40: Wittgendorf

Hello mum, remember we had just killed Etelka Herzen, and her weasel-faced companion, and her minions. We had captured one of the minions and tied him up. And we left him up in the signal tower while we had a look around the secret area of the tower, again.

As fair as we could tell it hadn’t been disturbed, so we thought that perhaps Herzen’s lot had only broken through the trap door shortly before we arrived. We thought about putting the keys in the magic star thing but were worried we might not be able to get them out again and so I got a rope so we would be able to climb back out through the trap door in an emergency.

We were worried about the internal doors closing without the keys, and so Guido got some old joist from outside to put in the way of one of the doors, but when it closed, the door was so strong it pulverised the wood and closed anyway. So then Willow got her wizard’s staff from the boat and used that to prop the door open (I think the staff is just the sort of thing a wizard would use to keep doors open and it is probably a magic door opener – Willow).

And then Dreamy started putting the keys in the slots around the hexagram. Guido and I watched from inside the circle, but Willow made sure to stay outside, just in case. And when the first key was inserted the lines of the hexagram began to glow and with each key they glowed brighter, until, as the last key was slotted in, the floor gave way and turned into a spiral staircase. I wasn’t expecting that and fell to the floor below, and it really hurt. And Guido fell as well but he said it didn’t hurt but I think it did (I was confused about that, too, because of all the screaming – Willow).

Guido lit his torch and we found ourselves in a hexagonal room lined with books, and there were six corridors leading off from this room and they were all lined with books, too. It was a secret library, or as Blume would have called it, a secret book room. To be honest, I was a bit disappointed to have come all this way for a crappy book room. I was expecting a cave with a dragon and lots of treasure and a magical rock of power, or something like that. And maybe some elves.

Dreamy had a look at the dust on the floor of the secret library to see if there were any tracks, and he was confident that no one had been here for hundreds of years. He said he had to check as he was still feeling a bit uneasy like someone was watching him (I was watching him – Willow).

In the central chamber was a table with three large books upon it, and some specific pages were marked. The first was a book called Sternschau's Astronomical Records – Being A Guide of the Mysterious Phenomena of the Nighte Skye', and the marked passage said:

In this two thousandth, three hundredth and second year of our Empire, on the night of the ill-omened Hexenstag, Morrslieb did shine with a Greene and Unnatural Lighte, and its Shape was as if it bore a Grinning Countenance of most Horryble appearance.

The Heavens were filled with a Greate Number of Shootinge Stars and some of these did seem to fall upon the Grounde which groaned under their assault. Again, during the Night of Geheimnistag, Morrslieb was Dominant in the Sky, and the Firmament was Criss-Crossed with a Tracery of Shootinge Stars.

Being forewarned by the earlier events of Hexenstag, I was able to trace the course of a particularly large Shootinge Star, which seemed to issue from Morrslieb itself. According to my calculations, the star must have fallen to earth in the uplands of Talabeclande, near the Head-waters of the River Narne.

Willow read it out to us and she told us she had been right, or at least partly right, about the moon falling to the ground in what is now called the Barren Hills, and what I supposed was called at the time, the Rather Pleasant Hills. And having a look through the book there were some sketches similar to the ones that were in the book Willow had found in the library above, earlier.

The second one was called 'Omens and Prophecies of the Seer Unserfrau'. Guido and Willow decided that it tallied with the first, although I didn’t really understand about the spit, but Guido said it was a metaphor.

This calls for wisdom. The time shall come when the enemies of Chaos shall relax their guard; looking out from their fortress, they shall pay no heed to the shadow at their backs. Then shall the great Mutator cause the warped moon to awaken, and the beloved of Morr shall clear his throat and spit upon the Empire. And where his spittle doth fall, there shall the weak fear to tread, but the possessor of the spittle shall wield great power.

The final book was more like a hand-written journal and Guido and Willow said that it wasn’t written in any language they could understand. But they saw as they leafed through it that there were a few bits written in Reikspiel, and the writing got increasingly inconsistent and sprawling as the book went on. And the final passage was written all in Reikspiel. And they guessed that perhaps this was Dagmar von Wittgenstein’s personal journal.

And so I, Dagmar von Wittgenstein, shall possess the largest piece of warpstone ever known outside the cursed city of Skavenblight. And straight from the Chaos moon itself. I shall become the most powerful wizard the Empire – nay, the world, has ever known. At last, my years of research are about to be rewarded. Everything is prepared: nothing has been overlooked. A team of ‘experts’ has been hired for the expedition; a special lead lined receptacle has been built to transport the meteorite; and a magically-reinforced chamber awaits it in the castle. I leave for Kemperbad tomorrow.

Blimey.

Guido decided it was time to put everything together for us. I think we had all been thinking about this for a good few weeks, but now we had what was approaching a full picture. He said that Herzen must have discovered information about the meteorite, of what they called warpstone, while researching her various nefarious. She had travelled to the Barren Hills to find it, but when it wasn’t there had gone to Dagmar’s old tower thinking it might be there. And we had been hot on their heels. And, because of all the strangeness and illness associated with the place, we now knew that the meteorite must be, or at least must have been, in Castle Wittgenstein.

And then Willow said if there was a real thing called the great Mutator then that would explain why the people around Wittgendorf were reportedly so strange and sickly, and perhaps, even the reason for fishman we had seen near there.

Then Guido told us that he was now more sure than ever that destiny was leading him on this mission for Myrmidia. He said there was no doubt that it was our duty to rescue this rock of power and bring it to the temple of Myrmidia in Altdorf. And they would know what to do with it. And, even though it sounded very dangerous, I think we all agreed that Guido had a point.

We had a look around the rest of the library but didn’t find anything much. Willow said she was looking for Uncle Herb’s Horticultural Helper, but they didn’t have a copy, but she did find Esme Puddlefoot’s Common Herbal, which she said she’d always wanted. I found a book with some pictures in, but Willow told me it was called The Daemons Amongst Us. That sounded nefarious so I told her I would put it back. I pretended to, but I stuck it in my bag at the last moment. It will be good to have some nice pictures to look at when I’m bored.

Once we left the lower bit of the tower, we had a conversation about what to do with the bodies of the four signalmen. Guido was adamant that we should bury them, as that was his understanding of Imperial traditions, but of course, in the Mootland we like to burn them, so we have something to put on the roses. Then Guido agreed we should burn them, but then Dreamy said that in the army they used to try to bury their own comrades because it was more respectful, but they burned their enemies because it was quicker, and so we agreed that we needed to bury them, after all. I’m not sure what all the fuss was about, because when you’re dead you’re dead. I wasn’t looking forward to having to dig the graves, especially as human graves take twice as much digging as halfling graves, but luckily, we remembered our prisoner and made him do most of the work.

At the thought of hard work, Blume complained that she was still feeling bad. She had a relapse from her wounds, and so Willow took her to bed and dosed her up with some tarrabeth and Dreamy offered to deliver the drug by arrow. Hopefully that stuff isn’t as addictive as crimson shade (It’s not at all addictive, but it makes you sleep for a long time – Willow).

Then we decided to send a signal from the signal tower to say the signal tower had been raided, but we couldn’t work out how to do that. In any case, I think it was better that we left before the authorities got there, because we didn’t want them to think that we had killed them or we were part of the nefarious.

Willow tried to tell how long the signalmen had been dead for, but she had to admit that she didn’t really have much experience of that sort of thing, and so couldn’t tell.

So when we had buried the four soldiers of the signal corps, Willow said some words, in the name of Esmerelda, Quinsberry, Josias, and Hyacinth. Then Dreamy said something that he had heard the Imperials say for their dead comrades in the army. And Guido said something in the name of Myrmidia but I wasn’t really listening because I was trying to think of something to say, as well, and in the end I said something about boats (It was nice – Willow).

Then we started to get ready to cast off. I thought we would want to head for Castle Wittgenstein as quickly as we could, but then Guido got it into his head that it was his duty to save all the books. I think he thought it was knowledge that his cult would benefit from. So we had to move all the books up on a pulley, through the trapdoor and carry them down to the boat, and then find somewhere to put them in the hold. And after we filled up the hold we put them in other places, and I feared they might start getting in the way of the smooth running of Das Moot.

And once I noticed that the boat was beginning to sit a bit low in the water I told Guido that I was a bit worried about the number of books. And he asked if he should stop loading them, and I said I didn’t know, and so he told me I had to be master of my own ship, and I should tell him that that was enough books, and so I did.

Then Willow did some foraging and found a couple of interesting plants. This was the area that Willow had spotted the Estalian Blood Oak, earlier, and so I expected her to come back with some more crimson shade, but she didn’t (I think someone must have chopped it down – Willow).

The first inn we came to after leaving Dagmar’s tower was the Dwarf King’s Gift, and so Willow went in to get some more tarrabeth (enough to keep Blume sedated until we got to Wittgendorf, for proper medical reasons – Willow). And I informed the river wardens there, about the dead soldiers at the signal tower, and we handed over the thug we had captured.

It took us about five days to get to Kemperbad which seemed a bit slow going. I suspect it was because we were over-loaded with books. But the journey was pleasant enough, partly because Blume was so sedated we didn’t have to deal with her much. And as we got to Kemperbad we saw a load of purple-dressed people on the dockside. When they saw Das Moot, I think they must have recognised the boat because they all quickly slunk away.

That made me a bit nervous about leaving the boat unattended, and so we took it in turn to guard the boat. And luckily Blume wasn’t well enough to go above deck, so that saved her from being spotted by the purple people. I needed to shop because my leather jacket was in a real state, and my uniform was looking very tired. And Dreamy said we could have most of the money we had found on Herzen and Weasel to spend on whatever we wanted.

So, I got some new leather gear, a jacket and some leggings, and then I got a mail jacket, for extra protection, and I bought a smart uniform to make me look like a proper ship’s captain. They had one on a halfling mannequin in the window of a shop and so I got it cheap as ex-display. The shopkeeper said it was from the novelty pirate collection, but I think he was just having a joke. Unfortunately it was purple, so I think Blume might have a bit of a shock when she comes round.

And then I got a fancy hat and a nice big orange ostrich feather to go in it. And, just in case, I bought a metal helmet that fitted under the hat. So, no one can say I don’t look like a proper captain, now, mum. I think Guido bought very similar stuff to me, so I’d like to think he was inspired by my look.

Then I bought a brace of pistols, and I gave Blume my old pistol, because it was part of a pair, with hers. I took eight crowns out of her share of the cash to cover it but I think she’ll be happy enough with that, if she wakes up. Anyway, mum, I’m sure you don’t really want to hear about my shopping. It was a really lovely ostrich feather, though.

And once Dreamy had replenished our supplies we headed straight to Wittgendorf. It took us three days to reach it, and instead of joining all the other river traffic sticking to the far bank we had to steer towards the village. And suddenly it felt a bit more real, and I was reminded of the nefarious we might have to face. We thought about looking to moor some way from the village, but we couldn’t find anywhere good to dock, and in any case, I preferred having Das Moot nearby for a quick getaway, should we need one.

Wittgendorf was a bit of a dive with ruined buildings and debris lying in the streets. But that’s what we were expecting. And we could see the huge castle in the distance looming over the river and the town, sinisterly. We saw groups of feral dogs skulking about and sad, emaciated villagers. Guido was looking particularly determined. He said he was going to declare to the locals that he had come in the name of Myrmidia to save them and for us to come with him. It looked a bit scary, so I wasn’t sure I wanted to go and pretty soon a group of locals had gathered, demanding, or pleading for, food and money.

Guido told them we didn’t have food and money but we would save them from their oppressors, but they just pressed towards him and Dreamy, and it looked like they might board the boat. So Guido nodded at me to cast off, and leave them behind. I wasn’t sure about that, but Guido was on dry land and we knew he was in charge of matters on land. But I was on the boat, and we agreed I was in charge of matters on the boat, so it was unclear who had jurisdiction in this particular instance. But in the end I cast off and let the boat drift out into the river.

The crowd pressed closer. Dreamy jumped onto a crate and Guido tried to address them, asking that they tell him how their town had come to such destitution. I’m not sure Guido is really cut out for addressing the mob, and I don’t think they were interested in having a sensible debate about anything. And it looked like Guido and Dreamy might be pushed into the river, so I fired my pistol.

At the sound of the pistol the whole mob scarpered. About half of them fled to the nearby boathouse and the other half disappeared among the buildings of the town. And as they went, Guido channelled his magic eagle, and the eagle chased them around the streets. Then it flew up to get the lie of the land, before flying back down into Guido.

We’d scared off all the villagers, but I don’t think it was that hard, they were so downtrodden and pathetic. But now Willow felt sorry for them and suggested we should make soup for them. I didn’t think we had enough food to feed the whole town, but said I would water it down a bit to help it go round. And Willow only had one bunch of parsley and thyme and three garlics to go round. But soup was a good idea for them, and I thought Blume might like a bit, too, as she was starting to get a bit better.

Guido and Dreamy decided to wander into town and see what they could find, and I told Willow to keep watch, while I was stirring the soup.

In the town, Guido and Dreamy spotted a young noble-looking woman riding a big horse, and she was attended by six heavily armed guards. Guido immediately recognised that the woman could be related to the nobles depicted in the portraits in Dagmar’s observatory.

They were in the middle of a crowd and there was some sort of commotion. They saw that a villager had had an arm cut off and was bleeding from the stump, and another villager was being dragged away by the guards. The bleeding one called to Guido and Dreamy for help, and was beaten for it, while they dragged the other one away.

Guido demanded, in the name of Myrmidia, that they stop. But the woman stared coldly at the pair of them, and they didn’t stop. So Guido and Dreamy followed them, and told the bleeding man to get to our boat where we had a surgeon who would hep him (He never got there – Willow).

Dreamy told Guido to just say the word and he would shoot the woman. And Guido demanded to know on what grounds they were taking their prisoner. They did not reply, and so Dreamy loosed an arrow, hitting the woman. She replied by firing a magical, black, green, bolt back at him, hitting him in the head.

Meanwhile I turned around to see Willow in the galley, watching me. So I asked whether she had been watching out for Guido and Dreamy, and Willow said she thought I had asked her to watch me stir the soup (I can now see how the misunderstanding occurred – Willow). So we didn’t know any of this was happening.

The noble woman galloped off leaving her six guards to deal with Guido and Dreamy. They dropped their prisoner and began loading their crossbows. Guido appealed to the watching crowd to throw off their shackles and fight for their freedom. And inspired by his rousing speech, all the townsfolk ran away in panic. Guido drew his sword and advanced on the guards, and Dreamy made another shot at the retreating noble. It hit her, but she continued on her way, back to her castle.

The guards shot their crossbows, one of them hit dreamy but he shrugged it off, and another fumbled and hit one of his colleagues. Guido charged them and hit one with his sword, and as he faced him he could see that beneath the covering of armour his flesh was green and putrescent. Dreamy loosed his arrow and finished him off but there were five more facing Guido.

That was when I heard their cries for help, and so I dropped my spoon and Willow and I ran up on deck and onto the wharf. But we were a very long way from the fight.

The five guards all piled into Guido, outnumbering him badly and after a few blows Guido fell to the ground, wounded, but they kept hitting him. I think he was grateful for his new armour.

Dreamy was angry, now and made sure to shoot at the one who downed Guido, and he managed to pick him off. And we ran as fast as we could towards them, but it was a long way and our legs are short. When Willow reached Dreamy she was able to give him a couple of flasks of healing draught. Then she had to try to reach Guido but the guards were in the way.

And they were shooting at Dreamy. Dreamy managed to kill another one of them, and I finally got close enough to fire, but missed. Perhaps I should have stuck with my old pistol. But the guards were advancing on us, now. Dreamy hit another, I pulled out my second pistol and fired it and hit one of the guards in the head, killing him. And that is why proper captains always carry two pistols.

One of the guards then began to run for it. I think he was scared of the big guns. But the remaining two charged at us. I drew my sword and we clashed. I’m not sure what happened but I fell over, knocked over by the charge, but my opponent hit me awkwardly and fell over too, and must have damaged himself because he couldn’t get up again. And so when Dreamy had dealt with his opponent, he had time to finish off mine, too. So that was that. Willow rushed over to bandage Guido, and when he was dealt with, she went to help the poor prisoner.

Five of the guards were dead, and one was running back to the castle. The noble lady had fled back to her castle as well. And I couldn’t help thinking that what Guido and Dreamy had done had put us in a very bad position indeed. Who knows how many men-at-arms were about to charge out of the castle and declare war on us.

What was the last thing you said to me before I left the Mootland, mum? It was never mess with the Imperial nobility, wasn’t it? You said that the human nobility had strange rules all of their own and you should never deal with them, or try to get one over on them because they were a law unto themselves. And now we had started a fight with the local noble. So I think we might be in very big trouble. Anyway, I will tell you what sort of trouble that turns out to be in my next letter if I am around to dictate it, and Willow is around to write it.