Upon arriving at The Tree Fortress, Ezrin is rather wide-eyed, but takes it in stride and unrolls his bedroll in a spot on the second floor.
After things settle down and a bit and the Aegirian ranger and… apprentice are busy, Ezrin approaches Alexis.
“I have so many questions Colleague… perhaps though, I should start here… what is this place?”
The Sutheroni mage gestures expansively at the massive trees around them.
36 thoughts on “So Many Questions…”
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“This place?” Alexis looks at the grandeur around them “This was created by Gus, but good luck getting a straight answer from him about it.”
“In my thinking, he has brought the heart of Aegeir to this place. To the woods near the fort, which is where Gus would see the heart of Aegeir. Unlike our Aegeirian craftsman, who feels the heart is in places like Aegeir City.”
“This place was created some nights ago in some sort of working with the very real presence of his god. He was refreshed in the process; the un-natural aging of the endless hunger was stripped from him.”
Ezrin’s eyes grow wider.
“Questions beget more questions…”
Ezrin shakes his head as if to clear it.
“Endless hunger and un-natural aging?”
Alexis and Ezrin talk of the magic domains of the endless hunger, of the sunken city, of Telosh’s connection with a ghost girl connected to Ty-lin who Alexis thinks might have been dragged to the undead city when Telosh condemned her… or might have somehow been returned to her rock with Yog… or might somehow be related to the owl.
“Ah yes, Yog. The Orc shaman who occupies the fortress on the hill. The fortress created by Barra’s forces while he wielded the sword-chaotic and looked for the stolen eyes of Maglubiyet. Yog is a worshiper of some power, to whatever evil god he’s dedicated to. He had large cat as some sort of companion.”
Alexis tells the tale of the confrontation with Yog. Of the wins, and the losses.
“Where did you meet this Westlander, Telosh? and what happened to Lucius, the… servant you left Sutheron with? Or, Inkham, the Westlander that helped you at the Twins? The Collegium… didn’t mention a ‘Telosh.’”
Ezrin is not mentioning something. His pauses betray his reluctance to share it.
Alexis gives Ezrin the briefest of scrutinizing looks and then asks “What did the Collegium tell you about Lucius or Inkham? And you’re *sure* they never mentioned a ‘Telosh’?”
Ezrin shrugs.
“I should be clear that I am her of my own volition and interest, not here on assignment, and I did not receive a briefing before setting out. My coming to join you is Known to the Collegium though…”
“In any case, your accomplishments generated a fair amount of talk in the Collegium, and I do not recall mention of a Telosh in the… gossip.”
Ezrin sighs gentle and takes a deep breath.
“I am also a former… no, that’s no quite right, rather an inactive member of… another guild… that I worked with before joining the Collegium. ‘Lucius’ was a member of that guild and known to have left Sutheron in the employ of a recently initiated Collegium member. I did not dig deeply with my contacts there before leaving Sutheron though.”
Alexis looks intrigued and happy with how the conversation has progressed.
“And you were sent after ‘Lucius’? You sent yourself? For what it’s worth, I’m only going to refer to ‘Lucius’ or ‘Inkham’ by his real name: Telosh. Unless he lied to us the whole time.” Alexis gives a shrug of un-concern.
Ezrin’s brow furrows momentarily, and then smiles with the delight of a child who has completed a puzzle.
“Ah, that makes… sense.”
He pauses for a moment.
“I was not sent after ‘Lucius,’ from what I understand he departed Sutheron in good standing…”
“I “sent myself,” as I said to join you in your search for great relics. Your deeds, your entry into the Collegium, your willingness to stand against the Dark Hand… they are inspiring. Although, your methods, are perhaps… a bit unorthodox?”
“You have had dealings with dwarves, gnolls, gnomes, and kobolds… The Sword Chaotic is in a location known to you, but you have chosen not to take it… You seek a ‘twice broken’ sword that you suspect is in the Copper Hills Fort, and killing this giant is… your path to greater privileges in the Fort? That you hope to use to find the sword?”
“What am I missing? What else should I know in order to best help in your efforts?”
“Please keep who we deal with close to your chest. It’s very possible that Red has greatly damaged our plan to ingratiate ourselves with the fort. I fear he might have signed us up for some Aegierian “questioning”. My hope is that if we come back with the head of the giant that his treasonous talk will be somewhat forgotten. Please don’t let him speak to any Aegierians if you can help it. He’s miserable with the task. It’s a mystery how he’s gotten this far in life. People skills are important.”
“As for the current mission, the more I learn, the more hopeful I am that the giant (whose name I wish I knew) has many treasures in his cave. He’s been traveling around this area for 100s of years, according to someone who should know. Perhaps the giant head plus some treasure will help us make our way. Or perhaps there is an old secret tunnel that connects the giant’s cave to the old mines under the current fort. I am very curious to see what is in that hillside, and under it.”
Alexis tells Ezrin a little about the path of the peacemakers as he knows it: there are various forces (some inside the 3 human realms, and some outside it) opposed to the dark hand and their slavery. We were approached to ally with this group and walk the “path of the peacemakers”. A great task on this “path of the peacemakers” is the breaking of the twice-broken sword, which appears to be saving, and enslaving, a god; the weeping god. Alexis will detour to tales of the Scar Orcs that work with the Dark Hand, which leads to his discovery that “the made” are powered by feasting on an ancient wound of a dead god, which is poisoned daily with blood. Alexis things the ‘dead god’ and the ‘weeping god’ are one-and-the-same and that dealing with the twice-broken sword will remove the Scar Orcs from the arsenal of the Dark Hand.
“And this is why we must get this sword! And break it again! To take away the blood magic being used to power these un-natural tools of the Dark Hand!”
“Yes, I’ve noticed that Ethelred is very… open with his words.”
“Exciting! Ancient treasure in the giant’s cave!”
“Do you have any idea who this dead god could be? I can only think of one dead god, and their mother’s Tears are legendary… but I know little about the gods other than it is good to donate early on their holy days and tithe a generous percentage of gains made on those days…”
Ezrin pauses, as if realizing he has let something slip, shakes his head, and follows up, “It seems like this weeping god and dead god are same god, though?”
Alexis seems to not have noticed any sort of slip and proceeds smoothly
“Yes. The working hypothesis is that they are the same.”
Alexis proceeds to tell Ezrin about the necklaces that “the Made” wear. How they appear to be scrying devices, made, presumably, by Bandesingh. Alexis goes into what little he observed when he analysed the necklaces, including the broken one.
Esrin’s face brightens.
“Hmm… fascinating, a scry-atic divination? released by the death of the… wearer? … bonded?”
He pauses thoughtfully,
“Do you still have any pieces of it?”
“Oh, do you have any wine?”
Alexis is a little taken off-guard by the last question.
“Um… no. No… um… wine.” Alexis looks around briefly to make sure.
“Getting some from Tul would have been a nice touch of civilization. Perhaps when we go back.”
“And no. No pieces of any of the amulets. And I’m uncertain if their magics are activated by the death of the Made. There is magic that is definitely activated when the amulets are crushed. We all felt seen, and in an unsettling way.”
“Ah, yes Tul. Wine would be useful…
“We should rest, do you think Gus would have any issues with me studying this… working?”
“Good luck getting him to acknowledge his working.” Alexis rolls his eyes slightly with a shrug. Clearly conveying that studying the working should be fine.
Ezrin nods,
“Thank you. I’ve asked you so many questions, do you have any questions for me?”
“Now that you mention it, sure.”
“Which guild did Telosh belong to in Sutheron? There are so many, and location specific, it would be good to know. It would also be nice to not be caught off guard if there are some unclaimed debts that we might be hearing about.”
Ezrin looks at Alexis thoughtfully, appraisingly. A few silent breaths pass between them.
Ezrin nods.
“Exactly the type of guild you would expect someone like Telosh to have belonged to.”
He takes a deep breath.
“Inkham was Known in Brookside, and I heard nothing of any debts..”
Alexis seems satisfied with that answer.
“And did you learn anything about the hammer and the crown since it was donated?”
“I have not studied those items. Dwarven? From the Twins. Of course…
“I heard that you had brought ancient artifacts to the Collegium but there seemed to be nothing but speculation about exactly what. The fact the you returned Mattias Minge’s belt to his family, well… that suggested to some folks the Lost Citadel… but again, all speculation.”
“What are your thoughts?”
Ezrin looks at Alexis carefully.
“You have been a very successful treasure hunter. There have been rumored of dwarven activity in Mount Sutheron, on? Under? There have been a lot of jobs related to The Mountain lately…”
“A hammer and a crown. From dwarves ruins… could be useful for negotiating with dwarves.”
Ezrin pauses.
“Im curious about these swords, the magic beasts and wild magic. Nervous about the undead. And a little nervous about the wild magic, the beasts, and the swords too…
“And fuck the Dark Hand.”
“And about the rumors of the Citadel of Pulathi?”
“And do you happen to know any alien scripts?”
“Pulathi… sounds intriguing. I would not be surprised if you had been there, nor would I be surprised it were mere rumor and speculation. I would go there with you given them chance.”
“I do not. Well, that’s not entirely accurate. I know an… explorer’s smattering of phrases and runes and a bit of pattern-matching tools for breaking codes that can be useful in ancient ruins. But I can’t claim to read Dwarven or Elvish.”
“Have you had any interactions with the natives outside the human realms?”
Ezrin smiles, joyfully but also sheepishly.
“This is my first trip out of Sutheron. Well, unless you count Mount Sutheron. I encountered no living dwarves though.”
“But, I have had to deal with some very strange… lizard-like beasts… and ratmen… I have deciphered a little bit of dwarven and elvish if that’s what your asking. Did you know that orcs of old wrote in a crude script based mostly on dwarven runes, but occasionally used some corrupted elvish words?”
“I had a passing knowledge of such things. Since leaving Sutheron I’ve had to become better with scripts and languages.”
“But let’s go back a moment. You skipped over a lot concerning non-humans. Did you see dead dwarves? ‘ratmen’? Were the ‘lizard-like beasts’ humanoid? Do they talk?”
“True corpses, yes, and a few un-dead shuffling skeletons. Voiceless and unintelligent, but able to swing an axe. Swords and bows were less effective that clubs and maces… A stronger, more malevolent spirit too… the rage was palpable, and very alien, we moved away a quickly as possible. And reported it to the Hoodites, of course.”
“Rat-men, half-man half-rat, some say they can change into a giant rat or a regular human, but I’ve never seen it. Strong connection to rats, seemed like the rats would following commands. Treated the rats like a kid would treat a puppy sometimes, petting them and chittering at them, sometimes more like a general, but hissing and growling like a rat mostly. But it also would try to speak common like a man, but with a rat’s voice… very strange…”
“Sure, humanoid beast-lizards, stood on two legs mostly, viscous fighters, great swimmers. It seemed like they spoke to each other? Hissed at one another really, but one seemed to be in charge, and perhaps even a shaman?”
“Did you ever see the sign of the Arru-Noroth?”
Alexis draws it in the ground and gets ready to wipe it away when he hears Ezrin’s answer.
Ezrin looks at it…
“It’s been a while… maybe? ‘Great Enemy?’ “Ancient Dragon?’ That doesn’t seem right, I’m just guessing really…”
You said “Ah-ru Nor-oth?”
“But you didn’t see that symbol with the lizard-creatures around (in?) Sutheron?”
Alexis wipes away the symbol as he asks the question.
“Like I said, it’s been a while… that was a rough fight…”
Ezrin looks very solemn for a moment. He shakes his head.
“A few years might as well be a life time. I don’t think so, but I did not get to examine their bodies up close, or any of their loot. I don’t think we were anywhere near their lair. But… the short version is we retreated. Those of us that survived did so by retreating…”
“I think they were looking for something, maybe the same thing we were? Old gold has a long call…”
“Oh, we were in Sutheron, or under? Sutheron? And I don’t think I recall that rune from that… adventure. Other ruins… I think? Old Sutheron is a big place…”
“It’s been a while. You should probably know that I’m not much of a swimmer.”
Alexis looks intrigued “What were you looking for?”
“Treasure? I don’t know. It was a long time ago and I was on A Job. Locks and traps to put it plainly, I’m a fair sneak, and a decent lookout. I can climb alright, and I’ve got the gear. But locks and traps were my… specialization.”
“I think the Dwarven job got me into the Collegium, but I’m not certain. It could’ve been a couple other jobs, but Dwarves love locks and traps…”
“A lifetime ago though. Eight winters? I think? Maybe this is the eighth winter?”
Ezrin looks a little confused and very tired.
“The ‘Dwarven job’?” Alexis sits down to enjoy the upcoming story.
Ezrin looks at Alexis sleepily and sighs.
“Very well.” The Sutheroni Mage shifts around a bit, sips from his waterskin and takes a deep breath.
“It was eight or nine years ago, probably a year or so before I received The Invitation. I was apprenticed to a locksmith. My parents were both Known. I’d done some good work of my own though, stepped up from the kiddie stuff. Some second-story work and some tunnel work. I was Known, and young.”
“So a Friend came to talk to me, he and some other Friends had been talking with Someone about some ruins on Mount Sutheron, out past The Horsetrader’s estates…”
The mage pauses and looks around.
“Excuse me, I must relive my bladder,
Where should I go?”
…
The keen of ear hear a bit of an invocation, and the sounds of urination.
The mage returns and begins his tale.