Afraid of the Dark

Chapter 28: Sacrifice

When dusk fell over Sunyu Foorst, Reela wished Todo luck with his dumbass 'Warrior's Test' and prayed to Mazenya that he doesn't get himself or Corb killed. Maybe she's just worrying too much about nothing, but she can't help but feel as though this whole thing is a bad idea. But she's not a centaur, so what the fuck does she know?

In any case, until Corb and Todo get back she's got nothing but time to kill. She might as well spend it on some modicum of productivity. Or getting shitfaced. Either way, she's going to the tavern. Maybe slamming back a few centaur drinks will wash her worries away.

Just like last time, as soon as she enters the tavern she sees a group of now three centaurs throwing fists in the center of the room, all while the rest of the room watches and cheers and the Adaliaen woman she had spoken to earlier – she never caught her name – is playing a flute with her eyes closed, blissfully ignoring the whole world around her. Reela hadn't realized that woman was a bard, but she plays her song beautifully.

She feels the ground slightly shake when one centaur grabs the other and slams him into the floor, and she hears a loud crack that she hopes was just the floorboards, until she realized the floor is made of stone and unfortunately in rock, paper, skulls – rock beats skull.

As the fight continues, Reela approaches the bar counter and sits at a stool. Panele is working behind the counter again, and approaches Reela once she notices her sitting with her head down in her hands and the will to live leaving her soul.

"Somethin' strong ah take it?" Panele asks and already starts reaching for a flagon before Reela even answers. The girl wearily nods, wincing when she hears the sound of a table shattering behind her and the observing centaurs cheer. She tries to block it out as she awaits her drink.

To think that this city is the centaur race's last hope of salvation. Forget the threat of Varagores, it's only a matter of time before these people all kill each other and then that's it, no more centaurs. It's a scary thought that Reela honestly would prefer to not think about at all. It's not her fight.

Panele sets a frothing flagon down in front of Reela and she smiles. "Another on th' house," she says and Reela sits up a bit straighter.

"Are you sure? I can pay, you know," she says but the centaur woman just snickers and waves her off.

"It's haird enough tae get visitors as it is. I'll mak th' idiots who kill each other pay an' let th' sensible ones stay fur free. It's th' least ah kin do," Panele says kindly before turning to start filling another flagon once the sounds of fighting die down behind Reela's back.

The bard's song soon winds down and Panele turns around to set the flagon on the other end of the counter from where Reela is sitting, and the girl turns her head to see the bard step up to grab the flagon and wink at Panele before taking a long drink.

"Another fantastic performance, Taanys. Yer flute is th' soundtrack tae our city's plight," Panele says. The woman, Taanys, sets the flagon down with a chuckle.

"I can't tell if that's a good or a bad thing, but I'll take the free drinks all the same."

Panele smiles. "In a burnin' pile o' shite, a good song kin help lift spirits. Yer a blessing on al' o' us," she says before she steps around the counter – probably to start cleaning up the mess from the fight that Reela really doesn't want to turn around to see.

So instead, she drinks.

Taanys, the bard turns to glance at Reela and smirks. "Hey, it's you again. The one with the Val'Dernak boys," she says and leans on the counter to face Reela better. "Here alone?"

Reela slowly nods and sets down her flagon with a muffled cough against her burning throat. "Yeah. The idiots got themselves wrapped up in taking the 'Warrior's Test.' So now I'm here, spite drinking," she explains and Taanys snickers.