Inferno Ascended

Adrastos sucked air into his lungs before answering.

"I don't know all the details, Glax. But you are certainly not human. I'll be brief about what you want to know. My former Master, Prince Achmeron, believed the words of the King of Valya and his prophecies. The King of Valya had powerful arguments and forbade him to reveal most of the secrets. But I dare assume they had to do with the gods and everything that goes on in Stygia. King Kaine was as powerful as a god. And his realm under the rule of Night was very fantastic. But the subject is not Valya, it is you. He gave you to Prince Achmeron. And to keep you safe until the right moment, a powerful spell was cast. You should find these objects when the time is right. Each of them has a blessing and a punishment. That's what we were told. If I could tell you more, I would. But I was told that you would have the knowledge at the right time, so the punishments would not come before you were prepared."

Glax thought for a moment. He realized his father tried to be economical in what he said, without lying to him.

"Okay. This will have to do for now. That clock… Was that what you were with? Or what was with my… with Kalanthe, my mother?"

"This was the clock I had. What was with your mother… I don't know what happened. You were hoping to find it on any clue she might have left in her report stored in the Hall of Bones." Adrastos sighed.

Glax was about to ask more questions, but they heard footsteps coming toward the bedroom. On the other side of the door, a servant warned that Archigeos would like to speak to Adrastos before bed.

"Glax," his father said, ending the subject before they both wanted to. "Don't trust anyone's smiles. Envy and resentment are often much closer than we think. The one time I opened my guard, I almost lost you. So trust my words." 

Glax understood it was a warning related to the Archigeos. And he knew that sometimes he had misjudged people badly. His father was right.

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"You didn't expect this one, did you?" Rasmus chuckled, slapping his friend on the back as they both headed down the road with the caravan the next day.

A twist of fate had fulfilled part of Lady Lais's wishes. 

The Archigeos had invited Adrastos and his daughter to come to Verivos, capital of Pharys, as his guests. Adrastos could help his diplomats and, at the same time, allow their children to get to know each other during the trip. The mayor of Crona couldn't really refuse the Archigeos' request, could he?

"No. I really didn't expect it." Glax was sparing with words because if he blurted everything he thought about it, it wouldn't end anytime soon. Furthermore, his opinion was strange and extremely unpopular among the clan.

"I'm glad the Archigeos likes you, since your father-in-law won't," Rasmus shrugged, and changed the subject. "Although we came to Pharys a few times, we never went to the capital. I'm curious to finally know what the famous Verivos is like. Are we going to meet Medea's Child?"

"Medea's Child? You know I don't remember anything. Who is she?" Glax complained to his friend. Ras spoke quietly,

"It's the woman who descends from the Infamous Sorceress Medea, where the Pharysians descend. She picks and marries the ruler of Pharys, while she devotes herself only to witchcraft. But if we are going to the palace…" his friend implied his reasoning.

"Know." Glax had always wondered why the Pharysians had such a terrible reputation. Among the Echelians, at least. But it was easier to understand with each new thing he learned.

The Pharysians were more inclined to magic and knowledge than to military feats. They had the best libraries, and through their alliances with the vselys, who had landed on their lands when they arrived from the Sea of ​​Mists, they learned new tricks. Necromancers openly appeared when the Sanction did not exist. Using the knowledge of Pharys most famous Style of Magic, Mind Control, and whatever the Vselys taught them, Pharysian wizards learned to resurrect the dead and command corpses like zombies.

Glax would normally find a class of necromancers pretty cool, but being in the shoes of an Echelian he understood the situation better. An army of zombies continually raised by necromancers was as unfair as cacodemons that summoned themselves in the same place. Or robots that didn't feel pain.

He understood how easy it was to drag an orb into a working metal mechanism. Thinking about this, he had suspicions about the origin of this problem that now seemed to happen spontaneously with machines. Mainly machines with Promethean technology.

Pharys was a dark and inhospitable place. Like most cold places in Stygia, the abundance of volcanic hot springs made the climate tolerable. Pharys had silver and the rare Galeon mines, and owned the greatest sources of chloromites, which powered every green light in the kingdom. 

As soon as they reached a city called Partis, an escort of Pharys' military joined them to 'accompany them and facilitate the journey of a guest of our Archigeos.' According to them.

But Glax had the impression that the idea was not to allow an official Echelian entourage to see what they shouldn't.

As they approached Verivos, Glax saw in the distance a mountain that looked like Swiss cheese, from which the green light emanated. He was still telling his colleagues how interesting it would be to visit a chloromite mine when they had to slow down because of a bridge problem.

There was a line for caravans to reach the bridge. Even though the Pharysian soldiers were trying to clear their way, it was useless as the traffic was stopped on the bridge.

It was the second traffic jam he had seen in Stygia, the first being on the day of Chriseis' funeral in Echelion. But the Valosian seized the moment to stretch his legs. Horseback riding was not his favorite activity.

Jumping off the animal, he called for Rasmus to go to the bridge on foot. Rasmus joined him happily. "If the bridge collapsed, can we get boats instead?"

"I don't know. This place doesn't seem to have a river port. It's just an ordinary bridge in an ordinary village." Glax looked around. People were complaining and talking to each other.

When they reached the edge of the bridge, they saw several workers repairing the bridge, which had collapsed. Upon talking to the officials of the nearest village, who were overseeing the service, they were told it would take all day to put in a new wooden floor.

As much as people complained and cursed, it wouldn't make the job go any faster. 

Glax sighed, wondering if there was a way to resolve the situation. He noticed that someone was playing weird music nearby, and he wondered who could be in a good mood in a situation like this. Well, there was always someone. But his gaze searched the surroundings for the source of the music.

A hooded man was perched on one of the support pillars of the suspension bridge, playing a strange stringed instrument.

The toe of the gold sandals gave him away.

'Hermes?! What is he doing here?!'

"Hey buddy," he called the hooded one. "You look like someone I know!"

"And even?!" The hooded man put away his strange lyre and jumped nimbly to the ground, catching everyone's attention. "Maybe you can buy me a drink?"

People seemed to notice that the Valosian had been unlucky enough to find a cheater ready to latch on to a less-smart traveler. And like most Pharysians so far, they pretended to see nothing and know nothing, focusing on their own business quickly. 

"Do you want to hear more of my songs?" Hermes asked happily as he paired up with Glax and Rasmus. 

The big Valosian was always nervous in the god's presence, but Glax was already used to the young Olympian's slightly tricky personality.

"Lord Hermes, don't take this the wrong way, but the audience wasn't really enjoying it."

"Ah, my big bro played the popular songs. My style is too hermetic for them. Haha."

Glax almost facepalmed, but not even he dared offend the god by the cringy pun. "Lord Hermes, as the god of roads, do you also rule bridges?"

Hermes nodded in agreement with a devilish smile.

"I understand. So… the bridge is broken because… did you want to?"

"NOOO-no…" The god shook his head emphatically and falsely. "If only people respected who they should to, wouldn't they? Many demands, few offerings. That's what I say. If I get weakened, I can't help it. No, no."

Glax looked at the line of carts, horses, and people waiting. Then the god again. If Hermes was the least capricious of them, Glax didn't wish to discover what the most demanding was like.

"Is there anything I can do?"

"I heard there is a railroad near here! That goes to the capital. A Rail-Road. Isn't that exciting for you? For me it is!" Hermes spoke with enthusiasm.

"A railroad…" Glax scratched his chin, surprised and thoughtful, repeating the god's words. Would this work?