Chapter 14 - Part 2

The citizens of Merylsward had been less than trusting of the news that Orphan had brought them. They could not fathom that the warforged army would simply quit. Many thought that Orphan was setting them up somehow. One man had been quite belligerent about saying so, until Delegado had picked him up and thrown him through a window.

Once the hysteria calmed down, the Vadalis people sent riders to the warforged in the morning (and took Orphan with them, although he did not ride, he apparently outran the horses). The captain of the warforged was wary, but confirmed the words of the warforged monk. The Vadalis people apparently gave the warforged more tools to finish repairing a ship, and then told the town to stay away from the area until the warforged were gone. Delegado had not gotten involved in that, although he was later invited to a council of Vadalis members who wanted his input on the size of the compensation they and Sivis should demand from Aundair. The half-orc only shrugged. Finances were not his forte.

Sometime after midday a druid arrived in the town and immediately cast healing spells on Pienna. She opened her eyes and smiled, but then went back to sleep. Later that evening she was feeling strong enough to sit up in bed. She had summoned Delegado, Orphan, and Thomas to her. The three of them came into the room she was in to see Missy lying next to her, and Chubat in an apron trying to feed Pienna some soup. Delegado was very, very tempted to snicker, but did not do so.

The group meeting was brief. She asked them if they appreciated the importance of Drorin’s words. Thomas agreed immediately, having dreamed of the halfling. Orphan simply said that if Pienna did then he did. She looked at Delegado, and the half-orc had felt a bad taste in his mouth.

“I’m still here, aren’t I?” he growled. She did not press the issue.

“Long ago, the dragons warred with the fiends,” Pienna said. “The fiends were bound away. Long after that, a dragon taught the orcs the druidic magics, and those orcs, the first Gatekeepers, were able to bind the daelkyr in a similar fashion. Just as the abominations have influence and servants despite their imprisonment, so do the fiends. Now the Gatekeepers seek to protect the land from the unnatural – regardless of its origin, and I can see that the three of you have a part to play.”

“A quest,” Orphan said. “I have read of these.” He seemed excited.

“Will there be redemption at the end of this road?” Thomas asked.

“I cannot promise anything,” Pienna said. “Except that there will be redemption for Delegado, if he is brave enough to take it.”

“Pienna, don’t bait me,” Delegado snapped. “I’ll go with them, so long as you get that Kundarak bearer bond to Tharashk!”

“I wasn’t baiting you,” she said. “I was warning you. Hard times are coming, Delegado, and you will be tested like never before. I hope that you will stay true to the mission.”

“What is the ‘Branch of Water and Air’ that the halfling prophesized of?” Thomas asked.

“A staff of great druidic power,” Pienna said. “With it one can control the very weather, duplicating a most powerful druidic spell, but on an even greater level. I do not know why you would need it, but it is old. It was fashioned by a coutal nature spirit during the war with the fiends.”

“That is old,” Thomas whispered. “But what will I do with it?”

“If you truly are good at manipulating magical devices, and Oalian does give it to you,” Pienna said. “Well, I do not know what you will do, but you will be able to do it. Oalian uses the staff to control the weather in the Reaches when some force seeks to block his own spells. Fiend magic, daelkyr, necromancy, it all folds before the staff. The vicious lightning storm that turned aside the Aundairian heavy infantry wave of Y.K. 986 was summoned by that staff, despite the best efforts of Aundair’s wizards to suppress it.”

“That was a storm that raged for the entire day,” Delegado noted. “The lightning bolts that it kicked up killed men by the dozens and made the entire Aundairian army quit the field. You really think that Oalian would hand it over to us?”

“If he is aware of Drorin’s prophecy, and I suspect since Oalian knows who ‘the prisoner’ is then he is aware of it, then yes,” Pienna said. “And before you ask, I do not know to what that refers.”

“You need to drink more if you’re going to talk so much,” Chubat told her. She nodded and took a cup of wine from him.

“Anyway,” she said. “House Orien has a courier coming in the morning, I will re-indorse the Kundarak bond to Tharashk and send it with him. You will also leave in the morning, you should get to Greenheart in nine or ten days.”

“How?” Delegado asked. “Are we flying?”

“Yes, the three pegasi that House Vadalis has in a secret corral here will be lent to you,” Pienna said. “I already arranged it. You will hand them over to the Vadalis agent in Greenheart. They can cover almost a hundred miles a day.”

“They have hidden – how did you swing that?” Delegado gaped.

“They owe me a favor,” Pienna coughed. “They hid them well from the townsfolk who do not question, but nothing that walks on grass or drinks water can remain hidden from a druid.”

“Everyone owes you favors,” Chubat said. Missy grumbled an agreement.

“What is a pegasus?” Orphan asked.

“Gorgeous winged horses that represent goodness,” Thomas whispered softly. “In the far wilderness I have seen them at play, but they do not let me near.”

“These will,” Pienna told him. “Thomas, I have a personal symbol of mine for you to use. You can use it as a diplomatic pass with other Gatekeepers should they be hostile due to your nature.” Chubat handed Thomas a medallion which the half-daelkyr took carefully. “Orphan, take some gold and buy yourself some alchemical weaponry from the merchants coming with the Orien caravan. They should have some stocks of holy water.” Chubat gave Orphan and pouch and the warforged nodded. “Delegado, thank you.”

The half-orc blinked. He hadn’t expected that. “You’re welcome,” he said.

“I have something for you,” she said. Chubat handed the half-orc a potion. “Your skin will harden like the bark of a great tree, turning aside blades.”

“Thanks,” he said. “I can get all sorts of gear from the Tharashk representative in Greenheart. I have enough pull to requisition whatever we’ll need, but it would help if you could give me some idea of where we’ll be deployed.”

“If only I knew,” she had told him.

He and the others took off at first light the next day. Delegado had been quite surly, for he had slept little the night before. He couldn’t shake the notion that ‘the prisoner’ was a changeling woman that he had failed.