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Virka Munni was in a room that wasn't his, distracting the palace chaplain who secretly wished his friend would go away and come back later. "So there were only two dogs, but the visiting lord was so eager to catch the white hart that he didn't care, and they rushed off anyway. But Lord Amery was a fox hunter, and these were his favorite hunting dogs. Now, soon enough, those two dogs started baying and howling, and the chase was on! The visiting lord hadn't spotted any deer, but he knew he could trust a dog to smell the prey when it was still out of sight. Well, they -"
Virka's story was interrupted by a messenger entering the room. "Pardon my intrusion," he said, "Lady Mariana sent me to make sure the chaplain is praying for the current situation on the Hiertania border."
"What situation would that be?" asked the chaplain.
"Tiadani bandits, sir. They were caught on the border, but a village was terribly burned. Everyone fears the worst, and is quick to point out how unhelpful Hiertania is."
"Thank you, you may go."
After the lad left, the chaplain turned to his friend and said apologetically, "You'll have to finish your story another day, it seems." He then opened the roof latch of his study and climbed the ladder to the angamnara: the sky tower. Virka had never been up there, but from what he had heard, it was a simple room with four short stone walls and no roof, where the chaplain could pray and worship in the fresh air without distractions.
As Virka turned and left the room, he considered the ramifications of the news. It was serious business, so the usual grin was absent from his face. His eyes still glinted, but with excitement rather than glee.
The yadi would be the place to go. Virka would always tell foreign dignitaries that the yadi was the courtyard, but to Lutaires it was more than that. It was the centerpiece of the palace: a lush garden with tall, healthy trees. People congregated there, ate there, studied there. Most rooms entered into there (or into a hallway that led there), and the yadi itself did not open directly into the street. So people would not disrupt the atmosphere of the yadi in bumbling around and asking for directions.
Upon entering the yadi, Virka was not disappointed. There were many groups of people conversing in hushed tones. But from the words he caught, each group had the same topic. (Well, except those two oddities in the corner. But they were always talking about toads.)
Virka's story was interrupted by a messenger entering the room. "Pardon my intrusion," he said, "Lady Mariana sent me to make sure the chaplain is praying for the current situation on the Hiertania border."
"What situation would that be?" asked the chaplain.
"Tiadani bandits, sir. They were caught on the border, but a village was terribly burned. Everyone fears the worst, and is quick to point out how unhelpful Hiertania is."
"Thank you, you may go."
After the lad left, the chaplain turned to his friend and said apologetically, "You'll have to finish your story another day, it seems." He then opened the roof latch of his study and climbed the ladder to the angamnara: the sky tower. Virka had never been up there, but from what he had heard, it was a simple room with four short stone walls and no roof, where the chaplain could pray and worship in the fresh air without distractions.
As Virka turned and left the room, he considered the ramifications of the news. It was serious business, so the usual grin was absent from his face. His eyes still glinted, but with excitement rather than glee.
The yadi would be the place to go. Virka would always tell foreign dignitaries that the yadi was the courtyard, but to Lutaires it was more than that. It was the centerpiece of the palace: a lush garden with tall, healthy trees. People congregated there, ate there, studied there. Most rooms entered into there (or into a hallway that led there), and the yadi itself did not open directly into the street. So people would not disrupt the atmosphere of the yadi in bumbling around and asking for directions.
Upon entering the yadi, Virka was not disappointed. There were many groups of people conversing in hushed tones. But from the words he caught, each group had the same topic. (Well, except those two oddities in the corner. But they were always talking about toads.)
