Nord walked into the room, spotting more than the usual one fairy on the table. Seated with Missy were two other fairies. Tinkle, glowing blue, her blonde hair shinning in the blue light. And for the first time ever, Nord saw a male fairy.
He was shorter than the two women, round and dumpy looking. A long curly mustache stuck out from his upper lip, and his side burns stretched clear to his neck. The hair was thick and red, with freckles covering every inch of clear skin. Parts of him seemed to glow faintly red in the light, a reflection off the skin.
Their eyes were reddened from crying, the man had long bags under his eyes that sank into his cheeks. He looked like he had been weeping for days.
"We lost him!" Missy wailed. Nord had heard the crying downstairs, it had drawn him to inspect.
The male jumped to his feet, his voice deep and booming for one so small. "Yes, Tryton's left us for that bitch! Stupid Wyrms. They ruin everything! We need to find Lovonian, now."
Nord hurried to the table, "Say that again? You mean you don't know where he's at?" He asked, glaring down at the little man.
"See here, you brute! I'm starting to see why Tryton always called you an idiot. Lovonian is special. He did something…unexpected, and we've lost track of him." The little man strode forward, his gut jiggling under the leaf vest and shirt he wore. His pants were sewn of leaf and threaded with stems, tailor fit. He stretched his hand up, pointing to Nord. "It's your fault, he gets his recklessness from your elf blood! But no matter, I'm sending Missy and Tinkle here to search for him first thing in the morning." He pulled his arm down and strode to the two other fairies. He put his arms around their shoulders, pulling Missy and Tinkle close. "They'll find him! Or my name isn't Sherman Thurmond Maxwell Thomas Chancellor the Second!"
Tinkle, the blue fairy, pushed Sherman's hand from around her shoulder. "And who do you think you are?"
Missy stomped her foot down, catching Sherman in the top of one of his feet. "Don't tell me what to do! You're not my boss!"
"Ladies, I mean no harm, I just want some rest." Sherman spread his arms wide, as if to show he had nothing to hide. "Just a few days, I'll take over after that."
"You would cause Nord to get all fat and lazy again. I know how much you enjoy drinking!" Missy said shaking her finger under Sherman's nose.
"Yeah!" piped in Tinkle, "You may think you're the boss of us, but remember what happened the last time you tried to push an issue." She smiled sweetly at him, "You looked so cute with the violet pollen on your eyelids, it really brought out the color of your eyes!" She started giggling uncontrollably, causing Missy to join in.
Nord shook his head, and covered his eyes with his palm. "I hate fairies and dragons. They're both insane." He turned to leave the room, shouting over his shoulder, "Let me know what you decide to do to find Lov. I'll help in anyway I can."
Sherman piped up, "Don't worry, I'll put you to work soon."
Nord groaned, heading to the common room, looking for Jaxon and Sanche to share a pint.
The giant elf and Sanche sat playing Gin in the common room of the inn. They heard a racket upstairs, as if someone were throwing onions around. A door slammed from upstairs and they heard Sherman calling out, "I think I've found him!" zipping down the stairs, leaving a red after image behind him. Sherman and Tinkle had left a few weeks ago, searching for Lov. Nord jumped to his feet, throwing his cards face up on the table.
"Where is he?" He demanded, resisting the urge to snatch the fairy from above the table. "Is he okay?"
"Lov's fine! He's actually set himself up pretty well." Sherman smiled deeply, "He somehow manage to take over a small tribe of orcs. Whoever gave him that hammer…that was a smart move."
Nord shook his head, "No one gave it to him. He picked it out himself."
"Oh... well, good eye. But no time to waste! Make haste! Get the army together," Sherman frowned, thinking hard. “Yes, Jaxon should be enough to keep you out of trouble. So make sure you don't forget your smart friend, and make haste for the Orc Lands!" With that he stepped sideways through a slit in the air, gone in an instant.
"I hate fairies!" Nord called over his shoulder to Sanche as he rushed up the stairs, kicking in his room door.
Jaxon lay on the bed, reading Rorchester Wallace's Journey Along the Way. Nord frowned as the halfling dog eared one of the book's pages. "Yeah, I heard patches but not enough. Nord, I'm beginning to see why you hate fairies."
Missy stomped her foot on the table. "You two, shut up and get in line!" She commanded pointing to the floor in front of the table. "I don't know if you two are prepared for the shit storm that's coming, but I'll do my best to make sure you both come out of this alive." The little fairy began to pace across the table, Tinkle behind her, fighting back laughter. The blue fairy knew Missy meant every word of it, but the sight of a foot tall woman telling off a giant filled her with mirth. Missy kept talking. "You two just shut up, follow my lead, and all should be fine." She glared at Nord, "Just don't let yourself go soft again! Tinkle and I will be heading this army with Sanche as adviser. You are just way too rogue to be put in charge, Nord. Especially with your nephew involved."
Nord turned red with anger, then took a couple deep calming breaths. "I might disagree with you if my own conscience didn't agree. I just hate being told that I need to follow orders. Authority and I tend to not get along, exception Sanche."
"Why do you think we tracked him down? Don't worry, Nord, we'll get to Lov with an army. We'll see that the Titanbringer pays." Missy floated off the table, Tinkle a half beat behind her. "We need to go get the Anuunaki ready to march. Get your gear in order." She pulled her pouch from her belt and tossed it to Jaxon. "Don't lose it, and don't get lost in it. I know you'll need it for something. Just be sure to give it back tonight."
Jaxon bowed low, pulling his hat from his head and placing it over his heart. His bald head glowed brightly in the blue bulbs. "Thank you, Missy, I take back what I said about fairies. Nord is just a jerk!" Jaxon shot from the room, laughing as he ducked under Nord's reaching arms.
"Fairies, dragons, and halflings, I hate them all."