Nights in the Traveller's Den were rather eerie, Alexis had decided.  There were almost no people in the streets, civilians let alone the groups of soldiers regularly patrolling towns and cities across Obrethon.  The war had made a lot of people suspicious of one another; it had also led to an increase in banditry which was the main reason so many guards were employed at town gates and most entrances were sealed at night.

Not so here.  There were no patrols and no defencible gates; only the magic and although she had come to grow comfortable with the presence of it through her use of the Water Gem she still put more faith in the things she could predict and control: people, steel and ingenuity.  Shi'larra had taught her about how the world worked, how to look after herself and how to treat others.  The war had taught her how to fight, what the people who couldn't be saved were like and how far some would go when pushed or threatened.  She had made friends and enemies in equal measure while gaining a reputation as a honest dealer but also as a ruthless, dishonourable killer with no regard for the ancient codes of chivalry; somewhat uncharitably.

Resting on her knees was the naked blade of her longsword as she ran a clean cloth up and down the blade.  It had been newly sharpened but she had seen too many blades suffer from rust due to lack of cleaning; the edge of a blade wasn't the only important thing.  Bad care would lead it to weaken, to rust or simply soften, and then it would fail its wielder when they most needed it to be strong and sturdy.  The blade was long since wiped clean of the dirt of her journey to that place, gleaming softly in the moonlight, but Alexis found the activity kept her calm and alert; a habit she had picked up during the wars.  Everyone came up with some kind of coping mechanism: some drank, some gambled, some joked and boasted, others found the arms of a lover (paid or unpaid).  She simply found pleasure in carrying out a monotonous, basic task that might serve to save her life in the future.

[b]"The question is, who arrives first?"[/b]  She muttered to herself.  All the knights who held gems would have heard of each other and she feared her common background would put her at a disadvantage if the others teamed together; that was not the purpose of their coming together but she knew all too well how petty the aristocracy could be.