Greybrook S1|E5 : Toes Before Hoes

Greybrook S1|E5

“Toes Before Hoes”

Scribe and Tal’yrra are delightfully surprised by the well-kept condition of the Greybrook sewer system. They expected to by waist deep in offal, but these sewers are well-made with walking paths on each side of the grey water trough. The sounds of the riots after the explosions echo in the tunnels. The sounds of people crying for help pangs at Cade’s heart, but keeps moving forward with the Harbinger’s sword to his back. 

The entire time blackish-purple motes of energy flow into the Harbinger. His body is radiating the energy and the whole group can feel his power growing in the air like static before a lightning strike. Cade and Black Fang try to fight back only to swatted down like insignificant bugs. They even try to mislead the Harbinger taking the wrong tunnels, but the Harbinger has some sense as where to go and throws Cade in the right direction. 

As the group travels through the sewers, they realize that they are getting close when they start to see the green luminescent mushrooms that Flinard used to show the way to the cavern under his hobbit hole. The problem is that they are also getting closer to the ocean and the well-kept sewers start to decay into what Tal’yrra and Scribe fear when entering the sewers the first time. 

The side pathways turn into dirt paths and the dirt paths disappear into the filth of the sewer’s grey water. Poor Cade can barely keep his head above the filthy water and lets out a gasp as his head plunges beneath the muck. He emerges moments later gagging and spitting out grey water from his mouth. 

“POOP WATER!” Black Fang barks at Cade and nuzzles his face. 

“EWW!” both Tal’yrra and Scribe gag at the thought of having the poop water in their mouths. 

Cade splashes through the last leg being fed up with the conditions of this trek. Black Fang is right behind him as they pass the protective runes that Flinard placed just before the entrance of his cavern. Scribe and Tal’yrra also rush out of the grey water. For a moment, the Harbinger inspects the protect ruins and passes through them letting the destructive energy zap his already deteriorating body. The Harbinger’s body loses a large portion of decaying flesh and all clothing is burned away. He now looks more like a shambling skeleton than a zombie. 

The group manages to dry off by the time they reach Flinard’s cavern, but Cade is sweating profusely and walking slowly. He collapses as they enter the opening of the cavern. He lands in a large pile of green luminescent mushrooms. 

“Poop water,” Black Fang nuzzles Cade face again and lays next to his sick friend. 

“The halfling has succumb to illness,” the Harbinger speaks in a hollow-tinny voice, “Do you know the way to the hag’s dwelling?”

Tal’yrra and Scribe look to each other questioningly and both reply, “NO.” 

The Harbinger growls and turns towards Cade. He place both his hands of the sides of Cade’s head. Black Fang tries to bite the Harbinger, but is batted away like a bug again. The Harbinger’s hands crackle with blackish-purple energy. The arches of electrical energy meet Cade’s temple as he squirms from the discomfort. The Harbinger stands up. 

“He isn’t dead, is he?” Tal’yrra questions the Harbinger’s actions and she reaches for her scimitar. 

“NO. Follow me.” The Harbinger walks across the cavern ignoring all the other tunnels and enters the one marked with red luminescent mushrooms. 

******

“If you know where you’re going, why do you needs us?” Tal’yrra eyes the Harbinger as he walks ahead of them. 

“You’ll fight the hag for me. To conserve my energy,” the Harbinger replies in his tinny voice. 

Tal’yrra’s face twists in confusion, “But aren’t you some all power sort of thing now? Just do you it yourself!”

The Harbinger turns to Tal’yrra and growls in frustration. He tosses Tal’yrra a pair of short swords, “Use these. On that.” 

The Harbinger points to a section of wall. Scribe and Tal’yrra look at the wall confused at first and then the wall moves. A gray ooze schluffs off the wall and makes its way towards the mildly surprised woman. The Harbinger crosses his skeletal arms. 

Tal’yrra looks down at the short swords not understanding why she has to use them. Scribe unleashing a ray of frost at the gray ooze. The thing winces, but continues its advance towards the women. Tal’yrra rushes the ooze and slashes down at it the Harbinger’s short sword. She connects and slices the ooze. The blade of the short sword sizzle and Tal’yrra can see the substance eating away at the metal. Scribe fires another ray of frost and Tal’yrra uses the damaged short sword again. The ooze deflates like sad balloon and its form sinks into the dirt. 

Tal’yrra inspects the blade and its even more damaged after the second swipe. She looks at your cherished scimitars and back at the Harbinger. The moonshadow elf nods in acknowledgement of his help. The Harbinger passes the women and continues down the tunnel. 

******

They make it out of the tunnels and a secret entrance opens up to a secluded spot within the Narrowsight Forest, just outside of Greybrook. The nighttime horizon is glowing orange as the flames from the explosions still rage at the Greybrook gates. 

The motes of blackish purple energy start to find their way back into the Harbinger. He pauses for a moment to relish the absorption of the chaotic energies. Tal’yrra and Scribe standby not knowing exactly what to do. 

“Where now?” Tal’yrra barks at the dazed Harbinger. 

Scribe pops of the secret opening, “Rotten Mollie’s! Remember?”

“Not you, twit! Him! Hey you, what do we do now?!” Tal’yrra spouts with a small amount of irritation evident in her voice. 

The Harbinger growls at her again and starts walking deeper into the Narrowsight Forest. The motes of chaotic energy continue to follow him and his body loses more flesh allowing more bone to show. With each step, he leaves scorched footprints. 

Scribe lets out a low whistle, “Hey, let’s try not to piss off the scary, glowing corpse guy.”

Tal’yrra scowls a bit and stomp off after the Harbinger. 

******

The sight of glowing orange horizon fades as they walk farther away from Greybrook and deeper into the Narrowsight Forest. The Harbinger’s physical form is losing fleshy definition revealing more bone and the motes of chaotic energy from the havoc in Greybrook are starting to dissipate as well. 

The Harbinger comes to an abrupt stop and Scribe nearly bumps into him. He stares ahead and slowly steps to the side. Stretching his skeletal arm towards the road, the harbinger points and stares with his eyes of swirling chaotic energy. 

“See to the woman,” The Harbinger commands Tal’yrra and Scribe. 

“Whaa… what? You want us to help someone, now?” Tal’yrra asks with confusion written across her brow. She can’t seem to understand this entity. She is starting to question if this thing is wholly evil. He’s definitely bad, but to what end?

“It could be a trap. GO. Check,” the Harbinger drops his arm and waits in the trees. Scribe scratches her head as well. How could a woman in the middle of the road be a trap for a near god-like entity. 

Then, they see it. A wagon is in the middle of the road and has seemingly sunk into the dirt. The whole front-end of the wagon is buried. It hasn’t rained for days and the ground isn’t wet at all. Scribe inspects the wagon trying to discern the cause. Tal’yrra sneaks around to the front with her scimitar drawn. 

“Hhh...hhhell. Help,” a woman from inside the wagon weakly calls out. Her hand reaches out of the wagon grasping at the air. 

Tal’yrra rushes to the entrance of the wagon to see a beautiful human woman wearing a purple dress with a white collar. The woman’s hair is straight and dark. The woman is lying on a burlap sack and she has a huge bump on her forehead. 

“Are you alright?” Tal’yrra peers closer at the woman, but with caution and her scimitar ready for anything. 

“Mmm..my husband. SShh.. she took him,” the woman replies with her wilting voice. 

Tal’yrra relaxes a bit, “Who took him?”

The woman’s eyes widen a bit and she bleats out, “Flithy Ethel!” 

The woman passes out after speak the name. Scribe bolts straight up from kneeling position as she was inspecting the sunken wheel of the wagon. The tiefling’s skin goes pale and she searches her mind for old nursery rhymes, but it’s been too long. 

“That’s one of Rotten Mollie’s sisters!” Scribe whispers to Tal’yrra, “Mollie must have called her coven to her lair.” 

“Filthy Ethel? So, another hag is here? Grreaat,” Tal’yrra kicks a small pebble away and leans into the wagon. She gentle shakes the woman’s shoulder and rouses her awake, “Who was your husband? Why did she take him?”

“I don’t know why,” the woman’s eyes are trying to focus and blink wildly, “My husband’s the Goatman.” 

“THE WHAT.” Tal’yrra drops her hands and shoulder in befuddlement. 

Scribe points at the signage of the merchant wagon. It reads ‘Goatman’s Roastery’. 

“They own a large cafe and bean roastery in Raven Nook. There’s a smaller location in Greybrook called Goatman’s Cafe. My parents rant about his coffee all the time,” Scribe explains and Tal’yrra gives her a suspect look, “My parents are merchants too. We own Thornfeather’s Maps and Stationary.” 

“Maps! Your family makes maps!” Tal’yrra is shocked that she just now learning this useful information. 

“Yeah. So?” Scribe walks around to the back of the wagon while she tries to remember the old nursery rhymes about the hag coven. 

Tal’yrra shakes the woman again, “What does your husband look like?” 

The woman is on the verge of passing out and weakly forces the words out of her mouth, “He has a sharp goatee.” 

Tal’yrra sheathes her scimitar, “Wow. Just wow.” 

A few bags of coffee beans had fallen out of the wagon. Scribe is sitting on one as Tal’yrra walks around. Scribe picks up some loose coffee beans and her memory fills in a blank about Filthy Ethel.

“TOESTEALER!” Scribe cringes at the realization and squirms atop the coffee bean sack. 

Tal’yrra tucks her chin down, “Excuse me? What are you going on about, now?”

“Toestealer, Toestealer, her evil is true, she’ll take your toes, to make her stew,” Scribe recants the nursery rhyme from her youth. One of many songs taught to children make them too scared to venture too far into the Narrowsight Forest. 

Still confused, but Tal’yrra manages to connect the dots, “Oh!”

“There’s a third sister. Covens always have three hags. Atleast I remember there being a third sister, but I can’t remember her name,” Scribe plants her face into her hands horrified at the thought of coming face-to-face with her childhood myths and wishing that she paid more attention to the tales. 

The Harbinger comes out of the woods and looks to the passed out woman. He kneels down to her and place both his hands on the side of her head like he had done with Cade. Crackles of blackish purple energy spark between his hands and the woman’s temples. 

“You’re still leading the show,” Tal’yrra adjusts her sword belt and looks down at the Harbinger. 

The Harbinger stands and leaves more of his flesh on the ground, “Find the other hag. Try to neutralize each threat individually.”

Tal’yrra frowns, “I’m no tracker and we left our sick ranger back in the tunnels.” 

The Harbinger growls, “LOOK. AROUND.” 

******

After awhile of searching for any clue, Tal’yrra finds an irregular dirt path. She calls over Scribe to try to discern if Filthy Ethel could have gone that way. 

“The path looks new and Ethel does have the ability to transmute earth. That’s how she sunk that wagon,” Scribe explains with an academic voice. 

“Should we take the path?” Tal’yrra peers down the path into the woods. 

Scribe shrugs, “We got nothing else to go on and the big glowing guy seems pretty set on killing the hags one at a time.” 

“GO,” the Harbinger pushes Scribe forward and Tal’yrra follows. 

The path itself is smooth and perfect for walking, but nothing about it seems worn down or formed from repeated use. Furthermore, the trees along the path seem to be lining up in straight lines as though they were planted rather than just grew in randomly. 

The path opens up to a large clearing and the night screen shines down on the area. The clearing is a perfect square with right angles. There’s no way this was spot of formed naturally and it bugs the hell out of Tal’yrra and Scribe. 

“This Filthy Ethel has to be close,” Tal’yrra draws her scimitar and stalks to very edge of the path before entering the clearing. 

Scribe steps forward just in front of Tal’yrra, “Where do you think she is? How do we get her to come out?”

“I don’t know. I’m not the one with the nursery rhymes,” Tal’yrra replies in a wry tone. 

The two women bicker for a moment as the Harbinger gawks at the spectacle. Then, Tal’yrra notices that Scribe is about a foot shorter that she was a moment ago. Scribe’s boots are completely engulfed by mud. 

“YA SINKIN’!” Tal’yrra cries out and bends a small sapling out towards Scribe for her to grab onto. 

Scribe struggles to remove herself from the mud, but manages to free herself. Tal’yrra starts to walk around the clearing after checking on her companion, but she never enters the clearing. As she sneak around, Tal’yrra notices that the light of the stars and the waning moon glistens off the ground of the clearing as though it is wet. 

Scribe takes some time to clean the dirt from her boots and wishes out loud that she could remember more of the Filthy Ethel nursery rhyme. The Harbinger lets out a strange noise and walks behind Scribe. 

The Harbinger recites another line of the rhyme using in a strange, tin can version of the wagon woman’s voice, “Make your wish. Dip your toes. Give her piggies. She’ll give you woes.” 

Scribe cringes as she looks down at the mud and takes off a boot. She dips her foot with five toes into the mud and dramatically cries out to the night air, “NOOOO!!!” 

“Whatcha want for them beans?” Filthy Ethel appears almost instantly to Scribe’s side and she is licking her lips staring down at Scribe’s mud-covered foot.

Scribe launches a stare at the Harbinger, “HELP.” 

The Harbinger lunges forward to pursue the hag, but she vanishes just as fast as she appeared. 

Tal’yrra comes bounding back to find out what the hell Scribe was screaming about. 

******

“She just showed up and vanished,” Tal’yrra comments while looking out in the clearing. 

Scribe puts back on her boot and is visibly rattled from the close encounter. She nods at Tal’yrra as she stands up. 

Tal’yrra nudges Scribe forward, “Well, get her to come back. I’m not running out into that field.” 

The Harbinger barks out a bestial laugh that unnerves both Scribe and Tal’yrra. 

The ground trembles for a moment and a large mound of dirt forms in the center of the clearing. Tal’yrra swirls out her scimitar and Scribe readies a spell. Filthy Ethel pops out of the top of the mound with dirt rolling off her shoulders. 

“I want them toes. Not a fight. Make me an offer. Before I bite.” Flithy Ethel chitters from atop the mound. 

Tal’yrra leans over to Scribe and whispers, “Ask to kill her sister for your toes.”

“What?! Why my toes!?” Scribe whines. 

Flithy Ethel chitters, “Because yours are the beans I want.” 

“FFFine. You agree to kill your sisters and I’ll give you five toes.” Scribe gulps and chokes down her revulsion. 

Filthy Ethel looks shocked and contemplative above her mound, “For their deaths? I want all twelve of your toes!” 

Tal’yrra whinces, “Twelve?”

“How do you know that!!” Scribe yells back at Ethel. 

“It’s no matter. I want all twelve! The extra two are the sweetest,” Filthy Ethel smiles after licking her lips. 

Tal’yrra gags and Scribe looks down at her feet. 

“MAKE THE DEAL,” the Harbinger pushes Scribe forward. 

On the top of her lungs, Scribe deals out the conditions of her offer, “FILTHY ETHEL TOESTEALER! AFTER YOU KILL YOUR SISTERS, YOU WILL HAVE ALL TWELVE OF MY TOES!”

In a blink of an eye, Ethel is standing in front of Scribe with her crooked, warty hand shaking Scribe’s trembling hand, “Deal.” 

******

“Even with me helping to kill my sisters, it still won’t be easy,” Filthy Ethel states while walking backwards face Tal’yrra and Scribe. 

“NO. The deal was for you to kill your sister’s by yourself,” Tal’yrra argues. 

“The deal was simple, my dear. I just have to kill my sisters. The tiefling didn’t specify when, where, or how. I just have to be the one to land the killing blow. I can still help my sisters complete their tasks with the shadar-kai, but I want them toes and I’ll play nicely.” 

Ethel goes on telling them about her other sister named Wicked Morgan Stonelicker. This other sister has an unhealthy relationship with her pet earth elemental that she calls Nugget. Filthy Ethel is certain that Nugget will be in the pet cemetery collecting spell ingredients as usual.

“I’ll deal with my sisters while you take care of poor Nugget,” Filthy Ethel vanishes leaving Tal’yrra and Scribe with the Harbinger. 

“I don’t suppose you know the way to this pet cemetery?” Tal’yrra looks at the Harbinger. 

Scribe forges the way through the woods, “I DO.” 

******

The behemoth of living rock and earth moves slowly through the pet cemetery. It is idly picking up skeletons of dead animals and slapping them into its torso. The earth elemental crushes everything in its path as it collects the odd ingredients for the hags’ magic. 

“That’s fucking huge!” Scribe gasps at the monster before them. Tal’yrra sighs and takes out her scimitar, but remembers the short swords that the Harbinger gave her. 

“Should I use these, instead?” Tal’yrra draws the short swords from her belt and turns to the Harbinger. 

He grabs the short swords and throws them off into the forest. “I’ll distract. You attack,” the Harbinger walks out to the elemental. 

Nugget turns to meet the Harbinger and swings a massive, lumbering arm. Tal’yrra and Scribe don’t see the Harbinger move at all, but Nugget completely misses him. 

Scribe lets loose a ray of frost that flicks a tiny pebble off of Nugget’s shoulder. Tal’yrra rushes in and attacks the elemental’s legs. The moonshadow elf’s strike does more damage, but it’s still minimal to the overall mass of the creature. 

Nugget, sensing the Harbinger is the bigger threat, decides to attack the entity. Two massive swings and the Harbinger dodges both with barely side-stepping. 

Scribe widens her stance and produces a ball of the same blackish-purple energy that the Harbinger emits. She launches the ball of chaos at Nugget, but within inches of striking the creature the balls stops in mid-air. It spins in place and sails into the chest of the Harbinger. 

The Harbinger turns to look at Scribe as his body glows brighter, “YOU’RE AN AGENT OF CHAOS?!” 

Tal’yrra knicks away at Nugget’s legs once more and Nugget takes advantage of the Harbinger’s momentary daze. The Harbinger goes sailing into the air from one of Nugget’s massive arm-swings. 

The Harbinger’s physical form is suffering from the hit. Tal’yrra can see darkened areas of bone where the chaotic energies are eating it away. Then, she sees the Harbinger unleash a mote of chaotic energy at her and she closes her eyes. 

******

Tal’yrra blinks her eyes open after expecting the worst, but she sees the chaotic energy swirling around her scimitar. “ATTACK NOW,” the Harbinger growls at her. 

Tal’yrra rushes after the elemental as Scribe shoots a ray of frost trying more to slow the beast than damage as it closes in on the Harbinger. Tal’yrra lands a wicked blow on Nugget’s back. The cut erupts in purple sparks and black smoke. 

Nugget turns to swing on Tal’yrra and she closes her eyes again to receive the worst. There’s groans of protest and the sounds of the Harbinger’s tinny voice yelling. Chaotic energy swirls around Nugget’s attacking arm that it is only inches from Tal’yrra’s face. Chunks of rock and dirt fall from Nugget’s arm shrinking it to over half its original size. 

“Uh-oh,” Scribe sees the Harbinger’s physical form getting consumed by the blackish-purple energy of chaos. All that remains is the skull of Marty Ithrana, but not under the control of the Harbinger. The entity is now a massive ball of raw chaotic energy that is lashing out in every direction. 

Scribe looks at Nugget and throws out her hand to launch a magic missile. To her horror she watches her skin turn bright blue before her eyes, instead. 

Tal’yrra continues her expertly performed assault on the elemental making sure to hit and run as much as possible. Nugget tries to chase Tal’yrra, but is thrown off balance by the massive weight loss of his arm. The element has to use his other arm as a third leg to move. 

Scribe tries another spell, but this time she is teleported 60 feet away into the woods. She looks around in a panic until she sees Nugget and Tal’yrra fighting. Scribe starts making her way back to the cemetery.

Tal’yrra hacks away at Nugget, but doesn’t manage to get out of the way of his attack. She takes a blow from Nugget’s shrunken arm, but the arm still has a lot of strength to it. 

Scribe conjures another spell and the chaotic energies to the Harbinger’s untamed form finally work in her favor. Her spell turns into nine large magic shards hovering just above her head. The magic shards launch themselves out of the woods and unerringly dive into Nugget’s body. The elemental bellows in surprise and agony. 

Tal’yrra swipes at Nugget one more time dealing another wicked cut into the stone of his body. She runs off to the side toward the massive swirling ball of the Harbinger. 

Scribe sees Nugget’s glowing eyes searching the woods for the source of her last attack. She moves away deeper into the woods and conjures more magical energy as Nugget pushes down the first row of trees. 

Bright light fills the air as Scribe builds up the magical energy and there’s a flash, Scribe is stunned as she looks upon a unicorn for the first time in her life. It looks at her with a shocked expression as well. 

“Um, hi!” Scribe waves at the unicorn. 

Tal’yrra’s sword arm is almost ruined from the last attack from Nugget. She whips at dagger a the elemental not expecting much, but hopefully it would distract it. Tal’yrra’s aim is better than she thought. The dagger plunges into Nugget’s jaw and embeds itself there. Nugget howls, but decides to run into the woods. 

Nugget tries to stop as he sees the unicorn, but his momentum is too much. The unicorn rears up and pummels Nugget with two crushing hooves followed by a goring of her horn. The elemental crumbles to dust. 

Tal’yrra stumbles into the woods to meet Scribe and to her surprise a unicorn as well. 

Able to speak a common language with unicorn, Tal’yrra questions, “How did you get here?” 

“I don’t know, but I believe this blue devil has something to do with it,” the unicorn gestures to Scribe, “You need healing, Xadain. Let me help you.” The unicorn taps its horn on the top of Tal’yrra’s head and all of her wounds heal. 

“What is that?!” the unicorn stomps its hoof in anger and lowers its horn at the sight the swirling ball of the Harbinger, “It must be destroyed!” 

The unicorn sprints out of the woods to attack the Harbinger, but whatever magic brought the unicorn to the material plane had worn off and it faded away before getting within striking range of the Harbinger. 

“Well, that was all very exciting!” Scribe laughs and places a hand of Tal’yrra’s shoulder.

Tal’yrra gawks at her companion, “Are you blue, now?”

******

Tal’yrra and Scribe approach the swirling ball of energy. The chaotic energy seems to be calming down and forming itself into a more unified ball-shape. The woman tip-toe towards it. 

“Umm… Harbinger?” Tal’yrra speaks to the ball and feels a bit foolish. 

The Harbinger’s tinny voice booms from the ball of blackish-purple energy, “YES. FOLLOW.” 

Scribe and Tal’yrra look to the mound of earth and rubble that was Nugget. Tal’yrra points at the creature’s corpse, “Can you possess that thing?”

“I CAN ONLY INHABIT A RECENTLY DECEASED BODY OF FLESH. FOLLOW,” the Harbinger floats away and the women follow the massive floating orb. 

******

“So, you’re blue,” Tal’yrra giggles at Scribe while walking through the Narrowsight Forest. 

Scribe looks over the skin of her hand, “I guess so. I think all my magic is affected when I’m near the Harbinger while he’s that floating ball thing.” 

Tal’yrra smiles at Scribe, “Well, it doesn’t look bad and you did summon a unicorn!”

The Harbinger stops advancing forward and begins to speak in the wagon woman’s voice again, “These woods are the lair of Rotten Mollie Nightworm. The very land is her power and an extension of her will. It preys on her worst fears and turns your mind against you.”

Scribe nods and looks at Tal’yrra with a concerned look, “PERFECT.” 

“I guess stay on your toes. All twelve of them,” Tal’yrra can’t stop taking a small, friendly gibe at Scribe’s expense. 

******

The group enters a very different part of the forest. The air has a heavy weight to it as though it wants to drag you down. As they journey further into this area, they feel strange sensations pulling at their minds until both Tal’yrra and Scribe succumb the mental invasions. 

******

Tal’yrra opens her eyes and she’s back in Xadia in her home village. Everyone is doing their daily routines and noone notices her. She runs up to the back of her twin sister only to have her excitement turn to horror. 

Noone in the village has a face. 

*Moonshadow elves have a practice of ‘forgetting’ members of their clan that have brought them shame. When a moonshadow elf is forgotten by their clan, noone from their clan can see them and the forgotten cannot see any of their faces.* 

“What did I do? I wasn’t even on a mission!” Tal’yrra sits on a fountain’s ledge and brings her knees up to chin as she hugs her legs, “IT NOT FAIR!!!”

******

Scribe opens her eyes and she’s back at the Greybrook library. She breathes in the familiar smell of all the binding glue and old pages within the stacks. The tiefling saunters down her favorite aisle with all the books about the Nine Hells and her bloodline. 

She sees one of her favorite titles and takes the book from the shelf, but the pages have no words on them. Scribe uncharastically drops the book and grabs another. Again, it has no words on its pages. The frantic tiefling starts pulling every book from the shelf and they are filled with nothing. 

Not. A. Single. Word. 

She collapses into a ball of exhaustion and cries into her hands. 

“What’s happening?” she whispers to herself, “How is this happening?”

******

The Harbinger is floating above the unconscious bodies of Tal’yrra and Scribe waiting for them to snap out of their nightmare trances. If he had eyes, he would have rolled them after the first ten minutes of their unconsciousness. 

Both of the women see an image of the Harbinger within their personal hells, “WAKE UP!” the Harbinger’s voice echoes in their minds. 

Tal’yrra and Scribe sit up immediately looking at each other. Their eyes show each other relief that none of what they just experienced was real. The Harbinger circles them slowly as they get their bearings in reality again. 

“The hag’s hut is close,” the Harbinger states, “I need to hide myself in this form. I can’t affect the physical world like this. Other than disrupting magical energies. As soon as a body is available, I’ll take it over. Even if it is one of you.” 

The Harbinger fades into nothingness. Scribe and Tal’yrra look to each other strongly feeling their trust in one another. They walk with cautious steps the rest of the way to Rotten Mollie Nightworm’s hut. 

******

Scribe and Tal’yrra reach another ominous clearing in the forest. This one is surrounded by swampy mud, but in the middle sits Rotten Mollie’s hut. Filthy Ethel and Wicked Morgan are chanting at a boiling cauldron. Rotten Mollie is standing next to the unconscious body of Wick. He is covered in mud that appears to have been applied by someone’s hand. 

There is another figure lying in the mud not too far from Wick. The man is wearing all black and has a well-kept, sharp goatee. Tal’yrra and Scribe assume that this is the Goatman that Ethel kidnapped. 

Tal’yrra sneers at the sight of Ethel because she hadn’t killed her sisters yet. The moonshadow elf sneaks over to a sunken boulder and Scribe tries to do the same in the opposite direction. The teifling sorceress fails to step with lightfeet crushing twigs like planes of glass. 

Rotten Mollie turns with a wide smile towards Tal’yrra, “I was going to play along with your sneaking around, if it wasn’t for you clumsy friend.” 

Filthy Ethel is nervously looking back and forth between her sisters, but continues to chant as though nothing is wrong. Wick Morgan stoops down to take a sip of the boiling concoction and notices Ethel’s strange behavior. Morgan leers at Filthy Ethel. 

“You brought something else with you,” Rotten Mollie searches the surrounding woods for the energy that senses, “But it’s not quite here, is it?”

Mollie fades into the ethereal plane like she did back in Greybrook. Wicked Morgan watches as Mollie disappears and snaps her eyes back at Ethel. 

“Sorry, sister. I want her toes!” Filthy Ethel draws on the magic of the coven and shoots Morgan with a ray of sickness. The poisonous energy writhes around Wicked Morgan’s sick as she backs away from her treasonous sister.   

“DAMN IT, ETHEL!!! YOU CROSS-FINGERED BITCH!” Wicked Morgan clutches a small totem on her chest, “NUGGET! COME!!!” 

Wicked Morgan tugs at the totem saying Nugget over and over. Then, she realizes that he isn’t coming and her mouth drops open in horrified disgust, “ETHEL!!! NNNOOO!!! THEY KILLED HIM!”

Scribe shoots a magic missile at Morgan. Her magic is working just fine with the Harbinger hiding on the Ethereal Plane. The shards of magic cut into the hag as she backs away from the cauldron. 

Wicked Morgan shoots a ray of sickness at Ethel, but misses. Filthy Ethel lays into her retreating sister with language and names so vulgar that they cut into Wicked Morgan’s face. 

  Tal’yrra rushes the retreating hag and opens a wicked wound in the hag’s arm before bounding away to be on the safeside. The sounds of the ethereal battle is heard in the air. Scribe searches around feeling like the fight is happening around her on the other plane.

Scribe shoots a ray of frost at Morgan’s feet. The frosty ray hits the ground at Wicked Morgan’s feet and the hag jumps at the near hit. The Stonelicker eyes her combatants and unleashes a ray of sickness onto Tal’yrra. 

The ray of sickness flows all throughout Tal’yrra’s body. Her skin tainted by the poisonous, green energy. The poor moonshadow elf drops her knees as the spell takes its full toll on her. She lays in the mud hoping the others kill Wicked Morgan. 

Filthy Ethel clenches her fist and utters some dark phrase. Morgan lets out a hard cough and her body becomes stiff leaving unable to move. “Call me a cross-fingered bitch, eh?” Ethel sneers at her magically held sister, “Quick, Elf! There should be a healing potion in the hut.” 

Tal’yrra manages to make her crawl into a stumbling walk. Scribe looks to Ethel, “Where’s Rotten Mollie?”

“One at a time, my dear,” Filthy Ethel picks up a kleaver to go finish Morgan off, but Wicked Morgan manages to resist the magic of Ethel’s spell. Wicked Morgan turns invisible and runs off, but Ethel’s magically softens the mud to show Morgan’s exodus. 

A bright flash appears and the Harbinger in his raw energy form comes bursting out. His energy is untamed again and lashing out in every direction. Rotten Mollie appears next to a boulder trying to cast a lethal spell at the Harbinger, but the magical energy recoils back into her body closing most of her wounds. 

Knowing that her magic will be affected by the Harbinger’s chaotic energy, Scribe lifts her hand, “Here goes nothing! Please, be a unicorn!” Scribe’s attempt doesn’t some another unicorn, but instead it twists her form into that of a sheep and unable to cast her spells. 

******

Tal’yrra stumbles into the hut and is greeted by a table filled with several bottles and vials of various concoctions. Her vision blurred as she looks over the table and she yells to Ethel, “WHAT BOTTLE IS IT?!”

Filthy Ethel is stunned looking down at the sheep-version of Scribe, “IT’S THE RED ONE!”

Ethel looks in every direction at the magically made mud and find Wicked Morgan’s footprints leading to the Goatman. Morgan is still invisible, but the magic that she is conjuring above the Goatman’s body isn’t. 

Sheep-Scribe rushes the spot that she believes Wicked Morgan is standing, but misses the hag and tumbles in the mud. 

Tal’yrra whines from inside the hut, “WHICH RED ONE?!”

Ethel tries shooting shards of magical energy at Rotten Mollie, but the chaotic energy changes her spell and seemingly nothing happens. “IT’S THE ONE IN THE BOX, CHILD!!!”

Tal’yrra finds the healing potion and gulps it down with no hesitation. Her skin turns back to it’s normal color and she no longer feels sick, but she tired as she draws her scimitar and walks out of Rotten Mollie’s hut. 

Rotten Mollie grimaces at Ethel, “You cross-fingered harlot! I knew you couldn’t be trusted!” 

Mollie’s hand glows bright with magical energy, but again the chaotic energy of the Harbinger warp her magic and it recoils back in her body. This time it seals all her wounds. She giggles at the healing energy coursing theri her veins. 

Sheep-Scribe runs into the hut in hopes of finding a dispelling potion. Wicked Morgan is still invisible as her magical conjuration continues to build. Filthy Ethel starts to back up into the hut as well at the sight of Rotten Mollie. 

Rotten Mollie turns to the Harbinger and starts pulling energy from the ground itself. This magical energy erupts from the soil wrapping around Mollie’s legs and leading up to her arm that is outstretched to the Harbinger. 

This spell’s energy is unaffected by the chaotic aura of the Harbinger and a ball of screaming, white light squeals towards the Harbinger. The energy pounds into the orb of energy and the Harbinger vanishes from sight. 

Tal’yrra stalks towards Rotten Mollie. Sheep-Scribe trots over to Filthy Ethel. Wicked Morgan finishes her spell and the Goatman rises from the ground under her complete control. 

Rotten Mollie eyes Tal’yrra and shakes a fist at her. Tal’yrra’s head violently shakes as well mimicking the same gestures as Rotten Mollie’s fist. The moonshadow elf furrows her brow and walks off into the woods with a confused look. 

Wicked Morgan and the Goatman stand next to Rotten Mollie. Morgan has a satisfied smile on her face as sees the terror in Filthy Ethel’s eyes. Sheep-Scribe shifts back into normal Scribe and gets some laughs from Rotten Mollie and Morgan. 

Ethel grabs Scribe’s arm and rushes into the hut. Rotten Mollie and Wicked Morgan cackle from outside the hut. Filthy Ethel starts rummaging through all the trinkets and potions trying to find any sort of advantage. The scared hag looks at Scribe and shrugs hopelessly. 

“For what it’s worth, I was going to kill my sisters for them toes,” Filthy Ethel drinks a potion and disappears. 

Rotten Mollie NIghtworm yells from outside, “Come out, now. Or we come in.” 

Scribe hides in the hut and readies a spell to unleash on the next thing that comes through the hut’s opening. Rotten Mollie pulls a bag of sand from her sachle and blows the sand out towards the hut. Scribe struggles to her eyes open, but all goes back. 

******

Tal’yrra regains her wits in the woods and turns to see Scribe being dragged out of Rotten Mollie’s hut by the Goatman. The moonshadow elf takes her time and sneaks around to behind the hags. Tal’yrra flips her dagger from her belt and flings it at the back of the Goatman. 

The Goatman’s back stiffens as the dagger enters his back killing him instantly. In that same moment, a bright flash appears and the Harbinger bursts out of whatever prison Rotten Mollie had sent him to. The Harbinger’s energy dives into the Goatman’s body and the Harbinger’s physical body is reborn in the shape of a well-groomed, coffee shop owner. 

Rotten Mollie and Wicked Morgan back away from the Harbinger as his hands radiant blackish-purple energy. He brings his hands up level with each of the hags’ heads. 

“Give me Wick and let these women go or I kill you both,” the Harbinger’s tinny voice booms out of the Goatman’s mouth. 

Tal’yrra runs up behind Wicked Morgan and severs the hag’s spine. The lifeless form of Wicked Morgan topples over in and lands facedown in the mud. The Harbinger simply points of his fists at Rotten Mollie. 

“All Alone. Do you we have a deal?” the Harbinger grins through the perfectly kept goatee. 

Rotten Mollie looks down at her dead sister and sneers at Tal’yrra, “This isn’t over, moonshadow. But I have a backstabbing sister to deal with first!”

Rotten Mollie vanishes into the ethereal plane. 

The Harbinger turns and walks toward Wick lying in the mud. Tal’yrra runs to Scribe and starts jostling her to wake up. The Harbinger lifts up Wick as easily as one might pick up a pillow onto his shoulder. 

“You both did well,” the Harbinger nods to Tal’yrra. Scribe wakes up just in time to see the Harbinger conjure a dark portal and step through it. 

******

Tal’yrra and Scribe take their time looking through Rotten Mollie’s hut. They take all 22 potions and a small box with trinkets inside. 

They rush back to Flinard’s and take the same way they took through the tunnels. On the way, they bump into the Goatman’s wife again. The poor woman had managed to dig most of her wagon out of the dirt, but Tal’yrra and Scribe help her with the rest. Neither of them had the heart to tell her that the Goatman was dead. 

They come into the cavern where they left Cade and Black Fang. Flinard is kneeling beside Cade with a bowl of water and wiping sweat from the sick halfling’s brow. 

“Is it done? How all died?” Flinard doesn’t look at the women. 

“We killed Wicked Morgan and Rotten Mollie is out trying to kill Filthy Ethel,” Scribe states to Flinard. 

Tal’yrra puts down a box of potions, “We took all of these from Mollie’s. The Harbinger took Wick.” 

Flinard’s eyebrows lift in astonishment at all the potions, “YOU BOTH DID EXCEEDINGLY WELL! This one should fix Mr. Cade’s condition.” Flinard pulls out a potion that is green and cloudy. It fizzes as he pours it out into Cade’s mouth. Cade coughs tremendously, but doesn’t wake up. 

Flinard opens the box of trinkets and goes about telling Tal’yrra and Scribe what they found. After the explanations of the items, Flinard sees the troubled looks in Tal’yrra’s and Scribe’s eyes. 

“There was nothing that you could have done about Mr. Wick’s abduction. His story is written and it will be played until the very end,” Flinard stands up and lifts Cade’s feet, “Can I get some help?”

Tal’yrra and Scribe help Flinard carry the halfling ranger to his room in the barracks hall. 

“Ms. Scribe! Meet me in the Greater Library after you’ve cleaned yourself up,” Flinard walks away and down the stairs to the Greater Library. Tal’yrra follows him. 

******

{Several hours later. Down in the cavern below Flinard’s hobbit hole.}

“You can come out, Mollie. They’re upstairs in their rooms,” Flinard speaks out to the darkness in the red tunnel. 

“Your little bitches took my things and turned Ethel against me,” Rotten Mollie shows herself, but doesn’t take any step forward. The protective runes of the tunnel glow as they prepare for her evil presence to pass over them. 

Flinard steps closer with a wide grin on his face, “YES! They did. This new crop is full of surprises! Last time I checked, you weren’t the type to whine about missing baubles and a renegade sister,” Flinard scratches his chin, “The things they came back with seemed relatively mundane compared to your usual pile of trinkets. Why are you here?” 

“The bag of adoraburrs,” Rotten Mollie polymorphs into the beautiful brunette version of herself allowing her raggitty dress to fall to the floor of the tunnel, “Bring me the adoraburrs, Flinard.” 

Flinard rolls his eyes, “I’ll do no such thing and I’ll make no deals with you for it. Honestly, Mollie. You know I haven’t cared for the flesh of a woman since the death of my wife.” 

The hag picks up her clothes and switches back to her normal twisted shape, “Right. Have your little soldiers met her yet? That moonshadow elf looks just like her!” 

Flinard points his finger down the tunnel and stares with deadly eyes at Mollie, “LEAVE.” 

Rotten Mollie Nightworm swaggers off into the darkness cackling the entire way.