We recuperate for the rest of the week, meeting regularly at the Sleeping Dragon for food and company. Miriel and Telryn make potions, and everyone shops. Novalia goes on a weapons shopping spree and leaves for the freehold, to make a fortified base from which to attack the rat men. Most of the group see her off, but Miriel refuses. As Novalia is mounting her horse to leave, one of her stirrups snaps. This is a very bad omen, but she ignores it and rides off.
Telryn sends a message to his sister and inquires after his parents, but there is no word from Durrover, which has been blocked to most communication by the hostilities. On the last day of the month, Denev's day, Goldpetal does his rituals.
The next day, the first Corday of Enker, the month of travel, we're having another excellent breakfast, omelettes, at The Sleeping Dragon. As we're discussing what we're going to do next, a courier arrives. He speaks to the innkeepers first, but is soon directed to our table. He comes over and asks if we're the heroes of Kratys Freehold, naming each of us.
Paks: "I am Paks."
Courier: "Can you sign for this?"
He holds out a scroll with a blue wax seal, the seal of Vesh. Telryn, impressed, says it's the seal of Kelemis Dern, Home Commander of Vesh. The message asks us to go to the Hall of Command in Vesh. Telryn tells us this is in a beautiful old building which used to be a palace of the old Ledean emperor, where he stayed when he visited here. We agree to go at once, as we have finished breakfast.
On the way there, we walk through Tanil's Preserve. Telryn teases Chuck about the ducks. The Hall of Command is a lovely villa, obviously not originally made for military purposes. There are frequent messengers running in and out. The guards at the door challenge us, but we show them the message and they immediately summon the majordomo. The majordomo is Tropheon, a strong-jawed, permanently-tanned man in his fifties, with greying hair. We notice he walks with a pronounced limp, and has no right hand.
He leads us into a beautiful room, well lit, with specks of mica reflecting the light from the walls. There is a sideboard laden with wine, fresh fruit, and other produce from the recent harvest. The food is excellent. In the room, we see two other bands of adventurers, not mingling with each other or us. On one side is a motley band of four foreigners, including a dwarf and a heavily tattoed half-orc. On the other side is a shady-looking band of three. The tattooed half-orc introduces himself as Thalkas, head of the Band of Stalwarts.
Thalkas: "You must be the Heroes of the Freehold. We haven't been here in Lave long, but we've already heard of your exploits." He has a strange Southern accent.
A half-orc in the other band, a large female in a mask, grunts, unimpressed. "Big deal, you killed some ratmen. What, are exterminators heros in this city?"
The other group introduces themselves as the Blades of Mullistown; a small man armed with lots of daggers is their leader. The door opens and another group is ushered in. Even we recognize The Bronze Arrows, a group of five adventurers about whom there are several songs. Their leader, who we know from the songs, Morwen, greets us and compliments us on our adventures in the swamp, saying she's impressed. Chuck preens subtly.
A few minutes later three people come in. The man in charge is a tall man in his 40s, with gray hair. He introduces himself as Kelemis Dern, the Home Commander of Vesh. Chuck recognizes him at the man who put out his last candle during his initiation. With him are a young woman wearing an amber vigilant necklace, who is introduced to us as Amra Varith. The third wears robes and leathers; he is Erem of the Huntress, a clergyman of Tanil, and one of the government's main researchers.
The Home Commander explains why he has called us here. The Vigilants have recently come into possession of what they believe is an extremely powerful artifact. Around midsummer, a group of Vigilants came upon band of Asaatthi (snake men) and red witch rat men out in the steppes. This was very surprising, as rat and snake men usually will not work together. The Vigilants attacked, but the snake and rat men kept retreating. They finally succeeded in ambushing them and found they were carrying an artifact, an amphora. (Telryn nudges Miriel at this point.) They killed a hag and took the amphora.
The two groups fought all the way across the Blood Steppes. Finally the Vigilant group had only one junior Vigilant left; the senior Vigilants gave him the amphora and held the titanspawn off while he tried to escape with the amphora. He didn't make it, but he met up with a band of adventurers, the Company of Stalwarts, who took on the delivery. They were just a mercenary band, who had been guarding riverboats. They were in a small town for the midsummer festival when the poisoned ranger showed up and handed them the amphora, telling them that it was very important, and must get to Vesh. Then he asked for a priest of Tanil for last rites.
As it happened, while there was no priest of Tanil available, they were Tanil worshippers, a rare thing in New Venir, where they worship Belsameth. The band gave him the last rites, but this, and his desire for the amphora, got them in trouble with the local priest.
They weren't sure what to do with the amphora, whether to sell it or to take it to Vesh. While they were still debating what to do that night, a purple light shone out of the amphora and they saw a vision of Chardun.
Companion: "It was awful, we could only abase ourselves!"
Chardun: "Fools, the agents of Mormo are upon you. Flee now."
A few minutes later, their inn was attacked and ransacked by the Asaatthi, and they barely made it out with their lives. They were tricked and the amphora was stolen. They pursued the titanspawn - there were five of them at first, but only four made it. They ambushed the Asaatthi where they were meeting with a red witch and a Storm Hag.
They were just about to be overwhelmed when the sky split open with a purple light, and demons came down from the sky to whip away the Storm Hag with whips. They fought across the Blood Steppes, trying to make it back to the town for help, but the town was against them too, so they headed for Vesh. They barely made it to the Kelder mountains, where the dwarves of Burok-Torn took them in and helped them get to the passes into Vesh. They made it across the mountains, harried by rat men all the way, and barely made it to Lave ten days ago.
The Home Commander thanks them for risking their lives to bring the amphora. He says that it has been researched, and the only reference to it was a fragment, which we are shown. Goldpetal, Telryn, and Miriel recognize the story immediately; it is a story of the defeat of Mormo by the gods, including Madriel, and it is during this encounter that Madriel's Tear was formed, as well. Telryn asks about the source of this material.
The Home Commander says they don't know if the scroll is true, or if the amphora the Stalwarts have delivered is the artifact mentioned in the fragment, but obviously we need to know more. They have tried to open the amphora, but it was impossible. Talkas puts in that, during their journey, it was bounced around, and the rat men cast Grease and Mage Hand spells to make it slip from their grasp and try to grab it, and none of this had any impact on the artifact itself. The Home Commander tells us that the fact that they have the amphora is the worst-kept secret in Lave, which is now filled with servants of Mormo, as well as other factions, all of whom are searching for it. It's hard to keep something like this a secret. He's planning to send out parties of known Vigils with fake amphoras, all across the world, to distract the searchers while we bands of adventurers go on separate research missions.
Goldpetal asks why we were all called to this official place if the need for secrecy is so great. The Home Commander responds that we could just as easily be here to be commended for killing rat men in the swamp. He then says he'll meet with each group separately so that none of us know what the others are doing. He apologizes for this, but says it is essential for the secrecy and success of the missions. He takes the Bronze Arrows off first.
Telryn is very excited about going on a research trip. As we discuss it, the Home Commander returns and invites us into a conference room, with a large oak table. He gives us a map, and tells us that our mission is the shortest trip, but possibly the most rewarding. We will be going to the city of Hedrad, which boasts several huge libraries. Stone nods, he's always wanted to go there, as it is a major center of Hedrada worshippers. Telyrn is very pleased to have the opportunity to see the libraries. We are told to get information from the sages there regarding the amphora. We'll be given a letter of introduction to a merchant in Hedrad who is sympathetic to Vesh, and who will give us any money we might need for research fees. He offers us 300 gold each as a reward just for going, and hints at much more if we succeed.
He now points out the location of a Vigilant fortress on the map; it is just across the Placid river from Barel, a town south of Southport. The Vigilant fortress, Riverrock Fortress is not marked on the map, but he shows us exactly where it is and tells us that the commander there will give us any assistance we might need.
Goldpetal asks if it's possible to take a boat down the river and across the lake to Hedrad. It is possible, except for one area of falls near the entrance to the lake. Paks asks for an advance on our reward for travel expenses and is given 30 platinum. We ask if there are any other messages we should take on the way, but are told that we should keep contact with people along the way to a minimum, as we're supposed to be undercover. Miriel asks what exactly our goal is. The Home Commander says first, we need to find out if this is really the amphora, and if it actually does contain the essence and viscera of Mormo. If it does, we need to find some way to dispose of it, because we can't afford to let it continue to exist. He then excuses himself, saying he has to go talk to the other bands.
We discuss plans to leave the next day, Paks suggests that we fake a message to Telryn from his sister, who is currently in Hedrad, saying that she is in trouble and needs him. This will give a plausible excuse for our trip there which has nothing to do with the amphora. Miriel checks in with the temple and arranges for an acolyte to deliver a message to the inn after lunch. We're having an early afternoon tea with biscotti at the inn when the acolyte comes in with the message. Telyrn then asks us publically to go with him, and of course we agree to go. Miriel asks her parents if they might know anyone with a boat who would take us down the river. The Sleeping Dragon is mostly a farmer's inn, but they do know a Captain Yengly who has shipped goods for them in the past and has been trustworthy. He ships in some of the northern vintages of wine. They've heard that he's at the docks right now, on his boat, the Skiprock. Paks, Telyrn, and Miriel go down to the docks to speak with him and try to arrange passage for the next day.
The docks in Lave are those of a thriving port city; you could put all of Southport in the dock area alone. It is a bustling district, with many people bumping into us; Miriel warns everyone to keep their hands on their purses. She keeps an eye out, but doesn't see anything untoward. We find the Skiprock, a keel boat, and its captain, a small round man, almost halfling size. He asks what he can do for us and we tell him we were referred to him by Kendra and Clay, as we need to travel down the river.
Captain Yengly: "Ah, yes, I've heard of you - their daughter the hero."
Paks: "Can you take us to Barel?"
Captain Yengly: "My boat is only a riverboat, but I can take you as far as Southport."
Paks: "When are you leaving?"
Captain Yengly: "Tomorrow."
Paks: "That's fine - how much would you charge to take six of us to Southport?"
Captain Yengly: "Just the standard fare, 1 silver piece per mile per person. Since it's 140 miles, that's 14 gold per person. We should get there in about five days."
We're all startled to hear how long it will take, as it only took us just over a day on horseback. Miriel asks if there might be faster ships, but the captain says it's not so much the ships as the current, which is quite slow. We decide to just ride back to Southport and get a ship there; Captain Yengly says we can talk to the harbormaster, who should be able to get us on a faster seagoing vessel.
We leave him and discuss how to proceed. Paks wants to leave town right away. Miriel wants to go back to inn first, which we do. We take some packed dinners and four loaves of bread. Miriel's parents are sorry to see us go, and we're all sorry to leave, particularly Miriel, who really doesn't want to go at all.
In the late afternoon, we're headed towards the main gates when we suddenly hear a shout of "Stop, thief!" We turn to look and see an overweight merchant huffing towards us, his clothes soaked in sweat and his long beard flying over his shoulder.
Merchant: "Stop! Thieves! They've stolen one of my best pieces!"
He points to Telryn. Paks assures him that it's not true, and Telryn says he's never even seen this merchant, but the merchant insists that Telryn stole a brooch from him and demands that Telryn be searched. A crowd gathers around the commotion.
Merchant: "It's a silver Albadian brooch, in the shape of a horseshoe and set with an amber stone."
Telryn: "Sounds ugly."
Telryn swings off his pack to let the guards search it; they do slowly. Miriel does a detect magic spell on his pack, but doesn't find anything.
The guards sort through all of Telryns magical paraphernalia, finding the brooch near the bottom of his pack.
Telryn: "That's not mine. It was obviously planted."
The guards look skeptical, and the merchant, who is Vanoveri, a jeweler, rants at them to arrest Telryn. Paks suggests questioning him under a truth spell cast by a priest of Hedrada. Miriel says that the priestess of Madriel will vouch for us. The guards look doubtful, but send to the temples for help. When the priest and priestess show up, Miriel explains our situation to the priestess of Madriel, who vouches for us. The priest of Hedrada casts Zone of Truth and interrogates Telryn, who denies knowing anything about the theft. Paks asks how the merchant knows it was Telryn; the merchant says he saw Telryn in his shop, stealing the brooch. Paks says she will swear she was with Telryn all day, and offers to do so under the truth spell. In the face of all this, the guards say they can't hold us if the priest vouches for us. Vanoveri grumbles, but he has his brooch back and he can't make the guards detain us further.
Telryn repacks his belongings, and we're out of the city by 5:30. We decide to go quickly before anything else happens to delay us, even though we can't travel far today. We travel for about two hours, until it starts getting dark. We decide to keep going on the road, using branches lighted with Light spells. We ride until midnight, when we and the horses are getting quite tired, then make camp. Chuck casts Alarm around the camp.
In the middle of the night, Chuck suddenly awakens. He looks around for Telyrn and Paks, who are supposed to be on guard, but finds them, and everyone else in the camp, asleep. Overhead are roiling purple clouds. Suddenly, with a great noise, a monster dives out of the clouds and lands in the middle of the camp. It has the head of a bull, the body of a lion, and the wings of a bird of prey. It gores Goldpetal and grabs Telryn in its claws. Chuck tries to wake Miriel, but fails. The monster tramples over Miriel, attacking Chuck, who dives out of the way, and pulls out his bow to shoot the monster. His bow snaps as he pulls it back.
The monster eats the entire party, who never wake up, then turns towards Chuck and is about to gore him, when the entire party is woken up by the sound of Chuck's screams. He's been having a horrible nightmare. Paks and Telryn wake him up, and he describes his nightmare to us. Telryn says the creature sounds like the Herald of Hedrada, a Taurosphynx. Chuck says no, it wasn't that at all. Telryn does a Detect Magic on Chuck but finds nothing.
Miriel has also woken up from a strange dream, which she tells to the party. She was in a dark hallway with many doors. In the distance, she hears the voice of her adopted parents calling for her. They sound worried and frightened. She can hear doors opening and slamming, but she cannot find them, nor make herself heard. She woke up disturbed and perplexed. The night passes without further incident. The next morning is foggy and the sky looks like it might rain.
We travel the whole day, injuring the horses slightly, and make it to Southport by evening. Miriel heals the horses. At the Laughing Ogre, we tell Fox the story of Telyrn's sick sister, and Telryn tells Fox about his encounter with Delmaron. They discuss how untrustworthy he is. Paks asks about ships to Barel, and learns that the only ship about to leave for Barel was burned last night. She reports back to us. Before we go to sleep, Goldpetal casts Plant Growth, which enhances the productivity of the crops in the area.
We spend the night at the Laughing Ogre, planning to take a ferry across the river in the morning. Paks carefully didn't inquire about ferry service so as to avoid any further sabotage of our route. It's al uneventful night.
In the morning, Dorin drops in to say hello. He's a smith in town now. After breakfast, we go to the ferry dock. The prices are low, so Paks insists on paying more, which delights the ferryman. Paks wants to leave right away, and he is happy to do so. We get across the river safely and find a small road heading south along the coast. Since we're actually going to the southeast, Paks suggests crossing the fields instead; it's very flat, with little farms dotting the landscape. We can sort of see the falls from where we are, and we know there's a stairway up the falls that everyone uses to cross; this is our goal.
It's a lovely day. We travel for most of the day across the fields, then find a nice spot for a camp. Goldpetal and Chuck forage for food and bring back a deer, which Miriel roasts with some local tubers and a few spices which Chuck has in his pack. We set watches and sleep for the evening.
Just after midnight, Chuck hears a sudden snapping and rustling in the fields near our campsite; then his Alarm goes off. He tells Goldpetal he hears something and Goldpetal casts Entangle in that general direction. Looking that way, we see many skeletons coming towards us. Goldpetal notices that they are very strange; they appear to be filled with vines, and the entangling grasses just ignore them.
Two skeletons attack Chuck, while four attack Goldpetal. Everyone else wakes up, with all the commotion. Telryn casts Flaming Sphere at one of the skeletons, which begins to burn. Paks casts Divine Favor on herself. Miriel stands up and attempts to Turn Undead, but the skeletons keep coming. Chuck swings with both swords and hits with the longsword. Goldpetal swings and misses. The skeletons attack. Two hit Chuck. He hits one that fumbles while trying to hit him. The skeleton on fire dies.
Telryn casts Flaming Weapon on Paks. Paks steps up and swings at one skeleton and hits. Miriel swings at one with her short spear and hits. Chuck pulls out the vial of Alchemist's Fire, but fumbles when trying to throw it; luckily it hits a different skeleton, killing it and splashing on the neighboring skeletons. Chuck falls over. Goldpetal steps back and casts a Thorns at the skeletons, but they don't seem damaged. Two of them hit him, two hit Paks, and one hits Chuck.
Telryn casts another Flaming Sphere. Paks swings at an injured skeleton, but misses. Miriel kills one with a Searing Light. Goldpetal pulls back. One skeleton hits Telryn and one hits Chuck. Chuck draws his mace and hits a skeleton.
Telryn kills another with his Flaming Sphere. Paks hits one hard with her flaming sword; it burns and shatters. Miriel hits the one in front of Chuck with a Searing Light. Goldpetal starts chanting to try to enchant the skeletons, but they don't even look at him. Two skeletons hit Paks, and she calls for healing. One hits Chuck, one hits Miriel. Chuck kills the one attacking Miriel, and his snake hits the one attacking him.
Telryn creates another ball of fire and kills a skeleton. Paks swings her flaming sword at one and kills it. Miriel runs over to Paks and heals her. Goldpetal moves back and shoots an arrow at one, but misses. A skeleton hits Chuck. Paks tells him to disengage, she can handle it, but Chuck swings at a skeleton and kills it, then steps back.
Telryn casts another Flaming Sphere and destroys the last skeleton. Paks moves to the other edge of the camp and looks out into the darkness for danger. Miriel casts Bread of Life and hands out the pieces of the loaf. Goldpetal and Chuck eat theirs immediately, and Goldpetal takes another from Telryn, who doesn't need it.
We rest quietly for the rest of the night. In the morning, Miriel casts Bread of Life again and hands the pieces out. Paks eats one of her pieces, and we begin travelling. Around midday, we see some horsemen in the distance. They also see us and turn to move towards us. We keep travelling and we get close enough to see them quite quickly. There are fifteen of them; Miriel recognizes them as Veshan military. They pull up and hail us. Chuck responds. They ask our business, and he tells them we're going to visit family in Hedrad. They warn us about rat man attacks in the vicinity, and Paks asks where this was. They tell us a fishing village was burned to the ground. She asks if it was the northeasterly-most village, but they say no, it was along the river. Chuck tells them about the skeletons, but they say they don't see undead in this area. He says they weren't undead, they were made of vines, and they look at him like he's crazy. He tells them they can see the remains where our campsite was, and points them in the right direction. They're still looking at him as if he was crazy, but they say that they patrol all of this area, so they might check it out. We all out about our business.
Paks asks if they're heading towards the falls. They ask why we want to know, do we need an escort? Paks says we might, and explains the troubles we've had so far on our journey, but they look us over and say they have more important things to do, as we look well able to handle the rat men ourselves. She asks them to be sure to stop anyone following us, which they agree to do. We don't encounter anyone else for the rest of the day, though we do come across a burned-out farmstead, which looks like it was burned down at least a month ago.
We reach a spot to camp, and those who need healing eat their bread. As we're preparing the camp, Miriel hears a cooing and sees a dove. It lands on her shoulder, and she sees that it has a note attached to it. It's from Virinia. "Beware the King of Autumn." Chuck checks for tracks around the camp, but he doesn't find any. We rest quietly for the entire night.
The next day we travel for about six hours and stop to camp. We go to sleep early, planning to get up before the dawn and lead the horses to the falls, arriving just before dawn. The night is uneventful. We reach the falls just as dawn is breaking. The view is magnificient.
Ahead, it looks as though the struggle between the gods and titans split the earth like a piece of timber, leaving one half tilted up and away from the other. A huge sheer wall of rock confronts us, over which the Placid river thunders earthward. Clouds of sray drift upward from the enormous cascade of water, creating a scintillating rainbow of golden hues in the early morning light.
As we're admiring it, from up out of the water far below comes a magnificient lion, with the head of a bull, golden fur, and wings. It resembles the creature from Chuck's dream. In a thunderous voice, it says: "I've been seeking you!"
Telryn: "Why do you seek us?"
Chuck pulls out his bow and shoots two arrows at the Taurosphynx; both miss. Paks grapples Chuck and pins him. This is clearly the Herald of Hedrada. Miriel greets it respectfully, and asks it to excuse Chuck, who is particularly susceptible to curses. It leaps forward and points its nose and horns at Chuck.
Herald of Hedrada: "You have been beset by illusion, and nearly unmade by falsehood. Even now you labor on behalf of the Mother of Serpents, although you know it not."
It puts a big paw on him; Paks rolls away uust in time. It mutters something and Chuck says "Oh" and feels very stupid. The Taurosphynix rolls his eyes skyward, as if appealing to his master, "this is the best you could find?"
T: "What is your real message, o mighty one?"
Herald of Hedrada: "The dream you suffered was a sending, inflicted upon you by the Witch Queen's servents, that you would be disinclined to trust my good council."
Herald: "As you should already know by now, I am the Hearld of Hedrada, the Mighty Lawgiver. I have been looking for you, but the witchs' magics cloaked you from my sight."
Herald: "You have been deceived. A traitor lurks among the Vigilants, another of the Hag's many vipers in the grass. You have been sent a on fool's errand. What you seek is not in the many great temples and vast libraries of Hedrad. Your journed was to end in failure, while the Witch Queens servants are attempting to steal away with your goal."
"The information you seeks in not in Hedrad, but rather in the ruins of the Skykeep, high up in the Kelder Mountains. There, amidst the wreckage, may be found the Vault of Chardun the Overlord, brother of my own master. In that vault is a manuscript that will tell you and the Vigiliants what you must know."
"You must hurry! Even now the children of the Serpent Mother are making their way to the Sky Keep. They have a start on you, but are still many days away. With luck and the help of the Gods, you may beat them to your goal."
"Knowing the importance of this quest, my master has convinced Enkili to redirect a storm to Southern Vesh. By nightfall, it's power will reverse the flow of the Hornswythe river, speeding you northward at great speed. This will not last long, so make haste will this opportunity presents itself! Then you need merely cross the Blood Basin and climb the Kelder Mountains to the Sky Keep ruins."
Miriel: "Is there anything else we need to know?"
Goldpetal: "How can we recognize the traitor?"
Paks: "Do you have a boat for us?"
Herald of Hedrada: "The identity of the traitor is hidden from me, just as your location was. Beware! He twists the councils of the Vigilants! Take the roads presented and be swift. Do not let the Hag's servitors recover Chardun's manuscript!"
It blesses us and flys off.
We ride as long as we can, then start pushing the horses to go further. After two hours, Goldpetal turns into a panther and runs off. After another hour, Chuck switches to Goldpetal's horse and Miriel heals hers. As we're healing the horses, Telyrn sees two mandibles come up from the ground at him. He's grabbed. He starts screaming and tries to escape.
Paks swings at the Antheg and misses. Chuck tries to help Telryn break free and succeeds. Miriel casts Cause Fear and scares it away. It drops Telryn and Chuck and jumps down the hole it came out of. We all swing at it, and some hit, but we don't kill it and it gets away. We leap on the horses and ride away.
As we ride, Miriel keeps healing everyone and the horses. Running fast, as a panther, Goldpetal reaches the town and tries to find a boat, but the captains don't want to go out. By the time we get in, around midnight, Goldpetal has bought a boat. We try to sell the horses, and finally succeed. We hop on the ship and head upriver. The reversed current and the wind from the storm move us very quickly. Telryn casts Bull's Strength on four of the rowers and Goldpetal casts Swift Water. We're practically flying, and we reach Southport by dawn. We look for riverboat, and find Captain Yengly. We beg him to take us to the Blood Basin as quickly as possible. Miriel and Paks both try to persuade him; Paks taks him aside. Finally, we give him a very large sum of money to take us immediately.
The current has picked up, and it's raining big red droplets of rain. Chuck and Paks row, after Telryn casts Bull's Strength on both of them. The captain refuses to sail at night; it is too hazardous with the rocks and the monsters, but we argue and finally convince him to go, and keep moving. Telryn sleeps and casts spells on Chuck, who is thus able to go without sleep, but we finally have to stop. Miriel watches while everyone else rests, as she has been resting while others were rowing. Paks joins her for the first part of the watch and Goldpetal joins her for the second.
We keep going up the river. After several hours, we're exhuasted and tie up to rest again. Some rest on the shore while others rest on the boat (Goldpetal will not rest on the water if he can help it). A few hours after we stop, while Paks is on watch, an Asaatthi appears behind Paks. As she turns, he drinks a vial and spits, covering her in acid. Three more rush forward and board the ship; two of them jump on Miriel while the other attacks Chuck. Miriel dodges them, but they hit Chuck.
Telryn attacks one with a Flaming Sphere. Miriel casts a Sound Burst and stuns one. One attacks Miriel, but misses; the other attacks Chuck and hits. Chuck stands up and swings, but misses. The Flaming Sphere burns the Assatthi up completely. Goldpetal's hawk attacks one. The one in front of Paks takes a swig and spits more acid at her, but misses. Paks swings at it and misses. Miriel casts Searing light and injures one of the two remaining. He leaps for Miriel, swinging, and hits her. Chuck swings and misses. His snake misses. Telyrn uses a Magic Missile and kills the one atacking Miriel. The crew huddles in fear at the far end of the boat.
Goldpetal is in a tree, in the shape of a panther, preparing to attack. The hawk attacks and hits. Paks hits. Miriel Blesses her allies. Chuck is hit. Goldpetal hits. Paks runs back to the ship and attacks the one attacking Chuck. The last Assatthi swings at Paks and hits her. Telyrn shoots a Magic Missle at it and kills it.
Miriel heals Paks while Telryn searches the bodies. He finds a snakeskin-covered spell book in Draconic, a scimitar, and some sweet-smelling wine. All of the Asaatthi have scimitars and armor, and they have three javelins and a strange ring. Telryn does a Detect Magic on all of it, but only the ring is magic. Miriel heals Chuck. We go back to rest.
After resting, Telryn examines the spellbook. It has spells for Acid Spittle, Grease, Magic Missile, and Summon Monster I.
The crew are pretty freaked out, as they don't ever see Asaatthi. They're usually found in the south, it's really too cold for them up here. Paks explains to the captain that they were after us. This is not encouraging to him, nor was our use of fire on his ship, but he agrees to continue the trip.. After resting, we set out again. After three hours of travelling, we're coming up on Lave, but we're not stopping. As we pass Lave, however, suddenly a wizard appears on the boat! It's Delmaron, and he materializes right in front of Telryn, who steps back. He says that someone is watching us, there's a scrying focus on someone in our party. He can tell because it's interfering with his scrying of us. He tells Telryn that it's in his bag; Telryn searches and finds it, a bundle of sticks tied with vine, and with an dessicated eyeball inside. Telyrn thanks Delmaron, not very graciously. Delmaron says he doesn't think it's in his our our interest to have servants of Mormo watching us. As he's talking, Paks tries to detect evil on him, but doesn't get any sense that he is evil. He goes on to say that our mission is very important, and he gives us a silver and jet medallion, a talisman to protect us from being scryed on. Telryn points out that it will allow him to scry on us, which he acknowledges. Telryn thanks him again, even more ungraciously.