Sol's Shine and the Kingdom of Fire

Chapter 9 A Bounty Hunter's Price

Lilac didn't have a particular destination in mind. She just knew that finding a bounty hunter will help her find Crystal. It was all easier said than done. Both her and Ella woke up in a cheap inn. She was a little under prepared for the trip and the cost it took to even spend one night in the place they were in took half of their gold. Lilac slipped on her shoes and was about to go ask a few locals some questions about the town they were in.

Just yesterday night the sisters arrived in a town called Barrow. The town was set in a valley and it was best known for having plenty of huge waterfalls surrounding it. Every now and then the wind will carry the mist produced by these waterfalls and set them high over the town creating a rainbow. Lilac looked at her sister who was still picking out her clothes for the day. "Stay here. I'm going to go ask around and see if I can figure out where we can get a bounty hunter."

"Are you sure you don't want me to come? I can help." Ella was eager to explore with her sister but Lilac had to turn her down. "We don't know what this place is like Ella. I don't want you to get in any trouble." Lilac didn't like the idea of trying to find someone who specialized in hunting down people and having Ella around at the same time. Lilac was so focused on protecting Ella that she forgot how devious her sister can be sometimes.

Ella smiled. "Well you better take me with you to make sure I don't." With her saying that Lilac knew Ella was bound to run off by herself if she didn't keep an eye on her. "Fine. But you're sticking with me at all times. Remember that we're not here on vacation." Lilac told her sister as she was basically twisting her arm.

Ella got finished changing and the two of them checked out of the inn. Lilac hardly knew where to begin and she didn't know where to start. She just walked up to the first person she saw and began to ask. "Excuse me sir. Do you know where I can find a bounty hunter?" The first person she asked turned out to be a vulgar man with balding hair. "How should I know? Keep walking!" The man stormed off.

Getting any information about where she might find a bounty hunter was a lot harder than Lilac initially thought. Lilac and Ella went to person after person with no luck. On the bright side of things Lilac and Ella got to see so much of the town's beautiful scenery. Even if they were hardly making any progress it was a joy to Lilac seeing a bright smile on Ella's face. They eventually almost forgot what they came here for.

The sisters explored to their heart's content. They got to try out new foods they couldn't get in Silverlite and the waterfalls were especially stunning. Besides the man they ran into earlier the people were actually a lot nicer and it was like the town had its own sense of culture separated from the rest of the kingdom. The town had a bunch of small canals running alongside the roads and it wasn't unusual to see about three to five bridges on one block.

"Lets go to that flower store next! I want to see what they got!" Ella pulled Lilac along and went toward a small shop. The little bell rang as they pushed open the door. The shop had many colorful flowers and the smell was like something that was sent down from the heavens. Something seemed off about the place as soon as Lilac realized no one was at the counter.

"These look so pretty! I wish I could have some!" Ella was preoccupied looking at some roses but Lilac gazed at the back of the small store where a door was cracked open. She figured the owner was somewhere back there. Lilac and Ella were the only ones in the shop so she couldn't blame the person for wanting to take a break but just like with everyone else in town, she wanted to ask.

Lilac got closer to the back. "Hello?" She slowly stepped forward and heard no response. "You have a few customers." She tried to get someone's attention, hoping a friendly face would pop their head out. Lilac pushed open the cracked door and looked around the corner. Lilac's eyes got wider as soon as she saw it.