When Relyn woke up the next morning, the air was still and warm. He sat up quickly, rubbed his eyes and his hands instinctively went to his sleeves, checking for his dagger.

  And luckily, it was still there.

  “Damnit! I actually slept in this place… I need to get out of here now.” Relyn muttered to himself.

  When was the last time he had a comfortable place to lay his back when he was tired?

  He couldn’t remember. His nights were usually spent feeling a cold stone beneath him against his bones no matter how many layers of leaves he used.

  Sometimes, he woke up shivering. Other times, it was the sounds of creatures and animals getting too close to his cave that woke him.

  But comfort could get you killed in this world. He kept that thought buried deep in his mind.

  Looking around the room, he saw the hall was empty now with no one around. He stood and walked toward the small room with the food he’d eaten yesterday, but when he opened the door, it was also empty.

  No bread, no cheese, not even crumbs. The pitchers of water were gone as well.

  He didn’t stay for long and walked outside. The streets were quieter than yesterday, with only a handful of people out. They moved quickly, heads down, as if they were in a hurry.

  When he reached the main gate, he had a simple plan. Don’t stand out. Just get in line like everyone else and walk away from that place.

  “State your business,” One of the guards asked an older man in front.

  “I have a load due to deliver today” The old man replied.

  “What’s the load?” The question came quickly.

  “Erian's talismans for the church of St. Lius” The man said, scratching his head.

  “Not essential. Gate’s closed for the day, please turn around.”

  “But I have to take these today, the holy mass is tomorrow morning!” He pleaded and gestured to a cart piled high with crates.

  “No exceptions,” The guard added, crossing his arms.

  “Foolish! When we’re so close to the times of repentance! Idiots…”

  Relyn stepped back, watching them talk. The old man muttered something under his breath and unwillingly turned his cart around.

  “Fuck! What’s happening?” He cursed to himself and started to plan his next steps.

  Looking at the sun’s position, he figured he’d still have enough time in the day to walk his way back to his cave, but there was no time to waste.

  He took a long walk around the town, scanning the gates and the walls for any gaps, any weakness he could exploit.

  “I still can’t believe that boy they found. I heard his face was so deformed they still don’t know who he is” Someone passing by spoke, almost whispering.

  “Yes. But he isn’t the only one, we know about him because his body fell from the wall, but what about the others?” Another person asked, in the same tone.

  “Why isn’t the army letting anyone speak to the soldiers?”

  “Why do you think there’s so few locals in the army?”

  “Oh.. you think they-”

  “Yes, yes, exactly. But keep your voice down, damnit.”

  As he walked, he noticed things were very different from the day before. People were tense, something completely different from just a couple of hours ago.

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  The hours passed by, and Relyn wandered aimlessly.

  No matter where he looked at, the walls seemed to be flawless. There were no gaps and no places one could get in or out with the exception of the main gate. He was taken aback.

  And unfortunately for him, everytime he walked up close to the gates again, there would be even more soldiers stationed there.

  Relyn frowned. Whatever happened in that place, it had trapped him inside.

  Eventually, he found a place where people came, went and spoke freely.

  It was a strange place, everything was red with the exception of the tables and chairs, and it was loud with conversations.

  The room was simple but crowded. There were about twenty tables around, most of them occupied at this point.

  Some people there were too excited, screamed, while others seemed happy to quietly drink in the corners.

  At one end of the room, a woman dressed in grey walked in between the tables, exchanging mugs for small coins. The concept of exchanging metal for things was something he had in the back of his mind, but this was the first time seeing it in person.

  A silent agreement everyone followed.

  Suddenly, someone stumbled left and forth, before finally managing to climb up a table.

  “A toast”

  “Come on, man. Get down, let’s go” A voice at the table urged him.

  “No, no, no.. Stop, I want a toast… Yes, a toast” The stumbling person said out loud.

  The room became quieter, and people looked over in curiosity.

  “To our brave heroes of the army of Salath. A toast, everyone. Raise your mugs”

  “They fought so much for us all, and at what cost?”

  “Get down Julian, what if someone-”

  But the person on top of the table didn’t listen, and continued.

  “They just take our children to Gods-know-where. For every two hundred we send, how many do we receive? Maybe fifteen?”

  “What an honor to the people of Salath!”

  Finally, the voice who tried to convince him before couldn’t take it anymore and pulled his friend down.

  People whispered to each other, and the room that was previously quiet, slowly came back to being noisy again.

  “Not from here, friend?”

  Relyn glanced over his shoulder and noticed a man sitting alone at a nearby table.

  His clothes were different from the other people of the town, they were old but well kept, with a style that didn’t seem common around here.

  It wasn’t just the clothes that caught his eye. The man’s left sleeve hung empty. He only had his right arm.

  “Yes, I’m not from here” Relyn replied and turned his head around again.

  “If the ale isn’t messing with my head,” The man said, leaning back, “I think I saw you yesterday. You’re with the expedition, aren’t you?”

  Relyn studied the man carefully. There was nothing threatening about him, but the room was too crowded, and the noise was against his senses. He seemed to be relaxed, but Relyn kept his eyes on him attentively.

  “Yes, I am,” Relyn answered after a pause.

  “Thought so. Here.” The man chuckled, reaching for a mug on the table.

  “This one’s on me.” He pushed a wooden mug across the table. It stopped just within Relyn’s reach.

  Relyn glanced at the beverage. It was deep red, and it seemed to have a mixture of herbs on its surface. The smell was sharp and heavy.

  “Thank you,” he said quietly, lifting the mug to his lips.

  He didn’t drink. Instead, he tilted it slightly, letting just a little of that liquid touch his mouth before lowering it again. The strong smell was enough to make his stomach turn.

  “Don’t worry, that’s nothing. Just a little something to warm you up. You may need it” The man laughed and shook his head.

  Relyn half smiled and nodded.

  The room was too packed, too loud. He was sure he made a mistake coming here. The longer he stayed, the more people would notice him.

  Relyn stood up. He left the mug on the table and moved toward the door.

  Leaving the tavern, he walked a few steps away before stopping and spitting out the drink that had been in his mouth to the ground.

  Seeing the sky grow dark, Relyn started walking back to the place he had slept the day before.

  After he had walked for a while, a familiar sound made him stop. Footsteps, but not just a couple of people. It was the sound of several pairs of boots marching at the same.

  Relyn hid himself in the shadows of one of the alleys there, behind what seemed to be some trash cans, and held his breath.

  The group that marched through the place just a couple of seconds later were soldiers. At least ten of them were together and their faces were serious.

  In the center of their formation, four of them carried something small, wrapped tightly in black cloth.

  It wasn’t large, maybe the size of someone’s leg, but the way they carried it was suspicious. They held it close, and all the other soldiers around seemed to be there just guarding it, like that was something really important.

  One soldier at the back glanced to the sides, and his eyes moved to the alley where Relyn hid.

  Relyn froze, his hand immediately moved to his dagger. The soldier stayed there for a moment before turning back and quickening his pace to catch up.