Alex and Melodi spent the night at the Second Chance Inn. They planned to head to the local Mages guild or its equivalent the next morning and find out why they were unable to use the Slingate outside. They were eager to return to Dellorim, and having to wait an extra night didn't bother them too much, considering that they had been on the road for a while already. Another night wouldn't hurt.

Melodi and Lynn spoke for a while before the night drew to a close, and the innkeeper took her leave for the evening. Alex found himself quite drunk as he stumbled his way up the stairs, and Melodi sighed in annoyance as she led him to his room across the hall from hers. Even from her room across the hall, she could hear him snoring as he slept.

She awoke the next morning less rested than she would have liked, but happy to have spent the night in a bed after so many days. She then descended the stairs and, to her dismay, found Alex well-rested and chatting happily with a stranger sitting at the bar.

Warning bells went off in her mind and she quickly examined the man to determine if he was friend or foe. She couldn't tell either way and caution rose in the back of her mind. He wore a grey hooded cloak and held his head down so that his face was hidden. Although, even without the hood, Melodi could tell that he was thoroughly annoyed by Alex. If he was an enemy, Alex and his pestering didn't seem to be triggering an attack... yet.

"Morning, Mels! Did ya sleep well?" asked Alex.

Melodi only glared at him and grabbed him by the ear to drag him away from the stranger. "Atatatata! Oww! What did you do that for?" asked Alex in a pained voice as he clutched his ear.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to bother strangers?!? What are you? Four? Grow up, will you!" she scolded. She then turned to face the man and offered him an apologetic bow. "Forgive my foolish friend here. He isn't usually this thickheaded."

The hooded man turned and nodded, "It's no problem. But thank you for getting him off my back. He's been rattling on about nothing for the past half hour."

"Oi, that's quite mean of you! I thought we were getting along just fine," whined Alex.

"If you had anything of substance to say, I might be more inclined to listen with an active ear. Instead, you went on about things that don't concern me," said the man in a mildly annoyed tone.

"What brings you here then?" asked Alex, and Melodi jabbed her elbow into his side, taking his breath.

The man paused for a moment and then answered, "I'm just passing through here on business. I don't really have time to be bothered with meaningless conversations. So, I'll be on my way if you don't mind."

"Oi, oi I'm not sure what kind of badass you think you are, but-" began Alex in a pained groan. However, Melodi once again jabbed her elbow into his side and laughed nervously as he collapsed to the ground.

"Here, let us take care of your drinks!" said Melodi, taking note of the man's two empty flagons. "It's the least we can do for being such a bother to you!" Melodi grabbed Alex's coin pouch from his belt and laid out some coins on the table.

"Thanks, I suppose..." replied the man. "I didn't catch your names," he added.

"I'm Melodi, and this idiot over here is Alex," she answered. However, in her mind, she roared in frustration and dismay. In her frazzled state, she had given their real names and she cursed the distraction and chaotic energy that was Alex.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

"Interesting..." he said under his breath. "My name is Ulric. It is a pleasure to meet you. I imagine we'll be seeing more of each other over the next few days. My business will keep me here in Ardua for a short while. As long as your friend can keep himself in check, I don't see why we can't get along and co-exist peacefully in this limited space."

Melodi smiled and pulled a doubled-over Alex to his feet, "You don't have to worry about a thing! I'll make sure he's on his best behavior!" she finished patting Alex on the back. Alex could only wobble as the pain radiated through his torso, and Melodi's grip was like icy steel around his bicep.

Alex thought better than to say anything at that point, and the man simply nodded and turned to leave. The two could sense nothing of his Conduction level if he even had one, but something about him gave them strange vibes. Alex was more laid back about it, but Melodi sensed a danger about him and was eager for him to be gone despite her cheery attitude.

After he left, Melodi turned to Alex and smacked him in the back of the head. "Just what the hell are you thinking? Didn't you get a bad feeling from that guy? What if he was a member of the Order? Do you even think before you act?"

"Oww! Can you stop fucking hitting me?! Please?" replied Alex as he rubbed his head and ribs. "Why do you think I was talking to him in the first place? I'm not a complete idiot, you know. If we got into a fight here, it would be bad for everyone involved." continued Alex as he looked around. Eugene was eyeing them warily, but Lynn was nowhere to be seen and was probably in the back room.

"I couldn't just ignore the possibility that he was one of those goons. You saw that creepy hood as well as I did! In my experience, anyone wearing a hood like that is up to no good! I was trying to get a feel for his power. I figured if I bothered him a bit, he might let some of it slip out, but you had to come over and ruin everything."

Melodi sighed and hung her head down a bit, "I'm sorry," she said somberly. "It's just that we can't take too many risks. We've already been burden enough to Cypher as it is. If we get captured again, they might be able to lure him into another trap."

Alex nodded, "That's true..." he said, sincerity in his tone. "Look, I should have waited for you, but I had to get the jump on that guy. Next time I'll include you in my plan, okay?"

Melodi nodded, and the two then headed out into the streets to look for the Mages Guild. Splitting up wasn't exactly the best idea, so the two spent the next four hours looking through the town in an attempt to find their destination. However, even after all that time, they didn't manage to find what they were looking for and returned to the Second Chance Inn.

The place was still fairly empty as they returned, and Lynn greeted them with a stern look as they walked through the door. "Oi! You two, I'd like a quick word with you!" she said as she huffed over to them and planted her hands on her hips.

"Don't you go scaring off my customers, understand? Business around here has been a little slow lately, and I need all the traffic I can get! If it happens again, I'll have to ask you to leave."

The two Conductors offered their apologies, and Melodi said, "Sorry about that. Alex can get a little intrusive at times. I do my best to keep him in line, but... Well, you know how hot-headed men can sometimes be."

Lynn nodded, her arms crossed. "You do have a point about that," she said, sparing a glance in Eugene's direction. He didn't notice, and Lynn turned back to face Melodi. "I don't want to have to kick you out, okay? So please try not to bother other patrons, alright?"

Melodi smiled, and with that, Lynn headed off to refill the empty flagons of the two men clustered in the corner. When she turned back to face Alex, he was gone. A quick glance around the room found him standing at the bar in front of Eugene.

"So big guy, I was wondering, do you happen to know where one could find the Mages Guild in this city?" asked Alex.

Eugene looked sternly at him and replied, "Mages Guild? Nah, that place closed down about a month ago, and all the Wizards either left town or stay at the Silver Post. Though, why they didn't choose to stay here is anyone's guess. That hooded guy was asking something similar before you scared him away. By the way, thanks for that, he was giving Lynn a weird look and I didn't like it one bit."

"You are quite welcome, big guy. Though, if I'm being honest it wasn't my intent to scare him off, I was just curious about him," said Alex.

"Well, intent or not, you did me a favor. Drinks are on me tonight kid. Consider it my way of paying you back. Just... don't tell Lynn alright?"