“Yes”, said Zipper, “I could get used to this.” They had found bundles of firewood marked with the Imperialists sigil, as well as a stockpile of dried food. They figured they were on official business and could avail of them. With further exploring Zipper had found wheels of cheese in the basement and a tun of cider. The cheese was a bit green, and the cider not really aged to its best, but roasting the former and mulling the later helped.

“As long as they don’t take it out of our paycheck”, said Delta.

Zipper shrugged. “Well, they won’t take that feather bed upstairs out of mine.” They had found the bed in what looked like the owner’s room when they did a walk-through of the inn. Anything of value that was easily portable, was gone. Anything left was stowed in good order. This wasn’t a panicked retreat. Clearly Imperialist scouts had used it as a base, and there had been no looting. Much like the bodies they carried. For insurrectionists, they were awfully focused on law and order.

“I don’t think they would begrudge you that”, said Delta. “So long as you clean your boots.”

Zipper held up her feet and wiggled her toes in front of the fire. “Being polite doesn’t cost anything. That’s what my mother said.” She pulled a skewer from the fire with bubbling cheese on it and rolled it through the dried food they had. “What’s the word on watches tonight?”

Delta took a sip of her cider and looked around. “Dunno. This place is pretty secure.” The windows were all boarded up making a very defensible perimeter. There were plenty of cracks between the boards to act as loopholes to see out of. She lifted her tankard to the fire. “On the other hand, there’s loot here for the hungry and this is the only fire for miles.”

Zipper looked at the fire and frowned. “I hadn’t thought about that.” She put the hot cheese ball in her mouth and fanned it as she chewed quickly, making appreciative noises. “I regret nothing.”

“Right then”, said Delta. “not to make your regret it, but you take first watch.” She nodded again at the fire. “I don’t think we need to watch all night. Just stay up till the fire goes out. Then you can hit the feather bed.” Delta leaned and tried to peer out a crack. “The moon will be late and slim. I’ll stand guard from moonrise till dawn. That’ll be the most likely time for trouble to be about.”

Zipper nodded. “I do not doubt my captain’s wisdom.” She emptied the tankard and pushed it aside. “At least it’s no crime to put an end to drinking. That stuff really does need a few more months before it’s any good.”

Delta nodded and pushed her tankard away as well. “You can use mine to douse the fire when you’re good.” She stood up and stretched. “I’ll find a spot where I can watch for moonrise.”

“You don’t need a wakeup call?” asked Zipper.

Delta shook her head. “I’m a pretty light sleeper. I think that upper room had an eastern facing window. As long as I can see that I’ll check each time I wake up.”

“Just as well to start early”, said Zipper. “I sleep like a log.”

“Goodnight.”

“Goodnight.”

Zipper both slept deeply and woke slowly. It took a few tries for Delta to rouse her. Even when she was up, she still didn’t seem to be tracking fully. At least not until Delta pressed her spear into her hand. Then she grunted and tried to make more sense of what was going on.

Delta beckoned her to the window in the hall. She stopped, frozen for a moment, pulling Delta to a standstill. “Donkeys”, she whispered. In the quiet they could hear their animals shifting about in their pen below.

Delta nodded. “They smell them.”

Zipper looked curiously at her, and then followed as she began peering through the cracks.

The moon was above the horizon, but it was less than a quarter full and didn’t give much light. The sun was not far behind and already that quarter of the sky was glowing with the pre-dawn light. The constrained view through the slits in the boards showed only shadows. Long, lanky fingers of darkness made by the moon in a night already dark.

But then there was movement. It was hard to see, as it appeared right against the inn. Zipper nudged Delta, but she had already seen it. They moved to the room at the end of the hall, cursing and freezing when a board squeaked underfoot.

The vantage point there wasn’t much improved, but they were closer, and the sounds carried better. They heard the definite clink of someone testing the chain on the gates. A donkey brayed in the silence, loud and agitated. Zipper furrowed her brow. She bent close to Delta. “Why are the donkeys all riled up? You think they would be expecting a feed.”

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Delta looked at her and tapped her nose. Then she leaned close to her ear. “I didn’t see much. But I did see something out there going on four feet.”

Zipper pulled back, more concerned now. They heard the creak of wood. Whatever was there had moved from testing the chains to testing the door itself. “Chains aren’t gonna stop someone climbing over”, Zipper hissed quietly.

Delta nodded in agreement, then tilted her head towards the stairs. They moved quickly, but carefully in that direction, paying close attention to where the squeaky board was.

There weren’t many good viewpoints into the courtyard from the inside of the inn, and neither of them wanted to unbolt the back door. “I think I saw a vent on the far side of the common room”, whispered Delta to Zipper. She took the cue and headed off in that direction.

The place was completely black, so she had to feel her way across most of it. When she got to the far end, though, that proved handy, as it was much easier to see a thin slit of weak moonlight, leaking in from outside. However, as she moved up to it, Zipper cursed her height for the umpteenth time. All she could see from her angle was the sky.

She propped her spear in the corner and began feeling her way around the room. There! Her hands hit the stool she thought she remembered seeing. She lifted it, and quietly walked it back. Once in place she climbed up on it and got a better view through the back.

Moving her head to one side and the other, she could see at least half of the gate. The barrier was in full moonlight, at least what there was of it, but the area above it was in complete darkness. As she looked, there was an area where the texture of the darkness was different. There was definitely a rounded shape that should not have been there.

The donkey brayed again, and the shape moved. She thought she saw the glitter of eyes. Then something imperceptible changed. She didn’t know what it was, but she felt it was looking at her. There’s no way it could see her. Not in the darkness on the other side of a slit. But it might be that it was looking at the slit, supposing her to be there. Either way, after it took it all in, the shape disappeared.

Zipper watched a minute or two more, and then got down off the stool and creeped back towards the kitchen. But on the way there, she saw Delta had moved to the forward-facing windows, so she joined her there.

Delta was so intent on watching, and Zipper had been so quiet in her movement, she was afraid that she might startle her, and her cries would give them away. She leaned all her weight on one foot, but the boards didn’t squeak on command. Instead, she felt for pressure inside of her, and produced a stifled belch.

Delta stiffened, and then slowly looked over her shoulder. Zipper waved and grinned.

“I think they’re gone”, said Delta, turning back. Zipper looked out the crack next to her. “It was just a pair of wolves”, she added. “Probably starving with no livestock to steal.”

“Wolves don’t climb”, said Zipper. Delta looked at her quizzically. “I’m sure I saw something looking over the gate.”

Delta looked skeptical, but not dismissive. “The sun is just about to come up. Give it till then and we’ll check. Let’s get some gear on.”

They had only put on the bare minimum, getting out of bed. Now they stopped and pulled on the rest of their clothes, their basic harness, and some choice pieces of armor.

They met back at the main door to the inn. It was barred and bolted from the inside, with additional wedges keeping it tight. It took a bit of effort to work them out, but eventually they were free, and the bar was off. Zipper made one last check through the windows to either side but saw nothing. The sun had cleared the horizon, and nearly the outbuildings of the town. There was certainly enough light to see if there was an ambush.

Nevertheless, they cautiously slid the bolt back, and held both of their weapons at the ready as they pushed the door open with their shoulders.

But there was nothing there. The three streets were empty up and down. Not even a crow cried.

Delta squatted, still standing on the lintel and examined the ground. “It’s not good ground for tracks. Hasn’t rained in days, so no mud. Not all that dusty. Gravel is terrible for prints.”

“We might have better luck near the gate”, said Zipper.

“Probably”, said Delta, straightening up. “But let’s cross first.” She stepped out into the street, Zipper following, and crossed until they were opposite the inn. Delta then looked critically up and down the inn.

“If it was me”, Delta said, “I’d have come in from there, and then kept close over there.” She pointed at different approaches and where you could keep close to the wall, and out of view of the windows. “If I was interested in the gate, there’s a good overhang on the right side, very much out of sight.”

“So, you’re believing me that it wasn’t just a bunch of hungry wolves?” asked Zipper, smiling.

Delta gave her a thin-lipped grin. “Let’s just play it out and see what we end up with. What would you do if you were a wolf?”

“Howl!” said Zipper. Delta gave her a warning look. “OK, OK.” Zipper looked up and down. “Best cover is from over there, where the nearest field is. A bit of weeds maybe, between there and here. But I’m more likely to just be following the smell. I’d go down the middle of the road, so nothing can jump out at me. Then straight at the gate, paw it a few times trying to get a sense if I could jump over it.”

Delta nodded. “I would have seen that. But I didn’t. What I saw was down by the base, but it definitely had four feet.”

“Smart wolves?” asked Zipper. “That can’t be good if Vargr are coming down from the mountains.”

Delta shrugged and made her way toward the gate. They paused at more likely patches of ground to look for tracks. They didn’t see anything until they got close to the wall, where there was more soil and less gravel.

“Looks like a paw print to me”, said Delta. She pointed at a few depressions. “Three pads, and I think those are claw tips.” She put down her hand for measurement. They were smaller than hers.

“This is not a paw”, said Zipper, closer to the gate. There were two, very clear, footprints. They looked at each other’s feet. They both wore boots. “I’m guessing it’s when our voyeur jumped down from the gate. Look.” She pointed to an edge. “They’re on top of the wagon tracks. So, they’re not old.”

“Yep”, said Delta. “No question about that. We were both right.”

“Something on four feet, something on two feet. What’s the answer to that riddle?” asked Zipper.

“I sure don’t think it was Montihouse cavalry”, said Delta. She straightened up. “Well, honestly, I hope we never find out the answer.” She started back towards the front door. “Let’s lock the place down, load up, get out, and never see this village again.”

“I do not doubt my captain’s wisdom!” said Zipper, shouldering her spear and following.