Miguel nods, opting to answer Alexandra first as she was the one who addressed him first. He took a moment to study her features, seeming somewhat troubled or perhaps almost offended at the implication, still, he plays it off with a hearty chuckle and a shake of his head "The Band of the Blue never break the laws of the land or take from lawful citizens of the Empire. I can tell you that now. As for Aester, hm, I reckon it won't be too out of our way for us to pay them there a visit!".

The boisterous captain smiles and leans forward again, taking the chance to shovel some of the food he was brought into his mouth and wash it down with a hefty swig of his drink, a dry apple cider. "As for the pay, well, that depends on what kinds of jobs we find out there. There're plenty of caravans heading eastwards, we can join them as guards to cover the expenses of a one way trip but I can't promise we'll find anything else while we're out there. Unlikely, but it's happened before. Either way, all the money the Band of the Blue earns as a unit will be split equally between the lot of us."

Another woman enters the inn, a tall, broad shouldered and heavily muscled Velucian with a bruised face, broken nose and split lip, the woman has a thuggish look to her and carries a naked dagger tucked into a cloth band around her waist. Miguel looks up glances towards the door and consequently the newcomer as it closes behind her again and the newcomer frowns at him, quite soaked, the relative dryness of the Siren's Pride having distracted him and the party from the fact that the rain had only gotten heavier since this morning. The woman makes her way past the trio on the other side of a dividing table to take a seat with the two large men in the corner and is greeted by them in turn.

Miguel looks back at Ryker, and then at Alexandra, remaining silent so that the two have a chance to speak for themselves.

"Hmrph....I'm not sure how I feel about equal pay but I understand the difficulty in splitting coin." Ryker thought for a moment. "I know the east lands well. We're bound to run into something. Especially if we travel far enough away from the city. If my...." he paused and looked at Alexandra, "companion here finds it agreeable, I'm in."

Having not eaten yet that morning, Ryker was quite ravenous. He was about to dig into his meal when the inn door opened. His eyes shot to the woman who entered. 'Huh....she seems a bit out of place here.' He thought to himself, still eyeing the woman. Her dagger caught his attention. It seemed quite brazen for a woman in these parts to wear a dagger so openly. As she took her spot at the corner table with the other two large men, he began to feel a bit uneasy. 'Something's off...'

He tensed up a bit, instinctively reaching his hand down to the dagger in it's sheath to make sure it was still there. Secure where it belonged, he began to eat. While he looked back to his own table, his eyes continually darted back to the corner table, focusing on their movements, their posture. They seemed agitated but he couldn't say for certain as to what was the source of that feeling.

Alexandra nodded from what she knew from stories of old, it was a good opportunity to start a quest. One that would bring fame, money and maybe, eventually, legend.
She let out a sight of relief when she heard that Aester was in the way of their mission. Feeling a little homesick was something that all adventurers probably feel when they first left on their journey but that would happen at the start of it, Alexandra left when she was younger than now and after 6 years, the feeling finally caught up to her.

Alexandra smiled at Ryker for his cooperation and nodded.

" Thank you. We accept and with any luck, may our journey be safe and we all return in one piece. " she rose her glass of wine in the air and drank whatever was left inside it.
Sounds from the outside entered the inn and with them a woman. She looked as if she was trouble and judging by Ryker's subtle move to his dagger, they felt it too.

" I may be new to this life but something is wrong I guess. Let me try to solve this the best way I know. " Alexandra whispered to her companions.
She then rose up from her seat, pulled her lute from it's string and rose her voice high so that it could be heard over the sounds of the patrons.

" May I have your attention please? " she waited for a seconds for the patrons to stop whatever they were doing and look at her.
" My name is the Siren and I want to sing you a song I made. It's called: The Siren's call. " and with that The Siren, no longer Alexandra, started singing for the crowd. The song started calm and soothing for the audience and then at the middle of the song, it went fast and hard as the rain outside. The Siren's fingers moved fast over the strings of the lute and her voice was as loud as a thunder.

"The Siren's Call" song was a known composition to most as it was sang by many bards in the lands but when the actual Siren sang it, it was transcendent. It was a story of the normal villager's life that was betrayed by her friends and left for dead in the woods, only for her to call upon the animals of the forest with her amazing voice to wreak vengeance.
After what must've been 10 minutes, the song ended and the patrons were silent. That is, until one started clapping and then another and then almost all the patrons started clapping and cheering for the Siren.

" That was all folks. Thank you, you've been an attentive crowd. " she stood down and put her lute on her back again.
She looked at her companions and said " Done. Now, even if trouble was to arise, we shall have a small army on our side. "

Miguel smiled and clapped his leather-clad hands together once, barking boisterously "Excellent, welcome to the Band of the Blue then, Ryker and Siren. 'Tis good to have you with us!" leaning forward and resting his elbows on the table again as he adds "I'm hoping to get at least a couple more before we leave, but tell me, how long-...". Stopping talking mid sentence, Miguel frowned ever so slightly at the prospect of Alexandra making a scene as she rose and stated that she would 'solve this'.

He remained silent, however, and turned to look over his shoulder at the Siren as she made her announcement to the patrons, and followed up with her performance. He paid attention, listening intently to her song but preferred, apparently, to occupy his eyes by glancing around the room and gauging the other patrons' reactions to her music. Though the small, individual gatherings weren't the liveliest of crowds they were most certainly an appreciative one who enjoyed the song. The round of cheers and free drinks following the applause only reaffirmed their appreciation.

Miguel looked up at Alexandra and stopped clapping as she returned to the table at which he and Ryker were still sat, stating "This'll be a good trip, I reckon." He then looks at Ryker, adding in a far more jestful tone of voice "Is she always this dramatic, my man?" before grabbing a hold of his cup of cider which he raises in a brief toast shared between he and his companions "To you two joining the Band of the Blue". After raising and finishing the cup he places it back down, wipes his moustache off on his sleeve and says "Now then, what was it I was saying before, hm?"

"Oh, aye. Of course. Yes." Miguel leaned forward and leaned his weight upon his elbows, looking at Ryker but addressing the two of them together "How long until you two reckon you'll be set to leave Averine city? Chances are if we fight anything it'll be beasts, bandits and Dregs so you'll need pikes at the least, might want armour and crossbows as well, arquebuses if you can afford them."

Ryker listened quietly to the Siren's song, still keeping an eye on the group in the corner, though they seemed must less agitated now. Her voice did sound familiar to him, although he couldn't place an exact time or place. He had heard many bards and many songs in his travels, although her voice was a bit more memorable.

He gave a quiet clap at the end of her song and flashed a brief smile of gratitude. He quickly finished the rest of his food and drank down his cider. Setting the mug down with a clunk onto the hard table, he stood. "I have a few preparations to take care of before we depart. Nothing major, shouldn't take me more than a day." He shot one last quick glance over at the far table and then turned his attention to Alexandra. "I need to pick up a few things from the marketplace before I get cleaned up a bit. I'd rather start this journey in fresh clothes." He raised his eyebrows slightly, wondering if she would pick up on his suggestion. He was quite eager to hear what she had wanted to speak to him about earlier.

Alexandra smiled her companions. Her plan to calm the nerves of everyone worked and she wandered if this will become a regular thing for her. Maybe she never had to give up her profession but those where things of the past, she had a plan and she had to see it to the end.

Waiting for her companions to talk, she nodded at each of their words and said a few words herself when asked when she could be able to leave.

" Nothing more than a day for me too. I'll just have to grab a new set of strings for the lute from the marketplace and then go back to the inn, I've slept in the past days to settle my accounts with the innkeeper and then I'll be ready. " looking at Ryker she quickly added "My companion and I will meet you at the gates tomorrow morning and then we shall leave."

She said her goodbyes and with a quick move of her head, she indicated that Ryker should follow her too. As soon as they left the inn, she took Ryker's arm and clang to it.

" A unmarried woman, like me, cannot be seen with a stranger without them having any kind of...relationship. I've got a reputation to keep so play along. We shall talk in my room when we arrive. 'Till then, let's go to the marketplace. Oh' and remember, if someone asks. You're either my bodyguard or simply a good friend. Whichever suits you. "

Hopefully, this Ryker person will prove to be a good bodyguard in the future.

Miguel nods in acknowledgement at Ryker as he speaks, then does the same for Alexandra, chiming in with a chuckle and smile as the two rise to leave "I'm the one who gets to decide when we leave, lass." He pauses and then adds "In case we aren't all set by tomorrow, I'll be staying in the Wayfarer's Wagon, an inn to the east of the city gates."

With that, Miguel waves them off, going to say his farewells but not before cutting himself off and calling out "Oh, and one more thing. If one of you can read, get yourselves a copy of 'A Treatise on the Art of Slaying Eldritch Beasts' by Antonella Vasquez. Farewell, my friends!". Once the couple leave, Miguel takes a moment to sit and ponder, ordering a second, small cup of apple cider as he does so. Having already recruited two potential sellswords for his 'Band of the Blue' it would seem that he has some time to relax and stay out of the rain for just a short while longer.

Ryker tensed slightly at the sudden grasp of Alexandra, a reflex he had developed, but quickly relaxed. He glanced over at her, a questioning look in his eyes. He still wasn't quite sure what she was up to but she gave him no reason not to trust her so far. "Alright, I'll play along."

The two walked through the streets towards the market district. Ryker chose to take the main streets this time, walking alongside the common folk. He frequently shot looks behind them as they walked, a habit he had picked up on many years ago. "I imagine you know the markets well enough? I need to pick up a few provisions as well as a fresh whet stone. I've never paid much attention to where one buys lute strings."

Emmy descended the porch steps with a light-hearted chuckle as she observed him greeting the two dogs. Tongues lolled and tails whipped happily about, and upon his straightening up again, they both wandered off, noses to the ground, having decided the visitor was welcomed and no threat to their home.

"Sure, I'd love to!" she said brightly, immediately turning to stride back the way she had come. Her hands were already moving to harness the long, golden tresses of her hair between them as she hopped back onto the porch. "Let me just...get my hair up...and get some proper boots on!" Her voice carried on as she vanished into the house.

Alexandra smiled at Ryker and watched him closely. He kept looking behind as if someone would decide to attack them in broad day light. Even with the rain, the guards wouldn't let a fight break out here in the common places.

" Keep calm Ryker. It's not as if someone will attack us here. " she made a small pause and proceed to answer his questions.
" It's my second time here in the capital but there is a popular saying in some parts of the world that goes something like this "see one marketplace and you've seen them all". I'm sure you can agree to that. Lute strings are hard to find usually but we're in the capital, there are bound to be some in the marketplace. My former slave usually did the shopping when I was a bard but if she could find them then we can too. "

Ryker nodded, scanning the shops. "Sorry, I'm always on edge. It's a result of my chosen occupation." He spotted what looked to be a blacksmith's stall and nodded towards it. "Let's head there first."

He walked towards the stall and glanced at the wares. "Welcome!" the man bellowed. "Finest swords in all the land. What're you looking for?"

Ryker lifted a whet stone from the table. "This." He paid the man his coin and turned to Alexandra. "Where to now?"

Alexandra nodded at his words. It was a normal thing for sell-swords then. She will have to probably pick us this habit if she wished to live long enough to become a legend.
She watched and said nothing as Ryker went to buy his whet stone.

" Now, let's search for some lute strings. They are hard to come by in villages outside of cities. I usually have two packs of strings with me but I didn't expect to leave so far yet. I figured out I would take a few, local jobs first but that is how it is with destiny. "

They moved through the market stalls until Alexandra spot someone that had what she looked for. She simply took 1 bell from her pocket, put in on the stall and took the lute strings without bothering to talk with the merchant. Quickly inspecting them she nodded and said:
" This are not the best I've seen but they will do. Now, unless you need to buy anything else, let's go to my room. I need to pack and I guess you have some questions. But before we go, let's buy that book that captain said. "
They found someone that sold the book and they both payed for it.

"Certainly I do but let me grab a few provisions first." He looked around briefly before finding a stall selling dried meats and other such goods. He glanced at the different foods, grabbing a few pieces to inspect before changing his mind. Finally decided on some dried beef slices, he reached into his coin purse and paid th merchant, stuffing the food into his pocket.

"Alright. Lead the way."

Alexandra lead the way back to the inn at the docks. Looking at Ryker, she gave him a small key and said:
" Second room on the left. Wait for me there while I talk with the innkeeper. "
She went to the innkeeper and talked with him for what seemed to be 15 minutes then eventually she relented and nodded. Moving up the stairs she took off her robe that was drenched in water and entered her room. With one hand she threw the robe on the floor.

Looking at the key in his hand, Ryker raised an eyebrow. This seemed like a far cry from most situations that start with getting a key to a woman's room. Unless he was in for a surprise, he assumed that this would not be one of those situations.

He walked down the hall and unlocked the door, stepping into the room. He pulled his gloves off, causing a small pile of dirt to fall to the floor. "Hmph....probably shouldn't have done that..." he mumbled to himself. Shrugging it off, he placed his gloves on a nearby table and began kneading his palms. He took a seat in a chair that was next to the table.

When the door opened again, he looked up at Alexandra. "Soo...." he trailed off, waiting for her to explain herself.

Alexandra entered the room and saw Ryker sitting on her chair.
" First of all. I didn't called you here for sex or whatever you could have in mind. Second of all, thank you for your support. I think I owe you an explanation, right? " she took a small break, moved towards her bed, stretched and lied down on the bed.
" Sorry if I won't look you in the eye while we talk but I'm kinda tired and this bed is good. Anyway. If you didn't get it 'till now, I'm new to this adventuring business. I don't have a real chance against real dangers and so, I am looking for someone to train me while in the same time, do things that will give me what I seek.
What I am about to tell you, will put your life in danger and believe me, I'll kill you before you have the chance to use it against me " her voice was no longer pleasant but steel-like and she made a small pause for the threat to sink in and then continued :
" I know the location of a great treasure. It is considered a myth but I know for sure that it's true. I cannot jorney there alone, nor I can do so with the limited combat training I have. I'm not interested in the treasure per se. I'm looking for a tome that's hidden there and the fame that comes from finding a treasure that most believe it's simply a story and those that do not, well, they'll kill anyone that knows anything about the treasure. " she waited for Ryker to answer.

Ryker furrowed his eyebrows listening to her speak. This would definitely be a new situation for him. "Well I've never trained anyone before...but there's a first time for everything." He undid the belts wrapped around his chest and pulled Oblivion off of his back, setting it in his lap. "You'll need a sword, for starters. A pair of wooden training swords would be ideal, but not necessarily required. We can always use sticks or small branches for practice....although those don't have the same weight as true swords."

He glanced over at her laying on the bed. Many questions ran through his mind but he decided to first ask the most important one, as far as he was concerned. "How do you propose splitting the treasure, if we do find it?"

Alexandra nodded and pulled in one quick motion, her short-sword hidden in her leather armor and pointed it at Ryker.
" I've got a sword. I never said I don't know how to fight but I'm not good at it. That sword of yours means that you've seen a lot of combat. I didn't need to fight much in my life, usually my lute and my voice is enough to...make people stand down. As you've seen at the inn, people tend to listen when I talk. ".
She rose up from the bed and looked Ryker in the eye.
" As I said. I have no interest in money. I only need the tome. Whatever else is there, it's yours to sell or keep. If I was for the money, I would've kept singing for the nobles of the lands and I would've had the money but when I heard of the treasure I took more and more jobs at inns and taverns to listen for rumors about it.
How does that sound to you? Do we have an agreement? Oh' and before you agree or disagree, you have to know that there are some people looking for it too and we are bound to meet them somewhere. " she then took a deep breath and waited for Ryker to speak.

"So you're only in it for the fame? ....fair enough." Ryker shifted in his seat and seemed to think a moment before speaking again. "Alright. I suppose I can help you. I can't guarantee your safety, however. You have to understand that before we start anything. I'm a skilled swordsman. I have years of practice against numerous foes. But I was born in the far east. I know what kind of monsters make their homes there. Chances are, we'll run into something far more fierce than any treasure hunters." He sat and thought silently for a moment. "What about the Band of the Blue? We'll be traveling with other mercenaries. If we end up finding something, they're bound to want a cut."

Alexandra nodded.
" I'm in it for the tome, the fame is just a bonus for me. " again she nodded " You should guarantee my safety. I'm the only one that knows where the treasure is and I won't tell you or anyone the location even under torture or whatever but I understand that it combat a lot of things can happen and that's why I need you to teach me how to fight, better than I do now. "
When he said that he was born in the far east, Alexandra smiled.
" Where exactly in the far east? I am from the east as well. As for the Band of the Blue? There are multiple ways to do this. They can be used as cannon fodder. In other words, let them trigger any traps or fight with the other treasure hunters instead of us or we could ditch them when we get to Aester. They will give us protection until there and then, I'll have to pull a favour from an old friend and we shall be free of any...obligations.

"A small town known as the Barrows. Last I was there, it was a shell of a town. I left when famine struck and it never seemed to recover." Ryker briefly reminisced on his old home before standing up and shifting his focus back to Alexandra. "I'll do what I can. For now, I need to clean my gear and myself. Unless there is something else you need tonight, I should be off."

" Never heard of the Barrows but then again, I left the east some time ago and I never sang there.
No. It's all good. Thank you for agreeing. If this works, we will both be rich at the end of the jorney, my new friend. I hope you'll do me the pleasure to meet me here in the morning.
Good night ! "

Davian beamed and called behind Emirien as she disappeared into the house "Fantastic, and don't forget a bow or a slingshot!". He hummed a tune and stretched his arms idly as he waited for Emmy to return, pulling his right elbow to his left side, and then repeating the action with his other arm. He looks around the small plot of land surrounding the cottage and turns to sit on the grass with his back to the door so that he's can enjoy the view of the rolling fields dotted with the occasional farm or cluster of trees, sighing with contentment as he does so.

Simply enjoying serenity and nature doesn't keep Davian entertained for long though, and soon he is up again investigating the yard, showing a particular interest in the building from which the chorus of howls and yips came from upon his arrival. He makes his way towards the building, humming to himself as he goes, and should he have time before Emmy returns he'd take a quick peek inside.

---

The book which Ryker and Alexandra bought is a compendium of known monsterss, should either of them sit down to skim through the first few pages. It was written many years ago by a woman well known for perfecting the art of beast slaying, and as such is somewhat dated though it is still said to contain a treasure trove of valuable information for one who could potentially come face to face with such nightmarish creatures. The book begins with chapter after chapter of long-winded theories on the origins of such beasts with quotes and research cited from a multitude of scholars, explorers and researchers. Some of the wilder theories point towards the idea that monsterous beasts are the remnant children of the dead gods, that Humans and Sethkra'Vesh are the flawed offspring of such creatures as well, others claim that beasts are magical in nature and were created by mad mages from the distant past for one reason or another.

There are brief mentions of specialised equipment used for the subduing and vanquishing of such creatures. The beast-slaying pike, a large, partisan like spear a long, thin blade flanked by winged lugs and spikes on the butt-end so that it may be driven into the ground to halt a charging beast in its tracks. A small sketch shows that the thing requires two people to lift and bring to bear, designed so that it can badly wound a charging beast. The second listed weapon is the great arbalest, a huge crossbow with which to launch huge barbed spears attached to ropes, which in turn are nailed into to the ground, a tactic reminiscent of that used by great whale harpooners in the Salt Ocean to the far south.

Ryker gathered his gloves and sword and exited the Inn. He had just about forgotten about the rain until he felt it. He shrugged it off as he was going to be getting wet anyway. Actually, it was almost pleasant. The petrichor almost drown out the usual fishy smell of the docks.

He had a number of things to do before he would be ready to meet with Miguel. He started off heading back to the ramshackle little inn that he had stayed in the night before. As he entered, he took note of the sleeping innkeep sitting behind the counter in the main room. He walked into his own room, a very small, rather uninviting place. There wasn't much other than a bed and one small nightstand. That was all this traveler really needed, however. He unloaded some of his gear onto the small nightstand and was off again.

He headed down the twisting path's of the city towards the local public bathhouse. As he walked in the doors, he was hit by a wave of moist, hot air. He entered the men's dressing room, just to the side of the entrance. It was a small room, dimly lit with only a candle. It had a pile of towels, some of which looked as if they hadn't been cleaned in weeks. He dug through the pile, choosing one towel that looked the cleanest, and began to unrobe. He lay his clothes carefully over his arm and tied the towel around his waist.

He walked to the back where a small pond of water was, separated from the rest of the city with thin walls. As it was raining, there weren't very many people there. He picked a spot in the corner and waded into the water. He spent some time cleaning himself first before reaching up to the shore to grab his clothing, one piece at a time. He started with the clothe pieces: his shirt, pants, hood and undergarments. He submerged them in the water and began vigorously scrubbing each piece until they looked and smelled clean.

Next he started to clean his leather armor. He took a clothe, got it damp, and began wiping the mud and dirt off of each piece. This took some time as there was plenty of mud caked onto his boots alone. When everything was finally clean, he decided that it would be a good time to just relax for a moment. He got out and laid his clothes across a fairly clean surface under an overhang to dry, then got back in the water. He sunk down into it's depths, letting the water come all the way up to his chin. With an audible sigh, he closed his eyes and focused on the feeling of the falling rain.

As she sat on a plain, hard, wooden chair in the living room, and the loud thunk of boots being pulled on drifted through the open door, she laughed lightly. "Ah, I need my own weapon, do I? You aren't going to protect me?" A long bit of plain, beige ribbon was tied around her hair, tugging it into a tidy ponytail, as a proper braid would take too long.

Outside, Coby and Nell continued to meander about the wide, open yard, noses to the earth, with occasional but largely disinterested glances thrown at the young man. The initial excitement coming from the kennel building had begun to die down, but at the cracking-open of the door, Davian would be greeted by a long row of spacious, wooden stalls, each one filled with fresh straw. Behind well-constructed vertical bars, a line of lean, leggy hounds in varying shades of woolly, grey fur came into view. Some were sleeping, curled in corners, others stood at attention, ears perked, tails waving slowly in friendly curiosity.

"Davian?" Emmy's voice carried pleasantly on the cool, morning breeze, coming from the house behind him. "Where on earth are you?"

Davian steps back out of the door into the relatively windstill air outside, shuts it behind him and turns, not wanting to cause a ruckus by waking all the sleeping dogs and exciting the rest, regardless of how tempting such thoughts are as they cross his mind. He calls out in reply to Emirien "Right here, Emmy!" and jogs over to where she is stood by the front door of her house. Upon approaching her and coming to a stop he folds his arms across his chest "Maybe you're right, maybe I should protect you? I hear pheasants and grouse are six feet tall and vicious as angry bears." He pauses and smiles at Emmy, adding "You don't need to bring a bow if you don't want to."

At that he gestures and stands aside. "How about you take the lead? I reckon the chances are that you and your dogs'll know this part of the woods better than I do." He pauses and adds, questioningly "If you're bringing them? I have a sunstone so we won't get too lost otherwise."

Arriving at the docks, Rose plans on checking some slavers. It's not her first time going shopping. Maybe the Burr have something interesting, and it's pouring, so a roof would be a good idea.
She walks in the office of the slaver and dries her face with a perfumed cloth before speaking. "Hello, Velta. Haven't seen you in a while. You're fatter. How are your charming brothers?" She draws a teasing smile. "Do you have anything that might interest me?" Without waiting for an invitation, Rose sits and crosses her legs, in a very ladylike manner.

Today was the day Luca had been expecting for the last months, he was walking from side to side in the kitchen while he could hear the screams of her wife coming from the bedroom, the midwife didn't allow for Luca to stay with his wife since the labor had started. Almost eight hours had past since the beggining and for some reason the screaming seemed to get lower in the past minutes, and suddenly it stopped.

Luca rushed to the bedroom, when he opened the door he saw it, the body of his wife already without life, and then, from the silence he heard a cry, a soft and calm cry, he look to the arms of the midwife and he saw his child "It's a boy, but unfortunately..." said the midwife, but before she could finish Luca rushed to grab his son, and hugged him tight, while the tears rushed down his face, both of sadness and happiness. After hugging his son for almost a minute, Luca went to look at him, expecting it to have his blue eyes and mother's golden hair. The baby had golden hair, just like his mother, but his eyes were crimson red.

Luca looked to the midwife and said "I'll pay for your silence!"

The ground was hard. Harder than he preferred and certainly harder than most beds he'd ever slept in, but a life on the road made a bed of almost anything and with few better options in sight Tomas had made the best of a bad situation. Just as he always had. Standing to stretch he let out a low groan as his tense muscles and stiff joints flexed back into operation all the while with his eyes on the path stretching ahead of him, the path that would eventually lead to Averine.

Gathering his thin bedroll off the ground and rest of his meager belongings his thoughts drifted to the obvious topic of how long it had last been since he set foot in the city. As he pushed through the heavy thicket which shielded the small clearing from sight of the main road he decided that it had been years. Finally as he brought his flute to his lips to play a song as he walked he tried his best to surpress the giddiness in his stomach. It seemed that even despite how much time he'd spent in the grand old city, he would always be excited to be back.


Gold coins clinked together against the bar 6as thirsty patrons traded their hard earned wage for the comforts of a heavy ale and good company. Tomas breathed deeply through his nose as the smell of fresh baked bread and other hot foods wafted from the kitchen, and he couldn't bother to keep the smile from his face. He liked it here. He hadn't caught the name of the Tavern as he'd entered, brought in by the jovial shouting and bursts of laughter before he had even realized what it was, but now seeing the building take on a life of it's own he knew he exactly what the bar lacked. Him.

Wide eyed with wonder, and a grin to match Tomas approached the man behind the bar, and did his best to earn the man's attention. As the burly bartender turned to face him, Tomas gave a slight bow "Greetings and well met. Forgive a foolish question, but what's the name of this place?"

Luckily for Ryker, the bathhouse was mostly vacant, with only a couple of customers minding their own business leaving the tired mercenary with just enough peace and quiet to relax, wash and clean his gear. This particular bathhouse, one of only two in the city was smaller and cheaper than the other in the residential district and was considered just on the expensive side of affordable for the typical city dwelling citizen. The proprietor and an attendant were the only employees present, or at least the only employees who Ryker would occasionally see walking back and fourth with buckets of fresh, warm water which they would give to the two other customers.

The rain had dyed down slightly, no longer was it hammering down as if threatening to drown the city but instead had become a light, continual shower, gently falling upon Ryker's face and hair as he sat with his eyes closed. Despite the calm atmosphere in the garden of the bathhouse with only the sound of running water and the quiet conversation of the two other customers, Ryker could hear the streets outside of his little walled in sanctuary bustling. Though it felt far away, and the noise was thankfully drowned out, he could still hear merchants call out their wares, the ever present thumping and hammering of dock workers and the occasional ring of a ship's bell.

Once the attendant had brought two buckets of hot water for the other men the young boy, likely not even a teen approached Ryker. "Sorry to disturb you sir, but will you be needing anything?" He said faintly as to not rouse the mercenary in the event he had fallen asleep.


Without a doubt, the first thing noticed by those who do not live by the seafront is the smell. As Madame Rose approached the wharf her nostrils were filled with the scent of salty sea air, the reek of fish, decaying wood and the stink of waste in the streets. A far cry from the perfumes and flowery scents found not just in her Brothel 'the Garden', but all over the Delucian district.

As she came down the main street and made for the quay, she could see one of the Imperial Flagships just coming into view of the port. The massive battleship was armed with ballistae, catapults and even four cannons and a pair of handguns, with room for many soldiers to boot, had white and red sails, and flew a black flag bearing the House Sauvage coat of arms. An impressive vessel to say the least, and its return meant that Sir Obirrin Cheem was finished with whatever he had left to do and was due to return to the city soon.

A second contrast of smells hit Madame Rose as she walked through the front door of Velta's shoppe, which was a well maintained building in a street hidden just behind the first row of houses on the wharf. The little bell hanging above the entrace rang as Rose pushed the door open, and the inside of the shop smelled of perfumes and flowers not unlike the ones in the Delucian district.

---

The fact that the screaming had finally stopped was both a terrifying prospect and a relief at the same time. As Sir Luca threw the door open and rushed in he could see the midwife facing him with arms covered in blood holding his softly mewling nerborn wrapped in a clean woollen blanket, in the background his wife lay with her eyes closed, unmoving and without breath. The complicated mass of juxtaposed emotions hit him all once like a warhammer to the gut as the shaky midwife handed the child over while avoiding eye contact.

"I..." She paused with her mouth open, shock evident in her features as she looks at Sir Luca's and hears his proposal, until she finally finds the words. "That's illegal, m'Lord, a heinous crime." She pauses again, looking around the room. "And the Mage-Hunters will be here soon... We'd both hang." The midwife backs away and fidgets nervously, smearing blood all over her hands and wrists.

---

Earlier on his way into the city, Tomas had wandered past field after field of farmland until he came to the city gates, the steel portcullis and wooden city doors were already open as the wandering troubadour made his way across the huge drawbridge over the river Avel which ran down from the north-western mountains to the sea and formed a semi-circular moat around the entire east side of the city. Guards dressed in leather and chain-mail and armed with spears lazily watched him as he entered, but didn't attempt to address him or get in his way.

The marketplace surrounded by shops of all different sorts, houses, apartments but no inn had a rich feel to it, and was the first thing once came across when entering the city. Tomas had been here before, however, and knew that the residential district to the north would house what he was looking for. The area north of the market was one of rich, stately homes only occasionally broken up by a building less pompous than the rest which seemed to stick out like sore thumbs in such a wealthy part of the city. Against the eastern city wall he could see the massive spires and ornate stained glass windows of the Grand Library, and further north loomed Castle Sauvage.

Here in the middle of the residential district by the fountain in the square was where Tomas found one of the city's many inns. Though this one was more of a restaurant with a bar service, and was known to be far more expensive and, according to the city folk who lived here, was classier than the rest. As Tomas approaches and addresses the barkeep the large, muscular man who wore an undercut gave a friendly greeting. "This here is the Golden Gryphon, my man. What can we do you for?"

As her wandering eyes discovered Davian again, she broke into another easy smile. "I'm surprised the dogs aren't going mad with you opening the door like that! They must sense what a harmless little mouse you are." Even she was surprised at the daring teases coming out of her mouth, and her creamy cheeks flushed softly as she cleared her throat and glanced away towards the dark wall of trees to the east.

His jesting drew another, light chuckle to her throat. "Hey, you never know! They say all myths have a root somewhere in reality, no? Haven't you ever heard of the...the dreaded...er...Weregrouse?" She flashed him a wide, toothy grin as she descended the steps. "Eyes glowing red and a razor-sharp beak! Known to stalk handsome young hunters in blue tunics, I hear." She could scarcely hold her laughter in at this point, so she turned to whistle for Coby and Nell, whose heads shot up like a rubber band. They bounded over with excited whines, tails flapping wildly as they nudged her hands in eagerness.

"Yes, yes!" she told them. "A bit of hunting this morning for you two!" Looking up towards Davian again, she gave a sheepish smile and patted the dagger at her hip. "This is all the weapon I've got, I'm afraid. Not much use for bird-hunting. But I volunteer to help pluck the feathers, how's that?" Her hands smoothed over the front of her drably-colored dress as she tried to look "useful".

Ryker barely moved at the sound of the young boy's voice except to open one eye, his good eye, to see who was speaking to him. "No, I'm fine," he replied, closing his eye again. "I won't be much longer."

As he sat, he took in all the noises, quiet chatter and water splashing. He suspected it would be a long while before he could return to a place like this. Even though he had grown used to the mud and grime of the road, it was nice to have the option of bathing in such a comfortable setting. Once they departed, any chance of getting clean would most likely be a lake or pond that they came across. He let out a deep sigh and opened his eyes again. "Actually, I should be going. This may be the last night in a long while that I sleep in a real bed, and I have a few more things to take care of before I can rest." He glanced over at the boy again. "If you could bring me a fresh towel, I will be on my way."