Merdon made sure the group was in top shape before they ascended the last flight of stairs. Sarel's dagger was sharpened, strapped onto her, and ready to go. As well, the thief had stretched and primed herself. Skyeyes and Red caught a short nap while Merdon took care of his armor and sword. The knight's equipment needed the most work thanks to the sweat and golem. Nothing would repair the tip of his sword while they were in the tower, but he was able to buff many of the dents out of the blade. Dealing with the rust that had built up inside of his armor, however, was another matter. He was diligently wiping down the insides that had been forced to get drenched by his sweat in the sweltering heat they'd all just left when Sarel came over to talk.

The thief aired her concerns about confronting the witch, leading with, “Why does she not come down to us now?” She had to know they were there.

Merdon shrugged. “Maybe she's overconfident.”

“Maybe it's a trap.”

“It could always be a trap,” Merdon agreed as he stopped polishing the shin plates and went for the arms. “Most of this tower was a trap.”

Sarel nodded. “If it's a trap though, what do we do?” What could they do?

Merdon sighed and looked at her. “We can't leave,” he told her plainly. “Whatever she has waiting for us upstairs, we have to face it head-on. Until she's out of the way we'll never live in peace.”

The blue kobold nodded again and looked away. There was no plan they could formulate for attacking the witch in her own room. All they could do was try their best. Neither Sarel or Red could remember anything specific about the witch's private chambers, a side effect of the spell that stole their memories. Still, she felt restless just planning to walk into the spider's web like that. As confident as they had been to simply walk into the tower to begin with, Sarel had seen them get outmaneuvered at every turn. It was natural she worry about situations she had no control over. Her instincts as a thief were to control every possible variable to achieve an outcome. A guard dog distracted by meat, the candles inside a house blown out, striking at the changing of a guard shift, every detail one could control she had to control, but here nothing was in her control anymore. She had even lost control of her own body.

Merdon felt her hesitation and leaned into the kobold. “It'll be fine,” he reassured her. “For every trap we've walked into, we've overcome it.” Sarel smiled and leaned into him as well. She couldn't argue that, despite her worries about what was waiting for them on the final floor. He attempted to help her worries further by giving her a quick kiss and another smile. It worked well enough for the kobold.

An hour later the time had come. Merdon was suited back up, Red and Skyeyes were awake, alert, and they'd just had a small snack from their packs to make sure hunger didn't bother them during their final battle. The knight took the lead, opening the door to the stairs and starting up, shortly followed by Sarel, and then Skyeyes with Red in the rear. Despite being the last flight of stairs they felt the shortest of the bunch. Their anxiety and anticipation made the climb fly by as they focused on what lay ahead rather than what was immediately around them. No traps stopped them, no magic held them back, Merdon was confident that by then the witch was as fed up with them as they were with her. She wanted a final confrontation as much as they did. To end this back and forth once and for all. Merdon pressed his shoulder into the door and entered the top room of the tower.

The room had several large shelves, some with books, other with assorted trinkets and objects. Merdon figured some of them were magical and quickly wondered if they might be served destroying them before they could be used. Apart from those shelves, there was a large bed in the center of the room, between those shelves of books and knickknacks, canopied and elegant, something the knight wouldn't have expected from a witch. He also spotted a crystal ball, likely used to spy on them as they traveled through the tower. A window sat at the other end of the room letting in the early summer light, only partially obscured by the form of a woman standing in front of it. Beside her sat a desk with many vials and bottles, as well as a small cauldron for brewing. It was apparent their target didn't just dabble in one kind of magic. Which made her far more dangerous than Merdon had expected. Fighting her there, in her element, was going to be arduous, to say the least, and deadly at the very worst.

They stood together as a group, Merdon just barely ahead, his shield out and raised, his sword in hand. Red pushed her way to the front of the group and glared across the room at the witch. She was only just held back by Merdon's glance in her direction. Out of them all, Red had the most reason to hate the woman standing on the opposite side of the room. Years of being under her control, lacking free will, until the day she felt a spark of magic and silently honed her power to escape. Sarel had a glare of her own, but she wasn't as ready to go as Red was. The blue kobold was still worried about what might happen, feared the power of the witch. Skyeyes now stood behind them and waited, keeping his faith as much as he could. His crisis could wait until they were done here. His companions needed him for this more than any conflict before, and he was determined not to let them down.

The witch turned to face them, the light at her back certainly helping with the mystique of her character if it wasn't for the fact they had all seen her before. It was a dramatic flair Merdon was getting the feeling she had a sense for. She stepped towards them and crossed her arms, her eyes scanning over each one of them as if she were deciding the order they would fall in. Her arm snapped up and pointed at Sarel. Ready for something, Merdon banged the shield Red had given him, causing it to hum. Nearly the same moment, a bolt of energy fired from the witch's finger and neatly curved into the waiting shield, dispelling the minor blast like nothing. Everyone's eyes followed the arc, including the witch, who scoffed and unfolded her arms. They were at the ready now, palms up, fingers raised.

“I see,” she said calmly. “That's how she got away, is it? I really should keep better inventory around here.”

Merdon chuckled. “Didn't know one of your enchanted items was missing?” he goaded her.

“Not mine. Something I picked off another unfortunate adventurer who came to slay the evil witch,” she mocked.

Red growled and suddenly hurled a pair of fireballs from her claws, their timing staggered as she threw them with such intensity that her whole body turned with her throws. The witch looked shocked for a moment as she swung her arm to conjure a shield in front of her. While the attack failed to damage her, it did burn the canopy of her bed. That was enough distraction for Merdon to rush in as quickly as he could, hoping to get an advantage. There was a window right behind her. A good solid blow and a long fall would end things fast enough for him. Unfortunately, magical shields were more sturdy than he anticipated. His charge was pushed back by the same force which blocked Red's flames, sending him flying backward and scraping along the floor with sparks shooting off.

Skillfully, the knight recovered before the witch could counter, getting himself upright and raising his shield again. Their opponent was focused on something else now, however. Her eyes were locked on the red kobold with a mixture of anger and intrigue. Magically capable kobolds were either rare or very well hidden, the fact one had escaped her grasp, lived in her tower without her knowledge, both astounded and infuriated her. She wanted to know more but the creature stood against her now. There was only one option open to her, obviously. Kill the kobold whisperer and take his special little group for herself, but he wasn't making that any easier with his shield. The way he stood in front of them, even charged at her without assistance, spoke volumes about his commitment. Either to his facade or how much he actually cared. Still, she had questions.

“You, red one,” she called. “Where did you learn that?”

Red glared at her and flared her fire again in both claws. “I learned it while I was here when you weren't looking,” she spat.

The witch hummed in thought. “I'll have to make sure you don't get loose again then,” she replied. “It would be terrible for something to happen to a rare specimen like you.”

Merdon stepped up at the comment, trying to hold her attention while they came up with a way through her barrier. “Talking about kobolds like property again. Remind me why you think you care about them again?” he taunted. It was more successful than expected, as the witch waved her hand and threw more electricity at the knight.

“Because I don't take them to dangerous places like Ardmach without collars so they can get grabbed by slavers,” she remarked with scorn.

Merdon banged his shield again, reactivating the enchantment while causing sparks to arc to his gauntlet. “And instead you keep them holed away in your tower, doing your bidding, without a will of their own,” he once again pointed out. “How is that any better than being a slave? You've never really answered that. You aren't as bad as other masters? Then why is Red standing against you now that she's free?”

The red kobold nodded with certainty and kept her eyes on the witch. Her flames died down and she started to plan a way through the barrier. In the meantime, the witch looked stricken. It hadn't occurred to her yet that if Merdon didn't have any powers then the red kobold had betrayed her entirely of its own free will. Red had traveled to Bereth, sought out someone to slay her.

“Come now,” she said to the kobold, her voice becoming much more soothing. “Was it really so bad not remembering all the suffering you went through?”

Red took a steadying breath and nodded. “I would rather know and be myself than become a husk. Even without my memories now I'm happier than I ever was under your control,” the kobold told the witch with certainty. It was intentionally scathing.

The witch's face turned as red as her hair as she angrily threw another spell that was harmlessly deflected upon Merdon's shield. Red took her opening, sharply thrusting her claw out and casting a spell. With a gasp of pain, the witch stumbled back as her barrier visibly shattered and left her momentarily stunned as she dealt with the magical backlash. Her mind swam with pain and her eyes rolled while she collected herself. There was enough time for Merdon to charge forward again, more certain of his attack, but not enough time for him to land a blow. Between them stood too much room for him to cross quickly enough, even with Sarel joining and sprinting ahead, ready to end the fight if Merdon couldn't reach her in time.

Their charge was thwarted as feet from the goal of their quest the witch roared and a burst of sheer magical power flung not only the two attackers rushing her, but the two kobolds on the far end of the room as well. Red and Skyeyes slammed against the wall and shouted in pain, both of them being deposited on the floor in sore heaps. Sarel and Merdon were only tossed back, Sarel spinning head over heels and landing on her stomach, while Merdon remained upright, bracing himself and taking a solid stance to avoid being knocked over. It only did so much to help him, however, as the witch curled her hands into a cylindrical shape. Between her fingers, magical energy rapidly formed and expanded until she held a whip of pure magic. The mystically created weapon cracked and sparked across his raised shield. She had the advantage of range, but Merdon was the more skilled fighter.

Merdon took the blows and made his way forward, making sure to keep the shield's enchantment going whenever possible. His advance kept the witch backing up while making her swings more ferocious over time. The increased ferocity might have overwhelmed an amateur, but Merdon was far from new to fighting. He took his opening the moment he saw her swing too hard, her recovery was too long. As quickly as he was able, Merdon whipped his sword forward, slashing, trying to land an attack that would put her on the back foot, make her mess up, give him the advantage. What he knew in martial combat was vastly overwhelmed by what he didn't know about magic. Openings in physical combat were traps in magical fights, and the witch was ahead of him there.

Without warning, another burst of force erupted from the witch's body, throwing Merdon back and this time successfully knocking him over. Sarel, angry and back in motion, leaped at the witch, only to be grabbed magically out of the air. Once more, her mastery of magic was superior to their physical prowess, and no matter how hard the blue kobold struggled, there was nothing for her to kick or knock away. She was stuck floating in the air as if someone were holding her entire body. Her arms were stuck to her side even though her tail and feet could make contact with her body. The witch pulled her closer, stopping Merdon in his movement to recovering. Now they were playing defense because of a hostage.

“I'm glad you came back to me,” the witch cooed with a devilish smile. “I have your collar here, you know.” With a wiggle of her finger, a heavy metal collar floated through the air, shining and carved with runes.

Sarel gritted her teeth at the sight and cursed at the witch. “Quickclaw would rather die than be a slave to anyone.”

“Aren't you though?” she proposed. “Would you not do anything for your human friend?” Her emphasis on friend belied another meaning which got Quickclaw's cheeks to heat up.

“That is different. Quickclaw would gladly, there is no coercion.”

The witch hummed and pressed further. “Isn't there? What if he decided to leave you because of something you won't do?”

“He would not,” Quickclaw asserted with a furious look. If she were free, she would have punched the witch, forgetting their objective to simply kill the woman.

Merdon joined in disagreeing. “No, I wouldn't,” he said to her firmly. “Maybe you should get out of your tower more if that's how you think a relationship works.” Always the bold one, much less afraid of calling what they had a relationship, causing even the witch to tint red in second-hand embarrassment.

Red took the opportunity. She shouted a counterspell which freed Quickclaw, dropping the blue kobold who proceeded to dive out of the way as a surge of flames shot towards their quarry. The witch was not so easily fooled and batted the flames away, though she began to look more annoyed with Red's abilities than impressed. A flick of the wrist and a veritable storm of lightning flew towards the red-scaled kobold, which she proceeded to catch with her claws, her lips tight in concentration as she shouted and flung the spell back. With a flat look, the witch dispelled her returned magic and fired a volley of conjured ice, to which Red simply melted with her fire magic before hurling those exploding orbs. Again, the witch was not intimidated and Red's spell was banished before it could find a mark.

The air seethed with magic, the scent of elements that shouldn't be together filled the room as they hurled spell after spell at each other. Their fight could have raged for hours, as mages were known to do, but Red was not the witch. Her abilities were limited and, after only a couple of minutes, the kobold was practically on her knees and out of breath. Merdon could charge the witch, but she wasn't nearly as drained as Red was, only having a stretch while the kobold caught her breath. It was a difference in their abilities Red couldn't ignore, but it was a difference she had to triumph over if they were to have any hope of winning. Growling, the kobold mage looked into her mind for anything, something, the same way she had with Merdon against the golem. Her mind had summoned up something spectacular once, why not again? Words came to her mind, something she hadn't thought before, something she hadn't tried before. It was a long and involved chant, but the witch was cocky, she wouldn't expect it. Even if she did, Red guessed the witch would watch it unfold just to see it happen, just to see if Red really could pull it off. That was their only shot.

Red stood with a deep breath and started her spell. “Crimson flames of vicious hellfire...” As expected, the witch stopped and raised a brow, giving Red all the time she needed. The kobold was certain her cockiness would be her undoing. “Flames that ravage the world and melt even the soul. Oh, blasphemous fires of demonic beasts, rage and consume!” Her arms thrust forward, aiming for the witch, but little did she know the spell did not work that way.

The instant she released the magic the entire room burst into flames with a deep red color. Merdon moved with a start, diving away from a wall that suddenly lit up despite being made of stone. Skyeyes equally flung himself away from the door which also caught alight. There was nothing in the room that wouldn't burn with these flames, and Red panicked greatly upon seeing everything except the witch catch on fire. She couldn't figure out if the witch had blocked herself or if there was something wrong with the way she cast the spell. Someone did know, however, and she was shaking her head across from the red kobold with disappointment.

“So, you simply sling whatever spell comes to mind?” she asked with a tone that was too calm for someone whose room was melting around them. “You've no skill, no training, barely just raw ability.” The witch raised a hand and offered a counterspell to deal with the raging inferno around them. “Celestial waters, the gift of life, quench that which has unending thirst.”

And as intended, the crimson flames were doused, filling the room with steam and putting an end to Red's plan. The kobold dropped to her knees again and looked at the ground in shock. She had given her absolute best, pulled out everything she knew and had inside of her, and nothing had worked. A sense of hopelessness filled her heart, but something grew alongside the feeling. As the steam faded away, the red kobold was glaring at the witch. If anything else, Red would fight to the death than go back to being a slave. Nothing was as grim and hopeless a fate as walking around the witch's tower without thought or emotion. It was a look the witch was tired of seeing.

“So, after all of this you still think I'm the bad guy,” she said with a sneer. “Fine, have your memories back.” Red's expression turned to one of shock as the woman in front of her made a claw shape with her hand and pulled, yanking some ethereal cloud from her crystal ball before thrusting that into Red.

The cloud rushed into her face, momentarily filling orifices and causing her to inhale deeply once it was gone. A second later and everything about herself came back, all of her memories rushing forward like a tsunami engulfing a coastal town. Anything that wasn't outright drowned was pulled under and for a time the mage lost sight of where she was, what she was doing. She was standing in the middle of a village, surrounded by kobolds. Younger, naive, curious, she found a book left behind at a human campsite and had been trying to decipher their written language. Written words were different than spoken and it took her many weeks to figure it out, but even when she read them the words didn't make any sense.

Red was standing in the middle of town with her book, the kobolds around her curious about why she had been reading it. She tried to explain it, but they didn't understand what she meant. If she could read it, the book would make sense, she must have been doing it wrong. That was how they understood language. Why would someone write something that couldn't be understood? So she demonstrated. Clearing her throat, the young kobold began to read the passage which had baffled her the most, even scared her to look at. The words felt ominous, threatening in places, but here she was safe. Among the others, she could reveal the mystery and banish the fear. “Crimson flames of vicious hellfire...”

Red came back to reality and sobbed just once. A single choked noise as she realized what had happened. The witch nodded at her, seeing that reaction, understanding what the red kobold saw. It had been a mystery to her how a kobold could cast such a spell, and at the time her only concern was with keeping the little mage from destroying herself with such magic. It had never occurred to her the same magic could help her get free of her control. Their collars were supposed to suppress any special abilities like that. She stepped forward and looked at the kobold with a sympathetic expression, almost reaching for the kobold before remembering they were enemies.

“Well? Do you not wish to forget that tragedy?” she asked quietly.

Red's response was sudden and feral. The kobold yelled and jumped on the witch, the first of them to manage such a feat. Her claws tore at the witch's robes, ripping them in many places and catching her completely off guard.

“You stole my family!” Red shrieked as her claws eventually found flesh to scrape and puncture. It was nothing fatal, but it made the human wince. “You made me forget them, all of them!”

Sadly, Red was not an accomplished fighter. She had no idea how to go for a killing strike with her claws, and she lacked the raw power to fend off even a less than active adult. Her natural agility didn't mean anything if she was single-mindedly focused, and it made her too easy for the witch to grab and throw. Red twirled and landed on the ground, bouncing a little but coming upright with her claws bared. When she lunged again, however, there was another barrier in the way, which she clawed at for several seconds before wearing herself down. This outburst left the witch shocked, her eyes on Red with surprise and pain.

Merdon was quickly realizing how futile this was, especially with Red out of power. They had no hope of breaking through the witch's defenses without her, and even when they had the witch was head and shoulders above them in her magic. Skyeyes could heal wounds, but he couldn't restore her magic, and the ring on his finger to summon wolves wouldn't help them either. They couldn't move any faster than the rest of them, and, with a barrier between them and the witch, they were just as useless as Merdon was. Sarel was focused on the witch as well, a similar look to Red, and it gave the knight one last plan. One chance was all they would have. He sat his sword down, getting the witch, and everyone else's, attention. With that hand, he reached up and pulled his helmet off to look her in the eyes. Nothing was obscuring them now, and Merdon spoke from his heart.

“Look at them,” he implored her. “Look at how they hate you once freed. These are not creatures that desire to be shackled and made to forget. They aren't pets or slaves. They resent you and everything you stand for after what you did to them.”

The witch looked at Sarel and Red again, both of them glaring at her. Even Skyeyes, through his fear, looked angrily at her.

“I took away their pain,” she replied, her voice faltering a little. A hitch in her tone. “All of the suffering they went through. Does that not count for anything?” She looked at Sarel and Red pleadingly, but all they had to give her were hate-filled looks.

Sarel was the first to speak. “You took our pains, yes, but you took our joys as well. Even then... our pains define us,” she said slowly.

“You took everything,” Red said, a mix of sadness and anger in her voice. “The ones that hear of you, they say you steal names, not memories.” The witch paled a little at the idea. Stealing a name was much more severe than what she did, though what she did was bad enough.

Merdon pressed his argumentative advantage. “Every step of the way you've seen our strength together,” he told her. “Not as a master with slaves, but as companions with a shared objective. No slave would have pushed themselves this far, not even yours.” Sarel and Red nodded in unison. “You have the choice,” the knight continued. “You can keep clinging to your delusions, you can enslave every kobold in the world until, eventually, someone comes to stop you for their own purposes, like gathering sheep to slaughter is all you'd be doing.”

“Or?” the witch asked, knowing exactly where he was going.

“Or you can try and prove yourself,” Merdon said. “If you love something, you set it free.”

She paused and thought about that. “But if they come back...” The witch was thinking about the rest of the saying.

“Then there's no stopping them,” Merdon admitted. “If any of them do.”

The witch looked at the three kobolds before her. She had watched them travel up her tower at great personal risk, placing themselves in peril time and again, pushing themselves not just for their own sake but for Merdon's as well. There was something there... something that made her giddy. A strange excitement she couldn't contain as she thought about a kobold, or many kobolds, doing the same for her. Without collars or magic to force them. Kobolds forming to her cause, admitting of their own that free will she was the one that cared the most, and a smile formed on her face as she thought about it. Her smile made Merdon and the kobolds glance at each other in worry, but the next moment proved their fears unfounded.

The witch walked over to her desk, upon which sat her scrying orb, and she placed her hands on it. “Very well, Whisperer,” she said as he lifted that orb, filling it with magic. “Let's see just who comes out on top!” The ball flashed and shined as many more of the opaque ghosts left it. They swirled and slowly expanded out before rushing through the door, the walls, the floor. Flashes could be seen outside, far away from the tower, as the memories flowed out of the orb and into the kobolds on the floors below. One by one they remembered who they were, what they were doing there, and how much they wanted to leave. A look of anticipation crossed the witch's face as she observed them from her crystal ball.

Then, one by one, the kobolds pulled their inert collars off and started to leave. Some of them slowly, confused, curious, unsure of where they even were in the world. Others ran, sprinting out of the tower, down the stairs, some even tripping and falling to escape as quickly as possible. They thought it might have been a trick, a trap, but it was their only chance to escape. The witch's face fell as she saw them all leave the tower, scattering through the enchanted woods, rushing out over the plains in search of a place to hide. Not from slavers, but from her. She dropped her crystal ball, as well as her barrier, and collapsed to the floor in a crying mess. Her tattered robe Red had given her completing the look of defeat that she felt.

Merdon frowned and stood up, slowly. He looked at his companions, the two who had experienced her control had no sympathy for the woman. Skyeyes simply averted his gaze, uninterested in how she felt, neither feeling she was deserving or pitiable. All that mattered was what Merdon did next. What were the odds she would let them leave after they convinced her to do that? Even the knight wasn't sure as he quietly picked up his sword and sheathed it. At the very least with her in an emotional state, it was highly unlikely she could concentrate on a spell, like Red only moments before in her blind rage. It was possible the fight was only drawing to a close and not completely over. Until the door to the room opened.

Everyone, except the sobbing witch, turned and looked at the door. A green-scaled kobold with strikingly red eyes walked into the room nervously. He was wringing his hands and looking around at the group as he walked over to the red-haired witch. Nervously, his voice soft and uncertain, the kobold cleared his throat and spoke up, “Are you … all right?”

Merdon's brow raised in surprise as the witch looked up and stared at the green kobold. “Who... are you?” she asked, sniffing and choking back another sob.

The kobold clicked his claws together nervously and replied, “Thickhide.”

The witch frowned and asked further, “Why?” Without the memories at her disposal, and with so many she had seen, she had no idea. She had to learn the normal way.

While the kobold nervously clacked his claws and tried to explain why a kobold who lived its life in slavery and was subject to constant beatings would get a name like Thickhide, Merdon looked back at the door and saw two more heads poke in. Although they were curious, they dared not enter. Only the green one, tough as he was, and maybe thick in more than his hide, dared to walk in uninvited. Red, Sarel, and Skyeyes looked at Merdon with confusion. The knight could only offer them a shrug. He was as lost about this turn of events as they were. If anyone knew kobolds had stayed, it should have been the witch.

“Why are you here?” the witch in question asked suddenly. “You're free. It's no trick.”

Thickhide nodded and looked back at the door, at the other kobolds outside, and then back to the witch. “Some of us... don't have anywhere else to go,” he told her. “And we...” He paused again and looked at the three invaders. “We know, kinda, that you wanted to help. Even if you were wrong,” he added quickly at the end. Red blinked and looked at the green kobold, then in the same fashion looked at those in the doorway, who nodded silently.

“You understood?” the witch repeated, slowly, letting it sink in. “What are you saying?”

With a small gulp at the witch's insistence, the green kobold replied, “If it's okay with you, we would like to… stay?” He was incredibly nervous, which only made the red-haired woman grin. It was exactly what she wanted!

The witch impulsively hugged the green kobold and laughed. “Of course you can!” she exclaimed, though the green kobold looked very uncomfortable being pulled into the woman's chest.

Merdon looked at his companions and made a short gesture that they leave, which the trio agreed to. Their mission was complete, hopefully. At least if they had to come back they would do so with better preparations. Before they could leave, however, Merdon having just barely picked up his helmet, the witch let go of the kobold and stood up. There was a flash that got their attention, and she was standing in completely repaired robes. A magic that made Red jealous after what happened to her gift back in Ardmach.

“What's the plan?” she asked, looking at Merdon intently.

“What plan?” he shot back, taking a stance and getting ready to grab his sword.

The witch rolled her eyes and floated a chair over for her to sit in. Despite most of the room being charred or burnt was in perfect condition.

“The plan for dealing with Ardmach, of course,” she said once seated. “You could run to the orcs, they might protect you after what you did. Then again, they might trade you in for some favor from the government here.” Her assumption was correct. Fleeing the country wasn't a guaranteed safety net, Merdon knew that. Their choices were limited after their adventure in the capital though.

“That's a risk I'm willing to take,” Merdon asserted.

“But it's a dumb one.”

The knight looked shocked at that. “What would you propose then?” he asked frankly.

“Fight back,” the witch said with a frown like he was stupid.

Merdon scoffed. “With what? There's four of us, and we couldn't even contend with you. The capital would crush us.” He said it so plainly that Sarel deflated a little. “Going to the orcs we could… we could raise an army.”

“An invasion,” the witch nodded. “And what is the orc's score on that? The last time I checked they hadn't won a war against Avant since the bronze age, and zero of those were invasions. Ardmach is unassailable from the outside. Avant is not going to topple from an outside force.”

Red frowned and looked at Merdon. “You said it yourself, things have to change here, even if they have to be changed by force. We can't run away.”

The witch nodded and smiled. “Besides, you miscount, dear knight. There are five of us.” Merdon and his companions gaped at the witch as she counted herself among their number, but it seemed less of an issue to her. She looked at them with concern. “I am the woman that loves kobolds most of all. You think I could stand by and let someone else run a rebellion without me?”

Merdon was at something of a loss, so he asked, “What do you suggest we do then?”

With a little laugh, the witch stood up and told him, “You've got a nearly impenetrable fortress all around you. I would suggest relaxing for a bit, Whisperer. We can work out the plans later.” She paused and looked around. “When my room isn't so burnt.”