I’ve often wondered why someone would worship a demon or demons.  Seems like if you want to worship an asshole divine being and do bad shit there’s better options in the form of evil gods.  As I understand it Kralten and Enumu and deities of that ilk have something to offer in the afterlife.  Do enough malevolence here in the world on their behalf and after you die you get to go to their version of heaven.  I’m no theologian but if you’re a demoniac your ultimate reward is still burning in the fiery pits of the Thirteen Hells when you cash in is my understanding.  That doesn’t seem like a good deal to me.  So are demon-worshippers exclusively the insane alienate nihilists who don’t even care about their own fate?  Doesn’t seem to be the case based on the one’s I’ve met.  Are they all deluded fools who are trading an eternity of pain and suffering for a modicum of temporal power?  Maybe. 

I’d like to gets some good information on their motivations but for some strange reason you don’t often find a demon worshipper who’s willing to have a frank and honest discussion about their beliefs – partially because those beliefs result in them being burned in the stake but partially because they’re trying to eat your toes in the name of Sithvogamu’Herlenshib the Demon Lord of Bloody Feet or some other damn thing.  I suppose I may be assigning too much logic to people’s thinking processes, most demon kissers people do it for the same reasons people do anything – they didn’t really think about it, it was a thing to do so they did it. 

I bring this up because Essa’s response to my night-time intrusion was to shriek like a bat being swallowed by a flying toad.

“Shree blyushed amukh ta garve bardh orchid!  Orchid oblist knamesh kul carven kurn theabse!”

That’s the Dark Speech if you’re not familiar.  Does orchid mean the same thing in the Dark Tongue as it doesn’t in the King’s language?  Seems unlikely, why would she be shouting about flowers when assailed in her bed under the cover of darkness?  But even if it’s a different meaning it’s weird that it would even exist in both languages as a word right?  I couldn’t see her face too well because of the darkness but I could see enough to know that it was twisted with hate like these demon-types get as she was shouting.  They must teach you that in demon school, I don’t know how they get their faces to do that – they like literally twisted as if their faces were made of wax.  It’s pretty scary I grant you that, if you’re the kind of person that’s scared by facial expressions. 

At the sound of her screaming the two sides of the tent flew up as if by signal and four men rushed in with slim blades and attacked my companions.  The nameless lookalikes displayed pretty impressive reflexes but in this situation it was more along the lines of avoiding an instant death strike than avoiding the blows altogether, they got stabbed pretty good is my point.  I’m not sure if she doesn’t care about dying or if she’s smart enough to realize that if I’m asking questions I need her alive, but either way Essa didn’t seem concerned about the knife I had against her and started chanting – not crazy cult chanting but casting a spell chanting.   I the dropped the knife and shoved some blanket in her mouth, leaning on her face with my elbow to stop her from finishing the mystical words that would turn our blood into molten lava or whatever these damn magic types do. 

The four men were clearly well versed in working together and they were flanking and striking my bodyguards despite their acrobatic defenses.  Sometimes I wonder why these sorts spend years working on martial arts forgoing all the pleasures of life when you can just pick up sword and put on a breastplate, it seems to be about as good if not better.  I suppose the idea is to catch people off guard but I’ve never seen one of these high-kicking loud shouting empty hand people really blow anyone away with their fancy moves.  Doing my best to keep the struggling Essa pressed underneath me I turned my cane into snake-form and threw it at one of the swordsmen on the right, it landed close enough that he was bitten on the ankle by the snake-cane which has to suck based on the way he yelped.  I managed to wrestle my crossbow out and holding it one handed and kind of balancing it against my hip as Essa writhed beneath me (not like that perv) I shot at one of the swordsmen on the left.

The good news is that even in that awkward position I managed to score a hit, the bad news is that who I hit wasn’t my enemy.  That’s downside to having a magically poisoning crossbow, makes friendly fire a real bitch.  Since we were in the middle of a military camp, sort of, I also employed another tactic – screaming “they’re killing us, they’re killing us” – but if I’ve learned anything it’s that if help arrives it’s always after things are over.  These violent life or death struggles happen a lot more quickly than you’d think – usually you’re either dead or you’ve already won before your back-up has their pants on. 

There’s no way I can reload a crossbow one-handed so while I was trying to figure out what to do next Essa squirmed out from underneath me and managed to get her arm around my neck.  I pried her arm off (it’s nice to be stronger than someone for once) and the two us were grappling on the bed, thrashing around like two blackbirds being baked into a pie.  I managed to get the upper hand by grabbing a handful of her hair (very dry, she must wash it with something too astringent) pulling her head back and biting her on the chin.  I heard something crack, not sure if it was one of my teeth or her jawbone, could be both – but then next thing I knew one of the swordsmen was yanking me off her and stabbing me through the calf with his blade.  Essa came up and even in her darkness I could see that her face was a bloody disaster, which didn’t seem to inconvenience her overly much.  She spat some magic words and I felt something burning on my chest like acid.  Probably acid.

It was at this point that the desperation set it.  This is not how I thought my night was going to go.  The next thing I knew though, I felt a surge of magic energy from my Boots and suddenly everything was different.  At first I thought that I was floating in the air and that someone had put a sack over my head but after a moment I realized that the “sack” was the tent and I wasn’t floating, I was just tall.  Really tall.  I ripped the tent away and I noticed in order that I appeared to be bout sixteen feet tall, I could see pretty well in the darkness, and my skin was blue.  Did you know that snow giants can see in the dark?  I didn’t.  Oh, and also there’s boots that turn you into one of them.  This is apparently an astounding enough turn of events that even demonic lunatics stop to gawk at it.  One of my bodyguards was down (probably on account of me shooting her with a poisoned bolt) but the other one was the first to recover – knocking her opponent out (or maybe killing him, what am I a healer?) with a spinning kick to the head.  Remind me never to let anyone do that to me.

I picked up the man who had stabbed me, not like a child, more like one of those human-shaped cookies people make sometimes, and hurled him into the night end over end and saw him hit the ground and tumble like a drunk falling down the stairs.  Seeing that the tide had turned Essa made to run but I grabbed her and lifted her into the air like a kitten by the scruff of the neck.  Have you ever wondered why giants always let out such booming laughs after they grab someone?  I can tell you why, it’s very satisfying.  I’ve never heard my voice so deep before, I’ll have to keep these Boots in mind if I ever want to sing a true operatic contralto.  I’ve always wanted to try out The Maiden of Death but it’s not in my register.  The last swordsman tried gamely to attack me but the remaining bodyguard swept his legs out from under him and as he hit the ground I stomped on his head and chest, crushing him like a roach.  I know a few men who would have paid good money to see that.

Like clockwork, with the fight over, at this point soldiers and various other people came running up.  As you can imagine they were very alarmed by the presence of an ice giant in their midst and were preparing to attack me with long spears when I boomed out my massive voice at them.

“Be thou not afraid, it is I, Ela transformed into a giant by the will of Adariel to uncover a horrible witch in your midst” I gave Essa a good shake and boomed out another colossal laugh as grown men, soldiers and warriors, cowered in fear before me.

The boots didn’t react to my command to “un-giant” me but fortunately the effect was temporary and I shrunk back down to size before too long.  I gave my fallen bodyguard a healing blast from the Flask as more and more confused soldiers turned up.  My good pal the Master Sergeant Costell Monague showed up as the first authority figured on the scene but thankfully he was quickly displaced by an as of yet unseen Baron, at least I assumed he was a Baron based on the extravagant jacket he had thrown on over silk nightclothes and his easy assumption of power.

“What the blazes is going on here?”

 I curtsied neatly “My Lord I don’t believe we’ve had the pleasure.  I was at my evening prayers when all of a sudden I was stunned by the appearance of one of Adariel’s angelic hosts appearing before me in my tent!  The vision before me told me that within this very camp there was a foul cancer, an attainted demonhost!” I pointed to Essa who was now being held by the arms in the grasp of two soldiers “The angel told me that I needed to do something about this horrible evil before it was too late.  Well, I was just beside myself, I had no idea what to do.  I’m no warrior, no priest, no exorcist, no inquisitor, just a godly woman observing the word of Adariel.  I said to my brave and loyal guards that we needed to tell someone about this but we didn’t know who to tell!  Knowing that there was no time to waste, I made my way this tent, guided by Adariel’s hand towards the source of the corruption.  I found this woman malingering in her tent with an ill look.  And I asked of her ‘Are you standing in the light of the blessed mother or have you strayed into the shadow?’ and her response was to snarl at me in the Forbidden Tongue like a lipless monster! 

All of a sudden her four accomplices appeared out of nowhere to assail my valiant and devoted protectors, attacking them from behind like the abhorrent cowards they are.  Left alone with the demon-witch she revealed a forked tongue and her eyes became that of a mantis and she said ‘I’ll suck your soul!’ in a voice from the pits of the Hells themselves!  I was sure I was going to die, for my stalwart and faithful guardians were being overwhelmed by the dirty fighting techniques of the witch’s familiars, but then, all of a sudden I felt the holy power of Adariel flowing through me!  And I was transformed into a mighty giant!  I heard the soft words of Adariel in my ears saying ‘Evil has no power in my sight, I am the mother of all peace and the creator of all mercy, but you must use my power now to strike down those who cannot be redeemed to save the innocent.  You are my vessel and my chosen one, strike now and save all those around you.’  Now, I am a simple woman, violence is foreign to me, but I was filled with the bravery of the Goddess Herself and her hand guided me to lay low these terrible villains  and deliver this awful witch unto you for Judgement.”

For a long time no one spoke, most people standing in awe, but finally one voice came from the crowd.

“Why would Adariel turn you into a frost giant?  That doesn’t make much sense.”

I heard someone smack the speaker upside the head and mutter something about blasphemy.

“Stay your hand good sir!  Adariel welcomes the questioners and the seekers, she is the Goddess of Knowledge and Wisdom, she doesn’t ask us to follow her blindly, she asks that we challenge and learn.  I do not know why Adraiel chose this form, for the way of the Gods of good are as ever a mystery to us.  I can only thank Her for the miracle that has transpired here tonight.  Will you join me brothers and sisters?  Let us kneel in thanks before the Great Lady, the True Lady, the Only Lady, and join hands and speak the prayer of Adariel’s protection and blessing against the dark night and the terrors that it hides, for her Light shall reveal all!  In her sight there is no shadow for evil to lurk in and we are all safe under her benevolent gaze!”

A good forty-five minutes later I was up at the farmhouse back in the little planning room with the Master Sergeant, the new Baron, Baron Berlixwhouse, Baron Redmynd, and some other people I didn’t know – presumably more Barons or their minions.  The new Baron who had spoken before, who I now saw to be a balding man with an impressive beard, addressed me again.

“What really went on out there?”

“Well you see, what had happened was . . .”

________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Funds: 50,874 gold

XP: 566,901

Inventory:  Courtier’s Outfit, Noble’s outfit, Artisan’s outfit, collegium ring, Deadly Kiss (dagger) Belt of Incredible Dexterity +2, Endless Efficient Quiver, sunrod (2) Handy Haversack, +4 Armored Coat, Sergeyevna Kostornaia’s Light Crossbow, Flask of Endless Sake, Hat of Effortless Style, masterwork disguise kit, covenant ring, Everwake Amulet, Ring of Disguise, Boots of the Winter Jarl, Ring of Jumping, Walking Stick (Rod of the Viper), map, Badge of Last Resort, Healer’s Satchel, 28 tiny diamonds

Revenge List: Duke Eaglevane, Piltis Swine, Rince Electrum, watchman Gridley, White-Muzzle the worg, Percy Ringle the butler, Alice Kinsey , “Patch”, Heroes of the Lost Sword, Claire Conrad, Erist priest of Strider, Riselda owner of the Sage Mirror, Eedraxis,  Skin-Taker tribe, Kartak, Królewna & Bonifacja Trading Company, Hurmont Family, Androni Titus, Greasy dreadlocks woman, Lodestone Security, Kellgale Nickoslander, Beltian Kruin the Splithog Pauper, The King of Spiders, Auraluna Domiel, mother Hurk, Mazzmus Parmalee,  Helgan van Tankerstrum, Lightdancer, Bonder Greysmith, Pegwhistle Proudfoot, Lumbfoot Sheepskin, Lumber Consortium of Three Rivers, Hellerhad the Wizard, Forsaken Kin, Law Offices of Office of Glilcus and Stolo, Jey Rora, Colonel Tarl Ciarán, Mayor Baras Haldmeer, Rindol the Sage, Essa