The faithful who visit the city gate where Hessk the Beggar King sat for forty years are asked to do one thing: sit there for an afternoon and ask passersby his question. This is an account of one such afternoon, set down by a Venomblade who asked that their name be left out, "because Hessk would have."
The first hour
"I sat with my back against the wall where they say his cup used to rest. I expected to feel holy. I felt ridiculous. The first twenty people walked past without looking at me. A guard asked if I was lost. I said no. He said I looked lost. I said that was fair."
The question
"Around the second hour I worked up the nerve. A dwarf walked by with a cart and I said, the way you're supposed to, What did you give today? He stopped. He looked genuinely offended. Then he looked confused. Then he said, 'I gave my nephew a ride to the bank.' I said that counted. He said, 'Does it?' and stood there for a long moment, and then he gave me a copper, and walked off looking at his cart like it was new."
What it does
"I asked maybe forty people. Most kept walking. About a dozen stopped. Every single one of those twelve had to think. Nobody had an answer ready. One woman started crying, and when I asked if she was all right, she said, 'I haven't given anything in a really long time and I didn't notice until you asked.' Then she gave her lunch to the fellow begging two spots down from me. I don't think she even saw me watching."
Passing it on
"By dusk I had nine coppers, a silver and half an apple. Hessk's rule is that nothing stays in the cup past nightfall, so I gave it all away on the walk back to the inn. It took longer than I expected. It turns out it is hard to find the right person for half an apple. I left the last copper on his grave by the gate, the way pilgrims do. The faithful say it's always gone by morning. I'd like to think someone needed it."
"I don't know if I understand Hessk now. I know I'll be asking myself his question for a while."
What did you give today?The Question at the Gate