Pen name of Ira Robinson
The Stumble Inn is the last stop outside of Center before civilization ends.
Bula, the Half-Orc bartender, brooks no trouble and she has the means to make that happen.
Within the walls of the tavern one can find the Key-Bard, Serene Heart, one-time minstrel who no longer sings. She still has many stories to tell, though, and is glad to share them with anyone who comes along, especially if a coin or two are shared for the favor.
Step inside, take a seat. Avoid the goat... he gets drunk sometimes.
And mind your manners. Bula is always watchful.
We actually had a plague doctor visit the tavern today. I was a bit surprised. We haven’t seen one of them around in a long while, not since the dark times almost twenty years ago now, at least. When he (I wasn’t sure at first it was a he, but…
The imps made a mess today. I’m not sure what got into Strakka’s head to start it all, but of course, once she threw the bucket at Yabra’s face, hells broke loose. All they had to do was clean up some dust, make things clean and sparkling for the guests…
“What shall we do with the prisoner, m’lord?” The question was innocuous enough, and one I heard many times before. Hundreds. Why was it so different this time, though? Why, when I looked into the eyes of the man standing before me did I feel something strange? I waved my…
When I was a kid, my parents had what they called the Sin Box. They were pretty religious, I guess, taking their faith very seriously, and they raised me to have the same kind of respect for the gods as they did. Granted, I might have had a little bit…
It remained on my tongue, ashen and warm, the sacred drink a nectar so sweet the gods, themselves, would weep for its touch. And it was mine, given as was right, nothing more than a taste, perhaps, but enough. More than enough. My head still reels as the priests chant…
Jim’s day started off hard and later than he’d wanted. A little too much to drink the night before made the alarm in the morning a klaxon he didn’t really want to deal with, but he couldn’t ignore it for long. The bills had to be paid, after all, and…
The ritual was, thankfully, rather simple. It had taken some time to find it, but when Shannon finally did, the smile on her face was hard to hide. She couldn’t believe how cheap the bookseller was letting it go for. They probably didn’t realize what kind of a treasure they…
It’s too late for my mother. I know that, even as I watch her being taken from the cage across the darkened hallway. Her eyes are already glazed from the deprivations she’s endured, and I am not sure if she can see me, but I stand straighter as she is…
