THE WAYFARER’S RECOLLECTION OF THE RESCUE OF PATSY PALMER By Glistam | Comments 5 Comments “You had to know we’d catch up to you eventually,” the woman said to the tied and bound Wayfarer . “We know how you kept eluding us,” she said while holding his magical pole arm. “Why don’t you tell me how you ended up with this?” She pointed to an ornate sword reverently displayed in the center of the chamber. The Wayfarer began to tell them again he would not cooperate with them. Instead he found the answer coming out of him against his will. “ An Elixir of Truth ,” he silently recognized as he began to speak. “ I watched that sword possess a vulnerable soul ,” he told her. “So I sought out her mate , a Swordsman himself, to enlist his aid. I was surprised to find he had several superhuman allies with him. One of whom was a Strange Beast that fell into a state of distress shortly after my arrival. This prompted the Senior to send for an herbal remedy. Instead the Scientist injected him with something from his science wand to calm him. Once that medicine wore off a Strange girl lay in the beast’s place.” “The Senior directed their Sponsor to fetch her garments. Once she woke up I was able to explain to the Swordsman what I had witnessed and why I was there. With my story concluded the man immediately sped out of his house full of concern, leaving all his companions behind. One by one his companions made their own arrangements to follow.” “His Sidekick followed quickly. The Scholar followed suit at the request of his fellows. The Swordsman was contacted by remote communication device by those who remained. He would not wait on them or return. But he agreed to tell them his destination and await their arrival there. It was a street location he read about in his mate’s private writings. I was familiar with that area myself as it was in the Zerhicho area of the city. It seemed his allies mostly all knew how to get there as well.” “The Senior and the Soldier ran off together. Faster than I think the Soldier expected, it seemed to me. The Scientist and the Sleuth traveled together through strange green portals produced by his other science wand , hopping through the air in short bursts rather than going there directly. This left the Strange girl and their Sponsor. The girl expressed concern that we had all been left behind. I assured her I could get us to that location.” “With Ostrem I sliced through space to bridge the gap between where we were and where we needed to go. The girl was able to extend her senses through the gap to determine the area was safe. Her assurance was welcomed. The three of us stepped through. Because of the hour of the day the streets were mainly empty. It was as she said. We were the first to arrive.” “The Swordsman arrived mere minutes later. High in the air, he shouted for his mate repeatedly. To the few people around this would have been a strange sight, and I believe they gave us wide berth because of it. One by one the others arrived. The Scholar. The Sidekick. The Scientist and the Sleuth. Lastly the Senior and the Soldier. Together they decided to get to a place less conspicuous. The roof of a nearby building was chosen. When I used Ostrem to create another passage the Scientist advised me that the pole arm was broken and working improperly! He asked me to refrain from making more of my portals, for I was creating some sort of danger with them I never knew anything about. “On the roof they were able to talk The Swordsman down to join them and talk about his mate. Some of them tried to reason with him and convince him to work with them. The Scientist and the rest took that as an opportunity to visit a nearby hot beverage dispensary. I believe the Strange girl, who stayed behind, used her command over the properties of sound to engage in communication with those visiting Star Buck. Shortly thereafter they returned with the beverages they sought, and shared their gains with those they left behind.” “Together they realized this place was not where the Swordsman’s possessed mate went once she left me. Some other information which his allies shared led them to suspect the old Wax Museum . We all moved in that direction together, as a team. Their talk with the Swordsman seemed to have tempered his fiery drive temporarily. As we got closer the Swordsman and the Sleuth noticed the Mystic Alarm wards surrounding the outside of the building. I was grateful they brought them to my attention. With my own magics I too could see them.” “Others spotted the recently slain bodies of local ne’er do wells. All signs pointed to this being the right place. The Scientist used his science wand to create a portal which would take us directly inside, bypassing the wards. All of us except the Scholar entered the building. He remained behind to keep a watch from the outside. Inside I could see troubling spirits hovering around. The Sleuth and the Swordsman saw them too. The Sidekick and the Soldier could sense them. The spirits sensed our presence and flew away with anticipation. They would be trouble later.” “We traveled through this museum of waxen figures until we reached a stairwell to go down. The Swordsman was sure that was the direction we needed to go. That was when the spirits converged in this last room. Tectonic entities, they maliciously inhabited the bodies of the figures in order to attack and feed! The Soldier tried to use a mortal device against them before they could inhabit the waxen shells but to no avail. A fight began but I recited the incantation to Banish the foul creatures and clear our way. Thus we traveled down into the basement of this dwelling, where we were anticipated.” “Sitting comfortably within the heart of Nexus we came upon the Swordsman mate, transformed by her possession as I remembered. The spirit of the sword she now carried superimposed its image upon her. The two sat calmly within a magical circle of communication, surrounded by protective Energy Fields. The Swordsman yelled to them, “Give her back!” “She has given herself to me willingly,” they calmly responded. “Then you lied to her.” “You would say that, Ashmadiel .” “He’s not speaking for me, nor is he possessing me.” “Sigh. Always the fool,” they said with sad resignation. “The Wayfarer continued to narrate the events which followed. “The Swordsman and his friends all sprinted into action against them. The Senior charged the Energy Fields and shattered them with a supernaturally powerful blow. The Scientist used his readied science wand to summon a portal which transported our opponent out of their circle to appear right in front of the Swordsman. He reached up to grasp the sword and pull it from their hand, despite the amount of pain it caused him. The fiery being which empowers the Swordsman appeared for a brief moment superimposed over him in all her own glory. The two beings stared at each other with recognition and regret. Then the Swordsman was holding the other sword in his bleeding hand and the visage was gone.” “Both the Sidekick and the Soldier tackled the falling woman and pinned her to the ground. Her connection to the sword was not yet severed, however, and she drew upon its power to call up the very earth itself to entomb the Sidekick. The Strange girl gave her a protective device while the Senior rushed over to try and pull her free. With a couple mighty yanks she broke the encasement and rescued the Sidekick. Both the Swordsman and the Scientist engaged in a quick discussion over where his science wand could send the sword.” “I rushed to the side of the Swordsman’s mate while she was still held by the Soldier. Kneeling beside her, I began to chant the rite of Exorcism. She fought and resisted mightily. I had to repeat the rite several times before it finally forced the spirit out of her body. That was when the Sleuth finally struck. He had waiting for just the right moment and decided this was that moment. His thunder rod fired a powerful blast of magical lightning, enhanced by the god which backed him, straight into and through the sword spirit. With a silent shriek the spirit exploded. The foreign sword still in the Swordsman’s hand went dormant once again.” “The heroes took the Swordsman’s mate and left to bring her to a place where she could recover safely. Before they left I agreed to bring the sword to a safe place for them.” With all the contempt he could muster in this state he concluded with, “You know the story from there.” The woman nodded. “Get comfortable,” she told him. “You’re going to be here for a long time.” Hands grabbed him from behind and dragged him away, still bound, while she wistfully admired the sword Aaziakel. “You’ve finally returned to us,” she softly whispered to it.
