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Post by Ethan Flatrivers on Jul 30, 2016 11:41:10 GMT
The nonalcoholic grape juice is extremely sweet and thick, and Kyle moves on to another customer for now, but the tall Ben is amusing so he keeps close enough to hear stories of made up places. Like Asshai was actually real.
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Benjen Snow
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Post by Benjen Snow on Jul 30, 2016 16:53:14 GMT
"Red like flame," Benjen said, "imagine the most brilliant sunset you've ever seen, then put that on top of someone's head. That's how bright his hair was." He took another sip and mused quietly, "It's a surprise it didn't attract attention while we were scouting." He glanced over at Dacey, realizing that he was just rambling on and on, and said, "What about you? Have you met any particularly strange individuals on your travels?"
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The Raven
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Post by The Raven on Aug 13, 2016 23:30:41 GMT
One of the strangest individuals Dacey had ever met entered the tavern, and weighed as much as the next three strangest men. Ser Valarr's beard was as crimson and spectacular as any piddling sunset, and his voice echoed like thunder in the dead of night.
"What calumny occurs in this den of iniquity?"
Several of the local patrons cheered, raising their cups in honor of the local magistrate. "Here, Ser Valarr! What will you have?" A man Kyle knew to be a local merchant stood up and lead the fat man to the bar.
"I shant, good Robert! I am on duty! The lives and safety of this township depend on my impeccable sobriety! Honest men rely on my cloak of valor! I shouldn't allow myself-"
"It's on me."
"Crownlands port, barman!"
Kyle had never really met the Knight of Harrentown, though he was certainly popular among his patrons. He was more like the knight one sees in a mummer's farce than anything in real life, which put the peasants at ease in a way very few knights ever could. He also didn't tax shit. That belly was maintained on a diet of good will and free food.
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Post by Ethan Flatrivers on Aug 13, 2016 23:38:14 GMT
Kyle pours the drink. Fat men brought more business. Gluttony was his particular favorite vice, it leading to money. He slid the drink over. "Ser," he said politely. "I assure you," he said with a grin, "you have no need to worry about finding any honest men here."
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The Raven
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Post by The Raven on Aug 13, 2016 23:55:21 GMT
"Well, I should hope not." The knight tweaked his moustachios as the Kyle poured the drink. "Ser Valarr the Vigilant would be aghast to learn he served no purpose in this wonderful community and would be forced to move on. You see, I have taken a vow, a supremely solemn vow of service, sworn upon the swollen sin of my past life as knave. Mmm... Good port."
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Post by Ethan Flatrivers on Aug 14, 2016 0:03:20 GMT
"Swearing on your sin?" Kyle asked, curious. "Seems an easy thing to fall back on, should it fail. I always thought you swore on your mother's memory or some such." He shrugged. "But hell, what's an innkeep know?" One of his girls came to the fat knight.
"Ser need his back rubbed? All that weight on your shoulders must weigh you down something fierce."
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The Raven
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Post by The Raven on Aug 15, 2016 0:08:41 GMT
Ser Valarr gave him an uncharacteristic look of seriousness. "There is nothing more grievous, and therefore nothing more solemn, than the evil that men do."
Then he gave a laugh. "Besides, my mother is quite alive. Oldest woman in the Riverlands! Perhaps in the Seven Kingdoms! She still remembers the Dance. Rode on a dragon even. She always swore that somehow, that dragon's spirit imprinted upon her soul somehow. And that when I was born, that power and strength was then bequeathed upon myself. It is not the accepted explanation among learned men for the magnificence and prowess of Ser Valarr Rivers, but it is gaining traction among certain circles in the Citadel, or so I am told. Not among the Archmaesters I have met to be sure, but still..."
He shrugged his great shoulders which apparently needed no massage.
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Post by Ethan Flatrivers on Aug 15, 2016 9:41:22 GMT
The innkeeper listened to the story seriously; it never hurt to indulge whatever insanity a patron wished to spew. "I've met a few maesters," he said. "Most of them can bind a wound shut and then hope you don't die of infection. Can't say that men of science should be trusted to know anything about matters of the soul."
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The Raven
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Post by The Raven on Aug 15, 2016 20:43:32 GMT
"Aye, I suppose your words are true on that point. Tell me, Master Kyle, where do you hail from? What did you do during the war? Red or black, Ser Valarr cannot judge you, having served both."
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Post by Ethan Flatrivers on Aug 15, 2016 20:49:12 GMT
Kyle shrugged. "Red dragon, black dragon, I just make the beer," he said. "I'm just glad a side finally won." He leaned forward. "Wasn't ever much for fighting. Seems a waste. I'll defend me and mine, but walking a hundred miles to kill some other innkeeper don't appeal to my sensibilities. And now winter is here and reds and blacks both starve and freeze. Stupidity."
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The Raven
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Post by The Raven on Aug 16, 2016 13:18:50 GMT
"Aye. Though that happened enough nearby. The owner of the Unlucky Crab reputedly hired some thugs to burn down the Knight's Respite a few months ago, because the Respite was claiming a lot of the trade just outside the town. As Magistrate, it's past my reach, but watch yourself. Success and security are not to be confused." He sipped his drink and watched an old man on his flute while some young people danced.
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Post by Ethan Flatrivers on Aug 16, 2016 14:17:07 GMT
"The Unlucky Crab, you say?" Kyle asked. "This owner sounds like a fearsome business competitor." He looked about the tavern. "Well, let's hope he doesn't cast a wandering eye into town," he added. "I suspect no thug wishes to deal with the Blackfort's enforcer in his own town, right?" He asked the disgustingly fat 'knight'. "I mean, that'd have to be taken as a direct assault to Lord Blackfort's authority." He had heard some tell of the Knight's Respite. "Did the Respite ever rebuild? I confess to a certain complacency in dealing with the matters outside my own walls here."
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The Raven
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Post by The Raven on Aug 17, 2016 13:10:08 GMT
"No. The owner is trying to make it as a wine merchant, but there aren't many proper vineyards left in this kingdom. He'll have to travel south to start his business." Indeed, most of the decent wine in the area was scavenged from old cellars and sometimes sold at exorbitant prices.
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Post by Ethan Flatrivers on Aug 17, 2016 15:40:40 GMT
"Unfortunate," Kyle said. He tapped his fingers on the bar. Perhaps this Crab would have to suffer its own financial difficulty. "Well, if they come to town I am reassured that you're watching over us, ser," he said. "Law and order are the pillars of community."
He makes a mental note to close the following day to go visit his overly competitive neighbors.
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Post by Ethan Flatrivers on Sept 21, 2016 12:07:56 GMT
///
Finding himself without a mission given the aborted nature of the Smallwood conflict, Ethan heads to Harrentown to lay low until a need for his services would emerge. Given his job, he cannot be seen frolicking at the castle, and so he settles for quiet anonymity at the Lonely Ghost, listening to the rumors cast about by ignorant folk who nonetheless know much of local events.
Observation 70, primarily waiting on Kyle's return to infiltrate the red eels.
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