[Edit]Edited into past tense on 25th September 2004[Edit]
Ice, Luck and Honour
Chapter 5: The Early Wyrm Catches The Birds
Early to Middle Winter, Realms Date 1372
…Breathing heavily, Thalin slumped back against the lichen-coated wall and rolled his head to the side, looking down the wide corridor that they sat in. Five small blue-skinned humanoids gazed back in fear at the three invaders. Wide translucent eyes blinked rapidly in the halflight of the corridor. Dropping their bag of fish in front of them, the creatures emitted a series of loud ‘clicks’ before racing into the next room, and out of sight...
The heroes sat in a broad corridor, almost twenty feet wide but only six foot high. Every inch of wall, ceiling and floor bore a thick carpet of moss. Milo admired the natural blends of colours, the bursts of blue and green reminding him of his father's sporadic painting phases. But that was years ago, and many many miles away.
Watching the five creatures disappear through an entrance heavy with moss, Torious rapidly healed himself, and after a concentrated effort, the broken skin on his chest knitted together. Looking up, Torious saw Milo staring in amazement at the priest’s healing powers. The halfling was distracted by a heavy thud that echoed from the direction that the creatures had escaped.
Leaving the priest to pick himself up, Milo leapt over the spilled fish and ragged netting towards the entrance, his shortsword drawn. Dariel dug his talons into Thalin’s shoulder to say that there were more to come, and swooped after the halfling, knowing full well what the halfling was capable of on his own.
Using Erifeci as a crutch, Thalin levered himself to his feet then checked that his spell book and components weren’t damaged in the escape from the spider. Satisfied that everything was safe and secure, Thalin stalked over the sodden ground towards the entrance that Milo had disappeared through.
Torious crouched to his knees,
“Why was I not taken?” prayed the aasimar quietly, “must I die and die again until I am worthy of your favour… father?”
Not waiting for the inevitable silence to his questions, Torious stood and gripping Justicar in one hand and his holy symbol in the other, followed the mage.
- - - - - - - - - -
Stepping cautiously into the room, Milo’s eyes swooped over the cluttered room. A carpet of moss extended over the floor and walls, hiding moulded lumps of what could have been desks and chairs in the corner of the room. However, one wall was completely untouched by the spongy growth. An open wooden door stood creaking across from the halfling, similar in craftsmanship to the door now holding the sword spider at bay. Through the opening was a long, cylindrical passage with an even thicker bed of moss lining the floor, leading to an open circular wooden door.
Torious let a shout out as he spotted the five creatures heave the door shut at the end of the moss-floor corridor. Before the priest could even move, a small metallic chime issued from the door as the handle spun clockwise once, then stopped.
“Locked” stated Torious dryly.
“Well, there might be another way out” said Thalin in reply, warily glancing back towards the sword spider door.
Torious and Thalin began to check over the untouched wall, ignoring the moss-ridden tunnel for now.
“It’s magic. The plant growth won’t touch it,” said Thalin over his shoulder, not wanting to divert his attention from the stone work in front of him.
Taking a calculated risk, Thalin reached to touch the bare stone but his hand hit an invisible resistance inches from the wall.
A sudden, deep, disembodied voice echoed a series of dwarven words through the room. Torious instinctively dropped to a crouch. Milo leapt backwards from the table top, yelping as Isplit digs his claws through his shirt. Thalin began to draw an arcane rune in the air as Dariel flattened himself to the floor.
Milo’s eyes closed for a second as he searched back to his maligned childhood dwarven lessons.
“Full. Locked. Departed.” said Thalin and Torious in unison. Milo looked dejected for a moment then sprung forwards and went to touch the wall. The same effect.
“Full. Locked. Departed.” said Milo as the echoes died down, sticking his tongue out at his companions as he skipped backwards and began to look at the moss covered stacks in the corners of the room.
Thalin suggested the wall was some kind of door and really shouldn’t be challenged further. Any defensive magic would probably still be active. Leaving Milo and Torious checking the sodden stacks, Thalin ventured into the cylindrical corridor.
Milo found nothing more than two tarnished gems amid the moss, and already thoroughly bored, went to join Thalin. Torious cast back a layer of moss with Justicar to reveal a stonework trough, where small luminescent fish swam lazily.
“I think this is a storeroom for those creatures,” said Torious, more to himself than to his companions. Dariel landed next to the priest and hopping along the trough rim, began to pick out a choice meal.
“Torious! Milo! Come and look at this,” shouted Thalin from the cylinder room. Torious stalked in and crouched next to the mage, whilst Milo darted further down the tunnel. Thalin carefully withdrew a small silver hunting knife from the depths of the moss, “There are holes all over the floor.” Thalin said, his thoughts suddenly racing towards an answer, “It’s a drainage system”. The mage’s eyes widened and he swung around just in time to see Milo hop up and grab the circular handle at the end of the corridor.
“Milo! You fool…”
But the mage's words were drowned out as a far off thunderous rush of noise filled the passageway. Milo sprung back with a scared shout towards his companions. With a wooden thud the entrance door to the passage way slammed tightly shut, trapping the heroes in. Thalin watched in horror as a thin line of water trickled from a hidden vent, then moments later an explosion of water thundered into the chamber. Torious roared something over the thunder of the water, but could not be heard by Thalin or Milo… Where was Milo? Torious searched urgently for the halfling, but only saw himself and Thalin on one side of the cascade of water that was quickly filling the room.
Suddenly Torious spotted Milo, the unconscious halfling surfaced for a moment before being violently dragged under again. Handing Thalin his sword, Torious took two powerful steps then plunged into the swelling water, which has already reached chest height. Thalin watched the shadow of Torious vanish under the torrent of white. Dropping Justicar and using Erifeci as a focus, Thalin discarded the painful feelings of separation from his familiar and began to draw the Weave around him, channelling it into the magical door.
- - - - - - - - - -
The five blue-skinned goblins gurgled in agreement as they tilted their heads against the outside of the door. With a smooth dialect of snaps, clicks and burrs, they quickly came to a decision, then with dextrous ease, climbed the lichen coated ladder towards the circle of sunlight above.
- - - - - - - - - -
Torious planted his legs onto the bottom of the passage way and with a grunt of effort, broke the surface of the water, holding the unconscious Milo above him. Drawing on his powers, Torious filled the halfling with restorative energy. Seconds later Milo spluttered to consciousness. With a shout of defiance, Torious edged himself into the path of the surging water, shielding the halfling from the vent. With a roar of exertion, Torious pushed Milo sideways to safety then dove after him, taking a sudden rush of speed as the water forced him outwards.
Thalin drove Erifeci harder into the door as the water splashed over his head. Focusing his mind, he searched for the correct incantation. As each verse came into his head, words were dashed away by the heaving water. Suddenly the water covered his ears and the chaotic sounds blended into a single, steady roar. Forcing all other thoughts out of his mind, Thalin screamed the arcane words as they came to him, sending a stream of bubbles in front of his eyes. With a quick draw back, then a violent thrust of Erifeci, the door groaned then swung outwards. Thalin, Torious and Milo spilled onto a rusted circular grate.
With a screeching whine, the water level abruptly dropped as the holes in the floor opened. Underneath them, the water fell into a deep shaft. Opening his eyes as the water drained around him, Milo gazed upwards to the circle of light at the top of the shaft.
- - - - - - - - - -
The five creatures watched intently for a moment, monitoring the three adventurers as they picked themselves up from the floor. Clicking hurriedly between each other, they all screeched as a crossbow bolt buzzed angrily out of the shaft and high into the afternoon air. Jumping to their webbed feet, the blue-skinned goblins turned and plunged into their lake, cutting swift arcs towards the far side.
- - - - - - - - - -
With a clatter, Justicar landed on the ground beside the shaft entrance. Moments later Torious had pulled himself upwards and rolled onto the stony surface. Dariel swooped above him, glad to be in flight again. An icy wind cuts into the priest as he stood slowly, surveying the terrain about him.
Immediately ahead of Torious was a brilliant clear lake that lapped gently against a sheer cliff on one side and a shingled shore on the other. The azure water and expanse of open sky assaulted his senses. With a sinking feeling, Torious saw that the shores of the lake bordered onto a towering lip of smoothed rock on every side, creating a natural enclosure in the mountain side. Or perhaps a prison, thought Torious.
Milo dragged himself onto the rocky edge and gazed out over the lake. He pointed a shivering finger at the throng of blue goblins swarming on the far shore.
“Looks like we’re guests of honour,” said Milo dryly as he unsheathed Vampire. Torious narrowed his eyes at Milo’s new blade for a moment, before looking to the opposite shore. The tip of a small tower stood amid a curious pattern of triangular craters that dominated the small beach.
“There might be a way out, it could well be some sort of gate house,” said Thalin, hoping that the sword spider would not have to be faced again.
- - - - - - - - - -
Lyle slowly wrapped the reins of his horse around the branch with his remaining arm. With a final twist of the leather the horse was secured, from bolting away yes, but not from any goblins drawn by the scent. However, he knew taking the horse into the mines would be impossible. With a final pat on the horses nose, Lyle unhitched his sword and gilded hunting horn, then slid them into his belt next to the small leather pouch.
Stopping at the shadowed doorway, Lyle dug a small pair of metal goggles from his pocket and placed them securely over his eyes. Turning towards the mines, a lonely dwarf spirit drifted through the ragged rock face and stopped to look at Lyle with hollow eyes. Using the powers within the lenses he now wore, Lyle glanced at the ghostly figure without any fear, for the spirit was dead, and he was not. With a thin smile at the thought of what pains he would inflict on that bastard of an ice mage, Lyle Blackrock slipped through the doorway and faded into the haunted darkness within.
- - - - - - - - - -
Milo dropped onto the shingled beach as another javelin clattered a few feet to his left. The Aarakocra swooped low again, but turned too late as Torious swept Justicar through the air. The blow tore the birdman’s wing clean off in a flare of red feathers. With a shrill squawk, the feathered body spiralled into the lake where it floundered for a moment before suddenly being snatched under by a dozen or more small blue hands.
Thalin leapt the last slippery foothold and hopped onto the sanded edge of one of the craters. Unslinging his crossbow from his shoulder, he found a foothold in the sand. The mage levelled his crossbow at one of the circling Aarakocras and snapped off a shot. Three javelins returned fire, but all flew uselessly wide.
Milo stood and looked behind him at the rising tower they were edging towards. Its windows were bordered up and half of the tower roof was collapsed. The harsh wind didn’t reach this enclave next to the tower, and was surprisingly peaceful. A high-pitched scream alerted the halfling to the diving birdman in just enough time to shift sideways as the Aarakocra landed with a wet thud into the sand.
Torious leapt from the last foothold and twirled Justicar through the air as he landed, severing the birdman's head from its body as it tried to take to the air again. The decapitated body continued to glide for a moment then plummeted into a crater in the shallows of the lake. The water goblins advanced towards the dead body on their hands and knees, not wanting to incur the wrath of the bird killers.
- - - - - - - - - -
Lyle crouched to the floor and examined the tread mark before him, with a nod of recognition he sneered at the three dwarf spirits who had come to watch his progress. Lyle stood, and despite being used to such things, angrily swatted at the newfound followers with his sword (which passed right through the apparitions). With a snarl of annoyance, Lyle got up quickly and exitted towards the main chamber with a swift stride. Brushing through a spider web as it caught on his face, plans of attack began to flow through Lyle’s mind, all ending in the grisly fate of that damned ice mage.
- - - - - - - - - -
Thalin guided his hand through the air, forcing his will into the minds of as many of the Aarakocras as he could, soothing them into unconsciousness. With a series of subdued screeches, half a dozen birdmen plummeted from the air and landed with heavy splashes into the water. The remainder of the goblins on the far shore eagerly dove in and cut swift lines towards the sleeping bodies.
With a cacophony of squeals and squawks, the remainder of the birdmen circled away angrily and fluttered back to a grassy ledge on the cliff face. Milo shook his fist at the fleeing birdmen as he removed a javelin that dangled from his backpack, shouting his revenge for hurting his mother’s travel bag.
Suddenly, the water goblins on both the near shore and the ones dragging the birdmen bodies down, turned and clicking hurriedly to each other, all dove downwards and disappeared into the depths of the lake. Watching this with a smile, Milo nodded at the effect that his warnings of halfling-wrath had on the goblins, as well as the birdmen.
Torious had already stepped up to the tower door and was motioning for the mage and halfling to join him. Holding his hand for silence, Torious listened intently for a moment then held a single finger in the air and pointed inside.
“One?” said Milo quickly, hoping he could beat the mage to this puzzle’s answer.
Torious looked astonished at the halfling’s lack of tact then quickly barged the door down, not wanting to give whatever was inside more time to prepare than it already had.
A middle-aged man in polished scale male stood up in a rush, surprised by his visitor’s entrance etiquette. Torious skidded to a stop as he saw the man.
The man cleared his throat and introduced himself as if he were a host of a dinner party, “Hello friends. I am Zalaznir, I do hope you come in peace”. His wavy brown hair swayed as he spoke. Placing his longsword against the wall, he offered his hand to Torious.
Torious looked warily at Zalaznir before accepting and shaking his extended hand. Thalin and Milo watched the man carefully as they stepped slowly into the tower. Its walls were dirty and slick with lichen, and a rotten stairway led upwards to the broken tower above.
“So you have travelled through the mines, yes?” asked Zalaznir, now directing his questions at Thalin with a disarming smile, “Strange that you have brought such a young child along. Well, I suppose it is quite a lovely place if you look in the right places.”
Milo went to correct the man; not wanting to be thought of as a child by anyone at all, least of all a strange old man sitting in a broken tower. But Thalin cut in before Milo could reply,
“So what are you doing… you don’t live here, do you?” asked Thalin, motioning to surrounding lichen.
“Oh certainly not. I am a wandering paladin of the holy order of Lathander, and have tracked the greatest of evils to this very lake!”
“What, the goblins?” replied Thalin, throwing a sideways glance at Milo, who began laughing into the hem of his shirt.
“No, not the goblins. I am here to challenge the mightiest of dragons to single combat, so as to prove myself to the Morning Lord,” said Zalaznir proudly, and in complete seriousness.
Thalin and Milo suddenly realised the reason for the imprisoned lake and the unusual craters. Spinning in horror, they saw Torious outside of the tower, staring into the sky.
Torious stood, his mouth lolling open in awe as a mighty red-skinned wyrm, easily more than three hundred feet in length, circled once with a single beat of its huge wings, then landed on the shoreline with an earth shuddering thud. As it landed, a wounded birdman was pressed deep into a fresh crater with a stab of a huge talon. Its immense size almost filled the entire beach; the heaving weight of the creature was adorned with hundreds of battle scars. The grand wyrm snaked its head around with a wicked snarl of amusement, seeing that the tower has drawn another visitor.
Thalin and Milo scrambled backwards in a panic, a fear gripping them so pure and white that it numbed everything else to shadow. Dariel and Isplit both dropped to the floor, unconscious. Pressing themselves deep into the far corner of the tower, the two companions could only watch, soundlessly shivering, as Zalaznir lifted his sword up onto his shoulder with a sharp sigh of exertion. Testing that his shield was strapped on securely, the paladin strode confidently out towards the colossal dragon.
The dragon’s mouth pulled back in a ripple of muscles, revealing a deadly fanged smirk as Zalaznir stepped out of the tower. Titling his head back to look the dragon eye to eye, Zalaznir shouted out with not a trace of fear,
“Klauth, I come here to destroy you. I, and my new found companions challenge you.”
Zalaznir stuck his thumb over his shoulder, pointing to where Torious stood with his mouth hanging open…
To be continued...
