    "Halt," The man leading the wagon party said, holding up his hand towards the group. As if on cue, everyone who was out walking focused their attention on the oxen leading the party, mostly to stop them in place and keep them from running out. 
    "What're we stopping for, Zafar?" A woman asked, after the oxen calmed down, "Is this a checkpoint?
    "I believe so," Zafar said, looking over at the dense brush, "But don't be entirely sure." With that, he whispered as he reached a hand for his back to grab a handle. 
    There was somewhat of a chuckle coming as some figures revealed themselves, perhaps at the assumption that they would be men, which they obviously weren't. Several women walked out to the path, getting a clear view of the wagon and the people walking with it. One adult male, two adult women, one elderly woman, and two children, at least, all of the party that the women could see. 
    "You're not from around here, are you?" one of the women said, looking at the party's darker skin tone, "You must have come a long way." 
    "...Yeah," Zafar said, surprised to have been confronted by a group of rather...attractive and youthful women. The rest of the party was likewise just as surprised. Even if one had heard of what went on in Metamor Keep or what most Keepers were like, seeing some for yourself could indeed be quite the shock. 
    Thankfully, the women were quite used to some of the initial shock. If anything, they were glad that none of these people were flirting with them, or giving them the look saying, "I am mentally undressing you". Each of them ran their eyes over the wagon, and the oxen pulling it. Definitely not from around here all right - It must have been a more desert-type wagon with its white covering. 
    "I-I have papers, do you need to do a head-count, or a wagon-inspection?" Zafar asked, looking at one of the more...buxom specimens in front of him. 
    "Head-count? Search? Well, you sound confident."
    "I-I have nothing to hide," Zafar said.
    The women of the wagon were meanwhile rolling their eyes in embarrassment at the situation. They had already heard about how many of the women looked in the Keep, but they definitely didn't expect Zafar to be so...keen on staring at one specific woman. Rafah meanwhile was a little pre-occupied with Salim at the back of the wagon to look at the women.
    "Grandfather, we're at a checkpoint," Rafah said into the wagon, "do you need us to help you out?"
    Inside the large wagon, the figure of Kaliq sat up. It was highly obvious from just his appearance that he was several decades Rafah's elder. Wrinkles adorned his sunscarred face, and his hair had bled into a salt-and-pepper gray shade covering his head, fortunate enough to have not lost his hair with age. 
    "Yes, that would be much appreciated," He said, rubbing some of the sleep out of his eyes, as he reached over the edge as Rafah and Salim then tried to grab him. One of the women from the bunch in front of the wagon then wandered over to the back, seeing the children walk back there. It seemed a little suspicious, or like they had something important.
    "Do you need help?" She asked, "That must have been one bumpy ride!"
    "Whoa, yes, please," Kaliq said, looking up at the woman who had come to the back. She wasn't a bombshell, thankfully, but he wasn't exactly used to the people who lived in Metamor. 
    "Grandfather broke his foot," Salim said, helping to hoist the old man down as best ad he could, "And we don't have a crotch."
    "Cur-RUT-ch!" Rafah stated to her brother. 
    Finding this amusing, the woman went over to help the old man out of the wagon, spotting a heavily bandaged foot at the end of his pants. 
    "Hey! They got an injured person with them," she shouted. 
    This caught the attention of the women who were busy checking papers and making preparations to search the wagon. 
    "My husband," The eldest woman with the wagon party said, "see, he broke his foot and we simply put him in the wagon so he wouldn't stand on his foot."
    "That must have been a rough ride," One of the women mused, "you can probably get him some treatment over in the nearby village."
    "Village? Good, that's where we want to go," Zafar spoke up.
    "Just head that way, after we check your wagon," One of the women said.
    "Well, search away - we got nothing to hide."
    "Just hope there's no Latex in there..." One of the younger women said as they got about to checking the wagon.
    As expected, there wasn't anything bad in their wagon - although they certainly had some weird stuff the women didn't see before in their lives, amongst some of the usual stuff merchants usually brought. Something that did catch their attention was the spices that they carried - Especially something that was identified as "Clove," with its rather distinctive scent. 
    "Well, you got some weird stuff in here," one of the women said, "but it should be legal....Hope you sell this stuff quickly, or else you'd best make some long-term plans here."
    "Maybe, maybe not," Zafar said, "thank you for your help." 
    Meanwhile, the women helped hoist Kaliq back into the wagon, but this time the front, where he could see more of the valley. (They did have to rearrange some things to give him space) After everything was ready, they set off and turned west to the nearest village. The women then got back to their posts.
    "...Say, Marta?" One of the women asked.
    "...What?" Marta asked, looking over at her comrade.
    "Did you have to send them to Lombard?" 
    "It's the nearest village to this road, why not?" 
    "But they're the one with the...err....rather eccentric doctor..."

####

    One of the rather small villages around Metamor Valley was named Lombard. Small population, but it didn't mean that much in a densely populated area such as the southern valley. If anything, it simply meant it was a little more quiet than all the other various towns, castles, and the main keep itself. The brush lands surrounding it (that is, which sides weren't covered by mountains) also helped a lot. 
    However, that certainly didn't make it any less colourful than the other areas around the keep. It usually happened when one lived a little close to the mouth of the valley, still deep enough to be affected by the curse. The Baeshans had been told a little about the keep residents (Some good, some bad) but there was a fair difference between being told of the keepers than seeing them for themselves. 
    One of the women in the wagon party, Mona, looked around as they walked in to the outskirts. Somewhat out of nervousness, but upon seeing a few animalized villagers, she started to wonder, exactly how animalized were they? Would a carnivore perhaps see her children as a nice meal, or would a horse turn their back and kick? She hadn't exactly told Salim everything about the Animalized keepers - frankly none of them knew themselves.
    The youngest girl, Rafah meanwhile looked around at the villagers. Some people were stopping to look at them, while others ignored them and continued on their ways. Even amongst the keepers who were still human, Rafah knew how...odd she and the rest of her family looked - Even if they weren't changed, their skin tone gave away that they weren't from around the keep. 
    Zafar momentarily glanced at Mona, his wife, and then looked around at everyone else. His sister Fadiyah seemed to be taking some of the glances rather well. As did his mother and father. The man then looked over at his children and noticed Rafah was taking the glances rather well - it could be such a sensitive time for her, he was quite proud.
    But then he realized something else - where did Salim go? Zafar actually slowed down and started to look for where his youngest went. 
    "What's wrong?" Mona asked as she spotted her husband looking around. 
    "Salim! Where did he go?" Zafar asked. 
    This seemed to catch everyone's attention. Fadiyah's eyes widened after realizing she hadn't seen him running around. Kaliq in the wagon looked back into the wagon in case he had climbed in again. Rafah stopped and looked back behind the wagon, not seeing Salim.
    "He's not in the wagon," Kaliq said. 
    "I don't see him behind here," Rafah called out.
    "SALIM!" Mona called out. 
    Suddenly, a few leaves fluttered down from above the wagon group. Nervously, they looked up above them. Right there, inside the tree above their head heights, was Salim. Holding right on to the branch and plucking leaves off.
    "Hi!" he called down, like nothing was wrong, "I spotted a marketplace that way." He pointed further west, towards the town square.
    A tidal wave of relief washed over the family...until that is, Mona spoke up. At the same time she was relieved that Salim wasn't lost, she was quite angry for the scare he almost caused. Frowning, she looked dead on at Salim in the tree branch.
    "SALIM! You get down here, RIGHT NOW!" Mona scolded at her son, "You scared us!"
    "Okay okay! I thought I was helping!" Salim said, dropping his handful of leaves to the ground. Thankful that the deciduous tree wasn't sticky, he started to maneuver his way back down through the branches to the ground. Salim seemed to be immune to any of the glances he got, especially from some people who had seen him in the tree - or heard him get yelled at. 
    "Well Salim, did you at least see a place where we can probably try and set-up shop?" Zafar asked, resisting all urges to smack the boy. 
    "Yeah, I just hope we don't get anybody yelling at us - or a horse eating all our stuff!"
    Mona sighed in relief, "Salim, don't do that again..."

####

    Shortly after midday, rumours were beginning to circulate through the so-called Heart of Lombard. It started with people glancing at the new people in town - or to the valley. Traveling through the arteries and veins of the roads, they reached the square. From there, the rumours were spread through the town, most of the message remaining intact for the most part.
    At first, the people who were on the outskirts of town looked dark. Like they were on the road forever. Then, they were perhaps Irombian. Then, they were perhaps Sondesharan. Their numbers even changed - Depending on who you asked, there was anywhere between four to near ten of the travelers. 
    Despite how commonly the message spread, details skewed, a few things did manage to survive the inevitable blurring of details. What was confirmed to have happened was that a kid was traveling with them, he climbed a tree, and that they weren't affected by the curse quite yet. Whether or not that would change (Literally!) wasn't yet known. Nobody seemed to come up to them quite yet to find out who they were, exactly. 
    Until that is, a few women and children spotted three of them coming over to them from their wagon. The three looked to be two women supporting a man, who appeared to be in pain. Ceasing their gossip, the villagers approached them first. 
    "Do you need any help?" one of the women asked, surprised.
    "Yes please," The elderly of the two women said, "My husband here broke his foot, and we don't have a crutch."
    "I know how to treat sick and injured, the second woman said, "But father can use a second opinion. We were told there was a doctor here."
    "There is," a child said, "This way." 
    "Thanks," all three said. 

####

    Even if you aren't stopping to help someone, the sight of them hurt can be a rather eye catching sight. Despite that many people continued their business as normal, some people stopped what they were doing, for a brief moment. Some seemed to look up just to see what entered their field of vision, to garner a more closer look at it. 
    Others, a few more charitable ones, looked up to realize that a child and a woman was already leading them. Preferably to where they could get some help - there was a medical doctor who lived in town, albeit a little...odd. 
    Some other people even looked up at the new people - they were unfamiliar. Dark skinned (not Irombian though), dark hair, unfamiliar faces...they must have been the newcomers to the valley. 
    "He lives here, just...don't give him a weird look, okay?" The child said, pointing to a building near the square.
    "Thank you," Shams said, "Your hospitality is like that of Sondeshara."
    "You probably didn't need to carry him here," The child added with a smile, "He could have come to tend to your injured."
    "I'm the only one, young man," Kaliq said, looking across him as they walked up to the building that hosted the supposed doctor. He too must have been proud of the hospitality that was "like that of Sondeshara". Such an exotic land wouldn't have exactly been known to everyone - The child made a small mission to find out more about this supposed "Sondeshara Hospitality", and walked right on off towards the Keep, where someone may have known. (He even heard there were a few Sondecki their - if anyone would know, they might have!)
    After the women assisting the injured man walked in, everyone resumed their business. Some were actually a little curious, maybe the rest of the wagon party was like that. Once more, the heart begun to pump; some people going out to spread corrective rumours, and others preferring to check out the rest of these newcomers to Lombard; maybe they had some interesting things to sell and tell, after all. 

####

    Meanwhile back at the wagon, the remaining four, Zafar, Mona, Rafah, and Salim remained camped around the wagon. While the others went off to see if Kaliq could be helped, they stayed behind. Partly to tend to the oxen, but mostly to chart out a plan in the valley. 
    Because of the rather...uncivilized nature of the North, it was highly likely that the Baeshans wouldn't go any further north than Metamor Keep. At best - if the keep itself was like any other castles, they likely would never be able to sell anything within the limited market space. But, at the same time, they could sell in the areas surrounding the keep. 
    According to the map that Zafar had, there were all sorts of towns dotting the valley, the majority of them in the Southern part of the Valley. Obviously, the map wasn't drawn to scale, mostly because of all the names and landmarks that had to be pointed out within the valley. 
    "So, Mona, Rafah, Salim," He announced, "when the others get back, we may probably stay here for the night," Zafar's brown finger pointed to the town labeled "Lombard" on the map he traded for from a kid in the south, "and the next day, we can continue up the trail. There are indeed quite a few villages to stop at, and on the way down. It shouldn't take a little more than maybe a week. Then, we can go back south."
    In his mind, the plan was perfect. Even after hearing about the curse in the valley, the Baeshans had hesitated, but the lure of potentially getting some more profit off of the trip overrode the general fear of the curse. Two weeks, they heard was the time limit before anything could happen. Men could become women, women could become men, aging could reverse or even stop. 
    Gender and age confusions were not even the tip of the iceberg; below the more normal looking women and children lied what most people called "demon spawn", the animalized victims. This apparently seemed to be the most feared fate, at least by some. The Baeshans themselves (with the exception of Salim, who likely ignored it) probably didn't wish to tempt that fate. 
    All three nodded in agreement. It seemed simple enough; Enter, walk from town to town, then leave the valley before it was too late and they found themselves sprouting scales and feathers. Zafar then looked around, as if to survey the landscape.
    "Salim, you don't suppose could just walk into the marketplace and say that we're selling things, can we? How many people did you see there?" Zafar asked.
    "Oh I saw quite a bit," Salim responded, "even a horse who stood on two feet! I didn't know they could do that out in this valley!"
    "...Salim," Mona and Rafah said at the same time. Rafah then jumped a little, but motioned for her mother to speak. It was not her place to disrespect her.
    "Salim, the horse was a man once; people in Metamor, remember, they're a little different then from the rest of the world." 
    "You mean like those pretty women who checked the wagon?" Salim responded.
    "A little more different then that," Mona said, "some are, but there are also animal-people here."
    Salim's eyes widened; not with fear, but anticipation. He must not have been informed of this before.
    "Oooooooh! I wonder if they have any uh, Fennec people here! I bet they love to-"
    Mona then lightly bonked Salim, who instantly shut his mouth. Rafah didn't do anything but roll her eyes at this. 
    "Salim, a bad wizard put the curse on them."
    "You mean like a Sondecki?"
    "No, much unlike a Sondecki; someone who wants to take over the entire valley, and maybe even the continent, and then Sondeshara."
    This seemed to silence Salim for now, but at the same time, intrigue Rafah.
    "Therefore, mentioning any curse may be a somewhat sensitive subject. Salim, promise me you won't ask what it is like to be cursed. Don't ask to pet any of the animal people who come to us, do not offend them in any way," Mona lectured.
    "I promise," Salim said, holding up a hand in a sign of promise.
    "Good, we are selling things to them," Mona said, "don't want to offend."
    Rafah actually nodded to herself, listening to this. Being the more mature one, she was informed ahead of time that the people of Metamor Valley were a little...queer. To say the least, that is. It seemed to interest her a little, almost. The girl reached to her hair and lightly ran a hand through it, before looking around at her surroundings. 
    No wonder everyone seemed to enjoy the valley. All sorts of trees Rafah couldn't identify blanketed the already green valley, and the keep itself could be seen in the distance throughout the green and brown. Although she couldn't get a clear look at it, or whether or not it was even the keep itself if not a nearby castle, it had to have been the standard for excellency out here. It was just, beautiful to look at. 
    Rafah then looked up and sat down on a rock, wondering what it would have been like to be in the castle...Perhaps an even better study location than Sondecki places on Sondeshara, or even the greatest mage-families out there. 
    But what would they be like out here? Surely not like the Ecclesians in Ainador who enforced charity, or the Sondesharans who felt hospitality was the way of life. Thinking of Ainador, she thought of the rest of her relatives who parted ways with them and decided to try going to Korazin, and how they might have been faring. It had been months since she last saw them, and what would they say when-
    "Excuse me," A voice said.
    Rafah was snapped out of her stupor, to spot a man (normal looking, even) walking up to her. He appeared an awful lot like the light-skinned residents of the valley, even speaking with an accent. 
    "Are you guys uh...Do you need any help?" The man asked.
    "Errr," Rafah said, remembering something she had picked up along the way.
    She then stood up to her full height and made eye contact with the man.
    "We're actually selling some of our wares," Rafah offered.

####

    When one was coming to Metamor Keep, they first had to be prepared to see some rather...unusual people. And that was barely even scratching the surface. Women acting like men and fighting...usually they were protected, or nursing the injured. Children, too. Nothing could be as odd as imagining a master who looks older than their apprentice.
    But seeing an animal walking upright and behaving exactly like a human would definitely get most people falling into an Uncanny Valley. No matter what social structure one was used to, seeing a kid having his arm wrapped up by a giant tortoise would have made even the most liberal hold their mouths open.
    Fadiyah looked over at her parents, who were perhaps even more astounded than she was to see a doctor before looking back at him. Even if his skin was composed of a brown scaly hide, Fadiyah still recognized some expertise in how he wrapped the kid's arm. Even if the almost magi-looking robes looked wrong on his body, Kaliq still acknowledged that this was a man. Animalistic face notwithstanding, Shams still nodded at seeing a rather professional looking man.
    "Keep this immobilized," The reptile ordered the child, "I didn't feel any bone damage to your elbow." 
    "Th-Thank you, Doctor," The child said after the thick fingers finished their work wrapping his elbow up, "I-I just slipped carrying something."
    "Sprains happen, thank YOU for some of the bandages you gave me," the doctor responded.
    "I'll be more careful!" the child said proudly as he walked out of the house, probably to resume his work to the best he could. Astonishing, a small town in a valley such as this had a doctor who didn't even charge coins for simple services, like many of the people throughout the midlands did. (Preying on merchants and travelers for even greater profit) 
    The doctor them turned around, sensing some more injured or sick entering. He didn't recognize these people, they had to have been new. Nobody around the town had dark skin weathered skin and even darker hair. He hadn't even heard the rumours of the newcomers. 
    "You're new here," he stated the obvious, "did your brother here injure himself?"
    "My husband," Shams said, "stepped in a hole and broke his foot trying to get out."
    "I already wrapped his foot up, but we need a second opinion," Fadiyah added. 
    "Did you now, just come over here, I'll look at it," The doctor said, gesturing to a cot where he could examine someone. Hopefully it wasn't contagious or anything, there looked to be a lot of dirt clinging to the straw, which looked somewhat old.
    Fadiyah and Shams helped Kaliq over to the cot and then helped him lay right on into the straw. Makeshift it was, but at least he wasn't bleeding or Fadiyah would worry about a "Dirty Wound" as it was called. When he was on his back, Fadiyah quickly elevated his injured leg at the calf (Where it didn't hurt) and held it up.
    "You seem to know a thing or two," The tortoise was impressed, it was like the younger of the two women who entered his house was a former nurse, or at least had a parent who was one. When she pulled back the leg of his pants with another hand to show him the wrapping on Kaliq's foot, he was even more impressed. Seeing someone like this made him smile - almost all the people like this seemed to have gone up to the keep or other towns who were more subject to Lutins or other such accidents.
    "I do," Fadiyah admitted.
    "My daughter always wanted to be a nurse," Kaliq proudly stated, while Shams smiled. 
    The tortoise then inspected the wrapped up foot, once more impressed. One at Metamor had to not only be able to treat injured feet, but also hooves, paws, and claws. For the human foot, he'd say that whoever wrapped this up did a rather nice job, after all. 
    "I need to ask you a few questions," He said, looking at the three humans, "This may seem a bit painful mister..."
    "Kaliq, Kaliq Baeshan," Kaliq said, propping himself up with his elbows.
    "Kaliq. When you stepped in the hole and broke your foot, do you know which part hurt?"
    "Well, sort of...right near where my foot meets the leg," Kaliq said, "that's what hurt the most."
    "Hmmm, whoever wrapped your foot up actually did a good job - did you two perhaps do it?" He looked towards the women.
    "I did," Fadiyah admitted.
    "There's not a whole lot I can do actually, unless you got some cleaner bandages to use, or some more cloth to help keep his foot warm," The doctor admitted. 
    "Well, we do need a crutch," Fadiyah said, "I couldn't find anything to use as one, and he can't stand on it so we had to simply give him some rest in the wagon."
    The doctor nodded again in approval. She must have been a nurse after all, maybe she was hired as one or trained as one to help her parents. What a nice woman; if that was the case.
    "I don't know if I have one, but you may have to carry him for a while until he can perhaps try standing. I believe Kaliq here snapped a bone in his foot, you know the bones that form bulges around the side of your feet? Around there. Does it still hurt?"
    "Only when I move it," Kaliq said.
    "Good, you already wrapped it up to keep it immobilized, but as for a crutch, I can perhaps fasten one if I had some wood. It's not likely he'll be able to put weight on it, so you'd have to be careful if you don't want it to hurt," The tortoise ordered.
    "There's a forest nearby after all, do you think we can get some branches for you?" Shams asked.
    "I guess," The doctor would have shrugged if he had shoulders, "it needs to be a rather strong branch, or stick of wood. The thicker the better, that way it can support his weight."
    "Thank you doctor," Fadiyah said, "I can go get my nephew to help me look for some actually!" 
    "You can do that," The doctor said.
    "Good! Just wait here, I know how to get back!" Fadiyah seemed to almost be like a child eager to get out and do something to feel productive. Shams and Kaliq looked at her, just as surprised as the person who just met her. Why, ever since she helped treat some villagers with an outbreak of Cholera several months ago, they hadn't seen her this excited. 
    "Wow, go right ahead, Fadiyah," Shams said, smiling. Fadiyah then gently guided Kaliq's foot down to the end of the cot (he grimaced a little when he felt a small streak of pain but didn't vocalize it) and stood up. Waving, she quickly walked out of the medieval clinic and ran off. Probably to get Salim and Rafah's help.
    "What's your relation to her, she looks a bit like your daughter almost," The doctor then said, looking at the injured man and his wife.
    "You are correct, sir," Shams said, looking at the doctor and sitting on her knees next to Kaliq in the cot, "we come from Sondeshara. Hospitality is the way of life, and she always wanted to help people, especially those who were sick and couldn't help themselves."
    "So she trained with doctors and nurses from Sondeshara," Kaliq added, "she actually wants to become a nurse up with an army or in a town. It makes me wonder if she's going to stay in the valley."
    "That can be a VERY major change, look at me right now," The tortoise said, tapping a finger to his literally rock hard chest.
    "I know," Shams sighed, "is everyone in the valley as nice as the people in this village?"
    "Some conflicts here and there, especially with people in power, as well as the persistent threat Nasoj and the Lutins bring, but otherwise, it's rather calm down here, rather quiet. There's a good reason I've not moved up to the castle where they need more doctors. However I WILL come up if there is a rather large attack, don't get me wrong. They are people too."
    They both nodded, understanding him. Even if they were only there for a day, Kaliq and Shams both liked the people here. Southerners who said the valley was full of "Demonspawn" obviously hadn't come to the valley at all. Physical appearances didn't seem to be as important when a third of the population looked like animals from across the world. 

####

    "Wow, this actually was a pretty nice day," Zafar said, later that night, when everyone was gathered in camp.
    While they weren't overly occupied the entire day, by no means was it an economically bad one. Some of the villagers who had come were actually quite surprised to see traveling merchants come to the valley. Mona had found out that although there were still plenty of merchants who made their home in the valley, there weren't enough coming in.
    "Indeed it was," Mona said, "traded some stuff, and we got Kaliq treated."
    "This doesn't seem like a bad place, after all actually," Rafah added, "nobody looking at us oddly because we're Sondesharan."
    "And," Kaliq added, "no doctors who were money grubbing. If the rest of the valley is like this, it wouldn't be a bad place to live, actually."
    Suddenly, Zafar took a look at his father. Was he going crazy already? They couldn't stay there for more than a week, maybe a little more if they were lucky. Did he even know what could have happened if they did stay there? 
    "Do you really mean that...?" He asked.
    "Father does have a point," Fadiyah contributed, "but it'd be a pretty big change."
    "Indeed," Zafar said.
    "Literally!" Salim giggled, thinking he was so clever with the pun.
    "So what do we do tomorrow?" Mona inquired of the unofficial leader. 
    "Well, we head back on the trail and move up to another town, of course." 
    "Maybe there will even some more children up there too!" Salim interrupted. 
    "Ugh, Salim...yes..."

####

    Almost every day, they kept the routine up. Wake up, get ready, leave town, then walk north along the trail. Stop at the nearest village, try to sell and trade. The more they walked up the valley, the bigger the Keep and other areas appeared. It was almost omnipresent. 
    However, some other castles were seen. Perhaps held by nobles, or maybe they were outposts and fortresses. It wasn't likely there were that few Out Forts in the southern part of the valley; not as much of a threat down here. 
    Figuring the castles themselves were occupied, the Baeshans never really approached them. The towns seemed to be a little more interesting. While they never really were demanded, almost every time they visited a town, the more they liked the valley. Even Zafar and Mona had to admit they could see what Kaliq, Shams, and Fadiyah did back on the first day. 
    Kaliq was recovering rather well, with the crutch that the doctor, Shams, and Fadiyah helped create. He seemed quite relieved to be on his feet again, and able to keep up with the wagon, at least to the best he could. Fadiyah and Salim kept with him to make sure he didn't get hurt any further. 
    While Business certainly wasn't flourishing, Zafar did have to admit that he predicted some customers' behaviours towards their goods. In addition to food and supplies they carried with them all the way across the continent, they carted all sorts of herbs and spices. A lot of which were from Sondeshara, but they had traded some for a few more goods from the southern part of Galendor.
    Zafar believed that in the Northern Midlands, people who knew of the goods would be willing to pay more for some goods from the South. Although he didn't know the soil conditions or the environment up north, he did know that most herbs and spices native to Sondeshara didn't grow up there. 
    Immediately, he told his family, and they begun to stockpile herbs and spices. Zafar was the prime motivator for encouraging the small exodus of the Baeshans from the city, in hopes of garnering some wealth up north. However, after they had paid enough to get on a ship to the North, they ran into some problems.
    The Baeshans had quite a bit of people in their party, about twenty total had left the city for a better future. Unfortunately, Zafar's brother Rabah had started a massive disagreement. What he wanted to do was try and go to Yesulam, but Zafar had planned to go further north where things were probably more expensive. The disagreement elevated, until finally they agreed to go their separate ways to avoid violence. 
    Poor Kaliq and Shams were caught in the middle of their two sons arguing, and without declaring any support for either side, Rabah assumed they were with Zafar and decided to leave them behind and go off to Korazin and Yesulam. He knew they would have been well taken care of, at least, despite wanting to harm his brother, Rabah knew that he would have taken care of his parents. 
    Thus came the seven Baeshans who had made the long journey all the way up north. It wasn't exactly an easy one, but they had managed to at the very least make it there without any major hitches, such as the dreaded Cholera or Beriberi. Having Fadiyah the nurse with them was also a big benefit. Every time someone got hurt or sick, she seemed to be able to identify the sickness and help them. It also helped when she could get money for treating other injured and sick travelers when priests weren't available. 
    Metamor Valley actually did begin to seem like a more appealing place to stay in, when Zafar thought about it. It would have to be a very large decision, not just something to cure the ennui that had started to set in on the merchants. Before they had come to the valley, they were all getting weary of being almost endlessly on the road, and of seeing some people speak down to them for simply being different. Such racism...
    "Well," Zafar finally said at camp one night, "We've been doing well so far, selling and trading things from town to town, and I do have to admit...this valley IS rather nice..."
    "Do you really think that Kaliq, Shams, and Fadiyah may be on to something with probably staying? The more we move around the valley, the more they seem to fall in love it all. Just the atmosphere...but what on earth would they be able to do for money?" Mona responded.
    "Well, unless you can get the required materials to sew, maybe. But what about Rafah and Salim? If they do become animals, it could be quite shocking."
    "But at the same time," Mona interjected, "they could have some more opportunities out here...This is a place where women are capable of whatever Men are, they could perhaps study if we stayed here." 
    "Guilds? I hear of them...they may be able to apply for membership after all," Zafar said, "it has been a long voyage, and we had no end in sight...what would we have done after the valley?" 
    Zafar didn't exactly think ahead that far.
    "Well, either way, we could move nearby, we can keep it a possibility," He finally said, after a few moments thought. 
    "I agree," Mona added, "we shouldn't rush into this...."
    "Well, we can go up north a little bit more than we expected," Zafar said, "if we're quick, we can probably avoid the Curse's effects before leaving the valley." 
    "You sure about that?" Mona asked.
    "We are ahead of schedule after all," Zafar added, "we might as well try and get enough money from selling our wares as we can, or items, actually." 
    "Hopefully, we don't get affected soon," Mona said, looking up at the different sky.
    "Well, hopefully nothing bad happens..." 
    These would unfortunately soon prove to be famous last words. 
 		 	   		  
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