A Mystical War

The Infiltration

It turns out the mission was to meet up with a smuggler, infiltrate Isonall, and find any usable information. We were told the smuggler would have a white rose. The commander only needed Ana and me to go, only two people would be easier to hide than four. I was getting dressed when Ana came in. "Oh sorry!" She exclaimed, quickly turning around. "Oh, it's fine," I said, putting my shirt on quickly, "I'm done." "What do you think of this mission?" She asked, sitting down on a bench, blushing. "Well, it's not going to be easy, but the commander is confident in our abilities," I responded. I grabbed a dagger from the rack, my sword and shield would be a dead giveaway, and started to walk out, but stopped and asked, "How are you doing?" I could feel Ana smile at me, "I'm feeling okay. Kind of scared to go in to Isonall but if you're confident I'm confident," She said then grabbed her dagger.

We were on the main road to Isonall, just walking and talking. "So, how long have you been using magic?" I inquired. "Well, I started training it since I was seven, but I've used it even before then I've been told," She answered. Then I heard some footsteps running up behind us. "Move!" The person behind us yelled. I grabbed Ana and sidestepped, barely dodging a man sprinting at full speed. "Run!" He yelled back at us. I turned around to see what he was running from but saw nothing. "Bloody razorleaf user." I said just loud enough for Ana to hear. "What's razorleaf?" She asked, confused. "It's an herb that kills all pain, but if you use too much it really messes you up." I told her.

We made it to the outskirts and were waiting for a smuggler to get us into Isonall. "Oi, you them?" A gravelly voice called to us out of the silence, causing Ana to jump. I turned to him, looking him up and down. He calmly showed us the white rose. "Yeah, we are," I told him. "I can get you to The Nytewolf's Den, but no further," He said, quickly turning around and climbing up a makeshift ladder to a roof. "Follow," he called back to us. "You go first." Ana said quietly, almost sounding scared. "I wish, but with my fear of heights I'll be going pretty slow," I said, motioning to the ladder. She just sighed and grabbed the first rung.

It was a long climb but we got up onto the roof. "You see that light right there? That's The Nytewolf's Den. There'll be guards so lemme take care of 'em ok?" The smuggler said. I just nodded. He quickly climbed down another ladder set up on the other side. Ana went next and I quickly followed. We hit the ground and the smuggler crouched low to the ground. "Follow my lead if you value your life and freedom," He whispered. We snuck down an alley, hiding in the shadows when we heard a patrol.

We made it to The Nytewolf's Den with no incident. "Ok, enjoy your stay here in the lovely Isonall!" The smuggler said with a snicker and walked back into an alley. I grabbed the handle of the heavy wooden door and pushed it open. I immediately smelled ale and heard joyous music and singing. I walked in, Ana following close behind. "Ah! Welcome!" A big man belted out. He had his arms around two bar maids, who looked less than happy. "Welcome to The Nytewolf's Den! My lovely bar! My name's Maximus!" He exclaimed, a huge smile plastered to his obviously drunk face. "I'm Robyn, and this is Ana," I said quickly. "Ah! I see it! True love, and don't -hic- tell me it ain't true. I have an eye for those things!" He laughed heavily. I could feel Ana blushing, I felt my own cheeks getting warm. "Oh? Not lovers yet? Well take a few drinks and rent a room! Maybe it'll change?" He chuckled again. I was starting to get frustrated. "Hey Maxi? How about you shut up and leave them girls alone." A woman's voice called from the stage. Maximus turned to the woman and smiled, "Ah, of course it's you. Fine, fine." "Why don't you girls come with me." The woman said, stepping off the stage. I could finally see her clearly. She was a bigger build of a woman, shoulder length blonde hair, and she had this welcoming feel about her.

She led us to a back room with a strange twinkle in her eye. "I haven't seen you around here. You guys just come in?" She asked us, sitting down on the bed, then exclaimed, "Oh, sorry! My name is Kaidan." I nodded my head. "Yeah, we're new around here. Just looking for a tour," I told her, knowing a tour would be the easiest way to learn the town. "Ah, well I can definitely give you a tour tomorrow, before or after I perform," She said, a giant grin on her face. Then she pointed at Ana, "You, you're young, but powerful. I can feel it," She said then whispered, "How about I share a secret." Ana nodded her head. "I'm a mage and I know you're one too. Don't worry, I won't tell." Kaidan said, shooting a comforting smile at Ana. Ana sighed in relief. I felt as if we could tell her anything. "Well, we're going to need a room if you're giving us the tour tomorrow," I said. "Ah, well, I can get ol' Maxi to give you a room, but you gotta keep my secret," She said with a wink, causing Ana to chuckle.

Then, Kaidan took us back to Maximus and we followed him to our room. "You're lucky Kaidan gave me good words. Normally I'd charge young 'uns more, especially since this is my last open room," He said with a hearty laugh, "We usually get visitors from all over Ushain, hell, we had a bunch of foreigners today." He opened the door for us. It was a luxurious room - but only one bed. Maximus left us to unpack the few things we had. Ana sat down on the bed, putting her dagger on the nightstand. "Looks like we have to share?" She said, a little bit of hope in her voice. I chuckled, "Looks like it," I answered. We talked about what we were going to scope out tomorrow, and before we knew it, it was night. We said goodnight to each other and I drifted off to sleep pretty easily.

I normally don't sleep for very long, and when I woke up it was the middle of the night. I felt Ana start to toss and turn, murmuring a little bit. 'She must be having a nightmare,' I thought, remembering when I had to comfort Jeni. After a few moments of hesitation I decided to roll over and put my arm around her. She became still almost immediately. Her calming down calmed me down and before I knew it I was dreaming again.

"Good morning girls!" A voice called from the doorway. I startled awake, and realized it was Kaidan and that I was still cuddling Ana. I quickly sat up, hoping neither realized, but when I looked up, Kaidan just chuckled lightly and winked. Ana got up, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. "What's going on?" She asked groggily. "Time for your tour," Kaidan said cheerfully, "Oh, and don't let Maxi see that knife out in the open. He'll have a cow." Ana quickly grabbed it and fastened it to her belt again.

We got the highlights of the town: The guild hall, the shopping center, and according to Kaidan the most important, the two pubs. I made a mental note of where the guild hall was while Kaidan led us back to The Nytewolf's den. She stopped us before going in. "I know what you're here to do." She paused, "I don't think you can do it. At least not without an inside guy, well, person." She motioned for us to follow and went around to the back, where there was a cellar door. "In here, ask for Ash. They'll sort everything," Kaidan explained, and slipped me a white rose. "Show this to the people down there." After taking it, I slowly opened the door and climbed down the stairs, thinking this might be a trap. I could hear a lot of hushed talking.

I made it to the bottom and saw a bunch of people. One of them, a boy, saw me and held out his hand. "Who are you? Where's Kaidan?" I held up the white rose and started speaking slowly, "Kaidan sent us down here to talk to Ash?" The boy lowered his hand. All of a sudden a cloaked figure with multiple battle scars on their face appears out of the shadows. "I am the one they call Ash," The cloaked figure said, "And this..." They said, motioning to the space around them, "...is a little safe haven that Kaidan has set up for us."