Hello, Everyone!
Welcome to a new chapter of our story. Last time, we had a sweet Interlude with Mary and Gillean, but before that, our heroes had just teleported in Erathos via Agatha’s magical Plane-shfting dagger.
Problem is, Mundus’ teleportation was not a precise thing, and the group popped in the Material Plane high above the ground and began falling to their death!
The air rushed around Mary’s ears. Her body twirled uncontrollably, falling down with a breakneck speed. Desperate, she flapped her hands and managed to grab a hold on to someone’s shirt. It was Agatha. They dove to Bruno who was just now grabbing Aurum. The world stopped twirling as the four of them formed a neat falling square, and, through the whooshing air around her ears, Mary was able to hear Aurum’s voice.
“... Featherfall!” he yelled out. “... last possible moment… Hold on!”
The air continued to whoosh past them, but now that Mary had the support of the others, she was more stable and was able to look below. She saw familiar mountains in the distance, and an even more familiar city built on top of a hill.
They were close to home!
Right below them, the dark waters of lake Dunlain was coming closer and closer with every moment. Aurum’s spell caught them just a few feet before they hit the water. After the initial splash, Bruno cast his Waterwalk and the four of them shot to the surface like corks from a bottle of wine. They coughed, wheezed and shivered as the cold air bit them through their drenched clothes. Agatha looked particularly miserable, fur dangling around her face and ears flattened back.
Mary waved her wand and dried everyone up, then looked around. They were standing on the lake’s smooth surface, with water spreading in all directions. All the tales she'd heard as a child--about monsters in the depths, waiting to snatch you and eat you--flooded her memory. She was so happy that they didn't have to find out first-hand if they were true!
"Where the heck are we?" Bruno said.
"I saw Frinkeltong while we were falling," Mary said and gestured in the general direction she thought she saw the blinking lights.
"And there's a village over there," Aurum pointed in turn. "It’s a lot closer, I think. Easier to get to."
They headed that way and soon, Mary realised that she knew where they were.
Pritley.
A few guards intercepted them at the village entrance, shining lanterns at their faces. But the moment they recognized Mary, Bruno and Aurum, they lowered their weapons and welcomed them with respect.
"How come you guys are so popular here?" Agatha said.
"These brave heroes helped us a few weeks ago," a guard answered before any of them could explain. "Saved us from a great threat!"
"Yeah, we beat up some Undead," Aurum said casually.
"Protected our livelihood, too!" the man added. “Our crops were about to burn up, and the three of them took care of the fire!”
Yeah, Mary thought. And they had let an innocent woman perish. They'd been doing a lot of that lately. She thought about the people Nurvureem had killed in Pamagos, first by destroying ‘The Leaky Sink', and then after her ambush in the streets.
They couldn't let her do that any longer!
"Something big has been going on in the West," a guard murmured, taking her out of her thoughts. “Do you know what it might be?”
It was a long time after sunset, but there was still yellow light on the horizon. Far, far away, so far that it must have been something really big, indeed.
Like Myth Adofhaer.
"We have nothing to do with that!" Agatha said quickly, making Mary glare at her.
“Bruno, please check with Dorina,” she asked. “Did they manage to get out in time?”
Bruno concentrated on his Sending spell and murmured the message under his breath.
“Dorina says they’re in Raxstrad. They’ve made it just in time but the forest is burning.”
So, Trax'rion had begun his quest for vengeance. Mary opened her mouth to say it out loud but before she had the chance, a Sending spell hit her mind, making her stagger in her tracks.
"Mary?" It was Francesca Findabair's voice. "Your family has arrived in Zerakas tol. They've been accomodated in the 'Shut-Eye' inn."
Mary's heart leaped with joy.
"Thank you!" she replied. And since this was a rare occasion, where they could send a report to Lady Findabair without Bruno's help, she decided to use it. "We're on our way towards Pamagos to fight Nurvureem."
"Oh?" Lady Findabair's voice sounded surprised. "You've already dealt with Racox? I'm impressed!"
Oh, right! This was the thing they told her they were going to do when they last spoke.
"I'm afraid we haven't," Mary sent back. "Nurvureem has settled in Pamagos and we feel responsible for the destruction and death she's doing there."
It took a while for Lady Findabair's message to sound in her head again. It was a lot less excited than before.
"Let's hope you're making the right choice."
Mary felt her stomach clench.
"Do you think we're making a mistake?" she asked, desperate to receive guidance and clear advice.
"There is no way of knowing for sure," Lady Findabair replied gravely.
Mary's heart sank. She looked at her friends who had noticed the signs that she was Sending back and forth, and were waiting for her to finish, with different degrees of curiosity and worry on their faces.
"We'll do everything in our power to stop as many enemies threatening the people." she sent to Lady Findabair, and that seemed to end their conversation.
Mary looked at her friends.
"We might be making a mistake," she said hesitantly.
Woo-hoo! Our heroes are alive and well! We didn’t think they were going to perish from a simple fall but it was fun to see how they’ll manage to get out of this one :)
Also, do you think they’re making a mistake by choosing to fight Nurvureem instead of Racox?
See you next time when we'll find out what is, ultimately, their final choice.
Take care and be well!
Episodes of Mary Windfiddle's story come out every Monday and Thursday.
(Also, here's a link to the Chapter Guide, the Glossaries (Part 1 and Part 2)
and the Map for the series. You're welcome!)
An important disclaimer: Mary Windfiddle's story is my notes from a D&D game turned into a narrative. All the worldbuilding and NPC encounters belong to our DM, and all the actions of the other main characters (Aurum, Bruno and Agatha) belong to my co-players. My contribution to the story is only everything Mary-related (actions, reactions, inner thoughts), as well as the writing itself.
