Musings of a Future Baron - 10. Ambushed

Fireday 30 Gozran 4710

Ran into a pair of bandits today. Spent the rest of the day walking. Reached the tomb at nightfall, will explore tomorrow.

Starday 1 Desnus 4710

The tomb was full of looters, presumably Tartuccio’s given the note we found on a mage. It begs the question of how the gnome could afford mercenaries, but then, that question could probably be answered simply. Iravetti.

They were laughably easy to deal with; the warriors were dead before they knew we were there, and Valerie dealt with the mage in similar fashion.

Escaping the tomb through a back entrance- a back door to a tomb! Really, what are these people thinking?- we found no sign of our quarry, no bent grass. The trail was cold, but I couldn’t give up. We had to face the gnome, ensure he could cause no lasting harm.

Scuffed footprints showed the way, Amiri tracking with surprising accuracy until we found a horde of claw marks, a battlefield fresh in the ground’s memory.

And here the trail split. Three prints charged toward the claws bravely, while another set turned down a gulley. It wasn’t hard to imagine what happened; Tartuccio had left his companions to cover his retreat.

None of us could figure out who the claws belonged to, save for the fact that they were small, light. Instead, I searched around us, hoping to pick up some sort of magical imprint on the surroundings.

Illusion magic. The rough wool feeling of a spell passed briefly in my mind, not enough to determine what the spell was, but enough to understand that Tartuccio was bending someone’s mind.

A moment’s study made it clear Theofrid, Jaethal, and Harrim had been captured by the clawed creatures. We saw no indication that the creatures followed Tartuccio, but on closer inspection, we discovered his tracks changing to become clawed feet, around the exact spot the illusion spell had been cast. Clearly the gnome decided it was better to blend in than to be captured himself. I hope he decided wrong.

After a short deliberation, we decided to follow Tartuccio. As much as I hate to say it, his companions made their choice. Tartuccio is the real threat, and he is the one we have to end.

It started raining sometime during our descent, nearly washing away the tracks, but we persevered, soon finding ourselves in a patch of pine trees. Ahead we could just make out a horde of kobolds, and I could just feel they were waiting for us.

It was a risky move, but I told Valerie and Amiri to take up wide flanking positions while I took point. If it came to a fight, I was reasonably sure I could hold off a couple kobolds while our warriors protected us from an ambush. Retreat was not an option; Tartuccio was somewhere ahead and I had the sinking feeling he had got the kobolds on his side.

Sure enough, when I ventured closer, I could hear one of the kobolds talking in the gnome’s voice, affecting a horrendous draconic accent. How the kobolds could fall for that was beyond me, save for magic. As I approached, I tried to warn the kobolds, knowing it would likely fail. But if I could get even two or three to falter, or even better, turn against each other, I might actually survive.

It was not to be. Tartuccio, in the guise of a purple kobold, announced that this whole thing was an ambush, surprise.

My plan almost worked. I could hear fighting from either flank, both Valerie and Amiri ending the lives of kobolds. But my vision was obscured by the rain, my aim off, and a pair of kobolds closed before we could pick them off at range. I was relieved to see the rest following Tartuccio into the distance, the remnants of the Stag Lord’s fog swallowing them from sight.

As soon as Amiri and Valerie were done, they rejoined us, cutting down the reptiles before us. We took a brief moment to loot the corpses and let Tristian tend to our wounds, before chasing after Tartuccio once more.