"I've never been to Anvil myself, but from all I've heard it's quite impressive - especially as it's mostly tents amongst ruins! Nobody's allowed to build permanent buildings there, so four times a year the great and good of the Empire bring all their best campaign tents and field adornments, and then pack it all down when they leave. All that's left is the Gate, the Regio, the Senate and the Forge."

"Why not? Superstition? Magic?"

Maybe everyone in this empire has decided architecture is for wimps and only builds temporary housing. If so, she's a little disappointed in what this says about humans rich enough to stop worrying about survival.

"Tradition - and between you and me, I think the Civil Service planned it that way, to avoid the inevitable arguments... Lots of important people, not used to being told no, I wouldn't want to have to decide who got to build something near the various immovable bits, or in the centre, or how much land they got to use. It must be bad enough planning the encampments, but at least they don't have people arguing they need to pull down a perfectly good building to put something else up instead."

"Who has the energy to-? ...Non-cursed people, I guess. If you don't have to fight to survive, you can fight over... trivialities." 

Brynna laughs. "Fighting over trivialities is exactly what Anvil is all about! You should read some of the Judgements the Synod puts out. Why, there was one about the proper content of fruit salad..."

"Death and blood, maybe I shouldn't go to Anvil..."

"I mean, I wouldn't, but as a traveller from distant lands you're likely to raise a lot of interest, and there's nowhere you'll get a better price for an artefact - although do take a canny broker with you!" Brynna finishes off her own dinner. "There's more where that came from if you want another bowl, or it will only get better overnight."

"I'm fine for tonight, I don't eat much. I think I still probably should visit, I'm just looking forward to it much less."

"Oh, don't let an old lady put you off. By all reports there are plenty of good things there - after all, where else can an artist or a baker sell to every nation of the Empire at once?"

She starts to clear her bowl and spoon away, briefly scrubbing with some soap, rinsing out the bowl and pouring the dirty water into a bucket on the ground.

"Feel free to go to bed whenever you like, but do remember the bed's in the front room, so I can't guarantee there won't be visitors after some stew for a little while yet."

"I mean, I'm still going to go; I like exploring new places. And a tent city is still a city, which will be a new experience; we probably didn't have any left even in my parent's days. I'm probably going to go everywhere, eventually."

"Well, I suppose everyone has to have an Ambition. There's quite a lot of everywhere, though! And you should pass through Seren on the way anywhere else, that's a city, and probably then Sarvos or Tassato which are huge sprawling League cities... not that I've ever been much for cities myself, too many people and the whole place reeks of ox-dung no matter how much perfume the Leaguers try to cover it up with."

"Perhaps I will visit a city and decide that I never want to repeat the experience, and then only visit everywhere else. But there aren't even many particularly big towns left in my old Empire, so I'm looking forward to it."

"Oh, so where is it you came from? I'd kind of assumed Asavea or something, now that place is a cursed and dwindling empire but I think they've still got cities."

"Far enough away that I've never heard of anywhere anyone's mentioned. It's usually called 'the Cursed Empire'; I think it used to be the 'Kallasian Empire'. A few generations ago, some kind of revenge death curse got placed on everything, and nothing's held together beyond the local level. People need blood and death to live, or they get exhausted and sickly like they weren't getting enough to eat or drink, or to rest."

"Now, that does sound like something that a number of heroes might be interested in! Although if it's a fairly small place, probably not enough of them, there are enough problems here after all. I don't suppose you have any idea how many people might be involved?"

"Thousands, surely. Not millions. It'd be tricky, though; it's not contagious - we just checked this afternoon - but anyone who visits will be affected, and it probably won't lift when they leave. I'm going to have to go hunting regularly, here, it's still got its claws in me."

"Well, there's no shortage of deer in the forest, boars too if you like a challenge. I'd avoid mentioning it around any questing types, then; those Dawn types especially, I can just imagine the reports, they'd be certain they could overcome the bloodlust by sheer force of will and righteousness..."

"I mean, they can. It's only if you start committing multiple murders per week that you get bloodsoaked and start going crazy; I've been very careful to manage it so fighting off bandits doesn't overwhelm me. If you stick to animals, there's no compulsion to fight or even to kill animals. But you'll be too weak to fight, or to carry a pregnancy to term. I think a lot of women in the first generation or two resisted, and so they didn't have descendants."

"Not getting in at least one fight a week would be out of character for questing knights! Some of them do confine themselves to beasts - generally something magical or at least dire, though, and they wouldn't take being too weak to fight very well at all."

"Well, I'll try not to encourage them, especially not after someone works out how to get back. I'm pretty sure my being resistant was mostly luck of birth and circumstances, not willpower. The culture I was born into is healthier and I got a taste of mild bloodsoak without a chance to make it worse, so I could pull back."

"Well, I'm glad you've turned out sensible. I reckon you'll get on well with the Thorns."

"I hope so!"

"Well, I should get these washed up and then settle the fire down for the night. Anything else I can get you? I'm sure there's another set of needles around here if you're not tired yet and want something to occupy you."

"I'll probably not be tired until well after you. My needlework probably won't be much good, but I'd be happy to try."

Brynna produces half a scarf on a pair of chunky knitting needles. "Do you need teaching to knit? There's also always socks to darn if you'd rather."