[indent][indent]Taru watched the boy leave and cast a glance at the bartender. It was clear from the look in the man’s eyes that this wasn’t the normal way of things. It was obvious that he knew the shriek of and Alpha Ablated when he heard it but hadn’t done so down these ends for a long time. Taru cursed himself for his inaction, he knew there was something wrong when the mage and the young blonde first arrived and still remained in the bar. But it was too late to dwell on it now, he would chastise himself in his usual way later. He heard the blonde speak to him and turned to look directly in his eyes.

[color=steelblue]“As far as those approaching soldiers are concerned, we’re already guilty.”[/color] He began. [color=steelblue]“If we don’t leave now, we risk bringing whatever is due to us down on the heads of everyone in this bar.”[/color] 

He turned back to the barman. [color=steelblue]“All your jars of Frowthorn…break them.”[/color]

[color=00a651]“All of them?”[/color] The barman replied. The man clearly was not fond of the idea. In addition to its ability to confuse lesser Ablated, it was often sold for its impressive healing qualities when blended correctly. Destroying the entire supply could prove costly for the Stiltwalker’s Fall in more ways than one.

[color=steelblue]“Pull the whole shelf down!”[/color] Taru barked. [color=steelblue]“There was a brawl in here, at least one mage was involved and, when you tried to throw them out, it escalated and they destroyed your entire stock of Frowthorn. That should be enough to satisfy the guards if they come in here. I won’t hold it against you if you were to point them in our direction.”[/color]

The man simply nodded as Taru turned back to the youth. He saw something of his younger self in the boy’s eyes. He knew the fire that burned within them all too well. The flame of righteousness, a soul dedicated to honour but unburdened by the shackles one forges for oneself in pursuit of that honour. For a brief moment he envied the boy. He saw in him the same thing he had seen in the young soldier at the gate that afternoon. [color=steelblue][i]The glimmer of greatness[/i][/color]. He pushed the thought away.

[color=steelblue]“By The Veils, boy, I honestly don’t care what you do! Any life lost is regrettable but this world isn’t short of families, certainly not here in Dalvastre. You can either let villains carve out your path for you as the hero or you can carve your own.”[/color] He hesitated…these felt like someone else’s words, but whose? Like the face of the mage, they pulled at the strings at the back of his mind but he couldn’t tie them down. He saw the vision of bandana but then it vanished into the mists of his mind. What concerned him more was that, despite these words feeling so familiar, he didn’t disagree with them. [color=steelblue]“But if you want my advice…”[/color] He said to the young man. [color=steelblue]“Get out of Dalvastre. Something stirs underneath theses streets.”[/color]

He turned to leave and got as far as the door before turning back to the bartender. [color=steelblue]“You were right about the D’ol Dathri whiskey…it really does glide over the tongue.”[/color] With that, he pushed the wooden door open and strode out into the night.

He hadn’t realised how strong the smell of Frowthorn was in the tavern until he found himself breathing in the air without it. He glanced left and saw the glow of torches carried by the city guards, and right to see the considerably larger glow of the house the mage had set ablaze. He began to cross the square onto which the tavern faced. He kept a walking pace as he crossed the mosaic on the ground, partially lit by the fractured light of the sporadically lit gas lamps. He didn’t make it to the other side before the soldiers turned the corner.

[color=f7976a]"You there! Halt in the name of the emperor!”[/color] The leader shouted.

Taru found himself with a decision to make. He was within dashing distance of the alley opposite the inn and, with a few strides, could be out of sight. He knew he could outrun the soldiers and he could keep running until the scent of Frowthorn and the arcane echoes left behind by the young mage wore off. But running had never been his style. After all, he had done nothing wrong. So he stopped.

As they closed the distance on him he saw her, the Alpha. What a wretched creature she was and what a being she could have been. Her hair was thin and what was left of her clothes clung to her emaciated frame like the tattered standards of a lost war. Like her two male counterparts, she strained against her shackles, shrieking and moaning, her eye closed shut around that horrific obsidian needle. He pitied her and, by extension, hated the men who kept her chained like a dog. They stopped a few feet from him, the Ablated all pulling against their bindings in the direction of the tavern and the escape route of the mage. Unfortunately for Taru, the latter was right behind him.

[color=f7976a]“Let me see your papers, mage!”[/color] The leader ordered. He was a large man, broad shouldered and tall. He had the posture of a seasoned soldier but only two stripes embossed into the steel shoulder guards of his armour. [color=steelblue][i]Only a corporal[/i][/color]. He was right about the number. There were eight soldiers in total. The mouthy corporal, five other infantry and two crossbowmen.

[color=steelblue]“I’m not a mage.”[/color] Taru said calmly, ensuring he never once looked back at the tavern.

[color=f7976a]“Well these creatures seem to disagree.”[/color] He sneered.

[color=steelblue]“Perhaps what they are really looking for is over there.”[/color] He nodded his head backwards, in the direction of the increasingly obvious flames and smoke.

[color=f7976a]“Another squad will see to that, I’m not going to be known as the man who let a mage escape. Now throw down your weapons and come quietly or we’ll have to take you down by force.”[/color]

[color=steelblue]"I have an imperial writ of passage into and around Dalvastre upon request of the emperor…” [/color]Taru began but he knew the type of man this corporal was, ambitious, stubborn and dumb as a bucket of bricks. Taru stretched out his fingers and took stock of each man in the squad’s position. This was more difficult than normal thanks to the gnashing and flailing of the chained Ablated but he pushed the noise away.

[color=f7976a]“I’ll be sure to read it after I pull it off your corpse, mage!” The corporal spat.[/color]

Shifting his weight, his arms fell to his hips and he sighed. He knew there was something about tonight.
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