Liandra and Mother squelched their way towards the men, contending with the rivulets of dark water streaming down mud channels in the road. Their boots sank into the sticky stuff and rose out with a sucking sound. They had to fight to pull their feet up with each slow step, as if the ground itself were grasping onto their feet with earthly fingers.
'You know,' Stroud was saying, when they finally caught up, 'there would be far fewer calling you lot invaders if you didn't treat them the way you just did, eh? A little kindness goes a long way. Perhaps then they would think more fondly of your so-called "great unifier."'
The captain did not turn to face the captive, only continued trekking onward into the town, then after a moment said, 'Shut it, Stroud, or I will shut it for you. I have not the patience tonight.'
Stroud held up his hands in peace, a gesture that lost some of its weight due to the chains clanking at his wrists. They all knew he was right, of course. The captain hadn't done the Emperor's image any favours tonight. But what was an image in the face of overwhelming strength, anyway? Far simpler to just bully the people into doing what you wanted. That was the way Liandra had seen it go, anyway, more often than not. If she were in charge, she would have done things differently.
They continued on, through the pouring rain and the mud, until they came to the town inn. The captain awoke the innkeeper with more banging and shouting. There was scuffling and grumbling from inside the two-storey building, and a portly man threw the front door open, frowning out at them all. He had come down in a dressing gown and a comical little cap, something that Liandra had only heard about in stories and didn't think people actually wore. His face was red. He was near blowing with exhaustion. Must've been a long walk from his bed.
'What the bloody hell do you think you're doing? You'll wake everyone up long past the devil's hour.'
The captain simply held up his medallion. Realisation crept across the innkeepers face, and he took several measured breaths, deflated like a windbag with a hole in it.
'You can come in,' he said. 'But keep your voices down, flog ya. We've got a full house, and I've got an early morning tomorrow.'
'We'd like somewhere to sleep,' the captain said.
The innkeeper looked over the lot of them, his gaze lingering on Stroud, then he turned to the captain with red-rimmed eyes. 'Did you not hear what I just said? I've got no rooms. Now, I'm happy to pay my respects to the Emperor, I got no problems there. I pay my taxes, and I pay them on time. But I'm not about to kick paying customers out of their beds in the middle of the night, especially not with this rain.'
'Never said it had to be a bed,' the captain responded. 'We can sleep on the floor.'
The innkeeper sighed. He looked at Liandra and Mother, and Liandra saw compassion in his eyes. She wanted desperately to put a hand on his arm.
'You're better off in the stables,' the innkeeper said, stifling a yawn with the back of his hand. It'll be just as warm, and there won't be people trampling all over you in a few hours.'
The captain didn't even check with the others. He just clapped his hands together and said, 'We'll take it.' It was the best offer of lodging they had had in weeks, and the only one in six days.
The innkeeper led them back out the front door, through the rain once more and around the side of the inn, to the stables at the back. It was dry enough, and warm, despite the lack of proper walls. Horses were sleeping in most of the stalls, and Liandra could feel the body heat steaming off them. There was hay as well, plenty enough to make beds for the lot of them. The only downside was the smell. It was hard to escape the raw stench of manure, and Liandra was sure it would find its way into her dreams.
'Well, it's not much, but you're welcome to it,' the innkeeper said. 'I hope you've already had your evening meals, as I'm afraid the kitchen's closed, though I can bring you bread in the morning.'
Mother stepped forward and took the innkeeper's hands in hers. 'I thank you, most kindly, good sir. We owe you our deepest debt of gratitude.'
The innkeeper looked taken aback. 'No, no. It is nothing, really.' He gave a peculiar smile. 'As long as I am back in my bed in the next five minutes, I'll consider the debt repaid.'
Mother released the man's hands, and he turned to go, but stopped as if he had just remembered some forgotten detail. He approached the captain, leaned in close. Though he lowered his voice, Liandra heard him say, 'Those posts go deep into the ground. Very solid.'
The captain nodded, and the innkeeper scurried away. The soldiers took Stroud over to a post, looped his chains around it and secured it all with bolt and shackle. Stroud endured this with little more than an occasional wince. It was routine by this point. The soldiers always chained their prize to something he could not carry away or pull apart. The chain gave the man enough room to lie down, but little else, and he would still have to sleep with his wrists together. It can't have been very comfortable, but Liandra had never heard the man complain. Probably, he knew there was no point.
The others made their beds in the hay. Mother used a rake to bunch up a pile of the scratchy stuff for her and Liandra. With everyone else busy, Liandra reached out to touch one of the horses which had awoken during their entrance. Mother was upon her in a second, pulling her hand away from the wooden slats of the stall.
'Don't. Let it be,' she said. 'There is too much at stake for you to be playing with these creatures.'
Liandra reluctantly moved away from the animal and let her mother guide her to bed. The horse gave a little shake of its head. It seemed a magnificent animal, with kind, deep eyes. But Liandra let herself be led to the pile of hay.
Despite her exhaustion, Liandra lay awake for a long while. When she was sure the others were asleep, and the stable had filled with the sounds of heavy breathing, Liandra eased herself up, crept across the stable and back to the stall with the horse in it. The horse lay down, dreaming, Liandra knew, so she climbed over the railings, careful not to make a sound, and dropped beside the big animal. She crouched down and put her hands on the horse's head. Its eyes opened, went wide in shock, then slowly relaxed. Liandra sat down and let the horse's head fall into her lap.
What is your name? she said, inside of her mind.
The horse's big eyes met with hers. Agrafell, it replied. Would you like to hear my tale?
Liandra looked about the stable once more, checking the others were still asleep. She could just make out Mother's chest slowly rising and falling.
Yes, she said.
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