Snippet #1919484

Acacia Winn rose a bit after sunrise, quickly got dressed, gathered her belongings, and headed down the small inn's narrow stairs. She paid the innkeeper a nice tip. It really was a comfortable little inn. She would have to remember it the next time she came to Paetax. That is, if I make it through this little adventure, she thought, a slight smirk on her face. She headed out the door, the morning already pleasantly warm as she headed out. She thought back to when she had come into town, just about four days ago.

She had happened upon this little inn, the Golden Grape, and talked a bit with the innkeeper. Innkeepers always seemed to have the juiciest rumors to share in any given city, and that would usually be the first place she would visit.To her surprise, he confirmed the rumor she had recently heard of the king becoming ill with an unknown disease. As the man apparently enjoyed talking, he also told her everything he knew about the subject, from the myriad of rumors surrounding what exactly had caused this illness to the posters that had recently gone up advertising riches for adventurers who were willing to retrieve some item that was meant to make the king well.

She was intrigued by this, but thought little about it as she made arrangements with the man to play and entertain in his inn in exchange for meals and a place to sleep. She could see him already envisioning the increase in customers a bard could bring. After a bit of bargaining, they finally agreed on the terms. She headed out to wander the city a bit before she would come back to play in the small inn.

As Acacia was walking to the market, her attention was caught again and again by the posters the man had told her about. Finally, she went up and actually read one for herself. Immediately, Acacia's full curiosity was aroused.

"An hour after noon, hmm." she said quietly, still attracting the eyes of a couple passersby as they noticed her lute. Suddenly she realized the time and made her way back to the inn. However, during the entire night, her thoughts kept drifting to the poster. What if I did go, at least to the meeting, she thought several times. The inn was bustling that night, and Acacia did not go to her bed until early in the morning. By that time, she had decided to go.

Thus, Acacia had taken leave of the innkeeper at the Golden Grape, who seemed quite disappointed that she was leaving after such a short stay. She decided to get out early to browse at the local market one more time. There were several items that had caught her eye, but she hadn't quite decided yet. The time past quickly, and soon she had added a couple more items to her collection. A hawk feather necklace, an intricately carved top, nothing big or even useful, but she still considered them great finds. Acacia then hurried off to the where the meeting was going to be held, a place called the Black Vagabond. She had already figured out where it was, so she found it easily.

She quickly read the poster just outside the door once more, took a deep breath, and entered. There were already several others sitting in the room. She took a seat in a chair by the left wall near the center of the room, facing outward so she could see everyone there as was her usual style. After a few moments, after it was obvious they were still waiting for people, and Acacia took out her lute. She began quietly playing a song she had learned before she became a bard. It was a traditional harvest song in her hometown. She began softly humming the slow tune, the words playing through her head.

At the end of the summer,
When the moon again becomes full,
The people bring in the harvest,
Before the fall again becomes cool...

After several moments, Acacia became lost in the soft, slow melody of the song. She barely noticed as the room began to fill. After a while, a man she hadn't noticed before started speaking. She stopped playing, her attention caught as she realized who he was from the ring on his hand. So this is Prince Rydas, she thought, smiling and leaning forward to rest her head in her hand as she listened. He sounded so serious. It only made her want to find out what this was all about even more. Acacia smiled even wider, excited to hear more about this "Quest of a Lifetime," as the sign had put it.