Lost and Alone

[Flamebird]

I dreaded walking into the town. I was welcomed by the sight of a half demolished sign and - wow! That stench! Trash and horse dung cluttered the streets. The snow piling on top of it just made it wet and worse! I swallowed bile rising in my throat from the revolting odors. Dirty snow piled in front of sagging houses, their frames rotted, broken windows boarded up. I passed a single street performer, strumming a lute as he leaned against a pole. He eyed his empty tin cup, singing out of tune.

"We are the chosen
By the Sway are we blessed
In this bitter tundra
We are called to their requests

Purity inside us
By the Church, guide us
We are the chosen
Their words locked inside us"

Before Shinsou found me, I had felt rock bottom. I had no coin, but I offered him a sympathetic look. Sadly, his gaze was fixated on his cup. I walked down the miserable pathway. Mud and what I hoped was not poop splattered my boots and pants. Oh Thaynes, now this awful smell would travel with me!

I walked next to a half destroyed wooden fence, gazing around the pathetic trash town for my goal.

I scanned the wooden houses for any sign of an inn. I passed two grubby children making a muddy snowman, their mother watching from the steps of the house with bored, dead eyes. I turned a cluttered street corner and finally saw an inn. The Debauching Hut.

What a quant name.

A tarp covered a broken window and a beam was left where it fell on the porch. Of course, the trash tavern did not help. This town was far from welcoming. I could smell the poorly brewed, potent alcohol from here.

With a shudder, I walked towards the building. Stepping into a deep puddle on the way in, I was eager to get on the road again once I got my map.