PBEM Orlantia

The Story So Far
Chapter 037

PBEM Orlantia: Off To The Sage.

With a comfortable bed and the security of sleeping in the inn, Sefarlain rested as well as he could remember. The following morning, refreshed and looking forward to meeting up with the group, he wandered downstairs and ordered breakfast.

Hot rolls with ham and fruits left the kitchen and were placed in front of him as the rest of the party drifted down in ones and twos. Everyone seemed to have an appetite, and soon the table was filled with empty plates and bowls. Feeling the extra weight in his purse, Sef stretched back in his chair and smiled. For the first time in many years he had a degree of financial security - enough at least to enjoy a breakfast and a room without concern.

But business matters pressed them all into action soon enough.

"When everyone is ready," began Afyanna, "I think we should settle this unfinished business. I've got the wine."

The group trundled out of the door of the Keg and made their way to Nick Shereef's home, where his son, Skylar, greeted them once more.

"You're back, I see. What happened?" he began, his youthful enthusiasm bubbling to the surface.

With a finger pressed to his lips, the elf smiled at the boy and instead the party entered the premises and sat down once more to await the sage.

- Justin (Sefarlain)

PBEM Orlantia: The Answer Man.

The party members entered the large consulting room as they had before and made themselves comfortable. Soon, a knock at the outside door took Skylar away for a moment, but he quickly returned with the missing Priest of Hermes, and Valin joined his friends for what would probably be the last time. Now they only had to wait for the sage.

They did not have long to wait before the sage appeared carrying some dusty books, but when he saw that the party of adventurers had returned, he laid the tomes down on his desk and abandoned whatever research he was doing in favor of more immediate concerns.

"I'm delighted to see you have returned, and in one piece from the looks of it. In fact, you have brought additional friends with you."

Bebe frowned, for they had not escaped from their ordeal in one piece, but it quickly dawned upon her the sage she had never seen before could not possibly have known about her friend, Jahar, whom the sage had also never seen. Then, as Lucian jumped up onto Alana's shoulder, the gnome silently wished Brambles could have been with her just as Alana's cat was with her, but a cat did not cause panic and fear within city limits the way a wolf often did, no matter how well behaved a wolf they were. As she waited for the sage to speak, her thoughts briefly flew to what Brambles might be doing outside of town.

"Yes, and with us now are Alana, Bebe, and Febriwyn," Afyanna introduced her new companions to the sage.

"I'm sorry my uncle is not here today; he would have liked to speak to you as well, I'm sure," said Shereef. "But I am here, so first order of business, please. Why have you returned? To satisfy my curiosity? If so, it is not necessary, though very kind of you to do so. But if you have come to buy further information, my door is always open," he smiled.

Afyanna now frowned, for she did not really know what to think of it. In part she had returned to fill the man in, more as a favor than anything else, though she could not tell him much of what she had learned since it had to remain a secret for a couple of years and she had promised the elders of Joad she would do her best to keep that secret. And she had brought the sage a present, too. And now here he was telling her he was going to charge them for information. Another expense? It irritated her, in a way. But she quickly decided upon a plan and put it into action without consulting the others.

"Yes," Afy began, "we have returned, and with friends, though one of our new found allies has paid the ultimate price, I'm sorry to say. Jahar Flinn, warrior of Crowl, has met his untimely end and has been laid to rest in Hooktar."

"Oh! I am grievously sorry to hear this news," the sage told them all, the proper solemn look crossing his face.

"And we do have need of information, but wondered about a trade," she said, producing the bottle of aged wine and placing it before the sage.

Nick picked it up and his eyes momentarily widened when he read the label.

"Ahum, umm, hmmm, a trade you say? For this? Are you sure you want to part with this? Well, I can only hope my information is worth as much as this is worth."

"We're never sure what information is worth - that's your trade - but we do hope this wine is worth more than our needs to come this day, and the balance you may consider a present and as an expression of our thanks for the information we obtained before that led us to our successful completion of my quest."

"Then you have succeeded?" the sage asked, "and we did steer you right?" he wondered.

"Indeed, we have succeeded, and you did steer us right. I'm only sorry to say we cannot tell you all the details."

At that the sage sat down and looked at the holy warrior for a time before finally speaking once more.

"I . . . understand. And is this a permanent arrangement, or might we one day speak of it?"

"For two years, I think, no further inquiries should be made along these lines," Afy told him.

*It's almost cryptic to listen to them,* Sef thought, and if the ranger hadn't known what they were talking about, he would have been completely lost.

The sage thought for a time, then finally nodded, "Yes, yes, very well, yes. It shall be done." Then he placed the bottle inside his desk drawer and closed it with a smile, the new and proud owner of a vintage bottle of wine.

"Ask your questions, then, and I'll answer as best I'm able."

Afyanna then told of Joad and the nightmare that had befallen them like a curse, how Jahar had died, and about the fierce final battle with the beast, all in surprising detail, blow for blow, recounting the tale they, themselves, had told each other several times during their return trip. Eventually, with each person's perspective thrown in, the tale of the battle had settled down to a common consensus of what had actually happened, and this was now what the holy warrior relayed to the sage, skipping any obvious mention of the temple or the altar, though she did mention the soul field and how the nightmare had been using and abusing it. She did not, however, mention the Timber. It would clutter up the narrative, and she wasn't sure anyone had any questions about the Timber, anyway. If they did, she wasn't certain how they would bring it up without telling too much of Joree Sheen's tale, and that seemed more intimately linked with the temple, which Afy needed to keep secret.

Skylar listened in rapture, wishing he had been there to witness it firsthand, somewhat oblivious to the fact had he been there he most likely would have perished.

"In the end, it wasn't a real nightmare we battled, after all," she at last finished, placing the oddly shaped stone before the sage. "It was some kind of magic item run amok, after having killed its own master. Near as we can figure, it was entirely an accident that set all this in motion. But this nightmare of a wondrous magic item has caused so main pain and destruction that we're not sure what to do with it. In the way of our first question, what can you tell us of it?"

"Skylar, bring them refreshments," ordered the youth's father, and the sage retired to some books and buried his nose in them for a time, ignoring the party.

The young man, as he had before, offered them various things to drink, and some bread and cheese to eat, and they all sat quietly nibbling at it for nearly half an hour before Shereef made his reply.

"It is my considered opinion that this is an item of wondrous power. Not all are the same, so one can never be truly certain what this one does without trial and error of some sort - though you could learn more from a spell of identification. And I suspect you'll have to obtain one, anyway, unless you know of the magic word of power to activate it?" he asked.

They collectively all nodded their heads, since Joree has told them the words she had heard.

"Ah, that's is good. And I can hazard a guess along these lines, too, if you wish." They seemed to, so he did. "This item could probably become many different animals - all most likely suited to travel or riding upon. It seems to summon a spirit of the intended creature, so even if you did summon a nightmare, it would be a different one - a different spirit of a different nightmare that would inhabit its form while it remained in your service. And, baring accidents, you'd have more control over it than its previous owner's last attempt. Sadly, however, I also suspect it's a sympathetic item."

"Sympathetic item?" Mystir asked. "What's that?" a bit miffed he, of all there, had never heard of that term before.

"Oh, perhaps there is a better term for it, but what it means, in essence, is the more powerful and experienced the user, the more diverse and powerful the summoned creature may be. Why, an inexperienced person like myself might be lucky to make the item work at all, even if I knew the command word. Then again, there is usually some default form that most anyone can summon. A nightmare, though, sounds like a pretty powerful being to control and command. Doubtless it might remain beyond your ability to summon one with this for some time to come. In the meantime however, for 100 GP, maybe a little more here, maybe a little less in Alodar, a guild could tell you what might be summoned, but since you know the word of power, you might just go for trial and error and save the money. I must warn you, though, I'd spend the cash if I were you. It might reveal a few hidden quirks that simple trial and error might not reveal for years."

"So, this item channels its power though the user, and if the user is weak, all he may summon are weak creatures?" Mystir asked, looking for clarification.

"Yes, essentially correct. Just as you, friend wizard, may summon and control greater and greater amounts of energy from beyond as you learn more of your craft, this item uses the same avenues for its strength, and any creature summoned would be sympathetically proportional to the user's own power, or, if they wished, less than that. That is only an upper limit, you understand, for doubtless you could summon anything less than that limit, too."

"Any idea what might be summoned?" the young wizard asked the sage.

"The identification spell should clear that up and give you more exacting parameters, but I'd guess a mule and a horse might be amongst them. What lay above and beyond that, apart from a nightmare, would be pure speculation on my part, I'm afraid."

"But we could control what we summoned?" Bebe wanted to know.

"Alas, since it probably summons a real spirit of the requested type, it would retain some of its nature. Just as some horses are gentle and others unruly and wild, so, too, would each horse you summoned be unpredictable to this extent. Yet a competent horseman would be able to handle all of those, I dare say. A nightmare, though, is another matter. That's a creature of a rather foul disposition, so while you could control it, never forget it is an inherently evil creature, and if it should escape your control it might do horrible things. Now I think, from what you tell me, this soul field allowed the beast to draw sympathetic energy from another source - a permanently available source. Such would not normally be the case. It draws power from the user, and for a finite period of time. I'd bet a day, maybe a little more, but not much longer. At the end of that time, it would revert to this statuette form and probably quit working while it recuperated. And it would remain in that form until a user summoned it again. It could not summon itself."

"Ah," Mystir exclaimed, "so the soul field in many ways is the whole cause why this beast was able to rampage not for a day, but for months and months?"

"Just so, but I'd have to know more about this soul field," the sage told Mystir. "Where was it, who erected it, and why, all might help my analysis," he explained.

"Details," Afy chimed in, "that I'd be happy to share with you . . . some day," she smiled. Shereef frowned, but nodded with a grunt.

And then it finally occurred to Afyanna why her lord might have sent her on that quest. Gods didn't normally interfere too directly with the calamities and tribulations that might befall mortal kin, but now it seemed Corellon Larethian's own hand, through Joree, had supplied the very power that allowed the carnage, and so it was incumbent upon her lord to stop it. And he worked this time through Afyanna's hands, another holy warrior. It made sense. The lord giveth and the lord taketh away. Otherwise the lord mindeth his own business - usually.

"We also have this," she said, nodding to Bebe, who then promptly produced the book of poetry and laid it before the sage.

He opened it gingerly, as if it might bite him, but when it didn't he proceeded to look through it for a time - seemingly unimpressed, and then eventually closed it. Just as he did, he quickly changed his mind and opened it again to the beginning pages. "Ohhh! Why, do you know what this is?" he asked, as if the answer should astonish anyone who did.

"We suspect we do, but what do you think?" Afy asked.

The sage now further examined the pages in greater detail, got out another book, hunted through that for a time, and then finally went back to the tome of poetry. After a few minutes he announced, "A first edition of The Emerald Soul. If you don't know, this is extremely valuable to the right people. And they'll want to examine it and confirm its authenticity for themselves - probably at your expense should it prove to be a fake - but it looks genuine enough to me."

He did not tell them this, but he frowned inwardly to himself and begrudged the good fortune of the adventuring class that they should have a book that could easily represent a decade's income for a hard working sage like himself. But then, he knew, his books never tried to kill him, and that book had cost them one life. On the whole, when his thoughts turned down this avenue, common sense eventually brought him back and made him realize anew his was the safer path to a long life, and he was only being petty to begrudge them of any reward that might come their way. Greater risks deserved greater rewards. So he said nothing about it.

"And were there more questions?" he asked, handing the book back to Bebe.

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: The Right People.

Alana caressed Lucian while thinking that it felt strange to tiptoe around the information they were supposed to keep a secret. The druid thought Afyanna did it rather well. She also thought she probably would want to wait recounting her adventures until she could safely do so without being afraid to inadvertently blurt something out she wasn't supposed to - much easier that way. There were some people who were experts in drawing information out of a person, even if they hadn't intended to tell them anything. And after everything they had gone through to save the people of Joad, she certainly wanted them to become a huge success.

Luckily, the sage was very gracious about it. He didn't pressure Afyanna to tell him more. That, more that anything else - even the things she had been told by the others - convinced Alana that this was a very trustworthy man.

Alana felt slightly uncomfortable when Afyanna produced the oddly shaped stone that had apparently been used to summon the nightmare. She still was slightly suspicious of the thing. But the sage's explanation made sense, and she was inclined to take his word for it. That at least eased her worries a bit about somehow inadvertently summoning a new nightmare.

When the book was produced she eagerly watched Shereef's reaction, and she wasn't disappointed. *Extremely valuable to the right people,* she thought.

Well, well, wasn't that exactly what they had wanted to hear? The only thing to know now was who the right people were, and when the sage asked if anyone had more questions, she did.

"Yes," Alana enthusiastically answered. "Would you happen to know who the right people are? That is," she continued a bit more insecurely, "if it is all right to ask that."

- Wilma (Alana)

PBEM Orlantia: Money Matters.

"The right people?" the sage repeated. "Well, collectors. The wealthy, the affluent, the social elite in most societies who have that kind of cash - more cash than they have status, perhaps. Indeed, a first edition such as this could bring great social status to some. But I have no one specifically in mind. The king, himself, might be inclined to buy it. The queen likes poetry, and he might jump at the chance to present her with such a present."

"It's true," Valin offered. "I have the queen's ear, though, and not the king's, but I might be able to present the offer."

"And if not there, then I'd suggest the wealthy merchant class - they often have more money than social status. It would be quite a feather in their cap if they were known as one of the owners of only two-dozen or so surviving copies of the first book ever printed. They might even throw parties around it. If not there, then I'd suggest a literary shop in Alodar or Handor. You'd lose a bit to the middleman, but you'd make a quick, clean sale."

"How would Valin get his share?" Tyrulf asked, knowing the rogue would not be going with them to Alodar.

"Oh, don't worry about that," Valin explained. "I've seen how things work on this planet, and there is no better system for transferring money than the church."

It seemed strange to be reminded that Valin was not even native to Orlantia. The wonder of talking to a person who was actually born on a different planet impressed Alana deeply, for she had always thought of things in terms of her druidic circle, which was only one of twelve, and all circles in general, which encompassed all of Orlantia. That had been everything - all there was, and all that would ever need concern her. The fact this world of hers was shown to be much smaller by Valin's presence almost awed her, and she vowed one day to travel the worlds and embrace a grander vista than before.

"The church?" Bebe asked, since no one else did.

"Yes, the church, or churches. You can drop off my share at any local church of Hermes in Alodar, and that's as good as cash here, at my church. They need not bother transferring the hard cash from city to city where it might be robbed. Credits and debts are routinely handled for the faithful, and they tend to balance themselves out, so actual cash transfers are rare. In any event, my share is as good as placed in my hands simply by dropping it off at a temple of Hermes wherever you may be."

"You might think governments could work as efficiently, but no," Shereef added. "Churches have better communications since all branches - or temples - are connected to the same heavenly hierarchy. I don't mean to make it sound like instantaneous communications - that would be harder and take more sophisticated magic - but each scepter reports are routinely shared between the appropriate churches. That's my understanding of it, anyway. So at worse, it might take 20 days to get the credit - usually less - and it often takes a lot longer to send the cash over land or over sea - assuming it gets there at all. Bandits are everywhere."

It was interesting to catch a glimpse of more sophisticated financial matters, now that they had some money. It had never even been an issue before since the few coins they had in their pockets and purses represented all they owned in the world. Horton's handling of debts through the use of gems, and now the whole church system of economic transfers, made Afyanna think.

She had thought to simply carry the churches' gems to it, but, when she thought about it, a sea voyage was riskier. It might be wiser and more prudent to drop off her charge at the closest temple imaginable.

"So any temple of Hermes will do?" she wanted to make sure.

"Actually, any temple friendly to Hermes will do almost as well," Valin told her. "Though you'll have no problem finding a temple to Hermes in Alodar, if that's what worries you."

"It is a worthy system of study," Shereef spoke again. "Knowing which temples are affiliated with whom, and where you can make deposits and withdrawals. There are those who think using a holy church as a depository is disrespectful, but few would dare try to steal from a church. The curse of god would be upon you. And, as a matter of socialization, having money filter through the churches tends to bring more people closer to god, if you can believe that. What is it they say? 'In the Gods, we trust,'?"

"But I mean, doesn't it seem trivial to use god's house of worship as a cache for cash?" Mystir asked.

"Well, it's not like we're talking about trivial sums, here. If you can carry it as coins, you probably should. But for great sums, for values too dear to lose or risk, we aren't dealing with the price of a pint or a loaf of bread, but sizable sums. So it is not a daily, trivial thing, but a periodic thing that the church is ideally suited for," Valin explained.

"Can I leave money at one temple just to withdraw it at another?" Sef asked.

"Well, yes and no. You shouldn't use the church as your personal vault, of course. But for members in good standing - and for that read those who faithfully give 10% of their income - yeah, you can do that, provided you let about 20 days pass between deposit and withdrawal, there should be no problem at all," Valin told the ranger.

Afy now wondered, since there were no large temples to Larethian in Tarren, if there was a friendly god to Larethian that might do as well, so she asked this.

"Umm, well, yes, I guess so," Valin told her. "I do happen to know the church of Athena has a small temple here, and Athena is friendly to your Lord, Larethian. You could drop off the temple's share there. You could pay your tithes and taxes there, as well, probably."

"My tithes, sure, but my taxes too?" the holy warrior asked in wonder.

"Oh yes. Even governments work through churches, and your taxes paid at a temple to Athena here, ear marked for the Alodarian Empire or wherever you hail from, is as good as paying it directly to them. If anyone keeps good and accurate records, it's the Alodarian Empire. They're fiends for accuracy, if you really want to know the truth," the sage told her.

"Really?" she asked.

"Yes, indeed, yes. A government or a kingdom or the local authorities are often one of the churches' biggest . . . umm . . . customers, you might say. The flow of debt and credit between government and church is so common, it is not surprising in the least to anyone familiar with the system that your taxes could be paid in that manner," the sage lectured the room.

Afyanna, she realized, had a lot to learn about the world. But she felt, at last, as she foresaw her future, that she was making a good beginning of it, and in good company.

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: Passage To Alodar, But First, What's Fair?

Afyanna left the sage feeling better than she had in a while. She hadn't even realized how much she had been thinking about their financial situation until Sage Shereef had lifted that burden. From his reaction, the book alone should fetch far and away enough to pay for their training, gear, and probably still have plenty left over - assuming they got it to the right people.

As they trudged back to the tavern, Afyanna voiced her ideas.

"I think we are pretty much done here," she said. "We should head toward Alodar in the morning."

Cosher chuckled at that, and when the holy warrior looked at the sea dwarf for an explanation, he finally relented and gave her one.

"Bookin' passage onna ship is nae so easy as that, lass. Sometimes you might have tae wait weeks, even months before the right ship appears."

"Months?" she said, dejectedly.

"Well, Ah'm guessin' this port's fair busy, so it'll most likely be days, but it'd be a wild stroke o' luck if we could depart as early as the morrow," he told the group.

"Then we best go down to the docks and see right away," she said, and so they turned that way and began to walk toward the harbor.

Then Alana went on about other matters while they walked.

"What do you think is the best way to handle the book and other items?" Alana asked.

"I think we should try to get the best value for them, even if it takes a little longer," Afy said.

"I do, too," Bebe chimed in from behind them. She was lugging around a bag containing the silver service, so by all means she wanted to get the best value for her hard work!

"Should I ask the king about the poetry," Valin asked, "or would you rather we try collectors or dealers?"

Afyanna thought about that for a moment, but before she could answer, Alana spoke up.

"I think it would be sweet if the queen could get it," she said. The druid had a soft spot in her heart for love.

Afyanna smiled at that. Yes, it would be nice if someone could enjoy the poetry instead of secreting it away because it was valuable.

This was sort of a silly notion, though it did not occur to her, since for a few gold pieces, anyone could buy a copy of that book - it just wouldn't be a first edition. Odds were, in fact, the queen, since she liked poetry, already had an inexpensive copy of the tome of poetry. But this didn't quite occur to her, so she was not thinking along those lines.

"As long as the money is similar," Sefarlain said, "I agree, we should sell it to the king as a gift for the queen, if he wants it. And we need not risk a book so rare on the open seas, as well."

"I think that's a wonderful idea," Afy said. "I'm happy to give up a little in value to see someone enjoy the book. I'm probably not alone in thinking that the book should cover most if not all of our expenses." Several nodded. "Besides," she continued, "it may not be a bad thing for us to be nice to the king and queen of Tarren." Several chuckles told her that they also thought it might prove worthwhile.

"I'll ask around and see if he is even interested," Valin offered.

"What about the figurine?" Sefarlain asked.

"And dagger?" added Mystir.

"For the dagger, I think Joree spelled out its powers already," the holy warrior said. "I agree though, we still need to decide who gets it."

"Why not let it belong to everyone?" Bebe asked.

"I've seen and heard of too much trouble coming from such a good, and well-meant, idea." Afy replied. "It never fails that someone, even with the best of intentions, starts thinking that 'so-and-so seems to use the 'thing' more than anyone else.' Or 'why does so-and-so always carry it?' I think it would be best if at some point we decide who actually owns the item." Then Afy added with a smile, "We'll first need to decide HOW to decide that as well."

"As for the figurine," she continued, "I think we should spend the money necessary to discover all the powers. It would be foolish to keep an item of such power and not know its boundaries."

"I agree with that," Mystir said.

"Once we get to Alodar, I'll still need to go to the temple and explain the situation in Joad," Afyanna said. "I'll have to get the services of a high priest, and of course pay the church their share from Joad. I may have to escort the high priest and his followers back to Joad as well."

"If this is so," she continued, "I may not be around for a bit while the items are being appraised and sold. I don't think you need to have me there anyway, as long as we are already in agreement as to the best course."

"But are we?" Mystir asked. "For one thing, it might be better to pay the church tithes and taxes now, before we set sail. And the churches' share from Joad should also be dropped off now to ensure its safety. And I know something about the value of magic items. No matter how valuable that book of poetry may be, it probably pales in comparison to the value of actual magic of this power. Both dagger and figurine may each surpass the book's value alone. There's no reasonable way any one of us can own any of these items. That is, unless we dice for them or something. Do we really want to gamble with things so valuable? Wouldn't it cause greater jealously if one person won both, or consistently won items, while the rest of us kept losing? I understand your concerns about the problems of no one owning it, but until we have more value to our names, the concerns of owning it may be greater. Besides, truth be told, I see little harm, save one, of thinking of these items as group property for now."

"Save one?" Sef inquired, cocking his head to the side and thinking he could see several, so his curiosity as to whether or not Mystir's one was even on his list surfaced. "What one?" he asked.

"Well, they are probably several, but my main concern would be what might happen if the person carrying it lost it or ruined it somehow in the line of duty? Might everyone feel he or she then owed everybody for that item? If so, I doubt I'd want to be the one to carry either of them."

"Thar's a bigga problem, mates," Cosher interjected. "Valin's leavin', and so am Ah. If those items are so valuable as that, that means those who wish to depart will get nothin' of thar value, and that's nae fair. Maybe we should sell 'em both and split the money evenly?"

This idea sent a chill through Afyanna. She knew the group's power, even their life, might depend on magic, and in the field cold cash rarely could save one's life. And yet Cosher was right. There did seem to be no fair way to handle the matter.

"In that case," Mystir sighed, "since the party would be foolish to sell items of power which might save our lives, we may have no choice but to gamble for them. If one departing wins an item, well, perhaps that's the will of the gods of chance and providence."

They proceeded in silence, all pondering the problem set before them, until at last they reached the docks.

It did not take long to learn the A.I.V. Raven was in port and due to return to Alodar in 6 days' time. They secured passage for themselves - all that wanted it, for 2 GP and 5 each - and then returned to the Copper Keg.

Evening had come sooner than they realized since walking the length and breadth of a large city consumed a great deal of time, and, as it turned out, was very tiring. Despite the money on the horizon, they still weren't ready to frivolously spend it on coach fares.

Finally arriving at the tavern and sitting down, they all soon found themselves ordering a large supper and eating in silence until all were satisfied they had had enough, except for their after dinner drinks. Mystir paid 1 GP and 1 from the group fund for all they had that evening, and then, as they sat at the table in relative quiet now that most patrons had gone home, all that remained were the few guests of the tavern, like themselves, and so they had the place virtually to themselves.

"So how are we going to do this and still be fair?" Mystir asked at last.

- Rick (Afyanna) and - JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: The Great Divide.

*You can fight side-by-side with people, but never really know them,* Afyanna thought, rubbing her bleary eyes. *But when you talk about money, their true colors often reveal themselves," she smirked inwardly. *This is the sort of stuff we should have worked out long ago - long before we found anything worth splitting up,* and she chided herself for not doing it. Often there had been times with little else to discuss on the trail, but she had failed to take the initiative to discuss such matters. But to be fair, she did have other things on her mind then.

Valin stood up from the table and stretched with a yawn. They had been deep in discussion about how to fairly split up their treasure for nearly seven hours, and dawn was not far off.

"We've made some progress, and I think we're getting closer and closer to an agreement. The 'party fund' idea is sound, but I repeat, I don't think there is much of a reason for departing members to concern themselves with that now. That's more something you can decide after Cosher and I depart. For now, an even split of the cash is fine - you can build a fund later any way you wish, and out of the money of those who stay with the party," he said, seeming adamant about the matter.

"Well, laddie, you may be goin', anyway," Cosher smirked. "Ah may be leavin' the group, too, but Ah'll be traveling with them for a fair time yet - until we reach Alodar, anyhow," he explained. The voyage would only begin in six, no, five days' time, and it would last three weeks or longer.

"True, true," Valin muttered, picking up the tome of poetry, which all had agreed he could take with him so the king might be more suitably impressed and see what he might be convinced to buy. "I'll take this now and see you all back in, well . . . not today - I'll be sleeping most of the day - so, say tomorrow morning for breakfast?" he asked. They all nodded, thinking of their five remaining days until departure, so a full day of nothing but sleep was a welcome idea. They were still recovering from their trip.

Wyn, of course, was somewhat more suspicious, but in the end he, too, relented and thought the fact the more valuable magic items remained with the rest of them would be incentive enough for the Rogue of Hermes not to run out on them with such a valuable book.

In the end, more than a few matters still left unresolved, they broke up their meeting and each headed to their respective rooms. Valin, of course, departed for his temple, the only one in the party who had more permanent dwelling arrangements in Tarren.

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The sun was shinning in her eyes, and Afyanna was annoyed, so she turned over and tried to fall back to sleep - but her mind had already started working, and sleep seemed hopeless.

*Wait a minute. I deliberately chose a room with a western facing window.* She sat up, suddenly realizing she had spent the entire day in bed and it was the setting sun that was now annoying her and interrupting her rest.

Minutes later Afy appeared on the stairs leading down into the Inn's common room, where Bebe greeted her, having just returned from the city limits. The gnome had gotten up much earlier than most and had spent the morning with her wolf, and communing with nature, but as the sun grew low she had returned to the inn.

"Good 'morning,' sleepy head," she chuckled at the holy warrior. "You're last up."

"Yeah? So? We have someplace to be, maybe?" Afy said grouchily.

Valin entered just then, well in advance of his expected visit for breakfast the following morning, and his smile turned to a grin as he saw the holy warrior.

"Good news," he beamed. Spying the others were about the share an evening meal, he joined them, and Afy and Bebe found their chairs from the previous night's meeting and all soon took up their accustomed positions.

They ordered - a lot of things - and paid a full two gold pieces for everything they consumed, gorging themselves on meat, fish, and vegetables, breads and cheeses, wine and fruit, and at the last - several slices of pie - apple and peace, cherry and strawberry, and a custard-like pie the waitress said was a 'cheese cake,' though only Mystir had ever had that before. He had to admit, in fact, that one was much better than he had recalled the others had been. Most thought it didn't really taste much like cheese, but it was very rich, creamy smooth, sweet and delicious.

Stuffed and feeling fine, drinks at hand, Valin finally told his news.

"The king agreed to see me and when he saw what I offered, he immediately bought it - paid me in platinum, he did."

"How much?" they asked in chorus, annoyed the cleric didn't think it important enough to volunteer that information immediately.

Valin smiled quite broadly now, "More than expected. More than we had a right to, anyway." He produced a weighty bag and dropped it on the table with a loud thud. Bebe grabbed it with surprising speed and drew it towards her.

"This is all . . . 'platinum?' " she whispered the last word. Hefting it, she proclaimed, "It must weigh nearly six or seven pounds!" she exclaimed under her breath.

"It's worth 14,000 GP. He probably would have given less, but when I told of some of our adventure, I think he became more generous. Oh, I didn't reveal any secrets. Seems the king had already been getting reports of the terrible creature, or the unexplained deaths, anyway, and he was looking into dispatching some soldiers to investigate. Now that he doesn't have to, he felt in a more giving mood, I guess, and bought the book for 4,000 more gold than we thought it was worth. I doubt we could have gotten a better deal elsewhere," Valin said.

"Hmm, maybe if timing had been different, the king would have paid us to go investigate the problem, and rewarded us even more for solving it," Tyrulf mused.

"Ah doubt et, lad. Well, not that much, anyhow. Not from what Ah know o' royalty - thay're pretty cheap most times, lad; they have tae be, or thay'd go broke fer sure in noo time," Cosher told them.

"But he paid dearly for the book, didn't he? That doesn't sound like a cheapskate to me," Bebe pointed out.

"Ah, lassie, but think aboot et. Tis a present, isin et? The more he pays fer et, the more he can brag about ets worth, or tell the queen how much he loves her by how much he spent, so et's no quite the same thang, now is et?" Cosher had never revealed this cynical side of himself before, so Afy figured either he was far more cynical than he let on, or he had some experience with royalty that was less than rewarding. She might have even wanted to find out for sure, but since Cosher was going to be leaving the group, she felt it was no time to begin prying into such personal affairs.

Afyanna took the bag, and looking around to make sure no one else could see, gingerly dumped the contents out on the table. One thousand-four hundred little discs of shinning metal lay heaped in a small pile one could scarcely believe weighed all of seven pounds.

"Divide it up nine ways" ordered Valin. Afy looked at him, but finally nodded, and soon Bebe's little fingers had produced nine piles of 155 coins each, and one pile of five coins that remained.

"Put the five other coins in the group fund, if you wish," Valin said, taking his pile. I'll be happy with this for now. I can finally start to buy some things I . . . need."

The others seemed happy enough to follow suit, each taking 155 platinum coins and placing them carefully in their purses and money belts, the three quarters of a pound or so of metal feeling like financial security to each of them.

"And there's more news," Valin announced. "The king's wizard has agreed to look over our items - no charge - as a favor to the king. That'll save a couple hundred gold in identification spells, too," he smiled.

"Can we trust him?" Wyn asked.

"I think so - about this, anyway. So if you let me take the dagger and figurine, we can get that done now as well."

Wyn's suspicions arose anew. He really didn't know these people. Maybe the Rogue of Hermes was just that crafty and devious - gaining their trust with the lesser item, just to spirit the other two away, never to be seen again.

"And you'll come back with them tomorrow?" Wyn asked.

"No, I doubt it. I've spoken to the king's wizard and he said what I described might take a few days to fully explore. I told him of your departure time, though, and he seemed to think it would take less time than that.

*Hermes is a thief, and a god of thieves,* Wyn continued to brood. *Is this really the guy we want to trust with these things?* he kept asking himself.

A remarkable degree of perspicacity, perhaps, Valin leaned over to him and whispered to Febriwyn, "In Hermes' name, I promise I'm not planning on ripping you off." No one else heard the whispered comment, save Wyn.

Wyn feigned a shocked look of disbelief and innocence as best he could, as if to say, 'I have no idea what you're talking about,' but then he cracked a wry smile. A priest did not use his lord's name to utter a lie, he knew, and so Wyn let the matter go.

"Then I'll try to sell the silver service tomorrow," Bebe said. "I'd rather not carry it on a three week sea voyage, anyway, and its value will pale in comparison to this," she said, hefting her purse, "anyway."

"I've already sold Bopper this morning," Tyrulf said. "Can't take him along with us."

"And how much did we get fer him?" Cosh asked.

"What do you mean, we? He was my mule. Not that it's your business, but I got half what I paid for him."

Though adventurers often did buy horses and pack animals at full price, and if they survived, ended up selling them at quite a loss like that - it was typical business for them. Stabling and feeding such animals was quite a costly endeavor, so in a way it was more like renting the animals, with the full value as a security deposit. He smiled as he thought how close his deposit had come to ending up in the bellies of the starving people of Joad. Then he briefly wondered what mule would taste like, but quickly put the thought out of his head, deciding he'd rather not find out. He was just glad Bopper had survived, and the stacks of dirty dishes around him suggested he'd never have to find out what it was like to be so hungry.

Afyanna yawned, hardly able to believe she was so sleepy so soon, but a big meal could so that. "Well, I'm going back to bed," she told everyone. "No reason to meet again so soon, so I suggest we wait until Valin returns again with news from the king's wizard. You'll let us know when, yes?" she asked Valin.

"Hmm, oh, yes, certainly," he smiled.

"In the meantime, well, you all have things to do, and maybe financial matters to attend to at your nearest church, etc. and finally some money to do it. Don't spend it all in one place. Remember, you'll all need to pay instructors if you wish to further your training, and I hope you all will pursue this wise course of action. For now, however, spend a little and have some fun, but keep a low profile, too. You never know who's watching," she warned them. Then she retired to her room and flopped into her bed again, thankful the sun had set and the room grew darker by the minute. Soon, she was fast asleep.

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They saw little of each other in the next three days, except in passing. Financial security gave them freedom from one another, and each ventured into the city, going every which way, doing things they wished, many of which they could never afford to do before. And the days were warm and sunny.

Despite everything, occasionally Wyn found himself sneaking around Valin's church, reassured when he caught a glimpse of the man and knew he was still around.

The town was aflutter with activity, many preparing for the High Holy Day and beginning of the year just two weeks off. Sadly, it finally dawned on many of the party members that they'd miss the biggest festival of the year since they'd be at sea at that time, but it couldn't be helped.

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: A Few Spare Days.

Feeling slightly giddy after receiving such a princely sum, Sefarlain decided to leave the money in the safe hands of the church before heading out of town for the day. He needed to consider what his next steps would be, and after the long discussions regarding the magical items, some time alone did not seem amiss.

He didn't stray far, though, and wandered near to the lake while lost in his own thoughts. *What to do with this wealth?* he pondered. Did he not also carry a responsibility for its use?

"I was sent to Joad for a purpose, and that was based on what I have learned," he reasoned. "Surely I must continue where I have begun. There is so much more to learn. But where to learn and from whom? Who do I know and trust to teach me?"

His path seemed endless with so many options, but in fact as he thought through such choices, he only knew of the Valantaúr and his uncle who could readily teach him what he so desperately needed to learn.

"I will go to Alodar and then to Peric for a while," he confirmed to himself, "but then I shall return to the group and see what the gods decide for me then."

He reminded himself he still carried the block of wood from the Timber, and resolved to take it to someone in Alodar who might be able to fashion a bow from its wood. All that money had to be useful somehow, he thought.

- Justin (Sefarlain)

PBEM Orlantia: Paying Her Dues.

Afyanna became aware of her own footfalls as the noise of Tarren faded behind her. Traffic was light that morning, with the horse-drawn wagons mostly heading into the city and on the other side of the wide avenue.

The paving stones gave way to hard packed earth after a while, and soon a side road came into view. Just as the local woman who gave Afy directions had said, there were two small statues of angles to Athena flanking the side road. 'You can't miss it,' the woman had said. True enough.

The holy warrior turned down the path past the angelic statues and past two sentries. They were dressed in ornate armor, each with a short spear and a shield emblazoned with a stylized owl.

*Probably holy warriors themselves,* Afy thought, nodding to the men as she passed.

Their positions there were most likely ceremonial in nature, but Afyanna could tell that those men knew what they were doing. The way they wore their armor, their stance, their scrutinizing gaze as she passed by, and their nonchalant attitude, as if she posed no possible threat to two as skilled as they. Small things to be sure, but things that told her that those men knew their trade and were not merely men in colorful costumes.

Afy continued along the well-maintained road toward a grouping of white stone buildings. As she drew near, she noted that most of the buildings were small structures without walls. They varied in size, but had the same appearance: a large slab-like roof overhead, supported by pillars. Some of the smaller units had four pillars, while the larger ones had eight or more.

Within the buildings were artisans of all kinds. A group of weavers chatted happily in one as they worked, while in another several painters stood in a semicircle with their easels around a seminude model. In still another, sculptors hammered away at stone while people stood and watched. The church of Athena was a well-known patron of the arts, and its temples hosted people of all trades.

Beyond the freestanding artistic venues was a wide courtyard with manicured shrubbery and a small fountain. Knots of people were gathered together in conversation around the area. At the end of the courtyard stood a large domed building of the same white stone. The whole area had an air of tranquility about it.

Afyanna moved toward the domed temple, pausing at some of the artists as she passed in order to watch them work. Afy had never been very artistically inclined, though she could affect minor repairs to her weapons and armor. It always filled her with a kind of awe to see someone create things of such beauty from nothingness.

The holy warrior climbed the broad flat steps of the round domed temple building. Arriving at the top level she could see that although she was already under the domed roof, she had not yet entered the temple. Instead, a wide colonnade wrapped around the temple that allowed people an area to talk and gather all around the circumference of the temple itself. Afy could see many taking advantage of the shade of surrounding pillars to do just that.

Afy continued straight ahead and entered the overlarge doorway of the temple to Athena. The thick, polished wooden doors were thrown open to allow all to enter freely. Once through the doorway, the room immediately opened up to use almost all of the vast area under the dome. Although she could see small doorways off to her left and right, Afyanna was mesmerized by the large statue of Athena herself that stood directly under the center of the dome. It was easily done in a 3 to 1 scale, reaching over 16 feet in height.

Athena drew the best sculptors to her temples and they had outdone themselves there. It was the most beautiful piece of stonework Afyanna had ever seen. Afy had seen magnificent dwarven stonework, and she had seen the temples to Corellon Larethian that had taken her breath away. But the statue to Athena surpassed even those. She had to blink a few times to assure herself that it was not, in fact, alive. The stone goddess stood in a casual pose, holding a short spear in one hand and a large shield in the other. Although wearing full armor, she was as stunning as if in a royal gown. Hair flowed down her back from under a golden helmet.

"May I help you, miss?" a voice asked from behind her.

Afyanna turned to see a small man dressed in the robes of an acolyte. His hands were folded in front of him and he looked up at her with a pair of sky blue eyes.

"Yes," she said, snapping out of the tranquility before the statue, "I need to drop off some funds for my church."

"Ah yes," he said. "Right this way, please."

Afy followed the man around the wall along the left side behind the statue. He pointed to a doorway and said, "Lysis, our temple clerk, can assist you."

"Thank you very much," Afy told him.

The room was quite small, and seemingly more so from entering from the temple dome. Another of the sentries stood post in the corner, and a large man in a gray robe trimmed with blue stood behind a broad polished counter. Behind him were bookcases filled with books and parchments. As Afyanna entered the room, the man looked up from something he was writing.

"Are you Lysis?" Afy asked.

"I am indeed," he said with a broad smile. "You have need of the financial services of the Church of Athena?"

Afy nodded and made her way to the counter. She withdrew the bag of gems from Joad as well as her coin purse and set them on the counter. "I need to pay my tithes and taxes, and get some things to my church."

"Yes, yes, we can do that," he said happily. "Providing it is a church with which we are affiliated."

"Church of Corellon Larethian?"

"Oh yes, yes. No problem at all!"

"Ok, this needs to get to the Church of Corellon Larethian." Afyanna slid the bag of gems toward Lysis.

"I see, I see," he said pouring the contents of the bag onto the counter top. "What's the value?"

"I don't recall exactly," Afy replied. "But it's not from me specifically - my tithe is separate."

"Oh, I see, I see," Lysis said. "Tell me what it is for so I can note it for the records and send along a proper message."

Afyanna thought about it a moment before replying. Finally she said, "It is the church's half of the salvage of temple property that I helped recover."

"Mmmmhmmmm," he mumbled idly as he scribbled on a piece of paper before her.

"I also . . . "

He held up a finger to bid her quiet a moment. He continued jotting down notes, sometimes pausing to rifle through the gems with his finger before continuing to write.

"Ok, what else do you have for me?" he asked finally.

Afy had been organizing her coins while he worked, so she slid over the piles she had made. "23 PP is for Alderami for taxes, and 23 PP is for the Church of Corellon Larethian as my tithe."

"I see, I see," he said. "Just a moment."

Lysis turned to the shelves behind him and retrieved two very large books from among the dozens. There were many smaller, but few thicker than the ones he retrieved. Once he slid one pile to the corner of the counter where the bag of gems was, he jotted down some notes in one book. Afyanna caught a glimpse of the crescent moon.

*Ah, these must be the ledgers for each place.* It made sense then that each 'account' had its own ledger to track payments in and out and by whom. As if on cue, he asked Afy her full name.

"Afyanna ea'Theys d'Enthril-Rynne."

Lysis surprised her by only asking for a clarification on one small part of her name - and it's a part that has multiple common spellings. He was obviously well versed in elvish names. He then opened the second ledger and made more notes, then slid the second pile of 23 PP to the corner.

"Would there be anything more?" he asked.

"Yes, I need to make some change and then put some away to be held in trust for me."

"Yes, yes, we can certainly do that!"

Afyanna explained what she needed and how much she wanted to keep with her. Between the two of them they sorted out some more of her coins into the pile at the corner and she received some change back. He made some more notes into his ledgers before she finally went on her way.

The holy warrior walked back into Tarren feeling a lot better about things.

*One more thing accomplished,* she thought with a smile.

The gems had been deposited for the church, so there was no longer any risk that they would get lost or stolen or some other fate. She had also tied up the loose ends involving her taxes and tithes. She still had her share of the party fund on her, but at least now it was in a form ready to give to Mystir when she saw him again.

Afy knew once the sale of the silver service was complete, she most likely would not make another trip back to Lysis to clear her debts again before sailing to Alodar. Such smaller sums could easily wait until her return to the Alderami Isles and home. Otherwise poor Lysis and clerks like him would forever be making minute entries every day, and no one needed that kind of hassle. Besides, she had over paid a bit, and it might turn out what the service sold for would not amount to her owing more than she had already paid.

Afyanna walked the streets of Tarren feeling a lot more at ease than she had in a while. Yes, the only things remaining for her to do were to get to the church for a High Priest, and to get some training. All in all, things were looking up.

- Rick (Afyanna)

PBEM Orlantia: A Day To Himself

Mystir spent an entire day in bed. It was the first time in over a week that he was able to rest. And rest he did.

The young boy decided to spend the day alone. He had a few errands he needed to run and wanted the time for himself. He dressed in his regular clothing, but donned his winter boots and cloak, just in case.

The wizard moved down the staircase and across the tavern. He managed to duck out without sight from the others and was on his way. His first stop was at a tailor's. The winter outfit he purchased was not meant for combat, and it showed slightly.

After dropping the garments off for some minor mending, Mystir set off to find himself a new staff. "Sheesh, that really hurt," he said to himself while rubbing his hands together, the memory of his shattered staff in his hands surfacing in his mind.

Soon the boy was examining various pieces of wood. He was checking the weight, length, thickness, and for the first time, the color. He wanted something that closely matched the piece he recovered from the timber. One piece caught his eye and he lifted it up to get a closer look.

"May I help you?" asked a middle-aged man, his voice startling Mystir.

"Uh, yes," the wizard paused for a moment. Rolling the reddish staff across his arm to check its edge, Mystir responded, "I'll take this one."

"I see," the merchant responded. "This is an excellent choice; strong wood."

"Hopefully stronger than the last," a smile crossed the boy's face.

Mystir paid for the staff and then continued on his way. He grabbed a bite to eat and then picked up a few items for the sea voyage. By the time he was finished, Gimarian hung low in the sky and a new backpack hung over his shoulder. He made his way back to the Copper Keg and arrived just in time for dinner.

- Kevin (Mystir)