As the night begins to fall a carriage approaches a walled town in the middle of a vast grassland.

Man-tall wheels, a metal structure at least a palm thick, the carriage seems to be designed to carry heavy loads yet its cabin is barely enough to host someone for a night. The two horse-like creatures that carry it seem indifferent to the thick, dark garb entirely covering them. Both figures, not much bigger than the average horse, effortlessly draw what should take many more beasts to even make a move of such structure. As peculiar as the rest of his transport, the impressive coachman stands at least man and half tall, with strongly defined factions, abundant body hair and a bulky body. Outside of a detailed piece of armor in his right shoulder, the man wears a fairly plain set up for a traveler: a long sleeve shirt of fine white wool, brown long pants of coarse fabric and a long black poncho with motives in silver and gold depicting battles between men and large beasts. His disposition seems to be relaxed, making a stark contrast with the deep marks on his face.

The town has only one gate that remains closed, with no exception, during the night. It is conformed by two slabs of metal covered with lance-like protrudings pointing at arbitrary directions. Keeping a safe distance of such entrance, three other carriages await the next day for the doors to open. As the strange carriage joins the group, the other coachmen leave their carriages to greet the newcomer. As the recent arrival becomes recognizable, the small group joyfully hails him with the word “Maeste”. In exchange, the man nods towards them with a smile. After some pleasantries, all individuals return to their carriage to spend the night. Locks and chains can be heard from each carriage as its occupants prepare for their slumber. As this is happening, the tall coachman, without moving from his sit, crosses his arms and lowers his head as he closes his eyes.

The other carriages, not unlike the town’s doors, are fortified with thick walls and thorns of rusted metal. Unlike the new arrival, the other carriages were large enough to host a family and in front of them, a steel barrel with wheels seem to power the vehicle.

As the sun sets, filaments, similar in size and shape to an adult human finger, begin to glow on every corner of each cab, except the newly arrival; and from posts, evenly distributed, above the town walls. The warm yellow light is more than enough to properly illuminate the surrounding areas.

In the middle of the night, the silence and wind accompanying the group is interrupted by a noise. Something is encircling the carriages. Then, the rustle of grass, a struggle, and the whining of beasts return to the night its silence. Afterwards, there are no movements or sounds until the morning comes.

The town is located in the middle of a vast plain with forest, hills and mountains only visible at significant distances. Tall walls, at least five bodies tall, covered in thick bushes with red flowers and enormous thorns, clothed with smaller ones, surround the place. The entrance, facing the sunrise, is guarded by two men.

A small bell above the door, rings, marking the start of the new day, and the preparations to open the doors. First, the doors are slightly open so that one of the guards could come out. Once out, the man inspect the carriages one by one. As he approaches the last carriage he sees the strange man deep in sleep and next to his cart a pile of eight burned corpses of what seems to be some sort of large dogs. Carefully, the guard knocks on the massive carriage whose rider immediately awakes to greet his visitor with a grin. Acknowledging the friendly gesture, the guard tries to act unconcerned, returning to his usual position in front of the gates. Once in place, the guard signals the other warden to fully open them so the four carriages may enter. The first three carriages turn to the left, while the last carriage keeps going straight to the middle of the town.

The town is build in a perfect circle surrounding a simple fountain embraced by a lush tree whose shadow cover its surroundings. Clean and tidy, every house and establishment was built in a sober and monotonous style with plain white walls, one frontal door, two floors, two frontal windows on each, with a small frontal balcony. Growing from every ceiling there is a carpet of tall grass with small white flowers. Only the decorative pots and small signs in front of each residence, and store, differentiate one structure from the rest.

The heavy sound produced by the carriage alerts the people of the town. The kids run to welcome the visitor with their parents following behind. At least half the town, a hundred individuals, comes to receive the traveler with warm smiles on every face. Suddenly a joyous cheer is shared by the children, while the adults become noticeable worried.

The man gets off of the carriage to stretch his massive figure, the cracking of his bones reverberate around the town as the echoes of a far away storm. Reincorporating, the man smiles towards the townsfolk, noticing the trouble faces of the adults…