Character: Ebony
Building: Mess Hall
Upgrade material: Bodies of the fallen
Provisions: Stress generating food that heal more, items to make enemies afraid or scared, and higher food stacks.
Author's Note: It's been awhile, but I've been inspired by this awesome game to write again. Red Hook... you've made such a fun game.
Battered, bloodied, and barely able to get to their weekly duties, the townsfolk of the hamlet were in desperate need of fresh soldiers to hold back the rising horrors trickling out of the mansion and corrupting the surrounding areas.
The beastly swine and their gluttonous lords have taken to raiding our farms for the workers; filling their stomachs with our own as they still scream for help within the Warrens. The last decent vessel to return from a successful fishing voyage to the Cove did so with hooded fishfolk testing the dry lands for their own uses, only to be trampled after startling the horses within the stables; finding our beasts only slightly kinder than those of the Weald.
Finally, there are the Ruins, our tombs and burials of our former leaders, and the Courtyard, no longer the place of nobles and dances but now of blood drinkers and their pets. These places mirror perfectly the hamlet's tale, as well as my own. We were once something to be proud of, but now we can only hope it ends quickly.
However, there is still hope; bleak though it may be. The latest escapade into the Weald has cleared the way for the stagecoach to bring in our newest champions and the shields of the common folk.
With any semblance of luck, they will be the fated to safe those that remain from the terrors we endure and raise the spirits of rest who yet still fight.
The stagecoach drew to a halt, and the care taker, as pre-usual, took his choice of dwellings to rest; taking the place of a hero to relieve his own stress within the brothel. The poor, old man dared the treacherous journey every week after only a day's rest, knowing full well that his death could come at any time on those lonely, perilous roads.
Even with the improvements made, the extra carts for more champions, stronger horses to speed their journey along, and better equipment for the wagon itself, the roads are dangerous to traverse when bandits can setup traps days in advance to catch the wary and focused alike.
The door opened... but only one stepped out. Neither human nor monster, this creature of ivory-white skin and short stature was to be an invaluable ally to the hamlet and the estate... though her intentions and methods were only slightly better than that of the foe we would have to face soon.
Ebony stepped out of the stagecoach with a smile on her face. She wore little, an apron under a set of creaking leather armor wore over form-fitting cotton clothes for protection and comfort, and she was armed with only three knives on a belt around her waist. Her feet were free of confines, allowing them to be seen easily and her three-toed talons, like hands ready to grip, at the ready. Her ears, while large, drooped slightly over her head, and her large eyes seemed to take in everything she saw.
She licked her lips as though in anticipation. She was eager to get to work, but first she would need supplies.
She started toward the tavern, where the caretaker had entered, and was immediately introduced to most of the living heroes of the hamlet; a total of seven by her count.
A jester by the name of Yorick preformed an act with the assistance of Jericho, a man skilled in the occult, to dazzled and impress the drunken patrons, led by a hellion by the name of Agatha, in a song of slurred words and unintelligent phrases.
In a corner of the room, a crusader had removed his helmet to drink a large mug of mead, flanked by two vestals and an arbalest between them and the rest; their names were Reynold the crusader, vestal sisters Marin and Mina, and Triss with her crossbow at her side. The three religious warriors seemed to in distress while the bow user watched the crowd on their behalf.
Ebony moved through the crowd with the grace of a child dancer, swaying between the people and even stealing a morsel of food to sample from a table as she made her way toward the barkeeper.
She took a bite of the meat bun, and her smile immediately fell only to return when she stopped at the counter. "What's the occasion for the party?" She asked as she placed the half-eaten meat bun, one bite from her, on the chair next to the one she climbed into.
She never saw her size as a disadvantage with the exception of times like this where she had to climb otherwise simple obstacles.
The barkeeper looked at her, at first with surprise at her looks, but then causal when he took note of her armor and the belt of weapons. "Elina is at the Sanitarium. I'd recommend you speak with her before going out." He began, and then turned to prepare a mug of mead. "The farmers have pulled their crops together for feast to celebrate the return of our heroes from the Warrens and remember the sacrifice of our fallen." He informed, and then placed the mug in front of her. "Your drink, ma'am."
Ebony accepted the mug with a nod and a smile, reaching to pay with a gold piece until the barkeeper shook his head; quietly informing her that that was unnecessary. She took a sip, and then growled and stuck her tongue out with displeasure. "I think I'd prefer water, if you please." She asked as she pushed the mug toward him. "Who is Elina?" She asked.
"Not a fan of the mead?" The barkeeper asked; seeming to be more curious than upset.
"I prefer water, juice, and milk, actually. Ale and mead have always tasted more like their products to me." She informed.
He pushed the mug back to her and made a sidelong smile. "Not even we locals drink the water here. Believe me, you're best off with this unless you want to build your own purifier." He said.
Ebony frowned and looked back at her mug of unwanted mead. She took it in both of her small hands and pulled it toward herself cautiously; as if it might attack her. "I'm Ebony, by the way." She said.
The man nodded. "Elina is our most recent veteran graverobber. Along with Micheal and his hound, that blood-crazed Alexander, and Mina, she slew the bandits and dismantled their oversized cannon, a Brigand 8-Pounder I think, that threatened the roads. If not for those four, you'd still be waiting for the caretaker and his stagecoach to come down the path of wherever you came from." He informed before turning and walking into the back.
When he returned, he had with him a small loaf of bread with rice baked in. He offered it to her. "Eat this, you'll need to built some muscle if you want to be of help here."
She accepted the bread and took a bite. She chewed and swallowed before speaking. "At least your baking is decent." She said; her smile returned. "Who died? I'm guessing they meant something to the people over there." She said with a tilt of her head.
"Barristan and Junia, friends of Reynold, Dismas's bodyguard." He replied without looking over. "The three of them, and Triss over there, went into the Warrens to gather stolen supplies and avenge the farmers killed by the pigmen. Because those two gave their lives, we can eat the rest of this month and half of the next." The barkeep said with a sober but grateful tone. "What's worse is their fate... Mina was the one who last saw what was left of them... when she went to pay her final respects."
She turned her head to the four, and then locked her eyes with those of the arbalest. "That one? Triss?" She asked without looking away.
"Triss was close to Barristan. The two of them fought in the last war together. I think she was a raider before he knocked some justice into her." He said.
"Hmm." She hummed, and then finally broke the lock. She closed her eyes, put the bread in her mouth, and jumped off of the stool. "Well, I guess I'll go see this Elina." She then turned to the barkeeper and waved. "Thanks for the food. Keep a room open for me tonight."
She left the tavern and immediately found the Sanitarium no more than 30 yards away. It seemed a fair enough distance, and she knew it was a good idea for such a building to be equal distance and close to the tavern and the chapel in case of food poisoning or injury.
As she approached, she saw two men, one with a dagger and pistol holstered at his sides and the other walking toward a dog, signaling it to follow with a pat, leaving the building. They were following a trail of blood leading between the Sanitarium and the chapel, but then they turned toward the gated graveyard.
Upon entering the makeshift hospital, she saw the tale-tell signs of a dragging into one of the rooms. Blood from the door, a slight pool in front of the desk, and bloody prints from the victim recovering enough to move.
There was no one present, the staff possibly one or two people, but she did notice a mop and bucket of water in the corner behind the desk.
Ebony never was one to sit idle for too long, and, without a designated cooking area, she decided to help out a little by mopping the blood; it was an unsanitary sight to her anyway. Had to been collected and stored, it would be a more enticing sight.
When she was nearly finished, she heard the door open and a female figure stepped out. She wore a blue dress with long sleeves and a head cover over her head; reminding her much of what a nun would look like.
The woman took immediate notice of Ebony and, after a brief look around, went to the desk. "Are you here for treatment?" She began as she took hold of a notebook. "If so, there is already someone in the ward undergoing treatment of the mind." She informed with a somewhat harsh tone.
"Is it a graverobber named Elina?" Ebony asked as she continued and finished cleaning, and then turned her head to speak to the nurse. "I take it Alexander is here too?" She asked with a smile.
The blue-dress nurse nodded her head. "The man is powerful, but he believes the only way to unleash that power is to bleed himself. After much trouble, his friends were finally able to get him into the chair... it's just a shame I cannot operate until the morning."
Ebony tilted her head and put a finger to her lower lip. "I'm pretty good with making incisions. If you'd like, I could cut the tendons of his arms, and try to reattach them. It's worked a few times." She said with a smile.
The nurse stared at her for a moment, brushing the hair from her face as she did, and then smiled; it did not seem natural or common for her to do so. "Only if you have a plan B in case you cannot." She said.
"I've fixed clubs and spikes to arms before. What weapons does he use? I could replace his arms with flails if he's so adamant about hurting himself and his enemies." Ebony offered with a stifled giggle.
The nurse covered her face with her left hand, chuckling silently and trying not to laugh, and then, when she had herself under control, turned around and gestured for Ebony to follow. "Come. Elina's treatment is over anyway. I was just about to clean up when I noticed you."
Elina had been brought in to undergo treatment that would remove a disease, and, by the look of the full leeches, the process had been a success, but the loss of blood appeared to have put her in a daze of sorts.
"Are they off now?" The graverobber asked when she heard the door stop moving and without looking toward them or the leeches on her arm.
The nurse walked over to the woman and began removing the leeches from her arm, placing them into a jar as she did with careful, practice hands. "I am doing so now, but you have an apprentice here to see you." She said with a rare smile. "For once, it's one I hope to see for conversation and not work." She added.
The graverobber did not open her eyes or turn her head toward either of the other two women. "Who else came with her?" She asked.
"Just me." Ebony said cheerfully. "I don't know why I was told to meet you, but the barkeeper told me to." She replied.
Elina startled, shaking momentarily like she had been shocked, at the words, forcing the nurse to step back, and sat up with a glare. "What did you- ugh!" She started, but then nearly fell out of the bed before the nurse caught her. "Just one? And a knife-thrower to boot..." She managed to mumble.
Ebony blinked her eyes and shrugged her shoulders. "I'm not a knife-thrower." She said.
Both the nurse and the graverobber looked at her then, and her smile grew.
"I'm a cook."
List of characters: Reynold (crusader), Dismas (highwayman), Yorick (jester), Agatha (hellion), Marin (vestal), Jericho (occultist), Christ (abomination), Alexander (flagellant), Triss (arbalest), Micheal (houndmaster), Elina (graverobber), and Mina (vestal)