Chapter 296 - Donning the Mask

At first, Char Char couldn’t make out the words being spoken by Firuzeh’s lips. However as Char Char leaned in the words suddenly became audible and clear, as if she had been let into a private space.

“Act natural.” Firuzeh said, “Don’t let them know we’re talking.”

Char Char barely avoided instinctively looking over to Corbin and Kai, who were occupied at the other side of the room and not looking their way. She realized with a start that Firuzeh had activated her power, Conspire, to hide their conversation from their companions.

“Firuzeh?” Char Char asked with a twinge of concern.

“We can’t speak long, or He will know.” Firuzeh kept her eyes on the map as she rolled up the scroll, saying in a soft, calm voice, “I am being watched constantly, but he can’t see me in this concealed space.”

“Who?”

“I need your help, Char Char.” Firuzeh said, ignoring Char Char’s question out of brevity, “When you find the White Maiden, ask her in secret to help me. Tell her I will do anything, if she can free me from His control.”

“If He finds out I told you about Him I will be punished.” The elegant woman tied the rolled up map with a string, only the slightest trembling in her lips betraying her inner turmoil, “I have no one else I can turn to, Char Char…”

“Okay.” Char Char nodded, “You can count on me.”

As soon as Char Char agreed she felt the bubble of secrecy around her dissipate.

“Let’s get on our way.” Firuzeh said to Char Char with a normal tone as she placed the scroll in a compartment of her bag.

“We’re ready.” Corbin announced, “A public carriage has been arranged to pick us up.”

Kai hoisted a leather bag on his back, nodding to the girls.

Neither of the men had noticed the private conversation between them. Char Char stood next to Firuzeh, her mind buzzing as she digested the words.

“How is your mask?” Firuzeh asked, snapping Char Char out of her daze.

“It’s fine—.” Char Char had taken her ceramic mask off when they’d entered the room. She reached down to her waist where it was hanging as she realized that Firuzeh was not just prompting her to put back on the mask, but reminding her of the secrecy of their conversation.

Char Char held the black mask in her hands, looking down at its matte surface. It had two holes for the eyes and a protrusion for her nose. It was only a half mask, leaving her lips and jaw exposed, with a leather strap that connected on either side. Despite its simplicity it was quite well-crafted, sculpted in the shape of an androgynous face and comfortable to wear.

Although the mask did not have a mouth, from the shape of the cheeks and eyes Char Char felt that it gave off a distinct personality. Youthful and strong, cool and calculating.

Char Char didn’t like how it looked on her. It didn’t feel like a mask that reflected her personality, but perhaps that was the point.

She spent a moment donning the mask, using the time to reflect on the brief conversation that had only taken a few seconds from start to finish.

Firuzeh was being watched. She had used the honorific “He”, that in the Exalted world was used to denote immortals at the angel level and higher. The tension in her voice conveyed helplessness and desperation as she reached out to Char Char for help.

As Firuzeh walked over to the door Char Char saw her mentor in a new light. To Char Char she was elegant, confident and strong, a person who could handle anything thrown at her with grace and composure. Char Char looked up to her as an example of someone she wanted to be like in the future.

But there was a crack in that armour that revealed a darker secret, one which Firuzeh was forced to hide from the world, one that was watching to make sure Firuzeh didn’t step out of line.

What did that person want from Firuzeh? How dangerous was He? How long had Firuzeh been under His control? From the tone of her voice, Char Char had to assume that this was something that Firuzeh had been dealing with for a long time.

These questions buzzed in Char Char’s head. She wished that Firuzeh had told her more, but at the same time she understood the brevity. The more Firuzeh exposed, the more chance there was that that person would find out. Firuzeh revealed only as much as she needed to Char Char to convey her request: A secret plea to the White Maiden for help.

Char Char maintained a cool expression as she joined the group, her mask snug on her face. She pushed the issue to the back of her mind, acting natural as they exited from the private room into the hallway.

The attendant accompanied them further down the hall, leading the way for only a short distance before she opened a doorway that led onto a quiet, shadowed street. A carriage was already waiting for them. They boarded it quickly, all four of them sitting in the passenger compartment, and then they were off.

~

The city walls loomed above the carriage as it rumbled out the southern city gates. The city continued past the southern gates, having long outgrown its original walls. They passed through bustling markets and packed streets, weaving their way through the winding streets that followed the curve of the hills.

As they traveled the four storey buildings grew shorter and less densely packed, and the cobblestone roads made way for packed dirt. The roads grew quieter, the chirps and songs of birds floated through the air.

Before long the idyllic rolling hills of southern NianXing came into view. Fields of green clover and grass, sectioned with rows of planted trees and hedges. Farmhouses dotted the landscape. Flocks of white sheep grazed peacefully, overlooked by shepherds who were just small dots in the distance.

Once they left the city and had a clear view of their surroundings Kai hopped out to ride on top with the driver. Firuzeh also permitted Char Char to exit the carriage and join Kai, opting herself to stay inside with Corbin whose attention was deep in business documents.

The beaming summer sun beat down on them as Char Char kept her eyes on the roads, on the lookout for any unusual or suspicious travelers. Their use of the import shop and their quiet exit from the city was a near certain way of losing any tail that might have been tracking them.

After an hour of peaceful travel across farmland and pastures, the relatively flat terrain made way for rolling hills. The road became more curvy, weaving through the grassy terrain on a slightly upward slope. Sometimes they would come to the peak of a hill and get a view of the area around them. Sometimes they would travel in the valleys.

Before long the white line of a low stone wall became visible ahead. The wall followed the curve of a ridge, blocking the view as the carriage traveled down the road under it. They went parallel to it for quite a ways, and Char Char noted that it was constructed from multiple sections, as if built at different times by different groups. Some sections were made of rough stone blocks, others were finished with smooth plaster. Some pieces were clearly just functional, while others had some decorative flourishes.

Overall though, Char Char thought the walls looked a little run down.

Small wooden and stone outposts were placed along the wall at intervals, presumably for the use of guards to keep an eye out on the perimeter, though the ones that Char Char could see were empty. Again, the quality of these outposts varied with the sections.

“There’s not that many outposts.” Kai noted, “And I don’t see any guards on them.”

“You know, I don’t think the guards use them. Maybe at night.” The driver said, “The city is quite safe, overall.”

“The walls are all different styles, too.” Char Char noted curiously.

“Each estate maintains their own section of the wall, the city has been around for several hundred years and has grown quite a bit.” The driver said, “These older sections are generally more crude. Also the outer walls are not as decorative as the inner ones.”

“Inner ones?” Char Char asked.

“Ah. You’ve never been inside?” The driver asked, “Well, you’ll soon see why it’s called Hasan Walled City.”

The man chuckled at Char Char’s curious frown as he didn’t elaborate. Before long they turned off the main road, following the path up the slope.

They climbed up the hill to a set of impressive wooden gates that had a large signboard engraved with, “Hasan Walled City” in bold brush script.

A pair of guards greeted them and checked their documentation, before opening the gates and letting them pass.

In her studies Char Char had read a little about the walled city. It was built in a shallow, wide valley, surrounded by hills that formed a natural ‘wall’ around the area. Due to its central but secluded location it became a popular place for rich and powerful families to live, separate from the more bustling and populated cities like Plunes.

Knowing this, Char Char had expected an area similar to the Whitehare Crescent neighborhood that her grandfather lived in - Spread out with lots of greenery and long roads leading up to and through each estate. Grand mansions surrounded by gardens and scenic views.

Her eyes widened as they passed through the gates. The gates were at the top of the hill, looking out at the valley where the Walled City spread out before her.

“It’s like a maze!” Char Char gasped.