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The Heartwood
Loch Faast Keep
The Sluice Gates
Attaday, the Eighth Day of Yrick


Cesare, the Raccoon and Mouse 'sisters' and a selection of Forest Folk

From the dam Cesare’s boats made a gently northwestern course, heading away from the arched bridge and towards the Keep itself. It was odd. He wasn’t given a paddle, no. But the three punts moved all the same.

Rats, it seemed, were extremely useful. There was no paddle noise at all, just the soft slipping of the boat through the water like skating over ice. With the failing light the long arched bridge vanished into the darkness and for a while they were in a black bubble, seeing only water whichever way they looked.

Their destination had just faded into vision ahead of them when a loud horn echoed across the lake, a deep bawooom, a call to arms and alarms.

The horn itself was unexpected but also not surprising. It also meant that Pietro’s group had been discovered. But that was what a diversion was for, wasn’t it? At the same time, far from them, two sets of mill gates away, lights appeared along the walls. Not torches, but something more akin to the crystal shrouded lamps found at Home.

But none, it seemed, at the gates where his boats stopped. The edge of the parapet was about fifteen feet above the waterline, its crenellations making a tooth-like pattern along the circumference of the dam.

Getting from the lake to the parapet wall was easier done than said. Between ope and rats Cesare was lofted and set down before a doorway. The door stayed closed until, from the other side, a Mouse opened it. The small Forest Kin waved everyone inside.

“Quick-Quick”

Quick-Quick closed the door behind them. One of the deer wrestled a very huge bar across it.

The space was dim and shadowy, but it was illuminated. A set of crystal lamps maintained a path of light, so one could walk safely from one gatehouse door to its opposite mate in the other tower. The two mill towers were connected by a curved rectangular space. Indeed this arrangement made a modicum of sense. If the Tower was invaded, barring these two doors would prevent an attacker from gaining access across the shaft’s ring.

This left Cesare not alone but with a moment’s time. While fighting was going on outside, he could look about. And it was indeed a mill. And in retrospect, when Lyric assigned him – and he accepted – this task, it suddenly made great sense. Because he was a smith he was used to forges and smithies of all sorts. Smithies and mills often went hand in hand – it was an advantage of not being a wanderer, that a mills power could be turned into trip-hammers and bellows. And being thus mechanically acquainted he was the best one to conjure how this maze of axles, gears and pulleys worked.

A huge shaft ran vertically down the center of each gate tower, turning slowly but with tremendous power. It probably powered the keep, working the forges down below, pumping water from here to there, perhaps even pulling fresh air down and drawing bad air up. Here the great gears eventually turned a set of wheels, wheels around which were set darksteel chains.

There were three levels to the sluice gate house. The middle level, which was where they were right now, was primarily used for passage. An upper level, an attic, was accessed by a ladder and housed the mountings and crown gears of the windmill vanes. Last was a lower level, which could be looked down into from where they stood, which held bearings for the main shaft and support for other axles for transferring power to other locations within the keep.

They were two gates controlled by his mill, each by a wheel set against the stone wall. By the size of the gears he came to a sudden conclusion.

The sluice gates were more than heavy. Without the mill, without these gears, the could not be moved. If they were broken, the gates would be stuck in whatever position they were caught in.

So now all he had to do was wait.

Or so he thought.

Sometime later – he could not tell for how long, - there was a creak of metal and a wooden whunk from below.

Looking down, in the floor of the lower level, a trapdoor had been swung up and open. That there was a door suddenly made sense. Not only could the mill towers be used to block an enemies progress across the top of the shaft, they could also serve to bring reinforcements from below.

The interloper seemed to be alone. That made sense. If reinforcements were needed for an assault across the bridge, they’d probably come up the towers closest to the bridge.

It was the strangest person he had ever seen. He was like a barrel, but also as short as a barrel, with thick curly hair and a beard that didn’t seem to end. He had placed a heavy axe on the floor before him, probably to get out of the way and make climbing through the trapdoor easier. He was clothed in heavy leather and black meal – ether a smith or a warrior, one couldn’t tell.

He was the first Dwarf Cesare had ever seen.

On the bright side, the Dwarf seemed to be as surprised to find Cesare in his gate tower.

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Cesare

The journey had been strange enough but this collection of machinery is just as strange. However as he studied it, it's purpose seemed to become clearer. He is lost in his musing when there is a sound from below. They had company. A dwarf!

So they had to deal with the dwarf and secure that trap door.

"Need to bar that trap door.." he whispers as he loads his crossbow. His thoughts are that the dwarf will have to come to him and that might not be easy, and whilst he dodges bolts - hopefully not all of them - maybe some of his team could get down to that trapdoor.

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The Heartwood
Loch Faast Keep
The Sluice Gates
Attaday, the Eighth Day of Yrick


Cesare, the Raccoon and Mouse sisters and a selection of Forest Folk

In that moment of shock, Cesare easily unlimbered his crossbow, drawing back the heavy leather string and setting a quarrel in place. The crystal lamps gave ample illumination of floor below, as they were set to illuminate the path one would take from where he was to where the dwarf was.

The Dwarf shook his head once, as if to make sure he was not imagining, that is, that he had interlopers trespassing within his millwork.

The crossbow snapped and as far as Cesare could tell was that it did sail true.

The problem was that the dwarf did something unexpected.

He immediately dropped, back the way he came. The trapdoor closed behind him.

“Oh my … That is …”

The Mouse from the night before spoke first. Her companion, the Raccoon, completed her friend’s sentence.

“… probably not a good thing.”


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Cesare

"We need to secure that trap door and like now!"

He moves quickly, looking for anything they might utilise on his way. His mind is thinking heavy weights, bars, spikes. His eyes are firmly on the trapdoor every second it is in view. And he hopes that it can be barred from their side.

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The Heartwood
Loch Faast Keep
The Sluice Gates
Attaday, the Eighth Day of Yrick


Cesare, the Raccoon and Mouse sisters and a selection of Forest Folk

The words of the two Forest Folk ere still echoing through the gears and axles as the trapdoor slammed home. That was a good sign. It meant the hinges were on their side of the door, which, in turn made it very possible to bar it from their side. That there was a set of metal loops that would allow a pair of bars to be slipped through was a second sign that Cesare’s command could have a successful end.

Dwarves, it seems were also very organized. Those two bars were very easy to find, racked up against the wall near the trapdoor. The Rats lofted them into place while the two ‘sisters’ watched.

“I think we have …”

The Mouse spoke up, only to have her sentence completed by her raccoon friend.

“… lost our element of surprise.”

That was a legitimate concern, one that had all the Forest Kin looking back to Cesare.

“What do we do now?

“They will be coming back.”

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Cesare

"Well done."

He is thinking fast.

"Our best plan is to hold here, so we need to bar all the other entrances too. Hopefully they won't be able to get in easily whilst we figure out what we need to do in here. Once we get those waters flowing, then they will all have more important things to do."

There are a lot of 'what ifs' unvoiced in what he had said. But if they can hold in there long enough to achieve their mission, well that was the most important thing. Only one drawback - how would they know when to release the waters? Deal with that later.

"OK, lets secure the other doors and hatchways. Quick now."

He starts looking for other ways in.

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The Heartwood
Loch Faast Keep
The Sluice Gates
Attaday, the Eighth Day of Yrick


Cesare, the Raccoon and Mouse sisters, Quick-Quick and a selection of Forest Folk

Efficient and effective was the best way to describe Dwarven construction. At each door there were black metal loops and nearby the means to bar them. They had thought of everything, including protecting their gear works from an enemy assault.

Of course they had planned to be the ones being besieged inside this room, not the other way about.

It left them a moment’s quiet. Of all those involved in the rescue there’s was the most vital, they would ensure the destruction of the Forges. But for now their task was the most tedious – they had to just wait.

It did give Cesare time to examine the workings of the slice gates; not just how to raise and lower them, but what modifications he would have to undertake to raise them above safe operating levels.

There were chocks that needed removal and safety chains that had to be removed. But he had a Mouse that could jump to whatever spot he could see, a set of Rats who were strong enough to toss horses about and two ‘sisters’ who were clever with their hands and took instruction well.

So they were waiting, but busy in their waiting.

It also gave them a chance to talk if he wished.

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Cesare

It has been a while since he has looked at any machinery in detail. He tries to recollect the last time he did so. Then he remembers. The Highgaard. It was spring, a spring after a bad storm winter and the miller had all but lost his mill to the awful storms that had raged down his valley. The mill sails had completely gone, ripped away, not even a piece of wood remaining. Part of the structure had collapsed and much of the machinery inside damaged. Trouble was everyone in the valley had repairs to make and there were no free hands to help out a neighbour. So a small group of Rhoni arriving and looking for work were maybe more welcome than before. He had toiled beside that miller, along with his Uncle. They cut lumber, shaped sails, operated the forge, reshaped twisted metal and gradually a mill took shape from the chaos.

This was kind of like that challenge but in reverse. He needed to work out what parts performed which functions, then he had to construct a plan to utilise those functions for the Forest Folk and a way to lock it all in place so that it could not easily be undone. He must become that storm wind.

He looks around his companions.

"I think I have an idea of what we need to do but it will take many pairs of hands.. and timing. And we will need to practice but like play-acting, not actually doing the tasks until they are ready for us to release the water. So what we are going to do is to construct a verbal plan, one that works with numbers so we all know who has to do what and in what order. OK?"

And he grins.

For the first time he believes that they actually have a chance to pull this off.

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The Heartwood
Loch Faast Keep
The Sluice Gates
Attaday, the Eighth Day of Yrick


Cesare, the Raccoon and Mouse sisters, Quick-Quick and a selection of Forest Folk

The Forest folk gathered about Cesare, in a small tight circle, listening to his words.

It was one of the Rats that spoke first and when he did his headdropped a bit, looking slightly sad as he made this admission.

“We … you’ll find … we, uhm … well … uhm … we all … its just the way we are made.. We are pretty smart about following orders. The Old Masters never liked having to explain things twice.”

He then looked up, his long whiskers twitching, managing a shrug and a small smile.

“Who’d have ever figured that’d end up being a good thing?”

And it was. They picked up their tasks very fast and while some of them couldn’t count, not knowing their numbers, they were acquainted with the concept of team work – that things sometimes had to be done in the right order or else they went terribly wrong, like getting doused in boiling hot dragon’s blood or worse, causing a dragon to twitch or roll over.

There were several tasks that had to be managed. First, of course, would be raising the sluice gate. And the problem there was a sturdy length of black metal that spanned between the rails of the gate counterweights. The beam prevented the counterweights from lowering past a certain point, limiting just how far the gate could be opened.

Then there was the big capstan that actually raised and lowered the gates. If the gates were well balanced, turning the capstan was easy. Unlocking it, however? That was perhaps the most difficult task, taking fine dexterity to pick the lock.

Last, of course, was figuring out which gears and levers to jam and break to keep the gate open. It was easy locating which metal gear to somehow slip off its axle, to prevent the mechanism from working. More difficult, however, would be jamming the big lever arm that actually lifted the gate. Otherwise all you’d have to do is cut off the counter weights and the gate would fall back into its shut position.

The tools Cesare had to do this? There were other gears that could be slipped loose. There were various shafts that the gears rotated on that could be used. There were large and long leather belts that operated pulleys.

Obviously these mechanisms powered devices deeper in the Keep, but breaking them in order to get materials to do his task would probably be an acceptable loss. They’d be made useless anyway, if the keep were successfully flooded.

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Cesare

"Yes you are all pretty smart."

He grins at them.

"Who is the strongest? The quickest?"

He works through the process in his head, figuring that giving them one set of instructions would be much less confusing but he does need to know the capabilities of those gathered here.

He can pick locks, sure, he did that rescuing the girl from the warehouses but maybe someone here is better?

"Any of you good at picking locks?"

Asking always a good way to find out. He also looks at which pieces he can free up to use as tools and components. Hopefully if the others are doing their tasks, the dwarves may well be too busy to notice just now. Levers to jam, levers to prize off cogs, small pins to pick locks. Then he looks at the black beam to see how it might be removed or repositioned. And he will need spares, in case other eventualities crop up, or tools break or are lost. Lots to think about, lots to plan.

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The Heartwood
Loch Faast Keep
The Sluice Gates
Attaday, the Eighth Day of Yrick


Cesare, the Raccoon and Mouse sisters, Quick-Quick and a selection of Forest Folk

It was the Mouse Sister that spoke up first.

“We call her Quick-Quick because she is. She’s a very fast Mouse and can run up and down Home quicker than anyone else, without even being a Mouse. If the dishes need to be done she’s doing them even before you can finish asking her.”

She considered their other companions.

“While the Rats are strong in Rat ways, for lifting and pushing and doing big things, that’s what deer bucks are for. They are really strong so they get used for hauling carts of stuff through the mines. They are forged really really strong. When one of the mines move, sometimes they can push the mine back into place.”

She then hugged her raccoon friend tightly.

“And for doing fine little tricky things? That’s what raccoons are for. Raccoons are the hardest to rescue you know. Because they work with the Smiths, doing all sorts of fancy work. I rescued my sister, because I once got sent to deliver a message to the smithies and when I got rescued I asked the Wuffs to rescue her too.

“She may not be able to pick the lock, whatever picking a lock means, but she can turn it into a serving bowl or ladle, if that will help.”

The raccoon girl just smiled and nodded.

They probably weren’t the answers Cesare was quite looking for, but they should suffice.

One never knew when one would need a ladle, after all.

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Cesare

He smiles broadly.

"OK then there are some things we can do now and get a plan ready for when our time to act arrives."

He beckons over the raccoon.

"See these gears over here. As far as I can tell these are not part of the gate machinery, not used very often judging by the dust on them. So I'd like you to remove the gears, I'll help and then use the spindles to make lock picking tools, so I will need a small hook at each end of the spindle. Then we should be able to get at these pulley belts. Sister mice and Quick-Quick, I need you to unpin these small bolts holding the tops of the reels in place so that the rats can slide off the pulley belts. We can then fit these pulley belts to the deer as harnesses and use strips from one pulley belt, cut with those small gears, to tie the harness to opposite ends of the capstan wheel, which the deer will then turn later on. And we will need some of those flat metal bars too."

He smiles again. He thinks that this area of the machinery that they are dismantling is possibly a fail-safe system, hence its lack of use. But of course they don't want a fail safe system in place anyway.

"Another thing we can do in advance is to remove this black beam. It's job is to stop us from opening the sluices wide because it will prevent the counter weights from falling far enough. This is a team effort. Mouse sisters and Quick-Quick need to run along the beam and unscrew all of the nuts on the top of the beam. Gravity should then take over and all the holding pins fall out. Meanwhile the rats and I will remove the bigger bolts at each end. We may need tools for this but can use those flat metal bars. Held together either side of the nut should work just like a spanner. Then it will be up to me and the rats to pull out the black beam which we will need later."

So far so good. He just hopes this all works in practice.

"Then thanking Raccoon for my new tools, I will pick the capstan lock ahead of the Plan Start. I don't want to delay anything at a crucial time and I may need several attempts. Once unlocked the deer will need to hold the capstan in place until Plan Start."

He nods.

"Everyone OK with their roles, any questions? This part is not timed, which the Plan will be. So we can help each other as needed."

"We will get our signal hopefully at some point and then I will call Plan Start. And here is the plan."

"Deer are first to raise the gates
Turn that capstan round and round
Chains will release and drop the weights
Gushing water will start to sound.

"Once those sluices are fully flowing
Rats will lift that big black beam
And jam it in very deep, knowing
the waters will continue to teem.

Next the three mice and one raccoon keen
Will pull spindles, pins and gears of steel
Throwing the pieces into the complex machine
To wreck, damage, destroy and unseal.

The last part may be the hardest to do
As the lever arm needs to be bent in two
Two harnessed deer, rats and Cesare make the crew
And then it is Home for drinks and stew!"

It is a silly rhyme, and he really hopes Lyric never hears it as it falls so far short of her clever words to almost have never started. But it should do the trick. The rhymes make it easy to remember, the verses, one for each group, keep it simple.

Now they just need to rehearse and make their preparations.

"Right now lets get to work on creating our tools and removing this black bar.. and whilst we work we will each chant our verses in order so that the Plan is learned."

He chuckles and sets to work, offering help and guidance everywhere he can.

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*blinks*grins*wows*

Last edited by Wolf; Mon 15/05/17 16:38 UTC.
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Yeah, excellent post. Fits so well with the crew he has to work with too

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Thanks guys! grin Inspired by Wolf and his excellent cast of players.. with a nod to 'The Dirty Dozen'.

And Wolf, I understand that time moves differently in each of these threads. wink I am happy to be GM parked for a while at least until 'our' moment arrives! Enjoying reading all the other threads. Some nice touches in all of them! smile

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The Heartwood
Loch Faast Keep
The Sluice Gates
Attaday, the Eighth Day of Yrick


Cesare, the Raccoon and Mouse sisters, Quick-Quick and a selection of Forest Folk

They first whispered their litany, as if trying to get used to the words.

As the tasks were set to, the singing became stronger, as the Forest Folk learned their parts and conjured what needed to be done once the final signal was given. It became a chorus, as harnesses were made, as black metal was transformed, as the sluice gate safety bar was unbolted and set loose. The song may have been a simple one but it was also brilliant. Not only did it direct, set the order and instructions for breaking the keep, it also boosted the morale of the Forest Folk significantly.

They would be ready when the time came for them to act.

Watching the Raccoon Sister was fascinating. She leaned in, whispering to the metal as she worked it with dainty fingers – like a potter might their clay upon a spinning wheel. It was obvious that she could only manipulate small amounts of the metal; the larger pieces taking more time as she had to work one part and then another.

She smiled as she bounced over and presented the Rhoni his new set of lockpicks. It was more than interesting and very, very amusing once thought about.

Here idarksteel was the most common metal in the world. Beyond the Keep what was a set of darksteel lockpicks? Not only were they the most valuable thing Cesare had ever held in the palm of his hand they’d be the most sought after – darksteel picks could, probably, unlatch magical locks after all.

“Did I do it right?”

Working with scraps of leather was something they were very skilled at. And the moving of things and the need for a proper harness was something the larger Forest Folk were well acquainted with.

As they waited for their signal, they worked at preparing for their final tasks.

They had one bit of fortune. The sluice gate bar? When it was finally taken out it fell with a loud and solid bang. The entire tower shook; or at least the floor and gear-work where they were. What was that bit of good fortune?

It had fallen atop the trap door.

It took a bit, when Cesare finally became the focus of all attention as he worked at the capstan lock. The Raccoon Sister provided an additional bonus – if one of the picks needed to be modified to fit the lock – which happened several times –she was able to whisper it into a new shape. Eventually that barrier too fell.

The Forest Folk took a collective breath.

It was time to wait.

[[ OOC Note: an intermediate post to acknowledge that the preparations requested by Cesare were completed. Feel free to just talk to the Forest Folk now as you wait! ]]

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Cesare

During the preparations, Cesare spares a thought for his friends, both old and new. He is certain in his heart that he has the easiest task. He is actually having fun and somehow he doubts the others are that fortunate. But he wishes all of them well and hopes the Fates smile kindly on all of them from the smallest mouse to the largest human.

And he learns a lot too. He likes learning and as he suspected, these forest folk are very clever indeed. Clever, brave, selfless. Good qualities.

When he is presented with his 'picks' he laughs out loud and picks up Miss Raccoon and twirls her around before setting her back on her feet.

"These are wonderful. Marvellous!"

And then they all got back to work, each to their own tasks.. and suddenly it was done. They were ready. He only hopes that his plan, his design, is good enough and can measure up to these wonderful small folk.

"We are ready for the signal now.. and must stay ready so we don't waste any time in getting it started when the time comes."

He looks around at those gathered.

"Just like to say how proud I am of you all. You make my heart sing and my spirits soar. We are the best team I have ever worked with."

Probably the only team actually.. but why spoil a great thing?

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The Heartwood
Loch Faast Keep
The Sluice Gates
Attaday, the Eighth Day of Yrick


Cesare, the Raccoon and Mouse sisters, Quick-Quick and a selection of Forest Folk

“Lady teaches us never to count our berries until they are picked …”

It was the Mouse who spoke and the Raccoon Girl who completed the thought.

“… and we got our baskets ready but it isn’t time to go harvesting yet,.”

For the moment, then, there was only silence.

“I hope things are going well deep down in the Mines. It must be scary going back down there. It’s scary being here …”

The Raccoon girl started and the Mouse girl finished.

“… none of us have really good memories of being here at all, especially now that we know what Home is like. The only thing we had was each other and it was only when we got out that we understood just how much that means.

“The World is scary place, if you are alone, right?”

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Cesare

"Well after my mother died and my small family dispersed, I set off into the world alone. Didn't have a problem with that but it is better to be around friends, aye."

He nods in agreement.

"And I am not saying we have succeeded yet.. depends on others as well as us playing our part when called upon.. just wanted to tell you how I felt whilst I am able to do so. Could be a bit chaotic later."

**And let's us hope that is the least of our worries...**

"And it is scary but you all have something worth fighting for.. Home. Keep that uppermost in your thoughts this day."

He wants to keep their spirits high and focused. Not an easy task for a lonely Rhoni but he has learned much from his friends in their time together.

"Let me tell you a tale, a true tale, in which I was very very scared..."

And he relates the tale of the battle to rescue the two that had been held for such a long time, their daily trials, their steadfastness and bravery, about how he and his friends had fought those that held them captive and their giant lizards and the eventual victory which resulted in two new stars in the sky.

He thinks that there are many similarities with the situation here and that hopefully the forest folk can take some inspiration from the tale. And although he simplifies the tale a little, he does not hold back his feelings, the fear, the determination, his awe at the courage of those two captives, his joy in being part of the ending of that tyranny, his pride in them and his friends.

And it is true. It was a complete turning point in his life. A looking outwards to others that needed help and rescue, rather than an inward looking at life from his own viewpoint.

And, of course, this is why he is here now.

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The Heartwood
Loch Faast Keep
The Sluice Gates
Attaday, the Eighth Day of Yrick


Cesare, the Raccoon and Mouse ‘sisters’, Quick-Quick and a selection of Forest Folk

“And they became stars?”

“Really, truly?”

The Mouse and Raccoon asked the questions, at the end of Cesare’s retelling of the rescue of Tashka and Linette. It was Quick-Quick the Mouse that answered first.

“Cor … he’s right. I jumped to the top of Home one night and I saw them. Two stars where there weren’t stars before. You could tell because they are in a black space where there are no stars at all. Or weren’t before. Now there are.”

From the back, one of the deer speaks up.

“But none of us are heroes, like you folks, like the Young Master. We are … were … just tools. Now Lady says we are good folk, normal folk, and now we are, I guess … just like everyone else.”

The Mouse and the Raccoon just nodded.

“But you are heroes, come from afar to rescue our kin. You did not have to, you could have slipped past Home, let sleeping dragons lie, let the hauntings in that far away place go on. Even now. Moving big things. Lifting things. Working with nimble fingers, going from place to place. It’s not special. It’s just our everyday life. What we do to get from one day to another …

“We don’t know how to be brave like that. It is truly special. “

With a whumf Quick-Quick was there, sitting on a rail next to the deer.

“I know what Lady would say. She would remind us we are the youngest, the newest people in the Forest, in the World.

“We should be given time to learn.”

The Mouse looked back to the Rhoni.

“Do you think, one day, maybe, a long long time from now, there may be a Forest Folk hero, just like you are to us?”

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Cesare

He shakes his head slowly but there is a big smile on his face.

"You still don't get it do you? When we rescued those two from an eternity of pain and humiliation, we stepped outside of our ordinary lives, determined to do something that no one else had tried."

He looks around his little group.

"That is just what you are doing, stepping outside of your lives determined to do something that no-one else has tried.. and not for your own benefit but to end the tyranny and suffering of others of your kind, ready to maybe make the ultimate sacrifice so that others may benefit."

"I see heroes all around me. I am humbled to be in your company."

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The Heartwood
Loch Faast Keep
The Sluice Gates
Attaday, the Eighth Day of Yrick


Cesare, the Raccoon and Mouse ‘sisters’, Quick-Quick and a selection of Forest Folk

“That feels kind of strange …”

The Mouse looked back to Cesare, gnawing upon her lower lip. Her best friend completed her thought, as if she could read the other’s mind. Perhaps they had simply been companions for a long, long time.

“ … like being part of a minstrel’s song or a tale shared around the hearth fire on a Storm Season night.”

From their place, waiting for the alarm, the Deer spoke up.

“But it shouldn’t be. Weren’t you taught that when faced by the right thing to do, you are just supposed to do it? That it shouldn’t be a question of if?

“Master Renyard, Lady and Miss Broke all say that. They didn’t rescue us so they could be heroes. They did it because they just could not not.”

With a pop Quick-Quick appeared next to the Rhoni lad.

“We do learn fast though. Lady says every time you help someone you gain a little bit worth. And for us, even a little bit of worth can be the difference between staying Awake or becoming Homesick.

“Do real people … well I guess we are real people now too … do other people worry about how much worth they are?”

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Cesare

"I know you learn fast Quick-Quick, all of you."

He grins at the obvious pairing of name and action.

"And no, most other people do not. Tend to be too wrapped up in their own lives, chasing goals, many of which like wealth and power don't really matter or have =real= value. I spent a lot of my life feeling I'd done something wrong, that outside of my family I had little value to anyone else. But then a.. a friend of mine Daxia - lady Bekkar's sister - opened up another path for me, measuring myself by what I can do for others.. and that nothing is impossible."

He paused and smiled softly.

"And so that path finds me here, here with others that are also learning that lesson."

And he looks at deer, Raccoon, Mouse sister, the rats.

"And I don't think you ever get used to it."

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The Heartwood
Loch Faast Keep
The Sluice Gates
Attaday, the Eighth Day of Yrick


Cesare, the Raccoon and Mouse ‘sisters’, Quick-Quick and a selection of Forest Folk

**whumf**

It was not the last thing that Cesare had expected to see. Indeed, he had been waiting and waiting for this exact moment.

But the manner was not what he expected.

It was not just a Mouse. It was a Mouse whose travel cloak was soaked and splattered with deadly splashes of blood. Emerald eyes met his, framed by sweat tangled hair and streaked in crimson and brown. It was not the kind Mouse he had expected, the one he had met in Talantal. Now she held, far too easily, two curvy daggers blacker than Darksteel. They were truly midnight dark.

And they dripped.

It was the Executioner. He had heard the whispered tales happened when her beloved ones were threatened. This was proof of the truth of those rumors.

When she spoke, however, there was a soft sadness in her words.

“It is time.”

Deer are first to raise the gates
Turn that capstan round and round
Chains will release and drop the weights
Gushing water will start to sound


It was anything but a silly rhyme.

It was hard work coming to fruition. It was the reason they were there. The Deer lay into the capstan and with a deep dark mechanical creaking it turned. When it turned so did gears and chains. Pulley cables were drawn and he could watch as the massive counterweights moved downwards.

It took a bit, just a little bit and in fact it was not immediately apparent – that the slowly growing background rumbling was not machinery but water pouring through the unseen sluice gates.

With the safety pins having been previously removed, there was nothing to keep the counterweights from continuing downwards. Which meant there was now no limit to how high the gates might be lifted.

Once those sluices are fully flowing
Rats will lift that big black beam
And jam it in very deep, knowing
the waters will continue to teem


It never stopped being amazing, watching the Rats at work. Just one, just one could lift a heavy barrel across the hall or loft a person safely to the top of a stone wall. But when they worked together the heaviest weights floated through the air like leaves on an autumn breeze.

And when they were a group of rats that worked together, having lived and worked in the brutal environment of the mines below, they made it seem easy.

They also showed the other side of their work.

They too were very dangerous.

The tower literally shook when they slammed the darksteel beam into the gate mechanism. So far, so hard, it surely wasn’t going anywhere and was probably protruding halfway out the other side.

Next the three mice and one raccoon keen
Will pull spindles, pins and gears of steel
Throwing the pieces into the complex machine
To wreck, damage, destroy and unseal


It was a hard working chorus that sang out Cesare’s silly rhyme. Their actions matched their words. The other Mice jumped from gear to gear, from pulley to pulley, taking them apart and tossing them into the machinery below. Sometimes they’d just grab a metal or wooden bit and then with a whumf be elsewhere - taking the object with. Sometimes they would jump high in the air just to drop their broken part and then jump to safety before they fell.

That was the Other Mice.

Because the last, the last one sang a duet with her adopted sister. They took the capstan apart. It did not, however, come to a stop. Both of them reached out to yank Cesare out of the way, and fast, as it started to free spin. Faster than a top, its spokes becoming a blurred hurricane whirl.

The last part may be the hardest to do
As the lever arm needs to be bent in two
Two harnessed deer, rats and Cesare make the crew
And then it is Home for drinks and stew!


Only then, when the song came to an end and the fate of Loch Faast keep was sealed that miss Emerald Mouse leave for her next destination.

For Cesare the boats awaited.

To take him and his team back Home.



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Cesare

As expected Emerald appeared, though this is not an Emerald he ever wanted to meet in a dark alley. But her arrival signalled the start of their finale, the last act of a few brave souls, maybe the final chapter in this rescue, certainly the start of the final chapter.

There was a deep seated satisfaction in seeing the plan put into action, everyone playing their part as if in a well rehearsed play. Soft chanting of the rhymes accompanied the work along with grinding, cracking, grating, a whole cacophony of noise, much like a badly tuned orchestra.. but sweet to his ears.

He looks around at his crew. Nods.

"We done good."

Simple words but they said everything they needed to. He picks up his crossbow.

"To the boats."

He unbars the door, the way they had entered and takes a quick look.

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