Most of the dinner had passed with me listening to Sir Aryoss. He caught me up on what he had been doing lately. It was mostly meetings about strategy and riding out with the scouts to get the lay of the land. Of course, he didn’t do much scouting, he’s far too loud for that. He’s also awful at sneaking around. He’s too much of a rush up and attack guy for scouting.

He did tell me how sorry he was about my mother and Jade dying, which was thoughtful. I just tried to let myself be distracted by all of his talking. Thankfully, there was a lot of it. His straightforward approach to life was refreshing, if not the most interesting stuff I had ever heard. I went to bed slightly tipsy. Not enough to cause a hangover but a big help in getting to sleep without thinking about things too much.

I woke up refreshed and excited to find out what Imprid had meant by keeping me away from the office. Alas, that was not to be, at least not yet. I dressed appropriately for the office, meaning some fancy lord clothes. I was careful not to get any food on them during breakfast and was waiting at the front door while Venzik picked out what guards to take with us. I had argued that with all of the Kathaldi having abandoned Ansdron we didn’t need as many guards anymore but Venzik pointed out that just because some of the Kathaldi had left that didn’t mean that some had not stayed behind, which made sense. No point taking unnecessary risks.

There was a loud series of knocks on the door. Celerith, the door duty guard, drew his sword. “Who is it?” he called out.

“Vone, of the house of Pevik, Kefnakian Priest and friend to the owner of this dwelling.”

That was a familiar voice! I smiled and reached for the door to open it but Celerith held up a hand in warning. “Are you certain it is truly this Vone?” I nodded. “Enough to bet your life on it?”

I thought it over. Sure, what did I care? I pulled open the door and saw my old friend in his familiar bronze robes. “Vone! “What are you doing here? I thought you were dead!” I grabbed him for a hug and hurt myself embracing the chainmail under his robes. “Get in here and tell me everything!”

He laughed and stepped inside, setting his small circular shield and mace against the wall. “It is great to see you again, Dirk. I worried that you were dead, too, until I arrived in Ansdron last night and found Delik Slin and Imprid.”

“Why didn’t you guys come find me? Sir Aryoss was here. We could have had a party!”

“We probably will, when Thilos returns from the field. We will need to invite Padral, as well.”

I sighed. “I suppose so.”

Vone laughed at that. “Can we sit somewhere and talk?”

“Of course!” I led him to the sitting room, which is just perfect for sitting in, after introducing him to everyone and letting Venzik know we wouldn’t be heading to the office as I’d planned. “So, what happened to you after the fight with the Orcin soldiers? I imagine Imprid and Delik Slin told you what happened with us.”

His face clouded over. “They did. Everything. A sad tale. Mine is less dark. When the fight started I traded blows with a calvaryman and killed him. I urged my horse forward and fought two more as I broke free. I think I injured one but I was not able to kill anyone else as I took off. I circled back around to the road and then followed it north, back the way we had just came. When I rested my horse I changed robes and cleaned myself up, figuring having blood showing would not put anyone at ease. I rode to Doin Rith, the Orcin city we saw near the entrance to the Great Pass that we had avoided earlier. I went directly to the Temple of Kefnak there. My hope was to gather a group of priests to join me on my way to Aandarvi, because I was determined to get the message out to the High Mages’ Council, Warders and Knights of Anathar, completing our quest. I had to assume that the rest of you were dead since we had been so outnumbered and at least some of them were Kathaldi.”

“So, what happened? Why didn’t we run into you in Aandarvi?” I asked.

He laughed. “I never made it there. The high priest of the temple in Doin Rith heard about me recruiting my fellow priests for some mysterious mission and summoned me to be questioned. I was not about to betray the confidences of our quest to him, what if he was Kathaldi?” He smiled. “The high priest did not take kindly to my refusal to answer his questions. He had me thrown in a cell with no distractions, such as anything to eat or drink, to encourage me to reconsider. I did not. I used my time to pray for guidance and to memorize the details of my cell. I counted every stone. I also attempted to kill all of the vermin I could see, from rats to insects, although the rats were usually too fast for me, especially after I weakened from lack of sustenance. Finally, after about a week, I informed him I would only answer to Kefnak himself. He did not like that much better but at least he had them provide me with food and water after that.”