Pax : Father's Grace (Jygust 30, TT)

[Tink]

Just north of the main street in Pax is an area where many of the town’s considerable gnome population live and work. In the middle of this district stands the Father’s Grace tavern. It is a large sprawling building that began life as a small shack but has been gradually added to in a rather haphazard fashion, giving the whole place a ramshackle and rather quaint look. A large and uneven balcony circles around the upper story and, at busy times, many gnomes can be seen chattering or demonstrating strange contrivances.

Although the tavern is mainly frequented by gnomes, persons of any race are welcome. The main room of the tavern contains a haphazard array of tables arranged around a central bar. To one side of the room stands a small stage, whilst several archways, corridors and doors lead off in all directions to a series of smaller rooms of different sizes, shapes and height. The whole tavern has the feel of a place that had grown organically, as if it were a plant spreading out across its environment.

Behind the bar can invariably be found the proprietor, Jakkeralan Lazaraus, universally known as Jake, who sports a long, jet black and well-groomed moustache

Tink strolled through the small town of Pax Balthasar, taking in the sights as he headed towards Father's Grace. He approached the ramshackle building, looking around for a stable where he could take his pony. Rather than waste time finding it, however, Tink simply hitched his pony to a convenient rail, and strode into the tavern.

After crossing the threshold, Tink looked around the room, looking to see who else was at the tavern this afternoon. After a brief survey of the patrons, Tink walked up to the bar and climbed atop a stool, waiting for the bartender's attention. When the 'tender got around to Tink, he introduced himself...

"Hi, I'm Tink! I'm new in town, just came in from Killem'Toh. Travelling sure makes a Gnome thirsty, got anything to wash away the dust? Oh, and is there a stable? I left Lazy, he's my pony, tied up out front, but I can go move him if you've got a stable. Though if I could wet my throat first I'd be most appreciative!"

[Guido Cercatoro]

The Father’s Grace tavern was one of the more unusual buildings in Pax. Not in the sense of the strange amalgamation of wood and stone that characterised many buildings in the town but rather in its sheer size and ramshackle nature. It was as if a large number of strangely shaped objects had been thrown down in a random fashion with no pre-planned design. Indeed, without the rather garish sign swinging from a corner of the building that jutted out in an alarming manner, it would have been difficult to find the entrance.

The tavern was busy this tradetide; most of the clientele were gnomes either having a drink before the festival or showing off their latest inventions to anyone who cared to look. Sitting at the bar was a red-bearded gnome drinking a foaming mug of dark ale. Close by him on the bar was a small package wrapped in brown cloth. Behind the bar was a gnome sporting a long, jet black and well-groomed moustache. As Tink entered the gnome looked up with a broad smile. “Good morningtide, friend Tink. There is a stable out the back but I’m sure that your fine steed will come to no harm outside. Perhaps I can get you a mug of our special festival brew – we call it Midsummer Madness.”

[Tink]

Tink smiled back at the bartender. "Midsummer Madness, that sounds like it would be all kinds of interesting! I'm sure it'll wet a gnome's whistle, pour me a mug!"

After ordering his drink, Tink climbs onto a stool near the gnome with the red beard. "Is that Midsummer Madness you've got? Is it as good as it sounds? My name's Tink by the way. I just got to town, my first time in Pax! It looks like it's going to be an interesting place to be, what with the festival and all."

Tink peers at the package on the bar while waiting for the gnome to reply. Showing an unusual amount of restraint, Tink doesn't touch the package, but his brain starts churning, wondering what it could be.

[Guido Cercatoro]

A mug of frothing Midsummer Madness was soon deposited in front of Tink. A fruity aroma wafted into the gnome’s nose. “Take it slow,” advised the barman. “It can have a strong effect on those not used to such ale.”

“Right he is,” laughed the red-bearded gnome, taking a sip from his own pint. “I never drink more than ten pints, before breakfast at any rate.” He broke out into a fit of cackles. “Aye it’s a good beer; the best in town. If you’re new here it’s the best place to start.”

The angular-faced gnome extended a hand to Tink. “I am Jermaine Lazaraus.” He bent forward to whisper in Tink’s ear. “Don’t tell anyone, but the barman’s my brother.” The barman shrugged his shoulders good-naturedly as if he had heard the same line many times before.

“Whilst he pours pints, I invent. Indeed, many regard me as the foremost inventor in Pax.” He caught sight of Tink’s glance at the package. “Aaah I can see you are a curious fellow. Would you like to take a look inside?”

[Tink]

Wow, an inventor! What wonderful luck, I wonder if he needs an apprentice? I bet I'd make a really good inventor's apprentice, and he seems like a nice fellow.

Tink picked up his mug, and took a cautious sip, heeding the barman's advice. Turning to the bartender, tink said "Mmm, that's some good stuff!" and proceeded to take another sip, less cautiously than before while listening to Jermaine.

"Well, I've certainly been called curious before, and I won't argue with that assessment! I must admit that your package has me intrigued... nothing like a mystery to spark the imagination, right? My imagination got quite the workout up at Killem'toh, do you know Frederick? I saw the most amazing things through his telescopes, though he wouldn't ever let me touch the big one. I got to look through it sometimes, and once... err, never mind, but it was neat! I bet you've got something interesting in there, what with you being an inventor and all. Is it something for the festival tonight?"

Tink watched expectantly, waiting for Jermaine to unwrap the package.

[Guido Cercatoro]

The beer proved to just as fruity as its aroma. It was pleasant on the tongue, if a little fiery when it reached the belly.

Jermaine was clearly hoping that Tink would ask to see the package, for the inventor quickly unwrapped the cloth to reveal the hidden object.

“There,” he exclaimed proudly. “What do you think of that?” The inventor had a proud look on his face.

Standing on the bar counter was what could only be described as a mechanical duck. It was no work of art, being roughly and crudely assembled from various jumbled pieces of metal. Sticking out of one side was a huge iron key. Rather alarmingly, there was a large hole in the rear of the bird. Two eyes had been painted on the front but they only served to make the beast look cross-eyed and rather disturbing.

[Tink]

"My goodness!" Said Tink, "It's a duck!"
Tink peered at the mechanical creature, and asked "May I?" as he reached to pick it up. He didn't bother to wait for a reply, but instead lifted the duck from the bar and turned it around, peering at it from all angles.

"Why is it locked, and what's this hole for?" Tink asked, pointing to the rather large hole in the duck's posterior. "Somehow I think it bodes rather poorly for whoever is holding the duck!" He said, promptly putting the duck back on the bar.

I can only think of two things that a hole in a duck's butt might be for, and one of them is considerably less pleasant than the other...

"Whatever does it do, and how did you make it, Jermaine?"

[Guido Cercatoro]

Tink’s inspection of the duck revealed nothing more of interest, other than that it was rather heavier than it looked.

“Yer a very observant young gnome,” nodded Jermaine with a grin. “It is indeed a duck. But it isn’t locked; the key winds it up. It is powered by a mixture of magical energy and mechanical devices. I’m an expert in fusing the two.” Jermaine’s grin had turned into a wide beaming smile.

“Turn the key and set it going and you’ll soon see what it does.”

There was a worried look on the face of the barman.

[Tink]

“Yer a very observant young gnome,”

Tink beamed with pride at the compliment, failing to recognize the sarcasm that was likely behind the comment. "Wow, mechanical magick? Or would it be Magical mechanics? Either way it sounds intriguing!"

Tink picked up the duck, and started turning the key as he talked to Jermaine. "Do you have a workshop? You must... surely one doesn't make a marvelous magical mechanical duck on the kitchen table... Do you think I could see it some time? I'd love to see what else you might be working on..."

Tink kept on turning the key until it got difficult to turn, then carefully set duck down on the bar, watching it intently.

[Guido Cercatoro]

Tink turned the key. It turned easily as if the mechanism were well-oiled.

“Oh aye, I’ve got a workshop,” beamed the inventor, “and I’d be happy to show you round. I have many, many inventions…”

Tink continued turning the key with little difficulty as Jermaine waxed lyrical about his workshop…”…finest workshop in Pax, I can tell you..”

“..er, don’t you think,” muttered the barman with a sense of urgency.

“…folk come from all over the place to see my workshop..” Jermaine continued.

There was a loud crack and the key refused to turn any more. Tink set the duck down on the counter. Jermaine frowned.

The mechanical duck moved slightly, giving a cute little waddle. A mechanical grinding noise came from within the animal.

“You didn’t turn the key all the way did you,” began the inventor, his eyebrows leaping up his forehead.

The duck waddled in a complete circle and a few wisps of smoke began to emanate from the hole in its rear.

“Bugger,” shouted Jermaine, easing himself down from his stool and backing away from the mechanical contrivance.

The duck spun round on the bar; a spark of flame shot out of its rear end, catching the end of a cloth held by the barman and setting it alight. He stuffed it into a half-empty beermug to douse the flames.

[Mara Zucaro]

Mara pushed open the door to the Father's Grace with heavy thoughts on her mind and needing a pint of Jumping Jake's to quiet them for a bit.

"Hey Jake, Jer!" Mara greeted the brothers. "One pint of... merde!" Mara exclaimed as the duck singed Jake's bar rag. She dropped to the ground as a gut instinct and crawled over to where Jermaine was backing away.

It was a testament to the creativity of the gnomes that a fire spewing mechanical duck was not the most unusual thing she had experienced in this bar. However, it was easily in the top three. "Jermaine, if this is another one of your cheesy bread toasters, I'll tie your mustache in a knot. What's going on?" She demanded.

[Guido Cercatoro]

Mara was not the only customer of the tavern to take evasive action. Most of those present flung themselves under tables, behind chairs or took whatever cover was available. As Mara crawled over to Jermaine, even the eccentric inventor appeared perturbed. The only person in the tavern who was oblivious to the danger was a gangly young gnomes standing close to the bar. He was obviously mesmerised by the duck and stood motionless despite repeated warnings from the barman.

The duck continued to dance in a circle of the top of the bar counter, spewing random jets of flame in all directions. It was only a matter of time before it did some serious damage.

“Oh dear,” muttered Jermaine when Mara’s words filtered through into his brain. “You wouldn’t have any bright ideas as to how we might stop it would you? It is most embarrassing for an inventor of my renown.” He ducked, just evading a large spout of flame that shot out of the duck’s rear.

[Mara Zucaro]

"You're asking me?" Mara sputtered incredulously. "You built the damn thing! What's its weak spot? Cause I have an idea but you are not going to like it." Mara raised up her head and took a another look at the situation. "Jake! Drag that washtub you stick the empties in over behind the duck. I'll do the rest."

Mara rolled back on to her feet and crouched down watching the duck. She wanted to get a sense of its timing and speed. Her plan was simple. Jake would place that washtub full of water behind the duck. Mara would wait until the duck's posterior passed her and then she would run up and push the duck off the bar and into the water. Mara tried to ignore the little voice in her head that insisted the duck might explode if got wet as she crept as close as she dared. Unless Jermaine came up with something incredibly clever in the next few burns, Mara would spring as soon as the tub was placed.

[Guido Cercatoro]

“Weak spot,” echoed Jermaine. Even in the midst of yet another attack from the rear end of the flaming duck, the gnome appeared slightly taken aback that anyone could suggest that his invention had a weak spot. “I’ll let you know that my inventions…” He rambled on, oblivious to the urgency of Mara’s question.

Fortunately, the inventor’s brother was more attuned to the seriousness of the situation and quickly deposited the washtub into the area behind the bar adjacent to the duck. Having obtained no sense from Jerome, Mara put her plan into action. Her timing was perfect and the duck sailed off the side of the bar to land with a great splash in the washtub. There was no explosion but a great cloud of steam whooshed upwards from the drowned duck.

Anyone peering behind the bar would see the forlorn animal immersed in the washtub. Yet the energy of the animal was not fully dissipated, for it appeared to be generating a huge mass of bubbles. Presumably this was due to the interaction between the mechanical-magic energy that powered the beast and whatever Jake used for cleaning the mugs. The bubbles poured over the side of the tub along the floor behind the bar. Jake stood there open-mouthed.

Jermaine put both hands on his hips, shaking his head “My poor duck.” He directed a stern look at Mara.

[Mara Zucaro]

"I told you you weren't going to like it." Mara shrugged. "Next time come up with a plan of your own." Mara sighed and look over the bar at the suds and froth that marked the duck's death throes. "Besides if I know you, you're already drawing up plans in your mind for waterproofing the mark II."

Mara leaned back over and sat down on one of the barstools. "So what was it supposed to do, Jermaine? Dance and lay hard cooked eggs?" Mara shook his head at the gnome. "I don't think I'll ever understand how your mind works, my friend." Mara said it with exasperation but it was the sort of phrase Jermaine usually took as a compliment.

[Guido Cercatoro]

Mara was beginning to understand the inventor’s mind, for as she suspected Jermaine took her remark as a compliment. His face beamed with pleasure.

“Yes my mind is unfathomable,” he replied without a trace of irony. Behind him, his brother and the barstaff were procuring an array of cloths, mops and other tools to attempt to stem the flow of bubbles.

“It was meant to be a guard dog,” the gnome explained “but my father misheard my instructions when he made the parts. He’s a little hard of hearing. So, as it was a prototype, I went ahead with the duck.”

“We needed extra security,” he whispered in a conspiratorial fashion. “Someone has been breaking into my father’s shop and my laboratory.”

Most of the area behind the bar was now a good foot deep in bubbles. The dousing of the duck had soused the flames but whatever magical energy was contained within the device was obviously still interacting the with water and soap.

[Mara Zucaro]

"Someone's been stealing from your family?" Mara supposed it was inevitable. The gnomes had an amazing capacity for finding and stockpiling scrap and raw materials. With the rising scarcity they were bound to become targets. Unless of course they actually wanted their inventions? Mara shook her head. Couldn't be that.

Mara peered back over the bar to watch the frantic effort against the bubbles. "Just what did you use as a power source, Jermaine? It seems unquenchable." Mara took a deep breath to calm herself and sank into the calm night sky at the center of her being. "Father, something is happening here beyond my mortal senses. Please grant me clear vision so that I might see." Mara opened her senses to the Aether and looked once more at the duck in its frothing bath.

[Guido Cercatoro]

“Er, well,” said Jermaine, appearing a little flustered. “I…mmm…found this…er magical device….er…never seen anything like it before…some sort of power source…I was in a rush, so I used it. I’m sure it was fine.” He looked uncertainly at the mountain of bubbles now climbing over the edge of the bar.

Once again, Mara called upon the Father to assist her. She summoned to her mind the map of the constellations, which she had previously used when viewing the stone cube. There burning brightly was a fiery star – a small, fierce ball of energy. It appeared to be sourcing its energy from somewhere other than the physical location where it sat in the duck behind the bar.

Strangely, Mara felt the same sensation she had felt when observing the cube. A sense of something that was there and not here at the same time. A sense of a connection to some other time and place, from which it was leeching energy..

[Mara Zucaro]

Mara sucked in a mouthful of air though clenched teeth. "I am sure it is not, Jermaine." Mara said softly but spared no more time for the gnome. This burning star required all her attention now. The Father claimed dominion over the realms of fire and water. It should be within her to quiet this burning star to a dim ember.

But how? Mara wondered. The power source must have been safe to touch or Jermaine could not have fitted it in the duck. So either the source itself has a floodgate to stem the tide of fire or only its connection to Jermaine's handiwork allowed the fire to flow.

"Jermaine, get your tools ready." Mara instructed. "I think I can quiet your power source but you must be ready to remove it right away in case I can't hold it for long."

Mara returned her attention to the stars before her eyes. She focused her attention of myriads of azure blue stars making up the water in the tub. "Fallen children of the clouds, hear me." Mara called to them. "by the authority the Father has given me, I bid you attend to my call. There is a fire within you that must be quenched. Attend." Mara stretched forth her will and gathered up as much of the water as she could. Then she focused it in a shell around the fiery star to create a shield of compressed water. Mara prayed fervently for her shield to hold long enough for Jermaine to remove the star.

[Guido Cercatoro]

At the mention of “tools”, Jermaine grinned and delved into the innards of his jacket, from which he produced a large leather wallet out of which poked the ends of a variety of strange-looking devices. “I never go anywhere without this,” he proclaimed proudly.

The bubbles were now covering most of the bar. The barstaff had given up trying to stem the flow and even the usually imperturbable gnomish clientele were showing signs of nervousness. Apart from Jermaine, of course, who was in a world of his own as he gazed at the bubbles. “Pretty effect; bet I could make a bit of cash if I could tame it.”

Mara focused on the problem at hand, attempting to form a shield of water around the fiery star. Gathering up the water was relatively easy and whilst forming in into a compressed body required a greater effort of will, she succeeded. Indeed, the fiery ball of energy did not appear as powerful as she had first thought. The pressure against the compressed water was not at first very great. However, she could feel it gradually increasing. The power released by the device was slow but persistent. She had stemmed the leak but was creating a dam behind the shield.

Jermaine appeared unaware of the desire for haste. He slowly unwrapped his tools, peered at them for a good half a burn and then selected a long, hooked device which he inserted into his belt. After another long delay he extricated a second device with a wooden handle out of which protruded a sharply pointed spindle. Having so armed himself, he wandered over to the edge of the bubbles.

“I can’t swim you know,” he shouted to no-one in particular before vanishing into the bubbles in the direction of the duck. Within a few flickers the sound of scraping metal, interspersed with increasingly obscene swearing emanated from within the bubbles.

The pressure on the shield intensified; the dam walls needed reinforcing or it would soon burst apart.

[Mara Zucaro]

Mara gritted her teeth as she braced herself she against the growing pressure of the flame. "Hurry Jermaine!" Mara gasped. "I can't hold it back much longer!"

Mara's eyes flicked back and forth among the stars of the Aether for help or guidance. She could see the form of Jermaine and his jabbing constellations of earth prying at the dull grey stars of the ridiculous duck. Perhaps the strength of iron... Mara started to shift her will then stopped. No, I might forge a permanent connection to Jermaine's creation. What else is there to use? How do I make my wall thicker?

"When there is nothing left to give, you must give of yourself." Laewin's words had always sounded so trite until this moment. Mara gripped the bar until her knuckles turned white as she proceeded to add her own life energy to reinforce her shield. "I will protect your faithful." She promised the Father. "I will!"

[Guido Cercatoro]

Seeing no other option, Mara sought to reinforce the wall of water with her own life energy. At first she only needed a trickle but as the pressure built up on the other side of the dam, so the energy she required grew and she could feel her energy draining away...so tired, she was becoming so tired..
Jermaine was whistling; clearly happy to be at work on the duck

clang...bugger...bang...ouch...crash..bloody duck.

The whistling was interrupted by a mixture of swearing and the noises of a master craftsman at work.

Aha!

A shout of triumph echoed out from the bubbles.

Mara felt the demand for her energy come to a crashing halt and then tiredness overcame her. She slipped to the floor of the bar and passed out as her head hit the floor.

She dreamt of bubbles...globes of colourful light floating in a seas of stars

*************************************************************************

“Aah, you’re awake.”

If Mara opened her eyes, she would find the face of Jermaine no more than two inches from her face. She felt tired, as if she had just run to the very top of the mountains that towered over Pax.

“You shouldn’t have done that you know,” said the gnome in a kindly voice. "I had it all under control.”

Mara found herself in a small untidy bedroom, festooned with a variety of mechanical gadgets. A jovial, round-bodied female gnome stood in the doorway of the room, hands on her hips.