It was several years ago in a small corner of Aquilonia a noble man was meeting with his mistress in a small farm house, His affair was well known unknown to all but his wife.  Making him quite easy to find.  He knew this fact well and kept the small farm house well guarded.  The moon shown bright the land was still, I laughed to myself, not the best conditions for my take at hand, Thankfully I was well trained at keeping my presence hidden, which was the one gift I excelled at.  The land was quiet under my feet as I crept to the tree line.  It was still two leagues to the small house.  I crept around the perimeter, to the one opening I could find.  A ranger stood upon the tree, I took to poison darts from my pouch, and my grappling hook.  I released to two darts into his neck.  The poison worked quickly.  His body began to sway on the tree branch.  I released the grappling hook catching him in the neck holding his body and keeping his body from falling off the tree.  TH e arterial spray made light plops upon the soil. Looking around I checked to make sure that no one bared witness, to his untimely death.  I waited a moment for the last patrol to pass before I swept across the open field to the farmhouse.  I slipped into the window.  Using the darkness, I made my way into the back room where the lovers laid.  The noble man stood by the bed dressing himself slowly.  The woman lay sleeping in the bed.  I pulled out my dagger from its sheath and held it inches from his neck.    Suddenly a commotion outside.  I could hear the guard’s cry of alarm and the smell of iron scented blood filling the sweet night air.  I knew I had to move fast.  I crept back to the shadows as the noble man moved to the window.  He slowly back away from the window into my waiting dagger.  Suddenly the door burst open to a flash of lantern light silhouetting a small famine form.  Her eyes darted to my hiding place in shadows, unable to restrain myself a smile spread across my face.  She smiled mischievously back at me.  I caught the glint of the dagger only seconds before it was imbedded in my chest.  I stumbled as the pain shot through my body.  I dropped to my knees and fell sideways toward the noble man.   The dagger banged the floor only causing it to fall deeper into my chest.  I watched from the floor as the noble man fell to his knees begging for his life.  She pulled a dagger from another sheath on her hip grabbed his hair pulled his head back and slit his throat.  Her boots made no noise as she turned to walk away.  At the entrance to the door, she stopped and glanced back toward me, a soft look in her eyes,   she walked back toward me and leaned down to my side, her hand caressed the side of my face.  Her lips gently pressed against mine, and then all went black.

The pain returned to my head as my eyes opened to blurry world.   I surveyed my surrounding and noticed a small old woman sitting by the fire.  A moaned escaped lips as struggled to sit up.  The woman turned to me.  “Your away finally, you have been unconscious for seven days.  We thought you had begun your journey to the land of the dead.” 

            “What happened?” I asked my voice gruff and foreign to me.

            “You had been stabbed on the road.”  The crone replied.  “A woman found you and brought you in.  A few moments later and the river man would have been asking for your coin.”

            “Woman?”  I responded as the memories flooded back to me.  “What happened to this woman?”  I asked.  The crone smiled. 

            “She said you might ask that.  She told me to tell you to find her at the Purple Carp Inn, in the city of Khemi.”

            “I am indebted to you.” I said as I retrieved a clean shirt from my satchel.  I dressed careful not to disturb the bandage.  I moved slowly to the door.  The pain in my chest throbbed with the movement.   I stared at the moon as I tried ascertaining my Barings.  The crone’s harsh laugh stopped me in my tracks.

            “I don’t suppose that you would like to know the identify of your savior.”  She smiled as she continued to rock in her chair by the fire.  I turned a devilish smile upon my face.

            “I would be grateful for anymore information that you may have about my savior.”

She stopped rocking and stared at the fire.

            “Her name is Liola”