Book Seven, Chapter Six �A Watery Lost Chapter�

            28/10/2006

What happened last time? Well Daniel and Bowlhead weren�t there and the rest talked of failing saving throws and failing down a hole and running away. Lots of damage and Sir Martyn is blind � again. So nothing much happened and nobody took any notes so obviously nothing important happened.

I had done my back in, but I have no idea what happened to Stuart.

OK the Daily Mail and Daily Express makes up its news on less than information than I was given. So if you can believe stories about the law being changed to allow a Catholic Tony Blair to become Prime Minister, or that the EU insists we have straight bananas, or other works of total fantasy, then you will have no problem believing the following is what really happened.

This was not a fortunate cloud bank. It had spent some time building itself up over the Gulf of Andurien and then had hit land through Boka Bay. It has already released some of its stored water to rain-wash the blood and dirt from the body of a dead peasant near the castle at Quiso. Now it was over a marshy area of the Kingdom of Rethem. Great Mother Peoni, by the time its waters had eventually returned to the seas again they would heavily discoloured with noxious deposits, and much in need of a holiday before they could return to Harn.

And here is more blood, mud and ichor to wash off with more rain. A nest of marsh vampires had finally been laid to rest by a group of adventurers, and the bodily fluids of the Undead are just so polluting. The Khuzdul who had just lost both of his ears and his nose would have to watch out or he�d pick up a nasty infection. It was time to go to work.

�Oh isn�t that just great, now it�s raining. Where�s that bloody Healer when you need him?�

�Are you sure he was he with us when we failed our saves? I thought he�d wandered off for a quick pray, or something.�

�I�ll have to upgrade him so he�s always present when I want him.�

�My doze hurts. Can�t you heal it?�

�Beyond my power mate, I�m only the driver.�

�I�ve told you before you�ve been promoted, and I bought you a pointy hat. By the way how are the reading and writing lessons I instructed you to take coming along?�

Silence fell, broken only by the sounds of boots trudging through mud.

Where indeed was the Healer? Was it this man sheltering beneath a large oak tree playing the flute? The haunting refrain provided an eerie counterpoint to the sound of the gently falling rain. Every now and then a small dart would fly out the end of the flute and miss its target. It was only the dart�s sudden appearance that gave the game away. Clearly he was a better flute player than a blowpipe user. Hmm he is more likely to be a Bard than a Healer.

Was it this man naked above the waist who was flagellating himself with a wire whip with razor blades tied to it? Even as the rain started to wash the blood away his wounds healed themselves. Hmm that�s a bit of a give away really.

�Ah that�s so much better.�

He let the rain clean his newly healed back and muttered to himself.

�I wonder if Daniel managed to get any birds for the pie yet?�

He started to get dressed.

�Better go and see.�

Later on, when the rain was futilely trying to put out the cooking fire, the three adventurers re-joined their companions. The Healer�s face lit up with naked joy at the sight of his colleague�s wounds. Quickly he rushed over and transferred the Khuzdul�s wounds to himself. After a few moments of complete ecstasy he started to heal them.

�OK, so what happened to you lot?� said the Bard, handing the new arrivals each a roast starling on a stick. �This is just the starter, there�s pigeon pie for main course.�

�Well after we killed the Marsh Vampires we found an underground cave complex. Well we had to investigate it didn�t we. And there was this Super Skeleton who stuck its fingers in Sir Martyn�s eyes blinding him again�

 �Well, I kinda like the idea of being blind. Not exactly the light of god that did it this time. Bummer, but I can still tell people �I was blinded by the light of god� and it will be true. I somehow feel it will be important for me to be blind when we finally face Panaga. I also feel that we will have Sular with us. And I�ll be the champion of both Agrik and Larani.�

�Well my Lord we're still several years away from that final and epic day. And you've been blinded several times already so if you are destined to be blind at that point in time then I'm sure Larani will provide an appropriate and suitably glorious final blinding for you. I�m sure it will almost certainly involving being blinded by the divine light of the goddess. So it would be best just to let Bowlhead suck up your wounds and cure you.�