  Bardric came to the edge of town slowly and cautiously. Until he was sure what sort of situation he was talking into he would take all the precautions possible. He noticed that the town was awfully quiet for being morning. Where are the children? He walked slowly towards the tavern located in the center of town. He noticed that most of the houses and business had their windows closed or boarded up. The town also had a run down look of not being taken care of lately.
He paused outside the tavern and took a quick look around before entering. The tavern had the usual dark, gloomy look inside. There were few people inside drinking and eating at the surrounding tables. The barkeeper cleaned the bar at the far wall. A fireplace on the left had a fire with a spit cooking poultry which lighted up some of the room. It was a very cheerless place. The wizard walked up to the bar and sat down on a stool in front of the barkeeper. "Tell me, friend, what news and give me a drink. " The wizard laid some coins on the bar. The barkeeper filled a tankard and sloshed it in front of the wizard. "The news around these parts are that there is fighting from here to Klaken on the road, armed guards ride through town at least once a day, and people are leaving. " "Do you know who is doing this? " The wizard asked as he sipped the ale from the noticeably dirty glass. "There are rumors that the Drakken are back or that the guards are from Zorlock. Plus there are stories of elves and dwarves packing up to go to war.
Truthfully I don't know and I don't ask any questions especially if it means losing my head. Now if I was you, I would head out of town before someone notices that you are asking a lot of questions. " With that the barkeeper took the tankard away and dumped it out. He walked to the other end of the bar and started cleaning once more. 
