Any Way The Wind Blows - 05/11/2024 - Mendal Recounts

“It’s happening far too bloody often!” Mendal exclaimed furiously to Archie and Kavel.

“Being duped?” Kavel asked for clarification.

“Yes!”

“Hmm,” Kavel acknowledged, and then began listing the ways. “You released Something Hungry in Kundar, and then you went and did a favour for the Hekrati cult here in Daring Heights. What is happening…”

Mendal cut Kavel off, angrily before Kavel could finish his question. “You broke the Lord of the Hunt out of his prison, and that fucked the Feywild!”

“Enough boys!” Archie interjected.

Archie turned to Mendal, “no one is blaming you for being duped into these mistakes.”

Mendal huffed.

Archie then turned to look at Kavel and shared an observation, “you are inadvertently provoking him.”

Kavel looked at Archie, taking in his elderly wizard friend’s observation. Kavel then looked at Mendal and took in; the crossed arms, clenched fists, tense shoulders, generally tensed body, and very angry face. His dwarven friend was fuming. Perhaps he did provoke this, the goliath thought. He turned back to look at Archie, expecting him to say something.

Archie turned to face Mendal. He had some questions. “Mendal, I’m not sure I quite followed everything. This captain Maru seems to have conned your group of adventurers into placing Safire’s Heart of the Tempest crystal into another shrine gate, which caused devastation to the grung village. However, Safire has, by carrying out the act, activated the second of three shrines, which she intended to do all along. Why? Because activating all three shrines will open an extremely fast transport method - which presumably also releases this enormous fog monster, which destroyed her former ship and crew, but will also grant her access to the people joined with this fog monster, so she can take revenge on them?”

Mendal had regained some composure whilst listening to Archie’s thoughts, trying to follow them and ready himself to correct or elaborate something. “Yeah. Something like that.”

“But this captain Maru, goliath you say, he seemed good at first?” Kavel asked, himself confused about the story.

“Yeah,” Mendal responded. “The grungs seemed to be looking after him, and it made sense when he explained they had rescued him. What didn’t make sense though, and I only thought about it later; why the fucker claimed he couldn’t get to the shore any earlier than when we found him. So what if he was confused when he first woke up in the grung village? There’s was a bloody path to the shore he could follow! Damian said this captain Maru, if it was even really him, was smirking at us while we were escaping the fog monster in the Wave Skimmer.”

Archie put forward his best interpretation of this captain Maru’s motive. “To what end was this alleged former member of Safire’s old ship acting? Was he hoping to end you all by having you activate the shrine and provoke the fog monster to pursue you?”

“No idea. Safire neither. We’re all really pissed at the wreckage we’ve caused to the grung village though, and their own little swamp shrine.”

“Will you go back?” Asked Kavel.

“Do you think they’d want us to? We fucked’em. They even fed us and gave us some gifts,” Mendal pointed at the blue vials he had put down on the kitchen table. “I made them a crossbow and some bolts with Moradin’s artisanal blessing. The grungs only seemed to have blowpipes. I thought a crossbow would blow their little brains. They probably hate the fucking crossbow now. Probably reminds them of their village getting ruined.”

“The gigantic arclight phoenix kept the fog monster back though, saved you time to sail away - could it have helped the village, perhaps?” Archie conjectured.

“Doubt it.”

The table went silent.

After some time, Mendal spoke up. “The other gods are elusive shits, boys. Moradin asks that you make stuff - pay tribute to him by helping yourself! What a deal, heh? Umberlee and Talos, apparently, just want you to wreck shit.”

“You say Orianna is helping Safire research this?” Archie asked. “I could lend a hand?”

“That’s alright. I think Orianna’s got this. I’ll let her know you offered, and Safire too.”

“Thank you. I’d be glad to help.”

Another moment of silence went by before Mendal once again broke the silence.

“Birds sure do hate Safire. She must have made a bird's nest fall out of the tree when the wind elemental creature flung her against one. Damian is bloody lethal with his greatsword against them - seems his practice from last time really served him well. There were flying lizards up on the mountain too, Sterling burned a couple to death with his magic cannon device and that metal cannon dog.”

Both Archie and Kavel said the same thing at the same time. “Sterling said it was magic?”

Mendal shook his head. “No. Don’t know what the fuck else he thinks it is though, if it isn’t magic? Sure looked like your Scorching Ray spell, Archie, coming out of his magic-looking little hand cannon.”

“Did you battle with Carric and Nevarra? What about Safire?” Kavel asked.

“Yes. The pair of those elven hammers got their fight fix. I blessed the group with divine aid too. Safire, as well as pinching some loot for us, and activating her crystal again, did her lightning stuff. She’s good with lightning and wind.”

Kavel looked at the blue vials on the table. “And you didn’t want any of the other loot?”

“Hmm. Potions of Heroism are accuracy enhancers. They’re good. Funnily enough, both Safire and I wanted the same items out of the loot; potions or the speed greaves. She let me pick - as well she should; she’s only alive because of me. She knows to pay tribute to me boys! She may be a pirate, but she has respect!” Mendal punctuated the last sentence with his index finger pointing up. Mendal seemed to have a thing for tributes concerning himself - deserved or otherwise.

“I might help her out again,” Mendal said carrying on. “Although, what I feel she needs more than my help, or Moradin’s blessed help, or even say a Kantas Mentorship Programme; is a bloody smart detective to tease out a scam on future adventures!”

“I’m sorry I can’t be on every adventure,” Archie said jokingly.

“Oh yeah?” Mendal looked knowingly at Kavel, then back at Archie. “Don’t make me bring up the Kundar prison break again.”

Archie went quiet.

Mendal took a swig of his drink and smacked his lips satisfied.