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Old 08-27-2003, 01:34 PM   #52
Mithadan
Spirit of Mist
 
Join Date: Jul 2000
Location: Tol Eressea
Posts: 3,310
Mithadan is a guest at the Prancing Pony.Mithadan is a guest at the Prancing Pony.
Sting

Following the musical arrival of the Quexchinmike (which he had enjoyed thoroughly, it was all so...musical), Grrralph had moved forward to the front of the Gallowship to stand beside Merisu. None of the Riders bore weapons which might harm him and he had no intention of allowing the ranks of his friends... errr... acquaintances... err... colleagues to be further reduced ("...accrued benefits, including medical, dental or pension are forfeit in the event that all members of an adventuring group are slain..." Standard Form Adventurers Contract, Paragraph 122(b)(17)(ix)(d)).

Thus, he was nonplussed by Érry's testosterone-tainted challenge, and was quietly debating the merits of using a combination of his morningstar and his whip (very effective when dealing with mounted foes) in the apparently upcoming battle when the Gateskeeper threw down and dissed the Rider. He quickly threw Kuruharan a fiver, taking the odds on Érry and stepped back to watch the mayhem. It had been some time since he'd witnessed a suicide...

What followed was surprising. Not only did he lose his bet, but he heard the Gateskeeper utter a phrase of a type he had heard before. But where? Then, he was struck by a flash of insight. Ignoring the pain, he reviewed his memory of a scene on a battlefield from not long ago. His former employer had backed a group of up-and-comers in a brief war against a mysterious force. The Eunuchs of Pea-Sea had performed admirably, multitasking their way through the battle which had ended in a draw. But during the battle he had heard a cry like the phrase Gateskeeper had whispered.

Moreover, it had seemed familiar even then. His faulty memory had failed him, but he had seemed to recall from his pre-wraith past...something. Something about an anti-trust and breach of contract suit against the International Brotherhood of Môgul (yes, IBM) a subsidiary of Môgul Enterprises, LLC. Not that he had any idea what "anti-trust" meant. A suit was, of course something you wore.

Here, unsurprisingly, his memory failed him again and he filed the insight away in the "miscellaneous" folder, along with the vague memories of a rubber duck in a bathtub and a breakfast of rice crispies. Returning to the here and now after his brief detour, Grrralph found the members of the Gallowship cheering, jumping and clapping the Gateskeeper on the back. Merisu in particular seemed exhilarated, leaping about vigorously with her luxurious hair seeming to flow rather than wave in the wind. She did not notice that her bow had fallen off her shoulder.

Grrralph bent and picked it up. It seemed to vibrate in a peculiar manner. Then, to his surprise, it spoke. "Here now, are you just going to admire me or are you going to to give me back?"

He caressed the wood gently and turned reluctantly to return it to Merisu. Even as he handed it over, he recalled the words of his fellow ThingWraith from several days before. "Damn volcano, there goes our free ride.." No, not those words. Wrong story. How about: "he told me to be on the lookout for some missing blocks of wood..." Grrralph looked at the bow on the Elf's shoulder for a moment, then looked away to the east...towards Moredough...
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