The Beast Within Us

Chapter 23: ↭ Yara

↭ Yara withheld a soft chuckle at Chala's side comment as they approached the apothecary, turning her coal gaze to her ward briefly.

"You seem to be all claws and teeth in either form, so I suppose it matters little." Yara's almost-smile was back again and she winked at Chala when their gazes met. The wardeness let the playful banter soothe the knots in her stomach as they made haste to the shop; while Yara paid little mind to the many stares they received, she did notice them.

The strong smell of herbs and potions assaulted Yara's senses as they entered the dimly lit shop. Chala rang the bell and it was not long before the leather-skinned man attended them. He greeted them with a tight-lipped smile and wiped his massive hands across the fabric of his soot-stained trousers as he approached the counter.

"Me lady, what can I do fer ya?" His rich voice was laced with a heavy western accent, rare to be seen in Audor.

Yara approached the counter gracefully, conscious of Chala tight at her side in her usual protective stance. Her coal gaze took in the array of bottles and jars before her, and the walls heavily lined with overstocked shelves of similar glass containers.

"I am in need of medicine. It's for one of my soldiers, he has a terrible cough."

The shopkeeper's lazy gaze swept across his stock briefly as Yara described more of Darryn's ailment. His hand idly reached up to stroke his beard as he appeared to think while he listened.

"A tonic fer a cough, aye, any fever or fatigue?"

"No fever that I am aware, but he is definitely rather worn down from the sickness."

The man nodded with her words and began rummaging along the shelves behind the counter, whistling a tune quietly as he searched through the vast array of vials.

Yara vaguely recognized the tune as one she had heard through her many travels before.

"The Maiden's Salvation." Yara named the hymn after a few moments, and nodded with her words to confirm the name.

"That's a piece commonly sung by the Sect of the Seven Gods. Are you from Briniel?"

The man paused his pawing through elixirs to glance at Yara.

"Aye, lass. And ye are the Warden of the North, are ye not?" Yara's stomach knotted up tightly again, and she gave a curt nod to the man before her. His accent and heavily tanned skin made sense now. The alchemist was from Briniel. His lazy gaze on her face suddenly made Yara feel panicked and she felt her body subconsciously step closer to Chala.

The man cracked a toothy smile, which helped ease her anxiety slightly.

"Yer group is going to Briniel, aye?" The alchemist placed a vial on the worn countertop before them, and the small glass jar bubbled lightly at the movement.

"Ye should be wary on the roads, me lady. Briniel is not very keen on Audor at this time."

Yara said little more as she paid for the murky brown tonic the man had provided. After quickly retreating from the shop with Chala and back in the security of the camp, Yara drug a confused Chala back to the caravan. Before entering her chambers, Yara uncorked the vial and poured the contents into the dirt.

"Just to be safe." She explained, before hurrying Chala into the caravan and out of the evening's chill.

"You probably don't know much about Briniel, but they are governed extremely different than Audor." Yara began explaining as she shrugged out of her cloak and boots.

"Audor has a king and queen that governs their wardens and houses, but Briniel is a religious kingdom. Their values and traditions are based on the Seven Gods of Creation and their kingdom is governed by the Sect of the Seven. It's a council made up of seven elders that decide what is best for the kingdom. They are the king and queen of Briniel." Yara undressed her riding clothes and quickly changed into her nightdressing. Her level of comfort was extreme around Chala, but she felt safe with her around at all times, even if the hewan was the only one to ever see her undressed.

"That man belonged to the Sect of the Seven, Chala. That's why he asked about us. I am willing to bet whatever was in that vial was not a tonic for coughing." Yara knew he was from Briniel, and all those who belonged to Briniel were from the Sect of the Seven, but what she wasn't sure of was his intentions.

"He made me feel uneasy. You should stay alert tonight, just in case." ↭