*The Falcon Pin and the Discovery of the Infirmary by Lyvonia [#j0f91491]

River's Rest is a town of mysteries and for many years, one that had perplexed those that took up residency there was that of the door that could never be opened, phased through or unlocked. The door was part of a white building in the Citadel complex situated next to the zoo. As time progressed, most efforts to find out where the door led to or what the building was faded as many figured that it would be one of the many mysteries that would never be solved. All this changed however, not long ago with the return of the enigmatic elven scholar, Taistil.

Taistil Agalloir appears to be in his 130's and bears long, braided white hair and tanned leathery skin. From his appearance and clothing, he looks to have spent many of his days traveling from city to city and town to town, studying lore and researching in libraries and archives. He had appeared in River's Rest once before gathering stories of things that people had seen during their time in the lands. This time, however, his return to River's Rest was not to gather knowledge or historical information. Rather, he had come to impart an artifact that he had come across in his wanderings. Though he professed to have no concrete information about the object, he believed that it had something to do with the Citadel. The artifact proved to be a cloak pin, which he entrusted to Lord Frijthof Shoun, founder and at the time, chair of the Beacon Hall Archives, provided that he would house it in the museum that were proposed to be a part of the building of the Archives. With that, Taistil took his leave once again and it would not be for many months until he returned.

The cloak pin is a disk of carved onyx. Inset in silver is a stylized image of a falcon's head. On the obverse side of the onyx pin is the inscription "Falcon Company...First to Fight." A small nick mars the beauty of the cloak pin. Once sung to by a bard, it became apparent that the nick was not the result of time, but bore witness to a fortuitous event in the original bearer's life, and death. Frijthof pressed Oliga, a bardess who was in town at the time to sing to it and the following are the images evoked by her song as she saw them:

'''"You become dizzy and disoriented as you begin to sing. Time becomes fluid, distance becomes an illusion. As your senses recover you see a gathering of young, uniformed men and women of all races...Elves, Humans, Halflings, Giantkin, Dwarves. They stand in formation in a large, marble-floored chamber. In the background are six pennants, three in blue and three buff-colored. On the buff pennants are the images of a boar, a ram and a thrak. On the blue pennants are a falcon, a hawk and an eagle. In the center of the room is a marble stairway. Standing on the bottom step is a tall warrior in battle armor. A large blade hangs naked at his side. One by one the young cadets step proudly forward and are embraced by the tall warrior, who then presents them with a cloak pin."'''

'''"Out of the mist comes a patrol of young soldiers wearing blue-grey cloaks, all bearing the falcon head cloak pin. They are led by a grizzled, human sergeant. His face bears the scars of many battles and brawls, one ear has been almost completely chewed off. The sergeant glares at a young, half-elven woman hobbling near the rear of the patrol. He raises a hand to his mouth and makes a soft clucking sound like a nesting grouse. The patrol halts. Four soldiers take perimeter stations while the rest relax. The sergeant gestures for the young half-elven woman to remove her new boots. Her feet are covered with bleeding and oozing blisters. The sergeant mutters to himself and reaches into his pack for a jar of salve."'''

'''"As I continue my song I find myself suddenly surrounded by noise. Shouts of desperation, the barking of orders, the clash of weapons, the screaming of wounded. Soldiers wearing blue-grey cloaks are in a running skirmish by a large band of trolls and krolvin pirates. The half-elven woman, older now and bearing a fresh wound in her arm, tugs at her broadsword, which is firmly wedged in the ribs of a dying krolvin. The grizzled sergeant, herding his squad toward the tall spires of a citadel, hesitates long enough to shout at her. He kicks a krolvin boarding axe in her direction. She snatches it up, grinning fiercely. They run to catch up with the others, pursued by howling trolls and barking krolvin."'''

'''"As I sing the scene shifts again. Now you are haunted by a deathly quiet. You see the one-eared sergeant pull shut the door of whitewashed building. Inside are hallways leading north, east and west. Furniture is piled in each of the hallways, forming crude barricades. The sergeant clambers over one barricade to where a small band of soldiers rests, sharpening their weapons and repairing the straps of their armor. The half-elven woman has her back to the wall, half asleep, the krolvin boarding axe still in her fist. The sergeant walks among the soldiers, offering advice and words of encouragement...though none of hope. Suddenly a krolvin pirate leaps over the barricade, thrusting a spear into the chest of the sergeant As he collapses still more krolvin attack. The half-elven woman kills the first krolvin and stands over her fallen sergeant, dealing death to any foe who comes within the reach of her blade. A thrown dagger strikes her cloak pin and ricochets into her throat. She falls to one knee, puts one hand to her throat, looks up into the battle-crazed face of a krolvin, sees an axe blade arcing toward her head...."'''

The images brought to light when the pin was sung to revealed many things. The description of the tall spires was that of the Citadel located near River's Rest on the mainland at a time before it had fallen during the Kannalan Empire. It was discovered that the whitewashed building was none other than the one in the citadel grounds that bore the door that could not be opened. When Taistil was to return to River's Rest again, months later, he came to give lectures regarding the colorful history of the town, some of which enabled us to understand more about what the pin revealed.

Taistil related how, at the time of the Kannalan Empire, River's Rest grew to be a glorious trading port. With the rise of wealth, prosperity and power, the Empire grew overly confident and began to believe in their own indestructibility. The threat of barbarian attacks were never taken seriously by the Emperor and the leaders of the kingdoms were unable to prevent their own downfall. Eventually, all kingdoms were lost to the barbarian raiders, except River's Rest. The town became the last to withstand the assault of the barbarians and kept that stand for many years.

The last Commander of the Citadel was an excellent tactician and divided he army into two battalions, a heavy battalion and a mobile battalion, each of which was comprised of three companies. Each company was represented by an insignia; the heavy battalions were represented by beasts of the land: a boar, a ram and a thrak. The mobile battalions were represented by birds of the air: a falcon, a hawk and an eagle. In the pin song, the pennants bear
these insignias on a field of either buff (symbolizing the land) or blue (symbolizing the air). As was described in the pin song, the army was an amalgam of different races. As the notoriety of the Last Commander arose, warriors from the surrounding areas joined the army and benefited from their collective strength and enthusiasm. The most elite and what proved to be the most effective company in the army was the Falcon Battalion which relied on speed to serve devastating raids on the enemy's supply trains. Their effectiveness in this manner of fighting served the army immeasurably, not only in cutting off the necessary supplies of the enemy but also in boosting the morale of their own army. Being chosen for the Falcon Battalion was a honor which was not lost on new cadets and is apparent in the pin song. The pin itself is an emblem of pride.

The time span between the times of the Last Commander and the images in the pin song is about five hundred years and during that time, the Citadel suffered a slow and agonizing fall. It began with the ascension of Millah Pradapt to the position of First Cord within the Falcon Battalion. She was a war leader who had come from the eastern tribal regions and was able to engage the Falcon Battalion with it's greatest efficiency and effectiveness. It was under her auspices that the Falcon Battalion gained it's greatest notoriety. She also gained the favor of the Last Commander but was spurned by the Council of Mages. The Last Commander had created the Council of Mages at the time of the restructuring of the army. The role of the Council was to advise him on the tactics and uses of magic in the war effort. Millah Pradept was a prideful warrior and refused to use magic in her maneuverings and engagement of the Falcon Battalion. As a result, the Council of Mages turned against her and proved to be an issue of contention between herself and the Last Commander.

In the spring of 4011, the Commander planned a large offensive against the enemy hordes and it was to be the Falcon Battalion that would lead the first blow. The night before the attack, the Commander went to her tent to encourage her to change her mind regarding the uses of magic in the assault. The next morning, his body was found in her tent. The Commander's untimely deathbegan the unraveling of the Citadel. The campaign was put on hold
and Millah Pradept was arrested for his death. Regardless of her protestations and the testimony of her troops to the contrary, the Council of Mages threw her in the brig and was never seen again. A new Commander was never named as it was the custom for the previous Commander to name his successor, which was never happened due to the untimely death of the Last Commander. The Council assumed control of the kingdom but were never able to effectively lead. The kingdom lost lands to the hoards of trolls and orcs which had been plaguing it for centuries. The Mages turned to dark magic instead of the army, resulting in the creation of undead and mongrel creatures meant to battle the hordes. As a result, the populace of River's Rest became alarmed and refused to support the Mages or the Citadel. The solution the Mages turned to was to crush the dissidents and force them to renew their support of the Citadel. With reluctance, the town acquiesced and renewed their support.

However, when the krolvin joined forces with the troll raiders in 4058 M.E., the fragile balance shifted in favor of the barbarians. The Council of Mages were unable to reach a consensus about how to meet this new threat. In the end, the loss was complete. The town of River's Rest, which had relied on the Citadel to provide military support was overrun and were few survived to flee. The Citadel compound was breached and the images of the final hours of the Citadel are captured within the pin song. The Falcon Battalion, still prideful, but having lost the support of the town and the leadership and support of the Council made their last stand in the infirmary. The invaders killed everyone that they found. However, the complexities of the swing bridge to the Citadel fortress refused the entry of the krolvins during the attack. When the krolvins were able to finally cross the bridge the day after the attack, the fortress was empty with the exception of some corpses of the guards stationed there. No one knows what became of the Council of Mages.

The krolvin pirates that fought with such bloodthirsty force during the attack still inhabit the infirmary where the last stand was made by the most elite force in the army. The compound of the Citadel still reflects the ferocity of the attack but nowhere else is it more evident than in the infirmary. The infirmary had been sealed up for centuries by some magic, perhaps a curse, that only the return of one of the Falcon Battalion's cloak pins could dispel. When Oliga related the images she saw when she sang to the pin, Frijthof and the others with him came to realize that the building which the troops had retreated to in order to make their final stand was the enigmatic building in the citadel grounds that had the door which would not open. With a new found curiosity, Frijthof, Higuchi and Aeto ran off to find the door as impassible as ever. It was not until Frijthof wore the pin that they were able to push in the door and be the first to have stepped into what proved to be the infirmary for over a thousand years. In that time, the building and its contents have been rather well preserved, and bear only some signs of decay.

Upon entering the infirmary, on sees the following: Furniture has been piled in each of the hallways leading away from the entry room, forming ineffective barricades. Each of the barricades has been breached. Skeletons, all savagely hewn and hacked, are strewn about the area. A sign hangs crookedly on the wall. The sign reads: Infirmary. Quiet Please. When the skeletons are examined, the result evidences the brutality of the attack: The hacked and hewn remains of humans, elves and dwarves all lie entangled in a tragic embrace with those of krolvin. bits or armor and broken weaponry lie scattered among the skeletons. It may in fact be that brutality which has enabled the krolvin pirates who died in the attack to continue to haunt the infirmary beyond the grave. Their brutality is apparent just by looking at them: Gnarled white hair drapes in locks over the krolvin pirate's face, which is fixed in a constant murderous leer. The pirate's puffy grayish-blue skin is slashed and punctured with what must have been mortal wounds, but the foul creature before you pays the ancient injuries no heed as she seeks to continue her plundering ways well beyond the grave. Though perhaps not so difficult for the seasoned and well trained hunter to overcome, the undead pirates which reside there are comparable in strength to their living warrior counterparts. However, these undead pirates also carry a powerful disease. If infected the hapless adventurer could die rather quickly if they are unable to ward off the disease or cannot heal themselves sufficiently. The disease is potent and dissipates slowly once established in the body.

The pirates carry long-handled gaffs and boarding axes, both are used onboard seafaring vessels. Gaffs are long poles bearing a nasty hook on the end. They are most commonly used to grab rigging, objects or fish out of the water, or to pull up next to another vessel before boarding it in an attack. A gaff makes for a particularly gruesome weapon, causing puncture and rending wounds. Boarding axes are carried by raiding parties when boarding another ship. Though they can be used as the krolvins do- as a weapon against their enemies, they also are used to break down doors, cut lines or rigging, and for basically breaking things when attacking another ship. Boarding axes are small one handed affairs, similar to a hatchet, giving it increased maneuverability compared to waraxes. The size of the axe also makes it useful when not engaged in warfare for cutting rigging and for making other repairs- although the krolvin seem to spend few hours on peaceful affairs.

The krolvins are communicative, although it seems they have a few preferred phrases. They speak a mixture of common and krolvin, making for colorful and somewhat puzzling phrases and sayings. "These grarrog wouldn't last a week on a fighting ship!" This is one of their favored sayings, "grarrog" apparently meaning something like "weaklings," which they frequently use against their combatants. Other sayings that they've been known to use are: "Ye're like the rest o' yer kind...ain't got grawel pra awrda!" the meaning of "grawel pra awrda" can only be guessed at, but probably means something like "guts" or something to that effect. "I see the mordg in yer eyes, puny grarrog!"; "mordg" probably meaning "fear." "Best be fer runnin', grarrog! This currarik is now gno Krol!"; "currarik" may mean "building" or "place"and "gno Krol" perhaps means "belongs to Krols." "Ap gno Krol, an' I spit on yer corpse, grarrog!"; this is a bit more confusing, as "Ap gno Krol" could mean almost anything along the lines of "long live the krols" or "power to krols." "Moradg tezt gno Krol!"is another enigmatic saying which could amount to almost any patriotic saying until more of the krolvin language is revealed. And finally, "Got some good booty fer the cap'n!" which is rather self-explanatory.

The breaching of the infirmary must have been a fast affair once the Falcon Battalion had been overcome. There is evidence everywhere of things haven been disrupted quickly. The treatment rooms still bear the skeletons of patients and their surgeons who had been interrupted in their work. Implements, herbs and the like still remain. Having little to defend themselves with, the surgeons and patients probably put up but little resistance and as a result, there's relatively little destruction in the other parts of the infirmary beyond the barricaded entryway. Besides the treatment and recovery rooms which one would expect to find in an infirmary, this one also contains workshops for metal, wood and glass working. All of the workshops still bear evidence of unfinished prostheses for limbs, hands, and even eyes. These workshops probably were built during the flourishing of the Citadel era when the Commanders and Mages encouraged the flowering of knowledge of the sciences. During this time, the zoo was also probably built for the same purposes. Those who worked in the workshops to produce such fine prostheses as articulating metal hands had no lack of patients even in the best of times during the Citadel Era as skirmishes with the trolls and orcs always resulted in some casualties.

There are also some other unusual rooms in the infirmary which, thankfully, were left undisturbed. Upstairs is a meditation room in the center of which is a fountain with meditation cushions. This, along with the temple downstairs, shows that those that practiced medicine and the healing arts had an interesting mixture of beliefs in science, spirituality, and religion. The templeis not dedicated to Imaera, as one might assume. Rather, it is dedicated to Aeia, the earth goddess associated with River's Rest. Her symbol of the lily is inscribed on the goblet and basin as well as in a tapestry bearing the white lily on a field of green, which still remain in the temple. As to what part of a ritual these relics may have been a part of, no one can tell, however, small amount of salt still remains in the basin. Salt may have been used in cleansing rituals as one of its many uses is as a cathartic. 

There is imagery dedicated to Aeia throughout the infirmary, but perhaps the most spectacular is the tapestry in the staff bedroom. When viewed, you see: The vivid colors of the tapestry have been untouched by time. the woven image retains all its artistic power. The tapestry depicts a tall, sharp-featured man standing in a garden. His head and left arm are swathed in bandages. In his hand he carries a pair of pruning shears. As you gaze at the tapestry you feel almost as if you are drawn into the scene. You feel a gentle breeze blowing across your face. You smell the sweet scent of flowers and the rich odor of newly turned soil. Somewhere a tropical bird warbles an intricate melody, the last note of which seems to linger in the air.

The man moves about the garden with the easy grace of a warrior. He stoops to examine a leaf and remove a slug. He lays his hands on the plants as if he can draw strength from them.At the sound of footstep he looks up. In the distance, silhouetted against the setting sun, is a woman wearing a white robe and carrying a lily. The tranquility of the man's face is replaces by a look of joy. As he stands to greet the woman you feel yourself slowly and inexorably pulled back into the present.

There's been some speculation as to the identity of the man in the tapestry. He may be the ghostly gardener who tends Aeia's gardens. The resemblance between the two are striking. The gardener was a tall human male in life, with sharp features. By the look of concentration upon his brow he was probably a passionate thinking man. Both hold the gardens with the same reverence. There is little known about the ghostly gardener. It could be in fact that Aeia had many followers of this sort (perhaps many of the staff of the infirmary at one time, explaining the presence of the tapestry in their bedroom). Rather than any specific individual, the gardeners could be emblematic of the followers of Aeia. In any case, the staff that worked in the infirmary had a strong tie with Aeia.

Upstairs in a private section of the infirmary was built a temple, most probably built in service to Aeia. The temple has a magical bond with Aeia's Gardens which are found outside in the Citadel grounds. The pool of water which appears as smooth as glass is actually a portal to the fountain in the center of Aeia's Gardens. If this was used as an escape route during the attack, it was unlikely to have proved to be of much use as the troll and krolvin hoards would have already overrun this area of the Citadel grounds and would have killed any who had sought this portal as a means of escape. However, that this portal to the Gardens exists is fascinating. The portal is only one way, so if someone were to leave the temple for the garden grounds, perhaps to find a healing herb, he or she would have to walk back. Perhaps the builders of the infirmary foresaw an attack such as the one that occurred and sought to ensure that those within the building had alternate routes of escape. Or perhaps, the two are merely linked through their common purpose.

If the pool was meant to be an alternative escape route, it would not have been the only one of these. Another is located in the glassworks workshop through a hidden passageway. The passageway leads to a dank underground tunnel which eventually ends in a room that offers a passage back out into the Citadel grounds near the Armory. At one time, a cabinet had blocked or hidden that end of the tunnel, although now it has been fallen on its side and ruined. The room is not little more than a pile of rubble, having suffered severely from the krolvin attack. Perhaps the master of the infirmary had sought to escape through this route but met with a bad end as bones still lie in this area- with gnaw marks, having either been suffered in the attack, or what's more likely, the effects of scavengers after death, as trolls and krolvin are not so animalistic as to rend their enemies apart using their teeth instead of weapons. The master of the infirmary probably built this secret underground passage, or someone in association with the master as it was obviously meant to keep the other staff and patients from using or finding this room. Perhaps he used the room at the end of the tunnel as a workshop of sorts, in order to carry out experiments or research in private. If the master was in fact the builder of this secret workshop, than he may as well have been the one to have used the glassworks. It is interesting that the master did not make this secret passage off of his bedroom for a more private manner of usage.

Regardless of secret passages and magical portals, those found in the infirmary at the time of the attack, whether they were soldiers bravely making their last stand, patients who had suffered from previous attacks, or staff members who worked on unaware of what was about to happen, all suffered the same fate. The infirmary and the objects associated with it give us a vivid picture of what had happened over a thousand years ago, yet still leaves questions and more to be discovered. the question of what lies beyond the door that had puzzled so many of us for so long may have been solved, but the infirmary remains as enigmatic as ever.

*Acknowledgements: [#r95a7081]
My special thanks to Frijthof Shoun's player, Mark Bowditch, for providing me the logs of his encounter with Taistil and his other help and recollections.

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