The young maid, Elise, answered the door, with the two dogs standing behind her. Rocky and Chilli yipped and barked a few times.
Walking into the foyer, Kirby knelt down to pet the two canines. “Doggie dudes, glad to see you too.”
Their stubby tails wagged in delight.
“Miss Keri is this way.” Elise led the three to the left, past the dining benches and into the sitting room. The proprietor set aside a large leather-bound book. She smiled, stood, and clasped her hands. “I am so glad to see that you have returned, Marigold, Gurk, and Jax. Did you and all of your party fair well?”
Glenn nodded. “We were successful.”
“Everyone made it,” Kirby said, adding with a sly smile, “even Kalgore the Courageous.”
Stephi slapped him across the top of his head in playful disapproval. “We just came to drop off some of our stuff before going over to the temple.”
“That will be fine,” Keri said. “I hope all goes well.”
Something inside Glenn stirred. Why would she think it wouldn’t?
Walking over to the temple, Stephi asked Ron, “Will I need to give them back their sanctuary stone?”
“No way,” Kirby said. “The priest never said anything about giving them back.”
“Why didn’t you use yours, Gurk?” Glenn asked. “I was following you, figuring you had a plan to take out the husk mummy.”
Kirby grinned. “Not really a plan to take her out. Once Lysine ID’d it as a husk mummy, I knew we were screwed. Nobody had any magic weapons to kill it and Lysine’s attempt to repel it failed. No way was I going to attack.
“I was reaching for my sanctuary stone when I got froze. I was aiming to get behind her, sneak up and use my stealth attack to try and grab the pendant from around her neck and run like hell.”
“Lot of good that would’ve done us,” Kalgore said, anger in his voice. “Left behind, frozen in place.”
“Dude, I figured she couldn’t attack me with a spell, so she’d have ta chase me.” He gestured wildly with his hands, drawing attention from peasant laborers and tradesmen on the street. “Give you time until the Arrest Spell’s duration ended.”
The temple was within sight and Ron unconsciously picked up the pace. It didn’t bother anyone but Glenn, who had to trot to keep up.
“A reasonable plan, Gurk, under anything but advantageous circumstances,” Ron said. “We shall not mention the sanctuary stones. And if they are brought up, I shall attempt to negotiate for us to retain possession.”
A flunky acolyte gave Ron the redirect runaround when he asked to meet with High Priest Rullio. Finally the acolyte allowed the party to meet with Schmedrey, the used car salesmen of the Apollo priesthood. Once Ron explained that they’d secured the pendant which rendered one undetectable to undead, word was sent up the chain immediately.
The party was ushered to a waiting room, with a plush cot, presumably for Kim’s body, and a bench against the wall with padded seating for the five to sit upon. There was a narrow window high up on the wall opposite the head of the cot. It was opened, some sort of pivot rotation, and allowed circulation of air—unlike the previous waiting room they’d been ushered into.
“Not exactly a five start room,” Kirby said, “but a lot better than that cramped little one last time.”
Derek smirked. “Like you’ve ever stayed in a five star hotel.”
“It was a figure of speech, dude. You know, like dumb as a box of rocks?”
Derek stood, fists balled.
Ron got between the thief and warrior. “It would not benefit our cause for us to be engaged in a brawl upon their arrival.”
“It wouldn’t last but a moment,” Derek said, staring down at Kirby. “Then the gnome could heal up his broken ass.”
“If Marigold elected not to Slumber you, and Jax failed to aid his short-statured compatriot,” Ron said.
“I most certainly would,” Stephi said, hands on her hips. “Your derogatory comment started it.”
The warrior druid’s gaze narrowed as it focused on Derek. “Your actions, along with your brother’s, initiated this chain of events, which we shall explore, once the sixth of our number is again among us.”
Derek huffed and sat down, leaving a large space on the bench between him and Ron.
Stephi put her arm around Kirby, and squeezed him close. “If there’s a five star tavern and inn in this backwards city, my little man, we’ll find it. After all this, we deserve room service and a king-sized bed.”
Glenn wasn’t sure Stephi meant the suggestion one of the ways it could be interpreted. He spotted stirrings of arousal in Kirby and looked away at the floor.
“We’ll see,” Kirby said, lifting her arm off his shoulder. He would’ve been blushing, if his half-goblin complexion allowed. “I think I hear someone coming.”
“Good,” Derek grumbled. “I was afraid Marigold was about ready to put on a big purple robe and start singing that Barney song for her little friend.”
Glenn thought they’d turned a corner in the outpost. Bonded or something. He’d had enough and stood up. “Shut up, Kalgore.”
“Whatever, gnome.”
The warrior druid stood, partially blocking Glenn’s view. “Cease, Kalgore.”
He pointed a finger down at Derek. “Not one of us is enamored with our situation. Attempting to alleviate your dissatisfaction and frustration through endless derogatory comments aimed at fellow party members is destructive to each of us as individuals, and to our party as a whole.”
“He’s worried that when Kim’s back she’ll—”
Ron spun and pointed at Gurk, but didn’t have time to say anything, as a manservant knocked twice and opened the door.
“The High Priest Rullio,” the elderly servant announced, and stepped aside, bowing his head.
In walked an elderly man, at least in his eighties, with a wispy white goatee beard and matching hair, what he had of it, for he was mostly bald. He wore the customary yellow robes, denoting him as a follower of Apollo, and a fist-sized symbol of Apollo, a chariot drawn by four steeds, carrying upon it the sun. The symbol, like the chain holding it around his neck, was made of gold.
The priest leaned heavily on a staff, one that was smooth and white. While he appeared frail, his green eyes were both intense and alert. He extended a liver-spotted hand. “May I examine the item you retrieved?” Like his eyes, the high priest’s voice carried an intensity that didn’t match the frailty of his years.
Ron pulled the ivory pendant from his pocket and handed it to the priest.
The old priest handed his staff to the manservant. He then placed his right hand over his left, clasping the magical item in between. He closed his eyes and his face went blank, as if he had fallen asleep standing up.
“I sense an enchantment,” he said with confidence. “Of a powerful and permanent nature.”
The old priest’s eyes snapped open. He said to Ron, “It requires testing to verify that this magical charm is what both you and I believe it to be.”
“May I and my associates accompany you to observe this verification?”
The old man examined the group. For the first time his eyes fell upon Stephi. They widened and he smiled, then shook his head ever so slightly. He held up three fingers as if to emphasize his words. “No more than three.”
Ron bit his lip, trying to decide. “Kalgore and Marigold, accompany me. Jax and Gurk, you will await the delivery of Byeol.”
Kirby frowned and crossed his arms. Glenn was curious as to the test, but wasn’t sure he could add anything should the testing prove questionable. His gut said the old priest was serious, and probably honest, and that he’d been through the process plenty of times.
“We’ll be here,” Glenn said.
The priest took his staff back from the servant and kept the ivory pendant. He slowly walked out of the room, attended by the elderly servant.
Marigold squeezed Glenn’s shoulder and followed Ron out of the room. Dere
k followed her, bumping into Kirby on the way past. Glenn was ninety-eight percent sure it was intentional, especially when the warrior said, “Sorry, dude.”
After the door was closed and it was only Glenn and Kirby, the thief asked, “Can you figure that asshole out?”
Glenn shrugged. “When we were in the outpost, for the most part he was reasonable. I just don’t get it.”
“Jerks are always jerks. They don’t need a reason. They just are.” Kirby sat down with a huff. “Trust me.”
Glenn sat next to him. “I think maybe he’s jealous that Marigold prefers to hang with us and has no interest in him, despite his big macho muscles.”
Kirby laughed, then got serious. “What I mentioned before?”
Glenn nodded, eyes a little wide.
“Well, he didn’t cross the line. I am not sure he will. In the dungeon—or outpost—and with that carnivorous bog lily, he was right there with his sword. Doing things like a good party member. He might’ve learned something after he let you get beat up.”
Glenn scowled, remembering that incident, recalling the boots connecting with his kidneys. He involuntarily winced.
“Sorry, dude. Kalgore’s a good party member when on an adventure, and a jerk when we’re not.”
“Lysine’s a warrior. Why doesn’t he do more to stop him?”
“In a fight, Kalgore would probably beat him pretty easily. I think Lysine figures as leader, he can…”
Glenn finished Kirby’s thought, saying, “Rein him in only so far.”
Kirby scratched behind his downward pointed ear. “What was that with Lysine talking about Kalgore’s brother?”
“You know his brother?”
“Yeah,” Kirby said. “Well, not really. He was the GM for us. Well, I only played under him a few times. His brother was sick that night you and Byeol and Marigold showed up, for your college paper.”
“There’s something Kalgore and Lysine aren’t saying. Did Kalgore’s brother know that GM that sent us here?”
Kirby shrugged. “I don’t think so. First time I saw him was that night. Kalgore thought he recognized the guy, at first, and was a little upset. Then told me it wasn’t who he thought it was.”
“Once we get Byeol back,” Glenn said, “we’ll confront Lysine when Kalgore’s not around.”
Kirby said, “Someone’s coming again.”
“You hear pretty well.”
“Not as good as Marigold.” Kirby’s eyebrows rose and he grinned sheepishly. “Trust me. She can hear a mumble a mile away.”
Glenn slapped his friend on the back. “Don’t forget, she can hear through Petie’s ears, when she wants to.”
“Do birds have ears?” Kirby smiled wickedly. “Tough question. Probably should ask Kalgore.”
They both laughed, then fell silent when someone knocked.
Two servants dressed in a yellow jerkins and brown trousers carried Kim’s body in on a stretcher. Without making eye contact with either Kirby or Glenn, they placed the stretcher on the plush cot, leaving Kim’s head nearer the door and with her feet closer to the window. They then exited the room, pulling the door closed behind them.
Kim wasn’t wrapped in the crude canvas tarp or any cloth. Instead they’d clothed her in a white, thick cotton gown. Her hair was clean and brushed and her eyes and mouth were closed. She could’ve been asleep.
The sight of her brought back the battle against the goblins and ogre. Glenn gripped his knees as he sat silently, thinking. It seemed like years ago, instead of fewer than two weeks.
“You know,” Kirby said, “with the Tether Spell working, that means her soul is probably in the room.”
Both the gnome and half-goblin looked around.
“Of course,” the thief continued, “if me or you was a high priest, we could probably cast a spell to talk with her. Might even be able to see her.”
“Let’s just hope that high priest can cast the revive spell,” Glenn said.
Kirby let loose with a grim laugh. “Let’s just hope they don’t try to screw us over, and claim we got the wrong magic item.”
Chapter 31
Without knocking, High Priest Rullio entered the room. Glenn jumped in his seat, but Kirby didn’t. He’d heard them coming.
The priest shuffled over to stand at the head of the cot. After Ron, Derek and Stephi filed into the room and took their places along the bench, the servant entered and closed the door.
“Is he gonna cast the Revive the Dead Spell?” Kirby whispered to Ron.
The warrior druid nodded and put his finger to his lips.
Stephi ignored Ron’s gesture. She crouched down and whispered, “He’s letting us watch, only if we’re quiet and don’t interfere.”
The priest glanced her way then back down at Kim. He handed his staff to the manservant, lifted the gold chain holding the symbol of Apollo from around his neck and held the medallion in both hands.
Staring out the open window, he began to speak.
Glenn couldn’t figure what he was saying. It sounded like gibberish, like a mix of French and Russian. The healer reflected that people probably didn’t understand what he said when he performed an incantation. Really, it was a sequence of syllables that he had to say with precise pronunciation, inflection and timing.
The high priest went on for over two minutes. Made sense, Glenn thought, why he needed silence and to not be distracted. One stutter or inappropriate pause could ruin the spell.
Then the old priest placed his right hand on Kim’s forehead and the gold Apollo symbol on top of that, and then pressed his left hand atop the symbol.
He uttered a few more unintelligible phrases and lifted his hands.
Kim’s eyes opened and she sucked in a breath.
And then, she gasped, stiffened, and began shaking, like she was suffering a seizure.
The priest watched, a frown crossing his face.
“What’s happening?” Stephi asked, grabbing her friend’s right hand.
Kim’s body ceased moving, and her eyes closed.
Kirby looked up at Ron. “Failed system shock survival?”
“What?” Stephi asked.
Ron struggled to get the words out. “Sh-sh-she failed her Sys--system Shock Saving Throw.”
Stephi spun on Ron, then looked back at the priest. “What the hell does that mean?”
Kirby took Stephi’s hands, lifting them from her friend’s, tears filling his yellow eyes. “She didn’t make it.”
Along Stephi’s right thigh, a burst of light appeared, like a muted flashbulb, then faded.
Kirby jumped back. “Dude!”
Glenn was stunned, trying to comprehend that after all they’d done, they still failed Kim. He tried to settle in his mind that she was truly dead…because of some random number generation game rule tied to this world.
She was dead.
The old high priest’s eyes widened. He was caught in the middle slipping the gold chain over his head when the light burst occurred.
Stephi gently tapped her pants, then reached into her pocket and withdrew the Alexandrite gem. In the sunlight it sparkled a blueish green.
The high priest stepped around the table. Both Ron and Kirby stepped back, giving him room to approach Stephi. He held out his right hand. “May I examine your gemstone?”
Confused, caught between grief and surprise, Stephi nodded and handed it to the old man.
He murmured an incantation and held the gem clasped between his hands. After a few seconds with his eyes closed, he lifted it to his right eye, and looked at, or into, the three-eighths inch gemstone.
He turned and examined Kim’s pale face and then he peered once again into the gem.
“Odd,” he said, and held up a hand, signaling for the five people staring at him to remain silent.
He mumbled another incantation. After another moment, he pursed his lips, then licked them. Apparently coming to a conclusion he said, “It is fortunate, or unfortunate, depending on your friend’
s perspective, that you, my fair elf maiden…” He glanced up at Stephi. “That you were in possession of a vacant soul gem.”
Chapter 32
The five party members sat huddled in their cramped room at the Glade House.
“I don’t care,” Derek said. “Next time there’s anything of value for party treasure, I’m carrying it.”
“Dude,” Kirby said, hunched down across from the muscular warrior. “Byeol is Marigold’s friend. It’s lucky for her that she possessed it.”
“What, dude,” Derek retorted. “You saying she wouldn’t like me?”
“I do not believe that is the case,” Ron said, seated on the floor to Derek’s right. “One of my characters possessed a soul gem, and from what Marigold has shared, the one she possesses functions much the same way.
“Unless Marigold dies, or we hire a priest to cast an Exorcism Spell upon the gem, Byeol’s soul is bound to Marigold, the possessor of the soul gem when her friend entered it. That arrangement cannot be altered. Thus, what kind of friendship you might have established is useless to debate.”
“Yeah,” Kirby said. “And as long as Marigold possesses the soul gem, she gets Byeol’s hit points added to hers. She’s a first rank magic user. You’re a fighter. Who needs them more?”
Ron nodded.
“Plus,” Kirby continued. “She’ll be able to fight like a warrior monk. You’re already a warrior. You don’t need that.”
Derek scowled. “Hey, as a fighter, that means I’ll be up front. Taking damage. Those hit points could make a difference when the chips are down. And all we have is the elf’s word on what Byeol says, or wants.” He shot a finger at Ron. “Wait, let me finish.”
Ron tipped his head, indicating for Derek to continue.
“If we managed to capture the soul of a powerful magic user or cleric, we could use their power to help us get home, or at least find a way.”
Stephi, sitting cross-legged next to Glenn, began to breathe pretty hard, building up a head of steam.
Glenn laid a reassuring hand on her leg. “Remember what the high priest said, Kalgore?” Glenn said. “He communicated with Byeol. He said she chose to enter the gem.”
Outpost: A LitRPG Adventure (Monsters, Maces and Magic Book 1) Page 23