Journal of Dragor Taliovic - Day 23
After the fight with the troll and the troglodytes, we sat nursing our wounds in the early hours of the morning. The eastern sky was beginning to lighten with the promise of a new day which looked to be as cloudy and miserable as the previous one out in these wretched, blighted moors.
A sudden movement set us all on our guard, fearful of more foul denizens of this cursed land seeking our end. A small figure appeared at the edge of our firelight, watching us nervously, too timid to approach.
We relaxed as we realised it was a young female dwarf that lurked in the darkness. We beckoned her closer and she sat, grateful for the warmth the flames provided.
She told us her story in quiet tones. Her name was Amber Rockdottir and she'd been trailing us ever since we left Triboar. She explained that she'd been in the marketplace when the giants attacked and I'd apparently saved her life when the masonry began to rain down upon us. This was news to me but she was evidently grateful for my unintended heroism. I didn't have the heart to tell her the truth and it is not my business to tell others what to do with their lives.
She'd decided, after seeing me topple one of the giants into that pit they'd dug, that she would help protect me from future threats. I was slightly offended that she kept calling me 'Squishy' but I held my tongue. She obviously needed to feel useful.
Amber was an inexperienced but tough fighter, seeking independence from her mountain dwarf clan and giddy with the promise of adventure. She longed to prove herself and decided that protecting me was the ideal cause to follow. How naive, I thought, although I admit to feeling a bit touched by her kindly attitude.
After the sun had risen above the horizon, not that we could really tell in this bleak and overcast place, we set off on the trail of our quarry once again.
Late that morning we came upon a cloud of carrion birds feasting on the corpse of a mighty black dragon. It was a fairly fresh kill and we realised that the giants we were following had brought this mighty beast to its doom. No mean feat, to be sure.
I plucked a glistening tooth from its maw to add to my collection and the others frolicked in its entrails. A somewhat unsanitary practice but they seemed to feel the better for it.
Later that day, we followed the trail down into a river valley; a large waterfall at its head. We saw the giants cleansing themselves in the waters at the base of the cascade, evidently wounded from their fight with the dragon.
We took cover in the woods downstream and planned our attack. The druid slipped into the water, taking the form of a giant octopus, and glided silently through the river to launch a surprise attack on the male giant who had been blinded by the dragon's acid breath.
I summoned a huge mastiff dog from the bag of tricks I carried and dispatched it up the far bank to outflank the huge humanoids. It proved to be of little benefit in the end. The barbarian, in his indomitable way, plunged head first into battle with the female giant.
Another huge fight ensued, the giants were truly formidable foes. I broke cover from the woods and headed out onto a spit of land creating a fork in the river so I could more easily cast my magic. Amber followed, shield raised and fiercely protective of me. I was, by turns, irritated and reassured by her presence.
I found some hidden well of power within myself and launched a crackling burst of lightning at the male giant, causing him to spasm in agony at my assault.
But my arrogance taught me a harsh lesson then. Convinced that a blind giant would prove no threat, I remained where I was rather than move to a safer location. The giant hefted a massive boulder into the air and hurled it in the direction the spell had come from. Fortune was on the giant's side as the huge projectile hurtled towards me so fast I couldn't react in time. Just as I thought this was to be the end of my journey, I was thrust aside by my diminutive protector. I sprawled to the ground just in time to see Amber disappear under the huge rock, crushed in the place where I had been standing but moments before. Unbidden, I let out a cry of anguish and shame that she should suffer for my foolishness.
I dragged myself over to her battered body and detected the faintest tremor of life still beating within her chest. I felt helpless, my powers were good only for destruction, not healing.
Fortunately, one of my companions came to her aid. I saw not who it was as my vision was blurred through the tears of my frustration. I think it may have been Jaya the rogue who saved her life and stabilised the faltering beat of her heart.
Forcing my angry feelings deep inside, I grabbed Amber under the arms and dragged her to the safety of the woods in the hope of keeping her alive long enough to receive some further medical attention.
The ranger, Rufeus, who had been lurking in the woods while the battle raged, appeared and thrust two Goodberries into Amber's hand which she ate quickly. It wasn't much but enough to bring some colour to her cheeks.
Rufeus stood there looking slightly indignant and whined that no one was giving him credit for saving the young dwarf's life, as if it had been purely he that had done all the hard work. I ignored him, it was the rogue to whom my gratitude would be directed. She had been the one to put herself in danger to help Amber, not this bowman who cowered in the shadows of the trees offering some meagre fruit to the fallen. Not that I'm entirely without thanks for his assistance, but oh the arrogance of the man!
I pushed these unseemly thoughts to one side as I made the little fighter as comfortable as I could and stayed with her while the rest of my companions brought the giants down.
When the fight was over, we recovered the artefact that they had taken from Triboar and while we decided what to do with it, the wizard giant's castle glided overhead and settled in a nearby clearing. A welcome sight indeed.
Another giant, not the wizard himself, appeared and helped us stow the artefact safely in the castle, out of reach of those that wished to unite all the scattered pieces.
We decided to seek out an oracle who could reputedly contact the giants' gods and could perhaps enlighten us to the reasons behind all this turmoil in the giants' hierarchy, this 'Ordning'.
The floating castle carried us to the mountains of the north to a remote place that was the home of this oracle.
On entering the ancient temple, we beheld a number of fierce barbarians attempting to smash their way in to loot the place for treasure. They evidently could not be swayed from their goal and they rushed us, swords swinging wildly.
Amber, hale and hearty once more after her ordeal with the giants, stood courageous by my side again as we cast spell and steel at a pair of berserkers who had marked us as adversaries. Our skills complemented each other's and we quickly despatched our foes.
My companions singled out the leader of this unruly band and laid him low. After the death of their chieftain, the fight went out his followers and they surrendered their arms to us. An unusual event for barbarians, I'm led to believe.
So there I must leave it for now, stood in an ancient temple, carved from the rock and ice of the mountain, trying to decide what to do with our new captives. Can they be trusted not to turn on us while we seek to gain entry where they had failed?
