#36 - A Game of Six Stones

As told by Magnus of the Island of Seren.

Six Stones is a contest for monsters: A fight in an arena, where seven contestants enter and then the ringmasters introduce a basilisk. The seven compete to force each other to meet the basilisk's eyes, which can turn one quite literally into stone. Once there are six stones, the last remaining man is the victor.

No weapons, no spells, lots of trickery and brute force. For some reason, Zerasha the medusa priestess believed she could read our fates, and our connection to this "Winter Coalition" group, better if we "assume stone form," and that one good way to be stone was by basilisk. She promised that we could be turned back from stone again afterwards. Doongul was going to sit out the game and oversee the care of our stone selves. Until, of course, he gives in to a medusa's own gaze.

Everyone told me that if we participated in Six Stones, we could gain favor for the upcoming fight against the ogre mage—the oni leader of the Skinners gang—in another arena match next week. So all right, we’d do it.

We stored our valuables and weapons and armor and money and trinkets at the House Kundarak bank. The dwarves, I'm told, can be trusted with possessions. Everyone looked like a peeled shrimp without their armor and cloaks and stuff, except Cypher. He looked just about the same. Except that for some reason, he is deciding to wear a stuffed bear on his head, the one he got in that backpack prize from that gargoyle street fight a couple days ago. I am not sure I will ever even want to know what goes on in his head.

Anyway, lots of talking and pecking around to see if the rules are actually rules (they are). And more talking to find out if anyone will notice if the rules are broken (they will be). More talking about if there will be consequences for breaking the rules (there will be). Finally, they led us to the Arena.

The Arena was pretty big and dark. We head in and go through a mini version of what we all talked about before, except here, we all say “yes” about following the rules (was that so hard?). Drix tells us about some notables in the stands, folks who could give us favor in the bigger bout to come: Tharashk orc-kin, some human general, a goblin, I don't know. I wasn't really paying attention to her. No, wait, she also said there was someone named Misfit watching: a changeling "courtesan" from the brothels in Calabas. All right, I remember that one.

But whatever, just let us fight as best we can and let the crowd be pleased.

We went through a magic wand interview looking for smuggled magic. The only thing that showed up was Cypher’s bear on his head, which he made glow with some minor artificer magic. He turned it off, but kept wearing the silly thing.

Soon enough we were led out into the actual fighting space, and sent to our positions (which were marked by ghosts of us!). As we assumed our spots, the ghost images went away. So, it’s me, Cypher, Xoma, and Rendar—we’d agreed NOT to act as a team, better crowd pleasing that way. The other three were that giant warforged we'd met, Grapnel, and his two human Karnnathi keepers. Tough contest.

A medusa in red robes walked out and announced us each to the crowd, with not much cheering to follow.

1. "Sergeant Ved, human of Karrnath." Younger man.
2. "Captain Arlen, human of Karrnath." Older man.
3. "Grapnel, warforged of Karrnath." Big construct.
4. "Rungo, warforged of Breland." (Cypher had given the name of the damned stuffed bear.)
5. "Magnus of the Seren Isles." I tell it like it is.
6. "Xoma, dark elf and Vulkoori Lord of Xen'drik." Fancy.
7. "Lord Rendar Torinn d'Tharashk, of the Shadow Marches." The crowd liked him best. Must be the tusks.

The medusa announced that ours was a special “softskins” match (tell that to the warforged!) and then left. Then an ogre dragged a beat-up chest to the center of the ring and walked off. That hadn't been mentioned in the rules.

Without any warning, Xoma zipped over to the chest to be met there by Cypher. NO WAY were those two getting in there first, so I charged into Xoma, grabbed him and pushed us both into Cypher. Xoma wriggled free and Cypher punched him.  (That should've gotten the crowd to see that we were not a team).

One of the Karrns grabs me, and his buddy hides by the entry gate. Xoma swivels to open the chest, Rendar punches Grapnel, who didn’t seem to mind. Cypher pushed Xoma away from the chest and opened it up. I couldn't see what’s inside, but the drow and the warforged started grabbing. Grapnel, meanwhile, grabbed Rendar and pointed him towards the opening gate.

Enter the basilisk, a large, eight-legged lizard wearing a helmet (that covered its eyes)! Not yet able to turn us to stone. I grabbed the Karrn nearest me and dragged him towards the lizard. Xoma pulled a rope out of the chest and reached back in. Something in there was full of magical power and hit him with lightning hard enough for him to let go and back away fast.

This little Karrn wiggled free and ran away from me, his buddy staying quiet by the gate. Grapnel kept his hold on Rendar and started to twist his head toward the basilisk. Cypher reached for my Karrn and managed NOT to fall down after tripping on some sand (!?). Maybe he was blinded by the damn bear on his head.

At just about this time, some wand-waving happens and the basilisk’s helmet fells away. Primed and ready to petrify!  Don’t look.

I grabbed the other Karrn and he started wriggling, this old goat was wiry and tough! He turned around and got a hold on me, whispering some crap in my ear.

Xoma made a lasso with the rope over in the corner, he got some space and a few seconds to think—that would do him some good, I was betting. Rendar broke free of Grapnel and tried to get clear. The huge warforged just batted Rendar with a fist and grabbed him again. I think he was talking, too. Apologizing? But ouch, I could see he had a good arm. Cypher grabbed the nearest Karrn and the freaking basilisk pounds me with its tail. I couldn't break the hold this old man has on me and I was getting beat up to boot!

Xoma advanced and lassoed the clutch of arms and legs that was Cypher and the Karrn, but only Cypher was entangled and then Cypher was restrained by his foe. The other Karrn forced my head around and I stared unblinking into the eyes of the lizard. Its eyes were green and I got lost for a second, but I shook it off and kept struggling. The damned Karrn kept talking, telling me to give up. Ass.

Rendar and Grapnel were a blur of twisting holds and bulging muscle. Neither could get an advantage but steel should prevail unless Rendar could get some help. The basilisk mashed me again with a tail slap, ouch! I couldn't take it any more—rage overcame me, so I broke free of that damned Karrn. He tried to grab me again but NO WAY IN HELL KHYBER FERNIA SHIT.

Rather, I was pissed off and was not having any of that.

The second Karrn helps Grapnel with Rendar and together they bent his head and forced him to look at the lizard. Rendar growled and wiggled around as best he can—at least it took numbers to bear him down, good man—but it wasn't looking good. He started to stiffen up as the basilisk steps on his head and presses its face right in, staring back at Rendar.

Cypher tumbled out of the lasso, Xoma said something to him and they charged together, each holding an end of the rope, stretched taught between them. The Karrrn dodged but Grapnel was caught in the rope, clotheslined. The crowd seemed to enjoy this. Rendar keeps trying to twist away, but they held him too long enough. He resisted the petrification as long as he could. Grapnel pounded Rendar im the back with a metal fist, trying to break him. Rendar was resolute.

The basilisk bashed Cypher with claws and I punched the Karrn in my grip. He couldn't break free and now I had him looking at the basilisk.  I felt him stiffen. I heard the crowd yelling, even booing, and I looked up to see that Rendar—the one closest to all the monsters of this city—had left us. Turned to stone. The basilisk was climbing up the Rendar statue to glare at Grapnel next.

Xoma and Cypher tightened the rope and the basilisk got a good look at Grapnel, who started to stiffen up, too. Cypher got the other Karrn in a hold and pointed his head toward the basilisk. The man locked up, but neither warforged nor human was stone yet. Still, a few more seconds and it should be me against Cypher against Xoma.

My thought was: Who should I go after first?