Isaac delivers a bone-shattering strike to the last remaining monstrosity. For a moment, the creature stands, outer shell cracked, its marrow exposed, undead but not yet destroyed. Then Empheria hurls a precise glob of plasma square in its new wound, searing the bones from inside, and there's no dark magic strong enough to recover from that injury. Ash and bone meal crumble on the floor, and there's silence once again, even more silent than before. It feels like a background noise suddenly stopped.
Minodora stops singing, her voice trembling. Then, the adrenaline rush that was keeping her conscious finishes, bringing back pain and memories. It sounds like she's trying to say something, but she just manages to grasp James' shirt and break out in wordless sobs that keep on going after she's short on breath.
Sir Jasper breaks through the door, sword in hand. His shield arm hangs limply at his side, and a scalp wound covered half of his face in blood. "Are you safe?" he asks sharply, looking over you with a penetrating stare that you feel is getting through your soul. "Is she?"
"Something was in her mind," Isaac says, immediately putting himself between Min and the adults. "I don't think it is a demon. I have the object responsible and will hold onto it until appropriate measures are taken."
By the look of him, he was waiting to see the response of the party of adults, his face set and his eyes cold. "It is important to remember she was a victim." All told, it was a gentle reminder but the implications were clear. If they decided to forget that fact, they would have to deal with him first.
Vorin cheers at the last one falls, punching the air, and says, "Now stay dead this time!"
He starts to say something to Min — probably an attempt to be reassuring — when Sir Jasper comes in. Nodding emphatically in agreement with Isaac, he adds, "But she's scared, and James is hurt! I think Isaac got hit, too, but don't know if he noticed." This last is said with what sounds like some admiration for his friend's toughness, if slightly hidden behind a joke.
"Ah, yes, I had forgotten," Isaac says, looking down at himself. He was leaking his strange pale blood from several wounds.
"They are alive!" shouts Sir Jasper towards the corridor. "And apparently safe!"
The paladin goes to Isaac, producing an unnaturally clean and white silk handkerchief. No trace of blood or filth from his hand stains the cloth, and you see that a golden key is embroidered on the side as he spreads it on his outstretched right hand. "Young man, please drop that item here."
Father Zantus and Ilsoari enter the room next. The priest has a limp in his stride and his clothes are ripped on the side, while the wizard, apparently unhurt, is in the process of magically cleaning his own robes. "Master Hosk is stable but won't regain consciousness for a few days." Father Zantus states drily. "Let me take a look at that young lady, please."
He moves slowly towards Minodora, while Ilsoari stands back, his body tense with alertness.
Isaac studied the outstretched handkerchief. "What assurances can you provide? If it made Minodora able to take a punch from me, I would not like to find out what it could do with you under its influence."
"This fabric is blessed and warded against evil, it will stop any attempt of possession. Furthermore,-"
"He has a point, Jasper" interrupts Gandethus. "I'll pick it up remotely with a spell, so it will not touch anyone. Why did you say it was not a demon? We just fought one."
"I don't think I would have been able to shrug off a demon or that a demon would have let itself be shrugged off," Isaac said simply and produced the amulet from his pocket.
Vorin looks relieved when his mentor comes in with nothing worse than dirty robes, but he doesn't say anything. He's silent for a moment, looking between the adults and Isaac.
"James is hurt," he says again, then. Just for the reminder.
Slowly James pats Min's back. 'The pains when I breathe is going' he notes, too distracted to realise exactly what's happening. 'Demon's gone now.' he notes. 'Everyone's okay.' "Okay..."
"Minodora, you alright? Maybe we should go back home to rest?" Empheria adds with a yawn.
"By Desna's mercy, may your wounds be mended." murmurs Father Zantus, placing a hand onto James' forehead , before taking Minodora's face between his hands and looking her deep in the eyes. The girl is a crying mess, but manages to keep in most of her sighs as the priest examines her. "At a first glance, it's as they say. There are the traces of an outsider, but I think it was the symptom, not the cause."
"If you think that's strange, Abstalar" replies Master Gandethus with a deep frown, lifting the seven-pointed star at a distance with a cantrip "this rune is not even magical. Not a lingering, minimal shred of any charm, by all accounts it's always been an ordinary piece of wood. And I swear I've seen it somewhere, but I can't for the life of me figure out where."
Some more words are exchanged, but at this point sleep and tiredness take over. You leave the lair quietly, carrying forth the unconscious Daviren Hosk and Minodora, put to magical sleep by the Headmaster. The trip to Sandpoint is uneventful, and through the pain and fatigue you feel some tension being released. Throughout Sandpoint, the citizens dream of beautiful songbirds, as if Desna and Shelyn were pleased with you removing a stain of evil upon the land.
Those of you who have them return to families that were various degrees of worried, and Ilsoari treats Vorin to a late but scrumptious lunch, proud of his brave drow pupil as any parent could be.
Vorin, as tired as any of them, doesn't say much on the way home, except to say, "See you tomorrow," to his friends as they separate.
He livens up a bit as he eats, however, and between mouthfuls he excitedly tells Ilsoari all about their side of the battle, complete with the occasional sound effect.
Isaac makes his plodding way back home. His limbs felt heavy and odd and now that he had nothing else to focus on, he was becoming aware of his injuries. It had been a long day and he was not sure just what it might foretell.
It was time to make some more changes.
James luxuriates in breathing. It wasn't the first time he'd been healed by magic, but it wasn't exactly commonplace.
The glow of heroism paled a little as he returned home, walking out to the farm. He finally reached the front steps and wiped his feet on the mat, belatedly realising he had bigger issues.
'Nuts. I'm covered in dirt, and dust, and blood and it is that skeleton thing had had inside it's bones. Marrow? Marrow.' Gingerly he took a step inside, and was set upon at once.
He might have the courage to face down demons, but in the face of Aunt Anya's rage his heroism fled. Thirty minutes later he was stripped down in a hot bath, in the old tin bath in the kitchen. The clear water was rapidly turning red-brown, and James was surprised to see even after healing he had a bruise on his side that looked as though he'd been kicked by a mule.
Aunt Anya was in the next room writing a letter to master Gandethus - and if her takedown of James was any indication, there was little chance James was going to be allowed to do anything heroic ever again.
Sammy stuck her head in to ask after some of the bigger words Aunt Anya had used - 'ninconpoop' in particular, as it had the forbidden word 'poop' in it - and he threw the soap at her.
'Worth it, though. I helped. Min is out from under the shadow, and I helped with that. I a hero. Not a ninconpoop!'
The days pass by, with their ups and downs. As for the downs, Minodora and Rynshinn, after thanking you profusely, have moved to Magnimar for the foreseeable future, trying to leave several lives' worth of bad memories behind them.
For the ups, however, you have won the trust and respect of Mayor Deverin, as well as the four adults who accompanied you in the expedition. Helped by a hefty does of magic, Daviren Hosk made a complete recovery after a couple of days, and Ameiko soon followed.
Ilsoari's research on the seven-pointed star proved mostly fruitless. All he could find was a connection with the old Thassilonian schools of magic, which formed a system called the Sihedron. Additionally, the amulet seems to have lost all of its power shortly after being taken from Minodora, and at the moment it's nothing more than an ordinary pendant.
A fortnight after the incident at Chopper's Isle, you are all invited to lunch at Ameiko's. Large bowls of a steaming and spiced venison stew are placed in front of you, and the innkeeper herself seats on the opposite side. "I went to see the Glassworks the other day. Turns out that my idiot brother had opened a hidden passageway to some sort of basement, and my instincts tell me that it's an old structure, likely filled with valuables. Now, I don't want to explore it alone, and it's not necessary for the defense of the city, like your little trip to the isle was, so I doubt that many others would want to come. But I think you'd enjoy the exploration, if you'd like to go with me, and it should be safe enough. What d'you say?"
"Yeah!" Empheria answers, enthusiastically and immediately. "If we go with you, does that mean we're professionals?"
"See it as a traineeship. You'll follow my call if I tell you to get the heck out, and you'll receive your fair share of the loot. Which reminds me, I've called in a few favors, so if you accept, you'll have some credit at the stores in town for equipment of any sort. Vorvashali Voon sells magical trinkets that you may like, and Savah Bevaniky is there for the mundane ones. Nisk Tander sells alchemicals, but... well, they're not the most stable."
Vorin has been acting a bit unusual during the last fortnight. Normally, he avoids things like homework and spends most of his free time playing. This time, however, he's been spending a lot of time with Ilsoari, both acting as an assistant in his research (at least, as much as he is allowed to), as well as doing a lot of his own.
By the time Ameiko invites them over, that research is done and he's looking quite pleased with himself. He starts to eat hungrily, then has to hurry to swallow a mouthful after Ameiko makes her offer, so he can reply excitedly, "Yeah, I want to go! We might be the first people down there in centuries! I bet there's lots of cool stuff to find, and maybe monsters and traps and stuff like in the Chronicles!"
And then they can get free stuff from the shops, too? He grins happily, and says, "This is gonna be brilliant!"
As he eats the next few mouthfuls, he is likely thinking through what things he may want to get, as a thought occurs to him after a moment, and he looks to his friends, "If I need anything from Mr. Vinder's shop, can one of you get it for me please? I think I'm still banned. I think mostly I just want a proper backpack and some rope from there. Oh, and maybe a water skin in case we're down there a while! But I'll check the other shops first, and I want to see what else they got."
James has been at home for most of the last fortnight - allowed out only to attend lessons, and morosely bored at home where his only options are chores and more study.
Aunt Anya, it seems, has declared that James will be a gentleman and a scholar if it kills him.
His trip to Ameiko's - sans Greatsword - has proceeded only because aunt Anya had a chance to explain to the adults of the expedition exactly how she feels about a group of children being allowed to go adventuring, and because they put a very interesting spin on the expedition. 'True though' he noted to himself [/i]'I was in a room with the other kids, talking her round, behind a locked door, while they fought the demon. Min raised those skeletons, but they weren't "in the room" when I went in!'[/i]
He sighs, and prepares himself to explain he can't go when Ameiko makes her offhand comment. "Traineeship?" he thinks for a second "That's like an apprenticeship, right? Aunt Anya might be okay with that. She says I need to get a job to keep me out of trouble!" He adds quickly "I'd love to go!"
"Ah yes, I've heard all kinds of stories about you and Vin's daughter, young man. All kinds." says Ameiko, with a mischievous smile. "I can grab some tools of the trade for you, don't worry."
Vorin is quite likely blushing, though it's quite hard to tell with his odd skin colour. He certainly looks embarrassed, even though he smiles a bit. That smile brightens when Ameiko said she'll help, and he says quickly, "Thank you!"
Ameiko downs her mug of cider. "Well then, this might not be exactly keeping you out of trouble, but my father didn't want me to be adventuring, either, and it didn't turn out great. Anywho, we can meet in about one hour in front of the Glassworks, yeah? Unless you've more questions."
Vorin grins, and says, "I think Old Gandy likes this kind of trouble more than my usual kind." Then he nods quickly, finishes the last couple of bites of his meal, then runs off to quickly shop. He comes right back, to whisper a shopping list for the general store into Ameiko's ear, then he's off running again with a, "Thanks!"
When he arrives at the Glassworks, he's armed with a new beautifully crafted rapier, a new pair of gloves of similar quality , a glowing ioun stone flying around his head, a book under one arm, and carrying what is likely a borrowed bag to carry a small collection of potions until he can put them in his new backpack.
And he's smiling from ear to ear.
"So I am an apprentice? Aunt Anya said I could take one if I was offered one I liked."
"By the way. I appreciate the offer..." James struggles for the words to explain Aunt Anya's strictures "But I'd prefer not to owe a debt, nor take charity."
He sighs, indicating he'd love to get a bunch of fancy items, then brightens "Of course if there's something we have to have, then maybe I could get that?" he turns fervent "We definitely need rope. Maybe a torch. Maybe we could get some sort of thing for healing? I don't think my Aunt would mind that so much."
"Also..." he stands tall and faces down Ameiko "I want us to spend a little while practising plays. We're a mob, we should be a team!"
"I want a stone just like Vorin has!" Empheria decides as soon as she sees him with the stone whirring around his head. Her plan is soon abandoned when she enters the shop herself, and sees all the trinkets to choose from. She finally decides on buying a cloak .
After checking the price of the ropes, she comes back to tell James, "I already have a torch. But I have enough credit left to buy 200 ropes! How many do you want? I think I can only carry one or two..."
Ameiko passes a masterwork backpack and two coils of rope to Vorin, taking careful looks at your equipment and loadout.
"It's not much charity, James, think of it as an advance, or an investment. If you are well protected, you can pull off your own weight, everyone is safer and happier, and we can get out dragging a big chest of gold instead of an unconscious friend. And I'm sure you'll find plenty of practice to be had down there."
She runs her fingers through Empheria's cloak, appreciatively. "Most of the times, one doesn't need more than a couple of ropes. I suggest silk, it's strong and light. Torches are great, but that thing Vorin has on his head is one of my favorites." She fishes in her pocket for a similar, dull and glowing ioun stone, before placing it back. "Weightless, cheap, and they keep your hands free. So, are we ready?"
Vorin grins, and looks up at his stone, "Yeah, it's kind of like the lights I can make but lasts way longer." Then he takes a few moments to pack things into his backpack.
Singing the pack on his back, he takes a couple of steps left and right, waving his arms, getting a feel for if it restricts his movement. Satisfied, he grins back to the others, and says, "I'm ready!"
"I believe so," Isaac intoned from the back of the group. It was hard to shake the feeling that the odd lad had somehow gotten bulkier since their last outing. At least his teeth seemed more human now. He was also clearly not trying to hide himself as much. The clothes were still all a touch worn and clearly secondhand but he did not seem to feel the need to obfuscate himself with layers and layers.
James looks up at Ameiko, the desperation to believe clear in his eyes.
"Investment. Yeah." he nods furiously, despite only the vaguest understanding of the word. 'When cousin Tom bought that new horse, and he got yelled at by Millie, he said that was an investment. I think it's a special okay type of loan? It'll only be for a little while, because once I'm rich I can pay it back!' "And then I can pay it back with the gold!"
Without another word he runs off towards the shops.
The bell rings as James bolts through the door, looking to make sure the item he'd had his eyes on for the best part of a year was still on display in the glass case.
Smiling to see it, he pulls out his Thassilonian workbook. Thassilonian had been his favourite subject. They'd had a temporary tutor for a few months to teach it while Mr Spitch had been visiting his sister. While the tutor had been employed to teach ancient languages, her background had been archaeology, and she had been all too easy to convince to recount stories of adventure from decades of tomb raiding. A full half of James' workbook from that time had been filled with notes from those adventures (recorded in Thassilonian, unfortunately) and over the years it had turned into a series of tiny, cramped notes on other stories he'd heard.
The first page (once an inside cover, before it had come loose and had to be hand stitched back in) contained a list of things James had decided he would carry, should he ever get to be a real adventurer.
Written in bold, underlined and with four exclamation marks was the (ridiculously expensive) item currently residing in the glass case.
James reappeared loaded down like a mule - the wonder of it was that he could move at all, let alone bolt down the road in fear of being left behind.
Pole
He still wore the chain shirt, but now his left and right arms had a motley collection of improvised gear attached, giving him the impression of oversized forearms - exacerbated by the good size sack full of loose items in each hand.
The chain shirt had been augmented with the neck-piece from plate armour, a necklace of garlic, and a pair of bandoleers filled with vials and tools.
As well as the greatsword and bow that normally adorned James' back (well, whenever he could get away with it) there was now also enough tools to suggest he'd decided to become a gardener, all attached to a series of hooks that looked as though they were supposed to attach to the wall.
"Look!" he cried in triumph, dropping the sacks to hold up his forearms triumphantly . "Smith ended up having to solder some of the bits on while I was wearing them, but they're on!" He presented his left arm, revealing a buckler with a strange S-shaped hook and a swing-out spike-blade that looked to have been forged out of the end of a wrought steel fencepost. "For Hags!" he threw forward the other arm, less encumbered "And..!"
Nothing happened. James looked a little disapointed and started to bring the arm towards himself, only to have a six-inch wooden stake launch itself viciously towards his face, stopping just short of his ear.
Somewhat more restrained he continued "For Vampires!"
Worried he'd lost his momentum (and the crowd) somewhat, he reached into a bandolier loop - almost stabbing himself again - and pulled out a precious wax-wrapped lump of chocolate "Rations!"
Vorin looks back to James as he arrives, and grins at the demonstration, "That's great! You'll be ready for anything! Wish I could get cool gadgets like that but it'd be too much for me. I had to even stop using my armour because it slowed me down too much."
James looks down, embarrassed for a moment.
"Well..." he drags out "There was thing... In the shop... makes you able to carry more."
He sighs "If I give it to you after this, you might be able to wear armour again. You really should wear it, Vorin. Fast is good, but anyone can have bad luck."
Vorin shakes his head, and says, "If I wear armour, it's hard to hit things. And I get hit too easy, my fencing teacher says it 'constricts' me too much. It's okay, he's been teaching me without armour all along, and even if I get hit I can heal myself now. That's the spell I've been learning," he adds, grinning. "And not just myself, I can heal anybody I touch."
The Glassworks have, mercifully, been cleaned, but the memory of the ghastly scene encountered here hasn't vanished. You follow the unexplored passage for several dozens of feet before discovering two branches. One seems to be a smuggler's entrance leading to the river, but is caved in. The other one follows for a hundred more feet or so, until suddenly Ameiko signals you to halt and be quiet.
"There's an opening to the right in front of us. Might be another tunnel, or something else."
James follows Ameiko, torch in hand and the two sacks in the other, doing his best to move quietly despite a quiet clinking.
'I'm going to have to put padding or something in the sack.'
"Shall I go have a look?"
Vorin goes a bit quiet as they pass through the hall where they found the mess before, but he started to be back to himself as they enter the tunnels, drawing his rapier.
He's opening his mouth to say something just before Ameiko signals for them to be quiet, and he closes his mouth again, doing his best to be quiet.
Empheria brings along two newly-purchased silk ropes to the Glassworks, having followed Ameiko's advice to the letter.
Empheria halts at Ameiko's signal and listens.
"There's somebody there, she whispers. "I think I hear gurgling, someone sounding really sick. Maybe someone's even trapped there. What should we do?"
"It may be a monster. This would be a really bad location for a prisoner, a good one for a guard. We should see-"
Her advice is interrupted by an abomination stepping into view. It's a hairless humanoid on back-bent, dog-like legs, its hideous mouth flanked by tiny arms with three-fingered hands. It's wielding a polearm looking like a cross between a spear and a trident, and it screeches as it notices you.
"Yuck!" Empheria exclaims upon seeing the humanoid. She directs a line of fire that spins around her and propels her up, then shoots directly at the monster. For the few moments she has in the air, she tries to get a good glance at whatever was gurgling in the branch.
"Oh, wow, you're ugly!" Vorin says, seemingly delighted, as he quickly enchants his blade. Then, he starts to cast a spell, almost shouting the vocal component as he vanishes in a swirl of sparks, reappearing the same way behind the creature. As soon as he appears, he stabs forward with his rapier.
Isaac gets as close as possible and tries to treat the thing to one of his devastating blows.
James stumbles for a moment at the sight of the... thing. By the time he recovers Vorin and Empheria have already landed telling blows, and Isaac has fronted it.
Unable to get past Isaac to engage the abomination - and ever a team player - James calls out advice and encouragement. "Go Vorin! Isaac, get him while he's distracted! RAAGH! You can do it!"
The creature lets out a gurgling screech as Empheria's fire sets it on fire: the sound that she heard was likely just this... thing breathing.
"What the actual Hell?" cries out Ameiko, reaching for her sword as she steps in next to Isaac. Instead of slashing, however, she intones a song you recognize, a popular rousing tale of bravery and heroes. Whereas singing would normally be inappropriate in battle, the magic woven in her notes bolsters and fortifies you.
The creature, despite being on fire, retaliates against Vorin, unleashing a devastating bite against him.
Isaac does not need to be told twice. The creature was making an intensely foolish mistake by not treating him as the biggest threat in the cave.
As it pulled back from biting Vorin, Isaac’s big hand gripped the side of its face. His grip was probably bad enough but he was just taking a moment before powering the thing’s skull into the nearest cave wall once, twice, three times before he released whatever remained.
What remains is not much. The strength of Isaac's blow is evough to extinguish the flames on the creature's skin. Ameiko gapes at the brutality of the blow, impressed and horrified in equal part.
“It bit Vorin. Nobody hurts my friends,” Isaac said in his usual placid way as he met Ameiko’s somewhat horrified gaze. Looking down at the mess the thing left on his hand, he tried to wipe it clean on a nearby surface as best he could.
"Ow!"
James gapes a little, his shouts of encouragement trailing off.
'Yeah. He do it.'
"Uh... you okay, Vorin?"