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The Runaway Bride Part 2

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The Adventure of the Runaway Bride


Part 2


A Tale of the BioSouls World


by Ben R (illogictree.deviantart.com)


"I think this might be the place," said Charlie.


Asenath examined the town from their hilltop vantage point. "Hmm, definitely looks bigger than the other towns. They have buildings Charlie might actually be able to fit into down there. But how can we be sure it's Lesser Serrush?"


"Call me crazy, but the fact that they're setting up a huge wedding pavilion in the square, and banners announcing the marriage of Ms. Meis Brockwood and Lord Hawney Waterdown are hanging from every convenient point, might be what gave her a clue," said Robin.


Charlie coughed and pointed at a green signpost with a greeting in gold lettering by the road. "Actually, I was just reading the sign," she said, "but yours is good too."


"Groovy spoons!" cried Asenath as she drew her sword. "Let's get it on! Swords to the wind and pants to the floor!"


The cleric grabbed her leader's sword arm and pinned it behind her back. "Hey, what do you think you're doing?! " she cried. "This calls for talk, not battle!"


"Yeah," sighed Robin, "at least not at this point. We have to find her first, and see if we can sneak off with her. If that fails, then we'll have to play it by ear from there."


The fiery young warrior sighed and nodded in assent. "All right, fair enough. Stealth first, steel later." Charlie released her, and she slid her sword back into its scabbard. Rubbing her shoulder, she looked over the town again. "So what do we do next?"


"We've got to get more information," said Robin. "Where is Meis living now? When is the wedding taking place? What are the plans for it? What sorts of defenses are there around her? You get the picture," he said, "we need to fill in the picture."


"And there's one place we can do that!" cried Asenath. "The local tavern!" She started off down the hill into the town.


The other two shrugged and followed her. "Where do you suppose she picked up that battle cry?" asked Charlie. "I understand the 'swords to the wind' bit, but 'pants to the floor'?"


After a few seconds of contemplation, Robin shrugged again. "Probably best not to think too hard about it," he said.


* * * * *


The dining hall at Waterdown Manor was not quite as impressive as that back in Meis' family's mansion. It was long, dark and lined with dusty suits of armor, faded portraits of Lords Waterdown of ages past, hideously antique furniture, and other detritus that very old and previously wealthy families seem to accumulate and leave lying around their domiciles. It was built in a style aping that of human buildings of the period, had few windows and was dominated by a large stone fireplace on one wall - square in shape, like a human fireplace, with a large portrait of the current Lord Waterdown hung over it. Meis thought this was a rather unnecessary touch, as the painting's subject was there in person.


Hawney Waterdown was not a handsome halfling. He was tall and skinny, but stood with an awkward stoop so that he was barely taller than she, not counting his long ears which couldn't seem to decide whether to stand up or hang down. He seemed to lack a chin, which accentuated his overly large buck teeth even more. His fur had irregular dark grey patches over a base of light grey, his whiskers drooped, and his black hair was thin and greasy. However, despite being ugly, unemployed, and having only a nominal income courtesy of the monarchy, her father expected her to marry him. And Waterdown was in love with the idea - mostly the idea of having a pretty wife hanging off his arm and a rich father-in-law just down the street. Whether he was in love with her, specifically, was debatable.


Currently, she was enduring his presence at dinner. Her parents were there as well, so she had been unable to simply claim illness and leave. Worse, he was actually pretending to actually care about her by attempting conversation.


"So, you were running around in the wilderness for the past year? With a group of humans?" he was asking, lisping as he spoke.


"Yeah, pretty much," she said, playing with her fork and a bread roll as she pointedly avoided looking at anyone.


"That sounds dangerous. Humans are stupid and don't always look where they put their feet, don't they?"


"...Well, I wouldn't call them ALL stupid, but yeah, it's not very easy for a halfling to live among humans." She smiled. "But I think I was getting used to it. It feels a bit funny to be able to look people in the eyes without having to look up all the time."


He ignored the fact that she wasn't looking anyone in the eyes at the moment. "Yes, but what about the wild beasts and monsters you faced? Didn't that frighten you?"


Meis sighed. She'd almost rather be back in the swamp fighting the hivebugs than be here. "A bit, I guess. It wasn't all that bad though, now that I think about it. At least with monsters, you only have to worry about where to stick your sword or when to use your energent."


An awkward pause ensued.


"Well, speaking of energent," began Waterdown as he attempted to change the subject, "how is the business going, Reynis old chap?"


Reynis gave a low growl. "Not bad. The mines are producing energent at an acceptable rate. We made a new deal with the representative from Kilohee this weekend; their shipments of stonewood timber and snow gems should begin arriving in a few months. Things seem to be going smoothly so far."


Waterdown smiled and lifted his wineglass in a toast to business success. The glasses were cut crystal and probably as old as the rest of the house; they were certainly beyond his current means. His grandfather or great-grandfather had laid down the wine contained therein, or so he had claimed. To Meis, it tasted like paint thinner and the bottle had looked suspiciously recent. She found herself missing the taverns and ale houses her group often stopped at on the way from place to place, despite the fact that they had been for the most part grubby, dingy, and filled with humans who didn't watch where they put their feet. This surprised her, but she had been finding a lot of things about herself that surprised her. The year on the road with her friends seemed to have changed her more than she had realized.


"So, Meis," broke in her mother, "what do you suppose your friends are up to now without you?"


Meis smiled ruefully. "Probably getting into trouble, or sitting in a tavern somewhere. Maybe both at once."


* * * * *


The main tavern in this part of Lesser Serrush was an expensive upscale establishment. This meant, in the group's experience, that the tables actually got wiped down between customers. However, it went well beyond that, providing actual booths for the patrons; a small five-member band in one corner playing music by paid request; an octopus pot whose occupant was advertising low-cost public access to the network; and a fully-stocked bar. All this, however, passed once under Asenath's radar and was promptly forgotten as she spotted something much more interesting to her.


"YOU!!!" yelled Asenath as she charged up to the bar.


"Great, she forgot her promise already," growled Robin. "There goes our low profile." He glanced back at Charlie as she crouched to avoid a chandelier. "Relatively speaking, I guess."


The man Asenath had spotted looked up calmly as she towered over him, and took a sip from his small shot glass. "Ah, at last we meet again, madam. I was wondering when you would arrive." He gestured to the seat beside him. "Would you care for a drink?"


Faced with this calm response, Asenath foundered for a few seconds, before shrugging and sitting down with him. Her knees bumped the underside of the bar as she did so. "So what's good here, Scratchy?"


Dismend Scratchtail flinched slightly at the nickname, but called for the bartender to mix up something called a 'martini', double size.


Asenath stared doubtfully at the small olive-adorned glass the bartender pushed toward her, then scooped it up and downed it in one go. She gave a cough and a wheeze, pounded her chest for a second, and then placed the glass back on the countertop. "Not bad, I guess. Not a lot of flavor."


Scratchtail's lips parted in a humorous smile. "Ah, yes, no doubt you are more used to tavern ales, which trade alcohol content for more, shall we say, interesting inclusions. Well, I did not expect you to have much in the way of a sophisticated palate."


She tapped the countertop again. "Hey, barman, er, bar...dog? Fox? Chinchilla? Whatever. Another of these things. But this time, mix in a bit of ale and lose the olive."


As the barman made horrified sounds at this demand, she turned her attention back to Scratchtail. "So what's up? Still hanging around the scene of the crime?"


He chuckled. "In a way. I have been keeping an eye on the developments regarding Ms. Brockwood, and waiting for you to arrive."


The barman pushed another glass toward Asenath. She scooped it up and sipped at it experimentally before continuing. "I see. And what have you found?"


"Madam, I'm afraid I do not work for free. If you want my help, you must pay for it."


"Well, that shouldn't be so bad. How much do you charge?" she asked, topping it off with a swig from her glass.


The mercenary cat named a sum.


She coughed on her ale-martini concoction and glanced towards Robin, who had seated himself at a nearby table with Charlie. The barbarian cleric's knees were almost touching her chin as she struggled to sip from a teacup barely bigger than her thumbnail. Robin shrugged back and upended his coin purse, allowing a measly three copper pieces to drop out.


"Nuts," she said. "Looks like we're a little short on cash at the moment." Abruptly, she remembered the wall scroll still tied to her pack. "Although, I have a good payment coming up, once I get back to Crestvale. Do you keep a tab?"


He chuckled in amusement. "Normally, I take my payment once my task is completed. I suppose this time I could delay receipt of my payment for some little time. That, I think, would be acceptable."


Asenath's eyes narrowed. "Why are you taking an interest in Meis? I mean, it's not like you stand to gain much from this. Hey, bar-hamster, gimme another of these. This time stick a chunk of roasted meat and a few strawberry slices in it, kay?"


Over the groans of the bartender, Scratchtail related his reasons. "I feel that I am responsible for her current situation. As you may have guessed, I am somewhat of a romantic at heart, and I feel that forcing someone into a marriage is a despicable thing to do. I would have refused the commission in the first place if Mr. Brockwood had been forthcoming as to the reasons for Ms. Brockwood's disappearance. But, I accepted, and I was honor-bound to complete the commission. That, however, does not mean I cannot take a commission to undo what I have done."


"I see," said Asenath. She sipped at the bizarre concoction she had ordered, and licked her lips. "Hmm, needs more soy sauce," she said, tipping it to the bartender again. With a barely contained sob, he produced a bottle and poured a little into the glass over the back of a silver spoon. She tasted it again, pronounced it "Perfection!", then proceeded to down it with gusto. "So, what can you tell us?"


"Well, the most important thing you should know," Scratchtail began, "is that the wedding is tomorrow evening."


* * * * *


Meis stared at the wedding dress. She knew her father had had one made for her a year ago, but she had run away before laying eyes upon it. It was just like her room, opulent and reflecting her father's vision of a 'proper lady' - and more specifically, what one should wear to her wedding. Layer upon layer of stunning white materials - gauze, lace, silk and fabrics she couldn't name - making up a dress that gave the impression of a wayward cloud.


"I... am... NOT wearing this," she said firmly.


Reynis loomed over her. "Is that because it is not to your liking, or because you do not intend to get married?"


"Both," she shot back.


He backed away from her, and turned toward the huge bay window that dominated the parlor. "Meis, I know how you feel about this, but this is far more important than you realize. Not just for me, but for the entire country. I've single-handedly put this city on the map as it is. If I could get a noble title, I could do so much more for this city."


"Oh, come on," groaned Meis. "Just look at Waterdown. He's a nobleman, and all he's ever done is sleep around and waste money. The only thing he has going for him is a title. Name one thing you can do with a noble title that you can't do as a businessman!"


Her father smiled. "Businessmen don't get a say in government policy," he said. "Noblemen do."


"Are you saying," she said calmly, "that you're marrying me off just so you can get your foot in the door on politics?"


"Don't be foolish!" he thundered, whirling around. "Power like that is wasted on men like Waterdown. With actual political clout, I could turn my business contacts in other countries into diplomatic ones. I could turn Lesser Serrush and the entirety of the West Woods into a major economic power. Someday, a descendant of yours could even sit on the throne of this entire country!" He stood over her again, silhouetting himself against the light from the window. "And you would throw all that away, just because you don't like him?"


Meis turned away from him. "This is nuts. Your plans are crazy. There are too many variables. If my time away from home has taught me anything, it's that you can't predict what will happen even an hour from now, much less lay out the plans for a few years! If you died tomorrow, you wouldn't be able to make your diplomatic contacts, and I'd be hitched to that randy cretin for the rest of my life! How would it make you feel, ruining your daughter's life for nothing?"


"Very little, I'd imagine, on account of being dead," he deadpanned.


Her reply was interrupted by the butler's polite knock.


"Excuse me, sir," said Welkins, "but there is someone here to speak with you and the young missus."


Reynis frowned. "I'm not expecting anyone. Who are they?"


Welkins held out a silver platter with a name card on it. "They claim to be here to attend the wedding, sir," he explained.


The master of the house picked it up and examined it. "...Lady Q. Camber of Petrean?" He frowned. "I've never heard of her... But Petrean?" His eyes lit up. "That's a small town in the central Earth Realm, famous for creating golems. I wonder..."


Her father may not have heard of a 'Lady Q. Camber', but Meis had. "Father, I met her once on my adventures. She's a golem dealer. We once helped her to expose a counterfeiting ring in Celestross that was using hollowed stone golems to exchange faked goods with the real thing. She was very grateful." This was a stretch of the truth; there was no 'Lady Camber', it was a pseudonym that Charlie had used during that particular mission when they had posed as golem dealers from Petrean. Robin had suggested the name as a joke, and Asenath, who hadn't gotten it, decided to go with it.


"Ah, I see," said Reynis, rubbing his chin in thought. "Golems... I'm sure there must be a market around here for them... And if not, they could still improve production in the mines..." Coming to a decision, he placed the name card back on the platter. "Inform her ladyship that we will be down shortly. Oh, and have Lucille prepare tea for us."


Welkins bowed and smoothly turned to carry out his tasks.


Satisfied, Reynis smiled down at his daughter. "Now, Meis... It's time for you to brush up on your diplomacy skills. We're going to lay the groundwork for a business deal now if possible. Remember to put in a good word for me with your friend."


Trying to hide her excitement, Meis smiled and nodded. "I'll certainly try, Father."


* * * * *


"Man, this place is POSH!" exclaimed Asenath as she lounged on a sofa, one of the few pieces of furniture available that could seat her comfortably. "A bit small, but posh. Check out the furniture, that's gotta be Gasprilian leather. And that rug...! I can't even pronounce the name of the place it comes from. Nice bit of carpet, I'd say..."


"You realize, of course," said Robin carefully, "that her ladyship should be the one sitting and commenting on the room's appointments?"


The dark-skinned woman leapt to her feet. "I, uh, sorry, your ladyship," she stuttered. She bowed. "Your seat's warmed up for you, ma'am!"


Charlie, clad in a striking green gown that matched her eyes and wearing the silver-and-emerald jewelry she had used the last time she assumed the role, nodded. "Thank you, but it is polite to wait until the host invites you to sit."


Embarrassed, Asenath straightened her three-piece business suit and attempted to look inconspicuous. "Right, well, I guess it's good then that nobody's been sitting, right?" She glared at Robin, daring him to contradict her.


He shifted uncomfortably. "Stop staring. I feel ridiculous enough as it is." He glared at her again. "Explain to me again why I'm wearing the maid outfit this time?"


Asenath stuck her tongue out at him. "Because I was the maid last time, and everyone thought you were a girl anyway. Now quit complaining! They're coming back."


The three of them stood to attention as Welkins reappeared to announce "Mr. Reynis Brockwood and his daughter, Meis."


The two skunks entered the waiting room with an unhurried air of formality. Reynis bowed stiffly, while Meis gave a curtsey. Charlie returned the bow, while the other two made curtsies as well.


"It is good to see you again, Ms. Brockwood," she started. "I trust I find you in good health?"


Meis smiled politely. "Yes, indeed, Lady Camber," she said. "I am surprised and delighted that you came so far to attend my..." Here she grimaced ever so slightly - "wedding tomorrow. I trust there were no difficulties in the trip?"


Charlie smiled back. "No, no trouble at all," she said. "I was already in the area for a business meeting, and I happened to hear of your upcoming marriage. I wanted to congratulate you on this happy occasion. You must be so excited."


Meis' smile became strained. "Ye-e-es, excited. I can barely contain myself," she said. Beside her, her father gave a cough. "Ah, where are my manners?" she said, falling back into her normal tones. "Lady Camber, this is my father. Father, this is Lady Qindyllene Camber of Petrean."


Reynis held out his hand, and Charlie grasped it for a handshake. Her hand completely enveloped his. "Please, sir, feel free to call my Qindy," she said.


"Ah," Reynis said, "then you may call me Reynis." He gestured to the hallway. "If you would care to accompany us to the drawing room, we can have some tea and some conversation. I'm sure you and my daughter have many things to catch up on."


As they started down the hall, he spoke up again, trying to sound nonchalant. "So... My daughter mentioned you were in the golem trade? Interesting area to be working in, golems..."


* * * * *


Fortunately, Charlie knew enough and Reynis knew little enough on the subject of animated statues that she could impress him with some technical talk, tossing around phrases like 'shem spooling', 'emet frequency', 'storage tablet capacity', and other impressive-sounding golem-related terms. Reynis listened politely but was clearly out of his league in this matter. However, when he started asking questions about business-related matters, it was clear that this was his domain. With some helpful figures from Asenath, taken from the latest stock information provided by the Octopus Pot Network, she managed to give answers that the skunk halfling found acceptable, whilst making up answers to his more specific questions about the companies she dealt with.


That out of the way for now, Charlie turned the conversation to what she was really interested in, the wedding plans.


"Oh, of course she'll be attended to at all times," said Reynis. "She'll be waited on hand and foot in preparation for the wedding; anything else would be careless. She'll also have an honor guard from the town's own auseler at all times." He neglected to mention that this was to ensure his daughter didn't run away again.


"Ah, very proper," said Charlie. "Very traditional, too, if I remember correctly."


Meis gave a dainty laugh. "Actually, a traditional wedding would have us naked in the woods and getting high on mushrooms, with a druid watching the whole thing," she said.


Asenath almost laughed aloud at that, but caught herself in time.


Charlie winced slightly and nodded. "Ah, of course. I apologize. I meant, traditional for a human-style wedding."


"That IS traditional, now," said Reynis gruffly. "Nobody does weddings in that barbaric manner any more. Now my daughter's wedding," he said, changing tone, "will be carried out with full pomp and ceremony. She and her honor guard will proceed straight out from the main house, down the lane, and turn directly onto the main street and proceed from there to the main square where the wedding pavilion is set up. They'll be accompanied by a marching band, dancers, a flower cart, the whole song and dance. The groom's party will be making a similar procession from Waterdown Manor beforehand, so Lord Waterdown will be there to meet her."


"Ah, yes, sounds wonderful," said Charlie. "Hopefully the weather holds."


Reynis sighed. "Yes, that's one thing we can't always count on. Forecasts are for good skies tomorrow, but you know how accurate the Octopus Weather Network is..."


Charlie gave a polite laugh. "Of course, of course. Well, may you have clear skies tomorrow," she said, raising an imaginary wineglass.


Her host smiled and returned the gesture. "And may your days be filled with peace," he said, finishing the traditional toast.


Asenath leaned toward Robin and said in a low whisper, "I thought the second half was, 'and may you not wake up with a hangover'?"


"Maybe for you," he whispered back.


"It has been very pleasant to meet you," said Charlie, "but I'm afraid that we must take our leave to prepare for tomorrow."


Reynis nodded and stood. "Ah, yes, of course. We have our own preparations to make. I will see you tomorrow, then?"


Charlie stood up. "Of course. And I'll be sure to mention your interest in our golems at the next guild meeting in Riftdelving once I return home." She turned to Meis, who was also getting to her feet. "I wish you a happy day tomorrow and once again give you my congratulations."


Meis smiled and curtsied. "Thank you, Lady Camber, I look forward to seeing you there tomorrow."


* * * * *


Late that night, in the candlelit gloom of their room at the inn, Scratchtail and the three humans pored over a map of the city, trying to come up with a plan for the next day.


"The honor guard will be the biggest problem, I believe," said Scratchtail. "My reconnaissance at the auseler barracks has informed me that the members selected for them are elite members."


"So what?" said Asenath. "Elite or not, they're still bunnies with weak little arms. They can't face all four of us."


"I wouldn't say 'weak little arms'," said Robin. "Those halberds they wield aren't for show. They're just long and heavy enough to take a man's head off in one swipe before he can get into sword range." He shivered. "They always go for the throat, you know."


"Also, I would ask you to never refer to them as 'bunnies', madam," said Scratchtail. "They happen to be hares, and if you call them that they will be sure to take offense. And they can be very, very dangerous when offended."


Asenath shrugged. "Sure, whatever. So they're nasty little buggers, I get it. We can take 'em out with one move. I can build a grenade out of an energent, some raw materials, and then toss it at 'em at an opportune moment and blow them to tiny bits."


Charlie shook her head. "No, definitely not. You would blow Meis up as well, and that would kind of defeat the purpose of rescuing her." She glanced out the window, watching the huge full moon slowly rise over the treetops. "No, I think what we need is a distraction." She turned to Robin.


"...I don't like that look," he said. "What are you thinking?"


"Simple. What's the best way to rain on someone's parade, than to rain on their parade?"


Realization dawned on the half-elf's face. "Oh, no, no way. The last time we tried that, it didn't turn out so well. Besides, we don't have enough energent."


"What? What's the idea?" asked Asenath.


"I too am curious," said Scratchtail. "Pray tell, what is this idea? At this point, anything deserves at least a modicum of consideration."


Robin sighed and shook his head. "The Thunderstorm technique. A spell that, as its name suggests, summons a large, localized thunderstorm."


"Ah, yeah, that one!" cried Asenath, leaping up. "That's one great technique, really impressive and attention-getting."


"It's also a Chaos technique," protested Robin. "Very dangerous, impossible to control. Nearly impossible to predict how well it will work, or how long. At best it will be a few minutes of driving rain, hailstones, lightning, and general chaos. At worst it will be an hour-long light drizzle. You'd be stupid to rely on something like that. Or desperate."


Scratchtail considered this. "Is there anything else that any of you can think of that would be as great a distraction?"


"Nothing quite as effective, at least not on such short notice. Charlie can do the Dust Storm technique, but I notice the streets here are pretty clean."


"Very well, I think we shall have to make do with that," said the catlike man. "We will have to move fast in any case, as the auseler are trained to fight under the most adverse circumstances; we may only have a few seconds of distraction, if any."


"Right, and after that, how do we get away?" asked Charlie.


"Same thing we always do," said Robin. "Run like all the forces of Niflheim were after us."


"Sounds good to me," said Asenath. "Unless those bunnies can run faster than us. Although, I think if I use a Fire Bomb or something, we might shake them a bit easier."


Scratchtail nodded. "That sounds like a workable plan... Albeit a bit expensive on the energent. Although that shouldn't be much of a problem, as I received a handsome payment recently and energent is not difficult to come by in this town." He paused for a second before continuing. "Although, might I suggest a slightly different tactic for the escape...?"


* * * * *


The day dawned bright and cloudless, which made Robin fret slightly. Although it was near impossible to predict how the Thunderstorm technique would behave any given time it was used, he always felt it worked better if there was something to work on. His teacher back home had scoffed at that notion, saying something about a butterfly flapping its wings in Sulidar causing blizzards in Kilohee, but Robin hadn't seen the relevance of that. He had always been of the opinion Kilohee got enough blizzards on its own without interference from butterflies halfway around the world.


Scratchtail disappeared for the day, collecting the equipment they would need, while Robin checked over the pavilion and square for part of their backup plan in case they had to ditch their first.


Meanwhile, Charlie and Asenath walked the streets, taking stock of the strength of the auseler honor guards present for both the bride and groom and exploring the route they would take. Shockingly, Asenath remained uncharacteristically quiet for most of the exercise. Finally, as the pair of them passed Waterdown Manor a third time, Charlie spoke up.


"OK, what is it?"


The shorter warrior glanced up in confusion. "Huh?"


"You know, why are you so quiet? I was expecting at least an 'I still think I can take 'em' out of you by now. Or at least a comment on how ugly the manor is."


Asenath shook her head. "I dunno, I feel like there was something important I forgot to do. Maybe there's a flaw in our plan or something. Maybe we're overlooking something. Maybe I'm bothered because I'm letting that crazy cat live for now. I just feel like something's going to go wrong."


Charlie stared at her. "OK, who are you and what have you done with the real Asenath?" Her shorter friend cracked a smile at that. "Seriously, Asenath, this isn't like you. You're usually the last one to worry about a plan. You never worry about the future or the past. And you're never down like this. What is it?"


Her friend glanced back toward the manor and the group of halberd-wielding hares in elaborate ceremonial armor milling about the courtyard. "I dunno, just something about this... I kinda feel like I've been in a similar situation before but it didn't turn out well. Well, not the whole wedding thing, but... Meis has her entire future riding on this, and I don't want to screw up. I mean, helping her out is the hero thing to do, but I've never felt like this for any of the other hero things I've done before."


"Well, I suppose responsibility would be a foreign concept to you," deadpanned Charlie. She smiled suddenly. "There's still hope for you yet, As. You might be a hero someday after all."


Asenath grinned at her, and glanced back over her shoulder at the manor just before the curve of the road hid the manor and its attendant auseler behind a row of neatly planted trees. "You know," she said brightly, "I still think I could take those dumb bunnies."


* * * * *


PROCEED TO PART 3 FOR CONCLUSION

OK, this has been sitting on my hard drive for quite a while. I've gotten generally positive reviews from the few friends I've shown it to, but I just haven't put it up on my page - both because I'm not ENTIRELY happy with it but don't know how I could make it better, and because I'm lazy. :P I ended up having to split it into 3 parts to accommodate dA's upload size limit; it's not really meant as 3 separate stories.

Anyway, this story is set in my BioSouls fantasy RPG setting, and features one of the groups of adventurers I've come up with. It also contains a few roundabout references to other literary works (and maybe a movie or two), though they might be difficult to spot.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
© 2009 - 2024 illogictree
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