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Message: <blockquote data-quote="el-remmen" data-source="post: 3901650" data-attributes="member: 11">Second Helping!Session #16 – “Hezrah’s Maternity Mayhem!” (part 2 of 3)“We need to unchain them before we kill them, though,” Timotheus said, his words bearing the weight of some reticence.  “I cannot in good conscience do that, if only out of respect for Nephthys… But yes, we need to kill them.”“Yes, that has already been determined. Are you steeling yourself, or trying to dissuade…?” Bleys asked.“The former.”“There is no shame in letting others complete this task if it proves too difficult for you,” Bleys replied.“No.  I won’t shirk my responsibility,” Timotheus, standing up straight again and looking the watch-mage in the eyes. “It would be on me whether I acted directed to slay them or not…”Bleys nodded.Markos and Telémahkos found several clay flasks holding what they assumed were potions, and ordered Crusta to tell them what they were.  She could only guess, she said.  One would make you disappear, another allowed you to see in the dark, or so she said.Among the flea-infested clothing and blankets in the big wooden chest, were some sacks of copper and silver coins.  Some of it was Thrician, but some of it was also <a href="http://aquerra.wikispaces.com/Herman-lander" target="_blank">Herman-lander</a>, and imprinted with the stamp of mints in the <a href="http://aquerra.wikispaces.com/Black+Islands+Barony" target="_blank">Black Islands Barony</a>.  Wrapped in a kerchief was an ivory plaque, about three inches wide and four inches high, not more than an eighth of an inch in thickness.  One side was painted like a trump from a set of cards, showing a blue-skinned demonic horned ogre, holding a staff, and carrying bound humans on its back.  It was marked with the same rune as was burned on the wall, and had a stylized ‘A’ in one corner and an ‘F’ in the opposite diagonal one. [sup]1[/sup]“That is the Master!” Crusta said when she saw the card.  “Momma use that to call the Master to come.”Markos used a detect magic spell to examine the plaque, but there was no trace of a dweomer.  He turned the card back and forth examining it with furrowed brow, confused by its lack of aura.“Perhaps this Master uses this object as a focus for his scrying?” Markos speculated while looking to Bleys for an opinion.“It is possible,” the watch-mage replied, uncommitted.“Momma makes ogrillions for the Master,” Crusta said.  “She prove she can make them for Master to use so she can serve Master and the other Masters…”“The ones that went to the Flor’Choo?”“No… The other Masters…” Crusta replied, as if that made it clearer.“That could explain the list,” Markos said.  “It is an order.  Four dozen ‘oh-gee-ar.” Ogrillions.”“And the ‘bee-ar-eff’ could mean ‘breeding females,’” Bleys offered.“Well, no use in stretching it out,” Timotheus said.  “If we are going to have to… Let’s do it and not make them suffer this wretched life too much longer…” He began to walk towards the door, and Bleys the Aubergine followed.“I want to help,” Telémahkos said.“Wait!” Laarus of Ra cried.  “You are planning to kill the breeders? Why? They are no threat!”“They may be no threat in and of themselves in the short term, but they are being used to breed those ogrillion things,” Markos said.“They are prisoners who were forced to breed against their will,” Laarus said. “They wear chains.  They are not warriors…”“They are orcs,” Telémahkos said by way of explanation.“It is too bad we have no means of making them incapable of conception,” Victoria said. “But that would take some learned herblore, and probably resources we are not likely to find.”“Look Laarus, I don’t like it either, and I plan to remove their chains before they are killed so at least they are free,” Timotheus began.“You’re going to what?” Markos scoffed.  “So we have to chase them around and kill them?  If we’re going to kill them, we just kill them.  It is a sad necessity, but a necessity, none-the-less…”“I stand with Brother Laarus,” said Victoria.  “They should not be killed.  It is not honorable to kill the defenseless, women or children…”“In the north, when a hobgoblin lair is found, every last of them is put to the sword,” Timotheus said.  “They cannot be allowed to regain their numbers because they hate humans and the other good races. They will never stop trying to raze our cities and kill us all… Anyway, it is what they do when they raze human towns… Do you think they would spare our women and children?”“So we should look to hobgoblins as are moral guides? I think not,” Laarus replied, his face growing flush.  He began to walk back out in the larger room where the orc women still cowered.“Heh. I guess he’s against killing the pregnant ogre, too,” Timotheus said.“Pregnant ogre!” Bleys’ face betrayed amazement. “Yep, she’s big… Looked due to pop…”“How long until an ogre baby is big enough to be a danger?” Markos asked Crusta.”By the time the seasons pass twice,” Crusta replied.  “Same with the ogrillions… They grow fast. Momma grinds up the babies that don’t live and the breeders that die and feeds them…”“Crusta, would you kill the orc women if asked you to?” Bleys asked her.”To save my own life? Yes…” She replied.“That is just is just wrong in so many ways,” Timotheus said, shaking his head.  He followed the priest of Ra out into the room. “Laarus, I just have one question: When you came up through the trapdoor, who stabbed at you with a spear?”Laarus looked at Tim and then at the four groups of orcish women cowering in the corners.  They wore stained roughspun smocks, and scratched at each other as they fought to get behind each other and as far away from the noble adventurers as they could.  The room was a mess of blood, urine, ratty furs and flea-ridden woolen blankets.  The horrendous smell was made just something short of vomit-inducing by the smoking braziers.“That one,” Laarus pointed to where the orcish crone lay dead, the left side of her head caved in.“And what are those on her chest?” Tim asked.“Breasts,” Laarus answered, furrowing his brow as he looked back at Tim.  His face bore a look of angry puzzlement. “Yes, Laarus… Breasts… Women orcs fight and kill, too…”“They are not fighting and killing now, are they?” Laarus asked in return. “And the orc crone was scared and lucky.  She threatened us and paid the price.  The same cannot be said of these others.”By this time, everyone had come back out of the smaller room, Bleys pushing Crusta along at saber-point.“You know if you try to run we will chase you down and kill you,” he told her in his cold tone.“Me figured…” She replied, drooling slightly with fear.“Will you fight to protect these orcs?” Markos asked his cousin.“Will it come to that?” Laarus’ anger was brimming. The young priest seemed barely contained, but still he did not raise his voice.“Is that a yes?” Markos asked. “Because if you will raise your weapon to keep us from killing these orc women then I shall concede my position, however reckless it may seem to me to let them live…”“Sometimes in the cause of honor we leave ourselves vulnerable, but that is why it is called ‘honor,’” Victoria reasoned.  She approached one of the orc women to remove the chains, and noticed the shackles had no locks.  They had been smelted closed around their arms and waists.  Nasty burn scars were visible around the shackles.Pressed for more answers, Crusta was unable to say where the black orc women had come from, except that Hezrah often disappeared for days or weeks returning with outcasts and slaves in tow.  Among these had been a runt of a warg cub that had grown strong on orc and kobold meat. [sup]2[/sup]  Freed, they would be unable to return to their own tribes, and even if they could they would likely be killed as tainted outsiders.Crusta snorted and grunted in the orcish tongue, explaining the prisoners that the young nobles only meant to free them, not kill or beat them.  The orcs were confused, but eventually calmed down and let Victoria do the carefull work of prying off the shackles with a mallet and an iron spike.  Timotheus helped her, and eventually took over freeing the rest.“Tell them to flee far,” Bleys told Crusta.  “If I see them again I will kill them…” The orc women fled from the large room and towards the exit.When asked what was in the cave just north of this one (also marked as being home to orcs on their map), Crusta said, “undead orcs.”The signers of the Charter of Schiereiland collected their gear and loot and began to make their way back to the grove where they usually camped out.  Crusta was brought along as prisoner, her wrists bound, but her feet let free so she could walk with no trouble.  She looked around furtively and with great fear as they came out into the gorge and then out towards the plain.  Markos walked along side of her, asking her many questions about her knowledge of witchcraft and asking after her tokens.  She explained they were hidden and buried, but she would show him to them if he wanted.  The others were against the detour.  It would have to wait.“So, what is the plan for tomorrow?” Timotheus asked Bleys as they walked.“We go and kill the goblins,” Bleys said flatly.“Except for the goblin women and children, them we leave to starve or to be killed by kobolds to show them the merciful ways of our gods,” Telémahkos said with a wink, making sure that Laarus heard him.  If he did, the priest of Ra ignored the jab.  He walked in the rear of the line occasionally talking with Victoria.“You know, when it comes time to fight hobgoblins, we are going to have to be careful to stay away from the priests,” Telémahkos said to his cousin.“It makes no difference,” Timotheus frowned.  “No one is going to stop me from doing what needs to be done when it comes to safety of our homeland…” Brimming with sudden anger at the thought, Tim slowed his pace to allow Laarus to catch up.“Hobgoblins are different,” Timotheus began.Laarus was puzzled.“They are an immediate threat,” Timotheus continued.  “If we come across one of their lairs, they would all have to die.  Every one of them…  The fact that they are an immediate threat makes it a different case than with these orc women…”Laarus of Ra shook his head.  “There is no difference.  Would you kill an innocent babe if it meant that all hobgoblins would die?’“What?!” Timotheus was outraged. “You think hobgoblins are innocent?”“That is not what I said,” Laarus replied.“I am fncking insulted that you would insinuate that I would kill some innocent baby, and to compare a human baby to some fnckin’ hobos!” Timotheus marched back up the line fuming.“The gods have always confused me,” said Telémahkos when he returned. “That’s why I like Bes and Bast.  Simple.  I need luck and I like cats.” He smiled at his tall cousin.“I’d make a lousy priest of Nephthys,” Timotheus said, and marched to the very front of the line.  Only Falco walked ahead of him, sixty feet ahead of the group, as was his habit.“Will one of you be my boyfriend?” Crusta asked with a saddened voice when got to the grove and began to settle in to rest of the remainder of the day. It was the hot part of the afternoon when they got back, and most of them flopped down to rest and drink water.“I will be your boyfriend,” Markos said, feeling sorry for her.  Crusta gave a weak smile and sidled up next to him.  She was taller than he was, but gangly and stooped.“I wish I could put soap in my head,” Timotheus said when he saw her cozy up to him.“Why not try putting some on your body every now and again,” Telémahkos quipped.“Hey! I bathe!” Timotheus gave his cousin a hard put playful shove and Telémahkos tripped across Victoria’s bedroll.  She gave him a withering look.Later, after long examination, Markos announced that two of the potions taken from Hezrah’s lair were indeed potions of invisibility.…to be continued…------------------------------------------------------------------------Notes:[sup]1[/sup] <a href="http://aquerra.wikispaces.com/space/showimage/masterplaque.jpg" target="_blank">Click here</a> to see a replica of the painted plaque.[sup]2[/sup] This was the warg that Dunlevey and Telémahkos were fighting in the narrow hall near the entrance to the cave in Session #15.</blockquote>

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