Travelling with a veritable Mad man [Attn: Murdock]

[Cheiron]

It was great enthusiasm that Seth leapt into the cart after Murdock, settling in for the trip to Maradon. It was important that he had picked a position away from anywhere, stray people, when a Gateway opened, could be disastrous. He held his tongue, however, and planned to at least make a point of the decision to Murdock in an educational sense. Soti would be happy for that at least.

Or whoever the Master of Soldiers is when we get back. You never know who gets put up and taken down in the time it takes to go around bringing happiness and song, his mind thinking of the last time he left Jaryd had been put up as Keeper of the Archives in his stead. Though, Seth knew someone had to take his place, just not who.

Seth looked down at Murdock's leg and wondered what he meant by how his injury had happened. It seemed odd too that the Yellows hadn't been able to restore it, if indeed it had happened recently. Old wounds weren't exactly able to be healed. Such things would require rebreaking, or basically undoing any healing that had occurred, and such practices with the One Power weren't known to the relatively young Asha'man.

As they drove into the city, Seth stood up in the back of the cart and surveyed the buildings. It had been so long since he had visited Maradon, and it almost seemed as though not a lot building wise had changed. As he stood there he allowed his cloak to flutter behind him, like multicoloured wings. He heard gasps and cheers. People knew the sight of a Gleeman as soon as they arrived, and even in a city as big as Maradon, no matter where Seth set up he knew people would come to watch him perform. Whenever Seth came to a big city he always tried to perform in at least two Inns, for maximum exposure.

As the cart slowed, Seth leapt from the back, and gave their courteous driver some coins for his trouble. He then thanked the man for the suggestion about where to stay. Good enough for most folk meant that it was frequented by locals and travellers alike.

Murdock asked Seth a question about him having been to Maradon before.

"That I have, I came here several years ago. Just before I came to the Tower in fact. So, no, to answer the second question, it wasn't a whimsical tour, unless you count travelling as an Apprentice Gleeman whimsical."

Seth turned to face Murdock and grinned. "Come, let us find the Three Bells, we can put our bags away, then we can go our separate ways until nightfall."

[Chris]

As it so happened Murdock did count travelling as an apprentice Gleeman as somewhat whimsical, but he thought it best to keep that thought to himself. The man might not appreciate someone pointing this out to him, especially when he seemed so happy to be prancing around with his shiny cloak on his shoulders. Murdock was so used to behaving like a man of the Grey Tower that he couldn't imagine being anything else, even one of the city guard back in Far Madding.

"Go our separate ways?" Murdock asked as they made their way to the Three Bells, which wasn't far from their current location. Courtesy of some locals, they found the place without much trouble. "You took me from the Tower, plonked me in Maradon and- fine." The Dedicated stilled his tongue. I can do some looking around without the peacock. He would stand out much less that way. If he was going to explore, he could do it on his own terms, see where his family came from. Perhaps find out what made some of them move to Far Madding of all places.

The Three Bells was a typical Inn, but what would be so different about this compared to any other place? Murdock bowed his head briefly to the little squat Innkeeper as Asha'man Seth flourished his cloak, offered his services for a bite to eat and that sort of thing. For his part Murdock simply stayed out of the way and tried not to look out of place, though it was probably clear from his silence and his lack of cloak that he was no Gleeman, nor was he an apprentice or servant. Still, the Innkeeper, Mistress Haren, was happy for them to stay for a time, and Murdock took his key for his room without bothering to check it out. "I'll be back in the evening then," he said to Seth, one of the serving girls taking the bag from him. One of the perks of his walking stick was that people seemed more inclined to help him, and he wasn't going to turn their assistance down.

Into Maradon he went, away from the Three Bells with no set destination in mind. He knew precious little of the Mather family based in Saldaea, and he didn't know where to find any of them. Whether he saw them or not, Murdock was content to explore the city a little and get a flavour of his ancestry. That didn't mean he wasn't going to ask a few people for assistance, the ones who looked local anyway.

"House Mather?" asked the pie vendor who passed a steaming hot pie his way, wrapped in greased paper. Murdock winced at how hot it was and set it on the counter for the moment, the greasy man still talking. "Aye, I've seen some of those folk around these parts. Their estate's up yonder." He jerked a thumb in the direction of some tall houses winding along a narrow street. Out here, away from the centre of the city, things were a little less crowded, the residential areas filled with more locals than visitors. "There's a sign over their door. Take care, now."

"Thank you," Murdock said as he took the pie up. He was tempted to cool it with Air but instead opted for holding it in his right hand as he limped along with his stick in his left. The excessive amount of walking was not good for his leg but then, he ached no matter what so what did it matter if he had more soreness than usual? The Dedicated wore a look of grim determination as he made his way along, dark eyes shifting from door to door to see where House Mather was based.

It would seem that his family in the north were a little more prosperous, but not overly so. The House was tall and thin, heading further back than outwards. A small metal fence lined the front wall and a small sign saying "House Mather" hung next to a crimson door. Well. Murdock looked up the steps at the main door, suddenly finding that his legs were frozen to the ground. Some unseen power held him in place as if he was tied down with Air, and he swallowed a couple of times before he limped up the steps. There might not be an opportunity like this again. Uncertainly the man straightened up, feeling much younger than his thirty seven winters as he rapped sharply on the door.

-

"Are you sure you wouldn't like more tea?"

"I'm quite alright thank you." Murdock gave his cousin a smile, seeing his own deep brown eyes and prominent nose staring back at him. As far as Saldaeans went they were rather typical, and Murdock had difficulty telling people apart. But apparently the Mather family had a certain look, and Reanna had seen it in Murdock when she opened the door.

It had taken more time to explain himself and his situation than he had intended, and that was without including the nitty gritty details of the Black Tower and Grey Tower. He tried to keep to the point but Reanna had so many questions about Giselle, about his four daughters, that he couldn't help but keep talking about them. He didn't learn much about the Mather family in Saldaea, though from the sounds of it his uncle had fathered a number of children and they were the predominant Mathers, minor merchants or some such thing. There was a gathering in Maradon that they were currently attending, leaving Reanna to keep house.

"They're all rather headstrong really," Reanna said, "your uncle - my father - his sons all married tough, proper Saldaean women. Oh, the arguments they have!" Reanna sighed a little forlornly, a wistful smile on her face. Having lost her husband some years prior, apparently arguments were the done thing around here. "It would be lovely for you to meet them. Good, proper folk. Your Da, he was much quieter, probably more suited to life in the south."

Murdock was sure his wife would be able to handle these Saldaean women - Far Madding was a powerful matriarchy. But it made sense that he was like his Da, being brought up where he was. "I have to go," he said, "my companion will be wondering where I am." It was well into the evening at this point. "I would love to write to you, when I am back from my journey to Light knows where. May I take your address?"

"Of course!" Reanna exclaimed, and that was that.

-

Most people would have found meeting their family to be a life changing experience, and Murdock supposed he was satisfied that he was the only sick individual in his otherwise typical, ordinary family. No other channellers, nobody else mad with grief and just twitching to use the Power to Rend their enemies into puddles of nothing.

"Confirmed: I'm a veritable madman," Murdock said. Giselle, walking by his side, nodded her head in sympathetic response. Of course she was agree, she was a figment of his broken mind. But it was the only one he had and it had served him pretty well so far. Oh well. If he had to take his family's share of the madness, he would carry it. Better him than some simple, kind creature such as Reanna.

He might even write to her.

Into the night Murdock walked, pretty confident of his ability to return to the Three Bells without getting lost. This was a confidence which was slightly misplaced, as it took him almost twice as long to return to the district where the Three Bells could be found, as it did to get to the Mather estate. Still, Murdock was quietly pleased about what he had done that day, and when he slipped into the Inn he looked a little more enthused than he had that morning.