The Journey Of Alanna

She stumbled as she dropped to her feet in that old cellar, deep beneath the keep, her tail extended to maintain her balance. "You have taken 4 damage!" flashed across her vision. She knew they picked her specifically because she was small enough to crawl through the old storm drains into the wine cellar, but that last steep drop hurt her ankles. She pushed through the pain, not daring to cast a spell to undo the damage.

They had given her a scroll of Acidic Spray to melt her way through the bars and stonework designed to stop intruders, which was worth more than she had made this past year. However, the pockets of her employer were deep, and that showed in the priceless little item she retrieved from her Bag of Holding.

It looked like an effigy of some primordial god of death and nightmares, a small statuette of a compressed humanoid skeleton, legs clutched to its chest with its arms wrapped around them, capped with a large skull with pronounced fangs. Her skin tingled just touching the glossy black surface. It was an artifact, a relic of magical power from the Lost Ages, from before anyone could remember. They say the people of that age knew magic that far surpassed anyone in our current time, though these objects of power are all they had to go on. There were no books, no scrolls... not even murals from that time period.

She shook off the thought, moving past old chests and weapon racks to reach the center beneath the keep. The air reeked of oil and dust, but at least she didn't need a torch to see. A small boon of her heritage she was thankful for, even if it made her a prime candidate for shady jobs like these.

When she guessed she was near the center of the keep, she raised the artifact. She put her little clawed fingernails beneath the skull and began to pry. No movement.

"Come on, come on you stupid thing!" she whispered in frustration as she tried to wrench off the cap. She knew it opened this way, they had told her so, and there was no telling when someone could come down here.

By accident her finger slipped over the sharp fangs of the skull. She yelped, immediately cursing herself for not staying quiet, and saw a drop of blood clinging to the skull's upper jaw. Almost immediately, the skull fell off of its own accord, and a black mist began to spill out of the artifact.

She dropped it in fright, not knowing what she was looking at, until two, baleful, glowing red eyes manifested within the gathering black mist and stared at her with a hatred so deep her heart almost stopped. She ran. She didn't stop to look back, or considered she should try to salvage the artifact once it was done doing whatever it did. She knew what the bottomless malice in those red eyes meant, and she needed to get out while she still could.

She jumped for the drain she had crawled in through, her clawed nails scrabbling for purchase on the rough stone, and she crawled through like her life depended on it. The deed was done. Now she could finally go home.

Nywen came to relieve Alanna at midnight. The smell of burning pine lingered in the air, though she brushed it off. After all, the troll ran into the woods as a living torch, surely he would've set something on fire, and she was just picking up that scent.

She struggled to sleep that night. The sight of the troll clawing at the helpless Yudi, its talons draped in flecks of blood and tattered skin, was etched into her mind. The stories always made adventuring seem so glamorous, heroic even. But that battle with the troll was anything but heroic or glamorous. They had come too late to save anyone, and fighting that monster was a brutal, bloody affair where people got hurt and could easily die.

Doubt started filling her chest. What if she wasn't good enough? It wasn't just about her. Not anymore. She'd always be working with a team, and if she failed other people could die too.

She fell asleep from exhaustion. Later, she heard a branch snap. She got up immediately, her heart pounding, sword in hand before she could even see the threat, only to realize it was Reizer adding wood to the fire. She couldn't help it, every nerve in her body was on high-alert.

"Go back to sleep, Alanna. Everything's fine," he said, his voice somewhere between tired and sympathetic. She nodded, placed her sword back beside her bed, and did her best to calm herself as she fell back asleep.

Her frayed nerves made her awaken at every little noise regardless. It took hours before she drifted off to a deep sleep, and by then it was her turn to be on guard duty.

When morning came a mist descended on the valley. Misty mornings were common in these mountain forests, but since she had developed her sensitive nose Alanna had grown less fond of it.  She could still smell the smoke in the air, but the humidity played tricks on her senses and she could no longer tell if she was simply picking up the same fire she had the other night or if other fires were burning nearby. The eerie quiet from the other day persisted. Even the birds of the woods chose to remain silent.

The group packed their belongings and made ready to head back to Wildbrook with the sorrowful news that the town had been lost. Nywen told them some other monsters, mainly wargs, a few oozes and even a rare ghoul had been attracted to the carrion, but didn't stick around for long when they realized they were being watched. They regretted that none of these poor folk would get a proper burial, but it was too dangerous to stick around here.

They moved at a steady pace, but Yudi was slowing them down.

"My scars, they burn," Yudi complained. She had taken off her right gauntlet so she could flex her wrist and fingers freely. It was her dominant hand and covered in callouses and old cuts.

"Do you think you should try a Lesser Restore Wounds spell again?" Reizer asked.

"Nay, the last one did nothing."

"It's a side-effect of my... My potion," Alanna stated hesitantly, avoiding use of the word 'elixir.' "It's still working its way through your body. It'll wear off by tomorrow morning, I promise."

Alanna had been watching Yudi carefully to monitor the side-effects of the regeneration elixir. The first sip a person takes would not only fix their immediate wounds, but over the next 24 hours would also undo any small amounts of damage their body had taken over their lifetime. She doubted Yudi would pass out as she did, not only was she a dwarf but she was significantly healthier than Alanna when she first imbibed one.

Alanna could tell everyone was on edge. Nywen's ears swivelled around constantly while her tail flicked in agitation, Reizer refused to step more than a step from Yudi's side, who was holding on to her warhammer like it was a lifeline.

As the first day passed with no attacks, and with the mist persisting, Alanna began to relax. Sure, this adventure had turned into a huge fiasco, but they were all still alive, and as soon as they got back to the safety of Wildbrook's walls they'd be golden.

They settled in a different campsite than the one they had used on the way here. Before they had chosen a clearing amidst some large pine trees which had sheltered them from the elements, giving them a dry, warm place to camp. This time they chose the top of a rocky hillock. It was nowhere near as comfortable, with the hard ground beneath their bedrolls and no nearby trees to shelter from the cold spring air coming down from the mountains, but there was also no soft grass to soften the steps of anything trying to sneak up on them, nor thick undergrowth to hide behind.

It was far from safe, but they couldn't have asked for a more defensible position out here in the untamed wilds.

Nywen had been first on watch that day. It had been Reizer's turn, but he insisted on watching over Yudi while she rested. Even after the pain of her wounds and the elixir had faded she had a haunted, pained look in her eyes, like she wasn't really there in spirit. Alanna felt deeply sorry for her, but every time she tried to think of something to say, she drew only blanks. What could you say to someone who almost died while experiencing some of the worst agony possible?

"Yudi and Reizer are resilient," she told herself. "They'll get back on their feet."

She went to Nywen's perch on the edge of camp, far enough away from the fire that her eyes would adapt to the dark. She was sitting crosslegged as she always did, and Alanna took a seat beside her.

"All has been quiet," Nywen stated, answering the unspoken question. "Do you still smell burning pine?"

Alanna took a deep breath. The fragrance was still there, vague but persistent, hidden within the humidity of the valley's fog. "I do," she answered.

"I hope that troll isn't following us like some burning effigy of vengeance," Nywen joked. Alanna chuckled. As horrifying as the idea of a perpetually burning, enraged troll was, it was also entirely outside the realm of possibility.

"I don't think that troll will come back, but we should stay on our guard as though it would," Alanna said, daring a slight smile. Nywen nodded. That troll could not have been responsible for the breach of the village's walls, nor would it have dug the charnel pits surrounding it. Everyone in camp knew there was something else out there that posed a greater threat than a charred troll, at least until they made it back to Wildbrook.

A moment of silence passed between the two. Alanna could feel the tension between them, until Nywen finally voiced the question Alanna had been dreading.

"Alanna... What was that potion you gave Yudi?" she asked, her dark eyes glinting in the dark as she turned to face Alanna. "It wasn't anything you listed when we took inventory, and I don't know of any potion that would have such slow healing powers. And those... Those vials you threw at the troll that burst into flames..."

Alanna couldn't find the words to respond. She thought of Solizzar's words, to be wary as many would try to steal or destroy the knowledge of alchemy if they learned of its existence.

"I-I know you probably don't want to answer that," Nywen said, speaking slowly as though she were afraid to trip over her words. "Believe me, I... I understand what it's like to not want people to know everything about you. I just..."

Nywen raised one of her hands. Alanna had no trouble seeing that it was quaking slightly, and she could practically hear Nywen's heart beating out of her chest. Was it fear, she wondered, or stress?

"I worry that, next time we face something that dangerous, I won't be able to help you, because I don't understand what you can do, or how you do it."

Alanna felt her stomach twist into knots. Nywen wasn't wrong. Every adventurer in a group had their own abilities, and their own roles to play accordingly. If the group didn't know what one person in the group could do, other members of the group may take enormous risks to protect that party member when they didn't need to, or may prioritize protecting other party members when the one unknown person in the group had skills vital to the fight at hand.

"If you don't... If you don't want to tell me, I promise I won't ask again," Nywen continued, her voice trembling slightly. "We have a good thing between the two of us. I-I don't want us to stop being..." she paused, finally daring to finish her thought: "F-friends."

Alanna had never seen Nywen this vulnerable. She had always been the daring Rogue, the experienced one between the two of them. She took a deep breath, steeling herself.

"Nywen... I..." she stopped, a thought crossing her mind. They were out in the wilderness, but Reizer and Yudi were close by. Anything they said could be overheard, and leaving the camp just to have a private conversation would put all of them at risk.

"I promise I'll tell you everything when we get back, okay?" Alanna said softly. "No more secrets."

She gingerly put her hand on Nywen's, squeezing softly. To her relief, Nywen squeezed back. "It's a promise then," Nywen said with a slight smile. "I'll admit I'm pretty excited."

Alanna chuckled. "It's still a day's worth of travel to Wildbrook. Don't stay up all night thinking about it, okay?"

"Promise," Nywen replied.

Alanna awoke the next morning to Nywen shaking her awake gently, but urgently. "Alanna, look," she said, pointing to the sky.

Alanna blinked the sleep from her eyes. At first she thought the fog had persisted, but her pained nose immediately registered that the haze she saw blotting out the sun was one of smoke. From the hill they had made their camp on she could now see vast plumes of smoke rising not just from the direction they came, but also from the mountains to their far east.

Reizer stomped up, already dressed in his armor, while Yudi was hurriedly packing their gear.

"Wake up lass, pack everything you can. We need to hurry and hightail it out of here," he said. He ran his gauntlet through his beard, tugging slightly as he grimaced. "I didn't want to believe it..."

"What?" Nywen asked.

"This," he said, waving his hand to the rising smoke, "is an old orc tactic, back from the Great Orc Migration when the Great Plains fell. Monsters are attracted to the smell of rotting carrion, so they'd drag the bodies of those that died in skirmishes and built great charnel pits full of them, then start fires in the grasslands or forests nearby to drive the monsters to their enemies. It didn't occur to me immediately when we saw the state of that village, but these fires leave no room for doubt. We aren't safe here, we need to get to Wildbrook as fast as our legs will carry us."

Alanna wasted no time packing. She could occasionally pick up the howls of various monsters on the wind, coming from all around them. As soon as they had collected their gear the group began a brisk jog back to Wildbrook. It would still be several hours before they got there, but they couldn't afford to waste any time.

Soon enough it became evident why. A pack of wargs, maddened by fear, burst from the treeline behind them. The fight was short, as many of the beasts were too panicked to launch a coordinated assault and instead ran past the group as their packmates were cut down. Alanna hesitated. She considered taking some trophies first so they'd have something to show for their efforts when they returned home, but Reizer grabbed her arm and forcibly dragged her along. "Not now!" he growled. "No amount of gold is worth your life!"

Next a giant swarm of spiders blocked their way, though driven out of their webs the creatures were of little challenge to the group. Small groups of goblins appeared at the edges of her vision before scattering back into the woods, clearly following them but too afraid to launch a direct attack. Alanna kept track of them and informed the party whenever she sighted the diminutive monsters, but it was hard to get a good headcount on them. She swore that she kept seeing different tribal markings between the goblins, but she couldn't be sure. They were too far away and did their best to stay out of sight.

Their pace had the desired effect, as they encountered fewer and fewer monsters the longer they jogged. However, Nywen's stamina was the first to falter. She was covered in sweat and her breathing was labored as Alanna pulled up beside her. Reizer and Yudi were dwarves with a naturally high Constitution score and Alanna benefitted from her Shaped By Hard Labor feat, but Nywen had no such advantage. Her Class was one of Agility, not endurance, and the long march home was taking its toll on her.

"Don't fall behind!" Alanna shouted back at her.

"I'm trying!" Nywen said through gasps. She was starting to lag behind, something which could prove fatal if they kept getting attacked.

Alanna wouldn't stand for it. She began jogging behind Nywen to keep an eye on her. About 20 minutes later she saw Nywen losing her balance. Alanna sped up and scooped her up in her arms before she could fall. Nywen wasn't heavy by any means, but the combination of her body, her gear and the gear Alanna was already carrying strained her to her limit. Even so, Alanna marvelled at how strong she had gotten. She imagined that a year ago she wouldn't have been able to handle anywhere near this weight at a full jog.

"What are you doing?!" Nywen asked, flustered, still trying to catch her breath.

"We're all going home together," Alanna said through heavy breaths."I'll put you back down when you've recovered, but don't even try to move until then."

She worried Nywen would argue, or even struggle, with how independent she usually was, but instead, she felt Nywen relax in her arms, and could swear she saw a blush forming on the half-catfolk's dark skin.

By the time Wildbrook came into view, they were exhausted and soaked in the blood and ichor of a variety of monsters. Even Alanna felt like she was on her last legs, and the air had begun to sting her nose hours ago. The fires that burned across the mountainside and hills consumed trees at a frightening rate, far too quickly for it to be entirely natural.

Alanna heard it before she could see them approach, a massive clamoring of soft feet, paws and other things behind them.

"Behind us! Goblins, too many to count!" she said, alerting the rest of the party. "Other things too, wargs and other stuff I can't make out!"

"Last stretch, ladies!" Reizer ordered. "We run for it, get to the gates!"

They moved as fast as their tired legs could carry them until they broke into the clearing in front of Wildbrook's walls, where the trees had been cut back to allow a clear line of sight of anyone, or anything, approaching.

Moments later, the goblins pursuing them came into view. A staggeringly large horde of them broke from the treeline, guided by chiefs in feathery headdresses and scavenged metal armor that tried to maintain order from the backs of wargs or giant spiders. It wasn't just a warband, it was an actual horde, like Alanna had seen described in her children's books.

Much to her horror, she saw the gates of Wildbrook were closed. Someone had been smart enough to understand the town was under threat and had the gates shut, but that left the party between a rock and a hard place.

Reizer waved his arm furiously while bellowing at the guards on the wall. "Open up! Let us in!"

Town guards lined the gates with bows and crossbows, some of them already firing projectiles into the goblins behind them. One guard, who Alanna recognized as the one she had already seen at the gate several times, stood on the gate tower and nearly took off his helm in disbelief as he saw the group approach.

"Open the gates!" he yelled. Alanna swore to herself she would buy him a drink later.

Behind them the screams of falling goblins and the roars of warbeasts echoed across the clearing, and projectiles flew both ways as the goblins returned fire with crude arrows and flung stones. A smooth pebble ricocheted off of Reizer's helmet but he didn't stop for even a heartbeat, keeping himself between the horde and Yudi.

The gate opened a sliver, just enough for them to squeeze through, and then slammed shut behind them. The party collapsed to the ground, having exerted the last of their strength. Alanna sank down to the ground next to Nywen, who lay sprawled out on the dirt road. She saw several guards moving barrels and carts against the gate to barricade it.

The guard who let them in came down, walking down a flight of stairs leading to the battlements. "You barely made it in time! What's going on out there?! A few of our scouts have returned and all they could tell was that someone or something's burning the woods down!"

"It's... It's a trick!" Reizer huffed. Even his dwarven constitution had struggled to keep up with the long haul here. "Someone's herding monsters to the town! We don't know who, but it's an old orc tactic!"