The Unsuspecting Mage - Brian S. Pratt [81]
On a hill a little inland from the harbor, but still within the city proper, rises a great castle. Shining white in the morning sun, it is an imposing sight, several towers and a great keep surrounded by a high formidable wall. Atop the highest spire of the tallest tower a flag bearing the crest of the Cardri line flutters in the breeze coming off the sea.
James looks to Miko and chuckles. Miko is standing there with his mouth hanging open, in obvious awe of the place. He reaches over and closes Miko’s mouth which snaps him out of it. He looks over at James and smiles, a little embarrassed.
“Pretty impressive, eh?” James asks him as they head down the hill toward the town.
“I’ll say,” Miko responds, “I always heard it was big, but I had no idea. I always thought of Bearn as a big city, but this makes Bearn look like a farming village.”
“It’s the capital,” explains James, “and I’m sure it’s also a major center of trade for the entire region. It would have to be big.” Moored at the docks of the harbor were dozens of ships of varying sizes, many with a buzz of activity surrounding them as sailors and porters load and unload their cargo.
They reach the outlying buildings a good two hundred yards before they even get to the outer wall that surrounds the city. Cardri has three defensive walls dividing up sections of the city. One encircles the castle proper and several large buildings which comprise the Castle Area. The second encompasses a much larger area and protects the homes and businesses of many merchants and wealthy individuals. The third is the outer wall and the primary defense for the city. Almost two miles in circumference, it boasts many towers spaced at regular intervals. Half seem to have some sort of siege equipment such as catapults sitting atop them for defense.
Though despite the awe inspiring length of the outer wall, it still isn’t large enough to encompass Cardri in its entirety. Originally it may have, but over the years, buildings have sprung up along the outside. Primarily comprised of poorer dwellings by the looks of them, many are obviously taverns and inns catering to those in need of accommodations, but the poor and slovenly appearance of most of them would keep James away unless he was very desperate.
The gate through which the road passes holds two portals, one larger than the other to accommodate wagons and merchants, the smaller being for people on foot or horse. James and Miko move to the line at the gate for people and are soon approaching the entrance.
Lining the road are many poor beggars who plead with all to give, most having lost limbs, eyes, or bore some other deformity. James is saddened by them and feels bad that he has to reject their pleadings for help.
As the line continues drawing closer to the gate, James notices that unlike Bearn, the guards here are not asking questions of travelers before they pass through. This allowed the line of people waiting to get in to advance quickly. They took notice of everyone however, but beyond that scrutiny allowed all to enter unchallenged. The wall itself is about fifteen feet thick and as he passes through, discovers murder holes in the ceiling where defenders would be able to drop rocks or oil on anyone unfortunate enough to be caught inside.
Once through the walls into the city proper, the state of the buildings improves somewhat over those outside, though they are still on the poorer side in James’ opinion. That made sense actually since the closer to the castle usually meant a higher social standing.
Miko noticeably becomes more relaxed in these surroundings. As a city boy, he had been out of his element on the road. But now that he is once more within a city, feels at home. Walking down the street it seems almost as if he can feel the heartbeat of the city, the ebb and flow of its life.
As they make their way through the crowded and noisy streets, James observes that the majority