Prologue
The night was quiet, serene. Not even the distant city of Darnough, its lights illuminating the otherwise purple sky to the south, seemed to disturb the profound tranquility that had settled over the inn's grounds. Moreover, the Skarmory, a small, gold-trimmed bird with furry feet, large eyes, and shimmering white plumage (which often filled the night with shrill cries and eerie song) remained silent. A flute, played by one of the inn's guests, had previously harmonized with the echoing voices of the Skarmory every night for the past two weeks that Turen had been present, but on this night, that musical accompaniment was also absent.
Turen made his way back toward his inn room for the night, but as he carried on his way, he could not shake a growing sense of unease. Something was not right, the atmosphere surrounding him felt decidedly unusual. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but the unsettling disquiet made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end.
Drawing a deep breath, he continued through the darkened inn-yard, his footsteps echoing over the cobblestone pathway, determined to shake off his worries and get some much-needed rest. He hurried past several windows before pausing at one room in particular. The occupants of this room were the reason Turen had been sent from the palace in Beldrumnon to the city of Darnough.
Upon initial inspection, there appeared to be nothing out of the ordinary. The window was open, and the faint glow of a lantern filtered through the closed curtain, casting its warm light into the night.
He turned to continue on his way, but then something on the ground at his feet caught his eye. There, nestled in the shadows, was a small blue neckerchief, its intricate gold and red filigree glinting in the ambient light. Picking it up, he examined the delicate fabric, his brows furrowing as that unsettling sense of dread grew impossible to ignore.
Something was off about this, and despite his worries, he knew he had to investigate.
He approached the window and carefully drew the curtain back to peer inside. It became immediately apparent why he had sensed something was amiss. Mere feet from the window, the lifeless form of the esteemed Galdovan King lay face down on the floor, immersed in a pool of his own blood.
With his heart pounding in his ears, Turen lept through the window and then stopped short of approaching the King, surveying the room for any sign of the culprit. The King lie still, clearly beyond aid, and yet, there was still one left unaccounted for.
Treading carefully around the deceased rulers body, Turen ventured deeper into the inn, the boards creeking under his weight as he stepped into the narrow corridor. He pushed open the door to the second chamber and was met with yet another gruesome scene.
It had appeared King Drogan had passed quickly, most likely taken by surprise. However, that did not seem to be the case for the killers second victim. Prince Malek, the kings oldest son and heir to the Galdovan throne, had put up a fierce and violent battle. The room was in complete disarray, with broken and overturned furniture scattered throughout, spattered from top to bottom in blood. Prince Malek himself bore testiment to his efforts, covered in bruises and defensive wounds under a thick coating of blood. He lay slumped over the shattered remnants of what had once been a writing desk stood in the corner of the room.
Turen had feared the worst, but the reality before him was still somehow even more dire than he had imagined. As he again took in the scene, his nose crinkled from the heavy metallic stench of blood in the air.
He stepped quietly back out of the room, careful to avoid where the king lay on the floor, and hoisted himself back out the window, landing noislessly on the other side. He took one last look around, stuffing the neckerchief into his breast pocket, before he set off for the stables, racing over the cobblestones in his urgent hurry to procure a horse and carry the news to Beldrumnon. Before anyone else could discover what had happened, he needed to deliver his findings to King Rikan of Taured. He would know best how to proceed with alerting Galdova.
