Off on another adventure...

[feathered_mages]

Arashi was not a happy Waltz. Old Aaron at the general store had told him the usual caravan bringing supplies for trade into Sarwin was late. Which meant there still wasn't a way to send the draft sketches of the weapon Arashi wanted to custom order off to be made. The Waltz is tempted to just fly out, find the dwarves, and deliver it himself

Comments

[random_xtras]

Silver looks up from where she's busy with a square of course fabric that someone gave her, her big blue eyes serious as she looks at the stewing Mage. Then she looks at Mistral. "Do you want me to look and see where they are? I can do it."

[feathered_mages]

"If it wouldn't be too hard for you," says Mistral. "Otherwise, I think Arashi might go looking for them..."

As it turns out, there are only four people left from the caravan. Two humans and a halfling are very well tied up and a bit battered, and a dwarf who has been beaten unconscious. They're all in a cage...

Looks like that ale's going to be even later.

[random_xtras]

The little girl hugs her half-finished knot doll and closes her eyes, frowning a bit with concentration as she looks for the right information.

Then she gasps and opens those wide blue eyes to look up at Mistral. "They're all in a cage, and only this many are left."

[feathered_mages]

"Good thing I hadn't ordered desert yet," mutters Blaze, looking up from his lunch.

Rydia nods. "Let's get our things together." She looks to Silver. "Can you lead us to where they are?"

It's a cave in the mountains. Orcs are not very imaginative. Luckily, they don't plan on killing their remaining prisoners yet, as they are trying to collect a ransom from the town the caravan came from first.

[random_xtras]

"Mistral?" Silver pauses, doll held close.

[feathered_mages]

"It's all right," says Mistral, though good luck guessing if he's talking to Silver or the big cube of jelly. "It won't hurt us. Poor thing, it's stuck in this room. I wonder how they got it in here."

"You are not keeping it," repeats Arashi.

Blaze decides to test out Mistral's control of the Gelatinous Cube. After all, if it moves to attack him, he can teleport out of the way in a hurry. He'll step inside and make his way to the far door, eyes on the barely-visible cube.

The cube stays where it is and just jiggles a little, but makes no move to attack.

[random_xtras]

Silver blinks and looks at the jelly. "I can get it out. But there are more orcs back there behind that door. And they're thinking about traps."

[feathered_mages]

"We'll see about that," says Blaze, and gets his knife ready just in case he doesn't get a chance to get a spell off.

"You don't need to get it out. He's not keeping it," mutters Arashi, moving through the room as well. Rydia joins them. Mistral raspberries Arashi before doing so as well.

And then Blaze opens the door. There is one orc in there, out cold in the middle of the floor near a treasure chest.

Blaze gives him a look, then looks to the chest, and snickers. "Looks like a trap, all right. I don't think we should try touching the chest..."

There's another door, and they'll cautiously head closer.

[random_xtras]

Silver looks at the lock, and then looks at Rydia. "Can you flip it up so she can see the lock side? And...." She turns and gives one of the humans in the cage a big-eyed look. "Can you lift her up so she can reach the lock?"

As she talks she sticks her hand through the bars and offers the hafling her 'lock pick', which is the heavy, jeweled pin from a broken ring brooch.

[feathered_mages]

The halfling accepts the pin and the female of the two humans in the cage picks her up, while Rydia gets the lock into position. After that, it only takes a few seconds before there's a click and the lock is opened. Rydia removes the lock and the door is pushed open while the halfling is put back down. She'll return the pin to Silver.

[random_xtras]

Silver takes it, and then is overcome by shyness and hides on the nearest of her friends who won't object to her doing so.

[feathered_mages]

Mistral will promptly tuck a wing over her. He's considering the best way to relocate the Giant Jelly Cube to the Nexus and find a safe place to keep it. Meanwhile the prisoners are being helped out of the cage, their leader talking to Rydia about the situation. Blaze perks up when he hears they'll pay for an escort back to their hometown.

[random_xtras]

She shakes her head. "I don't pop things very good yet. But... he's acid, right?"

[feathered_mages]

"Yes, I think so." Mistral soon finds they have to move around the room a bit, as the big cube seems to be edging itself along and rubbing against the walls of the small space. He frowns and tries to get a better look at the near-transparent cube. Was it cut? There seemed to be some kind of line down the side...

The cube isn't injured. It's just doing what an overgrown and well-fed cube eventually does. Splitting into eight small cubes.

[random_xtras]

Silver's going o.0.

"Well... he'll fit through the door now."

[feathered_mages]

Mistral is puzzled at what she means by that... until the top half of the cube slides off the bottom half and tumbles into four little cubes. The bottom half splits up as well. Mistral blinks as the eight baby cubes start to slide around and explore, instinct prompting them to split up and seek new territory.

Mistral knows he can't have them all wander off just yet. Someone could get accidentally eaten or something. So he makes use of the Bell to coax the little Gelatinous Cubes to line up and stay calm.

Everyone else is about ready to leave, which is why there's a couple startled comments when the former prisoners get a look at what's in this room.

[random_xtras]

Once he's gone Silver plops down on her bottom on an acid clear spot on the floor and stops projecting. A big sigh gets heaved, and then she's up and heading outside.

[feathered_mages]

The two taller Waltzes seem to be deciding to Never Mention That Again. But Blaze still hangs back in leaving long enough to reach for Silver's hand. Until Mistral rejoined them, he could manage dragonlet-sitting. Or so he thinks.

It's a lot brighter back outside after being in the cave, and the former prisoners are still blinking.

[random_xtras]

Silver holds his hand in her own tiny one, and despite what he may think of it she leans against him slightly in a tired snuggle as she looks up at the humans who had been in the cage. Her nearly finished dolly his held to her chest, and her big blue eyes look enormous in her little face.

[feathered_mages]

Blaze will just tuck a big white-tipped wing over her.

The former prisoners seem to be coming to some sort of agreement with Rydia for an escort back to the town they're from. Arashi is still interested in having a staff made, and says that's just as well as having to send the plans. The dwarf in the group then mentions he'd planned to make a journey home after this trip, and if the Waltz cared to come with, he'd put in a word with the metalsmiths there for any weapon he wanted.

While they're talking, Mistral PINPoints back and makes his way over to check on Silver.