“You’re right. They’re alive and yet, they’re like aliens.” Brynn kicked a stone out of the way. “It looks like Liesel has set up her new house in the time we were gone,” she added, pointing ahead.
Cheerful lights glimmered from within the house, and as we drew closer, the aroma of stew or pot roast or some sort of roasting meat wafted out of the windows.
I shivered, both from the chill and from hunger. Quickening the pace, I led them forward until we were on the porch. I knocked, yelling out, “Liesel, it’s us! It’s me, Erenye!”
She answered almost immediately, throwing open the door. Taking one look at us, she hustled us in. A fire was crackling merrily in the fireplace, and over on the woodstove at the other end of the great room, water whistled from a teapot, and a big Dutch oven held some sort of soup or stew.
“You look horrible. Are you all right?” She paused when her gaze landed on Geoff. “Hello?”
“I’m Geoff,” he said, before we could introduce him. “Your friends saved me from a bunch of zombies. I was in the dungeon with them.”
“Are you all right?” she asked. “I see blood?—”
“We got hurt, bruises, a few cuts. And…I have a problem. I can’t get this off.” I pointed to the key.
Liesel stared at me for a moment, then leaned over to look at the key. “Pardon me for sticking my face in your boobs,” she said, breaking the tension.
I snorted. “Yeah, well, that’s far from the worst thing to happen tonight.” Pausing, I asked, “Do you know what this is?” I gingerly fingered the key. It pulsed under my touch. “I’m afraid I might be wearing some sort of a curse or something.”
“I’m not sure,” Liesel said. “Let me check my employee guide. We have a section that describes most of the artifacts and magical items found in our territory. And yes, I do have a territory assigned to me. About twenty of us watch over each sector. I should try to contact the others.” Carrying an LED lantern, she walked over to a bookcase where she’d stacked some of the books she’d rescued from her old house. A couple more boxes of books were on the floor, waiting to be shelved.
As she sorted through them, the rest of us took off our armor and shoes and sprawled on the floor. I grimaced at the rank stench coming from our clothes and from us.
“We need to bathe. I am not going to be able to sleep stinking like this,” I said.
“Is there enough wood for us to heat up some water?” Thornhold asked.
Liesel glanced over her shoulder. “Yes, there’s plenty. There’s large washtub in the mudroom. Bring it in, and you can fill it with water from the well, then add in enough hot water to make it comfortable. I have soap, as well. There’s plenty of stew. I already ate, but I left it simmering on the back burner. That’s one way to keep food good for a day or so, and with stews, it only makes the flavor condense.”
“We wash before we get near food,” I said.
“Yeah,” Thornhold said. “I may look rough and tumble but I’m still a fastidious gay man in dwarf armor. Come on Brynn, help me lug in some water?—”
“Fill the tub about two-thirds of the way with the cold water,” Liesel said, glancing at them. “There’s a cauldron hanging in the fireplace. Ladle the hot water out of that, andthen replace it after you’re done. There should be enough so that everyone can get washed up.”
While Thornhold and Brynn went to fetch the water, Reggie and I scrounged up washcloths and towels from Brynn’s stash.
I couldn’t stand one more moment in the blood stained clothes. “I’m stripping. I’m sorry if anybody gets embarrassed, but the feel of this funk is awful. I’m an elf now and it’s heightened my sense of smell, as well as my eyesight.”
I stripped bare, dropping my underwear on the floor next to my outfit. The only thing that didn’t come off was the key. “I hope the stains come out.”
“I’ve got heavy duty scrubbing soap for clothes. We get to do that all by hand now, so tomorrow is laundry day. Before the game broke, we employees sent our clothes out to be laundered. The employees watching after the roaming Sym non-player characters made certain the villager Syms washed their clothes. Now, I don’t know what will happen. Dusmaria will probably stink to high heaven.” She paused. “Oh, here it is.”
She pulled a book off the shelf and carried it over to the table, where she sat with a cup of tea as she thumbed through it. “Where did you get the key?”
“In a sarcophagus in the bottom of the dungeon. I think it belonged to a necromancer,” I said, shivering.
“Thanks,” she said.
Thornhold and Brynn returned with the washtub, two thirds full of cold water. Brynn began ladling hot water into it with a massive ladle, testing it after every addition. Thornhold went back outside to bring in more buckets of cold water. Finally, the wash water was ready.
“Ladies first. I figure two of us will manage with each tub, so we’ll need three turns. Also, we should rinse off with well water. It’s chilly, but it’s not going to hurt us,” Ray said.
“I’m up for whatever you decide,” Geoff said. “I’m just grateful to be alive and breathing.”
Brynn motioned to me. “Go ahead, you go first.”
Relieved, I grabbed one of the washcloths and a handful of soap powder, which I scattered in the tub, swishing the water around to create a froth. Finally, wishing I could just climb in the galvanized tub, I began to scrub myself hard with the lather. The water felt wonderful, and the layers of grime and guts began to slough off, leaving me clean all over. The others turned away out of respect, and I cleaned myself quickly, not wanting them to have to wait much longer.
