The Card Game
“I’ve never been to Avalon, William, but I’ve heard fantastic tales about it… And if half those are true, it must be a truly wondrous place to call home….” “Then you’ve heard the best tales, my lady, not that there are any other kind of my home, or else you are a flatterer… Although, for never have set foot on my native land you possess an uncanny knack for the tongue…”
She laughed delightedly, “Now, who indeed is the flatterer, I wonder…” William smiled disarmingly, “Surely, madam, you are mistaken…” She had been shuffling the deck of playing cards absentmindedly. On occasion, one or two would slip from her hands and on the table. She would pick them up and shuffle them back in. The Hidden Stag was nearly empty, but for her and William. A few tables down, a drunk from the previous night dozed quietly. At the bar, another one of Charese’s girls wiped a dirty glass with an equally dirty towel, stealing a glance every so often at William. Her name was Beth, and she was one of Charese’s girls. William also recognized that she was one of Talen’s good friends. He had talked with her mostly since returning from Vodacce. She was young, too young in William’s estimation to be doing what she was doing here. She was maybe a year older than Talen, with a slim build and braided blonde hair that came to her waist. Her dress was simple and complemented her clear eyes. William fond it fortuitous that she spoke Avalon, and could not pass the opportunity that it presented. He had found her in the deserted barroom, idly shuffling the deck of cards. Talen had introduced them the night before via Reynaldo, but he reintroduced himself again. Her greeting was cordial. He had motioned toward the cards and asked what she played. Soon that led to idle conversation and the questions about his homeland. All the while, playing a few hands of cards. He had been playing cards for a few games now with her and came to a fairly unobservant conclusion. For all her yet unrevealed talents, playing cards was not one of them. Her mind seemed to drift at inopportune times in the game, for one thing. Another seemed that when she did concentrate on something it was to the exclusion of all else. She would toss out perfectly playable cards and keep the unremarkable ones. But she did have the rules of the game well understood. Which made it difficult for William to throw games initially, so he played the novice instead. Said the first games were beginner’s luck. That didn’t work out as well as he had hoped either. She explained the rules of the game expertly, and would often ‘borrow’ his hand so that he would beat her, or so in fact, that she would beat herself… William hadn’t figured that part out. Yet. “So, Beth, how long have you known Talen?” She dealt. “Oh, Talen? As long as I can remember, actually. Well, maybe not that long, but still, pretty well. Pretty quick with his hands…” “Yes, we’ve learned that, almost immediately…” “Lucky for you, then. He must like you… Or did you save him from a hanging?” “Actually, he saved us from one, to tell you the truth…” She nodded as she looked at her hand. William frowned as he looked at his. “Does he have any family? He mentioned a tutor in Castille, a swordsman by trade…” Beth looked at William oddly at that point. “He told you about him, did he?” “Yes. He did.” “That’s very odd of Talen.” She said. “Why’s that?” William asked. “It’s a piece of his past. A very personal piece, mind you… Let me ask you a question… “Why does he trust you?” She asked bluntly. William was about to answer that expounding on the virtues on the people that he would call friends and compatriots… But that wasn’t what she asked. What had they done to Talen, or for him, actually? He looked back on all the adventures in Dionna and mainland Vodacce, and he couldn’t find her answer. “I don’t know…” William said honestly. She straightened her cards, “I don’t know, either. But it doesn’t come lightly, you know. This is his home. Its not much of one, as I’m sure you understand…” “I do. I understand what you’re saying, Beth.” “A lot of people care for him, you understand, as much as they can anyway… He’s got a bit of decency in him, somehow. And even down here, people kind of respect that…” William discarded a part of the flush that he was dealt. He kept a two and a four in his hand. She also discarded three cards. He got the impression that her caring went beyond friendship. But he recognized the truth as she heard it. Upon his return, Talen greeted more than a few people, and those few appreciated it and reciprocated the gesture. The formidable guard that was on Charese’s payroll nearly broke Talen in two with his hug. “We’ll look after him, Beth, you have my word…” He drew his cards. Two fours and another two. William groaned inwardly. Beth had yet to draw. She stared into William’s face as if trying to discern the truth from what he had just said. For a moment, her youthful eyes scanned his, and William felt as if she had just catalogued his mind for that moment. Her eyes then scanned the cards face up on the table. She smiled. “Talen’s got a family. A father anyway. Unfortunately, for Talen, he was hardly an above the table guy. The father was Vodacce, as well as the mother, and they were fairly well off. The father was a successful merchantman, his wife, Talen’s mother, a respectable lady with a fair share of hereditary wealth. They had a mansion. His father was ruthlessly successful, and had a lack of interest in raising Talen. His mother was the opposite; she loved and doted on her son, as any caring parent would. The Castillian you mentioned was a family friend from her side. He tutored Talen, really filling the gap that Talen’s father had never stepped into. For a while things were good…” Beth drew her cards. She thought for a moment. She reordered the cards. “Until…” William prompted. She looked back up. She sneered. Not at William, though. “Until Talen’s father decided it was better for him not to have a son or a wife anymore. The Castillian, his mother, and Talen were riding in a carriage not far from here. In Eisen. It was attacked by bandits, seemingly. At his mother’s desperate urgings, Talen ran for the forest along the road. Not before, however…” Beth was silent for a few minutes. She glanced at her hand, the discarded cards… William looked at his own hand in disgust. He was going to win another game. Impatiently, William prompted her again. “Beth…” Startled, she looked up, “Yes?” “You were saying…” “Oh, yes. Talen was nearly to the forest edge, when he recognized the attackers, or at least one…” “His father?” “No, but close. It was the man that did all of his father’s dirty work for him in Vodacce, the captain of the mansion’s guard. Talen never did see what happened to his mother and his beloved tutor. Sometimes, I think he wonders if they made it. Sometimes, he wakes up from the nightmares of his mother’s frantic screaming, screaming himself, too…” She shook her head sadly. “What do you have, Avalon?” “Full house.” Beth smiled. “Four of a kind. I win.”Return to Uncommon Valor