Chapter 2: On the trail of orbs, bad guys and adventure

[badams30]

The dwarf nods in appreciation at being released. He starts quickly devouring the food offered to him, pausing between large bites to talk.

To Albrecht's question about the people on the hill: "I didn't see much of anything, they knocked us out and dragged us up there, so I woke up in a cell, and the only time I saw anyone was when they gave us some garbage they called food. And when I escaped, I managed to see a little of the place, I just know enough to maybe get in there, but I do know they don't have much in the way of guards or a watch, at least not when I escaped. I've been watching the place and unless someone is hidden or there's something I don't know about, I don't think they're worried about anyone finding them."

He says "They kept talking about putting us to work, and they'd laugh about that, not sure what was so funny about that, but when they'd say that and take one of my brothers, we wouldn't see them again. And I don't know where they's working at, unless they're mining something under that place, but I don't think they're mining. When I'd hear them talk they'd keep mentioning The Boss, but you could tell they didn't like him. But they were sure scared of him, kept saying they didn't want to be one of his projects, whatever that meant. I think they are just paid goons."

"If you have something I can write on I can sketch out a short map of what I can recall when I left. I've got a good mind for mining and stonework, I don't forget a thing. but I can at least get us inside there as far as I came from when I wasn't knocked out."

He points to the entrance to the cave and says "I don't think you have anything to worry about with those guys, they haven't come down the hill to this place in a long time, they don't usually come down unless they see a fire or smoke or hear something. But they know about this place, so we got to be careful."

And he chuckles and says "OH, how could I forget. That big flying thing. It comes around maybe every day or two, it lives north, somewhere in the mountains. We saw it a few times when we was coming down this way to mine, we just hid in the trees and waited him out, and he never saw us. It knows that those guys are in the hill, and it's always trying to catch them outside, and the thugs in there are scared of it worse than we were. It has snagged a couple of them, but they are pretty careful now. I think that's one of the reasons they don't go outside too far. Right before I got loose they were talking about building something to shoot it down, but I don't know anything about that."

[connivingsumo]

The Wizard, feeling a bit more comfortable around Mr. Stinks, hands him a piece of parchment from his scroll case, and his Quill & Ink, "Please be gentle with my Quill; it's the only one I've got." He pauses for the Dwarf to finish eating and get his fill...

"I know you didn't get to see a whole lot while you were in there, but based on different voices, maybe footsteps, etc. how many do you think are over there?"

[kipper]

Kane just stands and glowers.

[tumblingdice]

While Mr. Stinks is drawing a map, Albrecht thinks for a moment. Put them to work, he mutters. Put them to work. The cleric's eyes go wide, and then he tries to draw Zapolas and Kane out of immediate earshot of the poor dwarf. They must be using the Orb to turn the prisoners into zombies, or some deathly abomination, he says in a low voice. I should have expected this, he adds, to no one in particular.

[kipper]

Kane simply nods to Albrecht.

[connivingsumo]

While Mr. Stinks is drawing a map, Albrecht thinks for a moment. Put them to work, he mutters. Put them to work. The cleric's eyes go wide, and then he tries to draw Zapolas and Kane out of immediate earshot of the poor dwarf. They must be using the Orb to turn the prisoners into zombies, or some deathly abomination, he says in a low voice. I should have expected this, he adds, to no one in particular.

Zapolas turns green, not in an attempt to be a zombie, but from nausea! "Uh... uhh... uhhh... one of those dead but walking people?!" The young looking Wizard loses the color in his face. He mutters to himself, "I don't wanna be a Zombie."

[badams30]

As he noisily devours the food he's given, Gord draws on the sheet of parchment given to him. He hands it to Zapolas and says "I could crawl through that in the dark and still know every inch of it."

He points his grubby finger at the map, running it along each route and pausing at each caption to describe.

"Right inside the entrance is a tiny little room that usually has a guard in it. Most of the time, anyway. They don't think anyone know's they's here, so they don't take watching the entrance very seriously. If you keep going past the guard, there's a little entry chapel or somethin' like that. There's some busted up benches and an altar a the end of the room, they've hammered it to pieces. There's a door to the west, I don't know where it goes, but the guards say the Boss is that way, and they don't usually go that way."

He points to the hall leading from the chapel to the east - "this hall leads to a round room with a broken statue in it. To the south is the jail they kept us in, there's usually no one in there, but they'd check on us about every hour or so, less after dark. I was the last one in the cells when I left, but it's been a little while, so there could be somebody in there now. They was always talkin' about keeping the cells full of workers."

He taps his finger nervously on the area marked "Smelly." He says "I don't know what's up here, but it's smelly. Bad smelly. Like rotting meat. The guards didn't like to go that way, and they used to talk about drawing the short straw to go up there. I don't know what's there, but they was scared of it somehow."

He nods with satisfaction. "That's all I saw. But I can tell you, them guards are overconfident. They thinks no one has any idea they's up there. They're bullies too. They like to gang up on people. But when they's alone, they mutter about being scared about the boss and his workers. If you hit em' hard and fast, they'll fold. I'm no warrior, but I know this."

He takes a noisy gulp of water and says "So I've told you everything. You gonna take me with you? I wanna get a lick in on those cowards."