Will
is up earlier than the rest. The previous evening he borrowed some of
the silver coins taken from the captured and dead goblins and goes to
the smithy. Honza is already at work there, mending and sharpening
some scythes and other implements that are used in the
harvest.
'Honza, I have a favor to
ask of you' Will says to him. 'I wonder whether you could create some
silver-tipped arrows for me. I fear that they will be required during
out assault upon Boscobelous' Tower.'
'Certainly' replies Honza.
'How many will you need?'
'I will need around 20 I
believe, and I would like to obtain another 20 for use by Jihan or
one of the others if that is possible' Will replies.
'That should be no problem
if you have the silver, although it will take a couple of hours
before I have made them all.'
Will agrees, and gives Honza
80 silver pieces in order to create the arrowheads and affix them. He
then assists Honza in creating them.
Yaz is also up early. He
wanders off to the fringe of the woods and performs his daily rituals
to Prirodna. He asks Her for the solution to the problem of getting
the worgs all of the way from Holitze to the Tower without incident.
During his devotions, Viirin comes and sits patiently beside him
until he finishes the devotions. Yaz casts a speaking spell so as to
be able to speak with the wolf:
'Viirin, my friend,' Yaz
barks to his silver-coated friend. 'I asked Prirodna for an answer to
the question as to how to take the worgs to the Tower, but I received
no answer from her. Have you any idea as to how it may be
achieved?'
'Master Charaz' the wolf
replies. 'I was observing them during the night and I think that I
may be of assistance to you in this matter. I noticed that, being
free of the influence of the orcs and goblins for two days now, they
have reverted back to their natural pack instincts. There was quite a
power struggle in the barn last night as they fought for leadership
of the pack. Not surprisingly, the dire wolf won and they now accept
him as their leader. If it pleases you master, then I suggest that I
challenge the dire wolf to non-lethal combat. Providing that I win,
then I will take over leadership of the pack and they will follow my
commands.'
Yaz grins and strokes
Viirin's thick pelt:
'That would be very good of
you, Viirin, if it is not too much trouble.'
'Not at all, Master Charaz'
growls Viirin in response. 'I always like bringing dire wolves down a
peg or two.'
The plan agreed upon, Yaz
and Viirin return to the village and go to the barn containing the
worgs. A little nervously, Yaz opens the gate and allows Viirin
entrance. The worgs get out of Viirin's way as he makes his way
towards the huge form of the dire wolf. The dire wolf bares his teeth
at Viirin and the winter wolf reciprocates. The two of them start to
growl and then the dire wolf lunges at Viirin.
Before he connects, Viirin
opens his jaws and lets out a blast of freezing frost. The dire
wolf's coat turns as white as Viirin's and the wolf starts yelping
and trying to get as far from Viirin as possible. The winter wolf
comes to the gate and Yaz lets him back out.
'I don't think you need
worry about them getting up to anything stupid now, Master Charaz'
growls Viirin.
The rest of the party
assembles at 8.00 on the village green in front of The Dancing Troll,
as planned. They are surprised to see that, leading their horses
towards them is not the form of Barra, the ex-barmaid from the
Queen's Head, but the grinning form of Robert, whose powder obviously
wore off during the night. Robert is not the only one to have
returned to his original form, as the duplicate Tharnald has also
disappeared to be replaced by the graceful figure of Jihan.
Now only Winnacer and Xavier
remain in the illusionary forms. Winnacer hopes that the powder will
soon wear off. Xavier is even more fed up with the fact that he still
has the form of the orc and is now quite envious of those that have
returned to their true forms.
Winnacer sees the mounts
lined up before him. He sees that Shaman Hrust and Zsolt have taken
the two draft horses from the wagon, as they know that they will be
traveling through woodland which would be very slow going for the
wagon.
The young lord indicates to
Shaman Hrust that he would like to speak with him again. The bugbear
responds by casting his spell:
'Shaman Hrust, I have
another request to make of you. I wonder whether I could swap the use
of your draft horse for the spare riding horse that we have. I doubt
whether the riding horse would take the weight of myself and my mail,
and I would certainly not be able to make use of my lance if I would
need to. The riding horse, however, should easily be able to support
you and your brigandine.'
The bugbear nods:
'Certainly, that would not
be a problem.'
He hands over the reins of
his sturdy mount to the young lord. The bugbear then takes a large
sack from the horse's back. You can all hear the metallic chinking
sound of coins from within. He takes the sack over to Kesryk and
deposits it in front of him:
'May I leave these funds in
your safe keeping, Holy Man? I think that we will have no need of
them where we are headed. For your agreeing to accommodate me, I
would like to donate half of the sack's contents to you to use in
swelling the ranks of your cavalry. One quarter I would like to give
to my new comrades for them to use as they see fit to further the
cause of Bohavian independence. One quarter I would like to keep for
my own use, should I need to return to Slovensko earlier than I had
anticipated.'
Kesryk takes a look in the
sack and his eyes bulge a little as he surveys its contents:
'Thank you, Shaman' the
cleric replies. 'These funds should go a long way in truly making the
Holy Hammerers a force to be reckoned with.'
In way of preparation, Winn
will break out the five vials of holy water he has been carting
around for a while now. He offers a vial up to Faewen'il, Jihan,
Will, and Yaz, - keeping one for himself.
Will thanks the young noble
for the gift, but hands it back:
"The priests made a gift of
a vial similar to this when I left the temple almost ten years ago. I
have kept it ever since with a holy symbol they also gave me. I guess
I'd better get them out and handy before we get to the Tower."
Winnacer nods and gives the
vial instead to Bennett.
Each of you then make your
own last minute preparations for the journey and task ahead.
Winnacer calculates his
tally, keeping track until the day comes where he can access his
armor once again, and checks his equipment, giving it all a good
sharpening and whatnot. The silver longsword replaces the second
sword he typically carries and the youth practices drawing it from
over his shoulder quickly.
Before leaving, Winnacer
makes his way over to Kesryk and his temple and spends some quiet
time thinking about all that he has learned so far in Spravedelna's
name. He then speaks with Kesryk:
"Kesryk, ever since you have
opened my eyes to Spravedelna's ways, I feel that I can live my life
with newfound structure and meaning. I never really fit in with my
family, whose calling was to wage war blindly for the sake of
fighting. It was never something I could accept within my heart and
made me somewhat of an outcast within my own family, for I did not
answer to the Stradheim calling. I have often wondered and wished
that I would one day feel powerfully enough about something, to find
a calling of my own. With your tutelage and my recent experiences, I
believe I have found my calling. It is my role to shine the light of
Justice within the beleaguered lands of Bohavia and Rus. I have often
felt Spravedelna's eye watching over my shoulder and her arm guiding
my own. What I ask from you is what can a man such as myself do to
dedicate himself to Spravedelna? The priesthood is not for me, for I
feel Spravedelna compels me to mete Justice across the land with wit
and steel in the same way she compels you to stay and ensure Justice
takes place within the village confines. Any advice on this matter
would be appreciated."
There is a smile on Kesryk's
face as he hears Winnacer speak. He puts his arm upon Winnacer's
shoulder as he makes his reply:
'Winnacer, my friend, all
that you have just told me did not need to be expressed in words. I
have noticed all that you have just told me. In just the three short
weeks since we first met I have noticed a great change come over you.
When we first met, I was impressed with your words, but thought that
you still had a great deal to learn. The impetuosity that most men of
your age possess was very much evident in your actions. After seeing
you now, however, I can see that you have learned much of the ways of
Spravedelna. I can see that She has taken you to Her bosom, and you
have willingly accepted Her benevolent embrace. You probably do not
know how much joy that brings to me heart.'
'I can see that you are
truly an exceptional individual and have a great deal more potential
than myself, who is destined to be only a humble servant of My Lady.
Although I believe that there are few who love Her as much as I, I am
not the warrior that I have seen that you are. Such characters as
yours are rare indeed in this day and age and I truly believe that
you are destined for greatness. It would bring me great happiness if
your great destiny was to become under the banner of
Spravedelna.'
Kesryk once again goes quiet
for a moment, lost in thought:
'I can see that the
priesthood is not for you. I cannot see you remaining in a temple and
fighting the Holy fight in a passive way. As I told you before, I am
considered something of a renegade amongst the elders of the Church,
which is why I was sent to this small parish rather than serving at
the main Temple in Pardubitze. However, I see that you are not
destined to village life either. You are destined for greater things
and have already chosen the road towards your destiny, that of
leading Bohavia towards liberty.'
'There is a position within
the Church of Spravedelna that I think that you were destined for and
that position is known within the Church as a Lawbringer. The
investiture of a Lawbringer is a great rarity within the Church, as
only a handful of men and women each generation have the heart and
soul to be worthy of the name, but I see in you the required
attributes of courage and a desire to see justice.'
'A Lawbringer travels the
land righting wrongs and bringing justice to bear upon those who live
outside Spravedelna's ways. Yaromir was such a Lawbringer and there
are others whose names are written large in the history of the
Church. Be aware, however, that becoming a Lawbringer is much, much
more than simply calling oneself by that name. In order to become a
Lawbringer, one must devote his or herself to Our Lady. To live their
life in Her image. The life of a Lawbringer is no easy one and I
would ask you to think long and hard before deciding whether you
believe that you are worthy of such a position. Personally, I think
that you have the right attributes to take on this demanding role,
but it is not my decision. Ultimately Spravedelna Herself will make
the ultimate decision as She watches over each Lawbringer personally.
Those that uphold Her ways and preach Her word are rewarded by divine
gifts, but those gifts may be taken away as quickly as they are
given, so Lawbringers must never stray from the path of
righteousness.'
'If you truly feel the
calling of Spravedelna in your heart, then you must journey to
Pardubitze to meet with the High Priestess there and convince her of
your suitability for the position. She will be the one to decide as
to whether you are suitable to hold such an important decision within
our faith.'
Kesryk then goes silent and
Winnacer responds:
'Kesryk, my friend, I thank
you for your words and your support. You have truly given me much to
think about, as I understand that such a position to be undertaken
lightly. I will ponder the matter upon our journey to and from
Boscobelous' Tower and give you my decision upon my return.'
'On another note, I would
ask for Spravedelna's blessing upon our endeavor and upon my
soul.'
'Certainly I will' replies
Kesryk. 'Although I believe that you are all already blessed by
Her.'
With that, Kesryk starts to
chant to Spravedelna and touches each of the party on their
foreheads.
As the party comes together,
making their final preparations before the journey to the tower,
Winnacer calls everybody together.
"My friends and comrades. We
have fought together valiantly in the past, a small group of
like-minded people fighting for what their hearts believe in. With
our growing success and with the increase in the numbers of people
willing to take up arms for Bohavia, I have realized that the day
will come when we will not simply be ambushing and raiding our enemy.
Soon will be the day when we need to gather our forces on the field
of honor. It is with that day in mind that I present the following
gifts to a group of people for whom I would lay down my life."
Winnacer opens a sack that
he has and starts to remove numerous white garments. As he starts to
hand them out, they see that they are tabards, with the Two-Tailed
Lion of Bohavia prominently displayed in tawny and golden threads on
a field of white. Each one of them has additional embroidery, giving
them a personal touch:
Xavier: At two corners of
the tabard's bottom has the symbol of the Teutonic Knights, the other
two corners has the symbol of Saxony.
Xavier's hard eyes moisten
at the gift. He grabs hold of Winnacer's arm in a warrior's hand
shake.
"My Lord der gift, is most
velcome. It does me great honor, more that I deserve. I still have
much to achieve before I stand with pride in Rodengast's Hall. I
shall wear this with pride, I have been lordless for a long time. A
family and homeland lost, all the brother knights of my order three
years in there grave. This is indeed the greatest gift. I thank
you."
Yaz: The symbol of Prirodna
is repeated a number of times, adding a pleasing greenish hue to the
garment.
Jihan: The symbol of the
scout, a bow with a lightning bolt drawn in its string, is at two
corners and the symbol of Prirodna at the other two.
Faewen'il: Her garment is
inscribed throughout with mystic symbols done in blue thread, giving
her tabard the look of a classic wizard.
Will: His tabard has a harp
at two of its corners, leaving space for embellishment at the other
two bottom corners.
"I shall wear it with pride"
the bard replies as he accepts Winnacer's gift.
Bennett: At two corners are
the symbol of the footman, a sword overlaying a shield. The other
corners are blank.
Bennett shakes his head:
"I cannot take this, not
now. Keep it for me, and when you understand what the gift means and
who you are giving it to, then decide whether or not you still wish
to give it to me. We have much to discuss before you can make that
judgement."
Bennett hands the tabard
back to Winnacer, though he obviously admires it greatly.
Winnacer's own tabard has
two corners invested with Spravedelna's symbol and two blank. With
inspection, one would note that on the inside of the garment, the
symbol of Spravedelna has again been embroidered to lay above his
heart.
Another tabard lays in the
bag, but is not distributed.
"If we are to be an army, we
need to have pride and a rallying point. So I have also commissioned
the creation of this."
Winnacer withdraws a
stunning white Battle Standard portraying the Two-Tailed Lion.
"An army's Battle Standard
is its pride and joy. To be the Standard Bearer is an immense honor
and a deep commitment. All of you have proven your individual merit
and are all worthy of such an honor. So I ask for a volunteer, one
who would prefer death to allowing such an item to fall to the enemy,
sacrificing their life if necessary to keep an army's morale from
flagging."
Xavier steps forward and,
with full courtly etiquette, goes down on one knee before
Winnacer.
"To this standard and to you
my lord do I pledge my life. May the great Rodengast bear witness to
my pledge, that not until this standard flies above the great castle
of Mnyesto shall you not have my sword protecting your back."
Xavier then takes one corner
of the end of the Battle standard and kisses it, his head bowed as if
in prayer.
"I realize that these are
not the most practical garments, and may be more of a liability than
an asset at this moment. But they give us something tangible to think
upon and aspire to. One day we will don these garments and lead
Bohavia to its freedom, so I hope that you like them. You all deserve
this and much more."
Seeing that they are now
ready to leave, Kesryk shakes each of them by the hand, coming to
Winnacer last. He grasps the young lord firmly and puts an arm around
his shoulder:
'Consider my words well,
Winnacer, Spravedelna will be watching over you as you rid the Tower
of the abominations, as she watched over Yaromir when he performed
the same task. Although you should trust in Her, be sure to take care
of yourself. Spravedelna helps those that help themselves. Go now,
and return safely. We shall be waiting to hear of your triumph over
the denizens of the Tower.'
Winnacer grasps Kesryk's
hand firmly and replies:
'May Spravedelna watch over
you too, Kesryk, and all of your flock. I give you my word that I
shall be back safely in due course.'
With that, they make off
heading northwards making a fine, if strange sight as the ten of
them, accompanied by ten wolves all head out from the village, flying
under the banner of Bohavia, proudly borne by Xavier. The villagers,
including Darry, Tharnold and the three gnomes watch them depart,
waving at them until they reach the fringe of the woods.
Keeping away from the road
that leads from Hradetz to Trebova, they spend the rest of the
morning moving through the woodlands heading north towards the Tower.
They travel for four hours and then stop to take lunch before
carrying on your journey through the afternoon. The woods are quiet
around them and they see little signs of life other than the
occasional small animal that flees as soon as they become aware of
the party's presence.
Early in the afternoon, they
cross over the road after checking that there are no travelers upon
it, before carrying on with their journey northwards. Later in the
afternoon, it is Winnacer's turn to start shimmering and blurring as
his powder wears off. A few minutes later, the obviously relieved
form of Winnacer has replaced the form of the deceased Reinberger.
This really pisses off Xavier, as he in now the last one remaining in
his illusionary form:
'Gott in Himmel!' he
exclaims. 'Am I cursed to wear this accursed visage for all
eternity?!'
Ignoring Xavier's outburst,
they carry on with their journey. After another couple of hours they
have passed through the woods and are in the clearing with the ford
crossing of the River Orlitze before them.
'I say that we stop here for
the evening' says Winnacer. 'We shall make Boscobelous' Tower before
nightfall tomorrow providing that we do not run into any unexpected
resistance. After our last encounter at the ford, I would prefer that
we were all fresh when we passed through it.'
The rest of them agree and
camp is made. A watch system is arranged and they fall asleep after
the tiring journey.