Here I am.
Still alive and angry, also tired. In the last few days a lot has happened. Nothing
good or maybe…
I am
sitting on a bed in a strange hotel. A hotel in the middle of a jungle. The
innkeeper hates me, I am fine with that. It should make me wary but there is
too much on my mind to focus on that.
La’iri had
visited me and told me to leave the darkness. And when she disappeared a
strange looking lantern was left behind. Even without Faelon’s knowledge I know
it’s not a normal lantern. While filling up the lantern, my races back to
moment everything exploded. Drev’nae left, Valarith had a fall out with his
parents and his believes. Also we met Faelon’s nemesis, Felaby. He was the one
who told us about this establishment. I guess at least Faelon should have been suspicious
about it. It can’t be helped. We are here now. And before La’iri visited me I
was sure this is where I was ending myself. A tragic ending for a tragic life.
The fire
burns and a soft silvery white light is filling my room. It reminds me of
moonlight as I focus my mind on the lantern. I am trying to connect to the
magic in it. It is easier than expected. I feel welcomed. I feel someone
familiar to me. A presence who invites me. Time flies as I loose myself in the
light. And then I am back, holding the magical book in my hands that had suddenly
appeared in my pack. It is bound in night blue leather and on the cover in
finest silver a single woman dancing under the moon. So far I had ignored it
because it is basically empty. Though for the first time I notice that
something was added to it. Two more spells, a bit more complicated than those I
know already. Guess this is this eleven minute stuff Faelon goes on about. It
has to wait though. It is late and I have to figure something out.
This is the
first time I am trying to focus my trance on a specific event. I am not trained
in that so my hopes are dim. I am closing my eyes, adjusting my breathing and
wait.
“ Hey! Are
ya okay? Ya’re not dying on me, are ya?” A rough voice was shouting. I wanted
to answer but my mouth was as dry as desert. I wanted to look who it was that was
shouting but I was too weak to lift my head and then I lost consciousness.
The smell
of porridge woke me. Still I had problems to see clearly. From what I could see
I was in someone’s home. Dwarvish maybe. Then blackness again. I realised that
I hadn’t eaten for quite a while and had only a few drops of water.
Days passed by as I was nursed back to health by an unlike saviour. “Ya had me
quite scared the last day, laddie. Now that ya’re back it’s time for prober
introductions. Grandur Silverrock at your and your ancestors’ service.” In
front me a sat a dwarf, his head freshly shaved and his bright red beard was
covering his bare chest. The only clothing he was wearing, was what he called a
kilt and boots. His home was a single room. From what I saw he had slept on the
floor while he was taking care of me.
“Ve…Velverin, second son of House Kilsek of…” I left the sentence unfinished.
There was no sense in giving a name that no longer existed. Before we continued
the conversation he cleared wanted to have. He pointed to a table and stools,
asking if I felt strong enough to join him at the table. With his help I made it
out of bed to the table. In the conversion I was only listening to what he told
me.
Apparently, Grandur was a traveling gladiator and adventurer. He was on his way
home from a trip to Luskan when he found me. He explained I was close to
starvation and it took him quite a while to feed me.
Everything
he said was fine but I couldn’t wrap my head around the fact that he had helped
me. I didn’t even ask; why? He went on and on about his fights and what seems
endless stories of his ancestors.
The days following I regained my strength more and more. Grandur was always
helpful. While I had been wary the first few days I started to accept him.
Especially since he never inquired about my past. When he was asking me something,
it was always about what I was planning to do. He even protected me when the
guards came to ask me about a squad of Drow slavers. After this encounter he
had taken his maul and had thrown me my pack. “Ya know, what proves ‘em wrong. Gettin’
those bastards ourselves!” he said sporting a hearty laugh.
A few days after he had left we met with a friend of his, Dalarion, a cleric of
Tempus. It was only the reassurances of Grandur that kept him from killing me
on sight. The three of us went on and on the fourth day we had found our
target. With a dwarven barbarian and a cleric of Tempus a more tactical approach
was not really an option as they went straight towards them. I was hiding,
still. Flashes of La’iri’s death came up and disheartened me to take part in
this endeavour.
Grandur and Dalarion seemed fine though. Axe and hammer killing their foes
quite easily. And the appearing ghosts when Grandur fell into a rage were quite
impressive especially as they seemed to protect everyone around him. Everything
went along how the two had imagined it until only two slavers remained. While
Dalarion was cutting down one of them, the last one took a little girl and held
a dagger to her throat. On every whim the slaver put the girl in the way of
either Grandur or Dalarion while slowly retreating to the darkness around him.
The screaming and crying was echoing loudly in my ears. I tried to ignore it
but couldn’t. Slowly I was making my way around the slaver. The more I looked
at him the more his face changed and when I was thrusting my blade throw his
back killing him, he had the face of my brother for a few seconds. I picked up
the girl and brought her back to the rest. Dalarion tried to calm down her
parents, anger and regret on his face, while Grandur was opening the chains of
everyone.
I walked against a wall of anger. The freed slaves were ready to attack me with
the broken chains. I didn’t dare to walk along, so I sat the girl down and
pushed her a little bit towards her parents. I turned around to walk away
before the situation could get worse. However, I was stopped. A little hand
grabbed mine and pulled. It was the little girl. She took my hand properly and
led me through everyone. When we had reached her parents she asked me to come
down a little and before jumping into the arms of her parents, she hugged me
good bye.
Like back
then I am feeling tears running down my face as I open my eyes. In the corner
of my room I see Hidey-hole trying to escape my eyes as I realise that what I
had just seen was something I had hidden away.
