Levi had been riding all night. He was on an urgent mission to deliver a message back to Erwin, but as the moon hid behind the dark clouds now raining down on him, he found his horse’s hooves sinking into the mud below. He couldn’t keep up in this condition, or rather…his horse couldn’t. In the distance, he saw the warm light of a home. Perhaps whoever lived there might give him shelter, just until his horse was ready to continue, until the rain was over.

The cabin was lit by a fireplace, the hearth flickering with the flames. He made the decision to tie his horse up in the nearby barn, which was small, but manageable. He considered laying in the hay until the rain ceased, until a voice rang out behind him, a figure at the door of the barn.