On to the dwarves
Subject: The Lady and Ran
Ran listens politely as the Lady speaks. He is non-committal as she talks about her daughter and his compatibility with her. After listening as long as he can stand he politely excuses himself and heads to bed, not really ready to sleep but not wanting to spend any more time discussing romance.
From: Derek
Subject: The Lady and Ran
That's OK. She wasn't discussing romance either. Just business. ;)
From: Karl
Subject: The Lady and Ran
Salix takes in the evenings events with curiosity, but doesn't engage in much conversation, preferring to listen. He's a bit put off by "The Lady", finding himself dreading spending a week in the wilderness with her. He was hoping to enjoy this short trip before disappearing below the earth for who knew how long.
From: Mark
Subject: On to the dwarves
Ran's abrupt departure leaves the Lady sputtering. She turns to Maximus "I am retiring for the night. Make sure that breakfast is acceptable and we will leave in the morning." The Lady leaves, two guardsmen trailing behind her as she issues commands. The tension in the room eases almost the second she is gone. The men relax and soon one of them breaks into song. Before long the men of Bhyo and Schon are sharing their favorite songs and the camaraderie of military life fills the common room.
Several hours later Lt. Halpin bids the others goodnight. A few minutes later he is back, his face a mask of anger. The companions are not exactly sure what the problem is but the Schon soldier goes right to Maximus and the two have a quick, to the point talk. Whatever Maximus says does not appease Halpin, but the younger man seems to accept what the older man tells him. Halpin bows formally, if a bit stiffly, and leaves for a second time. Mund grabs one of the garrison soldiers and whispers "What was that?" The soldier smirks "Our Lt. Just found out that the Lady has taken his private quarters for the night. As head of the garrison he is given a private room. She felt that she should have that room and moved in, as well as moving out all of Halpin's gear." The man moves off, laughing silently at Halpin's plight.
A little while later one of the Bhyoian's calls out "Flavius, give us a song." The same man who De Blum had marked for flogging steps forward. He is shy and unassuming. Ranthir, Harp and Mund have not seen many more men who looked less ready to be warriors than Flavius. Expecting the others to be having some sport, they sit open mouthed when the young man starts to sing. A voice that dwarfs the thin body and small stature fills the room. Everyone stops and stares at the young man singing. The party members do not recognize the language, but such is the skill of the singer that they can follow the story of lovers met, torn apart and reunited. As the last bars of music die away the room erupts in applause. Flavius blushes and quickly sits down, tipping back a mug of ale that one of his companions hands to him.
Soon afterward Maximus calls for an end of the festivities "We must be on the road early tomorrow. The Lady is eager to reach her destination." The irony in the man's voice is obvious. There are a few protests, but the guardsmen move out to the tents pitched in the practice yard while the garrison soldiers head off to their barracks. The party, except for Kal, find their place in the barracks and are quickly asleep.
The party finds the Lady and her entourage up and moving early the next morning. Kal has returned from where ever he had gone. Ragnar signals for the companions to mount up as soon as breakfast is done. "We'll keep good care of your horses" Halpin tells them as they mount on those brought by the Bhyo contingent. "Just send word if you need them sent back to Gorn or Ivo." Ragnar says a quick blessing for the garrison and the party is off.
The next few days the group follows the Great North Road. However, after three days ride the party heads south instead of northwest. The road they turn on is in great shape. Large blocks of stone, fitted so finely that it seems like glass. "Dwarf work" says Maximus "If we every find a spot that needs repairing, we just let them know and before we get back the next time the problem is fixed. Got say this about the dwarves, they know how to keep things repaired." As they enter the foothills the weather turns nasty.
Cold winds whip past the party. The sky stays over cast and rain is their constant companion. The only saving grace is that the weather keeps De Blum to herself. It has taken all of Ran's self control not to tell the Lady that he would not marry her daughter if she were the last person on earth. He even feels a bit of sympathy for the poor girl.
The road they are on follows a valley up into the hills. As they go the valley gets narrower and narrower. By the third day the road is only a hundred feet or so across and the slope has increased dramatically. They often have to rest their horses. Occasionally they pass a trading caravan heading down the path towards Bhyo. These wagons are laden with ore, pulled by large teams of oxen and manned by human. As they settle in for the night Maximus tells them "Two more days. We should get to Backbiter Pass around noon tomorrow and to the gates around noon the day after. It will actually be easier once we are through the Pass, since it will be more down hill from there."
OODM: Any role playing or questions? If not please check in.
From: Bryan
Subject: On to the dwarves
Check...
From: Josh
Subject: On to the dwarves
I might get a little something in tonight if I have the time after making dinner. It's nothing essential though, so don't hold out on account of me.
In other words, check.
From: Jason
Subject: On to the dwarves
Same with me, except it will be tomorrow morning.