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After a long and arduous journey, The Smiling Wind's caravan set up camp just outside the eastern gates of Alo'Quin. Three of the four travelers hovered around their modest cart, each giving the other much needed space after being cooped up in tight quarters. An hour after everyone had settled in, Iko, the dancing fox woman, returned from her hunt. She carried a bucket of blood in one hand, which belonged to the hare she grasped with the other. 

"Well done!" Said Yania, the troupe's elvish singing actress. She set down her cup of mead and rolled over to greet her dear friend, staring excitedly at Iko's hunt. "That'll go well with the seasoned yams and gold taters we picked up at the Orchid Market." 

Iko nodded. "It's not quite the parting feast I wanted to give Zahir, but the company is where it counts, eh?" She flashed her white fangs into a smile. 

"Speaking of which, where is the lad?" A dwarf appeared from the other side of the cart. It was Ironshard, acoustic musician and special effects wizard. His long brown hair and beard were meticulously braided, no doubt the work of Iko and Yania. 

Yania shrugged. "He wandered off with Chuvalo. Said he'd be back." Ironshard frowned, but not because of Zahir's disappearance. 

"Either drink the Ruby Ale I brewed, or hand it over to someone who appreciates its craftsmanship! We're low on resources making this unexpected trip to Alo'Quin as is." Ironshard snarled, pointing at the cup Yania had been nursing for the past hour. Yania growled, engaging in what would be her 22nd argument with the dwarf for the day. Iko laughed as she trotted toward the campfire. Without warning, a powerful scent stopped her in her tracks. Iko stuck her nose in the air and gave two sniffs, then let the hare drop onto the grassy floor. 

"What is it?" Ironshard said, startled at Iko's behavior. Yania looked over, showing concern as well. The fox looked back at them both with a devious smile that sent chills down their spines. 

"Boar..." 

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Zahir Kadmizahri smiled at last nights farewell feast with The Smiling Wind, cherishing the look on their faces as he dragged in a succulent boar on the back of his white-coated llama. The meat was roasted with a tinge of honey and spiced seasoning, washed down with Ironshard's tasty Ruby Ale. After the meal settled warmly in their bellies, and the ale kept their spirits rambunctious, they performed one more time as a quartet, singing and dancing to their heart's content. Their audience? the woodland animals and insects of the night. They filled every bush and tree branch in site, watching with zipping curiosity at these peculiar characters. 

His thoughts wandered off to the late hour, when Ironshard and Yania were off asleep and it was just him and the beautiful fox...

Zahir clutched the aqua blue scarf around his neck, drawing it close to smell Iko's haunted scent of lilac and sunflowers. In his trouser pockets is a folded letter from Iko, one he can only open if his ears came across "their favorite song." His ears had been searching for its melody ever since. Another letter was folded in the same trouser pocket, one he opened time and time again. It was the reason why he now gathered with this group of strangers inside a tavern called The Cup and Barrel. Years of aimless travel with The Smiling Wind now seemed like a distant memory. The perilous adventure detailed by the robed man awoke something deep within the Gnome, a feeling he welcomed with much fervor in his heart. The time for song and dance is over. Now, it is a time for song, dance, and grim adventure! 

The gnome swayed to and fro between the giants that lumbered about his path, whistling a joyous tune. 

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"Well, quite the task set before us, eh?" Zahir said aloud to no one in particular. He placed the mugs onto the table and hopped onto the closest open seat. All of the attention seemed to be focused on Merlin, so Zahir slid one of the mugs he brought over to him, clanking everyone's cups with his own. "To new friends and new enemies...May the former be the only ones sharing this toast!"