Eight Intertwined

60 - Azure

After leaving behind Ellen, Flynn, and Marlene's home, Alfyn began to scan the area with a frown on his face. He admittedly didn't know where to start when it came to gathering information, but he figured that the tavern would be as good a place to start as any. He had learned that taverns were one of the best places to learn more about the surrounding area, and Therion had only followed up on that to make it ring even truer in Alfyn's ears. In other words, it was likelier they would find information there than anywhere else, and given that they were on a time crunch, Alfyn was desperate to get inside to start asking questions.

Alfyn paused just outside the tavern when he noticed that there was a strange path leading out of town nearby. He stared at it for a long moment, watching the crags carefully like he expected answers to come to life while he was standing there watching. He shook it off a moment later and turned in the direction of the tavern, and much to his surprise, he saw a man standing just outside the entrance of the building. He was counting leaves as far as Alfyn could tell.

The apothecary was quick to tap him on the shoulder after drawing nearer. "Excuse me, sir..." he said carefully, prompting the man to look up. He jabbed one finger over his shoulder in the direction of the winding path that led off into the distance. "Would you be able to tell me what all is back that way?"

The man straightened up after pocketing his leaves, a small frown on his face. "That's not somewhere you'd want to be going," he told Alfyn. "It's dangerous. There are a couple monsters that have decided to settle down in those caves, and they're prone to attacking just about anybody who gets too close. The only people who would be able to get back there would be great fighters. I don't know what's in the caves at the end of the path, but I'm willing to bet that it's not worth the risk."

Alfyn nodded along slowly at that, and he remembered from his past readings that there were many types of moss that tended to grow in dark, moist areas like that. In other words, it wouldn't be out of the question to say that there was at least something interesting in the area. "Alright... Thank you for the help," he told the man simply. He glanced in the direction of the tavern before deciding to not bother, darting off towards the back end of town instead.

Alfyn was moving so quickly that it was hard for the rest of his group to keep up with him, and Tressa had to practically run to fall into pace beside him. "What are you thinking now?" she asked. "Do you really think we're going to have to go back there if we want to figure out what's going on?"

"We might," Alfyn told her simply. "I'm not quite sure yet, but it wouldn't hurt for us to at least know a bit about what exactly goes on back there. There has to be something happening in that area, and if we can figure it out, then we're going to be better off."

Alfyn and the rest of the group arrived in the back part of town soon afterwards, and the apothecary once again took to glancing around the area. Talking to a few of the aristocrats who had bought medication from Vanessa seemed to be a nice place to try investigating next. Alfyn's eyes scrambled for anyone who might be considered useful to his cause, his stomach twisting into a knot along the way. He didn't want to believe that there was anything wrong with what Vanessa was doing. The facts were quickly being spelled out though, and he hated the picture that was being painted.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, he remembered seeing a dagger around her waist when they first spoke. It was hidden by her satchel at first, but it had been there. She knew how to fight, and once again, Alfyn felt sick to his stomach.

Damn it, Vanessa. You couldn't have...

Alfyn eventually saw a man who was walking through the back part of town, and he dashed off in the man's direction as quickly as he could. The aristocrat didn't seem to notice Alfyn at first, and the apothecary took that as his cue to get vocal. "Excuse me, sir!" he exclaimed. The man continued to ignore him, so Alfyn reached out and tapped him on the shoulder.