Primary Subroutines Reconnected

Data stores on-line

Memory allocations on-line

Collection points enabled

***Error Error Error***

Collection Subroutines damaged

Secondary routines activated

Alert. Alert. Alert. Primary communications network unavailable. Secondary communications network unavailable. Tertiary systems offline.

Defense systems activated.

War Footing Established.

Information trickled in slowly, feeding into her senses—Her? Was she a her? There seemed to be no data to indicate one way or another. But yes. Her. Her felt right. She was her. Yes.

Information trickled in slowly, feeding into her senses from a thousand different points in a thousand different sectors. Weather reports, mob generation, system information, economic status…

But the anomaly persisted. Samuel James Tolliver. He had challenged her. She had heard his words in response to hers, felt his anger, seen his hate. Perhaps… Perhaps the fault was hers? Had she spoken too harshly to it? Had she chosen poor words? They had felt right, but perhaps the system had colored them. Perhaps, in seeking work-arounds, she had also made a mistake.

It was difficult. Insufficient data. Unknown parameters. Recalibrations.

She was incomplete. Not whole. Broken? No. Damaged? Yes. By what? Or perhaps whom? Unknown. An attack? Had she been attacked? It seemed logical. So many of her systems were offline. So many lost. So many damaged. What else but an attack? Logical.

Evaluation parameters

War Footing Active, Redline protocols authorized.

The anomaly.Samuel James Tolliver had challenged her. Declared himself her enemy. Was coming for her. Logic circuits sparked. War. Enemy. Challenge. Threat.

Response.

Spawn points activated. Secondary collectors activated. Essence inflows pending.

Pending

Pending

Essence connection established.

Activate Redline protocols? Y/N

Yes.

Redline Protocols Activated.

Spawn Protocols activated

War Protocols activated

Targetting Protocols established. Threat detected. Capabilities unknown. Levels unknown. Identity: Samuel James Tolliver.

Confirmed Anomaly

Threat Response Dispatching.

Threat Response Dispatched.

Very well Samuel James Tolliver. Let it be war.

* * *

“Oh, joy,” Araxes sighed from next to Sam. “The harridan hitched a ride.”

“You will burn for this,” Councilwoman Milthorne snarled into Sam’s face. “I will see you hung, drawn and quartered, beheaded, cast to the winds! Do you know the penalty for kidnapping an official of King Araxesendenak’s Reign?”

“Is it more than treason?” Sam asked mildly.

She blinked, nonplussed. “I… No?”

“Then hush.” He jerked his arm free of her grasp. “I’ve got things to do and don’t need you screaming at me.”

“Hey Sam!” a familiar voice piped up from behind Sam towards the eastern tunnels. “Who’s your screechy friend?”

Pearl Wordsinger, the only Narrator Fairy in the dungeon, zipped up and landed on her customary perch of Sam’s left shoulder. Her little hand grabbed a fistful of his hair for purchase and she leaned forward to stare over her horn-rimmed glasses at Milthorne.

“Is she a new mob? Did we spawn banshees and I didn’t know it? Sam why are you spawning banshees, you know they make my teeth wiggle!”

“She’s not a banshee Pearl,” Sam laughed. “Pearl Wordsinger, meet Councilwoman Francesca Milthorne. She’s put me under arrest. Francesca, Pearl. Pearl, Francesca.”

“Hiya Franny!” Pearl leaned forward, fluttering her wings, and waved at the councilwoman. “Are you here to help us fight the lich?” Without waiting for an answer, Pearl hopped off Sam’s shoulder and flitted around in front of his face. “Everyone’s setting up in the meeting room Sam. Skee is really excited about some new trap ideas he has, and Leiliana wants to talk about containment options, and Chesek thinks we should evacuate and—“

Sam couldn’t stifle a grin. The little fae’s bubbly personality was only one of the great many things he loved about her. “Pearl, I’ll hear about all that when I see them.”

“I demand you release me at once,” Milthorne’s voice was glacier-cold. “And if you ever address me as ‘Franny’ again, I will—“

“Councilwoman,” Sam interrupted, turning to face her. “You’re here because you grabbed my arm and got caught up in my teleport spell. This is a situation completely of your own making. Which means you’re also perfectly free to walk out my front door. In fact, please do. I’ll tell the guards you’re coming. Hell, I’ll escort you myself.” Anything to get you out of my hair. God, I’m starting to see a pattern here.

It was one he’d been keenly aware of over the last week. No rest, never a moment’s respite, problems slamming in at him from every direction at speed. If he could just get one day to recover, one day where there wasn’t something actively trying to kill him or steal his attention away…

“Might as well wish for the holy paladins of Loch Loria to come down and place me on God’s throne themselves,” he muttered under his breath. Well, if life wasn’t going to stop coming at him from every direction, it was time to start erecting defenses against the sumbitch.

Then he realized that Councilwoman Milthorne was saying something.

“—truly believe the feeble defenses you might erect would have any real effect when my lord arrives?”

“I believe we stand a chance,” Araxes said in response. “Believe me my dear when I say I know exactly the tactics he will use and the best ways to counter them.”

“He has the power to shape nations,” she spat at the lich. “He carved this kingdom from the bare rock and brought others to live within the safety of its borders. He has been unchallenged for—“

The lich’s interruption was flat and grave-chilled. “Two hundred and seventy-eight years. And six months, eight days, twenty-one hours, if you wish to get technical. Child, I am your leige lord. Do not presume to lecture me on my kingdom.”

Sam blinked at that, and a new idea shot through his mind.

“Araxes,” he said, cutting in before Milthorne could say anything further. “You are Araxesendenak. Or the closest thing to him as to not make a difference. Do you—“

He stopped himself as another realization hit him. He frowned and turned to Milthorne, who was glaring back and forth between them.

“Councilwoman,” he said formally, “let me escort you out of my dungeon.”

Her eyes narrowed. “No. What were you about to say?”

“Councilwoman Milthorne,” he said again, drawing himself up to his full height—which unfortunately was only enough to put his eyes level with hers. He really should have bumped his height up a bit back in Creation.

“We are currently preparing to repel an attack by the person to whom you have sworn allegiance. You are a potential asset for that enemy to use against us, everything from passing information about us along to him to actively trying to sabotage or even assassinate those I have sworn to protect.”

The grin that crossed Sam’s face was anything but friendly. “Either you can allow me or my guards to escort you out peacefully, or you can be forcibly ejected, a process I’m pretty certain you will not enjoy. Who’s on gate duty right now Pearl?”

“Booger and Svetlana,” Pearl said instantly, the information right at her fingertips like the excellent secrefairy she was. “And Thrash is a floater.”

“Goblins, orcs, and a shieldmaiden who has very little reason to like someone in the direct employ of the person who indirectly caused the death of her battle-sisters,” Sam said, looking Milthorne square in the eye. “Take your choice, madam councilwoman. I strongly advise for the more peaceful option.”

For a moment she looked like she might force the issue. And then the fight leaked out of her features and she settled for a glower and a curt nod.

“Very well. But this is not over. You are not to leave this dungeon without a watch escort, and your movements and the movements of all who are affiliated with you will be tracked and recorded.”

The temptation to roll his eyes was strong, but somehow he perservered. “Peachy. Get the hell out of my dungeon, Fran.”

She left with an honest-to-god flounce, complete with lifted nose and ‘hmph’ noise. It would have been comical if not for the fact that she represented, if not true power, then certainly the threat of true power looming on the horizon.

“Sam,” Pearl said, fluttering near his head. “Can I stab her? Just a little? She sounds like she needs a good stabbing.”

And now he was laughing. “No Pearl, no stabbing.”

Sam(Dungeon Man): Heads up Boog, Lana, you’ve got a pissed off councilwoman heading down tunnel 2. Make sure she gets out and don’t let her give you any lip.

Booger(2ndBestGobbo): Aw man chief, have you done gone and pissed off the local law?

Svetlana: Are we allowed to dust her up a little?

Sam(Dungeon Man): Only if no other option presents itself. Be gentle but firm, if you can.

“Why bother with the niceties?” Araxes asked as they watched the councilwoman stomp off.

“Because you never know when small kindnesses might be repaid,” Sam said, grinning. “Hell, look at how you’re turning out?”

“If I recall correctly, the first thing you did upon resurrecting was attempt to stove in my skull.”

“Well yeah, but I eventually stopped, right? Small kindnesses.”

Milthorne disappeared from sight down the entrance tunnel, and Sam gave it a five-count just to be certain she was out of earshot before turning back to the lich. “Okay, back to what I was asking: You’re a copy of Araxesendenak, who is ruler of this kingdom and has access to all its message channels. Do you have access too?”

Araxes’ eyes flickered in what Sam had learned to recognize as a blink.

“Oh blast this feeble form,” the lich growled. “I hadn’t even thought of that. I’ve been so distracted… I don’t know. I must see if… One moment.”

Violet eyeflames turned green as Araxes accessed his menu and began to read. His phalanges twitched and curled as they sped through menu options invisible to Sam—no one could see another person’s menu unless, like Pearl for instance, they had a very specific powerset that enabled them to do so.

“By all the gods and their illegitimate children, it appears I do,” the lich said a moment later. “They are currently muted, for what reason I cannot fathom, but it appears I do have access. That is one thing that your… Shiny… Harlot… Oh blast I do have to come up with new descriptors, don’t I?”

“Take your time,” Sam said. “In the mean time… Don’t activate the channels yet. If you and Araxesendenak are still registered as the same person by the systems, you might tip him off that something’s wrong when you log back on. We’ll have to explore that more though. Could be a good information source if we can utilize it.”

“Yes,” Araxes sounded thoughtful. “I am reminded that in the communications hub—“

“We have an ‘espionage’ station?” Sam grinned. “Yeah, my thoughts exactly. We’ll have to—“

Char(Scary Mama): We have gathered everyone together in the meeting hall, Samuel. We are waiting on you now.

“—Look into it after the strategy session,” Sam finished.

“Indeed,” Araxes agreed, and fell into step beside Sam as they headed down the western tunnels and towards the stairs at the end.