An Axe in the Flames

Messages in the Night

Flame light flickered and danced on the dark stone, sending shadows across the walls in a rippling wave. Brother Poe sat at his desk with a feather quill, and stacks of coins both gold and bronze sat around him in neat order. He was muttering numbers to himself as he slid another stack of coins from his papers to the other stacks. His bald head was sweaty and streaks slid down the back of his head and continued down his neck. It was hot in the Chamber of Coins, being built next to the natural hot springs that created the bathing rooms was perhaps not the brightest idea. Granted it was located under the small swamp keep, but it could've been thought out better. Poe set his feather quill down after scrolling out a number and shaking his head. Tracing a finger back over the numbers, slowly, a noise caught his attention from just outside of the door. He turned to his left and behind him as the patchwork wooden and metal door burst open.

"Brother Finn, how goes the night?" Poe asked

Finn had come into the chamber with a stumbled rush, but now that Poe saw the cask he was carrying, he knew why. He had been drinking again, and this was becoming a problem.

"At the bottle again, Brother Finn?" He said with a nonchalant tone.

Finn looked at the cask and leaned up against the wall and rested his head for a moment. He closed his eyes and sat still for a moment as Poe eyed him curiously. After a few awkward moments, Finn pushed himself off the wall and finished off the cask of wine.

"I tell you Poe....you...are an asshole. A condescending little judgy asshole." Finn said with a grin.

"Am I, now?" He questioned back,

Finn waved his empty hand across the stacks of coins, and gold figurines that inhabited the whole of the room, save for Poe's desk, "Years beyond years of wealth. Too much for any one man to ever spend."

Poe looked around, and nodded, "Indeed. The Brothers have done well all of these years to accumulate more than most kingdoms will ever see."

"We could own whole kingdoms, more than just a swampy province inside of a kingdom. We could own armies and castles bigger than this. We could own Bree."

Finn stumbled across the room and slid down the wall next to Poe's desk. Poe reached out a hand and set it on Finn's shoulder, "We could have all and anything that we ever wanted. The nation relies on us, without realizing that they do. Young Finn, do you truly know the influence of what such wealth could mean?"

Finn looked up and raised an eyebrow, "We could literally pay anyone off, to do as we pleased. To bend the whole of this continent to our bidding without ever getting our hands dirty?"

Poe laughed, "Rather specific. I gather you've thought of this before?"

Finn shook his head, "Sometimes, I do. I don't like feeling like I'm someone's errand boy. Just waiting around to be useful."

"Would you do anything about it though?"

"Cor's front teeth, no. I wouldn't even know where to begin or who to talk to."

Poe sat back in his chair, that answered that question. Finn was too drunk to lie about knowing where to put the money to influence this war. That just left Warren, Gaven, and Y'hrue as suspects.

"Finn, is that why you drink so much? To escape the boredom?" Poe asked.

"Aye, I drink to forget that I'm someone's lap dog. Y'hrue seems to think it's okay because it's why we were founded. Gaven and Warren though...I know they long for those old days when we were involved in every battle."

Finn pushed himself back to his feet and made motions with his hands like he was swinging a sword, "Those days when people feared to see us enter a battle instead of fearing to see us when they're the least protected."