SECRETS OF EXOCLYUS

2: A PIECE OF HOME

  Stella walked through the town of Luro thankful of the magical dome that encased it, the snow within Luro fell very lightly compared to what was happening outside its walls.

  Still she was shivering, but that was to be expected after what she just went through. What she needed now was a place to rest and if the gods favoured her there would be a hot bath there to take the frost off her skin before she becomes an icicle.

  Fortunately an inn was about the second building she came across, hanging above the door was a sign that read "Welcome to The Orc Hut" along with a painting of a smiling orc's head hovering above the letters.

  Stella quickly moved into the building and was blessed by warm air the moment she walked in. Inside two large red stones stood on either side of the entrance, producing heat that the one around her neck had stopped doing on the way here.

  At the end of the welcoming room stood an orc behind a desk that seemed too small for her muscular frame, she drummed the table in a bored manner but her eyes gleamed once she noticed Stella who was now hugging the heat stone at this point.

  "A customer!" The inn keeper exclaimed and sat up straight. "I'm Narki, and welcome to Luro!"

  Stella gave no reply, she just kept her arms around the magical rock.

  "Mam, that rock tends to overheat on contact." Narki warned.

  "I'll be fine." Stella promised. "Can I have a room and a bath please?"

  "That'll be fifteen Fevs." The orc told her and Stella walked over to the table and placed a few gold coins on it.

  Stella was on a crucial mission, but she could barely move anymore so the best thing would be to have a long soak, figure out her next best plan of action, then move out in search of essentials. Also a hunter, a well trained one.

  That man said there would be some here.

  She wished he stuck around to show her around, but he probably had other things to do.

  Narki slid a copper key to Stella. "The bath will be ready in a bit, if you wish to wash your clothes that would be one extra ferv, don't worry clothes are dried via magma runes so you'll have them back before you know it."

  Stella dropped one more coin on the table and shuffled to where a sign said "bath hall" over the door. Inside the corridor there were several doors, and she was too cold to wait for the woman so she quickly went into one of them were a large wooden basin was placed just a few meters above a set of magma stones.

  They were functioning too slow for her liking so she aimed her finger towards them and shot a small column of fire to get them hotter. Once the water was proper boiling Stella ensured nobody was passing by, took off her clothes, then slipped into the bath with a tired sigh.

  She sunk in until her afro was soaked and only her nose up to her forehead remained above the surface. The hot bubbles glided about, steam curled up into the cool air, her dimly lit surroundings brought a sense of closure and relaxation.

  Yes...she definitely needed this.

  Stella didn't even notice when her clothes were taken, she only came back to reality when the water had switched from hot to warm. She had been here for a while longer than expected.

  She noticed that in her trance of stress relief her clothes had been returned, dry as the inn keeper promised. Stella took a moment to ready her mind before climbing out of the bath, drying herself up, then changing into her clothes and walking back to the innkeepers table, where Narki was flipping through a book with a bored expression.