Chapter Four
"Wognoman in the Temple of Droga" as told by Dariana Moondancer
in the common room of the Wind Spirit's Song:
"That damned gnome! Repeatedly, the old man causes strife in my life. This time, I came to his aid and wound up in jail!! Me! In JAIL!
"Wognoman needed my assistance in returning a book to a man named Manri in the Temple of Droga, of all places. I asked why he didn't simply send the book along, but he insisted it was necessary to return it in person. I needed a break from searching for my missing companions – indeed, that is a story for another night! - so I agreed to go along. He assured me that once we reached Manri, we would be safe. I should have known from past experience with the old cleric that we were headed for disaster.
"As soon as Wognoman began speaking with Manri, we attracted the attention of the goblins. They must have had some sort of paralyzing poison on their weapons, for as soon as they turned their whips on me, my world stopped. I could not move, nor cast a spell to save my life. Indeed, I soon found myself at my soul point.
"Needless to say, I was frustrated that I had been so easily bested by those lowly goblins; had they not paralyzed me, I would have dispatched them with no trouble. I was not totally out of luck though – at least Wognoman is capable of a small resurrection. As long as we avoided the goblins' paralyzing agent, I figured we would be able to get out of there quickly.
"Again, I was wrong. There is no doubt that Wognoman is a favorite of Bristlebane.
"We entered the Temple once again, and stealthily sneaked past droves of goblins. Somehow, we were separated – the old cleric sometimes has trouble keeping up - and I could hear Wognoman's screams as the cloak of invisibility I had given him wore off, and the goblins set upon him. I was now alone in the Temple, seeking my corpse in hostile and totally unfamiliar territory.
"What to do? In my attempts to assist Wognoman before he died, I had lost my bearings. I wandered about, doing my best with my limited knowledge of the Temple's layout... and suddenly found myself imprisoned! Indeed, I had fallen into a jail cell – an empty one, thank Tunare, though I doubted the bars would stop the goblin guards from attacking me the instant they saw me.
"I stood there as quiet as I could possibly be, and contemplated my situation. I could not slip through the bars, nor could I open the door. The cell was empty, but the door was locked just the same. Indeed, the only way out seemed to be the way I came in; through the hole in the cell's ceiling. But... it was too high for me to reach, and there was nothing to climb.
"I knew that time was running out on my own invisibility spell, so I prepared to levitate the instant it wore off. My hope was that the added height would be enough that I could get through the hole in the ceiling and somehow escape, but... alas, I had no bat wings for the spell! When I became visible, the guards saw me instantly and razed me with their poisoned whips, and I again found myself at my soul point in The Overthere.
"I was angry now, but what could I do? I knew that it would be impossible for me in my weakened state to enter the Temple once again to retrieve not one, but two corpses. I didn't even know where they were! It was time to call for help.
"The best luck of the evening came when I found my Arch Mage friend, and his friend the Heirophant. They were willing to assist Wognoman and I, and with my tail between my legs, I followed the Elders into the Temple once again.
"As if the situation were not embarrassing enough, the old gnome wandered off and got himself lost AGAIN! I swear, were he not an old acquaintance of my father's, I would have shunned him long ago... the man trips over rats!! Anyway, the venerable Mage summoned him back, rescued us both, and saved the day.
"All in all, it was a most exhausting and embarrassing excursion. And the next time that gnome asks for my assistance, unless it is in familiar territory, I will most assuredly decline!"
"Wognoman in the Temple of Droga" as told by Dariana Moondancer
in the common room of the Wind Spirit's Song:
"That damned gnome! Repeatedly, the old man causes strife in my life. This time, I came to his aid and wound up in jail!! Me! In JAIL!
"Wognoman needed my assistance in returning a book to a man named Manri in the Temple of Droga, of all places. I asked why he didn't simply send the book along, but he insisted it was necessary to return it in person. I needed a break from searching for my missing companions – indeed, that is a story for another night! - so I agreed to go along. He assured me that once we reached Manri, we would be safe. I should have known from past experience with the old cleric that we were headed for disaster.
"As soon as Wognoman began speaking with Manri, we attracted the attention of the goblins. They must have had some sort of paralyzing poison on their weapons, for as soon as they turned their whips on me, my world stopped. I could not move, nor cast a spell to save my life. Indeed, I soon found myself at my soul point.
"Needless to say, I was frustrated that I had been so easily bested by those lowly goblins; had they not paralyzed me, I would have dispatched them with no trouble. I was not totally out of luck though – at least Wognoman is capable of a small resurrection. As long as we avoided the goblins' paralyzing agent, I figured we would be able to get out of there quickly.
"Again, I was wrong. There is no doubt that Wognoman is a favorite of Bristlebane.
"We entered the Temple once again, and stealthily sneaked past droves of goblins. Somehow, we were separated – the old cleric sometimes has trouble keeping up - and I could hear Wognoman's screams as the cloak of invisibility I had given him wore off, and the goblins set upon him. I was now alone in the Temple, seeking my corpse in hostile and totally unfamiliar territory.
"What to do? In my attempts to assist Wognoman before he died, I had lost my bearings. I wandered about, doing my best with my limited knowledge of the Temple's layout... and suddenly found myself imprisoned! Indeed, I had fallen into a jail cell – an empty one, thank Tunare, though I doubted the bars would stop the goblin guards from attacking me the instant they saw me.
"I stood there as quiet as I could possibly be, and contemplated my situation. I could not slip through the bars, nor could I open the door. The cell was empty, but the door was locked just the same. Indeed, the only way out seemed to be the way I came in; through the hole in the cell's ceiling. But... it was too high for me to reach, and there was nothing to climb.
"I knew that time was running out on my own invisibility spell, so I prepared to levitate the instant it wore off. My hope was that the added height would be enough that I could get through the hole in the ceiling and somehow escape, but... alas, I had no bat wings for the spell! When I became visible, the guards saw me instantly and razed me with their poisoned whips, and I again found myself at my soul point in The Overthere.
"I was angry now, but what could I do? I knew that it would be impossible for me in my weakened state to enter the Temple once again to retrieve not one, but two corpses. I didn't even know where they were! It was time to call for help.
"The best luck of the evening came when I found my Arch Mage friend, and his friend the Heirophant. They were willing to assist Wognoman and I, and with my tail between my legs, I followed the Elders into the Temple once again.
"As if the situation were not embarrassing enough, the old gnome wandered off and got himself lost AGAIN! I swear, were he not an old acquaintance of my father's, I would have shunned him long ago... the man trips over rats!! Anyway, the venerable Mage summoned him back, rescued us both, and saved the day.
"All in all, it was a most exhausting and embarrassing excursion. And the next time that gnome asks for my assistance, unless it is in familiar territory, I will most assuredly decline!"