51 Cog of the Clockwork order

"Good thing we checked out the ritual site," Jess said as she put away her sword. "I think I know what the necromancer was trying to do."

"Oh?" Finn was curious. "Tell me as we check all the ruined buildings. We might find something more."

"I think she was trying to become an immortal Lich." Jess said as they entered a nearby building. "The bottle was supposed to be her phylactery, a vessel to store her mortal soul. If successful, she would become an undead herself that could never be killed unless the phylactery is destroyed."

"Wow! Good thing we interrupted the ritual." Finn said with relief.

"What I think must happened was that she was halfway through the process of transferring her soul when you interrupted the ritual. It ended prematurely splitting her soul in half and draining half of her vitality."

"That makes sense," Finn agreed, "only half of her body seemed like the zombies."

"Yeah, that also explains how we even managed to defeat her. With half her soul missing, her spell casting ability must have dropped several levels!" Jess continued, "the ritual had five runes, so she must have been really powerful before it failed. We were really lucky this time."

"I need to get stronger," Finn concluded solemnly. "And, we shouldn't accept tasks so easily next time."

One of the few taller buildings that hadn't collapsed after the ritual turned out to be where the necromancer had lived. The furniture consisted of a couple chests, some simple shelves, a bedroll, some stools and a small table.

"Jackpot!" Finn rubbed his hands eagerly. Checking the chests quickly, he was disappointed that the first one only contained clothes. Mostly black robes, socks and undergarments, but also a couple 'normal' outfits that upper-middle class women would wear when out shopping.

Finn didn't take anything, and went over to the next chest as Jess went through the things on the shelf. Cauldron, various old books, assorted dried ingredients. Jess leaned through some of the books and sorted things into two piles. Things worth something, and useless rubbish.

The second chest was significantly smaller, but it was locked, so Finn fiddled with it trying to unlock it or break it open. Finally he succeeded by using some wire to pick open the lock. Something clicked, and Finn opened the lid.

"Shu-shu-shu!"

"Thwack!"

"Crash!"

"Boom"

Three magic missiles shot out of the chest. The first sent Finn tumbling, the other two knocked over a stool and hit the wall.

Picking himself gingerly off the floor, Finn ignored Jess's chuckling and returned to the chest. Opening it, Finn found a pouch with some silver coins and a few pieces of jewelry. There a simple silver necklace, a bronze pendant inlaid with several small gems, a delicately carved hairpin made of bone, and three rings.

Finn showed it all to Jess before storing it all safely in his backpack and pouches. Jess picked up some things from her 'keep' pile and then they continued exploring.

Entering the seventh building, the two were surprised to find prisoners tied up and gagged. There were a few humans, a halfling, and two gnomes. All of them injured, and the halfling was unconscious.

Freeing them quickly, Finn and Jess did some quick first aid. Diluting a health potion with water, Finn gave them all some to drink before dabbing the rest on the worst wounds.

Talking to them, Jess found out that most of them were miners. They were the only survivors left among those captured alive. The rest had been turned to undead for the ritual. If It hadn't been interrupted, they would probably have been sacrificed too.

One of the gnomes stuck out like a sore thumb. He wasn't dressed in the typical loose fitting mining uniform. Instead, he was wearing a simple heavy cotton outfit. The accumulation of black oil stains and soot, however, had made the original color unrecognizable.

Digging through the pile of things their captors had confiscated, the odd gnome quickly found what remained of his belongings. A tool belt with assorted tiny tools, a couple small pouches, a dirty brown leather apron, and a single toothed silver gear that hung around his neck by some twine.

Polishing the gear with a rag, the gnome sighed with relief. Soon a soft light glowed around him before spreading outwards and washing over everyone like a gentle summer breeze.

All the captives thanked the gnome as they felt their wounds healing even faster. Even Finn and Jess felt like a burden had been lifted off their shoulders and they could breathe easier.

The moment soon passed, and the gnome tucked his amulet back under his shirt. The other miners grabbed their stuff, as well as things that used to belong to their cell mates. When everyone was ready, Finn and Jess decided it was time to head back.

Jess chatted with the captured miners and the odd gnome as they guided them back towards the mining camp. Everyone was hungry, and the duo's rations ran out quick with many mouths to feed.

Thankfully, the journey back was relatively uneventful, with Finn scouting ahead and Jess using her light spell in tunnels that were too dark.

When Malmdal and the worried miners back at the camp saw the group returning, they rushed out to meet them. The rescued miners burst into tears, letting out all the fear and grief they had accumulated since they were captured.

Finn and Jess were treated like heroes as they narrated some of their battles. Conveniently leaving out Finn's transformation, and crediting it to the necromancer being weakened.

Malmdal treated the whole group to a round of ale when he found out that the threat was dealt with. The whole camp gathered to celebrate, and the 'special occasion' keg was brought out with cheers and clinking of mugs.

After a hearty meal and cleaning themselves up, Finn fell asleep as soon as his head touched his pillow. Jess, having slept a little previously, went through her spell book for a while before also going to bed.

They only woke up fourteen hours later, when their bodies had rested sufficiently. Finn did his workout routine in the room, but felt a little discouraged when he noticed Jess only using one hand for her pushups. Her other hand was holding her spell book open and she was studying them intently. When he finished his reps, she just switched hands and kept going without breaking a sweat. Feeling competitive, he started another round too.

Muscles aching, and dripping in sweat, Finn finally threw in the towel. Jess smirked and continued as he lay there panting. Picking up his things, Finn went to wash off the sweat.

Breakfast that morning was extra delicious. Feeling starved, Finn's body craved the nutrients to rebuild itself. As he wolfed down the food and grabbed seconds, Jess joined him.

A little later, the odd gnome they rescued also joined them at the table.

"Mind if I join?" He said, proceeding to sit down before they even answered. Finn chuckled a little bit kept eating.

"Things were a little crazy last time so I didn't get a chance to properly introduce myself." The gnome held out a hand. His small hand was calloused and covered in fresh oil stains. "On second thoughts, no need to shake." Realizing the issue quickly, gnome retracted his hand.

"I'm Maximillian Copperdale, but you can call me brother Max, or just Max."

"Good to meet you Max, I'm Jess this is Finn."

"Hi!" Finn gave a polite nod. "If you don't mind me asking," he continued, "you don't seem like a miner, how did you end up captured by the necromancer?"

"Ah, well. You're right, I'm not a miner," Max started, "I'm a Cog of the Clockwork Order, dedicated to the service of the Bronze Lady, the Eternal Construct, mother of invention and engineer of the machina mundi."

By the end of his explanation, Max's eyes were glowing with religious fervor as he held up his single toothed gear.

"So, you're a priest or a monk or something?" Finn asked, slightly confused.

"Yes, but in our order that basically means inventor or engineer." Max explained matter of factly. A few bites later into his breakfast, he continued his story.

"The reason I was in these tunnels," he began. "Was to find some materials for an invention some of my seniors are working on. I had already found the needed gems, and was heading back when I was clubbed on the head and captured. Spent around four days in that ruin before you came along. Now the gems are gone as well."

"Eh, What kind of gems?" Finn asked, remembering the small pouch he had found on the necromancer.

Max's description matched the gems in the pouch exactly, which disappointed Finn slightly. After hesitating a little, Finn handed over the small pouch.

"Have a look, we found this on one of the bodies." Finn said.

"Amazing! They're all here!" Max said after opening the pouch. "Sister Cornelia will be so pleased! With this she should have enough to complete her prototype."

Finn and Jess both laughed at the gnome's excitement. Finishing their meal, the got up to leave.

"Please wait a moment, could I travel together with you back to the surface?" Max asked, before quickly finishing his food. "I have some errands to run up there."

"Sure," Jess agreed, and Finn nodded too. "We were hoping to depart within the next hour, if that works for you."

"Great! See you then." Max nodded before vanishing into the crowded room.

Around half an hour later, they were all checking out and returning their keys. Malmdal had paid Jess the cash reward, and said his goodbyes already.

Max carried only a small backpack, but had numerous cases filled with scrolls tied to it. Judging by what Finn had seen earlier, they were all half finished blueprints or blank.

In addition to the tool belt, Max had acquired a new small hammer, and a few odd shaped pieces of metal. He wore his leather apron, and had a pair of bronze goggles on his head.

As the three started their journey towards the cavern with the elevator, Finn picked up a faint sound that repeated at fixed intervals. Soon he realized that it was coming from Max's bag.

"What's that sound," Finn asked the gnome as they walked.

Pausing to open a side pocket, Max took out a delicate looking disk shaped object. It had glass on both sides protecting the interior. From one side Finn saw a face like the timekeeping devices he had seen previously. The other side revealed a collection of small gears turning steadily.

"This is my portable pocket chronometer. It shows the current time, and is a extremely precise and accurate tool."

The gnome went on rambling about it using a vivid vocabulary of technical jargon. The other two just smiled and nodded along.

Eventually, the small group arrived at their destination. The cavern was just as lively as it was previously.

The three had a quick meal before Max shot off to deliver the gems to someone from his order. Finn and Jess decided to check out the market again, now that they had some more coin to spend.

The central area of the cavern, was a bustling mess of smells and sounds. Merchants of many races set up their stalls.

Humans from the surface, sold fish, fruits, vegetables and various spices to those who lived underground.

Dwarves sold weapons and armor, and would also do repairs if the item presented was dwarf certified quality.

Several gnomes had worked together to set up a display, featuring various contraptions that Finn couldn't recognize. Other gnomes sold blueprints, tools, and small components like gears and springs.

Finn didn't see any elves or goblins though. Elves didn't like being underground, and goblins weren't welcome due to their history or warfare against the dwarves, and flagrant violation of gnomish copyright laws.

Finn checked his money pouch, before grinning. Time for a shopping spree.