Signup for Sal's Archery Tournament

[O'Brien]

After sending a courier to Olympia to print a Herald article there, Sal immediately began preparations for his tournament, to the point where he even spent some free time not shooting his composite bow Crescent all hours of the brightening. With a broom he tidied up the facility a bit, sweeping some dirt and sand that had fallen out of their respective circles and paths back in, placing fresh, holeless targets out downrange, and making sure he had a good store of silver arrows and the various other prizes he had promised.

Most Ariosans paid the tournament little heed and continued life as usual - fishing and chopping in the day and partying all night. A few expressed a sliver of interest and decided that they may enter later. Not all Ariosans were so unenthusiastic, though.

The crazy Aedile gnome of Arios, Tabri, agreed to lend out his desk, that was almost never used, to Sal for tournament coordination. With a pen and some parchment also from the Aedile, Sal set up a signup area at the entrance of his archery facility.

Participants in Sal's Archery Tournament

Tev Bowyer
Myfanwy Bower
Elle Trellian Kaldres
Paul Tyndal
Damien Lanilathis
Gareth Gruven
Ryn Hyllid
Pennthôliel Windleaf

The expert archer would have interested people sign their names on the list after he collected their 75 Crowns, and based on how many participants signed up, he would later sketch up the tournament brackets, though he already had a rough of idea of how they would look.

Fresh with anticipation of interested archers, Sal would even at some times just sit at the desk, just praying for people to come and sign up. He was very excited about the upcoming tournament and hoped that other folk throughout the Empire would be so anxious.

[Tev]

After they got into town, Tev looked for Sal's establishment. Then having found it, he tied up the carriage to the hitching post and left Myfanwy and the girls to stretch their legs. After entering the store Tev noticed the assortment of archery items and decided that he would check them out after he settled in.
He then proceeded to the obvious place, the desk. Once there he greeted the person seated and said, "Serale, I am Tev. I wish to enter in the Archery Tournament".
Seeing the sign up book, Tev entered two names:

Tev Bowyer

Myfanwy Bowyer

He then took some banknotes out of his pouch and handed 150 crowns to Sal.
After that he said to the man, "I require lodgings for my family. Where do you recommend that I go?"

[Elle Kaldres Lothain]

Ever since Elle had seen the article in the Herald regarding a tournament in Archery, she simply had to go to compete. The trip out to the island had been uneventful, and very quick. Accompanying her on the trip had been her elven companion and Master Elementalist Aderyn te tuin Lothain, and his portal literally made the trip in a blink of an eye. Perhaps one of these days, she'd get used to the icky sensation of being poured down a drain.

Elle had never been to the island of Arios before, and so it was with great curiosity that she peered this way and that as she sought the building she was looking for; Sal's Crescent Archery. The woman was dressed in her usual travel garb consisting of dark blue pants, a crisp white blouse, and over her shoulders to protect against the biting winds of the winter sea fluttered a navy blue woolen cloak.

The cloak all but hid the treasured recurve bow she carried on her back. The top of it extended beyond the warm fabric, but the rest of it remained hidden from prying eyes. What was visible though, was obviously the work of a master bowyer. Layered yew and ironwood had been stained a deep purple colour, and the tip was capped with a steel cap. For the moment, the string was lax, wrapped carefully around the shaft for protection.

Elle Kaldres wanted to participate in this competition mainly to see how she measured up against other archers in the Empire. She didn't really care much about the prizes, only the prestige, though she didn't have any plans to turn down the silver arrow that was promised as part of the registration fee. It would look fetching over the top of her mantle, as a memento at the very least.

Elle's only regret was that her instructor and friend Joseph Case of Imperia couldn't be here with her. She respected the man, and wanted to do him proud. Twice she'd had the pleasure of his instruction, and now was the time to put it to the test.

At last the Crescent Archery came into view, and Elle paused to stand before the desk of the young man taking names and crowns. She gave him a charming smile, lit from within by her honest excitement and anticipation at the beginning of the tournament. Her hands moved the cloak aside to reach into her pouch for the seventy five crowns. Beside her money pouch, rested a mahogany pouch containing a sheaf of fine arrows, all stained the same purply mahogany, and fletched with feathers of the same colour. Along one side of each arrow, black tips marked the balance on each shaft. The leather pouch was tooled with a beautiful scene of a gowned woman with long hair, holding a longbow. Her hand laid the seventy five crowns down on the desk.

"Serale. I would like to compete in the tournament." She picked up the quill, and wrote her name neatly on the next space.

"Might I inquire as to when it is planned to start, and about how many days it will last?" She hadn't need of lodgings, not when her companion could whisk her away to their home in Silrosia and back again, almost easily.

[O'Brien]

Tev

Sal hadn't thought of people signing up for friends as well, so he almost began patting around his clothes for change until he realized what Tev was doing. "Ah yes," he said, pocketing the 150, "thank you for your interest and be sure to pass on the thanks to your friend." When Tev asked for lodging, though, a very sly look crossed Sal's face. The archer leaned in close to Tev and spoke very quietly to him.

"The fantastic thing about Arios," he said, "is that there is some sort of force here, some sort of intangible magic. As long as you're here, you won't find the need to sleep. There's an outdoors supplier around if you'd like to buy a tent and try, but I can assure you...sleep just isn't an Ariosan thing." Sal couldn't help but grin widely as he kept his eyes on Tev. This was a large part of the reason Sal got so much practice.

OOC: Yep, that's right - you don't have to sleep on Arios! If that second person is an NPC, please PM me about that.

Elle Trellian Kaldres

Sal smiled when he saw Elle approaching. He didn't recognize her or anything, but she was attractive enough. "Welcome, miss," he said with a sweeping bow, "you are most welcome here." Ironically, Sal would not even see Elle's name when she wrote it, and would not realize until later that he had a Kaldres participating in his humble tournament.

"Wonderful," he said upon collecting her fee, "I suppose we'll start in a few brightenings or so - they pass by slowly here on Arios. It also depends on interested people, so we'll see."

OOC: Probably five to seven days from now.

[Tev]

Tev chuckled as he heard Sal refer to a friend.
"The friend you mention is my wife. She will be competing as well".
He groaned when Sal mentioned that there is no need to sleep in Arios. Almost unbelievable!!! This was not something he wanted to hear. No sleep? What sort of a God or Mage thought up of such foolishness. It was obvious that the individual did not have children and knew nothing of them.
As he and Sal were close together, Tev spoke quietly as well, "The effect of this force you speak of means that my twin daughters will be awake for the entire brightening as long as we are here, from dawn to dawn. I love them dearly and cherish every moment that I spend with them, but I have grown accustomed to having a few hours of tranquility while they sleep. I guess that is not to be.
"Thank you for the suggestion of purchasing a tent but I would just as soon set up a shelter in the forest if there are no rooms available. I assume that is permitted. By the way, are there any Rangers or Druids in the forest?"
Before Tev left, he asked, "At what ranges will the targets be during the competition"?

[O'Brien]

Sal chuckled when talking to Tev. "Mine is verily a strange island," he said, "but I am afraid I can offer you no suggestions regarding your daughters. As for the forest...hmm...first of all no, no one will protest to your staying in the forest. I would beseech you to take caution so that you will live to shoot in my tournament, but I can see you are a ranger and should be well-suited to the journey. There are many druids in the enchanted woods, but their coven is located far to the north of the island. A ranger such as yourself could probably make it up there in several hours though. There is the occasional other ranger out there, but there are far more druids. Oh yes, and I believe I will have the targets at 50 meters or so...I have not yet made up my mind, though, but I'll be sure to announce it." Sal nodded and shrugged in apology, hoping he had been of assistance.

[Tev]

Tev listened to the information that Sal gave. He was rather pleased with the reply.
"I do not intend to travel far into the forest for the time being. Setting up camp near town is my intention. I am sure that the Druids will be aware of our presence by the time I finish setting up camp. I will not need to seek them out. If they want me to meet them, I'm sure that I will."
Tev's eyebrows raised when Sal replied that he would probably have targets at 50 meters. He expected longer distances, but 50 meters was fine.
"Thank you for your help".

[Elle Kaldres Lothain]

"That sounds lovely then. I'll have some time to explore the Island, as I've never been here before." Elle continued to smile at the young man, as she laid down the quill. He answered her questions aptly enough, and so long as she didn't miss the start of the tournament Elle would be content.

"I'll continue to check back here then, in a few brightenings to see if the time has come. Hopefully you won't start without me." She grinned at him, and gave him a playful wink of her bright leaf-green eyes.

Slowly the woman sauntered away from the counter, her hips swaying beneath the folds of navy blue wool. The soft sounds of idle whistling drifted into the air as she moved into the distance, seeking out her companion to rejoin him and let him know she was registered for the competition.

[Damien Lanilathis]

Time Stamp: Lunaria, 10th Brightening of the First Cycle of Melora in the Tenth Era of the Age of Darkening.

Damien made his way through the door of the shop. He had a slight pang of worry in his gaze. His eyes moved to those of the keeper and he asked through hurried words, suggesting that he had been in a rush, as he walked towards him.

"Good sir, I have heard word of an archery tournament being held here. Is there still time to enter?"

The expression on Damien's face showed only a slight case of anticipation. He would hate to hear that his trip had been made for naught. Although, he supposed he would be able to watch the tournament, if nothing else.

[Paul Tyndal]

Paul strode up to the desk, behind with a man was sitting. He had his bow, a simple wooden long bow, strung over his back, the string running in front of him diagonally, holding the bow to his body. His quiver, resting on the back of his left shoulder, was full of arrows, their fletching a pure white, that reflected the morning sunlight so directly that one could not look straight into the feathers, taken from some bird that not very many people have heard of.

In a hushed voice, that one leans forward to hear, he told the man, "I would like to sign up for the tournament. Here is my money."

He gave the man his 75 Crowns, taken from one of the many pockets on his leather tunic, and wrote his name down on the parchment, in a short, cluttered hand. The name read as this:

Paul Tyndal

Walking away, his footsteps did not make a sound, and he seemed to disappear into the trees.

[O'Brien]

Damien Lanilathis

"Not a problem, sir," Sal said, suppressing a chuckle or two, "the tournament won't begin for another two brightenings or so. You're perfectly on time. I'm Sal. Welcome to Arios, and welcome to my tournament." Sal shook the elf's hand and gestured to the sign-up sheet. After Damien signed up, Sal would collect his entrance fee. That made five contestants, but Sal needed at least eight...

[Damien Lanilathis]

The face of the young elf lite up with relief. He was surely no expert with the bow, and he had hopped that he would be able to test his skills and maybe win something in the process. He had made the trip from Arconis as soon as he read the article in the herald, and the trip wasn't exactly an easy one. Having to traverse that distance on foot in only a few cycles was taxing. When Damien had arrived on the island he was worn out and in need of rest. Now, though, he seemed to be just fine. It was rather strange, he thought.

"Excellent, excellent. I had hopped to make it in time. The article said nothing of when the tournament would begin, so I took quiet a risk in coming. It's nice meet you, though, Sal. My name is Damien."

Damien removed a 100 crown banknote from a small bag and slid it along the counter.

"This is the smallest bill I have. If you don't have the change, I can get it exchanged at a bank and get it to you before the tournament begins."

Damien took the sheet and signed his name. It wasn't much of a signature. It was more of a print, but it took Damien most of his concentration to write it legibly. He hopped it would do, and looked back up to Sal.

"You said the tournament was to begin in two days? I should return in that time, then. Oh yes, and where shall we be meeting?"

[O'Brien]

Plenty of people had paid their 75 in three sets of 25s, so Sal certainly had change. He gave 25 back to Damien and thanked him for his interest. "We'll meet right here for the tournament," Sal instructed, "probably around noontime, I suppose. I'll see you then!"

[Gareth Gruven]

"Morning Sal!" the small platinum haired Sprite spoke in a cheerful voice as he glided towards the owner. "Mind if I signed up? I think the lessons you taught me might help, despite the small size," he spoke with a cheerful tone, nothing seeming to dampen his spirits. Sal was in the progress of teaching him basic archery, and it was only half-way through the training that the Sprite had grown confident in himself enough to actually sign up. Taking out a hundred-crown bank note, he placed it on the desk and slid it towards Sal, while he meanwhile took the Quill and signed his name on the list.

Gareth Gruven

Would be participating.