Salinaar - Turn 10 

Remagen finished her talk and climbed down from the podium as the gathered volunteers started to try out the ‘sharpened reed’ injection method she had shown them. It had been two weeks since the fall of the Great Plague Dragon and the city was just starting to find its feet again. There were still a few problems with those who had ‘turned’ too far and whose bodies were not able to expel the drugs in their systems, but mostly the overthrow of the dragonkin was going well especially with Dracalas in command.

She spotted Salinaar waiting for her over by the doorway and headed over to join him. “Surprised to see you here,” she said, “thought you’d still be ‘consummating’ your relationship with Medealia.” She was quoting Salinaar from the last time she saw him and he covered any embarrassment he felt with his usual bravado. Salinaar of course had been the first to boast that he had single-handedly taken down the Plague Dragon and only grudgingly admitted later to the cheering crowds that he had had a little help from his friends.

“I think we may have a problem with Maurice,” he said and indicated for Remagen to go with him.

“You know I do miss my home,” confessed Remagen as Salinaar stopped to scratch his mark on a lump of wood offered by another hero worshipper, “I mean who do I ask to be transported back?” “Hmmm,” Salinaar offered, apparently only just catching what she had said. “You’ll want to speak to a Son of L’denon called T’sardan,” he explained when she had repeated herself, “he seems to concern himself with gathering heroes and sending them into danger.”

“Well there are not exactly any phones round here,” grumbled Remagen and then adding almost in a philosophical vein, “and anyway I don’t know his number.” This was a little lost on Salinaar as the two of them pushed through the angry crowds that were gathering outside the grand cathedral which was where Maurice had ensconced himself.

“Show them in,” said Maurice with a wave of his hand, the dragon knight clicking his heels in acknowledgement before going over to open the small door. The sounds of shouts and jeers could be heard before the door was closed again and Remagen and Salinaar made their way across the echoing chamber.

The two could see that Maurice was sat in a throne which looked like it had been taken from the tower. He was stroking a third hand that sat upon his lap and as they got closer it was possible to see that it was actually a disembodied hand that was heavily stitched around where a small lizard or snake head had been attached to the end of one finger. The hand seemed to move as if it enjoyed being stroked.

“Look Maurice…,” said Salinaar only to be corrected straight away by Maurice. “That is Lord High Duke of the Bone Hand to you.”

“Oookaayy,” said Salinaar before mumbling the title and then going into what he wanted to say about the dragon knights that had so far been either killed or defected and the general feeling of displeasure amongst the populace. He explained about how the locals do not like Maurice using loyal dragon knights and all his talk of a new order.

“There are some that are stirring up trouble saying that you were actually a servant of the dragon and killed it to take power. And anyway,” concluded the T’gellen paladin with a little feeling, “I have enjoyed travelling together with you and Remagen here and would like us to stay as a group.”

Maurice looked down his nose at Salinaar and was about to make some caustic reply when there was a cry from the shadows to the right. “Death to the false one!!”

It was a figure in black brandishing a brown tainted dagger and as he ran at a surprised Maurice, Salinaar and Remagen reacted.

Remagen drew her pistol as she rushed to the side of the throne where Salinaar’s lightning reactions had already taken him to pull Maurice from the seat. The assassin was not alone however for as Salinaar pushed Maurice down, he caught a glimpse of another shadowy figure to the left, this one releasing an tainted arrow from a short bow. Maurice was indignantly calling out something as Salinaar dived upon him to pull his head down out of the way of the missile. As he did so everything seemed to fall into slow motion and then impact into blackness…

 

There was a groan from Maurice as he tried open his eyes and quickly closed them again when all he could see was very bright light. Next to him Remagen wondered what had died in her mouth, then realised it was her own tongue which was slightly swollen apparently from the effects of heat. Salinaar, despite being a T’gellenite, found himself almost baking inside his armour.

He rolled over and came face to face with a wild-eyed man, whose face was surrounded by a mane of overgrown and dirty hair and beard. The man was dressed in ragged and torn remains of rusted metal armour that had apparently seen many years of being patched and mended from other equally decayed suits. The man growled something unintelligible and leapt to his feet, drawing as he did so a beautifully polished two-handed sword which had the word ‘Deliverance’ engraved down the side of the blade. Salinaar slowly and carefully got to his feet and found the man not only looked like a scruffy lion but also stood some eight feet tall. The man grunted something else that sounded like, “Urgh Yurgh?”

“The names Celestial,” said a voice from nearby and the four turned to find an armoured dwarf sat upon a rock mopping his brow. “So can any of you explain what happened and how I woke up here?”

Between looking around at their surroundings, introductions are made at least between some of the group, the mystery knight simply putting his hand to each person’s chest as if feeling for a heart (and getting an indignant look from Remagen when he tries to do it to her). The land around the party seems to consist of rough red rocks jutting from a dusty desert landscape that is only broken up now and again by tall finger-like cacti. The heat is getting to everyone a little and Celestial claims to have spotted something off nearby, indicating that he will lead everyone to it.

It is in a gulley that seems to run for quite a distance in both directions that Celestial points to what looks to be black wagon, missing one wheel and topped with a couple of lumps which seem to have attracted three large black birds. The party move nearer and can see that the lumps are infact bodies, the face of one being pecked away by the vultures. The bodies of two more men can be seen within the wagon which has windows and a door on either side, one of the door hanging open and creaking in the wind. Outside on the the back of wagon is a rack to which is still tied two trunks and several sacks.

“Whurg gat?” exclaims the giant knight as if listening and the others strain their ears to hear the sound of galloping hooves approaching.

At the top of the gulley the rider appears. Shading their eyes from the sunlight, the party look up and can see that the rider is dressed in trews, boots, waistcoat, long leather duster coat and a strange brimmed hat. In his hands he holds what the others think to be some strange wand and Remagen knows to be a remington rifle. At his waist is a gun belt with a pistol in either holster.

“Move away from the stagecoach nice and easy,” shouts down the man. “You boys sure are in big trouble!” Remagen is indignant for the second time in as many hours…