Chapter 4.1

Syr had it marked down that being on the ground of a city like Clearharbor really made it clear just how large such a place actually was when wandering through it.

The view from the airship may not have downplayed the sheer scale of the coastal metropolis, but now that she had a chance to see more of it as she and Soren took the tram to get from where the Silver Scale had been to their next destination. And since Soren had been so kind as to let Syr study the city map on his Deck while they waited, she was beginning to get an idea of that scale into her mind.

The Guild District made up a suitable section of the city, one of the eight that were marked out. And within that larger District were, following suit, a number of Wards, at her count around four within its demarcation. And following from those were of course the individual streets that spanned those Wards and their associated businesses and locales.

It was all almost a bit overwhelming to consider, yet comprehensible enough that she was sure she’d get it down given enough time to familiarize herself with the city’s layout. The fact it formed a grid did make it pretty easy in full retrospect.

“Got to admire Lagunan city planning,” she commented as she passed Soren’s Deck back to him. “Makes something even quite complex easy to get a handle of.”

“I’ve been in Vaniran forest-cities a few times… but I definitely get what you mean,” Soren chuckled, Syr slowly nodding along. “Anyway, we’re headed over from the Guild District to the Industrial District. Most of the stuff there is focused on production, so lots of facilities for factories and other things. Plus, it’s where basically all the smiths work, since it keeps them close to material supplies and what not.”

“You mentioned a street called Bellows Street.”

“That I did. Bellows Street is pretty much the hub for all things forged and mechanical in Clearharbor. Lots of Vulcans and Dwarves running the show there, so the place is a pretty eclectic mix of their architecture to boot. For more direct fighters like me, it’s a regular hangout.”

“I’d imagine. Though I’d imagine the people who work on things like magical staffs wouldn’t quite be in such an area.”

“Ahhaaa…. Yeah. That’ll need to be figured out.”

The tram came to a stop at their destination not long after. And the change in environment was immediate, a hard, stark contrast to the buildings of the Guild District.

Off in the distance, towering spires of industry rose above the rooftops of the tightly huddled buildings surrounding the tram station. The streets were just as filled with delivery vehicles as they were people moving along the sidewalks, everything going in and out of the different structures for one reason or another. Syr found the idea akin to watching the inner workings of a living being in some form.

Yet she was more wowed by the difference in feeling of things. If Ainsel Avenue had been a near-cry to her homeland, this place was proving to be even more foreign to her than the Dynoriath construction of the other parts of the city. The buildings were all fantastical stonework with exterior carvings that displayed their origin: The elegant, curving runic marks of the Vulcans, or the hard, direct runes of the Dwarves. Rooftops coursed with endless stretches of piping and bellowing smokestacks, many of the pipes glowing with lines of the ether no doubt coursing through them and into the facilities below.

One could only imagine the kind of unique radiance the place would have during the night, lit up end to end with semi-natural ether lighting provided by the endless steam works coursing through it.

“Wow… it’s like every part of the city is a place all its own,” Syr awed as she looked across the stretch of the district from the view area of the tram station. She made note of the visible high-rises of the central district that had no doubt been the field of the encounter with the Drake, knowing that beyond it was the gleaming port district. And just above some of the buildings she could also make out the tops of the Alfish architectural zones, forming natural canopies just as spread out as the rows of buildings of other styles.

And somewhere mixed in there she knew there had to be a residential district of some kind, homes of families of all sorts with smaller shops and whatnot mixed within the suburban sprawl of it all.

“And Clearharbor ain’t even the biggest city in Laguna,” Soren chuckled. “That honor goes to Aurora. Place is so damn big it was built out of several smaller cities that happened to be in the same relative location that kinda just melded together over time.”

“I’d love to see it one day,” breathed Syr. “And more than that too. Places like Rubicon, the Highlands, even places beyond Aeonia.”

“Hehehe, well, you’ll get the chance no matter what kind of Freelancer you become. Now c’mon, let’s get a ride over to Bellows Street! If I take much longer that bull is gonna give me an earful!”

“That bad huh?”

“You’ll see soon enough.”