Holly-chan's Notes: GWSdragon, thanks for pointing that out about the animal dialogue; I actually DID have a way to tell it apart from the rest of the text, but it seems Fanfiction-Net has screwed me over again and removed the brackets I used. Ugh. I've changed that so the animal dialogue parts are in italics – not something I wanted to do, since I do thoughts in italics, but it seems FF-net likes to remove most brackets and what I normally use for such things, so there you go. If anyone else discovers something like that, especially if it's due to Fanfiction messing up the formatting, please, let me know.
Chapter 12
The party walked through a rocky path not but a mile from the nearest mountain path. Even late into the year, the sun burned down brightly on the small band of adventurers. Two tendays had passed since their visit to Athkatla, and Irek had wandered off on his own a few days ago.
"Ugh. I think maybe dis is too far south fer even me." Faelar sighed, "...Though... I think I might've been born further down Faerûn dan dis. Boss, don'tcha get hot in dat getup?"
"Nope." Serosa'ruth casually replied.
Saeola grumbled in agreement, tugging at her shirt collar in annoyance. She hated the heat. Truly, honest-to-gods hated it.
"It's not that bad," Miri said, earning a glare from the other party members. She shrugged. "What? It isn't..."
"Eh, whoteva, crazy Calishite." Faelar rolled his eyes, though his tone indicated jest. "So... whot's da next big landmark on our path?"
"The city of Brost is still a ways southeast of us. My guess is we'll find a small town or village along the way there." Serosa'ruth answered, looking at the scenery around them, "Perhaps even sooner. Much of this land has been cleared for some time, a sign of nearby civilization."
Miri shrugged as Saeola sighed in relief. "Finally," The half-elf muttered.
"'Ey, dat's my line," Faelar grinned, "Ain't ya supposed ta be a ranger, dove? Thought you blokes loved nature ova civilization any day."
"Oh, sure, of course I love nature 'n all. It's the heat I hate. Feels like the sun is sitting on my frickin' shoulder..."
"It really isn't that bad," Miri insisted.
"Shut it."
"Eh, con't blame ya for dat one." Faelar agreed with the ranger, pulling at his sleeves, "Me damn leather's stickin' ta me skin. Bleh."
"Try wearing metal armor, even if it is only a breastplate." Ky'itae grumbled.
"Jeez, you guys would die if you ever went to where I'm from," Miri chuckled. "Or maybe I'd die first from all the complaining."
"I told you to shut it... Ah, screw you. It's too damn hot to argue..."
"Hm... Looks like I was right. There's a town ahead." Serosa'ruth pointed. "Perhaps we should see if they have a local tavern and get out of the heat in there."
Saeola nodded eagerly. "Yes, let's."
The group soon came upon the town's fairly large wooden gates. A sign to the right read, "Blasingdell" and next to it stood a single, solitary guard, who eyed the approaching band.
"Got any particular business in Blasingdell?" He asked gruffly, pushing up his helm.
"Just a few adventurers passing through." Serosa'ruth replied politely. The guard nodded, motioning them towards the gate.
"Go ahead, then. They're unlocked. While you're here, maybe you can do something about the damn orcs."
Saeola moved to pass him without a word, arms bent behind her head and a flat look on her face. Miri stopped near the guard, giving him an inquisitive look. "Orcs?"
"Ask around, the townsfolk can tell you more than I can." The human pulled his helmet back down to help shade his eyes from the midday light.
"Ah... yes, all right. Thank you." Miri bowed politely to him before hurrying after the others.
Ky'itae looked around the town with a noted interest, "Huh. Pretty blended for a small town. Despite all the humans, I see a fair amount of halflings and elves here... oh, and is that a half-orc?"
"'Ey, look dove!" Faelar elbowed Saeola in the ribs lightly, "A couple 'o 'alf-elves are 'ere too. Don't see much of dem in towns, either. ...Eh, I don't see any wit wild elf blood in their veins. Guess it's still jus' you an' me on dat note, dove." The rogue grinned, scanning the crowd and buildings for anything interesting.
Saeola coughed at the sudden jab in the ribs and rubbed the new sore spot with a glare, but her eyes glanced to where he pointed. "Yes, that's a rare sight," She muttered, giving him a nasty look at his last comment.
"Wow! I've never seen one place with so many different races before," Miri said, eyes widening as she scanned the area.
"Well, one this small, at least," Ky'itae corrected, "Remember Athkatla? It was much more mixed than here, but that was a big city. Towns are usually more dominantly human, at least in this region, to my knowledge."
"Well, there's a tavern over there." Serosa'ruth pointed a gloved hand at a wooden sign depicting a griffin wrapped around the golden words, "The Griffin's Nest Inn."
"I'm there!" Saeola said quickly, hurrying toward it without a second glance.
"I'll meet you there shortly. I'm curious about the orcs the guard mentioned and I want to ask someone," Miri said.
"Indeed. I'll go with Mi-- hold on, what's that?" Serosa'ruth paused, his keen ears picking up the faint sound of a mandolin. He followed the sound out of curiosity and soon found a small crowd gathered around a performer standing upon a large rock. With dusky skin and bright red hair, the bard strummed his stringed instrument, shifting his weight from foot to booted foot as he played. After a moment, the young, somewhat hairy-faced human began to sing in a medium-ranged voice.
" There once was an odd dwarf
Who tired of his time in a cave,"
The bard rhymed, smiling at some of the chuckling dwarves in his audience, amused by the thought of any dwarvenkin disliking caves,
"And chose to live by a wharf
One day along came a wave
And swept the dwarf into the bay
Soon he washed into a cave,"
This brought a few more snickers from the crowd before the musician continued,
"'Ye gods!' the dwarf cried
'I kin ne'er escape this grave!'"
More strumming on the mandolin,
"Then in came the tide
And swept the dwarf back away
Where he is now none can say,"
The bard paused his voice and his music, then suddenly finished with a final strike of his chords,
"… …
Though I'm sure he's glad
To be free of the caves!"
His audience laughed and applauded, to which the bard bowed, "Thank ye, good citizens of Blasingdell. If you wish to hear more, I shall be in the Griffin's Nest Inn tonight. Tips are appreciated, but not required." With that, the human hopped down to sit upon the rock, slipping his instrument across his back.
Miri listened curiously and watched, head tilting slightly to the side. "A bard?"
"Oi, bard guy!" Saeola suddenly called out to him with a grin, coming over. "That really sucked." However, she tossed him two silver coins anyway with the flick of her wrist, still grinning teasingly.
The bard smiled, nodded his head at the ranger, "Perhaps, milady, but it makes a living. Ever since the rest of my party died in the mountains, I've been a bit hard up for coin, so the patronage is greatly appreciated."
Saeola frowned, bending her arms behind her head. "Jeez... I'm sorry about that..."
The bard laughed somewhat grimly, though still tinged it with mirth, "Trust me, they're better off where they are now, rather than prisoners of some orcs or something worse. Celdern Daystorm's the name, milady. And you are?"
"Saeola, mister." She lowered her arms, dropping her hands to her hips. "The orcs again... Hey, what's this about orcs anyway?"
"Ah... the orcs..." Celdern sighed, scratching his small beard, "Well, the lands north around Blasingdell have been suffering some pretty bad orc pillaging. Recently, we've discovered their lair's located in a hill some days' walk from here, called Stone Tooth. The mayor's paying anyone twenty-five gold per orc head brought back. Couple of folks have tried, but most don't find anything or don't return."
Saeola scratched her chin in thought. "Huh... interesting. Sounds like our kinda mission!"
Celdern held up his hand to halt the ranger's thoughts, "I'd be careful if I were you, Saeola -- that's where I lost my party -- Though... We weren't really there for the orcs."
Saeola arched an eyebrow at him. "Oh? What were you there for?"
The bard slowly smiled mysteriously, pulling a piece of paper out from his vest. Celdern unrolled it and showed the half-elf its contents, "It's a map pointing to the location of a secret dwarven stronghold -- Khundrukar. It's local legend, and it's been empty for quite some time... at least a century or two. Any folk 'round here could tell you of its first and only king, the dwarven master smith, Durgeddin. But I can save you the trouble of asking around and give you more info, as I've been to the entrance of the stronghold myself. I'll gladly tell you... for a small, favor." At the ranger's glare, he quickly added, "Nothing of inappropriate or perverted nature, my lady. I assure you."
Saeola leaned forward a bit, hands still on her hips as her eyes scanned over the map. She then glanced at him. "What's the favor?" She asked, although she had a feeling she knew what it might be.
"I can tell you're not alone, and you're already interested in what I have to say -- all of you, though you speak to me not." He glanced at Serosa'ruth and the others, "Take me with you to Khundrukar. My previous band may not have gotten far, true, but I've still seen deeper into Stone Tooth than anyone else in this town. I can guide you much of the way there from here on just memory alone -- of course, the map can tell you that, but it won't tell you much of the stronghold itself. That, I can help you with, at least a little bit. Besides, I don't see any arcane spellcasters among your numbers -- correct me if I'm wrong -- but I'm sure some of my bardic abilities could prove handy. I'm also decent with a scimitar."
Saeola grinned and rubbed her nose. "Ha! I knew you'd ask that. 'Tis fine with me, but I think it's up to our leader here." She glanced over at the druid expectantly.
"Well... I dabble a bit in da Art," Faelar spoke up, "But a rogue's more 'o whot I excel at. Boss, I don't think bringing 'im along would be a bad idea." He too looked over at their party leader for an answer.
"I'm in agreement with the half-elves," Serosa'ruth nodded, glancing at the other two woman, "Any objections?"
"Well... one more human -- and a male, at that -- would balance out the party's race and gender demographic." Ky'itae observed with a grin.
Saeola snickered at Ky'itae's words. "That was a bit sexist. Unless you meant what I think you meant." She winked kiddingly.
Miri, however, was silent. Her eyes on her hands as her finger linked and unlinked together. "He is... Tethyrian. I, ah... ..."
Celdern's eyes narrowed slightly, "Oh, and what's wrong with that, Calishite?"
Miri bristled at him, eyes narrowed dangerously. "Everything."
Celdern's emerald green eyes narrowed more, but he wisely withheld many of the comments he was tempted to make, "Well, I'm sure you're all lovely company, but I did promise my audience another performance at the inn tonight. Besides, as I said, Stone Tooth is a few days' journey from here, so we're probably better off leaving tomorrow morning."
"Ah, we were planning to stay for the night anyway to escape the heat," Saeola said, eyeing Miri, who was fuming now.
"True enough," Serosa'ruth agreed, looking around the town, handing a small bag of coin to Ky'itae, "Check us in at the Griffin's Nest... I'm going to look around town to restock and see if they have anything interesting to sell aside from the essentials."
"I'll go with you," Miri blurted quickly. Saeola stared at her, but chose not to comment as she motioned for Celdern to follow her, Ky'itae and Faelar with a friendly wave.
- - - - -
As the party split up, Serosa'ruth and Miri wove through the dirt streets in relative silence for a few moments. "So... Miri, what was that about?"
"It was nothing," Miri insisted in a quiet mutter, glancing away. She felt like a hypocrite. She tried so hard not to think in the ways of her up bringing, yet she found she could not bring herself to like Tethyrians.
"Didn't seem like 'nothing' to me." Serosa'ruth commented in a neutral tone, "... Miri, I grew up in an extremely prideful and prejudiced society. I know it can be difficult to get over a mindset you were raised in, but... It would do well to try your hardest, no?"
Miri glanced over at him curiously at his words, cocking her head slightly to one side. "You? That seems so... unlikely. And… Excuse me, that was rude." She bowed in apology before she straightened, frowning slightly. "Yes... I am trying..."
"And that's where it counts. If you truly want to change, you will. It will take time, but you're a strong woman. You'll persevere."
She smiled slightly. "Ah... Thank you. I... hope so."
"Well, now since we're here... Think we should restock on the MFAAB? They've been pretty good the last tenday, but, just to be on the safe side... What say you?"
Miri nodded. "Yes! That's a good idea, especially if we might be heading into a dangerous area tomorrow."
The druid nodded, then chuckled before adding, "Think we should check if they also have cassil shrubs and nararoots? Just in case? It's difficult to tell with those two... The ones I have probably won't last much longer in storage."
Miri laughed. "You're kidding? You really think they'd... I mean, they flirt and all like that, but..." She blushed and shrugged helplessly. "Don't ask ME..."
Serosa'ruth laughed and lightly elbowed the young cleric, "It was a joke... but as I say, better to be prepared, nonetheless."
Miri chuckled, clasping her hands in front of her and nodded. "Y-Yes, this is true. Hehehe..."
"Are all you humans this prudish about sexuality?" Serosa'ruth half-teased, half-asked.
Miri blushed and looked away. "N-No. I'm shy... I mean...! Ah... stop teasing me..." She pouted.
The druid laughed again, shaking his head, "Silly humans... c'mon, let's get some food -- oh look, melons and bananas." If the black cloth wasn't covering his lower face, Miri would've seen the wicked grin on the elf's lips. Obviously, he wasn't quite through with teasing her yet as he pointed to the fruit stand.
Miri blushed terribly and thwacked him on the back of his head.
Serosa'ruth snorted in humor one last time before turning serious again. "Right... lessee... They got a decent smith around here? My blades could use sharpening..."
Miri frantically rubbed her cheeks to tame the blush on her face before glancing at him. "I don't know. Probably..."
"How are your daggers doing? They dulled or they still keen?" Odd how not even a minute ago this druid had been making perverted fruit jokes, and before that, seriously conversing about prejudiced upbringing... elves were so strange.
"Ah... they could always use sharpening," Miri replied. Only two tendays of traveling and already she liked this man. He could be wonderfully humorous and then deadly serious in one sweep. It was a perfect balance.
"Hm. I see the smithy there. Give me your daggers and I'll get them sharpened for you. You can shop for food and drink while I do that."
Miri smiled and did as told, handing the weapons to him. "Thanks! I'll be quick!" She then turned on her heel and headed off.
The druid clutched her sheathed weapons tightly and wove his way through to the smithy, earning a few odd glances from the locals. He made little note of them, however, long since accustomed to the reaction his attire earned him.
- - - - -
Miri found her way around after some help from the locals, managing to find where food and drinks were sold. She began to stock up, choosing the best she could find.
Serosa'ruth returned a moment later, handing the cleric her daggers, "There, all nice and sharp again."
"That was fast," Miri chuckled, taking them with her free hand while her other held the precious food and drinks.
"Smith was a dwarf." Was all the druid needed to answer.
"Ah…"
"Got enough food?"
"Ah, I think so. And if I don't... Well, I can't carry anymore," Miri laughed.
"Here, let me get some of that." Serosa'ruth took one of the food parcels and motioned for Miri to follow him. "Let's get back to the tavern and hope Faelar didn't dare Ky'itae to drink any strong alcohol again."
Miri scrunched up her face and followed him back. "You don't think she'd be that stupid...?"
"Well, not so much as stupid as stubborn. Remember in Athkatla where she screamed, 'this woman never backs down from a dare, dammit!'? That wasn't just drunken rambling... She'll take on 'most any dare given to her... Well, within reason, and drinking ales and beers falls 'within reason.'"
Miri only smacked her face. "Oh boy..."
"...Ya know... Let's walk faster."
Miri sighed and did as he suggested.