GasLight

Chapter Three: Hospitality

Huge awaiting doors may have been a bit of an understatement. It felt like I'd been walking forever before I reached the entrance of the Manse. It gave me plenty of time to settle myself and take stock of the situation.

It was obvious that I was walking into a military installation, my old branch to be exact. Mounted proudly on the entry tower, above the great doors, hovered a gigantic shield with the depiction of a Griffin clawing the belly of a Black Dragon. I'd walked away from the Talon Company cycles ago and never thought about going back. Looked like they had different plans for me.

As I neared the entrance the great two story doors slowly eased open and I was met by two fresh-faced cadets in full uniform. One look at my jacket and they both took a knee and bowed their heads. A bit much, I thought, but what the hell? I gave them an 'At Ease' and a quick offhanded salute as I crossed the threshold. They stood in unison, clicked their heels, and closed the doors behind me. Likewise, the next set of doors began to open, powered by the efforts of a second set of cadets. They also bowed and received an 'At Ease' before closing those doors behind me as well.

Great, I was starting to feel trapped. I retained my composure with an air of nonchalance and stood in the center of a great domed hall. The ceiling loomed high above me while a pair of staircases ascended the curved walls of the hall opposite me to a wide balcony. Suits of armor stood flanking the base of the stairs displaying polearms with finely polished blades. I never felt comfortable in those things, too ridged and clunky, keeps me from doin what I do.

The cadets at the double doors stood at full attention, ordered to stand still and silent and only to move to open the doors. I supposed this was meant to make them feel their place in the military rankings... the objects that they'd become. They would be no help so I also stood, just not at attention, those days were behind me.

I was just arriving at irritation when the doors below the balcony opened before me and the house butler stepped into the hall. He wore a small badge with the Talon's insignia embroidered on the breast of his suit indicating that the old slender gentleman had once served as well. He'd be long retired now but kept a job to keep himself active. Some diehards never stop serving. I wasn't one of those.

"Master Chancellor, may I presume." Whoa, the etiquette in here was thick.

"You may." I stated, puffing out my chest. This didn't impress him and it hurt my ribs so it was a double failure on my part, but I took it in stride and played it cool.

"This way, Master Chancellor." The old butler clicked his heels military style and strutted off toward an arched hall to my left. I clicked my heels as well with a sarcastic clop and followed suit, strutting to the best of my ability while relying on the cane for support. Not an easy feat.

The corridor was a long one with large paintings adorning the walls depicting past battles the Talon Company had fought. Some dated back to the time of Dragons. One in particular illustrated the founding militia bombarding the Great Black Dragon 'Dahken-Mahbre the Tyrant' with fiery arrows from the backs of their legendary Griffon mounts. This hung on the wall between the archways that led into what appeared to be a library teaming with shelves that climbed out of sight.

I stopped and examined one of the paintings near the far end of the hall, allowing my guide to wander ahead without me. He wasn't going anywhere far. Cane or no cane, I could catch up.

The painting that caught my attention featured the Towering Cyclops from the mountainous region known as Wessock's Brow in the High end of Wessock. Great clubs smashed buildings while giant boulders soared through the smoke-streaked air. The streets were awash with blood and steeped with the fallen from both the Talons and the invading forces of the Renek Barbarian tribes. How they managed to control the Cyclops was still a mystery to me. The foreground showed a large contingent of Talon Company Soldiers loading cannons and ballistas in defense of the little denizens of Washessen Jumble. This was where the fighting got the fiercest during the Taldek-Rahn Liberation Scrimmages and I thought the artist did a fair job of capturing the chaos. I even fancied seeing myself depicted on a tenement rooftop firing a canon at one of the grizzly one-eyed beasts.