1.12 – Arrival

1.12 – Arrival

They arrived to Aradon just past noon. The three of them collected their belongings and set off for Tenet.

Walking through the busy streets of Aradon was a spectacle. She had never seen anything like the tall, vibrant architecture that packed Valhaur’s capital city. What surprised her most was the sheer density of everything. The buildings weren’t the only thing cram-packed; the people, too, swarmed the streets, milling about their daily lives.

Natalie felt out of place. Even Illesa had seemed like a big city compared to Tinford, but here was a real city. More people streamed through this one street than all of Tinford might hold. It was chaotic. As expected of the most populous city in the country. It was, after all, a civilization built atop a dungeon entrance ... one of only thirteen in the world. Of course half the world—or what felt like it—had settled down here.

Fortunately, the throng cleared out as they approached Tenet’s gated entrance. The three of them provided their names, and the guards checked a list then let them through. It wasn’t a high-security set up, just enough to keep Aradon’s general populace out. The Delving Academy was located deep in the city, not more than a ten minute walk from the dungeon entrance.

The guards provided directions, though they were redundant considering the signage everywhere. Today was intake day, and Natalie, Sofia, and Jordan weren’t the only ones lugging around backpacks and suitcases, seeking out their varying destinations. The non-newbies were obvious, compared to the regulars, the delvers who’d completed one or more semesters already. Natalie noted a mixture of expressions sent their way: amusement, annoyance, sometimes disdain. Natalie gave dirty looks right back to those who provided the last. She’d never been a person to ignore that sort of thing.

Which might cause problems for her, making the wrong enemies. While she, Sofia, and Jordan were nobodies, that wasn’t usually the case for a place like Tenet. The Delving Academy was as old as the dirt it was built atop. It’d existed for thousands of years ... because there’d always been need to train delvers. The dungeon had provided for the citizens of Valhaur—the world—since forever. Its student body, therefore, was similarly prestigious.

And sure, the Academy might not always have been these tall, gleaming stonebrick buildings, with well-maintained greenery and elegant magitech lamps scattering the pathways across the campus, but it’d existed in lesser forms. Like Aradon itself, it’d grown and grown, until it was one of the premier fixtures on the continent.

With a blanket covering her, it shouldn’t be too much of a problem, but if she threw the covers off at night? Natalie might give herself away. Which wouldn’t be the end of the world, but would introduce some questions—from a variety of sources—that Natalie would simply rather not answer. The odd, lewd details to her class, she’d prefer if nobody discovered besides Jordan.

Not to mention the embarrassment. Getting caught with morning wood would have plenty of that, just by its own.

Maybe it was happening each morning because she wasn’t taking care of it. For the past several days leading up to ship-off day, she’d been pretending it didn’t exist. Jordan, too, hadn’t brought it up much ... though they’d been kissing once a day, harvesting energy. That was its own mess. Natalie didn’t let her thoughts linger on how much she liked those kisses.

What a situation to be in, right? Natalie hadn’t come to terms with it. In the frenzy of the past two days, preparing to ship off for Tenet, and in the wake of her unexpected, intimate interactions with Jordan, Natalie had pushed the rather important thing between her legs to the back of her mind.

She’d have to come to terms with it, eventually. Both mentally, and practically speaking. Just, she wasn’t sure where to begin ... and pretending nothing had happened was so much easier.

Its introduction, too, had made her eyes start snagging to the curves of women with even more frequency than they had before—and Natalie had never been the most reserved girl in the first place. Though, it wasn’t something impossible to put out of mind. She could ignore the inappropriate thoughts. And thankfully, it wasn’t so big it couldn’t be physically hidden, either. Loose pants had done wonders for her. Thankfully, a relaxed style had already been her standard when it came to fashion.

Taking a deep breath, ready to meet her twenty-to-forty temporary roommates, Natalie walked into the squat, rectangular building that served as the first-year’s barracks.