"Of course," she mused, "I COULD just go home and forget about the whole business..."

However, her curiosity was now piqued - "bills" and stolen ale and abducted priests - what could it all mean?! And there was the matter of the impending foreclosure on her outhouse...which the nice Priestess had promised to take care of (A two-seater! Ophyllia had rarely dreamed of such luxurious accommodations!)... Then inspiration struck.

"I know!," thought Ophyllia, "I'll go and see if Rasor would be willing to escort me to the temple of the Violet Elf! Perhaps somebody there will tell me what it is I'm supposed to do next..."

As it occurred to Ophyllia in one brief moment of shining lucidity (for the threat of personal danger always cleared Ophyllia's mind), if she was to trek about Bottomburn while hordes of orcs and gnorcs ran rampant through the streets, she might do well to have a personal bodyguard accompanying her...

Now, it should be explained that Rasor and Ophyllia had quite a history together, dating from Ophyllia's one experience with answering a personals column ad (which, as it turned out, Rasor hadn't even written himself! The big lug was entirely incapable of setting quill to parchment, except to tear it!) Suffice it to say that it was not only with her music that Ophyllia had soothed the savage beast! And though things hadn't worked out between them, they had remained friends; indeed, due to Ophyllia's eccentricities and Rasor's rather limited social skills, they were well nigh the only friends that each had!

And so, Ophyllia made her way to the Inn of the Belching Dragon, where Rasor kept the penthouse apartment. Sneaking around to the kitchen entrance in an effort to avoid old Stradak, the Innkeeper (who seemed to have problems keeping his hands to himself when Ophyllia was around - though the black eye which Rasor had given him the last time he had pawed her might give the old leech a moment's pause before he attempted to handle her again...), Ophyllia nearly stumbled upon two large creatures lurking outside the kitchen window. Retreating rapidly and silently into the shadows as her night-vision adjusted, she saw quite clearly that the figures were...