I'll be the first to admit that I am often envious of the people of Phoenix Drop. The baker, the blacksmith, the farmer, they all have a single purpose. A job to do every day. Possibly a family to take care of and friends to see and laugh with. But, they know they'll be in bed once the sun goes down. Predictable but comforting. Those are the words that I would use to describe their lives. Lives that I wish everyone was blessed with. Including me. I am a guard. The "head guard". Sworn protector to the village and the people who inhabit it. Predictable is never a word that would cross my mind when describing my role. There was always something afoot, lurking around the corner. Even for a small village, mind you. I stop to question, at times, if I should have considered other forms of employment.

My thoughts are interrupted by the clanking of metal approaching me from my post. Zenix, my second-in-command and brother in arms, was making his way over. He takes off his helmet, his messy mop of brown hair cascades down his head as he says, "Ah, Rowan. I did my daily round and everything seems to be in order. No complaints so far from the villagers."

"That's new," I replied, shocked admittedly. "Seems like the only thing preventing this to be a perfect day is the weather."

Zenix huffed, tucking his helmet under his arm as he combed back his hair. I could tell he wasn't a fan of the misty day we were having. I didn't mind. I always preferred these days actually. The wind allowed the sounds of the nearby shore echo through the town, the scent of sea salt along with it. Plus, it keeps my face cool under my helmet.

"And the fact we still don't have a Lord," Zenix mumbled, looking down. But once there was an awkward moment of silence, he shot his head back up and said, "You know what I will never understand about you?"

"What's that?", I asked, a slight laugh in my voice as I looked at him through the slits of my metal cage.

"The townsfolk begs you to take up the mantle and you won't do it," He said, pointing at me.

"I think it's perfectly understandable as to why I don't want it," I defended myself, gripping my sword to try and calm myself so as to not snap at him. It was a reasonable statement. "There's things involved with the role that I don't think I can handle. Phoenix Drop would be better off with a corpse as a Lord than me."

"Is it because you're afraid of whoever is killing these Lords?" My friend asked, looking mildly annoyed. I remained silent, now really wanting to switch the topic. That seemed to just be an answer for him. "Rowan, if you were Lord, that man would stand no chance against you. In fact, I-"

"I didn't stop him before. And now look at the predicament we're in," I finally snapped, shutting him up. I felt guilty for doing so...barely. He knew that I was sensitive about the subject. About our previous Lord and how because of me, him and his family were now dead. I sighed, calming myself down before saying, "I appreciate the encouragement, Zenix. But I think you're biased in this debate."

"Heh, I guess you're right but, think about it. For a man who keeps to himself most of the time and never takes off that stupid helmet, it's surprising to see how many people believe you can do it."

Under my helm, a small smile came to my lips. It was refreshing to have him around. Even if his choices of conversation got on my nerves at times. I patted his shoulder as I went on to say, "They said it with irritation in their voice but, I like that you're being optimistic."

He laughed quietly, choosing to stand next to me for the next few moments. "I'll never understand you, Rowan Withers."

"I try to keep it that way."

He shot me a smirk before putting his helmet back on. Possibly to prevent his hair getting more wet. The village once again went quiet in the cold spring afternoon. The square was exceptionally peaceful compared to when it was a nice warm day. Granted, most of our merchants had left so it's never truly busy anymore. But that was just the approaching fate of our village. Even before the passing of Lord Fyresmith, the village was losing inhabitants due to the growing nearby towns such as Meteli or Brightport. I didn't mind though. Phoenix Drop didn't need to be one of the powerhouses of Ru'an. It just needed to be...Phoenix Drop. Calming, beautiful, lush Phoenix Drop.

"Were there any requests this morning?" I asked my friend, stopping the moment.

"Actually Zoey asked-"

"Rowan! Zenix!" A distant call rang out. I watched as a familiar face came rushing towards us. Donna. She held up her skirt above the ground with one of her hands while the other kept the hood on her head. When she did reach us, I saw that her light-brown braid was damp due to the moisture in the air and I immediately noticed sand on her boots, signaling to me that she had come from the beach. Even with the colder temperature, she still looked flushed as she sputtered out nonsense for a while, fear in her gray eyes.

I gently rested my hands on her arms as I said; "Donna, breath. What has happened?"

"M-Molly and I," She finally coherently said, taking a couple of breaths; "we were walking along the beach when we spotted a man in a green cloak. H-He had a mask so I d-didn't get a good look at him b-but, he h-had this stick thing that he forced into the ground. T-Then there was a quick flash and instead of the stick a-a w-woman appeared on the sand. Before Molly and I could a-anything he ran off and now there's just an u-unconscious woman on the shore!"

Zenix and I exchanged glances for a second before I gazed back at Donna and asked, "Show us."

And with that we followed her to the beach. A small secluded one that I have found myself from time to time. The usual bright blue water now looked gray due to the weather and the sand was moist and sticky, clinging onto my boots as we went along. I saw Molly in the distance, her blonde wavy hair now stick straight as she was knelt to the ground over what looked to be indeed another woman. As we made our way over, Molly turned her head over and said, her emerald green eyes laced with sympathy; "She's frozen! We need to get her to Zoey, immediately!"

Once we finally made it, I saw what we were messing with here. On the sandy ground, laid a woman with tan skin and black, raven hair. Her eyes were closed and I was relieved to see that her chest still rose and fell. She was alive, thankfully. She wore tattered clothes and nothing like a bag or satchel was on her. No bruises or cuts were on her either. If it wasn't for what Donna had told me, I would have believed she was involved in a shipwreck.

"What in the world-" I muttered to myself, Zenix popping in to say snarkily; "Take note, Rowan. This is what a woman looks like."

If it wasn't for my helmet blocking it, Zenix would have seen a sharp glare from me as a response. I took a deep breath as I said; "Zenix, why don't you retrieve Dale and start looking around these woods for this green-cloaked man. I'll take her to Zoey to see if she needs anything besides just a warm room and food. Can you handle that?"

He groaned and said, "Yes. I can handle looking and walking, Rowan. I'll be on my way then."

He then jogged off back to the village to find Dale. I knelt down myself and started checking the woman's vitals, placing my two fingers against her neck, feeling a pulse. But, Molly was right. She was as cold as ice. "How long ago did she appear?"

"Only about five minutes ago," Donna answered, holding Molly's hand who looked far more terrified than her. The blonde then leaned down as if to enhance her question, "Do you think she'll be alright? She looks so small..."

Molly was correct about that. This woman had to be only four-eleven if standing. But, and this is to not be offensive in the slightest, she did have a bit of weight to her. That only confused me further as to what was exactly happening. If she was kidnapped by this man, wouldn't she be frail as well?
"Molly, can you run ahead of us to alert Zoey of our arrival?" I asked her as gently as I could.

She nodded her head, scurrying off. Donna than looked back down at me and asked; "What shall I do?"

"Stay by me and make sure my armor isn't harming her as I carry her."

"Alright then, go ahead."

I carefully scooped the woman up in my arms, slowly lifting her off the ground. Donna must have seen my nerves as she commented; "Geez, Rowan. She's a woman, not expensive china."

"Just–ah! I just want to make sure I don't harm her," I say, a bit panicked. "She's probably already frazzled. She doesn't need a scary stranger with a helmet harming her."

"Then take off the blasted thing," Donna exclaimed as I finally was to my feet, keeping the woman close to my chest to hopefully supply any heat. I shook my head as I said; "Rather not. Now, let's get going before she gets hyperthermia."

As we went on our way, I couldn't help but ponder if this green-cloaked man was the same one from the night the Lord's house was set aflame. Perhaps it was my anxiety getting the better of me. Honestly, I didn't truly get a good look at that man that night anyways. I was only guessing I saw green instead of some other color. This would be too odd for one man to do in the span of a fortnight. But, if it was him, I wondered if there was more instore for me in the future that was above what I signed up for.

Irene, I should have been a farmer. I thought to myself as Donna and I reached the cobblestone path once again. But, I looked down at the woman in my arms and I knew I needed to put my selfish desires aside at the moment. She needed help. That was my job. I was good at my job. At least, that's what I've been told.