She heard the restaurant dwellers before she could enter the building. The cottage was long but stout and cheers rang from within like a song. Aeri rarely attended evening bars, but after showing a certain photo to several villagers, it was clear that this may just be the place where she can find him.
"You may not find him here…" Cerberus taunts. His voice was low and echoed in her ear as if he was speaking right next to her.
She tied her mare, Rain, to a post and made her way towards the large wooden door. "I have to try."
"Why spend so much time on this man when he so clearly does not want to be found?" The dragon within her questions, but she does not respond.
"He will be your downfall, if he has not become that already."
Aeri ignored his remark and pulled the hood of my cloak over her head before entering into the dark room of drunk people. A shoulder bumped into hers as she tried to slip between the crowd, and a drink almost spilled onto her, but Aeri continued her way towards the bar area in the back. It was a long bar that wrapped around the bartender who rushed to tend to all of their demanding customers. Aeri found an empty seat at one corner and scanned the area for him. No luck. Did she really believe it would be this easy?
She continued looking, trying her best not to draw any attention. In her mind sat the image of the young man she used to know, but would she recognize him now? Was that the problem? No, all that stood or sat around me were men well into their forties with beer bellies and unkempt stubbles shouting and swinging their drinks in the air.
"And for you, my lady?" A voice interrupted her thoughts. It was the bartender, a slim man with a clean cut mustache and glassy blue eyes.
"No thank you." She said, and another man nearby roars with laughter.
"Coming to a bar with no intentions of a single drink?" His laugh pierced her ears and she glared at the large man who stumbled towards her. His jug of beer spilled at her feet, staining her boots, and Aeri refrained from spitting in his face.
"You look too pretty to be at a place like this, princess." His cackles never cease and she pushes off of the bar to walk away, but his grimy hand quickly wraps around her wrist.
"Where are you going in such a hurry-" Aeri twisted her wrist and squeezed his hand, forcing his palm towards the ceiling until he writhed in pain.
"Touch me again, and you will never use those filthy fingers ever again."
His cries turned heads and the bar paused its festivities to stare at the ordeal she had caused. So much for trying not to draw attention. Aeri swore under her breath as the surrounding men step closer, sheathing their blades and cracking their knuckles.
She quickly looked around for an exit, and just as she discovered a back door, she noticed a dark figure with pale skin and dark hair shift from their seat and slowly move towards the exit. Could it be him?
Aeri did not have time to think before a long dagger suddenly swipes down at her head. She revealed the blade she had attached to her forearm and slid it into the palm of her hand, parrying the man's blade and kicking down her attacker. Other men yelled as they charged towards her, but her focus remained on the mysterious figure who had now slipped silently through the back door.
"You little bitch!" Another man raises his fist and swings at her face, but she reeled back until his fingers narrowly missed her nose and grabbed his same hand. She twisted his arm down and brought her elbow down onto his until it popped. He screamed and more men swarmed towards her end of the bar.
She continued dodging drunken punches and airborne swords until she neared the exit and escaped the mayhem that so quickly erupted. The figure was still outside, mounting a white stallion and Aeri did not hesitate to give chase. They sped into the forest and she paused, drawing out her bow until I could aim a clean hit on the horse's thigh. The arrow flew and connected, the horse falling forward and hurling the rider off.
They tumbled to the ground but quickly rushed to their feet and continued forward, disappearing into the thick trees and heavy brush. Aeri tried to follow their path but they were too fast. She kept running and running until she finally hit a clearing, an untouched meadow with tall grass illuminated by the moon. If she were not chasing a suspicious figure, she would have paused to admire the area, but she could not lose this mysterious person if it was truly Soren.
Her breath wavered as Aeri tried to catch it, but the drunken men at the bar was a waste of energy and she could only look around, scanning every tree for any movement. Suddenly, a heavy force shoved her back and she collapsed to the grass. She quickly turned towards her attacker as they swung a long silver blade down at my chest.
Cerberus erupted from Aeri's chest. He took the form of a giant flame and the force pushed the cloaked figure onto his back. Cerberus' spirit matched the orange color of the sky as the sun descended beneath the horizon, and he roars with a level of contempt she had never heard before. The burst of heat sent waves of wind whipping around the meadow, bending the tree trunks and flattening the tall grass. Cerberus loomed above her like a massive guardian angel, his slit eyes hard and unmoving as he stared at the figure who got to his feet. The force of the wind had simultaneously slipped off the hood of the cloaked figure, and that is when Aeri was met with a man whom she barely recognized.
He had smooth midnight hair that flowed out like waves, framing his face perfectly like curtains. He had dark and prominent brows and angular cheekbones that carved their way down towards a strong jaw. It was only the same dark hooded eyes and sorrowful expression that helped her remember the young man I knew from years ago.
"Soren…" She breathed.