“What…what by the horde of Ancalagon goes on here!!!” shouted Gareth Steelheart, Captain of the Hounds of Anarion as he stood surveying the wreckage of the upstairs chamber of the Thirsty Seer.
Over Gareth’s shoulder, the barkeep Emery surveyed the room with dismay. “You maniacs...do you know how much this flooring COST ME!!!????'
For yet another moment in this very long day, time seemed to stand still as the room was flooded by gawking knights as well as curious or angry townsfolk. Across the now acrid air of the chamber Xandilif the Banshee locked eyes with Finchley, and glanced at Hawke and the swooning Addiela meaningfully. The girl nodded, understanding immediately what the champion was asking her to do.
Picking up Eduwiges discarded ale mug as cover and giving Hawke an urgent wink, she helped Addie up with one shoulder, letting Hawke support the larger woman from the other side. Helping her through the crowd and towards the door, both Hawke and Finchley looked like part of the scenery, just another young couple in war-torn Minas Tirith, and Addie’s long black robe made her practically invisible and appear older than she was.
“Make way, make way…got a wounded woman here. I think she’s with child, she is..got a terrible scare. All this bother, how’s a woman to get her washing in today, I ask you.” Finchley called out in her Grams’ voice as knights respectfully got out of their way. One even helped them down the stairs. Finchley barely controlled the temptation to scold the young knight for letting such confusion happen in the city.
Many of the other participants in the drama also slipped out in the confusion, meeting in the courtyard below to wonder what the next move should be. Nethrida helped Finchley and Hawke tend Addie, who was still just moaning and muttering that this was all her fault, getting her water from a nearby fountain. Looking around at the street scene it was clear there were a shocking number of stunned and wounded around the Thirsty Seer, thanks to Mans’ unwanted return.
Eduwiges searched the crowd for the Lady Ahmo and Arrothiel but there was no sign of them. It was as if they had disappeared into thin air. Pacing, Eduwiges was still trying to understand how things went so bad, so quickly when she heard Xanderian’s voice in her head, as if the elf were whispering in her ear. “Take everyone home, my lynx, Lif and I will join you when we can and then we shall all consider what to do next. Do not let anyone despair, especially not sister Addie.”
The tall woman nodded her head, forgetting for a moment the huntress couldn’t actually see her, and began guiding the others towards where they had left the horses. What few knights sought to stop them were turned aside after noting Nethrida’s livery as a servant of the Crown in Dol Amroth or recognizing Eduwiges as “the Rohan giantess who haunts the training halls”.
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In the chamber above, sufficient order had been restored for Gareth to turn his attention to investigating the strange incident. His Executor, Stannis began carefully sifting through the ash atop the podium as Gareth turned to stare hard at Xandilif. Noting Xanderian hovering nervously at the champion’s shoulder just made him look more alarmed. One was bad enough.
“What the hell happened here, Banshee?” The knight nodded to Stannis as he rejoined him, looking disturbed.
Xandilif rolled her eyes. “Listen, ya tin lobster, I can explain….”
Gareth cut her off. “No you can’t…”
The Banshee stopped and looked chagrinned for a moment. “Yeah….no, I can’t. But she can, tell him Monk.” She stepped aside so her sister could face the knight.
Xanderian tried to look serene and learned, doing her best Calidis impression. “Captain, this was just a small experiment gone awry it seems, that our Lord Elrond Halfelven of Rivendell was fully cognizant of. A simple attempt was made to gain knowledge towards the war effort but it was perverted and usurped by the enemy. It was….”
Stannis cleared his throat. “From the residue remaining and the effect on the Tier, it appears that what we had here was an unregistered attempt to create a cross planer nexus with intent to contact a previously existing individual or individuals. That alone would involve endless paperwork, in triplicate, translated into four languages. Then it seems from the blood and the apparent application of an outlawed language that there was an intervention of some kind involving stage four shadow necromancy resulting in an attempt to reconstitute in spiritual or physical form a deceased creature within municipal boundaries…that is utterly illegal and carries a hefty fine and mandatory jailtime…or death. It doesn’t appear that the shadow energies produced seriously harmed anyone, and property damage is mostly confined to this room, so somebody appears to have gotten lucky or there would have been hell to pay.”
Gareth’s lip set firmly. “Do you two menaces have any reason why I don’t arrest you both right now and sort all this out in an interrogation pit?”
The mention of arrest caused Xanderian to frown deeply, the arrest of Gwaelion by the Hounds was still too fresh. She was about to open her mouth when Lif stepped in again. “Don’t give me that orcshite, Steelheart. We both know you got no orders on this yet. You are just here since the Hounds of Anorian’s Lounge is on this Tier so ya came over to check on all the damn noise. This ain’t official business yer on, this is a gordamned courtesy call and you know it!”
Now it was Gareth’s turn to look chagrined. “I admit we have no commands about this…but we were concerned someone was injured or that the walls up here had been breached. We didn’t expect to just find you two first born harpies playing games with dead things.”
Xanderian smiled. “And your desire to help was to your credit, Gareth. Truly the folk of the Tier needed your aid and that of your Company. As for what caused this troubling and shameful event, you know neither the Champion of the Azure Faithful nor myself are agents of the enemy. This has ended up being connected to a personal matter and Xandilif and myself, along with our comrades, shall resolve it. You have our oaths on it. Surely after all this time you must know the value of those oaths. We simply ask your patience, that is all. Of course we will repay Emery for any damages to the tavern.”
Emery’s voice was raised from across the room. “Damn RIGHT you will, or you’ll be banned for life…the both of you.” Xandilif went a bit pale at the threat.
Gareth shook his head ruefully. “Alright…we’ll let this slide for now and I will report it as an accident….but I will expect a full report on this from one or both of you soon, understood.”
Xandilif bristled. “I do NOT take yer damn orders let alone report ta you ya feckin…” but Xanderian put a hand on her arm, silencing her.
The Huntress nodded. “Understood Captain. When we have answers to give, we shall give them. Now, if you will excuse us, we will be about this.”
Gareth nodded curtly and went back to overseeing his men as the two sisters slipped downstairs silently and into the common room. As they walked past the bar a terrified looking serving wench pressed a long bill into Xandilif's hand and ran away. She glanced at it with a snort. "I could buy this whole fecking bar for this...." she muttered as they walked out into the street.
Xandilif shook her head as they walked quickly to their horses. “OK Rian, that keeps the White City off our arses for now, but what the feck did HorseImp DO? She called Mans back from the damn dead? How did she manage that little trick…and WHY? She has always been a bit..y’know..weird…but never evil.”
Xanderian shook her head softly. “I think it is far more complex then that. I truly believe sister Addie was deceived, but that Mans could do so from beyond the grave means as we suspected, there is far more to him than assumed. We must speak to Calidis Night-Eye, she will know more I hope…and our friends will have need of us in a myriad of ways. We must get home before Steelheart changes his mind…or receives orders.”
The huntress swung up on her horse. “The one thing that is terrifyingly clear….is that Mans is alive again, and we will need to find a way to rectify that situation as quickly as possible. I fear what that monster and his ring may have planned, and what host he will have fled into. We have little time to lose.”
The two rode out of Minas Tirith together, side by side, each lost in their own dark thoughts. It was clear to both of them that things were going to get a great deal worse before they got better…IF they got better.
