Infiltrating a Fortress on an Empty Stomach

Sorcery book 4 again; the infiltration of Mampang Fortress, to take back The Crown of Kings. I have a moderately good skill, 14 luck (aww yeah!), 18 stamina… and no food.

The book opens with rain coming, and I’m looking for a cave to sleep in. I find one which is occupied by a dead satyr — now that’s just sad — and sleep the night. I wake up to lose 3 stamina due to hunger. A poor start.

I walk the path, cross a bridge, and am attacked by a bird man. I huck a HOT at him, which has a devastating effect on feathers, and he goes down in one hit. But now I’m down to 11 stamina.

I walk past some janky bridges, and into a roadblock of fallen rocks. I climb over it (lose 1 stamina) and am caught in a second landslide (lose 4 stamina, WAL is the only way out). So now I’m down to 6 stamina.

The good news, is that around the next corner is the Fortress itself! The bad news, is that I have only 6 stamina and am apparently so awed by the fortress that I lose 1 skill until further notice. Oh, and that Libra speaks to me in my dreams to say that once I get inside she can’t help me.

Ooh man…

I sneak to the gate, and oh my goodness it’s a HUGE gate! I decide to play doorbell ditch: knock, then hide on top of the door to surprise the guard as he… oh geez, four guards. It’s long fight, but my 13 combat strength prevails and I come through with 4 stamina left.

Two more guards are inside the gatehouse, as is the key to the gate. And I’m in!

The courtyard is just huge, and also full of people people doing their daily business. This is great; it means I won’t stand out by skulking around dark hallways.

In the courtyard is a guy in a pillory. I figure that if he’s no friend of the local army and Archmage, he’s a friend of mine.

Wrong.

I free him. He clonks me on the noggin, locks me into the pillory in his place, and absconds with all my stuff. My adventure ends here.