Autumn was upon the world as evidenced by the cool night air. Seldonia shivered slightly as she exited the tavern. Tonight was like most nights before, she finished her daily work and had set off for the Silver Flagon to finish off the night. She liked the company the Tavern provided, its patrons were always friendly and finding a familiar face was never a hard task. One thing always held true about the Silver Flagon, no matter what night you showed up, Finleyville was always there to provide the drinks. Tonight had been no different. He prided himself with having the ability to take two rather bland liquors which he mixed with various other ingredients to create the most wonderful tasting beverages Seldonia had ever had. She would never give him the credit though, lest it go straight to his head. Tonight he offered something new to the patrons, a drink he called, Spindrift. Seldonia remembered vaguely commenting something about loose women on the move. This drew a bit of ire from the crotchety bartender which Seldonia laughed off as usual. The drink certainly lived up to it's name as Seldonia felt her head spinning as she drifted down the street toward her home. She made a mental note to give Finleyville a piece of her mind the next time she saw him. Which more likely than not would be tomorrow evening. She finally made it to her doorstep and stumbled through the main entrance of her home. The Autumn air had found it's way inside, due to an open window, making the room a bit too cold for Seldonia's liking. She closed the window and decided to throw a few logs in the fireplace to warm things up. She bent to pick up the logs and her head swirled a little, the alcohol in her system causing her body to rebel. She cursed the bartender again for that and forged on. Within a few minutes she had a nice fire blazing, it's warmth filling the room rapidly. Seldonia stood up admiring her fire building skills. She welcomed the warmth it provided even if it did make her somewhat sleepy. Taking a few steps back, Seldonia found her favorite chair and promptly sat herself in it. Between the alcohol and the warmth of the fire it wasn't long before she was sleeping in the same spot. She had a dream of hammers banging nails into walls as men hung posters throughout the town. Their banging made Seldonia's head throb. It was so bad that she woke slightly. The banging continued. There was a voice too. It was very faint at first and Seldonia had trouble making out what the person was saying. Surely she wasn't hearing voices in her head, “I must still be sleeping,” she said to herself. Those words were loud and quite clear. She made the mistake of shaking her head to clear her mind and let out a pained groan immediately after. More banging followed by, “In the name of Lord Sook I demand that you open this door at once!” The world was coming back to her and Seldonia realized the banging was not in her head but at her front door. She tried to stand but her knees had other ideas and she sat back down hard. She spoke, “Just a minute! Stop that banging!” each of these words making her head pound. Seldonia wanted the pain to stop and whoever was at the door was banging again. She willed her legs to work as she stood once more. Using every piece of furniture to lean on she made her way across the room. Seldonia flung the door open, not caring who was on the other side, she just wanted them to stop banging on it. Without a glance in their direction she said, “Come in already and be quiet about it!” She turned and made her way toward the kitchen. She needed water and cared about nothing else at the moment but that need. Reaching for the glass that sat on the counter top she finally spoke, “What could possibly be so important that you would need to bang on my door at this time of night?” There was no answer, only the sound of someone clearing their throat in a manner to get one's attention. Seldonia glanced at her reflection in the window as she filled her glass with water. The sight she saw there made her gasp. Her usual tidy reflection was replaced by a haggard looking beast. It's hair was hanging in all directions and where it wasn't hanging it was sticking up at odd angles. The makeup around it's eyes had run causing dark streaks down her face. She was a wreck. She silently cursed Finleyville again. Surely it was his fault for making those evil concoctions and forcing her to drink them. He did force her to do so by always filling the glass when it was empty. The person standing in her house cleared their throat once again, this time it was a bit more forceful. Looking and feeling like she'd been spawn straight from hell, Seldonia turned toward the person annoyed and said, “WHAT?!” in a voice that reflected her annoyance. Her eyes focused as she finished turning. There in her very home was Lord Sook himself. In her stupor the information took several seconds to register. Seldonia's knees threatened to give way and she steadied herself using the counter top. “M-m-m my apologies L-L-L-Lord,” she stammered. Seldonia wasn't sure if the look on his face was amusement or something else. “Lady Seldonia, you look as if you've have a terrible evening,” he said with a chuckle in his voice. To Seldonia it couldn't be any worse. His tone set her at ease slightly but she was still upset at how she looked in the High Lord's presence. It was that moment that she realized that as real as this may seem perhaps she was still dreaming, she hoped she was. Taking a chance by removing her hand from it's steadying point Seldonia pinched her arm. The pain was immediate and the news it gave was quite upsetting. This was really happening. She groaned. Lord Sook laughed loudly at the scene, he knew this woman was colorful it was the reason he was here in the first place. Seeing it in person had solidified his theory. He decided to take charge. “Lady Seldonia, I see that I may have caught you at a bad moment, a funny one, and one I will likely share with you again around the meeting table where we can perhaps both laugh about it.” Seldonia's eyes raised up to meet his. “Meeting table?” she squeaked out, interrupting him. “Yes, that is where all of the Talons gather. We come together to discuss all matters of the Silver Dragon Stronghold. I would like you to attend those meetings as the Silver Dragon Scribe.” He could see she was confused, the look on her face was a mixture of that and something else, shock, perhaps, horror, fear, he wasn't sure but there was something else behind the confusion. “Your talents have not gone unnoticed, your way with a pen and paper has gotten not only my attention but the attention of the rest of the Talons. We would like to put that talent to work with us. To chronicle not only our past, but our future endeavors.” Seldonia was stunned, sure she had done some write ups on things that had happened within the Stronghold but these were important things she felt needed to be recorded. What he was offering was something more in depth and official. Seldonia was not sure she had what it took to match such a prestigious position. She opened her mouth to say as much just as her stomach lurched. What happened next will haunt her for the rest of her life. She threw up on the man. Well not exactly on him as much as on his shoes. He must have saw it coming or perhaps it was the horrible guttural sound she made when she opened her mouth to speak, either way Lord Sook was able to step back from her enough to avoid the worst of it. Surely she had blown her chance. How can he possibly think she would be good enough after a display like this. She quickly grabbed a towel and started cleaning off his shoes. “I am so sorry, please, you had caught me at one of my worst moment and I've gone and made it worse.” In her mind she was cursing blazes at Finleyville, she vowed to make him pay for this. Lord Sook shook off his boot, “Not exactly the response I usually get but things can only go up from here, right?” His tone was light and jovial given the circumstances, which is what made him the leader he is. No matter the situation never let it get to you or hold you back, move forward and do it with a calm even head. When his boots were clean enough to not track the mess through the rest of the house, Lord Sook turned to make his leave, “I know you can do what we ask. I believe I have the right person to do so. Even if your face says you do not believe it. I know you can uphold those traditions we hold dear and that you can make a difference with your words going forward. As with all Talons, when you speak you will be speaking for me, so please, try to lay off Finleyville's concoctions. I know they are hard to resist but you are going to have to be strong. Not only for you or me or the Talons, but for everyone within this Stronghold we call home.” With that he left, closing the door behind him. Seldonia's mind was racing in a thousand different directions. She could not believe she just threw up on Lord Sook. She heard his parting words but how could she possibly face him after this? Could she perform the task at hand? These things she was not sure of. What she did know was that she couldn't remember having spaghetti for dinner.
Thanks for puking on me, Talon Seldonia!! A major congratulations and I look forward to partnering with you as we drive this community on... into a new golden age! Kudos!! I'll also add, there's a brief Audio announcement making this appointment official as well. Feel free to click the "Community Update" within my signature.
Grats, Sel! Hope your audience is ready to buckle up and hang on! :biggrin: "You unlock this door with the key of imagination. Beyond it is another dimension—a dimension of sound, a dimension of sight, a dimension of mind. You're moving into a land of both shadow and substance, of things and ideas. You've just crossed over into the Seldonia Zone."
