Mr. Dove and the Pipes of Creation

[Ancienne Alliance]

You have all my attention Mr. Dove


Best,

Robert

[starbkjrus]

Indeed...slender build? Perhaps Lord Swill owns the local eateries so my counterpart is less well fed.

In this reality I think I need to reach for the Orville Redenbacher :mrgreen:


Keep on Dave.......

[Jack Daw]

Of course, God's a piper. Probably makes his own reeds, too.

[davedove]

Scene 13


My head throbbed as I regained my senses. Unfortunately what met my senses wasn’t pleasant. The cold stone floor beneath me felt filthy and a stench of decay filled my nostrils.

As I tried to push myself up, a wave of dizziness swept over me and I collapsed back to the floor with a moan.

I heard movement and a pair of hands helped me sit up. “Easy there,” said a familiar man’s voice.

“Thanks,” I said to him. “They hit me pretty hard but I think I’ll be okay.”

“Commander Dove?” the voice said in shock. “What are you doing here?”

My eyes were slowly becoming accustomed to the sparse light in the room. I turned to face the man who had helped me. In the dim light he looked remarkably similar to the Steve Ashton I knew. It seems I had found the Wizard.

“Looking for you,” I replied, “But it looks like we’re both in a bit of trouble. And by the way, it’s not Commander Dove, just plain Mister Dove, but you can call me Dave.”

“Then you are the Mister Dove I was told to find. Captain Pleater never mentioned you would look so much like my ship’s Security Officer. Are you related, brothers perhaps?”

“No, I’m not a brother exactly. I’m the same man, but I’m from another dimension.”

“Another dimension? Like one of the alternate realms of creation the fiction writers describe?”

“Exactly like that,” I replied. I looked around my surroundings. We were in a large stone room with a single, heavy door. The bars of the door’s small window a faint light came in, probably from a torch or lantern outside. “Where are we?” I asked.

“In my dungeon,” said a weak voice from the shadows of the room. As I watched, a man crawled towards us. Although they were now dirty and torn, his clothes seemed to be well made and fairly luxurious.

“And who are you?” I asked.

“Oh, forgive me, David,” said the Wizard. “Mr. Dove, allow me to introduce Lord Swill.”

[davedove]

Scene 14


“Lord Swill?” I asked, “The Lord Swill who runs this village.”

The man shook his head sadly. “Yes, I am that man, or at least I was until that interloper arrived a few weeks ago.”

“Do you mean your nephew?”

“Nephew!” he spat out in disgust. “That man is no more my nephew than you are.”

“Then how is it that he’s running things now. He claims he’s working for you.”

“And behaving like a tyrant, yes, I know. Steven here has told me what the villagers have been saying. As I said, he arrived only a few weeks ago and asked for an audience. I try to accommodate all such requests and I granted his. Shortly after that I found myself here in the dungeon.”

“But how, what happened to all your men?”

“I don’t know; somehow he has gained control of them, or at least my inner council.”

“Controlling them, how?”

“Again, I don’t know. They seemed to follow his orders willingly. But when I looked at them, they didn’t seem the same. I believe he has bewitched them.”

“Bewitched? What do you mean?”

“Magic!” he declared, “Or sorcery, wizardry, whatever you want to call it.”

That made some sense, I thought to myself. This world was following a fantasy format, and thus magic would be a part of the setting.

“And he’s kept you down here since then?” I asked.

“Yes, a few times he has come down to question me, but usually I only see the guard who brings me a few meager scraps for a meal.”

“So, do you think Steven and I are in for the same fate?”

A shadow moved across the floor and a familiar voice came through the bars. “You will meet your fate soon enough, Mr. Dove. You will both be hung in the middle of town tomorrow morning.”

I slowly turned to face the door, but I had a good idea who I would see. There were slight differences in the lines on the face, but there was no mistaking the flowing blond hair.

Our captor was this world’s Grant.

[wildrover]

Moar! Moar!

...You have my attention ...

[Ancienne Alliance]

"Our captor was this world’s Grant. "

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo... ... ...

(despair...despair...despair)

[davedove]

Scene 15

“I take it you are the man claiming to be Lord Swill’s nephew?” I said to the man at the door.

“A necessary ruse,” he said to me, “in order to establish myself to the townspeople.”

“And why did you need to do that, to take over the town?”

“I have no interest in this town,” he answered. “As soon as I am done here, I will leave it to its fate.”

“Then why are you here?”

“Why, to eliminate you. It is all part of the Emperor’s plan to conquer this world. I was told to wait for one calling himself Dove and eliminate him.” He paused and examined me closely. “It’s amazing. You look so much like the King’s champion, yet you are obviously not him.”

“What makes you think I am not him?”

He laughed at my question. “Because although you look much like Sir David, the Guardian Dove, you do not act like him at all.”

Sir David must be my counterpart on this world, I thought to myself. “Why are you looking for me?” I asked.

“The Emperor received a warning from one of his advisors that you would try to stop his plans. He placed me here to intercept you and any allies you may have.”

“That’s why you imprisoned me,” Steven said.

“Yes indeed, Wizard,” our captor replied. “Imagine my surprise when my guards told me that a man had arrived looking for a Mr. Dove. I knew that it was only a matter of time before the one called Dove would arrive. Your asking questions in the town only served as bait to lure him to the tower.”

“I’m sorry, David,” Steven said to me. “I should have thought of that.”

“You had no way to know Steven. What happens now?” I asked our captor.

“You spend the night here and in the morning you will be executed.” He stepped aside and suddenly a plate slid under the door. The plate contained scraps of stale bread. Our captor again looked through the window. “Enjoy your meal gentlemen. It will be your last.”

[davedove]

Scene 16

The next morning came all too soon. Neither Steven nor I could come up with a suitable plan, as we didn’t know enough details about our execution. We could only hope that an opportunity would present itself.

The guards opened the door and entered our cell. Following right after them was our captor.

“Gentlemen, it is time,” he said to us. “You will stand still and allow the guards to bind you.”

Something about his words made me want to obey his commands and I stood perfectly still while the guards bound my hands behind me and shackled my ankles.

“You will remain silent and let the guards lead you outside. You will stay docile and cooperate completely.” He then said to us.

For some reason I couldn’t resist his commands. It was almost as if some force was controlling me.

That was it! There was a force controlling me. This world was based on a fantasy model. Magic was all too real here. Apparently, this world’s Grant was a sorcerer of some sort.

Steven and I were led outside, with Lord Swill being left in the cell. I suppose our captor needed to keep him alive to maintain the cover of being the Lord’s nephew.

I was momentarily blinded as we were led outside into the sunlight. The residents of the village were gathered along the street as we were led through town. Could I count on any of them to help me escape?

My question was soon answered when I saw a figure on the street ahead of us. It was apparently a dwarf from his size and was fully suited in finely polished chain mail. A steel helmet sat on his head with a visor protecting his eyes and nose. The dwarf held a large steel war hammer in his hands.

“Clear the road!” the guards ordered.

“I will not!” the dwarf answered. “You will release your prisoners immediately!”

“Jockel, is that you?” our captor asked in disbelief. “Where did you get that ridiculous outfit? Get out of the way before you get hurt!”

“I will not move! Release the prisoners now!”

This was just the distraction I needed, but how was I going to break the spell I was under. I didn’t know how to deal with magic.

Our captor stepped forward. “Leave the area now!” he commanded. I could almost feel the force of his command in the air.

Apparently Jockel felt it as well. I saw him sway slightly but he didn’t move. Somehow he resisted the magic. Could it be that dwarves were resistant to such things in this world?

Our captor also seemed surprised, but didn’t take long to respond. “Kill him!” he ordered the two foremost guards in the detail. The guards drew their swords and advanced on the dwarf.

Jockel remained standing without moving as the guards approached him. Thinking the dwarf to be an easy kill, the guards laughed and charged in attack.

The guards were soon surprised as the dwarf exploded into action. He spun to avoid the first guard’s sword. Lowering his war hammer he caught the guards legs and swept them from under him. The guard crashed to the ground.

Continuing the momentum of his swing, Jockel brought his hammer up and deflected the second guard’s sword, knocking it aside. Jockel drove his shoulder into the guard’s stomach and drove him back. The guard stumbled under the assault and fell to the ground. Jockel allowed his momentum to carry him over the guard before swinging the hammer back around and down, slamming the weapon onto the guard’s helmet and leaving a large dent. I could see blood oozing from around the edge of the helmet.

Jockel turned back to the first guard who was struggling to regain his feet. Jockel rushed forward and swung his hammer upward, catching the guard under the chin. The guard’s head snapped back with a sickening crack.

Jockel turned back to face my captors.

“Jockel?” my captor said in amazement.

“I am Jockel Stronghammer of the Iron Mountains!” Jockel declared so that all could hear him. “I have promised to protect that man and his friends. You will release them now or suffer for your mistake!”

[Livingston]

This is getting better and better.

<placing my order for popcorn to be delivered next Monday>