Devotion, after trekking across the forest all day, had finally made it back to the city walls of Bronia. He was happy to finally be back at civilization. After all, he'd been living in the woods, endlessly training, for two weeks now! He was looking forward to having a bed, a proper bathroom, and the chance to shave. Devotion himself hated having facial hair. It's just a bit hard to shave when you're in the woods for two weeks.
Devotion said a silent prayer to himself, hoping he wouldn't be seen by any of the unsavory fellows who wanted his head, then walked into the small town. His first order of business was finding an inn to stay at. That wasn't too difficult, considering the town was mostly a crossroads city for various wandering traders.
As Devotion walked through the streets, Ysmir was draped over his neck, almost like a scarf. Its appearance drew many odd glances from people walking by. After all, Bronia was a remote town, and Immortals were already a rare sight. These people were not very experienced with the world of Immortals, especially when it came to their magical beasts. A purple, two tailed fox was especially strange.
Devotion ignored the glances, resolving internally to find a way to mask Ysmir's appearance in the future. It was too attention grabbing. In fact, he'd have to figure out how to mask his own face, too. Especially since some people in this town wanted him dead. Hopefully, if they noticed him, they'd at least have the decency to not start a fight within the town.
After about twenty minutes of walking, Devotion found a suitable inn. It wasn't too large, but it would be enough. He read the battered, wooden sign out the front of the building: The Sour Nutmeg Inn.
"What an unappetizing name..." Devotion thought to himself, stepping inside. The atmosphere inside was a complete change from the dreary, work heavy scene outdoors. Countless patrons were drinking, singing, and brawling throughout the tavern floor. Devotion weaved his way through the crowd, finally making it to the front counter.
"How much for a room for the night?" Devotion practically yelled over the noise.
"One Silver!" The barkeep, a large, rotund man, replied. Devotion nodded, tossing a silver piece to the barkeep. He nodded, grabbing a key and handing it to Devotion. "Room 305!" With that, the barkeep turned around, attempting to serve drinks quick enough to the drunken patrons demanding more.
A small part of Devotion wanted to join that scene, drinking away his worries. Maybe the now-dead David Maliere would have done that, but Devotion was different now. He had more important things to worry about. For example, how would he get to Wanchen? That was a far trek. He needed a map, and to stock up on supplies. Before he headed back out to shop, he decided to head back to the room and leave Ysmir there. It would draw less attention.
After doing so, Devotion made his back outside, once more wading through the drunken crowd on the first floor. Now that he thought of it, it was pretty odd so many people were out drinking this early. It was barely past noon! In a way, Devotion now looked down on these people, wasting away their lives on drinking all day. Ironic, considering he would have been doing the same not three weeks ago.
Devotion pushed those thoughts out of his mind, deciding to look for a general store. Those were not uncommon in Bronia, due to the amount of traders that passed through all the time, mostly on their way to bigger cities.
Devotion stepped into the first general store he saw, a small building helmed by an older women for a shopkeeper. Upon hearing what Devotion was asking for, she quickly produced a map of their section of the continent of Phimux. You see, Phimux is a rather large continent, and Devotion lived in a rather remote section of it. He quickly purchased that map, as well as a sturdy back pack, enough food to last a week, and other various survival materials he might need. He then found a tailor, and purchased a large cloak a few sizes too large for him. It was a simple brown color, generic enough to blend in with a crowd. He bought such a large size so it could drape over Ysmir when it was on his shoulders. That way, he wouldn't draw so much attention.
It was a temporary solution, but it would suffice for now.
Little did Devotion know, it was too late to hide himself now. He had already been spotted on his way into Bronia, and James Powder was currently plotting how he would ambush and kill Devotion.
Devotion decided he would rest until the next day, then see if he could purchase a horse for the journey and leave in the morning. This was the longest journey that Devotion had ever taken in his life, and he was a little nervous. He supposed it would be better to be as rested as possible.
Before Devotion headed to bed, he decided to talk with Ysmir. He wasn't sure how sentient the fox was anymore, but it was worth a shot.
"We're going to be heading out to Wanchen tomorrow morning. It's a long journey, and we'll probably have to take turns keeping watch over each other. You can sleep on my shoulders during the day, I'll wake you when we camp, I guess." Devotion suddenly thought of something. "Do you even need sleep? Come to think of it, the only time I've seen you sleep is when you consumed those crystal cores."
Ysmir tilted its head, looking at Devotion oddly.
"Can you even understand me?" Ysmir didn't nod, but for some reason, Devotion felt that the answer was yes. Maybe it had something to do with the soul link they shared.
Devotion continued: "I'm not sure if you remember, but we had a conversation. In my Astral Space. You told me that our destinies were rewritten, just like our names. I'm going to be honest, I'm not sure where mine is headed. Everything has changed so rapidly for me, I don't exactly know what's going to happen. At least I know you'll stick with me. That's what you told me, at least." Ysmir once more looked at Devotion. It stood up and curled up in bed, next to Devotion.
"Whatever we face, we'll face it together. We're partners, I guess." With that vow, Devotion fell into a deep, restful sleep. His first in a long time.