Campaign Log: Chaotic Pioneering

[coronatiger]

I managed to roll two 17s in a row for Sex Appeal this last session. Luckily, with my modifiers, 17 isn't a critical failure, but I was still rebuffed at the two best inns in Garuk. We established earlier that I use Sex Appeal to get a deal at an inn and Acrobatics (each day after the first) to keep it, and that I fail only on 17 or 18, due to high skill.

My failures made it easy to introduce Leopold to the party, though. It had been decided that he wasn't staying at the most expensive inns. I'm sure the GM had a plan, but I couldn't help but feel that something supernatural was going on, like fate or serendipity, accommodating our meeting.

[coronatiger]

Thoughts on April 8th

We were tasked with exploring a residential area in one of the ancient elvish cities. Some buildings on our list were more or less normal buildings, like those we know from above ground, but one was carved into the wall of this enormous cavern. We started with that one. Window holes were scattered all over the wall, and there was a huge crack across, which Leopold claimed had been made by an earthquake. “The rock has sheared,” I think his words were. We decided to take the ordinary entrance, and Ilzo lit Surkalpi. The gnome was amazed with the sudden burst of daylight and prodded the orc with questions. Ilzo had some difficulty explaining in the Common tongue, so I stepped in to help.

Now that we didn’t have Lady Karita with us to look for traps, I asked the others what they thought about it. Ilzo went to put on his metal armor. I think he has a sentimental attachment to the bone armor, for that’s what he usually wears, but the metal armor is stronger. Feeling sufficiently protected, Ilzo entered first, followed by Va’lyndra who might be able to spot magical traps before he stepped in them. I suggested that Leopold go next. He doesn’t seem very combat capable, so I figured I should bring up the rear, in case someone attacked us from behind. I have my bow, so I can help out in front as well, if need be.

Almost immediately, we came upon a staircase leading up, but the hallway continued as well. Va’lyndra spotted a sign and tried to interpret the ancient script. She concluded that the words on the sign were missing from her dictionary, but Leopold, who had been gawking at the architecture and scribbling furiously in that notebook of his, asked if he could take a look. He claimed some skill at linguistics, so maybe he could find what Va’lyndra missed. Right enough, he was able to translate the sign. It read that this was the first floor, with apartments numbered one through twenty.

My companions annoyingly recalled that there had been a sign outside the building as well, and we all trooped out so Va’lyndra and Leopold could take a look at it. Why couldn’t they have done this while Ilzo changed his armor? From the sign, they gleaned that the building has ten floors, with the fanciest apartments on the top floors. I pointed out that they could just have counted the window rows; Surkalpi gave off enough light that we could see clearly all the way up to the top of the structure. They glared at me and expected me to understand, which I did not. We entered again, just as soon as Ilzo had changed back to the bone armor. I guess he didn’t fear traps in such dwellings as these.

Leopold explained about the architecture as we went through the first-floor apartments, telling us that these must be the apartments of free citizens on the lower end of the well-to-do scale. More interestingly, he determined that the earthquake had struck after the inhabitants had left, and that someone had moved some of the fallen rocks around afterwards. How long after was impossible to tell, but the dust layer was at least one year thick, however it could just as easily be thousands of years since anyone else was in here.

Leopold warned that even if the earthquake had happened long ago, some parts of the floor might be unsafe. As we made our way slowly up the floors, he pointed out some places we shouldn’t step, but I was confident my skills would let me react in time to grab a ledge if the floor gave way under me. Anyway, it’s no more than three meters to fall to the floor below.

Ilzo boasted that he was going to become stronger than the earthquakes. Va’lyndra told him, in that case, he had to defeat Gubb, the god of rocks and stones, who is the one that creates earthquakes. Leopold added that quakes also occur naturally, and started blabbing about geology. By that time, we had searched seven floors without finding anything more valuable than a few old coins, and I proposed we go back to Olivia. It was time for bed.

Leopold asked what we do when we’re out of water. His water skin was empty. He had probably been too busy with his notebook to notice Va’lyndra conjure water earlier. I left my water skin with the elf and retired with Olivia.


Thoughts on April 9th

I took the stairs up to the eighth floor on my hands. I might as well seize the opportunity to get in a practice session. The apartments on the higher floors were fewer and larger, and up here, someone had installed a metal front door. It was covered with rust, and Va’lyndra scanned it for magical traps without finding any, so I asked Ilzo if he fancied kicking it in. It proved a little too sturdy; he failed to break through. When he suggested to go find something heavy to hit the door with, Leopold lay a hand on the door frame. I could see the stone moving and shifting around the door. I shuddered, but Ilzo gave the door another kick, and it fell inwards.

We didn’t find much of interest here either, just a few coins. Leopold and Va’lyndra studied them with much enthusiasm, though. I couldn’t think why, and didn’t bother to ask what was so fascinating about the elven face on the currency.

There was another metal door on this floor. Leopold remembered that we had seen a hole in the ceiling of the apartment directly below, and he showed me where it was. I had no trouble reaching that high. I didn’t even have to take a running start; I just jumped up, grabbed the ledge and pulled myself up. Leopold offered to give me his lantern, but he was too short to hand it to me. I didn’t think I needed it either, so I just told him to go back to the others.

I crawled around on all fours in the darkness, to be safe. There were holes in the floor of this apartment, after all. Completely blind, I lost my way, and had to shout for the others to give me a clue, and soon enough, I found the metal door. I located the latch and forced it open. It had rusted shut, and I was only just able to open it. I imagined Olivia caressing my arms and complimenting me on my strength, but I snapped out of my reveries and took a step to the side, thinking that Ilzo might be about to kick down the door. I needn’t have worried, for he had tired of waiting while I fumbled around in the dark, and had gone to take a look at the floors above.

Va’lyndra, Leopold and I searched the apartment. There were some forgotten coins, but otherwise the rooms were empty. Clothes, furniture and curtains had long since turned to dust. We ascended to the next level, where we regrouped with Ilzo. A search here turned up some more coins, and we went up to the tenth and highest floor. The people who lived here had left behind some coins, too. A catwalk used to lead to other parts of the city, but it had collapsed, leaving a five-meter gap. I studied the supports, and they looked solid enough. Leopold claimed he couldn’t guarantee their structural integrity without a closer look, though, so I tied a rope under my arms and gave the other end to Ilzo before leaping across.

I stamped with my foot, but didn’t dislodge any loose rocks. A frightful thought struck me and I looked down to see Olivia sitting almost directly beneath me, doing camp chores in the light of her lantern. Later, in private, I would tell her how careless I had been, but for now, I just called down to her, waived my hand and blew her a kiss. Surkalpi shone bright and illuminated my gestures, for a short time banishing the perpetual subterranean darkness.

I jumped back, for the catwalk didn’t lead to any of the other buildings on our quest. We stopped briefly in the camp to let Olivia know we had finished with that building, before we proceeded on foot to the next one. There was no need to move the camp; it was only a hundred meters or so.

[coronatiger]

The next building looked like a small mansion. The door was made of living wood, and Va’lyndra claimed it as soon as she spotted it. Ilzo pushed it open and entered. Then he turned with a strange look on his face and kicked at Va’lyndra. Luckily, she had her magical shield floating in front of her, and it blocked the attack. I blinked in surprise at Ilzo, maybe I was mistaken. No, he attacked again, and Va’lyndra had to parry with her staff. A loud crack rang out when the staff connected with the bone armor on Ilzo’s leg. I shouted at Ilzo, what was he thinking?! He ignored me and brought Surkalpi to bear, thrusting the naginata through the open door at the elf. He missed, fortunately.

Tiny Leopold advanced towards the huge orc and a sand jet burst from his hands, shooting wide of its target. Va’lyndra shouted that we needed to pull back; there was a magic trap here. I did as I was ordered. So did Ilzo, who came out of the house and skewered Va’lyndra on Surkalpi. She dropped her staff and fell to the ground. Leopold tried to adjust his aim, but the sand struck the wall next to Ilzo.

I called Ilzo a bad name and ordered him to stop attacking us, but he still didn’t listen. He rammed Surkalpi through the gnome, light bursting out of the poor fellow’s back for a brief moment before Ilzo withdrew the blade. To my amazement, Leopold stayed on his feet, staggering away from Ilzo. Va’lyndra blasted a spray of water in Ilzo’s face, knocking him backwards.

I tried taunting Ilzo again, but he lashed out at Va’lyndra. The water in his eyes caused him to miss, fortunately, but the water jet stopped when Va’lyndra lost consciousness. Leopold had moved off to the side, so I was the only apparent enemy in Ilzo’s sight. He charged me, but missed. I used a fraction of a second to recall Olivia’s direction, and dashed off another way. I heard the whoosh behind me as Ilzo swung Surkalpi at my back.

I picked up speed along the side of the mansion and turned another corner. Ilzo was close on my tail, but took longer to turn. Had he thought to turn off the light, I would be doomed, for unlike me, he can see just fine without it. As it was, I spotted a hole in the rear wall of the mansion, dove through and rolled to a standing stop.

Ilzo must have decided the hole was too small for him, and turned around. I followed as silently as I could. I didn’t want to be left alone in the dark, and I feared he was going back to finish off Va’lyndra and Leopold.

He must have come back to his senses, for when I turned the corner, he was pouring a healing potion into Va’lyndra’s mouth. I asked him angrily what he had done, and he claimed that he had been attacked by goblins. The magic trap must have muddled his mind.

Leopold had disappeared from view, so I called out his name. It turned out he had just gone around the other corner of the building, where he had undressed in preparation for bandaging. I pulled out my first aid kit and obliged. While I fumbled with the bandages, Ilzo took Va’lyndra back to Olivia for treatment. Leopold was able to walk on his own, so the two of us followed.

A wide-eyed Olivia asked me what had happened. I explained. Olivia whispered a suggestion that I relieve Ilzo of Surkalpi. I asked the orc if he would be so good as to lend me the naginata. After all, I was the one in most need of the light. He didn’t mind, and handed it over.

Leopold drank all three of his healing potions, and got more from Ilzo when he said he was out. He asked me how many potions he should imbibe. I explained that when he felt light-footed, and not sluggish and in pain anymore, that would probably suffice.

Ilzo’s bone armor had cracked a little when Va’lyndra had smacked his leg while parrying, so the two of them took some time to fix it, using some living wood that Va’lyndra shaped with her magic, once she woke up.

Leopold asked if it was common for Ilzo to go berserk like he had done just now. I reminded him that Ilzo had walked into a magic trap; this behavior wasn’t like him. Leopold then asked if such traps were common, and I explained that down here in the ancient elvish ruins, there are many traps, both magic and mundane, but I couldn’t remember a trap that worked just like this one. Leopold was very curious about the traps we had encountered, and while I rattled off traps from my memory, Va’lyndra mentioned that we once walked into a trap that gave us visions. She didn’t want to give any details of that to someone we had just known for a few days, and went back towards the mansion.

I started to follow, but Olivia caught up with me. She was afraid of Ilzo, and didn’t want me to leave her alone with him. I inferred that Leopold didn’t count as protection, and I used my authority as the senior adventurer to declare that we were going back to the mansion to continue our quest.

On the way, Leopold asked about the visions, did we all have the same ones? Following Va’lyndra’s cue, I told him that the visions were secret, and anyway, how could we be certain that the visions didn’t vary for the different observers? “Didn’t you compare notes?” he wondered. “What notes?” I countered, and changed the subject, trying to describe the other magic traps we’d found and explain how we defeated them. Usually, Va’lyndra analyzes the trap so we can find a weakness, or perhaps a password. Destroying the trapped object seems to work if no other solution presents itself.

Analyzing traps takes an hour or more, so I practiced acrobatics for a while. I told the others that I had found a safe way inside, and Leopold and Ilzo went to take a look. They didn’t go inside, for they wanted to know what Va’lyndra could learn about the trap, first.

The trap makes those who pass the doorframe believe they see enemies around them. Va’lyndra also reported that there were more spells, but she needed to rest before continuing her spell dance. We went back to the camp to have dinner, and returned an hour later.

Va’lyndra discovered that there is a password that disables the trap, but she failed to identify it. I foolishly wondered out loud what kind of enemy I would see if I walked inside; Ilzo had seen goblins, but I might see something completely different. Leopold picked up on it, and I told him that if he wanted to test it out, I was going to tie him up first, so he couldn’t attack us.

He only agreed to have his hands tied together, and in front, so he could catch himself if he should stumble. It would have to suffice, but I gave Ilzo the other end of the rope after tying the knots. He entered, turned around and shouted for me to give him the book. I had no book, but I played along, shouted “No!” and took off, running in circles around Ilzo with Leopold in hot pursuit. After a short while, the magic wore off. Leopold claimed he didn’t seem to have a natural enemy, like Ilzo’s goblins, but that he strongly disapproved of people destroying books.

I told the others why I didn’t want to test the trap: I didn’t believe any of them could make a knot I couldn’t get out of, and as I’m the fastest in our group, they couldn’t get away if I decided to attack. The only way to end the fight was for Ilzo to strike me down, and I wasn’t particularly keen on that.

We all went around the building, and I dove through my little hole in the wall. Someone predicted that sooner or later, I was going to knock out my teeth, showing off like that. Bah! I’m completely in control.

The others forced their way in, and we searched the mansion. I found a few gold coins hidden away. I don’t know if they can make up for all the healing potions we used earlier, but at least it’s something. Va’lyndra removed the living wood from the door, and I painted a warning on the wall, in addition to the usual guild markings we’re obligated to leave.

[coronatiger]

The next building on our list had a sign in front, identifying it as the abode of some ancient arch mage. I had no trouble believing the accuracy of the translation. The two-story house had two towers, and something about the architecture was positively menacing.

Va’lyndra studied the entrance closely, discovered magic and started analyzing it. I climbed the highest tower, just in case there was something interesting up there. There wasn’t much, aside from a small hole in the roof. The view was marvelous from up high, though, and I did a short balancing act on the spire before climbing down.

Va’lyndra warned us that passing through the doorway would turn us to stone. Not a happy prospect. I mentioned the hole I had found on the roof, and said I could get through if Va’lyndra would check for magic first. Leopold claimed that he knew a spell that would make a hole in the wall, but that he didn’t have the energy to pull it off.

Climbing with Surkalpi was slightly more demanding, but I got up there without trouble. Va’lyndra too. She didn’t see any magic inside, but she worried I might get stuck in the tiny hole. She felt she had to be careful when she poked her head inside to see, but I figured that was because of her pointy ears. It took me some time to squeeze through, and she had to hold Surkalpi while I did, but after a minute or so, I was standing in the tower room. I searched through the rubbish, following Va’lyndra’s instructions about where to look, but found nothing. A spiraling staircase led down, but I didn’t want to risk it unless Va’lyndra had checked it for magic first, so I climbed back out.

Back down on the ground, Leopold had wandered off, so I called for him. Ilzo had fetched a pick-axe and was working his way through the wall. The hole wasn’t big enough for anyone but me, yet, so Va’lyndra retrieved our other pick and gave it to me. I helped Ilzo widen the hole, and everyone entered. Va’lyndra did her spell dance again, and discovered that there was an anti-magic enchantment that suffused the structure of the building, protecting the floors, walls and ceilings from tampering. Ilzo snorted derisively, pick-axe still in hand.

Ilzo, Leopold and I searched the room while Va’lyndra tried to analyze the anti-magic spell further. Her nose-bleed suggested that it was time to go to bed. On the way back to camp, she insisted that even if her spell had failed, she would be able to affect things inside the house, just not the building itself.

“Well,” Olivia asked in a low voice when we were alone in our tent, “is there something you want to tell me?” I had just summed up to her what I’d been doing since we left her after dinner, so I felt rather clueless, and admitted I didn’t know what she was talking about. Olivia grabbed one of the straps on my leather armor. “This is not how I tightened your armor this morning. You’ve undressed since then, Mattea,” she accused, “and I can’t imagine Leopold or Va’lyndra trying to get into your pants. It must have been Ilzo!” Her voice broke halfway through the last sentence, and tears welled up in her eyes. “Oh, no, Olivia! It wasn’t like that at all,” I explained. “I took off the armor so I could wriggle through the hole in the roof.” “Really?” Olivia blinked the tears out of her eyes, seized my head between her hands and studied my sincere expression for a moment. “Oh, Mattea, I’m so sorry! Please forgive me! Can we kiss and make up?” Leather plates hit the ground, soon followed by softer fabrics; we certainly could!


Thoughts on April 10th

“Why don’t we just break through the interior walls?” I asked the others as we made our way back to the arch mage’s house. “That way, we don’t have to pass any door frames.” Both traps we had found yesterday were there, so I assumed that any other traps also would be located in door frames. Leopold pointed out that we needed to use the stairs to move between floors, but I replied that we could use our picks on floors and ceilings, too, not just walls. In the case of ceilings, if worst came to worst and they were was pretty high up, I could stand on Ilzo’s shoulders and work the pick axe. Va’lyndra opined that it wouldn’t be needed. She knew a spell that would let her see magic traps, even if her identification spell was hindered.

We entered through Ilzo’s hole, and Va’lyndra cast her spell. Then she rushed off, trying to look at as much of the building as possible before the spell wore off. She located a magic staff leaning against the wall in a corner and a metal door with a spelled frame in the basement, each time warning us to stay away. She got through most of the house, except for one of the spires. Ilzo hefted his pick axe and set to work in the basement, Leopold and I searched for valuables, and Va’lyndra rested.

I pulled my ball of twine from my backpack and tied it around the magic staff, careful not to touch it. Then I dragged the staff out of the building and a little to the side, where nobody would walk. Va’lyndra could analyze it later.

I practiced for a little while, before going downstairs to help Ilzo. We had to dig through solid mountain, and it took us three hours to get around the magic door, and into the room beyond. I ran to fetch Va’lyndra, so she could look for magic before we entered. I fetched Leopold too, for he’s proven to be very capable when it comes to old buildings. He might see something the rest of us missed.

Va’lyndra found a book. It was clearly magical, otherwise it wouldn’t have survived all these years. There wasn’t anything else of value in the house. We returned to camp. I dragged the staff behind me, still cautious. While Va’lyndra analyzed the book and the staff, I stole some time with Olivia.

Va’lyndra discovered that the book was enchanted with a simple spell to prevent rot and moisture from destroying it. I suspected that the book held valuable information, most likely spells, otherwise it wouldn’t have been protected like this. The staff was a spellcasting focus, like so many other staves we’ve seen before. It was more ornate than her old staff, so she decided to keep it. Leopold and Va’lyndra wanted to remain in the camp to study the book, but I insisted they use time while we rest to do it. Now was the time to go check out the next building!

There was a rusted metal front door on this house, but no magic, so Ilzo kicked in the door. We found a small pile of old coins that Leopold and Va’lyndra eyeballed with considerable interest, but nothing exciting. The last house was a total disappointment to everyone.

We went back to Olivia and told her that we had completed this quest. It was getting late, but the next quest site was only about half an hour away, so we packed up and moved.

[coronatiger]

Thoughts on April 11th, afternoon

This quest had two parts. One was a hole in the cavern floor leading to an area to be explored, the other a residential district. We wanted to save the most exciting part for last, but Ilzo just had to take a look at the hole. It used to be covered by a metal hatch, but the hatch was broken and tossed to the side. Ilzo didn’t report anything interesting on the immediate inside of the hole, so we headed over to the residences.

There were only two buildings there, one block of apartments and what looked to be a temple, with statues outside it. Some parts of the block had collapsed, and it looked like someone had gone berserk with something heavy inside. All the apartments were large, and reminded me of those on the top floors of the structure we explored a couple of days ago. We were able to add some coins to those we’d found earlier, but I assume the inhabitants left with most of their possessions.

After dinner, we went to check out the temple. The statues outside resembled giant warriors or guardians. At one time, they had all been armed, but now some had dropped their weapons, and quite a few had fallen over, presumably in the earthquake. Va’lyndra pointed at one of the fallen ones and said it was the only one with magic in it. I asked if we should crush it, and if Ilzo wanted Surkalpi. It suddenly became dark, so the others might not have noticed that I turned red. “Surkalpi,” I repeated, and handed over the weapon, light again flooding the scene.

Leopold wanted to compare the statues’ faces with those on the coins we had found, so we moved a little closer. The statues’ faces weren’t very detailed, so they were probably never meant to depict someone in particular. Va’lyndra approached the magical statue. As soon as she entered the gate, its limbs started twitching, and she hurried back outside. Again, the statue lay as still as, well, a statue.

I didn’t connect the dots until later, but Va’lyndra started to explain to Leopold about powerstones. I had already concluded that he lacked adventuring experience. He couldn’t be very experienced as a mage either. Even I knew the purpose of powerstones, although I don’t quite know how to make them work. Not that I have the need. I began to suspect that all Leopold had experience with, was books. Va’lyndra handed Leopold a powerstone wand. He shot a burst of sand out of it and muttered to himself, “how quaint…”

Ilzo and I had armed ourselves with pick axes, just in case the statue decided to attack while Leopold experimented. Suddenly, the statue started trembling, and I prepared to attack. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Leopold was pointing the wand at the statue. The trembling ended with a loud crack, as one arm and one leg fell off the statue. “It’s still magical,” Va’lyndra warned, just as the statue started moving again. Ilzo dashed forward and swung at it. He missed. As did I, when I followed a moment later.

The giant guardian swiped its arm towards us, hitting me and bringing me to the ground. It hurt like I’d been kicked in the ribs by Lightfoot, but I bounced right up again. Ilzo connected mightily with its chest, and a large chunk fell off. Leopold hadn’t rushed in like Ilzo and me, and just reached us now. He wasn’t armed, but I suspected he had a spell or two at the ready.

The statue swiped at us again, and Ilzo chose to stand in the way of the attack so Leopold and I wouldn’t be struck. The arm took him down, but lost momentum, just as Ilzo wanted. I stepped out of reach of the arm, and Ilzo started to get back up. Leopold tried to speak to the statue, asking why it was attacking us. If I wasn’t in the middle of combat, I would have face-palmed.

The statue tackled Ilzo again, and I moved to its leg and attacked. I heard something crack, but nothing came apart. Ilzo got back up on his knees, and Leopold kept chattering, wisely out of reach of the prone enemy, who lashed out at Ilzo again. This time, it missed, and Ilzo stood up and landed another solid blow. I won’t claim that it was my second hit on its leg that caused the statue to shatter.

I pulled a healing potion out of my pouch and quaffed it. I didn’t notice much reduction in my chest pain, so I drank my other one as well. That was better. I still wanted medical treatment, as did Ilzo, so we returned to camp. Olivia prudently took me inside our tent so I could show her where it hurt; I wasn’t reeling with pain, so she determined that modesty should prevail. I insisted she check out certain other parts of me as well, now that they were uncovered. Both of them responded appropriately to Olivia’s stimulus, and I selfishly prevented the party medic from seeing to Ilzo’s wounds. Va’lyndra knows first aid. Right?

[coronatiger]

Thoughts on April 11th

With everyone’s wounds and aches taken care of, we returned to the temple. I asked Va’lyndra to cast her eyes over the statues to look for more magic, but it had all disappeared when the guardian shattered. We peeked inside the temple. There were more statues, and faded paintings covered the walls of the large chamber. Openings in the wall led to smaller rooms along the perimeter.

Va’lyndra searched for magic, but found none. When she sat down to regain some energy, Leopold began studying the paintings and the statues eagerly, scribbling furiously in that notebook of his. Ilzo and I searched for treasures, in my case while walking on my hands, but we turned up only scrap metal. We all noticed that a three-headed goat featured prominently in several artworks, and according to Leopold’s translations of the inscriptions, it was a war god named Farnotep. He asked if any of us had heard of this god. The name was new to me, and neither Ilzo nor Va’lyndra was familiar with it either. Va’lyndra nearly made a joke, deriding the concept of a farmyard animal as a god of war. There’s hope for her, yet.

Leopold launched a litany of questions at the elf, regarding the classes and hierarchy of the ancient elven nation, but Va’lyndra knew next to nothing about the topic. Bored almost to tears, I suggested they continue their discussion in camp, as there was obviously nothing for us here. I wished them a good night and went to make some noise with Olivia.


Thoughts on April 12th

At breakfast, Leopold asked if we were done at the temple. I told him that those of us who hadn’t been staring at statues and paintings the whole time had searched the place instead, so yes, we could move on.

We went over to the hole in the ground. A set of stairs led down into the darkness. I prompted Va’lyndra to go first to look for magic and traps, and the rest of us followed in the usual order. Ilzo went second, because he’s a man of action. If something happened to Va’lyndra, he’d help her. Leopold came after him so he wouldn’t stand in Ilzo’s way while copying down some fascinating fact revealed by a trap sprung by Va’lyndra. I brought up the rear, as it was wise to have someone combat capable there, in case an enemy snuck up on us from behind. I could launch arrows just as easily forward as backward, and if necessary, I could vault past the gnome and the orc effortlessly, through any space large enough for them to pass.

At the bottom of the stairs, a short corridor led to a larger chamber. In the middle of the chamber, reflecting light from Surkalpi, stood a tall metal pillar. Va’lyndra detected magic, and called us to a halt. She started her spell dance to analyze the magic, and Ilzo took the opportunity to return to camp and change into his heavier metal armor.

After several hours of spell casting and resting – I even had time for a tumble with Olivia – Va’lyndra had fully analyzed the enchantment. In front of us was an area spell that detected when someone alive, like a human or an animal, entered. If that happened, a signal would be sent to the metal pillar. The pillar was too far away for analysis without entering the field, but whatever occurred there couldn’t be good, for Va’lyndra discovered a password that hopefully would let us in without anything bad happening. We decided to take lunch before entering, and I snuck another snuggle with Olivia after helping her tidy up after the meal.

Va’lyndra uttered the password, and we could briefly hear a faint buzzing sound. She stepped forward a few paces. “Come and fetch me if this goes badly,” she instructed. Ilzo made as if to follow, but I held out a hand and told him not to, unless he first said the password. He did so, and entered the magic field. Va’lyndra, alarmed, tried to get out, but a bolt of lightning flashed out from the pillar and struck her in the back, and she crashed to the floor. I yelled for Ilzo to drag her out. We heard a buzz when he grabbed her, and Leopold shouted the password. A thought brushed past me that I could have dodged the lightning bolt, if I’d had focused intensely on it, but Va’lyndra, with her back turned, stood no chance. I wasn’t stupid enough to test it, though. Ilzo came out with the unconscious elf, and Leopold started to explain his theory about how the lightning trap worked. “Not now,” I interrupted, “we need to get her to Olivia!”

Olivia set to work with bandages and healing salves, and Va’lyndra blinked awake after a few minutes. Ilzo brought her healing potions, and she would have got up, if she hadn’t been so exhausted. Some more rest was in order. I glanced longingly at Olivia. “Again?” she sighed. I had to do most of the work, but she was far from unwilling.

Back at the magic field, Va’lyndra repeated the password, and again we heard the buzzing. I noticed that the short buzz increased slightly in pitch. Va’lyndra repeated the password yet again, and now the pitch decreased. “I think it’s off, now,” she told us and entered. I guessed she’d had a talk with Leopold about the password while I was … doing other things. She went as far as to the entrance to the chamber, and said we could follow, as long as we didn’t repeat the password. As it was several syllables of ancient elvish, I didn’t think there would be much chance for me to utter it by chance. I went inside with the others.

Near the pillar, something was painted with blood on the floor, an intricate and ominous image. The center of the painting was a ring with lots of triangles inside. Circling it was eight more rings; all nine rings were about the same size. Three arrows pointed out of the circle of rings, in different directions. Text unintelligible to me covered most of the painting. At six meters across, it must have taken forever to write it all. Some of the text was in a small area just outside the circle of rings, and while still unreadable, if seemed different, somehow. A rusted metal bottle lay on the floor, and someone had stepped in the blood while it was still liquid, but there wasn’t anything of interest here. Va’lyndra reported that there was no more magic in the painting than elsewhere in the chamber, so she took Ilzo and me exploring the other passages out of here, leaving Leopold to study the painting. He said he needed a whole day to copy everything down, so he’d better get started.

We found some rooms we determined must have been habitation areas, and Va’lyndra discovered a hidden room with a magical ring in it. The ring was made of gold and was inscribed with ancient elvish letters. Va’lyndra analyzed it and revealed that the wearer becomes blurry, thus harder to strike in combat. She demonstrated. I don’t want that ring. Although it would be useful to me in combat, I want to be seen!

Leopold kept at the copying while the rest of us returned to camp. Food and sleep weren’t as intriguing as the bloody painting. He came for his turn of the night watch, though.


Thoughts on April 13th

Leopold went to finish the copying after breakfast. Va’lyndra got out the magic book and started reading. At that point, I realized that we wouldn’t be doing party things for a while, and sought out Olivia’s company instead. We came out of our tent for lunch and dinner, and then Leopold came back and told us he had completed his task, so after the meal, we moved to the last quest site. It was getting quite late when we had pitched our tents, so we chose not to begin exploring until tomorrow. I had been with Olivia most of the day, but didn’t object to some more private time.

[coronatiger]

Thoughts on April 14th

Leopold and Va’lyndra had deduced that the ritual we had seen the remains of was part of a larger one, and that the arrows pointed towards the nearest other ritual sites. They suspected that the text outside the main painting was mathematical calculations that would give us the coordinates of the other sites, but neither of them knew enough geometry to decipher it. We determined to find someone who could help with the calculations later.

Ilzo started talking about how to spread chaos in the world. Burning down churches would be a good start, he thought. Leopold was alarmed, but calmed down when Va’lyndra assured him we weren’t going to do anything that extreme. The discussion moved on to what we’re going to do after these quests. Should we look for the other ritual sites? Should we join the fight against Tamburin? I didn’t weigh in much, but my mind was hard at work. I’m not keen on enlisting, having to take orders all day from some snot-nosed noble. I don’t have much respect for most of the nobles around here. Lady Karita’s cousin, Karl Morgenstern, is the only decent one, in my opinion. Hiding among the townsfolk while Ilzo and Va’lyndra, and Leopold, I guess, flee south to escape death or slavery doesn’t sound very appealing either. Whoever wins the battle, soldiers who haven’t seen a woman in ages will come into town, and they’ll rape my beautiful, precious, delicate Olivia. I have no delusions I’ll be able to stop them all. We’re going to have to flee, too.

I shook those depressing thoughts away and declared that we had a quest to complete. There were two residential areas and a temple to explore here. We started with the closest houses, five pretty nice villas.

The first house gave us nothing. The second house had metal doors and bars over the windows, and Va’lyndra said it was spelled, and she had difficulty analyzing it. So much so that Ilzo lost his patience, found a boulder and hurled it at the door. After a couple of attempts, the rock burst through, shattering the hinges and toppling the door inwards. He peeked inside, but didn’t pass the threshold until Va’lyndra questioned his wisdom. Then he stepped through defiantly. His hands came up to his chest and it was clear he’d been hurt somehow. He was still standing, and started looking around inside, telling us he wouldn’t come out again before we removed the spell on the door.

I asked him if he had brought healing potions. He hadn’t, but explained where I could find them, so I returned to camp and grabbed a few things that surprised Olivia. “Ilzo’s been stupid again,” I explained. Olivia nodded knowingly as I attached an empty sack to the end of a tent pole, and put Ilzo’s potions inside. I went back to the magic house and handed Ilzo the potions. I guess we could have used Surkalpi or Va’lyndra’s quarterstaff, but what was done was done. For his recklessness, I’d make Ilzo help me erect out tent again.

Ilzo declared that there wasn’t anything to find inside the house. Impatience getting the better of him again, he used his boulder to break through a window. Climbing out didn’t hurt him, so he climbed back in. That didn’t hurt either. I suspected that the window was safe, but maybe the house only attacked each intruder once? Figuring I was the one in our party, after Ilzo, who was most able to survive a beating, I backflipped in through the window. Seeing me unhurt on the inside prompted the others to follow. The window was only about a meter above the ground, but even that is too high for a gnome, so I reached out and pulled him inside. Va’lyndra entered last.

We searched through the house. As Ilzo had claimed, it was devoid of valuables, but Leopold was as interested in uninteresting things as always. He chattered on about how this wasn’t a dwelling, but rather a gathering place for someone, a place to meet once in a while. There was a cryptic inscription on the bottom of a wall, though, that baffled him and Va’lyndra for a few moments. The script was ancient elvish, but the words made no sense. Leopold managed to decipher the code, though, and then translated: “You must retrieve fire essence from the Spirit Land. Remember to bring a water mage to keep the container sealed. This must happen before …” some date near the end of the old elves’ three-thousand-year long calendar cycle. Neither Leopold nor Va’lyndra had heard of this Spirit Land, and the gnome determined that more research was required. I didn’t think the instruction held much relevance for us. It certainly wasn’t meant for us. Someone had to perform this task, and whether they succeeded or not was hardly important anymore. The time limit had expired millennia ago.

We marked the house with guild signs saying that we had explored it and that the door was trapped, but that the window was safe, and then we moved on. The last three houses were as boring as the first one, but we found some gold coins, so I had some good news for Olivia when we returned.


Thoughts on April 15th

We decided over breakfast that we’d search the other residential area first, even though we had to pass the temple to get there. Those houses were much smaller than the villas we searched yesterday, and they had no elaborate carvings to mark them as important places, so we agreed not to spend much time in each of them. There were a lot of them, though, and it took all day to go through them all. We’re lucky we did, for in one of them, someone had left a sizeable treasure, coins and gems totaling nearly a thousand gold pieces in value. Too bad the governor gets half. Va’lyndra and Ilzo talked about smuggling out the gems. I wasn’t keen on the idea, but said nothing. We’ve been caught smuggling before. The next time, we won’t likely get off with a slap on the wrist.


Thoughts on April 16th

I was supposedly watching for enemies approaching, but Olivia was still alert, even with my distractions, and she spotted Leopold leaving the camp. She slapped my hands away and nodded towards him. I called his name, first in a hushed voice so I wouldn’t wake Ilzo and Va’lyndra, but when he kept walking, I raised my voice. He gave no sign of hearing me, so I activated Surkalpi and ran over to him. I poked him on the shoulder, to no effect, so I ran around him and grabbed him by the shoulders. The glaring light from Surkalpi woke him up. He complained about it, so I lowered the weapon so the light shone from behind him. Then he said he was going to bed. “Do that,” I agreed, and followed him back. I turned off Surkalpi and explained to Olivia that he’d been sleepwalking.

We went to check out the temple after breakfast. It was carved into the wall of the cavern, and we could see a large lump carved into the wall above the entrance. The surface of the lump was covered in bubble-like carvings, and made me think of foam. I glanced meaningfully at Va’lyndra, and Leopold prompted that this would be a good place to look for magic. Sure enough, the area inside was covered with an enchantment. Va’lyndra discovered that the enchantment checks whether those entering are alive or not, and if you’re alive, the magic changes you so you’re not anymore; “transforms” was the word she used. To me, that sounded like a death spell. An additional effect makes the enchantment difficult to remove. Lovely! Not that we’ve ever removed spells other than by destroying the enchanted object. Our strategy has always been to break through or sneak past spelled areas. That wouldn’t work here.

Va’lyndra tossed a piece of dried fruit into the temple, but we couldn’t see any changes to it, other than the slight deformation that happened when it hit the floor. She needed to rest after her spellcasting, and was adamant that none of us should try to enter. I think her words were more for Ilzo than for Leopold or me…

A piece of living wood pushed into the temple showed no changes we could detect. With the stupidity of an orc, Va’lyndra stuck her hand inside. It made her feel dizzy, and when the effect worsened, she pulled her hand back. Ilzo postulated that maybe those who enter turn into spirits. Va’lyndra asked him to take her hand, and I could see the struggle on her face as she forced herself to step inside, only her hand remaining outside. She said she was getting dizzy, and told Ilzo to pull her out if she fainted. The words had barely left her mouth when she collapsed. Ilzo pulled her outside. We hurried back to Olivia with her body. I sighed with relief when Olivia said she felt a slight pulse on her neck. I explained what had happened, of course, that Va’lyndra had stepped into a magic death trap on purpose. “Why in the world would she do that?” Olivia moaned. I had no answer for her. We watched the body all day, letting Ilzo and Leopold do as they wished.

Va’lyndra didn’t wake, and Ilzo and I put the body inside her tent. Olivia notified Leopold that his watch was beginning, and my lover and I converged on our own tent. We were about to kiss when Olivia spotted something over my shoulder. She ran over to Va’lyndra’s tent and went to work, trying to get Va’lyndra to breathe. Relief washed over me when Va’lyndra vomited and gasped for breath, although she was still sleeping. Olivia rounded on Ilzo, berating him for nearly drowning the poor elf. He must never give liquids to someone who’s unconscious. Olivia turned on me, and with nearly as much anger instructed me to make sure he didn’t.

[coronatiger]

Thoughts on April 17th

Va’lyndra was still sleeping when morning came. After breakfast, I tried shaking her carefully, speaking her name. She didn’t respond. I considered sticking my hand inside her jacket to pinch her in a sensitive place, but decided not to. If someone tried to wake Olivia that way, I’d murder them, so it would be equally wrong for me to molest Va’lyndra.

I asked Leopold if he knew any magic that would get us inside the temple. It didn’t seem like he did, so we went to look for alternative entrances to the structure. My hopes weren’t high, but it gave us something to do while we waited for Va’lyndra to come around. Leopold stopped to make notes whenever he spotted something that piqued his interest, among them a reference to “the great spirit”. There were no other entrances, but Leopold seemed satisfied with glaring at the wall. I soon grew tired of watching him, and went back to surprise Olivia. Rhythmic banging on the temple wall – Ilzo, I presumed – set the pace for my advances. If Ilzo was stupid enough to break through the wall and actually enter, I wouldn’t come for him. At least not until Olivia and I had come a few times for each other first.


Thoughts on April 18th

Va’lyndra was still under this morning. Olivia had gotten some food and water inside her, but unless the mage woke up, she would die. I thought it was time to realize we’d been defeated. Ilzo argued that he wasn’t giving up quite yet, but then he noticed that we were out of water. We packed down the camp, and I started tying Va’lyndra across Hungover’s saddle, until Olivia told me she wouldn’t survive the transport like that. We shifted around some baggage, and I mounted Marvin. Ilzo and Olivia lifted up Va’lyndra, and we sat her in the saddle in front of me. I’m the best rider in the group, and could steer Marvin with my knees while holding the unconscious elf so she didn’t fall off. Ilzo was certainly strong enough to hold her, and a decent rider, but there’s no horse in the world that can carry Ilzo as well as a passenger.

We arrived at the underground inn late in the evening, and we rented three rooms, one for Ilzo, one for Leopold and one for us girls. We also bought water to refill our drained skins. Olivia and I brought Va’lyndra upstairs. Ilzo climbed up on a chair in the common room and asked if there was anyone present who could wake an unconscious person. Nobody volunteered, and in hindsight, I think I’d have gotten a more favorable response than the orc. Olivia and I ignored him and checked out the guild office. It was closed, so we went to bed. Lady Karita had once said that our activities could wake the dead, but it did no good for Va’lyndra.


Thoughts on April 19th

There was more activity at the guild office this morning, in fact we had to wait in line to get in. Leopold made small talk while I entertained with acrobatics. Olivia remained behind to take care of Va’lyndra. Ilzo asked again if anyone knew how to wake her. He got more traction today, and while nobody present possessed the necessary skills, someone mentioned a party that left in the direction of Garuk yesterday. They went on foot, so we might be able to catch up with them.

It was finally our turn at the office, and I explained what we’ve done, and what we failed to do. We accepted half pay for the last quest, and I rushed out to talk to the adventurers Ilzo had spoken to, to get the names and descriptions of the people in the healer’s party.

We agreed I could take Surkalpi and the bare minimum of supplies so I could race through the mines. I caught up with the correct group in the afternoon, and explained the situation to them. I turned on my charm when we started negotiating, but an elf woman took over when she saw how I was manipulating her male companions. Eventually we agreed that I’d pay twenty gold pieces for their help, and a bonus of another hundred if they managed to wake Va’lyndra. I only had sex once while we waited for my friends to arrive.

They came a few hours later, and I confessed to Olivia as soon as I got her alone. The healer examined Va’lyndra, but unfortunately, I only had to pay him the twenty gold.


Thoughts on April 20th

We traveled on today, at a much slower pace than I had held yesterday, but since I was there to take care of Va’lyndra, we moved faster than my friends had done.


Thoughts on April 21st

We passed the checkpoint and declared everything, paying fifty percent in tax to the governor. The innkeeper at the Red Mansion resisted my charms and made me pay for my room. In protest, I didn’t perform, instead devoting myself completely to Olivia.


Thoughts on April 22nd

Olivia and I went to see her medicine teacher if she could help us wake Va’lyndra. Ilzo headed for the guildhall on the same mission. We met again back at the Red Mansion, and by then Va’lyndra had come around on her own. She’d even been out for a stroll. We told Va’lyndra how long she’d been unconscious, and how worried we had been for her. She had trouble believing us. She thought she’d just been sleeping for a few hours.

I went to the guild and asked Master Malfinn Kandus what rank was required to gain admission to the guild auction next month. He explained that as I’ve been on a bunch of quests now, I just needed someone to vouch for me, in order to gain the rank of Veteran, and be allowed into the auction. Another benefit of gaining that rank was that a wider range of potions would be available for purchase. I asked him who might vouch for me, and he said it had to be someone of importance, but it didn’t have to be someone in the guild. I asked if he knew Fidel Sidel or Karl Morgenstern, and he would accept a recommendation from either of them, if I could convince one of them to vouch for my character.

I sought out Karl Morgenstern next, for he lives here in Garuk. If he wouldn’t vouch for me, I’d have to go to Urdon and find Fidel Sidel. He owes me a favor, so I knew I’d get a recommendation from him if I failed to get one from Karl.

The guards outside his office refused to let me in without an appointment. I suppose the Tamburin threat weighs heavily on him at the moment. The guards knew who I was, of course, and I convinced them to let Karl know I’d been to see him. He could send a reply to the Red Mansion.

I still have to pay for the room, but the innkeeper didn’t mind if I performed for tips in the common room. Leopold failed to show up for dinner, but while we wondered where he might have gone, we didn’t worry. It wasn’t like we had ordered him to dine with us. After the meal, I entertained the inn’s patrons with acrobatics. It was a raging success. Even Ilzo tipped me a whole gold piece.

[coronatiger]

Thoughts on April 23rd

There still was no sign of Leopold at breakfast, and I asked Va’lyndra to check if he had returned to his room. I didn’t want to orchestrate a search-and-rescue if he was simply nursing a hangover. With her plant magic, Va’lyndra could look through the locked door and see if he was there. He wasn’t. I asked the innkeeper if he knew where Leopold had gone yesterday, and he told us that he’d gone to the city hall to check something out.

Ilzo and Va’lyndra went to the city hall to investigate. Olivia and I remained at the inn, in case Leopold returned, or a messenger from Karl Morgenstern arrived. While we waited, an officer entered the inn and approached me. He was indeed sent by Karl Morgenstern, on two errands. The first was that a gnome named Leopold Nobus had been arrested yesterday, suspected of spying. Said gnome had given my name as someone who could vouch for him. The officer looked at me questioningly. I admitted that I knew Leopold, and claimed, quite honestly, that I didn’t believe in the accusations. A non-human spying for the Tamburin Supremacy? Not likely. The officer said he expected the whole situation was a big misunderstanding, with bureaucrats being on edge and seeing spies everywhere. He turned as if to go. “What about the other errand?” I asked. He apologized, and told me I could visit Karl Morgenstern at any time tomorrow before lunch. I promised I’d be there.

Va’lyndra had purchased fine clothes to wear at the city hall, and they came back so she could change and show me the outfit. Leopold had been released and was there already, and he expressed gratitude that Va’lyndra had woken up and flooded her with questions. That man can talk a hole in your head! I was beginning to regret vouching for him when Olivia reminded me that we could go somewhere else.

Fresh and invigorated, I performed again in the evening.


Thoughts on April 24th

We split the profits from the quests, and Leopold was overwhelmed by the amount he received. I gave Olivia all my money as usual, and went to see Karl Morgenstern. I was admitted to the office he shared with two underlings.

I explained that I needed a recommendation to gain access to an adventurers’ guild auction that I very much would like to attend. I asked if there was something I could do for him in return, but he couldn’t think of anything. He’s happily married, and I think both of them are nice people, so I made no suggestions that could jeopardize their happiness. We agreed that I’d owe him a favor in exchange for the letter of recommendation.

When I was about to leave, he asked about Lady Karita, his cousin. I plumped back down in the chair with a sad face. Hadn’t he heard she was dead? He asked what happened, and saw that I was reluctant to talk about it. He made us private, and I told him the whole story, that she had fallen in combat when we tried to arrest an inquisitor who had slaughtered an entire village outside Urdon.

Back at the inn, I told the others about my meeting. Then I declared that I wanted to go for a ride, to check out the snow in the mountains, to make a guess about when the Tamburin army might descend from the passes. Va’lyndra wanted to seek knowledge at the knowledge guild; she didn’t use those words, but I knew what she meant when she vaguely alluded to the place. They don’t want to be mentioned where outsiders can hear. Leopold wanted to find a mathematician, and thought he’d visit the adventurer’s guild. They make maps, so someone must know a little geometry, he reasoned. So that Ilzo would have something to do as well, the gnome suggested he should go with us into the mountains. Olivia glared at him, and I sighed and asked Ilzo unenthusiastically if he wanted to come. He did. So, he came.

The three of us saddled our horses and rode north. When the sun was getting low, I decided to turn back, even if we hadn’t come far enough to check out the snow in the passes. I expected a new rank to be bestowed upon me tomorrow, and wanted to be in town for that. Ilzo chose to keep going, intending to spend the night outdoors. Olivia and I got our romantic ride after all. It was getting quite late when we returned to the Red Mansion, but I put on a performance anyway. There were still people in the common room.


Thoughts on April 25th

Leopold and Va’lyndra wanted to do more research, so Olivia and I had the day to ourselves. I went to the guild in the afternoon to see if my letter of recommendation had arrived, and it had. There was no ceremony of any kind, but I gained access to new, more powerful potions, so I spent some time browsing. I made a list so I could tell the others what was available so I could buy it for them.

Ilzo arrived at the Red Mansion in the evening. He hadn’t reached high enough to spot the passes, but didn’t want to remain longer. He’d had a run-in with two soldiers from Garuk who demanded to know what he was doing up there. He thought they behaved strangely, and paid them a gold piece each to go away. He didn’t think they were keen to fight him, and the gold gave them an excuse not to.

I put on a show and went to bed.


Thoughts on April 26th

Olivia and I went potion shopping for the party. At the guildhall, I was given a list of auction items, and they asked if I had anything for sale. If I did, I should provide them at least two weeks in advance, so information about them could be distributed to the potential buyers. I forwarded the question to the others. I know we have a bunch of magic staves that we don’t need to drag along with us, and maybe the others have something else as well that I don’t recall.

Leopold was sullen because Va’lyndra had let him know that she had access to a library where he wasn’t welcome, so Va’lyndra tried to please him by contacting the knowledge guild again. They agreed to meet the two of them for negotiations the day after tomorrow.

It looked like Leopold and Va’lyndra would spend quite some time doing researching, so I tried to find something useful for the rest of us to do. I met with the guild master again, and suggested that Ilzo and I could escort someone with mountaineering skills to check out the snow in the passes. He asked me if I didn’t think that the military would be doing just that, but answered his own question by saying that it might take some time for the information to reach our guild. He decided to pay someone to go with us. Ilzo and I had to cover our own costs. That was fine by me. I just wanted something to do. I could stay in bed all day with Olivia, but the threat of invasion was worrying us, and we wanted information.

[coronatiger]

Thoughts on April 27th

Ilzo, Olivia and I met the other adventurer, a human named Erland Whitesand, and set off on foot. We would be climbing through terrain not friendly to horses. Since we didn’t bring horses, our packs were a lot heavier than usual, and our speed was much slower than I liked. I couldn’t even do acrobatics. Well, I could have, but with the weight distribution of our packs, I would have run myself into the ground if I tried.


Thoughts on April 28th

We moved on, and passed near the spot where Olivia and I had turned around when we went riding with Ilzo. If everything went according to plan, Va’lyndra and Leopold would be meeting the knowledge guild today and gain access for Leopold to their library.


Thoughts on April 29th

All the walking has made Olivia sore and stiff. She doesn’t complain, but I noticed her lovemaking is less … inspired than usual.


Thoughts on April 30th

In the afternoon, we reached the first pass, and saw it was clear of snow. We took a break before we’d turn back, and spotted two people coming towards us, so we hid until it became apparent that they wouldn’t be coming near our hiding place. They were still a couple of kilometers away, but Ilzo and I lightened our packs to combat weight and dashed off to intercept them, leaving Olivia and Erland to struggle along with all our food and camping gear.

When the two strangers noticed us approaching, they started running, but it was clear that we’d catch up with them. After a long chase, at fifty meters, they stopped to draw weapons, so we did too. One of them had a spear, the other one started winding up a crossbow. I nocked an arrow and aimed at the crossbowman, calling for them to put down their weapons; we wanted to talk. Ilzo charged ahead, and I gave them another warning. If they didn’t drop their weapons, the orc would thrash them. They ignored my third warning as well, so I released my arrow. It would have hit the crossbowman, if the spearman hadn’t stepped in front of him. As it was, the spearman took the broadhead arrow through his thigh and fell to the ground as his leg gave way.

I drew another arrow and aimed at the crossbowman again while the spearman sat up, preparing for Ilzo’s charge. The crossbowman fired at me, and I lost my aim as I had to flip out of the way of the bolt. I took aim again and put an arrow through his chest before Ilzo got close enough to block my view. The shooter toppled backwards, blood spurting from the wound.

Ilzo knocked the spear out of the way with Surkalpi and kicked at the spearman, but missed. “Last chance to give up before he cleaves you!” I shouted. Ilzo stood over him with the naginata at the ready, and the spearman wisely dropped his spear so he could clutch his thigh instead.

I ran over to them and tied up the unconscious crossbowman’s wound while I asked the spearman who they were. Ilzo watched over him so he shouldn’t try anything stupid. The spearman didn’t reply until I searched them and found foreign uniforms under their outer clothing. Then he was spiteful and rude to Ilzo, so I gagged him. Why should we put up with the abuse when we didn’t have to? There are professional investigators and questioners in Garuk who are paid to listen. Olivia looked over my bandaging work when she and Erland arrived and did some corrections to them.

When I told Olivia what had happened, I confessed I had been afraid that they were from Garuk. That’s why I waited so long to take the first shot. “Don’t you think they’d have recognized you?” Was that a snide remark about my lack of thought, or an attempt to soothe me? I must have looked like a question mark, for Olivia laughed. Then she kissed me, and all thoughts of being offended vanished.


Thoughts on May 1st

The crossbowman was still unconscious this morning, so Ilzo carried him. The spearman had to be helped along as well. We wouldn’t be back in the ten days we’d promised. Olivia suggested that we feed them healing potions, but I refused to expend those precious drops on enemies. We’d even save on the bill at the inn if we prolonged our trip, but I didn’t mention that out loud. The captives had brought enough food for us to remain a little longer, and water was readily available in small brooks and creeks, unlike in the mines.


Thoughts on May 2nd

Ilzo had to carry the crossbowman today too, even though he woke up last night. The spearman hobbled along, leaning more heavily on my shoulder than he really had to. I came to dislike him intensely.


Thoughts on May 3rd

We trudged along today. Luckily, we’re going downhill. At least, we are most of the time. This terrain is rough!


Thoughts on May 4th

We reached our second campsite tonight, so I calculated that we’re going at half speed compared to when we came the other way.


Thoughts on May 5th

The spearman touched Olivia’s bottom today. I punched him on his bandaged thigh, and calmly told him not to do it again. His face turned white, and he swore fervently that he wouldn’t, that he didn’t mean to, it was an accident. I believed him, and warned him to be more careful in the future. Someone else might not be as understanding as me.


Thoughts on May 6th

We had a talk this morning. What do we do with the prisoners when we reach Garuk? We were going to pass some mansions today, so we could deliver them there, but I don’t trust the nobles around here. Some of them even conspired with the infiltrators last year. I decided we should bring them to the city, and when we get near, I’ll run ahead and tell Karl Morgenstern. Then he can sort them out.


Thoughts on May 7th

We haven’t been challenged yet, and I think we’ll reach Garuk tomorrow.