Pilgrim 6 by Harmon Cooper

Author:Harmon Cooper
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Boycott Books, LLC
Published: 2022-07-26T07:00:00+00:00

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Danzen noticed something as they transitioned to the barren land separating the foothills of the Cadohnan Mountains with Tachibana.

While they hadn’t reached the sea beyond the desert, something about the way the moonlight traced across the dunes gave everything an oceanic visual to the point that it almost felt like a mirage. As different as they were, and as still as the desert could be, there was something that united the two.

Danzen thought about this as they funneled onto the stone path used by merchants, the two yokai dragging their feet by this point, both full from their meal. The stone pathway was wide, easily able to accommodate two carriages side by side. As they continued onto the windswept stones, Danzen noticed masonry tools and larger boulders in the process of being shaped into steps. They’d already encountered a camp of laborers a few minutes back, indicating that the elders of Tachibana were looking to expand the road.

Danzen recalled there had been discussion of this the last time he’d been in Tachibana, a desire from both the council of elders and the townspeople to continue to open up their seaside city.

Predictably, much of the discussion had been centered around who would be tasked with constructing the road, and how much they would be paid. From what Danzen had heard, these debates had

gone on for half a dozen years, reaching stalemates and starting again numerous times. Royal emissaries had gotten involved, and while Danzen had never taken a mark this far out, there had been contracts for the Brotherhood as well.

By the looks of the laborers and the start of a new pathway, whatever conflicts the city was having at the time had been solved, humans yet again acting as both the seeds of progress and the roots of hindrance.

Jelmay was quiet for once, the bakeneko now with his demon bear hide on his shoulders and his head, his eyes shining bright. He was in a human form that resembled his portly bakeneko shape, one that Danzen hadn’t seen him take before. Kudzu had decided to remain a kitsune, and as she trotted along, Danzen could tell by the way she pulled her paws off the stone steps that they were getting cold. At one point, he stopped and bent down to see for himself, the stone cool to the touch.

About an hour later, they came upon a carriage heading in the opposite direction. This was followed by several others, guards as well on camels, indicating that this was a caravan.

“Now that’s how we should be traveling,” Jelmay said, breathless as always. “I have wads of kip in my pocket, yet I’m out here walking in the desert like a penniless gaki. Bah! Makes no sense. They need to hurry and build the carriage stations or whatever village they’re working on back there at the start of the desert.”

Danzen thought back to the laborers they’d passed. He hadn’t seen signs of a settlement being built, but creating one did make sense.

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