With Zelda's discovery, all the clues pointed to Katapesh. That night, Neferi had a long discussion with Munira and decided to press ahead with their plans. They talked with their mentors to acquire their consent and support, making sure they had enough allies before presenting their case to Judi...<br/><br/>"Mother, Munira and I would like to travel abroad and see the multi-verse with our own eyes. We appreciate your care for us all these years, truly, and we won't be gone forever, but we would like to get more exposure to the outside world beyond Glass. We have done our research and Katapesh, in the Material plane, would be our favored destination."<br/><br/>Their mother was understandably surprised and initially reluctant, so it was good that Hanifa, Zelda, and Arensha were ready to be the voices of reason and assuage her fears.<br/><br/>"Neferi and Munira will have to learn to stand on their own feet sooner or later," Arensha said. "Besides, they will still have each other. I see before me not a pair of girls but a pair of young women who don't need us to watch their every move over their shoulders anymore. They need us - you - to trust them enough to let them step out on their own."<br/><br/><hr/><br/>Neferi checked and rechecked their luggage as it was packed, making sure they weren't leaving anything important behind. Occasionally she had to pinch herself to make sure that this wasn't a dream. She had half-expected her mother to delay, perhaps wait and see for a year or two, but Judi had said yes and now she and Munira were really going!<br/><br/>"Thanks, Zelda," she said, taking the books from her and packing them into one of the<em>purses</em>along with everything else. "I hope I'll be able to make use of the College's resources to follow<em>it</em>."<br/><br/>The loading finished, Neferi said her farewells before she boarded the carriage after Munira. "Take care, Mother. Don't worry too much about us, we'll write back regularly and let you know we're alright. Goodbye Arensha, Hanifa, Zelda, Alfreldi!"<br/><br/><hr/><br/><div align="center"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 14pt;">Katapesh, the Golden City</span></div><br/>Neferi shielded her eyes with her hand and turned her head away from the blinding light. The air was warm and the light shining down even hotter. She could practically feel herself drying out in the dry air, every breath was hot and harsh to her lungs. All in all, it was comparable to the inside of an oven.<br/><br/>"Move it!" someone cried, and grabbing her sister's hand the marid scrambled out of the way.<br/><br/>Safe for the moment, she stood still absorbing the sensory overload, overwhelmed by the throng, the unfamiliar architecture, the sights, smells and sounds, and the oppressive dry heat. Then she realized she was standing there mouth gaping like a fool. "Don't look directly at the Sun," Neferi recited from her preparatory research into the city, "it's bad for your eyes." Still holding onto Munira's hand she started walking, without any real idea where she was going but it was better than staying in place.<br/><br/>"Hold on Neferi, I need some time to adjust..."<br/><br/>"Adjust!  I've got just the thing for that!  With these special cough drops you can-"<br/><br/>"On second thought, we should head out of here for some peace and quiet!"<br/><br/>"Quite right. Pay no heed to the vendors," Neferi quoted more wisdom, "for it is safer to gaze at a basilisk than to glance at their wares - look, Muni, look! Authentic Osirioni scarab jewelry, how iridescent-"<br/><br/>Ironically, it was Munira who had to rescue Neferi from the clutches of a streetside salesman, but somehow they managed to make it to the relative safety of a restaurant none the worse for wear, valuable lesson learned, and more importantly with their purses intact. Overlooking and removed from the immediate bustle of Katapesh, the shade was a welcome change as was the hot tea she sipped. She had been incredulous at first - a hot drink seemed a fine way to overheat even more - but somehow it had a cooling effect.<br/><br/>"Slow down, Muni! We'll have plenty of time to see all the sights later. For now, we should register at the College first thing and secure lodgings there. If that falls through, we'll still have time to find some other place to stay for the night. I suppose we'll visit the Immaculate Repository somewhere along the way to make the necessary payments.<em>Then</em>we can hit the Bathhouse. If we still have time afterwards, we can try one of the Pathfinder lodges, if it's not the right one I'm sure they'll be more than happy to point us the right way."