Yes, tis I. Lordess lawn gnome, web-apprentice (as opposed to master) of
Raistland and Chief of Staff of the Raistlin's Flavor of the Varying
Period. Give me a submission all you prospecting authors... You know you want
to...
Oh! And R&R
Disclaimer: Ha! I actually do own these characters... Eat that Weis and Hickman!
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'A hunting we will go...
It was a dark and smelly place. Goldie signed dramatically as she was kicked again. Very dark and smelly. I should really get more pay for this, she thought, I was hired as a thief, not to hide under tables and get kicked. Oh well, at least something interesting was bound to happen tonight.
The table above the melodramatic kender shook as one of its occupants stood up.
"Yur gonna pay for me map, by the gods, or I'll cut off those pretty elf ears an' toss 'em in tonight's stew," a man with bad teeth and even worse grammar told the elf across the table. Alright, Goldie said to herself, the fun is about to start.
In response to this grievous insult, the elf with the pretty ears stood up with such a force that his chair flew over. "Do what you will, innkeep (though I doubt even my ears will improve tonight's fare any) but I will not pay for that map. It's too old and worn, probably from before that War of the Lance, and it doesn't look like it leads to anything of importance anyways."
"Bah! Ye're sayin' that cause you already got it remembered in that head 'o yur's, right?"
"Perhaps, but what does it matter?"
"Don't play dumb with me, elf, I know ya. Grey-haired elves are rare enough, but there's only one that's missin' an arm to boot. Yur a Marauder!" With this the foul innkeep flung the table in the air, trying to get at the elf. He was tripped en route, however, by a kender lying on the floor where the table had been.
"Thieves!" the man cried, checking his belt pouch to make sure he still had his precious map. He didn't, of course. "Kender!"
Goldie was just about to give the man a lecture on jumping to conclusions, when the room burst into flames. The elf nodded.
"That'd be Ayon; on time as usual." With a wary eye towards the other customers in the inn, he grabbed the affronted kender by the topknot and ran out into the dimming sun.
An hour or so later, a group of seven companions gathered in an abandoned warehouse near the inn. From the shadows came the Marauders. First came the kender Goldie, dripping wet. Born (as far as she knew) as Goldsun Blenchfoot, Goldie was your typical kender, if you over looked her introspection and withdrawn disposition. Next came the brother/ sister duo that ran the treasure-hunting group- Treg and Rhia Harpe. The children of a powerful mage, Treg (the older) was a powerfully built fighter with an open, though not very handsome, face. Rhia, in contrast, was a petit beauty who had inherited her father's talent for the art.
"Where are the others?" Rhia asked the kender, peering into the corners of the dark, decrepit building. "And why are you soaking wet?"
"Coming soon; I smelled like bad ale."
"Slow down, Goldie." Treg broke in.
"The others should be coming soon- after all it is getting close to meeting-time, isn't it? And I'm wet because I decided to take a bath after getting the map- the innkeep spilt his ale on me when Ayon let off that fireball."
Rhia nodded, and then looked shocked. "You didn't get the map wet, did you?"
"No, I have it," said a figure in the shadows.
"Kalesh! Finally!" Treg shouted to his long-time friend.
It was Treg and Kalesh- the pretty elf from the bar- who started the Marauders as a way to find adventure and treasure- Treg being young and Kalesh being old and bored. Kalesh was a dark elf, though how he could do something to merit that title was beyond Treg, who had lost and arm during the War of the Lance- nearly a hundred years ago. Having no money for food and unable to find a mercenary group who would hire a one-armed elf, he had joined up with Treg and his mageling little sister.
"Hey! I hope us two heroes have earned that type of welcome too!" a deep, jovial voice said from the rafters.
"Ott! And Jaden! How have you two rascals been?" shouted Treg.
"And why the roof?" the anxious Rhia said in a more reasonable tone. "Do you want to have he whole town come down on us?"
"Oh, don't be such a spoilsport," the priest of Kiri-Jolith told the red mage. Turing to Jaden, his partner in crime, the large man jumped off the rafters. Treg shouted and jumped out of the way, but the two just laughed uproariously. Five feet before they splattered on the floor, they stopped like they had hit a large cushion.
"Ha! You should have seen your faces. You thought we'd cracked and jumped! Ha!" Jaden, a human bard, managed to get out amid the giggles.
Obviously incensed a being mocked, Kalesh pulled his sword and leveled it at the man. "What is the meaning of this devilry?" he demanded.
"Calm down old one," said the cleric- further angering the elf, "in our travels the bard and I came upon a few magic rings that offered the power of flight. We thought to use them for a grand entrance."
"You of all people should know not to play around with magic objects you may happen to "find," disciple of Kiri-Jolith." This voice came from a figure in a full green cape that had sneaked in during the group's mirth.
"Ayon, I would guess," said Treg.
"All gloom and doom as usual,' added Rhia under her breath.
Treg shot his sister a warning glance. The last thing they needed was another fight between the red and white mages. Time to get to business- there was nothing to stem his sister's bad temper and the elf mage's self- righteousness like the prospect of gold. A lot of gold.
"Kalesh, the map?" Treg asked the dour elf.
With a flourish Kalesh drew the map out of his belt pouch and handed it to the group's leader. Treg reverently spread the old parchment out on the lone table. Abruptly the companions stopped fighting. Goldie grabbed the only chair in the room and placed it near the table for her to stand on.
"Hey kender! Leave that for me." Ayon said sternly.
"Ayon, I'm half your height. I need it more than you do," the kender reprimanded.
"So? I'm tired from saving you and darkie here from the evil innkeep."
Treg sighed. The bratty elf mage was already at it again. Sometimes he wished that he could just get rid of her- whether by accident or design- but white mages were hard to come by these days, especially ones as powerful as Ayon. With another sigh the fighter looker towards his sister. With a resolute nod the red mage made a symbol in air with her hand and whispered a few words of command. Suddenly the dejected kender was floating a foot or so off the ground- just the right height for her to see the map.
"Ooh ooh! I've been there... and there... but not there, though I have a cousin that has. And look at that, I didn't know Wayreth forest was so far south, but then I guess it tends to move a bit- being magic and all. Hey look at that place- looks interesting, doesn't it? And—"
"For the love of The Warrior, will someone shut the kender up?" Ott broke into Goldie tirade. Kender we're very well traveled creatures and coveted new maps and directories. The cleric, along with the rest of the Marauders, had spent many a night listening to the kender ramble about places she'd been to or where she'd like to go.
Treg offered the kender an apologetic sigh. Ott was a newer member of the group, and thus had not yet come to respect the kender's innocent prattle for the moral-booster it was. He, like most of Krynn, considered kender a nuisance- only to be endured by the gods' will.
"Moving on," Rhia began cryptically. "The map says the lich's cashé is in the Kholist Mountains about two days hike from here. That means if we leave tonight we can get there the morning before all three moons are full. According to legend, the door can only be seen on the first night of the Eye and can only be opened by blood letting."
"B- b- blood letting?" the suddenly pale Jaden asked. The bard was a self-admitting hedonist and thus didn't like to think that he would have to harm himself to gain treasure.
"Nothing to worry about," the mage replied. "My brother will trap a hare or such on the trail and we can use that as the sacrifice."
The bard gave a sigh of relief, his mind once again returning to the prospect of the lich's treasure.
"Is everyone in agreement with Rhia?" Treg asked the group. No one objected, so he continued. "Alright, Goldie, you and Jaden go buy ration- a week at least."
"And none of that elvish junk," Ott broke in, earning a dagger- spitting stare from Ayon.
Treg smiled, even going into a dangerous quest the jovial priest couldn't keep contained. The kender and the bard left, after checking for people of the street.
"Rhia, you and Ayon go to the mageware shop and stock up on components. Also, see if you can find any banishing spells- just in case the lich left any undead guardians."
The two females nodded and left just as the other two had.
"As for the rest of you, let's head to the tavern and see if we can find anyone who can gave us advice for the trail."
"Um... Treg? The kender and I stole this map from the innkeeper and Ayon let off a fireball in his commons. I don't think we'll be welcome," Kalesh said slowly.
Loosing the bluster of command, the large man fumbled.
"I- I... uh... I guess we'll just stay here then. Till the others get back"
Two days later the Marauders stood at the foot of a large hill. It was an odd place for a hill- this part of Ansalon, at the foot of the Kholist Mountains, was flatter and rockier- but nevertheless it stood, tall and grass-covered like a mossy gravestone.
"This hardly looks like the place for a lich's treasure trove." Jaden said skeptically.
"Which is exactly why it's a good place for one," Rhia scolded. She, lacking both the strength of her brother and the agility of the elf mage, was exhausted. Slowly she sank onto a rock and opened her spell book. Tonight, with luck, the companions would enter the cave that should magically appear at the onset of the Eye. The eye was just that- a giant eye formed by the three moons of Krynn. Solinari, named for the god of white magic, was the outer rim: Lunitari, named for the goddess of red (neutral) magic, was the iris; and Nutitari, named for the god of black magic, was the pupil. Because of the connections between the gods of magic and their moons, the Eye was a very special occurrence that meant improved magical prowess and stability to all the mages of Krynn.
Just behind Rhia came Ayon, who wasn't even winded after the long. With a disdainful look at Rhia, she too sat and began to study. Constantly having to memorize spells- only to have them slip away upon casting- was the curse of all mages, no matter their color.
Next came the kender, skipping gaily and collecting flowers for her hair. Not even the promise of pain and death could wipe the smile from Goldie's face.
Trudging along behind her were Treg and Ott, who were supporting Kalesh. The trek had not been easy for the old elf, despite his adamant protestations otherwise.
When all of the companions had made it to the base of the hill, Treg gave the order to set up camp. It was only midday, so they had quite a while to rest before entering the tunnels. Carefully he opened his bed roll and removed a small sack.
"It's ok, little fella," he crooned to the terrified rabbit inside. Really, it wasn't, for this rabbit was to be the blood sacrifice that would open the lich's cashé, but a bunny wasn't going to glean that from the group's conversations.
"Shh..." Rhia demanded, without even looking up from her spell book. Jaden giggled inwardly at the sight of the tiny Rhia rebuking the large fighter like a spoiled toddler, but knew enough not to say anything. Even the kender knew the benefits of staying on the mage's good side.
The day passed slowly, though the two studying mages hardly noticed, with the rest of the company lounging around and napping. At about one hour before sunset, Treg called the group together to go over their plans one last time.
"Ok, before sunset, Ott will be in position with the rabbit. At the mages' signal, he'll slice its throat and offer it as a sacrifice to the gods. With that, the doors should open. All of you run inside as fast as you can. I don't know how much time we'll have to enter. I'll try to hold the doors open, but if there are spells shutting them, I won't let Rhia and Ayon waste magic opening them from the inside to let dawdlers in. If anyone is left outside, head back to the town. I promise that as long as you try you'll see a share of the treasure."
"Though not an equal share," Jaden put in.
Treg smiled, "Nope, you have to earn an equal share. So, are we all ready?" he asked with a poignant glace at the two mages. Both nodded, though Ayon's was far more confident. Rhia was starting to feel the stress of the mission depending almost entirely on her and the elf-maid's magic- for what good is steel against the undead?
"It's almost time," Kalesh said, bring Treg back to reality.
"Good, I'm getting anxious. Ott, get to the doors. Rhia, Ayon, be ready to cast your signal spell. The rest of you, come with me- we're going to hide in the brush above the door."
Once they were all in position, the troupe waited, looking to the sky for the mages' signal. Finally, after nearly an hour of waiting, the kender got bored and started to get fidgety. Treg tried to keep Goldie quiet, but it was to no avail- most men would rather fight an army of ogres than silence a bored kender.
"Treg! Stop pinching me! I know what's going on, but I'm bored. If you'd let go of me, I could look at my maps." By now the whole group was centered on quieting the kender- even Ott was moving towards them, lecturing them all on their lack of stealth.
"Let go of me! What's the rope for Jaden? What are you looking for Treg? Your handkerchief? I think I may have seen it... Just let me check my pouches- hey! There it is! How did it get in there? Wha- Mongermspkyen! What was that for? Hey, look at that!
The kender pointed to the sky. Treg spun around. The signal! Ott ran to his place and got out his dagger and the rabbit from its sack. Treg and the rest of the gang prepared to jump into the opening when it appeared. Rhia and Ayon were running towards them.
Ott mumbled a prayer and slit rabbit's throat. It was tricky- the throat of a rabbit being rather hard to find- but the cleric managed. Holding the dead bunny into the air, Ott finished the prayer. Nothing happened. Rhia and Ayon arrived, both panting. They skidded to a stop, nearly running into Ott. Rhia shot Treg a questioning glance. He shrugged.
Suddenly the priest of Kiri-Jolith shrieked. The sound was unnatural- high pitched and keen- coming from the bass-voiced priest. With look a look of horror Ayon started backing away, pulling the stunned Rhia with her. Treg craned his neck, wondering what the two women could see that he couldn't.
Then he saw it. The sacrificial bunny had fallen from the man's hand and was growing. It already reached Ott knees, and at the rate it was going, it would soon be at his waist. Treg pulled his sword out and prepared to jump the horrid creature, but Ayon waved him back.
"What is she doing?" Jaden whispered. "We have to kill that thing before it hurts Ott."
"I trust her," Treg shushed him.
Despite the fact that Ayon seemed to be doing nothing, the remainder of the group stayed in the brush, waiting for the mage to order them to do something.
Then, suddenly, the elk-maid lifted her hand and shouted a word of command. Bright blue lightning struck the still-growing rabbit, causing purple and red flames on its pelt. Unperturbed, the rabbit continued to grow. Before Ayon's spell had even ended, it reared up and let put an ungodly keening noise. Treg prepared to jump down and help the still- unmoving Ott. He raised his sword and leapt at the monster bunny. He landed beside it and readied his attack. Before he could even get into the proper stance, the creature- already to his shoulder- reared again, this time coming down on Ott.
"No!" Treg shouted.
The other Marauders in the brush followed suit with Treg, jumping down to help free Ott from the monster's grasp- but it was too late.
As Jaden-the only other swordsman in the group-landed, the giant bunny lifted the comatose cleric above its head and twisted. Even Goldie became visible ill when a loud crack rang out. Ott was dead- his neck snapped.
With an unearth roar, the rabbit threw the corpse at the door and turned toward the remaining Marauders. Treg raised his sword, prepared to avenge his friend. Rhia however, suddenly looked up- as if waking up from a nap.
"Brother, you can do nothing here! Run! All of you! The door is open! The creature cannot enter! Run, you fools!" she shouted, breaking into a hard gallop towards the dark opening in the side of the hill.
Too stunned to disobey, Treg followed his sister- after looking around to make sure the others were coming too. Fueled by fright, the treasure hunters flew towards the cave. Out of the blue, the large- and now very angry- rabbit appeared in front of him. There was no way for him to stop, so he just closed his eyes, gritted his teeth, and barreled on... Right through the rabbit and on into the cave.
The door shut with a resounding thud just as he pulled his trailing foot in. Skidding to a stop, Treg looked around. It was no use; he couldn't see a thing in the inky blackness.
"Light," he called, hoping the others had made it in time.
"Shirak," said a voice in the darkness- Rhia's voice. A crystal she held in her hand flared to life.
After a cursory glance at his sister, Treg looked around the dimly lit cave. Goldie... Kalesh... Jaden... Where was Ayon?
"Ayon?" he asked the kender.
"Here," was the weak reply.
"Are you ok?" Rhia ran over to the pale elf.
"I'm fine. That spell drained me. I'll be ready to go in a moment," was the terse reply.
"I think we all need a rest... and a moment of silence for- for..."
"For Ott," Rhia interrupted her brother when it looked like he would never finish his sentence.
"Yes." All the companions bowed there heads and Kalesh murmured something in his native tongue.
After the allotted moment, Rhia raised her head and coughed delicately.
"Alright, let's move out," Treg said looking around. "Ott wouldn't have wanted us to stop for him."
Slowly the remaining Marauders rose and started looking around the cave. Not much was visible by the light of Rhia's crystal.
"We need light," Jaden said. "Do we have any torches?"
"I've got a set," Treg replied. He handed one to the bard and kept the other for himself.
"I'll lead the group; Kalesh goes in the center and I want Jaden at the rear." Slowly the group filed out of the opening cave into the dark tunnel beyond.
They walk for what felt like days, stopping for food and rest only when one of them collapsed. Goldie often left the group during those periods to explore the tunnel and its offshoot. She never found anything really interesting, till the group took a particularly long rest after Rhia and Jaden collapsed and Kalesh tripped over Rhia's prone body. The one- armed elf had been unable to steady himself and had fallen face-first into the wall, knocking himself unconscious. While the others stayed behind resting and tending to the comatose elf, Goldie traipsed ahead. Suddenly she came running back, shouting for everyone to come.
"Shut up!" the just awakened Kalesh shouted at her.
Goldie just pretended she hadn't heard him and continued yelling.
"You have to come see this! Pixies! They're so pretty and tiny! Just flitting everywhere! You have to come see them!"
"Kender! Calm down! We'll come look just as soon as the elf can walk again," Rhia said loudly.
"I can walk just fine, mage!" the elf shouted, getting up.
"Oh? Ok, then let's follow the kender then."
Kalesh cursed at being tricked into following the kender- something no sane person would do.
Groaning at having to move again, the companions rose and started down the hall, following the kender.
After an hour of walking, they came at last to the place the kender was so excited about. The hall ended in an open door, just past the door was a one hundred feet long room, about twice that high, that was chock full of a miasma of swirling and flashing bright lights.
"Mmmm... ok. Who wants to go check it out?" Treg asked.
"Don't you think its pretty?" the now-manic kender demanded.
"What? Oh, it's ah... very nice. But we need to get through it. That's my main concern."
"I'll go," Jaden volunteered. "That is, unless the kender want to gawk some more. I know how to deal with pixies."
"You won't kill any of them, will you?" Goldie panicked.
"Now, you know pixies are very violent creatures. I may have to make an example of a few of them to show the rest that I'm one to be reckoned with," Jaden said seriously.
"Ok, just don't kill too many of them. They're so pretty!" the kender said solemnly, not realizing she was the butt of a joke.
"Get on, you rascal," Treg said with a grin. He gently pushed the bard past the door into the room.
Jaden promptly vanished into a swirling mess of lights.
"No!" Treg shouted, prepared to go in after his friend.
Rhia stopped him. "Those are metal pixies, I recognize them now. I doubt there is much of our friend left.
"Lies! The mage is telling lies! She only wants Jaden's share of the treasure!" Kalesh said.
"Silence, Dark Elf," Ayon broke into Kalesh' frantic rant. "The red mage is the most trustworthy of all of us. You will go to check on the bard, but you will do as she says in accordance to preparations."
Kalesh nodded.
"Remove all the metal you care, elf. That will make them leave you alone," said Rhia, blushing slightly at Ayon's unusual compliment.
With Treg's help, the crippled elf removed every bit of metal, from every link of mail to the smallest dagger. After he was free of metal, Kalesh walked to the door and opened it. The pixies had stopped swarming and were again floating innocently. In the center of the room lay a human- shaped bundle wearing Jaden's clothes.
"I still advise you against this elf," Rhia said. "You should let Ayon or I go."
But Kalesh only snorted and entered the room. At the sight of the Jaden-blob, he broke into a run towards it.
"Wait!" Goldie shouted after him. "There may be traps."
Kalesh ignored her too and continued his sprint. When he was almost to the body, he froze suddenly and unnaturally.
"What-?" Treg began, but Rhia silenced him.
A single word of magic rang out from the very stones, and the ceiling of the room collapsed.
"Holy hell!" Treg cursed.
When the dust and debris cleared, the chunks of ceiling lifted and glided seamlessly into place. Ayon sighed in amazement. At the center of the still rumbling room, there lie two somewhat human-shaped blobs with large pools of blood around them.
"Well, anyone else dare to question me?" Rhia asked smugly.
After voting and deciding unanimously to continue, the kender lead the remaining four Marauders across the room. All of them were sure to watch their steps.
Outside of the only other door in the room was a short hall that lead to a door without any knobs, latches or locks.
"It must be spell locked," Ayon decided, causing the kender to groan. There is nothing a kender loves more than picking locks.
"I'll open it," said Rhia, shoving rudely past Ayon and Treg to stand before the door.
"Step back... please."
Too shocked that the ego-centric red mage had said please to resist, the whole group, even the curiosity plagued kender, retreated.
Rhia chanted a few word in the language of magic and rubbed a twig on the door. Instead of just opening, the door entirely disappeared, leaving to bare the treasures of a once great lich.
"Yes!" Treg exclaimed, heading toward a large golden throne.
"Wait," Rhia told him. "That was far too easy."
But it was too late already. Treg set his hand on the lovely throne and screaming in terror and pain. With a great wrench, he pulled his arm away, only to reveal that a bloody stump was all that remained.
Retching in pain, the stock fighter screamed again and toppled, his left leg hitting the throne. Rhia, Ayon, and even the kender were too terrified to do anything- even run- so they both watched in horror as Treg's leg disappeared in a gory spurt.
The man tries to rise again, but a combination of pain and blood loss defeated his efforts. With a bubbly sigh, Treg leaned back onto the throne, and exploded.
At her brother's last grisly sacrifice, Rhia suddenly snapped out of the all consuming fear that held her. She ran towards the throne to aid Treg, but received nothing but a hearty showering of her brother's blood. With a wail she sank to her knees and started to weep.
Also released from the spell, the remaining elf and the kender looked around the room. It was full of any type of riches imaginable, from soft, ornate gold to the coldest, hardest steel. Sighing happily the kender began to stick the shiniest bits into her pouches, but Ayon went to comfort the weeping Rhia.
"Its ok dear, he died a good man. He would have wanted us to enjoy this treasure- he died for it. At least he got to see it before he died, unlike the others," she tried, but it was no use.
In the end it was the kender that cheered Rhia up, though it was totally on accident. While the elf had been consoling, Goldie had been exploring. At the back of the room, she found a large stone chest. After a bit of a struggle, she managed to open it. Sighing disappointedly, she shouted at Ayon and Rhia to come have a look at its contents.
"Spell books," she told them. "Red ones with gold runes and even a few blue ones with silver runes."
At this Rhia, like any other mage, perked up considerably. Forcing the kender to take her to the books on threat of death, she followed Goldie to the back of the room. There she and Ayon began to remove the books from the chest and take inventory.
"I'll be able to read these," Rhia said, holding a pile of red books.
"What about these?" Goldie asked. "What color of robes are they for? There aren't any blue sects." She picked up one of the night blue books and began to open it.
"No!" Ayon shouted, racing forward to grab the book from the affronted kender. She quickly shut it again, but before she could redeposit it in the chest it flew out of her hands and across the room. Rhia gave Ayon a sour look and started over to retrieve it, but before she had made it half way the pages of the book ruffled, as if by an unseen wind, and a figure rose out of it.
"Back, puny mage!" it waved a hand at Rhia, activating a spell that sent her flying into the wall.
"A lich!" Goldie exclaimed in wonder.
"Stand back," said Ayon, taking charge of the dire situation. "This is my arena. I have several banishing spells."
"And you think your little spells will work on me, elfie? You know, I've never been an elf before. It could be fun," the lich taunted.
Ayon was undaunted. She raised her hands in the air and began tracing intricate patterns while chanting in the language of magic. White light began to accumulate around her, giving her an ethereal appeal. The lich froze and slowly began to dissipate. After what felt like hours, the last bit of his specter form disappeared and the light around Ayon flashed red before going away.
"A nice spell," Rhia complimented the white mage, but Ayon neither moved nor replied. Think the elf was tired and thus unnaturally rude; the red mage wandered off and began exploring the spell books again. The kender, however, could see that the elf was not normal. Her eyes were blank and her jaw had gone slack. Hesitantly, the kender poked her in the arm.
"Rhia? Rhia, are you in there?"
"Not anymore," came the horrible reply.
Rhia looked up at the sound of Ayon's voice, suddenly understanding. The voice was so like the elf maid's, yet not even close. The movements were crude and jerky. The eyes were a flaming red.
"Oh hell," Rhia said softly. Taking a last look at the spell she had been memorizing, she stood and faced the lich possessed Ayon.
"Run!" she said out of the side of her mouth toward the kender. "Run like hell. You're the last of the Marauders. You have to get out of here and keep the rest of us alive in memory."
"B-but..." the shaking kender could barley talk.
"Don't question me, just go. I can't let this thing loose on the world. I have to kill it, or at least temporarily destroy it. Don't worry, I have a good plan. Now go!"
Too scared to object, the kender took off, running past the lich and out the door.
"The kender isn't worth my time," Ayon said. "You're the one I want. For years and year I've had to stand behind you, groveling and fawning, to get even the slightest bit of praise in this group. You! A pitiful human!"
"Let's see how pitiful I really am!" Rhia shouted, raising her hand to shoot large purple fireball at the lich.
The fires didn't even reach it, instead rebounding off a magic shield and returning to Rhia in full force. Pretending to scream in agony, the magically fireproofed Rhia prepared her next spell. As soon as the last of the flames dissipated, she raised her hands and shouted a single word of command. Her magically amplified voice echoed through the halls of the cashé- even reaching the nearly free kender. With a small pray to Lunitari to preserve her, Rhia brought her hands together...
And the world exploded.
A kender emerged from the smoldering debris of a collapsed hill- silent and limping. When at last she was free of the destruction, she sat down and wept- bathed in the blood red light of Lunitari.
Oh! And R&R
Disclaimer: Ha! I actually do own these characters... Eat that Weis and Hickman!
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'A hunting we will go...
It was a dark and smelly place. Goldie signed dramatically as she was kicked again. Very dark and smelly. I should really get more pay for this, she thought, I was hired as a thief, not to hide under tables and get kicked. Oh well, at least something interesting was bound to happen tonight.
The table above the melodramatic kender shook as one of its occupants stood up.
"Yur gonna pay for me map, by the gods, or I'll cut off those pretty elf ears an' toss 'em in tonight's stew," a man with bad teeth and even worse grammar told the elf across the table. Alright, Goldie said to herself, the fun is about to start.
In response to this grievous insult, the elf with the pretty ears stood up with such a force that his chair flew over. "Do what you will, innkeep (though I doubt even my ears will improve tonight's fare any) but I will not pay for that map. It's too old and worn, probably from before that War of the Lance, and it doesn't look like it leads to anything of importance anyways."
"Bah! Ye're sayin' that cause you already got it remembered in that head 'o yur's, right?"
"Perhaps, but what does it matter?"
"Don't play dumb with me, elf, I know ya. Grey-haired elves are rare enough, but there's only one that's missin' an arm to boot. Yur a Marauder!" With this the foul innkeep flung the table in the air, trying to get at the elf. He was tripped en route, however, by a kender lying on the floor where the table had been.
"Thieves!" the man cried, checking his belt pouch to make sure he still had his precious map. He didn't, of course. "Kender!"
Goldie was just about to give the man a lecture on jumping to conclusions, when the room burst into flames. The elf nodded.
"That'd be Ayon; on time as usual." With a wary eye towards the other customers in the inn, he grabbed the affronted kender by the topknot and ran out into the dimming sun.
An hour or so later, a group of seven companions gathered in an abandoned warehouse near the inn. From the shadows came the Marauders. First came the kender Goldie, dripping wet. Born (as far as she knew) as Goldsun Blenchfoot, Goldie was your typical kender, if you over looked her introspection and withdrawn disposition. Next came the brother/ sister duo that ran the treasure-hunting group- Treg and Rhia Harpe. The children of a powerful mage, Treg (the older) was a powerfully built fighter with an open, though not very handsome, face. Rhia, in contrast, was a petit beauty who had inherited her father's talent for the art.
"Where are the others?" Rhia asked the kender, peering into the corners of the dark, decrepit building. "And why are you soaking wet?"
"Coming soon; I smelled like bad ale."
"Slow down, Goldie." Treg broke in.
"The others should be coming soon- after all it is getting close to meeting-time, isn't it? And I'm wet because I decided to take a bath after getting the map- the innkeep spilt his ale on me when Ayon let off that fireball."
Rhia nodded, and then looked shocked. "You didn't get the map wet, did you?"
"No, I have it," said a figure in the shadows.
"Kalesh! Finally!" Treg shouted to his long-time friend.
It was Treg and Kalesh- the pretty elf from the bar- who started the Marauders as a way to find adventure and treasure- Treg being young and Kalesh being old and bored. Kalesh was a dark elf, though how he could do something to merit that title was beyond Treg, who had lost and arm during the War of the Lance- nearly a hundred years ago. Having no money for food and unable to find a mercenary group who would hire a one-armed elf, he had joined up with Treg and his mageling little sister.
"Hey! I hope us two heroes have earned that type of welcome too!" a deep, jovial voice said from the rafters.
"Ott! And Jaden! How have you two rascals been?" shouted Treg.
"And why the roof?" the anxious Rhia said in a more reasonable tone. "Do you want to have he whole town come down on us?"
"Oh, don't be such a spoilsport," the priest of Kiri-Jolith told the red mage. Turing to Jaden, his partner in crime, the large man jumped off the rafters. Treg shouted and jumped out of the way, but the two just laughed uproariously. Five feet before they splattered on the floor, they stopped like they had hit a large cushion.
"Ha! You should have seen your faces. You thought we'd cracked and jumped! Ha!" Jaden, a human bard, managed to get out amid the giggles.
Obviously incensed a being mocked, Kalesh pulled his sword and leveled it at the man. "What is the meaning of this devilry?" he demanded.
"Calm down old one," said the cleric- further angering the elf, "in our travels the bard and I came upon a few magic rings that offered the power of flight. We thought to use them for a grand entrance."
"You of all people should know not to play around with magic objects you may happen to "find," disciple of Kiri-Jolith." This voice came from a figure in a full green cape that had sneaked in during the group's mirth.
"Ayon, I would guess," said Treg.
"All gloom and doom as usual,' added Rhia under her breath.
Treg shot his sister a warning glance. The last thing they needed was another fight between the red and white mages. Time to get to business- there was nothing to stem his sister's bad temper and the elf mage's self- righteousness like the prospect of gold. A lot of gold.
"Kalesh, the map?" Treg asked the dour elf.
With a flourish Kalesh drew the map out of his belt pouch and handed it to the group's leader. Treg reverently spread the old parchment out on the lone table. Abruptly the companions stopped fighting. Goldie grabbed the only chair in the room and placed it near the table for her to stand on.
"Hey kender! Leave that for me." Ayon said sternly.
"Ayon, I'm half your height. I need it more than you do," the kender reprimanded.
"So? I'm tired from saving you and darkie here from the evil innkeep."
Treg sighed. The bratty elf mage was already at it again. Sometimes he wished that he could just get rid of her- whether by accident or design- but white mages were hard to come by these days, especially ones as powerful as Ayon. With another sigh the fighter looker towards his sister. With a resolute nod the red mage made a symbol in air with her hand and whispered a few words of command. Suddenly the dejected kender was floating a foot or so off the ground- just the right height for her to see the map.
"Ooh ooh! I've been there... and there... but not there, though I have a cousin that has. And look at that, I didn't know Wayreth forest was so far south, but then I guess it tends to move a bit- being magic and all. Hey look at that place- looks interesting, doesn't it? And—"
"For the love of The Warrior, will someone shut the kender up?" Ott broke into Goldie tirade. Kender we're very well traveled creatures and coveted new maps and directories. The cleric, along with the rest of the Marauders, had spent many a night listening to the kender ramble about places she'd been to or where she'd like to go.
Treg offered the kender an apologetic sigh. Ott was a newer member of the group, and thus had not yet come to respect the kender's innocent prattle for the moral-booster it was. He, like most of Krynn, considered kender a nuisance- only to be endured by the gods' will.
"Moving on," Rhia began cryptically. "The map says the lich's cashé is in the Kholist Mountains about two days hike from here. That means if we leave tonight we can get there the morning before all three moons are full. According to legend, the door can only be seen on the first night of the Eye and can only be opened by blood letting."
"B- b- blood letting?" the suddenly pale Jaden asked. The bard was a self-admitting hedonist and thus didn't like to think that he would have to harm himself to gain treasure.
"Nothing to worry about," the mage replied. "My brother will trap a hare or such on the trail and we can use that as the sacrifice."
The bard gave a sigh of relief, his mind once again returning to the prospect of the lich's treasure.
"Is everyone in agreement with Rhia?" Treg asked the group. No one objected, so he continued. "Alright, Goldie, you and Jaden go buy ration- a week at least."
"And none of that elvish junk," Ott broke in, earning a dagger- spitting stare from Ayon.
Treg smiled, even going into a dangerous quest the jovial priest couldn't keep contained. The kender and the bard left, after checking for people of the street.
"Rhia, you and Ayon go to the mageware shop and stock up on components. Also, see if you can find any banishing spells- just in case the lich left any undead guardians."
The two females nodded and left just as the other two had.
"As for the rest of you, let's head to the tavern and see if we can find anyone who can gave us advice for the trail."
"Um... Treg? The kender and I stole this map from the innkeeper and Ayon let off a fireball in his commons. I don't think we'll be welcome," Kalesh said slowly.
Loosing the bluster of command, the large man fumbled.
"I- I... uh... I guess we'll just stay here then. Till the others get back"
Two days later the Marauders stood at the foot of a large hill. It was an odd place for a hill- this part of Ansalon, at the foot of the Kholist Mountains, was flatter and rockier- but nevertheless it stood, tall and grass-covered like a mossy gravestone.
"This hardly looks like the place for a lich's treasure trove." Jaden said skeptically.
"Which is exactly why it's a good place for one," Rhia scolded. She, lacking both the strength of her brother and the agility of the elf mage, was exhausted. Slowly she sank onto a rock and opened her spell book. Tonight, with luck, the companions would enter the cave that should magically appear at the onset of the Eye. The eye was just that- a giant eye formed by the three moons of Krynn. Solinari, named for the god of white magic, was the outer rim: Lunitari, named for the goddess of red (neutral) magic, was the iris; and Nutitari, named for the god of black magic, was the pupil. Because of the connections between the gods of magic and their moons, the Eye was a very special occurrence that meant improved magical prowess and stability to all the mages of Krynn.
Just behind Rhia came Ayon, who wasn't even winded after the long. With a disdainful look at Rhia, she too sat and began to study. Constantly having to memorize spells- only to have them slip away upon casting- was the curse of all mages, no matter their color.
Next came the kender, skipping gaily and collecting flowers for her hair. Not even the promise of pain and death could wipe the smile from Goldie's face.
Trudging along behind her were Treg and Ott, who were supporting Kalesh. The trek had not been easy for the old elf, despite his adamant protestations otherwise.
When all of the companions had made it to the base of the hill, Treg gave the order to set up camp. It was only midday, so they had quite a while to rest before entering the tunnels. Carefully he opened his bed roll and removed a small sack.
"It's ok, little fella," he crooned to the terrified rabbit inside. Really, it wasn't, for this rabbit was to be the blood sacrifice that would open the lich's cashé, but a bunny wasn't going to glean that from the group's conversations.
"Shh..." Rhia demanded, without even looking up from her spell book. Jaden giggled inwardly at the sight of the tiny Rhia rebuking the large fighter like a spoiled toddler, but knew enough not to say anything. Even the kender knew the benefits of staying on the mage's good side.
The day passed slowly, though the two studying mages hardly noticed, with the rest of the company lounging around and napping. At about one hour before sunset, Treg called the group together to go over their plans one last time.
"Ok, before sunset, Ott will be in position with the rabbit. At the mages' signal, he'll slice its throat and offer it as a sacrifice to the gods. With that, the doors should open. All of you run inside as fast as you can. I don't know how much time we'll have to enter. I'll try to hold the doors open, but if there are spells shutting them, I won't let Rhia and Ayon waste magic opening them from the inside to let dawdlers in. If anyone is left outside, head back to the town. I promise that as long as you try you'll see a share of the treasure."
"Though not an equal share," Jaden put in.
Treg smiled, "Nope, you have to earn an equal share. So, are we all ready?" he asked with a poignant glace at the two mages. Both nodded, though Ayon's was far more confident. Rhia was starting to feel the stress of the mission depending almost entirely on her and the elf-maid's magic- for what good is steel against the undead?
"It's almost time," Kalesh said, bring Treg back to reality.
"Good, I'm getting anxious. Ott, get to the doors. Rhia, Ayon, be ready to cast your signal spell. The rest of you, come with me- we're going to hide in the brush above the door."
Once they were all in position, the troupe waited, looking to the sky for the mages' signal. Finally, after nearly an hour of waiting, the kender got bored and started to get fidgety. Treg tried to keep Goldie quiet, but it was to no avail- most men would rather fight an army of ogres than silence a bored kender.
"Treg! Stop pinching me! I know what's going on, but I'm bored. If you'd let go of me, I could look at my maps." By now the whole group was centered on quieting the kender- even Ott was moving towards them, lecturing them all on their lack of stealth.
"Let go of me! What's the rope for Jaden? What are you looking for Treg? Your handkerchief? I think I may have seen it... Just let me check my pouches- hey! There it is! How did it get in there? Wha- Mongermspkyen! What was that for? Hey, look at that!
The kender pointed to the sky. Treg spun around. The signal! Ott ran to his place and got out his dagger and the rabbit from its sack. Treg and the rest of the gang prepared to jump into the opening when it appeared. Rhia and Ayon were running towards them.
Ott mumbled a prayer and slit rabbit's throat. It was tricky- the throat of a rabbit being rather hard to find- but the cleric managed. Holding the dead bunny into the air, Ott finished the prayer. Nothing happened. Rhia and Ayon arrived, both panting. They skidded to a stop, nearly running into Ott. Rhia shot Treg a questioning glance. He shrugged.
Suddenly the priest of Kiri-Jolith shrieked. The sound was unnatural- high pitched and keen- coming from the bass-voiced priest. With look a look of horror Ayon started backing away, pulling the stunned Rhia with her. Treg craned his neck, wondering what the two women could see that he couldn't.
Then he saw it. The sacrificial bunny had fallen from the man's hand and was growing. It already reached Ott knees, and at the rate it was going, it would soon be at his waist. Treg pulled his sword out and prepared to jump the horrid creature, but Ayon waved him back.
"What is she doing?" Jaden whispered. "We have to kill that thing before it hurts Ott."
"I trust her," Treg shushed him.
Despite the fact that Ayon seemed to be doing nothing, the remainder of the group stayed in the brush, waiting for the mage to order them to do something.
Then, suddenly, the elk-maid lifted her hand and shouted a word of command. Bright blue lightning struck the still-growing rabbit, causing purple and red flames on its pelt. Unperturbed, the rabbit continued to grow. Before Ayon's spell had even ended, it reared up and let put an ungodly keening noise. Treg prepared to jump down and help the still- unmoving Ott. He raised his sword and leapt at the monster bunny. He landed beside it and readied his attack. Before he could even get into the proper stance, the creature- already to his shoulder- reared again, this time coming down on Ott.
"No!" Treg shouted.
The other Marauders in the brush followed suit with Treg, jumping down to help free Ott from the monster's grasp- but it was too late.
As Jaden-the only other swordsman in the group-landed, the giant bunny lifted the comatose cleric above its head and twisted. Even Goldie became visible ill when a loud crack rang out. Ott was dead- his neck snapped.
With an unearth roar, the rabbit threw the corpse at the door and turned toward the remaining Marauders. Treg raised his sword, prepared to avenge his friend. Rhia however, suddenly looked up- as if waking up from a nap.
"Brother, you can do nothing here! Run! All of you! The door is open! The creature cannot enter! Run, you fools!" she shouted, breaking into a hard gallop towards the dark opening in the side of the hill.
Too stunned to disobey, Treg followed his sister- after looking around to make sure the others were coming too. Fueled by fright, the treasure hunters flew towards the cave. Out of the blue, the large- and now very angry- rabbit appeared in front of him. There was no way for him to stop, so he just closed his eyes, gritted his teeth, and barreled on... Right through the rabbit and on into the cave.
The door shut with a resounding thud just as he pulled his trailing foot in. Skidding to a stop, Treg looked around. It was no use; he couldn't see a thing in the inky blackness.
"Light," he called, hoping the others had made it in time.
"Shirak," said a voice in the darkness- Rhia's voice. A crystal she held in her hand flared to life.
After a cursory glance at his sister, Treg looked around the dimly lit cave. Goldie... Kalesh... Jaden... Where was Ayon?
"Ayon?" he asked the kender.
"Here," was the weak reply.
"Are you ok?" Rhia ran over to the pale elf.
"I'm fine. That spell drained me. I'll be ready to go in a moment," was the terse reply.
"I think we all need a rest... and a moment of silence for- for..."
"For Ott," Rhia interrupted her brother when it looked like he would never finish his sentence.
"Yes." All the companions bowed there heads and Kalesh murmured something in his native tongue.
After the allotted moment, Rhia raised her head and coughed delicately.
"Alright, let's move out," Treg said looking around. "Ott wouldn't have wanted us to stop for him."
Slowly the remaining Marauders rose and started looking around the cave. Not much was visible by the light of Rhia's crystal.
"We need light," Jaden said. "Do we have any torches?"
"I've got a set," Treg replied. He handed one to the bard and kept the other for himself.
"I'll lead the group; Kalesh goes in the center and I want Jaden at the rear." Slowly the group filed out of the opening cave into the dark tunnel beyond.
They walk for what felt like days, stopping for food and rest only when one of them collapsed. Goldie often left the group during those periods to explore the tunnel and its offshoot. She never found anything really interesting, till the group took a particularly long rest after Rhia and Jaden collapsed and Kalesh tripped over Rhia's prone body. The one- armed elf had been unable to steady himself and had fallen face-first into the wall, knocking himself unconscious. While the others stayed behind resting and tending to the comatose elf, Goldie traipsed ahead. Suddenly she came running back, shouting for everyone to come.
"Shut up!" the just awakened Kalesh shouted at her.
Goldie just pretended she hadn't heard him and continued yelling.
"You have to come see this! Pixies! They're so pretty and tiny! Just flitting everywhere! You have to come see them!"
"Kender! Calm down! We'll come look just as soon as the elf can walk again," Rhia said loudly.
"I can walk just fine, mage!" the elf shouted, getting up.
"Oh? Ok, then let's follow the kender then."
Kalesh cursed at being tricked into following the kender- something no sane person would do.
Groaning at having to move again, the companions rose and started down the hall, following the kender.
After an hour of walking, they came at last to the place the kender was so excited about. The hall ended in an open door, just past the door was a one hundred feet long room, about twice that high, that was chock full of a miasma of swirling and flashing bright lights.
"Mmmm... ok. Who wants to go check it out?" Treg asked.
"Don't you think its pretty?" the now-manic kender demanded.
"What? Oh, it's ah... very nice. But we need to get through it. That's my main concern."
"I'll go," Jaden volunteered. "That is, unless the kender want to gawk some more. I know how to deal with pixies."
"You won't kill any of them, will you?" Goldie panicked.
"Now, you know pixies are very violent creatures. I may have to make an example of a few of them to show the rest that I'm one to be reckoned with," Jaden said seriously.
"Ok, just don't kill too many of them. They're so pretty!" the kender said solemnly, not realizing she was the butt of a joke.
"Get on, you rascal," Treg said with a grin. He gently pushed the bard past the door into the room.
Jaden promptly vanished into a swirling mess of lights.
"No!" Treg shouted, prepared to go in after his friend.
Rhia stopped him. "Those are metal pixies, I recognize them now. I doubt there is much of our friend left.
"Lies! The mage is telling lies! She only wants Jaden's share of the treasure!" Kalesh said.
"Silence, Dark Elf," Ayon broke into Kalesh' frantic rant. "The red mage is the most trustworthy of all of us. You will go to check on the bard, but you will do as she says in accordance to preparations."
Kalesh nodded.
"Remove all the metal you care, elf. That will make them leave you alone," said Rhia, blushing slightly at Ayon's unusual compliment.
With Treg's help, the crippled elf removed every bit of metal, from every link of mail to the smallest dagger. After he was free of metal, Kalesh walked to the door and opened it. The pixies had stopped swarming and were again floating innocently. In the center of the room lay a human- shaped bundle wearing Jaden's clothes.
"I still advise you against this elf," Rhia said. "You should let Ayon or I go."
But Kalesh only snorted and entered the room. At the sight of the Jaden-blob, he broke into a run towards it.
"Wait!" Goldie shouted after him. "There may be traps."
Kalesh ignored her too and continued his sprint. When he was almost to the body, he froze suddenly and unnaturally.
"What-?" Treg began, but Rhia silenced him.
A single word of magic rang out from the very stones, and the ceiling of the room collapsed.
"Holy hell!" Treg cursed.
When the dust and debris cleared, the chunks of ceiling lifted and glided seamlessly into place. Ayon sighed in amazement. At the center of the still rumbling room, there lie two somewhat human-shaped blobs with large pools of blood around them.
"Well, anyone else dare to question me?" Rhia asked smugly.
After voting and deciding unanimously to continue, the kender lead the remaining four Marauders across the room. All of them were sure to watch their steps.
Outside of the only other door in the room was a short hall that lead to a door without any knobs, latches or locks.
"It must be spell locked," Ayon decided, causing the kender to groan. There is nothing a kender loves more than picking locks.
"I'll open it," said Rhia, shoving rudely past Ayon and Treg to stand before the door.
"Step back... please."
Too shocked that the ego-centric red mage had said please to resist, the whole group, even the curiosity plagued kender, retreated.
Rhia chanted a few word in the language of magic and rubbed a twig on the door. Instead of just opening, the door entirely disappeared, leaving to bare the treasures of a once great lich.
"Yes!" Treg exclaimed, heading toward a large golden throne.
"Wait," Rhia told him. "That was far too easy."
But it was too late already. Treg set his hand on the lovely throne and screaming in terror and pain. With a great wrench, he pulled his arm away, only to reveal that a bloody stump was all that remained.
Retching in pain, the stock fighter screamed again and toppled, his left leg hitting the throne. Rhia, Ayon, and even the kender were too terrified to do anything- even run- so they both watched in horror as Treg's leg disappeared in a gory spurt.
The man tries to rise again, but a combination of pain and blood loss defeated his efforts. With a bubbly sigh, Treg leaned back onto the throne, and exploded.
At her brother's last grisly sacrifice, Rhia suddenly snapped out of the all consuming fear that held her. She ran towards the throne to aid Treg, but received nothing but a hearty showering of her brother's blood. With a wail she sank to her knees and started to weep.
Also released from the spell, the remaining elf and the kender looked around the room. It was full of any type of riches imaginable, from soft, ornate gold to the coldest, hardest steel. Sighing happily the kender began to stick the shiniest bits into her pouches, but Ayon went to comfort the weeping Rhia.
"Its ok dear, he died a good man. He would have wanted us to enjoy this treasure- he died for it. At least he got to see it before he died, unlike the others," she tried, but it was no use.
In the end it was the kender that cheered Rhia up, though it was totally on accident. While the elf had been consoling, Goldie had been exploring. At the back of the room, she found a large stone chest. After a bit of a struggle, she managed to open it. Sighing disappointedly, she shouted at Ayon and Rhia to come have a look at its contents.
"Spell books," she told them. "Red ones with gold runes and even a few blue ones with silver runes."
At this Rhia, like any other mage, perked up considerably. Forcing the kender to take her to the books on threat of death, she followed Goldie to the back of the room. There she and Ayon began to remove the books from the chest and take inventory.
"I'll be able to read these," Rhia said, holding a pile of red books.
"What about these?" Goldie asked. "What color of robes are they for? There aren't any blue sects." She picked up one of the night blue books and began to open it.
"No!" Ayon shouted, racing forward to grab the book from the affronted kender. She quickly shut it again, but before she could redeposit it in the chest it flew out of her hands and across the room. Rhia gave Ayon a sour look and started over to retrieve it, but before she had made it half way the pages of the book ruffled, as if by an unseen wind, and a figure rose out of it.
"Back, puny mage!" it waved a hand at Rhia, activating a spell that sent her flying into the wall.
"A lich!" Goldie exclaimed in wonder.
"Stand back," said Ayon, taking charge of the dire situation. "This is my arena. I have several banishing spells."
"And you think your little spells will work on me, elfie? You know, I've never been an elf before. It could be fun," the lich taunted.
Ayon was undaunted. She raised her hands in the air and began tracing intricate patterns while chanting in the language of magic. White light began to accumulate around her, giving her an ethereal appeal. The lich froze and slowly began to dissipate. After what felt like hours, the last bit of his specter form disappeared and the light around Ayon flashed red before going away.
"A nice spell," Rhia complimented the white mage, but Ayon neither moved nor replied. Think the elf was tired and thus unnaturally rude; the red mage wandered off and began exploring the spell books again. The kender, however, could see that the elf was not normal. Her eyes were blank and her jaw had gone slack. Hesitantly, the kender poked her in the arm.
"Rhia? Rhia, are you in there?"
"Not anymore," came the horrible reply.
Rhia looked up at the sound of Ayon's voice, suddenly understanding. The voice was so like the elf maid's, yet not even close. The movements were crude and jerky. The eyes were a flaming red.
"Oh hell," Rhia said softly. Taking a last look at the spell she had been memorizing, she stood and faced the lich possessed Ayon.
"Run!" she said out of the side of her mouth toward the kender. "Run like hell. You're the last of the Marauders. You have to get out of here and keep the rest of us alive in memory."
"B-but..." the shaking kender could barley talk.
"Don't question me, just go. I can't let this thing loose on the world. I have to kill it, or at least temporarily destroy it. Don't worry, I have a good plan. Now go!"
Too scared to object, the kender took off, running past the lich and out the door.
"The kender isn't worth my time," Ayon said. "You're the one I want. For years and year I've had to stand behind you, groveling and fawning, to get even the slightest bit of praise in this group. You! A pitiful human!"
"Let's see how pitiful I really am!" Rhia shouted, raising her hand to shoot large purple fireball at the lich.
The fires didn't even reach it, instead rebounding off a magic shield and returning to Rhia in full force. Pretending to scream in agony, the magically fireproofed Rhia prepared her next spell. As soon as the last of the flames dissipated, she raised her hands and shouted a single word of command. Her magically amplified voice echoed through the halls of the cashé- even reaching the nearly free kender. With a small pray to Lunitari to preserve her, Rhia brought her hands together...
And the world exploded.
A kender emerged from the smoldering debris of a collapsed hill- silent and limping. When at last she was free of the destruction, she sat down and wept- bathed in the blood red light of Lunitari.