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Eberron's Not So Brave - The Dragonmarked Madness
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<blockquote data-quote="Lwaxy" data-source="post: 6095739" data-attributes="member: 53286"><p>"This is so typical we bring home a new job, and no one is around. Oh well, can't do anything tonight, anyway." Deniv dropped the message they had picked up on the table and looked around. "But at least someone did the shopping."</p><p></p><p>Milayn noticed the empty cup and the crystal missing. "If I'm not totally wrong, Viril and Yuja went somewhere for the serial killer investigation. But Where's Tjuja? Shouldn't she be back by now? It's almost midnight , and if I am not bad of hearing, she was supposed to be back way before then. Didn't she say her booth closed around tavern hour?"</p><p></p><p>"Yeah, but who knows who she picked up, or if she is not visiting the taverns herself. Halfling, and all that."</p><p></p><p>"True that. But our blue halfling was supposed to be home and clean the kitchen, it's his turn." Milayn wrinkled her nose at the state of said room. "But then, he had had excuses, and unfortunately good ones, for his last 5 turns." Resigned to the fact that someone would have to do it anyway, she started cleaning up. </p><p></p><p>"Hey, the crystal ball is glowing." Deniv went to the small, blue crystal ball sitting on a table in the corner of the kitchen, glowing in a dark blue. It was one of a set the oracle had acquired from a customer lately. A handy communication device. This bigger ball served as a central hub of sorts, and 3 smaller ones could be carried and used to contact both the bigger ball and each other as long as you were in a certain range. Tjuja had taken one along to test out the range, and they had already found it worked outside the city where she was now. "Can only be Tjuja," he deducted, "as the other balls aren't in use. Unless Viril remembered to take one." </p><p></p><p>The assassin shook her head. "Still up there," she pointed to a shelf.</p><p></p><p>Deniv already tried to call back to Tjuja, but he only got static blue flickers. "Whatever it was about, she isn't ready to talk at the moment. Probably tried to tell us she is running late. We need to find out how to get this thing to record messages." It was a function they knew existed, but the blue for "someone has called" and green for "someone is calling" had been all they had figured out yet. </p><p></p><p>"Well, then we don't need to wait for her to decide what's for late dinner." The woman began to look through their foods and then grabbed a basket of eggs and bread. "This fine for you? Also have bacon."</p><p></p><p>"Sure thing." With a grateful smile, the man put the trash in the shaft downwards to the sewers and plopped himself into a chair. "Can't wait to get on the new job, especially seeing how this is a follow up on our first adventure."</p><p></p><p>"Sure beats doing all the day to day stuff. I don't know how some people stand such boring lives. At least, Tjuja is out doing what she loves to do," the woman replied and went to work on dinner. </p><p></p><p>But at that moment, Tjuja was not doing what she loved. She was doing what was needed to survive. </p><p></p><p>It had, as most of the time with such situations, started out of the blue. One moment she had explained to a client that the reason she didn't have children was her unconscious rebellion against an abusive husband, the next moment there was shouting and yelling all around her tent, and she could hear the clang of weapons and the swoosh of arrows. </p><p></p><p>Before she could get up and open the flap of her tent, the shouts got louder. The fighting seemed to be right outside. Her terrified client hid under the table and the next moment, something cut loose the strings holding the tent up, and the canvas came crashing down on them. While her client was relatively fine under the table, Tjuja became entangled in canvas, decoration and a rope. Panic crept up in her. With no idea what was going on other than that there was a fight, and being so trapped, she had a hard time thinking at all. </p><p></p><p>Ever so slowly, she managed to get to the edge of the mess and look out with one eye. Still entangled, she could do nothing but stare at the sight right in front of her. A middle aged gnome fighter was hammering away at the shield of a halfling, who tried to defend himself with an axe while they were insulting each other. Some of what they said made little sense. "We'll nix you," the gnome cried at one point, to what the other replied "Lisp will prevail." She couldn't hear a lisp though, and right then, an arrow hit the canvas above her right arm, so she decided it was safer in all the mess than out. Not too long after, she heard what could only be a death cry right outside. Someone must have won the duel. Reaching for her part of the crystal ball, she contacted home, in the hopes of being able to let someone know what was going on, but no one was there. </p><p></p><p>Slowly, the fighting died down and the noise abated. The sobbing of her client had also stopped, which was good as Tjuja didn't want to be found. She heard orders outside about searching the place. "Take the small ones and leave no survivors among the tall," she heard someone with a squeaky voice order. </p><p></p><p>Someone lifted the canvas right next to her and stared right into her eyes. Behind the armor clad gnome woman that looked at her, Tjuja could see several more gnomes, halflings, a dwarf and what seemed to be goblins and kobolds. "I found a halfling," the woman shouted triumphantly. Then she turned back to Tjuja. "Anyone in the tent with you?" </p><p></p><p>Her client, she knew, was in danger. She was a human, and thus a tall one, she guessed. So she shook her head. "What is going on?" she managed. </p><p></p><p>"Later." The gnome started cutting her free. "But count yourself lucky to have met us." </p><p></p><p>Tjuja saw no reason to count anyone lucky. Around the area, small and big bodies were laying, from what she could make out, they were all dead, including the elf woman who had been organizing the fair. Some other small folk were rounded up and brought to the edge of the field. "You will be coming with us," a rough looking halfling in a leather armor with an eye patch said. "We'll help you realize your true potential, your true destiny!"</p><p></p><p>The way he spoke, Tjuja knew she was facing a fanatic. Whatever their mission was, it was not something she would want to be around, but it seemed s he had no choice. Strangely enough, without even being searched they were pushed onto a cart that was waiting for them in a thicket. Most of them, Tjuja couldn't quite exclude herself either, were shocked and confused. Her hand clasped around her communication device, but she could not attempt anything now, because a gnome and the dwarf were watching them. </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>At the same time, our group back in the tower ruins just woke up. None of them had had a particularly good rest, all had had some sort of nightmares, mostly about being turned into stone by one thing or the other. That nothing had occurred while they had been sleeping was a good thing, however. </p><p></p><p>After a bit of confusion how and where to do their morning toilet – another thing that's mostly ignored in stories you'll read – they decided to take it slow but steady. Filbura talked to their animal friend about what she might have heard. But other than some sounds like small feet scuttling around in some distance outside in the area they hadn't been to yet, there was no new information. </p><p></p><p>Ti'ir went out the door first, sticking to the ground while making warning noises. Filbura would have preferred her to be quiet, and from the frown, Lorraine was also hoping for more stealth. But the displacer beast had decided that showing strong presence was the best option, and there was no way to convince her otherwise. </p><p></p><p>"She says it smells kobold," Filbura explained. "The whole area must be swarming with them from what she says."</p><p></p><p>"If there are any, they are hiding from us, probably with reason, " the fighter snorted. </p><p></p><p>"Yeah because we are an armed group, invading their territory?" the bard suggested. "Kobolds are not the best fighters, unless they show up in swarms."</p><p></p><p>"We'll see. In my experience – and I have a bit of that – kobolds are never good news. Let's just be careful."</p><p></p><p>"Not only because of the kobolds," Filbura reminded them. "I don't exactly have a good feeling about all this." </p><p></p><p>Quavin waved his hands around and concentrated for a moment. "Thought so. There is lots of magical energy around here, and I doubt it's coming from any kobolds." Then the elf pointed left and right to the grey stone walls with several wooden and iron doors set in them. "It's somehow like the whole area is covered by protection spells and other powerful stuff I have not seen before. Lots of different magic."</p><p></p><p>The orc and the human were already, very carefully checking for traps, opening a few doors. None were locked, and all led to straw filled, mostly small chambers who definitely looked like they were usually occupied by kobolds. However, for kobolds, the rooms were surprisingly orderly and there was no trash. "Maybe some refugees from elsewhere making a home here," Zolan suggested. "I've seen it before – those who try to organize themselves are shunned by the other clans."</p><p></p><p>"Could be but this magic thing has me worried." Lorraine pointed to the end of the walls to their left and right, where the top of the tower had a sort of open central court. It started raining just then, ever so slightly but ever so annoying. "We might want to get out of this confined space."</p><p></p><p>"This door is locked," Zolan said just as they were about to get into the more open areas. "Guess not all kobolds like anyone spying on them."</p><p></p><p>"Or maybe it's the only one who knows to operate a key," Lorraine grinned. “We should check it out in any case. We don't want..." </p><p></p><p>"...anything falling in our backs, yeah," Moreelle finished and, to everyone's surprise, gave the wooden door a good kick. The lock broke immediately, barely holding together anyway due to rust. Only now it became apparent that no one could have used this door in a long time. "Maybe we should have kept it closed," the woman mused. </p><p></p><p>"Probably don't need to check it out then?" Quavin hoped. </p><p></p><p>"Unfortunately," the bard sighed, "things can lurk in such places slumbering for centuries. I don't have to tell you that, though."</p><p></p><p>"Was just a thought." Making sure to stay in the back and ready to cast if needed, Quavin motioned for one of the others to go ahead. </p><p></p><p>Lighting a torch and holding it inside the opening, Lorraine only found a room, maybe 4x4 meters wide, which had rows of black clothes hanging from the walls. After her eyes got adjusted to the relative dark, she noticed it looked like the cloth was covering doors. "Maybe some sort of meeting place where everyone comes in through a different door," she suggested upon showing the others. </p><p></p><p>The displacer beast hissed. "She doesn't like it," Filbura said, a translation that was unnecessary.</p><p></p><p>The human frowned at them. "Maybe it would be a good idea if you 2 stayed here as a watch. Just so nothing surprises us from outside, either."</p><p></p><p>Filbura nodded and took a few steps back. As much as she hated being alone – and she had the displacer beast after all – she was definitely happy not to have to go in there. There had been too many dark and weird rooms for her taste in this building. </p><p></p><p>The debating voices of her friends reached her from the opened door, but she couldn't understand what they were saying. Filbura was watching the displacer beast turning her attention to the end of the path they had been on when they had found this door. Her ears went back and forth, in a manner that told the gnome that Ti'ir was listening to something happening rather quickly. "What is it?" she asked her. </p><p></p><p>"Kobold sounds," Ti'ir replied. "In panic. Sounds like very small kobolds."</p><p></p><p>Filbura frowned and her ears strained to hear something, but all she could hear was the wind and some branches of high trees and bushes that had grown up here over the centuries. No surprise, as her ears weren't anywhere close to what the displacer beast's were. "From what direction?" she inquired. </p><p>"Left behind the corner and what sounds some stairs down," Ti'ir answered. "They sound really afraid but I can't smell anything bad that might cause it."</p><p></p><p>Filbura turned to tell this news to her friends, but they had gone quiet, so she assumed they had moved on a bit. "Right, we should check it out," she decided. "At least I should. Can you wait here and watch the door for me?" </p><p></p><p>Ti'ir yawned as answer and put her behind down. She seemed to be almost grinning. Filbura nodded and started running towards the direction her friend had indicated. Indeed, as soon as she was close to the corner she could hear the panicked cries of young voices in a language she didn't understand but could make out as draconic. A group of kobold children soon came to view standing around a basin designed to collect rain water. The small wall around it was mostly broken off, and they were all staring down into it. Filbura was almost out of breath when she reached the group. They noticed her very late, and now the cries of panic were also for her. Everyone moved back from the basin, giving the gnome a chance to have a look. </p><p></p><p>Several meters below, a kobold was hanging on to a gnarled root emerging from the wall. On another root a bit below some sort of toy was stuck. It was obvious that the child had been trying to reach it. A rope that had been tied around the waist had been torn somehow, and now it was impossible to either reach the toy or get out again. Filbura mumbled something about always needing more than one rope and went through her backpack in a hurry. Within seconds, she had tied the rope to the same old pump the kobolds had used for theirs and was climbing down. She didn't trust the kobold to be able to let go with one hand and grab it. </p><p></p><p>It was not difficult for her to get down, grab the kobold and then the toy – some sort of frisbee - after all, if he had risked his life for it and they were already down there, it made no sense to leave it there. Very slowly, with a shaking kobold even more panicked by her presence at first, she made her way back up. She was greeted with scared, curious and confused looks from the other kobold children. And from somewhere, the frantic voices of some older kobolds came closer. </p><p></p><p>"I doubt they would have been here in time," she mumbled and put her cargo down. </p><p></p><p>"Gnome?" one child asked in common, coming closer carefully. "Gnome help Garka."</p><p></p><p>"Oh you understand me then. A little, anyway." Carefully, Filbura put the child down and smiled at everyone. Then she looked at the frisbee. "Why do you play here where it is dangerous?"</p><p></p><p>"Can't go out anymore," an older child explained in much better grammar. "Not allowed since vampire moved in downstairs." </p><p></p><p>"Vampire?" Filbura's eyes went wide. "We saw no vampire in the lower levels." </p><p></p><p>"No, very down." The kobold frowned, trying to remember the word. "Base cement?"</p><p></p><p>“Basement,” the gnome corrected. “Good to know. How long has it been there?” The undead roaming the area suddenly seemed to make a lot more sense.</p><p></p><p>“Not know.” The little kobold frowned, trying to remember. “When bad wind came throwing ships at shore, think?” The child, probably a girl, thought Filbura, was looking questioningly at the others. They nodded. “Plant-come-out-wild-wind,” the kobold added, obviously translating literally from her own language. </p><p></p><p>“Spring storms,” Filbura nodded. That fit in well with what the people in the area had been describing. </p><p></p><p>By now, the grown ups were arriving, talking all over another in draconic, at first being suspicious of the gnome but quickly calming down when Garka, the rescued boy, explained what had happened. “You save little one, we grateful,” an older woman looking like she might be the chief and shaman in one person, said, bowing slightly. “But what you do here all alone? Place not good for lone hero.”</p><p></p><p>“Oh, I am not alone,” Filbura explained. “I am here with friends, but they wanted me to stand watch while they explored the locked room with the black curtains.”</p><p>For some reason, this caused a stir and cries of woe from the kobolds. “You alone now,” the chief cried out. “Them go in cursed room with look-ins, they never come out. You alone now.” Everyone looked at Filbura with an expression of grief, as much as she could tell kobold expressions. </p><p></p><p>“They should be fine, I’m sure,” the gnome said, not sure of the fact at all. “There was nothing in it, and the room had no other exits.”</p><p></p><p>“No way out for your eyes,” a warrior with a bow and lots of scars tried to explain. “Some ways are magic. Some ways are evil. Look-ins are evil, bring you to another place. Not come out again. We lost half the tribe when first we come live here. Then we closed room. You not see warnings?” </p><p></p><p>The gnome shook her head. “Just a locked door, with a very rusty lock. Easy to open. Look-ins?”</p><p></p><p>“Yes, look in and you see yourself the wrong way round,” the chief tried to explain. “Don’t know common word for.”</p><p></p><p>“Mirrors!” Filbura realized. “Those look-ins are covered by curtains? Falling clothes?” </p><p></p><p>Everyone nodded. “We make them not see anything anymore. All who look in are taken to the dragons knows where.” The warrior sighed. “Lost my mate, and my nest brother.”</p><p></p><p>“Excuse me, I need to check it out. I’m sure they are fine, but...” Filbura turned around and started running again. Only when she arrived and saw the alarmed expression of her animal friend did she notice the kobolds had all followed her and were arriving one after the other. “Did you hear from them?” she asked Ti’ir. She got a mental negative. Ever so carefully, she opened the door and peeked inside. It was pitch black. “Hello?” she called out. But she knew right then no one would answer. Not only the torch was gone, but so were her friends. </p><p></p><p>“Said so,” a younger kobold said, putting a bony hand on her shoulder. “All gone. Evil place. But you not alone, you have us, now. Can stay if you want, you help Garka, we help you.” </p><p></p><p>“I need to find them,” Filbura insisted. </p><p></p><p>“If they heroes, like you, might come back, no?” the fighter who had lost some of his family mused. “We no heroes, so we not come back. But maybe your friends help our friends? Maybe they end the look-ins?”</p><p></p><p>The chief-shaman nodded, only now understanding that they might actually be lucky and get rid of a threat. “Come, you stay with us, your companion friend, too. Tell us story what you were doing here, we tell you story how we come live in this place. We be friends.” </p><p></p><p>Not knowing what else to do, Filbura nodded.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Lwaxy, post: 6095739, member: 53286"] "This is so typical we bring home a new job, and no one is around. Oh well, can't do anything tonight, anyway." Deniv dropped the message they had picked up on the table and looked around. "But at least someone did the shopping." Milayn noticed the empty cup and the crystal missing. "If I'm not totally wrong, Viril and Yuja went somewhere for the serial killer investigation. But Where's Tjuja? Shouldn't she be back by now? It's almost midnight , and if I am not bad of hearing, she was supposed to be back way before then. Didn't she say her booth closed around tavern hour?" "Yeah, but who knows who she picked up, or if she is not visiting the taverns herself. Halfling, and all that." "True that. But our blue halfling was supposed to be home and clean the kitchen, it's his turn." Milayn wrinkled her nose at the state of said room. "But then, he had had excuses, and unfortunately good ones, for his last 5 turns." Resigned to the fact that someone would have to do it anyway, she started cleaning up. "Hey, the crystal ball is glowing." Deniv went to the small, blue crystal ball sitting on a table in the corner of the kitchen, glowing in a dark blue. It was one of a set the oracle had acquired from a customer lately. A handy communication device. This bigger ball served as a central hub of sorts, and 3 smaller ones could be carried and used to contact both the bigger ball and each other as long as you were in a certain range. Tjuja had taken one along to test out the range, and they had already found it worked outside the city where she was now. "Can only be Tjuja," he deducted, "as the other balls aren't in use. Unless Viril remembered to take one." The assassin shook her head. "Still up there," she pointed to a shelf. Deniv already tried to call back to Tjuja, but he only got static blue flickers. "Whatever it was about, she isn't ready to talk at the moment. Probably tried to tell us she is running late. We need to find out how to get this thing to record messages." It was a function they knew existed, but the blue for "someone has called" and green for "someone is calling" had been all they had figured out yet. "Well, then we don't need to wait for her to decide what's for late dinner." The woman began to look through their foods and then grabbed a basket of eggs and bread. "This fine for you? Also have bacon." "Sure thing." With a grateful smile, the man put the trash in the shaft downwards to the sewers and plopped himself into a chair. "Can't wait to get on the new job, especially seeing how this is a follow up on our first adventure." "Sure beats doing all the day to day stuff. I don't know how some people stand such boring lives. At least, Tjuja is out doing what she loves to do," the woman replied and went to work on dinner. But at that moment, Tjuja was not doing what she loved. She was doing what was needed to survive. It had, as most of the time with such situations, started out of the blue. One moment she had explained to a client that the reason she didn't have children was her unconscious rebellion against an abusive husband, the next moment there was shouting and yelling all around her tent, and she could hear the clang of weapons and the swoosh of arrows. Before she could get up and open the flap of her tent, the shouts got louder. The fighting seemed to be right outside. Her terrified client hid under the table and the next moment, something cut loose the strings holding the tent up, and the canvas came crashing down on them. While her client was relatively fine under the table, Tjuja became entangled in canvas, decoration and a rope. Panic crept up in her. With no idea what was going on other than that there was a fight, and being so trapped, she had a hard time thinking at all. Ever so slowly, she managed to get to the edge of the mess and look out with one eye. Still entangled, she could do nothing but stare at the sight right in front of her. A middle aged gnome fighter was hammering away at the shield of a halfling, who tried to defend himself with an axe while they were insulting each other. Some of what they said made little sense. "We'll nix you," the gnome cried at one point, to what the other replied "Lisp will prevail." She couldn't hear a lisp though, and right then, an arrow hit the canvas above her right arm, so she decided it was safer in all the mess than out. Not too long after, she heard what could only be a death cry right outside. Someone must have won the duel. Reaching for her part of the crystal ball, she contacted home, in the hopes of being able to let someone know what was going on, but no one was there. Slowly, the fighting died down and the noise abated. The sobbing of her client had also stopped, which was good as Tjuja didn't want to be found. She heard orders outside about searching the place. "Take the small ones and leave no survivors among the tall," she heard someone with a squeaky voice order. Someone lifted the canvas right next to her and stared right into her eyes. Behind the armor clad gnome woman that looked at her, Tjuja could see several more gnomes, halflings, a dwarf and what seemed to be goblins and kobolds. "I found a halfling," the woman shouted triumphantly. Then she turned back to Tjuja. "Anyone in the tent with you?" Her client, she knew, was in danger. She was a human, and thus a tall one, she guessed. So she shook her head. "What is going on?" she managed. "Later." The gnome started cutting her free. "But count yourself lucky to have met us." Tjuja saw no reason to count anyone lucky. Around the area, small and big bodies were laying, from what she could make out, they were all dead, including the elf woman who had been organizing the fair. Some other small folk were rounded up and brought to the edge of the field. "You will be coming with us," a rough looking halfling in a leather armor with an eye patch said. "We'll help you realize your true potential, your true destiny!" The way he spoke, Tjuja knew she was facing a fanatic. Whatever their mission was, it was not something she would want to be around, but it seemed s he had no choice. Strangely enough, without even being searched they were pushed onto a cart that was waiting for them in a thicket. Most of them, Tjuja couldn't quite exclude herself either, were shocked and confused. Her hand clasped around her communication device, but she could not attempt anything now, because a gnome and the dwarf were watching them. At the same time, our group back in the tower ruins just woke up. None of them had had a particularly good rest, all had had some sort of nightmares, mostly about being turned into stone by one thing or the other. That nothing had occurred while they had been sleeping was a good thing, however. After a bit of confusion how and where to do their morning toilet – another thing that's mostly ignored in stories you'll read – they decided to take it slow but steady. Filbura talked to their animal friend about what she might have heard. But other than some sounds like small feet scuttling around in some distance outside in the area they hadn't been to yet, there was no new information. Ti'ir went out the door first, sticking to the ground while making warning noises. Filbura would have preferred her to be quiet, and from the frown, Lorraine was also hoping for more stealth. But the displacer beast had decided that showing strong presence was the best option, and there was no way to convince her otherwise. "She says it smells kobold," Filbura explained. "The whole area must be swarming with them from what she says." "If there are any, they are hiding from us, probably with reason, " the fighter snorted. "Yeah because we are an armed group, invading their territory?" the bard suggested. "Kobolds are not the best fighters, unless they show up in swarms." "We'll see. In my experience – and I have a bit of that – kobolds are never good news. Let's just be careful." "Not only because of the kobolds," Filbura reminded them. "I don't exactly have a good feeling about all this." Quavin waved his hands around and concentrated for a moment. "Thought so. There is lots of magical energy around here, and I doubt it's coming from any kobolds." Then the elf pointed left and right to the grey stone walls with several wooden and iron doors set in them. "It's somehow like the whole area is covered by protection spells and other powerful stuff I have not seen before. Lots of different magic." The orc and the human were already, very carefully checking for traps, opening a few doors. None were locked, and all led to straw filled, mostly small chambers who definitely looked like they were usually occupied by kobolds. However, for kobolds, the rooms were surprisingly orderly and there was no trash. "Maybe some refugees from elsewhere making a home here," Zolan suggested. "I've seen it before – those who try to organize themselves are shunned by the other clans." "Could be but this magic thing has me worried." Lorraine pointed to the end of the walls to their left and right, where the top of the tower had a sort of open central court. It started raining just then, ever so slightly but ever so annoying. "We might want to get out of this confined space." "This door is locked," Zolan said just as they were about to get into the more open areas. "Guess not all kobolds like anyone spying on them." "Or maybe it's the only one who knows to operate a key," Lorraine grinned. “We should check it out in any case. We don't want..." "...anything falling in our backs, yeah," Moreelle finished and, to everyone's surprise, gave the wooden door a good kick. The lock broke immediately, barely holding together anyway due to rust. Only now it became apparent that no one could have used this door in a long time. "Maybe we should have kept it closed," the woman mused. "Probably don't need to check it out then?" Quavin hoped. "Unfortunately," the bard sighed, "things can lurk in such places slumbering for centuries. I don't have to tell you that, though." "Was just a thought." Making sure to stay in the back and ready to cast if needed, Quavin motioned for one of the others to go ahead. Lighting a torch and holding it inside the opening, Lorraine only found a room, maybe 4x4 meters wide, which had rows of black clothes hanging from the walls. After her eyes got adjusted to the relative dark, she noticed it looked like the cloth was covering doors. "Maybe some sort of meeting place where everyone comes in through a different door," she suggested upon showing the others. The displacer beast hissed. "She doesn't like it," Filbura said, a translation that was unnecessary. The human frowned at them. "Maybe it would be a good idea if you 2 stayed here as a watch. Just so nothing surprises us from outside, either." Filbura nodded and took a few steps back. As much as she hated being alone – and she had the displacer beast after all – she was definitely happy not to have to go in there. There had been too many dark and weird rooms for her taste in this building. The debating voices of her friends reached her from the opened door, but she couldn't understand what they were saying. Filbura was watching the displacer beast turning her attention to the end of the path they had been on when they had found this door. Her ears went back and forth, in a manner that told the gnome that Ti'ir was listening to something happening rather quickly. "What is it?" she asked her. "Kobold sounds," Ti'ir replied. "In panic. Sounds like very small kobolds." Filbura frowned and her ears strained to hear something, but all she could hear was the wind and some branches of high trees and bushes that had grown up here over the centuries. No surprise, as her ears weren't anywhere close to what the displacer beast's were. "From what direction?" she inquired. "Left behind the corner and what sounds some stairs down," Ti'ir answered. "They sound really afraid but I can't smell anything bad that might cause it." Filbura turned to tell this news to her friends, but they had gone quiet, so she assumed they had moved on a bit. "Right, we should check it out," she decided. "At least I should. Can you wait here and watch the door for me?" Ti'ir yawned as answer and put her behind down. She seemed to be almost grinning. Filbura nodded and started running towards the direction her friend had indicated. Indeed, as soon as she was close to the corner she could hear the panicked cries of young voices in a language she didn't understand but could make out as draconic. A group of kobold children soon came to view standing around a basin designed to collect rain water. The small wall around it was mostly broken off, and they were all staring down into it. Filbura was almost out of breath when she reached the group. They noticed her very late, and now the cries of panic were also for her. Everyone moved back from the basin, giving the gnome a chance to have a look. Several meters below, a kobold was hanging on to a gnarled root emerging from the wall. On another root a bit below some sort of toy was stuck. It was obvious that the child had been trying to reach it. A rope that had been tied around the waist had been torn somehow, and now it was impossible to either reach the toy or get out again. Filbura mumbled something about always needing more than one rope and went through her backpack in a hurry. Within seconds, she had tied the rope to the same old pump the kobolds had used for theirs and was climbing down. She didn't trust the kobold to be able to let go with one hand and grab it. It was not difficult for her to get down, grab the kobold and then the toy – some sort of frisbee - after all, if he had risked his life for it and they were already down there, it made no sense to leave it there. Very slowly, with a shaking kobold even more panicked by her presence at first, she made her way back up. She was greeted with scared, curious and confused looks from the other kobold children. And from somewhere, the frantic voices of some older kobolds came closer. "I doubt they would have been here in time," she mumbled and put her cargo down. "Gnome?" one child asked in common, coming closer carefully. "Gnome help Garka." "Oh you understand me then. A little, anyway." Carefully, Filbura put the child down and smiled at everyone. Then she looked at the frisbee. "Why do you play here where it is dangerous?" "Can't go out anymore," an older child explained in much better grammar. "Not allowed since vampire moved in downstairs." "Vampire?" Filbura's eyes went wide. "We saw no vampire in the lower levels." "No, very down." The kobold frowned, trying to remember the word. "Base cement?" “Basement,” the gnome corrected. “Good to know. How long has it been there?” The undead roaming the area suddenly seemed to make a lot more sense. “Not know.” The little kobold frowned, trying to remember. “When bad wind came throwing ships at shore, think?” The child, probably a girl, thought Filbura, was looking questioningly at the others. They nodded. “Plant-come-out-wild-wind,” the kobold added, obviously translating literally from her own language. “Spring storms,” Filbura nodded. That fit in well with what the people in the area had been describing. By now, the grown ups were arriving, talking all over another in draconic, at first being suspicious of the gnome but quickly calming down when Garka, the rescued boy, explained what had happened. “You save little one, we grateful,” an older woman looking like she might be the chief and shaman in one person, said, bowing slightly. “But what you do here all alone? Place not good for lone hero.” “Oh, I am not alone,” Filbura explained. “I am here with friends, but they wanted me to stand watch while they explored the locked room with the black curtains.” For some reason, this caused a stir and cries of woe from the kobolds. “You alone now,” the chief cried out. “Them go in cursed room with look-ins, they never come out. You alone now.” Everyone looked at Filbura with an expression of grief, as much as she could tell kobold expressions. “They should be fine, I’m sure,” the gnome said, not sure of the fact at all. “There was nothing in it, and the room had no other exits.” “No way out for your eyes,” a warrior with a bow and lots of scars tried to explain. “Some ways are magic. Some ways are evil. Look-ins are evil, bring you to another place. Not come out again. We lost half the tribe when first we come live here. Then we closed room. You not see warnings?” The gnome shook her head. “Just a locked door, with a very rusty lock. Easy to open. Look-ins?” “Yes, look in and you see yourself the wrong way round,” the chief tried to explain. “Don’t know common word for.” “Mirrors!” Filbura realized. “Those look-ins are covered by curtains? Falling clothes?” Everyone nodded. “We make them not see anything anymore. All who look in are taken to the dragons knows where.” The warrior sighed. “Lost my mate, and my nest brother.” “Excuse me, I need to check it out. I’m sure they are fine, but...” Filbura turned around and started running again. Only when she arrived and saw the alarmed expression of her animal friend did she notice the kobolds had all followed her and were arriving one after the other. “Did you hear from them?” she asked Ti’ir. She got a mental negative. Ever so carefully, she opened the door and peeked inside. It was pitch black. “Hello?” she called out. But she knew right then no one would answer. Not only the torch was gone, but so were her friends. “Said so,” a younger kobold said, putting a bony hand on her shoulder. “All gone. Evil place. But you not alone, you have us, now. Can stay if you want, you help Garka, we help you.” “I need to find them,” Filbura insisted. “If they heroes, like you, might come back, no?” the fighter who had lost some of his family mused. “We no heroes, so we not come back. But maybe your friends help our friends? Maybe they end the look-ins?” The chief-shaman nodded, only now understanding that they might actually be lucky and get rid of a threat. “Come, you stay with us, your companion friend, too. Tell us story what you were doing here, we tell you story how we come live in this place. We be friends.” Not knowing what else to do, Filbura nodded. [/QUOTE]
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