Even with his unrelenting lack of experience when it came to the wider world, Ali knew Illian was unusual for a city. As they had approached, it seemed as if the entire infrastructure was made of sweeping towers and palaces, and once they had entered nearly every street was crossed with different canals. A curious thought struck him when he passed by the water ways. Would he and Mave be allowed to take a raft about the city? It would be quicker, and Ali had loved rafting back home when he needed to get somewhere downriver quickly. 

Anyone able to read his thoughts would likely see how rustic and whimsical he was, and he felt a tinge of embarrassment. At the current moment, he stood upon the balcony of the multifloored Rosewater inn, overlooking the city and trying to concentrate of what they were to do next. Mave had been somewhat vague on what she needed to do here, and he felt like a sitting duck simply waiting, even though the rest and lack of travel was most welcome. 

Below him, a man and a woman walked down the stone street. The fellow sported a large beard that left his upper lip bare, and the woman wore a wide brimmed hat and plucked an olive stem from her mouth, chewing the treat with delight. She glanced his way and saw him looking, and she gave a wink, her rosebud lips curving into a smile. The Emond's Fielder blanched, and he decided to make his way inside the Inn. Light, these people were strange. He realized he must look very much like a tourist, as he had just shaved the stubble of a goatee he had gained, the barest shadow of facial hair now lining his chin and lips. His clothes were decidedly northern, as well.

Should he try to blend in further? 

The inner common room was a mixture of tired travelers and well to-do locals, and even a few hunters of the horn. Word had it from their talk that the council was to call another Hunt for the Horn soon. He decided he'd go and see how Mave was taking to the room, but he remembered she was taking her time in the baths. How long had she been in there? He'd at least call to her and see if she needed anything. Ali took the stairs up to the open air room, just outside of the bath area, reaching the apex before he heard a curious sloshing noise. 

For a moment, he thought it was her leaving the bath and he made his way to the exit, but then he heard it again, and a third time. Something pricked in the back of his mind, and a mad voice crying out in the depths of his soul. 

[i]When she died, I lost the best part of myself. When they died, I lost the best part of the world[/i]. 

"What?" he asked in his mind. "Who are you?" 

There was another slosh, and his mind screamed back into reality. Something was wrong. Modesty be damned, he knew something was wrong. The tall man opened the door to the bathouse, expecting a very confused Mave but instead seeing his worst fears realized. There was a man, devoid of emotion and grey of skin in the water of her bath, his arms thrust into the water as a woman's legs kicked futilely. "Get off of her!" Ali commanded, and for some reason the man stopped for a moment, unable to move for a mere second. It was long enough for Ali to make it to him and wrap his strong arm around the man's neck, pulling him out of the water. 

His hand, free from the fizz of the bath held a knife and he slashed as Ali's hip, drawing blood. "Blight take you!" Ali growled as Mave burst out of the water, vomiting up the liquid that had built into her lungs over the side. Alidren couldn't keep the man from stabbing him for long, twisting where he could to keep the knife at bay. He'd gotten second at the last wrestling competition in Emond Field, but his opponent had never had a weapon. Without thinking, he did what his uncle had always told him to do when in a dangerous situation. 

He needed to end it, and his muscles corded for a moment as he jerked the man's head and snapped his neck. Disgustingly, the body now flopped, weighted in his grasp. Sensing he was devoid of life, Ali let him fall to the ground heavily and he looked at his hands, suddenly appalled he had taken a life. "I..." He breathed, and then his mind caught up with him and he realized now wasn't the time to dwell on it. [i]Blood and Bloody Ashes[/i]!

Mave was now able to breathe, albeit hoarsely. Ali averted his eyes and took the towel she had waiting for her, helping her out of the tub and into the towel, holding her up and steady in his arms. "Mave, light, are you ok? Who was that?"