Iorrjaer

Chapter 24

 Upon hearing that there was a hag in Ockburg, Sorâth set into immediate action. His first order of business was to get his team back into functioning order and to do that, he had to break through the barrier that kept him from the pot in the kitchen. Sorâth entered the second room to face the wooden barrier and froze. His mind filled with possibilities of what could happen should he smash his way through.

One and the most important, the release of some toxin that would kill them all. The rot on the wood had already spread, so time would dispel it but he did not have the time to wait for the rot to undo itself.

Another was to ask Bethar to come in and burn it all away. Although Bethar was unstable and a release of fire may work, or it may kill Bethar, or it may kill them all. He weighed the probability of each and the possibility of an all consuming death prevailed.

Lastly, he thought of Hasmael. Hasmael's Bërrdiwüt state made him immune to magical effects. It was also proven that despite that immunity, he did have a weakness to necrotic magic. Could he be the one to dispel the whole situation? Would it kill him? Who else had the constitution to withstand such a volatile combination? He would surely lose Malka, and that alone was reason to delay using Hasmael until he knew more about what was in that pot and what the rot would release.

That's where Kârael found him. Stuck in a perpetually impossible decision. Who would he sacrifice? Was the correct person himself?

"Sorâth!" Malka called, sleepily. "Don't you dare stir that pot."

Kârael, journal in hand, Sorâth stuck in his own head and the others barely holding on, decided to do something that he was not sure would work. He headed back outside and looked back down towards the tavern.

"If you are listening, if you can hear me." He said normally in elvish. "If you have anything that you can spare to help us, please. Greater things are at work here and we are here to stop them. But we are incapacitated. We need your help."

Nothing happened. Kârael trained his ears around and heard something happening at the feasting grounds but what could have drawn his attention was drowned out by a dull hum that echoed from the ziggurat. Turning his gaze towards it, he saw that it was coming alive. Streaks of magical energy ran along its exterior. Stopping midway up its first tier and slowly but steadily making progress. Kârael took this as a sign similar to an alarm. Should the energies make it to the top, they were too late.

"Please!" He heard himself say. "Please!"

Nothing happened again and he returned to the house to see rainbow specks starting to dance around. The specks found their way to each member. They hovered before Malka and Shedmoth, Hasmael and Bethar, Graphiel and Yophiel and Barsabel. Even before Sorâth was a tight cluster of rainbow specks. Some of the specks broke away from the others and came to Kârael. He was familiar with this magic. He smiled.

In an exhale of wind that caused the specks to vanish. Rin appeared, at least an apparition of her. She looked around at everyone and then moved over to where Sorâth remained. She came back to Kârael.

"Thank you for calling me." She said barely recognizable elvish. Further proving to Kârael that she was from an era that far exceeded his or even Sorâth's time. "Tell me everything."

Kârael did not know where to begin and she sensed his delay.

"Here. Start here."

"Entering this town we felt the effects of some kind of magical dampener. Malka, our wizard, described it as their magic being sealed within."

Rin glanced around and tried a few different cantrips. They worked but did show signs of dampening. She looked at Yophiel for a curiously long moment.

"Malka tried a spell and noted that he saw something, something that scared Sorâth. A hag. Or the presence of one."