From: johnf@apollo.hp.com (John Francis)
Newsgroups: alt.pub.dragons-inn
Subject: [Felix] (in pub) Talks to Silverbreeze (& Selene)
Keywords: ring, Silverbreeze, Felix, tale
Message-ID: <1992May26.234130.19962@apollo.hp.com>
Date: 26 May 92 23:41:30 GMT
References: <9214416.11042@mulga.cs.mu.OZ.AU>

merricb@mundil.cs.mu.OZ.AU (Merric BLACKMAN) writes:
>[silverbreeze speaks of his companion Scarlet]
>"No luck at all. I thought to divine the location of a sword she carries.
>Either it is destroyed, or far more likely, is beyond the province of that
>spell. I can only hope that she is safe."
>
>Silverbreeze looks at Felix, and says, "Do you know of this world I describe?
>And, if you do not mind me asking, who are you and what is your tale?"

Felix replies "I know of many worlds, but I can not at present think of one
which has two moons, one red and one white.  To find your companion would,
it seems, require more than to simply return to familiar hunting grounds."

"As for me:  Folks here know me as Felix, although that is not my name. Nor
was I born with the form which you see before you - that was gifted to me
as a result of a slight miscalculation I made as to how far I could jump!"

Felix pauses to drink some more ale.  He discovers that his tankard is empty,
so he signals to the barmaid for a refill. Then, with a wry smile, he resumes:

"That was when I was younger and more foolish.  In those days I wandered often
in the company of friends with a similar love of places new and dangers fresh.
At times we quested after volumes of power like unto those of which you spoke -
in fact it was on one such quest that I gained my current appearance. One of my
companions of those days had ascertained that there were magical forces which
would be unleashed should we set foot on certain flagstones in a corridor.
I missed my footing while trying to leap across to the safe area beyond, and
I awoke to find myself caged, and with my mind trapped in an unfamiliar body.
I tried to call out, but all I could produced was the roar of a brute beast!"

"Fortunately for me the trap was an old one, and through the passage of time
wild magicks had altered it. Even more fortunately for me the alteration was
not immediately fatal. For instead of slaying me outright, the magical forces
had transformed me into the semblance of a cat-like creature, taking as their
model a creature held captive nearby.  She it was who taught me the truth of
my situation, for I never saw the being that imprisoned us both. I spent many
days imprisoned, but eventually with her aid I was able to release us both
while my adventuring companions distracted our captor."

"She and I travelled together for many months, and during those times I spent
much time researching the nature of the form I had so recently acquired,
for it was not a natural one, but instead one crafted by magical means.
Soon the study of these (and other) magicks became the most important thing
in my life, and in my search for knowledge I often travelled alone.  But I
sought magical knowledge as other men sought gold, so there were also times
when I joined with others in the search. Oft times, in fact, we ventured on
journeys that were like unto those of my youth. In the early days, however,
I was merely a seeker - it was only later that I came to know what I sought."

"How about you?" he asks Silverbreeze. "Have you learned what it is you are
looking for, or do you simply seek excitement and the pleasure of the hunt?"