Qumeel suddenly felt pretty tired. His wounds had been healed, but he needed a moment to rest. So he sat down against the wall, leaning forward and resting on his sword. His eyes closed and he only half paid attention to what was going on.
“This is a rather warm welcome,” Rodd Rigez joked, grinning at the armed men pointing their weapons at him in a generally menacing fashion. “No one’s tried to put their blade into my throat yet.”
That was the last thing Qumeel heard before sleep took him. He then awoke with a start, and everyone was gone. The sky had gone pale and everything looked washed out. The very air was hazy – less like fog, more like the haze from smoke, though he could not smell any fire. “Douglas,” he said, rising to his feet. “Wildfire?” he asked, less sure.
But no one answered. He looked up on the wall, and none were standing watch, so he climbed back up and continued his vigil. On the other side of the wall stood a number of shadowy figures. They seemed incorporeal, not entirely real. He heard them murmuring, but strained to make out what they were saying, all in vain.
“Who goes there?” he asked. The shadows turned and stared at him for a moment. They had no eyes, but he could definitely tell that they were peering right through him. After a few moments, they stopped staring and returned to their hushed conversations.
They weren’t doing anything other than talking, so he glanced into town. There were more of the shadowy figures peering up at him from windows and open doors throughout the town. He then spotted another figure, one that glowed crimson. He slapped himself, trying to awake from what he now realized was a dream thanks to the strong feeling of déjà vu that ran down his spine.
The shadows all around him chittered a strange laughter and he heard footsteps. The crimson figure was moving towards him. It was not rushing. No, its steps were deliberate and measured. It was coming, but he could sense no malice.
The shadows within the town were now watching the crimson figure, which was now clearly an immense dog – at least as tall as Qumeel himself – with smooth red fur. He wasn’t too sure about dog breeds, but Qumeel thought it looked like a mastiff. As it passed, the doors and shutters were drawn shut, the shadows hiding from its presence.
Qumeel realized what he was seeing. He knelt before the dog. “What wisdom have you for me?” he asked.
The dog’s maw opened in a toothy grin. “You did well,” he answered, though his lips did not exactly move as he spoke. Instead, Qumeel heard the voice reverberating in his chest. “That was one of the more interesting fights I’ve seen. And I’ve seen my fair share of fights.”
“I’m not much of a fighter,” Qumeel admitted humbly.
“Yet you continue returning to this place, where fighting is inevitable.”
“These are good people. Even though they do not follow the same faith that I do, their gods are good and just. If I can help protect them against the chaos at their gates, then it seems like that is a worthy use of my time.”
The dog laughed. “Come, I have something to show you.”
He followed the dog through town, and they came to the town’s spring, much faster than Qumeel thought they should have, had he been walking in the waking world. They also had not needed to stop to rest, though they had stopped for a moment as they passed the golden figure of a woman. She had smiled wistfully at the mastiff and it had nodded in solemn acknowledgment of her presence before she disappeared. Qumeel did not know who she was, but he got the feeling that the two had known each other well.
At the waterfall where the spring reached the surface, the mastiff sat before the water and motioned with his head, bidding Qumeel to look more closely. The cleric did so. What he saw was terrifying. The water ran red with blood. His nostrils were filled with the smell of smoke and he saw the reflection of flames in the water. He turned and saw the town ablaze. He also heard screaming, and the shadows were running through town in terror.
The mastiff stood next to him. “A storm is coming,” the voice said. “Horrible things will happen to Trunau. But this is not the true threat. Save who you can, but you will continue from here to face the greater danger.”
Qumeel nodded respectfully. “I will do what I can.”
The dog tilted his head in acknowledgement. “I will give you what aid I can.”
Qumeel genuflected. In his hand, his blade was now wreathed in flames. He looked up and the dog was gone, replaced by a tall being with wings of crimson flame. His face was grim but determined and his eyes shone with fierce intensity.
Looking up into those eyes caused Qumeel to awaken with a start. “…these goblins,” Jagrin Grath was saying to Douglas. “They had a leader, yes?”
“Ya know, he was riding one of those, uh, big naked rat things goblins like. Then he, uh, told them to attack and ran away.”
Qumeel rose to his feet and Jagrin noticed his movement. “Ah, Qumeel, glad to see you’re okay,” he said. “Perhaps you can give me a better description of what happened.”
Qumeel noticed that Halgra was interrogating the strange man but focused on answering the question. “The goblins rode up, demanding we turn over someone they called ‘The Hated One’ or they would attack. Then the young guardsmen convinced them to walk over to where Wildfire had set up some kind of traps. There was an explosion, then there was a fight.” He smiled wryly. “I missed part of it thanks to an arrow piercing a section of my armor. I believe I owe Wildfire for reviving me.”
Jagrin nodded. “Douglas and Brollerth said that this ‘Hated One’ is a man known as Rodd Rigez?”
“I believe one of the goblins said that during the fight, now that you mention it. But I believe there is something else you need to know.”
“Great,” Jagrin said, annoyed. “Just what I need. More complications.”
“How did you get into town?” Halgra asked Rodd Rigez. “My watchmen have no record of your arrival.”
“I snuck in, of course,” Rodd Rigez answered. “There are no fewer than fourteen holes in your town’s security. I’d be happy to show you what they are and give you advice on how to close them up.” He winked and pointed his fingers at her like a pair of guns. “For a modest fee, of course.”
Halgra sighed. “And why precisely are you here?”
“I like to watch,” Rodd Rigez answered.
“…and that’s why I think it would be wise to bolster the watch,” Qumeel finished. “We should do what we can to prevent this calamity.”
“Qumeel,” Jagrin said, pained. “When you said you had more to tell me, I didn’t expect you to tell me about your weird dreams. Keep them to yourself.”
The cleric could tell that the man was too stressed to hear the truth of the vision Ragathiel had given him. He would find someone else. “Understood,” he said.
Jagrin walked over to Halgra. “Should I lock this man up?”
“Perhaps,” Halgra answered.
“First, a question. Where were you the night before last?”
“Oh, here and there,” Rodd answered noncommittally.
“Where exactly?”
“I believe this place is called Trunau,” Rodd answered as if it was the only proper answer. “I would have thought you knew that.”
Jagrin snapped and grabbed the man by his shirt. He slammed him into the wall of a nearby house. “Do you think you’re funny?! I’m going to throw you into a cell!” he snarled.
“No new holes in my flesh AND a free place to rest? This really is the most welcoming town ever,” Rodd Rigez answered with a grin.
It took Halgra and two others to keep Jagrin from wringing the man’s neck right there.
The male goblin prisoner awoke and bared its teeth at the sight of Rodd Rigez. “HATED ONE!” it shouted as it squirmed, trying to free itself from its bindings. Douglas dropped on it with his elbow, knocking it unconscious once more.
“Heh heh, that’s like, two points,” Wildfire snickered.
Halgra shook her head at the young men and turned back to Rodd Rigez, but before she could speak, she was interrupted by the cheery voice of a young woman. “COACH!” Lucky Days squealed. “You’re here!”
Halgra turned to see the young woman looking at Rodd Rigez. “You know this man?”
“I do, Chief Chief. This is Coach,” Lucky Days said, turning to address Halgra. “He’s helping me train.”
Suddenly, Halgra realized that the strange man was squatting behind the young woman, his hands groping her left thigh. She hadn’t seen him move at all. Lucky Days reacted instinctively, kicking backwards and sending him crashing into the wall with immense force. He collapsed face first onto the ground. “Even stronger than I remember,” Rodd Rigez wheezed.
Before Halgra could react, she was once more interrupted by the sound of boisterous laughter. “There you are!” Valbrand said jovially, jogging over and lifting Rodd Rigez from the ground before giving him a brotherly bear hug. Halgra thought she heard a loud popping sound as the force cracked the man’s back.
“Thanks,” Rodd Rigez said. “That kick dislocated something and that was just what I needed. Though I’m going to be seeing spots for a bit. Hey Kermit.”
“Hello, Rodd,” the grippli replied.
“You also know this man?” Halgra asked the two new arrivals.
“This is Rodd Rigez,” Kermit answered. “He’s what you call a ‘Jack of All Trades’.”
“Rodd of All Trades,” Rodd Rigez corrected him. “I hate the name Jack.”
“I see,” Halgra said. She had not gotten nearly enough sleep to be dealing with this person right now. “Keep an eye on him,” she told Jagrin.
“Better keep two eyes on me,” Rodd Rigez said. “I’m pretty good.”
Halgra shook her head and looked away in disgust. She spotted the guardsman, Omast, pressuring the wizard Jazier into helping clean up all the blood from the battle. For his part, the wizard was complaining, but started helping anyway.
Halgra spotted Gwen coming up behind the others and waved her over. As the girl approached, she heard Rodd Rigez talking to Jagrin. “You know, if you’re that worried about why the goblins are after me, you should probably ask the goblins.” He snickered. “You guys are really bad at this, you know?”
Halgra sighed. “Did you sleep?” she asked Gwen.
“Not as much as I would have liked, but enough,” the girl admitted.
“Good. Today is going to be a long day.”
Gwen took a look at the goblins and the strange man they were interrogating. “I can see that.”
“Is Coach in trouble?” Lucky Days asked Jagrin.
“He’s suspicious, and today is not the day to be suspicious.”
“Oh.” The girl considered it. “Has he been lying?”
“I have told no lies,” Rodd Rigez scoffed. “Look, sir – can I call you sir? You have bags under your eyes. You’re obviously tired. I have a potion for that, and I’d be happy to give it to you for a modest fee.”
Jagrin grabbed the man by the throat and slammed him into the wall. “My son is dead,” he growled. “I am not going to put up with your bullshit today.” Rodd Rigez just snickered at that.
Halgra noticed that the goblin who had been knocked out was awake again. “Quit your squirming,” she commanded it. It paid her no heed.
“I can show you how it’s done, if you’d like,” Kermit offered.
“Sure, why not?” Halgra said.
Kermit nodded and went into Guyver mode. He grabbed the goblin and turned it to face him. His eyes glowed fiercely and hot mist coalesced around him. “You will be still,” he said softly but dangerously.
The goblin’s eyes grew wide and it immediately messed itself. It then collapsed into the fetal position and began gibbering softly as its fear overwhelmed it. But at least it had stopped trying to wriggle free.
As this was going on, Gwen noticed that the other goblin had awoken and was squirming a bit, trying to get to what appeared to be a doll made from an old wooden spoon that was lying on the floor near her. The girl walked over and picked up the spoon-doll. “Is this what you want?” she asked in a friendly tone. “I’ll give it to you if you’ll just tell us exactly why you’re here.”
The goblin – Tipi – didn’t trust her and just growled in response. Gwen shrugged. “I tried,” she said, returning to where Halgra was thanking Kermit for his “help”. “So, what do you want me to do?” she asked.
“Continue your investigation. Take this band of weirdos with you and get them out of my hair.”
“Understood,” Gwen said. She took Kermit and went first to gather up Lucky Days and Valbrand, who were still standing around chatting with Rodd Rigez.
“I’m going to put you in a cell until we can figure out what’s going on,” Jagrin was saying.
Rodd Rigez nodded. “Of course. But first, someone should reach into my left pocket and relieve me of my dagger.” He shook his head. “You’re really bad at this, you know?”
“Someone bring me some rope,” Jagrin growled.
“You’ll probably need more than that,” Kermit – who had returned to normal – noted.
Rodd Rigez guffawed. “Yeah, they use more than that on me at the brothel.” Gwen must have been making a disgusted face, as he turned to her. “You see, I just have so much love to give, but I only want to pay for the one. So they always try to keep me in the one room I’ve paid for.” He winked. “‘Try’ being the operative word, of course.”
Valbrand let out a belly laugh at that.
“Let’s go collect Ruby’s magician,” Gwen said to Lucky Days and Valbrand, then get going on our investigation.
“Okay,” Valbrand said. “I’ll bring you a beer later, Rodd.”
“Appreciate it,” the man being led away with his hands bound said. “I knew I could count on you. And Lucky Days, before I go, your arms are still flabby. Work on that.”
“I will, Coach,” the girl promised.
“Good kid.” He stopped suddenly after a few steps, causing Jagrin to bump into him. “Oh, and Lucky Days… pink is a good color on you.”
It took her a moment to understand what he was saying, then she turned a very bright red herself as her entire body blushed. She wanted to just crawl into a hole and die from embarrassment. Gwen decided not ask what was going on and instead just headed over to Jazier. “Ready to go investigate the Plague House?” she asked.
“I have a thought on that,” he said, but first turned to Omast. “You sure you don’t want to come with us?”
“No, that’s okay. I’d like to stay out of Hell today, thank you,” the guard said, making a sign against evil.
“You have no idea what Hell truly is,” Jazier said. “This is likely not to be all that bad.”
“The cleric I trained under told me all about Hell in depth,” Qumeel interjected. “I’d be happy to tell you what I’ve been told.”
“No, that’s okay,” Omast said. “Thanks, though.”
“Of course,” Qumeel said. He then left to catch up with Halgra.
“So, what was your thought?” Gwen asked Jazier.
“Well, this place is called ‘The Plague House’, right?”
“Yes.”
“We should invest in a potion to cure ourselves of any diseases we pick up while there.”
Gwen considered it. She hated wasting time, but he had a point. “We’ll hit the bazaar before going to the Plague House, then.”
“Thanks,” Jazier said.
Qumeel caught up with Halgra. “Chief Defender, a moment of your time, if you would,” he said.
“Of course, Qumeel,” she answered. “What is it?”
“I was given a vision by Ragathiel. I believe the town is in danger.”
“The town is always in danger,” she answered. “Look, I don’t have time to deal with visions at the moment. My plate is pretty full. Tell Gwen about it and she’ll fill me in on the important parts when I have time later.”
“Understood,” the cleric answered. He jogged to catch up with the party leaving the other way. “Miss Gwen,” he said. “The Chief Defender asked me to fill you in on a vision I was granted by Ragathiel.”
She nodded. “Tell me about it while we walk.” It took him several minutes to fill her in on the details. She furrowed her brow as he talked. “I see.”
“Could this be connected to the efforts of the demons?” Jazier asked.
“Demons?” Qumeel asked, startled.
“We’re investigating strange goings on,” Gwen said. “They seem to be related to my cousin’s death, and Jazier here thinks demons were involved.”
“That is always a possibility,” Qumeel admitted. “And where do your investigations take you now?”
“We’re stopping by the market, then going to the Plague House.”
“The building that burned but is still standing?” Qumeel asked.
“That’s the one,” Gwen affirmed.
“Then I shall accompany you. That building is too similar in nature to my vision to be a coincidence. I believe that Ragathiel wishes for me to aid you.”
She nodded. “I’ll be happy to have your help.”
At the market, there was a bit of commotion when one of the traveling traders desperately tried to convince Glenn to sell him his pelican suit. The strange man responded by slapping him away, which only made the trader more desperate. Kermit ended up having to chase him off in the end. Aside from that, the market was uneventful. They grabbed what they needed and headed to the Plague House.
The building was made from charred stone and was imposing, even under the full light of early afternoon. A few of the stained glass windows were still intact, adding a gothic and slightly off putting vibe to the whole structure.
Valbrand took point as they climbed up to the doorway that had once had wooden stairs. As he entered the building, it was dark, so he cast a spell, causing his shield to glow with clear white light. “Why hasn’t this place been torn down?” Jazier asked Gwen as the girl climbed up.
“We tried rebuilding a couple times, and something keeps happening, from fires to other issues. So now everyone thinks this place is cursed and is too afraid to be involved in the demolition, afraid they’ll be cursed as well.”
Lucky Days opened the first door to the right inside and investigated what appeared to be an infirmary, though she couldn’t tell very well in the dark. “Can I get some light in here?” she asked.
Valbrand obliged her and followed her in, as did Kermit. “Well, that’s strange,” the grippli said. “There appear to be coins under the beds.” He hopped over and began picking some up.
He managed to gather three of the coins when there was a ghostly shriek and burnt corpses appeared in the beds. The ghostly sound filled first Lucky Days and then Kermit with supernatural dread, and they began running at full speed out of the room and ultimately out of the building. Valbrand resisted the shriek at first, but as he began to laugh, another filled him with the same magical dread, and he had to flee.
But he was not so terrified that he was unable to realize how that would look to the pretty young woman in the hallway. He managed to focus himself as he ran, hiding the fear in his voice as he shouted. “Come back! It’s just some ghosts!” he called to the others as he followed after them.
“At least it’s not demons,” Jazier said as he walked into the room and zapped one of the ghosts with magical lightning. Qumeel followed him in and channeled holy energy through the room, beginning to cleanse the evil spirits. Gwen switched out the bullet in her gun for a magic wand, hoping the blast of magical acid would at least be able to harm the ghosts, then charged in and attacked.
One more hit from Jazier, and the haunt had ended. “See if there’s any other magic in here,” Gwen suggested.
“One moment,” Jazier said as he lit a torch. They searched the room under torchlight as they waited for the others to return. After a few moments, the wizard held up a small object. “I think you’ll want to see this,” he said.
Gwen took the object and examined it in the firelight. It was a hopeknife. “For Rodrik, my love,” she read aloud, her voice catching as she read it. This was Rodrik’s hopeknife! He must have encountered the ghosts and dropped it as he fled. He should have told her. She would have come with him to recover it. So would Kurst! “Thank you,” she said to Jazier as she took the knife, carefully tucking it into her pack.
They gathered up several other mementos of those who had fled this place before the others began to return. “Sorry,” Valbrand said. “I wanted to make sure that my friends didn’t hurt themselves as they ran away.” He was obviously lying, but no one called him on it.
Kermit and Lucky Days were behind him. It was the first time Kermit had seen the girl really run full out. She had made it nearly halfway around the town before the fear had subsided. And Rodd Rigez believed he could make her faster? Well, if anyone could, it was Rodd.
“That scared the beKurgess out of me,” Lucky Days admitted.
They continued forward, finding their way downstairs. Qumeel stopped at one point to fix a longsword that was askew from where a statue had been holding it, and the party continued forward, eventually coming to what appeared to be a mausoleum, filled with the skulls of the honored dead. “Remind me to tell Rodd about this place,” Valbrand whispered to Kermit.
“Will do,” the grippli – who had returned to his Guyver form for safety – acknowledged.
They noticed that a statue – depicting Jingh, one of Iomedae’s celestial emissaries – had been recently moved, so they pushed it aside, revealing a hidden passage guarded by a gelatinous cube. Kermit destroyed it easily, with a small bit of help from Valbrand and Lucky Days, and they continued forward.
Beyond the passage, they found what appeared to be the building’s old furnace room, where piles of coal littered the ground all around, but that wasn’t the most notable thing in the room, and was certainly not the first thing they noticed.
As Valbrand entered the room, a small, half-starved man with blonde hair looked up at him, first in terror, then in relief. “You’re not him! Thank the gods! I’m saved!” he exclaimed excitedly at seeing the approaching adventurers.