The Dancing Dolphin
We’ve been travelling south for the past week heading towards Merquay. This morning as we woke, there was a low mist rolling across the open fields towards us, and as it reached me I could smell the salt within it. Tomepicker looked unsure as I began chuckling, until I explained to him that it meant we were very close to Merquay. We walked the last two miles along the bank of the Simi – it was almost a repeat of my last entrance to the small fishing village, except that last time I was clinging to a boat as Rhonas paddled along the Simi.
The village hasn’t changed much. It still seems to hang
on to the rocks by the side of the pebbled beach.
I headed straight away for the one place in Merquay that
I knew would be welcoming – the Dancing Dolphin and it’s innkeeper, Iollan.
Tomepicker padded across the stone floor towards the open fire, whilst I
arranged for a room, food and ale (in that order!) with Iollan.
Once adequately full I caught up on events since my
previous visit. Torfeld the giant recovered from his injury quickly, although
in the process it seems he almost drank the entire village dry (all for
medicinal reasons of course!). He remained in the village for several years,
but when the strange boats began passing beyond Roper’s Isle he headed off to
the west to try and find out more about them. Since then, he hadn’t been heard
of, or seen.
With the mention of the boats - that I’d also seen a
while back - I enquired about the lack of fish being sent North to Castlecairgn. Iollan
looked glum and said that the fishermen were really struggling as their catches
had vanished from the waters over the past few years.
The locals, according to Iollan, thought that the
Baldrake was responsible for the lack of fish and were not happy.
