Hello, Everyone!
Last time Mary, Bruno and Aurum went on to the plateau that hosted the remains of the Gold dragon and met a mysterious (and, honestly, kinda intimidating) tabaxi named Agatha. They had a quick conversation and Mary went to plant the orange tree seed Gillean had given her. There, she had an awful scare - high in the sky above, a very familiar Black dragon flew over. Nurvureem had a rider.
Fortunately, she didn't notice our heroes, so they were safe... for now.
The afternoon on the plateau was going pretty well. The boys from the trio’s ‘Guard’ were called over and were now enjoying the warmth of several small campfires where the remains of the huge lizard were quickly turning into a meal. Agatha had seemed surprised when they started arriving. Bruno’s ‘strength in numbers’ comment must have gained a new meaning now.
The dwarf sent a message to inform Dynatos Perres about Nurvureem and received a concerning reply. A black dragon was seen flying above Pamagos towards Ekoba less than a week ago.
So, it wasn’t a one-time thing. Nurvureem was making rounds.
Aurum insisted that Bruno sent a message to someone in their fortress. Said they had to warn Orswald of the possible movement from Myth Adofhaer; and also mention the new recruits the trio was bringing in.
They replied and said that when the boys came, they would be taken care of. But another piece of worrying information came with their message. The fortress’ hunter, Dimana, had noticed some Ice Giants high in the mountain.
“There’s good news, too,” Bruno said with a wide smile. “They said they’ve found a vein of mythril near the fortress. Which means that, when this is all over, we’ll be rich!”
Mary shook her head. She was already used to her friend’s materialistic tendencies and didn’t comment on them anymore. She knew that he was doing it out of habit and because of his dwarven upbringing, and would drop any amount of money if it meant saving someone’s life. Bruno was a good person.
Bruno was an observant person, too.
“There’s a dust cloud coming from Ekoba,” he informed them during one of his watches. “People are coming this way. Possibly on horses.”
Mary flicked her wand and one by one, made all the nearby campfires disappear. They couldn’t risk being discovered.
“It’s about thirty people in military uniforms,” Aurum said when he was able to cast his Clairvoyance at them. “All on horses. Must be Ekoba’s drafting force.”
They must have been quite annoyed that there weren’t any young men in the villages on their way. Mary felt proud that they were able to get the boys out in time but also hoped that the rest of the villagers weren’t blamed for their absence.
“There’s one more village between here and Livorda,” Bezar said. “They must be going there now.”
“We need to warn them, too,” Aurum said.
He used his new spell to turn into a giant eagle, and flew to the village before the riders got there. Bezar went with him, to vouch for the bard’s words and convince the villagers that they were sincere.
A little bit unwillingly, the boy climbed on the eagle’s back and it took off. Bezar’s frightened gasp sounded in the air and turned into a yelp when the giant bird started gaining altitude.
Aurum was gone for about two hours. The military riders passed by the plateau without detecting the large group, and soon were far enough to not notice even if the campfires were re-lit.
Mary was really happy when that finally happened. By that time, her health condition had worsened considerably and she was sitting on the ground, wrapped in as many blankets as she was able to find, shivering and a bit delirious. She was starting to develop a fever and her stomach was burning in constant pain, although she’d emptied it--from both ends--several times already.
After the first sign that this wasn’t just an ordinary indisposition, she’d called for Bruno.
“It’s sewage fever,” the cleric had said. “You’ve probably gotten it from the waste water back in Ekoba. Normal healing magic won’t work here. I’ll pray to Ord for a spell that can do it instead, but it’d have to wait for the morning. Until then, I could give you some herbs… but you’ll probably expel them before they are able to work.”
Mary groaned but there was nothing to be done. She had to survive until morning.
She spent the night alone in the Orange tree, completely missing Aurum’s return. She hardly slept at all, tossing and turning, having one fever dream after another. Her whole being was yearning for Lilly’s hug and the special toasts she’d make when Mary would get sick at home.
Why did this have to happen on the road?!
It's such a nasty thing to get sick during a tense and stressful time. It usually doesn't happen to heroes, you know? No fantasy book I've read has a chapter of them having to fight off diarrhea 😅 All their illnesses and injuries are so heroic and romantic!
Well, our DM likes to have a more... realistic look on things :)
See you next time when we're about to see how Bruno deals with Mary's condition and we'll continue our journey forward.
Take care and be well!
(Also, here's a link to the Chapter Guide, the Glossary and the Map for the series. You're welcome!)
An important disclaimer: These are my notes from a D&D game turned into a narrative. All the worldbuilding and NPC encounters belong to our DM, and all the actions of the other main characters (Aurum, Bruno and Agatha) belong to my co-players. My contribution to the story is only everything Mary-related (actions, reactions, inner thoughts), as well as the writing itself.