Cal looked at Masako, a little concerned about the idea of concentrating her sexual aura.<span class="fixed-color" style="color:#ffff00">âJust try to stay out of sight and away from people. We donât have to stay long, but I need to speak to some people there.â</span><br/><br/>The Golden Goose was a tall narrow building flush against Serantoâs outermost wall just right of the cityâs north gate. Wagonloads of trade supplies towed by horses and oxen moved through in both directions, occasionally making room for the odd ornate carriage or a wealthy merchant or landowner to roll by. The Gooseâs plaster faÃ§ade had crumbled away over the years, exposing the rough hewn stonework beneath. The cracking wooden door hung ajar, its frame bent slightly so that it could no longer shut all the way. As the two entered, they could see a dark room full of darker figures. The proprietor stood behind a bar at the back of the room. He was a stocky man with shoulder-length grey hair, an eye patch, and a large beer belly under his stained apron. A handful of women, in brightly coloured, ill-fitting, attire and layers of makeup to cover the affects of a hard life, served food and drinks to the shifty patrons. A shabby wooden staircase started near the bar and rose up along one wall to the floor above. A small arched passage under the staircase led away from the main room, likely to the tavernâs storehouse, kitchen, and back entrance.<br/><br/>Cal found a small vacant table in the corner nearest the bar, opposite the staircase. The four legs were uneven, causing it to wobble on the hay covered floor. It was coated in scratches and the heads of a few rusting nails protruded from the top where the table had obviously once been broken and then mended. Around it were two stools and a chair with a crooked back and one loose leg. He turned to Masako.<span class="fixed-color" style="color:#ffff00">âWait here, I wonât be gone long.â</span>He drew one of his swords and placed it on the table.<span class="fixed-color" style="color:#ffff00">âIf you have to, use this.â</span>With that he headed for the stairs. They creaked and groaned as he hurried to the second floor.<br/><br/>It wasnât long before six men approached the table. Three wore armour and pale blue and white tabards, the other three were the ones who Cal had scared off in the street. One of the non-armoured men came closer to her.<span class="fixed-color" style="color:#606060">âWhatâs this? We follow you to this hovel only to find your owner left you alone? Well, that will make this easier than we expected.â</span>The other laughed menacingly.<span class="fixed-color" style="color:#606060">âYou owe us girl. Your master killed our friend and took our money, and all we wanted was a little time with his slave. Weâve come to get repayment for what he did.â</span><br/><br/>-------------------<br/><br/><span class="fixed-color" style="color:#804080">âIâm going to investigate the rumours, same as you.â</span>Melaina looked up at the sky. [color=#804080âWould be best to make camp at the tree line. The forest is much more dangerous at night.â[/color] She looked back to Nall.<span class="fixed-color" style="color:#804080">âHey, you mind if we travel together awhile?â </span>She flashed him a sweet smile and batted her long lashes.<span class="fixed-color" style="color:#804080">âWeâll be safer that way and have a better chance of finding the boy, if he really exists.â</span><br/><br/>-------------------<br/><br/>Sean could see Lynise was getting weaker. She needed to return to her tree, or at least find a safe place to rest near the sapling. Sean gathered the dryad into his arms and started to walk towards the forest edge. Between the foiled merger into the tree and the drain of moving strange trees that were centuries old, Lynise was in no shape to protest. A moment or two passed before she was unconscious completely.<br/><br/>When she awoke, the sun was nearly touching the tall Vaskaan Mountains in the west. Lynise was in a large rectangular garden surrounded by a tall, solid, wood fence. Beds of purple, red, and white flowers lined a center of soft green grass. At one end was a small stone building. In the middle of the grass, next to Lynise, was her sapling, planted in the ground. The only shade-giving plant was a giant apple tree growing close to the building between a simple wooden door on a low porch and the entrance to a root cellar.<br/><br/>Sean sat under the tree eating a bright red apple as he watched Lynise stir on the grass.<span class="fixed-color" style="color:#00bf00">âYouâre awake. Good. I was starting to worry that sapling might not have been your tree after all.â</span>