The Oracle
Fourth Passage of the Summer Moon
Small Town Boys Become Big Heroes
Not much news filters up from Shaky Crossing. In fact, if you’re not a traveler, you might not have even heard of the small village, not too far from Aranor and Jalpa. But a trader came to Aranor this passage with a story of his encounter in there with three young boys, and we’re all a little more likely to remember the town after his tale.
“I was crossing that famous bridge in the village,” said Eirninn, a Tirané trader who makes his travels through Shaky Crossing. “It’s as they say – an old bridge, covered and beautifully worked. A real historical treasure, as it’s rumored to be over two hundred years old. Well, it is a bit shaky as they say, and I got out on the other side because my horse had stumbled in the crossing, and I wanted to see if he was all right. That’s when I saw the . . . creature. It was a forest dragon, I’m sure, but it must have been sick, for its eyes were fevered and its muzzled coated with a sort of whitish paste, as if it had been drooling a lot. It was running along the ground out of the woods, coming straight for me, and in my startled state I stepped right back over the edge of the embankment and fell into the water.”
Because Eirninn isn’t a good swimmer, his clothes soon weighted him down.
“There happened to be three young boys nearby, all fishing, and instead of screaming and running for help as I would have imagined, they sprung into action! One of them ran up to my horse, which stood in the dragon’s way, and grabbed my horse’s reins and began to goad it so that it reared up and made a terrible noise. This was enough to startle the dragon, which stopped its advance. If it would have made past my horse and across the bridge, it would have been right in the village! The second boy grabbed a stick and held it out to me, dragging me into shore with all his might. And the third sprinted for the village.
“Gagging on water, I watched in amazement as my rescuer ran to help his friend, and they, with my horse, made all sorts of noise – plenty to keep that dragon confused. In a few moments some men were there, led by the third boy, and a few arrows drove the dragon away into the woods. If it wasn’t for those three boys, I’d be drowned and the village would have had a dragon in its midst!”
True heroes indeed. The three brave boys are named Connin, Erik, and Mark.
Tania
Cheese Festival Planned
The first-ever Cheese Festival will be held next passage on An Tiné in the Merchant’s District.
“The main street is going to be lined with booths,” said Maretta, the event’s organizer and owner of Mouse Dreams, a cheese shop that specializes in imports. “And each booth will have something cheesy at it. We’re going to have samplings of all varieties of cheese, winemakers are going to hold contests to see which wine goes best with certain cheeses, there will be cheese-making demonstrations, the ‘cheese lift’, a contest of strength, and all manner of cheese foods, such as fried cheese, yogurt cheese, and cheese-ka-bobs. Music, too!”
Many of the samplings are free, so they are expecting a huge crowd to gather for the all-day festival.
Tirian
Aislinn Summer to Sing for King Mark’s Birthday
The King of Rel Morde turns thirty-eight next passage, and will be celebrating in Aranor with Queen Lillian and her family. They have invited Aislinn Summer, the world-famous singer, to entertain at the occasion. Aislinn, already a legend at only twenty-one years of age, is said to have a voice which can never be forgotten, and hushes all to silence who hear it. Some even say she might be the child of a Siren. In any case, she sings only privately, and has already come to the city, “dripping with excitement”, she has said. It will be her first time singing for either of the two rulers, as she usually makes her home in Moraithe and Masalla, where she is highly in demand.
Lord Kieran
