Fish town must have earned its name from the smell. We had found a place to stay the night at an inn named The Parrot’s Roost, and even inside I could smell the fish market. The tables were scared and worn, and the walls banged up and barren. The people in the tavern weren’t laughing and singing like the taverns of other ports I’ve been to. Small groups of folks huddled around tables talking in whispers. I didn’t see a sailor among them.

   The last local left before sunset. He slapped a coin on the bar and said good night. The barman wished him a safe trip home.

   Gravis walked up to the counter and said, “We’re looking for a room for three.”

   “Yer in luck, I just had a room free up. It ain’t a palace suite, but it’s what I got.”

   “Perfect,” Gravis said.

   I figured that any room beats sleeping on the street. We walked around back to a room on the ground floor. Gravis had a grimace now. The barman put a key in the lock, jiggled it, but it didn’t turn. He kicked the door open.

   “Here we are.” He handed Gravis the key and walked away.

   Gravis walked in and I stopped at the door. He turned around. “Well, at least it won’t get too stuffy in here.” He pointed to the window, which was missing.

   “Nice,” was the only thing I could think to say. At least the city guard won’t be an issue, I told myself.

   Logan stuck his hand outside and pulled it back. There was a little moisture on his palm. “It’s starting to rain.”

   I smirked and said, “I’ve been sailing my adult life, I’ve seen worse.”

   Gravis ignored me. “It’s dark already, so we’re stuck here.”

   “Afraid of the dark?” I asked.

   Logan gave what I can only assume was a smile.

   “Bah!” I marched over to a dry corner of the room and lay down. I couldn’t sleep though. The rain poured down hard and the wind whipped through the room. The lightning flashed and left afterimages as I watched out the window, and then the thunder drowned out the night. A dog barked somewhere outside, and I heard a horse whinny from the stable.

   Gravis cursed loud enough for me to hear him. He slid a dagger out of a sheath from beneath his shirt. Logan stood with his back to the wall, looking out the window intently.

   I got up, not minding how quiet I was. The downpour outside obscured any noise I made. I wished I had a weapon, any sort of weapon, just in case. Chances were, Gravis was over-reacting, and I knew this. I still didn’t like the idea of having no weapon.

   There was a crash of glass from elsewhere in the building. Gravis and Logan both leapt toward the door, but it was Logan who was through first. I followed. The hall was empty. From there, I couldn’t see anything of the bar room.

   I could hear a sick gurgle and wet snap from around the corner. Logan turned to Gravis and he nodded. They advance down the hall with near silent steps. I did my best to keep pace without making a sound.

   I heard a hiss from the other room followed by a scamper. Logan picked up the pace and made it to the end of the hall and stopped. He studied the room, looking everywhere, even the ceiling.

   I made my way beside Gravis and Logan and saw the room is empty. The tavern window was smashed and the wind was blowing rain inside. The door to the kitchen was partly open, but the kitchen looked dark.

   Gravis slipped quietly through the shadows to the bar and leapt on top of it. He looked down with his dagger ready.

   Behind me, a door slammed. I turned and saw it was the door to our room flapping in the violent wind.

   I looked back and Gravis was behind the bar kneeling, I couldn’t see what he was studying. I stepped out from the hall toward him and as I did, I heard a stifled scream from upstairs. Logan charged across the bar room to the stairs, hurdling a table along the way. He pulled a short wooden wand from under his belt on his back. The wand looked almost child like in his large hands.

   I steadied myself. Gravis leapt and sprinted his way to catch up with Logan who had already reached the top of the stairs.

   I walked slowly toward the bar, curious about what Gravis had been studying. I peered over the wooden counter and saw a body. The barman. His throat was ripped out and his blood was pooling on the floor. He was holding a rapier in his hand. I reached down and pried it from his fingers. The weapon was old and not very well cared for. I suspected it might have been from the barman’s days of youth. At least I wasn’t unarmed, even if the weapon looked pretty dull.

   A pot in the kitchen fell to the floor. The door was only a few feet away. My breath caught in my throat. I gripped the hilt of my new weapon and stepped carefully over the barman. I grabbed the candle on the counter and pushed the door open with my foot.

   The room looked empty from the doorway. Upstairs I heard shouts. I stepped backwards from the kitchen and hopped over the counter. When I reached the top of the stairs, I saw Logan and Gravis standing in a doorway. A man in his nightshirt was shouting with panic. I could barely understand him, something about the night devils. Obviously, he’d bought into the same superstition as the locals. Not me though, I was not buying it.