Travel Montage (6th of Second Stores - 4th of Third Harvest, Rose: 47)

On the 6th of Second Stores, Llewellyn was invited by Audry of House Cyna to provide an oration to prominent thinkers, academics, and politicians. Llewellyn delivered that speech and impressed upon the attendees how important Hypnotic Pattern was to the recovery of the books. David rolled well and the speech was reasonably received although the hopefulness that the attendees expressed for having Llewellyn also try to resolve the crisis in Rhackdalia was dashed when Llewellyn sadly admitted that Hypnotic Pattern wouldn't work very well on frost giants.

At the gathering, Llewellyn was approached by Justice Lwynn of Dhayne, the Paladin Magistrate of Sphant. She asked for tactical information concerning the Pirates of the Black Horde and the disposition of their ships. She clarified a few things with Llew and the circumstances surrounding the pirates, then encouraged him to stop by her Garrison for retrieving a writ of 1,000 Crowns promised for relaying the vital information.

While attending the gathering and oration, Siegride was approached by a scholar-student from Seminary. Responding to Siegride's inquiry made some twenty days ago before she started training, the student provided information concerning the lizard-woman manifestation of the Goddess: mythology and locations where other worshipers may be found. Siegride was given backgrounds and sea-faring coordinates. Armed with these coordinates, Elan passed the information to her Ranger compatriots at Pathfinder Abbey who were advised to go to those inhabited places and warn them of possible pirate attacks.

The party performed a number of administrative tasks and finally opened an account with the Croupier as Stormhammer Company. Deposits were made. Exchanges to traveling gems and jewels were made at the Commercium. Supplies were purchased.

The party also decided that their next course of action was to help recover Ma'yah from the Book of Names, and travel to Pax Arcana. They hired additional crew and set sail for the shallow-water port of Shyn-Balyn on the mainland.

But, before they were to leave, Tolman visited the apartments of Gaelyn Hobbletoes (aka Twyst) to reveal the Gammond Brandyford logbook. Gaelyn was amazed and elated, and promised to get the book of the halfling hero to the Parishes' Libraries as quickly and as discretely as he could ... with all honors and tributes going to Tolman and his family, of course, for retrieving the book. Meanwhile, Twyst had his own request of Tolman. Having learned that Tolman was preparing to leave for Pax Arcana, Twyst asked that Tolman take a traveling kit containing a mortar and pestle, a tiny cauldron, a Diary of Correspondence, and a sealed letter to one Skeeta, a Master of Potions, found at Pax Arcana.

It was a long eight day journey. During the travel Llewellyn experienced a dream of Castle Mhorovia where, as he was floating above the harbor, he peered into the dark murky depths to see the animated corpses of his friends and family, reaching out to him, their dead voices pleading for justice. He awoke in a sweaty, fitful start. His conscience was eating at him, perhaps for deflecting the requests for assistance at his oration?

While making the trip, Tamroohk the Dwarven Cleric of Berronar Truesilver prayed for guidance on two words that kept bubbling-up in the back of her mind. "Champion" and "Emissary": words that she had been confronted with over the last several cycles in her deepening faith in Berronar.

The party arrived at Shyn-Balyn on the 14th of Second Stores. The HarborMaster greeted the vessel and accepted Stormhammer Company's chit for remitting the slip fees of 10 Crowns/day. The group disembarked and wandered into town to find a lively inn by the name of the Hungry Harpy. In summary, they ordered food and drink; Llewellyn the Bard entertained (poorly at first, but his act got better with the amazing Juggling Balls the party recovered); were greeted by three traveling merchant dwarves by the name of Griffy, Zolen, and Bashkor, who introduced Tamroohk to hot chilly peppers, and Tamroohk purchased a full keg of dwarven ale from the proprietor and there was a lot of dwarven drinking.

That evening at the Hungry Harpy, the party also encountered a Paladin and two of her garrison. Lucy of House Khain, one of the guards, said that she had seen an undead walking the streets of Shyn-Balyn at night. She was fearful and thought the Paladin should investigate. Well, much of the party got up with the Paladin and wandered about town speaking with the Paladin and learning more about her until coming upon Palerock Abbey (its name reflective of the white granite stone it was made from). The Paladin sensed an undead presence in its cemetery. They wandered about the tombstones until encountering a shivering, rotting, animated corpse, leaning against a tombstone, aside a small pile of fresh dirt. Apparently, this man - one of at least five buried husbands of Marie of House Harrid - was recently buried. It was certainly undead. But it was lost. Confused. And apparently longing to be more dead than what it was. Sister Siegride was only too happy to oblige. She destroyed the zombie by turning it, and its body was reduced to ash. Upon returning to the Hungry Harpy, the Paladin remarked on how much she missed adventuring and asked to travel with the party to Pax Arcana in the morning, and the party agreed.

That morning, the party awoke and were joined by the Justice Paladin in leaving Shyn-Balyn with horses and a cart to haul provisions and the Door that they had found onboard the pirate's vessel. It was a pleasant four day journey across a lightly forested and hilly landscape, upon clearly-marked and patrolled road. Along the road they encountered travelers, merchants, guards on horseback. They also encountered an old man with dark skin and snow-white hair playing a wooden flute, sitting aside the road and resting. The old man said he was Akanksha of the Dhadra Wilds, west of Gheoli, and that he was walking to find Tanelorn. They said that it was north, in the Frozen Wastes, and so he was going there to find his son. He'd been walking for ten years now, trying to find Tanelorn, and he was beginning to think that Tanelorn was indeed found in the Frozen Wastes, but just within the glaciers of his own mind - in a place that will never thaw and accept new ideas. He said that Tanelorn is a misty place, elusive; it will be where it wants but is available to anyone who seeks it; the journey to Tanelorn is long and arduous, and there is never a straight road to Tanelorn; it is a city between worlds and times, and he hoped to find his dead son there. However, he admitted that he's accepted that he would probably die on the road to Tanelorn, but he hopes to find sanctuary there. He wished the party farewell.

On the 4th of Third Harvest, the party arrived on the outskirts of Pax Arcana. Pax Arcana looked like a massive citadel of stone comprising of both human and dwarven designs; a defensive wall circled the university and its entrances were heavily guarded; there were wooden and stone structures built a fair distance from the wall that served as a shanty town of sorts with traders, barters, tradesmen, vendors, entertainers, artisans, and other such folk. There were many youth who attended Pax Arcana as students who wandered the grounds in green and black robes, while more accomplished, older graduates and professors were in brown and black robes. There were guards everywhere - both women and men, dressed in more ceremonial leather armor, capes, and all bearing large bastard swords, similar to what Simon used, the party recalled.

After some investigation, the party learned that they couldn't enter Pax Arcana without an escort. Overhearing their needs, a young adept dressed in green and black robes addressed the party. She introduced herself as Fhaya of House Brix, Daughter of Mae, Elizabeth, and Evelyn. She volunteered to be the party's concierge in exchange for information about what's happening in Rhackdalia since the fall. Ever optimistic and cheerful, she took the party through the gates. She explained that it was better this way - visitors are escorted through the wizardly castle with a concierge or a patron and those who're not escorted are arrested by the Eldritch Knights. In this way, lay-people can't just be wandering the grounds.

The party was looking to have some materials identified. "Ah," said Fhaya. "The Hall of Acquisitions, Investigations, and Categorization. Come! This way." She explained that this was the place where citizens throughout Floreth come to have their baubles and trinkets identified, but, it's also a place where serious artifacts and books of knowledge were cataloged. It was a massive stone building with two floors and thirty-two turrets. As they approached its massive stairs, the party even witnessed a disappointed family leaving with cast-down heirlooms that were, indeed, not magical, and they were cursing their bad luck and dismal fortune.

On the inside, they were greeted by another young student who took information from Fhaya. That adept then went to find a suitable magi for the task. In under fifteen minutes, the young adept returned with a wizened woman of some 5'3" in height with short, spiky gray hair, dressed in brown and black robes. She carried a large staff. She acknowledged the party - did not bother to give her name - and encouraged them to walk with her to the double-wooden-doors to a turret that had been made available for this purpose. On the inside was a large round room with a floor made of dirt and sand; on the upper level, an observation window was available for most of the party to witness the goings-on in the room from above. Surrounding the room, carved in stone, were arcane runes. Meanwhile, Siegride and Tolman accompanied the magi and two young apprentices inside the room, and they shut and sealed the two large wooden doors.

The magi invited the visitors in and told them to stand along the wall as she prepared for her work. Using her staff, she began tracing large circles into the sand and dirt. First, she drew a 3' diameter circle in front of her. Then, from there, began drawing a large 10' diameter circle around her, extending from the first. The first large circle she prepared was a rune and it was obvious to Siegride and Tolman that she was ritual-casting Detect Magic. Then, she augmented that rune with another circle and rune to ritual-cast Identify. Then she added another rune to cast Comprehend Languages. Finally, she prepared another large rune and circle, and ritual-cast Unseen Servant. All of this casting time took well over forty minutes.

She then stood straight up in the center of the circle and firmly planted her staff in the center. She then waved for an apprentice to bring over the first item to be identified. Wearing leather gloves, an apprentice picked up the Book of Names and placed it in the smaller circle on front of the magi.

The magi extended her arm and whispered just below her breath, "Bring it to me." The book skittered in the sand, wobbling back and forth, into the main circle with her.

She examined the book by walking around it, then, whispered, "Rise." The book lifted into the air to hover there as she examined it. The magi squinted and waved her hand at the book, issuing a command in a louder voice, "Mend." Suddenly, the book shook and all of the dirt and sand and grime was removed, its leather polished, its torn and frayed edges repaired, and its sheets of velum nicely aligned with the book's spine.

The magi then examined it more as it floated there. She said in whispered tones, "Open. Flip. Flip. Flip." And the book responded by flipping through pages. She arced her eyebrows when the book asked for her name, but she ignored it, and continued flipping through its contents. She spent around another ten minutes examining it and then knelt down and called over another apprentice. The apprentice came over and waited outside the circle. She said, "Farzen. F-A-R-Z-E-N. A listing of all works and compendiums." The apprentice nodded and ran off, out of the room.

Returning to her work at hand, the book hovered there, and she went tsk-tsk-tsk. "I count 232 names, seventy-five percent I might add are names and descriptions of magical adepts, warlocks, sorcerers, and other magicked academics. How remarkable, and, consequently, disproportionate."

She then backed away from the book at it attempted to again ask for her name. She shook her head. "It's lying to me." Then, she raised her staff and cast a spell. A magic circle of energy surrounded her, forming into black thorns, and a similar magic circle of energy surrounded the floor where the book was hovering. She then slapped her hands together and the book shimmered. She had cast Dispel Magic. She then returned to the book and said, "There. Now it tells no lies."

She looked the book then flipped it around and upside down, which now revealed another leather-bound cover with new writing on it. "Clever. A Book of Names on one side, reading left to right. Turn the pages and you see what you'd expect to see. Yet, flip it upside down and read the pages from right to left - in a manner that best fits its author's native tongue, I'd imagine - and it's a spellbook. The Book of Names is a trap designed to inform the one who possesses the book of who tried to learn its secrets." She then looked through the book for another ten minutes. The apprentice returned with no results from the search for the author. "Pity," she said, but then countered, "Bring me ... Incandantilus. Book of Summoning. Volume Three." And the apprentice ran out to fetch it.

When he returned with the large tome, he sit it in the small circle at the head of the magi. She whispered for her Unseen Servant to bring the book to her and rise, and open the book to page 323. There, she began to cast a summoning spell. A circle of energy opened at her feet and immediately began pooling with blood. That blood began coalescing into fibers and bone and flesh. Both books were rattling in the air as the magi maintained her concentration, and a small whisp of smoke could be seen lofting from the Book of Names. Soon, where there were bones there became muscle, and with muscle became flesh, and the magi began reading from the book aloud, yelling the description of Ma'yah that was written in the text. Within that magic circle where the body was being formed, ink of words became her flesh and Ma'yah was returned, naked, and on the dirt floor. She gasped a new breath of air as an apprentice rushed over with some robes and threw it into the circle towards Ma'yah.

Confident, the magi grasped the Book of Names from the air and leered over Ma'yah. "You went to school here? That was a nasty trap. Luckily a summoning spell did the trick. I'd encourage more diligence in your investigatory work. Books simply do not give up their secrets." The magi extended her hand and helped Ma'yah to her feet, who was then returned to her friends along the outside of the runes. The magi slapped her hands together. "Alright. Next?"

The party provided the Door which the magi whipped around using her Unseen Servant. The magi didn't reveal more than what the party already knew other than the Door was very dangerous, shouldn't be opened, let alone here, within the walls of Pax Arcana. Should the Door be opened, tread softly, for if the Door is destroyed on either side of it, it will no longer return its user home.

Siegride then put her Cloak of Starlight into the magic circle, and the magi called for it using her Unseen Servant. The magi regarded the cloak with humor and delight. "I've seen this before," and she examined its hem. "Go to the libraries. Research the work of Tarasadre. There you'll learn why this artifact should be destroyed. Tarasadre dabbled in portals, pocket dimensions, and extraterrestrial spaces. Most of his work ended in abject failure. You put yourself at risk in using this item."

Finally, Gorbash dropped the amulet of Vongur from his neck to Siegride, who put the amulet into the circle. Again, the magi examined it with her Unseen Servant and seemed to regard the amulet with a puzzled face. Then she scowled and roared, "Necromancy!", and cast Protection from Evil - a magic circle with thorns materialized and spun about her as she conversed with the amulet. "It lies! Speak truth! Thousands of years old, you are not! Seven hundred, seven hundred and fifty, maybe, and at most..." The amulet went "Shhh! Shh! Shhh! Please!" but eventually confessed to being a human male trapped within the amulet pretending to be a dwarf; the magi explained that the necromancy cast on the amulet acted as a magic jar that sealed his soul inside, and it would slowly suck on the soul of its wearer for sustenance. With a flick of her wrist, the magi sent the amulet back to the circle from where it was introduced. "Whoever was wearing this artifact must have had a remarkable constitution. It should be destroyed."

And that's where we left it!
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