Old Joe starts of at an easy pace, checking every few seconds if Nillian is still alright. Then, after a few minutes, he seems to gather courage, and speeds up a bit. They take the first turn very smoothly, and Old Joe begins to relax. He begins to tell Nillian a bit about the city. Because of the wind at first not everything is clear, but Nillian moves the bench closer, and soon can hear everything that is being told.
"Stokes it not a very old city. It started originally as a small mining village, with some minor mines in the neighbourhood. Most of the real mining is done at the two big mines. Because of this Stokes tried to convert itself to a smelting town. But as the mining towns did most of their smelting themselves, this did not take off immediately. But we persisted, and slowly more and more ore came our way, and Stokes became the city you now see before you."
The cart rides further, and soon they reach another part of town. Slowly the buildings on both sides of the road become lower, and the streets become more crowded. Nillian can hear sounds of hammering and the sizzling of metal.
"In this part of the town the metal gotten from the smelters is fashioned into tools and machine parts. We use steam engines a lot, but they are often older models. Only in Kataras the real modern steam engines are used, here we have to suffice with the leftovers."
It seems that Old Joe has forgotten that Nillian isn't a new worker in Stokes, and is giving his standard speech. This is reinforced by his next remarks.
"If you want some cheap working tools you best go to Thomas Blackeye, over there. He has a special price for newcomers, just to get them started. Ben over there does the best work, but is very expensive. You should never go to Will, the shop with the sickle in front of it over there. He does very sloppy work, and his tools break quite often. The other blacksmiths are alright, I guess. Over there are the best shops for food and such, you can get good stuff there."
The tour takes them through several different neighbourhoods, each one described in a stream of descriptions, tips and anecdotes from Old Joe. Nillian picks up quite a lot little facts and gossip about the goings-on in Stokes.
As they reach the more grimy parts of Stokes Nillian sees several human-hybrids walking on the street, mingling into the crowd. But here it looks like they are accepted, not like in Kataras where they are avoided as much as possible. Because Old Joe hasn't said anything about them, Nillian decides to ask.
"Are there many human-hybrids in Stokes?"
"Hmm, hybries? There are a few, they make good workers in the mine and in the smelters, due to their strength and discipline. They are not afraid to do honest work, unlike some other people. I heard there are spurned in the other cities something I can never understand..."
"Yes, I noticed that. I think people in the cities are reminded by the hybrids of their own mortality. And instead of being comforted by the fact that they can have a good life even when they lose a limb, they become afraid it will also happen to them, and therefore become afraid..."
"That sounds about right. Of course here in Stokes we do not have that problem, as all miners and smelters are faced with disfigurement and death every day. So we are used to it."
It remains silent for a while, both Nillian and Old Joe thinking their own thoughts. By then they have passes through most of the city, and get to the city centre. Old Joe breaks the silence, and starts again with some information.
"This here is the new city centre. The old city centre was destroyed in a fire a long time ago, so since then all the houses here are made of stone. In the city centre all the administrators of the city live and work. The city hall lies just up ahead, it is the large building with the many arches. There the city council takes seat, and you can go for permits and such. There are two large churches in the city centre, which give sermons at regular intervals. A lot of the storage is done outside the city, but the warehouses that are in the city are located here. There are also a few restaurants and bars here, but they are quite expensive."
"That is good to know. Are all records kept at the city hall, or is there another office for that?"
"I guess everything is kept by the city council, but I'm afraid I don't know much about that. You will have to ask them about it yourself."
"Ah, of course, never mind."
The cart continues its journey, and ten minutes later they are back at the inn. Nillian gingerly disembarks, after having sat for such a long time. Old Joe rides his cart a bit further, and parks it in a nearby alleyway. Then he returns to Nillian, holding his cap in his hands, his camaraderie during the journey replaced by a nervous demeanour.
"I hope the tour was to your liking good sir? I didn't bore you or say anything inappropriate?"
"No, no, you did a wonderful job! Thank you very much, I learned a lot today. What do I owe you?"
Old Joe looks uncomfortable, and mutters something about 'a pittance'. Nillian frowns, takes out his money pouch and removes some golden pounds. From Old Joe's eyes he gathers that it is much more than he had expected. But he presses the coins in Old Joe's hands and tells him that he deserved it. Old Joe thanks Nillian profoundly, and then walks back into the inn with his head high, probably going to boast about giving 'the grand tour of Stokes to a noble from Kataras'.
Nillian decides to dine out, and walks towards the city centre, where he dines at one of the 'expensive' restaurants as Old Joe called them. He has a lovely meal of potato pancakes, a roast lamb with mushrooms and a piece of cheesecake for desert. After dinner he returns to the inn, where he drinks a quiet glass of ale. Then he retires for the night, planning an early start the next morning. It almost seems to become a habit for him...
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