"Oh, I'll gladly do both!" snaps William, rising from the chair to grab his doctor's bag and heading for the cellar. "I'll check up on her, then I'm going straight back out to confront this icy Ariel. We've got a Caliban of our own, after all, though I feel that my role is more Stefano than Ferdinand."
Down in the cellar, she examines the prisoner
Naajy would accompany the doctor downstairs just in case. Staying back a bit to give the doctor lots of room to work, of course :-)
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Jazz heads down too. Before he does so. William just said the word Fairy based upon the description you gave. Not that I believe fairies are real, but if they are, based upon myth I know fairies are only a few inches high, we are bigger than them, it is like being scared of a single rat, even though fairies are said to fly. I would not be afraid of one fairy, now if hypothetically speaking there were a thousand of them, then I'd be afraid.
"O brave new world, that has such people in 't!" shouts William to Jazz from the cellar. "You know just one story, Caliban? There are more kinds of fairies in Irish tales than I've got hair on my head!"
"Are you referring to the Victorian tales or the older Celtic stories involving people like Cú Chulainn? Because the creatures in the older stories are most certainly NOT faeries.
There are a great many creatures in stories, legends and myths where I come from. Some of them involving very scary demons with blue skin and powers over cold and ice. And at least some of those stories ARE true. I have myself, for example, seen proof that the Yeti is no tale told to scare travellers. It exists"
"I'm referring to faerie as the Fair Folk. Oberon and Titania and all of their court, and the collection of spirits of the land. A sort of umbrella term, if you would, although I'll admit fairy tales are not a facet of literature I've spent much time exploring."
"My buddy Joey is a different kind of fairy too."
A rough wooden ladder descends 10 feet into the dimly lit cellar. Where the great room above is warmed by the fire in the fireplace, the cellar is noticeably cooler, though still pleasantly dry and seemingly well aired. There is a small kerosene lamp with a hurricane glass cover. Most of the space is filled with crates and a few barrels. In one corner is a rough matress of straw covered in a few blankets. A clean slop bucket lies nearby. Lying here is an attractive young woman in a muddied green dress that must have cost a month's wages. No hat is visible, and her hair hangs loose, but her clothes are untorn and there is no indication that her honor has been disturbed.
Smelling her breath, checking her slow pulse, and looking at her eyes reveals that she has been dosed with laudanum. Her breathing and pulse are slow but steady. She shows no sign of frostbite at her extremities, no signs of injury. There are some bruises on her arms that suggest some rough handling, but no indication of blows.
Roger interjects, "She seemed like no fairy from any story I ever heard. No walnut carriage or crown of motes. More like some sort of goblin or something."
Fang watches the proceedings, clearly trying to figure out what is going on.
"The White men are saying a lot. What is going on?"
Gesturing at Roger :
But whatever else is happening, Roger is definitely an evil criminal. But, at the moment, that seems secondary to what else is happening. So please don't lets kill them just yet?
"So I happen to have two killing machines and a couple of smart weirdoes AND A G!& D&&N TIGER. Let's deal with this threat. But how we gonna know you don't hurt this girl you already kidnapped and drugged?"
"Please, poor Haamid has feelings, you know. And he understands more than you think he does :-).
My friend here has a point, though. Why don't we ALL go out and see about this blue Oni? Together, we're more likely to succeed. And leaving you alone with the girl that you kidnapped seems just a little dangerous"
"She is unharmed, other than the laudanum. I doubt that they lacked the chance to hurt them, so a modicum of trust can be assumed." William emerges from the cellar, mechanically wiping his hands. "I would not mind something to eat, though. That walk was tiresome."
He says nothing about the absurdity of going out in force against a fairy, reckoning that battle to be for another day.
"Let us be about it then. Hiding will not help us, but finding our enemy and crushing it surely will. Also, when it is time to deal with Roger, let me know and it will be so."
It takes only a matter of minutes for Ten-Penny to appear with soup and a platter of roast venison, rustic bread, and boiled potatoes. The food is simple and filling, and Roger is happy to eat anything you might find suspicious.
Responding to your suspicions,
"I will walk out with you, but I will not fight against the icy blasts of the fairy, as you call it. Of course, if we all fall, there will be no one left to defend the lady."
After we all eat AND go to the bathroom :
"Right. Lets go and fight this blue creature. But, fair warning. If the girl here is hurt in any way at all somebody is going to become Tiger Chow!!"
"Not it," Digger says, touching his nose. "Say, I should probably have one of those rifles, yeah?"
William finishes off his deer sandwich, cleaning his mouth with a sleeve. "It's a bloody tale, get a culverin for all the good it'll do you. Alright, let's go look for this insanity."
After getting his coat on, the doctor loads a bullet in the rifle and opens the door, stepping out in the cold.
Fang eats and then joins the others outside, wearing the winter coat over his clothes. He begins looking around for tracks.
Roger pulls his heavy fur cloak around himself, shivering with cold he cannot yet feel before he steps out into the swirling snow onto the large porch facing the ravine and the rope bridge that crosses it.
The bridge is made of rope and wooden planks spans a narrow ravine. It’s already covered in ice and snow, and it sways alarmingly in the icy winds blowing through the gorge. The turbulent waters of a fast-moving creek surge through a couple of waterfalls 50 feet below.
"The creature doesn't like the heat of the lodge. She lurks out there, in the snow, flitting about the ravine. I'm sure she is watching us as we speak."
Moved most of you outside on the map.
William peeks down the bridge, uneasy with heights. "Come on then! Come forth, o sprite of legend, if you are more than lunacy and hallucination! Show yourself and speak!"
William sees nothing, but it is if the drifting snow speaks with a voice of ice sliding over ice. The sound is high pitched and whining.
"You might do best to step back from the brink, interloper. You have no business here. Down the mountain slide, back to your warmth and sun."
"Would you please do us the great honour of introducing yourself? It is always nice to know who one is talking to. My name is Naajy and this is my good friend Haamid"
"What is being said, and who is saying it?"
"You may call me Izzoze, Guardian of the Portal and Baroness of Winter, Naaaajy and Haaaamid."
The voice seems to circle the group, never coming too near, and certainly not coming near enough for Haamid to scent. The tiger seems intrigued, but not spooked or intimidated.
"Oh, he will know soon enough about Winter. Winter will come for all of you."
There is a Portal near here. I'm going to ask her more about it"
"What would we have to do to be allowed through the Portal? And what would we find on the other side? It sounds like it would be an absolutely fascinating place to visit if we can"
"Yeah. Last I checked, winter comes at least once a year. What's your deal, ma'am? You know at least some of our names. What's upset you and how can we help?"
"Oh demon of cold, please go and leave us in peace. You have invaded our world, and yet we find ourselves at your mercy. Please return to your home and bother us no longer."
Either this is a very elaborate practical joke, or I'm getting spooked.
William performs aflourishing, exaggerated parody of a bow, addressing the invisible spirit.
"Oh, a Baroness of Winter? Pardon me my manners, Your Ladyship, if you excuse the audacity of my request, would you kindly cut the ********? Show yourself, enough with the ventriloquist tricks, and enough wasting our time!"
"How dare you, impudent man! You will learn to show the proper respect..."
At that, a nightmare comes to life. The storm coalesces into a burst of snow and ice shards. Out of burst the small icy white blue body of a demon like something from a gothic cathedral appears, wings and all.
As the being of Ice and snow appears, Fang's immediate reaction is to whip off the coat he's wearing and throw it at the creature, trying to cover it as much as possible.
"We need fire!"
"Whoa, lady, relax. I'm sure we can work something out!"
"I think that diplomacy is more effective BEFORE the spells and rifles go off, not after :-("
With that slightly ironic observation Naajy shoots his rifle at the demon and then moves and goes prone
for
"Haamid, just guard me. You're too injured too attack. Good boy"
Haamid moves over beside Naajy, crouching ready to attack if somebody threatens him or his pet human.
The creature ducks and dodges as bullets fly. "Why does every creature here seem to have these strange wands," the creature muses.
"Well enough, humans. If you want to get rough..."
The creature snaps her wrist at Naajy as though throwing something, and a glowing beam of blue energy leaps from the gargoyle's hand toward Naajy.
force damage to Naajy.
Fang will move up and punch the creature.
"Son of a *****!" yells William, struck by the icy splinters. His arm shakes as he lets out a shot, flying wide. "What the **** is that?"
Barely on his feet, Naajy decides that discretion is definitely the better part of valor and (when his turn comes up) gets to his feet and moves out of sight, taking Haamid with him).
Fang connects with the creature's body, finding that it is harder even than ice. His powerful blow would punch a hole in a frozen river, but it hardly scuffs the creature.
The flying creature barely dodges Jazz's shot.
Realizing words weren't useful at this point, Digger tries shooting the rifle he'd been given.
Roger panics and runs back into the lodge.
The creature's wings flap wildly as its icy claws reach out for Fang's face. Fang is able to swat the relatively weak creature's hands away, keeping the icy claws at bay.
Begin round 3
The gargoyle, or whatever it is, is hard to hit as she dodges around, but William's logical mind takes control. Gritting his teeth to dominate the shivers, he takes a step back and levels the rifle, calculating the direction to intercept the apparently erratic movements before squeezing the trigger.
Fang will attempt to grab the creature, making it easier to deal with.
"bravely" may not be quite right, but Naajy DOES advance and again fire his rifle at the blue demon
for