Tavern Brawls S03W06

With a gloved hand, heavy with rain, Arwen threw the oilskinned pack on the table in front of Abacus. “Took you long enough,” Abacus’ voice was as low as the lantern flames in the dimly lit room and Arwen sneered. It had been days since he had last seen his friend and with the trouble he had had doing his bidding, he thought he was owed a little more than a curt greeting.

Abacus raised his eyes and took in the sight of his soaked accomplice. Then he grinned. “Alright, I’m sorry. There is ale ready for you by the fireplace.” He reached out and drew the pack closer. “What caused you such trouble, old friend?”

Arwen took off his jacket and hung it by the fire, before he sank down onto the chair and took his time, pouring the ale before answering. The liquid felt like pure bliss and he sighed comfortably before he turned his face to Abacus. “The Monaghan brothers.” He took another slug of the tankard and enjoyed the look of surprise that swept over Abacus’ face. “They were after the vampire hunter too.”

Abacus hands had stilled while trying to pry open the wet leather cord around the pack. “So that is why none of the street thugs could get to him. Good thing you went to help them then, eh?” He shot a smile to Arwen and then refocused on the pack. 

“Yeah. I don’t think we will be seeing much of them in the future.” Abacus nodded, but Arwen knew that his friend wasn’t really paying attention anymore. He ended up cutting the cord and carefully unwrapped the pack – revealing stacks of documents. “What is it?” Arwen asked and abandoned his place by the fire to go stand besides Abacus.

Abacus unfolded the document and held it closer to one of the lamps to read it. “Now that really is .. something. No wonder, the Commissar has been sniffing around here since the beginning of the tournament. More likely than not, it is also she, who has been sabotaging the new buildings. If she knew this …” His voice trailed off and Arwen made an effort to close his mouth and then swallowed. This was clever. More clever than he had imagined. “What do we do now?”

Abacus still had his eyes glued to the document but his mind was as entangled in possibilities as it was in the wording of the lease in his hands. The lease was for the Tipsy Turtle Inn and the grounds around it. A 40-year lease that was soon up for renewal, but with an option for the tenant to buy the land, if on it there was situated an active military garrison. 

“I see now why the Commissar has been doing so much to douse the success of the tournament. I suppose we will have to go and ask good old Wishard what keeping our mouths shut is worth to him now. He might even need a bit of help, steering this one into port.” 

Congratulations to all four teams for reaching the semifinals! All teams did well and it was with a margin of just a single match that Hero Cool and Guess Congress took their victory!