The Adventures of Rhana: Chapter 1
Rhana Arkngthamz sat on a solitary bench outside the Elder Council Building, weeping, rivulets of tears running down her round cheeks, and strands of her long fiery orange hair clinging to the damp trails they left behind. She glanced up at the closest thing she knew to a sky but received no hint of how much time had passed, no hint of whether it be day or night in the world above, for the dwarven city of Stual was built in the heart of a mountain. In a mimicry of sky, tens of thousands of luminous mushrooms grew across the ceiling and walls of the Great Cavern, ever glowing a soft turquoise glow, spotted with purples and reds, but their humble radiance offered Rhana no comfort.
Suddenly the doors to the Elder Council Building opened and out came the ten elders in a line, their crimson robes and aged beards swaying around the level of their ankles. Rhana stood and approached them, and Elder Korenck, whose entire face seemed comprised of a curly white beard and a pair of tiny golden spectacles, left the line to meet her. Rhana wiped the dampness from her eyes, hoping to restore some vestige of her dignity.
"What did you decide?" she asked.
Elder Korenck's eyes were small and beady behind his lenses, but they still managed to offer her a look of deep sympathy. "Rhana, your father has been found guilty and sentenced to death."
Rhana felt her chest go taut but nodded in silence, having expected this.
"He'll be executed by the Oathkeeper tomorrow morning."
Again, she nodded.
"Now go home and get some sleep. You look tired, and it's near the Time of Resting."
In silence, Rhana turned and began to leave, her dignity intact. However, she only made it about two steps before dignity didn't seem all that important anymore, and she spun back around and rushed for the council doors.
"NO!" she screamed as she shoved through the line of elders, knocking over several of the most respected dwarves in Stual. She ignored the shocked looks on their faces as she burst into the building at a sprint. "NO I SAY! DADDY!"
Running through a short hall, Rhana entered the Councilroom, a circular, marble chamber with high wooden chairs around the far edge. She heard sounds through a set of doors on her left, and barged through them into an adjoining room. Inside were four armored guards, their beards all tied in thick singular braids, and being escorted into a far door was her father, his bright orange beard and hair blazing like his head was on fire.
"DADDY!" screamed Rhana, who'd started weeping again.
"Rhana?-"
One guard hurriedly escorted the prisoner through the door and slammed it shut behind him, while the other three overcame their surprise and proceeded to block Rhana's way.
"NO I SAY!" she cried as she charged forward, but the three guards grabbed Rhana's arms and held her back.
She wrenched one of her arms free and punched a guard in the face, knocking him out cold. The other two struggled desperately to hold her while more reinforcements arrived from the rear. It ultimately took six guards to halt her advance, with two having lost consciousness and a third receiving a bloody nose so severe he had to be carried away. She was locked in a room in the Elder Council Building where she waited nearly an hour before Elder Korenck appeared, the door audibly locked behind him by the now much-more-cautious guards. He shook his head in disapproval.
"Am I to be punished?" asked Rhana.
Elder Korenck pushed up his tiny spectacles. "No. We reconvened and consulted the Tome of Laws, but apparently you did nothing illegal aside from hit the guards. Understandably though, none of them wish to testify that ever happened."
". . . Sorry."
Elder Korenck sighed. "However, we do understand why you acted so, and have no wish to keep you here longer than necessary. Your father is in the prison cells now, so if you promise to simply go home, we'll let you go."
Rhana cast her gaze down at the floor. "I promise."
"Good."
Elder Korenck knocked on the door, and the guards opened up. He then escorted her from the room to the front of the Elder Council Building – the guards notably giving her a wide berth along the way – and they both stopped under the mushroom light of the Great Cavern.
"Your grandfather must be worried by now," said Elder Korenck. "The Time of Resting began a half-notch ago, so don't dally in getting home. Goodrest, Rhana."
Rhana nodded, and Elder Korenck returned into the Elder Council Building, the tall, ornate doors closing shut behind him.
Keeping her promise, she headed down the zigzagging road into the city of Stual, a stone town full of spacious terraces, cube-shaped houses, and towering spires, all nestled together in the Great Cavern. She glanced at the Clock as she passed through the central plaza, its metal face held between a pair of fifty foot statues, and saw, as Elder Korenck had said, that the hand had passed into the Time of Resting. She then hastened her pace until she'd reached her house, a simple but large stone cube at the base of the cavern's western wall, next to a glowing red mushroom as large as a tree.
Rhana stepped inside and found her grandfather, Gazeer Arkngthamz, sitting in his red-cushioned chair next to the hearth. He looked at her sadly though his beard, a beard that had turned mostly gray yet remained orange at the tips, as though he had accidently dipped it into a dye. Rhana had expected him to still be awake, waiting up for her, but what she hadn't expected was another dwarf to be sitting in the neighboring chair, one with a black beard braided into three strands and a pointed nose. This dwarf stood and walked up to her.
"Rhana, I know we didn't part on the best of terms, but-"
Rhana struck him across the cheek, causing him to stagger. Then, as he regained his balance, she hugged him, burying her face in his beard. With one hand the dwarf embraced her, and with the other he rubbed the red mark on his face.
"Oy, you still hit like a hammer!"
"Shut it," she whimpered, though not really meaning it.
She released her hug and gave him a fierce glare.
"Where have you been?"
"Working!" he cried.
"You left me here to look after dad and grandpa on my own!"
"I knew you be alright, Sis."
He took a careful step back when her hand curled into a fist.
"When did you get back?" she asked.
"Three days ago, but I didn't know what happened to dad until just now, I swear. I'm sorry I didn't stop by sooner."
Grandfather climbed out of his chair and hobbled toward the pantry. "Rhana, Beremec – why don't you two sit while I get us some brandy?"
Beremec returned to his chair while Rhana pulled up another.
"So you've been working?" she asked.
"Aye," he replied. "As a guide. Plenty of work for guides. Human travelers don't know a thing about the Underrealms."
Grandfather returned with a bottle and glasses and started pouring.
"Why didn't you come to the trial?" pressed Rhana.
"Folk aren't allowed at the trials, you know that," replied Beremec. "You didn't wait outside, did you?
"Of course I did! Someone should've been there, in case. . . in case they let him go."
Grandfather frowned, "The law is clear for Oathbreakers."
"It wasn't his fault though. . ."
"Did you know that humans," began Beremec, "break their oaths all the time and think nuthin' of it?"
"We dwarves have honor," said Grandfather. "Nothing more sacred than an oath."
Grandfather handed Rhana a glass of brandy which she swallowed in one gulp, then slammed the empty glass on the table.
"I don't care," she said as Grandfather slowly lowered himself back into his chair.
Beremec started sipping his brandy. "Well, what can we do about it?"
"I'll tell you what we can do about it!" cried Rhana. "We break him out of that damn prison!"
Beremec spilled the brandy on his trousers. "You sound serious, Sis."
"Who says I'm joking?"
"Couldn't be done."
"Why not?"
"For starters, the prison cells are under the Elder Council Building – no way you could get down there. If you wanted to free him, you'd have to do it during the execution. That would be much easier. All you'd have to do is. . . hmm."
"So you do think it could be done!" accused Rhana.
"Aye, I suppose it could," replied Beremec pensively.
"You owe him, Beremec. You owe him."
Beremec nodded, "Aye, that I do. You might be able to convince me yet, but it'd still be hard. Even if we stopped the execution, we'd have to smuggle him out of the city. We could never come back, and would probably have to leave Grandpa behind – come back for him later."
Rhana glanced at Grandfather. "What do you think, Grandpa? I want your opinion."
Grandfather swirled his brandy around in the glass and watched it come to stillness. "I think such a thought is foolish, dangerous, and unlikely to succeed – so, naturally, I support you completely."
Rhana brightened. "You do?"
"Of course. Lloric is my son. If you think you can save him then who am I to say no? Can't say I've done less foolish things. . ."
Rhana left her chair and hugged Grandfather, kissing him on the cheek. "Then we should do it."
Beremec clapped his hands together, "I'm convinced. A family heist? No time to prepare? Completely spur of the moment? Sounds like a load of fun!"
Beremec leapt out of his chair, left the room, and came back a minute later with an armful of dangerous-looking stuff.
"Alright, let's see what we got here. . . " He dropped the pile on the rug and started sorting everything. "Grenades, flashbombs, smokebombs, a sack of black powder, not sure what thing is – should be everything we need here."
"Where did you get all this?" cried Rhana.
"From my work!" he replied. "You'd be surprise how much you need this stuff in the Underrealms. A cave collapses, you gotta make a new one, or if some beast comes your way. . ."
Rhana picked up a grenade. "In that case, we'll take some of these and attack at the execution!"
"That's the idea," said Beremec. "What's your plan?"
She blinked. "I just told you. We attack!"
"I think we're going to need a bit more planning than that."
"Nonsense! Give me an axe and one of these grenade-things, and I'll get it done!"
Unconsciously, Rhana tightened her grip around the grenade, and Beremec's eyes widened. Cautiously, he took it from her finger.
"Not that I don't think you'd give those guards a run for their money, Sis, but I do think we need to be a bit more careful. This is dad we're talkin' about."
"Listen to your brother, Rhana, "chuckled Grandfather, handing her another glass of brandy that she gulped down immediately.
"Alright then," she replied, plopping back down in her chair. "Plan away if you're so smart."
Beremec fetched a piece of parchment from the shelves and a pen. Moving the brandy bottle and empty glasses to the floor, he spread the parchment across the table and started drawing a sort of map.
"The execution. . ." he began while sketching. "Will be held on the platform outside the Elder Council Building, right? Now, that's on the east side of Stual. So. . ." He added more pictures. "We'll want the hastiest escape possible, out the east gate. We won't have time to go home and pack so we gotta do that in advance. That makes three parts to this plan: One, liberate dad when they bring him on the platform; Two, get us all to the east gate; and Three, make sure our stuff is waiting for us when we get there – if we're carrying around our luggage during the escape, it's going to slow us down, and that's not good."
"Easy," commented Rhana.
"Hardly," said Beremec. "There'll be guards every step of the way. But first, liberating dad: I propose a flash and smokebomb in the plaza. Cause enough chaos and we can get dad out before they realize what's happening. After that, we'll take a side road to the east gate. But by this point, let's assume they know what's happened and are close behind us. We need a way to slow 'em down."
"That's what axes are for," snapped Rhana.
"Good idea, Sis, but that'd slow us down too, right? We don't have time to stop and fight. Now, there is something else I could do. I go out there tonight and setup a trap, one that I could get-ready fast as we're taking our leave."
"You think that's better than axes? . ."
"And now for the third step, make sure our stuff's waiting. I ain't exactly sure what to do here since there are guards at the gate. Only a couple guards last I checked, since it's facing away from goblin territory, but even a couple could cause us problems."
"You need a trick," inserted Grandfather. "Trick your enemy into being your friend."
It took Beremec a moment, but gradually he got the meaning of Grandfather's wisdom. "Yes. . . Yes, that a good idea! Grandpa, when did you get so wise?"
He shrugged. "Comes with being old."
"Rhana." Beremec turned to her. "Before the execution starts, I want you to take our things to the guards at the east gate!"
"What do I tell 'em!?" she replied.
"The truth! Sorta. Tell 'em that you're meeting me there and that we're going out into the caves, but then say you forgot something and have 'em hold onto our stuff. If we get there fast enough, they won't know we're on the run, and they'll just let us leave."
"What if that don't work?" asked Rhana.
"Then, we'll do axes."
Rhana nodded approvingly.
"One more thing," he continued, "The contingency plan, in case it all goes wrong. . ."
"You think it'll go wrong?" questioned Rhana.
"Something always goes wrong, Sis," answered Beremec. "That's just how things are, and that's why you always need a contingency plan. Let's say we try to free dad but fail, can't get him out of the plaza – then what? You and I, Sis, will be up for arrest, and we'll need to get outta Stual. Best bet is we meet at the Clock and go south. I bet they'll expect us to stop at home first, so I think we could slip out the south gate before anyone notices."
"And leave dad!?" cried Rhana.
"This is only if we got no choice," he assured. "You should always have these sorta plans, you know?"
Rhana grunted with displeasure.
"One more thing," added Beremec. "Be careful with that axe of yours! We don't want to kill no guards on accident."
"I wasn't going to!" she retorted. "Besides, they got healers, don't they?"
"I think that's everything, so best we get started. Guess we ain't getting any sleep tonight, eh? I'm going to go scout the road to the gate and work on that trap. Why don't you start packing some bags for us? For you, me, and dad. When we find a new place to live, we'll make arrangements for Grandpa."
"Alright."
Beremec fetched a big, leather pack of his from another room and left out the door while Rhana started collecting food and clothes and sorting them into bags; Grandfather fell asleep in his chair. Rhana had nearly packed for an hour or so when she dropped a sharp, double-sided axe on the ground and startled Grandfather awake.
"Who? What? We under attack?" he said confusedly, still groggy.
She walked over to him and put a hand on his shoulder. "Sorry, Grandpa. Was just me. You can go back to sleep. It'll be a couple more hours."
He relaxed into his chair. "It's alright. I'm glad you waked me. I always see those ugly Abaxens in my dreams."
Rhana frowned. "You shouldn't still be bothered by that stuff."
Grandfather chuckled. "I may be two hundred years old, but those early memories stick with you your whole life. That war still seems like yesterday to me. . . I still. . . remember. . . everything. ." Grandfather snored back to sleep.
Rhana let him be and went back to packing, and after another hour, she felt like she had packed everything they'd need for a journey through the caves: Waterskins, food that wouldn't go bad, rope, axes (obviously), and more. She figured it take about a week to get to the nearest dwarven city, or two weeks if they wanted to leave the Underrealms altogether and move into the human kingdom. Dad would know what to do.
With a few hours left until the Time of Rising, she laid down on the floor and rested her head on one of the packs. She felt both tired and excited, the anticipation of tomorrow blending with the warm haze of brandy. After a few minutes though, she was roused by a loud clanking sound. Slowly, she leaned up and look around, and saw, to her horror, a towering cloaked figure with long, white fingers looming over Grandfather, its dark metal boots clanking on the floor. Grandfather was still asleep as the figure pulled out a curved dagger. She scrambled to her feet and looked for her axe, but as she gripped the handle, the figure plunged its dagger into Grandfather's neck, and blood poured forth like a river.
"Rhana. Wake up," said Beremec, shaking her out of the dream.
Rhana leapt to her feet with a speed unknown to dwarves and looked at Grandfather – but he was fine, alive and awake in his chair.
"What time is it!?" she asked frantically.
"Don't worry," replied Beremec. "I've been home for an hour, and thought I'd let you sleep a bit. It's time to head out."
Rhana nodded resolutely. "Okay."
"Grandpa," said Beremec as he put a hand on his shoulder. "Once we pick a new city, we'll either send someone for you or I'll come back myself. Will you be alright on your own for a bit?"
"I'll be fine. I'm old, not helpless!" he replied.
Rhana walked up and threw her arms around him. "We'll see you soon, you hear?"
Grandfather hugged her back. "Will you kids stop worrying about me? You're going to go do something stupid and dangerous – worry about yourselves!"
Rhana let him go, and Beremec clapped his hands together. "Stupid and dangerous it is! Rhana, take the packs to the east gate, then meet me at the Elder Council Building."
"On it."
Rhana gathered all three packs – which were heavy, but nothing she couldn't handle for a short walk – and split up from Beremec outside the house. She walked through the city of Stual, which had come to life in the Time of Waking. Shops were open, smiths were hammering, and people were heading to the mines. Rhana cut through the familiar, center plaza, glanced at the Clock – its hand a half-notch past the Time of Waking – and continued across the city until she reached the east gate. The east gate was a thirty foot high metal door set in the cavern wall, surrounded by a thick frame of stone blocks, which, weren't for the lever and system of gears and weights, would have been impossible to push open. Rousing her confidence, she approached the two guards at posted at the base.
"Yes?" said a guard curtly as she set the pile of packs in front of him.
"Hi. I'm meeting my brother here to- . . What happened to your nose?"
Rhana noticed the guard's nose was bandaged and had a purple streaks along the bridge.
"You did," he replied, staring at her darkly over a brown beard. "I had a shift last night at the Elder Council Building."
"Oh!" cried Rhana, vaguely remembering something or another like that. "I, um, I'm really sorry about that."
His tone softened a bit. "Your father was one of us, and we we know that what happened to him could've happened to any of us. So, don't worry about it."
"Thanks. . ."
"So, you going somewhere," he continued, gesturing to the packs.
"Oh, yes. I'm meeting my brother here. He's a guide, so I've decided to leave with him for awhile."
"You're not attending the ceremony then," he replied, politely avoiding the word execution. "Understandable. . . you need three packs?"
Rhana felt a brief surge of worry, not having prepared any answers. She was relieved when something came naturally. "I think that one belongs to my brother's client."
"Ah, I see," said the guard, satisfied.
"My brother is still at the tavern with his client waiting for me. Could you hold onto these while I go get him? We'll be back shortly."
"Sure. We'll make sure no one touches them."
"Thanks," she replied, turning and heading back into the city.
She entered the city streets, surprised that it had all gone to plan so far, and continued to the Elder Council Building, where she entered a small plaza at its southern side amidst a small crowd. A three-foot high platform extended out from the building, on which stood an ornate stone block and a couple patiently-waiting elders. She searched around for Beremec, but she couldn't find him until he had tapped her on the shoulder from behind.
"How'd things go at the gate?" he whispered.
"Fine," she replied. "Wait. . . One of them knew me! Would if he recognizes dad?"
"Don't worry about that right now, but just keep focused on the moment. I'll figure something out when we get there."
"Okay. . ."
Beremec hushed as a side door to the Elder Council Building opened and out came Elder Korenck, followed by a line of several guards escorting their father, arms shackled, whose bright orange beard blazed among the rest. The line was concluded with a dwarf in ceremonial armor holding a large axe, the Oathkeeper, his face hidden under a closed helm. Rhana tensed as Father was brought to the stone block.
"Now?" she whispered, casting an urgent glance at Beremec.
His eyes carefully watched the platform. "Not yet."
Elder Korenck stepped to the edge of the platform a pulled out a scroll. Gazing at it through his tiny spectacles, he read aloud.
"Lloric Arkngthamz, former Guard of the Citadel. Three days past, on the eve of Second Stone, the convicted fell asleep at his post, in negligence, and thus permitted the theft of the Relic Cube of the Founder, Hax Bthalmus. Thus, breaking the Oath of the Guards of the Citadel, allowing such a theft, on the part of the convicted. In accordance with the Tome of Laws, upon breaking such an oath, the honorable form of atonement, is death. This is a sad day for all the dwarves of Stual, and we, the Council of Elders, take no pride or joy in carrying out the ancient laws."
As Elder Korenck rolled up the scroll, Beremec shoved something in Rhana's hand. "Count to five and throw this at the platform," he whispered, then hastened forward, pushing his way through the crowd.
"1. . 2. ."
Elder Korenck nodded to the Oathkeeper who made Father kneel.
"3, 4, 5," Rhana finished hastily, then threw the round object over the heads of the crowd, the heads of the elders, landing near the doors, and after a couple bounces came to a rest.
The heads of elders and guards alike turned toward the dinging sound the object made against the stone, then turned away as it exploded with a blinding flash and a bang that filled everyone's ears with a high-pitched ring. At almost the exact same time, smoke exploded at the front of the platform, evolving the confusion into full-blown chaos. Even though she was farther from the blast than most, Rhana still felt disoriented, caught between the high-pitched sound in her ears and the thick black fog that quickly enveloped the whole plaza. She blinked rapidly trying to get her bearings.
After a few seconds, she felt a hand roughly grab her wrist, and she prepared for a fight.
"Time to go!" said Beremec's voice, and she let him guide her out of the smoke.
They ran out of the blackness, and she noticed he was guiding another with his other hand.
"Father!" she cried when she saw the orange beard.
Father simply coughed and stumbled along. She realized he had been a lot closer to the flash and smoke than she'd been. Together, they slipped behind a building, Beremic pulled out a set of lockpicks, and immediately started working on Father's shackles.
"Father, are you okay?" asked Rhana.
He coughed a bit more. "I'm fine," he rasped.
The shackles fell off.
"Where did you learn all this stuff?" cried Rhana in amazement.
Beremec then took out a folded cloak from his satchel and handed it to Father. "Wear this."
Father nodded, put on the cloak, and Beremec led them back into the streets at a run in the direction of the east gate.
"Over there!" cried a guard, who with several others followed in pursuit.
Beremec guided them down a narrow street Rhana was unfamiliar with. As they passed between pair of older houses, Beremec suddenly crouched by the corner where stood an ordinary looking barrel.
"Keep going," commanded Beremec, fiddling with something as Rhana and Father ran past.
Beremec finished and caught up with them as the guards rounded the corner, clinking in their armor. Then, they heard a click, and Rhana glaced back in time to see the barrel explode into a thick, green gas, which had an odor so repulsive that faint odor made them go even faster, trying to outrun the smell. The guards, however, fell unconscious.
After making some more distance and nearing the east gate, they next stopped at the base of a terrace, and Beremec took something else out of his satchel that looked like a pair of sticks, which he held out to Father.
"Put these on," he said.
"What are they?" replied Father.
"Stilts. Put them on your feet, and the guards at the gate might take you for a human."
"I can't wear these things!"
"Why not!?"
"Why not? I can't balance on damn sticks! You think I'm some sort of acrobat!?"
Frustrated, Beremec shoved them back in his satchel. "Then we're doing it Rhana's way!"
They started moving again, fast but slow enough to not alarm the guards at the gate.
"What's all the commotion down there?" asked the guard with the bruised nose as Rhana approached. He then noticed Father in the cloak. "Lloric!? How are you-!?"
"I'm really sorry about this one, honest," said Rhana as fast as she could, and she punched the guard in the nose, knocking him out cold.
The other guard drew his axe, but Father lunged forward and stayed his wrist. Beremec slipped behind the guard, put an arm around his neck, and choked him into unconsciousness. Meanwhile, Rhana pulled the lever near the door, which sent the gears and weights into motion and gradually opened it. The three of them of them found and threw on their packs, and then ran threw the cracked-open door, forever leaving the city of Stual behind them and plunging into the labyrinthine caves of the Underrealm.