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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Kidjake" data-source="post: 6773218" data-attributes="member: 6776876">We pick up from the end of our last session with Hezrael dragging his master's unconscious body through the forest as Eadric brings up the rear, leaping into action and axekicking any spider that pokes its head out in their path until it no longer wishes to be in their path.It seems to be working, but any time a spider runs away alive it seems to pick up their trail once they've passed by. Eventually it seems as though half the forest is swarming after them, just out of sight. By the time they break through the tree line Eadric can swear that dozens of forms are rushing in behind them but is too focused on running to check.A barrage of whistling arrows fills the air behind them and Lark, along with 4 of his rangers in training and Longarm, are loosing volley after volley into the already injured spiders. The monstrous vermin decide to pull back and let their prey go for now.As Kavos is out of it, Eadric attempts to explain the situation but his mental faculties are rapidly diminishing without his Intelligence amulets and his startling revelation of driders and ettercaps apparently forming a spider army bent on destruction quickly devolves into him pantomiming a spider eating and making 'nom, nom, nom' noises.Lark and Longarm look at each other nervously before deciding that they'll have to deal with their deputy mayor going insane later, when they have more time. For the present they escort their battered leaders to the ruins of Westbank where they take refuge in the remains of Rambalt's home and Lark works the last of his ranger magic to bring Kavos back around."You alright?" Lark asks, placing a hand on Kavos's chest to prevent him from getting up too fast. "Feel like everything's where it should be?"Kavos shakes his head slowly and hoarsely whispers "Nothing is where it should be,. We have to return to the keep, now."Longarm nods, "We need to hurry, we'll be lucky if that damned sniper hasn't resituated himself by now.""He'd be a fool." Kavos responds with more confidence than any one man should have, shakily crawling to his feet with the help of Lark. "I dismantled him once, I'll do it again if need be."The party wearily exits the last house in Westbank and begin their trek to the keep when an earth shaking roar rings out overhead and the large form of Ro'than'dur comes into view; apparently pissed.The green dragon lands clumsily in his rush to reach them, nearly tripping over his own feet as he bellows "What are you doing to me!?" at the trembling Eadric.Kavos, Longarm and Lark all take a step back in shock and Eadric chuckles nervously. "Fought Farakim...lost fight...lost amulets." Eadric explains."Amulets?" Ro'than'dur asks, confusion evident on his reptilian face."Need them back, before too stupid." Eadric responds unhelpfully.The dragon shakes his head, "I don't..." and then it dawns on him. "So that's why you aren't digging in the dirt and filth with your brothers. You were...artificially enlightened."Eadric rubs his temples, his head aching unbearably as he loses IQ points by the minute. "I..." the little kobold has trouble forming a response before rage appears on Ro'than'dur's face as the same pain flares through HIS head."FIX THIS KOBOLD!" Ro'than'dur bellows. "Playing the part of your nanny was an indignity I could almost bear, but I will kill us BOTH before I allow you to turn me into some drooling beast!"Seeing that this might very well grow out of control, Kavos steps in. "We'll get the amulet back once we find the creature known as Farakim." the cleric assures the enraged dragon. "In the meantime, perhaps Rambalt could provide a temporary solution at the Keep. Just come with us to the mountains and-"Ro'than'dur growls low and threateningly before lowering his head. "Get on, we fix this NOW! The peasants can take the long way."Turning to Longarm, Lark and the rangers Kavos says "Without me, the sniper shouldn't bother you if he IS in the mountains. Just to be safe however, keep your heads down and move slowly."They nod in agreement as Kavos and Eadric mount the dragon and take to the air."Where did you find Farakim?" Kavos asks the kobold once they're airborne. Eadric struggles to remember the directions that the Fire Idol gave to him but eventually sighs in defeat. "Forest near road..." Eadric stammers."How far?" Kavos asks.The kobold shakes his head. "Not sure...can't remember." Eadric says, a pained look on his face as he forces himself to slow down and say "I cannot remember more than that."The trip is relatively short as Ro'than'dur simply bypasses the difficult and unforgiving terrain altogether. The keep appears dark and forboding in the dim moonlight and as Ro'than'dur lands in the courtyard its age and disrepair become painfully apparent.The displaced townspeople are setting up a temporary camp in the spacious courtyard, trampling weeds and brambles as they attempt to avoid the more egregious of holes. The mighty wooden gates which guard the keep are all but rotting away and appear to be falling apart in great chunks.Kavos does however notice that the Keep is large and well built, seemingly carved into the mountain itself, and will easily house the former occupants of Wesbank once it's made more hospitable. More than house, it will protect them once a few simple repairs are performed."Where are we?" Eadric asks, having missed the move."Home." Kavos replies, lowering himself off the dragon and gritting in pain. "Where are Longarm and the ranger Lark?" Father Adrian asks worriedly, approaching the battered adventurers at a trot. "We received word that there was trouble.""They're fine." Kavos says reassuringly. "They're on their way here now, Eadric has a matter of some importance to discuss with Professor Rambalt and you and I have a great deal of work to do before the morning."Father Adrian sighs in relief and nods. "I'd say so."With a nod, Kavos says to Adrian "Meet me in my quarters in ten minutes with writing supplies. I have an idea that may very well save what's left of Westbank's people."Father Adrian rushes to get things ready and Kavos turns to rest a reassuring hand on Eadric's shoulder. "We'll get your amulets back Eadric, the moment we've recovered we'll ride out and teach him what happens to our...Eadric... What happened to your hand?" Kavos asks in shock, noticing for the first time the kobold's missing fingers of his left hand. "What did Farakim do to you?"Eadric shakes his head. "Fire Idol's price, not Farakim's. He can't see our dreams, can't control us anymore. I fixed it..."Kavos shakes his head sadly at the kobold's sacrifice. "We'll fix this Eadric. I promise." the cleric says, patting his partner on the back reassuringly before excusing himself to meet Adrian.Ro'than'dur growls irritably and wordlessly reveals two stiff and unmoving talons on his left claw, already beginning to shrivel away. Eadric slumps down, even more disheartened now than he was. "I...I didn't....""Find your mage." Ro'than'dur says, his eyes narrowing dangerously. "Fix this!"Kavos finds himself in the lord's chambers, a spacious suite of rooms which at one time were the finest in the Keep though now that's a bit like saying they're the shiniest turd in the pile. The once lavish decorations are peeling from the walls and the smell of mildew is absolutely overpowering. It has promise though.Lighting a few candles to drive away the shadows and pouring himself a glass of wine, Kavos sits at a thick, decaying desk and silently drafts a letter as Adrian paces nervously."Enemies surround us in every direction Father Adrian, we need a solution that doesn't end with us getting murdered to the last man." Kavos finally says, glancing up from his work.Father Adrian nods, "I obviously agree. But what do you propose?"All but ignoring the question, Kavos replies "The Keep is in great shape for having been abandoned for as long as it has been, but I couldn't help but notice that the front gates are collapsing. Have them repaired or replaced immediately, put every available man on it before first light and put our sharpest eyes on the walls until further notice."Father Adrian nods. "I'll have them start as soon as we're done here. I'll also station Longarm on the wall once he gets back, just in case.""Excellent." Kavos says. "Next up is the smell of the place. Have the women burn the tapestries and rugs, then start scrubbing the place down. Anything they're unsure about, have them burn it.""You're avoiding the question." Adrian points out. "What are you writing?"Kavos sighs and hands the letter to Father Adrian nervously.Father Adrian murmurs softly to himself as he reads. "Hasty desertion...wasted potential...Lord of Blackstone...loyal vassal..." the priest's blood runs cold in his veins as he reads Kavos's proposal to pledge himself, and by extension the Keep and its citizens, to the Duke in exchange for the title of Count. . Father Adrian all but gapes as he sputters out "This...this is a sick joke. The Duke is a monster and a madman, we can't..no, we WON'T bow our knee to him!" his voice is cold and very nearly threatening by the end.With a smile, Kavos says "I agree. If we are to strike at the Duke however, we'll have to get close to him. We don't have the men to march on Lonegate, so we'll have to find some way to bring him here."Father Adrian strokes his chin and nods slowly. "The Duke is a private man and even accepting such an offer is no guarantee we'll receive an audience with him...though it may at least give us the chance to GATHER the men needed to march on Lonegate. Just be careful not to be [i[too[/i] inviting or he may feel it only proper to send a contingent of men to 'protect' his new citizens."Kavos nods in agreement. "It's a longshot, I know. But if it buys us another day that's a day we didn't have before... Now that the business with the Duke and fortifications is out of the way....Eadric. How much do you know of him? Has he spoken with you?"Adrian shakes his head. "I'd imagine you know him better than any of us. He doesn't seem to mingle all that much..."Kavos shakes his head. "There's much we don't know about him...he speaks of dark deals with Fire Idols and magical amulets which he apparently depends on, but elaborates little if at all. He's a mystery, and that makes me nervous....however, he saved the town from Dolph and me...from Gandil."Father Adrian's eyes widen in shock. "Gandil is back...again?""He's been reincarnated by the druid Ibaeli, transformed into a drider." Kavos explains. "We fought, but he struck me down...would have killed me if not for Eadric's intervention, I'm sure."Father Adrian rubs his temples. "That's certainly going to complicate things. He was always...high spirited.... Does anyone else know?""Only Eadric, but he didn't know Gandil from before." Kavos replies."How are we to handle this?" Adrian asks. "The town believes that Gandil died a hero, to find out otherwise may undermine us.""Ibaeli twisted our hero and reanimated a monster." Kavos replies simply. "Whatever he was in life, is no more."Father Adrian shakes his head sadly and sighs. "Things just keep getting worse it would seem...though there does seem to be a glimmer of good news. That man Rambalt stumbled onto your..um 'luggage' while it was being unloaded. I was worried how he'd react, but the little man seems to be strangely comfortable with hidden corpses. He was quite excited to take Dolph's corpse with him for study, he said he believed he had an idea that could hold off the rest of The 8."Kavos smiles. "Rambalt has been an exceedingly valuable member of our town since the moment he arrived, I'm curious to see what he's worked up...though I believe it will have to wait for the morning. I need rest."Father Adrian nods at Kavos's wounds. "Get some sleep. I'll see to the repairs in the meantime."Kavos voices his appreciation and passes out before his head hits the pillow.Rambalt has more or less taken over the labyrinth like lower level of the keep, preferring to have thick walls between the rest of the populace and his experiments. His assorted stuff is mostly boxed up, however he's begun setting up a makeshift lab in the dusty cellar.Eadric explains his situation as best he can, admitting to Rambalt that his cleverness can be primarily attributed to his magical amulets and that every minute he's away from them he can feel himself becoming more and more like his dim-witted brethren. He's nearly at full panic by the time he gets around to asking if Rambalt could make him a new amulet or if maybe he has one just sitting around...Rambalt shakes his head as he listens to Eadric and says "Those amulets are rare and powerful, I don't know how you managed to get one but you're unlikely to find another around here.""But...you can make one?" Eadric asks hopefully.Rambalt sighs. "I'm afraid I simply don't don't have those kinds of resources. With enough time maybe I could get the materials together, but... Actually, it's not ideal but I may have a short term solution."Eadric perks up considerably as Rambalt begins unloading the contents of a box of potions, the professor draws out a pale blue potion and beams broadly."It's not a solution, but it should help." he explains, placing the vial in Eadric's hand. "It will only last about four hours at a time, but it should retard-"Eadric's eyes narrow."I'm sorry...it should slow down your intelligence loss and temporarily return you to your usual self until we can find a more permanent solution." Rambalt says."How many do you have? How many can you make?" Eadric nearly shouts."It's a lengthy process and I don't even have my lab up and running yet..." Rambalt responds. "At present I've got three that you can have, but it'll take me a day or two to start brewing again. I'd estimate I could crank out one a day with our current supplies, maybe two."Eadric breathes a sigh of relief and downs one of the potions as Rambalt sets about packing the others into a soft, protective case for Eadric to carry them around in.The kobold closes his eyes and just enjoys the sensation of his mind working at full tilt for a moment and then looks at Rambalt, scribbling a hasty list as he speaks. "I've got four hours to make preparations before I'm back to banging sticks together to try and make fire, I'll need these items if I'm going to bring Farakim down.""How are you going to bring Farakim down with...knives, rope and smoke pellets?" Rambalt asks incredulously.Eadric shrugs as he begins going over his extracts, picking out the ones he intends to use in the morning. "I haven't figured that out yet, but I've still got...three hours and fifty three minutes to go."Come morning the Keep is a bustling place. The women are tearing the place apart to get rid of the mold and mildew and the men are doing what they can to put it back together again. New gates are being constructed in the court yard and their stores of wood are rapidly diminishing. Father Adrian pitches in where he can with Mending to conserve their supplies, but it's a lengthy process and he's a busy man.Kavos steps out into the fresh air early, still haggard and sore from the day before but no longer on death's door and wanting to get some work done. The first thing he notices is the dragon Ro'than'dur sleeping in the center of the courtyard, the citizens go around to avoid interacting with it, but it's obviously an annoyance.Kavos sighs irritably and moves to direct it out of the way when he sees Looman hurrying past on some important errand."Looman!" Kavos calls out, catching the deputies attention. Before Looman even has a chance to respond a letter is pressed into his hand. "Find Devon and deliver this to Lonegate, it's of the utmost importance."Looman looks around. "But I'm supposed to-""Looman!" Kavos snaps. "This may be the most important thing you'll ever do. Make sure that this letter reaches Lonegate safely, no matter what else happens. Find somebody else to take over your duties here and leave at once."Looman nods grimly. "Yessir, I'll fetch Devon and set out within the hour."Kavos pats the young man on the back as he rushes off. "Good man!" the cleric calls after the deputy turned messenger."Kavos. We have to go." Eadric says, stepping out from beside the elderly priest and causing him to jump. "I'm in my right mind, and will be for another hour. I know where we can find Farakim.""Are you sure?" Kavos asks, interest and a little dread creeping into his voice. His interest is further pique by the sight of Eadric sporting visible daggers and what he assumes to be a handmade bola at the kobold's hip. "Don't we need more time to prepare?"Eadric shakes his head as he awakens the sleeping Ro'than'dur and leaps onto the dragon's back. "No time. This is the clearest I'm likely to be for the forseeable future, so it's now or never. Will you help me get my amulets back, or do I have to go alone?"Kavos looks up at the determined little kobold and tries to count the number of times that Eadric's already saved his life in the short time they've known each other. With a sigh he grabs onto the side of Ro'than'dur and pulls himself onto the dragon's back just before it takes to the air.This partnership would either turn out to be a very long one, or very short.</blockquote>

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