Assimilation. Why is such an innocent word used with such caution in this Age? For it is only through assimilation that Elves, Dwarves and Halflings might ever be considered as part of society. It has only been through assimilation that the race of Men has prospered so greatly. Back before the First Age it was said that many different races of Men lived across Essinendeür and it has been through assimilation that we now rule the entire known world. This is a fact. It is sad that as soon as people say that the so-called Elder Races of Elves, Dwarves, Halflings, and the like should assimilate into our culture it is called racism. But this is not so, assimilation is a form of friendship or companionship, one race forming a bond with the more dominant culture and taking on the dominant way of life as their own. Ultimately, for the Elder Races to at last be considered equal, they must first assimilate into the more dominant society of Men and move away from their old cultures and traditions.

-The World of Men by Magi Arthonal Grund

Chapter Six

Year 3630, the Fifth Age, the eighty-ninth day of Spring

Lieut woke to the sound of voices and the roar of the waterfall with the light of Inüer filtering through the green ferns that surrounded him and glared in his eyes. Slowly Lieut stretched himself out, forcing away the stiffness in his muscles.

With a slight grimace Lieut got to his feet and swung his sword into its clips and stretched the stiffness out of his neck. Down by the pool Vythe and Fairris turned to regard him with surprised looks upon their faces.

“Fairris and I were certain you had already left,” Vythe remarked with a sigh as he looked back across the water, seemingly distracted.

“You look uninjured,” Fairris said to him, but she too did not give him much consideration.

“Vythe, your teleportation spell,” Lieut demanded, ignoring their remarks.

Vythe looked away. “It will take some time to align the gates correctly.”

“No it won’t,” Lieut was quick to reply. “You said yourself, you are skilled with magicks, and Port Na’brath is an easy place to locate.”

Vythe continued to stare into the water and pay him little heed. “You seem to know quite a bit about magicks, Lieut. Teleport yourself.”

“I do not use your magicks,” Lieut replied quickly. “And it was our agreement that you teleport me once out of the prison.”

“If I recall, you reneged on our agreement once before.” Vythe turned to him. “It would seem only fair that I return the favour.”

Lieut’s eyes flared angrily and his hands balled into fists, but he controlled himself as he noticed Vythe’s despondent expression.

“You have lost your connection to the Fog,” Lieut stated with a scowl on his face. “Those ten years you have spent in the Gaia Prison has severed your connection to its magicks. Without it you are worse than useless.”

Vythe turned away and let out a deep sigh.

“What of you Fairris?” Lieut asked. “Do you know the spell of teleportation?”

“No.” Fairris shook her head, her attention on Vythe.

“De’im,” Lieut mumbled angrily as he left the two by the pool and headed downstream without saying a word to Vythe or Fairris.

All was not lost, however, and Lieut knew that the town of Galleraze was just over a day’s walk from his location. If he followed the stream he would soon come across the town, and hopefully a Magi.

Lieut followed the creek as it ran northeast along a deep vale with high cliffs on either side. The valley was littered with large leafy trees and little to no undergrowth. A thick grass carpet swayed in the breeze in the clearing and wildflowers turned their bright colourful faces towards the light of Inüer in the eastern sky. It was a warm day and although the heat was not as oppressive under the shade of the tree, the bugs and insects were out in full force this morning, which made Lieut’s walk through the valley very unpleasant. His mood darkened as the day grew warmer, and despite the pleasant songs of the birds and the bubble of the creek he was not enjoying himself. He constantly swatted at the bugs and flies that landed on his arms and bit at his flesh. It was bad enough that he had lost time after falling unconscious, but the bugs were making things much more annoying.

Lieut eventually stopped by the creek under the canopy of a bushy tree for some respite, but rest did not come. The bugs swarmed about his head and bit at his bare arms, and even in the shade the heat had become suffocating despite it being early Spring when the cold of Winter still clutched at the northern realm of Gaianaus.

Ruthlessly, the insects pursued him, forcing him to move faster to try and escape them but it was to no avail. That afternoon the irritating vale merged into a larger valley and the creek flowed into a wide river. Thankfully the bugs left him then and Inüer began to disappear behind the mountains to the west.

Darkness crept across the land and the shadows deepened as Lieut considered stopping for the night. He was going to push on determinedly despite his fatigue, but the welcoming look of a lone willow tree on the bank of the river slowed his walk.

Curiously the tree line had receded from the stony bank around the willow leaving a field of long grass where it stood by itself. Lieut walked slowly up to the tree as it reached out from the bank into the river, its gnarled roots imbedded firmly into the soil and rocks. As he approached, dozens of fireflies burst out from the boughs, each of the bugs a different, vivid colour. The insects gently flew around him, pleasantly getting caught in his hair and landing on his shoulders before drifting off towards the forest.

He smiled slightly as he removed his sword from his shoulder and sat down between the roots of the old tree. The stars had come out and the twin moons drifted in the sky, the larger seeming to cradle the smaller one.

The stars were different here, Lieut noticed as he gazed upwards, and somehow there seemed to be more of them than he remembered.

Lieut sighed as he thought of his home, where everything was so simple, where he could just focus on each mission as it was given to him and his brothers. But, ever since he had arrived in this wretched place his mind would not focus on his objective and his objective only, as it usually would.

“What are these doubts I keep having?” Lieut mumbled to himself.

He had thought that getting away from Fairris and Vythe might help him think straight, but it had not helped at all.

Closing his eyes Lieut banged the back of his head hard against the trunk of the tree, which caused one lazy firefly to buzz down from the branches. Realising all its companions had already left, the golden glowing bug raced off towards the trees.

Lieut rubbed his hands across his face as he thought of his brothers, one of which would be arriving in Essinendeür soon, in pursuit of his own mission.

Would his brother also have confusing thoughts once he arrived?

He hoped his brother would not, and in fact he hoped his brother could help him make sense of his confusion, which is why he needed to get to Port Na’brath.

“What is wrong with me? I don’t understand,” he said quietly and banged his head on the willow tree again.

The sound of heavy footsteps and muffled grunts grabbed his attention and his golden eyes popped open. Lieut quickly rolled to a crouching position and scanned the area for the individuals making the ruckus. Through the darkness Lieut spotted three small forms moving from the tree line to the north. They were grinlocks, short creatures with thin gangly arms and masses of hair on their heads. They wore simple clothes of hide and bone and their thick hair and beards were plaited and adorned with bone carvings. Grinlocks were considered as common beasts or monsters by the majority of the people in Essinendeür, and they perpetuated this by being aggressive and vicious, attacking merchants, wanderers and outposts indiscriminately. But they were also intelligent, which made them much more dangerous than your average beast.

Lieut smiled, finally something he did understand.

Confidently standing up Lieut calmly walked out into the field, his sword in hand. He was only several paces away by the time one of the grinlocks spotted him. The creature let out a shout and launched its spear towards him. The missile flew harmlessly by Lieut’s left ear, and he slowly raised his sword to meet the next attack.

The next grinlock charged him, its large battle-axe leading the way. Lieut turned his hips at the last second and let the blade fly by then responded with a slash across the creature’s belly, spilling its intestines. The grinlock dropped to its knees and Lieut spun around its back, taking the thing’s head with him.

The next grinlock darted towards him swinging a small mace into Lieut’s chest. Quickly lifting his sword up to stop the backhand blow Lieut pushed ahead, slamming the crosspiece of his sword into the creature’s eye. The grinlock screamed out and tried to swing its mace again, but the howls stopped when Lieut plunged his sword through the creature’s chest.

Lieut turned to the last grinlock, the one who had thrown the spear, as it stood as still as a statue, its face stamped with fear and disbelief. Calmly Lieut walked towards the creature, his sword still dripping with blood. The grinlock’s dark eyes widened and it shuffled backwards, its large bare feet snagging a rock and causing it to fall on its back. Lieut jumped at the opportunity and lunged at the grinlock, the tip of his sword leading the way.

“Don’ts ded mi,” the grinlock blurted out in a ruff voice. “I’s beg yous.”

Lieut stopped mid-strike, the tip of his sword millimetres away from the grinlock’s bearded neck.

“I’s beg yous. I’s not want be ded,” the grinlock whimpered.

Lieut paused and looked at the creature in confusion, and with disbelief he saw his own hand move his sword away from the grinlock’s throat.

The grinlock also looked at him curiously but slowly got to his feet. “I’s tank yous,” the grinlock said hesitantly, and it turned to leave.

As the grinlock turned away Lieut shook his head vigorously and clenched his jaw in frustration.

“One question,” Lieut said, causing the grinlock to turn back around.

“You kill?” Lieut asked as he moved towards the fiend.

“Yis,” said the grinlock, a confused look on his face.

“Then you should be prepared to die,” Lieut said coldly and he drove his sword through the grinlock’s chest.

Lieut watched impassively as the creature slumped to its knees, its mouth opened wide in a silent scream, the light leaving its eyes. Lieut pulled his sword free, turned away and walked back to the willow tree.

He had done the right thing, Lieut told himself, he was an elite warrior who killed anyone who opposed him. But for some reason he was disappointed with his last kill. With frustrating and confusing thoughts running through his head he sat back between the roots and stared up at the stars and moons and waited restfully until morning.

The eastern glow that promised a glorious morning did not bring with it clarity for Lieut and his conflicted thoughts. Pushing away his troubles as best he could he left the willow tree and continued to follow the flow of the river as it headed towards Galleraze. The clearing by the willow tree seemed to be something of a rarity in the area, for before long tangled trees crowded around him and did not seem to end anytime soon.

Like woody veins, the thin tree trunks twisted up though the rocky ground, interweaving with other trees and forming a tangled mess of a canopy with small dark leaves. The ground had mostly loose stones with hardy reeds at the base of the trees and few boulders stood among the growth towering over him and covered in pale green moss and fungi.

Lieut moved quickly and skilfully through the tangled mess of branches and boulders, always keeping the river to his left. It was midmorning by the time the trees released him from their maze and Lieut found himself standing atop a rocky precipice where the wide river flowed over the lip of the cliff into an enormous lake. From this view point he could see a dozen more waterfalls gushing down from the mountains and into a long loch. In the distance, at the far end of the lake, he spied Galleraze sitting upon wooden beams and walkways in the middle of the water.

Lieut looked down from the cliff beside the waterfall, but there was no easy way down and he would have to go miles out of his way to find a road. Without much consideration Lieut jumped from the top of the waterfall.

It was a fifty foot drop to the water below but his flight lasted only seconds before the water crashed around him and the thunder of the waterfall was snuffed out. His wet clothes dragged him down and he felt a rock clip his shoulder. Kicking back to the surface Lieut swam to the shore, shook the water from his silver hair and with smile he looked back to the top of the cliff. He shook his head again to rid his hair of water before setting off towards the town of Galleraze.

The banks of the lake where he walked were covered in thick grass and stony shores and large trees and vibrant bushes shaded a narrow path that wound around the water. Occasionally a small stone bridge would arch over the pools below the waterfalls, but they were few and far between. Sometimes a small fishing hut would be standing on the side of the path among the thick foliage, but they were sparser than the bridges.

It took the rest of the morning for Lieut to reach the city, having to cross below several more waterfalls in the process, but by midday he was walking amongst the hustle and bustle of the city centre. Galleraze was positioned on the precipice of a thousand foot waterfall known as Aregion Falls, which fell into the great Arbeth River. The river travelled thousands of miles before emptying into the Golden Sea on the eastern seaboard of Essinendeür.

Despite Galleraze being situated at the top of a gigantic waterfall, it was by no means small. A population of over five thousand called the lake town home and it was made up of a mixture of Men and Elves, with only a few Dwarves. With the help of Fog magicks, their life seemed quite comfortable.

Like every other town the class segregation was outstandingly obvious. The rich were carried around the market by servants in luxurious looking palanquins whilst the merchant class walked and the homeless crawled. Predominantly, the rich consisted of mostly Men, the merchants a mixture of races and the poor mostly Elves and Dwarves. On nearly every corner a dirty and skinny looking individual sat holding out their hands for the kindness of a stranger only to be ignored by all, including Lieut.

At the centre of the town sat a wide square where hundreds of market stalls were set up and where every merchant was spruiking their goods. Lieut ignored them all.

It was not only the centre square where things were happening, down nearly every narrow alley things were going on, be it a pair of city guards beating up a civilian, or a whore with her legs wrapped around a customer, but again Lieut ignored it all.

He needed to find the town Magi so he could get to Port Na’brath, everything else was unimportant. With this in mind Lieut took a direct path to the richer section of the city, and with a few questions of the guards he found the place he was looking for. At the northern end of town sat a large walled estate where the Mayor of Galleraze lived and with him also resided the town Magi.

Lieut smiled in satisfaction as he walked up to the gates of the estate, but that smile vanished as he was stopped by two guards, both of them holding halberds and wearing the coat of arms of Galleraze: a golden sun on a blue field. Accompanying their golden sun was the symbol of the Mayor’s household, which meant that these two were more than just some members of the docile city watch on a shift these two were members of the household.

“What do you want?” demanded one of the guards, moving his spear to block Lieut’s path.

“I need to speak with the Magi,” Lieut replied calmly.

“What’s your name mister?” the second guard asked as he eyed Lieut up and down.

“What does it matter?” Lieut asked in return.

The first guard spat to the side. “You’ll be needing to make an appointment afore you can talk to Magi Grund, which is why we need a name, see?”

Lieut stared at the first guard, he could have easily forced his way to this Magi Grund, but he did not think that would help his cause.

“Call me Lieut,” he replied, unblinking.

The second guard scribbled his name down on a piece of parchment. “Alright mister ‘Lute’, come back tomorrow morning,” the second guard said as he wiped his nose on his sleeve.

Lieut’s eyes narrowed. “Why?”

“‘Cause we said so, that’s why,” the first guard replied. “And ‘cause Magi Grund is busy til then.”

Lieut let out a frustrated sigh and looked past the guards to the large mansion.

“Don’t worry mate,” the second guard said with a smile. “There’s a good tavern not far from here, best thing about it is it’s a brothel also. The ‘Moist Rose’ it’s called. Can’t miss it.”

The first guard nodded his agreement. “Best place around. But don’t you go getting friendly with Bellia, the blood elf, I plan on being her first tonight. Man, once my shift is over I’m racing there and she will be tighter than your money purse, Decht.”

The first guard slapped the second on the shoulder.

“What do you mean, Jecht?” Decht demanded. “I bought a round of ale the other night.”

“You did,” Jecht agreed. “But it was only us two there at the time. As soon as the rest of the gang showed up you suddenly run out of money. Gone spending it on Rosy’s big thighs.”

“Man, I love myself a fat girl.” Decht laughed. “More to grab onto.”

The two of them burst out laughing, and Lieut sighed in disgust and left, quickly moving away from the pair and back into the city.

It was late afternoon and the boardwalks were becoming less crowded and the night dwellers were beginning to come out of their hiding holes. Thieves, ruffians and vagabonds who revel in the dark of the night and just like any other city Galleraze had their fair share of them. But that did not bother Lieut as he walked through the darkening streets. The night dwellers spent their lives sizing up their marks and with one glance at Lieut, they knew they had no chance, so they left him alone.

Lieut did not bother finding a tavern for the night. He did not sleep so there was not point renting a room for five times the amount of gold it was worth. He was comfortable enough simply sitting down on a bench that over looked the Aregion Falls and waiting until daybreak.

The night went by slowly and the next day’s dawn broke early. The cloud of mist that was drifting up from the Aregion Falls turned into a golden curtain when Inüer breached the horizon. A golden light washed over the city and Lieut watched the spectacle with a slight sense of awe. When Inüer rose higher into the sky the cloud began to break apart letting sharp rays of light through the thick veil. Lieut sat watching as the blanket of cloud dissipated into yellow wisps before drifting off into the blue sky. He was not the only one watching the marvellous spectacle and dozens of people stood around the open area overlooking the waterfall, all of them eager to wake early just to see the golden curtain of cloud that Galleraze was famous for.

As much as he could appreciate it, he had to be the least eager person there. To Lieut it was only a way to pass the time until his appointment with Magi Grund. It was rather a unique sight, he conceded that, but he was more concerned with the amount of time he had to waste before the Magi could teleport him to Port Na’brath.

Lieut watched as the last wisps of cloud disappeared into the morning before he left the area. As he walked through the city many arguments broke out between the early morning merchants. Their heated discussions over who had which stall area first sounded loudly throughout the empty streets. But Lieut ignored them.

Soon Lieut found himself back at the gate to the estate where two new guards were standing, each with a long spear in hand and the colours of Galleraze with the symbol of the Mayor’s household.

“What do ya want, traveller?” said one of the guards.

“I have an appointment to see Magi Grund,” Lieut replied simply.

The guard who greeted him looked him up and down and sucked at his teeth. “Ya have a name?”

“Lieut.”

The second guard mumbled as he looked through a list of names on a parchment. “Here we are, Mister Lute to see Magi Grund. Morning appointment.”

The first guard sucked his teeth again. “Go on in then, but I will be keeping an eye on ya, weirdo.”

“Oi, Tallen,” the second guard shouted through the gate.

A young boy came running, his face grubby and the wisps of a moustache appearing above his top lip.

“Bring Mister Lute here to Magi Grund,” the second guard commanded and the bright-eyed boy nodded eagerly.

“This way Mister,” Tallen said politely as he led Lieut through the gates and into the courtyard.

Many raised garden beds stood throughout the courtyard, forming an interesting pattern when looked down on from above. In the garden beds many plants blossomed joyfully in the rich soil provided for them and the bees were buzzing about, the fresh fragrances filling the morning air.

At the centre of the yard was a small void that looked down into the waters of the lake with several benches positioned around it. At these benches sat a group of women, and several of the younger ones giggled joyfully to each other when they saw Lieut.

Awkwardly Lieut looked away from the women and continued to follow Tallen from the gardens and into the west wing of the house, where a small tower was situated.

“What is it with Magi and towers?” Lieut mumbled to himself as Tallen knocked three times on the old wooden door.

In short time the door creaked open and there stood a young woman with shoulder length blonde hair and round spectacles on her thin nose. She was much younger than Lieut had expected and she wore long robes, like most Magi, though hers were covered in hand knitted flowers of many colours.

“Your morning appointment ma’am,” Tallen announced courteously.

The Magi frowned at Tallen. “Yes I can see that boy, now off with you,” Grund commanded and the lad hastily dashed off.

“I am Magi Arthonal Grund,” the woman said dramatically. “Please, do come in.”

Lieut’s golden eyes darted around the cluttered tower as he walked into the small room. Piles of paper and books were stacked all around and two chairs were situated under a void looking up to the second floor. Lieut scoffed subtly as he moved past a table between two chairs where, in prominent view, sat the academic work ‘The World of Men’ by Arthonal Grund. Magi were not known for their humility. Moving through the clutter he sat down in one of the chairs and Magi Grund occupied the other.

“You must be the one the twins, Jecht and Decht spoke of,” the Magi said her blue eyes wide. “They were right, you are the unusual type. And your name, Lieut, tis’ another oddity. Elven for wanderer, but you are clearly not an elf, or any other of the Elder Races. And your silver hair and golden eyes, simply remarkable.”

Lieut tore his eyes from an arrangement of steaming vials in the corner and fixed the Magi with a stern glare.

“You must forgive me sir.” Magi Grund looked away from his glare. “But I have a fierce interest in the races of M’Aierth and the assimilation of those races. I thoroughly enjoy the myth that an ancient Magi mixed the essence of rabbit and women to create the Yineth. Utterly preposterous of course, but enjoyable nonetheless.”

“I have no interest in your racist views, nor am I here to sate your curiosity,” Lieut said firmly.

“You think me racist?” the Magi baulked.

“The ‘assimilation of races’,” Lieut replied, mimicking the woman’s words. “Your book: ‘The World of Men’. You believe that all races should become like Men, and that any other history and culture is pointless to hold onto in the face of progress.”

The Magi looked at him, shocked, and stumbled over a few incoherent words.

“There is no point trying to deny your racism Magi,” Lieut continued. “Your research and experiments are littered around this room, and no doubt your findings will be commended once submitted to the Magi Order. But I do not care. What I do care about is your magickal services.”

Magi Grund’s mouth hung open in surprise, but she quickly composed herself. “You may think it racist, but you cannot ignore the obvious facts that the races in Essinendeür are growing further and further apart. The differences between us and them are irreparable. If we cannot get them to assimilate into our society, dissention will develop throughout the realm. Their equality relies on their assimilation, you cannot deny it.”

“‘Us’ and ‘them’,” Lieut replied. “That is the thinking that spurred the war between the races in the Third and Fourth Age. If you people stopped for one second and thought that perhaps it was not the other races that needed to assimilate, but rather the race of Men becoming more accepting of other cultures and not trying to control everything in the land, then attitudes between races would not be so volatile. An obvious solution to the racial problems would be if you people actually made the effort to dominate all other races, instead of sitting back in your lazy dotage and philosophising on the issues.

“But I say again, I do not care,” Lieut continued. “I simply need you to teleport me to Port Na’brath.”

Magi Grund rested back in her chair and studied Lieut over the top of her round glasses.

“Very well,” the Magi nodded slowly. “I lament for the debates we might have had if you had but more time, and interest.”

Magi Grund rose to her feet and began pacing about the room, tapping her lips with a finger. “I will make you a deal Mister Lieut, I will teleport you at no cost.”

Lieut narrowed his eyes.

“But in return for my magicks,” the Magi continued, “you will answer some questions for me and perhaps share a drink after. To sate my curiosity, do we have a deal?”

“No,” Lieut replied simply and he rose to leave.

The Magi let out a small laugh. “You cannot be serious. You refuse to answer a few questions about yourself and an enjoyable night of debate, which would make your journey easier? I think you are getting the better end of the deal.”

Lieut did not reply and he pushed through the old wooden door that led back into the courtyard, leaving the confused Magi behind.

“At least tell me where you are from?” Magi Grund called out behind him, but Lieut kept walking.

With his hands clenched at his sides he walked briskly through the gardens and slipped past the two guards at the gate and back into the city streets.

These endless setbacks were beginning to make him angry, the first few were just a slight annoyance, but now it was bordering on ridiculous. It was as if the moment he set foot in this land it had been determined to stop him at every turn.

Lieut paused by the corner of a building and took in a deep breath to calm himself. All was not lost though.

“I need a horse,” Lieut said determinedly to himself and he walked briskly into the city.

By mid-afternoon Lieut had spoken to dozens of people, but in each case the horse was either too old and not fit for riding or the merchant was unwilling to part with the beast. So, reluctantly, by the end of the day Lieut found himself walking along the main street that led out of Galleraze. With his hands clenched by his sides, his face was set with frustration, but he was still determined.

He still had time until his brother arrived in Port Na’brath, he would just have to walk briskly, with little to no stopping, and hopefully he would come across no problems or hindrances on the road. Lieut firmed his jaw as he strode along the main boardwalk leading out of the town.

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