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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Iron Sky" data-source="post: 4889223" data-attributes="member: 60965">Session 22, Part 6Bail awoke with a groan, shivering and aching.  His vision was a silver blur and his head hurt.  He struggled to remember where he was. A boat, judging by the faint sway and tilt of the room he was in, but what was that slow, regular thump sound and shudder?"He's awake Master Au!" a young voice shouted from somewhere nearby.A few moments later, the elf was kneeling over him, followed a minute later by the hideous orc female."Stop trying to move, dumb lizard," the orc said.  "You're barely alive as it is.""What... when... how long was I?" he said, the words rasping in his throat. “Drink this,” the orc said, pouring something foul and chalky down his throat.  He gagged a bit and tried to stop drinking but she punched him in the gut.  He gasped in surprise, then started coughing and struggling to simultaneously drink and cough up the bits that went into his lungs. “Your bedside manner never ceases to impress me, Shruka” Suniel said dryly. “He'll listen to me next time, won't he?” she said, tapping on the cup to get the last chunks that were stuck to the bottom to fall into Bail's mouth. “If he lives,” Suniel said.    “He'll live,” Shruka said, nodding as she turned and walked away. Suniel took a seat on the floor next to Bail's makeshift bed of furs and blankets.  “You've been out for almost a week.  We weren't sure you were going to pull through for a while there, between being half-frozen and bleeding from a score of cuts from that ice.” “A week?” Bail said, trying to sit up.  There was an excited squeal and he was knocked back by a flying kobold. “Bail!  You live!” Meepo said, arms wrapped about Bail's head. Bail winced and shifted the excited kobold's bear-hug to his arm.  He patted his old friend on the head.  “Takes more than a... what was that thing?” “I've researched it since and I believe it is called a “laernean cryo-hydra.”  The twelve-headed variety, of course.  Very nasty,” Suniel said. “You're telling me,” Bail said, slowly shifting himself to a sitting position.  He looked about.  “Ah, we're inside the turtle.  It's very... homey in here.” Rugs lay across the silver floors, tapestries lined the walls, and rods and curtains separated the big open space into makeshift rooms.  Two young acolytes were sitting on a collection of crates reading a large weather beaten tome to one side while the goblins and a couple others were dicing elsewhere.  The mouth of the turtle was open, a wooden plank running into the mouth to provide easy access to the scaffolding outside even while the turtle was moving.  A comforting silvery light that had no apparent source illuminated the whole place. “While you were out, we crossed most of the Freeholds,” Suniel said.  “No sight of any more Iron Sky, thankfully.  The locals didn't give us any trouble either, though we had people come from counties around in the middle of winter to watch us pass.” Bail finally detached Meepo from his arm.  The kobold snuggled into the furs beside him and almost immediately fell asleep.    “He barely slept the whole time you were out,” Suniel said with a faint smile.  “That kobold really cares about you.” “He's my brother,” Bail said, pulling a blanket up over Meepo. “Your brother?” “Long story.  So where are we at now?” Suniel began reply when Kormak jogged in, heading straight towards them.  “Ah, you're awake.  Good timing.  We're there.” “Where's there?” Bail said. “Some Crystal Towers city.  There's the biggest tower I've ever seen here attached to an even bigger bridge.  They're both the same metal as the turtle, looks like, but bigger.  As in, the tower reaches the clouds and the bridge disappears into the horizon in two directions!” “That is a big bridge,” Bail said, slowly working his way to his feet.  He wavered for a moment, then steadied himself and took a couple stiff steps. “Harold said it's twenty-five miles wide and three hundred long.  There's whole cities built on it.  It's what connects the Crystal Towers to the mainland,” Suniel said, placing a supporting hand on Bail's arm. “Oh, one more little thing about the city,” Kormak said as they walked towards the turtle's mouth.  “It's empty.  Gates closed, no one home.  Harold said that this is one of the busiest trade-cities in the Crystal Towers.  Five-thousand people or more are supposed to live here.  And they're all just... gone.”Bail winced as they ducked out of the turtle's mouth and walked out into the brilliant snow-reflected sunlight and the amazing view that awaited them.</blockquote>

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