"I'f'n the storm don't break by tomorrow we can leave then. Be hard ta get the golems out in this weather anyway." After seeing to the corpse and the bag, Gromff sees to healing.
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Ogre blood and gore splashed everywhere due to Roland’s attack, thing that wasn’t necessary at all, since the enemy was already dead and beaten. At the time, the mage doesn’t really think about that, other than burns and cuts and dirt, the only thing that had really been hurt was her pride. For a moment, she’s believed she was getting stronger, so much for that rope now. But to tell the truth, she didn’t have that much time to think as the other dwarf starts to curse and suddenly now only she is hurt, dirt and bathed on her own and enemy’s blood, now she is also covered in brains. Keeps getting better and better.
”Was that really necessary?” Catcher says opening her eyes, cleaning bits of brains for her hair and looking around to see if everyone is okay.
Under the newcomer’s ministration, some of most of the injuries are healed, but some of the burns are still visible under the armor and clothes.
==//==
”Well, that was a good start.” she says after the healing and the others dragging the dead bodies around, she makes sure Walker and Aersensi aren’t hurt, then she sits down again, bringing up some vials of blood and preparing to cast some spells.
The process isn’t so simple as there’s several requirements to cast the spell she is attempting, while she works, she asks talks to the others.
”I’ve been busy crafting items those three weeks and I know the queen is a dragon, and what kind of dragon she is, but I need every information you guys managed to learn from her.” she continues cleaning the place where the magic will be performed and directs her question to Crys ”You, Crystallius, you’ve already seem the queen right? Can you draw a picture of her? Closer to the real think the better.” after cleaning the area, she starts digging a small pool, and after she is done, Gromff is the next one on her list ”Gromff, can you fill the pool with wather? And tell me everything you learned about her as well.”
Roland had already shared everything he learned during his builder's days, which was not much, by the way. "Is JubJub a nickname or something? It sounds so pathetic. I think depending on our schedule we could go after one of this other trophies, or all of them, once we're finished with the queen. If we're gonna have time, maybe we could go after all of them, and then hit the Queen?"
He thanks the newcomer for his aid and recounts the stories of the most dangerous foes he knows of in the region. Each one more dangerous than the last.
Upon hearing Roland's response, he clarifies the bird's abilities.
"The bird, while referred to as a JubJub is a dangerous foe. The blades of many have been turned from it. If you cannot harm your foe, it's a dangerous beast.
As he speaks, he looks hears Catcher's request and goes about finding a drawing instrument. After settling upon one, he spends a moment doing his best to remember the dragon and anything he has learned about it so far.
After which he shares any information he can remember while sketching out the beast upon the floor.
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She picks the drawing and listens to the tales of her majesty and her evil deeds towards the city. Concentrating on the task at hand, she warn the others ”I have no way of knowing if the can detect us, or my attempt to spy on her, so be prepared for anything.”
After that she proceeds with the ritual to cast the spell, removing an expensive piece silver mirror and placing it inside the pool, now filled with water by Gromff. The mage’s voice carries into the cave, but the rain outside makes it hard to understand the low and mystical chant.
At some point, she drops one of the vials inside the pool while holding the drawing over it, the intensity in Catcher’s voice rising to match the arcane power used to conjure such spell.
Base DC: 10
Spell level 4: +4
Base int: +6
Knowledge (removes from the DC):
Secondhand (you have heard of the subject): -5
Connection (adds to the DC):
Likeness or picture: +2
Body part, lock of hair, bit of nail, etc. +10
"Yeah. Yeah. Hold still first." Gromff had not fully prepared all the magic he had available this day. Some of it was raw magical energy, unrefined for a specific spell. But cure spells were what he was most familiar with. So he pulled from that pool of raw energy to finish the job Chiro started. Only after did he provide the water.
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The scrying ritual was prepared with the utmost of care; the dragon's blood was smeared on the Catcher's fingertips as she focused on their origin; Gromff filled the basin with pure conjured water that covered the mirror and presented the lens with which the Queen dragon would be observed.
As the spellsword began her chanting the conjured water summoned imagery of the deep dark underworld, one with oppressive heat and deadly gas, one of such profound pressure as to turn stone into a river of orange liquid hot enough to melt steel. The pool suddenly rippled violently, dispelling any imagery and making it impossible to make out any definitive shapes.
The spellsword's magic was thwarted by a powerful will indeed. Though it wasn't the result hoped for, it did clarify the question of whether the Prince was able to complete his mission of regicide against his mother...
---------
Chiro asked, "What about this Prince? Wouldn't that dragon be a worthy trophy?"
He then added, "I'm not hunter but if getting a trophy prey will allow us to get the spear which will allow to defeat the hellspawn, then I'm in."
"Can ye try again?" Gromff asks as he wasn't familiar with the magic she used. "I'd rather not have ta deal with the little Prince just ta find her. Nor have ta go looking for something else," he says looking at Crys. "All of those sound like they'd work just fine but Queen's two birds. We get the spear and prevent the town from being attacked. She's gonna come back. Don't ye doubt."
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”Yeah, I can.” she says answering Gromff’s question ”But not today, for several reasons. One of them is that I don’t have the same spell memorized to cast it again, the other is the fact that some time is required until I can attempt the same spell on the same creature, usually a day is enough.”
She look around thinking and chant some other words casting yet another spell , trying to locate the prince and which direction to go.
==//==
”And the Prince,” she says answering Chiro ”is yet another underworld dragon we found before we arrived at the city. At the time, he wanted to recruit us to kill the Queen, and helping him takes her place, and he would help us to get into Crystallus, thru his agents, which I believe is the dead warden which tried to kill the Queen.”
Chiro asked, "What about this Prince? Wouldn't that dragon be a worthy trophy?"
He then added, "I'm not hunter but if getting a trophy prey will allow us to get the spear which will allow to defeat the hellspawn, then I'm in."
"Probably just as bad as his mother but no proof of being evil yet." Gromff thinks for a moment. They had a while to find a good quarry. They could afford to wait a day. But for now, might as well to something productive. "Let's at least get our shiny friends fer now." Shiny friends being the two golems they left in the cave. Hopefully nothing happened to them.
Crys would watch the spell unfold before him, recognizing it for what it was. While unable to cast such magic himself, he could see the use of the magic. It was unfortunate it had been thwarted in the end though.
He listened to his comrades speak of the possibility of trying again within a day. While the queen would surely win them the prize at hand, he feared that she may continue to make there attempts to locate her a vain pursuit. With his in mind, he would speak up.
"I would suggest we a least choose a secondary target for the time being. Whether that be the prince you speak of or one of the other beasts I spoke of.
He would think back to what he knew of each creature in turn. Perhaps one would be along the way should they find the need to change their course of action. He would not want to waste this opportunity to achieve his lost comrade's dream.
The terrible storm continued its raging rains for several hours after the melee in the cave. Sometime midafternoon the tempest fairly suddenly diminished to naught but a drizzle, though the skies remained dark overhead with storm clouds, threatening to drop another downpour at anytime. Thunder likewise was limited to distant rolling rumbles.
Watching the riverbanks that filled to overflow, the water's strength diminished similarly though only after several more hours had gone by.
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Catcher takes some moments waiting for the spell to take effect and then… nothing…
”Weird…” she mutters not knowing what happened ”My spell just didn’t… work?” she ask puzzled. She ponders for a moment of what might have happened and then gives up as there are others things to be discussed.
”There’s the possibility my spells will not be enough to track the queen. Should we go underground, back to that magma lake and try to find the Queen’s subjects or even the Prince? Or should we take a safer route and slay the monsters proposed by Crystallius?”
Chiro chided, "Boy you sure are an undecided lot when it comes to hunting."
The smile on his face quickly vanished, "The troll. Let's kill it once and for all."
His face returned to 'normal', "We know the troll deserves it and even if that doesn't earn us the price, it will sure earn us the good will of the people. Who knows that may be enough to get the spear from whoever wins it..."
"I would suggest we a least choose a secondary target for the time being. Whether that be the prince you speak of or one of the other beasts I spoke of.
"The giant then. Always good with taking a giant down a few feet. Specifically 6 of them underground." But as he said that he thought of the giants that helped them get to Archdale. They weren't evil. "Bah." He shook his head. They were an exception.
"But that dragon ain't gonna let this slide. Need ta do everything we can to stop her first afore she comes back." He looks out the cave. The weather has gotten a little better and the river seems less tenuous. "Let's head back down. See if the Prince is still in a helping mood."
They still had a little daylight and one cave was as good as another. They'd need to wait a day anyway just so he could prepare the spells necessary to talk to the damn thing. "Thinking we're done fer the day too. Where we found the Prince, hot enough to make a dwarven smith pass out and blisterin when we get ta his home in some lava pools. Need ta prepare different spells. Can ye help with that?" he asks Chiro. The dwarf seemed fond of fire. Did he have some protection maybe?
"I would suggest we a least choose a secondary target for the time being. Whether that be the prince you speak of or one of the other beasts I spoke of."The giant then. Always good with taking a giant down a few feet. Specifically 6 of them underground." But as he said that he thought of the giants that helped them get to Archdale. They weren't evil. "Bah." He shook his head. They were an exception.
"But that dragon ain't gonna let this slide. Need ta do everything we can to stop her first afore she comes back." He looks out the cave. The weather has gotten a little better and the river seems less tenuous. "Let's head back down. See if the Prince is still in a helping mood."
They still had a little daylight and one cave was as good as another. They'd need to wait a day anyway just so he could prepare the spells necessary to talk to the damn thing. "Thinking we're done fer the day too. Where we found the Prince, hot enough to make a dwarven smith pass out and blisterin when we get ta his home in some lava pools. Need ta prepare different spells. Can ye help with that?" he asks Chiro. The dwarf seemed fond of fire. Did he have some protection maybe?
Chiro frowned, "I said the troll! I like burning trolls!"
A second later his face relaxed and he breathed out, "Or the giant is just as good. I need more information on what sort of magic you need."
He called a fist-full of flame out of thin air and put it under his chin. His face took on a scary look as the flame danced inside the cave, "I don't burn. Not even my beard burns..."
"Bah. They're both giants. Yer fire would make the troll easier ta deal with," he says thoughtfully. "But we need protection from flame first. Can ye do that as well as ye can throw it?"
"Bah. They're both giants. Yer fire would make the troll easier ta deal with," he says thoughtfully. "But we need protection from flame first. Can ye do that as well as ye can throw it?"
He blew out the flame in his hand leaving slightly blackened fingers.
He nodded, "I can but not for long. A little longer than 3 hours and you'll be immune to regular fire and maybe char a little from very hot magical fires. Is that good enough for you?"
---------
"That'll do. Long as it protects from direct flame."
”Okay, it’s decided then? Underground again?” she asks the dwarfses already packing her things and ready to travel.
Crys would finally choose to speak up after listening to his companions.
"It would seem to me that the dragon herself is the best target if you truly wish to win. I doubt any other group will choose to hunt her after the display within the city, so if there is a source to get her location from, such as this prince you speak of, then I would suggest we speak to him. That is after all the reason why I came along."
Turning his head to Gromff, he would chime in upon the discussion of whether he could assist in protecting the group from fire.
"Unfortunately I have no way to protect us from fire. It is currently beyond my capabilities. However I could assist us in being able to move out of the way of spells and the breath of a dragon by increasing our reflexes."
Not willing to wait for the storm to intensify again, the newly-formed companions helped Chiro gather his belongings from the his cave and set their course for the lava chutes just outside the walls of Crystallus. The river was easily crossed, especially with the strength of the flying largebarian. These lands outside of the walled city, rocky grasslands for many miles in every direction, were now muddy and slow going though the rains did keep the dusts at bay that normally choked any unfortunate enough to be this deep into the Untamed Wilds.
Treading onward to their own symphony of mud-wet slops and plops, the rock formations that housed the lava chutes were soon upon them. These stones stood taller than those in the surroundings, some higher than the fifty-foot walls of the city nearby. Quickly finding the openings which they emerged from some weeks ago, the party secured their ropes and once again entered the dark world below.
By the sunlight pouring in through the various upward chutes, the party came upon the pair of moonbeast-shaped glass golems that were left behind, though they had apparently seen some action since their masters had left them behind. Sheeny dutifully stood sentinel in the precise spot where it was left, though its cutting arms were caked in a thick layer of dried blood. A pair of dried puddles lay on the floor underneath each limb. Glossy had suffered a different fate; its remains lay mostly in a pile of large broken shards near where the chutes continued deeper into Atma's underworld. All around Glossy's remains and Sheeny's pose were nearly twenty mutilated bodies - dwarves with brass skin to be specific, though the hard natural armor hadn't sufficiently protected them from Glossy and Sheeny's wrath. In addition to the brass-dwarves, a sliced-open serpentine orange body of some other monster lay nearby. This snake-like creature had humanoid arms and a horn-covered face, and a fine falchion lay on the ground near its limp hand.
Sheeny stood silently and obediently there, neither proud nor ashamed of its handiwork. The golem made no motion or indication that it noticed the presence of its masters' return.
The snakelike monster is a Salamander, a creature that calls the elemental plane of fire its home. They are ferocious warriors who delight in battle and relish the perfection of weaponsmithing. They are renown for these skills and for good reason.
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The brass-skinned dwarves are in fact not dwarves at all. They are from a race called the Azer who typically dwell on the plane of elemental fire, though their presence on the prime-material plane is not unknown. Their heads and shoulders are covered in steady hot flames though these specimens' fires were likely snuffed upon their death. Azers are hardworking and single-minded, typically following in the footsteps of one of their parents' trades.
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”Oh s%!%. Look what they did to Glossy.” she complains, not bothered at all that her orders might have caused a lot of innocent deaths.
She inspect the remains, maybe she could assemble the golem again, using fire.
"Salamanders and Azers. What could they have been doing here? I smell conspiracy and I think this might be Prince's handiwork."
Gromff kept his focus on travel for the first leg of the journey. Steady and sturdy as he was, a slip in heavy armor would hurt. Not to mention it would a few extra pounds of mud and take ages to get out of his beard. But they make it to the chute without slip up and now a new challenge presented itself. Climbing. But careful focus won again.
"Aw blast it," he comments as he takes in the scene. They'd lost a golem and one was very wounded. "Azers? Look like dwarves." Then he takes a closer look. Never heard of a bronze-skinned dwarf. "Kinda. How's the Prince connected?"
"There's a pool o lava near by. Course there's firey things around. But if ye wanna ask then go ahead," He says, waving his hand down the tunnel leading to said pools. "Gotta find a place ta rest first. New spells. New problems. All this fer a legendary spear. Be nice if someone just handed it to us fer once. No runnin all over the continent." The last few sentences turn into an annoyed grumble but what's new? Well before the tunnels get hot, Gromff looks for a good place to rest.
Roland did not care what target they chose, as long as he had the pleasure of meeting it heads on. So the Queen would be it. Good as any, but he was a little disappointed to face only her, and not all of the local legends before her. Anyway, they had a job to do. And it seemed to be getting weirder and weirder. "Well, it seems obvious that if the Queen noticed the girl's spell she will be expecting people from the city coming after her. These guys might have been sent by her to intercept us. Or maybe they were sent by the prince after us." He looks at the bodies, trying to picture something.
"When did these guys died? And also, can the golems slice that bottle open like we are seeing?"
"And how the heck do you know which golem is which?"
Roland also takes a look at the fine weapon laying around, handling it to the wizard for inspection. He searches the body for anything they might offer, regarding documents or loot.
Crys would follow the others through the strength sapping mud, doing his best to gracefully dodge as much of it as he can. He did not wish to be caught with mud slowing him down.
As they came upon the chutes, hidden among rock, he would gaze upon them. They were truly a testament to nature, some standing taller than the very walls that had protected his home for so long.
It was a shame to leave the sight behind, but their trail lead them underground and with a cautious step, he set down in the world below. The sights were a bit much. He thought he was worldly, but it appeared to only be in comparison to his own people.
"What is this place? And there is lava here? How does it not melt the world around it until the world above collapses into it's fiery grasp?"
It was all a bit much for him. The unknown creatures upon the floor, the new environment, and the idea of lava not destroying everything around it.
After careful examination (and a lot of nose covering) it is determined that there are some corpses that are quite a bit more decomposed than others, though all appear to have died to the wide and deep slashing wounds inflicted by the golem's weaponry. One is forced to conclude that six of these Azer were killed several weeks ago while the remainder, including the salamander, fell within the last few days.
It is also curious that other than the buzzing flies and their spawn there are no carrion-eaters around to clean up the mess. Perhaps the acrid sulfuric air wards off those who would find an easy meal here, or perhaps the golems warded them off in their own charming way.
Some blades were as beautiful on display as they were deadly to their foes, and this one certainly matched those descriptors. The gleaming falchion lay on the floor in silent grace, waiting for the next hand to wield it in epic battle. Tiny multi-colored ripples gave the steel a decorative appearance, though the studied eye recognized these as different types of steel folded together during the shaping of a single sturdy blade. It is a difficult method used only by the most proficient of bladesmiths due to its difficulty. The smith's mark is a simple two-pronged fork near the gold crossguard.
After magical inspection it reveals itself to have a enhancement weaved into the metals though it didn't compare with the mighty weapons already carried by the group.
After rifling through the pouches and clothing of the dead, a few more trinkets and odd rectangular-shaped bits of currency were found.
Roland never stopped to wonder about the melted lava on the ground. Where there was fire, there were devils, and that was it. "No idea. Underground there are rivers of lava in the dragon's den. Without magic we would be screwed."
"I guess the first ones came after us, sent by the prince, then. The others were sent either by him or the Queen, later on. To what purpose I don't know, tough." He grabs everything and puts in the loot backpack.
"I guess we might get this over with then. Head after the prince?"
Surprised at the battle scene, the dwarf goes about inspecting the remains.
"I take it these golems were/are yours?"
He nodded, "I'm sure there's story here somewhere and I'm a good listener."
"This is all rather knew. It seems odd that such a powerful force does not escape from here to do more harm. Perhaps there is something cooling it to prevent such a thing?"
Crys would contemplate the new world as the others went about inspecting the scene.
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"And how the heck do you know which golem is which?"
She looks at Roland surprised by the question. Is he really serious about it? ”What, you tell me you can’t?” she asks. Then she looks at the others, trying to see if they aren’t playing a prank on her.
”It’s really easy.” she walks over to the remaining golem patting its bloodied and cracked parts. ”If you pay attention, you’ll notice distinct changes in the magic aura produced by the golem. Sheeny’s aura have always been brighter of the two, and have a distinct shape, more like a burst of light, while Glossy was more spread out, and reaching further than Sheeny was ever capable of. ”
Saying that, she turns to the golem while digging into her bag and picking up a small, normal looking rod. She closes her eye for a moment, then commands the golem ”Stay still, don’t fight back while I cast this spell on you.”
--
"And yes, they are ours Chiro, recent acquisition. Spoils of war from a couple of weeks ago, and by the looks of it, they won’t last much longer. And it is a shame, I had plans for them." then she tells the short version of the history. ”We killed a moonbeast, which was the owner, the moonbeast, or the mindflyer fighting alongside it, had one Spectator as slave, and after we freed another imprisoned mindflyer, which turned on its formed disciple, sort of helping us, we told the spectator their master were dead, and reached an agreement with it. He could leave alive, as long he passed the command of the golems to us. Ah, by the way, we let the other mindflyer go as well, since well, it was kind of victim on the first place.”
We accepted a request from some underworld race, the pech, to free their comrades enslaved by the white beast, which we know it was, well, white and had tentacles. We also knew it could dominate others, so we assumed it was an Illithid.
We travelled for a couple of days, and passed near an underworld city, which we also reached an agreement to help the underworld folk to also release their enslaved cronies. The heroes of the underworld, is what this group should call itself.
We reached the creature’s lair, a huge battle ensued we fought devils, a freaking Gug, A moonbeast, while being utterly fooled by an invisible Illithid, casting illusion spells. There was an Illithid statue that seemed, at the time, to be the focus of the moonbeast control over the slaves (which were attacking us as well), and since things didn’t look good for us, we decided to destroy the statue.
Hard fought, but we destroyed it, and it was another imprisoned Illithid, and once freed, he killed the invisible Illithid (which was his former apprendice) for betraying him. A thing it’s worth mentioning is that until the imprisoned one, killed the invisible one, we had no idea an what was really happening with all the illusions and such (very well played GM).
Battle over, we killed the devil, the Gug, the moonbeast, and there was still the freed Illithid to deal with. During some controversial moment, Catcher suggested we let him go, since he didn’t do anything ‘bad’ to us, and even to he admit to have already done evil, Catcher just didn’t feel comfortable declaring herself to be the punisher of evil.
The Illithid mocked us, and left.
We freed the slaves, gave a lot of masterwork weapons to a bunch of Dark Folks and let them go.
Exploring the place, we found the moonbeast lair, and there an Spectator controlling the golems.
The Spectator was threatening us saying that when his ‘master’ returned, we would pay. And we refuted saying the master was already dead.
The enemy stopped there, saying that he was finally free from magic dominance from the master and if he could go. Heck, he already agreed to let a high level wizard Illithid walk free, what was a Spectator in comparison? We agreed that if he gave us control of the golems, and left without trying anything funny, we wouldn’t stop him.
And that’s the long, version of it.
--
" Perhaps there is something cooling it to prevent such a thing?"
”That’s a really good question I’ve never considered as well.” she thinks for a moment then says ”We are heading there, maybe once we get to the place, it will be easier to understand and answer that question.”
During the fiery onslaught Sheeny's limbs and cracked portions of body grew pink, then red, then positively glowed orange. It stood perfectly still as instructed during the barrage, and if it could speak it would have thanked the spellsword for the kind act. As the glowing faded and cooled it left behind a flawless perfection of form, completely repaired from its previous state after its battle with the agents of the underworld. The moonbeast-shaped golem of glass was made whole, fully ready to serve its masters.
Knowing that the clock was ticking on their Great Hunt, the crew made their way back down the chutes that led them here, back down to the very depths of the world - a world so very foreign to most of them. The old man Walker remained stoic in his duty to the group but the elf child Aersensi was not happy about this course. She tugged on the devil-plate armor and looked pleadingly into the spellsword's eyes -
"Catcher, I don't want to go back underground!" she whined.
The path was familiar for a time; they climbed down a sheer cliff face that they'd previously scaled upward, making liberal use of ropes and pitons. Much of the group wielded strength that rivaled some of the greatest warriors in the land, and so there was no shortage of helping hands to guide every person safely along their irregular path. By the guiding conjured lights of magic, the humans usually managed to find adequate hand and foot holds, though when the terrain threatened to thwart their progress, teamwork continued to provide alternative means of travel.
Leaving the cavern of sulfurous lava chutes well behind, the group was happy to find that they remained on the correct path as shown by the multiple caves previously widened by magic and strength, widened to make ample room for the large golem to pass. Though the path remained familiar for a time, the going was slow and tedious due to a constant change in slope, grade, and gravelly uneven footing.
After a period of several hours it suddenly became clear that the number of available passages began to muddle the group's recollection of which way led back to the molten lake where they had met the Prince some weeks ago.
When his memory started to fail on how to get back to the lava pool, Gromff called a stop. He'd had to turn completely around on more than one stop to get his bearings since they hadn't gone this way in reverse. By his estimation, it was also pretty late. A few hours to the chute and a few more wandering around. They'd start getting groggy and make more mistakes after this. That and it was getting warm. "Ain't making it today. Let's try again tomorrow."
---------
Being on his own for the past few years had honed Chiro's survival skills. He looked around when Gromff called for a halt and nodded when the dwarf. His lfying ability had helped the others and himself traverse the chutes but it was time for a break.
Chiro felt comfortable underground. His eyes were accustomed to the dark and he could conjure up a flame whenever he desired.
He asked with pleasure, "You all want a fire tonight?' His eyes seemed to plead that they say yes.
tag?
When it came time to rest, he asked again, "So, who needs fire protection tomorrow? oh, and I'll take first watch because I do need to rest my mind to recall these new spells. Who should I call on for second watch?"
tag?
Turning to Catcher, he answered back, "Perhpas it will. These are strange wonders beyond my experience. I have spent little time underground and only then with little more over my head than what we had back in the cave."
Upon hearing Gromff's call for a stop, he heartily agrees. While he as capable of continuing on, he realized that most were not without consequences.
"Give me two hours and then you may call upon me for second watch," Crys would respond to Chiro. "My ring allows me to remain vigilant on less sleep than others.
"Nice little trinket isn't it?" Gromff says holding his hand up and showing off a similar ring. "We all need protection except him," Gromff sas pointing at Roland. "At least until we get ta the spot we met the Prince last time. Too hot fer anything but protection from open flames."
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"I know you don't like it dear, but there's a big bad evil dragon living underground and if we don't do anything about it, she'll attack the city again, and we can't let that happen." she says trying to comfort the little girl. "Can you see in the dark?" she asks again the elf girl.
--
"I won't be much of help guarding, because I need to rest at least eight hours, and meditate for one more to prepare my magic spells. But I can take the first round, as long you guys don’t allow me to rest after." she doesn't say that she have a really hard time concentrating into her surroundings, making her a poor sentry.
"I know you don't like it dear, but there's a big bad evil dragon living underground and if we don't do anything about it, she'll attack the city again, and we can't let that happen." she says trying to comfort the little girl. "Can you see in the dark?" she asks again the elf girl.
"No, its really dark! I don't like it in the dark."
The child is play-acting. There was a powerful sense of sincerity but the practiced mind could sense the deception underneath. Could the elf-child see in the dark? Elves typically have low-light vision enhancement, but the subtleties in her tone indicate that she is not telling the truth when she said 'no'.