As the soldier waved down one of the serving girls, the bard reached the first chorus, and virtually everyone in the tavern lent their voice to the effort.

“Dinner under the stars

“We ended up with scars!

“What could be more tragic,

“Than Maribel’s Magic?”

The song told the story of love gone awry between a noble prince and a mage named Maribel. In the usual version, Maribel was portrayed as beautiful but moody, while the singer of the song was naive and lustful. However, this bard tweaked the lyrics to change the meaning, turning Maribel into a misunderstood romantic, while the singer seemed depressed that he wasn’t a mage of her caliber.

“Okay, I think I like this version,” Gandash said after the third chorus.

“Same,” Gem said as the serving girl swept by and dropped a tankard in front of him. Picking it up, he said, “Cheers, boys.”

The three of them drank and enjoyed the rest of the bard’s rendition of Maribel’s Magic. By the end, the room was in a frenzy, screaming the chorus and stamping feet and clapping hands with such vigor that the entire tavern seemed to shake.

After the bard finished, he stood and bowed to thunderous applause and quite a few lewd comments.

“I’d give Maribel a good time. Or two! Bahahaha!”

“What ol’ Maribel needs ain’t a mage, it’s a good strong man!”

Xerxes could see Gandash grinding his teeth. It was obvious his friend was still irritated at the locals’ crude jokes about mages.

“Come on, Gandy,” Xerxes said, “they’re just farmers and bumpkins. I bet nobody here’s ever even seen a real life mage before.”

“‘E’s right,” Gem said. “Don’t take it to ‘eart.”

“It just pisses me off,” Gandash said. “Gem, do you know how hard Xerxes and I worked to get to this point? Seers at only sixteen years old? Already sent on a mission from the capital? And they talk about us like we’re either fools or limpdicks or—”

“Ey, calm down,” Gem said, putting a hand on Gandash’s forearm.

“Yeah,” Xerxes added, “who gives a shit what they think, anyway?”

Gandash didn’t seem convinced, and continued to glare around as various raucous comments and laughter wafted about. The bard had left the stage and was presumably taking a break before starting another set. It was late, but not that late, and there was no way the tavern or the bard were going to miss out on the coin a crowd like this would turn over.

With the military convoy in town, of which Gem, Gandash, and Xerxes were part of, there was business the likes of which a place like this normally wouldn’t see outside of major festivals. There were soldiers, woodsmen, and locals as well, and the entire room buzzed with energy.

The convoy had been on the road for the better part of a month, and this was the last bit of civilization before they headed out into the wild forest. Their mission wasn’t inherently dangerous or particularly interesting, being little more than an inspection of a castle close to the border. But the soldiers were happy to relax a bit and spend some time without mud-spattered boots and nights spent on hard bedrolls.

As they waited for the bard to return for his next set, Gem tried to make some small talk. Xerxes accommodated, but Gandash clearly wasn’t having it, and seemed more interested in cocking his ear to listen for any unflattering comments made about mages. Xerxes knew what was going on. Normally speaking, Gandash wasn’t as sensitive as this. But these tankards of ale were big, and he was on his second one already. The alcohol was getting to him. And given how mages seemed to have become something of a theme already, it was a given that more jokes and stories would be heard as the evening wore on.

Xerxes weighed his options. The last thing they needed to do was provoke some sort of tavern brawl. If that happened, Captain Ishki would have their hides. She was from Od just like Bel was, but Xerxes knew full well that she wouldn’t give a rat’s ass if these yokels made a few bawdy comments about mages or people from Od.

Struck with a sudden idea, he said, “Hey, Gem, I have an idea.”

“Yeah, Xerk?”

“What if we did a little demonstration for these Unsighted gentlefolk? Show them ‘plain and simple’ what a mage can do?”

Gem grinned widely, revealing the huge gap made by his missing teeth. “Whaddya ‘ave in mind?”

Xerxes explained his plan and Gem’s grin widened. Even Gandash’s frown had leveled out and seemed on the verge of turning into a smile.

“Agreed?” Xerxes said.

“What if someone’s seen that trick before?” Gem asked.

Xerxes shrugged. “Play it by ear?”

Gem nodded. “Alright. Let’s do it! Been a while since I've been part of a show.” Without any further discussion, he smacked his hand loudly on the table and rose into a standing position. “Friends!” he shouted over the buzz of conversation, and quite a few heads turned in his direction. Clapping twice, he raised his voice even louder and said, “Friends! I ‘ave a bit of an announcement to make!”

The room quieted even further.

“Allow me to introduce myself. My very short and simple name is Gemegishkirihallat, and I’m but an ‘umble soldier from the capital!”

His comment provoked some laughter. His long name was something of a running joke among the soldiers, although there was another soldier in the group who had a similarly long appellation.

Continuing, Gem said, “I am passing through your most lovely town along with my fellow soldiers… and mages.”

Xerxes and Gandash weren’t soldiers, so they didn’t need to wear uniforms. At the moment, they wore utilitarian travel clothing that made it impossible to guess anything about them. And even if they had been wearing their mage attire, it was unlikely rustic folk such as this would have realized what it was.

As Gem let his words hang for a moment, the room grew more quiet. Xerxes took the opportunity to look around and gauge the feeling of the crowd. Most people seemed curious, and perhaps slightly apprehensive.