Two sets of eyes fell on the half-orc, whose knees trembled at the sight of the thing. It was a grotesque monster, unlike anything he'd ever imagined. Two heads sat upon massive shoulders. Each face was riddled with warts and scabs. Rotten brown teeth protruded from the creature's lower jaws. Its legs and arms were the size of small oaks. Either of its hands was easily as big as the half-orc's head. Thin, greasy hair hung limp over the creature's brows. It was clothed in a crude, hide loincloth. Bits of dried flesh still clung to the garment.
Mialee turned on the ettin with her magic bolts. A trio of them raced from her fingertips at the giant. The missiles slammed into the creature, burning holes in its thick clothing but doing little else.
The gnolls backed off as the giant waded into the melee wielding the lower half of a tree as a weapon. It moved toward Krusk at once, bringing the huge club around on the barbarian, sending him reeling to the side to avoid the blow. The return swing caught both of Vadania's phantasmal wolves, sending their broken bodies hurtling across the camp.
The ettin's attacks became less precise as the passion of the fight overtook it. It leveled a handful of fleeing gnolls, catching them on the end of its tree as they tried to get away from the flailing stump. The rest of the gnolls backed off entirely to the edge of the clearing, not wanting to run but unwilling to stay within the ettin's indiscriminate reach.
Malthooz blinked as he watched Mialee disappear for an instant then reappear at the ettin's side. The wizard flashed into and out of sight while she struck at the creature's feet with her staff.
The door flap of the main tent was thrown open from inside. A large gnoll stood in the doorway, mumbling words, its hands weaving patterns in the air. Malthooz felt something rubbing against his boots. He tried to lift his foot but it was held firmly to the ground. The earth seemed to come alive under his feet as tiny sprouts sprang up around him, snaking their way up his legs. The vines wrapped themselves up his calf, tightening as they grew.
He looked around at the others. All of them were caught in a web of foliage. Its spell completed, the gnoll dashed from the tent and into the woods.
"He's mine," Lidda said, hacking at the ground with her sword. She severed the last of the creepers that held her in place and raced after the fleeing gnoll.
Krusk and Mialee faced the giant, all three of them literally rooted to the battle. As it bent to add leverage to its swing, the barbarian's axe flashed upward and severed one of the ettin's heads from the body. Like an enormous melon, it rolled across the clearing, leaving behind a splashed trail of blood. One hand slipped from the giant's club as it lost control of half of its body. The beast spun in a circle, one leg tangled in foliage, the other stomping free, as it swung the tree around. Mialee dodged to the side and slammed her staff into the creature's chin. With a loud pop, the weapon snapped in two, but the jagged end stabbed upward through the ettin's jaw. The giant toppled backward, crashing into the side of a tent and bringing the structure flapping down around itself.
Seeing their champion down, the gnolls watching from the edges of the clearing turned and scattered into the gloom of the forest, leaving their attackers in possession of the camp.
"I lost the spellcaster," Lidda wheezed, her breath coming in short rapid breaths. "At least we have the staff. And I found this in its tent."
She tossed a roll of heavy parchment to Mialee. The wizard grabbed the thing, unfurling it and studying the writing on its surface. Arcane symbols covered its length. The wizard stuffed it into her pouch.
Lidda squatted down and set the box on the ground.
"It makes no sense to me that a band of gnolls would be after this magical device," she said, running her hand along the smooth surface of the case. The ornate silver lines that were previously animated still traced the natural contours of the wood but no longer moved as they had.
Vadania unwrapped a length of vine from her boot and threw it aside.
"It makes little difference now," she said. "We have what we were after."
"And I doubt the others will be back," Mialee said, "with the giant dead and their leader gone."
"That's probably true," the druid agreed. "Still, I'll feel better when we've put more ground between ourselves and this place."
"I agree," Malthooz said.
He touched the druid's arm. A warmth passed over his hand and into Vadania's body through the tips of his fingers. Vadania pulled away from him. Scrapes on her legs from the entanglement quickly healed over.
Malthooz stared in amazement, then touched the symbol hanging from his neck. It felt like a lifeless piece of wood. He felt no different from before, but all of them saw what happened.
Vadania ran her hand over her skin.
"Perhaps you were visited by Pelor after all, Malthooz," she said.
"Stick to the club," Krusk snarled, and moved away to search the bodies of the fallen gnolls.
Vadania ignored the barbarian's comment.
"Now maybe you'll take some time to find out," she said.
They searched the area hastily. Krusk found a pile of torches in one of the tents and Malthooz watched the cone of flame moving through the darkness as the barbarian passed among the bodies of the dead gnolls. Lidda and Mialee combed through the wooden building. Malthooz and Vadania stood guard near the wizard's box.
Malthooz tried to look calm, but he quietly berated himself. He hadn't done a thing during the fight. The magic, if that's what it was, moved through him without warning, unannounced and actually unwelcome. He wasn't sure what he expected, carrying the holy symbol with him on a cord around his neck. He'd seen the women use their magic many times, but it was under their control, arising intentionally. Even the shaman from the village worked with the utmost attention, whether or not what he did was truly magical. What was happening to him? None of the others seemed very concerned.
Malthooz knew that they were accustomed to the unusual, used to not relying on assumptions to get them through. They certainly didn't trust their lives to something they didn't understand. Not even Krusk appeared overly alarmed by what he'd seen, even if his distaste was obvious.
Malthooz heard Vadania approach.
"It sounds like the gnolls have regrouped and are returning," she said.
13
Newcoast bustled with activity as Lidda moved through the streets toward the Bung and Blade. She passed the rows of ships at harbor and the wharves that lined the waterfront. Stout and long merchant vessels rocked gently in their berths as workers unloaded cargo using a simple system of pulleys and booms. Many more ships had left the previous day, taking advantage of the mild weather, hoping to make it to the next port before another storm hit. A few more arrived in the port earlier that morning, setting the docks in motion.
From the gnolls' camp, they reached the city in three days by traveling hard. They headed south, straight through the forest. Low clouds followed them for most of the trip, hovering just above the tops of the trees. The weather followed them right into town. The air was thick and damp everywhere, inside and out, though it didn't rain. At least the blanket of haze brought relief from the bitter cold. The trip had been thankfully free from serious pursuit and uneventful.
Merchants' carts lined the streets and people of every description jostled amongst them, haggling over prices and quality. Lidda stopped to admire the assortment of daggers that one man was selling, with her eyes on a set of jeweled throwing blades. She waved the peddler off and moved down the row of vendors. She had no idea what use one would have for such weapons, but when she returned to the guild the next morning, shed walk away with enough gold to buy all of them and more, if she had the mind to. She walked into the pub and found her friends sitting at a table in the rear.