0: Evictions and Escapes

From the Archives of Bhodi Li Shalandalan...

A hero’s journey
Begins with a single step.
Seeds have been planted.

On a warm spring afternoon, a young tiefling woman named Demaia and her friend Erdrich searched the woods near their home for newly budding herbs needed for brewing ale by a local brewer Bogden. They had journeyed far into the woods when their path took them alongside a deep gully. Agile girl that she is, Demaia had no trouble skirting the gully edge along the narrow crumbling path, however Erdrich was not so lucky or agile. Trying to keep up with his nimble friend, he slipped on a muddy patch and lost his footing. He tumbled into the gully flailing his arms and legs in to find purchase on the steep walls of the ravine. His leg caught in a twist of tree root and caught him short, audibly snapping the lower bone of his right leg.

Erdrich’s scream echoed across the woods. Quick as an indigo shadow, Demaia scrambled and swung down into the gully, between fifteen and twenty feet deep. She grabbed ahold of her friend who was writhing and hollering in pain, freed his leg from the root and lowered him carefully to the gully floor. Taking a closer look, she could see the jagged end of the bone protruding through the skin on his leg. She knew that she couldn’t get him out of this gully in his present condition. He was too large for her to carry. She would have to mend his leg before he would be able to climb out.

Demaia had been studying a book on alchemy she had found recently and had been experimenting with the formulae contained within. She had achieved some success with an herbal healing potion she knew would help Erdrich’s leg, but she was missing a component, nightshade, and the nearest place it grew was several hours walk away. Erdrich needed help right away. She determined that she would have to get what she needed from a local hedge wizard, Arlen, in the nearby town of Greenest. But town people didn’t like Demaia. They were afraid of tieflings and their infernal heritage. Her curling horns and purplish skin which she found beautiful, caused fear and loathing in the simple folk of Greenest.

From her pack she removed a disguise kit and began to use the pigments to lighten her skin. She obscured her horns by adjusting the hood on her cloak and pinning it in place. After making Erdrich as comfortable as she could, she headed into town.

About that time a young noblewoman, Nora, and her middle-aged aunt Melia, weary from the road, entered Greenest seeking the comfort of an inn. This they found in a modest place near the town center. After securing rooms and settling their luggage they took a seat in the dining room and ordered venison stew and the best wine the inn had on hand. Their meal arrived promptly, and they proceeded to enjoy it thoroughly, feeling some of the tiredness from the road melt away.

Nearby, the tiefling, Demaia entered Arlen’s shop. He seemed busy, but always eager to do business. After some haggling they agreed on a price for the nightshade Demaia needed. She quickly left, though it seemed that Arlen may not have been fooled by her disguise. As fast as she could she made her way back to the gully and found Erdrich unconscious from the pain. She sorted through her pack and retrieved all the materials and tools she needed to mix the healing potion. Settling herself, she remembered the steps she had gone through before and was able to concoct an effective healing potion. She could see it take effect immediately as she fed it to her friend; his bone began to knit itself and the skin healed over. After a few minutes, Erdrich regained consciousness, and she was able to help him out of the ravine, and they began to head back home.

Bogden Grogbringer, a halfling brew master, having spent the day traveling, finally pulled his wagon into MudBurrow, the small ‘shanty-town’ just south across the creek from Greenest that he called home. He had gone to Revival, a merchant gathering where he had sold several casks of his ale. As the sun had begun to mellow into early evening, he was eager to settle his mule and cart and have a hearty supper with a cool mug of his own brew. In the local pub, where workers got together for quaffs of ale and tall tales, Bogden was barely through his first tankard when Demaia came in holding up the injured Erdrich. She told him the story of Erdrich’s fall and the potion. He immediately took them home to care for Erdrich.

Several miles to the southwest in a lonely tower, Carric, an agent on a mission for an elven authority out of Evereska, sat in a cell contemplating his fate. He had followed his investigation to this area when he was arrested, bound and thrown into a wagon, and taken to this tower dungeon, known as Durlag’s Tower. He was surrounded by iron bars and the dreary moans of the many other prisoners on this floor. The air was full of dust and the smell of death lingered. Several goblin guards patrolled the corridors. He had watched as many people, both men and women of several races, were dragged from their cells and returned later looking horribly drained and near death. Some were never returned. The woman in the next cell introduced herself as Seltra and informed him that the people that were taken were all arcanists of some sort. They were methodically being drained of their magical abilities, but she could not say how or by whom. As Carric considered his situation, Seltra told him of a blood ritual she knew that will grant him the power to escape this prison. She suggested that he really hadn’t much choice because surely they both would suffer the same fate as the other prisoners and likely soon.

As the evening set in the town of Greenest, another traveler entered her confines seeking food and shelter. Bhodi Li was a half-elf that had a foreign look to him and carried very little; only a staff and light pack thrown over his shoulder. Making directly for the only inn, he entered and approached the proprietor offering service in exchange for a meal and warm pallet by the fire. He noticed Nora and her aunt finishing their meal and smiled and nodded in their direction. The owner agreed to his proposal and directed him to a woodpile out back. After a few minutes of splitting wood and working the tightness of the road from his shoulders, he heard a commotion of angry raised voices coming from the front of the inn. He set down the ax, picked up his staff, and sought out the disturbance.

Around the front of the inn a crowd of folk had gathered and were loudly complaining of thieves and devils. They were badgering an officious-looking man and following him south across the bridge. Nora had come out onto the porch of the inn and was watching the crowd. When Bhodi began to follow the small mob at a distance, Nora quickly fell into step with him. Introducing themselves to each other, they walked behind the crowd as they crossed the bridge south of town and entered MudBurrow. Immediately the official, the deputy of Greenest, started knocking on doors and demanding to be allowed to search for stolen goods. He pulled people from their home and rummaged through their belongings without asking. The hedge wizard, Arlen, was crowing about being robbed, and insisted that it must be a MudBurrow resident as the townsfolk of Greenest never stole from one another, and that MudBurrow was a haven for thieves and swindlers. Most of the residents cowered before the deputy’s abuse. The young woman Nora was visibly offended at these people’s behavior, saying as much to Bhodi.

By the time the crowd reached the home of the brewer Bogden, he was just coming outside to see what the noise was about. Arlen looked his way and seeing Demaia through the doorway beyond, immediately begins to accuse her of stealing from his shop. The deputy began to demand entry to Bogden’s house, as he had the others, but the halfling puffed out his chest and blocked the man’s path. The hair on the back of the halfling’s neck visibly rose as his brow furrowed, and everyone watching could see the confrontation between him and the deputy begin to brew. Standing on his doorstep he refused to allow the deputy to search his place or question Demaia, insisting that no proof had been presented and no witnesses claiming her guilt were presented. It was then that Arlen piped up and accused Demaia of being the one who robbed him, insisting she had been the only one to come into the shop at that time. The deputy began to approach Bogden as if he would force his way into the house. From behind the crowd the traveler, Nora, addressed the deputy questioning his authority to enter a citizen’s home without warrant or proof. Bogden used the interruption to step into his house and retrieve his war hammer. Seeing this, Bhodi Li quickly stepped up to Bogden as he appeared again on his doorstep. Assessing the situation, he warned the angry halfling that while it was honorable for him to defend his friends and his home, any use of violence now would only bring worse consequences down on his head and theirs. After a tense few minutes, the two strangers were able to diffuse the argument, and Bogden more reasonable insisted that Arlen share his story of how he was robbed. The old man seemed sketchy on his recall of the facts and after much questioning by both Bogden and the deputy it was discovered that Arlen had indeed had another customer immediately after Demaia had been there and purchased the goods he’d thought stolen. With a dark look over his shoulder at Bogden and the hammer he held, he dispersed the crowd who were now castigating Arlen for his foolishness and cursing his senile memory.

Bogden invited Nora and Bhodi to stay and have a drink with him. They were introduced to Demaia and Erdrich and spent the next part of an hour getting to know each other. Bhodi Li agreed to return the next morning to help Bogden move barrels and load his wagon. The two travelers returned to their inn as the sun began to set chatting along the way. Bhodi Li told of how he had only recently finished many long years of training with his master and was now on a sabbatical to pass his final tests among the common people, helping those who needed it. He sought a destiny he believed was his alone to discover. Nora told how she was a travelling with her aunt to avoid an arranged marriage. She had gone against the will of her parents and ran away. She was reserved on the details, but her rebellious spirit was obvious even to the sheltered Bhodi Li.

Back at Durlag’s Tower, as Carric consider the consequences of using blood magic, an earthquake shook the tower and surrounding lands. He sensed it was connected to whatever evil deeds were going on beyond the doors to this prison to the prisoners who had been taken. Miresta, a partner and comrade of his, quietly approached the walls surrounding the tower. She was sent by the same elven association as Carric to guard his safety. Camouflaged and hidden among the flanking trees, she watched the goblin guards patrolling the top of the walls. Looking for any opportunity to gain entrance, she shot the first guard while still hidden. She was injured while dispatching the second guard with an expert shot, so she had to rest and heal before she could attempt getting inside again. She melted into the woods around the tower and found a safe place to sleep. The next morning, she returned to her former position and discovered a large dragonborn woman, Ofiera scouting the walls. Though startled at first, Miresta was quickly put at ease by the friendly nature of the dragon woman. She told her of how she was the only survivor of a band who had just recently tried to storm this tower. She told her of her friend, Seltra, who was even now locked inside facing a fate which she did not know. Realizing that their missions were intertwined they began to formulate a plan on how to get inside.

That morning in Greenest, Nora and her aunt rose early and entered the common room packed and ready to leave. Bhodi Li was finishing his breakfast and wished them good morning. Nora told him they were getting back on the road and proposed that if he was heading in their direction that they travel together offering mutual protection and good company. He heartily agreed to the proposal but insisted that they stop at the halfling Bogden’s home to help him with his barrels. As they crossed the bridge into MudBurrow and approached the small house of Bogden and his friends he saw them outside loading a wagon in a hurry. That morning Erdrich had heard from friendly neighbors that the deputy was angry that Bogden had faced him down and nearly threatened him in front of the townsfolk. To save face he was coming to throw Bogden in prison. Being without influence among the local nobility, Bogden thought it best to clear out of town for awhile taking his friends with him. He was sending Erdrich north with the wagon filled what stock of ale he had on hand to find a new place to set up business. When he heard that his new friends Bhodi Li and Nora were heading south they all agreed it would be a good idea to travel the road together. Bhodi began to help Erdrich load the wagon with the barrels of ale while Bogden and Demaia finished gathering their belongings and rations for the road. Within the hour the small group was on the main road heading southwest of Greenest.

Upon waking that morning in Durlag’s Tower, Carric saw the guards remove another poor soul from their cell and drag them off to a fate unknown. He knew his turn would come soon; his lifeforce drained in some foul arcane experiment. Seltra was visibly getting more and more nervous as time went on and complained that they would have to do something soon. Seeing little choice, he relented, and she began to explain to him the mechanics of the ritual. As she was finishing up the explanation, they began to layout the summoning circle. Just then a deep, intense tolling like of a gigantic bell began to sound from somewhere inside the tower. Carric hurried to begin the ritual. The tolling began to shake the tower and a huge blast of sonic energy was sent out from the tower. The only guard remaining on his floor fled in fear. Outside, Miresta and Ofiera were knocked down by the blast. They never saw those who were occupying the tower leave, but when they looked to the gates they saw them unlocked and ajar. Not far away on the main road, the travelers from Greenest who had been traveling from several hours, were paralyzed by the sound and the wave of energy. Bhodi Li pointed out how the tops of the trees had been bent back indicating the direction from which the blast had come. Nora insisted they should go investigate and see if there were folk in need of their aid. They began to make their way toward Durlag’s Tower.

Following the instruction of the now visibly fearful Seltra, Carric droned through the words of the ritual, allowing their sound to drown out any other distractions. Soon the cracks in the stonework of his floor began to glow green within the summoning circle. The bricks began to fall loose into a deep black pit full of green flames under the cell floor. He pressed himself back against the wall, and heard a voice speak to him from within the flames. The voice was deep and ancient, full of power and menace. It offered him the power to free himself if he would pledge his life in service. Whether from fear or a desire for power, Carric didn’t hesitate to pledge his service to the unnamed entity. The voice faded away with an ominous laugh. The tower was beginning to shake itself apart now, but he barely noticed as he felt waves of arcane energy flow through his body and spirit. With a simple motion of his hand, a blast of power left his fingertips and destroyed the latch on his cell door. Looking around he realized that he and Seltra were the only ones left alive in this prison. Those who had imprisoned him had apparently abandoned them here. The tower was falling apart. Holes were beginning to appear in the walls where stones were falling out of place. He realized they had very little time to escape before they would be caught in the collapsing tower. Again, he used his newfound power to blast the lock from her door and together they ran for the stairs leading to the exit.

Outside the tower, as Miresta and Ofiera were about to rush the gates, the travelers from Greenest rushed up offering aid. They explained that their friends were trapped inside. As the group approached the gates they saw unnatural green flames consuming the top of the tower. Two figures appeared at the front door and ran towards them. Ofiera let out a whoop as she saw it was her friend accompanied by a tall elf whose eyes seemed to reflect the glow of the flames on the tower for a moment. Just as they cleared the gates, the tower fell apart and crashed into the earth in a gout of green flame rising skyward.

Glad to be reunited with her friend, Ofiera suggested that they quickly get far away from the tower. And so, with the fallen stones of Durlag’s Tower burning in a pit of green flame behind them, the group of nine made their way back to the main road and headed southwest seeking a spot to camp and rest for the night.