Chapter 1 - The Stranger

The sound of glass smashing and a crowd of men cheering rang through the tavern. 

“That’s two meads and a bowl of stew coming right up for you.” Lyssara said to the startled couple she was serving and turned towards the sound of the chaos briefly to appraise the smashed goblet on the floor and the table full of deeply drunken men. “Right, that’s a gold piece added to your tab!” she scolded as they jeered and a gold piece flew into her forehead.

It had been a long night in The Golden Tankard. Rubbing the swollen red spot where the gold hit her, Lyssara deftly and efficiently poured the meads and ladled stew while muttering to herself. She was so sick of this place. This dead end job on the edge of this dead end forest at the dead end of the world. She wanted to live a life that would make her mother proud. She wanted to go to school in the free city of Arcanthia, and study magic like her mother did. But instead she was a tavern maiden in the middle of…who was that?

Her internal monologue came to a halt as she spotted a cloaked stranger sitting by himself at the end of the bar. Everyone in the tavern was from around here except him. His cloak was strange, it had a sheen about it like she’d never seen before. His eyes met hers and she found herself looking away shyly. I’m being ridiculous, she thought, and looked back, his light blue eyes seeming to pierce her soul.

“Is there anything I can get you from the bar, stranger?” she asked while wiping down the counter.

The man smirked under his hood, “Looking for a girl named Lyssara Ashvale. You seen her?”

This is an interesting development. Lyssara thought to herself, have I committed any crimes lately? I don’t think I have. “I might have seen her around. What do you want with her?”

“You might have?” the stranger chuckled to himself, “Well the locals say she’s a tavern maiden in this tavern here, said she has long brown hair, usually looks pissed off.”

“I don’t look pissed off, people just piss me off.” she started back and brushed her long brown braid back, embarrassed. “Alright you’ve got me, what can I get you now?” She blushed.

“I have something for you, but we’ll need to meet in private.” the stranger smirked, “I hear I could rent a room and you for 50 gold pieces?” There was a jingling of gold as he placed a small purse on the counter.

“Oh, that’s what you want.” Lyssara sighed internally, No new adventure today I guess, “Yeah it’s no problem, I’ll meet you in your room after dinner, in about 30 minutes.” I just won’t tell him it’s usually 30 gold.

Lyssara handed him the key to his room and continued serving the bar. She bussed the tables and refilled drinks and almost forgot that the stranger was there in the corner. But he was there unmoving, watching her with those piercing blue eyes the entire night until the dining room had cleared. 

She started when she remembered he was there, “Oh! You’re still here, you don’t have to wait for me, I'm just finishing up.”

He nodded silently and watched her place the closed sign on the door, and lock up the dining room. Finally she removed her apron and set it on a hook by the bar.

“Come on sweetie,” Lyssara reached out for his hand and looked at him under hooded eyes, “why don’t we go up to your room now?” she said silkily. Her ample chest filled out her bodice without an apron to cover it and was filling the space in front of his seated position, enticing.

The stranger rose from his stool and towered over her, so much so she thought it was strange she hadn’t seen him come in. He followed her up the stairs to the room he had rented for the night, her hips swaying gently with each step, his heavy step and fast breathing betraying his excitement.

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