Marshall R.T.East

The meeting of Nicholas Snow and Lexis Brasfort

Lexis sat at a table in the local bar, somberly sipping his pint with his eyes fixed at nothing. He was pondering on his choices, had he made the right ones or had he made the wrong ones. He thought about Mimosa and he thought about his home town.
He was pulled out of his reverie as a man sat beside him. The man was big and burly, though not as much as Lexis. He had a respectful feel to him, perhaps helped by his commanding beard. He offered Lexis a great big smile before he started to talk in a deep friendly voice.

- How are you this fine evening? I noticed you sitting here alone and thought you would appreciate company.
- Hmph, Ah rather enjoy bein’ by meself, but now that yer ‘ere we might as well chat. Where do ye ‘ail from, burly stranger?

The man gave a hearty laugh and offered his hand to Lexis.

- Name’s Nicholas Snow, Shrine Knight, at your service. Now why would a man sit in a crowded bar alone?
Lexis shook his hand and motioned for the barkeep to bring his new acquaintance something to water his mouth with.
- Ah’m Lexis. A Shrine Knight ‘eh? Never met one o’ yous before. To yer question… Ah don’ much enjoy the company of these people. Noisy, annoyin’, foul-mouthed, good-fer-nuffin, skinny rapscallions who never done nuffin ter earn any respect in mah eyes. Now what would bring a Shrine Knight like yourself ‘ere into tha midst of us mere men?
- Just some business for the church, nothing of great import. What about you? You have the look of a northerner about you, what brings you here?
- Ah’ve just been wanderin’ around for the last few months. Actually ah had some trouble at ‘ome ye see? With the wife an’ all that.

At this point Nicholas gave another hearty laugh and patted Lexis in the back.

- Ah women… they tend to be like that. Let me guess, an old nagging hag telling you about your bad habits with beer and coming home too late?
- Nay, nuffin like that. Mimosa, that is mah wife you see, is a sweet young lass. In ‘er mid twenties, pretty as the sky, she is. An’ nay, she never nags ter me, only does ‘er part diligently like a proper wife.
- Ah… so she left you then? Was there a reason to this?
- Wha- nay! She din’t leave me, Ah left ‘er. Ah got tired of ‘er naïveté an’ young ideas. Not ter mention the constant pressure she put on me. Always sex this an’ sex that. Told me not ter take any pressure, but how can Ah do that with ‘er always wantin’ for more. Anywa’ Ah got increasingly irritated by me life an’ ‘ad to take off. Ah told good bye ter me wife an’ packed some things an’ just left. Been wanderin’ around since then. Tryin’ ter help where Ah can, but… it’s been slow. It be hard ter find some ter help for a few coins nowadays ye know? Was fixin’ the roof fer this ‘ere bar fer a few gil an’ a drink or two.
- Wait… you mean to say you just left your wife? What about holy matrimony? You do know God doesn’t accept divorce like that, don’t you? And for what did you do it? So you could wander around aimlessly? What good will that do? To you or to anyone else?

Lexis turned back to his drink and pondered Nicholas’ words for a moment before answering.

- Ah just wasn’t ‘appy. Ah can’t go on like that now can Ah? It be better fer Mims too Ah guess. She ‘as ‘er whole life ahead of ‘er and Ah’m just an old man ye know? As for the wanderings… Ah don’t know. Ah just figured Ah’d be able ter ‘elp people an’ find some answers. Somethin’ ter make me life a wee bit ‘appier ye know? It just din’t work that way it seems. Ye on the other ‘and seem ter be doin’ fine. ‘Ow did ye manage that? What drives ye forward?
-Hmm… I see your situation was kind of problematic. Maybe you go at it the wrong way. Maybe instead of helping people with their minor tasks, you could help by protecting them from the forces of evil? There are demons and other creatures abound everywhere you look and you look like a man who could hold his own against them. Before I started my adventures, I was just an ordinary lad thinking what I could do to easy the suffering of others. And then it struck me, an inspiration from God. I got some equipment and went forth to slay those opposing the good of mankind. And for me, it was the right choice. I’ve helped people more than I could have imagined before I started out. Maybe this is the way for you too. I might also mention that many monsters carry coins with them, just like we people do. One can make a hefty sum by defeating these creatures.

Lexis fell silent for a long time, with a look of strained concentration on his face.

- Protect others from the forces of evil ‘eh… that don’t sound too shabby if Ah say so meself. An’ a good pay too? This might be worth some concideration…

Nicholas and Lexis talked for a long time afterwards and separated with good hearts and jolly minds. A spark was however lit into Lexis, a spark that would decide his fate later on.