I woke early, too hot, in a tangle of legs and a face full of ginger furbag. I smacked my lips and peeled my tongue from the roof of my mouth.

‘I miss toothpaste,’ I consider pithily. The simple pleasure of a fresh minty mouth. ‘It’s the simple things that matter the most.’

Gently, I extricate myself from the tangle of body, sheet, and cat enough to get up and pour a glass of water from the jug on the chest of drawers. Then, to preserve what hints of dignity I have, I shrug on my trousers and head out of the room and along the corridor to the bathroom. A few minutes later, I head back, roughly towelling dry my hair. Elara is sitting up in bed, playing softly with a purring Misty. The smells of cooking breakfast drifting up from downstairs follow me into the room.

"Good morning," I grunt as I grab my shirt and pull it over my head, doing my best not to enjoy too much the display Elara’s naked breasts provide as she tussles with the cat.

‘So shoot me for being human,’ I grouse to myself. ‘Del, you are too old for this shit.’

"I’m going to see what’s for breakfast," I say. "Do you want to join me once you’re finished playing?"

She gives me a nod and starts to pull her hand free from Misty’s playful claws as I head down to the bar.

Donna is busy bustling about, serving the few customers who stayed overnight, and she looks up at me with a smile, indicating a vacant table.

"Breakfast for just you, or are there another one and a bit joining?" she asks with a smile.

"The other two will be down shortly," I agree. "And whatever you have on the stove smells divine."

Soon, Elara and I are tucking into hot, steaming bacon and eggs, while Misty tackles her own large slab of fatty meat.

We discuss our plans between mouthfuls and agree that the first stop will be to find supplies. Then, once better equipped and dressed—considering our presently less-than-suitable attire—we’ll head to the elder’s house and see what Paolo has to say about Lucas, goblins, and wizards.

At the market, we first head towards a stall selling a mix of rough-spun clothing. My own gear is much the worse for wear, and I quickly select some new heavy-duty trousers, shirts, and basic undergarments. Being very aware that Elara only had on the long shirt she had borrowed from me when we first met, we also add enough items for her to be decently attired again. I think she is most happy about finding a pair of decent leather boots so she is no longer barefoot. I am very pleased to discover that costs in this rural market are not high, and our supply of copper and silver is more than adequate for the task at hand.

We also find a stall that sells hunting gear, so we are able to buy a second bow and a quiver of 20 arrows. Elara keeps hold of the smaller goblin bow, and I take the larger one for myself. At the leatherworker’s, we pick up a toughened hide jerkin for Elara, and I leave them the one I had acquired from the bandits to repair. We also sell them various items we don’t need from the looted corpses of those who had tried to prey on us.

I feel a momentary pang of guilt at the thought of their deaths but quickly shove it aside with a pragmatic shrug. If it hadn’t been that way, they would be somewhere selling my meagre belongings instead. We spot Jake loading a cart with meat from the butcher’s and give him a wave. It looks like some sort of strange not-deer is on the menu tonight.

‘You really need to learn more of the local plant and animal life around here,’ I admonish myself, and determine to start using Elara’s knowledge base to broaden my own.

We head back to the inn and quickly change into fresh clothes. It feels so much better than the old blood-stained and dirty things we had been wearing. Back downstairs, I ask Donna if they’re recoverable or just better on the trash heap. With a laugh, she promises to see them right and have them back in our room before supper. With that, we head across the town square, where behind the market stands the imposing building that is the house of the town elder.

The house is large but inside, not overly ostentatious—more a practical amalgam of offices and meeting rooms below and living space on the floors above. The door is open, and in the reception room is a collection of functionaries working at their desks. One of them looks up with a smile and asks if she can help us. I explain to her that we are here to see Paolo, and she nods and heads into another room, asking us to wait a moment.

Paolo is a portly man of about my age, with neatly cropped hair, mutton chops, and a gold chain hanging over his neat shirt, which contrasts nicely with business-like rolled-up sleeves and ink stains on his fingers. He gives off an air of a man who balances authority with practicality, someone who is equally comfortable working behind a desk or getting out and about to directly manage the affairs of Stonebridge. He comes forward with a smile, offering his hand, which I take and shake firmly.

"Welcome to Stonebridge. It’s always nice to meet new visitors." He raises a questioning eyebrow. "Or are you planning on moving to join our small community?"

"Not moving in—well, not at the moment anyway," I answer him. "But we do have some things we need to discuss with you."

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His brow furrows a bit and then clears. "Are you the couple that brought the tragic news about Lucas?" At our nods, he ushers us back and into his office. He indicates a group of comfortable chairs, and we sit down.

"Yes, that was us," I answer. "I came across him when some bandits attacked me in the high woods. After I successfully defended myself, I saw they already had one victim." I sigh. "He was dead when I found him."

"You brought us word, and that was still good of you. Bandits and robbers have been getting more numerous lately here," Paolo tells me. "The towns around Stenfield have boosted their local watch, and so those that haven’t been rounded up have made their way into the more rural areas."

"Merl was telling us that there have been more local issues?" I say questioningly.

"Times are indeed troubling," Paolo agrees. "People disappearing seemingly at random. The whole village is on edge at the moment."

"Do you have any ideas who or what is behind it?" Elara asks.

He shakes his head sadly. "I wish I did. There are rumours and theories, but no real truth to it that we can figure."

Paolo stands and starts pacing as he continues. "So far, four have simply vanished in a little over a month. I don’t include Lucas, as I believe him to be an unfortunate but unconnected loss." He becomes more animated, and agitation creeps into his voice. "Three were men out working, late dusk. Shawn was out tending his cows, Will was gathering logs for his fire, and Silas was doing his usual forage for tindergrubs. All had been seen by others out in the fields or woods, but then never returned home for their dinner. Then Breeda never turned up to open her market stall last week. As that was most unlike her, one of the kids went to see if she was ill." Paolo stops to gather his thoughts. "Her back door was open, but the house was empty." He flops down in his chair; it's easy to see the toll these events are placing upon him.

"So what are the rumours and ideas floating around?" I ask him.

He lifts his hands, palms up, helpless in uncertainty. "The usual bunch—elves," he glances apologetically at Elara, "witches, various fell beasts. But nothing substantial that can stand up to scrutiny or that has left any sign of its coming and going."

He massages his temples gently, his eyes pained.

"Elves as a threat are just an old memory of times long past, but unfortunately still exist in stories to frighten young children into behaving. We haven’t had any witches north of the capital since the last heaving, and even then, they have never been the harridans of evil laced throughout folklore. Most are more like simple herbalists and hedge mages, little different from a bonesetter. To be honest, wizards are far more likely to have unpredictable and possibly ill motives as they try to figure out how the world really works."

"What about lesser sentients and wild beasts?" Elara inquired.

"No tracks have been found," Paolo explains. "Some sentients, such as the more intelligent goblins and hobs, might think to erase tracks, but there would still be something to see. Evidence of struggles from those taken in the outfields would be hard to mask. None of them were weak men, and what of Breeda? Her house, apart from being empty, was undisturbed." His troubled look is very evident. "I will be completely honest, I am at a total loss so far."

I shake my head. ‘Where is Sherlock when you need him, Del,’ I think, perplexed. "I’m not sure how long we will be around the village, as we are mainly resting before continuing on to the city of Stenfield. But I’m sure we can keep our eyes open while we are here if you want."

"It's too much to ask, but maybe a fresh pair of eyes might see what we cannot."

[You have been offered a quest – Solve the mystery of Stonebridge: Accept Yes : No]

I look at Paolo through the translucent message in front of me and then at Elara; she gives me a nod, and I choose yes.

"As Del said, we may not be here long, as I have to get to the city to find a mage trainer, but"—she looks at the elder with determination— "while here, we can keep a look out and let you know if we find out anything." She smiles. "At the very least, we might be able to ease some fear of my kind among your villagers."

Conversation seems to relax with our decision to help the beleaguered man. We tell him of our journey here, leaving out certain chapters upriver that may not paint us in the best of lights but still giving him a broad idea of how things are in the high woods, according to what we saw. He acknowledges the goblin activity as a potential problem this early in the season, but he also slaps his thigh in joy at the vivid retelling Elara and I give of her rescue from captivity.

I tell him of my life on the Isle of Starnd. He admits it is not an island he is familiar with. "But there are a lot of small communities isolated in the seas off Gondowa," he says.

Elara explains her goal to find a trainer in nature magic and her journey thus far, until her capture by the goblins.After the stress of telling us about the disappearances, Paolo’s mood seems to ease at the thought of us providing what help we might manage from a fresh perspective, and in the end, we part with a handshake and a smile.

"I expect we may be here a touch longer than we first thought," I say to Elara somewhat ruefully. "I’m sorry to be delaying your own journey and will understand if you want to push on ahead."

She just gives me a playful shove and threads her arm through mine.

"Don’t think you are getting rid of me that easily," she laughs. "Besides, this could be an interesting problem to solve."