The kingdom of Astra was normally a bustling, beautiful, prosperous place. However, after the attack of its sister kingdom, Wyndia, it was no longer so. Now, it was in the process of rebuilding and reinforcing. Its people were all on edge, stressed and hungry thanks to one of their largest trading routes being cut off thanks to their new enemies. Not only that, but the brigands and thieves were now rearing their ugly heads in the small towns and villages, knowing that Astra no longer had the forces to protect their smaller population outside of the city. With the king almost dead, it sparked a fire in all the inside enemies that had already existed well before the King of Wyndia decided to attempt to occupy Astra.<br/><br/>Raquel Lightning, one of the few soldiers who were posted outside of the gate on the night of the attack that actually had survived, had been sent to the only tavern and inn in town that wasn’t destroyed. She was on orders to find travelers who valued coin for their time so that they could be hired to help out the kingdom. It was definitely a task she found beneath her. After all, she had fought so valiantly and nearly died several weeks ago in order to save Astra. Perhaps it was because of her worsening symptoms of an ailment that had plagued her since childhood that they believed she was better tasked with busy work rather than training the new recruits or being sent to the border patrol. Whatever Ser Justin ordered, however, would be her command.<br/><br/>As she approached the tavern, she saw that it was busier than ever since the competition had all been wiped out. There were people standing outside and actually sleeping underneath the stables meant for the horses to shield themselves from the snow. They were the less fancier looking individuals, with light padded armor and torn clothes. Some even looked like beggars. She knew that the owner of this particular establishment had been charging a lot of money for his rooms, so no doubt they had just been turned away and felt like any shelter was better than none. She shook her head and then slowly walked into the tavern, her eyes immediately scanning the entire room. It was indeed crowded, but not so enough she couldn’t find a place to sit.<br/><br/>She wondered, however. How would she be able to choose a decent party of ragtag sellswords for the mission at hand. As much as the smaller farms tried to help the kingdom out with their food, it just wasn’t enough. The bigger farms were all cut off thanks to Wyndia, and the mission was to capture and hold the trading post until soldier reinforcements came to defend it. Recent intel had indicated that the only ones there now were also mercenaries, as Wyndia had taken quite a hit in their own forces as well.