Anarquendor goes Basel
May. 29th, 2012 11:07 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
janestarzLast Friday we packed our things and piled everything in a large stationwagon before waving goodbye to our home and setting out for Basel. Tim, who had taken a nap in the afternoon, had overslept (not necessarily a bad thing, if it means he's not sleepy afterwards) so we left around ten o'clock.
Driving was good. It's been a while since I've been in a car and Tim took us towards Venlo. We took a wrong turn near Eindhoven though, but in the end we managed to get into Germany without problems. After the first 200 kilometers we took a little break and after maybe 300 kilometers we switched drivers.
It had been 5 months since I last drove a car, so it took a bit of getting used to. The stationwagon was packed to the brim with four people and our luggage and weapons, but I got the hang of it pretty quickly, and drove some 250 kilometers as well. Tim took a nap in back while I guided us down South, into France for a little bit. The route navigation took us into the regions near the borders and although it wasn't a bad road, it was annoying to drive 70 down a dense forest and not see a thing in front of me. Finally we were back on the highway, and continued apace. By 2 am traffic is really minimal, and the only thing slowing us down were roadworks where the speed limit was 80. Mostly, driving was just following the white lines on the road as our route was pretty straightforward.
Tim took over for the final part, and I woke as we were closing in on the Swiss border. In the east the sky was getting lighter and when we arrived at the location we found several people had stayed up drinking, hoping to catch us.
I nearly didn't recognise Andrew (Bibi), but I was very tired. I sent Simon and Andy (Finn) a text message and woke them up -- apparantly they were already at the terrain. They crawled out of their tents to welcome us.
We were given one of the empty tents and we set up our beds quickly. It was past five am, and we could do with a few hours of sleep.
The next morning we said hello to everyone and scrounged some breakfast. The games wouldn't start until after noon, because people were still arriving, setting up camp and getting ready. We tried out the archery targets for a little bit, and slowly changed into our costumes. I had brought my leather boots and dreads, and this always takes longer than one hopes. Still, we were done well before the game started.
There had been a bit of miscommunication though, because there should have been an escort for us to get to the Mauvetian Spring Games. However, as Woodelves we haven't a clue what "Lond" is, where this escort should wait for us, or how we could get there. Apparantly it was a city. Instead, we traveled in quite a different manner, one that fits the Omen-that-is-not-Omen setting our characters come from.
We spoke with Andy about this, took him along into the forest where Tim and I had scouted and of course promptly lost our point of entry we had decided on earlier that day. Dôh!
However, all was well. Tim briefed the Anarquendor who had joined us while we set Finn off down the path. We went cross-country after we arrived, an alpine horn softly playing between the hills. (Ah, the atmosphere!)
As we scouted the forest, we noticed movement between the trees. One of these turned out to be Finn. He was surprised to see us, his mouth open in wonderment. "My friends..." he said; "how did you get here? I was waiting for you in Lond, but you didn't arrive."
"What is this 'Lond'?" I asked.
Finn sighed and rubbed his head. "Lond is a city near the sea. We had expected you to arrive there."
"Wood elves in a city?" we asked him. A smile curled around our lips. "But we found you."
He was very happy to see us, relieved that he could take us the final stretch of the way, and we followed him up the hill.
The Anarquendor Delegation: Eferillion, Tegingûr, Autherdir Beriadanwen, Balamaethor.
He escorted us to the site of the tourney, where we were greeted by Parthalan. He was a little nervous, and insisted we take a seat in the middle of their large tent. We handed Parthalan the gifts we had brought. Culinary treats from our Woods, as well as several pouches and a banner of friendship, bearing both their sigil and ours. They were very pleased with our gifts, but the rest of the guests were eyeing us uncomfortably. We had not been introduced in the rush and confusion, and many of the Calennar and Dunkelgrün people came over to greet us. Metrino and Bibi, Haddingur and Brandar -- all presumed to hug us in turn.
However forward they were, it was nice to see them all again, and Imalayan, who had let his hair grow out again.
Soon enough the games were presented. Haddingur told a little bit of the history of the Spring Games, and encouraged everyone to bet freely during the proceedings. Tegingûr insisted that the female healer, a human, would not touch us, and instead asked Imalayan to do so should any of us get hurt. We also insisted that Parthalan would take responsibility in such a case. Parthalan agreed, although he was a little dismayed when I told him that his life would be forfeit should anything untoward happen to us, but he agreed.
I suppose some day we must explain why we are so strict with humans, even when among friends, but that day has not yet come.
The archery contest.
The first game was archery, something we were well equipped to do, and several of the Anarquendor made it through the first round. After this round, a human looking very much like a dwarf approached me, and introduced himself formally. He had a burly beard and wore a leather apron, and he was smiling a lot, and explained he was a smith. The games continued and he wandered off. We observed the techniques of several of the humans, and although Finn did well, even with his bow that was too short for him, Parthalan could work on his technique. Still, he did well enough, and after the archery game was over, the points were divided.
Tug of War: Tegingûr vs. Metrino
The second game was a Tug of War, while balanced on a small plateau. I was going against a young human child, and it would not be fair to pull him off the plateau right away. I feigned a stumble, so the boy won the first round, as it was best of three, and he cheered the loudest. In the quarter finals, I was paired up with Brynmor, a tall, burly human who tried to throw my concentration off by winking and attempting to flirt. He proved to be too strong for me, but I was sure the trick with the boy had gone down well enough with the humans.
The final game for that day was a round of a rugby-like game. Haddingur explained the rules and urged us to bet before each round started. Almost every human there did so with pleasure, but we had not thought to need money, so had brought none.
The rugby match used a very heavy, 8 kilo ball, wrapped in a bag. During the match, Daroq tried to run through me with it, and I was knocked over roughly. I had the wind knocked out of me and my organs rattled a bit, but nothing lasting. For a moment, my stomach was very upset and I needed to sit down. Daroq was thoroughly shocked, and came to apologise profusely. I assured him I was fine and that we would drink something together later that evening. Many others came to ask if I was fine as well, and I assured them all it was just the wind knocked out of me.
The games concluded for the day, and slowly the sun sank towards the horizon. Thoriat and Butze had been making food all day, passing morsels of food around on wooden plates. Mauvetian sausages, marinated chicken, grilled vegetables, each thing was as tasty as the last.
I took Finn into the forest with me, asking Tegingûr to join us, and we went for a walk. The Mauvetian forests were well content, and I asked Finn about his faith. We had a good talk with him, although it might have left him a bit rattled. When we returned, the dinner had been prepared: Mauvetian cheese, molten near the grill and poured over bread and vegetables. It was called raclette.
Dusk came and night fell, and groups of people broke off to sit and talk in quiet. The other guests, all humans, had warmed to us, and I saw Eferillion talking with several of them, while Balamaethor borrowed Daroq's guitar. Parthalan, Finn, Bibi, Tegingûr, Imalayan, Metrino and myself went off to sit under a tree and discuss politics. While we were talking, we realised that Dunkelgrün did not have one leader, but four leaders. Imalayan spoke of the first world of the dragons, and how they went to the past to get there, but apparantly Parthalan had never been briefed about this. I surmised that Imalayan as leader of the Eichen and Parthalan as leader of the Calennar, both being a part of Dunkelgrün, did not discuss their missions very often.
Perhaps our questions made them think whether this was wise. Tegingûr and I were sharp. We wanted to know why Dunkelgrün went to the Feast of the Dragons in the first place, and they told us their story. Their king received the call of the Green Dragon, calling him to fight for her, and would send them. The Calennar, being a group of mercenary soldiers, and Parthalan owing their king a favour, would answer the call in the king's name. But what their goals were on the World of the Dragons, they could not tell us.
We spoke of our goals there, and they were hesitant to reply. Perhaps our plans seemed forward, or perhaps they thought we were crazy. We had discussed it with Finn during our walk as well. All in nature should be in balance. Finn's goddess of the breeze does indeed stir the leaves gently, but she also calls forth the gale that drowns the fisherman. This was a point of view they had never before considered, and perhaps in time they will get used to the idea.
Parthalan concluded our discussion with a curt "We as Dunkelgrün must discuss our plans before the Drachenfest." He said that often to us. There was much he had not before considered possible, but now he knows we might attempt it, perhaps he will join us.
When the group broke up, I decided to tell Finn exactly how we had found him. Eferillion and Tegingûr had told Haddingur some of it, and I thought it only fair. Parthalan also stayed behind as the rest went in search for drinks, and the three of us lounged in the grass. Above us, the stars were bright.
"Finn, I would like to tell you how we found you, out there in the woods."
Finn gestured with his hands to hold up. "Perhaps I should first explain to Parthalan what happened." He turned to his leader. "I went to Lond to wait for them to arrive, but they never showed up. I asked around to see if anyone knew of several elves that were new in the city, but no one had heard anything. I stayed a day longer, just to see if they would still come, but they never did. So I journeyed back to Pelar, hoping to maybe find them, wondering what I would tell you if they didn't arrive at all. They found me instead."
Parthalan was not amused. "So where were you, when they found you?" The emphasis was clear in his voice.
"I was already close to here, passing through the forest."
"We had no idea that Lond was a city." I said; "We do not know your world. But we do know how to find Finn."
I smiled and lightly touched Finn's necklace. "When we named Finn Mellon-en-Anarquendor, we gave him this necklace. It was made by my people, elves from Weylin Woods. It allowed us to find him."
"How does this then work?" Finn asked.
"Our druids can learn how to walk through trees." I said. "Only the very strong and skilled can learn this, and it's not easy to learn. This was similiar. We traveled to a Grove of Rystill in Weylin Woods, and there the ritualists and druids helped us to walk into a tree in Weylin, and out of a tree in your forest here."
The humans leaned back, considering.
"It is very difficult to achieve, and not something to be done lightly." I said. "It strains nature. But the druids were willing to help us."
We spoke for half an hour more, making light conversation, but in the end I decided I should go to sleep.
Blind Magician - Fraxinus vs. Finn
The next morning the Spring games continued. Another balancing game, where one had to push to other off using spears that were wrapped in sheepskins was up first. After that, a game called Blind Magician, where the players were blindfolded and had bells hung around their neck. Each player was to throw a ball at the other one, and the players had to jump in place to make the bells jingle. It was really hard, but funny too as some players notoriously kept throwing their balls at Yield, in stead of each other.
The final game was Satyr Tag, the game the Anarquendor brought to Mauvetië. It is a Weylin Woods favorite, although it can get pretty rough (especially when played with satyrs -- those boys are strong!). We limited the game to several players in the field and would use blunted daggers. I withdrew from the contest at this point, so I could smear mud on players' faces, and mark them as the person that would need to be 'tagged'. It is a last-person-standing game, but everyone was very cheerful, especially when more and more people got smeared in mud as the game progressed.
Satyr tag - Eileen and Balamaethor try and tag Gar, who had been marked as prey.
Not all the visitors were participants to the Frühlingsspielen. Although Freya from Vinland had not traveled to Mauvetië to participate in the games, she did. Several others from Vinland did not -- they were looking for people who would join in the Feast of Dragons. Their council had decided they would join the Red camp, but perhaps they changed their minds after Eferillion told them he lost one of his ears to fighters from the Red.
In the end, all the points were counted and it was obvious Tegingûr had won. We all lined up to hand him our Silver of Honour, which had been given to us at the start of the tournament. By betting an hour's worth of archery practice in an earlier game, we had even made some money, but we had gifted the silver we had won to Thoriat, who had lost his honour on the field during a game. Tegingûr also received a necklace with the Mauvetian flower on it, and a certificate that he was the Champion.
Celebration ensued, and more politics also. Freya told us a story about how she came to follow the Green Dragon, and how she had received a parchment with a sign on it during her travels. According to Imalayan, it was the sign of the Poison Dancers, an ancient order from the World of the First Dragons. Still, not enough was known about the Poison Dancers to decide what to do, or whether we should change our plans. I promised Parthalan to ask Gílthir to inquire at the mages' Acadamy in Weylin, to see if anything was known on our world.
Tegingûr was fidgeting as the sun drew closer to the horizon, and indeed it was soon time to take our leave. Saying goodbye to everyone took a while, and gathering our weapons and armour a few moments more. Parthalan, Brandar and Finn escorted us into the woods, where the song of the Mauvetian horn once more was in the air.
With a final goodbye to each in turn, we turned our faces towards the forest, and disappeared between the trees.
Imalayan is taking a nap. (I always get sleepy elf pictures in the Drachenfest setting)
We returned to our tent and started packing our stuff. Soon enough we had the car loaded up again and we returned to the playing field for more goodbyes, but now Out of Character. Now we could hug everyone, without feeling awkward (that is mighty forward of you, human) and we did so with much joy. It was harder saying goodbye to Andy and Simon. We had played so much in the past days and we had had so much fun, that there were tears in my eyes. The French say it best: Partir c'est mourir un peu. (Saying goodbye is dying a little)
We left exactly at the planned time: 8 pm. I was behind the wheel once more and slowly descended the hill while the navigation software got a GPS fix and calculated a route. Within a minute we were in Germany again (we played very close to the border, and have actually crossed it on two different sides of the playing field). This time the route did not take us through France, and I drove merrily for some 350 kilometers (including breaks) before handing the wheel over to Bas. Tim was KO in the back, and we decided to let him sleep. I got my grubby grabby-hands on some coffee on the road and was ready to take over from Bas when he got tired after 75 kilometers. I drove some more, and at Sevenum (NL) Tim took over from me. By then, the white lines had a mesmerising effect and it was high time to take a break. I nearly missed the exit for Eindhoven at Venlo, so we did the switch at the next parking space. As Tim pulled onto the highway, I was already asleep in the back and only woke up when we entered Tilburg around 4 am. Tim stayed over, Bas went home as he lives close by, and the next morning at nine I baked us some fresh rolls and took a shower before Tim and I watched all the photos in a slideshow.
Needless to say, the Monday of Pentecost I didn't do much and mostly vegged out behind Bibble, editing all my pictures. I am very grateful to Barbara and Suzanne, who took turns handling my camera and often asked if I really didn't want to take pictures myself.
It was quite an adventure, and oh so much fun. I would love to do this again, but first the Calennar have been invited to Weylin Woods...
Driving was good. It's been a while since I've been in a car and Tim took us towards Venlo. We took a wrong turn near Eindhoven though, but in the end we managed to get into Germany without problems. After the first 200 kilometers we took a little break and after maybe 300 kilometers we switched drivers.
It had been 5 months since I last drove a car, so it took a bit of getting used to. The stationwagon was packed to the brim with four people and our luggage and weapons, but I got the hang of it pretty quickly, and drove some 250 kilometers as well. Tim took a nap in back while I guided us down South, into France for a little bit. The route navigation took us into the regions near the borders and although it wasn't a bad road, it was annoying to drive 70 down a dense forest and not see a thing in front of me. Finally we were back on the highway, and continued apace. By 2 am traffic is really minimal, and the only thing slowing us down were roadworks where the speed limit was 80. Mostly, driving was just following the white lines on the road as our route was pretty straightforward.
Tim took over for the final part, and I woke as we were closing in on the Swiss border. In the east the sky was getting lighter and when we arrived at the location we found several people had stayed up drinking, hoping to catch us.
I nearly didn't recognise Andrew (Bibi), but I was very tired. I sent Simon and Andy (Finn) a text message and woke them up -- apparantly they were already at the terrain. They crawled out of their tents to welcome us.
We were given one of the empty tents and we set up our beds quickly. It was past five am, and we could do with a few hours of sleep.
The next morning we said hello to everyone and scrounged some breakfast. The games wouldn't start until after noon, because people were still arriving, setting up camp and getting ready. We tried out the archery targets for a little bit, and slowly changed into our costumes. I had brought my leather boots and dreads, and this always takes longer than one hopes. Still, we were done well before the game started.
There had been a bit of miscommunication though, because there should have been an escort for us to get to the Mauvetian Spring Games. However, as Woodelves we haven't a clue what "Lond" is, where this escort should wait for us, or how we could get there. Apparantly it was a city. Instead, we traveled in quite a different manner, one that fits the Omen-that-is-not-Omen setting our characters come from.
We spoke with Andy about this, took him along into the forest where Tim and I had scouted and of course promptly lost our point of entry we had decided on earlier that day. Dôh!
However, all was well. Tim briefed the Anarquendor who had joined us while we set Finn off down the path. We went cross-country after we arrived, an alpine horn softly playing between the hills. (Ah, the atmosphere!)
As we scouted the forest, we noticed movement between the trees. One of these turned out to be Finn. He was surprised to see us, his mouth open in wonderment. "My friends..." he said; "how did you get here? I was waiting for you in Lond, but you didn't arrive."
"What is this 'Lond'?" I asked.
Finn sighed and rubbed his head. "Lond is a city near the sea. We had expected you to arrive there."
"Wood elves in a city?" we asked him. A smile curled around our lips. "But we found you."
He was very happy to see us, relieved that he could take us the final stretch of the way, and we followed him up the hill.
The Anarquendor Delegation: Eferillion, Tegingûr, Autherdir Beriadanwen, Balamaethor.
He escorted us to the site of the tourney, where we were greeted by Parthalan. He was a little nervous, and insisted we take a seat in the middle of their large tent. We handed Parthalan the gifts we had brought. Culinary treats from our Woods, as well as several pouches and a banner of friendship, bearing both their sigil and ours. They were very pleased with our gifts, but the rest of the guests were eyeing us uncomfortably. We had not been introduced in the rush and confusion, and many of the Calennar and Dunkelgrün people came over to greet us. Metrino and Bibi, Haddingur and Brandar -- all presumed to hug us in turn.
However forward they were, it was nice to see them all again, and Imalayan, who had let his hair grow out again.
Soon enough the games were presented. Haddingur told a little bit of the history of the Spring Games, and encouraged everyone to bet freely during the proceedings. Tegingûr insisted that the female healer, a human, would not touch us, and instead asked Imalayan to do so should any of us get hurt. We also insisted that Parthalan would take responsibility in such a case. Parthalan agreed, although he was a little dismayed when I told him that his life would be forfeit should anything untoward happen to us, but he agreed.
I suppose some day we must explain why we are so strict with humans, even when among friends, but that day has not yet come.
The archery contest.
The first game was archery, something we were well equipped to do, and several of the Anarquendor made it through the first round. After this round, a human looking very much like a dwarf approached me, and introduced himself formally. He had a burly beard and wore a leather apron, and he was smiling a lot, and explained he was a smith. The games continued and he wandered off. We observed the techniques of several of the humans, and although Finn did well, even with his bow that was too short for him, Parthalan could work on his technique. Still, he did well enough, and after the archery game was over, the points were divided.
Tug of War: Tegingûr vs. Metrino
The second game was a Tug of War, while balanced on a small plateau. I was going against a young human child, and it would not be fair to pull him off the plateau right away. I feigned a stumble, so the boy won the first round, as it was best of three, and he cheered the loudest. In the quarter finals, I was paired up with Brynmor, a tall, burly human who tried to throw my concentration off by winking and attempting to flirt. He proved to be too strong for me, but I was sure the trick with the boy had gone down well enough with the humans.
The final game for that day was a round of a rugby-like game. Haddingur explained the rules and urged us to bet before each round started. Almost every human there did so with pleasure, but we had not thought to need money, so had brought none.
The rugby match used a very heavy, 8 kilo ball, wrapped in a bag. During the match, Daroq tried to run through me with it, and I was knocked over roughly. I had the wind knocked out of me and my organs rattled a bit, but nothing lasting. For a moment, my stomach was very upset and I needed to sit down. Daroq was thoroughly shocked, and came to apologise profusely. I assured him I was fine and that we would drink something together later that evening. Many others came to ask if I was fine as well, and I assured them all it was just the wind knocked out of me.
The games concluded for the day, and slowly the sun sank towards the horizon. Thoriat and Butze had been making food all day, passing morsels of food around on wooden plates. Mauvetian sausages, marinated chicken, grilled vegetables, each thing was as tasty as the last. I took Finn into the forest with me, asking Tegingûr to join us, and we went for a walk. The Mauvetian forests were well content, and I asked Finn about his faith. We had a good talk with him, although it might have left him a bit rattled. When we returned, the dinner had been prepared: Mauvetian cheese, molten near the grill and poured over bread and vegetables. It was called raclette.
Dusk came and night fell, and groups of people broke off to sit and talk in quiet. The other guests, all humans, had warmed to us, and I saw Eferillion talking with several of them, while Balamaethor borrowed Daroq's guitar. Parthalan, Finn, Bibi, Tegingûr, Imalayan, Metrino and myself went off to sit under a tree and discuss politics. While we were talking, we realised that Dunkelgrün did not have one leader, but four leaders. Imalayan spoke of the first world of the dragons, and how they went to the past to get there, but apparantly Parthalan had never been briefed about this. I surmised that Imalayan as leader of the Eichen and Parthalan as leader of the Calennar, both being a part of Dunkelgrün, did not discuss their missions very often.
Perhaps our questions made them think whether this was wise. Tegingûr and I were sharp. We wanted to know why Dunkelgrün went to the Feast of the Dragons in the first place, and they told us their story. Their king received the call of the Green Dragon, calling him to fight for her, and would send them. The Calennar, being a group of mercenary soldiers, and Parthalan owing their king a favour, would answer the call in the king's name. But what their goals were on the World of the Dragons, they could not tell us.
We spoke of our goals there, and they were hesitant to reply. Perhaps our plans seemed forward, or perhaps they thought we were crazy. We had discussed it with Finn during our walk as well. All in nature should be in balance. Finn's goddess of the breeze does indeed stir the leaves gently, but she also calls forth the gale that drowns the fisherman. This was a point of view they had never before considered, and perhaps in time they will get used to the idea.
Parthalan concluded our discussion with a curt "We as Dunkelgrün must discuss our plans before the Drachenfest." He said that often to us. There was much he had not before considered possible, but now he knows we might attempt it, perhaps he will join us.
When the group broke up, I decided to tell Finn exactly how we had found him. Eferillion and Tegingûr had told Haddingur some of it, and I thought it only fair. Parthalan also stayed behind as the rest went in search for drinks, and the three of us lounged in the grass. Above us, the stars were bright.
"Finn, I would like to tell you how we found you, out there in the woods."
Finn gestured with his hands to hold up. "Perhaps I should first explain to Parthalan what happened." He turned to his leader. "I went to Lond to wait for them to arrive, but they never showed up. I asked around to see if anyone knew of several elves that were new in the city, but no one had heard anything. I stayed a day longer, just to see if they would still come, but they never did. So I journeyed back to Pelar, hoping to maybe find them, wondering what I would tell you if they didn't arrive at all. They found me instead."
Parthalan was not amused. "So where were you, when they found you?" The emphasis was clear in his voice.
"I was already close to here, passing through the forest."
"We had no idea that Lond was a city." I said; "We do not know your world. But we do know how to find Finn."
I smiled and lightly touched Finn's necklace. "When we named Finn Mellon-en-Anarquendor, we gave him this necklace. It was made by my people, elves from Weylin Woods. It allowed us to find him."
"How does this then work?" Finn asked.
"Our druids can learn how to walk through trees." I said. "Only the very strong and skilled can learn this, and it's not easy to learn. This was similiar. We traveled to a Grove of Rystill in Weylin Woods, and there the ritualists and druids helped us to walk into a tree in Weylin, and out of a tree in your forest here."
The humans leaned back, considering.
"It is very difficult to achieve, and not something to be done lightly." I said. "It strains nature. But the druids were willing to help us."
We spoke for half an hour more, making light conversation, but in the end I decided I should go to sleep.
Blind Magician - Fraxinus vs. Finn
The next morning the Spring games continued. Another balancing game, where one had to push to other off using spears that were wrapped in sheepskins was up first. After that, a game called Blind Magician, where the players were blindfolded and had bells hung around their neck. Each player was to throw a ball at the other one, and the players had to jump in place to make the bells jingle. It was really hard, but funny too as some players notoriously kept throwing their balls at Yield, in stead of each other.
The final game was Satyr Tag, the game the Anarquendor brought to Mauvetië. It is a Weylin Woods favorite, although it can get pretty rough (especially when played with satyrs -- those boys are strong!). We limited the game to several players in the field and would use blunted daggers. I withdrew from the contest at this point, so I could smear mud on players' faces, and mark them as the person that would need to be 'tagged'. It is a last-person-standing game, but everyone was very cheerful, especially when more and more people got smeared in mud as the game progressed.
Satyr tag - Eileen and Balamaethor try and tag Gar, who had been marked as prey.
Not all the visitors were participants to the Frühlingsspielen. Although Freya from Vinland had not traveled to Mauvetië to participate in the games, she did. Several others from Vinland did not -- they were looking for people who would join in the Feast of Dragons. Their council had decided they would join the Red camp, but perhaps they changed their minds after Eferillion told them he lost one of his ears to fighters from the Red.
In the end, all the points were counted and it was obvious Tegingûr had won. We all lined up to hand him our Silver of Honour, which had been given to us at the start of the tournament. By betting an hour's worth of archery practice in an earlier game, we had even made some money, but we had gifted the silver we had won to Thoriat, who had lost his honour on the field during a game. Tegingûr also received a necklace with the Mauvetian flower on it, and a certificate that he was the Champion.
Celebration ensued, and more politics also. Freya told us a story about how she came to follow the Green Dragon, and how she had received a parchment with a sign on it during her travels. According to Imalayan, it was the sign of the Poison Dancers, an ancient order from the World of the First Dragons. Still, not enough was known about the Poison Dancers to decide what to do, or whether we should change our plans. I promised Parthalan to ask Gílthir to inquire at the mages' Acadamy in Weylin, to see if anything was known on our world.
Tegingûr was fidgeting as the sun drew closer to the horizon, and indeed it was soon time to take our leave. Saying goodbye to everyone took a while, and gathering our weapons and armour a few moments more. Parthalan, Brandar and Finn escorted us into the woods, where the song of the Mauvetian horn once more was in the air.
With a final goodbye to each in turn, we turned our faces towards the forest, and disappeared between the trees.
Imalayan is taking a nap. (I always get sleepy elf pictures in the Drachenfest setting)
We returned to our tent and started packing our stuff. Soon enough we had the car loaded up again and we returned to the playing field for more goodbyes, but now Out of Character. Now we could hug everyone, without feeling awkward (that is mighty forward of you, human) and we did so with much joy. It was harder saying goodbye to Andy and Simon. We had played so much in the past days and we had had so much fun, that there were tears in my eyes. The French say it best: Partir c'est mourir un peu. (Saying goodbye is dying a little)
We left exactly at the planned time: 8 pm. I was behind the wheel once more and slowly descended the hill while the navigation software got a GPS fix and calculated a route. Within a minute we were in Germany again (we played very close to the border, and have actually crossed it on two different sides of the playing field). This time the route did not take us through France, and I drove merrily for some 350 kilometers (including breaks) before handing the wheel over to Bas. Tim was KO in the back, and we decided to let him sleep. I got my grubby grabby-hands on some coffee on the road and was ready to take over from Bas when he got tired after 75 kilometers. I drove some more, and at Sevenum (NL) Tim took over from me. By then, the white lines had a mesmerising effect and it was high time to take a break. I nearly missed the exit for Eindhoven at Venlo, so we did the switch at the next parking space. As Tim pulled onto the highway, I was already asleep in the back and only woke up when we entered Tilburg around 4 am. Tim stayed over, Bas went home as he lives close by, and the next morning at nine I baked us some fresh rolls and took a shower before Tim and I watched all the photos in a slideshow.
Needless to say, the Monday of Pentecost I didn't do much and mostly vegged out behind Bibble, editing all my pictures. I am very grateful to Barbara and Suzanne, who took turns handling my camera and often asked if I really didn't want to take pictures myself.
It was quite an adventure, and oh so much fun. I would love to do this again, but first the Calennar have been invited to Weylin Woods...
