The town's neon lights sh one brightly in the night that the town nearly looked the same as it did during the day. Therefore, I mused as I leaned back against the inn, counting coins, it should have been easy for me to spot Sinbad as he approached.
"Hayden!" I jumped in my skin, looking up from the coins to see Sinbad standing less than a foot from my face. His eyes crinkled, and a mischievous look crossed his face. He'd scared me on purpose. He eyed the coins in my hand. "Got quite a bit of exploring done, I see."
"Yes, though I didn't hear anything about our companions. You?"
Sinbad's head shifted back and forth. "Nothing. I did, however, hear an intriguing rumor." He said, his shining with intrigue.
"Oh?"
He took a step towards the entryway to the inn, and waved me in. "I'll explain in a minute."
Having defaulted to leading, I took the lead. The dining room was filled to the brim with players, so we marched forward into my room, where Ani lay napping on the bed. I ushered Sinbad in, and locked the door behind him. The rooms at the inn were large suites, with each room about the size of my living room. The entryway led into a sitting area with brightly patterned couches and rugs, where non-friended players coud communicate without being eavsdropped on by the outside world. Past that was a small bathroom I'd tested anxiously earlier. To my eternal thankfulness, it worked. Next to the bathroom was the bedroom, which fit a large king sized bed beneath a bright red canopy, with a wardrobe and full-sized mirror shoved in the corner.
Sinbad and I settled in across from eachother on the comfortable couches. Even without his crew around, Sinbad's ease of command bled through his posture. He simultaneously managed to look prim and relaxed, confidant and comfortable. In comparison, I let the couch swallow me up, sinking comfortably into it's warm recesses. Ani woke from his nap, poking his head out from the bedroom and trodding over to cuddle up next to Sinbad. My cat was such a little traitor.
I rolled my neck down to look Sinbad squarely in the eye, giving him my full attention. Once he had it, he began speaking.
"While I didn't hear any news of our companions, I did hear of a few strange occurrences. Perhaps they're related to the fragments you're looking for?"
I sat up a little straighter. "Go on."
"Each night at exactly midnight, strange things happen."
"Strange how?"
"Well, exactly a week ago, an entire group of forty competent thieves suddenly appeared. They had horses, weapons, and their own entire cave system on the main island. What makes this sotry really interesting, though, is that all these things appeared at exactly midnight. One of the townspeople was there to witness it. He packed up the next day and headed here, hoping the trouble wouldn't follow. I spoke to him myself, and I don't think he was lying."
Zenith Online as a whole was a futuristic twist on historical fairy tales. This expansion, I recalled, was particularly inspired by tales from The Thousand and One Nights, a collection of stories narrated by Sharahazad to her husband, the King. The king had a nasty habit of executing his wives after consumating their marriage, so every night Sharahazd would end her tale on a cliffhanger, postponing her execution by one more day. The group of thieves was likely inspired by the tale "Alibaba and the Forty Thieves," which was the origin of the phrase "Open sesame" and was a later addition to the collection of tales.
If I had to take a wild guess, I would guess that th estrange events after midnight were related to Sharahazd's tales to her husband.
"Did you already know of these events?" Sinbad questioned as he followed my facial expressions.
I considered my answers carefully, mindful of Sinbad's avoidance of spoilers. "Not exactly. But I believe the cause is related to the Queen."
"I see."
An awkward silence descended in the air.
"Tomorrow, we'll focus on finding the three stories for the Merchant and finding passage to one of the larger islands. Between the amount I gained today and the coins the Merchant will provide us once we finish his quest, I believe we may have just enough to purchase weapons and book passage to the largest of the Black Islands."
"So you don't believe either of our companions ended up here?"
After a moment of inner debate, I answered. "No."
"Very well then," he said as he rose gracefully from the couch. He lingered briefly in the doorway. "Sleep well, and don't let the gnomebugs bite."
The door slid shut gently behind him.
"The what?" I asked Ani. He looked up at me from where he'd been napping on the couch with an expression that said 'I'm just a cat. How am I supposed to know?' He flicked his tail, and laid his head back down on his paws. I took a deep breath in, and let it out slowly, my neck tilting back until I was staring up at th ecieling, my head against the back of the couch. I sucked in another breath, and lunged to my feet, locking the door soundly.
With a final pat on the head for Ani, I said "Training," and selected 'yes' on the prompt that popped up in front of my eyes.
The room went dark, the couches disappearing from around me.
[Training, start!]