Hello, Everyone!
Last time, during a short rest on their way towards Frinkeltong, Mary had a fight with Bruno. Well, it didn’t start as a fight – she "did everything in her power to try and understand him" and not get angry again… but he didn’t make it very easy. So, they fought, and now their relationship is a bit strained. I wonder if that’s going to reflect on their upcoming adventure.
(yes, I know that the cogs can't turn in this configuration. I didn't have the time and energy to fix them, sorry!)
The flight to Frinkeltong went for another two hours, and this time the silence on the eagle’s back was so tense it could be cut with a knife. Mary’s mind was like a stormcloud, dark and angry and ready to thunder at any moment. Bruno was pretending nothing had happened, and Agatha’s amused gaze was shifting between the two of them. She, at least, looked like she was having fun…
They approached the big city wall. It was almost midnight at this point, and the last sounds of the fiesta were quieting down in the city beyond. It was so strange, still having the daily festivities, with all that was going on in the world! With all her heart, Mary wished that her home was never going to go through what Pamagos or Myth Adofhaer were.
When Aurum landed in front of the gate, the guards on the wall yelled out and pointed their crossbows at the group.
“Who goes there?”
Mary raised her hands in a gesture of peace. “Mary Windfiddle,” she shouted in reply. “And friends.”
“‘Friends’ is a deceitful word these days.” A spotlight shined on the group, making Mary cover her eyes. “But you said Windfiddle?”
“Yes! Daughter of Lilly and Bramble Windfiddle.”
That seemed to alleviate some of the guards’ suspicions. Tey asked what brought the group to Frinkeltong.
“We need to get in, get ourselves some fast horses, and continue on our way,” Bruno said. "We are in the middle of an important chase."
"I'm afraid you can't enter the city at this time," the guard said. "There's a curfew and nobody is allowed beyond the wall during the night."
Mary's heart tightened. There had never been a curfew in Frinkeltong, for as long as she'd been alive. It seemed that the gnomes weren’t as careless as they looked. After all, up until recently, the city had almost been the first battlefield of the upcoming war.
Even though the guards couldn’t let them into the city proper, they still got them through the gate and into a small building into the wall. Bruno asked about the elven army and the Master of the guards told them that they’d pulled back and abandoned their camp the day before.
"They looked like they were in a hurry,” he added.
Of course they did, Mary thought. When someone tells you that a vengeful Blue dragon is flying towards your home to destroy it, you’d leave in a hurry, too.
The guards settled them in a small waiting room with no other accommodations except for a few chairs and an old rug on the floor, and left a gnome with a crossbow with them through the night. He didn't seem too vigilant. The moment his superiors left, he sat back in a chair and started nodding off.
“I wish I could go see my home,” Mary said, staring through the small window overlooking the city. “I know there won’t be anyone there, but still…”
If only she could sneak out, sprint to the Bricks, get a sniff of Lilly's perfume on one of her pillows, and then go back… The more she thought about it, the more doable it seemed. It wouldn’t take more than an hour, and she had the perfect spell for that…
“Whatever you’re planning on doing, don’t,” Bruno said from across the room.
He was mid-unpacking his bedroll and was studying her under his eyebrows. Mary glared at him.
“I’m not planning anything,” she lied.
“Yeah, right.”
“What would you care, anyway?”
She hurled down on her own bedroll and crossed her arms.
“We can swing by your home in the morning, if you want,” Agatha said quietly, leaning towards her.
“There’s no need,” Mary said, eyeing her suspiciously. Why would she be so nice? “We are in a hurry, and that’s far from the most important thing to do tomorrow.”
“You’re important to us,” Agatha said, “and so, if it’s important to you, we’ll go.”
Mary frowned. She felt like she was being talked down to. She remembered this colourful fair in town, back when she was sixteen, and Leefie was five. He’d really wanted to go get some cotton candy and she’d eventually agreed, almost in the same tone of voice Agatha was using right now.
“Don’t worry. Tomorrow I can help you go where you wanted,” Tesaya’s words sounded in her head, uninvited.
Mary huffed in frustration and demonstratively opened one of the books she’d gotten in Zerakas tol. While the rest of the group were preparing to sleep, she went deep into the lore surrounding the Hand of Vecna. After all, they were soon going to face this threat, it’d be best if they were prepared.
Mary almost did something stupid, again 🤣 It's good having friends who keep you from those sort of things. Although Mary doesn't view it like that. She’s been feeling on edge for quite a while, I hope it’ll be ok in the end…
See you in the next episode! Until then, take care and be well!
(Also, here's a link to the Chapter Guide, the Glossaries (Part 1 and Part 2)
and the Map for the series. You're welcome!)
An important disclaimer: Mary Windfiddle's story is 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.