Leaving for Caemlyn

The Never Ending Quest - Episode 19466

If the measure of the Faire's success was the degree of joy and happiness of the people, then the first day and night of the Celebration in Suffex had been a glorious triumph. Through the generosity of Duke Dred wine and spirits and food abundant had been made freely available to all. The plazas and courts and city squares, and even the streets, had become impromptu dance halls where men and women had joined arm-in-arm beneath the open sky as fiddlers played their merry tunes. Children had pranced about with abandon and bands of young people had paraded down the boulevards waving colored streamers and patriotic banners.

And in the middle of it all had been Lord Frederigo. From one quarter of the city to another Fred had gone, led by his father the Duke. And everywhere he passed through he had been cheered and toasted. Upon reaching the Merchant's Quarter he had discovered a feast waiting for him in the Guild Hall. So too had the artisan's been laying in wait for him, the food less rich perhaps but the company no less enthusiastic; the lot of them vowed to make a monument to Fred's triumph. And on and on it had gone, from the long afternoon and into the wee hours of the night.


The next morning everyone awoke somewhat less rested than usual. But even so, the men and women of the Castle Montefort quickly rose up to attend to their duties; the chamberlain Pomfret made sure of that. It was his job after all and he was quite good at it, but he also had more pressing reasons. The day was going to be a very busy one, for it was the day that the Family D'Honaire was departing for Caemlyn. With all that needed to be done Pomfret had no time for slackabouts or sleepy-heads.
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Duke Dred meanwhile was busy himself, though at the moment he was simply looking out of a window at the city below. "I would have liked to have put on a fireworks show last night, but they won't be here for another week," he said and then turned around to face the young man standing in the room with him. "Well, I won't be here to see it, but the people will get their show." The young man, Sir Willian, wryly replied, "No, you'll be in Caemlyn where the fireworks will probably be a hundred times grander." Duke Dred smiled, "They better be." And then he returned to his desk.

"Everything you need is here," Dred told Willian. "All of the arrangements and so on. You'll have your hands full presiding over the Faire, but Pomfret will help you." Sir Willian nodded. A few years older than Fred, Willian was the son of Duchess Champlaine's sister. But Willian LaPoste was not just the Duchess' nephew, he was also a trusted and loved member of the Duke's inner circle. "Please give my regards to my parents when you see them in Caemlyn," Willian said. "Of course," Dred answered, "And your father will be the first person I go to see; he is my Lord Speaker after all. Before I meet with the King I want to know everything that has happened in the Royal Court since they received the news of Fred's return."
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Elsewhere in the castle a brother and sister were preparing for their long trip. "Are you ready?" Rowena asked as she entered Fred's room. Fred looked up, "What?" Rowena frowned, Fred had been distant and distracted all morning. "Are you ready to leave?" she asked again. Fred shook his head, "This is a bad idea, Wen. I should not be going to the King." Rowena planted her hands firmly on her hips, "And where should you be going? You are a hero now, Fred. And as the people of Bannock celebrate your victory so too will the people of Caemlyn, and the whole Kingdom."

Fred suddenly shot up from his seat, "A hero? For what?!" Rowena stared at Fred in complete disbelief, utterly taken aback by Fred's absurd outburst.

"Did you hear what the Chanticleer was singing to the throngs out there last night?!" he asked her, his voice harsh and full of hot anger. "The Tale of the Dragon Slayer he called it and what a story it was! He recounted how I, Lord Frederigo, set out to slay the Dragon of the Southern Caves. How within that dark maze I was befriended by the magical hound Velus. How we discovered the bound and chained Warrior Princess and freed her. How Velus revealed itself to be the Dragon but was then destroyed by my iron hand. How the Caves were then engulfed in a magical tumult which sent the Princess and myself into the dark shadows of the Goth. How fierce bandits attacked us there and then, in a hidden pit, how we were set upon by Orcs, those nightmare devils long thought driven from the world. And how in that monstrous battle the brave Princess of Aqualaria was slain. I, of course, survived. Triumphantly I might add, or rather the Chanticleer did. And then I traveled homeward only to be met by my grief stricken and wandering sister on Tumbar's Road. And then, to finish the story off, he of course made mention of the terrible Green Flame and how I survived that evil and delivered from it not only my sister but the People of the Forts and even the Chanticleer himself!" Fred scowled in disgust. "But that's a lie."

Eyes glaring, Fred lapsed into silence. But whatever kind of response he expected from his sister he certainly wasn't prepared for her actual reply.

"You addlebrained fool!" Rowena barked. "Is it a lie that you risked your life stealing into the Southern Caves and battling that damnable dragon? Is it a lie that you rescued the Aqualarian princess and that she then died in battle with the orcs deep within the Goth? And is it a lie that you freed the people of Allaria from the horror of the Dragon? Is it?!"

Still silent, Fred did not answer Rowena but only stared at her intently. And then he looked away and in a low voice said, "But, there are other dragons, and worse things than dragons."

"YES!" Rowena exclaimed, "and we'll slay them as well; all the dragons and the orcs and the dwarves and the demons and whatever else the Darkness may throw at us! But for right now can't you just enjoy the fact that you're alive, that you've stopped the Dragon from hurting our Kingdom ever again, and that the people love you for what you've done for them? Can't you be happy for a single moment?!"

Fred sighed deeply and then gazed once more upon his sister's face. "No one is happier than I that the shadow of the Dragon has been lifted from our people, Wen. But what if I bring down upon them something far more terrible?"
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"That man is cursed!" Pall spat. He was pacing about in a well furnished room of the castle, the Chanticleer sitting near the window. The Chanticleer looked at him and asked with a smile, "And would you be referring to Lord Fred, the hero of the Kingdom and the famed Dragon Slayer?" Pall turned to him, "You know damn well -- oh, just shut up!" The Chanticleer laughed.

"He may be a hero and a lord," Pall huffed, "but he's trouble of the worst kind for all those who stay close to him. And all I want to do is to get as far away from him as possible. I want to go home, dammit. But they won't let me!" Pointing at the Chanticleer he added, "And they won't let you."

The Chanticleer shrugged, "Unlike you my friend Pall, I have no home and no pretty wife waiting for me there. And unlike you, I want to stick as close as possible to our good Lord Fred. What you call trouble I call a great story. And great stories are my stock in trade. I'm quite happy that Duke Dred has extended his invitation to us to accompany him to Caemlyn."

"Extended his invitation?! We're his prisoners!" Pall bellowed. "We know too much, more than they like and they don't want us steppin' out of line, telling anyone what we heard and saw."

"True, but I'm sure this is only temporary," the Chanticleer replied nonchalantly. "And if we are prisoners in a cage, then certainly it is a golden cage. I have the honor of currently being the Duke's most favored court bard and, even better, I have the singular privilege of crafting the Tale of the Dragon Slayer. The official version. Among my fellows that is a most enviable position. And I can assure you of this, yesterday's performance was only a foretaste. I'm already working on new stanzas and couplets. I'm not done with this story yet, not by a long shot, and I look forward to what's going to happen next." The Chanticleer paused, obviously happy with his situation. And then he continued by saying, "As for you, dear Pall, if I'm not mistaken you have done quite well yourself, hawking your wares here in Bannock. In fact, better than you could have expected. And this I'm confidant was just as much the Duke's doing as it was your own, however fine a merchant you are."

"Well, that may be," Pall grumbled, "but I tell you this and it's no lie, I'm not gonna be happy until I'm back in the arms of my Helen and all this is far behind me."


By mid-morning everything was in readiness for the trip to the King's City. It was a full procession that made its way from Montefort to the gates of Bannock. The Duke and his family, their attendants, and the mages who were accompanying them were traveling in opulent, grand carriages. An honor guard of riders in full ceremonial regalia led the way and carried the rear. The standard of the D'Honaires, the golden gryphon, was raised proudly before the entourage.

People lined the streets and crowded the gate to see the procession leave. There were many shouts and cheers and farewells. Captain Locke, at the head of the march, heard a familiar cry and looked to see his wife and young son. Locke waved and his boy, Holm, waved back. Enrico, one of Dred's castle servants, stood upon the top perch of the gate, his crutch supporting his balance. He too hollered and waved; his brother Loam was one of the honor guard.

Even more people waited on the road outside of the city, and all along it; people just arriving for the Faire. Surprised to discover that the Faire had already commenced, they were overjoyed when they found out the reason why. And considering that it was another twenty days until First Winter's Night, they would have more than enough time to celebrate their happy fortune.

  1. And the D'Honaires travel to Caemlyn

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WolfRun

4/18/2002 9:38:27 PM

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