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~Compiled by Alex~ A few miles from the castle, on a forest road, Audra's chief assassin Fallon camps in a small clearing. Her mission is to kill Rowena, the rightful Countess... but Fallon has other plans. As she sits by her campfire, dreaming of a long-dead lover, she is unexpectedly joined by a half-elven girl who introduces herself as Ninnocha. Guardedly, the two girls exchange stories before agreeing to accompany each other on their journies, finding something in common in their mutual desire to seek out a monk known as Brother John. The faerie Minuet overhears at least part of their conversation, and misinterpreting their intentions, flees the scene in order to warn Brother John that two assassins are on his trail. Knowing well Minuet's tendency to over-dramatize, John laughs off her warnings and sends her off to find Rowena, whom he is on his way to meet. In the pocket of his robe is concealed a mysterious roll of parchment, with which he hopes to assist Rowena in her quest. Heavily disguised, Rowena makes her way into Ashby and begins to visit some of her spies and supporters. After several hours, she eventually finds the obscure message left for her by Minuet and sets off to meet Brother John at The Seventh Stranger Inn. Meanwhile, the Countess Audra is growing frustrated at the inability of her magic mirror to aid her in locating her stepdaughter. It is not long before she makes the decision to send for her ally, the Lord Nikolai Rhodan. One of her trusted knights departs swiftly with the message. Fallon and Ninnocha break camp, unaware that they are being watched. Andy, a member of the Guild of Thieves, has been listening with a curious ear, and watching with a lustful eye. Deciding that he would like to accompany these two women, at least for a while, he positions himself on the roadside where they cannot help but stumble across him when they move on. In a small village in another part of the forest, a young boy by the name of Bantam has just been turned out of his father's house. Desperately trying to be brave, he sets off into the forest, in search of something to eat. Brother John passes him on his way into town, but has no time to stop and offer his help before meeting Rowena. When Rowena arrives at the tavern, she is just in time to witness a loud and violent altercation between the barmaid, Barbarella, and a man who calls himself Mallory. Mallory is there to purchase The Seventh Stranger from Barbarella, but the woman is furious at his suggestion that he might change the name of the inn once it is his. While the attention of the inn's patrons is on the commotion outside, Rowena sneaks into the back room where Brother John awaits her. Meanwhile, eavesdropping again, Minuet has overheard Brother John mention the lost boy he passed on the road, and sets off to find the boy for herself. She does not get far, however, before she becomes aware that she is being followed by a curious, sleek, black cat. Sebastian sensed the aura of magic about her, and is following its scent, even though she is invisible to him. Deciding that he might be an interesting creature to converse with, Minuet drops her cloak of invisibility and greets Sebastian. Back in the forest, Andy has grown tired of waiting for Fallon and Ninnocha and, feeling suddenly wary of their true intentions, hides himself in a tree. Ninnocha, who has seemingly been abandoned by her erstwhile companion and is *not* in a good mood, discovers him and demands, at arrow-point, that he explain himself. Only half-feigning his fear, Andy jumps to the ground and quickly puts Ninnocha at ease. On the outskirts of town, the lost boy Bantam has been spotted by young Nicholas, a forest dweller with strong empathetic skills. Nicholas feels a stab of pity for Bantam, and decides to leave a basket of fruit where the boy will find it. But before Bantam finds the basket, a lone vigilante by the name of Warren appears on the scene and helps himself to the fruit. Warren, too, has been watching Bantam with pity, but his curiosity about the basket of fruit has overpowered him. Incensed, Nicholas begins to pelt Warren with pine cones, all the while taking care to remain hidden. As yet, none of the three is aware of the presence of a fourth - a young, wild coyote who is a long-time friend of Nicholas', and who finds herself as strangely attracted to Bantam as the other two. While all this is taking place, Mallory has let himself into the tavern, with his companion wolf Evelyn at his side. Intending to inspect his newly acquired property, Mallory walks into the back room where Brother John and Rowena are conducting their secret meeting. After a brief attempt to conceal her identity from the intruder, Rowena finally removes her disguise. To the shock of all in the room, Mallory's response is to say the name of Rowena's deceased mother, and then promptly pass out at her feet. In the castle, Audra is amusing herself by conversing with a young man who has recently come into her employ. Simon is a telepath, and that combined with his psychokenetic abilities could make him very valuable to the Countess. However, Simon is beginning to wonder whether he's doing the right thing working for this woman. Her motives, he suspects, may not be as pure as he first thought. So when Audra comes down to the courtyard to talk to him, he seizes the opportunity to encourage her to send him off on a mission. *Anything*, to get out of this castle... Meanwhile, Nikolai Rhodan has received Audra's invitation, and is preparing to set out the following morning. But before he leaves, he has some other important business to attend to. Vanya, his beautiful young consort, is attending to her own toiletries, and awaits him in her chambers with only one thing on her mind: the pleasure of the man she adores above all else.
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