Post by Dead Greyhawk on Nov 4, 2007 23:24:49 GMT -5
The orcs flee in disorder, breaking into small groups and running as fast as they can away from the killing field surrounding the Company. The Company is placed in the odd position of choosing to pursue their opponents or to treat their own injured. Normally the battles are more one-sided, either for or against the Company, resulting in few creatures able to flee or few of the Company standing.
With the flames rising high into the weeping sky and the surrounding underbrush writhing as if in agony, the Company binds their wounds. Of the horses, only Giuseppe and Cyfael survive, the others succumbing to their wounds while the Company fought on against the orcs. Chasing the orcs becomes less and less feasible as the minutes pass.
With Diego dead, the three warriors are all engaged in watching for new enemies while the others bind wounds as quickly as possible. A white-faced Eig and Antonus unsteadily get to their feet, while Herbert cradles his aching head in both hands. Eig shakily pats at his clothes, searching for something that Hugh passes over. "Ah, the blessed fruit," intones Eig. "Eat of the fruit of the earth and let it purge you of ill." Eig pulls forth handfuls of lush berries and begins handing them out to the others.
Antonus dubiously looks at the lush, ripe berries. "I'm not looking forward to this purging," mutters Antonus, barely audible to the others, but certainly heard by the sharp-eared elven druid. "Too much fiber is not good for a man." Herbert, Adrienne, and Hugh all add the healing prayers of their god and goddesses, and the Company is quickly restored to full strength. While the other clerics have been providing benisons to the Company, Eig has been chanting to his goddess and performing a strange ritual. Smearing dirt on both hands and raising them up to the sky, Eig rhythmically chants and beckons to the sky.
Raven looks at the druid, the ritual seeming quite familiar for an unknown reason. The chanting is distracting though and continues on for minutes. Suddenly, Raven understands why the ritual looks so familiar; he's seen it performed, just not by a person before. "Giuseppe, stay! Eig, target the mausoleum door, we'll start for the cemetery now," he bellows at Eig as he hustles those nearest to hand towards the cemetery.
With a frightful clap of thunder, a gargantuan bolt of lightning splits the sky, slamming into the front of the mausoleum. Whatever door was held fast against the stone frame is blown from its hinges as the sky discharges. The Company staggers through the mud into the cemetery, trailing the lightning strike. The cemetery is unnervingly empty. Most of the gravestones are missing or upended, the graves opened and empty. Otto, faster than the others, reaches the smoking doorway and quickly springs backwards, almost losing his footing in the loose dirt.
Staggering forward from the doorway is a frightening sight. A rotting, half-embalmed figure staggers towards Otto, swinging its leprotic mitts at the warrior. Otto's armor and shield withstand or ward off the blows, but it is plain that the figure has a strength far beyond that of mortal man. The Company slides to a sudden halt at the creature's sudden appearance. Its eyes seem to have an unholy radiance to them, and its frightful mien is enough to make the staunchest of hearts quail.
The Company is made of those strong of will and spirit, and none of the Company retreat under the creatures gaze. Hugh and Adrienne both invoke their deities, driving back the creature, while Otto and Al spring forward, weapons at the ready. With great hewing blows, they strike at the rotting corpse, carving large chunks of dead, decayed flesh from it. Bolts from Winthrop destroy the creature without the Company receiving a single mark.
The Company is somewhat startled by the sudden appearance of another of the creatures in the doorway to the mausoleum. It staggers forth towards the Company while two dark, armor-clad priests invoke the dread names of the Dead God. Antonus and Herbert stand, paralyzed by fear as the creature marches towards them, and Alouicious and Hugh are both clasped in the might of the Dead God. The odds have gotten worse, but are by no means unmanageable for the well-honed team that is the Company of the Blue Sun.
As Eig knocks aside Antonus and Herbert, all but Adrienne concentrate their attacks on the priests. One appears to have a protective device pinned to his cloak, a bauble dedicated to his foul god likely imbued with some unholy magic. It absorbs most of a spread of magical bolts launched from Winthrop's hands, but erupts in a blaze of white metal as it catches aflame and melts. The other staggers backwards, avoiding Jasper's fists, but not Raven's arrows nor Otto's sword. Gutted and shot through, the priest collapses in a pool of gore.
The priest and his foul creature are hard pressed by the Company, but the priest seems devoted to the ill deeds of his god. Eschewing flight, he directs his minion at the under-armored Jasper while clasping Otto and Winthrop in the unholy power of his god. As Jasper franticly evades the rotting touch of the death-shrouded unlife, the priest cackles with black humor as more than half the Company stands paralyzed before him. The priest's laughter is cut short as Eig directs another bolt of lightning out of the clouded sky, skewering the priest and making him dance. More of Raven's arrows are the priest's accompaniment, and he finishes his performance by falling to the ground, quite dead.
Jasper, faster than the frightful but lumbering unlife, backs away from the creature and draws forth his halberd. Without the additional power provided by his priestly master, the unlife wavers in direction. Even with the paralysis grasping the Company members, Jasper, Raven, and Adrienne are able to quickly combine their blows and lay the creature low.
Raven peers into the mausoleum to be certain that no more lie in wait within. Two large, open, empty sarcophagi fill the space, which is remarkably dry. A wooden coffin, covered in dirt but still in one piece, sits open on the far end of the claustrophobic room, while two more sit overturned against one wall. Raven sees nothing living or moving in the cramped space and ducks back out. With the death of the unlife, Antonus and Herbert quickly come around, the unreasoning terror that so blocked them from action fading from their minds. They offer to watch after those still in the grasp of the Dead God, so that the others can quickly search through the mausoleum.
In the cramped space, it is a quick search. Even to the uninitiated, it is plain that the priests of the Dead God have used this chamber as a place to rest and recover between animating bodies. The overturned coffins are surrounded by muddy bootprints, mostly facing outwards, and appear to have been used as broad stools. The open, upright coffin though is filled with coins, likely once buried with the now animated dead. The coins are uniformly small, silver or copper coins, and from Sterich. The total absence of any rings, gems, or other valuables makes Raven think that the priests have a separate cache of items elsewhere in the village. The sarcophagi themselves are old and heavily carved with scenes of battle, still fresh and not worn down by age.
By the time Raven and the others have finished searching through the mausoleum, the rest of the Company is recovering from the Dead God's fell touch. "We should search some of the buildings," declares Raven. "The priests probably have a separate place where they camp and keep their goods."
"You've got the belongings of the priests, right Pfiffwin?" asks Otto, not looking at the gnome. Pfiffwin turns a slightly paler shade as the whole Company turns to look at him. No one remembers where Pfiffwin was during the battle, either battle, but he now stands among them, hands in his pockets.
"Uhhhh...yes," stammers Pfiffwin. "A brooch, an amulet, and some flasks. The one on the right is wearing some well-crafted boots as well."
"Herbert, get the boots," orders Otto as he extends his hand towards Pfiffwin, the black water dripping from his gauntlet. "I'll take the flask now," he grinds out. Pfiffwin turns an even paler color and digs around in his sack, pulling out a ceramic flask. "I am not a fool, gnome," growls Otto. "Just because I do not keep you under my thumb, do not think I am deceived by your petty tricks." Otto turns on his heel and heads off towards the blackened ground in the middle of the village, where his and Raven's mounts patiently wait among the carnage. With a whistle and a wave, Otto draws Eats Salmon out from the buildings and begins shouldering his way into the nearest building.
The rest of the Company follows, even Pfiffwin, who seems to be having some problems with his breathing. The building the gnolls came from, an inn or tavern of some sort, seems to have suffered both from the battle and perhaps from an earlier fire as well. The roof is partially burnt through and the rainwater pours into the common room. "We need to get a move on," says Raven quietly to Otto. "With us without horses, the orcs might be able to run us down. Let's hope they don't have reinforcements nearby."
"We'll just kill them as well," replies Otto, clearly not in a pleasant mood. "I agree with you though. Time will be tight getting to Oytpass Keep if we delay here too long. Let's look for someplace that seems dry and likely their base."
"I want to see the inside of the boot," declares Eig, clearly having overheard the two of them. "Eats Salmon would like a sheep, as well." Jasper nods in agreement.
The Company argues briefly over whether to head for the large manor house, where the fires burn and where the orcs came from. In the end, they decide not to, rationalizing that the orcs, the most numerous of the troops, needed the largest accommodations and that the priests were unlikely to camp with them. The building that disgorged the ogres, presumably affiliated with the ogre magi as was seen in the Crystalmists, is deemed a more likely location. Indeed, the building, a potter's shop, is much more intact than the inn, almost dry on the inside. Otto and Jasper, the fastest of the Company, and Eig and Antonus, the most junior, stand watch outside of the building, straining to spy the return of the orcs in the rain.
The potter's shop has been plainly altered since the ogres began living within. Four smaller rooms in the back, presumably store or work rooms and private space for the potter and his family, have been taken over by individual ogre magi. Large, long beds have been crudely put together, likely by the orcs or the ogres, and huge chests sit in each room. With Dell having absconded, Pfiffwin is called on to examine the chests. "I'm not very skilled at this sort of thing," exhorts Pfiffwin. "Stealing is wrong, and I would never try to open another's personal chest."
Alouicious lets out a loud groan and beckons Adrienne over. "Can you do one of your prophetic vision things and see if these chests are going to kill us all?" asks Alouicious, chuckling as Pfiffwin freezes over by the chest. Adrienne invokes the vision of Lydia and confirms that the chests are safe to handle. With some effort, Pfiffwin succeeds at opening three of the four chests, while the fourth has to be bashed apart by Alouicious.
Whatever the ogres and their leaders had been doing, it was profitable in the extreme. The chests are filled with coin, jewelry, and flasks of different sizes and design. The coin, all gold and platinum, comes from Sterich, and the jewelry so fills the chests that it appears almost as if it has been crammed into it to make it fit. "Winthrop!" shouts Raven. "We need your chest." The Company's eyes gleam with greed as thousands of gold eagles worth of jewelry and goods are transfered from the ogre magi's chests to Winthrop's. Pfiffwin, recovered from his fright, does a little dance of gnomish joy at seeing all of the fine metalwork. Beneath the piles of coins and valuable goods are flasks and, in one chest, a large bundle.
The guards are rotated in to help with the unloading and loading of the chests, leaving only Herbert, Eig and Eats Salmon outside to watch for the returning orcs. Antonus is aghast at the Company's glee at the discovery of the valuable jewelry. "We should be trying to find the proper owners of these stolen goods!" he exclaims to the others, trying to exhort them into doing such a good deed. The others look at him, and odd gleam in their eyes. "Are they going to kill me?" thinks Antonus, suddenly worried that he has fatally misjudged the situation.
"Those who had this are now dead, their corpses walking around outside killing more good folk," begins Raven. "We're in here fighting off war bands of orcs, priests of dark gods, and hordes of ghouls. Diego's out there, dead and likely to start walking around and eating people if we don't keep him doused, and he's not even from this part of the world. Don't you be telling us what we're supposed to be doing or not, not until you've been through half of what we've suffered through." Antonus sees that his voice is not going to be widely heard, and instead pitches in, moving precious items from one chest to another. While he does so, he thinks long and hard about how he might induce the Company into doing the right thing, even if not for the right reasons.
The transfer of items takes much time and care, as, unlike its previous handling, the Company packs the contents of the chests as neatly and carefully as they can, wanting to keep its value high. The ceramic flasks that are found in the bottom of the chests are carefully wrapped in cloth and passed out among the Company to be carried. The large bundle, deemed safe to handle by Adrienne, is opened and a three stringed musical instrument is found within. "Do you think we can get the bear to carry some of this?" asks Raven of Otto, who barks out a laugh.
"I'll get started on the transportation problem," declares Winthrop. "Start reading Antonus." The two of them stop loading and begin memorizing out of their arcane books, a magical solution to their dilemma likely to come.
Once the chests have been emptied, the Company waits until the mages pause in their studying and then gets their attention. Winthrop sends his chest back into the ether, and then the Company hikes on towards the boot-shaped building. Eig and Herbert bring the animals along with them and agree to continue their wet watch from before the boot-shaped building. In passing through the center of the village, a carved stone, at the intersection of the two roads that pass through it, declares the name of the village to be Durnick.
The building keeps its boot-like appearance even when closely approached. The windows in the upper story appear on the sides of the building, but a small door is in the front of the building, where the toe might be, and an enclosed porch makes a wooden "heel." Apparent when more closely approached is the fact that the upper levels of the building is short in comparison to the ground level.
The Company makes a violent entry to the building, which is quite dry. Otto holds the others back and scours the floor for signs of passage. Indeed, boot prints, of two distinct types, are found crossing the floor. The boot prints have more than a passing resemblance to those found in the mausoleum. It appears that the priests likely were in residence here.
Loathe to trigger any hidden glyphs or foul traps, Hugh summons Trithereon's gaze to warn him of any items concealing a trap within. Pfiffwin, seeing an opportunity to curry favor that was possibly lost earlier, enchants his own vision to help reveal hidden objects as well. The two of them, guarded by Otto and Raven begin to search the building, a cobbler's shop by the look of things.
As suspected from outside, the shop was likely owned by a dwarf, gnome, or halfling, as the cobbler's furniture, mostly broken, is of a smaller scale than normal. The rear of the store, a room, likely a storeroom, has been converted into living quarters for two. A smaller chest, glowing to Hugh's eyes with runic inscription, sits under sack cloth. "Something nasty on the chest," warns Hugh, "looks like fire of some kind. I'll handle it." Carefully, Hugh reaches into the glyphs, the fire running over him and his armor, the golden scales of his armor taking the brunt of the impact. The chest no longer glows to Hugh's eyes, and he declares it safe for Pfiffwin to open. "Later. With many people standing around him," he adds.
The stairs up to the upper levels are somewhat difficult for the humans to navigate, but Pfiffwin finds them perfect for his short legs. "Definitely a gnome," thinks Pfiffwin. The next level contains a small kitchen and a small room, both ransacked and left in disarray. No foodstuffs are visible, rotten or hale, but Pfiffwin's nose twitches. He smells, most definitely, the heady aroma of fragrant wood. Rushing into the kitchen, Pfiffwin digs around in the drawers and cubbies until he stands up with a handful of light colored wood. "Cedar!" he exclaims with pleasure. The others realize, yet again, that gnomes are odd creatures.
The top floor of the building contains only one large room, likely a bedroom of sorts. It has been ransacked, and the fine woodwork of the gnome-sized furnishings marred and destroyed. Pfiffwin appears quite saddened by the events, this small bit of something like home left in a disheveled and spoiled state. Pfiffwin's enchantment helps keep his eye sharp though, even as he longs for the cramped warrens of Laird Gwaylar's caves. In both the floor and the ceiling, faint lines show where the joining of boards actually conceals a panel that can be removed.
With Otto's help and Hugh's assurance that they are safe, both concealed compartments are opened and the goods within removed. The hidden access to the now wet attic contains a heavy bundle wrapped in leather and a sack. Within are two sets of fine armor, one sized to fit a gnome and the other sized to fit an elf. The gnome-sized armor is made of heavy overlapping scales, but the elven armor is constructed from fine links of chain, overlapping and interwoven. The slight bluish cast of the metal is odd as well, unlike any of the armor seen so far.
The access panel in the floor hides a small compartment only large enough for a small box. No box is within though, only a pair of shoes, or rather boots, large enough for a human to wear. The boots are well-made and strongly shod with a second, or perhaps third, layer of leather over the soles. They appear as if they were specially crafted, though for what purpose is hard to say. "We need to get Adrienne to look at these," mutters Otto. "Probably all of it that's not already in the chest." Raven agrees and helps carry the armor down the stubby stairs.
Pfiffwin struggles a bit to open the locked chest, but, under Alouicious's careful gaze, finds the chest full of gold and platinum coins, all of Sterich mint. "More money tainted by blood and death, torn from the clutches of the interred," intones Antonus.
"Enough," growls Winthrop, "read more of your book." With Winthrop engaged in resummoning his increasingly weighty chest from the ether, Antonus carefully looks around to make sure he's not being watched, and then rolls his eyes.
Outside, the druids have spent some time stripping the now cool bodies of the dead, mounding the valuables on the remains of capes and cloaks that survived puncture or fire. The pile is large, though most of the items are of low value. The ogres carry a surprising number of gemstones on them, many more than the Company has previously found to be the case when fighting them. Perhaps this duty, remaining behind in the land of unlife, is not an ideal one for the ogres, and their compensation is thus much greater.
The Company has tarried a long time, several hours, in Durnick. The orcs certainly have had time to regroup. On the other hand, the large manor house, where the orcs charged from, has not yet been searched, nor have any of the other ruined buildings in the village. Should the Company stay or should they go now? After a terse argument, the Company opts to continue onwards to the northwest, out of the village. Winthrop and Antonus surprise everyone by summoning magical constructs in the shape of a horse to help carry the Company away from the village. While they have not enough for everyone to ride, the Company will make better time than if they were walking through the muck and mire. The Company leaves the burning bonfires behind them, hoping to avoid pursuit.
That night is spent in tense contemplation of the darkness. The orcs, with their better night vision, may have followed them to this campsite, and no one wishes to be surprised in the dark. Fortunately, nothing disturbs the Company's rest.
In the morning, Winthrop and Antonus again summon mounts for the Company to ride. These placid magical constructs carry the Company to the north-northwest, as the Company hopes to avoid Istivin and any more powerful creatures that may have taken up residence there. Packs of ghouls are seen, and fought, twice on the trip towards Oytpass Keep, though no fatal injury is taken. The magical constructs are both easier and harder to ride in combat against the unlife. The false horses are more placid and do not start or fear the unlife as it attacks them and their riders, making them easier to control and direct during battle, but they also do not fight back against the unlife and their talons and fangs. Giuseppe and Cyfael, stomping and biting, are each more than a match for an individual ghoul, but the constructs are merely fodder. The constructs are equally unafraid of Eats Salmon and tolerate his nearby presence much more easily than the horses did.
After days of hard riding, the Company begins to approach Oytpass Keep. Diego has died over a week ago, so either a powerful priest or a group of amenable clerics must be found to lure his soul back to his body. Each night, Hugh has decanted holy water over Diego's corpse in an effort to keep his body from rising in unlife, and now Hugh's supplies are drawing low. With the turrets of Oytpass Keep visible on the horizon, the Company hears a howling in the wind behind them. A pack of ghouls is on their trail and closing fast.
With the flames rising high into the weeping sky and the surrounding underbrush writhing as if in agony, the Company binds their wounds. Of the horses, only Giuseppe and Cyfael survive, the others succumbing to their wounds while the Company fought on against the orcs. Chasing the orcs becomes less and less feasible as the minutes pass.
With Diego dead, the three warriors are all engaged in watching for new enemies while the others bind wounds as quickly as possible. A white-faced Eig and Antonus unsteadily get to their feet, while Herbert cradles his aching head in both hands. Eig shakily pats at his clothes, searching for something that Hugh passes over. "Ah, the blessed fruit," intones Eig. "Eat of the fruit of the earth and let it purge you of ill." Eig pulls forth handfuls of lush berries and begins handing them out to the others.
Antonus dubiously looks at the lush, ripe berries. "I'm not looking forward to this purging," mutters Antonus, barely audible to the others, but certainly heard by the sharp-eared elven druid. "Too much fiber is not good for a man." Herbert, Adrienne, and Hugh all add the healing prayers of their god and goddesses, and the Company is quickly restored to full strength. While the other clerics have been providing benisons to the Company, Eig has been chanting to his goddess and performing a strange ritual. Smearing dirt on both hands and raising them up to the sky, Eig rhythmically chants and beckons to the sky.
Raven looks at the druid, the ritual seeming quite familiar for an unknown reason. The chanting is distracting though and continues on for minutes. Suddenly, Raven understands why the ritual looks so familiar; he's seen it performed, just not by a person before. "Giuseppe, stay! Eig, target the mausoleum door, we'll start for the cemetery now," he bellows at Eig as he hustles those nearest to hand towards the cemetery.
With a frightful clap of thunder, a gargantuan bolt of lightning splits the sky, slamming into the front of the mausoleum. Whatever door was held fast against the stone frame is blown from its hinges as the sky discharges. The Company staggers through the mud into the cemetery, trailing the lightning strike. The cemetery is unnervingly empty. Most of the gravestones are missing or upended, the graves opened and empty. Otto, faster than the others, reaches the smoking doorway and quickly springs backwards, almost losing his footing in the loose dirt.
Staggering forward from the doorway is a frightening sight. A rotting, half-embalmed figure staggers towards Otto, swinging its leprotic mitts at the warrior. Otto's armor and shield withstand or ward off the blows, but it is plain that the figure has a strength far beyond that of mortal man. The Company slides to a sudden halt at the creature's sudden appearance. Its eyes seem to have an unholy radiance to them, and its frightful mien is enough to make the staunchest of hearts quail.
The Company is made of those strong of will and spirit, and none of the Company retreat under the creatures gaze. Hugh and Adrienne both invoke their deities, driving back the creature, while Otto and Al spring forward, weapons at the ready. With great hewing blows, they strike at the rotting corpse, carving large chunks of dead, decayed flesh from it. Bolts from Winthrop destroy the creature without the Company receiving a single mark.
The Company is somewhat startled by the sudden appearance of another of the creatures in the doorway to the mausoleum. It staggers forth towards the Company while two dark, armor-clad priests invoke the dread names of the Dead God. Antonus and Herbert stand, paralyzed by fear as the creature marches towards them, and Alouicious and Hugh are both clasped in the might of the Dead God. The odds have gotten worse, but are by no means unmanageable for the well-honed team that is the Company of the Blue Sun.
As Eig knocks aside Antonus and Herbert, all but Adrienne concentrate their attacks on the priests. One appears to have a protective device pinned to his cloak, a bauble dedicated to his foul god likely imbued with some unholy magic. It absorbs most of a spread of magical bolts launched from Winthrop's hands, but erupts in a blaze of white metal as it catches aflame and melts. The other staggers backwards, avoiding Jasper's fists, but not Raven's arrows nor Otto's sword. Gutted and shot through, the priest collapses in a pool of gore.
The priest and his foul creature are hard pressed by the Company, but the priest seems devoted to the ill deeds of his god. Eschewing flight, he directs his minion at the under-armored Jasper while clasping Otto and Winthrop in the unholy power of his god. As Jasper franticly evades the rotting touch of the death-shrouded unlife, the priest cackles with black humor as more than half the Company stands paralyzed before him. The priest's laughter is cut short as Eig directs another bolt of lightning out of the clouded sky, skewering the priest and making him dance. More of Raven's arrows are the priest's accompaniment, and he finishes his performance by falling to the ground, quite dead.
Jasper, faster than the frightful but lumbering unlife, backs away from the creature and draws forth his halberd. Without the additional power provided by his priestly master, the unlife wavers in direction. Even with the paralysis grasping the Company members, Jasper, Raven, and Adrienne are able to quickly combine their blows and lay the creature low.
Raven peers into the mausoleum to be certain that no more lie in wait within. Two large, open, empty sarcophagi fill the space, which is remarkably dry. A wooden coffin, covered in dirt but still in one piece, sits open on the far end of the claustrophobic room, while two more sit overturned against one wall. Raven sees nothing living or moving in the cramped space and ducks back out. With the death of the unlife, Antonus and Herbert quickly come around, the unreasoning terror that so blocked them from action fading from their minds. They offer to watch after those still in the grasp of the Dead God, so that the others can quickly search through the mausoleum.
In the cramped space, it is a quick search. Even to the uninitiated, it is plain that the priests of the Dead God have used this chamber as a place to rest and recover between animating bodies. The overturned coffins are surrounded by muddy bootprints, mostly facing outwards, and appear to have been used as broad stools. The open, upright coffin though is filled with coins, likely once buried with the now animated dead. The coins are uniformly small, silver or copper coins, and from Sterich. The total absence of any rings, gems, or other valuables makes Raven think that the priests have a separate cache of items elsewhere in the village. The sarcophagi themselves are old and heavily carved with scenes of battle, still fresh and not worn down by age.
By the time Raven and the others have finished searching through the mausoleum, the rest of the Company is recovering from the Dead God's fell touch. "We should search some of the buildings," declares Raven. "The priests probably have a separate place where they camp and keep their goods."
"You've got the belongings of the priests, right Pfiffwin?" asks Otto, not looking at the gnome. Pfiffwin turns a slightly paler shade as the whole Company turns to look at him. No one remembers where Pfiffwin was during the battle, either battle, but he now stands among them, hands in his pockets.
"Uhhhh...yes," stammers Pfiffwin. "A brooch, an amulet, and some flasks. The one on the right is wearing some well-crafted boots as well."
"Herbert, get the boots," orders Otto as he extends his hand towards Pfiffwin, the black water dripping from his gauntlet. "I'll take the flask now," he grinds out. Pfiffwin turns an even paler color and digs around in his sack, pulling out a ceramic flask. "I am not a fool, gnome," growls Otto. "Just because I do not keep you under my thumb, do not think I am deceived by your petty tricks." Otto turns on his heel and heads off towards the blackened ground in the middle of the village, where his and Raven's mounts patiently wait among the carnage. With a whistle and a wave, Otto draws Eats Salmon out from the buildings and begins shouldering his way into the nearest building.
The rest of the Company follows, even Pfiffwin, who seems to be having some problems with his breathing. The building the gnolls came from, an inn or tavern of some sort, seems to have suffered both from the battle and perhaps from an earlier fire as well. The roof is partially burnt through and the rainwater pours into the common room. "We need to get a move on," says Raven quietly to Otto. "With us without horses, the orcs might be able to run us down. Let's hope they don't have reinforcements nearby."
"We'll just kill them as well," replies Otto, clearly not in a pleasant mood. "I agree with you though. Time will be tight getting to Oytpass Keep if we delay here too long. Let's look for someplace that seems dry and likely their base."
"I want to see the inside of the boot," declares Eig, clearly having overheard the two of them. "Eats Salmon would like a sheep, as well." Jasper nods in agreement.
The Company argues briefly over whether to head for the large manor house, where the fires burn and where the orcs came from. In the end, they decide not to, rationalizing that the orcs, the most numerous of the troops, needed the largest accommodations and that the priests were unlikely to camp with them. The building that disgorged the ogres, presumably affiliated with the ogre magi as was seen in the Crystalmists, is deemed a more likely location. Indeed, the building, a potter's shop, is much more intact than the inn, almost dry on the inside. Otto and Jasper, the fastest of the Company, and Eig and Antonus, the most junior, stand watch outside of the building, straining to spy the return of the orcs in the rain.
The potter's shop has been plainly altered since the ogres began living within. Four smaller rooms in the back, presumably store or work rooms and private space for the potter and his family, have been taken over by individual ogre magi. Large, long beds have been crudely put together, likely by the orcs or the ogres, and huge chests sit in each room. With Dell having absconded, Pfiffwin is called on to examine the chests. "I'm not very skilled at this sort of thing," exhorts Pfiffwin. "Stealing is wrong, and I would never try to open another's personal chest."
Alouicious lets out a loud groan and beckons Adrienne over. "Can you do one of your prophetic vision things and see if these chests are going to kill us all?" asks Alouicious, chuckling as Pfiffwin freezes over by the chest. Adrienne invokes the vision of Lydia and confirms that the chests are safe to handle. With some effort, Pfiffwin succeeds at opening three of the four chests, while the fourth has to be bashed apart by Alouicious.
Whatever the ogres and their leaders had been doing, it was profitable in the extreme. The chests are filled with coin, jewelry, and flasks of different sizes and design. The coin, all gold and platinum, comes from Sterich, and the jewelry so fills the chests that it appears almost as if it has been crammed into it to make it fit. "Winthrop!" shouts Raven. "We need your chest." The Company's eyes gleam with greed as thousands of gold eagles worth of jewelry and goods are transfered from the ogre magi's chests to Winthrop's. Pfiffwin, recovered from his fright, does a little dance of gnomish joy at seeing all of the fine metalwork. Beneath the piles of coins and valuable goods are flasks and, in one chest, a large bundle.
The guards are rotated in to help with the unloading and loading of the chests, leaving only Herbert, Eig and Eats Salmon outside to watch for the returning orcs. Antonus is aghast at the Company's glee at the discovery of the valuable jewelry. "We should be trying to find the proper owners of these stolen goods!" he exclaims to the others, trying to exhort them into doing such a good deed. The others look at him, and odd gleam in their eyes. "Are they going to kill me?" thinks Antonus, suddenly worried that he has fatally misjudged the situation.
"Those who had this are now dead, their corpses walking around outside killing more good folk," begins Raven. "We're in here fighting off war bands of orcs, priests of dark gods, and hordes of ghouls. Diego's out there, dead and likely to start walking around and eating people if we don't keep him doused, and he's not even from this part of the world. Don't you be telling us what we're supposed to be doing or not, not until you've been through half of what we've suffered through." Antonus sees that his voice is not going to be widely heard, and instead pitches in, moving precious items from one chest to another. While he does so, he thinks long and hard about how he might induce the Company into doing the right thing, even if not for the right reasons.
The transfer of items takes much time and care, as, unlike its previous handling, the Company packs the contents of the chests as neatly and carefully as they can, wanting to keep its value high. The ceramic flasks that are found in the bottom of the chests are carefully wrapped in cloth and passed out among the Company to be carried. The large bundle, deemed safe to handle by Adrienne, is opened and a three stringed musical instrument is found within. "Do you think we can get the bear to carry some of this?" asks Raven of Otto, who barks out a laugh.
"I'll get started on the transportation problem," declares Winthrop. "Start reading Antonus." The two of them stop loading and begin memorizing out of their arcane books, a magical solution to their dilemma likely to come.
Once the chests have been emptied, the Company waits until the mages pause in their studying and then gets their attention. Winthrop sends his chest back into the ether, and then the Company hikes on towards the boot-shaped building. Eig and Herbert bring the animals along with them and agree to continue their wet watch from before the boot-shaped building. In passing through the center of the village, a carved stone, at the intersection of the two roads that pass through it, declares the name of the village to be Durnick.
The building keeps its boot-like appearance even when closely approached. The windows in the upper story appear on the sides of the building, but a small door is in the front of the building, where the toe might be, and an enclosed porch makes a wooden "heel." Apparent when more closely approached is the fact that the upper levels of the building is short in comparison to the ground level.
The Company makes a violent entry to the building, which is quite dry. Otto holds the others back and scours the floor for signs of passage. Indeed, boot prints, of two distinct types, are found crossing the floor. The boot prints have more than a passing resemblance to those found in the mausoleum. It appears that the priests likely were in residence here.
Loathe to trigger any hidden glyphs or foul traps, Hugh summons Trithereon's gaze to warn him of any items concealing a trap within. Pfiffwin, seeing an opportunity to curry favor that was possibly lost earlier, enchants his own vision to help reveal hidden objects as well. The two of them, guarded by Otto and Raven begin to search the building, a cobbler's shop by the look of things.
As suspected from outside, the shop was likely owned by a dwarf, gnome, or halfling, as the cobbler's furniture, mostly broken, is of a smaller scale than normal. The rear of the store, a room, likely a storeroom, has been converted into living quarters for two. A smaller chest, glowing to Hugh's eyes with runic inscription, sits under sack cloth. "Something nasty on the chest," warns Hugh, "looks like fire of some kind. I'll handle it." Carefully, Hugh reaches into the glyphs, the fire running over him and his armor, the golden scales of his armor taking the brunt of the impact. The chest no longer glows to Hugh's eyes, and he declares it safe for Pfiffwin to open. "Later. With many people standing around him," he adds.
The stairs up to the upper levels are somewhat difficult for the humans to navigate, but Pfiffwin finds them perfect for his short legs. "Definitely a gnome," thinks Pfiffwin. The next level contains a small kitchen and a small room, both ransacked and left in disarray. No foodstuffs are visible, rotten or hale, but Pfiffwin's nose twitches. He smells, most definitely, the heady aroma of fragrant wood. Rushing into the kitchen, Pfiffwin digs around in the drawers and cubbies until he stands up with a handful of light colored wood. "Cedar!" he exclaims with pleasure. The others realize, yet again, that gnomes are odd creatures.
The top floor of the building contains only one large room, likely a bedroom of sorts. It has been ransacked, and the fine woodwork of the gnome-sized furnishings marred and destroyed. Pfiffwin appears quite saddened by the events, this small bit of something like home left in a disheveled and spoiled state. Pfiffwin's enchantment helps keep his eye sharp though, even as he longs for the cramped warrens of Laird Gwaylar's caves. In both the floor and the ceiling, faint lines show where the joining of boards actually conceals a panel that can be removed.
With Otto's help and Hugh's assurance that they are safe, both concealed compartments are opened and the goods within removed. The hidden access to the now wet attic contains a heavy bundle wrapped in leather and a sack. Within are two sets of fine armor, one sized to fit a gnome and the other sized to fit an elf. The gnome-sized armor is made of heavy overlapping scales, but the elven armor is constructed from fine links of chain, overlapping and interwoven. The slight bluish cast of the metal is odd as well, unlike any of the armor seen so far.
The access panel in the floor hides a small compartment only large enough for a small box. No box is within though, only a pair of shoes, or rather boots, large enough for a human to wear. The boots are well-made and strongly shod with a second, or perhaps third, layer of leather over the soles. They appear as if they were specially crafted, though for what purpose is hard to say. "We need to get Adrienne to look at these," mutters Otto. "Probably all of it that's not already in the chest." Raven agrees and helps carry the armor down the stubby stairs.
Pfiffwin struggles a bit to open the locked chest, but, under Alouicious's careful gaze, finds the chest full of gold and platinum coins, all of Sterich mint. "More money tainted by blood and death, torn from the clutches of the interred," intones Antonus.
"Enough," growls Winthrop, "read more of your book." With Winthrop engaged in resummoning his increasingly weighty chest from the ether, Antonus carefully looks around to make sure he's not being watched, and then rolls his eyes.
Outside, the druids have spent some time stripping the now cool bodies of the dead, mounding the valuables on the remains of capes and cloaks that survived puncture or fire. The pile is large, though most of the items are of low value. The ogres carry a surprising number of gemstones on them, many more than the Company has previously found to be the case when fighting them. Perhaps this duty, remaining behind in the land of unlife, is not an ideal one for the ogres, and their compensation is thus much greater.
The Company has tarried a long time, several hours, in Durnick. The orcs certainly have had time to regroup. On the other hand, the large manor house, where the orcs charged from, has not yet been searched, nor have any of the other ruined buildings in the village. Should the Company stay or should they go now? After a terse argument, the Company opts to continue onwards to the northwest, out of the village. Winthrop and Antonus surprise everyone by summoning magical constructs in the shape of a horse to help carry the Company away from the village. While they have not enough for everyone to ride, the Company will make better time than if they were walking through the muck and mire. The Company leaves the burning bonfires behind them, hoping to avoid pursuit.
That night is spent in tense contemplation of the darkness. The orcs, with their better night vision, may have followed them to this campsite, and no one wishes to be surprised in the dark. Fortunately, nothing disturbs the Company's rest.
In the morning, Winthrop and Antonus again summon mounts for the Company to ride. These placid magical constructs carry the Company to the north-northwest, as the Company hopes to avoid Istivin and any more powerful creatures that may have taken up residence there. Packs of ghouls are seen, and fought, twice on the trip towards Oytpass Keep, though no fatal injury is taken. The magical constructs are both easier and harder to ride in combat against the unlife. The false horses are more placid and do not start or fear the unlife as it attacks them and their riders, making them easier to control and direct during battle, but they also do not fight back against the unlife and their talons and fangs. Giuseppe and Cyfael, stomping and biting, are each more than a match for an individual ghoul, but the constructs are merely fodder. The constructs are equally unafraid of Eats Salmon and tolerate his nearby presence much more easily than the horses did.
After days of hard riding, the Company begins to approach Oytpass Keep. Diego has died over a week ago, so either a powerful priest or a group of amenable clerics must be found to lure his soul back to his body. Each night, Hugh has decanted holy water over Diego's corpse in an effort to keep his body from rising in unlife, and now Hugh's supplies are drawing low. With the turrets of Oytpass Keep visible on the horizon, the Company hears a howling in the wind behind them. A pack of ghouls is on their trail and closing fast.