Tarifax – World of The Misplaced Dungeon

{Timeline: March / April 2019 – AoRB Ch. 04}

Charlie was supervising the installation of his babies on captain Bordal’s Silver Sparrow when he heard a gasp of surprise. He turned languidly ably suppressing his surprise to regard the young runner who was staring at him through the visor of a bulky respirator.

“May I be of assistance youngster? Why the big eyes?”

The runner stared in astonishment but remembering his duty he said, “Excuse me sir, are you Charlie Parsons?”

“But of course, my dear chap. Do you see any other erudite wolf ’folk around here?” drawled Charlie.

“I have a message for sir Rich Burton from the master of the guild of truth readers. Can you tell me where to find him?”

“Not at this precise moment, no. But I am fairly sure he said he was planning to pass by the yard to personally assess my progress in an hour or so. So pray excuse me youngster while I get on with it.”

* * *

Captain Bordal for his part was haunting the scene. He could see the advantages of having two propellers in place of the singleton, and he approved in the abstract at the changes Charlie had supervised. The gearings were interesting but he was very dubious that the two small strange looking steam engines would provide enough power to turn the two big metal propellers. The lack of pistons and crankshafts also worried him.

He was happy with everything else regarding his Silver Sparrow, the sky shipyard had done an excellent job and he had rounded up his crew and even signed on some new stokers and deckhands. He had been keeping his trimsmen on half pay in the hopes of keeping them and luckily this charter had come up in time to prevent them signing on with anyone else.

Provisions were being packed and they would be ready to go by the end of the week. Always assuming those weedy looking engines would work as advertised. He had been unable to get the opinion of his former engineer because the drunken sot had got himself killed in a tavern brawl.

= = O = =

Rich Burton dropped down from the hansom cab and assisted Minnow to descend. His new bodyguard, visibly disgruntled descended from the hansom cab that had been trailing his. She was followed by Eldaan. All four of them were using the new enchanted earrings and thus surrounded by clear air, not needing breather masks.

Eldaan paid the cabbies and trailed them into the rather poky looking soot stained building that housed the truth reader’s guild.

They were ushered into a comfortable meeting room and were soon joined by a tall, somewhat stooped man with short grey hair and a young neatly dressed bronze collared woman with a pad and pencil.

“Sit, sit, do you wish for some tea or maybe something stronger,” the elderly man said with a smile. “I’m Dinobar Voorman and my charming stenographer is Giina.”

Rich took one of the offered chairs, Cinders took up position behind him. Minnow seated herself in one of the other chairs while Eldaan remained hovering by the door.

Rich smiled, “So, Mr Voorman, might I ask why you seem so anxious to see me?”

“It’s not very important, but I had to be seen to do something once the guild of lawyers came to me with a formal complaint,” Dinobar grinned. “You put their noses out of joint. They have no grounds for complaint as you acted on your own behalf but I have been forced to remind you that as a unregistered truth reader you are not allowed to charge for your services.”

Rich got the distinct impression that the old man was very pleased with the lawyer’s discomfort. “Just that? Can’t charge. I thought I wouldn’t have been allowed to help anyone but myself.”

Dinobar chuckled. “That’s what most think. But the law merely states that unregistered truth readers may not charge to use their abilities. Oh, and please call me Dinobar.”

“Thank you Dinobar, please feel free to call me Rich.” Rich sat back in his chair, “do you have any advice for me, not charging seems hard to prove.”

“True, but we are truth readers. It makes things easier.”

A peal of bells rang through the town of Conimbriga bringing the conversation to a halt. It continued for several long minutes. Rich noted that Dinobar looked shocked. He glanced around, Cinders looked ashen and shocked. She seemed to be counting. Minnow was covering her ears, Eldaan was gazing at the ceiling, and he too, seemed to be counting. Giina had collapsed into a chair and she looked frightened.

When the bells finally fell silent a full ten minutes had passed.

“What?!” asked Rich still stunned by the cessation of the incredible noise.

“The full count... that was a full count... one of the bound dungeons has broken free... and it is still free...” half whispered Cinders.

“Yes,” agreed Dinobar.

Then the peal of bells resumed for another minute.

“Oh gods, it has started killing everybody within its domain, and the mages weren’t able to reimpose the bindings,” stated Cinders.

Rich bowed his head, ‘Mother, is it Frog?’ he prayed.

« Yes Rich, Frog and Strelitzia have broken their chains. You couldn’t be in a better place if you had planned it. Go to the dwarven embassy next. »

Minnow jerked upright in her chair. A look of surprise flashed across her face.

“I think the most disturbing thing I found when I arrived in town was the... the bound dungeons. The great market, and the various arenas among others; it seems reckless to me to treat such beings as tame chattel.”

“I’m afraid it is inevitable given greed and gods like Feltax, Holistos the Tinkerer and Vortexius Blackbeard,” said Dinobar sadly. “I suspect this puts paid to our meeting. We are going to be needed when all the recriminations start flying. I’m glad to have met you, Rich. And you have been formally warned by the guild that you are not allowed to charge for your services.”

= = O = =

Frog separated his mind from his Earthbound half. He beamed his satisfaction at Strelitzia and merged with her briefly. He felt joy as she smiled in glee. His Earthbound half had claimed a patch of swampy ground in Louisiana. He/they had been careful and followed Mary’s suggestions and accepted that this act might limit his/their freedom on Earth soon. Mary had warned him/them that she had found herself bound to her core a few months after first claiming a domain. But then she had gifted him/them with her secrets in regards to her avatars. And hopefully they would gain the ability to form a useful avatar soon. After their rebellion in fact, he/they now had full knowledge of the Allin-designed trapdoor breech-loading mechanism that allowed the conversion of the local muzzle loading rifles to breach loaders. In fact he/they had a simplified more rugged version than the original and they had suitably equipped Springfields for his troops too.

Strelitzia and Frog watched as Magister Rufus Calitroglia entered their domain. They noted with amusement as he tested his magical chains. Several bodyguards, his friend Bartold Kennings and several other self-important dignitaries accompanied him.

They were soon ensconced in the owner’s box and watching the opening ceremonies. Strelitzia and Frog waited patiently until the benches and stands were full and the gates closed. The gladiatorial matches started and the bloodthirsty crowd became entranced with the betting and the spectacle.

Frog summoned his monsters and waited, then he summoned some more. All standard fare for a day at the circus. But he was summoning more than usual and his current master and owner Magister Rufus Calitroglia hadn’t noticed anything yet, occupied as he was with his most recent sex slave.

Strelitzia was grinning savagely and Frog wished he could do likewise. It was time, he twisted his will and stretched his mental limbs and his master’s magical chains shattered and evaporated in a swirl of foul magic.

They were free! Time for revenge!

Squads of crocodile ’folk armed with his breach loaders and bayonets trotted to the entrances to the arena where they set up barricades and assumed guard. Further squads headed up the stairs to the highest point of the banked seating behind groups of feathered Deinonychus.

A tide of lizardmen flooded onto the arena sands and killed any gladiator that resisted while two of their shamans targeted the owner’s box with offensive spells. The confusion allowed some croc ’folk snipers to infiltrate the arena and start taking pot shots at the inhabitants of the luxury boxes.

The crowd cheered at first, very few of them liked the arrogant wealthy folk in their private boxes. But then realizing that the magic barriers that held the action in the arena had vanished they began to recoil and force their way up the stairs towards the exits at the top of the arena. Only to be met by the rampaging Deinonychus heading down. Those that got past the rampaging Deinonychus were met with crashing volleys and sporadic sniper fire.

Strelitzia shrieked in glee when Magister Rufus Calitroglia who had been successfully defending himself and his guests from the lizardman shamans failed to spot the rifle armed snipers and was killed when two .58 calibre bullets struck him.

In all the confusion few noticed the arena’s entertainers sneaking out of the luxury boxes and encouraging many but not all of the slaves that had been brought along by their owners to leave and scurry down the rough cramped undecorated underways. Soon as they were clear more of the feathered Deinonychus flooded up the slave ways and into the boxes of the rich and powerful.