As the group returned to Cracked Rock, they got many worried looks as people noticed the ambulatory skeleton with them. Many of the inhabitants rushed back indoors, but a handful simply stared as they passed through.
Once they reached the elder’s residence and he opened the door, it was quite clear he hadn’t ever considered seeing a walking skeleton, as he jumped back in shock and fell onto the ground. After helping him get back up, Morris explained a little of what was going on to the man.
Once Morris had finished a very basic explanation, the lich intruded on the link between Dawn and Niphru once again, asking them to see if there was anyone who was willing to open their minds enough for him to speak to so that he could leave them alone. Dawn relayed the request while Niphru once again glared at the skeleton for reaching into their connection to each other.
After a moment of thought, the elder nodded and gestured for them to follow him as he headed for the door. A short walk later, he stopped before a smaller home and banged on the door. Not long after, the door opened, and a young woman appeared, flinching at the sight of the lich, though not jumping back as the elder had done.
Seeing her less extreme reaction, the elder nodded before speaking, “Since you want to help so much, here is a chance for you. The skeleton here can talk with mind magic, but only to people willing to let him in, and as the leader of the village, I can’t risk anything like that.”
Seeing her hesitation, the lich had Dawn relay his assurances, “He says he will only speak to you, and won’t even attempt to look into your mind. Supposedly, he can also keep the link light enough that even without training, you could shut him out.”
It took a few moments of consideration, but the woman eventually agreed, and the elder asked everyone to follow him back to his home again. Upon arriving, he pulled out chairs for himself and the young woman and glanced between her and the lich.
A few seconds later, she stated, “This feels really fucking weird. It… He, I mean, says that he can write, but for now, he thinks it is better to be able to talk somewhat normally.” She took a moment to shift in the chair before turning to Dawn and Niphru to remark, “He said that he will leave you alone now and that he is sorry for having to intrude, whatever that means.”
Hearing this, the elder nodded before facing the group, informing them, “Morris, I’d like you to stay here for now, but the rest of your group are free to leave.” While they turned to leave, he could be heard asking, “Do you need a seat as well, mister lich? Ah Morris, sorry for not grabbing a chair for you; I’m kind of all over the place right now, feel free to get one from the table.”
By this point, the conversation faded as the door closed, and Lisryn led them back to their wagons, where they met Brigid again, sitting upon the church’s transport. As they approached, she tossed a mana stone to the far end of the wagon before grabbing another nearby. She looked over at the group and waved her free hand at them before focusing back on recharging the crystals.
Since the woman clearly saw them and wouldn’t think they were thieves, the group proceeded to their wagon and restocked their packs before pulling out their tents to set up nearby. As they were putting them up, a young man approached them, hesitating for a moment before clearing his throat.
As members of the group turned to focus on him, he began stating, “You can put those tents up; the elder talked with all of us while you were gone, and there are enough of us with free room that you can all sleep in a real house.” While he spoke, a few more people approached.
Lisryn was the first to respond, immediately asking if her guardians would be allowed to stay with her. The others simply nodded and began taking their tents back down rather than finishing them.
The man shrugged and remarked, “I don’t see why you’d need a guard, but sure, you can stay with me; I’ve got two rooms free in my house.”
Lisryn shook her head and stated, “My guards prefer to stay close, but thank you for the offer of another room. Since no one else asked, do you all have extra beds, or should we bring our sleeping bags?”
This resulted in some embarrassed muttering from the group. It turned out that there were only four who had beds, meaning several of them would need to sleep on the floor. Eventually, it was decided that Lisryn, Viera, Miana, and Dawn would get beds, while the others would use sleeping bags.
It did take a bit of negotiating to manage, however, as three of the four refused to allow an animal on their spare beds, and the last was still conflicted about it, while Dawn didn’t want Niphru treated worse than her. Niphru thanked her for her thoughtfulness, as well as the woman who would be their host for allowing him to join Dawn, surprising her, as he hadn’t spoken up while the others had been discussing the arrangements.
In hindsight, he probably should have, since it seemed they thought he was just an animal, considering how the others seemed surprised as well. He was tired, though, after his constant stress and being upset over the lich being present in his special link with Dawn. Due to this, he didn’t feel like doing much, and had stayed silent while allowing Dawn to speak for them both.
After the villagers got over their surprise, they led their guests to their homes for the evening, Lisryn taking a moment to collect Brigid before following.
As they prepared to go to bed, Dawn remarked, “It feels nice to be back in a simple home again. I like the spire and all, but it just isn’t the same.”
In response, Niphru nodded and replied, “I feel similarly, even if the spire has useful tools like the shower that also helps dry you. Your mother’s house felt more like home.”
“Exactly,” was all that Dawn said as she got into the loaned bed, Niphru leaping up to curl up beside her.
The following morning, the group met back up at the wagons, finding Morris leaning against one as the lich stood nearby, unmoving. Upon seeing them approach, Morris greeted them before speaking, “The talks went well last night, and we will be taking a bunch of writing supplies with us as we bring the lich back to his people before they go set up in the forest. They will be helping keep the forest safe, so we can probably leave and go help somewhere else. What do you think, Lisryn? You are the one who directed us here.”
After a moment to think, Lisryn replied, “That sounds like a good idea to me. They are pretty scary, especially him in particular,” she gestured towards the lich before continuing, “so if he is here, I’m sure they can deal with nearly anything, and there is still the group of warriors who got here before us.”
Since she agreed, the group double-checked the wagons before carefully bringing them back down the path to the plains. Following that, they moved them just off the road before walking back to the waiting group of skeletons to join up with Narath again. As he saw them, he noticeably relaxed before walking forward to join their group, trading places with the lich.
A while later, they arrived back at the wagons and began heading up the road toward the town of Misty Valley again. Similar to their earlier travels, the group practiced along the way, though Viera spent more time sitting on the wagon and reading her book on light magic rather than actually testing her spells.
