An Introduction to Characters of Minor Significance

Sitting on a rock outside the city, the wagon-master of the caravan waited in the pre-dawn light.  He had thrice made the fifteen year circuit from the east kingdom of Kath, out into the hot sands and oases of the Degeleen Empire, and back down through the peaceful, alluvial Commonwealth of Centhoundria before traveling by boat back up the coast to start again.  This specific journey was his first leading the merchant caravan of Livilee, the guild he grew up in.  This was also one of the times that the caravan was kept waiting on order from some noble, though the first time by a king.  Footsteps behind him turned his gaze from the city gates to his wife's smiling face.

"You think they'll be interesting sorts, Garth?"

"How should I know, all I got was a scroll with a few words on it telling us to wait.  Now I'm stuck here waiting for them like they think we're some sort of escort service, hah."

"Why not show a bit of hospitality for once, it is a whole week we'll be traveling with them."

"A whole week of going through that forest, all up on our toes for bandits and wolves or some strange wild thing out from the dark places in there and me not knowing what sort they'll be?  If the kings graces here weren't such a big deal, I'd leave them and be through with it."

"But a few extra eyes will be useful, 'specially in these times.  Word is something happened at that old castle near the border."

"You mean that old fort against the Empire?"

"No, the castle, owned by some wizard of some sort."

"That thing?  I'm not surprised, I was always a bit uneasy about it, remember the fuss there was about how the old codger in there hadn't got a magic licence from the king?"

"And how nobody was man enough to go knock on his door and tell him he needed one?"

"Well, it was a big castle."

"Yes, they say it appeared overnight almost, though nobody was really there to see it."

"Not like anybody besides us and the garrison over there actually take this road.  Thankfully we don't pass more than a crow's flight of the place."

"So it'll be great to have more travelers to keep a lookout for strange things in the woods, especially with talk about that castle being mighty haunted."

"I s'pose so, but whats this about haunted?"

"Seems some big blast of somethin' or other came down there, no word out of the place since."

"When was this again?"

"Well, remember when we had just crossed into the Empire last trip and saw that comet in the east?"

"Bad signs, comets, makes sense that bad times would fall when they do."

"Exactly, Folks took it as an omen, but nothing ever came of it besides that castle growing real quiet, so the story is that the wizard was smote from above for delving into secrets above his right."

"And now his ghost walks the halls, seeking revenge or something?"

"Pretty much."

"Well, it's not the tallest tale we've heard.  How long are these king's men going to keep us waiting?"

"Now dear, not everyone is used to such an active lifestyle, waking up this early on city-folk might be a bit hard."

"I'd agree with you, but two of them are from down south, came up through the pass before we set out by ship.  Didn't say why they came up, or who they were, or why they're going to the border, just that they were coming with us.  The other is Some sorcerer of the king's, didn't say which one he was neither."

"Well, that might be them there, just coming out."

"But there's only two of them."

"Well, some of them then."

"One looks like a kid, seems short enough."

"No, I don't think so, look at how he's walking.  Wasn't there something about a goblin conjurer in the city?"

"Maker's light I hope that's not them."

"Oh!  That might even be a fairy on the other one's shoulder!  And you know it is dear, they're even coming this way."

"I don't like them already.  At least it's just a week."