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Message: <blockquote data-quote="the Jester" data-source="post: 1779280" data-attributes="member: 1210">6/16/368, 8:30 p.m., just outside the hidden monastery“This place is horrible,” whispers Sandy.  “Did you see what they did to the food?”Miserably, Federico nods.  Timothy doesn’t respond; he seems distracted by some interior dialogue, or perhaps a rock or plant or the stars or something.  Timothy and Sandy wander the grounds of the monastery.  They have already seen the gardens, which hang with vegetables and a few fruits.  They wander over to the head of the Path of Humility, which winds slowly down the face of the mountain to the plains below.“Hey,” says Sandy, “look down there!”At the base of the mountain a small encampment seems to have formed, as if of its own volition.  There are a number of rude tents and several weird lizard creatures tethered near them.  In the gathering darkness, our heroes can just make out the red-orange forms of more of the fire-breathing newt-men that ambushed them on their way to the monastery.  There is an occasional gout of fire from them.“Uh oh,” Timothy mumbles.“We’d better get help,” Sandy states decisively.  “There are a lot of them down there...”“Um, aren’t we supposed to keep the monks from knowing they’re in danger?”Sandy gives Timothy a look.  “Listen, Timmy, we can’t take all those creatures by ourselves!”  But he winces even as the words escape his mouth, and he braces for what he knows will come next.  “No- not Timmy!  I’m Timothy!”  The autistic kid starts rocking back and forth, moaning.  Sandy sighs.“Come on, Timothy, you’re a big boy!  Remember, you’re on the program now- Timmy is a good halfling name...”“Ahhh!  Timothy- I’m Timothy!”Sandy heaves a sigh.  “Right.”  He waits patiently as Timothy settles out of his fit, then urges the other to accompany him and seek out aid.  “There has to be someone young here,” he reasons.“I think those old guys are it...”Timothy is wrong, but he is not far off.  Our two intrepid halflings walk swiftly about the grounds until they find the only figure that they have not yet met: a young human lad of ten years, garbed in a monk’s habit.  The lad, it turns out, is a sort of apprentice monk named Brother Spot.  Being ten years old, reflects Sandy, he won’t be much use, but he tries to speak to him anyway.  He is shushed; after dinner, the monks remain silent until breakfast.  Scowling to himself, Sandy trundles back to the top of the path, where he and Timothy can just make out enough to see a pair of the firenewts mounted on lizard-things starting up the long path.  “Well, the path’s probably a good place to ambush them,” reasons Sandy.Indeed it is.  The path switches back and forth much more than it needs to, as it serves a spiritual purpose for the monks.  There are many good places to lurk in wait, and Sandy selects a place about a quarter of the way down the mountain with a large boulder looming over it.  He crouches out of sight above the great stone, ready to hurl missiles or launch himself down at his enemies.  Timothy prepares a color spray, and when the two halflings spring out to begin their sudden assault, the ambush works almost perfectly.  But when the mounts start coughing out exploding balls of flame, Sandy and Timothy are momentarily taken aback- but only momentarily.  Sandy dispatches the final firenewt with a lethal blow to the jaw, which rips it cleanly off!“Are you all right, Sandy?” asks Timothy.  The other nods, but he notes that Timothy is a little singed and burnt.  “Well, that’s stopped them for now,” Sandy states, and the two head back up to the top of the mountain where they fall into the arms of sleep.***6/17/368 O.L.G., 4 a.m.Dong!  Dong!  Dong!The sound of a medium sized bell rolls through the air.  Startled, Sandy has a moment of disorientation as he thinks back to the bell tower in Bellhold.  Then he struggles up, throwing his blanket aside and moving swiftly to the hallway, stopping only to grab his spear.  Is there trouble?No; there is only breakfast.“You guys get up too early,” mutters Sandy to himself, hungrily gobbling his small helping of rice.After they eat, Sandy and Timothy go outside and glance again at the encampment below.  All seems to be silent at this point; there is no sign of movement, though without more light it could easily be missed at this distance.“Today we can talk to someone and see if they can help us,” Sandy says.  “Maybe that kid.”Brother Spot (as ‘that kid’ is called) is, sadly, not too receptive to their entreaties for aid.  He is remarkably fatalistic for a ten-year-old.  When Sandy urges him to aid them, he tells them that “god will provide.”“Dammit,” Sandy curses, and begins keeping watch as the sun rises in the east.Next Time: What do the firenewts want anyway?</blockquote>

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