Zion: Light of the New Moon Part 2, Ch 4.1 Doen
Zion - Light of the New Moon, Part 2
Chapter 4.1
Doen
The Path Diverges
Narissa gets the bonus xp. Zachary and Jasper are both saved. We will have to wait and see what Modifiers the group may yet again for this Event Arc.
Despite how much of a coward everyone thought him to be, Dillan Flynn preferred to consider himself a prudent businessman. Cowards were men who fled thoughtlessly into the night while a shrewd man of coin knew when to cut losses. A coward feared the unknown while a money-minded individual knew that the unknown presented incredible opportunities. A coward was a loser... and Dillan Flynn was no loser.
Everything considered, of course, Dillan had absolutely NO problem surrendering his weapon the moment the battle was obviously lost. Not only was a businessman not a coward, but a businessman also knew that any chance of surrender was an opportunity to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. His action was not entirely popular.
"Pick your blade up, you spinless weasel." Rust growled, brandishing his hammer-hand to keep the Blood Beasts at bay.
"An excellent proposal, Lord Rust, but I think I prefer the prospect of continued life." Dillan offered, "If you can't tell, they aren't attacking."
"What do you call that?" Rust demanded, pointing to the bloody mess that was Jasper.
"I call it stupidity." the ferret responded casually, "At the moment I would like to point out that he attacked and now he's dead." Dillan smiled as everyone slowly lowered their weapons; if he put it simply then it was obvious that they understood his point.
Taggart noted, glancing toward the cave where it had taken their priest, "Goddess," he whimpered softly, "I hope Zachary is alright..." Nobody bothered responding to his comment.
"Why aren't they attacking the rest of us?" Zeke asked, wedged into the middle of the group in a huddling pool of cowardice. Dillan sighed; how could the group compare his shrewed good-sense to such a pathetic display of humility?
"It isn't dawn, and it isn't dusk." Narissa offered softly in veneration of the old tales.
"Or maybe that creature doesn't want them to." Dillan interjected. It was one thing to appreciate a good story, but another entirely to miss the obvious answer... the one that Dillan recognized right away, "This is a bargaining session."
"A what?" Haldyn questioned.
"A business transaction." the ferret responded casually, "We're the collateral."
"Everything to you is a business transaction, Flynn." the lion snorted.
"Almost everything, yes, Lordling Rakken." the merchant nodded his head in a faint-bow, "But, if you notice," he motioned slowly to the ring of Blood Beasts around them, "They aren't attacking, now are they?"
A groan from Jasper interrupted their discussion, "He's still alive!" Narissa gasped, and went to step toward the fallen rat, only to be growled back into place by the creatures surrounding the party, "Goddess... we have to help him!"
"Hmm..." Dillan raised an eyebrow, "Apparently there is a price to pay if Zachary takes too long coming to an accord." The comment gained him several dirty looks. He determined at that point that it would serve the group best if he kept his thoughts to himself.
Whispers went back and forth between party members for several minutes, eyes focused alternatingly on the cave where Zachary and the monster had disappeared and observing Jasper, who was quite obviously dying. Dillan was no priest, healer, or medic, but it wasn't hard to tell that the rat didn't have very long left. Suddenly, however, they had other issues to contend with; the Blood Beasts went berserk.
Dillan lost track of the rest of the group during the insanity. Though the ferret did pick up his short sword he wasn't truly interested in fighting (but ten Lunars for the masterwork blade meant that he wasn't about to have spent the coins for nothing). He skirted the melee that had erupted when the beasts lost any sense of focus and began tearing into one another... a few even tried attacking the party, but, thankfully, Haldyn and Rust still hadn't dropped their weapons; Dillan truly appreciated the effectiveness of a few belligerant warriors between himself and danger.
Although the majority of the Blood Beasts were already in retreat, some nevertheless decided to challenge the party. Dillan managed to make quick time getting to Jasper and crouched down beside the dying rat; he had thankfully avoided attracting any attention. "Hey... you're not dead yet, are you?" he asked down to the apparently-unconscious Wild Lander. He lightly smacked either side of Jasper's muzzle and, after no response, the ferret lowered his blade down in front of the rat's nose and nodded to himself when he saw a blast of condensation appear on the metal.
"I am so going to bill the temple for all of this product." the merchant mumbled to himself as he pulled a small cloth sack out of his pocket. The ferret glanced around to make certain that no Blood Beasts were sneaking up on him and that the party was suitably distracted before he opened the pouch and dipped a finger in. Dillan shivered at the tingling sensation that flowed through his whole body, but he wasn't able to dwell on it... not when Jasper was lingering at Death's hearth.
Letting out a sigh of regret, the merchant slowly up-ended the bag over the rat, shaking his head in sadness as he watched hundreds of coins worth of powdered unicorn horn put to use. He had planned on extorting a noble, or perhaps bribing a Shradian diplomat, or at least scalping the black market with the contraband... but, when it came down to it, he realized that he was in the Wild Lands, and a Wild Lander guide was far more valuable because it would help prolongue his life... and THAT was a priceless asset.
Dillan quickly stood and carefully controlled his slide down into the ravine; the magic of the powder would not only keep Jasper alive, but he would be well in a matter of seconds... no sense for the ferret to be around to answer any inconvenient questions. Besides, he reasoned with himself, a Wild Lander would only be of use if the party still had its priest, and that meant that Dillan still had someone else to attend to.
The ferret nimbly approached the cave even as Zachary emerged. The young bunny stood with his robes half skewed, covered in blood... but Dillan knew enough of body language to know that it wasn't the rabbit's. The merchant watched, transfixed as the priest of Doen spoke the words of a ritual the ferret thought he would never see outside the confines of Shrad. How did the rabbit know it? How could a follower of Doen's teaching bring himself to speak the words? Did the silly little bunny even have the ability to channel the emotions needed to empower such a spiteful ritual? It was the Ritual of the Eclipse and, as the sky darkened, Dillan had no doubt; there was far more to Zachary than he had first realized.
Although the merchant was no priest himself, Dillan always prided himself on knowing a little about everything. He felt the tingling of wind running through his fur but there wasn't even a breeze. He could sense the baited breath of the world as the moon darkened in the sky and taste the metallic tinge of blood on the wind. In one paw, Zachary held his pure-white staff, smeared with blood; in the other paw, an enormous pelt... humanoid in shape. Dillan was surprised to see that the rabbit was capable of such a feat.
That wasn't his only surprise; the ferret could tell that Zachary was actually somehow managing to bring the ritual to fruition, but he would be even more surprised if the rabbit had it in him to complete it. As far as Dillan was concerned, it was one thing to understand anger and spite, but he knew Zachary didn't understand the meaning of sacrifice; the rabbit had spent his entire life sequestered away within the safety of the temple. Of course, that just meant the surprise was all the greater.
"They have wronged me, Mother." Zachary spoke, gazing up to the empty hole in the sky where the full moon had hung just moments before, "Let my loss be nothing compared to theirs." He dropped the fur and, with that, the rabbit sundered his staff... their Divine Shield-- he snapped it in two. In the next few seconds the entire world was turned upside down. With the complete and unequivocable vengeance of a mother bear protecting her young, Tah'aveen's wrath was instant... and deadly. Dillan's breath froze in his throat as the true power of the ritual was unleashed-- had Zachary realized just what sacrificing a Divine Shield would do?
"Apparently not." the ferret breathed, his voice coming out as freezing mist as red snow began to descend upon the suddenly silent battlefield. Dillan shook his head, slowly walking to the unmoving rabbit. Up at ground level the party was having trouble coming to grips with the strange event; the ferret heard exclamations of surprise and dismay... but not battle... no... all of the Blood Beasts would certainly have been killed.
"Oh Merciful Tah'aveen!" Dillan heard Narissa exclaim, "This one's... inside out..."
The ferret reached down and collected Zachary, "You've put on quite a show here today." he offered quietly to the priest, who flinched. The merchant began wrapping the prone rabbit up in the fur of the Blood Beast's leader.
"Dillan?" the priest inquired, gazing up at him with jet-black eyes; the ritual had left quite a mark on him.
"Yea." was all the merchant bothered saying. He hefted the priest up and flopped him onto his shoulder, "Don't start squirming... we gotta get out of this ravine."
"I can't see anything." the priest offered.
"New Moon Rituals do some crazy shit, Zachary." Dillan stated.
"Did..." the priest paused, "...she answer?"
"Yea, kid..." the merchant chuckled, "I'd say so." He began picking his way up the incline along the ramp that had been created from the landslide, "Breaking a Divine Shield tends to get Her attention I'm sure."
"Those creatures had to die." the rabbit said, his voice strangely dire.
"Hmmm..." Dillan mused, "Who are you, and what have you done with our priest?"
"I don't have it in me anymore, Mr Flynn." Zachary responded, unmoving from his position on the ferret's shoulder. It was a defeatist comment, but to Dillan it didn't sound like the rabbit had given up.
"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked.
"I can't be a Priest of Doen."
The comment paused Dillan to stop in his tracks, "Come again?"
"I... found a belt..."
Dillan scowled faintly, and continued walking, laboring under the added weight of the priest, "What does that have to do with being a priest?"
"It's made of silver and moonstone." Zachary replied, "It's a Divine Shield."
"Two would have been better than one." Dillan countered, finally understanding why the rabbit considered the staff to be expendible.
"No... the staff was from Doen... it was useless."
"Useless?" Dillan questioned, making his way back toward the group, trudging through the ankle-high red snow, "It's kept us alive pretty well so far."
"Tah'aveen has kept us alive, Dillan... that staff was just a weak tool made by a weak temple." the tone in Zachary's voice was something the ferret hadn't thought he'd ever hear from him: spite, "Brother Bronderson was right... Doen is corrupt. The temple exists for its own needs and wants. The men and women behind the temple walls don't understand life."
"Maybe they understand it so well that they choose to hide." the ferret mused, surprised at the sudden clarity that Zachary showed, "They stay in the temple so they don't have to face it."
"Then they're cowards." the rabbit countered.
Dillan chuckled softly at that, "You might be onto something there, Zachary..." and he lowered his voice as he drew nearer to the group, "So where do we go from here?" The rest of the party caught sight of the two and everyone ran over to assist the ferret with the priest.
Zachary looked at everyone in turn, all-black eyes failing to see any of them, yet he seemed to have no trouble focusing on their faces... or their goal. The priest raised his voice, "Gather everything up... we're going to Zion."