Hello, Everyone!
The school year has just begun. As some of you might know, I’m a teacher and so I’m going to be quite busy but that doesn’t mean that Mary’s adventures aren’t going to come out as planned. The only downside is that I might not be able to draw all the illustrations on time, so you might get a few placeholder drawings in the meanwhile.
Anyway. Last time, Mary and her friends finally prepared for the road and got on the next part of their adventure. Or at least went on to have some fun before their next adventure.
In D&D terms that’s called ‘down time’. And it’s fun!
The first stop on their way towards Frinkeltong was the fortress Orswald, which Mary and her companions now apparently owned. It was high in the mountain, just one day north of Belfast, overlooking the forests of Myth Adofhaer, the entire valley and many miles to the east.
The structure was perched up on a rock platform high above the ground. Leading to it, there were some narrow stairs cut out in the stone, and a hoist which could climb up and down using a series of pulleys. From underneath, the fortress looked quite impenetrable.
They met about fifteen people in Orswald, and not just dwarves as Mary had expected. There were a lot of humans, a half-elf and even two half-orcs who were helping with some repairs on the building. No gnomes, though. Mary always looked for gnomes.
Everyone greeted them with respect and took them around to let them get to know the place.
On the first floor there was a big hall, corridors leading to random rooms, a kitchen and a basement. On the second floor though, in one of the bedrooms currently in reconstruction, they found something interesting. A teleportation circle was drawn on the floor, just like the ones Mary had seen in Sylvanas’ abode and also drawn by the mysterious figure which took the Artefact from Agrax. These circles seemed important, so she took care to write down all the numbers and letters in her notebook. She also made a note to do the same with the one in Sylvanas’ laboratory.
That was actually the next stop on their journey. Mary and Aurum brought Bruno all the way to the cave and showed him around Sylvanas’ laboratory and the abode. Finally, the dwarf was able to see what they’d been talking about ever since Mary’s trial!
The orange tree Mary had planted on Sylvanas' grave was about eight inches tall already. The Muconids said they were taking care of it, watering it from the healing spring and making sure it was safe. Mary thanked them and wished them ‘Goodbye’ which they happily repeated again and again.
When they went into the abode behind the locked metal door, Mary made sure to ask the Unseen Servant to cook the dish she'd gotten from Konstanz Airhammer back in Belfast. Bruno deserved something nice after all those times he took care of them in the tunnels! And also, this way maybe he'd forget about that one time they’d had cake without him...
There was a melody coming from the music room and Mary realized that Aurum was playing the piano again. She smiled and then, just like last time, went to look through the window with the purple sky. She even plucked up her courage and opened it to stand on the platform on the other side. The air there was thick and sticky, like breathing honey, and she felt kinda heavier. When she looked around she saw that the whole window was just hanging in the purple sky, like it was pasted there where it didn’t belong.
This time they didn’t spend a lot of time in the abode. It seemed that either it didn’t want to keep them there or they had gotten used to its wonders. So, soon, they went on their way.
They passed through Meraket and visited ‘The Entrance to the Underworld’. The tavern was shining with a new coat of paint and there was even an additional wing under construction. It seemed that Rupert’s business was thriving.
“Yeah,” the halfling said when they went to see him, “We received your message. We sent a wizard to inspect the tunnel and he confirmed that it was connected to the Underdark. But that just made the whole thing more attractive to adventurers from near and far. I didn’t even have to raise the prices (well, not too much anyway), they flock here like crazy! Captain Reese keeps wanting to fill my hole up but I won’t give in,” he concluded proudly.
The hole in the tavern floor was surrounded by a couple of guards and was barred from unauthorized entry. A sign hung above it:
Mary shook her head. She couldn’t believe that the halfling’s endeavour was such a success – she found it so unreasonable!
But there was nothing more to be done and so they went on.
Oh, Rupert! You idiot!
I hope that halfling’s opportunistic attitude isn’t going to ruin Meraket! Also, every time I think about him, I can’t not remember the awesome comic my friend Y. made about him! ❤️ Have you seen it? It’s a masterpiece! Go give it your love, Y. deserves it! ❤️
See you next time when we’ll finally reach Frinkeltong and meet Mary’s family!
Until then, take care and be well!
(Also, here's a link to the Chapter Guide and the Glossary for the series. You're welcome!)