It was Plantmonth the 27th and we had escaped from Wendover, sadly with little more than a few weapons, 2 vessels, and the underwear we were wearing. We managed to get Ygraine the Valkyrie free, but she was unconscious right now and soaking wet – weighing in at 300 lbs.
The thought was to make a sledge to drag her with. But being where we were amidst the trees, we needed a place to go. And that was Nobleton, about 2 miles as the crow flies west of here. And we were not crows. The party carried the angel to the east some 2 to 300 yards until the quality of the trees changed from Cedar and cypress to ash/elm, and pine. From there a few of us went off to gather vines and kudzu to use as rope, while Darius and Rhygar used what branches, sticks, and the like they could find to make a sledge large enough and sturdy enough to survive the passage overland we would have to take. It wasn’t pretty and was crude, and was not going to last forever, but by quarter to 4 – we considered ourselves done.
Connal and Grendel took the first go round to drag the thing. We figured 45 minutes on and then 2 others could drag – Rhygar and Darius. We made our way north and west, circling slowly about the lake, ever watching south the distant town of Wendover through the trees. It was as we were getting closer to the border of the forest that the group heard passage in the forest – and getting closer. The party hid behind trees, a few of us climbing high enough to stay in the branches.
On looking around we could see 3 figures inching closer, sniffing and moving oddly. They got close enough for Shim and Connal to identify them for us. “Ghouls!” they hissed. “Damned ghouls!” The undead sniffed harder and charged us – Grendel, Rhygar, and Darius at the base of the trees, weapons up, sling spinning.
Shim summoned a wild horse who appeared in a puff of smoke, whinnying and kicking one of the ghouls, stopping it from running closer. The others ran up and Darius slung a big assed rock at one of them, busting its hip and forcing it to fall over. Connal dropped out of a tree and disabled another. Spears stabbed and the party cut and slashed. Another sling stone tore a ghoul’s lower jaw clean off and finally – we put them down. “That was…lucky!” The party noted. Ygraine was still out and we continued to sledge westward, the invisible Valkyrie safely in place.
The group swapped out for Rhygar and Darius to pull as we made our way further and further. We were pretty shot, hungry, thirsty. Our feet were hurting with no shoes or boots, the ground uncompromising as we plodded on. IN the distance we could see a lake, South Wind Lake, and the faint outline of a walled town on the south shore of it. It was quarter after 5 and Connal and Grendel took over pulling duties as we moved on. The distance was shrinking and we were growing weary.
And then it happened. In the distance north of us, we heard the “Buk buk Bwak!” of a wild Canaslanian Chicken. The rye grass we were walking in was 3’ tall and we could see faintly movement up there. Nothing to worry about – let’s keep going. A few minutes later an answering “buk buk Bwak” to our south. More chickens. North and south? Um.. ok. Let’s go. We picked up the pace a little. Eoghan was able to get a feel that we had a number of Chickens to our north, south, and now east – behind us. 20? 30? More? They were keeping their distance – a hundred yards or so – but were definitely swelling in flock size.
We did what we could to speed up as the clucking grew closer and closer. And ahead of us we could see maybe 40 yards or so, a 4 count stuck their heads up over the rye and “buk buk Bwaked!”.
And then, to our north, the distant call and cock a doodle doo of a full sized Canaslanian Rooster sounded out.
And the mass of chickens around us went fucking nuts and charged!!
We ran – and ran hard. Connal’s feet were still ripped up from the hooks earlier so was going slower already, but was even further slowed by the pull of the sledge he and Grendel were running with. Meanwhile Eoghan’s Longstrider effect was still on but only for a short time. Shim raised his hands and the Ranger snatched up the gnome, and RAN hard to the west and the town of Nobleton. We quickly spread out with Eoghan and Shim in the front, then Wilhelm charging along with Darius and Rhygar right behind the elven druid. And then last was Grendel and Connal and the sledge that was bouncing around with the invisible angel tied to the surface. And the Chickens came – running pell mell to attack. They jumped out of the grass, clawing and pecking. Connal got scratched and his underwear torn at the shoulder and the sledge made a snapping sound as a 22 lb chicken slammed into it like a cannon ball – but it held.
The group pounded the ground, kicking and running as Chickens burst from the grass to hit and buffet the back three. The elf and monk were getting hit and Darius slowed down a bit with Rhygar. Meanwhile Eoghan stopped, turned Shim around, held him steady and the gnome called out a summon spell – and an orc appeared! He looked around and frowned, asking, “Am I in Canaslan?!”
Shim nodded and told him, “Hold them off as long as you can!” pointing to the boiling mass of 40+ chickens and rising coming towards us.
“Wouldn’t you rather I come with you?!” The summoned orc wailed as the ranger lifted Shim up and once more…WHOOM – burst of speed ran ahead. The orc readied his weapons and attacked, Grendel and Connal spotting him briefly as they charged passed and then the orc screamed in horror as he was ripped and torn apart.
Run!
Grendel was smashed again and again as the chickens kept ripping at him. At one point he stepped poorly on the ground and split his heel wide open but grit his teeth, snarled, “This is fucking bullshit!” and ran through the pain. As the horde of chickens threatened to grow too large again, Eoghan was safely enough ahead to stop once more, turn Shim around and the gnome cast another spell – summoning a wild barbaric elf! The wild elf had a bow in her hand and could see the area around us, and the now almost 50 chickens racing towards us. “Damn it, gnome! Did you summon me to Canaslan!?!”
“Hold them off!” Shim cried out as Eoghan picked him up once more and they ran on.
“GNOME!” The elf turned and fired two arrows, picking off 2 of the chickens that were ready to jump on the monk, clearing a small place behind them, before she too ran on ahead until she could risk another 2 shots.
Meanwhile more chickens were hitting the sledge and pieces were cracking and breaking off. For a moment it slowed as a strut furrowed the ground behind before the offending branch snapped in half and spun away. Connal and Grendel were gasping for air, covered in dozens of scratches. Their feet looked like reddened lumps of ham as they pressed on leaving bloody flecks flying behind. And the rooster’s call was getting closer.
Run!!
From the wall Eoghan could see a figure on top waving them forward and the gate was opened as well, a figure there with a huge bag on his back was jumping and flailing his arms. “Hurry!” They called, “Hurry!” The elf fired two more arrows, picking another 2 chickens off Connal’s back before she was overrun. Eoghan slowed down, stopped and helped Shim turn around and the gnome fired off 3 magic missiles, scattering feathers and angry poultry. Grendel was hit again and again, the elf faltering. Darius slowed down to pace him and using his harpoon, swung it like a bat to keep the most aggressive chickens from taking the elf down.
It was getting dicey at this point if we were going to make it but Eoghan and Shim fired off one more blast of magic missiles before turning for the gate and charging to it. On the wall was a dwarven figure with what seemed to be 4 small trebuchets set up, screaming at the distant party, to “RUN!” At the gate was a half orc with a huge rope and leather looking bag on his back, a 7’ metal tube held in his hands pointing away and towards the charging mass. A gnome was on a platform over the orc’s head wearing a leather apron and thick long fingered gloves, and another gnome was at the orc’s side, a torch lit and ready but held very far away from them for some reason.
The party ran on, Wilhelm racing through the gate next and then Rhygar. A few last frantic chickens tried to attack, shredding the last of Connal’s shirt portion of his underwear, leaving him bear chested and racing with rags in his hand, and a furious pounding dive bomb attempt to shatter the sledge (hit – got it down to 4 hp but still not fully broken !) that snapped a support piece and began the spew broken branches behind it. Connal and Grendel hurled themselves through the gate as the cart broke apart and threatened to roll, screaming in fury as they made it.
The trebuchets on the wall fired and 4 large half gallon glass jars of firewater arced up and fell into the mass of chickens, burning big swaths of grasses as the Chickens with red murder in their eyes leapt forward.
Before they did, the gnome leapt from the platform, hit the bag hard and reached down to the ropes and pulled – sending some liquid racing through the bladders and down the metal tube at a rapid velocity. And the other gnome held the torch in front of the spewing aerated liquid as the orc aimed – and a tongue of fire 30’ long arced out for 11 seconds with a WHOOSHING sound and set ablaze every chicken within range of the gate, making the others back up and Bawk with fury. As the fire died out the dwarf had already dropped down to the ground and was helping to shove the gate closed, the locking bar set in place.
And we could hear for a few minutes angry chickens hurl their bodies at the gate in an attempt to get inside. “Yer all a daft bunch, ain’t ye?” the dwarf asked, identifying himself at Yrning. One of the gnomes and the half orc were taking the flame throwing contraption off and hanging it on a series of racks to be easily but on again while the apron wearing gnome asked the group, “Who the hell are you and what made you risk running across the grasslands like that? You want the chickens to get you?” He identified himself as Saelmigil, “Sail” for short.
Eoghan and Shim were pretty much the ones to talk and said that they were looking for a place to hold up. They were members of the Greater Rand Sellsword and Adventuring Guild and they hoped that Benson Trimend could help them out. Sail looked concerned about that and offered to go ahead to let Benson know of their arrival. Yrning walked with them and they had a chance to look over Nobleton. It wasn’t much of anything – the focal building was the Lodge itself, 2 main floors, shaped like a “T”, a smaller 3rd floor on top with a widow’s walk overlooking South Wind Lake. Dock ran out to the water. Besides that there were some granary and smoke house store houses, a 4 stall open walled stable, and 3 other smaller buildings. That was it.
The Lodge itself was very nice and accommodating. We were escorted to the main eating area where a dwarven cook, Gjuldar, was happy to see us. Sail had gone up to talk to Benson, but for us, we were given a bit to eat and drink for now – roast chicken featuring on the menu. There were 4 visible down here as staff, leading the group to imagine the entire place might be 15 to 25 people tops. The staff and people of Nobleton were nice, spoke warmly of Benson, indicated that he never came down to the dining room, and commented that he had been the owner here for 3 years or so and the last Lodge Owner was a pig and a prick. They weren’t worried about the flock of now over 100 chickens and 2 roosters out the gate, assuring us that in 3 days or so, the flocks would disperse after some interfighting and move on. They have enough stores for now to withstand the “siege” (a fact that Connal Detected Lie to verify – and that they owed no allegiance to Wendover) and would only have to worry if the supply wagons couldn’t get her for 2 weeks or more.
Finally Sail returned and suggested that Benson would meet with one or two of the party tops. We picked Eoghan and Shimlagesh to go and the rest of us waited here. They went up with the gnome to the 3rd floor where Sail knocked and the two were invited in. The penthouse apartment was a bit of a clutter, stacks of dishes and mugs, poor housecleaning. Lots of windows and a wonderful view of the lake and the hills beyond.
Bendon Trimend was a Mountain dwarf, about 4 and a half feet tall, 180 lbs – going to pot. If he was human he’d appear to be in his 50’s. Thick greying black beard, wide eyebrows, lots of scars. Part of left ear missing from lobe down and two smallest fingers missing from left hand – scarred tissue.
He motioned them to sit and invited Sail to leave for now. The Adventuring party thing was mentioned once and he scoffed at it. Wanted to know who they were and what they were doing here. We gave a top down recounting of our time from Wendover and our exploits there. We neglected to mention Ygraine (invisible and guarded outside by Connal) and kept the details light although truthful. He had a mug that he filled constantly just by flicking his finger at it, watching the party tightly.
Knew adventurers were going to come one day. And this group? Now? If they fled Wendover, why did they not go east further into the woods and the towns there? Why did they then turn back around and head past the place they just vacated? Sounds like bullshit – and knows they are hiding something. Might be best to just send you all out to your death but you already ate right? Ate here at the lodge and have no money? Well fuck. Fuck you all. You have to WORK tomorrow to pay for the food I had my people feed you and the room you’re going to sleep in tonight. Tomorrow, if I am still unhappy, you and your group will be expelled and you can take your chances with the chickens. “Sail! Sail! I’m done with them, get them the fuck out of my sight!”
The gnome came and took the group out and back downstairs. And Eoghan and Shim could hear Benson screaming and hurling things about his room. “Fuck! Damn it! Fuck you, Frigga! Grrr!!”
Downstairs we were given a room to stay in, some bathwater to clean up, and also a fresh set of clothes (peasant style), shoes, and underwear. We carried in Ygraine (still invisible) and it was obvious we were carrying something. No, no help thanks, we’ve got it. The entire staff of the Lodge was watching bemused. Connal was looking at the best way to maybe climb up and get to Benson’s room but would have to be outside to do so. He hoped to stay away but the party was seriously done – and the group fell asleep.
We awoke the next day, later than usual. Got dressed and reported to Gjuldar for work. Some of us were sent to scrub pots, others to whitewash the walls, dredge trenches, work stone, and other menial but important tasks. We ate well and it was evening again when Benson had Sail come for the group again. Once more Eoghan and Shim went up to the 3rd floor and Benson was there to see us. He frowned at their clothes. “More stuff you owe me for? How the hell are you ever going to pay me back if I keep feeding and dressing you? Bullshit!”
They went over in more depth the entire Wendover thing, and Eoghan and Shim came clean – telling Benson everything from the beginning. From Sonnab and Philters to Hillscar and Wendover. They went over the party’s trials and tribulations, really giving him a once over of what happened and how it went down – including their loss of all their gear and escape. The dwarf was engaged, listening deeply to the story. He commented that they would be ill prepared to face Wendover under the best of circumstances now even if he outfitted them with some spare swords, spears, and shields.
At this point they said that if he could do better, they’d show him something that would blow him away. He scoffed, been adventuring on and off for 27 years, there is damned little you can surprise him with. Is it the invisible thing? He guessed it might be a hybrid female troll based upon the things the group had mentioned about Stavraphore’s operation and Shim assured him, “Good guess. And it’s wrong. And so are the next 50 guesses.”
It was at this point that we realized that Benson was a shut in. He was coaxed to get up and follow them to the door where he took one last drink and Sail made sure the way was clear. Eyes closed, they led him to the 2nd floor and their room where he shut the door and was able to get a hold of himself. “It’s like being in my room only not. I can cope.” He looked around and sighed. “If this doesn’t blow my socks off, fuck you, I’m throwing you all out tonight.”
Shim dropped the invisibility and we all had a chance to see Ygraine.
“Sweet. Fucking. Frigga.” Benson was agog looking over the Valkyrie. She was scarred up, broken, old wounds, shunts still shoved inside, dirty, filthy, a total mess. But still divine in her own way and sporting a folded up set of 20’ angelic wings. Benson looked her over and cast a Deathwatch spell on her, musing as he muttered and the group answered questions about her and her capabilities as well as what she’s done so far and why she’s knocked out.
He assured us she was alive but her inner stores of divine light were pretty much gone. Unless Sif was looking for her directly and was in the same room, she’d never be seen. She is getting her sustenance from Asgard in her own way, not needing traditional food or drink. But she is very very broken. Only by returning her home could she be whole again. There are things he could do, it would take some time – 3, 4, 6 days – who knows. But he could get a large portion of the hurst that are down to her bones healed over time.
But she would still need to signal Sif and the Bifrost that she is here and needs to come back. Have to take her to holy ground, like big. Cathedral level if you can. And get her to the Apex of it. There is one in Erylond but Benson wasn’t sure that was a good or feasible idea, taking a wounded angel into the city.
The group asked does it have to be an active Cathedral? Nope, holy ground only. At some point an aspect of the god, an avatar had to be on site during the investiture of the locale and the spark of the god is still there, even if it's not active. We suggested Hillscar, and he did not know where it was. Makes sense, if it was a known locale, it would be pretty useless for smuggling. So the group figured in a week they’d get her to Hillscar – allows them to take care of Wendover and get their gear.
It was here that Benson sighed and talked about his former adventuring party. Eoghan came clean about the note we had found from the journal in Ditch and Benson admitted it was from a journal he had written at the end of his last adventuring party’s demise. He did say that the Desmondian Diamond was the most valuable treasure in the world – and he has the key to open it. It also killed his friends.
Adventures don’t have a beginning or an end – they are just where you are at the time.
He sat back and shared with the group of the Desmondian Diamond, what it means to him, and what happened to his group.
He had been a part of an adventuring group with a Mountain dwarf Fighter/Sorcerer named Yurshin, a Half-orc Fighter/Thief named Cantok, and an elven Fighter/Wizard named Rispardia. They had been an adventuring group on an off for the last 20 years when the first Sovereign Land of Duncan Eternal, Grymeria, came into being. It was a huge thing, people were talking all about it. Yurshin was the eldest daughter of Ambassador Guglin Gorok and was present when the entire ruling family, every Thane of the Gorokian Empire had been called together and had a closed door meeting. Turns out that the Underthanes were fanatically going on and on that, “It happened. It finally happened.”
There was a high powered Gorokian Seer named Desmond there who was railing against the Gorokian highlords that they have meddled with forces they don’t understand. Now that it happened, it’s come to pass, and the Norns will have to record it. Seeing that most of the dwarves in attendance were getting worried and not knowing what was being spoken about, the High Thane had everyone leave the meeting except the Upper Lords and Counselors. Yurshin and many others were left outside with no answers.
Many hours later, her father Ambassador Guglin left the meeting and said nothing, was just troubled the entire trip. After arriving home, he and his daughter were immediately summoned to the Sepulcher of Fates – the resting house of all the prophecies and seers. Here they were in attendance with a small contingent of the Gorokian Court and was visited by the Seer Desmond.
The Seer was adamant and assured those who came to him that Gorokian dwarves fucked up again, as bad as they did a 120 years ago (The Randari war and genocide). And as bad as they did 80 years ago (The Reetersbeard Compact). This one was going to take the cake. The Sovereign lands were a poison, a corruption of the world. And with each one that popped into being, were going to spell the doom to everyone. One of them was going to trigger Ragnarok. It was a matter of when.
During this meeting he confirmed that he could in theory construct a rune crafted ritual, a spell of such intricacy that it would allow a rewrite of the Nornian Skein – but it was going to be some time till he finished it -and it was going to take a fuck ton of power to run it. Ambassador Guglin and a small contingent of the Gorokian thanehood who disagreed with the greater council were in on this and happy to help. Money was given, help, anything that was needed. Desmond assured them he needed a decade and we’d have to be hopeful nothing too fucked up happened between now and then.
Yurshin and company eventually did other jobs with her friends and moved on at her father’s advice. Go into the Dungeon if they wish, but she was told that they were never to enter any of the glyph gates of the Terror Dungeon but to pay attention to who did and what they said about it.
Some 3 years ago the Seer Desmond finished the spell, etching the last of it on a diamond of such clarity and size. He described it as the “greatest treasure the world had even known”. The ritual was finished but it would need a powerful magical source to operate it. For now he wanted to mask its unique signature until it was time to use it, so had a casing crafted for it from the artisans at Emberia, and even paid Lord Emberwine to craft and enchant the key for it.
While there to pick up the key, the Dragonlord had gotten some questions of what it was that had been made from Seer Desmond and was getting upset at the answers. It was when Desmond inquired about a magical item Lord Emberwine had been searching for called the Ravenstone, a reputed item that might power the Diamond, that talks broke down. The Seer fled Emberia but was chased quite a bit, eventually losing his tail by going through a number of other Sovereign Lands and hiding the casing and Desmondia Diamond in one of them. He sent a cryptic message to Ambassador Guglin about it but the Seer had been slain on the road home back to Gorok.
Ambassador Guglin then asked his daughter, Yurshin and us to get to Emberia and get the key. We did, and it was a close thing. But Lord Emberwine sent a draconic beast, a twisted offspring of his that had been experimented on, to chase us down and get the key back. We ran, following the clues that the Seer had imparted to the Ambassador, and we fled and fought, hoping to get to where the Diamond is and get the case. The most valuable treasure the world has ever known.
The clues led to here, South Wind Lake. The Lodge owner there had put us up for the night, and then we left the next day, paying for his silence. The beastie followed us to here and the Lodge owner gave up where we had gone to. So there we were, in the caves, just about at the diamond, when the Beastie finally caught up to us. It was a terrible fight and we were going to lose. But one of us had to get out and damn it, I drew short straw. I did not want to go but me friends gave me no choice. I’m the cleric, I’m supposed to stay and support and help. Damn it, we’ve been friends for 27 years. But as the door gave way and the fire raced into the room, killing everyone, I was portalled away hurt and left for dead in Turnball.
The Watcher of the Dead tended to me and asked lots of questions as to what happened. I wrote in my journal and the Watcher I’m sure paid attention. But I was broken inside and I left a week later, with whatever valuables we had collected, not realizing that my mental state was troubling to the Watcher at that time. I came back to the Lodge and after speaking to the Owner, I paid the cost to buy the entire place. And then, after he had confessed to sending the Beastie after us…I killed him. With my bare hands, I throttled him until he died. I was disgusted with him, with life, with everything. Eventually I grew disgusted with the world, my place in it, and swore off everything.
I stay here and watch the water and the distant cave. The Beastie is still there, I see an odd fire now and again. The Watcher came and checked me out but I had him thrown out when his questions grew too upsetting to me. It must have been then that he took my journal and I did not notice at the time. So I sit here day after day and look at my dead friends. I expect I will drink until I die. Or until the world ends.
Whoa.
There was lots of back and forth and it was rather cathartic. He is willing to help us out with the following. We cannot go to Wendover even with what gear he could provide as the group is outmatched, especially as they have a Hellspawn, Kelly there. We need to even the power level a bit. He can outfit us, we go across South Wind Lake to the caves there and face the Beastie who has grown weak over the last 3 years, unable to leave or head home. In the 5th room are his friends' remains. The party is welcome to their gear. The Desmondian Diamond is in the 6th room. If we agree, he’ll give us the key to bring that back as well.
With the gear, we could then sneak back to Wendover and try to find all our stuff lost there, and if we have to face Kelly or Stavraphore – we’d be on better footing. Then, return here to Nobleton and Ygraine should be well enough to travel. And the party heads to Hillscar and climbs her to the top of the Cathedral. Finally, we go back to Glagdir Province and the Far Damn Tribe and Sonnab, resolve all that and then at the end, go to Erylond and see the Church of Freya – and find out what the fuck the Rector was doing and why he even wanted such an item as the Philter of Love?
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