A/N: The wonderful world of Exile (Avernum) remains the property of Jeff Vogel and Spiderweb Software. I make no money (in fact I've paid a hefty sum) for this bit of fun, after which I promise to return to the game unharmed the following persons: Dahris-Bok and places: the deep river, Dahris-Bok's tomb, the hydra lair, and a small, long tunnel.
Leaving the algae-filled lake behind, the smell was definitely more pleasant as they rowed the boat around the bend. Even more pleasant, there was none of those sounds of rushing water that would presage another waterfall. The boat, however, had taken quite a beating, and they had to hope that it would remain riverworthy until they got ... wherever. Quite suddenly, an apparition appeared in front of them: an apparition of a vahnatai wearing some sort of regalia which looked regal. It floated along, matching speed, and began speaking.
"What the fuck?" said Jenneke. "Michael, you know what it's saying?"
The apparition stopped, and mumbled a few words, and then began again. "I am Dahris-Bok, once and still a great lord. My honors are long, long overdue. I will not be neglected! Come to my tomb, and pay me my respects, or you will not leave without my curse."
Having delivered the message the shade disappeared. Ahead, beyond where the apparition had been, there was a dark tunnel leading into the hill.
"Shit," said Jenneke. "If they're not wanting to kill us, they're going to curse us. And with all this wizardry, I bet they can come up with some real beauts, too."
"I'm sure you're right," said Feodoric. "So, what are we going to do?"
"Stop and pay him his respects," said Jenneke. "Unless you've got a better idea."
"No, I don't," replied Feodoric.
Walking into the tunnel, they quickly came into a relatively featureless room, with a small, glowing portal.
"OK," said Jenneke, "I guess we're supposed to ..."
Dahris-Bok's voice spoke again, "Only one may pass through to honor me. Choose carefully. There are tests you must do, to prove your worthiness to come into my presence."
"What kind of tests?" said Jenneke, but the voice was silent. "How are we supposed to know who's the best suited for the tests?"
"If I might," said Feodoric, "I am, after all, a student of arcane and divine, so perhaps the most versatile. And so, I'll volunteer. If I'm not back in ... an hour, see if the portal will let you in."
"All right," said Jenneke, handing over the torches. "You're a brave one. Good luck to you."
"Strange vahnatai rituals, Empire armies, what's the difference," said Feodoric. "I'll live or die one way or the other."
With that, he stepped through the portal, and was gone from sight.
"Damn it," said Jenneke. "I shouldn't have let him go like that. It's my job ..."
"It's your job to choose the one of us best suited for a task," said Michael calmly. "Jenneke, I think that he was correct. If the tests require use of arcane arts, he is the only one amongst us so talented. If the divine arts—well, then perhaps I could have gone, but he is gifted in that wise as well. And between those gifts, it would make up for any lack in the skills which are your specialty, or Thissa's, or even Nigel's talents."
"The perfect soldier?" said Jenneke.
"No," said Michael, "just the one whose talents are the broadest. We are a good team, but choosing only one for a task ... It is not your job to do yourself, if it is better delegated."
"I'm still worried," said Jenneke. "What if he ... doesn't come back?"
"Then another will have to go," said Michael.
"In which case, it'll be me," said Jenneke. "I couldn't send the rest of you."
"Sarge, you worry too much," said Nigel. "C'mon. I got the dice."
"Fine, you play dice," said Jenneke, pacing. As he neared the portal, it dimmed until it seemed that it was impossible for it to carry anyone. "Damn it ... how's he going to get back?"
"Thissss isss not my ssspecccialty," said Thissa, "but the ssspirit sssaid but one may passssss. Perhapsss isss sssign all isss well with him."
"You mean, it'll go out like that if he's alive, but brighten up again for someone else to try if he's died in there?" said Jenneke, wondering if vahnatai knew the arts of raising the dead, and if they'd do such a thing. Probably not, he thought grimly. They'll think it's a job well begun to have one of us dead.
The portal brightened again, and Jenneke said, "All right, I'm going in. If I don't come back, Thissa ..."
And then Feodoric stumbled through the portal.
"You're all right!" said Jenneke.
"Yes," said Feodoric. "It's done. We can continue."
"What happened?" said Jenneke.
"I need a drink," said Feodoric, "I'm exhausted."
"Right," said Jenneke, handing over one of the small wineskins.
Feodoric took a long drink, and sat down in the room. "Well, it was a bit of a logic puzzle, with undead all over the place to keep me on my toes. Had to go to all the corners to open the right portcullis, and finally found this crystal. It wasn't as big as the ones in the cave with the coffins. I mean, big all right, but still. It seemed like it was lit up inside, and then the shade showed up again, this Dahris-Bok."
"And then what?" said Jenneke.
"Well, some complaints about how no one ever comes to visit anymore," said Feodoric, grinning. "In a place like this, I can't imagine why now. But anyway, he's fading away because no one cares, and so he wanted one person to do him homage. So, I did, and he said thanks, you can pass the cavern without the curse. And with that, I got out of there. I'm not sure that there wouldn't have been some more undead showing up if I tarried."
"That's it?" said Nigel. "Any loot?"
"Well, there were a few things I picked up on my way," said Feodoric, displaying some jewelry. "But I haven't the slightest idea whether they're good or cursed, so I wouldn't use them until I've had a chance to get to a sage."
Thissa said, "Sssso, we continue?"
"Yeah," said Jenneke. "C'mon, Feodoric, you can rest while we row."
"The spirit did wish us luck," said Feodoric. "I feel like we'll need it."
"Maybe we should wait," said Michael. "Let him take a bit more of a breather."
"This place kinda weirds me out," said Jenneke. "Let's go."
"I'm all right," said Feodoric. "Just was a bit intense in there."
"Then, let's go," said Jenneke. "Glad you're back out in one piece."
"So am I ," said Feodoric, and he took another long drink from the wineskin, returned it to Jenneke, and headed for the boat.
The river turned again, more lazy calm corners, and then, past some rocks, it began picking up speed again, and in the distance there was the dreaded familiar roar of a waterfall. The echoes grew louder and louder, suggesting a particularly nasty waterfall. After one waterfall, the roaring of the water grew louder and louder as the rapids got even worse than they had been before.
Icy water was now soaking through the clothing of the platoon members as they maneuvered the boat around one more corner. In the din, they could see clearly lit by the glowing fungus the longest, nastiest series of rapids ever seen in Avernum. Attempting to row back up did no good, as the current grabbed the boat, hurling them down.
"Fuck! Hang on!" said Jenneke, maneuvering and paddling frantically.
While the boat remained intact, they had lost nearly every bit of food, and paddled frantically for a small bit of shore, pulling the boat fully onto land as the roar of waterfalls sounded both before and behind.
"OK, there's a cave up there," said Jenneke. "Maybe shelter, probably trouble."
Stepping inside, there was a familiar smell, the heavy musk of lizard, with deep claw marks in the floor indicating very large lizards. As they turned a corner, it became clear that they had arrived in the middle of an attack on hydras by the giant bugs.
"Hold up," whispered Jenneke, unsure whether hydra or big bug had much of an ear to hear with, but he didn't want to take chances of the two deciding to gang up on his small patrol. "Which do you suppose will win, the lizards or the big bugs?"
"I'll put my money on the hydras," said Nigel.
"I'm not so sure," said Jenneke. "I bet the bugs will win."
They remained where they were until the sounds of fighting stopped, and then cautiously moved through the tunnels.
"Oh shit, sarge," said Nigel, as they encountered a dead hydra, "you were right."
They continued a bit further, finding themselves coming under bug attack, but they fended them off more successfully than the hydras.
"The one good thing," said Jenneke, looking over the hydra corpses. "I'm starving. Let's have some lizard."
"Sounds good to me," said Feodoric.
They ate, fortifying themselves, and then reluctantly went back to the boat for more nightmarish trips over the waterfalls. Finally, the river calmed, and lazily flowed into a huge cave. There was little to see in the way of vegetation or interesting features. Ahead, the river disappeared into a depression in the ground.
"I hope this is it," said Jenneke. "I think the boat is pretty much kaput."
The sight ahead, despite the soaked and frozen nature of the group, their food lost to the ravages of staying afloat through the waterfalls, was strangely beautiful. The river they had just traveled poured into a gigantic pit. Countless tons of water leapt over the edge and crashed down into the chasm. The sound was absolutely deafening. Tinted green by the glowing fungus, the site was both horrifying and awe-inspiring.
"There's no way we can go down that," said Jenneke. "We'll have to hope we can make it the rest of the way by land."
Traveling away from the sight, leaving their near-wrecked boat behind, they squinted, just making out a group of vahnatai running to greet them. However, as they drew closer, the vahnatai were heavily armed, weapons drawn, and began to attack.
"Shit, they want to kill us after all this?" said Jenneke. "Let's go!"
They fought a fierce battle, and afterwards, searched the vahnatai, hoping to find some sign of who they were or where they came from, but found nothing.
"There's one good thing," observed Michael.
"What?" said Jenneke. "We come all this way, and they're trying to kill us?"
"No," said Michael. "They're not carrying much supplies. No food, nothing. They're probably based close by."
"And you call that good news?" said Jenneke.
"Well, it means we're probably not so far from that place Avit," said Michael.
"I hope you're right," said Jenneke. "And that Avit's not going to try to kill us either, when we get there.
"It seems to me," said Feodoric, "that they might not be of one mind. There's one faction responsible for our trip, at least one other trying to stop us. But this looks like the end of the line. No more river, and the only way out is this tunnel."
"Yeah, and if it's a dead end, we're fucked," said Jenneke. "Guess all we can do is go forward and hope."
Miles of tunnel, fire-breathing salamanders, and slimy garbage, and they emerged into a wide-open space. To the southeast was a city. However, it was clearly not a human city. The shape of the building was all wrong. However, unlike the crumbling settlements they'd passed along the river, it was not a ruin. It was surrounded by neat fields of mushrooms, tended by figures wearing flowing, glowing cloaks. More figures were walking the streets of the town.
"Well, I guess we made it," said Jenneke. "Now we just have to find out if it's true that they're responsible for those barriers carving up home, and what we can do about it."
"And we don't even speak their language," said Feodoric.
"Don't have a whole lot of choices now," said Jenneke. "We've got to go and hope they're not going to just slaughter us after all we've been through."