Chapter 20: The Competition
The door to the inn creaked open and the strangeness inside amplified the duo's curiosity. On the outside, the inn was like any other building of Kessier Village. It was a wide two story building with a weathered grey exterior. The loose window shutters creaked eerily in the breeze and the overall structure was rather foreboding. But the inside was quite the opposite. The place was alive with the sounds of merriment. The smell of cooked foods welcomed them. The entry hallway was lined with racks for cloaks and hats and cubbyholes here aligned for keeping a person's accessories while they stayed.
A sign in the common language was hung over head that read 'Please leave all weapons here'
Thaelin and Hastur shrugged at the sight of the tavern room. It was a frantic sight for the senses. The delicious smells of fresh foods, the mob of people, the loud frenzy of music, and the overwhelming smell of body odor. Hastur made sure keep her hood low and held onto her new puppy as they made their way through the crowds to the bar counter. She didn't want the poor thing to run off and get crushed underfoot.
They made their way to the bar where a barkeep was busy at work filling tankards of frothy ale. Thaelin licked his lips at the sight of the ale. This was the longest he had traveled without some form of alcohol in his system. But he had to keep a level head as to be ready for his job. Hastur looked across the dimly lit room. In the back corner, the hum of a violin playing wildly, and a penny whistle followed suit. A troubadour was even singing along as he made his ways around the inn. It was a cozy comfort to have minstrels in a quaint setting such as this.
The man looked in the corners of his eyes and tried to find the owner of the elk hitched outside. Its owner wasn't a problem, but wherever she went, others soon found their way following. Before the barkeep could make his way to the new patrons, had a chance to request a room for the night, the ranger's head shot down when his hunch proved true.
"THAELIN FRIDULF?!" came a woman's voice from the back of the dining hall
There was a mix of embarrassment mixed with resentment etched on the ranger's face when the voice called for him. The man tried to position himself where he could use the crowd as cover, but the attempt was to no avail. Hastur turned to face the crowd, smiling as to answer the beckoning call.
"Hast!" the man chirped trying to make a hushed "what are you doing?
"What? Somebody knows you. Why not be friendly" she scoffed with her usual happy veneer
"Hey! Thaelin!" the voice called a second time
The ranger cursed under his breath. He tried to sneak through the crowd to get his room and make himself scarce, but he owner called for him a third time that was more demanding than before. He had no choice but to comply. Being sociable was a great annoyance.
"Thaelin Fridulf! Get your grumpy ass over here and give me a hug, damn it!"
Nestled in the northeast corner of the hall was a woman chugging the remainder of her tankard. The tankard was roughly almost as big as her. She let out the most bellyful belch any man ever thought would come from such a fair looking lady. She wiped her lips with the back of her hand and made her way through the mass of travelers and diners. When she got close to the duo, she came rather close to tripping over a serving wench and dousing the three in a chilled ale. Once the mysterious woman staggered while regaining her composure, she tackled Thaelin with an affectionate hug. The man feigned a friendly smile when he was being embraced.
In Hastur's opinion the woman looked exactly how one might imagine a ranger to have looked: a green bycocket hat with a long red, green, and brown pheasant plume sat atop her long curly red haired hair. Her freckled cheeks were rosy with drink. A long green tunic-dress hung loosely over her shoulders. A deep 'V' was cut at the collar of her tunic to better show off her 'assets'. A leather cord was used to barely lace the collar together. She stood just a few inches taller than the mage and had a quiver full of red fletched arrows across her back.
"Thaelin, how have you been. Its been way too long." The woman said with a ditsy grin.
Hastur could tell the woman was quite drunk but was amazed she could traverse the crowd as she did. It must be common for rangers to be skilled drinkers. Thaelin struggled to answer due to his deep voice was drowned out by merriment around him. This annoyed the red-haired ranger to the point that she rolled her eyes and turned to address the crowd.
"EVERYONE! Shut the fuck up! Me and my friends are trying to talk here!" she yelled with the most bellowed growl Hastur had ever heard.
The entire bar cowered in silence at the woman's deceleration. The violin hissed as it stopped mid tune. Even the bard cowered in fear at the woman. The mass of people made sure to keep their conversations down to a casual tone, but careful not to spark the ranger's ire.
Once they had some silence to better hear each other, the female ranger invited the two to her table.
"Hey barkeep! Bring some mead for my friends here. And whatever they want to eat! Their bill is on me."
"I'll take the mutton shoulder!" Declared Thaelin, eager for a free meal.
"Two chickens for me!" added Hastur
As fast as the staff hurried to bring the red-haired ranger their requests two serving wenches brought forth massive tankards of sweet mead and a trencher of their desired meats. The mutton smelled with savory herds garnished on top. The juicy chunk nearly fell off the bone as the man cut it away Hastur's chickens were both fire roasted with a delicious glaze of honey and thyme dripping over the edges.
Once seated and the three began their feast, the female ranger outstretched her hand to the imposing hooded cleric.
"Marie Oakenglade! Nice to meet'cha." The female ranger said with a cheery tone.
Hastur produced a sincere smile at the loudmouthed ranger. Despite the brunt first impression, she was proving to be a rather kind person.
"Hastur Prynn, a pleasure. And this is Freki." She said tucking her cloak aside and letting her little puppy sit on her lap. Hastur pulled one of the chickens closer to her and let Freki tear into it. The little pup seemed to enjoy every bit of meat in front of him
"Awe! What a little cutie! Where did you get a brittany spaniel? Kind of hard to find around these parts."
"I found him on the way here. I can tell were gonna be best friends." She said stroking the puppy's back. Hastur grinned at the smiling pup that began to sniff for its meal.
Hastur tasted her mead with caution. She never had the drink back in Hayak. But she greatly savored it. It was sweet like a fruit juice, and had almost none of the alcohol bite that most strong drinks had. It was a great treat. Especially for the incoming fall season.
"So Thaelin," Marie said turning to address the man across from her. She looked at the man in what could be described as the most drunken flirtatious expression "What brings you here? I thought you were back east in The Craggs. Or dead." She said with a giggle before taking a long gulp of her drink.
"Work mostly." Admitted Thaelin with a shrug. He refrained from any eye contact with the female ranger as he could. Instead he looked down at his plate and sliced at the tender chunk of mutton under is fork and shoveled in the delicious chunk of meat
"I see." she said with a sly grin. "You know, its been way to long since we last talked, How about later you show me some of you hunting techniques you may have picked up."
While taking a gulp of his drink, the man was caught off guard remark and the huntress tugging at the cord to her collar. With a slight tug the collar opened and he was able to catch a glimpse of the tops of her charms. He choked and a coughing spell took him. With his tankard around his mouth, it amplified the gasps.
"Um, maybe some other time, Marie." he managed between coughs
The female ranger pouted her lips. "Oh well. But if you change your mind, my room is right upstairs."
Across from him, Hastur smirked at the man. Of all the times she watched the man flirt with a pretty face, this was the first time she ever saw man get hit on, and totally freeze up. It was humorous in a case of irony. And in return Thaelin gave her a look that spelled out 'piss off'
The huntress laughed at her compatriot's clear signs of frustrations. It was amusing to stoke that fire. Just like old times, it was just as funny now as it was then.
"So, if you are here on work, that must mean you're here for the werewolf too?" she said with another sly grin.
"Shit… she knows."
Those words made Hastur's blood go cold. It finally made sense as to why he had brought such a large leg hold trap with him. The half elf held her pup close when they started to discuss the beast. Of all the monsters she read about in the libraries, werewolves scared her the most.
"What did he drag me into?"
Thaelin pursed his lips. He looked up from his mutton and resented having to converse with the huntress further. "What kinda info you got on the thing?
"I tracked him from Goldenglow for a good tenday. It tore up a lot of cattle down there."
"Damn, anything else?"
"Funny you should ask, sweetie." Marie cooed with a wink as she fumbled through a pouch on her belt.
Not only was this interaction foreboding, but it was also a bit entertaining. The sight before her was unreal. A woman was actively flirting with her friend, and there he was, completely intimidated by the huntress. It was a complete exchange of roles and she couldn't help but grim from this.
Marie retrieved a small cloth bundle. She unrolled the bundle to reveal a few tuffs of grey and black hair.
"He's roughly seven feet tall, mid-adult age, and worse-"
"Pureblood." Thaelin pursed his lips still thinking back on the statement that Marie tracked the beast for the last tenday.
"Yup. Which means the moon phase doesn't concern him any."
Freki let out a whine and lowered his head into Hastur's lap. As if the little pup could understand their talks and knew exactly what the danger the man was going to face.
"Don't worry, little guy. I'll catch this 'big bad wolf'. Thaelin reassured rubbing the pup on the head. His cocky grin was short lived when his keen senses caught wind of a subtle odor. The smell of sweat and ego. He looked to Marie who he could tell sensed the same thing.
"Oh shit. Not him."
The door to the inn slammed with a mighty force and a pair of heavy boots tamped their way to the tavern room. A few men chatting next to the entry way scooted away for the hulking behemoth to make its way inside. The figure let out an arrogant laugh when he caught glimpse of the two rangers sitting with their backs to the man.
"HAHAHA! Is that a Misfit I see before me?"
The man was a hulking pile of muscle held together with pride. Thaelin cursed under his breath with every footstep the man took. The man was looked to be so tall he could raise his arm over his head and touch the floor joists above. His arms were as wide as tree trunks and covered with course dark hairs. His mighty chest was like a barrel. The edges if a gnarled scar was wrapped around the right side of his cheek, but the faded wound didn't take away from his pretty-boy looks.
"Well, well, well. As I live and breathe. It is a Misfit." He said clapping a bear sized hand on Thaelin's shoulder. The sudden jolt clearly sent an ache through the man's body "And here I thought you Misfits were all dead. What a surprise."
"Fuck off Mattias." Thaelin muttered, trying to deepen his voice to equal of the man behind him.
Even Marie flashed a disappointing scowl at the large man. She gripped her hand hands around the handle to her tin mug, ready to use it in a fight if need be.
The massive man turned to Marie and gave her a flirtatious wink. That wasn't returned.
"Well then, this is interesting. If you are here Marie, that must mean that you two are here for the werewolf as well."
"Son of a bitch…"
"What's it to you." Grumbled Thaelin
Once again Mattias' attention was brought back to the man. "Well you can pack your bags and return to that filth you call home, Misfit. That bounty is mine."
Hastur lowered her head and tried to melt away. She knew by the temperament of her partner, a fight was sure to break out. She looked back at the crowd of other bar patrons and found many hand migrated a safe distance away. They too sensed the fight to come.
Out of the corner of his eye, the tower of a man, finally noticed the presence of the third member of the group. A yellow cloaked spell caster by the looks of it. She adorably small, and clearly not suited for such an environment as Kessier, let alone her current company.
"A friend of yours, Thaelin?" laughed the arrogant man
"Leave…her…alone." Threatened the huntsman.
Mattias leaned in close to the mage and tried to catch a glance at the woman under the hood, but all he saw was the snarling orange and white haired muzzle of the puppy in her arms. Its amber eyes baying for the massive creature to run away and leave its friend alone.
"Awe. Isn't that adorable. The Misfit has himself a little friend." Mattias smirked. With two of his massive fingers he pinched the dog by the scruff of the neck and hoisted it in the air. The little hound yipped as it was taken by its savior
"Freki!" Hastur cried while trying to retrieve her beloved puppy. She reached high, but was no way close to being able to reach for her dog. Her eyes burned with rage "Put him down!"
Mattias smirked at the snarling hound trying to break free of the vice like grip. He pointed a finger close to freki's muzzle and laughed when he felt pup try to bite him.
"Isn't that so cute. I'd be careful little fella. Anyone who hangs around a Misfit, often ends up dead. Real quick." The man loked down and gave the angered mage the same smirk. As if to give her the same warning.
Thaelin shuddered at the omen. He wished he had his sword with him, but his fork would have to make due. The man twirled the wire twisted fork in hand and thrusted it into the calve of the massive man next to him. The mountain of a man let out a roar as theelin released his grip on the fork and with the bottom of his clenched fist he slammed the fist into the groin of the giant man. Mattias dropped the hound and cowered in his shuddering pain. Hastur scooped Freki mid-air and retreated to a safe distance away from the ensuing fight. She was greatly relieved that the puppy looked unharmed.
From behind, a knife emerged and was pressed to the musclebound man's throat. In all the sudden commotion, Hastur lost sight of Marie. She crawled onto Mattias' back and held him in a lethal hold. The female ranger leaned in close to his ears and gave the man the most terrifying warning Thaelin had heard.
"Mattias, sweetie, why don't you do us all a favor and fuck off. Otherwise I'm going to carve a vagina on your face, and have every man in this room, skull-fuck you."
She held the knife to the behemoth until he was able to nod in agreement. Mattias pulled the fork free from his leg and snarled at the rangers. With his pride injured, the large man snarled as he backed away, but not before offering a bit of advice to the two mongrels protected by the rangers.
"Your days are numbered, Misfit." He said before exiting the inn. "Remember what I said."