"Well this is an unexpected surprise!" Gerrik hugs both warmly.
He sits them down and gets them drinks and some bread and cheese. They sit for a while talking of how each was doing and of Amber.
After an hour or so, Random gets up and looks at himself, "I need a bath! When I'm done kid, let's jam a few, what do ya say?"
Gerrik happily agrees and tells Random which room is vacant upstairs for him and where to find clean towels.
"I'm not an invalid my boy, I think I'll manage on my own!" Random laughs as he starts upstairs.
As soon as he disappears up the stairs, Gerrik grills Alis quietly, "What are you two doing here? You never show up without letting me know in advance. What's going on?"
Alis looks at Gerrik with a blank look on her face, "I don't know, Random just showed up at my door as well, he said that we should visit you. All I know is that he looked rushed and bothered about something."
Alis looks at the stairwell then looks back at Gerrik fearfully, "I'm scared Gerrik, I have never seen him like that."
Gerrik touches Alis' fidgeting hands in comfort. "Don't worry Alis, whatever is worrying Random will come out tonight. He will tell me what is going on."
He smiles at her, she returns a half hearted smile. "Come on, help me clean this place up until Random comes back down."
Alis nods and starts clearing the table. Gerrik glances at her while she is cleaning. He can tell she is worried for him. Gerrik sighs and begins to mop the floor.
A half hour goes by when Random emerges from the second floor. "I needed that!" Random heads straight for the drums on stage, "Come on kid let's kick out a few." He sits down behind the rack and starts a quick beat.
Gerrik looks at Alis, "You might as well take a shower yourself." Alis quietly nods and heads upstairs.
Gerrik heads for the stage. Random is still playing the same rhythm but with different variations. Gerrik looks at his piano, but knows that tonight wasn't made for an impromptu jam session.
Gerrik walks up to Random, "You can stop now, and tell me why you are really here."
Random goes on as if he didn't hear him, then abruptly stops. "I really don't feel like playing around either."
He slowly puts down the drumsticks and stares at Gerrik, "He is after you."
Gerrik chuckles, "Who's after me? And why?" Random is still staring at Gerrik. Gerrik's smile vanishes, "Who?"
Random looks down at the snare drum, "Brand, he is after the power you have, he wants to be able to unleash it against the others."
Gerrik taps the symbol with his hand, "But he is the one who taught me."
Random slowly looks up at Gerrik and sighs, "Maybe that's why. He might have trained you for his purposes and now he wants to tap into your power before you are too difficult to handle. Just be careful around him"
Gerrik slowly nods, "I guess I better learn to defend myself against him."
| Tuesday, September 30, 1997 |
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