<span style="color: #0080FF">“How do I look?”</span>Calaerwen asked her unhappy companion, and spread her arms wide.<br/><br/>He opened one eye, pulling back three sets of eyelids to reveal the magnificent emerald orb, and lazily he examined her. In the last town they had passed on the way to Goldenburgh, the Alftar girl had bought a long hooded cloak made of a light cotton material. It fell to her ankles and the deep hood hid her face entirely when she had it pulled up, as it was now. Zephyr regarded her a moment longer before flicking his forked tongue with disdain.<br/><br/><span style="color: #40BF00">“Like a cloak,” </span>was his sullen pronouncement. The scaled eyelid slid shut with a soft click. He was unhappy because Cal was going to be venturing into the city by herself. She insisted that they not draw attention to themselves so that the green cloaked men would not discover the pair on their trail, and that meant that having a large forest drake following her around was not a good idea. Weeks upon weeks of following murders and bronze amulets had finally led them to this moment. Cal had just watched the party slip through the city gates, and triumph showed plainly on her face.<br/><br/>Zephyr huffed again, and curled his tail around him. In the protected knoll some distance from the city, he was unlikely  to be discovered, but neither would he be likely to get there very fast if some trouble arose. He could already feel the worry building in his stomach, like a spoiled meal.<br/><br/>Cal looked at Zephyr from inside her hood with a feeling akin to guilt. She knew he wanted to come, but they were too close to risk it now. She sighed and carefully strapped her bow and quiver into their respective places in the saddle on his back. The cloak made trying to use them difficult and this was only to be a reconnoissance mission anyway.  With a forced tone of cheerfulness, the mage said goodbye to her friend and teleported into the city walls.<br/><br/>Her stomach flipped as it always did after teleporting and Cal struggled not to heave her breakfast up in the secluded alleyway. Grimly she remembered why she usually avoided teleporting places, but at least it had been a small jump. As the city was waking up, the thoughts of thousands pressed in on the young woman, but Cal blocked them easily and strode into the street. At this time in the morning it was not crowded, but the green clocks were no where to be seen.<br/><br/>Cal frowned in frustration, absentmindedly humming along to an ocarina playing in the store beside her.<span style="font-style: italic">Where could they have gone?</span>She would have to locate them quickly for her task to be successful.