Yagello, thanks for the feedback, but it's going to be a lot of work to ramp up a whole new set of characters just for the end of the volume. Happy to keep in touch if you have any suggestions (you can private message me).
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I'm sorry to hear this, but I respect your decisions, so I will stop this game. Safe travels.
The small man grunts in acknowledgement, then spits once more into the soup. "Zum Spass!" he laughs as the party leaves him with the stew. Gnomish:
"For fun!" There is only the tiles left at this point that presumably go to another floor.
Nadya tries to say a few words in Skald, but the creature merely shrugs, and spits into the stew. "Zum Geschmack!" he says over his shoulder, as if in explanation. Gnomish: "For flavor!"
"Was bin ich, ein Aufpasser der Kinder?" the creature spits. "Selbst wenn ich einen Knöchel beißen schleichen in meiner Küche zu sehen, warum sollte ich dann über Kind sprechen die beiden vier zufällige Fremde zu unterbrechen mich vor meinen Eintopf?" he yells. He stops for a minute to compose himself, and than continues more calmly. "Ich wurde gebeten, zwei einen zusätzlichen kleineren Schüssel für eine Zeit, nehme ich an, aber das hielt ein paar Tagen, vielleicht sogar in der Woche." The little man stops and puts a slop-crusted finger to his chin. "Welcher Tag ist es, überhaupt? Ist es immer noch Erastus?" Gnomish: "What am I, a minder of children? Even if I had seen an ankle biter sneaking in my kitchen, why would I then talk about said child to four random strangers interrupting me from making my stew? I was asked to make an additional smaller bowl for a time, I suppose, but that stopped a couple of days ago, maybe even a week. What day is it, anyways? Is it still Erastus?"
I will be on vacation from June 27 until July 5. I may post infrequently during this time if I have an opportunity, but I cannot promise I will at this time.
Yagello opens the door quietly. Inside, several cabinets line the narrow walls of this oddly angular room. A chopping block, water barrel, and cauldron stand near the room’s only door. Standing over the cauldron is a small humanoid with large pointed ears and a blue-brown complexion. The creature is covered in powders and sauces, and is stirring the thick bubbling liquid in the cauldron. The man stops at the intrusion, and looks up at Yagello with an impatient look. "Eine weitere Ablenkung? Kann ich diesen Eintopf ohne weitere Störungen zu machen? Lassen Sie mich, Fremde!" as he begins to shout, he sprays spittle from his drooping lower lip everywhere, including into the cauldron. Gnomish: "Another distraction? Can't I make this stew without any more disturbances? Leave me be, strangers!"
From inside, the sounds of oblivious humming is punctuated only by the sounds of bubbling liquid and the scrape and clang of metal against metal. The tantalizing smells of fresh baked bread and meaty stew waft from under the door. It is clear to Arkady and Cervin that there is someone inside.
Yagello doesn't noticing anything else of value in the room, but looks around as Arkady works on the chest. The wizard checks for traps first, but does not notice anything. Although the chest is locked, Arkady takes out a small thin tool, and easily opens the lock. Inside is a variety of treasures: a pair of silver bracers traced with figures of dragons, a jeweled scepter, an bright red rock with stripes, and three translucent blue crystals. There is also hundreds of gold, silver and copper pieces, and four potions. Arkady notes the magical auras emanate from the potions, and take a closer look at each of them. Three of them are simple potions that slow a fall to a safe float, but the last potion's purpose eludes Arkady.
Arkady searches the room, and although he does not find any auras on the mirror, he does note three weak auras coming from the chest.
A bed, desk, dresser, and storage chest furnish this small bedroom. A large mirror hangs on the wall opposite the room’s only door, and two windows look down on the tower’s courtyard. There is no one in the room.
One of Cervin's arrows hit, but it is Yagello's blade that finally cuts down the creature, and it collapses to the floor in a heap. The thump of the body hits the ground, with an light cracking sound, like branches snapping. The icy halls fall silent.
The small creature pauses for a moment, lifting its chained hands and looking at them, and then screams and raises its arms in fury, in vengeance against those around it, before bringing them down on anyone in reach.
Cervin, Arkady and Yagello each miss the creature, and the creature pulls once more against the bonds. With a crash, the remaining chain rips from the wall, and the sound of cracking ice echos down the hall.
I find fights are where we spend most of our real world calendar time, so I've been starting to omit some of the non-essential fights, and I'm considering turning to a milestone-based progression (rather than tracking XP closely). I'd welcome any feedback on any further changes.
Arkady gets behind the creature, and while Yagello is one one side, the Varisian sees a weaker piece of bark, which he hits with his staff. The piece collapses into the body, and the same black ichor with the consistency of tree sap oozes out. The creature spins in fury, and tries to pull again on the chain, but it stays, keeping the child-sized creature stuck in place.
The creature struggles against the final chain again. The anchor in the wall trembles slightly, but remains in place, keeping the creature in place. The creature is making some kind of growl, but the piercing shrink has thankfully faded.
The creature tries to free itself from the other chain, but it holds fast for now, keeping the creature tethered to the wall.
Two of Cervin's flurry of arrows hit, and the creature yelps in pain, cutting the scream short.
The strange creature pulls with Yagello, and the chain breaks free from the wall. The root that looks like a child then screams, and begins pulling on the other chain. The scream is terrible to hear, high pitched and painful to listen to.
My apologies, I've been a bit busy at work this week. I'll be posting an update tonight...
Once he has calmed, Cervin stares intently at the creature as it resists the bonds once again. This thing does not show any evil, though.
This strange creature is definitely not a common creature, Yagello figures, because he has never heard of anything so strange before.
Arkady peers at the creature, but he had not read about this creature in his books growing up. Seeing the bark-like appearance of the skin, Arkady wonders if he his grandmother's botany lessons ever covered creatures such as this, rather than the long droning lectures about medicinal properties.
The creature is only the height of a child, but it strains against the chains again, and Arkady hears a rumbling sounds from the walls. The chains hold fast, but Arkady notes that there are cracks in the wall from continued pulling. It is only a matter of time before the creature breaks free, especially if the party baits him just out of his restrained reach. Arkady takes a moment to scan the rest of the room, and does not notice any traps or other hazards of note.
Several tables, covered in flowering plants and decorative figurines both large and small, occupy the corners of this brightly lit large room. A large mirror hangs on the northwestern wall, while double doors lead north and south. In the eastern corner, between one table and a large branch, a filthy creature stands chained to the wall, resembling a pudgy child made from tree bark, with roots for hands and feet. As soon as it sees the group enter, it begins struggling and pulling against the chains, trying to break free, and making strange warbling sounds.
Yagello opens the door into a much larger room. A long red carpet extends from the western doorway of this mirrored hall between ice sculptures of twin nymphs, ending at an open alcove to the east, where a large crystal tile is set in the floor. Passageways continue north and south, following the contours of the tower’s outer wall, where windows look out over the open courtyard below. It is obvious to Yagello that some of the doors here lead back to the library and dining hall, but a door in one of the northern passageways leads to an unexplored side of this floor of the tower.
Lady Argentea shrugs. "Do not leave me in this tower with these cretins! I'll wait for you here."
Arkady thinks back to the first Lady Argentea. She behaved much like this one, and they had no way to suspect that she was fake. "I haven't seen much," Lady Argentea says to Yagello. "There was a courtyard, and then a large hall. We stepped onto some kind of tile that took us to a dining room, and then this room. I haven't been permitted to leave this room since we arrived, and they bring me my food here."
The lady takes a step back, her expression turns into a frown of disgust. "How dare you accuse me of being a conspirator of some crime? Who is Nadya, and why do I know anything of her daughter?" Nadya steps forwards at her name, staring icily at the well-dressed woman. "Well, I suppose I know Nadya now," the woman dismisses Nadya callously with her hand. "However I know nothing of a daughter. I have been imprisoned here for days now, and just because my door is not locked, I know what imprisonment feels like." She takes a breath before continuing. "If I leave this room, dozens of guards and fey that I saw on the way in are waiting to stop me, so I have not ventured outside this door. And if I sneak away, I am dressed for summer in Taldor, not winter in this wasteland of a country." She sighs and sits down on her bed. Cervin tries to sense some hole in her story, but it seems to make sense.
Lady Argentea looks between the men and Nadya, and has a slight look of confusion on her face. "I'm afraid your previous rescue was a sham, for I have been here the entire time. It must have been some imposter or look-a-like that you rescued instead. The likes of you no doubt confuse up from down just as easily as two completely different women." She pauses to ensure that the insult sinks in, and addresses Cervin directly. "I ask if you are rescuers, for I have met all manner of slovenly guards since my capture and imprisonment, and I was hoping for a more elegant rescue party." Despite her protests, the woman does look like a mirror image of the woman the men had rescued back in Heldren.
The woman stands up straight to address the group, attempting to straighten her clothes before beginning. "I was kidnapped by those foul men at the roadside, and taken through the portal. It's been a terrible ordeal ever since, and I've tried to forget the worst of what has happened, but I can most certainly say that I am not rescued... yet." She then turns to Yagello, and huffs once, "And as for you, how dare you insult my intelligence with your inane questions. We live to serve Grand Prince Stavian III, of course, for as long as Pharasma allows him to serve." Yagello listens intently, but she answers his question correctly, and she does not appear to be lying. "Now are you my rescuers, or some annoyances sent by my captors?" Lady Argentea puts one hand on her hip, in a posture of annoyance. Arkady watches the woman as well through the ring made by his thumb and finger, and detects a faint aura coming from the woman. However, he is unable to decipher any details pertaining to the nature of the magic.
Arkady opens the door . Inside, the scent of perfume fills the air of this small bedroom where several dresses styled for a Taldan noblewoman lie neatly arranged on the bed. A mirrored vanity and chair sit by the door next to a wooden chest, and a larger mirror hangs on the wall between two windows. A woman with red hair stands in the middle of the room, and turns towards the open door. "Thank goodness, you've saved me! If only they could send a proper rescue party for me..." As the woman turns, Arkady is surprised to see Lady Argentea, the same one that they had initially set out to rescue, that they had rescued from the raiders in the cellar of the lodge back in Taldor!
The woman with the glowing longsword laughs. "Hvis datteren din er en fange av den Bleke Tårnet, så du vil aldri få henne tilbake." She gestures to the bookshelves. "Jeg har gjort min lesning, og dette er en grusom land, med en grusom historie. Hvis du ikke kan klare seg selv, vil du ikke trives." Skald: "If your daughter is a prisoner of the Pale Tower, then you will never get her back. I have been doing my reading, and this is a cruel land, with a cruel history. If you cannot fend for yourself, you will not thrive."
"Hvem har invitert deg inn i Blek Tårnet?" the woman stands up and draws her sword. "Du ser ikke ut til å være fra disse landene, og vi ikke imot ubudne gjester her." She reads off another scroll on the table, and her blade begins to glow. She then stops, and looks towards Nadya, who is growing anxious at the exchange. "Et barn, skjønt? Hvorfor du ser for et barn trenger?" Skald: "Who has invited you into the Pale Tower? You do not look to be from these lands, and we do not welcome uninvited guests here."
"A child, though? Why do you look for a child?"
Meirul takes a moment to gather her things, and heads to the crystal floor plates in the dining room, leaving the party behind. Yagello notices while looking out the window in Meirul's room that they are noticeably higher up in the tower on this level. Yagello and Cervin look down the hallway, and sees a total of three more doors. They take turns listening at the door, and hearing nothing, open the door. Iniside, floor-to-ceiling bookshelves line the walls of this sprawling chamber. A massive mirror hangs on the western wall. An ornate wooden table, covered with open texts and lit candles, and six chairs sit in the middle of the room. A white-haired woman looks up from a book at the intrusion. She chants a few lines from a scroll next to her book, and stands up to challenge the intrusion. "Hvem er du, og hva virksomheten har du i her?" Skald:
"Who are you, and what business do you have in here?"
Meriul nods and walks across the room towards the door. She opens the door, revealing a long curving corridor, still as icy as the walls elsewhere. Yagello and Cervin follow as she takes not a step before reaching the first door. She opens this door to reveal a small bedroom, and walks across the room to a chest near the far wall. She glances over her shoulder briefly to see Yagello and Cervin watching before discreetly pulling a small key from a pouch. "I will need a moment to change and gather my things, if you do not mind." She smiles coyly as she notes Yagello's obvious discomfort.
Meriul thinks for a moment before responding. "All right. My belonging are in a guest room through there," she nods to the doorway to the right of the group, at one end of the table. "If you would permit me to gather my things, I would rather not be involved in this nonsense."
Mierul pauses after Yagello's outburst, then laughs loudly, sounding like musical bells echoing between the frozen walls. "You amuse me, foreigner, but I am merely a guest in this hall, so I know not of the daily activities of every servant in each nook!" She looks toward Cervin, staring icily in return. "I enjoy song and food, which is why I invite you to sit down. If you continue to insist on being so rude, I am not a helpless creature, either. Cervin maintains his gaze, and detects a faint evil in this blue-skinned fey.
Hey everyone - if you're still around. I had a couple of things catch up to me at once, and it's kept me away from here for the past few weeks. Not a good reason to stop altogether, though, so I apologize for disappearing like I did. I will PM everyone over the next day to gauge interest and see if this is worth resurrecting.
My apologies for the long absence. I ended up getting sick twice back-to-back, but I'm finally getting better now. Hopefully my absence does not derail things too much!
The strange magic envelops Cervin and Arkady, and they see Mierul in the same place, speaking with Yagello. The area around the tiles is getting crowded. "Ah, my friends are back!" Mierul exclaims. "I was just in the middle of inviting you to a feast, come sit at this table, I'm sure a hearty stew will be available soon!"
Sorry for the delays this week, I have come down with something that has been keeping me out of commission. I'm starting to get better now, and I will post again in the next day.
"You know, I'm not exactly sure what Mig is preparing today!" Mierul laughs musically. "I would bet that he is preparing one of his stews. Please, sit down." Mierul points to the curved table between them. Yagello does not feel that she is overtly lying, but still doubts Mierul's intentions as she seems to enjoy the comforts of the tower.
Yagello and Nadya step onto the tiles, and Nadya recites the phrase. As before, ice crystals begin to form from the floor, growing upwards only in a few moments to completely encase Yagello and Nadya in ice. After another hear beat, Yagello and Nadya are in the dining room described by Yagello and Arkady. Across the room, Mierul stands up to greet the newcomers. "Ah, the Varisian's friends! Come, you were so nice in sharing your food with me before, we will be feasting here shortly, please join me!" Nadya visibly tenses at the sight of Mierul, her hand ready to draw her axe.
Nevinia searches her bags, and produces two more potions. "I have two healing potions left, but after this I have nothing left. My powers are spent for the day."
The man keeps his eyes closed. "Det er ingen fanger som jeg har sett. Av kurset, jeg har ikke sett alle rom her ......" Skald: "There's no prisoners that I've seen. Of couse, I haven't seen all the rooms here..."
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