“We’re here,” Clark said, “Irris city limits.” The northwestern border gate of Irris was a fairly simple barrier for the size of the city it protected. It was a large wooden fence approximately 18 feet tall, built like a log cabin, with the entrance and exit from Irris being a large square in the middle wide enough for a half dozen horses to fit in side-by-side. As far as either of the two could see, the only things of note right outside the city were a windy cobblestone road and a great deal of pine trees; this structure was clearly not built for defense, as it didn’t seem there was much that needed to be defended against. “Right,” Arthur replied, “and if we take the fourth dirt road on the right in these woods, we’ll be on our way to The Black Cairn?” “Indeed. Are you nervous?” Arthur knew that Clark already knew the answer to that question, but also that the insect wouldn’t ask something like that for laughs, so there must have been a good reason behind it. “Yeah. Are you?” “Definitely. This is a big step, even if this area looks nicer than Irris. Not like an actual big step, ‘cause my feet are the same size they’ve always been, just like this is something new that I haven’t done before.” Even though he was still concerned for his friend, Arthur couldn’t help smiling a little at his friend’s explanation of an obvious expression. “We could go to Fletcherville or something if you’d like, you know. We don’t have to do this.” “Not literally, but I feel like I must. These keys unlock something important, and they may help you with your memory.” Clark noticed Arthur start to feel guilty, so he added “plus, like I said, this should be interesting. Are [i]you[/i] okay with all this?” “Yeah. I think a lot of it is just nerves, that and I feel bad leaving Morris and Marissa. They’ve been good to us.” “They’re great people and they helped us out a lot. They wouldn’t have done that if they didn’t know we’d be okay here. We should move forward and make sure their efforts weren’t in vain.” “Right.” After saying this, Arthur adjusted his helmet slightly. It was a simple steel helmet that lacked any fancy ornamentation, but still covered the back and top of his head effectively. “Let’s go to this Cairn.” ----- The night before Arthur and Clark’s departure from Irris, Marissa walked into her husband’s forge, watching him make armor for the amnesiac. “You know, if you keep this up, you won’t have any energy for tomorrow’s dinner rush,” she teased. “I could say the same about your journey in the publishing field,” Morris retorted as he took a break from his work. More sorrowfully now, he continued. “Those two, though, this journey of theirs reminds me so much of Marvin’s. I feel like if I helped our boy more before he left-” His wife cut him off, enveloping him in a hug. “Don’t blame yourself, dear. It all happened so fast we couldn’t even meet the people he was with. I’m sure wherever Marv is, he feels the same way.” “I know,” the big man agreed, returning Marissa’s gesture. His voice still contained sadness, but there was a small hint of acceptance as well. “It’s still hard though.” “I know, dear. I miss him too.” After a few moments of holding each other, the husband and wife separated, with Morris returning to his crafting and the woman returning to their restaurant, finding more items to pack for the amnesiac and cricket. ----- In the early afternoon after Arthur and Clark left Irris, three individuals were having a conversation in the vestibule of an old, disused jail building in the city. Gordon, Roland and the Chief didn’t want anyone to disturb them, so this was the perfect place to talk. “...and our boss has agreed to create a story for his escape,” Gordon concluded. “I am grateful; please tell Edgar his generosity is appreciated” the Chief responded. “Of course,” the tall man said with a nod of his head. “This benefits us both, after all.” “Certainly. Just be sure to kill those two. I don’t care about the keys, but nobody makes a fool out of me in my city,” the City Guard’s leader said as he opened the door. The lockup was empty, save for one cell, and it was that cell’s door that the Chief proceeded to unlock as he spoke to the prisoner. “Remember, if you hurt anyone [i]besides[/i] Arthur and Clark, this deal is off. We can’t have people asking questions.” “Yeah, yeah, yeah” the prisoner replied, sounding more bored than anything else. He then turned his attention to Edgar’s men and continued speaking, this time much more eagerly. “Remember, I don’t care how you end Arthur, but the cricket is mine. I’ve been looking forward to that snack.” The frog menacingly licked his lips, looking forward to his gruesome fare.