The next few days passed slowly, as the caravan trekked slowly to Raseir. While Msaka was kept busy near the head of the caravan checking for magical menaces, this time none lay in wait. There were no major mundane attacks either, as most of the desert creatures had the sense to avoid such a large band of travellers. A few agressive scorpions were the greatest threats they faced, and they were easily enough dealt with by the guards' arrows and Msaka's spells.

Fortuantely, Msaka managed to avoid the pains he'd exerienced during the first days of his earlier caravan journey, but the steady heat of the desert was still as oppressive as ever. One of the spells he'd purchased from Shapier's magic shop helped with that, though it didn't last nearly as long as Msaka would have liked, and with his divination and defense duties being paramount, he could only use it during the hottest part of the day. To do so more often would have drained his magical resources more than he cared to let happen.

To his tremendous dismay, he discovered quickly that the incident in the western plaza had been noted by at least a few of the people serving as guards. He did his best to ignore it, but the chuckled recitations during the first few days of his having purred for the child there embarrassed him greatly. He consoled himself with the fact that none of the guards had the temerity to ask him to do it again.

Talk also covered other topics, many of little interest to Msaka. One thing he did hear a few bits of information about was the katta, whom he had heard mention of before. The katta, it seemed, were natives of the city of Raseir, though they had been driven out for a time, returning after the Prince of Shapier, as the one who had passed through Tarna last year was known, had defeated Ad Avis, the evil wizard whose machinations had nearly devastated the region. According to what was said by the guards, they were a friendly people who commonly worked as merchants or businessmen. Unlike some others in those trades, katta merchants were apparently honorable in their dealings, never attempting to cheat a customer or pass off shoddy goods. Msaka was doubtful about these claims, as a supposedly universally honest species was not something he was willing to accept easily, certainly not based on tales that were as likely to be wrong as to be right.

Days after leaving Shapier, the caravan's destination came into view on the horizon. The city of Raseir stood proudly at the foot of the southern mountains, much as Shapier did against the northern ones. It was similar in architecture, with many spires thrusting up towards the sky, resembling upraised spears.

Most of the guards began to relax as the caravan closed the remaining distance to the gates of the city. Msaka remained wary, still regularly sensing for magical threats. It was true that attacks were unlikely in full view of the city, but he felt it better not to assume anything when it came to the caravan's - and his own - safety.

Fortunately, his caution proved unnecessary, and the caravan finally came to a halt outside Raseir's gates. The area around the gates seemed similar to the layout outside of Shapier, though the stables here were on the opposite side of the gates. Once the caravan stopped moving, it erupted into further activity as the various drovers and guards began to unload the cargo and carry it into the city. The merchant who'd been leading the caravan spoke with the gate guard for a few moments, then joined his centaur companion in overseeing the activity. Msaka stood next to his saurus, watching the events around him. He didn't want to get in the way of the laborers, and he wanted even less to end up carrying merchandise around himself.

He carefully picked his way through the crowd to where the merchant was directing the unloading of a collection of small but well padded crates. Msaka assumed the contents must be something fragile to have such care taken in their packing, and kept his distance.

A few minutes later, the delicate cargo had been unloaded, and the merchant turned to inspect the unloading in another area. He stopped upon seeing Msaka, and nodded respectfully. "My thanks to you for your service. If you will allow me to complete the unloading of my goods, I will see to your payment then. If you wish a good place to rest, the Katta's Tail Inn in the gate plaza is of the highest quality. I shall be staying there myself, so I can easily leave your payment there."

Msaka nodded. "I will go there then," he replied. Turning away, he walked towards the city gates, leaving the merchant to his wares. He strode in through the gates, looking around the plaza that lay beyond them. It looked, at first glance, similar to the equivalent one in Shapier, though as he continued to examine the area, it became apparent that there were subtle differences, both in appearance and in the demeanor of those within. Most notably, the presence of many katta merchants in addition to human ones. The merchant activity was less noisy, and proceeded at a more relaxed pace. Observing for a few moments, Msaka concluded that it was largely due to the kattas that this was the case, as the human merchants were only slightly less boisterous than those in Shapier.

Turning his attention elsewhere, Msaka scanned the buildings that opened onto the plaza, looking for the inn the merchant had mentioned. It proved easy to spot, being colorfully decorated and having small boxes of flowers mounted at the base of its windows. Without hesitation, he started walking towards it. While he had a goal to accomplish here, it could wait for a few hours while he rested. After the caravan trip, he certainly could use a nap in a comfortable bed.