Ch. 66: The Game

We kept riding for two weeks, making it to the edge of Grimmheim; a destructive barbaric land filled with huge hairy men that delved in human sacrifices. I wanted to go around and not mess with them, but we'd been getting reports that Grimmheim had caused some disturbances with our other allies. So our objective was either securing a treaty or making sure they understood not to cross on our borders. Since I figured this might be a rather gruesome battle, we made camp to have a very casual night before letting Grimmheim become aware of our arrival.

"Alright fellas, no worries about alcohol cause I've got the goods right here!" Richie stepped forward to our little campfire holding as many bottles of liquor as he could.

Toval's mouth gaped (he was a notorious drinker), "Where've you been hiding those you fruity brat?"

Richie rolled his eyes, setting the drinks down and sitting next to me, "A 'fruity brat' has his ways . . . besides if I'd told you about them before, you'd have already drunk them all."

Toval ran a rough hand through his short blonde hair while grunting in understanding. I looked off, making sure the other soldiers in the main camp were having a good time then looked back at our little group. Sitting in a circle around the campfire was Rodair, Iren, Toval, Kovin, Illana, Richie and myself (with my unnamed little pet perching on my shoulder).

I gave an inward sigh - even though we were facing imminent death tomorrow, these moments felt precious to me. I felt at peace being around these six other people; so much more than I ever did in my homeland. My life has purpose, reason, a goal and these people were my friends. Yeah I didn't know much about them, but they were there for me; they had my back. That meant so much more than blood or history to me. They were dependable and they depended on me too. It was a mutual understanding and respect, something that was unfamiliar to me.

"So, since we might all die tomorrow . . . How about we play a game??" Iren asked, his violet eyes sparkling in the firelight.

Richie did his signature eye roll, "No offence kid, but your games are probably way too adolescent for us grown folk."

Iren pursed his lips, "I apologize oh Ancient One, but why don't you hear me out before berating the better generation, hmm?"

We all chuckled (excluding Richie) and Toval grinned, "Alright, lay it on us kid."

"The rules are simple - everyone is asked a question. Answers can't be a yes or no - you MUST include a detailed backstory. Follow-up questions are allowed if the answer is too vague. You have the option to refuse answering, but refusals equal a pint of alcohol as consequence. You only get three chances to refuse - the final question after that HAS to be answered. Anyone BRAVE enough to play??"

The brave remark had the guys nodding their heads in acceptance. I nodded too - answering some questions shouldn't be all that bad, right? Actually . . . this could be very enlightening. I'd always wanted to know how Kovin got that scar - now might actually be my chance to get a direct answer.

"So who's going first?" Richie asked.

Iren tapped his chin, "Nose goes?"

We all tapped our noses except for Rodair who didn't understand what was going on. Iren laughed, "Okay, our winner is Lord Rodair! You have first dibs on asking anyone a question. Once Rodair picks his person, no one else can ask them. Go ahead."

Rodair's blue eyes filled with confusion, "What sort of question can be asked?"

"Anything! That's the beauty of the game." Iren smiled, that dimple dazzling in the firelight.

"Okay . . . Toval," All eyes turned to the sturdy rough guy, "What is Toval's greatest fear?"

Toval scoffed, "That's low. If I reveal my weaknesses then you guys wouldn't let me live it down. I'll drink." Toval lifted a pint of alcohol and downed it in one go with Richie and Iren whooping.

"Next question." Toval relaxed his shoulders and stared at Rodair.

"Hmmm, it's said that Toval does not favor women. Why is that?"

Toval grunted in disapproval, but nonetheless said, "I'm from Bodach. Women are nothing more than tools there. You use them for breeding - and if you're in the lower class you don't get to use them at all. Nobles get to rub it in our faces that they're the only ones to play around with something so rare. It'd be like saying only nobles get to paint, so you never ever get a paint brush. Eventually I guess I decided that if I couldn't have it, then I didn't want it. So, you could say an animosity rose in consequence."

Toval looked briefly at Illana then straight at me, "But that's not how I feel anymore. Women are people too - Ezran you've helped me see that. I was ignorant before and now I know better."

Iren clapped his hands, "Nice. Excellent answer. Alright Toval, it's your turn to ask a question."

Toval smirked, "Great! I've been wanting to ask this one for a while now." He turned his amber eyes on Richie, "Why in hellfire do you act so feminine?"

Richie laughed outright, "Ha! I'd have told you before if you'd just ask nicely. Sweetie, I was raised with ONLY women - you could say I developed accordingly. When you're like the only man around, you tend to pick up what everybody else is laying down. Besides, we lived in a brothel. My family devoted time and effort to be as feminine as possible when the need arose. You could say I picked up a few tricks myself." Richie winked giving a sensual grin. I chuckled as Toval's mouth hung open for a second.

"Then why doesn't Ezran act the same way?" Toval asked.

Iren raised his hand, "Nu-uh Toval. Richie already answered - you've gotta drink a pint as a consequence."

"Oh what great punishment!" Toval faked a gasp and downed another pint eagerly.

Richie turned back to the group, rubbing his hands together excitedly, "Yay - my turn. I pick," He waved his finger around then pointed at Illana, "YOU! I just gotta know girly, why did you decide to join up with those perverted Zantarkans in the first place? You obviously hated it there, did you not know what was going to happen?"

Illana had been quiet but now her deep dark eyes blazed with hidden anguish, "I didn't know what they were like . . . I was a slave under a very heartless Lord until I turned fifteen. One of the elders happened to be passing through my town and the Lord invited him for supper. The elder took one look at me, made some inquiries to the Lord, and asked me if I'd join the Zantarkans."

She shrugged her small shoulders, "I didn't see any reason to refuse - I thought it'd be better than my current situation and for a little while it was." She lowered her head down solemnly.

Everyone was quiet for a moment, until Illana raised her head and gave a beaming smile, "I'm in a much better situation now . . . Anyhow - I suppose it's my turn."

She shyly turned to Rodair, "How did you come to join the Bodach Empire? I've heard that Gorvants are extremely loyal to their country, why would you leave?"

Rodair proudly sat up with a huge grin, "Rodair was defeated in a one-on-one battle with Lady Ezran. When the time came for m'lady to end Rodair's life, she refused. Rodair is bound to return this life-debt, however Rodair has decided to stay with m'lady as she reaches her goals. M'lady has a good heart and is very strong. Rodair would be a fool to go back to a land that is not moving toward such an enriching future."

"Wow buddy, so you're staying for the long-haul?" Richie asked wide eyed.

Rodair nodded enthusiastically and Iren grinned, "Awesome!"

Since Rodair had already asked a question, he got to pick who would ask next and casually chose Kovin.

Kovin shifted uncomfortably but turned to look at Iren, "Prince - I'm not really sure what to ask, so what's your best memory?"

We all chuckled at the lame question, but Iren's eyes lit up, "Oh what a good question! No one ever asks me stuff like that! Let's see, my best memories would probably be when Brother Baymun would come back from war . . ."

I immediately felt anger at the mention of the demon's name, however I kept it to myself.

Iren continued, "If he were back for more than a few days, he always made it a point to take me and Brother Devin to the secluded oasis outside of the palace walls to go camping. I remember you, Kovin, always getting mad that he left without you ha ha! It was the best time - he'd tell us all about his war stories and the exciting lands he got to go to."

Iren gave a little grin, his eyes dazed as if he were in deep thought, "There was this one time after a rather difficult campaign, he told us what he wanted for the future. His dream . . . I'll never forget that night. He's truly a visionary."