(IT'S) TRAVELLERS (LIKE YOU WHAT CAUSE) UNREST

(Tune: "Travellers' Rest" by Mike Whitaker)

A traveller came one day to an inn beside the way,
Exhausted from a long and lonely ride.
'T was a man with piercing eyes, in the livery of the Wise,
With his blasting wand and crystal by his side.
He would neither eat nor drink, which gave many folks to think
There was something not quite normal taking place,
But a tale he did relate, while the fire burned in the grate,
Casting curious little shadows on his face.

[And this is what he said...]

"The towns and farms round here, were by demons plagued one year,
Which were causing people terror and alarm.
So the locals sent us word, and the Council duly heard
That a mage had gone to keep them safe from harm.
He boldly ventured forth to that tower in the north
And with spells repelled the fearsome demon hordes.
But demons can be sly, and we feared that he might die,
So we furnished him with potent magic wards."

[He paused, and then went on...]

"A month ago one night, I saw a dreadful sight
In my crystal as I sat alone and scried.
The wizard fought in vain, and at last was cruelly slain
By one to whom his wards were open wide."
Here a deeper voice broke in: 't was the keeper of the inn,
With a glint of gallows humour in his eye.
"Well, now I understand what brings wizards to this land.
Perhaps the missing piece I can supply."

[And this is what *he* said...]

"My young brother was obsessed with going on a quest
And fighting for the right with shield and sword.
He would hang around in bars, showing off his practice scars
And buy every bit of gear he could afford.
But his luck ran out one day, when a woman dressed in grey
Took him on to ride with her and right a wrong. (Ha!)
And the thing that then occurred, you may perhaps have heard
As a cute and rather nasty little song."

[He spat into a corner, and continued...]

"The woman, who, I judge, was a demon with a grudge,
Had a way to pierce the wards around the mage.
But the secret that she knew she didn't tell the other two,
Leaving them without a hope to face his rage.
Then the song herself she wrote, for all demons love to gloat,
And perhaps that may be her Achilles' heel;
Let me share the facts with you, which is more than she would do,
And my brother's killer's fate I plan to seal."

["What do you mean?" said the wizard.
"Listen..." said the innkeeper.]

"I may not be of the Wise, but I've got a brain and eyes,
And I've watched this demon closely since I came.
Her wards are very stout, but I have sussed them out,
And I know that we can crack 'em just the same.
She is powerless to harm, with weapon or with charm,
One who sings alternate lyrics to her tune... [pause]
So, wizard, shall we go, for I think she ought to know
That the tower will be free again quite soon!"