For reasons best known to herself, the Matron of the Little Sisters chose Tallis, an inexperienced and naive sister, to undertake the quest to retrieve the Heart.
By happy chance, at that time there were two respectable men staying in the Preceptory's outer hostel; Justin Thenikoff and Karlof al'Kruz al'Komani, both of them well travelled and experienced, and who could be trusted to look after Tallis in the dangerous outside world. They agreed readily to take on the task.
The Matron provided each of them with a riding hack, and a pack horse for their baggage. By some oversight she neglected to send Tallis along to the armoury, so she went out gaily on her Big Adventure armed with nothing more than a knife. Not to worry.
Camped up for the night, unwatchful sentry fails to notice a bunch of forest goblins who snuck in and nicked everything they could carry. Pandora arrives and, curious, watches to see what they do.
Next morning, party followed tracks and found bent toasting fork but nothing else of their rations etc. Pandora follows, overhears conversation about whether a sword would work if it were made of diamond.
Found a mysterious lair under the bank of the river. Justin investigates underwater entrance but doesn't enter. They decide to try to dig it out.
Everyone digs for a couple of hours, Justin breaks through unexpectedly and is trapped up to his chest in a collapse. Something (a vodyanoi) underground grabs and claws at his legs. Karlof runs down and enters the lair via the underwater tunnel. Justin is pulled through and starts to fight, Tallis follows Karlof.
Karlof loses his sword and is badly slashed by the vodyanoi. Tallis discovers the limitations of a utility knife. Justin drives the vodyanoi out, it swims away under water.
Pandora flutters down and performs a quick spot of fairy magic — see below.
Karlof searches for his sword in the dark tunnel and cannot find it — just a very similar sword-shaped crystalline object that, when examined in daylight, proves to be made of diamond.
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