Law + Chaos

A despairing soul

Night had befallen the town of Rath, and it seemed like as soon as the sun disappeared over the horizon, every store was closed and every door and window was shut. Every door except of course, the Moon and Son, was centered in the small port dwelling. It was here that every traveler, every adventurer, every wanderer met and conversed with their bellies full of ale. Each night was a different experience, filled with either violence or a sense of wonder. Sometimes there would be a bard in the building who would play his instruments to liven the atmosphere with a sense of fun and joy. More often than not, however, there was always a fight that broke out between these mysterious men.

There was a local woman of the Iron Order who made an effort to always be there when something started, however even with her assistance the owner of the Moon and Son suffered damages every night. It was difficult to keep the place in order with so many shady fellows meeting inside. Especially during times of war when the small town was occupied, which it almost always was being so close to the sea. They were just recovering from the last war, and their funds were starting to run low. The Inn and Pub was once the towns pride and joy. It was one of the largest buildings, standing at three stories high.

The first floor was dedicated to the dining room, which was once in pristine condition. Banners made from the finest fabric the country had to offer once hung from the ceiling. These Banners held the Sigil for three specific organizations. The Kinsmen, who were in charge of the towns trading and fishing commerce. Their personal Sigil were in the shape of two koi fish circling each other. The Iron Order, who were the Knights and soldiers belonging to The King. Their mark was the mark of a gauntlet covered fist. And the King's own personal house emblem, which was the shape of a Phoenix.

Those flags were now dirty and tattered. One was even scorched from some insane mage who swore that the Kings flag would turn into a real phoenix if he casted fire on it. Aside from the beautiful flags being completely ruined over the years, the walls were now dull and chipped with many shoddy patch work jobs. The chairs and tables were splintered and barely able to hold a mans weight. The flatware and glasses they used to serve was chipped and borderline dangerous. All these things Samuel Herald wanted to change.

Samuel was the son in the Moon and Son. His father had passed away a few years ago during the War of Kings, and his mother had died during child birth. Samuel was always told that his mother was the moon, watching over him. Of course he didn't believe that now, at his age. Though she was the Moon and he was the Son. His father indeed loved this place with his very soul to name it after the two most important things in his life.

Samuel had only one sibling, who he hadn't seen in years. She was younger than him by nearly a decade, mothered by a wench. Feeling like she didn't belong, she chose the life of an adventurer, specializing in magic and relics. It was just him here, and his barmaid, Esmeralda. A sweet thing, though she didn't talk much. Samuel was not surprised, after all, she was a foreigner who traveled all the way from the Faelands of the East. Although she never told Sam what she was, he doubted her to be human.

It was a normal night just like any other night. Men were singing, shouting, chanting. Having a good time as most drunken men do. A man that Sam had not seen before stumbled in, already appearing to be intoxicated. Though that was not unusual, there was a striking thing about him that gave Sam a bad feeling. This man stood at least seven feet tall, barely being able to get through the door without scrunching over. He was also very large, and every inch of his monstrous height was made purely from muscle. He wore leather armor, ripped and taught as if it was just barely able to fit around his muscle bound body. His pants were also ripped in some places, and on his back was an ax with dried blood dulling it's obvious shine.

This man made his way up to Sam, who was behind the counter and fixing drinks. He looked at him with a playful grin, as if he was thinking of something devious. His dark brown eyes were lit up with glee, but it was simply terrifying to someone like Sam, who was about half the size of this warrior. The mans hair was matted with a thick gooey substance that Sam did not want to ponder about for too long.

“I need a room.” The black haired male said, his speech slightly slurred but intimidating. Sam nodded slowly, his heart racing as he continued to notice more and more dried blood stains all over this mans body. He had been in the business for a while, but for some reason this man in particular was making him feel nervous. He seemed even tougher than some of the Orcs that passed through here.

“That will be three copper pieces, sir.” Sam said, holding his hand out hesitantly. He watched the man sloppily dig in something behind him. From where Sam was standing it looked like his hand was down his pants, and he was quite literally digging for gold. It wasn't until the man sloppily started to turn himself around that Sam would see what he was trying to do. There was a heavy tan pouch bounded by what seemed to be hemp rope dangling from the string of his ax holster.

“Help me out here, boy.” He leaned against the counter, placing his back within arms length of timid Sam. Though Sam was clearly not a boy at twenty eight, he didn't say anything. He continued to admire the injuries of this fellow. His armor was even more ripped to shreds in the back, and he seemed to be bleeding from a few open wounds that looked very painful. From the way his flesh was separated it was clear that they needed to be tended to, but Sam didn't say anything. He simply untied the string and the pouch landed on the counter with a heavy thud.

With that, the man turned around and opened the pouch, and Sam's mouth nearly dropped. It was filled with gold pieces. Sam had never seen so much gold in his entire life. He himself only made about fifty gold pieces a year, and they were never even gold pieces, they were all silver or copper. But in this large pouch, stood at least a thousand if not more. Sam had to wonder where it all came from. Was this man a thief? No, he was too large to be a thief. Perhaps a mercenary, maybe?

“You're gawking, boy. Never seen as much money as this have you? Here, I'll give you an entire gold piece if you give me your best room and that wench over there.” The large man pointed to Esmeralda, who looked up while she served a drink to one of the regulars of the Moon and Son. She then gave him a very disapproving look, the soft features of her face wrinkling with anger. Though she did not speak a world. “I kid, I kid. But I do require food. One gold piece for a room and a meal. That's about fair.” His booming voice was making the bar quiet, and a few characters were eying that big pouch on the counter.

“Sir, we haven't served food in a while as our chef quit months ago. The best I can do is give you some salted meat and bread.” Sam tried not to sound as if he was nervous, but it was obvious that he was intimidated by this hulk of a man. He seemed human in every way possible, he was not deformed, he did not seem to be blessed by some celestial being, he just seemed...normal aside from his height. Sam had no idea why he had this unnerving feeling that something bad was going to happen. It might have been his mothers uncanny gift that his father once told him about, where she always knew when someone was a bad omen. His father said that both children had this gift, but Sam just thought he had good instincts.

“Throw some ale in there and we'll have a deal. But you really should get a cook.” The man stuck his meaty hand inside of the pouch and placed a gold piece on the counter before Sam and started tying the bag up, then secured it to his belt. Sam did want to open the kitchen back up, but he couldn't afford a cook anymore. Of course, he didn't want to say that to a complete stranger.

“Deal. Please take a seat. Esmeralda will fetch you your dinner.” The man nodded and then started to stagger over to an empty table. Slowly the attention started to diverse among the men. Samuel was relieved when it seemed like his gut feeling was just his imagination. The man was harmless. He waved the young silver haired bar maiden over and had her fetch the mans dinner. He then placed the gold piece he was given in his safe. He could use the extra funds to fix some broken tables.

Perhaps this man, although dirty and covered in blood, was not such a bad man after all. Sam watched as he socialized with the table next to him, seemingly uncaring that they were strangers. He seemed free of all cares, which made Sam a bit jealous. The life of an adventurer seemed to be thrilling, and if it were not for the Moon and Son, Sam might have walked the same path as his sister. But, taking care of the family's pride and joy was what he was meant to do with his life.

Samuel Herald was a man of duty, and his duty laid here until the end of his days.