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Chapter Three: Vardadraug and the Cosmic Ore

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Dannigan said:
Stewart replies, "That, my dear lady, is entirely dependent on him. As for us, I say we raise a toast to simply being alive! Given all that has happened tonight, I will remember it for as long as I draw breath!"
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Kitrin agrees and takes a good long drink, pausing only when Sparkle comes racing out.
Dannigan said:
"Help! Something is after Luna and Wolf! They are in danger!"
The Meadowsweets and Stewart all exchange startled looks. Then, they remember they have a seasoned adventurer among them and, as if on cue, they all look at Kitrin. "What do we do?" Bonny asks.


Sparkle looks about. "And where is Otiorin when we need him?"
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The seasoned adventurer thrusts the bottle into Stewart's hands. "Keep the wagons steady on course! Sparkle" - she points into the darkness - "Oti went that way to scout. I'm off to help Luna and Wolf!" Kitrin bounces to her feet and through the wagon's front door in one jump, drawing her flail as she does so. She takes a moment to see who's where, then charges at the door Luna and Wolf are fleeing through. "Lemme at 'em!"
 
Sparkle's jaw drops in astonishment. "Scout? On foot? While we ride along with eight horses drawing this wagon alone? What kind of numbskull does he-" and that is all Kitrin hears as she dashes into the pool. There, she finds a wide-eyed Bria running full speed for her adventuring gear, and a frustrated and armor-less Powerpaw wildly scrambling about like only a cat can for his maul. Both of them appear completely surprised.


And not a moment too soon.


Wolf and Luna are about twenty feet past the door they entered when, all of a sudden, three great and toothy treasure chests bound out of that very same doorway, baying and growling, snarling and snapping, like Cerberus at the gate to Hell itself. Once at the pool, they stop at the doorway, barring all entry. The noise is so loud that talking at normal volume is useless.


Bria has just enough time to slip on her enchanted ring while the remainder of her fighting gear rests in the Bag of Holding at her feet. She shouts above the din looking as startled and worried as can be. "What happened? Where did they come from?""


Powerpaw grins as he drops into fighting stance. Armor or no armor, the furry monstrosity looks ready to fight. "Ooooh! You brought bad guys!"
 
Bronze is a bit startled so takes a moment of paws ((heh heh)) to evaluate the situation. Decides to head away from the danger but to a place where, if needed, he can respond. Also he readies his warhammer just in case. "What's up? Ugh, what the heck are those things?"
 
Luna does what is the most prudent for her: she keeps running until she has someone bigger, tougher, and better armed in melee action between her and the mimics. She cries out, "They're called mimics! Don't touch them! They are really sticky, and then they start to eat you alive when you can't get your hand away from them! The one in the middle has some kind of magic object in it. I saw it eat it before they started chasing us." After she gets some strong melee oriented people around her, she turns and readies her magic once more.
 
"Something that might be of interest to me!" Wolf shouts. "So Powerpaw, no matter what you do, do not crush the one in the middle!"


He then draws an arrow, ridden with doubt even as he does it as to the practical effectiveness of it against this particular foe.
 
And suddenly, the baying stops.


The three treasure chests quietly and rapidly turn toward one another using what appears to be body language to communicate. The two on either then nudge the chest in the middle. The chest in the middle, in return, barks and its whole body vigorously moves up and down for a moment as if indicating "yes." All three chests then nod together, their tongues lolling for a moment before snapping shut and turning toward you in a perfect, practiced line.

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Once finished, they do not wait, but resume their threatening barks and growls, teeth flashing as they protectively stand at the door leading into the hall.


Powerpaw slowly glances to Wolf and says, "Uhhhh, which one waz dat?"
 
Wolf's keen eyes attempt to keep track of the middle chest as it moves around with incredible speed and agility.


"Damnit! I think it's... Umm..."


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Luna watches the elaborate dance of the monsters with surprise. "I don't know . . . Is it that one?"


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Bronze watches the dance, nods, then looks around, notes there is one of the party missing and goes In Search Of (Dramatic Music)... Otiorin, and Stewart.
 
Kitrin's eyes narrow. The barking sparks a recent memory, and she shouts in her high-pitched hobbity voice, "Bronze! Fetch Stewart!" Then she shifts to a mobile, defensive stance*, not bothering to draw her shield given Luna's advice. "No one hurt them, I think they're...pets? Huh, Arfy?"


*By "defensive stance," I mean that this round she is going Total Defense, forgoing her attacks this round in return for a +4 dodge bonus to her AC.
 
"Pets?!" Luna looks over at Kitrin in astonishment. Then, as she ponders the situation, it makes more sense. "I suppose that's possible. I guess its a good thing that I didn't blast one of these things with a spell. I will have a few harsh words with Stewart, since he was aware that Wolf and I were walking about the Wagon. What other surprises are there in store for us that we don't know about?"
 
Bronze heads to the last place he saw Otiorin go - outside. As he moves through the purple mist covering the door, he exits the wagon and finds himself surrounded by a night sky that, for a relaxing moment, dominates his vision in its calm beauty. Outside, Bronze sees Stewart guiding the Grand Wagon and the Meadowsweets driving the prison wagon alongside the Grand Wagon.


The older fellow gives Bronze a startled look. "You appear to be looking for someone, and since the only person missing is Otiorin..." Stewart points off into the night in the last direction he saw him.


Meanwhile, Sparkle pauses, landing on the back of one of the great draft horses pulling the wagon you are on along. "I do not know whether to go after him or stay here..."


They both look to Bronze as if wondering what the mysterious blacksmith will do next.
 
"Sparkle I think you might want to find Otiorin for us, and Mr Stewart there is a situation in the pool area that we might need you to resolve, there are three Mimics doing a weird shuffle dance. Lets try this to get Otiorin... Brace yourselves" Bronze takes a deep powerful breath, puts his hands over his ears, and makes sure Stewart and Sparkle does the same, and sings in his powerful 125 dB Voice "Otiorin, we need you, please come home, why won't Otiorin come home, come home, come home!"
 
Otiorin was ranging back and forth, evaluating various areas along the route to see if it was appropriate.


"Nope, no shelter from the trees. No, no easy access to the road. No, that stream is foul."


He had to admit this wasn't the best job he could be doing, but right now, the chill of the early morning air was doing wonders on his inflamed ardor and it felt good to be doing more than sitting drinking or, if others had gotten a moment's peace, serious petting. He came to another clearing ans was about to assess it for it's benefits for a campsite when a voice drifted through the air to him.


"Otiorin, we need you, please come home, why won't Otiorin come home, come home, come home!"


He paused, unsure if he'd actually heard the bellow properly, but as the echoes came back, he couldn't but agree that it was indeed the voice of the blacksmith, Bronze. Which meant trouble was abound back at the wagon.


Without a second thought, he turned and sprinted back, his hands weaving the arcane symbols for his Shield even as his lips formed the chant.


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The wizard's accusation draws Kitrin's attention away from the animated, tooth-filled treasure chests. "Luna, that's not fair! He's been outside the whole time, and besides, you just went to talk with Wolf - at least, that's what we all thought." She doesn't mention the romantic possibilities the outside group discussed, as it's totally not relevant right now. "An' he did warn me about explorin', sort of, 'cause of little surprises or something. I woulda mentioned it when we got back together again except you guys went off to open chests instead of, um..." She tries to find something more tactful than making out and ends up just returning her attention to the mimics.
 
Luna glowers, wanting to be angry at Stewart. Then she lets out a sigh. "I suppose I could give him the benefit of the doubt, especially if he did warn you about these things. I still want to have a talk with him, to see what other surprises are lying in wait around here."
 
Wolf watches without a word, shifting his sight from the chest monsters to Luna and Kittrin, and back. He lowered his bow but still holds it with a nocked arrow.


Pets? Who would keep this kind of pet? Oh, right...
 
Otiorin may be distracted, but he is listening to his senses well enough to indeed hear Bronze's call, and identify it for what it is. His Shield spell forms before him, beyond the realm of sight, but as protective as its namesake. He finds himself back at the Grand Wagon, sweating and short of breath (such was the cost of sprinting the whole way) but there as quickly as his feet could take him. There, the sorcerer/rogue comes upon Bronze, Sparkle, and Stewart outside on the driver's seat.


Stewart is looking at Bronze in utter bafflement. "My, what volume you possess! Three mimics doing a strange shuffle, you say? Who in the world went venturing past the pool? After falling prey to the rainbow lotus, I would have thought everyone would have stayed safely put in the pool area." Stewart stands up, reins and wine bottle in hand, and looks a little helpless for a moment. "Could I get a hand or two, please?"


"Allow me, love!" Whittle carefully scrambles from the prison wagon to replace Stewart at the driver's seat. Then, reins at the ready, she looks over to Bonny and says, "Now we've each a wagon! Fancy a race?" She winks and teases her husband and Bonny laughs in kind. "Good luck in there," she says to all of you. Stewart heads inside with Sparkle shooting in right behind him.


"Thank you, my dear." Stewart heads inside with Sparkle shooting in right behind him.


Once inside, the once-servant stops in complete bafflement to what, for him, feels like the umpteenth time in one night. There, he finds the Wayfarers more or less in fighting stances, arranged well against the three bouncing and baying mimics, who bounce and bay all the more at his arrival. Stewart briefly places his hand to his head in disbelief before pausing to count the party members. Then he recounts. Satisfied, he slowly approaches the mimics. Once before them, he places his hands on his hips and in a sudden shout declares, "SIIII-LENCE!!"


Immediately, all three mimics quit their barking and form up in line like soldiers at attention. They cannot help but bounce as they face Stewart, their long red tongues licking at him in clear affection for the man, yet the old man retains his firm stance and tone.


"STACK!"


Eagerly, the mimics jump up and about until they form a triangle of neat chests. They close their maws and look marvelously inconspicuous.


"ROLL OVER!"


The mimics hear this and fall about, rolling about like clowns at a circus, teeth and tongues all over the place.


"ATTENTION!"


The trio excitedly scoop themselves up off of the floor and resume the position they first attended at Stewart's command. Speaking of command, Stewart's voice and manner are as firm as you have ever heard it.


Stewart's aimed finger is like the thrust of a sword. "Are you three chasing our guests out of the winery?"


In reply, all three mimics bark and nod vigorously, whining in anticipation.


"And while you are out here playing at the pool, just who is guarding the winery now?"


Hearing this, all three mimics freeze in what can only be sudden horror. Then, one by one, they begin "looking" at one another. The mimic on the farthest right appears to count the number of mimics. Coming to the number three, it whines in surprise and despair. The other two let out their own shocked, canine screeches and without further order from Stewart, the trio spin about-face and bounce as quickly as they can, yiping and mewling, right back through the door they came through with Stewart walking behind them.


His firm tone and stance fade and the old man smiles and shrugs to you. "I will admit, being Arfy, Barfy, and Snarfy's kennel master was a fun part of being a servant here. Still, please don't investigate further without a tour from me? I would hate for harm to come to you. Care to follow me for a drink?" Stewart follows the mimics, his duty apparently unfinished.


Powerpaw finally lowers his maul, his white tail swishing back and forth. "Wait... which face waz in da middle? Hold ups!" He bounds after Stewart.


Bria smiles, her face a mixture of amusement and relief on her sweet features. She looks to her fellow Wayfarers and gathers up the rest of her gear to follow Powerpaw. "My family told me there would be wonders in the Outside World, but they never mentioned anything like this!"


Meanwhile, from a high rafter comes a little tweet of mixed caution of curiosity. Anyone looking up there will spy a falcon and an uncloaked psuedo dragon peering down on you. Sparkle translates, "Is it safe to come down now?"
 
"Treasure-hunting without the Rogue?", Otiorin tutted after witnessing Stewart's display, "I'd have thought you'd have known better than that. Who knows how many traps, tricks and terrors old Bilial the Scrofulous had cooped up in here?"


He looked around at the others, his eyes not lingering on any of them and sweeping across Bria in particular to stop them from straying.
 
Having unequipped his bow Wolf turns his attention to the falcon. Had he really managed to forget all about his favorite bird in Luna's company? He holds up his gauntlet and signals Pecker to return to him.


And after that, some rest will be in order.
 
"well that was nice" Bronze will head over to a table and start cleaning and tuning Powerpaw's armor, checking and replacing the leather fittings, checking to make sure that if there is any fancy filigree that its cleaned out and the leaf is intact. 'scrub scrub tink tink, tug tug, measure, screw, fix'.


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"I Tink de armor be clean, and repaired!"
 
Bria watches Otiorin upon his return, studying him briefly before nodding to herself. She keeps her thoughts to herself before following Stewart into the bar and winery.


Upon Wolf's call, Pecker hops off of the rafter he was perched on and glides easily down to Wolf's arm. He lands with a thump, his talons digging into Wolf's arm brace. The ranger perceives worry or perhaps annoyance from the lively falcon's body language, but Pecker does not remain quiet about his thoughts for long. Wolf gets a full chirping. "Hey! Hey! Do you know how scared I was without you? Very! Very scared falcon!" Pecker's feathers look a little less ruffled. " There. Said it. All better now. I think..." Wolf might be used to such outbursts from Pecker, who means no harm towards Wolf's feelings, but still must voice his own given his worry, and once done, all will be well again in the falcon's world.


Upon reaching the subject of rest, Wolf notices that his body does indeed seem to require sleep at the moment, especially after a more-than-perilous night like this one. However, Wolf learns something as he examines how he feels - there is a gentle emptiness inside of him that was not present before this night. Not an emotional or physical emptiness, but a peaceful void in his very spirit that calls ever so quietly to be filled. It is not a moment where he feels he has to train to the next level of his ranger skills; it is something different. Something that perhaps requires further study of the self to unravel.


Bronze finds that Powerpaw has thoroughly cleaned his armor. However, Bronze finds that repairing Powerpaw's armor is quite easy, though Bronze has not held the armor of a large-sized creature like Powerpaw in some time. The burly warrior keeps his armor in top condition, but still the marks, scratches, dents, and other assorted nicks tell the tale of many, many battles. Each notch and mark a tale of its own. While the armor has been well-maintained, you doubt that it has seen a crafter's care like your own in some time. Its owner has loped off on all fours after Stewart.


Sparkle returns to Luna's shoulder. "What is it now, two or three hours before dawn?" She smiles and stretches her little wings, "And here we are, still alive and together. I don't know about you, but after tonight, I find that to be a miracle."
 
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Luna smiles at her small friend. "I don't know about you, but I could use a few good hours of sleep. Then I can take the place of someone steering the Wagon and let them rest. Stewart, can you point me safely in the direction of a room to bed down in?" Before she leaves, the young sorceress looks over at Wolf and shares with him a smile. "By the way, I enjoyed our walk. We need to spend more time together, that is, if you would like to." She looks somewhat wistful, hoping for a positive reaction from her companion.
 
Wolf is taken by surprise, and his gentle petting of the bird turns into a scratch that sends Pecker complaining again. Muttering a quick apology, the ranger quickly turns to Luna and says: "I... Why, yes, of course. Together. More time. Umm..."


Oh my gods.


He corrects himself as best and fast as possible, before he goes any higher on Luna's idiot detection meter. "Sorry, I was preoccupied with Pecker here." That's it. New plan. Blame it on the falcon. "Sort of forgot all about him for a time there, and he's not afraid to voice his complaints! But thank you for the walk. I very much enjoyed it." He hangs up a reassuring smile to seal the deal, and slightly bows his head. "Sleep night!"


Frak.


"I mean tight! Sleep tight, Luna. See you in the morning." Chuckling like someone who just went up a notch on the idiot scale, Wolf tries to leave the room as gracefully as possible, completely forgetting that he has absolutely no idea where he is going.
 
Luna turns to find Stewart absent from the pool area. Sparkle curls up on Luna's shoulder and tries her level best not to make some playful comment to Wolf. Many, many years of practice have helped add restraint to the list of things Sparkle is good at, and she succeeds. "Where did he go?" The pseudo dragon looks around the pool area noting the three doorways that exit the splendorous room.


Pecker, on the other talon, watches Wolf as he talks. Hearing his name, he perks up, tweeting and chirping excitedly, "You say my name! What are you saying? Why you nervous? Why you look at fire-soul like that? It is only Luna!"


"Oh, pipe down," Sparkle yawns, "and let things take their natural course."
 
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