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Back to Empire on the HPe3000
... and ...
This is a first draft of a story set in the world of Greyhawk.
It is based on a home campaign so some of the people, places and things
may be different. Any helpful comments or suggestions are very welcome.
Thanks
Jason Zavoda
"Harold, build a fire." Ivo said.
"Get Harald to do it, Little Rat is hurt." said Harold. The
halfling wrapped a length of cloth around the young orc's head. Blood
soaked through quickly and joined the drying trail down the young orc's
face.
"Oohhh!" Little Rat moaned.
"Good, you're still alive." said Harold.
"Head hurt." he put both his hands to the wound, then pulled them
back as if he touched a burning coal. "Ow!"
"What were you thinking." chided Harold. "Knives are next to
useless against those things."
"We need to burn these bones." Ivo put his foot down on a hand
that crawled across the floor like a spider. "They're pulling together
like the body of a troll."
"Ivo," Harald said, "there are no doors that I can see, just that
portal. A fire might smoke us out."
Ivo broke the skeletal fingers beneath his foot and scattered the
fragments of bone with a kick. "Keep an eye on the remains then or we will
be fighting these creatures all over again."
"We?" Harald shook his head.
"Take the light." Ivo handed the ranger the enchanted torch, then
stood by Harold and stared over the halfling's shoulder. "That looks well
done."
"I've had lots of practice." he said securing the bandage he had
wrapped round the orc's head. "Mostly on myself." he mumbled.
"If you are done then help me search." said Ivo. "There should be
another way out. You are sure that Talberth went through the door?"
"It might not matter." said Harald. The ranger bent and grabbed
the largest piece of a broken skull from a pile of fragmented bone. "This
room is not the one that my sword touched through the mist. I felt walls
close to either side, but here," he nodded toward the swirling mist, "here
the door is in the middle of that wall."
"He went through the middle door."Harold looked up. "It looked
like solid stone. Who can tell in a place like this if that door lead
to this room."
"I will use a spell." said Ivo. "The same that I used before,
but it will only show me where magic is active and how strong. If the
doors are simply hidden we will have to find them by other means."
"I can help there." said Harold. The thief had finished binding
the young orc's wounds.
Ivo gestured and spoke gnomish words of magic that the others
could not make out. Slowly he pivoted in a circle and pointed with his
hand, and where he pointed glowing light came forth. The skeletal bones
showed as a vibrant green. They were scattered about the room, some in
piles that flowed like bugs atop a carcase, others were mere fragments
that lay still, too far away to join together and reform.
It was the back wall of the room that reacted the strongest. From
floor to ceiling, from side to side, it glowed blue, bright enough to
light up the entire room.
"That's something." said Harold. "I think we have found our door."
"Before we go further in we should make sure we can get
out." Harald lowered the enchanted torch he held. The glow seemed even
stronger in the dark.
"If that is a door." said Ivo. He pulled the silver wire from
his pack and straightened it out again. "Hold one end, I will walk
through and see if this door still leads out."
* * *
(To Be Continued...)