Drink With Me

[Rezantis]

"Ahh.  I suppose that makes sense.  So if he comes in here, we wait for him to get to the sword, then jump him?"

[Bjorn]

"Ideally.  The wards placed on the sword will make it easier to track him if he gets away. But the first goal is to capture him."  

Bjorn studies the layout of the room, and then nods.  "I'll wait in the bedchamber."  He eyes the storm-riders appraisingly.  "Perhaps one other of you can fit in there with me.  The rest should hide in the antechamber -- unless one of you is willing to take privy duty.  I don't know that I'll ask that of anyone, however."

As he speaks, he makes his way over to the writing desk, looking for fresh candles.

[Brian]

"Well, anyone who comes into here should have to go through the antechamber first," Nathan reasons.  "Arthur, Edward, you stick with me -- that room has the most space to manuever anyway.  Eric, you stick with Bjorn; the bedroom is the only spot where you'd have a chance at lining up a bowshot.  Alec, sorry to do this to you, but can you watch the privy?  If someone climbs in through the window, you've got the best close-quarters weapon."

The storm-riders all nod, and vanish in the directions indicated.  Except for Eric, who's sitting on the bed's headboard, his feet resting on the matress, all of the storm-riders seem to have vanished entirely.

There are spare candles in the writing desk, as well.

[Bjorn]

Now.  We need to see what's going on.  Bjorn takes candles from the writing desk and uses them to replace the candles on the table, lighting them with the almost-extinguished stubs.  He also takes a second to stoke the fireplace, keeping a good, if not blazing fire going.

Then he takes another candle, lighting it, and moves into the bedroom, sitting himself on the floor and leaning against the wall beside the door, out of sight of the room behind him.  Putting the candle down on the side away from the door (and checking to make sure it does not overly illuminate Erik), Bjorn pulls out Durant's book and begins to read it again, going over it carefully.

[Brian]

The storm-riders are all silent, apparently settled in and ready to wait out whatever comes next.  By the light of the candle, you can review what you'd glanced through before.  The first half or so of the book is recorded songs, poems, and stories.  Some of it's old news, though you glance at a few stories you haven't heard about; there's a story about the dwarven city, deep beneath the earth, and a human smith who went there to study.  You don't read the entire thing, though you do glance over it, looking for notes in the margins.

After that point, you find a few journal entries.  "Left for Kith today."  "Sipoor hostile.  Guards keep city locked."  "Fletcher wants money to get through walls."  Then there are a few more stories -- these you've not heard anything of at all before.

Something about a kingdom of bamboo grasses (they call this country "Kith"), and how their king descended from the skies, created by the will of those who had faith that he would exist.

There are some notes after this story:  "Ask priest.  Emperor is true god-king?  Kithans created Emperor instead of gods during the war?"

Then there's a story of the Emperor of Kith fighting against the elder gods, in the ages of the wars.

Then some more notes: "Emperor alive?  Possible to meet?"  The next page is stained in spots with what looks like drops of blood.  "Bad idea.  Fletcher lied.  No way into palace.  Heading back to Sipoor."

After that, there's some poems (they go on about beams of sunlight, and the terrible pain that is being invalid).  The final poem is about freedom, and escaping.  "Back on feet again.  Three years lost.  Begin planning now.  Must get into Fletcher's good graces again."

Followed by another poem ... this one about a clever soldier who pretends loyalty to a moronic officer.  In each stanza, the clever soldier does exactly what the officer says to ... but in such a way that the officer gets the worst end of the deal.  The final stanza ends with the officer being killed.

An entirely different pen (but the same hand) has scrawled "Stormwall keep" into the margin next to this last stanza.

[Bjorn]

Bjorn frowns, and continues reading.

[Brian]

After this point, our noble hero has (reading between the lines) started heading north.  There's some passages about the rolling plains, the forboding mountains, and the might of Stormwall keep ("Almost as impressive as Gwerril or Fodun,").

After the note about Storm-wall keep is where you find the notes you had only glanced at earlier.  Then commentary about how boring the ice and snow is, and a map of a temple.  The observations here seem to label this church a church of Aestock.  Then more snow, some comments about storm-riders being too stupid to appreciate fine art.  Then another temple -- this one Hammar.

There's a pause between the first sketch of what you imagine the temple of Hammar would be, and an expedition to see some place called "the Dark Citadel".  There's a drawing of that, and it looks pretty huge, assuming it's not made up.

After the sketch of the exterior, there's another poem about a dance with two people.  Neither can read the other, and neither knows what's going to happen next, but to everyone who watches, it's amazing.

Then, a return to the temple, followed by a few hastily scribbled notes:  "Saw Fletcher.  Plan will work."  "Snow-madness explained absence.  Hammarites think I'm not dangerous enough to pay attention to."  "Last needle -- won't be able to darn socks for a long time."

Then there's a eulogy for a priestess, and a journal entry.  The writer of this journal was asked to attend the funeral of the priestess, and gave a speech.  The page has small discolored circles on it, like someone dripped water across it.

"My work here is done," is the next note, followed by "Further assigments?  Can't kill me yet."  "Still have a chance.  Stormwall."

There's a whole page with nothing written on it except (in painfully small characters) "My sin can never be forgiven.  But I can take him into hell with me."

[Bjorn]

Bjorn ponders, trying to absorb what he's just read.  After a few seconds, he makes a mental note to return to the beginning of the journal, this time focussing specifically on the nature of this Fletcher person -- looking for hints as to who or what he was, how the journal-writer met him, what he did, what he looks like.  

Then he continues reading.

[Brian]

The next thing is a prayer to Hammar (you think you remember this from your own book), which was copied into the journal.  The gist of the prayer is, "I promise that even though I'll die, I'll do it fighting, and I'll make each instant of life count."

After that, a large number of blank pages, and then notes for constructing another story.  Now that you've read through the other stories, you get the idea that this one is meant to be the author's legacy.  Every other story has been copied from someone else, but now he's actually trying to create one on his own.

It pretty much retells what you saw in the book; as a young man, after learning some stories, some songs, and leaving his master's hall, the bard wandered the world.  He stole into Kith, which was a sealed city, and made a deal with a man named Fletcher to get out of the city, and learn more stories.

He did this, and eventually, decided he wanted more.  He sought a way to meet the Emperor of Kith, and his friend Fletcher said there was a way to make it happen....

...but things didn't work out, and the bard managed to get to the sealed city before he was cut down by the guards and thrown into the sea.  By luck, he was saved by a passing merchant's ship, and he'd already thought to protect his journal by sealing its pouch with wax.

After that, the wounds and infections took three years to heal.  The story ends right there, with some notes on how to continue.  The notes make a reference to the temple of Hammar, and are then heavily crossed out (but still legible).

[Bjorn]

Bjorn concentrates, and reads the notes on how to continue.

[Brian]

The notes say: "Journeyed north, to Stormwall for vengeance" heavily-crossed out and then, "some noble cause?" is written in.  It's like when he got this far, he just gave up on finishing the story.

[Bjorn]

Bjorn grunts, and then goes back to the beginning, paying close attention to 'Fletcher,' and any references to people who might be him, trying to see if he can get any more information regarding his questions about him.

[Brian]

There's nothing more recorded about Fletcher other than the name, and that's almost certainly an alias.

[Bjorn]

Bjorn closes the book, carefully tucking it away, and then extinguishes the candle, settling in to watch the bundle while thinking about what he's read.

[Brian]

You watch the sword.  Eric glances at you, but says nothing, his own attention focused there, as well.

Now that you're not reading, time seems to drag.