The Newt and Demon - Chapter 5.16 - Tram Ride

Theo squinted against the horizon. Wind whipped at his face, sending tears welling in his eyes. Those tears were pulled away by the force of the wind as the alchemist rode the tram. He sat crowded with other citizens of Broken Tusk, intent on seeing Rivers and Daub. Tresk held on with both hands, gritting her teeth and cursing the entire ride. When the train pulled into the station, everyone on board breathed a collective sigh of relief.

“Screw that thing!” Tresk shouted, jumping out of the tram.

Theo found his legs in time, stumbling out of the train and onto the wooden platform. Music sounded in the distance, and there were people partying outside of the town. Trevas Parn, the newly elected mayor of Rivers and Daub, approached the train with a beer in either hand.

“Archduke!” he shouted, laughing as Theo and Tresk stumbled off of the platform and onto the firm ground. He shoved a beer in each of their hands. “Welcome to Rivers! To Treason Day!”

“Thank you, Duke Parn,” Theo said, wobbling on the spot. He sipped his mug of beer, nodding with approval. It was the local brew, something similar enough to mead for him to enjoy. “Things are already starting, huh?”

“Indeed, they are. And you must be Tresk… Oh, she’s gone,” Trevas said, scanning the area. Tresk had vanished, off to scout the town. “Shall I give you the tour?”

“Lead on.”

Rivers and Daub had seen a substantial change. Theo’s heart twanged with recognition as they entered the town, following a path along the river. The town was named as it was because it was originally two towns. On one side was Rivers. On the other, Daub. They had combined into a single town at some point. In recent memory, they were run by Alran Cherman. A corrupt man who only had an interest in lining his pockets. Broken Tusk had put him to better use, under threat of death.

Now the town thrived.

“You’ll remember this side of town from last time,” Trevas said with a chuckle.

The duke gestured to stacked rows of buildings. The last time Theo was here for a tour, they were the slums of the town. Each building had looked like burned-out shanties. Filth was strewn along the streets, and citizens lived in horrid conditions. Trevas had transformed the area into a beautiful, verdant garden of well-maintained houses and cheerful people. Little gardens, filled with local flowers and saplings dotted the area.

“This is amazing,” Theo said. “How did you manage it in such a short time?”

“We get a subsidy from the alliance,” Trevas laughed. “Thought you would have known about that. We turned the slums into free housing. The only catch is that citizens who take advantage of the housing need a job with the town.”

Theo walked the renewed streets, nodding at everything with approval.

“This place looks clean,” Tresk said, speaking into Theo’s mind. “He’s not hiding the slums anywhere.”

The slums were on the western side of the city. Almost everywhere around Rivers and Daub were low, rolling plains. This made construction easy, both for seed core buildings and manually built ones. A group of citizens danced by, singing a song and sipping from filled tankards of mead. The alchemist watched with a smile as they passed by.

“We’re taking advantage of the port in Broken Tusk,” Trevas said, gaining Theo’s attention. “Happy to pay the fee, of course. Rivers and Daub hasn’t sold this much produce in ages.”

“Funny how that works,” Theo said, continuing his tour throughout the western district. It was almost entirely housing on this side. Farms stretched far into the distance at the town’s edge, and the alchemist realized how much Trevas had expanded that operation. “When we were connected to Qavell, we barely sold anything. Now that we’re cut off, we’re making a fortune.”

“Well, also remember…” Trevas trailed off, smacking his lips as he thought. “Qavell provided more food for the world than you would think. Especially local produce, such as Qavelli Berries and Ansari Wheat.”

“Interesting.”

Once the tour of the western district was done, Trevas led Theo to the eastern district. This was the original seat of corruption in Rivers and Daub. They had emulated the merchant chairs from Qavell, resulting in a vampiric relationship between the merchants and the citizens. The buildings here were all much better quality, despite the recent renovations. All the town’s artisans, merchants, and nobles were housed here.

“I’m sure you read the reports,” Trevas said, shifting uncomfortably on the cobbled road. “But this was a grim place only weeks ago.”

Theo had glossed over those reports. “What happened?”

“Oh. Well… You see, the merchant lords wouldn’t give up their seats. So, Alran… Well, he disposed of them.”

“Long live the revolution,” Theo muttered, pushing on with his tour.

The repeated cycle of destruction and rebirth present in this world had always stuck out to Theo. He didn’t like it. It reminded him of the way things had gone back on Earth. Only, they never got to experience the rebirth part of that equation. They got to enjoy a long line of destruction, with no hope of recovery. While he hoped Khahar had some grand plan to make things right, he realigned his thoughts on the present.

Trevas finished his tour at the town hall, inviting Theo inside for some tea. They had something in common, at least. The duke of Rivers and Daub had administrators covering the day’s events, leaving him free to worry about other things. They sat in a well-furnished room with the window cracked open. Rivers had yet to adopt the air conditioner technology used in Broken Tusk, resulting in a sweltering interior. At least they had [Cleansing Scrub].

“I hope you’re enjoying your position as mayor. And duke.”

“I have seen little about the ‘duke’ part.” Trevas laughed, sipping his tea. “But, yes. I’m enjoying my position as mayor.”

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The duo chatted for some time. Theo could feel Sarisa and Rowan somewhere in the shadows nearby. Tresk was scouring the northern reaches of the town, desperate to find something that implicated Trevas as a traitor to the alliance. But no matter how long she searched, even with the help of Alex in the sky above, she couldn’t find anything.

“How has the corruption been?” Theo asked, moving on to his third cup of tea. He didn’t care much for mead.

“It’s not great,” Trevas said. “But I know our brothers and sisters in Gronro have it worse. So we don’t complain.”

Theo pushed himself out of the comfortable chair, pulling his coat closer. “Show me.”

Trevas led the way through the town. The streets were now thick with people celebrating the holiday. Most were already drunk, although it wasn’t even noon. Those that remained sober were on guard duty, keeping an eye out for any troublemakers. In Theo’s administration interface, he had seen notes made by Alise to give the guards in Broken Tusk a day of their own. They were taking the celebrations in shifts.

“Just up near the northern stretches,” Trevas said, drawing labored breaths as they walked. “We’ve had several people complain about illnesses related to the corruption. The farmers burned one field, but nothing major.”

The ground changed to a vile shade of green near the northern gate. Theo could feel the necromantic energy emanating from the ground. Even standing still, he could feel it spreading by the moment. If left untreated, the rot would spread to all corners of the continent before long.

“This is worse than I expected,” Theo said, kneeling to inspect the befouled soil.

“I was told you were working on a treatment,” Trevas said, fidgeting with his hands nervously.

Theo withdrew a barrel of the [Hallow the Soil] potion from his inventory. It fell to the ground with a loud thunk. He popped the lid, scooping a two-unit sample size with a flask and dripped it on the ground. Like the [Cleansing Scrub] potion, the ground exploded with light. From the point where he splashed it, the potion worked its way out. Perhaps a foot in each direction. Two halms, by the local measurements. He made a note of that in his mind, and continued to spread the potion. Trevas watched in amazement as the corruption was banished from his town.

“I didn’t know you had finished the potion,” the duke said, gawking.

“Yeah, take this,” Theo said, producing a flask and holding it out. “We’ll purge it from the town, then work our way out.”

The archduke and the duke worked together, scooping up small amounts of the potion and spreading it on the soil. Ripples of light rolled through the landscape as they worked. A small, rowdy crowd gathered nearby as the pair worked. One among them had a stringed instrument, and began playing and singing an improvised tune. Trevas went red in the face as they worked, but within a few hours the corruption was beaten back beyond the town’s border.

“I’m leaving this with you,” Theo said, patting the half-empty barrel of [Hallow the Soil]. “Just keep the corruption at bay for now. We’re working on a way to disperse the potion over a wide area.”

“Thank you,” Trevas said, clapping a hand on the alchemist’s back. “This calls for celebration!”

Of course, the celebrations had already started on the streets of Rivers and Daub. The citizens didn’t need the duke’s permission to drink, lighting fires, and sing in the streets. Theo was left with a feeling of accomplishment as he watched those people celebrate. But he was also left with a realization. This region, the middle of the southern edge of the continent, was the last enclave of Qavelli culture left. Gronro to the north had a harder edge to them like the dwarves, while Broken Tusk to the south held a unique blend of ogre, marshling, and human cultures.

Theo found himself in the thick of the celebration. He desperately searched for a theme. The Dying of the Blooms festival had a contest and everything. The Embers holiday devolved into dancing around bonfires and drinking far too much. Although he had his complaints about the specific themes of the holiday, the alchemist joined with his people around the fires. He even spotted some of his administrators dancing around a fire, and spied Alise singing a song to Nira.

“What a sight,” Theo said, turning away from the festivities to find a quiet corner. He slumped against a stone wall, sensing Rowan coming forth from the shadows.

“Big party,” the half-ogre grunted.

“I thought there would be more to it.”

“Some people need to release their frustrations. No reason to stop them.”

Theo nodded, watching as a pair of humans tumbled down some stairs. He allowed his mindset to shift. Away from a taskmaster and toward an enjoyer of parties. Celebrations were never something he was interested in on Earth, but he saw the value in them here. Citizens of the alliance lost themselves around those bonfires. As they danced, their troubles seemed to melt away. Perhaps that was due to the titanic quantity of booze they had, but still. It hardly seemed to matter at the moment.

Rowan and Theo roamed the party, finding no common theme between the various roads and alleys of the town. The alchemist found that he liked this celebration more than the last festival. It was free of constraints, allowing those participating to express themselves however they wanted. That allowed him to melt into the background as an observer, rather than a participant.

Lining the bank of the river were people. They cheered, and jeered, as something happened in the waters below. Theo watched them throw coins on the ground, betting on whatever was happening. He angled his way through the crowd, pushing to the river’s edge. Standing on a single log were two figures. Tresk and Grogrog Stormfist, the duke of Gronro-Dir, were rolling a log. Each had a tankard of mead in their hand, and were chugging it as though their lives depended on it. When either person finished their drink, the crowd would shout a number before tossing them another sloshing mug.

Theo withdrew a cold coin from his inventory, tossing it down onto the ground. Like the others around him, he shouted his bet. “One gold on the angry lizard!”

Tresk shot Theo a look, but chugged her beer even faster. The battle raged on for minutes, each participant downing a seemingly endless supply of booze. The alchemist cheered the entire time, certain that his champion would falter at any moment. The marshling wasn’t great at holding her liquor, and he could sense her flagging more by the moment. Keeping the log in place was a feat unto itself, so the spectacle was worth the price of admission.

“She’s faltering,” Rowan said, gesturing toward Tresk.

The little marshling had indeed lost her balance for a moment. Through their connection, Theo could feel her mind fading away from the task. The mead was taking its hold on her, dulling the edges of her senses. Before long, she wouldn’t have the coordination to stay upright. That prediction only took a few minutes to come to fruition. Tresk pitched over the edge, yelping as she splashed into the cold river water below.

“Never challenge a dwarf to a drinking contest!” Grot shouted, returning to his chugging. He took a deep breath. “Who’s next!?”

Another challenger jumped onto the log, but quickly found themselves in the river. Theo sensed that Tresk had retreated to their private realm to recover, but was too busy cheering for more challengers to care. Minutes later the marshling appeared at his side, cracking her knuckles.

“I’m gonna do it again.”

Theo left the log competition, finding similar contests going on throughout the town. Perhaps that was the soul of their new hybrid holiday. Lighting fires and testing each other’s strength with interesting battles. The least interesting thing he witnessed was a fire-jumping contest. Guards within Rivers and Daub refused to allow folks to spread embers throughout the streets. The result was pathetic fires that anyone could jump over.

The guards within the town were an interesting sight. Before the alliance had formed, Theo thought of them as weak. But Aarok was building them up to be more than anyone could have imagined. No longer able to rely on the protective curtain of the crown, they were now subjected to the same training as everyone else. Their willingness to change in the face of a threat was inspiring.

Falling into a steady rhythm of watching people party, and inspecting the infrastructure of the town, Theo made his way through the festivities.