Ok then what have here is the rough version of the D&D adventure I have been part of for the last couple of months. It’s the adventure as told from the perspective of my character, a Halfling Monk called Perrigrin Oakbottom. The key thing here that it is a rough version that will keep adding to as the adventure continues. But I would also like to revisited from time to time and try and turn it into a more rounded read with better descriptions, fewer typos and a bit more structure to the writing. Although for now you are stuck with this.
A Good Story Poorly Told
by
a Halfling Monk
Voyage in Chains
I awoke in a dark, damp space and soon notice a rocking motion that led me to believe I was on a ship of some description. As my senses started to return to me I can feel that I have some sort of iron collar around my neck with chains attached to either side which by any standards was not a good way to start the day.
As I became ever more aware of my surroundings I notice several other creatures who also appear to be waking up at the same time. A little more time spent assessing my surroundings confirms my initial assessment that I am in the hold of a ship of some description, chained to a group of strangers, and most disturbing of all, I have no recollection of how I came to be here. The last thing I can recall was having a drink in the Jolly Sailor tavern during the Festival of “NAME HERE” to mark the reign of “NAME HERE”.
With my senses slowly returning to normal I notice that the darkness in the hold isn’t complete and that there appear to be several pockets of light scattered throughout the space casting small pools of light across the deck. They look like small glass jars, probably containing some type of glow worms to provide enough light to allow someone to navigate the space safely. Standing in one of these pools of light, mid way down the hold, is a goblin armed with a crud sword and shield who I can only assume is our capture.
I assume that this must all be some sort of mistake as there is no reason to have a monk of Ishap chained up in the hold of a strange ship. Giving him my most cheerful smile I waved for him to come closer in the hope of getting him to set us all free. As he gets nearer I notice he has some keys on his belt but the language barrier means he simply doesn’t understand what I’m saying but he seems like a happy chap as he is laughing. He’s not going to come any close so I edge slowly towards him and the others in the group shift about a bit to give some slack on the chains. The big green guy is shouting something but I’m not paying any attention. Once I notice that the guard isn’t looking at me I make a lunge for his keys. Just as I grab them and start to back away my colleagues drag on the chains and the bemused guard comes along with the keys. The others jump on him whilst I get the keys off him and fiddle about to free myself. Once my collar has been removed I start to free the others before the guard can get up. Turns out that’s not really an issue as the big red guy appears to have killed him.
With everyone free I look at my companions and it appears there is another Halfling, a couple of elves, although one looks a bit funny, there’s a what at first glance appears to be an ork but as he’s not rampaging around I assume he must be some sort of half ork. The last of the group is the most striking as he looks like a man sized red dragon. I’ve never seen one in person but I assume he must be one of those Dragon Kin. Whilst I’ve been looking at my companions a couple of them have been searching our surroundings and found some locked chests. Big red is trying to break them with sword he took from the guard so I go over and the keys, eventually finding one that works. The chests, much to our surprise have the possessions we had prior to finding ourselves in these unusual circumstances. For me that is my robes, backpack, and pouch and quarter staff.
Whilst doing this we exchange names. The big dragon kin is Rhdan, the halfork is Orrakk, the female elf is Lilith, the funny elf is Dolus and lastly the other Halfling is Dave. Dave soon moves away and finds a ladder at the far end of the hull and climbs up. As we move over it looks like he has been having a peek out to see what is above her. Coming back down he tells us it’s clear at the top of the hatch but there is another deck with some cannons and more Goblins at the other end all looking up another ladder. The group decide that me and Dave should climb up and investigate so put my pack down and climb up holding the hatch for Dave. As soon as we are up there we can hear lots of banging on the side of the ship and it feels like it bashed about. The Goblins are distracted by this so Dave opens the hatch and beckons the others up urging them to be quite. This is lost on Rhdan who bangs his way up the ladder and charges at the Goblins. He is followed by the others and much to my surprise Dave also follows them. I leave them to it and drop back down to pick up my pack, I also notice Dave’s pack is there so I pick that up as well and climb back up to join the others.
There appears to be a real commotion going on around the ship and Rhdan and Orrakk are arguing about what to do next. Whilst they are doing that Lilith hands me a scroll and says she fund it below:
Captain Visser,
Everything is proceeding as planned, the Regio-SignOrrakk is dead
Sail the slave fleet around the Fel Cape, and towards Irian, I will rendezvous once the full fleet arrives. The slaves are the finOrrakk piece of the puzzle.
Do not look for me, and do not use the Amulet to summon me unless you are in direst need. I believe that the Lord of Stormtide has become aware of our plans.
It will not be long before the other five cities learn too.
Sail well, in BelsOrrakkel’s name. I
Whilst I’m reading the scroll Rhdan climbs the ladder and goes up through the hatch. There is some sort of commotion going on and when questioned he shouts down that the deck is clear and that we have to get off the ship. I’m not happy about this but after everyone else heads up the ladder I follow along. Once on the deck I realise that I should have stayed below. There are massive tentacles writhing around the deck and the ship is also being pushed up and ground against some rocks near the shore. Rhodan and Orrakk are taking about using the life boat to row to shore which I don’t think is a good idea but no one is listening to me and I’m not going to be left on my own so I go along with the idea. Lilith ties a rope to the ship and throws the loose end into the boat to allow us to climb down to it. With some effort we push the boat off the deck into the water. Before I get chance to climb down the rope Orrakk barges into me and I find myself falling over the side of the ship and crashing down into the boat with Orrakk crashing down beside me. Whilst he’s trying to fend off the Kraken, which mercifully seems more interested in the ship than us, I wrap the rope around the rowing bench so we don’t drift away from the ship. Dave then scrambles down the rope but the others just come crashing over the side and into the sea. I throw the tail end of the rope securing us to the ship to them so they can pull themselves into the boat. Orrakk helps them in and Rhdan shouts at me to cut the rope so we can get away. There is some frantic effort as Orrakk rows us away from the ship and towards the shore. It turns out that getting off the ship was a good move as there are some horrendous noises coming from behind use as the ship is smashed into splinters.
We made it to the beach without incident but as we splashed out of the surf between us and any way of the beach were half a dozen more Goblins and they didn’t look happy to see us. Before I knew what was happening an arrow wizard past Dave and he shouted something about a fire ball as the others charged the Goblins. Rhdan really lived up to his title of Dragon Kin as he spayed fire over three of the Goblins, but to be fare it didn’t seem to have much effect. I charged in alongside Rhdan which seemed to upset the Goblins as they all turned to fight me and left him alone. The fighting was over quickly with me dispatching one of the goblins, Rhdan the other and I think it was Orrakk who took down the other. Looking around I saw that Dolus seemed to be having a bit of trouble with the Goblin in front of him so dashed over and help him out.
With the fighting over I search the Goblin and pick up a pouch of coins, Lilith and Orrakk are also doing a bit of searching so I join them with the main group and find another couple of pouches with coins in them. Looking around I notice that Dave has wandered off up away for the beach and the others had started to follow him.
Once on the bluff overlooking the beach it was clear that ours wasn’t the only ship to suffer on this coast with wrecks of lots of ships, spanning time littered across the beach. Up on the bluff there was a sign indicating ‘Blackreach 3 days / Everwind 2 miles, beware of bandits’ we took a short rest and then set of for Everwind. Walk into town is uneventful and exchange a bit of small talk but no one is really giving anything away. We were all in Ashgaru for the Festival of the Four Winds commissioned by Reno 17th. The next thing we can all agree on is coming round chained together on the ship with no idea how we got there.
We arrived at Everwind just after dark and started looking for place to stay. Dolus didn’t look happy was walked through town, as if he wasn’t comfortable in built up places. The centre of the town was dominated by a large stone structure and once we reached the centre we were able to locate a tavern, called ‘The Tall Gnome’ where we thought we might be able to spend the night. We approached the pub and me and Dave were the first in and as we started to make our way to the bar no one seemed to bother about us. But that changed when Orrakk came in and people started to look a bit weary but once Rhdan entered the attitude turn quite hostile.
I asked the barman for a round of drinks and if there were any rooms available for the night. He was really agitated and whilst he was happy to serve me and Dave, and would even serve Orrakk he was adamant that he wouldn’t serve Rhdan. I tried to explain to him that we were simple travellers in need of a quite nights rest but nothing I said could change his mind. He said that it wasn’t down to him but that it was the law of the land. Rhdan didn’t take this well and a short argument ensued before he stormed out of the tavern smashing the door off its hinges in the process. The barman seemed to think that he was our friend and that me and Dave are responsible for the damage so I tried to keep things calm and asked how much it would cost to repair and he told us that he wanted 20 gold pieces for a new door. On hearing this Dave simply turned around and walked out of the tavern, I had no intention of paying that much for a door so I simply turned around and followed him out into the night. The rest of our companions, showing remarkable solidarity stayed exactly where they were so I decided to track down a local temple and see if we could spend the night there.
Following a bit of walk around town we managed find a temple to Serian and with nothing else to loose knocked on the door and waited to see if we would get a response. After knocking and waiting for a minute or so there was an answer from within asking who we were and what wanted. I told what I assumed to be the local pries that I was a traveling Ishapian monk with a traveling companion who were looking for somewhere to rest for the night. He let us in but was a bit suspicious until I explained that there had been some trouble at the tavern and the bar keep decided he didn’t’ want strangers stopping there. That didn’t completely allay his concerns as Chadir the inn keep was normally a very welcoming character, but as soon as I mentioned one of the crowd was dragonborn he understood. But to avoid any more trouble I stressed that we weren’t actually traveling with him. We exchanged small talk for a while until he seemed be comfortable with us and we told him that we had been traveling on a ship from Ashgeru, but I decided to omit the bit about the chains and guards, and that the crew wouldn’t let us up on deck so we had no idea where we actually were. Then the crew abandoned us to our fate as the ship started to sink on a beach near here. As we chatted it became clear that we had been on the ship a lot longer that we first thought with two weeks having passed since the Festival of the Four Winds. More disturbing was the fact that we weren’t even on (XXX) any more but were in fact on the coast of Irian. The chains started to make a little more sense when the priest said we been lucky as a large slave fleet had passed by only a couple of days ago, heading up the coast towards Dread harbour. Not knowing where we were we asked if he had any maps and he wandered off returning a short while later with a local map which he said was the only one he had. He also kindly offered to make us a copy for the morning. He also explained why there was such a reaction to the dragonkin, apparently anyone who takes a dragonkin skin to the law in Blackreach will receive 50 gold pieces. This all dates back to when King Reynald the 16th dragonkin Pretorian guard betrayed and killed him for no apparent reason. Since then they have been distrusted All Along the Kraken coast. They are still officially free to travel but no one will care if any harm comes to them. With that the priest left us to get some rest.
Myself and Dave continued to chat after the priest had left us and he told me his name wasn’t actuAlkly Dave but was in fact Hopplepic and that he was student of the esoteric ways of magic. He said he didn’t want to share his real name earlier as he is wary of strangers but felt he could trust a fellow Halfling. It made me think that he had a good point about not giving his real name and I decided to consider this when dealing with others in the future. I was Also thinking about how we explain away coming into town with a dragonkin and thought it would be good say that he simply caught up with us on the road and that we didn’t want to offend him so we simply had to let him walk Along with. After all wow knows what would have happened if we hadn’t. With that sorted we settled down for a nights rest.
During the night the priest dropped off a note summing up the events surrounding King Rynald the 16th and why the dragonkin are so disliked in these parts.
Rynald 16th known as ‘Good King Reynald’ was King and High Protector of Ash Garrou from years 346 ARF (After Rift Fall) until 376 ARF.
With his retinue of supposedly – incorruptible dragonknight paladins he presided over the only long period of peace in Exian’s post-rift period.
He was most famous for the system of continent spanning roads he built and maintained. A colloquial saying in Exian is ‘to take the Reynald way’ as in ‘to take the safe way’.
Reynald’s long and prosperous reign came to an end in suspicious and treacherous circumstances. He was betrayed by his dragonknight guards, and the ensuing turmoil, as well as the lack of an at-age heir, led to the tumultuous period of succession known as the Black Rein.
The Weeping Hills
The next morning we got up for a look around town and to have a think about what to do next. As we were passing the market space we came across Orrakk, Lilith and Rhdan in the market space but there was no sign of Dolus. We had a bit of catch up on the evening and the consensus seem to be that being a wood elf Dolus just wouldn’t be happy in a built up environment and he had probably wandered off into the woods and there was nothing to worry about. The conversation soon turned to how we could get some money for a return to Arrion. Knowing how much money I had and that Lilith and Orrakk also had at least as much as me I thought if we shared our money we could accomplish this now. However I wasn’t really that interested in returning at the moment and Orrakk only seemed interested in amassing as much money as he could. He was telling us that we could earn money fighting in the arena when a group of rather dishevelled looking travellers came walking into town.
They did make for an unusual band with a human female in the centre, a dwarf on one side and an elf on the other. As they approached we moved over and introduced ourselves and soon established that they were on the same ship as us but being held on the deck above. It turned out that Marsella, the female could speak Goblin and managed to convince the guard to release them just before the Kraken attack. However they didn’t head directly to the shore so by the time they had scouted the beach and found some equipment it had already gone dark. The next line came as something of a shock when you consider that one of them was a dwarf and the other looked like an elf ranger, but they said they got lost between the beach and the town.
As we were assimilating this information and trying to decide what to do next a man dressed in a red coat and an unusual half shaved head approached us. He introduced himself as Akaris the town Yeoman and gestured towards the arena and asked us if we were interested in earning some money. He went onto to explain that you needed a license to take part in the games and that he could get us said license as he worked for Lord Trent who ran the town. Orrakk and Rhdan were both interested but we also ask about the reward for riding the town of the goblin menace, in particular the Gem Eye character. He said there was a reward but couldn’t say what it was and that we would need to talk directly to Lord Trent if that was something we were interested in. He added that the local Wizard, Tamaril had gone to the Weeping Hills to route them out but had not yet returned. After a short chat we agreed to go and have a talk with Lord Trent but advised that Orrakk and Rhdan should stay where they were considering the animosity that everyone seemed to feel for the Dragonborn.
We found Lord Trent in the town hall and he was quite an imposing figure with a rich beard and was wearing what appeared to be very functional plate armour with a halberd propped up against the wall nearby. He was initially very wary of us questioning where we had come from and wanting to see our fealty marks. None of us knew anything about these marks and this added more tension to the situation. I explained that we had been on a ship on route from Arrion to Yilth when the ship we were on went down on the coast just south of here. We were looking at ways to earn some money so that we could continue our voyage. Lord Trent had no idea where Yilth was, which was happen as well as I’d just made the name up, but seem to accept our story. He insisted on checking us for any brigand’s marks though before he would continue. We again explained that we were interested in the reward for the Gem Eye. He said that if we could rid him and Lord Fell Wind, who is his lord and lord of the Kraken Coast, of Gem Eye then he would pay us two hundred gold pieces. But that we would have to bring the gem back as proof that had actually killed him. We asked why the gem and he explained that whoever holds the gem is considered the king of the goblins so with the gem gone then there would be no organisation for those that were left.
Lord Trent wanted to know more about the ship we were on. Not having any sort of explanation as to why we were captive we told him that the captain wasn’t very friendly and had insisted that we remain below decks during the voyage. He picked our brains about the ship and in particular about the colour of the sails and who the captain was. I recalled the letter we had seen said that the captain was called Visser and he didn’t’ seem happy to hear the name but didn’t labour the point. His questioning seemed to centre around the fact that there had been black sailed slave ships passing up the coast and that there had even been a slave caravan pass through the area a few days ago. We told him we didn’t know anything about this but that we could investigate the matter for him if he wanted. Pointing out that we were looking to do anything that would allow us to continue our journey. It turned out that it was Akaris who had actually seen the slavers and that we should talk to him to find out more about the caravan. We thanked the lord and headed back towards the market to see if we could find Akaris to find out more about the slave caravan.
Back at the market we brought Orrakk and Rhdan up to speed on what we had been talking about. Carrik seemed to be fixated on tracking down the slavers for some reason and was insistent that we should go after them and deal with the goblins later. Whilst we were having this discussion Akaris came back around the market and we asked him about the slave caravan. He told us that he thought there were six carts with slaves in guarded by half Ork’s who went past the town a few days ago. When we question him more for some details he told us that it was actually his wife, Marsella, who saw the caravan and told him about it so we would be better off talking to her. She was the town herbalist and we would be able to find her in her shop.
Over at the herbalist we talked to Miranda but she didn’t have much more information to share. There were six carts with cages on them with about six slaves in each cart, one of whom was also a Dragonborn but unlike Rhdan it was blue. This didn’t seem to be of any interest to him though. Miranda also explained that there was a seventh cart at the front of the caravan but that this was covered so she had no idea what or who was in it. It also appeared that there was one half ork guard with each of the carts. Carrik was still talking about heading after the caravan but Miranda said that if we were heading to the Weeping hills then she would pay us to take a little detour to pick up some red spot mushrooms that she used in healing potions as she had run out. That would give us a way of earning a bit more money but she did warn us that the last party that had headed out that way, to the encouragingly named Widow Maker cavern, had not returned. She didn’t know if anything had happened to them or not as they my have decided to simply carry on their journey to Dreadport.
Getting together outside the shop we decide to placate Carrik by saying we would head out up the road towards Dreadport and see if we could find any trace of the caravan. If we couldn’t then we could decide whether to carry on tracking them or to go and deal with the goblin issue. We had an uneventful days travel and just before we were going to look for a camping spot we saw another weary traveller coming towards us. Dave stepped up and made the assumption that this traveller was the wizard Tameril and on hearing his name he relaxed a little bit. We told him we are working for Lord Trent and had come up here to help with the goblin issue. He told us that he had been up to the old goblin fort but couldn’t find any trace of them. As for the slave caravan he saw them entering Dreadport three days ago and loading the slaves onto black sailed ships. We also asked him about the Widow Maker cavern and he told us that there is a trident shape junction in the road ahead with the left hand fork heading to the caverns, whilst the right hand fork heads towards the old goblin fort. He did warn us that another party had recently headed to the caverns and had not been heard from since. We tried to get a bit more information from him but he was keen to keep traveling and advised us against camping on the road for night.
We set up camp for the night about ten minutes from the road at which point Carrik diapered off into the woods with the claim that he would bring supper back for us all. It turned out that supper would consist of a single scrawny rabbit so I for one was glad I had brought my own rations. A quiet night and an early start brought our fist decision of the day. Thramin was adamant that he wanted to go after the mushrooms as he was convinced that there would also be brown brewing mushrooms that he could use to make beer. It was another day’s walk to get to the caverns which passed without incident but by the time we got there it was already getting dark and we decided to camp again and investigate further in the morning.
Once everyone was up and about we headed off into the rather cheerfully named ‘Widow Makers’ cavern. Not being married I wasn’t too concerned but decide to stay near the rear of the party none the less. As had become common now Rhdan took the lead lighting way thanks to some elven magic courtesy of Lilith. Once through the initial cavern mouth the passage narrowed somewhat so we were restricted to walking two abreast. The passage way started to slope downwards and show clear signs of being worked at some time in its history. After a short decent the tunnel took a right hand turn before opening out somewhat and splitting to pass around a large rock pillar. There were several mining tools lying around in this area and whilst they appeared old they still looked functional. With nothing here for us, and no sign of any mushrooms we pressed on and soon came to a cross junction in the tunnel.
Whilst debating which way to go we started to hear some growling sounds coming from the right hand passage but no one was sure what was making them. Carrik said they sounded like the callings of a brown bear and before anyone could disagree a bear came lumbering up the tunnel towards us. Carrik let louse with his bow and the rest of us were forced to try and fight it off. In the ensuing melee Rhdan, with nowhere to go, took a bit of a beating. But before anyone could help him two even larger bears came charging down the tunnel towards us. It looked like we had run into baby bear and now mummy and daddy were truly pissed off with us. The ensuing fight was just a chaotic mass of blades and blows with everyone trying to stay out of the way of raging claws and maws whilst at the same time trying to drive the bears away. After what felt like an age but couldn’t have been more than a couple of minutes all three bears were dead, and even more amazingly all our part was alive. Although it appeared that Rhdan had taken the brunt of the damage for us. He advised that things weren’t as bad as they appeared and that his kind had the ability to restore themselves after encounters like this. Based on his confidence we again continued down the tunnel and after only a short way we found what must have been the bear’s layer where the tunnel came to an end.
Backtracking back to the crossroads we took the next passageway, which was essentially continuing straight on from the way we entered the cavern. There were more sings that this wasn’t entirely natural with steps cut into the floor to make the decent a little easier. As we progressed lower we started to encounter more and more cobwebs, which made me think it was unlikely anyone had been here in some time, so probably wasn’t the best place to find mushrooms. Orrakk decided it would be a good idea to burn them away and got a torch out of his pack and proceeded to try and clear a path for everyone else. Although to be fair they weren’t low enough to be causing me any issues. One more turn and the tunnel opened out into a cavern full of cobwebs, but there did appear to be some other objects in there it was just that we couldn’t really make out what they were. Orrakk was not deterred (add something about loot) by this pressed on into the room. The further in he got the clearer the objects became and it was soon clear that there are five cocoons hanging from the roof of cavern. As we all started to look around some of the biggest scariest spiders I had ever seen dropped down from the roof all around us. Before I’d taken in what was happening the others were already involved in a fight not to end up as eight more cocoons hanging from the roof. Assessing which one posed the greatest threat to me and Dave I notice sparkles emanating from his hand and knew that our esteemed mage wasn’t going to be much use in this fight. I joined the fray franticly trying to beat the spiders away with my quarter staff. All the time I could hear some scuttling but by this time we are all fully engaged with spiders and appeared to be beating them off. Three of the five spiders were down and we were beginning to consolidate to deal with the others when two other creatures dropped from the roof.
These looked like some type of giant lobster, which I found out later were Cave Fishers. Unfortunately for me one of them appeared to have taken a fancy to me and shot out some sort lure trying to capture me like a fly, but I managed to dodge out of the way just in time. I must admit that at this point I did get a little annoyed at the situation and struck it with my staff before laying into it with a flurry of kicks. This had the desired effect of dropping it to the ground where it was soon dispatched. A quick look around reassured me that Dave was safe and that the remaining Fisher along with the spiders had been dispatched by the others, with Orrakk looking very satisfied with the situation.
A quick search of the cavern reassured us that there was nothing else lurking in the shadows and we then set about trying to cut open the cocoons. They proved almost impossible to cut through with the sticky fibres clinging to blades and then sticking themselves back together. Fire on the other hand made short work of them and revealed their grizzly contents. In various states of decay were what appeared to be the remains of another adventuring party? Very possibly the ones that Maridian had told us about when we were in her shop. A good search of the cavern revealed no sign of any mushrooms and no other way out so once again we were forced to back track and check out the remaining tunnel. Following our experience in the previous two tunnels I was fully on guard and ready to back away at any sign of danger. However this passageway proved to be far less disagreeable than the previous two.
After a short decent the tunnel opened out into a reasonable sized cavern that didn’t appear to be the home of something that thought we would make a good meal. Furthermore there were a number of red and white mushrooms and a couple of brown mushrooms on the far side. The only problem was the crevasse separating the two halves of the cavern. There wasn’t enough room on our side for a run up to be able to jump it and there didn’t appear to be any way to climb across. Rhdan and Orrakk had something of a heated discussion so I went to have a catch up with Dave, but before I had the chance Rhdan grabbed me and dropped my pack to the ground before Orrakk tied a rope around my waist. Then with without even a by your leave they had picked me up by my arms and legs and flung me across the crevasse. I managed to regain some dignity by landing on my feet before turning to glare at them. It was hard to tell but I could have sworn that they were both grinning like manic children so I decided just to collect the mushrooms and have done. There were three of the red and white once along with two brown ones and they were each nearly as big as me. Not really trusting to take the rope off I pulled more of it over and tied each mushroom on in turn to be pulled back across to the others. Once they were all collected and much to the consternation of my colleagues I took a big run at the crevasse and leapt into the air. Clearing the gap with much more grace than my previous trip I landed safely on the other side, hiding my own little satisfied grin.
The trip out of the cavern proved to be thankfully uneventful and once we were back in the open we returned to the camp site we had used the night before for a rest. During the evening we discussed whether we should return to town with the mushrooms or whether we should press straight on to the goblin fort and look for old Gem Eye. With no decision made we settled down for the night. Myself, Dave, Thramin and Carrik were up early the next morning eager to get on the road but the others weren’t interested in moving. We simply told them we were going to explore a little, picked up the mushrooms and set off towards the cross roads. We didn’t really have a plan in mind but ended up walking all day back to the cross roads without any untoward encounters. Having come this far we decided to camp for the night and then head back into town the next day and exchange the mushrooms. The next day’s travel was again peaceful and we got back into town late on in the afternoon heading straight for Meridian’s shop. She seemed quite surprised to see us and even more surprised that we had three of the red and white spotted mushrooms she had asked us to collect for her. She asked if we had found any trace of the other part that had gone looking in the caverns for her and we were forced to explain that we couldn’t be sure but had found the remains of five other possible adventures. But that we had taken care of the spider problem so they may not be as dangerous in the future. After a bit of discussion we agreed on a price of thirty two gold for the mushrooms, six each for us and then two each for the rest of party when we met up with them next.
With a bit of money in our pockets we decided to spend the evening at the ‘Tall Gnome’ but we sent Carrik and Thramin in first to book some rooms and get a round in. Hoping that Chadir wouldn’t pay too much attention to me and Dave once we came in and sat with the others. We spent a little bit of time looking at the notice board outside the tavern and a couple of notices caught our attention.
Adventurers Wanted: Undead have defiled the shrine of the righteous Hand, the Weeping Hills. Any adventurer who can return the Shrine of this noble order to the light will have the benefit of my grace. Lord Carrion Felhand. The Cold Spares None.
And
No pilgrims have returned from the tomb of the First Signal for a number of weeks now. Lord Felwind will not take kindly to the fact that his ancestor’s tomb has been infested.
Any adventurer willing to travel to the tomb in the Weeping Hills and enquire into the health of the pilgrims will be duly rewarded. Lord Abudal Trent of Everwind.
There was also one about a reward of ten gold pieces for a missing cat but everyone knows that cats don’t go missing, they just find somewhere better to live for a while. What did cause both me and Dave some concern was the mention of undead in the weeping hills, where we had left our unsuspecting companions. Knowing there was nothing we could do about that now we headed into the tavern to join the others. They had already ordered a goat curry and the beers, apparently in dwarven pints were already on the way. When Chadir brought the drinks over he had a look of recognition and questioned me and Dave but we just said all talk folk think Halflings all look the same and he seemed happy with that. The food was ok and the beer was strong. Before he had finished his first pint Dave was drunk and I wasn’t far behind him. Another beer in and we were both babbling incoherently about the undead not being dead and our companions possibly now being dead but not really dead because they might be undead. This was lost on Carrik and Thramin who had no idea what we were talking about. Before Thramin could order another beer and whilst I still had a modicum of sense remaining I dragged Dave up to our room and turned in for the night.
Neither of us were a pretty site the next morning and because Thramin had paid for everything last night I arranged a hearty breakfast for us all so we would be refreshed for the walk back to the Weeping Hills. After leaving the tavern Akkaris saw us and came over to ask where we had been and if we had seen any sign of Tamaril. We advised him we had been to the Widow Maker caverns to get the mushrooms for is wife and that we had in fact seen Tamaril on the road to town several days ago that he had seemed to be in good health when we saw him. Akkaris was concerned about this as he hadn’t made it to town and it was most unlike him not to have arrived the he hurried off to talk to Lord Trent. With nothing else to keep us in town we set off back up the road to meet our colleagues in the weeping hills.
We were only a few minutes outside of town when a mangy looking hound approached us and Carrik appeared to be ecstatic to see it. Apparently he had come across it when they came ashore the other day but it had disappeared when he entered the town. He’d christened it Rossie and she seemed intent on traveling with us. The rest of the day was uneventful and we decided to camp at the same campsite we had used a couple of days ago as opposed to staying near the road. That all changed with a flurry of crossbow bolts whizzing past us with one striking Carrik, who still managed to draw his bow and hit one of our attackers in the throat. Dave raised his arms and I was expecting another sprinkling of sparklers but instead something shot from his hands striking three of our assailants. Thramin charged at them and seeing no way out of this I dashed in to back him up. Carrik managed to lose a few more arrows and between myself and Thramin we managed to deal with all but the leader of this band of brigands. I was engaged with him when much to my surprise he just floated up in the air. My reaction was to back away and get out range so that I could have a moment to figure out what was happening. It turned out Dave had another trick up his sleeve and was responsible for the brigand’s predicament.
With no immediate danger I told Carrik to cover him with is bow and demanded the tell us who he was and why he had attacked us. Apparently he wasn’t very intimidated by me but he was afraid of heights which soon became apparent when Dave raised him higher into the air. At this point he did as he was told and dropped his weapons before answering some questions. It turned out he was a simple brigand robbing whoever came down the road. We asked him if he had seen Tamaril and we were a bit surprised to hear that he had but he stressed they never messed with a wizard of his stature. There wasn’t anything else we could get from him so Dave started to lower him to the ground. Unfortunately for all of us our brigand hadn’t fully disarmed himself and he pulled out some daggers and throws one at Dave striking him in the arm. Dave’s response was more sparkles so as soon as his feet hit the deck me and Thramin dispatched him. A search of the camp didn’t turn up anything of real interest but there was a small pouch of gold coins that we shared out.
Thankfully the rest of the night was uneventful and the next day we set out for the Weeping Hills with a touch of trepidation about what we might find. As things turned out there was no need to worry and our companions were oblivious to the potential danger and rather unconcerned that they hadn’t seen us for the last four days. We brought them up to speed on our trip back to the town, the news of the tomb and the fact that Tamaril had never made it to town. No one could agree as to whether we should investigate the toms or carry on as we had originally planned and clear out the goblins. The discussion went on into the night without a decision being made. The following morning started much as the night had ended with us trying to agree on how to proceed.
Before any decision had been reached Lilith just headed off towards the tomb headless as to whether the rest of us were following or not. Orrakk believing there would be loot in a tomb followed and I followed him to make sure he didn’t do anything to defile the place. The entrance to the tomb was cut into the side of one of the (XXX) and was wide enough for us to enter two barest but beyond the entrance there was no natural light. Rhdan takes the lead again with Lilith working some of her elven magic to make him glow as he walks forward. Once we were all across the threshold there was a grinding of stone and portal sealed firmly behind us. With no other option we proceeded further into the tomb until we came to large opening on the right hand side. Before we had a chance to decide what to do a wraith appeared in front of us and stated that only the worthy could enter the tomb of Lord Fellwing Blackreach and survive. He went on to ask a riddle ‘what am I that can be broken but still work and is complete once touched’. Apparently we didn’t answer his riddle quickly enough and we all received a pricing chill shock akin to be being stabbed by tiny ice cold needles. We made sure that we answered his next riddle much more quickly and instead of the shock we were rewarded by a room illuminating through the large portal in the corridor.
As we started to move into the room our initial good cheer was replaced with one of shock after the wraith had reappeared and informed us that we had passed the test of wisdom and now we would face a test of strength. But all we were focused on were the horde of skeletons rising up out of the floor. In typical fashion Rhdan was the first to charge in and Dave conjured his now familiar sparkling fanfare. Everyone else charged in and despite the fact that we were fighting skeletons it soon became apparent that hitting them with big hard stick had the desired effect of breaking them into little pieces. Rosie even got in the act running away with a tasty looking leg bone. The fight couldn’t have lasted more than a minute but it had left us all on edge.
With the last one dispatched the wraith returned and congratulated us on completing our test of strength. He then pointed to the large walk at the rear of the cavern and a series of runes appeared and he again disappeared. There didn’t appear to be any immediate threat so Dave set to work pondering the runes whilst Orrakk decided he wanted to explore some of the other passageways with Carrik. Not trusting him not to loot the tomb I decided to accompany him so that I could keep an eye on what he was doing. We had only been exploring for a short while when the room we were in started to fill with a noxious gas but it didn’t appear to be linked to anything we had been doing at the time. With nowhere else to go we hastily made our way back to the main chamber only to find that the wall with the runes on had sunk into the floor to reveal another passageway down which the rest of the part were retreating. We hastened after them and were grateful for their shouted warnings about a trap in the floor, a sunken pit that we had to jump over but would have been exceptionally inconvenient and painful if we hadn’t known it was there. The gas was still building behind us as we entered another chamber.
Whilst we were trying to decide what to do next the Wraith returned and told us that the only the just could proceed and the unworthy would remain and perish. With the gas now starting to fill the passageway we decided to press on into the chamber. We had only taken a few steps when acid started to fall from the roof burning any skin it touched or clothing it touched. There was nothing else for us to do but to press on and try and get through the chamber. A few more steps and we were clear of the acid but before we could regain our composure lightning started to dance around the room striking us in the process. Remembering that the Wraith had said that only the just could proceed we pushed on through the lighting. But Orrakk decided that he wasn’t going to join us however once he stopped moving the lighting seemed to focus on him and he soon started moving again. We were all beginning to feel the effects of this punishment and looking for any way out but things changed once again with a biting frost suddenly covering us and sending stabbing pains through any exposed skin.
With our breath frosting and strength fading we pressed on with the other side of the chamber now in sight. A couple more steps and everything changed. The cold just disappeared and the chamber appeared calm and warm as if nothing had every happened there. We had all got together and whilst we had all taken a bit of a beating we were all in one piece and looking around for a way out the chamber when a number of Ghouls attacked out of nowhere and we once again found ourselves fighting for our lives. In the ensuing melee I swung my staff with all my might and knocked one clean across the chamber to slump against the far wall. I could see that both Thramin and Orrakk were engaged but seemed to have the upper hand. Another blow from my staff and another was down on the deck and before I really knew what was happening the fight was over with all of us still more or less in one piece.
The Wraith once again appeared before us and we all tensed expecting another attack but were relieved when it said that we had proved ourselves worth and would not be joining those who had come before us, indicating the bones scattered throughout the chamber. He went on to explain that as we had proved ourselves worthy we could take reward for our endeavours, Orrakk immediately set to work riffling through the items scattered throughout all over the floor. We divided up the coin between us and I noticed a bar of (xxxxx) that I thought could of use to the party in the future so placed that in my pack. Dave examined a scythe that he said had magical properties and Orrakk insisted that I should take it to replace my quarter staff. I did take it but had no intention of replacing my staff but I did think that we may be able to sell it back at Everwind for a night’s room and lodgings.
A thorough search of the chamber and the remaining passageways didn’t turn up anything else of interest and when we got back to the entrance the portal was now clear allowing us to exit the tomb. Everyone agreed that we needed some time to recover from our ordeals and we decided to spend the night at our camp site again. The following morning feeling somewhat refreshed we set out back towards the crossroads with the intention of spending the night there and then pressing on to the goblin fort the next day. Thankfully we had an uneventful days travel and set up camp for the night in the same spot we had used before.
We set up camp for the night at what was rapidly becoming our most frequently used camp site near to the cross roads. Orrakk offered to take the first watch and the rest of the rest of us settled down for the night. At around midnight we were all awoken by Orrakk who whispered that someone was approaching the camp before he disappeared into the woods at the side of the clearing we had used as a camp site. Dave had moved towards the edge of the woods and I moved in the same direction readying myself for whatever it was that caused Orrakk to wake us up. As I became accustomed to the dark I could pick out a pack of what looked like hyena headed humanoids with red cloth tied around their upper arms, that knew to be Gnoll’s, not something I wanted to be facing in the middle of the night. As they crossed the brook a series of missiles flew into them from where Dave had secreted himself striking them and causing them charge towards us. Whilst I was still taking in the fact that Dave had manged something useful with his magic Orrakk had darted out of the shadows and one of the Gnoll’s was down, sprawled at the side of the brook and he was dodging back into the shadows. I made the call to try and help out by jumping over the fire and into the fray but my opening strikes don’t seem to have any impact of the Gnoll’s although it did have the result of me being the only member of the party actually engaged with them. Thankfully for me an arrow followed quickly by a bolt of fire started to reduce the numbers and they were further helped by Thramin moving up to my shoulder. Between me and Thramin we reduce the numbers but before we can finish off the last one Carrik’s mangy hound tries to drag my staff out of my hand and I ended up wasting precious time throwing her into the brook during which time Carrick put an arrow into the last one. A good search of the area reassured us there were no other Gnoll’s lurking about so it was back to the camp to try and get some rest.
The rest of the night passed without incident and in the morning we decided to carry on with our original plan of looking to track down Gem Eye and his band of goblins. Following the track that we believed led to the goblin fort we were a bit more weary than normal but there was no sign of trouble throughout the day. At about mid-afternoon Carrik spotted some wagon tracks leading off to the side of the track we had been following and we decided to investigate where they were going. After only a minute or two of following these track Rubby started to pick some sent that put us all on guard. Dave took a moment and work some of his wizard magic to tell us that he can sense ‘lots’ of goblins ahead which caused us to pause and consider what to do next. Before we had made a decision a flurry of arrows came whizzing into the group and Marcella threw herself between them and Rubby to save the stupid dog. We pushed forward and found that we are on the side of lake with quite a large goblin camp in front of us. Orrakk rushed forward to some carts that separated us from the main camp but just as he reached them he was struck by a number of arrows that dropped him to the floor. On seeing this Thramin rushed forward throwing a javelin to try and distract the remaining goblins, Rhdan also stepped out into the open but didn’t appear to be doing anything other than trying to look imposing. Marsella also move up to try and help the downed Orrakk so I dashed up to help and using the scythe from the tomb to strike one of the goblins down with its rather impressive burning blade. As we started to settle in for long fight Thramin rushed the nearest group tripping in the process and making an impressive show of swinging his axes without actually striking anything.
Whilst we had been doing this Dave had moved up behind Rhdan and worked some of his wizardry magic’s to enhance his voice. Rhdan then bellowed out “Fear me I am our god”, which was somewhat pompous but made a group of the goblins turn tail and run away. The ones that hadn’t run away fired some more our arrows our way hitting Thramin but he stayed on his feet. I continued to swing the scythe taking another one down whilst Rhdan stepped forward making an impressive sight breathing fire over the reaming goblins, unfortunately whilst looking impressive it didn’t seem to have much of an actual impact on them. Hop on the other hand used more of his magic to fires some sort of missiles into them dropping two in the process. As the arrows continued to fly Thramin was struck again and went down this time so Marsella moved on from Orrakk to help him. With Orrakk back on his feet and back in the fight I continued to press on dispatching a couple more of the goblins. Marsella once again worked her magic and had Thramin back up and in the fight in no time. Rhdan was taunting Gem Eye but he wasn’t having any of it so we had to keep pressing on through the ranks of goblins. Hop was better on the fire front that Rhdan had been sending a fire bolt into the goblins and dropping another. As we progressed I found myself face to face with Gem Eye who attacked in a flurry of blows that I wasn’t able to deflect. The result knocked me back and if it wasn’t for Orrakk darting in to distract him could have proved much worse. As I was trying to get back into the fight Thramin came charging into the fray, swinging madly with his axes, the result was the first swing completely missed Gem Eye and sent him toppling over. But the extra momentum from falling resulted in the second axe cleaving through Gem Eyes guard and dispatching him in spectacular style.
With Gem Eye gone the other goblins fell into disarray which gave Marsella a chance to heal some of my wounds whilst the other dispatched the goblins foolish enough not to run away. As things started to calm down I took the opportunity to free Gem Eye of his Gem Eye as proof that we had actually dispatched him. Hop took a bit of time to examine it and told us that it was a magic item that would be worth much more that the reward offered to us by Lord Trent. Orrakk in his usual brusque manor pointed out that Lord Trent just told us to bring back his eye but didn’t specify which eye and set about collecting the other eye. The others took some time to look for any other items and attend to various wounds, Orrakk was no sporting a scar across his forehead and Thramin had lost the lobe off one of his ears.
With the fight over and there being nothing of interest in the camp we weren’t sure if there were any other goblins in the area so we needed to find somewhere secure to spend the night and get some rest. Based on Tamaril having said the goblin fort was empty we headed there and scouted the place, thankfully finding it empty. It was a more of a ruin than a fort but it offered shelter and it was easily defensible so we set up camp there. The night proved to be peaceful and allowed us a chance to get some rest and to patch up some wounds. Dave also took the opportunity to explain to the others that his real name was in fact Hopilpic. This didn’t go down to well with a few people but as everyone was so tiered they all soon let it lye and went to sleep. The following day we headed back to the crossroads feeling quite satisfied. We had sorted out the problem with the undead at the tomb and had also got rid of old Gem Eye which we hopped would set us up in good stead we got back to Everwind. That night we stopped at the cross roads but picked a new camp site that was a little more secluded and further back from the road. With another quite night under our belts and having had the chance to patch up a few remaining wounds we set out a little bit later than normal and had a cautious but safe trip looking forward to a night in the Tall Nome and some more of that excellent beer. It was dark when we got to town and the sight that greeted us wasn’t what we were expecting.
As we approached Everwind it looked like there was some sort of even going on in the big arena with a large fire blazing way. However as we got a bit closer it became apparent that it wasn’t actually a fire in the arena but lots of smaller fires all over the town because the town itself was on fire. As we hurried forward to investigate we saw Meridian running away from town but she froze when she saw us before finally approaching us. She was demanding to know where we had been whilst the town was being attacked and asking why we had allowed it to happen. We managed to calm her down enough to explain that the town had been attacked by half ork slavers and that everyone was either dead or captured. She demanded that we help free everyone which was unnecessary as we weren’t about to abandon them. We came up with a plan for Al to escort me through the town as a prisoner so we could free the town’s folk and then get them to help us drive off the slavers whilst the others caused a distraction. Without giving it much more thought we set off around the side of the town, and we could hear Rhdan shouting out ‘come and fight me’ with Hops magically augmented voice. We hadn’t gone fare when a couple of half orks approached us but we kept to the plan until Orrakk suddenly stabbed one of them and shouted ‘ambush’ before dragging me down a side street. I wasn’t really sure what was going on but Orrakk rushed around a building and then charged into a couple more of the slavers knocking one to the ground, I followed him using the scythe dispatching the other before following Orrakk back into the shadows. By this time I had no idea what was happening with the others and was focusing on how we could free the town’s folk as it was apparent we were outnumbered by the slavers it would have a hard time trying to fight them all.
Heading for the other side of the town myself and Orrakk moved round another building and could make out the carts that the townsfolk were locked up in, but between us and them were about eight half orks and I didn’t fancy our chances of fighting them all. We decided that our original plan of trying to free the towns folk was still our best option but before we could do anything about it a flurry of crossbow bolts came wising our way. Thankfully only one was on target and I managed to deflect that. Orrakk then charged the nearest of the slavers and I set off at a run to get round them to open the carts and free the townsfolk. With the slavers distracted by Orrakks hit and run attacks I managed to get the carts unopposed but was dismayed to find that everyone had been drugged in what I assumed was a similar manor to ourselves on the ships. This meant that we wouldn’t be getting any help any time soon and we would need to think of a new plan. Although now wasn’t the best time to come up with one as the slavers had now noticed where I was and a number of them were heading my way. Deciding that discretion was the better part of valour I left the townsfolk for now and carried on past the carts with plan of looping back round to help out Orrakk. As I was looping back round to Orrakk I could see the other were engaged with a what looked like a pack of wagges and some more slavers but I continued to try and get back to Orrakk. He was holding his own and backing away but it looked the slavers had a cleric with them who was doing a good job of getting any that were injured back in the fight quickly. Whilst it was distracted I leapt in with my staff but seemed to causing more of an inconvenience that actually damaging it. What this did do however was result in me being surrounded by a number of the slavers and they were beginning to get through my guard. Luckily for me a number of arrows started to hit home in the slavers as Carrik had freed himself from the other fight and was helping me an Orrakk out. We somehow managed to get the upper hand which I think was down to them concentrating on me whilst Orrakk and Carrik where picking them off. I had taken a bit of beating but was in better shape than I had any right to be and was looking better than the slavers. It appeared that the cleric was having to spend it’s time healing itself and between Orrakk and me we were dishing out a beating.
I shouldn’t have got too confident as the arrows soon stopped and as the fight ebbed and flowed I could see that the guard who had been protecting the wagons had now engaged Carrik but there was nothing could to help him. A few more strikes from Orrakk and it was just me and a peg legged slaver but he turned out to be a formidable opponent. I was repeatedly striking him but my blows seem to have effect. By contrast with every blow he landed I could feel myself weakening and know that I couldn’t win but I also had no strength left to disengage. Thankfully whilst peg leg was setting up to finish me off he wasn’t paying attention to what was going on around him and Orrakk came up behind him and dispatched him in a very efficient and gruesome manor. Never being one to pass up an opportunity he also took the opportunity to free peg leg of a satchel he was carrying before coming over to see if I was ok. I had taken quite a beating and wasn’t in any state to carry on fighting but looking around we could see a very unnatural black smoke building around peg legs body so we made a hasty retreat to see what was happening. As soon as we thought we were safe Orrakk had a rummage through the satchel and I got a look at a couple of maps before there was a loud ripping sound and a black portal opened (add something about a smell and feel of ozone) just to the side of peg legs body and a figure dressed in flowing black robes and a large volumes hood stepped through. It had a wicked looking knife in one hand and staff with a glowing red tip in the other fitting the descriptions I had heard of the sorcerer Ichours Bile.
The only thing I really knew about Ichours Bile was that he was rumoured to be a powerful and not very nice sorcerer and if we had gotten entangled in one of his schemes then things weren’t going to end well for any of us. As I was thinking this he made some sort of gesture and we just started floating up into the air. I managed to grab hold of a low branch but some of the other had nothing to grab and were just floating into the air. Before anyone had gone too high Tamaril came bursting out of the undergrowth on the edge of town and waving his staff and whatever spell Ichours had cast disappeared and we dropped to the ground, some of us more smoothly than others. Tamaril then shouted ‘Run Fools’ and I for one didn’t wait for a second invitation and set off for the edge of town away from where this wizardry was taking place. As I was running I could see most of the others scattering for the woods and could clearly see Hop so I angled slightly to keep him in sight. As soon as reached the cover of the woods I hid myself and observed what was happening back in town.
I could see both Tamaril and Ichours facing off against each other and I thought that Ichours was going to be forced back through his portal but with a wave of his staff Tamaril was struck down by bolts of what I could only describe as black lightning. An eerie silence then descended over the town and I could see Ichours directing the remaining slavers to push the cart of prisoners through the portal and to my horror they also dragged the limp form of Rdhan through with them. With the last of the slavers through the portal Ichours turned his back on the town and stepped through. As soon as he was through there was a loud ripping sound and the portal closed leaving no trace of its passing. When things had been quiet for a few minutes I edged back in the town to search for any survivors but the place truly was deserted. Whilst searching the last building something must have fallen on me because the next thing I remembered was being dragged across the floor outside the building by Hop. He said we were getting out of town and headed for the woods along with Carrik but I couldn’t see the others. Once we were what we considered a safe distance from town we started looking for somewhere to camp. It was fully dark by now so it was a while before we noticed a figure in the woods. It appeared they had been watching us for a short time and had just come out of hiding. Being extremely cautious we beckoned for them too approach.
When they got a bit closer I could see that it was a human female and she introduced herself as Cordelia explaining that she had been on a black sailed ship that ran into some trouble off the coast and that she had swam ashore only find herself here at the side of a burning town. We relaxed a little on hearing that she appeared to have come off a slave ship and gave her a quick update on what had just transpired in town and agreed that it would best for us to have a cold camp tonight and then look for the others in the morning.
We were fortunate to have a quite night but in the morning we couldn’t find any trace of the others but we were sure they had made it away from town last night so we decided to head towards Dreadharbour and see if we could pick up any trace of them. We were feeling very wary so decided not to travel up the road but to allow Carrik to pick out a path through the light woodland between the road and the coast. We didn’t encounter any signs of the either our friends or of any slavers throughout the day and camped again roughly parallel to the cross roads. Another uneventful night and we set out the next morning with the same intention of keeping the road on left and heading in the direction of Dreadharbour. The light woodland soon gave way to rolling hills scattered with low gorse bushes and the occasional hill sheep. Late on in the afternoon when we were looking for a camp site Carrik offered to hunt down a sheep for some food so whilst he went off to do this we set up a small fire in the expectation of him returning empty handed. I also took the time to do a sketch of the map that Orrakk had taken from peg leg back at Everwind. When Carrik returned we pleasantly surprised to find that he had indeed managed to hunt down a sheep. It was looking a bit bedraggled but there would enough food for all of us for a few days so I set to butchering it and getting some meat on to cook and smoke. With some food in bellies I agreed to take the first watch whilst the others got some sleep.
At close to midnight when I was starting think about waking Carrik for his watch I heard a howl followed a short time later by a second closer one that thought I recognised. Not wanting to take any chances I woke Carrik and told him what I had heard before waking the other. As we manoeuvred to try and eke out some cover from our surroundings a group of four Gnols with red arm bands came into view. As soon as they saw us they let loose with their short bows and two arrows struck Carrik, Hop responded immediately shoot fire into two of them and Cordelia just shouted at them to sod off, looking surprised when nothing happened. Carrik then shot one and I decided that if we just stood there they would pick us off with their bows so I charged forward to try and stop them from shooting at us. The extra speed must have helped me as managed to dispatch one of them with the first swing of my staff. I could see Hop lining up for more magic but the two that weren’t engaged fired their bows at me but I managed to deflect the arrows. However this resulted in me trying to fight three of them at the same time. Leader attacked in a frenzy and got several blows through my guard driving me back and one of the others was biting my leg. I managed to strike the one biting me with my staff and looking for some help form the others I could hear Cordelia singing in the middle of a fight. Or at least I think it was supposed to be singing as it was making my head split, although the gnols seemed to like it even less than me with the leader simply keeling over dead and the remaining one running away whining in pain. I made my way back to others not liking the fact that the responsibility of defending the group seemed to have fallen to me. But I was too tired to worry about that now and just wanted to get some rest so I settled down in my bed roll and left the other to whatever they were talking about.
I had only been asleep for what felt like a couple of minutes before Carrik was waking me up saying that the he had heard wolves approaching the camp. I knew I was too tiered and hurt to go toe to toe with a pack of wolves but Hop suggested throwing the remaining sheep carcase to them and then backing way. I didn’t like the idea of giving our food away but I like the idea of fighting wolves again so if it worked it would be a fair trade. The wolves seemed happy with the carcase and we backed away and walked through the night for about an hour before I called a halt to our trip and insisted that I needed some rest. The other reluctantly agreed and crawled into my bed roll exhausted. It was late in the morning before I awoke and had some breakfast before setting off once again for Dreadhabour. The landscape remained much the same all day but the weather got progressively worse with a cold wind and rain becoming the norm. As the sun was setting we could make out a town on the horizon but we estimated it was still half a day’s walk away so we rigged up a shelter for the night with the plan of setting out early in the next morning. The weather wasn’t much better the next day but we didn’t encounter any more trouble and arrived at the gates of Dreadharbour at about midday.
We found that our way into town was blocked by two guards who seemed very wary and unwilling to let us pass. Hop tried to turn on the charm but they were still unwilling to let us pass but they did say that there had been a case of the shadows and that the last caravan to come up the road from Everwind was two weeks ago. None of us knew what the shadows were and we didn’t think it was prudent to ask so we decided to say that we had been working for Lord Trent to see if that would get us past the guards. It didn’t but one of them disappeared to get the captain. Whilst we were waiting for the captain we asked the remaining guard were the best place to stay in town was. She said that most people camp outside of town with their caravans but that there was Butchered Goat or the Last Hearth taverns along with a brothel called the Cramp in Hand. She said the food at the Butchered Goat was the best and it was also the nearest so if we could get into town that seemed like a good place to stop. The captain turned out to be a Dwarf called Brell who had something of fascination for Carrik’s beard although I think it was fair to say Carrik didn’t seem to share his enthusiasm. Hop managed to steer Brell to one side and quietly told him about what had happened in Everwind in the hope that he would then trust us and let us into town. He seemed concerned about this but still didn’t seem willing to let us into town so he told him that Tamaril was dead at the hands of black clad wizard and this really seemed to agitate him but he still wasn’t quite willing to let us all into town. He said that one of us would need to see the town surgeon to answer a few questions and without missing a beat Hop volunteered me.
On entering the town there was no obvious sign to indicate whatever these ‘shadows’ were and everything appeared normal, if a little quite, for a harbour town. As we are walking through town Brill quizzed me a bit more about the half orks and confirmed that there had been no traffic, other than ourselves on the road for the last three days. The Surgeons office looked much like the other buildings in town and we entered into a medium sized room with a table and few chairs. Brill knocked on another door and a figure in a long apron with a birdlike mask and goggles opened the door, stepping into our room. He closed the door behind him and looked me over. Brill explained where I had come from and he proceeded to ask me if I had any bruises, legions or open wounds. I couldn’t hid the beating I had taken over the last few days but he seemed content with my explanation. But he kept asking if I have come into contact with any sick people to which thought everyone I have seen of late has been healthy or dead, but I just told him the bit about the healthy people. After only a couple of minutes he seemed to be happy with my answers and declared me healthy before returning into the other room and Brill lead me back out into the town.
As we were heading back to the gate I quizzed Brill on just what these shadows were and he told me that it all started a few weeks ago when a ship put in from Stormtide. It gets its name because the victim’s vision narrows and they start to shadows in their peripheral vision. There was a quarantine zone on the other side of the town that ran from Tamarils tower to the harbour and back to the town wall. Anyone that enters stays there until the surgeon is happy for them to leave and he hasn’t been happy to let any leave to date. I told him none of us had any of these symptoms and if we were allowed in to town we would stay well clear of the quarantine zone. He seemed happy with this and said I was happy for us to stay and also recommended the Butchered Goat as a place to stay. When we got back to the gate there was no sign of Carrik and Hop said he had gone for a bit of an explore as he didn’t like the idea of going into a town full of sickness. Brell advised them we could stay in town and I gave them a quick rundown on what had just happened on the way to the tavern.
The Butchered Goat was a pleasant enough place with only a few patron all of whom were wearing black bandanas which was a bit strange but it felt welcoming enough. Before we had even had chance to find a table Cordelia approached the inn keep and offered to play for her in exchange for a room. This seemed to go down well so we found ourselves a table and ordered some dragon turtle soup at the recommendation of the inn keep who introduced herself as Tamy. When the soup was delivered we booked another room for the night along with some win and contemplated what to do next whilst we were eating. Hop was adamant that we had to get into Tamerals tower and wanted to do it this afternoon so once we had finished eating myself and Hop left Cordelia entertaining the patrons of the inn and set out across town to the wizard’s tower. I was a bit concerned with it being on the edge of the quarantine area and didn’t want to get caught up there so I stressed to Hop that he wasn’t to get carried away when we got there.
The tower was an impressive sight butting up to the base of the town wall but there was no obvious sign of life when we got there. Hop knocked on the door a few times with no answer before a section of wall opened up to reveal a window with a cowled figure telling us to go away and leave them in peace. Not going to be dismissed so simply Hop insisted that he needed to come into the tower to talk to him as he had important news for him. He wasn’t having any of it so Hop tried to be subtle about things by telling him that he had been promoted but he didn’t seem to take the hint so we told him that we had recently seen Tameril and that we had to come into the tower to tell him what we had seen. He was worried about the shadows so I explained that we had been cleared by the town surgeon which seemed to sway things for him and he closed the window. After a few moments a section of the wall to the side of the door opened up and it was apparent that the door we had been knocking on wasn’t actually a real door.
On entering tower we were in a large sitting room with a kitchen off to one side and a stairway circling around the wall up to the next level. Hop rather to cheerfully I thought congratulated Zamerax on his promotion which seemed to go straight over his head so we had to be blunt and tell him that Tameril was dead at the hands of Ichours Bile. On hearing the news he collapsed into a heap on the floor saying that it was impossible and not believing what we were telling him. Hop said that he would go and make him a cup of tea whilst I tried to explain what had happened. Zamerax was saying that no one was safe now and that they didn’t understand what Tameril had been doing to protect the town. No one was traveling on the road because of all the bandits and that the harbour was closed because the slave fleet had blockaded it out by the light house. Once he had got this out of his system he seemed willing to listen to what I was telling him but when I mentioned the black lighting that had killed Tameril he shot bolt upright repeating what I had told him was impossible. I said that I was sure about what I had seen and he just said that I had to close the town and he shot off up the stairs just as Hop was coming back out of the kitchen with a cup of tea which he handed to me and then followed Zamerax up the stairs.
I had a look around the room but couldn’t see anything of interest so I finished off the brew that Hop had made whilst I waited for him to come back down stairs. When Hop came back down stairs he was on his own and said we could leave as Zamerax was engrossed in studying some books about Rift Fall and wouldn’t talk to us anymore. Before going back to the inn we headed back to the gate to find Brill and tell him what Zamerax had said about closing down the town. He didn’t appear happy to hear this but we just pointed out that we were the messenger and he could take it up with him if he had any problems with it. As we left him he was closing the gate. When we got back to the inn Cordelia was once again entertaining the patrons so we ordered some more food and waited for her to join us. When she did we brought her up to speed on what Zamerax had said to us with the intention of going back to see him tomorrow to see if we could get any more information out of him. I also wanted to visit a couple of the local stores to see if any of them were interested in purchasing a magical scythe.
The Light of Dreadharbour
When we awoke the next morning it was to an unholy smell. It turned out that the wind had changed direction during the night and was now blowing across the town from the quarantine zone which made us all think that being locked in a town that smelled like this was not a good idea. Hop needed to go back to see Zamarax so we had some breakfast and then left Cordelia at the inn and went back to talk to see if we could get back into the tower. We knocked a few times and waited to see if there was any response and just like last time the wall opened up and Zamarax stuck his head out looking even more haggard that when we had left him the night before. After a brief chat he let us back into the tower and it looked like he had been up all night. He was still on edge and wanted to know why we had come back. We explained that we had been working with Tameral and we wanted to know if there was anything we could do to help him now that Tameral was gone. He wasn’t sure what we could do to help him so I explained all the things we had done up until now and that it was in our best interest to help out as we couldn’t get home whilst things were in the state they were at the moment. On hearing this he seemed to relax a bit and explained that things were a lot worse that we had first believed. It turned out that he and Tameral all thought this had something to do with the cult of ‘BelsOrrakkel’ which I recognised as being on the letter we had first found on the ship, although they way he pronounced it made it sound very guttural and otherworldly. I showed him the letter and he was really interested in this and asked if we could make a copy for him which Hop offered to do instantly but said he would need some paper and a quill. Zamerax said he could use his study upstairs and he shot off. Whilst he was copying the letter I ask if there was anything we could do to help and he listed a string of issues with bandits and worse, a blockade of the coast and the problems out at the lighthouse. Mention of the lighthouse perked my interest and I asked if it would be any help if we could deal with that issue for him. He looked me up and down obviously not thinking that there was anything I could do but I was insistent and he said that we should talk to Brill as he wanted it sorting but couldn’t leave town. This was our chance to get out of the town so I aske him if he could give us a letter to prove to Brill that we were working for him which he obligingly did. As soon as Hop came back I explained what we had committed to do and we left the tower to head back into town.
As were approaching the blacksmiths one of the guards from the other day approached us and said that there were some travellers outside of town who said that they knew us and Brill wanted us to come and see if they were telling the truth. I said I just needed to take care of something and that we would be along in a few moments. She seemed ok with this so we carried on to see the Blacksmith turned out to be a half elf called Bram. I explained that I was looking to sell the magical scythe I had been lugging around, it was no real use to me and the coin could come in useful. After a quick demonstration and a thorough examination he offered us one hundred and ninety gold for it, which wasn’t as much as I thought it was worth but was better than nothing. Hop also wanted some items he needed for some magic thing so we got that included in the exchange along with some chalk. I thought this might come in useful to hand out to the party if we ever found ourselves in some dungeon or cave so we could mark our way. With that little transaction over we headed off to the wall to see if the others had in fact made it to town.
When we got to the top of the wall we were exposed a bitterly cold wind which had me wrapping my cloak tightly around myself. We had a peek over the wall and cold see Lilith, Thramin and Orrakk loitering around waiting to see if they would be allowed in to the town. We had a quick chat with Brill about Zamarax asking us to take care of the problem at the light house and saying that we did in fact know the three travellers below and that they would be invaluable in dealing with the problem. Along with the letter we had from Zamarax with Tameril seal was enough for him to let them into the town. When we met up with them Orrakk was not happy with the smell of the town and was even less happy when we told him about the shadows. We softened things a bit by saying we had another job to do and that we would out of town as soon, so if they wanted to get any provisions now was the time to do it. With that Orrakk set off for the blacksmith and I went to the apothecary with Lilith and Cordelia. My intention was to see if I could pick up a couple of healing potions as the others didn’t know where Marcella was and without a cleric in our party they may come in very useful. With a bit of haggling I was able to procure three healing potions of Sandy and she also had some interesting information about there being some sort of treasure at the lighthouse. She wasn’t very clear about what this treasure may actually be but I thought it was worth keeping the information from Orrakk for now.
With that taken care of we met up with others by the town gates ready to depart on another adventure. Before we set off I gave one of the healing potions to Hop and told him I had two more in my satchel in case they were needed. Whilst it was a relief to be out of the town the weather hadn’t improved any since our trip up from Everwind and if anything it was even more miserable this close to the coast. We had estimated that it would take us about three days to get to the lighthouse and the first day passed without incident and we managed to set up a camp that kept most of the weather away from us for the night. It wasn’t a good night’s sleep so we were back on the road early the next day. The weather seemed to be taking a turn for the worse with the rain turning into sleet and making for a thoroughly miserably day. The only upside was that it was again incident free, with everyone and everything else having more sense that being out in this weather. It was another horrible night with none of us getting much sleep which made for another dreary days travel but as we could now see the lighthouse we had a clear goal in sight and were confident we could make it by night fall.
As we dropped down off the coast road we could make out the light of camp fire and some noise coming from a group of people sitting round it. Orrakk when ahead to scout the area and came to say that there were a group of five half ork’s that looked very similar to the slavers we had seen at Everwind. They were sitting round the fire drinking so we decided to sneak a little bit closer and let them get a bit more drunk before we did anything. Things didn’t start well with Orrakk promptly falling over and I had to dive underneath him to stop him tumbling down the path and blowing our cover. Everyone else managed to stay on their feet and edged up until we were about twenty feet from then and then settled in for a wet and cold wait.
It was probably only about an hour but felt much longer when we decided it was time to get the show on the road. The plan was as simple on, which with Orrakk about it had to be, all of us with range weapons would fire a single shot and then we would all charge. Nice and simple so what could possibly go wrong? I let loose with a drat hitting one in the face, Orrakk used his new bow and struck one, Thramin wasn’t so accurate with his javelin missing completely but it was Hop who was the star of the show striking three of them with firebolts before we all charged. They responded instantly throwing knives at us and readying for our attack. Lilith was the first in followed by Orrakk and between them they dropped one of the slavers to the ground. Thramin was engaged with another so I darted between them to attack one of the ones who had been injured by Hops firebolts. My momentum coupled with the fact that he was already injured meant I dropped straight to the deck. Any thought of this being easy was soon changed when the one that Lilith and Orrakk had dropped was given a potion and got back up only to then heal the one I had just put on the deck. This left me in a very precarious positions stuck in the middle of the fight and unable to defend myself against all the attacks coming my way. I took several blows but managed to put the one I had previously fought back on the deck whilst Lilith and Orrakk dispatched the one I assumed was Cleric and his comrade. Thramin killed the one he had been fighting and the last one decided that discretion was the better part of valour and started to run. Only to be struck down by Hop as he tried to make his escape. Whilst the fight was over quickly in no position for any more action and told the others that I wasn’t going any further tonight and that they could organise the night watch as I was going to get some rest. Making use of the slavers camp I quickly got wrapped up in my bed roll to get some rest.
I was woken in the early hours of the next morning with Thramin shouting something about an attack. As I came out of my tent all I could see was Thramin charging up the track patting out flames with one hand and with a javelin in the other hand towards a figure outlined by some flames floating in front of it. I was still very sore from the previous night and being unsure what I may have been getting into I dashed into the undergrowth to the side of the track to come along side Thramin. It didn’t take me long and I could soon see that Thramin had struck home with his javelin and that the figure in front of him, who appeared to be some sort of magic user also had an arrow protruding from his chest. Not seeing anyone else around I leapt from the undergrowth striking the figure firmly over the head which had the desired effect of the flames dissipating from his hands and him crumpling to the ground. A quick search of the area revealed no other people but I did manage to follow his tracks back onto the nearby beach. When I got back to the others Marcella was checking the fallen figure whilst Orrakk was trying to strip him of his robes. This character definitely wasn’t one of the slavers, for one he was a human and all the others had been half ork or goblin. He was also dressed in a more ritualistic manor with a long robe and large pointed hood which coupled with is obvious use of magic led me to believe that he was one of the cultists that Zamerax had warned us about.
It was only when Orrakk had finished stripping the body that it sank in that it was Marcella who was with him who I hadn’t seen since the attack at Everwind. She explained that she laid low for a day following the attack, not being sure what was happening and then with the aid of Ruby she had tracked us to Dreadharbour only to find out we had left and headed this way. Following along behind us she had arrived last night and after a brief chat with Thramin and Orrakk who had stayed up drinking she had turned in for the night. I explained that I had found tracks leading onto the beach and that I thought it would be a good idea if we checked them out before getting any more visitors. Thramin said that it would have to be just us four as Hop and Cordelia had been up all night after eating something that really didn’t agree with them.
We followed the tracks back to the beach and then onto narrow path leading to a secluded cove and cave. There was a small boat tide up here so it was definitely worth investigating. Because both Thramin and Orrakk had dark vision they went first with Thramin acting as a prisoner and Orrakk disguised in the cultists robes. The main part of the cave was empty save for a few barrels and crates so we proceeded down a short tunnel as we could see the reflection of a fire in a small chamber ahead. Orrakk snuck in first and dispatched another cultist before he knew what was happening, nearly decapitating him in the process. Thramin went in right behind him and used a bit more restraint to strike a sailor over the head with the flat of his axe. Marcella checked over the prone form of the sailor and declared that he should be ok once he came round. To make sure he didn’t get up to any trouble we rolled him up in a couple of blankets so that he could move.
When he did come round, with a little help from Marcella, he wasn’t happy to see us and spent several minutes cursing us in a very imaginative ways as only a real sailor can do. After some time questioning him we managed to establish that he had been ferrying people, both slavers, cultists and other out to the lighthouse for about six months. He didn’t appear to have any real affiliation to them other than the fact he was a thoroughly disreputable character who would do just about anything for a bit of coin. After more questioning and some negotiation he agreed to take us out to the light house for a gold coin and another to come and pick us up. He wasn’t happy about with this but wanted the coin more but he kept saying that no one came back from the lighthouse other than the cultists. He even described taking out another Halfling monk several weeks ago and he hadn’t come back. This perked my interest, making me more determined to investigate what has happening out there. With the others being indisposed we decided to go straight away to take advantage of the calmer weather and a thick fog that currently blanketed the coast.
The boat the sailor used wasn’t large but it was sufficient for the job and he seemed to know what he was doing. We were all glad that the weather had calmed down over night and the trip out to the lighthouse was uneventful. We quizzed him about the layout and how to get in but he said he had never actually been there himself, he just rowed to landing jetty and back. He said that he would drop us off on the fare side of the small island and that he would come back and pick us up when we made the light flicker, which seemed like a reasonable plan. By the time we reached the island the fog was like a thick blanket covering everything and hiding us from any prying eyes but it also prevented us from seeing what we were getting into. As soon as we were ashore he rowed the boat way and was soon lost in the fog.
We made a cautious approach to the structure and had a quick search all round looking for any ways in. It was as very sturdy three story building with only one solid door on the leeward side allowing entrance at ground level. There was a window on the second floor and it looked like a metal rails surrounded the third floor which was were the light was housed. This meant that the only way we had to get in was through the main door so we approached that and decided to send Orrakk in first in his Cultists robes in the hope that we could distract anyone inside long enough to get the upper hand. The door creaked a little as he opened it and we could just make out a cultist sitting at table the middle of the room. He looked up as Orrakk entered but then simply slumped back into his chair paying no heed assuming Orrakk was a colleague. Wasting no time and giving him no chance to think again Orrakk walked up behind him and quite literally decapitated him where he sat. We all flooded into the room and secured the door behind us before quickly searching for any other threats. There was a stairway circling the outside of the single room and a trap door under the table. With no immediate threat we set too securing trap door and planning what to do next. Whilst we were doing this Orrakk was trying to balance the cultists head back on his body saying that anyone coming into the room would think he was just asleep. He did do a good job but the copious amounts of blood pooled on the floor around him was something of a giveaway.
With the ground floor secure the plan was to simply head up stairs and repeat the process. It was a good plan that lasted about ten steps before Orrakk, who was in the lead, tripped a trap on the stairs and barley managed to dive out of the way of lightning bolt struck the spot he had been standing on only moments before. The sound of some ethereal bell could be heard ringing throughout the structure. With surprise gone I shouted to run and we all charged up the steps and into the room above. We emerged into a single room containing a large bed and two cultists, one standing by the window and one just getting out of bed. Thramin went straight for the one by the window so I went for the one just getting out of bed. It soon became apparent that this wasn’t going to be a fair fight when Thramin was engulfed in flame and I just managed to dodge some coming my way before managing to land a couple of blows. He then seemed to shimmer and was surrounded by a purple glow making his form seem hazy and indistinct. What happened next came as something of a shock with Marcella swinging a mace at him, missing and nearly taking my head off. I regained my composure and managed to land a couple of hits despite the purple haze, pushing him back up against the wall where Orrakk managed to strike him with an arrow. This seemed to really annoy him and he produced a large fireball and held it spinning between his hands. Everything seem to slow down whilst he shouted for us to surrender saying something about us never being able to defeat the shadow. Marcella seemed to take this to hart and lowered her mace, Thramin had defeated the other cleric and Orrakk had that look in his eye. Before the cleric could do or say anything else Orrakk charged and the cleric released a massive blast of fire. It staggered me back but appeared to have felled Orrakk, before he could conjure any more fire I laid into the cleric and managed to dispatch him. Both Marcella and Thramin appeared to be ok if somewhat shocked but Orrakk was certainly in a bad way so I used one of my healing potions to stabilise him before Marcella could help out with some of her healing powers.
With the cultists dispatched we had quick search of the room but all we find were two chests that we decided to leave for now until we had had chance to clear out the upper floor. I went up the ladder first and a quick peek through the trap door revealed a stone floor with a metal railing on the outside and the light in the centre. Seeing no immediate threat I hopped up on the floor and beckoned for the other to follow. Orrakk suggested I simply chase the light around the landing so that any one lurking on the other side would be distracted. Trusting to my speed I did just that only to find that this level was deserted. Orrakk was keen to destroy the light now but we managed to convince him it wasn’t a good idea just yet and Thramin dragged up the thin mattress from below so we could block the light and signal for our ride home.
That just left the basement to check but before we did that Orrakk wanted to check the chests so he picks the lock on the first one and finds some more cultist robes, a magic book that he gives to me so I put it away to share with Hop and a staff that Marcella says is also magic and is something that would be really useful to her. With those items dished out he picks the lock on the second chest and sets off some sort of poison track with renders him unconscious. As soon as the poison clears I was forced to use another healing potion on him but the only thing in this chest was a ceremonial knife. With Orrakk back on his feet and his quest for treasure temporarily supressed we went back down to the ground floor to investigate the trap door down into the basement.
We move the table out of the way and I then opened the tap door whilst Orrakk and Thramin were ready to deal with any surprises that my come out. Unfortunately the school boy error we made was that we didn’t check for traps and as I open the trap door we were engulfed in a cloud of noxious gas. Marcella and Orrakk were rendered unconscious forcing me and Thramin to drag them away and administer yet more healing potions to keep them alive. Once they revived we checked for any further traps and they stood at the other side of the room whilst I went back and opened the hatch. Thankfully this time there were no surprises but we couldn’t see very much from where we were. The room was lit and there were no sounds coming from below but the shaft leading to the basement limited out view. I volunteered to go first but ignored the ladder and simply stepped into the shaft and dropped to the floor below landing lightly, much to the surprise of my colleagues and quickly scanning the area to make sure it was clear. One I was happy the others came down add we gave the main area a more thorough search. There were several creates that we ignored for now but what stood out were a couple of blood soaked tables like something you would find in an abattoir along with two cell doors on one wall. Both doors were locked but after a further search we found some key and then checked the doors for traps but couldn’t find anything. Although Marcella said she could detect the feel of magic coming from behind the right hand door.
With Marcella’s warning we started by opening the door on the left which thankfully didn’t trigger any further traps. Inside the room were what appeared to be two deep shafts with iron grills covering them. Marcella made use of her new staff to produce a powerful light so that we could see the bottom of the shafts, although she soon wished that she hadn’t bothered. The first was littered with mutilated bodies that may well have been the victims of some sadistic cultist ritual. The second contained the bodies of what appeared to be an old man and women who we believed had been the light house keepers. These hadn’t been mutilated and in fact looked like they had taken their own lives to avoid the fate that had befallen those in the other shaft.
We moved back out into the main room and opened the second door, again without incident. This had a similar layout with one shaft being full of bodies but the other had what appeared be the body of the Halfling monk the sailor had described. He appeared to clutching a prayer stick but was otherwise unmarked. This was also where Marcella said the magic was radiating form so I secured a rope to the cell door and climbed down in the shaft. Judging by his clothing and tattoos I was able to identify the poor soul as what I believed to be a Monk of Adun and that the prayer stick was in fact a Denn’Bok of Aladrin, or fighting staff, their favoured martial weapon bestowed upon their most promising initiates to safeguard them on their pilgrimage. This was something that had to be returned to the monastery so I took it from him and climbed back up to join the others.
It was clear there was nothing else here so we checked the chests for traps before opening them and managed to recover some gold coins which we agreed to divide evenly despite Orrakk’s objections. We also recovered a bow that Marcella said had some magic properties and some armour that was of all things designed for a dog. We took this so to give to Carrik for that mangy hound that followed him around. Orrakk also wanted to burn the light house down but we appeased him by me locking the door as best I could form the inside and them using a rope to climb out of the second story window before he burned the rope. I think his mood could best be described as disappointed but he didn’t make any more of it. When we got to the landing jetty there was no sign of our sailor so realising we had been abandoned we used the boat that was secured there to make our way back to the cove.
Orrakk and Thramin shared the work of rowing us back to shore and everything was quite as made your way through the fog which was thinning as a weak sun started to burn it away. The plan was to get back to camp, bring the other up to speed on what we had just achieved and then get some rest before heading back to Dreadharbour. I for one was in a bad way and having used all the healing potions I had procured before setting out was looking forward to getting some rest and recovering a bit. As we were approaching the shore we could see the others on the headland leading to the cove but they are seemed to be focused on something obscured to us by the fog. Whilst we were trying to make out what it was Hop stretched out his arms and a fire ball shot from his hands to light up another boat that appeared to have a number of cultists on board, before striking it. His fireball was answered almost immediately with one coming from the boat to strike our friends.
I urged Orrakk to row as hard as he could so that we could get to the shore ahead of the cultists, not wanting to be caught on a boat that was hit with a fireball as that would in all probability finish me off in the state I was in. It turned out that Orrakk was up to the challenge and we managed to make it ashore ahead of the other boat and some thirty feet further down the beach. As soon as my feet hit the sand I headed for the cover of the underbrush to buy myself some time to assess the situation. Orrakks first action on hitting the beach was to make use of his new bow and fired at the sailor who was rowing the cultists ashore. This struck true and the magical properties of the bow froze the sailor in place, causing the boat to lose momentum and be tipped over in the surf. Unfortunatly it was so close to shore at this point that it didn’t hinder the cultist that much but Lilith takes this small advantages as an opportunity to attack. But the slippery rocks on the shore caused her to lose balance and she failed to land any blows. Thramin launched a javelin in the general direction but it failed to find a mark and on seeing this Hop amazed us all by taking to the air flying away from the fight down the beach.
As soon as they gained their footing the cultists struck at Lilith and she went down to their combined attacks. Not feeling in any condition to charge head long into three cultists I ran through the undergrowth to try and get myself into a position where I could help Lilith. As I was doing this Ruby charged forward and tumbled into the melee whilst Cordial started to play some sort of whistle, which seemed have the same effect as her singing with one of the cultists collapsing to the floor holding his ears in obvious agony. The others start to advance towards the fight and another cleric was struck by Orrakks bow freezing in place before slowly toppling into the surf. Seeing two of this colleagues go down like this other made a hasty retreat back into the cave where we had first encountered the sailor earlier this morning. Knowing there was no other way out and seeing the others working their way around the path to follow him in I decided that in my condition discretion was the better part of valour and decided to say up on the headland to make sure no one could sneak up behind us.
It wasn’t long before I could hear the sounds of shouting and assumed that they had trapped the cleric in the small chamber where we had found the sailor. Things then seemed to escalate rather quickly with what sounded like a large beast joining the fray, although I had no idea where this could have come from. With the sounds of battle still ringing up from the cave there were then gouts of flame spilling out of the cave mouth indicating that there was some sort of mage battle taking place down there. Even though I was in no condition to take part in another fight I felt compelled to make my way down there to offer whatever aid I could. Thankfully for me by the time I got down there they had managed to deal with the cleric and whatever beast he had conjured up to fight them. Everyone appeared to be in one piece but after a quick catch up that was largely down Marcella and her healing arts.
By now just about everyone was in as bad a shape as me and we all agreed that we were in no fit condition to continue traveling. It turned out that Cordelia had some magic up her sleeve and managed to creates some sort of shield around the cave to keep us warm and more importantly to keep anyone else out allowing us all to get some rest. It wasn’t all good news however as it also meant we were trapped in there with her whilst she ‘entertained’ us with what she called music and poems. One of these poems turned out to be a recollection of the fight the previous night with the slavers and went something like “Perregrin the Halfling is wise, so don’t be fooled by his size, if you get up his back, he’ll give you a crack, or yeel end up with ball sacks for eyes”. Once we had had a good twenty four hours rest we set out back for Dreadharbour. During the thankfully uneventful trip I advised the others that I wanted to head for the Backbraker mountains so that I could return the Den’Bockk to the monetary at Adun. No one had any objections so I was hopeful we could sort something out once we had informed Brill and Zamerax about what had happened out at the lighthouse.
Back at Dreadharbour the smell hadn’t abated any and Brill was a bit reluctant to let us back into town, we got round this by pushing Carrik to the front so that Brill could have a fondle of his ears. Whilst he was doing this myself and Hop brought him up to speed on our activities at the light house and the others slipped passed and headed for the Inn. Once Brill was up to speed we headed to see Zamerax before joining the others. He was surprised to see us but welcomed us in and we took a bit of time to explain everything we had seen out the lighthouse. I took particular care to explain about the bodies and the fact that it looked they had been killed in some ritualistic way which concerned but didn’t surprise him. Hop presented the staff he had been carrying which he had apparently got from Orrakk and Zamerax recognised it immediately as Tamaril’s staff but also said that he had his own staff and as we had done so much to help he was happy for Hop to keep it. He didn’t have anything else that he needed us to do at the moment so I took the opportunity to ask him if he know where the Monastery of Adun was. He didn’t have an exact location but said if we travelled up the Dreadthunder road to Dreadwatch we would be able to get more accurate directions from there. I was happy with this as I had seen a notice looking for guards to travel to Dreadwatch. Whilst I was thinking about this he asked if there was anything he could reward us with for all our work. Hop asked if would be possible to borrow a book which was he was more than happy to do and I advised that simply helping was enough reward for me.
