Of course things don't always unravel in a nice orderly fashion, so that it can be easily determined that event A led to event E, via B, C and D. That would be too simple; giving historians and archaeologists an easy ride.
So while the elf Sidrick the Innocent had met in assumed secrecy with Sir Thomlin Argon Hammersmith, a mighty dwarf not known for his diplomacy (although he was quite good at it nevertheless), other matters unfolded. Those happenings would remain disjointed and largely unreported until enough pieces of these puzzling times could be pieced together to make a whole lot of trouble.
For the moment- in no particular order- but all at around the same time the following things occurred...
A dwarf by the name of Robert Strong Axe had his drink knocked over in a pub by a human and didn't feel the need to spill blood.
Lucy, a young human girl, put the finishing touches on a song she had been composing for the past week. It was about her love for the boy of her dreams who happened to live in the next village over. Called My Love He Has Silver Hair and Rides a Pig to Market on Tuesday's and Friday's, it certainly did not have a catchy title but it was a song that would later become the unifying battle cry of the combined forces of the dwarves, humans and a few returning battle elves.
Sheep on the hillsides overlooking all the major towns and small villages stopped moving and became like stone, never to move again or utter a sound.
The self-styled Three Horsemen of the Abomination rode into the town of Sacrifice and began their annual five-day rampage. History would later record they only got as far as day three before abruptly suspending their 'entertainments.' Although the reasons why would only become fully clear with hindsight.
While passing the time of day in a restful after-lunch slumber, an engineer called Billy dreamt of the Chaos Machine, a device he would later construct, that might just save the world in the coming bloody battles.
Right now though we return to our (for want of a better word) girl, sat by the river pondering the rather odd meeting she had just spied. She had come to the conclusion she would not do herself any good remaining out in the open much longer. And certainly there were no further clues to what had transpired moments earlier. It was time to move on. Just give it a minute longer she told herself, to make sure the departing creatures wouldn't detect her.
The more-than-human girl stood and stretched her long limbs. As has already been described she wasn't much to look at and in fact if she concentrated really hard you would barely notice her. Rhia closed her eyes a moment and began to fade, melt into the background. Oh sure if you looked hard, knew who you were looking for and exactly where to look, she was still clearly visible but to the casual eye the veil would mask her progress across the landscape. It was a long walk back to camp even taking the shortest but least secure routes. Mind you Rhia wasn't troubled by such matters and throwing her satchel full of Impossible Things over her shoulder started to make her way.
The girl covered the open ground remarkably quickly without breaking into run. Time sometimes could move differently around Rhia. The landscape slid by, as did the villages and smaller towns. She stayed away from the larger towns where others of her kind were more likely to gather, better to remain undetected. Finally she spotted the standing stones, ancient and crumbling, up on the hill that indicated where the camp could be found, just another mile beyond. As she passed the stones Rhia felt the familiar shiver of ancient power humming from deep within the ground and through the rock pillars. As always at this point when returning to her adopted home, she let time catch up and she would walk leisurely back; enjoying her surrounds, with not a care in her world. And besides she didn't want the others in the camp to know everything she could do.
As she walked into the camp, Rhia noticed it was looking oddly more organised than usual. The main square deserted of normal traders' stalls and the hustle of day to day life. The cattle were in their pens, regarding her silently. The horses too were tethered, the carts arranged and loaded. As she turned the corner from the square, she realised the whole population of the camp seemed to be gathered outside the Mayor's tented home at the end of the main street. More than that, without exception every woman and man was stood to attention facing her, all dressed in battle armour and carrying a sword or other weapon. She felt hundreds of eyes watching her as she approached...
But what will she say and to whom? Will she act for the forces of right and good or for the coming darkness? What exactly is in her satchel? All may well be determined in the coming chapters...
(to Wunderlust)
Wednesday, 8 April 2009
Tuesday, 31 March 2009
Brief Note
Just a quick one.... let's run the current story into April, see if we can bring things to some kind of conclusion or at least natural pause before a new story starts in May.
The Day of Reckoning (part 4)
What had she seen?
A dwarf and what must have been an elf, if the descriptions from folk tales were to be believed, meeting with each other. What could these two possibly be doing, talking rather than trying to bludgeon each other to death. And not only were they talking with each other, but it seemed that they had exchanged things, information of some sort.
What was going on?
Something was definitely going on for a dwarf and an elf to be meeting together, something serious, something possibly even perilous, something that the local humans weren't aware of, not the farmers, not the merchants, not the rulers and not even the wise.
She wished she had been able read the scroll, or understand more of the discussion, for then she might have had some ideas about what to do next, but for the moment, all she had was questions.
(Pass to Ceramix)
A dwarf and what must have been an elf, if the descriptions from folk tales were to be believed, meeting with each other. What could these two possibly be doing, talking rather than trying to bludgeon each other to death. And not only were they talking with each other, but it seemed that they had exchanged things, information of some sort.
What was going on?
Something was definitely going on for a dwarf and an elf to be meeting together, something serious, something possibly even perilous, something that the local humans weren't aware of, not the farmers, not the merchants, not the rulers and not even the wise.
She wished she had been able read the scroll, or understand more of the discussion, for then she might have had some ideas about what to do next, but for the moment, all she had was questions.
(Pass to Ceramix)
Friday, 13 March 2009
The Day of Reckoning (part 3)
Immediately Sidrick looked around, trying to see who might be watching them. Usually, elves have exceptional sight, but for some reason Sidrick felt as if there was a veil keeping him from seeing who was there. Of course Thom was having trouble seeing, dwarfs not being known for their sight as much as for their hearing.
"What do you hear?" Sidrick asked Thom.
Thom, head cocked answered, "I'm not sure, but for a moment..." "For a moment what?" Sidrick encouraged, waiting for Thom to decide what he'd heard. "For a moment, it sounded like the tinkling of glass, but that can't be. It must have been the wind in the trees. Do you see anything?"
Sidrick looked around again and said, "Nothing, I see nothing. But I think we should leave."
So the two allies left, each going their own way back to their own world. Each a little spooked by the ending to their meeting and hoping they really had imagined something that wasn't there.
Of course that was not to be. There had been someone watching, listening, trying to learn what they knew. After she was sure the dwarf and elf were safely gone from the river she emerged and wandered around, trying to sense everything that had happened. Looking at her you wouldn't think much at all. She looked like most any of the humans that had entered their world. She wasn't especially beautiful in the way that humans measured beauty. But she wasn't like the other humans, she could do things and see things that they couldn't do or see. She knew that the elf would see her if she hadn't placed the veil. The sound got away from her, she would have to be more careful if the opportunity came again.
For now, she sat and looked back and listened and wondered at what she saw.
(Pass to Somarledi.)
"What do you hear?" Sidrick asked Thom.
Thom, head cocked answered, "I'm not sure, but for a moment..." "For a moment what?" Sidrick encouraged, waiting for Thom to decide what he'd heard. "For a moment, it sounded like the tinkling of glass, but that can't be. It must have been the wind in the trees. Do you see anything?"
Sidrick looked around again and said, "Nothing, I see nothing. But I think we should leave."
So the two allies left, each going their own way back to their own world. Each a little spooked by the ending to their meeting and hoping they really had imagined something that wasn't there.
Of course that was not to be. There had been someone watching, listening, trying to learn what they knew. After she was sure the dwarf and elf were safely gone from the river she emerged and wandered around, trying to sense everything that had happened. Looking at her you wouldn't think much at all. She looked like most any of the humans that had entered their world. She wasn't especially beautiful in the way that humans measured beauty. But she wasn't like the other humans, she could do things and see things that they couldn't do or see. She knew that the elf would see her if she hadn't placed the veil. The sound got away from her, she would have to be more careful if the opportunity came again.
For now, she sat and looked back and listened and wondered at what she saw.
(Pass to Somarledi.)
Monday, 9 March 2009
The Day of Reckoning (part 2)
You see elves are clever creatures. They could see what was coming and made plans to protect themselves. Elves were big on plans.
They had moved on to who knew where before the dark times had come. But they had not been reckless, they had left a guardian behind. Someone who officially was there just to keep an eye on things and look after their interests but in reality his role was a whole lot more. He was there to build bridges between peoples where (officially at least) none could exist. Sidrick the Innocent as he was known, would meet regularly with the dwarf known as Thom and plot and plan. There was trouble brewing and armies to build, they both knew and while both would normally trade insults, happily spill each other's blood or steal anything the other held to be precious, they both believed they had a common foe. A foe they could not name.
Sidrick the Innocent sat beside a river and regarded the dwarf for a moment. The sun was overhead, at it's peak but the history books would probably recount the time as being a quarter past four. Thom was- as always- wearing his best battle armour complete with family crest on his helmet, all highly polished. You had to hand it to Thom the guardian had thought, he was certainly brave but also pretty stupid. Why attend a semi-secretive meeting with a long standing enemy (and face it, they both had many of those) and advertise exactly who you were?
Sidrick waited while Sir Thomlin read the small scroll he had been passed. He watched as the dwarf's mouth silently formed each word. "Use this wisely," Sidrick told him. "I had to call in many favours to get you this." The dwarf finished reading and thought for a moment or two and then waited some more for what he considered to be dramatic effect. Dwarf's are not known for being big thinkers. Their world largely revolved around mining and fighting, interrupted by drunken songs about fighting and mining. Planning and cunning was not something that came naturally to most dwarfs. Thom however, was not most dwarfs.
"If this is to be believed," and dwarfs didn't tend to believe in much except gold. "This means we have less time than we had thought." He passed a small bag of coins over. Everything in their world had a price to pay, even information between allies. That particular bag had passed between them many times since their meetings had begun but never once opened and counted. It was their symbol of trust.
"Shush, " the dwarf had suddenly hissed. Thom, with his exceptional hearing, had realised they were being watched...
(To Teresa B)
They had moved on to who knew where before the dark times had come. But they had not been reckless, they had left a guardian behind. Someone who officially was there just to keep an eye on things and look after their interests but in reality his role was a whole lot more. He was there to build bridges between peoples where (officially at least) none could exist. Sidrick the Innocent as he was known, would meet regularly with the dwarf known as Thom and plot and plan. There was trouble brewing and armies to build, they both knew and while both would normally trade insults, happily spill each other's blood or steal anything the other held to be precious, they both believed they had a common foe. A foe they could not name.
Sidrick the Innocent sat beside a river and regarded the dwarf for a moment. The sun was overhead, at it's peak but the history books would probably recount the time as being a quarter past four. Thom was- as always- wearing his best battle armour complete with family crest on his helmet, all highly polished. You had to hand it to Thom the guardian had thought, he was certainly brave but also pretty stupid. Why attend a semi-secretive meeting with a long standing enemy (and face it, they both had many of those) and advertise exactly who you were?
Sidrick waited while Sir Thomlin read the small scroll he had been passed. He watched as the dwarf's mouth silently formed each word. "Use this wisely," Sidrick told him. "I had to call in many favours to get you this." The dwarf finished reading and thought for a moment or two and then waited some more for what he considered to be dramatic effect. Dwarf's are not known for being big thinkers. Their world largely revolved around mining and fighting, interrupted by drunken songs about fighting and mining. Planning and cunning was not something that came naturally to most dwarfs. Thom however, was not most dwarfs.
"If this is to be believed," and dwarfs didn't tend to believe in much except gold. "This means we have less time than we had thought." He passed a small bag of coins over. Everything in their world had a price to pay, even information between allies. That particular bag had passed between them many times since their meetings had begun but never once opened and counted. It was their symbol of trust.
"Shush, " the dwarf had suddenly hissed. Thom, with his exceptional hearing, had realised they were being watched...
(To Teresa B)
Sunday, 1 March 2009
The Day of Reckoning (part 1)
I was only four when the troubles began, so I can't rightly (or wrongly, for that matter), say who struck the first blow.
I do know, though, that it was a bloody battle, and a fierce one at that, and no one can honestly say who was at fault, or who even ended it, if truth be told. Just that it was a long battle in an even longer war, and neither side came out particularly victorious from either the battle or the war.
Thom was there, I do know that. Or perhaps I should give him his full title? Sir Thomlin Argon Hammersmith, all four foot three inches of him at full stretch, and almost as much again around, was known the world over more by reputation than renown, and rarely was any of it good.
He was typical of his people though, and generally fairly gruff with anyone over five feet tall - "no need for such excessive height" - was something of a catch-phrase with him. But then, what more could you expect from one such as him?
A dwarf is not such a common thing these days, but in the time of Thom, and indeed, this story, dwarves were still to be seen round and about. They had yet to vanish into their dark tunnels and caves, but that time would approach soon enough, with the day of reckoning.
The elves had felt it coming long before anyone else, and had all but disappeared from this once wondrous planet, only to be replaced by things best left hidden in the darkness. Evil things, Shadow things. But more was to come. That was certain.
(now to Ceramix to continue)
I do know, though, that it was a bloody battle, and a fierce one at that, and no one can honestly say who was at fault, or who even ended it, if truth be told. Just that it was a long battle in an even longer war, and neither side came out particularly victorious from either the battle or the war.
Thom was there, I do know that. Or perhaps I should give him his full title? Sir Thomlin Argon Hammersmith, all four foot three inches of him at full stretch, and almost as much again around, was known the world over more by reputation than renown, and rarely was any of it good.
He was typical of his people though, and generally fairly gruff with anyone over five feet tall - "no need for such excessive height" - was something of a catch-phrase with him. But then, what more could you expect from one such as him?
A dwarf is not such a common thing these days, but in the time of Thom, and indeed, this story, dwarves were still to be seen round and about. They had yet to vanish into their dark tunnels and caves, but that time would approach soon enough, with the day of reckoning.
The elves had felt it coming long before anyone else, and had all but disappeared from this once wondrous planet, only to be replaced by things best left hidden in the darkness. Evil things, Shadow things. But more was to come. That was certain.
(now to Ceramix to continue)
New Story starting today
As promised, we have a new story starting today. That doesn't mean we are forgetting about February's story. We will come back to that at a later date.
I'm hoping that my beginning of March's story leads to a nice fantasy story set on a mythical world, but maybe that's just wishful thinking. It's not totally up to me how the story pans out afterall. And again, I don't see this one being short either!
Anyway, enjoy the ride!
I'm hoping that my beginning of March's story leads to a nice fantasy story set on a mythical world, but maybe that's just wishful thinking. It's not totally up to me how the story pans out afterall. And again, I don't see this one being short either!
Anyway, enjoy the ride!
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