CHAPTER 20: SUMMERSEDGE

A trip through the gateway once again threw Norrin for a loop. He found himself lying face down on a soft tuft of grass his mind a blur. He was not rendered totally unconscious this trip, but his head was still spinning like he had one to many cheap ales. Nassima stood above him with a mixed look of concern and amusement. She could feel the effect the gateway jump was having on his body, and she watched him steady himself like a baby deer, trying to get his legs back under him. After a few moments Norrin’s dizziness waned, and he was ready to go.

“It’s going to take a minute to get used to that,” he said as he surveyed their surroundings. The gateway wall behind him was worn and covered in overgrowth, because it had long been out of use and its importance and magic had been forgotten. But when he turned to see what lay ahead of him, there was a familiarity to the place they had arrived that surprised him.

The gateway brought them just outside the decaying gates of a small, almost abandoned trading town called Summersedge. It was sat on the western side of the Great Crescent Sea between Citadel Steelhaven and Citadel Firstview. Once upon a time, Summersedge was major stop on the route between the two capital cities. But over the course of the passing solars, travelers began to avoid the entire area because it was believed the town and its surrounding land was beset upon by some atrocious curse. So, caravans would rather travel the extra four days it took to circumvent the sea southwards, cross the contentious southern bridge bordering the Emerald Nation, and trek north through the Redmere Woods to arrive in Firstview, instead of passing through Summersedge and ferrying the Crescent Sea. Now, only the down, lost and forgotten inhabited Summersedge, and none dared to cross the northern waters of the Crescent.

“Why are we here?” Norrin asked. He passed through Summersedge on training missions in the past and was not aware of anything extraordinary that would warrant them being there. The surrounding walls sat unguarded, and the rusted weather-beaten gates barely cracked open wide enough for Norrin to squeeze through. Norrin surveyed the settlement and it was exactly what he expected it to be; a near abandoned dusty old ghost town. There was one bar, full of sad drunkards who looked to escape their lives in bittersweet wine, one inn, whose clientele consisted mostly of fugitives and other people on the run. Plus, a barely functional dispatch office, ran by the same man who served as the bartender and innkeeper. The rest of the standing buildings were abandoned to squatters and vagrants, and even they did not stay long.

“Seriously, why are we here?”

“Just follow me,” Nassima directed.

“But where are we going? There is nothing in this town. Is this some sort of joke Amaliel is pulling? We don’t have time for games,” Norrin protested.

Nassima rounded a corner and lead Norrin uphill upon a narrow street shaded by uninhabited buildings. She ignored Norrin’s bewildered questions and stayed focused on navigating the cramped pathways of the derelict town.

Norrin followed Nassima as she guided them through the town’s dilapidated streets. He made sure to re-tie his bandero around his neck for all to see. The scarf usually granted a Chaser safe passage and shelter if he needed it, but in this town, it did not seem like a guarantee. It was near midday but, as expected in a place like this, the streets were empty and depression filled the air. However, the few people on the streets Norrin did see, stared at him with hard eyes. A strange Chaser, who seemed to be talking to himself, covered in a combination of sweat, dried blood, mud, and monster guts, was an interesting sight ... and smell. One that would make a good conversation starter in their otherwise monotonous lives.

Okay, she has been here before, Norrin concluded as he followed Nassima down a small alleyway. But what business does an Azuri have in a place like Summersedge?

Amaliel said the gateway would take him where he needs to go. Now he understood she was not saying this to him, but was speaking to Nassima directly.

“We are here,” Nassima announced as they reached a nondescript building at the top of the hill. Its entrance bore a large iron door with an ornate lion-head knocker. Above the door was a set of three large blacked out windows. They stretched upwards, reaching to the top of the building and were covered with iron bars. The building’s exterior looked run down with large cracks running from the foundation up the walls, and large pieces of missing plaster exposing the brickwork behind it. Wherever “here” was, Norrin was not impressed.

“What is this place?” He queried, but Nassima already passed through the iron door without an answer. He was already annoyed and tired but being ignored was pushing his patience to its maximum.

“Nassima!” Norrin shouted, but again there was no answer.

He grasped the ring of the knocker, but before he could knock, the iron door creaked open, inviting him inside. After he cautiously stepped passed the doorway, he was immediately wonderstruck by the scene before him. The crumbling façade gave way to an immaculate, lush green atrium, with gleaming polished tile pathways, and large twisted trees with full green crowns of leaves, sitting amongst perfectly trimmed hedges. The three blacked out windows on the outside in actuality magnified the light on the inside, brightening the entire plaza. The vaulted roof of the atrium was also made of the same one-way glass as the windows, letting in more light of the day. Despite this, the interior was cool and fresh like a new spring morning, due to the large series of rotating fans lining the wall, that pulled in and cooled the air from the outside and circulated it throughout the space.

The grounds were decorated with gigantic blue marble sculptures dedicated to the human figure. One was a stunning sculpted torso of a man being embraced from behind by a disembodied woman’s arms. Another headless figurine of a woman pushing her body against the wind, was carved with such detail, that one could imagine the silk gown she was wearing was fluttering in the breeze. There was also a humongous half-finished carving of a man’s head in a block of stone, but the expression of fear and bewilderment on the face of the man gave the impression that this bust was not a half finished piece of art, but in actuality the man’s head was indeed trapped in the stone.

Further along the path was a fountain shaped as a long, winding, serpent. Its head pointed upward, roaring at the ceiling and shooting a jet of water in the air. Beyond the fountain, stood a grand temple. Its illustrious walls made of the same polished stone decorating the path. Those walls were supported by pillars that bore inscriptions similar to the ones Norrin saw in the grand hall where he first encountered Nassima. Except instead of the hopelessness and fear he felt in that hall and labyrinth, this was a place of happiness, love, and light.

Norrin was still marveling at his surroundings when Nassima appeared in front of the doors of the Temple. She was filled with a giddiness that Norrin did not think was possible for such a serious warrior. Her aura was alive with color. Between the wonder of this place and the vision of her, Norrin was at a loss for words.

“This place…”

“Do you feel it?”

“Yes... It feels like…Home.”