Chapter Three – The Village in the Snow
They crossed the remaining distance quickly and it was a relief to discover the wooden gates still open as the last of the evenings sunlight fell on the small town.
The town of Tundara consisted of a small number of thatched single storey wooden houses assembled in a light ring, most only a single storey tall, some with pale silver smoke rising from small, half hidden chimneys, almost all the houses had a thin layer of snow resting on them.
As the trio moved down through the gates and down the main pathway a tall solitary tree came into vision at the centre of the town in a large clearing. Taller then most of the houses it rose, silver green branches clung to its broad thick wood, it looked strong and secure, anchoring the frail town in place.
"Huh." Cassandra grunted looking down and around the deserted square and then at the houses with drawn curtains. "This town seems abandoned and certainly not friendly."
"They're just not that used to visitors." Hurin cut across her striding forwards towards the centre of the town and the single tree. "The only people that come through here are en-route for the temple or spire to the north, that's the only reason this town exists."
"There is an inn here right? Somewhere we can stay for the night." Felix put in starting to feel a little shivery again.
"Yes." Hurin grunted in reply and with an expansive gesture pointed towards a solitary grey stone building with a thatched roof over it, a large wooden beam ran across it with the words…
"The Mountain Eagle" Felix read aloud.
"Do either of you have any coin on you that was not taken?" Hurin asked coming to a stop in front of the inns green wooded door.
Felix thought for a moment and dived into his pocket, he fumbled for a bit until he withdrew his hand and studied the four small coins he could find. "Three silvers and two bronze marks…"
Hurin was now resting against the side of the inn with one hand while the other fumbled with the bottom of his leather hiking boots, then suddenly the heel of the boot came away and several silver coins fell from it. Hurin bent to retrieve them and then reset the heel on his boot, standing back up he held out his hand and Felix tipped his coins into it, adding to Hurin's. "I carry ten silver pieces in there for just such an occasion, so that brings us up to thirteen silvers and two bronze marks…Cassandra?"
"Sorry…" She looked at her feet. "What little currency I had was taken by the brigands."
Hurin remained composed although Felix felt a little down, thirteen silvers was not a massive amount of money…
"Well we may be able to rent a room for the night…it'll be the one though." Hurin shot Cassandra a measuring look which she met.
"I prefer a night under a roof with you two then a night without a roof, I will share the room."
"Good, now stay silent." Hurin marched forwards. "This may require a bit of haggling."
Hurin pushed open the green door followed by Cassandra and then Felix shutting the door smoothly behind them.
The downstairs room of the pub was that of a well lit common room with several uninhabited wooden tables and chairs, a small bar evident in the far corner, all of it was lit by the soft glow of a half dozen candles, the room was wonderfully warm compared to the bitter chill outside.
From the other side of the room there was a sudden sound and Felix and Cassandra turned (Hurin was already looking that way) when, from a set of stairs leading up to the next floor a tall, thin man appeared down them, grey haired with a face lined with age his must distinguishing feature was a fantastic white moustache that seemed to quiver as if alive.
He moved slowly over to them, taking in the measure of their faces and finally rested his eyes on Hurin (who was at the front of the group.) Well now its been a long time since had anyway call in this place at such a time, what can I do for three ones such as yourself?"
"You're most basic room for the night." Hurin replied briskly. "Three beds are preferable but we will take whatever you have for the lowest price you can offer."
The old man looked Hurin the eyes now. "All my rooms have four beds and are well equipped, twenty-five silvers."
Felix felt his eyes widen but before he could express his outrage at the price swindling Hurin countered. "For three weary travellers staying just the one night? I think not, six silvers is fair."
"For a poor establishment such as this?" The old man tugged at his moustache. "Twenty silvers."
"And yet you want us to encourage more visitors if you get them so rare." Hurin shot back. "Ten silvers is as far as I can go."
"Fifteen." The man spat on his hand and offered it to Hurin. "No lower can I go."
Hurin did not take it. "Twelve silvers, ten marks and our well wishes."
The old man put on an indigent look. "Thirteen then, and push me no further…"
"Very well." Hurin offered his hand and the innkeeper shook it, Hurin then proceeded to hand over the thirteen silver coins, once the innkeeper had studied them all and bit the edge of one he pointed up the stairs. "The room at the ends free, move yourselves in, be out of here by midday tomorrow."
"We will be." Hurin replied as the man moved off towards the bar table.
"We should retire for now, we can leave tomorrow morning, early." Hurin said turning to face Cassandra, she however turned to Felix.
"Where exactly are you heading, Hurin is taking me to Tundara Temple and I need to find someway of paying him, if you are bound in the same way you would be more then welcome to travel in our company?"
Felix felt a little bit of warmth under her gaze. "I'm on the road to Tundara Spire, its further north but I would enjoy you're company until our paths must split."
"Enjoy our company he says, ha." Hurin shrugged and moved off towards the stairs. "Let us retire then, tomorrow we can buy a single drink with our left over coin to fill ourselves for the rest of the journey."
"Come on Felix." Cassandra nodded back to him and started up the stairs after Hurin.
Felix after only a seconds thought, followed after them, up the stairs.
Felix dreams that night were silent and he awoke as a slender ray of sunshine fell on him through the grey curtains that covered the small window.
Sitting up in his small bed and pushing aside the covers he stood up and stretched, the two beds next to his own were empty, Cassandra and Hurin must already be up and downstairs he thought.
Moving forwards to the window he brushed the curtains aside allowing the early morning sun to flood into the room. Outside the sky was blue and a new snow had lightly covered the village, outside of the window four trackers could be seen with their hounds, moving out towards the village gates, no doubt on their way to hunt for food.
Turning away from the window Felix stretched again, his clothes still clung to him, owning to the fact that a young woman had been in the room no-one had bothered to undress at all and there had been no baths in the inn so cleaning had been out of the question yet Felix didn't mind, quickly buckling on his boots he moved out of the room, carefully shutting the door behind him.
Moving back down the small corridor and down the stairs he came back into the inn common-room, it was now well lit with the curtains pulled back and a few hardy looking men were sitting at the tables drinking mulled wine or eating what looked like grilled fish. None of the men looked up at Felix, he wasn't from Tundara and just another passer-by and thus they ignored him, therefore it made spotting Cassandra and Hurin that much easier, the two were seated at a table in the far corner of the room.
Felix moved carefully over to them and moved to sit down in one of the spare seats next to Cassandra, in the middle of the table a single loaf of bread had been cut into three appallingly small slices.
"Took your time didn't you?" Hurin remarked sharply as Felix opened his mouth.
Cassandra reached forwards and took one of the fist sized pieces of bread and bit a small section of it away. "Ignore him." She spoke to Felix as she chewed. "We've only been down here for five or so minutes."
Hurin scowled as he himself picked up a chunk of the bread and ripped it in half with his teeth chewing noisily while Felix took the last and savoured the slightly warm taste of the bread, all too soon was it gone, Cassandra went and brought back a flagon on water which they then shared and once it was gone Hurin stood up.
"Right, the weather is as good as it will get and if we start moving now we can be at Tundara temple before night falls."
"Then let's get going." Cassandra agreed turning back to Felix. "So you'll join us?"
"Up until our paths divert yes" Felix nodded. "Let's move on together."
"Great!" Cassandra smiled, Hurin merely inclined his head slightly in acknowledgement.
They left Tundara as quickly as that soon leaving the small town behind them and the three of them made good progress across the endless white plains, Felix found himself mostly chatting to Cassandra, Hurin stayed ahead, he seemed to know where he was going (well he was the tracker and guide) and that left Cassandra and Felix to follow in his wake.
Felix found Cassandra to have a very inquisitive mind, she asked him many questions about where he had come from, the lands to the south of his village, his upbringing, his parents, while she was still a stranger to him Felix found himself telling her perhaps more then he had ever told anyone else about himself.
However once Cassandra had finished asking these questions and Felix tried to enquire where she was from she fell strangely silent, when he asked of her family she avoided the question and began talking about the snowy plains and when he asked why she was going to the temple she suddenly put on a burst of speed leaving Felix behind while she ran ahead to Hurin to enquire how far they had to go leaving Felix feeling very confused and a little let down.
Eventually the sea became visible on the horizon and as noon passed the sound of crashing waves in the distance announced that they were near the steep tall cliffs that made up the northern spit of Tundara, the very northern point of the continent of Alharfro.
Then in the distance a great new shape appeared ahead, a black needle sticking up into the highest sky, a faint blue light shinning from its top, as thin as a pencil (from this distance) it looked alien and out of place. It was Tundara Spire, Felix's destination.
As they walked the spire became closer and closer and Felix knew they were nearing his destination and that he would soon need to split from the group, they could have only been a few leagues from it when Hurin turned and pointed off to the south-east where in the distance faint black smoke could be seen rising into the azure sky.
"There lies Tundara temple, if you are to continue onto the spire our paths divert here."
Felix nodded. "Thank you for guiding me Hurin and rescuing me from the mountains, really, I don't think I could have made it out of there were it not for you."
Hurin grunted his goodbye and turned and began walking off towards the far off smoke, Cassandra lingered behind and turned to face Felix.
"Thank you for walking and talking with me Felix." She smiled again revealing perfect white teeth; her blue eyes sparkled at him. "I couldn't have standed it, if it was just me and him."
Felix laughed then remembered. "How are you going to pay him?"
She grinned all the wider and turned to check that he was a sufficient distance away and then she winked. "I'll probably give him the slip sometime in the future."
Then suddenly she moved close and put her arms round Felix in a brief hug and then backed away, waved over her shoulder and left the young man where he stood. She was a fair distance when she turned and shouted.
"Once you've finished you're business come drop by the temple, we'll probably still be there tonight." Waving again she vanished over the rise of the hill following after Hurin.
Felix remained where he was, his skin still tingling after the contact with Cassandra, shaking himself he shook his head and turned to face the far off black tower.
He began to walk towards it, the last hour of the trip was lonely and cold but he pushed on, the tower grew larger, black as coal made of materials made before the breaking of the world and the War of the Crystal the tower had endured through thousands of years of war and peace watched over by the eternal kin-idreal who maintained the towers and worked as scholars, priests and Elementalists who worked the ways of the most high, or so they said.
Finally Felix crested the last hill, the spire stood before him on the very edge of the peninsula high up on the cliffs like a mighty lighthouse. Taking a deep breath to steady his beating heart he walked forwards towards the doors that would lead him to claim his power.
'There is an inn here right?' - Well there is always one are'nt there? In most towns in most RPG's, so handy how they heal everything, prices varry from game to game, some inns are cheap while others...
Elementalists - Character class from Guild Wars (PC), not a very good class mind but its a great game (and its free to play online once you've brought it!)