Cato Emberson's Perspective:
I collected the last items I had brought with me to the Nature Tribe onto a flat tarp.
Tying the corners together, I used the tarp as a rucksack to travel with my wares.
I had purchased quite a few pricey-looking items but wasn't necessarily trying to turn a profit. I only wanted information.
I paid the guard at the gate of the surveillance bay as I left my now empty carriage behind.
Sighing, I started up the rope bridge closest to the exit of the area behind me.
I didn't have any specific instructions. That older gentleman had only told me to head towards the top of the canopy. So, this was my plan.
I started gaining elevation as I ascended the bridges. Each bridge led to the enormous trunk of a tree that would hold some tiny houses or buildings. Occasionally a bridge led to a branch with a small neighborhood on it, ending the continuous bridges.
If I made this mistake, I would have to retrace my steps and choose another bridge to take, hoping it might bring me closer to this elusive pub.
I stopped on a bridge that hung a deadly height from the jungle floor and took in my surroundings.
The houses that dotted the trees were made of—although I hated them—well-woven roots that held in solid winds.
The bridges caught my attention the most. They were made of regular wooden planks to stand on and rope holding them together. Although their materials and structure were not all that impressive, the number that this Tribe had built was.
They intertwined throughout every tree that held buildings on it. Occasionally a tree was empty, but it was most likely nearing the end of its lifecycle and couldn't sustain structures regardless.
'All such perfect kindling.'
I tried to ignore the raspy voice that appeared almost infrequently—speaking its mind about my internal conflicts.
I treated it as an external influence, not wanting to acknowledge the possibility that it could be an internal subconscious.
'I wish you would shut up.' I thought to myself, and hopefully, the voice.
I only received a faint laugh in return. I turned away from the incredible sight before me, now only able to see flames attached to the bridges, trees, and homes.
'Well,' I reasoned inside myself, 'isn't this what I want?'
With no input from the annoying voice in the back of my head, I steeled myself for the battles to come and decided to push away any lingering uncertainties.
I continued up the bridge I was currently standing on towards the next tree trunk. There wasn't much in terms of noticeability on this stop.
Only a few small huts littered the wooden base surrounding the trunk.
I chose my next bridge and started up it.
I had gotten used to the creak of the wooden planks as I continued to walk over countless bridges.
On my next stop, there were three possible bridges to take and six mediocre-sized huts. I started towards the bridge in the middle when I noticed a childish face peek out from one of the flaps of a house.
Quickly turning on my heel, I spoke towards the hut I had just passed, "Excuse me, I'm a traveling merchant, and I am looking for a pub where powerful folk gather to sell my items." I gestured towards the sack tied to my back, "Do you know of a place?"
A brief moment of silence followed my question before the young girl pointed towards the left-most bridge on the platform.
I bowed my head and thanked her before walking towards the bridge.
I maneuvered my way around the trunk, and as I was rounding the monstrous pillar, I felt an icy glare on my back.
I turned my head quickly in the direction I had felt the gaze without stopping. I wanted to leave.
I caught a glimpse of a glistening red iris through the closing flap where the little girl had gone back inside.
Rounding the tree, I started up the bridge the girl had told me to follow.
I made it halfway up the bridge when I stopped.
I turned back around to look at the wooden platform I had just left. There was an immense uneasiness that had followed me from the deck after I continued on my search.
'Why did it feel like the Goddess' hand was going to emerge through my chest?'
'Who held such intense pressure? So much so that I briefly mistook it for the Goddess?'
I pushed aside the thought and replaced it with a new one.
'We'll just deal with whoever they are later.'
I continued scaling the trees with the help of the bridges before I finally arrived at a huge tree.
It seemed the trunk had been hollowed out, and there was a door with two prominent men posted in front.
The wooden deck surrounding the trunk was one of the largest I had seen. It spanned almost six meters away from the seven to eight-meter diameter tree.
There were a couple of people mingling around the entrance. I only saw one soul brave enough to try and enter.
It seemed the test was a simple performance of source energy manipulation. Meaning, if you were strong enough, you wouldn't need a God Source or even a contract to enter.
However, from the one—almost impressive—entrance attempt I had seen, I gathered you needed to be immensely wealthy in source energy to pass without a contract.
I believed I could do it. However, as the Goddess had stated before, I was never the most proficient in my essential source energy use.
I also had to keep up the disguise of a weary merchant and traveler, which meant I couldn't use my contract or God Source to enter this establishment.
Instead of sitting outside in hopes of meeting God Sources, I decided to attempt to enter.
Once inside, I planned to approach a God Source and set up a purchase meeting at my carriage. That would allow me to strike whenever I wanted to.
I also believed this pub wouldn't appreciate me doing business on their property, which I would use to my advantage to try and get a God Source out into the open.
I walked up to the guards who had just finished kicking the failed entrant to the nearest bridge.
"Pardon me, may I attempt to enter?"
The guard to my right snorted, "Alright, are you a contractor or a wielder?"
"Neither, Sir."
This time, the guard to my left let out a snort, "You did see the last guy who attempted to enter with pure source energy, right?"
I smiled slightly, "I'm quite confident." I replied.
"Well, because you're ever so confident," the guard on the right started, "show us what you got."
I stood blankly for a second.
"T-that's all the instruction I get?"
The guard on the left spoke up, "Prove your worth; show us something that will impress us."
I scratched the back of my head, "Uh, okay."
I stood and thought for a second. I couldn't make a flame in front of them, and I couldn't make any realistic source energy conjures.
I continued to think, one of the guards tapping his foot on the wood below us before an idea landed in my head.
I turned my back to the guards before whipping back to face them with my palms extended.
Sitting in my palm was a sizeable chunk of white Soulflame dancing around.
The guard to my left immediately drew his sword, "What the fuck is that?" He asked shakily.
The other guard, noticing my outward friendliness, was taken by curiosity as he leaned in closer.
The guard inspecting the flame turned to his partner and burst out laughing, "It's not even hot, you idiot, come put a hand near it."
The guard to my left sheathed his sword and brought a cautious hand towards my flame.
"Huh, it isn't hot."
Seeing as they were both now satisfied that I wasn't Fire Tribe, I lied about what I had done.
"This uses a lot of source energy, but I can conjure this very realistic flame. That is why it doesn't produce any heat. It's pure source energy."
The guards continued to stare at the flame in my palms as I finished my explanation.
The guard who had drawn his weapon turned to his friend, "Have you seen a source energy conjure this real before? And a flame at that?"
The guard on my right shook his head in agreement as he crossed his arms.
I flashed a smile as I closed my extended hands and dispersed the Soulflame.
"Impressive enough?"
The guards nodded to one another before pushing open the door and turning back to me, "Welcome to the Tree of Blood."
As I walked past the guards, I felt a familiar piercing gaze hit my back. Ignoring it, I entered the pub.
~~~
As I walked into the pub, everything went silent. All eyes turned towards me for a split second before the building erupted into chaos again.
Assuming they hadn't seen a newcomer in a while, I ignored the attention.
I felt a few lingering stares but nothing as menacing as the gazes I had felt on arrival.
I was astonished at the natural sound barrier that the trunk provided for the building. The building was also incredible, with only two floors. The bottom floor had tables, a stage, and a bar. The second floor was an upper level where there were places to sit and dancing space.
I ordered a drink from the bar and began to wander around the pub. There were quite a few full tables on the bottom floor, but none of the people present looked like the folk I was hunting.
I started up the stairs as I thought about what it was I was trying to see. I imagined I could tell apart the God Sources from the typical contractors, but it was difficult on the bottom floor.
As I reached the top stair, I noticed only one table taken on the upper level.
There were three people seated at the table with an empty stool. Two of them had their backs facing me, but from the feeling I got, I could tell they knew I had come upstairs.
The two with their backs turned to me were a man and a woman. The man was across the table from an empty seat while the woman was across from the last person.
The last person had held my gaze as soon as I came into view.
He was staring at me intently, not in a malicious way, but an intellectual one.
I started towards the table when immense pressure surged from the two people with their backs turned towards me.
Stopping dead in my tracks, I was caught by surprise. It wasn't that I couldn't handle the pressure emitted from these two beings, but that it wasn't nearly as potent as the pressure I could produce.
Although I debated turning around at the sudden change in demeanor, the man facing me waved me forward with an enormous smile plastered on his face.
Wading through the now heavy air, I arrived at the empty stool and sat down.
Once I sat, the pressure diminished, but the dissatisfied faces on the two I was now facing were ever-present.
"Thank you for letting me sit here," I spoke with my hand around my wooden mug.
The man sitting next to me beamed a cheery smile, "Of course! I'm always welcoming of a stranger who wants to drink!"
He wrapped his arm around my shoulder before motioning his mug towards the people sitting across the table, "These two are absolute sticks in the mud, but you seem like a fun guy, so you should drink with me."
At the end of his sentence, the two across the table sighed heavily in unison. He then motioned his mug towards mine, attempting to put our cups together, insinuating a drink was coming.
I picked my mug up and brought it towards his as he clumsily rocketed his mug into mine, spraying the table with alcohol.
For the first time, I heard the other man speak, "For fucks sake Thatcher, get a grip, man."
Followed by the woman, "Agreed."
The man who went by Thatcher, after finishing his drink and slamming down his mug, spoke up, "Well, sorry, I have to be the life of the party every single time we drink together!"
Realizing I had accidentally stumbled into a feud between friends, I tried to help out a little.
I stuck out a hand towards the man now standing next to me, "Thatcher? My name is Cato. It's nice to meet you."
Thatcher turned his attention away from his original drinking buddies to make a new one.
He slapped his hand into mine and spoke in an almost slurred voice, "Great to meet you too, Cato."
Immediately moving on, Thatcher continued, "Now that we're acquainted, what brings you in here, Cato?"
"I'm actually a merchant coming from Conterra hoping to meet some strong individuals to sell some of my more expensive items to."
I continued, "I can gather that you three are powerful."
"Well, of course, we're powerful! We're wie-"
The woman sitting across from Thatcher cut him off, "You're a traveling merchant, and they allowed you in here?" She asked skeptically.
I stared at my mug, "Well, actual-"
She cut me off, "I bet you aren't even a contractor, are you? I can't feel any significant source energy forms from you."
Clenching my fist under the table, I spoke, "Correct, I am not a contractor. However, a merchant needs to defend themselves," I smiled, "and I know a few tricks."
I turned back to Thatcher, who had just received his next drink and was beginning to speak again, "As I was saying before Lady Rude interrupted me, you have keen senses, Cato. The three of us are the most powerful individuals in this building."
Practically screaming in joy inside, I attempted to act surprised, "The strongest? Are you sure, Thatcher?"
Thatcher snorted as he looked at me, "Come on, Cato. We're wielders."
I let my eyes shoot open in mock surprise as I stared at Thatcher, "Are you perhaps in need of some new gear?" I asked directly.
Thatcher let out a loud laugh before talking again, "Forever the merchant, ay, Cato? Let's drink tonight, and tomorrow night I'll come to check out what you have for sale."
"That would be wonderful!" I exclaimed genuinely.
However, at Thatcher's following statement, my excitement dulled, "Hell, I'll even bring these two sour-asses to buy some stuff from a friend." He said, slapping me on the back.
Attempting to keep up the facade, I spoke again, "Sounds perfect. Thank you so much."
Thatcher slapped my back once more before raising his mug above the table, "Let's driiiiiiink!"