Ordan Part Five

Their small meal was consumed in silence. “You have been very quiet, yet you should be full of questions, Ordan,” said Brynn as he sipped at his tea.

“Many questions. Yes. But I sit here wondering why I have invited a stranger in to my house and why I am making plans to leave my village tomorrow.”

“I expected as much. My influence over you has faded quickly.”

Ordan bristled. “Influence? Speak quickly, now. This village is a superstitious lot. A cry of daemon will bring you more trouble than any one man can handle.”

Brynn showed no outward sign of concern. “Perhaps that word holds too strong a meaning. I only levelled your emotions for a time. Allowed you to see things as they were and evaluate the situation fairly. My influence, really, is not much stronger than the influence of this tea we’re drinking.”

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“Keep talking. I will need more than that if I am to choose to let you live.” He made no attempt to conceal the motion as he moved his hand to the hilt of his dagger.

“I have always been able to calm strangers,” he said as he put his tea beside the fire, “little else. When a person must deal with a stranger, they tend to make snap judgements based on few facts. All I do is make people react more like they would with a friend. Think back to what lead us here. The only thing odd is that you trusted a stranger more than you normally would. You made no decisions otherwise out of character.”

Ordan was starting to calm down. Was the danger past, or was Brynn up to more tricks? “You speak some sense, but how do I know you’re not playing your tricks right now?”

“It’s no trick I play. That would suggest there is more to it than there is. Ah, I suppose I could steer a conversation in some regard. Allowing a rash judgement when it benefited me, preventing one when it didn’t. I don’t think I have that much control over it. I regard it more as an aura of good will.

“Even then, it only effects strangers. As I said, I relax the unease that comes from meeting someone new. That unease quickly fades and with it what little influence I have.”

The man’s words were persuasive. “Ok, Brynn, we’ll talk on this more tomorrow. I don’t trust you, but I’m quite sure I don’t fear you either. Even so, I sleep lightly. So don’t try anything.”