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Walking the roads once more, Tecwyn set his sights to the nearby mining town Orfe.

Before he left, Rezyk had advised him to seek out a ranger that knew the lay of the land, and that there was one living in town.

While he wasn't too keen travelling with someone else by his side after what happened on the mountain, he had to admit that it would be better than getting lost.

The road from the kobold outopost to the town was a simple stone path following along the course of the river. The temperature down on ground level was a lot warmer than on the high peaks of the mountain, rather pleasant to move in and take his time, still slightly sore from his experiences.

While his first encounter with the river was a wild one, here it was becoming gradually tamer, from rushing to gently babbling in the backgrounds as it divided and spread across the land.

The hardest part of his journey should be over now, and he looked forward to spend some time on regular roads and calmer travel.

It was a short trip, only a few hours of the day, and uneventful, but very enjoyable still.

In the distance, he could see Orfe and the mine nearby. From what he knew, there also was a quarry nearby as the stone from this area was well suited for construction, but that wasn't connected to the town itself.

Orfe itself was a quiet town, as it didn't seem to be a popular place for travellers to visit, but it still was of a decent size due to the trade with the capital of Pelnos.

The ranger he was looking for was apparently employed at the local inn. The kobolds didn't know much of him, but did know enough that he was skilled enough to be considered a recruit for the country's rangers guild.

He found the inn at the edge of town, and saw miners weary from work enter, as well as fresh faced ones leave to go to work.

When he asked about this, the workers at the inn told Tecwyn that this was the first building here, used for the workers to recover before the rest of the town was built.

To honor that tradition, the miners had special low cost rates in staying there.

Tecwyn sat down at a table, and, while waiting on the server, wondered if he should keep a journal of his travels, to remind him of all the things he would see.

Sure enough, his tome would record it for him as well, but he liked to have an alternate copy so he could share the information with others.

Before he could make up his mind, he was roused from his thoughts by a female server, a bovine whose blond hair was draped over one of her eyes.

"What can I get for you today sir?" She asked politely, but only out of work professionalism.

"I would like some of the local mead please and I am also looking for someone who is staying at this establishment"

At the mention of this, he noticed a few of the other guests started looking at him out of the corner of their eyes.

"And might I ask who you are asking for?" Her voice was more interested now.

"I believe he is called Tylo, I have been travelling here to aquire his services".

The people that were looking at him snickered and the waitress got a smirk on her face as well.

"I believe that can be arranged sir. If you want, I can bring you to his room already and serve your mead there."

This sounded like a wonderful offer, and Tecwyn accepted, hoping that it would not bother the ranger.

The room he was brought to was on the top floor, one of the larger ones available.

"This is where Tylo is accepting all his...clients. We do hope you get everything you are looking for."

She unlocked the door, signalled for Tecwyn to wait, and headed inside to let Tylo know someone was coming.

Not long after, she came back out again and let the mage inside the room.

The first impression Tecwyn got of the room was confusing at the very least. He had expected a ranger's abode to either be full of trophies and with materials for his craft, or sparse and to only use it as a place for rest. This room was filled with gaudy colors, while the strong smell of flowery perfume permeated the air. Despite the oddity, Tecwyn did not question the tastes of the ranger, as he believed everyone should have their own tastes, especially since this was still better than his former roommate. From a partitioned area, a soft and soothing voice came: "Welcome to my humble home, please, make yourself comfortable on the bed, I will be right there." As instructed, Tecwyn moved to the bed, noticing how clean it was and that it had the same scent on it as well. This could be explained by Tylo being a neat freak, so Tecwyn made sure to carefully sit on the bed, trying to keep it as crumple free as possible.

From behind the partition, the ranger known as Tylo stepped out as the mage observed him. The ranger was a pine marten, signified by his orangey chest standing against his brown fur, as well as the long tail he had. His choice of clothing however surprised the dragon. He was draped in garments not unlike what the dancers back home would have worn, the top of his body barely hidden by shimmering, nearly translucent garb, the bottom half in glimmering silk, flowing around his legs, lightly adorned with gold and silver colored metals.

The outfit was convincingly made, but the way Tylo wore it was confusing to Tecwyn, as if the ranger tried to be something he was not, selling an illusion rather than wearing the outfit to perform. The mage briefly wondered why someone would do this, when Tylo started to talk.

"So, I heard you wanted to hire my services. Well, I am pleased to tell you, my services are fully at your disposal". Again, his voice seemed to clash with the mental image Tecwyn had made about the ranger. The tone of his voice was a calm and soothing one, as if trying to reassure him. Considering the situation they were in, Tecwyn thought it was not appropriate, but he didn't say anything, in case this was just a speech impediment of the marten. "Ah, did my appearance leave you speechless? I am known to have that effect" Tylo continued and winked at the confused dragon. "My apologies, and yes, I was momentarily...elsewhere with my thoughts. I would like to hire you" "That is music to my ears, valued customer, what can this humble servant do for you?" At this point, Tecwyn just assumed people on the other side of the mountain were just vastly different from those he knew back home.

Regaining his composure, Tecwyn took a breath and spoke once more. "I would like to hire your services as a ranger to escort me through the woods of Pelnos. There is a location I would like to visit, but finding it without a proper guide would take forever, as well as the dangers that come with travelling long distances into the wild alone." For a moment, Tecwyn thought to see Tylo freeze up. When he spoke again, there was a strange tremble in his voice "I am sorry, w-what did you want me to do?" His posture and smile remained as they were, but there seemed something different about them now, more forced like a pose he had learned to keep up appearances. "That is why I travelled here, because I heard you were a skilled ranger. That were the services you were talking about right?" Tecwyn asked once more, trying to clear the confusion between them.

"I am hearing you correct? You came here to hire me as a guide?" His voice trembled and switched between the soft voice Tecwyn had known, and a deeper one, one that seemed to fit the marten better. The dragon just nodded in return, upon which the martens entire body language changed. It was as if he saw an entirely different person. What had first been carefully acted movements became the relaxed sways of comfort as Tylo moved to a nearby closet.

After some rummaging, he took out a bottle of spirits, and silently sat on the bed next to the dragon, opening the bottle and taking a big swig of it

"So" he started, his voice deeper and rather casual "where even did you hear I was a ranger, I mean, most people only know me from this other job"

"I heard it from the nearby kobolds. I told them I needed to go deep in the forests and they told me to go here"

"Kobolds huh" he took another swig "seems about right, those were the last people I talked about this. Well, I hate to disappoint, but due to circumstances I cannot exactly leave this place. I kinda owe money to the people here and believe me that I tried to get away. So unless you are willing to pay a rather royal service fee, best I can do is direct you to other ranger, or maybe even a local forester if you are short on cash"

Tecwyn thought about this, cheap costs would ease up on the travel later on, but Tylo was well recommended by the kobolds. If Rezyk trusted him, that meant Tecwyn could trust him as well. Better to pay extra and have that certainty.

From his belt, Tecwyn grabbed a pouch with various stones he got as an advance payment for his task and handed it to the sullen marten.

"Would this cover the cost?"

Tylo took the bag and opened it, and Tecwyn saw his eyes grow wide.

He set the bottle aside as he poured some in his paw, looking at the various shining rocks and mentally appraised them. Gemstones were often used in trade, but Tecwyn only ever saw them on clothes.

"This....this should be..." Tylo took only part of the gems and handed the rest back to Tecwyn.

"If you will excuse me, I need to deal with something" he said as he rushed out the door to the main hall, leaving the dragon sitting alone in confusion.

For a while, Tecwyn just sat there, waiting for anything to happen when the door swung open and Tylo walked back in and went behind the partition. "Allright, that is my debt settled. I just need to get all my stuff and then we can go to wherever you need to go!" After he had said it, the marten was frantically grabbing all kinds of objects and clothing from around the room, putting it in a big coffer, motioning for the mage to sit still and let him work.

"Are you going to take all that with you? Seems rather counterproductive"

"Right, forgot to mention we need to take a detour. My gear is still at my old home, so we need to pick it up.

If we catch the carriage out of here we should be able to reach that tomorrow.

And don't worry if it's a detour, I know the area very well, so we can still find whatever you are looking for in no time, guaranteed"

Spoken full of confidence and enthusiasm, Tylo had changed his outfit for a more standard style of clothing and finished with his packing. At this point, Tecwyn did not have any choice, but he had to admit to himself that he wasn't in any real hurry

As they left the inn together, they could hear sounds of disapproval and angry muttering aimed at both of them, likely because of the departure of Tylo and the interference of Tecwyn.

"Seems you were really popular back there"

"What can I say, I am just good at what I do" Tylo answered with a soft chuckle.

"I am just glad we can get out of here. Anyway, I asked them to get the carriage for us. While we wait, I have to ask you: where exactly did you want me to guide you to?"

Tecwyn just grabbed his tome, opening the pages as the image appeared before him once more.

"I need to reach this location, all I know it's in the woods of this land."

"Magic user eh? Hmm, Not much information to go on, but I bet I can get you there no problem. At the very least I can tell by the trees that its more in what we call the deep woods around here, but I have some books back home I got from the ranger's guild that should help in identifying some clues."

The two were distracted by the arrival of the carriage, pulled by a beast that was unknown to the dragon. The beast clearly was mammalian in origin, but had a tough, almost scale like hide.

"First time seeing one of these? They are called Straen and quite common around here. Rather strong beasts" Tylo casually explained this as he jumped in the back of the carriage and helped the mage on as well. Taking their seats, they saw they were the only travellers here as the carriage started moving, to take them to their next destination.

"Now that everything has calmed down, I would say it's time for proper introductions. First of all, I am Tylo Havard, and I hail from a small village called Furnir. I grew up working at my mother's inn there, with just the two of us living there, but it always had been my dream to join the ranger's guild of Pelnos. I actually managed to get an invitation for it and was told I would be a formal member should I succeed in a test they would give me. For that, we went to Orfe where I impressed them with my skills and we went to celebrate that evening, to properly induct me into their order. That was what I thought at least" Tylo's face became grim after saying this "As it turns out, the leader of the guild wasn't so much interested in my skills, but rather wanted to woo my mother. After she turned him down, he decided to get revenge by dumping me here away from home, ruining my dreams in the process. I got so drunk I passed out, and the next day people were telling me I broke some expensive possessions of a passing rich trader. I got cursed by a local hedge mage to stay around the area, unable to leave until my debt was paid off. Later, I found out that it was a setup. I managed to get in touch with home and the bastard apparently had the guts to tell her all that happened, knowing that he was untouchable due to his position. It took me almost three years to get all the money to pay this back, and I am so glad you came by, would have still taken me a long time without your advance payment."

Grinning at the dragon, he seemed to relax as he leaned back, giving his new boss some time to process this information. "At any rate, that would be enough about me for now, what about you? What is a dragon doing all the way over here? I mean, your kind isn't exactly known for travelling." Tecwyn considered for a moment how much he was willing to tell to his new companion. He seemed trustworthy enough, but he wanted to play it safe for now. "I guess I am one of the few that found life back home too oppressive. Everything was ordered too much and I yearned for freedom." Handy lines he read in stories of old, but Tylo would not know the difference. "I want to travel and see what was beyond the walls of my home, live by exploring what this land has to offer" "Sure, I can understand if you don't want to tell me the exact reason, but don't think I haven't read the tales of Halfjorn the bard, he came from this side of the mountain. Those lines...you didn't even try and change them a little." He said this without malice though, laughing a bit at the rather transparent attempt of Tecwyn to dodge the question. The mage felt a bit guilty, assuming Tylo was just an uncivilised person simply because he didn't come from the academy. "I...suppose so yeah. Truth is, I only had one chance to leave my home, and I took it because I felt adventure calling to me. Ever since leaving though, I start to worry a lot about whether this was the good idea I thought it was, but there is no turning back now."

He took a deep breath before continuing. "I am a mage from the Kriun academy, and while they give us all the luxury we can ask for, they do try to keep us locked up. I managed to slip out, and joined a group to travel over the mountains which ended badly for me. So, I suppose after that, I don't really trust others." "Hmm, yeah, I can understand that, having someone I looked up to betray myself, but point of advice to you, don't let them get into your head. Sure, there will be a few people to betray you, but most people are really nice once you get to know them. And believe me, to survive in this world, you really have to make friends someday. Take your time and it will be all right." Tylo did his best to sound reassuring, but Tecwyn just thought he said this to not lose his lucrative job.

"At any rate, I have to ask, you really have no clue what my job was back in Orfe, do you?" Tylo asked while looking intensely at the mage, studying his body language. "Not really, what exactly were you doing there? I thought you were a ranger protecting the village." "Hah, that's a good one. You are way too innocent, so don't worry about it. All you need to know is that I took the job myself out of free will should it ever come up. I needed the money and it had been one of my favourite pastimes back home, so I thought I might as well work on my skills." He took a breath and smiled "My advice, no matter the situation at hand, find ways to get in control and the upper hand. If you do that, there is nothing you cannot overcome. For me, it was how I survived those years." Tecwyn let these words sink in, the marten clearly talking from experience and he did seem rather sound of mind considering what he had been through. The rest of the journey was were spent in silence, Tylo deciding to sleep while Tecwyn went over all his incantations to keep his mind sharp, but before long, Tecwyn was asleep as well.

It was around noon when they left, but the moon was already high up when they woke up again, having arrived at the village of Fulnir. Without waiting for the mage, Tylo jumped out with his coffer and rushed towards the local inn, with Tecwyn following after him. He opened the door to Tylo and another marten, presumably his mother, hugging in silence, the world around them gone as they finally met each other once more. As soon as they noticed Tecwyn had entered the building, they came over to him, and the woman spoke to him. "I understand I have you to thank for returning my son to me. Thank you so very much" She embraced the dragon, who was surprised by this gesture, but had to admit that it felt comfortable.

It was calm in the inn at this time of night, so the three of them could sit and talk in peace. Before long, Tylo asked to borrow Tecwyn's tome to compare the image with his reference material, and headed upstairs to his old chambers. As soon as he left, Mariah, Tylo's mother and proprietress of the inn, turned to the dragon. "I wanted to thank you again for coming by when you did. While I knew where my son was all these years, it has been really painful to not being able to do anything about his situation. Luckily we have been able to keep regular contact through mail, but still, to see him in the fur again warms my heart. Know that you will always be welcome here at this inn." "Wow...that is a generous offer, but I don't feel like I did anything special. After all, I am also still hiring him to guide me to another part of the great forest, so doesn't that mean he will be gone for a while again?" "Don't you worry about that, after all, that is the life he has chosen for himself. No, what worried me was that he was trapped in a situation that was forced on him, that he had to be in despite his own wishes. Luckily, I managed to raise a smart kid, and when he told me what he was doing to make his way back here, I couldn't help but laugh. He had been doing the same sometimes here when the opportunity arose, the only difference is that he managed to get paid over there. In the end, all a mother wants is to know her child is doing well, I bet your mother feels the same about you travelling right?"

These words stung the mage deeper than he would like to admit. Back in Kriun, the eggs were separated from the parents if latent magical energy was detected. It always had been in the name of prestige and the future of the city, but Tecwyn secretly hoped he would meet his parents someday. This came in part because of the headmaster, Ornas. He had been like a surrogate father figure to the mage when he was younger, and had taken good care of every student, making sure that they felt accepted at the academy. This in turn made Tecwyn wonder where his own parents could be, and created a longing that he couldn't fulfil. In a way, he was jealous of Tylo currently, to have someone wait for him and help him through an apparently tough situation.

Still, he had to keep all this to himself, no reason to make things heavy with his own resentments. "Ah, it's actually customary where I am from to separate the children from the parents if they have magic aptitude, in order to bring them up in a neutral environment. It seems harsh, but they are trained for important roles within the government or other crucial assignments in the city." "Oh really? I am sorry to have implied something wrong then. I just meant that family is there to support you, no matter what you choose to do, even if it can be dangerous. Of course I would want Tylo to stay safe at home, but I would rather have him live his life the way he decides, potentially shorter, if it makes him truly happy. Just promise me you will be careful and not take any unnecessary risks to wherever he will be guiding you, alright?" To this, Tecwyn could let out a heartfelt laugh. "That won't be a problem ma'am, I just hired him to get me to the spot I need to go. The actually dangerous part will be fully on me, if there is any."

Mariah smiled warmly at the dragon, and got up.

"Regardless, you both have been through a lot. Stay here for a while, rest up, and prepare yourselves well for your journey. I will fix up some dinner for the both of you and after that I will be showing you to your room. Even though you think it might be too much, I insist on it." Sensing that there was no arguing against this woman, Tecwyn wisely decided to accept the offer, and relaxed. After the fall, he met the kobolds, and he met Tylo and Mariah. Could it be that on the mountains he just had bad luck in his encounter with Cecil? He decided to hold off on just trusting others again for now, but deep down it felt like a weight was lifting.

Soon, Tylo came back down after his mother insisted he had dinner as well, and the three of them spent the rest of the evening talking about the area they were in as well as the pasts of both Tecwyn and Tylo, to the formers delight and the latter's embarrassment. It was not just the warmth of the inn, but the warmth of the two that made Tecwyn feel at ease. At the end, he got the key to one of the spare rooms he could use to rest up. It was a small room, slightly smaller than the cave room he rested up in with the kobolds, but this was the first time he had a room to himself. One that he didn't have to share or worry someone else would be walking in at any time. There wasn't much in it aside from a small desk, a nightstand and a rather soft looking bed, but to Tecwyn, this felt simply luxurious.

The next morning, Tylo told the dragon that he still needed more time to get the correct spot, as well as determine the best path to it and decide on the supplies needed for the journey. Despite his initial looks and his laid-back personality, Tylo was surprisingly serious and thorough when it came to his work, so Tecwyn placed his trust in the rangers judgement, deciding to spend some more time in the village.