The makings of a long day

"Runt wake up" I hear Quinara say softly while shaking me, "come on runt we have a busy day today" she continues. With a small groan I get up and quickly get dressed Quinara hurrying me every step of the way, she grabs her war hammer and we head out of our room into the tavern however instead of sitting down for breakfast as we did yesterday she grabs my wrist and pulls me out the door with urgency "we will get breakfast on the way, runt"

She guides me through the winding streets only stopping briefly at a market stall for Quinara to pick us up a couple of apples "trust me you want a light breakfast" she says when I complain at the meager offering. I did trust her and given how urgently we were moving we end up eating on the go, Quinara not slowing for even a second as we hustle through the streets of Corviet.

Eventually our journey leads us to what appeared to be an abandoned warehouse next to the river, the river being frozen over had meant that most warehouses and docks had closed up shop but this building looked like it had closed up way before this winter began. "Uhh" I say looking at the state of this building, but Quinara doesn't stop she walks straight up the iron door and pounds on it, a stout dwarf answers "what do you want?" He spits on the ground next to Quinara,
"I'd like a sparring room" Quinara asks the dwarf,
"fer how long?" The dwarf say back,
"all day, my partner here has a lot of work to do" Quinara gestures to me. The dwarf looks me up and down "aye I can tell... Well seeing as yer me first customer I can swing you a room for half the day. Best I can do, got a lot of people booked in". Quinara gives him a nod of approval "that will do" she says paying him a few gold coins for the room.

The dwarf opens the door fully and we walk in, the inside of this warehouse was in an equal or worse state of disrepair than the outside, Quinara had paid for a room in this dump. I catch up to Quinara and softly speak to her making sure that I wouldn't be heard by the dwarf, "wanna explain what's going on? Why did we pay so much to be in this dump?" Quinara leans down to my level "oh we didn't pay for a room in here...." She says softly, it doesn't make sense to me she asked for a room what did she mean it wasn't in here.

My questions are answered almost as soon as I think them as the dwarf pulls a lever on the wall. The sound of creaking metal fills the warehouse as two large metal plates begin to part like the jaws of some great beast opening to swallow us whole. The stairs they reveal are dimly lit by small candles affixed to the walls, if I didn't trust Quinara I would have bolted as a creepy dark staircase hidden under a building in ruin certainly didn't inspire much desire to continue further.

"Room 11" the dwarf says tossing Quinara a iron key, "you need a guide?" The dwarf asks but Quinara just shakes her head "no, I've been here before I'll have no trouble" the dwarf gives a curt nod and heads back his duties as doorman. Once the dwarf was out of earshot I ask the question burning on my mind "what is this place?" Quinara begins to head down the stairs and I follow in behind her, "the best way to improve as a fighter is to get actual practice fighting, and this is the best place to practice fighting in the whole city. Used to be hidden vaults for king Horlath, but after he was overthrown eighty years ago they got abandoned, until the hounds pack mercenary group decided to covert them into a hidden training ground." She explains, as we follow the straight hallway past all the other sparring rooms, each room with a number hastily scrawled on the door in yellow paint.

We exit from the main hallway into a circular room, with several former vaults dotted around the circumference. I really didn't know why exactly anyone would ever need a guide, it was literally a straight hallway leading to an open room, though I guess if you have never been here you wouldn't know how easy it was to navigate. Quinara walks with purpose to room labeled room 11 and unlocks the heavy iron door, "you got your waterskin? Runt" she asks me.
"Of course" I reply
"Good you'll need it" she says as she enters the room, I follow in behind her.