Insert Title Here - an Epic Tale by GreenApple

[Greenie]

To be a king is not the world's easiest job, especially when one is barely a functioning adult. For Sven, this couldn't be closer to the truth. His entire life he was told how to do pretty much everything, from which clothes to wear to what food to eat to even when to smile or stop laughing.

Then suddenly, out of the blue, his father passed away at the dinner table due to an unfortunate choking on a chicken bone incident, and Sven found himself the King of Panworld. His grief had been pushed aside, giving way to a panic that never left him, not even two years later. Sure, he had his father's old friend and vizier by his side, literally most of the time, but everyone was looking at him to make scary decisions.

Sven rubbed his hand against his forehead on the particular morning this epic tale begins, wondering how he would break the news of what he had just done to his vizier Tomus, better known to the common folk as Tomus Shiftyeyes. The young king had for once taken matters in his own hands, and now that action had been taken he was beginning to show signs of panic.

"My dear Sven, you're positively shining today." The high pitched voice came from the entrance of the throne room, and not a moment later in stepped the vizier, dressed in his usually white robes trimmed with blue. For someone with such a devious name, he didn't sport any black or red as most common villains in stories did.

"Oh," Sven muttered, wiping at his forehead, "it's just the sweat, really..." His voice trailed as he looked at Tomus, his entire being radiating nervousness.

"Yet it's quite chilly today." Tomus tapped at his pointy chin as he looked over the young king, wondering what was the matter. "Are you feeling well?"

"I sent it!" Sven couldn't help himself; he needed to spill the beans. "I sent out quite a few magpies earlier in the morning... calling for adventurers."

Tomus' eyes narrowed. "For what, my liege?"

"Adventurers," the king repeated with a gulp, "to find the scepter."​

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The letter that our intrepid adventurers would receive, hand written and with errors, had the following words:

All those who wish to seek adventure,

Please Show yourself to Pan Palace before King Sven, Fourteenth Fifteenth of His Name and ruler of all Panworld, in five days time.
You will be seeeking Your quest will be detailed then.
You will be rewarded

Sincerely,
The King's Scribe

It was clearly not written by someone who was used to writing letters, so the reader would know it right away wasn't the King's Scribe. However, the seal was very obviously not fake, a black inked balance. For someone who had nothing better to do, it was worth investigating whether this was a legitimate quest.​

 

[Applo]

Rán looked along the broad main street at the palace and blinked. When she open her eyes again, much to her disappointment the building was still there as grand and regal as it had been before. She had been staring at the building for the last hour and and in that time she hadn't managed to take another step closer to her destination. Normally she avoided places like the city like the plague and the thought of going to the palace had never even crossed her mind before she had found the invitation attached to a bird's leg.

It had been four long days since she'd found the magpie tapping incessantly away on the window of her boarding house room. She had tried to ignore it at first. It had been a cold morning and her bed, if you could call a paddy sack lightly stuffed with musty old straw and a horse blanket a bed, had been warm. When ignoring the bird hadn't worked Rán had tried throwing things at the window to scare the blasted thing off but that had only made the stupid tap louder.

Five minutes after she'd run out of things to throw Rán's patience had snapped and she'd dragged herself out of snug little cocoon and stormed over to window, ripped it open and tried to swat the bloody bird off the window sill. It had ducked under her swing, hopped into the room, relieved itself on one of Rán's shoes and then hopped onto the battered chest that held Rán's few world possession before crowing smugly. It had only been when Rán had gone to grab the bird that she had noticed the little silver canister attached to it's leg.

After another half an hour of of exertion and occasional swearing Rán managed to corner the bird and wrestle the canister away from the feathery little bastard. Her first instinct had been that the message was some kind of joke but after a day of looking at the message irritating curiosity and sheer boredom had driven Rán to pack up her things and set off for the capital.

And now here she was in the shadow of the home of the most powerful person in the world. Rán regretted not concentrating harder on hitting that stupid bird before it had gotten into her room. She reached into a pocket and pulled a little copper flask, took a deep breath and uncorked it cautiously. This caused a young couple that chose this moment to walk past Rán to double over coughing as a yellowish cloud poured out of the alleyway Rán was loitering in. When the worst of the smog had been blown away Rán took a long swig from the little flask, wincing as she did so, before forcing the bung back in the next and stuffing it back into a pocket. Filled with new confidence, or at least the inability to think clearly enough to feel nervous Rán propelled herself out of the alleyway, along the street and after showing the invitation to the guards at the gates started climbing the small mountain of stone steps that lead up to the palace.​

 

[Greenie]

Not too far behind ye not so hyped adventurer were two others, making their way up the stone steps. It was hard to tell whether they too were adventurers or perhaps part of a circus or a travelling menagerie. The fellow, named Rendas was walking alongside a rather large white wolf, whistling as he looked up at the imposing towers and turrets they would soon be passing through. As for his human companion Rinata, she was sporting a raven that was currently perched on her head, crowing every odd moment.

"It'll be just like old times, Rin," the man commented once he stopped whistling, a cheerful look on his face. "You, me, the whole wide world... off an adventure. The siblings who could, they'll write songs about us-"

"More like you'll write songs about us." Rinata looked amused at his enthusiasm, though she poked his arm. "We don't even know if the letter is legitimate, and what the king will even want from us."

Rendas nodded, chuckling a little before speaking. "I know, Rin. You know me." He nudged her. "Don't worry, I won't embarrass you in front of anyone. You might want to tell Velasco to stop insulting every other bird he sees though..." He looked nervously at the seagulls that seemed to be flying closer. "I don't think they fancy his insults."

The two continued onward, hurrying enough that they soon caught up with Ran. It would be easy for the latter to tell Rinata and Rendas were related; both had olive tone skin, green eyes and dark hair, both were on the short scale, and both seemed to have the same pleasant demeanour, though Rinata seemed a little more contained in that regard.

"Hello there," Rendas greeted with a smile. "Would I be wrong in guessing you received a letter too?"​

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Meanwhile in the throne room, Sven was beginning to hyperventilate. He knew as soon as the deed was done that he would regret it, even if it was the right thing to do. He was the King; it was his right to do whatever he wanted to, right? Besides, it wasn't like he was increasing taxes or anything like that!

His sister Runa had told him that Tomus would probably have been happier with tax raises than what he had done.

"Your Highness," started Sven's squire, "there's been word from the guards at the gate that three people with your invitation have arrived and been let in. They should be here in a little while."

"Tch." That came from Tomus, causing the squire to cringe a little. "Fine, we shall see what worthy adventure seekers have come forth to set off on this ridiculous mission."

Sven wiped at his forehead with a handkerchief. He knew it was but tales, but there were so many... there had to be truth to them, right? Besides... he had more than tales as it were, but he wouldn't reveal that just yet, at least not to Tomus alone.​

 

[Applo]

The first indication that Ran had of anyone coming up behind her was when a monstrously large white wolf padded past her and started sniffing the ground around one of the columns that adorned the front of the palace. Her first reaction to the sight in front of her was to try and work out which of the ingredients that she had used in the current batch of her home brew were making her hallucinate. The thought that a real wolf would be urinating on the front of the royal palace never even crossed her mind.

"Hello there,would I be wrong in guessing you received a letter too?"

Turning around Ran found herself confronted by two pairs of green eyes framed by dark brown hair and gentle smiles. One of the faces had a large Raven perched next to it. Wordlessly Ran reached out and gently poked each of the pair on the shoulder until she was convinced that they were really there before pointing at the wolf who was now watching the little group with glossy eyes.

"Ca...ca...can you see that wolf t...t...t...to?" she asked, her tongue stumbling over the words as her brain was to preoccupied with the thought that the monstrous creature behind her might be real to be any help.

 

[Greenie]

"Well yes, he is right there after all." Rinata had been a little surprised with the poke to the shoulder, though she quite understood why the woman might find the wolf being there somewhat disconcerting. Truth be told, even though she and Rendas acted as if it was perfectly natural to have animal friends, they were looked at with very strange eyes in their village of Sojourn.

"His name is Moonbeam," Rendas supplied quickly, recognizing the look on the woman's face. "Don't worry, he never goes after humans. Says they aren't as tasty as venison." To prove his point, he jogged a little ahead of the other two, reaching toward the white wolf's head to give him a pat. Said wolf stopped in his tracks, his tail wagging as if his life depended on it.

Rinata could tell that while Rendas was trying to help easy the woman's fears, he was probably not being very tactful at it. Between the two siblings, she was calmer of the two, even if he was a older than her. "I'm Rinata," she started, introducing herself to the woman. "That's my older brother, Rendas. This-" she pointed to the raven "-is Velasco, and that wolf there is Moonbeam." It seemed a little overbearing, explaining everything at once, but she didn't want to cause any trouble even before they reached the thrones room.

"We can speak to animals and understand them," Rendas supplied, turning away from the wolf to look at the woman. "They're not really pets, nor are they trained... they're more friends and allies. Rather useful ones when you're travelling, that I can assure you!"

"Mhm..." Rinata decided it was time to continue forward. "Let's continue onward, I'm sure the king knows by now that we've arrived." She started walking, leaving the other two behind.

"Right, right." Rendas looked to Moonbeam and nodded; the wolf let out a short bark before following after Rinata. "My sister probably has a point there, don't want to keep royalty waiting, eh? So, what're you called?" He seemed genuinely interested.​

 

[Applo]

Rán watched as the wolf as the silvery white tail of the wolf disappeared into the palace. Somehow the name Moonbeam was very fitting for the beast and at the same time entirely wrong to Rán's mind.

"So, what're you called?"

Turning back to Rendas, Rán found the man's deep green eyes watching her intently and even though she was taller than him by good margin, under Rendas's gaze she suddenly felt about six years old.

"I'm Rán." After a moment of awkward silence she added "I travel." It felt pretty pathetic when compared to the what Rin and Rendas could do but it was the only thing that had come to mind. It wasn't really even the truth either. Rán didn't travel, she fled. The past was a place was place that Rán never wanted to visit again and so she ran, never staying in one place too long lest it catch up with her. While this train of thought hurtled through Rán's mind she was aware that Rendas was still watching her and with nothing else to say she felt her cheeks start to flush. Quickly she turned towards the palace with a mumbled "the king is waiting." and hurried inside hoping that Rendas hadn't noticed the deep crimson shade that was spreading across her face.

It didn't take Rán long to find where Moonbeam, Rin and Valesco were waiting. Rán tried to give her the woman a friendly smile though she felt like a prize idiot as she did. The odd little group was standing in front of was a monstrous and grand door. It stretched right up to the ceiling high above and was made of a dark red wood inlaid with delicate golden patterns. There was another much smaller door built into the main door, though it was well hidden and it was through this that a fussy little man with a bald head and excessively shiny shoes suddenly appeared.

"Is everyone here now" he exclaimed impatiently. "The King is waiting."

 

[Greenie]

"Ran, hm?" Rendas nodded as he followed after her, still pondering about the name. While it amused him that it was so close to his and his sister's nicknames, he did wonder where she was from. The siblings were originally from the Groenlan continent, born and raised in a forested village near the coast known as Sojourn. It had been given that name precisely because it was a place where people stayed temporarily before heading either off the continent or further in.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, fellow traveler." Rendas wasn't sure if Ran was actually listening to him as she led the way, and so he quieted. It may have been an awkward one for others, but for himself he was quite as ease. He enjoyed having some quiet time, which was actually rather rare for him, seeing he could understand animals as well.

As for the red on her cheeks, the hunter had noticed, he just had enough sense not to bring it up... right now. He was sure there would be plenty of time to laugh over silly memories once he and Rinata became fast friends with this Ran. Rendas was an optimist in that sense.

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Rinata was looking a tad bit impatience by the time the bald fellow made his appearance. "Well, there was no one else with us," she replied with a shrug.

It wasn't long before they were lead into the throne room at last, the inside looking more impressive the longer one looked around. Pillars and archways a plenty, balconies and chandeliers. It was clear that a lot of time and gold had been spent to build just this one room. Rinata couldn't imagine how long it must have been to build the entire palace.

The throne sat further in, a rather large and exquisite seat fit for a king. It was said the throne was to have originally been a throne upon which the king sat, but some hundred of years it was scrapped for the much more feasible idea of a fancy chair.

"Humble yourselves before King Sven, Fifteenth of His Name and Ruler of all Panworld!" The order was given by a rather high-pitched voice. If the adventurers looked in the direction of the voice, they would see it came from a rather gaunt man dressed in white and blue.

"That's..." The much quieter and shakier voice came from the person seated on the throne.

Rendas and Rinata both bowed their heads in respect. Moonbeam, not caring about human traditions and customs trotted around the room, sniffing about. Velasco on the other hand wing flew straight for the throne, landing on its head.

"Why the insolense!" Tomus Shiftyeyes sounded scandalized. "This is a palace, not a menagerie!"

For his part, Sven actually seemed much more relieved having the distraction of the bird. It was something else he could pay attention to while he spoke. "My thanks for arriving here in time allocated," he began, holding his hand out before the raven, who promptly pecked at a finger. "Ow! Uhm... before I uh..." He seemed to be searching for words before simply blurting out what he wanted to say. "Will you tell me more about yourselves before I give the quest?"​

 

[Applo]

Like the siblings, Rán had her head bowed in deference to the King. Part of her hated how quickly she had lowered her gaze when instructed, but she knew that it was a habit that was burned so deeply into her soul and that she'd probably never shake it off. Her gaze remained fixed to the floor until a sharp voice ripped through the hall and she found herself looking for it's source.

Her eyes settled on the tall, haggard man standing next to the throne. She had barely noticed him when they had entered the throne room, her attention having been focused on the throne and its occupant and now that she looked at him properly Rán wished she had never noticed him at all and hoped against hope that he hadn't noticed her either. The look in the man's eyes made her stomach churn with fear.

"Ow! Uhm... before I uh………Will you tell me more about yourselves before I give the quest?"

It took Rán a moment to realise a question had been asked. Like a gazelle that has just spotted a lion, all her attention had been focused on the gaunt man as she watched for some sign that she should run. Looking around she was suddenly aware that all eyes were now on her, even Rendas and Rinata were staring at her from the sides of their eyes. Worse still the man next to the throne was as well.

For a long moment Rán's mouth opened and closed as sentences flooded into her brain and were equally as quickly dismissed. Her cheeks, still a little red from her encounter with Rendas contrived to go an even darker red with each passing second. Unable to meet the gazes of anyone one in the room Rám's eyes fell to the floor and focused on the ends of her boots as if they were everything she had ever desired.

"I am Rán." The words crept out and felt just as pathetic as when she had last spoken them. Feeling that something more was required of her. She couldn't tell them where she came from, her right hand moving to cover her left wrist at the mere thought. And she also couldn't say what she used to do. While the king had invited her here Rán didn't think it was a good idea that she had spent several years working aboard a pirate ship. In the end she settled for merely saying "I dive." It was one of the few thing about herself that she was sure off.​

 

[Greenie]

Sven blinked, trying to understand what Ran had meant. "Dive?" he repeated, head tilted as he looked at the woman with unabashed curiosity. It was rare enough for him to see a woman adventurer, yet today he was blessed with the sight of two. An interesting turn of affairs. It was almost disappointing that he wouldn't be allowed to go along with them.

"Ahem." Sven's attention immediately turned to Tomus, who was seeming rather inpatient, pointy shoe tapping against the floor. "She means she jumps into the water and swims, probably thinking she's a fish." He let out a very loud guffaw at the non-joke, only stopping when he realized no one was actually laughing and were more confused as to what he found funny. He cleared his throat, a vein in his forehead twitching with annoyance as he continued. "I don't know what sort of help... diving would do to this quest-"

"What's about you?" The king hastily turned to look at Rendas, not wishing Tomus to continue. He knew the vizier didn't want this mission to take place, but there was no way he was going to let it stop.

Rendas could tell there was something fishy with Tomus Shiftyhands, but with a name like that, he couldn't really expect the fellow to be upstanding and honest. However, he shifted his glance from the vizier over to the King, whom he focused on whilst giving a polite smile. "My sister and I hail from Sojourn but we've been travelling on land as well as by sea for quite a while." He looked to Rinata, urging her to continue.

"We have an ability passed down through generations, we can speak to animals." It was said in a very matter of fact way.

"Oh?" Sven leaned forward, looking excited. "What's-" He pointed to Moonbeam, who had his mouth wide open. "What's he saying?"

"Ah, he's just yawning." Rinata chuckled a little before looking to Moonbeam. "Tell us something."

The wolf trotted forward and began to bark even as he closed in on them. His tail was wagging, ears standing up and tall, looking more a dog than a wild wolf. "Ah... he's explaining he doesn't really like the smell of... ah, wine." The ending was clearly made up, but she didn't want to say anything insulting out loud.

"That's amazing!" Sven proclaimed, unable to look away.

"I suppose it is," Rendas agreed with a grin. He would have probably been happy to continue talking about Moonbeam, but a nudge from Rin reminded him of why they were actually there. "So, was there a specific task for which we were called?

"A fool's errand," Tomus muttered, shaking his head impatiently.

"I am hoping that you'll find and bring me the Scepter of Brelagh." Sven's look of amazement became serious, and the three adventurers would be able to tell he was neither joking nor indecisive of the matter. "I know most think of it a fairy tale, perhaps even you three but..." He took a deep breath. "A druid came here and told me of its existence." Druids were thought throughout Panworld to be the most knowledgable of magic holders as well as the most ellusive. "He said that the scepter is real, and that if wielded by a true king, it will serve him well."

He looked to Ran, Rendas and Rinata. "Well? Do you accept to go on this mission?"​

 

[Applo]

While the king had been talking to Rendas and Rinata, Rán had been lost in her own little world as she reflected on what Tomus Shiftyhands had said. She had never thought that she might be a fish. She had wished it, she had wished it many many times. The idea of leaving the surface world and all it noise behind and spending the rest of her life caressed by the comforting embrace of the oceans was a dream Rán had had many times in the past. She knew however that a dream was all it could ever be.

The sound of Moonbeam's bark pulled Rán back out of her head and into the here and now just in time to listen to what task the King wanted the group to accomplish. Personally Rán had never heard of the Scepter of Brelagh, not that would have stopped her from accepting the quest. She needed a new purpose in life she knew that. She had spent months idling in the boarding house the magpie had found her in for several months now. It wasn't that she particularly liked it there, it was just that she had no where else to go and nothing else to do. Rán had lived most of her life with someone telling her what she should be doing with every waking moment, she wasn't good at making choices for herself and tended to shy away from having to make them where she could. Being handed a task like this was a gift for Rán. It didn't matter that this scepter was thought not to exist, she would search for it. Besides a Druid had said it was real and while Rán's education was a little light on most subjects one of the things that her mother had drilled into her was respect the druids.

"I accept." Rán was almost a little taken aback at how quickly she had answered King Sven's question and she suddenly wished she had waited to see what the siblings were going to say. While the idea of a quest that would take her away from her current life was incredibly appealing she had no idea how she would go about it by herself and she found her self looking over to Rinata and Rendas with a knot in her stomach.​

 

[Greenie]

Rendas and Rinata looked at each other, a silent agreement going on between them before they turned to look at Sven. "We accept as well," the brother said, giving a little bow of his head while his sister inclined her head.

"S- splendid!" Sven was beaming as he looked over new fellowship of three- or rather five- each whom he figured had their own unique qualities and would bring value to this team. He wished terribly that he too could go along with the group, away from his responsibilities of king. It would be nice to spend time with normal people than the stuffy lot he was continuously stuck with. Why, he was sure he'd received more smiles in the last couple of minutes than he had in the last couple of days!

"Well, that's settled then." The grumble was of course from Tomus, who seemed somewhat pleased. And he was, of course. Now that this frivolity was almost over, the king would pay more attention to things that deserved being looked over. Like taxes and other things peasants hated. "Baldy should have horses and various other travelling necessities packed for you and waiting by the stables." He lifted a hand and waved it in an almost shooing manner.

While the three 'Rs' and even Moonbeam would have probably ignored the man as simply being a bit of a douche, Velasco suffered no fools. He let out a rather delicious insult at the tall and thin vizier, took to the air and promptly relieved himself on the man's head.

"What the-"

"And that's our cue to skedaddle." It was hard for Rendas to keep the grin off his face. "I doubt there's anything else we'll be learning here!" He hastily bowed in Sven's directly before trotting for the exit, followed quickly by the large white wolf, the latter seemingly grinning as well, white tail wagging enthusiastically.

"Right," Rinata said, "we'll see you when we shall, my liege!" Looking to Ran, she gave her new companion a friendly smile. "Let's get going then, eh? Shenanigans await, I'm sure."​

 

[Applo]

Rán trailed behind Rinata, her brother and their pets as they left the great hall at hurried pace while curses against them, Valesco and the universe in general echoed in the hall behind them. She wasn't sure but Rán could of sworn that several of guards who had been standing by the hall's over sized doors smiled at the group as they passed.

The group walked in a companionable silence as they made their way back outside, down the palace steps and out of the gates. Back in the city proper the problem that had occurred to Rán on their journey so far was rammed home to her. Where in the heavens should they begin their search for the Scepter. All around them streets stretched away. How could they possibly pick the right one.

"So," The word came out as a flat whisper that even she struggled to hear over the general hubbub of the busy city center. She tried again. "So, where do we go now?"

 

[Greenie]

Rendas patted the side of his horse's neck before looking to Ran, a pondering look on his face. "That's a good question," he replied, scratching at his bearded chin. "Most often Rin and I have a set destination but it seems planning has been thrown to the wind at this moment." He looked at their surroundings, unsure if he wanted to stay in the city for too long or if they should leave or head on forward to some other location. "What do you think, Rin?"

She shrugged her shoulders momentarily before shooing Velasco off her head, where he had settled once they'd left the palace. She smoothed her dark hair before looking out towards the city gates. "Honestly... we could probably ride on forward to... er..." She reached around in her backpack and pulled out a map, spreading it out so that if the two came closer, they'd be able to see as well." Her green eyes narrowed as she looked carefully, following away from the palace and down to the coast, stopping at a name. "Seaspur? I heard it's s'posed to have a famous library there even though it's small... maybe one of us could find something more credible about the scepter in there?"

"Hm..." Rendas looked to the place where his sister's finger still rested before looking up to Ran. "What do you think? Have you been there before?" Since she mentioned she was a diver, he felt it was very possible she must have. "I'm betting they have more than a tavern or two to visit..."​

 

[Applo]

"Once or twice." Rán hesitated as she tried to think of what to say about why she had been in the town. The real answer wasn't something she particularly wanted to tell the twin right now. Despite their friendliness towards her, they were still strangers and Rán wasn't sure how they would react to finding out about the less wholesome chapters of her life.

In the end she opted for telling the truth somewhat selectively. "One of the ships I used to work on visited a few times but we only ever passed through and I normally stayed aboard when we did." Rán left out that it was a good thing that she'd never really ventured into the town with the rest of her crew. There were probably more than a few people in Seaspur that would want to quite literally claim their pound of flesh from the members of her old crew but Rán doubted anyone would remember or even suspect her of being one of them. Still there was a part of her that worried that a trip to Seaspur was a bad idea. The past belonged in the past. There was also a more immediate problem with Rinata's plan.

"I don't have horse." Rán had never really dealt wit horses. They were something that other people had, not her. Normally she traveled alone and could walk at her own pace without consequence. Two people on horses though would quickly get frustrated, leave her behind or run her into the ground.

 

[Greenie]

"Well that won't do at all." Rendas paused his horse in its tracks, thinking over the matter. He wasn't overly devoted to the two geldings the siblings had bought, seeing the two were old and would much rather be better off in a farmer's field to retire. The only reason he had convinced Rinata to buy these two was because their previous master had been a rather callous jerk from the stories the two horses had told them.

"Alright, I've an idea." He looked to Rinata and held out his hand. "Give me the reins. I'm going to find someone to exchange these two with and get us something more suitable and relaxing to travel in."

Rinata looked unsure, but she trusted her brother and knew he wouldn't do anything too stupid. Letting out a small sigh before nodding, she got off the horse and handed the reins. "Don't take too long."

"Aye, don't worry." He smiled to the two. "Well, since it seems you two will just be idling, why not take a look through city? Must be something worth seeing here. These two can find you when I return. Moonbeam, Velasco, come with me." The raven made a rude noise, though he did comply. Moonbeam was eager to please, as always.

Rin shrugged a shoulder As Rendas and the duo of animals headed off. "Well that's that. She then looked to Ran, a friendly smile on her face. "Well, he has a point I guess, we may as well start our search from here. Or relax, whatever suits your fancy." She had to admit she was a little curious about this much taller and quiet woman.

"So... anything else besides diving that you do?"​

 

[Applo]

"Not really." Rán was always at at loss as to what to say when people asked her questions like that. Apart from her sub aquatic exploits she did very little worthy of talking about. Mostly she just existed, drifting from one day to the next. She was quite happy with this state of affairs but it didn't exactly make good conversation.

Unsure of what to do while they waited for Rendas to return with new horses, Rán turned in a circle on the spot, taking in their surroundings. Half way through her spin Rán spotted a fountain at the next intersection of streets along from where she and Rin where standing. Wordlessly she stalked along the street, pushing her way through the crowd till she reached the smooth stone wall that contained the pond of water before sitting on it and letting her hands trial in the cool water. Even here, in fact especially here, in the hustle and bustle of the city, the sound of running water was incredibly soothing.

"What do you and your brother do?" The question had been much mulled over and debated inside Rán's head but now with the little inner tranquility provided by the fountain she had the courage to actually ask it.

 

[Greenie]

Rin had followed after Ran, quickening her steps after the much taller woman. There was that at least; Ran was tall enough to follow so didn't have to worry about losing the only person she knew in this city. 'Knew' of course was a very loose term to be used, but even a couple of hours together was better than being stuck with a bunch of strangers. She sat down at a little distance from the woman, trying to figure out this enigma of a person.

"Me and Rendas?" She chuckled as she dipped her own finger in the water, swirling it about and drawing shapes that immediately disappeared. "We travel quite a bit... take on different quests for people. We were always different with our abilities and so..." She shrugged. "It was easier bein' out an' about with no one passing judgement." She leaned back carefully and looked up at the sky, smiling a little. "We stopped for a while, both of us gettin' married. Turned out Rendas' wife wasn't as lovely as he had first though. As for my husband..." She paused before changing the subject. "In any case, we soon found ourselves alone once more. It seemed the world liked us better whilst we travelled, and so... here we are."

She reached up towards the sky, stretching out her arms before sighing with relief. "Not gonna lie though, this is easily the most lucrative quest we've decided to go on. Scepter of Brelagh? Huh..." Rin looked at Ran questioningly. "Was it just me or did that vizier seem as if he'd rather the mission not go through?"​

 

[Applo]

"He scares me."

Rán was a little taken aback at hearing the words of what she thought were her inner thoughts roll off her tongue and for a moment she felt the familiar urge to run and seek metal oblivion in the bottom of a bottle. This time however, instead of having fight with all her will to stay put, the urge passed quickly and a feeling of relative calmness descended over her. This too surprised Rán a little. In her previous life as a sailor, Rán knew that several of her shipmates had thought her mute for quite a long time. She didn't know why, but something about Rinata made her feel it was safe to let her guard down just a little.

"His eyes aren't the eyes of a good man." Rán thought for a moment on how to explain what she saw in the viziers eyes before settling on the simplest explanation that came to mind. "The King had kind eyes full of worry. The viziers eyes were full of meanness and greed. I've seen those eyes before in the faces of bad people. I'm glad our mission will take us far away from him."

As last of that train of thoughts left Rán's mind a new question came up to take their place. "Do you think the druid the king met is right and that the scepter actually exists?​

 

[Greenie]

Rin was quiet as she heard the woman next to her speak more words than she had previous in the last couple of hours they had been together. And she had to agree with what Ran was saying as well.

"You're right, that man's not quite right where it counts." She shook her head as she leaned back a little, letting her own fingers dangle in the water of the fountain. "He's a lecher, that much's obvious, but something else. Like you said, his eyes just ring wrong. I wish there was someone else to guide the king..." She dug her booted heel against the ground before letting out a frustrated breath. "But he probably weaseled his way there through money or magic. That's why I like smaller places, villages. You know everything there is to know about a person..."

Heh. Well, sometimes that's not the greatest either, Rin. A half-smile came to her lips. "Well, I guess those have their own troubles.

"As for the druid... honestly I'm not sure." She looked to Ran, shrugging her shoulders before giving the taller woman a grin. "But you know, people used to say people like me and Rendas were just from stories." She prodded her cheek with her finger a couple of times and then chuckled. "I'm pretty sure I'm real though. A rumour usually has some truth to it."

She quieted a little as she reached into one of her satchels, pulling out a sack with beef jerky. "Have some," she offered.​

 

[Applo]

Rán reached out for the proffered jerky and, not wanting to accidentally rip it out of Rin's hands or use a second hand, awkwardly tore a off a strip by twisting her hand as much as she could. While she chewed on the dried beef Rán thought on the truth of what Rin had said.

It was hard enough for her to believe that the twins could talk to animals now that she had met them, would she of have believed a rumor of a pair of siblings who could talk to animals? She'd met some strange people in her life and seen her fair share of weirdness but still Rán doubted that she would have. And yet here Rin was in the flesh, her and her brother having demonstrated their abilities several times already, living proof that fantastical tales could be true.

It was at this point that Ráns train of thought got diverted onto a new track. "When did you and your brother know you could do what you can do? Could you always do it or did you have to learn how?