The morning was a quiet one as Cora cleaned her face with a fresh cloth, the fringes of her hair slightly damp from the washing. The young woman paced in the small room she’d rented last night in the only tavern in the village; she’d hoped to earn a few extra coins putting on a show or two before making her way to Gainsborough to meet her next buyer. Sadly it was not meant to be.

When she’d first arrived, Cora had sensed something hang in the air, tension so thick one could slice it with a butter knife. People walked warily, no one made eye contact and no one smiled even as Cora put on her most friendly face. She’d located the tavern easy enough, the village of Mayflower was neither big nor complicated to navigate through. The owner had eyed her silently, his face a blank mask, and when he finally spoke he made Cora jump slightly, the bass of his voice booming in the near choking silence from just a moment ago. 

“We don’t get your sort coming through here often,” he remarked, his voice almost monotonous. “If you’re hoping to find...business, you can forget it.”

“Just lodging would be nice,” Cora masked her surprise and flashed the tavern keeper a modest smile, her big green eyes wide with mock innocence. “A-and some food would be nice too, I’m on my way through to Gainsborough and the journey has not been kind.” 

The man’s expression softened just a touch as he turned around, took off his apron, and beckoned her to follow him up a flight of stairs located near a door she guessed would lead into the kitchen. The room he showed her was at the end of the narrow hallway, it had a window that looked down the main street running through the village, a small bed pushed against one side of the room, and a water basin stood across next to the opposite wall. A chest was at the foot of the bed for her belongings. 

“Dinner starts at sundown. Spiced beef stew tonight and fresh bread,” the tavern keeper grunted as he turned to leave. “You can try plying your trade, as long as you don’t scare away customers.” 

Cora had pulled out a less elaborate stage costume with a moderate hair piece that evening, with all sorts of tricks hidden up her sleeves as she head down to the dining hall. It was slow at first, but even as people started filing in and the ale started pouring, the tension in the air did not lessen. After some asking around Cora found out the reason for everyone's unease; a monster was coming. Well, a little girl was turning to be more specific. 

That was interesting, and not in a fun way. Cora was always thankful her infection was minor compared to most, and if anything, more beneficial to her than not. A lot of others were not so lucky. Cora went upstairs after she’d found out the news, changed out of her stage clothes and into something more comfortable, ordered some food to be delivered to her room and stayed there until sunrise. 

The young woman blinked into the bright morning sun and sighed, she really should leave town now while the girl child has not turned monster yet. All things considered, a village this size faced with a newly turned monster generally meant bad bad things were going to happen. But heading into Gainsborough early was also not a good idea, after all there were people there that would be more than happy to see her dead, a few of them would even take action to make that happen themselves. The devil she knew was better than the devil she didn't, and with that she made up her mind to stick around town just one more day.

The day wore on as Cora practised some of her tricks, barely leaving her room. She’d hear weird noises drifting through her window once in a while, the interval becoming shorter as the day wore on. Then there was a commotion as a villager ran from the entrance, waving his arms and yelling for the elder. He was chanting something about a bounty hunter. 

[i]Well things just got a bit more interesting still,[/i] Cora thought to herself as she snuffed out the ball of light in her palm and stuck her head out the window to get a better look. Moments later a woman not much older than herself walked into the village in all her battle glory, long black hair billowing in the midday breeze. 

She watched the warrior woman speak with the old man, then let herself be led to a house not too far from the tavern, no wonder she could hear the weird noises, the monster was going to hatch not even three doors down from her. Trouble was in the air, and Cora could almost taste it as she dug into her trunk and pulled out her black silk shirt, a pair of form fitting black trousers and a belt with 6 black throwing knives strapped into them. She changed quickly, strapping the belt securely around her waist. Cora checked the blades, then pulled out a loosely coiled black leather whip out of the trunk and hooked that around her torso, off one shoulder, the handle within easy reach of her left hand. 

She didn’t like getting involved in fights, but if this monster got out of hand she was going to be a victim of its destruction, and well, Cora didn’t like being a victim to anyone or anything. The afternoon drifted on by slow and chokingly quiet. The villagers all but shut themselves into their homes, fear and uncertainty hung in the air like a blanket. 

Then suddenly the world was alive with sounds and movement as the bounty hunter all but exploded out of the hut, following a bellow of rage and confusion and hunger. [i]Ah crap…[/i]

Cora bolted from her room, down the flight of stairs on silent feet before slipping out of the tavern.