While Ambrose was searching the cabin for clues, I stared at the snow underneath for any signs of movement. When I was confidant that the cabin was stable, I took a look inside the outhouse.
It was evident that the outhouse had been used in the last two days, and I found a book, which I immediately shows to Saritu, since Talyth was busy casting Gentle Repose on Taimen’s remains and Saritu needed to be brought out of her misery.
Saritu used Mage Hand to take the book and I noticed Boy digging by the empty woodshed. As I approached, he eagerly presented me with an axe he had dug up. It felt well balanced and Saritu pointed out that it was enchanted.
It seemed that Saritu, Soupmeister Steve, and Ambrose had deduced that they needed to forge a third ring and place it on the orb that had disintegrated Taimen and Jojo, which was called the Summer Star. Suspecting they would need more fuel for the forge, I began chopping down the nearest tree when, to my surprise, I felled it with one swing.
After chopping the felled tree into small enough pieces of timber, and helping to haul it up to the cabin, I returned to my guard duty, which was split between watching the surrounding lands for intruders and the snow under the cabin.
Letters suddenly appeared in the ashes of Taimen’s remains and apparently other words had been written in the frost of the cabin windows. Using an arrow, I wrote in the snow: “who are you?” and was surprised when the words were returned: “Macreadus”
Using this method, we communicated with Macreadus and learned that Taimen and Jojo were with him in an ethereal border place. We verified our plans and Soupmeister Steve began fording the the third ring.
When he was done, Saritu and Ambrose helped him place the ring on the Summer Star. Then Ambrose held it aloft and it began to spin and glow. Soon it was so bright I could barely see and had to squint.
Then Taimen and Jojo were back. Jojo was in good spirits but Taimen was obviously shaken from her ordeal and her left arm had transformed into a tentacle, though it still had strength and could hold a shield.
While we were celebrating, I noticed creatures moving toward us from Lonelywood. They seemed to glow ominously as the approached. I warned my companions.
Meanwhile, Ambrose had used the Summer Star, which was now glowing like a small sun in the sky overhead, to diminish the blizzard to a drizzle of rain.
Forced to seek shelter from the light under the floor of the cabin, I waited for the walkers to emerge from the woods. From 300 feet away, I began shooting arrows at them, but the light was blinding and I only landed one shot before they engaged us.
Then five ice mephits appeared from the gorge, summoning clouds of fog and knocking Soupmeister Steve over the side. Ambrose quickly tossed his rope down, and the cook somehow managed to take out two of the mephits as he made his way back to the ridge, eliminating the fog in the process.
Engaging one of the walkers, Talyth fell to its blazing gaze. Fortunately, Saritu was quickly by her side, feeding her a Potion of Healing.
While everyone else finished off the remaining mephits, some of them killing each other as they exploded, Soupmeister Steve blasted one of the walkers while approaching the other with a Thunderwave that sent it off the side of the ridge, before turning and finishing the first walker with another blast.
There was little time to catch our breath, as I could see more walkers approaching from Lonelywood. We decided to run to Termalaine, circling around the walkers emerging from Lonelywood.
First a few miners, then others, began to gawk at us and crowd around us as we approached. Even though the sun following Ambrose had diminished, many were basking in its rays. An old human woman shouted and pointed at Ambrose, naming him as the Dawnbringer. Jojo claimed to be the Dawnbringer himself, but the woman was certain about it being Ambrose.
We soon met Speaker Oris, a welcoming orc who was eager to have heroes to help with some danger in the nearby mines. Apparently they were taken over by kobolds. I wonder if these are the same mines that Talyth and I escaped from…
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