Sequel: Angel

The Blank Book

Lord Veldenabarr

Tre now had his drum stuff and they had already warmed up in the abandoned hut. The dogs were left with Trubane. The crowd in The Brown Horse was a bit bigger now.

"As you probably already know, we are Green Day," Billie Joe said, "We are going to play a few songs for you and any tips would be appreciated. Our first song will be We Are the Champions and you can request any songs you want to after it."

The people in the inn grew still after a few shifted in their seats to see them better. They looked excited and Mike thought that they were sure to get plenty of money to pay for their stay at the inn.

After playing We Are the Champions, a man shouted to them, "Can you play that first song? What was it called... Poprocks and Coke?"

Billie Joe nodded. They played Castaway, Knowledge, Dominated Love Slave (much to Tre's satisfaction), and Good Riddance again, also.

By the time they were done, they had accumulated a ton of copper and silver pieces, even a gold one. They bowed and then took their seats again.

Trubane stared at the money they had made. "Why, this is the most I have ever seen anyone make with just one performance. We could not possibly take all of it. Here," he gave them everything except for the gold piece and two silver ones, "this is yours. I'll even give yah a leather pouch to keep that all in." He scrounged around for one and triumphantly presented it to them. "If yah ever are in Maenurr again and need a place to stay, yah can always come back here and bring your music with yah."

They nodded. Mike thought it was as best an opportunity as any to find out some things about Surtomb, "We come from far away and we've been wondering... " He paused and watched as Trubane made them some more beers. When he was about to make the third one, Mike stopped him by saying, "No thanks, I'll pass. Anyways, we've been wondering why you are all so downcast."

Trubane froze up as he was about to give Tre his mug. Tre stared at it longingly. "Yah mean yah don't know anything about Lord Veldenbarr? Heard none of the stories?" the cook asked. Green Day shook their heads. Trubane looked around to see if anyone was listening before carrying on in an undertone, "Lord Veldenbarr rules over the Kingdom of Surtomb, our village included. Some say he's a vampire, been one since he was a youngling. He wants dominance over this world, so he can enslave it. From what I hear, he seems to use vampires to attack. When he does, no one is spared, not the woman, the elderly, or even the children. He might not have us enslaved, but we have to follow his laws and pay all his high taxes, otherwise we'll be attacked. He doesn't care about us, just so long as we give him what he wants." The cook stopped there. "That's all yah'll get from me."

"We understand," Mike said.

"Now, on a more cheerful note, your room is up the stairs," Trubane pointed at the spiral stairs in the far right corner of the room, "Third door on the left."

"Thanks," Billie Joe said.

Tre was chugging his beer, which he had finally got. He slammed it down on the table and said, "I gotta go!"