Arlyiss wasn't sure how she had managed to make it away from her house. Her nerves were completely shot. Her imagination kept painting Ezra, or another one of her father's goons, behind every tree branch, bush and turn of the road. She only lived a short walk away from town, but it seemed to take so much longer than usual. 

Her legs could barely support her when she had left her house. They weren't any better now. She kept stumbling and tripping down the trail, as if she was drunk. She was in desperate need of rest, but couldn't allow herself to stop. 

"What am I supposed to do now?" Arlyiss thought to herself. She wanted to find Argent and leave right away. However, that wasnt an option for her currently. He had to get everything ready for the voyage. Even if she hid aboard his ship until they were ready to go, there was a chance that she would bring her troubles to them too early. 

But, if she could keep quiet, lay low and wait for a couple of days. Then, she might have a better shot at escaping and leaving this all behind her. 

"I can't believe that I've killed him…" she thought to herself. It didn't make her feel quite as sick. The sun and the summer breeze soothed her. "He had it coming to him though."

A steady stream of tears spilled down her face. At least, she had stopped sobbing. The whole experience seemed surreal, as if it had only happened in a dream. The scars and the blood reminded her that it was all too real.

"I'll need to wash this all off before someone sees me. And, get some fresh clothes. I think there's a stream nearby. Or I could go down to the beach…"

Arlyiss opted to search for the stream first. It was probably closer and wasn't nearly as open to prying eyes as the beach.

A few minutes off the beaten path had her bathing and washing all of the blood from her skin. It took more scrubbing than she'd like to spend. Every moment was a reminder that she was now a murderer. A fugitive from justice and the wrath of her father. 

Yet, soon enough she was clean. An exhausted sigh escaping her lips as she looked at her still bloodied clothes.

"I can't do anything about those… I'll have to find a new set somewhere. Idiot. I should have grabbed something on my way out."

In the end, Arlyiss wasn't too upset with herself over her hasty departure though. Every moment spent in her house was another moment spent with the corpse of Mordechai. Another moment closer to Ezra discovering her crime. 

"It's okay. It's okay. I just need to take this one step at a time. Remember to breathe…" She took a few moments to just breathe deeply until her body relaxed. "It's a warm day and good weather. I can get away with just wearing my undergarments. I'd rather not, but at least I can make something up if I'm seen. It would be difficult to explain all this blood."

Arlyiss quickly got dressed in what she could to avoid the blood, and still keep some of her dignity. In the end, she had her undergarments and her boots. 

"And… there were some small fishing huts on the beach. I'll head there. No one should be home at this time of day. I'll have to get some clothes from there for now."

The hike down to the beach was longer than expected. She slid from tree to tree and stayed hidden as best as she could manage. And, she had to steer herself away from a few errant voices in the woods. Townsmen, no doubt, but she didn't know their business. Nor did she want to know. However, avoiding them ended up being yet another detour that delayed her.

Finally, Arlyiss reached the beach. She stayed near the tree line a little bit inland to have a little more cover. And, began her search of the coast for a small hut that she could scavenge for now. 

It didn't take her too long to find a suitable place. She was familiar enough with the area, and with most the island, that she wouldn't have any trouble locating what she wanted. After a momentary survey of the area, as expected, the small fisherman's home was empty. 

Arlyiss crept up to the thatch door and silently slid inside. It was pleasantly shaded from the mid afternoon sun. The morning had long since passed in the haze of the days events. 

The shack was a single room space. A flat sleeping mat laid in one corner, while several woven baskets that smelled of fish were stacked in another. A few fishing poles and a spare net were neatly hung on the opposite wall of the door. And, finally, a small chest rested near the head of the sleeping mat. 

Arlyiss strode over and discovered a few clothes and some personal belongings stored within the chest. The clothes fit poorly and she was nearly drowning in the excess lengths of cloth. But, it was better than being naked in town. Or, being covered in the blood of a notorious henchman. She rolled up her sleeves and exchanged her blood soaked boots for a pair of straw sandals. 

"Alright… now where do I go. I can't stay here…" Arlyiss glanced into the woods. "I could just camp outside. Except, I don't have any of the necessary skills to do that very well. But, I don't want to bring any trouble down onto anyone I know…"

Arlyiss searched around the hut a little bit more and discovered some hard bread that was stored near the baskets. And, she ate it ravenously while planning her next move. 

"It's probably for the best, if I just check up on Captain Argent. Just to make sure everything is alright and proceeding according to plan. If not, then I can plan differently."

"For tonight though, I know of a couple safe coves that I can sleep." And, with that she grabbed another piece of bread, a dried fish from the basket and headed out to find shelter.

"It's alright. It'll be okay. I'll figure this out."