From: jpg@bnr.co.uk (Jonathan P. Gibbons)
Newsgroups: alt.prose
Subject: Rumours
Date: 2 Sep 92 08:47:48 GMT
Distribution: alt
Organization: BNR Europe Ltd, London Rd, Harlow, Essex, CM19 9NA, U.K.

Collecting Rumours
------------------

   "I know something of Leondis," said an old man.  "I wouldn't go near the
castle, rhyme or no rhyme."
   "Why not?"
   "It's not a long story, pull your chair over."  The old man took a sip of 
beer while his listener moved over.  "We lived there when I was 
five. Can't remember much else about our stay in that
town other than the castle.  We moved about a lot, Dad traded in quack
medicine - although Mum swears that sometimes they worked.  Maybe he
could heal, maybe not.  But the result was that we moved about a lot.
I'd guess we stayed about a year and moved on just after it happened."
   "What happened?"
   "Yes, I should get back to the point shouldn't I?  I
remember there was a small group of us, maybe three or four.  One boy
was called Justin; a small red haired boy.  I don't remember the
names of the rest.  We were best friends, a gang I suppose."
   "Is this about the castle or not, old man."
   "Yes it is.  You people have no time to listen, do you?"
   "Not really, now get on with it."
   "Hm, OK.  But get me a drink first."  The man gestured to one of
his group who went off to the bar.
   "Go on then, and it better be good."
   The old man waited until the drink arrived, ignoring the
impatience of the man sitting opposite him.  "The castle was in ruins even
then.  We had been told the usual stories of goblins and monsters but we went
up anyway.  We went up in the morning on a sunny day - not so stupid
that we would go up at night, although we did think of it.  Have you seen the 
castle?"  The man shook his head.  
   "No?  Well it sits on top of a rocky hill.  One side's sheer and looks 
over Leondis port but the rest are gentle hills.  Funny really, but no one 
lived on the hill.  I don't think there are even sheep on it.  We didn't 
care.  We ran all the way up, I guess it can't be that high if we managed 
that.  When we got to the top we saw how dilapidated the place really
was.  All the roofs had fallen and taken most of the walls with them.  
Lots of brambles and nettles covered most of the ruins.  Another funny
thing, the rest of the hill was scrub grass but the top was 
covered in brambles.  I didn't want to go into that mess but the
others did.  Couldn't be a sissy, so I went with them.  There
was only one room we found standing.  Almost sunken into the earth, its
roof only a little above the ground and covered with rotting beams
and fungus.  There wasn't a door but a gap about two feet high
between the roof and the ground.  And it smelt bad.  I remember that, really
bad - like rotten eggs and meat mixed together.  Only Justin wanted to 
see inside.  I said no and climbed to the top of a crumbling wall
where I could watch.  He only  convinced one of the others 
to go down with him.  My other friend and me watched them creep down to the
entrance and peer inside.
  I remember I heard a bird call and looked up to see a sea gull fly up
from the cliff.  It cried out as it flew overhead, and then I heard Justin
scream.  I almost fell off the wall I jumped so much.  Justin was
lying by the mouth of the room covered in blood, head to toe.   Not his blood as 
it turned out but the blood of the boy who had gone to look with him.  Justin
lay a second and then scrambled back.  There was no sign of the boy who had
been by his side.  We all ran then, madly jumping from wall to wall,
screaming like banshees in the morning sun.  We didn't stop until we
got back to the town.  A group of people met us and took us home.
They all believed us but not one person went up the hill to look for
our friend - or what might be left of him.  I remember
the noise the gulls made that night, screaming and calling all night.
I doubt anyone slept, I know I didn't.  Still can't some nights."
  "Well, we're not boys or peasants.  Thanks for the tale old man."
  "No wait, theres more.  About two days later Justin vanished.  A total
mystery.  His mother had just been to see him in his room when she
heard a gull shriek.  It scared her for some reason so she went back
to look at him.  He'd gone.  No sign of him anywhere.  And
still no one would go to the hill to look.
   There, that's it.  Was it worth your time then?  You still want to go 
chasing riddles or not?  Say that rhyme one more time for me so I can 
remember and then we'll be even."
   The steel clad man frowned and then repeated his riddle.
   "On Leondis crown, on thorny hill top,
    Lies a treasure in waiting
    for one to take up.

    By gull wing and nestling where walls tumble down
    A life's treasure guarded
    Deep in the ground."

   "Sounds about right," said the old man turning back to his drink.
"Doesn't say much about dying though."



Jonethot
(c) 1992 


--
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  With fearsome eyes and fiery breath the dragon burnt the girl to death
                    -- from "Too Late Saint George"
Newsgroups: alt.prose,rec.games.frp.archives