He fussed over my other bloody clothes doing his best to clean off my pants and boots. “There. I don’t think these are lost. You may avoid wearing them to court but since you have many days in the wilderness ahead of you, I’d recommend you keep them. Have another pair made. The Magistrate will likely pay for them from the treasury when he hears you took care of eight bandits. You did very well in that fight. I’m impressed. Only a week in the service and you have taken out a band of thieves. Pine Mill will be better off for it for sure. The expression on his face when you told him he couldn’t hold his liquor and then again when you told him was going to bested by a Poff. Oh, that was worth the walk to Pine Mill and back for me. Unfortunately, I can’t tell this story. My clerical oaths forbid it. But hey, you’re a Bard. You live for just a chance like this.” I brightened up, “Hey, you’re right. This is pure gold. Thank you very much. Your oaths don’t forbid me telling them you were with me do they?” Joseph said, “No, but I might be a little embarrassed should I be around when you sing of it. I hope you understand.” I replied, “Of course.”
I pulled my sleeveless shirt on and we wiped off my armor as best we could. I pulled it on and he helped me fasten it up. I went to get my dagger and rapier. Picking them up I asked if we could wipe them off too. And he said “Certainly.” So we wiped them down and I put them back in their scabbards. I took my hat off and looked at it. It appeared to have avoided all the blood to my relief. I asked Joseph, “Are you OK?” He replied, “Yes, I’m fine. I’m afraid I need a hand with these, and he waved at the five dead men. Can you help me drag them over to this spot near the road?” I responded, “Drag them over to the road? I would think you’d want them well off the road. Now everyone running up and down this road will have to contend with buzzards and wolves.” “No”, he replied. “I have to pick up these bodies on the return trip. No need to drag them off into the field only so that I have to drag them back.” I shrugged. “Sure I’ll give you a hand.” We dragged the bodies over by the road and lined them up in a neat row.
After we finished, we were back on the road. I had my lute back in my hands and I was already trying to work out a song of my encounter with the bandits. After another hour I was in better spirits and my song was taking shape. Joseph shook his head, “I’m amazed at you fellows, writing poetry and music like that as easy as some people can eat pie.”
“How long have you been here in Stonebridge?” I asked. He replied, “Oh, I’ve been here since leaving the College. That’s been about eight years I think. It’s been good living here and I wouldn’t be surprised if I stayed here the rest of my life. Hasn’t been much going on really. We occasionally hear there are orc activities round here but nothing ever seems to happen from it. These bandits are the worst sort of thing that happens around here. Why I heard in the city they had a fire that killed over a hundred people. We haven’t had anything like that happen here.” And I replied, “And let’s hope it stays like that.”
We talked and walked a bit more and we saw the road was headed into a forest. I said, “Well, assuming Pine Mill is among the pines, it looks like we’re getting close.” Joseph replied, “We must be getting close because my feet have been asking for a bit now. What do you see?” I replied, “The forest ahead, it passes to the right and to the left of the road so we are surly headed in. Can you not see it?” And he stopped walking, and Ham, so I did also. And looking ahead, “I see the road keeps going and I see the sky but I can’t make out the trees from here. So you can see the trees from here?” I replied, “Yes, I can see the trees, and well enough that I can see they are pines with their straight trunks and branches more at the top. And you can’t?” Joseph said, “No, I’m afraid not … not yet. But I know they are there as sure as I know the gods watch over us. And I won’t see them unless we keep walking.” And he began walking again. And so did I and so did Ham.
And I asked him, “So if your feet are sore, why don’t you ride in the cart?” “Well, Ham is a good boy. And we make this trip every other day because Pine Mill sort of belongs to me, you see. His Holiness has designated Pine Mill as my Cure so I am the Chief Cleric to serve them. And to serve our Cures we visit the hamlets every day. But His Holiness also desires that we are familiar with the men and halflings that make up the whole province. On every other day, I visit one of the other three hamlets. It is a good system I think. Now Ham here is not my mule. He belongs to our Order and we have found that it is easier to work with the mules if they make the same walk each day. So if we go to Pine Mill, Ham comes with us. If we go to Grain Mill we take Tang. If we go to Wool Corner, Fiorina comes along. And if we go to Smallarfolk, Jessica pulls the cart. Do you remember passing me yesterday when you were coming to Stonebridge?” I thought back and said, “I only vaguely remember passing travelers coming the other way. And you were going the other way yesterday, I was coming to Stonebridge?” “Yes”, he replied, And I could hear you long before I could see you, as did those bandits we encountered I’d say. You were a sight for sore eyes, as they say. We have not been visited by an emissary of any kind in quite a spell. And so before dinner, I had reported about you to my brothers, but they said they already knew because you had come into town before I returned and played and sang as you came up the street. But most of them, like me, only got into Stonebridge a little before dinner so we had not seen you, they had only heard of you. Now emissaries are always nice fellows so we are glad to have you with us. But they have a dangerous job as you learned this morning. They must travel frequently and often alone because there is no one to travel with. And so you are quite vulnerable to many highway hazards, bandits mostly, but other evil lurks near the road even inside the Empire. And so many young emissaries are killed. “
“Why even this morning, without you, I may have been killed if I had chosen to defend our cargo. After that spell it would have been me against six, I figure, but two of those fellows may have been bad off enough to forget fighting. But four or six, I would have been fighting for my life after that spell. You, without that spell, you would have been fighting all eight of them. You fought with valor this morning, as well as I could have expected any new emissary. But you’re a Bard and not a Paladin or Barbarian or Ranger. It is not your calling to slay enemies … with your sword. Against eight, I fear you would have been surrounded and killed. Surely you would have taken two, maybe three, but they would have had you.”
“For this reason, they gave you a horse. Did you know you are the lowest official that gets to have a horse? You get a horse not so you can get from one place to another more quickly, and not to carry your luggage, although of course you must put your burdens on your horse if he is to be of any use. You get a horse so you may ride away from those bandits and other threats. The Empire has learned this is necessary. And the other thing is that although bandits are dim, they are not mindless. The group we encountered would not have bothered me if it were not for the cart. You see, they know unless they are very lucky, some of them will die if they wished to rob me for I carry personal effects that I would die to protect. But they would know that I don’t carry enough to be worth the death of three or four of their kind. You must likewise be weary of giving the appearance that you carry enough to be worth some of their lives. By yourself, many bandits will leave you be if you exercise such caution. But the other terrors, they aren’t interested in your riches. Animals may attack because they are that hungry from days of failure. Orcs may attack because they seek to disrupt the Empire in every way possible, to undermine our coherence and faith in our leaders. Spies and assassins from other competing kingdoms may do the same. So we lose many of our emissary brothers.” And with that, we had crossed enough space that people were now visible to me moving about at the edge of the wood. I could even see the faintest trail of smoke rising from deeper in the wood.
I said to Joseph, “It appears they have work to do on this side of the wood. Do you know what that is about?” He replied, “Oh yes. They got the idea from their enemy the beaver. They were logging deep inside the pine forest near the stream and beavers had dammed up the way and were doing what beavers do making a nuisance of themselves. So they had to go in and destroy the beaver dam which restored the proper flow of water in the stream needed to power the mill, and it dispersed the beavers who will surely head upstream and do it again.” And I asked, “So what does that have to do with the work they are doing on this side of the wood?” “Well they are surveying for a canal”, he replied. “The beaver dam made them realize they can dam up the creek just above the mill and build a new sluice. The sluice will carry water more efficiently to the wheel. The pond behind the dam can be used to help get the logs downhill to the mill. But they won’t benefit as much by using the same methods for transporting boards from the mill for the boards will be fully saturated with water when they are pulled from the water. So below the mill they wish to transport the boards on rafts or barges. They are looking about for an idea on how they could make this work.” I replied, “Very ingenious, I say.”
“But you did not tell me why you won’t ride the cart.” I asked again. “Oh, yes, I got off the subject, didn’t I. Well Ham here is a good mule but he is still a mule. He doesn’t like it when we ride the cart. He likes to see us walking on the road with him. Now if you were walking on the road and I were to ride the cart, that might work. But if nobody is walking where Ham can see them, he doesn’t want to walk. I wonder if he is worried he is walking off without us. He is a mule after all.”
And we arrived at the edge of the wood and the folks, men this time, we stopping what they were doing and walking to us. Joseph said, “They see you are coming with me and they want to meet you. Normally they keep waving and I just walk by. They walk to the mill a short time later for the midday meal. But they want to meet this stranger coming with Joseph today, that doesn’t wear sleeves but prefers a fancy hat and carries a lute.” And so they got close and I waved to them and smiled. And Joseph said to them, “Good day my friends. Good day. I may be a bit late but I am here nonetheless. Come meet my friend. His name is Bene-Timber, a bard. He is in the Service and decided it would be best to come meet the people of Pine Mill even though he arrived in Stonebridge only yesterday. He is a friend of Andante.” And there was much waving and smiling among them. And so I reached around and played my lute. And I sang a new ballad, The Valor of Joseph and Bene-Timber. And they were pleased at first with my playing and my singing, and then they realized I was singing about only this morning and they began to notice a bit of blood we couldn’t remove from my armor and my pants. And they began to murmur among themselves about how this happened, for they knew that a bard’s tale might embellish the details or even omit a fact, or two. But Joseph held up his hand as I sang and he said, “Yes, yes, it is all true my friends. We were attacked by bandits on the way and my friend Bene-Timber did slay two of them and chased off the rest.” And some of the people clapped and I finished my song.
We arrived at the hamlet, which was dominated by the Mill at the upper end of the settlement. And there was a town hall or meeting place with a great porch on the second level and I ascended the stair and played some more music for the crowd. A few men took the cart and unloaded it and also attended to Ham letting him walk down to the brook for a drink and they brought him some meal. And Joseph came up on the porch with me and he waved to the people and held up his arms asking for quiet.
“Friends, it is good to see you on this fine day. We have a new friend with us, Bene-Timber, from the Bard College. He came to meet you because he expects to be assigned territory as an emissary in these lands. Andante is still the emissary for Stonebridge but his duties keep him from us too long and they have given him Bene-Timber to be his assistant. And Bene-Timber is a fine Bard. You know how well he plays, but he is much more than a musician. Yes, he is a half-elf and this is good for he has a wonderful sense of humor and quick wit. He met with the Magistrate yesterday and received his full approval to move about the Province as he willed. But on the way we were accosted by bandits, a company of eight sorry looking fellows with only two things in common; their taste for brutality and their desire that others should work to feed their appetites. As they closed in, I grabbed my mace and Bene-Timber drew his rapier and dagger. We met their first charge each of us slaying one of the bandits, and Bene stepped forward and challenged their leader who was wearing leather armor. And in a flash Bene had struck him twice and he collapsed. The remaining bandits lost heart and fled without their leader. Unfortunately the bandits had no manners at all and bled all over Bene ruining his splendid shirt. So we did the best we could and I cleaned up as much blood as I was able, and, here we are.” And there was a great applause. And when it died down he said, “Let us give thanks.” And all the men removed their hats and Joseph said, “Demeter, god of the harvest, we give thanks that you have delivered your servants Joseph and Bene-Timber from the hands of bandits. We pledge to do something for you to be worthy of your attention. Thank you, Demeter.” And the men put their hats back on their heads and there was a cheer. And another man ascended the stairs to stand next to Joseph. He was older and had been a laborer for many years judging by his hands and his slight limp. He was not wearing fine clothes but they weren’t rags either. In addition to the clothes every man was wearing, this man was wearing a vest. The assembly quieted down. He began, “The midday meal is ready for everyone. Let us allow our guests to sit in the highest places and dine with us.” And there was another cheer. And he turned and shook hands with Joseph, and then leaned forward and extended his hand to me. I shook his hand but I could not hear what he said, which I supposed to be his name.
We descended the stairs and were led to a picnic table in an open area. I was directed to sit at the end of one table opposite Joseph. The man with the vest sat at the head of the table between me and Joseph. After he sat down, other men began to sit down, but I watched Joseph, who nodded to me, and I sat down, and Joseph sat down after me. Some young boys came to the tables carrying platters of food. They set a platter at each table. A group of young girls came to the tables carrying a stack of plates and set them next to the platters. The man at the foot of the table stood and began to serve a plate, and it was passed to the head of the table, alternately on each side. The boys had moved to their own tables, and so the girls also moved to their own tables. And finally the women came carrying pitchers and they set a pitcher at each table and gathered at their own tables. A few women went to the tables with the youngest children, one at each end, and they served all the children at the table and sat down at the head and the foot. And looking on the gathering I noted women of a certain age were not seated with the crowd and I surmised they were sitting somewhere out of sight with infants and toddlers caring for them. And we enjoyed a meal of chicken, beans and potatoes. And as we were finishing our meals boys returned with berry pie for each of the tables. And we had a blackberry pie spiced with honey and other spices. The crust was perfectly prepared and cooked to a golden brown.
And after the meal was finished the boys stood up and cleared all the tables. The men stood and spoke briefly to some of the women and returned to their work. The women and girls stood and went into the buildings apparently to clean dishes or other work. So I was left sitting with Joseph and the vest man, who I learned was called Barker. He was not an educated man but was held in high esteem by the people, something akin to the Mayor, although it appeared nothing so formal as an office of Mayor was recognized in the community. He was a jovial fellow and knew the comings and goings of everyone in this community. He quizzed us carefully about the encounter with the bandits. Joseph took control of the conversation and explained that there were eight bandits and I had indeed killed two of them including the leader who wore leather armor and carried a sword. And he repeated that he likewise killed one with his mace and was unable to save the man because his wounds were so serious. And he admitted that the bandits were well hurt by a spell he used, but it was my action of killing the bandit leader that made the bandits flee. And he said, I will need to leave here in time to take Five bodies back to Stonebridge. And he looked directly into Barker’s eyes. Barker paused for a moment, and then he looked back at Joseph in the eye and said, “OK, now I understand.” And Barker turned to me and said, “Thank you very much, Bene-Timber. You have done us a great service delivering our friend Joseph and his cart to us.” And I nodded, and replied, “And I was none too glad to be able to join them all the way here.”
We stood up and he shook my hand and the hand of Joseph. It appeared that I was now considered a part of this community. And Barker excused himself saying he had work to do. And he walked off in the direction of the deep woods. Joseph said, “I also have work to do visiting the people, but I know you also have an appointment to keep.” And I replied, “It seems I don’t have as many secrets as I thought. Where will I find him?” And Joseph replied, “Follow the brook upstream and Flint will find you.”
So I looked to the mill and figured which direction the brook went from there. “Will I need anything from my saddlebags?” I asked. And he replied, “No, I don’t think so.” And I asked, “Will you keep an eye on them for me then?” And Joseph replied, “Yes, of course.” So with my rapier, my dagger, my purse and my lute I walked over and began following the brook upstream.
I took my time taking note of the sounds to approximate where the men were working, the animals around me and the species and health of the trees. These were from my woodsman’s skills I learned as a child, not something I was taught in either the Bardic College or Diplomat training. It was as much a desire for me to want to add to my report to Andante as it was for me to reach back and connect with my childhood, family and Tahgrum where I grew up. The forest was healthy. I could see the evidence in everything, which was in good balance. The Elves taught me to see the signs in the leaves, in the animal trails and the insects that crawled and flew by, the call of the birds, the spacing of the trees and their diameter. Walking through the woods for me was like reading a good book. [perception] And I heard him watching me.
I didn’t want to let him know how soon I knew he was there. And I believe he was testing me, one half-elf playing with a friend. So when I heard him move to within a comfortable voice range, I just turned my body and looked directly at him and said, “He said you would find me if I followed the brook.” And Flint’s face broke into a wide grin and he walked straight to me. He held up his hand to shake hands with me saying, “So how long did you know I was there?” I took his hand and shaking it vigorously I replied, “Oh, about an hour”, and I grinned back at him, for it had been less than half that time since I walked away from Joseph and Barker. I continued, “I heard you standing on a branch four or five minutes ago. I heard the wood creek under the weight. You were about one hundred feet away then. And I walked forward and smelled the wind. I could smell the leather you are wearing. It is hard for me to make out any other smells over the smell of wood smoke everywhere when I am with men. But tanned leather that has been well cared for still has a smell I can pick out.” He slapped me on the shoulder, a playful slap, and said, “Very good. When I met you and saw you were also a half-elf, I had to see if the College had dulled your senses. Why in heaven did you want to be a Bard? You should be a Ranger, my friend.” “Well”, I responded, “I thought you would know after hearing me play last night. You really think I’m that bad, eh?” And I grinned at him. He replied, “Oh, no, no, no. You were a real delight. But there are musicians and there are Bards. And there are Bards and there are Rangers. And there are Rangers that enjoy music. And I thought you could be one of those.” And he slapped me on the shoulder again. And I said, “Well thank you very much, friend. But I’ll go on being a Bard for now and hope that my duties allow me to visit the trees often enough. Why you should have seen the merchant company I travelled with when we camped on the edge of the wood. They were as nervous as a long-tailed cat near a rocking chair. Me; I could hear everything going on in the woods when the men would be quiet enough. I could hear the deer and the rabbit moving on the trail. [perception] I could hear the birds and identify each one by their song. By the way, where is that owl?” Flint’s eyes widened, “Why you rascal. You even know I have an owl with me? And how did you know that? He hasn’t moved a muscle.” I replied, “Well, I guessed. I guessed he was an owl, or a hawk, because the rodents and rabbits were not making a sound around here. And I guessed he was yours, well because who else would he belong to. And, his talon marks are on your glove. I figure he could have been a hawk, but an owl is more consistent with those marks.” He replied, “Why you’re really something.”
“I asked you to come here”, he went on, “so you could be introduced to this community. This is where I get my support. I am here to watch over this part of the border and I spend a great deal of time at the other edge of this wood watching the orcs in the lands beyond here. I belong to another Order that is pledged to serve the Empire, but not the Emperor. My Order watches over the evil forces in this world and attempts to drive them back from civilization. This wood is The Frontier. Beyond there are no civilizations for men. I am pledged to help the Empire maintain civilization from the edge of this wood all the way to the capitol. I drew this land because of my knowledge and hatred for orcs.” He looked down at the ground and paused. Then he looked up again and turned to look at me. He continued, “I also asked you here to give you a lesson in swordsmanship. But I hear you’ve been teaching your own classes, except all your students ran away and died?”
I grinned and said, “Oh you heard about that too? Well it isn’t quite what you might think. Joseph, I fear he is losing his sight, but I picked up on the fact we were noticed by a band of men, and under the circumstances I surmised they must be bandits. And then I could see there were eight of them. I asked Joseph what he could do against eight men and he said he had a spell that would work at fifty feet. So I figured that would slow them down pretty good. And I figured that if we were brave enough, we might intimidate the rest out of their ideas for the cart. If I hadn’t thought we could win I may have asked him to surrender his wagon, for I hoped that was what they wanted. So I used my influences to stop them at the right distance and Joseph cast his spell, Burning Hands, and it nailed them. Six of them took significant damage including their leader and second. The other two came in a charge and the brutes were no match, one-on-one, for me or Joseph. So we killed those two, and I looked up to see his spell killed two others. So we faced four seriously wounded bandits. But their leader wanted the cart as payment for his losses and wasn’t going to give up. So I used my influences again and goaded him into facing me in single combat. I did take advantage of his wounds, but I am not ashamed for it. I knew his reflexes were affected by his burns and I caught him in his exposed arm with my rapier and followed up with a death stroke from my dagger. I drove it home and his blood poured forth.”
Flint responded, “Well that is quite a story. Forgive me, but I must seize this opportunity to assess your skill. Are you able to demonstrate your skill with the sword?” I replied, “If it must be, I am ready.” So I removed my lute and my purse and placed them at the base of a tree. I removed my dagger and placed it there too. I drew my rapier and began walking around in the leaves to see if there were any hidden roots, soft spots or low places in the forest floor. Flint likewise took his time but he carried a heavier weapon. When we were ready, he faced me and raised his sword and his other arm for balance. I saluted him and made ready. We stared at one another, and finally he said, “If you please.” And so I shuffled my feet to close the distance and took a stroke at him. Of course, he ably parried my stroke, which was expected. He did not counter. I took another stroke, which he parried again. And I took another, but this time after parrying my stroke he made a counter attack and this I parried. He said, “Good.” I shifted to my left and lunged and he parried my stroke, and countered, which I parried and countered, and he parried, and countered and I parried. He lowered his sword and said, “You are a better swordsman than I have seen from the diplomatic service in some time. I was beginning to think they weren’t teaching that any longer.” And I relaxed a little and replied, “Or maybe a little more swordsman than you wish to play with today?” And with a quickness I had not seen before in a primate he thrust out, catching my sword, which I had to focus on just to keep in my hand, and then snapped his wrist catching my sword from the other side making it fly out of my hand, and he raised his sword straight at my chest. He said in all seriousness, “This is not your profession, Bard, remember that. I am trying to teach you something that I hope will keep you alive.” And he lowered his sword, and I breathed out.
He smiled at me and said, “We half-elves are a curious lot, aren’t we?” I breathed in, “Yes, we are. I was beginning to think that what I learned as a child from the Elves was good enough for you. But it will be some time before I think that again. You are right, though. Neither the Bard college nor the Service school teach anything meaningful in swordplay. I have been relying on my lessons from before that, which carried me through the College easily. So are fighters all this good? Have I the need to study this as well?” He stepped over to retrieve my rapier, raised it with a flick of his wrist and caught it in his off hand and turned to hand it back to me. He said, “Yes, you will have to become better at the sword, but that will come with time and training. I have been training Andante for years. He can play his lute, and he can talk a knight off his horse, but in single combat, without spells, he knows I would best him. And as a credit to his wisdom, he lets me teach him to become a better swordsman even if he tries to avoid using that skill. He solves bigger problems in his own way, and that is what you will do, if I can help keep you alive long enough to develop your skills and your contacts. Come, let us walk together back to the mill.” We picked up our things and turned for the mill.
“You’re pretty fair with the sword. Can you use a short sword and a broad sword?” I replied, “I trained with a short sword as a boy. I assume a broad sword is just heavier.” He answered, “Well that’s about it. How about the bow?” I said, “Oh yes, nobody living among Elves doesn’t fall in love with the bow. I learned on a short bow but I have shot the long bow also with no trouble.” Flint went on, “Well I can see your tracking skills are very good. Are your other woodsman’s skills sufficient?” I answered, “Well I know the plants and I can forage for myself. I even know the medicines of the Allenhalvania. I can use an axe and maul as good as any other half-elf and I keep my carving knife sharp enough to shave with. I know rope work and fire building. Is there any particular skill you are curious about?” “No”, he replied. “I was just making sure you had all the basics covered so I wouldn’t bother with those things. When you come here next I think we should focus on the sword. You’re better than I expected, but I need to see how you would handle yourself against some of the animals and humanoids you could face. They are altogether different than fighting a man armed with a weapon. Soldiers and knights are taught to fight armed men. Fighters, Paladins, Rangers”, and he bowed and spread his arms, “even Barbarians learn to fight beasts and humanoids, so let me teach you these things.” Flint fished in a pouch at his belt and produced a small stone with a glyph carved on it. He handed it to me saying, “Here. Take this and keep it in your pouch. If you show it to someone that knows the sign they will know you are a friend of mine. That can be used to have a message sent to me. I have a network used to communicate with others that share my interests. The clerics of Stonebridge are part of that network. They want me to keep the folk of Pine Mill safe from orcs. If you are in Stonebridge you may ask a Cleric of Demeter to get a message to me, show him that stone, and give him the message. Don’t send me an epistle, just a few words. I will act on it as I am able, or at least respond to your message. Normally when you need me, you’ll have to come out here. I don’t have the luxury of coming into Stonebridge whenever I would like. I must stay here and harass the orcs incessantly. It keeps them from becoming curious about these woods.”
We arrived at the mill and Flint bid me goodbye. I asked when I should return. He responded that I should come back as soon as I could, but he wanted that to be after I met with Andante first. I shook his hand and walked into the hamlet. I turned and he had disappeared, but I knew he was watching, so I smiled a broad smile and waved to the woods.
I walked past the picnic tables and judged it to be about two o’clock. Joseph was by the cart talking to some townsfolk. I walked over to him. I unslung my lute and began to idly play a little finger roll while I watched them. A lady near me turned around and got a large smile on her face. She stepped over and gave me a big hug around the neck and I didn’t know what to do. The other ladies turned and gathered around. Joseph got a smile on his face and said, “They’re all very happy you ran off the bandits. Some of them are quite fond of me.” I responded while gently coercing the first lady, not at all unattractive, to let go of me, “You did remind them that you helped, right?” He smiled and said, “Of course, of course. But they’ve come to think of you as a great avenger so let’s roll with it.” And I said, “Yes, of course.” And I smiled at the ladies and thanked them for their affection.
I asked, “Are we ready to go? I’m, worried I’ll have a report to make and I need to clean up first.” And he said, “Oh yes, I suppose we, ah, you do.” So we said our goodbyes and we were on our way back. To help cement my own legend I played the music for my new ballad to leave the tune in their heads as we walked off.
“So”, he began, “what did Flint want to talk about?” “Well”, I answered, “he mostly wanted to give me a fencing lesson, which I passed by the way.” “After this morning, I should think so. I haven’t seen a Bard jump into combat like that before. They usually sit back and try some casting while our friends do the Hack-N-Slash dance. But you didn’t hesitate.” I replied, “I didn’t have and spells to cast on my friends so it was my only option. I wasn’t going to send you up against the eight of them. What was I going to do, Polymorph old Ham into a bear?” “Well”, Joseph continued, “I’m sure glad you handled it the way you did. I won’t get over the expression on his face when you told him he was wearing his liquor.”
We passed the miles rather uneventfully, picked up the bodies, and continued on to Stonebridge. I asked, “So you have to bury the bodies of your victims?” “It is an order from our liege lord cleric, Thomas Quintus.” He replied. “He expects us to show the greatest respect for life, even for our enemies, in hopes we inspire better behavior in the townsfolk. This is also why I attempted to heal our victims even though they had taken arms up against us. But I was pretty sure they wouldn’t take my offer because the one fellow was right. The only thing waiting for those fellows was the gallows.”
We arrived at the edge of town a little short of six o’clock and I reported to the guard that we were back from Pine Mill. I also reported that I must make a report to the Magistrate shortly but I was in no shape to attend dinner. It would take me some time to change and wash. I asked that word would be sent to the Green Hawk when I should have an audience with the Magistrate.” Joseph, meanwhile, continued to the Chapel and met Thomas Quintus on the road and made a brief report to him. Thomas was headed to dinner with the Magistrate so all of the most important information would already be shared with the Magistrate before I arrived.
I strode through town playing and singing my new ballad. Many heads turned to hear the new tune. I don’t believe many of the onlookers caught the words, but they did seem to enjoy the tune. I nodded to Ben as I passed by, and he waved a friendly wave. I nodded to the guards at the mansion and they Didn’t wave a friendly wave. I arrived at the Green Hawk and stopped playing. I removed my hat and stepped inside. There was a cheer as I stepped in and then a few men stood and slapped me on the shoulder, a friendly slap as Flint had in the wood. I waved at a few and kept walking because I felt terrible in my bloody clothes. As I hit the stairs, Tony was coming up right behind me. As we moved away from the noise I could make out him telling me the news of the bandits had already reached town. I wondered how that might be since we were the only people that saw the events and I didn’t know who might have traveled from Pine Mill already today. He then fussed about opening my room since it had been locked almost every moment after I left except to pick up and drop off my laundry.
We reached the head of the stair and I held out my hand forcing Tony to wait. Something seemed amiss in the hallway. I asked, “Have any new visitors come to rent a room here?” He replied, “Yes. A fellow came late today and checked into this room here”, and he indicated the first room on the right. My room was the last on the left. We walked down the hall. I asked, “If you could please unlock the door but not open it?” “Sure”, he said in a curious tone. Click. The door was unlocked. I raised my arm and eased him away from the door. I drew my dagger and he said softly, “Bene?” I placed my hand on the knob and turned it very slowly. I pressed the door in and the string was out of place. I pushed the door open but stood in the hall and the window was open.
I stepped in waving for Tony to follow. I looked all around the room seeing everything where I had left it except the laundry basked and a fresh pitcher of water. I stepped over to the window and examined the casing. It had not been forced. I turned and asked Tony, “How did my window get open?!” He stammered, “Sorry sir, I suppose my wife raised it for you to let in some fresh air.” I let out a breath. “Sorry my friend. I carry sensitive correspondence and I can’t allow prying eyes see it. Please let your family know if I am not in the building keep this window closed unless I say otherwise, in which case I’ll almost certainly have my correspondence on my person.” He responded, “Y-yes, sir.” I smiled at him. “Take a seat. I’m sure it is all right. Your wife meant well, I’m sure.” And he sat down, but not in a relaxed manner. I removed my rapier and dagger and lute, and I placed them near the door and hung my hat on the coat tree. I sat down at the table and opened my correspondence case. I had all three of my maps and my letters. I placed my credentials on the table and said, “Everything is here. It looks like no harm. You were really worried. I could read it in your face.” He replied, “Yes, I suppose I was after hearing about today. You really killed eight bandits?” “Oh, no”, I replied, “I only killed two, but I intimidated the rest into fleeing because of the manner in which I killed the first two, including their leader. Joseph believes they will all be dead of their wounds that were able to flee.” Tony stood up suddenly, and backed up, “Sir, you killed the bandit leader and another man and yet you act like you’ve been out visiting and playing your lute. Doesn’t it bother you that you came so close to death?” “Well”, I said, “when you put it like that, I suppose I should. I guess I haven’t stopped to think about it like that.” “If you will excuse me sir, I need to return to the bar.” “Do you have a lad that can help me with my armor and things?” “Yes sir. I can send the boy up.” “Is he your boy?” I asked. He responded, “Yes sir.” I asked, “And you don’t mind?” “No sir.” So I said, “Very well, yes, please send him up.” And Tony disappeared down the hallway.
A moment later a boy of about ten or eleven years was in the hallway looking into the room. I said, “Please come in.” And he stepped in the room. I asked as I turned in my chair and held up my arm, “I could use your help unfastening this armor please.” And the boy stepped up and began working on the buckles. “Sorry for the stench. I’ve been trapped in this for the whole day.” I said to him. He smiled a little and kept working. He began working on the hooks and was having trouble with them so I had to reach around with my other hand and help. Once he got two hooks undone, he could manage the rest. I stood up and slid the armor off. Then I pulled the remnant of my shirt off and started to pull the padded undergarment off. Next I removed the inner under shirt and threw the shirts in a pile. I asked the boy to place the clean laundry on the bed and to then step into the hall for a moment or two. I closed the door and pulled off my bloody trousers and my boots and my socks. I placed it all into the empty basket. I stood before the mirror and poured the water into the wash basin. I washed myself off and ran a wet comb through my hair to tame the unruliness of it. I pulled some clean clothes from the pile on the bed and began to dress. Once I had my pants and under shirt on, I asked the boy to come in again.
I pointed to the pile of sweaty shirts and said “Put those in the basket with the other things and take them to be washed, please.” He reached down and did as asked. He went to pick up the whole basket and I said, wait a moment. I went to my purse and found two coppers. I picked up my damp socks and put them in the basket and handed the boy the two coppers. I went and washed my hands again saying, “OK that’s it. Thank you.” And he lifted the basket and disappeared down the hallway. I finished washing and dressing, putting on new socks and my street shoes. I heard a man ascending the stairs, and I wasn’t Tony. The foot falls came down the hall and I stood up and stepped to my rapier and dagger. I could tell he was standing in the doorway but could not see me. I drew my rapier in a flash and stepped back from the door to look into the hallway. It was a member of the guard and he reached for his weapon upon seeing me jump out like this. I lowered my rapier, and said, “What is it?” He let out a breath and said, “The magistrate has asked that you come to dinner immediately. I am supposed to bring you as quickly as I can.” He replaced his sword in his scabbard. “You gave me such a start, sir.” “Sorry”, I said, “I’m nearly ready. Please call for Tony to come up.” He turned and walked down the hallway.
I grabbed my credentials. I replaced my rapier in its scabbard, and took only my belt, dagger and purse. I grabbed my cloth bag for my credentials and my lute. I stepped into the hallway and closed the door behind me, slowly arranging the string as it shut. Tony and the guard were coming up the stairs. I met them at the head of the stairs. “Tony please secure my door. I must be off to speak to the Magistrate. I should return tonight about the same time.” And with that, I slung my lute over my shoulder and followed the guard down the stairs and out the door. As I passed through the tavern, the buzz increased a bit, but they could see I was following the guard, and they understood what that meant.
Out in the street, the sun was setting and it was getting a little windy. I could smell the approach of rain. We hurried to the mansion, for I didn’t want the other dinner guests to be inconvenienced. I went right into the mansion and to the doors leading to the banquet hall. I stopped in front of the doors and collected myself. The guard gave a sharp wrap on the door. The doors opened and I stepped inside. The Herald said, “My Lord Ballinor, I present Bene-Timber, messenger and emissary of the Emperor, his highness Emperor Alexander of Confernos, Defender of the faithful, son of his highness Alexander II, Vanquisher of the Orcs, and third grandson of his highness Emperor Alexander I, Conqueror of the Andorean Plains.” And he raised his staff and brought it down again, Bang. And everyone in the hall stood and all the guests applauded.
When the applause died down, the Magistrate indicated my chair inviting me to sit down and join them. And as I started walking he sat down in his chair, and his wife, and the captain of the guard and his wife, and Thomas Quintus sat down as well. Everyone else remained standing. I arrived at my chair and remained standing. Lord Ballinor said, “Bene-Timber, please be seated, my friend.” I replied, “Yes, my lord.” I lifted my Lute from my shoulder and handed it to the attendant, and as I sat down I said, “I must beg my lords forgiveness for I have barely had time to wash and change my clothes.” “No bother, no bother, we understand”, he replied. And he went on, “We understand you had an eventful trip to Pine Mill today?” A question everyone already knew the answer. “Yes, my lord. We were accosted by a band of bandits and with the help of Joseph we convinced them to flee.” “Oh”, he began in reply, “we heard it was a little more involved than that, … And that you have already composed a song about it. Please, we should like to hear your new song, the way you wrote it for the citizens of Pine Mill, not some watered down modest version as you just told me. Let me hear how it really went.” I responded, “Yes my lord.” And I rose from my seat, and the attendant brought me my lute. I slung it over my shoulder and I checked the tuning. I strummed it and cleared my throat. I reached for my goblet of water and took a sip. I strummed it again and hummed a note.
I began strumming with vigor and walking about the table in the fashion I learned at the college. And I began to sing my new ballad. And the guests smiled and some nodded their heads to the beat of the music and enjoyed the story. And I couldn’t help but enjoy the experience of singing a ballad of my own accomplishments, for this was one of the highest aspirations of a Bard, not only to be present when valiant battles are fought, not only to be influencing and helping the victors, but to be the key actor in the story and live to sing your own ballad written of the tale; this was pure heaven. And for such an audience as this. Except for Flint, there is likely no other important man in the Province not seated at this table tonight. So I sang my ballad and paraded around for their enjoyment and enjoyed every moment. When I was done, I bowed at the waist with a flourish to the applause. And I pulled the lute from my shoulder and handed it to the attendant and Lord Ballinor waved me to be seated.
Lord Ballinor clapped his hands and said, “Lovely, beautiful, I should hope you are present at our next festival to perform it again at that time. And we know of your evening’s activities last night and believe you will wish to perform it again. Feel free to do so as much as you wish between now and the festival as you like.” And I nodded my thanks to the Magistrate. “Now”, he continued, “tell us how it played out in your words. For you shouldn’t be constrained by measures and beats to use any words you like.”
I asked to stand again, and the Magistrate waved me on. I stood and recounted the story of that morning beginning with my sensing that something was amiss. I told them the real truth, that Joseph did the most damage with his spell, and then that I took over the engagement and killed the bandit leader. I stopped telling the story after the bandits ran away saying nothing waited for them except the hangman’s noose. I did add Joseph’s observation that the three that were able to run away would probably die soon anyway. I didn’t share my reaction to being covered in blood and that Joseph had to calm me down over it. Lord Thomas Quintus did question me about the opening of the engagement. “You sensed something was amiss, and yet Joseph did not?” I replied that was true and I added that I feared his eyesight was failing. But I added that it was due in part to my upbringing with the Elves and my familiarity with the woods and the peculiarities of animals. I said that I think my first note of trouble was a flock of crows taking flight which is a well-known sign among woodsmen that something ominous started the birds. After this, I heard something which sounded like a noise humanoids make, not animal. This is when I first said something to Joseph.
Lord Martinex was next. “You sized up the enemy so quickly noting only two wore armor of any kind and to others were bearing clubs. You also noted the two fellows in the first charge, both being unarmored would be easy to handle. You really kept your head about you my boy. And then you figured the leader was the key. Kill him and the rest will fall away like dead leaves in the Fall. And by acting boldly you intimidated your foes who out numbered you and allowed you to engage their leader in single combat? Why I wish I had officers with such keen senses. They are all too often intent in winning their own single combat and not judging the battlefield as a whole.” I responded, “Thank you my lord, but I am by no means a grand strategist for defeating six unruly bandits.” And he replied, “Yes, you’re right, but from such beginnings great leaders are made. Good show.”
I began to feel a little awkward. I was trained as a diplomat to flatter and entice my targets into giving me information they might otherwise wish to hold to themselves. Being the center of attention this way put me completely off balance. In addition, as a Bard I was reveling in the glory of the moment. I would have enjoyed writing a ballad of Flint if he had been the hero, so to be the subject of a ballad I would have enjoyed writing about a friend was a blissful moment. The two sides of me were struggling with one another. The Bard wanted to tell the world in a beautiful way and the diplomat wanted to keep most of the information to myself.
Another man at a side table looked over and said, “And did you notice anything remarkable about these bandits? Was there anything that you found on their person to indicate where they had been, where they were from, or who else they may have assaulted?” I gazed back at him and thought for a moment, “Well, not that I can think of now. Joseph was adamant that we needed to bring the bodies back. Perhaps an inspection can be made of the bodies, their clothes and their belongings?” And he replied, “Perhaps.” I thought to myself, I need to know who this man is. Cottern is here. I will ask him later.
And the Magistrate clapped his hands and said, ”Let dinner be served. It is getting late. Thomas, if you please.” And Thomas Quintus rose and so did five men on one of the side tables. Thomas gestured to Joseph, who began, “Let us give thanks for the deliverance of Demeter’s two servants”, and he repeated the prayer he recited at lunch. Thomas Quintus sat down and the other five men sat after he sat down. And the servants brought water, and dinner, and bread and wine. We enjoyed a pleasant meal of beef and potatoes, peas and bread. During the course of dinner, the guests seated closest to me offered their personal congratulations and thanks for driving off and killing the bandits.
The magistrate was ready for the formal portion of dinner to be concluded. He signaled to Cottern who rose from his seat and cleared his throat. Lords, ladies and gentlemen, Lord Ballinor wishes you each a pleasant evening. And with that, everyone except Lord Ballinor and the ladies present rose and stepped away from the table and toward the door. The ladies were assisted from their seats by their husbands and escorted out. But Cottern caught up to me and said, “Bene, Lord Ballinor wishes you to remain for a private conversation.” I bowed and said I shall be with him in a moment. I continued to intercept Joseph. “Joseph”, I said, and I motioned with my head for him to step aside. “The bodies”, I asked, “are they under guard? We need to make sure we trust whoever is sent to inspect the bodies. Something is bothering me.” He replied, “Why, anyone sent to inspect the bodies will be observed by someone here tonight. These are the most trusted men in the Province.” “I fear”, I replied, “the Magistrate can not trust everyone in this room. Please have one of your order, no two of them, stay with the bodies until you hear from me. I shall try to be quick.” And he said with a smile, “For you, I will do this. But they are beginning to smell awful, you know.” “Sorry”, I replied, “That can’t be helped on my end. If you have someone that can”, and I waved my hands in a flurry as if to mimic a spell. He smiled again and turned to leave.
I immediately went back inside the banquet hall. The governor was seated with his captain, Lord Martinex, and Thomas. I approached. Lord Martinex spoke, “You”, indicating a servant, “have a chair brought over here at once.” I waited and a chair was delivered. Lord Ballinor indicated with his arm for me to have a seat. I sat down. Lord Ballinor asked, “Is Joseph alright?” I replied, “Sir?” He repeated his question, “Is he alright? His vision? Was he truly unable to realize he was in danger?” I thought for a moment, “Sir, I believe his reaction was honest and he truly did not realize he was in danger until they were close and this was after I raised the alert. I do believe his eyesight is failing.” Thomas said, “What a pity, what a pity. He is a very diligent man. And he is well liked by the people. I may have to have him reassigned because it is too dangerous to send a man like that on the road. If you had not arrived yesterday, he may well be dead today.”
Lord Ballinor asked, “Is there anything else you need to report, for I know you emissary fellows are careful with your information. Is there something you want to tell us now you didn’t want to say in front of everyone?” I replied, “Yes sir, there is. But I didn’t know it until we were talking at the banquet. First I must ask, who was the man that asked me about the bodies?” Lord Martinex shook his head, “That is the court mage, Finlock. He’s a real squirrel. Lord Ballinor, you know …” Lord Ballinor cut him off, “Yes, I know.” He turned back to me and explained, “Each Province is entrusted with certain sensitive magic items. Each Province is sent a Court Mage responsible for these items. Finlock is new to our Province. His predecessor, Sommerbee, was well liked and we felt we could trust him. He died under mysterious circumstances. Finlock has not developed a bond with the people of the Court or the townsfolk. Andante knows these things. He has told the people that need to know, so you need not report this to anyone other than Andante to confirm what we’re telling you now.” Lord Ballinor continued, “So why do you ask about Finlock?” I thought and replied, “I found it curios that he was so interested in what we may have learned by inspecting the dead bodies.”
“I must confess to you sir, I was not thinking clearly when the fight was done. I’m new to this profession and you know. And, I have never killed a man before. Beasts, certainly, scores of them, for my family made our living as fur traders. But I had never killed a man before. And I had never killed a beast with a dagger. I was not ready for what happened, for I got blood all over everything I was wearing save my hat. It was a feeling that makes me sick to think of it now. I was operating on some other level as if I were not myself. I had some sort of blood lust or something so that I stuck my dagger in his side like I was selecting a piece of meat for dinner. I just did it without thinking. Well, being new to the service and all, I have to present myself in my best at all times. But I have only three sets of clothes and one of them is completely ruined. I can’t afford another leather cuirass. My boots and adventuring trousers are still permanently blood stained; my shirt was ruined. I was in a state worried about how I would present myself in court until I could afford to replace these things. I was also worried about showing up in Pine Mill dressed like a butcher not an emissary. Anyway, I am ashamed because inspecting the bodies is just the sort of thing and information gatherer like me should have though to do.”
“Now I am worried that someone is going to inspect the bodies and tamper with them, planting or stealing evidence we should need. Can we have guards secure the bodies? I know it is a terrible duty, but I fear someone is working at something behind the scenes on this. I have already imposed on Joseph to have his brothers keep an eye on the bodies until I contact him.” Lord Ballinor replied, “You have a keen mind, Bene-Timber. Lord Martinex, see to this at once. Quietly have the Clerics relieved and place four soldiers on this for no more than two hours at a time. I don’t want this failing because someone fell asleep or became complacent. Send four guards at once with Bene-Timber, so he may relieve Joseph.” He paused, “Once the guard is posted, I would ask that you return to the Green Hawk as if nothing happened. Many townsfolk will be excited to see you there tonight. Play your ballad, sing and have a great time. Come see Cottern in the morning. He will have something for you. Now my friends, please excuse me. I have more to share with Lord Martinex after he sees to the guards.” And with that, the three of us stood up. I bowed to Lord Ballinor, to Lord Martinex and to Thomas, turned and left. Lord Martinex followed me outside.
Lord Martinex said, “This way, Bene-Timber.” I followed him down the hallway to the left. He stepped into an office and a soldier immediately stood at attention. “Sergeant, find the Officer of the Day at once.” “Sir”, he replied, “the O-D is making his rounds. He should be between here and the west gate.” Lord Martinex replied, “Find a soldier to carry a message to the O-D.” The sergeant stepped past us and out into the hallway. A few seconds later the sergeant returned with another soldier in tow. Lord Martinex motioned for both of them to come in. He motioned for me to close the door, which I did. He turned to the soldier, “Take this man to see the O-D at once. The O-D is to set a detail of four men to watch over the dead bodies from today’s fight. They are to make sure nobody tampers with the bodies before I relieve them. They are to stand no more than a two-hour watch by order of the Magistrate. Is this clear?” The soldier nodded and said “Yes, sir.” Lord Martinex continued to both of them, “Nobody is to speak of this assignment to anyone not directly involved. Not either of you. Not the O-D. Not the soldiers on duty. Not the soldiers off duty. Nobody. Is that clear?” “Yes, sir.” They both replied. I opened the door.
I walked back to the main entrance of the mansion with the soldier right behind me. Lord Martinex walked past us retuning to the banquet room. Outside, I donned my hat and smelled the air. I said to no one in particular, “Rain is coming before dawn.” The soldier stepped past me and said, “This way sir.” We walked to the west gate in the direction of the chapel. We met the O-D at the chapel. He was there with an orderly and taking an interest in the dead bodies asking why the clerics wouldn’t go in for the night. The soldier approached the Officer of the Day and saluted. The O-D returned the salute and said, “Yes, who is this?” I introduced myself, “I am Bene-Timber. I am the fellow that dispatched these bandits today on the road to Pine Mill.” He looked at me and said, “You? You killed these bandits? Why I find that hard to believe. You clubbed them over their heads with your lute?” “Sir, I am an emissary of the Emperor and I am able to defend myself when needs arise.” He replied, “Whatever.” I continued, “We have come with orders from Lord Martinex. You are to establish a guard detail of no less than four soldiers over these dead bodies to ensure they are not tampered with until relieved by Lord Martinex. The guards are to stand watch no more than two hours so they do not become fatigued or complacent. Nobody”, and I looked at the clerics as well, “is to speak of this detail that is not directly involved. Those are Lord Martinex’s orders. Once the relief arrives, these clerics are relieved. Is this understood?” The orderly and the soldier that came with me immediately said, “Yes sir.” I turned to the clerics and they acknowledged the orders, “Yes sir.” I turned to the O-D. He looked at me like a child. “Who are you to be giving me such orders?” He said. I replied, “I am relaying these orders from Lord Martinex. You should consider these orders are from him personally. Under the circumstances I must ask this soldier to remain here with the clerics until the orders are carried out.” I turned to the soldier, “Once these orders are carried out, let Lord Martinex know, and tell Lord Martinex that I shall like to know as well. He will know what to do.” The O-D was beside himself. “Who do you think you are giving orders to my soldiers?” I turned and faced him, “You don’t want to test me on this matter. If you wish to question these dealings you are free to speak to Lord Martinex yourself. But you better see to the detail before you do. I must take my leave. Good evening, sirs.”
I turned and began walking toward the mansion and the Green Hawk. I didn’t turn around so I would give the impression that my orders were not to be questioned. And I thought to myself, What an ass of an O-D. If Lord Martinex were to have witnessed that exchange, his career would be over. I pushed all that away in my mind so I could get into my performer’s mind set and have a good time.
I entered the tavern and again there was a great cheer. I strode to the hearth and a small table was waiting for me. I bowed and the applause died down a moment later. “Friends, I appreciate your affection and attention. I must run up to my room and grab a few things and when I return, I will perform my new ballad, Bene-Timber, Bane of Bandits and Thieves.” And with that, I nodded to Tony by way of asking him to unlock my room. He followed me up the stairs where I checked the hallway and then continued to the door. He opened the door and pushed it open for me and I looked in but it was dark. I stepped inside and went to light a candle. As the soft yellow light shone, I looked about and stepped to the table. I lit a second candle and set it on a stand. I lifted the first and Tony stood near the door indicating the bench he had brought in for me. I thanked him and asked for the key to the room. He paused, and then realizing there was no point in objecting, he fumbled the key from the key ring and handed it over to me. “I’ll be along in a moment.” And he disappeared down the hallway. I removed my belt and dagger setting them by the rapier. I picked up my cloth bag for tips and headed back out into the hallway. Outside in the hallway, I turned and locked my door, and then remembering the candles, I unlocked it and stepped back inside. I put out both candles and stepped back into the hallway. I closed the door carefully this time and set the string. I then closed and locked the door, turned and headed downstairs.
Upon coming back into sight there was another cheer, and I smiled and waved. I stepped over to the hearth and placed my hat on the table and my bright cloth bag next to it. I signaled Tony for an ale and I pulled my lute around and checked the tuning. A maid brought the ale and I finished tuning the lute. I turned to the audience and said, “I hope everyone is doing well. It is a pleasure to back here tonight, … in one piece <cheer>, and I believe there is no better ale in Stonebridge than the Green Hawk serves, so everyone make sure you top off for I have more to share this evening than I had this morning.” <cheer> I raised my tankard and made a big show of taking a deep drink, which was an illusion they taught us in the Bard College. And finishing my drink I set the tankard down with a flourish and pulled my lute into position. The crowd quieted down and I began a slow finger picking roll on my lute in six-eight time.
The Ballad of Bene-Timber, Bane of Bandits and Thieves
And there was a great cheer from the crowd for they felt pride in hearing of their town in song and that they knew a local hero. And they cheered that the bandits in the area would have more reason to ply their trade elsewhere. For the rest of the evening they drank and cheered and sang and cried and danced and embraced so that everyone in the Green Hawk that night was a friend to everyone else. And when it was late, Bene-Timber finished his second tankard of ale and bowed with a flourish waving his tankard about. And he picked up his colorful cloth bag and his hat and he stepped over to the bar to invite Tony to sit while they counted their coin together. And Bene-Timber asked him to bring another tankard when he came. And he sat down at the table at the end of the bar and set his hat down and his lute, and set the bag on the table and reached in his pouch for a cloth. Tony came over with two tankards and set one before Bene with a big smile. And Bene asked if he could have a candle brought over so they may see better. And when the candle was delivered, Bene upended his colorful bag onto the cloth and set it down the colorful bag again.
And as they drank and chatted, they divided the coin slowly. One would take two coins and the other would take two coins and so it went until there was only one coin left, a lonely copper piece. Leaving the copper piece there for a moment, Bene-Timber asked Tony if the agreement was satisfactory. Tony beamed, “Why this is probably the best night I’ve ever had since I opened this place. Yes, yes, my friend. I made more coin tonight than ever.” “Very good, my friend.” Bene replied. “Could I trouble you to trade my coppers and silvers for gold? I fear a great bulge at my belt will attract thieves instead of women.” Tony looked at me a moment with a blank face, and then suddenly he laughed slapping the table. “Ah, haw, I get it. No, uh, yes. We don’t want you attracting that kind of attention. I always need light coin so I’ll be happy to oblige you.” And he stood up, a little uneasily, and stepped over to the bar. He came back with another pouch and opened it up, and pulled it up close to his eyes and said, “Now, less see here? I got …”, “Hush my friend”, I cut him off, “You need not say any more. Take one coin out and I will count out the number of coppers and silvers”, I said this quietly to him, “And then you take my pile and I’ll take yours. And then we’ll repeat the process. This way it will be difficult for anyone to see a large sum on our table.”
So he reached in and took hold of one coin, with a little effort, and slapped it on the table, looked up and smiled at me. I calmly counted out the silvers and coppers I wanted to trade him. I placed them in a neat pile and we exchanged piles. I put my coin away and counted out some more. He likewise, took hold of another coin with some effort and slapped it on the table. I counted out my pile and placed them on the table saying quietly, “If you don’t stop slapping the table everyone in Stonebridge will know what is going on and one of us will be robbed, and I fear it will be you, my friend.” And he took his pile and I took mine. He reached in and took hold of another coin, but as he went to slap it down on the table, I reached out and caught his hand and stood up. I said a little loud, “Thank you my friend for the loan. I promise to make good use of your money.” And I shook his hand as an old friend. And he began to say, “Wait a second …” But I stood him up and twisted his arm a little to make him stop talking. “Hey, watch …” I threw my arm around him and walked him to the bar. His wife took notice and came to meet me at the bar with a look of violence on her face. She raised her hand which was holding a wooden spoon and began to shake it in my face, “Look here… “ I whispered, "Your husband has had too much and I’m trying to make a scene so he won’t be robbed. I will be in my room tonight and down in the morning for breakfast. We should talk then. I’m not going anywhere." And in a loud voice I said, “Don’t worry, I’ll double your money, and you will be dancing in the street.” And I eased Tony into his wife’s arms. And taking his weight she understood I was right and he was a drunken boy. She looked in my eyes and I winked. I nodded and she nodded back indicating she had his weight, so I let go and retrieved my things. I looked about [perception] and didn’t see any threats so I walked up the stairs to my room.
At the head of the stairs I examined the hallway [perception] and didn’t see anything amiss. I was wondering who the other guest was on the top floor. But I would have to exercise some patience to learn who this was. I couldn’t risk being discovered doing anything out of order. I stepped to the door and unlocked it. I pressed it open and checked to see the string was in its place. I pushed the door open, looked and then stepped inside. I lit one and then another candle, turned, and closed the door. I put my things on the table and let the saddle bags on the bench. I leaned the lute against the dresser and took off my shirt. I sat for a moment letting my head clear, and I picked up my lute. It was late and I shouldn’t be playing a lute in my bedroom at this hour. But I had things to sort out and I needed a spell to clear my head and help me focus.
I plucked quietly and tried to enter a meditation trance. I thought about the bandits. I tried to concentrate on their clothing, their weapons and anything else that stood out. All I could remember was their severe burns and the blood. I cleared my mind again and I concentrated on the Officer-of-the-Day. Was there anything strange about him or was he just a little too puffed up with himself. The service school told me I would run into fellows like this; fellows that felt their rank was more important than their brains. No, I couldn’t think of anything tell-tale about him either. Then I cleared my mind and I thought about Finlock. He was the toughest because I never got close to him to see him well. Was there anything out of the ordinary about him? Wait, a glint of light. A glint of light reflected from his chest as he turned to face me and ask his questions. What made that reflection? It had to be small. Maybe it was a token about his neck or a broach pinned to his tunic. I couldn’t make out what it was even in my trance like state. I cleared my mind and set the lute down.
I stood up and washed myself off and changed into my night shirt. I went to the window and opened it a crack. The wind was rushing outside. The rain should begin any time now. I left the window cracked and blew out the first candle on the table. I took my journal and as I read it, I began to drift off to sleep. I set my journal on the nightstand, blew out the candle and went to sleep.
I woke some time later when it was raining. It was very dark in the room but I lay still. My eyes adjusted and I could see the room in a faint grey to black tone image. The curtain was dancing in the wind and the window was blown open further. I sat up and stood, stepped over to the window and closed it well and secured it. I stepped back and got back in bed. As I lay down, I heard footsteps in the hall. I heard a door open, footsteps and a door close. I heard only a little scuffing noise now and then for a few minutes and then nothing. I surmised the other guest was back in his room, from where I didn’t know. And after a moment I drifted off to sleep.
48th Planting, 221
There was a knock on my door and I opened my eyes. The room came into focus and there was a second knock. “Thank you”, I replied, “and good morning.” “My lord”, came the reply, “Would you like your breakfast early today?” I swung my legs out and replied, “Yes, I think I should like my breakfast early, thank you.” A reply came, “Very well sir. I will let mother know.”
I rubbed my upper arms, for there was a chill in the air. I lit the candle on my bed stand and stood up. I carried the candle over to the table and lit the candle there, for warmth and light. I returned the first candle to the bed stand. I walked over to the bowl of water on the dresser and dipped my fingers in the water, lifted my hand to my face and rubbed the water into my face. I rubbed my face and decided I should trim my beard so I went to my saddlebags and fished out my razor. I returned to the mirror and shaved around the edge of my beard. I touched up my neck and rinsed the razor off. I set it down and looked in the mirror again. I wondered if I could find a barber in this town able to touch up my beard and trim my hair around my ears and along the back. I must keep appearances that I am too foolishly occupied with my looks to be a physical threat, but after my deeds of the previous day, that may not fool anybody, which could be useful too. I always found being underestimated easier to overcome than being overestimated.
I stepped over and sat at the table. I fumbled with my credentials folder and with my correspondence case. I wanted to write something down but I dared not. If they were found I could be damaged. I wanted Andante to arrive so I could share my observations and ask his advice. He should be here in two to five days anyway. I may have time to visit all the other hamlets before he gets here. Today, as I looked out the window, was no day for travelling. It had rained hard at a few times during the night and now it was just drizzling, almost like an extra heavy fog. Today I should visit a few shops in town and make some more friends. I also needed to see Cottern again. I wasn’t looking forward to that. He just wasn’t my sort of fellow.
I stood and dressed in street clothes but put my boots on over my bloody pants. I didn’t want to look like a bum but I didn’t have much of a choice. I could wear my best clothes or these dirty things. I didn’t put on my armor but just my padded under garment and a normal shirt. I dug my cloak from my saddlebags and threw it over one arm. I stepped to the door and grabbed my belt, baldric and rapier and put them on. I grabbed my credentials pouch and my hat and headed downstairs after locking the door.
At the bottom of the stairs I saw Christine getting a fire going. My table was set and ready for me. I stepped across the room and Christine looked up and smiled saying, “I’ll have your coffee out in a moment, my lord.” I replied with a smile, “Thank you ever so much. Today will be a good day for coffee. I think it’s going to be dreary all day.” She stepped past me as I set some things on the table next to mine. “Oh stop”, she replied, “Let’s not jinx it.” And she disappeared around the corner. I set down at the table and looked over at the fire over my shoulder.
She came back around the corner with a mug and a pot of hot liquid, steaming from the spout. She set the mug down and poured saying, “Take care, my lord, it is still too hot to drink. I’ll be back in a moment with your spices.” With that she set the pot down on the other side of the table and returned from where she appeared. There was a little talk and then from around the corner she returned with the honey pot and a handful of spice jars. She set these on the table and headed back around the corner. A moment later she returned with a plate with two large dough circles a medium brown. They looked like a strange kind of burned bread. And she set these down before me with a pot of butter and a big smile. She stepped back and smoothed her skirts and looked at the plate.
I hesitated and glanced up at her. She sensed the question on my mind. “Oh, lord, these are fluffy dough cakes. My family likes these more than anything else I make for breakfast. They are best with a healthy(?) spoon of butter and a big dollop of honey. But you may want to add some honey to your coffee after trying these. It seems the sweet cakes make you want sweeter coffee.” So I took some butter with my table knife and spread it on top of the cakes and then I lifted the honey stick and swirled it in the coffee. I knocked and dripped it in my cup before I set it in the honey pot and lifted it again, lowering it to the cakes. I returned the stick and watched the butter and honey spread out as I lifted the coffee to my lips. The coffee was still not so good but not awful either. But on a chilly morning it was good enough. And Christine kept looking on with anticipation.
I set my mug down and took my fork and knife, cutting a bite from the plate and raised it to my mouth. I popped it in my mouth and gave it a squeeze with my tongue against the roof of my mouth. The flavor was wonderful and I wonder how my eyes didn’t pop out of my head. I got a big grin on my face and Christine beamed and even clapped her hands together. “See my lord. Isn’t it wonderful?” I swallowed and put my fork down reaching for my coffee cup. I took another drink and she was right. After a mouthful of that my coffee needed more honey. I grinned and looked up at her as I reached for the honey stick to put more in. “This is the best thing I have had for breakfast since I left my home.” I said. “But the coffee needs the honey just as you said.” I took another drink from my mug and it tasted better. I took another bite from my cakes.
I slowed down to savor the cake flavor, sweet and fluffy, with the butter and honey. It was just so pleasing. I took another bite and then another drink from my mug. She reached over and lifted the pot to pour my coffee again and I nodded while I savored the flavor of the cakes. I took two good strokes of honey from the pot and swirled them into my cup. I sipped the coffee just to test it. I wanted to enjoy every mouthful of this breakfast, and I wasn’t in a hurry this morning as I was the day before.
Tony came from around the corner with another plate. It had two dark meat cakes on it. I looked quizzically at him but he didn’t notice. “Christine”, he began, “You didn’t come back for the Spiced Meat Cakes.” “Oh, sorry, uh, Bene”, and she took the plate from Tony and set it down for me, “These are the spiced meat cakes we eat with the fluffy dough cakes. You’ll like these too. Try them first. Don’t spice them. They’re already very spicy.” I smiled and took my knife and fork and cut a piece. I lifted the bite to my mouth.
I almost coughed. It was unlike anything I expected. But the flavor intrigued me. I couldn’t tell what sort of spices were in these, there seemed to be so many. I cut another bite and put it in my mouth and tasted it. It was very unusual. There was no doubt that I didn’t want to bother with adding spices to these. They were great too. I asked, “Where did you get these? How are they made?” Christine smiled and replied, “You’ll like them more if you don’t hear all the details. It takes a while to make them and it would take just as long for me to tell you how we make them. Just enjoy them.” And Tony nudged her at the elbow and twitched his head back toward the kitchen. She looked at him and then looked at me, “Please excuse me my lord. I hope you have everything you need.” And she followed her husband around the corner. There was some talking and then the sound of eating with flat wear touching pottery.
I finished my breakfast, and my coffee, and wiped my mouth setting the napkin in a neat pile next to my plate. I stood and stretched, turned and looked at the fire. I stepped over and warmed myself. I stepped to a window and gazed out. The rain was still spritzing enough to make me want to wear a hood, but I had only a cloak. When I turned to step back to the hearth, Christina was clearing the table. She tried to look at me without me seeing that she was looking at me. She also tried to be as graceful as possible with everything. And I tried to make sure she didn’t notice that I was aware of this.
She turned to return to the kitchen and I called after her, “Please ask Tony to come over so we may chat.” She turned, smiled, and replied, “Yes, my lord.” She turned and disappeared. Tony came round the corner looking tired. I was standing with my back to the fire. I called out, “Good morning, Tony. How are you feeling?” He opened his eyes with a forlorn look of “You know damn well how I feel” but said instead, “Oh good morning, my friend. A little tired I suppose. I always feel like this when it rains.” I replied, “Pity. Say we have to finish our business. Do you have your coin purse handy?” He paused, and opened his eyes wide, and patted his pockets, and said, “No, I’m not sure where it is. Christina?” A voice from the kitchen called, “Yes dear?” He answered, “Where’s my purse?” “Oh”, she replied back, “I set it on the dresser.” He mumbled something and turned around to fetch it.
When he returned I was sitting at my table with my own coin purse. He sat down across from me. I opened, “Do you know what happened last night?” “Uh, I’m not sure. You were making change?” “Yes”, I replied, “and you had too much to drink. I didn’t want to take advantage of you and I didn’t want anyone else to take advantage of you either. I made a big show making it appear you had loaned me a sum of money so it would appear you were nearly broke. In this way, anyone thinking we had money between us would think I was holding it. They wouldn’t think to come after the drunken owner to steal his money. If they had any ideas they would have come after me thinking I had the money.” Tony scratched his head, “You did?” And I said, “Yes, I did. And further, when we stopped counting our money together, you had given me an extra gold piece, so I want to give you your silver for it.” I held out ten silvers in my palm and continued, “Here they are. Now we are even again and I think I have enough silvers and coppers to do my shopping so we’ll see if I can make change again for you tonight if you care.” “Oh, Bene”, he responded, “You are a saint. I thought you had taken an extra gold piece from me, but in my state I couldn’t be sure. But I wasn’t going to accuse you because I thought you were my friend, and, I was in such a state. My wife said you got me up and out of the tavern just in time before I made a fool of myself. You are a real friend, Bene.” And he cupped his hand and slid the coins into his purse. “From now on”, he said, “you can have all the ale you wish from the Green Hawk, no charge.” I placed my hand on my heart, bowed with my head and replied, “Thank you, sir.”
I need to go see a tailor this morning. My shirt was ruined yesterday and I need another, so I thought I would get two. I also want to see a leather worker in case he might be able to clean these up some more.” And with this I waved at my feet. “What time do you think I may see them? When do they open up?” Tony replied, “Oh they should open about eight as soon as the men head off to work.” I asked, “Really, today, the men will head out to work in the fields today, in this dreary rain?” “Well”, he answered, “Not the field men, but we have many tradesmen that will still go to work.” I asked, “What time do they begin business in the mansion?” Tony answered, “They usually get going early in the mansion. Lord Ballinor demands it.” I replied, “I see. Well then I suppose I’ll clean up a little and head over there and get my business done with the steward first.” I stood up and said, “I’ll head up to my room and clean up. Please keep an eye on my things.” And Tony replied with a hearty, “Yes, sir.”
I went upstairs and cleaned up before returning. I called out, “Tony, I’m headed out. I hope to see you at lunch, OK?” “Oh”, he poked his head around the corner, “I hope so.” And I threw the cloak about my shoulders and grabbed my things and hid them under the cloak to protect them from the rain. I pulled the hood over my head and stepped outside into the street. It was just a nasty day with the puddles and drizzle. At least there was enough stone in the road to keep me from having to trek through mud.
I arrived at the mansion and the guards saluted me and opened the door for me. Becoming a local hero was beginning to suit me. Inside I looked at the guards and one asked if there was something he could do for me? I asked if I could put my things somewhere while I visited with the steward this morning. He said he would have them put somewhere safe while I was with the steward if I would only leave what I wished in that chair”, and he indicated a chair near him. As I began to put my arm load of things in the chair, he motioned for a guard to get a servant, and then he reached up to help me with my cloak. I retrieved my purse and my cloth bag holding my credentials and left everything else in the chair. I looked at the guard and asked if it looked alright to him and he replied he would see to it. I asked, “Is the steward in his office?” The guard replied, “Oh, yes sir, and he is expecting you.” “Thank you.” I walked down the right hand corridor.
Arriving at the steward's offices I stepped in through the open doorway and the scribe stood up. I asked him to announce me to the steward, and he said, “Yes, my lord.” He turned and knocked twice softly and waited. He knocked softly a second time. A muffled voice from inside said, “What is it!?” The scribe opened the door slightly and said, Bene-Timber, Messenger and Emissary of the …” And the reply came in an irritated voice, “Yes, yes, ask him to come in please.” “Please, my lord”, he said to me and opened the door and stepped back so I could pass.
I stepped into the steward’s office and the door closed behind me. Cottern was standing at the window looking out. I waited and he turned and said, “Good morning”, in a voice that showed he was in an ill humor, probably due to more than the rain. “My dear Steward, do you wish …” “No, I don’t wish. I’m in an ill humor as you know but I surely don’t want to return to the formalities of court for this.” And hearing this, I sat down calmly in the chair opposite Cottern’s desk. “What ails you this morning?” I asked. He replied, “Just about everything, and it all involves you in one way or another but it isn’t your fault.” He sat down behind his desk.
Cottern continued, “Those men you killed yesterday will be buried today after the guards have inspected them for signs. I am to get the report from the guards when they are done and send a copy to the Magistrate. The Officer-of-the-Day, Jaffort, is fit to be tied. He and I are almost close enough to be friends. He said he had words with you last night and took his complaint to Lord Martinex. My friend won’t do that again. He has been given an assignment to carry some important correspondence to the Emperor, which really means to the Emperor’s Chamberlain. He doesn’t know it, but he’ll never return to Stonebridge after that. Within that correspondence will be a sealed envelope that he is to be reprimanded for conduct unbecoming of an officer. He is, in effect, delivering his own ‘death warrant’ so to speak.” Cottern turned and looked out the window. He continued talking, “As I said, he is a friend and it isn’t your fault. He was just too stupid to believe a messenger could deliver a message ordering him to do something that important. He thought if it were a valid order of that gravity, the order would have been relayed by someone in uniform. He doesn’t think much of you and he is going to pay dearly for his lack of judgement. Mind you, I never suggested you were someone to disregard. No, no, I told him you were a certified messenger, but he just …”
“Well my friend”, I began, “The Magistrate said I must see you today again. Do you know what that is about?” “Yes, yes”, he replied, “You now have a letter of credit in this settlement, which will permit you to buy some things after yesterday’s events ruined your clothes. It is for quite a sum. The magistrate doesn’t want to give you the coin because he doesn’t want you to be robbed, but you have a letter of credit for 20 gold pieces you may spend in the town and the merchants may make a claim upon producing a note from you concerning your purchases. Do you understand?” “Yes, I guess. How will I certify these transactions?” “You know how to write, so you need only write out a note and place this seal on the bottom of the note. They bring the note to me and I pay them for their services after deducting any taxes they may owe.” And he reached into his desk drawer and pulled out a couple seals, selected one, and handed it to me in a soft cloth bag of red fabric. He looked me in the eye and said, “Please don’t lose this. It is yours. You need not bring it back to me but if you lose it the Magistrate will be bound to pay off debts until you sort out the matter with me and the Magistrate. Neither of us wants that.” I nodded my head and said, “Oh, I understand. Twenty gold pieces, you say?” “Yes”, he replied, “He can be most generous. I believe he sees something special in you.”
“Is there anything else?” I asked. “No, he wanted you to be able to replace your shirt, maybe buy a dinner vest. He fancies Andante’s choice of dinner vest when he comes and plays for us. I believe he hopes you will follow Andante’s example. And he imagined you could use some more coin to finish outfitting yourself for the service. He noticed you wore essentially the same clothes both evenings you’ve been here, and he knows you would be uncomfortable if folks noticed.” “Well”, I replied, “The Magistrate is very gracious and very kind. I shall invest the money in my future as he suggests. Please thank him for me. If that is all, I better attend to it.” And I stood up. He stopped me. “Just a moment. Let me register your seal.” He held out his hand, and I paused and realized he was asking for my credentials folder once again. He turned to the page with his earlier remarks, which had empty space. I handed him me seal and he moved his candle over to the middle of his desk. He picked up some sealing wax and dripped it onto the page and quickly used the seal to make an impression in the wax. He replaced the seal into the bag and handed it to me. After a pause he lifted the credentials folder and inspected the image. He closed the folder and handed it to me. “There”, he said, “Now you’re all set.” I asked, “You don’t need an impression of the seal for your records?” He replied, “No I took care of that earlier. You are certified and registered, Bene-Timber. Enjoy your day.” And he raised his hand toward the door. I replaced my credentials into the cloth bag and slipped the seal into a pouch on my belt. I turned and headed for the door. I grabbed the handle and walked outside. The scribe stood up and I said to him, “Good day.” And he replied, “Good day, my lord.”
I headed down the hallway and met the soldier that took charge of my things. I asked him to let the governor know I would like to know what was found when the bodies were searched if it pleased the governor. And he said, “Yes, my lord. Would you like your cloak and things, my lord?” “Yes, thank you. Can you tell me where the tailor is, and a leather worker? I have need of some help.” He first motioned to another guard and then turned back to speak with me, “The tailor is the first home on the road that leads down the left-hand side of the park as you leave the mansion. Directly behind the tailor’s home is the tinkerer’s shop and across the street from the tinkerer is the leather workers shop. You’ll probably smell that from a distance.” I nodded with a grin, “Yes, I might at that.” Leather workers had to deal with all manner of disagreeable solutions to tan and color their leather goods. My things arrived and the guard helped me with the cloak, and the other guard handed me my armor and other things. I turned and went outside.
On the mansion’s porch I looked around. I nodded to a guard and asked if the tailor’s house were over that way, indicating the direction I thought the guard inside had given me, and the guard confirmed it. I asked if the leather worker’s shop could be found over there, and I pointed in that general direction. He confirmed I was pointing in about the right direction. I thanked him and stepped into the mist.
The tailor was only a short distance away but I was going to see someone in their home and not a shop. I hoped I wasn’t intruding on their rainy day. I knocked on the door and I heard foot steps inside approach the door. The door opened a crack and an eye peered out. The eyebrow jumped up and the door opened a foot or so. A young lady stared and said, “Yes, my lord. What may I do for you, my lord?” I replied with a smile, “I am here to see the tailor on this dreary day. May I come in or should I come back at a later time?” There was a slight pause and the door flew open. “No, no, my lord. Please come in from the rain. Please.” And she stepped back. I stepped inside and out of the way of the door and she closed it behind me. It was dim inside but I could see well enough. The home was small but well cared for. It was cleanly swept and smelled of breakfast. I was standing in the corner of the great room with a fire place on my right and a crudely made stairway in front of me. Two large chairs were set on opposite sides of the fireplace with a small table between them only knee high. A large table was set somewhat sheltered by the stairway. A carpet of woven fibers was set through the middle of the room. A fire crackled in the fireplace and that was the only light in the room. In one corner there was a straight wooden chair, a table and some fabric. Some metal implements were set out on the table.
I turned and bowed to the young lady and said, “I am Bene-Timber, messenger and emissary to the Emperor. I suffered some misfortune yesterday and I need the assistance of the tailor if he is available.” She replied, “No, my lord, my husband is not a tailor, but a tinkerer. He makes small things and devices. It is almost like magic what he can do.” And I replied, “Oh, my apologies. I have the wrong house, my lady. If you could direct me please to the tailor, I will be on my way.” And she laughed a little nervous laugh, “No my lord, I must apologize. I am the tailor you are looking for. I am the only tailor that accepts money. The other ladies only do repairs for their families. I am the one you seek. What is it that my lord wishes?” I asked if I could set my things down and remove my cloak for it was too warm indoors to manage it any longer.
I showed her my sorry state; walking about town in my padded under garment and dirty trousers. I asked her if she could make me some clothes since my other shirt was ruined the day before. She said, “Of course.” I said I wished her to make two dress shirts, two ‘street shirts’, a dinner vest, a day vest and a coat so I might not have to wear my cloak all the time. I also asked if she could make a collared hood that I might wear on days like this where the rain is coming down but not so hard and two pair of cloth pants. She replied that she could make all these things, but it would take some time. She also said that some of the things I wanted might be already available in the town’s dry good shop.
I thought for a moment and asked if she could begin with a dress shirt, a street shirt and a pair of cloth pants, so I would have one clean outfit I might wear to dinner. She asked that I step over to the middle of the room so she could measure me out. She produced a diagram of a body; front, back and side view, and set it on the table. She also produced a quill pen and an ink well. She took hold of a measuring cloth and asked me stand up straight. Then she looked down and said, “My lord, you shall have to remove your boots for this.” I looked down and saw my boots and thought where should I sit down to remove them? I sat down on the straight-backed chair and removed my boots, and stood back up. She measured my height to my knee, my waist, my crotch (rather embarrassing for both of us), my wrist, my elbow, my shoulder, my collar and to the top of my head, pausing to write each number down on her diagram. She then asked that I extend my right arm fully and she measured from the center of my back to the start of my arm, to my elbow, and to my wrist. Then she wrapped the measuring cloth around my chest and then around my waist and told me I could lower my arm. She measured around my upper arm, around my forearm, my upper leg and my shin. Finally, she measured me around the neck and around the head at the hairline. All these numbers she wrote down. She invited me to sit down and she examined the diagram to verify she had not accidentally copied the numbers improperly. Satisfied, she wrote my name at the top of the page. Then she set the page down and asked again what I would like and what I would like first.
I replied, “Why I must apologize again, for I did not call you by your name, did I, Isabell?” And she blushed a little and flattened her skirts and stepped over squarely in front of me and put her hands behind her back. “Oh no, my lord. There is no need for my lord to treat me with such kindness.” And I continued, “I need one dress shirt and a street shirt, and one pair of cloth pants as quickly as you can manage, please.” “After that I need a second dress shirt, street shirt, and pair of cloth pants, as well as a day vest, a dinner vest, a coat and a collared hood. I would also like a cloth bag the size of a message bag, for carrying things about when I shop in town. She wrote these things on the back of the page with my measurements. Isabell asked me, “What color do you wish these garments to be?” I responded, “Well, I’m not too particular about color as I am about fabrics. Can you show me the fabrics you have that I might have some of these things straight away?” She replied, “Of course, my lord.”
As she stepped to her fabrics I said, “All four shirts I would like to be bright white if you have the right fabric.” She produced a bolt of white fabric. “Would my lord want the street shirts to be made from this?” I rubbed the fabric between my fingers and thought it was well made and thick enough so I replied, “Yes, that will do nicely.” So she set that bolt down by itself, and she fingered through some more and produced a second bolt of white fabric. “Would this do for my lord for the dress shirts?” And again, I inspected the cloth and replied, “Why yes, that is exactly what I want.” And she set that bolt aside. “And what color for the dress pants, my lord?” I asked if she had some dark blue fabric I could see. She found what she was looking for and I inspected it. I asked if she had something almost bright red and she located some of that. I inspected it and said, “Please make the first pair from this red and the second pair from that dark blue.” And she set those aside and said, “Yes, my lord.” She asked what I wanted for the dress vest, and I asked that she make it from the same red fabric. And she wrote a note to herself. And she asked about the day vest, and I asked to see some green fabric. The first was too bright. The second was a good color, but didn’t look robust enough for me. She produced another bolt of green and I said I liked the other color better. She offered to make the vest with a dark lining that would give it more substance, and I said, “Yes, I think that will do. Do you have a dark brown for that?” She replied, looking at her cloth stack, “Yes, right here.” And she wrote down some more notes.
She then continued, “My lord, I do not want you to have to wait unnecessarily for these things. I believe you will find the bag and collared hood at the dry goods shop. If you do not like what you find there, please feel free to pay me another visit.” I stood and thanked her, and she blushed again and smoothed her skirts.
“Now about the payment”, I began, “how much would you charge a local merchant to make these things, Isabell?” And she thought, “I would want two gold pieces for each piece of dress clothing, one gold piece for the street shirts and day vest, each, oh, and then there is the coat. We didn’t discuss the coat.” I responded, “Let’s not bother with the coat right now. How much would you charge a member of the court for these things?” She cleared her throat, “My lord, I don’t know what you mean by that question. I would, of course, expect the same thing for most of them although I would charge the Magistrate less for the notoriety of being his tailor.” “And what premium would you like for putting me at the top of your list, ahead of your other customers, and getting this done right away, Isabell?” “Oh, my lord”, she blushed, “I heard what you did for the town, yesterday. I should be glad to help you in my own way, to recover from the indignity of being soiled by their awful blood. I believe my current customers also would understand.” I replied, “Well then, you leave me to guess. I have been given a letter of credit. I am authorized to spend the Magistrate’s money with my seal and my signature. I trust you are familiar with the process, are you not?” “Yes, my lord. I am.” “But the steward informed me there are some taxes involved?” She replied, “Yes, my lord.” I continued, “I consider myself a fair man and a loyal servant to the Emperor. I don’t believe the town needs to tax your premium for this favor, for that is really just an agreement between friends, right Isabell?” “Well”, she answered, “I suppose so, my lord. That sounds right to me when you put it that way.” “I propose that I pay you up front”, I continued, “for the fabric and half for the work, and pay the remainder when I receive the goods. How does that sound to you?” “My lord”, she began, “you would pay me up front even without a garment?” “Yes”, I replied. “You should not be in debt for taking this commission, should you?” Isabell said, “Its just, my lord, nobody pays me up front.” “Well, I should like to set a new standard, for the fair-minded folks, to treat each other this way.” And she curtsied and answered, “Yes, my lord.”
“So let me see, two-times-six and ten more makes twenty-two, I believe. Two-thirds would be fourteen, fifteen. I’ll offer you fifteen gold pieces on my letter of credit for nine garments, and I will pay you five silvers in coin for each piece when I pick them up, and another twenty-five silvers when I pick up the last piece. Is that suitable?” And she thought for a moment, “That’s, uh, hmm, … oh that would be fine, my lord.” So I asked her for a piece of paper that we might write down our credit slip and she produced a smaller size piece of writing paper. Clearly, she didn’t want to waste paper. I wrote, To Isabell the tailor, I extend fifteen gold pieces on my letter of credit in Stonebridge for nine garments including two pair of dress pants, two white dress shirts, two white street shirts, one green day vest, one red dinner vest and one coat – Bene Timber, messenger and emissary to the Emperor [sealed]. And I applied my seal on the paper and dated in underneath. And I handed her the note and she curtsied. I concluded, “Thank you Isabell, but I must leave and attend to other matters. I will be going to the leather workers shop and the dry goods shop. I would ask that you show your husband this note and then have him come speak to me. I wish to assure him your virtue has not been compromised in this matter to convince me to give you payment up front. Do you understand?” She replied, “Yes, yes, my lord. I shall ask him to come see you.”
And I gathered up my things, put on my cloak and headed out to the leather worker’s shop. I walked past the tinkerer’s shop, crossed the street, and before I opened the door, I knew I was entering a leather worker’s shop. I stepped inside and pulled the hood back on my cloak. As my eyes adjusted to the dim light I found the lone workman sitting at his workbench. He was fussing over a large piece of hide doing something I knew not. He called to me, “Good morning my musical friend. I am Gordon and I have been at the tavern already to hear you play. I heard about your adventure from the gossip and then I enjoyed your story, er, ballad last night. What may I do for the hero of the Pine Mill Road?” “Well”, I replied, “good morning to you my friend, Gordon you say? I need a little help to clean up my leather things after the fight and I was hoping I might purchase a few things while I am here. May I set my things somewhere?” Gordon stood up and said, “Yes, of course. Please just place your things on that table by the door.”
So I turned and laid my leather armor down and a few other things I carried beside the armor, and then I unfastened my belt and set the pouches aside, and then lifted off my baldric and removed my rapier and scabbard. I slipped my dagger and scabbard out of the frog and set it aside. Gordon walked over to see what I had for him. I began by showing him by belt and baldric and asked if he could clean them up and put another coat of polish on them. Next I showed him my leather armor and asked if he could clean that up as well. He nodded while I spoke of the belts but he didn’t nod when I spoke of the armor. He responded, “You should take this to see the armorer, er, the armor smith. His shop is over by the soldiers stable.” I replied, “Oh, you have an armorer in this town? I would have thought a town this size couldn’t support an armorer.” “Oh, we have an armorer because many soldiers are sent through here. He is quite capable but very busy.” “Well, thank you for that. And you think I should bother him with this armor rather than have you manage it?” He replied, “I can certainly clean it up but I can’t make any adjustments without conferring with him.” “Well”, I replied, “Tell me how much you would want to clean it up in two days time? I am on a tight schedule to visit the hamlets and I could be called away in as little as two or three days.” Gordon thought, “Well, I could clean her up for you for five silvers and one more for the belt and another for the baldric. But I’m just going to scrub ‘er off and apply some polish to cover up as much of the blood as I can. You know many of the adventurer folks like a good blood-stained armor cuirass. You want this cleaned up, huh?” I answered, “Oh yes, I do. And how about these boots and pants? Could you clean them up?” Gordon replied, “Well mostly I can just polish over the blood on your boots, but the pants, well, uh, nobody polishes their pants.”
“Is there anything else I could do for you m’lord?” And I replied, “Yes, I would like a pair of large saddle bags and a leather bucket. How long would it take to make those?” He thought a moment and replied, “I think I could make a bucket in a day or two, but you can go over to Moses’ shop and buy a pair of saddle bags right now if you’re in a hurry.” I replied, “I need these saddle bags to have a service emblem on them. You’ll need to make them.” And he smiled and said, “Oh no, you just buy them and bring them over here. I’ll add the emblem for you. I made the bags he’s selling over there. I can fix ‘em up any way you like.” “Oh, I should have figured that out. Of course they are yours, or you made them anyway.” He continued, “I tell you what. I’ll get to work on the bucket. After you’ve seen the armorer you come back and tell me if you still need me to clean those things up for ya.” I replied, “Very well. Thank you, Gordon.” “Thank you, m’lord.” He said. I put my cloak back on and picked up my things ready to head next door.
Out in the street again I just needed to go next door. I knew this was a goods shop because of the sign but the outside of the building looked like a fortress. There were no windows on the first floor. There was only a great wood door with iron fittings and a heavy handle. There was a chair sitting outside the door protected from the rain and a small table. I wondered at this as I knocked on the door, for due to its size it was not inviting. After knocking I tried the handle and it was open. I pushed the door and walked inside.
My eyes adjusted quickly inside this shop for there were several candles providing light within. I saw a young man approaching with a big smile on his face and extending his hand to me. I smiled back and took his hand firmly and said, “Good day, friend. I am …” He cut me off, “Bene-Timber, Bene-Timber, I know. The hero of the Pine Mill Road. I’m very glad to see you wish to visit my establishment. There is no finer collection of dry goods for a days travel in any direction my friend. What may I do for my lord, Bene-Timber, today?” I paused, for this fellow knew how to speak to a man to obtain his confidence. Was this natural or was he trained for it? I cleared my throat and said, “I need a few supplies and I would like to know what you normally stock. As you may know, I must travel extensively. I must carry everything I need. But if I may fill me supply of candles or ground meal at Stonebridge, I should not have to carry more to get here. This is important to me and could earn you a regular customer.” “Oh, well”, he responded, “please have a seat at this table so we may talk about that. May I bring you some water? Bread and cheese, perhaps?” I stepped to the table and said, “Why that would be very nice, thank you.” And I sat down and he retrieved a pair of mugs with clear water and then returned a second time with a plate of bread and cheese. He set the plate with a knife and the table between us and sat down himself.
“My lord, I can see you are in the service and not for very long, yet. I am sure you have need of many things. I would be very pleased to provide for you anything I can and more if you would only tell me what you want.” This fellow was very, very good at warming up another. I could see that I must pay attention to everything he says or I may agree to almost anything just to make him happy. He is quite a charmer. “Moses, right, your name is Moses?” And he smiled and lifted his hand palm upwards, “At your service, my lord.” I continued, “I bloodied my good shirt, armor, boots and breaches yesterday in that awful incident. Today I am trying to replace those things I can not clean and clean anything I can. In my work I must make a good impression on everyone I meet and they will not be very good if I look like a butcher that hasn’t cleaned himself up from a days hard work.” “Yes”, he replied, “I can see how that is important for a man such as yourself. How may I help, my lord?” “I am replacing and adding to my wardrobe this morning so I will not be caught in such a pickle again. Toward that end I need a small trunk to pack my clothes in so they may travel well.” He smiled a great smile and said, “My lord, I have several trunks for you to see. You may take your pick of the lot, please.” And he waved a hand toward the back of his shop.
“I also need a few more candles, a lamp and oil. I find that I am not accustomed to living on the road where I must record my observations in the evening and the provincials are very thrifty and use few candles. I don’t wish to be a burden but needing more light to read and write by, I would like to purchase candles and a lamp.” He waved his hand again, “And we have lamps, candles and oil for you here, my lord. Is there anything else?” I paused, “The seamstress I spoke with this morning, Isabell, said you could show me a collard hood and a cloth bag the size of a messenger case.” “Yes, of course, she has made a few of these for me to sell for her. Isabell is a nice lady and I am happy to assist her and your lordship if I can. I can show you a few to try on if you like, my lord.” “Do you have any finished leather pouches and saddlebags?” He replied, “Yes, my lord. Gordon has left a few with me to sell for him.” I concluded with “Other than that I should like to know what else you carry so I may know what you have when I plan a trip through this area in the future.” And he showed my about the shop the things he sold and we picked out the things I named. I put the things in the small trunk I purchased. Then he told me why his shop was made like a fortress.
It seems his father was also a successful merchant. But one day adventurers came to buy supplies and noticed a particular sword his father had to sell. One of them became obsessed with it and had to have it. They didn’t have enough to buy it and when his father refused to either give it up for what they could pay or to hold it until they returned, one of them killed him for the sword. At that point they realized they were in a spot they could not turn back from, so they robbed the place of all the expensive things they could find. Because of their avarice, the authorities were able to track them down, following the trail of unusual expensive items they sold to finance their escape. Not only did they leave a trail to follow, but the descriptions of the band became more and more complete until they could not hide anywhere men lived. Even though every last one of them paid for the crime with their lives, the family was not the same. His brother took over the shop and nursed it back to a healthy financial state, Gordon could not bear to stay. Once he knew his mother was in the good care of his brother, Gordon struck out on his own. And he came to set up a shop in this little town. And when he did he developed a system to protect his investment and his life. It turned out the shop was made so that nobody could leave unless they were let out by the owner. He kept a special key and other means of securing the door. Everyone was told that they could not escape if they robbed the shop so nobody ever tried. He was working very closely with the Magistrate to keep the few weapons he sold safe. The Magistrate didn’t want these to be stolen and released into the country where bandits might become armed enough to pose a serious threat to his interest.
So I collected my things and walked back over to the leather worker and asked that he add the service glyph to the saddlebags. I told him I would be back later for them but needed to see the armorer. And I went to see the armorer in his shop past the mansion, but first decided to stop in to the Green Hawk for lunch and drop off a few things.
“Welcome back”, Tony said, as he peeked out from around the corner when he heard me come in. I called back to him, “I’d like some lunch. I need to take these things upstairs and I’ll be right back down.” And so I took my trunk full of things upstairs and set the trunk on the bench in my room. I got my clothes out and folded the clean clothes and placed them in the trunk and everything else I put in the basket. I took some of the other items and placed them in the dresser drawers to tidy up my room. I placed the lamp on the table and placed all of Tony’s candles in the drawer of the bedside table. I took my purse, by belt and baldric, rapier and dagger, my dirty leather armor and my cloak back downstairs after locking my room.
Down in the tavern I set my things on a table and stood by the fire and warmed myself. It was still a dreary day outside although the rain had stopped. As I waited a young fellow came into the tavern from the street. He walked over to me and introduced himself, “I am Renlamay, the tinkerer. And I presume you are the hero, Bene-Timber. My wife, Isabell, said I should find you because you needed to speak to me.” I looked him in the eye and said, “Do you know why I asked to speak to you?” And he replied, “My wife said you gave her an advance and you wanted to discuss it.” I said, “Yes, yes I do. Would you please have a seat at this table?” And I indicate the table I use to eat my breakfast near the fire. He sat down and I stepped over to call into the kitchen. “Tony, could you bring two mugs of tea for us? Thank you.”
I sat down and asked him how long he had been living in Stonebridge and other small talk until the tea was delivered. Tony said, “Your lunch is coming out in a moment.” And I replied, “Not just yet. I must speak with Renlamay first.” I sipped my tea and it was good. I started, “Your wife told you I stopped by to ask her to make some clothes for me? And she told you what price we agreed upon? And you know these prices are generous? And you know that I was given a letter of credit to pay for some new clothes?” He nodded to each of these things. I went on. “If I used the whole letter of credit to pay for these things, your family would have paid the full tax for doing this for me. But I have chosen to ask your family only to accept partial payment from the letter of credit. The rest will be paid by me in coin. In this way, your family will benefit from the deal. Do you see that?” He nodded and said, “Yes, I do.” I continued again, “I also wanted to help you by paying for the cloth and consumed items like the thread and hooks so you would not be out that cost until the finished product was made. I did this for your benefit, but it was no great risk for me. You see, because I used the letter of credit I have a written contract that your wife must redeem to collect your money. The contract itself is my surety that the goods will be delivered. Do you see this?” He nodded and said, “Oh, I see. OK.” I continued, “So I hope you see that although I paid your wife in advance I did not need anything from her by way of thanks for doing so. Although you received a special deal from me, she was not expected to give me a special deal in return, except that I asked she put me at the head of her list, which she told me was no bother. I feared that because your wife, Isabell, is young and attractive, and I am now a ‘figure’ in this town as a result of yesterday’s excitement, I assure you I did not take advantage of that or your wife. So this is why I wanted to speak with you.” And he thought for a moment. He looked me in the eye and said, “Thank you, my lord. Although I trust my wife and love her dearly, I may have wondered if her story were true until you carefully laid it out for me to see. I am sure she will deliver your goods on time and you will be pleased with the work.” And he scooted his chair back and stood up. I stood up as well and we shook hands. I said, “I hope so because I may wish to have more clothes made here in Stonebridge before I am done. Good day. I’m sure you want to go enjoy your lunch at home now.” And we shook hands and he put on his hat and left.
I sat down and a moment later Tony brought my lunch and refilled my mug of tea. I ate my lunch and thought about the day before again, and the glint of light I caught from Finlock when he questioned me. I was going to have a good look at him sometime today. I also wondered why I had not yet heard about the inspections. I finished my lunch and Tony came and cleared the table. I told him I had more to do visiting the shopkeepers. And he said, “Good luck.” I told him that we should have a good night in the tavern because of the rain today. Many men will want to gather here tonight so he should be ready. He responded, “You’re right about that. We always do more business on a slow day in the fields. I shall make sure we’re ready for a big crowd.” And with that I put on my cloak and gathered my things to go see the armorer.
After a walk past the mansion, I stopped in a moment to see Ben. I gave him two coppers and asked him to give my horse an apple. Next I walked back and patted my horse on the neck and talked quietly with him so he would remember me, and then I continued on to the armorer. Arriving at the building that had to be the armorer’s shop I knocked on the door, waited for two counts and then reached out for the door knob. I tried it and the door was open so I opened the door and stepped inside. The light of the afternoon was better with the clouds thinning so I could see normally inside.
The armorer was looking over some stock in the back and turned around as he heard me enter. He was a thick man, balding, not tall, with thick arms and rough hands. He stepped closer and I bowed at the waist and said, “Good day, sir. I am Bene-Timber, musician and messenger, traveler from the east.” I extended my hand and he took it responding, “Good day, but not for the weather. You are the hero of the Pine Mill Road I have heard about.” And he released my hand. He continued, “What may I do for my lord today?” I looked about and selected a table and asked if I could set my things down, and he agreed. I said, “Unfortunately those bandits had no manners and as I was teaching them what the consequences of their behavior might be, they were so inconsiderate as to bleed, heavily mind you, bleed all over my clothing and armor. Now I can not wear this armor nor my adventuring breaches and boots in town for their ragged appearance. I hope you could help me address this awful state of my things.” He laughed, “Yes, that is rich it is. Yes, those bandits can be tiresome bleeding on everything like they do. My lord, you have come to the right place, and the wrong place. I could do a bit of cleaning on your things but not so good as our friends across the road. We need to ask Jacob to come over here, if he is available. Unfortunately, it is near mid-day and he is likely returning from one of the nearby hamlets. He may be here in three hours or so, maybe later. Why he could cast a spell and clean your things up like that.” And he snapped his knarred fingers in the air. I replied, “Well now, why didn’t I think of that myself. Why I am stunned that I should be so forgetful. Thank you, thank you, my friend, uh, your name sir?” He reflexively held out his hand again, “Sorry, I am George Smith. They call me Smith because that is my profession as an armor Smith.” I shook his hand again. “Well”, I continued, “that brings me to my next request. I need a set of studded leather armor made for me. How much would that cost and when would you be able to complete such a work?” He looked me over and replied, “You appear to have a typical build for a half-elf, so I don’t anticipate any surprises. We typically require seventy-five gold pieces for that. You see there is a lot of work to be done, fitting and shaping the splints, and the materials cost coin. Would you want it to be strictly functional or did you have any cosmetic, er, uh, ornaments added?” I responded, “That is a good question, which I shall get to in a moment.” And he cut me off, “But my lord, I would need to know to give you the right price and estimate, if I may beg your pardon.” I responded, “I understand. Well, I want this to be a utility set of armor, for now, and I may wish it to have some ornaments added later, if that makes a difference today.” And George replied, “No sir, as long as you want it straight today, that is all I would need to know. It takes me many hours to make a set of studded leather, but I have orders to fill already, mostly with the sanction of the Magistrate. I would have to work your suit in here and there. I think it would take me a month, I am afraid.”
“So”, I replied, “a month and seventy-five gold pieces? What if I got the Magistrate to sanction my armor as a priority?” He responded quickly, “If you were to stop by each day for fitting, I would have it done in a week, my lord.” I replied, “A week would be great, but I can’t promise every day for a fitting. We shall have to see. And how much do you need up front to acquire the materials?” He turned and looked at his stock saying, “I think I have most of the stock here already.” And he turned back to face me saying, “Up front, my lord? Ahead of the order? I’m not accustomed to being given money up front, my lord.” I replied, “Well, I have a letter of credit, a gift of the Magistrate, that I would like to use. You are familiar with the process, are you not?” “Yes”, George said, “Yes, my lord, I am familiar with it.” I continued, “I shall pay you with five gold pieces using my letter of credit, and I shall pay you five gold pieces each time I visit for a fitting to compensate you for your diligence, and then I shall pay you, uh, let’s see, the thirty-five gold pieces remaining when it is complete. What do you say to that?” George’s face broke out into a big smile. He extended his hand and said, “Why, my lord is most generous. I only wish my lord’s good will were as contagious as, well, uh, I wish it were contagious. I have not been treated so well in all my days. Bless you my lord.” We shook hands vigorously. He said, “Pardon my lord.” And George turned and stepped back into his shop and out a small door at the rear. He returned in a moment and closed the door behind him and walked over to speak with me again. “Sorry my lord. I asked my apprentice, young Fred, to run, mind you, run over to the Temple and see if a cleric might come over at once, my lord. Maybe someone can clean up your leathers straight away.”
And with that he looked about and produced a small piece of paper, ink and a quill. I took it and I wrote, To George Smith, I extend five gold pieces on my letter of credit in Stonebridge for one suit of studded leather armor, including faulds, pauldrons and gauntlets. The balance shall be paid upon delivery. – Bene Timber, messenger and emissary to the Emperor [sealed]. And I applied my seal on the paper and dated it underneath. And I handed her the note and he bowed at the waist and thanked me again for the advance.
I then revisited the comment about decorations and ornaments. I said, “George, since I hope, with the Magistrates endorsement, to have the studded leather armor soon, I would like some ornaments to be added to this armor”, and I motioned toward my bloodied leather armor, “once it is cleaned.” George looked and picked up the leather armor holding it so it hung full and set it upright on the table so it stood by itself. He asked, “What does my lord wish to do?” I paused and said, “Well, once I have the studded armor, I hope this could become a ceremonial garment. I have only the faulds to match it. What sort of things have you seen? I was thinking of a red piece here and here, and the faulds being dyed in varying light to dark shades of red as well.” George considered this and said, “We can add red pieces but I may as well make new pieces and swap them for the pieces you have now. If I try to dye these pieces red over the brown you have now it will only look dirty red, never a cheerful red. If I were to just make new pieces they would have the true color you want. I could trade out the pieces and keep the other pieces for another set later, so there wouldn’t be any charge for that.” I replied, “Well George, I can see you know your craft well. I will have the faulds brought over and we can do it as you describe. How much will I owe you for that and when do you think you can have it done?” “Well”, he began, “I could have that done in two days. I’d have to measure the pieces and cut them. Then I’d have to dye them, which takes a day and then the next day I could fit it all together. I’ll have to give Gordon the dye job so he will need three silvers, and I’ll have to buy leather from Gordon, probably six silvers for the leather, and then there is the work and the sewing, I’d like two gold pieces for the ornament work, my lord.” I extended my hand and said, “Very well. And will that delay my studded leather, George?” He replied, “Oh, no sir, er, my lord, it shouldn’t. But I do need to know the Magistrate is agreeable to have the studded leather made, my lord.” And we shook hands. “Yes”, I replied, “I’ll see to that.”
And there was a knock on the door and it opened. A boy came inside with a cleric following and George stiffened up. I recognized the cleric as Thomas Quintus, and stood erect myself. I said, “Good day, my lord. How may I serve you this afternoon?” And I bowed at the waist removing my hat. Thomas Quintus waved his hand at us, “Relax, please. Bene, I hope that I may call you Bene, I have come to clean up your armor. I am very thankful that you saved the goods we were sending to Pine Mill and I believe you also saved the life of my servant, Joseph, so I thought I could come over here, a short walk, and do this small favor for you.” And he stood between us and looked at my armor, lifted his hand and spoke a word in a whisper and my armor faded into perfection without a trace of blood. And I smiled. And he turned a little more towards me and made the same gesture and my breaches faded into perfect cleanliness. And he repeated the feat on my boots. And I smiled and thanked him. And he asked what I was up to this afternoon. I replied, “I am taking advantage of the awful weather to get some things done around town and meet the citizenry. I was going to come see someone in the Temple next. Did anything come of the action that started last night?” “No”, he replied, “nothing came of that. But it was a wise endeavor none-the-less.” I replied, “I see. I believe I must visit the Magistrate about another matter. May I impose on your lordship to walk over to the mansion with me?” Thomas Quintus said, “Of course, of course.” And I said, “If my lordship could allow me just a moment.” And he nodded. I turned to George, and thanked him again for his help. I told him I would return the next day assuming the Magistrate could permit it and I would pay for the adjustments to my armor when I picked it up. I turned to the head cleric and said, “After you, my lord.” And we went to the door.
Out in the street it was becoming lighter all the time. As we walked I said, “My lord, I need to take a close look at the Court Mage, Finlock. I think he may be wearing something that may shed some light on his affairs and loyalties, but I do not wish for him to be aware that I am making an inspection of him. I also need to speak to the magistrate about another matter of a personal nature and that would be a good time to suggest an excuse be made to permit me to give Finlock a good look.” He replied, “This all sounds so mysterious.” I continued, “If I find something, what I expect to find, then I shall want to report back to the Magistrate, and I believe he will want you and Lord Ballinor to know of it as well.” And Thomas Quintus said, “Well then let’s see what the Magistrate says. I am sure he will see you if I have endorsed the meeting, but I shall have to go in and see him alone first.” And I replied, “Yes, my lord, I understand. I hate to be a bother, but if I went through Cottern I don’t think I would see Lord Martinex until after dinner.” “Yes”, he said, “I believe you are right.” And we stepped up onto the porch and into the mansion.
When we stepped inside, I removed my hat and only then realized I was wearing practically rags with my padded armor under garment. I said in a bit of a panic, “My goodness, I can’t see him like this. And unless I go back and get …” Thomas Quintus stopped me, “His lordship will not bother about that after I have spoken with him.” He led me down the right hallway, the one that went by Cottern’s office. We stopped in the Steward’s outer office and Thomas Quintus waved the scribe to remain seated. He tapped on Cottern’s office door, reached and opened it at once, poked his head in and asked, “Is the Magistrate busy at the moment? Good. I must speak with him. Send word to the Court Mage to come at once. Thank you.” And he pulled his head out of the doorway and closed the door. He nodded his head toward me and I turned to leave. Thomas Quintus looked at the scribe, put his fingers to his lips, pointed to me, and then winked at the scribe. The scribe got a grin on his face and nodded in reply. He slowly stood up as we disappeared into the corridor. I heard the door to Cottern’s office open up and he said, “Go tell the Court Mage the Magistrate wishes to see him at once.” And I heard the door close.
We continued walking down the corridor and through a door on the left. We walked up a stair and there was another corridor. We took a few more steps and stopped at a door on the right. He turned and said softly, “Wait here a moment.” And he knocked softly and went straight in. A moment later the door ahead and to my right opened and Thomas poked his head into the hallway saying, “Bene, come on in, here.” I stepped forward and through the doorway and closed the door behind me. The Magistrate was seated at a desk in a well-appointed room. There were two large comfortable chairs on this side of the desk, a carpet covering half of the floor through the middle of the room, book cases covering the walls on the left and the right sides, two large windows at the rear of the room with draperies and carved wooden paneling on all the exposed walls with chair rail and crown moulding. Thomas Quintus was standing at one of the empty chairs before the Magistrate and beckoned me to step forward. I approached Lord Balllinor seated at his desk, bowed and said, “My Lord, Bene-Timber, to …” He cut me off, saying, “Please be seated, both of you.”
He continued, “Now Thomas says you needed to speak with me.” I began, “Yes, my lord. First, I have a request that your lordship would indulge me. After yesterday’s events I have come to realize I will be in some danger often, well, pardon my lord, but more often than I anticipated. It may not be so dangerous a prospect for your lordship, but for me, well until it happens, you just don’t think about it. So I realized that I should take more appropriate”, and I paused, “precautions to avoid being harmed.” I paused again and said, “Well, I have just commissioned the armorer to make a set of studded leather armor for me, to afford more protection than the leather armor, oh forgive my appearance, my lord, the leather armor, well I could do better my lord. The armorer informed me he was quite busy fulfilling orders your lordship had placed earlier, and it would be some time …” And he held up his hand and I stopped speaking. He cleared his throat. “How long until he can get to your order?” I replied, “He said a month, my lord.” Lord Ballinor continued, “And how long if he neglects my orders?” I was very worried that he said “neglects” but I answered, “He said he could finish my new armor in a week after he is able to begin working on it, my lord.” Lord Ballinor waved his hand dismissively, “A week will not cause me any concern. Tell him I like your music and I want you to stay alive. If I thought you couldn’t even pay for it, I might even offer to loan you the money. By the way, why don’t you have your lute with you?” I brightened up immediately, “Your lordship is most kind. I was concerned that carrying my lute around in the rain could damage it. I left it in my room at the Green Hawk, my lord.” He smiled and turned to face Thomas Quintus, “Well that was probably very wise. We have no artisans about to work on lutes, I fear. Thomas says you have something else for me?”
“Yes, my lord”, I continued. “I was thinking over carefully the events of last evening and I realized that the Court Mage, Finlock, was wearing something about his neck or on his tunic that glinted in the light. It appears to be a broach or pendent of precious metal or precious stone that he values. If I were to see it, my knowledge of history, legends and lore may allow me to determine what motivates the Court Mage. This may be invaluable to determining whether Finlock may be trusted in Stonebridge, my lord.” And he replied, “So you need a good look at his pendent? Well let’s hope it is so precious to him he has it on his person right now. Thomas says he has already sent for Finlock so let’s see.” I added, “My lord, if we could make some small ruse about my visit so that he is unaware that I am inspecting him, it may help later.” He responded, “Yes, yes, I see. When he enters I will make a show of being annoyed that you requested your armor be made at once. I will stop speaking about it and ask Finlock to step over here and ask him something unrelated and then dismiss him. I will then dismiss you rather abruptly so he thinks this entire visit is about your armor.” I said, “Yes, my lord, I believe that would be prefect.” And there was a knock at the door.
The Magistrate stood up and motioned for Thomas Quintus to open the door. As he did so, the Magistrate began saying to me, “You want me to hold up an entire month’s order so you can get some armor? You can’t just make do with the armor you have? For bandits? You weren’t even harmed, for heaven’s sake.” And he stopped abruptly and motioned for Thomas Quintus and Finlock to step over to the desk. “Bandits! Finlock”, and he paused and quieted down, “Finlock, do you have any magic items being shipped to or from the capitol at present?” And with that, he walked around the desk on my side and slowly circled around to my left causing Finlock to slowly turn his body to face him giving my an ideal opportunity to see him from every angle. And Finlock replied, “No my lord. Nothing I know of is going either way, my lord.” The magistrate stopped, paused and replied, “Good. At least I don’t have to fret over bandits getting into those.” He stepped around to his side of the desk and Finlock slowly turned to remain facing him. The Magistrate was seated. “Thank you Finlock. That will be all.” And Finlock turned around and headed for the door. Thomas Quintus followed him and made sure the door was secure.
Lord Ballinor looked at me and asked, “Well?” I replied, “That was a great ruse, my lord. I did see pendent but it is not familiar to me. With your permission I will see if my contacts may help me learn where this came from. May I ask my lordship for a piece of paper and a quill?” “Of course.” And he reached in his drawer and flipped a piece of paper to me. I grabbed the quill next to the inkwell, looked at the Magistrate, and he nodded, so I dipped the quill in his inkwell and made a diagram of the pendent, and dipped the quill in a cup of water to wash it out. I waited for the ink to set and I lifted the paper and showed it to the Magistrate. He looked at the drawing and said, “You have a good eye and a steady hand, Bene-Timber.” He handed my drawing to Thomas Quintus who nodded in approval. Thomas Quintus said, “It must be a gift from your elven parent. You have a keen eye.” He handed me the drawing. The Magistrate looked at Thomas and Thomas said, “No my lord. I do not recognize it either.” Lord Ballinor asked, “Do you think any of these volumes”, and he waved his arm at the book cases on his left, “might have the answer?” Thomas replied, “I couldn’t say, my lord.” I asked, “You have histories of the Empire, my lord?” “Yes”, he said, and stood up again. He walked slowly to the wall and looked intently at them. He stepped to his right, reached up and put his finger on one, pulled it out and handed it to me. “This”, he said, “is the earliest volume of the history of this area we have.” “If you can’t find an answer in there, come back and I’ll give you the next volume. We’ll let people know you asked to read about the history of Stonebridge. That is a very typical request for a bard of any kind.” I took the book from his hand and thanked him. I folded the drawing so it would not poke out and I stuck it in between the pages of the book, and so I smuggled it out of the Mansion. “Thank you, my lord, and my lord.” I said bowing to each of them. Lord Ballinor said, “Good luck. Let us know when you find something.” And I turned and let myself out. I walked out the way I had come in.
Outside it was just beginning to get dark as the sun was getting closer to the horizon. I walked back over to the armorer. I stopped in and let George know the Magistrate had given his permission to move ahead with my studded leather armor. Gordon was there with some leather in his hand. They were already measuring my cuirass to fit the new pieces and get an idea for what was needed for the new suit. I waved and said I would have my faulds brought over soon. “I’ll have Fred come over at once and fetch them, my lord.” With that I stepped out into the street and closed the door behind me. I walked back to the Green Hawk and greeted many of the townsfolk as I walked. Many of the ladies smiled, but few of them spoke to me. The men were very typical, saying “Good day, Bene-Timber”, to me as they passed.
Arriving back at my room I unlocked the door and checked the string. It had been moved. I pushed the door open slowly and looked carefully [perception] at everything in the room. There was a basket of folded clean clothes on my bed. I let out a breath of air. I thought Tony had given me his only key, but apparently not. I left the door open and walked in. I removed my cloak and hung it on the coat tree. I removed my baldric, belt, dagger and rapier, and hung them on the coat tree. I set my hat on the coat tree. I removed my padded armor shirt and set it on the floor neatly at the foot of the bed. I sat down in a chair by the window, looked at my boots and smiled. They were better than when I arrived in Stonebridge. I removed them and set them next to the shirt. I removed my socks and placed them over the tops of my boots so they might air out. I took out the book and flipped it open. There were sparing few diagrams or maps of any kind. Mostly just at the title pages for the chapters. I didn’t see a title page that caught my fancy so I turned to the beginning and started reading.
I heard someone approaching from the hallway, turned and saw Tony in the doorway. “Ah, Tony”, I began, “would you like a seat?” He replied, “That isn’t necessary, my lord. I don’t expect to be long. Will my lord be having dinner here this evening or with the Governor?” I replied, “I expect to eat here. Why do you ask?” “My wife wanted to know. Pardon, my lord, but I hear you’ve been shopping all over town today.” I stopped him and asked, “My lord? Tony, please call me Bene.” “Oh, yes”, he responded, “I see you bought a trunk.” I replied, “Yes, I bought some clothes and they’re being made, so I was going to need a place to put all my clothes. I’m sure you understand.” “Of course, my lord, uh, Bene. By the way, do you know what happened to the candles that were here yesterday?” “Yes”, I replied, “I put all those candles in this drawer here.” I stood up and walked to the bedside table and opened the drawer. Tony stepped in and saw the candles. He was relieved. I looked at him and he was very embarrassed. He said, “I’m sorry my lord, uh, sorry, uh, Bene. I am not a rich man and …” I put up my hand and said, “I understand. We are in business together and you don’t even really know me. I hope that before I leave Stonebridge you would trust me with you wife, uh, let’s see, maybe not that, with your Tavern and Inn, the Green Hawk.” “Yes, sir”, he replied, “let’s hope so. And how long do you think that will be?” I replied, “I hope I can stay nearby for at least a week. But if duty calls I shall have to go.” “A week would be nice”, he said. Will you be down around six then sir?” “Probably about then. Send someone up to get me if I fall asleep.” He turned and said, “Very well.” And he walked away. And I heard footsteps approaching again. There was a voice in the hallway, and then a boy was standing in my doorway. “Ah, are you Fred?” He replied quietly, “Yes, my lord.” And I pointed to my faulds and said, “You’re here to pick these up?” Fred replied, “Yes, my lord.” And still pointing, I opened my hand toward the faulds and said, “Please help yourself.” And he stepped inside, picked up my armor and disappeared down the hallway.
I returned to my reading. After a little more than a chapter, I thought I would lay down. I stood up and placed the book on the bedside table. I fished out two candles and holders and set them out. I took the clothes from the basket and put them away in my trunk. I took the empty basket and set it in the hallway. I closed the door and walked over to lay down on the bed. I picked up the book and continued to read. As I turned the pages, my diagram fell out. I opened it again and looked at it for a moment. I folded it and put it inside the bedside table drawer. I set the book on the bedside table and closed my eyes.
A knock came at the door and I opened my eyes. It was almost dark. I said, “Yes?” “My lord, it is six o’clock. You asked to be alerted at six.” Came a female voice on the other side of the door. I called back, “Thank you.” I sat up and swung my legs around. I lit the candle on the bedside table, stood up and took it to the table where I lit the second candle. I set the candle on the dresser and washed myself off. I pulled out my best shirt and my only other pair of pants and put them on. I pulled on fresh socks and slipped into my shoes. I grabbed my belt, dagger and scabbard and pulled them around my waist. I picked up my purse, my ornate cloth pouch and my lute and stepped into the hallway. I reached up and set the string, closed the door and locked it. I took a good look at the hallway, turned and walked to the stairs and down to the tavern.
As I neared the bottom of the stairs a joyous cheer went up in the crowd. I raised my hand in a gesture to thank the crowd and stepped through to sit at “my” table. A tankard of fine ale was brought to me and my dinner followed shortly after. It was lamb, mashed potatoes and gravy with green beans. It was a very nice dinner after a long rainy day. And I felt good as I wiped my mouth and prepared to play. I signaled Tony for another tankard and he smiled back. I stood up and walked over to the hearth. I set my purse on the mantle behind me and my ornate cloth bag on the table near me. My tankard arrived. I looked out into the crowd and raised my tankard and the noise quieted down. I began, “My friends, I have been touring Stonebridge today and I find it to be a warm community full of stout-hearted people. I hope you will enjoy my opening song tonight, for I have not played it in a mouth or more. But I believe you know the tune.” And I took a good drink from my tankard and set it down, pulled my lute up and began to play the ballad celebrating the conquest of Alexander I of the Andorean Plains. A cheer went up as soon as they recognized the song. And so it was all night long that the crowd was full of energy and wanted to hear more. I believed it was a combination of two things. First, most workers had the day off due to the rain so they had more energy this evening. Second, word of my bandit exploit had spread even further and I believed we had a capacity crowd. I even wondered if we had some visitors from the hamlets of the province. I played more that evening than I had before on the two previous evenings.
And after a little more than an hour a group of men came into the tavern wearing traveling clothes and armor. They had no weapons which I could see; but they appeared to be the sort of men that carried weapons wherever they went. They squeezed into a table in the back of the room near the door. Ale was brought to them and they slipped into the spirit of the evening. My tips were overflowing and I was having a grand time. One of the men stood up apparently to go to the bar. He asked the bar maid something and indicated my direction with his thumb. After some answer from the bar maid he snapped his head in my direction and then back to the bar maid. She nodded her head and he stood up with a new tankard and drank while looking at me. Something was up with this fellow and I was concerned he was going to ruin the best night Tony’s ever had. I decided to take a break and I took my purse and my tips and headed over to the bar to see Tony. I wanted to count out some money so I wouldn’t have such a full pouch. While I talked with Tony I kept an eye on this new fellow.
“Tony, let’s count out a few coins so I can put this back and it won’t look so full.” Tony replied, “Sure thing, Bene. Hey, if this keeps up, I’m going to have to buy more ale. I’ve sold more ale in the past three nights than I usually sell in a week, and tonight is just getting started.” We started counting the coin. The coppers were piled up and there was a smaller pile of silvers. I picked up one that had a different image stamped on it and I looked at it and set aside. Then I immediately noticed another, and another. I showed it to Tony and asked, “Do you know where these coins are made?” He looked close and said, “Hey, that’s a dwarven coin, I think.” I replied, “Yea, but where is it made? Someone here has come across a stash of dwarven coins or they traveled to dwarven lands recently. Do you think those fellows?” Tony looked and said, “Now they haven’t been out of their seats. How would their coins end up in your pouch?” “Oh”, I replied, “you’re right. Please ask your bar maids to find who is spending dwarven coins, to tell you, and you need to tell me immediately.” “OK Bene.”
As we got near finishing the count I said, “Let me keep these dwarven coins as part of my share. What is the total you have?” Tony replied, “I have three hundred-twenty-eight coppers and twenty-one silvers. So in coppers that comes to five-hundred-thirty-eight.” “How much in dwarven coin, Tony?” “He said to me, “You can just keep the dwarven coins from this lot. There are forty-eight coppers and two silvers.” I scooped up the dwarven coins and put them in my purse. I said, “So how about you give me two gold pieces and three silvers for my share?” “Sure thing, Bene.” And with that, I pushed all the coins a little toward Tony and took two coppers and put them back in my ornate cloth pouch for good luck. I smiled and stepped past Tony.
I slid down the bar to speak to the bar maid, Christina, about another tankard of ale. She smiled and produced one right away. I looked at the fellow that had been talking to her. He was wearing leather breaches similar to mine, the sort of breaches travelers and adventurers wear. He had a heavy cloth jacket on over some armor. It appeared to me to be a scale mail armor that didn’t quite fit him as it should. I also noticed he was looking at me but didn’t want me to “see” that he was looking at me. I decided to use the direct approach.
“Hello friend”, I began with a broad smile, “Where have you been? I’ve been in this town for a couple days and I haven’t seen you before. I’m a traveler too.” I figured he wouldn’t give up information without getting information, so I started by giving him information he could easily get anywhere else in town. He turned his head to look at me and then turned his shoulders toward me resting his arm on the bar still holding his tankard. He replied, “I’ve been up north. We did just arrive in this town (He didn’t say Stonebridge) and we’re travelling to, toward, Eros.” I responded, “I’ve never been to Eros. Where are you staying? What’s in Eros?” I asked him two questions hoping to get either one answered and again gave him information that was of no significance. He replied, “We’ve never been to Eros either, so I can’t say, but we heard a rumor of a problem involving a graveyard, maybe some undead, and we were going to see if we could help. We’re staying at the Guild hall across the way.” I was getting somewhere but I needed to get back to playing so I needed to “hook him” for more information. “I am Bene-Timber, a travelling musician and messenger. I’d like to meet your friends, but I must need play for my supper. That is my lot.” And I extended my hand and he raised his hand and we clasped and shook hands. He replied, “I am Darvist. Sure we can talk later.” And I nodded my head and said, “Very good, Darvist.” And with that I made my way to the hearth and there was a cheer.
I set my ornate cloth bag on the table and my purse up on the mantle. I picked up my lute and started. I decided to play my new ballad, in part because the town was still celebrating the event. I also wanted to take advantage of my situation to increase my tips for the night. And finally, I wanted to give these visitors a reason to be curious so I may get to have that conversation tonight. I played and there was great applause, and wishing to keep the spirits up I continued with another of my favorite tavern melodies called the Wild Rover. This was also a big hit, so I followed with another tavern song, and another. But after several boisterous tavern ditties, I decided to play a more somber melody to help quiet the crowd so Tony could close up about midnight, so I played Those Were The Days. And this went on for a while.
My bag was filling up again nicely and everyone was getting on very well. When I decided I needed to wrap it up, there were many encouraging voices urging me to continue. I had to hold up may hand and quiet the crowd to tell them I should be back again the next evening and I thanked them for all their good wishes. I took my tip bag and my purse and my empty tankard over to the bar to meet Tony. We counted out the coin and settled up for gold. Tony was beginning to have enough money that he was a little concerned that he might be robbed. Not only had he made a significant profit on my playing, but his sales of ale, stout and beer were very high for the past two nights. He told me he was going to have to supplement his stores with other brewer’s supplies, some as good but some not as good as his own, for Tony brewed his own ale, stout, lager, beer and had even begun to make mead. He said this presented a problem because he would have to sample the other products and determine a fair price. Too high and he would be accused of selling poor products, and too low and he risked losing money on a barrel. I grinned at Tony as he was telling me these things and he stopped and said, “Why is this so funny to you?” I replied, “Tony, you should thank the gods for these problems. Doesn’t every man wish he had so much that his would fret whether to buy the red dress or the blue one? I tell you, clean up tonight and put everything away where it belongs. Get up in the morning and have a good wash and breakfast. Enjoy your coffee with me. And then go to the temple and offer to the goddess for you are going to turn her harvest into good ale and make everyone happy. Let’s hope you are so successful that the hamlets ask you to send your ale to them and that Stonebridge becomes known for the good lager and stout. Let the soldiers that are sent here be grateful for they want to see what the others have been speaking about. Maybe you can turn to be a brewer and your son can run the tavern someday? Be grateful, not worried.” Tony thought about that and he got a big smile on his face. He looked at me and said, “You’re right my friend. I should realize this could become the greatest thing that ever happened to me.” And with that we finished the count and I picked up my things and said, “See you in the morning, my friend.”
I stepped over to the table of newcomers and said, “If you will be patient and wait, I shall be right back. I am going to put a few things away.” Another fellow, not Darvist, looked at me and said, “We can only wait a moment. We have things to attend to tomorrow and we must rise early.” I nodded and turned and walked up the steps.
In my room I took all the money and placed it on the table. I pulled out all the dwarven coins and a few coppers and silvers. The rest I picked up and put inside a small cloth lined box and locked it inside my trunk. The coins I picked out I placed inside my purse secured to my belt. I left my lute and my ornate cloth bag in the room and headed back downstairs after locking the door. I was wearing my belt with the dagger and scabbard, and my purse, and carrying my tankard from Gelfin.
As I reached the bottom, I caught the barmaid’s eye and raised my empty tankard in my hand, and she smiled and signaled back she understood. I stepped over to the visitor’s table and sat at the end with Darvist on my left and the other fellow that spoke to me on my right. The other members of their party were seated farther down the table. They were not talking, apparently waiting for me and sipping their drinks. Tony’s daughter, Priscilla, came over to pick up my empty tankard. As she started to turn away I reached out and placed my hand gently on her forearm and she stopped. I spoke to the fellows together, “What are you having, my travelling kindred?” They looked a little confused and Priscilla spoke saying, “They have been drinking beer, my lord.” I asked them, “Is this so? Do you know my friend also serves lager, stout and ale? Is it beer you prefer? All of you?” And Darvist replied, “I’d like to try an ale, but …” And it appeared the fellow on my right shot him a glance. I turned to Priscilla and said, “I’ll have an ale, and bring one for my friend, Darvist, please.” And turning back to the travelers, I asked, “Anyone else?” And the other fellows at the table called out ale, or lager, or stout as it suited them, except for the quiet fellow. After a short pause he looked at no one and said, “I’ll have another beer.” And so I nodded to Priscilla and she turned and left. I smiled as I turned back to look upon them and I asked, “So you fellows are from up north? Up north is a big place I hear. Any place in particular?” A fellow toward the end of the table spoke up, “We were up near the iron mines of Rottscald looking to help them …” And the fellow to my right again shot a look at his companion and he stopped talking. I stood up slowly and bowed slightly, “Forgive me, my friends and fellow travelers, I forgot to introduce myself. I am Bene-Timber, messenger and traveler from the east. This is my first visit to Stonebridge and I am seeking to learn about the province, but unfortunately with the rain I was delayed in town today. Could I learn the names of you gentlemen?” And I turned immediately to the fellow on my right.
He looked back at me with a slight look of fright on his face. I immediately understood this fellow didn’t want to share any information about their affairs with me, and I expected didn’t want anyone in the tavern to overhear either. But I had backed him into a corner through my careful social manipulations. I was graciously buying their entire party a round of drinks. I had introduced myself and been exceedingly friendly so that he could only choose to reply or be rude enough to cause notice; and it appeared the thing he wanted least was to be noticed. This was of course exactly why I was pressing. Why was he so careful to avoid notice?
He sputtered a bit and said, “I am Fordaire, and we are seeking fame and adventure in these lands where we can find it.” And I extended my hand and replied, “I am glad to make your acquaintance, Fordaire.” And turning my attention to the next fellow I raised my eyebrows inviting him to be next, while also keeping an eye on Fordaire. The next fellow said, “I am Gillfort, a Druid from Tanalee, a town on the edge of the holly grove called Hollibliss.” And I extended my hand to Gillfort. And the next fellow said, “I am Jackwon, from a village not far from Hollibliss.” And I nodded to Jackwon. And turning my attention to the end of the table the next fellow said, “Everyone calls me Tucker.” And I nodded to Tucker. And then the next fellow chimed in, “I am Vallen. I am from the capitol.” Now Vallen was a broad chested man and I believed he was wearing heavy armor under a Gambeson. He had the look of a paladin and being from the capitol he could have attended the same college as Lord Ballinor and Lord Martinex. I made a note to confirm that with him and nodded in return. And then I was looking at Darvist. And Darvist reached out his hand and said, “I am Darvist from Derlin, a port city on the coast.” “Derlin”, I responded with a nod, “I’ve heard of Derlin. What do you think of it?” He said, “I like it there. We ate the most interesting foods, I guess because we were on the coast. There are a lot of things that pass through Derlin. My family worked in the yards, uh, shipyards. My father is a master carpenter. My uncle is a sailmaker. My other uncle is a blacksmith. He specializes in making the iron fittings the ships need.
About this time our tankards arrived and I sat down. They were distributed and Priscilla started to turn to leave once more before I touched her forearm. I looked up at her and she smiled at me. I asked her, “How much for the table?” She replied, “Oh, my lord, we thought …” and I held up my finger and swirled it around. “How much for the ales?” She replied, “Well, it is four coppers for the ales and four coppers for the rest.” So I reached into my purse and pulled out all my coins. I turned my palm upward and picked out a silver piece and handed it to Priscilla. She curtsied, turned and walked back to the bar.
And then I picked out another coin, a copper piece of the dwarven mint and showed it to Darvist and was going to say something when Fordaire shot his hand up and seized my arm by the wrist. Several of my coins flipped onto the table top and made some noise and everyone around us stopped and stared. Fordaire looked at me with a menacing look and said, “Why you thief! I knew you were up to something, and paying for our drinks with our money. Why I’ll have you thrown in jail and searched. We’ll have it all back. Now!” Darvist was shocked as well as Vallen, Gillfort and Tucker. Jackwon was next to speak, “I thought something was up with this fellow, Bene-Timber is it? All that talk about you being a hero and then wanting to talk to us? You don’t know us from Adam. Is that your game? Set us at ease and then pick our pockets?”
Now it was my turn to speak. “Fordaire, you had best let my arm go before someone calls the guards. If you do not, I am not sure I will be able to keep you out of the jail. And after that, you might never visit Confernos again. I have not robbed you and I am prepared to prove it to you. I regret that when I am done you will be embarrassed. But to overlook that, I only ask you to answer some questions for me.” Fordaire hesitated. I considered my options. I could take out my dagger and threaten Fordaire, for I believed he had yet to see the Magistrate and was therefore unarmed until the next evening. I could call upon Tony and the patrons to accost these men and then the men would be lightly beaten and sent to jail. Their prospect of getting their weapons back would be very small and they would be in a pickle. I could call for someone to fetch the guards and then make an attempt to resolve the situation there without involving Lord Ballinor. I decided to give it one more try before calling for the guards. Any other approach would cause these men to be in serious trouble which I don’t think I could talk their way out of. I believe Lord Ballinor would consider it an important example of good order in the town that these men should be punished.
I smiled a small smile of confidence to convey just that point. Then I looked at Fordaire and said for a second time, “You must let go of my arm or I fear you will spend time in our jail. I am a government official. I am popular in this community. If you do not agree to settle this quietly here, Lord Ballinor will consider your treatment of me an affront to his ability to maintain good order. I already know that you are unarmed.” And with this Fordaire’s eyes began to widen. “I have a dagger on my hip. I know how to use it. In fact, I killed a man yesterday with it. Take my advice and remove your grip on my hand.” At that he looked around and noticed there were easily fifteen men in the tavern watching and listening to everything I just said. I don’t think he had the good sense to accept my argument, but rather looking around and realized they were outnumbered three to one. He released my arm and stood up quickly pointing his finger at me.
I shook my head. I rolled the palm of my hand down and let the other coins land in a pile on the table. I asked Darvist if he could help me get the other coins into the pile. Without looking at Fordaire I said, “You may as well sit down and drink your beer. I think I will ask the Magistrate to throw you in jail just as a favor. I was trying to help you, my friend, but you don’t have the good sense to listen to good advice. You wanted to avoid being noticed. Now fifteen men in this tavern will hear your testimony. And after we have settled this matter you will answer every question I have for you. If you don’t, I can promise that you will not get your weapons back, ever. The bigger problem for you is that Lord Ballinor may be sufficiently annoyed that you assaulted a government official that he sends word to the Emperor, yes, Emperor Alexander, to have you banished forever from Confernos. You know what that means, right? You will have your arm branded and if you are ever found in Confernos again you will be killed on sight just for the bounty. Nobody will care why you were banished because you’ll just be dead. You will never see your homes again. Now sit down and let’s settle this without the Magistrate.” Fordaire couldn’t think. He lowered his arm and then looked about. Everyone was staring at him. He blushed. He wanted to do anything else but sit as I asked, but there was nothing for him to do. I had reduced him to a child forced to obey his parents.
I raised my tankard and smiled in an effort to lighten the mood. I took a drink and set it back on the table. I turned slowly to the bar and raised my voice a little. “Tony could you come over here?” And then I turned back to the adventurers. I heard Tony approach while I took another drink from my tankard.
“Tony”, I began, “I am sorry to bother you because I know you are busy.” He responded, “Oh no my lord, I would drop anything to come talk with you. What may I do for my lord?” “I have a small pile of coins in front of me.” I went on. I picked up one and handed it to Tony. “You recall I received a number of these coins in my tips bag earlier, and decided I wanted to keep them and trade you the local coinage as we divided our earnings earlier?” He responded, “Yes my lord. These are the same coins you said had dwarven markings on them, see here the letters?” “Thank you, Tony.” And I held out my hand and he returned the coin to me. I looked at an onlooker. I said to him, “Dear fellow, take this coin and look at it. What do you think of this coin?” He reached out a hand and looked at the coin. He replied while giving me the coin back, “That coin does not come from Stonebridge, my lord.” I accepted the coin back and said, “Thank you.” I held the coin up to Fordaire and asked, “Do you need to see the coin? Is this a coin like the coins you carry?” “No”, he answered in an irritated voice. “I do not need to see the coin. That is exactly the manner of coins we carry.” And I replied, “Thank you.”
I went on. “Do you carry any other coinage?” He replied, “No I do not think so. We are travelling from the north and I believe all the coins we have came from there.” I asked, “Have you spent any coins in town since you arrived?” He answered, “No, we arrived late. We took our things to the guild hall and decided to come over here for dinner and beer.” I answered, “I was afraid of that. But you did buy drinks here?” “Yes”, he answered, “and dinner.” “For the six of you, right?” I asked. “Yes”, he responded with an edge in his voice. I raised my voice a little and said, “Friends, please check your pockets and tell me if you have any dwarven coins, or unusual coins in your purses.” Two or three men called out, “Yes, I have one here.” At this point the outcome of my questions was becoming obvious to everyone present, including Fordaire. I turned to him, “How many people stole coins from you tonight? I trust you are the keeper of the party’s purse, are you not?” The other party members looked at him. He said, “I see. Maybe you didn’t pick my purse after all.” At this point I was beginning to lose patience with him. “Maybe you say, maybe. Are you familiar with the customs for tipping a bard in Confernos? Patrons enjoy their time and don’t want to bother scooting about among the tables with other guests enjoying their meals and drinks. When a bar maid returns with drinks, she brings the change for the drinks as well. The patrons ask the bar maid to give the change to the minstrel at the hearth so they don’t have to get up and do it themselves. You did not, but the money you spent ended up in my tips bag that way, don’t you see?” And he hung his head. “And worse, Tony and everyone else here now know that you’re a cheap traveler that cares nothing for the people that do something to make your travel any easier. Should I go on to other matters, or may we consider that matter of the theft of these coins settled?” He answered quietly, “Please go on. I have no interest in discussing it further.” And I replied to make sure he was all the more uneasy, “I’m sorry, there are many people that didn’t hear you. Would you repeat that?” He raised his head and his face was red and said, “I believe you received those coins as tips and did not steal them, sorry.” And I replied, “Thank you. Let’s consider that matter closed. Now let’s talk a little more.” I took a drink from my tankard and set it down. Many of the patrons went back to their affairs since it was late and began to depart for the evening.
“Drink up my friends”, I said to the table. They all had a drink from their tankards. I turned to Darvist and asked, “Where did you get these coins?” He replied, “The governor of Maples paid them to us for killing a bugbear and a handful of kobolds.” “Bugbear and Kobalds”, I said, “in Maples?” “Yes, my lord.” He replied. I continued, “Is that unusual?” He answered, “Yes, my lord. We went there for other reasons but when we got there, they needed someone to kill these beasts. We received a small reward paid in these dwarven minted coins.” I asked, “Are you mercenaries or adventurers?” “We are adventurers, my lord.” He responded. And then I asked a question I had never asked before, and it was a little awkward. “May I see your credentials?” Fordaire had his folder out first but most of the others had theirs in their hands. I took the folder from Fordaire. I opened it and read the folder, and returned it to him. I took the next folder and the next and so on, and read them all. I continued, “you said you were in … Rottscald was it?” Vallen responded, “Yes my lord, we said we were near Rottscald, but we were in Maples, which is near Rottscald.” “I see.” And I asked, “And how did you come to hear they needed you in Eros?” The whole table looked at me in amazement? How did I know they wanted to go to Eros? Vallen cleared his throat and said, “We heard there were undead that needed to be dealt with and someone needed to look into their mischief. We understand it comes with a bounty and we are in need of coin for financing.” I asked, “What are you financing?” He replied, “Uh well, us, my lord. We’re trying to get to Humbolt and that is a great distance. We will need horses and supplies, so we’re trying to raise the funds needed for the trip.” I answered, “I see.” I continued, “Which way did you come to Stonebridge from Maples?” Vallen responded, “We took the main road, my lord. It comes here on a fairly straight path through flat agricultural lands. We expected to make good time.” I replied, “And you are on foot?” “Yes”, he responded, “we have a cart and a mule but no mounts.” I said, “Let me give you some advice. Wait a day or two and hire yourselves on to a caravan. They will provide mounts for you, if they can use you, and you will eat much better. You only need fight for the caravan if you are accosted by bandits, but you would face the same fate without a caravan, so why not enjoy the ride. So, did you encounter and bandits on the way?” Vallen replied, “No, my lord.” I continued, “Was there any evidence you were being scouted as you passed through the country?” Vallen replied again, “No my lord.” I continued, “How long have you been adventuring together?” Vallen said, “I have been with this troupe for six weeks, my lord.” And I said, “And the rest of you?” Gillfort was first to respond, “I believe it all began when we left Hollibliss. As we journeyed to the east we met each of these fellows and formed our troupe. Dravist was the first fellow we met and then Vallen as we got nearer the capitol. We met Tucker and Fordaire there when we reached Maples, and they recruited us to help them with the kobolds. In Maples we heard about Eros and Tucker and Fordaire told us about their plan to journey to Humbolt.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
He fussed over my other bloody clothes doing his best to clean off my pants and boots. “There. I don’t think these are lost. You may avoid wearing them to court but since you have many days in the wilderness ahead of you, I’d recommend you keep them. Have another pair made. The Magistrate will likely pay for them from the treasury when he hears you took care of eight bandits. You did very well in that fight. I’m impressed. Only a week in the service and you have taken out a band of thieves. Pine Mill will be better off for it for sure. The expression on his face when you told him he couldn’t hold his liquor and then again when you told him was going to bested by a Poff. Oh, that was worth the walk to Pine Mill and back for me. Unfortunately, I can’t tell this story. My clerical oaths forbid it. But hey, you’re a Bard. You live for just a chance like this.” I brightened up, “Hey, you’re right. This is pure gold. Thank you very much. Your oaths don’t forbid me telling them you were with me do they?” Joseph said, “No, but I might be a little embarrassed should I be around when you sing of it. I hope you understand.” I replied, “Of course.”
I pulled my sleeveless shirt on and we wiped off my armor as best we could. I pulled it on and he helped me fasten it up. I went to get my dagger and rapier. Picking them up I asked if we could wipe them off too. And he said “Certainly.” So we wiped them down and I put them back in their scabbards. I took my hat off and looked at it. It appeared to have avoided all the blood to my relief. I asked Joseph, “Are you OK?” He replied, “Yes, I’m fine. I’m afraid I need a hand with these, and he waved at the five dead men. Can you help me drag them over to this spot near the road?” I responded, “Drag them over to the road? I would think you’d want them well off the road. Now everyone running up and down this road will have to contend with buzzards and wolves.” “No”, he replied. “I have to pick up these bodies on the return trip. No need to drag them off into the field only so that I have to drag them back.” I shrugged. “Sure I’ll give you a hand.” We dragged the bodies over by the road and lined them up in a neat row.
After we finished, we were back on the road. I had my lute back in my hands and I was already trying to work out a song of my encounter with the bandits. After another hour I was in better spirits and my song was taking shape. Joseph shook his head, “I’m amazed at you fellows, writing poetry and music like that as easy as some people can eat pie.”
“How long have you been here in Stonebridge?” I asked. He replied, “Oh, I’ve been here since leaving the College. That’s been about eight years I think. It’s been good living here and I wouldn’t be surprised if I stayed here the rest of my life. Hasn’t been much going on really. We occasionally hear there are orc activities round here but nothing ever seems to happen from it. These bandits are the worst sort of thing that happens around here. Why I heard in the city they had a fire that killed over a hundred people. We haven’t had anything like that happen here.” And I replied, “And let’s hope it stays like that.”
We talked and walked a bit more and we saw the road was headed into a forest. I said, “Well, assuming Pine Mill is among the pines, it looks like we’re getting close.” Joseph replied, “We must be getting close because my feet have been asking for a bit now. What do you see?” I replied, “The forest ahead, it passes to the right and to the left of the road so we are surly headed in. Can you not see it?” And he stopped walking, and Ham, so I did also. And looking ahead, “I see the road keeps going and I see the sky but I can’t make out the trees from here. So you can see the trees from here?” I replied, “Yes, I can see the trees, and well enough that I can see they are pines with their straight trunks and branches more at the top. And you can’t?” Joseph said, “No, I’m afraid not … not yet. But I know they are there as sure as I know the gods watch over us. And I won’t see them unless we keep walking.” And he began walking again. And so did I and so did Ham.
And I asked him, “So if your feet are sore, why don’t you ride in the cart?” “Well, Ham is a good boy. And we make this trip every other day because Pine Mill sort of belongs to me, you see. His Holiness has designated Pine Mill as my Cure so I am the Chief Cleric to serve them. And to serve our Cures we visit the hamlets every day. But His Holiness also desires that we are familiar with the men and halflings that make up the whole province. On every other day, I visit one of the other three hamlets. It is a good system I think. Now Ham here is not my mule. He belongs to our Order and we have found that it is easier to work with the mules if they make the same walk each day. So if we go to Pine Mill, Ham comes with us. If we go to Grain Mill we take Tang. If we go to Wool Corner, Fiorina comes along. And if we go to Smallarfolk, Jessica pulls the cart. Do you remember passing me yesterday when you were coming to Stonebridge?” I thought back and said, “I only vaguely remember passing travelers coming the other way. And you were going the other way yesterday, I was coming to Stonebridge?” “Yes”, he replied, And I could hear you long before I could see you, as did those bandits we encountered I’d say. You were a sight for sore eyes, as they say. We have not been visited by an emissary of any kind in quite a spell. And so before dinner, I had reported about you to my brothers, but they said they already knew because you had come into town before I returned and played and sang as you came up the street. But most of them, like me, only got into Stonebridge a little before dinner so we had not seen you, they had only heard of you. Now emissaries are always nice fellows so we are glad to have you with us. But they have a dangerous job as you learned this morning. They must travel frequently and often alone because there is no one to travel with. And so you are quite vulnerable to many highway hazards, bandits mostly, but other evil lurks near the road even inside the Empire. And so many young emissaries are killed. “
“Why even this morning, without you, I may have been killed if I had chosen to defend our cargo. After that spell it would have been me against six, I figure, but two of those fellows may have been bad off enough to forget fighting. But four or six, I would have been fighting for my life after that spell. You, without that spell, you would have been fighting all eight of them. You fought with valor this morning, as well as I could have expected any new emissary. But you’re a Bard and not a Paladin or Barbarian or Ranger. It is not your calling to slay enemies … with your sword. Against eight, I fear you would have been surrounded and killed. Surely you would have taken two, maybe three, but they would have had you.”
“For this reason, they gave you a horse. Did you know you are the lowest official that gets to have a horse? You get a horse not so you can get from one place to another more quickly, and not to carry your luggage, although of course you must put your burdens on your horse if he is to be of any use. You get a horse so you may ride away from those bandits and other threats. The Empire has learned this is necessary. And the other thing is that although bandits are dim, they are not mindless. The group we encountered would not have bothered me if it were not for the cart. You see, they know unless they are very lucky, some of them will die if they wished to rob me for I carry personal effects that I would die to protect. But they would know that I don’t carry enough to be worth the death of three or four of their kind. You must likewise be weary of giving the appearance that you carry enough to be worth some of their lives. By yourself, many bandits will leave you be if you exercise such caution. But the other terrors, they aren’t interested in your riches. Animals may attack because they are that hungry from days of failure. Orcs may attack because they seek to disrupt the Empire in every way possible, to undermine our coherence and faith in our leaders. Spies and assassins from other competing kingdoms may do the same. So we lose many of our emissary brothers.” And with that, we had crossed enough space that people were now visible to me moving about at the edge of the wood. I could even see the faintest trail of smoke rising from deeper in the wood.
I said to Joseph, “It appears they have work to do on this side of the wood. Do you know what that is about?” He replied, “Oh yes. They got the idea from their enemy the beaver. They were logging deep inside the pine forest near the stream and beavers had dammed up the way and were doing what beavers do making a nuisance of themselves. So they had to go in and destroy the beaver dam which restored the proper flow of water in the stream needed to power the mill, and it dispersed the beavers who will surely head upstream and do it again.” And I asked, “So what does that have to do with the work they are doing on this side of the wood?” “Well they are surveying for a canal”, he replied. “The beaver dam made them realize they can dam up the creek just above the mill and build a new sluice. The sluice will carry water more efficiently to the wheel. The pond behind the dam can be used to help get the logs downhill to the mill. But they won’t benefit as much by using the same methods for transporting boards from the mill for the boards will be fully saturated with water when they are pulled from the water. So below the mill they wish to transport the boards on rafts or barges. They are looking about for an idea on how they could make this work.” I replied, “Very ingenious, I say.”
“But you did not tell me why you won’t ride the cart.” I asked again. “Oh, yes, I got off the subject, didn’t I. Well Ham here is a good mule but he is still a mule. He doesn’t like it when we ride the cart. He likes to see us walking on the road with him. Now if you were walking on the road and I were to ride the cart, that might work. But if nobody is walking where Ham can see them, he doesn’t want to walk. I wonder if he is worried he is walking off without us. He is a mule after all.”
And we arrived at the edge of the wood and the folks, men this time, we stopping what they were doing and walking to us. Joseph said, “They see you are coming with me and they want to meet you. Normally they keep waving and I just walk by. They walk to the mill a short time later for the midday meal. But they want to meet this stranger coming with Joseph today, that doesn’t wear sleeves but prefers a fancy hat and carries a lute.” And so they got close and I waved to them and smiled. And Joseph said to them, “Good day my friends. Good day. I may be a bit late but I am here nonetheless. Come meet my friend. His name is Bene-Timber, a bard. He is in the Service and decided it would be best to come meet the people of Pine Mill even though he arrived in Stonebridge only yesterday. He is a friend of Andante.” And there was much waving and smiling among them. And so I reached around and played my lute. And I sang a new ballad, The Valor of Joseph and Bene-Timber. And they were pleased at first with my playing and my singing, and then they realized I was singing about only this morning and they began to notice a bit of blood we couldn’t remove from my armor and my pants. And they began to murmur among themselves about how this happened, for they knew that a bard’s tale might embellish the details or even omit a fact, or two. But Joseph held up his hand as I sang and he said, “Yes, yes, it is all true my friends. We were attacked by bandits on the way and my friend Bene-Timber did slay two of them and chased off the rest.” And some of the people clapped and I finished my song.
We arrived at the hamlet, which was dominated by the Mill at the upper end of the settlement. And there was a town hall or meeting place with a great porch on the second level and I ascended the stair and played some more music for the crowd. A few men took the cart and unloaded it and also attended to Ham letting him walk down to the brook for a drink and they brought him some meal. And Joseph came up on the porch with me and he waved to the people and held up his arms asking for quiet.
“Friends, it is good to see you on this fine day. We have a new friend with us, Bene-Timber, from the Bard College. He came to meet you because he expects to be assigned territory as an emissary in these lands. Andante is still the emissary for Stonebridge but his duties keep him from us too long and they have given him Bene-Timber to be his assistant. And Bene-Timber is a fine Bard. You know how well he plays, but he is much more than a musician. Yes, he is a half-elf and this is good for he has a wonderful sense of humor and quick wit. He met with the Magistrate yesterday and received his full approval to move about the Province as he willed. But on the way we were accosted by bandits, a company of eight sorry looking fellows with only two things in common; their taste for brutality and their desire that others should work to feed their appetites. As they closed in, I grabbed my mace and Bene-Timber drew his rapier and dagger. We met their first charge each of us slaying one of the bandits, and Bene stepped forward and challenged their leader who was wearing leather armor. And in a flash Bene had struck him twice and he collapsed. The remaining bandits lost heart and fled without their leader. Unfortunately the bandits had no manners at all and bled all over Bene ruining his splendid shirt. So we did the best we could and I cleaned up as much blood as I was able, and, here we are.” And there was a great applause. And when it died down he said, “Let us give thanks.” And all the men removed their hats and Joseph said, “Demeter, god of the harvest, we give thanks that you have delivered your servants Joseph and Bene-Timber from the hands of bandits. We pledge to do something for you to be worthy of your attention. Thank you, Demeter.” And the men put their hats back on their heads and there was a cheer. And another man ascended the stairs to stand next to Joseph. He was older and had been a laborer for many years judging by his hands and his slight limp. He was not wearing fine clothes but they weren’t rags either. In addition to the clothes every man was wearing, this man was wearing a vest. The assembly quieted down. He began, “The midday meal is ready for everyone. Let us allow our guests to sit in the highest places and dine with us.” And there was another cheer. And he turned and shook hands with Joseph, and then leaned forward and extended his hand to me. I shook his hand but I could not hear what he said, which I supposed to be his name.
We descended the stairs and were led to a picnic table in an open area. I was directed to sit at the end of one table opposite Joseph. The man with the vest sat at the head of the table between me and Joseph. After he sat down, other men began to sit down, but I watched Joseph, who nodded to me, and I sat down, and Joseph sat down after me. Some young boys came to the tables carrying platters of food. They set a platter at each table. A group of young girls came to the tables carrying a stack of plates and set them next to the platters. The man at the foot of the table stood and began to serve a plate, and it was passed to the head of the table, alternately on each side. The boys had moved to their own tables, and so the girls also moved to their own tables. And finally the women came carrying pitchers and they set a pitcher at each table and gathered at their own tables. A few women went to the tables with the youngest children, one at each end, and they served all the children at the table and sat down at the head and the foot. And looking on the gathering I noted women of a certain age were not seated with the crowd and I surmised they were sitting somewhere out of sight with infants and toddlers caring for them. And we enjoyed a meal of chicken, beans and potatoes. And as we were finishing our meals boys returned with berry pie for each of the tables. And we had a blackberry pie spiced with honey and other spices. The crust was perfectly prepared and cooked to a golden brown.
And after the meal was finished the boys stood up and cleared all the tables. The men stood and spoke briefly to some of the women and returned to their work. The women and girls stood and went into the buildings apparently to clean dishes or other work. So I was left sitting with Joseph and the vest man, who I learned was called Barker. He was not an educated man but was held in high esteem by the people, something akin to the Mayor, although it appeared nothing so formal as an office of Mayor was recognized in the community. He was a jovial fellow and knew the comings and goings of everyone in this community. He quizzed us carefully about the encounter with the bandits. Joseph took control of the conversation and explained that there were eight bandits and I had indeed killed two of them including the leader who wore leather armor and carried a sword. And he repeated that he likewise killed one with his mace and was unable to save the man because his wounds were so serious. And he admitted that the bandits were well hurt by a spell he used, but it was my action of killing the bandit leader that made the bandits flee. And he said, I will need to leave here in time to take Five bodies back to Stonebridge. And he looked directly into Barker’s eyes. Barker paused for a moment, and then he looked back at Joseph in the eye and said, “OK, now I understand.” And Barker turned to me and said, “Thank you very much, Bene-Timber. You have done us a great service delivering our friend Joseph and his cart to us.” And I nodded, and replied, “And I was none too glad to be able to join them all the way here.”
We stood up and he shook my hand and the hand of Joseph. It appeared that I was now considered a part of this community. And Barker excused himself saying he had work to do. And he walked off in the direction of the deep woods. Joseph said, “I also have work to do visiting the people, but I know you also have an appointment to keep.” And I replied, “It seems I don’t have as many secrets as I thought. Where will I find him?” And Joseph replied, “Follow the brook upstream and Flint will find you.”
So I looked to the mill and figured which direction the brook went from there. “Will I need anything from my saddlebags?” I asked. And he replied, “No, I don’t think so.” And I asked, “Will you keep an eye on them for me then?” And Joseph replied, “Yes, of course.” So with my rapier, my dagger, my purse and my lute I walked over and began following the brook upstream.
I took my time taking note of the sounds to approximate where the men were working, the animals around me and the species and health of the trees. These were from my woodsman’s skills I learned as a child, not something I was taught in either the Bardic College or Diplomat training. It was as much a desire for me to want to add to my report to Andante as it was for me to reach back and connect with my childhood, family and Tahgrum where I grew up. The forest was healthy. I could see the evidence in everything, which was in good balance. The Elves taught me to see the signs in the leaves, in the animal trails and the insects that crawled and flew by, the call of the birds, the spacing of the trees and their diameter. Walking through the woods for me was like reading a good book. [perception] And I heard him watching me.
I didn’t want to let him know how soon I knew he was there. And I believe he was testing me, one half-elf playing with a friend. So when I heard him move to within a comfortable voice range, I just turned my body and looked directly at him and said, “He said you would find me if I followed the brook.” And Flint’s face broke into a wide grin and he walked straight to me. He held up his hand to shake hands with me saying, “So how long did you know I was there?” I took his hand and shaking it vigorously I replied, “Oh, about an hour”, and I grinned back at him, for it had been less than half that time since I walked away from Joseph and Barker. I continued, “I heard you standing on a branch four or five minutes ago. I heard the wood creek under the weight. You were about one hundred feet away then. And I walked forward and smelled the wind. I could smell the leather you are wearing. It is hard for me to make out any other smells over the smell of wood smoke everywhere when I am with men. But tanned leather that has been well cared for still has a smell I can pick out.” He slapped me on the shoulder, a playful slap, and said, “Very good. When I met you and saw you were also a half-elf, I had to see if the College had dulled your senses. Why in heaven did you want to be a Bard? You should be a Ranger, my friend.” “Well”, I responded, “I thought you would know after hearing me play last night. You really think I’m that bad, eh?” And I grinned at him. He replied, “Oh, no, no, no. You were a real delight. But there are musicians and there are Bards. And there are Bards and there are Rangers. And there are Rangers that enjoy music. And I thought you could be one of those.” And he slapped me on the shoulder again. And I said, “Well thank you very much, friend. But I’ll go on being a Bard for now and hope that my duties allow me to visit the trees often enough. Why you should have seen the merchant company I travelled with when we camped on the edge of the wood. They were as nervous as a long-tailed cat near a rocking chair. Me; I could hear everything going on in the woods when the men would be quiet enough. I could hear the deer and the rabbit moving on the trail. [perception] I could hear the birds and identify each one by their song. By the way, where is that owl?” Flint’s eyes widened, “Why you rascal. You even know I have an owl with me? And how did you know that? He hasn’t moved a muscle.” I replied, “Well, I guessed. I guessed he was an owl, or a hawk, because the rodents and rabbits were not making a sound around here. And I guessed he was yours, well because who else would he belong to. And, his talon marks are on your glove. I figure he could have been a hawk, but an owl is more consistent with those marks.” He replied, “Why you’re really something.”
“I asked you to come here”, he went on, “so you could be introduced to this community. This is where I get my support. I am here to watch over this part of the border and I spend a great deal of time at the other edge of this wood watching the orcs in the lands beyond here. I belong to another Order that is pledged to serve the Empire, but not the Emperor. My Order watches over the evil forces in this world and attempts to drive them back from civilization. This wood is The Frontier. Beyond there are no civilizations for men. I am pledged to help the Empire maintain civilization from the edge of this wood all the way to the capitol. I drew this land because of my knowledge and hatred for orcs.” He looked down at the ground and paused. Then he looked up again and turned to look at me. He continued, “I also asked you here to give you a lesson in swordsmanship. But I hear you’ve been teaching your own classes, except all your students ran away and died?”
I grinned and said, “Oh you heard about that too? Well it isn’t quite what you might think. Joseph, I fear he is losing his sight, but I picked up on the fact we were noticed by a band of men, and under the circumstances I surmised they must be bandits. And then I could see there were eight of them. I asked Joseph what he could do against eight men and he said he had a spell that would work at fifty feet. So I figured that would slow them down pretty good. And I figured that if we were brave enough, we might intimidate the rest out of their ideas for the cart. If I hadn’t thought we could win I may have asked him to surrender his wagon, for I hoped that was what they wanted. So I used my influences to stop them at the right distance and Joseph cast his spell, Burning Hands, and it nailed them. Six of them took significant damage including their leader and second. The other two came in a charge and the brutes were no match, one-on-one, for me or Joseph. So we killed those two, and I looked up to see his spell killed two others. So we faced four seriously wounded bandits. But their leader wanted the cart as payment for his losses and wasn’t going to give up. So I used my influences again and goaded him into facing me in single combat. I did take advantage of his wounds, but I am not ashamed for it. I knew his reflexes were affected by his burns and I caught him in his exposed arm with my rapier and followed up with a death stroke from my dagger. I drove it home and his blood poured forth.”
Flint responded, “Well that is quite a story. Forgive me, but I must seize this opportunity to assess your skill. Are you able to demonstrate your skill with the sword?” I replied, “If it must be, I am ready.” So I removed my lute and my purse and placed them at the base of a tree. I removed my dagger and placed it there too. I drew my rapier and began walking around in the leaves to see if there were any hidden roots, soft spots or low places in the forest floor. Flint likewise took his time but he carried a heavier weapon. When we were ready, he faced me and raised his sword and his other arm for balance. I saluted him and made ready. We stared at one another, and finally he said, “If you please.” And so I shuffled my feet to close the distance and took a stroke at him. Of course, he ably parried my stroke, which was expected. He did not counter. I took another stroke, which he parried again. And I took another, but this time after parrying my stroke he made a counter attack and this I parried. He said, “Good.” I shifted to my left and lunged and he parried my stroke, and countered, which I parried and countered, and he parried, and countered and I parried. He lowered his sword and said, “You are a better swordsman than I have seen from the diplomatic service in some time. I was beginning to think they weren’t teaching that any longer.” And I relaxed a little and replied, “Or maybe a little more swordsman than you wish to play with today?” And with a quickness I had not seen before in a primate he thrust out, catching my sword, which I had to focus on just to keep in my hand, and then snapped his wrist catching my sword from the other side making it fly out of my hand, and he raised his sword straight at my chest. He said in all seriousness, “This is not your profession, Bard, remember that. I am trying to teach you something that I hope will keep you alive.” And he lowered his sword, and I breathed out.
He smiled at me and said, “We half-elves are a curious lot, aren’t we?” I breathed in, “Yes, we are. I was beginning to think that what I learned as a child from the Elves was good enough for you. But it will be some time before I think that again. You are right, though. Neither the Bard college nor the Service school teach anything meaningful in swordplay. I have been relying on my lessons from before that, which carried me through the College easily. So are fighters all this good? Have I the need to study this as well?” He stepped over to retrieve my rapier, raised it with a flick of his wrist and caught it in his off hand and turned to hand it back to me. He said, “Yes, you will have to become better at the sword, but that will come with time and training. I have been training Andante for years. He can play his lute, and he can talk a knight off his horse, but in single combat, without spells, he knows I would best him. And as a credit to his wisdom, he lets me teach him to become a better swordsman even if he tries to avoid using that skill. He solves bigger problems in his own way, and that is what you will do, if I can help keep you alive long enough to develop your skills and your contacts. Come, let us walk together back to the mill.” We picked up our things and turned for the mill.
“You’re pretty fair with the sword. Can you use a short sword and a broad sword?” I replied, “I trained with a short sword as a boy. I assume a broad sword is just heavier.” He answered, “Well that’s about it. How about the bow?” I said, “Oh yes, nobody living among Elves doesn’t fall in love with the bow. I learned on a short bow but I have shot the long bow also with no trouble.” Flint went on, “Well I can see your tracking skills are very good. Are your other woodsman’s skills sufficient?” I answered, “Well I know the plants and I can forage for myself. I even know the medicines of the Allenhalvania. I can use an axe and maul as good as any other half-elf and I keep my carving knife sharp enough to shave with. I know rope work and fire building. Is there any particular skill you are curious about?” “No”, he replied. “I was just making sure you had all the basics covered so I wouldn’t bother with those things. When you come here next I think we should focus on the sword. You’re better than I expected, but I need to see how you would handle yourself against some of the animals and humanoids you could face. They are altogether different than fighting a man armed with a weapon. Soldiers and knights are taught to fight armed men. Fighters, Paladins, Rangers”, and he bowed and spread his arms, “even Barbarians learn to fight beasts and humanoids, so let me teach you these things.” Flint fished in a pouch at his belt and produced a small stone with a glyph carved on it. He handed it to me saying, “Here. Take this and keep it in your pouch. If you show it to someone that knows the sign they will know you are a friend of mine. That can be used to have a message sent to me. I have a network used to communicate with others that share my interests. The clerics of Stonebridge are part of that network. They want me to keep the folk of Pine Mill safe from orcs. If you are in Stonebridge you may ask a Cleric of Demeter to get a message to me, show him that stone, and give him the message. Don’t send me an epistle, just a few words. I will act on it as I am able, or at least respond to your message. Normally when you need me, you’ll have to come out here. I don’t have the luxury of coming into Stonebridge whenever I would like. I must stay here and harass the orcs incessantly. It keeps them from becoming curious about these woods.”
We arrived at the mill and Flint bid me goodbye. I asked when I should return. He responded that I should come back as soon as I could, but he wanted that to be after I met with Andante first. I shook his hand and walked into the hamlet. I turned and he had disappeared, but I knew he was watching, so I smiled a broad smile and waved to the woods.
I walked past the picnic tables and judged it to be about two o’clock. Joseph was by the cart talking to some townsfolk. I walked over to him. I unslung my lute and began to idly play a little finger roll while I watched them. A lady near me turned around and got a large smile on her face. She stepped over and gave me a big hug around the neck and I didn’t know what to do. The other ladies turned and gathered around. Joseph got a smile on his face and said, “They’re all very happy you ran off the bandits. Some of them are quite fond of me.” I responded while gently coercing the first lady, not at all unattractive, to let go of me, “You did remind them that you helped, right?” He smiled and said, “Of course, of course. But they’ve come to think of you as a great avenger so let’s roll with it.” And I said, “Yes, of course.” And I smiled at the ladies and thanked them for their affection.
I asked, “Are we ready to go? I’m, worried I’ll have a report to make and I need to clean up first.” And he said, “Oh yes, I suppose we, ah, you do.” So we said our goodbyes and we were on our way back. To help cement my own legend I played the music for my new ballad to leave the tune in their heads as we walked off.
“So”, he began, “what did Flint want to talk about?” “Well”, I answered, “he mostly wanted to give me a fencing lesson, which I passed by the way.” “After this morning, I should think so. I haven’t seen a Bard jump into combat like that before. They usually sit back and try some casting while our friends do the Hack-N-Slash dance. But you didn’t hesitate.” I replied, “I didn’t have and spells to cast on my friends so it was my only option. I wasn’t going to send you up against the eight of them. What was I going to do, Polymorph old Ham into a bear?” “Well”, Joseph continued, “I’m sure glad you handled it the way you did. I won’t get over the expression on his face when you told him he was wearing his liquor.”
We passed the miles rather uneventfully, picked up the bodies, and continued on to Stonebridge. I asked, “So you have to bury the bodies of your victims?” “It is an order from our liege lord cleric, Thomas Quintus.” He replied. “He expects us to show the greatest respect for life, even for our enemies, in hopes we inspire better behavior in the townsfolk. This is also why I attempted to heal our victims even though they had taken arms up against us. But I was pretty sure they wouldn’t take my offer because the one fellow was right. The only thing waiting for those fellows was the gallows.”
We arrived at the edge of town a little short of six o’clock and I reported to the guard that we were back from Pine Mill. I also reported that I must make a report to the Magistrate shortly but I was in no shape to attend dinner. It would take me some time to change and wash. I asked that word would be sent to the Green Hawk when I should have an audience with the Magistrate.” Joseph, meanwhile, continued to the Chapel and met Thomas Quintus on the road and made a brief report to him. Thomas was headed to dinner with the Magistrate so all of the most important information would already be shared with the Magistrate before I arrived.
I strode through town playing and singing my new ballad. Many heads turned to hear the new tune. I don’t believe many of the onlookers caught the words, but they did seem to enjoy the tune. I nodded to Ben as I passed by, and he waved a friendly wave. I nodded to the guards at the mansion and they Didn’t wave a friendly wave. I arrived at the Green Hawk and stopped playing. I removed my hat and stepped inside. There was a cheer as I stepped in and then a few men stood and slapped me on the shoulder, a friendly slap as Flint had in the wood. I waved at a few and kept walking because I felt terrible in my bloody clothes. As I hit the stairs, Tony was coming up right behind me. As we moved away from the noise I could make out him telling me the news of the bandits had already reached town. I wondered how that might be since we were the only people that saw the events and I didn’t know who might have traveled from Pine Mill already today. He then fussed about opening my room since it had been locked almost every moment after I left except to pick up and drop off my laundry.
We reached the head of the stair and I held out my hand forcing Tony to wait. Something seemed amiss in the hallway. I asked, “Have any new visitors come to rent a room here?” He replied, “Yes. A fellow came late today and checked into this room here”, and he indicated the first room on the right. My room was the last on the left. We walked down the hall. I asked, “If you could please unlock the door but not open it?” “Sure”, he said in a curious tone. Click. The door was unlocked. I raised my arm and eased him away from the door. I drew my dagger and he said softly, “Bene?” I placed my hand on the knob and turned it very slowly. I pressed the door in and the string was out of place. I pushed the door open but stood in the hall and the window was open.
I stepped in waving for Tony to follow. I looked all around the room seeing everything where I had left it except the laundry basked and a fresh pitcher of water. I stepped over to the window and examined the casing. It had not been forced. I turned and asked Tony, “How did my window get open?!” He stammered, “Sorry sir, I suppose my wife raised it for you to let in some fresh air.” I let out a breath. “Sorry my friend. I carry sensitive correspondence and I can’t allow prying eyes see it. Please let your family know if I am not in the building keep this window closed unless I say otherwise, in which case I’ll almost certainly have my correspondence on my person.” He responded, “Y-yes, sir.” I smiled at him. “Take a seat. I’m sure it is all right. Your wife meant well, I’m sure.” And he sat down, but not in a relaxed manner. I removed my rapier and dagger and lute, and I placed them near the door and hung my hat on the coat tree. I sat down at the table and opened my correspondence case. I had all three of my maps and my letters. I placed my credentials on the table and said, “Everything is here. It looks like no harm. You were really worried. I could read it in your face.” He replied, “Yes, I suppose I was after hearing about today. You really killed eight bandits?” “Oh, no”, I replied, “I only killed two, but I intimidated the rest into fleeing because of the manner in which I killed the first two, including their leader. Joseph believes they will all be dead of their wounds that were able to flee.” Tony stood up suddenly, and backed up, “Sir, you killed the bandit leader and another man and yet you act like you’ve been out visiting and playing your lute. Doesn’t it bother you that you came so close to death?” “Well”, I said, “when you put it like that, I suppose I should. I guess I haven’t stopped to think about it like that.” “If you will excuse me sir, I need to return to the bar.” “Do you have a lad that can help me with my armor and things?” “Yes sir. I can send the boy up.” “Is he your boy?” I asked. He responded, “Yes sir.” I asked, “And you don’t mind?” “No sir.” So I said, “Very well, yes, please send him up.” And Tony disappeared down the hallway.
A moment later a boy of about ten or eleven years was in the hallway looking into the room. I said, “Please come in.” And he stepped in the room. I asked as I turned in my chair and held up my arm, “I could use your help unfastening this armor please.” And the boy stepped up and began working on the buckles. “Sorry for the stench. I’ve been trapped in this for the whole day.” I said to him. He smiled a little and kept working. He began working on the hooks and was having trouble with them so I had to reach around with my other hand and help. Once he got two hooks undone, he could manage the rest. I stood up and slid the armor off. Then I pulled the remnant of my shirt off and started to pull the padded undergarment off. Next I removed the inner under shirt and threw the shirts in a pile. I asked the boy to place the clean laundry on the bed and to then step into the hall for a moment or two. I closed the door and pulled off my bloody trousers and my boots and my socks. I placed it all into the empty basket. I stood before the mirror and poured the water into the wash basin. I washed myself off and ran a wet comb through my hair to tame the unruliness of it. I pulled some clean clothes from the pile on the bed and began to dress. Once I had my pants and under shirt on, I asked the boy to come in again.
I pointed to the pile of sweaty shirts and said “Put those in the basket with the other things and take them to be washed, please.” He reached down and did as asked. He went to pick up the whole basket and I said, wait a moment. I went to my purse and found two coppers. I picked up my damp socks and put them in the basket and handed the boy the two coppers. I went and washed my hands again saying, “OK that’s it. Thank you.” And he lifted the basket and disappeared down the hallway. I finished washing and dressing, putting on new socks and my street shoes. I heard a man ascending the stairs, and I wasn’t Tony. The foot falls came down the hall and I stood up and stepped to my rapier and dagger. I could tell he was standing in the doorway but could not see me. I drew my rapier in a flash and stepped back from the door to look into the hallway. It was a member of the guard and he reached for his weapon upon seeing me jump out like this. I lowered my rapier, and said, “What is it?” He let out a breath and said, “The magistrate has asked that you come to dinner immediately. I am supposed to bring you as quickly as I can.” He replaced his sword in his scabbard. “You gave me such a start, sir.” “Sorry”, I said, “I’m nearly ready. Please call for Tony to come up.” He turned and walked down the hallway.
I grabbed my credentials. I replaced my rapier in its scabbard, and took only my belt, dagger and purse. I grabbed my cloth bag for my credentials and my lute. I stepped into the hallway and closed the door behind me, slowly arranging the string as it shut. Tony and the guard were coming up the stairs. I met them at the head of the stairs. “Tony please secure my door. I must be off to speak to the Magistrate. I should return tonight about the same time.” And with that, I slung my lute over my shoulder and followed the guard down the stairs and out the door. As I passed through the tavern, the buzz increased a bit, but they could see I was following the guard, and they understood what that meant.
Out in the street, the sun was setting and it was getting a little windy. I could smell the approach of rain. We hurried to the mansion, for I didn’t want the other dinner guests to be inconvenienced. I went right into the mansion and to the doors leading to the banquet hall. I stopped in front of the doors and collected myself. The guard gave a sharp wrap on the door. The doors opened and I stepped inside. The Herald said, “My Lord Ballinor, I present Bene-Timber, messenger and emissary of the Emperor, his highness Emperor Alexander of Confernos, Defender of the faithful, son of his highness Alexander II, Vanquisher of the Orcs, and third grandson of his highness Emperor Alexander I, Conqueror of the Andorean Plains.” And he raised his staff and brought it down again, Bang. And everyone in the hall stood and all the guests applauded.
When the applause died down, the Magistrate indicated my chair inviting me to sit down and join them. And as I started walking he sat down in his chair, and his wife, and the captain of the guard and his wife, and Thomas Quintus sat down as well. Everyone else remained standing. I arrived at my chair and remained standing. Lord Ballinor said, “Bene-Timber, please be seated, my friend.” I replied, “Yes, my lord.” I lifted my Lute from my shoulder and handed it to the attendant, and as I sat down I said, “I must beg my lords forgiveness for I have barely had time to wash and change my clothes.” “No bother, no bother, we understand”, he replied. And he went on, “We understand you had an eventful trip to Pine Mill today?” A question everyone already knew the answer. “Yes, my lord. We were accosted by a band of bandits and with the help of Joseph we convinced them to flee.” “Oh”, he began in reply, “we heard it was a little more involved than that, … And that you have already composed a song about it. Please, we should like to hear your new song, the way you wrote it for the citizens of Pine Mill, not some watered down modest version as you just told me. Let me hear how it really went.” I responded, “Yes my lord.” And I rose from my seat, and the attendant brought me my lute. I slung it over my shoulder and I checked the tuning. I strummed it and cleared my throat. I reached for my goblet of water and took a sip. I strummed it again and hummed a note.
I began strumming with vigor and walking about the table in the fashion I learned at the college. And I began to sing my new ballad. And the guests smiled and some nodded their heads to the beat of the music and enjoyed the story. And I couldn’t help but enjoy the experience of singing a ballad of my own accomplishments, for this was one of the highest aspirations of a Bard, not only to be present when valiant battles are fought, not only to be influencing and helping the victors, but to be the key actor in the story and live to sing your own ballad written of the tale; this was pure heaven. And for such an audience as this. Except for Flint, there is likely no other important man in the Province not seated at this table tonight. So I sang my ballad and paraded around for their enjoyment and enjoyed every moment. When I was done, I bowed at the waist with a flourish to the applause. And I pulled the lute from my shoulder and handed it to the attendant and Lord Ballinor waved me to be seated.
Lord Ballinor clapped his hands and said, “Lovely, beautiful, I should hope you are present at our next festival to perform it again at that time. And we know of your evening’s activities last night and believe you will wish to perform it again. Feel free to do so as much as you wish between now and the festival as you like.” And I nodded my thanks to the Magistrate. “Now”, he continued, “tell us how it played out in your words. For you shouldn’t be constrained by measures and beats to use any words you like.”
I asked to stand again, and the Magistrate waved me on. I stood and recounted the story of that morning beginning with my sensing that something was amiss. I told them the real truth, that Joseph did the most damage with his spell, and then that I took over the engagement and killed the bandit leader. I stopped telling the story after the bandits ran away saying nothing waited for them except the hangman’s noose. I did add Joseph’s observation that the three that were able to run away would probably die soon anyway. I didn’t share my reaction to being covered in blood and that Joseph had to calm me down over it. Lord Thomas Quintus did question me about the opening of the engagement. “You sensed something was amiss, and yet Joseph did not?” I replied that was true and I added that I feared his eyesight was failing. But I added that it was due in part to my upbringing with the Elves and my familiarity with the woods and the peculiarities of animals. I said that I think my first note of trouble was a flock of crows taking flight which is a well-known sign among woodsmen that something ominous started the birds. After this, I heard something which sounded like a noise humanoids make, not animal. This is when I first said something to Joseph.
Lord Martinex was next. “You sized up the enemy so quickly noting only two wore armor of any kind and to others were bearing clubs. You also noted the two fellows in the first charge, both being unarmored would be easy to handle. You really kept your head about you my boy. And then you figured the leader was the key. Kill him and the rest will fall away like dead leaves in the Fall. And by acting boldly you intimidated your foes who out numbered you and allowed you to engage their leader in single combat? Why I wish I had officers with such keen senses. They are all too often intent in winning their own single combat and not judging the battlefield as a whole.” I responded, “Thank you my lord, but I am by no means a grand strategist for defeating six unruly bandits.” And he replied, “Yes, you’re right, but from such beginnings great leaders are made. Good show.”
I began to feel a little awkward. I was trained as a diplomat to flatter and entice my targets into giving me information they might otherwise wish to hold to themselves. Being the center of attention this way put me completely off balance. In addition, as a Bard I was reveling in the glory of the moment. I would have enjoyed writing a ballad of Flint if he had been the hero, so to be the subject of a ballad I would have enjoyed writing about a friend was a blissful moment. The two sides of me were struggling with one another. The Bard wanted to tell the world in a beautiful way and the diplomat wanted to keep most of the information to myself.
Another man at a side table looked over and said, “And did you notice anything remarkable about these bandits? Was there anything that you found on their person to indicate where they had been, where they were from, or who else they may have assaulted?” I gazed back at him and thought for a moment, “Well, not that I can think of now. Joseph was adamant that we needed to bring the bodies back. Perhaps an inspection can be made of the bodies, their clothes and their belongings?” And he replied, “Perhaps.” I thought to myself, I need to know who this man is. Cottern is here. I will ask him later.
And the Magistrate clapped his hands and said, ”Let dinner be served. It is getting late. Thomas, if you please.” And Thomas Quintus rose and so did five men on one of the side tables. Thomas gestured to Joseph, who began, “Let us give thanks for the deliverance of Demeter’s two servants”, and he repeated the prayer he recited at lunch. Thomas Quintus sat down and the other five men sat after he sat down. And the servants brought water, and dinner, and bread and wine. We enjoyed a pleasant meal of beef and potatoes, peas and bread. During the course of dinner, the guests seated closest to me offered their personal congratulations and thanks for driving off and killing the bandits.
The magistrate was ready for the formal portion of dinner to be concluded. He signaled to Cottern who rose from his seat and cleared his throat. Lords, ladies and gentlemen, Lord Ballinor wishes you each a pleasant evening. And with that, everyone except Lord Ballinor and the ladies present rose and stepped away from the table and toward the door. The ladies were assisted from their seats by their husbands and escorted out. But Cottern caught up to me and said, “Bene, Lord Ballinor wishes you to remain for a private conversation.” I bowed and said I shall be with him in a moment. I continued to intercept Joseph. “Joseph”, I said, and I motioned with my head for him to step aside. “The bodies”, I asked, “are they under guard? We need to make sure we trust whoever is sent to inspect the bodies. Something is bothering me.” He replied, “Why, anyone sent to inspect the bodies will be observed by someone here tonight. These are the most trusted men in the Province.” “I fear”, I replied, “the Magistrate can not trust everyone in this room. Please have one of your order, no two of them, stay with the bodies until you hear from me. I shall try to be quick.” And he said with a smile, “For you, I will do this. But they are beginning to smell awful, you know.” “Sorry”, I replied, “That can’t be helped on my end. If you have someone that can”, and I waved my hands in a flurry as if to mimic a spell. He smiled again and turned to leave.
I immediately went back inside the banquet hall. The governor was seated with his captain, Lord Martinex, and Thomas. I approached. Lord Martinex spoke, “You”, indicating a servant, “have a chair brought over here at once.” I waited and a chair was delivered. Lord Ballinor indicated with his arm for me to have a seat. I sat down. Lord Ballinor asked, “Is Joseph alright?” I replied, “Sir?” He repeated his question, “Is he alright? His vision? Was he truly unable to realize he was in danger?” I thought for a moment, “Sir, I believe his reaction was honest and he truly did not realize he was in danger until they were close and this was after I raised the alert. I do believe his eyesight is failing.” Thomas said, “What a pity, what a pity. He is a very diligent man. And he is well liked by the people. I may have to have him reassigned because it is too dangerous to send a man like that on the road. If you had not arrived yesterday, he may well be dead today.”
Lord Ballinor asked, “Is there anything else you need to report, for I know you emissary fellows are careful with your information. Is there something you want to tell us now you didn’t want to say in front of everyone?” I replied, “Yes sir, there is. But I didn’t know it until we were talking at the banquet. First I must ask, who was the man that asked me about the bodies?” Lord Martinex shook his head, “That is the court mage, Finlock. He’s a real squirrel. Lord Ballinor, you know …” Lord Ballinor cut him off, “Yes, I know.” He turned back to me and explained, “Each Province is entrusted with certain sensitive magic items. Each Province is sent a Court Mage responsible for these items. Finlock is new to our Province. His predecessor, Sommerbee, was well liked and we felt we could trust him. He died under mysterious circumstances. Finlock has not developed a bond with the people of the Court or the townsfolk. Andante knows these things. He has told the people that need to know, so you need not report this to anyone other than Andante to confirm what we’re telling you now.” Lord Ballinor continued, “So why do you ask about Finlock?” I thought and replied, “I found it curios that he was so interested in what we may have learned by inspecting the dead bodies.”
“I must confess to you sir, I was not thinking clearly when the fight was done. I’m new to this profession and you know. And, I have never killed a man before. Beasts, certainly, scores of them, for my family made our living as fur traders. But I had never killed a man before. And I had never killed a beast with a dagger. I was not ready for what happened, for I got blood all over everything I was wearing save my hat. It was a feeling that makes me sick to think of it now. I was operating on some other level as if I were not myself. I had some sort of blood lust or something so that I stuck my dagger in his side like I was selecting a piece of meat for dinner. I just did it without thinking. Well, being new to the service and all, I have to present myself in my best at all times. But I have only three sets of clothes and one of them is completely ruined. I can’t afford another leather cuirass. My boots and adventuring trousers are still permanently blood stained; my shirt was ruined. I was in a state worried about how I would present myself in court until I could afford to replace these things. I was also worried about showing up in Pine Mill dressed like a butcher not an emissary. Anyway, I am ashamed because inspecting the bodies is just the sort of thing and information gatherer like me should have though to do.”
“Now I am worried that someone is going to inspect the bodies and tamper with them, planting or stealing evidence we should need. Can we have guards secure the bodies? I know it is a terrible duty, but I fear someone is working at something behind the scenes on this. I have already imposed on Joseph to have his brothers keep an eye on the bodies until I contact him.” Lord Ballinor replied, “You have a keen mind, Bene-Timber. Lord Martinex, see to this at once. Quietly have the Clerics relieved and place four soldiers on this for no more than two hours at a time. I don’t want this failing because someone fell asleep or became complacent. Send four guards at once with Bene-Timber, so he may relieve Joseph.” He paused, “Once the guard is posted, I would ask that you return to the Green Hawk as if nothing happened. Many townsfolk will be excited to see you there tonight. Play your ballad, sing and have a great time. Come see Cottern in the morning. He will have something for you. Now my friends, please excuse me. I have more to share with Lord Martinex after he sees to the guards.” And with that, the three of us stood up. I bowed to Lord Ballinor, to Lord Martinex and to Thomas, turned and left. Lord Martinex followed me outside.
Lord Martinex said, “This way, Bene-Timber.” I followed him down the hallway to the left. He stepped into an office and a soldier immediately stood at attention. “Sergeant, find the Officer of the Day at once.” “Sir”, he replied, “the O-D is making his rounds. He should be between here and the west gate.” Lord Martinex replied, “Find a soldier to carry a message to the O-D.” The sergeant stepped past us and out into the hallway. A few seconds later the sergeant returned with another soldier in tow. Lord Martinex motioned for both of them to come in. He motioned for me to close the door, which I did. He turned to the soldier, “Take this man to see the O-D at once. The O-D is to set a detail of four men to watch over the dead bodies from today’s fight. They are to make sure nobody tampers with the bodies before I relieve them. They are to stand no more than a two-hour watch by order of the Magistrate. Is this clear?” The soldier nodded and said “Yes, sir.” Lord Martinex continued to both of them, “Nobody is to speak of this assignment to anyone not directly involved. Not either of you. Not the O-D. Not the soldiers on duty. Not the soldiers off duty. Nobody. Is that clear?” “Yes, sir.” They both replied. I opened the door.
I walked back to the main entrance of the mansion with the soldier right behind me. Lord Martinex walked past us retuning to the banquet room. Outside, I donned my hat and smelled the air. I said to no one in particular, “Rain is coming before dawn.” The soldier stepped past me and said, “This way sir.” We walked to the west gate in the direction of the chapel. We met the O-D at the chapel. He was there with an orderly and taking an interest in the dead bodies asking why the clerics wouldn’t go in for the night. The soldier approached the Officer of the Day and saluted. The O-D returned the salute and said, “Yes, who is this?” I introduced myself, “I am Bene-Timber. I am the fellow that dispatched these bandits today on the road to Pine Mill.” He looked at me and said, “You? You killed these bandits? Why I find that hard to believe. You clubbed them over their heads with your lute?” “Sir, I am an emissary of the Emperor and I am able to defend myself when needs arise.” He replied, “Whatever.” I continued, “We have come with orders from Lord Martinex. You are to establish a guard detail of no less than four soldiers over these dead bodies to ensure they are not tampered with until relieved by Lord Martinex. The guards are to stand watch no more than two hours so they do not become fatigued or complacent. Nobody”, and I looked at the clerics as well, “is to speak of this detail that is not directly involved. Those are Lord Martinex’s orders. Once the relief arrives, these clerics are relieved. Is this understood?” The orderly and the soldier that came with me immediately said, “Yes sir.” I turned to the clerics and they acknowledged the orders, “Yes sir.” I turned to the O-D. He looked at me like a child. “Who are you to be giving me such orders?” He said. I replied, “I am relaying these orders from Lord Martinex. You should consider these orders are from him personally. Under the circumstances I must ask this soldier to remain here with the clerics until the orders are carried out.” I turned to the soldier, “Once these orders are carried out, let Lord Martinex know, and tell Lord Martinex that I shall like to know as well. He will know what to do.” The O-D was beside himself. “Who do you think you are giving orders to my soldiers?” I turned and faced him, “You don’t want to test me on this matter. If you wish to question these dealings you are free to speak to Lord Martinex yourself. But you better see to the detail before you do. I must take my leave. Good evening, sirs.”
I turned and began walking toward the mansion and the Green Hawk. I didn’t turn around so I would give the impression that my orders were not to be questioned. And I thought to myself, What an ass of an O-D. If Lord Martinex were to have witnessed that exchange, his career would be over. I pushed all that away in my mind so I could get into my performer’s mind set and have a good time.
I entered the tavern and again there was a great cheer. I strode to the hearth and a small table was waiting for me. I bowed and the applause died down a moment later. “Friends, I appreciate your affection and attention. I must run up to my room and grab a few things and when I return, I will perform my new ballad, Bene-Timber, Bane of Bandits and Thieves.” And with that, I nodded to Tony by way of asking him to unlock my room. He followed me up the stairs where I checked the hallway and then continued to the door. He opened the door and pushed it open for me and I looked in but it was dark. I stepped inside and went to light a candle. As the soft yellow light shone, I looked about and stepped to the table. I lit a second candle and set it on a stand. I lifted the first and Tony stood near the door indicating the bench he had brought in for me. I thanked him and asked for the key to the room. He paused, and then realizing there was no point in objecting, he fumbled the key from the key ring and handed it over to me. “I’ll be along in a moment.” And he disappeared down the hallway. I removed my belt and dagger setting them by the rapier. I picked up my cloth bag for tips and headed back out into the hallway. Outside in the hallway, I turned and locked my door, and then remembering the candles, I unlocked it and stepped back inside. I put out both candles and stepped back into the hallway. I closed the door carefully this time and set the string. I then closed and locked the door, turned and headed downstairs.
Upon coming back into sight there was another cheer, and I smiled and waved. I stepped over to the hearth and placed my hat on the table and my bright cloth bag next to it. I signaled Tony for an ale and I pulled my lute around and checked the tuning. A maid brought the ale and I finished tuning the lute. I turned to the audience and said, “I hope everyone is doing well. It is a pleasure to back here tonight, … in one piece <cheer>, and I believe there is no better ale in Stonebridge than the Green Hawk serves, so everyone make sure you top off for I have more to share this evening than I had this morning.” <cheer> I raised my tankard and made a big show of taking a deep drink, which was an illusion they taught us in the Bard College. And finishing my drink I set the tankard down with a flourish and pulled my lute into position. The crowd quieted down and I began a slow finger picking roll on my lute in six-eight time.
The Ballad of Bene-Timber, Bane of Bandits and Thieves
And there was a great cheer from the crowd for they felt pride in hearing of their town in song and that they knew a local hero. And they cheered that the bandits in the area would have more reason to ply their trade elsewhere. For the rest of the evening they drank and cheered and sang and cried and danced and embraced so that everyone in the Green Hawk that night was a friend to everyone else. And when it was late, Bene-Timber finished his second tankard of ale and bowed with a flourish waving his tankard about. And he picked up his colorful cloth bag and his hat and he stepped over to the bar to invite Tony to sit while they counted their coin together. And Bene-Timber asked him to bring another tankard when he came. And he sat down at the table at the end of the bar and set his hat down and his lute, and set the bag on the table and reached in his pouch for a cloth. Tony came over with two tankards and set one before Bene with a big smile. And Bene asked if he could have a candle brought over so they may see better. And when the candle was delivered, Bene upended his colorful bag onto the cloth and set it down the colorful bag again.
And as they drank and chatted, they divided the coin slowly. One would take two coins and the other would take two coins and so it went until there was only one coin left, a lonely copper piece. Leaving the copper piece there for a moment, Bene-Timber asked Tony if the agreement was satisfactory. Tony beamed, “Why this is probably the best night I’ve ever had since I opened this place. Yes, yes, my friend. I made more coin tonight than ever.” “Very good, my friend.” Bene replied. “Could I trouble you to trade my coppers and silvers for gold? I fear a great bulge at my belt will attract thieves instead of women.” Tony looked at me a moment with a blank face, and then suddenly he laughed slapping the table. “Ah, haw, I get it. No, uh, yes. We don’t want you attracting that kind of attention. I always need light coin so I’ll be happy to oblige you.” And he stood up, a little uneasily, and stepped over to the bar. He came back with another pouch and opened it up, and pulled it up close to his eyes and said, “Now, less see here? I got …”, “Hush my friend”, I cut him off, “You need not say any more. Take one coin out and I will count out the number of coppers and silvers”, I said this quietly to him, “And then you take my pile and I’ll take yours. And then we’ll repeat the process. This way it will be difficult for anyone to see a large sum on our table.”
So he reached in and took hold of one coin, with a little effort, and slapped it on the table, looked up and smiled at me. I calmly counted out the silvers and coppers I wanted to trade him. I placed them in a neat pile and we exchanged piles. I put my coin away and counted out some more. He likewise, took hold of another coin with some effort and slapped it on the table. I counted out my pile and placed them on the table saying quietly, “If you don’t stop slapping the table everyone in Stonebridge will know what is going on and one of us will be robbed, and I fear it will be you, my friend.” And he took his pile and I took mine. He reached in and took hold of another coin, but as he went to slap it down on the table, I reached out and caught his hand and stood up. I said a little loud, “Thank you my friend for the loan. I promise to make good use of your money.” And I shook his hand as an old friend. And he began to say, “Wait a second …” But I stood him up and twisted his arm a little to make him stop talking. “Hey, watch …” I threw my arm around him and walked him to the bar. His wife took notice and came to meet me at the bar with a look of violence on her face. She raised her hand which was holding a wooden spoon and began to shake it in my face, “Look here… “ I whispered, "Your husband has had too much and I’m trying to make a scene so he won’t be robbed. I will be in my room tonight and down in the morning for breakfast. We should talk then. I’m not going anywhere." And in a loud voice I said, “Don’t worry, I’ll double your money, and you will be dancing in the street.” And I eased Tony into his wife’s arms. And taking his weight she understood I was right and he was a drunken boy. She looked in my eyes and I winked. I nodded and she nodded back indicating she had his weight, so I let go and retrieved my things. I looked about [perception] and didn’t see any threats so I walked up the stairs to my room.
At the head of the stairs I examined the hallway [perception] and didn’t see anything amiss. I was wondering who the other guest was on the top floor. But I would have to exercise some patience to learn who this was. I couldn’t risk being discovered doing anything out of order. I stepped to the door and unlocked it. I pressed it open and checked to see the string was in its place. I pushed the door open, looked and then stepped inside. I lit one and then another candle, turned, and closed the door. I put my things on the table and let the saddle bags on the bench. I leaned the lute against the dresser and took off my shirt. I sat for a moment letting my head clear, and I picked up my lute. It was late and I shouldn’t be playing a lute in my bedroom at this hour. But I had things to sort out and I needed a spell to clear my head and help me focus.
I plucked quietly and tried to enter a meditation trance. I thought about the bandits. I tried to concentrate on their clothing, their weapons and anything else that stood out. All I could remember was their severe burns and the blood. I cleared my mind again and I concentrated on the Officer-of-the-Day. Was there anything strange about him or was he just a little too puffed up with himself. The service school told me I would run into fellows like this; fellows that felt their rank was more important than their brains. No, I couldn’t think of anything tell-tale about him either. Then I cleared my mind and I thought about Finlock. He was the toughest because I never got close to him to see him well. Was there anything out of the ordinary about him? Wait, a glint of light. A glint of light reflected from his chest as he turned to face me and ask his questions. What made that reflection? It had to be small. Maybe it was a token about his neck or a broach pinned to his tunic. I couldn’t make out what it was even in my trance like state. I cleared my mind and set the lute down.
I stood up and washed myself off and changed into my night shirt. I went to the window and opened it a crack. The wind was rushing outside. The rain should begin any time now. I left the window cracked and blew out the first candle on the table. I took my journal and as I read it, I began to drift off to sleep. I set my journal on the nightstand, blew out the candle and went to sleep.
I woke some time later when it was raining. It was very dark in the room but I lay still. My eyes adjusted and I could see the room in a faint grey to black tone image. The curtain was dancing in the wind and the window was blown open further. I sat up and stood, stepped over to the window and closed it well and secured it. I stepped back and got back in bed. As I lay down, I heard footsteps in the hall. I heard a door open, footsteps and a door close. I heard only a little scuffing noise now and then for a few minutes and then nothing. I surmised the other guest was back in his room, from where I didn’t know. And after a moment I drifted off to sleep.
48th Planting, 221
There was a knock on my door and I opened my eyes. The room came into focus and there was a second knock. “Thank you”, I replied, “and good morning.” “My lord”, came the reply, “Would you like your breakfast early today?” I swung my legs out and replied, “Yes, I think I should like my breakfast early, thank you.” A reply came, “Very well sir. I will let mother know.”
I rubbed my upper arms, for there was a chill in the air. I lit the candle on my bed stand and stood up. I carried the candle over to the table and lit the candle there, for warmth and light. I returned the first candle to the bed stand. I walked over to the bowl of water on the dresser and dipped my fingers in the water, lifted my hand to my face and rubbed the water into my face. I rubbed my face and decided I should trim my beard so I went to my saddlebags and fished out my razor. I returned to the mirror and shaved around the edge of my beard. I touched up my neck and rinsed the razor off. I set it down and looked in the mirror again. I wondered if I could find a barber in this town able to touch up my beard and trim my hair around my ears and along the back. I must keep appearances that I am too foolishly occupied with my looks to be a physical threat, but after my deeds of the previous day, that may not fool anybody, which could be useful too. I always found being underestimated easier to overcome than being overestimated.
I stepped over and sat at the table. I fumbled with my credentials folder and with my correspondence case. I wanted to write something down but I dared not. If they were found I could be damaged. I wanted Andante to arrive so I could share my observations and ask his advice. He should be here in two to five days anyway. I may have time to visit all the other hamlets before he gets here. Today, as I looked out the window, was no day for travelling. It had rained hard at a few times during the night and now it was just drizzling, almost like an extra heavy fog. Today I should visit a few shops in town and make some more friends. I also needed to see Cottern again. I wasn’t looking forward to that. He just wasn’t my sort of fellow.
I stood and dressed in street clothes but put my boots on over my bloody pants. I didn’t want to look like a bum but I didn’t have much of a choice. I could wear my best clothes or these dirty things. I didn’t put on my armor but just my padded under garment and a normal shirt. I dug my cloak from my saddlebags and threw it over one arm. I stepped to the door and grabbed my belt, baldric and rapier and put them on. I grabbed my credentials pouch and my hat and headed downstairs after locking the door.
At the bottom of the stairs I saw Christine getting a fire going. My table was set and ready for me. I stepped across the room and Christine looked up and smiled saying, “I’ll have your coffee out in a moment, my lord.” I replied with a smile, “Thank you ever so much. Today will be a good day for coffee. I think it’s going to be dreary all day.” She stepped past me as I set some things on the table next to mine. “Oh stop”, she replied, “Let’s not jinx it.” And she disappeared around the corner. I set down at the table and looked over at the fire over my shoulder.
She came back around the corner with a mug and a pot of hot liquid, steaming from the spout. She set the mug down and poured saying, “Take care, my lord, it is still too hot to drink. I’ll be back in a moment with your spices.” With that she set the pot down on the other side of the table and returned from where she appeared. There was a little talk and then from around the corner she returned with the honey pot and a handful of spice jars. She set these on the table and headed back around the corner. A moment later she returned with a plate with two large dough circles a medium brown. They looked like a strange kind of burned bread. And she set these down before me with a pot of butter and a big smile. She stepped back and smoothed her skirts and looked at the plate.
I hesitated and glanced up at her. She sensed the question on my mind. “Oh, lord, these are fluffy dough cakes. My family likes these more than anything else I make for breakfast. They are best with a healthy(?) spoon of butter and a big dollop of honey. But you may want to add some honey to your coffee after trying these. It seems the sweet cakes make you want sweeter coffee.” So I took some butter with my table knife and spread it on top of the cakes and then I lifted the honey stick and swirled it in the coffee. I knocked and dripped it in my cup before I set it in the honey pot and lifted it again, lowering it to the cakes. I returned the stick and watched the butter and honey spread out as I lifted the coffee to my lips. The coffee was still not so good but not awful either. But on a chilly morning it was good enough. And Christine kept looking on with anticipation.
I set my mug down and took my fork and knife, cutting a bite from the plate and raised it to my mouth. I popped it in my mouth and gave it a squeeze with my tongue against the roof of my mouth. The flavor was wonderful and I wonder how my eyes didn’t pop out of my head. I got a big grin on my face and Christine beamed and even clapped her hands together. “See my lord. Isn’t it wonderful?” I swallowed and put my fork down reaching for my coffee cup. I took another drink and she was right. After a mouthful of that my coffee needed more honey. I grinned and looked up at her as I reached for the honey stick to put more in. “This is the best thing I have had for breakfast since I left my home.” I said. “But the coffee needs the honey just as you said.” I took another drink from my mug and it tasted better. I took another bite from my cakes.
I slowed down to savor the cake flavor, sweet and fluffy, with the butter and honey. It was just so pleasing. I took another bite and then another drink from my mug. She reached over and lifted the pot to pour my coffee again and I nodded while I savored the flavor of the cakes. I took two good strokes of honey from the pot and swirled them into my cup. I sipped the coffee just to test it. I wanted to enjoy every mouthful of this breakfast, and I wasn’t in a hurry this morning as I was the day before.
Tony came from around the corner with another plate. It had two dark meat cakes on it. I looked quizzically at him but he didn’t notice. “Christine”, he began, “You didn’t come back for the Spiced Meat Cakes.” “Oh, sorry, uh, Bene”, and she took the plate from Tony and set it down for me, “These are the spiced meat cakes we eat with the fluffy dough cakes. You’ll like these too. Try them first. Don’t spice them. They’re already very spicy.” I smiled and took my knife and fork and cut a piece. I lifted the bite to my mouth.
I almost coughed. It was unlike anything I expected. But the flavor intrigued me. I couldn’t tell what sort of spices were in these, there seemed to be so many. I cut another bite and put it in my mouth and tasted it. It was very unusual. There was no doubt that I didn’t want to bother with adding spices to these. They were great too. I asked, “Where did you get these? How are they made?” Christine smiled and replied, “You’ll like them more if you don’t hear all the details. It takes a while to make them and it would take just as long for me to tell you how we make them. Just enjoy them.” And Tony nudged her at the elbow and twitched his head back toward the kitchen. She looked at him and then looked at me, “Please excuse me my lord. I hope you have everything you need.” And she followed her husband around the corner. There was some talking and then the sound of eating with flat wear touching pottery.
I finished my breakfast, and my coffee, and wiped my mouth setting the napkin in a neat pile next to my plate. I stood and stretched, turned and looked at the fire. I stepped over and warmed myself. I stepped to a window and gazed out. The rain was still spritzing enough to make me want to wear a hood, but I had only a cloak. When I turned to step back to the hearth, Christina was clearing the table. She tried to look at me without me seeing that she was looking at me. She also tried to be as graceful as possible with everything. And I tried to make sure she didn’t notice that I was aware of this.
She turned to return to the kitchen and I called after her, “Please ask Tony to come over so we may chat.” She turned, smiled, and replied, “Yes, my lord.” She turned and disappeared. Tony came round the corner looking tired. I was standing with my back to the fire. I called out, “Good morning, Tony. How are you feeling?” He opened his eyes with a forlorn look of “You know damn well how I feel” but said instead, “Oh good morning, my friend. A little tired I suppose. I always feel like this when it rains.” I replied, “Pity. Say we have to finish our business. Do you have your coin purse handy?” He paused, and opened his eyes wide, and patted his pockets, and said, “No, I’m not sure where it is. Christina?” A voice from the kitchen called, “Yes dear?” He answered, “Where’s my purse?” “Oh”, she replied back, “I set it on the dresser.” He mumbled something and turned around to fetch it.
When he returned I was sitting at my table with my own coin purse. He sat down across from me. I opened, “Do you know what happened last night?” “Uh, I’m not sure. You were making change?” “Yes”, I replied, “and you had too much to drink. I didn’t want to take advantage of you and I didn’t want anyone else to take advantage of you either. I made a big show making it appear you had loaned me a sum of money so it would appear you were nearly broke. In this way, anyone thinking we had money between us would think I was holding it. They wouldn’t think to come after the drunken owner to steal his money. If they had any ideas they would have come after me thinking I had the money.” Tony scratched his head, “You did?” And I said, “Yes, I did. And further, when we stopped counting our money together, you had given me an extra gold piece, so I want to give you your silver for it.” I held out ten silvers in my palm and continued, “Here they are. Now we are even again and I think I have enough silvers and coppers to do my shopping so we’ll see if I can make change again for you tonight if you care.” “Oh, Bene”, he responded, “You are a saint. I thought you had taken an extra gold piece from me, but in my state I couldn’t be sure. But I wasn’t going to accuse you because I thought you were my friend, and, I was in such a state. My wife said you got me up and out of the tavern just in time before I made a fool of myself. You are a real friend, Bene.” And he cupped his hand and slid the coins into his purse. “From now on”, he said, “you can have all the ale you wish from the Green Hawk, no charge.” I placed my hand on my heart, bowed with my head and replied, “Thank you, sir.”
I need to go see a tailor this morning. My shirt was ruined yesterday and I need another, so I thought I would get two. I also want to see a leather worker in case he might be able to clean these up some more.” And with this I waved at my feet. “What time do you think I may see them? When do they open up?” Tony replied, “Oh they should open about eight as soon as the men head off to work.” I asked, “Really, today, the men will head out to work in the fields today, in this dreary rain?” “Well”, he answered, “Not the field men, but we have many tradesmen that will still go to work.” I asked, “What time do they begin business in the mansion?” Tony answered, “They usually get going early in the mansion. Lord Ballinor demands it.” I replied, “I see. Well then I suppose I’ll clean up a little and head over there and get my business done with the steward first.” I stood up and said, “I’ll head up to my room and clean up. Please keep an eye on my things.” And Tony replied with a hearty, “Yes, sir.”
I went upstairs and cleaned up before returning. I called out, “Tony, I’m headed out. I hope to see you at lunch, OK?” “Oh”, he poked his head around the corner, “I hope so.” And I threw the cloak about my shoulders and grabbed my things and hid them under the cloak to protect them from the rain. I pulled the hood over my head and stepped outside into the street. It was just a nasty day with the puddles and drizzle. At least there was enough stone in the road to keep me from having to trek through mud.
I arrived at the mansion and the guards saluted me and opened the door for me. Becoming a local hero was beginning to suit me. Inside I looked at the guards and one asked if there was something he could do for me? I asked if I could put my things somewhere while I visited with the steward this morning. He said he would have them put somewhere safe while I was with the steward if I would only leave what I wished in that chair”, and he indicated a chair near him. As I began to put my arm load of things in the chair, he motioned for a guard to get a servant, and then he reached up to help me with my cloak. I retrieved my purse and my cloth bag holding my credentials and left everything else in the chair. I looked at the guard and asked if it looked alright to him and he replied he would see to it. I asked, “Is the steward in his office?” The guard replied, “Oh, yes sir, and he is expecting you.” “Thank you.” I walked down the right hand corridor.
Arriving at the steward's offices I stepped in through the open doorway and the scribe stood up. I asked him to announce me to the steward, and he said, “Yes, my lord.” He turned and knocked twice softly and waited. He knocked softly a second time. A muffled voice from inside said, “What is it!?” The scribe opened the door slightly and said, Bene-Timber, Messenger and Emissary of the …” And the reply came in an irritated voice, “Yes, yes, ask him to come in please.” “Please, my lord”, he said to me and opened the door and stepped back so I could pass.
I stepped into the steward’s office and the door closed behind me. Cottern was standing at the window looking out. I waited and he turned and said, “Good morning”, in a voice that showed he was in an ill humor, probably due to more than the rain. “My dear Steward, do you wish …” “No, I don’t wish. I’m in an ill humor as you know but I surely don’t want to return to the formalities of court for this.” And hearing this, I sat down calmly in the chair opposite Cottern’s desk. “What ails you this morning?” I asked. He replied, “Just about everything, and it all involves you in one way or another but it isn’t your fault.” He sat down behind his desk.
Cottern continued, “Those men you killed yesterday will be buried today after the guards have inspected them for signs. I am to get the report from the guards when they are done and send a copy to the Magistrate. The Officer-of-the-Day, Jaffort, is fit to be tied. He and I are almost close enough to be friends. He said he had words with you last night and took his complaint to Lord Martinex. My friend won’t do that again. He has been given an assignment to carry some important correspondence to the Emperor, which really means to the Emperor’s Chamberlain. He doesn’t know it, but he’ll never return to Stonebridge after that. Within that correspondence will be a sealed envelope that he is to be reprimanded for conduct unbecoming of an officer. He is, in effect, delivering his own ‘death warrant’ so to speak.” Cottern turned and looked out the window. He continued talking, “As I said, he is a friend and it isn’t your fault. He was just too stupid to believe a messenger could deliver a message ordering him to do something that important. He thought if it were a valid order of that gravity, the order would have been relayed by someone in uniform. He doesn’t think much of you and he is going to pay dearly for his lack of judgement. Mind you, I never suggested you were someone to disregard. No, no, I told him you were a certified messenger, but he just …”
“Well my friend”, I began, “The Magistrate said I must see you today again. Do you know what that is about?” “Yes, yes”, he replied, “You now have a letter of credit in this settlement, which will permit you to buy some things after yesterday’s events ruined your clothes. It is for quite a sum. The magistrate doesn’t want to give you the coin because he doesn’t want you to be robbed, but you have a letter of credit for 20 gold pieces you may spend in the town and the merchants may make a claim upon producing a note from you concerning your purchases. Do you understand?” “Yes, I guess. How will I certify these transactions?” “You know how to write, so you need only write out a note and place this seal on the bottom of the note. They bring the note to me and I pay them for their services after deducting any taxes they may owe.” And he reached into his desk drawer and pulled out a couple seals, selected one, and handed it to me in a soft cloth bag of red fabric. He looked me in the eye and said, “Please don’t lose this. It is yours. You need not bring it back to me but if you lose it the Magistrate will be bound to pay off debts until you sort out the matter with me and the Magistrate. Neither of us wants that.” I nodded my head and said, “Oh, I understand. Twenty gold pieces, you say?” “Yes”, he replied, “He can be most generous. I believe he sees something special in you.”
“Is there anything else?” I asked. “No, he wanted you to be able to replace your shirt, maybe buy a dinner vest. He fancies Andante’s choice of dinner vest when he comes and plays for us. I believe he hopes you will follow Andante’s example. And he imagined you could use some more coin to finish outfitting yourself for the service. He noticed you wore essentially the same clothes both evenings you’ve been here, and he knows you would be uncomfortable if folks noticed.” “Well”, I replied, “The Magistrate is very gracious and very kind. I shall invest the money in my future as he suggests. Please thank him for me. If that is all, I better attend to it.” And I stood up. He stopped me. “Just a moment. Let me register your seal.” He held out his hand, and I paused and realized he was asking for my credentials folder once again. He turned to the page with his earlier remarks, which had empty space. I handed him me seal and he moved his candle over to the middle of his desk. He picked up some sealing wax and dripped it onto the page and quickly used the seal to make an impression in the wax. He replaced the seal into the bag and handed it to me. After a pause he lifted the credentials folder and inspected the image. He closed the folder and handed it to me. “There”, he said, “Now you’re all set.” I asked, “You don’t need an impression of the seal for your records?” He replied, “No I took care of that earlier. You are certified and registered, Bene-Timber. Enjoy your day.” And he raised his hand toward the door. I replaced my credentials into the cloth bag and slipped the seal into a pouch on my belt. I turned and headed for the door. I grabbed the handle and walked outside. The scribe stood up and I said to him, “Good day.” And he replied, “Good day, my lord.”
I headed down the hallway and met the soldier that took charge of my things. I asked him to let the governor know I would like to know what was found when the bodies were searched if it pleased the governor. And he said, “Yes, my lord. Would you like your cloak and things, my lord?” “Yes, thank you. Can you tell me where the tailor is, and a leather worker? I have need of some help.” He first motioned to another guard and then turned back to speak with me, “The tailor is the first home on the road that leads down the left-hand side of the park as you leave the mansion. Directly behind the tailor’s home is the tinkerer’s shop and across the street from the tinkerer is the leather workers shop. You’ll probably smell that from a distance.” I nodded with a grin, “Yes, I might at that.” Leather workers had to deal with all manner of disagreeable solutions to tan and color their leather goods. My things arrived and the guard helped me with the cloak, and the other guard handed me my armor and other things. I turned and went outside.
On the mansion’s porch I looked around. I nodded to a guard and asked if the tailor’s house were over that way, indicating the direction I thought the guard inside had given me, and the guard confirmed it. I asked if the leather worker’s shop could be found over there, and I pointed in that general direction. He confirmed I was pointing in about the right direction. I thanked him and stepped into the mist.
The tailor was only a short distance away but I was going to see someone in their home and not a shop. I hoped I wasn’t intruding on their rainy day. I knocked on the door and I heard foot steps inside approach the door. The door opened a crack and an eye peered out. The eyebrow jumped up and the door opened a foot or so. A young lady stared and said, “Yes, my lord. What may I do for you, my lord?” I replied with a smile, “I am here to see the tailor on this dreary day. May I come in or should I come back at a later time?” There was a slight pause and the door flew open. “No, no, my lord. Please come in from the rain. Please.” And she stepped back. I stepped inside and out of the way of the door and she closed it behind me. It was dim inside but I could see well enough. The home was small but well cared for. It was cleanly swept and smelled of breakfast. I was standing in the corner of the great room with a fire place on my right and a crudely made stairway in front of me. Two large chairs were set on opposite sides of the fireplace with a small table between them only knee high. A large table was set somewhat sheltered by the stairway. A carpet of woven fibers was set through the middle of the room. A fire crackled in the fireplace and that was the only light in the room. In one corner there was a straight wooden chair, a table and some fabric. Some metal implements were set out on the table.
I turned and bowed to the young lady and said, “I am Bene-Timber, messenger and emissary to the Emperor. I suffered some misfortune yesterday and I need the assistance of the tailor if he is available.” She replied, “No, my lord, my husband is not a tailor, but a tinkerer. He makes small things and devices. It is almost like magic what he can do.” And I replied, “Oh, my apologies. I have the wrong house, my lady. If you could direct me please to the tailor, I will be on my way.” And she laughed a little nervous laugh, “No my lord, I must apologize. I am the tailor you are looking for. I am the only tailor that accepts money. The other ladies only do repairs for their families. I am the one you seek. What is it that my lord wishes?” I asked if I could set my things down and remove my cloak for it was too warm indoors to manage it any longer.
I showed her my sorry state; walking about town in my padded under garment and dirty trousers. I asked her if she could make me some clothes since my other shirt was ruined the day before. She said, “Of course.” I said I wished her to make two dress shirts, two ‘street shirts’, a dinner vest, a day vest and a coat so I might not have to wear my cloak all the time. I also asked if she could make a collared hood that I might wear on days like this where the rain is coming down but not so hard and two pair of cloth pants. She replied that she could make all these things, but it would take some time. She also said that some of the things I wanted might be already available in the town’s dry good shop.
I thought for a moment and asked if she could begin with a dress shirt, a street shirt and a pair of cloth pants, so I would have one clean outfit I might wear to dinner. She asked that I step over to the middle of the room so she could measure me out. She produced a diagram of a body; front, back and side view, and set it on the table. She also produced a quill pen and an ink well. She took hold of a measuring cloth and asked me stand up straight. Then she looked down and said, “My lord, you shall have to remove your boots for this.” I looked down and saw my boots and thought where should I sit down to remove them? I sat down on the straight-backed chair and removed my boots, and stood back up. She measured my height to my knee, my waist, my crotch (rather embarrassing for both of us), my wrist, my elbow, my shoulder, my collar and to the top of my head, pausing to write each number down on her diagram. She then asked that I extend my right arm fully and she measured from the center of my back to the start of my arm, to my elbow, and to my wrist. Then she wrapped the measuring cloth around my chest and then around my waist and told me I could lower my arm. She measured around my upper arm, around my forearm, my upper leg and my shin. Finally, she measured me around the neck and around the head at the hairline. All these numbers she wrote down. She invited me to sit down and she examined the diagram to verify she had not accidentally copied the numbers improperly. Satisfied, she wrote my name at the top of the page. Then she set the page down and asked again what I would like and what I would like first.
I replied, “Why I must apologize again, for I did not call you by your name, did I, Isabell?” And she blushed a little and flattened her skirts and stepped over squarely in front of me and put her hands behind her back. “Oh no, my lord. There is no need for my lord to treat me with such kindness.” And I continued, “I need one dress shirt and a street shirt, and one pair of cloth pants as quickly as you can manage, please.” “After that I need a second dress shirt, street shirt, and pair of cloth pants, as well as a day vest, a dinner vest, a coat and a collared hood. I would also like a cloth bag the size of a message bag, for carrying things about when I shop in town. She wrote these things on the back of the page with my measurements. Isabell asked me, “What color do you wish these garments to be?” I responded, “Well, I’m not too particular about color as I am about fabrics. Can you show me the fabrics you have that I might have some of these things straight away?” She replied, “Of course, my lord.”
As she stepped to her fabrics I said, “All four shirts I would like to be bright white if you have the right fabric.” She produced a bolt of white fabric. “Would my lord want the street shirts to be made from this?” I rubbed the fabric between my fingers and thought it was well made and thick enough so I replied, “Yes, that will do nicely.” So she set that bolt down by itself, and she fingered through some more and produced a second bolt of white fabric. “Would this do for my lord for the dress shirts?” And again, I inspected the cloth and replied, “Why yes, that is exactly what I want.” And she set that bolt aside. “And what color for the dress pants, my lord?” I asked if she had some dark blue fabric I could see. She found what she was looking for and I inspected it. I asked if she had something almost bright red and she located some of that. I inspected it and said, “Please make the first pair from this red and the second pair from that dark blue.” And she set those aside and said, “Yes, my lord.” She asked what I wanted for the dress vest, and I asked that she make it from the same red fabric. And she wrote a note to herself. And she asked about the day vest, and I asked to see some green fabric. The first was too bright. The second was a good color, but didn’t look robust enough for me. She produced another bolt of green and I said I liked the other color better. She offered to make the vest with a dark lining that would give it more substance, and I said, “Yes, I think that will do. Do you have a dark brown for that?” She replied, looking at her cloth stack, “Yes, right here.” And she wrote down some more notes.
She then continued, “My lord, I do not want you to have to wait unnecessarily for these things. I believe you will find the bag and collared hood at the dry goods shop. If you do not like what you find there, please feel free to pay me another visit.” I stood and thanked her, and she blushed again and smoothed her skirts.
“Now about the payment”, I began, “how much would you charge a local merchant to make these things, Isabell?” And she thought, “I would want two gold pieces for each piece of dress clothing, one gold piece for the street shirts and day vest, each, oh, and then there is the coat. We didn’t discuss the coat.” I responded, “Let’s not bother with the coat right now. How much would you charge a member of the court for these things?” She cleared her throat, “My lord, I don’t know what you mean by that question. I would, of course, expect the same thing for most of them although I would charge the Magistrate less for the notoriety of being his tailor.” “And what premium would you like for putting me at the top of your list, ahead of your other customers, and getting this done right away, Isabell?” “Oh, my lord”, she blushed, “I heard what you did for the town, yesterday. I should be glad to help you in my own way, to recover from the indignity of being soiled by their awful blood. I believe my current customers also would understand.” I replied, “Well then, you leave me to guess. I have been given a letter of credit. I am authorized to spend the Magistrate’s money with my seal and my signature. I trust you are familiar with the process, are you not?” “Yes, my lord. I am.” “But the steward informed me there are some taxes involved?” She replied, “Yes, my lord.” I continued, “I consider myself a fair man and a loyal servant to the Emperor. I don’t believe the town needs to tax your premium for this favor, for that is really just an agreement between friends, right Isabell?” “Well”, she answered, “I suppose so, my lord. That sounds right to me when you put it that way.” “I propose that I pay you up front”, I continued, “for the fabric and half for the work, and pay the remainder when I receive the goods. How does that sound to you?” “My lord”, she began, “you would pay me up front even without a garment?” “Yes”, I replied. “You should not be in debt for taking this commission, should you?” Isabell said, “Its just, my lord, nobody pays me up front.” “Well, I should like to set a new standard, for the fair-minded folks, to treat each other this way.” And she curtsied and answered, “Yes, my lord.”
“So let me see, two-times-six and ten more makes twenty-two, I believe. Two-thirds would be fourteen, fifteen. I’ll offer you fifteen gold pieces on my letter of credit for nine garments, and I will pay you five silvers in coin for each piece when I pick them up, and another twenty-five silvers when I pick up the last piece. Is that suitable?” And she thought for a moment, “That’s, uh, hmm, … oh that would be fine, my lord.” So I asked her for a piece of paper that we might write down our credit slip and she produced a smaller size piece of writing paper. Clearly, she didn’t want to waste paper. I wrote, To Isabell the tailor, I extend fifteen gold pieces on my letter of credit in Stonebridge for nine garments including two pair of dress pants, two white dress shirts, two white street shirts, one green day vest, one red dinner vest and one coat – Bene Timber, messenger and emissary to the Emperor [sealed]. And I applied my seal on the paper and dated in underneath. And I handed her the note and she curtsied. I concluded, “Thank you Isabell, but I must leave and attend to other matters. I will be going to the leather workers shop and the dry goods shop. I would ask that you show your husband this note and then have him come speak to me. I wish to assure him your virtue has not been compromised in this matter to convince me to give you payment up front. Do you understand?” She replied, “Yes, yes, my lord. I shall ask him to come see you.”
And I gathered up my things, put on my cloak and headed out to the leather worker’s shop. I walked past the tinkerer’s shop, crossed the street, and before I opened the door, I knew I was entering a leather worker’s shop. I stepped inside and pulled the hood back on my cloak. As my eyes adjusted to the dim light I found the lone workman sitting at his workbench. He was fussing over a large piece of hide doing something I knew not. He called to me, “Good morning my musical friend. I am Gordon and I have been at the tavern already to hear you play. I heard about your adventure from the gossip and then I enjoyed your story, er, ballad last night. What may I do for the hero of the Pine Mill Road?” “Well”, I replied, “good morning to you my friend, Gordon you say? I need a little help to clean up my leather things after the fight and I was hoping I might purchase a few things while I am here. May I set my things somewhere?” Gordon stood up and said, “Yes, of course. Please just place your things on that table by the door.”
So I turned and laid my leather armor down and a few other things I carried beside the armor, and then I unfastened my belt and set the pouches aside, and then lifted off my baldric and removed my rapier and scabbard. I slipped my dagger and scabbard out of the frog and set it aside. Gordon walked over to see what I had for him. I began by showing him by belt and baldric and asked if he could clean them up and put another coat of polish on them. Next I showed him my leather armor and asked if he could clean that up as well. He nodded while I spoke of the belts but he didn’t nod when I spoke of the armor. He responded, “You should take this to see the armorer, er, the armor smith. His shop is over by the soldiers stable.” I replied, “Oh, you have an armorer in this town? I would have thought a town this size couldn’t support an armorer.” “Oh, we have an armorer because many soldiers are sent through here. He is quite capable but very busy.” “Well, thank you for that. And you think I should bother him with this armor rather than have you manage it?” He replied, “I can certainly clean it up but I can’t make any adjustments without conferring with him.” “Well”, I replied, “Tell me how much you would want to clean it up in two days time? I am on a tight schedule to visit the hamlets and I could be called away in as little as two or three days.” Gordon thought, “Well, I could clean her up for you for five silvers and one more for the belt and another for the baldric. But I’m just going to scrub ‘er off and apply some polish to cover up as much of the blood as I can. You know many of the adventurer folks like a good blood-stained armor cuirass. You want this cleaned up, huh?” I answered, “Oh yes, I do. And how about these boots and pants? Could you clean them up?” Gordon replied, “Well mostly I can just polish over the blood on your boots, but the pants, well, uh, nobody polishes their pants.”
“Is there anything else I could do for you m’lord?” And I replied, “Yes, I would like a pair of large saddle bags and a leather bucket. How long would it take to make those?” He thought a moment and replied, “I think I could make a bucket in a day or two, but you can go over to Moses’ shop and buy a pair of saddle bags right now if you’re in a hurry.” I replied, “I need these saddle bags to have a service emblem on them. You’ll need to make them.” And he smiled and said, “Oh no, you just buy them and bring them over here. I’ll add the emblem for you. I made the bags he’s selling over there. I can fix ‘em up any way you like.” “Oh, I should have figured that out. Of course they are yours, or you made them anyway.” He continued, “I tell you what. I’ll get to work on the bucket. After you’ve seen the armorer you come back and tell me if you still need me to clean those things up for ya.” I replied, “Very well. Thank you, Gordon.” “Thank you, m’lord.” He said. I put my cloak back on and picked up my things ready to head next door.
Out in the street again I just needed to go next door. I knew this was a goods shop because of the sign but the outside of the building looked like a fortress. There were no windows on the first floor. There was only a great wood door with iron fittings and a heavy handle. There was a chair sitting outside the door protected from the rain and a small table. I wondered at this as I knocked on the door, for due to its size it was not inviting. After knocking I tried the handle and it was open. I pushed the door and walked inside.
My eyes adjusted quickly inside this shop for there were several candles providing light within. I saw a young man approaching with a big smile on his face and extending his hand to me. I smiled back and took his hand firmly and said, “Good day, friend. I am …” He cut me off, “Bene-Timber, Bene-Timber, I know. The hero of the Pine Mill Road. I’m very glad to see you wish to visit my establishment. There is no finer collection of dry goods for a days travel in any direction my friend. What may I do for my lord, Bene-Timber, today?” I paused, for this fellow knew how to speak to a man to obtain his confidence. Was this natural or was he trained for it? I cleared my throat and said, “I need a few supplies and I would like to know what you normally stock. As you may know, I must travel extensively. I must carry everything I need. But if I may fill me supply of candles or ground meal at Stonebridge, I should not have to carry more to get here. This is important to me and could earn you a regular customer.” “Oh, well”, he responded, “please have a seat at this table so we may talk about that. May I bring you some water? Bread and cheese, perhaps?” I stepped to the table and said, “Why that would be very nice, thank you.” And I sat down and he retrieved a pair of mugs with clear water and then returned a second time with a plate of bread and cheese. He set the plate with a knife and the table between us and sat down himself.
“My lord, I can see you are in the service and not for very long, yet. I am sure you have need of many things. I would be very pleased to provide for you anything I can and more if you would only tell me what you want.” This fellow was very, very good at warming up another. I could see that I must pay attention to everything he says or I may agree to almost anything just to make him happy. He is quite a charmer. “Moses, right, your name is Moses?” And he smiled and lifted his hand palm upwards, “At your service, my lord.” I continued, “I bloodied my good shirt, armor, boots and breaches yesterday in that awful incident. Today I am trying to replace those things I can not clean and clean anything I can. In my work I must make a good impression on everyone I meet and they will not be very good if I look like a butcher that hasn’t cleaned himself up from a days hard work.” “Yes”, he replied, “I can see how that is important for a man such as yourself. How may I help, my lord?” “I am replacing and adding to my wardrobe this morning so I will not be caught in such a pickle again. Toward that end I need a small trunk to pack my clothes in so they may travel well.” He smiled a great smile and said, “My lord, I have several trunks for you to see. You may take your pick of the lot, please.” And he waved a hand toward the back of his shop.
“I also need a few more candles, a lamp and oil. I find that I am not accustomed to living on the road where I must record my observations in the evening and the provincials are very thrifty and use few candles. I don’t wish to be a burden but needing more light to read and write by, I would like to purchase candles and a lamp.” He waved his hand again, “And we have lamps, candles and oil for you here, my lord. Is there anything else?” I paused, “The seamstress I spoke with this morning, Isabell, said you could show me a collard hood and a cloth bag the size of a messenger case.” “Yes, of course, she has made a few of these for me to sell for her. Isabell is a nice lady and I am happy to assist her and your lordship if I can. I can show you a few to try on if you like, my lord.” “Do you have any finished leather pouches and saddlebags?” He replied, “Yes, my lord. Gordon has left a few with me to sell for him.” I concluded with “Other than that I should like to know what else you carry so I may know what you have when I plan a trip through this area in the future.” And he showed my about the shop the things he sold and we picked out the things I named. I put the things in the small trunk I purchased. Then he told me why his shop was made like a fortress.
It seems his father was also a successful merchant. But one day adventurers came to buy supplies and noticed a particular sword his father had to sell. One of them became obsessed with it and had to have it. They didn’t have enough to buy it and when his father refused to either give it up for what they could pay or to hold it until they returned, one of them killed him for the sword. At that point they realized they were in a spot they could not turn back from, so they robbed the place of all the expensive things they could find. Because of their avarice, the authorities were able to track them down, following the trail of unusual expensive items they sold to finance their escape. Not only did they leave a trail to follow, but the descriptions of the band became more and more complete until they could not hide anywhere men lived. Even though every last one of them paid for the crime with their lives, the family was not the same. His brother took over the shop and nursed it back to a healthy financial state, Gordon could not bear to stay. Once he knew his mother was in the good care of his brother, Gordon struck out on his own. And he came to set up a shop in this little town. And when he did he developed a system to protect his investment and his life. It turned out the shop was made so that nobody could leave unless they were let out by the owner. He kept a special key and other means of securing the door. Everyone was told that they could not escape if they robbed the shop so nobody ever tried. He was working very closely with the Magistrate to keep the few weapons he sold safe. The Magistrate didn’t want these to be stolen and released into the country where bandits might become armed enough to pose a serious threat to his interest.
So I collected my things and walked back over to the leather worker and asked that he add the service glyph to the saddlebags. I told him I would be back later for them but needed to see the armorer. And I went to see the armorer in his shop past the mansion, but first decided to stop in to the Green Hawk for lunch and drop off a few things.
“Welcome back”, Tony said, as he peeked out from around the corner when he heard me come in. I called back to him, “I’d like some lunch. I need to take these things upstairs and I’ll be right back down.” And so I took my trunk full of things upstairs and set the trunk on the bench in my room. I got my clothes out and folded the clean clothes and placed them in the trunk and everything else I put in the basket. I took some of the other items and placed them in the dresser drawers to tidy up my room. I placed the lamp on the table and placed all of Tony’s candles in the drawer of the bedside table. I took my purse, by belt and baldric, rapier and dagger, my dirty leather armor and my cloak back downstairs after locking my room.
Down in the tavern I set my things on a table and stood by the fire and warmed myself. It was still a dreary day outside although the rain had stopped. As I waited a young fellow came into the tavern from the street. He walked over to me and introduced himself, “I am Renlamay, the tinkerer. And I presume you are the hero, Bene-Timber. My wife, Isabell, said I should find you because you needed to speak to me.” I looked him in the eye and said, “Do you know why I asked to speak to you?” And he replied, “My wife said you gave her an advance and you wanted to discuss it.” I said, “Yes, yes I do. Would you please have a seat at this table?” And I indicate the table I use to eat my breakfast near the fire. He sat down and I stepped over to call into the kitchen. “Tony, could you bring two mugs of tea for us? Thank you.”
I sat down and asked him how long he had been living in Stonebridge and other small talk until the tea was delivered. Tony said, “Your lunch is coming out in a moment.” And I replied, “Not just yet. I must speak with Renlamay first.” I sipped my tea and it was good. I started, “Your wife told you I stopped by to ask her to make some clothes for me? And she told you what price we agreed upon? And you know these prices are generous? And you know that I was given a letter of credit to pay for some new clothes?” He nodded to each of these things. I went on. “If I used the whole letter of credit to pay for these things, your family would have paid the full tax for doing this for me. But I have chosen to ask your family only to accept partial payment from the letter of credit. The rest will be paid by me in coin. In this way, your family will benefit from the deal. Do you see that?” He nodded and said, “Yes, I do.” I continued again, “I also wanted to help you by paying for the cloth and consumed items like the thread and hooks so you would not be out that cost until the finished product was made. I did this for your benefit, but it was no great risk for me. You see, because I used the letter of credit I have a written contract that your wife must redeem to collect your money. The contract itself is my surety that the goods will be delivered. Do you see this?” He nodded and said, “Oh, I see. OK.” I continued, “So I hope you see that although I paid your wife in advance I did not need anything from her by way of thanks for doing so. Although you received a special deal from me, she was not expected to give me a special deal in return, except that I asked she put me at the head of her list, which she told me was no bother. I feared that because your wife, Isabell, is young and attractive, and I am now a ‘figure’ in this town as a result of yesterday’s excitement, I assure you I did not take advantage of that or your wife. So this is why I wanted to speak with you.” And he thought for a moment. He looked me in the eye and said, “Thank you, my lord. Although I trust my wife and love her dearly, I may have wondered if her story were true until you carefully laid it out for me to see. I am sure she will deliver your goods on time and you will be pleased with the work.” And he scooted his chair back and stood up. I stood up as well and we shook hands. I said, “I hope so because I may wish to have more clothes made here in Stonebridge before I am done. Good day. I’m sure you want to go enjoy your lunch at home now.” And we shook hands and he put on his hat and left.
I sat down and a moment later Tony brought my lunch and refilled my mug of tea. I ate my lunch and thought about the day before again, and the glint of light I caught from Finlock when he questioned me. I was going to have a good look at him sometime today. I also wondered why I had not yet heard about the inspections. I finished my lunch and Tony came and cleared the table. I told him I had more to do visiting the shopkeepers. And he said, “Good luck.” I told him that we should have a good night in the tavern because of the rain today. Many men will want to gather here tonight so he should be ready. He responded, “You’re right about that. We always do more business on a slow day in the fields. I shall make sure we’re ready for a big crowd.” And with that I put on my cloak and gathered my things to go see the armorer.
After a walk past the mansion, I stopped in a moment to see Ben. I gave him two coppers and asked him to give my horse an apple. Next I walked back and patted my horse on the neck and talked quietly with him so he would remember me, and then I continued on to the armorer. Arriving at the building that had to be the armorer’s shop I knocked on the door, waited for two counts and then reached out for the door knob. I tried it and the door was open so I opened the door and stepped inside. The light of the afternoon was better with the clouds thinning so I could see normally inside.
The armorer was looking over some stock in the back and turned around as he heard me enter. He was a thick man, balding, not tall, with thick arms and rough hands. He stepped closer and I bowed at the waist and said, “Good day, sir. I am Bene-Timber, musician and messenger, traveler from the east.” I extended my hand and he took it responding, “Good day, but not for the weather. You are the hero of the Pine Mill Road I have heard about.” And he released my hand. He continued, “What may I do for my lord today?” I looked about and selected a table and asked if I could set my things down, and he agreed. I said, “Unfortunately those bandits had no manners and as I was teaching them what the consequences of their behavior might be, they were so inconsiderate as to bleed, heavily mind you, bleed all over my clothing and armor. Now I can not wear this armor nor my adventuring breaches and boots in town for their ragged appearance. I hope you could help me address this awful state of my things.” He laughed, “Yes, that is rich it is. Yes, those bandits can be tiresome bleeding on everything like they do. My lord, you have come to the right place, and the wrong place. I could do a bit of cleaning on your things but not so good as our friends across the road. We need to ask Jacob to come over here, if he is available. Unfortunately, it is near mid-day and he is likely returning from one of the nearby hamlets. He may be here in three hours or so, maybe later. Why he could cast a spell and clean your things up like that.” And he snapped his knarred fingers in the air. I replied, “Well now, why didn’t I think of that myself. Why I am stunned that I should be so forgetful. Thank you, thank you, my friend, uh, your name sir?” He reflexively held out his hand again, “Sorry, I am George Smith. They call me Smith because that is my profession as an armor Smith.” I shook his hand again. “Well”, I continued, “that brings me to my next request. I need a set of studded leather armor made for me. How much would that cost and when would you be able to complete such a work?” He looked me over and replied, “You appear to have a typical build for a half-elf, so I don’t anticipate any surprises. We typically require seventy-five gold pieces for that. You see there is a lot of work to be done, fitting and shaping the splints, and the materials cost coin. Would you want it to be strictly functional or did you have any cosmetic, er, uh, ornaments added?” I responded, “That is a good question, which I shall get to in a moment.” And he cut me off, “But my lord, I would need to know to give you the right price and estimate, if I may beg your pardon.” I responded, “I understand. Well, I want this to be a utility set of armor, for now, and I may wish it to have some ornaments added later, if that makes a difference today.” And George replied, “No sir, as long as you want it straight today, that is all I would need to know. It takes me many hours to make a set of studded leather, but I have orders to fill already, mostly with the sanction of the Magistrate. I would have to work your suit in here and there. I think it would take me a month, I am afraid.”
“So”, I replied, “a month and seventy-five gold pieces? What if I got the Magistrate to sanction my armor as a priority?” He responded quickly, “If you were to stop by each day for fitting, I would have it done in a week, my lord.” I replied, “A week would be great, but I can’t promise every day for a fitting. We shall have to see. And how much do you need up front to acquire the materials?” He turned and looked at his stock saying, “I think I have most of the stock here already.” And he turned back to face me saying, “Up front, my lord? Ahead of the order? I’m not accustomed to being given money up front, my lord.” I replied, “Well, I have a letter of credit, a gift of the Magistrate, that I would like to use. You are familiar with the process, are you not?” “Yes”, George said, “Yes, my lord, I am familiar with it.” I continued, “I shall pay you with five gold pieces using my letter of credit, and I shall pay you five gold pieces each time I visit for a fitting to compensate you for your diligence, and then I shall pay you, uh, let’s see, the thirty-five gold pieces remaining when it is complete. What do you say to that?” George’s face broke out into a big smile. He extended his hand and said, “Why, my lord is most generous. I only wish my lord’s good will were as contagious as, well, uh, I wish it were contagious. I have not been treated so well in all my days. Bless you my lord.” We shook hands vigorously. He said, “Pardon my lord.” And George turned and stepped back into his shop and out a small door at the rear. He returned in a moment and closed the door behind him and walked over to speak with me again. “Sorry my lord. I asked my apprentice, young Fred, to run, mind you, run over to the Temple and see if a cleric might come over at once, my lord. Maybe someone can clean up your leathers straight away.”
And with that he looked about and produced a small piece of paper, ink and a quill. I took it and I wrote, To George Smith, I extend five gold pieces on my letter of credit in Stonebridge for one suit of studded leather armor, including faulds, pauldrons and gauntlets. The balance shall be paid upon delivery. – Bene Timber, messenger and emissary to the Emperor [sealed]. And I applied my seal on the paper and dated it underneath. And I handed her the note and he bowed at the waist and thanked me again for the advance.
I then revisited the comment about decorations and ornaments. I said, “George, since I hope, with the Magistrates endorsement, to have the studded leather armor soon, I would like some ornaments to be added to this armor”, and I motioned toward my bloodied leather armor, “once it is cleaned.” George looked and picked up the leather armor holding it so it hung full and set it upright on the table so it stood by itself. He asked, “What does my lord wish to do?” I paused and said, “Well, once I have the studded armor, I hope this could become a ceremonial garment. I have only the faulds to match it. What sort of things have you seen? I was thinking of a red piece here and here, and the faulds being dyed in varying light to dark shades of red as well.” George considered this and said, “We can add red pieces but I may as well make new pieces and swap them for the pieces you have now. If I try to dye these pieces red over the brown you have now it will only look dirty red, never a cheerful red. If I were to just make new pieces they would have the true color you want. I could trade out the pieces and keep the other pieces for another set later, so there wouldn’t be any charge for that.” I replied, “Well George, I can see you know your craft well. I will have the faulds brought over and we can do it as you describe. How much will I owe you for that and when do you think you can have it done?” “Well”, he began, “I could have that done in two days. I’d have to measure the pieces and cut them. Then I’d have to dye them, which takes a day and then the next day I could fit it all together. I’ll have to give Gordon the dye job so he will need three silvers, and I’ll have to buy leather from Gordon, probably six silvers for the leather, and then there is the work and the sewing, I’d like two gold pieces for the ornament work, my lord.” I extended my hand and said, “Very well. And will that delay my studded leather, George?” He replied, “Oh, no sir, er, my lord, it shouldn’t. But I do need to know the Magistrate is agreeable to have the studded leather made, my lord.” And we shook hands. “Yes”, I replied, “I’ll see to that.”
And there was a knock on the door and it opened. A boy came inside with a cleric following and George stiffened up. I recognized the cleric as Thomas Quintus, and stood erect myself. I said, “Good day, my lord. How may I serve you this afternoon?” And I bowed at the waist removing my hat. Thomas Quintus waved his hand at us, “Relax, please. Bene, I hope that I may call you Bene, I have come to clean up your armor. I am very thankful that you saved the goods we were sending to Pine Mill and I believe you also saved the life of my servant, Joseph, so I thought I could come over here, a short walk, and do this small favor for you.” And he stood between us and looked at my armor, lifted his hand and spoke a word in a whisper and my armor faded into perfection without a trace of blood. And I smiled. And he turned a little more towards me and made the same gesture and my breaches faded into perfect cleanliness. And he repeated the feat on my boots. And I smiled and thanked him. And he asked what I was up to this afternoon. I replied, “I am taking advantage of the awful weather to get some things done around town and meet the citizenry. I was going to come see someone in the Temple next. Did anything come of the action that started last night?” “No”, he replied, “nothing came of that. But it was a wise endeavor none-the-less.” I replied, “I see. I believe I must visit the Magistrate about another matter. May I impose on your lordship to walk over to the mansion with me?” Thomas Quintus said, “Of course, of course.” And I said, “If my lordship could allow me just a moment.” And he nodded. I turned to George, and thanked him again for his help. I told him I would return the next day assuming the Magistrate could permit it and I would pay for the adjustments to my armor when I picked it up. I turned to the head cleric and said, “After you, my lord.” And we went to the door.
Out in the street it was becoming lighter all the time. As we walked I said, “My lord, I need to take a close look at the Court Mage, Finlock. I think he may be wearing something that may shed some light on his affairs and loyalties, but I do not wish for him to be aware that I am making an inspection of him. I also need to speak to the magistrate about another matter of a personal nature and that would be a good time to suggest an excuse be made to permit me to give Finlock a good look.” He replied, “This all sounds so mysterious.” I continued, “If I find something, what I expect to find, then I shall want to report back to the Magistrate, and I believe he will want you and Lord Ballinor to know of it as well.” And Thomas Quintus said, “Well then let’s see what the Magistrate says. I am sure he will see you if I have endorsed the meeting, but I shall have to go in and see him alone first.” And I replied, “Yes, my lord, I understand. I hate to be a bother, but if I went through Cottern I don’t think I would see Lord Martinex until after dinner.” “Yes”, he said, “I believe you are right.” And we stepped up onto the porch and into the mansion.
When we stepped inside, I removed my hat and only then realized I was wearing practically rags with my padded armor under garment. I said in a bit of a panic, “My goodness, I can’t see him like this. And unless I go back and get …” Thomas Quintus stopped me, “His lordship will not bother about that after I have spoken with him.” He led me down the right hallway, the one that went by Cottern’s office. We stopped in the Steward’s outer office and Thomas Quintus waved the scribe to remain seated. He tapped on Cottern’s office door, reached and opened it at once, poked his head in and asked, “Is the Magistrate busy at the moment? Good. I must speak with him. Send word to the Court Mage to come at once. Thank you.” And he pulled his head out of the doorway and closed the door. He nodded his head toward me and I turned to leave. Thomas Quintus looked at the scribe, put his fingers to his lips, pointed to me, and then winked at the scribe. The scribe got a grin on his face and nodded in reply. He slowly stood up as we disappeared into the corridor. I heard the door to Cottern’s office open up and he said, “Go tell the Court Mage the Magistrate wishes to see him at once.” And I heard the door close.
We continued walking down the corridor and through a door on the left. We walked up a stair and there was another corridor. We took a few more steps and stopped at a door on the right. He turned and said softly, “Wait here a moment.” And he knocked softly and went straight in. A moment later the door ahead and to my right opened and Thomas poked his head into the hallway saying, “Bene, come on in, here.” I stepped forward and through the doorway and closed the door behind me. The Magistrate was seated at a desk in a well-appointed room. There were two large comfortable chairs on this side of the desk, a carpet covering half of the floor through the middle of the room, book cases covering the walls on the left and the right sides, two large windows at the rear of the room with draperies and carved wooden paneling on all the exposed walls with chair rail and crown moulding. Thomas Quintus was standing at one of the empty chairs before the Magistrate and beckoned me to step forward. I approached Lord Balllinor seated at his desk, bowed and said, “My Lord, Bene-Timber, to …” He cut me off, saying, “Please be seated, both of you.”
He continued, “Now Thomas says you needed to speak with me.” I began, “Yes, my lord. First, I have a request that your lordship would indulge me. After yesterday’s events I have come to realize I will be in some danger often, well, pardon my lord, but more often than I anticipated. It may not be so dangerous a prospect for your lordship, but for me, well until it happens, you just don’t think about it. So I realized that I should take more appropriate”, and I paused, “precautions to avoid being harmed.” I paused again and said, “Well, I have just commissioned the armorer to make a set of studded leather armor for me, to afford more protection than the leather armor, oh forgive my appearance, my lord, the leather armor, well I could do better my lord. The armorer informed me he was quite busy fulfilling orders your lordship had placed earlier, and it would be some time …” And he held up his hand and I stopped speaking. He cleared his throat. “How long until he can get to your order?” I replied, “He said a month, my lord.” Lord Ballinor continued, “And how long if he neglects my orders?” I was very worried that he said “neglects” but I answered, “He said he could finish my new armor in a week after he is able to begin working on it, my lord.” Lord Ballinor waved his hand dismissively, “A week will not cause me any concern. Tell him I like your music and I want you to stay alive. If I thought you couldn’t even pay for it, I might even offer to loan you the money. By the way, why don’t you have your lute with you?” I brightened up immediately, “Your lordship is most kind. I was concerned that carrying my lute around in the rain could damage it. I left it in my room at the Green Hawk, my lord.” He smiled and turned to face Thomas Quintus, “Well that was probably very wise. We have no artisans about to work on lutes, I fear. Thomas says you have something else for me?”
“Yes, my lord”, I continued. “I was thinking over carefully the events of last evening and I realized that the Court Mage, Finlock, was wearing something about his neck or on his tunic that glinted in the light. It appears to be a broach or pendent of precious metal or precious stone that he values. If I were to see it, my knowledge of history, legends and lore may allow me to determine what motivates the Court Mage. This may be invaluable to determining whether Finlock may be trusted in Stonebridge, my lord.” And he replied, “So you need a good look at his pendent? Well let’s hope it is so precious to him he has it on his person right now. Thomas says he has already sent for Finlock so let’s see.” I added, “My lord, if we could make some small ruse about my visit so that he is unaware that I am inspecting him, it may help later.” He responded, “Yes, yes, I see. When he enters I will make a show of being annoyed that you requested your armor be made at once. I will stop speaking about it and ask Finlock to step over here and ask him something unrelated and then dismiss him. I will then dismiss you rather abruptly so he thinks this entire visit is about your armor.” I said, “Yes, my lord, I believe that would be prefect.” And there was a knock at the door.
The Magistrate stood up and motioned for Thomas Quintus to open the door. As he did so, the Magistrate began saying to me, “You want me to hold up an entire month’s order so you can get some armor? You can’t just make do with the armor you have? For bandits? You weren’t even harmed, for heaven’s sake.” And he stopped abruptly and motioned for Thomas Quintus and Finlock to step over to the desk. “Bandits! Finlock”, and he paused and quieted down, “Finlock, do you have any magic items being shipped to or from the capitol at present?” And with that, he walked around the desk on my side and slowly circled around to my left causing Finlock to slowly turn his body to face him giving my an ideal opportunity to see him from every angle. And Finlock replied, “No my lord. Nothing I know of is going either way, my lord.” The magistrate stopped, paused and replied, “Good. At least I don’t have to fret over bandits getting into those.” He stepped around to his side of the desk and Finlock slowly turned to remain facing him. The Magistrate was seated. “Thank you Finlock. That will be all.” And Finlock turned around and headed for the door. Thomas Quintus followed him and made sure the door was secure.
Lord Ballinor looked at me and asked, “Well?” I replied, “That was a great ruse, my lord. I did see pendent but it is not familiar to me. With your permission I will see if my contacts may help me learn where this came from. May I ask my lordship for a piece of paper and a quill?” “Of course.” And he reached in his drawer and flipped a piece of paper to me. I grabbed the quill next to the inkwell, looked at the Magistrate, and he nodded, so I dipped the quill in his inkwell and made a diagram of the pendent, and dipped the quill in a cup of water to wash it out. I waited for the ink to set and I lifted the paper and showed it to the Magistrate. He looked at the drawing and said, “You have a good eye and a steady hand, Bene-Timber.” He handed my drawing to Thomas Quintus who nodded in approval. Thomas Quintus said, “It must be a gift from your elven parent. You have a keen eye.” He handed me the drawing. The Magistrate looked at Thomas and Thomas said, “No my lord. I do not recognize it either.” Lord Ballinor asked, “Do you think any of these volumes”, and he waved his arm at the book cases on his left, “might have the answer?” Thomas replied, “I couldn’t say, my lord.” I asked, “You have histories of the Empire, my lord?” “Yes”, he said, and stood up again. He walked slowly to the wall and looked intently at them. He stepped to his right, reached up and put his finger on one, pulled it out and handed it to me. “This”, he said, “is the earliest volume of the history of this area we have.” “If you can’t find an answer in there, come back and I’ll give you the next volume. We’ll let people know you asked to read about the history of Stonebridge. That is a very typical request for a bard of any kind.” I took the book from his hand and thanked him. I folded the drawing so it would not poke out and I stuck it in between the pages of the book, and so I smuggled it out of the Mansion. “Thank you, my lord, and my lord.” I said bowing to each of them. Lord Ballinor said, “Good luck. Let us know when you find something.” And I turned and let myself out. I walked out the way I had come in.
Outside it was just beginning to get dark as the sun was getting closer to the horizon. I walked back over to the armorer. I stopped in and let George know the Magistrate had given his permission to move ahead with my studded leather armor. Gordon was there with some leather in his hand. They were already measuring my cuirass to fit the new pieces and get an idea for what was needed for the new suit. I waved and said I would have my faulds brought over soon. “I’ll have Fred come over at once and fetch them, my lord.” With that I stepped out into the street and closed the door behind me. I walked back to the Green Hawk and greeted many of the townsfolk as I walked. Many of the ladies smiled, but few of them spoke to me. The men were very typical, saying “Good day, Bene-Timber”, to me as they passed.
Arriving back at my room I unlocked the door and checked the string. It had been moved. I pushed the door open slowly and looked carefully [perception] at everything in the room. There was a basket of folded clean clothes on my bed. I let out a breath of air. I thought Tony had given me his only key, but apparently not. I left the door open and walked in. I removed my cloak and hung it on the coat tree. I removed my baldric, belt, dagger and rapier, and hung them on the coat tree. I set my hat on the coat tree. I removed my padded armor shirt and set it on the floor neatly at the foot of the bed. I sat down in a chair by the window, looked at my boots and smiled. They were better than when I arrived in Stonebridge. I removed them and set them next to the shirt. I removed my socks and placed them over the tops of my boots so they might air out. I took out the book and flipped it open. There were sparing few diagrams or maps of any kind. Mostly just at the title pages for the chapters. I didn’t see a title page that caught my fancy so I turned to the beginning and started reading.
I heard someone approaching from the hallway, turned and saw Tony in the doorway. “Ah, Tony”, I began, “would you like a seat?” He replied, “That isn’t necessary, my lord. I don’t expect to be long. Will my lord be having dinner here this evening or with the Governor?” I replied, “I expect to eat here. Why do you ask?” “My wife wanted to know. Pardon, my lord, but I hear you’ve been shopping all over town today.” I stopped him and asked, “My lord? Tony, please call me Bene.” “Oh, yes”, he responded, “I see you bought a trunk.” I replied, “Yes, I bought some clothes and they’re being made, so I was going to need a place to put all my clothes. I’m sure you understand.” “Of course, my lord, uh, Bene. By the way, do you know what happened to the candles that were here yesterday?” “Yes”, I replied, “I put all those candles in this drawer here.” I stood up and walked to the bedside table and opened the drawer. Tony stepped in and saw the candles. He was relieved. I looked at him and he was very embarrassed. He said, “I’m sorry my lord, uh, sorry, uh, Bene. I am not a rich man and …” I put up my hand and said, “I understand. We are in business together and you don’t even really know me. I hope that before I leave Stonebridge you would trust me with you wife, uh, let’s see, maybe not that, with your Tavern and Inn, the Green Hawk.” “Yes, sir”, he replied, “let’s hope so. And how long do you think that will be?” I replied, “I hope I can stay nearby for at least a week. But if duty calls I shall have to go.” “A week would be nice”, he said. Will you be down around six then sir?” “Probably about then. Send someone up to get me if I fall asleep.” He turned and said, “Very well.” And he walked away. And I heard footsteps approaching again. There was a voice in the hallway, and then a boy was standing in my doorway. “Ah, are you Fred?” He replied quietly, “Yes, my lord.” And I pointed to my faulds and said, “You’re here to pick these up?” Fred replied, “Yes, my lord.” And still pointing, I opened my hand toward the faulds and said, “Please help yourself.” And he stepped inside, picked up my armor and disappeared down the hallway.
I returned to my reading. After a little more than a chapter, I thought I would lay down. I stood up and placed the book on the bedside table. I fished out two candles and holders and set them out. I took the clothes from the basket and put them away in my trunk. I took the empty basket and set it in the hallway. I closed the door and walked over to lay down on the bed. I picked up the book and continued to read. As I turned the pages, my diagram fell out. I opened it again and looked at it for a moment. I folded it and put it inside the bedside table drawer. I set the book on the bedside table and closed my eyes.
A knock came at the door and I opened my eyes. It was almost dark. I said, “Yes?” “My lord, it is six o’clock. You asked to be alerted at six.” Came a female voice on the other side of the door. I called back, “Thank you.” I sat up and swung my legs around. I lit the candle on the bedside table, stood up and took it to the table where I lit the second candle. I set the candle on the dresser and washed myself off. I pulled out my best shirt and my only other pair of pants and put them on. I pulled on fresh socks and slipped into my shoes. I grabbed my belt, dagger and scabbard and pulled them around my waist. I picked up my purse, my ornate cloth pouch and my lute and stepped into the hallway. I reached up and set the string, closed the door and locked it. I took a good look at the hallway, turned and walked to the stairs and down to the tavern.
As I neared the bottom of the stairs a joyous cheer went up in the crowd. I raised my hand in a gesture to thank the crowd and stepped through to sit at “my” table. A tankard of fine ale was brought to me and my dinner followed shortly after. It was lamb, mashed potatoes and gravy with green beans. It was a very nice dinner after a long rainy day. And I felt good as I wiped my mouth and prepared to play. I signaled Tony for another tankard and he smiled back. I stood up and walked over to the hearth. I set my purse on the mantle behind me and my ornate cloth bag on the table near me. My tankard arrived. I looked out into the crowd and raised my tankard and the noise quieted down. I began, “My friends, I have been touring Stonebridge today and I find it to be a warm community full of stout-hearted people. I hope you will enjoy my opening song tonight, for I have not played it in a mouth or more. But I believe you know the tune.” And I took a good drink from my tankard and set it down, pulled my lute up and began to play the ballad celebrating the conquest of Alexander I of the Andorean Plains. A cheer went up as soon as they recognized the song. And so it was all night long that the crowd was full of energy and wanted to hear more. I believed it was a combination of two things. First, most workers had the day off due to the rain so they had more energy this evening. Second, word of my bandit exploit had spread even further and I believed we had a capacity crowd. I even wondered if we had some visitors from the hamlets of the province. I played more that evening than I had before on the two previous evenings.
And after a little more than an hour a group of men came into the tavern wearing traveling clothes and armor. They had no weapons which I could see; but they appeared to be the sort of men that carried weapons wherever they went. They squeezed into a table in the back of the room near the door. Ale was brought to them and they slipped into the spirit of the evening. My tips were overflowing and I was having a grand time. One of the men stood up apparently to go to the bar. He asked the bar maid something and indicated my direction with his thumb. After some answer from the bar maid he snapped his head in my direction and then back to the bar maid. She nodded her head and he stood up with a new tankard and drank while looking at me. Something was up with this fellow and I was concerned he was going to ruin the best night Tony’s ever had. I decided to take a break and I took my purse and my tips and headed over to the bar to see Tony. I wanted to count out some money so I wouldn’t have such a full pouch. While I talked with Tony I kept an eye on this new fellow.
“Tony, let’s count out a few coins so I can put this back and it won’t look so full.” Tony replied, “Sure thing, Bene. Hey, if this keeps up, I’m going to have to buy more ale. I’ve sold more ale in the past three nights than I usually sell in a week, and tonight is just getting started.” We started counting the coin. The coppers were piled up and there was a smaller pile of silvers. I picked up one that had a different image stamped on it and I looked at it and set aside. Then I immediately noticed another, and another. I showed it to Tony and asked, “Do you know where these coins are made?” He looked close and said, “Hey, that’s a dwarven coin, I think.” I replied, “Yea, but where is it made? Someone here has come across a stash of dwarven coins or they traveled to dwarven lands recently. Do you think those fellows?” Tony looked and said, “Now they haven’t been out of their seats. How would their coins end up in your pouch?” “Oh”, I replied, “you’re right. Please ask your bar maids to find who is spending dwarven coins, to tell you, and you need to tell me immediately.” “OK Bene.”
As we got near finishing the count I said, “Let me keep these dwarven coins as part of my share. What is the total you have?” Tony replied, “I have three hundred-twenty-eight coppers and twenty-one silvers. So in coppers that comes to five-hundred-thirty-eight.” “How much in dwarven coin, Tony?” “He said to me, “You can just keep the dwarven coins from this lot. There are forty-eight coppers and two silvers.” I scooped up the dwarven coins and put them in my purse. I said, “So how about you give me two gold pieces and three silvers for my share?” “Sure thing, Bene.” And with that, I pushed all the coins a little toward Tony and took two coppers and put them back in my ornate cloth pouch for good luck. I smiled and stepped past Tony.
I slid down the bar to speak to the bar maid, Christina, about another tankard of ale. She smiled and produced one right away. I looked at the fellow that had been talking to her. He was wearing leather breaches similar to mine, the sort of breaches travelers and adventurers wear. He had a heavy cloth jacket on over some armor. It appeared to me to be a scale mail armor that didn’t quite fit him as it should. I also noticed he was looking at me but didn’t want me to “see” that he was looking at me. I decided to use the direct approach.
“Hello friend”, I began with a broad smile, “Where have you been? I’ve been in this town for a couple days and I haven’t seen you before. I’m a traveler too.” I figured he wouldn’t give up information without getting information, so I started by giving him information he could easily get anywhere else in town. He turned his head to look at me and then turned his shoulders toward me resting his arm on the bar still holding his tankard. He replied, “I’ve been up north. We did just arrive in this town (He didn’t say Stonebridge) and we’re travelling to, toward, Eros.” I responded, “I’ve never been to Eros. Where are you staying? What’s in Eros?” I asked him two questions hoping to get either one answered and again gave him information that was of no significance. He replied, “We’ve never been to Eros either, so I can’t say, but we heard a rumor of a problem involving a graveyard, maybe some undead, and we were going to see if we could help. We’re staying at the Guild hall across the way.” I was getting somewhere but I needed to get back to playing so I needed to “hook him” for more information. “I am Bene-Timber, a travelling musician and messenger. I’d like to meet your friends, but I must need play for my supper. That is my lot.” And I extended my hand and he raised his hand and we clasped and shook hands. He replied, “I am Darvist. Sure we can talk later.” And I nodded my head and said, “Very good, Darvist.” And with that I made my way to the hearth and there was a cheer.
I set my ornate cloth bag on the table and my purse up on the mantle. I picked up my lute and started. I decided to play my new ballad, in part because the town was still celebrating the event. I also wanted to take advantage of my situation to increase my tips for the night. And finally, I wanted to give these visitors a reason to be curious so I may get to have that conversation tonight. I played and there was great applause, and wishing to keep the spirits up I continued with another of my favorite tavern melodies called the Wild Rover. This was also a big hit, so I followed with another tavern song, and another. But after several boisterous tavern ditties, I decided to play a more somber melody to help quiet the crowd so Tony could close up about midnight, so I played Those Were The Days. And this went on for a while.
My bag was filling up again nicely and everyone was getting on very well. When I decided I needed to wrap it up, there were many encouraging voices urging me to continue. I had to hold up may hand and quiet the crowd to tell them I should be back again the next evening and I thanked them for all their good wishes. I took my tip bag and my purse and my empty tankard over to the bar to meet Tony. We counted out the coin and settled up for gold. Tony was beginning to have enough money that he was a little concerned that he might be robbed. Not only had he made a significant profit on my playing, but his sales of ale, stout and beer were very high for the past two nights. He told me he was going to have to supplement his stores with other brewer’s supplies, some as good but some not as good as his own, for Tony brewed his own ale, stout, lager, beer and had even begun to make mead. He said this presented a problem because he would have to sample the other products and determine a fair price. Too high and he would be accused of selling poor products, and too low and he risked losing money on a barrel. I grinned at Tony as he was telling me these things and he stopped and said, “Why is this so funny to you?” I replied, “Tony, you should thank the gods for these problems. Doesn’t every man wish he had so much that his would fret whether to buy the red dress or the blue one? I tell you, clean up tonight and put everything away where it belongs. Get up in the morning and have a good wash and breakfast. Enjoy your coffee with me. And then go to the temple and offer to the goddess for you are going to turn her harvest into good ale and make everyone happy. Let’s hope you are so successful that the hamlets ask you to send your ale to them and that Stonebridge becomes known for the good lager and stout. Let the soldiers that are sent here be grateful for they want to see what the others have been speaking about. Maybe you can turn to be a brewer and your son can run the tavern someday? Be grateful, not worried.” Tony thought about that and he got a big smile on his face. He looked at me and said, “You’re right my friend. I should realize this could become the greatest thing that ever happened to me.” And with that we finished the count and I picked up my things and said, “See you in the morning, my friend.”
I stepped over to the table of newcomers and said, “If you will be patient and wait, I shall be right back. I am going to put a few things away.” Another fellow, not Darvist, looked at me and said, “We can only wait a moment. We have things to attend to tomorrow and we must rise early.” I nodded and turned and walked up the steps.
In my room I took all the money and placed it on the table. I pulled out all the dwarven coins and a few coppers and silvers. The rest I picked up and put inside a small cloth lined box and locked it inside my trunk. The coins I picked out I placed inside my purse secured to my belt. I left my lute and my ornate cloth bag in the room and headed back downstairs after locking the door. I was wearing my belt with the dagger and scabbard, and my purse, and carrying my tankard from Gelfin.
As I reached the bottom, I caught the barmaid’s eye and raised my empty tankard in my hand, and she smiled and signaled back she understood. I stepped over to the visitor’s table and sat at the end with Darvist on my left and the other fellow that spoke to me on my right. The other members of their party were seated farther down the table. They were not talking, apparently waiting for me and sipping their drinks. Tony’s daughter, Priscilla, came over to pick up my empty tankard. As she started to turn away I reached out and placed my hand gently on her forearm and she stopped. I spoke to the fellows together, “What are you having, my travelling kindred?” They looked a little confused and Priscilla spoke saying, “They have been drinking beer, my lord.” I asked them, “Is this so? Do you know my friend also serves lager, stout and ale? Is it beer you prefer? All of you?” And Darvist replied, “I’d like to try an ale, but …” And it appeared the fellow on my right shot him a glance. I turned to Priscilla and said, “I’ll have an ale, and bring one for my friend, Darvist, please.” And turning back to the travelers, I asked, “Anyone else?” And the other fellows at the table called out ale, or lager, or stout as it suited them, except for the quiet fellow. After a short pause he looked at no one and said, “I’ll have another beer.” And so I nodded to Priscilla and she turned and left. I smiled as I turned back to look upon them and I asked, “So you fellows are from up north? Up north is a big place I hear. Any place in particular?” A fellow toward the end of the table spoke up, “We were up near the iron mines of Rottscald looking to help them …” And the fellow to my right again shot a look at his companion and he stopped talking. I stood up slowly and bowed slightly, “Forgive me, my friends and fellow travelers, I forgot to introduce myself. I am Bene-Timber, messenger and traveler from the east. This is my first visit to Stonebridge and I am seeking to learn about the province, but unfortunately with the rain I was delayed in town today. Could I learn the names of you gentlemen?” And I turned immediately to the fellow on my right.
He looked back at me with a slight look of fright on his face. I immediately understood this fellow didn’t want to share any information about their affairs with me, and I expected didn’t want anyone in the tavern to overhear either. But I had backed him into a corner through my careful social manipulations. I was graciously buying their entire party a round of drinks. I had introduced myself and been exceedingly friendly so that he could only choose to reply or be rude enough to cause notice; and it appeared the thing he wanted least was to be noticed. This was of course exactly why I was pressing. Why was he so careful to avoid notice?
He sputtered a bit and said, “I am Fordaire, and we are seeking fame and adventure in these lands where we can find it.” And I extended my hand and replied, “I am glad to make your acquaintance, Fordaire.” And turning my attention to the next fellow I raised my eyebrows inviting him to be next, while also keeping an eye on Fordaire. The next fellow said, “I am Gillfort, a Druid from Tanalee, a town on the edge of the holly grove called Hollibliss.” And I extended my hand to Gillfort. And the next fellow said, “I am Jackwon, from a village not far from Hollibliss.” And I nodded to Jackwon. And turning my attention to the end of the table the next fellow said, “Everyone calls me Tucker.” And I nodded to Tucker. And then the next fellow chimed in, “I am Vallen. I am from the capitol.” Now Vallen was a broad chested man and I believed he was wearing heavy armor under a Gambeson. He had the look of a paladin and being from the capitol he could have attended the same college as Lord Ballinor and Lord Martinex. I made a note to confirm that with him and nodded in return. And then I was looking at Darvist. And Darvist reached out his hand and said, “I am Darvist from Derlin, a port city on the coast.” “Derlin”, I responded with a nod, “I’ve heard of Derlin. What do you think of it?” He said, “I like it there. We ate the most interesting foods, I guess because we were on the coast. There are a lot of things that pass through Derlin. My family worked in the yards, uh, shipyards. My father is a master carpenter. My uncle is a sailmaker. My other uncle is a blacksmith. He specializes in making the iron fittings the ships need.
About this time our tankards arrived and I sat down. They were distributed and Priscilla started to turn to leave once more before I touched her forearm. I looked up at her and she smiled at me. I asked her, “How much for the table?” She replied, “Oh, my lord, we thought …” and I held up my finger and swirled it around. “How much for the ales?” She replied, “Well, it is four coppers for the ales and four coppers for the rest.” So I reached into my purse and pulled out all my coins. I turned my palm upward and picked out a silver piece and handed it to Priscilla. She curtsied, turned and walked back to the bar.
And then I picked out another coin, a copper piece of the dwarven mint and showed it to Darvist and was going to say something when Fordaire shot his hand up and seized my arm by the wrist. Several of my coins flipped onto the table top and made some noise and everyone around us stopped and stared. Fordaire looked at me with a menacing look and said, “Why you thief! I knew you were up to something, and paying for our drinks with our money. Why I’ll have you thrown in jail and searched. We’ll have it all back. Now!” Darvist was shocked as well as Vallen, Gillfort and Tucker. Jackwon was next to speak, “I thought something was up with this fellow, Bene-Timber is it? All that talk about you being a hero and then wanting to talk to us? You don’t know us from Adam. Is that your game? Set us at ease and then pick our pockets?”
Now it was my turn to speak. “Fordaire, you had best let my arm go before someone calls the guards. If you do not, I am not sure I will be able to keep you out of the jail. And after that, you might never visit Confernos again. I have not robbed you and I am prepared to prove it to you. I regret that when I am done you will be embarrassed. But to overlook that, I only ask you to answer some questions for me.” Fordaire hesitated. I considered my options. I could take out my dagger and threaten Fordaire, for I believed he had yet to see the Magistrate and was therefore unarmed until the next evening. I could call upon Tony and the patrons to accost these men and then the men would be lightly beaten and sent to jail. Their prospect of getting their weapons back would be very small and they would be in a pickle. I could call for someone to fetch the guards and then make an attempt to resolve the situation there without involving Lord Ballinor. I decided to give it one more try before calling for the guards. Any other approach would cause these men to be in serious trouble which I don’t think I could talk their way out of. I believe Lord Ballinor would consider it an important example of good order in the town that these men should be punished.
I smiled a small smile of confidence to convey just that point. Then I looked at Fordaire and said for a second time, “You must let go of my arm or I fear you will spend time in our jail. I am a government official. I am popular in this community. If you do not agree to settle this quietly here, Lord Ballinor will consider your treatment of me an affront to his ability to maintain good order. I already know that you are unarmed.” And with this Fordaire’s eyes began to widen. “I have a dagger on my hip. I know how to use it. In fact, I killed a man yesterday with it. Take my advice and remove your grip on my hand.” At that he looked around and noticed there were easily fifteen men in the tavern watching and listening to everything I just said. I don’t think he had the good sense to accept my argument, but rather looking around and realized they were outnumbered three to one. He released my arm and stood up quickly pointing his finger at me.
I shook my head. I rolled the palm of my hand down and let the other coins land in a pile on the table. I asked Darvist if he could help me get the other coins into the pile. Without looking at Fordaire I said, “You may as well sit down and drink your beer. I think I will ask the Magistrate to throw you in jail just as a favor. I was trying to help you, my friend, but you don’t have the good sense to listen to good advice. You wanted to avoid being noticed. Now fifteen men in this tavern will hear your testimony. And after we have settled this matter you will answer every question I have for you. If you don’t, I can promise that you will not get your weapons back, ever. The bigger problem for you is that Lord Ballinor may be sufficiently annoyed that you assaulted a government official that he sends word to the Emperor, yes, Emperor Alexander, to have you banished forever from Confernos. You know what that means, right? You will have your arm branded and if you are ever found in Confernos again you will be killed on sight just for the bounty. Nobody will care why you were banished because you’ll just be dead. You will never see your homes again. Now sit down and let’s settle this without the Magistrate.” Fordaire couldn’t think. He lowered his arm and then looked about. Everyone was staring at him. He blushed. He wanted to do anything else but sit as I asked, but there was nothing for him to do. I had reduced him to a child forced to obey his parents.
I raised my tankard and smiled in an effort to lighten the mood. I took a drink and set it back on the table. I turned slowly to the bar and raised my voice a little. “Tony could you come over here?” And then I turned back to the adventurers. I heard Tony approach while I took another drink from my tankard.
“Tony”, I began, “I am sorry to bother you because I know you are busy.” He responded, “Oh no my lord, I would drop anything to come talk with you. What may I do for my lord?” “I have a small pile of coins in front of me.” I went on. I picked up one and handed it to Tony. “You recall I received a number of these coins in my tips bag earlier, and decided I wanted to keep them and trade you the local coinage as we divided our earnings earlier?” He responded, “Yes my lord. These are the same coins you said had dwarven markings on them, see here the letters?” “Thank you, Tony.” And I held out my hand and he returned the coin to me. I looked at an onlooker. I said to him, “Dear fellow, take this coin and look at it. What do you think of this coin?” He reached out a hand and looked at the coin. He replied while giving me the coin back, “That coin does not come from Stonebridge, my lord.” I accepted the coin back and said, “Thank you.” I held the coin up to Fordaire and asked, “Do you need to see the coin? Is this a coin like the coins you carry?” “No”, he answered in an irritated voice. “I do not need to see the coin. That is exactly the manner of coins we carry.” And I replied, “Thank you.”
I went on. “Do you carry any other coinage?” He replied, “No I do not think so. We are travelling from the north and I believe all the coins we have came from there.” I asked, “Have you spent any coins in town since you arrived?” He answered, “No, we arrived late. We took our things to the guild hall and decided to come over here for dinner and beer.” I answered, “I was afraid of that. But you did buy drinks here?” “Yes”, he answered, “and dinner.” “For the six of you, right?” I asked. “Yes”, he responded with an edge in his voice. I raised my voice a little and said, “Friends, please check your pockets and tell me if you have any dwarven coins, or unusual coins in your purses.” Two or three men called out, “Yes, I have one here.” At this point the outcome of my questions was becoming obvious to everyone present, including Fordaire. I turned to him, “How many people stole coins from you tonight? I trust you are the keeper of the party’s purse, are you not?” The other party members looked at him. He said, “I see. Maybe you didn’t pick my purse after all.” At this point I was beginning to lose patience with him. “Maybe you say, maybe. Are you familiar with the customs for tipping a bard in Confernos? Patrons enjoy their time and don’t want to bother scooting about among the tables with other guests enjoying their meals and drinks. When a bar maid returns with drinks, she brings the change for the drinks as well. The patrons ask the bar maid to give the change to the minstrel at the hearth so they don’t have to get up and do it themselves. You did not, but the money you spent ended up in my tips bag that way, don’t you see?” And he hung his head. “And worse, Tony and everyone else here now know that you’re a cheap traveler that cares nothing for the people that do something to make your travel any easier. Should I go on to other matters, or may we consider that matter of the theft of these coins settled?” He answered quietly, “Please go on. I have no interest in discussing it further.” And I replied to make sure he was all the more uneasy, “I’m sorry, there are many people that didn’t hear you. Would you repeat that?” He raised his head and his face was red and said, “I believe you received those coins as tips and did not steal them, sorry.” And I replied, “Thank you. Let’s consider that matter closed. Now let’s talk a little more.” I took a drink from my tankard and set it down. Many of the patrons went back to their affairs since it was late and began to depart for the evening.
“Drink up my friends”, I said to the table. They all had a drink from their tankards. I turned to Darvist and asked, “Where did you get these coins?” He replied, “The governor of Maples paid them to us for killing a bugbear and a handful of kobolds.” “Bugbear and Kobalds”, I said, “in Maples?” “Yes, my lord.” He replied. I continued, “Is that unusual?” He answered, “Yes, my lord. We went there for other reasons but when we got there, they needed someone to kill these beasts. We received a small reward paid in these dwarven minted coins.” I asked, “Are you mercenaries or adventurers?” “We are adventurers, my lord.” He responded. And then I asked a question I had never asked before, and it was a little awkward. “May I see your credentials?” Fordaire had his folder out first but most of the others had theirs in their hands. I took the folder from Fordaire. I opened it and read the folder, and returned it to him. I took the next folder and the next and so on, and read them all. I continued, “you said you were in … Rottscald was it?” Vallen responded, “Yes my lord, we said we were near Rottscald, but we were in Maples, which is near Rottscald.” “I see.” And I asked, “And how did you come to hear they needed you in Eros?” The whole table looked at me in amazement? How did I know they wanted to go to Eros? Vallen cleared his throat and said, “We heard there were undead that needed to be dealt with and someone needed to look into their mischief. We understand it comes with a bounty and we are in need of coin for financing.” I asked, “What are you financing?” He replied, “Uh well, us, my lord. We’re trying to get to Humbolt and that is a great distance. We will need horses and supplies, so we’re trying to raise the funds needed for the trip.” I answered, “I see.” I continued, “Which way did you come to Stonebridge from Maples?” Vallen responded, “We took the main road, my lord. It comes here on a fairly straight path through flat agricultural lands. We expected to make good time.” I replied, “And you are on foot?” “Yes”, he responded, “we have a cart and a mule but no mounts.” I said, “Let me give you some advice. Wait a day or two and hire yourselves on to a caravan. They will provide mounts for you, if they can use you, and you will eat much better. You only need fight for the caravan if you are accosted by bandits, but you would face the same fate without a caravan, so why not enjoy the ride. So, did you encounter and bandits on the way?” Vallen replied, “No, my lord.” I continued, “Was there any evidence you were being scouted as you passed through the country?” Vallen replied again, “No my lord.” I continued, “How long have you been adventuring together?” Vallen said, “I have been with this troupe for six weeks, my lord.” And I said, “And the rest of you?” Gillfort was first to respond, “I believe it all began when we left Hollibliss. As we journeyed to the east we met each of these fellows and formed our troupe. Dravist was the first fellow we met and then Vallen as we got nearer the capitol. We met Tucker and Fordaire there when we reached Maples, and they recruited us to help them with the kobolds. In Maples we heard about Eros and Tucker and Fordaire told us about their plan to journey to Humbolt.