Jana ran from the inn, her mind a whirl of emotions. She let her feet carry her where they would, and without realizing it, she soon found herself before Ouest’s outer gates. Yesterday she and Merlie had passed through without incident; today, after the attack in the woods, armed guards bristled across the path leading out into the fields beyond the city walls. Jana drew up short before them, surprised at the sudden show of force. Her father’s doing, no doubt.
Turning from the gate, Jana kicked at the shrubs and weeds which struggled to grow alongside the city walls. To anyone watching, she might have seemed lost in thought, trailing a hand along the cracks in the wall as she wandered away from the gate. But her thoughts were an avalanche in her mind, scattering all reason as they tumbled
