2 September and it’s a grey day. No rain but clouds cover most of the sky all day.
After your meeting in the guesthouse, you head outside where peter and Kerim are checking the mules over. None of the gear is packed yet, but stands in piles to the side. Peter leads you into the barracks for a last meal, courtesy of the earl's staff, before you set off. There is fresh bread, cheeses, apples, honey and ale for those who want it. Just as importantly, he encourages you to take a little with you, for the journey. A vague smile crosses your face as you wonder if he treats the barracks's residents in this way - but No, you guess you do get special treatment when you go on a well publicised scouting mission …
Then back out side and it takes Kerim and Peter about 20 minutes to load the mules to their satisfaction - Peter more concerned over the placement of the food sacks and his pack - Kerim more concerned with the way the Mules are loaded …
And finally you are away - there is no big leaving committee - but every one who sees you leave, waves and wishes you luck …
A comfortable pace takes you to the junction with the Semasay/Branna's road by early evening, and you decide to stop at a campsite that Rolf and his men built here. (http://www.galinia.org.uk/Galinia/NewGalinia.htm - for map)
The campsite consists of a stone edged fire pit, and a stack of fire wood concealed under a leather skin. The whole is set in a quiet spot slightly back from the road, there is even a small stream running near by.. Those of you who have travelled this road with Rolf (Kerim and Peter spring to mind) will have stayed here before.
Peter enters the barracks refectory and grins across at the cook, as he saunters over to the table with breads, cheese, apples and honey on. "How do, Charlie. How are you today?" he asks taking a mug of the beer to acommpany his bread and honey.
He chats with the cook for a while before taking a couple of apples and a a lump of cheeses for his meal. Then slapping the cook affectionately on the arm, bids him goodbye as he leave the barracks and starts to load one of the mules, with his backpack, cooking utensils and food bags.
Finally, after Kerim's assistance, he is ready to leave, and stands waiting, his hand on the mule's leading rein.
During the journey, Peter heads for the middle of the group still leading his mule.
Peter unloads his mule quickly and starts a fire using some of the wood from the stack.
"Rolf?" he calls, "I am using some of your wood stash. Just thought you should know ..."
While the fire burns itself in, he starts preparing a stew. He has fresh vegetables and meat that he has bought from Giantsferry, which he favours with some herbs that he brought with him. Finally he settles down to tend the stew, and munches of a raw carrot that he saved from the pot.
"It'll be about another hour .." he calls to the group generally.
Rolf makes good use of the meal provided, being sure to offer his thanks and compliments to those serving the meal. But soon it's done and Rolf moves out, ready to leave. His patience gets a little worn though, watching Kerim and Peter wrangle at the loading of the mules. But finally, they finish up and it's time to set out.
Rolf enjoys being on the road again. He even catches himself whistling a bit as he strolls along. When they reach the familiar camp at the crossroads, he immediately decides to call for a stop. As Peter warns of using the firewood, Rolf makes a dismissive gesture. "That's what it's here for." When informed that dinner was an hour away, he replies, "Very good." Turning to the others, he says, "Okay, seems like we have some time."
Rolf doles out assignments for some to set up camp, others to replenish the firewood and selects the gathering of water for himself and one other. He admonishes the others, that no one is to be left alone. Before everyone splits up, Rolf asks about watches. He wants two on each watch, two hours for each shift. He opts for the dawn shift himself.
OOC: Here's my thoughts on Marching Order.
Ravn and Corellon
Elsbeth and Rolf
Mandrake and Edgar
Meeleek and Peter
Kerim and Selina
Peter nods towards Rolf. "If I join you on the dawn watch, I can have a bit of breakfast ready for when we start to wake the others ...." he comments.
Meeleek chooses to help set up camp, and then sits by the fire, and pulls out of his bag a large tome. He starts reading and soon is totally absorbed in the reading, only to be startled by Peter’s call for dinner.
The young mage eats sparingly, and then returns to his fireside reading, not before volunteering for the first shift.
Salina stays a bit away fromt he main group, totally absorbed in watching the forest line and idly traceing the edge of her bracer with a slim finger.
When they stop she eats little and settles again away form the group. Not volunteering for the watch, she waits to be assigned to a time.
Wandering about a bit, Corellon pays attention while marching orders and watch orders are doled out. Pulling Rolf to the side, Corellon makes sure he is paying attention before whispering to him, and once finished... he waits for approval and heads back to camp.
After dinner Peter clears the cooking pots away, but expects each of you to look after your own crockery and cutlery.
Then he takes a slow walk around the campsite, looking at the countryside and occasionally bending down to inspect a plant or two.
He doesn't drift very far, before coming back to camp and reading a book until it is too dark to see the words anymore.
A little time warp....
Once Peter and Kerim finish loading the mule, Rolf moves over to the keeper of the written word. He presents the shield that was found in the tomb months ago. "A gift to keep you safe, Peter."
Back to the present....
After a quiet discussion with Corellon, Rolf returns to the center part of the camp. The food is being cooked, the wood and water gathered and the business of the day done. Rolf takes out a flute from his shoulder pouch. He runs a trill along it's length, getting the feel for it as he's not played in some time. He glances around to see if any find the noise bothersome before dropping into a somber air. The notes give the impression of sorrowful acceptance of the whims of fate.
Corellon comes back, looking obviously less burdened by something. Ignoring his own 'crockery', he sits down across from Rolf, and, listening to his flute, drifts off into reverie. (sleep sort of)
Elsbeth looks to Rolf in surprise, then leans back against Laddie with a smile. She listens, untying her hair, then begins singing a wordless harmony, soft enough to not offend. Her voice is soft and pleasant, and she closes her eyes momentarily with a joy she had forgotten.
Peter is surprised when Rolf passes him the shield from the crypt. "Are you sure ..." he starts to ask, before realising that the constable wouldn't offer it unless he was sure. "Err! Thank you ..." he finishes, obviously feeling a little awkward. Perhaps he is just unused to recieving expensive gifts from leaders, or perhaps its something else.
Peter gets a boy to take his old brown and green daubed shield back to his quarters, muttering " .. Ah well - have to try Barlane's theory on hiding another time .."
Although the first day of journey was a pleasant albeit uneventful one, Ravn could not surpress the growing, uneasy feeling of impending conflict.
The day's travels had provided little opportunity to relieve or even air his premonitions since Rolf had him placed in the front of the column next to the strange elf which whom he had not exchanged more than a brief nod and the occasional curious stare all day.
Evening brought a little more comfort when everyone petered away on their chores, and the Runecaster seized the opportunity to join Elsbeth in setting up camp.
He wanted to talk to her - not to discuss any matter in particular, just to hear her familiar voice, to feel again the arousing challenge of the arguments bred in her sharp and sensitive mind - he wanted to relive their long talk in the Tas Bardon courtyard half a season ago.
"...Elsbeth..."
Within feet of her presence, he found himself speechless. Not a familiar feeling for a storyteller and a notorious loudmouth - but still speechless.
"...er..."
He struggled to find the words, to no avail.
"...er... Never mind."
He broke away, letting her finish the chore. He felt her brief studying look like glowing embers on his back and hurriedly went to gather some more kindle for the woodstack.
The Runecaster returns to see her listening to Rolf's music and notes the strange look in her eyes as she shifts her gaze from the meditating elf to the Constable playing.
What are you thinking, Ravn, you fool?
He rubs his eye patch to scratch the still itching wound beneath it, then goes to store the kindle and wait for supper.
Then his eye catches the other southerner, Meeleek, studying a tome with strange scribbles in it.
Those must be Midani runes. Wonder how powerful they are?, he thinks to himself. Best not disturb him, though - I will learn soon enough.
He eats in silence, clears his cutlery and stays by the fire, practising runes on a twig.
"I, too, shall take the first watch, Constable."
Ravn spends the watch cutting runes and discreetly observing to the mage, the southerners lips moving without a word as he reads to himself from the book - apparently memorizing the contents.
Strange folk, those Midani...
I'm fine with the marching order, and I'll take any shift, or since there are a few bookworms about I'll do a double shift.
Night watch in pairs will mean 4 watches of 2 hours each. Which might as well be the marching order pairings, with Mandrake being teamed with Meeleek and Peter. No offence Edgar but Kerim still hasn't come to terms of full recognition with you.
If anyone really needs a full 8 hours sleep then the third person on shift 3 can take their place.
Ravn and Corellon (1)
Elsbeth and Rolf (2)
Mandrake and Edgar (3)
Meeleek and Peter (3)
Kerim and Selina (4)
*****************
After the meal Kerim ensures the Mules are hobbled and fed, and that their pack is removed, such that they can properly rest.
He pats each and plants a kiss on their foreheads before retiring to his own tasks.
He returns to the camp centre, looking at the fire. "Fire is a lure to the creatures of night. Suggest I do that we wean ourselves of it's comfort wherever possible."
Kerim then waits to see if he'll be called upon to fill anyones watch before retiring for the night.
Selina sits quietly, hardly noticable to anyone in the group untill Elsbeth begins to sing with Rolf's music. This draws her eyes and for any observer, she relaxes noticably, taking again the posture of a zelous youth insted of a bodyguard.
But the relief is short lived and with everyone settling down for th night she fades in the darkness, the one true home she is used to. Of course she could never tell them her true origens or why she didn't need sleep, so through the night she patrols the area around the camp, easily keeping away from the guard Rolf has set and only going back in time to take her own shift without arrising suspicion. Durning thier turn, she politly ignores Kerim unless she is directly addressed. Insted she spends the time swing the two heavy looking clubs in delicate and it would seem impossible patterns for a girl that doesn't truly look that strong.
Kerim is looking to ignore Rolf's on the dawn watch is he? What would one more experienced than Rolf do about such a delimma? Hmmm......
Kerim isn't trying to undo Rolf's authority. I kind of missed the last sentence in that post where you want the dawn shift.
I'll log that one down to language barriers and have Kerim misunderstand Rolf if questioned about it.
******************
After his sourness about the fire and everyone ignoring his warnings Kerim decides to conceal his dislike of the music, song and dance, this being even more attention attracting. So he sets to gaining what sleep is to be had, stewing on his thoughts.
Waking to find Selina's cold shouldering of Kerim doesn't do much to improve his mood.
What does worry him is that he can't be sure that she is on guard, what with her vanishing into the darkness. He hardly knows if he can trust her, even given her appearance with Earl Richard.
Dawn's greeting brings a final end to his misery and reminding himself to listen to Rolf a little more carefully next time he thinks to himself to suggest Rolf take shift with Selina.
OOC- Kerim seems to misunderstand even Midani accents… Meeleek volunteered for the first shift, and Ravn already posted on that basis. So I’m going to go with that…
*************************************
Meeleek only nods in acknowledgment when Ravn joins him in the first shift. As everyone else retires, the Midani closes his book and starts paying more attention to his surroundings. He notices the Rune caster carvings, and smiles, for it is also a habit he indulges in. He joins Ravn by picking a piece of wood and starting to carve it with his jambiya, making a thin spotted snake, but keeps silent.
Edgar takes his assigned position in the marching order with no complaint, though he takes care to spell Mandrake's shoulder by perching on either Peter's mule or Laddie's back (should neither the wolf nor the Constable voice no complaint).
When not conversing with the gnome or Elsbeth, he spends the time resting quietly, perhaps asleep, perhaps in contemplation.
Unlike Corellon, the raven has no crockery to either wash or ignore (though if that worthy prefers not to eat off dishes licked clean by a grateful wolf, he'll soon learn better housekeeping !), though he is sure to politely thanks Peter for his preparation of the meal.
One thing he does share with Kerim, however, is the view that the assignment of watches precludes himself, and like Selina is wakeful the whole night long, enjoying the darkness and sharing the watch with whomever happens to be on, chatting with them if they wish, or sitting on a branch of a tree and leaving them be if their mood suggests they want to be left alone.
If he notices Selina's wakefulness and patrol, he says naught to anyone else, though if asked he would not conceal any knowledge he has - he just does not consider the matter anyone's business but hers, and certainly not a matter worthy of comment.
On those occasions when Edgar rides on the mule he is leading, Peter makes the occasional general comment to include the bird, as he does with Meeleek, his other walking companion.
Most of his comments refer to plants growing at the side of the road. Either comments on their beauty, their usefulness, or some other related small comment.
Although silent most of the time, Meeleek seems very interrested in Peter's remarks, especially the northern name and uses of the various plants. He stops from time to time to pick up a certain flower or weed, and stows them in one of his pockets.
Shaking himself up, Corellon regains orientation before quietly standing up. Not sure when his watch is, he pulls someone aside and asks.
Elsbeth takes the second watch, having no clue who she is going to be on watch with. She's relaxed after her musical sharing- taking her back to other days with Rolf and the others. The others... Such thoughts are actually at the front of her thoughts as she keeps watch. Truth be told, she has Laddie on watch too- and the great wolf is far more alert than the druid could ever hope to be.
The wolf alternates on watch between laying at his mistress' feet and pacing the edges of the camp. Anyone awake notices that he pauses on occasion to sniff the toes and belongings of the newcomers. After all, though his two-legged friend might trust them, he hasn't accepted them to the pack...
OK, so Kerim is missing the point recently. I'll put it down to him having been born a Midani and not on Angasa.
And the watch, boy have I messed that one up. Though again I can attribute that to his not being trained in such matters.
*******************
Thinking to himself that he should perhaps leave matters of watch and guard to people more qualified than himself Kerim again bows down from his attempts to help others.
As is often the case his misunderstandings of people natures and intents leave him at the source of confusion.
If only this were a business enterprise, now then, then he'd have some success.
Kerim takes whatever shift he is relegated to and continues sombrely in the morning, keeping to himself and his mules.