In Search of Nibelungen part I

I had finally managed to recover from the wounds I received from that stupid duel (when will I learn). I had gotten up and made my way downstairs to the breakfast table hoping to eat something, relax and then get some exercise.

When I got there, Dandelion was looking over some sort of trick sword the group had acquired while I was recovering. It apparently belonged to a cousin of his that had somehow been stolen. I sat down at the table and picked a copy of the latest Freiburg Gazzette and began perusing the headlines. I noticed a few furtive looks at me from the others as I picked up the paper, but they continued their discussion on the fate of Hans Jost.

Montegue Army in Posen Wiped Out. Montegue Held Hostage.

Invading Army in Fischler Destroyed by Creatures From The Black Forest.

Yngvild Olafsdottir Boards Merchant Ship, Finds Eisen Mercenaries. Vendel League Appoints Jorund Guttormson to Track Her Down

Hans Jost Put to Death by Morderbande. Morderbande left in charge of Seiger.

Hmmm. So that's what they're talking about.

Arnaud De Charouse Presents Petition to Emperor. Rejection.

Erich Seiger's Army in Support of Mondavi. Mondavi invades Vilanova, Calligari and Lucani.

What??? And then finally:

Alberto Lucani Struck Down by Assassins. Attempts On All Six Vodacce Princes.

I couldn't believe it. Alberto dead. What about Lucinda?

My first reaction was to rush back to Lucani to see what I could do, but my companions talked me out of it. The news would already be at least a week old and it would take me a few weeks to get there. I didn't know what to do.

In the midst of my shock I heard the others discussing Fraulein Martina, the Nibelungen. Something about Dracheneisen, and something about her having left for Hainzl. My mind was so fogged I could not keep up with them. I could not stop thinking about Lucinda and the others back home. Someone mentioned a journey. A trip to the south east of Eisen. I didn't care what the trip was for but I knew it would get me closer to home, and that began to make me feel better.

A few of us went out to get some supplies. Giving myself something to do was a good idea. I began to regain my focus as I thought of what I needed. While occupied with all this I suddenly heard a familiar yell up ahead. Peering forward I saw the large bulk of Pistol charging at someone ahead of him. Knowing that there must be good reason for this (Pistol always preferred running away to confrontation whenever possible - something I could learn from him) I drew my sword and ran down the street.

As I ran I saw a group of large Vesten standing over the unconscious form of Borsten, and Pistol slamming into the nearest Vesten, bowling him over. A second Vesten turned to attack but when he saw me coming he turned to attack me. It didn't take long to dispatch of my opponent but it did give the other Vesten enough time to conjure some sort of magical fog and disappear. Pistol had knocked out his opponent and both of us stumbled blindly through the fog looking for Borstenn or his captors. When the fog cleared everyone was gone.

We grabbed the still unconscious Vesten and took him back to the manor.

After Dandelion brought our prisoner back to consciousness we tried to frighten some information out of him, but the Vesten was not easily frightened. He was prepared to die for what he believed. What we did discover was that the other Vesten thought that Borstenn was a Vendel spy (Borstenn? Vendel? If it wasn't so annoying it would be humorous) and that Skjaeren (I assume their leader) will cut the Blood Eagle on him. Not so bad I thought, just another mark on Borstenn's already highly scarred body. And then Franz explained what the Blood Eagle was. Eww. Nasty.

Apparently they came to this spy conclusion because Borstenn had been running around pretending to be some Vendel merchant and trying to give him a bad name. We tried explaining this to our thick friend but it was to no avail. So we decided to keep our prisoner in the back shed, the one that is easily escaped from, and follow him when he gets away. As I said, our prisoner was not too bright and when he escaped it was easy enough to follow him outside the city and on to the camping site of the Vesten. Franz, Eduarde, Dandelion, Pistol and myself arrived at the edge of the trees in time to see Borstenn being tied to two spears jammed into the ground at the top of a small mound. In the river nearby we saw a Vesten long boat with a couple of guards at the bow.

Nearby we saw a group of the Eisen wandering living-dead and a quick plan was formulated. Hiding ourselves amongst the group we managed to steer them close to the camp while remaining inconspicuous. As we got closer I noticed that there were quite a few of these Vesten and this was not going to be easy. Soon we were spotted and a large group descended upon us at the edge of their camp. The battle was fierce with everyone fighting multiple opponents. I managed to dispense mine after sustaining a few serious wounds and turned to help Pistol who seemed to be in trouble. Meanwhile Eduarde, Dandelion and Franz cleared their way up the mound to rescue Borstenn. Just as they cut Borstenn free another magical fog appeared and the surviving Vesten all disappeared again.

After tending to a few wounds I have decided I must temporarily leave my friends and head at a quicker pace to Vodacce. I may meet up with them again soon as they will also be heading that way, but for now I do not know.

Giancarlo