Chapter 2 : The Feast (Part 4)

A flurry of casual conversation (mostly perpetrated by members of the lesser houses, who apparently lacked the sophistication to recognize when their silence was expected) went on for a few minutes, sparked up by the latecomers’ dramatic entrance. Eventually those engaged in conversation realized their mistake and the scattered voices tapered off into silence. All eyes turned to the front of the great hall as the guests’ attention focused on the most important attendee of the mid-winter feast – the host.

Vasper looked over the nobles and smiled, confident in his plans for the evening. Time for the Thane to do what he does best.

The Thane rose from his high seat, the very embodiment of the kind of grace and composure that only the most noble of nobles could aspire to. He was a tall man whose normally thin frame had been even more emaciated than usual as of late. Tonight, however, the Thane appeared hale and vigorous, his size augmented by a luxurious, multi-layered robe that hung perfectly about his body, draping him in various shades of crimson. It was no coincidence that he had chosen to wear the colour of blood tonight. Long hair, jet black, boldly framed the pale, yet strangely darkened face of one who saw little of the sun, even on the odd occasion when it chose to shine upon the people of Unver’s frigid northern province. A long plaited goatee decorated the Thane’s chin and contrasted his deep set eyes, blue and bright as precious stones, which looked out from under a heavy brow and missed little that went on around them.

Vasper smiled serenely as he climbed down a short flight of steps to the very front of the dais, the speaker’s platform. Vasper stretched out his arms, palms toward the ceiling, in a stance that conveyed openness and welcome, and addressed the hall with a strikingly rich baritone voice that both soothed and compelled all who could hear.

“Welcome to my hall, noble houses of Serapis. You truly are the greatest and the mightiest of all that Unver has to offer – I stand before you, both honoured and delighted to have such mighty folk as my guests for tonight’s mid-winter feast!”

If the nobles had heard anything Vasper had said, they showed little enthusiasm aside from some scattered clapping near the back.

“Tonight we celebrate the early thawing of our cold and beautiful land. You have all proven, year after year, that you are not subject to the whims and fancies of winter, nor frightened of the ice and snow that covers your homes and threatens the very safety and provision of your great houses. You have all survived, and that is an admirable thing.”

At this, the guests perked up somewhat and responded with half-hearted cheering and clapping.

“The coming of such an early spring has not been seen in more than twenty years – how much more then should we celebrate such blessings! Indeed, though the snow gathers upon the ground outside, my heart is warmed to be in such dignified and honourable company.

“May your houses be graced with all the warmth, security and happiness that you all so richly deserve. I may be your Thane, but I count myself truly privileged and fortunate to be surrounded by so many loyal friends.”

A few of the more unsubtle guests coughed dryly at “loyal” and “friends”. It was painfully obvious that nobody here fit particularly well into either category.

Vasper looked bemused, “Left you all speechless have I? Can it be that you have never seen your Thane throw a party before?! Well let us rectify that now, my friends. I have only one command for you tonight – avail yourselves liberally of the hospitality of my hall!

“Here you will find every kind of delicacy and amusement one could possibly imagine – and if you can imagine something else, you have but to ask and it will be provided! One final thing – thank you all for honouring me with your presence tonight! Let the feast begin!”

With that final command a crew of servants who had seemed quite invisible moments before sprung into action, carrying large platters piled high with an assortment of delicious food offerings from distant and exotic locales that most of the guests had neither been to nor in many cases heard of. For the more daring tastes, foreign fare was in high demand. Particularly well received by many were the pungently spiced skewers of meat and vegetables, served alongside peppered brown rice and stuffed pastries whose complex flavours conjured up the arid desert country of Hadrok from which it came. Others found the savoury cuts of roasted meat with cheesy potatoes and thick gravy from Kiral Tor irresistible, or strips of delicately seasoned lamb wrapped in thick flat bread shells that was a specialty of the island of Myrdra.

Traditionalists were treated to all of their local Unverian favourites, especially anything involving the specially seasoned sausages, sharp onions and tangy cabbages that were staples in most Unverian homes. The Unverian ale was especially appreciated and was widely considered (by Unverians) to be the best ale in the known world. Those with a more refined palate (a characteristic that seemed in-born in most aristocratic families) preferred to nibble on an assortment of cheeses and breads from Sorenne, while sipping (and evaluating) a variety of fabulously expensive wines.

For dessert, the Thane’s master chefs had prepared a collection of exquisite pastries, creams, ices, cakes, pies and every other type of sweet one could imagine, all of which contained liberal amounts of Unver’s finest chocolate (also widely considered the best). Vasper had even had special insignia plaques made for all the noble houses, each carved from a solid block of the dark delight. Along with this was served a plethora of the juiciest, most delectable fruits from a number of different countries; Vasper himself had always been particularly fond of stuffed dates, specially sent to him from the desert orchards of the Hadrokene seti.

Of course, the true measure of a good feast is not only in its food, but its entertainment and Vasper had arranged to have the best of both. Starting with Unver’s finest fiddlers and harpists, the entertainment moved from act to act, each one progressively more exciting than the last. Drummers were followed by dancers who were followed by storytellers, jugglers, tumblers, fire-eaters, acrobats and sword fighters. All were building up to the climactic performance of Zool the magician, who awed the great hall with a thrilling mixture of illusion and fireworks, culminating in his final act – the disappearance (and subsequent reappearance on one prominent Duke’s head) of a gigantic festival turkey.

All in all, it was a lavish and grandiose affair that seemed a smashing success in Vasper’s eyes. The feast had come across exactly as he had planned it to come across – a shallow attempt by a desperate leader to appease the opponents mounting against him. Vasper knew quite well that with this last feat of manipulation his image in the eyes of the nobles was that of a pathetic, almost pitiable fool who had gotten into things over his head and was now clawing desperately to get out with his head attached. The nobles would pounce on such a perceived weakness as surely as a barracuda that smells blood in the water.