Elys Adair
Location: Oratorio, //O3@ERode
This nauseating, dizzying city.
It was nothing like the wide, open dirt roads she was used to, sparse of people.
No, this. This was too much.
Elys, against her better judgment, stood in the middle of the street in the edges of Oratorio, her weight bearing on her walking staff. She could
see shapes of bodies passing by her at flurrying speeds, hear the rush of the city streets as people searched for bounty and weakness of their brethren. She could smell the stench of a heavily populated area, and a poor, or entirely lacking sewage system. She couldn't see it, but maybe that worked in her favour.
She could picture well enough the deplorable state of being this side of town brought.
Yet, despite its lackluster impression, she still felt heavily drawn to the center of the city. To the Abyss. A place praised and cursed by merchants and travelers on the road.
A change in the direction of the warm wind. A stench. A slight
woosh above her. A grimace as Elys side stepped past the shapes of bodies, narrowly avoiding the plummet of something quite
unsavory. She checked her hooded cloak, ensuring it didn't get wet with who knew what. Then, with a slight click of her tongue, she pressed on.
She desired the centre of the city, but a detour first. All cities had watering holes, and Oratorio was no exception, even in the roughest outskirts. She held her head up, smelling the air for telltale beer, listening for the jovial, or violet banter of voices surrounding a tavern. Eventually, she found a building that fit the description, and she could
see it's shape and sides.
Just where was the door, though?
She tapped her staff along the foot of the wall, moving past shapes of bodies, until she tapped out an indent. A push gave way to her discovery - a door.
She entered what she assumed was a tavern, rough and torn at the edges, the scent of sweat and stale beer coating the air as she moved past the shapes of chairs and tables. There was a shape of a long block ahead, and another shape behind it. The owner?
Elys walked up, dropping one of her last coins on the table. Her covered eyes looked directly at the shape she could
see, though it was doubtful she was looking directly at their eyes or face. They'd see her robes, her staff, and the sword hanging from her hip.
“A drink, please. And a lead for a monster-slayer. I'm looking for work.”She was looking for so much more, of course. But, baby steps. These people didn't know who she was, after all. And for now, that was preferred.