Story HourPost your ongoing tales from your campaigns, and read those from others for inspiration. Lots of other RPG boards post "Story Hours", but this is where it started!
Yes indeedy! The derro warren is where both Twiggy and Tavi get to make extensive use of their abilities to flambé the opposition. Although Twiggy has decidedly mixed feelings about the "flaming ball of death," as Kormick calls it. And you should hear what Acorn has to say about it.
Still, it's a pretty amazing tool. As I recall, Fajitas' reaction to that fight -- in which the entire party passed up the opportunity for a short rest between combats so that Twiggy could maintain her daily power into a second combat and essentially vaporize all the mooks in the surprise round -- was something along the lines of "well, that was not at all how I expected that combat to go."
I believed I was ready for this, Savina thought. As they had entered the derro caves, she had steeled herself for the trial to come. Innocent children needed rescue, and, as a Blessed Daughter of Alirria, it was Savina's duty to help: that got her into the tunnel. Corani was pregnant and recovering from injury, and, as a healer, it was Savina's duty to keep her patient safe: that got her onto the battlefield. Then Arden came under attack, and, as a member of the noble house of di Infusino, it was Savina's duty to care for her own: that got her to strike out at the derro. But she'd killed him. And she had not been ready for that.
Now she stood in the dim barracks-room, in the reeking aftermath of the second battle, feeling numb. Kormick and Tavi were investigating the pit, studying the frayed ropes that dangled above it and attempting to peer into its gloom. Mena was collecting Rose from her hiding-place in the hallway. Corani was at the far side of the room, her ax rising and falling methodically -- Savina tried not to look too closely.
Twiggy sat against the wall, looking as shaken as Savina felt. Nearby, Arden wiped her sword clean on a rag torn from a derro's cloak. Her movements lacked force and her face was drawn; some clinical part of Savina's mind diagnosed blood loss and exhaustion and prescribed a long rest.
Twiggy asked, as Savina had earlier, "Arden, are you all right?"
"I hate this place," Arden snapped. Twiggy blinked, and Savina was jolted out of her reverie for a moment, too, at the slave's uncharacteristic harshness. Arden caught herself immediately. "I'm sorry, Lady Chelesta," she muttered to Twiggy. "I'll be fine."
Mena and Rose returned. "Are there any derro left alive to question?" asked Mena.
Kormick laughed in response and pointed at Corani. Savina followed his finger just in time to see Corani whack some appendage off another corpse. Savina doubled over and was sick again.
When she straightened, Mena was beside her. "Think about the smell of mint," she advised. "Fresh from the garden, in summertime."
Savina thought about it. "I . . . I used to like mint," she whispered doubtfully.
"I really, really hate to say this," said Kormick, "but I think we should make ourselves aware of what's in that pit."
"Mena, grab that rope and give me a hand," called Tavi. "We're going to lower Kormick down to take a look."
"Why me, exactly?" Kormick demanded.
"We'll tie a rope around you," answered Tavi.
"I see what you did there," said Kormick. Tavi smirked. "The lake, this morning, har har. . ."
Mena handed a rope to Kormick.
"How can I refuse," sighed the Justicar, taking the rope.
Mena helped Tavi lower Kormick down into the pit. Watching them, Savina suppressed a wild urge to laugh at the Justicar dangling like bait on a hook. What's wrong with me? That's not funny!
She heard Kormick's voice from the darkness below. "Lower . . . lower . . . okay. Stop. Hmmm. Interesting . . . disgusting . . . intriguing . . . and yes! Time to leave! Up we go!" Mena and Tavi heaved, and soon Kormick was grabbing the rim of the pit and pulling himself up.
"It was a vast chamber containing a number of troublingly large mushrooms," he reported. "And then I heard something scuffling toward me, and I decided not to wait to see what it was. I suggest that we not enter that lower level unless we have no choice."
"Yes, because the Ketkath has a long and proud history of plants that will mess you up," said Twiggy, with a flash of her usual spirit. "Let's not test the fungi."
"That would argue against following the passage that led downward from the entrance chamber," mused Mena.
"This corridor keeps going a good way beyond this pit," said Tavi. "Let's move ahead."
Mena looked dubiously at the wide gap and the questionable ropes dangling above it, the only means of swinging across. Then she looked back at Rose and Savina.
"I'm not sure we can all cross the pit safely," she said.
"We could send a scout," said Tavi.
"No – that person would be cut off and vulnerable."
"Come," said Kormick, "what are slaves for? Arden!" He tugged a rope to see if it was sturdy. It gave way in his hand.
Savina was vaguely aware that Arden had cast a cursory glance at her for permission, but she still felt so numb. Seeing no objection from her mistress, Arden silently turned and walked toward the Justicar.
"You don't have to go," Mena told the slave, glaring at Kormick. Mena's armor backed up her words, hissing and growling. Kormick had continued testing ropes, and now he handed one to Arden. "Do your sneaky thing," he told her. "And remember that cloak you're wearing."
"Yes, Justicar." Arden swung smoothly across the pit, landing lightly on the other side. She set off down the corridor and soon vanished into the shadows.
Mena was still glaring at Kormick.
"What?" he demanded. "Owning a sneaky murder-slave is like owning an attack dog. You must give her regular exercise if you don't want her to turn on you."
"I'm growing tired of these jokes," said Mena. "Arden is not a pet, and you know it."
"Put away your wrath, illustrious Dame Mena. Of course I know it."
What a strange conversation, Savina thought. But I'm glad Arden is able to be useful. She was still trying her best to think about mint, but then Twiggy asked a question that forced her to think about all the worst things after all.
"Mena? Kormick? Does killing ever not feel horrible?"
Kormick eyed Mena like a student trying to guess the correct answer. "I'm going to say . . . no?"
"No," agreed Mena.
Behind her, Kormick caught Tavi's eye and rolled his eyes. Tavi stifled a laugh.
"Killing never gets easier," Mena was continuing. "And that is a good thing. It must never become an act that you perform lightly. I see that face you're making, Kormick."
"Well, well," said Kormick, unperturbed. "Dame Mena is right, kids. Killing should never be fun. Let's merely say that sometimes, when the cause is – you know – just and so forth – killing can be deeply, deeply . . . satisfying."
For some reason, although naturally she found his words troubling, Kormick's cheerful demeanor reassured Savina. Tavi was smiling, too, and that also helped. Not everyone felt like the world was ending, so maybe it wasn't. Maybe things would be all right. Maybe, right now, Arden was opening a door and freeing all the dwarven prisoners – maybe they'd all be back outside in only a few more minutes –
From far away down the corridor came a sound. A bestial snarl.
###
Arden crept down the corridor reluctantly, straining to hear the conversation she was leaving behind. Did Alleged just call me a dog . . .?!
An occasional sputtering torch dimly lit her way. She passed a smaller entrance on her right, the narrow tunnel beyond it sloping upwards. She saw no light up there, and a little light up ahead, so she kept going forward toward the light and, as she got closer, the sound of voices.
Her gaze focused up ahead, she nearly fell into a second pit. She glimpsed it just in time, found the ropes above it and swung easily across, landing near the corner where the hallway turned.
First the barracks, now the dining hall, she realized in discouragement, as she peered around the corner and into a large room full of rowdy derro sitting at long tables, eating and drinking and speaking their guttural, incomprehensible language. There was no sign of the dwarven prisoners. On the left-hand side of the room, a spiral staircase led up to a landing and another tunnel. On the right-hand side, a heavy barred door was set into the wall. Arden locked her gaze onto it: That looks promising.
She scanned the derro again, noticing that they were all armed. Suddenly, a face poked out from under one of the tables, between the legs of the derro. It belonged to a lizard the size of a dog, with its tongue lolling out over its fangs – and it was looking straight at her.
Arden pulled back around the corner, flattening herself against the wall, breathing hard. She held still for a long time, praying that the creature would lose interest. Finally, she dared to peek around the corner.
The lizard was right in front of her. And it sprang.
Arden jumped backwards into the corridor. The creature landed inches from her, its claws scrabbling on the stone. It snarled, a loud sound that rolled down the corridor behind her. It leapt at her again and, this time, sank its teeth into her thigh. Arden felt her flesh tear, and she clenched her jaw shut against the pain, not making a sound, hoping that the derro hadn't noticed what their pet was up to. For the first time, she felt perversely grateful to Unssa, that fiend, who'd insisted that slaves under the lash be seen and not heard.
Then she felt emptiness behind her heels and realized that if she backed up any more, she'd plummet into the pit. Her hands caught her cloak and pulled it around her protectively. In the split second before its magic activated, she had a flash of doubt – They've lied to me, it's not magic, I'm dead – and then –
Congratulations to jonrog1 and jenber on the renewal of jonrog1's show Leverage! If anyone isn't already watching, you should check it out. Why? (1) It's very good fun, and (2) you get to see what Halmae players are doing with those rare moments of free time when they're not killing derro.
Arden staggered backward, suddenly on the far side of the second pit from the pacing, snarling lizard-dog. The amazing thought that she'd been magically teleported twice within the last hour – once by Signor Octavian and again, just now, by her cloak – flashed distantly across her mind, but mostly she was distracted by the creature across from her and the pain in her injured leg.
###
Back near the barracks room, the snarling from down the hall got everyone's attention. Savina felt chills cascade down her spine. As the echo died away, Twiggy leaped to her feet. "Arden's in trouble!" she said.
Kormick and Mena didn't have time to register full objections as Twiggy took off, running toward the first pit.
"Wait, no – "
"Stop –"
Twiggy vanished, fey-stepping across the pit. She re-appeared on the other side and continued running down the corridor.
Kormick gave an aggrieved sigh, backed up for a running start, jumped the pit, and followed Twiggy.
"Rose –" said Mena.
"I've got you," Tavi told his sister.
Mena jumped the pit and waited anxiously on the other side as Tavi solicitously picked up Rose and jumped across with her in his arms.
Savina felt a flash of panic as she watched her companions cross the pit. They're going to leave me behind! She couldn't possibly jump the pit, and she lacked the strength to make it across one of the ropes. She stood, her eyes growing wider and wider as she considered the possibilities. None of them were good.
Suddenly, Tavi was back, beside her.
"Do you trust me?" he asked, holding out his hand.
Savina nodded mutely and put her hand in his.
He led her toward the pit. He took her staff and tossed it carefully across to Mena. Then he picked her up in his arms and cradled her against his body. Savina twined her arms around him, feeling the slight dampness on the back of his neck. She was aware of the heat of him, the strangely attractive smell of his exertion. Her heart pounding, not only from fear, she buried her face in his strong shoulder and felt his muscles tense as he jumped. For an instant, she was weightless in his arms, and then they landed with a thump on the far side.
Tavi set her down, but Savina was trembling so hard that she almost fell. Tavi caught her gently by the shoulders and held her, looking into her eyes.
"Are you all right?" he asked.
She looked back at him, still unable to speak.
"No!" yelled Mena, interrupting Savina's reverie. "Corani, don't be a fool – Tavi, stop her!"
Tavi wheeled away from Savina and they all watched in horror as the pregnant dwarf launched herself into the air. Her jump carried her across the pit, but only to the very, very edge. Mena grabbed her and the two staggered, on the brink of disaster, until Mena threw all her weight backwards and Tavi helped to catch them as they fell to the ground, safe.
Mena, Tavi, Savina, and Rose assisted Corani to her feet. "I must rescue my family," she said, daring them to argue.
"But … you must care for your baby, too," said Savina, aghast at the risks this mother-to-be was taking. The dwarf stared at her defiantly.
Mena sighed.
"Come on," said Tavi. "We've lost a lot of time."
They found Arden, Twiggy, and Kormick farther down the dim corridor, near the second pit. Light spilled toward them from a room across that pit, around the corner ahead. Everything was silent. Kormick was standing guard, his crossbow ready. Arden was kneeling nearby, doing her best to bind up a bleeding wound on her thigh. Twiggy was helping her.
"What's the situation?" whispered Tavi.
Twiggy jumped up and joined them, whispering quickly. "Stand-off. Arden says there's a lot more derro around that corner. They didn't see her, but a greenish-brown lizard-dog-like thing attacked her. I caught a glimpse of it – it was ugly – but it ran back around the corner. Then all the derro in there got quiet, and they've stayed that way. So here we are."
"They'll be back," said Kormick, "and I'm not wildly enthusiastic about our strategic position, trapped between two pits."
"I saw a side opening back there," Tavi suggested. "It might lead to an exit."
"It might also lead to ten derro chieftains at the head of an army of attack trees," Kormick said. "But either way, I guess we should find out. Slave, get yourself off the front line and do something useful."
Arden dragged herself to her feet and set off down the corridor toward the side opening, limping only slightly. Savina was glad that her wound didn't seem severe.
"Tavi," ordered Mena. "You should go with Arden."
Tavi looked slightly bemused at Mena's tone, but then he hurried after Arden. He never hesitates to confront danger, mused Savina, watching after him as long as she could.
###
Arden crept up the side tunnel behind Tavi, her dagger at the ready. The tunnel was narrower than the main corridor and sloped up steeply until it dead-ended in a shut door.
At Tavi’s gesture, Arden knelt and checked it. "It's not locked, Signor," she said. "Shall I -- ?"
He nodded. Arden eased the door open a few inches. She thought she had steeled herself for anything in this godsforsaken hellhole, but what she saw surprised her: under the green glow of moss, a derro woman rocked in a rocking chair, engaged in some derro version of knitting. Another woman carried more coals to a cozy fire, then sat down in a second chair and began spinning coarse yarn with a spindle.
As Tavi looked in over her shoulder, Arden wondered if he would order her to attack the two women. She waited. And waited. Finally, she risked glancing up at him just as he looked down at her. "Should we take them out?" he whispered, obviously uncertain.
She felt sympathy for the young nobleman confronted with a tough call: either kill two apparently peaceful people or risk them becoming a threat later on. She also felt relief that this wasn't her tough call. Enjoy the burden of freedom, Signor, she thought at him. Out loud, she whispered politely, "Whatever you will, Signor Octavian."
He looked startled, then slightly disgusted with himself, as if he had only just remembered who she was. "Right," he sighed. He thought for a split second more, then made his decision. "Close the door," he told her. "We're going back."
Arden closed the door as silently as she'd opened it. As they started back down the corridor, Tavi had an idea. "Can you lock them in?" he asked.
"The door has no lock, Signor, but – "
Arden pulled out her dagger and wedged it as solidly as she could between the door and the rough frame. It wasn't much of a barrier, but it would have to do.
###
Just before they reached the main corridor, Tavi heard Kormick speak out loud, a shock after all the whispering. "Well, hello!" he said. Then came the swish-thunk of a bolt flying true from his crossbow.
Tavi and Arden raced back to the front, passing Savina, Rose, and Corani, who had retreated from the second pit.
"What happened?" demanded Tavi as he reached the pit's edge.
"One of the derro poked his head around the corner and I shot him most magnificently through the eye," answered Kormick. "His comrades dragged him back into the room. Tell me you found a backdoor to the outside world."
"No," said Tavi. "It was kind of weird –"
Before he could say more, two derro soldiers jogged around the corner ahead, carrying the dead body of their comrade, the crossbow bolt still protruding from its eye.
"Ah, kind of them. They've come to show you my precise shooting," said Kormick, lining up a second shot. But then, with a violent motion, the derro heaved the corpse with all their strength across the pit. It slammed into Kormick, knocking him to the floor. Before anyone could react, the two derro leaped across the pit after their comrade, drawing short swords. Behind them, three more derro swarmed out of the room with – Tavi groaned without surprise – crossbows.
The battle went badly from the start. Tavi defended Kormick as best he could until the Justicar managed to arise, but between the derro flanking him, the archers across the pit, and the pit itself, he didn't have a lot of space to maneuver. Neither did Mena, who lacked a ranged weapon and had trouble getting close enough to hit the two nearby enemies. The slave, usually nimble with either a blade or her sling, seemed hampered by her injuries: only a few of her blows landed, and none with much force. Slowly but surely, the derro established more of a foothold on the party’s side of the pit. As they did, one whistled. A pair of the lizard-dogs came raging around the corner and leaped across the pit to join the fray.
You've got ’em, buzzed Phoebe. Sure, it's exciting right now, but you're going to be fine!
As long as those derro women don't make trouble, Tavi thought back, swinging with such artistry that the derro recoiled from the shock seemingly even before Tavi's blade made contact.
They were boring. That was a great hit! Do it again!
###
Farther down the hall, near the junction with the side corridor, Rose waited. Savina and Corani had been with her, but Corani had, as usual, attempted to race toward the fight, and Savina had followed her, begging her to stop. Rose hugged herself and dared to look past Savina and Corani to the battle itself. Through the dimness, she could glimpse a tangle of arms, legs, and snapping lizard jaws accompanied by grunting and snarling and fragmented shouts of instruction. It made her skin crawl, and yet – I asked for this, in a way, she thought to Whisper. Is this my destiny? Will pain and death always find me?
There was a noise from the side corridor, a clinking and scraping.
Arden's dagger came skittering down the passageway to rest at her feet.
That, she thought, one eyebrow arching, can’t be good…
For those who wish to enjoy this excellent Story Hour in PDF form... With the approval of ellinor, Ilex and Fajitas (thanks, guys!), I've begun compiling A Rose in the Wind in the same way as I've previously done with Sagiro's Story Hour and the original Welcome to the Halmae.
The first four completed chapters (plus the prologue) are now available here. Enjoy!
Thank you, StevenAC! I know that Fajitas, ellinor, and I have all, at various times, enjoyed revisiting Welcome to the Halmae through your PDF compilation. We are very pleased that you are giving A Rose in the Wind the same treatment.
Wow, StevenAC, that's awesome. I've also really enjoyed reading your PDF compiliations. You always do such a nice job. Thanks for the work and for sharing!
Thanks StevenAC for your efforts. I have appreciated the collected Halmae stories as a resource for Halmaean theology in the past as well as re-reading the story hour.
__________________ "People need vision.
Sometimes you just have to add spices without a recipie."
- My wonderful wife.
Rose screamed a warning. The two derro women were bearing down on her from the side corridor, swords at the ready. The party was now trapped between two groups of assailants. Chaos broke out as they each faced the battle in their own way:
Mena, who had been frustrated at her inability to join Kormick and Tavi at the very front of the fight near the pit, now realized that she was the only person free to come to Rose's rescue. The two men couldn't disengage from their opponents, Twiggy was concentrating hard as she cast a spell, and Arden was hurt. So be it, thought Mena, running toward Rose. She threw herself between the two derro women and the cowering girl. The derro were on her in a heartbeat, and she glimpsed fresh poison on their swords.
Arden had been leaning against the wall, taking a break. Her leg hurt, her arm hurt, she hadn't been so tired since the mines, and this wasn't her fight. It is your fight, some part of her insisted, but she ignored it. Let the freepeople take the blows. It's their problem. Then Rose cried out, Mena ran to her aid, and Arden remembered her words to the Defier the first time they had spoken together during the watch: "If I am allowed, I will help Signora Roseanna." It was her fight. She pushed off the wall and ran to join Mena near the side corridor.
Savina, her heart pounding, strained to see past Twiggy and Corani. Beyond them, Tavi was balanced on the very edge of the pit, flanked by two derro warriors, blood streaming from his wounds. Next to him, Kormick had his back to the wall; the lizard-dogs snapping at his torso were too close for the Justicar to swing his hammers effectively. The archers rained arrows into the struggling bodies, and Tavi yelled as one of them struck home. It was horrible. And Savina knew she had to get up there. Mother Alirria, defend your daughter, she prayed as she pushed past Corani and Twiggy. "No! Let's have no suicidal heroics from you!" Kormick yelled at her, but she was already next to him. She prayed for his health, and for Tavi's, ignoring the crossbow bolt that shot past her ear. Then one of the lizards menacing Kormick wheeled around with a growl and launched itself at her neck. Its teeth tore into her throat and shoulder. Savina felt her blood gush.
Mena was giving the two derro women a master class in advanced flail technique when the air around her rippled as a magical wave of force narrowly missed her. "Rose!" cried Mena, turning to see if the spell had impacted Rose, but Rose had dodged, Whisper herding her protectively away from danger. Mena turned back, straining her eyes to spot the spellcaster who must be farther up the side tunnel, but she could only make out a rippling in the air, a presence without a form. The two women had powerful backup. Though she struck out all the harder against them, Mena's heart sank: Three against one, and a magic-user among the three. Then Arden appeared out of the dimness beside her and drove her short sword with terrible accuracy straight into the second woman's shoulder joint, pulling it out again across tendons and bone to render the arm useless. Mena relaxed. Slightly.
Twiggy felt shock as Savina staggered, her hand clutching her throat, blood pouring through her fingers. She was only trying to help! Twiggy's mind protested, even though she immediately knew that the thought was irrational. Many things in life weren't fair, all the innocence in the world couldn't save you, and not all famous battles had been won by the good side. Still, this didn’t have to be one of those battles. Twiggy stepped up behind Savina and cast an illusory ambush on the archers across the pit. Their rain of bolts ceased for a moment as her spell hit home resoundingly, causing all three to stare around in fear at invisible foes. One of them leapt up and ran screaming straight into the pit. Kormick flashed a brief grin at her. "You terrifying, terrifying girl," he grunted approvingly.
Tavi raised his hand, summoning magic at the speed of thought, and a crossbow bolt heading straight for Savina careened off an invisible shield and fell into the pit. This is my fault. He spun and rained down fire from his sword on the derro in front of him, then shoved the creature backwards. It followed the crossbow bolt into the pit. How is it your fault!? It's not your fault! Two archers were still shooting, and two lizards and a derro remained on their side of the pit. He tried to see farther down the corridor, to glimpse what had become of Mena and Rose, but he was boxed in. If I'd killed those women instead of trying to lock them in. . . Another arrow buried itself in his arm. In frustration, he tried to strike a lizard and missed.
Kormick followed up Tavi's missed blow with a resounding hit on the lizard, breaking its spine at last. He kicked it into the pit, out of his way. He had a bad feeling. Yes, they were grinding down their foes, but the toll was high: Savina, blood streaking her silly girlish armor, looked doomed. The remaining lizard had latched on to her leg with its fierce jaws, and Kormick whacked at the beast’s haunch with his warhammer, struggling to keep its attention on him. Until now, he'd held the thing’s attention a little too well, and was badly bloodied as a result. A crossbow bolt grazed his forehead, sending an aggravating trickle of blood into the corner of his eye. He guessed that, if he could see himself from afar, he'd have the numb, staggering look of a tough guy about to lose a street fight. Maybe he was the doomed one. "Get back!" he entreated Savina again, knowing that she wouldn't listen. Instead, the girl closed her eyes and then stood a little straighter as the wound on her neck closed. Having healed herself, she held out her bloody hand and called, "Alirria!" A blinding lance of faith killed a second archer. Faith, thought Kormick. I don't understand faith.
Mena didn’t have time to wonder how things were going on the other front: although she and Arden had injured both of the derro women, they had suffered even more injuries themselves. Arden stumbled, bleeding freely from a deep cut. "Arden?" Mena asked, checking in, and Arden surprised her by smiling grimly. "I hate this pl –" she began, just as a wave of force from the hidden spellcaster slammed into her. Arden hit the ground like a stone and lay there, senseless.
Tavi was calculating. Twiggy’s spells were taking care of the archer. Corani’s axe was taking care of – whack – correction, had taken care of the lizard-dog. We're almost done here. Can I go help Mena yet? He and Kormick were now flanking the remaining derro warrior. He sliced at it just as Kormick, blood-streaked, seemed to read his mind. "I've got this," the Justicar said. "Go help your sister." Tavi nodded his thanks and took off at once, hearing behind him the sound of the derro's death beneath Kormick's warhammer. Racing down the corridor toward his tutor, Tavi found that things were as bad as he'd feared: Mena was fending off attacks from two derro women as the slave lay crumpled limply behind her. One of the women dove in, aiming a killing strike straight at Arden's exposed throat. Heedless of the danger, Tavi threw himself over Arden's body, parrying the blow meant for the dying slave. Pain shot through his arm as the derro blade sliced his wrist. Then he lunged, plunging his blade into the derro woman's heart.
Mena pulled Arden from the fray, pressed fingers to her throat, and found a faint pulse. Huff and puff, Twilight Bitch, she thought with grim pride at her student’s sacrifice and Arden’s resilience, but we will not break. She seized Arden by the shoulders. "Not here," she commanded. "They do. Not. Win. Here. Get up.” Arden’s eyes flickered. “Get--."
"—up," Arden heard, and struggled automatically to obey despite lacking, for the moment, any sense of where she was or what had happened. She opened her eyes and saw Dame Filomena kneeling over her. "I was saying . . ." Arden groaned, and Mena nodded. "Trust me. I hate it more," she agreed, holding out her hand. Arden grabbed it and sat up. She gazed at the two battles around her: Mena rejoining Tavi in the face-off against the remaining derro woman; the Justicar and the others dodging crossbow bolts. It may have been her fight, but she wouldn’t be fighting more of it any time soon. She was too weak to stand.
(DM’s NOTE: And that’s what Mena’s Inspiring Word power looks like…)
Mena slammed the remaining derro woman on the back of the head with her flail. At last, the woman dropped, unconscious. Almost instantly, from up the hall, the hazy presence vanished and the door to the women's chamber slammed shut. The spellcaster had fled. Tavi raised his sword to execute the woman. "I should have killed you when I had the chance," he said. Mena stopped him. "She may know where the captives are," she explained. "We must question her."
At the pit’s edge, Savina was finally ready to stop ignoring the Justicar, who really, really wanted her to get off the front lines. She was exhausted, the battle was nearly won, and she was reaching the limits of her healing power. But as she moved out of the fray, she heard a trio of sounds behind her: A scream from Twiggy—"Corani!"—then gurgling—then a thud. Savina wheeled and ran back. Corani had collapsed to the ground, dying, a crossbow bolt protruding from her neck.
For Kormick, that was the last straw. Having struck down the pregnant lady dwarf with a lucky shot, the derro archer had a smug look on his face that Kormick simply didn't feel was justifiable, given that its side was clearly losing. Sure, Kormick's whole body ached, he was bleeding from multiple punctures, and everyone else was looking at least as ragged as he was feeling. But this guy looked smug. Kormick raised his warhammer and pointed it at the archer. "You," he said, pronouncing its death sentence. The archer's face fell. The creature squeezed off one last shot – it glanced off Kormick's leg, adding another trickle of blood to Kormick's collection – turned, and ran. Kormick jumped the pit and followed.
Arden watched Savina and Twiggy rush to Corani's side. Savina glanced worriedly back at Arden, once, then looked away, laid her hands upon Corani, and concentrated for an unusually long time. Finally, she collapsed backward, drained, as Twiggy helped Corani sit up. Arden heard the Blessed Daughter tell Twiggy, "Give me a moment to rest… I can't do anything more right now... I'm so tired." What had happened was clear: with a choice between healing Corani or Arden, Savina had chosen Corani. Arden looked away. The Blessed Daughter did the right thing, she told herself firmly. Corani is pregnant, even more hurt than me, and hasn't asked for any of this, either. Getting angry about it would be unreasonable. Nonetheless, aware that this place would probably kill her if her mistress didn't help her, she felt her face burn with anger and shame. "Expendable," the Justicar had called her.
Kormick entered the dining hall to see the formerly smug derro archer sprinting for a spiral staircase at the far side. Kormick didn't feel like running. At all. He planted his feet, raised his sore arm, took aim, and sent a crossbow bolt with spectacular accuracy straight through the creature's leg. It yowled and fell to its knees. "Now," announced Kormick, "we can take our time." As the derro dragged itself up the first few steps, Kormick sauntered across the room. He arrived at the staircase just as the derro reached the fourth step. Kormick leisurely traded his crossbow for a warhammer and took aim at the back of the creature's skull. Crack.
Arden appreciates your understanding and sympathy. Anyone who sympathizes in such a way with Arden's plight is far less likely to find themselves a victim of soup poisoning.
To be (grudgingly) fair about the Savina-heals-Arden bit, of course, Savina's triage is actually sensible. Arden's kneejerk reaction is "all freepeople are always out to get me"; she can't quite cut this off even when the evidence doesn't support it. (The healing bit was also especially dramatic at the table because both Corani and Arden were now down to one or zero healing surges -- I forget exactly, but we were hurting -- so we were both heavily reliant on rare non-surge-requiring powers.)
It's too bad that Arden will never know (and would never guess) that Tavi has just saved her in a gloriously self-sacrificing, downright heroic manner from the derro woman's attempt to kill her with a coup de grace. That might have helped Arden's paranoia a little bit.
Last edited by Ilex; 16th September 2009 at 06:02 AM..
The regular update will be delayed for one week due to a happy (but highly distracting) event within the group that deserves its own separate announcement. In the meantime, let's review (thanks to Baron Opal's inspiration) our Halmaean theology.
This sidebar from the original Welcome to the Halmae story hour sums up the basics on the Halmae's four deities. Study it. Study it well. Then take this important quiz:
1. At Rose's extravagant coming-of-age ball at the beginning of this story hour, Kormick distresses Intransigent the Just by referring to Kettenek's justice as what?
(A) a pebble
(B) a flower
(C) a flame
(D) a rat
2. If he had been the least bit interested in not distressing Brother Intransigent, what more orthodox metaphor for justice might Kormick have used?
(A) a boulder
(B) a war horse
(C) a sword
(D) a kneecap
3) To which of the Halmae deities was Mena devoted before she became a Sedellan Defier of the Wind?
(A) Kettenek
(B) Alirria
(C) Ehkt
(D) Euro
4) In Lord's Edge, a visit to which Alirrian sect gives Twiggy an inspiring glimpse of the wider world?
(A) The Givers of Life
(B) The Receivers of Life
(C) The Handmaidens
(D) The Water Walkers
DISCUSSION QUESTION:
If we can assume that Kettenek's favorite TV show is Law & Order, what are the favorite TV shows of Alirria, Ehkt, and Sedellus?
ANSWERS:
Spoiler:
Click on the letter to review the relevant section of the story: B, A, C, D.
Fajitas has commented that there is a thin line between inventing a pantheon and inventing a religion, and that (despite our efforts to compare him to L.Ron Hubbard) he thinks of himself as having done the former.
At the risk of sounding too much like the latter, we would like to wish the marital blessings of Alirria and Kettenek to Thatch and Jenber, who just returned from their honeymoon.
YAY! Congratulations.
Attached is a commemorating picture of the game group (That is: Bad Monkey Jeff, Eva, Spyscribe, Jenber, Thatch, Ilex, WisdomLikeSilence, ellinor, and Fajitas -- sadly, jonrog1 could not make it). Trust me, we dress up like this for every game session.
Mena crouched over the unconscious derro woman she'd ordered Tavi to spare.
Slap, slap. "I said wake up."
The derro woman's eyes flew open and she spat a curse in broken Dwarven. Mena hurled a curse back. She sensed rather than saw Corani lunge forward, longing to kill the captive, and Tavi hold her back. Beyond them, the rest of the party gathered, looking on.
Mena kept her eyes locked on the derro's.
"Do you have children?" Mena asked in Dwarven.
The woman's eyes narrowed, but she said nothing.
"Do you want them to live?" Mena asked, keeping her voice calm and even. She saw the flicker of fear in the woman's eyes and waited. The woman nodded.
"Cooperate, and I give you my word that none of us will harm your children. Where are the dwarven prisoners?"
"Some here." The woman's eyes darted up the side corridor.
"With the spellcaster?" Mena asked.
"Protects with spells."
"Where are the others?"
"Don't know." Mena raised her eyebrows and, at that small gesture, the derro cringed. "Don't know!"
Mena decided to believe her. "I need to knock you unconscious now," she told the woman.
The woman shied away. "Will not fight."
Mena smiled almost sadly. Gods, this would be easier if the woman went back to cursing her. "That may well be. But you wouldn't take the chance either, if our positions were reversed, and I can't risk it."
"Do you have children?" the derro whispered.
There was no real answer to that, not that it mattered. Mena slammed her fist into the side of the derro's head. The woman drooped backward. "Give me some rope," said Mena. Someone passed it to her, and she bound the derro's hands and feet, gently but tightly. Then she straightened and found Corani watching her solemnly.
"If we find our children alive," said Corani, "I will abide by the promise you just made. If not . . . "
"Her children are innocent, too," said Mena. Corani looked skeptical. Mena looked her steadily in the eye and said without raising her voice: "And if you make a move towards any child, Corani, I will stop you myself by whatever means necessary."
During the interrogation, Kormick had returned from the dining hall. He was wearing magical bracers that he'd stripped off a derro warrior's corpse, and he was carrying a few other items: a pair of vision-sharpening goggles, which he handed to Twiggy; a pouch of seventy gold pieces, which he added to the money that Savina already carried; and two healing potions and a salve, all of which he offered to Tavi.
"Arden," Tavi said. Arden, who hadn't yet risen to her feet after her brush with death, looked up from where she was sitting against a wall just in time to catch the healing salve that Tavi matter-of-factly tossed her way. Her eyes widened, but Tavi had already turned away to consult with Savina about the potions.
As Arden wasted no time applying the salve, Kormick turned to Mena. "This peaceful, non-violent reasoning you used with the captive," he commented. "It's exactly the sort of enlightened approach that might go over well in Dar Und. I'll remember to introduce it."
Mena, not sure if Kormick was being obtuse or willful in defining what she'd just done as peaceful and non-violent, then led the way up the side corridor. They eased open the door that Tavi and Arden had opened earlier. The fire crackled in the derro women's recently deserted room and a chair still rocked slightly.
Crash. The chair exploded into splinters. Mena gripped her sword and whirled to see Twiggy lowering her casting hand.
"That'll teach it," observed Kormick.
"It was moving," said Twiggy, jumpy and defiant. The longer we're in this horrible place, Mena thought, self-control is going to become an increasing rare and precious resource. Dungeons are a terrible terrible idea. Whoever thought that trapping heavily armed and nervous people in a confined space with only one way out would be a clever little challenge should be dropped down to whatever man-eating plants are populating the basement. We need to get out of here before we all lose control.
Across the room was a heavy closed door, apparently barred on the far side. Tavi and Kormick put their shoulders to it. The door shook in its frame. Under their blows and kicks it flew off its hinges and crashed into the room beyond.
Tavi and Kormick strode through the opening, weapons ready. Mena was on their heels. They stopped short as they saw that the room on the far side was a nursery, its walls lined with cradles and small bunks, carved toys scattered on the floor. Huddled in the corner were a number of children and a few infants, dwarf and derro mingled together. Between them and the party stood a shimmery, derro-shaped figure – the spellcaster.
Mena stepped forward as the rest of the party joined Tavi and Kormick behind her. "We will not harm your children," she said. "We merely wish to reclaim those who belong to us." The shimmer took a step forward. "Stay back," came a voice.
"Send out the dwarven children," said Mena, "and we'll leave you and your children alone."
"Swear blood," the voice demanded.
Of course, Mena sighed internally. For all their mutual hatred, dwarves and derro apparently shared the view that honor and parentage were somehow related. Why an oath on my family? Why not anything else in the world? she thought, but she knew that if she didn’t comply, they’d never be able to rescue the children. She reached into the catalogue of her mind and recalled what she'd studied of dwarven oath-making. Then she looked around, found a small stone, and picked it up. "Arden, your dagger, please," she asked, and Arden gave her the weapon. Mena cut her own palm, smeared her blood on the stone, and tossed it onto the floor near the spellcaster. "I swear," she said, “by my blood.” Please, let that be enough without the name.
The spellcaster's shimmer made a gesture and stepped aside. Three dwarven toddlers, one barely managing to carry an infant, moved forward tentatively, leaving only derro children behind.
"May I approach to get them?" Mena asked.
"You," answered the voice firmly.
Mena stepped forward, knelt down, and took the infant from the toddler, who stared at her solemnly. She stood up, nodded once to the spellcaster, turned, and escorted the children briskly toward the door, bracing herself for a parting shot of magical force hitting her square between the shoulderblades. The rest of the party preceded her out of the room. The spellcaster did not stop them.
As they passed through the doorway into the room with the fireplace, one of the other toddlers squeaked: he'd seen Corani. All three toddlers raced around Mena and ran to Corani, who tried to hug them all at once, greeting them: "Gulst! Ladini! Tothi! And is that Fulri?" The toddlers were all chattering, and Gulst was trying assertively to get Corani to hold him, throwing his arms – and his weight – around her neck. As she nearly toppled over, Kormick stepped in and swooped the three-year-old up in his arms.
"No strangling the pregnant lady," he said. Gulst grinned at him uncomprehendingly, and Mena nearly laughed out loud as she watched the Justicar's face soften irresistibly into a warm answering smile. Kormick set Gulst down, bemused and almost self-conscious. "Behave yourself," he said, failing to sound stern.
"Your cheeks are glowing," Tavi told Kormick, straight-faced.
"Alirria has blessed you," added Savina, utterly serious. Mena had to admit, Kormick really did look much better: he was standing straighter, and somehow, his wounds no longer looked recent, but rather as if they were well on their way to healing.
DM’s NOTE: The original module that I based this adventure off of calls for the party to emerge from the dungeon to take extended rests when needed, and then return to the caves. This works in context because the creatures are not all working together, and thus they might reasonably not discover that the caves had been invaded and people slaughtered during the eight hours the party spent napping.
Clearly, clearly that was not going to work here.
So I ended up making the PCs do this entire module without an extended rest.
Since I knew that this was going to make Healing Surges and Daily Powers an *extremely* scarce resource, I decided to help them out by providing extra ones. Every dwarven prisoner that they rescued came with a power—some of them had Daily Powers, others had the equivalent of a Paladin’s Lay on Hands power (heal as if you had spent a healing surge without actually spending one).
The dwarven children, they provided healing surges. I mean, seriously, who wouldn’t be inspired to keep on fighting after looking at those adorable little tykes with their big, dwarven puppy-dog eyes…
"Yes, yes, of course, children are magical and precious reminders of our youth. If we're done here," said Kormick, "there's a door in the dining hall that I'm eager to break open."
As they made their way back to the dining hall, Kormick tapped Savina on the shoulder. "I'd like a word with you, young lady," he said. "What you did in this last fight, running straight into the center of it, was very brave, yes? Very brave and very foolish. Never do it again."
"I – I wanted to help," protested Savina.
"Never, ever again."
"But I – it makes me feel good to – "
"Never."
"But Alirria protects – "
"Ever."
Savina said nothing more, but she didn't look cowed. If anything, her expression reminded Mena of the expression the young Giver wore when caring for patients: she looked sorry for Kormick.
When they reached the dining hall, Mena was proud to see Tavi move instinctively to help Kormick with the barred door and Twiggy station herself on watch in a spot where a well-placed magic missile would take out anyone or anything – even a rogue rocking chair – that might dare to show itself on the landing at the top of the room's spiral staircase.
Arden leaned against the wall, still weak. Despite the salve, she wouldn't last long if they kept up this pace. As Kormick turned and opened his mouth to summon her, Mena beat him to it:
"Arden –"
Arden jerked upright defensively, like any slave caught loafing. By the gods, Mena thought at her in frustration, when we're keeping watch together, we converse like friends. Please trust me. Aloud, she said, "Would you please guard the corridor we came from?"
Arden relaxed. "Yes, Dame Filomena." She moved to a vantage point where she could see the second pit. She leaned back against the wall, caught Mena's eye, and soundlessly mouthed, "Thank you."
Kormick and Tavi heaved the bar off the door and opened it.
Mena joined the two as they crept down the short corridor beyond. It opened up into a room lit by a single guttering torch – a room containing a row of barred cells.
In the second-to-last cell, someone moved. In the last was a lump of rags.
Tavi called in Dwarven, "We seek the husband and sister-wives of Corani."
A voice answered from the second-to-last cell with a mixture of exhaustion and pride: "I am Sertani, first wife of Kartan Rockminder. Who are you?"
"Friends. We're helping Corani. Is anyone else here?" asked Tavi.
"Only Ordren, one of our caravan guards, and myself," said Sertani. The lump in the final cell, a badly beaten dwarven man, stirred painfully and groaned in response to his name. "They took my husband first. They said something about the lower tunnels. Kartan – Kartan was defiant. But they took him anyway."
Mena heard a rattle as Kormick lifted a keyring off a hook on the wall.
"I would never tolerate such lazy, lazy jail-keeping in Dar Und," he said happily, and set about trying to find the key that unlocked Sertani's cell.
"There were others in your party, correct?" Mena asked Sertani.
"Yes," she said. "Our children were taken. I don't know the fate of Thurran, Kartan's eldest son. He is seven, and we must find him. There are four other children, toddlers and the baby –"
"We found the four," said Tavi. "They're safe, down the hall."
"Truly? Praise the gods." Sertani's fists clenched on the bars as she watched Kormick work.
"Do you know what became of the other wives?" Mena asked.
"Zerkai tried to kill herself, but they stopped her. She is pregnant and vowed not to let them have her child, no matter the cost. They took her and Jalissi. They also took Mirtal, our cook."
"Mirtal," groaned Ordren, dragging himself upright to his knees. His face was nothing but bruises.
Kormick got Sertani's cell open and she stepped out quickly.
"They took Mirtal," murmured Ordren, now staggering to his feet, as Kormick went to work on his cell's door. "They took him . . . " Mena knew that in the polygamous dwarven society, young dwarven men, not yet advanced enough in years and craft to support families, often formed loving attachments to other young men. Ordren's worry was that of a lover. "Have you found Mirtal?" he asked, begging them with his eyes to say yes.
"Not yet," said Mena. The weight of the work still undone suddenly felt heavy. So many people left to save, but how long until they were too weak to fight?
With a rattle, the door opened, and Kormick reached out to steady the young dwarf, who managed to walk with some assistance. They all hurried back up the corridor to the dining hall.
After a few minutes of reunion, Sertani turned to address the group. "We must find Kartan, Thurran, and the others," she said. "Corani has told me of your kind assistance; I would be grateful if you would continue to help us. If not, we go on alone."
Mena looked over the dwarven party: four babies, a man weak from torture, and two women, one pregnant. So many innocents. How long until a misstep puts them in danger again? "I think," she said, "that we should go on alone . . . assuming we can find someplace safe for you to wait for us."
"Absolutely not," said Sertani. Behind her, Corani nodded fiercely, and even Ordren looking up in outrage. "We have skills, we can help. More importantly, we have honor, and it's our family. I understand that our route lies up those stairs?"
Mena sighed. Dwarven honor could be so . . . problematic. "Yes, but –"
"Then respectfully, new friends," interrupted Sertani, "what are we waiting for?"
Linear Mode
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