<span class="fixed-color" style="color:rgb(235, 107, 86)">A tremor of excitement shifted in the air, and Sabina guided her horse slightly to the right of the caravan, the Outpost finally coming into view. After a few days of dusty, tense travel, they finally had arrived at the first major stop in their journey. She guided her steed to follow the others, noting that despite its seeming importance to the Empire, the structures were small and basic, almost an attempt to build quickly rather than a carefully planned and crafted functional compound. The young woman dismounted, nodding as Grimsson ordered them to pack their gear, and she unbuckled the saddle from her horse, clucking her tongue and speaking gently to the animal, giving him oats and water.<br/>
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"Köszönöm hűséges szolgálataimat, barátom," she murmured as she brushed the horse's sweaty coat. "Jól vittél engem, és hálás vagyok." When she finished, she patted his rump and then gathered her gear, making her way toward the last stall.<br/>
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"Miss, we have a bathing place set up if you'd like to use it," came a squeaky voice, and Sabina turned to see a youthful soldier blushing beet red as she looked at him. She took pity on him and smiled kindly.<br/>
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"Yes, I'd like to very much," she replied, digging into her satchel for the bag of crushed yucca root, rose petals, and a fresh change of clothing. She left her cloak there and followed the young man to an outdoor bathing area beside the barn. It was a simple structure and hastily thrown together with pieces of wood nailed together around a metal hip tub that was filled with hot water. Nearby was a small fire with a cauldron of water heating, no doubt awaiting the next occupant. There was no roof, but the walls were high, reaching nearly to the top of her head.<br/>
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"It isn't much, but at least you can clean up a little, miss," the young man said, nervously clearing his throat. "Women have never been to the Outpost before, so we put the walls up as soon as we arrived."<br/>
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Sabina smiled at the man, this time allowing it to reach her eyes, turning them a vibrant emerald. "How very gallant of you. I appreciate your thoughtfulness."<br/>
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The soldier nodded and left her alone, and she tossed a handful of dried rose petals into the water then stripped her dusty clothing off. She shook each garment out, sponiging them with some of the hot water, and laid them over the wall to dry as she bathed. She climbed into the hip bathtub, tempted to lean back and relax, but knowing others probably wanted to bathe soon, she began scrubbing her dusty body with hot water and a rich lather from her supply of crushed yucca root. As she bathed, she hummed in that sultry voice of hers, taking care to wash her long, red tresses. <br/>
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When she finished, she stepped out onto a platform made of wooden slats and dried herself with a cloth the soldier had provided. She ran the cloth over her smooth skin, slowing when she reached her left thigh. Her soft fingers gently traced the long, puckered path of a scar that ran from the top of her thigh and down to her knee. It was a wide scar, wider than most, and a flitting memory darted into her brain, but she shoved it back and finished drying off, and then she dressed in an outfit similar to the one she'd worn earlier that day. Her stomach gave a growl as she finished, and she chuckled, glad that she smelled supper cooking. <br/>
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Sabina dried her long hair as much as she could, letting it hang loosely about her shoulders and down her back, ending at her waist. The night air would dry it better than any cloth, so she left it down, dumped out her used bathwater, and exited the structure, making her way to the stall where she'd left the rest of her belongings. <br/>
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After she packed everything neatly, she pulled out the parchment that she'd written the words she recognized from the Old Woman's song. The old woman had been talking about the Northern god Odin but the other words she'd written were confusing. They sounded familiar, as though she should know them. She nibbled her bottom lip, thinking about the implications. Bending low, she was jotting down ideas when she heard someone at the entrance of the stall. She looked up, and a long shadow inched closer.<br/>
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"Who's there?" she called out, suddenly feeling very alone.</span>