Hammer 19, 1489
Dre'zel my love,
After bitterly leaving Easthaven, I spent the night camping on the outskirts of the city with JoJo.
I woke early the next morning and left JoJo sleeping while I set out to hunt. It wasn’t long before I tracked down a herd of reindeer and took down the elder male, who was clearly past his prime.
As I knelt to check on my kill, I was hit from behind and knocked into the snow. I was startled and not used to being caught by surprise.
When I turned, I was pleasantly surprised to find Master Bra'tac standing there, a smug smile on his face. But the mood would not stay pleasant for long. He warned me not to trust Talyth and that he was obliged to send more assassins after her. I tried to convince him that Talyth was no threat to the Drow and was a shining example of all we could become. But Master Bra'tac was understandably suspicious of Auril and anyone who would follow the Frostmaiden. At least he confirmed he would not be coming after Talyth himself and was doing his best to keep Xadriia safe.
After dragging the deer back to camp and taking my share, I gave the rest to JoJo, who said he was going to deliver the meat to a fan he had acquired. I suspect he didn’t want to reveal that he was bringing the meat to Easthaven, for fear that I would admonish him for not standing his ground. In truth, I expected nothing less from the Lathander-worshipping barbarian. It is why his exile is so upsetting.
When JoJo returned, we traveled to Good Mead, but we found no survivors. The Mead Hall was still standing, but it was empty and abandoned. It seemed that many who had fled were slain on the road to The Eastway.
When we returned to our camp that evening, our companions had gathered there with Vellynne. Talyth had acquired a breastplate and Taimen a custom suit of plate armor. The old necromancer wanted to make plans. She shared her hopes of finding the mythallar in the lost city of Ythryn, which was buried in the ice, so that we could end the rime. She said that The Codicil of White could reveal the path to the lost city.
We agreed that we would head west to recover Talyth’s Shield Guardian and then make our way to Snowflake Island to find The Codicil of White. When we returned, we could help JoJo with some local trouble among the goliaths before searching for the lost city of Ythryn.
Then Taimen, in an uncharacteristic fit of gratitude toward JoJo for requisitioning her custom armor, revealed that she had revived the hag, Maud Chiselbone, the same hag that would have sacrificed him had he not been stolen by a bear and delivered to the goliaths. The paladin claimed that she had no choice and had to do it to serve her god, but she must know that hags should never be trusted.
I should not have been surprised when JoJo seemed to take it in stride, as he’s done so many times when faced with rejection or ridicule by anyone not explicitly an enemy. Nevertheless, I think I could see the pain in his eyes. Meanwhile, I struggled to conceal my own pain at the realization that Talyth must have known this all along…and she kept it from me. How ironic that this deed has endangered the people of Easthaven, whom I have forsaken, but Talyth has worked effortlessly to heal and assist.
Later that evening, Rowan, Talyth, Taimen, JoJo, and Ambrose returned to Easthaven and hauled the chardalyn dragon construct out of Lac Dinneshere.
When they returned, Talyth cast a Sending to Nimsy, who reported that all was good in Lonelywood. I was relieved, but not surprised, to learn they were able to fight off a small Duergar invasion.
Talyth then cast a Sending to Jarthra, who reported that Caer-Konig had survived, thanks to Trovus, which was a surprise.
Finally, Talyth cast a Sending to Marta, but there was no response. A Sending to August revealed that the Militia, who had remained in Termalaine, survived, but all the civilians who hid in the mine died when the Duergar collapsed it!
JoJo asked Vellyne what Captain Arlaggath meant about the full moon, and she explained that on the full moon, he would be filled with bloodlust. JoJo seemed nervous, but also incredulous.
The next morning, we headed west. The Eastway was littered with corpses. Workers from Easthaven hauled them into wagons to be properly disposed of.
Halfway to Bryn Shander, we encountered a caravan and were greeted by none other than Speaker Duvessa Shane and Sheriff Markham Southwell. They were traveling to Easthaven to return the cauldron of plenty. I was tempted to urge them to keep it in Bryn Shander and wait for those in need to fill their walls, but I suspected they wouldn’t heed my advice, and it would probably backfire.
The speaker gave us a letter from Chief Yarb-Gnock of the goblins requesting peace. She asked us to go to Karkolohk to broker the peace treaty. Considering that this was on our way to recover Talyth’s Shield Guardian, we gladly agreed.
When we entered Bryn Shander, Talyth led us to the House of the Morning Lord to speak with Mishann. The conversation laid bare Talyth’s dilemma and confusion regarding the Rime of the Frostmaiden and even Auril herself. I maintained that Talyth’s divine power was evidence that, on some level, the Frostmaiden supported Talyth’s actions. Mishann was skeptical, believing that it was more likely that Auril was unaware of Talyth’s intention of ending the Rime. Talyth seemed perplexed.
It was midafternoon when we reached Targos. The walls were hung with Duergar corpses, and the gates were closed despite the time of day.
Skath greeted us and told us that, to his dismay, Naerth had closed the city, preventing anyone from coming or going.
We continued west and reached Bremen within the hour. Cora was there and agreed to put us up for the night. She was unaware of Speaker Dorbulgruf Shalescar’s whereabouts until we filled her in. She took some solace when we informed her that, even though everyone outside of Caer-Dineval was slain by Duergar, everyone inside the castle was untouched. Perhaps there was hope that her son still lived.
Before retiring for the night, Taimen asked Talyth to cast a Sending to Naerth, who said he was “trapped inside his own flesh” and that his actions were not his own.
Convinced that Naerth was possessed by Pagophil the ghost, Talyth cast a Sending to Ma, who responded that she was rotting in a dungeon.
Then, after some consideration and debate, Talyth cast a Sending to Skath, who seemed convinced that Naerth should be stopped and agreed to let us inside the heavily patrolled walls.
That night, we left the comfort of Buried Treasures in Bremen and returned to Targos. As we approached, I cast Pass Without Trace. Skath had dropped some ropes over the walls, and we climbed into the city, where he greeted us.
Skath led us to his modest home so we could hide in his cellar while Talyth recovered her divine spells for our impending encounter with Naerth. But as we descended the steps, the trap was made clear. The place was a torture chamber, and dead bodies lay strewn across the ground. Naerth waited eagerly, surrounded by his guards.
No comments:
Post a Comment