Chapter 4, in which a steamship finally gets treated right, and the Adventurers depart

Dragon Hunter
He saw how Red Un ran out and heard him say "HOLEY MOLEY! A DWARF STEAMSHIP ON COLLISION COURSE!" He saw him running away. The dragon hunter followed out immediately and saw a pillar of smoke from the sea and Red Un was running towards the harbour and jumped into the water. The dragon hunter said "Arath Lefeth"
and he started to run at over human speed, and if anything got in his way he took a huge jump over it!
As he neared the harbour he saw Red Un swimming in the ocean. Hhe quickly took a giant leap against him splashing down 9 feet in front of him. Now he saw that is was a ship, and asked Red Un wile he was swimming next to him "What the hell is a human ship doing with a steam engine?!"

Red Un
"No time to for questions!"

Red Un realised that he wouldn't get to the ship in time. Then he got a mad idea. It was a Once-In-A-Million Chance (TM) but it could work.

He took out an old explosion rune while he kept swimming. Then he used it.

"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"

He flew away in the distance and managed to grab the mast of the ship just as he flew by...

Dragon Hunter
"Orgathar Levimed" the dragon hunter said and fired himself away towards the ship, surrounded by blue flames.
As the landed he yelled "What the hell is wrong with this ship!" and ran against the lower deck.

Red Un (postid 660859)
Red Un jumped down to the huge engine below deck. It was shaking and banging and groaning. As the Dragon Hunter came down, Red Un yelled "STAND BACK!" over the noise.

Then he walked calmly towards the engine. He looked around, found a small hole and laid his ear beside it.

"Yes...aha...no really? Three times? Oh...I see..."

Then he turned around and looked at the Dragon Hunter with a grim face.

"This engine is depressed. It felt like it was never used, and now, when it finally got the chance, it over-worked itself."

There was a groan from a pipe.

"There there, it can happen to anyone. Let's see now..."

He knocked the boiler. There was a whistle from another pipe.

"This hurts eh? But what if I do THIS!"

He suddenly took out a hammer and rammed it hard into a nearby piston.

A pipe exploded in a shower of hot water.

Then the engine stopped. There was a weeze somewhere.

"Oh, you don't need to thank me."

Red Un looked around.

"Now where is the captain of this ship? I've heard humans captains has the strange custom of goin' down with their vessels..."

Andrune
- "I have to get some fresh air, the air is stifling in here." Andrune said.

She walked out to the open streets of Thais, and went south to the crossroads. Suddenly a knight jumped up and cut her in the leg with his sword. Unable to move, more people gathered around her and started attacking.
She started to feel numb, the attack didn't hurt her anymore. It was getting darker and…

Vodok
The short dwarf had followed Red Un to the harbour and he had also seen when Red Un jumped in the water then one minute later was flying through the air. He HAS to teach me that trick. The dwarf thought.


Dragon Hunter
"Well looks like our job is done here, let’s move back to land." the dragon hunter said. He jumped away of sight from Red Un. When he landed on the harbour people stared at him. He guessed they had never seen a man falling down from the sky before. He went to Frodos and sat down in a shady corner and mumbled "Incario Mashith" and became one with the shadows. The people in the bar got frightened and many left as they though that such a big man couldn't just disappear...
Red Un
Meanwhile, Red Un was teaching a certain captain that dwarves cares for their machines.

"You heard me! Say that you're sorry!"

"But it's just...a thing!"

Red Un laid his hand firmly on the captains shoulder.

"If you were in Kazordoon right now, well, you would wish you weren't there. Now SAY IT!"

" Okay then. Mr.Machine..."

"It's name is Krudar’s Pride!"

"...Mr. Pride, I'm very sorry for not using you until now. I will now sail you back to Kazordoon after letting of this...friendly half-dwarf at Thais. Is that...um...okay?"

There was a groan from the cooling down machine.

"...I take that as a yes..."

Danger
He noticed Dalafor looking at someone. He turned to see his sister looking back at him with some sort of innocent smile. He looked angry but did not act on it.

"I think I'll go see what’s going on out side." he said a bit annoyed.

RHIA! what are you doing here! He thought very loudly. Why must you follow me to the ends of the earth?!

Despite his mood he seemed perplexed by the ship in the water. He would have to ask the others about it when they came back.

"Hope no one else heard me..." He said as he realized how loud he was thinking.

Pheonix
-Rhia looked at Dalafor with the same serious look.
What is troubling you and my brother? She directed her thoughts only to him. Hopefully Dalafor could at least hear thoughts directed at him if he cannot read them.

-Rhia watched as her brother stormed out.
"Hehe, he must have seen me." She got up and sat next to Dalafor. "What is your name? I forget... Can't expect me to remember all 3 of my brother's "friends"" She said sarcastically.

- You know brother.... you don't have to yell. All of Thais will be able to hear you if you think that loudly. She sighed. She hated having her brother mad at her. She loved him to death. Couldn't he understand that?

Red Un
Finally, the ship puffed into the harbour. The steam engine was working nicely now, and Red Un jumped of the ship before it had stopped.

"Now, take this ship DIRECTLY to the underground lake that I showed ya on the map."

The captain sighed.

"Whatever you say. I never want to see that damn thing..."

One of the pistons made a sound like a thousand nails against a blackboard.

"...wonderful invention again..."

And so, the ship puffed away merrily through the sea towards its home.

(it later won the prize "Ship of the Year" by the dwarves and went to become a liner between Kazordoon and Carlin. No one knows for sure what happened to its captain, but there was later a cell in Dwarfcarta Prison Isles that had the words "Human Heretic" written on the door...)

"Right" said Red Un as the last smoke disappeared at the horizon. "I think it's time to go to the bar and get our group together..."

Danger
The young mage watched as they came to shore waiting patiently for someone to tell what had happened.

Roku Yarit
The Sorcerer was extremely proud of himself. Not only had he warned the inhabitants but caught a nice little show of their strength. They might actually find the Library for him so he would not have to waste his time and magic. "I should travel with them, of course, to ensure they do not find anything they should not be seeing. I am sure they will take pity on a 'old man' and allow him to follow them so he might find some adventure before he passes away." Roku began to laugh madly and quickly began making tears in his robes and throwing dirt all over him so they did not suspect him to be a Sorcerer of great cunning and power. After the necessary modifications were made to his appearance he walked off the beach and proceeded to Frodo's pub where he knew the companions resided for the time being.

He could see the travellers through the window and placed himself right outside the door, hanging his head as if he were tired from much travel and making himself look even more pitiful then he already did. "Perhaps there is hope for them yet..."

Dragon Hunter
The dragon hunter saw an old man enter, so he walked out from the shadows, leaving the invisibility. He studied the man from top to toe and then took out his crystal bottle again and drank some blood.
He looked how the old man would react to it...

Roku Yarit
Roku had no quarrel with anyone who enjoyed drinking blood but was careful not to offend the man as he drank the blood. He showed an obvious disgust that any old person who was stuck in their ways would have. Covering his withered hands carefully with his ragged robes, he walked over to a table near the companions but far as well and carefully slumped himself down heavily. Speaking in a old, creaking voice he said, "Looks like rain..."

Dragon Hunter
As he was done the dragon hunter put away the bottle and sat down by the others. "Does anyone of you know who we are waiting for?" he asked the others. "I'm getting really bored of just sitting here and letting my ass grow fat..."

Vodok
"Red Un!! The short dwarf yelled from outside the bar. "RED UN!!!! The short dwarf yelled again as he walked in the bar. "Say... how did yer do 'at flyin' trick?" The dwarf said very in a I-don’t-care-voice. Too much in a I-don’t-care-voice, so Red Un got suspicious. "Waved my arms and yelled: IM A BIRD!!!" Was the answer. "Oh yeah, when are we gettin' goin'? I 'ate it 'ere." the short dwarf said to Red Un. "When we want to" became the answer to that question.

Red Un
"Ahem, I guess that everyone who wants to go is here now."

He looked over with disgust at the smelly, dirty old man tat had entered.

"Well, there sure won't be rain where we are goin', old man..."

He looked at the rest of the group.

"So, if everyone are ready, we'll be goin'! To the desert!"

And with those words he led the group to the northern gate of Thais. Meanwhile, a group of four hooded men spied on them from the shadows.

"The desert will be hot. Very hot. When they are tired and dry, we will strike" said one of them. Then he threw up a yellow rune-stone in the sky. It dissolved into dust...

Dragon Hunter
"So its finally time to depart" the dragon hunter said, "It will be nice with some adventure. How many years was it since the last real adventure? 20-30 maybe?" he thought.

Red Un
As the group went for the north gates, Red Un took the lead and started to sing a merry dwarven song.

"Hey ho, hey ho
to the desert we go
a key we will find
and leave no one behind
Hey ho, hey ho!

Come on everyone, join in!"

Danger
The young mage stared at Red Un with horror.

"Uh... I think not."

Rhia, I don't know why you are hiding. I know you are following us. Just join the group.
He thought waiting from his sister to show her self.

Dragon Hunter
The dark warrior quickly put his hand over Red Un's mouth and said "Spare the torture for our enemies!"