Pearl in the Hilt, Part Four

The flame danced merrily upon the rope, the wind of the open plains marring it's progress but dispersing the black smoke which rose from the flame nicely. The kobold within the cage looked at the flame in an amused sort of way, the light reflecting in its eyes and giving light to an otherwise dull face that did little to conceal the kobold's facination, and ill-gotten mirth at its situation. However, the guards had more pressing issues on their mind, most pressingly how to ensure that the young sire Markelhay made the final stroke upon the small lithe and tricky, and too little interest in dealing with Kobolds to recognise but their most common emotion as seen upon the plains; that of terror. The flame danced its dance to the conclusion, going out just before the cage was released. The guard in charge of the release cursed mildly, made his excuses, and jumped off his horse, tinderbox in hand to relight the, mostly, charred and blackened rope. As he neared the cage, one hand clutching the rope, the kobold spewed another gout of flame that took the guard in the centre of his chest, knocking him backwards onto the ground, and burning the length of the rope through.

The cage clanked through, and the kobold slipped through the newly created gap, while the horsemen were still milling about in confusion as their horses reared and whinneyed. The horizon held no easy options for the kobold, as the nearest cover was the city of Fallcrest, less than a mile to the north-east was less than inviting. The kobold took off at speed to the south, it's limbs pushing it far faster than would have seemed usual or possible to the puzzled riders. Lord Markelhay the Third, called to his riders, and to his son. "To Arms! Our blades shall taste this creature's blood this day!" The riders caught the look of his eyes and made an impressive movement to line up once more, but their pace was ultimately dictated by the slugish pace of the Young Lord Markelhay, as the riders continued to mill about until the young lord was fully ready. Then, in a thin line, the riders surged forward after their prey.

Behind them, the fallen guard lay motionless beside the cage, as the horse gently prodded him with its muzzle.

Pearl in the Hilt, Part 3

The horsemen moved closer to the cage. "Scrawny looking fellow, isn't he?" Markelhay the Fourth said, looking closely at the cage. The scaly creature growled as loudly as it seemed its frame could manage. Markelhay IV moved his hand to poke the kobold. It turned to him, its eyes glowing with a power that hadn't been there previously. Markelhay IV managed to muster enough of his own sense of self preservation to toss himself to one side, as a burst of flame filled the place that his body had once filled. "What in the name of Erathis was that!" Markelhay IV said, partially exasperated. The man standing next to the cage smiled, his scarred face more apparent up close. "Best catch we've had all year. Just the thing we needed to spice up your first hunt, Master Markelhay."

"Mount up!" The call came down the line, and the horsemen all stood ready, Markelhey IV scrambled to get himself mounted upon his horse. "Ready?" the man by the cage called. There was a chorus of assenting cries. He moved to face the cage, and looked the kobold, the scaly creature, square in its eyes. "Now friend, we know you don't like us, and we don't like you. But if you can get it through your brain, we want to give you a fair shot at getting away. So, we're giving you a good two minutes to get clear from here." The Kobold just growled at him. The Guard lit a rope that when burned the whole way through, would cause the cage to open. Once the rope was burning through, he ran to his horse and mounted quickly.

A Pearl in the Hilt, Part 2

The group of horsemen began their ride to the keep, rounding the hillock that marked the start of the ascent up towards the large walls in the upper tier of the town where the Upper-class, and their servants were resident. Their course wasn't as straight as they'd like to imagine, and their control of their mounts was less than ideal, showing their lack of true combat experience, in the last five decades of peace, before the reclamation of hte outer stretches of the Glimmer. They wore the heraldry of the Lord Warden of Fallcrest, Lord Markelhay, as every guard in the town did. As they reached the gate of the keep, it's large wooden entryway looming above them, one of their number pulled a large horn from his saddlebag, and let loose a blast from its wide mouth.

Sire Markelhay the Third, Lord Warden mounted his charger at a run, his blood pumping in his veins and his armour clanging on his body. This was the feeling he loved, the feeling that he was sure his grandfather had felt as part of the large army that left Lorinan to conquer the wastes from the savages that had roamed there. His horse snorted, and reared its head. His son, Sire Markelhay the fourth, walked out, the armour that ill-fitted him so much clanking about his frame. "Where's my sword, father?" he asked, "You promised me a sword for my eighteenth birthday." His father wheeled about on his horse, his forehead glinting in the mid-morning sun. "That I did. And you promised me that you'd practice with your trainer each and every day until today." His son snorted, "You didn't expect me to actually do it, did you?" As the gates opened, the page rode in, his arms full with the recently acquired sword. He dismounted, before Sire Markelhay the Fourth and knealt, presenting the sword to him. His father eventually responded, his eyebrow raised, "Evidently I did not."

The horsemen passed forward through the town, passing over the river and northwards up towards the plains, where another of their number stood beside a cage, in which a small reptilian creature squatted through clenched teeth at anyone that came close to it. "Ready for the hunt?" The man asked.

The Pearl in the Hilt, Part 1

As he took the sword in his hand, the runes upon his hilt flared into light. He snorted, Of Course, he thought, that's what it was supposed to do. He lowered the blade, and sheathed it in the embossed leather sheath that had been supplied by the leather-workers down at the mill. He had spruced up the sheath with a golden leaf, and a stalk that ran around the sheath. He put the weapon aside, and sighed. It wasn't always like this. Once, heroes, or at least warriors wielded his weapons. Now, it was only the rich nobles that bought his swords, because they wanted a piece of shine when they readied their weapons for a last charge on their hunt.

"Sire Markhelay sends his regards," a man entering through the door said, his talbard bedecked with the signs of the Markhelay household. "He is eager for news on the progress of his sword, Telderhorn." Telderhorn looked up, his aged feet finding their purchase on the floor as he stood. "Sire Markhelay will get his sword, page, when it is ready."


The page looked disheartened. "Would it help if he said that his son would not be seen dead with a sword that was not made by Telderhorn's capable hands?" Telderhorn shook his head. "These things cannot be rushed." The page raised an eyebrow, and leaned to one side. Telderhorn lifted the sword, and handed it over. "If he wants the next one more promptly, perhaps he could ask for a Proper enchantment upon it." The page nodded, "Well," he said, "He says they're too expensive." Telderhorn shrugged. "If he can show me another maker nearby that has a comparable price... I might do him a deal." The page nodded, taking the sword. "I'll let him know."

As soon as the page left, Telderhorn sagged slightly. He looked over to the wall where there was a wide variety of weapons hanging off hooks on the wall. He walked over to them and took an opaque black staff off the wall. As his hand settled into a well worn groove on the staff, a small white pearl revealed itself like clouds clearing from across the face of a moon. As his hand left the slot, as he put it back on the wall, the pearl disappeared back into the black surface of the staff.