NEMO: Into The Depths

Chapter 17: Tapping Marrow

As the carriage rumbled over the ancient limestone bridges, Elyza's gaze swept over the tranquil river flowing beneath, its surface shimmering in the soft light of dawn. "This is not the fastest way to the border," she stated, turning to Alex sitting next to her.

They had left Rexham a day before, travelling with a farmer who was heading to his village, currently napping in the wagon. The sound of the wheels rolling over stone, their clack, melded beautifully with the roar, bloop, splash that flowing water made, creating music that Alex was busy enjoying, till his partner caught onto his antics.

He shifted in his seat, meeting her gaze with a sheepish grin. "About that," he began, rescinding his legs, his posture straightening up, as he continued, "I have a personal request that I need to take care of, and since we were already heading this way, I may have guided us a bit askew."

He stared at her stoic face, trying to decipher what she was thinking. Thankfully, her ears drooped as her eyes narrowed, and she asked, "Would we still be able to reach the border within two days?"

"Definitely."

"We are already a day ahead according to my schedule, so there is no reason why we can not stop and complete your request," Elyza acknowledged, her ears returning to their usual slant as her eyes scanned the treeline, much more vigilant than the day before. "What has been asked for you?" She prodded, and Alex could only sigh as he replied.

"One of my friends, eh, more of an acquaintance, has dropped off the map in the town that's coming up," he began, his expression one of concern. "She's a reporter, works closely with the House, though we met unofficially through her food column in the Luminae Express, has a habit of disappearing for a week at a time."

Elyza thought for a moment before adding to her question, "Is this going to be troublesome?"

He shrugged, running a hand through his hair, answering after a bit, "There's a highly acclaimed restaurant that was set up a short while back in the town, and I suspect that she's gone and done the thing again, got herself caught up in the excitement again, probably gorging herself. But there's been rumours as well surrounding the town, so I'm a bit cautious."

"Rumours?" Elyza's ears shot upwards, her interest piqued.

"People have a... tendency to drop off the face of the earth there, or that's what others say, and even though I'm wary of rumours, I can't disregard them entirely, considering I've been part of multiple of them and I know the truth they hide," Alex summarised, leaning his head against the canvas sheets of the wagon, staring at the blue sky stretching endlessly above.

"What is the town called?"

"Rameys... I think, I might be mangling it a bit, it's a logging town, though a lot of traffic has been flowing through it in the past year, so it may be a bit more aesthetically pleasing than the surrounding towns."

"Do we..." Elyza began, her lips pursing, her ears perked upwards, full of hope, "get the opportunity to partake in some culinary delights of said restaurants."

"Oh, I'm disappointed you even had to ask," he joked, grinning as he closed his eyes, wanting to get some rest while he could, and his partner understood the feeling.

The paved road curved and bent besides the river as the caravan travelled along it, opposing the flow of the river, as they travelled on the edge of the trees. There were fewer interruptions in this leg of the journey than they encountered the day before; A fallen tree that Elyza lifted without even stopping the wagon; a goblin hunting party which Alex quickly scared off with a few thunderclaps; and a lost wolf pup that they both travelled with till its pack arrived.