The extra weight from the gold ore in my pack made me considerably less steady on the wooden walkway. Each step set the boards to creaking under my feet increasing my level of anxiety as we ascended. The lot of us moved through the adjoining hallway that linked to the main mining shaft.
The rest of the group was silent, besides the sound of footfalls on the gritty floor. Insects chirped in the humidity, but even that had died down since the excitement with the spiders.
"I'm going to leave my pack here. There's no point in dragging around this load of ore."
I dropped them pack in the adjoining tunnel, then removed my breastplate to further lighten my load. I looked toward the tunnel where the spiders had come pouring through the last time.
I am not looking forward to this. I thought.
"I'll look ahead." Floki offered and tucked around the corner. I could hear the floorboards tremble as he moved over them.
Silah stood silently, her expression tepid. She was on this uncomfortable edge of annoyance and the excitement of discovery. With each life she'd taken, I had felt her getting stronger and she had just crossed a threshold down below, there was an indescribable feeling with that killing blow. This rush of life's energy into her also brought about this manic urging to keep up the pace. I kept thinking of it as bloodlust, but that seemed to be oversimplifying things.
She had told me early on that she could help, but that it would diminish her essence to do so. I had taken advantage of it during the battle with the giant crab on the beach about a month ago, draining her reserves. After that, her appetites increased to an uncomfortable degree and nothing could sate her beyond the temporary fill that us mere mortals found satisfying. I could imagine that it felt a lot like a constant hunger. To her, it was completely intolerable, something that her current form had moved well beyond. Only taking more lives seemed to fill that space permanently.
Yet, taking more life made her grow in capacity in other ways, as I had seen first hand just moments ago. I could tell, now, when a threshold was bound to be crossed. She buzzed with mania after each kill, her anticipation palpably rising; her driving forward more fervent. I couldn't lose control.
"Do you have the tools?" Sig looked over me as I sorted through my pack, retrieving what I needed moving forward.
I produced the shovel and showed it to him. I brought the hammer and pitons, as well. We had prepared to dig out and shore up the tunnel so it was safer to navigate, but also, had purchased a considerable amount of lantern oil, knowing there would be plenty of opportunity to use it more as a weapon than a help. We didn't need to bring our own materials for shoring the tunnels up since the next room over had old timbers we could use in the process.
As I walked in, the others stood against the walls, including a grimacing Silah, their eyes on me. Even Floki's wolf, Tenner, had an expectant look. I took a deep breath, not saying a word, and thrust the shovel into the wall of dirt before me.
In the enclosed space, sweat sprang readily to my forehead and quickly covered my arms. I clenched my teeth with each thrust of the shovel, hauling it back to deposit that the entrance. The passage was still short, vertically, making each move take twice the effort. Bromm was behind me, hauling in timbers to shore up the tunnel as we proceeded. Floki helped Bromm with getting the larger pieces in place.
After quite some time, we broke through, seeing the familiar tossed carts and bones of the long dead Dwarves in their reclined positions; an eerie mausoleum for the long lost miners. I saw some glittering eyes in motion.
I turned to Floki and Bromm.
"There's movement in there. I'm sure they've seen us." I said.
Floki had produced some of the lantern oil, and placed each vial in the tunnel. Bromm was doing the same, edging back to a more defensible location.
I reached instinctively over my shoulder then looked fretfully down the tunnel toward Silah. She pushed from the wall, her demeanor nonchalant, to the center of the tunnel, I was unsure of what she was doing, considering I was defenseless. I could hear the creak of metal and a tumble of rocks through the hole. They were getting closer.
"Think of me as a sword in your hands." She called down the tunnel, "Then call out to me."
Crouched in the tunnel and quieted my mind, doing as she said.
"Come to me." I whispered.
Instantly, Silah was in my hands, in her Greatsword form. Beady eyes emerged from the hole, and I lanced through them, splitting easily through the husk. I edged back, seeing more come through. Floki sent the next dog-sized spider to the floor with a couple of arrows and I slashed through the last that emerged. We waited, listening. I pushed through, peering into the tunnel beyond. The black and gray scene showed no other movement and I turned back to the others and let them know.
I looked down at Silah in my hand and felt a warm smile emanate from her. She appeared in my mind, lounging in an elongated chair elegantly, wearing a sheer dark blue dress laced with sparkling jewels. Her glowing eyes regarding me easily.
"There are benefits, you know." She said smoothly. "I am capable of so much more if you allow it."
Silah's expression had softened slightly, her annoyance wasn't nearly as obvious, but it did remain.
I wish that was a comforting thought. I thought, with a smirk.
The annoyance returned instantly; showing a crease in her brow and the glowing eyes sharpened.
"Why are you being so difficult?" She said, sitting forward.
Can we do this later? I thought, breathing out a sigh. I need to focus. Who knows what we're up against in here?
"Fine." She puffed out of existence with a toss of her hand.
Bromm was looking at me.
"Is everything well?" He said, looking concerned.
I chuckled as the look in his eyes.
"More of the same, really." I said, smirking.
We finished the process of shoring up the remainder of the tunnel as quietly as possible. Floki looked down the hallway past the blockade of minecarts that had been in place for ages.
"I'm going to get my armor." I said to Floki and Bromm.
I crouched through the tunnel. Sig and Danin on the far side were talking amongst themselves.
"We broke through on the far side." I said as I moved through.
"Where are you going?" Sig asked.
I patted my chest then pulled at my undershirt. Sig nodded.
"Wait, one other thing," Sig paused, "What was that thing with Silah?"
"Apparently, she comes when I call?" I said with a shrug.
A burning sensation erupted from the hand that held her. I moved out into the mineshaft and brought Silah back to human form as I donned my armor. If there was going to be a tongue lashing, I might as well busy myself while it happened.
She stood, furiously, all five and a half feet of her, giving me a smoldering look with her arms crossed over the milky white dress.
"Again, why?" She growled, keeping her voice low.
I was deliberately putting my armor in place, working with the failing buckles, and tapping at the metal protecting my chest and guts. I turned to her and looked down at her. It was a wonder that such a small thing could command such power over me. I sighed at the thought.
"You're making me uneasy." I said, feeling a little heat rise in me. "You're reckless and you want me to be reckless, too."
Her mouth pinched, but she held her tongue.
I continued, "I need to be able to trust you to let me do my job. Will you?"
"Why do you think I wouldn't let you do your job?" She hissed.
"You've been scratching around in my head since the last fight." I paused, "It's downright unnerving and distracting. Distracted is the last thing I need right now. There's too much at stake."
Her posture relaxed slightly, and she looked to the side shaking her head slightly rolling her eyes. She looked to me.
"Fine." She said, her voice quiet, but ripe with contempt.
"Thank you." I said, I felt my own aggravation just below the surface, held back just enough to attempt being cordial.
"‘She comes when I call.'" Silah scoffed.
"Isn't that how it works?" I looked at her slide-long, while putting my scabbards in place.
"Yes, but … to say it like that?" Silah looked at me, incredulous.
I suppressed a smile.
This can work both ways. I thought to myself.
"Back to work," I said.
As I closed my hand around her arm her expression went livid. She then immediately melted into her Greatsword form at my mental command, and I placed her into the sheath on my back.
I moved down the tunnel to meet up with the others. I could see a deliberately placed cask of gunpowder against one of the walls, an expertly crafted fuse rose from a small hole in the center.
As good of a contingency plan as any, I guess? I mused.
I hoped that this agreement with Silah would give me a little more breathing room. Each time she hit one of these thresholds, it seemed like a new struggle to keep her from taking over. I needed to visit with Duncan soon. Perhaps he could give me some tips on keeping my mind clear and Silah's influence at bay.
"We're going to start lighting up the hallway," Bromm said as I approached. Danin had taken position behind one of the overturned mining carts that blocked the hallway.
Floki had a quiver of lit arrow fletchings, compliments of Sig. Floki was poised with and arrow and Sig was wrapping them with cloth soaked in oil and sparking them. Floki would send them off downrange, clearing the webs from the long hallways beyond. A few curious spiders began to emerge, glittering eyes filling the hallway beyond.
"There's … a lot of them." I said.
"No different than last time." Sig shrugged.
"Heh, oh, I remember." I grimaced.
Last time, it was just Bromm and I. I saw that the ground in front of the carts as well as the carts themselves had been slicked with lantern oil. There was no doubt that we were more prepared this time.
Arrows lanced through the gap between Danin and myself. I could hear Tenner growling and Floki's voice keeping the wolf at bay. Then came a deafening boom, rattling everyone. I glanced around. Bromm had a focused and determined look on his face, eyes down the hall. He seemed to be the only one unfazed by the percussion. He put the musket off to the side and pulled his sidearm. I clenched my teeth, bracing for the next shot.
As the spiders reached the carts, Danin and I swung out, side by side. These dog sized spiders were easy prey for me, but took a little more effort from Danin. Danin, however, was far more protected with his shield and heavy armor where I had to be more wary of their sharp little fangs. One slipped through, biting me, and sending poison through my body. I could feel it weaken me, but only slightly. I pressed through, dealing with the pain and the sickening poison, and slashed the Greatsword through it's thin carapace. Silah didn't seem to respond to the poison as she had done in the past. She was focused on the feeding frenzy before her.
I felt the blade warm with a hum as each creature fell. Her passion was restrained but that energy was building within her. I distantly wondered how much time I had before she was able to exert more control over me.
A cluster of them approached the carts and Sig lit off the oil with a snap of his fingers. They hissed with pain, but unfortunately, it merely burned some of the prickly hairs off of their bodies. Danin and I made short work of the rest.
Eventually, the waves of spiders subsided regardless of the amount of noise we had made. Even the echoing blasts from Bromm's pistol shimmering through the tunnels ahead failed to lure more toward us. I could hear him reloading as the spider's diminished.
"Let's advance to the first intersection." I said to Danin, who nodded in response.
We hopped over the carts and pushed forward. I clenched my teeth, shuddering with each step as the dead spider's thin forms yielded briefly, until they crunched flat under each footfall. Floki took his lit arrows and shot them down the corridor that extended off to our left. I moved around the corner with Danin, a few of the dog-sized spiders were quietly moving down the hall and reared back threateningly as we faced them.
Danin's impervious shell held firm against the multiple spiders that attacked him. I moved to his side, following him as he pressed down the corridor.
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves!" I shouted to Danin. "We could get flanked if we're not careful!"
Danin seemed to be fully engaged, his axe swinging readily as he moved forward against the swarm. I matched pace with him to make sure he couldn't get overwhelmed. Ahead, I could see into a large cavern. There was an edge just inside that dropped into some sort of abyss. A little ways further there were steel cables stretched to the edges of the cavern suspending a bridge over the gaping hole. There was a lumpy form on the bridge, covered in dust for the ages it had been there.
Bromm moved in behind us, taking the flasks of oil and holding them at the ready as Sig snapped his fingers, sparking them. Bromm would toss them into the cave and down over the edge of the abyss. There were crashes and fire erupted for short periods of time. Moments later, the spiders halted the advance, yet there were clicking sounds still echoing from just beyond. It sounded like Floki and Tenner were holding the other hallway, flanked by Sig.
There was a collective gasp from Bromm and myself as spider, its body the size of a large horse and cart, pulled itself over the lip of the abyss. The hairs on its carapace were still burning from the oil. It reared up, it's large legs thumping against the ground with each movement. All over its back was crawling mass of smaller spiders. I looked back to Bromm, incredulous.
"Oops, I didn't expect that." He said looking sheepish as he pulled his pistol.
"I hate spiders so much." I breathed, turning forward, gritting my teeth and feeling rage course through me.
I stepped forward and took a swipe at another of the smaller spiders that had appeared around the corner, feeling the hum from Silah gaining intensity.
"Fall back! There is another one moving on Floki!" Sig called out from behind.
"Another one?" I said incredulous then growled toward Danin, "Are you falling back?"
I waited a moment, but his heavy brow looked to me unspeaking. I fell back, aggravated, as the large spider lashed out at me, narrowly missing. As I turned, Silah appeared in my mind's eye, her grand aspect bearing down on me with its menacing glowing eyes. She gripped the floor, on either side of me buckling the wooden stage with her grasp. She leaned in, her massive inhuman form brought it's face close.
"What are you doing?" Her bellowing, angry voice shook me to the core. I felt anxiety mount as my will pressed against her own.
This is exactly what I was afraid of. I projected at her, my relatively diminutive self snarling on the darkened stage, doing my best to stand my ground.
She looked on, her frightening expression unchanged, but she did not continue to press.
I turned the corner and looked back as Danin moved in from behind me. Sig reached into a pouch and tossed a small marble that immediately expanded to fill the hallway beyond.
I looked on, both shocked and glad about what Sig had done. I turned to see another large spider bearing down on me, this one was considerably more colorful and had a few arrows already dotting its carapace. I braced for an attack, but as it got into position, Bromm and Floki continued to put shot and arrows into the creature. Floki's last arrow struck home. The spider thrashed awkwardly in the contained hallway, then went still. I turned to look at them.
"Perhaps we should have thought this through." Bromm said to Floki with a grimace at the now blocked tunnel.
I could feel Silah's menace edging in again, scowling at the loss.
"You had it! You are intentionally holding back." She said vehemently.
I growled at her and then, using my anger, charged the hulking body. Danin joined me and together we pressed it into an alcove in the hallway.
I continued down the hall, picking off spiders as I saw them. Her visage softened with each killing blow, the hum from Silah was nearly all consuming, vibrating loudly in my mind. I paused, grinding my teeth in the darkness.
I need healing. I projected to Silah.
Her large scowling face hovering in the darkness reacted as expected.
"No you don't." She seethed.
Yes, I do. I thought, bracing against her will.
"Fine." She turned away giving way in her reluctance, her essence diminishing slightly to bind my meager wounds.
Thank you. I thought, with an unconscious nod.
The passionate hum reduced, and Silah seemed to quiet sulkily along with it.
Sig was holding a lit crossbow bolt. He chanted something to himself and winked out of sight, becoming a disembodied glow moving through the hallway. I quivered slightly as his presence eddied past me. I restrained the impulse to lash out.
Danin and I moved up the hall after the ghostly glow which then that disappeared around the corner.
"It's up on the wall out here." Sig's disembodied voice echoed toward us. "Be careful."
As we approached the mouth of the tunnel, the creature descended, moving its large legs into our tunnel. It shook aggressively, and the floor began to twitch and crawl as thousands of baby spiders swarmed toward us. Floki and Bromm now had a target as the spider descended, they stepped into the hallway and continued their attacks. Danin and I were, in short order, covered with the spiders. I shook them off and moved out into the cave, seeing a few more spiders that seemed to be milling about on the shelf of the chasm opposite of where I stood. Danin swung and dealt a fantastic blow to the creature, cracking the carapace and bursting the eyes on its left side.
I moved forward, holding Silah at the ready preparing to bear down on the spider, then a round of shot and arrows lanced into its wounded head. It lost it's grip and came crashing down, crushing its jaws and head soundly under its own weight. It toppled forward into the chasm below and, after brief moment later, there an echoing splash.
I could feel Silah's displeasure roll over me again, but then just as quickly it subsided. She seemed to relent in this pursuit, smoldering angrily.
There were shouts from the hallway, I turned and saw small pockets of fire, some of which were moving. Danin seemed to be avoiding a small pile of the now flaming spiders that kept inching toward him. Floki was long gone, he seemed to have run off after the spiders approached him, which explained the shouting. Tenner was now dancing around, too. I moved in, attempting to help get spiders of Danin.
He looked to me, disgust and annoyance in his eyes, then held out his hands, and water gushed from them, putting out the fire, but doing very little else to the seething mass. He moved away from the spiders, shaking them off and moving down the hallway. They moved to me covering my boots and crawling up my legs. Sig produced another flask.
"Move Hakaar!"
I remained.
"They'll just move. If I stay, at least I can burn them off. I can take it."
Sig shrugged, and even smiled, as he tossed the oil flasks at my feet. I braced against the burning pain as I held my arms over the small fire. The little spiders bursting as they flames licked at them. The last of them dispersed and I stepped away from the flames, putting out the flames on my soot covered boots. My hands had spots of char and cracked as I flexed them.
"You didn't have to just stand in the flames," Sig prodded with a smirk.
"There was no guarantee they stay on fire. I didn't want to take the chance." I grumbled with a sneer.
"Suit yourself."
Heh, ‘suit yourself'. Smug bastard. I thought menacingly as I watched Sig move in to talk to Danin.
One last spider moved around the corner into the tunnel we were in. I moved quickly to it and brought the Greatsword down hard, letting loose all of my hostility in one final blow. It's goupy entrails splashed the hallway with the force of the blow. I stood, looking back at the others with a seething menace. Weighing, judging each of the others silently.
Bromm looked my way, a little bewildered.
"Perhaps you should be the one to calm down," Silah's voice eddied in, laced with contempt.
"I'm doing my best." I murmured under my breath.
(Get to know Akeron.)
Friday, May 15, 2015
Saturday, May 9, 2015
Hakaar - Chronicle 21.5 - The Contested Throne
My mind itched with Silah's scratching around. Even while she stood in front of me appearing to do nothing, I could see her tugging and pulling at my memories. Some held, some gave.
I couldn't bear the intrusion anymore. I moved into one of the hallways, out of sight of the others as they discussed what to do next. I pulled the milky white dress from my rucksack and allowed had her materialize in front of me. Her naked form was pearlescent for the moments that it took for her to return to being human. I smiled at her, feeling my adoration swell as I saw her face, even though the aggravation of her digging around in my mind was still fresh. I handed her the dress and stood in front of her, blocking anyone's view in case they came looking for us.
"What are you grinning at?" She said, sounding a little annoyed with, I assumed, the whole naked situation.
Her face belied the tone, though. There was a mixture of emotions on her face: a touch of anger, a bit of haughtiness, some appreciation, and perhaps even love. She looked at me sidelong as she dropped the dress over her shoulders and pulled it into place.
"Are you going to tell me what happened back there?" I said, ignoring her comment.
"Soon enough." She said, a quirky smile spread over her pale pink lips.
So, we're back to this. I thought, readily showing my distaste at these kinds of games.
"You and the boys are going to show me this portal, right?" She said, making the effort to regain her composure.
I nodded, still grimacing, and turned to head out. She grabbed at my arm and pulled me back around, pulling me close and planting a kiss on my unexpecting lips. Heat immediately rose in my face and I blinked vacantly.
"Shall we?" She said, jutting out her arm in my direction.
It took a moment for me to take in the offer, reeling from the cacophony of emotions ringing through my head.
"Come on." She waited, holding her glittering smile.
I looped my arm through hers, feeling almost drunk. The power she held over me, both over my heart and over my mind, was terrifying.
Floki smirked as he watched us emerge from the tunnel and he took a breath to say something, but he glanced at Silah, which made him reconsider, though the knowing smile remained there.
Bromm had taken a spot at the pump and had been readily removing the water that had began to pool again. It was in his best interest to keep the water at bay, and he, of all of us, seemed very aware of that.
"I just remembered that the tunnel to the portal is always submerged." He looked to Bromm, who looked at him and shook his head.
"I'll stay here." Bromm said.
"So, it's Silah, myself and who else?" He looked between us.
Danin didn't have the opportunity to see the room last time, so I obliged to stick with Bromm. Perhaps giving me a moment to collect myself about Silah's newfound ability to torment, whatever it was. Floki also seemed anxious to get a better look at the mural. The group of them proceeded to the tunnel and I nodded to Silah who turned back for a moment.
"Go ahead. Just be careful." I said, nodding to her.
She returned the gesture, looking a little anxious. I felt an ache in my side with the nauseousness pressing in as she moved beyond our bond. I was anxious, too, not being exactly sure why I didn't go along. Sacrificing my spot for others who hadn't had to opportunity to see the portal. I also could always engage with Silah afterwards, a benefit these others didn't have. I grinned at the thought of her.
"What's on your mind?" Bromm said with a grin. "I see that look."
"Yeah?" I said through the widening smile, "I'm not all that good about hiding things like this. And I can't say anything like her has happened to me before."
Bromm nodded, continuing to work the lever controlling the plunger up and down.
"Let me take over, I insist." I nodded at the lever.
I moved in and took the lever opposite Bromm and he released. He stepped back and took his time clearing his pepperbox pistol, using a tool to sweep out the debris.
"She is something very special, for sure." Bromm mused, remaining engaged in his cleaning process.
Then he continued, "What do you think about Kols?"
I chuckled while I worked the lever.
"Are you trying to convert me?"
"No." He said, "You did seem to be interested back at the temple."
"Yes, for the same reason you are." I explained, "To help Kols get his throne back. Attempt to bring things back in line. However, I can't fully ascribe to the strictness of the path you've chosen."
Bromm shrugged, clicking the body of the revolver in place and putting it back in it's holster on his right hip. He leaned against the water-soaked lift timbers gingerly and crossed his arms looking at me.
"Kols needs us. He'll have to accept the way that we'll be doing things. Our way may not particularly be his way, but times have changed."
"Sure, I believe in keeping oaths. But I wouldn't think it my place to enforce unless it caused someone undeserving soul considerable harm. Also, I'm more willing to forgive those who are unable to fulfill their oaths." I looked narrowed my eyes at Bromm, "Is that something that Kols, or you, could do? Release someone of their oath?"
Without shedding their blood as penance, I thought to myself.
Bromm thought for a moment.
"That remains to be seen." He looked introspective.
"I've made some pretty absurd promises in my time." I said, "In those foolish moments, I needed mercy; not justice."
"Are you trying to unconvert me?" He smiled tensely.
"No, not at all." I felt a little sheepish, this really wasn't my place. "I just don't think I could bear the weight of what you you've chosen to do. But still, I keep thinking about it. I just hope this choice becomes clearer for me."
There was a silence between us, I continued to pump away while his eyes looked off in the distance, his mind elsewhere. I didn't envy him, but I truly respected him. It brought another thought to mind.
"So, what happens if," I paused for a moment, feeling the heaviness of the words I was about to speak, "If your father crosses you in your new path?"
There was some commotion from the far side of the cavern, I reached up to my scabbard instinctively, but then realized Silah wasn't there nor was my campaign blade. I immediately felt vulnerable.
A few forms moved from the tunnel beyond, another lighted fletching stood above Floki's shoulder. Silah preceded the group, looking a little bashful. The milky white dress clung tightly to her form outlining every curve with impeccable precision. I lost my breath as my eyes drank in the sight of her.
"Don't say it. I'm fully aware of what I just did." Silah said, hand up to me. "And, yes, I didn't think about it either."
Heh, she has no idea how revealing... I cut the thought off, fearing that she may be able to hear me even now.
Bromm's own eyes could pierce through the gloom. I glanced at him and he looked toward me, nodding appreciatively. A smile crept across my face.
She approached, still seeming ignorant of the attention on her from all sides.
"But that doesn't mean you're getting out of treating me to a night on the town." She said with a low voice, pulling at the wet clothes, pulling the nearly transparent dress even tighter in order to squeeze water from it.
"So," I said, coughing slightly, clearing my throat and attempting to focus my thoughts. "What did you see in there?"
Silah described the room the way I had explained it, but the mural at the far end had changed slightly.
"Apparently, Kols is still in the picture. And I mean that quite literally." Sig piped up, "He wasn't on the throne, but he was in the background. That may mean that there are more followers, or it may mean that what you did, Bromm, is keeping him in place."
Floki didn't look well, he seemed having trouble catching his breath. And, surprisingly, Danin looked only slightly better.
"The mural at the end of the room is exactly what I expected: a portal into the throne room. It may be in our best interest to not collapse the entrance, but we take the very real risk of having another assault on the priory." Silah said.
You could tell that she was in her element now. After we had read that book on the planes together, I had begun to understand how complex the interconnection between us and the many other planes were. It was mind boggling how much existed beyond this immediate realm. Even the descriptions of the way that they had moved between the different planes, by way of the Ether Trees, was clearly described in the book, but still seemed to be incomplete. Even this group's short experience on Sidhe Lara surpassed the scholar's own understanding. I was anxious about such things, but understanding them had made me feel more prepared when standing face to face with the opportunity. I was fascinated with the idea that I might have the opportunity to traverse that space in the coming future.
"There was another set of footprints there." Floki had found his voice, color coming back into his face. "A small set, about Silah's size. It could be the agent of Gevurah hiding out in Hlofreden."
Bromm nodded.
"Raenir's friend, again?" He mused, "I wish we knew more about her."
"If anyone is going to let Gevurah know that Kol's temple is still active here, it might be in our best interest to track her down." Floki followed on with Bromm's thought.
Everyone fell silent for a moment and I looked around, still on duty at the pump.
"So, what's next?" I asked.
"We could clear out the spiders in that tunnel on the next level up?" Floki said.
Sig nodded, he seemed interested in the same.
"That place is a death trap, but we're more prepared this time around." I added my two bits, feeling a bit negative about the whole experience. "We could also investigate for more of that ore down the tunnel? Now that I know that Silah couldn't actually see in the dark, we might be able to move a little deeper to see if there is a gold vein."
"We can investigate that, but lets consider that for another time." Sig approached, "I like Floki's thought to push back the spiders. We brought all of the right materials this time."
I could remember seeing their beady eyes glistening at the edge of my vision. It would be different if I knew the others would be working side by side with me, but that hadn't been how things worked, besides having Danin close. I knew how much I'd get in the way of both Floki and Bromm's way in those tight spaces. It was a few moments of thinking about it when I finally shrugged.
"Hell, why not. Let's crush some spiders."
(Get to know Akeron.)
(Read Robyn's Account of Events.)
I couldn't bear the intrusion anymore. I moved into one of the hallways, out of sight of the others as they discussed what to do next. I pulled the milky white dress from my rucksack and allowed had her materialize in front of me. Her naked form was pearlescent for the moments that it took for her to return to being human. I smiled at her, feeling my adoration swell as I saw her face, even though the aggravation of her digging around in my mind was still fresh. I handed her the dress and stood in front of her, blocking anyone's view in case they came looking for us.
"What are you grinning at?" She said, sounding a little annoyed with, I assumed, the whole naked situation.
Her face belied the tone, though. There was a mixture of emotions on her face: a touch of anger, a bit of haughtiness, some appreciation, and perhaps even love. She looked at me sidelong as she dropped the dress over her shoulders and pulled it into place.
"Are you going to tell me what happened back there?" I said, ignoring her comment.
"Soon enough." She said, a quirky smile spread over her pale pink lips.
So, we're back to this. I thought, readily showing my distaste at these kinds of games.
"You and the boys are going to show me this portal, right?" She said, making the effort to regain her composure.
I nodded, still grimacing, and turned to head out. She grabbed at my arm and pulled me back around, pulling me close and planting a kiss on my unexpecting lips. Heat immediately rose in my face and I blinked vacantly.
"Shall we?" She said, jutting out her arm in my direction.
It took a moment for me to take in the offer, reeling from the cacophony of emotions ringing through my head.
"Come on." She waited, holding her glittering smile.
I looped my arm through hers, feeling almost drunk. The power she held over me, both over my heart and over my mind, was terrifying.
Floki smirked as he watched us emerge from the tunnel and he took a breath to say something, but he glanced at Silah, which made him reconsider, though the knowing smile remained there.
Bromm had taken a spot at the pump and had been readily removing the water that had began to pool again. It was in his best interest to keep the water at bay, and he, of all of us, seemed very aware of that.
"I just remembered that the tunnel to the portal is always submerged." He looked to Bromm, who looked at him and shook his head.
"I'll stay here." Bromm said.
"So, it's Silah, myself and who else?" He looked between us.
Danin didn't have the opportunity to see the room last time, so I obliged to stick with Bromm. Perhaps giving me a moment to collect myself about Silah's newfound ability to torment, whatever it was. Floki also seemed anxious to get a better look at the mural. The group of them proceeded to the tunnel and I nodded to Silah who turned back for a moment.
"Go ahead. Just be careful." I said, nodding to her.
She returned the gesture, looking a little anxious. I felt an ache in my side with the nauseousness pressing in as she moved beyond our bond. I was anxious, too, not being exactly sure why I didn't go along. Sacrificing my spot for others who hadn't had to opportunity to see the portal. I also could always engage with Silah afterwards, a benefit these others didn't have. I grinned at the thought of her.
"What's on your mind?" Bromm said with a grin. "I see that look."
"Yeah?" I said through the widening smile, "I'm not all that good about hiding things like this. And I can't say anything like her has happened to me before."
Bromm nodded, continuing to work the lever controlling the plunger up and down.
"Let me take over, I insist." I nodded at the lever.
I moved in and took the lever opposite Bromm and he released. He stepped back and took his time clearing his pepperbox pistol, using a tool to sweep out the debris.
"She is something very special, for sure." Bromm mused, remaining engaged in his cleaning process.
Then he continued, "What do you think about Kols?"
I chuckled while I worked the lever.
"Are you trying to convert me?"
"No." He said, "You did seem to be interested back at the temple."
"Yes, for the same reason you are." I explained, "To help Kols get his throne back. Attempt to bring things back in line. However, I can't fully ascribe to the strictness of the path you've chosen."
Bromm shrugged, clicking the body of the revolver in place and putting it back in it's holster on his right hip. He leaned against the water-soaked lift timbers gingerly and crossed his arms looking at me.
"Kols needs us. He'll have to accept the way that we'll be doing things. Our way may not particularly be his way, but times have changed."
"Sure, I believe in keeping oaths. But I wouldn't think it my place to enforce unless it caused someone undeserving soul considerable harm. Also, I'm more willing to forgive those who are unable to fulfill their oaths." I looked narrowed my eyes at Bromm, "Is that something that Kols, or you, could do? Release someone of their oath?"
Without shedding their blood as penance, I thought to myself.
Bromm thought for a moment.
"That remains to be seen." He looked introspective.
"I've made some pretty absurd promises in my time." I said, "In those foolish moments, I needed mercy; not justice."
"Are you trying to unconvert me?" He smiled tensely.
"No, not at all." I felt a little sheepish, this really wasn't my place. "I just don't think I could bear the weight of what you you've chosen to do. But still, I keep thinking about it. I just hope this choice becomes clearer for me."
There was a silence between us, I continued to pump away while his eyes looked off in the distance, his mind elsewhere. I didn't envy him, but I truly respected him. It brought another thought to mind.
"So, what happens if," I paused for a moment, feeling the heaviness of the words I was about to speak, "If your father crosses you in your new path?"
There was some commotion from the far side of the cavern, I reached up to my scabbard instinctively, but then realized Silah wasn't there nor was my campaign blade. I immediately felt vulnerable.
A few forms moved from the tunnel beyond, another lighted fletching stood above Floki's shoulder. Silah preceded the group, looking a little bashful. The milky white dress clung tightly to her form outlining every curve with impeccable precision. I lost my breath as my eyes drank in the sight of her.
"Don't say it. I'm fully aware of what I just did." Silah said, hand up to me. "And, yes, I didn't think about it either."
Heh, she has no idea how revealing... I cut the thought off, fearing that she may be able to hear me even now.
Bromm's own eyes could pierce through the gloom. I glanced at him and he looked toward me, nodding appreciatively. A smile crept across my face.
She approached, still seeming ignorant of the attention on her from all sides.
"But that doesn't mean you're getting out of treating me to a night on the town." She said with a low voice, pulling at the wet clothes, pulling the nearly transparent dress even tighter in order to squeeze water from it.
"So," I said, coughing slightly, clearing my throat and attempting to focus my thoughts. "What did you see in there?"
Silah described the room the way I had explained it, but the mural at the far end had changed slightly.
"Apparently, Kols is still in the picture. And I mean that quite literally." Sig piped up, "He wasn't on the throne, but he was in the background. That may mean that there are more followers, or it may mean that what you did, Bromm, is keeping him in place."
Floki didn't look well, he seemed having trouble catching his breath. And, surprisingly, Danin looked only slightly better.
"The mural at the end of the room is exactly what I expected: a portal into the throne room. It may be in our best interest to not collapse the entrance, but we take the very real risk of having another assault on the priory." Silah said.
You could tell that she was in her element now. After we had read that book on the planes together, I had begun to understand how complex the interconnection between us and the many other planes were. It was mind boggling how much existed beyond this immediate realm. Even the descriptions of the way that they had moved between the different planes, by way of the Ether Trees, was clearly described in the book, but still seemed to be incomplete. Even this group's short experience on Sidhe Lara surpassed the scholar's own understanding. I was anxious about such things, but understanding them had made me feel more prepared when standing face to face with the opportunity. I was fascinated with the idea that I might have the opportunity to traverse that space in the coming future.
"There was another set of footprints there." Floki had found his voice, color coming back into his face. "A small set, about Silah's size. It could be the agent of Gevurah hiding out in Hlofreden."
Bromm nodded.
"Raenir's friend, again?" He mused, "I wish we knew more about her."
"If anyone is going to let Gevurah know that Kol's temple is still active here, it might be in our best interest to track her down." Floki followed on with Bromm's thought.
Everyone fell silent for a moment and I looked around, still on duty at the pump.
"So, what's next?" I asked.
"We could clear out the spiders in that tunnel on the next level up?" Floki said.
Sig nodded, he seemed interested in the same.
"That place is a death trap, but we're more prepared this time around." I added my two bits, feeling a bit negative about the whole experience. "We could also investigate for more of that ore down the tunnel? Now that I know that Silah couldn't actually see in the dark, we might be able to move a little deeper to see if there is a gold vein."
"We can investigate that, but lets consider that for another time." Sig approached, "I like Floki's thought to push back the spiders. We brought all of the right materials this time."
I could remember seeing their beady eyes glistening at the edge of my vision. It would be different if I knew the others would be working side by side with me, but that hadn't been how things worked, besides having Danin close. I knew how much I'd get in the way of both Floki and Bromm's way in those tight spaces. It was a few moments of thinking about it when I finally shrugged.
"Hell, why not. Let's crush some spiders."
(Get to know Akeron.)
(Read Robyn's Account of Events.)
Hakaar - Chronicle 21.4 - Delving
We stood in front of the yawning hole where the iron doors to the storage area used to stand. Unlike the earlier break in—or break out, rather—they had been torn clean from the stone mountainside that they were mounted into. Erland must have had some help, tipping them back into place and tying the site off. I had just pulled them down so we could make our way back into the depths that lie beyond.
I had been told that the Windhollows were a series of pilot shafts that the Polterhaud Mining Company had drilled in this ore rich area. It was said that the Dwarven families that remained in Hlofreden had come here originally to extract silver, but, apparently, had discovered much more than they had bargained for. The portal that sat at very bottom of this mine would even been considered ancient, even to the Dwarves. The thought of that alone boggled my mind.
After they claimed the silver had dried up, the majority of the Dwarven families pulled up their roots and moved on. The ones who did remain converted these pilot holes into storage areas, finding other ways to turn a profit. In Bromm and Sig's dealings with the Shatterhammer brewery, they just happened to end up with the one storage area that was part of the original entrance to the greater mining operation. In fact, one of the requirements of the sale was to resolve a problem that Mister Shatterhammer himself didn't care to handle, which seemed to usher the sale along with considerable haste.
I had wondered if he knew what was down there this whole time. And, when things got active again, he knew it was time to move on. I've found that Dwarves are especially secretive when there is money involved, especially when it directly affects their own coinpurse. And, right now, as we stood staring into darkness, I wanted to wring that little Dwarf's neck. At the edge of my vision, I could just make out the edges of the crudely bricked hole that had been torn through yet again. I shook my head and looked back to the others.
"It's clear all the way to the back."
Floki started to move ahead, and, as he did, Sig spoke a few unintelligible words then touched one of the fletchings of the arrows in Floki's quiver. The soft glow was difficult to perceive in the mid-morning light, but became more obvious as he entered the mouth of the cave and crouched to look for signs of the many-armed creature's passing.
Silah's anxiousness returned. She stood unnaturally still, looking wide-eyed into the darkness. She stood next to Danin and Sig. The milky white dress she wore was being tugged at by gentle breezes. I took a deep breath and smiled lovingly, taking in the view of her as she shone gloriously in the rising sun. The concern on her face fractured for a moment as she became aware of my gaze. She looked away, embarrassed, but then met my eyes with a shy smile.
"It's pretty much what I saw before." Floki announced from his crouched position. "There aren't any signs of foot traffic from before three weeks ago."
As Silah had said earlier, Gevurah likely believed this place was no longer a concern. I wondered how long that would last, considering the steps we had taken to make Hlofreden a target again. I sighed at the thought.
Bromm moved past Floki, peering into the darkness beyond.
"Let's press on, then." Bromm said, crouching by the scattered bricks near the back of the tunnel.
As we filed in, I decidedly took point, with Silah at my side. Taking heed to Denton's word, I had shed my fancy clothes and left them at home. In their place was my considerably more rustic armor. I was disgruntled by their disrepair as I had put it on again. I had intended to visit the armorer and see what could be done about their condition. Or, more regrettably, what other options there were.
The large vertical timbers that were put in place for the lift in the middle of the circular room had stood strong for ages. Their stability was a tribute to Dwarven craftsmanship. Unfortunately, the floorboards leading up to that central support sagged and creaked with each step. Only the cart path up to the lift seemed to be robust enough for my considerable weight.
"Stay around the outside, if you can. Rana said we should try to keep as much weight off of them as possible."
"When you say ‘as much weight as possible', that means you, right?" Floki said with a wry tone.
"Yeah, fine." I grumbled.
"Let's take the stairs over here." I motioned through the branch to the right of where we emerged.
As I walked around the spiraling wooden walkway that clung to the walls of the shaft. My heart sank as I remembered this first time I had seen this room. If not for Danin tying a rope to me and holding on to me, I would likely have fallen to my death. It was a foolhardy stunt, leaping on the back of that giant spider. While it ended well enough, it still stung to think about.
"Ah, I remember this place." Bromm said loudly.
I cringed, waiting for him to elaborate, but he looked toward the ceiling and rubbed at his chest where the spider had bit him. I remembered how pale he looked in that moment, but, even with our foolhardy approach, we all still managed to survive.
The walls still had many of the large insect creatures crawling over them, but the population seemed thinner than expected. The fungus they fed on was still readily available, though. Most of the sounds seemed to be coming from the central mine shaft the next floor down, or, perhaps, lower? This seemed strange because the central shafts seemed bare of the mushroom colonies.
As we neared the bottom of the third level of stairs, I held my hand out to Silah.
"You probably don't want to get wet. We're going to have to wade in from here."
I took her hand and, upon request, she melted into her sword form. I sheathed her and dropped into the cold chest-high water. I cringed from the rush of cold, clamping my teeth to keep from chattering while my body adjusted.
"It's best not to think about it and jump in." I said aloud, splashing around a bit, as I moved on.
Floki and Sig jumped in, their faces contorted as their heads bobbed above the water. Bromm and Danin remained, looking on.
"Gunpowder and water." Bromm said darkly, shaking his head and folding his arms over his impressive long coat. "I'll wait here."
"I will wait, too. I'm not in the mood to swim." Danin followed on.
We waded through the tunnel back into the central shaft. The bottom of the lift was well underwater. Soaked timbers lie at the bottom-tossed around haphazardly-where the car had fallen ages ago. Floki moved past, looking at the long cables that attached to the pump that rose up to the next level. He had effectively disabled the mechanism by removing what looked like a gear and secreting it away. He dove into the water to check the pump.
"It looks like someone did tamper with it, but they didn't get it working." He said, as he came up for air.
"How long will it take to get things back in order?" Sig asked.
"Not long, I've got the part right here." He said, holding up the missing piece, "I don't see anyone floating face down in here, so they must have avoided the poison."
He dove in again, this time down there for nearly a minute. When he surfaced, he tugged on one of the cables. You could hear the pumping mechanism engage with the movement.
"That should do it. Hakaar? Would you like the honors?" Floki stood back from the mechanism.
I nodded and reached down and grabbed the handles. They were set at a low position, being Dwarven made, so I had to dip my head into the water multiple times before the water levels started to drop. The system that the Dwarves had devised was very efficient. In short order, the water levels had dropped to reveal the slick silty surface dotted with standing water. Bromm and Danin splashed through the connected tunnel. Bromm's expression was still one of disdain as he deftly avoided the larger puddles.
I unsheathed Silah, and thought of her in human form. She reformed then bowed to me politely.
"I appreciate the forethought." She said, smiling appreciatively.
"Don't thank me just yet." I said, I had a plan in mind to retrieve the gold ore at the bottom of the shaft with Silah's help.
Unfortunately, I hadn't considered the one problem in all of this: she was absolutely going to get wet. I grimaced and she looked at me curiously which then turned to concern as she read my face.
"What." She said flatly, her open expression had fallen into a deadpan.
"I'll work with Silah to get the rest of the gold ore from the cart." I said to the others then turned to Silah, "Here, come with me."
I took her hand and led her into the darkness of the branching tunnel where we had discovered the submerged cart with the gold ore.
"So, if you'd like to help, the minecart is down there." I looked toward the broken lift mechanism that dangled into the water above the shaft, my vision a mixture of blacks and grays in the deep darkness.
"How do you mean help?" She looked at me, annoyance creeping into her expression.
"I have to breathe and, well, you don't." I said, feeling more and more like this was a bad idea, but I continued, "I didn't really think ahead, though. Your dress would get soaked."
Silah leaned her head forward and glared at me. I waited, feeling sheepish, but still insistent.
"You want me to get naked and retrieve some rocks for you?" She narrowed her eyes as she spoke.
"If you would like to help, yes." I said, frankly, then continued, "Although, saying ‘rocks' trivializes how much this is actually worth. It was a lot of effort for me to get the chunk I did from out of there."
She sat, sullen. I realized that I was still holding her hand.
"It's a matter of dignity." She finally said, "This is not dignified."
"No." I said, shaking my head, "It's a matter of choice. You don't have to do it, but I would appreciate it if you would. I would never ask you to do something that I wouldn't be willing to do myself. And I am still willing to risk it ... if you choose not to."
I sighed and started to unbuckle my breastplate. She put a hand to mine and stopped me.
"Fine," she breathed out heavily, "I will do it. Just, please, don't tell the others."
She immediately snaked her way out of her white dress. Her bare form shimmered in my sight. I shivered for her, still feeling the cold from my own soaked clothes. I did have the impulse to reach toward her, but held myself back. This seemed neither the place nor the time for any sort of affection. She held out the dress and I took it, rolling it up and put it into my rucksack. She turned to face the drop off into the water and I saw the stark black scrollwork slashes running up either side of her spine. I put my hand to her shoulder and she looked back at me.
"Thank you. I do appreciate it." I said humbly.
Silah gave a bit of scoff as she turned forward, narrowed her form, and dropped into the water, creating very little splash. After almost two minutes, I began to get worried, then she crested the water, with two of the stones in her hands. She rested them on the ledge, looking determined, and slipped back into the water again.
The process repeated until the piles threatened to fall back in. I took a portion of the gold ore and called down the tunnel for some help moving it. Floki with his lit arrow poking over his shoulder came and relieved me of some of the chunks of ore, moving it into the central shaft. He poked around the corner and must have seen Silah's naked back and shoulders dropping into the water. He glanced at me with a bewildered expression.
"Really?" He said, looking at me with disdain.
"She doesn't need to breathe. I do." I shook my head at his look as he walked back to the others with the load.
Finally, she came up empty and tried to speak, but water came out instead of sound. She looked annoyed, then pulled herself up onto the shelf and sat. She leaned forward with a noiseless scream, sending gouts of water out of her mouth in the process. She took a deep breath and cleared her throat. I was slightly horrified.
"Hacker, you there?" She said into the darkness.
"Hakaar, and yes, I'm right here." I said, waving a hand in her direction.
"Oh, good, I thought you'd left." There was still some sputtering as she spoke, the water not quite cleared from her lungs. "The cart is empty. I patted the whole thing down. I couldn't see anything, so, unless you've got some light to share, that's all there is."
"You … can't see?" I boggled, "I thought you could see in the dark?"
She furrowed her brow and looked in my direction, but not at me. How did I not see that before?
"Through your eyes, yes. Otherwise? Nope." She shook her head.
I put my hand to my face, feeling a mix between shame and embarrassment. I put my hand on her shoulder and she lifted her chin, then raised a hand up. I pulled her to her feet and she looked at me with an expression that puzzled me. She wicked some of the water off of her skin with her hands.
"Now, that deserves another grand night on the town. Perhaps I'll be able to regain some of my composure then." She blindly gave a disgruntled smirk, "Consider yourself in my debt."
Silah paused for a moment.
"Did you bring a towel?" She said, almost with a hiss.
I shook my head noiselessly, then I saw her grimace, brow furrowed.
"You didn't, did you. And you're shaking your head in the dark." She said, her perturbance increasing.
The percussion of a gunshot rattled through the tunnels. I glanced at her sightless expression which was immediately worried. I grabbed her arm and willed her into her sword form and her naked body instantly took shape.
I bolted down the passageway, splashing through the standing water, listening to the shouts coming from the main mine shaft.
"It's coming down! Bromm, fall back!" I heard in what sounded like Floki's voice.
I ran to the opening into the shaft and spun my head to get my bearings. A brown spider, nearly the size of a horse, was descending the wall, a glowing fletching jutted from its body. I heard a restrained grunt from Bromm as the creature darted forward and fangs sunk into him. His face went pale and his jaw clenched as he pointed his pistol at it and let another round loose, blowing a hole right through its carapace. It slumped to the floor and it's legs twitched then began to relax as viscous liquids burbled from the fresh wound.
Danin put a hand on Bromm's shoulder and while the wound stopped bleeding, his paleness did not subside. Bromm shook his head at Danin. This was starting to remind me of last time, and that worried me. Bromm had faced off with a huge Black Widow that nearly killed him. I shuddered. It was what had prompted my disastrous leap from the scaffold.
"More incoming!" Floki shouted.
It took me a moment to spot them crawling through the hole where the lift would come through. Three more massive spiders skittered through then down the walls toward us. One dropped in front of me, raising its front legs menacingly. I moved quickly toward it, hissing through my teeth. It struck at me, but my forward momentum carried me past the bite and I sunk the greatsword deep into its body, just to the right of its mandibles.
Bile oozed as it shuddered and lost use of some of its limbs, but it continued to dance with me, now with only one of its front legs raised, the other dangling as dead weight. It struck at me again, failing to connect as it stumbled around on its now useless legs. I saw a chance to lance at the creature from above and drove the killing blow through the spider's back. The legs twitched, dancing about for a moment longer before falling still.
I saw Floki out of the corner of my eye, speedily lancing the spider with arrows as it rushed toward. It clamped down on his arm as he fell back. He let out a grunt as he gripped his bow and sent more arrows into the creature until it tumbled harmlessly at his feet. Tenner, his wolf, growled at it, watching closely to make sure it didn't move.
Behind me, Bromm's pistol went off two more times. I swung my head to see the last remaining spider moving in on him as he was flanked by Danin. I darted forward, but his last shot went through the creatures clustered eyes and burst its head into an oozing black mass.
I looked around, listening for Floki to say anything else. All eyes were on the walls, but there was only the annoyed rustle of the large insects fluttering around us. Danin motioned for us to gather and called on his power to send a healing wave through each of us. It was a first for me, I had been able to avoid getting injured. Unfortunately, this made me feel like I had failed to do my job by stepping in the way of danger.
"Don't be hard on yourself. They're big boys. They can take care of themselves." Silah shimmered into my mind, wearing an elaborate gown and standing my height.
She looked at her hands and opened and closed them. Her presence was clearly more potent than usual, more substantial.
What changed? I projected the question to her, watching her traipse solidly through my mind with a mix between horror and fascination.
Silah smiled at me, glowing gold eyes holding a secret. She waved her hand and a full length mirror appeared. She walked over to it and looked herself over, then dismissed it with another wave. I had never seen her do that before.
"I feel stronger here, in your mind." She smiled hauntingly at me, "Oh, don't worry, I'll be kind... Maybe."
Stronger how? I pressed, suddenly very concerned about what I had gotten into.
"There's where it came from," Floki's words interrupted our internal dialogue.
He pointed up the wall to a hole where the insects seemed thinner. Sig touched another arrow fletching and Floki launched the lit arrow into the hole.
"I wonder if there's anything else in there?" Floki looked to Sig and myself.
"I've got a grappling hook and a … rope." I said stiltedly to Floki, dividing my attention to him with Silah's unnerving smile and glowing eyes.
"I've got this." Sig said.
His hands waved in front of him and he gestured. His feet lifted off of the ground, seemingly controlled by his thoughts and the force of his will. He looked in, keeping his distance, as he levelled off at the same height as the hole. He peered into the hole using the light from the fletching.
"Not much. Small bones, insect husks." Sig shook his head, "Nothing of interest."
Floki grimaced then shrugged, "Ah well."
I dipped the Greatsword into the water and cleaned it off, wiping the spider's ichor onto my breeches.
"Wait, don't!" She demanded, her glowing eyes both panicked and furious.
What? I thought, wondering what her paranoia was about.
"I can't come back like this in front of them!" She said, her voice hitting a fevered pitch.
I wasn't planning on it. I am very aware of the situation. Believe me. I explained, which seemed to put her at ease.
I was curious why she wouldn't just resist the change if I did it? Apparently, it wasn't as simple as that?
Even with that, I could still feel her grip on my mind was stronger somehow. She seemed more capable and she was flexing this power to an uncomfortable degree.
"Just… don't get any ideas." She whispered, almost playfully.
I could say the same. I mused, watching her form give me a wry smile.
(Get to know Akeron.)
(Read Robyn's Account of Events.)
I had been told that the Windhollows were a series of pilot shafts that the Polterhaud Mining Company had drilled in this ore rich area. It was said that the Dwarven families that remained in Hlofreden had come here originally to extract silver, but, apparently, had discovered much more than they had bargained for. The portal that sat at very bottom of this mine would even been considered ancient, even to the Dwarves. The thought of that alone boggled my mind.
After they claimed the silver had dried up, the majority of the Dwarven families pulled up their roots and moved on. The ones who did remain converted these pilot holes into storage areas, finding other ways to turn a profit. In Bromm and Sig's dealings with the Shatterhammer brewery, they just happened to end up with the one storage area that was part of the original entrance to the greater mining operation. In fact, one of the requirements of the sale was to resolve a problem that Mister Shatterhammer himself didn't care to handle, which seemed to usher the sale along with considerable haste.
I had wondered if he knew what was down there this whole time. And, when things got active again, he knew it was time to move on. I've found that Dwarves are especially secretive when there is money involved, especially when it directly affects their own coinpurse. And, right now, as we stood staring into darkness, I wanted to wring that little Dwarf's neck. At the edge of my vision, I could just make out the edges of the crudely bricked hole that had been torn through yet again. I shook my head and looked back to the others.
"It's clear all the way to the back."
Floki started to move ahead, and, as he did, Sig spoke a few unintelligible words then touched one of the fletchings of the arrows in Floki's quiver. The soft glow was difficult to perceive in the mid-morning light, but became more obvious as he entered the mouth of the cave and crouched to look for signs of the many-armed creature's passing.
Silah's anxiousness returned. She stood unnaturally still, looking wide-eyed into the darkness. She stood next to Danin and Sig. The milky white dress she wore was being tugged at by gentle breezes. I took a deep breath and smiled lovingly, taking in the view of her as she shone gloriously in the rising sun. The concern on her face fractured for a moment as she became aware of my gaze. She looked away, embarrassed, but then met my eyes with a shy smile.
"It's pretty much what I saw before." Floki announced from his crouched position. "There aren't any signs of foot traffic from before three weeks ago."
As Silah had said earlier, Gevurah likely believed this place was no longer a concern. I wondered how long that would last, considering the steps we had taken to make Hlofreden a target again. I sighed at the thought.
Bromm moved past Floki, peering into the darkness beyond.
"Let's press on, then." Bromm said, crouching by the scattered bricks near the back of the tunnel.
As we filed in, I decidedly took point, with Silah at my side. Taking heed to Denton's word, I had shed my fancy clothes and left them at home. In their place was my considerably more rustic armor. I was disgruntled by their disrepair as I had put it on again. I had intended to visit the armorer and see what could be done about their condition. Or, more regrettably, what other options there were.
The large vertical timbers that were put in place for the lift in the middle of the circular room had stood strong for ages. Their stability was a tribute to Dwarven craftsmanship. Unfortunately, the floorboards leading up to that central support sagged and creaked with each step. Only the cart path up to the lift seemed to be robust enough for my considerable weight.
"Stay around the outside, if you can. Rana said we should try to keep as much weight off of them as possible."
"When you say ‘as much weight as possible', that means you, right?" Floki said with a wry tone.
"Yeah, fine." I grumbled.
"Let's take the stairs over here." I motioned through the branch to the right of where we emerged.
As I walked around the spiraling wooden walkway that clung to the walls of the shaft. My heart sank as I remembered this first time I had seen this room. If not for Danin tying a rope to me and holding on to me, I would likely have fallen to my death. It was a foolhardy stunt, leaping on the back of that giant spider. While it ended well enough, it still stung to think about.
"Ah, I remember this place." Bromm said loudly.
I cringed, waiting for him to elaborate, but he looked toward the ceiling and rubbed at his chest where the spider had bit him. I remembered how pale he looked in that moment, but, even with our foolhardy approach, we all still managed to survive.
The walls still had many of the large insect creatures crawling over them, but the population seemed thinner than expected. The fungus they fed on was still readily available, though. Most of the sounds seemed to be coming from the central mine shaft the next floor down, or, perhaps, lower? This seemed strange because the central shafts seemed bare of the mushroom colonies.
As we neared the bottom of the third level of stairs, I held my hand out to Silah.
"You probably don't want to get wet. We're going to have to wade in from here."
I took her hand and, upon request, she melted into her sword form. I sheathed her and dropped into the cold chest-high water. I cringed from the rush of cold, clamping my teeth to keep from chattering while my body adjusted.
"It's best not to think about it and jump in." I said aloud, splashing around a bit, as I moved on.
Floki and Sig jumped in, their faces contorted as their heads bobbed above the water. Bromm and Danin remained, looking on.
"Gunpowder and water." Bromm said darkly, shaking his head and folding his arms over his impressive long coat. "I'll wait here."
"I will wait, too. I'm not in the mood to swim." Danin followed on.
We waded through the tunnel back into the central shaft. The bottom of the lift was well underwater. Soaked timbers lie at the bottom-tossed around haphazardly-where the car had fallen ages ago. Floki moved past, looking at the long cables that attached to the pump that rose up to the next level. He had effectively disabled the mechanism by removing what looked like a gear and secreting it away. He dove into the water to check the pump.
"It looks like someone did tamper with it, but they didn't get it working." He said, as he came up for air.
"How long will it take to get things back in order?" Sig asked.
"Not long, I've got the part right here." He said, holding up the missing piece, "I don't see anyone floating face down in here, so they must have avoided the poison."
He dove in again, this time down there for nearly a minute. When he surfaced, he tugged on one of the cables. You could hear the pumping mechanism engage with the movement.
"That should do it. Hakaar? Would you like the honors?" Floki stood back from the mechanism.
I nodded and reached down and grabbed the handles. They were set at a low position, being Dwarven made, so I had to dip my head into the water multiple times before the water levels started to drop. The system that the Dwarves had devised was very efficient. In short order, the water levels had dropped to reveal the slick silty surface dotted with standing water. Bromm and Danin splashed through the connected tunnel. Bromm's expression was still one of disdain as he deftly avoided the larger puddles.
I unsheathed Silah, and thought of her in human form. She reformed then bowed to me politely.
"I appreciate the forethought." She said, smiling appreciatively.
"Don't thank me just yet." I said, I had a plan in mind to retrieve the gold ore at the bottom of the shaft with Silah's help.
Unfortunately, I hadn't considered the one problem in all of this: she was absolutely going to get wet. I grimaced and she looked at me curiously which then turned to concern as she read my face.
"What." She said flatly, her open expression had fallen into a deadpan.
"I'll work with Silah to get the rest of the gold ore from the cart." I said to the others then turned to Silah, "Here, come with me."
I took her hand and led her into the darkness of the branching tunnel where we had discovered the submerged cart with the gold ore.
"So, if you'd like to help, the minecart is down there." I looked toward the broken lift mechanism that dangled into the water above the shaft, my vision a mixture of blacks and grays in the deep darkness.
"How do you mean help?" She looked at me, annoyance creeping into her expression.
"I have to breathe and, well, you don't." I said, feeling more and more like this was a bad idea, but I continued, "I didn't really think ahead, though. Your dress would get soaked."
Silah leaned her head forward and glared at me. I waited, feeling sheepish, but still insistent.
"You want me to get naked and retrieve some rocks for you?" She narrowed her eyes as she spoke.
"If you would like to help, yes." I said, frankly, then continued, "Although, saying ‘rocks' trivializes how much this is actually worth. It was a lot of effort for me to get the chunk I did from out of there."
She sat, sullen. I realized that I was still holding her hand.
"It's a matter of dignity." She finally said, "This is not dignified."
"No." I said, shaking my head, "It's a matter of choice. You don't have to do it, but I would appreciate it if you would. I would never ask you to do something that I wouldn't be willing to do myself. And I am still willing to risk it ... if you choose not to."
I sighed and started to unbuckle my breastplate. She put a hand to mine and stopped me.
"Fine," she breathed out heavily, "I will do it. Just, please, don't tell the others."
She immediately snaked her way out of her white dress. Her bare form shimmered in my sight. I shivered for her, still feeling the cold from my own soaked clothes. I did have the impulse to reach toward her, but held myself back. This seemed neither the place nor the time for any sort of affection. She held out the dress and I took it, rolling it up and put it into my rucksack. She turned to face the drop off into the water and I saw the stark black scrollwork slashes running up either side of her spine. I put my hand to her shoulder and she looked back at me.
"Thank you. I do appreciate it." I said humbly.
Silah gave a bit of scoff as she turned forward, narrowed her form, and dropped into the water, creating very little splash. After almost two minutes, I began to get worried, then she crested the water, with two of the stones in her hands. She rested them on the ledge, looking determined, and slipped back into the water again.
The process repeated until the piles threatened to fall back in. I took a portion of the gold ore and called down the tunnel for some help moving it. Floki with his lit arrow poking over his shoulder came and relieved me of some of the chunks of ore, moving it into the central shaft. He poked around the corner and must have seen Silah's naked back and shoulders dropping into the water. He glanced at me with a bewildered expression.
"Really?" He said, looking at me with disdain.
"She doesn't need to breathe. I do." I shook my head at his look as he walked back to the others with the load.
Finally, she came up empty and tried to speak, but water came out instead of sound. She looked annoyed, then pulled herself up onto the shelf and sat. She leaned forward with a noiseless scream, sending gouts of water out of her mouth in the process. She took a deep breath and cleared her throat. I was slightly horrified.
"Hacker, you there?" She said into the darkness.
"Hakaar, and yes, I'm right here." I said, waving a hand in her direction.
"Oh, good, I thought you'd left." There was still some sputtering as she spoke, the water not quite cleared from her lungs. "The cart is empty. I patted the whole thing down. I couldn't see anything, so, unless you've got some light to share, that's all there is."
"You … can't see?" I boggled, "I thought you could see in the dark?"
She furrowed her brow and looked in my direction, but not at me. How did I not see that before?
"Through your eyes, yes. Otherwise? Nope." She shook her head.
I put my hand to my face, feeling a mix between shame and embarrassment. I put my hand on her shoulder and she lifted her chin, then raised a hand up. I pulled her to her feet and she looked at me with an expression that puzzled me. She wicked some of the water off of her skin with her hands.
"Now, that deserves another grand night on the town. Perhaps I'll be able to regain some of my composure then." She blindly gave a disgruntled smirk, "Consider yourself in my debt."
Silah paused for a moment.
"Did you bring a towel?" She said, almost with a hiss.
I shook my head noiselessly, then I saw her grimace, brow furrowed.
"You didn't, did you. And you're shaking your head in the dark." She said, her perturbance increasing.
The percussion of a gunshot rattled through the tunnels. I glanced at her sightless expression which was immediately worried. I grabbed her arm and willed her into her sword form and her naked body instantly took shape.
I bolted down the passageway, splashing through the standing water, listening to the shouts coming from the main mine shaft.
"It's coming down! Bromm, fall back!" I heard in what sounded like Floki's voice.
I ran to the opening into the shaft and spun my head to get my bearings. A brown spider, nearly the size of a horse, was descending the wall, a glowing fletching jutted from its body. I heard a restrained grunt from Bromm as the creature darted forward and fangs sunk into him. His face went pale and his jaw clenched as he pointed his pistol at it and let another round loose, blowing a hole right through its carapace. It slumped to the floor and it's legs twitched then began to relax as viscous liquids burbled from the fresh wound.
Danin put a hand on Bromm's shoulder and while the wound stopped bleeding, his paleness did not subside. Bromm shook his head at Danin. This was starting to remind me of last time, and that worried me. Bromm had faced off with a huge Black Widow that nearly killed him. I shuddered. It was what had prompted my disastrous leap from the scaffold.
"More incoming!" Floki shouted.
It took me a moment to spot them crawling through the hole where the lift would come through. Three more massive spiders skittered through then down the walls toward us. One dropped in front of me, raising its front legs menacingly. I moved quickly toward it, hissing through my teeth. It struck at me, but my forward momentum carried me past the bite and I sunk the greatsword deep into its body, just to the right of its mandibles.
Bile oozed as it shuddered and lost use of some of its limbs, but it continued to dance with me, now with only one of its front legs raised, the other dangling as dead weight. It struck at me again, failing to connect as it stumbled around on its now useless legs. I saw a chance to lance at the creature from above and drove the killing blow through the spider's back. The legs twitched, dancing about for a moment longer before falling still.
I saw Floki out of the corner of my eye, speedily lancing the spider with arrows as it rushed toward. It clamped down on his arm as he fell back. He let out a grunt as he gripped his bow and sent more arrows into the creature until it tumbled harmlessly at his feet. Tenner, his wolf, growled at it, watching closely to make sure it didn't move.
Behind me, Bromm's pistol went off two more times. I swung my head to see the last remaining spider moving in on him as he was flanked by Danin. I darted forward, but his last shot went through the creatures clustered eyes and burst its head into an oozing black mass.
I looked around, listening for Floki to say anything else. All eyes were on the walls, but there was only the annoyed rustle of the large insects fluttering around us. Danin motioned for us to gather and called on his power to send a healing wave through each of us. It was a first for me, I had been able to avoid getting injured. Unfortunately, this made me feel like I had failed to do my job by stepping in the way of danger.
"Don't be hard on yourself. They're big boys. They can take care of themselves." Silah shimmered into my mind, wearing an elaborate gown and standing my height.
She looked at her hands and opened and closed them. Her presence was clearly more potent than usual, more substantial.
What changed? I projected the question to her, watching her traipse solidly through my mind with a mix between horror and fascination.
Silah smiled at me, glowing gold eyes holding a secret. She waved her hand and a full length mirror appeared. She walked over to it and looked herself over, then dismissed it with another wave. I had never seen her do that before.
"I feel stronger here, in your mind." She smiled hauntingly at me, "Oh, don't worry, I'll be kind... Maybe."
Stronger how? I pressed, suddenly very concerned about what I had gotten into.
"There's where it came from," Floki's words interrupted our internal dialogue.
He pointed up the wall to a hole where the insects seemed thinner. Sig touched another arrow fletching and Floki launched the lit arrow into the hole.
"I wonder if there's anything else in there?" Floki looked to Sig and myself.
"I've got a grappling hook and a … rope." I said stiltedly to Floki, dividing my attention to him with Silah's unnerving smile and glowing eyes.
"I've got this." Sig said.
His hands waved in front of him and he gestured. His feet lifted off of the ground, seemingly controlled by his thoughts and the force of his will. He looked in, keeping his distance, as he levelled off at the same height as the hole. He peered into the hole using the light from the fletching.
"Not much. Small bones, insect husks." Sig shook his head, "Nothing of interest."
Floki grimaced then shrugged, "Ah well."
I dipped the Greatsword into the water and cleaned it off, wiping the spider's ichor onto my breeches.
"Wait, don't!" She demanded, her glowing eyes both panicked and furious.
What? I thought, wondering what her paranoia was about.
"I can't come back like this in front of them!" She said, her voice hitting a fevered pitch.
I wasn't planning on it. I am very aware of the situation. Believe me. I explained, which seemed to put her at ease.
I was curious why she wouldn't just resist the change if I did it? Apparently, it wasn't as simple as that?
Even with that, I could still feel her grip on my mind was stronger somehow. She seemed more capable and she was flexing this power to an uncomfortable degree.
"Just… don't get any ideas." She whispered, almost playfully.
I could say the same. I mused, watching her form give me a wry smile.
(Get to know Akeron.)
(Read Robyn's Account of Events.)
Tuesday, May 5, 2015
Hakaar - Chronicle 21.3 - Catch and Release
While, doubtless, I was enjoying the quiet calm these days, I also found myself casting about for more things to keep us distracted. I found it surprisingly hard to fill time in such a small town. It made me itch to be on the road again, discovering new places. Sig had offered me a book he had just finished from his stash. It was a discourse on the planes from a scholar. He had been reading it himself in between the times that he and Bromm were doing work on the gunpowder shipments.
I now had that book on hand, but I wasn't much of a reader. The thought of diving into it made me yawn and my eyes water. I did want to align better with Silah's own understanding. Hopefully, whatever insight I gained could bring more clarity to the looming fate that was inching its way toward us.
Bromm had done his best to repopulate the temple of Kols. Now, there was even a theologian, Bridger, who was eager to dig into the books of history and lore as an Acolyte of Kols. He had already set to reading, becoming versed in Kols' tenets. There were others, primarily help that maintained and occupied the building, performing the duties that the followers had done. These weren't true believers, but were happy to help maintain the grounds in exchange for food, clothing, shelter, and a meager wage.
It seemed that Bromm, alone, held the honor of this commitment to Kols. Although, from what he had said, Robyn also wore the striking hammer holy symbol that Bromm had devised. It seemed that all of the most unlikely characters were finding a place in all of this madness. Even Robyn, whom I wondered if she had the patience to settle in? Would she find that her old habits were too ingrained? It could be said that the world had turned again and this Spring brought all sorts of change. Only time could reveal where each of these roads led.
Silah and I dug into every nook and cranny of Hlofreden, exploring even the most mundane portions of the city. It was a late morning nearly two weeks after Robyn's so-called farewell and subsequent incarceration when we ended up at the landmark Shrine of the Lost Mariner on the Northwestern cape.
"I think we've been just about everywhere." I grimaced, again feeling that itch for adventure tugging at me.
I leaned up against the standing bronze monument and slid to a seat looking out over the shimmering water. Silah was walking around the monument, studying the names carved in the stone below the bronze cap. I wasn't sure if she was genuinely interested. There were times where the inconsequential barely made an impression on her, but she still went through the motions of appearing interested. It was a silly sort of thoughtful. But the seeming of it made her feel more… alive?
It was true. She had seemed more human lately. Those moments of unnatural stillness or not taking a breath for minutes at a time still happened, but they were not obvious. Her assimilation with humanity was seamless. It seemed to be a point of satisfaction, even joy, for her to blend in so effectively. Even I rarely recognized those times where she failed to hold up that appearance. Perhaps that was a point of joy for her, too?
"I wish we could get into that mine behind the storage area. I can't get Sig to commit to anything until they're done. He and Bromm have been very preoccupied." I sighed, and bounced my head gently against the monument.
Silah's lips were pursed.
"They said they would be done in a matter of weeks." She said, her face still thoughtful while inspecting the facade of the monument. "Isn't Robyn's trial scheduled for tomorrow?"
"Yes, that." I realized that this gnawing despair that was consuming me was this fear over what was next for Robyn, but now it was obvious, "Bromm said he called in on his dad to see if he could swing a little favor in her direction. I wouldn't say that Hagan is a good character witness, but doubtless, he's got clout."
"The whole situation was pretty suspicious; Salamanders, a foreign Queen." I shook my head, still concerned. "To think that Bromm and I had called it from the beginning."
I was just talking to talk at this point. Silah was already well aware of the situation. She had helped piece together some of the points we were bringing to the Regent. Strangely, the fact that the Salamander's left immediately after the altercation hadn't immediately thrown the case into question.
I shrugged to myself. I pulled the book on the planes from my backpack along with some of the trail rations I'd gathered from the priory's well stocked pantry. I did feel bad for dipping into it, but I knew it would have remain unused otherwise.
"Interesting." Silah looked down at me awkwardly handling the book, her interest settling on me again. "Are you going to give it a try?"
"I'm thinking about it." I scrunched my face at the words, "This kind of stuff makes my head hurt."
"Perhaps I can help? Do you mind if I join you?"
She asked the question brightly, but without waiting for a response, she settled up against me, looking at the pages that my large hands were gingerly grasping at. I was easily frustrated with things this complex, but then something strange happened as I began to read through it. Silah would chime in and describe certain aspects of things in more detail or she would help me with the more heady words I came across. She helped me make sense of things where I doubted I could.
The sun rose, then descended until it was well into the evening. We had moved along with the shadow of the monument, when the sun had had become unbearable. As dusk began to set in, we returned to The Sea Witch, which was now operating at its usual pitch for a weekday. It was a lighter crowd allowing for unforced conversation. It seemed that Bromm was passing through when we showed up, packing a meal for Robyn.
"Those apartments, the ones near the docks. Those are your father's, correct? Are they available?"
"As far as I know. You'll have to talk with my Da'." Bromm said, his barogue unrolling with the mention of his father.
"What do you think would be a fair price?" I asked, feeling immediately outclassed. "I want to settle in to something a bit more permanent. I wouldn't mind something like those apartments. I feel bad every time I take over your room."
He gave a dismissive gesture.
"Don't even worry about it! You're welcome to use it." His words were genuine, but I had felt that I had long overstayed my welcome.
"I, uh, we need our own space." I nodded toward Silah who was talking with Macaulay animatedly. "It just doesn't feel right otherwise."
Bromm nodded, his expression was one of understanding.
"I'll put in a good word for ya." He clapped a hand to my shoulder. "Don't let him intimidate you."
He winked with the advice. I wasn't sure how serious he was, but it didn't help settle my nerves.
"Are you ready for the trial tomorrow?" I asked him, bringing the topic around to something more serious.
"I assume so?" Bromm said, there was no hesitation with the response even if he was unsure.
"It should work out just fine." I said as a feeble attempt at being reassuring.
I could see that Bromm was now very invested in his time with Robyn. There was far more to the story than I had seen. There was always an inkling, a potential, but I hadn't seen it coming. His attachment and her change of heart after this event had shaken loose whatever feelings they had for each other. Perhaps it was the shock of potential loss that both of them needed?
Yet, I could see that it would still be a long road. I had rarely seen Robyn show affection, but when she had, it was most definitely toward Bromm. I just hoped that their sparks didn't end up burning anything down in the process as they worked to see how they fit with each other.
Bromm moved away from the bar as Macaulay brought a bundle to him.
"I'm going to deliver this and see if I can get some sleep." He looked through the bundle then looked up at me, "You have a good night."
I nodded and patted him on the back. He was weary. Between Robyn, the priory, and the tasks that he had taken on with Sig, I hoped that things would work out for the best for the sake of his health.
Silah and I had not been invited to the trial. It was being held in the Regent's private offices, which only allowed for Bromm and Danin to represent Robyn's case.
Bromm met up with us in The Sea Witch where we awaited the results of the trial. He came in somewhat somber, but Danin had a wide grin on his face as he walked through the door, revealing the true result.
They unfolded the story of the trial to us. Magra, the Nightwatch Captain and the Bluecoat clerk were acting on behalf of the deceased. It had been up to Danin and Bromm to reveal the true intentions of the Salamanders and their employer.
It was an uphill battle, but paperwork that Danin had pilfered from the corpse provided a clear connection to the throne, whom Robyn had an uneasy relationship with, at best. Bromm explained that the actions of the Salamanders were clearly that of enforcers and if it hadn't gone the way it had, she would have been overwhelmed and killed or taken by force.
The challenge was just enough to put the clerk off balance, being unable to provide the burden of proof in the other direction. Bromm clapped a hand to Danin's back.
"I visited Robyn right after and let her know the verdict." Bromm said proudly.
The twinkle in his eye, one that had faded with the devastation at the Priory and the situation at Robyn's farewell, had come back. His tenacity was sparked now that he had fully committed himself.
He mentioned that he and Sig had another week of work to be able to keep the gunpowder freight commitments to the Princess for the coming month.
"We are going to meet Robyn at the temple and show her around. It's an open invitation for whoever wants to join. This is likely the closest you'll ever see her to being religious." Bromm said with a subtle grin pulling at the corners of his lips.
Even with her stay in prison, Robyn looked healthy. She wore a quieter version of the outfit she had worn to her farewell two weeks prior. She wore her double barrel pistol that Danin secured after the gunfight. There was a softness to her that hadn't been there before. She didn't seem to be looking for a fight as had always been her way. In this group, there was no need to look for vulnerabilities or an edge over one or the other. She seemed to be taking a break from the posturing game that she had been playing for most of her life. She simply let things happen and her unfeigned smile made her seem much younger for it.
"So, what's my job here?" She peered around the main chapel area, looking at the stained glass windows.
Bromm looked at her with some curiousity. He had been introducing Bridger, the new scholar, or, now, the newly appointed Acolyte of Kols—however that worked—to Floki and Sig.
"What … job would you like?" He said with some trepidation.
"I'm pretty good with a gun?" She said, rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet.
"I offered to train the Bluecoats in firearms. Are you good at training?" He raised an eyebrow with the mock question.
She rolled her eyes.
"Haven't I done enough damage to my reputation already. Training Bluecoats?" She let out a sharp involuntary laugh, but then mused for a moment.
"It's a public service! You know, for a good cause?" Bromm continued dryly with a deadpan expression.
She looked at Bromm, her face was unreadable.
"Why not." She nodded, then smiled at him.
Bromm raised his eyebrow at that.
"Why not?" He said scoffingly. "They say prison really does change people. I didn't expect that."
Robyn crinkled her nose at him, her green eyes scorching.
"Perhaps," She paused, searching for words, "We both have a need to commit to something?"
Bromm made to respond, but then nodded slowly, looking at her.
"You're in charge of defense, then. And, if you choose to, you can decide to teach others."
She looked at the walls then out into the courtyard.
"It looks defensible enough?" She mused.
She looked at each of us around the room at the nodding heads then stopped on me. I was shaking my head dramatically.
"No, this place is not defensible for what's coming up against you." I said emphatically.
Robyn suddenly looked worried then looked to Bromm.
"What's he talking about?" She asked Bromm and he shrugged.
"You might want to confer with him about, uh, defenses."
I showed her downstairs where the small classroom was. I moved to the slate and scratched primitive figures. It took only a moment to bewilder her with the descriptions of the creatures we encountered and how best to defend against them. Silah sat near the back of the room and watched. There was a glimmer of pride in her eyes as she looked on, but she remained silent letting me have my moment.
"The best defense is to never let them get in in the first place." I said, clearly recalling the pools of blood and the signs of death covering the basement. "And, because they can climb just as quickly as they can walk, you can't depends on the walls to save you."
I elaborated on the defenses: iron bars behind every window including those in the bell tower and behind the large stained glass window, reinforced doors securing each entrance, and barbed hooks facing outward on the tops of the surrounding fence.
"You've thought about this for a while, haven't you." Robyn said, watching me closely after I had fallen silent.
"Let's just say that I've had plenty of dreams about it. It only takes staring death in the face once to learn a lesson like that." I said quietly.
"Aren't all lessons learned that way?" Robyn smiled.
(Get to know Akeron.)
(Read Robyn's Account of Events.)
I now had that book on hand, but I wasn't much of a reader. The thought of diving into it made me yawn and my eyes water. I did want to align better with Silah's own understanding. Hopefully, whatever insight I gained could bring more clarity to the looming fate that was inching its way toward us.
Bromm had done his best to repopulate the temple of Kols. Now, there was even a theologian, Bridger, who was eager to dig into the books of history and lore as an Acolyte of Kols. He had already set to reading, becoming versed in Kols' tenets. There were others, primarily help that maintained and occupied the building, performing the duties that the followers had done. These weren't true believers, but were happy to help maintain the grounds in exchange for food, clothing, shelter, and a meager wage.
It seemed that Bromm, alone, held the honor of this commitment to Kols. Although, from what he had said, Robyn also wore the striking hammer holy symbol that Bromm had devised. It seemed that all of the most unlikely characters were finding a place in all of this madness. Even Robyn, whom I wondered if she had the patience to settle in? Would she find that her old habits were too ingrained? It could be said that the world had turned again and this Spring brought all sorts of change. Only time could reveal where each of these roads led.
Silah and I dug into every nook and cranny of Hlofreden, exploring even the most mundane portions of the city. It was a late morning nearly two weeks after Robyn's so-called farewell and subsequent incarceration when we ended up at the landmark Shrine of the Lost Mariner on the Northwestern cape.
"I think we've been just about everywhere." I grimaced, again feeling that itch for adventure tugging at me.
I leaned up against the standing bronze monument and slid to a seat looking out over the shimmering water. Silah was walking around the monument, studying the names carved in the stone below the bronze cap. I wasn't sure if she was genuinely interested. There were times where the inconsequential barely made an impression on her, but she still went through the motions of appearing interested. It was a silly sort of thoughtful. But the seeming of it made her feel more… alive?
It was true. She had seemed more human lately. Those moments of unnatural stillness or not taking a breath for minutes at a time still happened, but they were not obvious. Her assimilation with humanity was seamless. It seemed to be a point of satisfaction, even joy, for her to blend in so effectively. Even I rarely recognized those times where she failed to hold up that appearance. Perhaps that was a point of joy for her, too?
"I wish we could get into that mine behind the storage area. I can't get Sig to commit to anything until they're done. He and Bromm have been very preoccupied." I sighed, and bounced my head gently against the monument.
Silah's lips were pursed.
"They said they would be done in a matter of weeks." She said, her face still thoughtful while inspecting the facade of the monument. "Isn't Robyn's trial scheduled for tomorrow?"
"Yes, that." I realized that this gnawing despair that was consuming me was this fear over what was next for Robyn, but now it was obvious, "Bromm said he called in on his dad to see if he could swing a little favor in her direction. I wouldn't say that Hagan is a good character witness, but doubtless, he's got clout."
"The whole situation was pretty suspicious; Salamanders, a foreign Queen." I shook my head, still concerned. "To think that Bromm and I had called it from the beginning."
I was just talking to talk at this point. Silah was already well aware of the situation. She had helped piece together some of the points we were bringing to the Regent. Strangely, the fact that the Salamander's left immediately after the altercation hadn't immediately thrown the case into question.
I shrugged to myself. I pulled the book on the planes from my backpack along with some of the trail rations I'd gathered from the priory's well stocked pantry. I did feel bad for dipping into it, but I knew it would have remain unused otherwise.
"Interesting." Silah looked down at me awkwardly handling the book, her interest settling on me again. "Are you going to give it a try?"
"I'm thinking about it." I scrunched my face at the words, "This kind of stuff makes my head hurt."
"Perhaps I can help? Do you mind if I join you?"
She asked the question brightly, but without waiting for a response, she settled up against me, looking at the pages that my large hands were gingerly grasping at. I was easily frustrated with things this complex, but then something strange happened as I began to read through it. Silah would chime in and describe certain aspects of things in more detail or she would help me with the more heady words I came across. She helped me make sense of things where I doubted I could.
The sun rose, then descended until it was well into the evening. We had moved along with the shadow of the monument, when the sun had had become unbearable. As dusk began to set in, we returned to The Sea Witch, which was now operating at its usual pitch for a weekday. It was a lighter crowd allowing for unforced conversation. It seemed that Bromm was passing through when we showed up, packing a meal for Robyn.
"Those apartments, the ones near the docks. Those are your father's, correct? Are they available?"
"As far as I know. You'll have to talk with my Da'." Bromm said, his barogue unrolling with the mention of his father.
"What do you think would be a fair price?" I asked, feeling immediately outclassed. "I want to settle in to something a bit more permanent. I wouldn't mind something like those apartments. I feel bad every time I take over your room."
He gave a dismissive gesture.
"Don't even worry about it! You're welcome to use it." His words were genuine, but I had felt that I had long overstayed my welcome.
"I, uh, we need our own space." I nodded toward Silah who was talking with Macaulay animatedly. "It just doesn't feel right otherwise."
Bromm nodded, his expression was one of understanding.
"I'll put in a good word for ya." He clapped a hand to my shoulder. "Don't let him intimidate you."
He winked with the advice. I wasn't sure how serious he was, but it didn't help settle my nerves.
"Are you ready for the trial tomorrow?" I asked him, bringing the topic around to something more serious.
"I assume so?" Bromm said, there was no hesitation with the response even if he was unsure.
"It should work out just fine." I said as a feeble attempt at being reassuring.
I could see that Bromm was now very invested in his time with Robyn. There was far more to the story than I had seen. There was always an inkling, a potential, but I hadn't seen it coming. His attachment and her change of heart after this event had shaken loose whatever feelings they had for each other. Perhaps it was the shock of potential loss that both of them needed?
Yet, I could see that it would still be a long road. I had rarely seen Robyn show affection, but when she had, it was most definitely toward Bromm. I just hoped that their sparks didn't end up burning anything down in the process as they worked to see how they fit with each other.
Bromm moved away from the bar as Macaulay brought a bundle to him.
"I'm going to deliver this and see if I can get some sleep." He looked through the bundle then looked up at me, "You have a good night."
I nodded and patted him on the back. He was weary. Between Robyn, the priory, and the tasks that he had taken on with Sig, I hoped that things would work out for the best for the sake of his health.
Silah and I had not been invited to the trial. It was being held in the Regent's private offices, which only allowed for Bromm and Danin to represent Robyn's case.
Bromm met up with us in The Sea Witch where we awaited the results of the trial. He came in somewhat somber, but Danin had a wide grin on his face as he walked through the door, revealing the true result.
They unfolded the story of the trial to us. Magra, the Nightwatch Captain and the Bluecoat clerk were acting on behalf of the deceased. It had been up to Danin and Bromm to reveal the true intentions of the Salamanders and their employer.
It was an uphill battle, but paperwork that Danin had pilfered from the corpse provided a clear connection to the throne, whom Robyn had an uneasy relationship with, at best. Bromm explained that the actions of the Salamanders were clearly that of enforcers and if it hadn't gone the way it had, she would have been overwhelmed and killed or taken by force.
The challenge was just enough to put the clerk off balance, being unable to provide the burden of proof in the other direction. Bromm clapped a hand to Danin's back.
"I visited Robyn right after and let her know the verdict." Bromm said proudly.
The twinkle in his eye, one that had faded with the devastation at the Priory and the situation at Robyn's farewell, had come back. His tenacity was sparked now that he had fully committed himself.
He mentioned that he and Sig had another week of work to be able to keep the gunpowder freight commitments to the Princess for the coming month.
"We are going to meet Robyn at the temple and show her around. It's an open invitation for whoever wants to join. This is likely the closest you'll ever see her to being religious." Bromm said with a subtle grin pulling at the corners of his lips.
Even with her stay in prison, Robyn looked healthy. She wore a quieter version of the outfit she had worn to her farewell two weeks prior. She wore her double barrel pistol that Danin secured after the gunfight. There was a softness to her that hadn't been there before. She didn't seem to be looking for a fight as had always been her way. In this group, there was no need to look for vulnerabilities or an edge over one or the other. She seemed to be taking a break from the posturing game that she had been playing for most of her life. She simply let things happen and her unfeigned smile made her seem much younger for it.
"So, what's my job here?" She peered around the main chapel area, looking at the stained glass windows.
Bromm looked at her with some curiousity. He had been introducing Bridger, the new scholar, or, now, the newly appointed Acolyte of Kols—however that worked—to Floki and Sig.
"What … job would you like?" He said with some trepidation.
"I'm pretty good with a gun?" She said, rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet.
"I offered to train the Bluecoats in firearms. Are you good at training?" He raised an eyebrow with the mock question.
She rolled her eyes.
"Haven't I done enough damage to my reputation already. Training Bluecoats?" She let out a sharp involuntary laugh, but then mused for a moment.
"It's a public service! You know, for a good cause?" Bromm continued dryly with a deadpan expression.
She looked at Bromm, her face was unreadable.
"Why not." She nodded, then smiled at him.
Bromm raised his eyebrow at that.
"Why not?" He said scoffingly. "They say prison really does change people. I didn't expect that."
Robyn crinkled her nose at him, her green eyes scorching.
"Perhaps," She paused, searching for words, "We both have a need to commit to something?"
Bromm made to respond, but then nodded slowly, looking at her.
"You're in charge of defense, then. And, if you choose to, you can decide to teach others."
She looked at the walls then out into the courtyard.
"It looks defensible enough?" She mused.
She looked at each of us around the room at the nodding heads then stopped on me. I was shaking my head dramatically.
"No, this place is not defensible for what's coming up against you." I said emphatically.
Robyn suddenly looked worried then looked to Bromm.
"What's he talking about?" She asked Bromm and he shrugged.
"You might want to confer with him about, uh, defenses."
I showed her downstairs where the small classroom was. I moved to the slate and scratched primitive figures. It took only a moment to bewilder her with the descriptions of the creatures we encountered and how best to defend against them. Silah sat near the back of the room and watched. There was a glimmer of pride in her eyes as she looked on, but she remained silent letting me have my moment.
"The best defense is to never let them get in in the first place." I said, clearly recalling the pools of blood and the signs of death covering the basement. "And, because they can climb just as quickly as they can walk, you can't depends on the walls to save you."
I elaborated on the defenses: iron bars behind every window including those in the bell tower and behind the large stained glass window, reinforced doors securing each entrance, and barbed hooks facing outward on the tops of the surrounding fence.
"You've thought about this for a while, haven't you." Robyn said, watching me closely after I had fallen silent.
"Let's just say that I've had plenty of dreams about it. It only takes staring death in the face once to learn a lesson like that." I said quietly.
"Aren't all lessons learned that way?" Robyn smiled.
(Get to know Akeron.)
(Read Robyn's Account of Events.)
Hakaar - Chronicle 21.2 - Machinations
The morning slipped quietly into the room. Silah's naked form stirred against me as she felt me ascend through the layers of sleep. I let myself linger on the edge of wakefulness, fighting back the need to snap myself aware. I felt ecstasy reflected from Silah, a memory replaying in her thoughts; something that she was sharing with me. I breathed deeply, reveling in the vibrant feelings tugging at me.
"Good morning, love." She said with a wistful smile.
It had been a long time since things were as calm and, dare I say it, easy. For now, we could simply be together.
I leaned my head forward, awkwardly and kissed her forehead. I could see the tattoos—stark against her pale skin—that ran down the length of her spine and reaching up to the nape of her neck. I traced along them with my fingers, feeling my pulse rise with the caress. It had only been days since I had allowed myself to look at her with unrestrained desire. I wondered why I had held back for so long, but also knew that this … this was different. If I had allowed it to sweep me away, I doubted our connection would have had the roots grow as deep as they had. And my hope was that they were deep enough to weather the storms ahead.
Silah's own expression shone with a wry humor listening in on everything passing through my head, her golden eyes sparkling. Her smile widened with amorous intent as she clawed her way up and straddled me, bringing me in line with those fiery eyes. I encircled her with my arms as we kissed. I felt every part of me react to her intensity and I responded in kind, drowning in the reverberating echoes reflected between our bodies.
Hours passed and I began to feel a smoldering guilt; that, along with pangs of hunger, from being lazily holed up in this room until nearly noon. The sunlight had started to heat the walls and ceiling to a point where it was getting uncomfortable. I sat forward and swung my legs from the bed. I expected Silah to sulk at my departure, but she just smiled warmly. She remained, lounging comfortably, draped loosely in a sheet, propping her head up to watch me. While still naked, I walked absently around the room, gathering my things, still trying to emerge from this dreamlike haze as hunger gnawed at me.
"We can't stay in here all day." I said as she remained still with the wistful smile plastered to her face.
"I never intended to. I'm impressed that you didn't shoot out and run to your friends upon waking." She said, her voice laced with dry humor.
"We should take the time to live gracefully," I said with a smile, "I remember someone telling me some time ago. Back when there was even less to worry about."
"Whoever it was, she sounded like a very wise person." She said as she swung her graceful legs from the bed.
The sight of her naked form triggered my involuntary reaction to turn away. I smiled to myself, and turn back to meet her gaze. She chuckled at my initial reaction then moved into my arms and lingered. I could see us in the mirror, my mottled gray green flesh against her perfect peach-colored skin slashed with the scrollwork up her back. I breathed deeply, soaking in the preternatural warmth from our embrace.
"Let's find something to eat." I said, while putting on the Mont Brooks tunic and trousers.
She nodded and quickly snaked her way into the milky white dress. It had been bunched in my rucksack, but the crushed fabric appearance seemed to add a pleasing texture to the dress. Silah admired herself in the mirror and nodded. I gathered only my coin purse, but left my rucksack and gear remain. It was a fierce internal struggle to leave anything behind, but my concept of home had begun to change. At the door, I held out an arm and Silah slipped her arm through, then descended into the dining room.
After breakfast we found that Bromm had gone to the temple again. He was following through with his commitment to Kols. We found that Floki and Sig had joined Bromm there, but Danin was absent. Bromm suppressed a chuckle as I approached.
"We wondered where you'd gone off to, but, then again, we also didn't." He gave me a smile and a nod, the striking hammer swinging from his neck with the movement.
"What's the plan here?" I said aloud while looking around the room avoiding their eyes, feeling a little sheepish and doing my best to push on to another topic.
There was a subtle chuckle reverberating in my head from Silah as she disengaged from my arm. She moved into the next room to fall in next to Sig.
"We've been looking for the deed." Sig said, digging through some of the bookshelves at the bottom of the tower.
"What can you do with the deed?" I asked, curious.
"If we're going to revive faith in Kols, we'll need to make sure we keep control of this building. I have a few ideas, but it all starts with acquiring this building."
I nodded. It sounded sensible and very business-like. I started to wonder what the plan was, to keep faith in Kols alive or start yet another business? Maybe the ingenuity of what Bromm was doing was that it was both. I lingered, listening in on the exchange between Sig and Bromm. They had been loudly calling out different ways to bring in more members who would pledge themselves to the cause.
Later today he planned to go to the City Offices to hire some hands to maintain the temple and, perhaps, a scholar who he would pay to take on the clerical responsibilities for the church. The man would officially be an acolyte of Kols. He even laughed about getting his first "member", as he had given Robyn the same symbol he wore around his neck.
"We could set up a lab here, sell powder from the temple." Sig said. He seemed to be getting excited with the direction Bromm was going.
Bromm nodded appreciatively.
"We could offer training in firearms, too. Like how Yollari has the rangers headquarter to draw people in for services and information, we could do the same." Bromm mused, fitting the pieces together.
The stout Danin emerged through the door.
"I found the deed. It shouldn't be a problem. We'll just want final word from the Regent." He said, somewhat gruffly.
"We should get to that immediately. No use shuffling through more papers here, when we're hiring someone to do that for us." Sig said with a bit of a grimace. "We've got to get to work on the powder shipments, anyway. The sooner we can get Beidrick back on the water, the better."
Silah and I followed Bromm and Sig to the city offices first, Bromm approached the straight-backed man who ran the public calls for service. He warily looked at Bromm, knowing the amount of effort he had recently gone through with vetting and populating the mining venture for Richter Holdings. There was a discussion of the best fit and the man pulled a number of papers for unskilled labor and a potential for the acolyte position, a budding scholar who had submitted his paperwork.
"This is for work at the Priory?" The man said, "Nasty business, that. Should I have them meet you there?"
"And," the man paused and wet his lips, "Will this position be hazardous?"
Bromm's face was smooth, it was clear that he did not intend to allow anything to happen.
"No, sir. All will be in order. And, yes, have them meet us at the priory."
With that, we took our leave and continued on past the city offices back to the Regent's estate.
"I've been seeing a lot of you boys lately." The Regent said with a tired sort of smile. "What do you have for me?"
"The priory," Bromm began, "We wish to take charge of the ongoing duties of those who were lost, including care and maintenance."
The Regent looked at each of us, weighing us.
"You've done well so far, but this is a very weighty matter. We will need to make sure all of the paperwork is in order for it to transition to your care." He fidgeted, drumming his fingers into his palms rapidly. "To tell you the truth, I would rather keep this as quiet as possible. The city has only heard rumors so far, and losing one of the oldest holy places is … disquieting, to say the least."
"If you can promise me that you will honor this position and," he glanced between Bromm and Sig, "Treat this duty respectfully and not simply to your own ends, then, by all means, I will fully empower you."
There were nods around. He watched closely, still weighing their intent. I could see the deepening lines around his eyes and the graying at his temples stand out more pronounced with each visit.
Crisis upon Crisis. I thought. I wonder how much all of us will age before these matters are settled.
Silah caressed my arm in response and I felt a warm embrace tighten across my shoulders reassuringly.
"Just," The Regent took a deep breath and let it out slowly, "don't make me regret this."
"You won't." Bromm said, fervently. "I am an Oathkeeper."
Bromm gave a curt bow, but remained standing in front of the man. He was about to turn away when he looked back to Bromm.
"Is there something else?" He said, annoyance creeping into his voice.
"Yes. One other matter." Bromm's unflappable exterior held strong, but I could still see a slight strain in his neck and his eye twitched just momentarily. "Regarding Robyn Beckett."
The Regent shook his head clenching his teeth.
"I will allow the law to handle this matter." The Regent chewed on the words. "There are too many moving parts to settle this cleanly. It will require a private pre-trial to establish a precedent. If we find that she was not justified in her … self-defense. If we are unable to settle this there, we will be required to make this a matter of public record. This could be … difficult for all of us."
Bromm nodded slowly.
"Anything else?" The Regent's eyes smoldered.
"No, sir. Thank you for your time." Bromm's manner was charming, but the Regent wasn't open to his disarming approach, at least, not at the moment..
As we stepped outside, Bromm let out a long breath and shook his head, the tension bled from him as he allowed himself to relax.
"I'm going to need more than a couple of drinks after all this." He announced. " But, right now, I'm going to visit Robyn again."
"Later at The Sea Witch?" He looked at us.
Danin and Floki nodded. Sig seemed preoccupied.
"We have the materials from Beidrick's shipment, Bromm." Sig mentioned. "We can start anytime."
Sig's tone belied his words. He wanted to start immediately. Bromm nodded seeming to recognize this. Apparently, this wasn't new information to him, but he seemed to need a moment to gather himself before he committed to yet another task.
Sig moved toward his grandfather's place while Danin and Floki went on to their own matters.
Beidrick was at The Sea Witch, he was sitting at one of the round tables, doing his best to capture Sabella's interest. She watched to see how much he pulled from his purse, giving back the attention as the coin still flowed. When Silah and I walked in, he nearly sent his chair to the floor he stood so quickly.
"A drink for these two! Shatterhammer?" He nodded toward us, Silah parted and moved toward him with a grand smile.
I looked to Sabella, then to Macaulay and shook my head.
"A stout if you would." I said in a low tone as a delighted Silah talked with the exuberant Beidrick.
Macaulay nodded with a wry smile. This had become the usual for me. I had told Sig and Bromm had better get something new in place quickly or they'd lose me entirely.
Beidrick flagged me over as Silah turned back, her eyes glittering reflecting his excitement.
"Did Bromm tell you about what happened on the return trip?" His eyes were afire as his excitement seemed to get the better of him.
I shook my head. My lazy morning, perhaps, was too lazy after all.
"So, we're out at sea and have the first shipment from the mines in the hold. It's a clear night, smooth sailing as far as I could see." He swept his hand across the air as he spoke, "Then these clouds start building from nowhere, off a bit to West from what I could tell by the starlight. It swallowed up the moon and we were nearly blind out there. We put in to the coast just as the the rain rolled right over us."
I thought back on the events after Bromm pledged himself to Kols. I furrowed my brow at Beidrick's own revelation. I have no idea how the gods work and now I was even more confused. It seemed a coincidence—even a sign, as it were—that showed just in time with Bromm's words. I was now even more intrigued and, from the look in his eye, Beidrick was just getting started.
"When it settled and we had bailed the boat, we ran into an old fisherman, someone I'd known for years, he flagged us over. They were caught out in the worst of it and it caused them some trouble with their sails." Beidrick got intense, "But, get this, they had fished a man out of the water who had been on some sort of makeshift raft. They said he was babbling on about a war. The fisherman was confused, thinking he was blown in from another warring nation, but then he mentioned Briarsgate and, oh, what's that name again, Dezovrask. That's the name of the demon that ..."
He looked at me and saw my confused look. Silah was intrigued, though, she seemed to recognize this name. I would have to ask her about it later. Seeing my lack of recognition, he moved on.
"The guy babbled on about mermaids grabbing the others and dragging them into the depths of the sea. Mermaids! Raenir and Danin said they saw mermaids off the coast of … that island." He looked around worried now that he'd raised his voice.
"Of course, it didn't work out so well for the man, though. He died from exposure as they were stuck in the worst of it."
He looked to me excitedly, but my lack of reaction seemed to tamp down his spirits. I could imagine my face didn't show much more than bewilderment.
"They did tell you about the island, right?" He said, a tad sullenly.
"Only briefly. I did overhear Bromm talking about Briarsgate once and I asked him some questions about it. Your friends are a bit tight lipped about all that." I offered, wondering if he could fill in the gaps. He looked around the room and found an empty table in a quiet corner of The Sea Witch.
"Let's go over there." He said, nodding toward the table, his eyes darting around for eavesdroppers. "If we're going back there, you'll want to know what went down."
I couldn't help but smile at the mischievous look on his face. Both Silah and I had heard portions of his tale from the others to a certain extent, but it had always been very restrained and abbreviated. Beidrick brought a different flavor to all of it, a considerably more raw depiction of events as well as adding his characteristic bravado.
"You keep talking, I'll keep buying." I offered, and he gave me a wide grin.
"You're on!"
(Get to know Akeron.)
(Read Robyn's Account of Events.)
"Good morning, love." She said with a wistful smile.
It had been a long time since things were as calm and, dare I say it, easy. For now, we could simply be together.
I leaned my head forward, awkwardly and kissed her forehead. I could see the tattoos—stark against her pale skin—that ran down the length of her spine and reaching up to the nape of her neck. I traced along them with my fingers, feeling my pulse rise with the caress. It had only been days since I had allowed myself to look at her with unrestrained desire. I wondered why I had held back for so long, but also knew that this … this was different. If I had allowed it to sweep me away, I doubted our connection would have had the roots grow as deep as they had. And my hope was that they were deep enough to weather the storms ahead.
Silah's own expression shone with a wry humor listening in on everything passing through my head, her golden eyes sparkling. Her smile widened with amorous intent as she clawed her way up and straddled me, bringing me in line with those fiery eyes. I encircled her with my arms as we kissed. I felt every part of me react to her intensity and I responded in kind, drowning in the reverberating echoes reflected between our bodies.
Hours passed and I began to feel a smoldering guilt; that, along with pangs of hunger, from being lazily holed up in this room until nearly noon. The sunlight had started to heat the walls and ceiling to a point where it was getting uncomfortable. I sat forward and swung my legs from the bed. I expected Silah to sulk at my departure, but she just smiled warmly. She remained, lounging comfortably, draped loosely in a sheet, propping her head up to watch me. While still naked, I walked absently around the room, gathering my things, still trying to emerge from this dreamlike haze as hunger gnawed at me.
"We can't stay in here all day." I said as she remained still with the wistful smile plastered to her face.
"I never intended to. I'm impressed that you didn't shoot out and run to your friends upon waking." She said, her voice laced with dry humor.
"We should take the time to live gracefully," I said with a smile, "I remember someone telling me some time ago. Back when there was even less to worry about."
"Whoever it was, she sounded like a very wise person." She said as she swung her graceful legs from the bed.
The sight of her naked form triggered my involuntary reaction to turn away. I smiled to myself, and turn back to meet her gaze. She chuckled at my initial reaction then moved into my arms and lingered. I could see us in the mirror, my mottled gray green flesh against her perfect peach-colored skin slashed with the scrollwork up her back. I breathed deeply, soaking in the preternatural warmth from our embrace.
"Let's find something to eat." I said, while putting on the Mont Brooks tunic and trousers.
She nodded and quickly snaked her way into the milky white dress. It had been bunched in my rucksack, but the crushed fabric appearance seemed to add a pleasing texture to the dress. Silah admired herself in the mirror and nodded. I gathered only my coin purse, but left my rucksack and gear remain. It was a fierce internal struggle to leave anything behind, but my concept of home had begun to change. At the door, I held out an arm and Silah slipped her arm through, then descended into the dining room.
After breakfast we found that Bromm had gone to the temple again. He was following through with his commitment to Kols. We found that Floki and Sig had joined Bromm there, but Danin was absent. Bromm suppressed a chuckle as I approached.
"We wondered where you'd gone off to, but, then again, we also didn't." He gave me a smile and a nod, the striking hammer swinging from his neck with the movement.
"What's the plan here?" I said aloud while looking around the room avoiding their eyes, feeling a little sheepish and doing my best to push on to another topic.
There was a subtle chuckle reverberating in my head from Silah as she disengaged from my arm. She moved into the next room to fall in next to Sig.
"We've been looking for the deed." Sig said, digging through some of the bookshelves at the bottom of the tower.
"What can you do with the deed?" I asked, curious.
"If we're going to revive faith in Kols, we'll need to make sure we keep control of this building. I have a few ideas, but it all starts with acquiring this building."
I nodded. It sounded sensible and very business-like. I started to wonder what the plan was, to keep faith in Kols alive or start yet another business? Maybe the ingenuity of what Bromm was doing was that it was both. I lingered, listening in on the exchange between Sig and Bromm. They had been loudly calling out different ways to bring in more members who would pledge themselves to the cause.
Later today he planned to go to the City Offices to hire some hands to maintain the temple and, perhaps, a scholar who he would pay to take on the clerical responsibilities for the church. The man would officially be an acolyte of Kols. He even laughed about getting his first "member", as he had given Robyn the same symbol he wore around his neck.
"We could set up a lab here, sell powder from the temple." Sig said. He seemed to be getting excited with the direction Bromm was going.
Bromm nodded appreciatively.
"We could offer training in firearms, too. Like how Yollari has the rangers headquarter to draw people in for services and information, we could do the same." Bromm mused, fitting the pieces together.
The stout Danin emerged through the door.
"I found the deed. It shouldn't be a problem. We'll just want final word from the Regent." He said, somewhat gruffly.
"We should get to that immediately. No use shuffling through more papers here, when we're hiring someone to do that for us." Sig said with a bit of a grimace. "We've got to get to work on the powder shipments, anyway. The sooner we can get Beidrick back on the water, the better."
Silah and I followed Bromm and Sig to the city offices first, Bromm approached the straight-backed man who ran the public calls for service. He warily looked at Bromm, knowing the amount of effort he had recently gone through with vetting and populating the mining venture for Richter Holdings. There was a discussion of the best fit and the man pulled a number of papers for unskilled labor and a potential for the acolyte position, a budding scholar who had submitted his paperwork.
"This is for work at the Priory?" The man said, "Nasty business, that. Should I have them meet you there?"
"And," the man paused and wet his lips, "Will this position be hazardous?"
Bromm's face was smooth, it was clear that he did not intend to allow anything to happen.
"No, sir. All will be in order. And, yes, have them meet us at the priory."
With that, we took our leave and continued on past the city offices back to the Regent's estate.
"I've been seeing a lot of you boys lately." The Regent said with a tired sort of smile. "What do you have for me?"
"The priory," Bromm began, "We wish to take charge of the ongoing duties of those who were lost, including care and maintenance."
The Regent looked at each of us, weighing us.
"You've done well so far, but this is a very weighty matter. We will need to make sure all of the paperwork is in order for it to transition to your care." He fidgeted, drumming his fingers into his palms rapidly. "To tell you the truth, I would rather keep this as quiet as possible. The city has only heard rumors so far, and losing one of the oldest holy places is … disquieting, to say the least."
"If you can promise me that you will honor this position and," he glanced between Bromm and Sig, "Treat this duty respectfully and not simply to your own ends, then, by all means, I will fully empower you."
There were nods around. He watched closely, still weighing their intent. I could see the deepening lines around his eyes and the graying at his temples stand out more pronounced with each visit.
Crisis upon Crisis. I thought. I wonder how much all of us will age before these matters are settled.
Silah caressed my arm in response and I felt a warm embrace tighten across my shoulders reassuringly.
"Just," The Regent took a deep breath and let it out slowly, "don't make me regret this."
"You won't." Bromm said, fervently. "I am an Oathkeeper."
Bromm gave a curt bow, but remained standing in front of the man. He was about to turn away when he looked back to Bromm.
"Is there something else?" He said, annoyance creeping into his voice.
"Yes. One other matter." Bromm's unflappable exterior held strong, but I could still see a slight strain in his neck and his eye twitched just momentarily. "Regarding Robyn Beckett."
The Regent shook his head clenching his teeth.
"I will allow the law to handle this matter." The Regent chewed on the words. "There are too many moving parts to settle this cleanly. It will require a private pre-trial to establish a precedent. If we find that she was not justified in her … self-defense. If we are unable to settle this there, we will be required to make this a matter of public record. This could be … difficult for all of us."
Bromm nodded slowly.
"Anything else?" The Regent's eyes smoldered.
"No, sir. Thank you for your time." Bromm's manner was charming, but the Regent wasn't open to his disarming approach, at least, not at the moment..
As we stepped outside, Bromm let out a long breath and shook his head, the tension bled from him as he allowed himself to relax.
"I'm going to need more than a couple of drinks after all this." He announced. " But, right now, I'm going to visit Robyn again."
"Later at The Sea Witch?" He looked at us.
Danin and Floki nodded. Sig seemed preoccupied.
"We have the materials from Beidrick's shipment, Bromm." Sig mentioned. "We can start anytime."
Sig's tone belied his words. He wanted to start immediately. Bromm nodded seeming to recognize this. Apparently, this wasn't new information to him, but he seemed to need a moment to gather himself before he committed to yet another task.
Sig moved toward his grandfather's place while Danin and Floki went on to their own matters.
Beidrick was at The Sea Witch, he was sitting at one of the round tables, doing his best to capture Sabella's interest. She watched to see how much he pulled from his purse, giving back the attention as the coin still flowed. When Silah and I walked in, he nearly sent his chair to the floor he stood so quickly.
"A drink for these two! Shatterhammer?" He nodded toward us, Silah parted and moved toward him with a grand smile.
I looked to Sabella, then to Macaulay and shook my head.
"A stout if you would." I said in a low tone as a delighted Silah talked with the exuberant Beidrick.
Macaulay nodded with a wry smile. This had become the usual for me. I had told Sig and Bromm had better get something new in place quickly or they'd lose me entirely.
Beidrick flagged me over as Silah turned back, her eyes glittering reflecting his excitement.
"Did Bromm tell you about what happened on the return trip?" His eyes were afire as his excitement seemed to get the better of him.
I shook my head. My lazy morning, perhaps, was too lazy after all.
"So, we're out at sea and have the first shipment from the mines in the hold. It's a clear night, smooth sailing as far as I could see." He swept his hand across the air as he spoke, "Then these clouds start building from nowhere, off a bit to West from what I could tell by the starlight. It swallowed up the moon and we were nearly blind out there. We put in to the coast just as the the rain rolled right over us."
I thought back on the events after Bromm pledged himself to Kols. I furrowed my brow at Beidrick's own revelation. I have no idea how the gods work and now I was even more confused. It seemed a coincidence—even a sign, as it were—that showed just in time with Bromm's words. I was now even more intrigued and, from the look in his eye, Beidrick was just getting started.
"When it settled and we had bailed the boat, we ran into an old fisherman, someone I'd known for years, he flagged us over. They were caught out in the worst of it and it caused them some trouble with their sails." Beidrick got intense, "But, get this, they had fished a man out of the water who had been on some sort of makeshift raft. They said he was babbling on about a war. The fisherman was confused, thinking he was blown in from another warring nation, but then he mentioned Briarsgate and, oh, what's that name again, Dezovrask. That's the name of the demon that ..."
He looked at me and saw my confused look. Silah was intrigued, though, she seemed to recognize this name. I would have to ask her about it later. Seeing my lack of recognition, he moved on.
"The guy babbled on about mermaids grabbing the others and dragging them into the depths of the sea. Mermaids! Raenir and Danin said they saw mermaids off the coast of … that island." He looked around worried now that he'd raised his voice.
"Of course, it didn't work out so well for the man, though. He died from exposure as they were stuck in the worst of it."
He looked to me excitedly, but my lack of reaction seemed to tamp down his spirits. I could imagine my face didn't show much more than bewilderment.
"They did tell you about the island, right?" He said, a tad sullenly.
"Only briefly. I did overhear Bromm talking about Briarsgate once and I asked him some questions about it. Your friends are a bit tight lipped about all that." I offered, wondering if he could fill in the gaps. He looked around the room and found an empty table in a quiet corner of The Sea Witch.
"Let's go over there." He said, nodding toward the table, his eyes darting around for eavesdroppers. "If we're going back there, you'll want to know what went down."
I couldn't help but smile at the mischievous look on his face. Both Silah and I had heard portions of his tale from the others to a certain extent, but it had always been very restrained and abbreviated. Beidrick brought a different flavor to all of it, a considerably more raw depiction of events as well as adding his characteristic bravado.
"You keep talking, I'll keep buying." I offered, and he gave me a wide grin.
"You're on!"
(Get to know Akeron.)
(Read Robyn's Account of Events.)
Hakaar - Chronicle 21.1 - Reviving Kols
We failed miserably at avoiding Hagan's penetrating gaze as we hurried out into the night. His jaw flexed as he squinted at each of us. I didn't envy Bromm; not in the least. He'd be the one to catch words for all this. Hagan was a man who could make me feel a little queasy at a glance and that worried me.
The temperature dropped sharply as we emerged into the night. Hlofreden was quieter than expected even with the weekend bustle spilling out into the street. I could only guess that Magra, the Nightwatch Captain, cowed the onlookers or, perhaps, it was the angry but sullen Salamanders creating a wake of wary citizens. Whatever it was, it fit the mood of the night, suddenly tamped down to an uneasy atmosphere that eddied through the city streets.
Igul, the Salamander Captain, had said they would leave without question, but Bromm wanted to make sure they held to that promise—and to leave Robyn be. We spotted the Bluecoat escort in the distance and followed, watching closely. The Salamanders surely knew that we were lingering behind as well. They were veterans after all. Veterans for a Queen, even. I was curious what it took to get to a status like that. In Igul's case, he seemed to resent it at that moment; being more an unwilling tool than a soldier. Ultimately, he risked his own neck and stood against his Queen's order.
I don't believe that Bromm would see it that way. I doubted he would ever let it go. He had been lied to. And while, we hadn't quite told the truth ourselves, our cause for concern had been justified.
The Salamanders turned off the street, stepping into a stack of buildings that had seen some recent polish. I nudged Silah and nodded that direction.
"I've been looking for something a bit more permanent here." I spoke low to her, my voice still carrying in the evening air.
She looked up at me and smiled, pulling on my arm with the gesture, but didn't say anything. She had been remarkably calm in all of this. I started to realize that since she had let go of the anxiety from our encounter at the Priory of Kols, she seemed to be at peace?
Bromm was leading us past the docks. I didn't see Beidrick's boat docked. He had been busy shuttling workers to the different work sites, keeping Richter Holding's assets in motion.
The Bluecoats walking with Robyn gave no indication of being aware of our presence. They turned into the the barracks passing the Daywatch Captain on the way out. The difference between Magra Olfsen and Murdoch Keyes, the Daywatch Captain, were immediately apparent. Magra was a hard, strict fellow; a man who'd seen action. Magra, seeing us all out here bristling with weapons, would have been more than a little wary. Murdoch Keyes gave us an easy, unperturbed smile and a nod as he pushed out into the night.
Through the door, Robyn stood, straight backed and in shackles. She stood in front of a small, barred window talking to someone on the inside. You could hear her answering questions through the door as it slowly shut. I could imagine the bleary eyed clerk that Magra had with him trying desperately to write the information as Robyn's perfectly even voice rattled on.
"What do you want to do?" Sig asked Bromm.
"We'll come back after they get done with her." Bromm said, meeting Sig's gaze.
There was a pause and Bromm, suddenly intense, looked to each one of us.
"I've got something to do at the temple. Join me if you'd like." With that, he purposefully turned and strode down the street.
There were bewildered glances around. Floki shrugged and turned to follow him. Danin and Rana were still a pair. Sig, Silah, and I were the last to follow, falling in behind.
"Do you think this is part of a plan to get Robyn out?" I said aloud, looking to both Sig and Silah.
Sig shrugged, but Silah looked up with a half smile.
"I don't think this is about Robyn. I've seen that look before…" she whispered in my head, but let her voice faded before she completed the thought.
We moved through the outer door of the priory overhearing voices in the courtyard beyond.
"You were the ones who cleaned out that mess, right? You fit the description." A Bluecoat spoke from the shadows but I could see his young face clearly, showing the beginnings of a patchy beard. "You can go in. You'd have taken anything already if you wanted to."
The Bluecoat dismissed us by turning his attention from us and pulling out a worn pipe and starting to pack it.
Bromm pushed through the door into the dimly lit interior. I could see easily into the darkness, knowing I had an advantage over most of my cohorts in this situation. I scanned the corners for any lurking remnants, very clearly recalling the events of the morning before. Bromm moved toward the statue and altar in front of the stained glass. He pulled his pistol and knelt in front of the altar and looked up at the likeness of Kols and the giant boar, Mughurah. The group was fanned out around him, looking on with curiosity.
"Kols. I pledge my weapon to your cause." He licked his lips, searching for the words. "My ways differ from your ways but I believe in the power of an oath. I pledge to be an Oathkeeper and will make sure that others do the same."
He waited a moment, taking up his weapon and putting it into his coat. He then pulled out a striking hammer from a pistol and placed it on the altar. There was a string attached to it giving an indication to his forethought.
"And this is my holy symbol," He waited a moment, looking up at the statue, "This is my hammer."
He then swept the symbol off of the altar and slung it around his neck and stood, dusting off his knees. And as he turned to the rest of the group, there was patter of rain against the stained glass. I saw Silah nodding proudly.
"I can't let Kols fade into obscurity." He said, as the faint pattering turned into a rush. "It's about time I stood for a purpose that I can believe in."
Floki moved toward the door, looking out into the courtyard in disbelief. He shook his head but said nothing. I moved to the rain slicked windows, the downpour was unlike anything I had ever seen. It coated the walls with a thick layer of running water within moments.
"What did you do in there?" The young Bluecoat called out looking disgruntled and wet, huddling under the narrow eaves of the courtyard entrance.
It was still raining when we arrived at the Bluecoat hall. It was likely getting well into the night, but it was impossible to tell with the rain bearing down on us. We gathered, dripping wet, into the receiving room of the public side of the jail. Bromm introduced himself to the same clerk we had seen just earlier. His eyes were a bit red and watery. He would often put the palm of his hand to his head every so often, fending off a headache.
"What can I help you with?" He said, his eyes getting wider with each of us that stepped through the door. Even with his paranoia he didn't seem to recognize who we were.
Bromm stepped up.
"I'm here to see Robyn Beckett." There was an earnest calm in his approach.
"Are you family?" He said, not looking up from his scrawling on a parchment.
"Yes."
The clerk looked beyond Bromm at the rest of us and nodded.
"They all staying here?" He said, showing a little worry.
"Will that be a problem?" Bromm asked.
"Naw, just… have them take a seat if you could?" He scooted back the chain with a scrape and grabbed some keys, "I'll be right out. Meet me by that door there."
The man shuttered the receiving window. We attempted to take seats, but we quickly found that not everyone would fit on the bench. I leaned against the wall with Silah and tried to look indifferent as the guard let Bromm through. I still wasn't sure what Bromm's plan was for Robyn. I expected some fury out of all of this, but he'd been downright mild. The door opened and he moved through.
It was some time before Bromm joined us again. There was a slight flush to his face as he moved through the door. He wore a satisfied smile. I could hear the door behind him lock from the other side and footsteps moved into the back room, but the shutter stayed in place.
"I'm impressed. I didn't hear a gunshot or anything." I joked, but Bromm didn't react, "So, no jailbreak, then?"
"Nope. Although, if we wanted to, all you have to do is ask to see a prisoner." He showed his belt with the pistols slung, "They didn't even bother to disarm me."
Eyes went around.
"But you didn't… do anything, did you?" I asked, suddenly concerned.
"What kind of man do you think I am?" He looked at me with incredulity, "I'm an Oathkeeper!"
I chuckled.
The door creaked open and Captain Magra walked in. His head was low against the rain at first, but then he looked up with a moment of surprise in his eyes. He quickly masked it and moved in stripped away his wet cloak.
"Gentleman." He looked around at the lot of us, "You here to see the prisoner?"
"Ah, we've already seen her. We're on our way out." Bromm said smoothly.
That seemed to make him a little anxious. He walked to the shuttered window and gave it a rap.
"Yeah? How is she settling in?" He asked Bromm, with some degree of annoyance. "Some nasty business back there."
The shutter opened to the bleary eyed clerk who snapped to attention when he saw who it was.
"I'm sorry that you got caught up in all that." Bromm said, nodding. "But she knew that she could trust you to enforce the law."
"Heh, yeah. We hadn't said much more than a few words." He grimaced, "And most of those words weren't exactly pleasant."
"Will she be safe, then?" Bromm pressed, "We will be close at hand if there's any trouble."
Magra seemed to appreciate the gesture, but he waved it off.
"We'll be fine."
"Oh, she wanted me to tend to her cottage. She said you had the key?"
"Yes. I'll get to it." He moved back to the window and spoke to the clerk, "Her key is in that cabinet."
The clerk pushed the key through the window to Magra who handed it to Bromm.
"Everything else in order?" The Nightwatch Captain asked.
"Yes. We'll be on our way." He smiled a genuine smile at Magra and moved toward the door looking back to the rest of us.
Floki announced that he was heading to his shack on the edge of town as he prepared to step outside. Others chimed in, everyone heading to their respective beds.
"I'm going to do some house sitting for Robyn." Bromm held up the key.
"Say, since you're not taking your room in The Sea Witch, mind if Silah and I take it?"
"Feel free. It doesn't feel like my bed anymore anyway." He gave me a wry look, "Between Robyn bleeding all over it and, well, whatever you've done in there…"
There were some awkward chuckles around. I grimaced at first, but then gave a toothy grin. My eyes slid to meet Silah's who suddenly looked demure. I wasn't sure if she could blush, but this was likely the closest I'd seen from her.
"As always, you're too good to me, Bromm." I said with a smile.
We pushed out in the downpour. It had lessened only slightly since the initial rush. Floki seemed both dismayed and annoyed by it's onslaught.
"I didn't even see this coming." He mused loudly, seeming a touch annoyed with himself, as moved out into the night.
I had produced my duster and put it over Silah and myself as we moved our way to The Sea Witch. Silah pulled in close under the protective draping, I felt her warm arm around my back just below my rucksack. Her other hand traced absently over my ribs. The rain was aggressive, trying—in vain—to penetrate the oil soaked black canvas of the duster.
I paused under the shallow eaves of The Sea Witch, she moved through the door and I shook off the water from the relatively dry doorway. It was late, but the bouncer, Dean, who watched the common room at night nodded at me as we walked through.
Silah moved quietly into the room, standing in front of the full length mirror looking at herself. I couldn't remember the last time that Bromm had even been in here? It was left almost as we had left it nearly a week ago. I unslung the rucksack from my back and place it near the small desk with a thud and moved over to the mirror behind Silah. She looked at me and smiled through the mirror. I reached over and tilted it back slightly so I could see my own face.
"You've been quiet." I said, watching her eyes trace along the lines of her dress.
"Yes." She said quietly, a blissful smile on her face.
I put my hands on her shoulders and she looked me in the eyes. I felt my breath catch in my throat with her glittering gaze.
"Denton did you proud, my beast." She said thoughtfully, "That ensemble fits you perfectly."
I bent down and kissed her on the neck. I felt her rise with the touch and felt both my own desire mix with hers and reflect back to me. This was very different from the need that I had felt from her when I used her power to heal myself. Her response wasn't driven by need, but honest desire. She turned toward me and I cradled her face in my large hands.
"Thank you, love." I whispered, then pulled her close bringing my lips to hers.
(Get to know Akeron.)
(Read Robyn's Account of Events.)
The temperature dropped sharply as we emerged into the night. Hlofreden was quieter than expected even with the weekend bustle spilling out into the street. I could only guess that Magra, the Nightwatch Captain, cowed the onlookers or, perhaps, it was the angry but sullen Salamanders creating a wake of wary citizens. Whatever it was, it fit the mood of the night, suddenly tamped down to an uneasy atmosphere that eddied through the city streets.
Igul, the Salamander Captain, had said they would leave without question, but Bromm wanted to make sure they held to that promise—and to leave Robyn be. We spotted the Bluecoat escort in the distance and followed, watching closely. The Salamanders surely knew that we were lingering behind as well. They were veterans after all. Veterans for a Queen, even. I was curious what it took to get to a status like that. In Igul's case, he seemed to resent it at that moment; being more an unwilling tool than a soldier. Ultimately, he risked his own neck and stood against his Queen's order.
I don't believe that Bromm would see it that way. I doubted he would ever let it go. He had been lied to. And while, we hadn't quite told the truth ourselves, our cause for concern had been justified.
The Salamanders turned off the street, stepping into a stack of buildings that had seen some recent polish. I nudged Silah and nodded that direction.
"I've been looking for something a bit more permanent here." I spoke low to her, my voice still carrying in the evening air.
She looked up at me and smiled, pulling on my arm with the gesture, but didn't say anything. She had been remarkably calm in all of this. I started to realize that since she had let go of the anxiety from our encounter at the Priory of Kols, she seemed to be at peace?
Bromm was leading us past the docks. I didn't see Beidrick's boat docked. He had been busy shuttling workers to the different work sites, keeping Richter Holding's assets in motion.
The Bluecoats walking with Robyn gave no indication of being aware of our presence. They turned into the the barracks passing the Daywatch Captain on the way out. The difference between Magra Olfsen and Murdoch Keyes, the Daywatch Captain, were immediately apparent. Magra was a hard, strict fellow; a man who'd seen action. Magra, seeing us all out here bristling with weapons, would have been more than a little wary. Murdoch Keyes gave us an easy, unperturbed smile and a nod as he pushed out into the night.
Through the door, Robyn stood, straight backed and in shackles. She stood in front of a small, barred window talking to someone on the inside. You could hear her answering questions through the door as it slowly shut. I could imagine the bleary eyed clerk that Magra had with him trying desperately to write the information as Robyn's perfectly even voice rattled on.
"What do you want to do?" Sig asked Bromm.
"We'll come back after they get done with her." Bromm said, meeting Sig's gaze.
There was a pause and Bromm, suddenly intense, looked to each one of us.
"I've got something to do at the temple. Join me if you'd like." With that, he purposefully turned and strode down the street.
There were bewildered glances around. Floki shrugged and turned to follow him. Danin and Rana were still a pair. Sig, Silah, and I were the last to follow, falling in behind.
"Do you think this is part of a plan to get Robyn out?" I said aloud, looking to both Sig and Silah.
Sig shrugged, but Silah looked up with a half smile.
"I don't think this is about Robyn. I've seen that look before…" she whispered in my head, but let her voice faded before she completed the thought.
We moved through the outer door of the priory overhearing voices in the courtyard beyond.
"You were the ones who cleaned out that mess, right? You fit the description." A Bluecoat spoke from the shadows but I could see his young face clearly, showing the beginnings of a patchy beard. "You can go in. You'd have taken anything already if you wanted to."
The Bluecoat dismissed us by turning his attention from us and pulling out a worn pipe and starting to pack it.
Bromm pushed through the door into the dimly lit interior. I could see easily into the darkness, knowing I had an advantage over most of my cohorts in this situation. I scanned the corners for any lurking remnants, very clearly recalling the events of the morning before. Bromm moved toward the statue and altar in front of the stained glass. He pulled his pistol and knelt in front of the altar and looked up at the likeness of Kols and the giant boar, Mughurah. The group was fanned out around him, looking on with curiosity.
"Kols. I pledge my weapon to your cause." He licked his lips, searching for the words. "My ways differ from your ways but I believe in the power of an oath. I pledge to be an Oathkeeper and will make sure that others do the same."
He waited a moment, taking up his weapon and putting it into his coat. He then pulled out a striking hammer from a pistol and placed it on the altar. There was a string attached to it giving an indication to his forethought.
"And this is my holy symbol," He waited a moment, looking up at the statue, "This is my hammer."
He then swept the symbol off of the altar and slung it around his neck and stood, dusting off his knees. And as he turned to the rest of the group, there was patter of rain against the stained glass. I saw Silah nodding proudly.
"I can't let Kols fade into obscurity." He said, as the faint pattering turned into a rush. "It's about time I stood for a purpose that I can believe in."
Floki moved toward the door, looking out into the courtyard in disbelief. He shook his head but said nothing. I moved to the rain slicked windows, the downpour was unlike anything I had ever seen. It coated the walls with a thick layer of running water within moments.
"What did you do in there?" The young Bluecoat called out looking disgruntled and wet, huddling under the narrow eaves of the courtyard entrance.
It was still raining when we arrived at the Bluecoat hall. It was likely getting well into the night, but it was impossible to tell with the rain bearing down on us. We gathered, dripping wet, into the receiving room of the public side of the jail. Bromm introduced himself to the same clerk we had seen just earlier. His eyes were a bit red and watery. He would often put the palm of his hand to his head every so often, fending off a headache.
"What can I help you with?" He said, his eyes getting wider with each of us that stepped through the door. Even with his paranoia he didn't seem to recognize who we were.
Bromm stepped up.
"I'm here to see Robyn Beckett." There was an earnest calm in his approach.
"Are you family?" He said, not looking up from his scrawling on a parchment.
"Yes."
The clerk looked beyond Bromm at the rest of us and nodded.
"They all staying here?" He said, showing a little worry.
"Will that be a problem?" Bromm asked.
"Naw, just… have them take a seat if you could?" He scooted back the chain with a scrape and grabbed some keys, "I'll be right out. Meet me by that door there."
The man shuttered the receiving window. We attempted to take seats, but we quickly found that not everyone would fit on the bench. I leaned against the wall with Silah and tried to look indifferent as the guard let Bromm through. I still wasn't sure what Bromm's plan was for Robyn. I expected some fury out of all of this, but he'd been downright mild. The door opened and he moved through.
It was some time before Bromm joined us again. There was a slight flush to his face as he moved through the door. He wore a satisfied smile. I could hear the door behind him lock from the other side and footsteps moved into the back room, but the shutter stayed in place.
"I'm impressed. I didn't hear a gunshot or anything." I joked, but Bromm didn't react, "So, no jailbreak, then?"
"Nope. Although, if we wanted to, all you have to do is ask to see a prisoner." He showed his belt with the pistols slung, "They didn't even bother to disarm me."
Eyes went around.
"But you didn't… do anything, did you?" I asked, suddenly concerned.
"What kind of man do you think I am?" He looked at me with incredulity, "I'm an Oathkeeper!"
I chuckled.
The door creaked open and Captain Magra walked in. His head was low against the rain at first, but then he looked up with a moment of surprise in his eyes. He quickly masked it and moved in stripped away his wet cloak.
"Gentleman." He looked around at the lot of us, "You here to see the prisoner?"
"Ah, we've already seen her. We're on our way out." Bromm said smoothly.
That seemed to make him a little anxious. He walked to the shuttered window and gave it a rap.
"Yeah? How is she settling in?" He asked Bromm, with some degree of annoyance. "Some nasty business back there."
The shutter opened to the bleary eyed clerk who snapped to attention when he saw who it was.
"I'm sorry that you got caught up in all that." Bromm said, nodding. "But she knew that she could trust you to enforce the law."
"Heh, yeah. We hadn't said much more than a few words." He grimaced, "And most of those words weren't exactly pleasant."
"Will she be safe, then?" Bromm pressed, "We will be close at hand if there's any trouble."
Magra seemed to appreciate the gesture, but he waved it off.
"We'll be fine."
"Oh, she wanted me to tend to her cottage. She said you had the key?"
"Yes. I'll get to it." He moved back to the window and spoke to the clerk, "Her key is in that cabinet."
The clerk pushed the key through the window to Magra who handed it to Bromm.
"Everything else in order?" The Nightwatch Captain asked.
"Yes. We'll be on our way." He smiled a genuine smile at Magra and moved toward the door looking back to the rest of us.
Floki announced that he was heading to his shack on the edge of town as he prepared to step outside. Others chimed in, everyone heading to their respective beds.
"I'm going to do some house sitting for Robyn." Bromm held up the key.
"Say, since you're not taking your room in The Sea Witch, mind if Silah and I take it?"
"Feel free. It doesn't feel like my bed anymore anyway." He gave me a wry look, "Between Robyn bleeding all over it and, well, whatever you've done in there…"
There were some awkward chuckles around. I grimaced at first, but then gave a toothy grin. My eyes slid to meet Silah's who suddenly looked demure. I wasn't sure if she could blush, but this was likely the closest I'd seen from her.
"As always, you're too good to me, Bromm." I said with a smile.
We pushed out in the downpour. It had lessened only slightly since the initial rush. Floki seemed both dismayed and annoyed by it's onslaught.
"I didn't even see this coming." He mused loudly, seeming a touch annoyed with himself, as moved out into the night.
I had produced my duster and put it over Silah and myself as we moved our way to The Sea Witch. Silah pulled in close under the protective draping, I felt her warm arm around my back just below my rucksack. Her other hand traced absently over my ribs. The rain was aggressive, trying—in vain—to penetrate the oil soaked black canvas of the duster.
I paused under the shallow eaves of The Sea Witch, she moved through the door and I shook off the water from the relatively dry doorway. It was late, but the bouncer, Dean, who watched the common room at night nodded at me as we walked through.
Silah moved quietly into the room, standing in front of the full length mirror looking at herself. I couldn't remember the last time that Bromm had even been in here? It was left almost as we had left it nearly a week ago. I unslung the rucksack from my back and place it near the small desk with a thud and moved over to the mirror behind Silah. She looked at me and smiled through the mirror. I reached over and tilted it back slightly so I could see my own face.
"You've been quiet." I said, watching her eyes trace along the lines of her dress.
"Yes." She said quietly, a blissful smile on her face.
I put my hands on her shoulders and she looked me in the eyes. I felt my breath catch in my throat with her glittering gaze.
"Denton did you proud, my beast." She said thoughtfully, "That ensemble fits you perfectly."
I bent down and kissed her on the neck. I felt her rise with the touch and felt both my own desire mix with hers and reflect back to me. This was very different from the need that I had felt from her when I used her power to heal myself. Her response wasn't driven by need, but honest desire. She turned toward me and I cradled her face in my large hands.
"Thank you, love." I whispered, then pulled her close bringing my lips to hers.
(Get to know Akeron.)
(Read Robyn's Account of Events.)
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