Sapphire:Sessions:20140412

The enchanted standard is flying under its own power toward the manor. Trace completes the moat he has excavated using his earth-shifting magic. Rory readies his bow as three orcs set grappling hooks and begin climbing over the wall. Chalker uses his power to loosen one of the grappling hooks and throw it back; one of the orcs retreats. Another orc jumps down but lands badly, sprawling on the ground; Chalker grabs another grappling hook and wraps the attached rope around the orc, then srikes it in the head with the heavy hook. Rory shoots the other orc, then stomps on the bound orc's chest with both feet.

The mage that Aliana attacked screamed and disappeard from the dreamscape. She wipes the blood off her swordblade and scans her surroundings. She senses that she is in a "mage arena," a partitioned-off piece of the astral plane. No mage of the current era has the knowledge to cast this spell. Aliana re-enters the real world and finds that Trace is nearby. Trace feels magic forces begin to swirl around the two of them, some sort of exotic gate spell building up. He grabs Aliana's cloak and drags her away. Suddenly they are both at the rear of the manor. Dead orcs are scattered around them. Aliana is standing over the strange guardian, which is lying face-down on the grass. Nearby is the corpse of a mage, his blood pooled on the ground; the sight causes Trace to vomit.

Aliana leaps across the moat to where another mage lies crumpled; she cuts this one's throat and searches the body. Beneath his tunic he wears an amulet of Asseraah. She takes a pouch, six rings (four of them with drained manastones and the other two with powerstones), and a wooden wand hidden in a sash, then draws the mage's hood over his face.

Meanwhile, an injured orc screams "Retreat! Oak Thief is down!" Chalker and Rory judge that no more orcs will attempt to scale the wall. The flying standard lies inert on the roof.

Chalker searches Oak Thief's body. The orc leader's clothes and armor are well-made. He wears a clan amulet and several talismans, but no symbols of Gauder or Asseraah. There is a space at the base of the orc's skull and scarring at the base of his spine. Chalker finds a sheathed knife with a recess in the handle that contains a key; he recalls Aliana mentioning a locked chest in the orc camp.

Rory sees a dead horse and rider on either side of the manor. He figures the guardian probably killed them. Rory goes over to the guardian and turns him over. Attached to the guardian's face is a wooden mask, its features carved into a frightening grimace. Rory glances over at Trace and tells him to start throwing dead orcs into the trench, but Trace merely looks away.

Chalker slides a copper piece under the pennant-shaped standard and brings it down off the roof. It seems inert. He folds it around the coin, slides it into a leather bag, and ties it shut. Seeing no one else in front of the manor, Chalker heads around back.

Rory, his hands protected with a piece of leather, pries the mask from the guardian's face; with a sucking sound, the mask gives way. Some of the guardian's skin comes away with the mask. The mask gets a little larger as though to fit a human-sized face. Rory hurriedly throws it into the trench.

Aliana observes that two horses have left the area recently. She gathers up eight of the orcs' horses, all healthy and well-trained, and leads them back toward the manor. Trace fills in part of the trench to make a path across. Aliana rounds up the group's horses and Nancy.

Rory goes around retrieving his magic arrows, and finds signs that the orcs had fought among themselves.

Chalker examines the bled-out mage. He leaves the amulet of Gauder, but takes six finger rings (all of which had had gems that evidently exploded) and a purse containing gold and silver. He notes that the mage has an oaken wand with blood on it. He dumps the corpse into the trench.

After all the orcs' bodies are put into the trench, Trace begins filling it in. At first Chalker objects, as the ogres have not yet been examined, but Trace explains that he can bury the ogres separately.

One of the ogres wears an amulet of Gauder, but Chalker is drawn to an ornate ring made of an unusual silver/copper alloy and set with a large black ruby. Looking into the ruby is like staring into a starless night, and Chalker feels the essence of the Mother of Night within the stone. Chalker silently addresses the darkness, "Mother." After a moment comes a distracted reply, "What?" "Why are you here?" "Some rude mortal called my name." "I apologize. I felt your presence." "You are cutting into 'quality time' with my husband. Do you want us to visit you?" Chalker breaks off the contact, then pulls the ring off of the ogre's hand.

Chalker retrieves the wooden mask from the trench before Trace can cover it over. He puts the mask into the bag with the pennant.

Chalker shows the ring to Trace, who says it's not magical, but might be holy. Chalker admits that he looked into the ring and had a conversation.

Trace, Chalker, and Aliana take another look at the guardian. This is not the same one the group first met. This guardian is dressed in 'farming leathers' (such as a workman might wear). There are arcane markings on the skin of his back. Chalker picks up the guardian, takes him inside, and lays him on a bed.

Trace goes to the gear room. Two of the cogwheels are inert, but the third is still active. He reassembles the gears.

Outside again, Chalker sits next to Aliana. "The guardian said that you and I don't fit the 'pattern'. I know there is something different about your aura. I'm going to look under your cloak..." Almost before he finishes speaking, Aliana cries sharply "No!" and bolts away.

After a few moments, Chalker goes into the manor, to the power room. Trace is there, looking satisfied at his work. He tells Chalker, "I think this switch here brings back Danilon." Trace has made it so that the switch is not obvious and will not move easily. He points out the guardian's cogwheel, and Chalker mentions the markings on the guardian's back. Chalker says that he'll be going to the orc camp; Trace says he'll stay here at the power source.

Chalker retrieves his horse and Rory's. He says to Rory, "We're going to play Whack-An-Orc." Chalker mentions that Aliana is mad at him, and that he saw her back.

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