Fan Fiction: Master Says (Chapter 6A)

Xeang

Active member
Chapter 6: Side Salad and Soup

In case you missed the beginning of adventure -- Chapter 1: https://forums.ddo.com/index.php?threads/fan-fiction-master-says-chapters-1-2.119/


I was now on the “ins” list of Korthos Island. Even Sigmund and his wife Ingrid treated me like family. Well not completely. They still made me pay for my room and board. But they were welcoming and often gave me small jobs to do.

Kaja Bauerdatter was indeed their young daughter. They had another who worked tables in the inn, Merla Bauerdatter. She sent me fetching for wine and run errands around town – which was quite a delight when you are the hero of the village. She paid me with a spate of onions and other veggies when her dad wasn’t looking.

There was a respite in the fighting. The Sahuagin had retreated from this huge black eye. But we knew they were mending and plotting more. And the dragon continued to spray the island with its cold shattering teeth. Icicles hung in bunches where bananas should be. Korthos needed someone with more than just guts. They needed a dragon slayer.

I used the time to get to know the villagers of Korthos better. Kaja and Merla would take breaks at my table – yes I had my own table including a small wood sign edged on the side that said “Xeang Eats Here!” Apparently it was a popular table when I was not around. I think they charged an extra 10% on meals for anyone at this table … including me. The daughters of Sigmund would gossip about many patrons, as they heard many stories from loudmouths with a beer or three in their belly as they waited tables.

Many times the conversation turned to Jacoby Drexelhand the betrayer. Villagers would in hindsight remark how they knew all along he was a crotchety betrayer and how they had never liked him. They beamed how they told Jacoby in the past ‘where to go,’ or brushed him off with a rebuff, or even had physical spats with him. Dax Boon, the general vendor in the open market, bragged he pushed him over a wheel barrow once in a fight about prices. And that Jacoby cried out, “Booooooon!” as he fell. He also remarked that anyone who says to him ‘Booooon!’ will get a discount on goods for the next week. And Matias Milkweed bragged that she vomited on the crypt keeper drenching him with the soup and salad special from the Wavecrest in response to his invitation to join the cult. Whether these tales were true no one could say. Its easy to be find yourself in memory a hero in when the villain is already dead.

Sometimes they asked my opinion regarding the affairs of other villagers of which they gossiped: What should be done about Bertram Sharpwood who was drinking too much (apparently my errand delivering the Old Sully Grog for him sent him on a drinking spiral down)? Who was stealing food from the tables of others when they weren’t looking? It turned out to be Old Willy Oaksworn. But Merla and Kaja liked the old butterbean too much to turn him in and felt sorry for the henpecked codger considering his wife berated him daily. I think they also had bets whether he would get caught each night by their Pa, Sigumund.

Who was sick and or injured were frequent conversations they listened in on. Poor Mayor Storr had apparently lost a lot of weight in fear and dread of the Sahuagin (he was still quite plump however). They told me the good news that Baldar the Bold. who had helped the militia retrieve the Cannith Crystal keeping their village from freezing over completely – but at the cost of an injury to his thigh including leg rot – was on the mend. He could now limp around town on his own merit; however, he was enjoying having the kids of the village push him around in a turnip cart so much that he seldom walked.

A lot of their gossip regarded ‘who was seeing who.’ They chastised to each the pairs of love birds who sought romance in the midst of the Korthos crisis, but seemed to avoid the hidden romance Kaja was pursuing with Lars Heyton (the last of the Heytons). Kaja’s face glowed whenever Heyton’s name came up in any tables conversations. And she would interrupt any maleficent talk that he was dead or had joined the cultists. She would defend such vehemence that he was alive, often slamming down the plates of food or ignoring servicing that table the rest of the evening. Her heart told her that he was alive and fighting for Korthos! Merla winked at me. We both knew Kaja and Heyton were having a May – December romance.

I usually tried to avoid all such gossip and seldom responded except with a wane smile and a head nod of listening. Master had warned me once that, “Answering gossip is like the choice between eating straw or bricks.” Master’s saying was confusing – it is a no-win situation though I reasoned. You have a choice: either offend the gossiper by not agreeing or participating in the gossip – tasteless like a dry mouth full of straw --or partake in their gossip and knock down the person another peg in private … but when the ‘gossipee’ finds out what you said, you’ll likely get your teeth knocked out in one way or another. Might as well have eaten a brick.

Merla and Kaja would wrinkle their eyes in confusion and then interpret my silence as a support for their side of the matter – at the same time. And on and on the stories, gossips and quarrelling and sometimes laughter went on. But the lurking shadow of the cultist threat haunted even the best times. And walking out the door of the inn after hiding in its warmth the Wavecrest’s fireplace, stove and happy company was greeted by a flattening breeze of the teeth chattering cold and the reminder that the Dragon was soaring somewhere above their abode.

During the reprieve of these few days I often spent the daylight hours going about the wilderness, exploring a little further each time. I was learning the lay of the land. Often as not I would run across roving bands of cultists. In this way I thinned their ranks.

I also met up with my monk friend, Valenie, my brother from another Monastery, “Golden Fist.” We trained again in our time off. I focused on the speed of the Leopard so I could burst into an even faster fury of devastating blows. Following the Path of Light I mastered making my fists strike with good chi which returned healing energies to me even while blasting those not meant to be of this world. I could occasionally share this light healing ki on others. This was different than my innate ability to heal myself or others. I wondered why other monks did not seem to share this power.

In return for Valenie’s healing skills, I taught him close range fighting abilities form my system – the ‘Shadow’ techniques where one is in constant touch of the opponent so one can read and manipulate their energy. We continued to grow as brothers.

But time grew heavy on us all. Each day that past, we knew, was a step closer to more strife, more war. Reducing wandering Devourers was good, but not good enough. I was learning their strongholds and soon I needed go in them and put an end to whatever mischievous evil they were about.

Bauerson was feeling the same pressure. After some days he said to me, “Your next step is to push on into the wilderness of Korthos Island. I will have my son Askel let you past the barricade and out the main village gate. But before you go, certain issues have come to my attention which you ought to know.”

“Issues? What kind of issues,” I asked.

“Firstly,” he said, “there’s the kidnapping of the mayor’s daughter. I don’t think the Sahuagin have taken her to the Misery’s Peak yet, which means there is still a chance to saver her. Doing so would be a great boost to the morale of the people here. Mayor Viggie Storr is in the village square, wailing and lamenting. See what you can do for him.”

Any other issues?” I asked.

“There are. Someone named Wilm down at the docks reported another kidnapping. Also it turns out my daughter Kaja isn’t the only one who thinks Lars Heyton is alive – Ursa at the barricade actually thinks she saw him,” he informed me.

“Got it, be well Sigmund,” I curtly said.

The most pressing issues were the two kidnappings. My feet swiftly carried me out the door to the village square where there was a frantic fat man holding his head and looking to and fro for help. He saw me and latched on to me telling me he was Mayor Viggie Storr.

“Oh, it’s you…I beseech you, hero!” he exclaimed with some relief. “Something terrible has happened…my daughter Arissa has been kidnapped! We heard her scream in the night, but by the time we got to her room…she was gone.”

“Is there anything that can be done?” I wondered as to how we could find where they took her.

“I think she’s being held with other prisoners at the old Cannith Aqueduct – they’re being taken there one-by-one for indoctrination,” He spoke breathlessly. “The Cannith Aqueduct is on a rocky cliff at the Eastern-most tip of Korthos Island. To get there, someone would need to cross all the island’s wilderness. Then, that person would need to find a path to climb up, and gain entrance to the Aqueduct at the top of the cliff.” I told him I had already visited the site of such a place in my explorations. “Excellent!” he said. “It’s our only chance to rescue the prisoners. I beg you, hero – bring my little ‘Rissa back to me!”

“Yes,” I confirmed, “the time to strike is now. I will rescue your daughter and the others.”

I strode firmly down the path and to gate. I spied Askel Bauerson again and nodded. “Ho friend. How are you?” he asked. I informed him of the dire circumstances of the mayor’s daughter and others and he quickly unlocked the gate for me.

I made my way back to the entrance at the top of the cliff that led down into the aqueduct, roving cultist guards and Sahuagin notwithstanding.

I stepped in to find the man-made tunnels cold and damp. Many crevices led to small pools and the plinking of water falling onto the ancient paved stone blocks. Old rotting barrels filled with molds and soupy cloth and other supplies were linked by a vast network of cobwebs. The place – once a magnificent edifice of construction and sacrifice – now looked unattended for vast years.

As I approached my footsteps awakened a dozen brown spiders that poured out of the curtains of cobwebs. I had seen these before in the storehouse in Korthos. These were natural predators to the Island of Korthos and I warmed myself up by dismissing them with by fists and feet to Spider Heaven.

The resilient spider webs that blocked my path fell from my blows but laced my hands and arms and legs with their sticky goo. I came upon a small river pathway funneling the water down through the aqueduct. Small rooms with bars that once protected supplies for the works from the indigenous spiders and rats now served as cells to Korthosians.

The prisoners looked gaunt and worn, and peered hopefully through the bars at me. I crossed a small bridge to the shelf on the other side where a large lever was built into the side of the wall. Two cultist guards paced near it monitoring the slaves. They were surprised to see me and even more surprised by the look on their faces as I sprung on them lightning-speed leopard-fast.

I turned the lever which raised one bridge but lowered another back to another lever on the first side of the river tunnel. That lever raised the bar to a room with a third lever. And that one released the two other caged rooms freeing the prisoners. I helped the half dozen to their feet and prepared to usher them to front entrance.

They were dazed from starvation and perhaps torture. “Can…can I go back to my family now?” one asked. “Thank the Host!” another exclaimed. “The cultists might as well kill me. I’ll never convert,” said still another in defiance as she limped toward the front gate.

I asked them their names as they made their way out to safety. Kara Cutter, Zara Fjord, Niholai the Orphan, Prissine Weir, and Petti Brunhelf. They thanked me profusely. I would hope to meet them well again back in the village since I cleared the cultists along the pathway here. I trusted they would be make it without incident. In either case I had to search out others whom I knew were not safe including Arissa the mayor’s daughter.

After helping them to the front I returned to the river gates. I could see below through the water which had gathered more gates and levers below. The current did not appear strong and I went into the water incase these levers would release more prisoner gates further ahead. But instead they seemed to manipulate only submerged gates no longer used because of the elevation of the water.

I came to a ladder leading down which I followed. The water was waist deep in places. As I troughed through suddenly a trap was sprung of four Sahuagin popping out of the shallow waters and converging on me from all sides. I would now test the explosiveness of leopard and summoned my ki. The haste explosion helped me strike almost twice as fast with my hands and feet. My body blurred in motion as I struck my opponents with blinding speed. They were all sinking back into their watery traps never to surprise anyone again.

However, such a ki release was exhausting. I could only stay in such a timber of rhythm for half a minute before I returned to normal speed. I caught my breath and continued.

I stayed below following this duct and it came to another ladder. Above me were ledges and stone cross beams. At one point it looked about like a shadowed mouth of an alcove. I climbed back up the first ladder and used my dexterity to walk the ledge edge. Occasionally I jumped from one beam to the next until I got to the mouth opening. Sure enough it was an alcove that had an inviting chest of trophies in it. This looked like the lair of some river creature that had made this haunt its home.

But I saw no beast.

I entered the alcove. Nothing. I took two more steps toward the chest. Nothing. But on my third step suddenly a terrible boney skeletal mage rose mystically off of the floor. I used my fists of light to send this abomination back to the nether land it belonged. As a Shintao monk I was trained to use my ki to return “unnatural” creatures back to their natural habitat – death.

The chest held a few coins and gems to which would satisfy my room and meals for the next week.

I climbed the second ladder and approached a turn in the hall. My acutely trained senses detected danger ahead. Down the turn appeared nothing in the next 20 paces. But as I cautiously stepped down the hallway suddenly spikes sprung up from the floor to impale me. I was fortunate not to be standing on one, but the wily Sahuagin had a second trap go off – a large blade sliced out of the right wall knee-high. My reflexes saved me from being a stump on the floor as I jumped straight up three feet and then moved out of the way before it sliced again.

I turned the corner safely away from the devious devices and pulled a lever to open a stone door before me. I had breached the Devourer’s sanctum. From ahead, I heard a woman’s plaintive cry for help. But before me stood seven Sahuagin with spears.

But my experiences with fighting Sahuagin was making me an expert in combat with them. They all had similar training and I could predict many of their motions. Yet seven would be the most I faced at once.

Again I drew deep to use my ki. I had enough left for one more leopard speed attack to which I launched into these of these guards who were coming at me in a line. I felled one, then another leaving a trail of broken bloody fish meat. I sucked wind at the end; but all seven went down.

Up a pathway were more cells. I turned the lever and three cages opened. Five more prisoners were released. Hagar Fjord, Edgard Frieholm, Gasmir Jern, Evette Myr, and Jolly Dolf. They thanked the Host for answering their prayers and freeing them to go back to their families in Korthos.

Still no Arissa. There was one more passage to go down that I had passed earlier having first spied the cells up the path. I returned to it anxiously.

I went down this aqueduct my ankles splashing in a stream. This was the alert system for a Devourer Caster at the bottom of the path in front of an altar. Crumpled next to him was a young woman. She had been beaten and tormented, but was still alive.

The Devourer follower turned and introduced himself as Drenyl Fallow one of the first villagers to join the cult. He looked at my face and read it. “Don’t worry,” he mused. “I have no final words for you to delay your doom! Guards!” He cried.

But no guards came. “Guards!” he cried again. His look changed at the silent response. I folded my arms and waited through a third cry for help. Then he started casting a spell. I swept out his legs and he fell before the altar disrupting his magic. I wailed on him as he tried to stand. He succeeded. He stood bloody and bruised. I think he wanted to now give me a final speech but his concussion prevented it. I pushed him and he toppled over smashing through the altar with his head.

I reached for the girl to heal her with my ki, but she shrank back. “No, no more!” she cried. “Please don’t hurt me!” I spoke kindly with her. “Be at ease. Your father sent me to get you out of here,” I said. She felt my compassion but she spoke angrily, “My father? They told me his was afraid. They told me he’d abandoned me.” This was mind manipulation the cultists used to convert her. “Not so,” I said. “Your father loves you very much. He begged me to find you.” She smiled. I healed her wounds with the new ki ability Vealenie had taught me and then escorted her back to Korthos.

The mayor had not left his pacing spot. If possible he had worn down the stone plates where he had tread ceaselessly for days. When he saw me and his daughter he ran to her and embraced her with tears streaming down his face. Arissa wept too. I felt joy and also wept watching the reunion.

Finally, the mayor looked up at me and said, “You are truly incredible, Xeang!” Arissa then launched into a ceaseless speech of all the things I did for her. I gave Arissa my deepest regards and said, “You are most welcome. Go home with your Pa and be safe.” With his arm around her Mayor Viggie Storr started walking his daughter back home weary yet happy, but not before turning back to me and saying, “I’ll make sure the whole village hears of your bravery.” ‘Oh joy!’ I thought. ‘When the Bauerson’s hear of this they will start charging 20% more to eat at ‘my’ table.’

Chapter 6B: https://forums.ddo.com/index.php?threads/fan-fiction-master-says-chapter-6b.1083/

Chapters 1 and 2: https://forums.ddo.com/index.php?threads/fan-fiction-master-says-chapters-1-2.119/
Chapter 3: https://forums.ddo.com/index.php?threads/fan-fiction-master-says-chapter-3.459/
Chapter 4: https://forums.ddo.com/index.php?threads/fan-fiction-master-says-chapter-4.460/
Chapter 5A: https://forums.ddo.com/index.php?threads/fan-fiction-master-says-chapter-5a.883/
 
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