With his Stillness tank full and his Biological Time safely buffered by Theron's rations, Alex finally felt equipped to venture beyond the shack's immediate perimeter for one final, crucial mission: intelligence acquisition. He needed a map of the forest routes and a way to gauge the human risk in Oakhaven before he fled.
His target was the Common House, the village's central hub for rumors, ale, and fleeting contact with the outside world.
The Social Field
Alex entered the dim, smoke-filled room, his senses immediately assaulted by the heat and noise—the antithesis of the Stillness he stored. He moved to the darkest corner, using the dense wool of his tunic to hide the subtle shivering that accompanied the Stillness saturation.
He focused his perception, initiating a minimal, passive draw of energy from his tank—just enough to sharpen his awareness of the Stillness field around the living, without draining his youth.
The effect was terrifying and overwhelming. The people around him were no longer just loud, dirty villagers; they were walking, breathing maps of their own mortality and decay.
The Farmer: A faint, flickering coldness around his chest. Chronic cough, low energy reserve. Low threat.
The Tavern Keeper: A thick, static cloud of cold surrounding his left arm. Likely an old, debilitating curse or persistent injury. Distracted, high personal risk.
The Merchant: The man who often brought goods from the outside, currently drinking ale. He radiated an unnervingly clear, bright vitality, but the coin purse at his hip was encased in a fleeting ring of sharp, cutting cold—the clear signature of malicious intent, or greed. High threat/High value target for information.
The Crucial Intelligence
Alex fixed on the Merchant. This man traveled the paths Alex needed. He was the only source of reliable geography.
Alex approached the table, keeping his voice flat and deferential, maintaining the sickly, harmless persona. "Good evening, sir. My uncle Theron asks if the road to the Thorp of Wyllow is clear of the early snows this year."
The Merchant sneered, but the intense Stillness Alex could perceive around the coin purse flared. "It's a long walk for a boy like you. The King's Wood Road is always dangerous this time of year—bandits in the south fork."
Bandits. A planned, active threat. This was the precise intelligence Alex needed. The direct road was a trap.
Alex risked a quick, bold maneuver. He subtly concentrated the Stillness flowing through his hand and placed his hand briefly on the Merchant's wooden table. The immediate transfer of cold was too subtle for the human to notice, but it momentarily amplified the Stillness surrounding the Merchant's purse.
The Merchant suddenly shivered, slapping his hand over his coin pouch. "It's cold in here tonight. Get back to your pigsty, boy."
Alex had his answer. The Merchant was paranoid about his wealth, and his warning about the bandits—confirmed by the signature of greed—was likely true, as he feared others would also take that path.
Alex retreated immediately. He had the high-value data he needed: Avoid the King's Wood Road's South Fork. He now knew the Oakhaven Creek path—the parallel, slower route—was his only viable option.
The Accountant's Verdict
Outside, the cold air felt cleaner. Alex ran a quick internal audit. The passive Stillness draw and the small, momentary transfer to the table had cost him less than one percent of his full tank. The mental effort was considerable, but the risk of aging was minimal.
He had gathered tactical intelligence, confirmed his Stillness Budget, and avoided drawing attention to his magic.
Now, with both his survival (calories) and his future (Stillness) accounted for, there was nothing left but to execute the escape.
With this crucial social interaction complete and the geographical danger mapped, Alex is fully prepared for his flight.