Chapter 3: Ristar and Lashana
THEY conversed to pass the time. Ivy sometimes got distracted by the beautiful scenery that they passed. They shared basic information about themselves - where they're from, how old they are, their skills, what languages they can speak and other background information
that the others might want to know or might come in handy.
Ivy told them that she was from a land call Tielmark. She told them that she was about their age. She fought with a staff and some daggers. She could speak common, druid, elven, wolf and orc fluently. She also told them that she was just starting out as a Druid.
They rode on into the day, stopping for lunch, that had been provided by the temple, in a small clearing near a small field of wildflowers. The flower created a sort of natural tapestry of a kind that has probably inspired many a traveling poet or fellow Bard.
The day slowly wore on, and they reached Anaka awhile before dusk even threatened to darken the sky. The town in itself was a medium sized village with a few inns and shops. They found the Rose Blossom Inn near the edge of the town. A convenient place for travelers, right there to be one of the first things seen.
They walked into the moderately full inn and asked for three rooms- one in exchange for entertainment. The innkeeper had no current musician, for his regular was sick, so she got the job for tonight. Ivy and Carina paid for their rooms and settled at a table. They had planned to approach Ristar and Lashana after eating. They would introduce themselves and Moran would introduce herself during a break between sets.
She left Carina and Ivy sitting at a table and settled into a stool. She placed her pack between the wall and the stool. She got out her precious harp that had been locked away in it's case during their journey here. She carefully tuned the harp until it sung beautifully. She started her usual program of international songs and set to work on her first set. Her eyes wandered about the crowd as her mind was let to roam and her fingers left to their songs.
She saw some elves and many humans. She saw an elven serving girl bring Carina and Ivy their supper. The two other women ate their food slowly and silently. Moran returned her mind to her music for a song or two.
When she looked for them again she saw Carina and Ivy talking softly to two tall, brown haired elven women. One wore the armor and clothes of a warrior while the other was dressed in Mage robes of a similar make to Carina's mousy robes. The warrior- most likely the Ranger, Ristar- wore two bastard swords each tied to it's scarab by a peace knot. If that was Ristar in the silverish armor, thought Moran, then the other woman in the blue robes must be Ristar's sister, Lashana.
She finished the set a bit after they had finished talking. She walked over to where the four of them were sitting and sat down.
"Moran," said Carina. "This is Ristar." She gestured to towards the elf wearing two swords. "And this is Lashana." She motioned to the other elf. "They're sisters. Ristar and Lashana Gwen meet Moran Zinbar."
"Nice to meet you both," said Moran. She shook hands with both of them in turn and smiled.
"So," said Ristar. "Our party contains a druid, a ranger, two mages and a bard. Quite an assortment."
"Yes," said Carina. "A strange gathering. I wonder why the man arranged from such a variety of talents?" She smile wryly.
"We should head for Dew in the morning," said Ivy. "There we will find the answer to that question at least. If not more."
"I suppose we shall," said Ristar. "Should we meet here slightly before dawn?"
The other four women nodded in agreement. Moran bid the others good night before going back to her music, knowing she would not get a chance to speak to them again before morning.
She sat down, picked up her harp and went on to her next set. She paid attention to her music and became completely absorbed in it. Before she knew what was happening, she reached the end of the set and came abruptly out of her music-filled world.
She had a serving girl bring her something to drink and gulped it down. Singing and playing never failed to make her very thirsty.
She went into a set of dance songs, giving a broad range of music for the many moves that accompanied each song. She played on until midnight. Then she stopped herself at the end of a song.
She picked up the empty pouch she had placed before her stool as she played. People who had enjoyed her music had dropped coins into it. She noticed that she had gotten a little bit of a profit out of it. She gathered up her bundles and trudged up the stairs. She fell
asleep a few minutes after her head had hit the pillow.
Moran awoke slightly before dawn. She got ready to go and exited the room. The door closed quietly. She was barely heard as she went through the hall and down the stairs.
She ate some warm breakfast and waited for the others. She watched both the stairs and the doors, for she was not sure through which entrance Ristar and Lashana would come. Carina and Ivy should be come down the stairs soon.
Sure enough she didn't have to wait long until she heard two sets of light footsteps coming down the hall upstairs. She then saw Ivy in her druidic robes and Carina in her carefully crafted robes that all but shouted that she was a mage, for those that recognized the signs.
The two women sat down at the table with Moran and ordered some breakfast. They sat quietly while the food came.
The door opened just as the food was arriving. Ristar walked in, dressed in her armor, followed by Lashana in robes almost exactly like Carina's except for the color and a few other items. They sat down at the next table and had their breakfast in silence.
Moran reviewed the itinerary for today in her head. They would start out early, as soon as breakfast had settled. They were to travel along the Anaka-Dew road and stop for their mid-day meal. If everything went quickly and smoothly they would reach Dew in the evening. How late or early would be determined by their pace and how much ground they could cover in a short amount of time.
When breakfast was done, they all proceeded to the stables at the back of the inn. There along with Blossom, Maple and Cream, were two other horses. One was of a reddish color. The other was a shade of brown.
Lashana mounted the red horse and Ristar mounted the brown. As the others mounted, Lashana told them that her horse was named Cardinal and Ristar's was named Robin.
They started out onto the Anaka-Dew road and rode as dawn rose. They were outside the village before the sun got very high over the horizon. Their horses trotted quietly onward past the great, forested landscape. The talked a little as they rode, discussing background and other trivial details to pass the time more quickly.
They stopped at noon in an open glade. They tethered their horses in a clear place with healthy plants. They ate quietly and quickly as their horses rested.
Soon they set off again, at a slightly faster pace. They reached Dew as the sun began to sink behind the distant hills. They found a nice looking inn in the small city and stopped there for the night. They had planned to find the place where they were to report to in the morning.
Previous Chapter Gathering: Index Home Next Chapter