XP for Slaves of the Old Prophecy Session #1

Each player gained 1100 experience for the session.

Total XP: 19900 (level 10 at 20500 xp)

XP for Unraveling the Prophecy Session #1

Each player gained 400 experience for the session.

Total XP: 9950 (level 7 at 10000xp)

Smashing Gnolls, For Fun and Profit

It was another boring day looking for real work. No decent jobs to be had in the entire town...assuming I don't want to work the quarries, mines or fields. I'm back to beating up some unsuspecting gnolls in a circle challenge. Hey, it pays the bills.

Stewirk, my little goblin bookie, handles all my bets while I'm fighting. He's really smart and knows how to play the odds. He's also good for starting the fights, as he gets picked on quite a bit being a goblin in Bloodstone. The bullies picking on the little guys are usually cowards and wimps. Not much fun to fight but great for bringing in the money as they look tough

Today's first challenge is a gang of gnolls. They've been hanging around here most evenings for the past week causing trouble. Their leader, whose name sounds like a cross between a hacking cough and a dog bark (we just call him Liveroil, because that's what he smells like) was too chicken to be the first to challenge me. He made his lieutenant go first. Doesn't matter, I can take them all one by one no problem....hahaha, they think 1 on 10 will be better odds for them. Now it's a fair fight. Bring It On Baby Rrrrowwggh!!!

The Lightning Rail to House Sivis

There are so many things out here the likes of which I had never even imagined that they existed. First we took a floating carriage on the branch line to the lightning rail. Then, we waited at the station and a huge train of coaches appeared. I was overwhelmed and a little afraid since they distinctly smelled of fire, but Elaira said that it was normal and we shouldn't be concerned. We had to ride for several days to get to Korranberg.

On the second day, I overheard Elaira talking in her compartment. I checked to make sure everything was okay, and found her talking to a mechanical person, a warforged like Reader. She was scolding him and telling him that it was somewhat rude to peer into people's compartments on the train. He clanked a lot, and was much noisier than Reader. He also had these attachments that must serve some purpose... he called them "doodads." He wasn't terribly eloquent, so I couldn't piece together entirely what he was doing. He kept saying he was looking for "stuff" to take to his master, Robert, to sell. He did manage to tell us some of his story, telling us that his name was Stalwart, but that we could call him "Clangor." He said he is from the region that used to be called Narath. Horadric said that his former land is now the Mror Holds in Karrnath, very far away. He said he has been travelling for awhile, and it's been over a year since he has been back. So, I asked where he was keeping all the other items he had acquired for his master, and he said he hadn't managed to collect anything really in all that time. Then, Clangor said that his master is not a very nice master and does not make him proud. He did say he was the only servant of his master, and that he was commissioned to serve the master and help the house. I came away from this discussion feeling somewhat confused, as to why he is serving this master, and why he has not been competent enough to find any "stuff" in over a year that would be suitable, and exactly what "stuff" he was looking for, and why not just to sell the items and take the money to his master instead as that seems easier. I think Elaira felt sorry for him, as she offered to let him travel with us.

The next night, there was a horrible thunderstorm. I worried that it would interfere with the rail, but still the train carried us forward. I awoke in the middle of the night, not really sure why. I saw a flash of black cloth pass by my window, and I felt a little uneasy... I reached for my weapon and stood, quiet and vigilant, ready for trouble. And trouble ensued. Very shortly thereafter I heard Elaira trying to fend someone off. In the hallway I saw a female elf and an eladrin, and in Elaira's compartment I could see her scuffling with another elf, upon whom I landed a crushing blow. Clangor came out, too, and grappled with the eladrin. Before I knew it, we were all out there: Horadric shouting out that he could see their dragonmarks and that there was a kobold scurrying around; and Reader for some inexplicable reason not remaining safe in his cubicle but instead running around in the hall doing a poor job of hiding and subsequently being punched and carried off. Clangor and I went after him and got him back (but the would-be captors somehow leapt off the moving train and got away), while Keh'r had stopped an assassin in Elaira's room who subsequently committed suicide. In the guy's pockets we found some of Elaira's belongings--just personal stuff. Obviously she was targeted, as any number of compartments were closer to the doors than hers. Elaira, Horadric, and Keh'r talked about it at some length as they checked over the items they had found on our foes: five coins, a "to-do" list, a Chinese flute, a Bag of Holding containing another 300 coins, an Amulet of Resilience, and a Wand of Vicious Mockery +2. They came to the conclusion that Elaira was being targeted for some kind of scrying ritual. Creepy. The "to-do" list listed some arcane components that my arcane allies believed were going to be used for some kind of scrying and/or long-range teleportation ritual; also a note to "convince Dor'alla" and to "be creative in town," a reminder to write to Mom, and a note to talk to folks including Mordac. As we watched, the man's form changed to a whitish creature with purple hair. The others decided that he was a race called a changeling, and that he could assume other forms. Lastly, it's worth noting that the money he had left was not regular money like I've seen before, but somewhat different money. I asked the others about where that kind of money was from and Elaira said it was money from Breland. Reader had told us that he had recognized the assassin; he said it was a man named Ephraim who had assassinated an elder of House Sivis and that it was the man who Nym had been speaking with, in the event that had revealed to him Nym's treachery.

Fortunately, the rest of our trip was uneventful. At Korranberg, we were welcomed by House Sivis. We relayed information to them and did our best to learn useful information from them as well. I overheard Keh'r talking to one of the gnomes named Alvian about "Tasker's Dream"... I got the impression it had to do with developing the "ultimate language" to use to send information quickly through the speaking stones. Keh'r, however, seemed fascinated and the two had a long, in-depth conversation... something about compression rates? Moving on... Elaira was deeply involved in a conversation about the Prophecy. I didn't hear much of it, but I did hear the gonmes talking to her about some anomaly in the Pantheon, some demon type god named Orkus who is also called the "Prince of Undeath." It was around then that I noticed that although all the people there were very small, one of them was a dwarf while the others were gnomes. The dwarf was wearing a holy symbol; I later learn that he is a cleric named Bjornhelm working for the gnomes. Another gnome was overheard saying that Reader was a useless slacker. Poor guy. A sweet apprentice named Talia looked him over with Elaira. I heard her say that some of the damage would be permanent.

Then, the gnomes started telling us how dragonmarks were showing up all over the land, with the first having appeared in Warden Keep. They had already sent a party out to investigate. If I could only have gone, I could have gotten two tasks completed! But Elwood's letter will have to wait, as some surprising turns of events in House Sivis have settled our path in another direction for the near future.

A gnome with glasses named Rattigan had begun calling out Horadric, and asking him about his past. This caught my interest, so I listened in a little more carefully. Horadric said he had been working with the Silver Flame, and said how he kind of just found himself somewhere without any memory of his past. He tried to make a joke about wanting a new memory unit, like Reader, but a hush fell over the House and it quickly became clear that this was no joking matter to the gnomes. Rattigan said that 66.358 percent of people with memory loss are important to a prophecy. Elaira asked more about the prophecy, and the gnomes started getting all sorts of books out. The dwarf cleric said he could not heal Horadric, but that he knew someone who could help. A skinny, old goblin named Cyrus came in. He told Horadric to come take part in a primal ritual to unlock his memory. I offered to help with the ritual and suggested that Reader should be healed too, but was told that Reader's memory loss being physical would prevent the magical ritual from restoring him, while the ritual may help break down the walls in Horadric's memory. All of us save for Keh'r went to do the ritual, while Keh'r decided to try his hand at gambling. Overall I don't have much skill with magic, but thought a ritual using primal energy might be a useful application of my skills.

I should have gambled, instead. Perhaps the way that I channel the primal energy only works for me personally, and isn't something that I can lend to others. Or maybe I was so unnerved by the group setting that I wasn't able to direct the energy appropriately. In any event, I think I might have killed a couple of birds. Cyrus seemed to be having quite a bit of luck, though, and he said he could see the Silver Flame moving away, that Horadric was not a member of the church, though possibly in a past life he could have been. He said that someone does not want Horadric to get his memory back; that he saw giants stomping the ground creating earthquakes, stone columns and orcs bowing before him; that then there was a view from the floor, with broken columns around and a plume of smoke, a corpse burning. He said he saw red flickering shadows, that there was a tigerlike creature called a rokshacka, a demonlike creature from the darkest areas of the world, stalking Horadric.

Then, the energy went awry, the glass ceiling of the House broke and earthquakes shook the very ground beneath us. A necrotic ooze began flowing down the shelves and among the hundreds of thousands of books in this place. A tiny lizard fell to its death, dropping at Horadric's feet. And Cyrus began screaming out, and as lightning flashed, a black dog appeared in Cyrus' place, the vision ended. We rejoined with Keh'r, who looked a bit dejected at the outcome of his night as well, and the next morning we spoke more to the gnomes about the next step.

They had managed to track down the portion of the prophecy that they had deciphered that they believed may be relevant to us now. It reads:
"The fall of one nation,
Erased from the great between,
Shall herald an open door,
A break in the armor between,
A dragon and its dreams,

A wall of red stone,
A huffing bull provokes,
Let him charge against a crimson brother,
Let him break against a charging oak
And give his wisdom to another."

It sounds like a bunch of gibberish to me and I am not sure I believe in Prophecy, but these lots are serious about it and I am willing to go along to help watch over them and to help try to restore Reader's memory. The gnomes said that the dragonmarks had begun appearing near Rivenroar, too, and that these along with the one at Warden Keep portrayed a dark future, that they should be studied to give us hints on how to help and stop the evil. They asked that the first thing we should do is to find Nym. They promised to pay us handsomely to track him to Graywall to the west. Cyrus (still a dog, the next morning) spoke up then, saying that the "wall of red stone" mentioned in the prophecy might refer to Graywall, a poorly-named city whose walls are in fact made of red clay. At this the gnomes became excited, saying that if we can bring any hints about the prophecy from this city, that they will give us extra money for any information we find.

Cyrus said he had a contact in Graywall named Bloodrush, who he spoke of as a useful, resilient, dependable sort. Elaira said she had heard of him as a great champion of the gladiator arena there, and Cyrus confirmed that it was the same. The gnomes asked Keh'r if he would be willing to delay his trip to Graywall to take a broken item back to Derrick in Brindol for repair. He agreed, and the rest of us set off with Cyrus toward Graywall. On the road, two interesting things happened. First, a weird glowy mark started appearing on my arm. I guess it must be a dragonmark? Elaira saw it one night while I was dressing into nightclothes. She told me with concern that I should keep it covered up when I was in public. I don't understand it much myself, so I certainly plan to follow her advice in this. Second, I had a dream about the letter I am carrying for Aelwyn. This has the letter on my mind... I probably dreamed about it because of all the talk about dragonmarks in Warden Keep. Hopefully this business in Graywall can get wrapped up quickly so that I can do the task that was set before me by Elwood.

We arrived in Graywall. It is an amazing place, with all sorts of kinds of people and creatures I have never seen before. I could just sit there and stare in wonder for hours at all the new things that await here. On the other hand, I received a few wayward stares myself, so I tried to hide in the middle of our group as best as I could. We walked around, seeing creatures dueling in challenge circles, lovers, musicians, shopkeepers... all manners of things. We stopped to watch one challenge circle, as an orc dueled with a gnoll. As we watched, Cyrus told us that we had come upon Bloodrush, the contact we were seeking. Bloodrush attacked the gnoll, and then a bunch of his friends rushed into the circle and all came upon Bloodrush at the same time, mobbing him. There must have been ten of them altogether. Cyrus said that we should help. I was a little wary, not being sure about the politics involved, but Cyrus told us that Bloodrush was a sportsman and would not do anything to provoke this attack justly. Clangor proclaimed that if Bloodrush was our ally, then he would fight. I am with Clangor on this one... if Bloodrush needs protection so that he can help us, I am willing to protect him.

An airship full of starving slaves

As we headed back to town, we came upon the burning ruins of a caravan. There were several wounded, many of whom I aided when we arrived. We quickly found the leader, an elderly man named Dryan. He told us that on their way, an airship led by half-orcs hailed and wanted to trade with their caravan, but instead attacked. He told us that he was the leader of a group of pilgrims, whose life savings of 200 gold, that they had planned to use to establish a new church, had been stolen. In the meantime, I found myself healing the last remaining caravan guard, a ranger named Morangan. He pointed us toward the last standing caravan, inside which was Ned, an accountant-type. He told us some information about those in the airship and pointed us toward where it had gone. Overall, he was very rattled, and came across as a greedy and cowardly type. He said that he was ruined, and estimated his losses at around 1500 gold.

Phelaia and Colvin were shocked and very sympathetic to the pilgrims' plight. They offered to go chase the airship and get the money back. Now I wasn't real set on chasin' a long-gone airship to get a couple hundred gold back for the pilgrims. It would have been a different situation had we been hired to do it, or if we could still see the airship. Me, I woulda rather helped 'em all get healed and give 'em an escort back to town rather than leavin' 'em without any guards. But I reluctantly agreed to go along with the team, under the condition that if there was no sign of the airship by nightfall, then we head back to town. Mishaan left us to stay with the pilgrims and go back to Greenwood Villa, whereupon he would take the Wrathstone to his employer to have it properly disposed of. Morangan volunteered to come with us instead, as he wanted to be part of taking down the bandits.

The airship had a four-hour lead on us. Dryan had given us a bunch of (Ned's) horses, now that their wagons were fewer in number, to help us catch up to it. We rode hard, and Morangan spotted the caravan as dusk was falling. We rode somewhat into the night, and when we (and our horses) became too weary, we rested to begin again the next morning. We caught up to the ship during the day, and waited for it to anchor to a tree at nightfall. We then found ourselves the difficulty of climbing up the ropes to board and overtake it. Treble came up with a great idea, and tied us all what he called "Prousic knots," to tighten and catch each of us should we fall. Treble and Morangan went up first, letting down a tied rope to ease the trip for the rest of us. Eventually, we all (save Colvin) made our way up, as Colvin threw lightning bolts in the air on the other side of the ship as a distraction, trading profanities and insults with the half-orcs.

The situation on the ship itself was not optimal, at least not without Colvin there. I think he would've been able to do us a lot more good above than below. Instead, their damn mage conjured a swarm of biting flies, so between those little bastards and the mage himself, I was close to going down. Not to mention that the flies kept flying in front of and into our eyes so we couldn't see, either. It was thanks to Brogar that I didn't die, but the whole takeover was a pretty shitty situation and we probably should have used much better tactics. I guess what counts is in the end we got ourselves an airship and routed all the guys out. I sure heard the crowd cheerin' when Aurora threw that mage right off the deck to the ground. Served him right. Bastard.

Anyway, then we looted the place. In the captain's pocket, we found a letter to Agrawal (captain) from Thorn. It said to deliver the cargo to the Dagger River Compound (we found it marked on a map in the captain's quarters), and "between your load and the others, we should be ready to begin Stage 2." Sounds nefarious. Loot-wise, we found 1 platinum, some magic boots that Treble showed a quick interest in, a quarterstaff that Phelaia claimed, some sailing equipment, jewels worth 800 gold, a smashed, empty, lockbox, and 4 healing potions.

After we all healed up, we opened the hold, from which we could hear movement. Inside, we found about a hundred, starving, scared, chained people sitting in their own sewage. Poor folk. I started healin' 'em right away, and talked to 'em to learn that many of 'em were from the northern area, near Cragwar. I told 'em that we'd do our best to get 'em close to home, and several of them told me that they thought they'd never have hope again until we came upon 'em. I found a few of the prisoners knew a bit about sailing, and asked 'em to help give us some pointers so we could get 'em home faster.

Among us in the little party, quite a debate erupted upon the best course of action. Phelaia was pretty passionate about going to the compound with great haste (and Brogar was in support), suggesting that we take the slaves to the capital city of Wroat before going to the compound; while the rest of us weren't necessarily convinced that the situation was as urgent (after all, the letter indicated that Stage 2 couldn't begin without the rest of the slaves). We all agreed we didn't want to drop them in the nearest small town, Woodhelm, because of the tax on the infrastructure, but some of us would rather've gone back to Greenwood Villa, to give the money we'd retrieved to the pilgrims and stock up at a familiar town before heading out. And I wasn't real sure about leaving the pilgrims 500 miles from their homes (and we could have gone back to get them later, but it seemed like a good idea to get the people we had as close to home as was feasible before worrying about the unknown). In the end, that's what we did, as Greenwood Villa was only two days or so out of the way. The slaves were overjoyed to be free, and the pilgrims were falling over themselves with gratitude for returning their savings. Some of the (ex-)slaves tried to convince us (or maybe I should say bribe us) into going to Cragwar next, but I don't think we can afford the time for it, although I'd be glad to offer to return a couple weeks hence after finding out whether there are more slaves to free. Ye'd think of all people, they would be understanding to the plight of others who were enslaved.

An adventuring job

Last week, this fellow, Mishaan, who I've crafted items for several times in the past, came into the shop. He told me that he wanted me to craft him a Bag of Shielding of a particular size, that could help give him some protection against the contents of the bag. I told him I had just the thing in mind, and we settled on a price. This time, though, he said he was in a hurry to organize a mission, and instead of waiting for the item, he asked me if I would go to Greenwood Villa and deliver it to 'im. I told him that usually I charge a travel fee, but being as I appreciate repeat customers who pay promptly and in full, I'd waive the charges and do it for the cost of travel expenses. He agreed, and we made plans to meet in a tavern a week hence. He told me that actually, he was recruiting for the mission as well, and he invited me to join along as long as I was there delivering the bag. He said that I could expect a hefty sum if I joined along, and for me it was a safe investment to at least listen to his spiel, given that I know he pays as promised.

Then, Mishaan asked me if I knew any other adventurers that I could recommend recruiting. I told 'im about that time I went to the cemetery to go after Volkir, and about how of that lot we took along with us, only a few of 'em really would have the mettle for a serious mission. I told 'im that Treble has worked in this area a long time, so I was pretty sure I could find 'im and ask 'im if he was looking for a job from someone who pays reliably, and if so, I'd see if he wanted to come along with me. I told Mishaan that I don't know Colvin, Agathor, and Balthazar as well, but that he could get in touch with them by sending a message over to the Temple of the Silver Flame if he wanted to see if any of them were available. I told him that of the three, especially Colvin really hung in there with us when it got nasty in those crypts. He's a brave fellow even if I did have to save his life when he got himself in a pickle. I said that Agathor led the mission, but he and Balthazar went to stave the Children of Winter off of our flank, so they weren't there in the thick of the action, although I thought they would be useful if they were available. I told him that the other fellows, Horadric and Rhogar, were adventuring types who aren't from this area, so I don't know how he'd get in touch with them, but if he managed to find them, they would be worthy allies.

During the intervening week, I crafted Mishaan's bag, putting as much care into it as I do to all of the items that I craft. I met up with Treble and we headed out to Greenwood Villa to meet with Mishaan at the tavern for drinks and information. Colvin was there too, and sitting with them was Aurora, a strong-looking (if hairy) woman with a bunch of weapons at her disposal. Mishaan offered us hefty doses of excitement, fame, and most of all treasure if we joined him in his mission to retrieve an artifact from an old hideout. He promised us each 100 gold for our time and trouble even if the artifact was not there, which seemed fair enough, so we all agreed to join. He told us that the old hideout we would be looking for was that of the Stormcrow Company, a trio of disreputable adventurers who had disappeared fifteen years ago, and showed us a map he had drawn of the area where he thought we might be able to find it.

The next morning, we headed out toward the area that Mishaan had indicated on his map. It took us pretty much the whole day to get down there, and I suggested we make camp a little away from the woods and enter the woods in daylight. The others agreed, even Colvin, who was reluctant and had to be convinced not to make camp right in the middle of the woods with wolves all around. The next morning, Aurora and Treble climbed up a tree to look for the rock outcropping we were using as a landmark to decide from whither to enter the woods. They pointed the way and we all headed that direction and went into the woods. It was dark and the brush and undergrowth were overgrown in the woods, so it was slow going. We all tried to use our skills to the best of our abilities to help, but some of us were more successful than others. I especially gave a long look to Colvin, who told us all that he was skilled in Nature, and then instead of tracking his way through the woods he started incanting prayers and calling forth lightning from the sky and bring blasted trees down all around us. Poor Treble out in front there almost had a close call when a limb came crashing down right in front of him. Hopefully this was an anomaly, and Colvin will prove himself to be more useful in the future, or Mishaan might not give as much weight to my recommendations in the future.

As it neared dark, we found the outcropping. As dusk surrounded us, so did a pack of wolves, as we approached the clearing. Our team was somewhat divided on whether we should make a run for it or stand and fight, so our tactics were not ideal, as Mishaan and Treble tried to make a run for it while Colvin and I decided to choose a patch of ground and defend it. The fighter lady stayed with the two of us, and I planted my deep red battle standard in the ground to mark the ground as ours. Colvin and Aurora quickly found themselves surrounded by wolves, and so I conjured an arcane eye to help them see the weaknesses of their foes. At one point there, Aurora was knocked prone and rather than help her up, Colvin stepped aside and roasted the whole area with fire and hail. I had given her an elixir of protection, so she didn't seem too much worse off for the wear. While I have to admit that his fiery hailstorm was effective in dispatching several of the wolves, I can't help but think that the bloke must have been having an off-day, first bring trees down around our rogue and then bringing fiery hail down around our fighter. Off-days happen to the best of us, so let's hope that the lad learns from this to temper somewhat his youthful impulsiveness.

Anyway, the battle was over in short order, so we decided to sleep in the hideout ruins for the night. Aurora volunteered to sleep on the trap door, and Treble volunteered to keep watch, which worked for me. Tomorrow, we plan to go into the burrows underground and look for Mishaan's artifact.

Tavern brawl

I continued in my journey to carry the message from Elwood to Aelwyn in Warden Keep. I stopped in a tavern in a town called Brindol. I took a seat near the back and tried to ignore all the wayward glances. The place was busy; a few people sat at my table, though we didn't do much chatting. In the middle of the meal, a bunch of hobgoblins burst in, shouting something about Sinruth and the hand. They started just slaughtering all the innocent people who were sitting closest to the door. One guy who had been sitting in the corner started fighting back and was quickly finding himself the target of their attacks. I ran across the room to help him and managed to draw some of their attention away from him, as more rounds of hobgoblins rushed in and were throwing torches everywhere, setting the place on fire. A few other tavern patrons joined in the fray: a wizard who had been eating at my table, a fiery-looking orange swordsman, even the bard who had been entertaining us, and a human with a club (who, unfortunately, lost his life to one of the hobgoblins). In the meantime, I was hit by a torch of fire and the wall behind us was burning down. Fortunately, a lot of people managed to escape out the back door. I chased down the last hobgoblin who had been throwing torches, as he tried to escape out the front once he realized he was outmatched. However, it was too late to save the tavern, which burned to ruins, though the Bucket Brigade was able to extinguish the fire before it consumed the neighboring buildings. At least everyone who survived the hobgoblin attack was able to get out before it burned to the ground.

The watch patrol, bloodied and wounded, arrived and were asking questions of the witnesses. I staunched my own bleeding as we learned that the town hall had been raided. I met the others who had defended the tavern: the wizard Horadric, the bard Elaira, the swordsman Keh'r, and the rogue Treble. Keh'r asked the watchman about which artifacts were taken, and we learned that they were nonmagical artifacts from the Band of the Red Hand. The watchman still seemed a little stunned and unraveled to be telling us this; he said everyone in these parts knew that the Band of the Red Hand had been defunct long ago.

While we were talking, a band of townspeople came running and shouting down the street. We tried to ask what was going on, but they ran right past us. Then, we saw for ourselves: they were being chased by a huge ogre carrying a wagon of casks and hobgoblins. The casks were explosive: the hobgoblins were lighting them and giving them to the ogre, who was throwing them into the town to light more buildings on fire. I couldn't stand idly by and watch them burn down the town, so I put aside my trepidation and ran up to the ogre to attack it. While I was battling the ogre, Keh'r blew up the wagon of explosives, and he and I were caught in the explosion. Can't say I much appreciated being blown up by an ally, but I guess it did the trick... One hobgoblin was killed; the other ran away. Shortly thereafter, Keh'r and I both retreated to staunch our bleeding, and we all kept our distance as we watched the ogre tied to the explosive wagon trudge on until he self-destructed.

The Bucket Brigade appeared, again late to the fray, to put out the last of the fires as we rushed off to aid in a skirmish at the bridge. This time it was we who arrived too late as the watchmen defeated the last of the band of hobgoblins. The watchmen were grateful for all of our help this evening and a member of the city council who was talking with them thanked us for our aid and offered us lodging at an upscale inn. We also learned that several people from the village were missing, presumed kidnapped.

As we arrived at the inn to get settled, a man approached us and read to us an invitation from Councilmember Troyas to dine at his residence for the midday meal where he would like to discuss enlisting our services to aid in protecting Brindol from rogue bandit attacks in the Elsir Vale. I plan to meet with him to learn more about what services they need and how I can help. I am sure that delivering the message can wait; Elwood advised me to keep on the lookout for ways I can serve the greater good while away from the village, and as a Warden, Aelwyn will certainly understand that I could not put aside my duty to accept this calling to defend the village now that this opportunity has presented itself. After the bandits are defeated and Brindol and the Elsir Vale are safe, I can take the lightning rail to Darguun and make my way to find Aelwyn in Warden Keep.

The Summons

A man wearing a top hat and a cloak approaches you. He opens a scroll, clears his throat, and begins to read:

"Brave defenders of Brindol, Councilmember Troyas summons you for a meeting of grave importance. Bandit attacks in the Elsir Vale have become far too common as of late, and tonight's incident is only the latest in the bandits' dastardly exploits. Brindol needs men and women with the qualities you have shown. If you find it within you to help, you will be rewarded most suitably for your service, in both gratitude and wealth.

Councilmember Troyas invites you to his humble abode tomorrow as Siberys holds aloft the sun (dm note: Noon). Details will be provided over the midday meal."

The man closes the scroll and hands it to Elaira. He tips his hat and says, "Good evening," turns on his heel, and walks off into the dusk.