Reemerging from the inn. Gwen was again buffeted by the sights, sounds, and smells of the medieval city. Tristan led the way, seeming to know his way around New Roanoke while Maximus and Gwen followed closely behind. The city streets were like a maze, nothing like the rows and columns of streets in New York City.
The trio finally stopped in front of a building with a sign with a shirt on it. Tristan opened the door and beckoned for Gwen to follow. Once in the store Gwen was ambushed by the smell of leather and cloth.
"How can I assist you today?" the burly man asked the group from behind the counter. The man had coarse black hair and stubble on his neck.
"We would like to purchase a gambeson tunic for this lady here," Tristan replied. "Something durable, but not too heavy."
"Oh, you are in luck, I believe that I have something that will fit her nicely," the tailor said turning and heading into the back of the shop through an opening behind the counter.
The man returned about a minute after heading into the back.
"Here miss try this on."
Gwen pulled the gambeson tunic over her head. The tunic was an off-white color. It was heavier than she expected but not unbearably so. Her chief complaint was that the fabric was uncomfortable. The layers of linen sewn together hung from her body in a similar fashion to a puffer jacket. The fabric itself was not smooth either, it caught on her clothes and was going to be itchy on her bare arms.
"Hmm, it is a tad big, do you have anything else?" Gwen asked.
"Not now, but if you are willing to wait, I could make you a custom one," the tailor offered.
"How long would that take? I am in a bit of a hurry."
"Well miss, it would take about ten days," the tailor responded shaking his head.
Ten days?! Gwen thought in shock. She had thought that she had understood that everything in this world would take longer, but that statement had still left her shocked.
"I think I will take this one then," Gwen sighed, understanding that she would have to settle for this piece of armor.
"That will be forty silver pieces," the tailor stated. "Who will be paying?"
At this Maximus spoke, "I'll be paying. Do you take gold coins?"
"Yes, I do," the tailor responded.
Maximus handed the man two gold coins. The man looked at the money a little perplexed.
"This currency is a little dated," he said.
"Is that a problem?" Maximus asked.
"No, no problem, gold is gold," the tailor responded.
The strange interaction left Gwen wondering how old the money was that Max was carrying. When was the last time he had left his tower and used money to purchase something? She quickly shook the thought out of her head as she was not prepared for what the answer might be.
The trio left the store and went down another street. They came to a store with the picture of a sword on its placard. Gwen knew immediately what this store was going to be.
"I'm not trained with any weapons, you know," Gwen said to the two boys and the invisible fairy before the group had even entered the armory.
"We just want you to have a dagger in case something happens. Hopefully, you don't have to use it," Tristan explained.
The trio and invisible fairy went into the weapons shop. A muscular woman with an eyepatch greeted them.
"What can I do for ye?" the weapons dealer asked.
"We are looking for a dagger for my friend here," Tristan said pointing at Gwen. "She does not have much combat experience, so something simple would be helpful."
The woman looked Gwen up and down.
"For a starter, ay? Well, I would suggest a dagger with a handguard. I prefer a two-handed sword myself, but I don't think you'll be getting there any time soon. Here is what I have," the weapons dealer laid out a few daggers of varying lengths and different hand guards.
"I also happened to notice that your other friend there is left-handed," she said motioning to Maximus's scabbard being on his right side. "They say those who are left-handed are blessed by the dragons."
"I think I'll take this one," Gwen decided on a dagger with a nine-inch blade and a basket hilt. While she was not mentally prepared to actually use it, if carrying the dagger made her friends feel better, she would do just that.
"That dagger is twenty silver pieces," the weapon seller stated.
Maximus opened up his bag and handed the woman one gold coin.
"I would also like to purchase a sturdy spear," Tristan told the weapon dealer. Then to Gwen he said, "Gabriel would lecture me if I had forgotten to get a spear after our encounter with that Lesser."
The group, having finished their errands, returned to the inn. Gabriel was waiting for them in the brothers' room.
"So. You were successful, I see," Gabriel stated to the returning group, Marigold once again visible.
"Yes, we got everything we needed," Gwen replied confidently.
"It is getting dark, we might as well sleep for the night," Maximus stated, "Can you two go looking for work in the morning?"
The brothers agreed that it did not make sense to search for jobs at night. The only places that would be open were pubs and courtesan houses.
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The next morning Gwen awoke feeling more rested than she had when she had woken up at the Feathered Hen. Alone in the room, she looked over at her newly acquired armor and weapon.
Well, might as well get used to wearing them. Gwen thought to herself.
Gwen got up and put the gambeson over top of her t-shirt and fastened the scabbard and belt around her waist. Now wearing her gear, Gwen went to the brothers' room to check in.
In the room Gabriel and Tristan were already talking with Maximus about getting a horse. As soon as they noticed Gwen, they greeted her.
"So, you really want to go around the city with us looking for jobs?" Tristan asked unsure as to whether the girl would actually want to travel around the city with them.
"Yes, I might find out some information about an easier way to get home," Gwen responded.
"Alright then, you can come along," Tristan said smiling.
"Make sure that you keep close and don't get lost," Gabriel said with less appreciation.
"What are you and Marigold going to do, Max?" Gwen questioned.
"We are going to look around town for a horse to buy to aid us on our journey to the Great Library. I'm also interested in how much has changed since we were last in public," Maximus replied with a smile.
With that the two groups parted ways. The brothers and Gwen heading in one direction and Maximus and the invisible Marigold heading the opposite way.
"We are first going to see if any of the merchant guilds have any shipments that they want protected," Tristan explained as they walked. "The trade guilds are almost always sending caravans to and from other cities to sell products and buy supplies. And those caravans require protection from bandits and monster attacks."
After two hours of walking around the guild district and not finding any work, the trio took a short break on a bridge overlooking the river that bifurcated the city.
"We can always try the cathedral," an exacerbated Tristan suggested.
The three of them set off in the direction of the cathedral. As they approached the cathedral, Gwen noticed that something seemed odd about the cathedral. It wasn't until they got closer that she realized that the cathedral had no crucifixes anywhere. In their place were stone statues of Dragons.
"What kind of church is this?" Gwen asked confused.
"It is the Cathedral of the Draconic Temple," Tristan stated as if it were common knowledge.
The group headed inside the cathedral. It was similar to other cathedrals Gwen had been in, with the exception of everything being dragons. Gwen turned around to get a 360 view of the place. On the back of the door leading out of the cathedral was a piece of paper that read in big letters Abolish Slavery: Slavery is a sin against the wisdom of the dragons. In smaller letters below it was End this Holy Spiritist Practice. This confused Gwen.
"Um, why is there a sign that says to end slavery, and what does that have to do with a Holy Spirit?" a confused Gwen asked the brothers.
"Right, you wouldn't know about the current politics of the kingdom of New Roanoke," Gabriel stated. "Basically, there are two main religions in the kingdom, the Draconic Temple and the Church of the Holy Spirit. The Draconic Temple is vehemently against the practice of slavery while the majority of Spiritists support it as it appears in their holy text. There are more Spiritist nobles than Draconite nobles and the guilds profit from the free labor, so the practice of slavery is continued, despite the fact that the majority of the common people of New Roanoke are Draconites."
"But slavery is horrible," Gwen replied.
"It is," Tristan affirmed.
"But, that is not why we came here. The Draconite priests revere dragon-age artifacts as they are seen as holy relics," Gabriel stated.
"So, we are hoping to get a contract to collect some dragon artifacts. If we can, we figured the best place to look for them would be the Great Library," Tristan finished.
"Does that mean you are going to come with me to the Great Library?" Gwen asked, feeling elated at the thought.
"Yes, it does," Tristan replied.
"If we can get the Temple to give us a contract," Gabriel said.
At that moment, a priest walked up to the trio and asked if he could help them. The brothers explained their proposal and the priest left to go talk to his superior.
While the trio waited Gwen's eyes glanced around the cathedral. One particular sight caught Gwen's attention. On the far side of the cathedral there was a line of individuals with a seated priest at the front.
Looking closer, Gwen noticed that everyone in the line was injured in some way. The person at the front of the line knelt down in front of the priest and unwound the cloth covering his arm. To Gwen's shock, the arm was in poor shape. The arm was covered in what appeared to be burns and there were places where the skin was peeling away to show the tissue underneath.
The priest held up what appeared to be some kind of staff or wand. The priest then started speaking in what Gwen had come to recognize as Draconic. To Gwen's amazement the kneeling man's wound began to heal rapidly.
"What is happening over there?" Gwen asked in astonishment.
"Oh, this cathedral has several priests who are able to use Draconic magic for healing wounds and purifying water. Twice a week the cathedral will hold a ceremony of healing. It is free to participate although donations are accepted." Tristan explained.
After a few minutes of waiting, the priest returned with a small bag.
"This is the prepayment," the priest stated, "You will get the rest once you have returned with an artifact. May the dragons watch over you"
The brothers then took Gwen to purchase the food and supplies they would need on the journey.