Troubadours by the Fireside - 5121-03-14 (log)

Troubadours by the Fireside was a cozy storytelling event hosted by Argent Aspis on March 14th, 2021. A variety of characters shared original works with the assembled audience.

Katiesa

Allyria says, "And our first performer for the night is Katiesa. Katie, grab a seat on the bards bench. And begin when you are ready."

Katiesa lightly says, "This story, I have sort of told before here in Aspis."

Katiesa amusedly says, "Like life, this story has a lot of... options. But I'm sure it involves ale and taverns."

Katiesa nods once.

Katiesa dusts off the blue glass orb in her hand.

Katiesa affably says, "This tale is of a young ale-loving man who was ready to set out in the world."

Katiesa amusedly says, "He thought of the ales he might drink and finding a fine young lady to wed."

Katiesa chuckles to herself.

Katiesa says, "He wasn't much good at decisions, though, so his mother bought him a magic orb."

Katiesa laughs softly, trying to hide her amusement.

Katiesa brightly exclaims, "Like this one!"

Katiesa taps a bubble-filled blue glass orb, which is in her right hand.

Katiesa winks.

Katiesa says, "So this...this is his story."

Katiesa clears her throat.

Katiesa recites lightly:

   "A fine magical guide a wise mother did plan
    For her ale-loving son who'd become a young man.
    He was not overblessed by too much common sense,
    Yet was handsome, good-natured, not overly dense."

Katiesa recites:

   "She presented the orb, then its powers explained.
    Her son poured out a pint, in delight he exclaimed:
    "I shall go on a trip without any delay--
    With such portable wisdom, I shan't go astray!"

Katiesa recites:

   "His fresh ale in right hand, he trekked fast 'til he got
    To the spot where the trail from the village let out.
    Addressed orb in left hand:  "Quick an answer give now!
    So which way should I go -- is it best to go south?"

Katiesa glances at a bubble-filled blue glass orb in her hand.

Speaking to her blue glass orb, Katiesa inquires, "Well, what say you? Will he go south?"

Dark blue motes of light twinkle within the blue glass orb in response to Katiesa's voice.

Katiesa shakes her blue glass orb vigorously! Within the mottled two-toned blue glass, iridescent blue and silver bubbles of varying sizes bounce and spin off one another. One by one, motes of dark blue light blink into existence within the orb and begin to coalesce into recognizable shapes. The light pauses momentarily on the answer "Not a chance" before bursting into tiny dark blue specks which quickly dissipate.

Katiesa cheerfully exclaims, "That's No for North!"

Katiesa points north.

Katiesa attempts to hum a merry little tune.

Katiesa recites cheerfully:

   "He'll be journeying north!  "I do hope they'll have beer--
    Maybe berry-infused and does not cost too dear?"
    Such wonder-filled thoughts kept a frown from his face
    And a song in his heart 'til he reached Ice Mule Trace."

Katiesa recites:

   "Now once there he walked into the Tartifacts shop
    Where quickly the eye of a halfling he caught.
    She was tall for a halfling and asked very sweet:
    "Would you like to join me for some tarts and some

Katiesa recites:

   "This isn't a tavern!" He thought in alarm,
    Then realized completely the halfling's rare charms--
    And to spend time with she of such beauty renowned
    Might clearly be worth some sobriety now."

Katiesa delicately comments, "Charms."

Katiesa recites:

   "I'm a cleric of Lumnis," confided the girl.
    "I only drink tea as that keeps my mind pure.
    Do you not agree?"  And he did not say nay.
    So they sat and they sipped and they chatted away."

Katiesa recites:

   "After tarts and some tea, with uncommon clear head,
    He thought, "Maybe this damsel is one I could wed!"
    To the orb whispered loudly, "Hey, what do you see?
    Should I offer to buy her some more stinky tea?"

Katiesa glances inquiringly at a bubble-filled blue glass orb in her hand.

Speaking lightly to her blue glass orb, Katiesa asks, "Well, shall he?"

Dark blue motes of light twinkle within the blue glass orb in response to Katiesa's voice.

Katiesa shakes her blue glass orb vigorously! Within the mottled two-toned blue glass, iridescent blue and silver bubbles of varying sizes bounce and spin off one another. One by one, motes of dark blue light blink into existence within the orb and begin to coalesce into recognizable shapes. The light pauses momentarily on the answer "Excuse me?" before bursting into tiny dark blue specks which quickly dissipate.

Katiesa frankly says, "He really did feel that was NOT much help."

Katiesa smiles suddenly then simply laughs out loud. With a wink, she explains, "No matter. He did not ask the question well. You'll see."

Katiesa recites bemusedly:

   "You just TALKED to that BALL?  And you said my tea SMELLED??"
    She stared coldly at him and all ardor was quelled.
    So quite quickly his plans for sobriety fled--
    After saying good-night, out the doorway he sped."

Katiesa lightly says, "But he was not wrong. That tea did smell as if milked from a gak."

Katiesa wrinkles her nose.

Katiesa recites:

   "He traveled 'cross town 'til he came to a pub
    That music spilled from, and smelled of good grub.
    Inside was a corner that held an oak stage--
    This surely did seem a fine Cholen-blessed place!"

Katiesa recites whimsically:

   "Ascending the stage, a fair sweet vision strolled--
    Her loose hair worn in ringlets of summer-sun gold.
    In a velvety voice she crooned clear and so true
    While playing along on a crimson-hued lute."

Katiesa recites:

   "I'm a cleric of Cholen," confided the maid,
    When she came and sat with him right after she played,
    "Will you buy me an ale?" So they shared a carafe,
    And they drank and she sang and they laughed and they laughed."

Katiesa hums happily to herself.

Katiesa recites brightly:

   "Her golden gown shimmered, her eyes shone pure blue.
    This must be his soulmate, he just somehow knew.
    And as the two shared berry ale freshly-brewed,
    He planned how to ask his mum's orb what to do."

Katiesa recites amusedly:

   "When the lads twirled their lasses in one final dance,
    He quick begged to Oleani to bless this romance--
    Then finished that ale made of berries and wheat,
    And -soft- asked the orb: "Shall I wed her this week?""

Speaking excitedly to her blue glass orb, Katiesa echoes, "Will he wed her that week?"

Dark blue motes of light twinkle within the blue glass orb in response to Katiesa's voice.

Katiesa glances expectantly at a bubble-filled blue glass orb in her hand.

Katiesa shakes her blue glass orb vigorously! Within the mottled two-toned blue glass, iridescent blue and silver bubbles of varying sizes bounce and spin off one another. One by one, motes of dark blue light blink into existence within the orb and begin to coalesce into recognizable shapes. The light pauses momentarily on the answer "Unlikely" before bursting into tiny dark blue specks which quickly dissipate.

Katiesa frowns at a bubble-filled blue glass orb.

Katiesa gives a sigh of disappointment.

Katiesa says, "He definitely could not call THAT answer a yes. So, with no small regret, he ruled out that week."

Katiesa taps her foot impatiently.

Katiesa leans forward.

Katiesa recites theatrically:

   "The week NEXT he proposed and of course she said yes!
    She ran right out to buy an astonishing dress--
    A gorgeous concoction of crimsony-red.
    The next Feastday eve? The new lovers were wed."

Katiesa pours herself a magnum of silver champagne.

Katiesa recites lightly:

   "So the maid now his wife, his sweet muse, and new guide
    (For the cleric of Cholen was shrewd and quite wise),
    They proceeded to live a fine life amply blessed
    With fat babies, good song, berry brews, and much zest!"

Katiesa airily asks, "They bought a pub, she sang, he brewed ale, and his mum's orb? What happened to the orb?"

Katiesa chuckles to herself.

Katiesa amusedly explains, "Why, it sits safely up on a mantle, ready for the next generation's adventure."

Katiesa nods approvingly.

You grin at Katiesa.

Katiesa stands up.

Katiesa curtsies gracefully.

Meril

Allyria says, "Our next performer is Meril."

Meril cocks her head.

Meril says, "Ah, I fear this will not be such a pretty tune as the last, but I will try my best."

Meril stands up.

Meril ponders.

Meril walks over to the bench and settles down.

Meril says, "I heard this tale first in a sylvan house, and I hope it is not a poor translation. It is about... flight, I guess, in a fashion."

Meril nods slightly.

As Meril tugs her leather into place, several bits of flora fall from its midst.

Meril begins playing a quiet song on her mandolin.

You see Meril. She appears to be a Sylvankind. She is average height. She appears to have come of age. She has hardened, piercing forest green eyes and fair skin. She has waist length, flowing auburn hair interspersed with strands of grey. She has a delicate face and slightly downswept pointed ears. She is in good shape. She is holding an ebonwood mandolin with star-shaped cloud agate inlays in her right hand. She is wearing a strand of vaalin glowbark leaves, a faded russet linen cloak, a translucent amber doe symbol suspended from a strand of hazelwood, a cinched barkcloth pack, some eahnor studded splint leather embossed with ebon accents, some knee-length hunting skirts stitched from bands of shredded leather, and a pair of slouched henna brown leather knee boots.

Meril sings:

   "She stands silent before the pool
    Grey cloak falling from her shoulders
    Shifting ever slightly in the wind. . ."

Meril sings:

   "A couple passes by without meeting her eyes
    They bow their head in reverence
    With a murmured greeting--"

Without a change in dynamics Meril picks up the pace of the song, weaving a soft but playful theme reminiscent of the sound of a far-away horse running across the countryside.

Meril sings:

   "But their young child approaches curiously
    Peering at the grey fabric as it shifts again
    And cries out in marvel as he sees--"

Meril sings:

   "The brilliant, pristine white feathers
    On the wings folded behind her
    Caught for a moment in the light."

With a decrease in tempo, Meril gives her soft melody the aspect of a soothing lullabye that makes forgetting the day's cares as easy as closing your eyes.

Meril gazes heavenward.

Meril sings:

   "He reaches out and touches her
    And feels the softness of the feathers
    To convince himself that they truly exist. . ."

Meril sings:

   "She catches his hand gently
    As he babbles his words
    And returns him to his apologizing mother--"

Meril makes a sharp decrescendo, forcing you to strain to hear the soft notes.

Meril sings:

   "And as they are leaving
    She hears him asking his parents
    If he could ever have wings like that--"

Meril sings:

   "She wants to tell him
    If only she were not sworn to silence
    If only it were not forbidden--"

Meril brushes her fingers over the strings, modulating softly from chord to chord as if playing to herself.

Meril builds a soft harmony behind the cheerless melody, as fleeting as memory but as insistent as regret.

Meril sings:

   "And she drowns the old memory once more
    For it could not be permitted to surface
    For she must feel no pain nor regret."

Meril brushes her fingers lightly over the strings, allowing the haunting minor seventh chord to hang eerily in the air for a moment before beginning her sad melody. Meril bridges her song into a new key, taking it to new heights of intensity.

Meril sings:

   "Before the hunter's moon
    She had asked the sisters
    When she would have her wings--"

Cyar hugs his knees and sways side to side.

Meril sings:

   "Not yet, they would tell her
    Not until the last hunt before the winter
    And beyond that they knew little--"

Paying complete attention to the mandolin's strings, Meril begins building an intense melody.

Meril sings:

   "For only those passing the trial
    Wore those brilliant white feathers
    And they were sworn to silence."

Now and again, some resin hidden in the wood is ignited by the flames, and the fire snaps and crackles loudly. The sweet smell of the resin permeates the air and fills your nostrils.

Meril sings:

   "The night when the red moon rose in the sky
    They took everything from her
    And left her alone in the forest. . ."

Meril bridges her song into a new key, taking it to new heights of intensity.

Meril sings:

   "She looked at the wilderness around her
    And leaning close to the ground, she listened
    And suddenly she knew--"

Meril's concentration shifts and becomes more focused as she slightly tilts an ear in a particular direction. Meril sings:

   "For there was no crackle of branches
    No birds flushed from their nests
    No deer fleeing through the bushes--"

Meril plucks her instrument's lower strings, adding a driving bass foundation to the melody.

Meril sings:

   "There was only the hunt
    There were only the hunters
    And so, she ran--"

Meril sings:

   "But she was not as elusive as the birds
    Nor as swift as the deer
    And they were closing in--"

Meril looks around nervously, ready to bolt.

Meril sings:

   "And she called out to her goddess
    For if it was a trial, there must be an answer
    But there was only silence. . ."

Meril sings:

   "They found her cowering behind the trees
    Beneath the blood red moonlight
    And left her dying in the forest."

Meril makes a dramatic change in the song's dynamics, sweeping from soft to loud in a sharp crescendo then back into the middle ranges.

The quiet, forlorn strains of Meril's song convey a gentle sadness, reminding you of friends long gone and family left to Lorminstra's care. Meril sings:

   "And as her last breath passed
    She felt the feathery touch upon her soul
    Taking everything from her. . ."

Meril sings:

   "The joy and the compassion
    The pain and the anger
    The desire and the regret. . ."

Meril builds a soft harmony behind the cheerless melody, as fleeting as memory but as insistent as regret.

Meril sings:

   "Emptied and broken and remade
    For an eternity until at last
    She felt the cold sunlight upon her wings."

(Meril plays another wordless refrain, then shifts to a brighter key.)

Meril builds a soft harmony behind the cheerless melody, as fleeting as memory but as insistent as regret.

Meril's harmony dances about the melody, intertwining about it with pure, shining notes.

Meril sings:

   "She remembers the first time she touched
    The brilliant white feathers of a priestess
    And wondered if they came from the heavens--"

Meril sings:

   "If they could glide like the pelican
    If they could soar like the hawk
    If they could harness the winds. . ."

Embellishing on the simple melody, Meril skillfully conveys a measure of the joy she feels while playing.

Meril sings:

   "She asked all those questions
    And the priestess only looked at her
    With deep and unreadable eyes."

Meril sings:

   "But they were so beautiful and pristine
    And she dreamed of them for many nights
    Of taking flight beneath a silver moon. . ."

Meril finishes the verse of the song then begins the next, further embellishing the melody by adding an ecstatic moving harmony.

Meril sings:

   "Until the day she gathered her courage
    Letting her dreams guide her
    And asked to be given those wings."

With a final joyous flourish Meril stills her fingers on the mandolin, allowing the final bright chord to fade into silence.

Meril stands up.

Meril gazes about with serene contemplation, then gracefully crosses her hands across her leather and executes a gentle bow.

Traiva

Allyria says, "Next up will be Traiva."

Traiva smiles at Allyria.

Traiva says, "That is quite the tale to have to follow.."

(Traiva makes her way to the front of the crowd.)

Traiva stands in front of an upholstered bench carved with various musical motifs.

Speaking to Traiva, Katiesa whispers aloud, "This is why you go first."

Traiva thoughtfully says, "But.. let us see about changing the mood here some..."

Traiva grins slowly.

(Traiva cradles her maoral cittern against her torso and brushes her fingers across the strings, checking the tune as she begins to speak.)

Traiva sheepishly begins, "For all I support the drinking at Paupers, I am sadly inept at writing any good, rousing drinking songs myself."

(Traiva gazes thoughtfully down at her cittern for a moment before her lips slowly spread into a wry grin.)

Traiva muses, "Perhaps that means I should be drinking more, no?"

(Traiva laughs softly, almost to herself, and quietly begins a rollicking melody.)

Traiva merrily continues, "So I hope you will indulge my singing a song I did not write, but rather have heard during my travels and quite enjoy."

Traiva smiles and tilts her head toward you.

(Traiva suddenly increases the volume of the rollicking melody flowing from her cittern while stomping out the beat with her heel. After two rounds she makes a slight decrescendo to a steady, rhythmic strum.)

Traiva sings liltingly:

   "Though the night be dark as dungeon, not a star to be seen above,
    I will be guided without a stumble into the arms of me only love.
    I went up to her bedroom window, kneeling gently upon a stone --
    I rapped on her bedroom window - "My darling dear, do you lie alone?"

(Traiva strums her cittern loudly and skips lightly about the room, encouraging you to clap along with the beat as she sings.)

Traiva sings jauntily:

   "For I'm a rover, seldom sober.
    I'm a rover of high degree!
    And when I'm drinking I'm always thinking
    How to gain my love's company."

(Traiva's eyes seem to sparkle as she loudly returns to the rollicking melody, again making a sharp decrescendo as she begins to sing again.)

Traiva sings liltingly:

   "She raised her head from her feather pillow, raised her arms up around her chest
    Saying "Who's at me bedroom window disturbing me and me long night's rest?"
    "It's only me, your own true lover, open the door and please let me in --
    For I have come on a long night's journey. I am near drenched to the skin!"

(Traiva grimaces dramatically as she launches loudly into the chorus, beckoning you to join in with a jaunty toss of her head.) Traiva sings boisterously:

   "For I'm a rover, seldom sober.
    I'm a rover of high degree!
    And when I'm drinking I'm always thinking
    How to gain my love's company."

Traiva skips around in a happy little circle.

(Traiva's skirt swishes around her legs as she skips about, her fingers seeming to fly across her cittern's strings with the jaunty tune. She runs it enthusiastically through, calling out excitedly to those gathered.)

(Traiva makes a sharp decrescendo, the strums low and steady as a heartbeat.)

Traiva sings flirtatiously:

   "She opened the door with the greatest pleasure, and she drew me in with a warm embrace.
    All through the night we stayed together until the sun dared to show his face.
    "Well now me love, I must go and leave you, though the mountains be high above --
    Well, I will climb them with greater pleasure that I have been with me only love!""

(Traiva pulls her fingers quickly from her cittern's strings and taps out the beat against the soundboard.)

Traiva sings rollickingly:

   "For I'm a rover, seldom sober.
    I'm a rover of high degree!
    And when I'm drinking I'm always thinking
    How to gain my love's company."

(Traiva loudly strums the chorus and begins weaving through the crowd, her expression brightening as others join in.)

Traiva sings raucously:

   "For I'm a rover, seldom sober.
    I'm a rover of high degree!
    And when I'm drinking I'm always thinking
    How to gain my love's company!"

Regwen claps her hands rhythmically.

You clap your hands rhythmically.

(Traiva plays the rollicking chorus again twice through as she dances among the crowd, finally bringing it to a jaunty close as she again stands before you.)

(Traiva holds her cittern by the neck as she raises it triumphantly before sinking into a deep curtsy.)

Nazarr

Allyria says, "Next up is Nazarr."

(Nazarr walks to the bards' bench.)

Nazarr walks over to the bench and settles down.

Nazarr recites:

   "This is a song about a woman in a tale most of us know but whose name is ignored by history and whose attributed motives are rather shallow. I thought she deserved better, so I decided to tell her version of the story. This is 'Aqila the Forgotten.'"

Beginning without preamble, Nazarr starts playing his flame maple harp -- it rings with the speed of the notes, as he displays his easy virtuosity and beautiful tone.