In search of the past: The guide
A tale freshly told of the Dunlending
Brev recruits Lek to take him to Archet, while Rathos appropriates a piece of his wood
Under the Archway
You stand under the archway of the famed Prancing Pony Inn. The archway above your head is constructed of stone, and the wooden beams help give support to the inn\'s three storeys. The archway seems to separate the inn\'s two wings, and straight ahead lies an open-air innyard. That there are no visible doors or windows on the south wing might tend to indicate that it housed the town\'s stables. On the north wing, just inside the archway, a few broad wooden steps climb up to a doorway. Near the middle of the arch, and flanked on both sides by lanterns, hangs a \'sign\' which shows a fat white pony reared up on its hind legs. Presently the lanterns are unlit.
Obvious exits:
Doorway leads to Entryway.
Archway (Out) leads to Before the Prancing Pony.
Inn-yard
================================== Bree Time ==================================
Real time: Thu May 21 17:23:31 2009
Bree time: Late Morning <11> on Trewsday of Winter - December 28,1446
Moon Phase: Waxing Gibbous Moon
Breelands Weather
The late morning winter air is cold and dry around you. The murky sky is overcast and dreary.
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It is a crisp, cold winter morning, one of those days when every puff of breath seems to linger in the air. The cobbles underfoot are deceptively beautiful, for the frost that glitters like powdered diamonds is treacherous underfoot.
The swarthy-skinned traveller, the young fellow with the dark curls, picks his way carefully across them as he heads toward the entrance to the Pony. He hasn\'t been staying there he - and others like him - are apparently camped somewhere outside town. There were some mutterings about weapons (and Outside is the best place for nasty things like those!) Today, though, the traveller appears to have an errand, for he scans the Inn-yard, scowling.
[Nob(#16122)] A boy bursts out of the main door to the Inn and races shivering across the yard, vanishing into the stables. He is out again a minute later, arguing with someone inside, even as he trudges towards a wood pile and begins to pick up split pieces. To take inside, apparently.
The stranger surveys the youngster for a moment, before wandering over that way. \"You\'re Lek, aren\'t you?\" His arms are crossed, and he does not offer to help.
[Nob(#16122)] The boy piles as much wood into his arms as he can possibly carry - he is nearly bent backwards holding it all. \"Uh?\" he grunts as he starts to walk carefully, blindly, towards the door. \"Yeah. \'M Lek.\" He doesn\'t stop to talk, but continues staggering across the yard.
The midmorning air is /cold/ - pity poor Lek who\'s out collecting an armful of wood. The Breelad staggers across the courtyard of the Pony whils Brev watches.
\"He said you could take me to Archet. The wee rabbity- uh, the hobbit.\" The swarthy-skinned stranger is forced to follow to continue the conversation. He watches the boy\'s progress in silence for a while, then adds, \"You should take less. No sense in killing yourself. \'Sides,\" and for a moment one side of his mouth pulls up in a half-smirk, \"if they pay you by the hour you /want/ to do more trips.\"
[Nob(#16122)] Lek fetches up at the door (good thing he left it open, no matter how those inside, now cold, may howl), and says over his shoulder, \"Be right back.\" And he is gone, trailing wooddust and bark. A muted crash from inside tells of the dropping of the load. A little while later, the boy is back. \"Naw,\" he says, \"Faster I get it in there, th\'more time I gots t\'myself, see?\" He bends his arms gingerly, to see if they are still attached. \"Archet? Whatcha want t\'go there for? Right now? I ain\'t et anything.\"
The Dunlending lets out a snorted breath as Lek disappears. When the youngster comes out again to give answer, he shakes his head. \"The more time other folk have to fill, you mean.\" He is speaking the same Common tongue as the lad, and easily, though with a definite singsong accent to it. \"Still, it\'s nothing to me. Means you\'ll have more time to find this Archet, eh?\" The final remark brings a chuckle. \"Doesn\'t have to be now. It\'s waited years, what\'s a few more days?\"
[Nob(#16122)] Lek\'s grin flashes out. \"Well,\" he points out, \"You\'re filling it - lemme eat, an\' we can go now.\" He squints at the sky, a sudden serious demeanor - as a young lad copying his elders without quite knowing why they do it - and looks pleased. \"Got to stay there, an\' come back t\'morrow. Someone else can do the wood! Nob said it\'s all right?\" he demands abruptly.
[Rathos(#19023)]
A heavly fur wrapped figure ambles through the archway and looks up at the large inn. His eye\'s making a slow apraisial of the scene. A small grin flickers across his ruggard features. The man in the fur-wrap trundles up next to the Dunlending and offers a nod and asks, \"whose your freind?\" To the boy he gives a half-hearted wave but his tone is good natured, \"brisk worker ain\'t ye.\"
The first Dunlending, Brev, follows the direction of Lek\'s gaze. \"Expecting snow, are we?\" His tone is dry. \"And not right now. I need to get my spear first. Not going anywhere without a second weapon.\"
At Rathos\' greeting he turns his head, and gives a snort, before replying in their own tongue, \"
[Nob(#16122)] \"A spear? Like for hunting pigs?\" the boy asks eagerly. \"I ain\'t never used one of them. I got a knife though. But there ain\'t nothing b\'tween here and Archet.\"
At Brev\'s answer to his last question, Lek looks slightly confused, and then offended. \"Well, if\'n y\'don\'t /want/ me to take you, ask someone else,\" he says. The suddenly bristly attitude carries over as he glances at the second man in his half-scowl and truculent look. \"Yeah, I can work, what of it?\"
[Rathos(#19023)]
Rathos nods to show he\'s taking it all in but his eyes hold a somewhat bewildered look, \"
Rathos says, \"Just noticing is all.\" The dunlander adds to the boy, \"didn\'t mean nothing by it.\"\"
[Nob(#16122)] \"Sure,\" Lek shrugs. \"It\'s just wood.\" He calms down a little at Rathos\' peaceable tones. \"What kind of hobby?\"
\"I do want you to take me,\" Brev snaps to Lek. \"And aye, I have a spear. If you come with me I\'ll show you how to use it. There\'s dangers enough out there without going out with empty hands. You do have /something/ to protect yourself with?\" He peers doubtfully at the boy.
As Rathos and the lad strike up a conversation he falls silent, murmuring only to Rathos\' in the Dunael tongue, \"Guess I don\'t need to ask who won. You did leave them some money? Don\'t want to be run out of town for robbery.\" He winks at his countryman.
[Nob(#16122)] Lek looks at the first man, still unwilling to return to entire friendliness. \"Then how come you said it was too bad Nob says I can go?\" he asks, skeptically. The offer of spear-teaching brings a flash to his eyes, but he shuts his mouth firmly, waiting for the man to reply.
[Rathos(#19023)]
To the boy Rathos shrugs, \"I scratch it with a knife until I like the look of it. Dunno what\'d you call it.\" The woodsman chuckles at Brev\'s comment, \"
[Nob(#16122)] \"Carving,\" Lek says absently. His gaze is pinned to Brev.
Lek\'s question brings a shake of Brev\'s head. \"Didn\'t say that. Just that when I was your age ... ach, never mind. Later.\" He shuts his mouth tactfully in case anyone is listening, rather than being accused of corrupting Nob\'s best worker.
Whatever Rathos says, it brings on a sudden chuckle.
[Nob(#16122)] A moment longer of quivering disbelief and then Lek\'s normal good-nature surfaces. \"Right then,\" he says cheerfully. \"I\'m getting food. You come back here.\" He points to the ground. \"Then we can go. Takes most of the day, getting there.\" He grins at Rathos and darts back inside the Inn.
Brev watches the youngster go, and shakes his head, reverting to his native Dunael. \"Feel almost sorry for the lad. He\'s not worked out how to fleece folk yet.\" He shrugs. \"Still. Said he\'d take me out to Archet - it\'s one of their villages. There\'s someone there who knows my father - or did know.\" His tone, formerly light, hardens for a moment. \"It\'s time I laid some ghosts to rest.\" He stares northward, then shakes his head.
\"You should come. A bit of excercise would do you good, plus there might be new suckers to outdrink.\" He winks at the other man. \"I\'m off to get my spear - they have some daft rules about weapons here, and I\'m not about to line their Mayor\'s pockets if I can help it. See you later.\" With that he\'s off, rather more slowly than Lek.