"I see", Neide nodded.

She frowned thoughtfully.

"You say these northern winters are that bad? I've heard about them, but I find it hard to imagine a winter as harsh..."

Irgen glanced at Neide for the first time in a while. "They're bad. Very bad. Any stories you've already heard about what they're like are true." He goes back to staring straight ahead. "And there are... threats. ...Wolves, for example. Hungry ones."

Neide shuddered slightly at the mention of wolves. Yes, wolves could be dangerous... even here, in Sefonia. The idea of hunger-crazed wolves in an icy land... that notion made her uncomfortable.

"You... travelled quite a lot", she changed the subject, "I must admit I envy you. I have never been away from Sefonia, nor have I met any foreigners..."

"No? Hardly surprising in the case of Easterners, but..." He shrugs.

(17:37, Today: Perception Check: The GM, on behalf of Neide, rolled 9 using 2d6 ((6,3)).)


Neide hears something to her right. She turns her head.

A man is running up in her direction... not a Warrior of Alara... he's dressed in normal traveling clothes... At this moment he's still, oh, say, well, more than 50 yards away... but he's moving pretty fast...

It looks like there's a couple of people chasing him...

"Hey", Neide interrupted Irgen, "Look at that..."

A man running... some other people chasing him. That looked like trouble...

Putting her hand on her sword's hilt, she stepped forward and observed the situation, ready to intervene. Was the man running away from danger - or was he a criminal chased by lawful people?

The man in front had long black hair, and was pale, Neide could see as he got closer.

The two men in back had nightsticks. "Stop him! You Alarans! Stop that man!"

The man in front was quite close now... in scant seconds he'd be in arm's reach. He looked like he wanted to run to the side, but the left was solid wall, and the right looked like thick mud, so...

It still wasn't clear to Neide what the situation was about... but, whatever the reason for the commotion was, no solution would be possible if the pursued man just ran away.

And so, Neide stepped firmly into the man's path, blocking his way.

"Halt!", she said, trying to sound commanding, "What's this all about?"

(08:23, Today: The GM rolled 12 using 2d6+1 ((5,6)).)

WOW. The man just dodged right past Neide like she wasn't even there. Guy seemed to be fairly quick on his feet.

Turning her head, however, Neide saw that the man hadn't gotten past Irgen. There'd been a muffled thud, and then the man was wincing in pain-- she'd turned barely fast enough to see what looked like Irgen punching the man in the stomach.

He wasn't on the ground writhing in pain or anything, but Irgen now had a firm hold on the man's shoulder, specifically the fabric of the man's cloak and tunic. "What's going on?" Irgin asked casually, within earshot of the two men running up.

"Dirty Westerner caused a disturbance at the Bardic College," says one of the men. "Pulled a sword on me when I asked 'im t' leave..."

A Westerner! Yes, that'd explain the man's looks...

"He pulled a sword on you?", Neide repeated, as she heard the pursuer's accusation. Then, she turned to the Westerner.

"Is that so?", she asked firmly, "Is that man telling the truth?"

"Yes and no," says the man. His voice has an almost sing-song accent to it. "The 'disturbance' I made was when they wouldn't let me in to take the exams, as is supposed to be any musician's right if they choose to exercise it. When I started shouting, these lackwits threatened to throw me out physically-- and they raised their weapons ere I did."

"The college's for Sefonians only," says one of the man's pursuers. "Just because they occasionally make an exception for the odd Northerner or two doesn't mean they have t' let the likes of you in--"

"--It's for any musician-- Odhran passed 'is exams at the bardic college," says the man.

"So some say," says his other pursuer, "but that was four hundred years ago, and I wasn't there and neither were you, and today, I say, you're not setting foot in the college again, not this week, not next month, not ever..."

"Wait", Neide raised her hand, her voice taking on a subtle sterner note, "So, you people pulled your weapons at this man? And you were first to do so? Also... what happened next?"

She eyed the two pursuers, her eyes not entirely friendly.

The first guard looked like he thought it was rude for Neide to interpose herself, but that the fact that she was a warrior of Alara kept him from saying so. "He engaged me in a bit of swordplay--" (Neide checked-- yes, the Westerner was wearing a sword... a longsword, specifically) "And when my colleague here came to help, the coward turned and ran for it."

"Two to one? I'd do the same if I was being robbed in dark alley," said the Westerner. "And after all, the situation was hardly any different from being robbed in a dark alley..."

Neide turned toward the Westerner.

"And who actually started that fight?", she asked him, "Who drew the steel first? Was it you? Speak truthfully."

She still didn't have the complete picture of the situation...

"Them," the Westerner says simply.

He's giving Neide a slightly unusual look-- as if he's surprised that she's bothering to care about the truth.

"I see", Neide nodded, then turned to the pursuers, "And what do you say to that? Did you pull the blades first, as this man claims? Speak, I want the truth."

(CHR check, please. (Which for you would be 2d6 -1, since you made CHR your lowest score...))

OOC: 12:23, Today: Neide rolled 8 using 2d6-1 with rolls of 3,6.

"Yes--" "--No."

They speak simultaneously. One man says yes, while the other says no at the same time.

Each of the two guards gives the other a resentful Why'd you have to say THAT, that just makes it worse look.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:19, Mon 17 Dec 2018.

Neide couldn't help giving out an exasperated sigh.

"All right... let me get this straight", she said to the two men who had been pursuing the Westerner, "You two got into a disagreement with this man here - and, because of said disagreement, you attacked him? And now, after he had to flee from you, you actually accuse him of causing the whole commotion? How... brazen of you."

She put her hand on the hilt of her sword.

"The way I see, it is you two that might need to be punished..."

"Hey, it wasn't just 'a disagreement.' He started yelling about injustice and stuff just because they told 'im t' get lost, that they weren't going to let him take the exams or whatever. That's up to them. And when someone causes a disturbance at the college, it's our job to kick 'em out. If someone walked in your barracks or temple or whatever and demanded you go arrest their neighbor for letting their leaves blow into his yard, wouldn't you tell 'im t' get lost? And if he started yelling about injustice or whatever instead of leaving, wouldn't you draw steel on 'im?"

Irgen looks sympathetic to this line of thinking, Neide notices.




They shrug, clearly believing they're in the right.




They raise their heavy batons defensively. "Hey, we're just doing our jobs. We've broken no laws-- just keepin' th' peace."

"Yes, you truly did 'keep the peace' this time around", Neide snickered, "That's why we're all here, talking about you two getting into a sword fight with this man..."

She sighed.

"All right... The way I see it, the Bardic College can have its own rules, true. And you are allowed to enforce them. But I can't help thinking that you let this whole situation get out of hand. I'm sure there are better ways of sorting out this kind of disagreement then drawing steel..."

She looked at the pursuers, then at the Westerner, then back at the pursuers.

"I say you two forget that all of this happened and go back to your duties. As for our friend here, I'm certain he'll reconsider the way he voices his objections regarding the College. And so - everything solved. No need to continue with all this mess, don't you two agree?"

"That's a matter of opinion," says the guard who said 'no.' "We didn't just want to kick 'im out. We wanted to convince him not to come back."



The two guards glance at each other, shrug, and turn around and walk off-- glaring at the Westerner just a little over their shoulders as they head off the way they came...

Neide's eyes followed the two guards for a moment - then, she turned to the Westerner.

"So... what about you?", she asked, sounding a little more friendly than when she had been talking to the guard, "I hope you don't plan on going back to the Bardic College and causing more trouble?"

She frowned slightly.

"By the way, would you mind explaining to me what was it all about? You mentioned not being allowed to take the College's exams... whatever these are?"

The man sighs. "...I think they've made it clear they won't have me."



"You've surely heard of bards... to be official, one must pass the Exam of the Bardic College, a test of both bardic knowledge and musical skill judged by the masters of the college... No Westerner has passed it for a few hundred years, and none has tried for at least 150, but I thought I'd give it a shot... At best, to force them to pass me, at worst, shame them for their own hypocrisy in failing me, look them in the eye as they lied and said I wasn't good enough, and they would see that I knew their secret shame, if they were man enough to have any shame. But they won't even allow me to try. It's not that I care that much for their opinion, exactly... it was more an attempt to get someone-- who in any way represents the Southlands-- to respect something about the Isles of Dhan. But it's not to be."

The stranger's words tugged at an old string in Neide's heart. The yearning for acceptance and respect... she could empathize with that.

"You sound... resentful", she observed, "I can see you care about your Isles a lot..."