Dragon's Egg - Act II

[Steerpike]

Darin nods to Rydh. "Aye. Let them die." He feels around the healed area of his throat at nods his thanks at Rydh. "I agree we need rest. I don't think I'm good for much at the moment, anyway. Let those who can climb take care of that ledge. Unless I miss my guess, the lizards are scared of this place. If we keep the door closed, we may get some undisturbed rest. With any luck, they'll know we came in here and they make think we went to our doom."

He heads, shakily, toward the corridor leading back into the circular room. As Darin passes Rydh, he pauses for a moment. "I saw it, briefly. The great hall of the All-Father. It smelled of ale and the smoke of many forges." He lays a hand on Rydh's shoulder. "It is a good place, but there is much for me to do here before I make that final journey."

 

[Keitsumah]

I give Rhyd a smile for his efforts, even if his spell only gives me the faintest trace of warmth as it accelerates the healing of my wound a bit. Looking over at everyone though, I see many wounds, and this place is easily a breeding ground for illness.

Standing, I head over to each individual and touch their shoulder, the gems on the necklace I wear glowing for a moment as I cast First Aid on them. It will only stop the bleeding and prevent infection, but it is better than nothing.

Batos whined and rubbed his head against my leg, ears heavy against his head. I knelt and hugged him, comforting the stubborn wolf and thanking him for his obedience despite how much he must have hated leaving my side during the battle.

"I don't think it would be a good idea for one person to go up alone. Even young animals can do heavy damage, and they might already know that humans are food," I say, looking over at Baldart apologetically.

"But . . . maybe we could leave, and just seal this place off. We wouldn't have to do the dirty work." my tongue becomes thick at the last words, and I can tell that my expression has soured. Living amongst animals, even monsters, for my whole life, I feel guilty for killing any young, but I know that it is the law of life, that the weak die off, and the strong survive.

I had prevented that fate for Batos.

 

[Nihal]

"Yes, let them slowly starve to death, it sounds so merciful," I say in a snarky tone, half reading her lips half hearing what she said.

I turn to the others. "Oh, yes, I have a new condition: Don't hand my things over to suspicious strangers, never my weapons. Thank you very much!"

 

[Ravana]

As it falls, Algernon grabs hold of the unconscious form and bears it to the water, retaining his grab as the creature is submerged, its blood mingling with the water. A few bubbles rise from the harpy's mouth, indicating it is still alive and trying to breath, but there is no life left in its limbs.

((As far as I can tell, this one's still alive, correct?))

Algernon spits foul water from his lips. Oh, man, it's all through my beard. Yuck. Turning his head doesn't help: that puts his face in the harpy's noxious wings. Think I'm maybe gonna barf.

He continues to pin the harpy beneath him, face down in the water. He looks to Ankari, the only other person remaining nearby. "Uh, hey, you wanna skewer this birdie or cut her throat or somethin'? This is seriously gross, y'know?"

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

Rydh raises his voice in anger and leaves me standing here bleeding. Sir Cadell, Mauve and Darin are calm in their disagreement. Algernon has the heart to ask for a quick death for his foe.

"I didn't mean to use magic… I just meant to bandage them so I could… well… never mind my silly talk of mercy. I guess being winged women, they reminded me of what I will one day become, and then I pictured the children in that nest. Little girls with wings. There are twenty fresh corpses in this tunnel, and ten of them fell by my sword."

I take the harpy's dagger and wipe my blood off of it. It fits in the side of my boot where the stone knife was once sheathed. Another trophy to bring me nightmares.

"I'm the monster the lizards should fear." I sigh. "Mauve, I'll take the berries. Those and a rest should be enough."

((If Mauve gives Baldy the berries, she eats all 4 and is still down 6 HP. She will politely refuse any additional healing if offered, confident that the rest will help her recover fully.))

I head out the stone door alone, and carry in the lizard corpses—two on the first trip, then back for the other. I don't ask for help. Nissa is the only one I wish to talk to.

 

[SeverinR]

"I could try climbing again, but if we are just leaving what ever is up there to fend for themselves, I won't bother. There might be valubles up there, with or without harpy young. I am not in favor of saving the beasts we just conquered. The scar on my face will remind me of the harpy for a lifetime."

 

[Nihal]

I hand over the berries to Baldhart. "You need to clean these wounds, at least. I still have bandages."

When I see her dragging the corpses I move to help in silence; not that we can truly talk, we would have to shout to each other or something. Whatever she intends to do with them complies with what I had in mind, I don't like the idea of leaving them there to signal to our presence the other lizards. Hopefully these lizards are the same who fled—no, of course they aren't, that would be too much to hope for. But that would be a nice turn of luck if they were.

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

I manage a smile at Mauve, and accept her help. We can move the bodies in one trip.

"Your first kill," I tell her. "You were great today." I leave the lizards in the bone pile to rot with the rest of the corpses, and climb into the bent bars of Keit's cage, grimacing at I eat the berries one by one. The sour taste in my mouth is not from this awful fruit.

I hate what I've become, Nissa. Hate it.

Rest, Baldy.

 

[Nihal]

"Do you know that pile of bones? Mine would be there if you didn't what you did. I am not as sturdy as a dwarf and I owe you my life." I retrieve some bandages and what was left of the piece I've already cut up to use as earplugs. "Oh, I forgot to take them off," I mumble.

After removing them, I wet the piece in fresh water and hand over to her. "Clean them." I show her the bandages. "Then we shall dress your wounds; I won't hear any refusals."

 

[Ireth]

Baldhart's words, especially about mercy, strike a chord in me. She wishes to be alone, that much is clear, but still I feel I should speak to her. I follow a few moments after she leaves, and find her huddled in Keitsumah's cage. I move forward, keeping a few steps between myself and the cage if Baldhart doesn't wish me to come closer. I drop to a crouch so I am level with her.

"Baldhart?"

 

[Keitsumah]

Looking at everyone and wincing at Mauve's outburst, I'm reminded why I had never gone near others.

I crouched, clutching the newborn to my chest as its lifeblood spilled to the ground, fire flickering in the sky. The village was burning all around me, and even as terror flooded my limbs I ran from one to another, expending every last bit of my magical ability to try to save their lives. But it was all for naught. The raiders had killed them all.

Batos whimpered from where he huddled in my hood -still in bandages from when i had found him only days before. His huge blue eyes looked out of proportion on his white head, but the scars across his face reminded me all too well of how his own pack had abandoned him to the clutches of a cougar.

Gritting my teeth, tears spilled onto the human child's chest, their blank eyes staring into mine.

"Death has no mercy, you either are or you aren't. And we can't afford to have those things kill more of our people. What if you had a child snatched by them? a brother? a sister?" I whispered, standing up and limping away before anyone could respond. Batos actually hesitated to come after me for once, glancing at me and then the group. But he came after another moment, and we both threaded through the water to the far shore. My hair hangs down well past my knees, having never been cut, and it is stained with red and black from the water. My robes are a mess, and the bandage is soaked through with water. Good thing i cast First Aid on the wound, or i would say i had already been infected.

My hand went down and I patted Batos on the head, scratching one ear, and I sat down idly on a rock a few feet from the shore, out of the way of everybody's passage. My gaze grew vacant and i stared at the wall. Humans, elves, dwarves, halflings . . . they were all the same if one got down to it.

And i wish i wasn't, I thought grimly, and Batos rested his head on my lap with a huff, wrapping his tail around us and keeping me a little warmer.

Siren song . . . my vision focuses and i look at the nest. What if we didn't have to go up to get to them? I bite my lower lip and keep quiet about it though. It was a stupid idea, and one that... one that made a bond. If I linked myself to the harpy chicks, i would never be able to let them be killed.

I pulled a small flute out of my pocket and thumbed it still, torn between what to do.

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

Mauve and Sir Cadell won't leave me alone.

Good. Clean the wounds, Baldy. Respond.

I sigh, "Let me light a fire if you intend to keep me awake."

Your smile gave you away, Baldy. I'm sure they know you appreciate them!

I gather some sticks and… are those arrows from the dead lizards. Well, whatever burns.

((^Roll for barbarian deerstalker skill according to player's handbook.))

It takes about half a minute, but the fire should last a few hours.

"I won't refuse your help, Mauve. I need it now. You see what that overgrown rat-with-wings did to my dress?" A side-slit from hip to hem exposes my thigh, and the cut that I really should clean before eating the rest of the berries. "Kind of sexy, actually."

Sir Cadell waits outside the cage. "Come in, Sir Cadell. Join us by the fire."

 

[Ireth]

I slip in between the bars of the cage and settle down by the fire, glad for the warmth and heat after sloshing through water in that harpy-infested cavern. Now that I am here, though, the words I meant to say to Baldhart won't cooperate and cohere. What can I say?

My gaze glances over the gash in her thigh, and I wince. "I could try to stitch that for you... let me find my needle and thread." I shrug off my pack, set it in my lap and open it, reaching inside for my pincushion and a spool of thread that Hiljikki left me.

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

"I don't mind showing a little leg," I laugh. "But surely you didn't come here to help me with my modesty. Whatever you wish to say, don't hold back. I won't get upset. Not at you."

 

[Nihal]

I place my hand on her shoulder. "I would hug you if I wasn't stinking—oh, I'm so tempted to go back to the lake to wash out this smell! Don't you have any spare cloth to use? I'll have to change into my 'sexy' one too, the one with the javelin hole." I grin.

"Drink," I order, offering my wine. "Go on, end it, you need it. Don't think I'll leave you alone, you'll have a haaaard time getting rid of me."

I start to clean her wound with soft dabs and glance at Cadell, repressing a shiver. "Let her eat all the berries first."

 

[Ireth]

I smile. "I meant the cut, not your dress, though I suppose I can do both if you like."

I pause, my pincushion in hand. "Actually, I... came to speak about what you said before, about showing mercy. You called it silly. I don't see it as such. In fact, if things were different, I would have been more inclined to it myself. My Code forbids me from harming a foe who is helpless, unarmed, or who begs for mercy. The harpies were none of those. Though, I suppose I did not even get to join the battle this time, so maybe that doesn't mean much."

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

I let Mauve work on my wound for a bit. I sip the wine and enjoy the peaceful moment too much to care about the sting when she rubs too hard or touches a nerve. "That feels good," I say in response to a sudden sharp pain. Despite the pain, I am being truthful.

Mauve says eat, so I do. The wine washes down the horrible berry taste. Did she remember how much I hate the taste of these? "Thanks," I tell her as I extend the bottle for either friend to take.

I look at my leg. A pink line of new flesh pierces the woad paint design.

To Sir Cadell I say, "I was just thinking aloud back there. I don't really care about the harpy I killed, but… I wanted to know if I had any humanity left in me. I mentioned mercy for my own selfish reason—to see if I would really suggest it aloud.

"I never killed before you met me. My first kill was on that ship, and each monster I kill, I remember the splash of blood vividly. I remember what body parts came off. I remember the final sounds. And I remember how many. I'm very good at killing. Sometimes I even enjoy it. It took a monster with human parts to make me realize it:

"A part of me is a monster."

 

[Ravana]

As Darin passes Rydh, he pauses for a moment. "I saw it, briefly. The great hall of the All-Father. It smelled of ale and the smoke of many forges." He lays a hand on Rydh's shoulder. "It is a good place, but there is much for me to do here before I make that final journey."

Algernon smiles at the dwarf's overheard words. "Oh, hey, Darin, that's good to know. 'Cause that's been kinda nagging at me a little. I mean, what Baldhart's firebug friend said. About there not being a special place for guys, y'know? Guess she maybe just meant there ain't no guy valkyries. I was kinda worried she meant there ain't no place for guys in Valhalla. Which didn't make sense, since I always heard tell that's what valkyries did, fly around over battles an' wars an' such, an' choose what warriors got to go to Valhalla, y'know? So maybe I just got it confused. I do that sometimes. But if you saw it, then I guess it's cool, an' I can stop worryin' 'bout it."

•

((And, again as far as I can tell, no one has actually scaled up to the ledge yet, correct? Wouldn't mention it now, except that the action appears to be trying to move on, and don't want things to get too badly out of order.))

Once the harpy Algernon has been holding dies (through whatever means, and however long it takes), the big man stands, does what he can to remove the foulnesses of bird and sewer given the limited means available to him, goes back to the previous room to collect his warhammer and shield, then returns once more to the scene of combat to assess the difficulty an ascent to the ledge involves.

 

[Nihal]

Cage's room

"Oh, shut up.

"Baldhart, you are more human than half of our part together. Wait, that sounded wrong—I mean, you have more humanity. Stop torturing yourself with these thoughts, testing yourself, watching yourself..." I roll eyes. "I enjoyed the battle, of course I did. When something I am trying to do actually works, it is a wonderful change. By your logic it makes me a little, scarred monster. Worst, because I did not care about their deaths. I tend to not care if their survival means my death.

"Let's set an agreement: Do not torture yourself over it. Nissa will warn you if you are crossing the line, and if she does not me or Sir Cadell will. Does this sound good?"

 

[Legendary Sidekick]

"Yes. Especially to Nissa. She's been saying the same thing you have. You'd be surprised at how much the two of you agree."