"Well, at least after tonight we get to not worry about it for a few weeks??"
Locked in a cage, Russ'ruk can feel the pull of the moon as it rises that night...
Knaxshi is visibly upset as he stands guard over the room with the cage. As he looks in on Russ changing, he cries out, "You were the chosen one! It was said that you would destroy the werewolves, not join them! Bring balance to the Stolen Lands, not leave them in darkness!..... You were my brother, Russ'Ruk. I loved you."
"Hells."
"Normally I'd make Russ do this, but I'm gonna go get some chairs and uh, coffee? Coffee anyone? We've got a long night ahead of us. Oh, Blue, you need a hanky or something since he's all fuzzed out?"
***
Blaze returns, chairs loudly scraping along the floor behind her. "So Blue, you had a teacher right, she any good at curing curses? Any idea where she is these days?"
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"Okay, so if you had to be bit by a weresomething, and you're gonna have to turn into it at least sometimes, forget about the whole caging and eating people part - what would you pick?"
Tears are streaming down Vesi's cheeks and their blue face has a violet undertone which indicates that yes, the fuzzing out is affecting the druid. Still, they don't move farther away from the cage, suffering through the allergy attack in sniffle-punctuated silence.
"Jeez brobably bag home. I gan wride her a ledder. Maybe Drisdian knowz."
Blaze juts her head up and away as she holds out a handkerchief to Vesi's nose. "Blow."
She resolutely refuses to watch while she asks, "How far is home anyways? If we just packed up and walked there? Or horsed there?"
Knax is distracted. "I don't care how far it is. If it'll help Russ, then we should go." This is definitely weighting on him. So much so that he forgets who he's with later. "Being a werehuman would be awful. All that naked skin..."
"Uhh, Knaxy? If it means that we'll be on the road next time there's a full moon? That's worth caring about. Besides, you're just jealous that you can't sweat and get a good glisteny look going."
Drawing nearer to Rostland, the crew encounters a not-quite-brigand, expert in both bladesmanship and braggadocio. He refuses to let the party pass without allowing him to demonstrate his mastery in a performance for which he would clearly deserve payment, or perhaps we could...
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Russ was exhausted from the wolf-out, his recovery from the scuffle with Kundal, and his recent change in training regime. "Are you looking to show off, or simply duel someone to prove your own skill to yourself?"
He asks very undiplomatically, seeing as the energy to be so kind is drained from him at the moment.
After some cavorting with the duelist and proving his more focused training in the shield to be quite more to pierce than his previous fighting style Russ manages to send the man on his way without much more issue.
However a few more days down the road they come across a wagon hard stuck in the mud. The draft horse looks to have been dragged down into the ditch when part of the roadway gave way and dragged the wagon down. The group could try to get the wagon on the road themselves, but that still leaves the injured horse....
Fortunately, the horse hasn't broken any legs, but it is badly bruised and bleeding from where a snapped shaft cut an ugly gash into the left flank. First, Vesi calms down the animal, soothing it with their voice and gentle touches. The druid uses their magic to heal the worst damage, then applies poultices and bandages for the rest.
"Good girl, what's your name, sweetness?" They feed the horse an apple before going to talk to the wagon's driver about long-term care for the horse.
The rains continue for a few more days, and this is how they all find themselves stuck in an inn with a boisterous travelling troupe looking to recruit fresh talent.
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"Oh, everybody's got talent, do they?" says Knaxshi as he finally gets fed up with the continual nattering of the ringmaster. "Everybody out by the barn. Bring as many old bottles as you can."
Normally, he would have just slipped into the shadows and ignored this, but with the worry about Russ, he's hitting the limits of his patience.
Next to the barn, there are hay bales, he stacks the bottles on them and pushing some into the hay. "I need a volunt..., you Marvolo the Mouthy. Tie him up there in the center. Make sure he can't wriggle or this may go badly." When he's tied up, he adds, "oh, and gag him."
This would definitely be more jolly if it weren't so wet and muddy. But the roupe has lights from their show and they put up enough magic flames to burn down ten barns.
Knaxshi doesn't go in for patter. He just paces off and starts plinking the bottles one by one. A couple are close enough that Marvolo gets scratched by the shattering glass. Only flesh wounds. The tension grows in the crowd.
The last shots bring up tufts of hay right next to Marvolo. The sheer terror in his eyes betrays that he's starting to realize that Knaxshi might not be the best showman.
For the last shot, he puts in just a fraction of the powder and he palms the bullet. He also adds a tiny fraction of the electric alchemical powder to this shot.
He lines up and fires, directly to Marvolo's crotch. there is a horrified gasp. But as people realize that this isn't a lethal shot it changes to peals of laughter, hoots and howls. Marvolo doesn't seem nearly as amused.
"Looks like I'm a showman after all." he says. "But I insist that you be my volunteer every night. Twice on Sundays."
As the group resumes their travels, they start hearing things from the woods. Sometimes music, sometimes laughter, sometimes animalistic growls. But only one person hears the sounds at a time. It seems that someone, or something wanted their attention.
Blaze promptly whips out her fiddle, sawing away with a jig so merry as to chase the shadows from the wood, and as she goes from song to song, the shadows stay gone. A silvery light echoes between the trees until at last the mischievous fey who'd hidden there stands revealed and a bit chagrined.
Blaze grins wickedly. "Well, fair's fair, right? Guess you'll have to come with us, at least until the forest's edge, and keep away any other little pranksters.
"Oh! Wanna swap songs? You go first..."
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In the distance a figure looks over. Suddenly his arms rise into the air, flailing about like flags in a hurricane. "Heeeeyyyy Vesiiiiiii!" he calls out with unrestrained joy as he begins galumphing toward the group at top speed. As he approaches, they see he is a tall young human with a shiny breastplate. His long hair is streaming behind him and a smile a mile wide covers his face.
*****
Interlude - beyond the mortal realm, outside of time
A river of souls flows past an ossified throne. The Lady watches, as she has for eternity. Spotting a discrepancy, she reaches in and pulls out the smallest of souls. The soul of a puppy, barely weaned. She sees the fate written for this dog, to be a loyal companion and protector. She also see the cold reality as he was separated from his mother and wandered lost and alone on city streets. She sees suffering beyond what happens in most full lives. Still, the soul rubs its head against her hand, trying to comfort the Judge of All Souls. It raises its eyes to her infinite gaze, and she hears, "Was I a good boy?"
The heart of a goddess beats on a timescale of eons. But it beat once then and she replied "You will be," as she sent the soul off. It found the home that fit it, this time a human form.
*****
"Vesiiiiii! Vesifish!" he says as he thunders up to the group. Up close he seems to be a little wet. Not sweaty, but damp. As if he had run through a light rain shower that nobody else noticed. He's definitely grown in the last couple of years since Vesi saw him, but it is the same irrepressible Ankra.
Blaze's mouth drops slightly open in a mix of joy and bemusement as Ankra bounds closer.
"Haha, uh, wow. Blue? Are the pecs real if he takes off the breastplate, and if so can we keep this guy? I mean we kept Hargen- We kept Hardrada- We kept the dwarf, and this is much better."
"A-Ankra? Ohmygosh, Ankra!" Vesi laughs with unrestrained joy and surprise as they open their arms for a hug. "What are you doing here? How have you been since..." It occurs to Vesi that it has been some time since they last saw each other. "Since I left for uni? What is that, thee years now? Oh gods, so much has happened, I need to tell you-"
Just then, Blaze's remark reminds Vesi of social niceties, etiquette and other conventions. "Oh, right, this is Ankra, a friend of mine. These are Blaze, Knaxshi and Russ'Ruk, other friends of mine. We're here to meet with my mentor."
He steps into the hug, wrapping her in a big friendly hug. He even lifts her and spins her around. Suggesting that the pecs are probably real.
He'll shake everybody else's hand, taking a moment to evaporate the water off first. He doesn't seem to care about species, even the apparent tiefling doesn't bother him. Apparently if Vesi trusts them, he's fine with them.
"If you guys need help, I'm happy to come along." he says. "I heard that this new Fire Queen was looking for people to help clear out some land and I thought I might go that way. But that can wait if you need help."
"Oh hey, 'Fire Queen.' Pretty cool name, right? Almost as cool as a 'Bandit Queen' some might say. Oh hey, speaking of, is 'friend of mine' code here too, or is that just a Daggermark thing?"
Vesi blinks at Blaze. "Code? As in, a secret meaning? No, Ankra is my friend. We studied together for a bit." The undine whirls towards Ankra. "Show them! I hope you've been practicing!"
"oh, I've been practicing. I've learned a few new tricks."
He leads the group off the road. He spins in place, drawing water from nowhere that floats around him. With dancelike gestures he forms this into whips, hammers, and spears that attack imaginary enemies. Some are quick jabs, but others take more effort and seem to swing with more force. He arcs a stream of water over a hundred feet away, battering a bush. Bursts of ice explode, leaving jagged shards of ice around. All of this is instinctive, without the effort of a spellcaster.
He'll pull Vesi out away from the group. He'll look at them and ask, "Do you trust me?" If they agree, he'll spray a huge amount of water with punishing force. But the water parts around Vesi, leaving them dry and unharmed.
"I've even learned how to heal." He takes Vesi's hand and pulls out his knife. Looking in their eyes to confirm, he'll cut across their palm. But it is the skin on his own palm that splits and bleeds. Once again, Vesi is unharmed. A rush of water cleans off the blood and seals the wound on his hand.
With that, he takes a bow.
Knax looks around to see who saw this, clearly unhappy with drawing so much attention. But it's a habit everybody is used to from when Blaze is being her exuberant self.
"Wow, you've developed so much! You are now better with water than I am!" Vesi claps enthusiastically, beaming up at Ankra with pride. "Oh, you should see Blaze do her fire tricks, you two would be an incredible pair - fire and water!"
The undine turns back to their companions. "Could Ankra come with us when we return to our lands? His talents would help a lot with our agriculture efforts!" They leave aside the fact that most of the demonstration was rather martial in nature.
Blaze looks quite put out by the 'blast Vesi' plan, and shimmers with heat at the 'stab Vesi' plan, but tries to smooth over her ruffled feathers by replacing outrage with a feline display of 'I was kidding anyways and this was always fine.'
"Fire and water, huh? Always thought that might be steamy! And uh, good for crops and agriculture? Wait! Hells! Uhh something about plowing? Fill in the blanks you know where I was going."
"So you have a farm now? Huh, I never would have guessed you guys were farmers. I guess the area is still pretty wild." he says. "But I'm happy to help out. I've never done any plowing, but I'm sure I'll figure it out with the right teacher."
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Russ'ruk sighed and looked at Ankra.
"My good-don'tsaydull well mannered sir... you are looking at the rulers of what was formerly known as The Stolen Lands. Might I introduce you properly to Lady Blaze, The Fire Queen?"
He motions unceremoniously towards Blaze. "As well as her personal Magister Vesi Medvyed. Over there is the warden general of our lands Knaxshi. I myself am Viceroy Russ'ruk. We are the present members of the council of the growing province of Safehaven."
His face drops as he looks quickly around to each of them. He's not sure what happened, but nobody is laughing. He drops to a knee, "I'm sorry your HighMajestiness
Blaze looks to her friends in amusement. "Oh he didn't figure- Huh, even with wearing a crown too? Of like, silver that looks like it been blackened in a fire and still no- Huh. Okay, well, by the power vested in my High Majestiness I bid ye rise and-
"Hey Blue? The human irrigator here isn't the one who taught you everything you know and is the wise healer we're seeking, right?"
"What? Oh no, no. My teacher... oh gods! We need to go! She doesn't like it when I'm late." Vesi springs into action all of a sudden, marching away at speed - or rather, enacting a rapid waddle - in the direction of Restov. Their mentor had said they would meet them outside the western gates.
"Late? Blaze shouts at Vesi's back before jogging after them with a sigh.
You find Vesi's mentor in a park outside the city. She is an older woman, wizened and stooped, with coarse gray hair and thick, bushy eyebrows. She is clad in homespun clothes and leans heavily on a gnarled wooden staff. She straightens a bit and smirks as she sees Vesi approaching.
"Cub," she says in way of greeting. "It's been some time. You've grown like a weed, haven't you?"
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Vesi slaps their ample hips with a proud grin. "I sure did! Country food is very healthy. How are you, ma'am? Thank you for meeting us here, as I said in the letter... the situation is not good." They gesture to the rest of the group. "These are my friends, we're building a new country in the Stolen Lands. This one, Russ'Ruk, has been bitten by a werewolf. Is there anything you can do to help him?"
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Blaze pops her head up over Vesi's shoulder, barely waiting till they finish speaking to add in, "And uh, your ma'amship? Hi, I'm Queen Blaze. I'm going to have Sooooo many questions once you've made Russ here a little less flea-friendly. Do you have a favorite chatting drink?"
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Russ gives a pathetic tired wave as he's introduced.
"Hello ma'm, as you're no doubt aware doing one's court duties becomes quite difficult when you are um.. afflicted as I have recently become."
He scratches the broken and healing scales, where Kundal had attacked him and it had yet to heal well. "Issues with dealing with our own local populace's problems and all."
Ankra bows his head, "Vesi has spoken a lot about you. I am Ankra, and I channel elemental water."
Knaxshi just nods, the worry evident on his face.
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"It is a pleasure to meet you all," the woman says, inclining her head. To Blaze, she says, "My drink of choice is a whiskey sour. We can chat later, but first, to business."
She kneels down to examine Russ'ruk. She leans close and sniffs at his broken scales. "Hmm. Yes, the curse definitely has its claws in you. You did well to seek my aid in a swift manner. Wait too long, and you run the risk of permanently becoming one with the beast.
"I will attempt to help. Close your eyes and clear your mind."
The woman raps her staff on the ground and begins to chant words in Druidic. Over the course of a minute, Russ'ruk can feel gentle restorative magic flowing into his body, working to push out the malefic curse of lycanthropy.
The magic works wonders. Russ'ruk can feel the fell curse dissipating until no trace of it remains. The kobold has been cured!
Knaxshi relaxes, releasing the tension he has held since learning that Russ had been cursed. "Oh, the drinks are on us tonight! Thank you."
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"Great! That was really easy, thanks! So wait, do you do a whiskey sour with a float of red on top, or is that just a Chelish thing? In Daggermark that was just begging to get dosed with something, and I know in Kyonin when I asked for egg in mine, they looked at me like my head was on fire, which was preposterous because I was in disguise and- Well that's not the point anyways..."
***
"Mmm... That is good. Okay okay okay - so. How many animals did they try to endruid before succumbing to the wheezies? How many did they name?"
"Oh, also, are you the one who taught Vez about proper introductions and everything? 'Cause we had been through a get-to-know-you-party, two nicknames, a sleepover, and six homicides before I was able to get their actual first name. From Russ. And look, I'm not regretting putting in the time, but since there's a whole queendom to get back to, I'm hoping to shortcut things with you, fair?"
As they drink, another ratfolk enters the bar. Knaxshi goes off for a moment to talk with them and then comes back. [b]"I have a little family business to attend to. It will probably take a couple of weeks, so I'll head back on my own."
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Russ'ruk breaths slow alongside Teacher, and does as she says closing his eyes and trying to clear his mind. It is filled largely with the attack and flashes of hazy bits when he first transformed. Slowly as the druidic magic coursed through him it soothed those thoughts making them less vivid, the pain from the wound slowly dulling to a light ache before vanishing entirely. Now he remembers Kundal attacking him violently, but the pain wasn't so bad the terror that it brought along nothing more than the usual adrenaline pumping excitement of defying death.
He opened his eyes and rubbed at the place where he'd been infected, the scales were still broken, but the scale bed was still intact and it would heal as all thing would. He feels lighter, brighter, and no longer weighed down by some unseen fatigue.
"Many thanks Ma'm. I see now where our dear Vesi gets their exceptional abilities from. Should you ever venture through our lands and require anything, you need only ask and so long as I breath I shall offer what I can."
Keeping himself paced relatively well with a light mead he watches as Knaxshi gets distracted to the side. "Are you sure Knaxshi, we could all come help if you need. I mean we do need our marshal for court affairs after all."
"Sadly, this isn't the kind of problem where more people will help." he says. "Believe me, if it were something a sword could chop or fire could burn, I'd be asking you along."
"Are you sure? There's very few things that enough fire can't burn... I mean I guess it doesn't always help though."
Vesi raises their head curiously from their mug of berry juice. "I hope everything is alright - or if not, that it soon will be. Please do let us know if we can help, Knaxshi."
The druid tilts their head to Ankra. "And if fire doesn't help, how about water?"
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"Oh, water power can be useful, but I don't think it will do much this time." He looks over to Knaxshi and cocks his head. Knaxshi thinks a moment and nods.
Unlike before, this seems to be something Ankra knows well. "Lots of Ysoki caravans in town. I come from river traders, so we often keep close with the land traders. This many gathering, it's a time for family to get together. Time to deal with old problems and hopefully hash them out. I expect that you've got something to clear up with someone." Knaxshi nods, not volunteering what he has to deal with.
"But cheer up. It's also a time to brag and celebrate. You are the Warden of a new land. Once you get those monsters cleared out, it's a whole new market!" Knaxshi looks even less enthused about this.
Ankra turns to the others, "Not much place for outsiders there. But maybe an invitation to trade from the Fire Queen might help smooth things over. Nothing grants forgiveness more than bringing good fortune back to the family."
He turns to Blaze, with his eyes begging in a way that Knax would never do for himself.
"That's a great idea! Did uh, did anyone bring the proclamating paper?"
And so, you return to your capital city with Ankra in tow. After your brief detour to Restov and with new leadership to be instated, it's time to turn your attention back to governing your nascent nation...