The story so far

Before it all began

Trouble on Rose Bush hill

Introduction.
As a prequel to the main tale taking place some distance to the south & about 6 months earlier in a sleepy Halfling town

Dramatis Personae.
Lalia - Halfling Thief
Heradin- Dwarf Fighter Mage

The events

Having had something of a teen age row with her mother about adventuring & lets be honest flouncing out of her family home in a small Thorpe about a days walk to the west, Lalia was sitting in the Market Tavern in the Halfling market town of Little bridge rather cooling her heels but not yet prepared to go back and make things up. When a commotion was heard in the busy market outside which eventually Lalia decided to investigate despite thinking that it was just some feud between farmers being settled by fisticuffs.

In the Market Place Lalia found a  sizeable crowd surrounding something or some one she could not see  and a discussion going on between the members of the crowd as to what was to be done there seeming to be general agreement that something must be done just a considerable difference in opinion as to what and by whom. Eventually the Dwarven drover who was also outside to see what all the commotion was about pushed his way through the crowd & Lalia saw what was at the heart of it. this proved to be a small blonde halfing boy who was quietly sobbing into the skirts of a particularly formidable Halfling matron, more than likely his grand mother or great aunt. The boy was inconsolable & honestly the adults around it were too lost in there argument to be taking an interest in even trying.

Lalia approached the lad in a sisterly way & discovered that the poor lad had been playing on Rose bush hill which Lalia knows is a shrub and tree covered knoll just beyond the bounds of the village when some clawed beast had taken his pet dog Timmi. Elac the boy was terrified that a monster from the tales had eaten him. Over head the argument about who should do something about this continued. It did so until the Dwarf gruffly in the manner of dwarves volunteered to be the one who did something about it.

The dwarf asked for volunteers to help him and the crowd backed off a little more so when the dwarf announced that he was an adventurer Lalia however sensing that adventure had just dropped in her lap agreed to help & consoled Elac whist the Dwarf went to fetch his sword.

A little later Elac safely off in the hands of his family & the dwarf having returned with a sword the size of Lalia and introduced himself the unlikely pair took the short walk to Rose bush hill here it did not take long to find the tags of the lads clothing left on the brambles in his terrified flight and to track them back to a sink hole. Lalia had never heard of any sink holes on Rose bush hill.

Peering down Lalia could see almost nothing & set about manufacturing a torch form a dead branch and some bits of oily rag she had to hand whist the dwarf who could see better in the dark said he thought that he could see worked stone at the bottom of the hole.

Lighting it Lalia and the dwarf scrambled down the soft earth slope about twenty feet until they where indeed standing on worked stone.  They where standing in a dusty corridor obviously ages old and a few feet form a doorway which gaped open its likely door long since turned to dust by the ages. Venturing beyond it into a square chamber investigation was interrupted when a giant wolf spider drooped in from its point of ambush striking first at the dwarf and running onto the blade of the sword he surprised hastily parried with. Lallia worked her way around the foul beasts flank whist the doughty dwarf kept it at bay and held its attentions with swings of his mighty blade. Lalia seeing an opening drove her dagger into the things back hilt deep & it turned on her dodging she stumbled and its jaws closed on her & she knew nothing but pain until the dwarf forced some foul tasting liquid between he lips and said drink.

Her pain eased and the gash in her side closed a little, the beast was dead hacked to death by the dwarves broad sword and a choice lay before them go north south or east. First they went east discovering a long hall with no sigh remaining of its former content or function.  It was possible to go further that way but they decided to turn back and try the north route rather than going all the way.  Turning north they found an odd room with a graven pillar covered with strange sigils. They decided to investigate but as Lalia & her companion approached the column a stone door slid across the entrance sealing the room and every ones eyes began to sting. A look of panic flashed across the dwarves eyes. Lalia remained calm and examining the pillar discovered a raised block with a sigil of a radiant wheel on it pressed it in the door unsealed and the increasing stinging in their eyes and noses waned once more. The door remained closed but with some small effort could be slid back into the wall allowing them to exit

They pressed on to the north past an other doorway to the east into a square room with some rouble in the north corner and heard the whimpering or so they thought at first of a trapped animal, however the more they listened the more unearthly it sounded and the came to doubt it was as simple as that and after a brief examination of the room they moved on to the east into a huge four pillared hall with a central pedestal.  The walls where covered with a low relief carving of robed men & demonic creatures engaged in some sort of a struggle once this had been painted but long years had faded it to nothing but a suggestion of white on the robes & bronze armoured demons.

Leaving the dwarf at the entrance Lalia scouted the place out noticing that the mural's centre piece was on the north wall where a spear was grounded in a pedestal rather like the one at the centre of this very room. However as Lalia stepped forward to look at it more closely a fearful creature half like a mantis and half just solid darkness coalesced into existence to block her way & she backed off there after it followed her but did not move beyond the confines of the area bounded by the four great pillars. Lalia investigated the area outside the circuit of the pillars and found a slightly raised sun-wheel sigil on the back of the north east pillar. Pressing it revealed a secret passage heading further east. Lalia went back to fetch the dwarf and lead him around the outside of the room & through the now open door into a corridor beyond. Then after a brief search of the area through a second secret door at the far end, the corridor itself being unremarkable apart form it's rather elaborate decoration in the manner of the previous hall.

The room beyond the second secret door was again elaborately decorated but any furniture which might have given a clue to its function had long since crumpled to dust. So after a cursory search the pair turned south and went though the empty door arch into a sort corridor trough another empty door arch & into what might once have been a library judging by the stone shelves and alcoves in the walls. Of the writings which it once held nothing but dust remains. However on further investigation Lalia finds a raised sigil of the sun wheel As before Lalia pressed the stone & the thing moved there was a gust of stale air & the torch went out & every one was pitched into blackness. Even a dwarf can not see when there is no light at all, however Lalia with calmness and presence of mind managed to get the torch alight again and once lit it revealed an open door in the north west of the  library revealing a smaller  room which was second & intact library.

Here the alcoves are full of scrolls showing their age but largely intact which Heradin was initially very interested in but he found nothing written in any tongue he could read and was disappointed. Mean while Lalia found two large amphora shapes vials in glassed terracotta still sealed with Terracotta stoppers and blue wax each was marked with a sun wheel sigil and looked like an expensive perfume container, each being a little less than six inches long and appearing on gentle shaking to contain a liquid. These Lalia decided to keep. Bing sure to close the secret library door the pair continued into unexplored areas of the little dungeon into a room as large as the library littered with the remains of combatants in rotted bronze armour & scattered similarly rotted bronze weapons. The walls where again decorated with a faded but elaborate mural. However this time there was not chance of investigating the room as soon as the pair crossed the threshold the remains in the middle of the room reassembled themselves into skeletons at least a dozen of them and all that was to be done was to run across the room as fast as possible before they finished.

Fortunately neither Lalia nor he dwarvish companion where over encumbered with armour or gear and even on their relativity short legs they made it across looking back to see a packed phalanx of  skeletal undead poised waiting to attack but apparently not to pursue.

They caught their breaths in a dusty passage way heading west and having done so continued west past a ancient garderobe which proved to be like much of the rest of the empty apart from a few items of stone furniture which indicated its function. Beyond was a passage way edged with cells all of which where abandoned and empty save one which was it would seem entirely intact. In the dimness of the dungeon it was lit by a soft light. Investigating that one confirmed not only was it still intact but that it was as if the previous occupant had only just stepped out for a moment with a small human sized wooden  truckle bed a straw mattress &n a night stand holding an ancient style of lamp still greasy with lamp traces of lamp oil. However it was rather more than the surprising condition of the rooms furnishings compared to those in the rest of the complex for as they looked round both Lalia and Heradin noticed there wounds healing and the fatigue of the adventure draining form them. Sitting down on the bed for there was no where else to sit and resting a while the twos wounds closed a little more. Moving on again west and following the passage way they found themselves back where they had started the hacked remains of the giant wolf spider on the floor still.

As they had not found the Dog & not explored fully to the east Lalia & Heradin turned east through the long empty room they had passed before into what had to have been a kitchen judging by the fire pits still full of long dead ash & the floor scattered with shards of crockery & pot mixed with a lot of bat guano - Lalia knew being local that there had been bats roosting on Rose bush hill time out of mind. Then after a cursory search into a smaller room beyond where they disturbed a number of huge rats some of which fled and some fought. The fight was brief for no rat was a match for Lalia's sling or the powerful swings of Heradin's broad sword and those that fought where soon either dead or also fled. The eastern way however proved to be a complete dead end. So the place had seemingly be searched thoroughly well as thoroughly as could be done by two who wanted not to get killed by the things either seeming to numerous to fight like the horde of skeletons or too powerful like the fiend of shadow. The dog therefore had to be either dead & that would require proof to convince Elac or some where they had been and missed. Recalling the sounds which had been heard in the room to the north thought they should start there this the dwarf agreed to and they made there way to the northern room and searching again they noticed what they had missed the dog had fallen down a hole and was hanging precariously supported only by a tangle of roots and it was his being at ceiling rather than floor height and his whimpering echoing which gave it the unearthly edge to it. Once found it was only a matter of time before sitting astride the dwarfs sturdy back like a child she had him free from the cage roots and cuddled in her arms he was clearly terrified but safe.

 

After that it was a bit of a blur for a while certainly they returned to the town the boy was reunited with his dog and an impromptu party was held during which an awful lot was eaten and drunk as is the Halfling custom. The pair where hailed as heroes of the day & there was a lot of congratulations from as many folks as could and they spent the night for free in the towns inn which Elac's parents happened to own & Lalia being a local and quite wounded despite Haraldrin's potion & the healing effects of the strange room got a ride home in the mayors trap and that as far as the townsfolk where concerned was that a fence was built around rose bush hill & the whole matter was left at that.

After it was all over Lalia returned to her home to recover from her wounds over winter & her family rather hoped that her escapade had been enough to cure her of her silly ideas however it had done little more than reinforce the idea & besides there was still unfinished business under Rose bush Hill that needed investigating with something more like one of the proper adventuring parties from the stories. In the spring Lalia left home to gather such....

Skirmishing with Goblin Brigands and why dwarves are always better

Introduction

As a prequel to the main tale taking place some distance to the North West inside the Kingdom of Cosdol, the previous spring in a border fiefdom called the fief of Vaynam.

Part I Taking on the Mission

Dramatis Personae.
Aron – Half elf Ranger

Nyadryn – Brandobian Human Fighter

Thans Thorikkksson – Dwarf Fighter Thief

Location

The Thorpe of Sylais and the road west to the local market town Vaynam

Events

Thans, finding himself at a lose end and rather short of coins in the tinny settlement of Sylais after a mild falling out with his pervious travelling companions about the general superiority of Dwarves, strange how lesser, kindred’s never got that, he did not blame them after all they where less folks nor did he push the natural superiority of dwarves in their faces it just went without saying. So why they had put a sleeping draft in his ale and left without leaving any indication of where he was to follow them was beyond his ken.

Still their loss as he had been the only Dwarf in the company of a group of men who had planed to adventure in the wild lands beyond the Cosolen border, dangerous without the guidance of a dwarf, and not exactly safe even with.

Still after a good fish breakfast it came down to him having to find some paying work so Thans was interested when he heard the half elf that had arrived the previous night talking with one of the local lords retainers and a group of some what irate villagers. Pausing, briefly to listen and ascertain what the discussion was about Thans discovered that it was about a problem the men of Sylais where having with bandits in the woods between the village and the local market town. They had it seems been being waylaid on the way back from market, and forced at crossbow point to unload their carts and wagons before being allowed to drive on. The village headman had quite naturally sent to the local lord for aid.

However when that aid arrived it turned out to be one man from the lords men at arms who it seemed was supposed to organise the local farmers into an militia and lead then against the bandits.  The farmers where having none of this idea and the young man at arms was now looking to recruit any adventuring types around to help him.

All that where available where an Elf looking fellow and Thans, however the headman did come up with a plan which seemed sensible that the three adventurers take his cart into the local market town Vaynam as it was market day and collect every thing the farmers needed and when the Bandits stopped them on the way back deal with them then. This struck all involved as a sensible plan

So the small company took the village headman’s wagon and some goods the villagers wanted sold in town and a list of goods they wanted bought at market and passed along the road thought the woods to the local market town Vaynam without incident though Aron  was convinced that they where being watched by the Bandits. Thans & Nyadryn thought this likely too, and indeed the plan depended upon it.

The company spent much of the day shopping fro the villagers and in late afternoon they set out with a laden wagon for Sylais and in due cause in the middle of the woods as the Villagers had told them found the road blocked by a newly fallen tree. They halted the cart and shortly two short stocky heavily cloaked figures one armed with a massive crossbow emerged form the underbrush along the road side.

Part II Defeating the Bandits  

Dramatis Personae.
Aron – Half Elf Ranger

Nyadryn – Brandobian Human Fighter

Thans Thorikkksson – Dwarf Fighter Thief

Location

The Thorpe of Sylais and the road west to the local market town Vaynam and the hills above the vale in the abandoned dwarf workings

Events

The Bandits stated their demands that the company unload the cart onto the road and that when they did they would move the tree and allow the company and the empty cart to go on its way. After a brief discussion the company decided to appear to comply with this request as previously discussed and all three dismounted the cart and whilst Aron and Nyadryn recovered their weapons from amongst the goods on the cart Thans slipped into the woods to sneak up on the Bandits. Aron readied his bow drew and loosed at the crossbow armed Bandit, as Thans made it into position behind the two bandits on the road. The stupid elf missed but badly enough that the bandits did not even notice that they had been shot at. Thans moved to improve his position whilst scanning the roadside underbrush for further bandits and Nyadryn readied his glaive behind the cover of the loaded wagon.  The elf drew and loosed again his arrow striking true this time just as the Bandits speaker began to become aware that this was not going to the usual plan. The Elves arrow took the crossbow armed bandit at the base of the throat and he fell, Nyadryn  charged and Thans having spotted no additional bandits slipped out of the underbrush un seen by the bandits speaker and behind him.  The Bandit speaker drew his long knife and backed off almost into Thans. Thans’s and Nyadryn struck almost simultaneously and the Goblin leader for that was what the Bandits where died where he stood savagely stabbed in the back and carved in twin at the same time. Elated Thans moved to finish off the crossbow Goblin as several of his colleagues revealed themselves from their positions behind the “fallen tree” and ran into the woods as fast as their little legs would carry them.

It was growing late and the company decided not to peruse, rather moving the tree aside, it having been lowered into place with a block and tackle and carrying on to the village to unload the farmer’s goods and received a free meal at the local tavern as partial reward for dealing with the goblins, and the good folk of Sylais being shocked at the bandits turning out to be goblins as they thought the goblins had been cleared out of these lands in their grandfathers times by the grandfather of the current fief holder.

In the morning after a free breakfast the company set out again to the place where they had been ambushed and by mid morning they had reached there and Aron a skilled tracker easily found the tracks of the fleeing goblins form the day before and the company made its way into and though the woods following them. There destination turned out to be an abandoned mine shaft in the ridge above the vale which the villagers had said had been dug by dwarven prospectors in their fathers times

On seeing the target, Aron and Thans moved to scout the area, whilst Nyadryn remained in cover at the edge of the approach to the mine. The two scouts quickly discovered there was a goblin watchman on top of the bluff above the mine entrance. Aron moved to cover him with his bow whilst Thans snuck up on him. Aron signalled to Nyadryn to come forward, and the goblin spotted him almost right away.

The goblin had a sling and sent a stone in Nyadryn’s direction it hit but caused little harm mostly bouncing off his armour, Aron loosed an arrow into the bushes and seconds latter, Thans stabbed him in the back. The goblin quickly decided running away was the better part of valour fled with Thans in close pursuit slashing at him ineffectually.  The goblin made the crest of bluff and scrabbled down escaping into the mine entrance.

Outside the company regrouped, Thans made a torch, and Aron performed first aid on Nyadryn’s minor wound before they pressed on, into the mine. The mine was as one might expect well made and from the entrance the passage lead down into the hill wide enough for two to walk abreast and high enough that even a tall man like Nyadryn could stand even if he had to swap his glaive for his sword due to the confines of the passage.

A short way inside the mine there was an entrance, the dwarves original sleeping quarters Thans thought where there where three ill armed goblins which the company surprised.  A short fight followed but the Goblins where no match for the company and where soon slain. A subsequent search here found little save the goblins stinking bedding and a few brass coins and three of the ubiquitous short curved goblin knives.

Moving deeper into the Mine the company reached the main workings a relatively roughly worked chamber with the beginnings of a shaft in the middle of it now largely filled with the detritus of the years between the mines abandonment and now overlain by  the goblins rubbish. Four better armed goblins changed forward to meet the company, however they too where soon cut down and the last two goblins cringed at the back of the chamber amongst the haphazard piles of the villagers stolen goods pleading for mercy and offering to help if they where let live.

They where and where dragooned into carrying all the villagers goods down to the road before being chased off. Leaving Thans and Aron as guards Nyadryn walked back to the village to   fetch the villagers with carts and wagons to get it moved further and to cut the story short that is what happened and the villagers where over joyed to recover all their goods and another free meal and several rounds of the ale wives best followed the companies return as did the passing of a small amount of coin as the Villages thought not dirt poor had little cash.

The following day Thans and returned to the local market town Vaynam and sold such goods that the villages had not claimed and dividing up the cash parted as friends.

A Prelude

Introduction

Three travelling companions going to the Caravanserai at A'rakum Manor to seek work as caravan escorts going across the spine of the world from greater Brandovia to greater Kalamar

Episode I – Trouble with Rats part I

Dramatis Personae

Telec Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer

Aetlred Half Elf Ranger

D’rek Brandobian Human Fighter

Location

Melacs farm – on the eastern border of the kingdom of Cosdol

Events
after travelling with each other for a couple of days our putative hero's where with in a days March of their objective when around mid morning whilst passing a road side farm they where waved down by a child. The child asks them if they are adventurers and when they say yes proceeds to lead them through the hedge across the field behind it to her family farm where the family is apparently just sitting down for the mid day meal. The family consists of two adults in early middle age apparently the girl’s mother and father, three young male adults her brothers at a guess and a man in his sixties who is latter revealed to be her grandfather.

The girl announces to the family in general and her father in particular that this group of adventurers have come to help out. There is a little discussion in the family & some evidence of internal familial conflict but eventually the father admits he does have a problem the adventurers could help with & offers them a share of the family meal.

The problem is that some kind of large aggressive vermin has invaded the farms barn & root store & local resources have proved unable to drive them out. Two of the farm cats are dead & the third an ill natures semi feral creature has decided to become a house cat. The whatever they are bit the farmer’s dog & it now won’t go near either the barn or the root store. So the Ratman was summoned and he lost his terrier in the root store and was himself bitten badly on the leg by a rat the size of said terrier and he returned his fee saying he could not help.

The Farmer is worried about where he will store the crops currently growing in the fields & does not really want to go to the trouble of building a new barn & root store at the other end of the farm for fear that this will just get invaded by the big rats as well gaining him nothing.

Telec & Aetlred offered to take a look and went out of the back of the farm house to go and have a look at the larger and nearer barn D'rek took up the offer of a plate of food and leaned his bulk on the wall of the house as the other two moved with as much stealth as possible across the yard and entered the barn.

Inside Aetlred was immediately aware of the recent presence of animals when his eyes started to itch and he had to suppress the need to sneeze. However looking round there was no sign of any animals indeed little unusual except the barn was both remarkably empty and at the same time very untidy. Closer inspection revealed the remains of shredded sacks and that the handles of the scattered farm implements had been gnawed at. At the other end of the yard there was a half second floor the latter to which was leaning rather crazily to one side and what appeared in the dim building to be a hole and some disturbed earth.

Mean while outside D'rek having finished his food was approached by the girl who producing a lantern offered her services as a torch bearer if she was allowed to join in the "adventure" D'rek was in the process of explaining that this was not a good idea when her mother intervened calling Elvie back in.

Inside the barn Telec advanced raised his staff and struck the mezzanine floor from below a resounding blew & in the heavens risk lord of chances rolled its dice  

Episode II – Trouble with Rats Part II

Dramatis Personae

Telec Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer

Aetlred Half Elf Ranger

D’rek Brandobian Human Fighter.

Location

Melacs farm – on the eastern border of the kingdom of Cosdol

Events

At the end of episode 1 Telec had disturbed something in the loft of the barn by striking it underneath with his staff so the session began with a swarm of rats he disturbed by doing this swarming down upon Aetlred who was waiting for them. Some just hurled themselves off the edge into the face of the unfortunate Aetlred others scampered down the rickety ladder to join the fray. A brief fur ball of a fight followed as the rats angrily plied there claws and teeth almost exclusively against Aetlred who plied his heavy spear his eyes streaming and his rhythm of strikes interrupted by staccato sneezes. All the while standing some what clear the Wanderer Telec thrust his staff spear wise into the fight breaking backs & crushing skulls. Then it was all over Aetlred was surrounded by the broken bodies of the fury foe & Telec was chasing down the last of them as it tried to flee the barn.

Mean while D’rek stood outside the farm house across the yard chatted to “the girl” who very much wanted to join in with the adventure & slowly ate seconds or was it thirds, he had rather lost track. This was interrupted by Aetlred & Telec coming out of the barn & suggesting that he might actually help. This he agreed to do after naturally finishing off the last morsel whilst Aetlred in the absence of any one else to do so tended to his own wounds.

This done a further search of the barn revealed where the rats had come in a hole gnawed in the wattle & daub wall near the ground in the eastern wall under the loft as well as a well used track leading across the back of the yard through a hedge into north field & to the small stilted root store, This same exploration revealed that the north west corner of the barn had a hole in the floor around which the floor was rather unstable. The company noted this for latter exploration, first deciding to deal with the rats as the mater at hand. So Telec, Aetlred and D’rek moved over to the root store which was little more than a large wattle and daub thatched shed on stilts of finely worked stone.   A quick inspection found several rat sized holes in the walls and in the shed door. It was decided that the store was full of rats & that given it had the dimensions of a granted good sized shed it was unwise to enter & confront the rats inside where they would be at an advantage against combatants of larger size who where employing spear length weapons for the most part. Preparations where made to smoke them out with Aetlred a skilled woodsman starting a smoky fire under the store & then with Telec and D’rek taking up positions to hack or strike any rats which tried to flee. The smoke flushed out the rats and a short fight ensued as the three attempted to cut down the escapers as well as to hold as many as they could inside for the smoke to work its wicked work. In this they where largely successful with only a few rats escaping & running to wards the copse on the opposite edge of the field. These where tracked to a large patch of brambles and dry ferns in the midst of this copse. Once again deciding not to battle the rats at a disadvantage & the bramble and underbrush being dry a fire was set and with care the cover was burned slaying all the rats that yet remained.  In the cooling embers of the fire a worked iron hoop was found the sort which is used on fancy lidded wicker pet transporters & a sign of a loaf of bread riddled with worms was also found cut into one of the scorched trees on the edge of the fire. This sign looked some what familiar to Telec but he could not exactly identify it.

Leaving this mystery for a while as it was late Aetlred Telec & D’rek returned to the store and found on entering it the smoke dead corpses of a score and more baby rats & several nursing or obviously gravid females the main nest it would seem was dealt with.

It was then decided that the hole in the corner of the barn needed to be investigated. Some preparations where made which involved laying the loft ladder across the area of unstable ground around the hole & tying a rope securely to one of the supports of the mezzanine floor above so it hung down the hole.

Aelthred being the lightest descended down this rope and investigated the area below finding an earth cave partly walled by worked stone and backed by a plain but sturdy stone double width door. This door proved to be unlocked and unbarred and at this point Telec joined Aelthred in the area and together they explored beyond it finding a large yard like hall with several doors off of it a stable as well as what was obviously the top of a mine shaft of some sort. All very defiantly deserving of a lot more investigation, however the day had been a long and eventful one & some of the company had been injured so it was decided to leave further exploration till the morning.

Aelthred Telec & D'rek then returned & spent the night at the hospitality of the Melac's family

Introduction

Enter three more travelling companions going to the Caravanserai at A'rakum Manor to seek work as caravan escorts going across the spine of the world from greater Brandovia to greater Kalamar

Episode III – The Hole & what was down it Part I

Dramatis Personae

Telec Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer

Aetlred Half Elf Ranger

D’rek Brandobian Human Fighter.

Melias B’Paran Human Mage-Thief

Lalia Halfling Thief

Nameless Elven Mage

Location

Melacs farm – on the eastern border of kingdom of Cosdol

Events

In the morning Aelthred Telec & D’rek breakfasted at the hospitality of the Meliac’s family once again and when farmer Meliac & his three sons went out to work to repair the damage to the root store, it was decided that the hole in the barn needed further investigating if only to finally make it safe for Farmer Meliac & his sons to repair it & to start using it as a barn again  in this they where assisted willingly or not by Elvie Meliac who is adventure struck as some others her age might be stage struck or mad on ponies, it not helping that her grandfather Elvas was for a time an adventures & has been telling her stories for as long as she can remember.

Meanwhile on the road some where to the west trudged Melias a young fellow of B’paran descent who had gone to Cosolen the capital to further his interests in the magical arts a Lalia young Halfling & the Elven mage for such was obvious form his garb who had not yet vouched safe his name to his newly met travelling companions. They where they hoped within easy march of the Caravanserai at A’rakum manor or so their informant at the road house they had stayed at last night had indicated but the road was proving longer than hoped and despite expecting the appearance of the large stone Caravanserai over the next hill it failed to appear. Indeed it very much looked like there informant had advised them wrongly & not particularly wanting to spend a night in the open if it could be avoided they decided amongst themselves that they should try to get a nights shelter at the next farm they passed.

Mean while at the in the Barn, leaving Drek up top for the moment mostly to intercept Elvie who had realised that there was a dungeon in her own dads barn was very eager to see it by giving her jobs to do to help in the adventure so as to keep her out of danger.

Further explorations reveal that the stables are long abandoned & that the only remaining fixtures and fittings in them are stone & built into the structure. The same is true of the area around the mine shaft where only the massive stone double A frame remains in place and what where obviously solos for mined material are empty with no trace of what might have been in them save for the odd discoloration on the ground and the odd lose bit of material which neither Telec & Aelthred can identify. The whole place has a look of long abandonment.

Telec & Aelthred then turn their attention to the single stone doors on the left of the yard area as they entered form the hole. Being systematic they decided to start with the one nearest the front door to the yard area and work along the wall. The first door opened easily despite its weight a slab of stone seven feet by three feet and at least six inches thick is not going to be light. Inside they found an empty room large vaulted like the yard and devoid of any fixtures and fitting save for a collapsed wooden round table so rotten it had all but disintegrated. Here again fixtures seemed to have been deliberately striped out with the only sign of what might have been several wall sconces being the holes the spikes that held them in place had left and some very ancient blackening of the wall above. And the shadow of what might have been a rack for weapons perhaps shown only by a faint shadow on the walls and some empty holes.

The next room was the same size as the first and seemed as barren save it had a few more fixtures some stone bed frames remained as did a pile of detritus & large bones just to the left of the door and with in spears reach. Telec & Aelthred moved into the room for a better look as before they disturbed the pile of Detritus & the bones began to move on there own & to coalesce into a whole, the skeletal form of a man. Shocked Telec & Aelthred readied their weapons hastily.

As the skeletal form turned towards than its bony fingers striking like claws, a brief fight ensued as the monstrosity clawed first at Aelthred who lunged at it repeatedly only to have his heavy spear head slip between its ribs or strike empty air where on a fully fleshed man there would have been flesh a plenty and then at Telic whose staff proved more adept at shattering ancient bone until finally the thing had taken enough of a beating that the foul magic which powered it could hold it together no more and it collapsed into the pile of detritus from whence it had risen. Shaken still by the encounter Aelthred & Telec decided to leave and to at least fetch D’rek before returning and continuing their exploration.

On the road our other three travellers spied a suitable farm coming into view and decided after a brief conversation that as it was the first they had seen since they decided to try to put up at one for the night they should approach this farmer for hospitality.  Making their way to the farm along the lane between the two south fields they reached a substantial farm house and went around into the yard to speak to the farmer.

When the door was finally opened they encountered Kalan Melias, the farmer who said he was unable to offer the hospitality of his house as it was spoken for already but he was happy to offer them a meal and allow them to bed down in the barn for nothing. Mellias became suspicious at this point and wanted to know what was wrong with the barn that the farmer would not charge for it. At which point Elvie arrived on one of her many little missions to help out the adventurers and became a fascinated with the Halfling who she first mistook as a child of her own age. 

Whilst all of this was happening D’rek had been persuaded to join Telec & Aelthred. The showed him the remains of the animated skeleton and together they raked thought the pile of detritus on which it lay and confirmed that the bones where try thought of a man rather than a dwarf which Telec & Aelthred had decided without any real knowledge or evidence had built this place. They found nothing save for some corroded bits of twisted metal which might once have been fittings for clothes.  Though no one present could work out what they might once have been. D’rek was unimpressed and pointed out that it was late and he was hungry so every one decided to go back to the farm, for some food & some time to think and plan.

This resulted in them running into the other three who where still discussing accommodation with farmer Meliac. Melias in particular was being stroppy and making increasingly unreasonable demands about having a fire lit in the barn & farmer Meliac was equally obstinately refusing them as he did not want having just recovered his barn from bloody huge rats to have it burnt down. Besides it was spring and not cold and the barn would more than keep the rain off should there be any. The discussion grew to encompass the first group and they all set off to view the barn and to try to explain to Melias the situation with the barn. He was not happy but when all said and done it was free shelter for a night not a tavern  

Episode IV – The Hole & what was down it Part II

Dramatis Personae
Telec Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer
Aetlred Half Elf Ranger
D’rek Brandobian Human Fighter.
Melias B’Paran Human Mage-Thief
Lalia Halfling Thief
Nameless Elven Mage

Location
Melacs farm – on the eastern border of kingdom of Cosdol

Events
The next morning every one awoke ready for the new day & breakfast over which there was something of an argument between Farmer Melacs & Melias who was rather unimpressed wit the Meliac's style of hospitality. Farmer Melac was equally unimpressed with Melias's attitude and finally pointed out that it was free & he was running a farm not an inn. The argument ended when Farmer Meliac & sons who had been chipping in, in support of their father & looked more than ready to batter Melias decided they had work to do & Farmer Meliac angrily pointed out that there was an inn half a day to the east. Melias & Nameless left though Nameless had not been involved in the argument and indeed had said little to any one except Aetlred & only spoke to him as Aetlred kept talking to him in high Elven.

The remaining members of the company many of whom where still smarting form the previous days activities fell to a day of domestic labour. Aetlred sorted out the materials to make several arrows. D’rek  Telec & Lalia  to fixing the hole in the barn floor & generally staying away from D’rek who had striped to the waist to use the Meliac’s small improvised blacksmithy and so revealed rolls of flesh best left unseen despite wearing the farms leather apron. Aetlred  after failing to find any flints suitable to make points out of resorted to having D'rek make some out of the bar stock he was busy turning into nails & hinges and the like for Lalia and Telec  to use improving the entry to the hole and allowing it to be secured against prying children if nothing else. By the end of the day this had been done and Aetlred had the makings of a half dozen arrows though sadly no glue for the fletchings. He did whilst out foraging take a look at the rouble and stones in the banks at the bases of the field hedges and found a lot of worked stone some of which had carved decoration on though most of it was too broken to identify what it once might have been. Chatting to the farmer and his sons as they worked he also found out that the majority of the worked stones where to be found in the north east field and that in grandfathers great grandfathers time enough cut stone was recovered clearing the site of the farm to allow the house to be built with a hardcore floor & its walls to have at three courses of cut stone at their base.

The following morning with every one much rested despite their labours, Aetlred sent Evie out to do a survey of where the work stones where to be found around the farm to help with the adventure and to keep her out of the way whilst the company went down the hole again.

Descending the new ladder in the new wood lined shaft the company moved to explore beyond the two doors on the west wall through which they had not yet passed. They did so warily after the encounter with the animated skeleton the last time. Through the first they found an empty room long ago striped of all features but a line of alcoves on the north wall all of which proved to be empty of all but dust. Above them they found a line of holes suggesting something perhaps a shelf had been there once and some scrapes on the paved floor hinting at the presence of heavy furniture long ago. The room’s unique feature for in size it was like the other two already was a further stone door in the west wall.  This the company approached with caution Lalia listened at it and heard nothing at all so they entered and where there confronted with a bizarre sight.

The room was furnished and appeared to be occupied. To the left and right of the door where stacks of what looked like human bones and ahead slumped over a lectern with a great tome on it was a figure in heavy brocaded robes, the sort that shout wizard to even the greenest and most naive peasant around him partly hidden in a layer of dust was a circle scratched ion the floor with a star inside & the stubs of black wax at each of the cardinal points of the star inside.

Shouting a curse Aetlred said smash the bones before any magic can raise them & with a will both he and D’rek fell to smashing the ancient bones which did not stir as each hammered them to fragments with their weapons. The figure did not stir and the company took in the rest of the rooms fixtures. There was a small bronze bound coffer and a half collapsed wooden truckle bead to north, over which was inscribed a passage in an unknown angular script, and a set of benches to the south.  On the bench where animal bones laid out as if in the middle of a dissection some very corroded bronze surgical tools and scrolls which crumbled on being touched under the bench where decayed sacks full of what once may have been clothing but which where so rotten that colour or form where beyond guessing.

Still the figure which was revealed to be sitting on a high perch stool did not move or react. Eventually after exploring the room Aetlred prodded the figure with the but of his trusty spear it stood up the piercing stool collapsing into ruin as it did so, & the gods of chance and battle rolled their cosmic dice.

The company stood stunned whilst the skeletal mage raised its hands and started to incant some terrible magic except no incantation came form its decayed mouth and it swung its arms in useless gesture. Lalia snapped out of it first and shouting a warning readied her sling sending spinning in ever faster arcs about her head. Followed by Aetlred who drawing back his heavy spear struck the vile thing such a blow it that is rotted arm fell off & the creature was hurled into the back wall where it slumped to the floor and remained motionless. A tense moment passed until it became apparent that the malice had given the long dead thing the semblance of life had fled.

Searching the body revealed it was long dead and half decayed with bone showing where the desiccated flesh had long ago turned to dust. It was clad in fine brocaded robes which crumbled even as they where searched and wore a belt of pouches each filled with some trace of what once might have been at Aeltred's guess a spell component all long gone to dust and decay.

Mean while on the surface Elvie had fallen to her mission with a will and was crawling about in the bases of the farms hedges looking for worked stone so she could tell the adventurers what she had found when they came to ask her. Her mother did try to give her something else fro her to do but her grandfather put his hand on his daughter in laws arm and said you kept my son and his sons form the sell sword life but I fear you have lost that battle with the lass just as much as my father gods rest him lost it with me. It’s a madness which burns itself out after a while and such things burn out quicker in the young if you let them.

Elvie’s mother was not happy at this and chided her father in law for his foolishness & his telling tales to her easily lead daughter, but she let Elvie alone to get on with her task all the same. 

Down the hole the company thoroughly searched the wizard’s room but found many more questions than answers especially as almost every thing they touched was so aged that on even the gentlest investigation it crumbled to nothing.  The only thing of interest which survived was the tome form the lectern a heavy book with fine velum pages covered in diagrams of an apparently arcane nature but unfathomable to the company there present accompanied by notes in a foreign script no one could read except it was certainly in the hands of several scribes.

Other than the tome, the prime exception to this was the coffer at the foot of the bed which thought covered by a fine layer of the dust of ages was whole and intact. A sturdy wooden box made form one of the dark woods form the far south bound in thick bronze straps and secured by a small lock for which the company could find no key. However the small lock proved to be only a small challenge to Lalia once she had ascertained that there where no traps to catch the unwary, inside the contents of the coffer where remarkably well preserved.  A small book Aetlred guessed almost certainly a personal spell book written in an unknown script similar to that of the tome but all the same hand as far as could be seen. Some coins of an unfamiliar type a couple of good leather multi pocket pouches full of spoilt bits which might have been spell components. A dozen sheets of the finest velum and an exquisite bronze leaf bladed dagger, which looked to be Drejii work from one of the plains clans east of the mountains according to Telec who has travelled a lot.

Puzzled and the company decided to press on and to explore the last room. Entering all the more cautiously the company found the thing was some sort of a prison & perhaps torture chamber though fortunately nothing of that remained. Fully half the room had been made into four small cells by the installation of a cage work of sturdy bronze bars.  In each cell was a manacled skeleton lying in a position which suggested that they had been probably alive and fleshed when cast into the cell. Each cell was secured by a sturdy if simple lock which Lalia reckoned she could open easily but the company decided not to given their recent encounters and settled to examining the skeletons as best they could with out entering the cells or unlocking the doors. After a short examination the company pressed further on.

To the double doors on the north wall, a quick examination by Lalia seemed to indicate that these doors which stood easily eight feet high and wide enough for a cart to enter where not locked or at least not locked by any mechanism which there was access to from the outside, D’rek being the strongest bay far pressed on the  doors but they did not budge but an uncanny thing happened the face of what appeared to be a dwarf by the elaborately platted beard and hair appeared in mid air just behind D’rek and spoke in at least three tongues possibly four of which only one was known to the company, Dwarvish.  This Telec for it was he who had the rudiments of the language said apologised in the name of the king that there was no entry for strangers such as they and directed them around to the front gate, where they should seek entry.

A discussion followed and it was decided that the other messages must say something like that which had been said in Dwarvish and that the gates where almost certainly secured by something like magic. An idea confirmed when detailed scrutiny of the whole area around the gates failed to find   any hidden mechanism which might open them form this side.

Then it occurs to Aetlred to try the cloak broach they found in the spoil around the hole on the first day the one with a missing pin and yellow glass eyes & with it presented strongly the gates swing open revealing a dark road way leading slightly down and the nauseating smell of stale air which is very familiar to Lalia. A quick look round the inside of the gate reveals nothing of interest save an inscription on the wall in angular characters similar to that on the wall above the wizards long rotted bed, which is assumed to be Dwarvish. Even thought non present could read the tongue or actually knew what Dwarvish script look like.

Confronted by a puzzle wrapped in an enigma the company discussed what to do next and decided that they needed more information and the advice of a wizard. So the shut the gate & returned to the surface intending to spend the night once more at the Meliac’s farm and press on in the morning.

Over supper the company talked with grandfather Meliac’s abut his adventuring life & questioned him as to weather he had encountered any thing like what they had found and he spoke of a raid on a goblin foot hold in the mountains to the east a strong hold which had once long ago been some sort of large town. He spoke of the guide an elf ranger called Vagarion who had lead them there and of the hard fights they had had with the goblins before being forces to withdraw and the companions who had not made it back. Trading tales of his own extensive travels Telec recalled that there was a sage who lived in an old Kalamarian watch tower to the east and Grandfather Meliac also remembered that possibly the same tower had been used by a middling powerful wizard in his time. Perhaps the Sage was the heir to or the apprentice to the long ago wizard.

To all this little Evie Meliac listened with wrapped attention, she had heard her grandfather’s tales before but not this one, nor any in such detail.  She wanted to add what she had found in the fields around the farm but the wanting to hear what passed between adventurers stilled her tongue & even drew in her brothers and her parents who had not heard such an exchange before either.

In the morning the company awoke rested & they all breakfasted with the Melacs family before being taken around by Elvie and shown what she had found yesterday.  She had noted every worked stone in every hedge bottom looked for fragments in the plough soil and walked the ground with an almost professional eye.

From what she had found it became apparent that there had been a large and well appointed building in the north west field possibly more than one perhaps a manor house and its out buildings and that there might have been other smaller lesser buildings scattered over much of the rest of the farm.

An interlude for two characters - which takes place whilst episode IV above is occurring

Dramatis Personae

Nameless Elven Mage

Melias B’Paran Human Mage-Thief

Location
Melacs farm – on the eastern border of kingdom of Cosdol, The king’s road east into the kingdom of P’Bapara and A’Rakham Manor over the course of a day.

Events

Melias argued with the stupid farmer about his appalling lack of basic hospitality and so had decided to press on to find a proper inn in the following morning as having to sleep in a rat infested barn was really too much and he was defiantly not doing it twice. The Elf remained taciturn but left with him as he had no reason to stay. They marched till mid morning the Elven mage lost in arcane thoughts and Melias continued to mumble about the in hospitality of farmers here about.

They arrived at the Inn at A’Rakham manor just after lunch here Melias complained about the price of the food the price of the rooms three silvers really that was utterly exorbitant and the mage was mildly affronted by being told he had to sleep in the foreigners’ house with a stinking half ork drunk, he was an elf of good lineage and not to be bundled together with a misbegotten half ork.

Nameless did not argue what was the point of doing it with ephemeral folk and Melias was able to argue more than adequately.  They ate a plate of stew which Melias complained lacked meat and drank a cup of small beer before taking to the road again. Having been told by a surly dwarf that there was free lodging to be had at the Wayfarer’s temple at the stone bridge yonder.

They marched till night fall when they camped in as Melias put it a ditch as the surly dwarf had lied to them about how far the Wayfarers’ temple was form the inn. Only arriving at the temple around mid day the following day. Nameless found the whole affair a mild amusement even if it did distract him from his higher purpose some what.

Episode V all roads lead east

Dramatis Personae

Telec Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer
Aetlred Half Elf Ranger
D’rek Brandobian Human Fighter.
Melias B’Paran Human Mage-Thief
Lalia Halfling Thief
Namless Elven Mage

Heradin- Dwarf fighter mage

Location
Melacs farm – on the eastern border of kingdom of Cosdol, The king’s road east into the kingdom of P’Bapara and A’Rakham Manor over the course of a day.

Events

The company spent a final night at Meliac’s farm and said their good byes after breakfast as D’rek was reluctant to start a long march without first making sure of a hearty meal and seconds if they where to be had.

Resuming the journey they had been on some four or five days before they marched eastwards along the king’s road across the border noting the marker stone then to the turn off to the village of Ettis wall.  pausing briefly when they passed the turn to consider visiting that village and perhaps spend the night there or at least get D’rek elevenses something that D’rek was very much in favour of since he had had nothing to eat since breakfast and felt in severe danger of starving to death on the road long before they reached  A’Rakham manor. However in the end it was decided that as it was still in the fore noon that they should press on intending to reach the Inn before night. 

As it was they came into sight and smell of A’Rakham manor in the mid afternoon. On the approach Telec and Altered noted the splendour of the manor and its surrounding buildings, nestled in a sheltered spot, principally to the north of the road, surrounded by rolling scrubby woodlands and D’rek catching the scent of the days stew put on an unexpected turn of speed. On the approach Telec and Aeltred that the inn and its ancillary buildings save for the expensive Laggosa slate panties seemed to be built of reused stone and that even the most modest of buildings where of stone with slate roofs unusual in a region where most of the other buildings they had seen where timber or timber framed with the gaps in filled with mud and wattle and roofed with thatch or less commonly wooden shingles.  Lalia noted that she really needed to speed up as the big folks where walking her into the ground with their long strides.

D’rek had reached the inn and had begun his first bowl of stew by the time his travelling companions did. His companions tarried to discuss the reused stones in the buildings and to compare them with those they had seen at Meliac’s farm or those which young Evie had told them about in such detail. Lalia just tried to keep up in a dignified manner.

It being past lunch time in the inns great common room was largely empty as the inns still relatively few residents had retired to conduct there own business else where, having eaten. The only apparent guests where D’rek well into his first plate of vegetable stew and seriously thinking about a second and a cup of small beer, and a dwarf.

The dwarf appeared vaguely familiar to Lalia but then again she had only ever met one dwarf and had no idea how similar one dwarf might appear to be to another. Lalia was considering what to do when the Dwarf recognised her. The Dwarf turned out to be Lalia’s adventuring companion of last autumn.

They had a brief chat about old times and Heradin spoke of a letter he had had written to Lalia before he left suggesting that they meet up here, a letter which he had sent before he had moved on after he recovered from his wounds, and which he had used a scribe to write. This latter lead Telec and Aetlred to believe Heradin was illiterate, but he is a wizard and all wizards can read at least in one language. The problem being that he can only read and write Dwarvish a tongue and a script likely to be very unfamiliar to a young Halfling whose native tongue was Brandobian and in any event any scribe would have a fairer hand.

Lalia introduced her old companion to the rest of the company and there was some discussion of what both had been doing Lalia and Heradin spoke of the adventure they had had under Rose Bush hill, and the company spoke of the adventure they had had in the apparent dwarf mine.  The company showed Harare the coins which they had found and he was unable to say much about them except they where not dwarf work and seemed mannish if any thing at all. Lalia showed the company the “perfume flasks” she had found under Rose bush hill and the company could where unable to add to what she had deduced save that the symbol on them was likely to be religious rather than arcane. However Telec who said that had no ideas as to its meaning or the religion to which it might belong and the flasks remain a mystery. During this chat Aetlred helpful as ever provided translation services as required and the conversation switched tongues with the ease of a practiced swordsman moving his footing. The company ordered a small beer, Heradin buying Lalia’s for old time’s sake and those who had not eaten had a plate of the vegetable stew. D’rek it should be said here was well into his second or possibly third by this time The conversation turned back to the announcement the magical voice had made when D’rek had attempted to push open the inner gates and in an inspired move Aetlred who though the doesn’t speak the language is a gifted mimic managed to mimic the sound of the words apparently spoken in Dwarfish perfectly. Heradin confirmed that the words where indeed in Dwarfish but the ones he took to be proper names where not.   

At some point during this conversation the lord of the manor approached D’rek half way through his current plate of stew, and having ascertained that D’rek was a blacksmith the innkeeper or as he would prefer the lord of the manor offered D’rek the job as black smith at the inn as his previous one had returned over the pass to P’Bapara last autumn to take over his late fathers business.  D’rek who had been becoming increasingly aware that this adventuring lark seemed to involve going hungry far more often than he would like decided to take the job

After dinner the company rented out the unused common room in the foreigner’s house as it was the cheapest option by far, stowed their meagre kit.  Telec went off to find out what had happened to D’rek and then every one retired out the back of the in and spent a pleasant afternoon gently sparing and swapping tips for skills at arms.

In the evening things became interesting. After supper when the common room was a bit more crowded with a couple of apparent sell swords, here for the same reason the company had originally intended to come, a woman in striking embroidered padded    armour who Telic recognised as hailing form on of the eastern plains tribes of Drejii and a couple of men a tall one with braded blonde hair and a shorter brown haired one who seemed to be friends There was also group of four men at arms  armoured and liveried but not armed beyond their habitual daggers. These where drinking freely and seemed to have quite a bit of coin about them. Aetlred stood up and started to sing   attracting a few trade coins form the customers as he had a fine voice and Elvish, in which he chose to sing, is rather a beautiful language off any ones tongue

With every one distracted Lalia decided that the men at arms should pay for her stay at the inn sidled over to one slipped out her knife to cut his nicely bulging purse  all very easy till sliding her hand around the bag to catch it as it fell she inadvertently made contact with her targets thigh. He turned as she tried to slip away and realised what she had intended. His companions and Telec did not, but the sharp eyed Aetlred did.  So he changed his song to something to draw every one else attention. Lalia bolted for the door and the man at arms gave chase catching her just on the threshold with his longer stride.  His dagger drawn he slashed at her as she turned cornered to defend herself he missed a little drunk perhaps and Lalia tripped him as he recovered to strike again he stumbled she scampered back pushing the back door to the inn open with her back as she did so. His stumble turned into a fall he fell full length in the open doorway onto his dagger hilt which turned the blade up into him its point caught a gap between the studs on the thickly studded leather and being honed to great sharpness it cut through the leather as if it was not there wounding him deeply as the Halfling turned and ran into the night. In the common room all hell now broke lose.

The other men at arms realised something was afoot and moved to aid their fallen friend Telec who had been as lost in the song as every one else moved to help cursing quietly that he had used his healing magic on Aetlred that morning. However Aetlred go there first and managed to stop the man at arms bleeding out which incidentally allowed Lalia to reach the safety of a hiding place under the very, very drunk half Orks bed. Then with the aid of Telec and the other three men at arms carry there wounded and fortunately unconscious friend to the bed in one of the other dormitories in the foreigners house all the while trying to hide that he knew any thing of how the man at arms Alegh had come to harm. Telec mean while managed to engage the men at arms in conversation and discovered that they where not in fact caravan guards waiting for employment. But worked for the very sage which the company where seeking and where able to give detailed directions to the place adding that they where waiting to collect some documents and other materials which should be on the first caravan form Cosolen the capital and was due to be here in a few days. They chatted a bit about the location of the Sages tower and how best to get there with Telec whilst Aetlred worked, extremely nervously on their wounded colleague. Then having stabilised the wounded man Aetlred gratefully left saying little after the apparent leader of the men at arms flipped him a gold coin for his work, and the company retired to the adjacent dormitory where Telec slept but Aetlred remained awake to confront Lalia when she returned.

Lalia eventually crawled out form under the drunken half orcs bed when she thought the coast was clear and tried to slip into a spare bed in the adjacent dormitory which the company had hired. Here she was confronted by Aetlred who said that he had seen exactly what Lalia had done earlier in the great common room and he expressed his views on what she had done in the bar and how to be frank he disapproved. However was not going to do any thing else this time as he liked Lalia enough as a comrade that he had not wish to see the consequences of any one else finding out what he knew and suggested that the company was likely to move on in the morning and it would be a very good idea if Lalia left good and early before any one else was about and they met up out of sight on the road. 

Eventually every one slept, until that is there was the sound of horse’s hooves on the paved yard between the inn and the sound of some one shouting form help. Rousing themselves Telec and Aetlred went out to investigate and found a girl; dressed only in a bloody under tunic slumped over the saddle of a much lathered and blooded  horse several of the Inn servants and Heradin, who had run from the stables, had also been roused form sleep by the commotion. The source of the blood was an arrow broken off but imbedded in the girl’s thigh

Aetlred moved to help the girl down off the horse and realising he could not manage this alone he had Heradin, who had been attending to the horse to  help him .

An interlude for two characters - which takes place whilst episode V & VI above are occurring

Dramatis Personae

Nameless Elven Mage

Melias B’Paran Human Mage-Thief

Location

The temple of the Wayfarer at Falax bridge

Events

Having arrived there about mid afternoon and taken a late mid day meal curtsy of the temple Melias balked at being asked to pay a voluntary tithe to the temple and handed over a mere couple of trade coins before going off to his room frankly to sulk as Nameless had paid almost cheerfully an was now engaged in deep conversation with a human mage who had been injured crossing the pass from P’Bapara last autumn. Apparently the caravan that he was travelling with had been escorted by a company of Hobgoblin mercenaries lead by a half hobgoblin of particularly cruel mien called the mage said Velikas. The caravan had been attacked by giants, hurling rocks from the heights and had only escaped by leaving most of it’s injured behind in their stone crushed wagons. The Mage had only made it because he had been on a wagon which was only clipped by stone fragments and Velikas threw him off the caravan just as soon as it became apparent that he was injured. Fortunately that did not happen until the remains of the caravan arrived at Falax Bridge.

The Mage a Kalamarian called Emeric feels bad about having left the wounded in the pass and said he would have intervened had he not been wounded, and its too late now to go and rescue any one as that all happened late last autumn. Emeric is turns out came across the mountains with a few companions all sadly in the wagon behind which took several direct hits, in quest of a lost library of magical lore attributed to the legendary arch mage Aldor or Adroius which is supposed to be at his tower some where in the mountains on this side of the Laggosa pass. Emeric who has, thanks to the priest of the wayfarer here, recovered form his injuries is rather keen to find new companions and to continue his quest. He has little evidence for the location of the fabled horde of magical lore but he is a friendly chap and shows Nameless what he has before the discussion meanders off as discussions between mages do meanders off into more general magical lore and related matters continuing late into the night.

It should be noted here that Nameless is not aware of any such human arch magus dwelling or having ever dwelt on this side of the Laggosa peaks and thought he is not a sage of such things the memory of even a youthful elf stretches back more than a human life time and the lore of his people back to the dawn of time. None the less the human mage seems honest and the evidence he shared if very sketchy seemed to be genuine.

In the morning over breakfast the discussion continued for where it had left off last night. With Melias who was mildly annoyed at being excluded from the conversation before as he has his one interest in magical lore joining in. 

The discussions also drew in another traveller with an interest in the arcane who introduced themselves as Keras Ashwyn a ranger who said she was on the way to see the sage not far to the north. This lead to a discussion about the possibility of the sage having more information on the lost library of the arch mage which Emeric was looking for and the company having formed and breakfasted enquired of the temple guards of the route to the mages tower and being advised that it was a hard route which would take them the better part of the day. They set off for the mages tower guided by the ranger who whilst not local was experienced at such things.

A hard day’s travel found them approaching the sage’s tower.

Episode VI a Rude Awakening & what followed

Dramatis Personae

Telec - Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer
Aetlred - Half Elf Ranger
Lalia - Halfling Thief
Heradin- Dwarf fighter mage

Dvorn the Axe- Folokkii Human Fighter

Sondan – Brandobian, Human Fighter

Fawlit – Half Ork Fighter

Nyasse - a wounded human girl

Location

A’Rakham Manor the woods to the north, the Hidden Dell & the deeper woods to the north of that over the course of a day

Events

(The Action continued from where the last session ended).

Heradin and Aetlred carried the semi conscious girl into the common room of the inn where he shouted orders at random to the considerable crowd of residents and inn servants who had gathered in the room to see what all the noise and activity was about if nothing else. Telec hovered very aware that he had used his one healing spell the previous morning and having just been raised from sleep and had not had time to meditate and pray to regain it. After the events previous day Lalia sleeping under her bed, woke rolled over and went back to sleep in preparation for a really early and likely breakfast less start  

Even thought every one was ignoring Aeltred’s orders a pair of tables where dragged together for use as an examination table and with the girl laid on it Aetlred fell to investigating the girls wounds. He found only one more serious than the many minor scratches she had got form her precipitous gallop through the woods. She had an arrow through her left thigh which had entered from the outside about in the middle, missed the bone and whose head was partly protruding through the skin on the inside of it not far above the knee. The arrow was broken off with about a hand span of shaft still present.  Convinced that the arrow was barbed and needed to come out the way it had entered Aetlred griped the shaft sadly twisting it a little in the wound before pulling it free the girl passed out completely and the wound began to gush blood the arrow thought of an unusual sort was not barbed just very sharp and near Aeltred’s hand almost burning hot. He passed the remains of the arrow to Heradin so he could deal with the bleeding he strove to do that for just long enough to realise that the wound was beyond first aid and the girl would surely bleed out without healing magic Aetlred realising ha had messed up cast his eyes first at Telic and then to the crowd in rising panic.  Eventually or so it seemed the local priest of life’s fire the brewer Jarem Kalvir from the village of Ettis wall made his presence known and used his healing magic to stop the bleed. He then had something of a row with Aetlred which would have come to blows had not Telec intervened to break it up. Having been healed even slightly the wounded girl began to rouse. 

Mean while Heradin cast a practiced eye over the strange arrow head, it was dwarf work he realised and very fine, marked with a maker mark which resembled the dwarf runes for A&D in some sort of a monogram. He thought the head was possibly at least enchanted with a minor spell to resist corrosion, but couldn’t be sure as it was very fine work and may have been in a special alloy which served the same purpose. Unlike Aetlred he handled the arrow head and felt no heat form it at all.

Regaining consciousness the wounded girl revealed her name as Nyasse and told her tale, with a story tellers practiced tongue. The Girl was from a small village to the north no one at the inn had heard of she called the Hidden Dell and that she had come seeking help when the village was attacked by goblins. She had been in the village stables when the attack happened and immediately taken one of the villages few ridding horses and set off south. She had been chased by Goblins riding great dogs and in the chase she was wounded but even so remained on her horse and evaded the pursuit.

She said that she wanted to raise a company to go back to the village and drive off the Goblins and rescue her friends and family. There was some enthusiasm for this and some of the assembled company went off to don their armour and fetch their arms. Heradin was one of these returning to his quarters in the stables to fetch his sword. The only problem was that the girl insisted that she had to accompany the company despite an arrow wound which made it near impossible for her to walk. Several people including Aetlred and Telec tried to dissuade her unsuccessfully but she said no one would find the hidden dell without a guide who had lived there. During this conversation Aetlred not the best at social discourse left to get his gear form the Foreigners house. Just as he reached the back door the pursuing goblins caught up with Nyasse. Saw the Half elf alone in the yard drew their short bows and loosed all as a volley. Fortunately it was dark the goblins where poor shots tired form the long chase and most of the arrows missed, or just clipped the ranger none the less Aetlred was bleeding from at least two wounds when he stopped to catch his breath inside the door

Fortunately the rangers’ cry of GOBLINS! had woken the half ork warrior Fawlit who grabbed his trusty axes and charged past Aetlred who was crouched inside the shelter of the wall assessing the damage, screaming the vilest curses in orkish he knew, the goblins shot again but to little effect and spooked by the Half Ork’s wild charge and the number of armed individuals now issuing from the inn decided to abandon the pursuit and turned their mounts north and galloped off into the pre dawn gloom.

Realising this Aetlred left the Foreigners house and to the sound of Fawlit’s continued cursing at the backs of the fleeing Goblins and the milling crowd of armed folk outside the inn proper. He recovered what arrows he could from the goblins volleys at him and Fawlit. Aetlred was particularly pained to se Fawlit destroy a perfectly good arrow as part of his demonstration that the goblins where all cowards and used children’s weapons cowards weapons and should have come and fought him blade to blade. rant which became a tirade and which lurched from Orkish to Kalamarian and back with the curse words of a number of other languages thrown in. Recovering the arrows he could before Fawlit destroyed those as well Aetlred found another which radiated a fierce heat when his hand was near to the head.

Some time around this time Lalia who had been awakened by the commotion earlier but had taken no part not knowing if any one other than Aetlred had seen what had actually happened in the common room last night slipped out of one of the dormitory windows and took up a vantage point in the shrubs just beyond the inn yard but where she could still hear and see what was going on.

Mean while Aetlred called Telec and Heradin over to look at the second strange arrow. Telec could discern little of it’s of its origin or purpose but whist Heradin was examining it the penny dropped it was a bane arrow & its behaviour around Aetlred meant that it must be an elf bane arrow Aetlred winced at the thought and Heradin wondered why a dwarf would go to the trouble of making elf bane arrows when there where greater banes to dwarf kind than elves.

There was some chaos after the departure of the Goblin dog riders but eventually as dawn began to break order coalesced out of it, especially when Maragamir the innkeeper at A’Rakham Manor and the self appointed lord of that manor offered ten gold coins to every one who would avenge this outrage. The only problem was posed because Nyasse insisted that she had to come with the company as without her as a guide they would never be able to find her home village of The Hidden Dell, she would not explain herself further and in truth even though the master brewers healing magic had stopped the bleeding from her leg wound she could barely put weight on it to walk around the yard let alone take part in a cross country march. None the less she was insistent and Maragamir ordered the inn servants to lend her come travelling clothes and help her get ready. Giving in the inevitable and recognising an almost dwarf like stubborn courage Heradin suggested that she ride and with assistance she remounted her horse.  So when the company left at around mid morning she rode along with them retracing her wild ride of the previous night.

Aetlred found the fleeing goblins tracks and the company followed them until they became lost in the increasingly dense under growth of the thickening woods to the north of the inn after that he found the track of Nyasse’s horse and the track of a galloping shod horse proved easier to follow than the soft paws of the goblin’s riding dogs. As the company pushed its way through the undergrowth and wound between trees Aetlred became concerned that the company where being followed and leaving Telec to follow the easier trail he circled back searching but found nothing, even though he was certain they where being followed.

When the company had left Lalia had followed after them stealthily finding that their need to stop and search for tracks and the dense undergrowth she with her small stature and slight build could slip through slowed the big folk more. When Aetlred sensed with rangers field cunning her following, she played him at his own game and evaded him as a ghost might on a dark night without losing track of the company she had no intention of showing herself to any one in the company until she had discovered that it was safe to do so and none present save Aetlred knew what she had been up to and how the man at arms came to be stabbed the previous night.

By the middle of the afternoon the company had arrived at the edge of a deep dell in which sheltered a small village of half a dozen log cabins in the style of the Fillokki some small fields and a scatter of smaller buildings all seemed to have been fired but beyond the roves collapsing the thick log walls where intact and wood smoke drifted over the scene. The company initially halted at the lip of the dell whilst Aetlred and his ghostly follower Lalia scouted the settlement quickly finding that it had been toughly looted then burned. There was no sign of any of the inhabitants thought there were very many goblin tracks and large dog racks it became apparent that the goblins possibly as many as fifty with a couple of dozen dogs had gathered all the villagers and live stock together and marched them off to the north under escort before firing every thing they left behind.

At Nyasse’s insistence the company who where ready to press on north tarried long enough to investigate the village bolt hole a hidden cellar strangely decorated with broken chains a shrine Nyasse said but she used a name of the god which no one in the company would recognise. She also secretly recovered a number of small flasks whilst she was in the shrine and none but Lalia saw her drink one.

The company then headed due north to the lip of the Dell past the old watch house on the edge of the even thicker woods. Aetlred scouted ahead a short distance, following the wide trail the goblins and their captives had blazed, and Lalia  revealed herself to him as she knew that he was the only other person who she was sure knew the truth of what had happened in the inn’s great common room. They talked and then parted Lalia again concealing herself whilst both returned to the look out tree where the rest of the company where waiting.

Then as it was growing late in the day the company decided that it was better to take shelter in the ruins of the village for the night.

An outsider’s tale Part I

Violet had led her small band of refugees across the high pass just as soon as it was passable in the spring, but the journey had been hard even so from their winter camp.  Especially as they had been short on supplies all winter after the pursuit almost caught up with them and they had lost a significant amount of them throwing off the chase. The pass itself was no longer as safe as it had been. There had been an encounter with a band of Orcs who could not be persuaded to leave them be even after She had slain their leader in the single combat they had demanded they still attacked and she and Perkal killed several more orcs before the point was made.

Then two nights after they had slain her companion Perkal whilst he was on watch hacking his head off before she reached him. Several more orcs died on her blade and the young Filloki priest was avenged more perished when they learned that her night sight and archery skill was better than theirs.  The refugees had liked Perkal and where more distant with him dead and they argued about how he should be buried and not left to the carrion animals on the high pass as was the custom of his folk and by the time Violet had arrived at the cache by the water caves in the foot hills which she and Perkal had made the year before she was glad to leave them as they needed her no more being free from the slavery in which they had been held on the other side of the peaks until last summer. Violet headed back to the Hidden Dell to tell Perkal's father that his son who he had never quite approved of for following the priestly path had died like a warrior eye to eye with his foe and his sword hilt deep in the guts of the ork that killed him.

In this grim mood Violet unslung her bow and strung it and decided to take a short cut through the Spider wood just in case she had been followed, after all a little paranoia was a survival skill.    

Episode VII an unfortunate episode with spiders and preparations for war

Dramatis Personae

Telec - Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer
Aetlred - Half Elf Ranger
Lalia - Halfling Thief

Thans – Dwarf fighter thief
Heradin- Dwarf fighter mage

Dvorn the Axe- Folokkii Human Fighter

Sondan – Brandobian, Human Fighter

Fawlit – Half Ork Fighter

Nyasse - a wounded human girl

Location

The Village of Hidden Dell and the woods north of the village of Hidden Dell particularly the area known locally as the Spider wood.

Events

After an uncomfortable night in the ruins of the village sheltering in some cases rather reluctantly in the largest house which had what Telec described as a creepy cellar, the shrine as Nyasse described it rather worried him. The house had no roof and it rained enough a couple of times over night enough to make every one wake up and awaken at dawn rather damp and uncomfortable. The company had a breakfast of inadequately cooked trail rations which did little to improve the morale. During which Lalia who had aha a better night than the others sheltering in a nearby smaller house rejoined the company assured by what Aetlred had said the previous afternoon and her own eaves dropping  that it was safe to do so.

The majority of the company settled to breaking camp whilst Telec, having managed to get sufficient rest and had do the morning ritual to regain his spells, first offered to heal Nyasse’s injured leg which she having taken a healing potion the previous night demurred to conceal this and continued to act having a bad limp. Telec noticed that she was acting rather than still hurt and began to worry even more.

Aetlred attempting the role of leader which he being so very charismatically challenged  he is totally unsuited for  attempted to hurry every one along and get them moving and failing to do that he headed off to scout on his own whilst Telec Lalia and Thans   decided to have another look at the creepy cellar  in the absence of Nyasse. Here Lalia’s practiced eye found a hidden draw built into the icon at the south end of the room big enough to hold a number of fair sized vials and empty save for some packing straw. Lalia decided that this was likely where the girl had got the vial she had seen her drink and Telec was inclined to agree.  A further search revealed a secret door in the north wall and beyond it as the door was not locked a hidden room

Mean while an annoyed Aetlred made his way out of the dell to the watch tower easily climbed the tree and had a look over the surrounding terrain form the vantage of being thirty or so feet higher up. He paid particular attention to the north whence the goblins their captives and the stolen live stock had gone.  He saw a belt of thick woods closest to him which became lighter and increasingly interspersed with areas of heath as the land rose into the foot hills of the mountainous spur of the Laggosa range  however there was not trace of where the goblins might have been heading beyond that he already knew. He climbed down from the watch tower and inspected the trunk for signs and shortly found a number of symbols cut into the north side of the trunk some time ago. These he read as beware the risk of ambushes to the north. With this in mind he warily decided to scout north to determine the nature of the ambush threat.

The secret room was small, little more than a cell with a narrow bed made up and not slept in a wardrobe which was found to contain a selection of clothing a mixture of common travellers garb and women’s clothing form a number of cultures, some of which the well travelled Telec could put a name to some not, all apparently made for a tall lightly built individual as well as being of good but not flashy quality. The wardrobe also contained a mail shirt on a stand and a handful of longbow hunting arrows. The chest of draws had three draws all locked with a good lock but not one beyond the skills of Lalia to pick. The first two contained papers chiefly maps and plans but a couple of small books which looked to Telec likely  journals but which where written in a script the like of which Telec had never seen before, but which gave him shivers down the spine to look at,  and the bottom one neatly folded linen under tunics and other underclothes.  Telec Lalia and Thans spent quite some time looking through all the rest of the papers particularly the maps which proved rather interesting. Thans being a skilled map maker was not all that impressed with the local map but was sure that he could produce an accurate copy having seen it, thought the copy would be only as accurate as the original and he was distinctly dubious of any map drawn by a not dwarf.

Whilst that was going on the rest of the company finished breaking camp and waited with Nyasse reliving the wait with a comic song the subject of which was distinctly  unsuitable to be sung by some one her age  but caused the half ork to roll about on the floor laughing hysterically and every one else to cheer up considerably.

Meanwhile Aetlred now less annoyed and more wary continued to scout ahead. He crossed a small stream and coming to the area where the trees began to thin out again as he had seen form the watch tower came across the remains of a fight, the bodies of a half dozen goblins who had been torn limb form limb and the body of an elderly giant human wearing only a blooded and torn under tunic and covered in the sort of wounds the slashing knives and short spears of the goblins would cause. As well as having several arrows broken off and buried in his still massively muscled frame, suggesting that he had continued to fight long after they struck. The tracks here where very confused suggesting a melee containing several more goblins than where slain and the previous passage of the goblin raiders their captives and their loot. Aetlred was unable to glean much more from these tracks than he already knew and decided to turn back and see if they had finished fooling about in the village and where prepared to get on with things. He strayed off the track a little but he wasn’t lost and was making good progress following animal tracks through the thick woods and underbrush. He noticed a movement to his left and looking that way whist he continued generally south spotted half concealed by the trees and underbrush a huge mottled wolf spider stalking him. He sped up to a run and used all his rangers’ whiles and hunting skill to evade it. He managed to do so for a while but became aware that there was a second spider also hunting him and unable to evade both prepared to fight.

Back amidst the ruins of the village the company finally gathered it’s self and prepared to get under way as Telec Lalia and Thans came up form the creepy cellar and joined them. They made there way slowly up to the lip of the dell where Telec asked Nyasse why the watch tower had been built and was convinced that her reply that it was before her time and she had no idea was true but he still had suspicions about her and the cellar troubled him a great deal especially all those manacles.

Aetlred fought desperately manoeuvring to keep the two spiders apart dodging around trees and jabbing with his heavy spear, striking and striking hard but try as he might the spiders still evaded his point and bit him he felt the poison surge thought him and still he fought shaking his head fighting off the poison by act of will as much as native constitution. He kicked, and one spider’s hard carapace cracked and leaked ichor from the crack and Aetlred stabbed and   horror he drove is spear into the ground. He drew it back but too late the foul thing hit again and thought he was sure he had again fought off the poison the would alone was more than he could take and the fell to one knee and then slid into darkness.

Violet was aware of the spiders before she saw them an newly mated pair of the usually solitary creatures cute she thought grimly and look there was their conjugal supper hanging from the tree branch all wrapped up like a mummy in a shroud. She peered closer it looked humanoid and too big to be the usual stupid wandering goblin. Dam it all is it some one from the Dell & why are they up here every one knows not to leave the Dell its not safe that’s why they are there no where else is safe and the spider wood even more so.  She unslung her bow and knocked an arrow drawing the great bow back beyond her up pointed ear before losing. The spider jerked as the arrow punched through its carapace and it span round looking for the origin of the arrow. She drew and loosed as she had been taught and arrow after arrow pierced first one spider then the other and they jerked and spasmed as death came to them from a place unseen. When she was sure they where both dead Violet slung her great bow and drew her hunting knife, lets see who the marriage feast is shall we.

The company at the watch tower wondered what had become of Aetlred who at least some of them had seen stride off saying something about scouting when they where still eating half cooked nut porridge and breaking camp.

To his surprise Aetlred came round staring into his mothers face except it wasn’t his mother, it was quite the wrong colour for a start his mother was never pale purple. Neither did her hands glow with a soft radiant light like that. He started to remember he should be dead shouldn’t he yet his wounds or where he remembered where the spiders had bitten him and even the goblin arrows strike where hurting less and less. Then the glow stopped and he stopped feeling better and he became aware that this woman had cut his clothes to ribbons slicing him out of the spiders silk prison.  I am Violet she said in a tome which was both gentle and terrifying.  Who are you and what are you doing in the Spiders wood. Sensing that it was unwise to lie to this stranger Aetlred told her the exact situation and she helped him back to the tracks the raiders had left coming back from the Dell.

Blast it thought Violet seeing the tracks and identifying them easily the fool elf kin is telling the exact truth. Which made it another thing she was going to have to deal with as if the fact that a probable band of adventurers, and what in the blessed Guardians name where most of those except more mobile bandits with some what more diverse talents, had discovered the Hidden Dell at least this one owes me his life which might matter if he has a scrap of honour.

The woman kept chatting to Aetlred as they walked back to the towards the edge of the Dell, which should have put him some what at his ease except that she spoke with a disturbing lisp and flashed a set of teeth that looked more at home in the mouth of a snake than any sort of woman no not even an ork

Then Aetlred sighted the rest of the company gathered at the base of the watch house tree. Dvorn and Fawlit unshouldered and drew their axes and Telec recognising what manner of creature was walking next to Aetlred who was adding to the alarm looking even more than normally if he had been dragged through a hedge, or a bramble patch.  Only Nyasse reacted at all positively sliding off her horse all pretence of feigning continued injury abandoned and embraced the demon. It crossed Telec’s mind that they where all doomed and the whole thing was a malign plot.  He knew such creatures capable of such and had read reliable tales of them eating the still beating hearts of those they had seduced and worse.

Violet looked at the assembled company and thought them a sorry bunch but she was relived to see Nyasse the ward apparently in there midst of her own free will and even more so when the hose mad child slid off her horse and rushed forward to greet her. Violet brought a quick prayer the Guardian to mind and introduced herself.

Aetlred staggered back to join his companions and the half Ork said something probably in orkish and sniggered a bit or was that sneezed, and the woman with Violet skin making no threatening gesture what so ever separated herself from the girls embrace and standing alone formally  announced herself as Violet the Paladin of the Guardian of the Free.  The girl taking up a position just behind her. Telec was relived at that less so when she caught his relief and said that she was indeed half demon but that did not make her any the less that.

She talked with various in the company and seemed satisfied at least for now with their replies. Going on to suggest that she and they go forth to rescue the captives of Hidden Dell for the honour of The FREE. The conversation continued and it came out that most of the company where only here because the Landlord of A’Rakham manor had offered them ten gold each to avenge the slight that the goblin attack on the in had been.

In the end both parties came to a general agreement that they should work together during the course of which Aetlred blurted out about the dead elderly Folloki man and the goblins he had found on the trail ahead. Nyasse seemed genuinely upset at this but the woman who called herself the Paladin of the free did not react.

The company moved into the woods and followed the broad track left by the raiders and their captives and spoils until they reached the edge of a clearing before the line of bluffs, Violet had suggested might be the raiders base where it became apparent that Violet was right with the clearing much expanded by the clear felling of the sparse trees and the building of two crude corals and what seemed to be a hut or shed.

Episode VIII – The War Begins in earnest 

Dramatis Personae

Telec - Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer
Aetlred - Half Elf Ranger
Lalia - Halfling Thief

Thans – Dwarf fighter thief
Heradin- Dwarf fighter mage

Dvorn the Axe- Folokkii Human Fighter

Sondan – Brandobian, Human Fighter

Fawlit – Half Ork Fighter

Violet – Paladin of the free

Nyasse - a wounded human girl

Location

The woods and hills to the north of the village of Hidden Dell and in the caves and encampment of the goblin raiders

Events

The episode begins where the other left off with the company hidden by the edge of the forest observing the goblins camp and planning what they should do next. Shortly Lalia, Aetlred and violet go off scouting. Lalia disappears into the woodlands not to be seen for some while and Aetlred with Violet screening him scout the lay out of the clearing for the best angle off attack. Whilst every one else remained concealed by the tree line and the dense underbrush under it.

Crouched in cover and awaiting the return of the scouts the rest of the company watched the clearing ahead intently. At the back of the clearing was a steep slope with scree and lose rocks obvious between the grass and scattered brambles and gorse bushes on top of that slope was a wooded ridge. The face of the slope was marked with three caves making the appearance of a lopsided face the largest of the caves was at ground level and from it issued a broad muddy path edged with trampled grass which seemed to be the end of the track that the goblin raiders had made form the village of Hidden Dell even if the amount of mud and trampling suggested that it had more use here than most of the rest of the way  to the right of that broad path was the smaller of the two stockades both constructed from rough posts driven into the ground and reinforced by a haphazard weaving of brush and thinner branches through them. The result looked very primitive and rather crude but the fighters in the company had no doubt as to the effectiveness of it as a barrier. Behind the smaller stockade was some sort of shed but it was hard to see as it was largely obscured by the stockade in front of it. To the eastern side of this stockade was a tall post seemingly made from a pollarded tree toped by an inverted cone made of a basket work of thin branches. The stockade on the west was similar but significantly larger and perhaps newer as the interwoven branches still sported the occasional green leaf.  Either side of this was two structures similar to the one on the eastern stockade differing only in that these where not built round a tree but around sturdy rough hewn posts.

The pair first scouted to the east and considered making their move from that side but decided to scout the around the other side as Aetlred was concerned about the company having to cross a wide area of relatively open ground on his side where the trees and underbrush had been cleared. Likely to build the two stockades and the shed they could see in the clearing and all the long grass like that in which they where now hiding trampled down. It was also not clear quite what the posts where for. So the two moved to the west where it quickly became apparent that the larger western stockaded coral contained all of the animals looted form the Hidden Dell and those they where all cramped together, untended and stinking, with the cows in milk in some considerable distress as it was clear they had not been milked since before the raid. It was some what worrying that no goblins had been seen about so far and that for all they peered into them the stockades and the odd structures atop posts which might have been hiding them neither Aetlred nor Violets practiced eye could spot anything hidden.

With that the two scouts returned to where the company was hidden and there was a discussion as to what to do. Telec a man of wide travels noted that the structures on top of posts resembled those used by hobgoblins as raised watch points and the goblins being kin might use similar. He also said that many human cultures used the same sort of structure to build beacons and that they could therefore be either. In the end it was decided to strike form the west as it was upwind of the trapped live stock and they where less likely to smell humans and sensing relief from their distress give the game away. The company moved round to the west well inside the tree line crossing the shallow beck out of sight and sound of any watching goblins and finally as before halting on the edge of the trees

Once again Aetlred and Violet went forward moving through the sheltering long grass with ease before they finally spotted a solitary goblin in the crude basket work of branches atop the furthest western post. Both Aetlred and Violet drew their bows and loosed. Both missed and readied their bows again hoping that the goblin watchman did not notice his lucky escape he did not. They both drew and loosed again Violet missed driving an arrow into the post below the basket, Aetlred struck home but not at all hard as the arrow was slowed passing trough the woven screening twigs and almost stopped by the layers of fetid furs that the goblin guard used as armour. The goblin could not fail to notice this and readied his own bow whilst scanning the ground before him for the archers he knew where there but could not see. Aetlred moved closer for a better shot and the goblin saw the grass move and still not seeing a target dropped his bow and blew his signal horn.

Violet signalled the retreat and she and Aetlred made for the relative safety of the trees edge whilst the goblin camp roused behind them and most wooingly the air was rent with further more distant horn calls and the barking of large dogs which grow lest distant by the moment.  At the woods edge Violet took charge sending the company west whilst she took off at a loping run to the south. The company fled with as much stealth as they could muster at speed fording the beck well inside the woods and then following it as it wound its way north and west to where it issued from the scarp. There they halted and considered entering the narrow cave but eventually dwarven wisdom about water and caves being a poor mix prevailed. All the while they listened out for sounds of a pursuit closing in but it would seen that whatever Violet had planed had worked at least that well  it kept the goblins and their massive ravening hounds of the companies backs.

As they where discussing the merits of going into the cave it came to Than’s that the ridge above them was the continuation of the one in which the abandoned dwarf test mine had been dug from which he had cleared those goblin bandits from the previous spring More relaxed the company decided to return to the goblin camp along the wooded ridge line which they do relatively easily being sure that the goblins are not guarding this angle of approach  It is still getting late by the time the company arrive in a position above the goblin camp. Further discussion occurs as to weather they should strike at the goblins or wait to see if Violet returns. Now confident the company decides to press on. Sending Thans down to the east most or upper cave as it’s the only one that the companies one hundred feet of rope will reach and the slope is far too steep and covered with lose stones to be scrabbled down safely without the aid of a rope. Thans is very careful to make sure that the only other dwarf in the group is in charge of the rope. At the cave Thans discovers a narrow shelf off rock forming a sort of an apron outside the cave little more than five feet at it’s widest and that the cave entrance is blocked by a lattice of interlaced branches. Thans signals and Fawlit the half ork is sent down as he is best able to clear this obstacle with his bestial strength.

Thans crouched in the entrance to the cave looking into the darkness as Fawlit descended the rope he could see nothing in the dark of the cave, beyond the grill, even with his superior dwarven vision, consoling himself that this meant there was no one there he waited and in due course the half ork reached the apron in front of the grill. Fawlit placed the shaft of the axe beaten his teeth as a dwarf might a knife and griping the wooden grill tore it asunder and rolled through the gap.  There was a silence a distinctly goblin squawk of alarm and three goblins charged into view. Thans drew his daggers they where only goblins and he was sure he could take three with ease after last spring. It did not alarm him therefore when Fawlit appeared stunned until after the first arriving goblin tried to knife him. Thans duelled with two goblins matching their petty knife strikes with his mighty blows. Then the Half ork gained his wits and bringing his shield into play moved to attack his axe sending his opponent sprawling before he turned on the two fighting Thans distracting them and allowing Thans to disengage and move to strike form behind. He wounded both goblins before Fawlit finished one off and the second stated to back off realising it was going to die otherwise. Unfortunately neither of them noticed the goblin Fawlit had sent sprawling recover and scamper off as they drove his comrade back and slew him amidst the bedding in which he and his allies had been skulking.

The fight over the rest of the company climbed down the rope and took stock, Aetlred managed to find the goblins solitary bow before Fawlit a well known hatter of missile arms did and then he fell to tending the minor scratches the goblins had managed to deal out. Thans searched the bedding and the corpses recovered the goblins small stash of copper and bronze trade coins. Before examining the low passage the escapee had used and declaring that it was dug and badly not a natural cave.

Outside the company noticed that the pursuit group had returned with empty saddles and some hunting dogs missing, others limping and it would seem Violet had pulled something and that the goblins had had the worst of it

An outsider’s tale Part II

It all went a bit wrong not that Violet did not expect it to all conflict is by nature chaotic and one should always be prepared to cope with set backs. Violet signalled the company to go west and was rather pleased when they did as she really did not want to risk a stand up fight in an open field which would allow the goblins the advantage of numbers which they had in spades she had no doubt. She broke cover and ran out of range of the dog mounted archers but so they would see her easily and ran as fast as she could towards the southern woods edge. Here seeing Nyasse still holding onto the horse she sent her back to the Hidden Hell. Having most of ones wards kidnapped was only going to be made worse by having another killed. Violet concentration as she had on the campaign against the slavers of Kalamaria and the east had forgotten or to be kinder to herself taken her eye off the general dangers of living on the edge of the wilderness.

The goblins would have to be dealt  with severely  and something more would have to be done to protect the Hidden Hell There would have to be a militia or something organised and perhaps the Hidden Dell would have to cease to be quite so hidden after all its secrecy had not protected it form this danger. That however was for the future for now the goblins needed to be lead away to give the others a chance of coming up with a opportunity to strike  perhaps form an unexpected angle Violet wished them well and fell to leading the goblins to their doom.

Her options where limited the goblins knew about the spider woods she guessed and they are lazy creatures so leading them a long way was out of the question, they would just give up and go home tired but un punished  if she tried that. Then it came to her and her course changed to the west into a part of the woods she had only been to once and which the previous champion had described as a very bad place indeed.
Violet ran showing herself often enough to encourage the goblin pursuit to continues when her hunters sense told her that the wicked creatures might be losing interest.  They loosed the odd arrow at long range but none struck home. Even so after less than three hours chase the creatures began to lose interest and Violet was forced to ambush them well short of her objective and they fled faster than she could give chase after her arrows emptied a couple of saddles and took down one of the dogs. She sensed that the dog pack would have continued but the goblins had no heart for it and she had used up all her meagre supply of arrows so she turned back to the Hidden dell to pick up more form her cache.

An interlude for one character -which takes place at the same time as Episode VIII

Dramatis Personae

Lalia - Halfling Thief

Location

The woods and hills to the north of the village of Hidden Dell and in the caves and encampment of the goblin raiders

Events

Lalia slipped away from the group as Violet and Aetlred left on there own separate scouting attempt well aware of her own near invisibility in natural surroundings. She followed the pair as they swung off to the left and soon caught the distinctive smell of large unfriendly dog something all too familiar to any Halfling of a larcenous bent as just about every Halfling farm kept at least one large and usually unfriendly dog and they made acquiring stuff from them a little too interesting at times. Lalia decided to leave them to it when it became apparent that they where going to try to enter the camp from that side and even on her rather short legs was out of earshot by the time Violet and Aetlred moved around the other side.

Lalia made her way along the base of the scarp to the east not wanting to climb it as it was very bad going with all those lose stones and offered little cover to the climber even if you where prepared to make the effort. About a mile to the east of the goblin camp Lalia came across a deep gully which scared the scarp and which under all the underbrush which filled it appeared to be an ancient set of stone steps going up the scarp. This was much easier going and the cover was better as there was plenty of vegetation along the sides of the gully.

Lalia cautiously advanced up the stairs comfortable that her movements could not be observed at the top of the stairs was an open area the edges of which where slightly over grown such as to be largely indeterminate. In the middle of this paved area was a low circular plinth edged with three broad shallow steps so that all in all it was around waist height for Lalia all like the steps in the gully where very heavily worn and weathered and in the centre of which where some small stumps spaced as if they had once been the ends of legs of a table of perhaps the hooves of a quadruped statue but time had more them down beyond recognition as more than almost shapeless lumps. Lalia had a good look at the plinth until she was sure it held no secrets that she could discern then she continued to explore the ridge line back to the west in the direction of the goblin camp and the caves. Lalia wandered for some time through an area of open woods along the crest of the ridge and on the upper portions of its back slope. Until some where near the entrance to the goblin caves and their camp but down the back slope of the ridge she found a dimple in the lush turf where the earth had given way and quite recently. Some careful investigation revealed that the dimple revealed a sink hole and quite a deep one at that. Lalia was careful not to fall into the sink hole and as she was lacking rope unable to explore down it with any safety. Some where about this point Lalia who had been quite happy exploring solo fell to wondering what her friends where up to and thinking to perhaps tell them of her findings she went looking for them

Episode IX – A Tactical withdrawal and some inter-party conflict 

Dramatis Personae
Telec - Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer
Aetlred - Half Elf Ranger
Lalia - Halfling Thief
Thans – Dwarf fighter thief
Heradin- Dwarf fighter mage
Dvorn the Axe- Folokkii Human Fighter
Sondan – Brandobian, Human Fighter
Fawlit – Half Ork Fighter

Location
The caves and encampment of the goblin raiders the woods along the ridge line and a very old and abandoned dwarf hold adjacent to it.

Events
(the action starts in the upper eye cave following on directly from the conclusion of the previous episode it is late afternoon or early evening and its been a long day, and a very long one for others)

The company except for Lalia continued to mill about in the cave and consider what to do next for a while. Eventually it was decided to send Thans down the tunnel the goblin had escaped down to take a lot whilst every one else continued to mill round and Heradin tried to hide his fearful eying of the narrow tunnel which looked like where they where going down next. At some point around then the rope was removed and Heradin who every one else assumed was watching it at this end being to concerned with hiding his rising terror at the prospect of going down a narrow tunnel failed to notice.  Thans scouted the tunnel almost to its end but did not leave it as it was apparent that the tunnel opened out into the mouth cave near enough to the entrance of the latter for any one doing so to be silhouetted against the fading daylight coming in from the outside, not sensible for a scout when the goblins where likely warned of the company’s presence and equipped with bows.

Thans scanned the cave but even with his superior dwarf vision could see little, it was a large cave as could have been guessed from the size of the mouth with a high roof some twenty and more feet his practiced eye said. He noticed that the mouth of the cave was blocked by a crude lattice of branches lashed together as the other one had He noticed the tracks of many passing on the mud floor of the cave and the scrapes made by the central section of the grill blocking the caves entrance having been moved in the manner of a gate, he noticed shapeless piles of stuff which could have been any thing and the over powering stink of dogs and goblins However most importantly he noticed no goblins what so ever suggesting that the disgusting little creatures if present where in some sort of a craven ambush. It being unwise for even a dwarf to spring an ambush he decided to report back and see if the whole company would come to a decision unlikely as there where entirely too few dwarves in it for sense to prevail.  

Back in then eye cave Thans report did not stir any one to action, they company had decided that it was trapped and to press the attack would only further advantage the goblins who where no doubt waiting to lose a volley of arrows into any one exiting the tunnel. Telec suggested that it might be better if the company again withdrew which they did despite posturing from Dvorn who proposed valuably charging out of the end of the tunnel and taking them in a wild charge until it was suggested that he lead such a charge, They looked out of the entrance and saw two goblin archers crouched bows in hand on the roof of the shed below, Aetlred viewed half fearfully half greedily the pile of arrows beside each goblin and then some one noticed the rope was missing.

A mild wave of panic insured as the missing rope almost certainly meant that the goblins had found it and almost certainly also had archers on the top of the ridge to shoot down. The shot up was possibly worth the risk as the mouth of the eye cave was almost out of short bow shot form below and shooting up hill was always going to be a poorer shot. Than down not to mention the top of the slope being nearer than the shed below any way. Trapped it was decide that they needed to know what was at the top of the ridge so Telec had Fawlit start shouting down the tunnel in orkish as loud as he could and shortly every one else joined in shouting as loud as they could. At the same time Thans slipped out of the cave and started to scramble up the scree, difficult without the help, of a rope but not impossible for a bold dwarf. Down below the goblin archers drew and loosed there arrows dropping short as Thans made the apex above the cave mouth then a few feet up before slipping as every one in the cave made an unholy din. The Goblin archers at the limit of their range drew and loosed one last time whilst any goblin archers on the crest of the ridge held their fire. One arrow went astray the second found its mark catching Thans in the leg thought the skirts of his leather armour. Still wounded or not he pressed on now out of range of the archers below and made the crest with no further incident.

Here Thans found no waiting goblins indeed he found no one but the rope had been untied form the stout tree Heradin had tied it round and was no where in sight. Further there was no sign at all of who might have done this until Lalia appeared out of nowhere with a smile. Thans had a brief chat with Lalia and the two swapped tales of what they had been doing. The ending of Thans reminded him quite why he had come up here and he asked Lalia if she had any rope and when she said she did he borrowed off her and swiftly secured it around the stout tree and lowered the other end down the slope.

Much to the relief of the rest of the company in the cave who one at a time and in initially under fire from the goblins below climbed and scrambled up it. The goblins below missed with the first few volleys of arrows and either ran out of arrows or tired of the game by the time the last of the company scrambled free of the cave and up the slope above.

The company regrouped in the woods on the crest of the ridge and Lalia told them that she had found a possible back way in and some steps asking if they wanted to be shown them. The rest of the company decided that they did and there was time before night fall to do so. Unfortunately in the discussion several members of the company conflated the back way in Lalia spoke of with the steps she also mentioned and it was decided to look at the steps first. So being a basically happy and obliging young Halfling Lalia lead the company just over a mile east along the track to the plinth and dais and adjacent steps, incidentally a mile  further away from the possible back way in which was a mere couple of hundred yards back from where they started at the top of the reverse slope. On arriving at the steps every one had a good look at them and the other exposed stone work and on the basis that it might be dwarf work had the two dwarves present Thans and Heradin examine it in more detail but all they could add was that it was dwarf work and very old. Telec suggested that it might have something to do with the dwarf hold they had found earlier at Meliac’s farm. Sondan asked innocently where the entrance was as he couldn’t see any thing that looked like an entrance, the stairs after all only lead down the face of the scarp.

To with Lalia replied that, it was just in the woods behind where they had met her. There was some grumbling in the ranks at this point and Aetlred in particular was more than a bit aggrieved, he still hurt form his encounter with the spiders, had had a long hard day and a rather bad time of it and this was almost too much, especially if you added in the stupid dwarf going on ad nauseam about how much better dwarves where than any one else at just about any thing you thought to mention, blasted Dwarves blasted Halflings blasted adventurers and thrice blasted adventuring. Even so Lalia did not notice the mood building and cheerfully lead the company back a mile west along the ridge line and then a little down its back slope, to where a dimple in the thick turf between the scattered trees of the wood revealed a sinkhole.

Lalia explained that she had not looked down the hole as she had at the time had no rope to allow her to lower herself down it, but now she did as she had found a hundred feet of it tied round a tree just before she had met up with the rest of the company so they could use her rope. Aetlred realised that this was the rope he and Telic had given to Heradin who had tied it around the tree to make Thans and the Half Ork’s decent to the eye cave easier, it was his rope, at least in part, and the blasted thieving Halfling had better give it back. “Give me my rope back” he growled, to which Lalia replied defiantly and a bit to cheerily “shan’t it’s my rope now finders keepers”.

Aetlred already had his bow out and had had all the way both ways to the stairs and back with an arrow knocked but not drawn in case of ambush. “Give me my rope back” as he spoke Aetlred drew the bow, no one least of all Lalia thought he would loose at her “finders keepers” she said again.  Aetlred snapped and loosed the arrow before he could have a second thought it struck Lalia at a range of may be ten feet it couldn’t very well do any thing else, every one was stunned.

Lalia looked down at the arrow lodged in her, then up at Aetlred who had knocked another arrow and was drawing the bow again, and smiling grimly. “All right you can have your rope back if it’s so important” Aetlred relaxed for a moment then Lalia slowly and deliberately snapped the arrow. Aeltred’s anger flared again but Heradin intervened.  The dwarf calmly suggested that they stop this as they where there after all to fight goblins not each other. Every one else looked on tired from a long day and still more than a little stunned that the disgruntlement all of them felt had flared into violence, Aetlred glared at the Dwarf, blasted interfering dwarves he thought then he remembered that he had given Heradin four of his precious arrows “you can give me my arrows back” he said Heradin said nothing but drew the small bundle of arrows from his belt and handed them to the Half Elf  before adding calmly “you had better see to that” indicating the arrow lodged in Lalia and the blood trickling out form around it. Aetlred put down his bow and the arrows and moved to attend to the Halflings wound. The moment of crisis had passed at least for now.   

After a short rest whilst Aetlred saw to Lalia’s arrow wound the company turned its thoughts to what to do about the sinkhole. There was some discussion and it was decided that Thans who had become the company’s designated scout in such circumstances should be lowered down the hole with Lalia as back up.

A few hacks of Fawlit’s axe cleared the unsupported turf away form the top of the sinkhole whilst Thans and Heradin secured a length of rope around a convenient tree and Thans looped the rope around his waist and prepared to descend. The hole was narrow but wide enough to admit a Dwarfs shoulders, it descended around twenty feet into a roughly round chamber. The sort of chamber which might have been made a vortex of running water over a long time. To the north the passage quickly narrowed to the point of impassability though Thans was sure that it widen out again beyond the impassable squeeze there was simply no way of knowing. To the south the passage also narrowed from the point of entry but not to the point of impassability remaining just about wide enough for a Dwarf to pass without contorting himself and for a tall Dwarf like Thans to walk upright without the ceiling catching his hair. It was as black as pitch down here and even his superior Dwarf night vision would not have aid him much without the aid of the guttering torch the Half Elf had made.

Thans proceeded carefully down the passage as natural caves where unpredictable things even with out the possibility of the malignant interference of creatures like goblins to consider. However the passage continued south and perhaps a little west for several minutes before Thans cautiously advanced food found void not floor beneath it. He rolled his weight back and moved back away from the edge. Marking it by leaving his guttering brand near to its entrance and went back to fetch the Halfling so she could hold the torch whilst he had a good look down the hole. The torch was too close and impeded his night vision if he held it himself and it would be bad if he alerted any goblins of yet another approach, it was irritating enough that the fool Half Elf and Half Ork had already managed to do so twice.  Lalia descended the sinkhole with a torch of her own, Halflings do not see any better than Humans in that sort of dark and met the dwarf in the chamber at the base of it and was rather unceremoniously told to follow Thans, had she not been a happy soul this being treated as the help might have offended especially after the shooting incident. She had considered waking in the night and breaking every one of Aeltred’s precious arrows, but she was not spiteful and that would endanger every one. Lalia followed as she was bid and stopped where she was bit. The Dwarf knelt to look into the hole whilst Lalia looked into the short distance of the other tunnel she could see on the other side of the hole and wondered if there where any spiders down here. 

Thans looked down the hole and his practiced eye estimated that it descended some twenty feet before entering the larger cave below. He could see little of the cave below but a few points of flickering red orange light suggesting torches and his nostrils caught a faint tang of greasy smoke from them. It was apparent that the large cave below held at least part of the goblin camp and was either behind the mouth cave they had seen form outside or was the back of it. He considered it as an angle off attack, but could see little virtue in it as such as any attacker must descend by rope and being caught part way up or down a rope is a bad place to begin a fight. He decided that he should put his observations to the rest of the company.

By the time Thans and Lalia exited the sinkhole it was dark and with the company almost exhausted it was decided to make camp and rest as best they could for the night. It became apparent as it had the previous night when the company had camped in the ruins of the hidden dell that they where ill equipped and unprepared fro a stay out in the wilderness. Worse caution counselled that they should not light any fires in case they attracted the attention of any wandering goblins and because of this all they had to eat was the uncooked fruit porridge which those of them who had any trail rations at all had a few days supply of, not intended to be eaten cold and uncooked still it served to take the edge of the hunger if not improve the mood.  After this mean supper the company who had no tents and little bedding fell to making some sort of shelter with little success and only Telec woke relatively refreshed in the morning as a result. Every one else was either cold or uncomfortable and some of the more unfortunate where wakened by the rains which fell as a sharp shower about three am and which caused the trees under which many had sheltered to drip mightily there after. At dawn and every one was awake by then if not before the mood of the company had not improved even if they where a little rested and that breakfast was the same uncooked fruit porridge as supper had been only tended to make things worse. Telec however experienced at roughing it had made a good shelter and rested well enough to be able to heal one of the worst wounded. Telec’s relatively better mood than the rest of the company proved to be remarkably uncontagious.

After a discussion over the rather unsatisfactory breakfast it was decided to send Thans and Lalia back down the sinkhole to further explore it.  The initial plan being that every one else remain on the surface until they had but worries about possible goblin patrols lead all to them to descend with Thans and Lalia leading the way. Heradin screwed up his courage to the sticking point and went with them even thought he would have much preferred to be left on the surface guarding the rope.

The company edged its way along the passage slowly until they reached the first hole where they stopped and Thans again peered down the hole. This time he saw a great cooking fire below and several scurrying goblins. Smoke and the smell of meat cooking rose up the hole causing some of the company’s eyes to run and all there stomachs to grumble after all they had all breakfasted on uncooked fruit porridge whiles the blasted goblins seemed to be roasting a whole animal at the very least.  There was some discussion as to weather and how best to use the hole as a way of attacking the Goblins below but as no one could come up with a plan which had any chance of success the company turned its mind to exploring further on. There was some further discussion and Aetlred still perhaps annoyed from the night before suggested that Fawlit should hurl the Halfling across. However more sensible counsel won the day an it was decided that Lalia should indeed cross but using the shafts of Aeltred’s spear and Telec’s staff as an aid and that she do so roped to the massively strong Half Ork.

Lalia crossed on the second attempt and scouted a little way ahead before it was decided that it would be better if Thans crossed as he could see better in the dim light. Some one Passed Lalia a torch. The passage continued straight on for a short distance, perhaps a yard of two beyond the limit of Lalia’s sight the previous night Then the he passage widened made a shallow turn to the left and ended in a second much larger sink hole thought which Thans could see day light filtering in from the cave below and he quickly worked out that the second sink hole opened into the roof of the mouth cave fairly near the entrance. However of much more interest to Thans than the location of the sinkhole’s opening was that the last four or so feet of the sink hole passage was made of worked stone. It showed some signs of wetter wear but it was sound and Thans though of Dwarven origin having been laid without mortar. That the stone was not perfect suggested that it was the back of a wall rather than the front.

Thans worked at the stone work at the end of the sink hole with care knowing he could work the stones free of the wall and yet not wanting to drop the stones down the adjacent sink hole and alert the goblins below. Being a Dwarf he succeeded in the task and found himself looking into a void beyond the wall. This void with the aid of his torch and his very much superior dwarven night sight resolved into a shaft around forty feet square with a stair well built around the wall descending from a collapse some distance above and ending in a large hall may be fifty feet below the broad landing that the hole in the wall he had made opened on to. The stairs where wide upwards of fifteen feet to his cartographers eye and relatively shallow. The hall below was at least twice the size of the stair well but even a Dwarf could not accurately measure it by eye, from this distance. Every thing was covered by rock dust and a scatter of small bits of rubble probably from the collapse which blocked long ago the stair above but the air was fresh and there was no sign at all that any creature had been in the place in a very, very long time indeed. Thans got up and returned to the rest of the company to report his findings leaving Lalia who had been behind him whilst he worked the stones out holding the torch to guard both the hole and the terminal sink hole.

The rest of the company followed him quickly to where Lalia crouched and entered the stair well regrouping on the landing on the other side of the hole Thans had made; Heradin in particular was relived to be out in a larger space after the discomfort of the cramped passage. Shortly the company descended the stair putting the first foot prints in the dust fall.

At the base of the stair there was indeed a wide hall high hall, square in plan like the stair at its centre but at least a hundred feet to each side and decorated with a brightly painted bass relief frieze, in the flickering torch light the frieze almost seemed to be alive. The company moved out into the hall obviously some sort of grand entrance hall but one given the subject of the freeze with a very singular message to impart.

The frieze here was divided into panels by the three archways exiting the hall to the north east and west as well as the corners of the hall depicted a pitched battle between Elves and Dwarves in relatively open country. It showed mailed elves largely fighting on foot supported by a few mounted warriors and the Dwarves all fighting mounted either as lightly or even unarmoured horse archers or as massively heavily armoured cataphracts armed some times with bows and massive two handed lances but mostly with long handled axes, mace’s and a few long chopping swords and hammers. The flow of the battle showed the Elves confidently advancing against the Dwarves. Then the Elves   horsemen being chased off by the much more numerous Dwarven horse and then a rather one sided battle between the Dwarven horse and the Elven foot. With the former forced into squares bristling with spears and backed up by longbowmen by the Dwarves then systematically slaughtered first by storms of short bow arrows fired by the Dwarven horse archers who seemed to take little hurt in reply for the Elven archers despite many of them being depicted in no armour at all. Then by the cataphracts who advanced plying their own bows before charging into the beleaguered Elven squares and smashing them and riding those down with the few Elves who survived the slaughter and broke for the next square being cut down by the returned horse archers.

The final panel, which took up the whole of the south wall showed a wounded and obviously beaten Elf Lord surrendering to the Dwarven commander and the last and rather pitiful survivors of his army being lead into captivity behind him. Just behind the Dwarf commander one of his men was standing on what appeared to be the Elves battle banner as it lay amongst the mud and the blood the symbols on which looked to Telec a lot like those used by the Overlord worshiping men of Pell Brolenon in the South of Brandobia, not that he had ever seen them in person but the priests of the wayfarer are if relatively few very well travelled and well informed about the world beyond their own travels by the very nature of their calling. This observation lead Telec to go back and look at all the other panels for religious symbols and whilst he found many he could not identify those he could on the Elven side seemed to be of the Overlord, The Flay master and the Emperor of Scorn those on the Dwarven side seemed to be less identifiable but those he could where mostly those of The Speaker of the Word and The True. Though the most common was that of a radiant flame which he could not identify, however this was so old he mused that the symbols of the very gods may have altered since then.

Having explored the entrance hall and had a good look at the frieze around it the company discussed where they should head next. They had already noted that of the three exits form the entrance hall the north one seemed to be the most important as the frieze along its walls depicted expensively clad members of several races some of whom the members of the company could identify but others not all carrying rich merchandise and at the end by the door kneeling to present them as gifts. The passage was fully twenty feet wide and some fifteen feet high at the apex of the roof, a roof which was formed of complex interlocking structure of Romanesque arches and heavily decorated with abstract geometric designs large bosses like stone lanterns formed a line down the apex of the arches where they crossed. No where in the passage way was there any indication as to how it might have been lit.

As the company reached within a few feet of the door an image of a dwarfs head wearing an elaborate cap similar to the one Telec Aetlred and D’rek had seen at the hold under Meliac’s farm. As before it spoke but this time only in an oddly accented Dwarvish “speak friend and enter”. At which Thans and Heradin who being Dwarves understood it started to formally introduce themselves in the manner of Dwarves, by reciting their lineages. Unfortunately Telec also understands Dwarvish and began to repeat the word friend in all of the languages he knew, nothing happened until he said it in low Elvish at which point an orb dropped out of the ceiling marked with an eye symbol. The eye scanned the hall as every one in the corridor bolted back into the entrance hall and took cover. Seconds passed nothing happened and the initial panic receded but everyone decided that they should explore the other ways out of the entrance. It was also decided that not one should speak Elvish again. Aetlred even going so far as top suggest no one should speak Brandobian as that was a language which had been heavily influenced by Elvish and might sound Elvish enough to set off others of whatever the eye globe was. No one knew for certain but every one felt sure it was some sort of fell magical trap. A trap which was designed to protect the place form elves which where it would seem the deadly foes of the builders. Aetlred was beginning to feel persecuted as this built upon the earlier find of the Dwarf made Elf bane arrow heads.

The company taking care not even to cross line of sight of the eye globe moved to explore the less elaborately decorated passage way which lead west out of the entry chamber. This was decorated like the hall to the north with a fries along the middle of the wall but this showed animals gambling about in an idyllic rural scene rather than battle or the races off the world coming bearing tribute. This passage was other wise very much like that leading to the north.

It ended after what Thans thought was perhaps half a mile in a chamber full of obviously dwarven style buildings though it was odd to find such buildings of the type Dwarves typically build on the surface so far underground, or underground at all for that matter. The chamber resembled a village or town square with prominent stone troughs full of dead earth which Lalia thought must have been flower beds  and looking up in the high vaulting there where signs that once long ago there might have been some sort of a skylight.

The buildings themselves where modest and had for the greater part been long ago stripped of any furnishings only the occasional stone shelves built into the walls and the scars of where other fittings might once have been attached gave any clue that they had ever been furnished, but no clue as to their former function. The company found two doors in the houses cut into the walls of the chamber itself both where locked but neither proved a problem for Lalia’s deft hands. The one in the house in the north east corner of the square lead into a large empty and featureless room, the other was more interesting as it appeared to open into an armoury. This had largely been long since striped of every thing and all that remained where several rows of crosses on one of which hung a coat of mail and plates the like of which the Dwarves in the battle frieze where wearing. Along the walls where empty stone shelves and the signs that wooden or iron weapon racks had been attached to the walls beneath them. The armour was heavy well made and though made for a Dwarf would wear well on the shoulders of a taller slimmer man by dint of not reaching quite so far down their legs. It seemed not to have been enchanted thought Heradin was sure at the very least minor ones against the effects of age had been used as it seemed to be intact and in good repair. After some discussion it was decide that form now Telec should wear it and he duly striped off the breast plate shoulder guards and bracers of his leather armour and put it on over the soft leather under armour. It did indeed fit but Telec would become aware latter that he needed to wear more substantial and differently designed under armour for it to be truly comfortable for long.

Having exhausted any interest in further searching these empty houses the company unable to go any further in this direction and still wanting to explore whilst avoiding the probable trap they had at least armed on the tribute corridor made a move back to the entrance and after a sort discussion it was decided to see what lay down the as yet unexplored rustic corridor. This continued Thans estimated for a similar distance east as the other had west and ended in a hall again containing buildings. These the company explored finding them all to be empty and stripped of all furnishings and most of the fittings. They where on the whole smaller than the buildings in the previous area but most of these had two stories and where given that they where subdivided into more rooms possibly living quarters. This cluster of for want of a better description houses where built around what was apparently at least central garden, now nothing more than barren soil and there was again some sort of sky light in the roof above.

This hall differed form the first in a second way this time there was an exit form it other than the way the company which had entered. Following that lead to a cross roads. To the east and north where more passageways with rustic friezes down the walls to the west however was what appeared to be a duplicate of the tribute corridor judging by the  frieze on the wall. Heradin did note that this frieze contained a completely different set of tributary peoples and goods being brought as tribute.

As their setting off of the probable trap in the other similar corridor had not it would seem had any effect here and as it was the most interesting option the company decided to go that way. They did so with caution and care not to speak any language which might set off a trap.

Again as the company reached within a few feet of the door an image of a Dwarfs head wearing an elaborate cap similar to the one Telec Aetlred and D’rek had seen at the hold under Meliac’s farm. As before it spoke but this time only in an oddly accented Dwarvish “speak friend and enter”. This time only Telec spoke saying only the word friend in Dwarvish. The door slid aside revealing a massive hall once again decorated with a brightly painted bas relief frieze.

The tribute hall now the company had finally entered it was easily as large as the entrance hall they had first encountered and like it, it was decorated with a vividly painted bass relief frieze of a battle between Elves and Dwarves. In the middle of the hall and taking up much the same sort of area as the stair well had in the entrance hall was a slightly raised circular dais with an elaborately carved stone on its edge to the north and to the south. These stones were pierced by an elaborately faceted gem the size of a man’s head and seemed unnervingly like some sort of grave marker.

Apart from the dais there was a large double door in each of the walls round witch the frieze flowed with the doors and for that matter the corners of the room breaking the frieze into a number of separate but linked scenes. The doors themselves where relatively plain being each decorated with a simple abstract pattern carved into the stone and unlike the frieze these where unpainted.

The battle depicted on the scenes of the frieze seemed to be taking place deep in Elven woodland and was between Elves and Dwarves as before this time the Dwarves where mostly on foot and all in very heavy armour and unlike the fist battle scene there seemed also to be a magical battle going on at the same time with a circle of Elven wizards apparently losing to a lone Dwarf spell caster as heavily armoured as the warriors around him. The Dwarves seemed to be getting the better of both battles and the final scene was of what appeared to be an Elven king surrounded by his slain bodyguard being cut down by an armoured Dwarf on an armoured steed armed with a sword. Drawing his eyes away from the frieze Aetlred who was beginning to find all this depiction of dwarves defeating elves more than a bit unnerving not to mention dispiriting him being a Half Elf raised by Elves an all he decided to look at the central feature of the hall in more detail.

The dais was unmarked save for a narrow ring of gold coloured metal laid into the floor of it around the edge, seeing Aeltred’s interest and being a student of the arcane himself Heradin joined him in the examination of this structure whist the others mostly watched Telec trying to identify the religious symbols in the battle scenes of the freeze. All except for Thans who just basked in more proof of the natural superiority of dwarves.

Neither Aetlred nor Heradin where make much of the nature and purpose of the plinth even after considerable examination Heradin’s comment that the whole thing reeked of magic was the best that either of them could muster.

Episode X – An unexpected change of direction

Dramatis Personae
Telec - Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer
Aetlred - Half Elf Ranger
Lalia - Halfling Thief
Thans – Dwarf fighter thief
Heradin- Dwarf fighter mage
Dvorn the Axe- Folokkii Human Fighter
Sondan – Brandobian, Human Fighter
Fawlit – Half Ork Fighter

Location
The caves and encampment of the goblin raiders the woods along the ridge line and a very old and abandoned dwarf hold adjacent to it.

Events
(the action starts in the ancient dwarf hold following on directly from the conclusion of the previous episode it is early afternoon and its been a long day, and every one is feeling more than a little hungry and morale is ebbing especially as the Dwarf hold continues to provide far more questions than answers)

The company after some discussion decided to leave the tribute hall and seek the more commonplace parts of the hold and see if they could find any more gear of the like of the mail Telec was now wearing.  The company turned out of the great hall of tribute and retraced their route east until they came to the cross roads again.

Moving north the Company moved up a broad passage way of the type the Company was familiar with and they soon came into a large hall with buildings around the edge rather like a square in a surface town. This square was larger than the previous ones of a similar kind that they had previously explored and featured a large fountain and central garden. The fountain was dry and the surrounded beds where as the other ones they had found just bare earth with not even a trace of any plants which might once have grown in them

The buildings around the square where in good order and appeared to be a mixture of shops and houses with an inn in the south west corner and what might have once been a library in the south east if the stone racking and pidgin holes where any guide. However as before it seemed the buildings had been striped of any fixture and fitting which they had once had leaving only marks on the stone to give any suggestion there had been something removed. Most importantly there was no sign of any more gear and the impression of long abandonment was driven home

Growing increasingly convinced that the ancient dwarf hold had been stripped of every thing else of either value or use, and finding that there scant supply of torches had dwindled to the point where the two they where using where the last of them, the company resolved to return to the matter of the goblins and retracing their steps soon found themselves in the entrance chamber and then in the sink hole despite, Heradin’s protests that he was not going in there again even he was there. Moving as swiftly as one may in such a narrow way they made there way to the first chamber and where relieved to find that the rope was still in place.  A short discussion followed as to the best plan of attack. It was decided that a stout branch should be cut long enough to cross the hole into the kitchen cave below so as to be able to support two people climbing down on a rope at the same time.   

Aetlred volunteers Fawlit as he has an axe to help in this task, the half ork always more than eager to please agrees. Aetlred climbs first tugging the rope to make sure it is still secure. He fails to hear the tinkle of the cowbells the goblins have attached to it. He pulls again and prepares to climb. Thunk, a bag of crudely but tightly stitched rawhide hits him on the head and bursts. Filling the chamber with a scatter of sharp stones, fortunately harming none of the others who are sheltering in the passage still. Cursing to him self Aetlred climbs up the swinging rope as Fawlit takes his place at the bottom, with him holding the rope Aetlred gains the surface finally noting the jingle of cow bells, to late however as the goblin guard they where meant to alert is already in place and swinging his mallet. Thunk and thunk again as poor bruised Aetlred is struck twice before he manages to scrabble free of the hole. Dodging desperately he draws the goblin away from the hole and Fawlit gains the surface. After that the fight is short for Fawlit’s axe will hew goblin just as well as wood.

Aetlred picks a suitable tree to provide the stout beam and whilst the obliging half ork plies his axe in this endeavour, he applies his first aid skills to his injuries, cursing all the while internally the foul luck he has had so far. By the time he has finished this Fawlit has the beam cut and trimmed.

From then on the plan is quickly put into effect with the stout but rough beam being emplaced over the hole which leads down to the kitchen cavern a rope tied firmly around it to allow Thans and Fawlit to descend, both being chosen as they can see best in the ill lit cave below.  Thans and Fawlit both descend into the cave and scouting around find that it is empty save for the dying embers of the great cooking fire and lit only by them and the last couple of troches both in the throws of burning out entirely. The place reeks of goblin, spilt beer and the remains of likely more than one whole animal roast. To the north the cave narrows to about twenty feet before opining out into another deeper cavern. Whilst to the south it does the same and apparently opens into the back of the mouth cave as the last vestiges of failing daylight can be seen dimly in that direction.

The rest of the company descended the rope and Thans and Lalia went off to scout. Lalia to the south confirming that the kitchen cave opened into the mouth cave. Thans moving to the north found a similar if smaller cave and found it to be full of sleeping goblins. Thans and Lalia having scouted retuned to where the rest of the company waited at the base of the rope in the glow of the cook fires embers.

A whispered planning session followed and it was decided that Thans should use his superior night vision and stealth to sneak into the north cave and to dispatch as many goblins as he could. The rest of the company would more as quietly as they may to the choke point to be ready to render assistance if need be. Aetlred decided that he was better at the top of the rope in the sink hole ready to drop arrows onto any goblins and Heradin had already decided to leave the hole to guard the rope at the top, and indeed had become quite truculent at the prospect of going into any more confined spaces.

So Thans drew his dagger and snuck into the northern chamber hugging the walls as there the goblins seemed to have concentrated sleeping in little knots of three or four. He snuck up on the first group of gently snoring goblins and with dwarven skill silenced each of their snores in turn. He moved to the next knot of four and dealt with them similarly. He moved further in towards a third knot of snoring goblins. Crack, Thans foot caught a piece of bone and it snapped rousing the goblins that scrambled to their feet drawing knives.

Thans fell back fighting from the three goblins he had disturbed whilst trying to cut their throats in their sleep lashing out as he did so with his dagger as much to dissuade them of the pursuit than to actually injure them. His companions waited for him at the choke point, for the most part not able to see what was going on in the dim cave lit as it was only by a scatter of failing torches and not having the superior night sight of dwarves. However the goblins where defiantly trying to kill Thans and just before he reached the relative safety of the rest of the company a goblin knife struck true and he fell.

At that Fawlit, the only one present who could see in the dark as well as the goblins gave a wild cry in orkish and charged the perusing goblins who where going to do unto Thans as he had intended to do unto them and indeed had already done unto several of their companions if the did but know it recoiled. Then backed away as Fawlit was joined by Dvorn, Sondan and Telec the former swinging his great axe in killing arcs and shouting for all he was worth. The goblins fled noisily further rousing their companions and Fawlit picked up the wounded dwarf and all fell back to the choke point. Where Thans roused himself and every one else wondered what they should do next as the goblins where now alerted.

Mean while Heradin who had refused to go back down the sink hole was sitting on the surface ostensibly guarding the rope, though in fact he was reading his spell book something which ha had not had the time to do for several days whilst the company had been gallivanting about in the wilds. It probably was not the right thing to be doing just now but it was just the thing to settle his nerves after being dragged up and down narrow holes repeatedly.

Aetlred, was crouched in the sink hole peering down into the kitchen cave trying to see what was going on down there and finding he was just unable to get a decent line of sight of what ever was just kicking off, given quite how much he currently hurt, cursed goblins cursed bags of gravel & their thrice cursed mallets he was disinclined to get closer for a better look.   

In the cave below Dvorn came up with a battle plan as the now well awake goblins assembled in the half darkness. They he proposed should hold the choke point as if the goblins charged it would give them least use of there advantage in numbers, Fawlit who could see just how many goblins there where most clearly resolved to sell his life as dearly as he could and muttered a quiet prayer to the gods of good and honour to accept him into their halls after his death. That he could do with a strong drink also crossed his mind.

The Goblins milled round sort out and picked up their scattered weapons, and some of them even their shields and a couple of the more cunning and cowardly bows and handfuls of arrows, none however acted. They where further discouraged because Fawlit had begun a blood curdling battle chant in orkish and had been joined first by Dvorn and then by the rest who added curses in as many languages as they could muster. The milling mass of goblins could understand little detail of this but quickly formed the idea that they where facing a group of confident warriors who where prepared to stand and fight. Goblins as a kind don’t like that sort of fight and it was not what they where here for, preferring raiding undefended settlements and then feasting royally off the stolen live stock. However all the noise the intruders where making filtered deeper into the caverns and shortly Akakabul the sub chief and a couple of his bullies arrived. He first ordered the bowmen to lose which they did at the mailed knight leading the foe.

Two arrows came out of the darkness and the milling goblins and struck Telec, thunk, thunk as each slammed into his newly obtained dwarf mail and being common goblin made arrows shot from weak short bows the arrows skittered off it leaving him unscathed.  In return Lalia wound up her sling and loosed a stone into the dark in reply but no goblin squealed to indicate it had hit any thing that mattered. 

Akakabul grew angry and started shouting at the goblins even more, and  setting his bullies on them to drive them forward, the common goblins being more scares of Akakabul and his bullies surged forward in a wild charge hoping to over run the company of at least send it fleeing

The line stood in the choke point and received the charge, Dvorn’s axe swung and a goblin fell, even before it had a chance to fight. Telec’s staff broke a nose on another and instants later both Sondan and Fawlit joined in and two more goblins fell. However there where a lot of goblins and the initial crush cared the charge home despite this and goblin blades struck home, the company’s blood also flowed and mingled with that of the goblins.

Hearing sounds of battle but unable to see to intervene Aetlred left his post to go and fetch Heradin and below a slightly recovered Thans and Lalia, prepared to add their missiles to the fight.

An outsider’s tale Part III

Violet arrived at her cache and  quickly emptied it of the two bundles of arrows one for her long bow and one of short bow arrows originally for Perkal but  for the company she hoped had taken advantage of the  diversion and struck the goblins a blow or two. Violet also took the caches supply of food mostly preserves and the sort of hard black bread that almost never goes off but which no one who was not fairly desperate would eat willingly one of the precious potions of healing Perkal had made and some other useful items though not so much as she was going to be impeded by the load.

So equipped Violet set off back to the goblin camp what would other wise have been for her a pleasant afternoons hike under other circumstances. It would even been pleasant under the current circumstances had she Perkal along for company  and he was dead on the high pass and though Violet had long ago suppressed any feeling  that suggested  they would  ever be more than comrades in arms she realised that she missed him, more than the many others she had lost in the long war against the Kalamarian slavers, she had waged.  Dragging her thoughts away form the subject Violet turned her thoughts to how best to deal with the goblins single handed if need be.

As she approached the camp from the south she carefully reconnoitred the lower perimeter and quickly noted the lack of goblin or other activity for that matter. Then Violet decided her plan off attack first moving across to the base of the slope below the lower eye cave. Under cover of the perimeter trees and under brush.  Then after a quick look round to make sure that any goblin in the watch tower had not seen her approach. That done she scrambled up the exposed slope to the lower eye cave taking cover inside the shadows of its entrance.  Moving a few steps further into the cave Violet noticed the crude lattice blocking further progress and the sleeping forms of three goblins right at the back. Violet reached out and touched the binding of the lattice and unleashed her god’s power, the lattice unbound itself silently. Sufficiently to allow Violet to slip through unheard. Violet drew her dagger and cautiously advanced on the gently snoring goblins and one by one they ceased to snore.

Beyond them Violet spotted the way on a narrow tunnel low so she would have to crouch to pass thought it. She unstrung her great bow and holding it at her side spear wise in her left hand slipped down the twisting tunnel dagger still drawn.  At the end of the tunnel it opened into a larger cave but the view was blocked by a frame holding a drying cow hide. Even in the dark Violet recognised the animal one of the Hidden Dells best milkers, Violet grew grimmer even more so as she found that this first tanning frame concealed several others all adorned with the drying hides of Hidden Dell prime live stock.

An interlude for two characters - which takes place whilst episode VII -X above are occurring

Dramatis Personae

Nameless Elven Mage

Melias B’Paran Human Mage-Thief

Location

The Sages tower and east into the mountains toward the high pass but not into it.

Events

The sage himself was the soul of hospitality and entertained his guests to a standard that even the easily angered and to be honest extremely picky Melias considered proper. The accommodation was good even if the nature of the building, a converted Kalamarian watch post made them of necessity small. The sage was lavish with his knowledge too only asking in payment that they should add to it store.

In the few days that they stayed with him he was able to provide Melias with some additional spells which thought little more than cantrips where within his ability to learn He was unfortunately unable to add too much to Emetic’s quest for the fabled magical library however promises to look more deeply into the records left by his predecessors who where as he is not wizards. The Sages interest in wizardry is rather peripheral, to the acquisition of knowledge and he uses little of the magic he was thought and none to any other end. In all these discussions there ranger guide listens politely in the background but it is clear she has no interest and it would seem that she is happier being treated as a servant than an equal

Nameless is happy to allow any human whatever eccentricity they so chose after all in a century any human is going to be dead and he baring accidents or violence will still be in the first flush of his youth.

After learning all they could from spending several days with the Sage, time finally comes to pay for that service by getting him more information to add to his store. To this end the Sage asks the company to travel to the north east in search of a ruined temple of a forgotten god whose worship was apparently practiced by the Dreji tribes of this region before they where absorbed into the Brandobian kingdom. He does not want the company to delve into the ruins as the party is too small but should they find them the Sage says that a party in Bet Kalmar will be prepared to mount a larger and more through expedition which the Sage is sure they would be allowed to join.

The Sage allows the small company to equip itself from the Sages pantry’ and provides a couple of guards form his own men and a pack mule or two. The foot hills and the mountains are hazardous and inhabited by barbarous humanoids of several types and he does want the company to return safe with his information.

The company sets off from the Sages tower early in the morning crossing the ford fist before heading off into the wild hills beyond and for now at the least out of the compass of this tale.

Episode XI – A Close run thing

Dramatis Personae
Telec - Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer
Aetlred - Half Elf Ranger
Lalia - Halfling Thief
Thans – Dwarf Fighter thief
Heradin- Dwarf Fighter mage
Dvorn the Axe- Fhokki  Human Fighter
Sondan – Brandobian, Human Fighter
Fawlit – Half Ork Fighter

Violet – Half Demon Paladin of the Free

Location
The caves of the goblin raiders

Events
(the action starts directly at the end of the last session with the greater part of the company being locked in a battle for their lives with an over whelming number of goblins)

With the outcome lay teetering on the balance, the company held its line and the goblin’s first rush was halted and those that followed them where less eager to step into the fight when it involved having to step over the dying bodies of those who had come before. None the less for all the fallen goblins the company could neither advance nor fall back and each of its members where well aware of their wounds and feared they would not stand much longer. Dvorn looked at the mass of goblins before him and was very afraid the axe he boasted off could not slay them fast enough even though one of the foul little creatures fell with each stroke. He wanted to run, but to run was no certain way to escape alive even if he could face the shame of it. Near him Fawlit, swung his axe to the rhythm of the odd song he sang as he fought and another goblin staggered back as the Half Ork’s age struck. Sondan missed his comrades form the company and blocked and stabbed as he had been trained another goblin fell and the gap it left in the goblin line remained.  Breathing heavily under the unfamiliar weight of the Dwarf mail Telec who was of all of them pressed closest plied his staff and tried not to give ground. As he realized that the goblins read his armour as some sort of badge of leadership.  Behind the line and half stunned by the wounds that had felled him earlier Thans hurled his axes into the milling mass of goblins hanging back behind the battle line and Lalia, who could see very little in the dying torch light behind the fighting line, launched stone after stone into the dark some times being rewarded by a goblin squeal as the shot struck a telling blow. Above in the sink hole Aetlred reached the bottom of the rope Heradin was guarding and tried desperately to   get the dwarf to come down and help.

In the rear of the mass of goblins Akakabul and his bully’s urged the lesser goblins between them and their foes to press the attack even as fear started to build in the pits of their craven gusts, these where not villagers to be rounded up from sleep but warriors prepared to fight and from the cries of the fallen goblins doing more apparent harm to his fighters than they where sustaining from them.

Violet heard the sounds of battle as she entered the kitchen cave and brought a quick prayer the Guardian to mind and before quickening her pace and readying a stoppered flask  ahead was the dying embers of the goblin cooking fire, she hurled the fragile flask into the hot embers with as much force as she could muster and closing her eyes advanced blindly as the heat the and the alchemical mixture in the flask worked their mundane magic

There was a massive flash and the dark caves where in an instant as bright as day. The company with their backs to the flash where not blinded but the goblins where at least briefly. Their attack faltered and the Company took advantage more goblins fell.

Violet unleashed a wild war cry fit to strike fear into the hearts of the fabled Grel and charged.

That was enough for Akakabul and his bully’s and with out them most of the goblins in front of them who had not yet joined the fight. A general rout ensued leaving only the front rank of the goblins still fighting, and only doing so because to run was to die for certain, but to fight might not be certain death. The charging paladin cut down one of the goblins mobbing Telec. Fawlit and Sondan stepped forward still fighting as a desperate goblin blade slashed out and took down Dvorn. Lalia sent a shot into the fleeing backs of the goblin mob still quite visible in the after glow of the flash, whilst Thans began the grim task of finishing off the goblin wounded. Then it was over the last few goblins that had remained in the fight had fallen quickly and the company drew breath in the knowledge that they lived to fight another day.

Violet turned as the fight ended towards the end of the battle line where Dvorn the tall lanky blonde warrior lay, his death approaching and kneeling beside him poured some of the healing poser of her god into the dying man to check deaths approach. It never ceased to amaze her even after four years that the god itself had seen fit to grant her such power.

The death vision of the would be fhokki hero faded as the guardian of the free’s life giving power was channelled into him and his erstwhile death wound began to close miraculously.

Aetlred his efforts at persuasion on Heradin being successful arrived at the site of the battle just as it ended and after that every one fell into something of a routine with Thans and Lalia finishing off the remaining wounded goblins before they could recover enough to flee after their fellows and Aetlred and Violet falling to tending to the company’s wounds whilst the least wounded Sondan who had escaped the recent battle with the goblins relatively lightly largely because of his skill with a shield let it be said and Heradin who had not been involved moved to secure the sleeping or as Thans would have it the slaughtering cave. As the process of tending the wounded dragged on Thans and Lalia fell to looting the goblins abandoned goods, bedding and bodies gathering a significant heap of low value coins form the local kingdoms a number of goblin made small shields knives and enlarged knife style short swords. Telec, not all that useful as a healer not having even Violets skill at it fell to finding the unlit torches the goblins had placed in crude sconces around the cave and lighting them and having done that making a few more out of the staves of burned out brands and the rags of goblin bedding.

As the healing went on even longer those who had been attended to joined the pair guarding the relatively narrow northern exit to the sleeping cave and after a while there being sufficient of them they judged pressing on with the exploration especially as nothing could be heard from the goblins even if every one was sure they where planning something and the company was in poor shape to deal with unpleasant surprises.

With the last of the wounded tended to as best they could, and the spoil of battle gathered up be the company resolved to press on with the exploration of the caves as they had yet to locate the captives form the Hidden Dell. Violet was in particular eager to do this as she felt there capture as a slight on her honour even if she had not been in any position even to try and stop it at the time. Before they pressed on Violet distributed a bundle of short bow arrows, she had taken from the rangers’ cache, to those who had bows and recovered her own long bow and quiver from where she had left it prior to her charge.

A short distance along the relatively narrow channel, it was still over ten feet wide and as high so Heradin was not discomforted, which lead north from the sleeping cave the company came across a hewn passage on the left. This passage was over man height and wide enough for two to pass abreast and after as short way ended in a rustic wooden door with signs of weathering on it the door was not locked and opened outwards into the passage freely on well oiled leather hinges.

Beyond the door was a sizable room hewn out of the soft sandstone with unfinished walls furnished with a large farmhouse table and half dozen solid chairs to match in a mismatch of styles. The room was unlit but lamp holders had been cut into the walls and wooden candelabra stood in the middle of the great table. There was a door in the north and the east walls both locked and both of the sorts you might find on any Brandobian farm. On the south wall was the hide of a bull in which a large map of the region had been drawn showing all the features that the company was aware of and three crosses in red. These latter Thans quickly worked out where the caves they where in now, the small abandoned Dwarf test mine he had cleared of goblin bandits last year  and another deeper into the mountains of the spur from the Laggosa range, this he concluded was yet another goblin camp. He considered taking the map with him but settled for quickly adding the new details from it to the regional map he had already.

Lalia was called in and made short work of the locks first to the north which opened into a large hall furnished in the manner of a barracks. Closer investigation revealed a number of interesting features first whilst it was furnished it seemed never to have been occupied, and once again all the furniture had seemingly been looted from farmsteads as whilst it was all of a type it was blatantly of different ages and slightly different styles. Lalia found a concealed compartment in one of the bedsteads into which was hidden an exquisitely carved holly icon of the true, she pocked this as it was at least covered in gold leaf. There was a weapons rack on the north wall newly made but innocent of weapons thought it was apparent theta it could hold pole arms for the twenty or so warriors that the barracks would accommodate. Feeling another mystery arriving to add to the may they had already encountered the company pressed on. This time thought the east door which leads to a short passage with a door at its end to the east and one on the north and south walls, as before the doors where well made and had quite apparently been acquired from local farms. All the doors where locked but with locks which where no match for Lalia.  

Through the south door was a large empty chamber featuring two large chests in one corner. These looked like larder chests of the sort used to store perishables like cream and butter and as they where neither locked nor trapped opening them to reveal a heavy marble slab in each of them confirmed this. The company began to conclude that this complex had been prepared for its intended inhabitants but that these had not yet arrived. Telec commented that this was the reverse of the ancient Dwarf hold whose inhabitants had long ago abandoned it. 

Through the north door was a passage with a number of doors off and a large weapons rack along the opposite wall, but the company decided to ignore this way for the while. Preferring to examine the door to the east. This chamber proved to be much more interesting. On first examination it was apparent that it was fully furnished and had been occupied even if it was not currently. The bed, again one seemingly recovered from a local farm was made up with fresh bedding. There where three locked travelling chests in one corner a dresser a smaller table and a couple of chairs. There where pot lamps in the alcoves in the wall made for them with used wicks and at least a trace of oil

The locks on the chests where more challenging for Lalia, but still not beyond her skill and the chests where found to contain much of interest. One contained several changes of male clothing including a set of priestly regalia for a mid ranking cleric of the tyrant as well as a flaying whip. The middle one contained several bags and packets of pungent herbs and spices of the sort used to make insense and perfume, in bags labelled in an odd script a bit like Brandobian, Lalia who had some knowledge of such things guessed that to the right individual this would be of considerable value. The third chest was to the coin poor company the most interesting it contained three leather bags of silver coin. The coin was bright and newly minted, unlike every other coin the company had recovered so far or indeed most of the coins any of them had ever seen more over all of them where the same and the widely travelled Telec identified them as being form Pel Brolenon.

The wayfarer priest showed Violet the bright silver coin he had been examining and she cursed. Suddenly the matter of the goblins had transformed from a matter impinging on her honour to a matter impinging on her duty. She needed not only to get her people free and safe but she needed to crush whatever the slaves of the tyrant where up to before she did any thing else. So her plans for Kalmar and the young kingdoms would have to wait. Then Violet grinned three sacks of such coin could make a good weapon to use against those who had minted them.

Pel Brolenon, a name most had heard of if distantly a cruel land in the south, home of the greatest slavers in Telene and rich in silver such as this. This most guessed was perhaps a clue to on of the mysteries they faced but also something of an evil omen for the future.

The dresser contained several sheets of used and fresh parchment which Thans took as well as a selection of pens and black gall ink and other writing equipment along with space awaiting other gear.

Grimly the company turned north taking with it the sacks of silver and passed through the north door, ignoring for now the empty weapons rack along the west wall of the passage. There where two doors on the west side of the passage again obviously scavenged form some looted farmstead or other and both where locked. The locks where well within Lalia’s skills and the company was able to search both. They found them to be largely identical and apparently neither had been used. Each was furnished with a looted bed and some simple rustic furniture, principally a chest a stool and a work bench. Beyond the final door was a large completely unfurnished chamber whose function apparently had not been assigned as yet. The weapons rack was also empty but seemed to be made form reused farm tool racks likely acquired in the same way as every thing else in the way of furniture had.

The side complex now thoroughly explored the company determined to push on further in to the caves especially as they had still not found let alone recovered the captives they sought. As they also thought they had lost the element of surprise and given the company was in poor shape to deal with unpleasant surprises, Aetlred suggested they advance further using the solid table from the Priests room as cover, This they duly did following the channel passage further in and shortly came upon a large cave brightly lit with torches This cave was more rounded than the ones they had come across before and apparently had a deeper sink hole in the middle of it. This hole was covered by a crude lattice of branches and it was not possible to spot what might be down it form the place where the channel opened out into the large room, toward the back of the cave where two hurdle barricades of woven branches behind which several bow armed goblins could be seen briefly before the in turn saw the company and hid properly.

Having spotted the goblins hiding behind low walls of crude hurdles either side of the grill covered sink hole, the company needed a plan so that they could assault them without being shot to ribbons crossing the open space between where the relatively narrow passage of the channel opened up into the brightly lit cave. Having just used the smaller table from the overlord’s priest’s room to provide cover when scouting it occurred to Aetlred that the larger table from the planning room and some of the abandoned goblin shields could be constructed into some portable cover. Not having the skill to do this he asked if any one else in the company could and Sondan who had been apprenticed to a carpenter before taking up the profession of arms offered to do it and he was helped by Lalia, whose experience in making and repairing animal pens on her family farm proved of great use. Shortly the table fort was constructed and the company divided into two teams a shooting team who would try to shoot down any goblins which showed themselves and an attack team which would carry the table fort to give them cover as they approached the goblins. The attack team lead by Telec still hardly hurt in his dwarf mail picked up the table fort and crawled forward, to be met with a hail of arrows most of which either missed or stuck in the fort itself, except for the one which caught Telec in his unarmoured calf after almost skimming along the cave floor. Violet and the shooting team took pot shots at any goblin which showed itself to shoot. More of the companies arrows struck home than the goblins and they began to waver before the slow advance of the fort had reached them. The last straw was an arrow from Violets bow which struck the goblin as it ducked back in the shoulder with such force that it hurled the goblin a good ten feet back into the wall behind. The goblins ran and had escaped down both of the caves exits by the time the attack group had untangled itself form the table fort. The company did not give chase but moved the goblins barricades to block the ways the surviving goblins had fled down whilst Thans and Lalia dealt with the wounded the goblins had abandoned in their flight.

The company drew breath, and as it did so it became aware that the captives they sought where down under the lattice in the large sink hole in the middle of the cave.

Episode XII – Some field rest and recuperation and wyrd stuff happens

Dramatis Personae
Telec - Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer
Aetlred - Half Elf Ranger
Lalia - Halfling Thief
Thans – Dwarf Fighter thief
Heradin- Dwarf Fighter mage
Dvorn the Axe- Fhokki Human Fighter
Sondan – Brandobian, Human Fighter
Fawlit – Half Ork Fighter

Violet – Half Demon Paladin of the Free

Location
In the caves of the goblin raiders, their camp outside and the Ancient Dwarf hold 

Events
(the action starts directly at the end of the last session, with the company just having found the captives in the sinkhole in the cavern floor)

It proved to be the work of only a few moments to hack apart the grill work of branches the goblins had built over the large pit in which the captives had been held enough to allow access to the captives.  It took a bit longer for Sondan and Lalia to fashion a crude ladder from the scavenged timber and allow the tired hungry and half naked, all had been taken from their beds by the raiding Goblins and most wore nothing more than their under tunics, captives to escape.

 The captives where it relatively quickly became apparent unhurt, as they had largely recovered form the first days forced march and  the presence of the young Liamar            a priest of the Guardian also helped with this as well as in reassuring in fearful companions that rescue was certain they just had to have faith. The captives had however not been fed much since the night of the raid, but had been tormented by the cooking smells from the goblins nightly feasts, had no bedding or much clothing to protect them from the cold and where more than a little apprehensive at the unfamiliarity of their rescuers, it latter transpired that they had hoped for and expected Perkal the leading priest of the community and Violet.

They where much reassured when they discovered Violet amongst the Company but much saddened to hear of Perkal and his fathers deaths, even though they had expected the latter when the old warrior went berserk and broke free of the goblins on the first night of their captivity.

The captives where a mixed group of forty people aged between ten and sixty years old apparently forming several families, most spoke Kalamarian or Merchants tongue’s eastern form with a smattering of Fillokki and Ranaraese. Certainly none spoke Brandobian a testament to them being isolated at the Hidden Dell. The younger ones had apparently mostly been born in the Hidden Dell with the older ones being brought here by the previous champion of the free who had established the village.  Amongst them where the noted and according, to the well travelled Telec deceased, Kalamarian historian Selemar Ku’Ato and the also accordingly to Telec deceased imperial sword smith and armourer Lakaran Tur Esamil. They had both been publically executed many years ago for truly dreadful crimes.

The armourer it seemed had claimed to have found the sword, Rovak Fen’doral from the imperial regalia but was found to be lying having produced a copy of the blade in order to be able to claim credit for the recovery of the weapon and the huge reward that the Emperor had offered for it. The figure which Telec recalls was a million pieces of gold. The historian had written several well thought of histories of ancient Kalamaria, but had come to grief when he was discovered to have had inappropriate relations with several of the imperial nieces, as it happened this was discovered shortly after the publication of a more recent history which some saw as critical of the claim to the throne and lineage of the Bakari dynasty.

The names of other elders and several of the family names where also sort of familiar to Telec, but he could not remember any details to go with his vague recall.

Having been rescued they fell into considerable discussion as to what to do next, it would seem that the population of the Hidden Dell organised itself along the principles of a participatory democracy and every one got a say in what happened, deferring generally to those amongst them who knew most about the topic at hand. Given that the company was with Violet they where more than happy to include them in this practice. Eventually it was decided that a direct escape route from the caves was best, and that they should all return to the Hidden Dell, they where not happy when they where told that this was uninhabitable not to mention indefensible and they would have to take shelter in the old holdfast until the village could be rebuilt and arrangements made for its proper defence. The older ones who had lived in the holdfast before the village was built where the least happy about the prospect of the return to doing so. The younger ones just remembered that the Holdfast was haunted by repute and whilst it was a fine place to sneak into and explore for a dare was no where they would want to live.

Then there where the cattle and other livestock to consider, thought Violet suggested that there was indoor accommodation for some of them and the old paddocks outside the Holdfast could be put back into use.  The elders in particular raised objection to this as there had never been enough space for live stock at the Holdfast in the old days and there was more live stock than they ever had when they had lived there even allowing for the amount the goblins had probably eaten. Several of the Company bought up the miserable night they had spent in the village and that there was only one place with a roof on in the whole of Hidden Dell and that being the chapel in the basement of the large house and that was Thans estimated smaller than the hole the captives had just been rescued from.

Discussion moved on to the best way to get out of the caves and back to the Dell and Violet proposed leading the people back to the Holdfast by a more westerly route, and down the cliff path near it, and sending the Company back by the direct south route as the trail by the watch tree was the only practicable route into the Dell driving large numbers of livestock. The company where not in the least happy at this plan seeing that they would be they felt little more than bait for the goblin dog riders who would no doubt give chase even if they where not already waiting in ambush on that path.

In the end there where no decisions made as to long term planning but the Company did gather up bedding from the slaughter cave as well as the priests clothes from the side complex to clothe them better against the journey and hand out the recovered goblin knives short swords and shields so as to make them look more of a threat to any goblins they might come across. Violet also handed out all of the food she had taken from the ranger’s cache but it was a very meagre amount when divided amongst the company and the released captives.

There was some grumbling from Aetlred hinting that Violet had hidden this food from the company, which was largely ignored as is, much wise or foolish he says. So as prepared as they may be they headed out the company taking point as any goblin attack was probably going to be from the front.

When the company approached the entry to the back of the mouth cave, Lalia and Thans where pressed to scout ahead. It was obvious that the sun had almost set outside the caves and it was growing quite dark outside. Lalia and Thans sneaked forward until they where about level with the entrances from the eye caves but spotted no goblins yet.  Continuing forward with even more caution neither of them saw any thing, until Thans stood on some unseen debris on the floor which crushed under his Dwarvish boot with a loud report, and both Thans and Lalia froze. It was a loud enough report that it attracted the attention of the group of goblins crouched outside the grill across the entrance. They having good enough night sight spotted Thans. The one with a bow carefully knocked an arrow drew and less carefully loosed it at Thans. It missed completely but, Thans saw no wisdom wounded as he still was of braving any more arrows and with as much dignity as he could manage scampered back out of bow shot.

Lalia who had not noticed the goblins till one shot at Thans remained hidden considering her options before deciding the best one was to also return to the company. When they both arrived back with the rest of the company there followed a discussion and it was decided to go and fetch the table fort as it was not known how many goblins they faced. Thans had seen two or perhaps three and one arrow had been loosed but at long range so the others might also have had bows just judged the long shot a waste of an arrow. 

When the Table fort had been fetched the company again split into two groups with the attack group of Thans, Lalia, Telec, Sondan Dvorn and Fawlit lugging the table with Heradin and Aetlred following in the rear with bows at the ready. Violet slipped into the shadows and made her way along the left hand side of the mouth cave an arrow knocked but not drawn.

The Goblins soon noticed the table fort lumbering forward and their one bowman loosed arrows at it as fast as he could with little effect apart form one which bouncing off the structure grazed Lalia. The goblins flighty at best become more spooked as the table fort closes in on them and when Violet who has by now moved into the perfect position loses one arrow which takes the goblin crouched to the left of the archer in the chest with sufficient force to knock him down despite glancing off the grill work on the way in the two remaining goblins decide the game is up and run quickly disappearing out of sight, before the attack team can drop the table fort and catch up with them, leaving their half dead companion to be sent on his way by Thans. With the goblins driven off the company take a breather after lugging the heavy and quite cumbersome table fort from one end of the caves to the other and prepare for the next stage.

Having had a short rest, Sondan and Aetlred are chosen to scout ahead and most particularly discover what is going on with the goblin’s dogs as they are they company believes a worse threat than the goblins themselves. Leaving the gate in the grill the pair head right towards the dogs chorale, Aetlred examines the tracks in the soft ground whilst, Sondan sword drawn holds a torch and ponders if the half ork or one other dwarves might be better at this than him as he scanned the gloom for   goblins. As they approach the chorale it is silent and there seems to be no goblin in the watch post beside it and more importantly Aetlred notices that there are a lot of fairly fresh dog tracks leaving the area heading south. He decides not to investigate this right away but to reconnoitre the dogs’ chorale and the shed at the back of it. Sondan follows warily as Aetlred his ward examines tracks and works out that there were at least fourteen dogs with five of them with riders. Aetlred decides to enter the shed, he lights a second torch form Sondan’s brand and leaving Sondan on guard outside.

Aetlred enters first forcing his torch into the soft ground just inside the door he begins to rake thought the mess of bedding and debris inside the shed, with the point of his heavy spear. Shortly metal catches metal and Aetlred spotting the cause a small disk of yellow metal bends down to investigate. He finds it’s a bronze disk broach in good condition if a bit dirty rubbing it to remove the muck he sees that there is a design on it of a radiant flame on it, in which with a little more rubbing is revealed an open gate and then fleetingly a ring of gently glowing dwarven writing and Aetlred is some where else and its very dark.

Outside Sondan hears a loud pop and looks in to find Aeltred’s newly lit torch stuck in the ground and the bedding and debris of the dogs den freshly disturbed but Aetlred gone. Sondan ever the good soldier decides to report back as this is very much beyond his pay grade.

(At this point the narrative splits and the two next sections actually happened at the same time.)

Sondan who is fearful of very little but understands urgency legs it back to where the rest of the company are crouched in the gate of the mouth cave where he relays what he had heard Aetlred mumble about the dogs, which was not all that much and that Aetlred has vanished.  Pushed to explain he says he just cannot, it’s suggested that as he was supposed to be looking after Aetlred this was some how his fault, Sondan bites his tongue at this but it stings what else could he do it was not something he could fight, Aetlred just vanished with a pop he adds and the company better have a look and see if they can work out what happened.

As usual there is some discussion and while the majority of the company head straight to the dog’s chorale to investigate Aeltred’s vanishing. Violet moves forward to determine where the dogs went and quickly discovers that there where fourteen dogs five of which had riders on all of which rode south as a pack at about the same time the fight around the captives prison took place. Mean while the rest of the company inspects the dog shed and finds it as Sondan said, Aeltred’s torch still stuck in the ground near the entrance illuminating the place and a couple of Aeltred’s soft boot prints showing where he stood and raked through the bedding and that he then walked forward a step or two then no more. Perhaps because he vanished at that point or perhaps because no one in the company present is enough of a tracker to pick up any step he might have made onto the disturbed bedding. They stood and starred they had Heradin look for any traces of magic, and he found none not being sufficiently talented at arcane lore even to be aware the sort of magic that had effected Aetlred existed  not to mention having no spells to divine any thing. Expected Telec to discern the actions of some divine power and he was just as much at a los as Heradin. In the end the company called out to Violet who had by this time finished working out where the dogs had gone and asked her opinion but she was equally none the wiser but she did suggest that as it was very late and every one was hurt it might be an idea if the company took shelter some where for the night, especially as she and doubtless the others who had use of their gods power, but it was spent, would find it rejuvenated after a nights sleep. There is some agreement with this but no one wants to try to sleep in a cave full of goblins, even if those goblins are at least for now cowed. Eventually it is decided that the best place to shelter is the dwarf hold and Heradin suggests the abandoned inn. However no one wants to have the captives have to climb up the ropes from the kitchen cave to the sink hole above and thence through the hole in the wall to the entry stairs of the dwarf hold.

Some one points out that the sink hole in which the captives where held appears to have broken into the dwarf hold and that it might be quite possible to break through the crude wall the goblins have built to block it off. So Thans and Heradin work to loosen some stones form the wall and when they have done that Thans leaves Heradin to supervise as every one else able bodied piles in to remove the wall, those who can’t work to gather up as many of the goblins torches as they can and to move the goblin barriers across the two passages which lead further in.

Thans goes and recovers the companies precious rope from the sink hole and by the time he returns with it the wall on the east side of the prison is cleared revealing a worn version of the tribute corridor, one which seems at least to have been partially flooded in the distant past. They step into the corridor and move towards the closed stone gate at the end. Noticing as they do the decaying bodies of a number of goblins and that the globe by the door is down. Some one hisses not Elvish no Brandobian. Despite their age and the long ago ingress of water the door opens smoothly when the word friend is spoken in Dwarvish as the illusory speaker requests and they enter the tribute hall with the company in the lead. Briefly stopping to once again marvel at the wall paintings but soon broken from that reverie by an unfamiliar stench of acrid decay.

Aetlred became aware that he was all alone some where dark and quite empty judging by the echo, briefly he wondered where his torch was then remembered leaving it stuck in the ground in the dog shed. Aetlred cursed, where was he then as his eyes adapted to the dark he became aware he was not alone nor was it totally dark. There are others and a faint light coming from one of them who is standing half crouched presenting something which is emitting a weak but comforting light and softly incanting a prayer. At Aeltred’s feet is an elf of exceptionally powerful build that appears to be dying slowly bleeding out from half a dozen wounds. Other less recognisable items litter the floor all around most seem to be body parts of beasts the whole of Aetlred devoutly hopes never to meet. Broken gear, crushed masonry and the lower leg and foot of what Aetlred believes to be a dwarf still wearing a heavy nailed ankle boot and bloodied striped trews. Beyond the comforting light is Aetlred can see a deeper soul eating darkness.  The Darkness is closing in as the praying figure’s light very slowly fades. Aetlred wonders what to do and feeling his spear would be useless falls to trying to stop the unknown elf dying, futile as that might be with the soul eating darkness closing in and resolving into hellish geometries. 

A powerful voice speaks a single word of power and the darkness is gone as if it never was and the light flares as bright as day for an instant. Even crouched attending to the wounded elf Aetlred notices there is a new arrival in the tribute chamber of the ancient dwarf hold a tall powerfully built Dwarf in a blue tunic with yellow and crimson edging red trousers and riding boots of a similar sort to the ones Heradin wears toped off by a mustard coloured cap of the sort Alerted had only ever seen in the speaking illusionary images here and in the hold under the Meliac’s farm. The Dwarf spoke, in low Elvish thought Aetlred, very strange as he was sure he heard after echoes in another harsher tongue. The wounded elf at Aeltred’s feet groans and begins to come around and the crouching man wielding the light like a weapon turns to face the new comer.  They exchange introductions and Aetlred learns the names of those present. The Dwarf is Zildor, nothing more, no surname no title no elaborate recitation of lineage as if none of that where really needed. The Man was apparently Americ Estvaran chaplain to the Company of the Liberators of the Blight Scar and the wounded elf was Nyssarr a warrior from that company. The priest speaks as Nyssarr was too wounded saying did not know how they had come to be here as they had last been trapped in some sort of under ground cavern beset on all sides by demons. Some they had fought off but the ones made of nothing more than malevolent darkness where beyond them. He then thanks Zildor for dealing with them and asks where they are, leaving the question as to how they got there mute. Zildor nods and answers both you are a very long way from home and there is no need to thank him for dealing with a few vermin, the nonchalant way the dwarf dismissed the easy destruction of the likely end of all of them was rather alarming. All of this conversation to Aetlred seems to have been conducted in the low Elvish of his mother tongue. Aetlred decided to make a contribution and asks Zildor what the broach he found is reasoning that it was the cause of his being down here so suddenly and in the first place answers politely but some what abruptly in the typical manner of a blasted dwarf Aetlred can’t help thinking.

The broach Zildor explains is one of several that he made long ago and has only one magic to it and that it to transport the person handling it   to the nearest working gate on the king’s road. The magic is quite powerful and will do this over considerable distances regardless of any barrier, Aetlred begins to see and it crosses his mind that the broach is a perfect escape form any difficult situation. Zildor corrects him as he says there is no way of choosing which gate you go to, nor is there any guarantee that the location of the kings gate is any more safe than where he is already the broach just seeks the nearest regardless of all other considerations. Aetlred asks why every one can understand each other and seems to be specking Aeltred’s native tongue; Zildor replies that this is a function of the gate which will for a while after its use do that its part of the magic built into them

After answering that question Zildor wishes them good day as he is rather busy and came here himself for some peace and quiet to get some work done and he is gone as abruptly as he arrived

Leaving Aetlred and the two strangers together in the light of Americ’s flickering magical light. Aetlred takes charge and the strangers do not intervene to prevent him he attends to Nyassers’s wounds which are several and quite deep despite his mail and Americ who is unhurt but proves to have quite a bit of magical healing helps healing his comrade and Aetlred  who is himself quite wounded from his pervious adventures. He also offers to lead the pair of them out of the cavern but warns them that none of them will be able to understand each other after they leave the circle of the gate and its translating magic. The two strangers also having heard what Zildor said are already aware of this but have not yet grown weary of this habit of Aeltred’s. The strangers agree and follow Aetlred south down the tribute corridor to the entrance hall and begin to ascend the stairs towards the hole in the wall which leads to the sink hole and thence to the surface.

The Company soon notice the cause of the stink of rotting the platform in the middle of the room is no longer empty. Instead it is littered with rotting body parts form hideous creatures, wings and clawed legs and arms as well as a great deal of thick black blood. The only sane thing found is the left foot and calf of what was probably a dwarf also well decayed. Despite the stink several of the company stopped to investigate the remains Heradin could make little of them and his best opinion was that the wyrd magic he and Aetlred had believed the raised platform and its now slightly sparkling gems involved in when they had examined it before but beyond that his grasp of the theory of magic gave him no guide. Telec was sure that the body parts where from some sort of demon, Violet was sure he was right especially after she found a small token with some abyssal script scratched on it a name Herkarat and Lalia found a single gold coin which had been sewn in between the layers of leather of the sole of the dwarfs boot it was old and worn but very defiantly gold so she slipped it into her pouch. Eventually however the cloying stink of the rapidly rotting flesh overcame their curiosity and the investigators decided to get on with their original plan. To move to the ancient Dwarf inn and spend the night there.  Though Violet who had seen none of the dwarf hold at all before this had to suppress her with to go and explore further. The group lead by the company therefore moved on and noticing that the south door was open and for some reason they decided to go that way rather than east as they had planed.

The south corridor was as they had discovered in the Companies visit thought the ball had apparently retracted into the ceiling again, but the whispered call went round no Elvish no Brandobian. After which the company proceeded into the entry hall, and paused to look at the wall paintings there, by chance looking up Violet noticed a light flickering at the top of the stairs not a natural light to white, magic. Jumpy because of finding the evidence of the enemy in the goblin caves Violet drew an arrow knocked it and loosed it almost before any one else was aware she had seen any thing much less what. The arrow shot form her bow speeding up into the darkness towards the light bearer who it missed being aimed a little too far to the right of them striking Aetlred a glancing blow fortunately, but it still staggered the frail half elf. Nyassor ever suspicious unslung his crossbow as Americ raised his light and brightened it. Then Violet realised he mistake and lowered he bow calling up profuse apologies in broken Brandobian. Aetlred recovered enough to signal to Nyassor to lower his aim and indicate that the shot was a mistake amongst friends all be it a damniably painful one. Aetlred and his two companions descended the stairs slowly and the rest of the company waited for them arms lowered wondering who Aeltred’s new friends where.

Aeltred’s new friends put up their weapons and relaxed and looked at those they approached a score of scruffy ill armed militia types save the one in knightly mail who oddly lacked ether a helm or a shield or a weapon beyond a common walking staff, only the Tiefling ranger looked like one who truly knew her business. That said Aetlred who they some how trusted looked to be little more than an elfin child, playing at being a hero. Those behind them dressed in dirty linen tunics and rags of cloth and ill cured fur armed with long knives and humanoid bucklers had even less about them to impress. On the Other hand the company saw Aeltred’s new friends and they looked rather as if they knew the trade of adventuring and where properly equipped for it. The Human wore a simple steel helmet and a sleeveless steel scaled tunic metal over a quilted long sleeved gambeson, reinforced leather bracers and had a nasty looking mace type weapon hanging at his belt. He was booted and hung about with satchels and haversacks doubtless full of the sort of gear the company would like to have. The massively built elfish looking figure still holding a very nasty steel spanned cross bow though now not pointing it at any one looked even more warlike in his mail coat and nazeled helm with a long curved sword at his hip was also hung about with adventuring gear. He squinted grimly his outlandish eyes little more than red slits in the cold pure white light of his companions magical light. This was no doubt a cold killer and one it was to be hoped was on your side.

As the three reached the base of the stairs Violet came forward and profusely apologised to Aetlred for shooting him and offered to see to his wound but Aetlred never the most socially adept rather snubbed the apology and  said he wasn’t hurt that badly and would sort it out after he had introduced his new friends.  He did just that, relaying the whole tale of what had happened since he vanished in the dog shed and pointing out that neither of his companions spoke a language any of the company was going to understand, but the situation felt more than a little awkward even so.

In the end Telec suggested that they should carry on to the inn and in addition some one should go back and get a pig form the animal enclosure above and as no one had eaten much or properly they should organise a hog roast to cheer themselves all up. This was done and the evening ended in some festivity for all concerned even given the lack of ale or in many cases a common language eventually most of the company drifted away to sleep but not before Telec and Sondan had organised a watch to be kept in the passage near the entrance they had made form the goblin caves.

Whilst the Company and the released captives slept replete and happier than they had been for several days in the relative safety of the inn in the ancient dwarf hold Aetlred fell to dreaming.

Annual Muster officially began at noon, with the blessing of the festival by Lord Amulun Duke of Ebaran himself, ruler of Ebaran. The crowd gathered in Temple Square quieted as the aged inquisitor took the stage, clad in shining, resplendent armor. He cleared his throat, but just as he was about to speak, a bright light shone from the west, as if the sun were rising from the wrong direction. Amulun Duke of Ebaran’s shadow fell huge and distorted across the Great Temple’s facade. A moment later, the sound of a thunderous explosion ripped through the air and earth, along with a violent tremor.

To the west, the fortress known as the Great Bastion the location of Ebaran’s pale stone had vanished. In its place, a brilliant plume of red fire, lightning, and very black smoke which erupted into the heavens. A moment later, a powerful roar rent the air and was followed by a welcome sight rising from the crowd Ebaran’s greatest guardian, the ancient dragon Alakarennassamur, who had until that moment been attending the opening ceremony disguised as a human. Above, another form appeared, as nightmarish as the dragon was breathtaking. A humanoid shape three times the size of any man, with skin coated in fire and lightning, gripped a flaming sword and whip. The creature’s identity was immediately obvious: Valaxdev, the Storm King of the Blight Scar, had come to Ebaran!

As the ground continued to shake and disgorge demons into the streets, the dragon and the Demon lord clashed above. The fight was over in a few harrowing moments, as the Demon cut deep into Alakarennassamur’s body, swooping down to strike the dragon and arresting her charge. A few more blows, and the titanic duo spiraled downward toward the crowd.

The sight of the dragon smashing into the facade of the Great Temple of Ebaran one no witness would ever forget. At that moment, a titanic demon erupted at the far end of the plaza, reducing several buildings to ruins as it smashed into this world. The rift it created shot across the square opening up a great chasm, and this time there was no escape it opened below your feet, and every where the shocked attendees of the great annual muster fell  away into darkness.

Even as you fell, cruelly wounded by the Demon lord’s blade the dragon noticed your plight. Though she saw death standing over her, she seized this final chance to save a few more souls. After she uttered a few rasping words of power words and stretched out a blooded talon in your direction, you felt her magic take hold of you, slowing your plummet into the darkness as if you were feathers falling into a pit. Yet the fall remained as inexorable, and as you drifted downward into the depths, the last thing you saw was the Storm King standing before the ancient silver dragon, his sword lashing out and cleaving full through her neck. As her severed head fell, the rift above you slammed shut, and the light of the world above was gone.

At this Aetlred awoke with a mighty start and found himself in a cold sweat, the good sprits conjured by the hog roast quite gone. Around him his companions still slept, this annoyed Aetlred for no good reason and convinced he would not sleep again that night he resolved to get to the bottom of the dream or what he was sure was a dream even though it was as vivid and disturbing as if he had actually lived it.

Aetlred snaffled a couple of scraps from the remains of last nights feast and came to a conclusion that the damned big dwarf knew something more about what was going on than he had told and resolved to beard him in his lair. With this determination in mind Aetlred marched down to the tribute hall, and after glancing almost apprehensively in the direction of the gate thing he turned and hammered on the carved doors to the north. Shortly he had an answer as a postern he had not even seen opened in the door and the same large dwarf told him to come in. Which some what nervously Aetlred did entering a bright clean hall beautifully decorated in the same sort of style as the dwarven houses the company had explored lit by crystal lamps and furnished like some sort of wizards study  from Aeltred’s imagination with the walls lined with shelves of books high chairs and a work table covered with scrolls and wyrd looking maps,  a writing desk and a pair of armchairs .

The Dwarf rather behaved as if he had been expecting Aetlred. Being a hospitable soul for all his apparent grumpiness and not tolerating idiots at all well, Zildor offered Aetlred a mug of good ale and a very comfortable chair and offered to answer any of the questions Aetlred might need answering. Aetlred was a bit shocked as in his mind dwarves came in two sorts the full of themselves sort, Thans, and the miserable and taciturn, Heradin.

Zildor said that the thing outside in the tribute hall was a gate on the king’s road built by his apprentice Aildor who had settled here some thirty thousand local years ago or more. When a prince of Zildor’s people had answered a cry for help from the dwarves of this realm and Aildor had gone with him. The two strangers where not from the same realm but form a place a long way away which was much beset by primal chaotic evils, Zildor believed, how they had come here in particular was not clear but Zildor suspected that some powerful magic they had used had synched in with the kings gate outside causing it to operate as if they had stepped form one active gate to another.

The creatures found in parts on the gate where the foot soldiers of that evil slain by the strangers and their missing companions and the vermin he had destroyed where a more elite soldier of that same evil. Zildor added that these elite soldiers these chaotic evil outsiders and something which had no place in this realm and that was why he had destroyed them as he did.

The  strangers where in all likely hood far to far form home ever to return at least not without magic of the power which had brought them hence and that was not something Zildor believed would be found in this realm. Zildor could be wrong as he admitted to not knowing a great deal about the details of this realm after all he said he came here form else where to be able to work in peace and quiet and the guest rooms Aildor had built where convenient for that and rather a home away form home.

The strangers did speak learnable languages, but that in the mean time it was quite possible to translate them using magic. Indeed there was a simple spell which would work in this realm to do just that and it so happened that he had a scroll of it to hand. Zildor told Aetlred that the spell could be cast once from the scroll by any one with the ability to read the language of dwarves but doing so would consume the scroll so that it would be better given to a wizard so that that individual could use it to learn the spell and so have it to hand. There where also some notes on the scroll to help in learning the spell and a couple of other spells an aspiring mage should find useful. Zildor went to the writing desk picked up a beautifully tooled leather scroll case and handed to Aetlred who had the presence of mind to clip it to his belt.

  

Aetlred asked Zildor about the dream and whist he did not understand all that much of the answer he got he did remember it in detail. The dream he had was almost certainly a true memory of the events which lead the strangers to use whatever magic they had used however it was not a memory of Aeltred’s but rather that of one of the strangers missing companions with who Aetlred had some how fused as they had appeared in the same place in the same time. Aetlred being the native here, and perhaps with the other being in the process of dying had provided the majority of the fusion but that fragments of the other would likely rise to the surface from time to time.

The conversation after that touched on several subjects the majority of which Aetlred cant now recall as he  was by this point overcome by the tiredness of the day before having had but a couple of hours sleep before the dream woke him. Aetlred did remember asking Zildor about the overlord and Zildor saying after a discussion the details of which are very vague that he, Zildor could if needed kill it, however there would be consequences and it would be better if the problem was dealt with locally Eventually the fatigue and the ale took hold Aetlred dozed off and had a rather pleasant sleep one he greatly needed, and dreamed romantically of Halflings.

Whilst Aetlred was dreaming in the Wizards very comfortable over stuffed chair the rest of the company awoke arranged itself a breakfast of oat cakes baked form the last of the fruit porridge by one of the villagers and cold cuts form the remains of the hog roast from the precious night. Then whilst the rest arranged to break camp those who where injured received magical healing and first aid from Violet, Telec and Linamar, it was some time during this activity that it became apparent that Aetlred had gone missing yet again and after some moaning the company set about to go and look for him. At around the same time Americ finished his morning prayers and tried to heal his companion Nyassor and discovered to his alarm that the powers granted to him by his Devine lord had not as he would have expected refreshed after a nights sleep and the proper meditation and prayer. He would have liked to ask his new companions about this but seeing as the old dwarf wizard had said he and his friend had no language in common with them   he could not do so. Besides by the time he had discovered the awful truth the Villagers where in the middle of breaking camp and every one of the adventuring company seemed to have gone off about some urgent business or other so all that could be done was to check Nyassor’s wounds where healing and to leave nature to take its course. Not that the grim and often silent elf would complain regardless of the hardship. Americ for the first time, since he arrived in this strange land and possibly since he had met them on the road to Ebaran regretted the absence of the annoying halfling wizard

After the company had sought Aetlred for some time and asked the guard post if he had passed that way and where told he had not. Violets and others attempts to track him failed as his rangers soft soled boots left no track any one could follow on the hard stone floors. It was noticed during the search that all the body parts scattered across the dais in the tribute room had rotted away to nothing and all that remained was a few nails from the dwarven boot.

In the end Aetlred reappeared without being found, be with a tale about going and talking with the wizard he had mentioned in his previous account of what had happened after he had disappeared. He even had a scroll case as evidence. Handing this to Heradin, who quickly opened it and found it contained a solitary spell scroll. As Heradin examined it Aetlred told him rather eagerly that the wizard wanted him to learn that. Heradin returned a rather typical skeptical look and decided that he would take a proper look at it latter.

Episode XIII – A victory the goblins defeated at least for now 

Dramatis Personae
Telec - Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer
Aetlred - Half Elf Ranger
Lalia - Halfling Thief
Thans – Dwarf Fighter thief
Heradin- Dwarf Fighter mage
Dvorn the Axe- Fhokki Human Fighter
Sondan – Brandobian, Human Fighter
Fawlit – Half Ork Fighter

Violet – Half Demon Paladin of the Free

Nyassor- Elven, Fighter from Elsewhere

Americ – Human Cleric form Elsewhere

Liamar – Kalamarian Human Cleric of the free from the Hidden Dell

Nyasse - Kalamarian Human girl from the Hidden Dell

Location
In the caves of the goblin raiders, their camp outside and the Ancient Dwarf hold, the woods back to the Hidden Dell and the Holdfast and  A’Rakham Manor

Events

(Starting shortly after the end of the previous session) The company found itself in the morning though more rested and healed than they had been the night before in much the same situation. They and the released villagers where in the caves and safe especially if they took refuge in the dwarf hold behind the magical defense system which seemed not to like goblins as much as it did elves. However they had very limited supplies and would be trapped by the goblins that they knew still to be in the caves who whilst they where more than likely quite demoralized by the companies victories so far where still there and a potential threat. The same applied if the Company returned to the Hidden Dell especially with the villagers live stock as there was only one way to do that which was along the route the goblins had used getting them and the captives here and the company and those it had released where very aware that there where a pack of dogs and several goblins, with bows, almost certainly waiting in ambush some where along that path. The villagers alone could reach the safety of the holdfast by several routes and this was why at least in part Violet was pressing for the company to escort the animals down the only feasible path whilst she lead the villagers to the holdfast by a different route.  The general opinion of the company seemed to be that Violet was sending the company into an ambush, which she admitted she was but she was doing so in order to try to protect the lives of the villagers who where ill equipped to deal with the goblins in a fight where as the company was even if wounded from previous fights. There was something of an impasse especially when it was also pointed out rather unhelpfully that the goblins remaining in the caves could also sally forth and attack them as they left.  After some period of rather circular argument Telec suggested that they clear the caves of the remaining goblins whilst the villagers remained behind the ancient Dwarven defenses. Rather amazingly to all present given the increasing heat of the argument every one seemed to think this was a good plan and agreed.

The villagers returned to the ancient dwarf inn where every one had spent the night to wait whilst the company pressed on.  The company with Violet and the two strangers then regrouped in the chamber that the captives had been held in to continue. This chamber had two as yet unexplored exits down both of which the goblins had fled when routed the previous day. Both of these headed generally north though one was to the fest of the other. The one heading almost due north seemed to be the main channel of the river which had made the caves and the other which sloped up noticeably more steeply a tributary stream.  It was quickly decided that the western exit should be checked first.  There was some discussion as to who should scout it but that ended when it was pointed out by Thans that dwarves would be better at this as he could see in the near dark. Violet omitted to say she could see in total darkness deciding she would be better set to rescue the damned fool dwarf if he should get into trouble than any other way round.

This being decided the rest to the company split to give Thans cover as well as to prevent a goblin attack from any of the other two ways in to the cave and refurbished and then relit some of the goblin torches which had burned out over night.

As normal there was some discussion as to how best to proceed but in the end it was decided that Thans was the best scout given the relative lack of light in the caves, but he was rather less than enthusiastic as in this case with all the torches blazing in the cave where the captives had been held he would be heavily back lit and an easy target therefore foe any lurking goblin with a bow. Even so he pressed on and advancing a short way up the North West exit he found that there was a torch bobbing about just out of sight round a corner. Thans returned to the rest of the company who where covering the other exits from the cave incase goblins some how managed to sneak around behind them. He reported the presence of the torch but was sent back to see if he could find out more and even by Aetlred somewhat upbraided for coming back too soon. In return Thans pointedly told Aetlred that his former complaint about him not reporting back regularly enough was the reason he had done so, so soon. With that barbed comment Thans retuned to his task. Going further up the passage this time Thans was unable to spot the carrier of the torch and would have gone further except the toe of his boot suddenly seemed to be over an edge of some sort.  

Thans took a step back and carefully searched for the edge with his foot. The hole went all the way across the passage from wall to wall and was wider than he cared to probe with his foot lest he lose his balance. Ahead the torch moved back further out of sight probably round a corner and the light dimmed.   

Thans went to fetch help and several of the others came forward with a torch at which point the true nature of the hole Tans had found was revealed. It was a shallow, about five feet deep pit blocking the passage and about five feet deep so a bit difficult for a standing jump if not a running one. However the mud and rock rubble that had been dug out of the pit had been piled in a crude low rampart on the other side of the thing such that any one taking a running jump at it would almost certainly either trip and fall forward or missing their footing on the slip and fall back into the pit they had just tried to jump over.

Thans abandoned his exploration of the north western passage; leaving it guarded by the others of the company Thans redirected his efforts to the northern one. More careful here as it was he found lit by the occasional flickering half burned out torch, but still more than enough light for even a goblin’s night sight. The passage curved slowly to the right and he passed out of the dim illumination of the torches plunging even a Dwarf into darkness exempt there where three no four spots of light ahead, they might be more torches. Thans followed the left hand wall with his hand and then just as he got close enough to see that they where indeed distant torches the passage opened out into another very large cave. Thans could see little as he scanned the cave to the left and the right slowly hardly breathing except there was breathing heavy breathing off to the left in the darkness. Thans could not see its source at first so he moved slowly so as to see if the light of the distant torches might reveal any detail. Briefly he caught a glimpse of a large hunched humanoid figure and drew back as fast as stealth would allow him.

Once he was he guessed far enough away form the hulking brute Thans quickened his pace to return to report what he had found.  The company gathered quickly and there was a discussion as to what to do next and in the end it was decided to abandon all attempts at stealth and once again use the Table fort as a mobile defense against whatever the huge hulking thing might be. There was discussion of what that might be but all that could be said for certain was that it was far bigger than any goblin they had met or heard tell of. Lugging the table fort from where it had been left at the front of the mouth cave took half the company the better part of an hour whilst the other half covered both the exits form the cave where the captive villagers had been held in case of a goblin attack. No such attack came but further time was spent by Sondan and Lalia tightening the bindings which held the thing together, repositioning the goblin shields and adding a couple torch mountings to the front.

With the Table fort in place the company split into an attack group and a shooting group again, with the mailed strangers staying at the back of the shooting group just incase the goblins being sneak as they are managed to outflank the Company every one was well aware that there might well be goblins up the passage behind the hastily dug pit. It was apparent that they had both got crossbows, something which outflanking goblins might find a salutatory surprise in its self and seemed to be able to use the curved blade and the spiked mace they carried respectively as close combat weapons. The attack group lifted the table fort and went forward putting it down just inside the room. The twisted and hideously fanged form of an ogre was immediately to be seen to the left and it charged as the table rounded the last corner its great axe swinging in lethal arcs. Across the room could be dimly seen a locked and rather professional shield wall of around a score of armoured goblins, but seemingly no archers. The attack group put the table down and readied itself to face the ogre drawing weapons and unslinging shields.  However the ogres strides was to long and before they could the heavy axe blade was in range and its first swing would have cut Sondan in half had he not swayed back causing it to miss him by a mere fraction

The ogre swing ended and reversed, the foul thing knew how to use an axe thought Dvorn a little queasily as he brought his own axe up into a fighting position. Then before the Ogres reverse swing threatened any one Telec whose weapon was easiest to ready and fast as he was safe behind Sondan swung his staff out and caught the ogre of guard, the butt of the staff striking hard into the beast’s groin. The monster doubled over and staggered hack half a step in agony. Its great axe’s swing striking the ground prematurely and thought with savage force harmlessly. Seeing the great beast discommoded Thans had the presence of mind to vault the table fort and drawing his trusty dagger ran it across the creature’s throat. There was a gout of dark blood and it fell back lifeless.  Across the room the goblins shield wall wavered there plan had gone awry. Seizing the opportunity Telec raised his staff and shouted out to them in Kalamarian that they where the next to be cut down and this wavering teetered on the edge of rout, it all rested on Akakabul, who at that crucial moment seeing all his plans in apparent ruin and only the future image of that mailed behemoth smashing him down with that staff as easily as it had the ogre also gave way to panic and the ordered shield wall became a mob of running goblins desperate to escape. The Attack group started to clamber over the edge of the table fort and Fawlit’s orkish war howl split the air. At the lead of the shooting group Lalia and Aetlred loosed one shot into the backs of the routing goblins one of whom was struck by stone or arrow, stumbled and fell briefly before rising again and following his already fled comrades into the dark tunnel beyond. Telec shouted for every one to halt and let the goblins run for now lest in blind pursuit the pursuers run heedlessly into a goblin trap.

Every one halted, drew breath and it was again over at least for now. Looking around the large cave it was soon apparent that this was where the goblins had stowed the majority of the loot form the Hidden Dell though none of the villager’s soft goods seemed to be present as there where no clothes bedding or the like just tools, farm implements and cooking pots all jumbled together in a heap. The chests where still locked and as usual Lalia fairly rushed to check both for traps and open the locks. Whist they where found not to be trapped the locks on both of them defeated her with the lock on the second breaking one of her lock picks and requiring the Village black smith to finally open it, the first fell at the second attempt but it was a bit shaming to some one who took a pride in no lock ever beating her. The chests where both found to contain only the villagers goods one containing a selection of medicines and the second the one Lalia failed to open parchment ink and book binder’s tools.

Whilst waiting for the blacksmith Lalia and Thans had looked for other traps and found a deep covered pit in the area between the torches on poles, quite possibly they where there as a reminder to the goblins that the pit was there as well as to provide the dim illumination which would aid the night sighted goblins and disadvantage those with out. This pit had been covered by a light wicker lid which had in turn been carefully covered with the mud from the cave floor so that it was to the eye very difficult to distinguish form the undisturbed floor especially if distracted as one would be mid fight. This lid would in no way even support the weight of a goblin let alone a man or a dwarf and seemed to be designed to collapse if stepped on. The pit was shear sided and a good ten feet deep with short sharpened fire hardened wooden stakes driven into its base pointing up to further injure any who fell into it. Searching the Ogres corpse the company found that its belt was decorated with a stet of some fourteen very old worn gold coins pierced and wired together probably by the goblins and its axe was interesting being the warriors attested of no unusual quality but likely of giant work, possibly originally as a hand axe or hatchet for one of the larger kinds.  Fawlit it has to be said took quite a shine to this weapon and it was decided he should have it and he was so happy tears came to his little piggy orkish eyes, people did not give him gifts and he was some what over whelmed.

Investigation on the exits quickly discovered that the one to the east narrowed to the point of impassibility with in a few feet of leaving the chamber, but that the one the goblins had routed down, apparently the main channel continued on a fair eight to ten feet floor to ceiling and a similar width. With the recent lesson of the cunningly concealed pit in mind the company explored this one gingerly. The passage turned a little east as it went north and the soft mud and silt covering the rock of the floor was marked with the boot prints of goblins running pell mell along it. There where no traps, but the passage was lit every thirty or forty feet by a guttering torch. After about three torches the passage began to narrow from its starting width to one of less than a foot thought the height remained almost the same and the passage now resembled a wide water worn crack more than a passage. The Goblin boot prints had not come this far, indeed when the company retraced its steps Aetlred noticed that the boot marks stopped just before the last torch and here they appeared to have rallied at least partly as the boot prints told the story of a milling group of goblins in the passage and that a rope end had partly obliterated the marks in the mud and silt of the tunnel floor. Looking up Thans saw a sink hole in the roof and all became clear the goblins had fled to here and then escaped further by climbing up a rope into a passage above. They boosted Lalia up through the hole with a torch and she saw more goblin boot prints and scramble marks up there but being no tracker she could add no more detail.

Thans realised that the passage that the escaping goblins had climbed into might be the same one as that which lead from the cave where the captives where. After a brief discussion and leaving a guard to stop any goblins coming back and stealing the villager’s goods form the pile in the goblin leader’s lair cave, Thans Lalia and Aetlred doubled back with Fawlit and several borrowed shovels filled in the hastily dug pit and crossing it discovered that Thans guess had been right. Further searching along this upper passage showed that the goblins had escaped onto the surface not far from the scarp of the next ridge.

There had been two groups one, had left last night and might well have been the archers who escaped from the cave the captives where held in after fleeing the fight there and the other larger group had climbed the scarp an hour or two ago and both Violet and Aetlred agreed where the booted group thought tracking them across the scree of the scarp proved rather difficult.  

Now it was apparent that the caves where clear of goblins and would remain so at least for the moment the company returned to the problem of firs thing this morning that of getting the captives their goods and live stock back to the Dell and thence to the Holdfast without getting ambushed given that they where sure there where goblins and worse dogs in the woods along the one practical path to the destination waiting to do just that.  On consideration it was thought best to assume that they would be ambushed in the woods some where along the route and therefore best to organise so as to minimise the casualties caused by an ambush and allow a quick counter when it happened.  Being the most wood wise this task fell to Violet and Aetlred who split the company the villagers and the live stock into groups who would move through the woods far enough apart that any ambush could only target one of them, yet close enough together to allow the rest of the company especially those in adjacent groups to come to the aid of the one ambushed very quickly.

That and other needful things, such as milking the cows who where in utter agony having not been milked for days, done the whole party set off cautiously the villagers in each group paying attention to driving their live stock and the escorting company scanning the woods for clues to the location of the ambush. Going was slower than it might have otherwise been because of this and they only reached the edge of the Dell by late afternoon but despite expectations and seeing both Goblin tracks and dog spoor on route they had not been ambushed nor had they seen any goblins or their hunting dogs. Once the passed the watch tree and descended into the dell every one felt safe and they where able to reach the holdfast in early evening without any encounter with goblins nor further signs of their past presence. At the sight of the overgrown and neglected paddocks outside the Holdfast every ones spirits oddly rose.

They rose all the more when they saw Nyasse’s horse grazing in one of the paddocks outside and her having at least opened the place up and aired it ready for their arrival. It was a bit disappointing that she had not got a feast waiting for the returning hero’s but then  Thans thought she was not a dwarf and found her lack of preparedness understandable on that basis, and every one else realised that the girl could not have known that they where coming let alone at what time.  However she was able to point out where all the supplies where and had laid in a supply of fire wood for the kitchen and a modest feast was soon in the preparation. Every one except Violet ate and drank the wine the last champion had laid in and stories where told over the table in the great dining room of deeds past and of the activities of recent days. Only Nyassor and Americ where excluded form that though the former joined in with the games as much as he could given he understood none of words even with Aetlred dumb show’s questionable help. Americ was more withdrawn and sort his bed rather than face the jollity he would normally have been the life and soul of Dvorn and Aetlred duelled in telling outrageous stories though Dvorn maintained all of them where true and became a bit annoyed when challenged. Telec told some traveller’s tales all the more appreciated since they where in the native Kalamarian of most of those present and Violet told of the death of Perkal in the manner of his folk even if in Kalamarian not his native tongue. In the end a good time was had by most present.

The company having spent a quite comfortable night at the Holdfast set out in the morning carrying the rather unpleasantly smelling goblin heads and the ogre head in old sacs scrounged from the least reusable ones in the Holdfasts stocks The journey was pleasant and took the company a little more than half a day during which they saw no sign of goblins.

Coming down over the last rise into the hollow the Inn at A’Rakham sat in revealed a major change the inn building where still there but they where now surrounded by a small canvas town of traders and craftsmen who serviced or wanted to trade with the caravans heading east and the camps ordered camps of the larger mercenary groups who plied their trade guarding the caravans which crossed the Laggosa range to Kalamaria and back.

The company made quite an entrance coming in along the king’s road from the west like they owned it. This attracted quite a crowd and the crowd built up even more as the Company approached the inn at the centre of the fair, scanning this growing crowd Lalia noticed the pickpockets working them and was pleased with her self.  The company passed D’rek who was working away at the smithy assisted by two apprentices one operating the bellows and one plying him with watered ale and honey cakes. He was as most smiths are working stripped to the waist in a leather apron and that was an image even his friends would not wish to see. He waved in a jovial manner and commented that his friends all looked like they where wasting away, before turning back to alternating eating and smith work.

By the time the company had reached the inn it seemed that every one in the fair with nothing better to do and quite a lot which had was gathered to watch the spectacle. Telec took charge and spoke to the inn servants who where at first a little unhelpful but such was his confidence as the ogre slayer that he swiftly reprimanded them and sent them to fetch Maragamir the lord of the manor. Maragamir shortly returned resplendent in his lordly robes attended by his body servants and chancellor. Telec spoke to him and presented him with the sacks of goblin heads saying proudly that the offense the goblins had caused to the honour of the lord of A’Rakham had been avenged. Maragamir quickly counted the thirty severed heads and agreed that it had he gestured to his Chancellor who passed him a small leather bag of coin and announced that he had offered these men indicating the company with an expansive gesture five gold to avenge the honour of the inn, however they had done it in such fine style that he felt he would be shamed if he did not double it to ten. He then rather ostentatiously counted five more gold coins from his personal money pouch into the bag before commanding that his chancellor add an extra five to the other bags he was carrying from the money chest. This was done and all saw the wealth and the magnanimity of the lord of the A’Rakham as the open money chest contained much more than the forty five extra gold coins he was handing out indeed it was fairly brimming with coin. All that is except that is Aetlred who remembered the original offer of ten gold to each man who would avenge the honour of the Lord of A’Rakham on the night of the raid and was not going to let it go, especially as the bastard was only paying what he had said he would but was making it sound like he was paying much more than he had promised.  Aetlred therefore challenged Maragamir pointing out that ten gold coins to each of the volunteers was what was promised on the night, not five and if he wanted to reward good work as he said he should really be paying over ten Maragamir shot Aetlred a filthy look, which fortunately very few else present saw and continued handing out the purses of gold to all of them even Americ, who would normally have said something if he had not been quite so despondent about the loss of contact with his god and Nyassor who took it with a meaningless smile, not at all wishing to look a gift horse in the mouth and thought Maragamir a skinflint for expecting the company to have done what they did for so very little. Telic also noticed and decided this was the time to bring out the ogres head, this drew gasps and even ragged cheers when Maragamir had his body servants lift it up to show to the crowd and had the desired effect of resetting the mood even if it did not spur Maragamir to hand over any more coin. Maragamir said it was a fine trophy and the tale of Telec’s slaying it was a fine tale indeed and he sent one of the body servants off to fetch Voldomar the taxidermist as the ogre head needed to be presented properly. It was apparent that it was beginning to decompose even if it was no where near as stinking as the goblin heads.

Shortly the Taxidermist arrived and after some negotiation with Telec said that he would be able to boil down the Ogre head and produce a trophy skull and he would do so for the honour of working for such a brave man as Telic, this rather put Dvorn’s nose out of joint as he had almost convinced himself that he was the one who had struck down the Ogre with one blow an was preparing a good tale to tell to that end at the next opportunity. The Taxidermist also agreed to buy the goblin heads off the Company as Maragamir did not want them except as proof that his honour had been avenged. Voldomar’s apprentices took the Ogre head and the Goblin heads and Voldomar advised the company that it would take a few days to boil the flesh of the Ogre skull and make it ready for display. Then Maragamir wanting to draw the attention of the slightly thinning crowd outside the inn back to him spoke up offering the company a free meal and free drinks on the house. Fawlit lead the charge and was for the first time in his life served without a quibble by the servants of any in not to mention being allowed to sit in the common room with every one else and drink it. He downed the first and ordered a second before any one else had taken more than a sip of their first.

The meal which followed was the best the house could muster and whilst it was not of the best it went down well with mugs of small beer, as the company had eaten little half as palatable or filling since the last meal Meliac’s farm in the case of the original members and even longer for the others who had been living on the inns cheapest fare whilst waiting for a caravan to come ant them to get paid employment.

First Aetlred and then the others began hearing the word Grell in the conversations around them followed by noticing pointed glances at Nyassor and the word being applied to Nyassor by both drinkers and staff The Company collectively sensing the atmosphere in the common room beginning to grow hostile decided that it might be best if they got up and left even Fawlit, not the most perceptive or the brightest caught on to the need dispute the free ale and him being well into his second mug of it as a half ork he was no stranger to this sort of thing from others who would judge a man by his  looks and then curse him or cast stones or blows because of them.

Nyassor had sat and eaten quietly and drank as he usually did slowly had not being able to understand the conversation did not properly understand why they drank up quickly and left in a such a hurry it was as far as he was concerned just a foreign inn and he had been in lots and this one was not so different form the ones he had been in before. That Aetlred had tried to explain after they got clear of the fair in dumb show only told him that something too dangerous to deal with was about to happen and that he was some how the cause of it. Americ lost in the misery of his abandonment by his god did not even notice this.

After leaving the fair at A’Rakham in something of a hurry the Company quickly returned to the Holdfast where they found the rescued villagers had been starting the process of settling in to the place.

The original description of the Holdfast had been accurate it was eminently defensible dry and almost invisible from the outside but very cramped with fifty people living in it and the paddocks outside where too small for the number of live stock the community now had even with the damage the goblins feasting had done to the numbers and the shelters had also long fallen into disrepair having been replaced long since by the ones the goblins burnt in the village.

That said it was adequately supplied to allow the villagers to survive until they could reinstate the village and gather in the harvest which having not long bee planted had not been disturbed by the goblins and was as Violet had said a definite improvement on living in a sink hole as captives of the goblins or camping out in a village none of whose buildings had a roof to its name.

The company spent the next couple of weeks catching up on the practice of the skills they had not had a chance to do owing to the frantic pace of life. Americ took over one of the smaller animal sheds by the paddocks repaired its leaking roof and converted it into a chapel where he spent the rest of his time praying to his goddess in his  own language. He was largely left to his own devices except by Nyassor who it would appear was a worshiper of the same deity and Aetlred who between his other activities was trying to get a feel for the strangers languages and by the end of it could or felt he could manage that a bit.  Nyassor when he was not joining his comrade in prayer spent his time exploring the Dell and the surrounding area apparently trying to learn the lie of the land. Violet, Nyasse and Liamar the latter after he had recovered from the migraine which had struck him down on the night of the company’s arrival fell to various tasks along side the villagers putting the Holdfast into good order and working out how to do the much larger task of doing the same to the Village.

Heradin spent his time sitting under a tree with bill his pony grazing on the lush meadow reading and re reading Zildor’s scroll and then using the last of his precious inks to copy the spells into his spell book 

Episode XIV a battle won but the war is not over – the worries of the Holdfast

Dramatis Personae
Telec - Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer
Aetlred - Half Elf Ranger
Lalia - Halfling Thief
Thans – Dwarf Fighter thief
Heradin- Dwarf Fighter mage
Dvorn the Axe- Fhokki Human Fighter
Sondan – Brandobian, Human Fighter
Fawlit – Half Ork Fighter

Violet – Half Demon Paladin of the Free

Nyassor- Elven, Fighter from Elsewhere

Americ – Human Cleric form Elsewhere

Liamar – Kalamarian Human Cleric of the free from the Hidden Dell

Nyasse - Kalamarian Human girl from the Hidden Dell

Location

The Holdfast and the Hidden Dell, the woods to the south, the Faire at A’Rakham Manor

Events

(The events start four weeks after the end of the last episode at the Holdfast at the western end of the Hidden Dell)

With Violet off on her travels again and with their recent experience with the goblin raid and what followed the people of the Hidden Dell are more than a little worried when the company finally comes to the point where they want to return to A’Rakham and spend some of the gold the Lord of the manor gave them for defending his honour against the goblins.

There was at first a something of a discussion with Liamar and the village elders quite a formidable group in themselves revolving round not leaving the villagers totally unprotected from the goblins possible return as every one present is quite aware the goblins where defeated and not vanquished for good ad all. This got a bit heated at times but Liamar managed to keep things constructive for the most part and it was agreed that the company could go south provided they returned, with the supplies which they had already discussed getting with Violet and Liamar before Violet left on her travels. It was also suggested by Nyasse amongst others that some of the company remained behind as a support for the villager’s fledgling militia. None of the company wanted to stay because the ten gold coins the lord of A’Rakham had given them was more money than they had ever had to spend and in some cases more than they had ever had for any purpose. This left of course the strangers and Aetlred the ever helpful had managed to learn some scraps of their rather odd shared tongue and armed with this he went off to ask them.  He first approached Americ who was the easiest to find as he seldom left his chapel and found him unwilling to help in the matter wanting as far as Aetlred could tell to spend his time mending his broken relationship with his goddess who he believes he had offended.

A short further search located the queer looking elf Nyassor not far from the paddock with the horses in it. Aetlred asked him the same question and this time Aeltred’s blundering about in the unfamiliar tongue got Nyassor more than a little exasperated so as Aetlred looked to him like an Elven adolescent Nyassor asked Aetlred in high Elven if he spoke it. Aetlred was initially annoyed as he often is that the tall elf had been hiding his ability to speak High Elven from him, and then it occurred to him that it had never crossed his mind that someone who looked like nothing so much as an oversized elf might speak an Elven tongue and felt a fool.

The conversation which followed was not brief being in a tongue designed to convey very complex matters developed by a people who where immortal and had all the time in the world to do so. The result of the conversation was that Nyassor agreed to stay at the Holdfast as moral support and to if required prize his friend away form his atonement.  When this was conveyed to the Villagers’ they agreed to let the rest of the company go   and Liamar handed them a list of the sort of things the Villages’ needed to replace the goods burnt or otherwise used up and spoilt by the goblins

With that all sorted out the Company along with a couple of the villagers ponies and Heradin’s pony Bill left for the journey south, which day light on a pleasant day saw them arriving at the faire in the early evening. 

Arriving at the faire the company noted the new defensive ditch north of the road and the presence of a check point on the road manned by tabarded mercenaries in the pay of the Lord of A’Rakham

The faire was if any thing busier than it had been when they had visited a month earlier and the whole ground was a mass off tents and pavilions with several streets of traders now in evidence.

The company first stabled there pack ponies in a small livery stable just inside the boundary of the fair not far form the check point at the entry and Heradin stopped to brief the stable hand in his halting Brandobian about the proper way to care for Bill before rushing to catch up with the rest of the company.

After that the first stop was to visit the Taxidermist to recover the skull of the ogre which was done and after a brief chat with the master taxidermist the Company moved on to the inn seeking a room for the night, not that Aetlred grumbled there would be one as the place would be full to bursting with fat merchants. Lalia noted again the dips working the crowd and this put her rather in mind of a bit of fundraising of her own for why spend ones own hard earned coin on an overpriced room in an inn when you can spend some one else’s.

As they approached the inn they passed D’rek who was working away happily sustained by sips of small ale and nibbles of honey cake passed to him by an apprentice he was as usual for a smith striped to the waist and wearing a bull’s hide apron and was not a jot slimmer than when last met. Seeing the company passing he raised his hammer from the piece and waved it in a friendly manner. The company waved back and continued on to the inn itself.

The great common room was packed and it quickly became apparent that the place was full, something confirmed by Telec asking one of the very busy staff about the availability of a room here or in the foreigner’s house.  However the general opinion was that the Company should at least stop for a drink before finding some where to stay with space for them. Lalia’s eyes where drawn to the leather aprons full of coins all the serving staff had and started to form a plan. Aetlred in a fit of devilment decided to suggest to Fawlit that he get the first round in. Fawlit was desperate fro a drink as he had had none since the companies triumphant last visit and was as ever eager to please so he approached the line of tables which served as a bar coin in hand as even he realized he would have to pay this time. As the Half Ork moved forwards the crowd around him parted and people drew back. Muttering started and by the time the eager Fawlit reached the bar there was a distinctly hostile feel to the atmosphere in the common room. The inn staff just ignored him despite his eagerly proffered gold coin. Fawlit felt not for the first time in his life utterly humiliated, he couldn’t fight all of them and he didn’t really want to, he wasn’t a monster he only wanted a drink, and by all the powers he desperately needed one.

Lalia sensing the distraction provided gave her an opening slipped into the crowd and sidling up to one of the serving staff and sliding an exploratory hand into the coin apron. The serving man noticed and with exemplary speed grabbed her hand stop that thief he said in Brandobian but fortunately no one else heard him, but Sondan saw there was a problem and stepped in taking command of events like his old sergeant would have.  He batted Lalia round the back of the head as if she was a naughty child took her wrist none to gently whilst apologizing to the serving man for the brat, fortunately the serving man saw that Lalia had actually taken no coins decided to leave it at that as Sondan dragged Lalia away, she was annoyed with herself as much as any thing else it was a good plan why hadn’t it worked and that she had had to be rescued stung her professional pride.

Meanwhile Fawlit stood at the bar a moment longer until Telec announced every one out we will find some where which will serve us and marched out of the door the company followed to a man thought Sondan still had Lalia’ wrist in a vice grip until they where clear and she had given her word she would buy a round when they did find somewhere to serve them, Lalia felt more annoyed as her money pouch took a hit just after her professional pride.

By this time the Faire was most defiantly winding down for the day and most of the many stalls where shutting up shop even so it did not take that long for the company to find one of the several large tents which served as taverns in the faire Here Sondan made Lalia make good on her word and she bought the first round as well as ordering some food for herself an annoyed halfling is a hungry halfling. Fawlit downed the wooden tankard of small beer so fast it never touched the sides. Then ordered another it would seem here that his coin was as good as any one else’s. However he failed to notice he was being charged double at least for each drink.

The rest of the company moved over to the table where Sondan and Lalia where sitting and considered ordering food, indeed they where on the point of this when Lalia’s arrived it was a wooden bowl of brown stew, to be more precise it was a brown bowl full of thick some what greasy hot brown liquid with brown lumps floating in it. The brown lumps could have been any thing but most likely might one have been root vegetables or unidentified very over cooked meat.   It came with a brown wooden spoon and a lump of dark brown dry bread even a hungry halfling had it on her honour to turn her nose up at that and every one else decided to have another drink and go looking for some where better to eat.

At this point the company split up the majority of them went with Aetlred in search of a hog roast as he was insistent there must be one at the faire and he had rather liked the one they had had in the dwarf hold. Fawlit stayed here and drunk himself into oblivion. Dvorn disappeared off to find a crowd to tell his stories of how heroic he was to and Sondan to catch up with any of his old comrades who might be about and generally see what was going on in the caravan protection trade.

The main company quickly located the almost obligatory hog roast, not hard with it not being all that far from the tavern tent where they had just been. Here the food was good as was the ale which had be bought from the master brewer at Ettis wall the same as the good ale at the main inn though the staff did mention that they might have trouble getting much more as the road west of the faire had seen numerous sightings of goblins and many of the local peasants had decamped to the relative safety of Ettis wall. There were also romours of war from the north and the doomsayers where predicting another great humanoid invasion. Even so the whole night was pleasant and increasingly celebratory as the ale followed and every one went back for seconds and perhaps thirds in some cases. The conversation waxed back and forth over recent events and what the company should do after they took the goods that they where honour bound to purchase back to the Holdfast however no conclusions where reached and thoughts turned to where to sleep that night at which point Aetlred rushed off to the roast once more and every one else more than a little ale fuddled if the truth be told wondered what on earth he was up to especially when he returned with a wooded trencher with a huge portion of roast in it. Snackage he announced with the solemnity of the more than slightly drunk we are all off to see our old friend and companion D’rek. Every one looked a little confused but Lalia caught on first we go and see D’rek and see if he will put us up for the night. With which the company set off to D’rek’s house though the darkening faire bearing their gift before them.

When they arrived D’rek was still up, having a pre bed snack and quickly told his apprentice let them in. He was delighted to see them and even more delighted with the granted slightly cold and a bit congealed pig roast. He took one look at the company and announced that they where wasting away with all this adventuring lark and roused his other apprentice who was already asleep and had them prepare a slap up supper and offered more ale and honey oat cakes for afters.

They chatted late into the night as old friends will reminiscing about the rats at the farm which seemed so very long ago now even if it was only a month or perhaps two ago D’rek was eager to hear of the adventures with the goblins and especially of the hardships he had avoided by giving up the adventuring life. He told of what had been going on around the faire alluded to the sightings of goblins along the kings road to the west and  how he was doing very well being by far the best blacksmith in the area. They talked of who the good armourers and weapon smiths where and D’rek gave them directions to the weapon smiths row and to remind him in the morning. All of them retired late and rose late to the sounds of D’rek opening up the forge outside and the smell of cooking as D’rek’s second breakfast was cooked so he could eat it whilst the apprentices cosseted the forge up to the proper working temperature. 

D’rek offered every one a share of his breakfast, but every one was keen to leave as no one wanted to be present for the awful moment D’rek took of his tunic to start work. He did force some packages of honeyed oat cakes into the departing company member’s hands.  He said they where welcome any time and sent one of his apprentices along to make sure that they found where they wanted to go in the faire as he had to do some food shopping any way as it never did to be in danger of running out of supplies.

The apprentice led the company to the clothier’s row along the road and left them there, with directions to the armourers row just off to the north, as he had to get off to the bakery because he would be for it if he didn’t bring back his masters favorite sweet cakes and the best loaves soon ran out these days. This reminded the company that they had also intended to get some more provisions for the folk of the Hidden Dell so they followed the apprentice to the bake house tent and finding it in an area surrounded by other stalls selling preserves, pickles, sacks of various grains and various long lasting root vegetables of the sort you can make good stews and soups form the company stocked up on these to give the residents of the Holdfast at the Hidden Dell a decent supplement to their basic rations until such time as the crops in the fields by the ruined village which the goblins had not harmed became ready tom harvest and they became once again self sufficient.  The company arranged for these goods to be taken to the blacksmiths house as soon as they where ready. Seeing how much the company had already bought before they got to the clothiers and the weapons and armour smiths Heradin suggested that they would likely need another pack pony to carry it all.  There was as ever and the company decided to invest in another pack ponies’ which they would get the end along with the necessary gear from the livery they had left Bill and the ponies lent them by the people of the Hidden Dell.

As they talked of this the company moved along back to the clothier’s row. Browsing the Clothiers row the company discussed the bolts of cloth that they had been asked to get for the Holdfast chose them and tried to haggle but it cut almost no slack with the veteran merchants but they got what they required all be it not at a bargain price and made arrangements for the goods to be delivered to D’rek’s forge so they could pick them up on the way out and load them onto the pack animals.

With that done the company then moved off up onto the weapon smiths row and started the serious business of browsing for better weapons and armour. Some of it was easy getting a light crossbow for Sondan and Thans with a supply of bolts was easy but getting good quality weapons and armour was difficult as any thing obviously better than standard was also doled to the limit up to push the price up even more. Nothing was to be had in the weapons line which was undemonstrative plain or workmanlike and not flashy often in the extreme. Armour was a little easier but most of that was metal any way and well out of the company’s price range even for the more normal quality sort.  The best they could find was a suit of studded leather obviously made for a priest of the True as it was whilst of excellent quality rather spoilt by all the rivets and washers being brass topped and polished like gold and all the intervening leather painted with gilt paint some of which was flaking where the quilted leather had flexed in use. In the end the company settled on two suits of plain but Thans & Heradin assured every one sturdy and good quality quilted leather of the type the Fhokki people faviour as its good armour and will keep you from freezing in the winter cold. Granted it’s not nice in the south but it’s nearly that cold sometimes around here especially in the mountains and mercenaries who have worked in the north along the ragged northern Cosdolen frontier for  example  going to work in the warmer south often sell it on so its available second hand in large markets an the faire here is as large as you will find for many a weeks march either east or west not to mention being the very sort of place where a mercenary might want to off load unwanted gear.

In the morning Fawlit woke with a bad head having passed out under a merchant’s wagon and went off to look for a tavern tent to serve him some food and a couple of tankards of ale to clear his head. 

Dvorn awoke in the arms of an easily impressed serving maid who was no doubt late for work as it was some what past dawn, not that he cared she had saved him the price of a room for the night after all and spent some time with a real hero. He dressed quickly and quietly and left with a blown kiss. Going off to seek some breakfast, in the nearby tavern tent he noticed the damned half ork head down in a bowl of stew and his first drink of the day wretched sot he thought Dvorn did not a knowledge him best not make a point of letting people know the hero Dvorn the axe even knows such a low life, let alone counted him as a comrade in arms. Having eaten and wanting to avoid the stupid clingy beast Dvorn stepped out onto armourer’s row to seek an axe fit for the hero he was. He soon found one a beautifully balanced piece with a blade covered in gilt and the handle reinforced by steel strip decorated with brass polished to look like gold wrapped in fine sot calfskin and counter balanced with a pommel in brass that was in the shape of a screaming Orks head, it was made for him, he also picked up a coat of heavy quilted leather as used by the northern tribes and edged in soft grey fur he thought looked like wolf. His purchase complete and his purse empty of gold he decided to go looking for every one else, how lucky they where he thought to be in the company of such a great hero. 

Sondan took his coin to the armourer’s row to look for some better armour and perhaps a cross bow though that was not the essential it might once have been as he had grown quite fond of the short bow the use of which he had practiced at the Holdfast not least of which because his likely enemies seemed to favor it and therefore a ready supply of arrows could be recovered form them, he had yet to see a goblin with a cross bow or any one else exempt the strangers who where very odd indeed and the elves bow with its steel span looked like it was made to take down charging caparisoned horses or the sort of monster Sondan would rather give a very wide birth to, owl beasts sprang to mind, not that he had ever seen an owl beast powers be thanked.

He browsed the armour available and had set his eye on a coat of studded leather and an open faced plate steel helm when he spied the majority of the company further along the row. He sighed and like the good soldier he was decided to keep hold of his gold and may be save up for a coat of mail at a latter date. He walked up the row to where the rest of the company where examining a very flashy suit of studded leather armour and more than slightly turning their noses up at something only a priest of the True would be see in dead or alive. By the time he reached them they had purchased a couple of suits of leather armour in the fhokki style.

Dvorn saw the company outside on Armourers row as he left the tavern tent and resplendent in his new armour with his new axe shouldered, he would he thought have to think of a name for that after all even the scummy half ork had one he remembered not that he could read the dwarf scratchings on the sharpened club it was so fond of. He wondered whether or not to say where the half ork was and half hoped they would forget about it and leave it behind.

When he joined the company they and the “corporal” Sondan where talking about getting good but unflashy weapons and discussing a couple of coats of fhokki style armour they had just bought doubtless for the fool dwarves or perhaps just one of them and the more fool elf, he did not really care.

With most of the company gathered together again and with those that had gone to D’rek’s house, last night wanting something to wash down the small mountain of food just being in his company again could cause you to consume It was decided to retire to the very same tavern tent Dvorn had not long left for a mug of small ale and a longer discussion of what to do next. Here they met up with Fawlit who was already the wrong side of a couple too many mugs of small ale and was quite effusively pleased to see every one and offered to buy them all a drink. The discussion continued on the subject of unflashy weapons of quality and bemoaning the fact that they where not to be had locally. Eventually however the discussion turned to the possibility of getting such made and wondering who they could get to do it. D’rek’s name was mentioned by Heradin and backed up by Thans because any dwarf blacksmith could turn his or her to weapon and armour smiting and D’rek was as far as they could see a rather good one, even if Thans did note not as good as a dwarf of course. However Telec and Aetlred who had known him longest said that he had no skill with weapons and they had never seen him make any thing more complex than an arrow head.  To prove his point, literally, Aetlred hunted through his quiver to find one of the arrows he had made with an arrow head D’rek had forged at the Meliac’s farm. Having found one he passed it round and those who knew their weapons where forced to agree that whilst there was certainly nothing wrong with it there was certainly nothing exceptional about it either. Some what smug his point being proved Aetlred returned the arrow to his now brimming quiver with a flourish. Sondan commented that even so D’rek might have some good steel as even a blacksmith had uses for it, for good measure and to prove his point in Aeltred’s manner he drew his own razor and nail clippers from his pouch commenting that they where of the best steel and doubtless blacksmith work. Telec agreed and wondered if their old friend might sell them some steel and they could seek out a smith to make weapons out of it.  Aetlred blurted out the fact that they already knew such a smith then coloured as he knew he shouldn’t have said so here.  The discussion fell into silence and every one drunk up and left feeling it was time to go and see D’rek then to leave.

The company walked quickly out of the tavern tent and down armourers and then weapon smith’s rows to the main line of the king’s road through the faire passing as they did the line of stalls and tents which formed clothier’s way and past the inn to D’rek’s house where he was to be seen working away sustained as before with bites of honey oat cakes and sips of small ale. He sent his apprentice over to say to them that the cloth and other stores had arrived. He also had the apprentice ask if they wanted to stop for a snack, but the company still uncomfortably full from last night had not even made a start on the packets of honey cakes he had insisted they take to keep their strengths up whilst shopping. Even the Halfling could not face the thought of eating for quite a while and felt more than usual like the barrel big people occasionally refer to her kind as.

Putting the offer of food aside the Company stopped to chat instead about where they could get high grade steel from in the faire. D’rek laughed saying that he had a load he did not need as he had over estimated the demand for tools and was in any event far to busy supplying the nearby Farrier and Waggoner’s with metal fittings for their trades not to mention iron barrel rings of all sizes and nails by the box even if he did delegate most of the latter to his apprentices, it’s the way I learned he adds with a chuckle and a small bit of errant oat cake escapes form his beard falling to the ground. D’rek rests on the handle of the heavy hammer his wields as if it where a tenth of its weight and size and sends his apprentice out back to get the steel bar stock. Shortly the lad arrives dragging a heavy box. D’rek deftly flicks the lid open with his hammer revealing that it is full of long twisted bars of dark steel how much do you need he asks there is another box like this out back but you cant have all of it as I will need it when the knife grinder moves on and I stop having his competition.  A look passes round the company, how much do they need they are not sure. So D’rek asks them what they want making and whilst he is no weapon smith he has a much better eye to the amount of metal needed for any item than they do. The company reels off a list and as they do so D’rek lifts the amount of bar he thinks it will need from the box with a pair of tongs and piles it on the ground beside it. When they are finished he smiles and laughs upending the rest of the content into the heap adding incase he is wrong as he is not weapon smith. The company looks at the pile and tries to assess how much it might cost them.

Aetlred hazards a cautious how much?  D’rek laughs not a penny it’s for old time’s sake and for keeping me alive whilst I learned the adventuring lark is just not for me. They shook hands on the deal and then departed to the Livery to get the extra pony and tack for it before returning to the blacksmiths to load up with their goods.

There business at the fair completed Heradin, made sure that all the ponies where properly packed up with the goods they had bought in preparation for the return to the Holdfast.  

The return journey was as easy as the outward one had been and just as untroubled by hostile encounters. So that by mid afternoon on the day they left A’Rakham the company had descended into the Dell and swung east to arrive at the Holdfast early in the evening. 

Episode XV – Maters of comparative Religion and a nasty little skirmish in the woods

Dramatis Personae
Telec - Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer
Aeltred - Half Elf Ranger
Lalia - Halfling Thief
Thans – Dwarf Fighter thief
Heradin- Dwarf Fighter mage
Dvorn the Axe- Fhokki Human Fighter
Sondan – Brandobian, Human Fighter
Fawlit – Half Ork Fighter

Nyassor- Elven, Fighter from Elsewhere

Americ – Human Cleric form Elsewhere

Liamar – Kalamarian Human Cleric of the free from the Hidden Dell

Nyasse - Kalamarian Human girl from the Hidden Dell

Location
The Holdfast and the Hidden Dell, the woods to the north of it

Events

(The session started immediately where the previous one finished with the company arriving back at the holdfast from the faire)

The people at the Holdfast where greatly pleased to see the company’s return and helped Heradin unload the pack ponies making short work of the task. Before inviting the company to share the evening meal, after which the company first spoke to Master Selemar Ku’Ato the village blacksmith at the Hidden Dell who Telec had recognised as having had a former life as the master weapon smith to the imperial household in Bet Kalmar before falling foul of a scheme of the emperors to produce a copy of the lost sword of the emperors. They showed him the good steel bar stock which they had been given by D’rek and then commissioned him to use it to make some plain but professional quality weapons for them. The Master agreed seeing that the steel was of excellent quality but did warn them he was very much out of practice as he had not made anything a village blacksmith would not have in these many years. The talk turned to magical weaponry. However Selemar Ku’Ato had said he had seen exactly one magic sword once long ago and admitted he had no knowledge at all of matters arcane. Never the less Aeltred insisted he looked at the dwarf made elf bane arrow heads they had acquired from the goblins ands asked if he could change the enchantment to something perhaps more useful he looked at the arrow heads and agreed they where without doubt the best work of that kind he had ever seen but regretted that he could not help. Some discussion followed as Aeltred would not take no for an answer and in the end Aeltred had almost had to be dragged away from the poor man by his friends. The excuse used was that they needed Aeltred to talk to Nyassor since every one knew both of them spoke high Elven as they had heard talk of the goblins being back in the woods above the dell and given the big elf had distinct ranger like tendencies and was given to scouting they wanted to know more detail.

Nyassor and Aeltred had a long involved but rather precise conversation, just about the only sort you can have in high Elven it has to be said, about the tracks which Nyassor had said he had seen in the woods to the north and Nyassor explained that there seemed to be regular patrols of five to six large dogs probably with goblins mounted on them passing along the game trails in the woods within an hours walk of the edge of the dell and that they had been increasing in frequency from around two weeks after the companies raid on the goblin caves during which time period he would swear there had been no goblin activity this far south. Nyassor believes that the goblins have returned to the caves and possibly in greater numbers than before but has not thought it wise to scout that far on his own. He is also rather of the belief that the company need to return to the caves and deliver a more stinging check to the goblins than they did previously but he senses a certain reluctance and dose not mention that.  This conversation becomes more general turning into the customary discussion about what to do next. During which the translate spell is brought up and Heradin asked why he did not use it so any one could talk to Nyassor indeed every one could. Heradin is forced to explain that the translate spell only gives him the ability to understand unknown languages both spoken and written but not to give the same ability to others. Aeltred gets grumpy and says it’s a fat lot of use then and will not be persuaded otherwise even when its use is shown to him by the rather exasperated Heradin.  At this point Aeltred retires to bed mumbling about the uselessness of magic and dwarves and especially wizards who are dwarves, which fortunately Thans does not over, hear, and every one realises its quite late and it has been a long day and drifts of to their beds.

The following morning the discussion of what to do next recommences over breakfast. Aeltred gets an idea and goes off to round up Nyassor and then Liamar. He first speaks to Nyassor at some length in high Elven about the religion that Americ is a priest off and what is troubling him as even some one so blind to such things has Aeltred has noticed that Americ’s behavior seems more than a little strange . First Nyassor speaks of the religion and does his best to explain but whilst he is an anointed follower of that religion he is no priest ant can only describe their beliefs in very general terms. The goddess whose worship they share is the patron of rebels against oppression and of those who suffer under the yolk of tyranny; it is a cult dedicated to the support of the former when they stand against tyrants and the giving of hope to the latter that tyranny will always pass. It is as religions go fairly minor as most of any given population will drift away from it when the cause off oppression has been removed. This is something understood by its followers who typically seek the next cause requiring their support and move on. The company which Nyassor and his companions Americ, Nesbit the wizard and Meanor Arvol the dwarf where part of had traveled to a city in the north called Eboran to help liberate a nation over run by the forces of the Abyss. Then Nyassor addresses the matter troubling the priest, and causing him according to Nyassor usually a confident individual to lose his confidence quite so spectacularly apparently since they arrived here the goddess has not responded to any on Americ’s prayers and has granted him no magic after he used that which she had granted him before the disaster in Eboran and the young priest believes that this is because he had in some way offended her and seeks to atone. Nyassor adds that he has no idea of the offense, and believes that Americ himself is equally bewildered as to its nature.

Having heard this Aeltred then goes to fetch Liamar and repeats the tale, suggesting that the faith of the free and this goddess form else where sound rather similar, even if Americ’s  goddess of the liberation struggle seems to have a more limited preview that the guardian, not that Aeltred knows any great detail about the theology of either. Liamar hears what Aeltred has to say and after some thought the young man agrees that elements of the two faiths do sound at least on the surface to be similar at which point and he agrees being cut off from the font of his faith would be troubling to any priest. Liamar also being no fool despite his inexperience that Aeltred might want to do more than discuss a matter of comparative religion and asks Aeltred what he is driving at. To which Aeltred replies remembering something Zildor mentioned to him in their long conversation in the dwarf hold saying that the stranger like himself had come from an elsewhere which was cosmologically a long way off and jumps to the conclusion that it might well be distance rather than any fault on Americ’s part which is the issue. Liamar says he can understand the logic of Aeltred’s point but knows very little of such things and so can’t comment. Violet may well know, but as Violet is absent it is not possible to ask her. Then Aeltred unveils his plan, which is to have Americ convert to the faith of the guardian who is obviously the local equivalent of the goddess he worships elsewhere and who would be able to step into her role.  Liamar is not sure that it will prove that easy.

Mean while every one else was finishing breakfast and chatting generally thought the topic of the companies future plans did feature prominently. Aeltred returns with Liamar in tow and explains his plan which is discussed around the table for a while before an agreement is reached to help. Dvorn wanders off as the conversation turns to the practically of how this might be done as he is only really interested in himself and one by one Heradin, Lalia and Thans also drift away as whilst they are in favor of helping the troubled Americ they don’t see that they can contribute practically.

The remaining group discusses the matter and comes up with a plan where Liamar will attempt to convert Americ to the faith of the guardian. Further discussion clarifies that there are two principle problems with this plan the most significant of which are that Liamar and Americ do not share a common language. Things will have to go through a number of translators. Liamar will have to speak Kalamarian to Telec who will have to repeat this in either low Elven or Brandobian to Aeltred who will translate this into High Elven, for Nyassor’s benefit and Nyassor would then repeat it to his friend and comrade and so the discussion would flow back and forth. The other being the minor point that priests of a faith even in the throws of a crisis of that faith are the least easy to convert to another faith even one which is as far as every one else knows is quite so similar, a problem aggravated because none involved but Liamar and Americ have any knowledge of the comparative and competing theologies except in the most of basic terms. None the less the company resolves to go along with this plan and the date is set for it to go into action during the evening meal. Nyassor is tasked with going and seeing his old friend and talking him out of his isolation in the makeshift chapel to join every one at the evening meal.

Nyassor went off to Americ’s chapel after breakfast to talk with his friend and attempt to persuade him to join every one at the communal supper that night. He was careful not top drop any hint of the plan as he did not want to offend his comrade or for warn him as he suspected that any such would cause Americ to reject the invitation and so the help which Nyassor was sure the company where trying to offer him.

Every one else passed the day in their own pursuits and reconvened at the evening meal where they found that the first part of the plan succeeded and Nyassor had managed to persuade his friend to join them. The extra ale cask the Company had bought from the faire was broached and after supper was eaten the conversation began in earnest against the background of the evening’s entertainment in the common room at the holdfast. The only ones to miss out on which where those whose turn it was to stand guard at the watch post and the watch tree against a repeat of the goblin intrusion.

Telec, Liamar, Aeltred, Nyassor and Americ sat together and ate supper, Americ who had been fasting quite a lot by way of penance for the wrong, and he still had no clue as to what it might be,  he had done which had suppurated the goddess from himself since ha had come to this strange place.  He wondered at Nyassor who seemed to had adapted better than he, but then Elf kind where pragmatists especially those few who rejected the cold cruel calculating evil that the majority of them practiced and which had caused the long war between them and most of the other thinking races of Mararianin even the evil ones like the chaotic gnomes and the lizard men of the furthest east against whom his people had long warred. Or the Necromancers of Orisan whose foul practices still persisted despite being first over ran by the devil worshiping Assuri and then conquered by his own people. Still he had said that he would come and at least spend an evening in the company of his old friend and his new found ones.

The conversation around the table started off rather general with small talk and the like but once the translators where comfortable Liamar took his queue and he subtly turned the talk to matters of faith generally at first with both Telec and Liamar chipping in about their religions and that of the Founders creation which was apparently the faith of Liamar’s parents with Americ replying talking of the liberator and her religion. This progressed to a specific comparison between the faiths of the Liberator and that of the Free and it became rather difficult as the linguistic chain proved to be quite unwieldy even if it seemed to hold as increasingly complex theological concepts passed back and forth from Liamar to Americ and the ale flowed and the hour grew late then latter and eventually the group broke up the matter still undecided and perhaps both Americ and Liamar strengthened in their particular faiths. Telec on the other hand couldn’t but wonder quite why he had spent so much time trying to convert some one to a religion other than his own.

Whist this is going on those not involved amused themselves in their own ways in the corner the two horse obsessive’s, Nyasse and Heradin had a long discussion about horses which drifted off onto magic as the usefulness of the translate spell to allow a conversation between a girl who mostly spoke court Kalamarian and a dwarf who really could hold that sort of conversation in dwarvish became rather apparent. Dvorn and Fawlit both fell to carousing which granted in Fawlit’s case involved drinking too much of the good ale the company had bought back for the faire, and in Dvorn’s pinning Lakaran Tur Esamil a noted Kalamarian historian in a former life and his wife Lamasaru a Kalamarian imperial princess in a former life of his exploits and those of his imagined father in the Kalamarian imperial guard also largely imagined as the only fact involved is the existence of a small guard of mercenary Fhokki origin who have for the last centaury stood as shield between the emperor and the knives blades of imperial palace politics. That their grasp of Brandobian is rather poor, Lakaran mostly reads it because of his love of the school of poetry fostered by the temple of the Raconteur in Cosdol only adds to the pathos of the situation.  

Sondan ever the good soldier took his supper and then took himself off to see how the militia volunteers where doing at the watch tree and in the watch post at the base of the cliff path taking with him a couple of jugs of ale and some treats to make the long night pass a little more pleasantly for them. He also it mist be said wanted to check their alertness in the light of Nyassor’s reports of their being goblins in the woods again. 

In the morning they awoke to find that Americ had returned to his chapel shortly after dawn and had decided not to stay long enough to share breakfast with every one else. Even if Nyassor did, over breakfast the company discussed the need to do something about the returned goblins and it was decided that a severe check would be required to discourage them coming south and from troubling the inhabitants of the hidden dell. The company decided that since the goblins where again patrolling the woods to the north the best thing to do would be to ambush and roughly handle these patrols. Sufficiently so that the goblins would not come south as far as the Hidden dell preferring instead to go off and look for easier targets elsewhere. No one really wanted to contemplate having to clear out the Goblins from the goblin caves again especially as they had almost certainly reinforced their position. 

The day was spent patrolling the woods following the tracks of the goblin patrols and developing a plan of action. The company would have engaged the goblins in the day but it would seem that the creatures where only active at night which posed a problem as not every one in the company had all that good night vision whilst the goblins certainly all did. Both Aeltred and Telec came up with separate ambush plans given that the ambush was going to have to take place at night.  Aeltred’s plan involved the company being strung out along a game track in a fairly dense area of forest and being all armed with missile weapons them taking post shots at the goblins as they rode by in single file the intent being to kill most of them but to allow one at the least to survive so that he could go back and report to his masters that the woods to the south of the goblin caves where dangerous and well defended. Telec’s plan involved setting up a false camp as bait with a big fire both to draw in goblin patrols, as well as giving a light source which would allow those of the company without night vision to shoot a the goblins effectively.  Both plans where discussed and in the end the company decided much to Aeltred’s personal disgust to go with Telec’s. To this end the company spent the remains of the day collecting a lot of wood making some fake tents out of branches and the canvas they had bought at the fare and improvising torches to be left at hand around the fire. In order to make the fake camp more attractive as a target it was also decided that a portion of the company should volunteer to act as bait, Telec volunteered to lead this group and Fawlit whose poor sight an loathing of missile weapons made him useless as a shooter volunteered to help first followed by Dvorn who very much wanted to blood his fine new axe and defiantly did not want to upstaged by a Half Ork.

When every thing was set up to every ones satisfaction the bait group of Dvorn Telec and Fawlit sat round the fire in the fake encampment making small talk and generally play acting at being lost travelers whilst the rest made themselves comfortable in the cover around the clearing weapons ready if not actually trained on the fire and the camp. They did not have long to wait as the dog tracks on the game path had been read correctly by Aeltred and this was a place the goblins sent a patrol through at least once a night.

The goblins probably spotted the large fire and the figures sitting silhouetted against it before even the ambush group heard them coming on their dogs fast soft padded feet. As when they reached the clearing they where trotting along apace arrows already knocked and bows half drawn. The speed of this entry surprised the bait group who hesitated for several seconds before reaching for weapons. The goblins did not attack, and it seemed that their intent was to take captive rather than kill. However that will never be known as before they did any such plan was interrupted by a hail of bolts and arrows from the darkness. Followed an instant latter by a sling stone and a hurled axe. Goblins tumbled form their mounts to lie stunned or dead in the dirt at the bait groups feet. The two who remained able loosed their held arrows before scrambling for weapons more suitable to a close fight. One arrow missed striking the ground between Dvorn and Fawlit, the other struck Telec in the chest. There was a resounding thunk as the arrow pierced his cloak and then met the dwarf mail beneath and stopped dead, harmlessly breaking against it. Fawlit and Dvorn swung their great axes almost together and the unfortunate goblin swayed to dodge Fawlit’s relatively clumsy swing with “Questions will be axed” straight into the glittering ark of Dvorn’s. There was a gout of dark blood as the goblin lost its head, which disappeared into the darkness; its headless body remained for an instant seated on its dog as if nothing had happened, before sliding off inelegantly. Dvorn let out a cry of exaltation and brandished his great axe one handed quite unnecessarily in triumph, the light from the fire cast a ruddy glow on the blade, and the parts of it unmarred by goblin blood, being gilded, glittered. Lalia sent a second stone hurtling into the back of the one remaining mounted goblin, then Aeltred’s second arrow also struck the one remaining mounted goblin, punching through its still slung shield wounding it deeply and it decided that it had had quite enough and turned his dog away and spurring it to a gallop fled into the surrounding night.

In the bushes around Nyassor and Sondan put down their crossbows grabbed shields and drew their swords. Thans followed up his axe throw by driving a dagger into the flank of one of the rider less dogs. The dog howled half in pain half in anger and threw itself at Telec. Telec who had picked his crossbow rather than his staff discharged it at the oncoming dog at point blank range, but his aim sent the bolt high to be lost in the woods and the darkness beyond, but he dodged the dogs snarling charge. The fight was won but not yet over, Telec grabbed his staff from the ground as both Nyassor and Sondan swords drawn joined the fight. Thans slashed at the dog again, drawing blood but not diverting it from Telec. Lalia, not wanting to lose another stone into the swirling fight for fear of hitting friend not foe, moved to the edge of the fire light and waited her opening. With the goblins all fled or down and so no longer in charge and enemies coming in form all sides the four remaining dogs had little choice but to fight which they did with the desperate ferocity of cornered animals and a desperate struggle followed.  Axes swung and swords rose and fell Thans darted in and out stabbing as he found an opening. Telec swung his staff increasingly wildly beating at the enraged dogs. A dog threw itself snarling at Telec who in his heavy armour was unable to dodge all that well, but its powerful jaws only closed on the hem of the mail and did so with a sickening crunch teeth broke and the animal turned and fled whimpering, Aeltred seeing there where no good targets moved in spear in hand quickly closing the distance to the melee. Promptly to be struck a smart blow on the side of the head by the end of Telec’s staff that caused him to see stars in spite of the hardened leather cap he was wearing. Several others stumbled on the blood slicked ground, as the fight became a matter of attrition. An over confident Dvorn over extended himself with his swing and the dog he was aiming the blow at got in past his guard and jumping up at him sank its teeth deep into his shoulder, Dvorn fell with a howl to match that of the wounded dog defense less. Lalia moved in to make sure the goblins who where on the ground where finished off in case they where only stunned and Thans joined her in this butchers work. Fawlit swiped at the dog just about to tear out the fallen Dvorn’s throat standing over his body protecting him whilst every one gathered around the remaining dogs and one by one they fell overcome by wound s until the last was split nearly in twain by a mighty blow form Fawlit

All was silent again it had taken less than a minute and had not roused Heradin from his dose in his ambush spot. 

Here  the focus of our tale moves else where for a while though it will be returning here but there is far more a foot in the region than that which just the one tale can encompass though the treads of these tale are interlinked and may well cross merge and divide again as the story unfolds further.

An Urban Interlude

Begins with the Goblin raid on the town of Vayham and continues until it is contemporaneous with the events of session XV above

Part one the gathering storm

Dramatis Personae

Leon – a Brandobian Human Fighter

Quirrel – a Halfling Thief

Location
the Brandobian county town of Vayham in the North West corner of the region

Events

(These begin during session XIII of the main story and progress to the start of session XIV this is largely about setting the scene for what follows and to be gin with time passes rapidly with relatively few events)

Vayham is the county town of the Cosdolan County of the same name it was established before the fracturing of Brandobia and the subsequent civil war thought it only grew to its present importance following that when it was chosen by the first king of Cosdol as the seat for one of his more trusted nobles. This noble was charged with consolidating Cosdol’s eastern border with the adjacent rather lawless back country Kalamarian province. A situation which became even more critical when the Kalamarian Empire itself collapsed locally and then even its successor the city state of P’Bapara largely lost what little control of the area due to the actions of humanoids, mostly Orks in the Laggosa mountains to the east. This noble and his descendants largely succeeded in this even expanding their holdings into the abandoned area of the former Kalamarian province and bringing a period of peace and stability which has lasted until the present day.

The town has expanded form the area walled by the first count and the walled area was extended to incorporate this expansion by the present count’s grandfather creating the Newtown, and it was expanding again due to the influence of the Cult of the Coin lord and the growth of beef farming to the east the other side of the M’Alvern stream to the east, which caused the existing beast market to expand to an area outside the east gate,  Where additional stock pens where built and an enterprising gnome built the regions first and so far only commercial slaughter house about twenty years ago.  

Despite the mention of the Gnome the towns population is almost entirely human and of either Brandobian of P’Baparan stock with a mere two extended Halfling families and a scatter of individuals who can legitimately lay claim to some Elven blood, even if none have enough to be half elves, even if a grand parent or great grandparent was. There is no Dwarves resident and very few pass through either as there are no dwarven settlements any where around.

Town ordinances bar half Orks from the town outright and only permit half hobgoblins as employees of reputable citizens.  The town is prosperous, provincial, parochial and peaceful beyond the odd drunken punch up in the beast market between drovers.

Leon was between jobs but had no particular problem with that as he still had coin in his pocket from his last job as a mercenary on the northern border of Cosdol and to be frank felt he had earned a bit of rest and recuperation. He found Vayham with its numerous inns and taverns as well as a constant new crowd wanting to listen tom his tales of daring do in the northlands a fine place to do that, not to mention it was a damned site warmer and more clement here than on the somewhat windswept northern frontier.

He had rented a room in a lodging house in the old town behind the market square which he shared with another mercenary soldier Nyadryn another refugee from the northern frontier and his occasional lady friend and of all things a Halfling clerk from the market administration a strange quiet fellow but apparently quite upright if boring. There where at first at least a couple of empty rooms in the house but as the time passed these filled up.

Nyadryn had been in the town since the holder of the fief just over the M’Alvern stream in whose service he had been had sent him effectively single handed to deal with that bandit problem last year, granted they had only been goblins in the end but he had been in the north and had a health respect for those bastard creatures ability to butcher the stupid and the cock sure, he had seen to much of it which is why he was now down south as he still thought of it and working as a carpenters labourer again. Still that had its perks he was sure that the masters youngest daughter was sweet on him.

Quirrel who is one of the few Halflings in the town and at least on the surface as conventional and unadventurous as the rest of his kinfolk here about a clan whose only adventurous impulse in living memory was their paternal grandfather moving his family here from the more Halfling dominated lands to the south and east of Cosdol and even then that was to avoid a renewed war with Eldor which never happened in the end.

Leon was to be honest unemployed but did not see much of an issue with that provided he still had the coin to support himself without working as he much preferred spending time in the tavern telling tales of former adventures to actually doing more. He also thought himself rather above having to do common labour again

All was as described until quite  recently when a large band of hostile and apparently well organised goblins appeared in the area of the M’Alvern ridge and started raiding the farms and then the villages south of there and east of the M’Alvern stream. The situation escalated and within a few days the land holder found he was unable to defend his small fief and returned to join the refugees in Vayham and to regroup and request assistance form his liege lord the count.

In response to his vassals quite reasonable request the count gathered up the forces he had to hand and rode with them across the M’Alvern crossings to confront the goblins. In retrospect the Count wishes he had called up the counties feudal levies and waited for them to arrive before doing so but convinced that speed was of the essence to catch the raiders and that he had sufficient force to deal the goblins a severe rebuke he attacked straight away. His small army smashed through the goblin force attempting to hold the M’Alvern crossings and when their retreat apparently turned in to a panicked rout gave chase back toward the M’Alvern ridge. This was done without much thought to the possibility of ambush sadly and the goblins had indeed set one which the counts pursuing army ran right into.

Even so the goblins where not quite able to take full advantage of their coup and the counts army managed to regroup and after a hard fight, involving a number of casualties to gain control of the field driving off the ambushers. However this time the lesson being learned there was no wild pursuit. However as the army was reordering it became apparent that the Counts son and heir had been fatally struck by an arrow. This arrow had punched thought the mail around his neck and slain him outright.  This caused the count to rethink his plans and he ordered his army back to Vayham to plan.

The counts army withdrew back to the town and as they did so they started to be harassed by goblin archers riding on great slavering hounds, which they could not get to grips with and more good men died in the retreat.  Reaching the town near dusk the count’s exhausted force gained it hoped some rest. However even this was shattered as towards mid night a large band of dog mounted goblins arrived before the east gate and driving off the rather thin guard in the outer market burned it and the slaughter house to the ground before making a concerted attack on the gate. This failed as the Counts men rallied form their beds to defend the town and the town levy was called out for the first time in living memory.

Having stirred up the hornets nest good and proper the goblins rode off back over the M’Alvern crossings leaving the fires of burning buildings in the foregte and farmsteads this side of it to light their way home and to mark their nights foul work. 

The next morning the count called up his feudal levy from all around the county and made an announcement such that all men at arms in the town regardless of in whose employ they might be must make them selves available to defend the town. Further the formally strict rules on the bearing of arms within the walls of the town where relaxed and the town militia where expected to take their arms with them to work. As a result just about every shop, inn or tavern in the town has a tell tale stack of spear small shield, padded jack and leather cap to be found in plain view.  There was also an immediate run on swords in the town and every sword smith in town of which there where it being a market town very few sold out and then quickly ran out of steel to make more as orders fairly poured in. Ancient blades which had not seen the light of day let alone use since the Brandobian civil war also put in a strong showing as did various articles of equally antique armour.

In the days and weeks which followed the feudal levy mustered as ordered and more refugees trickled in from the areas along the M’Alvern stream, meat became increasingly expensive and the price of lodgings shot up. The markets became less busy and the beast market robed of the beef cattle from the banks of the M’Alvern stream more or less closed down and the rumors started.  The war however settled down to a stale mate of raid and counter raid across the stream. With the most concerning event being that the landholders in the south of the county where the kings road crossed it had withheld their levy as they too where troubled by goblin raiders.

First shortly after the funeral of the Counts son it became known that the arrow head that killed him was both enchanted and of dwarven workmanship, and that this had been determined by no lesser persons than the chief priests of the True and the Founder who had examined it as it was recovered form the body of the counts son even if the most of the shaft arrow it had been attached to was destroyed, as a result of the fall he took form his horse when struck down and whilst his lifeless body was born away form the fight.  This fragment of fact grew and morphed into a monster, especially after some dwarven coins where recovered from goblin corpses in subsequent skirmishing along the M’Alvern stream. It became known that the Goblins where in the pay of a evil dwarven sorcerer and there was a small riot inside the north gate when the gnomish owner of the abattoir in the foregate, which the goblins had burned, was taken for a dwarf and had to be rescored by the town guard and there where casualties on both sides and one rioter killed before order was restored.

After that the suspicion was cast on any one who had any thing of dwarvish work in their possession and much was burned publicly or just hidden if too valuable and any one who defended dwarves or who had been seen in the company of them as Nyadryn had  was likely to get hassle or worse indeed  Nyadryn who had adventured with a dwarf last year and who had come into town with one got into a deal of trouble and had to break some heads after he mentioned that the one dwarf he had known closely was a decent fellow and that those he had heard of in the north where in no way either evil or any friends of goblins. However he soon tired of defending the honour of those not present and kept his opinions to himself.

Both Leon and Nyadryn though they kept to their normal employ made themselves known as fighting men to the authorities and did the occasional duty as a result however their lives did not change significantly otherwise.

Leon a bit of a scoundrel and a rake continued to enjoy the easy life and spend a lot of his time in taverns telling tales of his adventurous life and soldiering life to any who would listen, especially enjoying the eager ears of the increasing number of impressionable young refugees.

Quirrel found that the business of the market office which he was junior clerk in dropped considerably and he spent more of his time twiddling his thumbs as work and working the taverns for coin on the gambling tables in the evenings. There where as a result of the refugees a lot more people in the town without employment and those who still had coin to do so and given the rise of the price of food and of lodgings fewer did whiled away the time drinking and gambling and bemoaning their fate. However Quirrel’s greatest fear was that thing should get so dire that the count should call a levy of the town which would mean his actually being called up to fight, horror.

A cloud of uneasy expectation hangs over the town

Part two a Simple Eviction Job

Dramatis Personae

Leon – a Brandobian Human Fighter & self styled hero

Quirrel – a Halfling Thief

Nyadryn – a Brandobian Human, fighter

Esme– a Brandobian human, a loud over enthusiastic person, Nyadryn’s girl friend

Siskin – a Halfling Cleric of Chance Quirrel’s cousin

Larifus – a Gnome,

Quelsteine– a Gnome

Briana – a Half Elven fighter magic user 

Location
the Brandobian county town of Vayham in the North West corner of the region

Events

(These take place during episode XIV & XV of the main story)

With the amount of work the Market administration office is having to do greatly reduced owing to the virtual closure of the beast market following the raid and the loss of the lands beyond the M’Alvern stream to the goblins and the general reduction of trading in the great market Quirrel is he would be the first to admit making work for himself just to alleviate the boredom and more importantly make his supervisor a junior priest of the coin lord called Bevan think he is working hard. However this can only work for so long and it would appear that this is the morning the ploy breaks down

Bevan came over to Quirrel bouncing a small soft leather drawstring bag, a coin purse, Quirrel though hopefully, in his left hand and holding a small roll of parchment in the other he was smiling which was always a bad sign Quirrel thought, briefly the paralyzing fear that this might be his levy warrant crossed his mind but then Bevan spoke calling as he always did boy despite Quirrel being ten years his senior. Boy he began I have a job for you and he proceeded to lay out the task he had in mind. As he did a wave of relief flowed through poor Quirrel.

It would seem that in the past there had been a lot of smuggling into the town through tunnels which started in what later became the new town and passed under the wall into the district just inside the old wall line then the town slum area. These of course became useless when the Counts great grandfather built the new wall and no more where built as the economic environment changed to faviour legitimate trade. However one tunnel is known to have passed beyond the current wall, into the farmland beyond the then Foul Borough and now New Town.  Given the present trouble with goblins it would be good to know if this tunnel is still usable because it would be very unfortunate if situation deteriorated and town was besieged to have the Goblins have a way under the wall or more likely a way a band of raiders made it across the river and stumbled into the out wall entrance and got into the town. Given the present situation with the town already packed with people with not enough to do and more than a little jumpy as many of them had been forced to flee their homes by goblins the panic would be massive and the coin lord’s temple believes likely beyond the ability of the Count to control.

Therefore the temple has decided to give its trusted servant Quirrel a budget to deal with it, at which Bevan passes the roll of parchment and bag of coins to Quirrel here boy go and get some people together and investigate this your budget is fifty slivers try not to spend it all. With that Bevan strides off, Quirrel assumes to whatever he doing to make himself look busy, Quirrel puts the bag and parchment down on his desk looks at them both for a moment then unable to resist releases the cord on the purse, empties it onto the make work paper work and counts it, fifty silvers do indeed glitter back at him, which are all his if he plays it cleaver, the small roll is a warrant covered with official seals announcing the bearer to be an accredited agent of the Market authority and giving them the right to do what ever was required in support of their work. Quirrel smiled and when through a mental list in his head of people who would be inclined to come along for a few silvers which with a bit of after action creative accountancy could be expanded to use up all or most of the silver. The first name on the list was cousin Siskin, who was always up for any sort of adventure and Quirrel new exactly where to find him.

A sort time latter Quirrel approaches the Lucky Copper a garishly painted tavern in the north of the town which also happens to be the finest gambling establishment in town and a shrine to the god RISK. It stands out from the plain white washed buildings around it with their timber frames faded to dull silver, Its walls are washed with bright yellow ochre, its beams painted black and the wooden shingles which cover the roof a bright red, thought the sun and the rain has begun to fade this to deep terracotta. The masterfully painted sign outside the door shows a pair of fine ivory gaming dice showing a seven with a single copper coin with a cute smiley face upwards between them. For those patrons that can read under this is blazoned the words “Lucky Copper” the tavern is busy and the and more or less every table is packed with men and boys and the occasional woman engaged in popular games of luck and skill. Small coins lay in piles amongst the cards and dice and there is a buzz of exited activity all round. Siskin is easy to find despite his shortened stature as he is leaning on the wall by the door into the temple proper over seeing the shine of luck where patrons may sacrifice a trade coin by putting it through a slot in the shine and if truly lucky be favored by the return of the lucky copper the tavern is named for. Seeing cousin Quirrel approach Siskin opens the door to the chapel and signals him to come inside as Quirrel will almost certainly want to talk and the chapel is a quieter and more private place to do that than the gaming room.

However as they are in the temple of RISK a wager is required by way of sacrifice first. A pair of coppers are placed in the bowl on the chapels’ altar table and the dice are rolled with a prayer to the lord of all risks by Siskin, the temple wins and as normal Siskin returns his coin to his pocket and drops his cousins lost one in the offertory strong box. Well cousin to what do I owe the pleasure. To which Quirrel replied he had been given a job by his boss at the Market office and been told to get some people together to help and he was wondering if Siskin would help. The job was to investigate if an old smugglers tunnel which used at least to lead from the cellar of a house just inside the old wall to, possibly beyond the new wall line was still viable as a tunnel and if it was did it actually pass beyond the new wall line as if it is and does it would represent a threat to the security of the town under the current conditions. Siskin nodded he could imagine a considerable panic occurring if even a few goblins got into the town in secret and appeared unexpectedly. The town Siskin noted grimly would burn as readily as the east fore gate had. Quirrel added that there was money in it so they fell to haggling over a price and in the end settled on three silvers given it was it seemed a straight forward mission which would not take all that long.  Siskin having agreed went off to collect his gear and when he returned Quirrel added that he wondered if Siskin new any one else who might go along as well. Siskin said he would think about it but for now they would go back to Quirrels lodgings to recruit the two big people he shared it with as should muscle be needed big people where always good for that.

Returning to Quirrels lodging the two cousins discuss the mission and who else might be up for an unusual way of earning a few silvers.  Siskin mentions a young gnome one of the abattoir owner’s young nephews or great nephews he thinks who is obviously rather underemployed given the place got burned down by the goblins recently. So much so that the young fellow is spending rather a lot of time and coin in the lucky copper and other, Siskin shudders, dubious gaming houses where they fix the games against the player rather then letting RISK rule as IT should. So convincing is Siskin that Quirrel is persuaded to back track to the gnome’s house near the north gate where he is apparently out but a servant takes a message and assures Quirrel and Siskin that he will pass the message along and that the young master will be back shortly and will meet them outside the great hospital as asked.  With that the two companions resume their journey back to Quirrels lodgings to recruit the warriors Nyadryn, and Leon as a couple of big people with swords would reduce the chance of any rough stuff as Siskin put it to calm his rather jumpy cousins nerves.

Larifus was very bored, his father had sent him to work for his uncle and learn the business so that perhaps one day he could set up something similar in on of the towns of the north or even the great cities of Crandolen or Cosdolan. He had not particularly wanted to do this but his father had made it clear that there was not enough room for him in the family Gem cutting business in Neffaria, even if he had ever shown any interest in the business like his older sister or real skill at cutting Gem like his younger brother and in any event he had had Larifus educated at great expense in that school in Crandolen so was his farther felt destined for better things.  So He had gone along with it and what goes and happens barely a week after he arrived and before he had settled in at all some blasted goblins come over and burn the place down.  Leaving Larifus  and every body else involved with the business for that matter at a lose end as the as with the goblin treat still there it would be stupid to try to rebuild and with the goblins occupying the majority of the live stock raising land beyond the river and having burned down or driven out all the occupants from those this side there would be no work for it either. His uncle had tried to get keep every one busy at first but now they had run out of even make work, and Larifus  was bored very and rather wished he was still at the school in Crandolen or at least in a city where a young gnome about town could find proper amusement. So Larifus was to be honest relived when he arrived home form a walk around town to relive the boredom to find that a one of uncles aged retainers had a message from a pair of Halflings one of which he recognized by the retainers description as Siskin who he sort of knew that there was a job and possibly some excitement to be had and that if he was interested he was to meet them outside the great hospital. Pausing only to grab a snack and collect his gear Larifus was on his way, something exiting was going to happen at last.

Meanwhile Siskin and Quirrel had arrived at Quirrels lodging house. They ran into Lion first and after only an introduction and a short chat he proved more than up for the mission as Quirrel outlined it. Leon then mentioned that Nyadryn was in with his girlfriend he added with a chuckle. Despite this Siskin and Quirrel decided to call on him and when they did found Nyadryn in the company of an expensively and modestly dressed young woman with whom he was exchanging small talk. Nyadryn greeted every one warmly and introduced his young lady as Esme, at which she curtsied elegantly and giggled a bit rather spoiling the effect, pleased to meet you all she said with a smile. Nyadryn then took over the conversation and it turned to the job at hand with Esme listening intently. Nyadryn agreed quite quickly to go along and help for a sum of three silvers as he wanted to keep his hand in with the adventuring lark even if he was in to minds about it as an idea and besides one of the things Esme liked about him was that he was a gallant adventurer and she was as nice a lass as you could find so if it kept her happy he would keep his hand in. after this he chatted about this and that with his housemates for a bit and did not notice Esme slip out Quirrel and Siskin however did and kept him talking deliberately as they had both noticed that Esme’s body language suggested that she would like to come along as well and both guessed that Nyadryn would be put out by this and found the idea amusing. Once Nyadryn realized that Esme had gone he became more eager to get on with things rather than chat and quickly donned his armour gathered his gear. However he was too late because they ran into Esme in the street outside all kited out to go adventuring.  Her ensemble bears some description, she was wearing a patched pair of her brother trousers a worn workman’s tunic belted with a leather strap without a buckle through with was thrust a scabbarded dress dagger and a carpenters socketing axe the sort used for making the mortises on heavy furniture, she was holding some what ineptly a town militia small round shield bearing as they all did the counts livery colours. Her hair was held in place by a tatty workman’s woolen cap and her face was a picture of girlish enthusiasm. Nyadryn winced and the two cousins giggled to themselves

Siskin, Quirrel, Leon, Nyadryn, and Esme met up with Larifus  as had been arranged outside the entrance of the great hospital and Quirrel quickly lead them thorough the maze of lanes alleys and passages to the house which lay in the ley of the bank which was all that was left of the old wall. It was a small one story thatched timber framed house typical of the poorer part of the old town. The walls where peeling and the mud and plaster daub was cracking away form the wattle panels beyond the roof sagged and the thatch was old and grey well weathered more than a bit decayed. That said it was not so different from its neighbors or half a hundred other near by. Smoke gently issued from the smoke hole accompanied by the smell of cooking so the house was occupied. The door was locked or rather latched on the other side but as what to do about this was being considered Esme surprised every one by producing a wooden key of the sort used to lift such latches and with a couple of deft twists managed to get the latch up. Beyond the door was what was once any way the entry hall for the house, thought it was also apparent from the straw mattress in one corner and pile of rough bedding that some one was at least camping out here now. There where two doors leading on one to the south opened onto a bedroom with little furniture beyond straw mattresses and coarse bedding of the same sort that had been found in the  hall the one to the east from behind which sounds of systematic chopping could be heard accompanied by the smells of a stew cooking seemed more promising. Like the bedroom door it was not locked. This time it opened onto a kitchen.  The place was sparsely furnished with a large table and a scatter of stools all of which had seen better days. The rooms only inhabitant was a middle aged woman in an unstylish and old fashioned dress who when the company entered looked up from her chopping at a turnip. Quirrel saw the large heavy and well used knife and winced, shaking himself however he pulled himself together and approached the woman who by no means tall towered over him as did all the big people.

It all however proved to be rather less terrifying than he had feared as the good woman indeed a farmer’s wife from the east of the M’Alvern stream proved quite amenable to leaving and going back to the poor house especially after Quirrel showed her the warrant which whilst she couldn’t read it she was able to recognize as official, she even pointed out the cellar door before she hurried off.

Descending the steps stone steps the company found the cellar deserted but not without signs of current habitation. There where fresh unlit torches in all the wall sconces and nearly a dozen straw mattresses and poles of rough bedding around the walls. Only one torch was lit at the base of the stairs but it was adequate to show the scene. Further exploration revealed that the cellar had been expanded as part of it about the size of the kitchen above was stone flagged, but that it had been extended from that to almost the size of the foot print of the house above and the roof of the cellar which was also the floor of the house had been reinforced with wooden joists and posts so large they where made of whole fair sized tree trunks with their bark roughly adzed off. The walls or the original cellar where as might be expected from a well built larder cellar clad in stone but the extension had been done in split logs instead. Quirrel being aware that there was a secret door some where in the cellar leading to the old smugglers tunnel commenced to search for it and every one joined in quickly locating an area of wall where the split logs seemed to have been replaced by rough planks. Moving the pile of bedding which was in the way Quirrel fell to working out how to open the door since it had no visible handle on this side neither could he see hinges from this side. As he worked every one else watched,   being a careful fellow he also kept an eye out for traps and indeed found one feeling the edge of a concealed blade scratch the palm of his hand, but not draw blood. (This trap was latter discovered to have been a combination of Quirrels fear and a sharp splinter in the rough hewn wood to his not inconsiderable discomfiture and the amusement of others especially the gnomes)  In the end he decided that the hinges where on the left hand side of the door and that it opened inwards and was not likely locked at all though it might be bared on the other side. Quirrel took a step back and stood a moment in thought before deciding what to do. He must report back to Bevan he decided and would leave every one else here on guard incase the residents of the house returned or a horde of Goblins came through the door. Every one agreed to go along with this plan at least for the moment

Leaving his companions to guard the secret door that they had found in the cellar of the house Quirrel hurried back to the office pausing only to affix a notice to the hose door saying that all the residents had been evicted by order of the Market Administration action on behalf of the Count. He scurried off thorough the streets busy with big folk who had given up on work for the day and who where heading home. The state of trade was Quirrel observed to him self appalling and it would be little worse even if the goblins actually besieged the town as some of the local doomsayers suggested that they might.  Quirrel did not rush as he felt he needed the time to compose himself and give the best report to Bevan, not to mention wanting to borrow the spare night lantern from outside of the market office as it would be so much better for exploring down in the dark than candles or even the torches recovered from the houses basement. He would also rather like it if he had to admit if Siskin well known low boredom threshold caused him to encourage the others to explore further so that the place was all checked out and any thing dangerous dealt with by the time he got back.

In the cellar Siskin quickly became bored and his new found companions where quite happy to agree with him when he suggested that whatever Quirrel had said there was no harm and more use in pressing on rather than loitering round in the cellar waiting for further orders. A quick check of the door revealed that it was not locked or barred and seemed only stiff from lack of use; further no one who examined it could find a trace of the trap Quirrel had found. So Leon & Nyadryn yanked and pulled at the thing till it came open during which process as expected the trap was revealed not to exist.

Beyond the door was a stone ramp which lead to a solidly built and dry passage some six feet wide and the same high lined with wood which showed little sings of rot whose floor was covered in a thin layer of dust suggesting it had not seen use in a long time, even if shallow ruts in the ramp and the floor beyond suggested that one it had.  Seeking a better light source than the candle Quirrel had left the company emptied the wall sconces of all the lit and unlit torches before pressing on down the passage.  Once down the ramp the passage was beautiful and level all the way until the far end. It was so straight level and featureless that it was rather difficult to assess quite how long it was. Even when paced out by Leon latter it was still less than certain. At the far end the company came across a stone ramp almost identical to the one at the start except that this one lead up to the roof which was here a panel of half rotted wicker work held together by roots, the passage it would seem was blocked off which was what they where here to find. However Siskin was curious and just had to know quite how blocked the passage was. He mover up the ramp until just under the roof and drawing his dagger worked it through the rotten roof as far as it would go. Removing it he peered into the hole and saw no light. Every one else stood and watched as he worked, and Esme began to squeak quite excitedly.  Nyadryn began to get a bad feeling, why was the girl of his dreams so, then he found that he had no words to describe his feeling so it turned to annoyance with Quirrel since if he had not messed around back at the house they could all have been off and doing this without her being involved, this still might turn into an adventure and he didn’t want Esme getting hurt or even involved adventures are not cute or heroic whatever she might think. They are quite unpleasant even when one is well equipped to deal with them and Nyadryn was certain Esme was not.  Siskin repeated the maneuver with his short sword and when it found no resistance a couple of inches further in than the dagger had gone he withdrew it revealing a very faint shaft of light. Larifus grinned and laughed as the tunnel to his gnomish night sight lit up beautifully. Sunlight however defuse was always better than torches or candle.  Right a the back Leon watched in horror as the idiot Halfling worked his sword to expand the hole, so much for the tunnel being sealed. He considered intervening but he was right at the back and diden’t think that he could barge his way past Nyadryn Esme and the gnome in time to stop him so he decided to wait and once he was sure where the tunnel opened out alert the guards at the south gate and get it properly guarded then blocked off after all he was known to the guards having worked with them though mostly on the east gate where the chances of getting some action with another goblin attack where greatest.  Sure enough Siskin opened up a big enough hole that he could pop his head out of and see that the Tunnel opened into a willow copse under the shade of a huge ash tree. Leon turned and strode off barely noticed by the others who where all too intent on what Siskin was doing. Soon the hole was big enough for a Gnome a Halfling or even a Goblin to climb through.  Nyadryn winced inwardly as Esme excitedly encouraged Siskin and Larifus to go through ad take a look what was on the outside. Not needing all that much encouragement if any both Siskin and then Larifus  climbed through the hole that Siskin had made and found themselves in a small copse of pollarded willow trees at the corner of a field on the edge of the killing zone outside the new wall with in sight of the road leading from the south gate. Sheep where peacefully grazing in the next door field and it being spring several lambs where frolicking amongst them. At the back of the copse almost in the sparse hedge which surrounded it was a massive and ancient ash tree. Siskin considered climbing it for a better view, but reconsidered quickly as the lowest branch was several times his height above him. Turning round he noticed that Larifus was leaning on a willow idly watching the lamps at play. So Siskin suggested that given there was a shortage of meat in the town some one would almost certainly pay well for a sheep of a lamb and given what Larifus uncles business was it would be easy to find a market.

Whilst all this was happening Leon had left the house and made his way as fast as possible to the south gate. He needed to alert the guard there and to make sure that the tunnel was sealed and the town saved from the threat it posed of course it would do nom harm if he was the hero of the day either.

By this time Quirrel was well on his way back from his short interview with Bevan at the market office carrying a half full lantern had had filched form outside the front door on his way out.

Arriving at the south gate Leon shouted that he needed to see the sergeant urgently and after a short discussion him having been recognized because of his involvement with the patrols outside the east gate the sergeant was fetched. The sergeant was a middle aged man at arms called Dolmar and he soon saw the threat called up the dozen men waiting in the ready room and set off with them and Leon down the south road towards the large tree which Leon had pointed out to him. As they ran weapons where drawn and the two who had thought to bring crossbows fitted bolts onto them.

At around this time Quirrel arrived back at the house and finding it deserted and a quick glance into the clear revealing that there was no sign of his companions, Quirrel’s acquisitive nature took charge and he systematically when thought all the possessions of the people in the house and found a good score of trade coins, he considered doing the same to the bed piles in the cellar but his caution prompted him not to as it would not do if his companions realized he was a thief, if nothing else they might want a share. After this even Quirrel began to wonder what his companions might be up to so leaving a candle by the now open secret door and holding his now lit new lantern he proceeded down the passage with due caution because even if his colleagues had been down here that did not mean that there might not still be traps for the unwary. Some way down the passage the light form the lantern he noticed that there was a discontinuity in the pattern of the stout posts which made up the wall. He stopped and had a good look at this and was quickly convinced that this was another secret door so Quirrel left a candle on the floor opposite. That would need investigating but he was not about to do that on his own.

Mean while Leon the sergeant and the guard where rushing from the gate along the road towards the copse, pushing their way through the hedge where upon they discovered Siskin and Larifus , unconcernedly lounging about in the shade of the great ash tree. Dolmar the sergeant said that they where both under arrest and his men moved to take them into custody, as he said they had some explaining to do to the captain of the guard. For a moment things looked tense especially when the good sergeant realized there where still more of them down the hole in the tunnel however some calming words on Leon’s part and some quick thinking on Siskin’s prevented any arrest and instead the Sergeant was satisfied with setting up a guard post in the copse and blocking up the hole after shooing the two little folks back down it.

After that Leon took a walk back to the gate with the sergeant who was full of praise for his prompt actions and said he would put in a good word for him with the guard captain, they parted at the gate and Leon continued back to the house alone arriving not long before Quirrel did, indeed he might even have noticed him struggling down the road with the heavy lantern had Leon not been quite so self-absorbed about the prospect of his getting a commendation from the captain of the Counts guard, that was the sort of thing which could do a fellow in his line of work no end of good.

Back in the tunnel and not at all chastened by their lucky escape form arrest Siskin and Larifus  Nyadryn, Esme discussed what to do next and whilst they where doing this Leon arrived striding down the tunnel counting paces still not sure quite how long it actually was. The discussion continued until Quirrel lugging the heavy lantern joined them and told them that he had found a secret door about half way back down the passage and suggesting that they should investigate that as a group. This they decided to do with varying degrees of enthusiasm. Moving back to where the candle still burned the company confronted the riddle of the door quickly finding that though it had no handle on this side it opened inwards on hidden hinges and like the other door was not locked or barred but merely stuck something quickly solved by Leon and Nyadryn  applying there shoulders to it. Egged on by Esme saying too loudly for stealth isn’t this exiting through the door the company found a large and very empty room dug deeper than the passage so the big people could actually stand the differing levels being joined by a well made stone ramp  of the sort they had found elsewhere in the tunnel. The door open the company descended the ramp and began to search the room beyond. As they entered it they became aware of two exits a door to the left sporting a heavy iron lock and solid hinges and a door directly ahead.

Briana finished her work at the poor house not so very far way and in the company of the gnome Quelsteine who was her house mate or rather cellar mate as there was such a dearth lodgings in the town that she a half elf of an ancient and noble Elven lineage more over was forced to doss down in a cellar of a hovel. However that was the way things where and where likely to stay until the locals got their act together and dealt with their goblin problem so that all the refuges could go home and rebuilt, all Briana could do was to keep up her studies as she had promised her uncle and try to find herself a better and more fitting job than helping out in the poor house part time. Actually strictly speaking she was not in the company of Quelsteine as thought they left the poor house at roughly the same time her longer stride quickly put distance between her and the little fellow.

Quelsteine was rather lost in his own thoughts and did little more than note he had left at the same time as the tall half elf.  His own thoughts centered on quite why the order of the unblinking eye had sent him hence. Especial when the orders aim where the reunification of Brandobia and the return of its culture to the one that had existed before the Kalamarians had come west and the long and bitter war with them and the subsequent civil war, when Brandobia had split and all of its Demihuman population been either driven into what is now Pel Brolenon or north into the nascent Cosdol. Most of the former has then had to flee again or had been enslaved when the Tyrant was released.  What could the order be interested in here in the wild if stable east lands of Cosdol. Granted the recent trouble with goblins was a possible reason but he was sure the order had not known of this when he was sent out form Crandolen. Indeed Quelsteine had himself  not known of it till he enquired after the reasons for the huge crowds in the market square on the day of his arrival which also happened to be the day of the Counts sons’ funeral.  

Arriving at the door Briana noticed the note pined to it started to read and then decided that it was not worth doing so after the first line or so and she could ignore it as would most of the others in the house who she was sure could not even read.  Opening the door she could see that the pile of bedding Dolm the out of work meat porter had  used had been disturbed so she hurried down through the strangely empty kitchen where was good wife Pelema? Briana instincts told her to suspect foul play here so she loosened her uncle’s good sword in its scabbard and decided that she was glad she had worn it and her armour to work on the grounds she was signed up to defend the town at need, so needed to have her arms to hand the same as any militia man. She opened the cellar door slowly so as not to alert any looters and with her hand on her sword hilt she descended the stairs. The cellar was seemingly empty however there was an open door she had never seen before just beside the mattress where she slept and it had been moved and some one had left a candle by it other than that the cellar seemed to be unusually dark, a quick glance down the stairs gave her answer as to why, the usually lit torch   at the bottom of the stairs had gone as had as far as she could telling the flickering light of one candle all of the others. Briana descended the stairs and moving over to her bed quickly checked the gear she had left there and found it all present and sighed with relief. Gathering her gear and quickly packing it Briana decided it would be safer with her as she investigated further.

Quelsteine arrived back at the house and found the door ajar and a quickly written note pined to it at eye level marked with the sigil of the market authority, hand drawn rather than applied with a stamp or a seal ring. He laughed he knew lodgings where scarce in the city but this was a bad joke even by gnomish standards or some sort of scam. His sharp nose noticed the lack of cooking smell as he entered and he wondered what had happened to Pelema as he had rather been looking forward to the stew she made the household made form the market cast offs her sons who where working a market porters bought back. It was he thought rather good all the more so given its unpromising ingredients and so much better than the food at the poor house and as free.

In the cellar Briana picked up the candle and sword now in hand moved along the passage in the circle of light of the candle ahead she could see the flickering flame of a second candle.

Moving on alert now the gnome pushed on into the house noting the disturbed  bedding in the hall the slightly open door on the bedroom the empty kitchen with its missing stew pot and table still marked with vegetable juices. Entering the cellar where he slept in the far corner he noticed it was dim even to his night vision as the customary torch at the bottom of the stair was gone.

In the large room, quickly identified by the debris as the ware house nothing of interest was found the opposite door was found to be latched but Esme easily opened it with the universal latch lifter she was carrying a quick look suggested that it was a second room perhaps smaller than the ware house but also empty no one noticed the tracks on the floor at this point being drawn to the north door with its curiosity attention drawing heavy iron lock. Every one had a good look at the door and Esme gestured sadly with the wooden lifter and said that’s beyond this she said. Quirrel thought about picking the lock but decided not to do that in front of people who did not really need to know he could. Then Nyadryn saved him from having to, by saying that he reckoned the wood round the lock was soft with age and damp and he could chop the lock out. He gestured to Esme who passed him the axe and he began to work on the wood around the lock with a practiced hand and soon the wood being as he had said old and soft began to give way.

In the tunnel Briana got close enough to the second candle that she could see a second open door in the circle of its illumination. She could also hear the faint sounds of a rhythmic chopping almost like a wood pecker or Good wife Pelema chopping vegetables.

Behind her Quelsteine had almost caught up with the tall half elf with his better night sight saw all this and more as he followed with trained stealth.

Nyadryn finished chopping the lock free and he and Leon barged the door open with their shoulders and the company swarmed on into the room which despite its lock seemed as empty as the rest.  Leon commented that this was obviously where they stored the good stuff putting the stress on the past tense. Siskin noticed the circle and the discarded items first and giving the circle seared into the packed earth floor a miss as there where even for a priest of RISK risks which first needed appreciating at least before one took them. The other items where however interesting and investigating them was a risk one could take without thought. They turned out to be a rather nice box satchel of size which would be perfect for a Halfling an equally fine leather scroll case some under clothing again for a Halfling and a book open and tossed aside. A glance at the last was enough to put it in the same category as the scorched circle.

The rest of the company took a look at the circle and made no more of it than Siskin had but continued to search the rest of the locked room finding little but the decayed detritus of a long abandoned store room. Quirrel looked at the clothing and found it to be of rather fine quality and marked with an unfamiliar rune inside the hem, whilst Esme who now had something of a fixation with secret doors given that they had found two already checked all the walls here for more a task in which she was joined by Larifus  whilst the fighters Leon and Nyadryn stood guard Siskin took the opportunity to have a better look at the satchel and by so doing found a slit in the soft leather inner lining which contained a large coin or medallion, silver he guessed and a much folded piece of fine velum. Looking at which Siskin noticed it was covered on side with a dense block of writing in an unfamiliar script like the one he had noticed in the book he had taken for a spell book and left alone.

Outside in the first room Briana approached the open, no broken down door to the north and stepped on a piece of rubbish on the floor which cracked like a broken twig. Behind her Quelsteine slid into the shadows her candle made against the walls. Inside the previously locked store the two warriors who where closes to the door heard and went from at ease on guard to on alert. Sensing the tension and not much liking it Quirrel backed off.  Siskin calmly slipped the medallion in his coin purse and the scroll case unopened into his knapsack where it barely fitted.  

Briana cursed at the sound she had made but never the less pressed on and stepped through the door into the north room. Quelsteine moved to cover her without acknowledging it after all they at least knew each other and who knew the motives of any they might meet down here? Indeed his training had taught him to be wary in such situations.

With every one in the same room and with weapons drawn there was something of a confrontation, who the hell are you both Briana and Nyadryn said at the same time and Larifus and Esme turned to look abandoning their search. Who are you Brianne, Leon and Nyadryn said almost simultaneously as they faced each other weapons ready but not yet prepared to strike. Esme and Larifus circled to the left and right whilst Siskin mentally tossed a coin in his head to decide what to do. It looked like it was going to get ugly.

However no one seemed to want to initiate any violent action, and after a few seconds both sides decided to answer the others questions, Briana announcing that she lived and the gnome Quelsteine lived in the house and Leon replying that he and his companions where working for the Market authority and so the moment for violence receded and Quirrel was persuaded to show his warrant and both of the two newcomers nodded that they understood.

The matter resolved and cursory introductions exchanged the tension relaxed Nyadryn gestured at the scorched circle on the floor figuring that as the last half elf he had met had had some knowledge of magic, despite being a surly and charmless git other wise this one might. “What do you make of that” he said gesturing to the scorched circle with his foot. Briana approached the circle with care noting the scorching and the fine runes around the edge that had not been noticed up to now. She knelt down candle in hand to get a better look and quickly realized that it was not an actual magic circle that she was looking at but the shadow of one which had been and which in its passing had seared its image into the packed earth of the floor. She could make little of it save that it was powerful certainly and probably no longer a threat. Briana stood up brushing the slight soil marks from the knee cops of her armour.  What did you make of it Leon asked, Briana she gave him a withering look in return adding that she had no idea except whatever it was, was she believed a trace left by very powerful arcane magic, and though she did not say this aloud that the little wispy sigils or runes curving around the outside of the circle made her flesh creep.

Getting the idea Quirrel passed her the book, and every one except Siskin who was now getting a bit bored, looked on with interest.  Siskin amused himself as the new half elf examined the book by trying to smudge the marks of the circle with the toe of his boot, not very successfully as they had been very deeply seared into the floor.

Briana looked the book and could see it was stoutly made and reinforced with strips of thick leather studded with bronze, it looked for all the world like a small spall book, thought she could not read it as it was written in a queer looking script she had never seen before and possibly in a cipher spell books often where. What was odd was that it had been tossed aside by a spell caster as new spells even weak ones are almost always of interest to an arcane caster. She slipped the spell book into her knapsack this would benefit form a closer look and perhaps some magic to translate it, she mused on this for a moment as she did not have the spell and wondered if the “magic shop” near the north gate  could find her one and if she could afford it if it could.

Siskin got bored with his failure to scrub out the markings on the floor with his foot and wandered off to find amusement some where else. He was not quite as fascinated by watching a half elf who they where not so very long ago long the point of fighting, page through a book he was not sure she could even read. He might be a Priest of RISK and understand the nature of chance but some times people and especially cousin Quirrel seemed random even beyond his advanced understanding.  Picking up a lit torch Siskin wandered out of the formerly locked room into the first store room and thence into the further store room which they had not checked.

On better examination the room was revealed to be as empty as they had suspected on first glance, but the floor was Siskin noted an elaborate tracery of tracks. Of what animal he was not sure and whatever it was it had long gone, exploring further Siskin noticed that some of the detritus had seemingly been gnawed by something quite big and there some odd lumps here and their on the floor, idly Siskin kicked one and a fetid stench rose to meet his nose. He sneezed violently and backed out of the room realizing he had just kicked a half dry pile of droppings from whatever the creature was. Backing into the first store room he was just in time to see the rest of the company coming out of the formally locked room intent on pressing on apparently. Siskin mentioned something about tracks in the other room. However no one seemed to notice as Leon and Nyadryn followed closely by Esme pushed the door to the second room open, most of the company had passed into the seemingly empty room before Esme saw a pair of beady eyes in the dark at the back of the room.

Ooh monsters said Esme and readied her borrowed axe and the huge rat lifted its head and sniffed the air, before catching sight of every one.

An Urban Interlude Part Three – It’s found to be not as simple as it looked and then it all goes horribly wrong in quite unexpected ways

Dramatis Personae

Leon – a Brandobian Human Fighter & self styled hero

Quirrel – a Halfling Thief

Nyadryn – a Brandobian Human, fighter

Esme– a Brandobian human, a loud over enthusiastic person, Nyadryn’s girl friend

Siskin – a Halfling Cleric of Chance Quirrel’s cousin

Larifus – a Gnome,

Quelsteine– a Gnome

Briana – a Half Elven fighter magic user 

Location
the Brandobian county town of Vayham in the North West corner of the region in a long abandoned smugglers tunnel and store and parts of the new town sewer it would seem

Events

(These take place during episode XIV & XV of the main story and they follow on exactly from the end of the previous session)

Having more or less announced the company’s presence to the huge rat which was half out of the tunnel in the far wall Esme proceeded to set her shield and slide the socketing axe form her belt and march forward at a steady almost drilled pace. Everyone else took some time to react to her action and even the rat towards whom she was heading did no more than regard her advance with casual interest. The first to react after this was Siskin who rushed forward to engage before Esme followed by Leon, who swore and moved quickly to a jog followed by an alarmed Nyadryn who accelerated into a blind sprint, drawing his short sword  and shouting at Esme to stand away as he closed with the still unreactive rat. Esme seemingly ignored him and accelerated herself to quickly close the last few feet.  The wickedly sharp axe swung and hit the rat solidly on the head. Leon and Siskin arrived in range of the rat Siskin because this was as fast as he could go on his short legs and Leon because he had a few more feet to cover. Behind Quirrel calmly loaded his sling and began to spin it up to speed, this was as close as he was going to get to the blasted thing he thought. Briana and Quelsteine stood back near the door into the room it was not yet their fight.

Nyadryn stabbed the rat desperate to save his beloved from the creature, regardless that his beloved did not seem to want to be saved and was laying it on with an axe like a pro a few feet away. Siskin lunged at the huge beast and missed whilst Leon unable to reach it past those who arrived first waited his chance to do something heroic. The rat having been roused by Esme’s axe blow had been snapping at the fighting line since but only now found its chance and clamped its massive jaws around Nyadryn’s leg betwixt boot and the hem of his studded jack the burly fighter gritted his jaw in pain and staggered a step back but did not fall. Larifus , alarmed at the huge size of the thing panicked and ran when he finally reacted he was a lover not a fighter after all, and would have fled the room had not Briana tripped him as he passed her and sent him sprawling. Leon made to step into the gap but found there was none, so continued to await his chance for heroics. Behind Quirrel sling whirled as he tried to sport a gap in the fighting line he could lose his stone at the rat through. Siskin took full advantage of the rat turning its attention away for an instant and drove his sword into it hilt deep slamming the cross guard hard into the Rat’s mangy fur the rat spasmed, as it entered its death throes, and Siskin trying to recover his deeply buried blade lost his grip on the hilt and slipped and fell as the force of his own tugging threw him back. Nyadryn took a step towards Esme to comfort her at this horrid sight only to have is breath taken away by the pain of shifting his weight onto his hurt leg and unleash a barrack room curse the like of which should never be said in front of a lady. Leon decided to help the little man by rolling the now dead rat over and yanking his short sword free. Ever the soldier he wiped it clean before handing it back to Siskin who had by now scrambled back to his feet “bravely struck littler man” he said as he did.  Esme completely unfazed by the fight despite of for that matter Nyadryn’s barracks curse bent down to examine the corpse with an inexpert eye, that’s one giant rat she exclaimed loudly as ever. Quirrel feeling much safer now that it was defiantly dead picked up his lantern and moved over to  have a look and show off the fact that Greytar’s great treatise, or a knock off copy of part of it any way had been his recent bed time reading. He considered the rat its size, it’s over sized head and squat powerful body, he also noted the patches of what looked a lot like mange on a dog and decided not to get too close as the thing was certainly as diseased as it was possible to get and he did not want to catch any of them.  Then he announced it’s an Oliphant rat but quite what it’s doing so far north and from the coast is any ones guess as they are not naturally found here about, Quirrel shuddered scaring himself with his own conclusion, that someone might have deliberately bought the thing and probably others here. Mean while Siskin remembered that he had been gifted with healing last time he had prayed to RISK and seeing this as the perfect opportunity to be useful proceeded to cast a trifling cure on Nyadryn’s bitten leg, the wound closed a little and the pain subsided and the fighter mumbled his thanks and on being told he had been healed by RISK a prayer of thanks.

Esme prodded it one last time with the toe her inelegantly booted foot and suggested that someone needed to move it out of the way as it was still partly blocking the hole and that was obviously where they had to go next. Leon obliged by dragging the thing to one side, Esme said someone needs to go and have a look down there someone small, this latter observation being brought on by the tunnel roof being not much above Esme’s waist and at most a yard wide. Siskin collared Quelsteine who had wandered over to have a look at the Rat now it was dead to help as gnomes can see in the dark better than Halflings and it would be good to see anything else like that, indicating the rat, we might find down there coming. For some reason even though he was also of a size to be able to explore the passage Siskin did not even suggest that his cousin should help. Shaken by his earlier conclusions Quirrel decided to go and see if he could get the two newcomers to join in the mission. This would be a decision he may come to regret in latter life, if that is he makes it that far. Mean while on the other side of the room Siskin and Larifus  entered the tunnel whilst Nyadryn and Esme stood guard.

Leaving everyone else in the second store room the intrepid duo of Siskin and Larifus  moved to explore the tunnel. The tunnel was dark and dank smelling strongly of animals and obviously dug by rats of at least the size of the one that they had encountered before, it was winding and branched off in many directions but LARIFUS  could not help but think the main direction was at least slightly downwards. Going in the tunnels was not easy as the floors where distinctly uneven and the ceiling low even for a Gnome or a Halfling. The side passages where often narrower and lower than the main one an each seemed to end in a small chamber full of shredded materials mostly unidentifiable but some defiantly cloth straw and street sweepings and this material was also to be found in small quantities in the area of the approaches to the final chamber. They were as far as both Larifus and Siskin where concerned nests, containing even more titanic rats and as such best left undisturbed. Siskin in particular rather felt that RISK had blessed him as much as it was going to this day. Eventually the pair wound their way through the winding passages and dead ends to a hole in a stone lined wall where it would seem several of the flat regular slabs which covered the wall had been pulled away and left scattered on the floor almost as if someone had done it to allow the rats to tunnel out. The room beyond was large, lined with thick stone blocks and very high ceilinged, with simple vaulting rising to perhaps as much as fifteen feet. The chamber was dimly at least lit by natural light. The source of this seemed to be a grill in the ceiling, or rather at the top of a shaft in the ceiling it was difficult to tell as all easy views where blocked by a massive mound of rotting vegetation and the room was filled with a foul cloying sickly sweet odour. As the pair approached the mound gingerly it was found to be heaving with the movement of unseen creatures within. Seeing a large exit on the far side of then pile Siskin and Larifus backed round the mound backs to the wall so as to investigate it and at the same time keep an eye out for attacks by any creature emerging from the rotting vegetation. As they had seen what appeared to be an entrance on the far side of the room  as they did they came across a door in the wall but decided not to explore that way for now as it was firmly shut. Further on they passed a second somewhat smaller rat hole in the wall where once more somebody had removed the lining stones to allow the rats to dig when they reached the exit they had seen from the other side of the room it was discovered to be a wide high vaulted passage like the room it lead away from plain but well and expensively built, with slightly rusted but empty wall sconces for torches at regular intervals. Moving along it stealthily Siskin and Larifus passed a shut door to their left from around which a vile smell issued worse than the smell of rotting vegetation in the room they had just passed through. This one had a lachrymatory effect on both the Halfling and the Gnome.

Continuing on down the passage way they passed down a set of broad shallow steps before coming to a large well made shut wooden door. Listening at that door suggested whatever was beyond was empty and unoccupied but on opening the door a crack Larifus  saw the moving shapes of large rats in the dim light of Siskin’s torch so they decided to close the door and explore in the other direction. Pausing only to check that the door from behind which the tear jerking stench came was unlocked the pair retraced their steps to the closed door they had found in the first room, once again taking care to avoid the large rotting pile of vegetable waste which if anything now seemed to be more active and the light from the grate far above was growing even dimmer yet as the night drew on. It too was unlocked and opened easily suggesting that it was well used Opening it cautiously the pair slipped through.

The passage way beyond was as wide and as well built as the first they had explored being at Larifus  guess about seven feet wide and over ten high roofed with a flattened arch the walls where lined with stone cut stone blocks around half a gnomes span square of carefully cut local stone. They where unmortared but if they were as deep as the ones he had seen displaced at the rat hole, at around a gnomes cubit, then they would not need to be. Beyond the door the passage was a little narrower than the first perhaps but as high and also vaulted with flattened arches. It was unlit thought there where rusted wall sconces at regular intervals none of which contained a torch or showed any sign a torch had burned in it recently. Very shortly the passage climbed up a shallow set of steps and there was an entry to the left from which Larifus could see the faint glimmer of a distant torch though he doubted Siskin could. Larifus pointed this out to Siskin and there was a whispered discussion and the two moved to explore further as carefully and quietly as they could. However a short distance down the side passage Larifus signalled a halt as the chamber at the end came into view and in the glow of the still distant torch and out of sight he could see movement slipping a little closer and listening Siskin heard the squeaking and scratching of rat’s very large rats and signalled a retreat. Returning to the main passage and after a further short discussion the pair decided to report back and retraced there steps back to the rest of the company in the abandoned smugglers store here they found every one save Quirrel waiting in an uneasy silence.

Whilst Siskin and Larifus  where off exploring starting not long after they left in fact the events in the abandoned smugglers lair took an interesting turn of events Quirrel approached the new comers Quelsteine and Briana intending to recruit them to join the company for the mission at least.

Quelsteine and Briana had apart from halting the fleeing Larifus had rather stood aloof since they were first encountered but Quirrel saw no reason that they should not join in with the mission after all three silvers was good money for a day’s work even if it was going to be a trice more complicated than it had at first looked, not to mention that paying that still left him with a tidy profit and gained him more people to stand between him and the teeth of the next Oliphant rat they met. Drawing himself up to his full high and taking on the mantle of being in charge he approached the gnome first as he was to be honest a more approachable height after all. He made his opening offer of employment and the gnome turned him down to Quirrel’s surprise quite curtly saying that he was part of some sort and embassy and not really looking for casual day jobs no matter how well paid they were for what they were. At this point Leon sidled over to get away from Esme and Nyadryn whose interpretation of guard duty was becoming a bit well sissy for him to be comfortable with they had started holding hands. Not knowing quite how to respond Quirrel pressed on any way. Larifus did not like this not taking of a no for an answer and repeated his point somewhat more bluntly and more assertively. Quirrel feeling brave for once pressed his point and it degenerated into a row. Briana intervened claiming to be Quelsteine’s body guard and saying that Quirrel should listen to what was said and go away, she said this in a tone which implied the addition of you common little man. Leon hand slid onto his sword hilt as the row escalated further. Whilst across the room Esme and Nyadryn remained oblivious holding hands and staring into each other eyes. Who drew first of Leon is unclear but the sudden ring of steel been drawn startled Quirrel and sent his thoughts into a tumble. Where these two actually spies or enemy agents was where it landed up and he was terrified again even more so when Briana raised her off hand and blue fire flickered around it, Quirrel panicked, he bolted past them followed by Leon who backed away covering the fleeing Quirrel. They quickly crossed the outer room and entered the passage way where they paused for a hurried discussion.

Back in the second store room Quelsteine and Briana did not give chase what was the point the officious little man was only running off to tell his tale to his master who would likely tell him to man up and not throw his weight around. She released her spell harmlessly and put up her sword. Quelsteine said nothing and relaxed feeling rather that he had made his point and his honour and dignity where quite intact. The other two distracted now form their romancing asked what that was all about but the only reply they got was Briana’s comment stuff of nonsense and an almost imperceptible shrug from Quelsteine

After Quirrel and Leon parted company in the passage way, Quirrel made his way along the tunnel as fast as he could. He needed to warn the guard that there where spies or worse already in the town and perhaps more than the two he had found. His head filled with possibilities each less pleasant than the last, they could be Elidoran as the central kingdom was said to be eager to reunite Brandobia by force of arms and everyone knew that Cosdol was the weakest of the three, they could be Kalamarans as once their empire had crossed the great pass and come close to conquering all of the lands of the Brandobians  with many of the first battles being fought around  here, then they could be B’parans seeking to control both ends of the great pass, or the people behind all the goblin trouble the possibilities where almost endless and all very bad. As a result of him being somewhat consumed by this and the need to tell someone in authority and the accompanying more general fear he almost walked straight into the six angry men in the cellar.

The one thing that stopped him was noticing that someone had replaced the torch in the sconce at the base of the stairs and lit it and the glow he spotted as he approached the door forewarned him as he knew the half elf spy had picked up the candle, so it should be dark. They all looked like farmers, but the town was full of refugee farmers so looking like one would be an ideal cover for the agents of any of the enemies of Cosdol whoever they actually where. Whoever they might be they were not happy and some of them at least where armed if only with clubs. It’s the thief one of them announced on seeing Quirrel in a good local Brandobian accent of as crossed Quirrel’s fevered mind a very good impersonation of one. Where’s our money another added and Quirrel remembered the weight of his coin purse full of pilfered trade coins. Scrag the little bastard added another eager for revenge. For a moment Quirrel wondered at the word scrag and then remembered it was country slang for lynch. He struggled to stay calm, he needed to talk his way out of this, there were far too many to fight even if he was a fighter and he was not. It’s not like that he began I am from the market authority and searching for his warrant he fumbled through his other pouch I can prove it. Give us back our money you little squirt another said adding may be we don’t kill him just beat him and strip him down to his braes, find what he took, take it and the rest then fling him over the bank for the beggars to take to the temple of the flay master they have in the shambles. I have a warrant Quirrel announced triumphantly producing the piece of vellum Bevan had given him and holding it up for them to see. They all laughed evilly and poor Quirrel lost it this was worse than the incident where Siskin took him scrumping and he ended up sat up in one of farmer Dvorn’s apple trees terrified out of his when the ladder fell down by accident and Siskin got chased off by the farmer’s dogs. This was all going wrong again, the angry men lunged at him to grab him and he dropped the lantern he had been holding. It all went much darker there was a yelp as someone stood in the pool of spilt hot oil and Quirrel finding himself blocked from retreat made a mad dodging dash thought the men towards the stairs. An ecstasy of fumbling in the half dark followed with Quirrel moving on pure survival instinct as the men tried to grab him or club him. Breathless he made the stairs but it did not take long for his pursuers to organise themselves and come after him and with his short legs he was barely out of the door of the house before the first of them caught up and again made a dive for him. He missed a second tried and others shouted stop thief and a mob formed as passerby’s joined in the chase. Quirrel dodged and wove as if his very life depended on it all down the street as he was sure that it did until he ran into a patrol of the Counts guard on south gate street just by the hospital.  By that time both perused and pursuers where distinctly winded by the chase and in some cases rather filthy from trying to tackle a wildly dodging Halfling missing and going face down on the muddy street. For some while neither could do more than heavy breathe and the corporal in charge of the patrol was inclined to arrest the lot of them for a breach of the peace at least  if not  riot. However he decided to give them time to catch their collective breaths so they could explain themselves and also to allow those citizens who had done no more than join a hue and cry to return to their business. Indeed by the time Quarrel could speak again only the angry farmers and a few hangers on with nothing better to do remained of the small mob that had been after him not long before.

A short discussion, well argument ensued during which the farmers attempted to convince the guard that Quirrel was a thief and a burglar and he that they where some sort of enemy agents or in league with them and he was an official about his lawful duty. In the end Quirrel won out not least because the corporal recognised his warrant even if he could not read it. The farmers where duly arrested and taken off to the geol at the keep for proper interrogation latter. Quirrel was escorted to the nearby south gate where he had the chance to talk to the duty sergeant who was already aware of part of the problem having been informed of the tunnel by Leon and having had to detail men to guard it whilst it was comprehensively blocked up. When Quirrel mentioned the spies, the sergeant took him directly to the captain who listened to him and made sure that his plan to trap the spies by literally bringing the house down on them was put into operation. At which point Quirrel was free to go and decided he should report to Bevan.

Leon slipped back into the smugglers store and tried to the best of his limited acting ability to behave as if the row with Quelsteine and Briana had never happened, all whilst doing his best to keep a surreptitious eye on what they where up to. He said when asked that Quirrel had just gone to check in with his boss like last time. Esme and Nyadryn still bemused at the sudden eruption of verbal conflict between Quelsteine and Quirrel left it at that for now. In any event Esme was more interested in waiting for the return of the scouting party and Nyadryn more interested in protecting Esme, even from dangers she was happy to accept. Briana and Quelsteine and said nothing and all was quiet save for Esme’s occasional  loud comment about quite how much fun all this adventuring lark was.  Nyadryn for all he loved her could not help but wonder if the silly girl would find it so after she nearly got her leg bitten off by a gigantic rat, however love or something akin to it stayed his tongue. Time passed and the torches burned down a deal and the candles burned out. Eventually Siskin and Larifus returned, somewhat grubbier and defiantly smellier to report what they had found.

There was a discussion and given that Siskin and Larifus had said the rat tunnels where full of rats nests continuing no doubt a large number of gigantic rats who where fortunately asleep when they traversed them and the complex beyond as far as they had dared investigate was also full of them, not all of which seemed to be asleep and more tunnel exits meaning more tunnel warrens suggesting more nests, and a corresponding large but unknown number of rats had been found. The best thing to do was to regroup and reequip as though what had been found certainly posed a threat to the town and needed dealing with the best time to do that was in the day. No one was sure what time it was but felt it had grown rather late.  The impromptu company decided to retrace its steps to the surface. They moved back quickly through the abandoned smugglers lair and into the smugglers tunnel, here they turned north intending to leave through the house or perhaps to camp there over night. After a short distance it became apparent that the air was full of dust, it caught the light of the companies torches as floating dust does and tickled their nostrils, at first no one thought anything of it but as they moved further it got worse and by the time they reached near the end of the tunnel in sight of the door it was more a mist as in a flower mill or as Nyadryn commented in a saw mill with which Esme the Master carpenters daughter could only agree, and the dust irritated their noses and died their mouths. When they reached the end of the tunnel its cause became all too unpleasantly apparent. The house above had been literally bought down and had collapsed into the cellar. What had been the cellar was now an impassable being filled with an almost jumble of joists, planks, beams, broken wattle infill panels, and fragments of rough plaster and ancient thatch from the collapsed house. Not impossible to clear exactly had they the tools but they did not and so which they did not. Leon lost it. The bastard the half sized murderous backstabbing bastard he did this it’s his fault I will worse than kill him when I catch him. More to mollify a fuming Leon than in any hope of the other end of the tunnel still being open the company trudged all the way to the other end and as they had half expected found it to be thoroughly blocked. Leon was less than happy even though this is what he had asked for himself.

What to do next they where trapped from this direction and the only way out was likely to be found on the other side of the complex which Siskin and Larifus  had scouted. The company adjourned to the smugglers store to discuss what to do next. Their mood was low they had been betrayed and that weighed more on some than on others. However here Esme rather took charge saying that her father would pay four silvers to each of them for rescuing her from this dungeon, a discussion followed about whether Esme’s father could afford that sort of cash, but once they realised he was one of the richest master craftsmen in Vayham and further doted on his youngest daughter the matter was quickly settled.

So the company traversed the rat tunnels, on hands and knees in some cases keeping to the main drag to avoid the nests and becoming increasingly aware of the unseen presence of massive rats all around them. Nyadryn gritted his teeth as he did so because the process of crawling through the narrow tunnel served to reawaken the pain in his leg wound which Siskin’s healing had sent to sleep. Briana found the whole process distinctly undignified and was almost glad when they reached the sewer where she could stand and at need fight.

As he wandered back to the office Quirrel was quite pleased that the day had on the whole despite its very definite alarums and excursions gone his way over all and it was quite the pleasant evening for a stroll, it was he supposed a pity about Siskin, but he took too many risks and sooner or latter one was going to catch up with him and now it had.

When he arrived at the office the night lamp was lit so he was surprised to find it still open as even Bevan could not surly be working this late. Especially given that much of the work they were now doing was make work what with the markets being so quiet due to the goblin situation still it would save him a job in the morning and get it out of the way. Quirrel’s buoyant mood evaporated as he walked into the main office and saw Bevan waiting for him, with a look of thunder on his face. Bevan spoke he was fuming he told Quirrel he was a blithering idiot as the mission which was supposed to have been a quiet unobtrusive check of one of the temples, not currently used, assets had been done with such a fanfare of fuss that the world and its dog knew about it, not only that but the guard had thoroughly blocked it and destroyed some of the temples property to do so. This robs the temple of the rental income as well and we have nosy bastards from the Counts Guard and from the temple of the true no less asking very awkward questions of all of us and threatening to arrest Argarven, who Quirrel knows is the senior priest of the order, for complicity in a smuggling operation that has not run in nearly seventy years. You Bevan said really rising to the task are an utter incompetent and a total liability up with whom the temple and the market authority will no longer put, your fired clear you desk and go and may the coin lord curse you with poverty all your days and you end them starving in the gutter. Not feeling the need to clear his desk or hang round for the rest of Bevan’s tirade, in case if nothing else he remembered the fifty silvers Quirrel slipped into the night intent in making the best of his profit in the gaming taverns of the town, the high stakes ones he had not had the coin to be able to enter before.

Once out of the rat tunnels the company regrouped in the room with the large pile of rotting vegetation and vegetable waste at its centre. Taking good care as advised not to get too close as the thing was even more obviously heaving, with unseen vermin. The light from the grate far above was almost gone and as they stood and considered what to do it vanished in its entirety. The ceiling was at least ten feet high and could perhaps be reached, this would   require, as they had no gear to do it any other way, the climbing of a pile of stinking rotting matter live with who knew what then the scaling of a shaft perhaps fifteen feet deep and the lifting of a heavy grate which might be secured from underneath with no leverage not going to be easy even if possible. However the discussion was made moot when the surface of the mound erupted with large red worms and Larifus almost jumped out of his skin.

Having abandoned any thought of gaining the surface via the grate especially after the appearance of the red worms which so alarmed Larifus , it became necessary to think of another way out especially as it was almost certainly night time outside and the party where growing ever more tired and hungry. Their thoughts turned to the only part of the sewer Siskin had said was lit, or had been when he had explored it before, reasoning that artificial light meant people and that the presence of people down here meant an accessible way out, or so they hoped even if they might have to fight their way past them.

They therefore left the room by the door to the south and made their, as quietly as they could without deliberate stealth, way up the shallow steps to the opening in the wall from which the gnomes in the company at least could see a faint light issuing from. Readying weapons and preparing for a possible fight the company moved up the increasingly well lit passage to a stone room at the end. At a glance the room was live with rats, one of which was the size of the one they had fought before as well as several more smaller but still unnaturally large ones. The rats seemed to be eating a corpse or possibly corpses it was difficult to tell. The largest rat turned its head toward them and RISK began to warm up its dice..

An Urban interlude part 4 - rats, rats more rats and yet more rats

Dramatis Personae

Leon – a Brandobian Human Fighter & self styled hero

Nyadryn – a Brandobian Human, fighter

Esme– a Brandobian human, a loud over enthusiastic person, Nyadryn’s girl friend

Siskin – a Halfling Cleric of Chance Quirrel’s cousin

Larifus – a Gnome,

Quelsteine– a Gnome

Lori – a Gnome, rescued captive

Briana – a Half Elven fighter magic user 

Aeneste – a Brandobian? Human rescued captive 

Varill – a Brandobian Human the tanners apprentice and rescued captive

Location

Some where in the sewers under the new town of Vayham

Events

(These take place during episode XV of the main story and they follow on exactly from the end of the previous session)

Tension built and the company passage hurriedly readied their weapons, but the large rat did not register them as a threat and after a casual but pulse raising glance turned back to feast on the corpse it had been gnawing at previously.  There was a hurried whispered conversation about tactics and several of the company took the chance to try to estimate the numbers of rats. One massive one perhaps half a dozen of the big ones and a lot more, more normal sized ones than could be accurately counted in the  light of the single torch which illuminated the room. Larifus picked up a large gnawed bone and hurled it across the heap into the rooms far corner intending to distract the rats, the throw was wild and the rats took little notice of half a human femur bouncing off a pile of bodies in the middle of them. Most carried on eating a few looked up but did not attack. Siskin grew bored and started a charge towards the mass of them. There was going to be a fight so best get it started in the company’s favour. Leon joined the charge followed by Briana and Quelsteine, who circled to the right clinging to the shadows the lone torch cast. Nyadryn would have followed as well but was too intent on stopping Esme from joining the charge. He managed this only by grabbing her tunic by the collar and applying main force. The rats where briefly startled by the charge and the majority of the smaller ones fled scurrying for the bolt hole on the far side of the room. The bigger ones and the massive Oliphant rat however turned and moved to meet the charge. 

With his typical valour Leon directed his charge at the largest of the rats and Brianne drawing her uncles gift blade charged in an instant latter to Siskin’s side thinking that you could not fault the little man for bravery even if he was only a Halfling and more at home on the farm especially as even the smaller rats where much nearer his size than hers. Preferring guile Larifus and Quelsteine slipped along the wall seeking the shadows from whence to launch an attack with guile. Esme and Nyadryn both would have joined the charge as well but that the latter wanted to stop the former taking any part in the fight delayed their involvement for a while.  Leon, Siskin and Brianne largely stopped the rats with a wall of flashing steel and Quelsteine darted in and out of the shadows plying his dagger to good effect, whilst Larifus still wary of the slavering beasts and their frothing mouths, horribly snapping jaws and yellow teeth sent his throwing knives into the fray in his stead with some effect indeed on struck one of the smaller, but still terrier sized, rats next to the great one so hard it sent it tumbling back into the hillock of rotting bodies behind it. Esme and Nyadryn joined the fray to intercept a pair of the smaller rats which had circled around to the flank and the fell on them in a strange dance where each tried to maneuver around the other. Nyadryn intent on keeping Esme out of the fight even so and Esme intent on getting as involved in it as she could, her axe swinging with wild abandon. For a few tense seconds all was furious action but eventually steel won over teeth as Leon slashed open the great rat and sent it staggering back and following up slew it with the aid of Quelsteine in an economy of brutal strokes. Brianne cut down the last of the rats facing her and Siskin much relived found he had no foe to fight. To the flank Nyadryn and Esme did their deadly work despite their strange method and it was all over and the room was quiet save for the heavy breathing of the company after its exertions. The company was by no means unscathed and Siskin in particular was convinced he was only alive because the lord RISK had stood at his shoulder parrying the rat’s fangs with an invisible blade. Brianne fell to the unpleasant task of attending to the company’s injuries but could not help thinking that this was the job for a servant not a noble elf.  Mean while Larifus investigated the rest of the room, finding it to be like the rest of the complex so far well if plainly built but with deliberate damage having been done to provide the rats with access to the earth beyond the stone facings of the walls. He did not investigate the maw of the large rat tunnel for fear of luring any more of the beasts into the room which might lair within, he recovered one of his precious throwing knives before discovering the exact state of decomposition of the corpses at the bottom of the pile the hard and defiantly unpleasant way and deciding the second was not that precious.

The others who where available and neither wounded not involved in treating the wounds has a casual inspection of the human remains and managed to persuade themselves that the cause of death of the fresher ones where it could be seen was rat bites and that the dismemberment of the more rotted bodies was also caused by rats dragging parts form the pile to gnaw on. The only thing which the identifiable corpses had in common was that they where mostly male appeared to be of manual workers and had been striped of all their gear as well as most of their clothing before being dumped in here.

Having grown tired of the stench of decaying bodies and well aware that the presence of the large rat hole in the far wall of the room, into which the smaller more timid rats had fled at the beginning of the fight, suggested the probability of more large and aggressive rats which might arrive at any moment the company retired back into the passageway they had originally come down here Siskin and several others tried to determine how the bodies had got into the Mortuary room and where from. Believing rightly or wrongly that for all the rats had apparently killed them; something other than rats had stripped them of their gear and the majority of their clothing and dragged them into the room and had placed and lit the torch. Traces of blood was found on the floor in the passage to the mortuary room as where drag marks and whilst it was difficult to find actual identifiable tracks which could not be put down to the recent passage of the company it was apparent that a general track lead out of the side passage across the main one and to a door a little way further down on that side. Further Larifus and Quelsteine could see a dim illumination emanating from all around the door and those without the gnome’s gift for night sight could see a little light in the gap under the door when this was pointed out. Siskin and others tried to make out any activity beyond the door by listening at it but where unable to do so as the door was thick and solidly built and the company behind was not exactly silent and masked what might have been picked up by a sensitive ear in a quieter environment. As ever decisive Siskin lifted the latch and opened the door which sung on well used hinges quite easily despite the Halflings modest strength. Beyond was a stone chamber built in the same manner as the rest of the complex and well lit by at least four torches the room was as wide as the previous one but square rather than rectangular, so perhaps a little smaller over all. It had an obvious door on the opposite wall to the way in but the thing of greatest interest to Siskin was a group of raggedy men to the left of the entrance clustered around a feature on the floor which might be a lipped pit of some sort they seemed to be gambling, betting in the local dialect of Brandobian on something going on in the pit.  They failed to notice the Halfling open the door and come in they failed to notice when Siskin quietly drew his sword and threw himself bodily at one of the ragged men until he impacted. Then all hell broke lose as the Halfling bounced off the under weight but full sized human. Every one else charged lead by Leon and Nyadryn who was as usual eager to keep Esme out of the fight if he could but was even so too much the gentleman to actually shove her out of the way. Briana’s Elven sword sang as it cleared the scabbard and Quelsteine and Larifus circled to the back looking for opportunities to fight with cunning. The Beggars for that was what they seemed to be seemed to be prepared to fight at least to start but it became apparent that they where no match for the company quite quickly and those that could backed off all the time lacing the air with vile oaths and threatening the company with death and worse, if they continued. Threats they looked less and less able to make good on as the seconds passed. Siskin backed away after his initial charge and falling back behind the big people fighters he span up his sling and loosed stones at the beggars who where now distinctly beginning to cower one shot slammed into the wall missing the target it seemed by a whisker before bouncing back and stinking the man hard on the left buttock from he Siskin was pleased to hear squealed like the proverbial girl whist the actual girls here present plied their arms with skill, Brianne, and wild enthusiasm, Esme, driving their foes back the while.

Finally backed into the corner beyond the pit and with one of their number down the pit, and with several down one with Quelsteine’s knife at his throat a Quelsteine’s quiet insistent questions in his mangled ear the wounded beggars where prevailed upon successfully to surrender. They threw aside there knives and where quickly corralled, by Leon Nyadryn and Esme weapons drawn and ready, into a corner. As they had no fight left in them and looked in all honesty a sorry sight. Dressed as they where clad in rags covered by ragged hooded cloaks and hooded ponchos their faces where drawn almost gaunt and pocked and even in the light of the torched they all looked distinctly unhealthy, if not actually sick. Down the pit was a dead beggar being gnawed on by a pair of Oliphant rats and lying on a third which was apparently at least stunned by the impact of the falling man. Also down the pit or rather clinging to the ladder about half way up was another man he did not look like the beggars he seemed to be well for a start and was dressed in a poor but well looked after short sleeved tunic, was largely clean shaven and seemed to be at least adequately fed.

He was however terrified and had to be coaxed gently up the ladder and out of the pit however once out it was more than apparent that he was a respectable citizen if a poor one. However once he was convinced he had been rescued he proved to be more than helpful telling the company how he had been captured, buy being jumped in the alleys not far form the shambles on the way back form working late he thinks a couple of days ago and that the Beggars had first set one of the smaller rats on him after his capture which he had killed and then thrown him in the cells beyond the door yonder only to bring him out again tonight to fight those behemoths now engaged in eating the beggar who fell in the pit during the fight he is he will say called Varill and apprenticed to the smaller of the two tanneries in the old town and that they had of late been rather busy as the demand for leather for amour and war gear had gone quite mad even if the supply of good hides had become difficult he supposes because the goblins burned the fore gate and practically shut down the beast market where most of it came form. His story is confirmed by Quelsteine’s questioning of the captives who are eager to cooperate especially when it is suggested half in jest that they should get to join their friend down the pit, they are all however some what drunk and probably not the most articulate in the first place even if sober which they are most certainly not having shared two thirds of a barrel of local brandy

Larifus on the other hand had noticed that the beggars had been drinking from a broached cask of something on the other side of the room form the fighting pit and moved to investigate. It proved to be some sort of cheap local brandy but Larifus found that after a few tentative mouths full it became actually quite palatable, it was however difficult for him to reach down into the half empty barrel to fill his cup as the beggars had so being small enough to do so he climbed in to it so as to make this easier, and passed the rest of the time the company was in this area continuing his investigation of the spirit. Siskin made sure to gather up the beggar’s stakes and obtained a larger handful of trade coins some of them so worn as to be almost unrecognizable after all they had been betting on a certainty and that offended RISK.

With Larifus deep in the barrel and Esme and Nyadryn the company guarding the captives every one else let Varill lead them to the cells. These where reached through the other door and down a short flight of shallow stairs and seemed to be well and deliberately built cage type cells, made with a grid of thick if tarnished iron bars being mortared into the floor ceiling and adjacent walls, four of them in a small area which was lit by a single guttering torch. Two of the cells seemed to be occupied one by a scruffy woman with a grim and oddly emotionless face in travelers garb and the other by a large sack, the sort dyers use to store large amounts of yarn in, the sack appears to be occupied and whatever is in it is not happy and is beginning to struggle and make muffled noises.  There is some worry that the occupant might be a rat but it was quickly realised that a rat even a normal sized one would make very sort work of a sack. It was also realised that the gates on the cells where locked and no one had either the keys or the where withal to pick the slightly rusty if well looked after locks. Leon tried the bars and the gates and quickly worked out that bending them or ripping door open was beyond his strength. At this point the woman volunteered that the beggars had keys she had seen this when they took the boy out.

Returning up stairs and further interrogating the to the captive beggars quickly resulted in them handing over a small ring of keys which they swore blind and by all the gods they had forgotten about when first questioned, this was possible seeing how drunk they where but not worth pursuing any way as the keys where surrendered with out any resistance. Then every one save Larifus who was beginning to enjoy the fine vintage as well as slip into it in the barrel across the room and Nyadryn and Esme on guard duty returned to the cells releasing the woman who introduced herself in unfamiliarly accented Brandobian as Aeneste, the occupant of the other cell was a large well muscled female gnome who introduced herself simply a Lori. Naturally the company interrogated the now released captives and got much the same story both where pit fighting in one of the rougher taverns in the new town, but interestingly enough not the same one and had won their fights and a decent amount of coin. However both where bought drinks by those who had made as they said a killing on betting on them and don’t remember much after that. Lori being small seems to have come round after Aeneste and neither has any recall of how they got form the tavern to here. Varill could add a bit more to that as he was at least conscious when taken and remembers going down some steps and the opening of several doors before his captive’s threw him in here, however he admits to being a bit stunned and was covered in a filthy cloak all the while which made it impossible for him to see and difficult to hear and to work out quite what was happening with any certainty. Both the Tanner and the Gnome seem grateful for their rescue even if Lori is a little fixated on her missing gear but Aeneste is best described as totally blasé about the whole affair which makes some of the company a bit suspicious. It seems rather odd for any one to take such a misadventure so much in their stride. What was important was that none of the captives had any idea of where the way out might be so the company was forced to rely on the word of the beggars.

By further interrogating the surviving beggars the company managed to discover that the way in was via a secret door the other side of the room with the pile of compost in. Siskin who was the only one of the company who had been up that way pressed them for more details and eventually they volunteered that it was in the room behind the door which Siskin and Larifus had discovered the foul smell issuing from and that the door lead to an old disused cesspit and thence to the surface behind a house just by the wall in the new town. Given that this was all that they had to go on the company chose to follow this information. After first securing the beggars in the cells and recovering the by now very inebriated and unwilling Larifus from the barrel, not forgetting to recover the torches from the pit fighting room to light them on their way, neither of the two original Gnomes where happy about this for their own reasons Larifus as there was still undrunk brandy in the barrel and   Quelsteine as red worms where such a very bad omen, trust him an evil omen and they where having far too much contact with them. Even so the company with varying degrees of enthusiasm and expectations of success went with the plan retracing its steps to the compost room.

Passing around the huge pile of composting vegetable market waste was more of an ordeal than ever before as it was a live writhing mass of huge red worms at which large but relatively small rats snapped continually occasionally dragging on off or rather out of the pile and eating it as it writhed still on the floor. These rats scarpered for the tunnels at the Companies approach and did not return till they had passed pressing themselves close to the wall most especially Quelsteine who was by now mumbling loudly in gnomish fortunately about red worms being a very bad omen. However this was the way the beggars had said under duress was the way out so it had to be hadn’t it.

It was something of a relief to get into the corridor on the other side of the composting room but that relief was soon dispersed when the company approached the door the beggars had indicated the stink was vile, so bad it fairly took your breath away even for Siskin and Larifus who had smelt it before and had some preparation.

The door was neither locked or latched and opened with the ease one would expect of a regularly used door. The place smelt even worse inside than it had even from the corridor and very soon every ones eyes where streaming and feeling quite nauseous even the tanners apprentice who had taken up a torch to help, out and was well used to working with vats of stale urine, was effected. Walking a short distance down the passage beyond the door into a broad vaulted room almost identical in construction and likely size to the abattoir room the company had found earlier entering this relatively brightly lit area revealed the source of this stench. It came from under two lids of slimy corroded wood over which hung a miasma of yet fouler air. Here the walls where streaked with slime and dripping with the condensate from the fumes which rose from under the lids little hindered it would seen by there presence. Not wanting to stay here any longer than needs be the company fell to looking for the hidden exit the beggars had spoken of it was not to be found after an initial search and the company began to wonder if it might actually be hidden beneath the slimy wooden lids in the maw of one of the pits to be found below.

An Urban interlude Part 5 - Rats attrition and an evil cult confronted

Dramatis Personae

Leon – a Brandobian Human Fighter & self styled hero

Nyadryn – a Brandobian Human, fighter

Esme– a Brandobian human, a loud over enthusiastic person, Nyadryn’s girl friend

Siskin – a Halfling Cleric of Chance

Larifus – a Gnome,

Quelsteine– a Gnome

Lori – a Gnome, rescued captive

Briana – a Half Elven fighter magic user 

Aeneste – a Brandobian? Human rescued captive 

Varill – a Brandobian Human the tanners apprentice and rescued captive

Location

Some where in the sewers under the new town of Vayham

Events

(These take place during episode XV of the main story and they follow on exactly from the end of the previous session)

The company continued its increasingly desperate search for a way out in the room of stenches. Lori, Larifus and Leon turned to examine the slime covered walls every ones eyes where stinging heads spinning, Nyadryn and Esme inspected the floor with Nyadryn going down on hands and knees to look at the sections she pointed out if only to stop her doing it herself and she grew increasingly exasperated. Siskin started to peer under the edge of the slimy wooden lids finding nothing but more slime encrusting the stone lip beneath. Every one joined in With only Brianne and Quelsteine standing aloof from the search. Nothing was found apart from clear slime yellow slime, odd discoloured incrustations and stains, algae growths and small pieces of unidentifiable detritus, all damp and mostly quite slimy. 

Then across the room Larifus noticed that under the slime and the encrustations there was a decorative band of low bass relief going around the room at head just above his head height. It was a strip of “brocade” for want of a better description carved into the stone blocks which covered the wall that looked like a necklace of skulls threaded with worms through the eye sockets and holes in the cheek and broken toothed gaping mouths. He also noticed that there was another similar strip about his height again further up but he was too shortsighted to tell if it was the same as he could not pick out any detail.  He pointed this out to every one else and they joined in the examination of it Esme confirmed that the higher strip was the same as the lower and was as she put it gross and down right morbid. However she and Siskin fell to examining this detail looking for a switch which would open a concealed door through which unconscious bodies might be carried.  As they examined the strip it dawned on Siskin that the decoration was an adaption of one of the many unholy symbols of the rot lord, suggesting that not only was the place occupied by that foul cult as they had already discovered but that it might have been built for that purpose rather than just commandeered by them at a later date.

However before they could finish there examination of meditate too much on what they had found the door at the end of the short passage leading to the chamber opened with a creak and there was the sound of men coming along it men with a violent purpose. Turning from the examination of the relief the company saw half a dozen burly fellows dressed in the same way as the beggars they had met before coming down the sort corridors clubs, or rather knobby sticks, in hand. From the far in the rear they hear the familiar voice of one of the beggars they had met before, “that’s them beat ‘em good they killed Eggil”  The men who had all the look of some sort of beggars guild enforcers made no reply but came on in silence but with increasing speed. As every one in the company gathered their wits they reacted but not before the bullies had fallen on the nearest of the company Two fell on the apparently unarmed Lori and Aeneste and two descended on Brianne, Quelsteine even surprised had the whit to dodge behind his larger colleague, who dodged the bullies flailing clubs with an arrogant ease, these might frighten common scum but not her a half elf of the best lineage. Across the room Lori and Aeneste where as successful the thugs where unused to fighting those with the wit to fight back and had only encountered these two before when in a drugged stupor and even them Lori had even then not quieted till they dumped her in a sack. Weapons where drawn and Esme unleashed a what she thought was a wild war cry and charged Nyadryn secretly terrified she should come to harm followed her in trying all the way to outpace the girl so he could put himself between her and danger. Varill it has to be said was afraid having been beaten severely a couple of days before by these self same thugs made a dash for the far corner.  

A wild fight followed, during which Aeneste was savagely clubbed around the head, staggered back and then righted her self and then forgetting her art plunged back into the fray fists flying alongside Nyadryn and Esme. Lori took a winding blow which sent her reeling but left her attackers triumph rather short lived as the blow left him wide open to Leon’s sword and Leon duly extracted the cost of this foolhardiness, with a perfectly executed stop thrust. Larifus danced around the edge of the fight and threw both of his throwing knives before closing one missed entirely and one clipped Siskin as it passed. Siskin was less than amused by this and shouted at Larifus to stop that and join in. He did but weather it was Siskin’s outrage or his running out of knives which was the cause who is to know. Lori got up and rejoined the fight pausing only briefly to groin stomp the now fallen thug that had hurt her and pick up his club. Lori was disgusted at the weapon it was a blasted stick not even a club, still it might be better than a half blunt belt knife. She rounded on the second of the pair of bullies who was now backing off under an expert flurry of sword blows from Leon. However it was not all going the companies way the stunned Aeneste was now down properly and whilst wounded both of the bullies fighting  Esme and Nyadryn where still up but not for long as Larifus joined the fight with them.

Mean while Leon and Lori backed the one bully they where engaged with almost on the point of Siskin’s waiting sword and he turned to flee over the slippery wooden lid fell and stunned himself

The bullies where no match for people who could match their numbers and stood their ground and one by one they went down even so it was not over for just as the surviving where considering flight the group of beggars in the hall at the end of the entry passage who had taken no part in the fight having been thought better of it by the Company earlier when they rescued Lori Aeneste and Varill and gave them a sound hiding doing it, acted on much the same thought releasing the starving rats which unable to turn on their carriers as the beggars had been wise enough to block the passage with the large cages before slamming the door shut behind them and making themselves scarce. The Rats hared down the passage into the room beyond where they smelt fresh blood and the scent of human fear which they had come to associate with food and they where so very hungry.

Hearing the Rats coming and well aware that the rats would go for them as much as they would those they where fighting attempted to break off and put their enemies between then and the Rats. Trying to flee proved unwise as first Lori and Leon took advantage of it to cut down and then viciously groin stomp the one wounded bully fighting them, and the one still fighting Nyadryn and Esme was unable to pass their impromptu shield wall and was trapped and torn down when the rats decided the best and easiest source of food was his fallen comrade and the unconscious Aeneste behind them. All the one fighting Brianne could manage was to back against the wall to keep Quelsteine to his front as the little shite had managed to stab him in the back a couple of times already, however a crude club wielded by a terrified thug is no match for elf wrought steel and Brianne contemptuously flicked the mere stick away and effortlessly carved him open, he slid down the wall as Quelsteine made short work of finishing him off.

The fight then converged on the centre and the rats still being fended off by Nyadryn and Esme a fight made a bit easier buy the rats being just as interested in eating the two fallen bullies as attacking people who could fight back. Even so and with the company taking care not to distract the rats from their feeding and a show of amazing skill, with a shield by Esme people got bitten and before the fight was over Esme’s luck had run out and she had fallen to a savage bite.  Nyadryn went berserk hacking at the remaining rat savagely screaming all the while that the foul beast had killed her and swearing that  it would pay and by the SPEAKER so would all of them even their foul god.  Then it was over and the last of the rats died hacked by down Nyadryn and impaled on Siskin, Leon and Brianne’s swords. In the silence that followed both Esme and Aeneste groaned and began to rouse.

Every one looked at Brianne, and she thought to herself why always me can no one else here bind wounds? Before falling to the task of dealing with the worst wounded as best she could given she had no clean bandages or clean water little practice and less taste for this sort of work.  Mean while those who where not wounded or had been seen too searched the bodies of the fallen foe and found little save for a good leather sack some what ruined by a dagger thrust in the fight by Larifus which contained around three hundred useable trade coins as well as a fair number of small bits of brass which might once have been trade coins but which where now too worn and damaged to be ought but scrap brass.

With such first aid that could be done finished the Company halted to review its position and found it not to be at all good most of them where wounded Lori and Aeneste very badly though each where trying to be brave for there own reasons.  Esme was being fussed over by Nyadryn despite her vehemently asserting that she was not that hurt and that it had only bowled her over and she had banged her head on the floor. None the less the blood drying on her brother old tunic was not all from a rat or a thug either. Further to that every one except Siskin was feeling a little feverish and unwell. Not to mention that the enemy knew the company where there and where no doubt preparing the next nasty surprise for them, Nyadryn was the foremost supporter of this suggestion as Esme getting hurt had thrown him into a low mood.

It was decided that the company needed to get out or failing that get to some where safe where they could rest at least over night and work out what to do as they could only see death staring them in the face if they pressed on as they where doing. They had been lied to and fallen for the trick and been ambushed. The problem being was that there was no safe place to rest. Where they where was out of the question, so was further in as Siskin and Larifus had found more large rats in that direction when they had first explored the place and since it was apparent that rats where more awake now who could say there where not more now. They had seen the first room they had cleared of rats refilled and in any event the room was full of rotting corpses same went for the composting room as that had even more rotting matter in it as well as Quelsteine gnome eating red worms. The only place any one could think of was the old smugglers hide out but that required traversing the rat tunnels and whilst they had managed that twice who was to say they could a third time given that the rats where more active at the present. However it seemed to be quite the best of the bad options they had before them. So grimly they set off to do as planed

As the company approached the composting room again fighters to the fore and wounded and their attendants to the rear Esme who kept saying she was not as wounded as he thought being assisted by a still half distraught Nyadryn and Aeneste held up by Varill the rescued tanner turned torch bearer. Only Lori of the wounded stayed at the front mumbling all the while about the lack of a decent weapon and her gear, as all she had was one of the bullies knobby sticks as a club and a half blunt beggars knife.

The compost pile was the most active any had seen it so far, Quelsteine cringed as he spotted the first red worm and the Company began the edge into the room along the north edge of the pile. As they did so a huge centipede erupted from the surface scattering red worms and rotted vegetation as it did so the fighters at the front recoiled behind shields those who had them, whilst wearily drawing weapons.  The fight was fortunately soon over and no one involved was further wounded before the foul thing twitched its last. Alarmingly as it did so its corpse was dragged back into the pile by half a dozen similar if smaller creatures of the same kind

After the encounter with the vast centipede, the company edged its way cautiously around the compost pile, backs to the wall torches forward fending off the apparent myriad of similar if smaller creatures which writhed and hunted over its surface and scattering small, well normal sized, rats, that nipped around the edge, before them until they made it to the exit to the rat tunnels which they had entered by. Quelsteine was by this point frankly terrified and only able to pass at all because the red worms had been in part obscured by the centipedes which where swarming all over them as they in turn fell on the  layer of fresh vegetable waste which had been freshly dumped there and Briana dragged him with main force when he froze.  At the entrance the company halted and formed a ring around its wounded, peering uncertainly into the dark tunnel yet still seeming determined to traverse it. Lori her own wounds smarting peered into the tunnel and despite being told that there where rats nests all round could see no presence of rats and crouching and relying on her gnomish night vision she took a few steps down the tunnel wishing she had her faithful sword with her, shortsightedly she did not notice the huge rat ahead until she ran in to it. It turned, snarling teeth bared and she tried to dodge in the narrow confines of the passage, but its fangs found there aim and Lori went down drowning in a sea of pain before every thing faded to black.

Seconds latter the rest of the company where surprised by the eruption of a massive rat from the mouth of the tunnel. Tired hands reached for weapons as the frenzied creature hurled itself at the nearest of them. The fight was short and vicious but Company triumphed as they had numbers on their side if nothing else, there was a lull as the foul scabrous beast twitched and breathed its last after the final strike of Siskin’s sword and every one drew breath, only then wondering what had become of Lori in some desperation recovering her almost lifeless body from a few steps inside the tunnel without further incident, Brianne who was nearest quickly worked out that Lori was actually still alive but almost certainly not for very long as she was hurt beyond her skill to aid. At which point Aeneste who had been staggering along in a daze since the beating she had taken when trying to take on two of the beggar bullies with nothing but her fists roused herself and confessing to knowing something about this sort of thing fell to helping as she could, thought it was largely Brianne who did the work on instruction as Aeneste was herself sore wounded.

Here again the focus of our tale moves else where for a while though it will be returning here but there is far more a foot in the region than that which just the one tale can encompass though the treads of these tale are interlinked and may well cross merge and divide again as the story unfolds further.

Episode XVI – The aftermath of the skirmish and what happened next

Dramatis Personae
Telec - Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer
Aeltred - Half Elf Ranger
Lalia - Halfling Thief
Thans – Dwarf Fighter thief
Heradin- Dwarf Fighter mage
Dvorn the Axe- “Fhokki” Human Fighter
Sondan – Brandobian, Human Fighter
Fawlit – Half Ork Fighter

Nyassor- Elven, Fighter from Elsewhere

Americ – Human Cleric form Elsewhere

Myrinaris – Human from Elsewhere

Liamar – Kalamarian Human Cleric of the free from the Hidden Dell

Nyasse - Kalamarian Human girl from the Hidden Dell
Bill – Heradin’s pack pony and pet

Benjamina- the companies pack pony

Shadow – Nyasse’s horse

Nesbit – Halfling Wizard form Elsewhere currently resident in Aeltred’s mind some how

Location
The Holdfast and the Hidden Dell, the woods to the north of it and westwards to the tinny holding of Little Thorpe and to the goblin held lands east of the M’Alvern stream

Events

(These continue exactly from the end of Episode Thirteen / Session XV of the main tale above, it is late at night or early in the morning its hard to tell here deep in the woods above the Hidden Dell but around the Company stands in the midst of the fake camp surrounded by the bodies of slain goblins and goblin dogs the last of which has just breathed its last after a frenzied fight)

Nesbit blinked and looked around as his head cleared, he was not where he expected to be, or for that matter when, and whilst he seemed to know all the people here present he could identify none of them apart from the Elf lord Nyassor who was returning from the edge of the woods which surrounded them methodically winding the heavy elf bow he favoured, his head hurt and a man in far too much mail was fussing over him and chuntering on in a weird language, a priest so where was Americ then. The others seem to know their trades, even if they where strangely ill equipped he had not seen this much leather and padded amour since the village musters of long ago. Nesbit’s gaze was drawn to the one Halfling in the group who was kneeling over a fallen fighter. She was very cute he thought to himself as she seemed to be signalling for him to come over.  He turned to look for Americ who had obviously gone into the woods to get his crossbow and was coming up from behind him, wondering as he did so what he was standing on and why he seemed to be wearing boots as his awareness faded again and he reentered the dream in which he had been for quite some time now.

Telec healed Aeltred’s head with effusive apologies releasing his lesser healing as the wound closed and the half elf Aeltred who had seemed absent snapped out of whatever it was that had been distracting him with a shudder. Ahead Thans was looking over the fallen goblins and finishing any who where still alive, whilst the big elf Nyassor and Fawlit where standing guard, the former calmly winding his crossbow and the latter holding no doubt unconsciously a heroic pose over the goblin he had all but cut in half seconds earlier. Sondan reappeared from the woods his newly acquired cross bow tucked under his arm as he applied the goats foot leaver one handed. He had already stowed his sword and shield ever the soldier and was scanning the edges of the clearing as he drew the cross bow, so familiar was he with his task.  

Aeltred was alarmed to put it mildly he had been belted round the back of the head so his head rang like a bell, probably by Telec judging by his apologies and unasked for healing magic and then for several seconds it had been as if he was a passenger in his own head and not at all in control. What the dwarf wizard had said needed dealing with and soon else it would drive him insane, if he thought grimly it had not already done so. He became aware that Lalia was kneeling beside Dvorn who appeared to be out cold.

Lalia had noticed that Dvorn had not got up after the great Half Ork had sent the goblin dog that had taken him down flying into on of the fake tents whilst she had been going through the dead goblins possessions, it’s a rotten job but se could not let Thans do all the work, and besides little tasted better than a goblin bought meal an half pint of small ale.  Lalia had some knowledge of assisting the wounded but Dvorn was beyond her he was alive and did not seem to be bleeding but he defiantly was not conscious or rousable. He had one wound in his shoulder but that didn’t seem bad enough to justify his being apparently out cold.  

When Aeltred finally noticed her signalling and came over with Telec they had the chance to have a better look, gently rolling the man over and getting him out of his armour. There was a lot more blood on his tunic underneath, even so she could not see quite what ailed him so and Telec kept mumbling on about healing him saying he still had healing magic to use. Aeltred took charge and continued the examination whilst Lalia decided it was best if she helped with the watch as there where likely more goblins in the woods and they had deliberately let one escape so he could be heading back with his mates to start round two. Aeltred was concerned and spent a lot of time examining Dvorn before it occurred to him what was up. It was the floppy arm that gave it away in the end; it would seem that the dog’s teeth had torn the tendons in Dvorn’s shoulder very badly despite his armour and that he had passed out in shock, this was a career ending injury for a warrior unless treated with specialist magic and even worse for an arrogant so and so like Dvorn whose whole life was built around him being a two handed axe wielder. Aeltred told Telec that his healing would in this case only make things worse so Telec used it to finish off repairing the hurt done to Aeltred by a careless swipe of groin seeker.

Thans having finished making sure of the last of the goblins turned his superior Dwarven night sight to scanning the woods beyond the circle of fire light and when Lalia joined the watch he asked her to come with him and they both scouted the woods beyond the small clearing and the bright circle of fire light form the huge fire they had build in the middle of the false camp. He would have preferred to have had a Dwarf cover his back but as Heradin seemed to have disappeared Lalia who could scout as well as could be expected of a non dwarf would have to do as the companies only other scout was the company’s healer and even Thans noticed that Dvorn was still down.  Shortly the pair came across Heradin who was rubbing his eyes and shaking his head to clear the sleep out of them it would seem that the stupid wizard had dozed off and gone and missed every thing, just goes to show that whilst Dwarves are better at magic than every one else it’s a peculiar occupation for a Dwarf. Heradin said nothing beyond a mumbled apology in dwarvish and Thans saw no need to upbraid him before non Dwarves.  The three of them finished the circuit of the clearing and there seemed to be no more goblins about well not immediate area anyway.

By the time every one arrived back at the false camp Aeltred and Telic had largely decided what to do. The subsequent discussion was therefore quite brief and every one ended up agreeing with them for once.  It was decided to build a travois for Dvorn and when that was done they would take him on it back to the holdfast from whence they would set out probably for the great hospital at Vayham to the west after they had got some rest. The travois was quickly built out of branches and some of the canvases which they had used as fake tents and the as Sondan was a fairly proficient carpenter and he an Lalia had worked together before building the dread table fort. Mean while the rest of the company kept close watch for more Goblins but none came. With the built the still unconscious Dvorn was transferred on to it and made comfortable and secure and the always helpful Fawlit had volunteered to be the main dragger of it.  The company therefore set out through the woods with their injured passenger keeping a weary eye out for more goblins as they did so.

The company dragged the travois bearing the still unconscious Dvorn back the long way round into the Dell, as it was the easiest route to drag the travois which was too unwieldy to take down the cliff path near the Holdfast. As they did all where aware all of the time that there might be more goblins in the wood and that they could very well be the ones being ambushed this time. It was tiring and slow work, so no one was surprised that it was well past dawn when they stopped for a breather amidst the ruins of the village, before turning west towards the Holdfast arriving there in the mid morning.

The company where seen approaching the Holdfast by the watch and the alarm was raised by the Villagers early and by the time the company reached the gates they had mustered a reception party and some hot food. There was some alarm at the travois and many openly wondered if the nights work had gone well, but where reassured when they saw no one else hurt amongst the company and heard the tale of a successful ambush. Having eaten the company for the large part headed off to bed as they had been up since before this time yesterday and where honestly shattered and half drunk form fatigue at least. Heradin however having shamingly managed a significant nap whilst waiting for the goblins to arrive and be ambushed and being possessed of well the constitution of a Dwarf went off to see to the ponies Bill and Benjamina first and honestly every one else was too tired to notice he was actually up to something more. Whilst he did indeed go and check up on the ponies he also expected that Nyasse would be with her horse shadow and being proved right proceeded after admiring the fine animal that the horse was, fell to continuing to talk to Nyasse about magic, a conversation which he had began the day before whilst the rest of the company where trying to talk the stranger priest Americ into adopting the faith of the FREE.

The conversation and the budding friendship between the dwarf and the odd girl began to blossom and both where prepared to share some mutual confidences. Heradin spoke if the ruins under rosebush hill in the Halfling lands in the south which he and Lalia had explored and Nyasse showed Heradin her sword. Which he found a fine blade, the finest he had ever seen indeed almost magical in its utter perfection though as far as he could tell not even slightly enchanted even the strange runes on the blade which he translated with magic read, “Sworn Brothers Gift” possibly a name but an odd one.  Nyasse also showed him the place she had found the other side of the illusionary wall, the old champion’s quarters and they talked long amongst the possessions of the dead mage and made plans.

During the day Liamar made sure to tend to the wounded Dvorn, hoping that Aeltred’s diagnosis of the deeply torn muscle in Dvorn’s shoulder which would need magic to heal properly was wrong however after detailed examination he was forced reluctantly to agree with the antisocial half elf who almost seemed to take a perverse pleasure in the misfortune. It struck him that there was neither malice nor evil in the man even so as he seemed to delight equally in his own misfortunes and perhaps to court them. He was what his old master might call a cup half empty man. So Liamar sedated the injured man as he was still seemingly in crippling agony when not unconscious and generally ensured he was as comfortable as he may be given the unfortunate circumstances.

The rest of the company slept the day away and even come supper that evening when they awoke where still tired enough that they did not take their attempts to convert Americ any further and any way Americ was not present a the meal having retired once more to his chapel to pray to his unresponsive goddess. They did however manage, after Aeltred’s diagnosis was confirmed by Liamar, to start planning, if vaguely, to take the severely wounded and sedated Dvorn to the Great Hospital in Vayham which Thans had seen last year and Telec with his cult’s magpie custom of collecting of traveller’s tales had heard of. It was said that the Priests of the Caregiver would work true miracles of healing there.

Heradin was not party to these discussions and spent the meal and much of the evening even after the rest of the company had retired to bed discussing magic and other esoteric subjects with Nyasse. Indeed if any one had been paying attention they would have noticed that the pair disappeared for a considerable portion of the night and only snatched a few hours sleep in the early hours of the morning.

However the come the morning there was a minor problem with the plan as Heradin, decided that he wanted to stay at the Holdfast and wouldn’t say why not even to his fellow Dwarf Thans, who dismissed it as more blasted wizard nonsense in his head, however the honour of Dwarf kind caused him not to pass that opinion on. Aeltred tried to persuade him to come but Heradin was not seeing reason and very much stuck his heels in and wouldn’t budge, not that Aeltred is that well known for his persuasive skills so exasperated and annoyed a quite common condition with Aeltred passed the task to Telec who being more skilled in this aspect managed it by playing the pony card and suggesting that if Heradin did not come then there would be no one to properly look after the companies pack pony Benjamina. The dwarf however went off to organize some unspecified things before they set off and turned up with a fully packed Bill, his own pack pony some what latter.

About an hour after the company had set off just as they where turning south from the ruined village Nyasse rode up on shadow and dismounted to exchange conversation about rather esoteric and magical things with Heradin who was content to lead the two pack ponies at the back of the company for all the world as if it was a pleasant stroll in the country. When it became apparent that Nyasse appeared to intent on accompanying the company it was decided to use Shadow who she was not currently riding to draw the travois rather than Benjamina who was also laden with company gear. They therefore stopped a while to allow reorganization to occur.  

Having left the Dell by the south entrance they turned west and as it was reckoned that Vayham was a little north of the Dell made there way a little north before turning west in earnest. They travelled west peacefully with neither Aeltred who was making a point of scouting ahead and looking for them, nor any one else seeing hide nor hair of either goblins or their dogs, Sondan commented that it seemed quite unusually quiet especially given the closeness of the goblin camp. The upgraded travois was drawn easily by Benjamina and Dvorn who was being kept sedated as Liamar suggested seemed to suffer no further hurt form travelling. Drawing the travois did however make it quite difficult to take the most direct route west as it was necessary to work round obstacles which they would no foot even with pack animals passed through with ease so going was slow if uneventful, late in the afternoon however this all changed as whilst scouting ahead Aeltred spotted smoke slightly to the north. He called Lalia forward to confirm he had seen what he though he had and she quickly spotted what looked like smoke form hearth fires in some isolated village, and rather fancied spending the night in a soft bed in a half empty inn, however as was becoming a matter of tradition Aeltred did not see them as any thing quite so benign after all there must be a reason the goblins seemed to be avoiding the area.

There was something of a discussion when the two returned to the rest of the company but in the end curiosity mostly Telec’s won out and the company turned north. Aeltred however stuck to his guns convinced that they should be pressing on west, after all there where several hours more daylight judging by the sun and would all be murdered in their sleep if they investigated the source of the smoke regardless of appearances to the contrary. So he made a bivouac in a suitable tree so he could comfortably spend the night and still be round in the morning to confirm that his prediction of the future would come true.

After heading north for a relatively short time every one else came into sight of a tiny village little more than a cluster of wood and wattle hovels surrounded by as scatter of some what ill kempt farm lands as they approached this they where spotted by the locals.  The locals all looked Brandobian and indeed greeted the Company in that tongue though there accent was rather thick, Lalia in particular could not help but be reminded of the Gaffers and Gammers back home by the way these people spoke.  It was also quickly apparent that the demographics of the population where rather odd most seemed to be children, well under the age of six or seven, but none where quite babes in arms or the distinctly elderly all save for about five young and youngish men who lurked in the background and sported wicked hunting knives and bows and looked wary all of these looked like hunters. There where no adult women of child bearing age and apart form the hunters no men who where of an age to be the fathers of these children rather than their grandfathers. It was also apparent though less blatantly so that there where not enough people even for this modest size of settlement. Even so the people where welcoming and invited the Company to share their evening meal in the small hall around which the village was built. Both Lalia and Telec thought this looked like one of the community meeting hall temples of the cult of life’s fire but there where no sign of any holly icons or other iconography on show.

Over the meal the Villagers recounted their tale of woe, starting as old people will with a little history. Apparently Little Thorpe has lived in happy isolation since it was settled by Brandobians fleeing the initial Kalamarian invasion, it had missed the whole Brandobian war with the Elves and the break up of the kingdom of Brandobia which followed it and so isolated was Little Thorpe from the rest of the world that generations have passed without a stranger coming across the place and apart form becoming more than a little inbred, though the worst of that has largely passed now. The place has been a rural idle even a pastoral Halfling would envy, until late last year when a company of men rode out of the east. which was unusual in itself  as most of the few who have come to Little Thorpe over the centuries have been on foot and often lost or fleeing something in the wider world and almost always in ones or twos. 

The mounted company where none the less greeted as one might guests according to ancient Brandobian custom still practiced here. However strangers did not react as guests at all drawing weapons and surrounding the villagers who had come out to see the strangers, out of curiosity.  They then sorted the villagers into two groups adults of both sexes and children and the elders the former they striped of there belt knives and roped together by the neck and the latter they corralled with weapon points. Then both groups where made to watch as they flogged old Mindori the village priest to death for worshipping a false god, he was as one might expect a priest of life's fire as had his father before him. Then the strangers they dragged his brother, Brensen, the only other man in the village who could read, out and made him stab the corpse with his knife before the leader a fellow called Dvorn, the villagers where too terrified to recall if he gave surname but he was a Brandobian they believe, publicly initiated Brensen as a priest of the Lord of Shackles, saying he was the true gods slave and would teach them the true religion and that they where all slaves. The strangers defiled the village chapel and stayed to reconsecrate it to The Lord of Shackles, before riding off with practically the whole able bodied adult population of the village roped together as a chorfe of slaves. Those who remained where left stunned at the savagery of the sudden and unexpected turn of events.

The next day Brensen who had been left with a copy of the Lord of Shackles prayer book was found hanged by the scourge the strangers had given him as his symbol of office, he had written something on the prayer books frontice page but no one in the village could read it.  The villagers even point to the beam he used and say that Lalia is sitting on the chair that he stood on a high chair built for a child, and incidentally confirming that this was the community hall of a temple of life’s fire.  Over the next few days the half dozen or so adults who had been out hunting at the time of the visit drifted back to their horrified and traumatized kinsfolk. They took charge and buried Mindori and Brensen and the remaining villagers attempted to shape a life out of the ruins of the old.

It however was not over for about a month ago in early spring a strange woman who spoke an unknown language but who did not seem to be Kalamarian or have any thing to do with the terrible Lord of Shackles or its murderous followers arrived and with time and by dumb show she told the still traumatised villagers that a demon had taken up residence to the north. A couple of the hunters went out to look and the one who returned told the tale of terrible monsters seen distantly in some ancient very over grown ruins, the one who did not was every one supposed taken by these reported monsters. It was apparent that she sought aid in clearing the evil form these ruins, ruins that here to fore even the village hunters had been unaware of those few who had seen them in the distance having taken them as a natural crag rather than a construction. The Villages introduce the woman to the company and it is quickly discovered that she does not speak any of the many human tongues which the company knows collectively. Nyassor does however identify her garb as being that of tribe of wanderers from his own world even if she speaks none of the human languages of elsewhere that he knows. Eventually in some exasperation he exclaims something in his native Elvish and the woman, Myrinaris switches to that tongue though it is not until latter that her full story comes out as the rest of the company’s grasp of low Elven is rather limited as is hers for that matter and Nyassor has not yet mastered any of the tongues of Telene. However it wound seem that her tale runs something like this she was in the city of the crusade against the Blight Scar as Nyassor and his companions where when the demon attack occurred and fell into the void when the great square collapsed. Surviving the fall she scavenged amongst those who had not and eventually spotted Nyassor and his companions but whilst attempting to make contact with them and to join them she was captured. Her captor brought her with them when the magic of the circle on which Nyassor’s company was making its stand was activated and brought them to the ancient dwarf hold. She is not sure how but Myrinaris knows her captor to be a Sorcerer of some power so presumes that magic was involved, from thence she was taken to a cellar when her captor became alarmed at the way the dwarf, Zildor, slew four shadow demons with a single word of power and thence also by magic to the black crag after her captor has summoned her demonic master in the cellar. Imprisoned by her captor at the Crag she was so poorly guarded, by conjured demons that she was not only able to escape but to  recover some of the equipment which she had scavenged in the cavern under the city but which had been taken form her when she was captured. This includes a very fine short sword which she makes a point of showing off to all of the company marked with what Nyassor identifies as the holy icon of the PALADIN the principle god of the city and sponsor of the war against the Demons of the Blight Scar. However she makes it clear that all of the rest of the loot she had taken from the great cavern and the best part of it was still in the possession of her captor. Given the fineness of the short sword considered to be of little account it is generally agreed by those present that the other stuff must be good indeed.

The company stayed up late into the night listening to the villagers of little Thorpe imploring them to help as if it was unlikely that the captive villagers could be rescued given how long it had been they where afraid of the reported demon infestation at the black crag and feared that even more woe might fall on them because of it. Much of the subsequent discussion was conducted in low Elvish as it was the nearest thing there was to a conman language amongst the company but even so it was slow going and there was much misunderstanding. It did become apparent that Nyassor was a crusader against the Blight Scar a huge area of Demon infestation where he originated and that Myanaris and a companion a Half Elf Priest of the JUDGE had come north intending to join that army. Indeed they would have on the day the demon attack occurred had it not. The company however resolved to sleep on the matter as they where in all honour torn between their duty to a wounded comrade and their wanting to help people who where in rather bad trouble. As well as in Lalia’s and Telec’s cases a terrible curiosity to investigate the nature of these demons, the former because of the encounter under Rose Bush Hill and the latter out of a desperate curiosity. It is also likely Heradin would have shown more interest but he was lost in trying to teach Nyasse dwarvish as the translation spell has its limits and his grasp, of any other language was not really up to the task of discussing such esoteric things.

In the end and after breakfast the company reluctantly announced to their hosts that they where going to have to deal with Dvorn’s problem first though they did so with a heavy heart and with promises to return this way when they where done and deal with the problem of the Black Craig. There hosts where rather fatalistic in the manner that peasant farmers well used to hardship often are.

The following morning after spending a rather comfortable and very safe night in his tree and breakfasting on foraged early fruits, Aeltred was not that put out by seeing every one still seemed to be alive and whole, when you prepare for the worst then any thing better is after all a pleasant surprise. His friendly greeting of “so you didn’t all have your throats cut then” was delivered with a cheery smile when he saw the rest of the company hove into view.

The company continued as best they could due west thought the underbrush if not the actual trees was becoming thicker and making finding a good path for the travois even harder than before. Still there where enough in the company with a good sense of direction that they managed to keep heading west as much as possible and they did not become confounded by the diversions necessary in finding a route for the travois. Shortly after they departed it became apparent that Myrinaris had joined the company when she was spotted openly chatting away to Nyassor in low Elvish, her arrival surprised no one though it did alarm Aeltred some what enough that he stopped by to listen in to it, it being in a language he spoke very well between forays scouting ahead and found it to be quite innocuous mostly Myrinaris telling Nyassor of her adventures on the way north in elsewhere.  As before Aeltred scouted ahead mostly with Lalia as both had sharp eyes and could move almost unseen through the woodlands. Around mid day however what had as quiet a day’s travel as the day before had became a touch more fraught as Aeltred spotted the first scattered goblin tracks. They where granted few in number and there where no dog tracks but it was enough to put him and then when he reported back every one else in the company on alert. As the afternoon progressed what had been scattered tracks of individual or small groups of goblins at worst became those of larger more regimented groups though with the goblins liking for the hours of darkness none where seen just their tracks and spoor. It was not easy at first to guess the principal direction of the movement of the goblins as there was quite a lot of it in all directions but in the end Aeltred became convinced that the large bodies at least where going from north to south and back again. The ones going north from the south seemed to be the more heavily laden and form the majority of the more recent tracks. However all of the tracks he found seemed to be relatively fresh, a couple of days old at the most and not much blurred by the passage of animals over them or by the regular afternoon and early morning showers common in this region.

There after the company moved forwards with more caution, and Aeltred scouted ahead more often but less far incase he ran into goblins and with Lalia as a second set of eyes since both where all but invisible in the woods and dense underbrush through which their route west now lay, the Goblin tracks became more frequent and whilst scouting Aeltred came across a rough sort of road cut thought the brush with lots of goblin tracks as well as those of two very heavily laden wagons. Wagons which apparently had no horses pulling them just a small horde of goblins, as the way seemed to lead north east Lalia and Aeltred followed it for about half a mile until they saw the goblins manhandling the wagons and ahead clearing the brush with axes and stolen hedge laying bills .

The company withdrew and after a brief discussion made a quick plan. Aeltred would lead Telec, Lalia, Nyassor, Sondan and Fawlit round ahead of the goblins from where they would launch an ambush   whilst Heradin, Nyasse, Thans and the new comer Myrinaris would remain behind to guard the travois and the wounded Dvorn. The plan worked well and even the notably unstealthy elf  got into position without alerting the advancing goblins though the racket that they where making hacking a road through the scrub and hauling the two heavily laden wagons no doubt helped considerably, every one took up a comfortable ambush spot and waited for the goblins road to reach within an easy shots range. This was becoming rather an old game and one that they where well practiced at.    

When in due course the goblins came into range the company as one unleashed its first volley of  bolts arrows and stones, most stuck home and the goblins struck by Nyassor’s bolt in particular staggered back a good six feet before it even realised it was dead.

Taken quite by surprise the goblins leading the wagons where quickly cut down by a volley of missiles and then by the hand weapons of the company as they charged in after, those who could just ran with the large number of slaves who where doing all the hauling breaking as the charging members of the company broke cover after the missile volley abandoning the wagons as they scattered pell mell in all directions shrieking in alarm as they did. The few goblins who survived the missile volley and the following charge stood and fought, mostly because the company was on them before they had the chance to turn and flee but they soon fell and the guards further back decided to take advantage of the few seconds this resistance had bought them and turn tail and follow the already fleeing slaves. Leaving the company in possession of two over laden looted farm wagons.

Just as the last of the goblin warriors broke and scattered hither and yon a lone bowman spotted the company and loosed one arrow before fleeing themselves it was a wild shot not well aimed indeed it missed the mark it was half aimed at, Nyassor and struck the man beside him Sondan missing his now lowered shield and tearing into his side. It was fortunate in missing the tall elf as it proved to be carrying one of the Ancient Dwarfish small broad heads rather then the more usual crude iron point favoured by goblins. Sondan doubled up from the pain for a second and by the time he looked up eyes clouded by tears of pain his assailant was gone. Sondan cursed, and the company halted whilst Aeltred dealt with the wound which was quite a bad one. Mean while Telec who had been passed the arrow the moment Aeltred had felt heat coming off the head when he had grasped the rough shaft to drawn it idly inspected the arrow which was beautiful work and as sharp and deadly as when it had been forged for that long ago war and wondered if the dwarf mail he wore would have slowed it much more than Sondan’s leather. Then Aeltred broke his reverie by summoning over and he remembered he still had a healing spell this day. 

Those of the company present took a quick look at the two wagons noticing one was full of farm goods and furniture an the other with looted weapons and armour, some of which Sondan was disconcerted to see bore the livery of his old company he had not realised that old Crindar had come south especially since he had been threatening to do so since before Sondan had joined him as a recruit, according to the old timers and had remained in the north, until after Sondan had waxed sick of it and left to come south on his own even so. It was always going to be our last season in the northlands, Sondan remembered except it never was. It was even more disconcerting that the wily old man had come off sufficiently worse from an encounter with goblins that he had left his dead behind, he would have never done that in the old days in the north. Before deciding to leave them for now continue back along the road the goblins had cut.

Following the goblins crude road back the company came upon a shallow ford guarded by a handful of goblins who where as surprised as their fellows leading the wagons. However the fight went on longer here and the final goblin was not cut down until it had made it half way across the relatively deep ford in what had to be if Aeltred’s guess was right the M’Alvern stream as they had more or less being moving west along the line of the M’Alvern ridge since they left the Holdfast two days ago now, it seemed much longer. The company looted the fallen goblins at the ford and found them laden with stolen trade coins but whilst they all had bows they had empty quivers and not more than four arrows between them all. More grimly the company found cast aside the bodies of two men both robbed naked and cast aside into the bushes seemingly the former guards of the ford slain a day or so before by the goblins if the condition of the bodies was a guide. The company returned to the wagons and as they where undisturbed it was decided to regroup before investigation what they carried in any detail so every one trooped back into the woods to bring in the party guarding Dvorn after which they all went through the trove of good in each wagon before reloading them and harnessing Bill and Benjamina to one and shadow to the other despite the dismay of their owners in the case of Shadow and Bill the travois was placed on the furniture wagon and enough space was made to allow the wounded Dvorn to be laid down on the other one.

The company then crossed the ford with Aeltred and Lalia scouting ahead and soon spotting what looked like a goblin camp by a crude fence or stockade wall along a slight ridge to the south. The goblins appeared to be asleep so the company moved back north up a hill and took cover on the edge of an area of managed woodlands to plan what to do next.

Beyond the sleeping goblins and their improvised wall by a mile may be a mile an a half  to the south west was the walls of the Town of Vayham over which there was rather more smoke to be seen than might normally be expected this late on a spring day and the air was full of the smell of burning, though much of that seemed to originate from a burnt out farmstead to the left of the goblins camp. 

Here again the focus of our tale moves else where for a while though it will be returning here but there is far more a foot in the region than that which just the one tale can encompass though the threads of these tales are interlinked and may well cross merge and divide again as the story unfolds further.