The sun and the blowing sand stings my eyes. I am nearly blind until the sandstorm recedes. I stand in front of a towering quartz building. Sand has buried itself in cracks in the walls, but otherwise it gleams. This isn't a place I want to be. Being in the middle of a city scares me. People who are hunting me might catch me there.

I head to the more run-down parts of town, though run-down in this context means still amazing- looking. No one is in the streets, but I can see people slowly coming out of their homes to the sand-covered streets. As I wander deeper into the maze of houses, less and less people appear. I finally come to an alley and rest my back against a wall.

A girl leaps out at me, a spear in hand. "Who are you?" she whispers. She is clearly not as brave as she appears to be.

"I originally came from an area around here," I answer calmly. "I don't want to hurt you."

She doesn't lower her spear. "Are you from BIG?"

"No," I say, a little offended. I don't look like that, do I? "I'm not. I'm just passing through."

She stares at me, and I can see the distrust in her eyes. Something has bad has happened to her, I can see it in her stance and the way she looks around like someone is following her. Something is happening here, I can feel it. 

Yes of course Laya you can trade. I think that having a wider variety of building materials will definitly increase the cities beauty. Here are the things we offer:

Rose glass: Is is basically glass died with roses. Very strong though, and very beautiful. Used to construct buildings and to make sculptures.

Quartz: This of course comes in a wide variety and is not very unusual. People in Aslahari, however, have a secret way of refining it to make it seem like it is giving off light.

Pyron: A special kind of metal that is extremly durable but also very bendable. Great for jewelry and finery.

Also, as a note for everyone: The currency for Aslahari are flame gems. The blue stones are the least valuable, the yellow are second, the orange are third, and the red are the most valuable. Only very rich people have reds. 

Dk you have anything that could be used as an explosive? I need weapons as well.

*static*

(morse code)

s-e-n-d   r-e-i-n-f-o-r-c-e-m-e-n-t-s 

t-h-e    C-a-v-e

C-a-t-a-s-t-r-o-p-h-e

t-r-y-i-n-g    t-o   c-a-p-t-u-r-e    -a-   c-a-t

d-o-n-t     k-n-o-w     w-h-y

t-h-e    b-a-t-s    a-r-e    t-r-y-i-n-g

n-e-e-d    m-o-r-e     b-a-c-k-u-p

(this message is and relates to the "My mother...." RP) 

Ok, I think that I shouldn't be the one answering trade questions. From now on, please address your questions to Blaze Umh. He will help you with trade questions or questions about the city.

 Umh will actually be me, but for sake of making this thread more real I will answer with him.

Elliot, we don't really have any explosives, but we are a fire people so we know about explosions and ignitions. 

I walk down the streets, listening to the sounds of the market. It was market day, and traders from around the desert came to sell their wares. The sea of colorful tents was startling and beautiful like everything in the city.

Yet Aslahari was not as beautiful in its core as it was without. The crime network was huge, as was black market and corruption. I did not take part of this, though I had known people who did.

I turn right and into the street I lived on. I rubbed my fingers, wishing I could feel the warm flames tickle my fingers. I reach into my pocket and pull out a fire starter. I spark it and start the spark into a flame. I build the flame, sending into little flowers in the air. I juggle for a while and then stop. I wasn't supposed to do that outside school. Oh well. 

The city was sleeping, the lights spread out before them as they crested the hill. This sight always amazed me. It made it look like the sky had fallen and the stars had covered the ground.

Urmine grunted beside me. "I cannot wait till we just get to stop and rest. You newbies don'the understand. It is exhausting this caravan work."

I smiled. I had joined my tribes caravan three months ago, and I had been traveling around ever since. We traded with others and brought our wares to the city to sell and barter. It was dangerous though. Thieves roamed the desert in bands, as did the Crest. No one wanted to mess with them, as encounters usually led to bloodshed.

I was glad to come to Aslahari.