I tried not to stare as Ninian led me through the winding alleys of the City of Men. It was so crowded compared to the forests of Faydwer. I recognized people of other races from the stories Father had read me in my childhood. Huge ogres, tiny gnomes, blue drow ran back and forth, offering to bind affinity, sell their old weapons, or invoke the spirit of the wolf. Everyone seemed to be on an errand, even the guards who marched solemnly by, swords at the ready.
"Come on, come on," Ninian groused as I turned to look at a human woman, passing by with a basket under her arm. "You want everyone to know you just got in town? Be cool, Sister!" I glared. "Uh, I mean Gwion," he said, leading me onward.
We reached a large building made of red bricks. I wondered where all the trees had gone, if the people hereabouts had not used them to make buildings. Ninian pointed to a sign near the door and said "There ya go. They'll feed ya in there and you can stock up."
"Hogcaller's Inn," I read out loud, "Travelers Welcome. That's me! Are you coming in with me?" Suddenly, I didn't want to be by myself.
"Eh heh! Uh, no, not this time," Ninian said, "I sorta got into kind of a, well, kind of an argument in there a little while back." He shrugged. "Some people take a simple card game so seriously! Those warriors, I tell ya. Sheeze! Win one lousy game and they start jumping around waving swords at ya and swearing on their fathers' graves. It just ain't worth the plat!" He ran a hand through his oily hair, and as he did so I noticed a long scar, running from the knuckles to the wrist.
"Is that how you make your way in the world," I said, "Cheating at cards?"
"Hey!" Ninian straightened up to his full height. "I do NOT cheat! Well, not everybody. And besides, I'm a businessman. There's a big difference. A guy's gotta look out for his interests."
"All right then." I couldn't help giggling. He wasn't really as bad as I'd thought at first. "Thank you again for your help, Ninian."
"Nice meetin' ya, Sis-- Gwion," he said. "I'm around here all the time. If ya need me, check near the dock." He waved, then was gone in the crowd.
I entered the inn. When my eyes got used to the darkness, I saw a leather-aproned human merchant behind a counter. "Hail," I said.
He smiled, showing a lot of teeth. "Welcome, Gwion, have you seen the embalming dust I just got in?" he said.
"Er, I'll have an ale, please, and something to eat."
"Rat ear sandwich? Just made them this morning!"
"Uh, no," I said, feeling a bit queasy, "I'll have a nice vegetable pie, thank you."
I carried my food to a table and brought Father's scroll out of my backpack. Uncle Zophia's address was in North Freeport, an apartment over an inn called the Jade Tiger. I wished I'd asked Ninian to take me there, but at the same time I was anxious to learn to get around on my own. I ate a few bites of pie. The taste made me homesick for Father's special winter vegetable stew. I decided to try and get word to him as soon as I could.
A loud belch interrupted my reverie. I turned to see a tall human woman at the next table, wiping gravy off her leather tunic. Her ears were hidden beneath her long, brown hair. Sighing contentedly, she produced a dagger and began to pick her teeth. I quickly looked down at my pie.
"Hey!" she said, "You there! Elf! What are you looking at?"
"Uh, nothing," I smiled politely, "The pie is very good." I hastily ate another forkful.
"Hah," she barked, "You wanna arm wrestle for it?" She leaned toward me, grinning malevolently.
"Uh," I said. Her arms looked as if one of them could crush me in two. "If you're still hungry, I'd be happy to share."
"Now that's more like it." She scooted next to me, grabbed the fork out of my hand, and began stuffing the pie down like she'd never seen food before. I moved away to avoid being splashed with gravy. "Warriors have to eat," she said around a mouthful of pie, "If we don't, we get WEAK!" She laughed, spraying a few bits of crust into the air.
"Do you live here?" I said.
"In the Inn? Naw, I got a camp outside town."
I tried again. "Do you know your way around here?"
She stared at me. "What, like you don't? What happened to you, lose your map?" She laughed again, pounding a fist on the table.
Now I was angry. "Yes," I said, "I just got here. I'm looking for an address -- this address." I thrust Father's scroll in her face. "And since you've done me the favor of eating most of my pie, perhaps you'd like to tell me where this is."
She frowned at the scroll for what seemed like a long time. "I can't read," she finally said, in a much quieter voice.
"Oh," I said. "Well then. How about if I tell you what it says, and you take me there." I kept looking at her, right in the eyes. "It's in North Freeport, the Jade Tiger." I didn't let my eyes to wander to her enormous biceps, or any of the weapons she wore on her belt. She stared back. We stayed like that for a while.
"All right, Elf," she said at last. "Let's go." She stood up. The swords at her belt clanked. She was a lot taller than me. "I gotta go there anyway and get some stuff."
"My name's Gwion," I said, offering a hand.
"Bankerra." She walked off without shaking it. "Come on, Elf, I ain't got all day."
Following her out the door, I wondered if anyone in the City of Men called each other by their proper names.
