Love of a Soldier [F/F; PM to join]

Love of a Soldier

I want to do a F/F fantasy roleplay with someone, about a soldier woman and the Lady/princess she's sworn to protect. While the Lady is traveling home across country, with her entourage of guards and such, they're attacked by brigands. The soldier woman, one of her guards, takes the Lady and flees with her to protect her and they run and hide, left to travel alone. In their travels, they find out that the attack was actually an assassination attempt by the Lady's husband(if she's a princess, it could be that he's making a grab for power; if she's a Lady, it could be that she cannot bare him children, or maybe she saw something she wasn't suppose to). So the two have to stay together in hiding, traveling from town to town, hiding from soldiers looking for them and trying to figure out a way to protect the woman from her husband. My character is a very rough and cold person, "wed to battle" and at first she doesn't like the woman she's sworn to protect(maybe a personality clash). But in their travels they start to develop a friendship and an attraction grows between them.




The wind whispered through the trees and mixed with the rumble of the carriages wheels as they moved over the dirt path. The ornately carved coach swayed over rocks in the dirt road, it's large belly holding precious cargo on this journey through the wilderness. The carriage in front of it holding even more important "cargo". Guards rode and walked along beside the carriages, eyes and ears open and alert. The forest around them was bright with sunlight cascading through the top branches and illuminating the mossy ground beneath. Birds and small animals chittered in the brush and a pervading sense of peace ghosted over the travelers, like a comforting cloud.

But Andarta was not at ease, her body tense like a loaded spring as she let her hazel eyes sweep over the trees surrounding the path. Every ray of sunshine could be hiding the enemy and although a comrade jostled her and shared a joke with her, she merely let her lips twitch in a smile before continuing her vigil. In her late 20s, Andarta was a beautiful woman, despite having her head completely shaved and dressed in the armor normally worn by men, she had smooth, chiseled features and full, plush lips, with bright, dark eyes with long lashes. And the thin scar trailing down over her left eye, from cheek bone to forehead, did nothing to mar or hide her cold grace.

Walking on the left side of the carriages, she trailed behind near the luggage coach, hand held loose and ready, resting on her sword hilt at her hip. Her commanding officer, a large hulk of a man with a grizzled beard and riding on a russet horse, came galloping back towards where she walked and trotted along beside her.

"I need you to position yourself at the front carriage," he said quietly, not looking at her, but his eyes scanning the trees surrounding them. "Do it quietly and without show and stand ready. We're not alone and I fear they may try something at any minute."

"Aye, sir," she said curtly, keeping her movements fluid and steady as she made her way to the leading carriage. She walked along beside it and continued to keep an eye out, her hand grasping at the hilt of her sword and ready for whatever enemy might launch an attack. Andarta glanced once at the coach she was now guarding at a movement from behind the maroon curtains on the window, but when she looked it was closed. Unperturbed, she continued to walk along beside the carriage, watching and waiting, the forest threatening with a looming violence.

~bump~

A small bump in the road caused a slight stir in the depths of the large carriage. If one looked through the purple curtains of the window, she would have seen the young woman inside shift in her seat.

A soft, feminine yawn escaped her full pink lips, her eyes opening to expose her gray-blue eyes, so soft, so vulnerable. A small feminine hand came up to rub her sleep laden eyes as a small frown made its way to her face.

The young woman went over to the window and peeked outside. She silently marveled at the vast expanses of trees, leaves painted in varying shades of vibrant green. Rays of sunlight broke through the sparse foliage, illuminating the earth in bright patches of light. Every so often there was a shift in the forest as animals scurried to and fro, going through their everyday tasks necessary for survival.

They have such simple lives... They have nothing to worry about. Young Lady Alanna thought in wonder. Her hand dropped the curtain back, allowing it to settle into its usual place. Such a beautiful day. It's a great day to travel.

A hand brushed back her long, golden blond hair as she settled back into her seat. Alanna ran her hands down her dress, straightening the expensive silks that her husband had made for her the week before.

A sense of despair had filled her heart at the thought of her husband. She loved him dearly, infatuated with him every since she was a 16 year old virgin, daughter of a wealthy merchant. He had seemed to be quite taken with her as well, the two marrying quickly and living together as husband and wife. He constantly spoiled her with expensive gifts: fine cloths, several maids, a stable of horses, and a kitchen full of all the necessities of fine cooking, her passion. They had had a perfect marriage.

But then things had started to go sour. They had tried various times to conceive but were unable to. At first, they were content just to "practice," but after two years of no success, he had started to grow impatient. Her cute face frowned as she noticed his not-so-subtle changes in demeanor. His temper grew shorter, his words with her were more brief, and his gentle loving caresses disappeared entirely in their lovemaking.

That brought her to her current situation. Lord Donmon, her husband had been rough with her during their last session. It was no longer a couple making love, but was rough groping and thrusting on his part. Her pain and ultimate fear of him was evident in the way she had cried herself to sleep that night, cringing away from his snoring form.

Alanna shook her head to free her thoughts and attempted to smile. He had suggested that she take a visit to the sea, to be refreshed by the crisp ocean air.

The young woman pushed the curtains out of the way and peered outside. She rested her head in-between her hands, leaning her elbows on the windowsill. She saw the woman soldier walking alongside her carriage.

"Excuse me, miss?" The young blonde was ever-polite. And then she spoke the words usually reserved for toddlers and young children.

"Are we there yet?"

The pace was steady as the carriage continued to rumble on, the slow clopping of the horses hooves blending with the squeak and drone of axles and wheels against the hard packed dirt road. Andarta stayed close to the carriage that carried the Lady Alanna, a few other soldiers surrounding it as well. There weren't many of them and they were spread out, but they were enough to have three men on either side, with 2 men on horseback split between each side as well. Andarta's eyes probed the forest around them, gaze darting and fixating on everything that moved, her hand adjusting her grip on the sword hilt at her hip. Then her heart thundered in her chest as she caught sight of something: a movement just beyond the cover of trees and a glint of metal that quickly hid itself from the rays of golden light that trickled down through the tree tops.

"Excuse me, miss? Are we there yet?"

Andarta was shaken from her study of those who lurked in the shady woods as she heard the voice address her. Turning to look, she saw the Lady Alanna peering out of the coach's window at her. It took Andarta a moment to remember the question she was asked. Glancing back at the forest, and then at the path ahead and squinting an eye at the sky, she estimated to herself that they would reach the outside of the forest by nightfall...that is, if everything went smoothly. Turning back to the woman she was sworn to protect, Andarta coldly made note of her beauty and fine silks, like one who distantly observes another's vulnerable state and authority compared to their own station in life.

"Get back inside, m'Lady," she said, her bright eyes looking at the woman with a severe intensity. "Close the curtain and stay down and keep quiet." There was a harshness to her tone that she hadn't meant to be there, her own edginess on the foot of a battle transferring to her voice. Seeing the look the woman gave her also softened her heart. In a more understanding voice, Andarta looked her in the eyes and told her, "Everything will be alright." And she turned just in time to see an arrow appear in the neck of the driver of the carriage and watch him gurgle wetly and fall over dead. Then, chaos erupted.

The young lady had stiffened at the urgent edge in the guard's voice. Fear flashed across her features, her eyes grew wider, her heart beat faster, and her mouth became dry. The soldier spoke again, this time, softer, but no less urgent.

Alanna nodded her understanding and immediately withdrew into the carriage, closed the wooden windows as an extra precaution, and shut the curtains. She scooted as far into the carriage as possible and sat still.

There was a slight thump, immediately followed by a loud, wet, gurgling noise. The young woman turned her eyes towards the window directly below the driver and watched as his dead corpse feel from the seat.

Outside, chaos rained down from the heavens. The soldiers assigned to protect her immediately surrounded the caravan. A battle broke out outside the carriage, her box of sanctuary.

Lady Alanna curled up inside and did the only thing she could,

she cried...

Screams and shouts erupted as several men exploded from out of the forest, charging the carriages. Both carriages were brought to a stop as the drivers were shot down. Arrows continued to fly from the cover of the trees like birds of death, piercing through armor and leaving men to die with a scream, left and right. The men were dressed in scrubby clothes and studded leather, days old grime and dirt covering faces topped with unkempt hair, their eyes wild and greedy as they wielded weapons against the guard that stood between them and their goal.

Andarta drew her sword fluidly, letting out a feminine roar as a few men came upon her. Blocking thrusts and stabbing out, she fought them off with grace rather than brute strength, her sword whizzing in the air and opening up necks and gullets as she twirled in a tight circle in place. Her eyes were bright and fierce as adrenaline surged through her body and her heart hammered in her breast, beautiful features contorted into a fierce grimace and predatory scowl. When she had the chance to look, the men from the forest had downed the few soldiers on horseback, including her commanding officer, his eyes wide and glassy and beard grown red with blood where he lay a few feet away.

In her hand to hand fight, she was drawn away from the carriage where Lady Alanna still hid, and when she slashed with a swirling pivot and killed the man she was fighting, she looked back towards the coach. The forest path was in complete chaos as men fought and died under short sword and arrow and the number of soldiers was dwindling. Soon, she would be the only one left with Lady Alanna, just two women against a gang of men and then...

And it was almost that time. There were more soldiers upon the ground than there were rogues and there were already some swarming the luggage carriage and going through the Lady Alanna's valuables. Andarta's eyes were drawn to the first carriage where she'd told her Lady to hide, and she saw a man approaching it, one hand holding a small knife and the other outstretched to open the door on the side. Memories sped through Andarta's mind as she remembered her first day swearing in. She wasn't a mercenary or just a guard for hire. She'd grown up on Lord Donmon's estate and when she'd been of age, had entered into his service, swearing to protect him and his family from those who would do them harm, along with the rest of her brothers in arms.

Now, being practically the only one left and without her commanding officer did not change that fact or null the oath she'd made. Gripping her sword tight and fixing her face with a grim expression, she charged the man at the carriage door, just as he was opening it. Her blade, like an angel of death, flew out and sliced across his back and the back of his throat as Andarta swung it out in two fluid strikes. When he fell, Andarta peered into the carriage for a moment to make sure Lady Alanna was okay, then she climbed up onto the carriage's driver seat and took hold of the reigns. The brigands standing around didn't have a chance to realize she was up there until the horses took off in a speedy gallop down the path, arrows whizzing past, but their sharp pointed beaks hitting nothing but air and dust.

The sound of metal on metal assaulted her ears as the battle continued to rage on outside. The distinct, unmistakable ringing could be heard as weapons clashed together and blood spilled.

Alanna trembled inside the safety of the carriage, huddled in a far corner when the door opened. Her eyes widened in fright when an unfamiliar man stepped into the carrier. On the best of circumstances on a normal day, this would have already set her into a slight panic, but it was what he had in his left hand that froze the scream in her throat: a wicked looking dagger. Her husband's ceremonial dagger...

The implications didn't register in her befuddled mind as she cringed away from the assassin. She saw a malicious smile on the man's face. But just then a flash of silver sliced through the man's throat and torso, killing him. He died too quickly for the smile to ever disappear.

Blood gushed from his severed throat, jetting into the depths of the carriage and painting the wall in splotches of crimson.

"Oh my god, oh my god..." The young lady repeated over and over again. This was when the woman soldier popped her head in to check on her for a tense moment. Her eyes were filled with righteous rage and indignation, but she could hear a sigh of relief from the female guard.

Alanna let off a sigh of her own, realizing that she was safe, for at least the moment. The carriage door closed, and the sound of the horses whining could be heard over the din of the battle as Andarta, was that her name?, jumped onto the driver's seat and took the reins.

The coach lurched and sped off into the distance, leaving the chaos behind them. Curses could be heard from the brigands as they searched for the soldier's horses. But they were nowhere to be found, had scared away by the sounds of fighting, and quickly sped down the worn dirt road.

Alanna was slightly whimpering in fear at the robbery, for that was what it must have been in her naive mind, and how close their escape had been. Andarta must have spurred the horses on for quite a while now, as the landscape had started to change from the dense forest to more sparse foliage. The two women, one beautiful soldier and a frightened young girl, had escaped from a certain extinction.

The young lady looked out the carriage window and saw how the sun had started to set, casting the evening sky in hues of beautiful golden red, bathing the blooming plants on landscape in its ambiance. But the beauty was lost on Alanna as she closed her eyes. Fright had exhausted her and she slowly fell into a troubled sleep.

She was awoken by a scream, bolting upright and clasping her arms to herself. It was only then that she noticed she was laying on the ground in the mouth of a cave. Her eyes quickly scanned her surroundings and finally settled on the woman sitting not five feet away from her.

Alanna took a deep breath to calm herself. Then she spoke in a small, soft voice.

"Andarta?" For she had finally remembered seeing the tall, beautiful woman before. "Where am I?"

Andarta sat in the mouth of the cave, eyes drawn inward as she was lost in thought, the Lady Alanna sleeping just a short distance from her. Thinking about their flight from terror, she rubbed a hand over her head fingers smoothing over skin and she sighed exhaustedly. It hadn't been an easy decision to hide away in a cave, but they were too far away from any towns and night was falling quickly as they'd broken from the forest and traveled the open countryside. She'd needed to find the Lady shelter, lest they be left in the open for the night. The brigands might not come after them, but there were plenty of others out there willing to take advantage of two women on the road alone. And despite being trained for combat and well-experienced in battle, Andarta was still a woman. She had to keep the Lady safe.

After traveling a ways down the dirt road, she'd gone off it and into the rocky hills for a few miles. She finally came upon the cave around twilight, it's mouth facing the east with it's back to the road they'd left and the woods just beyond several miles. The ground around the cave mouth was clustered with brush, half obscuring it from sight. Once she'd gotten the Lady settled with a small fire going, Andarta had gone out to set traps for rabbits. The carriage they'd ridden off in was practically empty of anything of value for camping at night, but Andarta had on her person the necessary items to get them food for tonight.

The scream of the rabbit she was killing roused the Lady Alanna and she looked up from her work to glance at the golden haired woman as she sat up. The horses stood unsaddled and tied to a small tree just outside the cave and Andarta had her armor off, wearing her leather jerkin and tunic.

"Andarta? Where am I?"

Andarta continued to slowly skin the hare in her hands with a small knife as she answered. "You're safe," she said in a serious tone. "We're still half a days journey from the manor and probably moreso; we left the road behind a little ways back." She kept her face stony to hide the uncertainty she felt and looked up to see how her mistress was taking things.

A pair of soft gray-blue eyes watched in fascination as the razor edge of the sharp knife slowly and effectively removed the soft hide of the hare. The blade traveled in slow, intricate cuts, peeling away the skin as if from an orange.

Those eyes continued up to a calloused yet feminine hand. They continued up the arm to a very feminine shoulder up a beautifully shaped neck, and finally settled on the sharp, angular features the female warrior.

"You're safe," Andarta said in a serious tone, steady and confident.. "We're still half a days journey from the manor and probably moreso; we left the road behind a little ways back."

Alanna gave a small, hesitant smile and drew her knees up to her chest, hugging them to herself and gently resting her head on top.

"I guess it's just us girls now." She said in her lilting voice. "I'm hungry. Can you cook? I can help if you need me to." She spoke quickly in short, staccato bursts when she was nervous.

The smile slowly disappeared from her face as a single tear slid out of her right eye. She quickly wiped it away with the back of an arm.

"I want to go home..."

She was a very beautiful woman and the firelight only seemed to accentuate it, long, honey locks, the light from the fire making it look like liquid gold spilling down her back and over her shoulders. The Lady Alanna looked so vulnerable as she wrapped her arms around herself and laid her head atop her knees and a sense of protectiveness rose up inside Andarta as she watched the other woman and heard her speak.

"I'm hungry. Can you cook? I can help if you need me to."

The questions came out in short bursts and Andarta could tell that Alanna was nervous. This hadn't been the first time Andarta had needed to rough it out in the wild--although it was the first time she'd been left without a chain of command over her, ever since she'd become a soldier. She couldn't imagine what it must be like for the other woman, so use to safety and being indoors.

"No, it's alright," she said as she started to set the rabbit up on a spit over the fire. "I think I've got it. It should be ready soon, m'Lady."

Then seeing the young woman shed a tear in the amber light and her soft words, "I want to go home..." Andarta felt the urge to put her arm around her and comfort her. But she didn't and she firmed her expression and stood up from her place by the fire and stood looking out at the night.

"There's nothing to worry about," she said in serious tones. "Everything will be fine. In the morn we'll get in the carriage and I'll take you home." She glanced back at her mistress and saw the woman looking at her with those beautiful eyes and felt a blush rise to her cheeks at the woman's beauty. And she turned back to the cave opening, shaking her head at her own thoughts and worries. She had to be strong for her Lady.

The rabbit sizzled and the fire popped as the juices dripped into the flames and soon, Andarta came back over to the fire and took the hare off of the fire, cutting into the hot meat and giving some of it to her Lady. For a wild hare, it was pretty meaty, with enough on it's bones to feed them both. Andarta sat silently on her side of the fire, eating the meal she made and tried to not make eye contact with the other woman.

"There's nothing to worry about," she said in serious tones. "Everything will be fine. In the morn we'll get in the carriage and I'll take you home."

Alanna just nodded, gazing intently at the back of the other woman, at the soft, female curves, and gentle, rounded swell of her butt. She shook her mind free of those thoughts and focused instead at the long, flowing dark hair, silky strands of twilight spilling down her shoulders.

Her gaze moved to those eyes, those piercing beautiful brown eyes that dared you to run and hide yet begged you to look closer, to look deeper. And so she did. She stared intently into those pools of brown until Andarta looked away.

Alanna frowned slightly but stayed in the same position. Her gaze never left the other woman, following her around. She watched as Andara's hands worked to quickly cut off a chunk of choice flesh, placing it into her outstretched palms. Those same hands that swung the sword that had killed a man right before her eyes.

The young Lady took a bite of the plump, juicy flesh and continued to watch the other woman, watching the way her jaw and lips worked the meat inside her mouth before biting down on it, and repeating. She gazed at those lips, transfixed.

So when Andarta's eyes moved to hers, catching Alanna watching her, she blushed and looked away quickly. But it wasn't long before her gaze moved back to settle once more on those gorgeous orbs.

Lady Alanna held the meat in the fingers of one hand and slowly made her way over to where the other woman was sitting on the opposite side of the fire, and sat onto the ground in front of her, and gazing upwards at her. The hand clutching the meat in her hand had disappeared, a lazy content smile making its way to her face as her hunger was sated.

She brought her hands out and noticed only then what was clutched in her other hand: her husband's ceremonial dagger. Her eyes widened at recognition of that blade, her mouth opened slightly in confusion.

Young Lady Alanna glanced back up at her guardian and frowned.

"Andarta... I know this blade..." She glanced back down.

"It's my husband's." Her gray blue eyes immediately looked back up, concern obvious in her face now. "Do you think something happened to him? Is he hurt? What's wrong?"

The soldier woman's eyes drifted down over the Lady's face, her blue gray eyes accentuated by the firelight and the moonlight cascading into the cave. Then they made their way down to the dagger in the woman's hands and Andarta's mind came to a halt to hear what she said.

"Andarta... I know this blade... It's my husband's." The blond Lady glanced down at it and then back up at her, a worrisome look painted across her feminine features. "Do you think something happened to him? Is he hurt? What's wrong?"

Andarta's eyes latched onto the blade in Lady Alanna's hands and she immediately recognized it as the one wielded by the man who had attempted to kill her. Suddenly, everything started to swarm up to meet her, her mind rushing with the conclusions too fast, and she felt her heart sink.

There had been rumors lately of the Lady Alanna and Lord Donmon having trouble conceiving and through the whispers in the manor, the gentleman was growing older and more impatient for an heir. There were theories on the course of action, possibly that the man would take a mistress, but there was also a lot of political tension running through the estate. If he didn't have an heir, it was likely his political enemies would succeed in shaping the country as they saw fit when he was finally gone, with no one to carry on the Donmon name and represent their house. But would he kill his wife?

No, he couldn't! It was inconceivable, but sitting there, staring at the dagger in the other woman's hand, she knew it to be true. The attack on the carriages today hadn't been a random opportunistic assault. Those men had been waiting for them specifically and Lord Donmon would not stop trying, until his wife was dead. Looking back up at her mistress's eyes, Andarta struggled for what to say, but decided the truth, no matter how much it hurt would give the woman the sense of reality she needed right now.

"I'm so sorry, my Lady," she said, her dark eyes looking into Alanna's with an empathetic intensity. "But I think your husband sent those men today... To try to kill you..."

Lady Alanna watched as conflicting emotions flitted across her protector's face. Her own creased in thought.

Maybe he's hurt somewhere? No... he was at home when I left, so there could be no way... Dark thoughts made their way through her head.

Her worried frown deepened as she watched the different emotions flit across the other woman's face. She thought again of her husband and what could have become of him, and why someone like the bandit would have his blade.

Lady Alanna looked up at her expectantly as she started to speak. The curiosity in her eyes turned to shock at Andarta's words.

No... that s not... The dagger dropped to the ground, thumping dully onto the dust.

"No... thats not possible... You are lying to me!" The young blond started, the shock in her eyes turning into first, anger, and then uncertainty.

"But he would never do that. H-he loves me!" Alanna insisted. Her voice softened to barely a whisper. Her gaze dropped down to her feet.

"Why are you lying to me?" That cold sense of dread settled into the pit of her stomach as her shoulders began to shake with suppressed sobs.

Andarta's expression of concern turned to one of stoney disapproval as she listened to Lady Alanna speak in distraught and disbelieving tones. Andarta didn't really know how to deal with the woman's reaction or how to comfort her. All she knew was that the Lady Alanna had to be convinced of the truth.

"I do NOT lie!" she said harshly, standing up and facing the blond woman, even as she began to weep. The other woman's tears did nothing to soften Andarta's tone or her anger. "If you do not believe me, then fine I'll take you home! But I can assure you, m'Lady, you'll be dead within the month!"

She continued to stare angrily against the tears her mistress shed, feeling an embarrassment deep down at her impotence in face of the other woman's emotion. And it was then that the soldier woman started to wonder and think about her loyalties. She was in service to and had pledged her life to protecting Lord Donmon and those in his house. But Alanna was from outside and had married into the family; was it still in service to the man if she went against his supposed wish to see the woman dead, to keep her out of his reach and protect her?

She was at the cusp of a life altering decision. Lady Alanna did not believe her, or at least acted like she didn't, and could be convinced that her theory was a bunch of silly speculation. And she could take her home and when she died it would be because Andarta had decided to give in. But even despite this wondering train of thought, she knew she'd already made her decision.

"A change of plans, m'Lady," she said in a softer tone, but no less firm and stoney. "Tomorrow, we'll abandon the carriage and ride into the nearest town and gather our bearings. Those men who attacked us might still be looking for us. We'll figure out what to do then."

The tears stopped for a few seconds in shock at the soldiers words. Alanna stared up at her in fright, her blue eyes wide, before burying her heads in her arms once again. She sighed breathlessly and cringed at the edge in Andarta's voice, drawing her skirts more closely to her body.

Why? Why is this happening to me? The young blond wailed in her mind. But he loves me... Her mind drifted once more to the past few months spent with her husband in their large manor. The little flitting touches and lingering, longing looks disappeared almost entirely.

There had been a reason that she had fallen so quickly in love with Donmon, her husband. He had her quickly eyed her from across the ballroom floor at a fund raising event and swept her off her feet with his shocking charisma.

But it seemed as if it were all for naught if Andarta's suspicions proved to be true.

"Tomorrow, we'll abandon the carriage and ride into the nearest town and gather our bearings. Those men who attacked us might still be looking for us. We'll figure out what to do then." Her tone had softened somewhat, but it still made the young Lady wither slightly.

"Okay..." Alanna whispered, looking back up at the other woman. "I trust you."

Alanna smiled sadly and spread her blankets onto the ground near the fire, but not next to it where it was unbearably hot. She frowned slightly but then slid under the covers and curled up within herself.

When the other woman agreed and verbally offered her trust, Andarta felt a measure of guilt run through her for being so aggressive towards the other woman. But she kept the emotion from her face, even as she struggled with the desire to comfort her lady in some way. And that emotion was shoved down inside her too. She could not be blinded by emotions right now, not when their survival depended on her being aware and alert.

Andarta stayed up and watched over her mistress for most of the night, dozing while sitting up here and there. Not knowing how close the brigands were now or if they'd pursue them, kept her up and alert. In the morning, light cascaded into the cave and Andarta gently roused Lady Alanna. As promised, they left the carriage where it was, hidden from the road by the cave and trotted off on their horses. The hills kept them hidden occasionally from the road but they followed it riding rough over the rocky countryside, taking occasionally rests throughout the day. But Andarta did not like staying in one place for too long and kept them moving constantly through the day. Around midday they reached the nearest town and at the crest of the hill looking down upon it, Andarta felt a sense of foreboding. Could they be there? Were they waiting for them?

Elderburton was a pretty large town with at least two to three inns and several shops for trade. Plenty of places to hide and plenty of places for assassins to wait for an ambush. But despite her nervousness, Andarta kept her cool and they trotted up to the town wall, a little ways East from the gates leading into the town. Andarta dismounted then and made sure they were a good distance from the main road and hidden from sight. Turning to Alanna her tone was serious and her gaze was fixated and cold.

"Listen to me," she said glancing back towards the road again briefly. "You need to stay here for a moment. I'm going to go into town and make sure it's safe. I'll get us a room and we can figure out what to do from there. Don't make any noise and don't talk to anyone. You should be safe here, we're far enough from the road... I will be back as quick as I can. Do not go anywhere, my Lady."