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[i][b]A not so vigilant watch[/b][/i]
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[color=a187be]”I spy with my little eye… something shiny.”[/color]

Yalen shaded his eyes with his hand and squinted. From where he and Isabella stood atop the wall, they had an overhead view of half the complex. Her first hint was fairly broad, as to be expected. From the shimmer of the oasis to the painted windows of the Darhannic chapel, there were dozens of objects that could count as the game winning answer. 

Since he was unlikely to get it his first try, Yalen took a blind guess. [color=#FD5E53]”Um… is it the weather vane?”[/color] He pointed at the dragon shaped instrument spinning around on top of one of the administrative buildings. 

[color=a187be]”Nope. Your next hint is: someone is wearing it.”[/color] Isabella pushed her glasses up with her pinky finger. It was quite the generous hint for a second guess, but the pair of tethered had agreed on a three strikes rule for this game. Even with that much Yalen had a good chance of losing. 

[color=#FD5E53]”Alright then, how about… that guard’s helmet?”[/color] The younger of the two pointed his finger at a watchman patrolling in the distance. The angle of the sun was such that a bright spot shone on the soldier’s plated headwear. Isabella crossed her arms in an ‘X’ and shook her head. 

[color=a187be]”Wrong again! Last hint: it’s closer than you think.”[/color] 

[color=#FD5E53][i]Close by? Hm.[/i][/color] Yalen scanned his eyeballs around the immediate vicinity. There weren’t actually that many people around. Almost everyone was occupied with attending the talks with the Duke or taking care of all the men he’d brought with him. With that in mind, the young monk felt that he had the correct answer figured out. 

[color=#FD5E53]”It’s your glasses.”[/color] Isabella had nearly tricked him. Maybe she thought he wouldn’t suspect her person as being part of the game. It was a clever ruse.

[color=a187be]”Wroooooong. You were almost there though.The answer was your robe.”[/color] The spectacled girl poked at Yalen’s collar. The golden embroidery shimmered like fine jewelry. To think he’d overlooked the possibility… Isabella had outmatched him. 

[color=#FD5E53]”Alas, I am beaten.”[/color] The priest in training shook his head in defeat. [color=#FD5E53]”Did you want to play another game?”[/color] Neither of them had detected the wyrm’s presence, so there was still time to kill. 

[color=a187be]”Nah, I’m over that. Let’s talk about something.”[/color] Isabella scooted her stool closer to Yalen’s. 

[color=#FD5E53]”Oh? Like what?”[/color]

[color=a187be]”I don’t know. Anything. You can talk about your school, or… your friends… hey, you’re going to be a priest someday right? Tell me more about that.”[/color] The inquisitive gaze of the apprentice secretary bore into Yalen’s head. It made him a tad uncomfortable; he still wasn’t used to being so thoroughly examined by someone. He scratched his cheek and gave her a nervous smile. 

[color=#FD5E53]”I don’t mind, but there is much I can talk about. You may find it a tiresome subject. Priesthood isn’t just a job. If you set yourself on the path you’re committing yourself for life. We’re talking about a decision that shaped most of my childhood.”[/color] When he saw his watch partner pull out a pad and start taking notes, a bead of sweat trickled down Yalen’s forehead. 

[color=a187be]”So you started pretty early then?”[/color]

[color=#FD5E53]”All the kids in my orphanage were given lessons on the scriptures since we were five or six years old. I have always loved the Creator, but I didn’t devote myself to him fully until shortly after my eighth birthday. I didn’t know what I was asking for when I told my honorable brothers that I wished to join the brotherhood. There is so much you have to learn. A seminarian has to study theology and philosophy for years just to enter the lowest ranks of the priesthood. Besides that you also need to study the tenets of your specific organization. As a prospective member of the Brotherhood of Sunset, I must be a practitioner of medicine and a caregiver for the infirm. The extra homework afforded me little time to play with my orphan siblings. Even now, I have only committed a fraction of the required knowledge to memory.”[/color]

[color=a187be]”So there are different orders among the Quentics?”[/color] Isabella tapped her pen against her chin.

[color=#FD5E53]”Yes, there are several. The five gods are each honored by their own order of worshippers, and each order is further divided into five sects. These sects are unified in the worship of their patron deity, but they each embody an individual part of their god’s personality.”[/color]

[color=a187be]”I see…”[/color] Izzy was scribbling notes as fast as Yalen could talk. Though he found her behavior a bit odd, he was flattered that someone was this interested in his words. When there was a short pause in the conversation, the pigtailed girl poked at his chest, or more specifically the holy icon hung around his neck. [color=a187be]”What’s this for? It looks expensive.”[/color]

[color=#FD5E53]”This? It’s a present from my dad. The shape is of the setting sun to express my allegiance to the brotherhood. I didn’t ask how much it cost to make. It already weighs heavily on my neck as is.”[/color]

[color=a187be]”You were talking about being an orphan, yes?  Someone adopted you?”[/color]

[color=#FD5E53]”Charles Castel. He is the abbot of the monastery and the second son of the noble Castel family. He’s taken such good care of me. My aunts and uncles are too busy with politics to visit very often, but they’re good people too. I couldn’t be happier.”[/color]

[color=a187be]”Jeez, try not to lay it on too thick.”[/color] Isabella crossed her arms and feigned indignance.

[color=#FD5E53]”Oops. Sorry.”[/color] Yalen tried to think of a new direction to steer the conversation for a second, but then he felt something brush against his mental probe. [color=#FD5E53]”Wait, do you sense that?”[/color] His fellow tethered shut her eyes and concentrated. 

[color=a187be]”...Yeah. Yeah! I sense it. By the gods, it’s huge! So this is the king of the desert.”[/color]

[color=#FD5E53]”It’s not coming this way though. Should we still report it?”[/color]

[color=a187be]”Let me think. If it’s going the way we know it’s going then - oh shit. Oh shit oh shit oh shit.”[/color]

Yalen put his hand on Izzy’s shoulder. [color=#FD5E53]”What is it?”[/color] 

[color=a187be]”Hosta! The dragon is going towards Hosta! Let’s go, we gotta warn the others!”[/color]