Though she be but little, IT is fierce.
Yomada sat under a tree, a good few miles away from the furious villagers. The dwarf had been run out of town, again. A few too many people had their well-earned money either swindled or stolen away, and it all had started when the dwarf first appeared. Yomada couldn't help it, humans couldn't handle their alcohol as well as dwarves could, so they made easy targets. This was the fourth village Yomada had travelled through since almost being beheaded in Neverwinter, and each village had quickly decided that the bard should move on.
Musing on where to go next, Yomada pulled out their harp and stated to play. Without realising it, after a while the dwarf started to play some old tunes from home. Yomada didn't realise until they caught themselves singing as well. The dwarf abruptly stopped. Maybe it was time to go home. The bardic life clearly wasn't going well, maybe it was time to try and make amends, time to stop running away.
Before they could finish that thought, Yomada heard the faint sounds of a lute floating across the countryside. As the music grew louder, a cart came into view down the road. The occupants seemed to be having a fun time and, most importantly, were heading away from the village Yomada had just left. 'I could always try one more village', Yomada thought, 'What's the worst that can happen?'
Yomada stood looking at the now benign piles of bones. The floor was covered with broken shards and blood. They couldn't be sure if they had found the cause of the disappearances, but they had definitely found something. It was worth reporting back, besides, the party needed to tend to their wounds. They couldn't possibly face anything else in their condition.
"He was dead. The skeleton killed him. He died." Dumir was in shock.
"He's alive now. I saved him, that's all that matters," Cluym tried to reassure.
"We need to head back to the tavern, bind our wounds and inform the others of what we've found. Come on." Yomada helped Grok up off the floor and the party supported each other out of the basement and back towards the safety of the Golden Hand.
Cluym lagged behind a little. He was still holding Elan's mace, which confused him. Why had he picked it up during the fight? He had a perfectly good quarterstaff. As he looked around for the staff he noticed something else was different. He no longer had this feeling in the back of his head, the piece of knowledge constantly struggling for attention informing him that his ring was on his right index finger. He looked at his hand and the ring was gone. Realising what had happened, Cluym swore under his breath and caught up with the rest of the party (1).
Upon entering the Golden Hand, the party was swarmed by optimistic villagers hoping to hear their troubles would soon be over. When it was clear that they needed medical aid, the High Priestess issued a series of orders to her followers. The villagers were corralled out of the tavern and bandages and healing salves were produced. As the party's wounds were being seen to Yomada reported on their progress.
"Underneath the police station we were attacked by a small army of skeletons. Most likely they were the prisoners who had been abandoned six months ago. Dumir confirmed the presence of some advanced necromancy. We don't know if this is linked with the disappearances. Maybe the same person or creature caused them both. There's definitely something powerful down there though."
"Oh my, that is most disturbing. Just to confirm though, you have yet to ascertain the cause of the disappearances?" Even though to everyone else the High Priestess seemed to have an air of compassion, she dropped any pretence when dealing with Yomada.
"Not yet, we'll head back down after a brief rest. Given the urgency of the matter, and the dangers involved, could we have a few more guards join us?" At the sound of this Grok ran out of the tavern, an unwound bandage streaming behind him. Yomada stared at where he had been a moment ago. "Maybe one or two replacements for our more injured members."
"Since meeting you, two of my guards have died. I will not risk any more lives." Yomada and Cluym exchanged guilty glances.
"Only one of your guards is dead," Yomada tried to argue semantics (2).
"Two of my guards have died," the High Priestess said more pointedly, looking at Cluym.
"Fine, can we at least keep the ones who were assigned to us? Maybe you could call Grok back for us."
"You can take whoever you can convince yourself," the High Priestess said turning away from the dwarf to tend to Elan.
Thogold was the easiest to convince. He had escaped the battle with the skeletons unscathed, and the fact that he had previously shot both Yomada and Cluym was useful leverage. Elan was a little trickier, but Yomada was an expert at blackmailing good natured people. Cluym had saved his life so it was easy enough to convince Elan that he had a debt to repay. They didn't try looking for Grok. On their way out, back to the police station, they scooped up Dumir who had been sat in a corner mostly in shock.
Without the threat of vicious animated dead, the party had the opportunity to investigate the prison. In total there were twelve cells, two in the basement underneath the police station and the remaining ten beyond the hidden door. The tunnel continued past the cells with no end in sight. Positioned against the wall opposite the cells was a desk with a single chair. The few scattered papers on top indicated that it had infrequently been used by the police, they had obviously spent as little time down here as they could get away with.
Under the desk was a row of drawers. Yomada opened the top two and found them empty. When they opened the third one though, the dwarf's thievish instincts kicked in. The drawer had a tripwire which triggered when it was opened. Yomada managed to grab the wire just as it pulled loose on one end. Cluym tried to help disarm the trap, but there wasn't enough room in the small drawer for four fumbling hands. As the wire slipped out of Yomada's hand, an alarm spell spluttered to life and slowly whined back into silence.
Relieved that the drawer had only been protected by a weak spell, months beyond its use by date, Yomada reached in and grasped a simple silver chain. Dangling from the chain was a golden ring, with small feathers etched around the band. It was clearly a magical ring.
"I'll hold on to that if you want," Elan offered.
"Why would I want that?"
"Well, I'm guessing you want me to keep on leading the way through the dark and dangerous tunnels," Elan smirked. Yomada grumbled and handed over the ring, much to Cluym's dismay who also had designs on the ring.
The party continued down the tunnel with Elan leading the way. After a few minutes' walk, the tunnel widened and then opened out into a large underground chamber. In the middle was a small waterfall emanating from the ceiling which formed a stream of water, flowing away from the prison. The party surmised that the water was coming from the fountain in the village square. On opposite sides of the chamber were two circular, wooden doors. Behind one was a passageway that had been barricaded, the other led to a circular tunnel with a shallow layer of water in the bottom. Elan was volunteered to see what was in the tunnel, however it ended in a grate a few hundred metres from the door with nothing much to see beyond.
Back in the chamber the only way left to go was to continue in the direction of the stream. The water was around fifteen feet wide, so the party decided to split in two and travel either side. Elan, Yomada and Cluym followed the right wall, whilst Thogold and Dumir followed the left. The paths either side of the stream were quite narrow and precarious so they travelled in single file.
The journey was relatively boring. The loud rush of the stream had a hypnotic effect, and the repetitive, stone brick pattern of the walls didn't help (3). They were walking at a slower than usual pace, making sure to check for any signs of necromancy or any potential solutions to their mystery. Not able to see much past the two in front, Cluym spent most of his time looking backwards. This was even more tedious than looking forward, but it turned out to be more useful. Cluym noticed two shadows keeping pace with them in the water. He watched as the shadows became shapes, crawling out of the water, and as the shapes became giant, Labrador-sized rats looking for a meal. He called for help as he readied his magic.
Not able to directly attack the rats, Yomada had to get creative. In an effort to distract the closest rat, the dwarf created the image of a box around it. Confused, the rat sniffed at the box but couldn't smell anything. This gave Cluym enough time to throw a bubble of acid at the other rat, and Thogold took a shot at it from across the stream, killing it. Thogold then aimed for the rat in the box but missed. Now aware that the box wasn't real, the rat tried to bite at Cluym. Buoyed by the effectiveness of the magical box, Yomada tried another trick. A growl from some unknown animal echoed through the tunnel, frightening the rat (4). Trying to escape becoming dinner, the rat jumped on Cluym trying to push him to the floor. In a rather impressive display of strength, the not-exactly-muscle-bound wizard managed to throw the rat off. Doubling down on the rouse, Yomada conjured the image of a five foot (5) tall snarling beast, complete with viscous teeth and long, sharp claws. This was the final straw for the rat who immediately ran through three sets of legs and dove into the water.
The rat wasn't the only one making a run for it. Dumir had continued his fleeing from earlier, with Thogold close behind. Thogold knew the creature was another magic trick, and wasn't running away in fear. He just saw the opportunity to leave and not have to face whatever else lay in wait for them. Yomada yelled for them to come back but Thogold's only reply was a hand gesture that wasn't received too well. Jealous of his cowardly ex-party members, Elan sighed and continued along the path.
It wasn't long before they reached another chamber, complete with falling water. This was most likely coming from the fountain on the path to the tower. There was a metal door on the other side of the stream but, with no one left on that side, they couldn't find out what it led to. Just outside the chamber, the path ended at a sheer drop. The stream fell into the cavern below. It was quite a way down, too far to tell, but in the back of the cavern there was a faint orange glow.
Still at the back of the procession, Cluym couldn't see into the cavern. He was looking at the wall instead. He had felt a faint breeze on the side of his neck and found a crack in the wall where it was coming from. He tapped Yomada on the shoulder, who took over the investigation. It turned out it wasn't a crack; a section of the wall didn't have any mortar between the bricks. The dwarf traced the edge of the bricks with a finger, carefully tapped a few to hear what sound they made, then smashed the wall with the butt of their battleaxe. A few bricks fell inwards.
"Subtle," Elan smirked.
"It worked, didn't it?"
The trio managed to make a hole large enough to fit through and found a staircase on the other side leading down into the cavern. The steps were roughly hewn and uneven. About half way down, one of the steps broke as Elan stepped on it. He fell over backwards, knocking the others behind him down as well. The three tumbled until they came to a stop at the bottom. Cluym and Yomada were a little bruised but Elan had landed awkwardly on his leg. He pulled himself over to the side of the cavern and propped himself up against the wall.
Satisfied that Elan was going to be fine, our caring duo looked around the cavern. Yomada wanted to see where the water went, but it just collected in a pool, complete with a dead, oversized rat. Cluym, on the other hand, was drawn to the orange glow. Now they were closer he could see where the light was coming from. The source seemed to be a golden gauntlet floating just below his eye level. As he approached it he noticed the figure of a young girl, her arm held in the air supporting the gauntlet. Her body was frozen stiff and her eyes glazed over. The gauntlet sat loosely on her fist, too big for her small hand.
"Hello, what are you doing down here?" Cluym reached out to place a comforting hand on the girl's shoulder. The moment he touched her, he vanished.
"What did you do to him?" Yomada had turned around just in time to see Cluym disappear.
"HE IS SAFE."
The girl's mouth moved but the voice didn't sound like it came from her. The words almost felt like they were being formed in Yomada's head without any noise being made. Yomada knew it was the gauntlet talking (6).
"Where is he?"
"HE IS SAFE."
"What do you mean safe?"
There was no response.
"Why did you do that?"
"HE ATTACKED THE GIRL."
"No, you're mistaken. He was trying to comfort the girl, make sure she was OK. That wasn't an attack."
No response.
"Can you bring him back?"
"YES."
"Please bring him back."
"HE IS SAFE."
Yomada paused for a moment thinking. This line of questioning clearly wasn't going anywhere.
"Are you responsible for the disappearances in the village?"
"THEY ARE SAFE."
"Yes then. Safe from what?"
"THEMSELVES."
"Well who made you? Where did you come from?"
"I AM OF DONREGAN."
"Why are you doing this?"
"IT IS MY JOB TO PROTECT DONREGAN."
"At least we're getting somewhere now," Yomada thought again, "But why now, why only start six months ago?"
"THE GIRL FOUND ME. BEFORE THAT I COULD NOT SAVE THEM. WHEN SHE PUT ME ON SHE TOLD ME WHO TO SAVE."
"Can I speak to her?"
All the tension in the girl's body suddenly released and her arm dropped a little. She blinked a few times, filling her eyes with life again. She quickly looked around the cavern.
"Hello, my name's Yomada. What's yours?"
"I… it's Ariadne."
"Don't worry Ariadne, everything's going to be alright. I'm going to get you out of here but first I need you to answer some questions for me. Can you do that?" Ariadne nodded. "Good, do you have any control over the gauntlet? Can you use it to bring people back?"
Ariadne shook her head.
"That's fine. How did you end up down here with it?"
"I was playing, under the police station. I saw a glow and found the glove. I just wanted to try it on. I didn't mean for this to happen. Please help me." Ariadne started to cry.
"I will help you, I just need a little more information. Do you know why it's making people disappear?"
"When I put the glove on I could see the whole village. It asked me who needed protecting. I didn't know what was happening. I focussed on my dad and then he wasn't there anymore. I got scared and more people started going. Then I got sad and more went. Can you bring them back? Please bring… them…" Ariadne's body tensed again and returned to its earlier stance. Her eyes glazed over once again. A single tear fell down her cheek.
"She isn't telling you who needs to be saved. She is a frightened little girl, you're only recognising people who feel like her. Those who are afraid or upset. She doesn't know what she is doing.
"SHE IS ALL I HAVE."
"You need someone to tell you who to save. Would you release the girl if I found someone better for you? Someone more appropriate to tell you who to save."
"IT IS MY JOB TO PROTECT DONREGAN. I WILL RELEASE THE GIRL IF SHE IS REPLACED BY SOMEONE WHO CAN BETTER HELP ME PROTECT DONREGAN."
"OK then, I just need to convince someone to become a slave to a glove. Shouldn't be too hard. Before I go, did you kill the prisoners? Was it you who brought them back from the dead?"
"THAT WAS NOT MY DOING."
"Do you know who did?"
No response.
"Of course not, that would be too easy." There was a faint pop and Cluym reappeared next to the girl.
"What just happened? I could see this room but I couldn't move or hear anything. And it was darker, but a dark red."
"I'll fill you in on the way to the Golden Hand, we need to talk with Nieven. I've finally figured out what's going on here."
Back on the surface, the trio discovered that the High Priestess and her troupe had left. They had returned to a near empty tavern and were directed to seek out Nieven in the tower. Upon greeting them, Nieven explained that the High Priestess had been eager to continue her journey, and delivered two letters from her. One to Elan and the other for Cluym and Yomada. This second letter read:
'Thank you, kind adventurers. Your assistance in reaching Donregan has been invaluable. I ask now that you assist me one last time and put paid to whatever is decimating Donregan. Your help in this matter won't go unrewarded. You will be paid handsomely in silver, which I have left in the care of Nieven. With blessing, High Priestess of Tor.'
Yomada had hoped that finding the cause of the disappearances would have been sufficient and Cluym was not overly enthusiastic about interacting with the gauntlet again, but this letter disrupted those ideas. Elan however, was much cheerier after reading his letter. Now that the High Priestess had moved on, his services were no longer required. In particular, this meant that he no longer had any obligations to help Cluym and Yomada. As he was leaving the tower, Yomada offered a congratulatory hand shake. Elan was too excited at the prospect of having some free time that he didn't notice the dwarf slipping the magical ring off his finger.
Our dismayed duo returned to the matter at hand and relayed everything they had learned to Nieven. Nieven hadn't heard of any item like the gauntlet, but was sure there would be record of it somewhere in the library. Dumir was not too happy to see Yomada and Cluym again, but relaxed a little when he realised it was purely a research visit. He delighted in retrieving a book, from a somewhat underutilised section, titled 'Great Artefacts of the Kingdom'. With all ears on him, Dumir recited the knowledge held within.
'Hundreds of years ago, the Town of Donregan was a place of violence and of crime. In desperation, the local police force turned to the Order of the Red for aid in keeping the peace. Not wanting to be involved directly, Ayla, first of the Order of the Red, created the gauntlet to help detect and arrest those who had committed crimes in the town. She imbued great power into the Golden Hand, such that non-magic users could use it for their ends. Once order was restored, the Golden Hand was no longer needed and, fearing its intense magical power, was no longer used. The gauntlet has since been lost.'
"So, the gauntlet is supposed to be a tool for justice. It doesn't have its own sense of morality though so it needs someone to control it," Yomada summarised.
"A good person with a strong respect for the law," Cluym finished. "Nieven, are there any priests or police officers left in the village?"
"The village was never big enough to support a church or temple. As for police officers, the station was the first place to be affected. Everyone inside was taken. The only possibility would be Norman. If I remember correctly, not long before the incident he broke his leg. Quite nasty, one of our order had to make a potion for him. He might still be in the village."
"Can you take us to his house?"
Norman's house was located a few doors away from the police station. Most of the policemen lived on that side of the village, and being the deputy chief of police meant that Norman had the benefit of having the second shortest walk to work. It was made just that little bit shorter by the hole in the wall too. The house was in a state. There were remnants of barricades hanging on the windows, the roof had collapsed and the pansies in the front garden were trampled. Time, and the kobolds, had not been kind. Yomada knocked on the doorframe, still wishing to be polite. A cheery looking dwarf clambered out of the hole.
"Marvellously convenient that hole, I should have made another doorway years ago. And it lets a nice cooling breeze through," Norman grinned, he'd clearly remembered his daily potion.
"It's been relatively cold these past few days, surely it can't be comfortable in there." Yomada unconsciously shivered. Living underground made dwarves more accustomed to warmer temperatures.
"Well I can't complain really (7). What can I do for you?"
"We need your help to save the village, and also a little girl, Ariadne. She's being held hostage, now this may sound a little strange I'll admit, she's being held hostage by an intelligent gauntlet that's obsessed by arresting criminals."
"Ariadne, you say? The chief's daughter? About thirteen, blonde hair?" The description matched.
"Yes, that's her. We need you to…"
"Well come on then, what are you waiting for?" Norman said shutting a non-existent door behind him.
"You don't even want to know what we have to do?"
"Why would I? You say Ariadne needs help, and the whole village no less. Protecting others is my job."
"You certainly sound like the right person for the job. And I've always thought that blind obedience with no regard for personal safety is an exceptional quality… for other people to have."
Yomada, Nieven, Cluym and Norman were standing in the cavern (8), a respectable distance from Ariadne and the Golden Hand. Norman's first reaction had been to run towards Ariadne, arms outstretched, but he had been quickly stopped by Cluym. Yomada, having the most rapport with the gauntlet, stepped forward.
"I have returned as promised and now seek to trade the girl for another." Yomada's stage training started to kick in, preparing for a grandiose dialogue with the calculating villain of the play.
"I MUST PROTECT DONREGAN. GIVE ME SOMEONE TO TELL ME WHO TO SAVE."
"Amazing!" Nieven remarked.
"Oh, it's nothing really," Yomada said with false modesty.
"Not you, the gauntlet."
"Oh, right, of course. Anyway. I have brought you the deputy chief of police, the only remaining policeman in the village. You were created to aid them serve justice. Let him direct you now."
"HE IS ACCEPTABLE."
Ariadne's arm slumped and the Golden Hand fell to the floor. The girl took a step backwards and fell to her knees. As Nieven rushed to her to make sure she was OK, Norman slowly approached the gauntlet. He bent over to pick it up and slid it onto his fist. It didn't take full control of his body like it had done with Ariadne. He was still able to move freely and his eyes glowed a fierce gold.
"I AM THE PROTECTOR OF DONREGAN. THEY ARE ALL SAFE NOW."
Norman removed the gauntlet and placed it on the ground, his eyes returned to normal.
"Well that should do it I reckon. Quite handy actually, if you'll excuse the pun. We should probably go back topside, there's a lot of confused people who need taking care off. And I need to explain to the chief why I haven't been to work for six months."
The group was shocked by Norman's nonchalant behaviour towards saving the village, but half a year's worth of potions will do that to you (9). Nieven led them back to the police station, levitating the Golden Hand a few feet in front so no one else had to touch it. When they emerged from the basement, they were greeted by the pointy ends of half a dozen swords and crossbows. The police officers lowered their weapons in embarrassment when they realised who they were pointing them at. Norman started to explain what had happened to the chief of police, but was ignored when Ariadne ran to her father and flung her arms around him. Nieven, Cluym and Yomada sneaked out whilst no one was looking and returned to the tavern.
There was rather a large crowd standing outside. When the villagers reappeared, they all returned to the spot they had disappeared from. Quite a few had left it a little too late to get their daily potion and had vanished in front of the tavern. Nieven cast a spell that made his voice echo around the village. As he gave instructions to the villagers, members of the Order of the Red started arriving to help carry out Nieven's orders. In the middle of the commotion, one of the wizards secreted the Golden Hand away in order to hide and protect it.
It was a long evening. The village was in a bad shape. A large percentage of the houses had been damaged, either in the initial panic or by the looting kobolds. Families set about clearing rooms, those whose houses were no longer habitable tried to find lodging with whoever had space. Temporary shelters were set up throughout the village. Without farmers tending crops and taking care of livestock, the food supplies had become woefully low. The Order of the Red was able to conjure enough food for the village, but they knew this could only be a temporary solution. There was a long road ahead to rebuilding the village.
Yomada helped in the only way the bard knew how. Gentle harp music filled the streets, laced with subtle magical tones that lifted spirits and aided in the hard work. Yomada also recounted the heroic deeds that had saved the village. Dumir's bravery in the face of extreme terrors. Grok's valiant fights against oncoming hordes. Elan fearlessly leading the charge. Norman's potential self-sacrifice to save Ariadne. Cluym's… occasional help (10)? And all of them led by the noble Yomada of course.
As night fell, Nieven made an announcement. In honour of her outstanding work in supporting the village during the crisis, he made Rosmerta the new head of the Order. As his final act, he carried out the High Priestess of Tor's request. He produced two bags, each containing a large amount of silver and one or two valuable gemstones, and gave them to Yomada and Cluym for services rendered. He then thanked them from the bottom of his heart for their help in saving the village.
And so, our bumbling yet successful duo spent the night in Donregan as heroes. Their motivations had been self-preservation and greed, but nevertheless they had saved the village. Heroes have to start somewhere after all. But their story was only just beginning, and they had much greater trials on the road ahead. After all, there was still the mystery of who had turned the skeletons in the prison. That, however, is a story for another time (11).
1 A great many magical spells require a material component to cast them. These are usually inexpensive things like a pinch of ash, a small pebble or a dried leaf. Some spells require more expensive components, precious gemstones which the spell converts into raw magical power. Bringing someone back from the dead is not common, mostly due to morality, but also due to the high cost associated with it. Cluym didn't have the necessary components when he tried to cast the spell, so the wild magical energies drew power from whatever they could. Anything of value that he had been wearing or holding had been consumed by the spell. Even the ring of locating.
2 It's not often in arguments that being classed as currently alive is a necessary technicality.
3 Actually, Yomada found it reasonably interesting. Being a dwarf came in useful when you were stuck between two people with only stones to look at.
4 This turned out to work too well. Dumir was also frightened by the noise and started to run off. He had to be coaxed back by Yomada with assurances that there weren't any other creatures nearby.
5 Five foot may seem a bit specific, and also not very impressive for a creature designed to frighten. The reason for this is unnecessarily complicated. In our world, a great many things in nature are linked with the number pi. Circles are a perfect example of this. Pi is a fundamental number in the creation of our universe. When the gods made this universe, they made things easier by making five foot a fundamental length for magic. Most magical spells had effects in multiples of five feet. This made maths a much easier subject to teach.
6 Strange things can happen when powerful enough magic is poured into an object. The item can seem to take on a life of its own and, very occasionally, can even develop intelligence. If you find a magical item that talks it's usually best to leave it alone, and you certainly shouldn't touch it.
7 He was right, he couldn't. The potion made sure of that.
8 You caught me, I skipped the travelling again. Nothing happened on the way, honest.
9 They also have a slight laxative effect. If side effects persist for more than a week, see your local Cleric.
10 Necromancy is not looked upon kindly, advertising it in song was not a good idea.
11 Or as I like to call it, Chapter 5.