EA#47:

The Sands of Chaos Character Free Write

So I’ve got my five main heroes sorted.

I’ve had them in mind for some time, but I had so many other characters, too. It became too much. So I relegated most of them to minor roles and decided five would last me the series of so many books I have planned.

Here they are again…

Primary: Leam Dagorn
Healer: Sherena Torin
Mage: Kaill
Warrior: Darron Steele
Thief: Rargem Reddale

And now that I have them, it’s playtime.

What follows is a fictional account.

“

The Unkempt Hole In the Wall—ahem, “The Cushy Corner Tavern”—was filled with sordid types that night. A group of ruffians guffawing in one corner. Watermir land sharks, the ensign guard, over there, discussing the crimes of the day. And three travelers enjoying a late dinner.

Leam sat with Sherena and Kaill over some braised duck.

“I don’t care much for duck,” Sherena muttered, poking it with her fork. She settled on eating her carrots and peas.

“Mm,” voiced Leam, mouth full. “I’m loving it.”

“Of course you are.”

Kaill licked sauce from his lip. “Indeed, it is a fresh catch. Good seasoning.”

“Mhmm,” Leam agreed.

It seemed a large man at the bar concurred. He called for the barmaid, “More duck, please!”

“How much longer do you think we’ll be stuck here?” asked Leam, sticking a fork in Sherena’s duck and putting it on his own plate.

She said, “Help yourself.”

“It comes to a point, Leam—” Kaill answered, “—when waiting for the travel ban to lift might take longer than alternate routes.”

“What do you mean? Can you use magic to get there?”

“Magic? Bah!” cursed a man sitting at the next table. He rose from his chair and turned to them. “No such thing.”

Sherena became annoyed at the comment, saying, “Of course there is!”

“Ok, little lady,” the bar goer turned to her. “You look like a Shone. Tell me what’s so special about your magic. What can it do that can’t be done by science.”

“He’s a scientist?” whispered Leam.

Sherena reached into her reagent pouch, began her spell, and flicked her fingers to cause a quick spark of light. “Explain that with your science,” she retorted.

“Sherena,” Leam said, shaking his head.

The whole bar turned to the spectacle. Kaill raised a dubious eyebrow.

“Ah, nice trick,” said the scientist. “But we have learned how to do that, as well.” He, too, took something from a pouch, then touched his fingers to the candle on the table. A similar spark lit up. It was followed by smoke and a burnt smell.

“That’s not the same,” Sherena argued. “It’s smells like—”

The scientist interrupted, almost embarrassed, “I may not have the ingredients to rid the effect of smell, but science can figure that out. Just because you Shones hord your knowledge of such things, doesn’t mean you are endowed with some sort of special powers.”

Many bar goers laughed at this and began to seem more relieved, going back to their drinks and conversations.

“Kaill, show him,” Sherena asked their caretaker.

The mage huffed, looking uninterested in doing anything of the sort.

“Sherena, it’s not worth it,” Leam said, tugging on her arm. “Can’t convince him anyways.”

She paused, still boiling over inside. Leam pleaded silently once more. At last, she stifled her feelings.

The scientist grinned and returned to his seat.

A fuul walked past the table just then and bumped right into Kaill. The mage fell toward his plate, but caught his hands on the table. He looked to his side.

“Begging your pardon, good sir,” said the fuul—rather thin for a dwarf, if you ask me.

Kaill relaxed in his seat. “That’s alright.”

The fuul found a stool at the bar and clambered up.

“Well, I think it’s time we pay up and head to bed,” Kaill said. He reached into his robe for his coin purse.

Leam stuffed one last bite of duck in his mouth. “You never answered my question. How do we get to Nakninin?”

“Yes, well I…” The mage’s face turned sour. His whole body paused. “Now where did I put my money bag?”

“Is it in our room?” asked Sherena, hopeful.

“I never leave it…”

“He has it,” said Leam, pointing at the fuul.

“That’s quite a claim, young man.”

The Mian boy shouted, “I know he took it!”

Again the bar turned to see what was going on. The fuul saw Leam pointing his way and uttered some curses in his native language, haal.

“Yites, Leam! Don’t make a scene,” Sherena said. Then she tapped her fingers on her chin. “How could he have taken it?”

“When he bumped into Kaill. Go ask him.”

Kaill scoffed. “I can’t go accusing—”

A moment later Leam was across the floor next to the bar. “Give it back.”

The fuul gave him a sidelong glance. “Give what back, boy?”

“My friend’s money.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I’ll call the guard.” Leam looked towards the land sharks.

The fuul turned hard and glared at the boy. “Curse o’ the gods, I’m not kidding. Leave it alone.” The fuul gulped his beer and slammed it on the bar, then ordered another.

“It’s in your pocket.”

The fuul became enraged. “That’s enough boy!”

From a couple barstools down came a deep, resonant voice. “Hold on now.”

The large man who had ordered the duck rose to his feet. He towered above everyone else, causing bar goers to inch away in shock. “A Titan,” whispered one.

It was true. The man wore T’hor armor, a scabbard and sword laid by his stool within easy reach. He walked over to intercede.

The titan announced, “I am Darron Steele, and I hope that we can resolve this matter without conflict. What is your name?”

The fuul scoffed. “Why would I need to tell you?”

“It is just a name.”

“Rargem.”

“And you?”

“Leam,” Sherena called in a hushed sort of tone, urging him to stop with her eyes.

“Ah, Leam.” Darron Steele nodded. “Well, I am not sure about the customs where you come from. But here in Taltane we need proof before we accuse people of theft.” He raised his hands like two sides of a scale were balanced. “Perhaps your friend misplaced his money? I shall help you look.”

“He’s got it.” Leam affirmed once more.

“This boy’s crazy,” said Rargem.

That set Leam off. As if he were hearing his old bully, Dunn, or the rest of his people when he was condemned from his tribe. “I’m not crazy!”

Leam rushed headlong into the fuul, knocking him off the stool and into Darron. The titan caught Rargem, turned half sideways. Something slipped from his vest pocket to the floorboards below. A metal clanking sound was clear amidst the tumult.

“Told you,” said Leam, picking up the coin purse and looking quite pleased with himself.

“You are a thief?” Darron said in disbelief as he set the fuul back in his stool.

Rargem chuckled nervously. By this time the ensign guard had turned a curious eye on the happenings and began rising to their feet.

“All I want is my money bag,” Kaill stated quietly, waving his hands towards the land sharks to dissuade them from engaging. “No more trouble.”

The ensign guard were not convinced and continued to head towards them.

“We need to go,” Leam said. “Now.”

Kaill saw, too. “If it’s not too late”

Leam pointed at the front door. “It is.”

A moment later, two imperial soldiers entered the bar. They held their hands on their sheathed swords, intimidating the entire place with their armored presence. They glanced about, eased their posture, and headed to the bar.

Leam and Sherena breathed a sigh of relief as the imperials ordered drinks.

Kaill said. “I don’t relish the time you’ll spend in the Watermiri jail, Rargem.” The mage gave a sympathetic look to the titan, who still seemed upset at the turn of circumstances.

The teens, with Kaill’s nudging hands on their shoulders, began towards the door. As they went, one of the imperials could be heard saying, “Not often you see Shones in here. Or T’hors.”

His compatriot: “Yeah, and definitely not dwarves.”

The two laughed. “It’s like we’re in some sort of freak show. Haha.”

“Wait a minute, that dwarf…”

Rargem tried to ignore the land sharks on the one side, and the imperials on the other. He sat still, sipping his beer.

Kaill’s eyes glanced backwards, but he kept ushering Leam and Sherena on. The kids were far too curious. “Stop looking,” advised their caretaker.

“Wasn’t there a fugitive dwarf they said stowed away on our ship?”

“Don’t know how, but, yeah, that’s what I heard.”

“Some sort of thief, wanted by Tharsher? Was supposed to be kind of slim for a dwarf. Look at him, so scrawny.”

“Like he could fit into small places and hide.”

The imperials stood up and approached Rargem. One of them asked, “Say, dwarf you’re not from here, are you?”

The other. “Yeah, he looks Toman, to me. I’ve seen enough of them. Look how he’s dressed.”

Darron again presented himself. “My fellows from afar, what is your intention?”

Rargem stayed silent.

“Just curious, is all,” said the imperial.

The ensign guard came up behind Darron. “If it might help, sirs, we’ve been seeing some funny behavior from this group. Magic. Something about a theft.”

“A theft, huh?” said one imperial with a knowing smile.

“Magic?” the other inquired, “Group?”

The land sharks indicated Kaill, Leam and Sherena.

Just as the three of them reached the door, a third imperial stepped in. A nod from the first two made him stand in the way.

“I think we’ve got our thief,” the first imperial said, putting a hand on Rargem’s shoulder.

Rargem grunted. “I think I came to the wrong bar tonight…”

“You’ll have to come with us for questioning,” said the imperial.

Darron stepped in, standing well above the imperials and the land sharks. “With all due respect, sirs. If this is a matter of theft, why is it a concern of the Empire? Surely the ensign guard should handle local crimes?”

The imperial pointed his chin at Darron. “And with all due respect to you, T’hor, this is none of your concern. Take the four of them in. I want to know what’s going on here.”

Darron reached for his scabbard. “It is unjust to arrest them. Those three have done nothing.”

“You’re out of line, T’hor.”

“It’s time to do something,” Leam said.

“Leam, no,” said Sherena with a quiet but emphatic tone.

“We’re all in now,” Kaill agreed. In a louder voice, the mage announced, “My apologies to all and especially the bar owner. We’ve had a very nice stay.”

Then, pounding his staff into the floorboards, an explosive sound reverberated across the room. It was deafening, and everyone covered their ears and crouched low. Aiming his staff at the door he began another spell. The imperial standing guard decided he’d rather not find out what it was, so he jumped aside. Kaill’s spell blasted forth and knocked the door right off the hinges.

“Run!” said the mage. Leam and Sherena were ahead of him, halfway out the door.

Apparently, Rargem seemed to think the command applied to him, as well. But as he tried to slip past the imperials, one grabbed his vest.

“Not so fast. You’re place is in a prison cell in Tharsher, dwarf.”

“Justice must be done in proper ways,” roared Darron. He unsheathed his sword, slashing it through the air. The imperial released Rargem and dodged the attack by falling back on the bar.

Rargem took the opportunity to slip past both imperials and land sharks and made quick work across the room. Darron followed the fuul, the mage, and the teens.

All five of them were in the cobbled streets of Watermire, running from their pursuers who were quick to give chase.

The Cushy Corner Tavern was left in turmoil. The bar owner stood in his busted doorway, waving a fist and cursing them all into the night.

“

This has been a portion of my working novel, “The Sands of Chaos”

Thank you for reading! What do you think?

Blessings to all,

Matthew Rondeau