Chapter Four

As Brimeia looks around she notices that only her and the woman they rescued are standing in the basement. "What in the hells?" Brimeia scratches her head, looking all around, still thrown off by the whole... poofing thing.

"That was.... odd. Where did the others go?" the woman asks.

"They probably got teleported back home. Can you pick me back up?" Poni grumbles from the floor from where he was dropped with Seirixori's disappearance.

Brimeia frowns at the magic stick-gnome, crinkling her nose a bit. "Oh. You. I suppose... You're not gonna zap me or anything right?"

"As long as you don't drop me."

".... right." The woman shakes her head, "I need to go. I need to make sure my Vardalon's safe and... oh, Hennet will probably have my head for leaving without permission."

Still looking a bit skeptical, Brimeia bends and slowly picks the stick up. "Oh. Already? Well, take care... I never caught your name, ma'am."

"Oh, it's Lin. Lin Cook. Thank you so much for saving me from those nasty goblins. Please, stop by the general store if you need anything else. I'm sure Hennet will be happy to help you find what you need."

"Hennet's an asshole."

Lin blinks. "I-- Is that thing talking?"

"Glad to help a pretty la--" Brimeia sighs when Poni interrupts. "Yeah. He does that, apparently. Some kinda magical, not quite dead, gnome in a stick. Think he made this place blow up and ... do all the weird magic poofs." Brimeia gestures vaguely.

"Poofs? Like more than just me?"

"Oh yeah. Like everyone. ..I think." Brimeia frowns with confusion for a moment, but shrugs it off quickly. "I try not to think too hard about it. Hey, want someone to see you home?"

"Wait, everyone? Everyone? Oh... I need to-- I need to see if he's ok." She goes to turn and remembers she's carrying the goblin scimitar. She gently lays it across the clutter on one of Poni's workbenches and heads up the stairs.

"Ah- " Brimeia doesn't get a chance to finish before Lin rushes off. Concerned, Brimeia follows. The poor woman looks so worried.

"Good, now that that's done, we should go to-- oh, we're following. Of course we are."

Lin rushes up the stairs and pauses at the street, taking in the quiet of the town. "No... this is... this is all wrong." She heads south, opposite the direction of the town square, where the houses turn back to a single style, but the smell of water's in the air. She ducks into one alley and starts pounding on the door to a house. "Vardalon? Many? Hemisal?? Please, answer!"

Despite the headstart it doesn't take Brimeia long to catch up. "Um, are you-- Is everything alright?" It certainly doesn't seem as if everything is alright, but she can't think of anything else to say.

"You... you saved me, right? Could... is it possible for you to find my Vardalon? I worry about him. If some goblins or something took him, I don't think he could defend himself."

"Yeah..? Vardalon, he your family? Well if it's fighting to be done, I'm just the devil for it." Brimeia puffs up a bit, offering a grin.

"He... yes, something like that. Just, please. He's so sweet and gentle. I'm so worried something terrible has happened to him."

"Well, if it'll ease your worries, miss." Brimeia backs up a step or two and charges the door, throwing her shoulder against the door and the frame gives way, splintering at the handle. TLin stands behind her, shocked, as the door now hanging off one of the hinges.

"Well is he in here?" Brimeia gives a shake to clear off any larger bits of debris and peers into the house.

Lin carefully edges past you and into the house. It's well kept, but there's food out on the counter like someone was in the middle of making lunch when they disappeared. "No... it doesn't look like it. Maybe they're at the Cask? That's where most people go."

"Cask, huh? Sounds like my kinda place. Maybe we'll find my new companions there too."

"We can check there. If he's not there, though, how will we find him?"

"I've.. no idea." Brimeia shrugs casually. "Let's just check first."

Lin nods and heads out and back north to the town square.

When they arrive at the town square a chain of commoners are moving perishable foods into the tavern. One of them points at the big fancy building and says, "They went in there."

~\*~\*~

Ravaphine finds herself popping back into Bellbury's town square. A group of commoners moving perishable's into the tavern. There’s a stout Dwarf woman giving direction while she nibbles on a tart. When she sees Ravaphine appear, she heads over with a smile spread between her plump, rosy cheeks. She’s got her red hair pulled back into a messy, thick braid that falls over chain mail armor with a blue and yellow stylized H on a tabard smeared with juices and flour.

“Hello dearie! How are you? Gunnloda, at your service,” she says holding her hand out to shake. “I couldn’t bear the thought of the food out here spoiling, so I asked Carlota over there to help me get it all stored away. You know people like this listen to anything you say when you’re wearing a suit of armor. Speaking of, you stand out a bit yourself. Where are you from?”

Ravaphine stands there confused for a few seconds but regains composure to introduce herself to the kind woman and reaching her hand out to reciprocate the handshake. "Hello ma'am good day. My name is Ravaphine from the town of Rauvi. Are you here from these parts? Do you frequent the temple often? I am just a visitor here in your town of Bellbury."

"Oh, I'm not from here, dearie. I just appeared, much like you did. Are you from here? Bellbury you said?"

"Just came across it in my travels. I never heard about this place before, even in my readings" Ravaphine says with slight questioning in her voice, "I've noticed that symbol on your armor before, would you like to accompany me to the temple? Maybe we can find something there to get a better understanding about this town."

"Oh, I'm so scatter-brained sometimes. You just said you weren't from here. Rauvi.... I can't say I've heard of it. But yes and no. That temple's to an agricultural god like my own goddess Arawai... well, one of the gods I serve. I looked in the temple myself when I first got here, but it was empty."

"My companions have vanished, but we managed to find this piece of paper in our findings. Have you heard of any of these other places before?" Ravaphine asks while showing Gunnloda the map fragment. "I haven't explored much of this town. I might make it over to the mansion next to see if there is anything to be found there."

She shoves the last of the tart into her mouth, wipes her hands across her tabard and takes the paper. "Hmmmph... nopf. Can't fay I'f heard of deef." she swallows the tart, "Mmm, hold on, Riverrun, I've heard of but nothing else."

"It seems that this is a land somewhere far off. I'm headed to the mansion now, care to accompany me? My companions might be there and they can help send us home."

"Oh? Well now... that sounds interesting. While we walk, maybe you wouldn't mind telling me about the kind of food you eat back home?"

Ravaphine walks next to Gunnloda and heads to the direction of the mansion. "Well, for starters, my mother is a fantastic cook. She can create a meal out of anything and I mean anything. Only the freshest food you can find!"

The most ornate of the buildings around the town square appears to be both a seat of government and, as you enter the door, the home of the ruling family. A symbol of a crescent moon and river is embossed in stone, embroidered in blue and silver on draperies, and embedded in the floor in the entryway. Straight ahead are a pair of double doors.

"Anything? I ask because I'm a bit of a chef myself and I'm always looking for new, exotic dishes to try."

"Before we leave, I may have you show me some cooking lessons to see if my mom hasn't heard of them before! maybe we can trade recipes"

"Oh, that would be wonderful."

Ravaphine cautiously knocks on the door, "I'm sure they'll know what's going on here..." she waits, but there is no answer. "Should we...should we try the door?"

"I don't see why not. This seems to be where the leader of the town lives. They probably have people in and out all day." She leans in a bit conspiratorially. "Besides, it's not like anyone is here to stop us!" she laughs.

Ravaphine opens the doors to a large room where the business of governance appears to take place. Two long tables flank the open space in the middle and a large, oaken desk sits at the head of the room.

"Oh, this is quite fancy for such a small town."

Ravaphine heads to the desk and starts poking around it, taking in the things on top of the desk. There are stacks of parchment, a few books, and a half-written letter. The inkwell sits ready, but there is no quill, the ink on the parchment is freshly dried.

Master Enchanter Qarius,

I must ask you once more to consider sending your Spellguard to Bellbury. The town is on edge and Mr. Ningel’s actions have been come increasingly erratic and dangerous. My guard is not equipped to handle the threat of a mad wizard. Your college is still responsible for him, regardless of his standing. He appears to be buil

The letter stops mid-word.

Ravaphine quietly mumbles to herself, as she opens a desk drawer, "What has Poni done?" She pulls out a ledger that gives the names, occupations, and addresses of all the villagers and a locked chest.

Gunnloda is looking at the letter curiously. "Well, I suppose that means this is definitely Bellbury.”

"Poor guy probably disappeared in the middle of his letter not too long ago from the looks of it."

"I agree. Have you seen much of the rest of the town?"

"I haven't seen much, just the temple, and the home of  a fellow named Poni" Ravaphine says with hesitation, not sure if she should tell Gunnloda the whole story yet. "Hey, are you good with tools? I found a chest over here but it seems locked and I'm sure the key is on somebody's person."

"Oh, no, and I'm not above opening unlocked doors, but locked chests in desk drawers are a bit further than I'd want to go, love."

"What if it has answers about how to get home?" Ravaphine searches for a key.

Gunnloda looks at Ravaphine, "You think there are answers about this in that box? I think you already know more than that."

Meanwhile Enna and Seirixori show up in the town square.

Enna mutters to herself, "That really doesn't get any less disarming each time it happens, does it."

Seeing the, unfortunately, familiar town square, Serixori shouts, "Damnit! Can I get ANYTHING done? Stupid gnome!"

"Try only being gone and back for ten minutes. Just enough time for the nausea to kick in."

One of the commoners carrying food from the carts to the Cask points towards the mansion. "Some people went in there."

Grumbling all the way, Seirixori nods towards the elf she met last time and heads towards where the commoner pointed, Enna following. Brimeia wanders into the building with Lin, as well, "Well I found you lovelies after all!" she laughs.

Inside they see Ravaphine and the dwarf woman, Enna and Seirixori recognizing the symbol on her tabard.

"Oh! More friends! Hello! My name is Gunnloda. Who are you and where are you from?"

Seirixori steps back and away from the group to give herself some space. Her only response is to nod at Gunnloda.

"I'm... Lin. I'm from here."

Enna leans against the wall, picking at her bracer, her eyes scanning the room.

"Friendly bunch, I see. Well, Ravaphine and I were just looking here and found this." She holds out a piece of paper.

Seirixori sighs and steps forward to glance at the paper, seeing the note that Ravaphine had read earlier.

“That backstabbing-- I hope she's gotten captured by goblins!" Poni shouts.

Brimeia flinches when the stick-thing speaks. She's never going to get used to that.  "So you get on well with everyone then."

"So you are crazy, good to know." Seirixori steps back again.

"All great minds are considered crazy to the people too stupid to understand them."

"I'm sure you tell yourself that daily."

Enna gestures her head in a nod towards Seirixori. "What's it say?"

"That he's mad and a threat." she pauses, "Is there more to this?" She asks Gunnloda.

"No, dear. It looks like it was cut off right there."

"We also found a locked chest and a list of some villagers names.” Ravaphine says, followed by, “I think they poofed.”

"Not to... interrupt, but if you saved me, you could save my Vardalon, right? Do you think you could?"

"Who is Vardalon?" Ravaphine asks.

Enna pipes up from her corner, "What happened to him?"

"Vardalon is my love. He's not at home and if everyone's disappeared... I think he might be in trouble. He couldn't protect himself from goblins."

"Oh no I'm so sorry. Maybe we can find the rest of the components and find him along the way."

Seirixori looks towards the Poni stick in Brimeia’s hand, "Well, mad wizard, you're the thing that gets us places."

"I take us to components."

Seirixori’s silver, pupiless, eyes narrow, "You're not telling us the truth."

"Of course I am, Candy Cane. I haven't lied. I take you to components."

"Yes, but you can take us elsewhere. And this is your fault, so you will take us to wherever it is to help her."

Ravaphine interrupts, "Poni, didn't you say that you were working on a way to transport to unknown places?"

“I could theoretically find people if I had a personal item, but you don't! So let's go find the next component, yes?"

"So you were lying to us!" Ravaphine exclaims. “Who knows, maybe he's seen another component. People are getting taken because of them."

"I do! I have his necklace!" Lin shouts and Poni grumbles.

"If we can get back to the task at hand, fine. Take me back to the portal and I'll find the asshole."

Seirixori lifts her double pierced eyebrow, "We already know where you are. We need to find her husband."

"Not…” Lin clears her throat, “my husband. His fathers don't like me much, but please, if we could save him, maybe they'd change their minds."

"My ...apologies? Let's just go." Serixori heads outside to Poni's basement, Ravaphine following close behind.

Enna turns to Lin and says, "We'll find him."

They return to the basement and Poni immediately says, "Press my button."

"No thanks," Brimeia grumbles.

Ravaphine notices the components on the desk and takes the first component out of her bag to add to the collection "I'm going to put these on the top shelf so they're safe."

"Great. That way you won't take it home and lose it."

"Honestly," Seirixori reaches over and pushes the stupid button.

"Well if you wanted to hold hands, all you had to do was ask," Brimeia says with a wink.

The portal flashes and shiny material is sitting in the darkness of a destroyed building. The rubble old and weathered, moonless darkness surrounding the image the barest hint of movement shuffling in the distance, but it’s too dark to make out.

"Brimeia, enough. Poni, this is not where we're going first."

Enna growls, "We promised that woman we would find the person she's missing, gnome."

Poni grumbles again. "Fine. Put the item up to the sensor on the bottom of... me."

Lin takes the necklace from her neck and hands it to Brimeia then grabs the scimitar she set down earlier.

Brimeia takes the necklace and holds it up to Poni. "Like this?"

"Now push the button." He mutters, “fricken half-brain.”

"Do I have to?"

"Give me the damn thing if you won't, stop wasting time." Seirixori holds out her hand.

Enna mutters under her breath, "Why hesitate, you're pushing everyone else's buttons."

“Fine, fine," Brimeia says, finger poised over the button, but at Enna's comment, she looks up again. "Not the fun way," she grins. She presses the button.

The image shimmers and coalesces into a vision of a jungle. Though the light appears as though daytime, it is subdued, likely due to the high canopy of trees above. In the center of the image, there is a large human man, currently fawning over what appears to be a greenish elf barely dressed in leaves and vines. She’s clearly enjoying his attention.

"....Vardalon?" Lin whispers.

"Look! It's a dryad! I've read about them before." Ravaphine looks over to Lin nervously.

Lin steps towards the portal, confusion etched across her face. "Why is he..."

"Lin, before we jump to any conclusions, I'm sure there's a good explanation for this."

Lin turns. "He doesn't look like... himself. Can we save him?"

"Dryads can easily charm people. He may not be fully in control right now." Enna tells Lin.

"There's only one way to find out. Hold on to each other and let's step through." Seirixori suggests.

Before they can move on there’s a shout from the top of the stairs, articulate profanity, and then a male elf, Martyn, tumbles down the stairs. He lands in a heap at the bottom, looks around, and says, "I meant to do that."

"Oh my! Are you ok, dear?" Gunnloda reaches down to help him to his feet.

"Oh hi! I hope you're okay.” Ravaphine says, the only one to have met him before.

"Aside from a mostly unpleasant interaction with a local and a particularly unpleasant threat of bodily harm, never better." Martyn nods his thanks to the Gunnloda.

"Great, more fun. Listen, join us or not, but please let us go through, now. We're wasting time." Seirixori says, annoyed.

Lin nods in agreement, "Yes, please."

"How do we do such a thing, love?"

“Everyone, follow Brimeia's lead. Grab a shoulder" Ravaphine says.

The group do as suggested just as Poni says, "Are we ready? Can we do this so we can find the next component soon?"

"How's this work?" Brimeia frowns at the stick.

"For the gods' sake, that man is in trouble and that thing is unpredictable." Enna growls.

Poni sighs heavily. "Put me through the portal. I'm not sure how many times I have to explain this."

“Treat it like a door," Martyn says. "Step lively now."

"Will you please hand me the stupid stick." Seirixori growls, clearly annoyed at Brimeia’s incompetence.

Ravaphine sighs, “Please hang onto the—” she starts to say just as Brimeia chucks Poni through the portal. Ravaphine blinks, unmoving, "that was...our ride home."

Enna curses, "Oh lord."

The image instantly changes as soon as Poni goes through the portal. Vardalon and the dryad are no longer visible, instead Poni is lying against a fern at the base of a tree.

"He said put him through. He didn't say how."

Seirixori tries to hit Brimeia on the back of the head with her staff, but it just bounces off her shoulder.

Brimeia turns to look at the spot she was struck without a hint of concern. "Well if you wanted to spar, you're welcome to any time."

Martyn huffs and steps through without waiting for the rest and the portal now shows him in the same place as Poni. Enna runs in after him.

"Great, why with these people?" Seirixori mutters but steps in, the rest of the group following shortly after.

"I'm impressed Poni. Your little portal didn't kill me or rearrange my limbs in some terribly inconvenient way." Martyn says.

"Would you like me to?"

"Oh thank god we made it in one piece." Ravaphine says as she opens her eyes, having closed them as she jumped through.

Seirixori stalks over to where Poni is still lying on the ground and picks him up, shoving him into her bag. Ignoring the muffled, "hhhhhmmmmphhh!!"

Enna bends down to speak into Seirixori's bag "I don't appreciate being used as a pawn in any games, gnome. Show us where that man and creature were."

"Mmmmhphpmm!"

"He's doing this on purpose," Ravaphine says.

"Did you really need to ask him a question? He's less annoying this way." Seirixori pulls him out reluctantly.

"All I'm concerned with is making sure we get to Vardalon in time."

"If I get the ability to cast spells back, just know you're on my shit list, you rutabega!” Poni threatens Seirixori.

"If I don't leave you in shit first."

"That is a powerfully impolite thing to say Poni." Martyn says.

"Where's Vardalon? VARDALON!?" Lin shouts, making her way through the brush, calling out. "VARDALON?"

"Damnit, Lin! Don't go running off!" Seirixori calls out, trying to stop Lin.

"If you aren't going to find him, I will."

"How far did you yeet poni into the portal, tiefling?” Ravaphine asks Brimeia, “he can't be that far."

"I dunno. I am quite strong." Brimeia shrugs and flexes a little.

"We don't know where we are, running off is going to get you killed and this will be pointless." Seirixori says to Lin.

Enna goes after Lin and cuts her off, blocking her path. "If you're going to run after him, at least be quiet about it. You don't know what's surrounding us."

At this they hear a sound from the left and see three small, moldy two-legged creatures with long, thin arms ending in long hands with claws and another blackish, moldy creature that walks on four legs like a beast and has thorns protruding from all parts of its body. All curious at the noise they’re hearing.

"I've never seen these things before." Enna says.

"I suggest an immediate and liberal application of fire." Martyn says. “The tiny ones are Vegepygmies and the ugly thing is called a Thorny!”

One of the Vegepygmy comes up to Lin, the loudest of the bunch, and tries to attack with claws, but Lin manages to jump back behind Enna to avoid it.

The other comes around and slashes at Brimeia but they don’t find any purchase. Brimeia flies into a rage at being attacked and swings her mighty greataxe at the creature. The greataxe swings straight through it and it explodes into a cloud of spores.

Seirixori makes a whipping motion with her arm, whispering, and a whip made of thorns and vines forms from the foliage nearby, but the Vegepygmy ducks and avoids it.

Enna swings forward with her short sword at the Vegepygmy next to her, running it right through it and it collapses to the ground. Enna backs away from the pile mold on the floor. "I think I killed it? Can't be too certain though."

"If there's one thing I can't abide, it's mold." Gunnloda points her finger at the one still standing and a ray of fiery light streaks towards it, but it ducks out of the way.

The Thorny approaches Enna and bites into her and throws its head around like a dog with a ragdoll, knocking Enna out.

The Vegepygmy Gunnloda fired at jumps on her and swipes at her neck. There's a spray of blood and Gunnloda falls. Lin freaks out and slashes wildly with her scimitar, but she misses just as wildly.

Martyn sticks his hand out and a ray of cold shoots forward, striking the Vegepygmy standing over Gunnloda in the side, causing a frost to develop. It hisses in pain.

Ravaphine hurls a mote of fire at it and goes to find safety behind a tree, however in her haste to hide, the fire shoots wide and hits a nearby tree, sputtering out against the living wood.

One of the assumed dead Vegepygmies stands up, seemingly returning from the dead, it sees it's surrounded and tries to make a break for it.

The Vegepygmy barely has its feet when Brimeia’s axe comes down on its head again and it falls once more.

Brimeia lumbers forward, glowing with a kill, and with a mighty howl and pulls her axe in the air and swings down upon the Thorny.

The axe finds purchase in it’s ‘flesh’, but it snarls and spits Enna out, turning to Brimeia.

Seirixori aims her sights on the Thorny and tries her whip of thorns again, however in her effort to not hit Enna she misses once more.

The Thorny reaches out and takes hold of Brimeia's thigh, but in her rage she hardly feels it.

The Vegepygmy runs at Seirixori, slashing at her, leaving a bleeding cut across her stomach.

Lin steps in and swings, finally finding purchase on something and the Vegypygmy growls in pain.

Martyn rushes forward into the fray near the Thorny and the Vegepygmy and fires another ray of frost at both of them. The cold blasts out of Martyn's finger and fully encases the unconscious vegepygmy.

Ravaphine takes a deep breath before peeking out of her hiding spot and shoots out a couple of magic missiles, one knocking a Vegepygmy out, two slam into the Thorny, who just growls at the attack.

Brimeia growls back, burring her axe into it’s head and it falls to the ground, unmoving.

Seirixori rushes over to Gunnloda, pulling out some herbs to try and stabilize her, ignoring the fighting going on around her.

Just as Brimeia turns to leave, the Thorny starts to stand back up, and with a might roar, she swings her axe once more, knocking it out again.

One of the Vegypygmy’s stands, and rushes at Lin in a frenzy, slashing her in the leg. She tries to fight it off, but misses.

Martyn rushes to her aid and frost once again slams into the Vegypygmy, some of its limbs seizing up.

Ravaphine comes up next to Brimeia, setting fire to the Thorny, making sure it cannot regenerate.

Brimeia turns and rushes the final Vegepygmy, her axe comes down and it shatters into tiny ice cubes.

Seirixori breathes a sigh of relief when Gunnloda opens her eyes and sits up, "That... was not good." Gunnloda puts her hand to her neck.

The others start searching the dead mold for anything of interest but find nothing.

Brimeia puts her hand directly in the Vegepygmy's body and comes away with her hand covered in spores. She grimaces and wipes her hand on the tree bark nearby.

“We should rest for the night." Ravaphine says, helping Enna to her feet.

"Aye, we could use some healing." Gunnloda puts a hand on Enna, a glowing warmth flowing through her and Enna breathes a little easier. Then presses her hand to herself, closing her eyes and muttering, the glow flowing through her as well.

Seirixori pulls Poni out of her pack, "Let's do this quickly in case there are more lurking around."

"Grab on." Poni says.

They all begin making sure they’re touching one another, Lin doing so reluctantly, trying to see any sign of Vardalon. "We'll come back for him, right?"

Seirixori sighs, "Yes, yes, we're just in no shape for anything else right now." she presses the button and they return to the town, all finding places to rest for the night.

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