Fenice woke in a fit of a sweat, her head throbbing a little as she sat straight up, her pulse racing beyond all comfortable limits. She almost wanted to throw up except that would be bad for the person laying beside her... or the person who should have been beside her. When the princess felt for Locke, his figure was missing in the pitch black night.

That frightened her a little and she grabbed the hair pins in her hair to realize that those were also missing. Their conversation from before came back to frighten her where Locke had suggested they sell them. She thought it had been more of a joke, but what if that's exactly what he had done!

Fen sat in the dark room breathing uncontrollably, until she had to calm herself down. No. Locke wouldn't do that. Besides, the hair pins would only fetch a pittance compared to the enormous wealth he'd receive upon their arrival in Beneš. Fen rolled her eyes at herself and the very next second while fumbling around on the mattress, found her pins lying side by side. She must have forgotten to take them out given the exciting day she had. They must have fallen out some time in the night. Thank god they hadn't poked Locke... or else maybe that's why he was missing now. Before Fenice was able to put the pins back into her hair, she heard a strange thumping sound coming from outside.

Fen gently chewed the meat of her cheek and quickly put on the boots she had bartered the innkeeper's wife for in exchange for a ring. She then went to the window to see if she could spot Locke walking outside.

The panes were black except for the parts that were illuminated by the moon. On the white expanse of snow she could see a black body walking towards the inn... followed by another. And they... they didn't actually appear human sized. The shadows were too big for that.

Fen's eyes narrowed, trying to get a better look at the bodies as she leaned into the small window overlooking the expanse. The very next second a large hand broke through the glass, causing her to scream out as it tried to grab her.

The four-fingered hand that had thick, meaty knuckles caught her under garments and began dragging the princess to the window. She gasped again and without thinking, used her mother's hair pins to stab them into the hand that had tried to take her.

A roar bellowed from outside and the enormous limb that had reached through the window flailed wildly. Fen watched it in horror before scrambling to the entrance of the room.

The hair pins were still clenched tightly in her hands when she flung the door open and ran out into the hallway. There, she was frozen to the spot when, blocking the only entrance and exit, a monstrous shadow appeared in the hall.

Fen's eyes widened as the creature's mouth broke into a toothy grin, its blazing orange eyes piercing through black and sending a stab of terror through her heart.

"Let's not not go making a fuss, pretty girl," the thing said, a great cloud of steam escaping its mouth and nostrils. 

It dwarfed the short ceiling of the inn and had to hunch as it dragged its long muscular arms across the the floor. The wide mouth sported four enormous incisors that dripped with drool and the round gut of the creature held a rope of skulls at the waist like a trophy.

"Ogre!" she screamed in her loudest voice to wake the others, banging on a couple of doors as she flung herself backwards to the end of the hall. "Wake up! Wake up! Ogres inside!"

Ogres were mountain dwelling creatures that often came up to eight or nine feet with a penchant for eating farm animals whole and the occasional person if they didn't keep them as a pet or slave. But Fen hardly ever heard of them leaving the mountains... and where was Locke?

She made it to the end of the hall quickly. The muffled frightened sounds of the other occupants could be heard underneath the sounds of the ogres' thundering steps. The princess doubled back and using all her speed, threw herself between the legs of the creature while lashing out with the sharp end of her hair pins.

Another roar broke over the inn as Fen scrambled to her feet, nails biting into the wooden floor and coming back with splinters as she hit the ground and doors were thrown open. People who had slept at the inn clamoured to escape the rooms as they too realized that they were under attack. They followed the princess out who was armed with nothing but a couple of hair pins but they didn't even have time to make it to the kitchens before they were ambushed by the third ogre. Of course, problems always always came in threes. That's what her father would say.

This one's eyes glowed yellow and it was also smiling as she stood in front, her arms spread wide across as if to shield the others. They were her people, after all.

"Now... come quietly, and no one will be harmed," this one said as it towered over the entrance.