Elendor
In search of the past: Eastward ho!
Brev and Muirgheal play with words instead of knives, whilst Brev tries to persuade Cordelia to act as guide across the Mountains. When Carac arrives, a deal is struck
Sort Date: no date set
Location: Shepherding village
Game Date: May 3047
IC Time: Afternoon
Weather: Clear
Description: Shepherding Village
This is the home of a small, proud, and independent people who live primarily by herding sheep in the open lands south of the Great East Road. Once driven from this region by troll depredations, they have returned and appear to be prospering, perhaps because they can also profit by trade on the Great East Road. There are many sturdy houses and smaller huts clustered on a hill here, safely ensconced behind a deep ditch and wall. The ditch is filled with thorn bushes ... and the gate to the village is by a removable walkway over that ditch. Clearly the possibility of attack, whether from trolls or something worse, has not been ignored.
A long, low, whitewashed building, sprawling along the hillside below the caravanserai, appears to the south. The thatched roof spills down to the tops of its lead-paned windows, thick glass aglow with firelight.
Obvious exits:
Gathering House, Caravanserai, and Great East Road
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Dunland Time and Weather Forecast
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Real Time is: Thu Jul 09 14:10:00 2009
IC weather is: Wind: breeze - Clouds: sparse - Rain: drizzle
IC Moon is: Not visible
IC time is: Midnight
IC date is: Monday, Day 22 of May in the year 3047.
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[Muirgheal(#32535)] With the arrival of a very foreign looking dark-haired woman to the Shepherding Village, another foreigner, a resident of only over a year in this little gathering of homes, has been seen out and about much more often. In fact, Muirgheal is smiling this afternoon as she takes a walk toward the green, gently sloping pastures where men here take their sheep. She's got a hound at her side, obviously not for sheep-work, looking much more like a pet by the way he keeps within scant inches of her heels. Though the tall young woman wears a simply black dress, ropes making its straps over her shoulders, and her hair in a long, pleasantly-done braid, she's still armed with those knives that rest in sheaths on her forearms, and a sword swinging at her side. It makes for an interesting contrast, those weapons and that smile, as Muirgheal takes her dog for a run through the fields.
Brev, by contrast, is not smiling. The Dunlending returned from another supposed 'hunting' trip only last night, empty-handed, and has spoken to noone since except in monosyllables. Not even Verge has been able to get much out of him.
Now he stands by a clump of bushes in the rough pastureland, not far from where Muirgheal and her dog are heading, a black scowl on his face as he tosses stones with the sling toward another unprotesting bush, in quick, jerky movements.
Weapons? Well, aside from the sling there's one dagger visible. No spear today.
[Cordelia(#24827)]
Not far behind Muirgheal is another dark-haried foreigner, this one Cordelia. She looks somewhat less than thrilled.
[Muirgheal(#32535)] Muirgheal grins to herself, watching the hound as he finally leaves her side and takes off, bounding across the field, his legs swallowing up the green and putting distance between himself and his mistress in a quest to find a squirrel. Of course, as she watches him, her dark eyes catch sight of the familiar-looking youth standing beside the bushes. On long legs, it doesn't take but a few quick strides to reach him. "Trying to kill a bird with that?" Muirgheal asks the boy, no friendliness in that rich voice.
It is the dog that Brev notices first. His arm, drawn back for another cast, lowers gently and the stone drops to earth at his feet. It is when he's bending to retrieve it that Muirgheal's words reach his ears. "No." The single word is flat, and when his gaze meets the woman's for a moment his scowl only deepens. "Don't see any dead birds, do you? I was just thinking. Course, if you've volunteering to act as target it might help me think even better." The edges of his mouth curl up slightly in a rather forced-looking smirk.
[Cordelia(#24827)] Behind Muirgheal, Cordelia frowns at this exchange. On the other hand, she doesn't say anything to intervene--just stops and listens.
[Muirgheal(#32535)] "Now is that any way to be talking to strangers, boy?" Muirgheal says, her words sharp, but her eyes sharper, so black they're difficult to read at all, blinking at the 'boy'. "I only asked what you're doing here. Mind you don't hit my dog, and..." That last comment causes Muirgheal to be temporarily at a loss for words. She cants her head to the side in contemplation, then asks softly, "Are you spoiling for a fight? It isn't what I had in mind to do with my nice afternoon without the children, but.." She spreads her hands, "It'll do."
Brev snorts at the first words. "Do I look like I'd maim a fine animal like that? Kiern!" His glance towards where the dog is bounding away is brief, and half-hearted. At the other query he tilts his head to one side, in unconscious mimicry of Muirgheal, considering. "Well. Suppose it'd be one way to solve my problems. I'd not need to worry about thinking after that, eh?" His tone is self-mocking. "Pretty pointless, though, given you're not the cause."
His gaze slides past the woman's blonde hair, and it is only then that he seems to notice Cordelia. "Cordy." The greeting is level, but half-hearted. "Did Carac speak with you?"
[Cordelia(#24827)] Still behind Muirgheal, Cordelia rolls her eyes at the threat of violence that passes between the two. She herself doesn't seem to be armed...at least not outwardly.
"Carac?" she shakes her head. "Haven't even met anyone by that name. One of yours, I take it? What does he want from me?"
[Muirgheal(#32535)] "Isn't this cozy," Muirgheal says, affecting her voice with a slight drawl and smirking. "We're all friends here now, huh? You look like you really need a hug." With her wolfish grin, flashing with teeth and black eyes, Muirgheal perhaps looks anything but huggable, even in a dress. Her arms spread in mock invitation. "Come, now...tell us what's wrong," she says with mock sympathy. "I can't hit such a sad looking face." More mockery, and she looks very amused with herself.
At Cordelia's answer, Brev's scowl of earlier returns, and it's her he addresses first. "Kiern! How the damn am /I/ supposed to know what he wants? Hasn't spoken to me for weeks." Which, considering Brev himself has barely been in the Shepherding village for the past few weeks, disappearing for days on end on supposed hunting trips (sometimes with Gidon but more often without), is hardly fair. He hesitates, then shrugs. "Fine. You said something about knowing the way across the mountains - could you get me there? And some others." The word hangs in the air: me, not us.
Muirgheal's offer distracts him, and he summons up an answering smirk of his own. "Oh, you don't want a hug from me. Daggers, you know. They're usually quite sharp." Perhaps she's not the only one who carries more than one on her person. The smirk broadens, then is quickly pulled back into a downturned mouth. "I forgot. I'd best not smile, in the interests of self-preservation. Such a soft heart you have!"
[Cordelia(#24827)]
"You? Just you? Or you and the rest of your group?" Cordelia presses, picking up on the emphasis. "It's a terribly dangerous path, over the mountains, even for a group of travelers. What kind of warriors do you have with you? Have they killed orcs before? What sort of waggons or baggage are you carrying? And...well, if I go over the mountains, I am stuck there, too, aren't I? How can I get back home to Bree?"
"And then there is the matter of payment."
[Muirgheal(#32535)] "It'd be my knife in your back first, boy," Muirgheal says quickly, unable to resist the temptation. Still, she seems to be losing interest in him, not having the proper excuse yet to shed any blood here on the growing green field and wildflowers. "The tenderest," Muirgheal agrees sweetly about her heart, flipping her braid over her shoulder and batting her lashes over her unsettling eyes. Then she, too, smirks. When Cordelia speaks up, Muirgheal turns to regard her and says with some regret, "I'm sorry I can't come with you, to watch your back...you would need it, if you are foolish enough to accept his offer. I've got the children, you know, and two little blonde heads in that kind of company...I wouldn't trust it. Though if anyone is capable, I've no doubt it's you." Muirgheal smiles at her friend, a genuine smile.
Brev returns Cordelia's questions with his own. "How many would we need in a group to minimize the risk? The Hawk are warriors, they've killed men and goblins before. Even I have killed goblins, despite my tender years." He cannot resist giving Muirgheal a mocking smile at that reference, lifting a hand to rub at the beard that proclaims he is in reality no boy. "Gidon's a keen shot with the bow - he'll do. And Verge .." The words trail off, and his jaw tightens suddenly. He swallows, then continues briskly, "No wagons, just packs. As to payment - we don't use gold. Perhaps keeping you alive through the passage would count toward it?" His lips curl upward slightly. "Seemed to me you had some interest in that direction .. your dear friend certainly believes it."
He nods toward Muirgheal, before rounding on her fiercely. "Think I'd take /children/ on a journey like that, Strawhead or no? Kiern, woman, don't you care for their lives?"
[Cordelia(#24827)] "That sounds like enough men who can fight, but I won't willingly make the journey east for you out of the goodness of my heart," Cordelia snorts. "Certainly, part of my family lies in that direction, but I hadn't planned on seeing them again so soon. ANd, as I said, if I guide you east, then I am stuck there, no? How would I get back to Bree again?"
[Muirgheal(#32535)] Muirgheal makes a rather unexpected sound: she starts giggling, looking at Brev in disbelief. Said giggles are stifled with a hand pressed to her lips, but still, she shakes her head in amusement. "I'm..not about to justify to you anything I do with my children.." she says between little fits of laughter. "And you know," she points out, warming up to this game of trading insults even more, "You've got something on your chin...just...there." As she speaks, she rubs her right hand over her chin in imitation of someone with a beard. "Oh- and if you make one more reference to my lovely hair being in some way undesirable, I'll just cut off yours and make myself a wig." Muirgheal looks like she'd find it funny.
"The same way you came before," Brev retorts to Cordelia. "The same way we'd get back to Dunland, come to that. If the mountains can be crossed they can be recrossed. Fine then, if you're interested name your price if you're not I'll ask elsewhere." He shrugs nonchalantly and begins turning away.
The motion stops as Muirgheal's fit of the giggles reaches his ears. One brow arches and his own lips twitch, though the motion is quickly stilled. "I do?" He returns his own hand to his chin, and pats it cautiously. "Hmm. I really should do something about that. Would hate to give folk the impression I was more than a boy. They might feel .. ah, threatened." He lets his hand drop back to his side, then tilts his head. "Not sure dark curls would suit you. How about straight?" He jabs his chin in Cordelia's direction.
[Cordelia(#24827)]
"We'll see..." Cordelia shrugs, still managing to ignore the jibes between Brev and Muirgheal, though she does give an exasperated sigh at the words the two are passing. "Dunland...you'll be goign back there afterwards? Maybe I could go along with you, if that's the case.." She shrugs a second time. "As for price...well, let me think on it. Depends on whether or not I can travel along with you and for how far and how..productive that is. We can talk anoather time."
[Muirgheal(#32535)] "You might be doing yourself a favor by letting me toughen you up a little, -boy-," Muirgheal says, cheerfully and pointedly. "The orcs'll do a good job of that, otherwise, when you head east." She can't exactly pull up her dress to show the mass of scar tissue that covers her entire lower stomach, but she does grab hold of the top of her dress and tug it sharply down, revealing a long pink scar that trails down past her breast. "Scars make men," she tells Brev, "Not scruffle." She releases the neckline of her dress and pats her chin again to make fun of his beard. Her smiling eyes are mocking as they watch him. "How do you like that a Forgoil is more a man than -you-?"
[Carac(#32384)] With the afternoon sun blazing behind him Carac appears upon the pasturelands. Spotting the figures in the distance it is toward those that he moves, at a casual pace. Though as figures become clearer and he recognizes Brev and spies the blonde hair of one of those near his friend, his approach is made with more urgency.
The day is a pleasant one, and scarce wonder that a few people have chosen to spend time in the green pasturelands outside the village. One might, however, wonder at /which/ people, for there are two dark heads and one blonde.
Brev nods at Cordelia's words. "Like I said, have a think about it. There's someone I need to talk to ..." He trails off, muttering something under his breath in Dunael.
Muirgheal's initial offer is received with a lopsided smirk. "Sure, you can try." The smirk remains when she pulls down her dress. "Sorry, lass, you're no match for my own woman. Can't say I find you tempting. Oh, and didn't you know?" he adds. "The Forgoil aren't men. Do you prefer to be thought of as an animal?" The tilt to his brow is a quizzical one - and as he catches sight of Carac out of the corner of his eye, a blink is the only acknowledgement. He does not cease his scrutiny of Muirgheal.
[Cordelia(#24827)]
"Oh? Would it be that Carac person you have to speak with?" Cordelia prompts the Dunlander. Her eyes slide off to the approaching man and then back to Brev. "So besides you, how many would be making this journey?"
[Muirgheal(#32535)] "You, please a woman?" Muirgheal scoffs. The mere thought of it sends her into another fit of laughter, so it takes her a moment to notice that Brev has got a friend approaching their gathering. The animal comment, though, is enough to make her put her hand on the hilt of her sword. "One more word from your mouth toward me," she growls, quite a feral thing, not far from Brev's remark, when her eyes don't look entirely sane, "And I'll cut that idiot tongue right out of it."
[Carac(#32384)] "I will be joining Brev on any journey he makes," Carac says to the dark haired woman with Brev. "As will a handful of others." His gaze then moves towards his friend and he gives the younger man a nod of greeting.
"Where are we headed on this journey she speaks of?" he asks, still not acknowledging the blonde woman. Though as she hurls her threats and insults towards Brev he finally turns to her briefly, but then turns right back to Brev.
"Who might your charming friend, be?"
[Cordelia(#24827)]
"Is that so?" Cordelia looks to Brev for confirmation on that statement from Carac, but mostly she takes a step back for the moment to just listen. Muirgheal gets a grin and a whispered comment: "Surely you don't want to ruin your dress with all that blood, though. Think what a pain it will be to try to wash it out. Not worth it."
Brev is saved from answering Cordelia by Carac's approach. Or is it truly 'saved'? "Ah, that would be under discussion," he answers quietly, before making a hasty introduction, "Carac, this is Cordy. She's the woman I told you about." He looks quite surprised at the man's sudden support, and adds a hasty hiss to him in Dunael, keeping a wary eye on Muirgheal as he does: "We should talk - about our path from here. I need to go east, over the mountains, Gidon-"
With Muirgheal speaking there is no time to say more. Her first words are greeted by an affable smile. "I seem to be entertaining you quite effectively." His gaze shifts down towards the woman's sword-hand - his own hand remains at his side, not on his dagger but within easy reach of it - and he snorts. "Kiern, woman, it was /you/ who used the word this time, not me. Are you or aren't you? Perhaps you should make up your mind. Carac," he does not even pause for breath, "this is Muirgheal. She enjoys playing with words almost as much as playing with knives."
[Muirgheal(#32535)] Muirgheal replies to Brev in her native tongue as well, smirking as she says to him, "I understand exactly what you're saying." She cants her to the side as she regards Carac. "Charming? I think not." Likely she means herself, but she could mean both of the men, as well. To Cordelia, she smiles and shakes her head. "Uannve and I can always make new. Wouldn't be the first time I got blood on something like this." With a shrug, she turns on her heel and hurries after her hound dog, who's got a squirrel up a tree and is barking frantically further on down the field.
Brev scowls at Muirgheal's reminder - likely he had been all too aware of that fact. As Muirgheal rushes off in the direction of the barking, he remarks casually to his friend, again in Dunael, "Nice dog - shame about the owner, eh?" Then he restrains his ignoble tongue again.
[Carac(#32384)] "Words and knives?" Carac asks, feigning surprise. "I have found few skilled at both, usually one hones their skill in one to make up for a complete lack of ability in the other. I mean a witty swordsman? Who's ever heard of such a thing?" He turns then to perhaps say something directly to Muirgheal, but she has already set off after her dog.
"You see?" he asks with a grin. "Words seem to be her true skill. Strange to see a forgoil who speak our tongue, however."
Brev casts a wary eye in Cordelia's direction to see if she's listening, then mutters a single Dunael word to Carac (and quietly this time, though the dog's barking will surely drown out most things): "Half-breed." Switching back to the Common, he concedes, "Suppose you're right. Which is why I don't wave a sword about. Words are far more handy, don't you think? Along with a few sharp daggers ..."
[Carac(#32384)] With a chuckle Carac holds out one of his hands. "That is easy for you to say," he replies. "You actually have hands capable of using such weapons. I have no skill at throwing them, and do not like letting my enemies get close enough to stab them with a dagger." His smile widens.
"Besides, I've never been accused of being witty. You've always been the one with the brains."
Brev's mouth twitches at Carac's response. "Me? Hardly - I don't have what it takes to lead men. I'm just good at talking." He pauses, then concedes, "But you've got a point about letting enemies get close. Which is why I'm also good at running." Switching to Dunael, he adds something else, with the cadence of a question to it: "Have you found any me traces of our folk? All I've come across are empty ruins, home to the rats and the birds."
[Cordelia(#24827)] "Terribly rude of you to go about whispering things in a language I don't understand," Cordelia comments dryly after all this. "Though I suppose I'll ask Muirgheal what it was all about, since she seems to be able to speak your tongue. Now...tell me why you want to head east, of all places."
[Carac(#32384)] " I've found nothing but the same," Carac replies to Brev's query. " As well as signs that some harbored creatures much larger than birds or rats."
His attention turns towards Cordelia then and he switches back to Common. "Why are our reasons of such interest to you?" he asks. "Our reasons should matter little so long as payment is arranged."
Brev tilts a brow in Cordelia's direction. "This is a language most of our folk don't understand," he says bluntly, keeping now to singsong Common. "Sometimes it's easier to say things in plain speech than struggle away in your tongue."
Whatever it is that Carac says in Dunael, it makes him wince, but when the man's words in Common are concluded, he lets out a quiet chuckle. "True. Carac, you've just proven yourself wrong about who has the wit. Next you'll be upstaging Verge as trader. Ah," he sobers now, "we had yet to discuss the details of payment. I had explained that our folk do not generally use gold ..." He lets the speech trail off.
[Cordelia(#24827)]
"I am a lone woman offering to lead a bunch of armed men that I do not know across a long and dangerous path," Cordelia says flatly, her eyes steady on Carac. "It would help if I knew your reasons. Do you think I will betray some secret to..to my Forgoil friend? I know many secrets," she grins. "And I...well, I need some time at home and then I have to return here."
"If you do not use gold, then what do you use?"
[Carac(#32384)] "We seldom use gold," Carac corrects. "If that is what is demanded for payment it can perhaps be obtained, but we are not without other skills that you may find of value. If you fear our numbers, I can send the rest of our party home to Dunland, and just Brev, myself, and the two women Saffron and Verge will go eastward. Where is this home that you journey too?" he queries.
With a look towards Brev he falls back into Dunael once more. " Are you sure this one's mind is all there?"
"Skills," Brev answers Cordelia's final query, in turn. "Our fighters' skills you'll see plenty of, while I can fix anything wooden that needs mending - fix up broken flesh, too, if Saffron's called elsewhere... Or goods - furs, food, weapons ..." He watches her carefully to see if any of his words produce the merest flicker of reaction in her unusually-shaped eyes.
"And Gidon," he urgently amends Carac's list of suggested persons. "He's the reason I-," he checks himself briefly, then states simply, "Gidon needs to go east." Carac's query in Dunael is answered by a few brief, clipped words. "Yes. Too much."
Returning to the Common, he adds, to Cordelia again, "Admit it, woman, you're saying no more of reasons than we are. I've never met someone so good at not answering questions. Reminds me of me." He smirks.
[Cordelia(#24827)]
"Two women as well? Your women?" Cordelia says, though that knowledge brings a bit of relief to the sound of her reply. "If you have never crossed the High Pass before, or the Misties at all, I would not advise you send your men home. You will need all the men you can get to make it safe across. And you will need gold--to pay the Beornings, who keep the Pass open. They, I'm afraid, have all the skills in the world that they need, or so they claim. Gold or goods for them, or so it was on my way west to here."
"As for home, it is an eastern trading outpost where men..of all types...and dwarves meet to barter. Buhr Mahrling.," she says. "If you do not have gold, we can work something else out. I have no particular need for goods...but perhaps a weapon would do. I could use a new dagger. Mine is worn," she grins. "As for the rest of my fee...well, we can work it out. I will not demand gold of you."
[Carac(#32384)] Carac's brow rises slightly as Cordy speaks. "The way east is too dangerous for us, but not for a lone woman?" he asks. "Or do have others joining you that you have not mentioned? If not then I think any fee you decide upon should take into account the protection we bring to you."
He glances towards Brev and raises a brow. "That only seems fair does it not? If she is travelling alone she will need us as much as we need her."
"The .. Beornans." Brev seizes on that particular word in Cordelia's speech, perhaps a little too eagerly. "Yes. Can you tell us of them? What goods do they prize? Furs? Tools?"
Carac's words set the corners of his mouth twitching. "Indeed," he agrees solemnly. "As has already been pointed out to ..Cordy.." he hesitates slightly over the name, but does not even attempt the woman's unpronouncable full name, "here, it is would be a fair exchange of skills. Ours in defence, hers in guiding."
[Cordelia(#24827)]
"I had not planned on going east--I had no means to go east until Brev asked me to guide your folk. So..." Cordelia shrugs a shoulder, "yes, my fee considers that. Weapons...and..." She pauses to eye Brev. "There will be plenty of time to speak of such matters. Weapons and I think tell me of your lands. What news you have heard in traveling. Strange events...things...I crave news of the world. Perhaps a trip to your lands in the end? I am restless," she finishes, seeming to have changed her mind about payment in the course of the conversation.
Carac casts a glance towards Brev as the young Bear speaks of the 'Beornans', but says nothing for the moment. Instead he focuses back upon Cordelia. "You will have your dagger when we set out, tales of our lands along the way, any other payment can be discussed once we have reached these Beornans you speak of," he says with a nod. "That is fair. Now, when can you be ready to depart?"
Brev notes Cordelia's glance in his direction, and meets it with a level gaze. "We will need to know what goods to bring these ..Beornans.. for their toll," he says patiently when she is done. "Not to mention /why/ they think they have the right to charge the damn things in the first place," he mutters sourly afterwards, some of the good mood produced by Forgoil-baiting beginning to dissipate.
He lets Carac continue with the bargaining without interruption - only at the end does he offer, "I am sure I can tell Cordy a little of our lands." Whether it will be the same information he would give the likes of Uannve .. well, that's hardly the issue, is it?
[Cordelia(#24827)] "Beornings," Cordelia corrects Brev. "Folk of Beorn. They are over the mountains but before the great forest. Though first...we have to make it past the elves on this side of the mountains...and if so and we make it safe to the Beornings...there is little there of consequence. Further east, through the forest, are the homes of the dwarves and my people," Cordelia says. "As for when..tomorrow if you wish. I have nothing here save some clothing."
To Brev, she makes a face. "Tools. Weapons. No furs. No leathers. They are an odd folk and react violently to dead animals," she scoffs.
[Carac(#32384)] Carac raises a brow at Cordelia's last words. " Are all men outside Dunland mad," he mutters softly, before giving Brev a look.
"If this High Pass is as dangerous as the woman claims and they keep it open, then they have a right to payment," he says in Common.
" There are passes in the mountains near our own borders, mayhap we can do with the same with them."
He turns back to the woman and brushes a stray lock of hair from his eyes. "Tomorrow works well."
"Tools, then," Brev agrees to Cordelia's list of items - likely he does not relish the thought of arming men who might in the worst case turn against them. The information about animals is greeted by a raised brow, but no more. "And I doubt the Elves will bother us. The one called Gillath seemed to have little interest in men." Of Caelwen, who had rather more interest in the race of Men, he says naught.
Carac's mixture of Dunael and Common is greeted by a thoughtful expression. Only a single word of Dunael this time, accompanied by a snort: "Yes." Switching back to Common, he nods to his friend. "Fair enough. Just wanted to make sure we make the /right/ payment. It's a little far to come traipsing back if we get it wrong." He manages a smile, but it is slightly strained.
At the news of imminent departure he lifts a brow. "That soon? I'll .. uh, go and tell Verge. Might be some trading she wants to finish." With that he nods to the pair and steps away, looking perhaps just slightly uncomfortable as he heads back to the village to break the news.
[Cordelia(#24827)] "Orcs," Cordelia says simply in reply. "So a dagger for me at the very least, though my own will do for now. They are sharp enough. A sword would be better--I've no wish to get close enough to an orc to use a dagger." Words accompanied by a grimace, she nods to Carac. "Tomorrow. Anything I should know now?" she says, nodding to the departing Brev. "Like your friend, I want to be prepared. Who are you folk? All I know is that Muirgheal's mother is from your lands...or something like that."
This is the home of a small, proud, and independent people who live primarily by herding sheep in the open lands south of the Great East Road. Once driven from this region by troll depredations, they have returned and appear to be prospering, perhaps because they can also profit by trade on the Great East Road. There are many sturdy houses and smaller huts clustered on a hill here, safely ensconced behind a deep ditch and wall. The ditch is filled with thorn bushes ... and the gate to the village is by a removable walkway over that ditch. Clearly the possibility of attack, whether from trolls or something worse, has not been ignored.
A long, low, whitewashed building, sprawling along the hillside below the caravanserai, appears to the south. The thatched roof spills down to the tops of its lead-paned windows, thick glass aglow with firelight.
Obvious exits:
Gathering House, Caravanserai, and Great East Road
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Dunland Time and Weather Forecast
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Real Time is: Thu Jul 09 14:10:00 2009
IC weather is: Wind: breeze - Clouds: sparse - Rain: drizzle
IC Moon is: Not visible
IC time is: Midnight
IC date is: Monday, Day 22 of May in the year 3047.
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[Muirgheal(#32535)] With the arrival of a very foreign looking dark-haired woman to the Shepherding Village, another foreigner, a resident of only over a year in this little gathering of homes, has been seen out and about much more often. In fact, Muirgheal is smiling this afternoon as she takes a walk toward the green, gently sloping pastures where men here take their sheep. She's got a hound at her side, obviously not for sheep-work, looking much more like a pet by the way he keeps within scant inches of her heels. Though the tall young woman wears a simply black dress, ropes making its straps over her shoulders, and her hair in a long, pleasantly-done braid, she's still armed with those knives that rest in sheaths on her forearms, and a sword swinging at her side. It makes for an interesting contrast, those weapons and that smile, as Muirgheal takes her dog for a run through the fields.
Brev, by contrast, is not smiling. The Dunlending returned from another supposed 'hunting' trip only last night, empty-handed, and has spoken to noone since except in monosyllables. Not even Verge has been able to get much out of him.
Now he stands by a clump of bushes in the rough pastureland, not far from where Muirgheal and her dog are heading, a black scowl on his face as he tosses stones with the sling toward another unprotesting bush, in quick, jerky movements.
Weapons? Well, aside from the sling there's one dagger visible. No spear today.
[Cordelia(#24827)]
Not far behind Muirgheal is another dark-haried foreigner, this one Cordelia. She looks somewhat less than thrilled.
[Muirgheal(#32535)] Muirgheal grins to herself, watching the hound as he finally leaves her side and takes off, bounding across the field, his legs swallowing up the green and putting distance between himself and his mistress in a quest to find a squirrel. Of course, as she watches him, her dark eyes catch sight of the familiar-looking youth standing beside the bushes. On long legs, it doesn't take but a few quick strides to reach him. "Trying to kill a bird with that?" Muirgheal asks the boy, no friendliness in that rich voice.
It is the dog that Brev notices first. His arm, drawn back for another cast, lowers gently and the stone drops to earth at his feet. It is when he's bending to retrieve it that Muirgheal's words reach his ears. "No." The single word is flat, and when his gaze meets the woman's for a moment his scowl only deepens. "Don't see any dead birds, do you? I was just thinking. Course, if you've volunteering to act as target it might help me think even better." The edges of his mouth curl up slightly in a rather forced-looking smirk.
[Cordelia(#24827)] Behind Muirgheal, Cordelia frowns at this exchange. On the other hand, she doesn't say anything to intervene--just stops and listens.
[Muirgheal(#32535)] "Now is that any way to be talking to strangers, boy?" Muirgheal says, her words sharp, but her eyes sharper, so black they're difficult to read at all, blinking at the 'boy'. "I only asked what you're doing here. Mind you don't hit my dog, and..." That last comment causes Muirgheal to be temporarily at a loss for words. She cants her head to the side in contemplation, then asks softly, "Are you spoiling for a fight? It isn't what I had in mind to do with my nice afternoon without the children, but.." She spreads her hands, "It'll do."
Brev snorts at the first words. "Do I look like I'd maim a fine animal like that? Kiern!" His glance towards where the dog is bounding away is brief, and half-hearted. At the other query he tilts his head to one side, in unconscious mimicry of Muirgheal, considering. "Well. Suppose it'd be one way to solve my problems. I'd not need to worry about thinking after that, eh?" His tone is self-mocking. "Pretty pointless, though, given you're not the cause."
His gaze slides past the woman's blonde hair, and it is only then that he seems to notice Cordelia. "Cordy." The greeting is level, but half-hearted. "Did Carac speak with you?"
[Cordelia(#24827)] Still behind Muirgheal, Cordelia rolls her eyes at the threat of violence that passes between the two. She herself doesn't seem to be armed...at least not outwardly.
"Carac?" she shakes her head. "Haven't even met anyone by that name. One of yours, I take it? What does he want from me?"
[Muirgheal(#32535)] "Isn't this cozy," Muirgheal says, affecting her voice with a slight drawl and smirking. "We're all friends here now, huh? You look like you really need a hug." With her wolfish grin, flashing with teeth and black eyes, Muirgheal perhaps looks anything but huggable, even in a dress. Her arms spread in mock invitation. "Come, now...tell us what's wrong," she says with mock sympathy. "I can't hit such a sad looking face." More mockery, and she looks very amused with herself.
At Cordelia's answer, Brev's scowl of earlier returns, and it's her he addresses first. "Kiern! How the damn am /I/ supposed to know what he wants? Hasn't spoken to me for weeks." Which, considering Brev himself has barely been in the Shepherding village for the past few weeks, disappearing for days on end on supposed hunting trips (sometimes with Gidon but more often without), is hardly fair. He hesitates, then shrugs. "Fine. You said something about knowing the way across the mountains - could you get me there? And some others." The word hangs in the air: me, not us.
Muirgheal's offer distracts him, and he summons up an answering smirk of his own. "Oh, you don't want a hug from me. Daggers, you know. They're usually quite sharp." Perhaps she's not the only one who carries more than one on her person. The smirk broadens, then is quickly pulled back into a downturned mouth. "I forgot. I'd best not smile, in the interests of self-preservation. Such a soft heart you have!"
[Cordelia(#24827)]
"You? Just you? Or you and the rest of your group?" Cordelia presses, picking up on the emphasis. "It's a terribly dangerous path, over the mountains, even for a group of travelers. What kind of warriors do you have with you? Have they killed orcs before? What sort of waggons or baggage are you carrying? And...well, if I go over the mountains, I am stuck there, too, aren't I? How can I get back home to Bree?"
"And then there is the matter of payment."
[Muirgheal(#32535)] "It'd be my knife in your back first, boy," Muirgheal says quickly, unable to resist the temptation. Still, she seems to be losing interest in him, not having the proper excuse yet to shed any blood here on the growing green field and wildflowers. "The tenderest," Muirgheal agrees sweetly about her heart, flipping her braid over her shoulder and batting her lashes over her unsettling eyes. Then she, too, smirks. When Cordelia speaks up, Muirgheal turns to regard her and says with some regret, "I'm sorry I can't come with you, to watch your back...you would need it, if you are foolish enough to accept his offer. I've got the children, you know, and two little blonde heads in that kind of company...I wouldn't trust it. Though if anyone is capable, I've no doubt it's you." Muirgheal smiles at her friend, a genuine smile.
Brev returns Cordelia's questions with his own. "How many would we need in a group to minimize the risk? The Hawk are warriors, they've killed men and goblins before. Even I have killed goblins, despite my tender years." He cannot resist giving Muirgheal a mocking smile at that reference, lifting a hand to rub at the beard that proclaims he is in reality no boy. "Gidon's a keen shot with the bow - he'll do. And Verge .." The words trail off, and his jaw tightens suddenly. He swallows, then continues briskly, "No wagons, just packs. As to payment - we don't use gold. Perhaps keeping you alive through the passage would count toward it?" His lips curl upward slightly. "Seemed to me you had some interest in that direction .. your dear friend certainly believes it."
He nods toward Muirgheal, before rounding on her fiercely. "Think I'd take /children/ on a journey like that, Strawhead or no? Kiern, woman, don't you care for their lives?"
[Cordelia(#24827)] "That sounds like enough men who can fight, but I won't willingly make the journey east for you out of the goodness of my heart," Cordelia snorts. "Certainly, part of my family lies in that direction, but I hadn't planned on seeing them again so soon. ANd, as I said, if I guide you east, then I am stuck there, no? How would I get back to Bree again?"
[Muirgheal(#32535)] Muirgheal makes a rather unexpected sound: she starts giggling, looking at Brev in disbelief. Said giggles are stifled with a hand pressed to her lips, but still, she shakes her head in amusement. "I'm..not about to justify to you anything I do with my children.." she says between little fits of laughter. "And you know," she points out, warming up to this game of trading insults even more, "You've got something on your chin...just...there." As she speaks, she rubs her right hand over her chin in imitation of someone with a beard. "Oh- and if you make one more reference to my lovely hair being in some way undesirable, I'll just cut off yours and make myself a wig." Muirgheal looks like she'd find it funny.
"The same way you came before," Brev retorts to Cordelia. "The same way we'd get back to Dunland, come to that. If the mountains can be crossed they can be recrossed. Fine then, if you're interested name your price if you're not I'll ask elsewhere." He shrugs nonchalantly and begins turning away.
The motion stops as Muirgheal's fit of the giggles reaches his ears. One brow arches and his own lips twitch, though the motion is quickly stilled. "I do?" He returns his own hand to his chin, and pats it cautiously. "Hmm. I really should do something about that. Would hate to give folk the impression I was more than a boy. They might feel .. ah, threatened." He lets his hand drop back to his side, then tilts his head. "Not sure dark curls would suit you. How about straight?" He jabs his chin in Cordelia's direction.
[Cordelia(#24827)]
"We'll see..." Cordelia shrugs, still managing to ignore the jibes between Brev and Muirgheal, though she does give an exasperated sigh at the words the two are passing. "Dunland...you'll be goign back there afterwards? Maybe I could go along with you, if that's the case.." She shrugs a second time. "As for price...well, let me think on it. Depends on whether or not I can travel along with you and for how far and how..productive that is. We can talk anoather time."
[Muirgheal(#32535)] "You might be doing yourself a favor by letting me toughen you up a little, -boy-," Muirgheal says, cheerfully and pointedly. "The orcs'll do a good job of that, otherwise, when you head east." She can't exactly pull up her dress to show the mass of scar tissue that covers her entire lower stomach, but she does grab hold of the top of her dress and tug it sharply down, revealing a long pink scar that trails down past her breast. "Scars make men," she tells Brev, "Not scruffle." She releases the neckline of her dress and pats her chin again to make fun of his beard. Her smiling eyes are mocking as they watch him. "How do you like that a Forgoil is more a man than -you-?"
[Carac(#32384)] With the afternoon sun blazing behind him Carac appears upon the pasturelands. Spotting the figures in the distance it is toward those that he moves, at a casual pace. Though as figures become clearer and he recognizes Brev and spies the blonde hair of one of those near his friend, his approach is made with more urgency.
The day is a pleasant one, and scarce wonder that a few people have chosen to spend time in the green pasturelands outside the village. One might, however, wonder at /which/ people, for there are two dark heads and one blonde.
Brev nods at Cordelia's words. "Like I said, have a think about it. There's someone I need to talk to ..." He trails off, muttering something under his breath in Dunael.
Muirgheal's initial offer is received with a lopsided smirk. "Sure, you can try." The smirk remains when she pulls down her dress. "Sorry, lass, you're no match for my own woman. Can't say I find you tempting. Oh, and didn't you know?" he adds. "The Forgoil aren't men. Do you prefer to be thought of as an animal?" The tilt to his brow is a quizzical one - and as he catches sight of Carac out of the corner of his eye, a blink is the only acknowledgement. He does not cease his scrutiny of Muirgheal.
[Cordelia(#24827)]
"Oh? Would it be that Carac person you have to speak with?" Cordelia prompts the Dunlander. Her eyes slide off to the approaching man and then back to Brev. "So besides you, how many would be making this journey?"
[Muirgheal(#32535)] "You, please a woman?" Muirgheal scoffs. The mere thought of it sends her into another fit of laughter, so it takes her a moment to notice that Brev has got a friend approaching their gathering. The animal comment, though, is enough to make her put her hand on the hilt of her sword. "One more word from your mouth toward me," she growls, quite a feral thing, not far from Brev's remark, when her eyes don't look entirely sane, "And I'll cut that idiot tongue right out of it."
[Carac(#32384)] "I will be joining Brev on any journey he makes," Carac says to the dark haired woman with Brev. "As will a handful of others." His gaze then moves towards his friend and he gives the younger man a nod of greeting.
"Where are we headed on this journey she speaks of?" he asks, still not acknowledging the blonde woman. Though as she hurls her threats and insults towards Brev he finally turns to her briefly, but then turns right back to Brev.
"Who might your charming friend, be?"
[Cordelia(#24827)]
"Is that so?" Cordelia looks to Brev for confirmation on that statement from Carac, but mostly she takes a step back for the moment to just listen. Muirgheal gets a grin and a whispered comment: "Surely you don't want to ruin your dress with all that blood, though. Think what a pain it will be to try to wash it out. Not worth it."
Brev is saved from answering Cordelia by Carac's approach. Or is it truly 'saved'? "Ah, that would be under discussion," he answers quietly, before making a hasty introduction, "Carac, this is Cordy. She's the woman I told you about." He looks quite surprised at the man's sudden support, and adds a hasty hiss to him in Dunael, keeping a wary eye on Muirgheal as he does: "
With Muirgheal speaking there is no time to say more. Her first words are greeted by an affable smile. "I seem to be entertaining you quite effectively." His gaze shifts down towards the woman's sword-hand - his own hand remains at his side, not on his dagger but within easy reach of it - and he snorts. "Kiern, woman, it was /you/ who used the word this time, not me. Are you or aren't you? Perhaps you should make up your mind. Carac," he does not even pause for breath, "this is Muirgheal. She enjoys playing with words almost as much as playing with knives."
[Muirgheal(#32535)] Muirgheal replies to Brev in her native tongue as well, smirking as she says to him, "
Brev scowls at Muirgheal's reminder - likely he had been all too aware of that fact. As Muirgheal rushes off in the direction of the barking, he remarks casually to his friend, again in Dunael, "
[Carac(#32384)] "Words and knives?" Carac asks, feigning surprise. "I have found few skilled at both, usually one hones their skill in one to make up for a complete lack of ability in the other. I mean a witty swordsman? Who's ever heard of such a thing?" He turns then to perhaps say something directly to Muirgheal, but she has already set off after her dog.
"You see?" he asks with a grin. "Words seem to be her true skill. Strange to see a forgoil who speak our tongue, however."
Brev casts a wary eye in Cordelia's direction to see if she's listening, then mutters a single Dunael word to Carac (and quietly this time, though the dog's barking will surely drown out most things): "
[Carac(#32384)] With a chuckle Carac holds out one of his hands. "That is easy for you to say," he replies. "You actually have hands capable of using such weapons. I have no skill at throwing them, and do not like letting my enemies get close enough to stab them with a dagger." His smile widens.
"Besides, I've never been accused of being witty. You've always been the one with the brains."
Brev's mouth twitches at Carac's response. "Me? Hardly - I don't have what it takes to lead men. I'm just good at talking." He pauses, then concedes, "But you've got a point about letting enemies get close. Which is why I'm also good at running." Switching to Dunael, he adds something else, with the cadence of a question to it: "
[Cordelia(#24827)] "Terribly rude of you to go about whispering things in a language I don't understand," Cordelia comments dryly after all this. "Though I suppose I'll ask Muirgheal what it was all about, since she seems to be able to speak your tongue. Now...tell me why you want to head east, of all places."
[Carac(#32384)] "
His attention turns towards Cordelia then and he switches back to Common. "Why are our reasons of such interest to you?" he asks. "Our reasons should matter little so long as payment is arranged."
Brev tilts a brow in Cordelia's direction. "This is a language most of our folk don't understand," he says bluntly, keeping now to singsong Common. "Sometimes it's easier to say things in plain speech than struggle away in your tongue."
Whatever it is that Carac says in Dunael, it makes him wince, but when the man's words in Common are concluded, he lets out a quiet chuckle. "True. Carac, you've just proven yourself wrong about who has the wit. Next you'll be upstaging Verge as trader. Ah," he sobers now, "we had yet to discuss the details of payment. I had explained that our folk do not generally use gold ..." He lets the speech trail off.
[Cordelia(#24827)]
"I am a lone woman offering to lead a bunch of armed men that I do not know across a long and dangerous path," Cordelia says flatly, her eyes steady on Carac. "It would help if I knew your reasons. Do you think I will betray some secret to..to my Forgoil friend? I know many secrets," she grins. "And I...well, I need some time at home and then I have to return here."
"If you do not use gold, then what do you use?"
[Carac(#32384)] "We seldom use gold," Carac corrects. "If that is what is demanded for payment it can perhaps be obtained, but we are not without other skills that you may find of value. If you fear our numbers, I can send the rest of our party home to Dunland, and just Brev, myself, and the two women Saffron and Verge will go eastward. Where is this home that you journey too?" he queries.
With a look towards Brev he falls back into Dunael once more. "
"Skills," Brev answers Cordelia's final query, in turn. "Our fighters' skills you'll see plenty of, while I can fix anything wooden that needs mending - fix up broken flesh, too, if Saffron's called elsewhere... Or goods - furs, food, weapons ..." He watches her carefully to see if any of his words produce the merest flicker of reaction in her unusually-shaped eyes.
"And Gidon," he urgently amends Carac's list of suggested persons. "He's the reason I-," he checks himself briefly, then states simply, "Gidon needs to go east." Carac's query in Dunael is answered by a few brief, clipped words. "
Returning to the Common, he adds, to Cordelia again, "Admit it, woman, you're saying no more of reasons than we are. I've never met someone so good at not answering questions. Reminds me of me." He smirks.
[Cordelia(#24827)]
"Two women as well? Your women?" Cordelia says, though that knowledge brings a bit of relief to the sound of her reply. "If you have never crossed the High Pass before, or the Misties at all, I would not advise you send your men home. You will need all the men you can get to make it safe across. And you will need gold--to pay the Beornings, who keep the Pass open. They, I'm afraid, have all the skills in the world that they need, or so they claim. Gold or goods for them, or so it was on my way west to here."
"As for home, it is an eastern trading outpost where men..of all types...and dwarves meet to barter. Buhr Mahrling.," she says. "If you do not have gold, we can work something else out. I have no particular need for goods...but perhaps a weapon would do. I could use a new dagger. Mine is worn," she grins. "As for the rest of my fee...well, we can work it out. I will not demand gold of you."
[Carac(#32384)] Carac's brow rises slightly as Cordy speaks. "The way east is too dangerous for us, but not for a lone woman?" he asks. "Or do have others joining you that you have not mentioned? If not then I think any fee you decide upon should take into account the protection we bring to you."
He glances towards Brev and raises a brow. "That only seems fair does it not? If she is travelling alone she will need us as much as we need her."
"The .. Beornans." Brev seizes on that particular word in Cordelia's speech, perhaps a little too eagerly. "Yes. Can you tell us of them? What goods do they prize? Furs? Tools?"
Carac's words set the corners of his mouth twitching. "Indeed," he agrees solemnly. "As has already been pointed out to ..Cordy.." he hesitates slightly over the name, but does not even attempt the woman's unpronouncable full name, "here, it is would be a fair exchange of skills. Ours in defence, hers in guiding."
[Cordelia(#24827)]
"I had not planned on going east--I had no means to go east until Brev asked me to guide your folk. So..." Cordelia shrugs a shoulder, "yes, my fee considers that. Weapons...and..." She pauses to eye Brev. "There will be plenty of time to speak of such matters. Weapons and I think tell me of your lands. What news you have heard in traveling. Strange events...things...I crave news of the world. Perhaps a trip to your lands in the end? I am restless," she finishes, seeming to have changed her mind about payment in the course of the conversation.
Carac casts a glance towards Brev as the young Bear speaks of the 'Beornans', but says nothing for the moment. Instead he focuses back upon Cordelia. "You will have your dagger when we set out, tales of our lands along the way, any other payment can be discussed once we have reached these Beornans you speak of," he says with a nod. "That is fair. Now, when can you be ready to depart?"
Brev notes Cordelia's glance in his direction, and meets it with a level gaze. "We will need to know what goods to bring these ..Beornans.. for their toll," he says patiently when she is done. "Not to mention /why/ they think they have the right to charge the damn things in the first place," he mutters sourly afterwards, some of the good mood produced by Forgoil-baiting beginning to dissipate.
He lets Carac continue with the bargaining without interruption - only at the end does he offer, "I am sure I can tell Cordy a little of our lands." Whether it will be the same information he would give the likes of Uannve .. well, that's hardly the issue, is it?
[Cordelia(#24827)] "Beornings," Cordelia corrects Brev. "Folk of Beorn. They are over the mountains but before the great forest. Though first...we have to make it past the elves on this side of the mountains...and if so and we make it safe to the Beornings...there is little there of consequence. Further east, through the forest, are the homes of the dwarves and my people," Cordelia says. "As for when..tomorrow if you wish. I have nothing here save some clothing."
To Brev, she makes a face. "Tools. Weapons. No furs. No leathers. They are an odd folk and react violently to dead animals," she scoffs.
[Carac(#32384)] Carac raises a brow at Cordelia's last words. "
"If this High Pass is as dangerous as the woman claims and they keep it open, then they have a right to payment," he says in Common.
"
He turns back to the woman and brushes a stray lock of hair from his eyes. "Tomorrow works well."
"Tools, then," Brev agrees to Cordelia's list of items - likely he does not relish the thought of arming men who might in the worst case turn against them. The information about animals is greeted by a raised brow, but no more. "And I doubt the Elves will bother us. The one called Gillath seemed to have little interest in men." Of Caelwen, who had rather more interest in the race of Men, he says naught.
Carac's mixture of Dunael and Common is greeted by a thoughtful expression. Only a single word of Dunael this time, accompanied by a snort: "
At the news of imminent departure he lifts a brow. "That soon? I'll .. uh, go and tell Verge. Might be some trading she wants to finish." With that he nods to the pair and steps away, looking perhaps just slightly uncomfortable as he heads back to the village to break the news.
[Cordelia(#24827)] "Orcs," Cordelia says simply in reply. "So a dagger for me at the very least, though my own will do for now. They are sharp enough. A sword would be better--I've no wish to get close enough to an orc to use a dagger." Words accompanied by a grimace, she nods to Carac. "Tomorrow. Anything I should know now?" she says, nodding to the departing Brev. "Like your friend, I want to be prepared. Who are you folk? All I know is that Muirgheal's mother is from your lands...or something like that."
Players: Muirgheal, Brev, Cordelia, Carac
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