Stranger

Gra'akast

Alexis let herself be guided be the smells of exotic foods, the sound of merriment and the colourful sights that filled the torch lit streets.

Here an old woman in greenish robes, tended a stall in front of a large oven where she cooked flat breads sold with an assortment of bright spicy sauces and small rolled dougher sprinkled with white powder.

Near an alcove a group of men stood around a stone circle in the sand watching two small golden scorpions fight, while they laid bets to rancouous cheers and clapping.

At the door of a red painted building a group of scantily clad men and women stood at its entrance calling on passerbys, trying to entice them into the pleasure den. A dark skin woman wearing only a thin transparent robe grabbed Alexis hand kissing it softly while gazing into her eyes.

Eventually she settled in seating at an outdoor tavern serving steaming plates of food and ruby rich wine. She called for food and drink, noticing that her control over the language was not as strong as when she had been interrogating the Dark Robe. Maybe the boon as like the voices. And it waned, coming to the fore when it was sorely needed.

She has noticed that many women and men did not remove their scarves when eating or drinking. Simply lifting the bottom of the fabric gently and guiding the food under it. She did the same.

She noticed a young man, with curly black hair and a trimmed beard, a few tables over, looking at her intently. His clean expensive robes and the gold rings on his fingers marked him apart from many she had seen in the city so far. Maybe a noble of some kind.

The man smiled at her, holding her gaze. Just before her food arrived, carried by an older man with a limp, the stranger stood and walked to her table. He sat looking at her eyes.

"I have never seen the like before in my life. And I have travelled far and wide across Arcadia. Stunning." He said.