Necklace of Memories (4)

Emrys, an Investigator, saw the raven leave the town and glide lazily upriver towards the hills, as the valley was beginning to brighten as the sun rose from the sea. His sharp eyes noticed the silver ring on its rooks leg, denoting it was a Brandweud,one of the noble magical messengers. The elf then turned his gaze towards the town nestled by the river at the bottom of the hill, which was in the demesne of Lord Lennox. Speaking aloud to his mute companion behind him he said “I wonder what self serving machination that bird is being sent on now?” Emrys turned to gaze at the cold figure behind him. Tanwen, an investigators bodyguard called a Beddmilwr, was an undead former investigator. She had rested her long axe called a bardiche against a snow laden pine, as Emrys regarded her with a quiet despair. She had been his bodyguard for nearly twenty years now, blandly obeying his gentle instructions all those years. “Come, let's at least get a warm cup of mead and a warm night's sleep indoors at the Dolphin Inn“ said Emrys, stamping the snow from his boots.

He furrowed a path through the night's snow, as Tanwen followed clad in her distinctive blue kimono. The path . Avoiding the bramble hedge at the bottom of the hill, the pair approached the small stone bridge, as a stooped troll emerged from the tollbooth wearing a wide brimmed hat. Emrys raised a hand in greeting “Well met Guardian, I am Emrys, Investigator. I have urgent business with Lord Lennox.” The troll stopped, mugged the hand gesture then she turned round and went back into the booth. Several seconds later she stepped out again, shielding her eyes with a stony arm. She cradled a small paper parcel under the other arm. Thrusting it out, the parcel rattled as something instead moved furiously. “It not dog for food. Azazi told by grandmother not to eat it and get to Lord. You take, me not go out in sun, too hot.” The troll’s smiled, and Emrys fought down the urge to run from the unwashed blackened stumps revealed. “Of course, it will be my pleasure, and your toll fee.” stated the elf as he exchanged two copper coins for the parcel. When he said “Go and buy a goat for lunch” the stony response cooled the atmosphere even more than the icy river. Azazi covered her ears with her hands. “No talk of goat, not funny, cough cough then arrrggghhh” and she held her breath and blew out her cheeks until her eyes crossed. Stepping back precisely, Emrys laughed and gesturing farewell with the parcel marched into town. The troll shivered as she saw Tanwen and loped in the tollbooth as quickly as her bent frame allowed.

The Dolphin Inn was named after the crest of the local lord and situated at the main crossroads of the town on the southern corner. The sign of a painted blue dolphin leaping out of the sea was old, cracked and faded. It had also fallen off its perch and had been nailed crudely above the buckled door. The rest of the tavern had also seen better days. Only a scrawny human girl of about twelve winters was in the main room, half cleaning the pots. She looked up wide-eyed as the elf and the zombie entered, then gathering her skirt and her wits, she rushed over to the bar, and located the guest room keys. Selecting the iron toothed key, she proffered it to Emrys “Well met Sire, h-here is your r-room key.” Her weak smile wilted as Emry’s face grew dark Scowling he said in a tight voice “Child, I am an investigator, not a noble. I work for a living, do not call me Sire. Investigator will suffice.” Straightening his coat with a sharp pull from both hands he softened. “However, thank you for your prompt service. I need some refreshment, so some warm mead and some morning pastry would help to unfreeze my bones. Also some blood for my guard, but not dog or goat. Please send to my room, which is where?” The girl brightened somewhat and pointed to the left hand stairs labelled ‘Guest Cellar’. “ There Sir.. erm, Investigator” and she bobbed twice uncertainly. Flashing a quick thank you, Emrys took the key and proceeded across the room and wearily climbed down the stairs.

Once in the room, he collapsed onto the well worn but clean bed with an audible flump. Tanwen stepped to the stool by the door, sat down and rested her bardiche across the door. A position she could stay in for days, if required. Emrys rested for a few minutes, until there was a nervous tapping at the door. Tanwen retrieved her axe and opened the door. The girl stepped back and placed the tray of two mugs and three steaming pastries in a small basket on the floor, inside the room. Bobbing again she then turned and fled up the stone stairs. “Thank you most kindly” Emrys said to the retreating back. Picking up the mug of blood, Emrys sniffed. Satisfied it was warm lambs blood, he placed it on the floor in front of Tanwen. Collecting the remaining mug and the pastries he retired to the bed as the zombie closed the door and reset the axe. Both feasted quietly and then placed the mugs and the basket back on the tray.

Sitting cross legged on the bed, Emrys took out a seven pearl necklace from under his tunic. Six pearls were white, and one was oddly grey, and they were held together with copper filigree. Rubbing the grey pearl, Emrys contemplated what had happened last evening at Matilda’s farm and the memory retrieved that led him there. Earlier in the morning he had been summoned to investigate the appearance of a dead slave at a human farmers barn, a man called Tevis. Using cluetake, he had rescued seven clean memories from the corpse, and placed them in the necklace’s pearls. When he accessed the first memory in the afternoon, after he could no longer follow the man's trail due to the snow fall, it was a memory of the dead man meeting a farmer's wife who was baking spider pies. Normally after retrieving a memory, the pearl would revert to black, but the pearl only turned gray. Additionally the memory stayed fresh in his mind, and he could replay it without any degradation, just as he could with his own memories. This was highly unusual and Emrys had not encountered this in his seventy years since graduating from Beddmerthyr investigator school. Putting his speculation, Emrys closes his eyes and whispers a short magical cantrip to locate the next memory. His fingers twitched and were drawn to the sixth pearl, opposite the grey pearl. As the purple haze filled his mind's vision, Emry’s head leaned slowly back and rested on the headboard. Tanwen secured a straw pillow to support his head, a task she had done many times beforehand.

The memory was an old one. Another human boy of about 8 or 9 winters, a brother? Both were playing in a well manicured garden, obviously a noble's mansion. They were running around searching for a particular flower as they giggled and tripped and laughed and ran as only children can. Eventually they found the flower requested by their grandmother, a marigold, a large orange sun with a yellow center. Excitedly taking it to show to a fresh faced elven woman with bright blue eyes, blonde hair, and ritually made up as an elven sorceress. Numerous facial and ear piercings, suffused with vine tattoos and mourning make of black forehead. Most tellings she had the characteristic dead moon headlace denoting a witch of high status. Her eyes suddenly became dark and the elf looked directly at Emrys. Not the human boy in the memory, but directly at him, the black gaze hypnotic. A female voice, full of authority, said “Well, who do we have here? A nosey parker, ah, I cannot see your face behind the human child, but you must be magical, an Investigator perhaps?. This puts me in a pickle. Tread carefully, snooper, or you might lose your nose, or maybe more?” With that the purple haze intruded, but not before Emrys saw the crest on the mansion at the far end of the garden. It was a leaping Dolphin, Lord Lennox’s crest. When he opened his eyes, the last pearl was scorched, cracked and quickly turning to dust.