The Gathering
Into the Foreverdark
They rode to the tower in silence and as she climbed out of the carriage demanding to see the archmage as she pushed an acolyte aside. As Dirzune did the archmage stepped around the corner and smiled, Rikton was hopeful this would be like the other times she had visited.
Dirzune grabbed him slamming Rikton into the wall saying, "Move those hands and I will have half this tower culled. This is all business, my dear, you are not that lucky."
As she gave him a wink as he stopped casting, he understood this was a new game to be played. Dirzune meant every last word of her threat and knew that even though she preferred to have him as her consort doing Lloth's will came first. So nothing fun would be happening, but he would still try and she would enjoy the effort. As she stormed off to his private study terrifying the acolytes along the way, he followed enjoying the chaos she was causing when they entered his chambers he activated several wards to give them privacy.
Rikton wondering how this game was going to be played asked, "What brings you here, threatening to kill half the acolytes in this tower."
Dirzune looked at him, he saw no amusement in her eyes as she said, "I have ears everywhere and I will know if you talk. Should be foolish enough to I will not kill half I will kill all of them and you."
Normally they would play games to get this information and she would be more hospitable even flirtatious, this was something new and it unsettled both of them to a great degree. He would never admit it, but he did have strong feelings for her.
He chose his words carefully knowing one wrong word would send he off again and said in a measured voice, "What has you this disturbed? If it is the human you are worrying over nothing he is one and blind, he could never find the surface in his short life without light to guide him."
She spun and back handed him saying, "You know little and make it much, and we both know you are smarter than this or you never would have sired my children, he is no ordinary human your own acolyte confirmed as much."
He rubbed his check fighting his desire for revenge, thinking this might lead somewhere and replied, "How is he different? I cannot give you what you will not tell me."
She retorted annoyed, "His aura is strong very strong. I would have to say it will soon be stronger than the Intress's own and if your acolyte is right it will only get bigger."
He thought about it and said dismissively, "So, he is a powerful cleric, they do gain power quickly in their short lives. You kill him and move on, why would that bother you so much?"
She said lost in her thoughts about what she felt from the human, "His power seems to be natural not divine or arcane. If he was as powerful as your acolyte says then why was he taken by a merchant family? How could he not know of us, even Alak the surface trader confirmed that we are feared by them and shrouded in myth, yet he does not know of us?"
Now this was worth the back hand he had received and said with the wheels turning in a new direction, "Only magical creatures like nymphs, dryads and the like have a natural magic and demons can use divine magic naturally of course magic comes from dragons they are the ones who taught it to all Fey, some evolved into arcane natural magic users, so you are telling me he is some kind of demon or dragon. Alak told me that many human priests don't believe in fighting. If Alak is right then this is the most interesting one of all maybe he is ... oh wait where is it."
He was digging through his library for a book and pulled it out. The book was written in a strange language that the priestess didn't understand a word of it.
She asked, "What is this?"
Rikton said sounding very scholarly, "It is a tale told to the Mountain Dwarves and if I understand it correctly they the wild elves and the humans who are called the Ride all believe this. It says that they came from another planet those three tribes would return one day when a guardian would come from their world. Maybe he is their guardian and has come from another world and knows nothing of us."
He smirked at his answer thinking of how fantastic such an idea would be. He turned the page and they saw a circle with symbols around the outside and on the inside an image of earth as seen from space.
Dirzune pointed and asked, "What does this say?"
He retorted, "Something about the mark of the guardian and this I am still trying to figure out but my best guess says he will have companions and they will bear a mark on them."
Dirzune would have sworn she had seen that somewhere but just couldn't place and asked, "I thought you could just cast a spell and you would know all of this. Which is what your acolyte did twice to the human, he resisted the first one."
Rikton looked at Dirzune a little lost and said sounding confused, "Only offensive spells will be resisted not common tongue or healing. I have tried several times and even invented spells to try and read this, every time I cast a spell on any page that page will disappear until the spell wears off. I honestly think this is the language of the gods, which makes this a holy book I have found no magic on the book or on the pages but my magic still won't work on it, if you have another explanation I listening."
Dirzune laughed and snorted derisively, "It is a tale for them to have hope is all. A man will come and lead you to a safe place, away from all your troubles what a load. What goddess in her right mind would fool their followers with such drivel and what kind of fools would follow it."
Rikton thought for a second, ran through his encyclopedic knowledge and said, "We have the legends about renewal and not a single priestess denies that. Maybe this is the same thing, from what I know of renewal we will leave here and travel to another place and battle with Lloth, against the sun kissed elves and settle things once and for all."
Dirzune couldn't argue his point they talked further coming up with no plan or even hint of what was going on and left the meeting with no clear answers. She did have more information as she headed back to the cloister mulling over the information and wanting to figure this human out let alone the sinking feeling she got from him. The priestess came the next day and took him out of his cell and leading him through the large house filled with strange art and soft light, to a room on the upper level. She opened up the door and Henri saw his patient for the first time since the transfusion. She was awake and looked in good health considering, hesaw that robed man who had done something so that he could understand them, he made the same gestures as last time and then left the room.
The priestess walked up to my patient, pointed to her and demanded, "How did you save her?"
I didn't want to talk to her or any of these people really so I stayed silent. The priestess offered to return me to my cell if I didn't want to talk. I wasn't in the mood for another beating and the last time I helped her she let me rest. The women in this house hadn't, so what choice did I really have.
I said trying to sound like a doctor, "I used silver nitrate to cauterize the wound and then used disinfectant to keep it from getting infected, stitched it up the wound and bandaged it."
