In the flickering torchlight, Cobus chewed his aromatic sweetmeats and drank his rich wine and let his mind wander, thinking about the road that lead him here. He smiled but shook his head no when asked by several of the Nightseekers asked him to join in the sinuous dance. Instead, he got up and moved to a more comfortable seat, and one that commanded a fuller view of the festivities.
The cleric reached beneath his cuirass and scratched an itchy, healing wound, one of many he'd received since joining the Strangers. The music pounded in the Nightseekers' space as the dance became even more frenetic. In the oddly flickering light, Cobus was sure he even saw some figures transitioning from dancing to more intimate activities. He was sure he saw Balurt rubbing his beard on the bare breasts of a woman who seemed to have grown an elongated snout, razor fangs, and a layer of course hair covering long pointed ears. After shaking his head and rubbing his eyes, Cobus once again saw a comely young woman. He smirked, looking appreciatively at his wine and took another sip.
The cleric of Fharlanghn's road had taken him some strange places, and never had he faced more dangerous situations than his travels in the Hrothgar Peninsula with the Strangers. However, each danger he had faced with his new found fellow travelers. His life had been saved as many times as he'd saved lives and nothing binds people together more completely than such obligations. The gruff dwarf, the large manchild, the oft-captured, but always tricksy daughter of tailors, the beautiful nature priestess, the foppish young singer, the mysterious man in black armor with a dangerous air, the quiet, but deadly Lilyth with such strange hair, and even the new spellcaster Gener all Strangers closer to him than members of his own family.
Despite the chaos of the dance rapidly turning into an orgy, the cleric couldn't stop thinking back on Zaret's words to him about the importance of companions on the road. Cobus had always assumed that the life of a Walker of Fharlanghn was a solitary one. After all, wasn't their life dedicated to never setting down roots, never finishing the journey? If that was the case, deep connections with people were the price to pay. He still remembered his teacher's hearty laughter at Cobus's pronouncements on the loneliness of the long-distance Traveller.
As they had their discussion a week into a month-long trek, Zaret reminded the young initiate about the people they had passed on the road. There was the farming family on the way to market that they had helped change a wagon wheel. There was the gypsy merchant who had shared his rabbit dinner with the clerics. Finally, there had been the traveling blacksmith they had rescued from roadside bandits. Cobus shook his head at each mention, still not getting the point.
Zaret sighed, rubbing the back of his neck, hating to state what to him was obvious. "If we were truly expected to live in isolation, why would we have accepted or offered any aid? Why not just pass them by? The path is wide enough to avoid such contact, surely. The road is owned equally by all who walk it. It's this bond that connects us all. There are no strangers on the road, only fellow travellers. Should you be lucky enough to find companions to share your journey more directly, walking side by side, then you have your burdens lightened even further."
He stared at the confused look on young Cobus's face, a smile spreading across his broad, tanned face, as he clapped him on the shoulder with his walking staff before breaking into a hearty laugh. "After all, I wouldn't enjoy this trek nearly as much without your foolishness to keep me amused. If you are lucky enough to find traveling companions who will willingly share your road, be grateful and know that nothing will make your voyages safer or more pleasurable."
Finishing his wine, Cobus looked over the rim of his goblet, seeing Balurt, sweat pouring down his face and into his beard, as he spent his seed into what was now obviously a werebat. Cobus's craggy face split into a wide grin as he realized how light his steps would be going forward. No matter how dangerous their upward trek in this tower, Cobus only need think of how much fun he would have teasing the dwarf about this encounter to lighten his step. Companions could indeed be a boon.
The cleric reached beneath his cuirass and scratched an itchy, healing wound, one of many he'd received since joining the Strangers. The music pounded in the Nightseekers' space as the dance became even more frenetic. In the oddly flickering light, Cobus was sure he even saw some figures transitioning from dancing to more intimate activities. He was sure he saw Balurt rubbing his beard on the bare breasts of a woman who seemed to have grown an elongated snout, razor fangs, and a layer of course hair covering long pointed ears. After shaking his head and rubbing his eyes, Cobus once again saw a comely young woman. He smirked, looking appreciatively at his wine and took another sip.
The cleric of Fharlanghn's road had taken him some strange places, and never had he faced more dangerous situations than his travels in the Hrothgar Peninsula with the Strangers. However, each danger he had faced with his new found fellow travelers. His life had been saved as many times as he'd saved lives and nothing binds people together more completely than such obligations. The gruff dwarf, the large manchild, the oft-captured, but always tricksy daughter of tailors, the beautiful nature priestess, the foppish young singer, the mysterious man in black armor with a dangerous air, the quiet, but deadly Lilyth with such strange hair, and even the new spellcaster Gener all Strangers closer to him than members of his own family.
Despite the chaos of the dance rapidly turning into an orgy, the cleric couldn't stop thinking back on Zaret's words to him about the importance of companions on the road. Cobus had always assumed that the life of a Walker of Fharlanghn was a solitary one. After all, wasn't their life dedicated to never setting down roots, never finishing the journey? If that was the case, deep connections with people were the price to pay. He still remembered his teacher's hearty laughter at Cobus's pronouncements on the loneliness of the long-distance Traveller.
As they had their discussion a week into a month-long trek, Zaret reminded the young initiate about the people they had passed on the road. There was the farming family on the way to market that they had helped change a wagon wheel. There was the gypsy merchant who had shared his rabbit dinner with the clerics. Finally, there had been the traveling blacksmith they had rescued from roadside bandits. Cobus shook his head at each mention, still not getting the point.
Zaret sighed, rubbing the back of his neck, hating to state what to him was obvious. "If we were truly expected to live in isolation, why would we have accepted or offered any aid? Why not just pass them by? The path is wide enough to avoid such contact, surely. The road is owned equally by all who walk it. It's this bond that connects us all. There are no strangers on the road, only fellow travellers. Should you be lucky enough to find companions to share your journey more directly, walking side by side, then you have your burdens lightened even further."
He stared at the confused look on young Cobus's face, a smile spreading across his broad, tanned face, as he clapped him on the shoulder with his walking staff before breaking into a hearty laugh. "After all, I wouldn't enjoy this trek nearly as much without your foolishness to keep me amused. If you are lucky enough to find traveling companions who will willingly share your road, be grateful and know that nothing will make your voyages safer or more pleasurable."
Finishing his wine, Cobus looked over the rim of his goblet, seeing Balurt, sweat pouring down his face and into his beard, as he spent his seed into what was now obviously a werebat. Cobus's craggy face split into a wide grin as he realized how light his steps would be going forward. No matter how dangerous their upward trek in this tower, Cobus only need think of how much fun he would have teasing the dwarf about this encounter to lighten his step. Companions could indeed be a boon.
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Posted on August 09, 2012 16:28
9 comments
Epic!