Halonar

Bel

Jack got done packing shortly before noon, he had gotten very little sleep. He and the rest of the Branch had stayed up almost the entire night for the ambush. Still, he loaded his belongings onto a donkey in the stable.

The donkey had originally belonged to Wyatt, its name was Fido, because he was the size of a large dog and he was brown. He was pretty sure that Wyatt would be okay with him taking Fido.

He hopped on Fido after he was done loading his stuff, and rode him slowly out onto the road. Kuhara looked at him on his way out, she wasn't angry, she looked almost sad to see him go, but Jack had already made up his mind. He was sure that the Branch could find more recruits to fill the gaps. And staying behind would just put them in more danger, especially if the Adaraians found out. He was better off alone anyway.

Jack knew he had arrived in Keywark when he saw a beggar approaching him, the man's shirt was held together by little more than a few threads.

The man gave him a toothy smile, and held up the bottom half of a broken bottle of rum. "Spare change?" he asked. Jack forced a smile and gave him a few coins from his pockets. The man smiled wider and thanked him, then turned around to leave. Tucked in his back satchel, was a big knife. Jack gritted his teeth, he knew his way around a town like this. He had grown up in one after all.

Jack never told his wife, but he had used to live in a town like this one. The conditions weren't nearly as bad as this, Jack ate well, and slept under a bridge close to the river. People would often throw coins into the river for good luck. Jack found out about the coins when he was hit by one while fishing for salmon. From that point on, he fished for coins. Jack later ended up working at a store, other people like him had chosen a life of crime over hard work. Jack eventually built up enough money to support a family...

Jack felt sick to his stomach. He had almost forgotten how he had gotten in this situation. He shook it off and moved forward.

Jack continued on his way, he didn't make direct eye contact with anyone because It could start a fight. He found it very difficult to do that when he was the only one in sight with a pack animal. Still, it was broad daylight, he highly doubted people would attempt to rob him right then and there. He kept riding. As he got further into the city, he noticed the streets and houses looked better. Cleaner. There were less people in the street.

He stopped when he got to a gate. A guard halted him, then waved to another guard. The other guard opened a large door.

"No weapons," said the guard, gesturing to Jack to put his sword in a pile of weapons. He obliged, He would probably get it on his way out.

Beyond the gate, the town looked much cleaner, at least. The houses seemed to look the same though. He found it difficult to see, as everything appeared to be shrouded in some sort of mist.

Jack spent the rest of the day exploring the town. To his surprise he saw almost no Adaraians . He looked at a few shops, none had any food, which was weird.

Every shop sold almost the same thing; clothing, horseshoes, or bricks for building houses. Jack approached one of the vendors and asked him where he could find food. The man told him to go away. Jack grunted and left.

He didn't buy a single thing. He mounted Fido again. Fido grunted and his stomach rumbled. Jack was hungry too. And by now it was getting pretty late.

This place looked cleaner, maybe an inn would be here, but Jack didn't see any.

Suddenly, a carriage rolled in front of Jack, startling Fido. He squealed, stopping in his tracks abruptly. Jack was thrown off his back. Jack immediately rolled and got up, just in time to intercept a knife being jabbed at him, he twisted the man's arm, a disarming technique that he had learned when he was only a teenager, the man grunted and dropped the blade. He wore a piece of cloth over his face. Three other men exited the carriage, they held various weapons, another knife, a bow and one had a full fledged spear.