Part 17 "Prismatic Bard"

(Co-written by Blaze, http://lessthan141.blogspot.com/ )

I don’t even know the names of most of the colors she is wearing. It is as if some fell creature has eaten an oak tree and a rainbow and puked them up into an outfit. The hooded mantle on the woman ends in dags shaped like oak leaves, and the bells and buttons on the garb are shaped like acorns. Even the folds of her boots are cut into oak leaf shapes. “Who?” I ask the Barkeep.

“Danja Ghinda.” He replies, “Bard.” He says it like this: Don-ya Gin-da.

Danja Ghinda stands and looks around the tables of men drinking and laughs at their blank expressions. She hops from one table to the next until she is on the bar, and hunkers down in front of me, eye to eye. Her eyes and hair are dark. She smiles all her teeth at me and she has an enormous amount of even white teeth. I don’t recall seeing anyone with whiter teeth. With more courage than I have seen in many a warrior she meets my gaze and then of all things her thickly lashed eyes wink at me.

She stands once more, bringing the harp to bear and plucking out a lively tune. I watch her feet tap and her voice rings out clear, silencing the din.

“Stormguard seeking charms
Ran into Anton’s open Arms
What he wanted was no hug
But a weapon he could lug!” 

Her grin is aimed at me.  Maybe so I won’t kill her later?

“Mighty men earn mighty foes
Stormguard has them, he knows
Always to be on his toes.
                                   
Elf  he made a mighty pel
Like a daemon out of hell
When he orders it to fight
It will battle any knight!

Mighty men earn mighty foes
Stormguard has them, he knows
Always to be on his toes.

Hefting Axe and hafted mace
Stormguard swung about the place
Pelman’s spell it went awry
Are those smithies gonna die?

Mighty men earn mighty foes
Stormguard has them, he knows
Always to be on his toes.

May have been some other day,
But Stormguard stood in the way
Of daemon bound to deal death...
(Our boy won’t even lose his breath.)

Mighty men earn mighty foes
Stormguard has them, he knows
Always to be on his toes.

Save us! Save us!  Cried the Elf
Then went on to wet himself.
Pel came forward weapons flashed
Maces pounded, swords they slashed.

Mighty men earn mighty foes
Stormguard has them, he knows
Always to be on his toes.

All around the smithies cowered
But not Stormguard, he glowered,
He glared, he raised his sword
He diced that Pel into chip board!

Mighty men earn mighty foes
Stormguard has them, he knows
Always to be on his toes.

Probably saved the whole damn town
Stormguard’s earned his vast renown
Big, he is, and yes, he’s really fleet
Bad men see him and cross the street!

Mighty men earn mighty foes
Stormguard has them, he knows
Always to be on his toes.

Killed the daemon in the pel
Then paid his bill so legends tell
Settled on a fair amount
and that’s the end of this recount!”