Sent Kobold
Chapter 2: Aveamaria’s Prayers
Serhis renews his journey and is on the road once again, but now with a friend.
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It had been five days since Serhis and Baous had left the town of Dunben, and it wouldn‘t be until tomorrow when they would see Aveamaria, but on average it only takes five days by foot and on road. The delay stemmed from Serhis.
“Baous! Catch! Catch Serhis!” screamed a half-panicked kobold flailing his arms as he dropped through the air.
Baous ran full-tilt away from Serhis, turning around as the still flailing kobold caught up, getting ready to catch when he got low enough. Both fell to the ground as Serhis rammed into Baous, the landing a spectacular mess.
Getting off the ground, rubbing his chest “Owww. Ah, that time hurt. You okay there Serhis?” asked Baous
Serhis laid face down on the grass, only limply raising his tail as indication he was alive, before it plopped back to the ground, muffled speech coming from the floor, “Serhis… fine. Flying really not easy to learn. Painful.”
The two had spent the whole afternoon at the hillside, Serhis trying to stay in the air with his wings. Only til now was Serhis starting to get the hang of it, but he still had trouble predicting how the wind blew and flapping those wings was tiring him out, the landings pretty much consisted of him hoping Baous catching him.
“That’s the twenty fifth try. Want to rest again before you give it another go?” asked Baous, stretching his arms.
Turning his head to the side, Serhis replied, “Maybe few more times. After this all done, going to need to wash robes, all grass stained now.” Getting up, he brushed the blades of grass off, the blue and white robes decorated with large green streaks. He’d even taken off the chain shirt to reduce weight.
Standing at the top of the hill once more, Serhis stretched his wings. He still had enough light for maybe a few more tries, but now he was sore, tired of failure, and exhausted. Gripping the Star as a source of strength, he ran down the hill and made a high jump, flapping his wings. He held out his wings for as long and hard as he could, closing his eyes and bracing for another hard crash.
Seconds passed, and he opened his eyes.
I’m flying. Those words rung through his head a few times, each time more joyous than the last. Wind swept past his face and under his wings, he was more gliding than actively flying, but he was still soaring on the wind. Those words echoing in his head made it to his mouth, practically screaming them out at the top of his lungs as he saw Baous standing underneath as he flew past, completely ecstatic at the feeling of going though the air for the first time in his life under his own power.
The ground came up too soon, he wanted to stay in the wind as long as he could. He also was going too fast and Baous wasn’t there to catch him. Serhis rolled forward and spun three times and he was left sitting in the grass up-right when he came to a stop, then he fell back, dizzy, somewhat nauseous, and in a state of euphoria.
Hearing footstep, Serhis looked up as he lay on the ground, seeing Baous standing over him, “Serhis, you okay? Looks like you finally did it.”
Serhis practically jumped up, giving the furry kobold a huge hug, “Did you see?! Did you see?! Serhis did it! Serhis finally did it!” He started running around the field, wings and arms out, before he sat back down, a bit embarrassed at his display, but still with a wild grin stuck on his face.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Sitting at the camp, the cooking fire dying down, the two laid back in their bedrolls, looking at the night sky.
During the whole trip, they only crossed paths with other travelers a few times, the reactions as they saw each other mixed. Some looked with anger, others gave a yelp of fright, more looked at the both of them with curiosity, all kept their distance. Baous stared at the stars, having trouble falling asleep again since they started their journey, having to readjust to life on the road and distracted by memories of home. As he looked up, he asked, “Serhis, why are we going to Aveamaria?”
Serhis opened his eyes, giving a reply, “Going to temple of Bahamut. Aveamaria only place for long way around that I know that has temple. Not many people find temple, not many know about it, but now starting to get some attention. Serhis think that maybe find something to do there. You ever be to Aveamaria?”
Baous nodded, “I’ve been there a few times, it’s a big city. Over fifteen thousand people, last I heard. I know a few places there, but it’s so big there’s no way I could explore it all. My sister lives there, her name’s Alexia, owns her very own tavern and inn. Dad helped buying the place, but, sis being sis, she’s already repaid him. Last letter she sent us, business was good and it looks like it’s only getting better, now that the festival is starting.”
“Festival? What festival?” asked Serhis.
“There’s a Harvest festival that happens every year there. Lots of parties, feasts, dances, all that sort of stuff. Last time I was there was two years back, sis was really busy that night. I’ve never seen her carrying eight jugs of ale back and forth before, I helped hand the food out that day. Nobody said anything, some just looked at me weird, some kinda smiled at me. People tipped really horrible too. Sis already hired some help, she’s going to need it this year, this is probably the biggest festival that they’ve ever had. The harvest this year was really big and they say the storehouses are filled, so they wanted to make it big this year. It’s going to start three days from now, I guess that’s why we see so many people on the road now,” Baous yawned as he finished, rolling on his side to go to sleep.
Serhis thought about this festival, wondering how it would look like, then he closed his eyes again, scratched at dry scales, tugged on his wing so that he wouldn’t fall asleep on it, then drifted off.
*~*~*~*~*~*
By the next day, the two of them reached the city of Aveamaria by noon. They had a little trouble getting through the gate, since one of the guards asked who they are, what they were doing here, and what they are, the last one confusing the guard even more, since both Serhis and Baous answered that they are both kobolds. A short time later, both had gotten through, the guard having gotten a new story to tell his buddies about this unusual incident.
Baous led Serhis through the city, the place was large and it was easy to get lost. It almost reminded Serhis of home, large tunnels that funneled people from one place to another, except that home just had kobolds and that there was no sky to look up at.
Walking up to a building, on the side hung a sign, “The Fox’s Gem Inn and Tavern”.
Serhis paused at the sign, asking Baous, “Why the funny name?”
“You’ll get it,” said Baous as he opened the door, gesturing for Serhis to enter. Inside was a spacious tavern, with marble flooring and oak tables. The bar looked like polished mahogany, behind it a female dwarf arranging a few drinks. Her hair glowed a reddish brown and she dressed tastefully, wearing a blue dress and a decorative belt. Behind both the bar and her was a raised pedestal, on top a red fox, sleeping curled up next to a diamond, which practically glowed in the light.
“Hi Sis!” announced Baous as he walked through the door, Serhis trotting behind. The people in the tavern had already given a weird and confused look at the two newcomers, only to be more confused as the bar keeper went up to her kobold brother and gave him a hug, “Hi Brother! You should have sent a letter saying you were coming Baous, I would have had something for you. Who’s this with you?”
Serhis shook her hand, “My name is Serhis, kobold, cleric of Bahamut.”
She looked at Serhis, “Kobold, but… oh that kind of kobold. Yes, I’ve heard something about other kobolds. He your friend brother?”
Baous gave a nod, “Uh, yes sis. Could, could you please let go, getting hard to breathe.”
She let go and turned to the bar, speaking to an elf waitress, “Melissa, could you cover for me? Thanks,” she asked as she gestured to an empty table to Baous and Serhis. The tavern patrons returned to their business, though a few glanced their way in curiosity.
Taking a seat, Baous’ sister asked, “So, what can Alexia Winterstone do for you? Did you both come for the festival?”
“Sorta. I’m traveling with Serhis now, I want to go journey around like Dad, I want to see the things he saw,” Baous answered.
Alexia looked at the both of them, “A journey, I see. So Serhis, where are you going, what are you doing, how did you get to know my brother?”
Serhis adjusted his tail as he sat and scratched the back of his head, replying, “Well, Serhis not really sure where going. Came to Aveamaria to go to temple of Bahamut, maybe find something to do. Me being friend to your brother, it’s a long story,” he said, and started telling of the incident nearly four weeks ago.
When he was finished, Alexia leaned back into her chair, “I always said that Alaric was a little too fast in his decisions. Rough month on you, wasn’t it?” she said as she took a flask from her belt and took a gulp. “Looks like dad finally took the hammer down, huh?” she noted, pointing at the war hammer that Baous had on his back as she held the flask.
Baous nodded, “Yeah, but I really don’t know if I need to use it. I think it’s his way of giving me a safe journey. How about you sis? How are things with the tavern?”
Upon hearing that question, she took a big swig from the flask, emptying it, “Busy. This whole week customers have been coming in and going out. It’s good for business, no question, but with so many people, trouble just starts to come in. I already had to throw out five people this week, two for trying to steal stuff in my tavern, the other three for starting a fight here. They want a fight, they do it outside, then the city watch can deal with them. Even the local temples are having troubles of their own, but not from outsiders or anything. They probably didn’t intend for it, but those old duffers really started something. Because of the good harvest this year, the priests started declaring feasts and thanksgivings for their gods. Then they go say their god was the one most responsible for the bounty. Not all of the temples here are doing that, but the two biggest offenders here are the ones of Pelor and Yondalla. The Pelor supporters say that most thanks should go to him for the great weather and sunlight this year, the Yondalla ones saying it was her influence that caused the bumper crop. Seems a little funny that none of the gods are saying anything in their own defense or others. Ha! They all either really did help the crops grow and no one wants to steal someone else’s thunder or they had nothing to do with it at all. Not that the priests are going to stop because of it.”
“Serhis not mean to interrupt, but can I get room for tonight? Maybe need room for some days,” asked Serhis.
“Oh, yes, you can stay here. Since business is really going fast now, I’ll give you a room to stay with Baous free of charge,” Alexia replied.
“No, no, Serhis will pay,” he gestured as he tried to hand her some coins.
“Look, since you’re helping my brother with this journey, I need some way to repay you for looking out for him. Besides, the room isn’t usually one that sells very well, I’m sad to say. Now come on, go ask Melissa for the key,” Alexia said, so Serhis went and got the key to the room and went up, while Baous and Alexia continued their conversation.
As they continued to talk at the table, their discussion ranged in topics from local news, the festival, the price of food, family and friends. At the end of the last topic, Baous rose from the table, “I’m going to check up on Serhis, he might want something to eat now,” and climbed the stairs, the room they were given was at the end of the hall, the door unlocked.
“Serhis, you want something for lunc- WHAAAA!” Baous gave a yelp of surprise as he saw Serhis. The scaly kobold was at the end of the room, disrobed and turned away from Baous, the ground around him littered with patches of skin.
Most kobolds have a practical view of clothing, it kept you warm, it gave some protection from the elements, you don’t scrape yourself when you bump into the cavern walls, and could be used as a symbol or decoration for the wealth and status you carried.
Serhis is just modest as hell.
At seeing Baous at the door, he gave the shocked look of a deer staring down the arrow of a hunter, made his own yelp of surprise and covered himself with his wings, then ran and jumped into the bed, pulling the covers over him. Baous stood in shock, then turned back into the hall, only leaving the door open a little, “Uh, um, Serhis, you, ah, are you alright?” stammering in some embarrassment, but nowhere near as much as Serhis.
“… Yes,” Serhis said meekly.
“Wha… What was all that stuff around you? You sure your okay?” asked Baous.
“Serhis fine. Just need to… shed old skin. Started to get itchy.”
“What? Like a snake?”
“No, not like snake, snake shed most skin in piece, kobold needs to shed skin in patches. Serhis not shed skin in over year.”
“So kobolds don’t need to shed skin for over a year?”
“No, no, most kobold adult shed skin every season, young kobold need shed every week or month. If Serhis use bitter leaf oil, no need to do this.”
“So you ran out?” asked Baous.
“No, but when lost my pack, had all my bitter leaf oil in it. When got pack back, not there. Think that Alaric didn’t know what it was and threw it away,” answered Serhis.
After an awkward silence, Baous asked, “Uh, you still want anything for lunch?”
“Anything is fine,” Serhis said from underneath the sheets, listening to Baous walk down the hall. Serhis gave a sigh, then got out of the bed. He kept scraping the old skin and scales off, alone in his thoughts again.
That was really embarrassing, Serhis thought, what’s Baous going to think of me now? He spent the next minute stewing in that question, calming down while he kept shedding. Ah, I’ve got to concentrate. I’ve got to get to the temple of Bahamut here. I really hope I remembered the directions right. What if I get lost? I’ve got to ask Alexia where to find a map. What will I do when I get there? Will they have some sort of task that I can help with as best I can? The questions echoed through his head, as he looked out the window.
The last patch gone, Serhis donned his chain shirt and robes, the itchy feeling gone, but his fresh skin was still somewhat irritable. The view from the window was poor, it didn’t offer much of a view of the street and all the landmarks where covered by buildings at this angle, the only thing to be seen was the sky. Gathering the old patches of shed skin, he put it into a bag to dispose of later, going downstairs for lunch.
I’ve got to pull myself together.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Lunch consisted of some form of leafy vegetables and a side of chicken, but the conversation was subdued, Serhis and Baous not saying much, but Alexia didn’t notice, still asking questions to both as they ate. Baous hadn’t said anything about the incident, for which Serhis was thankful for, after lunch Serhis asked her if she knew where to buy a map of the city. She handed him a copy of hers, then Serhis and Baous headed out.
The walk to the temple was a strained silence between the two, both not sure how to act in front of the other. Serhis gathered his courage, then tried to speak, “… Your sister a nice person.”
Dolt. You’re dancing around the question, he berated himself, and realized just that he didn’t know what the question was. What am I going to ask, you just saw my bare backside, I hope you weren’t too embarrassed?
Baous nodded, “Yeah, she took care of me when mom and dad weren’t home sometimes when we were younger. Always treated me as we were both still just little kids, still hard to believe she’s more than three times my age.”
“Three time…? How old she…? Ah, little rude to ask,” Serhis cut himself off.
“Oh, don’t worry, she doesn’t mind. She’s forty-eight. Dwarf tend to age slowly, I found out, when I ask dad how old he was. Really confused me when I found out humans only lived about seventy years, maybe eighty or ninety if they are really luck, since my dad’s older than all of them,” Baous explained. After another brief bit of silence, Baous asked, “Uh, what are you going to do about all the dead skin you have?”
Serhis started twisting his tail with his hand, “Serhis maybe put into grass or maybe just burn…” he took a huge breathe, he knew Baous asked that as an indirect way to breach the subject, “Serhis… Serhis hope Baous not mind about that back there.”
If Serhis could see through fur, he’d be seeing Baous blushing hard, “No, no, besides, I learned something about kobolds today. I just hope you aren’t mad at me for seeing you like that.”
“Not mad, no, just a little embarrassed, but don’t worry, still good friends,” Serhis said, nodding at the taller kobold. The two continued their conversation, talking about the city and Alexia, glad that that issue had been dealt with.
Baous soon lost track of where they were going, but Serhis kept a mental map of where to go, assuming that the directions he was given were correctly remembered. Temples to Bahamut are extremely rare, his followers consisting mainly of dragons, dragonborn, some kobolds, and a myriad of others, but such is the rarity of the lot, that only a few places have enough of any to warrant a temple. On top of that, one of the creeds of a follower of Bahamut was to follow with actions, not words and prayer, so such places to actually worship were pretty much moot, as most followers simply kept a small shrine as a sign of devotion. The main reason for a temple, however, was simply for an official gather place for any followers, where someone who wanted to make their services available to a cause of Bahamut could go. As Serhis explained this, Baous barely noticed that the building they had entered only had one door, but they had come in from another. Only those who knew where the door is could open or see it. Ascending to the top through winding stairwell, both came out to a simple temple, a statue of a dragon with platinum scales sat near the far wall, the Star engraved on the statue, the room furnished with several chairs and tables, but nothing extravagant and with few embellishments, the walls have several doors leading to smaller rooms for more privacy, the walls near the roof have wide open windows, to allow in the sunshine, wind, and starlight at night. Two dragonborn, one male and one female, stood near a wall, having a conversation, their hands gesturing as it developed, while a tall human female, elegantly dressed and with a graceful beauty, who looked no more than twenty, leaned back in a big, cushioned chair that faced the exit, likely half-asleep, not so gracefully.
The two dragonborn took a glancing look at the new arrivals, but went back to their private talk as they saw Serhis. Serhis himself didn’t notice, as he was concentrating on the human in the chair across the room, “Is it… Hah, yes it is!” he yelled in some joy as he sprinted across the room, practically tackling the woman with a hug.
The woman jerked awake as the small scaly kobold jumped in the chair, then exclaimed in delighted surprise, “Serhis! What are you doing here? I thought that you went back home to Lehaskeral when you left.”
Serhis let go, dropping back to the floor, “Really good see you again Helena!” he said with glee, then started to talk rapidly in Draconic, “I really, really missed you Helena! I know it’s been several months, I really wish I could have sent a letter, but I had no idea where you went, you said it yourself you didn’t know where you were going to go when you left. It’s been difficult these past four months, my tribe, having to go above ground without you, going to places I had no knowledge of beforehand.”
He would have continued if Helena hadn’t put her finger to his snout, speaking in eloquent Draconic, “You can tell me all about it, but first, perhaps you should explain the situation and our previous relations to your friend standing there, he seems a bit perplexed and I’m sure he does not understand us at the current time,” nodding over to a confused Baous.
Serhis nodded, then brought Baous over to the woman, “Baous, meet Helena. Helena, this Baous. Baous also a kobold, really. Not same type of kobold, but still kobold. Helena is good friend of Serhis, taught me all I know about how to be cleric of Bahamut, stayed with her for year going across the land, helping her and she help me,” Serhis was energized and full of life, more than happy to greet two of his best friends.
Baous extended a hand to her, “Nice to meet you Miss Helena. I’m Baous Winterstone.”
Helena shook his hand, giving a pleasant smile, “A pleasure to meet you, Baous, I see that Serhis always makes good friends, my name is Helena Rhastrom,” she noted as she looked again at Serhis, “Still having some difficulty with Common, Serhis? It seems I’ve spoiled you during that year, I never did give you much opportunity to speak it frequently.”
“Maybe, but I learned a lot more this past months, don’t worry,” said Serhis, “Oh, Serhis came here looking for something to do, been kinda lost, not sure where to go to help do something, so came here.”
She gave some thought to his words, “Well, Serhis, it has been rather uneventful of late, there have been no incidents to speak of that require our attention. You could stay here for the festival, others may come during this time with news of an event that might use your abilities. This festival would also be a good time for you to relax, it sounds as if you’ve had some unpleasant experiences since we parted.”
“Well, yes, I might be interested in seeing what city festival looks like,” Serhis responded.
Helena looked between the two kobolds, asking, “Do you have a place to stay while you are here? There are some rooms at the temple you could use during your stay.”
Baous responded, “No need, Miss Helena, we have a room to stay at my sister’s inn.”
“Very well. So Serhis, what would you like to talk about?” Helena asked, Serhis began talking about the past month. The group spent the rest of the afternoon at the temple, the two old friends catching up, the three new friends exchanging interests.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
By nightfall, Serhis and Baous had said their farewells to Helena and had returned to the inn. They had dinner in their room, some bread, a bit of steak and tomato soup. Serhis sat facing the window, he could see why the room didn’t sell very well, the lighting was terrible, there wasn’t much to see from this side of the building, and the only view that wasn’t blocked was the street directly in front of the entrance. He saw the sign at the front again, reminding him of a previous unanswered question.
“Baous, why your sister named this place the strange name? Serhis saw fox and diamond at bar, but still don’t get it,” Serhis asked.
Baous was in the process of guzzling down the bowl of soup, licking his lips as he finished, “Oh, that. Yeah, my sister has a bit of a story for that. About three years ago, just before my sis bought this place, dad found this little fox pup while he was working. I’m not sure why he did it, but he brought it home with him, maybe because he thought a pet would be good for me. Funny thing is, he liked my sis a lot more than me, he always seemed to follow her around, and she took a liking to him herself, so decided to name him Poss. Just as my sis bought this inn, she tells me one day Poss came in with this diamond in his mouth, just carried in in, put it on the table, and sat down next to it. She tried to find out who it belonged to, but she got so many people saying it was their’s, she got fed up with it and bought a scroll of truth from the market, saying anyone who said they owned the gem had to be subject to the spell and anyone that lied had to pay double for the scroll, and that‘s a lot of money. A lot of the people then said it wasn’t their’s or that they were mistaken, but a few thought they could get by the spell. Sis just asked a lot of smart questions and tricked the whole lot of them, we found out that really nobody owned that gem, and we still don’t know where he got it. Now it just sits there at the bar, a nice decoration. She got it appraised, turns out it’s worth a small fortune, the diamond one of those really rare star diamonds, enough for a small house. When sis did name the bar, she thought of the diamond, since little Poss helped pay for it in a way.”
“But if you leave it at the bar, won’t someone try steal it?” asked Serhis.
“Sis already had to deal with plenty of thieves when some found out she had the diamond, that’s why it’s on that pedestal. Anyone that doesn’t say a certain word and isn’t my sis or Poss touches it get a nasty shock, it leaves them on the floor stunned. After the last festival, she sent us a letter she had to kick out five guys in the same night for trying to get the diamond. They even tried being smart about it, two had gloves that didn’t let you get shocked, but Poss jumped on their faces and really scratched them up.”
Serhis nodded, the story something of interest to him, until he heard a loud BZZZT sound downstairs and the sound of someone screaming, a string of loud talking what sounded to be Dwarven, then he saw out the window someone being thrown face first into the street, Alexia shouting at the top of her lungs in Dwarven at the man as he got up and ran.
Baous stood behind Serhis, looking at Alexia as she went back into the bar, “Oh, I’m not sure dad would like hearing sis saying all that.”
“Why? What she say?” asked Serhis.
“I don’t think you’d like to hear and I’d really don’t want to say,” blushed Baous.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The next morning was a busy day, the eve of the Harvest festival. Baous was acting as busboy again, helping with the large increase in customers, while Serhis had managed to earn some gold by using his skill at healing to patch up people that were injured. A few shady characters came in and out of the tavern, but what got both of their attention was a human male sitting in one corner, a mug of ale on the table and a book in his hands, but Serhis and Baous sometimes noticed that he would be observing something else besides the book.
By the afternoon, most of the customers had left, Baous and Serhis decided to see the markets and see if there was something that would interest them.
“Serhis, you see him?” Baous nudged slightly, indicating the man they had noticed earlier.
“Yes, Serhis noticed. You know why he following us?” questioned Serhis.
“No,” said Baous, “We’re going to need to keep an eye on him.”
The trip though the market was uneventful, Serhis had bought two potions that would cure light wounds, useful in the event he could no longer cast, Baous kept watch during the whole trip. They lost sight of the man from time to time, but they’d spot him somewhere in the crowd later. He looked somewhat lean, but it was hard to tell beneath the dark gray cloak he wore, but he did not have the hood up, allowing both of them to see his face clearly, slightly angular, sharp eyes, with short, black hair.
“Might want to go through alleys to get back to inn,” hissed Serhis, to which Baous nodded. Breaking a hard left, both entered a small side street. Serhis took the map from his pouch, taking the streets not normally subject to traffic, avoiding the dead ends, and using the small alleys as much as possible. Ten minutes of weaving in and out though the streets of Aveamaria, they waited in a grimy alley, listening for any sign of pursuit.
Baous listened, ears perked, “Think we lost him?”
Serhis nodded, but with a bit of uncertainty, “I want to find out why he follow us, but maybe later, go back to inn now,” he said as he looked though the map, trying to find a route to get back.
As he looked, Serhis smelled something… rotting. Baous’ ears heard a deep growl, which sounded like a canine, but very different.
“You smell that?” asked Serhis.
Baous looked around, “Uh huh, I hear something too. Doesn’t sound like the guy that was following us.”
The source of both came from a dead end street, which Serhis saw on the map, slowly turning the corner, they saw what looked like a feral wolf tearing messily through the remains of what appeared to be a dead dog, a Doberman. Both made a sound of revulsion at the sight and turned to leave, but the wolf itself had looked at what caused the noise. Serhis and Baous looked, seeing if the wolf was going to chase them or growl to drive them away from it’s downed prey, until they noticed it’s face.
It was missing it’s left eye. Not that it simply had a scarred face and had the eye lids closed, but the eye was gone, a dark pit where it used to be, then they saw the rest of the wolf, the lower half of it’s right front leg rotten to the bone. Dark, gory slashes crossed its back.
“Undead. This wolf is a zombie,” warned Serhis, his claws reaching for his crossbow, “What it doing in the city? Someone would have notice.”
Baous took the war hammer from his back, a bit of fear creeping into his voice, “So that’s a zombie? Dad told me a few stories about things like these, I’ve never seen one before.”
The wolf zombie walked slowly at the two, then with surprising speed, ran at them, howling in a half groan that was unnatural coming from the dead lupine. Serhis fired a bolt from the small crossbow, only catching it in the leg as it ran, but it only stumbled slightly as it continued to run straight at Baous, jaws opening wide.
Baous was ready, swinging the hammer in an upward arc that hit the underbelly of the beast as it jumped at him. The force of the blow caused it to stumble, scrabbling on the dirty stone street trying to get back up. Baous still had the war hammer above his head from the previous swing, he stepped forward to bring it crashing down, while Serhis had reloaded, unable to fire as Baous was too close to the wolf zombie.
It did not stay down, instead launching itself at Baous again before he could strike, throwing both of them to the ground. Baous used the war hammer handle to push back the wolf’s neck as it’s jaws snapped at him, it’s claws scratching at him as he laid on the ground, unable to get up with the wolf standing on him.
Serhis couldn’t fire another bolt, not with them so close, instead he raised the Star of Bahamut, surging the area with a holy presence. The undead wolf howled, unable to stand the aura, dashing past Serhis and down another alley, leaving a shaky Baous on the ground, somewhat scratched up, a stunned Serhis rattled at the surprise attack from a zombie. Serhis extended a shaking claw to Baous helping him up while at the same time healing him, the scratches and marks fading, “What a zombie doing here? Why it here?”
Baous stumbled slightly as Serhis helped him stand, putting the war hammer onto his back, “I don’t know, but I just want to get back to the inn,” to which Serhis unfolded the map again, quickly leading them back though city until Baous recognized certain streets, finding their way back through the roads, lit orange by the setting afternoon sun and the streets lamps as they were lit.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
When they returned to the inn, they were surprised to see that the man who had followed them earlier was at the bar, talking to Alexia, only to depart up the stairs to one of the rooms as they entered. Serhis and Baous walked up to the bar, Serhis asking Alexia, “Who that you was talking to?”
Alexia finished handing a tray of food to Melissa before turning to hurriedly answer, “A friend of mine, just needed to asked for a room to rent. Need anything else? The dinner rush is starting and I’m going to need some help tonight.”
As Alexia turned to deal with another customer, Serhis began to say something about the zombie, but before he could utter a word, Baous clamped his hand down on Serhis’ snout, a sheepish look on his face a mix look of apology and worry. Serhis nearly opened his mouth again to say something, then nodded with Baous’ hand still over his mouth, staying silent as the hand was removed. The dinner rush was hectic, all of them going back and forth with orders and dishes, only until much later that night in their room did Serhis and Baous talk.
Serhis plopped down his bed, carefully avoiding landing on his wings and tail, “Why you do that back there? Serhis know you don’t want me say anything to Alexia, but I don’t know why.”
Baous fell into his bed, front first and curled up, lifting his head to talk, “I didn’t want to say anything about zombies in front of Alexia. She’d be really worried about that sort of thing, even more worried that it attacked me. I mean, she looked really upset when I told her about what happened back home with Alaric yesterday, I really don’t want her find out about this. If I’m going to be taking this journey with you, this thing is kinda going to be expected, right?”
Serhis turned his head, thinking. Another secret to keep. I’m getting tired of secrets. But… what about what Innoc said, should I tell him about it now? No, it’s something for later. But when?
He nodded his head, agreeing, “Serhis think your right. Besides, saying something about zombie now, in middle of crowded tavern not good idea, really not good idea since festival starting. Might start panic. But we can’t just let this go, zombie needs something to create it, necromancy, divine power, dark energy source. We need to keep lookout for anything strange later, but since city is such big place, with so many people, someone else might find it and we don’t need do something.”
Serhis sighed, a single thought plaguing him as he blew out the candle that lit the room and wrapped the bed sheets over himself. I’ve come to Aveamaria, I’ve found Helena, but I still don’t have a clear idea what to do in this situation, what answer am I suppose to make? He turned his head at the shadow that was Baous in his bed. Some journey I’m taking you on, I don’t know where I‘m going. An uneasy slumber was all that he found.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The start of the Harvest festival began.
The morning was a frantic mess of orders, dishes, mugs of ale and beer, one guy trying to skip out on his bill, and another tried an attempt at the diamond, the end result of Serhis finding out Alexia was much stronger than he thought. Serhis had volunteered to help as busboy again, this time Alexia really needed the help. Someone had rented out a section a of the tavern for a large party, Alexia practically had to roll a whole keg of ale to the main table to save time instead of going back and forth with constant refills, billing them for the whole thing. It probably wouldn’t last the day. During the whole day, the man Alexia said was a friend stayed in the tavern at the same table, again with the book and the occasional glancing looks. Serhis wanted to go and see who this friend really was, but was to occupied helping cook as well as a myriad of other tasks to try.
When noon came and the lunch crowd entered, it became a system of managed chaos as everyone had to do a task and a half just to keep up. An order of two beers, seasoned chicken, a vegetable plate, sending a runner to the market to get more ingredients, constantly making sure that the dishes were dry enough after washing for immediate use, even an extra order from the party for the chef’s special while Serhis was the only one cooking at the time. The people at the table found that kobold style cooking very much to their taste, much to the dismay of Serhis, as he looked at the mess of new orders from the surrounding tables wondering what that exotic smell was coming from.
By the afternoon, the tide of orders stopped, Baous dead on his feet after running back and forth, Alexia taking stock of the depleted pantry, Melissa mopping up the mess that some drunks had left, and Serhis sitting at a table in with Baous in contemplation.
Three days in Aveamaria and what have I done? He asked himself. The temple of Bahamut had received no news of a situation where a cleric would generate a positive outcome if one were sent. Most of my time was spent helping Alexia, I‘m glad I could help, but wasn’t there a situation where my healing would be of critical use?
Serhis then realized he now had time to talk to the man that had followed them, but when he looked at the table were he sat, the man was not in his seat or anywhere to be seen. There was a tip on the table, a single gold coin. Serhis set his head down on the table, matching Baous’ physical exhaustion with his mental tiredness, both sitting at the table, one looking like a tired puppy waiting for time to pass while a large lizard sat across from him mimicking the expression.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
In the evening, things had calmed downed, dinner had been served and promptly devoured, the party had run its course, people staggering off to home or to a room in the inn into bed, oblivious to the nightmare that awaited them, not in their dreams, but the morning after, the beer and ale all much too present in their systems. These concerns were not shared with the two kobolds that helped put them in this state. Serhis bemused that the effort today was comparable to a day in a kobold mine.
Though the party at the “Fox’s Gem” was over, other such festivities continued though the night. The Harvest festival usually lasted a week in Aveamaria, but most of the major events occurred during the first and last day, this midnight would be marked by a concert performed by outstanding musicians and bards. The only effect it would have on the two would be hoping that it wouldn’t wake them up. Serhis, tired enough that he didn’t bother taking off his chain shirt, fell into the bed with a weighted “thumpf”, the gust of wind enough to blow out the candle, which was fine with him as he tried to fall asleep. Baous’ ears lifted up, the sound of distant music could be heard. Trying their best to ignore the noise, both curled up and slept.
What woke them up was not the sound of a loud note, but the sharp ring of shattering glass. Serhis bolted up-right in his bed looking around to see what had caused the noise. He barely caught the glimpse of fur and fangs as it leapt on him, teeth and claws trying to rip at him through the sheets. Though sheets and robes were slashed and gouged, they didn’t penetrate the chain mail that Serhis wore. Scrambling from the bed, Serhis grabbed his pick from the table and turned to face what was attacking him in the night.
Even if it was the pitch black night, Serhis had no difficulty identifying what had assaulted him, kobolds having the ability to see in total darkness. His attacker was the zombie wolf from yesterday, easily marked by the eyeless socket staring at him and the hole where he had shot a bolt. Serhis was alarmed at the sight of Baous being bitten in the arm by a dog, that same dog that was killed by the wolf in the blind alley. Baous was using his arm to block the undead dog from ripping his throat open, his arm wrapped in the bed sheet, but the bite still was painful and Baous was pinned down. He was panicking, the furry kobold was nowhere near his war hammer, and Serhis didn’t know if Baous had the same advantage of seeing in the dark he did. Concentrating, Serhis directed holy energies at the undead canines, trying to drive them away. The zombies turned away from Serhis, leaping through the window that they had entered.
Serhis took deep breathes, the threat fleeing, then he ran to Baous placing his hand on the shaking kobold’s arm, “Baous, you okay, can you talk?”
Baous was shaking badly, he had just been bitten by an undead dog, attacked as he had slept in his bed in the dark of night, he never remembered such a horrific experience in his life that compared to this. The shaking stopped as Serhis held his arm, the bite marks fading as soothing energies came from the small kobold as he healed the minor wound. Baous nodded his head, his voice shaky “Ye- Yeah, I… I think I’m okay,” he said, calming down now that a friend was near.
Serhis silently nodded, handing Baous his war hammer, then running toward the broken window, looking out to where the zombies had fled or looking to see how they even managed to get up to a second story window. Looking down, he saw stacks of crates and barrels, the containers they had used today for the large amounts of food and drink. What was alarming was that Alexia had not stacked up the crates to stack up high enough to reach the window. Somebody else, somebody that had hands and could think had set that up. He stepped on the windowsill, “Serhis going after them, going make sure they don’t come back after us, make them very dead.”
Baous whipped his head around and his face showed a shocked look, “You’re going after them?!”
Serhis only had time to nod, concentrating on sensing where the undead creatures had gone. Focusing on a spell, he looked for the presence of the maligned energies that gave the dead carcasses motion, sensing the two go through the winding alleys. Serhis had prepared spells to sense and destroy undead because of yesterday, but he had no idea that the undead would come hunting for him. Jumping down the crates, he ran down the street in pursuit. He heard the sound of Baous jumping down off the crates, his friend coming to help, even if Baous was still scared, he’d still help.
The wolf and dog zombies went though a dozen alleys, Serhis undeterred by the numerous blind alleys as he followed by sensing the undead. The sound of a festival concert started to become louder as they went from street to street, until Serhis came to a immediate halt before he turned into another alley, Baous nearly running into him as he came to an unexpected halt.
“What? Where did they go? Why did you stop?” Baous asked.
Serhis raised his claw, telling Baous to quiet down, before silently speaking himself, the sound of loud drums and strings hopefully drowning out what Baous had just said, “I… what word… sense, more than two now. I can feel more than two with evil in their souls in next alley,” he said, crouching in the darkness of the alley and peered around the corner.
In the dark gloom, he saw the wolf and dog zombies, then more, 3 zombies in the next alley, bipedal in form, a human, elf, and dwarf, or what was left of them, the elf only a skeleton. What gave Serhis a shock was not only that there were so many in one place, but what was behind them all. Standing just outside the light, two figures, dressed in dark cloaks, looking out of the alley and onto a plaza, which was filled with a mass of people, all looking at the concert being played. The two were talking to each other, Serhis straining to hear them over the concert playing behind them.
“The dogs are back, does that mean they’re dead?” one spoke, sounded like a male voice, with a wispy accent.
“Yes, I see some blood on that one’s teeth, two less that can interfere,” spoke the other, a gravelly voice, one that spoke with authority, taller in stature and looked to have a larger frame, though it was hard to tell under those robes.
“Should we go back, see if I can make use of their bodies?”
“No, it’s almost time, if we go back, it might take too long and we will have disrupted the plan. We stay here.”
Baous looked worried, seeing the number of undead before them, “What are we going to do?” he asked.
Serhis pressed his back to the wall, his mind racing. Who are those two? Some form of necromancer, no doubt, but who ARE they? They have some sort of plan, one that involved the zombies maybe, judging from the fact they had a group of zombies waiting in a dark alley watching with a clear view over the plaza filled with people, clearly something not good. I’m not going to let them do anything harmful, no way. But what AM I going to do? There’s so many of them, if I went back and tried to get someone to help, maybe the town guard, would they listen to us talking about something like this. Perhaps they would, but from the sound of it, they wouldn’t get back in time before they started.
They were outnumbered, about to fight an enemy who’s abilities he did not know, but he had prepared for an encounter with undead and he had the element of surprise. He just needed to push things further into their advantage.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Several minutes had passed, the two looking out to see if they had been discovered. Tension was high, if they failed their attack, it would end very poorly for them. They had done the best they could to prepare, they only needed to wait a little more to attack.
Pity for the both of them they had not noticed the pouch spilling silver dust and holy water being flung behind their heads.
Hearing a Draconic holy word shouted behind them, the two robed men turned to see Serhis with the symbol of Bahamut above his head, consecrating the area. The zombies were moaning, the consecrated area conflicting with the evil spirits that moved the bodies, though one was quickly silenced, the zombified Doberman’s howling groan cut short as a war hammer crashed into it’s head.
“Your dogs did not kill them!” said the larger man as he turned to face the unexpected threats, moving to act.
The two kobolds move faster, out came of the hand of Baous a large bottle of holy water that Serhis had given him, the bottle breaking as it hit the human zombie and spraying the group of undead, their putrid bodies dissolving as the water touched them. Serhis continued to speak in Draconic, the disruptive influence of the blessed area becoming unbearable to the undead, they turned to escape the alley, out of the necromancer‘s control.
“No! It’s too soon, they can’t be seen now,” said the larger man, who then raised his hand, robes rustling as he moved quickly. In his hand, the holy symbol of Vecna, the god of dark secrets, the Whispered One.
Serhis felt a dark wave of unholy aura pulse in the air, having no effect on him, but the zombies stopped trying to flee, turning back to attack Serhis and Baous.
Serhis looked toward the man that carried the symbol. I was wrong, that’s no necromancer, that’s a cleric of Vecna. This is going to mess up my strategy really badly. I thought they would only be able to regain control of them one at a time, not all at once. At least one zombie would have alerted the crowd, given away whatever surprise their plan had called for. Can’t change things now.
Serhis’ thoughts were interrupted, the other man pulling out a spell book and he began to create arcane gestures. At least he was a necromancer.
Serhis recognized the words and gestures as the beginnings of a fireball, he meant to fry the kobolds in one quick burst. The cleric of Vecna recognized this as well, apparently, “No fool! You cast that here, you give away our position. We can’t let anyone else know we’re here, we still can make this work!”
The necromancer gave a glare to the cleric, choosing instead to use another spell, a bolt of dark energies lashing out at Serhis. Instead of pain, Serhis felt as if he’d spent three days awake in one second. His mind and body rebelled at the spell, his mind clearing, but still tired, one day instead of three.
Baous turned pale as the bolt hit, Serhis shouting to calm him, “Serhis alright! Watch out for them,” he needed to concentrate, he still had to disrupt their plan. Baous gave a shaky nod, turned to face the approaching threat.
Serhis needed to change something, anything about the situation to push it back into their advantage, despite them being outnumbered and outclassed, the cleric and necromancer clearly more powerful, but constrained by the need for secrecy. He couldn’t do anything about the necromancer, the approaching undead blocking his view and he wasn‘t sure if he could do anything to eliminate the threat. As long as the cleric was present, trying to force the undead to run again would be successful, the consecrated area making it more easy, but he would be stopped, the undead brought back under command and any further attempts would be futile, the opposing cleric would probably outlast him try for try.
Serhis aimed at the cleric, concentrating on the one thing that turned the battle. A loud ringing echoed through the night and alley, easily overpowering the background noise of the concert. The symbol of Vecna shattered, leaving the cleric holding high only bits of metal, making him scream in fury, this action a direct desecration to his god. The undead were still under his control though, continuing to advance on Serhis and Baous. Baous stood his ground, caving in the skull of the wolf as it tried to leap at him, a deep growl coming from his throat.
Serhis made a toothy smirk at the hostile cleric, but that changed to pain as the necromancer flung another arcane spell. This time was different, Serhis’ shoulder’s sagged, the very weight of his own armor becoming too much for him to carry. He fell forward, the spell had not made his armor more heavy, but himself more weak, and he wasn’t able to move in his own armor.
“Serhis!” shouted Baous, turning to rush over to him, thinking that the spell had killed him.
“No, still alive,” cried Serhis from the ground, just lucky that he could still talk. Giving one more prayer to Bahamut, he released one more shot of positive energy, bathing the alley in it, the Star heavy in his hand.
The undead turned away again, heading out of the alley as fast as a shambling mound of rotting flesh and bones could. The necromancer shouted in a panicked voice, “Do something! They’re going to get into view!”
The cleric seemed to give a desperate look at his ally, Serhis had difficulty telling from the ground, “I cannot! Without my symbol, I cannot control them again!”
Screams of horror came from the plaza, the undead had been spotted.
The necromancer and the cleric gave glowering looks at the fallen kobold and the one still standing, breaking into a run to get into the alley and away from the scene they had just caused. The cleric reached Baous first, the furred kobold swinging the war hammer as he came into range, but the cleric sidestepping the blow and ran into the dark alley behind them. The necromancer was not so fortunate, Baous had readjusted and stuck a hard blow into the man’s stomach as he tried to pass, the color draining from his face. The strange part was that as he staggered, he seemed… weaker, his run much more tiring, the hammer strike seeming to have more damage than it should. Desperate, he flung one more spell at close range. A deep need for sleep swept over Baous and Serhis. Serhis couldn’t tell if Baous could resist and stay awake, but the previous spells had weakened him too much, his eyes shutting close. The last thing he was consciously aware of was the sound of running, a loud clanging noise of bars snapping tight and shut, a torrent of Elvish swearing, someone stumbling to the ground, then another clang.
Got you.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Groggy, a forceful sleep spell slumber not pleasant, Serhis awoke.
He was in his room at the inn, Baous sitting in the bed next to him looking at him, happy to see him awake. Looking through the broken window, it was still night. Baous smiled as Serhis opened his golden eyes, “Glad you’re okay. You feel anything wrong with you at all?”
Serhis sat in the bed, mentally checking that nothing hurt, “I am okay. What happen after I fall asleep?”
“Well, you’re trap kinda worked. Even if we missed one of them, at least the necromancer guy was caught. I picked you up while you were asleep, then I ran back here, I‘m not sure anyone there would have been very nice to two kobolds in the same alley some undead had just come out of” Baous said.
Serhis reviewed how well his strategy worked. He’d planned for the zombies to run into the open street, alerting the crowd to their presence, spoiling any attempt at a concentrated attack. The people were not at risk, the undead would have been too busy running away to attack anyone and they would have been quickly dispatched by the city guards. They would have then have ran back into the alley with the two in pursuit. That failed, since he’d thought they were both necromancers, the one being a cleric had ruined any chance for quickly making the undead run away. The end part worked half as planned, at least one of the two had stepped into the leg snares he had set into the ground, this time securely so that neither would have gotten up once they went down. All in all, the battle a meager success, the overall tactics worked since it disrupted their enemies plans in full.
“We also had a visitor when we got back,” Baous pointed to the opposite side of Serhis’ bed.
Serhis turned over, expecting to see Alexia, but instead was the man that had followed them from earlier, sitting in a chair at the table.
Mind blanking, either from surprise or exhaustion, Serhis could only say, “Who you?”
He had his hood back, that angled face only offering an neutral expression, his head have a polite nod, “My name is Mile. I’ve already introduced myself to your friend while you were sleeping.”
“Mile? Just Mile?”
“I will admit that it’s not my real name, but it’s the only one I’m willing to call myself by that isn’t “false”. Alexia calls me by that name as well.”
Serhis looked at Mile, a glaring question that he had to ask, “Why you follow us yesterday? Why you looking around so much?”
“When I first saw you talking to Alexia, I was very curious to as who and what you are. Had I thought you a threat, you would not have noticed me at all. I was courteous enough to allow you to know of my presence. You did well to try to evade me, you did not seek to attack me or become hostile, instead you choose a more subtler tactic. When I asked Alexia about you two, I was surprised to find out her other brother was a kobold. I’d remembered she said he was adopted, but I had no idea…”
Mile looked at Baous, examining him, “She’s said good things about you. I trust her judgment as well as my own thoughts on you both. I must say that was a kind thing that you both did, helping these past few days with the inn.”
He redirected his comments back to Serhis, “I had already gathered a few facts from what had happened in your room, Baous was kind enough to inform me of what has transpired.”
He paused, looked to be concentrating, before speaking again, crossing his arms as he spoke “… and gathering what has been said of late, I’d say your attempts have proven successful. The necromancer your traps has captured is currently being held by the city watch and has already been questioned. He is being charged with possession of volatile material, the undead, attempted assault with a deadly weapon, also the undead, and disrupting a public event. He has not admitted guilt or to any conspirators. He will be held in prison for his crimes, but, since no one was killed and it seemed that he lost control of his creations before he issued an order to attack, his sentence will be relatively light.”
Serhis and Baous were dumbfounded at his words, Baous asking, “How do you know all that?”
“News needs to reach my ears fast if I am to use it,” was Mile’s response, “I wish you luck with your journeys, I myself must go and see to my own tasks, our conversation has been enlightening, remember that I am a friend of your sister, I am also an ally to you,” he said as he rose from his chair.
Baous rose from his bed, “Wait, where are you going?”
Miles had turned to go to the door, “First, to inform you sister about you recent adventure, she should be made aware of the blemish visited on her inn at the very least,” indicating the still broken window. At least the glass had been swept away. “Any other matters are of my concern. Oh, yes, this,” he said as he reached into a pocket inside his cloak, pulling out a diamond. A diamond that shined with a brilliant radiance in the candle light. “I must inform her of a new way to protect this.”
Baous’ jaw dropped and he started to babbling a bit, “Wha… but… how did you…?”
Mile tucked the jewel back into the cloak, “She owes me another beer. We have this game, in a way. I find new ways to protect this gem, she gives me free ale. Who did you think gave her those questions to ask when someone claimed this precious diamond was their own? Though I must say the whole truth spell idea was completely her own doing. Now, I must return this to her and I a good night to you both. You seem to need it,” he said as he closed the door.
Serhis couldn’t help but think with the adventure thwarting a dark plan and meeting such a weird man, that this was a strange, strange night.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Serhis was almost sure that Bahamut messed around with his luck, just to see what would happen. Considering that Bahamut controlled an aspect of luck, the idea wasn’t so far fetched.
Baous had started this morning explaining the details from the night before that Mile had told in some description to Alexia. Serhis heard the shouting of a worried sister all the way downstairs, but she understood, this was part of the journey that he was going through. Boys will be boys.
Baous had proven something to himself that night, he could stand and defend himself and a friend in need, he could stop others from inflicting harm, even if he was scared. He’d learned that though the odds might be stacked badly against him, he still could do something. He also learned that he was fairly handy with that hammer in a pitched night battle. Examining the hammer closer, turns out that on top of being enchanted to hit harder and faster, an enemy struck with it not only suffered from the physical blow, but it would impact their life force, their health being shattered little by little on top of being smashed with a weight at the end of a nasty backswing, though it only worked on things that had a viable life force. Innoc Winterstone did not play around when he used the War Hammer of Wounding.
Serhis laid in his bed, mulling over recent events. Though they had survived a surprise attack by a necromancer and a cleric of Vecna’s minions only to launch their own, the cleric had gotten away. No longer was Serhis aware of just an undead wolf roaming the city at large, but it was now replaced with someone who reveled in dark schemes and plots. What was he really trying to do that night? Even with those zombies, it would not have been devastating in terms of damage and life lost when they attacked. And why wait until a specific time, would that have made a significant difference?
Looking out the window, the glass having being recently replaced, he looked at the open sky, though obscured by the surrounding buildings, thinking again to himself. What now? There’s no point in trying to track down the man and it sounds like the necromancer would be far from cooperative, any attempt to locate him would be as easy as finding a temple of Bahamut without even knowing who Bahamut is. Should I go to the temple? They probably still don’t have anything that I could help with at the time.
A knock came at the door, the latch opening to reveal Helena standing in the hall, holding two cups of tea, a bag slung over her shoulder.
By this time, Serhis was sure Bahamut was listening to him think.
“Helena, what you doing coming here?”
Helena gave a closed eye smile, the same smile she had given so many times before, speaking in the Draconic tongue “I see that no matter where you go, you still find something that you can do to help. I’ve heard about an incident in the city, where the undead had come through a crowd of people, yet they were not attacking and were simply trying to get away from something. A mark of a cleric turning undead. Then of the reports of a necromancer being found in the dark alley where they had been seen emerging from the shadows, a victim of traps laid out on his only escape route. Though he was struck by these traps, he was not injured, immobilized as the guards found him. These traps were designed in a distinctive way, not used by most that do create their own traps. All these factors leave you in the center, a secret savior that seems to have done something kind without anyone’s knowledge. Perfectly fitting your way of operating.”
Serhis couldn’t help but smile at his old friend’s sharp wit, motioning a claw for her to take a seat. The story took some time to explain, though thankfully quickly and clearly as both spoke in Draconic, the tea relaxing both of them.
Setting down her cup on the table, Helena spoke her thoughts, “A follower of Vecna in the city is something to be expected, worthy of caution. This plan, unclear as it is, is alarming.”
Serhis gulped down the last of his tea, speaking again in an language he did not have an opportunity to use until recently, “I’ve no direction at a time like this. I would pursue the issue, but it wouldn’t do much good, he’d have gone to ground, and those of Vecna are very good at doing something like that. Right now, I just don’t know what to do or where to go. I’m healing the injured, I’m helping those that need it, I just don’t know what to do afterwards.”
Helena crossed an arm across her chest and placed her hand to her chin, thinking, “There might be a situation that might require the actions of one of our clerics,” she said, grabbing Serhis’ attention, “Due to recent events, people have started telling this incident as a story to others. In response, some have given stories of other alarming events as a way to share gossip, possibly to say that they are more knowledgeable of such issues. What has become clear is that one particular rumor is disturbingly consistent, the general facts being clear, the details sometimes muddled, but to be expected in repeated stories. What lends it truth is that most of originators of these rumors come from a general location.”
“What is this rumor?” asked Serhis.
“Tales of people disappearing, travelers never arriving at their destination. Days where a group of people are expected to arrive, but weeks pass and no word is heard about them. A few unpleasant tales of a local family being lost, one member of the family found a bloody mess, the home coated in blood and the others not to be found. These stories carry a grain of truth to them, some of them even connected to one another. This is what cause for suspicion.”
Serhis listened to the grim subject, “You are going to ask me to see if these rumors have any substance to them.”
Helena lowered the arm to her chin, looking Serhis in the eyes, “Being rumor, we are exercising some restraint. I am not asking you to go, but I am making you aware of the situation. If you do go, send word about the outcome.” Giving detailed directions to head to the east, toward the region of Ahn, she took the cup off the table, sipping the last drops, “At least it was nice to see you once again, however short it was.”
Serhis nodded in agreement, “And you Helena? Are you staying here?”
Shaking her head no, she put down the cup and saucer with a small click, “I’m also leaving the city. Where I go, only Bahamut knows, same as before. Perhaps we will cross paths again, Bahamut’s luck favor us.”
“Yeah. Maybe we’ll see each other in an unexpected way,” said Serhis.
Rising from her seat, Helena took a book from her bag, giving it to him, “I’ve rummaged through my collection and this book may be of interest to Baous. It has details of the kobolds of his kind, he seemed a bit confused about himself when we talked.”
Serhis put the book into his own pouch, “Thank you Helena, you are a really good help.”
She smiled once more, “If you wish to find me, go to the temple, one of the cleric’s there may be able to contact me,” she said as she left, the words so familiar to their last departure.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
After the Harvest festival was over, Serhis and Baous were at the gates of the city, ready to leave though the eastern gate. They were well provisioned, given by Alexia as a farewell gift to her brother for his trip, as well as stocked after a trip to the market.
“So we’re just going to see if these rumors of disappearing and dead people are true?” asked Baous, a bit confused at the whole notion of this journey.
“Yep, might be something, might be nothing. Beside, might find something else entirely different when get there,” answered Serhis. “Oh, Helena left gift for you,” he said, pulling out the book he had received, “She said has stuff about your kobold, might be helpful.”
Baous gingerly touched the book, only opening it to exclaim, “Hey, I can’t read any of this.”
Serhis had to bend Baous’ hand down to see, only to discover that it was written completely in a familiar language, “Someday, I need to teach you about Draconic. Don’t worry, I’ll read to you later.”
“Thank Serhis. You should tell me about your family someday, it would be nice to know,” said Baous.
A sheepish grin was all that Serhis could give, “Serhis will.”
They walked the path to the east, the morning sun rising ahead them. The road ahead was rough, the plains surrounding it laid out for miles, the lands ahead not known for kindness. Both kobolds didn’t mind, the friend next to him was kind enough.
