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[howandwhy99]

Dalin listened politely to the half-fae, and respectfully to Father Ben and others. Patiently waiting for his turn to speak, he sat quietly a moment and then shared what he had to say.

Dalin: "Your openness is refreshing, Rose," he begins, hoping that the lady has not noticed him stealing glances at her, admiring her unusual beauty the past few days. "I have asked myself the same questions many times recently. I have no personal quest, or family members to rescue. My parents, as well as two of my brothers and my youngest sister, live comfortably on their estate, surrounded by their apple orchards. A life there, helping with and perhaps eventually inheriting the family business, still awaits me if I choose."

"My family has regarded me as a bit of a black sheep, although they remain convinced that I will outgrow my adventurous ways and come home to settle down. If and when I do, I have a debt to settle with them. I can only hope that they received my letters and know that I have found my calling. My parents have covered my gambling debts too many times to count. A few months ago, they resorted to tough love and told me if I continued to wager money on games I was on my own. My luck ran out, as it always eventually does, and I was again over my head. This time the county was kind enough to offer conscription as an alternative to debtors' prison."

"Having some training with arms, I have even participated in a few tournaments, I elected to maintain some degree of freedom and try my hand at the military life. I took to it better than I had expected, and found some good and loyal friends there. While I stay out of the investigation and politics myself, we learned some things that I can't simply ignore. If the fight does not go well, our way of life could end. Having served my time, I now have the best arrangement I can currently imagine. First, I am able to exercise my combat abilities in a way that benefits my homeland. But this has also proved a profitable way of living, which gives me the bankroll to feed my true love, gambling."

"The times when I am most happy are when I am winning at a game of chance, preferably despite the odds being against me. Previously I was most able to find this feeling while participating in a literal game, with money on the table, be it cards, dice, drinking, or more creative such games. I know you, Rose, have expressed a inability to understand our use of coin, but surely you can relate to risking something of value, either losing it or winning and gaining more items of value."

"But now I know that I can experience that same feeling when engaged in a battle of arms with a fearsome foe. Again, I am wagering something of value, my life and health. Should I lose the debt may well be all that I have, in the most literal sense. But winning means vanquishing an evil being at the least, and likely gaining ownership of a share of his possessions and a better understanding of why he sought to do me in."

"There remains one other game of chance at which I have not had much opportunity of late. As pleasing as I found the company of a young lady at Grog's establishment, there was no challenge to paying a price in mere coin, especially not when I have the coin to spare. The pursuit of a fair woman is a game I have been absent from for far too long, and I look to correct that soon."

"Father Ben, I have been a bit negligent in giving thanks to your order for saving me from paying that greatest debt. My nights often leave me wishing to sleep in mornings, but I should take this opportunity while we are traveling to keep a proper schedule, starting with joining you for your morning prayers. Please wake me tomorrow in a timely manner, if you do not mind."

Dalin smiles at his companions, and continues to listen to the fireside chat.

Darius looked around at his friends and began his tale shortly after sipping his waterskin.

Darius: "My life. Heh. I find myself around good friends on a mission to rescue a good person from evil designs. Truly there can be no other lot in life."

"Back in the Dwarven Kingdom, I am one of 5 children. My older brother is with the army, a seargeant I believe (Or equivalent dwarven rank). My twin sister is a Hearth Sister, or priestess. Dwarven clerics are very much like our Father Ben here, but different as well, as they never leave the Hearth. Paladins and medics are our only form of healing outside of the home, and the potions our Clerics make for us. My younger brother is skilled in the ways of the scout, though not as proficient in woodlore or combat as you, m' lady. I also have a little sister, my silfar-kahl, who is still too little to venture outside of the mountain.”

“I was a diplomat for relations between the gnomes and the dwarves, and was learning much about the gnomes. I was actually close, I believe, to learning their method of speaking with the stone. However, my visit was cut short when I learned of my mother's illness. My mother was an influential priestess, so they sought out all her relatives to come see her before her passing. My father was there, long retired from smithing. In this, Dram and I are of a common bond, warriors who are the sons of shapers of metal.”

“It was on my mother's deathbed that I swore to take up the work of the church, and was an acolyte before becoming squired to a Paladin there, Durok. My father and my family's influence were apparent, as he was the First Paladin of Thor for our lands."

*Darius chuckles a bit, but refrains from his normal dwarven laughter*

"I am pleased it did, for Durok was an excellent instructor. His teachings in combat, diplomacy, mount riding, and healing have truly assisted me in my travels."

"I was sent forth to Margrave on a diplomatic mission. I joined to assist in the defense of the county because I felt it was my duty. From there, as most everyone here knows, things moved fast, becoming a seargent, then a captain, without ever originally intending of joining the military at all. Now I travel forth once again, looking to do Thor's bidding, to bring the message to my people of the situation here, and right now, to save my friend's brother."