The Adventures of The Unknown
Episode 9
“The Carnival of Isolde - Part I”
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Seth DeCalea: Half-Elven Ranger
Issic: Half Dragon from Sigil
Manderkarr: Dwarven master of Axe
and asskicking.
Piper Troublefinder A halfling with
a taste for vengeance
Shanagra Darmal: Nyandarian Druid
late of Drychtnoth.
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The Place: The Unknown Lands, Lake Eonnoth
The Time: Summer, 11 Eul, Sixth Year, Eighth Age.
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Shanagra and the others walked around the Carnival of Isolde. Manderkarr
was looking for a bearded lady and Piper was looking for some sap to rip off.
Seth was checking to see if any herbs were for sale. He could only find food
for sale.
Shanagra asked Piper not to cause trouble. “If the carnival people
catch you and throw you to human law,” he warned, not finishing his sentence.
“Don’t worry about me, Shan,” said Piper. “I’ll only be in trouble
if I am caught.”
“Piper,” said Issic. “You be careful. They have ears everywhere,
these gypsies.”
“Well, at least we’re welcome, eh Issic?” said Manderkarr. For
once, no one was really looking twice at the strangers.
A lot of ale was being distributed to the crowds by the carneys.
“Mmmm, ale,” said Seth. He tugged on Manderkarr. “Hey, Manderkarr! Up for
a contest?” He gestured to an ale tent.
“Did you say contest?” asked the dwarf. “It’d be no contest with
humans.”
“I meant me, but I’ll stand on my knees,” said Seth.
Piper opted to stay with the group. “They probably don’t have much
anyways,” he mumbled as an excuse.
“So, up to a challenge?” asked Seth to the dwarf. The dwarf nodded.
“No plaguespreader can outdrink a dwarf!” piped in Piper. “Just
like no plague spreader could outthink a gnome or outwit a halfling!”
“We’ll see,” said Seth with a laugh.
“For a battle of the minds,” commented Manderkarr, “I use my helmet.”
The barker stood before a large tent and said, “Welcome one , welcome
all! Welcome to the short and welcome to the tall! Welcome angels, welcome
fiends., welcome to all from walks between! Welcome to the Carnival! here
we have The Imp! “ He held his hand out and a grotesque man stepped out. He
looked normal enough... except for the growth on his neck. That singular lump
of flesh, with limp half formed limbs, a drooling slash of a mouth, and wavering
mismatched eyes, was almost another person growing out of the man’s neck.
Flower hid behind Issic so she didn’t have to look at it. She reached
down and played with Manderkarr’s helmet.
“Now!” exclaimed the barker. “To show you that this is no illusion!
No piece of stage makeup! I will blindfold Claude and… like so… if someone
in the audience would care to hold up an object?”
Manderkarr held up my axe.
The thing on the neck of the man whispers something and the man,
Claude, said, “An Axe!”
The crowed applauded. Seth shouted, “Fraud!” Manderkarr bumped
him and told him to shut up and not ruin it.
The barker pointed to Seth. “Fraud? You believe this not? Why
then do you disbelieve?”
“That ‘bump’ told him.”
“He’s trying to show us that the bump can see for itself, Treehugger,”
said Piper.
“Blindfold the bump!” said Seth.
“Ah,” said the barker, “but the Imp is not clairvoyant. This just
shows that he can see and communicate, that, indeed, Claude has a whole ‘nother
person growing out of his neck!”
Issic spread his wings, and the imp whispered to Claude and Claude
said, “Wings!” The crowd applauded again.
“See, Seth?” asked Piper. Manderkarr held up a pink sash, and Claude
said, “A sash – pink!” A lady smacked the dwarf and took back her sash.
Seth held up his dagger, and Claude listened to the bump on his
neck and said, “Dagger!”
After a few more of these demonstrations, Claude disappeared into
the tent behind him.
“Next,” said the barker, “The Brute!”
“Ah yes! I love the carnival!” said Manderkarr. Seth wandered
slowly to the ale tent.
The tent opened and a huge man came out, his head hidden by an executioner’s
mask.
“Ooooh, the brute...We’ve got a couple of those with us right now,”
joked Piper.
“This mountain of a man,” continued the barker, “with his mass
of mammoth muscles will astound you with his feats of strength. Brute could
crush your skull with his bare hands.”
“Hmmm, I wonder if that’s true even without my helm,” mused Manderkarr.
Seth returned with an ale in his hands.
The barker handed the mountain of muscle a horseshoe. The Brute
twisted and bent it.
“For five coppers, you can buy a horseshoe twisted by The Brute!”
Issic tossed up some coppers in appreciation for the display of
raw strength. The Brute tossed Issic the horseshoe. He continued to bend them
and sell them to the public. Issic straightened out his horseshoe, bending
it back into shape.
The Brute disappeared into the tent. The barker began speaking
again. “Now ladies, be warned and steel yourself because the Illuminated man
wears as little as decency allows!”
The Illuminated Man came out and his body was covered with painstakingly
detailed tattoos. People oohed and ahhed as he posed and showed off the tattoos.
Flower pulled on Shanagra’s pantleg and said she was bored.
“Make that dragon roar,” said Manderkarr, tossing some copper.
The illuminated man smiles and the dragon tattoo roars loudly. Flower hopped
in surprise. Manderkarr reared his head back and laughed.
“Next,” said the barker as the tattooed man left, “The Snake Mistress!”
A beautiful elven lady came out. Draped in a huge snake, the elven lady began
a sensuous dance with the snake. She reached into a vat of snakes and pulled
out a copperhead and kissed it. Then she pulled out a cobra. The cobra hissed
at the crowd and its hood came up, but she whispered to it and the snake calmed.
“Now that is what I at I call a show!” said Issic.
“Ah, enjoy, Issic! Just don’t fall in love again!” joked Manderkarr
as he slipped off for some quick ales. Seth followed him.
She left and the barker said, “And now... Wood’n-Head! Who here
is handy with a hammer?”
A black man comes out, with earrings in his ears, through his nose
and one through his bottom lip.
“No one handy with a hammer?” asked the barker. He saw Manderkarr
return with a pail of ale. “You sir dwarf! Care to come up?”
Issic yelled, ”Manderkarr, Manderkarr!”
“I don’t like the way this looks,” said Piper. He turned around.
“I’ll wait till this uns over.”
Manderkarr took out his hammer and ascended the stage. The barker
put a stool behind the black man and handed Manderkarr a nail.
“Nail it into his head,” said the barker.
The black man sat calmly.
“What? I’m not drunk, did you say nail him?”
“Nail it into his head,” the barker repeated. Manderkarr took
the nail and said, “Sorry, bud, this will hurt you more than me.” He gave the
nail a gentle tap and the nail sunk into the man’s head. Manderkarr continued
to hammer the nail in. The black man smiled into the crowd, who was watching
in astonishment, and said to the barker, “Give ‘em another one. I think he
missed the brain.”
The barker gave the dwarf an iron spike. “Hammer that one into
his skull.” Manderkarr set the spike square center on top of the man’s head
and drove it in. It took a few taps, but the spike was in. The black man was
still grinning from ear to ear. Manderkarr’s jaw dropped and he gave him his
whole bag of money. “I think I need another drink or three.”
The barker held out a stake and asked if another audience member
would like to stake the man through the heart.
“Is it over yet?” asked Piper. Seth went up to the stage and took
the spike and the mallet.
“Are you sure this is safe?” asked Seth. “This won’t kill him,
will it?” The black man, with a nail and a spike through his head nodded.
“Would I do this if I thought I would die?”
“OK,” said Seth. He hammered the stake in. And the man lived.
By the time the man left the stage, he had over thirty nails, spikes and stakes
in him, as well as two swords.
“That ain’t right,” muttered Manderkarr.
The barker said, “There will be more later, please feel free to
wander the tents and, please, visit the Hall of Horrors!”
Piper turned back around, glad that it was over.
“Now that at sounds pretty cool. Let ‘s us go see the hall,” said
Issic, referring to the Hall of Horrors.
“ Well, now we can have ale,” said Seth. J
“Ale – yuck,” said Piper. “Mmmm, I don’t drink the stuff. Anything
that hinders my abilities I don’t do.”
Issic bought Manderkarr three drinks and Manderkarr and Seth sat
down to have their drinks.
“Thank you Issic, I need that,” said Manderkarr. “That boy ain’t
right, I tell you.”
“Obviously, since you gave away all of your money, you sure need
something,” said Issic.
“I didn’t have much left anyway. I figured he needed it for wood
filler.”
“Up for a contest?” said Seth.
“Only if you’re buying!” said Manderkarr with enthusiasm.
“Well, I will pay,” said Seth. Issic and Seth then tried to get Piper to join
them, but the halfling would have none of it.
“No thanks,” said Piper. “While you guys are drunk and stumblin’ , I’ll be
as alert as ever.”
“There you are mistaken, Piper. I’ll be just as alert, beside you got nothing
to worry about; I won’t take your head off if I miss,” said Seth, drinking the
first of his drinks. The contest between dwarf and human began.
Flower tugged on Shanagra’s shirt. “Can we go see the elf?”
Shanagra said, “Yes, Flower. You many go see the snake.” Piper
said he would go with Flower. “Well at least you don’t wanna get drunk, right,
Flower?”
Flower ignored the halfling and walked a little ahead of Piper in
the crowd. The halfling stayed close behind. They found a crowd of people
lined up to go into the snake lady’s tent. Piper noticed a man with a purse.
The man set his moneybag on the ground to purchase something. Piper told Flower
to wait for him, but she ignored him and moved on. Piper easily got into the
purse and came away with 15 silver Drychtma’s and 20 copper coins.
Flower entered into the tent, slipping around the crowd. The place
was filled with snake cages. A lot of the people in here were looking at the
snakes. The elf girl was on a tall chair, wrapped in a snake and little else.
The snake, a 12’ constrictor, was doing tricks at her command.
“Laurie Launtar,” said Flower in Elvish.
The snake lady said, “I am sorry, but I really don’t speak Elvish.
It has been a long time.”
“It has been a long time since I have seen an elf too,” said Flower.
“You are the first in many decades.” Flower was very happy inside.
Piper slipped into the tent and introduced himself to the girl.
“Laurie Launtar,” said the elf with the snake. “I am Silessa.”
“Let’s go somewhere,” Flower whispered to Silessa, obviously resenting
Piper’s intrusion.
Silessa said to Flower, “Where you would you like to go, little
one?”
“Anywhere.”
”I will stay behind if you like, Flower,” offered Piper.
“Can we go to the woods?” Flower asked Silessa.
Silessa said, “No. The humans would capture me. We must stay in
the Carnival so that Isolde may protect us.”
“Isolde?”
Piper whispered into her ear, “Be careful, Pretty face, you never
know with circus folk. She could be a lady of poison for all we know.”
Piper thought, Am I the only one that finds this a bit suspicious?
“No fear,” said Flower. “An elf would NEVER hurt another elf.
I have nothing to fear from her. Nor her from me. Elves have evolved above
such things.”
“Well I’m sorry. I, I just feared for your protection...”
“Isolde protects me from my old master, who still seeks me,” said
Silessa.
“Elves, who needs them,” said Piper.
“Why, the cosmos of course, Piper,” said Flower. “Don’t you need
me?” Flower pouted a small frown.
“Don’t frown,” said Piper. Flower gave Piper a peck on the cheek.
“You worry about me until I get back. Bye bye,” said Flower as
Piper blushed.
“Bye,” said Piper as he left the tent.
Flower asked how Silessa came to the Carnival. “It seems like an
awful place to live,” she added.
“I have always had an affinity for snakes. And her old master was
cold and cruel and when she visited the carnival with her old master, she asked
Isolde if she could stay. And Isolde said I could.”
“Your master? Only nature owns an elf. I don’t understand. Were
you a slave?”
“I was.”
Flower frowned. Silessa frowned back.
“You still do not seem happy.”
“I am happy here, but my master still seeks to regain me.”
“I have friends. They like elves. Who was your master? Was he
human?” Flower snarled the word human a little.
“Sarlandril the Mage. Yes, he was human.”
“Do you know where he is now?”
“In the city over there.”
“Does he have other slaves? Did any of them stay here when you
did?”
“No.”
Flower whispers, “Have you seen the homelands?”
“Never.”
“Can’t we stop him from hunting for you?”
“No. I am too familiar to him for him to stop.”
Issic went to find the Brute to challenge him to arm wrestling.
He found the Brute in his tent, lifting massive weights. Standing at 7’0”
tall, he was looking impressive. Issic, at 7’1”, said, “I request a test of
your strength.”
The Brute said, “Very well. I am not claiming to be the strongest,
mind you, just strong.”
”Yes,” said Issic. “Just a friendly contest. Is there someone
here that claims to be the strongest?”
“You, friend.”
Issic smiled a toothy, friendly grin and put his elbow on the table
and hand in the air for the challenge. The Brute, still in his mask, gripped
his hand. The struggle was intense, but the Brute finally leveraged Issic’s
arm down. Money exchanged hands all around them.
“Best 2 out of 3?” said Issic.
“Very well.” Issic won the next two bouts. The Brute shook Issic’s
hand. “As I said, I am not the strongest, merely strong.”
“Well met,” said Issic, giving the Brute a gold piece for being
a worthy challenge. He left the tent to walk around to see what else there
is to see.
Back in the Ale Tent, Seth had finally fallen unconscious. Manderkarr
had won the drinking contest. The dwarf tried to wake poor Seth, and he finally
awakened.
“I’ll never try THAT again,” said Seth.
“You gotta learn somehow,” said Manderkarr. “Let me help you out
of here. Let’s go see what our demon is up to.”
Manderkarr found Issic outside the Brute’s tent. “I figured you’d
be here,” said the Dwarf. “Quit beating on the locals and lets have some fun.”
They found Shanagra at the ale tent talking to an Ingaran named
Alexander. Issic and Manderkarr were properly introduced to the Ingaran in
leather armor and a toga. Piper was found resting in the shade of a tree.
Flower was no where to be seen.
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Current
Events:
Notes about Isolde’s Carnival: Isolde’s Carnival is a collection of oddities
and abused people that she has given sanctuary to.
Notes about Tindel: Tindel is a former mage and is now the head Barker
for Isolde’s Carnival.
Notes about The Imp: Claude was a beautiful baby, had it not been for
the fleshy bit of baggage on his face. His mother screamed when she first saw
him. The doctors could do nothing, and the priest would do nothing. Claude’s
childhood was no kinder than his birth. He became surly and resentful. The
Carnival first visited his city when he was sixteen. Claude’s parents took
him there and abandoned him, washing their hands of him forever. The rejection
was more than Claude could bear. He lashed out, trying to beat his way past
the Troupers, who even then welcomed him to their family. He intended to vent
his rage on his parents as they headed back to town. Claude grabbed a knife.
And then Isolde stepped in and stopped him cold. She kindly asked him if he
would like to stay. Claude said, “Why would I?” Isolde responded, “Then you
may.” Suddenly his entire behavior changed and he was thanking Isolde. And
he has been with the Carnival ever since.
Notes about The Illuminated Man: Very little is known about this man
as no one understands his language of clicks and gutterals. His tattoos live,
that much is known, and he will tattoo customers for a price.
Notes about Wood’n Head: A former apprentice to an alchemist, his master
was trying to develop a regenerative potion mix. When he thought he had it,
he forced his apprentice to drink it. Thanks to the potion, Wood’n Head’s
flesh could instantly and painlessly seal around any sharp object that broke
through the skin, and he would heal the moment the object was withdrawn. The
alchemist was pleased with the result and brewed up another batch and drank
it himself. Wood’n Head claims that the alchemist’s demise was as messy as
it was sudden.
Notes about The Brute: The Brute, named Tosk, is an Orc, and the Twisting
has enhanced his strength and made his features even less human than they were
before. He has unyielding loyalty to Isolde. When Tosk first joined the Carnival
he was unruly and mean. At one point he was insulted and picked up his axe
and challenged a trouper to a fight to the death. Isolde, at this point, stepped
in. She grabbed him by the ear and hauled him into the darkness. The troupers
thought he was done for, but he soon came back, following Isolde. No one really
knows what happened out there, but the opinion of the Troupers is that the Brute
respects power and only power and that’s exactly what Isolde showed him out
in the darkness that night. He no longer was unruly, that is for sure.
Notes about Silessa: Silessa began her life as a serpent, a deadly spitting
asp. She was a familiar to a mage named Sarlandril. He polymorphed her into
an elfmaid. He still treated her like a familiar. She still retains the ability,
thanks to the Twisting, to spit venom.