“So, what brings you boys to Winterglade? Haven’t seen you ‘round here before,” Hila asked.
“We were a part of the garrison sent to defend Barrowtown against the invasion.”
“Oh, I see. A lot of folk have fled their homes and are holding up in Winterglade. Business has been booming because of it. Apparently, those Imperials have been landing up and down the coast,” Hila said.
Hila had uncertainty in her eyes, Tomas saw. He looked around- all the townsfolk in the tavern looks uneasy. A time of potential invasion was a time of doubt for the people of the Broken Coast.
“Couple of farmsteads to the north of here were burned down not two days passed. They found the farmers and their kin hanging by the neck. Those Imperial bastards,” Hila whimpered.
Tomas shook his head in disgust; it reminded him of the family they had ridden across, hanging above the road, on their way to Winterglade.
“And just yesterday, a traveller came through claiming he’d seen an entire herd of cows butchered and dismembered, but not eaten. Huge, bone-deep gashes on their bodies, grass painted red with blood.”
Hila broke some more bread and passed it around, taking a bite into a piece for herself.
“Probably wolves,” Landry said.
Hila raised an eyebrow. “I’m not so sure. Wolves only go for one animal at a time when they hunt, never a whole herd. And the cattle weren’t eaten, only killed.”
“Why would the Akurai invaders kill livestock and not eat the meat?” Tomas asked.
“Maybe it wasn’t the Imperials who did it?” Landry said.
“Or maybe they don’t eat meat, like you, Tomas,” Rilan joked.
“Pardon me for asking,” Hila said, “but if you were a part of the Barrowtown garrison, then why are you all the way out here?”
The boys looked at one-another, unsure of how much information to divulge. Landry peered over to Gharland and Britus to ensure they could not overhear, before responding,
“Um, we’re on our way to the Grand Repository, actually. To help out the Magisters.” A little truth was better than none, it seemed.
“What do you want with them?”
“We will be running scout patrols around Mooncrest Mountain and helping with their defences. With the invasion and all, the Imperium needs the extra protection,” Tomas said.
“Hm… Well, I’d be cautious around that lot,” Hila warned, leaning in closer to whisper. “Bunch of old, crazy child-stealers, those Magisters are. They come ‘round every once and a while to take a child for their wicked experiments, I hear. Every time a child goes missing in Winterglade, they say they’re with the Imperium now. For good!”
“Our village tells it the same way, too,” Tomas said. “I think any time a child goes missing on the Broken Coast, it’s blamed on the Magisters.”
“Aye, because their minds have grown afoul from drinking that black poison around their necks,” Rilan added.
Landry did not contribute further to the conversation. He looked as though he could not take their words seriously, as if they were just peasant rumours. They had to be…
But Tomas wasn’t so sure, he had always had his suspicions growing up, and still held some fear of the Magisters. No one really know what they did up in their Repository, all alone atop the mountain.
Hila’s balding father walked up to his daughter with a grimace, smacking her on the back of the head so hard it made the boys jump with surprise. The Valkhor men at the bar looked over but said nothing.
“Get up and help serve this instant, young lady,” the bald man barked. He had an unappealing gap between his front teeth and stunk of stale wine. “Lest you cop the back of my hand again.”
Hila stood up, rubbing her head with a frown. Tomas saw a hint of fear in her squinting eyes.
“Enjoy your stay at the Pickled Kraken,” she mumbled.
Tomas wanted to say something to her, to her father, but felt it was not his place to do so. It may only make things worse.
“Looks like Tommy’s found himself a lass!” Rilan joked, quiet enough so that she wouldn’t hear him.
“She’s pretty, you could do a lot worse!” Landry added.
“Time to find that toadstool of yours a new home, Tommy,” Rilan said.
Tomas blushed with a laugh, nudging Rilan. “Shut up. Don’t be so crude.”
It made him uncomfortable to hear Rilan and Landry make jokes about a girl who had just been threatened, let alone someone as lovely as Hila appeared to be.
But as they continued their meal, Tomas could not take his eyes off of the barmaid.
※
After some more eating and drinking, Tomas took himself out the back of the tavern to use the outhouse. It was a small shack with a mud floor and a few used chamberpots, full of buzzing flies. The smell was overwhelming enough to almost convince him to find somewhere else to do his business.
Tomas strode clear of the horrific odour once he was finished, standing amongst some swaying juniper trees. He looked up at the cloudless blue sky, feeling the cool breeze kiss his skin, hearing some sparrows singing to each other amongst the branches.
He took in a deep breath of the crisp northern air, feeling it enter his chest and spread out through his body like a relaxing aura. It felt pleasant to be away from everybody else, even just for a short amount of time.
Tomas watched as the flock of small birds took flight from a nearby pine tree, soaring into the air together. It was then he realised that the strange red star in the sky he’d seen the night before. It shimmered like a large star. Strange that it is still visible in the daytime.
Tomas heard snow crunching from behind him. He turned to see the barmaid Hila approaching, peering up at the sky where
