Zion: Light of the New Moon Part 2, Ch 2.3 Doen
Zion - Light of the New Moon, Part 2 Chapter 2.3
Doen A Very Wrong Turn
Thanks to a full 5 out of 5 correct on the riddles the party will receive a +5 bonus on their rolls regarding the upcoming events. That will add some nice bonuses to be sure! The current chapter will provide the following modifiers to the party: ++ Favor, + Treasure if successful or --Luck, ++ Delay if they fail. These modifiers can still be changed based on party actions/choices.
The merchant had left town, heading out into the forest without telling anyone. He took his wagon, the one with the supplies, and was heading south east which, coincidentally was the direction of Doen. Dillan left early, in secret, and didn't leave a message, notice, or letter for us. Despite what he had said about his dislike of the situation and his constant arguments with different members of the party I hadn't thought that he would actually do something like that and I spend the day packing all of that concern, worry, and frustration down away from the surface, telling myself that there were any number of possible explanations... even if I couldn't think of any.
I spent most of the day deep in thought. I promised that I would rest, and that limited my capacity to contribute, but I did what I could as I wandered around town. For the most part it felt good to just walk the streets and smile when people waved. Once or twice I offered a simple blessing to a villager, just basic well-wishing, not channeling divine energy or anything. Despite wanting to do more I had to admit that it felt like a good day, all except for that one thing gnawing at the back of my mind: did Dillan Flynn really abandon us? As dusk approached, I realized that it wouldn't be much longer before I had to say the words I'd only thought.
I slowly meandered my way back toward the center of town where I knew the group would be meeting up. There were any number of ways I could approach the topic of Dillan leaving and I wished for at least the twentieth time that day that I'd learned how to better present bad news. I considered in bad news, anyway. Considering the fact that he got along so poorly with some members of our party I suppose it would have been fair to say that it was not bad news to some, but, regardless, I thought it was bad.
"Dillan's gone." I listened to how the words came out of my muzzle; it sounded flat. "Mr Flynn left this morning." sounded marginally better. "Dillan abandoned us, and he took his wagon and the supplies with him." I winced from even saying it. "Hey! Has anybody seen Dillan?" didn't really get the idea across. Mulling over my options, I remembered Brother Harmond once tell me that offering bad news in a good-natured or humorous manner often helped ease the pain of it, so I took a deep breath and considered my options.
Stopping in front of a glass window I turned to regard my reflection, "What do you call a band of travelers who are abandoned by the ferret merchant traveling with them?" pause for effect, "...US!" I let out a sigh, hanging my head once I lost the will to look at the forlorn reflection staring back at me, "I'm screwed."
"NOW what's wrong?" came the condescending call from behind me on the road. I froze the moment I heard the voice.
"Dillan?" I spun around and ended up face-to-face with the ferret who stood there with one paw on his hip, the other holding the reins of the draft beast pulling his cart.
"Well I'm not Narissa." he responded flatly, and started when I threw my arms around him. I don't normally consider myself excessively clingy, but at that moment I was thanking Tah'aveen that he hadn't abandoned us.
"You didn't leave!" I was elated.
"What are you talking about, Zach?" he demanded, pushing me to arm's length, "Did someone slip you something?"
"The stable keep said you left!" I blurted, "I thought--"
The ferret raised an eyebrow and gave me a critical look. He glanced back at the wagon and the animal following him, "I did leave." he answered, pushing past me, "And now I'm back." he continued walking as he called over his shoulder, "Everyone's at the statue, right?"
"Yea..." I acknowledged, "but--"
"Good... get your ass in gear," he interrupted, "I have an announcement." I fell in beside him, and followed the ferret to meet up with the others. Glancing back at the wagon behind us, I couldn't help but notice that the canopy was covering it.
"Dillan?" I asked.
"Hmm?"
"Where did you go?" I inquired.
"I don't want to explain it more than once." he answered.
"And you took the wagon?" I asked.
"Yep."
"Why?" I pressed.
"I needed it." he responded.
"Why?"
"I don't want to explain it more than once." he repeated his earlier comment, "Now stop sounding like a little kid with all the questions." We walked on in silence; I really don't like being called a kid.
We drew a lot of attention when we entered the square. The town was gathering for evening prayer and it looked like Lord Rust was just about to begin. Jasper and Zeke, seated off to the side, sharing an overturned barrel looked from the gathering to us, and whispered to one another. Haldyn, who was off to the other side, was surrounded by two dozen exhausted-looking villagers-- the militia, I assumed. The lion was wearing a deep frown, which I guessed wasn't a good thing.
"Sorry to interrupt." Dillan stated in a tone that suggested he really wasn't. I took a step to the side to distance myself from him, moving over to join Taggart and Narissa, who stood near Lord Rust.
"If you would like to stow the wagon you can come back and join us for the evening's prayer." the echidna offered flatly, "Otherwise, take your interruptions somewhere else."
"Right." Dillan acknowledged, walking around to the back of the transport, "I just need to unload some stuff first then I'll take it back to the stables."
Lord Rust's scowl deepened, "You could do that somewhere less disrupti--" but he fell silent as the ferret began helping kids down from the back of the wagon. I certainly couldn't fault him; I think I froze up too.
"Megan!" came a cry from one of the villagers. "Eustace!" gasped another, followed by more and more names as the square erupted into a chorus of shouts and cries of surprise and happiness. I watched as Dillan, heedless of the continued tearful reunions, continued helping more and more children out of the wagon.
"Dillan?" Narissa hailed, approaching the wagon, "What's going on?"
"What does it look like?" the ferret asked casually, "I'm unloading the wagon before putting it away."
"But..." Taggart took several steps forward, "Are those the--?"
"Fairview's lost generation." Dillan confirmed.
"How did you--?" Narissa began.
"I reached an agreement with the Fey." the ferret answered the question before the tigress could finish asking it.
"You reached an agreement?" Jasper asked, walking over with Zeke beside him, "How, exactly?"
"I traded them something they wanted more." the merchant glanced into the covered wagon once the kids stopped emerging, then raised the tail gate back up, "Excuse me," he pushed past the two Wild Landers and hopped up into the transport's driving bench.
I offered him the reins, "That's amazing..." I noted, "These people will be forever grateful."
"These people can burn in the Eternal Flame for all I care." the ferret spat, and pulled on the reins, wheeling the wagon about and starting it off down the road. The comment didn't sit well with me, and left a very important question on my mind. I grabbed hold of the side of the wagon and hoisted myself up onto it. I climbed forward to the driver's bench and hopped into it beside him.
"What?" he asked without turning to regard me.
"Why DID you help the townsfolk then?" I inquired.
"I didn't." he answered, facing forward, "I helped the children."
"But--" I paused, trying to find a way to breech that logic, but found no argument. I chose a different way to continue the conversation, "What did you give them that they wanted more than the children?"
A faint, wily grin split Dillan's muzzle, "The only thing Fey like more than getting the better of morals is getting the better of their own kind."
"How does that work?" I asked, glancing at the ferret, who continued to stare forward.
"The Fey are divided into Fiefdoms..." the merchant stated, "those Fiefdoms are always vying for power, so when they have an opportunity to get a one-up on another they never pass up the opportunity."
"So... what did you give them?" my curiosity wouldn't let the question rest.
The ferret pulled out a silver coin and set it in my paw; I was surprised at how heavy it was, "This... isn't a Lunar."
"No... it's a Fey coin." he answered, stopping the wagon outside the stables.
"It feels heavy." I admitted, hopping down when he did.
"It's not meant to be used by us... just the Fey." he explained, "It doesn't want us to carry it." he held his paw back out and I returned it to him to him, "Each coin is marked by the Fiefdom that created it... I had five, but now I just have two left."
"How did you get Fey coins?" I asked.
"That, dear Brother Zachary, is none of your business." he answered in a cold tone, "But, needless to say, three coins freed the children... except for the Fey Marks."
"The what?" I asked, following him down the road once the stable hand took the wagon from him.
"Fey Marks." Dillan answered, "When Fey take ownership of children they give them marks on the back of their necks... it shows the Fiefdom that they belong to."
"Like a rancher and cattle." I offered.
"Exactly like that." he acknowledged, "And now I think it's only fair that we have the parents cut the marks off their children."
"WHAT?!?!" the glee with which he said the words stopped me in my tracks.
"Stupidity is a disease, Zachary." the ferret stated in a steely tone, "People can't be forgiven their ignorance... they have to realize that the decisions they make have consequences."
"But you can't expect them to--" I began, but he was quick to interrupt me.
"Listen, Zach." he grabbed hold of my wrist and spun me to face him, "I'm not going to give them an easy out and carve up their kids for them... they made the deal that did this so now they have to live with the consequences."
"There has to be some other way..." I insisted.
"There is." Dillan stated, letting go of my wrist as he continued toward the town square, "Any kid that has enough guts can do it themselves... because that's what it takes to be free."
I remained where I'd stopped, looking after the ferret. I couldn't remember the last time I saw him without his coat... at least from behind. Maybe I'd just never given it much thought before, but at that moment it was impossible to not see the gaping, circular scar on the back of his neck.
* * * * * *
Welcoem to the 3rd post of Chapter 2 for Doen.
In this chapter it appears that there may be more to Dillan Flynn than first meets the eyes. That, and some good use of that current +5 bonus.
Go here:
http://www.sofurry.com/page/319175/
to get a chance to earn more bonuses for the coming Sylvan event... having a big bonus will be helpful, to say the least.
As it shall be noted, the Contributing Readers will have until midnight on Friday, December 23rd to have their answers.