“You are never to set foot in the city of Mirabar again.”
The statement, spoken by Rale Cotchen but relayed secondhand since he was sprawled out and bleeding upon the ground during its utterance, assails Zeb's mind as Bonie re-dresses his wounds in the confines of their tent in Dagger's Deep.
An idle threat, surely, for all that the guard captain's doomspeak has ever mattered to Zeb and his allies. Yet the terseness in Bonie's hands as she cuts off a final wrap betrays his thoughts, ere she remarks, abruptly:
“I think we should return to the source of all this. Longsaddle. Those were your words. Do you remember? Do you still think that? Now that we're exiled from Mirabar and committed to sailing downriver through orc-infested lands to emerge, if we survive, in the open sea, and then winter over in the Frozenfar? I didn't dare speak my mind against ye when everyone else was decided, but history never told of any ‘Mirabar Run’ that I came to hear of in my life before... before all of this.”
Her gaze, colder than the most frigid winds of Icewind Dale, pierces Zeb to his core.
“I still seek answers,” she says determinedly. “But the longer we go on, I'm fearin' that the only thing you truly seek is death.”
With a huff, she rises and takes leave of the tent, not waiting for any reply. Outside, she makes her way to Audric, newly returned from the Mystran shrine erected at the edge of the encampment. “He'll be ready in a few hours, if ye care to heal him further. Though I'd not begrudge ye if ye didn't.”
The venom in her tone washes over the crusader as he feels its force, though he knows it not intended for him. Since their encounter with Rale Cotchen along the road and subsequent return, the woman has struggled to preserve her normal stoicism. In truth, between them all, interactions have mostly been brief, curt, and matter-of-fact, exchanging details pertinent to their situation but accompanied by few of their usual pleasantries.
Bonie then turns from Audric, heading purposefully in the direction of Seirsha and Edine, who busy themselves tending a pair of young goats whilst Zargon stands idly by, practicing his lute.
In her wake, the tension rests on the edge of a knife.
I do my best to keep my mouth shut and weather the storm as Bonie unleashes a torrent of emotion. What could I possibly say? She's right about most of it, maybe all of it, and in any case in my weakened state I can barely stand, let alone argue.
ReplyDeleteAs if being defeated handily by Rale Cotchen wasn't enough, the words Bonie decided to throw back in my face cut deep, leaving me both physically and mentally battered. She's a fitting avatar for the Beastlord's rage.
I can sense Audric lurking outside the tent, probably torn between an overwhelming need to play nursemaid to my wounds and throttle me for the trouble I got us all into. "If you're waiting in line for your turn at me, the tent's open" I say, putting what strength I can into my voice so that it might carry.
In the quiet moments that follow, my mind races, struggling to find any foothold. What does she want from me? Answers? We have a broken ring, a magic rock, and a piece of parchment from the future. Or the past? It's hard to tell any more. Longsaddle was a decision born more of desperation than anything else--I don't know what's there for us, if anything, and all that assumes Soliania actually lets us back in.
Mirabar Run probably IS foolhardy--and Bonie's point about never having heard of it is a valid point worth discussion. I didn't exactly need my leg twisted to sign onto the idea...I have to admit, Selben's tale about his ventures into the orc-infested lands raised my bloodlust, and with both Audric and Zargon agreeing to take on the mission, well, it seemed like a reasonable course of action.
That's all I wanted anyway...direction...and no one except apparently Bonie seemed thrilled about Longsaddle. I groan, try to stand and pace, but give up after the effort, settling in a lump back onto my bedroll. I can feel the flesh knitting in my side where Rale Cotchen ran me through.
Rale...forget him, at least for now. More worrisome is his ban on Mirabar. Can he enforce that even if he wanted to? We could probably sneak in to board the Moonmaiden before it departs...maybe. If we fail, it might mean imprisonment or turning the Mirabar Axe upside down, and dead guards don't help anything.
Unable to pace, unable to focus, I just lie there staring up at the top of the tent, my mind racing in circles, my body nearly broken, my spirit in a shambles.
Audric nods at Bonie's words, himself still frustrated by Zeb's actions and clear, almost willful, lack of foresight. He waits longer than he normally would to enter the tent, letting Zeb's words be whisked away by the wind before entering.
Delete"Another fine mess you have gotten us into my friend," Audric says. "All you had to do was hold your tongue and let the man get bored with us. He would never have made a move against us in any other way. However, he knew he could goad you into a duel. I have gone over it a thousand times in my head, and I regret not taking action. Rale is not a man with honor, so I do not know why I felt honor-bound to not interfere. For that, I am sorry my friend. I should not have let you face that alone."
"Now it seems that our path forward is barred. Rale made it clear that we are not to enter Mirabar again. However, I wonder if he can even enforce that order. He made it clear in front of his men that this was not a Mirabaran matter, but was personal. Those were his words witnessed by us and his men. So does his threat actually carry any weight, or was it merely a scare tactic?" Audric shrugs his shoulders, "I do not know."
"I still would like to try to find a way to get my armor and make our way to the Mirabar Run. I suspect that if we can make it to the boat that Dame would not alert the Axe to our presence as it would be too late for him to hire replacements. The only question is whether we can make it through town to the armorer and the boat without drawing the attention of Rale."
Audric stares off into the distance quietly for a long moment. "...a distraction", "Daeghar...", "...help", "...gold", "...time". The priest is lost in thought for some time, his mind moving faster than a ship while he mumbles, only part of it coherent.
He suddenly comes to, with a smile. "We could sneak and and through town and hope our luck holds and we don't meet Rale, but given everything that has happened since we joined Erathmar, I do not trust our luck in such an endeavor. But," He holds up a finger, "What if we stack the deck, so to speak. Perhaps we can get a message to Daeghar, and have him distract Rale on the day we come through town. Our business with the armorer should be quick, and we can make our way to the boat, and have Dame put us up until it is time to sail. Perhaps we could even stay in the ship, and thus out of sight. We would only need a distraction for a few hours, and we could compensate Daeghar handsomely, even enough for him to pay others to get in on the distraction."
He looks at Zeb, with a gleam in his eye similar to a child proud of something they just made. "So what do you think? I know it might not be the best plan, but we don't need to distract the entire Axe, just Rale. If his threat truly holds no weight as I suspect, no one else will be looking for us anyway."
The bard continued playing his lute throughout the conversation between Bonie and Zeb. Those words may have concerned him, may be they did not, but he was not one to invade the privacy of a man and his lady. Zargon did however put down the instrument after Audric entered the tent. He could not help but agree that it was fool hardy to enter battle with Rale, however Zargon knew that he was right there cheering Zeb on and encouraging battle. He too was wrong in this. Being that Audric alone bears no blame for the current predicament, it stands to reason that the party should take his lead on how to get to the ship and get to the Mirabar Run....because make no mistake, Zargon wants to get on that boat, no matter what.
DeleteAudric's chastening words aren't unexpected, and as with Bonie, I do my best to keep my mouth shut until he's done. "You are right, I was reckless. But I seem to remember the last time we were barred from a town was your fault, friend, and not mine."
Delete"Our minds travel similar paths. I too have considered sneaking into Mirabar--though I think that a path of peril. If we were to be caught, we would either end up killing or injuring many of the Axe, and they are not our enemy. I like your idea of distraction.
Daeghar is a fine consideration."
"Bonie is displease with our decision to continue on the Mirabar Run. I will talk to her about that. Though perilous, we have just as much to learn to the north as we potentially do to the south. Though I do not wish to encounter this shadowy figure that Thrur spoke of, the fact that another is asking similar questions means that north is not a direction completely without merit."
"For now, I need rest...while we consider a plan."
Audric listens to his friend's words. He owes him that much as Zeb took his admonishment without saying a word.
DeleteHe sighs deeply at Zeb's comment alluding to their unceremonious departure from Longsaddle. "Yes my friend, we were kindly asked to stay away from Longsaddle due to my actions. It was not my... ahem... finest moment, shall we say."
"You mentioned going south to Longsaddle a while back. Perhaps we lick our wounds, head south, and let Rale be. Why poke the hornet's nest if it is not necessary. Sure the Mirabar run seemed interesting, and lucrative, but with our skills we should not have much trouble finding employ anywhere we head. Zargon here just seems to have wanderlust and is ready to head in any direction as long as it is away from here."
"All I truly care about in that city is getting my new suit of armor, but if that is out of the question, I could let it go. I do have some ideas about that though."
Audric steps up and casts Cure Light Wounds once on Zeb. "I will not see you suffer needlessly. However, I will leave you with some of your pain as a reminder of what rashness results in."
Later--several hours later--I pull myself from the ground, staggering only a little, and step outside the tent. Jakke sits outside as if he has been waiting for me, tail wagging. Bonie has not returned since she shared her feelings, but I have a pretty good idea where to find her.
ReplyDeleteI stumble through Dagger's Deep, Jakke in tow, until I reach the river keep, where I find her standing on a rocky patch of open ground. It's where we saw Wyardt in a vision, and where he called out to her. She has been troubled since that night, though we have not spoken of it much since.
I step to her side silently, not expecting her to acknowledge my presence. "I have not given up on answers," I begin quietly. She makes no reaction. "Longsaddle is a direction, but it is not the only direction, and we have just as little chance of finding anything helpful there--assuming we'd even be let back into the town--as we do in the Frozenfar."
"Longsaddle was an option born out of desperation--we had grown complacent, with no clear path, so I chose one. My companions do not share my confidence in Longsaddle as a reasonable choice, and I trust Audric's intuition on this."
"The decision to sign onto the Moonmaiden's voyage is also born from lack of direction...but it is not entirely reckless. Our discussion with Thrur indicates that there is another who walks the same path we do, asking similar questions about Mystryl. That cannot be coincidence. Though this is a dangerous option, it is suicidal, and not completely without merit."
"I don't expect you to agree with every decision I make, and your vote counts just as much as any of ours when it comes to choosing a direction. But your comment about seeking death...on that, you are wrong."
I stir a bit, mostly from weariness and discomfort, but let the silence hang before continuing. "Rale Cotchen is a bastard. I wouldn't have killed him, had it worked out that way--he's done nothing to deserve that. But what happened between he and I NEEDED to happen. Otherwise, the next time he and I met, it may have led to a bloodbath including you and others. Though he may not feel the same way, my conflict with Rale Cotchen is ended."
With more confidence, I continue. "I don't expect you to understand my motivations, but I do not court death. I fight, I live for you and Selben."
I can tell by her heavy exhalations that I've likely said something else that will trigger her ire, but don't have the energy to wait for its release. Having said my piece, I turn back and trudge to the tents.
Lom sits near the river keep watching the dark water drift by. This has been where he comes to clear his mind when not out hunting. For some reason the water soothes him more than being in the woods. Perhaps that is why he was so content to partake in the Mirabar Run. He has never seen the open water, and the thought of seeing the Trackless Sea in front of him all the way to the horizon was alluring to say the least.
DeleteHe sighs and stands, only now noticing that Lume was laying near him. For some reason, he has always had a way with animals. It is part of what makes him a good hunter. The animals did not run away from him like from others. He turned and walked back to his tent passing by Bonie and Zeb. He inclined his head to them, in acknowledgement, as he passed by, not stopping to talk as they seemed deep in a conversation. Just before he is out of earshot he overheads Zeb state that his conflict with the Rale man is over.
Lom has no idea why Zeb and Audric dislike the man Rale so much. He had not seen what caused the conflict, and could not begin to imagine how a Captain of the Axe got on the bad side of those two priests. As he laid down for sleep his last thought was that anyone that opposed Audric, or any of Audric's friends for that matter, is an enemy of Lom's.
"You know I mean to follow ye," Bonie calls back to Zeb. "Until the end, whenever it may come. Though I'd rather it not come sooner."
DeleteShe gives pause for him to listen, but briefly. "It was never about Wyardt. Nor was it even about Elseba," she adds, a tear welling in her eye. "But I know, in my heart, there's something greater to all this than you, I, any of us can comprehend. I've felt it since ye first told me about meeting Kezia in the Shadfeld ruins, and my feeling has only strengthened with everything that's happened since. I want to know our place in this world, in these events. We've committed ourselves to boarding Moonmaiden, and board her we should... for our honor, if nothing else. But I still seek answers, Zeb. And I do, someday, mean to find them."