Msaka awoke to the sound of someone knocking on his door. Blinking sleepily, he sat up, immediately annoyed at having been disturbed. "What do you want?" he snapped, loudly enough to be heard by whoever was outside.

"Your presence is required at the guard post. Come as soon as you are able," came the somewhat muffled reply.

Msaka sighed, wondering what he was needed for. "Perhaps they've found that third attacker and want me to identify him," he thought, not entirely displeased at the notion. It would certainly eliminate one potential problem. "Very well," he called back.

He quickly pulled on his sandals and pack, unwilling to leave the latter unguarded, considering what he had stored inside it. While he had not thus far seen any indications that this city had much of a problem with thieves, the potential havoc that might be wreaked if one did inadvertently make off with the elemental wasn't worth risking.

With nothing else left to do, Msaka left his room, heading down the hall to the common room and out the front door. The sun was sinking low in the sky, and the merchants in the plaza were starting to close up their stalls, making a few last hurried sales while the light remained good.

Msaka crossed the plaza to the guard station, keeping a wary eye out for trouble. It was unlikely that he'd be attacked in public, but he wasn't about to discount the possibility - the various attempts on his life in the last few days had left him even more cautious than usual.

Msaka entered the guard post, scanning the room. He quickly spotted the officer he'd dealt with on his previous visit, and aproached him.

The guardsman looked in his direction as he approached, and nodded a greeting. "Thank you for coming. We've arrested the one who attacked you. He has confessed to the attack, but we'd like you to confirm that he's the one, if you would. It would simplify matters later."

Msaka nodded. "Very well. Where is he?"

The officer walked over to a door near the back, and unlocked it with one of the keys on a keyring he was wearing on his belt. He pushed the door open, leading Msaka inside.

The chamber they entered had several cells attached to it, secured with heavy iron bars and sturdy locks. A guardsman was on duty, keeping a careful watch on the occupants of the cells, despite the unlikely chance any of them could escape. The area was dimly lit by a pair of torches, their flickering light providing the only illumination to be had - apparently, windows were considered too much of a risk to have been included.

The officer indicated one of the cells to the left, and Msaka looked into it, his eyes easily penetrating the murk. He immediately recognized the man in the cell as being his escaped attacker, who had a despairing look on his face. Msaka nodded. "He's the one all right," he growled.

"Good," the officer declared. "That's all we needed." He gestured towards the exit, and the two of them left the cell block, the officer closing and locking the door behind them.

"Thank you," the officer said. "If there's anything more we need, we'll let you know."

Msaka nodded, and turned to leave, but the officer continued, speaking more quietly than before. "A word to the wise - you'd best be careful if you decide to head anywhere that help isn't available. The three who attacked you have friends, not all of whom are as rash as they are. We'll be keeping an eye on them, but we can't be everywhere at once."

Msaka nodded slowly, suppressing a frown. "I'll be careful," he said.

"Good evening to you," the officer replied, then turned away, his attention drawn to other concerns.

Msaka left the guard post, emerging back into the plaza. The sun was beginning to set, casting a beautiful palette of colors across the horizon. Msaka stood quietly, watching as the sun slowly sunk out of sight, and the light began to fade. Feeling the night breeze beginning to blow, he turned and walked back to the inn, intending to get something to eat before he returned to his room. He needed to arrange for transport to the city of Raseir soon, and the guard officer's words had convinced him that doing so in the next few days would be a very good idea.

Entering the inn, he discovered that the common room was nearly full. Patrons crowded around the tables, most of them eating, and almost all of them talking. The noise and cramped conditions left Msaka feeling ill at ease, but his desire for fresh food was stronger, so he picked his way through the room, quickly taking a cushion when its previous occupant left.

It was several minutes before he was served, presumably due to the crowd. Msaka took the time to scan the crowd, but failed to see anyone who looked like they might be of interest. From the snippets of conversation he overheard, a caravan would be departing the next day, heading north, and the merchants sponsoring it were celebrating its imminent departure.

Dinner proved to be the spicy balls known as felafels, covered with a generous amount of yogurt, and a bowl of thick stew. Msaka ate hungrily, despite being unused to the dish. When he'd finished, he quickly abandoned his spot, striding over to the innkeeper. He paid for his room, both the time already spent as well as a few more days, then hurried down the hall to get away from the crowd.

Entering his room, he shrugged off his pack and sandals, then began the process of practicing his new spells once again. Somewhat bothered by the noise from the common room, which he could hear faintly from down the hall, he added the spell he'd learned in Tarna to plug his ears to his routine, hoping that when he was done it would last long enough to let him fall asleep.

He hadn't been able to rest as long as he'd intended, so the session proved to be shorter than the previous ones, but he was satisfied with the results by the time he finished and lay down, the Earplugs spell keeping the celebrants' noise at bay. The weariness of earlier that day soon returned, and he drifted quietly off to sleep.