Hello, Everyone!
Last time, our heroes climbed down into Ekoba's sewers and started a fight with the terrifying creature that was eating the people of the city. Mary was really frightened - because of its strange powers, if it ate any of them, it would be like they'd never even existed!
The creature used the voices of its previous victims, trying to distract and enchant the group. Mary managed to shake off two of its attempts but, after it revealed that Lanurey Trost--whose existence Mary didn't remember--had saved her life back in Myth Adofhaer, Mary fell into the trance.
Content warning: The text below contains topics that might be upsetting to some readers ( amputation). Proceed at your own caution.
Everything was a blur. There were shouts and flashes of light, there was a dull ache in her chest and the feeling that somehow it was all her fault. There was the air rushing around her face, like she was flying up, then it slowed down and gravity pulled her back.
Then, a snap. And everything went dark.
The whole world burst into pain. Mary didn’t know where she was. She gasped and realized--in horror--that her lungs did not receive air. Her mind screamed. She flailed her arms in the murky liquid and saw light… above? below? next to? herself. She desperately swam towards it until her head pierced the surface.
There was a bank in the distance. She teleported towards it. When she stepped on the ground, her foot gave in and she fell sideways.
Darkness engulfed her once again.
Consciousness slowly came back to her, and along came the pain. She felt it all over her body – chest, arms, legs… It was somehow distant--pulsing but not actively ripping her apart. She knew that feeling. She’d been magically healed. Thank Ioun for her friends!
She opened her eyes and saw their worried faces above her. They both seemed tired. Aurum had dried blood all over his shirt and Bruno looked like he’d been through hell; but they were both alive. She let out a relieved sigh.
“Hey,” she said weakly. “We’re all here! That’s good. I was so worried…”
“Mary, I’m sorry,” Bruno said.
“I’m ok, don’t worry,” she said and began to rise. “You healed me, right? I’ll be up and running in no time.”
“Mary, don’t…” Aurum held out his arms.
She propped herself on her elbows and looked around. They were still in the sewer. Wet walls surrounded them, along with the sound of running water and the atrocious smell of human waste. The Hydra was gone. Mary was about to say something about winning yet another fight, but then her eyes fell on her legs.
Leg.
Her eyes fell on her leg.
She stared at the place where her right foot should have been and saw nothing but the bloody end of her trousers, ripped off just under the knee.
She blinked.
It couldn’t…
It wasn’t...
She…
Mercifully, her mind gave up and she fell into nothingness.
She flickered into consciousness. The sewer hung above her like a prison cell. Bruno and Aurum‘s muffled voices came from somewhere beside her. She couldn’t understand what they were saying but they were still there and they were still alive.
She drifted off again.
She came to from the sensation of water on her skin. Her eyes fluttered half-open and she looked around. There was a well, and a bucket, and Bruno and Aurum who were trying to clean themselves a few feet away from her. She was lying on the ground, her head gently placed on the Bag of Holding. Her clothes and hair were wet.
Maybe she'd just been washed, too?
"There are no healers here that are capable to help her," came the words of a worried male voice.
There was a bed underneath Mary’s body and a wooden ceiling over her head. The smell of ointments and something cooked filled her nostrils.
"Everyone who shows even a little bit of a talent is sure to leave Ekoba very soon after. I'm sorry.”
She was sorry, too. This person was so worried!
“I’ll think about it,” a croaking female voice made its way into Mary’s consciousness.
Somewhere in her mind she didn’t trust this voice.
“I wouldn’t hold on to the leg, though. It doesn’t matter how little time has passed. It is lost for good.”
What was that person talking about? What leg?
Mary’s eyes opened. She stared at the ceiling and remembered her nightmare. It was so real!She stood up and stared at her foot.
It hadn't been a nightmare.
Slowly, she lay down on her side and curled into a ball. The feeling of her right leg not lying on top of the left was like nothing she could ever have imagined.
I'm so sorry you had to read that! And at the same time, I hope I've managed to write it well enough to be just as heartbreaking as it was during the actual game.
Do you think Mary's going to be alright? 🥺
See you next time when we'll find out.
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 and Bruno) 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.