They met an army patrol the next day. 40 armed men in their padded light armor wielding clubs, shields and slings and seemed well organized . They didn't seem like much, but Fetch knew better. He saw first hand what Grommers could do in battle. They were organized and had many secret weapons. Frank was chuckling how a bunch of guys with clubs were gonna get smacked around by goblins, but the cleric saw iron wands also known as dragon golems in addition to their clubs. There were even a few crates labelled M.A.U.G. but Fetch wasn't sure what was in them. The cleric discreetly inquired if any rangers on dogs came through this way, but no one recalled seeing anyone of that nature.
The patrol captain was surprised that anyone got through the humanoid blockade. They sent a message to Baltar's Port warning them of danger and told them to restrict caravan travel. Fetch wondered if the message got through or did Ivan know and tried to crash the blockade anyways. They were escorted to Karlston for the next 2 days.
Karlston was an unremarkable city from its appearance , about the same size as Baltar's port, except land locked. It had a river that was still mostly frozen, and a wall that actually encompassed most of the city. The outlying farms and manors were all like small fortified keeps. It seemed to have seen its share of raids. The city itself was very clean and organized. One of the guards told Fetch that it use to be the Capital of the Kingdom of Tholok Myer before it was conquered and annexed by Grommers. Many nobles here can still trace their lineage to those days. Fetch was told Governor Nils and his family had ruled Karlston as stewards with a fair but iron fist for several generations now.
Ivan's company broke up angrily when they reached town. Several merchants accused him of withholding information of the dangers. Ivan lost half his caravan and at that point he just didn't care. He ignored their criticisms and went to drown his grief at the nearest Tavern.
Frank decided to find out for himself if traveling to McDunnalds was safer. In the meantime Fetch and Tyris went looking for their friend Clovis. The cleric didn't know if his old artificer friend still lived or if he was successful at restoring his house. Clovis mentioned he came from Karlston , so they asked if anyone heard of him. They all answered that Clovis was an influential nobleman in Karlston. He had a large estate in the city and several manors and farms outside. They were directed to a large building called the Tholok Trading company, apparently the artificer was the primary owner of it. They made their way into the busy building but were told Master Clovis was out of town attending to his other businesses . Although his business and personal headquarters were in Karlston , he had many other businesses in northern Grom.
Fetch thanked the man , as he was about to leave he thought he heard an involuntary hissing. The young cleric turned and saw a sickly looking man wrapped in heavy cloths. He was sure that man hissed. He wondered if he was followed or if this was just a chance meeting with one of the yawn ties members. He was glad he didn't declare who he was to the merchant, and resolved to be more careful in the future.
They met up with Frank and Goldanna and made their way to an inn. They were hassled by a tax collector and his thugs, but they had the proper receipts to avoid him. Fetch thought he might be in trouble because he was drenched earlier, but apparently his papers were written on special magical water and tear resistant paper.
The golden goose inn, was quite surprising. It was referred to them as a moderate price and quality inn, but the food preparations and the quality of the accommodations were above any expectations they had. The companions loved the quality of the food and accommodations so much that they decided to stay another day. Fetch really liked this city , so much different then any other they had been to. He wondered if the rest of Grom was like that.
Fetch was surprised at how well Frank and Goldanna were getting along. He never saw Frank treat a woman the way he treated her. Even though she was mute and stared blankly most of the time, Frank would talk to her endlessly regardless. He even bought her a different change of clothes so she wouldn't have to wear the thin priest robes. Goldanna even broke out a smile once in awhile in his presence. Fetch teased Frank about his new girlfriend. He expected a witty comeback or a headlock, but he just smiled. They shared the same room together, Tyris didn't object. She could see the rapport they had.
Fetch wondered if that was the secret of happiness. Frank was neither rich or smart, and Goldanna was worse, but they seemed to share a small bit of happiness between them. He looked at Tyris , he wondered if he was truly happy. He loved her, but he had to sacrifice and bear so much for her. Even now he knew so little about her. For a moment he thought of Nara , but looking at Tyris those thoughts were dispelled.
"Fetch? Are you OK?", said a worried Tyris. Fetch nodded at her. She place his hand in hers, and gave him a light kiss on the cheek. She whispered something in thieves cant in his ear, he smiled, and together they found a small broom closet in the inn.
The journey to McDunnalds was uneventful. While Karlston was known as the jewel and culture capital of the north, McDunnalds was the bastion of power and glory. The famous 3rd army of Grom was stationed here. The city had a massive population of 200,000. Outside were many walled farms and manors like Karlston. The walls outside the city were truly impressive, they seemed like they were built for a castle not simple city defenses. They towered a massive 50 feet high. Each guard tower a small keep by itself. As they approached the city a massive stone tablet intoned the words "Over 1,000,000 ...SERVED!" as a reminder of all the soldiers that enlisted in the Grommish 3rd army. 2 Massive golems of iron the size of a small keeps kept guard outside the city. Inside the city, statues of the most famous of Grommish Heroes lined the streets. Their Founder the unstoppable Kirk McDunn, the wise General Christy, the Victorious General Olive and numerous ones of the Legendary Prodigy Monte Nabisco. Interesting enough the statue of Olive was that of an old woman. Fetch was surprised how much features her younger self shared with it. Inside the city, there were many monuments to the great victories the 3rd army achieved over the years. The most stunning monument was the twin golden arches. Victorious armies would march into town through the arches to celebrate. They were amongst the tallest human structures Fetch had ever seen, They were clearly not made of gold, but the glittery paint that was used was most impressive. A fitting tribute to victorious armies. The only thing that looked out of place was what looked like the ruins of a once mighty tower . There were guards patrolling the perimeter of the ruins . Fetch wondered why they didn't just remove the rubble and put something more aesthetically pleasing. A passerby told him that was the ruins of the Tower of Boryis, a powerful sage of some sorts. As they proceeded inwards Fetch noticed they were in the process of erecting one for the 2nd demon war. He noticed they even had a statue of him. He had the younger version of Olive on his shoulders, they were both pointing towards victory or something.
"That looks nothing like you .", said Frank "The nose is too big, and the muscles are too defined", he said with a sarcastic smile.
Fetch was glad it wasn't an exact representation of him. After encountering the snake man in Karlston he of course wanted to keep a lower profile.
Frank and Goldanna once again left Fetch and Tyris after they agreed upon an inn to meet at later. Fetch went to the city headquarters of the 3rd army. He presented the guard with his letter , who in turned summoned an honor guard to escort them a few miles to the edge of the city to the Fortress headquarters of the army. Tyris was asked to stay in a meeting room. She smiled and lightly kissed her husband for good luck.
Olive was surprised and greeted him warmly, "FETCH! so good to see you. Its been too long. 7 months? Whats with the hair? Did you lose a bet or something? hehe ... I'm glad you decided to take up my offer. My people will set you up right away. Do you know what a general staff is? Its a group of officers and other thinkers that review and make up contingency plans in case of war. I want to put that tactical mind of yours to review some of the plans. Offer suggestions and criticisms that kind of thing. ", she breathed deeply, "This deserves a break! Lieutenant...get us some cookies..and milk...!"
As they waited for the snacks, Fetch gave her Earl's note.
"Whats this? Earl,...whats that rascal got you into now...now this is bad.", she looked at Fetch with slanted eyes."Snake men? Snake men? Really?"
Fetch nodded. "I saw one in Karlston, although he didn't seem to notice me"
"And they think your wife is some kind of goddess and you have to keep a low profile in Lower Lueders to protect her?This is pretty hard to believe... Whose idea is this?", asked Olive rhetorically.
Olive grumbled, but cheered up when the cookies and milk were brought in. She stuffed one in her mouth and happily munched on it. Her smile returned instantly" Well, it cant be helped. This can still work out. I'll send the Lueders garrison copies of our theoretical plans. You can review them there. It might work out better, gives you a more objective judgement, you wont be swayed by working relations or anything. Let me draw up your orders. One more thing, you still have to finish training..Everyone finishes training. If you skip training it might alert umm the snakemen."
Fetch was rather annoyed at the prospect of marching around, sit ups or whatever they do for training in Grom."How long is this going to take?"
Olive smiled while eating another cookie."Since we've been getting so many battle hardened troops from the north we have instituted an accelerated training program. We will skip your basic training. But we need you to attend military orientation and have a supervised first mission. Nothing too dangerous, we aren't gonna send you to the horde coming from the north between Karlston and Baltar's port. Garrison relief or an escort mission. Something along those lines. Its about 5 weeks."
"I didn't expect this delay...what about Tyris , Frank...and Goldanna?",asked Fetch.
"Who? Oh your wife and companions...They can stay at one of my estates as my guests.", Olive said after draining her glass of milk.
Fetch thought about it. 5 weeks without Tyris, but then he will be set up in Lower Lueders . Olive looked at him with wide expectant eyes.
Fetch shook her hand, and gave her the best imitation of a Grommish salute he could muster.
"Excellent !" , exclaimed Olive, while stuffing another cookie in her mouth.
Tyris wasn't happy with the plan at all. She didn't even like the accommodations that was assigned to her. The estate was nice, luxurious, even had its own staff. Fetch had never stayed anywhere so fancy, but Tyris was against anything that saw her separated from Fetch. The cleric thought it over, and realized since they met they've only been separated a few days at most. Even before they shared their bed, they were adventuring companions. Frank and Goldanna however , seemed happy to stay at the estate.
Tyris and Goldanna saw him off the next day. Fetch didn't see Frank, he thought his friend must have been drunk somewhere. Tyris kissed him passionately and promised to pray for his safe return. Goldanna gave him her typical blank look.
Fetch was led off to the training center, A cart with several other veteran recruits took him to their camp. The training officer looked at his papers carefully and told him to climb aboard. There were a pair of thin noble looking half elves, even though they were brother and sister, they were androgynous enough to make it difficult to tell them apart, there was a large knight of the boar, that smiled at Fetch as he approached, and a strange looking halfling , wearing a heavy cloak and thick armor. The twins spoke softly to each other and they gave him disapproving looks. Fetch caught a glimpse of the halfling skin..it looked withered and grey. He introduced himself in a monotone voice as Trip. The large knight offered him a seat next to him, and introduced himself as Sir Branndr. Fetch told them his name and the large knight laughed,"You should have called yourself Champion Magdar! ", he said with a wink.
The veteran recruits reached a secluded camp. There was a barracks and a wooden lodge, some pits and posts. Fetch looked at the recruits that arrived before him, there was a few more knights, some Grommish noblemen, a few dwarves...
"FETCH!", cried an all too familiar voice.
Fetch could see Frank talking to a group of other recruits, he was surprised his friend was here.
"What are you doing here?", he hissed.
"Well I needed money, and these Grommers pay pretty good, and since you were gonna be gone for 5 weeks I volunteered.", said Frank.
"Tyris tried too , it was her idea, but apparently they didn't need bards or shy stoutly built women. A massive handsome knight like myself however, I got signed up with a bonus. " . he said with a smile.
"What about Goldanna?", asked Fetch unsure what to make of it.
"Tyris is taking care of her. Shes the only one that can make her follow anyways besides myself. This is gonna be great buddy, you and me together in the Grom army. Lets show these Grommers real heroes"
"LISTEN UP,,,,,PAIR UP EVERYONE!", cried their instructor.
Frank pointed at Fetch and he nodded.
"Listen up ,you all got here , because you are supposedly veterans or something. Well , I'll be the judge of that. I want you and your partner to do some full contact sparring for me . If you don't impress me, you'll be sent home. This is the Third Army! Not some noble vacation lodge!", the trainer directed his ire at some of the Grommish nobles.
The big knight Branndr fought the halfling Trip first. The halfling lost but gave a good account of himself. The knight beat him but was winded from the effort. While the halfling, stood up after the pummeling and shook his hand without any lasting strain .
The twins fought next. One seemed skilled with magic with some swordplay mixed in , the other quite skilled with the blade with some magic tricks up his sleeve . They were evenly matched and the battle lasted awhile, with neither side giving quarter. The instructor told them to halt before any serious damage was done.
Fetch and Frank squared off. Fetch knew Frank was the better fighter, but he had magic. It wouldn't be a problem to defeat him with a simple command or hold prayer. The captain signaled them to start. Frank offered his hand to shake before the match. Fetch knew it was probably a trap but Franks sword wasn't drawn yet. Fetch shrug and shook it. The next thing he knew, Frank pulled him towards his shield, which impacted heavily on his face. Fetch stumbled back and Frank swept his legs out with a sweeping leg kick. Fetch landed hard on his back. Frank stood over him, with his sword drawn. "Enough! ", cried the instructor scribbling notes.
"Are you trying to get me kicked out! ", asked Fetch angrily.
"Sorry ",said Frank he said with a sad face, but turned to a grin and struck a pose when one of the female nobles walked by.
The other recruits sparred with each other. At the end of the day one of the knights and 2 of the nobles were sent back. The instructor Sgt Hakon took Fetch aside. " You should be on that cart as well, but your orders were approved by General Olive herself. Did you give her candy or something? Says you have clerical powers, you better not disappoint me. General Olive or not, the Third army will not be embarrassed by the likes of you."
There were 17 of them left in total. Hakon assigned them to squads . Fetch's squad consisted of squad leader Frank, Fetch, the twins Surry and Agni, Sir Branndr, and Trip. Apparently the first week was a combination military drills and military traditions. After that field work for another week. And after that an extended patrol . After the patrol they would be evaluated. Of those that pass some would become officers, others would be assigned to specialized divisions.
"So your named after your ability to get water?", asked a surprised Branndr. "HO HO HO! That's the funniest thing I heard all month. I thought you chose that name to make people think your Warmaster Fetch himself. " Fetch let that part of his history slip. He didn't want attention drawn to himself.
Frank already told them his history. How he was a triplet of the order of the Crab. How his brothers were slain, but he took up the blade in their memory. How he fought with honor . Culminating in him being the one to lead the charge against Yeenoghu and him being knighted afterwards. He skipped the part about how his life was a failure after the war though.
Branndr told them he was a boar warrior, but he regretfully missed the main battle, he was frozen in ice for apparently 200 years. When the mists retreated he found everything had changed. His champion was gone, the battles were over, and his lands were gone . He decided to start fresh in the Grommish lands. He heard they were always hiring people of talent.
Trip was a warforged scout created for the great war. He couldn't find his place in halfling society , since he was bad at pie eating contests , singing and other halfling habits. He came to Grom because he heard tales of their advanced weaponry. He wanted to see more. A few years in the Grommish army seemed a good place to start.
Surry and Agni , were apparently half elf twins from a nearby barony. The Eagleclaw barony had a large population of displaced elves. Most were from a displaced northern elf tribe while others were from the Iron Glacier. Agni wanted to study at the war collage and Surry wished to attend wizard academy but their family was poor, very poor. They never knew their father and their mother abandoned them at an early age. Despite working as mercenaries and adventurers for the last 20 plus years, they were no closer to their goal. They finally decided to join the 3rd army while they were still young and earn their tuition in exchange for their service. Fetch felt bad for those 2. They both have lived longer then him, but their life seemed full of abandonment and tragedy. If he and Tyris ever had children he would never abandon them. If for some reason he had to leave, his kids would be well provided for.
Frank asked " So ...which one you 2 is the main twin? "
They looked at him with confused looks.
Frank gave them an exasperated look ," Cmon, I know how it works. One of you does all the talking and fighting. The other one stays in the background. If the first one gets clobbered, the second one takes his or her stuff, and starts taking over the talking. Its a time honored twin tradition. Believe me it works great, you save on equipment costs, and the non twin can train and adjust his kills while needed. Best of all, since your practically family, your group will accept you more easily."
They both gave him a "are you crazy " look. "
Agni spoke first, "We don't do that..."
Surry finished "...and we've never heard of that before ."
Frank threw up his hands" Oh my god, I can't believe you 2. Twins both talking at once! Even having their own separate gear! HAS THE WORLD GONE MAD!"
The next 2 weeks went by fairly fast. Instructor Hakon taught them basic military etiquette and traditions of the 3rd army. A brief history lesson was also taught. The long and proud tradition of the 3rd army impressed Fetch. Their military history was as long and proud as any of the knightly orders. As with most warriors from the northern wastes, Fetch didn't think much of the "weak" Grommish army and its "milk drinking " soldiers . They had light armor and shields , and used clubs and slings. Physically a Grommer was smaller then a northern knight, even Fetch who was a slightly smaller then an average knight was larger then most Grommers. After the orientation Fetch had new respect for these men, when he thought about it , it didn't surprise him. An empire doesn't survive for over 1000 years if it had a tradition of losing.
Afterwards Hakon taught them how Grommers fight in units. Simple phalanx fighting, Grommish battle square, line formations and echelon formations. Branndr and Frank had trouble with the formations. Knights were trained to fight one on one. When they did fight in groups it generally degenerated into a chaotic melee once the initial charge was over.
Hakon was a pretty strict by the book guy. He was the archetypal training instructor, short, stocky, bald, scarred, and tough as nails. His assistant Corporal Samuel was the opposite. He was very helpful and offered a hand to the trainees whenever they got stuck or confused. They trained in the proper use of Grommish transports and even group tactics for Grommish weapons like the club and sling.
They even received brief instructions on the operation of dragon golems and certain wands. He even learned that MAUG meant Massive Armored UNIT -GROM. They were apparently sentient automatons created by the demon king hundreds of years ago, much more powerful and larger then the warforged, but way fewer in number. Fetch was told centuries ago during the age of King Alphonso , the Grommers created many great constructs. Some were bigger then giants, some as large as castles. The army still created golems but they were the "smaller" ogre and giant sized ones. Fetch wasn't given any instruction in their use but heard stories and rumors that only a person of the old royal bloodline could command the greatest of the golems.
Fetch thought the group bonded well together. Branndr and Frank were good front line fighters. Surry was a capable front line fighter mage, she had considerable talent in magic but was not anything special. Agni was a more rounded fighter, he augmented his skills with magic. A magus was what he called himself. He was a solid fighter but had few tricks in his repertoire. Fetch though the half elf could learn a lot from Branndr and Frank. Despite their age, Frank and Fetch saw a lot more combat action then those 2. Trip was a solid scout and skirmisher. He didn't speak much of his past, but Fetch found out from he was a veteran of the Great war, the first demon war, and countless campaigns against giants, goblins and the saughain tribes of the north.
They had inter squad combats after their initial training. Franks squad almost lost due to poor tactical decisions , despite the groups skill at arms. At the last moment Fetch seized command and barely pulled out a victory. Afterwards Hakon demoted Frank and placed Fetch in charge. Partially for his failure at command, and also for his strange habit of babbling about phantom canary's following him. Frank said he didn't mind, he was more of a fighter then a leader, and he also told everyone the canary was real. He was disappointed that he lost his command but he knew his place in battle, it was on the front dealing death not in the back giving commands. The others of the group backed their new leader , the past two weeks showed them his ability to lead. Although Frank supported the change, he could tell his friend's pride was hurt. A smuggled flask of spirits managed to cheer him up however.
After their initial training, Hakon told them to prepare for a patrol to the west towards Khazag Narg. Fetch wasn't too concerned, he was told by Olive it was to be a regular patrol , to test how they perform on the field. Their group was suppose to relieve a guard tower, and maintain watch till they were in turn relieved themselves.
Fetch felt strange, his vision was blurry . He didn't remember drinking last night, in fact he remembered going to sleep early, because they were starting their march towards the guard tower tomorrow. He looked at his hand and it looked more then blurry it was rippling. As if he were staring at it from a pool of disturbed water. He shook his hand in disbelief, and it slowly reformed into a more standard image. He looked around, he was in a silvery landscape. He couldn't tell up from down...he should have been panicked but he knew he was dreaming.
He explored for awhile in his new environment. He wasn't sure how long it took. It could have been a few minutes or an hour. He lost all sense of time. Eventually he came upon a wooden shack. With a sign saying "Fetch's Fortune". He walked in, and once again he was greeted by a short fat elf, that was slightly unshaven wearing a turban.
"Do you know why you are here?", asked the elf with a smile.
"Umm...too much Lemming chilli?", answered Fetch playfully.
The elf frowned," not quite...", he waved his hand and before Fetch many strings sparkled as they became visible to his eye. Some were glowing and golden, others bright and silvery , some still looked dark and cold. A myriad of different strings seem to flow across the table. They started invisibly at one end of the table and disappeared on the other end. The elf pointed to something that looked like a knot amongst the strings. He took out a thin dagger and traced one glowing thread towards the knot.
"My domains as you know ...is that of chaos, luck, shadows...", the elf continued but Fetch interrupted.
"Wait a minute ..domains? What are you talking about? You're just some crazy guy in a hut in my dreams.", snorted Fetch
"Oh...you don't know who I am?", the elf asked surprised ,"I thought you were the high priest of Rawk. I thought religion training was part of the job. Don't you recognize me?"
Fetch felt embarrassed. He never learned much about gods, and never actually cared. He prayed for victory in combat and that was apparently enough for his patron Rawk, " Ummm are you Rawk?", Fetch answered sheepishly.
The elf laughed and waved his hands again. "Maybe your companions will know." To the corner of the room Frank rippled into existence, next to Frank the most beautiful Silver haired elf he ever saw appeared as well. Fetch was stunned by her beauty, she was not as tall as Brita but had a noble serenity about her. Her skin was ivory and flawless, and her hair sparkled like a polished mirror . Her eyes shined like sapphires , and she had an aura of beauty and nobility that the young cleric had never encountered before.
"Whooa...too much Lemming Chilli, ", said Frank stumbling, he then noticed the beautiful maiden and then stopped and stared.
"Hi I'm Frank...how's you doing?", the knight said in a smooth practice banter.
The elf oracle bowed 3 times once to Frank , once to the elf, and once to the empty air " Sir Knight, Lady Tulani, Mistress Shadow"
The silver haired elf seemed as stunned and surprised as Fetch and Frank. She stared at her hand and waved it to test if it was real. "Where am I?"
Frank began to answer, but then he noticed the elf at the table with the threads. The maiden noticed as well, and they both exclaimed together " KARD! ", the elf bowed curtly, Frank followed with a more nervous bow.
"Who's Kard ? Is that some famous wandering fortune teller or something.",asked Fetch.
"Shhh...", Frank told Fetch while still bowed," don't insult the god of thieves or he'll take your magic items and money."
"Oh ...the god of thieves and luck...I see that makes sense now," ,Fetch snorted once again still not believing this entire scene. He was positively sure he was dreaming now but decided to play along. "Oh mighty trickster king...please give your MOST humble servant a piece of your OH SO infinite wisdom. Oh and who's the hottie elf? I thought you were gonna conjure Tyris to my side ."
The chubby elf grew annoyed " Oh...your mocking me now? I've slain dragons for less...Don't push your luck mortal, I'm here to help you not slay you. and I'll let the lady introduce herself."
The elven maiden was lost staring at her hands and legs, and touching her face. She noticed that everyone was looking at her, and she recovered her composure." Hello Fetch, Frank ...I'm Galatea...or I think I am. "
"You can call yourself whatever you want baby.", Frank replied lost in her beauty.
"Wait a second , Galatea is a sword..and you don't even sound like her. She has a deeper , echoing voice.", laughed Fetch.
She looked around, and pointed to Franks shield. He nodded blankly, and she took the shield and spoke behind it. "Hello Fetch, Hello Frank...I'm Galatea...does this sound better?" , she said in a deeper echoing voice.
"Wow! This is one trippy dream!", said Fetch. " Is this your true form or something? Its stunning ! "
Galatea nodded and handed Frank back his shield, " I was once a Tulani eladrin, the highest caste of my people. My beauty was legendary. it was only eclipsed by my queen Morwell. After a set of "unfortunate circumstances" I volunteered to have my soul bound to a blade to seek justice and vengeance against the foul demons of the abyss. ...Its been so long , I forgot the sensations of having a body once again. ", she said articulating her limbs. "Thank you Kard, although you are not a friend to the Eladrin, I owe you my thanks for this brief respite.
The fat elf nodded with a smile. "Now these people know the proper respect given to a god. As I was saying...as you can see from the threads, many seem to be converging here at this knot. I can see this knot will affect the futures of nations, of millions of people, of even the gods. Now normally I would just wait and watch, but something is pulling them together on purpose . Something is manipulating the fates. As the embodiment of chaos, this offends me. When someone pulls, I push", he said with a smile.
"However I have a reputation to protect. If I start helping people willy nilly, people will come to expect it, and that wont do. So I'm here to offer 2 things. A warning and an answer. I've already given you the warning, so choose your question wisely ...or foolishly. Ask anything you want but know that your fate and that of others will depend on you. .", said the elf with a sly smile .
Fetch then noticed a duplicate of the elf sneaking into the hut, once again holding his fingers to his lips. He delicately placed another fish on "Kard's" head and stalked out.
Fetch started to say something , but he thought better of it. Just a strange dream, better not start an argument over this craziness. He noticed Galatea and Frank laughing to the side, Frank was completely entranced by the elven beauty and was turning on the charm. Galatea for her part missed the attention she must have received when she was "mobile" and playfully lead Frank on.
Kard waited patiently for the question . Fetch thought this whole affair was stupid , but he decided to indulge his dream and gave it some thought. "Will I ever have kids?", he considered about asking if Tyris loved him, but he knew the answer to that. The only thing in his life that seemed missing was that he wasn't able to have kids with Tyris. They tried many times, but he could see the strain it was placing between them.
Kard rolled his eyes. "Meaning of life...the combination to the great vault of grom... how many roads must a man walk... or the location of the jacnith of beauty...and this is your question? Ok I'll be nice. Since your question is not that specific I'll be nice and give you 2 answers. The first is you already sired 2 of them. , the second is "no".. Tyris will not bear you any children. "
Fetch was confused and disappointed. He shouldn't be , he told himself, he didn't believe any of it . 2 kids already? That's crazy talk. This is of course a dream. Kard seemed disappointed and waved them away. "You can leave at any time, the realm will cease when you awake. "
Fetch began to leave ..and then stopped. "If you are Kard, and this isn't a dream...I have another question. Why choose to warn me about the fate of millions...why not Frank...or even someone of note like General Olive or that Earl person, someone in power that can make a difference " Fetch paused and considered his next statement " I'm just a guy who can't have a child with his wife, who has a few crazy friends. I only became Warmaster because I was in the right place at the right time."
Kard laughed "I stated you could ask but one question. But why not, I break rules all the time, even my own. Don't sell yourself short my boy. Lets see, you probably don't recall but you survived a dragon attack when you were but a child , you made your way by yourself up the great plateau. You rubbed shoulders with heroes, kings, assassins, high priests and even gods. You even saved one! You cleared the dangerous dungeons of Mammoth keep, you survived an encounter with Sir Hildraxel and even fucked his daughter under his nose ," Fetch felt uneasy at that last statement. He could see Frank passionately kissing a surprisingly submissive Galatea at that moment. Frank gave him a finger point then a thumbs up at that statement." You survived the demon infested Scar, you were the guardian of Galatea, one of the most sacred of swords, You defeated the false high priest of Rawk, you commanded and rallied the Great host against the demon horde. You battled balors , you even aided in the imprisonment of a demon lord. You've earned the respect of generals, royal adventurers, the grandfather of assassins, and the legendary Mighty champions of the north, you fate is intertwined with not just 1 but 2 souls on the verge of immortality...and most importantly you amuse me. "
Fetch shrugged...he thought for sure he was going to mention he killed a dragon, even if it was a small one. He would have put that on top his resume.
"Oh and you killed an adolescent dragon the size of 4 dogs", Kard replied as if reading his mind..."pffft...I watch things, I can see things that most can't ..even other gods can't . After an eternity of this, I found its more amusing watching interesting people then powerful people. Interesting people do more anyways...hey you smell something...smells like ..sniff...fish...WHO PUT THIS FISH ON MY HEAD AGAIN!"
The elf started to rant and began a search around the room. Fetch yawned and felt like sleeping.
Fetch awoke in the tent . It was just a dream he thought. His memory was rapidly fading and he wondered what he was dreaming of. He looked at Frank sleeping close to him. He had a happy smile on his face , he muttered, "You like it when I touch you like that don't you.. whos a bad sword...whos a bad sword..." Fetch thought to wake him, but he thought better of it. Tomorrow will be a long day.