The party ended. The revelers who once filled the street with noise and life have stumbled wearily to their lodgings. For the first time in a week subdued silence fills the streets. Seeking refuge in his rented room, Gillian takes to his bed and gratefully falls asleep.

From the hall, a thin sliver of light dimly illuminates the dark room as the door eases open. The light causes the exhausted Gillian to stir. After a brief pause, a slight form slips through the door and steals into the room. Once in the room the invader extinguishes the tightly shuttered lantern and sinks into the shadows watching her beloved. Deep in sleep Gillian does not wake and does not realize his sometime stalker, Athdara, invaded his room.

Unnoticed by either Athdara or the slumbering Gillian another form slips into the room via the open window. With the ease of long practice Gildor slithers silently across the empty floor. He pausing for a moment when he saw Athdara seated on the floor. She was looking right at him but not seeing him. Waiting for the right moment Gildor did not move. Athdara looked away seemingly lost in thought or perhaps in her music. The moment was now. Gildor quietly stole to the side of Gillian’s bed keeping the bulk of the bed between him and Athdara.

It would be so easy to kill this one, Gildor thought. Just a quick thrust of a dagger to the heart or, a stiletto in the ear. If it so easy, why couldn’t I kill her? It should have been so easy. Now the contract is broken, the assassin’s guild will come after me. Rajah has been looking for an excuse to come after me and I have handed him one on a silver platter. I should go back. I must go back to her room and finish the job… I can’t go back.

With a shrug Gildor redirected his attention to the take at hand. It would never do to have him screaming Gildor thought.

With the speed of the striking snake Gildor’s hand shot out and covered Gillian’s mouth.

The slight warrior monk’s reactions are good. As soon as he felt Gildor’s hand cover his mouth, he brought his hands up and readied a strike. He relaxed bit when he felt the intruder’s other hand press some paper against his chest. Fully awake Gillian realized he’d been expecting this intruder.

“I’m sorry, I couldn’t get you a copy of the documents as you expected. It is unusual for me to request access to the archives let alone documents of this nature. They were watching me like hawks watch mice. This is the best I could do.”

Gillian nodded his acceptance but could not keep the disappointment from his face. He hoped that this unexpected expected meeting would end his life quest to find what happened to his parents.

Gildor turned back to the window and prepared to leave.

“Wait,” Athdara cried, “Who is that woman.”

Gillian bolt upright, “What are you doing in here?”

“Never mind that now,” Athdara replied. Then looked back at Gildor, and demanded, “Well who is that woman?”

“What woman. Oh you must mean Lisaria, she is the woman I am going to die for.”

“What do you mean?”

“I am going to be killed because of that woman.”

With that Gildor slipped out the window and disappeared into the darkness below.

Athdara ran to the window trying to get one last glimpse of her new infatuation but she was too late.

Gillian walked over to Athdara grabbed her shoulder and roughly spun her to face him. Leaning forward so close that there noses were almost touching.

Slowly and distinctly Gillian said, “What… Are… You… Doing… Here?”

“This is the first time I’ve done it.” Athdara said defensively.

“Well don’t do it again.”

Gillian turned his attention away from the unrepentant Athdara to the folded paper he still had clutched in his hand. Slowly Gillian walked the room looking for light source so he could read the document. After several seconds of looking he found Athdara’s abandoned lantern. Glancing sidelong at Athdara, Gillian picked up the lantern and lit it.
Un-shuttering the lantern and carefully unfolding the paper Gillian studied the contents.

It is a map, a map of Elvendaria. The northeast section of the map contained a small red circle. The margins of the map had a handwritten message it read:

“I’m sorry this is the best that I could do. I could not get access to the documents describing what happened to your parents. Those documents are classified Crown eyes only. They must be a part of the legendary Book of Kings. The documents I do have access to describe a secret military base at the location marked on the map. I used to be an officer in Special Forces, until I saw these documents I had no idea the base even existed. There is something there the area has been given a threat level IV rating. Until today, the highest treat rating I have head of was level III. If you decide to go to this area you need to know the King intends for this secret to remain secret the soldiers are authorized to use deadly force to keep out intruders.”