Our heroes reach the town Bardsdale, by morning. It's a small place, compared to the large town of Howlingrift, with few stores with mostly items for everyday Bards. "Hey," says Adie, noticing the Bard-theme, "Is this your hometown, Vi?" "I have no hometown." she says, somber, "No, this isn't where I was born. I was born in a city, named Elven Dale. It was destroyed by Zev's army, years ago." Edeline and Faeda nods, remembering Vi's story.
"Oh," says Adie, apologetic, "Sorry. I forgot about that." Galen quickly changes the subject, "So, where is this shard, Faeda?" "Um," she says, beginning to listen to the Song. But before she could, an finely dressed man approaches them. He is carrying a lute, with a few of it's strings snapped, grinning from ear to ear. "Hello!" he greets, "How are you, good people?" "Who the hell are you?" growls Galen. "Be nice." nudges Edeline. "I am Dave!" bows the man, "The greatest Bard of Bardsdale!"

Edeline: "Well... it was nice to meet you, but we have things to do." (;^_^)
Dave: "One moment! You don't want to miss out, on this once-in-a-lifetime song!" (^o^)
Galen: "We're not interested." (u_u)
Dave: "You seem like a group of heroes! Six brave friends, who will travel on a long and difficult journey, trying to figure out the mysteries of Serenity! ... and about life, of course!" (^_-)
Faeda: (o_o)
Adie: (O_o)
Oar: "Sir, we must be on our way..." (-_-)
Dave: "An epic journey, of epic characters, deserves an epic theme song!" (^o^)
Galen: "Theme song?!" (;u_u)

Dave begans to play the lute, very off-key, and warming up his voice. "Mi-mi-mi!" he sang, off-key as well. "No, no." waves Edeline, "We'll pass. Thank you anyway." But Dave isn't listening and starts playing a horrible melody. Galen growls, quickly losing his patience. Dave belts out, "*This is a tale! Of six wondering heroes. None of them are zeroes! They're here to save the day!*" "These are the lyrics," frowns Adie, "You're kidding, right?" But Dave isn't listening...
He continues, "*A pretty noble girl! And one woman warrior! A mage and a eleven-girl! And two fellows who look gay!*" "WHAT?!" screams Galen. Oar frowns and moves closer to Adie. Edeline and Faeda giggle. "Take that back!" roars Galen, "Or you'll be eating that lute for breakfast!!!" Dave stops the song, "I'm sorry... did I assume wrong?" "YES!" yells Galen and Oar.

Dave: "I'm sorry! My mother always told me, that you can't judge a book, by it's cover..." (;^_^)
Galen: "I WILL KILL YOU!!!" W('O')W
Edeline: "Calm down, Galen... Um... maybe we should go now." (;^_^)
Faeda: "Yes." (^_^)
Dave: "Wait! Give me another chance, I'll write another song!" m(_ _)m
Vi: "Really, sir... we must be on our way." (>_>)
Dave: "It will only take a moment!" (^o^)
Faeda: "No thanks." (;^_^)
Dave: "Okay, here it is!" \(^o^)/
Edeline: "Um..." (o_O)

Dave begins the same horrible melody. Everyone winches at the off-key pangs. Again Dave sings, "*Hooray for the day! Here comes our heroes! Mighty-mighty heroes! They're wonderful, that's that!*" "Oh, brother." sighs Adie. Then Dave sings with a wink, "*The guys, they are not gay. And the women are so beautiful! And I think this group is powerful! But the girl in pink, looks fat!*"
Faeda gasps, looking at herself, self-consciously. "What a creep!" yells Adie. "You'll pay for that!" shouts Galen. "Beat him good!" nods Oar. "I'm fat?" worries Faeda. "Wait! Wait!" frowns Dave, as Galen and Edeline closes in, "I'm sorry! Wrong choice of words! I swear!" "Why are you picking on us?!" yells Edeline, "What did we ever do to you?" "I'm sorry!" bows the man, "It was the slip of the tongue! I swear! She isn't fat! If anything, it looks as if she could gain more." "I'm too skinny?" gasps Faeda.

Galen: "You need a serious beating, stupid bard!" (;u_u)
Dave: "Wait! Give me one more chance! I can fix the song!" m(_ _)m
Galen: "No sale!" W('O')W
Adie: "What does he expect? For us to sit around, until he has insulted each of us?" (o_O)
Oar: "What an odd little man..." (-_-)
Edeline: "Why do we always find the crazy people?" (;u_u)
Faeda: "Which is it? Am I too fat or too skinny?" (o_o)
Vi: "Don't worry, Faeda. You're fine." (-_-)
Dave: "I'm SO sorry! Don't beat me up! I bleed easily! Let me change the song! I'll make it better!" m(_ _)m
Edeline: "No more songs!" (;u_u)
Adie: "Yeah... quit while you're ahead. Let's just go, guys." (>_>)
Dave: "Whew... okay... this one will be better, I promise." (;^_^)
Galen: "HEY! We said, no!" W('O')W

Dave isn't listening and starts the melody again. "For the love of-!" yells Adie. "Let's just run!" nods Vi. But it's too late... "*Listen to my tale! Of six mighty heroes! Yes, six spirited heroes! They the nicest, my dear chap!*" "For crying out loud!" frowns Edeline. "STOP!" yells Oar. But Dave continues, "*They're strong and they will fight! And save us all in Serenity! From darkness and the monsters! And their faces look like crap!*"
"He did it again!" gasps Adie. "I knew he would." frowns Oar. "You're mean," yells Faeda, "Very mean, Mr. Dave!" "That's it!" screams Galen. He kicks the bard so hard, that the man and his lute crashes through the glass of a storefront, forty feet away! "Woah!" jumps Edeline. "Um," blushes Galen, "I didn't mean to kick him that hard!" "That was great!" cheers Oar. "Let's get out of here." frowns Adie, looking around nervously, "Before we get in trouble." Our group moves quickly away from the scene...

Oar: "That was AWESOME!" (^o^)
Vi: "More like, 'alarming'..." (>_>)
Galen: "I didn't mean to do that..." (;-_-)
Edeline: "I can't say, that the guy didn't deserve it." (;^_^)
Faeda: "Yeah... he was mean." (o_o)
Adie: *giggles* (^o^)
Galen: "So... where to next, Faeda?" (;^_^)
Faeda: "Oh, right..." *starts to listen* (^_^)
Adie: "Wow... you're really happy, Oar." (;^_^)
Oar: "That was AWESOME!" (^o^)
Adie: "Yeah... you said that, already..." (>_>)
Oar: "Well it was! I wish to see it again!" \(^o^)/
Edeline: "Hmm... like a child." (-_-)

Faeda is done listening and turns to the group. "We are to head to a store, in town." she explains, "A shoemaker is holding the shard. His family knows of seers and the Guardians and have been entrusted for generations to keep a shard hidden." "Good," nods Galen, "Sounds like a piece of cake." "We deserve a break." says Adie, "It would be nice if finding all the shards were this simple." Edeline and Vi nods in agreement. They head for the shoemakers store.
Inside of a small shop, an elderly man is working away, trying his best to earn a living. Our group enter the store, the tiny bell on the door jingles, gaining the man's attention. "Yes?" he asks, wary of this large group, "How may I help you?" "I am Faeda." she smiles, stepping closer. The shoemaker takes a close look into her eyes and begins to smile. "The seer." he says, in a far-off voice, "There is an legend, among my family, of an seer and her escorts, traveling the world once a couple of generations, saving all of Serenity from darkness."

Faeda: "Yes! That's me, that's us!" (^o^)
Shoemaker: "And the legend goes on to say, that my bloodline is chosen to keep one tiny shard safe, until the seer stops by to retrieve it. That when anyone of our family comes across the seer, we won't know it, until we've gazed into his or hers eyes." (*_*)
Adie: "Wow! That's so cool!" (^o^)
Faeda: "So, I've come to get the shard! Do you have it here or did you hide it somewhere else?" (^_^)
Shoemaker: "I don't have it." (-_-)
Galen: "Come again?" (o_O)
Shoemaker: "I always thought it was family myth. So, I sold it." (-_-)
Faeda: (o_o)
Edeline: "WHAT???" W('O')W
Galen: "WHAT DO YOU MEAN, YOU SOLD IT?!" W('O')W

"Just what I said," frowns the old shoemaker, "I sold it. Didn't think the story was real, so I sold it and got a pretty penny for it too!" "Oh no!" shrieks Faeda. "Crazy old man!" hops Galen. "What will we do?!" asks Adie, "Without that shard, all of Serenity is doomed!!!" "Relax," nods the man, "I've just sold it, some minutes ago, to a very nice lad. If you ask him, maybe he will give you the shard."
"Who is he?" asks Faeda, eager. "A nice rich gentleman." nods the old man. "Well," suggests Oar, "You can always buy it back from him, Faeda." She nods. "You'll find him in town," continues the shoemaker, "He goes by the name of Dave: The Bard." The room seemed to get cold suddenly and Adie collapsed to the floor.

Galen: "Gah!!!" W('O')W
Faeda: "We have to talk with that guy?" (o_o)
Adie: "That's not fair!" (;_;)
Oar: "Talking to him is the least of our problems..." (-_-)
Edeline: "Yeah... Galen knocked him through a glass-pane. I doubt he'll be fair about the shard, now." (;^_^)
Adie: "Why can't things ever be easy for us?!" (;_;)
Galen: "I'll fix it... I'll try to apologize and then maybe we can reason with the guy." (u_u)
Vi: "I doubt that will work..." (>_>)
Edeline: "Well, it's worth a try." (;u_u)
Faeda: "We don't really have any other choice." (<_<)
Oar: "Then, lets not waste any more time..." (-_-)
Adie: "WAH!!!" (;_;)

They search for Dave: The Bard, Adie wailed the whole time. No one was happy about meeting this guy again! After a long while, they finally find him, heading from a building in bandages. "There he is!" points Edeline. Dave sees our group and starts to hobble away, in a different direction. "Wait!" calls Galen, catching up with him, "I want to apologize!" "For what?" asks Dave, nervously, "Nothing happened! I remember nothing!"
"Look," frowns Galen, "I'm trying to apologize!" "Okay," says Dave, fearfully, "Whatever you want." "I'm sorry." says Galen, under his breath. Edeline elbows him. "Ow!" yells Galen, "Okay! Okay! I'm sorry for kicking you!" "All forgiven." nods the man and tries to hobble away. "Wait!" calls Galen. "Y-yes, s-sir." shakes Dave. "The old shoemaker," he explains, "Said he sold a shard to you. Some type of crystal shard?" "Yes," says Dave, remembering the purchase, "What about it?"

Galen: "Well, it kinda belongs to Faeda. We need it back." (;^_^)
Dave: "I see..." (>_>)
Galen: "We'll pay you, of course. Just name your price!" (;^_^)
Dave: "Hmm... punitive damages?" (<_<)
Adie: (o_o)
Edeline: "What?!" (o_o)
Faeda: "Um, Mr. Dave... You don't seem to understand. You see, I'm a seer, and I'm on a quest to save Serenity from destruction. That shard is an important piece to completing my journey. If I don't have it, all of Serenity is doomed." (;^_^)
Dave: "WOW! You really are heroes! Do I know how to pick 'em or what?" (^_-)
Faeda: *giggles* (^_^)
Dave: "That's SO cool! Thanks for doing such a great job for us all!"
(^_-)V
Faeda: "No problem, Mr. Dave!" (^_^)

"Whew," sighs Galen, "Now that we've come to an understanding. Can we have the shard?" "Yes," nods Vi, "Just name your price." "Punitive damages." answers Dave, "I thought I said that, already." Galen growls, his fist shaking at his side, trying his best not to kick the guy again. "Oh, for Pete's sakes!" yells Adie. "Fine," sighs Edeline, "Fine... It's not like we have many choices here. How much are the punitive damages, Dave?"
"Well," Dave begins, "Mr. Bowell is angry about his store window. He wants three-hundred gold for it and it's not fair I should pay." "Okay," nods Edeline, "That's fair." "And," says Dave, "I've just got done with Dr. Odin and the bill is for five-hundred gold." "For what?!" screams Galen, "You're only wearing bandages!" "Yes," nods David, "Turns out these bandages are expensive. I'm pretty sure Dr. Odin is a crook, but he was the only one I could find at short notice. Doesn't mean that the doctor won't hound me for a payment." Galen stifles his words, letting an angry whimper escape.

Dave: "Hmm... what else...?" (-_-)
Edeline: "There's more?!" (o_o)
Dave: "Two of my lute strings were broken." (>_>)
Galen: "Which ones?" (o_O)
Dave: "Ah, these two here." (<_<)
Galen: "Those strings were broken, when we first meet you!!!" W('O')W
Dave: "You don't know that, for sure." (o_O)
Galen: "YOU ROTTEN LIAR!!!" W('O')W
Edeline: "Fine! How much for the strings?" (u_u)
Dave: "Twenty gold." (^_^)

"Are you done, yet?" asks Oar, annoyed. "Just one last thing." nods Dave. "What more could you ask for?" frowns Adie. "One thousand gold," answers Dave, "For pain and suffering." Galen screams and quickly moves away from the guy, resisting the urge to kick him through another storefront window. "Pain and suffering?" frowns Edeline, "What pain and suffering?!" "I am in pain," Dave frowns, "You would be too, if someone kicked you through glass! And I'm nice enough to not charge you for missed work wages!" Galen gives out a maddening laugh. "Hoo, boy..." frowns Edeline, "This guy is a piece of work..."
"So," Dave continues, "That comes to... One thousand, eight-hundred, and twenty gold coins! Pay up!" Faeda counts up her coins, a worried expression on her face. "Hey," frowns Adie, "Don't we get an discount for, um... saving the world?!" "Yes," nods Dave, "Like I said, I'm not charging for missed work. Gee, you people can't hear too well." Galen slowly heads over to the guy, his arm outstretched like an zombie, ready to strangle the guy. "Um," gasps Oar, grabbing Galen's arm, "Let's calm down a bit?"

Faeda: "Okay... here's your gold, Mr. Dave." (;^_^)
Dave: "And here's your shard, my dear!" (^o^)
Adie: (;u_u)
Edeline: (>_>)
Vi: (-_-)
Oar: "Let's go... Galen's turning red..." (-_-)
Edeline: "Breath, Galen! Breath!" (o_o)
Galen: *takes a deep breath, exhale* (;-_-)
Dave: "Hey, wait, don't go!" (^o^)
Adie: "Is this guy serious?!" (;u_u)
Dave: "I've fixed the song for you!" (^o^)
Vi: "RUN!!!" (o_o)

Our heroes run from the town, as if their lives depended on it!