Surprising his friends with his calm acceptance, he rose and walked out the door. His faithful companions followed after him. Together, greeted by a growing silence, they descended to the first floor.
The shouting and laughter subsided, replaced by an all-consuming attention directed toward the famous heroes. Leaving his friends at one of the tables which had been immediately been offered to them by some courteous guests, Hadjar climbed onto the stage.
He came up to one of the bards.
“May I?” He stretched his hand out. “I swear on the graves of my ancestors, I’ll be careful with it.”
“Y-yes, of course, please.”
The bard gave him the dearest and most valuable possession of any musician — their instrument — without hesitation. Hadjar nodded and sat down in the empty chair. He stretched
