Chapter 31: Stoking the Flames
The moment when Magnus meets someone for the first time is always tense. It's hard to know what sort of horrors play out in a human's mind when they first see a minotaur and Magnus knows the lore of his race is not always balanced with a dose of reality. Sure, his kind have killed many humans, but those numbers pale in comparison to the legions of men killed by their own kind each year. Somehow, in their eyes, murder seemed far less terrifying than the prospect of being eaten, a difference that seemed inconsequential to Magnus himself.
The only thing more tense than meeting someone for the first time, was meeting many people, for men tended to feed on and amplify each other's fears. If one person was to react poorly, there was a chance that a group of men might get it in their heads to rid the world of one more minotaur.
And so, not for the first time in his life, Magnus finds himself with an over-dry mouth, eyes that snap to the source of any movement, and twitchy fingers that are spring-loaded to come to the aide of his self defense.
The particulars of the situation probably don't help much either, for Magnus is leading Macchus, the bandit who was captured from the caves the previous day, who's arms are bound behind his back. Also, while Magnus had expected to simply be calling on Einion Broskow, a young noble and former army lieutenant who was now the governor of the small village of Three Corners, instead he finds that he had interrupted some sort of meeting... Even as he had opened the door to the moderate sized structure which doubled the government headquarters and the governor's residence, the sounds of agitated voices carried to him, though they stopped abruptly the moment the door was fully open.
The men within gathered around a wide table, upon which a map was sprawled. Center in the fray, with both of his fists curled and rested upon the table is a young man, who dressed in a fine riding jacket and sports an immaculately groomed mustache with hair combed back in a fashion to look as if it is blowing in the wind.
There's no doubt in Magnus's mind that this man is Enion Broskow.
To Enion's left is a much older man, who leans forward over the map, though his empty hand retreats from it when he recognizes the newcomers entering the room. He wears a mail shirt with short cropped hair and beard that splashed with nearly as much grey as black. The man's face is marked with scars, one in particular that runs all the way from his left cheek to his jaw, cleaving his beard like the split of an axe.
To Enion's right are two more men, each of whom seem nearly as out of place as Magnus. The first has skin darker even than Sajaa, though his cheekbones are high and his head and face are shaved entirely clean, or else are naturally bald. He is the tallest man in the room, perhaps only a few inches short of Magnus himself. He wears thick leather hides across his chest and he stares at Magnus with probing and distrustful eyes.
The other man is near his opposite, shorter by far than the rest, he wears his hair tied in a knot at the back of his head and his beard drips down several inches below his chin. His eyes are thin and near expressionless, though it seems as if every muscle in the man's face, the only part of his body which is exposed, is fixed taut. The bulky robe which covers his body is so loose it could hide near anything.
The last of the men stands behind all the others, a neat but plain smock and tights covering his body and an expression of extreme discomfort on his face.
The moment of discomfort passes, and Magnus finds himself extremely grateful that Giles had volunteered to come along with him.
"Giles!" Broskow lights up the moment the soldier walks in the door just behind Magnus, removing his fists from the table and looking at the three in all a new light. "Back so soon from the expedition? Did you find the bandits? Did you kill them all?"
OOC: It is 0800 on the 5th of January. Thanks gents for the patience. This thread is for Magnus and Giles.
You have returned to Three Corners and have gone to Broskow's home/office to report back on the mission and offer up Macchus for whatever his fate may be. The others would have already left the town for the caves again. A closer look will inform you that the map is of this general region, and it has the town, the fort, as well as the Makarem and several towns just south of the river displayed.
Giles would recognize the man in the back as Cinar, Broskow's main administrator.
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:53, Sun 23 Apr 2023.