Questions about "Sylvia"

"...And so, to honor our King who wielded the hammer of the smith before he came to wear the crown of Elyssia, we begin the tournament with contests designed to show the strength and skill of those who work the forge!"

As you are often compelled to do, you have borrowed Sir Magnus' booming voice to make the pronouncements to the crowd, as his bellow can be heard clearly at twice the distance of your loudest shouting.

"Six master blacksmiths will come before this crowd to work the six forges that have been constructed here, where they will each be tasked with crafting a blade from a blank of iron. That blade must then cut a stout oaken staff with a single blow. Points will be awarded for the fastest time, the cleanest cut, and the finest craftsmanship. The winner will receive this silver-plated hammer, which was forged by King Xavier's own hand! Let the contest begin!"

Magnus hands the hammer to you, and you hold it high to the cheering crowd, then bring it down to ring out loud against the anvil in front of you. In moments, the ring of other hammers pounding on steel echo the opening bell.

"Really, the joust would probably be a more exciting opening event," you mention to the Sultan, who sits to your right. "The people took a vote, however, and this is how it came out."

"Ach, they probably wanted to get it over with," the Sultan says with a dismissive wave. "My favorite event is the dancing girls, at any rate! Of course, that will be no contest; I have brought with me such lovely and nubile ladies as to shame any others who dare take the stage. Best let my dancers perform last, as none would ever presume to follow them."

You have to admit that after ten minutes of watching the smiths pound steel, it does begin to get rather tedious, and your eyes start to scan the crowd instead. Surely, Velimir's men would not be so obvious as to wear their signature bearskin cloaks out in the open, but knowing that they are out there, it's impossible not to look.

"My people are watching for spies," M'Kubwa says, observing what you are doing, "and I am watching them. If one of Velimir's men is spotted, we will know it."

"Speaking of beautiful ladies," Subhi says, either ignoring or not hearing what M'Kubwa says, "who is the lovely young woman in armor who rides next to your Lady Trina? You did not tell me you were looking to add more women to your ranks, Xavier. I still do not know why it would even possess a woman to pick up a sword and shield, but the women of my land are made of different stuff, I suppose."

"The women of my people wield spears alongside the men, both to hunt and do battle," M'Kubwa says proudly. "The ferocity of a woman can be more than equal to the raw strength of a man. My daughter's daughter, one named Jua, could best any man with a staff; you shall see that this is so when she takes her turn at this tournament."

"Be that as it may, where did you find this vision of loveliness?" Subhi asks.

"Her name is Sylvia, of Corinthia I believe," you say, trying to sound only mildly interested. "She came here on her own, looking for work. Trina saw some talent in her, I suppose; she asked if she might take the woman on as a second squire, and I allowed it. It may come to nothing, however. She is apparently only fair with a sword."

"She is certainly fair in all other ways," the Sultan says with a laugh.

It occurs to you that you have not seen either Lady Trina or the Vixen in some time. You glance behind you, but they are not on the grandstand, and they do not seem to be in the crowd anywhere else either. Of course, Lady Trina is taking part in the fencing competition, the first bouts of which take place after the blacksmithing contest, so she may simply be preparing for that.

Still, you can't help but feel a degree of disquiet... an itch at the back of your neck, as if something has gone terribly wrong.