Zion: Light of the New Moon, Ch 4.1 Bannihar
Zion - Light of the New Moon Chapter 4.1
Bannihar A Little Problem
Beaten and bloody, the Bannihar group will still have the opportunity to do some high-quality dungeon delving if they take advantage of it.
Iskiy's body had had responded well to the healing provided by Lord Raes; as it had been explained to him during his time in the temple, a body was full of the essence of life and, when a portion of that life is taken from it then the body was eager to regain what was lost-- either it eats itself alive trying to compensate, or else it hungrily absorbs anything given to it. The large dog had spent hours contemplating that lesson as he watched over the antlered wolf, whose absorption of the healing energy of the Full Moon was nothing less than ravenous.
The Wild Lander finally awoke three days after the attack, and he shot up in the cot with a start; unlike those whose bodies had been overcome by wounds, there was no wince or groan, just sudden and complete attentiveness. He locked eyes with Lord Raes immediately, then quickly looked away, "I..."
"You're alive." the large dog noted, clasping a large paw onto the wolf's shoulder. Iskiy wilted and, with a heavy sigh, flopped back onto the cot. No... Iskiy's body was not wounded, but it was incredibly exhausted. "Tired?"
The wolf nodded, though not enough to cause his antlers to scrape the pillows behind his head, "Like I didn't sleep at all."
Lord Raes nodded with a chuckle, "Your body was using all of its energy to keep you alive... and a good amount of what was gifted by the Goddess as well."
"I've never had a priest along when I've been scouting the Wild Lands." Iskiy noted, rubbing his stomach. He cocked his head to the side, "I didn't eat while I was unconscious, did I?"
Lord Raes' chuckle turned into a laugh, "Nothing solid, Iskiy, no... but the Moon Goddess nourishes the spirit enough for the body." he cracked a wry grin, "Until you wake up, that is." Iskiy's stomach grumbled as if to accentuate its current state.
"So..." Iskiy spoke up, looking from the collection of travel bread and smoked jerky handed to him by the big dog, "Was I the only one hurt?"
Lord Raes shook his head, "No... six casualties total... three fatalities among them: Jorn, Augustus, and Leidicia."
"That's half..." the wolf noted, splitting the piece of bread into smaller pieces, "There were only six of us... you don't look hurt." the Wild Lander cocked his head to the side.
"Others came to our aid when the gryphon sounded the alert." the champion nodded thoughtfully, "My wounds were pulled from me on the battlefield by the grace of Tah'Aveen... I was not seriously injured... but Elesin is still unconscious."
Iskiy popped a piece of bread into his muzzle and chewed it thoughtfully, "You make that sound like a good thing."
"She's responsible for a large amount of damage." Lord Raes regarded him, "You may have been focused on the wraith, but you couldn't have missed the fire... it certainly didn't miss you."
The antlered wolf nodded, "Everything felt so cold when it touched me... I know someone shouted a warning, but, to be honest, that... that thing's touch... that's all I could feel." Iskiy shuddered as he said it.
"For the best, I suppose." Lord Raes stood, "The burns have already healed, and most of your life has been restored, but there will be some lasting side effects..." he reached for his shield, and slowly turned it so that Iskiy could see his reflection clearly in the finely polished metal.
"I'm all gray." the wolf noted, drawing a paw up to touch the side of his muzzle and run his claws through the fur, then started when he gazed closer at his reflection, "My eyes!" the wolf looked closely, gazing at the vacant cloudy orbs that stared back at him.
"We weren't sure if the Goddess would be able to grant you sight..." Lord Raes nodded casually, "Regardless of what they look like, Tah'Aveen's gift of vision still resides within them."
Iskiy slowly slid his feet over the cot to touch the floor of the carriage, then paused, holding his head, "Everything's spinning."
"You're still weak." Lord Raes confirmed, "Your body may not be injured but your soul is still recovering. There shouldn't be any problem with moving around, just do so conservatively." and he slowly helped Iskiy to stand.
"Uh..." the antlered wolf noted, lowering his ears as he curled his tail, "I'm a little naked." he suddenly observed.
"Nothing I haven't seen before." Lord Raes noted, slowly letting go of Iskiy. Once he was certain the wolf could stand on his own, he added, "I'll get you some clothes and you can get dressed." and, with that, he opened the door to the carriage and slipped out, closing it again behind himself.
Alexander watched as the champion moved to one of the supply wagons, but it was more out of casual curiosity than any real interest. The past several days had been monotonous for everyone, and the lone cat set to keep an eye on an unconscious kangaroo wasn't faring any better. He occasionally alternated between sitting atop the cage, riding in the wagon with it, or walking along beside it. Regardless of his position, the situation of the comatose marsupial hadn't changed.
There had been more than a few conversations about Elesin. Numerous guards were always coming and going, constantly checking in on her, quite likely for two reasons: to make sure she was still alive, and to reassure themselves that she was unconscious and that they wouldn't have any trouble. After the display of death and destruction wrought by Elesin, it only made sense that the guards would be concerned. It didn't escape the cat's notice, however, that the guards who had joined the caravan alongside Elesin didn't bother coming by to check in on her... in fact, they didn't seem surprised at all once they heard that she was locked up. The cat, of course, didn't really have an inclination to start theorizing... he was more intent on the here-and-now.
A couple of times over the course of the prior days, Alexander had listened in on casual mumblings and half-fevered rantings of Elesin... "How could you, Daddy? She was my mama!" was one that had caught his attention, along with "Well now you know what happens when my 'tats' glow, fucker.". He smiled to himself when he heard the nonsensical "But blue tastes so much better than seven.", and spent the rest of the day out of arm's reach when he heard her state as clear as day "If you don't stop looking at me I swear to the Goddess I'll burn out your eyeballs using your own severed paw." No one would have mistaken it for a cognizant threat to the cat, but he was obviously not one to take a chance.
Everyone had seen the monster she had become, though any such modification no longer seemed all that obvious. Elesin, despite being unconscious (and therefore much quieter than normal), appeared to be exactly as she had been before the encounter with the undead. Considering all the damage she had done to the party, Alexander had been about to end her life. In that end, however, she turned-the tables and was quite ready to end his... and would have, if not for Elias. The cat glanced to the temple wagons, and the one where Elias had been for the past three days. Anyone looking closely at Alexander would have been able to clearly tell that he was a curious cat.
As if on cue, Kayte emerged from the wagon, a small smile on her muzzle. "Good news?" Lord Raes inquire, heading back toward his own wagon with an armful of clothes.
The priestess smiled, idly twisting and tugging at a ring resting on one of her digits, "He's awake."
"Good." the dog nodded, "and...?" he glanced over his shoulder toward the cage, not bothering to ask the question.
"He wants her dead." Kayte sighed.
"That's another one who agrees with me." Lord Raes pointed out.
The priestess shook her head, "I just can't accept that."
"So you're going to keep her caged up?" the champion inquired, walking in step with her as the caravan continued moving.
"We need to understand more about her condition and see if there is a way to anticipate it. If we can catch it before it becomes a problem--"
"Kayte... she almost killed five of our caravan... it already is a problem."
"It is a problem we can address." the wolf countered.
"You have a kind heart, Priestess," Raes offered with a sigh, "Just remember that sometimes sacrifices must be made for the good of all... and we cannot continue to blindly overlook Elesin's transgressions."
"We will address them should the need arise." she offered with finality. The conversation would have gone on, and, in fact, Lord Raes appeared unwilling to let her have the last word, but their discussion ended abruptly with a call from the front of the caravan. Everything came to a halt.
The Champion and priestess ran past the next wagon, Lord Raes pausing just long enough to toss the armful of clothes in at the surprised Wild Lander, "Get dressed and hurry up." They continued on until they reached the head wagons, which were stopped right on the road, "What's wrong?" the dog inquired of the lead guides, a gopher and lion.
"Dwarf." Roarg spoke up before either of the two could. Raes and Kayte looked to the badger, who was kneeling by the side of the road near a crumpled body, "Dead..." They moved to join him, each crouching to inspect the small humanoid.
"Of course it's dead..." noted Sebastian, alighting beside Roarg, "They've all been dead for decades, right?"
"Except this one is a little fresher." Kayte noted, her muzzle pulling back in a grimace as she covered her nose.
"Which means it was alive when it shouldn't have been." Lord Raes scowled, his voice almost a growl, "The Templars may be right." several eyes went to him and he cleared his throat, "There've been rumors that Shrad may have harbored some of the shortfolk in exchange for their services... considering the number of dwarven weapons that their warriors used in the 200 year war, it only makes sense... and now..." he motioned to the body, "this might just be the proof."
"Either that, or maybe he came from underground." Sebastian suggested.
"Karod'Hass was destroyed by Myre." Lord Raes noted.
"Oh..." the gryphon paused, cocking his head to the side before looking at Roarg, "You said Karod'Hass was under Myre... not all the way out here."
"It WAS under Myre." Lord Raes pointed out, "And extended for over a mile in every direction."
"Then what about the dwarven city here?" Sebastian inquired, cocking his head the other way as he regarded Lord Raes.
"What other dwarven city?" numerous voices spoke in unison.
Sebastian casually trotted a short distance off into the brush, "This way." he noted casually, "I spotted something from the air and went to check it out when Roarg called a halt to the caravan."
Everyone followed quickly after the gryphon, who pressed his way through the undergrowth. Iskiy, making his way toward the front, spoke up, "Lord Raes, Priestess... this is a path."
"A path?" Kayte spoke up, "It looks like a bunch of plants."
"A wild path, Priestess." Roarg added, "I've seen a few... they're game trails and the like."
"Those are game trails, Mr Stoneclan, not paths." Iskiy corrected politely, "This is a footpath that someone didn't want anyone else to notice."
"Whomever made it obviously wasn't a Wild Lander then," Sebastian glanced back, flashing a beaky grin "cuz it wasn't all that hidden."
The group continued on for several hundred feet before the brush opened up into a good sized clearing, in the middle of which was good sized hole. Almost the size of a carriage, the opening in the ground looked like a straight drop and, as the party drew closer to it, the view made it quite apparent that it was quite a drop. "Move it." noted a gruff armadillo, limping past everyone with the aid of a cane, "No sense killing yourselves."
"Elias!" Kayte noted, her voice full of objection, moving over to help him.
"I'm fine." he waved her away, "I heard all the commotion, and I'm not about to let anyone get close to a vertical shaft until I know it's safe."
"You said he was conscious... you didn't mention anything about onery." Raes offered aside to Kayte with a good-natured smile.
"When you're talking about Elias, that goes without saying." Roarg whispered, grinning.
The Geomancer, ignoring the comments, had knelt down with a groan to pick up a fist-sized rock. Closing his eyes, a soft light flowed from his paw and into the stone, which suddenly began to glow brightly. Letting go of the illuminated hunk of earth, the armadillo gazed down the hole, following its descent with his eyes until, with a gasp, he stepped back.
"What?" a number of voices inquired in unison.
"It's... the ruins of a dwarven city!" Elias noted, astounded.
Shock flowed through the gathering, except for Sebastian, who just puffed out, "Sure... listen to the Geomancer, ignore the gryphon... it's okay, I'm used to it."
* * * * * *
And Bannihar is off to a good start with Chapter 4! We're getting right into the thick of things with the discovery of a possible dwarven ruin... and what's with the dwarven body near the Highway.... eerie.
Contributing players, it's voting time!
1) The dwarven people and all of their creations are an affront to the Moon Goddess... destroy the entire cavern.
2) Leave the ruins be... if they belonged to the dwarves then there are assuredly traps and it's probably cursed worse than the rest of the Wild Lands.
3) Park the caravan for the afternoon on an extended stop so an expedition may be sent into cavern cato explore it... who knows what lays within?
4) Send in a small scouting party (the named characters, of course) to try and see if there's anything worthwhile to be seen.
Any contributing reader that wishes to spend a willpower may be the central focus of the next post. In the event of multiple characters expending willpower, the one who uses it first will earn the right, unless whomever else that wants the focus is willing to spend more.
You have until Thursday August 4th to make your vote and willpower utilization (if applicable). Midnght (PST) as usual