His name was Theron.
Not the Theron of the Unbroken Shield who taught Elias mathematics and astronomy, a different Theron, since this was a common name in Stormfall's lower districts. This Theron was a leatherworker by trade, a man who had spent twenty years building a quiet life with the woman he loved and the son she had given him.
That life had ended three days ago.
He had been at the tannery, working late to finish an order that would have paid for his son's winter clothes. When he returned home, they were gone. Just... gone. The door had not been locked, meaning that his wife did not expect to be gone for long.
Stormfall was a relatively safe city, but it was massive, and people went missing every day due to the multiple dangers prevalent in a city of this size. Theron had almost gone mad with worry when his greatest fear had been realized.
