A/N: The world of Exile (Avernum) remains the property of Jeff Vogel and Spiderweb Software. I promise to return to the game unharmed the following persons: Anaximander, Levy, Berra, Yanmitho, Commander Ace, Flanagan, Seles; and places: Fort Emergence, New Formello, Portal Fortress, and the territory of the Cult of the Sacred Item.
Returning to Fort Emergence, Anicka was aware of the buzz of conversation that rose to a fevered pitch as they came into the place, and she grinned. Everyone was interested in their adventures, and for once, she felt that she wasn't overshadowed by the possible legendary father her mother had claimed for her.
Not pausing for more than a few perfunctory greetings, she led the way to Anaximander's office.
"Well, you certainly have been gone for some time," said Anaximander, sounding a little bit severe.
"We got kinda busy," said Anicka. "We took this job to make a little money, and we ended up finding this island pretty much overrun by cockroaches. It was disgusting, but we knew we had to do something."
Anaximander twitched in revulsion as Anicka described the roaches, and said, "And I thought that the slimes were awful! I hesitate to help the Empire in this way, but if the roaches had not been eradicated, they would surely find their way into Avernum."
"While we were in the factory where the cockroaches were coming from," said Phaedra, "we found the remains of someone whose name apparently was Elsner."
"Ah, yes. Well, that answers that question," said Anaximander. "Elsner was one of ours. He had a real tendency to go off on his own. Overconfident. And we know where that leads. Thank you for this report. I shall convey the sad news to his widow."
"With the aid of a mage who gave us a Phoenix Egg," said Anicka, "we were able to destroy the roach pits by burning the place up. The roaches aren't nearly as numerous, and they should have a handle on killing the leftovers."
"Well done. Even if they did not threaten us yet, I would support the destruction of the roaches on general principles," said Anaximander. "Continue to explore the surface, and go down to the Tower of Magi for further magical training. But before you do that, there have been some strange murders up by New Formello. I've sent Agent Flanagan up there, but I think that you should go help him."
"What's so strange about the murders?" said Anicka.
"There has been a mysterious and bizarre series of murders in New Formello, in the caves to the far northwest. I have sent Flanagan to investigate, but somehow I feel that is not sufficient," said Anaximander. You should speak with him."
"Is Flanagan incompetent?" said Daniel.
"No, he is skilled enough, but strange magic is involved. I would prefer you to go up to investigate as well," said Anaximander. "Somehow I think you will find things relevant to your quest."
"Thanks, we'll head right out," said Anicka.
"Good," said Anaximander.
They left his office, and Anicka said, "Although, I think we probably should see that trainer."
They walked back to the quarters they'd been given, leaving their packs there, and went into the training hall. A young lithe woman with dark skin stood gracefully in the center of the room, performing some exercises, with a vicious curved sword sheathed at one side.
She gave them a stiff bow, and said, "Ah, the heroes of Avernum. Welcome. I am Yanmitho, the trainer for Fort Emergence."
"Who can you train?" said Anicka.
She looked at them almost as though they were cockroaches from Bigail, and said, "I am here to train soldiers to the best of my ability. I can also train ... others," the disdain on the last word was unmistakable.
"Do you have some problem with us?" said Anicka.
"You work for Covert Operations, do you not?" said Yanmitho. "I am not afraid to say I have little respect for your lot."
"But we're all fighting the same enemy!" said Anicka.
"Pfaugh!" said Yanmitho, spitting. "Covert operations is a ragtag band of untrained adventurers, amateur spies, and mixed hangers-on. We soldiers train hard and die for our cause. You wander around aimlessly and expect respect. And yet, King Micah gives the first contact with the surface to your undisciplined lot." She spit again.
"King Micah is a wise ruler," said Angarahad, "and we won't tolerate any insults of our sovereign."
"Of course. It is not to such as me to question the wisdom of my monarch," said Yanmitho. "Even if he is wrong."
"Nonetheless, we would like to train with you," said Anicka.
"I am under orders to train you to the best of my ability, although I am also allowed to require payment for the expenses of my department," said Yanmitho. "Let me know when you are ready."
"You charge people for training?" said Anicka.
"Occasionally. I train all soldiers as best I can and do not expect the slightest compensation. However, I also have to train those who are, like you, from Covert Operations," said Yanmitho. "I am forced to train you, but my department has many expenses, and I am allowed to require you to help defray them." She smiled nastily.
"Fine," said Anicka. "How much?"
Finishing with their training, they fell into their beds, exhausted.
Daniel said, "Well, at least Yanmitho will make sure our heads don't get too big."
"I know," said Anicka. "Still, she really does know her stuff. Anyway, let's rest, and we'll try to get on the road to New Formello by first candlemark. Second, at the latest."
Their rest was good, and they made their way out of Fort Emergence into the caves of Upper Avernum, wishing heartily that they could go back to the surface and the good tasting ales and wines and food that they had encountered there.
It had taken a few days, but at last they reached New Formello, and met Commander Ace again.
"How fares New Formello?" said Anicka.
"Well, productivity is up since you helped with the chitrach problem," said Commander Ace, "but then there's the murders, and that's a new problem."
"We've been sent to look into that," said Anicka. "What do you know about it?"
"Simple enough. Foley and Thompson went out to survey. Now they're dead. The bodies are in a cave up to the north, but nobody wants to go up there. Can't blame them," said Commander Ace. "I know nothing more about it, really. You should talk to that big-shot Flanagan guy."
"Tell us more about Flanagan," said Daniel.
"He's Unspecified Services," said Commander Ace, and she paused to look at them with distaste. "Like you. Come up from Fort Emergence to make everything all better. He's probably at the inn. Talk to him. We're busy trying to build a city."
"Well, thanks for your help," said Anicka. She turned to her companions, and said, "Let's go."
They came into the inn, and there met a slight woman who seemed far too fragile to be working in a place like New Formello.
Dominique smiled, and said, "How can I help you?"
"What's your job in New Formello?" said Anicka.
She took a delicate sip of mushroom beer and said, "I spend most of my time on watch duty."
"Is that exciting?" said Anicka.
"I can spot a chitrach twice as far away as anyone else. The chitraches are nasty, nasty creatures. They used to live only down with the vahnatai. Now they're spreading everywhere. I hear someone brought a few of them up to Avernum as an experiment, and they escaped and spread everywhere. At least, that's what I heard. Is it true? Beats me. At least they keep me in a job! It's a good thing," said Dominique. "I have to be especially on my guard now, after the killings."
"Know anything about the killings?" said Anicka.
"They call them murders, but I don't buy that. Foley and Thompson went out. They got careless. They were too slow. A chitrach ate them. End of story," said Dominique. "You'll hear lots of weird rumors about magic and evil and stuff, but don't buy it. And the earthquake was just a coincidence."
"Earthquake?" said Angarahad.
"A day before the bodies were found, there was a big rumbling, like an earthquake. But that sort of thing happens often enough," said Dominque. "Dumb to think there was a connection."
"Did the earthquake cause any damage?" said Anicka.
"Not much. A few walls fell over. The sliths got scared," said Dominique. "And there was a rockslide to the north. To the north out of town, that is. About ten, twenty miles in that direction."
A burly man with a lot of hair and a large gut looked the group over and approached, and said, "Sit down. I'm Flanagan with Unspecified Services. Pleased to meet you. Glad you made it up here."
Anicka sat at the table, and said, "What have you been doing?"
"I'm sort of an investigating agent," said Flanagan.
"Investigating anything interesting?" said Anicka.
"Well, right now, I'm investigating a pair of messy murders," said Flanagan. "I'm glad you're here. I could use some help."
"Has there been any progress in the murder investigation?" asked Daniel.
"Here's what we know. Not long ago, two men were sent north from here to do some surveying. Not long after that, there was an earthquake. Not long after that, they were found in a cave up there, dead," said Flanagan. "I sure could use another brain to find out what happened."
"Have you gone up there?" said Frrrrrr.
"Are you mad?" said Flanagan. "Of course not. I was hoping that you would go north and see what you can find in the cave there."
"I see," said Anicka. "Well, I guess we'll just get a room for the night, and set out tomorrow."
The next day, they stood at the entrance to a long, narrow dark tunnel, with a distinct, unpleasant rotting odor in the air. The passage ended at a small cavern, and the rotting smell was strongest here—at the north end were two heavily decomposed human bodies.
As the group entered, several large, chittering insects walked out of the shadows and charged, though oddly enough, they hadn't been heard earlier, and such insects should have been easily detected.
"At least they weren't that hard to kill," said Anicka.
They reached the bodies and examined them closely.
"They weren't killed by chitraches," said Angarahad, surprised. "They were burned to death."
"OK, why would someone sear these guys to death, and then leave them here?" said Anicka.
"Because," said Frrrrrr, "they got too close to a secret passage they weren't supposed to discover."
"How ..." said Anicka. "Oh, never mind, I see. Lead on, Frrrrrr."
In the concealed tunnel, the rotting smell was much weaker, but there were no signs of anyone passing recently. As they continued, suddenly there was the unpleasant, familiar clicking noises of chitraches.
"Strange we didn't hear them," said Daniel.
"I know," said Anicka. "Let's keep on. There is something odd in here."
They continued, setting off a few fireball traps.
As she tended to their burns, Angarahad said, "If we want to find who killed those men—for they must have run afoul of a trap like those, we need to know who made this place."
They crossed a cracked bridge that looked as though it might collapse imminently, and reached the end of the long, hazardous tunnel. The cavern was strewn with massive amounts of rubble. Then, in a blinding flash of light, it was filled with a horde of giant insects.
"Oh, shit," said Anicka. "Well, let's go!"
They fought off the strange bugs, and then got close enough to examine the north end of the cavern.
"This is not the cavern's end," said Phaedra. "The place went on, probably for much longer, but was sealed off by a rockfall ... that must be the earthquake. Look up there, and there must have been magical force ... incredible ... Like in the factory, blocking those stairs."
"I don't see anything pointing to who did it," said Anicka, sifting through rubble.
"Hey, how about this?" said Daniel, pushing gravel away to remove a finely polished steel key from the grip of a shattered skeleton. The key was of a peculiar, twisted, looping design, but there were no other indications as to who might have made it.
"That's good," said Anicka. "But ... I'm not finding anything else. Let's get out of here before another cave-in crushes us."
As they returned to the cave with the bodies, Phaedra said, "What about the dead men?"
"Burn them," said Anicka. "It's the least we could do."
Phaedra nodded, and unleashed arcane fire, which quickly began to consume the remains, and they made their way back to New Formello.
Returning to the inn, Flanagan was still sitting at the table, his nice clothes making him look out of place amongst the laborers here.
"Anything else I can help you with?" he asked. "How's the investigation going?"
"We found a key inside the caves where the murders happened," said Anicka. "Show him, Dan."
Daniel got the key out to show Flanagan.
"Interesting. I don't recognize the style of construction," said Flanagan. "You should show it to Anaximander. He might be able to tell you more about it."
"All right, we'll do that," said Anicka. "Good luck with the rest of your investigation."
They left New Formello then, as Anicka wanted to make it to New Cotra before they rested, and as soon as she was outside the border of New Formello, she muttered, "Lazy git."
Finally, they made it back to Fort Emergence, and went to Anaximander's office.
"There's been a theft!" Anaximander was so angry he was spitting, and failed to greet them properly. "Right in the middle of Fort Emergence! A band of bandits managed to get in and steal the Orb of Thralni right out from under our noses. You should go speak with Levy. We really need to get it back. It's an invaluable artifact. He was the caretaker, and he may have an idea of what happened to it."
"Sure," said Anicka. "Do you want to find out about what we learned in New Formello?"
"Oh, of course," said Anaximander. "I'm sorry. How'd it go?"
Anicka described the hidden cave, and then the key that they had found.
"Well done," said Anaximander. We don't know who killed those men, but this key is an interesting clue. Hang onto it. It may prove to be useful in the future."
"All right," said Anicka, as Daniel stowed it away.
"And now, if you would, speak with Levy," said Anaximander.
"All right," said Anicka, managing to stifle a groan.
She led the way back into the office, and saw Levy behind the counter. "Anaximander told us to come and speak with you about the Orb of Thralni," said Anicka.
Levy looked ill, and he said, "I was entrusted with the guardianship of Thralni's Sphere. Then it was stolen."
"How was the orb stolen?" said Anicka.
"There was an explosion in the middle of the night. We went to the orb's vault, and it was ravaged and empty. There was no way anyone could have snuck in," said Levy. "We think the thieves teleported in."
"Any idea how they could have teleported in and out?" said Anicka.
"No, but it's the only way they could have entered. Fortunately, Seles, Avernum's best teleportation expert, came here to investigate, and she agreed with my guess," said Levy. "She said that anyone interested in tracking the thieves should go see her."
"Where is Seles now?" said Anicka.
"Oh, she went back to Portal Keep," replied Levy.
"All right," said Anicka. "We'll head out."
After leaving Levy, Frrrrrr said, "I want to see Berra."
"Sure," said Anicka. "We'll pay him a quick call on our way."
They entered the library, and Berra looked them over with unfocused eyes.
"Sir," said Frrrrrr, "we have evidence we want you to examine regarding a plague of roaches on the surface."
Berra took the scales from Frrrrrr and said, "This is pathetically obvious. These are dragon scales. Where did you get them?"
"They were in the center ... well, nearly the center, of a factory where roaches were being bred," said Anicka.
Berra looked alarmed, and said, "You should tell Anaximander of this immediately."
"All right," said Anicka. "Guess we're not headed out just yet after all."
They returned to Anaximander's office, and Anicka said, "We found some scales that Berra says were dragon scales in the cockroach pit."
Anaximander looked disturbed, and said, "Two of the three dragons still living in Avernum—Khoth and Sulfras recently disappeared. They both have the power necessary to create the monsters. They were attacked and enslaved by the Empire during the Empire War. They despise the Empire and would gladly destroy it. If you ever see the dragons, you should ask them about this. Carefully. Empire has slain most of the world's dragons. Revenge is a reasonable desire."
"I understand," said Anicka. "Well, we are off to talk to Seles about the Orb theft."
"Good," said Anaximander. "See me when you return."
"Yes, sir," said Anicka.
This time, they left Fort Emergence, and made the journey to Portal Fortress, a trip which was mostly uneventful, except for the encounter with a group of suicidal goblins accompanied by wolves.
Once at Portal Fortress, they went directly to Seles, who asked, "Do you have some business with the Portal?"
"Do you know anything about what happened to the Orb of Thralni?" asked Anicka.
"I don't know who stole it or why, but I do know where they went. You see, any teleportation up here affects the portal, and I can cast spells to tell who blipped where and why, and adjust this portal to compensate," said Seles. "Thus, I can help you find the thieves."
"So, where did they go?" said Anicka.
"I detected a teleportation out of Fort Emergence, and I was able to magically tell where the thieves went to. If you use the portal now, you will end up near where the thieves are," said Seles. "You'll have to find your own way back, however."
"No real idea, then," said Anicka.
"Look," said Seles, "there aren't many with authorization to enter the portal. I can tell you it's somewhere in Avernum, but I'm not the sort to do ethereal travel and get other landmarks."
"Sorry, didn't mean to upset you," said Anicka. "I guess we're going, then."
The group stood before the powerful portal, and stepped in. Upon arrival, they found themselves on a stone platform, immediately under attack by a number of fighters and mages, and even a cleric. Defeating them, they searched the bodies and the supply boxes, but found nothing which gave a clue as to who these people were, or where the Orb of Thralni might be.
Leaving the platform area, they found themselves definitely in Avernum, but with no towns or settlements to tell them where they were.
"There is a trail here," said Frrrrrr, pointing out the crude trail leading west.
"Well, I guess it's as good a place to start as any," said Anicka. "Let's go."
As they continued through the cavewood, a large and armed group of thieves emerged from the trees. They drew weapons and took a good look at the group, and then realized who had come after them, and fled in terror.
Continuing through the cavewood forest, they caught sight of a lake and began working their way around, and encountered another group, but this one was not so easily cowed. When the fight was over, Anicka and her companions searched the dead, still finding no recognizable clue as to who these people were or where they were from. However, they each had a symbol painted on the chest of the armor: a gold square with several objects inside it—a crown, a sword, a potion, and a few other items.
Continuing through the woods, they came to a small building, where more of these people were found—along with a small docks, and in the hopes of finding information, they started going through the house.
Here, there was a book written in handwriting which was jagged and hard to read, but the first solid clue they had found.
"The Way of the Sacred Item, by Zalactar of the Sacred Item," read Angarahad. "Oh, I write of the joy of items, of the powers that mere stone and rock and metal and paper and gem can hold. Lo, they are gifts of the gods, they will be here after us, we must give thanks for the gods' benevolence. So we must be guided in that which will be here long after us, and follow the lessons. Firstly, it is true that they must not be used, for doing so puts them at risk, and verily, they are here to be here long after us."
"They're nutters," said Daniel.
"There's more: And lo, secondly, the search for new Gifts of the Gods must never end, and the Sacred Mighty Quest to obtain them must never end, for every day a Sacred Item is owned by the unholy is a needle in the eye of God," read Angarahad. "And thus lo, we reach the second, which is that we must refine ourselves and purge our weaknesses, so that we may live up to the Sacred Expectations of the Sacred Items! All one! All one! Dilute! Dilute! Follow you, and lo, the Gods Will Watch Over Us when their gifts are touched and protected and loved by us! Follow us! Follow us!"
"All righty," said Anicka. "They sound like they're all insane ... Probably have to kill them all. Let's go see if the building on that island has the Orb."
Getting into the boat, they rowed across, finding the place quiet enough until they reached the docks and the two armed men guarding the docks.
Reading from a sign, Daniel said, "They're totally whacked. All new acquisitions must be checked in with the high priests. Personal retention of acquisitions will be punished by mandatory drowning."
They carefully moved from room to room, trying not to raise too much ruckus as they killed the cult members encountered, finding amongst all the rantings, a marble key hidden on a bookshelf. In another room, there were just crude stone counters covered with a wild variety of items—rare, common, and odd. They continued through the courtyard and a pitched battle, and found a room memorializing those who had been killed—someone named Volorb lost during routine training.
"Considering training appears to be whacking each other with sticks, small wonder," said Daniel.
"And the sincere apology to Corinda who was teleported into solid rock is no doubt much appreciated," said Anicka.
"Levy will be pleased," said Daniel, reading off, "In memory of Zelaz, lost in the Fort Emergence raid. May what's left of him find peace."
"To Heustess, lost during commission of routine procedures," said Angarahad. "I don't want to know."
"To Kricfalusi, who mysteriously and suddenly dissolved!" said Daniel.
"To Eileen, lost while testing the Wand of Unusual Results," read Frrrrrr. "Intriguing."
"Well, I guess we know they've got the orb," said Anicka. "The only question is where ..."
"Try the purification walk," said Angarahad. "That would fit with the rantings we read."
"Fine," said Anicka, and she led the way, using the marble key to get there.
As they walked, they came to a pool of slightly icky water, with algae floating on the top and a thick encrustation of minerals and unidentified goo around the edges.
"That's how they purify themselves?" said Anicka.
"Hopefully, just touching it is enough," said Daniel, dipping his fingertips in.
Washing hands in the slimy water was apparently required, their hands looking dirty afterwards, whereas they had been clean before. However, as they continued, their hands tingled, and a sweet smell filled the air, and little motes of light danced around the group. A deep soothing voice from out of nowhere said, "You are clean. You may proceed." Then the lights disappeared and the voice was quiet.
"Here's another one," said Anicka. "I guess, same procedure."
Indeed, it was the same, and then they found one more pool, and repeated the whole procedure, standing at last in front of a room with a sign declaring it to be the chamber of the sacred items.
"Here's hoping," said Anicka, and she tried the door.
The door was unlocked, and they found within six alcoves with a large case in each.
"Demonslayer—not yet obtained," read Angarahad, moving into one alcove. "That's something."
"Unusual plate mail," read Anicka. "Considerable powers not yet analyzed and mastered. I guess we can take this with us, too."
"Orb of Thralni," said Daniel. "Here it is."
Opening the case revealed a silver orb on a velvet pad. The orb was covered with delicately etched runes which caught the light beautifully.
"All right," said Anicka, taking it and then storing it in her pack. "Now to find a way out of here."
"Power metal?" said Phaedra. "I'd recommend leaving that ... I've seen too much about the sort of thing that would cause us to become ill ... it's powerful all right, but dangerous."
"Fine," said Anicka. "What else do they have?"
"Smite, not yet obtained," said Daniel.
"Self-regenerating magical stone," said Phaedra. "Maybe one of those spellshards they mentioned in Ghikra."
They continued, and found their way to another chamber, where there was a portal, and a control panel on the far side of the room.
Phaedra went over to the green books, finding they were instructions and notes for the operation of the teleporter.
"Even if they weren't totally insane, this would be too much," said Phaedra. "Maybe Seles would be interested, though."
"The only button I dare try," said Angarahad, "is this power button. All these sliders and dials probably control where you go."
"Well, I guess power it up, and let's hope we get out of here," said Anicka. "I didn't see too many other options when we were wandering the woods."
As they reached the cultists' portal, they could tell it was jury-rigged, but finding little other option, moved to walk into the portal. However, as they approached, the portal suddenly faded and lost energy, and turning around, they realized they had been ambushed by the cultists—including their massive and gaudily dressed, powerful leader.
"I knew it was too easy," said Anicka. "Let's go!" She drew her sword and the battle was joined.
Pressing the button again after the fight, there was a rumbling and crackling, as the portal was re-energized.
"Let's see if we can go home now," said Anicka.
Uttering a few quick prayers, as there was no other way back that they'd found, they entered the portal, and blacked out, waking up in the bandit tunnel that they had dealt with some time before.
"Interesting," said Anicka. "I bet Anaximander will be interested in that little bit of information."
"Quite so," said Angarahad. "I'm just glad that they were dealt with ... we're in no shape for another big battle."
Wanting to get some rest, they hurried back to Fort Emergence, and stopped by Anaximander's office.
"We recovered the Orb of Thralni," said Anicka.
"Excellent," said Anaximander. "Our opinion of your skills improves. We've talked it over, and we believe that the orb may do a lot more good in your hands. Just try to hang onto it."
"Sure," said Anicka. "We may have wiped them out, but I'm not sure. They also seem to have had designs on stealing Demonslayer and Smite."
"Very good," said Anaximander. "I'll pass that information along."
"And most interestingly," said Angarahad, "that group of bandits we were sent to deal with before we went to the surface—when we used the portal out of the cult, that's where we ended up."
"Most interesting," said Anaximander. "Thank you for relating that information. By the way, we have something for you. Time is of the essence, and you have long distances to travel." He handed Anicka an amulet, and said, "Using this when outdoors will return you to Fort Emergence. Hopefully it will save you some time. Certain of our agents report that there is a way on the surface, due north of Fort Emergence, to teleport to different cities in Valorim. Investigate this. Between that and the amulet, you will be able to travel anywhere quickly."
"We were hoping to get the money to buy some horses," said Anicka.
"Well, I suppose that would work," said Anaximander, "but there may be times when you need to move even more quickly than that."
Anicka handed the amulet to Daniel, who put it on. She didn't want to tell Anaximander about Erika's amulet, and she was afraid that two amulets might interfere with one another.
"Oh, I almost forgot," said Anaximander. "The range of the amulet is far, but not infinite. If you get too far away, it may not work. Don't worry about that, though. I'm sure it won't be a problem."
Leaving Anaximander's, Anicka said, "I wonder what Levy will have to say about this."
"Let's go see," said Daniel, grinning at Anicka.
They entered the office, and Anicka said, "We recovered the orb of Thralni."
"So I heard," said Levi with a sigh. "I would love to have it back in my care, but my superiors have already decided that it was to be turned over to you for your use. So I guess you can keep it," he shook his head sadly, and said, "I miss it."
"So, is that the only reward?" asked Anicka.
"Yes," said Levy.
"OK," said Anicka. "Just wanted to check."
They left the office, heading for their quarters, chortling over Levy's disappointment.
"What are we going to do next?"said Daniel.
"Well, see if we can get info on the other loot," said Anicka. "And we still have to go down to the Tower of Magi. But we probably should rest up first."