Story:Holy Opposites Chapter 22

The following article is a /tg/ related story or fanfic. Should you continue, expect to find tl;dr and an occasional amount of awesome.

This is one of the pages of the Holy Opposites story arc.

Chapter 21

Chapter Twenty-Two:

Axio looked over the two drow in his office. They certainly carried themselves like adventurers. Luanea was wearing classic Eilistraeean War Cleric armor, with enchanted chain mail and a bastard sword. The glittering silver metal of her armor was glamoured, so she could render it matte black in an instant. The center of her chest was decorated by a tabard with an elaborate image of Eilistraee dancing nude in the moonlight, with a sword hanging between her hands. Above the tabard’s collar was a coil of thin black fabric, which she could release with a flick of a strap to cover her torso and render her invisible in the darkness.

The other drow he knew well. Doshellas was a ranger, and a very good one, who had been born in the upper tunnels of the Underdark and been enslaved for his troubles. Clerics of Corellon had captured him from his owner and released him into the care of Leliana Vrinn, a priestess of Eilistraee. He was quiet and dour, but it was as much an artifact of his former enslavement as much as his natural personality. His armor was the darkest green, which looked black in the depths of night or underground. Both looked like they were more than capable of putting up a proper fight if called on to do so, which he knew they had in the past.

“Welcome, my friends,” Axio said warmly, rising to greet them. “I’m glad you assembled on such short notice.”

“We’re glad to help,” Luanea said in the same tone. Doshellas simply nodded.

“Any time, Axio,” he said, almost silently. Even after decades of freedom and independence, he still had problems raising his voice.

Cavria leaned back against the wall. Doshellas was built like a mountain climber, which he probably was, and Luanea somehow made wearing full chain armor attractive and fashionable. Both looked like they were kitted out for bear. “So you’re both ready for tomorrow, I see,” she put in.

Luanea nodded. “We are. We always keep some of our wargear ready for use in case we have to travel into the Underdark.”

Cavria grinned. “So why wear it today?”

“Practice. Making sure it still fits,” Luanea said glibly.

“So, you’re both in need of a briefing,” Axio said, pouring them both water. “Please sit and we’ll go over it all.”

The four of them sat at the desk, and Axio spread out the list of victim names. “All right. Our target, as best the Watch can tell, is a hidden chamber on the higher fourth or lower third level of Undermountain. The chamber is supposedly connected to the city itself by at least one sending circle, and possibly some means of transit. After all, it seems unlikely they travel all the way to Undermountain every time they steal a child.”

Doshellas gripped his armrests. “No,” he said faintly.

“Therefore, our task will be to infiltrate the Undermountain complex and make our way to that level,” Axio continued. “Fortunately, Luanea tells us that that’s more or less where the river Sargauth lets through into Skullport, so we can move through there.”

“We can stop in the Port if we need help, and to complete our own errands,” Luanea put in.

“Right. So where is the rest of your underground team?” Axio asked.

Doshellas shrugged. “Busy. Distracted. Rescuing people.”

“Oh, they’re helping people get away from the demonic outbreak in the Underdark?” Axio asked. “Hmm. Well… we’ll be careful,” he said unhappily. “Anyway, we can make our way up the river into the Slime Den, and then skirt our way through the old dwarven tunnels towards the parts of Undermountain that were revealed when Halaster died, and the old portal network broke down.”

“Seems reasonable. How long do we have? Undermountain is vast,” Cavria pointed out.

“It is, yes, but the Watch is going to be watching all the known egress points, as will the Blackstaff,” Axio said. “We’re no mere party of adventurers, either. I have faith that we’ll get there at a decent clip. The Watch isn’t timing themselves against us.” His face clouded. “Of course, time is lives, now. They’ve already started sacrificing the children.”

The ranger grimaced. “Why wait?” he asked. “We can just go.”

“I know, I want to,” Axio said. “Is there any chance that your allies underground will return before then?”

“No,” Luanea said.

Axio let out a long breath. “All right, then. I was planning on leaving tomorrow morning, after we’ve all slept. Any objections?”

“No, we should be rested,” Cavria said reluctantly. “There’s no sun to guide us underground.”

Both drow nodded. “All right,” Axio said. “Bright and early. We’ll meet at the entrance to the Sea Caves in the morning. I’ll bring as much money to cover the fees of the Keepers as we can.”

“I can cover my share,” Doshellas said.

“Good, thank you,” Axio said in relief. The Church of Ryaire was not flush with a glut of cash. “I’ll bring my magic compass with me.” He stood and reached over to shake the hands of the two drow warriors. “Thank you both,” he said firmly. “I really appreciate you taking this risk for me.”

“And for the innocent,” Luanea said. Doshellas nodded in silence.

Suivi groaned aloud. What in the utter living fuck were those Watch doing?

The entire rookery building and the abandoned store below were still seething with Watch. There had to be fifteen or sixteen Watch just that he could find. Every inch of the upper floor was covered in wizards and Watchmen, inspecting it all. The wreckage that had fallen into the streets was gone, swept away into the alley out back.

Suivi had been orbiting the building for hours, trying as hard as he could to avoid walking in front of it. The Watch may have looked silly, but they had real fighters amongst them, and engaging them would have been suicide. Now, his patience was gone.

Embersson broke off the surveillance and walked off to the bookstore where Toller had erected his gate. He stormed upstairs and walked back to the false wall. “Vortese,” he bit off, and the wall faded away. He walked down the hall, avoiding the tiles he knew to be trap triggers, and burst into the altar room.

Toller looked up, surprised. “Suivi! I told you to lay low-”

“Not now, Toller,” Suivi bit off. “The Ryairans are coming. They found the sending circles in the farm and the rookery.”

Toller’s face darkened with anger. “I see. Well. I suppose it’s better that I know,” he said coldly. “Fine. Hide. Hide somewhere at the outer edges of the city, somewhere far away from me and the organization.”

Suivi’s eyes narrowed. “Oh, of course. And how will we re-establish contact? The Ryairans are attacking the Undermountain because they thought you’re there.”

Toller clenched his teeth. His appearance was just as jovial and rosy-cheeked as ever, which made it all seem so incongruous. “Of course they are,” he said bitterly, which certainly confirmed Suivi’s suspicion that that was, indeed, where they were standing. “Good. Thanks for telling me. I’ll send to you when we need you.”

Suivi nodded. “All right. Good luck, I suppose.” He turned to leave and froze. “What…?”

A slimy bundle of tendrils was sliding across the ground behind him, silent and disgusting. The thing, whatever it was, was tugging the mangled remains of a human body into a swinging door built into the wood paneling of the wall, about knee-high.

“You’re dismissed, Suivi,” Toller said curtly.

Suivi stared. The body was maybe three and a half feet tall, at the most. “Right.” He tugged his hood up and left as quickly as decorum allowed. What had he gotten himself into?

Axio rose from his bed, as rested as he could be under the circumstances. He stumbled into the bath, rubbing his aching eyes. The first rays of the sun weren’t up yet in his window, but morning was coming.

He scrubbed his body down and scraped the fuzz off his face, grumbling to himself about underground fighting and sailing being unnatural. He washed his face clean and stared blearily into the mirror.

He squinted as he noticed something awry. Was there a smudge on his eyes? He walked back into the bedroom and lit a candle, then walked back into the bathroom and peered into the mirror.

Axio nearly dropped the candle into the water. His eyes weren’t smudged, they were just simply different. His light blue eyes had been replaced with what looked like faceted blue gemstones, but his vision was the same! He set the candle on the edge of the bowl and gingerly probed his left eye with his hands. Sure enough, the slightly yielding orb of flesh was gone, replaced by a cold piece of stone.

He let out a frightened sound as he registered the change. “What? What in the world?” he managed. “Ryaire, what is this?”

Cavria was just finishing her own morning rituals when she heard somebody walking quickly through the halls of the rectory. She poked her head into the hallway, making sure she had her amulet on.

“Axio?” she asked, baffled. He rounded on her, and she recoiled. “What? What happened to your eyes?” she demanded.

“I don’t know!” he hissed. She winced at the genuine fear in his voice. She had never heard him so unnerved.

“Hey,” she said urgently, shutting the door behind her. “Hey, be calm. Let me see.”

Axio stooped over, opening his eyes wide. Sure enough, the meat was simply gone. The little gems inside swiveled slightly, turning and moving in the sockets like normal eyes, but they were just dead stone.

“Okay,” she said, thinking furiously. “Can we get to an apothecary or a magical healer before we meet up with the others at the Caves?”

Axio let out a shaky breath. “We can see my grandfather; he’s got a ton of experience with healing.” His voice was getting rougher by the moment, and it showed in his words.

“Okay, we’ll go see Solen,” she said, trying to calm him with her tone. She was scared too, but now he was the one needing her to be calm.

Solen straightened up from his stoop. “Well, Axio, this isn’t something to fear,” he said tiredly, massaging the small of his back. “This is the progression of your being.”

Axio very clearly wanted to demand what that meant, but Solen continued. “My grandson, you are becoming what your soul has been all along,” he wheezed, and I swear I saw pride in his weary old eyes. “You are becoming angelic.”

Axio swallowed. His hands were shaking. I rested a hand on his bare shoulder, and he leaned into it. It was a disconcertingly child-like gesture from the enormous warrior. “I’m becoming an angel?” he asked, in a very small voice.

“Well… no, not exactly,” Solen said carefully. “But you are coming into alignment with Ryaire’s vision for her faithful. Your eyes are now those of a Solar, specifically an angel attuned with the element of wind.” He gestured at Axio’s eyes. “No, Axio, you are starting to resemble my father. He became an angelic Exarch after his death, so he could follow Ryaire into eternity as her beloved and lieutenant.”

“But you were born before he ascended, when he was just a mortal,” Axio pointed out, trying to calm himself with his own reason.

“Yes, but you are her Chosen,” Solen reminded him. “Ryaire loves those few dozen angels whom have aligned themselves with her, and you are coming to resemble them. Your bloodline is simply hastening their manifestation.”

Axio wilted. “So this will keep happening? I’m going to keep mutating?”

“I would prefer that we both think of it as ascending, not mutating,” Solen said. “Am I a mutant? I show the light of the Astral Sea, and none call me mutant.” It was true. His faint glow of holy light was throwing shadows on the walls behind us.

Axio flushed in embarrassment. “I’m so sorry, grandfather,” he said miserably. “That was very rude of me.”

Solen shook his head. “You are afraid, think nothing of it. To answer your question, however, yes, you will continue to ascend. Eventually, you may not be so terribly different from an actual angel in your appearance. Your eyes are but the first of your changes. What will the others be? I have no idea. When? I do not know. They are coming. I would wager, though,” he added, “that you shall ascend more quickly when you use your divine power.”

I could see that Axio wanted to say a whole lot more, but instead he stood. “I see,” he said quietly. “Thank you, grandfather. Wish us luck in Undermountain.”

“Goodbye, Axio,” Solen said, with an air of sadness tinging his voice. “I know Ryaire will keep you safe.”

“Or just keep us,” Axio said in the same voice. He hugged his ancient grandfather and stepped back. The distress was gone from his demeanor, replaced with the ever-inviolable rock of his faith, but this new distraction hid his happy self. “Goodbye.”

I walked in his wake, silent and anxious. Axio’s distress had consumed the morning, and I was just glad he had had a chance to say goodbye to his parents and sister before they had bedded down the previous night. In a horrible, selfish way, I was glad it had given me something else about which to talk. I hadn’t wanted to discuss my own nightmare.

I had been wrapped up in a lucid vision of torture again, but this time it wasn’t I in control. I had been pinned to a bed of gritty sand and been raped, over and over and over, by a team of shadow-faced incubi, who had delighted in my agony and ecstasy. Scalding water and drops of wine and blood had dripped down over my body as from hidden cups above as I was violated and pleaded for more.

I had awoken shaking, shivering, nearly retching from the force of it all. I had taken to casting protection from evil in my glyph tattoo every night and letting it recharge overnight. I had forgotten to do so before bed, just once, and Asmodeus had once more delighted in showing me exactly what I wanted.

The world swam as I slowed my step, fighting off my vision of the previous night. I clutched my glaive so hard my knuckles cracked. Solen’s kind words and Ryaire’s reassurance had made it far easier to bear such reminders of my evil nature, but that didn’t make waking up the next morning any easier. At least I hadn’t wrecked my sheets this time, or awoken the other women with my moans.

“Cavria?” Axio asked. He had turned to face me. I looked up, sweating and biting my lip. “Cavria, are you all right?”

I stared. He was worried for me. His ordeal was forgotten. He had probably not noticed he was looking at me with gemstones instead of eyes.

I managed a tiny smile. “Just thinking about my nightmares,” I confessed. “I will be fine.”

The two drow warriors were sitting on the bench outside the tiny landing in the Sea Caves when the Ryairans arrived. They both looked relaxed and confident, which made them the opposite of the Paladins. “Good morning,” Axio said as he approached. “Sleep well?”

“I did,” Luanea said, rising gracefully to sweep him into a hug. “Hello… Axio? What happened to you since yesterday?” she asked, noticing his eyes. Doshellas perked up and took notice of his acquaintance’s face.

“It’s a long story,” Axio muttered. “I’ll explain on the ship.” He gently disentangled from his friend’s arms. “Okay. Do we have everything?”

Doshellas held up his overstuffed pack. Luanea nodded, still clearly concerned. “We’re as ready as we will be,” she said.

Axio patted the pocket of his coat where the compass was located. “We’re set, too. Let’s move out.”

Inside, Axio stared down the Keeper with whom he was haggling. “Sir, I do not understand the nature of your complaint,” he said politely.

“The lock’s open to business, but you’re not getting through with that little a payment, and that’s that,” the Keeper mage said bluntly. The slight human man glared up at the Paladin with visible irritation and no small amount of discomfort.

“Your rates are listed. We have met them. Explain,” Axio returned.

“The Underdark fulla’ demons! You want us to go down there now of all times, you’re gonna pay extra!” the mage demanded.

Axio’s armored fist clenched. “Really. And I suppose updating your posted rates would be too difficult?”

The mage glared. “We dunno when it’s gonna end!”

Luanea stepped forward. “Sir, we’re not putting you at risk,” she said smoothly.

Cavria and Doshellas wandered out into the port while their leaders haggled. “We’ll let them play ‘Good Cleric, Bad Cleric,’” Cavria said drily. She looked Doshellas over. He was wearing ringlet armor under his dark green and black tunic and black pantaloons. His holy symbol of Eilistraee was pinned to his collar, which intrigued her. Generally, rangers didn’t wear their faith openly. “Nice collar badge,” she said.

“Thanks,” he mumbled. He was as animated as any other elf, just very quiet. “Take it off when I’m hunting, but I like it.” He squeezed his spindly fingers around it. “Enchanted for protection from evil. Comes in handy.”

Axio and Luanea joined them. “All right, we got him down to just ten percent increase,” Axio grumbled, “but we have to leave at once.”

“Fine.” Cavria grabbed her bag and walked down the short wharf. “Let’s go, then.”

The ships of the Skull Lock were very compact, which made sense. They were not sailing vessels by any means; they were canal boats, with no masts and long oars. The four of them trooped into the nearest vessel and set their bags down in the deck.

Axio leaned back against the railing and rubbed his eyes. He flinched in discomfort as his metal gloves pressed against the cold stones he now had instead of flesh, and groaned internally. He supposed, in the grand scheme of things, becoming more angelic wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it was sure going to take a lot of adjustment.

The grinding locks and shifting water of the descent into the Port eventually halted. Cavria stared in wonder as the final gate opened up to a massive cavern. “It’s beautiful,” she said faintly.

It did have a sort of grandeur, in its own way. The spurs of rock that stuck up from the water followed no pattern, but they all shone with luminescent fungus. The water itself was so dark; it may have been the blackness of space. Lights filled the walls of the cavern, thousands of lights, from torches to lanterns, glowing fungi to magic orbs, all shedding multihued light over the scattered settlement below. Buildings stuck out from the rocks, mostly clustered around the water’s edge. Whole blocks of crude structures erupted from the bare rock floor, and back from the edge of the water, there were roads and buildings in a grid-like pattern.

“Welcome to Skullport,” Luanea said to her. “Hope you’re not here long.”

“Way to set the mood,” Cavria said.

“We shouldn’t linger. We all have work to do here.” Luanea’s white hair bobbed in the bun she had made when she shrugged. “Sorry if you want to sightsee, but we’re on a schedule.”

“Oh, I know.” Cavria turned back to the approaching wharf. “I’m just sorry we can’t explore a bit.”

The Port was bustling with people, and many were clearly new. The number of drow and even duergar refugees in the town was disquieting to the four travelers, and an ugly reminder of the ongoing demonic violence in the Underdark. Luanea led the group through the town with haste, coming eventually to the outer walls of the city. The drow priestess looked back at their path to make sure they hadn’t been followed, and then directed the quartet into the tunnels outside the Skullport boundaries.

Cavria and Axio were both looking around in silent wonder. The whole city was an architectural wonder. Axio dimly remembered reading about how the Netherese mages and Halaster Blackcloak’s apprentice had fought over the control of the great magic mantle that kept the city intact, many decades before. He was glad to see the end of the city, though. It was simply an ominous place, and he didn’t generally like staying in a place that required magic to exist.

Luanea’s unfailing vision led them through the outer tunnels. They walked for what felt like hours, and more than one belly was grumbling before long.

All four party members possessed darkvision, so seeing their way wasn’t difficult. When the passageway opened up into a cavern, both Paladins craned their heads back. “This is a sight to remember,” Axio said quietly.

The cavern hosted an entire fortified temple. “So this is the Promenade of the Dark Maiden,” Cavria said in awe.

“What’s left,” Doshellas muttered. It did seem to be under repairs, but the nearest structure was completed. “We focused on the defenses.”

“You sure did,” Cavria said. The nearest structure was a guardhouse, and it ran from floor to ceiling in the huge cavern. They had passed abandoned, broken piles of rubble on their way in, but this was an active defense. The guardhouse had thick slabs of stone on its walls, metal spikes in the shape of crescent moons sticking from the corners, and thin, well-reinforced slots on the windows from which arrows could be fired. The structure’s top, where it stuck against the ceiling, had larger arrow slots, suitable for crossbows. Beyond was a stone bridge that arced over the ground by fifteen feet, with high stone fences on the sides, and which ended up in a far wall, where a door into the stone was visible.

Luanea walked up until she was a few dozen feet from the archway and took a knee. She removed her helm and looked up at the bridge in silence.

A head poked over and immediately vanished. A minute of uncomfortable silence passed before a drow came running from behind the tower. “Luanea!” the drow said cheerfully. “So good to see you!”

Luanea beamed and swept the drow into a hug. “Hello, Benra!” she said delightedly. “You’re alright!”

The drow man broke out of the hug and slammed his fist into his armored breastplate. “Better than ever. Some ugly demon can’t stop me.” He looked over the group. “Doshellas, brother, welcome back!” His gaze traveled to the Paladins, and his smile vanished. “Outsiders, now?”

“Yes, my friend, outsiders,” Luanea said. “Briefly. Just long enough to rest our feet and stock up on holy water. We’re making for Undermountain.”

“Hmm.” After a moment, Benra nodded to her and bowed quickly to the Paladins. “Welcome to the Promenade Rebuilt,” he said. “If Luanea gives you the vouch, then so be it. I caution you that the back caverns are heavily damaged, and not to be traversed.”

“Thank you,” Axio said for them both.

The duo followed Luanea and their guide into the main structure behind the guardhouse, which turned out to be a walled-in temple. Several dozen drow men and women in the formal garb – what little that was – of Eilistraeean clergy were there, sitting or standing around a large, open room. Decorated pillars rose at random from the floor to the ceiling high above, but the more interesting feature was the floor. It wasn’t entirely flat. The smooth, polished stone sloped and rose in places, creating an effect like the surface of a lake. Cushions and chairs were everywhere, and more than a few small tables or altars.

“Beautiful place,” Cavria said. “It’s hard to believe that this was a ruin just twelve years ago.”

“I know,” Luanea said wistfully. “There’s still so much work to do.” She moved over to Benra’s side. “I don’t suppose Verashon is here?”

“Sadly not,” Benra said. Cavria cocked her head, but neither said anything else. The three drow led the others into another chamber, this one containing what was unmistakably a healing temple. Partitions divided the large room into smaller ones. A cleric or two tended to wounded people here, but most of the building was vacant.

Benra indicated two empty rooms. “If you wish, you may remain here until you are ready to go,” he said. “Feel free to visit the main building, but please do not enter the portal room or the back caverns. They are not stable.”

“Thank you, Benra,” Luanea said for the group. As soon as he bowed out, she left as well, heading for the main cavern.

Axio sprawled out over and started removing his armor. “I think I’m going catch some shut-eye,” he said. “Didn’t sleep much last night.”

Doshellas leaned back against the headboard of his own bed and shut his eyes. “Might trance a bit myself.”

Cavria looked at her own bed, but decided against it. She followed Luanea into the main temple and looked around. The majority of the clergy were working on things. Several were crafting items on tables in one corner, while several others were watching what looked like an incredibly complex ritual dance in the middle of the room, performed by two blindfolded drow men in loincloths, carrying swords in one hand and flowers in the others. Cavria took a moment to appreciate the artistry needed to perform such a dance while blind, as well as the mouth-watering physique of the men involved, before wandering off, wondering where Luanea had gone.

She found Luanea in one corner, riffling through a small wooden box on a table. As she approached, Luanea withdrew a small metal ring, inspected it, and set it aside. She waved Cavria over when she spotted her new friend. “Ah, Cavria. Come here, I want to show you something.”

Cavria did so, looking down at the box. It appeared to contain a large variety of cheap jewelry and accessories, some of them magical. “What’s this?”

“A collection of items the small excursion teams we send into Undermountain have retrieved,” Luanea said. “The items are stored communally, in case we need to send people out into the tunnels we haven’t secured.”

“Hmm. Think we’re going to need some?” Cavria asked.

Luanea sighed. “Undermountain is a mad, mad place,” she said. “There’s no such thing as being too well-protected.” She lifted a large metal coil, which she folded around her arm. It snapped tight against her skin, and Cavria flinched in surprise, but Luanea shook her head. “It’s depleted,” she said, and the coil sprang loose and back into the box. “Hmm. Maybe… ah, here we go,” she said. She pulled another ring out, this one stainless steel with no markings. “This feels like protection from darkness,” she said. “I think I’ll bring this. If we run into Baneites, and they have a wizard, we’ll need to ensure they don’t blind us.”

“Good thinking.” Cavria looked over her shoulder at the religious ceremony the two men were apparently performing. “That is… an interesting display,” she remarked.

Luanea nodded with a smile. “Eilistraee does love dance. You should see the larger version we perform at weddings.”

“I’m sure female attendance is higher than heaven,” Cavria quipped.

Luanea laughed. “You know, when you’ve seen it a hundred times, the sexual edge sort of wears away. Yes, though, it is great fun to watch. Most of the formal dances have only female participants, though.”

“Increasing male attendance in turn?”

The priestess gave Cavria a look of exasperation. “Don’t tease.”

“I’m not teasing, I’m jealous,” Cavria admitted. “I have… very strong reservations about sex and beauty.”

“Oh.” Luanea looked awkward, hastening Cavria to explain.

“My family is unbelievably fucked up,” she said quickly. “I’m not judging. I just wish I could be more comfortable with… things.”

Luanea seemed to want to say something, but nodded instead. She turned back to the box and resumed her riffling. “Of course. I apologize. I thought you were being coy.”

“No, no.” Cavria flushed under her magic disguise. Why did she even say all that? It wasn’t Luanea’s fault that she couldn’t enjoy intimacy.

The two women looked through the box in silence before Cavria spoke up. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to burden you with that.”

Luanea rested a hand on Cavria’s armored shoulder. “It’s no trouble. If it’s any help, you would be far from the first woman I had helped through some past trauma, if ever you wanted to ask me how to leave your discomfort behind.”

“Really?”

“I’ve been counseling drow sex slaves who escaped their mistresses for generations,” Luanea said sadly. “Yes, Cavria, I would be more than happy to help you.”

“I… huh. Well, I think I may take you up on that,” Cavria admitted. Maybe it would be easier to talk it over with a woman than with a man. Who knew? It couldn’t hurt.

A commotion by the front entrance broke the moment. Both looked up to see a trio of drow men in stealth armor walking in, carrying a wounded human between them. They skirted the pair of dancers. Two of the clerics peeled off to follow. Luanea sighed. “So many adventurers are hurt in the sewers and tunnels these days. We help whom we can, but there are just too many.”

Cavria nodded in sympathy. “Well, the sooner we stop this cult, the sooner we can make things safer.”

“Yes.” Luanea extracted a small ring from the box. “Ah, here we go. Try this.”

Cavria slid the ring on. “Hmm. I feel the same.”

“That is a ring of feather fall,” Luanea explained. “In case we have to cross a chasm, it may be helpful.”

“Good.” Cavria dropped it in a pocket. “Let’s not take more than our fair share, though, right?”

“Yes, and if we find more things in the dungeons, we can leave them here,” Luanea said. “All right. Let’s get some rest. We’ll head out after a meal.”

Chapter 23