Anima et Forma

Episode 11: A Lord's Weight in Silver

The West Duchies were established on the 25th day of Haspbern's Moon, 592 A.D. The first Duchies were scattered city-states, ruled by various monarchs and regents who formed a massive coalition in order to stop the conquests of King Antonius VI, of Alexandria. It was comprised of the Igni Isles, and the cities along the Colonus Coast, Caliacran Bay, and the Bihari Strip. Over the centuries, as Eastern influence waned, and Western culture grew into its own, prominent city-states swallowed up their smaller neighbors. Centers of power rose to dominance, and the regents of lesser cities were forced to accept titles such as 'count,' or 'baron.' Now, there are only four major Dukedoms.

—Brother Donnman, of the Holy Order, "A Brief History of the Western Kingdom." 1531 A.D.

"I want to go home!" a boy said, tugging at the skirt of his mother's dress. He wore a red button-down shirt and shiny brown shoes with silver buckles.

His mother's yellow dress was the most vibrant thing in the room–frilled and flowering. "Go wait at your table, dear," the woman said. She didn't say what she wanted to say. Percy saw the resentment hiding behind her eyes. She was far too important to be bothered with the droll of child-rearing.

The Riverview Fish-fry was a quaint one-room building, lacking any decorations but housing many empty tables. The mines around Hollowdale operated day and night. Timber rolled down the Westward Rush, and they pulled fish from the same river. Most people were at work, leaving only the wives of merchants and politicians to enjoy a leisurely mid-morning meal. "I want to go home!" the boy cried.

"Just go sit for a moment longer," his mother insisted. The women at her table shared secret smiles. The empty room amplified the exchange between mother and son.

Percy nibbled on fried fish, mushrooms, and onions.

The boy huffed and puffed and stomped his way over to his lonely table by the fireplace, fiddling a fork with a spoon. His mother returned to her women in waiting. Their whispers filled the air with incoherent mutterings. What is the gossip of the day? Percy wondered.

Percival rose from his chair. He approached the table of women. They went silent. Percybowed. "I am Percival, the Bard. A pleasure."

Two younger women giggled.

The mother sat rigid and straight-backed in her yellow dress. She held Percival's eyes and her silence.

"I can entertain the boy if you will pay," he offered. Percival retrieved three wooden balls from a satchel hidden behind his cloak. He tossed the painted balls into the air and began juggling.

He stopped the balls and bowed once more. The women clapped. A hefty old woman in a rough-hewn dress clapped loudest of all. "Bravo!" she shouted.

The mother rolled her eyes and retrieved her purse. She sat a stack of five copper circling on the table. She smiled. "Is that sufficient?"

"It is," Percival said. Thankfully, I'm after your gossip and not your coin. He approached the boy, juggling balls in hand. The child glared at him.

Percival tossed the balls into the air. He started with a simple round-and-around, then began tossing balls behind his back and over the shoulder. The little boy perked up. He didn't smile, but his eyes became alive with wonder.

"You're good!" the boy cried.

"Hush!" Percival pleaded. "I must concentrate." He sped up. The painted balls became blurs. Faster and faster, he plucked them from the air with deft hands. He tossed his yellow ball high in the air. It floated up, up, up, as Percival continued to juggle the red and the blue.