The dawn of new days

((The continuation of Merchant Trouble: for those who were there, of course, but also anyone Warden or not who’d wish to welcome the newcomers!))


They had quickly been sorted out. Out of all the people that had entered the Keep this morning, most of them were merchants or their caravan’s guards. But not everyone had come here in search of interesting deals and contracts, or a higher wage. Some had brought along with them special requests, offers or messages that required special attention, from someone more qualified than the patrol initially dispatched.

And there were already a few of them, gathered here in that antechamber near the Keep’s main entrance. Outside, the morning was still in its early hours, leaving a cool breeze to sweep the main grounds; inside, the sun’s comforting rays had pierced their way through the windows’ thick glass, bringing its warm light to brighten the room. It even shone on the face of that lone soldier, who had been left there to guard the group of newcomers, while his comrade went looking for someone to deal with them.

Among this eclectic group, Damien was left relatively unimpressed by the calm stillness of the tableau. Arms crossed, chewing on his lower lip and tapping his right foot; his eyes nervously skipping around, under his ever-displeased frown; the short elf, still clad in his ragged leather-and-plate armour, looked about as calm as a cat thrown in a cold bath. Then again, it probably wasn’t that different from usual.

The people around him were still mostly unknown to Damien: after a harassing day of riding through the dense forest, and still upset at his arriving too late, the evening had left few opportunities for socialization –not that it was something he usually partook in, for that matter. He did remember something about that Emil guy, who stood out from the rest of the caravan’s folks, but that was it. For now, Damien was just that elf staring at the door, waiting for the moment it would open again.