About Crystals and Stars (On hold)

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A/N: Thanks for the votes and comments! I hope to keep you guys entertained. Have fun reading!^^

The Crystal of Stars was said to be hidden inside of a mountain on Crystal Island. The place were human life came to be, so they say. An holy place, the birthplace and cradle of the first Crystal's daughter; the cradle, which had been soaked in the blood of thousands claiming the sole right over the holy ground.

This was his destination.

After burrowing a warrior's uniform and a cape in the barracks, belonging to the Ikaruga estate, Shimon had traveled with nothing but his pack and the new, worn-out clothes through the city of Tsuchimikado. The city of the Ikaruga reign, known for its sand washed buildings, its broad and flourishing main street and the narrow buildings, spreading over the city, overreached the horizon.

He had been lucky to come this far without anyone noticing him. This was enough repayment for the itching skin beneath his lend clothing. The leather armor on his right arm was slightly out of shape and the one on the left slid at its end over the elbow at every move, thanks to the porous structure of the strings holding it. But at least the scaled leather armor on his stomach and legs were a good fit over the his shirt and trousers. The Jin-Baori (1) in the red color of the Tsuchimikado crest was comfortable but heavy on his shoulders. To hide his identity Shimon wore a hooded cape over his attire as disguise. One, that raised the temperature under this cover to an higher degree.

Even after this short time wearing it, he felt hot. The thin material of the shirt couldn't make up for all the thick armor covering it. He wondered, how their warriors were to bear this heat all day.

But for the sake of his cover, he had to get accustomed to the humid heat clouding his body beneath the armor.

If everything went according to plan, his quest might take only a few days and he could rid of the scratching material then.

His plan was to head out of the city to the harbor, so he could border a warrior ship to Crystal Island to learn about the Crystal. Shimon believed, the only ones knowing more about the Crystal than the things told in lore and by fanatics, were the men fighting to its feet. Hopefully, he would gain enough insight to the Crystal's structure and form to aid him on his quest.

Unfortunately the harbor was almost twenty miles away from the city, so that going on foot would take at least two days. To cut it to less than one day, he wanted to rent a horse at the stables next to the gate with a part of the savings, he had taken with him, when he left the Ikaruga estate. (2)

The main street was busy. Merchants shouted out the prices of their goods. Beggars sat at the edge of the street, pleading for money in their old, rotten and stinking rags. Children squeezed themselves through the crowd playing tag, farmers dragged their carts through the narrow spaces left aside from the market.

Usually Shimon wouldn't cross the street alone. A circle of guards would guide him through the masses with him being in the center and having at least two feet of space to each of the guard.

Now he could be a part of the crowd, which he had only watched over the head of the guards until today.

He liked the feeling of being under cover. It felt like a freedom, he never knew was there.

Yet, he wasn't unfocused enough to stop and stare in awe, enchanted by this lively feeling. He knew, he had a quest. He should focus on it. He could enjoy this feeling of being anonymous for once on his way.

So he made his through the crowd and followed the path, leading out of the city.

All of a sudden he felt an impact against his side, that made him waver on his feet. Looking down he saw a child, watching him with sadness and regret. It bowed its head and loudly exclaimed, "Gomenasai!"