Companion...Lost?

If I could describe my return to the capital in a word, that word would be 'conspicuous.'

Riding on Rockford's back, and with Moya seated directly behind me - though I imagine she was difficult to notice in comparison - it was a surprise to no one that our presence caused quite the stir, especially as traffic increased.

None, thankfully, screamed and pointed in horror - most were, instead, intrigued or confused by what they saw. This did tell me that whatever Rockford was, it was not a common enough sight - for better or for worse - for the average citizen to react to it in a way that was any more extreme than what I was already witnessing.

But then the question became: why had the guards of Slyrest reacted the way they had?

"Is this going to be ok?" the barely-heard voice of Moya sounded behind me as we moved swiftly along. "I thought you said you kept the beast hidden."

"Yeah, well, I've got a plan, don't worry." I, personally, wouldn't actually describe what I had in mind as a "plan," but...

As we approached the capital proper, I had Rockford fall into step behind the other mounted travelers, figuring the process would be slightly different from traveling on foot. If I just pretended very, very hard that I was just riding a horse, maybe the guards wouldn't ask too many questions.

"Good heavens!" I heard come from behind me, and found another traveler - a portly man seated atop a way-too-small-for-its-rider horse - looking over my stony steed excitedly. "What a bizarre mount you have there, friend! What on earth is it, may I ask?"

"Uhh...It's made of magic," I said after considerable hesitation.

"Magic, you say! Hmm, it does appear to be made of inorganic material, now that you mention it."

So he wasn't really sure if Rockford was alive or not, at first glance?

"It moves via magic," I clarified. "I think."

"You...think?" the man repeated, looking at me questioningly. It may have seemed like a blunder, but, for once, I had a plan that seemed promising.

"I paid a handsome price for this mount, you see. The man I bought it from assured me it was state-of-the-art magical technology!" I only half realized that my manner of speech was beginning to match the man I was speaking to.

"Ohh, I see!" he replied, apparently convinced. "I don't suppose you'd be willing to reveal your sources...?" He seemed hopeful, but I shook my head.

"Afraid not, my friend!" I replied with a wag of my finger. The man feigned frustration and laughed.

"I figured not, I figured not!"

The conversation concluded there, on a somewhat pleasant note. I figured this was a good enough plan of attack if questioned about Rockford - if I claimed I bought him, the authorities might think that I was just a gullible idiot, if whatever he turned out to be was something unsavory. The other traveler's interest in him only served to confirm it - naturally, if you didn't know what he was or what he was capable of, Rockford merely seemed like a stylish manner with which to travel.

Though, if they noticed my status as a rookie Adventurer, they might question how I was able to afford something so exotic...But then I could just claim to be the son of a rich painter, or some other nonsense. Whatever. I'd just improvise, dammit!

"Are you...ok?" came Moya's voice again, and I could feel her grip on my sides tighten slightly. I could only guess that she was feeling nervous, and my internal strife was making her think I was nervous, too.

"I'm fine. We'll be fine," I assured her, and I half believed it myself.

The line had progressed steadily, due to everyone in it possessing the necessary identification, and their mounted status only slowed the process down in the event they had cargo coming along with them, which needed inspected.

Already, I could tell we were being watched, and by more than just the curious public. As the distance between us and the guards decreased, the nature of my bizarre steed was revealed to them, long before it was actually our turn to check in. By the time it was, I imagine they knew exactly what they were going to say and how they were going to say it.

I, meanwhile, aggressively ignored their attention. I acted outwardly as if this stop was just the standard fair, in the vain hope that they would do the same.

"...Identification Card?" the official behind the desk - another demi-human with some vaguely canine features - asked, though I suspected that was mostly a preamble. I handed the card over nonchalantly, sticking to my belief that everything was hunky-dory. The official looked it over closely, and even seemed to squint at it at one point.

"...Ok, I'll bite," he began, holding the card to the side. "Where'd you get that thing?"

"What thing?" I replied immediately, trying my best to look confused. The official just stared, his expression unchanging. "Oh, this? It's my new mount, I just bought it! State-of-the-art magical technology, you see!" I repeated the line from before, acting like I was hoping he would ask about it just so I could show off.

"Right," he replied with a drawn out sigh. "Listen, kid, that thing is not some fancy toy; it's a magical construct used in assassinations."

"Good heavens!" I cried in faux-surprise, though inwardly I was, in fact, screaming quite genuinely. "B-But I assure you, the man I bought it from said it was merely used in transportation!"

"And who, pray tell, did you buy this from?"

"He was a traveling wizard, headed through Slyrest. His name was...uh...what was his name again...?" I explained, rapidly constructing my story as the words came out of my mouth. "Kvoth! Kvoth, that was it." I hope there wasn't a traveling wizard out there named Kvoth that might suffer from this...

"'Traveling wizard,' yeah right," the official scoffed. "You probably took some cultist's murder weapon right off his hands! And even paid him for it, for good measure."

"Cultist?" I repeated, my face turning pale. I knew Rockford might be bad news, but it had to be the cults again?!

"Yeah, cultist," he repeated, in turn, back to me. "That's who uses these damn things to take out people they don't like." The official waved my Card around dismissively. "Could be some rogue magic-user with knowledge of their rituals too, I suppose, but that's besides the point."

I feel like there was a lot to gain from this conversation, but the stress of once again being associated with these cultish types was keeping me from processing it. The fact that I wasn't already being hung out to dry because of my earlier introduction as an 'acolyte' was a miracle in itself. I could only hope they didn't keep a record, and now with my class having changed...

"Look, I'm not saying you're in trouble or anything," the official clarified, pointing the Card at me. "No real cultist would be stupid enough to parade that thing through the streets like that, let alone bring it straight to the front gates of the capital!"

"Then, we're all good...?"

"C'mon. You know damn well we can't let you keep that thing. It's dangerous, as I'm sure you can understand."

I relaxed a little, but the thought of losing Rockford, after so much time together...?

"I'm a Tamer, as you can tell from my Card. Can't I just...tame it, so I can use it in battle?"

"Does that thing look even remotely alive to you?" the demi-human asked with an exaggerated gesture in Rockford's direction. "It's made of rocks and powered by occult magic. If you can tame that, can you tame my mug, next, then?" He shook the mug in question with his free hand to drive the point home.

Rockford...wasn't tamable? Was this...a set up? Had I been had from the very start? This would definitely be the time for the trap to be sprung, if so, seeing as he was about to be taken away...

I looked to my mount with nervous anticipation...only to find him waiting in stony silence, as always. Somehow, this didn't feel like a setup, but maybe there was an angle I just wasn't seeing. Perhaps giving him up to the capital guard was the best option, just to be safe.

"I...guess if it's really that dangerous..." I muttered after a moment's contemplation, looking down at Rockford with genuine disappointment. Without his help - as much as it could be described as 'help' on his part - the kobold quest would not have gone as well as it did. Plus, he was an extremely strong weapon to have at my disposal, not to mention I would be returning to my unmounted ways of travel with him gone.

But, he was too dangerous to keep around with this knowledge, not that I had much of a choice in that regard now anyway. Plus, I wanted to be far, far away from anything remotely involved with these damn cults I keep hearing about - and almost being associated with.

"Good. I'll clear you through, but there'll be some guards waiting on the other side to take it off your hands...or help out if things go south," the official handed me back my Card with another exasperated sigh. "Honestly, I'm not sure how the hell that thing is being as complicit as it is, and I have a bad feeling about its cooperation going forward, so hurry along, please. For everyone's sake."