PBEM Orlantia

The Story So Far
Chapter 028

PBEM Orlantia: Alana's Thoughts.

Alana caught Sefarlain's expression. "We are all just thinking out loud," she said. "Speaking your thoughts out in the open often helps to clarify them. I think we've established that it will be very hard to trap the infernal beast. So I guess our best option would be to surprise it and then hurt it bad enough to defeat it. Something along the lines of what Tyrulf said. But we all know hurting it is not an easy thing to do. Just let me share some of my thoughts with you all."

Alana began pacing back and forth again, just as they had seen her do before.

"On my travels, I've seen some dragon hunters," she said. "They used a device that I can best describe as an enormous crossbow or ballista. So I was thinking that perhaps we could build such a thing."

"I don't think . . ." Bebe said. "I know it wouldn't be as accurate as what I saw, and that we don't have the tools nor the time to make it properly."

Alana interrupted her. "But we have the advantage of knowing were the hell spawn will probably turn up. So we don't have to be able to move it around with ease."

"Remember how easy our spears broke on its hide?" Sefarlain said, having experienced it first hand.

"Well, yes, there is that." Alana said.

"An it ain't easy ta rig such a thing, besides," Cosher offered.

"I imagine it will be a lot harder to construct such a thing than the little catapults children sometimes make," Alana conceded.

"So here is the next thing I was thinking about. We know arrows can hurt it much, probably. So what if we pour all our knowledge and skills in one or more arrows? Enhance them with spells and so on. Create our own magical weapons, so to speak. When they hit - and perhaps we can use magic as well to increase the probability of that - they'd do some real heavy damage. And if we would then be able to keep the nightmare from healing itself, as was suggested by several others, then maybe we'd we able to defeat it that way."

Alana saw the doubt on the faces of the others. "Just a thought," she said.

"But I'm a bit loathed to release the timber just to accomplish keeping the nightmare from healing itself. It's what Wyn said. What if we wind up facing two enemies simultaneously instead of just one? On the other hand, perhaps we would get lucky and the timber and the nightmare would turn on each other. Would anyone know if that is a possibility?" Alana looked around to see if anyone knew something about that.

"And then there is one more thing I was thinking about." Now the druid turned to Afyanna. "You told us about this . . . um . . . storage area hidden in this temple. Is it possible something in there was somehow involved in summoning this beast? And if so, would it be possible to banish it again using the same tool?"

"I'm not proposing we go and mess around with it," she hastened to add, "but it is something I was thinking about. Kind of as last resort if everything else fails."

The druid shrugged apologetically.

"You were very adamant we leave the storage area alone. And I think you are right to do so, but I couldn't help but wonder if it would be worth the price to investigate that," Alana said, as she wondered if anyone else had been wondering about that too, and she was just the first one to speak it out loud, or that none of them even had thought about it.

"As for the statue." Alana said, changing the subject. Guessing her words had upset the holy warrior, and perhaps a few others as well, she said, "I know I was very interested in that when we first came here, and in a way, I still am. But I haven't a clue what to think of it now. I hope it is something that will help us, but after our last encounter with the beast, I kinda like something more than hope. Besides, if the statue does anything, it'll be tomorrow night. That's a whole day for us to do something first. The question is, what?"

- Wilma (Alana)

PBEM Orlantia: Replies.

Febriwyn had fallen silent again and, rather than stay ostensibly visible, had retreated towards the cave's entrance, his cloak about him tightly. The weather hadn't much improved outside, though now it contrasted sharply with his mood. This weather was so . . . depressing, dark, and gloomy. Yet, it excited him to watch the storm pass through, the thrill of challenging the storm, placing one's mortal life against the wrath of a huge tempest.

His father had often called him bereft of common sense since, when the weather was particularly bad, Febriwyn would race through the forest. He didn't understand though, it was simply because the storm made it hard that he loved every minute of it. The wind tossing his light frame side to side, drops of steely rain crashing against his face and body, the lightning crashing to the ground beside him; his very defiance of nature's forces almost challenging the storm to try and tackle him. It was exhilarating.

Turning his eyes back to the group, his ears picked up once again the sounds of their conversation. They were still discussing how to best that hell horse. Actually, they were also discussing the statue, an oddity as much for its mention as for its lack of anything odd.

Walking back over to the group, Febriwyn listened as Alana finished speaking about the statue, then said, "I do not think this is the time to worry about the statue. It might be prudent to have one of us check on it, or two if the nightmare is not otherwise occupied, just to ensure nothing of note occurs, but the one for whom it was made is dead. We know that now."

"That is also why we can not use the blue field. If Joree's sacrifice is drained of its energy, the timber will be released. Now, I've never seen such a creature as mentioned in the journal, but I've heard stories of treants, which are natural objects of that description, and it is very unlikely we'd be able to even chip away the bark," said Febriwyn.

Just before turning back to move from the group, Febriwyn said, "Oh, and releasing the timber will almost certainly leave us with one foe destroying the temple and another foe killing the people. The hell horse is not stupid; it would run at the first sign that the timber would hurt it. And, if it did that, we wouldn't be able to find it because it would have no predictable place to go."

- Brandon (Febriwyn)

PBEM Orlantia: A Time To Decide?

The conversation ebbed and flowed around the fire. For the first time together, the group seemed undecided, torn even, by the choices ahead. These were important choices and their fate lay in their hands.

As voices rose in volume, Sefarlain decided to take stock of what the group's choices were.

"From what little we were told in the song, the statue may not even do anything tomorrow night," he began, "and as we're all agreed it's pointless facing the nightmare in the open, I think we should discount waiting at the town square. We've got to face the nightmare somehow, so I guess we should be in the temple. Maybe as it's the holy day, we might see something there anyway."

This was greeted by murmurs of agreement from one or two around the fire.

"So my opinion is that we face the nightmare tomorrow and we do it at the temple. What we have to decide is how we do it. We must stop it getting to the field, and we need to stop it escaping, but I don't know how. If we're indoors, maybe that will help. As for sealing off the field, rope work may still have the answer."

This last comment from Sef raised Valin's eyebrows once again.

"Tied to what, though?" the rogue exclaimed, which caused the conversation to pause.

"Well, I'll have to look at the temple, I guess. Maybe it isn't possible, but we have to come up with something." The ranger turned to Afyanna. "Afy, I agree we shouldn't open the vault, but do you think we should just have a look down there to fully explore the temple first? There were two areas we didn't explore and we really need to be certain that it's clear."

- Justin (Sefarlain)

PBEM Orlantia: Febriwyn's Vote

"Why fight it so soon? We are now free from haste, so let's take our time. I think it most prudent to explore the temple tomorrow, watch the statue tomorrow evening, and then decide on a new course of action following that. If nothing has popped up, perhaps exploring the temple more thoroughly would be advisable. If something has, however, then we're free to challenge the nightmare at our time and place," offered Febriwyn.

- Brandon (Febriwyn)

PBEM Orlantia: Further Thoughts.

"Febriwyn makes a good point," Afyanna said from her spot near the wall. "We are no longer forced to attack night after night, now that the townspeople are safe."

"However," the holy warrior continued, "we seem to be assuming that the temple is the creature's lair. I don't think we can be certain of that."

"Aye," Cosher added, "Tha beastie's smart. It may just be usin' the temple for heals."

Afyanna nodded. "Exactly. And if true, preparing our attack in the temple itself may not do a lot of good unless the creature was injured already."

"Would it even have a lair?" Tyrulf wondered aloud. "I mean, if it is a creature from another plane, why even have a lair on our plane?"

While the party talked their observations over between themselves, another thought came to the kin-der.

"We may have another problem regarding the field," Afy said.

"What do you mean?" asked Valin.

"If we try to set up a defensive position around the field to keep the nightmare from reaching it, what would stop it from just phasing out and then back in next to it?"

"That seems likely," Mystir agreed. "If it could slip out of a trap, or ropes, then it should be just as capable of phasing past any line of defense we could set up."

"But I thought someone said it could get hurt if it . . . intersected something from our plane, didn't they?" Bebe asked.

"And so it would, I believe," Mystir replied. "But if it was hurt badly enough, I think it might risk it. I know I would."

Alana had had enough. "So we can't trap it. We can't corner it. We can't prevent it from going where it wants. When we hurt it, it heals itself. And we cannot risk dropping the field. So what CAN we do to this thing?"

"I don't know," said Afyanna.

Her blunt statement seemed to dampen their spirits even more than the rain.

Afyanna let out an exasperated sigh. "Even if we set up camp within the temple, not knowing whether it would appear inside or outside, I think it would come for us."

"Like it does when we are out in the open," Sefarlain said.

"Right," Afy agreed. "But let's assume we get into a fight in the temple. The healing field is right there within reach."

"Of both it and us," Sef said.

Afyanna nodded.

"So the battle might drag on," Cosher noted.

"Until the field was drained," Afy continued.

"And when that happens . . . " Tyrulf began.

"It's over," said Valin.

A heavy silence settled over the camp, with only the crackling of the fire and the noise of the rain outside echoing within the cave.

"So we are right back where we started," Mystir noted. "Do we drop the field ourselves or not?"

"I'm of a mind to leave the nightmare alone for tomorrow and instead investigate the statue during the Holy Day of Larethian," Afyanna said. "Perhaps it may shed new light on the situation in some way."

"And the temple?" Febriwyn asked from the shadows away from the party.

Afyanna considered that for a few moments. "We can look over the secret passageway tomorrow during the day. But we must stay out of the vault."

Wyn said nothing, but his eyes told her that he would do as he pleased.

"This is not some personal thing of mine," Afy said. "Those vaults exist for the sole reason that there are items and who knows what else in the world that should not come to light. Some things that are better left unfound and undiscovered. If there is anything in that vault, whether it is sealed or not, then it MUST be left there. The consequences could be far more reaching than simply because 'I' do not want it opened."

"The simple fact of the matter is that the existence of the vaults themselves is not to be generally known," Afy said, her eyes flaring.

Sefarlain interrupted, breaking the rising tension whenever the subject was brought up. "There may be something other than this 'vault' down there. If so, we'll find out. But the vault will remain undisturbed. Agreed?"

"Agreed," Afy said.

- Rick (Afyanna).

PBEM Orlantia: Further Useless Deaths.

Valin looked uncomfortable at Wyn's apparent lack of concern for others, and Afy's agreement made him only feel even more uncomfortable, but maybe they had just failed to consider these people rather than dismissing them as unimportant.

"Granted, the nightmare is not a danger to us or those who remained, IF we hide in the caves. And the people of Joad may be safe before tomorrow night as well. But let us not forget, this abomination seeks out victims. If it is not confronted soon by us, it'll probably hunt down more innocents elsewhere. With the speed that thing can move on the ethereal or astral planes, it cuts a potentially wide path of destruction. Remember all those bodies we've heard about? Remember the Lovejoys? Remember Jahar? Each day's delay is almost certain to claim more innocent victims, so while we have already saved most of the people of Joad, probably, and the creature's eventual demise is assured now that word has gotten out, the longer we tarry, the more deaths will be on our hands if we could have done something about it."

He looked nervously at each of his companions, but then continued.

"I think exploring the temple further is a good idea, and waiting around to fight it out in the open is a proven losing proposition. But we are in a hurry, Afy - at least I am," he said to the holy warrior.

Alana, too, stood up and nodded. "It killed my friends, and it's killed many others, and it'll kill again. If we can't kill it, I vote we at least keep hurting it. That way it'll stay occupied with us and not hunt the countryside for more innocent lives. And let's face it. Though we risk one or two of us each time we do fight it, I think we're up to the challenge - far more than farmers and simple townsfolk, anyway. We can't let it have another chance to kill with impunity," she vowed, wishing some others like them might have been in a position earlier to save the Lovejoys. She couldn't save them any longer, but she still could save countless others, and she was willing to take the risks.

"Aye, lass, thar be more murders if we dinnae keep hurtin' the beastie, all right. Whatever comes, we must keep hittin' and hurtin' it each night, best we kin, or the souls lost will neva fergive us, and the songs sung aboot us will show us fer cowards if we play it too safe."

Wyn wasn't sure he cared what the songs might say later on - or more to the point, he knew whoever wrote them could 'adjust' the truth and make them sound as good as they wanted - for he had a sneaking suspicion most bardic songs stretched the truth further than ever known by most all who heard the tales. Still, they had a point.

"Well then, Afyanna," he said to the holy warrior, "what's your decision? At least tell us what we should do yet tonight. Otherwise, we should get some rest and prepare for the morrow - either here, or back at the temple, I don't care which."

The holy warrior pondered the group's concerns, and thought long and hard on the matters before her. As quest leader, she knew, the final decision was hers to make. A pang of empathetic regret shot through her for all those times she callously and impatiently had waited for those in command to make a decision.

"We can't fight the nightmare in the temple near the field, that much is certain," Sef spoke up. "It, and we, will sap the field's energy as the battle draws on, and if the timber is released during such a fight, then it'll destroy the temple, the nightmare will likely kill us, and it'll end badly for everyone - except the forces of evil," he noted.

"If, on the other hand, the nightmare doesn't lair in the temple and it is elsewhere during the day - doing the gods know what - we might have a chance. If we ever did it, that would be the time to take down the field and fight the timber. It was badly wounded already, wasn't it? I bet it's not healed, being in stasis and all. I'm just afraid even then, we may not have the magic it might take to hurt such a magical creature, let alone kill it," he pondered out loud.

"What are ye sayin', man?" Cosher asked. "That we should willin'ly take on that wooden beastie, too?" he asked incredulously.

"Look, it may be impossible to kill the nightmare as long as it has access to the field. The way it moves through the planes, I can't think of any way to keep it away from the field, except one - take the field away. All we have to do is make sure we don't have to fight both monsters at once, and we might be ok. Maybe not, but maybe," he admitted. They really didn't have any facts regarding the timber. He wished Shereef were there, for a wise sage would come in handy just then.

"Look," he continued, "the only thing I'm certain of is that we need to know more to play it safe, but maybe we can't find out what we need. Then we have to risk more. Risk is our business, isn't it?"

"Reasonable risk," Mystir said. "Foolhardiness isn't my game, I can assure you."

"Then what should we do, wizard?" Sef spat back.

"If the nightmare isn't around in the temple during the day, I say we need to explore more. Until we do that, there is no point speculating. We'll have all afternoon to do that, probably. We can decide then, and if we find out more in the morning, then our decision will be better. Right now, though, I'm only interested in knowing if Afy wants us to rest here, or, though a bit riskier and potentially more enlightening, go back to the temple and rest there in some nightmare free room."

All eyes turned back to the holy warrior.

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: Stay the Night.

Afyanna considered the conversations and experiences of the last few days. She had hoped that between them they could have found a better solution to the problem of the field she had voiced earlier. Whereas she would have eventually wanted to vanquish the timber that had finally felled the Holy Warrior of Wrath, now was the least desirable time to do so. But no matter how they looked at it, the nightmare's access to the healing field had to be stopped if the beast itself was to be killed.

"All right," she said standing, "we'll rest up here tonight. I don't want to risk running into the nightmare in the temple tonight. It WAS there when we left."

"Tomorrow," she continued, "we'll return to the temple, take a quick foray around the upper floor to make sure nothing was missed, and then spend a little time down the secret passage. But we need to make it quick."

Afyanna took a deep breath before delivering the worst. "I think it's clear that we cannot avoid dropping the field and releasing the timber, so we need to get our exploration done as early as possible, fight the timber, and hopefully that will leave ample time to rest and recover spells before nightfall."

"F . . . fight the timber," Mystir said. "Like it's just a simple task to be checked off."

"I honestly do not see any way to avoid it, Mystir," Afy said exasperated. "I wish I did. But if we have to do it, then we need to plan it so that we are ready for the nightmare later."

She gestured toward Valin. "He's right. I had concerned myself with the people of Joad and had for . . . overlooked the other innocent victims of this beast."

Afyanna looked around the camp. Whether they agreed with her or not, they now had a plan and had started to settle in for the night.

- Rick (Afyanna)

PBEM Orlantia: Bebe's Last Thoughts.

Half dozing next to the warming fire, Bebe let Afyanna's decision sink in.

*Fight the timber first?* she thought. *I really don't think that is the best idea. I hope we can find a safe corner and slay the hell horse tomorrow before releasing the field becomes necessary. Most likely we would be so depleted after fighting the timber, if we even survive it, that the nightmare would kill us later at the statue. I hope no one is forgetting that our two villagers will probably need protection for their little ceremony, and I will bet the horsy will be in the audience.*

*No, no,* she mumbled to herself *one way or another we will be fighting the nightmare on the morrow. If we do not search it out, it will find us.*

With everyone finally settling down, Bebe snuggled closer into Brambles' thick coat.

- Shelly (Bebe)

PBEM Orlantia: Febriwyn's Idea.

Finished as he was with handing over the reigns, Febriwyn sat silently on the cave floor. It was cold, hard, and jagged - almost the opposite of the forest. The thick, damp cloak didn't much help with the quite unelven surroundings, accentuating it more than anything, seeming to smother the very life huddling within it.

Breaking himself from the distractions of his current predicament, Febriwyn turned his ears back to the party. Valin was speaking now, talking about those who had died at the hellspawn's hooves already. Didn't he know that rushing to face that thing, which had now come out on top three times in battle, was just plain stupid?

No, Febriwyn had been raised different than most folk. He knew that they didn't have to deal with the constant threat of death . . . the life of a soldier. It wasn't as if he had a choice, but were he to have one, he'd never choose any other path.

The group seemed to have come to a consensus then, or, at least, they had quieted. Febriwyn truly wondered why they might have done that and opened his eyes to see if perhaps something had changed. Nothing looked changed. Regardless, now was his opportunity.

Refusing to stand from his position of only moderate discomfort, Febriwyn began, "I didn't forget about the others out there that the nightmare could hurt. It was because they are out there that I suggested we wait."

The group turned to the sitting elf, several giving him with a puzzled if not outright annoyed look.

"Wait, wait. Listen, I don't want anyone hurt either. Yet, every single time we've faced this creature we have come out worse for it. Not only that, but it has simply run back and further drained the field. Each time it does so, remember, it brings Joad closer to economic ruin," at the last, Febriwyn paused for a moment to allow that thought to sink in.

After what seemed a long enough pause, Febriwyn continued, "Draining the field will ruin Joad, release the timber, and finish the defilement of the sacred temple. None of those are good for us or those we want to help; after all, who will sing about people that let the temple get defiled?"

Febriwyn looked down at the ground and shook his head. If he waited much longer, someone was going to speak up.

"However, I was thinking. What if we aren't the only ones the nightmare fights? What if, in trying to kill someone else, the nightmare runs into some city guards or a vigilante that manages to harm it? Now the beast is already hurt. It isn't stupid, but it is predictable. It flies back to the temple and heals itself in the field. Little does it know though, we've set an ambush. After it gets into the temple, it runs into some of us in front, just as some of us from behind run in after it. Maybe we can even get a rope or two on it to prevent it from moving. What's it going to do now? Its only options are to fight or flee. More than anything, right now, it wants to get healed. So it is going to try to get into that field. Maybe it goes ethereal, planning to go corporeal again past our barricades. However, what if we just stick pieces of wood through the field and around it? Then the only place it could try to come back would be in the field, but there are already things there to 'interact with it.' Or, it runs away, which we risk it doing, whether we attack it or not. Once the field goes down, I doubt it will return. I think if we can make it unlikely that it can go astral safely, we might be able to kill it."

- Brandon (Febriwyn)

PBEM Orlantia: The Secret Of Joad.

Horton entered the adventurer's cave, Andrew close on his heels. The party had been set up in their own cave apart from the remaining townsfolk since the nightmare's first attack along the beach, and for reasons of privacy, had remained apart from them in their own cave when possible. But now the head elder of Joad was back in their presence.

"Andrew told me what you found, and some of the implications of this discovery. We are surprised, of course, to learn of the temple's continued existence - but now that we know it's there, and what it might mean, we must insist you keep this temple a secret from anyone outside of Joad, at least until the Church of Larethian might send a priest to protect it. In fact, it would be better not to tell the other townsfolk just yet as well," Horton told everyone there.

"Now," he went on, "I know we can't force our wishes upon you. The truth is we are powerless before you and will have to accept whatever you do, but if you are planning on telling anyone outside the church - and I mean anyone - would you at least tell us now if this is your intention?"

The elder looked grave, but Afy decided to take it upon herself to play all her cards, and stood up and walked over to Horton to confront the man.

"Let's speak about this privately, then," she said, taking his arm and escorting him out into the windy night. The rain had stopped, but the wind blew all the stronger, and the sky was so clear that the stars were extremely bright, their crystal clear illumination suggesting a warmth that the icy wind robbed of its beauty.

Once alone and downwind of the cave's entrance, Afy looked somberly at Horton, then upwards toward the heavens, then back again at the aging halfelf before her.

"I know you have some secret you've been busting your ass to keep from us," she began somewhat harshly. Horton was about to protest, but she silenced him with a quick, defiant, even threatening gesture. "Do not bother denying it, for I've decided I do not blame you. In fact, I believe you when you say it has nothing to do with the nightmare. I sense you are just doing your best for Joad. But you must know, I am too. If it were otherwise, we would be long gone by now. Know that Larethian himself has sent me here. Why? To harm you? Is that what you think?" she demanded. The elder looked more feeble than normal in his silence with Afyanna towering above him, and he had to admit it made little sense the god would wish their downfall.

"Now I demand that you tell me what this secret is, for we've run into a dead-end, and for all you know it could mean something to us, despite you're certainty that it means nothing. Besides, if we discover it on our own, then I cannot make this promise to you."

Horton looked puzzled, then hopeful, and softly whispered, "What promise?"

Looking heavenward again, Afy went down to one knee, drew her sword, and held her sword upraised before her. Now, looking up at Horton, she could see the man's eyes began to swell with tears of hope.

"I swear by my Lord, Corellon Larethian, to keep your secret as best I can, and as Joree Sheen before me, to do my utmost for the welfare of Joad and her people, during this time of crisis. Unless the church wills otherwise, I will not betray your secret unless absolutely necessary," she said with sterling conviction.

Horton fell to his own knees at the sound of her words, and when he hit the ground, his breath escaped him with a slight hiss, and he was softly sobbing by the time he could breathe again.

"Now tell me," Afy softly whispered, a marked change from her previous tone, and placing her hand on the old man's shoulder, she whispered further, "what is this secret you are hiding from all outsiders?"

She had played her last card in the game with Horton. There could be no further tricks. He would either tell her now, Larethian's promise behind her, or he would never tell. He might even deny any secret, for despite Afyanna's best guess, there might genuinely be none at all. She waited.

A half a moment passed, then Horton slowly rose to his feet.

"Very well, I trust you, but I cannot afford to trust your friends - not all of them, anyway. You, at least, have given me your assurances. What I tell you now, you must not share with your comrades, unless you deem it absolutely necessary. Just know, if this information gets out, Joad's life is over."

Afyanna nodded for him to proceed.

"It's the wine."

She had guessed as much. Frowning, she looked impatient. "What about it?"

"Near this temple you discovered, there are vast subterranean catacombs. I've always suspected some passage might lead to the old temple, but I could never find one. I came across the catacombs as a child while spying on the hermit, Anlashok. I'm not sure what he was doing, and he never saw me. But I remembered. Years later, I decided to . . . to . . . to use the catacombs."

"Use them?" Afyanna asked. "How?"

"To store our wine, of course. No matter how good the grapes - and it now appears we owe even their quality to this lost temple - it doesn't matter. If you make it, bottle it, and sell it too soon, improperly aged, this wine may be good, but not great. Centuries ago when the elves ran these vineyards, they laid down such bottles for decades, maybe centuries, for elves are like that. That amount of time, it's like nothing to them. It would be like a human waiting just a couple years to them - big deal, right? But now the human inhabitants are too impatient to wait, and our wine's quality has steadily declined these last centuries. They no longer commanded the prices they used too, and our prosperity was dwindling, due to the all too human impatience. So I hit upon a plan."

"What plan?" Afy asked, urging him not to stop now that he had finally started to unwind.

"When I assumed office - my, nearly fifty years ago - I organized it such that all our wine was sold to the township instead of each family selling its own. Then we laid them down in the catacombs. We still sold some, the inferior batches, just to get by, but we kept our best. They were ok, but not great. And we've sat on this secret for half a century now," he said.

"So what happened?" Afy asked.

"Last year we sent out a few test bottles, to start building our reputation again. The empty bottle you found was probably such a bottle, come back to us via the man in purple. At least that's my guess. We didn't plan on such persistence or dangerous inquiries, but I guess maybe we should have. That was my mistake."

Afyanna was still confused. "So why not tell him? Just sell him what he wanted. What would be wrong with that?" she wondered.

"You don't seem to get it. Do you know how much wine is down there after fifty years? Each bottle is of exceptional vintage and age. Each bottle is worth a small fortune - at least the older ones. And if we regulate it properly, selling just our fifty-year-old stock, each year we can sell wine that old and that good. It'll be the best human made wine in all the world - maybe even in all the net."

"Again, so what? You're rich. You want to hide your good fortune?" Afy asked.

Horton sighed. "What do you think would happen if it became common knowledge that there was a treasure worth millions of gold pieces in a small, unprotected town like Joad?"

It finally clicked for the holy warrior.

"Until we can sell off a year or two of stock, we're still pretty poor. We need to quietly hire guards and mercenaries, trustworthy men and women, and build suitable protection and defenses before word gets out. If this secret gets out prematurely, thieves and warlords from miles around will try to plunder our wealth, and we could do nothing but let them take it, or uselessly die trying to protect it. And the masses are extremely dim, too. They'll think every bottle down there is worth a fortune, though only one fiftieth of it really would command such a price. Each newer year is worth less, until the bottles we laid down just last year aren't worth much more than wine you'd find nearly anywhere. But those dopes would plunder it all, and fifty years, my life's work, would be lost. Joad's wealth, Joad's suffering, Joad's patience would have been for naught. And it wouldn't stop there. Long after someone plundered it all, others would still come. You know the type. Too stupid for words, too slow on the uptake, always three steps behind everyone else. And when disappointed they came all that way for nothing, they'd likely kill us for sport just as soon look at us. No, I'm not sorry for keeping this secret from you. I'd kill to keep this secret, if I had to," he finished, looking at her, trying to judge her reaction.

"So, it really has nothing to do with the nightmare, but you say the catacombs are near where we found the temple?"

"Yes, not too far north of the position Andrew told me where you found the temple."

"Could the nightmare be hiding in the catacombs?" she asked him.

"I doubt it. The passages are extensive, but all of them are twisting and narrow. A large horse really would have a tough time of it down there. Now add to this the fact what little room there was, we've taken up with racks and racks of bottles. There's no more than five feet left for a single man to pass. A horse would never fit through there."

"How much wine are we talking about?"

"Fifty years of wine for all of Joad. Close to ten thousand bottles a year? There's more than half a million bottles down there. A few gold each, and you can see the wealth, can't you? I mean, a few gold for the oldest ones. Andrew tells me you found even older ones than that, and they might fetch an even prettier copper, sure, but you only have a few - not half a million."

The holy warrior was almost stunned by the enormity of the secret. At 10 GP each, ten thousand fifty-year-old bottles would account for 100,000 gold pieces, or ten million silver pieces, and potentially that much again each year, every year, for life and beyond, as long as Joad prospered. It staggered her. And here she was often worried about how many silver pieces she had in her purse. Afyanna had never been so close to that amount of wealth in her entire life. It made her . . . uneasy. And now she, too, had the secret of Joad pressing down upon her, the pressure of her promise, and the oath before her lord.

What would she do?

*That one passage,* she thought. *Not the one going to the iniquities vault, but the other one leading down and to the east. It might lead to the catacombs,* she figured.

"You go back to your cave," she told Horton. "You and Andrew can come into town with us in the morning for what supplies we might need, and what food you can scrounge to keep yourself another few days. Maybe we'll have a little time to hunt, but I'm not sure. We're going back to the temple after we visit Joad and see what we can find to stop this horrible creature. But for now, rest, and be at ease. Your secret is safe with me," she reassured him.

It annoyed her she might not share this with her comrades, but it might become necessary too, if they explored further and found the catacombs and the wine. It was probably even inevitable, if that corridor joined the catacombs. At least now she knew what the consequences would be if the word got out. Saving the town from the nightmare would be a futile move if, through their actions, they just allowed its subsequent destruction through their careless words. Her comrades would probably understand all that, but she hadn't really known them all that long, and some of them, she had to admit, she still hardly knew at all. Were any of them the type to rob the town blind and leave them at the mercy of marauders? She hoped not, but that was the sort of thing one learned only after years of traveling together - and sometimes not even then.

Horton returned to his cave, Afyanna to hers, and she then sent Andrew out. When they were alone, she decided what to tell them.

"Horton has finally told me the secret of Joad," she announced to them all.

"Really? What is it?" several asked her simultaneously.

"Unfortunately, I promised not to tell anyone, unless absolutely necessary. However, I can finally assure you that it is not particularly important in regards to our quest and the nightmare's destruction, nor even the timber's. What I can tell you is that we might stumble upon the secret ourselves, and if that happens, I cannot emphasize enough that letting this secret out would almost certainly result in Joad's destruction and the death of many of her people. I wish I could tell you more than that, but know this. It is just your curiosity that may be denied here - not a need, but a simple desire. Sometimes it is better not to know. In a way, I wish I didn't know," she confessed.

"So what do we do? Nothing?" Sefarlain asked her.

"We continue as planned, and tomorrow, after we go into town with Horton for supplies and equipment, we'll head to the temple and see what we will see. Then we'll know more. For the rest of you, get some rest, say your prayers, study your tomes, sharpen your weapons, and prepare for the morrow. It's going to be a long day."

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: Preparations.

Before going to sleep, Alana pondered the spells she was going to prepare. She discarded the Create Water spell. It didn't work on the nightmare and its usefulness for putting out a fire would probably be nearly nonexistent in the near future. Better add an extra Flare spell. The one she had had prepared that day had served her rather well, though it could have been even better if she had remembered to warn her companions first, but in the heat of the moment that hadn't occurred to her.

She guessed that she had been real lucky that day in a way. A small ache still lingering after her close brush with the infernal beast reminded her just how lucky she or any of them had been. Well, at least they had some sort of defense. Poor Harriet and Ben hadn't had a chance.

So that would be two Flare spells and one Guidance spell. She wasn't an archer, but one never knew when Guidance could come in handy. Yet she doubted she would get more than one chance. Nevertheless, that Flare definitely had saved her life. Never change a winning spell.

She next pondered some more sophisticated spells. Entangle had always been a favorite of hers, and there were plenty of bushes near the temple. Even if the monster could escape, it would at least be distracted for a moment. She would certainly renew that spell. And she would also prepare Shillelagh. It grated on her how easily the beast had shrugged of her quarterstaff. Perhaps with that spell cast, then it would pay attention.

And what about the timber? She hadn't thought much about the timber. Would their combined effort be enough to beat it before the nightmare turned up? She knew nearly nothing about the timber creature, except that is was badly wounded. How did one best fight against such a monster? Perhaps she should have asked. Who was it again that first named the nightmare?

"Hey, psst Mystir," Alana said to the still form of her companion. "Are you asleep yet?"

"Not anymore," came the sleepy answer.

"Do you know anything about the timber? I want to mull it over before I fall asleep," Alana said.

- Wilma (Alana)

PBEM Orlantia: Wood Against Fire.

"I've been thinking a lot about the timber myself," the tired halfelf replied. "I don't know much about golems;" he confessed, "nothing more than any other apprentice would, I guess."

The boy rolled over on his bedroll, gripping his winter cloak closer about him. Attempting to stifle a yawn, he continued, "The golem was likely made by a powerful wizard or cleric. Someone adept at crafting items of magic."

Repositioning himself again, this time so that others that may be interested could hear, he went on. "From what I understand, they are not intelligent beings. They're incapable of producing their own thoughts or desires - they simply follow orders. Well, commands would be more appropriate. The fact that it is a wood golem, as Afyanna has described it, has made me really consider trying to pit the nightmare against the golem."

Now sitting, the wizard brought up another point. "Another thing to think about is if we bring the field down - the field the nightmare is using to heal itself - do you think it will continue its rampage?"

Not knowing whether the others were following, Mystir tried to explain a little better. "I mean, I've never heard of a nightmare going to such great lengths to bring death and destruction to an area, especially on its own. If anyone here really had, then we would have picked up on the clues much sooner." A few nods from those paying attention urged him on. "If we can't outright destroy this thing, maybe we can get rid of why it's here."

"That is if it's not bound to the area or holds some other interest," Sef interjected, "like the vault."

"That is true," the young wizard added, "but we have no indication that the vault was disturbed in order to release the being. The purple-clad man didn't seem to go into that area."

"Anyway - about trying to contain the nightmare - when going from one plane to the next, the traveler must either be certain of the landscape of both locations, or be desperate in its attempt." The rest of the group seemed quite interested on this topic. "Two objects cannot exist in the same place, on the same place. It's like me trying to shove my finger through a wall. It just can't happen, unless the wall breaks, and even then they don't actually occupy the same space at the same time."

"Then what happens when two objects are in the same place?" Alana asked.

"Well," Mystir continued, "one of the objects would be damaged - at least the parts of the objects that intersected. And it would likely be the object that is doing the plane shifting. I don't have a definitive reason why, but I would say it is because that object is in a weaker physical state. Then rather than reform on the intend plane, it would be, umm . . . it would be bounced off, for lack of a better term. And hard. It could be damaged, stunned, perhaps even killed, and might end up in a variety of other possible places, either on the intended plane, such as a nearby open space, or deeper in the ether or astral planes, or sometimes, I'm told, even a totally unexpected place. It's hard to predict. The only consensus is that it's a pretty bad idea to try it."

The young boy gave a shrug and gazed about the room. "I have no personal experience with golems, nor with plane traveling. I am no expert in these fields; all I am offering is what I have heard from my master and his friends, and my personal opinion."

Laying back into his bedroll, Mystir spoke one last time. "Well, here's what I think we should do. Either attempt to pit wood against fire, or face the timber in the day, and then the nightmare tomorrow night."

With his eyes now closed, Mystir attempted to wrestle with his thoughts. *Either way this is going to be risky. But then again, just being here was risky."

- Kevin (Mystir)

PBEM Orlantia: Gathering Heather.

Mystir closed his eyes and the entire party stared ahead in silence, contemplating the next day's problems in relation to what he had just said. There really wasn't much else to say. Perhaps they needed to digest the information, or perhaps they needed more information before a better analysis would be possible.

*Sleeping on the matter will do us all some good,* she thought. *And if we aren't rested, no matter what plan we devise, we'll be in poor shape to carry it out.*

"OK, we'll sleep on it and discuss it more in the morning. Everyone get some rest or you'll be useless tomorrow, come what may," Afyanna said, then turned over and covered herself in her bedroll's blanket.

A chorus of 'Good night's' followed, then only the crackle of the fire and the howl of the wind outside remained. Soon, everyone had drifted off to sleep.

----------------------------------------

It was cold, colder than it had been all night. Cosher turned over and spied the fire had gone out, or rather, had burned down to ashes. Rising, he poked and prodded it and tossed more sticks on until the blaze had renewed itself, and then he squat there, happily rubbing his hands before the dancing flames. He inhaled deeply, the smoky smell of burning wood a welcome experience. He liked fire, but that was almost contrary to his profession's nature.

Fire was often the sailor's worst enemy, for old timbers soaked with tar or pitch or coated with layers of old paint would burn wildly if the fourth element ever got a foothold aboard the vessel.

The sea dwarf smiled to himself when he realized he used an ancient notion of four basic elements. His uncle had explained it to him once. The first element was air, and then came water. Those two came first and in that order since that was their order of importance to basic survival. Without air, you'd be dead in minutes. Without water, it'd take days. The third element, earth, was required to grow food, and you'd starve in a week or so without that. The last, the fourth, was fire. It was a silly concept, or so modern sages would tell one, but, like old stories and songs, he liked the idea - of what he understood of it, anyway.

Filaments of light shown through the entrance, and Cosh could see that morning had broken. A soft step at his side - Alana - her cheery self greeted him.

"Morning Cosh. A quick breakfast, what say?" she smiled.

"I knew I liked you, lass," he beamed, his stomach fondly remembering the monastic druid's earlier efforts. "How kinna help?"

"Oh, just fetch some fresh water, I guess," she replied. Alana liked to work alone in the 'kitchen,' but didn't mind others fetching water, wood, or even the food.

Sef entered the cave just then - apparently he had been outside. Cosh felt remiss in the fact he hadn't noticed a missing party member and chided himself to pay greater attention in future.

"Good morning, friends," Sef smiled, holding up a brace of rabbits. "Shot these two when I got up early and couldn't get back to sleep. I'll clean them," he announced, and set to work. Soon, Alana had the skinned rabbits for a stew, and Sef was scraping rabbit hides with some bark he had stripped from a tree in anticipation of some gloves, perhaps.

The smells of breakfast soon roused all of them, and the meal was devoured the instant Alana said, 'Come and get it.'

*By the gods!* Alana thought, *They'll never appreciate my cooking if they don't take time to taste it before wolfing it down,* speaking of which, Brambles was busy gnawing on rabbit bones tossed her way. Alana sighed after her, slightly saddened realizing Lucian had not yet returned. *Where is that cat?* she stamped her foot. No one noticed, their noses buried deep in their bowls.

"Lucky you got two rabbits, eh?" Tyrulf laughed. "Lucky we got a ranger here," he said happily to the group.

"Actually, I got three, but I dropped one off in the next cave. I would have cleaned it and had Alana cook it, but I figured it'd give them something to do, and I wasn't sure we wanted them here to hear our plans, if anything has changed."

"No," Afyanna said thoughtfully, "we're still going back to the temple. But first, back to town to pick up a few items. Ropes, lanterns, and whatever else you think we might need."

"A plank," said Bebe.

"A plank? Why do you want a plank?" Mystir asked the gnome.

"Brambles can walk up a plank if we lay it across the boulders, so she can come with us this time."

"Ah, I guess so," the wizard giggled, thinking of what a balancing wolf on a plank would look like.

They left the cave and discovered, as Sef had earlier, the wind had nearly died to nothing under the gray sky. The still air was cold, but with no wind, far more tolerable than it had been in some time.

For such a chatty bunch, it became surprisingly quiet during the trip to town. Horton was dead silent, looking worried, as usual - maybe more than usual, in fact. He kept looking around at each party member in turn, but said nothing. Andrew talked, but he said nothing of importance, except making it clear he and Horton wished them luck since they wouldn't be joining them. He expressed such sentiments guiltily, though, and perhaps was worrying whether the strangers thought him a coward. Nothing was said about it, however.

The local pair wished them luck after they scrounged what they could for the heroes, and sent them on their way. It wasn't long before they had reached the grove of heather.

Plank along, handy as it was, it was an easy matter to get Brambles up the first boulder, then haul the plank along and place it across to the next boulder, and so on, and so forth, until the wolf bounded down to the cleared path.

"Look at that!" Bebe exclaimed. Looks of 'At what?' shot her way. "The heather," she said, pointing at the new growth. The heather had already started to regrow at a fantastic rate. It would not hinder them yet, but at that speed the path would be totally overgrown within the week. Whatever variety of heather Anlashok had planted there, it was ideal for the job - maybe almost magical to grow so fast and before winter had fully departed. Bebe stooped and collected some of it, as did Alana, both druids securing some of the heather in their respective packs.

The illusion greeted them, unchanged, and ignoring it, they passed with ease. There was no sound from below. Sef and Wyn in the lead, they crept down under the archways again to where they saw the nightmare before. It was gone. Things looked pretty much as they had before, sans hell horse. Even the mummified body of the purple-clad wizard remained. The shimmering field of blue-white energy still hung there, illuminating everything, pulsing with empathetic waves just as before, and could be felt by some of them, just as before, and not by others, just as before. Nothing had really changed.

"What now?" someone asked.

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: Finish The Job.

Like before, Alana was struck by the feeling of love and sacrifice pouring out of the shimmering field in the temple. She had been mulling over Mystir's information about the golem, and Afyanna's account of the Joree's sacrifice had made a great impression on the druid. Now that she was there again, she knew that no matter what else happened she would like to finish what Joree had started and destroy the Timber once and for all.

"I have been thinking," Alana said, "about the creature trapped here. Am I correct that this golem is made of wood? And if so, would this not mean that it is very vulnerable to fire? I mean, we are in a unique position now because we know, or at least hope to know, what is waiting for us. We could forage for as much inflammable stuff we can get, throw it at the Timber as soon as the field goes down, and then set fire to it."

Alana looked again at the field. There was such beauty in it and such sadness that it nearly broke her heart. And stupidly enough it also made her think of Lucian. With some effort she tore her gaze away from the shimmering light.

"But that is all for later," she brusquely said. "Let's start searching this place." Alana then looked at Afyanna. "Were do we start?"

- Wilma (Alana)

PBEM Orlantia: Into The Darkness.

Using a little of the heather and some tinder that he always liked to carry with his flint, Sefarlain set to work lighting the two lanterns they had taken from the village. They were heavier and somewhat cruder in manufacture than so-called 'adventuring' lanterns, but the ranger was pleased to see that their light was just as steady. Within a few minutes, both were lit and providing the group with enough illumination to consider exploring the temple further.

"Well, I guess the first thing is to quickly check the temple and confirm the nightmare is not here," began the ranger, "and then we can begin to explore the first stairway. If nothing is found there, we can check to make sure the vault is closed and plan for what we need next."

Afyanna nodded her approval silently. Without need for words, both Wyn and Sef slipped away ahead of the rest with a heavily hooded lantern in their hands. Sometimes it was just easier to do what they needed to do without too much explanation or discussion, and the two scouts understood this intuitively. They slipped off into the dark corridor that led towards the stores and the others awaited their word or return.

- Justin (Sefarlain)

PBEM Orlantia: Iniquities.

Following the well-remembered path, Sef and Wyn quietly crept through the hall into the pantry storage area, and seeing no movement, proceeded down the long westerly hall until they hit the kitchen. Still nothing. Moving to the next rooms, Wyn looked in the toilet area, the bedroom, and even the closet while Sef stood guard, but the rogue spied no nightmare. There were things of interest there they did not have time to look at before, and they still didn't have time to do then, but perhaps they'd come back soon and give the place a thorough going over - the way it deserved. But for now, making good time back to the others was of paramount importance.

Opening the door to the anteroom, then taking a quick peek inside the sacristy, the nightmare was still nowhere to be found. The scouting party therefore rushed back toward the others via the last baring door, entered the hall and walked northeast, past the secret door, and into the main chamber once more where their friends were waiting for them.

"No nightmare to report," said Sef, curious as to where that foul beast hung out. "I wonder where it hides during the day," he openly mused.

The others pondered it too, except Wyn, who was far more interested in the secret door. Since he had opened it before, he did not fear to do so again, and silently activated the mechanism sending the wall back, then up, revealing the dark stairwell leading below.

"I'll go first," Afyanna said, noting his eagerness - or was it his readiness? "As the primary representative of Corellon Larethian, I want to be the first to see the door and its seals," she explained.

Slowly, quietly, she descended, both Wyn and Sef following close behind. Ten feet, twenty, thirty, forty - wouldn't these infernal steps ever come to an end?!- fifty feet and almost double that many actual steps, and Afyanna came to a landing. Holding the lantern aloft, it revealed a ten by ten foot room, the ceiling at least eight feet high.

A massive double iron door bared the way, and upon the doors, religious depictions of Larethian, a warning chiseled in iron written in elven hand, and five dark seals - all intact - on the left and right seam, as well as the top and bottom seams in the center, and finally the largest squarely in the middle of the doors, sealing that seam. The seals unbroken, it was clear the doors had not been disturbed for years, maybe centuries.

Afyanna was both relieved and discouraged at the same time - thankful nothing had gotten out, but disappointed the explanation for the nightmare's presence did not seem to be at hand.

Carefully, aloud, she read the warning carved into the iron door.

<Alderami> You look upon the iniquities vault of Moonstone Temple, wherein evil lies, sequestering it from those without. Break not these seals, nor enter this vault, except in His most Holy name. </Alderami>

"Whatever is behind these doors and these seals clearly should remain there," Afy said. Sef simply nodded. Wyn said nothing, but looked long and hard at the seals.

Each seal held a different depiction of a god - Corellon Larethian, of course, was on the central one. The topmost one bore a resemblance of Hanali Celanil, Alana's goddess. The bottom most one depicted Moradin, a well-known god of the dwarves. Pallas Athena - goddess of combat and wisdom - lay upon the rightmost one, while the leftmost had Odin - the 'All Father' - embossed upon its waxy surface.

"Is that usual?" Wyn asked. "Not only more than one god, but several religions represented here?" he inquired, looking at Afyanna.

Afy didn't really know, but she ventured a guess.

"The seals chosen may pay deference to these particular gods since the evil contained within may hold some special interest to those gods and goddesses. Being on friendly terms, I think it only natural they would lend their power to keep this evil hidden away. Each seal, no doubt, has powerful warding enchantments on it. Breaking any one of them might prove disastrous, let alone breaking all five!" she said, slightly anxious at the thought of that much lethal power in one area. She quietly wondered how one might safely pass such seals, but finally decided that kind of knowledge was probably a closely guarded secret of the high priests. In fact, one might need a high priest of each religion to pass their lord's own seal. If true, it might take the collaborative effort of five high priests to safely pass those doors.

Then the holy warrior shuddered all the more when she thought, however powerful the warding seals were, what was hidden inside might be more so - and evil. On a calmer note, a further thought occurred to her when she decided as powerful as the nightmare was, its power probably paled in comparison to what lay fifty feet below Moonstone Temple in the vault before her.

"Let's leave this place," she whispered. "To stay longer is to needlessly invite danger," she said, then turned and went up the stairs.

"After you," Sef told Wyn. Wyn just eyed him suspiciously, wondering if the ranger trusted him or not. He shrugged it off, however, and followed the holy warrior up and out, meeting several others who had come part way down the stairs and were waiting. They turned around and headed up too in front of Afy. Finally, when Sef emerged from the secret door, Wyn activated the closing mechanism again and the slab of rock slid down, then forward, sealing itself so amazingly that the door vanished into a semblance of stones such that it looked like the rest of the surrounding wall. It was a great secret door. He had been lucky to find it.

"OK, now what?" Wyn asked, all eyes turning to the quest leader.

- JimGM.