A Grand Design 38.

Winter. Central Region Of The Kingdom Of Girdane.

Lord Farque is running west across farmland, sensing as he does so.
The undead warlord when he turns slightly to the south and goes to cross a field.
Slows down, and behind the faceplate of his full helm, he sourly smiles at what he senses.
The heavily armoured deathlord walks quickly through the lightly falling snow.
And before long he sees some woods a few hundred yards in the distance.
The lord and ruler of the lands Farque who can move quicker than the eye can comprehend if he wants to.
Doesn't hurry, because he doesn't have to. And he soon sees people staggering from this side of the woods.
Farmers and locals by the looks of it. And he senses more of them leaving the woods in other directions.
They leave in ones and twos, or in small groups, families most likely.
Some look bewildered, while others look frightened. Though they all look relieved.
They also keep clear of him as some pass nearby as he enters the woods.
The lord of the death realm heads inwards, to the middle of the woods by his best guess.
Draugadrottin as he's also known by to the people of his nation, which lies faraway to the south.
Slightly nods his full helmed head as he senses away to the west, and locates someone who is heading in this direction.
The undead being quickly realises he's heading to a clearing in the middle of the woods as a couple of people stagger by, without even noticing him.
And as the large, heavily armoured deathlord of Farque walks through the lightly falling snow that's coming down through the canopy of the trees.
He soon gets to the edge of the clearing, and sees what's happened. And who remains in the clearing in the middle of the woods that's between farms, here on the border of the duchies of Wostin and Fandell in the central region of the kingdom of Girdane.
"I see you're still alive then" says lord Farque in a slightly dry tone of voice as he looks at those who are still alive in the clearing.
A slightly dazed looking Tovis the war engineer, who is sitting on a small boulder nearby. Turns his head when he hears the undead warlord.
The young engineer goes to stand up, but he can barely move.
The deathlord of Farque waves to the captain in his armies to remain sitting.
While sitting on a tree stump deeper in the clearing, sir Percavelle Lé Dic. Who has his full helm off, and is breathing heavily, with sweat pouring off his brow even though it's cold and snowing.
And whose armour looks to battered and dinged up in places. Lifts a gauntleted hand in greeting to the lord and ruler of the lands Farque.
The former paladin in the order of the Knights of Saint Mar-che, doesn't even say anything. A clear sign that he's exhausted, and is trying to get his breath back.
While in the middle of the clearing, standing there in the lightly falling snow.
Dorc da Orc whose left arm is hanging limply, and is covered in blood, a lot of it his own.
Turns when he hears the lord of the death realm.
The large ork, didn't even hear or smell Draugadrottin approaching the woods. A clear sign that he's both spent, and preoccupied.
At the moment, he's preoccupied with the handful of white looking blubber he's stuffed into his mouth.
The ork warleader doesn't know if it tastes any good or not. But that doesn't stop him from chewing it, and finding out.
The general in the armies of Farque glances to his right. And as he stands there in the middle of the clearing, as the snow continues to lightly fall.
He wonders if he can fuck, what he's eating at the moment. Dorkindle is certainly going to try and find out when he can.
There's bodies littered across the clearing in the middle of the woods. Humans, of all ages. From the very young, to the elderly. Men and women, boys and girls.
All locals from the surrounding farms here on the border between the duchies of Wostin and Fandell in central Girdane.
Also lying in the clearing in the middle of the woods, is another body. This one a creature, that resembles a grub. White in colour, segmented like a grub or maggot.
It's entire body, about forty feet in length. Has come up out of a hole in the middle of the clearing in the woods.
And though it's about eight foot wide at the head. It's far wider than that around the middle of it. Almost twice the width of it's head.
The lange grub like creature has a number of weapons sticking out of. At least twenty of them, most of which belong to Dorc da Orc. While the rest belong to sir Percavelle Lé Dic.
There's also a fair few weapons scattered across the clearing. Also belonging to the ork warleader and the former paladin.
The two of them fought together to kill the creature, which is a naturally magical creature. Which uses a psychic attack upon it's victim. And a psychic attack to draw it's victims in.
Lord Farque walks down to where the ork general is. Where the weaponsmith from the wolf tribe of orks. Has cut a chunk out of the grub like creature, and stuffed it in his mouth.
The warleader of the ork race who isn't sure if he likes what he's eating or not, after he's swallowed some of it.
Grunts as the lord and ruler of the lands Farque walks up, and stands near him.
Looking at the left arm of Dorkindle, and seeing that it's clearly broken. And that the big, burly ork who is from the southern polar region of the world, has a wicked looking gash down his side.
Lord Farque says to him "You can take that healing potion you've got in your belt?" followed by "Or have Beldane see to your inquiries when he gets back?".
"That fucken one" says Dorc da Orc who knows he better make a decision, or the undead warlord will make one for him. And the large ork knows which one the lord of the death realm will pick.
"The fucken cleric" adds the ork weaponsmith, who'd rather Beldane cast a healing spell on him. Than to take a healing potion. As he finds them totally disgusting whenever he tastes them.
The lord and ruler of the lands Farque, who has an elven name of Des'tier, which means The Destroyer when translated to common.
Figures the ork general in his armies will be fine until Beldane the cleric gets here. As the large ork's naturally healing ability. Has already stopped the flow of blood from the nasty wound down his side
"He fucken disappear" says Dorkindle, who is the son of the former matriarch of the wolf tribe of orks.
Nodding his full helmed head, the heavily armoured deathlord says "He'll be back soon".
Draugadrottin who senses Beldane the cleric heading this way from further to the west. Figures the fighting cleric's mace took him away to safety due to the threat of the creature, whose liar is here in the clearing.
Dorc da Orc who moves with a bit of a limp, pulls out one of his spears. That's stuck in the grub like creature, near it's maw. In one of the indentations where an eye would normally be.
"Fucken cunt" growls the large ork, who then adss "Fucked it" as he looks at the spearhead, which is badly bent, showing the force the ork general used to shove it into the large, grub like creature.
Dorc da Orc sighs at the time and effort it'll take to fix the spearhead. Then he kicks away one of the creature's pincers, which came off when it ripped open the side of the big, burly ork who is from the frozen bottom of the world.
"Bit of a tough cunt" mutters the ork weaponsmith, which is the only admission you'll get from him at how difficult it was for him to kill the large, grub like creature.
And the only reason he was able to, was because he and his bitter rival, sir Percavelle Lé Dic had to work together to defeat the creature that was a threat. Not just to them, but everyone else in the clearing.
"What the fuck is it?" asks Dorkindle who is speaking in the ork language.
Lord Farque who is also speaking in that particular language, tells the ork warleader "A white worm".
The lord of the death realm gestures towards the nearby hole in the middle of the clearing as the light snowfal across this area of central Girdane, as he continues with "And that's it's liar".
The undead being after seeing a half chewed body still in the slit like maw of the white worm. Makes his way around to the hole in the ground.
Dorc da Orc limps after him, after he decides he doesn't like the taste of the creature, which tastes pretty bland to him.
Draugadrottin picks up the tail of the creature as it's lying across the opening in the ground. And he flings it to one side, where it hits the ground with a thud.
And as the snow continues to fall in the clearing, the lord of the death realm looks down into the hole in the ground.
The ork general looks down into it too. And after a few moments, sir Percavelle Lé Dic gets up off the tree stump he's been sitting on, and walks over to the hole in the middle of clearing too.
Eventually Tovis the war engineer, who is still feeling slightly dazed. Makes his way down to where the others are standing next to the dead creature, looking down into the hole in the ground.
They're silent for a little while, then sir Percavelle Lé Dic speaks up and says "Pray tell, what is it?" followed by "Wot".
"Something" says lord Farque who then slightly nods his full helmed head as he carefully senses down beneath the ground in this area.
Now that's interesting, i wonder where it goes? Des'tier thinks to himself, who then gestures to the west side of the clearing, and says "Beldane".
While the deathlord of Farque, and Dorkindle continue to look down into the hole in the ground.
The former earl of Lé Dic and the young engineer look to the west side of the clearing as the snow continues to fall, and they see Beldane the cleric suddenly appear.
The member of the church of Glaine when he sees the others, along with lord Farque standing near the dead, grub like creature in the middle of the clearing. Breathes a sigh of relief, then hurries down to join them.
"Sorry" says Beldane the cleric to Tovis, sir Percavelle and Dorc da Orc "My damn mace took me away" sourly says the fighting cleric who hails from the kingdom of Nastell.
"Heal him" the deathlord of Farque says to the powerful cleric as he points at the warleader of the ork race.
Beldane nods his head, then casts a healing spell upon the big, burly ork who is from the southern polar region of the world.
The ork weaponsmith grunts, then yawns after he flexes his left arm which is no longer broken. While the wicked looking gash down his side is gone too.
"Wait here" says the lord and ruler of the lands Farque, who then takes a step forward, and drops down into the hole in the middle of the clearing in the woods.
The trio of humans look at Dorkindle, who just shrugs his massive shoulders. As he's the only one who can see more than a few feet down into hole, as it's completely black after that.
The ork general just walks over to the dead white worm, and starts taking out some of his weapons that he stabbed into it.
After a moment, the nobleborn knight originally from the kingdom of Druvic does likewise.
A little bit later, as they're all looking down into the hole again, they hear the voice of lord Farque call up "Get down here".
He quickly follows that with "Don't jump you fucking idiot" in the ork language, as the ork warleader was just about to do that. Dorc da Orc sourly smiles as he grunts in disappointment.
"Cast a lightball, you'll be able to see then Beldane" calls up the heavily armoured deathlord.
The fighting cleric who has already cast a nightvision spell to see down into the hole with no effect.
Does as lord Farque suggests, and sends it down into the hole. And he along, with Tovis the war engineer, and sir Percavelle Le Dic, are now able to see the undead warlord standing at the bottom of the hole, about sixty feet down.
Beldane nods, then he rolls his eyes as he's just about to teleport them down to the bottom of the hole, when Dorc da Orc says to him "Make Dorc fly down there cunt".
The fighting cleric in the church of Glaine levitates the ork warleader up off the ground, then down the hole in the middle of the clearing.
And as the chuckling ork weaponsmith flaps his arms, as he descends down to the bottom of the hole.
Beldane teleports himself, along with the two Druvicians, sir Percavelle and Tovis down to where the lord and ruler of the lands Farque is.
Once they're all down at the bottom of the hole, Draugadrottin points to a tunnel, that goes through bedrock, and says "This way".
He leads the way, with the others following, with Beldane's lightball floating above them, so the three living humans can see where they're going.
The tunnel, which was dug by the white worm over many a year. Twists and turns beneath the ground, as they basically head east, passing beneath the woods.
Until the tunnel gets smaller and smaller, where both Dorc da Orc and lord Farque have to duck down as they continue onwards.
Then as they make a right, the lord of the death realm says "It got too big, and couldn't go back through".
"Back through what?" asks Beldane the cleric "A portal" replies Draugadrottin.
The eyebrows of the spellcaster in church of Glaine go up in surprise as he can't sense a portal anywhere.
Then he murmurs "Hell" when the undead warlord says "It's a gnome hole".
Dorc da Orc's eyes light up when he hears that, as gnomes mean treasure, and lots of it.
"Me get to piss on the ga-nome" declares the ork general, who in the past, has pissed on gnomes to get them to give up their treasure.
Rolling his eyes, the deathlord of Farque dryly says "It's abandoned". The son of the former matriarch of the wolf tribe of orks, grunts in disappointment at that.
Then up ahead, the bedrock suddenly disappears, and the tunnel is more dirt packed than anything.
And when they're stepped from the bedrock, to the dirt floor of the tunnel, they've passed through a portal.
"Where by chance are we, wot?" asks sir Percavelle Lé Dic.
"Somewhere to the east of where we just were" is the reply of Draugadrottin, who ignores the muttered "Not north" from Dorkindle, and continues to lead the way through the tunnel.
It eventually goes up, and after a couple hundred yards or so, they come up out of the ground, between some rocks and boulders, within some woods.
Lord Farque senses, then he turns to the right, and leads the way through the quiet woods.
It's snowed here recently, but it isn't now. And at the edge of the trees, they come to a stop, and look westwards.
After a moment, Tovis the war engineer, says "Is that a river over there?".
"It is" says the undead warlord, who continues with "The river Tambir if I'm not mistaken" he looks at the others and tells them "We're in eastern Girdane" followed by "Not far from the capital Oaklynn" . . . . . .