'BeZ' (Bethan Tremaine -deceased)

[*Pashan01]

The skeleton processed the conversations from the bar as it headed down to the sewers on its usual search for 'things' for Master Gol....and for itself. Later it scrawled this in childish hand to the BeZ Book.

One one-eyed human getting drunk to drown a pain.
One small halfling slave Li-ly an 'Adept of Pain'.
BeZ feels no pain.
BeZ is undead.
One tiefling woman Ty-ria calling it unclean.
BeZ is not dirty.

This time the skeleton did not chase the woman around the market with a sword for calling it unclean. But this time, the woman did not also attack it.

The resident fly that had made its 'home' upon the remnants of scalp upon the skeleton's skull took off again in flight to circle the dead hobgoblin and lay a few eggs in the hacked flesh. The skeleton sliced off the hobgoblin's finger to take the ring from the swollen digit and took out a book from between its ribcage, placing the bloodied piece of gold into the cavity it had hollowed out from the pages, to rest alongside a necklace and some coins. The undead then shoved the closed book into its ribcage wedging it around a number of other books and 'things' that surrounded and protected the beaten journal.

Master Gol thought it more intelligent than most other skeleton servants. Master said so. BeZ knew so. BeZ knows things.

BeZ made a good run of the sewers, its boney feet click, clacking against stone floor as it trotted through the dank tunnels for 'things' its master could both use and hoard. BeZ understood this. Its ribcage was full of 'things' too.

[*Pashan01]

The skeleton scratched a list of 'things' on a new page of the journal

Tattoo is on bone to protect
Powerful great sword BeZ now has like Master

Stronger shield to help guard Master
Thing to give speed for BeZ to stay closer to guard Master
Bag to hold things, ribcage full
Armor and boots like other servants
Thing to protect BeZ from fire

[*Pashan01]

The skeleton added to its list

Master will help BeZ to fit armour about bones
BeZ bought ring from orc merchant to go faster
Speed magic not lasting long

On a separate page it scrawls

Why does BeZ not know portal to upper plane?
BeZ go next time with Master
Puzzle of outlands BeZ strong killed Queen and King
No things found of use
BeZ asked Master to return to Grey Waste puzzle
No bandage makes Master wound better

[*Pashan01]

The skeleton's boney fingers scrunched up into the cloth of the cloak its Master had given it in the plane of ice then it gripped the pen awkwardly preparing to write to the journal.

The timing could not have been better. Master Gol had used a wall of flame spell against the elemental and BeZ had thrown back its skull, stepped back jaw chawing, molars grinding as if in pain while Incendus and Gol finished the hulking creature off. One salamander warrior directly after was slain by them and was relieved of its possessions, the more interesting one being the cloak that provided some resistance to the fire. BeZ took it, wrapped it around its neck vertebrae to rest it over shoulderbones and tuck the trailing end about its pelvic girdle. The threesome then headed off into the ice cave to bring about BeZ's request for assistance in a revenge killing of the lizard leader.

BeZ is strong now

It scrawled to the BeZ Book

[*Pashan01]

More scrawls to the BeZ Book

Bez saw woman in market
Image of fire and flame and heat
Hurt to BeZ Book in ribs
Melting black amulet more
Who is this woman?
Master called for BeZ to join in hunt to earth plane
BeZ followed Master leaving woman
Master Gol gave BeZ armour of blood plate
Master Gol is strong and powerful
BeZ will find others to serve
To rise for Master like BeZ

[*Pashan01]

In the BeZ Book it wrote

Woman Anja asked if BeZ was bound to plane
Sight of BeZ made man sick
BeZ did not understand woman's meaning or why man vomit
Then called BeZ 'slave' when BeZ told of Master
BeZ is not 'slave'
Master Gol made BeZ rise
BeZ is now awake and chooses to serve dragon Master
Service is not slavery

[*Pashan01]

More random scrawls of the skeleton warrior were made to the journal

Bez charged fee escort group to show them puzzle of outlands
This time Master not present
Also asked fee for guidework to newcomer of Sigil
BeZ can work for 'self'
Masked man in plate asked if thought is as he or she
BeZ does not feel difference but makes to think
BeZ likes Li-ly with pretty red hair
Li-ly does not vomit
BeZ worked for master to guard two women in Baator
One makes magic to bind bones like Master
One hurt to heal Master cautioned
BeZ knows this place but feet feel slow in swamp mud and pools
Dogai die well on greatsword Amnizu hated fire
Master Gol gave gift of oil vials of powerful magic
To save for time of great need as makes slower
BeZ has found bones with potential
Now to request Master Gol for his power
For more to rise for Master like BeZ

[*Pashan01]

The skeleton warrior in the blood red plate armour, tore and twisted off with odd strength and purpose two of its rib bones to hand them to the half-dragon Master Gol. They were spare and redundant, only serving to better wedge the books, scrolls and bits that BeZ stuffed to the cage of ribs. BeZ requested its master Gol to make another and more like it. Gol and BeZ returned to the plane of gray wastes, from whence they had both first arisen along side the others, Jerel, Kaptin, Jaoll...none knowing the reasons why or why there. They gathered more bones of fallen warriors and to the half-dragon's necromantic magic, the beginnings of a small army of skeleton guard were animated, rising from the ground, appendicular skeleton meeting with the axial bones to form skull, pelvis, ribs, femur, arm bones...until two taller warriors stood by BeZ, clutching rusted weaponery found and taken from the pile.

Scrawled to the BeZ Book later that day, the skeleton wrote...

BeZ has brothers who also serve and obey
Han is from BeZ bones and from same pile BeZ was awoken
Han still acts like human as if of flesh
Han will learn and adapt as many of Cage must to survive
Master awoke another from the remains
Master Gol named it Tre being the third
Tre is dumb not like BeZ who knows things
Power was not strong enough to give Tre strong thought
Or power of Master Gol went to bring armour to shine instead of its thought
BeZ is stronger but Tre runs faster
BeZ is in charge when Master is gone
BeZ met another like Han name of Anor
Anor is guardian of man with hands that glow
Man is familiar to BeZ coming from mists
Not all citizens like undead to walk again
People must learn we have rights to walk
People will learn
BeZ punished Han for touching to woman
Han will walk again Master will awake another day
Woman should not have attacked all undead in area to try to make fall
Undead have rights

[*Pashan01]

BeZ, was 'just' a skeleton according to its master, animated, unproven, useful, obedient. After a long trip to a prime in the service of its Master, they returned to Sigil. It seemed the Master Gol might take many of these trips. BeZ did not mind. It was learning. Learning to know what it was. Learning to know what it wanted. Learning to -be- and think more for itself and for its 'brothers' Han and Tre, made and formed from the extra rib that BeZ was created with and other spare bones of the gray wastes; Han and Tre, who had to make regular trips to get repaired by the dustmen being weaker.

It added more scrawls to the battered journal. Two torn out pages bearing images were thrust between two pages of the journal, stuck in by a sticky compound made of rats sputem and crushed worm.



BeZ knows things. It knows what it wants. It is not just a skeleton.
It can be more.

It can be this.



BeZ looked long and hard and often at the images it had found, its dark sockets lingering on the greatsword of the second image. Torn from the many books it hunted for, collected and stuffed between its ribcage until BeZ had finished reading the book. It liked this pair, saved them and stuck them to its Journal in pride of place

[*Pashan01]

A few more scratches and scrawls were added to the BeZ book

Small armoured creature poked BeZ
BeZ poked back.
Tiefling girl put arms around BeZ
Talking nonsense that BeZ is lost family uncle
BeZ warned next to touch without permission it would fight
Many chaotic in Cage today
Lots of nonsense and mad people
Encouraged by Khazeet
Chaos creates chaos
BeZ just watched
Waited
Standing by stone pillar
Xaosancts out in force
BeZ thinks faction is building army of madness

BeZ joined master to planes
Hard to recall which key for which portal
Things take shape as image and BeZ knows again
Ingot for Nisrek
Blood for Clangor
Fire
Fire for Abyss
Abyss
Abyss
Why is Abyss important and powerful image?
Master Gol took BeZ with him to Abyss
BeZ asked to go there
Joined by Yuanti ally of Master
Later by human mage, erinyes and beholder
Mage made BeZ go faster
Good
Mage wants to buy BeZ like BeZ is property
Master said BeZ is not for sale
Good

BeZ has 'charming' eyes
Jinkskirt in bar to Cage said so
Old lizard knows it is time to die
BeZ hears bad health and rasp in voice
Old warrior bones should lie down and be renewed
Old bones can be made stronger by powerful Master's magic
BeZ knows it was not old when it died
Its bones show it so too

BeZ closed the journal, shoving it protectively back into its ribcage, surrounding it with other bits and books. It held up the skull it had found, turned it this way and that then tried to attach it to the shoulder part of its dull red plated armour. The skull did not attach on its own. BeZ tried a few times, tried the compound of rats sputem and crushed worm it had used on the journal page then gave up, scratching the tuft on its skull a couple of times as it thought of what to do.