Inwardly, Mel sighs.
Melia shakes her head and leans a little closer so she can speak to Matilda without being heard by the entire room. "Well, it's nice that the place isn't showy, but that's not what I was asking about at all. I just don't want to take out my wallet and give you a large sum of money in full view of a room full of people, because then they'd all know that I'm carrying a fair sum on me and where I keep it. I'm sure they're all very nice and would never ever consider jumping me in an alley and stealing the money Mom and Dad entrusted to me. But maaaaaaaybe it's better not to tempt anyone. You know? The location and contents of my wallet is what I don't want to flaunt."
[ooc]And now the entire room has the opportunity to potentially listen in on this speech, which kind of defeats the purpose.
"Tomorrow morning, then, that sounds good. Waiting around with nothing to do is not good for a man.", Janus finishes his mug, indicating he wants a new one, leaning closer to the Barkeep when he delivers it:"Pray tell, is it true that in the city there are gals that lay with a man for coin? I would see such a wonderful place with my own eyes...if it exists-"
Kazador looked the man over, gauging him as best he could. What was his game? Did he suspect something was afoot, or was he just showing off?
”Well manling, any more of this and my arm might well fall off. So nay, won’t bet, but I’ll take ye on just yet. Winner gets bragging rights and loser has to make up for the loss by entertaining all of us with a tale. Those are the highest stakes ye’ll get out of me. If ye accept, let’s go.”
With that he put his arm on the table, ready for the bout.
The oldest-looking of the young soldiers claps a hand on Garick's shoulder and gestures him to take a seat. "Well you're in the right place then, my good man! We'll give you the straight tale of it. The pay is excellent, the training is impeccable, and we have the prestige of all Iustia on our coats." He gestures to their maroons. "We can go sign you up right now, if you like!"
This soldier isn't being completely honest. He's giving Garick the sales pitch.
The barkeep looks incredibly uncomfortable when Janus asks about such establishments and mutters "Er... yer not really in the right place for that. Docks might have something..." He scratches the back of his neck uncomfortably and doesn't provide any more information than that.
Matilda nods "Of course, dearie." and leads Melia into the kitchen. A couple of girls are working hard there kneading dough and stirring pots on the wood stove but the patrons can't see Melia and Matilda anymore.
The man raises his eyebrows at Khaz's bet then nods slowly. The men around laugh and proclaim "Now you'd better win, master dwarf! We've never gotten Allen to tell us a story before!" Khaz begins very strong, forcing the man's arm down.
Garick senses there's something fishy in what 5ye man is saying and a few glances at the others confirms it, tight smiles, confused looks and other tells. "Oh come now, you don't expect me to believe it's all sunshine and daisies do ya? What is then, so they give ya a bonus for signing up up poor fools too deep in their cups? Common, gimme the truth of it. I ain't gonna sign up tonight either way, but if you tell me straight what I'm in for I might later. What's you name? I'll let them know you're the one what's recruited me? But if you're just gonna give me the recruiter's lines I'll be on my way friend." He finishes with a smile and waits expectantly.
"Ha, guess it was just stupid rumors, after all! I knew they were just pulling my leg.", Janus laughs it off, smiles and lifts his new mug for another sip.
In the kitchen, Melia pulls her wallet out of her handy haversack and counts out the required payment. ".... and there we have it, 180 shiny gold pieces for a month! I'm sure everything will be just peachy. Where's the house located? Do I need a key? Oo, or maybe you have a giant guarding the door and I'll have to charm my way past every time I come or go!"
"Hey Khaz!" Melia calls to him as she walks back out into the main room. "I rented a house, it's all taken care of -- I'm just going over to a bookstore for a bit, I'll meet you back here in about an hour and we can go check out the house, okay? I'm so excited, I've never rented a house before ..."
And with that she is out the door and on the way to Alexander's.
——
Straining to put Allen down, he yelled back ”...that’s...nice!” Muscles straining he continued pushing. ”...have...fun!” He grunted.
Melia waves cheerfully at the plate seller as she passes by, light of step and heart.
Some of the fellows at the table laugh and the speaking soldier's cheeks turn to match the color of his uniform more closely. He swallows then speaks up "Ok ok then. So it isn't always the easiest thing. They drill you. Hard. The sergeants will yell at you if you don't follow every order to the tee. My da says that army was much laxer in his day and fellows could fight more how they saw fit. But the sergeants say it's to keep us alive!"
The bartender eyes you uncertainly then nods. "Sure thing, sir." and gets back to his work.
Khaz slams Allen's hand down to the table and the men erupt in cheers or groans depending on where they place their bets.
The winning men appear to be collecting at pretty good odds.
d
The men begin ribbing Allen to tell them a story. Allen grumbles then waves them off. "Alright, alright. Let me talk, then, if you're in such a hurry to hear a story. Ten years ago when I was serving, we were dealing with the Lakefire Rebellion. My commander's name was Alain Turick. Think he came from nobility or something. But you couldn't tell from how he served. Slept with the men. Ate with us. Marched with us whenever the going got tough. He always told us that our duty was to Iustia, not ourselves. Some of the lads said he was full of bluster but us paying attention knew he meant it. And he proved it during the Battle of the Long Mile. We were tasked with holding a hill for archer fire. A whole regiment of Lakeburners was assaulting us, though, and we had the fighting hot for a long time. One of their fellas was this big man with a longspear who was tearing through our boys. One of ours pointed out that we could leave our spot to hold a different hill. There was even a poorly-defended Lakefire standard over there that'd have been easy glory. But Commander Turick didn't have it. He shouted back what he always said, that our duty was to Iustia. Then he charged the big fella. Took a spear thrust that grazed him over his left eye but with the blood pouring down his face he spun under the fellas guard and stuck him in the gut. So we held that hill. Later found out, it probably kept the battle from turning against us." He gets up from his seat and takes another farther in the corner and begins sipping a drink. "That's my story. Now I'm done talking."
The populace seems rather busy and industrious as Melia heads to the bookstore, muffin in hand. She sees the sign of the bookstore hanging over a small storefront with glass windows. Inside are shelves upon shelves of books and sliding ladders to help access them.
The rungs of the sliding ladders are about twice as close together as you might expect.
Inside the store, Melia sees a human in his thirties organizing several shelves, a woman of forty running her finger down titles, and a gnome with hair gray at the temples looking rather downcast on a stool in the corner.
"Ah, don't take it too hard. You're not the first man ever to try putting lipstick on a pig, who got dirty in the process." Fyrman smiles and gives the man a consoling Pat on the back. "So, they're drilling you boys hard eh? Wonder why? I bet there's some old timers that don't like this new tune much. I mean, Iustia's not at war or anything. But you didn't mention the pay, is it worth they sergeants' tongue lashings? How long do they own you once you sign? Is there any way to get in ahead of the regular crowd? I'm a hunter by trade, do they have a place for scouts and foragers that isn't digging ditches and marching all day? Them's the kind of things I wanna know." Fyrman pulls over a chair and sits his mug down at the table cementing his place among them. "What was you name anyways friend?"
Melia enters the bookstore, deducing from the glum expression and the ladders built for short legs that the gnome must be the proprietor. She marches directly up to him.
"Hello there!" she says. "Unless I miss my guess, you are Alexander, which means that this ..." (she flourishes the muffin at him) "... is for you. Courtesy of Matilda at the Homely Hearth, who is a saint among women, I am sure."
The men chat and gab with Garick as he has inserted himself smoothly into their conversations. "Eh... some of the oldtimers complain about the good old days when you only joined the army when there was a war on. But most people see how strong it's making Iustia." Another chimes in "The pay isn't a lot but they pay us every time. That's more than I could say for most jobs." A third pipes up "Standard is five years of service." When Garick mentions getting ahead, one of the men snorts derisively "Well new model or not, noble's sons seem to find plenty of command positions. That's the main way. Or be rich enough to get officer training in Troscari before you even sign up. As for scouts, sure they got 'em. But you have to do your time and prove yourself in the regular infantry first."
The soldier Garick introduced himself first to has become quieter as the others chimed in but nods and states his name "Daryl."
The gnome looks surprised as Melia approaches him and nods, accepting the muffin. "Why... yes... I am Alexander. Thank you for the muffin and pass my compliments back to Matilda." He takes a bite of the muffin, which is sized for a human and will provide him with a long, delightful meal of a snack, and looks reinvigorated by either the food or the kindness. "And who might you be, young lady? What can Alexander Mumblethunder the Third do for you?"
"I'm looking for a map of the city!" Melia informs him. "I'm new to town, you see, and I want to get to know aaaaaaall about it. It's so big! I thought Trostan was pretty large, you know, but now I can see it's not much larger than a village really, and so I want to learn all about Bannerhold and a map would help me do that. Also I might want to look around at the books and see if there are any Mom might like, although honestly I don't read much myself so I don't know if I would pick good ones or not, but with a whole store full of books, why, there has to be something she might like in here somewhere!"
Finishing his second mug, Túrion says his thanks and goodbyes, leaving the Tavern, not quite willing to give up on his plans, just yet. Wandering across the market, then a bit further, he ponders. Eventually, he approaches two old men playing a board game in the evening sun:"Excuse me, sirs. I came here, to this wonderful city, with friends that I owe much to, and would like to make their stay memorable. As an expression of my gratitude, I would like to treat them to a night they will remember for the rest of their days. You sirs seem knowledgeable of the city, mayhaps you could help me. I am looking for the best restaurant in the city, one the King wouldn't be ashamed to be seen in. And some entertainment, a play, a concert, artists, anything to spend the evening - and later yet, a brothel, with the prettiest and most uninhibited woman this side of the continent."
He produces 2 silver coins from below his cloak:"If you'd pause your game long enough to give me some advice, it would certainly be worth your while."
"Well boys, I gotta get going now. Maybe we'll share a mug again soon." Fyrman says a he finishes off his drink. He shakes the first man's hand as he gets his name before leaving. "Daryl huh? Good name that." With that he takes his leave. Outside the inn Fyrman browses at nearby stores waiting to see if he can catch Kazador as he leaves the in since Janus and Melia have left already. If too long passes without Kazador leaving Fryman will head to the place he rented from the innkeeper and settle in a bit.
With the crowd finally dispersing, Kazador ambled off while rotating his sore arm. He smiled when he saw his comrade. ”Oi! Eh....Garick?” He said, blanking on the new name for a moment. ”I’m getting some fresh air. Where’ya off to? Got quite a story to tell, if ye’ll listen...”
Through the window, you notice a few people approaching Alexander's who stop outside then walk away, concerned and confused.
The gnome's eyes widen slightly as the torrent of words pours forth from Melia. "Um... well yes ma'am... I do have some maps of the city. It depends on the level of detail you require. I can give you a basic map for 5 gold pieces or a moderately-detailed map for 10 gold pieces. If you wish to commission something beyond this, however, I can place requests with various surveyors and records offices and have something very detailed within the week for 50 gold."
A minute or two after Khaz steps out of the inn, James Taylor steps out after him. He eyes Garick uncertainly then asks Khaz in a low tone, "So, should we ask around for some... entertainment... or not?"
The old men are more than curious when Janus walks up with his coin and his questions. They laugh and poke each other mischievously when he gets to his last request. "Sure thing, son. We can help you with that alright! You'll want the Boar's Head on the Reguline itself for the food. As for the play, you'll see something good at the Plainsview Theater in the merchant district. Best theater on the continent! And for your friends to have a good time at the end of the day, well take a little walk down to the merchant edge of the Reguline and look for a white house with pink flowers in front. Knock on the back door and show your coin. You'll be taken care of just fine." Some disagreement then arises between the two men as to the best restaurant and they begin arguing vigorously.
When he meets up with Khaz Garick shares his part as well. He looks to Khaz when James Taylor asks and shrugs. "Could be fun..."
”Aye. James, Garick. Garick, James. Let’s see what’s what.” ‘Khaz’ said with a smile. He didn’t have a head for subterfuge, but fortunately it wasn’t needed here. At the moment he was literally just having a good time and seeing where fate took them. It had been so long since he felt able to do so that the feeling was almost completely foreign.
"The medium detail one, please!" Melia says. "I mean, that should be plenty to start with, and I can always come back later and order a fancy one if I decide, to, right? Hey, what's with those people outside? Actually I'd better take both the 10 gp one and order the fancy one now, because a week is a long time and if I wait to order it then it'll just take longer so I may as well do it now. They look confused! I should know, I'm an expert on being confused. Here's your gold!"
Turning her back to the window so as to keep her hands out of sight, Melia extracts seventy gold from her haversack and presents it to Alexander.
James Taylor grins somewhat sheepishly and nervously. "Well I feel safer doing something like this with two new friends along. I heard something about this being in docks. Let's go take a look." Garick, Khaz, and James Taylor wander down to the docks district, which seems a little dangerous at night given the lack of reputable-looking people traversing the small narrow streets at night. Thankfully for them, a group of three men makes them unattractive targets. James Taylor begins asking around if anyone has heard about some fighting in the sewers but the farmer doesn't exactly have a silver tongue.
Alexander is caught somewhat off-guard by Melia's rapid transitions back and forth between the sensitive question and the talk of the map. Because of that, he perhaps reveals more than he would otherwise. "Er... they see the censor's mark on my door. Oh ok miss I'll get started on that right away. Thank you for your business." When Melia overpays, the gnome immediately, as if automatically, corrects her "Oh no, miss. Fifty plus ten is sixty." He hands back the ten gold with a slightly condescending smile. The human male gives Alexander an exasperated look but the gnome waves him off.
Garick seeing that James is struggling chats with a couple of people as well.
"Oh! You're right, silly me. Thanks. Censer's mark? What's that?" Melia asks. "The priests in the chapel of Pharasma back home sometimes use a censer. It makes my eyes water."
Garick smoothly asks around for entertainment and has a gruff-looking man point him to a sewer hatch in an alley. "Tell them you're there for the show. You'll have to pay, though. Ten pieces." The alley in question is a few minutes away.
The gnome looks rather uncomfortable about the topic but can't help correcting "No you're thinking of a homophone. C-E-N-S-O-R." He emphasizes the "O." "Here, I can point you to a book on the topic." He shows you a legal encyclopedia of Iustian law for 10 gold pieces.
”Let’s do this. Oi, James. I got you for this one. Take it as my thanks for letting us know of this, and for making this dwarf feel welcome in a foreign land.” ‘Khaz’ said with a smile.
Fyrman pays his portion with a feigned grin. "This should be fun. Can't say the setting is that great though."
"Weeeeell, sure, I guess," Melia says doubtfully. "But I don't know why you won't just tell me. Oh well. Hold on to that one, I'm going to see if there's anything here Mom might like!"
She goes and peruses the shelves, taking her time. Censor's mark? she thinks. My my, what have you been gotten involved in, Alexander Mumblethunder the third?
"Ha, I consider it a good sign that you argue over the food - and not the girls!", Janus comments to their squabble, leaving the coins at their table: "You have my gratitude, do have a nice evening, sirs!"
He then makes his way to the Plainsview Theater, securing cards for a show in one of the upcoming nights. Then he'll head to the Boar's Head, trying to make a reservation for dinner for that same night - properly timed so there is no need to hurry. If told that there are no openings, he will sneakily hand over an appropriate amount of coins and ask to re-check, just in case someone has cancelled.
Finally, he makes his way to the Reguline, pinpointing the white house with pink flowers. Knocking on the back door, he grips a pouch of coins while waiting for a response.
The sewer guard shrugs as he accepts the money, not feeling a need to convince these men the show will be worth it since they already paid. He opens the sewer grate and ushers you down. A few small torches light the way as you head deeper and deeper and around a few corners. The smell isn't pleasant but it's not as bad as you might expect. It seems this part of the sewers hasn't been in service for several years. Soon, you hear laughing, chatter, and occasional cheers. You walk into a larger chamber where several dozen men stand around a large cage, 20 x 20 ft across, cheering, drinking, betting, and laughing. An unarmed, unarmored man with wraps around his fists is fighting four rats the size of hunting dogs. They lunge at him, jaws snapping, but he puts one down with a well-placed punch, another with a kick to the side of the head, and springs away from the other two. They circle him slowly before he lashes out with blinding speed, putting them down. Some men cheer while others groan. A man next to you complains to the air "I only bet they could tag him once! I thought my money would be safe!" He draws out some coins and pays a halfling near him, one of the few halfings you've seen in the city. James Taylor looks thrilled and mutters "This is better than I'd hoped!" He then pulls out his market money and looks overly eager to start making bets.
Alexander shakes his head, making it clear (to Mel but maybe not Melia) that the censor's mark is a sensitive topic to him. Melia peruses the shelves and sees many books she would expect, histories, a collection of fairy tales, almanacs. But she also notices a book entitled The History of Non-Humans in Iustia next to a large empty section of shelf.
Janus secures the theater cards and Boar's Head reservations for five nights from now. At the white house, a middle-aged woman in a fine dress opens the door. "Yes young sir? How may I help you?"
Melia collects several books:
A Nice and Accurate Historie of the First Blackthorne War, a title written some 120 years back and well known for its wild and totally unsupported claims about a conflict from which few written records survive.
The Golden Griddle and Other Stories, a collection of fairy tales, which she hasn't read before.
Leaves on Still Water, a slim collection of poetry, mostly romantic in nature.
And she picks up the The History of Non-Humans in Iustia.
It takes about twenty minutes to make her selections. Books in hand, she returns to the counter and plops them down. "These, please!" she says brightly. "Plus the one you recommended earlier. And wow, that section over there must be really popular -- there was hardly anything left!" She waves a hand at the empty section.
Fyrman nods and with a forced grin replies, "yeah, great stuff this. I didn't realize they'd have animals in the ring too. That guy was pretty fast. Do you think you could do something like that James?"
Alexander counts up the books and announces "That will be twenty crowns each, miss, for a total of eighty crowns." When she mentions the empty section, Alexander winces again. "Er... um... Not exactly. Anyhow, thank you for your business."
James Taylor hoots and cheers as the next fight starts between a much-balley-hooed orc and a tough-looking dwarf. "Nah... the missus would be right upset if I came home battered in from something like this. But it's right good fun!" You see a man working his way through the crowd. He seems to be sizing up and inviting potential contenders who look like they would make an interesting show. You also see a man sitting up somewhat higher watching the fights who is dressed a little more richly than the rest. Those near him seem to give him some deference.
Based on the falcon insignia on his cloak and what you've heard about him, the well-dressed man is Alain Turick.
"Hold on a sec ..." Melia says, turning so the location of her wallet is not easily seen from the window. Fishing around in her haversack, she pulls out the small sack of gems she procured in the Bishopric. She extracts an emerald, tucks the pouch away again, and pushes the gleaming green stone across the countertop.
She leans her elbows on the countertop, chin cupped in one hand, one toe propped up on the floor behind her. She smiles sweetly and lowers her voice a bit so the other two people in the shop can't overhear easily.
"That's valued at a hundred crowns," she says. "I carry gems when I'm traveling. They're easy to conceal, and light weight. They don't slow you down if you have to run. From bandits, you know. If you'd prefer coin, I could do that instead."
"But I think you should take the emerald, and not worry about the change. And if there's anything you think the new girl in town should know to do -- or avoid doing -- I'd love to hear about it."
(She opts not to point out that the price of the Encyclopedia of Iustian Law somehow doubled between his initial suggestion and ringing it up.)
Janus lifts the small bag of coin so it's visible, then gives the lady a warm smile: "I am certain there are many ways I could be helped here - but I would rather discuss the specifics inside."
Fyrtor slips away from James and Khaz and begins working the crowd trying to pick out who are the most influential people there and who might be able to help them infiltrate the aristocracy or the military. He also keeps an eye on the fights. He may place a few small bets as needed to have an excuse to chat, but not much.
Alexander eyes the emerald and looks at Mel appraisingly. Maybe this girl wasn't as dim-witted and lacking in discretion as she appeared. He responds in a low tone "Well Miss, you'll find out soon enough that it's good to be human like you in Iustia and not be much else. The young king's advisors have him and the whole country stirred up about how dangerous we non-humans are, trying to take over their culture and land. That's why there's been such a big focus on the military." He shakes his head sadly. "If only they could be made to see it's all a big farce. Sure there are orc raiders and elven spies here and there but most of us are just looking to live our lives."
The woman smiles charmingly and admits the young man. There he finds a lavishly decorated room with sofas, exquisite though suggestive art, and heavy doses of perfume in the air. Several young ladies dressed in high fashion stand about flirting with wealthy young men. The middle-aged woman asks Janus "Would you like to discuss the specifics with me or find things out for yourself, my young lord?"
Walking around and chatting up the spectators, Garick is able to determine the identity of the richly-dressed man.
Melia purses her lips. "How surprising!" she says. "I know a dwarven doctor; he's a bit gruff at times, but he can patch up a wound right quick. He seems a good sort. Just trying to live his life, as you said."
"I hadn't heard anything about all this in Trostan. But then, it's fairly isolated, so news is slow. When did all this start?"
Not having a hard time staying in his role, Janus answers the Madame while his eyes jump from lady to lady, only remotely registering the art and decoration of the room: "As intriguing as the latter sounds, I do have rather specific wishes and would feel more comfortable discussing my vision in private - if that is acceptable. I trust you will counsel me well, rather than judge."
Kazador watched the fights with growing interest, eyeing the combatants with a growing impatience. He wanted to step in there and join the bout. It had been a long time since he had gotten his hands dirty as such.
But at the same time he didn’t want to blow his cover, as flimsy as it was. At length he said ”So, what’s the prize here? Who pays these fighters? Wonder if I could get some work patching them back up...” He added, remembering that he was supposed to be a traveling doctor.
Fyrman drifts back over to check on Khaz and chat about what he's discovered. "Hey Khaz, remember that guy you beat arm wrestling? The one who told a story about his commander? Pretty sure that's the guy there." He nods his head towards the well dressed man. "He's got to have some people still in the army he's close to, probably higher ups. I'm gonna go see if I can get to know him. Ya wanna come?" Glancing at James Fyrman is careful to touch back on his cover. "I think he might be able to help me get a good spot if I decide to join up you know? They probably have places for surgeons and healers too. I don't know if you'd be interested in joining the army, or if they'd take a dwarf, but might be an option since you're looking for work and all."
”...aye? Sure. Why not.” It took him a moment to register that this was part of the intrigue that they had signed up for. He wasn’t used to lying, deceit, or anything more underhanded than feinting before a punch. Which he supposed, in a way, this was. He followed his friend, his ears and eyes open.
Fyrman and Khaz head over to speak with Alain. "Ho there, enjoying the fight? Bet it's pretty boring for someone like you. You're Alain Turick ain't ya? I heard you was magnificent in the Lakeside rebellion. Met one of you men, said you fought like a demon and stood firm as a boulder. So this probably won't enough to get you really excited. Though I bet ya have a good eye for how the fights gonna go. Oh, I'm being rude, me names Garick Fyrman, but I mostly just go by Fyrman. And this here's Khaz, we were wondering if you can tell us a bit more about this New Model Army business. I might join up ya know? Khaz here's a healer, plenty of work for healers in an army I reckon."
Khaz nodded along, generally looking interested while ‘Fyrman’ did the talking.
Alexander looks around uneasily then stands up on his tiptoes so he can speak more quietly. "Well, Duke Beaumont was talking about these ideas before the Lakefire Rebellion, five years ago. Got Stephen to pass a couple of laws. But then the Lakes raised their standard and a lot of worried, disgruntled folk, dwarves, gnomes, halflings, some half-orcs, joined them. After the rebellion was put down, the laws got a lot worse for the majority of us who just sat quietly hoping things would get better."
The matron nods and curtsies and leads Janus to a finely-appointed upstairs room. A large canopy bed occupies much of the room but there is a large mirror on the wall, and two fine armchairs for sitting. She perches daintily on one of them and inquires "Exactly how my I help the young lord?"
Khaz thinks he could probably handle most of these fights without his hammer and just sticking to his fists. But some of them, he reckons he would definitely need to use his hammer for. After a little inquiring, he learns that a tall, dark-haired man named Drake, seen watching the fights and counting out and receiving bets, seems to pay the fighters and would be the one to talk to regarding healing services.
Garick and Khaz boldly approach the incognito viscount who looks surprised and even offended at their chummy approach but then he laughs and slaps his knee at their respectful, if eager and class-unconscious, address to him. "Two seats for my new friends! And bring us some drinks!" A few men rush to accommodate the high-ranking Iustian lord, bringing stools and mugs of ale. Alain takes a moderate sip from his own and then grins at the two of you. "I did fight the Lakes, but a demon and a boulder might be too high of praise. Who told you this tale?" He shakes his head, chuckling. "As for the army, it's the best, well-oiled machine you'll find on the Continent. No room for Dwarf soldiers, but if he's worth his salt, he could be a healer no doubt. How about you, Garick Fyrman, can you hold your own in a bout?"
”No room for dwarf soldiers? Do ye have too many?” He asked, confused. ”Ye know...” he mused ”...a combined dwarf and human army would be terrifying. Get a formation of crossbowmen, dwarfs in front. The humans could fire over their heads easily enough. Double the rate of fire. And spearmen, just imagine that! Front rank of dwarfs in plate with spears and shields. Humans behind. Ye’d get more Spears pointing at the enemy, and ye’d have a front rank that won’t be pushed over. A slower formation, but with cav’ on the flanks, it’d be more important for infantry to hold and missiles to shoot faster. Aye, more I think about it, more it seems that men and dwarfs together would be right solid.”
"Well Sir, I can hold my own with a bow, and if push comes to shove I'm pretty quick with a knife. Can't say I'm much of a fighter though to be honest. I'm a woodsman, hunter by trade, from near the border with the Bishopric. Came to see what all the fuss was about with this New Army bit. Thought maybe they'd have place for someone with skills in scarin' up game and such. But I hear that you gotta start as a grunt and move on from there, so I'm not sure. Might just head home before the cold hits and the furs start being worth takin' again. What do you think?"
Melia nods. "That sounds awful," she says sympathetically. "Can I take it that this encyclopedia of law is up to date? Because it sounds like maybe you ran into trouble with something that got added recently."