The Freyan Times - An interview with Bartholomew Bask

Thursday, February 6, 2014


Background.
In events recently described in the official report entitled, The Flight of the Griffin, Merchant Bartholomew Bask was robbed of a cache of possessions. Rightly outraged, Mr Bask is thought to have hired a professional bounty hunter to trace his goods and bring the villains to justice. Unfortunately, the Times has learned that all did not quite go as expected and Mr Bask was the victim of a series of unfortunate events leading to him falling into the company of demons…

Times: ‘Mr Bask, thank you for joining us today. Make yourself comfortable is… is the chair errr… quite big enough is... Oh… Oh, well don’t worry I’m sure that we can fix that… No, really…  please, put it down, Mr Bask please…’
Bartholomew Bask, a portly man of middle years, jumps to his feet as the chair sags beneath him, brandishing the chair’s decorative arm.
Bask: ‘Confound it man, yer damn chair’s not fit fer a midget. Yer might find me something a little more sturdy… and a cake, bring me a cake and…’
Short respite as a heavy chair and refreshments are brought for our guest…
Times: ‘Now then, Mr Bask, let us continue. I do hope you are quite comfortable now? I have a few prepared questions, so perhaps we can…
What? Oh yes, yes of course, please help yourself to more cake… and oh… you brought cinnamon buns… in your pockets, how… convenient how…’
With a mouthful of sponge cake and an eye to his carefully arranged pile of buns, Bartholomew settles. Small crumbs fly from his mouth as he speaks.
Bask: ‘Get on with it man, ask yer blithering questions I have a business ter run… I want my fee and I want more cake!’
Times: ‘Mr Bask, please, you’re getting bits of cake all over… Oh never mind, Mr Bask, I understand that you were robbed and…’
Bartholomew jumps to his feet.
Bask: ‘Robed I was, ragamuffin scum! Entered me sleeping quarters and sorted through me unmentionables they did, opened me safe and when they run, I followed, so I did. Tracked the orrible little… had a boat they did, and not some normal boat, oh no, this one, this Source confounded one… Griffin!’
Times: ‘Mr Bask, please, you’re getting cake all over the floor… sit and calm yourself. So you had articles taken and then I understand that you employed the notorious hunter and tracker Matheus Hawk, whom I am told is wanted on several counts of murder and…’
Bask: ‘Damn and blast, get yer facts straight man! The Hawk is no confidant of mine, an evil creature, so ‘e is. Tricked me, me a poor honest merchant, robbed and tricked by criminals so I was and…’
Times: ‘Demons? Did you not also fall into the company of demons?’
Bartholomew leans forward and his plate tips sending cakes and buns onto the floor.
Bask: ‘Lies! The Source damned demons captured me, deceived me, stole my ship and and… ahhh, Yes, I will have more cake, it tends to sooth me… demons can’t be trusted, that I can tell you, never trust a demon.’
Times: ‘But what took place Mr Bask? Who were these thieves? How did they manage to rob you and evade not only you and your men, but the hunter Matheus Hawk and a group of demons!’
Bask: ‘Those thieves ain’t natural. Look like children they do, but they aint…them and their strange boat ain’t normal. Tracked them half way across the kingdom and back again we did. Almost got them, several times. Got dragged through storms at sea and terrible deserts.’
Bartholomew stands, drops his plate to the floor and stares out of the window.
‘Looking for things they were. I’m still not sure why, but they was searching, and whatever it is they found it should be mine!’
Yer cake is finished and there’s no more to tell. If you wants more then read the official report. Got most of it right they have, It’s called The Flight of the Griffin, got a very nice cover so it has.

Bartholomew waddles out, our brief interview is over.

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