Felix looks amused for a moment, then shivers, assuming the air of a shaken man. “Of course. I was coming along the Gold road when a pair of men came out of the ditch and dragged me off the road. I- I didn’t realize at first, but the way they were talking… I think they were thralls.”

That last is almost whispered, and he swallows. “They pulled me into some Ayleid ruins – I remember a man giving orders, and some kind of altar. When I saw what was there I came to my senses and tried to fight them off – I barely made it out of there. Somewhere along the way I grabbed this… this thing. I knew someone had to know about it, so I came here as fast as I could…”

He trails off, looking anxious- then pauses. “Remind me to get more mud on my clothes first.”