The city of Krafmont was a rather impressive sight to behold, even from a distance as the horse-drawn carriage went along the winding paths over the foothills leading towards the city. Krafmont reminded Dimmetri a lot of the capital city of Deryium back on the main plane of Tytaurain in his home world. Much like the capital, this city was built along the coast with a protective mountain range visible just North of the city itself. Winding foothills with cobblestone roads spanned out in all directions going to and from the city and leading to the outerwall that surrounded it. Though unlike Deryium, Krafmont seemed to be also built on a plateau with a large castle sitting above the rocky cliff side. The city also wasn't quite as large as Deryium was and from the few times Dimmetri had seen the capital with his own eyes, the city before them also wasn't as architecturally beautiful as the capital either. There were also no signs of high tech flying machines thundering through the sky either, at least none that he could see.
As the carriage grew nearer to the city walls, Dimmetri began to take note of the increased foot traffic alongside the cart. Many seemed to be standing off to the sides of the road as the carriage passed and looked upon them with a sense of awe. Dimmetri took note of as many of the individual faces as he could as they passed them by and began to get a feel for the races that may have made up the city. He saw forms and features that looked to be human or even elven in nature. At times it was hard to make out the distinct details of one's ear shape as they passed by but Dimmetri was beginning to notice that he was seeing more human looking individuals then not. There was a good mix of what seemed to be elves and half elves among the crowds and Dimmetri even saw the occasional varied race ranging from a family of tieflings sitting on a cart heading away from the city to a pair of Orcs even carrying large bags upon their backs. It slightly bothered Dimmetri that there seemed to be more humans than any of the other races. Where he had come from, there were only ever three other humans Dimmetri had ever even known in all of Tytaura nd aher planes for quite some time. Of course, that'd all changed once the great crossover had begun but most of those humans stayed on the main plane of Tytaura and had brought strange and powerful weapons and technology with them. The humans here seemed like they had been in existence here for some time, wearing common clothing and looking like they'd never used a weapon more advanced than a pitchfork if at all in their lives. Dimmetri even saw a family that looked like his own. There was a human male and a female elf walking alongside the road with their half-elf children walking beside them. The children stared in wondrous awe as the carriage passed and one even pointed and jumped with glee.
"How many people live in the city?" Dimmetri heard Ezra ask, as he must have been studying the crowd just as Dimmetri had.
"Last records were around seventeen thousand registered people living within the city walls?" Merrygold replied, still looking out of the carriage "Though those numbers have grown over the past couple of years so by the time of our next census I'd say we should have close to… twenty, maybe even twenty one thousand people?"
"Why such a sudden boom in the population?" Ezra was a bit surprised that Merrygold seemed to know the numbers off the top of their head.
"A couple of reasons I suspect. Our nation, I'm sure like yours judging by the weapons you carry, is under constant threat from monsters, cults, and the normal dangers of the world. Not the least of those threats being some of our neighboring nations as well. We have had reports of several skirmishes with the nation of Ushia to the North of us. Refugees are already flocking to the capital. Luckily enough, her grace saw that this might be coming and had made plans to expand the city years ago. We have the room and infrastructure for now but…"
"Such things can only last so long before your resources are completely drained dry. And I can only imagine the social strain caused between the different classes and the hordes of refugees coming into the city. Policing such a vast number of people and keeping the piece must be tough if your forces are being sent elsewhere to potentially deter any advancing force from invading your borders." Ezra replied.
Merrygold seemed surprised at Ezra's knowledge of the situation for a moment before she looked skeptically across the carriage at him.
"Of course, though we have plenty of sufficient forces to guard our people both at home, and abroad" Merrygold replied with a bit of sterness in her voice.
Ezra must have realized how his observations must have sounded coming from him as he began to explain himself "Oh well of course I'm quite sure you do have everything under control. You must forgive me as I myself am a member of the Council in the North. Though I believe the North in which you speak of and the North in which we come from are two different places all together. From what I can gather our people have no acknowledgement of your nation's existence nor does it bear any ill intentions towards yours or any other neighboring lands. I'm still attempting to figure out exactly where we are in fact, but I believe the North in which we hail from is at least from a different plane of existence altogether."
"A different plane? Right, you mentioned something along those lines before but… perhaps the Commander knows more on the subject, and can hopefully get to the bottom of all of this. However you said you were a member of some sort of Council? Does that mean you are all diplomats from where you come from?" Merrygold asked.
"Not quite. I myself am a member of the ruling council in the city known as Colk. I specifically help handle logistical efforts for resources as well as historical documentation. Technically I guess you could say I wear many more hats but those are my primary focus points in my general position. Everyone else here is more of family and friends really though I suppose they each have their own power in certain places." Ezra explained.
Merrygold squinted towards Ezra once more in an estranged look, however it was clear she was more of trying to process the information dump she was receiving then casting a judging gaze like she had been before. Eventually she gave a short shrug in a motion of surrender and shook her head.
"Sounds a bit above my paygrade really, though I won't lie it does sound rather interesting" Merrygold admitted.
Ezra was about to reply with something when a dark shadow of the wall was cast over the coach, drawing everyone's attention back outside as the carriage rumbled along and moved through an entrance into the city. There were several guards standing by along the gate with their focus on the carriage as they snapped a form of a salute by putting a closed fist to their chests with their right hand and had pumped their left arms out before themselves. Both Merrygold and Wehlington returned the salute in a half manner as they simply held their fists to their breastplates.
Beyond the gate Dimmetri began to get a scope of the full grand scale of the city. They had entered into what looked to be like a small town center with an open common area built around a water fountain in the center. Shops and taverns lined the outer edges of the common and Dimmetri could see, hear, and smell all the inner workings of a busy city. People and carriages lined the street before the common as the presence of the new arrivals gained quite a bit of attention. Traveling traffic was halted by several guards at the gate, and several curious eyes were cast upon them. People walking through the streets themselves quickly stepped to the sidewalks and out of the way as the carriage rolled past them and began to follow the road around the common and towards the shops and taverns. The warm, almost intoxicating smells of fresh baked goods and roasting meats rose to fill the newcomers' nostrils with a welcoming embrace as the carriage rounded the common and came to a halt in front of a tavern. The entire carriage shifted as Wehlington moved from his seat at the front of the carriage and came around to open the door on the side of the carriage facing the tavern.
"We have been ordered by the commander to wait with you all here in the meantime. The Commander is on their way here from the keep now, shouldn't be too long" Wehlington offered the information as he held the carriage door open and stepped aside.
After a moment, one by one the group began to exit the carriage with Dimmetri exiting last behind Destin. The tavern didn't seem to be anything special. It looked to be a considerable size with at least two or maybe even three floors if the single circular window at the peak of the roof was to be assumed to let some natural light in for guests. It had two large bay windows on the first floor with curtains pulled across the windows and there was a small balcony above on the second floor with several small tables, chairs, and a few unlit lanterns. The door looked to be made of a heavy wood with strong iron supports but Merrygold seemed to open it up with ease as she held the door open for the group.
Following everyone else inside, Dimmetri took a quick note of how things looked from the inside. At first glance the bar area and tables looked like that of any other standard tavern Dimmetri had ever been to with a set of stairs going up to the second floor over on their left. There was a door against the wall at the bottom of the steps and another from what Dimmetri could tell that went under the staircase. The door at the bottom of the stairs was closed but the one leading under the stairs was open with a faint hint of light reflecting off the stained wood finish on the door. However, what seemed to make this tavern special was the glowing lights above their heads that shined in different colors and moved like floating orbs over the ceiling. Dimmetri watched as two of the orbs grew close to one another and gently bounced away in different directions after they had collided. The lights painted the inside of the tavern in a gentle hue of purple and blue and gave a sort of relaxing aroma to the room.
However what really caught Dimmetri's eye was the strange and utter lack of customers or patrons in the tavern. There was no one else inside the building except for them. There wasn't even a bartender behind the counter from what Dimmetri could tell. He considered for a moment that the tavern might have been one of the ones that opened up closer to the evening hours and stayed open much later than the other taverns around the area. He still felt a bit of unease at the stark silence however.
Both Raz and Dimmetri had grown up in Mama and Papa's tavern inn known as the InnBetween in the Northern Plane. The inn was the name of a small city sized town built around the inn itself. The InnBetween was a much larger tavern itself even without the city around it and pretty much stayed busy almost all hours of the night and day. It was odd to Dimmetri to hear such an estranged silence around the bar which brought on the uneasy feeling. Raz must have been feeling the same way as after a moment of standing around in silence, her foot began to tap against the hardwood floor almost the same time as Dimmetri had. The group was all used to the busy atmosphere of the Innbetween by now, as Destin began to softly whistle, Iris began to hum, and Ezra even drummed his finger on a table top nearby as he leaned against it. Merrygold stood with them inside as Dimmetri saw Wehlington move the carriage away from the front of the building. She looked at the group with a raised eyebrow for a moment at their behavior before she shook her head and began to cross the tavern over towards the bar.
"We have commandeered the tavern for a bit of time. The commander wishes to speak with you all in private for a time.`` Merrygold stated as the group watched as she leaned over the counter and retrieved a glass bottle.
She then proceeded to take her helmet off and place it on the counter. She then pulled her long hair out of the bun on top of her head before she uncorked the bottle and began to drink directly from it. To any other group of people her behavior might have seemed even more estranged compared to theirs, especially with her supposed title and weight she carried. However they knew more than most sometimes how good it felt to finally sit down after a long adventure and unwind a bit. Destin quickly followed suit, heading over to the bar and taking a seat beside Merrygold as the rest of the group slowly followed and took a seat as well. One by one Merrygold reached under the bar and pulled out several bottles and began offering them to the others. Dimmetri happily took the bottle and uncorked it before reaching into the pouch on the side of his belt and retrieving his straw and using it to drink the liquid inside through his mask. It was a darker ale that had a slight citrus taste to it and tasted a bit sharper then most ales he had tried before. Dimmetri wasn't the biggest fan of citrus drinks but it was better than nothing at the moment.
"So I have to wonder, why meet at a bar when your commander must have some sort of office or some sort of private accommodations to speak in?" Destin asked after he took a long drawn out swing of the ale.
Merrygold was still mid sip when she shrugged before she placed the bottle down and whipped her mouth with a satisfied sigh.
"Not a clue to be honest. The Commander was insistent on us bringing you here and even made sure you'd be the only ones here when she arrived." Merrygold stated as a matter of factly.
"Have you been in contact with your Commander? You said that they insisted on you bringing us here but you've been with us since we met yesterday." Ezra asked cutting in "Do you have some means of communication with them over such a distance?"
"Mm, yes of course. All Lancers have direct communication to that of the Commander herself and even the Queen on certain occasions." Merrygold replied, though a bit vaguely.
"Exactly how is that done? Is it a sort of spell or device or…?" Ezra pressed.
"Sorry mister. That's classified for us Lancers only" Merrygold replied once more and even gave a small, apologetic bow.
Ezra's lip drew up slightly in a look of dissatisfaction. He didn't exactly like that the answer was withheld from him. He himself was a walking, breathing book of endless information that loved to add more and more volumes to his endless book of knowledge. Dimmetri could tell by the look on his face that it was like Merrygold was keeping him from important information that would help him solve all of the world's problems. It was nice to see that in this place of strange and wonderful new things, some things would never change and Dimmetri could rely on his friends and family to be a steady anchor for his own sanity at times.
"This Commander of yours, she seems to be quite the eccentric one doesn't she? Bringing us to a tavern and all" Destin smiled as he turned in his seat so his back was to the counter and looked around. "And my, what a cute little tavern this is"
"Little is a word I suppose. This is one of the largest taverns in the capital and usually the busiest if you don't include the guild halls that serve drinks as well." Merrygold chuckled.
"Is that so? Hmm, well you see where we come from there is a much larger tavern inn that we all often frequent and is actually owned by the parents of some of our very own party." Destin smiled from beneath his mustache.
"Oh really? And how big is this tavern of yours?" Merrygold laughed.
"Hmm" Destin tried to think of the words to properly describe the tavern as he repeatedly opened his mouth to answer before closing it again in thought. "Perhaps it might be better, to show you"
He then stood up and walked up to the center of the room and rubbed his hands together. Dimmetri watched with a slight smile under his mask as he leaned back and readied himself mentally. Destin then parted his hands before he clapped them together and suddenly it was like they were teleported. The room suddenly changed and grew in both length and height as the light changed to a warm glow and the sounds of hundreds of patrons filled the air around them. Merrygold looked stunned as she shot up from her seat and looked around wildly. Destin smiled mischievously behind his mustache as he saw her reaction. He had recreated the great hall of the InnBetween. There were no patrons on site but the voices of hundreds filling the air surrounded them. The warm feeling from the oversized fireplace in the center of the room seemed to touch their skin and seep in through their clothing and the smell of alcohol and freshly made food filled their noses.
Dimmetri smiled and looked over at the leather band Destin had tied around his wrist and at the almost flat, golden diamond that lay upon it. The story that Destin often told went that he received the band as a gift from a God many years ago allowing him to create a fully functional demi plane at will. Dimmetri wasn't sure if the story was true but he knew of what the band was capable of. For an estimated time of up to ten minutes, Destin could create a demi plane that looked exactly the same as the Great Hall of the Innbetween. The spell affected anyone within ten feet of Destin when he used it and Destin seemed to be the only one capable of using the band. However while in the plane, Destin could affect both the warmth, smell, and sound of the plane and even stock it with items brought from the originating planes. Dimmetri didn't know which supposed God gave him the gift but Destin had spent his fair share of time… sleeping with many of them that came to the inn.
Dimmetri smiled as he took in the familiar surroundings and for a brief moment as he closed his eyes he could picture the room filled with all walks of life drinking, eating, and acting like everyday was one big party. Even as he reopened his eyes and looked around he could almost see some of the regulars as well as some of his close friends around the hall in their usual spots they liked to sit or hang out at. Dimmetri even turned his head behind the bar and saw Razgriz was already back there rummaging through the bottles.
"Hey dumbass! You forgot to restalk the bar again! You know if Mama ever saw the bar like this she'd burn the whole place down!" Raz yelled out angrily as she began pulling out empty bottles and placing them in a bag on her hip to later dispose of.
"Well to be fair. The last time I was even in here was when we were with that group of Proctors in Curdin." Destin replied.
"That seems like it was ages ago," Dimmetri said, butting into the conversation.
"At least several months," Destin replied.
"W-What is the place?" Merrygold asked, still bewildered "W-Where are we?"
"It's a pocket dimension of sorts. Stored in the gem on this leather band here. It's really just a place for us to hang out when we are far from home" Destin laughed as he sat back down at the bar between Dimmetri and Merrygold.
"I've… never seen one of these before" Merrygold said as she rose to her feet and began to look around.
"This is a replica of the main Great Hall area of the tavern inn I mentioned before. Welcome to the InnBetween." Destin smiled before taking a swing of his drink.
The Great Hall of the InnBetween was technically two separate rooms combined together to make roughly a five thousand six hundred and twenty five square foot area. There was a main entrance into the hall along the southern wall that led directly into the main dining area. The main dining area consisted of ten, eight to ten foot tables with benches as well as a corner booth directly to ones left as the entered the Great Hall. To the right, the room was split in two by a wall with a great fireplace built midway through with two ways into the darkened "Den." The Den had a two hundred and fifty foot stage that went slightly into the eastern wall. The room had over twelve tables with eight of which being round 5 foot tables facing towards the stage. There was another much larger corner booth that faced towards the stage along the southern and eastern wall and two separate face to face booths along the north-eastern wall. The bar where everyone had been sitting was along the northern wall with two, double swinging doors that would have led back into the kitchen area. There was also one last door along the eastern wall close to the bar that only a select few were able to open and use at the actual inn. However, in this pocket dimension if anyone tried to leave through the doors they'd find themselves coming back in through the door in which they had attempted to leave. Destin had complete control over this plane and was the only one that could invite and expel whomever he pleased.
"So, this is where you are all from?" Merrygold asked as she looked at the multitude of pictures, animal heads, and other memorabilia hung up along the walls.
"Mhm, home sweet home," Destin smiled.
Dimmetri was now behind the bar with his sister, rifling through the multitude of empty bottles in an attempt to find something that hadn't been opened. They truly must have put a dent in the alcohol that had been squirreled away there beforehand as there seemed to be an over exuberant amount of empty bottles piled in and thrown about under the counter.
"If Mama saw her bar like this, she'd kill all of us" Dimmetri said outwardly, cringing a bit as he thought of his adoptive mothers face she'd make at the scene.
"I don't even remember us drinking this much," Raz complained.
"Well isn't that the point?" Dimmetri chuckled softly.
Raz just shook her head a bit in dismay as she began a fruitless attempt to organize the empty bottles off to the side. Dimmetri was helping her when he paused for a moment, and reached towards the back of the shelf and pulled out what he saw through the distorted glass bottles. Raz had paused as well and both of them sat in silence for a moment as they looked at the object in Dimmetri's hand. It was a small, brown, stuffed rabbit that had definitely seen better days. It was missing one of its blue colored button eyes and stitches replaced the spot where it's right ear should have been. The rabbit belonged to his daughter, lost around the same time they had all last been inside the mock InnBetween. Dimmetri had searched high and low for it and even made Violet a temporary replacement. His heart began to suddenly ache as he brought the stuffed rabbit up to the faceplate of his mask and closed his eyes.
Violet had taken this rabbit everywhere with her wherever she went and was absolutely devastated when she lost it. She complained that she always had nightmares when she didn't have the rabbit with her when she slept. Though the temporary stuff bunny Dimmetri had made her did help her sleep a bit better, it was no true replacement for that of her real rabbit. Dimmetri took a deep breath in and could almost smell her on it, even past the smell of absorbed alcohol into its fur and stuffing.
"Hey don't worry. We'll find her soon. She's probably off making new friends and is safe and sound. And I have a feeling we will find her real soon too" Raz said in a low voice to him as she placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Yeah, yeah you're right" he replied nodding a bit before he took the rabbit and put it away in the seemingly bottomless bag tied to his waist.
"This place is amazing" Merrygold exclaimed as she walked over towards the bar again.
"The real deal is normally packed shoulder to shoulder. Feels odd and empty seeing it look so… bare" Iris admitted.
"Yeah, I'll take a crowded hall any day" Dimmetri replied as he stood to his feet and hopped over the counter, another thing Mama wouldn't have liked.
"Mmm a full night, the Dread in dock and everyone home together." Iris smiled as she closed her eyes in thoughtful reminiscence.
"I still remember hearing you sing for the first time up on that stage," Dimmetri said as he slid his arms around his wife and held her close.
She leaned back into him as they both gently swayed together. Even many years later, Dimmetri still felt the electric-like feeling that ran through his entire being whenever he held his wife like this. As he too closed his eyes he could almost picture the two of them back at the real InnBetween. Holding her just like he was as they looked out over the great hall at all the familiar faces of friends and patrons. The smells of Mama's cooking, the ale, and Papa's pipe. The sounds of laughing and endless chatter, music playing up on the stage, and the roaring fire in the fireplace. The feeling of home and familiarity mixed with that of awe and adventure. Dimmetri knew Iris could feel it all this as well through an unspoken bound the two had had ever since they met. Call it love or magic but it was the ability to always be able to feel and understand how the other was feeling. It was a trait that brought the two of them together, first through friendship then eventually marriage. Iris let out a forlorn sigh that brought Dimmetri reluctantly back to reality as he opened his eyes.
"Mister and Misses Ioena?" Merrygold interrupted in a soft voice.
Dimmetri and Iris both turned to the young looking Lancer as Merrygold stood nearby. She must have been paying attention to the tender moment they had a moment ago as the Lancer placed her fist over her chest in the same salute as before and bowed slightly with a soft, tender smile.
"I assure you both we will find your daughter and get you and your family back home safe and sound. I swear upon that of my oaf as a Lancer to the Queen and her Kingdom as well as the crest of my family. I will not let you down." She said with a tone of serious commitment in her voice.
Dimmetri and Iris both stood for a moment, admittedly both a bit confused by the sudden, seemingly heartfelt promise she had made to them both. Merrygold caught their confused looks before standing straight and rubbing the back of her neck as she laughed nervously.
"Ah, sorry. You two just looked so happy then, sad… nevermind all that please!"
This caused Iris to let out a small chuckle of laughter as Dimmetri just shook his head with a smile. It was clear now that Merrygold meant well and was now embarrassed by her own remarks. Her behavior reminded Dimmetri of someone else he knew, another young but powerful girl who often spoke their heart. He watched as Iris went over towards Merrygold and put her arms around her in the way any loving mother would. Merrygold froze at the unexpected contact and her face grew slightly red.
"Thank you for kind words Alexa. You truly are such a good hearted person aren't you?" Iris said in her motherly tone.
Dimmetri couldn't help but feel a bit for the young Lancer at the moment. Dimmetri had known a time when Iris hadn't always acted so motherly till they had Violet. Now she was like the super mother friend everyone wished they had at least at one point in their lives. However, Dimmetri could see the confused and almost shell shocked expression on Merrygolds face from not only the embrace and kind words, but also at the fact that Iris was the first one of the group to address her by her first name. Iris let the poor girl go but only smiled as she stepped back towards her husband.
"Ahem right um, don't… mention it" Merrygold replied as she pulled a strand of her brown hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ear.
"Oh Iris does your lust know no bounds? Look what you've done to the poor girl! Look at her face" Destin smiled as he threw his arm around Merrygolds shoulder and slapped her on the back.
Destin was every bit the king of reading the room and knowing when he should, and shouldn't insert himself into a conversation. Whether he acted appropriately during those times was another question. His remark only made the young Lancer's face grow an even deeper shade of red as her eyes went wide in surprise. Destin wore a shit eating grin under his mustache as he looked back to Iris, awaiting her reply.
"Mmm sorry and no offense dear, but you're just not my type" Iris replied with her own grin as she placed a hand on her husband's chest. "Not enough armor I'm afraid"
Dimmetri could tell the two would only make the situation worse for the girl once Destin got Iris going. He looked down at his wife who looked back up at him with a sly smile. She may have become the perfect mother but she still had her fiery and mischievous side in her that Destin seemed all too well at bringing out in her at times. This was often at Dimmetri's own expense so he now really felt for the poor girl.
"Come on you two, leave the poor girl alone" Dimmetri's voice echoed out from his mask as he shook his head.
Iris rested her head on his shoulder in quiet surrender as Destin rolled his eyes and threw his arms up into the air.
"Captain party pooper ruins the fun yet again. I remember when you used to be fun" Destin accused.
"And I remember when you used to be funny, besides just looking funny," Dimmetri replied.
Destin's gaze narrowed on Dimmetri's face as he wagged a finger in his direction.
"You best take that back mister-"
"I mean he's always been funny looking. Just take a look at his mustache" Raz taunted as she joined in on the conversation.
"And unkempt hair taboot" Ezra added, also joining in.
"Oh like you're one to talk" Destin retorted, pointing accusingly at Ezra.
This caused Merrygold to start to laugh. Dimmetri could tell it was a true, honest laughter and he couldn't help but smile under his mask. He felt like there was a possibility now that he could begin to perhaps trust her a bit. Her reactions seemed to be sincere and he had a good feeling that her heart truly was in the right place. Suddenly, her face lit up more with a large smile as she clasped her hands in front of her face.
"Oh ! The Commander has arrived at the tavern. Please, please we must go back now!" she happily proclaimed.
Dimmetri wondered how Merrygold knew the commander had arrived. It troubled him some as he looked down at Iris, who was clutching onto his arm a bit. They both exchanged a silent nod between one another before Dimmetri looked around the room. He felt like he was going to miss this place. Though he figured if they were stuck in this place for a time, at least Destin had his ring.
"Alright Destin, take us back" Dimmetri sighed.
Destin nodded his head before cracking his neck side to side, holding his hands out in front of him and closing his eyes. Suddenly, in a swirling rush of wind, the six of them were standing back inside the tavern they had originally been in before. As Dimmetri looked about he noticed they were still the only ones inside until he heard the latch on the door lift and before the door swung open.
"Oh my gods" Iris gasped suddenly as she placed her hand up over her mouth.
"N-no way," Raz muttered.
"It… can't be," Ezra added.
Standing in the doorway, was the supposed Commander of this kingdom's army. Their leader the group had heard so much about. A woman, with purple hair.