[Nydardomond]

Afternoon, 42nd Brightening of Kalendryas, Winter, Era XIII (pf)

The afternoon found Nyd feeling like a new adventure of sorts. Since arriving in Nexus Prime nearly a cycle ago, he had yet to bathe. He hadn’t been keen on taking up residence within the inner city after the experiences he had with both muted and blatant racism from many of the people he encountered. This had the unpleasant side affect of creating a lack of bathing opportunity. Thus when he heard of the existence of a public bathhouse, he was more than ready to wash away the filth of living in squalor in the outskirts of the city. Still dressed in the rags he wore when he arrived, he packed up his gear and made his way into the city.

He had originally stumbled upon the bathhouse during his afternoon wanderings about the city. That part of the city, the Jasmine District, was where the wealthy and powerful of Nexus Prime lived. Feeling more out of place than usual, Nyd was sure to make his arrival at the bathhouse happen as quickly as possible.

The Public Bathhouses were a massive stone building, outstripping even the Cathedral for size if not splendour. It was a series of vaulted ceilings in the best granite, built at great expense in some far distant time. The outside was dominated by the white marble pillars typical of the Imperial architecture which dominated this building, though it crashed somewhat with the Arakmatan flavour which could be found here and there in the building.

Nyd couldn’t help but stop at the entrance and marvel at the magnificence of it all.

The entrance was decorated by a large fountain which contained several nude bodies, of either gender, and even a few races, from which water spurted and ran down. Lightly dressed guards moved around languidly although upon seeing Nyd, they were sure to keep close; not too close though as the smell was rather strong to be sure.

After entering the bathhouse, Nyd found the changing room. Lacking any real modesty, he began stripping away the rags that stuck to his bulky form. Tossing them in the nearby trash, he took one of the complimentary towels that hung from a rack on the wall. Before leaving the changing room, he stopped for a moment. The longer he spent in the city the more he was learning about the people. He realized that many of the people around him were bound to be rather prudish, modest, and quite possibly irrational about any public display of nudity so he wrapped the towel, which barely fit, around his waist and entered the baths proper beyond.

The rooms there were mostly circular, with frescoes on the walls depicting scenes of people playing at the beach or otherwise enjoying themselves. Most rooms had three pools, one of which was hot, another warm and a third cold. Nyd watched as some people shifted back and forth between these three different pools. He noted mixed genders in each bath as well as handsome and less handsome individuals of both genders and several races padding around silently, some humming to themselves.

It seemed as though the baths were not as busy during the afternoon which made sense to Nyd as he would assume most people would come around at night. He spotted a room that appeared empty and went in. He immediately went for the hot pool. Tossing his towel to the side, he stepped into the pool and slowly lowered himself into the hot water. The steam poured from the surface of the water and Nyd was in instant bliss. In the mountains if he wanted hot water, he had to heat it over a fire and it always seemed to get cold quite fast. Here though, he found himself in a whole new world of relaxation. He sank beneath the surface of the pool, only his nose remaining above water.

Lying there beneath the hot water, blanketed in warmth, everything was silent save for the beating of his heart. Nyd listened to the soft beats of his heart as well as his own breath as he breathed in deeply, holding it for a few moments before releasing it. Beneath the water he was without worry and without distraction. He felt himself letting go of everything; his loneliness, his fear, his anger, everything was being washed away with the slime and grime of the outside world.

As the dark claws of negativity lessened their grip on Nyd, he was left only with the sound of his own heart beating and his slow breaths. This is where he focused most of his attention; his breathing. He breathed in very deeply and held it for longer and longer before letting it out slowly. Each time he breathed like this, the burning anger that had been growing deep inside was dealt a vicious blow.

After nearly a candlemark of being submerged in the pool, Nyd allowed himself to slide back above the surface of the water. Taking one more deep breath, Nyd smiled and began washing off the rest of the now loosened dirt and grime from his body. When he was finally finished, Nyd stood and stepped from the now foul smelling, dirty water in the pool. He retrieved his towel and dried himself before rewrapping it around his waist. He returned to the changing room and unpacked the cloths he had bought a few brightenings ago. Dressing in the clean white shirt and grey velvet trousers, he pulled his high black boots on, strapped his belt, and pulled his fur cloak over his shoulders before exiting the baths and stepping out into the cold wet snow that had been falling since his arrival.

He knew he would be back to the baths very soon.