Down by the docks, a lone figure sat perched on a stack of crates. A sentinel amongst the chaos. People around her screamed for their loved ones and soldiers began to ready arms for the battle ahead. She slowly sipped at a leather-bound flask, pondering how she managed to get herself into this situation. A stranger in strange land. Destined to die a mournless death. She closed her eyes and took another gulp, before opening them once more to the vision in front of her.<br/><br/>The galleys, previously kept at bay by the invisible boundary of the inlet, had begun to make their way towards Eastbourne. Their hulking forms harbingers of ruin. Of death. Behind her, she could hear the rumble of what she could only guess were the city walls crumbling beneath the unstoppable force of The Empire’s war machine. The scent of smoke was beginning to taint the air, and above, a few embers drifted lazily into view.<br/><br/>Kestrel brought the flask up to her lips once more with a shaky grasp. The rum settled on her tongue with a familiar burn, but even as the last few drops slipped past her lips, it did little to soothe her nerves. She screwed the lid of the flask shut and tossed it into the water, the quiet splash drowned out by the symphony of battle. She watched the silver flask bob gently in the water as her fingers found the hilt of her sword. Kestrel’s fingertips caressed its smooth surface, a husky "sorry" escaping her lips, before she hopped off the crates and began to walk back towards the city.<br/><br/>And to do what exactly? Well, she wasn’t sure. To hide? To fight? To find some more rum and drink herself to death? At the very least she’d be numb to the fear of her inevitable impalement on an Empire spear.<br/><br/>She felt her heart pound.<br/><br/>She needed to decide, one way or another.<br/><br/><i>Dead woman walking. </i><br/><br/>The crowd was thick. People swarmed every which way, trying to find somewhere, anywhere, to escape. Kestrel felt her shoulder knock against a large form and turned to see a father cradling his young daughter in his arms.<br/><br/>“Daddy, I’m scared! Do something! Please!” The girl screamed, face twisted in utter terror, tears streaking down her soot covered face. The father pressed her face close to his shoulder, placing soothing kisses onto blonde hair.<br/><br/>“Don’t worry darling, as long as Daddy is with you everything will be okay. Daddy will always be with you and Daddy will always love you.”<br/><br/>Kestrel froze, her hand reaching instinctively for the sword hanging at her hip, she watched as the father’s reassurances faded into the crowd as the two pressed onwards. Kestrel’s fingers curved around the handle of the falchion and she slowly unsheathed the blade, holding it in front of her. The polished surface reflected the light of the fires burning around, the smoke-sullied sky above, and two horns warped by its curve. Kestrel tightened her grip before sprinting towards the nearest gathering of Eastbourne soldiers.<br/><br/>It’s easier to make decisions when decisions are made for you.