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survived
an attack. Perhaps you should protect me.”
    “I can teach you how to run really fast if you like.”
    She laughed. Somehow she looked even more beautiful when she
laughed. Her whole face was a smile. His heart melted.
    When they arrived outside the inn the daylight was beginning to
fade. The inn was small and looked very old, ancient even. Similar to Aldrick’s
home, its walls were built of stone, but over the years these had been
weathered and, in places, had collapsed. One entire corner was reinforced with
sturdy lengths of wood from the surrounding forest. Above the door, a faded
sign hung from rusted chains reading ‘Seawood Inn’.
    They dismounted and led their horses round to a smelly, drab
stable. There was little feed and the lack of other horses occupying the stalls
made them question whether the inn had been abandoned. This soon proved not to
be the case as, upon entering, an aged man with a walking stick greeted them
from behind a dusty counter.
    “Hello, weary travellers,” he said brightly. “My name is Roan.
Welcome to my humble inn.” He gestured around with a shaky hand. “Are you
looking to stay the night? I can offer you suitable bedding for little coin.”
    “Yes, please. We will have a room each, thank you,” said Télia.
    Roan looked surprised. “Oh, you are not a couple?” He scratched
his chin. “Well now, I only have one room. It’s quite spacious, mind you. Er,
perhaps you can convince this young man to make do with the floor.” He stared
at Aldrick expectantly.
    “One room will be fine,” said Télia, reaching for her coin pouch.
“We are just grateful to have a roof over our heads tonight. There has been
talk of foul beasts prowling this area. We caught wind of this in Rain and have
stopped here tonight as a precaution.”
    “Really… beasts you say?” Roan didn’t sound alarmed by this at
all. “Well, I’m sure you will find no such things shall pester you here. Never
in all my years has there been an incident. Unless you bring the trouble with
you, I believe we shall all have a very incident-less night.”
    Aldrick felt guilty. He knew that if there was a ka-zchen out
there it would not pause at the walls of the inn to find him.
    “Still, it would be wise to remain cautious,” he said, glancing at
Télia. “You never know what might be lurking out there in the shadows.”
    Roan eyed them both curiously.
    “For such fine young souls you are very chary indeed,” he
remarked. “Nevertheless, I shall heed your words and I too will be wary of the
shadows.”
    After Télia had paid him a small fee, the innkeeper showed them to
the room. It was spacious but rather bare. An old bed stood against the left
wall. A deer skin rug lay at its foot and a small wooden table stood beside it.
There was no chair. To the right were a row of empty shelves and a tall
wardrobe that slanted because of one broken leg. A single window directly
opposite the door offered fresh air. They lay their possessions on the floor by
the bed, not bothering to unpack. They would leave for Farguard at dawn.
    Télia threw Aldrick an apple before drawing a small crossbow from
her saddlebag. It looked to be a fine weapon. Its stock and foregrip were
fashioned from a dark wood, the tree from which he could not say. The remainder
was metal—steel or silver. Bands of intricate engravings decorated its barrel
and limb. For such a deadly weapon it looked rather elegant. She set it beside
the bed, removed her cloak and lay down. Aldrick remained standing, pondering.
The journey had begun abruptly and there were still many questions he wished to
ask this woman that he had not yet found the right moment for. Maybe this was
it.
    “Télia, who hired you to protect me?” he asked. She didn’t respond
so he went on. “Do they know why Selayna wants me dead?”
    Télia sat back up and looked at him. She seemed settled now, more
so than him at least.
    “I assume they must know,” she said pensively.