Chapter 15: City of Aurethium
The City of Order
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Travel
On the road to Aurethium, Elad studied the ledger page: quantities, route, signatures, stamps and dates. He poured over the materials and amounts: barrels, crates, weights, routing codes. It was very detailed, without obvious contradictions or errors of any kind. Only the delivery and acceptance date was suspicious.
After three days of travel, Elad arrived at Aurethium, a gated city that’s main gates were closed. There was a line of travelers waiting their turn to pass through a smaller gate for those on foot, but nothing immediately obvious for riders, those leading pack animals or driving wagons.
Elad rode closer and spotted an area of tied off horses and donkeys on the far side of the waiting line. A sign directed people to leave their horses, pack mules and wagons here and proceed on foot to obtain or verify proper authorization. Elad dismounted, tied his horse, and joined the line.
Authorization Nightmare
A narrow booth stood just inside the pedestrian gate. A clerk sat behind a slotted window, quill in hand, ink pot at the ready. He did not look up as Elad approached.
“Documentation,” the clerk said, voice flat, eyes still on his ledger.
Elad produced the Shampton ledger page.
The clerk glanced at it for less than a second. “Not that. Entry documentation. Travel authorization, residency token, merchant license, or diplomatic writ.”
“I am here on royal business,” Elad said. “Urgent.”
“Royal business requires Form 17‑B, stamped by a recognized office. If you do not have Form 17‑B, you must obtain Form 12‑C to request Form 17‑B. Form 12‑C is available at the Office of External Affairs. They are closed today.”
Elad kept his tone neutral. “Is there an expedited process?”
“Yes,” the clerk said, still not looking up. “The Magical Seal Verification. It is the line behind you.”
Only then did the clerk finally look up, expression unchanged. “Next!”
Magical Seal Verification
Elad stepped away from the clerk’s booth and turned to face the second line. It stretched along the inner wall, moving at an even slower pace than the first. Elad joined the line and watched the process carefully.
A robed attendant stood beside a raised floor area, holding a crystal tablet that flickered with shifting symbols. Each traveler stepped up onto the raised floor area marked with magic symbols, and waited for the runes to react. Then they either received a curt nod or were redirected to a side area marked Further Review.
When his turn came, the attendant raised a hand to stop him.
“Present your seal.”
“I have none,” Elad said. “I am here on royal business.”
“All travelers must be verified.” The attendant gestured toward the raised. “Step through.”
Elad stepped up onto the platform circled with runes. The glyphs remained dim.
The attendant tapped the crystal tablet. “No civic registration. No merchant bond. No guild affiliation. No diplomatic imprint. You are not in the system.”
“I require entry to address a matter of state,” Elad said.
“Then you must obtain a provisional seal.” The attendant pointed to a small stone building beside the gate. “Provisional seals require a sponsoring citizen or a pre‑existing record in the civic registry.”
“I have neither.”
“Then you must apply for a temporary identity marker.” The attendant consulted the tablet again. “Processing time is currently three days.”
Elad remained still. “Is there an accelerated method?”
“Yes,” the attendant said. “If you possess a signature recognized by the city’s archives.”
“And how is that verified?”
The attendant nodded toward the interior of the city. “Inside.”
The line behind Elad pressed forward, impatient.
“Step aside,” the attendant said. “Next.”
Workaround
Elad stepped aside, letting the next traveler move through. The line pressed forward behind him, but he remained where he was, holding the ledger page in plain view.
“I am investigating a falsified merchant document,” Elad said, projecting his voice just enough for the attendant to hear without raising it. “It bears the seal of House Valcorin. I need to know which office handles such matters.”
The attendant froze.
House Valcorin was not a name spoken lightly. Their influence touched trade, law, and civic administration. A falsified document under their seal was not merely a clerical issue. It was a criminal offense with political implications.
Elad extended the ledger page.
The attendant did not take it. He simply stared at the crest, then at Elad.
“One moment, please,” the attendant said. He tapped the crystal tablet twice, then again, harder.
He stepped away from the ring of runes and signaled to a guard stationed near the inner gate. The guard’s expression shifted from boredom to alarm. He jogged off at once.
Within minutes, a constable arrived, uniform crisp, posture straight, eyes sharp. His badge bore the sigil of Aurethium’s Civic Enforcement Office.
“Who raised the Valcorin flag,” the constable asked.
The attendant pointed at Elad. “He presented a document with their seal. Claims it may be falsified.”
The constable approached Elad with measured steps. “Your name?”
“Elad of Telius.”
The constable’s eyes widened in recognition. “Is Garland still around?.”
“Yes, he provided the horse to get me here in fact.”
The constable nodded once, the tension in his shoulders easing. “I am Constable Pruitt. Garland and I worked together when Telius was still a Barony. If you are here on his authority, that is sufficient for me.”
Elad handed him the ledger page. Pruitt examined it carefully, tracing the crest, the routing codes, the date.
Pruitt said. “This is very serious. A falsified document under a noble house’s seal crosses both legal and diplomatic boundaries.”
He folded the ledger and returned it to Elad.
“You will need a foreign investigator’s pass. It grants temporary authority to operate within the city’s administrative and commercial sectors. It also bypasses standard entry procedures.”
Pruitt signaled the guard who had accompanied him. “Fetch a Form 44‑I and the diplomatic ledger.”
The guard sprinted off.
Pruitt turned back to Elad. “You will still be subject to our laws, but you will not be hindered by the usual bureaucracy. Aurethium takes document fraud seriously. Especially when it touches a house like Valcorin.”
The guard returned with a small leather‑bound book and a stamped form. Pruitt filled it out with practiced efficiency, signed it, and pressed an official seal into the wax.
He handed the pass to Elad.
“This grants you entry and investigative access. Present it at any office, guild, or archive. They will comply.”
Elad accepted the pass with a nod. “Thank you.”
Pruitt stepped aside, clearing the path to the inner gate. “Welcome to Aurethium. And tread carefully. If someone is forging Valcorin seals, they will not appreciate your presence.”
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Bureaucracy as a weapon! I really enjoyed the logic of this piece.