Avatar: Terror Of The Red Spirit - Volume 1: Mortal Development Chapter 17 Gravelside: City Of Mining

They arrived to the entrance of the city where a trio of guards in green armour and armed with iron spears stood guarding. HALT! They yelled as they put their spears out threatening them.

“State your purpose! Identify yourself strangers!”

“I am Yami! A traveller seeking work right now.”

“I am Ryu! I too am a traveller seeking work.”

“Have you got any identification like a household pendant or a letter?”

“No.” They both relpied shaking their heads.

“Then I might ask you guys to leave!” warned a guard.

“Wait a second Poral I’ll vouche for them. Let them in they must be cold and hungry from travel.”

A stranger was behind a guard and soon he revealed himself to be a man dressed in fancy green and teal robes, he had a topknot with a wooden hairpin and he had long black hair with emerald eyes that wore glasses.

“Stick your nose out of it Shuin, we’re just following the mayor’s orders.” The guard in the middle who was called Poral said.

“Tell the great ‘Mayor’ to buzz off. Come on in you guys.”

Kuro and Lu Ten tried to walk in but a guard stopped them,” Who said you can pass!?”

“I said!” said the glasses guy said as he blocked the spear with a fan and gave a menacing stare.

Poral stopped the fellow guard from escalating this situation,”What are you doing let them pass. It’s not like you can even stand a chance against him.”

Kuro and Lu Ten entered the city, they had one question in mind.

“What is this city?” they asked.

But the glasses man ignored them as he kept walking, the brothers simply followed him and then they finally reached a tea shop called the Stone Fountain. It was a small round shop covered in green walls.

As they were walking down the streets of this city everyone inside, including the kids, looked at them with piercing eyes as the duo looked like nails sticking out.

They went inside where only they three were.

“Sit down and I’ll prepare you some tea. We’ll even have a little chat.”

An hour later and glasses man came back with three cups of tea on a platter, he held it with one hand like a butler. Each one of them sat around the table got their own tea, Jasmine flavoured.

Slurp!

Lu Ten drank this tea in an instant, the way Lu Ten slurped seemed slightly vulgar in a tea shop that looked with class.

“I’m sorry mister glasses. I have travelled far away and had not had such amazing tea in a long time. Your tea brewing skills are amazing as this tea makes me feel better more lighter.”

“It’s alright Mister Older Pants. That was my intention all along to make you violently drink this tea; I believe that us humans should drink tea as simple as simple it could get, I hate the fancy fancy stuff with the tea with them so called experts saying ‘You drink with respect to show the tea respect’ I call that make-belief as drinking the tea is enough respect. My name is not Mister Glasses but Shuin Hon of the Hon clan. I am an aspiring tea master.”

“I’m Ryu and this is Yami. I am the older brother 22 and Yami the younger one 17.”

“Hi.” Said Kuro as he waved and smiled at Shuin.

“What is this city?” Lu Ten asked.

“This city’s called Gravelside. By the name of this city it is easy to figure out that our speciality is mining and collecting gravel. This city is surrounded mountains creating a U around the city and behind the mountains is a massive river that crosses near the city and behind the mountain where gravel collects. Our city is run by the Mayor who’s not a nice guy.”

“What do you mean?”

“Promise you’ll help me.”

“We’ll help you.” Both brothers said.

“Don’t tell anyone but The Mayor is keeping most of the profit when trading with other major cities and only letting his personal staff keep the rest whilst the city is slowly being depraved of their wealth and health. And the thing is No One complains.”

“What why? Are they scared of him or are they extreamly loyal?” asked Lu Ten

“Both” said Shuin,”They either fake their loyalty due to extreme fear or they are genuinely loyal to him. When you were coming here everyone had their eyes on you, you are under watch so you have to be careful it’s dangerous. To not stick out you’ll guys need to dress normally and you’ll need to find work in the gravel pits where you’ll look like normal men who are looking for a job, just like you said right? That’s when they’ll drop their guard and we’ll…”

“What?” asked Lu Ten.

“Nothing. We haven’t even done the first stage let alone talking about the second stage.”