15th of Cylus, 717.
"The smell reminds me of home." Nir'wei couldn't help but agree. The shot of what he'd been assured was Desnind-imported beer had a distinct earthy aroma that brought back so many memories of his homeland. It woke pangs of homesickness the likes of which he'd never experienced before, and as he raised his face to the sky and gulped down the thick mug in one long series of gulps, it filled the coldness in his belly nicely. He wiped his mouth with the back of one hand and reached into his pocket with the other, pulling out a small handful of roughly six silver nels. Half to pay for the previous mug, and half to order another. The old Sev'ryn to Nir'weis side drew out his own silver coins and added them to the pile, as the bartender wordlessly took back his mug and poured a fresh tap. "Make it two," the other Sev'ryn chuckled, and soon he was handed a mug of his own.
At the start of the night, he'd barely known the other man's name. With the beer taking hold, he was struggling to remember it again. Er'wehl? Er'lewh? It didn't matter, Er'something was doing enough talking for the two of them. Despite the wrinkling over his brow, the thinning of his hair and the paleness of his skin, he was as animated and energetic as any man a third of his age. As he turned his tales of travel all across the Eternal Empire and down through the Eastern Continent, his spindly fingers became soldiers, merchants, assassins and spies; even Immortals. "Where was I? Yes! Karem, she has them everywhere. She sees with the eyes of a thousand wolves. She walks within them, she does! I've seen it myself, one minute a lone wolf was on the prowl through the great forests just north of Cahryst, and then it stood up on two legs and it was a wolf no longer; Karem is more than she lets on, she always has been..." There was no way to tell whether Er'wehl was telling the truth or not, but Nir'wei didn't care. He wasn't even listening, not really.
He just wanted to sit down, have a beer or three and escape the claustrophobia of his room. It wasn't even his room, really, it was the room of a patient; a confined little space where the Order could squeeze him into. He was convinced that Faith hadn't told them of his terminal illness, and that the moment they found out, he'd be kicked out and left to fend for himself in his remaining years. The mystery of his illness was solved, and there was nothing the Order could do about it. He was just another face, in from the rain, they weren't going to bring in any White Cloaks to come and treat him. They weren't going to call for the aid of the Immortals. While he sat in his bed, crying and bleeding from his eyeballs, there were plenty of people with curable diseases still sitting in the rain that needed the Order's help. No point wasting it on a man who's time has already run out.
He was already staring into an empty mug and hurried to pull out another few silver nel to get another refill. "You sure you haven't had enough?" Er'wehl asked with a raised eyebrow, pausing mid-story to glance pointedly from the empty mug to Nir'weis face.
"I'm sure." He'd never been one to drink in sorrow before, but it seemed like now was a better time than any to get into the habit. For all it was worth, the warmth in his belly and the lightness in his skull was certainly taking the edge off his problems, but dangerous thoughts still swirled around in his skull, and he still had many mugs to go before he could drown those out. Er'wehl had started talking again, but his voice had gone from soothing to grating in a matter of bits, and now Nir'wei stood up unsteadily on his feet and downed his third mug, leaving the small pile of silver nel on the counter for the barman to pick up at his own discretion. "I'm going outside. Need some air." The Harlot 'n' Hound was an excellent place to lose oneself, but the dark and thick atmosphere made it intolerable to last more than a full break before he needed fresh air and clean moonlight.
As he headed for the door, he turned back for a moment, but Er'wehl wasn't looking; he'd turned to the next available person to continue his new tale without hesitating. He only caught the last bits before his path took him out of earshot and out into the cool breeze of the midnight air. Mulling on them, he decided he didn't want to know what came before it. "... And that's how I lost my pants!"
"The smell reminds me of home." Nir'wei couldn't help but agree. The shot of what he'd been assured was Desnind-imported beer had a distinct earthy aroma that brought back so many memories of his homeland. It woke pangs of homesickness the likes of which he'd never experienced before, and as he raised his face to the sky and gulped down the thick mug in one long series of gulps, it filled the coldness in his belly nicely. He wiped his mouth with the back of one hand and reached into his pocket with the other, pulling out a small handful of roughly six silver nels. Half to pay for the previous mug, and half to order another. The old Sev'ryn to Nir'weis side drew out his own silver coins and added them to the pile, as the bartender wordlessly took back his mug and poured a fresh tap. "Make it two," the other Sev'ryn chuckled, and soon he was handed a mug of his own.
At the start of the night, he'd barely known the other man's name. With the beer taking hold, he was struggling to remember it again. Er'wehl? Er'lewh? It didn't matter, Er'something was doing enough talking for the two of them. Despite the wrinkling over his brow, the thinning of his hair and the paleness of his skin, he was as animated and energetic as any man a third of his age. As he turned his tales of travel all across the Eternal Empire and down through the Eastern Continent, his spindly fingers became soldiers, merchants, assassins and spies; even Immortals. "Where was I? Yes! Karem, she has them everywhere. She sees with the eyes of a thousand wolves. She walks within them, she does! I've seen it myself, one minute a lone wolf was on the prowl through the great forests just north of Cahryst, and then it stood up on two legs and it was a wolf no longer; Karem is more than she lets on, she always has been..." There was no way to tell whether Er'wehl was telling the truth or not, but Nir'wei didn't care. He wasn't even listening, not really.
He just wanted to sit down, have a beer or three and escape the claustrophobia of his room. It wasn't even his room, really, it was the room of a patient; a confined little space where the Order could squeeze him into. He was convinced that Faith hadn't told them of his terminal illness, and that the moment they found out, he'd be kicked out and left to fend for himself in his remaining years. The mystery of his illness was solved, and there was nothing the Order could do about it. He was just another face, in from the rain, they weren't going to bring in any White Cloaks to come and treat him. They weren't going to call for the aid of the Immortals. While he sat in his bed, crying and bleeding from his eyeballs, there were plenty of people with curable diseases still sitting in the rain that needed the Order's help. No point wasting it on a man who's time has already run out.
He was already staring into an empty mug and hurried to pull out another few silver nel to get another refill. "You sure you haven't had enough?" Er'wehl asked with a raised eyebrow, pausing mid-story to glance pointedly from the empty mug to Nir'weis face.
"I'm sure." He'd never been one to drink in sorrow before, but it seemed like now was a better time than any to get into the habit. For all it was worth, the warmth in his belly and the lightness in his skull was certainly taking the edge off his problems, but dangerous thoughts still swirled around in his skull, and he still had many mugs to go before he could drown those out. Er'wehl had started talking again, but his voice had gone from soothing to grating in a matter of bits, and now Nir'wei stood up unsteadily on his feet and downed his third mug, leaving the small pile of silver nel on the counter for the barman to pick up at his own discretion. "I'm going outside. Need some air." The Harlot 'n' Hound was an excellent place to lose oneself, but the dark and thick atmosphere made it intolerable to last more than a full break before he needed fresh air and clean moonlight.
As he headed for the door, he turned back for a moment, but Er'wehl wasn't looking; he'd turned to the next available person to continue his new tale without hesitating. He only caught the last bits before his path took him out of earshot and out into the cool breeze of the midnight air. Mulling on them, he decided he didn't want to know what came before it. "... And that's how I lost my pants!"
