By ArchangelUK
Hey look - a Dungeons & Dragons disclaimer! I do…. [rolls dice] … not own Dungeons & Dragons (advanced, animated or otherwise). I'd also like to thank the guys who brought D&D out on DVD and the guys on the commentaries for putting me off my Evangelion fanfic so much I had to write this. My thanks and fist shaking curses to you all… to you ALL!!!!
Pt 1: Travellers Rest
'When thine neighbour's house doth burn, be careful of thine own.' - Proverb
It was dark and depressing in this particular part of the Realm, then again Presto thought most of the Realm was either dark or depressing. The little band of adventurers had spent the majority of yesterday picking their way carefully through the 'Sands of Shame' and were now resting before they made their way to their next port of call. A castle keep stood on top of a mountain some four kilometres south and Dungeon Master had said (in as much as Dungeon Master actually 'says' anything) that were they to investigate it they may find something to help them find a way home.
The road just ahead forked in two directions, a sign told any travellers that the left pathway lead to the 'Skull Cenotaph' and the right to 'Castle of the Waking Nightmare'. Eric had sighed and muttered something about how it wasn't a surprise the Realm's tourist population wasn't exactly a staggering volume.
The magician looked around the group, they were all very tired. Uni was asleep, not in any particularly comfy position it had to be said. When Hank made the call that they should stop here for the night the little unicorn had collapsed in a heap where it stood and was now snoozing away, only the occasional yawn or snort interrupting her calm breathing. Bobby and Sheila had been talking quietly in a corner for a while now, about what Presto didn't know and he respected them enough to mind his own business. He suspected it was about home though; Sheila was always the one who tried to keep everyone's spirits up and just rarely Bobby's feelings would betray the warrior image he had tried to conjure up since their arrival in the Realm. Presto's smile waned, Barbarian he may be but try as he might to tell the world otherwise Bobby was young and there were certain things that would always get the better of him.
For now.
Hank and Diana sat by the fire, Diana still had her normal buoyancy and the fiery passion that burned in her eyes was still visible to all, but Hank looked paler than normal. He looked old to Presto, much older than his teenage years. The endless journeying and weight of the leadership usually seemed nothing to him. The Hank the Realm knew was made of iron; hardship rolled off of him like beads of water. The Hank the gang saw in these late hours was an emotionally drained shell, however rest would rejuvenate him and as usual when they woke up he would be the pillar of strength they all knew and respected.
Presto slumped down on an old tree trunk that had been rolled over to use as seating around the campfire. His magic hat sagged over his eyes so he took it off his head and tried to pull its point upwards making it straight.
"Hmm, guess we're not the only ones drained huh?" The hat sagged again, through conscious movement or not, but effectively giving him its answer.
A rustle of leaves greeted the return of the Cavalier. Eric had been gathering firewood, a task he undertook for once without prompting and by the size of the bundle of sticks he was carrying a task he was rather successful at. Presto raised a hand in greeting and a ghost of a smile tugged at Eric's lips.
"Hey, Presto."
Presto nodded and looked his friend over for a minute, the normally cocky youth was nothing like his normal self.
"Hey, Eric. Something on your mind?"
"Oh no, no nothing at all." Eric gave a forced smile and put the bundle down at a safe distance to the flames. He looked up, his armour shimmering slightly in the light of the three Realm moons all of which were full this night. A cloudbank slowly drifted across them and the light dimmed noticeably, snapping Eric out of the trance he was in. "Listen, I'm gonna go scout the perimeter for a while, make sure there's nothing with multiple heads and a taste for human flesh following us."
"Are you sure?" The magician asked, poking his glasses further up his nose. "I mean what if you find such a monster?"
"Then you'll be able to follow my ear piercing howls of terror." Eric replied picking up his shield and turning away.
"Eric you ran away scared from a frog this morning." Bobby laughed, "How will we know the difference?"
"I'll make sure it's a significantly loud howl of terror." The Cavalier said quiet and trudged off into the forest, Bobby blinked at Eric's retreating back.
"Is he okay Sheila? I mean, I was expecting a bit more of a snappy comeback than that."
His sister frowned, "I know what you mean, since Dungeon Master visited us the other day Eric hasn't been himself."
"Maybe I should follow him and make sure he's okay." Presto volunteered and finding that no one was that inclined to stop him set off after his friend.
The forest was a foreboding place at best, every stereotype of a haunted wood very obviously there. Horrible screeching noises over his head, trees whose branches moved even with no breeze and had on their trunks huge hideous faces. The howls of wild creatures that sounded like wolves echoed around him, spider webs the size of transit vans dotted the undergrowth, as well as multiple sets of eyes that glowed red in the darkness. Some of the creaking branches even held effigies of some ghastly paganesque creatures made of twigs. Despite all this Presto wasn't afraid, perhaps because of its overly cliché nature or maybe his time in the Realm. How long had they been trapped here anyway? The wizard pushed his way through the undergrowth, following the path that Eric had visibly taken.
After a while he could have sworn he was no longer going straight but to the left, a thought made fact some three minutes later when he popped out of the woodland back where the signpost was.
"What the?" Presto began, only to notice footprints in the dusty path heading in the direction of the Skull Cenotaph. "Where's he going?"
Eric stood before the Cenotaph and waited for whom he knew would show up, the name Skull Cenotaph left little to the imagination. It was a great obelisk of bone, skulls jutted out the features twisted in pain and suffering, Eric began to wonder just how much pain someone must be in and for how long that they should remain so in death however knowing he would not like the answer to his question he shook this idea from his head. The air stank of sulphur, and the red stone walls were streaked with the yellow bile that was the stuff. In front of the obelisk a bowl of bone held by two pairs of skeletal arms stuck out, in which a pool of blood (which too stank beyond belief) sat unwavering. Every so often though a drop of seemingly fresh blood would fall from a skull above into the pool – perhaps ensuring it would remain at the same level as the blood slowly evaporates.
"Creepy." He mumbled to himself as the moat of molten lava bubbled around him, "I hope Dungeon Master knows what he's doing."
"Of course I do Cavalier."
"WHAAAAA!" Eric jumped into the air and onto the bowl, managing to put only one foot in the blood and hanging onto the cenotaph as if his life depended on it. "Will you stop doing that!?"
"Doing what?" Dungeon Master said innocently, the smile that crossed his face revealing his true thoughts.
"That!" Eric gestured with one hand and in doing so lost his grip, swinging himself around to come face to face with the gruesome skull he was inadvertently clinging on to. Eric screamed and let go, falling unceremoniously onto his chain mail clad backside. "Ouch!"
"I am glad to see you arrived safely at least Cavalier, your time of trial will soon come."
"Oh sensational!" Eric flung his hands in the air, "And what may I ask is so important that I have to leave my friends and go on some kind of adventure or quest alone?"
"Not alone Cavalier, true friends will know of trouble before trouble finds you."
"And sometimes the trouble is the friend." Eric retorted, "And you still haven't told me what I'm doing in this Boris Karlov paradise."
"A young female contacted me recently quite surprisingly," Dungeon Master said evenly, "She has been forced from her home and requires assistance in retrieving her abode from the trespasser. This situation is serious enough to do great damage to the stability of the Realm, plus it could forever deny the path home to you."
"Surprisingly huh?" Eric's eyebrows rose inquisitively, "Here's me thinking everything in the Realm was already decided o' Master of the Dungeons."
At this Dungeon Master did look surprised, "Not all Cavalier." He turned away slightly, a puzzled if not unnerved look appearing on his brow. "Not all."
Eric sighed, "Naturally. So why only me."
"It was her request; she shall no doubt fill you in more on the details."
"My, my, not even a riddle this time on how to solve this problem DM?"
"No." Dungeon Master shook his head.
"Right." Eric ran a gauntleted hand through his hair, then back down over his face. "So I just help this girl out and all will be well right… Right Dungeon Master?"
He'd disappeared.
Again.
Eric looked at his reflection in the blood pool and sighed, why, oh why was it always him.
A terrible howl erupted outside and ripples skipped across the surface of the blood pool erasing his mirror image from view. He swallowed, trying to reposition his heart back into its correct position and remove it from his throat. Thunderous footsteps announced that the person he was waiting for had arrived, summoning up courage from somewhere he picked up his shield and walked back down to the pathway. It was at this exact time that his guess as to his personal life expectancy nose-dived spectacularly.
Tiamat strode in through the door...
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ArchangelUK 0:o)