He found himself bored at the Tavern. So far, his adventure had been rather mundane. The Tavern being nearly empty allowed him the freedom to sit at a table and read some of the books he had with him. He made his way through "Daions, and how they will ruin your day". It was about measuring magical energy. It seemed that the primary unit of measurement was a Daion, abbreviated as 'Di'. It was also the name given to the force of energy itself. That was useful to him, since he had seen the abbreviation in a few other places during his studies. There was a difference between aspect and Daions, but their relationship was rather apparent to anyone that had ever tried to empower aspect. The book stated that Daions are one of the few things that can resonate aspect, but referenced a few other known influencers. It read.

"Daions are the primary influencers of applied natural philosophy. It is however known to be only one of few influencers to aspect. The known influencers are, applied natural philosophy, natural magics, inner magics and outer magics. The latter also being commonly referred to as foreign magics."

He was interrupted by the sound of a plate being placed in front of him. Looking up, he could see the Blood Rain standing in front of him. The Tavern was dim, and the sky dark outside. He wondered how long he had been sitting there.

"I'd almost think you were the old man" she laughed, placing a mug next to his plate.

"Thank you" he said genuinely, not realising how hungry he was. He eyed the plate of meat and greens eagerly.

"No need, consider it a welcome to Hammond."

"Can I ask you something?" He said, as she was turning to leave.

"What's that dear?"

"How long have you known the old man?"

She thought for a moment. "Have to be about thirty red skies now."

He quickly did the math, something he was also getting better at. It was twelve thousand human years. He was hoping for more. He knew the old man had to be around his grandfather's age, which was in the area of one hundred and twenty red skies, or fifty thousand human years.

She saw the look of disappointment on his face. "Why do you ask?"

"I want to know how old he is" he replied bluntly.

She laughed. "I'm afraid I can't help you there. The old kook was here already when I took over as innkeeper."

"Do you know where the old innkeeper is?"

She frowned, and joined him at the table. "Sad story that. Went off into the badlands when the tower came up, thought he could do good there they say."

"You just said a bunch of things I don't understand" he said, blinking at her.

She looked at him curiously. Before she could ask, he spoke again.

"I know, you’re wondering how I don't know an obvious thing, aren’t you?"

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She chuckled. "Most people know plenty enough about the dark towers. I'm just surprised you don't, considering your master and all."

"He's not as good a teacher as he is a drunkard" he said, lifting his mug to emphasise.

"He does make for a winning drunkard" she laughed. "The dark towers are the monuments to the God King. They poison the land beneath them for spans further than the eye can see. Nasty places to be sure, I'd steer right clear if I were you."

He knew she was being serious, but he still felt a small rush of excitement. He was curious to see a dark tower, he wondered what colours might come of a God King's influence.

"I'll try and keep that in mind" he replied.

"I'm sure you will" she said sarcastically.

"One other thing" he said, changing the topic.

"What's that then dear?"

"Where do you think I might hire somebody to help me get to Creeden?"

She grimaced. "That's quite a trip, no chance it'll cost you less than eight gold to hire for that. But the Tavern can help you with that still"

He grimaced back. "That's a lot, why so much?"

"It's the distance, or the danger" she responded.

He looked at her, puzzled.

"This brings us back to the dark tower. The badlands sit between us and Creeden. You either have to go around, which will take some time. Or you can go through the badlands, and hope you make it out the other side. Either way, it'll cost you."

He gulped, feeling like his coin pouch was in danger. "You might have to leave this with me for a moment."

She laughed, and stood to leave. "No worry dear. You know where to find me". She returned to the bar, and let him contemplate his next move over a plate of "beef".

It wasn’t much later that he found himself with company again, when a wiry man in leather strappings joined him at the table. There were subtle traces of aspects on the leather, so he figured it was armour. The man stared at him without saying anything.

"Hello there" Murphy said, breaking the strange silence.

"I 'eard you might be lookin' for a guide" the man said with a slightly nasally tone.

"I might be" he responded. "Depending on what you're charging."

"Goin' out to Creeden yeah?" The man asked.

"That's the plan anyhow."

"I got a sister out there, I'm lookin' to go see 'er."

"That sounds nice for you, but how does it help me?"

The man frowned at him, the scars on his face made it a chilling image. "Could take you along I think, won't charge as much since I gotta be there myself yeah."

"How much then?"

The man smiled with a wolfish grin, with blackened teeth to complete the image. "I'll get ya' there fa' four slab, since ya' seem so nice and all. You can give me two when we leave, and two when we get there. We'll even go the quick way. 'Ows that sound?"

Murphy thought about it. He dreaded the idea of spending four gold, but figured half price to the innkeepers guess was probably the best he was going to get.

"I suppose you have a deal then" he said firmly.

The man bowed his head, and somehow smiled even wider. "Fantastic" he said, holding his hand out.

"You want the gold now?" Murphy scoffed.

The man frowned. "I'm Taymon."

Murphy groaned internally. He was having a hard time getting the hang of the concept of an open palm in front of him. He shook Taymon's hand. "Murphy LockHalm" he said politely.

"'Ow soon do ya' wanna leave then?"

"As soon as we can I suppose."

Taymon grinned. "First light then, I'll meet ya' at the north gate."

"Sounds like a plan then" Murphy said confidently.

Taymon bid him and Uundah farewell, and left to drink alone in a corner. Uundah expressed some concerns to his Warlock friend, but they were promptly dismissed and ignored by the arrogant wizardling.

Eventually, he was done with his food, and he finished the book he was reading, so he went to his room and locked the door behind him. He wanted to rest well, and be ready for whatever the next day had in store.