The Golden Scales

7: The dignity of the Hunters

Förd was a small village, with barely a hundred inhabitants during the times of harvest. Around it, dozens of hectares of fields with different kinds of fruit and wheat gave an ocre tone to the sharp terrain where it was, adding with some soft tones the roofs with wood and straw that one could see from afar. In the southern part of the village there were the three only stone buildings visible, on three different hills that would form an equilateral triangle. It was placed so one side of the village would touch beside a small river that would not appear in the maps Ulfhärt bought before leaving Hope.

"Whoever drew this map doesn't know a thing about geographic accidents" he complained as he saw the river.

"I know a lot about accidents" Kilau laughed, earning a worried look from Antonius, who sat just near her in the cart... in a place where there could happen a lot of 'accidents'. She laughed even harder.

As they approached the village, they could feel the humid smell of autumn and the vintage. Especially the vintage. The strong smell of crushed grape that would ferment and become wine; and also -Ulfhärt's favourite- ale.

"And we're stopping in this village?" Nihilus asked. "It's a pig court."

"It's a pig court with some good ale" Ulfhärt replied and then pointed to the dragon skull behind him. "And it also has a local hunters' guild where we can sign in by presenting Susan's head."

"Oh, see? That's good."

"We need a name" Kri-ling commented. "Because if we are to travel together, I understand that groups tend to sign in with group names, don't they?"

"Yes. Many times they use to." Neven answered. "There's the Black Sharks, who happen to be very good marine hunters. Or the Champions of Radnya, who recieved this name after facing a group of trolls attacking that village. Or, my personal favourite, the Glitter fairies, a group of girls who use spells of every imaginable color as they fight, and also scream a lot."

"Sounds like a group of assholes." Nihilus complained.

"They are a group of assholes. But the fun kind."

"And what kind of name could we have?" Kilau asked, looking around.

"No idea. What have we done that's interesting?" Ulfhärt asked himself. It looked like Neven was the only one that didn't understood it was rethorical.

"We've killed a dragon. Hope's dragonslayers?"

"That's an idea... except we've been expelled from Hope, and I don't know if I want to have the name of a city that kicked me off." Nihilus said, and everyone seemed to agree with him. "Also, nobody's gonna believe the dragon thing."

"What do you think about... Golden Scales?" Antonius said as he g rabbed one of the scales from his bag. "It's our reward for having slain the dragon, it can be our presentation card and, also, it sounds impressive."

The group thought about it, but they didn't really have many arguments against it. Everyone was fine with that name.

"Okay, then. We shall be the Golden Scales!" Neven announced to the world. A world that didn't listen and wasn't too impressed with that. But it was a declaration of her intentions, and that was enough for her.

The village of Förd was mostly comprised of streets where the cart would barely fit. But they managed to find a way to the central square of the village that, depending on who they asked, it was the Marketplace, the Town Hall Square, or the Gallows'. So it was quite safe to assume the reason why it had those names. None of the members of the recently named Golden scales was surprised to see exactly what they expected in that square. What did sprurise them was the news post, where someone drew a huge humanoid being dressed with pelts showing their muscles and with huge tusks. With one quick glance, Neven deduced it would probably be an orc, but quite poorly drawn.