The previous night had been an experience. Malcador had to endure eating only slightly cooked squirrel, while Serphia and he spoke about their plans for the next day and supped what little water they had gathered from the last river they had happened upon. They had no money, no prospects, and it was only a matter of time before the riders of Thentia showed up in Thenton to question the townsfolk about two escapees. A dark elf, who was easy to spot, and an incredibly handsome magician, who might also not be extremely forgettable. Not to mention the bulbous giant spider trailing them.

They needed to keep heading east, potentially to Hulburg. Malcador had never been there, but it was close enough to reach on foot and far away enough to be out of Thentia's sphere of influence. He doubted Serphia had been there, either. Truth be told, wherever they went, she would bring trouble by nothing else but her heritage, and if people found out she was an assassin, it would certainly not help an already delicate matter. However, Malcador was stupidly going to stick with her for awhile. 

The outfit he now wore was a simple one. Baggy, worksman's trousers and a white linen shirt, tied snug at his waist with a sash belt. Sephia had received similar garb, albeit not exactly the same. Malcador had fixed his hair best he could, but he was still fairly unkempt. At least they had slept well, considering it was on hay. Malcador had been so tired he had slept until an hour after sunrise, and his body still ached. He was not built for running all day, and while it replenished a small bit of his magical strength back, he still required a spellbook to do anything complicated. He wasn't a sorcerer that could just will his way into power, he was a wizard. It required study and preparation, and he was without much of either, and no real collection of spell components.

He drew a course map of the northern coast of the moonsea in the dirt with his finger. "We could travel on the east road, but someone might spot us, and you would need to keep your face swathed in some form of cloth. We could head north for a brief spell, and travel in the back country. It might be safer, even considering how close Thar is." He shook his head. There were multiple options, but none of them great. "I'm not sure how adverse you are to stealing, but we might need to continue that until we can procure some more coins and find a reasonable mode of employ. I would suggest we hire ourselves as guards on a caravan, but considering our lack of armor or weapons or credentials, I doubt anyone would accept us. They'd sooner send us straight back into Thentia Prison." 

It looked somewhat bleak, to him, but chances were Seprhia was far older than he, and was likely used to traveling places without being seen. With Arloke scouting, they might have to endure the woods for another few days longer. 

"What do you think, Serphia?"