Lefrik eyes the fruits and vegatables and with great effort manages to say "Thank you." Where the hell is the meat?
The gratitude becomes quite sincere though when he hears of the salve.
"Go raibh maith agat go mór ar do theach," Bruendor says to the elf that brings the salve, giving a bow of his head to further drive home his sincerity. He opens the salve up and looks at it. "What do we do, just smear it on him?"
"Many thanks upon your house."
"The salve should be smeared upon the stone, master dwarf. The reversal process should take a few minutes, but your companion should be restored. Is there anything else I can do for you?"
Bruendor nods at the runner's advice, and dabs the unction upon Anklebiter's rocky form.
The oily cream seemed to glide over the rough rocky surface of the goblin statue, and in minutes Bruendor had completely covered Anklebiter with the stone salve. Nearly ten minutes later, you could see heat pouring off the statue as the gray stone turned red, then white. As the glow faded, you could see Anklebiter in his natural gray-green form, blinking at the light all around him.
"What happened?" Anklebiter asks, dumbfounded, swinging his staff left to right and back again. "We were underground just a moment ago.... there was a huge spider..."
The little Wizard winces and grimaces; he drops the staff so he can rub his neck. "Nethys' white mask, why am I so stiff? And..."
The Goblin gives Bruendor an odd look. "... and why do you have Magpie stuffed in a jute bag that smells of old turnips?"
"Anklebiter!" Lefrik almost tackles the little guy! "you were turned into stone!"
"I was?" Anklebiter asks, startled. "... What kind of stone? Did I at least have an aesthetic pose?"
"We made it, AB," Bruendor says, waiting his turn to embrace his friend. "She went a little crazy after you weren't yourself any longer. I had to stuff her in there to keep her from being a danger to herself or others. Now that you're back...are you feeling better in there, Maggie?"
"As for the stone..."
As soon as Bruendor opens the bag, Magpie peeks out. The homunculus cocks her head at the Dwarf, nods, shakes her head, then twirls her index finger next to her temple and ... shrugs. Clearly, 'Maggie' is still pretty shaken by her experience.
With another shrug and a twist, Magpie tumbles out of the bag, spreads her black-and-white-feathered wings and flaps over to Anklebiter, perching on top of his head. Tellingly, the little creation puts one hand on one of the Goblin's ears, as if to make sure he isn't going anywhere.
Anklebiter is eager enough to return the hugs from his friends.
"This is passing strange," he says, shaking his head in confusion. "Um. I am glad to be in the light again, so I am, but ... where are we, exactly? ... Is that a plate of fruits and vegetables? Elves again?"
The little Wizard reaches up to stroke Magpie's head.
"Do you think I could buy about five hundred gold coins' worth of dew of lunary and platinum off them? My Magpie really needs a voice now we're out of the bloody Darklands."
Not to be outdone in the petting department, Minky descends the tapestry and leaps onto her Wizard's shoulder. Chittering, she offers him a half-eaten piece of fruit - an offer she is happy enough to forget when the Goblin gently scratches her behind the ears.
"Iadara," Bruendor replies after releasing his embrace upon Anklebiter. "The aiudara took us to Kyonin, and now we're waiting to talk with the Queen's advisors about our experiences in Zirnakaynin."
"That'll be quite the talk," Anklebiter says, shaking his ears. "Well; I'm going to need other clothes. This Drow getup is a bit big and wide for my proper body. I'd hate for it to fall off in front of the Queen of the Elves."
The servants had left during the reunion, but the outfits they left behind looked as if they would fit all of you, even Anklebiter.
Calla changes into the garb, grumbling about how long the elves intend to leave them there.
"Those should fit you, Greenears," she tells Anklebiter.
"Yes, I think so," Anklebiter agrees as he struggles into a set of leggings and a loose robe. "Though I wonder where they got Goblin-sized ... Ahh, I just hope these aren't children's clothes."
Kel adjusts her new outfit, then helps the goblin into his garments. "I'm glad your back in one piece, Anklebiter. Hauling around a statue your size without chipping it wasn't easy, you should thank our big friend there for being so careful with you." Kel nods toward Lefrik.
Once the goblin is dressed, she shows him the sword retrieved from the fallen drow warrior. "What do you make of this blade? I was unsure about it myself."
"Ah, so this is why you are so happy to have me back, sister Kel," Anklebiter jokes, teasingly. The Goblin mutters a cantrip and takes a look at the blade.
"We're happy to have you back for many reasons, my friend! Not the least that you maybe the only who can explain things to the elves. "
A short time later, after you have all had time to bathe, change, and eat, there was a clapping at the door. It was Lord Villastir again, a smile on his face. A genuine one this time, with none of the haughty smirk he had worn earlier.
"Gentlemen and Ladies, Queen Telandia Edasseril requests your presence that she might hear more of your recent adventures. I should inform you that this is to be a private audience, free from the distractions of the court. As such, it would be improper to appear with weapons in hand. If you would be so kind as to leave them here, I can assure you that no harm will befall them, or you for that matter."
"I can't use this anymore anyway," Anklebiter says with a wistful look at the Drow shortsword. "So no problem."
The Goblin sets aside his daggers without complaint - and just grimaces at his staff.
"Oh, before I forget - have your people mandrakes and alchemical reagents for sale? I have some work to do, when we've the time."
Magpie flutters over to Anklebiter's shoulder and sits down. If the Elflord looks at her funny, she stubbornly crosses her arms and stares him down ... well, up.
"What is it with everyone constantly trying to divest of us weapons. Even our allies now?" Lefrik sighs with frustration. "Can I not peace tie it and keep it in scabbard?"
"I am afraid it is not allowed. No one is allowed in the Queen's presence while armed, saving only her Guard."
Call, knowing her goddess grants her other options if she should need them, merely nods, and divests herself of her weaponry.
Kel sheds her weapons and waits at the door for the others. "If they wanted our stuff they could take it, and they did provide healing for Anklebiter. Let us show our host some courtesy."
"The Queen has nothing to fear from us," Bruendor says as he undoes the ties that keeps his scabbard to his belt. "But I understand the need for security." Especially for my blade, he thinks to himself, not vocalizing the fact that Bloodbane makes no distinction between the drow and surface elves.
"I find it insulting, but very well," Lefrik says "Perhaps too much time dealing with drow has me paranoid and skittish." He does disarm.
Calla taps her foot impatiently.
"Well? Are we going to see the queen?"
"I do thank you for your cooperation. It is for the best."
Lord Villastir bowed to you as a group, then held his hands up.
"Now, the easiest way to teh audience chamber is a quick teleport..."
He broke off at Calla's scowl and Lefrik's hardened face.
"You know, perhaps I have strained your trust a bit much today. If you do not mind a bit of a walk, we can go the traditional way. He set off down the hallway at a brisk walk, forcing you to hurry to keep up with him. Bruendor fell slightly behind, and after a quick glance backwards, the elf shortened his stride a bit.
The route that Villastir took you on was long, and comprised of many twists and turns. If his idea was to confuse your sense of direction, he was dong a good job of it. Finally, after a good half hour of fast-paced walking, he stood before an ornate set of double doors, guarded by four burly elves with polearms. The weapons and armor of the guards left no doubt of their magical nature, as the fairly hummed with power.
Lord Villastir opened the crystal and gold doors and stepped forward and to the side. As you approached the doors, a herald standing just inside the room announced, in a clear, loud voice [b]"Lords and Ladies of the Court of Light, I present to you travelers from the outside world, invited guests of the Queen, Lefrik Olegson, Calumny Tas'vere, Kelendra Sahe, Bruendor Cavescouter, and Anklebiter the Insane."
Some gasps of amazement moved through the crowd of male and female elves gathered around the outside of a large audience hall, at the end of which was a dais complete with enthroned Queen. There were also a few twitters of laughter at the goblin's name.
Light flowed into the audience hall from a thousand glass and crystal openings in the roof and walls, and seemed to pool like water in the spot where the throne sat. On the throne was a mature, yet beautiful, elven woman. A crown of gold wire so thin it looked like lace sat upon her brow, dotted with violets. Beneath the crow were a pair of eyes that gazed speculatively at you as you stood in the doorway. When she spoke, her voice had a bored, or even slightly amused quality.
"Well Lord Villastir, you said that these visitors had an entertaining story to tell. Do usher them in so tat we might all be entertained."
Villastir flushed, then motioned for you to enter the hall and arrange yourselves before the Queen and her court.
"Yes, indeed my Queen. It seems that these adventurers have been to the Darklands, faced the ravening hordes of monsters there, and then found their way to Kyonin from one of the ancient elf-gates, saving the entire world int he process."
Te queen smiled, and the hall rung with the titter of elven laughter that sounded much like birdsong.
"I had thought that your Majesty might enjoy hearing some of their entertaining song before we sent them on their way with some supplies as a token of our appreciation of such stories."
"Very well, then Villastir, have them tell their tale. We will gladly listen, will we not my Lords and Ladies?"
There was a murmur of assent from the small crowd of elves. Villastir motioned for you to tell your tale.
"As Calistria is my witness, our story offers little to entertain, my queen,," Calla says, practically biting off the last words. "After we helped clear the occupation of Celwynvian, one of your own, Eviana, sent us on a mission to the Darklands to deal with a threat from the drow -- after she explained why she needed us to do it instead of anyone in your fine court.
There we did our best to stymie the plans of a dark elf known as Allevrah Azrinae, who perhaps you may have heard of ... or, in the case of some of you," she continues, letting her gaze sweep around the court, lingering on those she thinks may have laughed, [b]"even known!
"Unfortunately, we weren't able to stop her, but returned to the surface to offer you warning that she is coming, with an army and powerful magic at her beck and call."
Anklebiter steps forward and ... starts to sing. His voice is high-pitched and scratchy - he is a Goblin - but this is not a song of harmony. It is a dragon-chant of Meaning, like the Draconic learning-chants taught to apprentices learning their first spells.
It starts with an Identification; the form of an intellect growing in knowledge and power, like a luminous crystal, growing in the dark. It is Anklebiter, studying, learning.
The pattern grows; the Blot over Riddleport appears in the chant, theories swirling in the sky.
The pattern expands; the starstone that rocked Riddleport, the island overrun with not-lions, the Armageddon Echo of Celwynvian; all accords that form a greater pattern.
For a few minutes, Anklebiter sings of Azlant and Thassilon, both of which fell due to their Starstone. A grounding for the next layer of expansion, and the pattern becomes clear.
The starstone weapon.
Cities destroyed.
Golarion obscured by clouds of dust.
The Drow, ascendant upon the corpse of Kyonin.
The chant goes on.
That luminous crystal, plunged into the fetid darkness of the underworld in a cloak of necromancy-bespelled flesh from an enemy. Dry, cold facts and figures; enchantments and spells observed, reports of the corruption of the network of Elfgates by an insidious enemy in the dark.
The patterns link up, the full picture becomes clear ... but there is an empty space. Like in any dragon-chant of Meaning, there is room for a reply from the one listening. Simply translated, it is the Draconic equivalent of 'This is what is. Now what is your response'?
Slowly, the echoes of Anklebiter's chant die away, and the Goblin regards the Queen. His back is straight and his shoulders are squared. His red eyes are clear.
Calla was halfway through her explanation when another titter of laughter echoed through the room. Villastir was making remarks such as "oh really" and "fascinating" at appropriate times. At one point he interrupted Calla.
"And what, pray tell, do you think drow are? Bogeymen from the Darklands sent to steal human children and replace them? Ridiculous!"
"Wait! The goblin wants to squawk at us."
He waved his hands through the air as Anklebiter sang, as if conducting the piece. When Anklebiter was done, the elf said, "Such marvelous entertainment. I never expected it to be this good. We should hire them again sometime, should we not?"
The queen seemed to be barely restraining open amusement at Villastir's antics, and the assembled courtiers didn't even bother to try and hide theirs. A smattering of applause was offered, and someone in teh back could be heard asking if anyone had some small coinage to throw to the performers' feats. One rake shouted "Let's see the big one lift something heavy!" In all, it was apparent that nobody was taking you very seriously.
Calla's eyes narrow to a murderous glare.
"You doubt us, you pompous poppinjay? Summon Eviana and Kaeshariel from Celwynvian. Ask them how we aided the Skin'Rakorath. Ask them how we liberated your city and have helped your people? Ask them why we should continue in the face of such arrogance?"
And they are what you Elves become if you give in to evil. They are where your youngsters go, if they listen to the siren song of evil. That is what the Drow are.
They are corrupting your portal system, and they are planning to bring the next starstone down on Kyonin. They are under the command of Allevrah of House Azrinae, who even now tunnels into the depths of Orv in search of the aboleth magic she needs to create the next Earthfall. Ignore this warning at your peril, Elf."
"We may not have as long a history with fighting your corrupted brothers and sisters, Your Highness, but we have fought them. Even now they plot to destroy your shining city in the deepest parts of the Darklands. We come bearing this warning for you, and to announce our intention of returning to end the threat that Allevrah poses to all of the surface world. I had hoped that you would see the severity of what we face, but it seems your court has forgotten the threat of the dark elves, and the darkness that each of you harbor in your hearts. If you will not aid our quest, then there is nothing more we have to say to you. We will depart and find our way into Orv and kill your traitor - not for you, not for your nation, but for everyone else that would be held hostage by this weapon. I hope you've already started creating aiudara to flee the world again, because I don't think you have much time to waste."
"But my dear, we have the Shin'Rakorath here, and none of them have ever heard of you. As for the Lady Eviana, we have not heard from her or her forces at Crying Leaf for months. It is an isolated outpost, and one of little importance. Still, it is good that your troupe tried to work those details into your stories. It adds that flavor of realism that makes for a more entertaining experience."
"And little goblin, everyone knows of the evil drow bogeymen. How they steal away elves and replace them with their own kind. There are also stories of mechanical creatures from other worlds that remove a person's brain while they are still conscious, and replace it with a mechanical one. There are even stories about intelligent goblins...none of these has any basis in reality, though."
The crowd tittered at this.
"As for you, master dwarf, where is the proof? You bring us fairy tales and stories that were old before your ancestors even knew the difference between stone and something that is good to eat."
"My exile-name may sound funny to you, but I prefer to be addressed by it, rather than as 'little Goblin'. I am not your pet. What about the Drow weapons we carried with us?"
"Allevrah Azrinae could invoke the truth from people, I beg you to do the same, I submit willingly, if you even have the power to do so." Kel offers her challenge. "I very much doubt your fawning court will laugh at our words when they understand that an army of drow is heading your way."
"Have any of your court even entered the Darklands? We have. Even if there are any among you who have traversed those dark paths, I know for a fact that none of you have walked within Zirnakaynin's walls. We have. We infiltrated House Vonnarc and spied upon House Azrinae during our time there. We risked our lives to bring this to you. Verify our stories with Lady Eviana and the Shin'Rakorath agents in Crying Leaf. Ask them if they sent agents into the Darklands to recover this information. Ask them how we infiltrated the damned indigos without their discovery for weeks on end, then come back to us and ask us. If that answer isn't proof that we did what we said we did, I don't know what would convince you."
"He is right," At the mention of weapons "We have items retrieved from below, perhaps they are of dark elf make and you could tell that by their style, perhaps not.. I do not know the difference, but why would we make up an elaborate story? We are not minstrels. If you wish, we can bring the items here, show them to you. "
Another titter of laughter worked its way through the crowd, though the elven queen had a look of interest on her face for a brief moment. Then, the look was gone, replaced with one of bored amusement.
Lord Villastir beckoned to one of the elven courtiers standing nearby. The elven man that stepped forward had a military look about him, and his dress was more uniform than formal wear.
"I am Malindil, commander-in-chief of the Kyonin forces. I can state unequivocally that there are no Shin'Rakorath forces in Crying Leaf. You might want to update your story to reflect that, as I will have none in Kyonin saying that we have any of our soldiers in lands forbidden by the Compact."
Queen Telandia cleared her throat. "Well, your tale is certainly riveting and worthy of the bards. Villastir, perhaps they can indeed return for the midsummer feast. Please make the arrangements."
Villastir took the words of dismissal with ill grace, turning red and glaring at he floor for a moment before stiffly bowing and briskly leaving the hall.
The queen then turned to you once more.
"“Thank you so much for visiting us today. We cannot remember when we have been so entertained—though perhaps the next time you tell this tale you should add in some dragons, and perhaps a captive princess, with a handsome suitor who comes to her rescue. And perhaps leave out all that distasteful nonsense about falling stars; you must consider the sensibilities of your audience, after all. In any event, we shall take your tale under advisement. Kyonin’s seers and diviners are second to none, and given time we trust that they shall secure the truth of these matters. The divinations may take some time, perhaps a week. Until such time as they are ready to advise us further, I invite you to remain in Iadara at the accommodations we have provided you. You may take these next days to rest and relax and recover from your ordeals—when we have our reports from our diviners, we wish to speak with you again on what
might be done if, Calistria forfend, your tales are as true as you fear.”
She nodded once more and turned to leave the audience chamber. Her guards formed up around her, all but one pair that remained to escort you back to your provided quarters. Apparently, you were to be given no further opportunity to speak with the queen this day.
***************************
The trip back to your quarters was an easy one, as Lord Villastir apparently had led you down the formal approach. The side hallways route was easily half the time, if not less, and you were soon back in your rooms. One of the stewards met you there and informed you that you had the freedom of movement through the entire city and castle, as you wished, other than those few areas cordoned off by the Guards. He left you with a written note, explaining to all merchants of Kyonin that you were to be considered elf-friends for the time being, in all things. He also left you with a purse of coins "for your performance". The bag had 30 platinum pieces in it.
"At least these Elves know to insult us handsomely," Anklebiter says. "Let's not waste time fuming; we have to prepare for our trip into Orv.
Lefrik; I can enchant a new javelin for you so it hurts demons, or maybe so it returns to you. Bruendor, Kelendra, we should probably get you a good ranged weapon each, on the level of Calla's or close.
Everyone, that giant spider-thing was a wakeup call. We need better protection against element-based attacks. When we shop, we need to look for rings of energy resistance.
I also want to see which spell scrolls these Elves have available that I can scribe to make our lives easier.
And I am going to scribe two scrolls of Break Enchantment, rebuild Duchess and give Magpie a voice. That'll take me four days. Three days left for the rest. Everyone think of items I could craft for you while I'm working on the homunculi."
Calla scowls.
"I say we let them rot. No point helping the helpless and ungrateful. They never change their spots," she complains.
"They have shops we can use to resupply and they're offering us room and board for free. They might still become more useful. Or not. Our dignity can survive a few hits; the world may not survive a second Starfall," Anklebiter says, shrugging. "I don't like them either. I'll still eat their food and use their gear. The world is more important than my pride."
"Fools," Bruendor says with a sneer when the door is closed to their chambers. "All of them, from the one that sits on the throne to the multitude of fops that make up her court. And now, we sit in this gilded prison, waiting for them to do their divinations, all the while our quarry delves deeper into the Darklands and comes closer to her goal."
He listens to Anklebiter's words, and slowly lets his blood cease its boiling. "You're right, friend," he eventually says. "Elemental resistances, and weapons to bite the flesh of demons. After that, I don't know how to prepare. Only the gods know what dwells in Orv."