Hero Chapter Two

 Here's the second chapter, enjoy!

 Chapter Two  

 Olak noticed a smudge on the horizon, which slowly revealed itself to be a town. Most likely Drowed, the town indicated by the signpost as being in this general direction. He kicked Aman lightly with his heels, and the gelding turned his head and fixed Olak with a long suffering look, but increased his speed gradually until he was at a slow canter. The town grew larger, and Olak was able to pick out individual buildings. As he got closer, he noticed something strange. There was little to no activity on the outskirts of town. Maybe it was market day, and everyone was in the town square. Yes, that must be it. He didn't notice a small child slipping away from the roadside, racing in between the buildings.  

 As Olak reached the outlying buildings, he reined in. Aman was more than happy to drop back into a walk, although this one was a bit faster than before. The gelding knew towns meant stables, food and no traveling, at least for a short time. As they made their way through the town to the square, Olak became aware of a sound, the droning of people all together in a group. As he made his way into the open, he saw the town's inhabitants gathered around a platform. On the platform was a group of young people all dressed in identical white robes, with crowns of ivy and flowers on their heads. There was an older man was on the dais as well, holding a jar and speaking to the crowd. As Olak rode closer, the man noticed him, and stopped in mid-sentence. As all the people in the square turned to look at him, Olak pulled Aman to a stop, and nervously raised a hand in greeting. Something wasn't right here, but Olak was not sure just what exactly was going on.  

 The man on the platform came quickly down the steps, handing the jar to a younger man standing at the bottom of the stairs. He hurried over to Olak. "Good Morrow Sir, may I enquire whether or not you are a Knight?"  

 Olak nodded. "I am. What's going on here? Are you in need of a Knight's services?" He inquired, glancing around the square at the sea of faces turned to him. The people on the dais clasped their hands and looked hopeful. Olak dropped his head and smiled a little to himself. Things were looking like they might actually pan out for once.   

 The man nodded. "We are! If you would be so kind as to dismount, I would be more than happy to explain it to you, Good Knight! Come, we will go to the inn." He waited until Olak had dismounted, and then led him to a building off to one side of the town square. A sign with a bright red ear of corn, with a foaming mug and a leg of fowl underneath it proclaimed the building's identity.  

 A rotund man standing in the doorway wearing an apron turned to yell over his shoulder. "Zusi, get out here, we got a customer!" A short young girl with dark hair in an untidy braid down her back squeezed past the innkeeper, and came up to Olak, smiling shyly.  

 "I'm the stablegirl, Sir Knight. If you would tell me your warsteed's name, I will take him to the stable and care for him." the girl told Olak.  

 He handed her the reins. "His name is Aman, and he is fond of carrots. If he gets stubborn on you, offer him a carrot, and he will do whatever you want, happily." he told her.  

 Zusi giggled, turned to the horse and held her hand out palm up for the beast to smell. Aman whuffled her palm, and dipped his head so she could scratch his nose. The girl obliged, and then told the horse, "Come on Aman, I have some carrots and a nice warm stall for you." She turned and tugged on the reins, heading around to the back of the building, where Olak guessed the stables must be. Aman followed her eagerly, and Olak stepped to the door of the inn. The innkeeper moved aside, and once Olak entered, he hustled the knight to a table.  

 "Welcome to Drowed and the Red Corn Inn. I am Daffyth, the innkeeper. What be your pleasure this fine afternoon?" He didn't wait for an answer, but turned and yelled over his shoulder, "Lurie! A meal for our guest!" He trotted over to the bar, sliding behind it. He tapped the keg behind the bar and brought a mug of good brown ale to the table. "You just start on that Sir Knight, and your meal will be out shortly." He bustled away back to the bar, and pulling out a rag, began polishing the already gleaming bar top.  

 Olak took a sip, and nodded happily. The ale was excellent, Daffyth certainly knew his brewing. He had high hopes that the meal would be as good. He was starving, it had been a long while since his midday meal of bread and a turnip. Olak was accustomed most of his life to eating well, and once his Royal father cut off his funds, he had to make due with whatever he could get.  

 A shadow crossed the door, and the man from the platform entered the inn. He navigated the room to Olak's table. "May I sit, Sir Knight? I have need of some business I must discuss with you, and it cannot wait."  

 Olak waved his mug at the chair across the table and leaned back in his chair. The man seated himself, and raised a finger to Daffyth, who brought him a mug of ale, then returned to his polishing. Olak looked across the table at the man. He was tallish, with the pot gut and slightly oily skin that spoke of rich foods and good living. His hair was a middling brown, thinning on top and hung in longish limp locks, framing his face. He was dressed in better clothes than most of the townspeople, a maroon velvet coat with a white shirt under it. No one who did manual labor for a living wore such clothes. Some sort of local official most likely.  

 The man took a sip, then set his mug down on the table. "My name is Kreed Dogin, and I'm mayor here in Drowed. As time is of the essence, I’ll get right to the point. I'm sure you noticed we were holding a lottery when you arrived." Olak nodded. An older woman wearing a huge apron that covered nearly her entire body came out of the kitchen bearing a massive platter of food, which she set in front of Olak. He nodded thanks to her and she dimpled at him and returned to the kitchen.  

 The platter held a huge slab of beef ribs, a bowl of roasted root vegetables and a steaming loaf of crusty bread, already split open and slathered in fresh melting butter. As this was the best meal he'd seen in weeks, Olak wasted no time in pulling his eating knife out of his belt pouch and setting to. He waved a rib at the mayor. "So, what was the lottery for, anyway?" he asked, taking a bite of the tender beef. "Oh, by the way, the name's Olak of Dald. I'm out looking for Quests, so I would be happy to help with any problems you might be having."  

 The mayor cleared his throat nervously and leaned forward in his chair. "Well, you see, we do have a bit of a problem. Been a problem for a while now, and we've been hoping for a Knight to come along that could help us." Olak nodded again and reached for his ale to wash down another bite of succulent meat. "We have a dragon problem."  

 Olak nearly choked on his swig of ale, and turned away coughing. He gasped, "A dragon? I don't remember there being tales of any dragons in this area, just the opposite. Are you sure it's a dragon? Not just a large lizard or something?"  
 Kreed Dogin nodded sadly. "Very sure. Once we realized that it really was a dragon, we of course sent people out to investigate it. None returned. After that, we instituted the Lottery, as is traditional in these circumstances."  

 Olak knew exactly what the mayor meant. The town would put the names of the ‘eligible’ into a pot, and every time the dragon poked its snout out of whatever place it was holed up, the townspeople shoved a tender young person in front of it to distract it from ravaging the countryside. Barbaric, but effective, as everyone knew Dragons could only be slain by a Knight, and Knights weren't exactly thick on the ground in Treegan.  

 Kreed Dogin continued, "The dragon has taken over a keep a few miles from town. Most of the Keep's inhabitants fled, but the Lord's daughter was trying to get her maids out, and ended up being caught in the tower. The dragon keeps her prisoner, knowing that a hostage is the best way to keep the local people quiet and giving it what it wants. The Lord was one of the first killed, trying to rescue his daughter, and the rest of the Household fled."  

 Olak chewed for a moment, thinking. A Dragon! Now that was a Quest to make his Name if he ever heard one, and would let him retire as Sir Olak the Dragon Slayer. He could live comfortably the rest of his life on a reputation like that.  

 "So, I'm guessing you need me to slay the beast for you, good fellow?" Olak asked, grinning. "That is a job for a Hero, after all."  

 Kreed Dogin inhaled hugely, eyes round. "Yes, yes, of course! Please, Fair Knight, rid our town of this evil scourge!"  

 There, the Request was made. Now for his Answer. So tiring, these little word games that must accompany any formal Questing.   

 Olak set down the rib bone, and leaned forward in his chair. "Of course, Good Mayor, I will be happy to deal with your dragon problem." There, formalities out of the way. Now he could finish his meal in peace.  

 The mayor blew his breath out in a huge gust and leaned back in his chair, spreading his hands wide. "Thank you, thank you Sir Knight! The dragon isn't due tribute until sundown tomorrow, so you and your steed can rest and we will tell you what we do know about it." Dogin looked up and waved, and a young woman appeared beside Olak. "This is Kendis, if you need anything, she will be taking care of you during your stay here in Drowed." Olak glanced over at the young woman. Buxom, blonde and bouncy, just what he liked. He might just stay a while after he dealt with the dragon, if the town was properly 'grateful'. The girl wrinkled her nose and smiled at him, and dropped a curtsey, batting her eyelashes in a flirt. Yes, things were definitely looking up.  

 Olak finished his meal with the girl Kendis attending to his every need. He decided he ought to stroll around town for a bit, and see what the townspeople could tell him about the dragon. As he stood up, Kendis dipped into another curtsey and said coyly "I will make all ready in your room for when you are ready to return and rest, Sir Knight." She turned and scampered up the stairs to the sleeping chambers on the second floor. 

 Olak turned to the innkeeper. "Going for a walk to stretch my legs, tell your cook that the meal was excellent."  

 Daffyth nodded "Many thanks, I'll let her know. Supper will be ready about sundown, and your room will be ready then as well. Enjoy your walk."