Reginald led them through a pair of massive wooden gates into the city. Triss couldn't help but stare. It was like everything was twice the size it should be. The white stone arch of the gate was as tall as a three story building, and the wall above was nearly twice again as high. "Why is it so big?" She asked. "Like, is it just to be impressive or do they actually need the height?"

  "Just to be impressive." Reginald replied. "Centuries ago, before the rise of the council, this was home to Polina the Mad. She was queen over pretty much all the lands we've traveled through. She built this city as a symbol of her wealth and power."

  "What happened to her?" Triss asked.

  Reginald shrugged. "Same that happens to many arrogant leaders. She was murdered by her son so he could take the throne."

  "That's terrible."

  "That's politics."

  They continued on through the city. Unlike the other places she'd seen, Holintis was a bright and vibrant city. The roads were busy, filled with people of all sizes, shapes and clothing walking around. The roads were wide, so travel was easy despite the crowds. Reginald led them through the city, past a huge open air market where vendors called out to passersby about the quality of their wares. Triss saw several vendors selling clothing and jewelry, and even a blacksmith with an anvil set up right on the side of the street. “Can we stop and look at some of this stuff?” Triss asked. “It’s amazing!”

  “No, we need to get to the inn. Remember what I told you before. It’s not safe.” Reginald replied, not turning to look at her.

  “You’re no fun.” Triss complained.

  “I wouldn’t mind stopping.” Naiela said. Triss snapped her head to look at the council wizard. That had been the first time she’d talked in a week.

  “See? Naiela wants to stop too.” Triss said.

  “I really don’t care. We have more important things to do.”

  Triss rolled her eyes. “It took us like a month to get here. An extra twenty minutes won’t make that much of a difference.”

  “You can’t know that. Besides, you don’t have any money to spend.”

  “So? I can look.”

  “I have money.” Naiela added.

  “She has money.” Triss repeated. “Come on, fifteen minutes? Ten?”

  “Zero.”

  “Spoilsport.”

  “I don’t know what that means. Come along, the inn is only a few blocks away.”

  The inn turned out to be a tall, four story building with dozens of windows on each floor. It was made of the same white stone as the walls, with a silvery metal roof that reminded Triss of modern steel roofs back home. A large, hand painted sign hung over the wide double doors with a picture of a man holding a rabbit by the ears. The words “The Hares Rest” was written in golden flowing script along the bottom of the sign. “Doesn’t look very restful for the hare.” Triss said, pointing at the sign.

  “Don’t point. You don’t want people to realize you’re new here.” Reginald said. “Especially this far into the city.”

  There was a stable boy waiting out front, and he took the horses from them, promising to have their saddlebags delivered to their rooms. “How does he know which rooms will be ours?” Triss asked Reginald quietly as they made their way inside.

  He raised a scaly eyebrow. “There’s really not that many draconic around here. I think he’ll be able to figure out which group was ours.”

  “Oh. I hadn’t thought of that.”

  Naiela snorted. “What a surprise.”

  “You can go back to not talking now, you know.” Triss snapped back.

  “I swear to all the ancient gods if you two start again…” Reginald trailed off as he opened the door, leaving his threat unfinished. The inside of the inn was gorgeous, with dark wood paneling covering each wall, accented by lighter coloured trims of pale yellow wood. Glowing orbs hung from delicate golden chains throughout the space, casting a pleasant white light that made the room feel bigger than it was. A wooden desk stretched across the back wall, with two people in identical dark blue clothing standing behind it. They smiled at them as they crossed the threshold.

  “Welcome to the Hare’s Rest. Are you looking to stay with us?” The two asked in unison. Triss blinked. The two were the most nondescript people she’d ever seen. Both had shorter brown hair, brown eyes, and plain facial features.

  "What the fuck?" Triss whispered.

  "Shhhh. Let me handle this." Reginald replied in a low tone. He walked up to the desk, a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes plastered across his reptilian face. "Good afternoon. I require three rooms, plus stabling for two horses."

  "Very good sir." One of the clerks said.

  "Will you be staying with us long?" The other asked.

  "I'm not sure yet. I have business in the city, and it may take some time to conclude." Reginald said.

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  "An unknown length of stay." Said one.

  "This is acceptable." Said the other.

  "The cost is six gold per night."

  "For three combined, including meals."

  "Payment is required up front, of course."

  "Of course." The two went back and forth, nearly speaking over one another.

  "I would like to put it on Master Dothal's account." Reginald replied. "We've been friends for seven and a half years."

  Both clerks widened their eyes at that. "A friend of Master Dothal?" They said in perfect unison. "In that case, we are pleased to meet you. Please follow the servant. He will show you to your rooms." They both bowed slightly at Reginald.

  Triss wondered what servant they were talking about, as the two clerks were the only ones in the lobby - besides her and her party, of course. "If you would follow me?" A soft voice spoke from beside Triss, and she nearly jumped out of her skin.

  "Shit fuck!" She yelled, jumping away from the speaker. Another nondescript man had appeared right beside her, making no noise whatsoever in his approach.

  "Eloquent." Naiela smirked. "If you could show me to the bath after my room, I would appreciate that." She said to the servant.

  He nodded. "Of course. Please, follow me."

  “What’s with the creepy staff?” Triss whispered to Reginald as the followed the servant up a set of wide wooden steps.

  “They’re constructs. Someone made them to be the perfect servants.”

  “Made them? Like, they’re not real people?” Triss asked, and Reginald shook his head in reply. “What are they made of then? It looks like real skin. Is it painted?”

  “It is real skin. They’re made out of human parts, usually grown in large vats and then assembled later.”

  “Thats horrific!” Triss hissed. “That shouldn’t be allowed!”

  “Your ignorance is showing again.” Naiela said from a few feet in front of them.

  “The fuck is that supposed to mean?” Triss shot back.

  “Settle down.” Reginald stepped in between the two women. “We’re not starting this again.”

  “You don’t tell me what to do.” Naiela said, glaring at Reginald over her shoulder as she walked.

  Reginald stopped walking. Triss nearly ran into him, barely managing to stop in time. Naiela stopped and turned to face him. “What?” She asked, in an exasperated tone. Then she yelped and jumped a foot in the air, grabbing at her bottom and spinning to look the other direction. The servant leading them had stopped, and held a thin wooden wand in his hand.

  “It would be best if you showed Master Reginald the respect he deserved.” The servant said, in a quiet, flat tone

  Naiela’s jaw dropped. She looked back and forth between the servant and Reginald several times. “Did you do that?” She finally asked Reginald. “No, no, HOW did you do that? I know that was you!”

  “My wand has been put away the entire time.” Reginald replied with a self satisfied smirk. He looked past her to the servant. “Carry on.” The servant nodded and began to lead them down a long, narrow hallway lined with doors. Thick red carpet ran the length of the hallway, bordered on the sides by wooden floor so dark as to be nearly black. The same glowing orbs as were in the lobby hung every ten feet or so, keeping the hallway from feeling gloomy. The servant stopped in front of one door, producing a key from a pouch at his waist and handing it to Naiela.

  Naiela took the key and unlocked the door. The servant bowed. “I shall return shortly to show you to the baths. I must, of course, show your companions to their rooms first.”

  “Yes, that’s fine.” Naiela said, slightly distractedly. “Actually, could you just tell me where they are? I’ll fine them myself.”

  “Of course, mistress.” The servant said. He gave a quick explanation of how to find the baths, and letting her know there were additional facilities available on the floors above and below should the ones on this floor be unavailable. She nodded, not bothering to thank him and heading inside the room. The sound of a deadbolt locking followed almost instantly. The servant looked at Reginald, shrugged, and then headed back the way they’d come. They went back to the staircase, up two additional flights of stairs, and into another hallway. The lights were larger and closer together here, making the hallway seem much nicer than the one below. The doors seemed to be spaced further apart as well, Triss noticed. The servant stopped in front of a heavy door the was painted a pure and brilliant white colour. He pressed a thumb to the latch, eliciting a quiet clicking noise. He turned the handle and led them into a large, open room. Bright sunlight streamed in from several large windows set into the far wall. A plush couch and two heavy chairs sat near the windows with a low table between them. A kitchenette with a large island and barstools took up one corner of the room, and a long dining table with at least a dozen wooden chairs sat nearby. The room was twice the size of her studio apartment back on earth!

  “Wow.” Triss said, stepping into the room and looking around. “Wait, where’s the bed?”

  The servant pointed out doors at each end of the room. “Two separate bedrooms are available. I assumed that would be best, yes? Master and apprentice only?” He directed the last comment to Reginald.

  “Two rooms, yes.” He nodded. “Thank you.”

  “You are welcome. Should you require anything, please contact the front desk. The room is keyed you each of you now as well. Is there anything else I can do for you now?”

  “I believe that will be sufficient for now.” Reginald said, dismissing the servant. The servant bowed and left.

  “Ok, so what’s with the creepy constructs? And how in the heck can we afford such nice rooms?” Triss asked the second the servant left. “Also-“

  “One question at a time.” Reginald interrupted. “The constructs are approved magic by the council. It’s expensive to make one, which is why you rarely see them. They’re common at the coucil’s headquarters and at their school, which is why Naiela knew what they were.” He explained. “As for why we are able to stay here? This is part of a network for dark wizards. By having the right name, code, and some other things you couldn’t see yet, our stay is completely free.”

  “Other things?” Triss said with a frown. “What other things?”

  “If you reach the tertiary order, you’ll understand. It’s a little hard to explain.” Reginald said. “Our belongings will be up shortly. I’d suggest you get cleaned up, maybe take a rest. I’ll have some supper sent up for you as well.”

  Triss narrowed her eyes. “Supper for me?” She asked suspiciously. “Not you?”

  “Now that we’re in the city, I need to start working on finding Percival. You are going to stay here, have something to eat, maybe take a bath and then get a good nights sleep.”

  “That’s not fair!” Triss protested.

  “Who ever said life was fair?” Reginald shrugged. “The fact is that I need to find Percival. I’ll be going places that are dangerous, and I can’t keep you safe and do what I need to do at the same time. So you’re staying here, and I’m going. If you’re bored, go talk to Naiela. As long as you can do it without fighting.” He turned and headed towards the door, pausing with the door open. He turned back to Triss. “I mean it about Naiela. Please, no fighting, ok? I want the inn to be in one piece when I get back.”

  “I promise I won’t fight with Naiela.” Triss said with a sigh. Reginald waited a beat before nodding his head and leaving. Triss sat on the couch and waited. After three or four minutes had passed, she stood up and left room. She went back down the staircase, down a hallway, and stopped in front of Naiela’s door. She knocked loudly then took a step backwards and waited. After a few moments the door cracked open, just enough for Naiela to peer through the crack. She sighed heavily.

  “What do you want now?” She asked. “Oh, wait, let me guess. You want us to braid each other’s hair and make friendship bracelets while we giggle about boys?”

  “Close.” Triss said with a grin. “I was thinking, since Reginald has gone out and left me all alone, that maybe you’d like to accompany me as I go shopping?”

  Naiela blinked, then opened the door with a smile. “Now that is something I can get behind.”