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Audra

  Audra looked at the sky above her and made a mental note of the time, sunset, only an hour of sunlight left, at most. Instead of leaving it up to chance of finding a clothing store before nightfall she decided to just ask the one person she was most familiar with.

“Hey Vasuki, do you know where a clothing store is? I’d like to be back before nightfall.” Audra asked.

“When you leave the tavern walk five minutes to the left, two if you hurry. When you reach the shopping district it’ll be one of the first buildings on your right. You can either put in an order for specific measurements or just go in and buy something that fits.” He answered without looking up as he poured a drink for a woman sitting at the bar.

  The forest between the Dragon’s Dinn and the town was dense but sunlight was still able to poke through from the horizon. Audra was wary of the possible dangers, living with goblins attacking your town every night as a child would make anyone paranoid as a young adult. After the paranoia settled she began to enjoy the scenery of the forest. Flowers had bloomed creating a beautiful array of colors along the sides of the trail. Birds chirped high in the trees above her singing their songs of nature. It was a nice change of pace from what had been happening, and before she knew it she was at the shopping district.

  The shopping district was a long rectangle with shops lining the outer sides of it, some vendors had set up a small store along the middle, creating a lane of stores in between the outer edges. A large fountain was shooting water into the air in the center of the district. Some stores had already closed with sheets of metal to block the windows and doors. Thankfully the store that Vasuki had told her about was still open with a few customers in the middle of picking out clothes.

  Walking into the store, Audra found rows upon rows of clothes, hanging on wooden hooks from the walls, and from beams that fell from the ceiling and stuck into the floor. She began to look through the clothes until she found a brown linen shirt and a fresh pair of dark breeches She would have gotten more but she had already wasted enough time. After making sure they fit her she approached the man at the counter, at first she suspected he wasn’t a variant until she noticed his eyes were a bit different than normal, but besides his deep brown eyes, he had light brown hair and a heavy beard. She accidentally stared a bit too long at the shape of his eyes before he smiled and shook his head.

“Yes, I’m a Daosr Variant.” His voice was deep and warm.

“I-I’m sorry I really didn’t mean to stare, I’m just not used to so many variants in one place.”

“I could tell you were from out of town, the smell gives it away too. If you want to tell a Daosr from a normal human, besides the absurd amount of strength. A human’s pupils are always round, whereas a Daosr’s eyes are always round and pointed at the top and bottom.”

“Does that change your eyesight at all?” She asked.

“Probably, I’ve lived with it all my life, so I wouldn’t know any better. The shirt costs 15 gold I’ll take 5 for the breeches since you seem like a nice person. Name’s Garen by the way.” He said holding his hand out though she caught the glimpse of some dark markings on his wrist before he pulled his shirt sleeve down to cover up whatever it was.

“Audra.” She greeted as she shook his hand, before counting out the 20 gold and laying it on the counter. “What’s the tattoo of?”

“Oh it’s nothing special, I used to be part of the Knights and some buddies of mine made a bet and I lost. It’s just a bit embarrassing.” He looked out the window behind him. “You should get going. It was nice to meet you, and don’t wander out at night.” He seemed nervous about something. “Just how dangerous is it here?”

  Audra left the store to find it was getting darker and darker out. She tightened her grip around the bag her new clothes were in before she began to quickly walk towards the tavern. A few smells hit her nose, but the most terrifying one was the one that used to fill the roads of Kiaveen every night. Her hairs stood on end and her heart began to beat faster and faster. Her stride had turned into a full on sprint as the growls and laughter of the Goblins began to fill up the night. She just needed to make it to the Dragon’s Dinn, she’d be safe there. She silently thanked the Maker that nothing occurred by the time she walked into the tavern.

  The tavern was busy with the regular bustle; loud shouts and joyous laughter made Audra feel at ease. The outside world here was more dangerous than it was in present day Kiaveen at least here she didn’t have to worry about soaking the door with blood to hide her scent. She began making her way to the stairs to head to her room until she noticed that Vasuki was absent from his post. She quickly made her way to the boy running the bar, he couldn’t have been more than 16.

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“Uhh, yes what can I help you with?” The boy asked as she approached.

“Nothing really, just wondering where Vasuki was.”

“He went for a walk don’t bother him.” Vasuki’s father replied. “Chereno make sure the salad gets to the gentleman with the nice hat he should have taken off by now! And I don’t want to see a leaf from that plate fall!” He barked, it seemed either Vasuki was more proficient or his dad was playing favorites.

“But there were Goblins out there. Isn’t he in danger?” Audra asked, concerned for her kind acquaintance. He poked his head through the window.

“I don’t think we’ve been properly introduced, my name’s Igon. And if Vasuki finds Goblins, I’d pray, not for him but for the Goblins. May their death’s be swift!” He said as he cheered a glass of wine before downing it.

“What did he mean by that?” Audra thought to herself, it was clear the intended meaning about that, he meant the Goblins would die. Vasuki had seemed kind enough to her, using his money to treat her to a meal of her choice. She hated Goblins just as much as the next person, but her hate was driven by fear. Fear gained from years of living with a horde of Goblins outside her bedroom window every night. Did Vasuki’s hate drive him to face Goblins? She wondered.

  Audra placed a lantern at the desk in front of the window, illuminating enough of it so she could see what she was doing. She tore a piece of paper from a note book that filled the bookshelf of her room, and began to write hoping she could get it delivered sooner rather than later.

Dear Catherine Sandalious,

  I promise you I am safe. I was attacked by raiders on the outskirts of Kiaveen, but I was saved by a Royal Knight. I’m in Nevenal right now so I can guarantee my safety to you. I dind didn’t get hurt or anything, and the people here are extremely nice to me. I got a free room at the Dragon’s Dinn and the people here are treating me with care. I can’t return because of the nature of raiders. The Royal Knight, Felix, told me they’d be back looking for me and I cna can’t risk your life for my own comfort. I hope you can come by sometime, I think you’d like it here. Minus the no traveling at night without protection, not like we haven’t done that before.

                Sincrely, Audra Sandalious

  Audra and her mother may have had their differences but she deserved to know where her only daughter was. She’d get it sent in the morning, until then she could enjoy the summer night. Though the lanterns that pierced the veil of night, was a bit unnerving. To keep people from looking at her through the window she opted to turn her own lantern off. The stars were bountiful that night, the clouds had decided to leave the sky, revealing the waxing crescent of the moon. She had been so scared in the woods but the moon tonight was bringing out a calm to her.

  After a lot of consideration Audra decided that it would be better not to sleep with the window wide open. But before sleep came a meal, and with the few gold she had left she was sure she could afford it, seeing as how she already took her ‘free meal voucher’ from Vasuki. She was mid-way down the steps when the door to the tavern burst open. The cold air hit her like a blizzard, it was definitely from him. She knew it now more than ever. And the smell that came next was something she didn’t want to think about, and she may have lost her appetite from it. She expected someone to welcome him back but everything was quiet, even the customers cheering and laughter had died down. She took a few steps down to see why. Vasuki was covered in blood, Audra knew that scent from anywhere, he had killed a group of Goblins. He was holding onto his right shoulder, blood slowly dripping from the wound under his palm. His eyes looked lifeless and puffy, not lifeless like he was about to die, but as if his emotions had been stripped from him. Everything was silent until he spoke.

“I’ll be in room 8 if anyone needs me, I’m taking the rest of the night off.” He said, but still just stood still.

“Alright, get some rest son, you can rest tomorrow too.” Igon spoke quietly as if not to startle anyone. Only with Igon’s permission did Vasuki begin to head up the stairs, giving Audra a sad glance as he passed her.

  Audra chose to skip out on another meal, the smell of Goblin blood always made her sick to her stomach. She instead chose to rinse herself off from whatever grime may have gathered that day then dry off by taking the water off of her body with magic. Now she could finally rest in solitude. Then she did something she never had been able to at her parents house. She closed the curtains in each and every room, creating the appearance of pure darkness for any normal human. After that she couldn’t help but feel a little giddy as she slid under the blanket, completely naked. This was a new experience, with her own privacy she couldn’t help but take advantage of the opportunity. She closed her eyes before silently laughing at herself. The blanket felt good against her skin, she definitely wasn’t used to this and she felt all the more childish for laughing about it. Even after that disgusting smell sticking to her nose, this was still a life she couldn’t wait to get used to. But she’d have to find work. Right then and right there naked, as a peeled potato, in the most comfortable bed she’s ever laid on, she decided she’d go out tomorrow and find Cabana, and she knew just the person to help her.