In-Game Dates: Disander 5th, night – Dis 8, night
After Quirky leaves, Rowan and Nialia convince Grumble to give Quirky the benefit of the doubt. Grumble mutters that while he doesn’t trust the “gnome,” he won’t do anything rash unless Quirky gets out of line.
Eventually the party hears the faint, clear, tenor voice of Quirky singing an elven lament, “Ard hi Ethenialle”. Rowan remembers her father singing it once when he found that a former companion of his had died. A while after the song ends, Badger gets up and heads in the direction Quirky had gone. Though she tells everyone not to follow her, Grumble heads off after them about five minutes later.
Badger finds Quirky, who has carved a rough headstone in front of a grave. He must have used magic, for etched into the rough stone surface is the inscription:
“Here Lies Grayle, loyal companion and friend. Ill-used in this life, may the gods grant her peace in the next.”
Badger apologizes; wishing she’d died, or done anything rather than to have forced Quirky to choose between her and Grayle. Quirky takes her by the shoulders and tells her that Grayle was trying to save the person she knew from making a mistake. However, says Quirky, he is no longer that person anymore. Sadly, Grayle didn’t give him time to explain. Quirky did what he had to do, and while he regrets more than anything having to kill Grayle, would make the same decision again if he had to.Badger pleads for Quirky to tell her everything, right now. Anything else he’s been hiding, Badger wants it out in the open. She thinks she can forgive him whatever he tells her, but she wants to hear it all now; after this she’s not sure her heart could take any further betrayal.
Quirky is silent for half a minute, but instead of an answer, he greets Grumble, who has done a fair job of sneaking up on the two. Badger screams at Grumble to leave, even throwing her kukri at him in her rage. Quirky gets Grumble to leave them in peace for a while, asking “I just killed my only friend and the only family I’ve ever known to save Badger’s life. Do you honestly think I’m going to hurt her?”
Quirky asks Badger what she loves about him, wondering if Grayle wasn’t right about Badger not being able to love him for what he truly is. Sighing at Badger’s confusion, Quirky admits to Badger that he’s a shape-shifter, a doppelganger, a changeling. To his amazement, Badger finds this fascinating. After saying she forgives him, Quirky comes out and, naming all her names (Roywyn Ellybelle Badger Goodlock Turen), tells her that he loves her. She is much more shocked by finding out that Quirky was a near-mythic assassin known only as “Shadowspawn.” Quirky explains that Shadowspawn was actually a title conferred upon him, that he adopted the name from another to keep the legend going (a la the “Dread Pirate Roberts”). Badger exclaims: “I’ve woken my parents up thinking you were under my bed!” Despite himself, Quirky laughs. He quickly sobers as he realizes that Badger is still bleeding from Grayle’s claws. He presses his hand to her wounded stomach and heals her. Eventually Badger taked the hand on her stomach in her own, and the two sit, hand-in hand, by the grave in silence. Quirky stays by the grave for a while longer after Badger reluctantly heads back to camp, but not before she tells him the name given to her upon her becoming an adult gnome: Lunhedia, which means “beloved mystery.”
The next morning, Quirky not only tells the rest of the party what he truly is, but reveals his true form to them, a thin, hairless gray creature. He does not, however, tell them about being Shadowspawn.
The party sets off down the road, passing a crossroads. They should reach Brindinsford, a city between them and Pythia, by mid-day tomorrow. As they make camp, Badger drags Grumble off to gather firewood while Rowan hunts. Badger tells Grumble that she’s forgiven Quirky for everything, and that they love each other, and would he please cut Quirky some slack. Grumble says that he’s just trying to look out for her, and he’ll try.
The next day, the party passes a gnome-run caravan heading north along the road. The party warns them of possible bandits, and the gnome wagon-master warns them that Brindinsford is a bit off, from what it has been in the past, though it’s hard to say exactly how.
Soon after parting ways, Nialia smells smoke on the air. Topping a rise, the party can see a column of smoke rising out of the forest into the cloud-laden sky. Rowan takes them into the forest to investigate, and they eventually arrive at the remains of a village. The village has been destroyed, not a building remains standing. A mass grave has been freshly dug just south, and there are fresh tracks leading down a road that heads back towards the main road towards the city. Following the road, the party soon meets a work party of perhaps a dozen men and a squad of mounted militia led by a dwarven sergeant.
The sergeant, Boxar, tells them the gruesome story: that this is the second village to be attacked this week. No one has survived to see who’s responsible, but orcs are suspected, even though they haven’t attacked the area in nearly a hundred years, and mainly keep to the plains to the west. The annual Brindinsford festival is coming up in a few days, and with all the bustle from that, the militia has no manpower to spare to protect all of the independent Halfling farm communities scattered around the area.
Curiously, the sergeant seems to have been given orders regarding the party, he was told adventurers matching their description would likely be on the road coming south, and the Baron wants a word with them. Boxar doesn’t know what for, only that it can’t be too bad, or Boxar would have orders to apprehend them.
Upon reaching the city, Boxar leads the party to the Baron’s manor estate within the city walls. After waiting awhile, they are instead met by a human knight, Lieutenant Eve Shella. She is terse with the party (Boxar warned them that the Lieutenant is none too fond of adventurer-types), informing that the Baron cannot see them tonight, but she has authority to act in his stead. She tells them that the Baron will hire them to find and eliminate the force or forces attacking the villages. The party agrees (Rowan feels a funny vibe about the whole thing, but agrees that protecting innocent farmers is worth the weirdness). Shella provides them with a map of the area showing the independent Halfling villages. Shella seems to also have a low opinion of these villages, as they have had the opportunity to be protected by the Baron, but declined, clinging to their tradition of independence.
The party leaves the barracks next to the Baron’s enclosure and is accosted by a slightly deranged Beggar woman who, when they give her a few coins and some food, whispers fiercely: “Beware those who hear whispers in their dreams! They sleep fitfully, now, awaiting the Speaker’s plans!” After than she ambles off as if nothing had happened, and begins begging for coin again from other passersby, ignoring the party.
Creeped out, the party heads to the nearest inn. Tired and road-weary, Grumble, Rowan and Nialia head up to their rooms after eating. Badger and Quirky share an awkward drink or two, then head upstairs, with plans to spend the night in the same room. Ish. Kind of. They couldn’t be more nervous.
Quirky, ducking into his own room to change, finds Grumble waiting for him. Grumble gives a small and obviously rehearsed speech about the painful things he’ll do to Quirky if he breaks Badger’s heart. Quirky takes it in stride. As he leaves, Grumble asks Quirky a curious question. Just after Grayle’s attack, Quirky mentioned something about “just because Grumble failed to protect something precious in the past,” and Grumble wants to know how the shifter knew anything about Grumble’s past. Not wanting to tell the dwarf that he can read thoughts, Quirky tells Grumble that he was talking in his sleep. Grumble asks Quirky to stop him if he does so again. Quirky offers the suggestion that it can be beneficial, even therapeutic, to let your past out, and to not let it haunt you. Grumble glowers at the gnome* and Quirky backs off the subject. With a last warning of grievous bodily harm in the event of gnomish heartbreak, Grumble heads for his room.
Finally Quirky knocks on Badger’s door, and she opens it, wearing a flowing sleeping gown that makes Quirky weak in the knees. The gnome and the changeling talk for a while, trying to get the nerve up for a kiss. As Badger is about to give up and climb into bed alone, Quirky, panicking, pulls Badger to him, only to have her slam her jaw painfully into his shoulder. Rubbing her jaw while Quirky apologizes, aghast, Badger informs him that he’s allowed to try again. Quirky smiles and leans toward the beautiful young gnome once more. For tonight, at least, death-marks, assassins and the perils of the world are forgotten, and nothing exists for the two fumbling lovers except each other.
At dawn, Rowan heads out to post a letter to Potter. She gets back to the inn as Grumble and Nialia are starting to eat. Badger comes downstairs, greeting everyone with a bright cheerfulness. Rowan and Nialia share a knowing “oh, really” look over the head of the dwarf. Quirky comes down a few minutes later, and the party sets out onto the road towards the nearest village on the map.
All too soon they notice yet another column of smoke rising out of the woods, and hasten to the scene. Near the village they find a beaten pat leading off into the woods. Nialia shifts into wolf form and investigates, finding a recently used orc encampment that now stands deserted. The rest of the party gathers to investigate the remains of the orc camp, but are ambushed by a group of lizardfolk carrying bolas and poisoned arrows. The party makes short work of the reptilian warriors, but several escape, running into the woods in different directions. Disheartened, the group heads to the village to see what clues may be found there.
It is a grim sight: this village has been razed just like the other two. Orc, lizardfolk and other, stranger tracks have trampled the area. Wooden poles topped by hastily stripped skulls are dotted throughout the village, and the ground is littered with the skulls of Halfling men, women and children as well as farm animals. Nothing seems to have been spared. A pair of young Halflings emerges from the mist, having spent most of the day burying the dead. The sole survivors, a brother and sister, tell a chilling tale of sudden fog, and silent orcs that make no sound while they slaughter, and great beasts from hell with glowing eyes that are equally noiseless. The only sound the two heard were the screams of their neighbors and family been slaughtered in their beds.
Giving the Halflings some healing potions, weapons and money and instructing them to get to Brindinsford as soon as they can, the party heads off towards the next village. Nialia changes to wolf form and streaks ahead, taking full advantage of her ability to pass through the woodlands as easily as an open road. Three miles from the next village, she finds another beaten path leading off into the woods. Cautiously investigating, she finds the path closely watched by orc scouts. Moving deeper into the woods, she finds an encampment just like the last, only this one is full of at least 30 orc warriors and beasts that resemble a cross between a cat and a wolf with ram horns and large enough to take an orc rider.
She flees back to the party as they make their way up the road. Everyone decides that they have no time to try and evacuate, fortify or even warn the nearby village, night is coming on fast. They decide to head into the woods, their passing eased by a druid spell. Their attempt to circle around the camp and approach from an unexpected direction does not work as planned, however. Quirky and Grumble both wear heavy armor that is difficult to keep quiet. Upon reaching the camp, they find it empty. Wondering if they are too late, they venture into the center of camp. However, fires still burn within the crude fortifications surrounding the encampment, and tents still stand. Just as the party reaches the center of the camp, a fog rolls in seemingly from out of nowhere. The two gnomes are nearly lost in the 3 feet of fog. Slowly the chilling sight of hulking orc shapes materialize out of the mist, circling outside the camp. They see also the beasts Nialia described earlier, an orc warrior atop each. Finally a deep voice calls to them, asking if the Baron had sent them.
Nialia covers Grumbles response that Hell has sent them to bring the orcs home with a hasty declaration that yes, they were sent by the Baron. Hearing this, an order to stand down is barked, and the orcs lower their bows and crossbows, and begin heading into the camp. A towering orc, obviously the leader of the tribe, demands to know where his gold is. It seems the baron was paying he and his tribe to slaughter the villages. Covering their dismay and confusion, the party is forced to admit that they do not have the gold owed the Skull Tribe for services rendered, nor had the Baron told them about any arrangement.
“Well,” says the tribe leader, “the Baron must have wanted you dead then.” In orcish, he calls for his troops to kill the intruders, drawing a huge greataxe.
Grim-faced, the party pulls together against the onslaught of orcs. Nialia tosses her python rod onto the tribe’s spell-caster, shouting the command word just as it hits him. The savage sorcerer never has a chance as the giant constrictor quickly crushes him into orc-paste. Grumble battles the orc chieftain, trading grievous blows until the chief overbalances, topples backwards and impales himself on the blade of his own axe. Meanwhile, orcs mounted on their brutish mounts have smashed into the party from behind. Rowan and Grumble concentrate on the orcs, as do Quirky and Badger, as Nialia calls lighting down from the stormy skies to strike the beasts. As the ranks of the orcs close around them, the beast-riders drive a wedge into the party’s formation, raking the adventurers with claws and teeth.
Hidden in the low fog, Badger slices up the beasts’ underbellies while Grumble takes down two orc warriors with each measured sweep of his axe. Rowan, weaving a tapestry of death with her whirling longsword and mace, single-handedly holds the party’s right flank together. Nialia summons a pack of wolves to distract and maul the orcs from the rear, and sends her python to attack the beast-riders that haven’t been able to join the fray yet. The snake kills one and wounds a second before being hacked to death by the orcs running to help their beast-rider comrade.
The skull tribe is on the verge of defeat when Grumble goes down on a clod of loose earth and bashes himself in the head with his weapon, momentarily stunning him. Orcs and an adjacent beast-rider swarm over him, but Quirky leaps to the fallen dwarf’s aid, literally standing on Grumble as he metes out a brutal counterattack. He pushes the enemy back with spells and his dagger, having lost his mace earlier in the battle. Despite his deadly magic and tenacity, the orcs and beast nearly rip Quirky to shreds. Only an emergency contingency healing spell saves Quirky from falling senseless across the body of Grumble.
Badger screams with the rage of angels as she leaps to Quirky’s aid, and with a savage thrust of her sword rips the throat out of the beast mauling her love. Nialia heals the gnome enough to keep him on his feet, then the three women mop up the remaining orcs and the last of the beasts.
Grumble regains his feet a few seconds later while Rowan walks over the battlefield, finishing off her wounded foes. Looting the camp, they find the gold given to the skull tribe as a down payment, as well as a magical staff that enabled all the orcs wearing skull charms to remain quiet while they attacked. The exhausted party takes the head of the chief with them and staggers back to their mounts left back on the road.
They make it to the nearby village, where they’re met by the village Elder, an old Halfling man named Joram. He and several young Halflings have been standing watch, armed with the meager weapons available to them. The party insists they have taken care of the menace. Joram, eying their wounds and their gore-spattered clothes and armor, wants to believe them, but remains cautions. Out of the shadows behind the party melts a large but striking Halfling female warrior astride a wolf that escapes being classified as dire only because he would have eaten anyone who got close enough to measure him.
She goes off down the trail to verify the party’s tale while Joram allows the party to relax in a barn. He promises them the best accommodations and food the village can provide when Cora Thornapple (the Halfling warrior woman) returns.
Thornapple returns soon after, and with grudging respect for the adventurers, informs Elder Joram that the orc tribe has indeed been wiped out completely. Nialia amazes Cora further when her ferocious mount pads up to the druidess and licks her hand. Joram and the other Halflings, too tired and afraid for the truth to sink in quite yet, usher the party to a common house in the village with “big-sized” rooms. The party is bathed and fed, and discuss what action to follow next. Was this all just a brutal protection scam, or is something else going on? Realizing they have only the flimsiest of circumstantial evidence against the Baron, they decide that all they can do is collect their pay from Lieutenant Shella and move on. They resolve to speak to Elder Joram the next morning; perhaps the Halfling can shed some light on this mystery.
While most of them head off to bed (or out into the woods); Rowan has a question on her mind for Quirky. After she cleans herself up, she seeks him out.
She finds Quirky by the fire in the main room of the common house, stoically stitching shut some of his wounds. Rowan asks about the device Quirky used in the sunless citadel to give them all foul dreams. She asks how it could cause Heidiana’s reflection to disappear after her reflection’s throat was slit in her dream. Quirky does not know, only knowing that the device was full of foul and evil magic, designed to bring madness as well as nightmares. He reiterates that he’s certain he destroyed it before leaving it in the citadel. Seemingly satisfied, Rowan bids him good-night and leaves him as Badger emerges from her own room. She’s obviously been shaken by seeing Quirky come so close to being slain. She helps him clean his wounds, bathes him, and then helps him to bed.
The adventurers sleep uneasily, knowing that while they have saved hundreds of innocent lives, they may have played right into the hands of the one who endangered those same lives in the first place...
* Yes, Quirky is technically a doppelganger, not a gnome. But he stays in his gnome form almost exclusively, for Badger’s sake. I refer to him as a gnome for ease of writing, unless he’s in the guise of someone else.
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