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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Tilla the Hun (work)" data-source="post: 1209173" data-attributes="member: 14214">Prologue (con't): Farley, the halfling bard:  Jonato listened to Farleys voice, shaking his head slowly.  When the song ended, and the family was moving around again with awe in their eyes, he called his grandson over to him.  "Farley," he said, "your voice is wasted here.  You should go and put it into the service of those who are righteous.  The Bardic Guild or the Royal Army."  "But grandfather, my place is here, with the family!"  "Balderdash son, you need to take that gift of yours and share it."  The conversation was an old one, oft repeated, and it fell upon deaf ears these days.  Farley was convinced his place was was with his family, and the family business - farming of smokeweed.  Two weeks later, his grandfather lay dying of a heart condition the healers could do nothing for.  Farley was at his side day and night, trying to ease his passage.  Finally, after the old man had begged him, Farley agreed to journey to Eledissil and try out for the Bardic Guild.  In a wheezy, gasping breath, his grandfather spoke to him, "Thanks, grandson of mine.  I served the Royal Army and I wanted your dad to do so, but he never did.  Give back to the people what they gave for us all.  Search under the big oak in the south forty, you'll find my old, trusty..."  The old halflings voice faded away into a whisper and then he was gone.  Farley and family moaned and mourned for the obligatory two weeks.  Eventually, Farley searched under the big oak and found a sling of pure white leather that almost glowed.  He placed the sling under his pillow as a reminder of his grandfather.  He almost forgot about the pledge he had given, losing himself in the family business.  That is, until the dreams began.  About a week after he placed the sling under his pillow, he began to have dreams about a beautiful faerie that haunted his every waking minute.  She seemed to be beckoning him to come to her, and the ache in his heart for his grandfather melted a little more with every dream he had.  One day, he saw her in broad daylight, a transparent, four foot tall pixie of pure, glowing white with wings of purest black, spotted with twinkling white dots.  She held a familiar looking sling in one hand, and was beckoning to him with the other.  Racing back to his bed, ignoring the cries of his family, he checked for his sling.  It was gone.  With a cry, he ran out and towards where he had lost seen the pixie.  When he got there, he saw her again, not to far away.  Again he ran toward her, but she seemed to always be just out of reach, or just dissappearing around the next corner of the road.  For a full two weeks he chased her, day and night, not realizing he was never hungry or thirsty.  One misty morning, he charged up a dirt path on a grassy hill to a solid wooden door mounted in the hillside.  Just as he reached the door, an old gentleman opened it and welcomed him in, taking him to a waiting room.  The Story Begins:  Lillias, Tull, and Farley found themselves in the same waiting room.  Lillias, strikingly pretty human in clerical robes, was speaking quietly to Tull about his experiences when Farley was brought in.  Questions abounded as to why they were where they were, and, for that matter, where here was.  They fell silent a moment later, as a figure drifted in the open door of the room.  Great gossamer wings of pearlescent, scintillating colors beat slowly, holding the incredibly perfect, four foot tall humanoid female off the ground.  Of the people present, only Farley had ever seen a pixie before, but he recognized her at once.  "I'm sure you all have many questions, all recruits do as a rule ." Spoke the pixie in a firm contralto that was as pleasant as the soft chuckle of a pure mountain stream over rocks smoothed with age.  "I can tell you where you are, which is the Questar Academy, and why you are here, because you were divinely summoned by the patron gods of the academy, blessed be they in their anonymity.  I can tell you that your past is past, you have begun a new life here as Questars.  If you truly do not wish to be here, you may leave freely. However, in my experience nobody ever selected has ever willingly left the service."  She smiled at them.  "I'm sure you have many questions.  Please, feel free to ask me of them.  I'll answer as much as I may, though your instructors will likely add detail."  Lillias was the first to speak "The Questars? I am honored to be summoned to the service."  Tull responded to both Lillias and Attila, "I am a recruit in the Royal Army, and as such, I would like to return there as I was brought here nearly against my will.  "Nay lad, ye were summoned here 'ginst your will, there be a difference, ye know.  Would ye turn your back on the gods themselves asking you to serve them directly??" Farly spoke up in a poised manner, his south halfling accent clearly showing.  "I'm thinking ye should at least be trying this service, and if ye be worried about deserting your post, as I understand it, the Questar summons transcends all other mortal laws..."  "Quite right Farley - Tull, you need have no worry about your sergeant, he sent word just a few days ago to keep an eye out for you, and to take good care of you."   After reassuring each individually, and explaining a few concepts about their training time at the Academy, Attila left them in the hands of the seneschal to enroll in various classes that would teach them their responsibilities as Questars, the vaguities of etiquette in Lammoria, and the Lammorian Judicial System.  Lillias opted to enroll in additional classes to expend her magical abilities, and Tull chose to enroll in additional physical combat training courses.  Farley enrolled in just the basic classes, finding himself weaker by nature than most of the people around them.Next Post:  Training finished, First trial mission undertaken.</blockquote>

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