Struggle and Strife- A scarred lands storyhour

[Lars Frehse]

Vacation- part 4 of 4

Back in the real world, Ben's friends were meanwhile standing in a doorway in the northern parts of Hollowfaust. They waited as Trepat listened to the telepathic messages from his familiar until the sorcerer looked up and said:" He went to the wall for some reason. There is no house... But now, he manipulates some stone or something- and there is a trapdoor!"

"Let's go there, quick!“ Torn said, and then added as an afterthought to Trepat:" And tell your raven to hover over the wall, so in case he comes out, we will know where!"

They hurried through narrow alleys, past closed shops and then reached the wall. Soon, Torn found a lose brick, and when he pressed it, a trapdoor opened up. They entered a small tunnel, which was just about big enough for one crouching man at a time.

On the other side of the tunnel, they were surrounded by ruins. "This is not good", Niklas said. "I heard there are undead patrols in this part of the city. And since we have no special tokens to move here, those undead would certainly attack us, too."

"Still, I am sure that this is the only way...“ Torn added.

"Good news!“ Trepat whispered, his voice barely audible in the silence that surrounded them "the man we are trailing has just entered a specific ruin. I can lead us there".

Jan smiled and wrapped his hand around the hilt of his sword:" Very good!"

"And what are we going to do once we get there?“ Niklas asked.

Torn scratched his chin: "I could disguise myself as a human merchant, or something, and go in there and look around. In case that there are guards or anything, I should be able to come up with a plausible story, I think."

Trepat nodded in response:" Yes, that sounds like the best choice... I will keep your familiar here, so that it can warn us in case you get in trouble.“

After casting a spell, and using some props to make sure that he would pass as a human, Torn went into the little ditch and knocked on the door through which the man they had followed had passed. A sour looking Halforc opened. Upon seeing Torn, he blocked the entrance with the mass of his body, and said:" Yes?"

Torn extended his hand for a handshake, sneaking five gold pieces into the palm of the halforc:" A business-acquaintance of mine, Mr Bolte, had told me about this place two weeks ago, and now that I am back in town, I finally would like to see it myself."

The halforc nodded and stepped aside, opening the doorway to the corridor beyond:" A personal recommendation of one of our members is acceptable. Enjoy your stay, sir!"

Torn entered the corridor, and as he noticed that behind his back the halforc had closed the main door, he simply went ahead and opened the door. Immediately, all of Torn's senses were flooded with impressions. The room in front of him was dimly lit, but he was able to see that there were several humanoids engaged in carnal activities. There was music and the smell of perfume, incense and sweet smoke was almost too powerful for him to adjust to without coughing.

He looked around, trying to look inconspicuous, and walked into the room, avoiding the couples and triplets who were wrapped around each other in various positions on the floor. He was heading to what looked like a bar at the far end, but suddenly, his eyes were captured by something else. To his right, some twenty feet away, he recognized Ben, who was lying on a cushion with the hooker he had introduced to them earlier that day.

Ben was apparently far-gone, his eyes were just slits and he had the look of a dreaming man. Torn decided not to address his halfling friend here, and turned to the bar again. However, before he reached it, two women with masks hooked their arms into his to his left and right.

Both wore masks, but since they didn't wear anything else, he concluded that they were young, human and in rather good health. One of them asked whether he was new, and when he said that he was, they led him into a backroom in order to give him what they called a "nice welcome".

An hour later, Torn was back with his friends. "The place seems to be some sort of a brothel. Actually, I think I have just encountered the best hookers of my life! However, you give as much money as you like upon leaving or entering. I don't quite see how this is profitable... Oh, and the bouncer immediately recognized the name of Bolte, so we can say for sure that he had been a patron here."

They talked a little more and when Trepat warned them about someone coming, they hid in the shadows. It turned out that it was Siriak, the grey haired man who had led them to the place earlier.

Torn stepped out of the shadows. The human saw him, wanted to turn around, but already Niklas had positioned himself behind him, glaring darkly at him.

"What do you want?", he asked, trying to show bravery in spite of his quavering voice, which betrayed his fear.

Torn stared into the man's eyes until he had to flinch and turn away:" We know that you had lied to us. You knew that Bolte had spent his nights here. Why?"

Siriak sighed, and with his sigh, he admitted both his defeat and his resignation. He told the friends that the idea of the club was that you would use your relations in favour of the club and other members. Sometimes, the proprietess, a woman called Lel, would call in little favors. But never anything that would truly compromise any of the patrons, and usually you would only be asked for favors once you have become a regular.

When Siriak had told them all he knew, they dismissed him. They waited a little longer and at some point after midnight, they saw what they had been waiting for: Ben was walking back to Hollowfaust proper- arm in arm with Mina.

He was clearer now than he had been when Torn had seen him, and upon seeing his friends, he shouted cheerfully: "What the hell are you guys doing here!"

 

[Black_Kaioshin]

Go, Lars!! Bump!!

 

[Nightfall]

LOL! Ben...Still nice to see the old brothel in place. Have to wait and see how this plays out.

 

[Lars Frehse]

Hi there,
I thought a little explanation for my absence would be in order.

Usually, I write my updates in my breaks at work. But two weeks ago, I got struck by tonsilitis. (Apparently, I am no Paladin). So, my material was at work, while I was at home, recovering. At least my tonsils stayed in for now- but if it becomes chronic, I will have to go the hospital*
Then, just when I had gotten better, my vacation had started and I was off to the Netherlands (still pretty sick- but there was no refund for my traintickets, so I thought it would have been a waste to stay at home. So, I was on vacation and now I am back and home. Either today or tomorrow, I intend to write a big update, which I will post in several portions.

I just want to say I am sorry that the storyhour grinded to a halt. I hope some of you guys will come back when I am posting new updates.



*Incidentally, when I was a kid I had always wanted to have my tonsils removed, since I knew that you got a bunch of icecream after that was done. But now I am 31 and I can get all the icecream I want anyway- without having to go to the hospital.

 

[Nightfall]

It's alright Lars. Can't expect you to be here 24/7. But do appreciate you updating us. Hope you feel better soon and STAY better.

 

[Lars Frehse]

The Grateful Dead- part 1

Creak...

Niklas woke up, sensing that he wasn't alone. He was lying in bed in his hotel room, and even though he had been asleep just moments ago, he was now wide-awake. He concentrated and due to the psionic forces that the slarecian Virus had triggered in him, his eyes were now as sharp as those of any elf.

Looking through a small slit between his lids, he turned around, scanning the room, and to his relief, he saw that it was empty. Concluding that it had been merely an echo of a dream, he sank back into his cushions, looking forward to the luxury of drifting away into the land of dreams. Just then, there was another Creak.

He bolted up, sitting upright in his bed when he heard the swooshing sound of a blade cutting through air. Still, he saw no one, but he rolled to the side and from the bed nonetheless, and a sharp but invisible blade cut into his thigh while the bed was torn open by another blade.

Ignoring his pain, he jumped to his feet, and as the feathers that had come out of the bed like the blood of a living being were levitating around him, his fists exploded in a flurry of blows into the direction from which the attack had come. Twice he felt his fists hitting something, and he shouted for his friends, who were sleeping in the bordering rooms.

He kept on fighting his invisible enemy, who, in spite of being very silent, seemed to be much bigger than a normal human. Then, just as his arm was cut open by the blade of his invisible attacker, the door burst open and all four of his companions came streaming in.

Ben reacted immediately. He cast a spell, dispelling the invisibility. Now, they could all see the attacker. It was a massive, naked humanoid of about eight feet of height, with a muscular body and powerful hands, which were wrapped around a pair of strange small scythe-like blades. The most remarkable thing about the attacker, however, was that he had no face at all- the front of his head was completely featureless.

Now all of the companions were able to fight the attacker, who kept on fighting even though he was clearly outnumbered, and after a struggle, Jan struck him with his sword in the middle of his forehead, defeating him. The faceless fell to the floor, now nothing more than a lifeless lump of heavy flesh, and the ground shook under the impact.

By now, there was quite a commotion in the hallway in front of Niklas' room. Some of the residents were peeking in, and they only made way when the proprietess arrived. While she asked what had happened, the body of the faceless attacker evaporated with a loud hissing noise.

She opened her eyes in shock at this, and said:" I have to apologize that this had happened in my hotel. Please, let me get you a new room, in which you will of course be free to stay for as long as you want without having to worry about the cost. I will also inform the guards, so that they can take a look at this...

"This..." she pointed at the puddle at the floor that was all that was left of the attacker"... this is clearly no mundane threat you are dealing with. I bet the necromancers will be able to make more of it than I possibly could.“

"All right, then", Torn said. "I think there are some questions we have to ask the necromancers, as well".

Half an hour went by, in which Ben treated Niklas' wounds, and eventually, a young human in a dark cloak appeared. "My name is Jorbas", he said, shaking hands. "Now, please let me know what exactly had happened".

Niklas explained how he had woken up and had been assaulted and Jorbas watched him, piercing him with eyes the colour of molten lead. When Niklas was done, Jorbas asked:" Do you have any idea why a creature like this one could want to attack you?"

"We might have angered some people last night.“ Jan answered, and then they all told the young necromancer about their investigations ever since they had arrived. They were as thorough as possible, but about two aspects they were silent, and that was Ben's visit to the brothel and the hooker who had lead them there. Mina had told them that she had been offered to bring along wealthy customers, but she herself was not much more than a guest- and they readily believed her.

After he had heard about the strange club in the Ghost Quarters and the possible connection with the murder of Bolte, he nodded and said:" I think I would rather let you report to the leader of my guild, Numadaya. Your attacker here was a member of a race of devils, which we call "the faceless". Apparently, they are an organization of assassins which operate from somewhere in the pits of hell. As far as we know, you have to travel to their fortress in order to make a contract with them. So it looks as if whoever had ordered this assassin had to have some fiendish connections..."

He shrugged:" All this, however, is too much for me. Please come with me to the Underfaust, since I think that the powers you are dealing with could be great enough to concern the council members."

After getting dressed and a quick breakfast, the companions followed Jorbas to the Underfaust. All they knew about the necromantic realm below the volcano were rumours, so they all felt a little exited and vulnerable.

The Underfaust was separated from the rest of Hollowfaust by a massive gate, which was guarded by living and undead guards. Upon seeing Jorbas, they were waved through and walked through a tunnel, which was big enough to allow siege machines to get towed through.

They followed the corridor deep into the mountain, and every now and then, smaller corridors intersected it. Undead Servants, Constructs and members of the guilds were everywhere, busily walking to and fro, giving the serene subterranean city the hectic feeling of an anthill.

Under the ceiling and along the walls, there were several pipes of different, and sometimes there would be a hissing or gurgling sound coming from those pipes. "What is the purpose of those pipes?“ Niklas asked Jorbas, who was hurrying ahead of them.

"Ah, all kinds of purposes actually. Some of them, like the big one there, is taking care of the sewage that is created here. The sewage is processed outside, and ultimately used as fertilizer for the fields in and around Hollowfaust. Other pipes are used to get cool air deep inside into the mountain, where it is uncomfortably hot even with Coldweave, yet others are used to transport small messages or to distribute water, and so on."

After a while they turned into one of the smaller corridors, and after a few more turns, they reached a small hall with tables and chairs. "Wait here, please" Jorbas said. "I will go and speak with Numadaya, the leader of my guild. Meanwhile, you will be served a second breakfast. So, please, make yourself feel at home. I will try to be back with you as soon as possible."

Jorbas left through a metal door and soon afterwards, skeletons with trays of tea and sweet bread appeared, serving them, and even though the service was ghastly, the tea and food was delicious. They ate, drank, and talked with hushed voices, the undead servants not helpful in making them feel more comfortable...

 

[Lars Frehse]

Grateful Dead- part 2

After more than an hour had gone by, and the patience of the companions had been put to a test, Jorbas announced that the guild master would now welcome them. He waved them into the room beyond the metal door, and it turned out that this was already the office of Numadaya.

Entering the room, the friends were surprised to see a young, attractive and fragile looking woman. All of them would have expected someone older to lead a guild of necromancers, and this woman looked far too innocent and vulnerable for this job.

The room was big, and the walls were covered with violet, purple and black tapestries. There was a thick black carpet on the floor and between the chairs and the desk, which were all made of ebony, there were small pots with orchids and trays with incense.

Numadaya herself had jet-black hair, which framed a face that looked like it was made of china. Whenever one of the friends looked at her, they were drawn to her big brown eyes, which dominated the face over a small nose and a pressed mouth. She wore a simple, loose black tunic, and as the friends entered, she was standing next to a small desk.

She greeted them with the melodic, little voice, of a young girl, and yet there was a firm quality to it, that gave a glimpse of the power that must have been at her command:" Welcome, travellers. Settle down, and tell me what brings you here."
The companions told her everything that had happened since they had arrived, again keeping Mina out of it, and Numadaya listened. She had a way to absorb information that urged the friends on to tell her every single detail. People just wanted to tell Numaday things ever since she had been a little girl, and soon she had found out that not only the living wanted to share things with her, and restless spirits had contacted her for all time since she could remember.

When the friends had finished, and it was clear that she had heard all there was to hear, she said:" Those are grave news, indeed. I will gather some Blackshields, our elite guards, and you will have to lead us to this brothel you told us about. I don't fully understand yet just what is going on here, but I will try to find out."

Again, the companions to ask in the waiting room, and after another long hour, in which they were served a little lunch by more undead servants, they were summoned again. This time, they met in the main-tunnel, which lead out of the Underfaust, and there were twenty men and women waiting for them. Some of them were necromancers, but others, the Blackshields, were clad in black armours and carrying black swords.

They left the Faust and went into Ghost town. It took the friends some time to find the right building. After all, most of the ruins looked alike in the light of day, and this part of the city was little more than a desert of rubble and grey dust under the scorching sun. Another problem was that they had entered from the north, and the night before from the east.

However, after some hours they had finally discovered the building where Ben and Torn had spent the last night. Several guards charged into the ruin- and came back empty handed after just a few minutes. The captain went up to Numadaya and announced:" The building is empty, madam. There are some indications of recent habitations, like empty, discarded bottles, some shards, and the like, but it is most certainly deserted.“

Numadaya turned to the friends: "Maybe somebody has warned them... I will go in and see if I can contact any spirits."

She disappeared in the ruin, and after a while she came back, a puzzled look on her face:" There are not even any spirits. I feel you are telling the truth, so whoever had organized the deserting of the building, must have found a way to make sure that the spirits stay silent as well..."

She shook her head: "I am afraid that there is little I can do for you now. If someone had tipped the cultists off, it might have been members of my own guild. Who knows, maybe even Blackshields..."

 

[Nightfall]

Gotta love them Belsamite Cultists! They know how to handle "spirits" as well as the living.

 

[Lars Frehse]

The grateful dead- part 3

The companions were lead back into the living part of Hollowfaust, and as Numadaya said goodbye to them, they all felt that they had to start all over again. Somehow, the cultists had been warned. And even though this took them out of justice's reach for the moment, it also confirmed that there really was something sinister going on...

They stood in a crowded market, oblivious to the colours, smells, and noises around them, and discussed their situation. "We have to be more careful now, though", Trepat said. " We don't know how far the network of those cultists of hedonists, or whatever they are, goes. So for now we should try to avoid contacting officials. However, I don't know what else we could do next..."

"I know something, I think", Torn said, "We still have Siriak... If we use some pressure, he might help us. After all, he had been quaking in his shoes last nights".

They went to the guild house, where they were told that Siriak hadn't appeared to his job that day. Alarmed, they raced to his private house, a three-story merchant house in one of the better parts of the city, and knocked on the front door.

The door opened, and a grey and hardened human maid in her fifties asked:" What do you want? Master Siriak isn't at home".

"I see", Niklas said. "When do you think we can expect him back?“

"I don't know".

Jan pushed Niklas to the side:" When have you seen him for the last time?"

Cracks of suspicion suddenly appeared on the maid's forehead:" Who are you and why do you want to know?“

Trying to save things, Trepat interrupted Jan, who was about to speak:" Excuse me, mam, but we are private investigators who work with the Black Shields. Mr Siriak hasn't appeared at work today, and since one of his colleagues had been murdered recently, we are naturally worried."

The furrows on the maid's forehead remained, but at least she answered:" That is really worrying. He didn't come home last night, and I haven't seen him all day."

"Is there anything else of interest, for example, do you know where Siriak spends his nights?“ Trepat asked and immediately, the maid turned hard as stone again:" No, I don't. And unless you have some official papers to show me, I don't see why I should tell you in the first place!"

Seeing that there was nothing more to find out for now, Torn said:" I see. Well, let's hope that nothing had happened to Siriak, and in case there is anything you would like to tell us about, you can always find us at the Weary Pilgrim".

They left the entrance, and as soon as they were sure that they couldn't be seen, Niklas said:" I don't trust that woman at all".

Torn nodded:" Me neither. I think it is best if we keep an eye on that house." He turned to Niklas:" Maybe we should stay close together. We both can easily blend into the background".

Niklas agreed and they settled down in the surrounding to watch the house. Trepat's raven stayed close as well; ready to warn his master if Torn and Niklas should need help.

After a short while, the maid left the building. She looked to the left and right, and apparently unaware of the hidden eyes, which were resting on her, she turned to the right and swiftly left with long strides. Torn stayed some dozen yards behind her, followed by Niklas in turn.

Soon, Niklas noticed that Torn wasn't alone, and he once again felt glad that they had established a system of shadowing the shadower. Forming a row where the head was unaware of it's tail, they headed into a part of the town were warehouses and merchant-homes were standing side by side. The maid stopped in front of what looked like an abandoned warehouse, unlocked the door, and went in.

The two women who had followed Torn walked past the half-orc, and after a few turns, Niklas had followed them to the back-entrance of the warehouse, where they went in. Seeing that he would get no further here, he waved down Trepat's raven, and told him to tell his master to join him there. For the moment, Torn should wait at the front entrance, where they would stay in touch through the raven.

When his friends arrived, Niklas told them what he had seen so far. At least they could now be sure that the maid wasn't as innocent as she appeared, since she seemed to be in league with the mysterious pair of women. Eventually, they decided to enter the warehouse and ask for an explanation.

Torn, who ran over once the raven told him to, picked the lock, and together, they entered the warehouse. It was empty, and rays of sunlight fell in through the smudged windows and cut through the dust-filled air. The ground level of the house was one big hall and they could see the front door on the other side, and there was a spiral staircase, which led up through the ceiling.

Their nerves were strung as tight as violin-chords, and they pulled out their weapons. Signalling silently, they went to the staircase and climbed up, staying close together.

Jan was the first to arrive on the next floor, and expecting an ambush, he boldly jumped forward, his shield raised and his sword ready. However, what he saw didn't seem to warrant his attention: The three women were there, seated around a table, and from the looks of it, they were drinking tea.

The one Torn had seen at the door jumped up, and shouted in a firm voice:” What are you doing here? Get out, or I will call the guards!”

Jan folded his arms in front of his chest:” Well, if you really want to call the guards, go ahead! We know that you are up to no good, and the guards would probably be glad to hear about that, too!”

Ignoring him, the woman turned around and opened the window wide. She leaned out and shouted for the guards to come. And indeed, Hollowfaust being the lawful city it was, immediately a pair of guards arrived.

 

[Nightfall]

I could have told them calling the guards. Bad idea. Oh well.