Thunder followed them.
It grew quieter after a while, or perhaps they had simply grown used to it.
The clouds remained, covering the sky in a darkness that did not seem entirely natural.
Vell thought that perhaps, in this new world, the weather had changed as well, but he wasn't entirely convinced.
Then came the fog.
At first, it was only a thin layer over the road, barely enough to obscure the ground ahead. But it grew thicker as they walked, spreading across the surrounding fields as they left the forest behind.
Before long, Sonder could hardly see ahead.
She slowed her pace.
"Maybe we should wait for it to clear," she suggested.
Vell narrowed his eyes as he peered into the distance. "I think I can see it. Seroti."
Sonder looked in the same direction, but all she could make out was a pale wall of fog.
"Yeah, I think I can," Vell said, continuing to walk, apparently quite satisfied.
Sonder followed. She had no particular reason to think Vell was wrong, but she could barely make out the trees on either side of the road.
After a little while, Vell spoke again.
"Tell me, Sonder. The weather, the clouds, the thunder, and the fog... I was wondering: you haven't acquired enough power to change the weather in the meantime, have you?"
"No," she said. "I don't think I could do something like that. It might be just a little beyond my power."
"Just a little?"
"Just a little," she replied jokingly. "If I could, I would have used it before we got caught in this bad weather."
Sonder found herself wondering whether the strange weather had anything to do with the city ahead. The clouds and thunder had been unusual enough, and the fog seemed just as strange.
Maybe that was simply the nature of the land.
They were far enough from the Yellow Mage's tower and village that the weather might have been this bad naturally.
Just as Gloam lay in a desert, plagued by sand and heat, Seroti might lie in a region plagued by clouds and rain.
They walked a little farther before she could finally make out a vague shape in the distance.
The farther they went, the clearer the shape became against the gray sky.
"There," Vell said, gesturing ahead. "You see?"
It was unmistakably a city. Walls rose above the surrounding land, and behind them stood the uneven outlines of buildings and towers.
The fog drifted around the walls, hiding parts of them and revealing others as it moved.
Sonder studied the city for a while.
The walls were old, built from blocks of gray stone, and several towers stood along their length. She could see movement near the gates, though the fog still made it difficult to distinguish individual people.
Vell watched the city with quiet interest.
For him, it was another place in a world he barely recognized. For Sonder, it was the first city they would visit together.
She wondered what they would find there.
Perhaps they would earn some money, buy what they needed, and rest for a while.
Maybe even get clean.