Chapter 96: Mellow Bloom

Rhian and Maximus climbed the last hill towards their destination. The city of Mellow Bloom lay below among the grassy plains of Dusk Valley. A river curled around the city, with bridges connecting all around.

“Ah, Mellow Bloom, it’s been a while,” Loh sighed in satisfaction. “It may not be one of the four Great Cities, but I’d still count it as one of my favorite places.”

Stryg poked his head around Rhian’s waist and looked down at the city. He counted dozens upon dozens of buildings sprawled about the small city, there were too many to count. The buildings near the border were spaced out, while most buildings were concentrated towards the center of the city. It was different from Hollow Shade, where the Central District was mostly empty save for the Ebon Tower and a few official buildings.

“We’re not there yet, let’s go,” Loh called out from atop of Maximus.

Maximus nodded and ran down the hill with swift strides.

“It’s a race then, ey?” Rhian smiled confidently. She paused and looked back, “Master, is it alright if I run?”

She knew he was not a fan of being jostled around and almost falling off the saddle on various occasions.

Stryg took a deep breath and gripped the reins. “Ebon Hollow does not run away from a challenge.”

“Hold on,” she grinned.

Rhian breathed in deeply, tensed her muscles, and shot off the ground, launching herself into the air. Stryg shouted in surprise, she laughed as they careened through the air and down the hill. She landed on her feet with a soft shock before bursting away in a bundle of energy. Her hooves swept past the grass as if she surfed on an ocean of green.

Loh noticed Rhian coming up behind her and chuckled.

“Don’t hold back,” Loh whispered into her own centaur’s ear.

Maximus furrowed his brow and lowered his upper body in a charge. His bulging muscles tightened as he rushed down the hill. Despite Rhian’s sweeping gait, the distance between the centaurs widened.

“We won’t make it at this rate,” Rhian said between breaths.

“What are we waiting for then?” Stryg managed to say through the jostling motions.

“What?”

“Run faster, Rhian!”

“Aye!”

She grit her teeth and narrowed her eyes at the city below. She ignored the strain in her legs and pushed forward. She galloped past grass and stray stone, her body barrelling through the oncoming wind. The hill’s slope only served to quicken her pace.

Maximus caught sight of her from the corner of his eye. He bellowed and pushed his enormous body further, increasing the gap between them.

The wind blasted Stryg’s eyes, he strained to keep them open. “Run, Rhiannon, run!”

Liquid thunder flooded Rhian’s veins, the rushing wind in her ears softened to a whisper, her vision focused on the task ahead. Her heart beat loudly at the thrum of his voice. She screamed, her hooves crushed the ground beneath, she sprinted away, a blur in the wind.

~~~

A pair of Mellow Bloom’s guards stood at their station in front of one of the half-a-dozen bridges leading into the city. It had been a fairly busy day thanks to the ongoing festivities. Still, it had finally seemed to quiet down for a moment.

One of the guards squinted her eyes and cupped her hand over her brow, “Hey, what is that? On the hill over there.”

“Huh? What are you talking about?” The other guard scratched his beard.

“That,” she pointed at the base of the hill.

Two figures were hurtling towards them at breathtaking speeds.

The guard craned his neck forward and narrowed his eyes, “What the-?”

“For Ebon Holloooooow!” Rhian screamed and vaulted over the stunned guards.

The guards fell over in surprise. Maximus came close behind, skidding to a halt at the base of the bridge, in front of the guards.

“We won! What am I saying? Of course, we won! I’m the best!” Rhian did a little dance and twirl.

Stryg stood up on the saddle and threw his hands up, “Victoryyyy!”

“Damn, they got us,” Loh smiled lopsidedly.

“I am wearing a full suit of armor and carrying most of our supplies,” Maximus huffed.

“Oh, Maxxy, I didn’t expect you of all people to be a sore loser,” Rhian wagged her finger.

“Permission to duel the showhorse?” Maximus hefted his battle axe.

“Denied,” Loh laughed.

“Who the fuck are you people!?” The male guard yelled.

“Oh, I didn’t notice you two. I am Loh of House Noir of Hollow Shade and these are my companions. We have come to rest our weary bodies in your city for a few days.” She pulled out her gold nameplate.

The guard’s jaw went slack at the name and gold.

The female guard elbowed her partner, “Please, forgive this idiot, he drinks too much. What he meant to say is welcome to Mellow Bloom, where the mead is sweet and flowers are always in bloom!”

“*Cough* Yes *cough* that’s what I meant,” he wheezed.

“Wonderful, it’s been a while since I’ve visited. I hope your mead is as good as ever,” Loh said.

“Oh, most definitely! In fact, we have several more selections thanks to the local Bellflower Festival,” she nodded profusely.

“You guys are having a festival right now?” Loh beamed.

“The biggest festival in Mellow Bloom! Excluding the Festival of the Gods, of course.”

“Tell me more,” Loh urged.

“Eh... right,” the guard cleared her throat and spread her arms wide open. “We’ve got spirits of all kinds, ranging from sweet meads to burning dwarven alcohols. We also have all sorts of games, flower shows, and even the famous Singing Willow troupe is performing! To top it all off we’ve got the annual Seregulus Hunt.”

“Do they also have tasty food!?” Stryg asked with wide eyes, his pupils round as saucers.

The guard frowned at the strange goblin, “Um, it is a festival. So, we do have plenty of food stalls.”

“How about venison?” Stryg asked.

“Veni-what now?”

“Venison, you know, deer meat. I’ve been craving it for a while now. Honestly, I don’t care if it’s alive or not. I’ll eat it either way at this point,” Stryg licked his small fangs.

“Uhhhh, I’m not sure we have that,” she forced a smile. “Deer don’t live in Dusk Valley to my knowledge. But, who knows, maybe one of the travelling vendors brought some.”

“Maybe,” Stryg sulked.

“Let’s get going then,” Loh patted Maximus’ back.

Maximus pushed past the guards and crossed the bridge, Rhian followed next to him. The guards curiously watched them disappear in the menagerie of buildings and people.

“What was wrong with those people?” The guard asked his partner.

“Who knows? Aristocrats are all crazy people,” she shrugged.

~~~

Stryg’s ear twitched at the guard’s words. He pulled the reins and turned Rhian around.

“Master?” She asked.

“Where are you going?” Loh asked.

“One of those guards insulted you,” he said.

“Stryg, I’ve been meaning to talk to you about that,” Loh sighed.

“About guards insulting you? Does this happen often? But, you’re strong and they are not. Why would they risk offending you?”

“Oh, they wouldn’t insult me to my face, no sane person would. However, it isn’t strange for commoners to insult aristocrats behind their back, it’s just a part of life. It doesn’t really matter. We always put them in their place every now and then, anyway.”

“Then let it be now,” Stryg said.

“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about. You can’t go about picking a fight with people here. We are going to be staying in Mellow Bloom for a few days and I rather not have to deal with the locals, nor House Azol, who basically runs this city.”

“House Azol?” Stryg tilted his head. The name sounded familiar to him.

“They are a merchant family that runs several caravans between Mellow Bloom and Hollow Shade, mostly delivering mead. While they may be a Great House, truth be told, they aren’t a very influential family, but they still rule this city. So, let’s not antagonize their people.”

Stryg nodded in understanding, although he still really did not know much regarding Houses. He would have to look into it at some point.

Loh reached over and grabbed his shoulder, “The Cairn tribe may be prowling nearby. But, Valley tribes only have a few hundred raiders at best. No tribe would dare attack a city. We’ll be safe here, so just relax and stay out of trouble for a few days, okay?”

“Okay,” he looked away.

“I mean it, Stryg. No fights while we’re here. Promise me.”

“I promise,” he mumbled.

He didn’t like it, but he very well understood the concept of not attacking those who disrespected him. It was just that he really only stayed quiet when stronger foes disrespected him. Although, he could somewhat see the light in Loh’s words. Attacking an omega of a tribe could lead to the alpha attacking you, he supposed.

“Good,” Loh nodded, satisfied. “I’m going to get us some rooms in The Blue Meadow, it’s my favorite tavern in this city. You wanna come?”

“I’ll stop by later,” Stryg shook his head. “I’m going to go check out the food stalls.”

“Suit yourself, let’s go Max.”

Maximus trotted off, leaving Stryg and Rhian alone in the bustling street.

“Should we ask for directions, Master?” She asked.

“No need,” Stryg closed his eyes and breathed in deeply.

He could smell an overflowing amount of delicious aromas coming from the east. It had to be the food stalls.

“Let’s go over here,” Stryg pointed to the east.

Rhian glanced at the direction and began making her way down the street.

After a few minutes Rhian spoke up, “Hey, Master?”

“Hm?”

“Why do you want to eat venison? I’ve never heard you mention it.”

“Oh, well… It was my favorite food growing up.”

“Back in Blood Fang?”

“Yeah…” He sighed.

“You must miss your tribe a lot, huh?”

Stryg recalled the red canopy of Vulture Woods, running through the ashen grey trees and breathing in the sweet scent of sap. He could practically hear the sounds of the rushing river near his village. He remembered the great hunters of his tribe, how they moved about the underbrush, silent as a wolf, ready to pounce on their prey.

But, most of all, he remembered the faces of his tribe. Of how they stared at him, at his odd features and his small lanky form. Of how First Mother was always so hard on him for his failings, which were many. Of how the chief held hope in his eyes as he watched Stryg, only to be disappointed time and time again.

How Stryg dreamed of making them proud, showing the Mothers and hunters that he was worthy of their respect. Despite all the pain and shame, all he wanted was to show them that he was worthy. Worthy of being accepted by his tribe. That they had been wrong about him. Just for once, he wanted to not be the odd goblin.

“Master?” Rhian craned her neck back and crinkled her eyes in worry.

“Huh? Oh, yeah, I guess I miss them,” Stryg sniffed and rubbed his nose. “There’s a lot of food here, we should try as much as we can.”

“That sounds delicious,” Rhian smiled.

Stryg stopped by each food stall he could find, buying bits of pastries, fried meats, and all manner of spirits. Rhian took hesitant bites of each one, before devouring them within an instant. The festivities reminded him of the times he went out to eat with Feli.

Stryg wondered how Feli was doing. He missed so much about her, her scent, her coquettish laugh, her purple hair, her smile, her confidence, even how she sometimes tried cooking him spicy food. Stryg suddenly had a wonderful idea.

He sniffed out the few food stalls serving spicy dishes. He bought the food and began to feed them all to Rhian. After a few bite fulls Rhian’s face reddened. She declined having any more.

“Um, is this one spicy too?” Rhian eyed the food suspiciously.

“Who knows? Now open your mouth,” Stryg handed her a skewered piece of chicken dipped in a red glaze.

“I think I’m full,” she played with her black hair.

“I already bought it,” Stryg pushed the food towards her face.

“I don’t think I can handle anymore, my tongue is on fire,” she whined.

“I thought you were the best centaur? The best can handle anything, right? Or maybe you aren’t the best after all?” Stryg asked innocently.

“Ugh,” she scowled. “Alright, fine, dammit. Ahh,” she opened her mouth wide.

“Heh,” Stryg grinned and fed her the chicken kebab.

Rhian winced at the flavor.

“So, how is it? Is it tasty?”

“Ish hawwwt!” Rhian mumbled as she chewed with teary eyes.

“Remember, Ebon Hollow is strong. You may not be a goblin, but you are still part of this Sylvan tribe. We’re not supposed to cry over something like food. As chief, I’ll have to punish you if you do,” Stryg admonished.

Rhian grimaced as she swallowed, “My mouth is burning!”

A tear trailed down her cheek.

“What did I say? No crying allowed. Bad tear!” Stryg licked the tear and proceeded to bite the offending cheek.

“Agh, what the hell, Master! Not the face!” Rhian flailed around in a circle.

People scurried out of the way of the thrashing centaur and the goblin latched onto her back.

“Is that who I think it is?” A woman furrowed her brow.

“Stryg?” A voice called out.

The goblin unclenched his jaw and released his iron grip on the centaur. He glanced up at the two bystanders that remained in the street. The first was a pretty woman wearing a lovely blue dress. Stryg recognized her from the mage academy, but he could not recall her name. She was holding hands with a handsome young man in a fashionable dark green tunic and black plants.

“Clypeus Gale?”