Last time, we had realized the death beholder's cultists knew how to get into the kobold wizard's tower and rushed to his aid. We arrived too late, finding half the kobolds dead or petrified after a large battle, and the wizard wounded and despairing. Balazar obliged the wizard by pulling his soul from his body and attempting to infuse it into a soul gem like the one Elle's soul inhabits that the wizard had for some reason. This resulted in a soul being expelled from the gem and inhabiting the wizard's body, hurling Sadun and wizard body from the tower. As Sadun tried to explain the situation to the reawakened soul, the now-a-kobold fainted.
-------------------
Ignoring the commotion outside, Pip Squeak stooped and picked up the fallen gem. The stone now bore the image of a dragon's head, breathing fire. It was warm to the touch. The ratfllk examined the stone through his goggles, and saw that it was bursting with magic, but also with intense emotions of hatred and anger. The longer the ratfolk barbarian held the stone, the hotter his paws became, until they burned and he was forced to toss the stone from paw to paw to keep from being injured. "Yes, yes! I can use this!" Pip muttered to himself. He held the stone up closer to his muzzle and sniffed it. His whiskers began to singe. "Perfect," he said happily. "This is just what I hoped for!"
-----------------------
"Whatever that is, it's not worth my time," Balazar complained, glaring at the unconscious kobold wizard. "Zap me for trying to be nice and explain things for a change, will you? I'm going inside."
The dragonborn turned, grabbed one of the kobolds that had gathered around and stormed to the door.
"I'm going in too," Talna said, following Balazar. "Are you coming Sadun?"
Sadun picked herself up slowly. The fall from the tower's third floor had knocked the wind out of her, but she was able to stand. "Yes, I'll bring this person in. The wizard may have lost all hope, but perhaps this friend of his can help us." Sadun lifted the kobold body, and walked into the tower, followed by all the gathered kobolds and Arnick the gnome. "Could you tell me where a bed is?" Sadun asked the kobolds.
"Yes yes!" a kobold said. "Upstairs! I'll show you!" The kobold tugged on Sadun's arm and led her up to the third floor where the party had found the wizard initially. Sadun lay the sleeping wizard's body on the bed, while the kobolds began rushing about, gathering blankets and tucking the wizard in, pulling vials of water and placing them on the floor nearby, and picking up the debris left from the battle and the events after the party had arrived.
Balazar stalked through the room, heading for the stairs leading to the upper floors. "Where are you going Balazar?" Talna asked, a long suffering sigh lingering behind her words.
"I'm going to go drink myself to sleep, and then sleep away my problems," the dragonborn replied.
Talna let loose another sigh. "Just, just go to bed Balazar."
"That's what I'm doing!" Balazar complained as he disappeared up to the fourth floor.
Behind the group, Pip shuffled towards the door to follow Balazar, holding something behind his back.
"What do you have there?" Talna asked, seeing the ratfolk attempting to be surreptitious.
"Nothing, nothing!" Pip said, innocently. He grabbed his pack and tossed the stone into it. "Nothing at all, just something I had pulled from my pack. I'm just going to go upstairs too, and rest too."
Talna sighed again.
"What is that potion you are putting next to the wizard?" Arnick asked one of the scurrying kobolds.
"This? This is a get better potion, wizard make these," the kobold said.
"Oh, that's pretty neat," Arnick said. "Are there more of those?"
"Yes, well, not so many now, but some still," the kobold said.
"Great, is it labeled?"
"Yes, red is get better, see?" the kobold held up the potion bottle. The label was written in draconic, illegible to Anick. The gnome improvised, pulling out his journal and copying the symbols on the label down.
"It looks like the wizard's wounds are healing on their own," Talna said, observing the sleeping kobold. "And does he look taller? And his features are a little different. What is going on?"
"Balazar pulled his soul out and pushed it into that soul gem," Sadun explained. "I think another soul came out of the gem and switched places. This isn't the wizard we've come to know and... well, it's not the wizard we were speaking to an hour ago."
"Hmm, I wonder if the residual magic is doing something of this healing, it must have taken a lot of magical power to keep a soul in a stone," Talna pondered thoughtfully.
"Is something burning?" Arnick asked, looking up.
"Maybe is cooking fire?" One of the kobolds suggested.
"I smell it too. I'll look downstairs, you look up," Sadun said to Arnick. "We've had enough hijinks for one day I'd hope, lets make sure the tower isn't burning down too."
"Pip, your backpack is smoking," Talna said, as the others departed on their search.
"No, everything is fine! It does this sometimes. I have to go do something elsewhere now," Pip said, trying to remain calm as he scurried up the stairs to where Balazar was building a blanket fortress to nap in.
"Did you need help with something?" Arnick asked Pip as he walked past, intent on going to the top of the tower.
"What is with the damn interrogation?" Pip shouted vehemently. "Can't a rat go deal with things in peace?" As he walked past the startled Arnick and began to ascend the stairs to the fifth floor, several lit torches spilled from a newly formed hole in his backpack.
"Ah!" Arnick shouted, "Fire!"
Pip ignored the gnome and walked determinately upstairs, trying to keep his pack together as he went.
Arnick grabbed one of the blankets off of Balazar, who guiltily shoved his alchemy jug behind his back. The gnome didn't notice, and began beating at the growing flames with the blanket. Unfortunately Arnick's technique was off, and he only managed to fan the flames higher.
"Fire!" Arnick shouted again, getting desperate.
On the floor below, Talna heard Arnick's shouts. She walked to the stairs leading to the second floor and called down for Sadun. "Arnick needs you help, sounds like there's a fire," she explained, as Sadun came rushing back up.
Without a word, Sadun coninued running, reaching the fourth floor to see the gnome fanning the flames with a blanket. "Arnick, stop! You're not helping with that!" Sadun said. She ran up to the gnome, ignoring Balazar as he slunk back down to the third floor. Sadun opened her mouth and let loose a blast of freezing air from her lungs, which cooled and doused the flames. As the flames went out, Arnick and Sadun saw several gems and metal items had been caught in the fire. A dagger glowed red-hot, but Arnick reached past it to grab one of the gems without thinking, brushing the dagger as he did so.
"Ah!" Arnick screamed in pain as the dagger burned his skin. Sadun hurried over and let loose another less powerful gust of cold air, freezing the wound. Arnick passed out. With a sigh, Sadun lifted the gnome and headed back downstairs.
-----------------------
On the fifth floor of the tower, Pip turned around, made sure he was alone and then dumped his burning backpack on the floor with a curse. The pack was in pieces, and all of the ratfolk's torches and rope were burning. "By the Dark Gates," Pip muttered, looking for anything to use to put out the blaze. Finding nothing, he shrugged, dropped to the floor, and rolled back and forth across his burning possessions until the fire on the floor went out. He stood up, looked down, and realized his robes were now on fire. With a squeal of panic, Pip dropped again, rolling about until he put out the remaining flames.
Standing up on shaky legs, Pip looked through his remaining belongings. The torches were gone, and the rope was unsalvageable, but he still had several pieces of scrap leather from the armor he had cut up to make his goggles. With a long suffering sigh of genius thwarted, he set to work patching his backpack with the leather, and making a leather container to keep the red hot soul gem in.
------------------------
On the third floor, Talna turned as Balazar came back down the stairs, surreptitiously holding his alchemist's jug behind his back.
"Balazar, give me a drink too," the drowse said, sounding more weary than ever before.
"What drink?" Balazar asked innocently.
"Balazar."
"Fine, fine," Balazar said, pulling an empty wineskin from his belt and filling it from the magical jug. He handed the wineskin to Talna.
"Thank you Balazar. I need this," Talna said, sitting next to the bed and sipping from the skin.
A kobold scurried up and handed a glass of water to both Talna and Balazar.
"This had better be vodka," Balazar said to the kobold with a glare.
"Balazar, be nice," Talna said.
"But he's trying to water my booze down!" Balazar complained as the kobold scurried away again.
"What is this anyway?" Talna asked, eyeing the wineskin thoughtfully.
"Oh, I put the strongest booze they could give me at the castle in my alchemist's jug so it would replicate that," Balazar explained.
"Good," Talna said. "I really need something strong."
The pair lapsed into silence. Sadun interrupted a moment later, carrying in the unconscious gnome.
"What happened to Arnick?" Talna asked.
"It is... probably best not to ask," Sadun said with a sigh.
Talna looked more closely, and saw the ruby the gnome still clutched in his burned hand. She sighed, stood up and cast a healing spell on the gnome.
Arnick woke with a start. "What happened?"
"You were maybe a bit reckless going for the gem in that still hot area," Sadun explained.
"But you put the fire out with your breath!" Arnick said, surprised.
"Yes, but that metal dagger was still very hot. I only stopped the flames from spreading."
"There were more gems, I'm going back for them," Arnick said, disappearing back upstairs. "I'll use my knife to get them out this time, don't worry about any more burns!" he called back as he disappeared from view.
"Well, I guess he's feeling better," Sadun said.
"It's sunset out there," Talna said, looking out the broken window. "We should do something about the window. Greg!" The cleric's skeletal assistant appeared at her elbow. "Greg, get a sheet or something and hang it up there. We wouldn't want our new friend to catch a cold."
The skeleton clattered in acknowledgment and departed, looking for something to cover the window.
Sadun sat down and closed her eyes. "I'm going to get some rest," she said. "It's been a tiring day."
Talna followed suit, sitting down and returning to the wineskin Balazar had given her.
"Don't let me see you watering that down Talna," Balazar said. "I went to great lengths to keep that stuff strong."
"Oh, just get some rest would you?" Talna said.
They settled into a comfortable silence again.
--------------------------
The sun was setting behind the spare bedsheet Greg had hung over the broken window when the wizard began to stir. Talna, noticing immediately, stood and stepped away as the wizard sat up in the bed.
"Where am I?" the figure asked.
"You are in Sorzen's tower," Talna said. "I assume anyway. It seems you knew him as Sorzen, although he never gave us his name."
"Kobold, wizard, a little belligerent?" the kobold asked.
"Yes, although a little belligerent seems underselling him," Sadun said.
"Yeah, that would be Sorzen. He has a tower now? Good for him. Where is he?"
"I put him in a rock," Balazar said without opening his eyes.
"Balazar, do you want to get blasted again?" Talna asked.
"So I notice I am in a kobold body now," the wizard said. "This is strange."
"Yes, when the swapping of souls happened, Sorzen took your place in your stone," Talna explained.
"Because you died," Balazar said with a chuckle.
"I don't think Sorzen is dead, if it helps," Talna said.
"A stone? I don't know anything about that. Where is the stone?" the wizard asked.
"The rat took it," Balazar said. "Last I knew he was setting the tower on fire."
"We know it has been a considerable amount of time since you were last in this world," Talna said, ignoring Balazar.
"Centuries probably," Balazar said.
"I found some papers dated 1630, though I have no reference for when that was in relation to today," Talna said. "Do you know the year?" she asked, turning to one of the kobold minions.
The kobold walked to a desk and began pulling out book after book after book, a stone tablet, and then several more books. Finally the kobold came away satisfied, and handed a worn diary to the drow. The book was written in draconic.
"Balazar, tell me what year this says it is," Talna said.
"Do I have to?" Balazar whined.
"You know how to read, right?" Talna asked.
"Fine, give me the book," Balazar said. Talna handed it over. The dragonborn flipped through the pages, coming to the last entry about halfway through. The date read 3025. "Alright, what do I get if I tell you the year?"
"I won't smack you," Talna said.
"You'll smack me either way! I don't believe that."
"I've never said I wouldn't smack you before," Talna pointed out.
"I need something better," Balazar said.
"That's the best deal you'll get," Talna said.
"Fine, it's like three thousand something," Balazar said.
"I don't think they're paying attention anymore," Sadun said, gesturing to the wizard on the bed. The kobold had gone into some kind of trance, their eyes were a solid black. Arnick walked in at this moment, glanced at the kobold, and screamed at the blackened eyes.
Pip, sneaking down, used the distraction to walk past the group with a muttered "Neat."
"It looks like they are in a trance, communing with their patron," Talna said. "I know something of warlocks, and I think the soul we rescued is that of a warlock. They may be trying to divine something."
"Oh yeah, I saw them being a warlock in my vision," Balazar said casually.
"What vision?" Talna demanded.
"Oh, I had a vision about the wizard and some warlock doing adventures when their souls swapped," Balazar explained.
"Balazar are you drunk?" Talna asked.
"Not yet I'm not!" the dragonborn complained.
"Just go to bed Balazar," Talna said with a sigh.
"I can't, I'm not drunk yet!"
"Well this is all fascinating," Arnick said, "what with the creepy kobold and the arguing, but I think I'm going to go downstairs and see if I can find some useful potions. You, kobold, come with me," the gnome pointed at one of the kobold minions, who put down his broom and followed Arnick downstairs.
----------------------
On the second floor, Arnick found Pip scrabbling through piles of debris and magical looking equipment. Ignoring the ratfolk, Arnick led the kobold to the cabinet of potions. "Alright, I need help sorting these," the gnome explained. "You tell me what they do, I'll group them up. Then I'll work on getting the labels translated properly."
"Sounds good," the kobold said.
"Are any of those flammable?" Pip asked, walking over.
"Sure, this one is," the kobold said, handing a red colored potion to the ratfolk.
"Any others?" Pip asked, tucking the potion away.
"Why do you want them?" the kobold asked suspiciously.
"For science," Pip said, a strange gleam in his eye.
"What is science?" the kobold asked.
"Fun times," Pip said mysteriously.
"Could you not do science in here, whatever you're going to do, while I'm sorting these potions?" Arnick asked over his shoulder.
"It will be fine," Pip said.
"But what is science?" the kobold asked, genuinely curious.
"I'll show you," Pip offered. "You just have to give me more of those potions."
"Why do you need more?" the kobold asked.
"I said I'll show you," Pip said again. The kobold carefully pushed the potions back into the cabinet away from Pip.
"Spoil my fun," Pip muttered. "I am a rat of science you know!"
"What is science?" The kobold asked again.
"You'll never know if you don't give me more potions," Pip said.
"Is science an animal?" the kobold asked.
"Please ignore the rat," Arnick said, "and show me the potions."
The kobold turned back to the gnome, and Pip walked away, disappointed.
The kobold and Arnick worked feverishly for a few minutes, until the potions had been emptied from the cabinet into three piles on the floor.
"This pile here, three potions, they make fire," the kobold explained. "This pile, four potions, they make weapons be good. Final pile, these two potions, are good for you to drink."
Arnick copied the labels into his notebook. "Do you know if there are recipes for making the potions?" Arnick asked when he was done.
"Yes, but I do not know where they are," the kobold admitted.
"Don't worry, I'll look around. They can't be hidden away after all," Arnick said, setting off the investigate the bookshelves surrounding the area.
-------------------------
On the third floor, Talna and Sadun watched the meditating warlock on the bed. A sphere of dark colored energy had formed between their hands.
"They seem to be conjuring something," Talna said, after a minute.
"I could stop that by ripping their soul out again," Balazar offered.
"I'm not convinced that would be healthy for them or for you," Sadun said.
"You don't let me have any fun," Balazar said. He turned to a nearby kobold. "You, go fetch me a tube, alright? I have an idea." The kobold nodded and ran downstairs.
Pip, ascending at that moment from his search, called down "Could I have some metal tubing too?"
"No, don't get any for him," Balazar countermanded.
"I do as dragon lord says!" the kobold's voice came up from the second floor.
"Damn it Balazar," Pip muttered to himself. "How am I supposed to build my idea if you keep getting in the way?"
------------------------
Arnick looked up from his search for the potion book as a kobold entered the room and walked over to a table covered in beakers and flasks. Tubes connected the different beakers, and liquid seemed to pour constantly from one to the next in some strange alchemical reaction. The kobold reached out, grabbed a tube at random, pulled it off, and walked back upstairs.
Arnick walked over and examined the setup. A silver liquid dripped from the beaker the tube had been connected to onto the floor. Even as the gnome watched, the silvery fluid seemed to pool together and began moving slowly but inexorably towards one wall
"Strange," Arnick said, watching the progress of the liquid. "Oh, wait here's a book is seems to explain the setup here, and maybe also has some of those option recipes. Too bad it's in draconic. I really should learn to read that one." The gnome picked up the book and started heading back up the stairs again, towards the dragonborn members who might help him translate.
----------------------
Balazar accepted the tube from the kobold. "This one is dirty!" he shouted, "there's all this silver stuff in here." He flicked the tube at Pip, splattering drops of silver over the floor, though the ratfolk dodged the spray. The silver liquid again began moving towards one wall of the tower. Ignoring this, Balazar turned to the kobold. "Now go get me some water so I can clean this out. I can't drink my booze through a dirty tube, it would dilute the alcohol.
Pip crouched by the moving pool of liquid and poked a finger into it. His finger came out covered in silver, and suddenly the ratfolk found himself drawn towards the window by that figure, though not strongly enough to force him off his feet. Pip walked back to Balazar, grabbed the tube still dripping silver, and tossed it out the window. The tube did not fall to the ground, but flew out in the direction the silver was moving in.
"Damn it rat, that was going to be my straw!" Balazar shouted.
"It was dirty," Pip said.
"That's why the kobold was getting me water," Balazar said.
"Oh," Pip said. "Well, I want to see what happens with the liquid."
"Kobold, get me another tube. And not with stuff in it this time!" Balazar said to the kobold returning with his water.
"Would you two stop messing around," Talna said. "The warlock seems to have conjured some sort of book."
"Book? I want to see a book," Arnick said, entering the room.
"Do not touch that book," Talna warned. Arnick leaned over to get a look anyway, but at Talna's glare straightened up and walked over to Sadun.
"I have potions," Arnick said, handing one of the weapon improvement potions to the silver dragonborn.
"Oh, good," Sadun said. "Those can be very helpful."
"But I can't read the labels, I think they're in draconic, can you read them?" Arnick asked.
"Let me see," Sadun said, looking at the label of the potion the gnome had handed her. "This one says it is a potion to bring out the hidden power in weapons. That sounds fun, maybe I should polish y great sword with it."
"What about this one? The kobolds said these were flammable," Arnick asked.
"Alchemist's fire. Yes, that's dangerous."
"Keep those away from Pip," Balazar suggested.
"And these last ones read as Recovery Potions," Sadun said. "Good for a fight or afterwards."
"Alchemist's fire, huh?" Arnick said thoughtfully. "Hey Pip!"
"No!" Balazar shouted.
"I'm busy!" Pip shouted from the second floor.
"I have alchemist's fire for you!" Arnick called down.
"I am suddenly less busy!" Pip shouted, running up the stairs. Arnick handed the ratfolk two of the remaining alchemist's fire bottles.
"And I think you should have these weapon potions," the gnome said, handing the potions to Sadun, Balazar and Talna. "So, can I see that book now?" Arnick asked, turning to the warlock on the bed.
"No." the warlock said. "It's mine."
Talna sat down with a sigh and began polishing her rusty shield with her new potion.
"Fine," Arnick said, disappointed. "Sadun here's a book I found too, what does it say?"
"This looks like a log of experiments," Sadun said, flipping through the pages. "Oh, here is a recipe for that recovery potion."
"What do you... do?" the warlock asked Talna on the other side of the room.
"Suffer," Talna said in a despondent voice.
"Last time I tried to tell you something you shot me with magic," Balazar said.
"Oh. I would apologize for that," the warlock said, "but it was funny."
"You know I can't even be mad about that," Balazar said. "I would say the same thing."
"We were sent here from another world by the gods," Sadun interjected, "to fight the beholders. Before we go further, may I ask your name?"
"I am Tella," the warlock said. "And that takes powerful magic. What type of gods?"
"For me it was my ancestors," Sadun said.
"I was tricked into having gods at all in the last world we were in," Balazar said sullenly.
"Your gods sound like jerks," the warlock said. "Unlike my god." They clutched the book they had summoned to their chest. "Sounds like that old god that was imprisoned many years ago."
"Imprisoned gods?" Arnick perked up. "Do tell!"
"You haven't heard the stories? The traveling bards tell them all the time. A favorite of the rabbit folk."
"Oh, the rabbit folk are endangered," Talna said. "I think there's only two left."
The warlock's face fell. "No, I can't believe it."
"Yeah, I think the beholders exterminated them. But to be fair they were jerks," Talna said.
"To be fair, the one rabbit folk we did meet was a little bit of a jerk," Sadun said. "I don't think you can apply that one experience to every rabbit folk."
"But the rabbit folk were a happy, lively bunch, they never wanted to harm anyone!" the warlock said sadly. "Also, you keep mentioning beholders as in plural. Why are there more than one?"
"We don't know," Talna said. "Nobody seems to."
"What about this old god," Arnick asked. "Why was it imprisoned, how was it imprisoned?"
"Oh, he's not even supposed to be here anymore, we threw him in a rat and threw the rat in a hole," the warlock explained. "It's gone."
Balazar started laughing at that.
"About that," Sadun said, holding up Elle's stone, "it might be in here."
"Yeah, I'll pull the old one out!" Balazar said jokingly, and walked towards Sadun.
"Balazar no!" Talna shouted, casting Chill Touch. The skeletal hand flew through Balazar and knocked him unconscious. The dragonborn fell to the floor.
"Does this happen often with you people?" Tella asked.
"Unfortunately," Sadun said. "Though it's usually not this violent."
"So what is that stone?" Tella asked again.
"Well, it's a long story," Sadun began.
The warlock looked pointedly out the window where the last rays of sunset were filtering through the bedsheet. "We have nothing but time. Did Sorzen make that stone?"
"No. So, when we first came to this world we had another... companion is almost too strong a word. There was a goblin with us. The goblin was beholden to a god of gambling, and he gambled away his arm. The gambling god gave him this strange magical void instead. Then the goblin died while we were here. There was a stone rat in his pack, we also had a different gnome friend who picked up the stone rat. The rat started talking to her. Long story short she ended up going through the void with the rat and that all turned into this stone."
"So, problem solved?" Tella said hesitantly. "So you brought the old one back, and sent him into another void, losing two people. I'd say that's pretty good for killing an old god."
"I am in agreement," Sadun said, "which is why the stone is still a stone. The rat thinks he can make something out of it though."
"What could you make out of the soul of an old god? Nevermind. Where is the other one? You said there was a second stone that I was in," Tella asked.
"The rat has it," Sadun admitted.
"Pip! Get up here!" Tella shouted, walking towards the staircase.
"I'm doing science!" Pip called from the second floor.
Tella went downstairs followed by Arnick and Sadun.
"Pip, let me see the shiny stone thing," Tella demanded.
"No," Pip said, attempting to ignore them.
"Let me see it," Tella said.
"Why?" Pip asked.
"I have to see if Sorzen is in there. And if he is I need to get him out. Is he in there?"
"No?" Pip lied.
"Can I see the stone then?"
"No," Pip said again. "It's dangerous."
"I suspect I can handle it," Tella said sternly.
"No, just me," Pip said.
"Just give her the stone!" Arnick called.
"Fine, but I'm holding it," Pip said, holding the stone up and tossing it back and forth from paw to paw so that it would not burn him.
"Stop moving it!" Tella said.
"No, it hurts if I hold it too long," Pip said.
Without warning, Tella grabs the stone from midair and thrusts it into a piece of leather she pulled from the floor.
"I want that back!" Pip said.
"Ah, a fire breathing dragon, sounds like Sorzen. He always had a temper on him. How did you get me out?" Tella asked, turning back to Arnick and Sadun.
"About that," Sadun said hesitantly.
"We might have promised we would kill him," Arnick admitted. "In exchange for answers. Balazar wanted to test his ghost hand, pulled out Sorzen's soul, tried to stick it in the stone, your soul came out... Sorzen is probably upset he's not dead actually."
"Why would he want to die? He had such hope for the future," Tella said, confused. "Anyway, Balazar is the unconscious one, right?"
"Yes," Sadun said.
"Well, I'll hold onto this for now," Tella said.
"No, give it back!" Pip said. "It's mine!"
"Can you get him out?" the warlock asked.
"Yes, using science," Pip said.
"And what is that?" Tella asked.
"I'll show you, just give me the stone back," Pip said sullenly.
"He did say he could do that for our friend Elle as well," Sadun said. "Specifically he said he could make her better. We have our doubts."
"Show her the thing I made," Pip said.
"He did make this statue of Elle," Sadun admitted, holding the figure out.
"That is incredible," Tella said. "Technology has advanced so far."
"Yeah, now give me the stone," Pip said.
"And you'll get Sorzen out?" Tella asked, handing the stone over.
"Yes, but it will take some time."
"What about the other parties?" Arnick asked.
"The other parties Sorzen was in?" Sadun asked.
"What other parties?" Tella asked. "Sorzen was only in one group, with me."
"We found pictures of him with two other groups," Sadun said. "We think he was with the first three attempts. There have been at least thirty six attempts to defeat the beholders now, all of them have failed."
"Well we'll just have to kill them ourselves. Now get Sorzen out of that stone," Tella said, turning back to Pip.
"I have to take some time to do this, I need to take time to examine it and see every angle of it, and know what to do with it," Pip said, clearly stalling.
"You won't leave until you get him out," Tella said.
"Yeah yeah, whatever," Pip muttered.
The kobold walked up to Pip and picked him up, pinning him to the wall. "I'm serious, if you don't get him out you will be my new corpse."
"Let me go please," Pip said.
Tella pulled out her book. Words seem to flow across the page, though Arnick is able to make out the phrase "Finger of Death" among them. "You will promise me won't you?" Tella said.
"Please let him go," Arnick said.
"Don't worry, I have a plan," Pip said to Arnick, palming his last flash bomb.
Tella noticed the motion and began to shake him. "Do anything and you die now," she warned.
Pip blinked, and activated the bomb. A blinding flash of light exploded from the sphere, blinding Tella, who let go of Pip. She turned on him. "How dare you," she said, black tentacles emerging from the shadows. The tentacles flew out to hit every creature in the room apart from Tella, knocking two kobolds dead and Arnick unconscious. Beakers and vials shattered from the attack. The cauldron in the center of the room tipped over, pouring its viscous fluid all over the floor, making a line of repelling liquid across the center of the room, isolating Tella with Pip.
"What was that noise?" Talna asked, coming down the stairs. She took in the scene with a glance; the destruction, Tella rubbing her eyes, Pip against the wall nearby, Sadun kneeling and Arnick unconscious. "Never mind," the cleric muttered. "Arnick get up," she said, casting Healing Word before going upstairs and repeating the spell for Balazar.
"Sadun," Arnick said, regaining consciousness and seeing the corpse of a kobold nearby. "Could I have Elle's stone?"
"You are her family, of course you can have it," Sadun said, rubbing the flash from her own eyes.
"Thanks Sadun," Arnick said, taking the stone. She turned to the kobold body and slammed her hand with the stone into its chest. Her hand passed into the kobold in a flash of light, the stone sparking with blue magic. Arnick felt his spirit beginning to follow in the wake of the stone filling the kobold body, getting flashes of Elle's life and the existence of the Old God. A flash of the god being a decent ruler, until the new gods began picking off the old gods, a flash of being forced into a stone rat, a flash of flying through portals on various worlds, and ending up on a pirate ship where it was picked up by a goblin. A flash of Elle's death from two perspectives, that of Elle herself and that of the old god.
Just in time, Sadun reached out and pulled Arnick off of the kobold body. The soul stone remained embedded in the corpse, still flashing, and Arnick collapsed into Sadun's arms weeping desperate tears.
As this happened, Pip took a strong breath of his poison gas and flew into a rage. The ratfolk leapt onto Tella, attempting to bite her face off. His teeth clamp down on a magical field, causing bruises to form beneath but not drawing blood.
"Stop now, or I will kill you," Tella hissed at the enraged Pip, "and your soul will come to me." The ratfolk growled in response, and Tella seemed to sigh, then raised her book and chanted a spell. Pip immediately collapsed, asleep on the floor. "There, stay that way," Tella said, retrieving Sorzen's stone from the ratfolk's pack. Pocketing the stone, the warlock picked up the unconscious ratfolk and walked down the stairs to the first floor.
On the other side of the room, Sadun and Arnick stared as the kobold body rose from the floor, sparking with magic. The body grew to Elle's height, and the eyes flicked open a moment, pitch black orbs in the kobold's head. Then the body falls to the floor, unconscious but alive.
Arnick ran to the kobold. "Elle! Wake up!" he shouted, shaking the body. The kobold started awake, and breathed fire on the gnome, who collapsed to the floor unconscious, still holding the kobold's wrist.
The kobold pushed Arnick off its wrist, and scrabbled back until it bumped into the wall.
"May I ask your name?" Sadun said gently, not moving towards the kobold.
"I don't know," the kobold said, a hint of fear in its voice. "Where am I?"
"You are in the tower of a kobold wizard," Sadun said calmly.
"What is a kobold?"
"Your body is that of a kobold," Sadun said.
"So it is," the kobold said, looking at itself. "What now?"
"That is a good question," Sadun said.
"What is that on the floor?"
"The silvery stuff?" Sadun guessed.
"Yeah."
"I have no idea, this is not my tower," Sadun admitted. "It just wants to go that way."
"Great. What about the stuff from that metal thing that looks like a circle?"
"Again, I do not know. A lot of stuff got knocked over a few minutes ago," Sadun said.
"Greeeaat," the kobold said, "it's not my tower either."
Talna walked into the room to investigate the quiet, observing the suddenly alive and terrified kobold with pitch black eyes.
"Who is that?" the kobold asked.
"That is Talna," Sadun said, as Talna walked to Arnick and cast spare the dying on the gnome's prone form. "She is a cleric. She will heal people. And the short figure is Arnick, a gnome. Arnick is the brother of possibly part of your soul."
"Who am I?" the kobold asked again.
"What is going on?" Talna asked. "Explain in less than ten words."
"Arnick tried to bring Elle back," Sadun began.
"I see, that's all you need to say," Talna said.
"So who am I?" the kobold asked.
"As far as I know you are Elle," Sadun said.
"That's a letter I think," the kobold said.
"Elle was my friend. She died recently, but her soul was trapped in a stone," Sadun explained.
"Well that is not me," the kobold said, "because I don't know who you are."
"Do you have any urges?" Talna asked. "Do you want to kill things?"
"I don't even know what that means," the kobold said, still sounding terrified. "I just want answers."
"It might be best for you to go to sleep," Talna said. "Maybe things will sort themselves out in your brain."
The kobold turned to Sadun. "Is that normal?"
"That's normal for her, yes," Sadun said comfortingly.
"I'm just going to go outside," the kobold said hesitantly.
"Outside is not safe," Talna warned. The kobold looked around the room at the total wreck multiple scuffles had made of it. "Going to the top of the tower would be safer," Talna added belatedly. The kobold continued to stare around it. It tried to climb the wall, but fell down.
"How do you use legs?" the kobold asked.
"Would you like some help?" Sadun asked.
"From you yes," the kobold said. "I don't know about that one." It motioned towards Talna.
"Very well. I will take you outside," Sadun said. "And we can try to sort this out a bit for you."
"That would be great actually," the kobold said.
Sadun lifted the kobold and walked downstairs. On the first floor Tella was tying Pip to a chair with multiple lengths of chain. She looked up as Sadun descended the stairs. "Hi," Tella said.
"I'm just going to let you do what you're doing," Sadun said.
"Great," Tella said. "Didn't that one die?" She gestured to the kobold.
"We're working on what happened," Sadun said.
"I died?" the kobold asked, puzzled.
"We are working on what happened," Sadun said, "but it is possible you did several times."
"Great," the kobold said.
Talna trailed behind Sadun, casting Detect Good and Evil. She got faint vibes of good from Sadun, and total neutrality from the kobold. As best she could tell the souls of Elle and the elder god were mixed, but because the kobold was recently dead its soul also got dragged into the mix. The kobold soul seemed to be the dominant one. "It could be a danger if it's taught wrong," she pondered.
Sadun took the kobold outside. Talna followed, and knelt next to the kobold as Sadun put it down.
"Do you want to learn?" Talna asked.
"Yes, actually," the kobold said.
"Would you let me teach you?" Talna asked.
"I just have questions, like what's with this tower, and what happened to it?"
"This was a man's home, and evil creatures attacked it."
"Why?" the kobold asked, a blank expression on its face.
"He had power that could defeat them, and they did not like that," Talna explained.
"Great. What's power?"
"Strength," Talna said, making a gesture and summoning dancing lights in her hand.
"How did you do that?" the kobold asked, afraid.
"It's magic," Talna said. "My magic derives from my worship of a god."
"You said a lot of words I do not know," the kobold said nervously. "So you get power and it makes lights?"
"Magic can do many things. Some take longer to learn than others. They can hurt or they can help," Talna said.
"So what is happening with the rat in the chair?" the kobold asked.
"He did something that was unwise," Talna said. "And he is most likely facing punishment for it."
"Will he die?"
"I don't think so. He might get hurt, but I don't think he'll die because the warlock needs information from him."
The kobold turned to Sadun. "Will he die?" It asked again.
"I cannot promise anything," Sadun said. "I do not know that warlock yet. I do know the rat relatively well after a few days, and given the opportunity the rat will do unfortunate things."
"So you're saying magic can be bad, and what's going on in there is bad, and it might be fine?" the kobold said.
"We won't let things go too far," Talna said.
"Are you sure of that?"
"This is Sadun," Talna said, "she is one of the most good hearted people I've ever known. She will not let anyone come to harm."
"Is that true?" the kobold asked, turning to Sadun.
"If it is within my power to prevent," Sadun said.
"So they are going to be fine and not die," the kobold said.
"I will do my best, but I would have to be there for it," Sadun admitted.
"Why aren't you?" the kobold demanded.
"Because I am out here with you at the moment," Sadun said. "I cannot be in two places at once, and I do not wish to leave you alone when you are yet scared."
"Ok," the kobold said, reaching out to one of the dancing lights. The light was sucked into the kobold's finger. "Ah, I see. Is that normal?"
"No, but we can figure it out if you come with me," Talna said. She turned to Sadun. "Sadun, I've been meaning to talk to you about this. I'm leaving."
"What do you plan to do?" Sadun asked.
"Travel for a bit, heal people, maybe settle down. Gather information on the beholders if I can and send it back to you," Talna said. She turned to the kobold. "And if you come with me..." the kobold was gone. Talna and Sadun turned as one to the tower, in time to see the kobold disappear inside. "Oh gods, we'll have to finish this later," Talna said.
"Yes, we'll talk later," said Sadun, already running for the door.
-------------------
"Hello," the kobold said, entering the room. "Why are you tied to that chair?"
"Let me out and I'll tell you," Pip said, having regained consciousness shortly before. Tella stood nearby, watching carefully.
"Excuse me Tella," Talna said, entering the room. "Could you, as infuriating as this rat is, not kill him?"
"I got what I wanted, so I was just going to leave him outside, tied to the chair, so he doesn't steal this," Tella said, holding up Sorzen's stone.
"That's mine!" Pip shouted. "You don't have the power to bring him back! I do!"
"What is that?" the kobold asked.
"This is my friend, he is stuck in there," Tella said.
"Ok, I think I need to stay here and find out what is going on," the kobold said. "I just need a place to lay down."
"There's a bed on the third floor," Talna said.
"How many steps is that?"
"Go up the stairs and you will pass this many levels," Talna said, holding up three fingers. "Each time you pass a floor bring down one finger until no more fingers remain."
"Ok," the kobold says slowly. It walked up to the second floor, and put down one finger, leaving two remaining
"Wait!" Talna cried, realizing her mistake. "Go back down one!"
The kobold returned. "I think I'll just stay here," it said.
"Ok. Greg, bring a bed," Talna called out.
As soon as the skeletal butler appeared, the kobold let out a scream of horror. A loud explosion sounded, and Greg's bones rattled against the walls. The kobold passed out.
"That's not good?" Tella said.
"It's a mix of a gnome, a kobold and an old god. The soul is true neutral. Perhaps you should take it under your wing?" Talna suggested to the warlock.
"I see," Tella said slowly. "So what we need to do is," she picked up Pip in the chair and hurled him out the front door, closing it behind him. "And I'm just going to go to sleep now."
"Would you take this kobold under your charge?" Talna asked.
"I suppose, if it's willing," Tella said, sounding reluctant. "I still need to find out how much has changed around here and all that. Are the two cities still good?"
"How may cities?" Sadun asked.
"Two. You know, the one north and the one south."
"I think there may be more now," Talna said.
"We've been to one east of here, the City of Rebellion," Sadun said.
"That city doesn't exist," Tella said. "Or it shouldn't."
"A king that rules there is a jerk," Talna said.
"I thought he was nice," Sadun said.
"He gave us cursed items!" Talna said.
"Great, I need to find out what connections I still have, if any," Tella said. She went upstairs without another word and collapsed into a heap on the floor.
"Great," Talna said. She turned back to Sadun. "So I'm leaving. I'm sure you've felt it, with the group. Things are going poorly to say the least."
"It has been chaotic," Sadun admitted.
"I don't like the turn we've taken," Talna continued. "The things that we have done recently, especially in this new world, I don't like it. It seemed somehow easier in Barovia."
"That is fair," Sadun said. "I can't argue with you. We should be killing beholders, freeing this world and fulfilling our destinies. Instead we are messing with ancient gods and souls in stones. I did not think this is how it would go."
"Gnomes just don't listen do they?" Talna said. "Do you think it runs in the family or is it gnomes?"
"I have not met many gnomes," Sadun said.
"Anyway, here are the party funds, and some food to help you on your way," Talna said, handing Sadun a pouch full of coins and a sack of owl bear jerky. "And you should have this shield. Use it to keep someone safe."
"I feel like that may be all I can do," Sadun said, sadly. "But I cannot leave these people. I feel I have a duty to see this through. I wish you luck."
"I will send you magical communications if I find anything that can help you. I'm taking Biscuit too, I'm tired of the jokes at my horse's expense from the others." Talna gives Sadun a hug. "I'll try to contact Vivi as well while I'm gone," she said. "And I hope we can meet again."
"I hope so too," Sadun said, returning the hug. "It has been good to know you.
"Tell Balazar he's an asshole," Talna said, as she walked out the door, "but I will miss him nonetheless."
Outside the door, Talna saw Pip free himself from his chains and stand triumphantly. "I'm free!" the ratfolk said. "What are you looking at drow?"
Talna ignored Pip, mounted Biscuit, and rode away into the night.
TO BE CONTINUED
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