The trollkin all shake their heads at Verzeg's suggestion of speaking up. Freedom is still a very new concept and the idea of drawing attention to yourself to a leader is anathema to them in case retribution should follow. They do select a guard rota, of sorts, and then begin to shuffle into the darkest corners to sleep while Yelm rides the sky dome.

Verzeg looks at them sadly. He knows he's somehow different to his kin but he doesn't understand it even though he's quite smart. He just knows they seem to have less spirit than he does and this makes them adverse to taking action. He worries what would happen to them if he wasn't around to help them. How would they survive? Would some new bully turn up from somewhere to enslave them or would they simply perish? He doesn't know, he doesn't have the experience to provide context. Accepting what is as being what it is, he eats and then sleeps.

Later when he wakes he checks in to make sure everything is as it should be. He knows it's unlikely that they'll venture far in unknown territory and he plans to be back by daybreak for the first night. Getting his equipment together he plans to move lightly and cautiously, working in short trips to evaluate the area and ensure there's no major threats. When they finally move off to Smalltown he'll have the vulnerable kin in tow so he'll have to plot a cautious and none-too-straight route through the ruins to where they have to get to. He makes sure some careful hunting is done at twilight so the kin have food in case he doesn't get back for a few days and they know where a water source is.

With his gear checked, crystals filled and the kin seen to he sets out, keeping to the ruins he starts working cautious sweeps through the ruins. He doesn't expect to get far in any 'jump' and will probably be quite close to the haven for most of the first night.

Creeping along in the gloomy shadows of a dilapidated wall Verzeg doesn't notice, until he almost bumps into one, a troop of baboons. They don't spot him and seem to be foraging for food or treasure.

Verzeg flattens himself to the ground, not knowing if they can see in the dark or not.

He's more than a little frightened, they seem to have the bite capability of a big Uz and seem about as big. He doesn't want to sonar them heavily in case they can sense it and is at a bit of a loss of what to do. He watches them lithely move around for a bit.

(OOC: What sort of weapons and armour do they have and how many of them does he think there is?)

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 4):

There are about 12 baboons. Some are wearing leather chest plates or hauberks. They are mainly armed with fire-hardened wooden spears and several have daggers or shortswords on their waists. They seem to be searching for food more than anything and are not being particularly aggressive.

Verzeg sees that there's a lot of these things and while they don't appear too hostile he's not going to risk being mobbed. He waits until the darkness really sets in and then stalks an isolated baboon so he can see if he can talk to it.

His plan is that if it becomes hostile he'll immediately flee back to the trollkin hideout by a circuitous route and then shift them somewhere further away from the band.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 6):

The baboons' attention is drawn to a sudden noise ahead of them. They quickly become alert and bring their weapons into readiness. They scatter into various hiding places, one taking cover not 2m away from Verzeg.

A scent comes to his nostrils, an unwelcome scent. There is at least one dark troll here.

Angry with himself, Verzeg withdraws in a circling route to limit the baboon's ability to track him in the dark.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 8):

The baboon doesn't hear Verzeg sneaking off, its attention is entirely focussed on the creatures ahead.

Verzeg realises he's been fixated on the baboons and now there's a new problem, uzko. Even though an enlo and therefore a food item he's not automatically hostile to uzko but he knows that uzko stalking these creatures at this time of the night probably means they're hunting, because if they were coming to trade they'd have sent an expendable enlo in with a gift first to ease any tension.

Verzeg is torn. While he's slowly coming to the belief that eating thinking beings is intrinsically wrong (although he hasn't really had the time to sort out any coherent thoughts on the matter) culturally he knows uzko eat other things, that's always been the way. But these baboon-things might be friendly and everyone looks to their friends. However he has to balance this with the threat to the kin in the basement not too far away, are the uzko here for them? Do uzko even live over here?! That's a disturbing thought, Verzeg was under the impression the uzko might only live in the Stronglands but if they live here too they'll never be safe. What to do?

Verzeg may only be an enlo but he's very smart. He knows the baboons may not speak tradetalk as their level of equipment looks like things they could make themselves which don't need to be traded for and thus the baboons might be incapable of speaking with him, however just seeing an enlo might be enough to warn them. If they can talk, well and good, he'll quickly advise them of the danger and possibly win their trust. If the monkey-kin are hostile he'll fade into the night and try and engineer a situation where they come into conflict with the uzko. If all else fails he'll bolt back to the basement and lead the kin in direction of the Garden where the uzko dare not go.

He slides over to a small hole in a wall which is suitable for his small frame and hisses to the baboons "monkey-kin! Uzko, the dark men, are hunting you! You must prepare for a fight, try and get where they can only come at you singly and you can spear them as a group! If you have bright lights use them to scare off the little ones so you only have to fight the big ones! I will help you, but prepare quickly!"

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 10):

The nearby baboon, startled by the unexpected voice, looks round at Verzeg. It remains silent but nods it's head. Then it lets out some loud, screeching yells. Verzeg expects they can be heard at Troll Bridge.

A small fire magically ignites in the grass some 20m away, then suddenly it expands rapidly. Burning everything it touches. The baboon and its companions back away rapidly to put the flames between themselves and the trolls.

Hopefully the uzko are now focused on the baboons, so Verzeg creeps through the ruins in an arc to see if he can get to where the group leader will be setting up for a charge. If the uzko are being traditional they'll try and send the enlo in first to wear down the defenders and then they'll smash into them from an unexpected direction. If there's no enlo then that settles it for Verzeg, they're hunting him and have brought along no enlo to ensure there'll be no more desertions. He'll have to deal with all of them.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 12):

There are 3 or 4 enlo being urges forward by the uz. They are caught between fierce trolls and the terrifying flames. As they advance slingstones pelt them, some of the stones burst into flames in flight. Two trollkin drop to the ground and the others turn and run in panic.

Verzeg brings the spell "Befuddle" into mind. He marks where the enlo ran off to, if they get separated from the uzko he'll contact them later. Now he has to work out what the uzko are actually up to. he continues his flanking movement until he can see where they are and what they're doing.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 14):

The fleeing enlo scatter. One gets too close to an angry uz and is swatted like a fly by its massive maul. There seem to be 4 uz. 1 is charging at the baboons, passing very close to the fire. The other 3 disappear into the darkness away from the light of the fire. With his darksense Verzeg can still see them as they flank the apes to try and come at them from the rear.

Verzeg scuttles through the ruins in a wide arc to get himself behind the uzko when they're getting ready for their attack. When the uzko make contact with the monkey-kin he'll attack them from behind. he casts his weapon enhancing magic and prepares to assault, his teeth gritted and fear clenching his belly.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 16):

The charging uzko suddenly stops and then does an about turn and starts to run from the gathered baboons. They shriek their delight and give chase. Their rear is now exposed and the other 3 trolls appear from darkness, closing in on the now unprotected baboons. Verzeg is probably 5m from the nearest troll at this point.

Verzeg waits until the ambushing uzko are committed before starting his spells, befuddling the attackers as fast as he can.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 18):

Whether by good fortune or magical skill the three trolls about to attack from the rear suddenly become very dazed and confused. Their advance halts has they all begin to wonder just what is going on and who these other trolls are.

The baboons launch a volley of javelins at the charging troll. 1 strike her left leg and 2 smash into her head. Blood runs down her face as she comes to halt and prepares to retreat. She attempts to cast a spell but cannot summon the magic. Turning to flee she is now targetted by the baboons' slings. Several stones hit but bounce harmlessly off.

With the three flanking uzko dealt with in the short term Verzeg takes stock of the situation. As far as he can tell the baboons are dealing with the other warrior to their satisfaction and that means his only problems will be if the enlo rally and attack again or of there is some other force his is unaware of, not impossible considering how dangerous The Rubble is and the amount of noise being made.

He moves up, weapon at the ready and scanning about for more threats.

He can't see the fleeing enlo but can hear them yelping in the distance as they make their exit.

The nearby fire flares and a huge shower of sparks shoot up in the air. Suddenly the Uz starts thrashing and clawing at his chest as if he is being struck.

Seeing the baoons seem to have everything in hand, Verzeg slinks back into the shadows and watches how the situation plays out but is ready to intervene if the baboons run into strife.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 22):

The baboons set about the stricken trolls. Stabbing them with fire-hardened wooden spears and biting with long curved fangs. It is a desperate and bloody end for the darkmen. The enlo are not making a sound, they have either slunk off into the night or are cowering in fear somewhere.

Verzeg watches the baboons in a mixture of understanding and horror. He knows life in The Big Rubble is often short and brutal but he notes that the baboons never thought of ransom, however he also knows the baboons knew only too well they were being hunted for food.

He starts carefully looking for the enlo, both physically and for tracks. If he can't find them he returns to the baboons, if he does he'll carefully make contact.

Verzeg is well aware that a lot of enlo, while hating their life, can't think of anything better and may return to the uzko with news of Verzeg's band for a reward in the hope of better treatment. As such he'll keep the enlo from knowing about his band until he has given them enough benefits and security that they understand that his vision is far superior to life in a clan. Even then he also knows it's massively unlikely that enlo will ever confront uzko in open battle, his group tend to go too far the other way but he suspects that it's desperate fear that drives them and doesn't expect other enlo to stand up to torture or abuse.

With all that in mind he heads off looking for the enlo in the dark. If he sees signs they've fled the vicinity he lets them go and returns to parlay.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 24):

A search of the wider area reveals no sign of the enlo. They are certainly not together and ran off like a starburst, each going in a different direction.

Verzeg looks about to take his bearings, checking against landmarks with his weak eyesight and also taking in the distinctive smells and sounds of the locality. He assumes the enlo will go to ground and he might come back and coax them out with food rather than let them die out here so far away from the Troll Stronglands.

Now it's time to do something about the Monkeykin. In the darkness he leans against a wall and catches his breath, giving himself a time to think both tactically and strategically. The baboons might well be local and he has to work out if this is the case. If they are and he's near Small Town then it's important to make friendly contact with his new neighbours. If they are not, and he really knows absolutely nothing about most things and doesn't even understand that "nomadism" is an actual phenomena, then they might have heard about Small Town and know where it is. Most importantly they might know what sort of threats there are there because if there's something hostile there Verzeg seriously intends to exterminate it root and branch, as such that sort of information would be of immense use to him.

He quietly makes his way back yo the baboon camp, stopping well outside the firelight and calls out again.

"Well done monkey-people! I too am a troll, although just a little one, so I am worried that you might want to hurt me. However I'd like to talk to you now that the danger is over. Can I come closer?"

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 26):

The chattering baboons suddenly fall silent. They look at where Verzeg's voice came from and quickly move into a defensive formation. The leader calls out in heavily accented trade "Step into the light small troll, have no weapons in your hand or you will be attacked."

Verzeg feels a lump of icy fear settle in his stomach. These things just obliterated some uzko, they're really dangerous. He shoots a glance over his shoulder to ensure none of them is sneaking up on him as he still doesn't know how good their perception is. This whole thing of not being able to see in the dark still confuses him and he usually assumes everything can.

He clears his throat a little and says from his place in the dark "well, the problem is is that I'm really scared of you. You are frightening warriors who can kill the, umm, "dark trolls" and I don't know if you hate all us, umm, "trolls". If you don't like us I'll just wish you well and leave you alone."

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 28):

"Aaah, we don't hate trolls but fear is what drives us. If the catch us they eat us so we must kill them or be eaten, not a difficult choice though it seem unpleasant. Come, we will not attack unless we are attacked first. If that should happen know you will be the first to die."

Swallowing fearfully, Verzeg lays his spear down and carefully steps out of the shadows, half crouched and ready to dash back into the ruins.

A baboon approaches, he goes on all fours and has no weapon drawn. On his head is a crown fashioned from bird feathers, it looks as though it has seen better days. He nods to Verzeg "Welcome small troll. May Daka Fal and the ancestors bless you! What do you want to talk about?"

Surprised that he's not going to be skewered and eaten, Verzeg straightens slightly and says "I am Verzeg, a runaway enlo. I am glad that I could help you when the uzko arrived, I didn't know they came over here." He looks at the twisted bodies of the trolls but can't find it in himself to feel any pity. "I used the magic of Generous Auntie to confuse them, but I hardly think I was needed. Do you know if the uzko frequently hunt here? I thought they stayed on the other side of the river."

He looks about in the dark, scanning for movement. He's never really comfortable unless he's under the ground or in a structure. It strikes him as odd that these creatures would prefer to be out in the open like this. He continues "I am looking for a place known as "Smalltown" where there are places suited to creatures like myself and where the big things will probably not go, at least I hope they will not go."

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 32):

"Welcome Verzeg, I am Skreena. We don't often see big trolls here but sometimes they come this side of the river and we must defend ourselves gainst them. Luckily we have ancestors here who help us in such fights." the baboon, feeling more comfortable with the trollkin's presence, sits on his haunches. "We sometimes pass through smalltown. The big trolls and humans rarely enter but they do have markets on the edge and the people in there come and trade."

Verzeg doesn't ease up, this isn't Upright territory". For all he knows this may be some complex ruse and it never occurs to Verzeg that he overthinks things.

"May Generous Auntie bless you and your people Skreena. If I may ask, could you tell me how to get to this place? is there landmarks that I should follow? Being an enlo I travel at night."

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 34):


"Go that way." Skreena says pointing northwest. "Keep the river on your right, when you see the Puzzle Canal on the other side of the river you have gone far enough. Turn left and go up the slope, Smalltown should be nearby."

Verzeg nods.

"Then I will head off while there's no light. What will you do now Skreena?"

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 36):

"We are going to rest for the rest of the night and then in the morning we are heading into Prax, we have a holy day coming and must get to the Paps for it."

Verzeg prepares to leave. "Is there anything I can help you with? I should continue on."

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 38):

Skreena thinks for a moment, "You are quite small. We have a need to get into a small space to retrieve a treasure we hid but we can't get back in. If you could get in there we'll give you a rich reward."

"Well, what sort of reward is it?" Says Verzeg interested. "Also, if you don't mind can I look over these corpses for anything that is only useful to uz?."

He thinks for a bit.

"Why can't you get your treasure any more?"

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 40):

"We hid something in a narrow shaft but the only one of us small enough to get in there a get it back was killed by broos. Now we can't collect it, we're hoping you'll do us a favour."

Verzeg nods "yes, I can do that. Show me where it is." He goes and collects his sword-spear.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 42):

Skreena leads Verzeg about 20 meters to a small hole in the ground. It is wide wnough to allow and armoured trollkin to enter it. It is very dark down there and Verzeg can feel an enticing cool breeze coming from it.

"What am I looking for?" He says, scanning for handholds. He sniffs the hole to see what it smells like, not quite knowing what to expect. Once Skreena answers he clambers down the hole.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 44):

"A spear, it is 1 and a half meters long. The point is made of gold and has rune carved on it."

Verzeg is able to lower himself down the shaft slowly so he doesn't fall. The bottom of the shaft drops into a room about 2m below. There is no sign of the spear but the rooms smells strange.

(OOC: Track by scent to recognise the smell)

Verzeg gathers up his spear and readies it in a crouch, scanning the dark. He sniffs almost theatrically trying to place the scent.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 46):

He remembers the smell well. The scent of chaos monsters that drop from tunnels onto unsuspecting prey below. The Uz called them Krashtkids and wouldn't eat them.

Verzeg's mouth compresses into a thin line. It occurs to him that Skreena wasn't as forthcoming to him as he might have been, it looks like the baboon runt was killed by chaos down here.

"Spider-Crabs" he mutters.

Still, nothing for it now. If there are monsters down here he'd best see where they are in case these things spread. Verzeg knows only too well that if he doesn't do anything about chaos then Nasty Uncle sends him lurid nightmares that get progressively worse until he does. He decides to see how bad it is so he can go and find Rostakos the Baresark who'll know what to do. At least the kin aren't here or they'd try and be brave and fight them.

Watching out for overhead gaps and chimneys he sees if there's other exits to this space. If there's not he creeps along until he finds something.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 48):

The room is more of a wide corridor, it is about 3m wide and disappears off into the distance. His darksense detects a long pole  on the floor several meters ahead.

(OOC: Listen roll please)

In reply to Adrian (msg # 49):

Above the pole on the ground is another opening in the ceiling, from within this opening a scraping noise can be heard.

Verzeg, who is timid and fearful if he has time to think on things, is far too focused on the serious danger of the creature above to be scared enough to flee. It starts to dawn on him that this thing might be quite smart, smart enough to have set a trap. He knows that there's variations in intelligence and even things that can't speak or have families can be clever enough to out-think those not paying attention or those who let pride make them think they're smarter than dumb animals. Those individuals who do that get eaten in The Big Rubble. Verzeg has the luxury of being an extremely intelligent example of a notoriously stupid category of trolls and thus has a long experience of what stupidity can do in the face of threats.

Crouching quietly, he considers the situation. His troll senses give him a pretty good idea of the area. He only knows these things are savage ambushers, not how fast or how big they are. He quietly scans the area, making sure nothing is creeping up on him or in case there's more overhead shafts he hasn't sensed yet.

It occurs to him that either he carefully removes what he assumes is the spear before the monster can react, or he quickly destroys the creature before it can attack - something he's unsure he can achieve - or he distracts it. The problem he faces is he doesn't know how these things sense, he assumes they sense just like he does so if he does anything it must be utterly without sound. That means he can't use spells to prepare.

Slowly reaching down he softly feels around for a few pebbles, being extra sure not to create any sound. If he finds some he'll quietly toss the pebble some distance further down the the gallery and see what happens, readying his spear to strike if the creature drops to the ground and rushes him.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 51):

Verzeg's hand feels around and come to rest on a fist sized stone. He chucks it along the corridor, the clatter of it it echoes loudly. Quickly a krashtkid drops from the hole in the ceiling and scuttles after the stone.

(OOC: My assumption is they detect prey by movement/vibrations so making a noise will attract them but remaining still and silent will foil them.)

Verzeg reaches for another stone to cast and after he finds one, creeps forward to the pole. Just before he's near the pole he'll throw the other stone even further down the tunnel.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 53):

The stone skitters along the corridor, the krashtkid gives chase. As Verzeg picks up the spear the glowing golden point gives a small metallic ring as it scrapes along the floor. The krashtkid stops its pursuit of the stone and suddenly changes direction, charging straight towards the trollkin.

Cursing softly, Verzeg drops the weapon obviously associated with The Burner and grabs up his trusty elf bone, chitin and flint spear. Grabbing the sweat-stained haft he grits his teeth and drives it at the monster scuttling towards him.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:45, Mon 16 Nov 2020.

The charging krashtkid spits its sticky pratzim at Verzeg, it misses and the gluey substance lands behind him.

His spear thrust slices clean through the armour and neatly lops off a leg. The monster now slowly advances on the trollkin.

Moving sideways so the monster doesn't have time to aim, Verzeg sends in a storm of cuts from different directions.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 57):

Verzeg's first cut removes another leg and the creature slumps to the floor. Life has fled before the second cut chops off a third leg.

Avoiding the revolting pratzim, Verzeg snatches up the golden spear and looks around, wondering what sort of place this is. He's not at all happy these things are here when he's been told he's not far away from Smalltown.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 59):

As far as he can tell with his darksense it is a long straight corridor. It runs east-west and is empty although there are several holes in the ceiling.

(OOC: He can see about 30m in each direction with his darksense)

Deciding that exploring this particular death trap has no lasting interest for him he makes a mental note to inform either the Uroxi or the Zorak Zoran people so as to keep the Death Lord out of his dreams or worse. He sincerely hopes that killing the krashtkid was enough of a propitiatory sacrifice for the god of murder and revenge to be satisfied.

Carefully retracing his steps he takes his prize back to the surface.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 61):

The baboons chatter excitedly when Verzeg resurfaces with the golden spear. He quickly finds himself surrounded as the all reach to touch the weapon and paw at the trollkin.

Verzeg holds up the spear to Skreena and says "you could have mentioned that the chaos was actually in the hole, I had to kill one to get this back."

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 63):

Skreena is taken aback by Verzeg's accusation. "Chaos? There is no chaos down there that we knew of. If we though the devil's spawn was down there we would have sought a Storm Khan. We will double what we offered as compensation. How does that suit?"

Verzeg, easy going as always, is happy with that. "That would be generous, the Monkeykin are truly magnanimous." He hands the spear to Skreena and says "as you have said, the chaos hunters must become aware of this nest noble Skreena. The spider-crabs live in shafts in the ceiling of that hole, I killed one but there were many more shafts".

"It may not be safe here. The uzko that survived the fight might be looking for vengeance if there were followers of Nasty Uncle among them or if any of the slain were high status. If there were any clan fetishes on the uzko bodies it would be best to leave them here hanging from a wall or something, do not lay them on the ground as that is an insult. Also I do not know if spider-crabs will follow a person out of their holes so they too might be a threat."

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 65):

"Thank you for your advice, we'll move away from here now and, when Yelm shows his face, we'll move the troop many miles away before the hunters come back."

(OOC: Reading back no fee was agreed but they give the following in payment)

Skreena hands Verzeg a small bag containing a large number of silver coins (150L), a necklace adorned with with jewels and lion teeth and a unbutchered haunch of zebra meat, it weighs about 10 to 15 kilos.

Food is of course a gift of great status among trolls, especially a trollkin, and Verzeg is extremely grateful. To his somewhat culturally backwards sensibilities he values it far higher than the coins. He thanks the baboons sincerely and watches them leave.

Hoisting the zebra haunch and associated loot over his shoulder he head back into the dark, taking wide sweeps once again. He keeps in mind that the enlo took off around here and they might have gone to ground. While he's well disposed to enlo he's also aware that many might value clan a lot more than some ragtag deserter and his scruffy mates so he has to be careful he doesn't get betrayed, but even then in he knows in his heart he has to seek them out and see if they want to join his new life. It needs to be handled carefully though as high status enlo, little more than favoured pets to uzko, can be doggedly loyal to their masters and he has to make sure that his friends are safe above everything.

With this in mind he carefully slinks through the rubble, taking his time and ensuring he's not followed through plenty of switching back over his trail and observing his back path. After all this is done he'll return to the hideout.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 67):

His companions wait in the hideout, hearing him coming in the quickly take up defensive positions, although they are poor and would not stop any kind of attack. Their fear turns to delight when they see Verzeg and they are even happier to see the lump of fresh meat. They sit around waiting for Verzeg to eat his fill before being thrown any scraps.

Verzeg shares the meat out, not wanting to take the place of the uz masters.

"Well, it was a long night and I still haven't found the place. Still, I talked to some creatures but there was also fighting. Tomorrow I'll look where they told me it might be. We have to be careful, there was uz here where I didn't think they come to. Some got away but I don't think they ever noticed me."

He shares out some water and makes a mental note to look for some more. It never fails to amaze him how dry it is on the surface and how awfully hot during the day. He wonders if the stories about the cool mountains are true. Shaking his head he pulls of his armour, arranges his weapons nearby and rolls on his blanket to get some sleep and wait for the following night.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 69):

The group of trollkin bolt down their food as is custom (it stops other stealing it) before they settle into the day routine of sleeping and guarding. All are fearful of returning Uz.

As Yelm sinks Verzeg wakes. The day has been quiet with no sign of marauding trolls or other sorts of beasts. The zebra meat has been entirely consumed, including bones and skin. Everyone gathers round Verzeg with an expectant look waiting to find out what the night will bring.

Verzeg opens his bleary eyes as Hurzeg shakes him awake. He really doesn't want to do anything but roll back over in his bunny blanket and snore some more but he slowly drags himself out from under the cover and knuckles his eyes. Looking around hazily he sees they're all watching him again. He wonders what they're thinking, they probably know if he gets killed out there they have little chance of survival and all they can do is sit here waiting for for him to come back. At least he has choices, they just have to wait in fear. This stiffens Verzeg's spine and spurs him with a bit of guilt knowing he can take action and that gives him power.

"You've all been really good friends" he says, "I could never have gotten so far without you, knowing I have a safe place to come back to has made this possible. Tonight I'll push on and see if I can find the road to Smalltown and then we can carve out a new life for ourselves. We can learn to trade, to make our own decisions and make our own way in the world. Not far now." He wonders if he's talking more to himself than anything else.

Once more he climbs into his armour, hefts his weapons and gets ready to move out. This time he takes more waterskins with him. Giving the enlo the obligatory instructions he once again leaves the hideout and heads out into the dark, this time more towards the riverbank where Skreena indicated his goal was. Almost there.

Verzeg follows the river in the direction indicated by the baboons. After about an hour he sees sporadic twinkling lights in amongst the building up ahead, still some 500m distant. Suddenly a nearby voice calls out. It is quiet but urgent and insistent, but not in a language familiar to Verzeg.
This message was last edited by the GM at 08:39, Mon 28 Dec 2020.

Verzeg freezes. He's not sure if the caller has seen him as he's slinky through the deepest shadows. He presses back against a fallen pillar-drum amid the rubble to see what happens.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 73):

Another voice answers the first and then Verzeg feels magic pulling at him but he braces his will and fights off the effects of the spell.

After a moment a voice calls out in trade "Friend! Identify yourself."

"Hello friend?" Says Verzeg, worried that whoever is talking is keeping him busy while others flank him.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 75):

"Hello, this is the land of our queen. Her permission is needed to cross it, You must come with us and petition her to be allowed on it."

Verzeg carefully steps forward, fully expecting an arrow in the brisket.

"I mean no harm, I'm just a little enlo."

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 77):

"Most of us are enlo, we still need to talk to the queen. It is her rules." A small shape steps out of the shadows and walks towards Verzeg. "Unless you think to bring Uz here you are quite safe."

Verzeg puts his spear over his shoulder and walks towards the voices. "Take me to you queen. I come as a friend and I am tired from a long journey".

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 79):

The figure beckons to Verzeg before turning and walking away. Verzeg follows and after a while is aware that another 3 figures have started following behind. All remain silent.

After some 500m the leading figure steps into a ruined building and goes down some steps into a cellar. The room at the bottom of the steps is quite small and would be cramped for 5 but the leader opens a door and leads through it. The other 3 remain in the entrance room.

The is a short corridor leading to another door. Outside it stands an enlo, he is wearing a mish-mash of cuirboilli and scale armour. He holds a small shield and a light mace. He looks at Verzeg curiously but at a signal from the leader he opens the door.

Beyond the door is a dimly lit room. 4 or 5 enlo and small humans lounge around lazily. At the far wall is a tall seat, it has been arranged to look like a throne but is in reality just a dining chair. Slouching in the chair is a female enlo, she is wearing ragged clothes that were once the property of a wealthy human child.

Seeing the new arrive she says, in darktongue, "Olavar, bring this one forth."

The creature in front of Verzeg bows and replies "Yes, your majesty." before signalling to Verzeg to advance on the throne.

Verzeg walks over, unsure what to make of the figure. Even with the dim lights he narrows his eyes against the unwanted illumination and glances about, checking to see if the guards are getting ready to jump him.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 81):

The guards looks at Verzeg with interest but no hostilities can be sensed. They stand alert but make no moves.

As he approaches the enlo on the chair speaks, "Well, hello! Who are you? I am Queen Brasegz and this is my realm in Smalltown, we call it Brasegzland. What is it you are after?"

Verzeg relaxes a bit. Somehow it had never occurred to him that Smalltown would be occupied, and he'd never would have thought enlo lived here. He suddenly realises he'd never actually given this part any thought at all. For a long moment he says nothing, trying to order his thoughts.

"I am Verzeg Blackbeetle, once an enlo of the Srak Arhan. I got into trouble and made the clan leaders argue when I killed all the horrors in Dark Fort and they each wanted the place, so I ran off or they would eat me. My brother Brenzeg told me about this place and brought some of my other brothers to me, so we set off across the Rubble." He stops and sighs. "It was a hard trip."

"I'm looking for my own upright land where I and my brothers can be safe. We're good workers and I can fight too, the others not so much although they do try hard. I've fought lots of things; uz, humans, dwarfs, elfs, chaos and monsters. I can work in resin and I once bred a special fire beetle that I was rewarded for, although it spat on me and burned my face."

Verzeg stops and then straightens up with a confidence and resolution he didn't know he had. He looks at Braseg in the eyes and says evenly "I don't like cruelty and I don't like bullying. I'm not taking my friends and family somewhere they'll have to live in fear. We're not going to be slaves again. Anywhere we settled down has to treat us properly, we're not helpless and we'll work for our keep but that doesn't mean we're less than anyone."

He relaxes again, back to his usual amiable self.
"I am pleased to meet you, I hope you will help us."

Brazeg listens to Verzeg, nodding in agreement at points. "I too am an escaped slave, a few of us managed to escape the Uz and find safety here. My realm is small, only 350 people. Mostly enlo but also some small humans and strange creatures called durulz. There is no slavery or forced servitude here. What you earn is yours, if you work hard then you will become rich. I do require everyone to give 1 day a week in service of the militia. This is for our mutual defense. Part of your militia day is training and the rest is patrolling and guarding the realm. Religion is free and you may worship who you will except there are no chaos gods allowed here. Lastly there is a tax to pay to live here, 1 silver piece a week. If you agree to these terms then you may go and collect your kin and swear fealty to me and the land. Also I have a couple of jobs I would like to offer you if you wish to stay."

Verzeg grins toothily and nods. He's never met a queen before so he's not sure what to do, he knows the uz have all sorts of ritual behaviour when dealing with the clan matriarch but it was death for the common enlo to go near here so he never saw it in action.

Not knowing what to do next he simply stands, waiting for them to let him go and find his kin.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 85):

"So,do you agree to the terms of citizenship of Brasegzland?"

Not prone to flowery speech, Verzeg simply answers "yes, I do."

H leans on his spear and rubs his jaw before saying "what is this task you'd like me to do?"

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 87):

"There are two jobs you could do for me. Firstly I would like some to breed and tend insects, we hope to get some ham beetles soon but don't really have the skill to deal with them. The other job would be more difficult, scouring the ruins for such as yourself. Escaping enlo, bring them here so we can offer them somewhere safe to live."

"I can do both," says Verzeg with a toothy smile. "I have heard also that there are enlo who live in a big flooded hole on the other side of the Great River from here. I know how to use boats and I can even swim, so I could go there if you wish and see if they want to trade although I have heard they are a rough lot. I know a human trader who is good to enlo called Danzar, he seemed interested in uz goods and I can seek him out as well if you desire."
This message was last edited by the player at 15:35, Tue 02 Aug 2022.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 89):

"Excellent, that then is settled. You may go and collect your kin, if you wish I can send soldiers with you in case of any trouble. We can work out where we go with your future endeavours when you return. I would certainly be interested in meeting this Danzar person. Come back to me in 24 hours with your kin and we will complete the necessary formalities."