Category Archives: Jade Regent

The Jade Regent adventure path.

Character: Olmas

Annals of the Order of the Dragon

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Starday, 22 Kuthona

We had decided to do the almist-customary-now speak with dead with Katiana, but somewhat to my surprise, this time Qatana wanted the whole body. I thought we only needed the head?  Certainly we’ve done that in the past, but she said something about “it works better if you have more of the body”.

Well it also works better if you don’t kill the body (you’re not limited to four questions!), but I’m not really recommending that as a strategy. I may be half elven with a magical heritage, but sometimes I just don’t understand how these spellcasters work.  So, okay, we’ve got a whole-but-grievously-wounded body for tomorrow. We’ll see if this improves the quality of the answers.

Sunday, 23 Kuthona

Before we set off in the morning, Qatana spoke with Katiana. I was not impressed with the quality of the answers.  I paraphrase here:

Q: Who were the others you were working with?
A: Fell creatures of the frozen north who are allied
against you and your cause!  they may yet thwart you!

Q: What was the purpose of the storms?
A: To further the glory of the lord Sithud! You will feel
his wrath and die at his hands and he will serve death to
you on a putrid platter with a side of fell broccoli.

Q: Who else is assisting Sithud?
A: My underlings, the fell creatures of the frozen north
who are allied against you and your cause!  They will
defeat you and you will join their ranks as the frozen
ice becomes your new home and … and you bow down before
the great Lord Sithud as he, ah, as he serves you death on
a fell platter of MASTER construction with a side of, uh,
moldy yams. Frozen moldy yams. Of death. But which may
once have been candied, but their being of death it
really matters not. Ha ha-ha-ha!

Q: Are you working with the oni of the 5 storms?
A: I serve the great Lord Sithud whose legions of foul
creatures, a subset of which also serve me although
of course his orders would supercede mine should he
give them any, which he doesn’t, so it’s irrelevant,
the legions of which shall oppose you at every step,
or rather every third step because fell creatures
lose a step or two when they originally fell, but
not so much that they fall very far behind, for they
are tireless, and, uh, right.  Who will oppose you – I
mean do ALREADY oppose you with great … opposition
and will defeat you in battle – no, it will be no battle
at all when you fall before the frozen but plodding
armies of … wait, curse Common, I don’t think that’s
the right word .. frozen but STEADFAST, that’s it,
frozen but STEADFAST armies of Sithud that shall –

and at that point the head stopped talking and Qatana informed us the spell had run its course.

Or at least, that’s what I remember. I didn’t have a pen ready so I may not have captured it word for word.  Overall, having the whole body there seemed to mean she spoke more but said less.  Not sure if it  was really worth the trouble. I guess we did learn we may want to be more vigilant.

Ulf told us that our best route out of the ice now would be by way of Dead Man’s Dome, and being a fantastic shill I immediately said, “Dead Man’s Dome?  Why is it called that?” and Ulf managed to look ominous, sinister, and mysterious even though it was the brightest darkness of the day, and said, “aye, there’s a story there, but it needs wait for dinner” because Ulf realized, of course, that the dancing shadows and captive audience provided by the evening fire would be needed to properly tell this story.

In the evening, as our relatively small fire shone brightly across the miles of flat unbroken ice, he told us a tale of a tower that, over two hundred years ago, was used to guarantee safe passage between the ice and the lands beyond.  The area was known to be home to not just fell beasts but disagreeable giants and others.  The last caravan of the season was exiting the ice later than normal, and their scouts reported having seen signs that they were indeed being followed. They reached the guard tower just as an army of undead and giants attacked them.

At this point I realized uncomfortably that this almost perfectly described OUR caravan’s current situation.

The tower was not without armaments, and the caravan had at least reached its elevated base safely.  Still, the attack was ferocious and it didn’t take too long to realize that the tower (and the caravan it was guarding) was destined to fall.

One of the remaining soldiers from the tower came forward and offered a plan.  Since the attacking army may not know how close the tower was to falling, it might be possibly to make the army think there was a massive counterattack preparing.  Distracted by the apparent counterattack, the caravan may yet escape even as the tower fell.  It was, of course, a suicide mission for the lone soldier but it was all they had.

And it was successful.  What was left of the attacking army – for they too had truly taken significant losses – moved up to defeat the apparent counterattack.  The soldier used what little magic and weapons he had left to appear to be a small platoon of troops, when in fact it was just him.  As the attackers angrily surged forward, he played his last card, collapsing the tower upon the attackers and guaranteeing there were too few left to chase the escaping caravan.

Nobody ever learned of the soldier’s name, but the tale of his bravery moved rapidly from campfire to town to garrison, and the remaining wreckage became known as Dead Man’s Dome.  And legend has it (of course) that he guards the pass still, against any evil that would dare attack a passing caravan.

When we get there, we’ll see how much of what remains supports the story. We anticipate it taking over a week to get there.  But Ulf certainly did tell it well.

Fireday, 28 Kuthona

Things had been pretty uneventful until tonight, when a guard reported a woman out on the ice, approaching our position.Ivan, Qatana, and I cautiously approached the figure.  Ivan had cast a spell called ‘deathwatch’ which apparently allows him to discern at a glance if a being is truly alive or not.  A maiden in a red silk robe – which looked dreadfully out of place here on the ice – hesitantly drew nigh and announced, “My name is Uki.”

Sparna quietly moved to the perimeter.

When we bade her to come nearer, she said she was afraid and actually backed up.  We looked at each other, and Ivan shook his head. There was no life here.  We called for the rest of the party, and at that moment the wind inexplicably increased and started becoming an issue.  Hailstones fell from what had previously been a clear sky, and they definitely hurt.  I instructed Suishen to turn up the flame, and Ivan provided a wall of flame behind Uki to encourage her to move closer.

She tried to use her waif looks to captivate us, but was unsuccessful. We then attacked, and although she was much tougher than she looked, she was soon not a threat at all.

Moonday, 31 Kuthona

One of our wagon drivers has been acting strangely, but today it turned to the irrational.  He became afraid of the horses and refused to drive.  We suspect this might be a case of the “Howl of the North” that Ulf had warned us about.  So far we have been fortunate to avoid it, but we had acquired resources before we left town that would allow us to mitigate it.  Qatana was able to use some diamond dust to create a spell of Restoration to help with the healing.  While that did make him better, he is still by no means healed so we have shifted some of our roles around to cover for the missing driver, who now is under the personal care of Koya.

Toilday, 1 Abadius

Owing to Katiana’s clear premonitions, we suspected this day would come. Today, we noticed in the distance, figures following us.  I quickly rode back a bit with Kasimir and observed, yes, I saw at least 10 skeletons plodding, er STEADFASTLY plodding towards us.  They were not really overtaking us, but the problem is that they were tireless, but we’d have to stop and rest at some point. They would eventually catch up to us.  Ivan scouted ahead to make sure we weren’t being herded into a trap, and as far as he could tell, no, we weren’t.

Ulf pointed out we could probably make Dead Man’s Dome and in a quick meeting, we concluded it probably would provide the most defensible place.  It was apparent that more undead were joining the skeletons and it was anybody’s guess how many we’d ultimately be facing.  High ground seemed like a good idea.

By evening, we’d reached Dead Man’s Dome, and we quickly sized it up. We probably had 20-30 min before the horde caught up to us, and in consultation with Ulf we came up with a plan to funnel the undead towards us using walls of fire.  Once they were in the kill zone, some area effect spells would hammer them before the fighters moved in to clean up.  I asked Suishen for protection from cold, and we moved up to execute.

As the greatly reduced undead advanced towards us, among our fighters rose a ghostly figure from the ground. The Dead Man had risen to defend the caravan, just as legend foretold!  His great sword sliced a wight in half as he gave a half nod to the fighters around him.

Ivan kept a steady stream of arrows heading out to the advancing undead.  We destroyed the rest of the undead in short order, with little damage to us.    And that’s when we saw the second wave advancing.

Since we again had a few minutes to prepare, we quickly brought Ulf up to see the Dead Man.  Ulf never expected to see the subject of one of his stories before him 🙂 and the look on his face was worth the effort.  For his part, the Dead Man again politely nodded at Ulf much as he had to us.

The walls of fire had provided not only a funnelling effect, but also light.  But they would be expired for the second wave.  We adjusted our strategy a bit.  Ivan shot some lit arrows out behind the second wave, and that provided some backlight to help see them advancing.  A few tried to move off to flank us, but the nice thing about undead is that they don’t think very hard. they pretty much move directly to the target.  Our basic area effect spells still took out a goodly number.  The Dead Man again proved indispensible. In the end, we easily killed over 30 undead between the two waves, and we did save the caravan.

Instead of disappearing or sinking back into the ground, the Dead Man walked slowly up the hill. He still looked very distinguished in his dated full plate.  But then he reached a pile of rubble, and slowly pointed at it.  I thought we might find his remains there, but what we found was more valuable than that.

[431] terra cotta statue
-once per day one can reroll a d20 attack roll w/+1
– once per day one can call upon a spiritual ally for 7 rds

We believe we have exhausted the undead army, but we will nevertheless proceed with caution for the next few days.

Character: Qatana

Qatana’s Journal for Kuthona 22, 4712 – Abadius 1, 4713

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Starday, Kuthona 22, 4712 evening
Caravan, near the Storm Tower

We returned to the caravan and recounted our adventures with Katiyana and the other creatures both alive and undead. Ulf replied with his usual grunt (of approval? disbelief? relief?), but Ameiko and Koya wanted to see the infamous Tower of the Storms for themselves.

I looked over questioningly at Shalelu, who gave a small discrete smile and a wink in reply. I guess it makes sense that if you’re going to travel halfway around the world through the most inhospitable places it makes sense to see the sites while you’re there.

I did notice that Shalelu followed along with the others, and so I remained in camp with Sparna and worked on dinner. When they returned they were lugging the bodies of the two remorhazes we had slain and having an animated discussion about using their scales as personal talisman.

I held up a knife I was using and offered to scale the beasts and was met with blank stares. Ameiko said, “Maybe after dinner.” Well, yeah. I didn’t mean for them to fling the corpses on the cutting board right then. Food preparation is important, and I keep a clean kitchen.

Sunday, Kuthona 23, 4712 evening
Caravan

Before leaving in the morning I used Speak With Undead to question Katiyana’s body. The night before I had come up with things to ask that I hoped would be revealing, but as the others gathered round and the interrogation began it was clear that even in death Katiyana would be difficult. She served her frozen master (Sithud) and she was confident in his eventual return. She also took the opportunity to hint at her legion of undead that wandered the frozen wastes, and to gloat over their eventual victory over us.

If nothing else she put us on alert for more frozen undead.

With the Storm Tower disabled we had mild (relatively speaking) conditions and made good progress. Ulf is leading us back to the main caravan route over the high ice. We’re headed toward a place auspiciously called “Dead Man’s Dome.” When pressed for details Ulf took a large swig of spiced rum and leaned into the fire, the dancing flames highlighting random parts of his grizzled face and giving him an almost otherworldly appearance. We were used to it by now: this was Ulf’s favorite story telling effect.

“Generations ago there stood a stone tower atop a hill used to guard the caravan route. The last caravan of the season was drawing nigh, but instead of tower guards it was met by a horde of giants and fell beasts. As they prepared to circle the wagons for a desperate defense, one of the caravan’s soldiers came forward with a cunning plan.”

”I’ll lead some of the men around our attacker’s flanks and draw them toward the tower while the rest of you flee with all possible speed. We’ll try and meet down the road later on.”

“Seeing that this was their only hope this plan was swiftly enacted. The drivers moved the wagons as if circling them for battle while the guards lept off and raced around to the flanks of the giants. As expected the giants turned to to attack and were led by the retreating men up the hill toward the tower. This gave the the caravan the break they needed and the wagons quickly began to roll away.”

“Seeing this the soldier said to his men, ”Swiftly head around back to the road. I will keep the giants busy.” And as the guards crept away the soldier ran into the tower, shouting out orders to troops he did not have. The giants, not being the brightest of creatures, were completely fooled and followed him in.”

“Some say that once the giants entered the tower it collapsed, killing them all. Others say the giants were so enraged by the soldier’s taunts that they simply forgot about the fleeing caravan. Either way the wagons escaped to safety, leaving the soldier behind.”

“No one remembers his name, but the hill has been called Dead Man’s Dome ever since. Legend has it that his spirit remains and guards the way for passing caravans.”

Ulf ended his tale as the fire shot embers high into the black sky. We remained respectfully quiet, although Pookie did comment, “I’m going to remember that story to retell later.” No doubt she would, but I suspected the next time I heard it it would be a tale of ferocious rats against a wandering band of brave mice.

Fireday, Kuthona 28, 4712 night
Caravan

We spent five days of blissfully dull travel on the ice, but that streak came to an end tonight. As we were setting up camp one of the guards called out, “There’s a woman over there!” Sure enough, just within the range of our lamps was a lone figure draped in a thin shawl.

The guard wanted to rush to her assistance, but the rest of us were far more suspicious. “Think about it, man, who could survive out here for more than a minute dressed like that? This is obviously a trap.”

Olmas, Ivan and I cautiously moved forward.

“Who are you?” I called out.

She replied, “My name is Uki.” Uki? That was a Tien name. We became even more suspicious.

Olmas asked, “Why are you here?”

“I am lost.”

“Well, come over to us. Just come into the light.”

“I am afraid of all of the people!”

Finally some truth. We moved closer toward her and predictably she drifted a bit further away. It became colder and windier the further we strayed from camp. I called back for assistance.

A moment later and Uki Revealed herself to be some sort of malevolent ice spirit. A few more moments after that and she was dead.

Moonday, Kuthona 31, 4712 evening
Caravan

A silver dragon flew overhead again this morning. I wonder if it is the same one we have seen before? It is hard to see details in the ever present darkness, but it was hard to miss the unmistakable glitter of starlight on silver scales.

I wish it would land by the caravan for a visit.

One of our wagon drivers, Vankor, has become shaken by the ever present darkness and unending plane of ice. He shivers and starts at any noise, and cannot abide being around our oxen and horses. I suspect sighting of the dragon may have pushed him over the edge.

I offered to speak to him and calm his nerves. Talk about Groetus and his promise of the end of the world and how soothing that is. Kali seemed to think this a bad idea, but I was allowed to try a restorative spell on him, which appeared to have helped some.

This has caused a shift in who is riding in which dragon. Kali is now acting as the caravan’s fortune teller (is there anything she can’t do?).

I volunteered to ride with Sparna. I thought this would be a good opportunity to get to know our dwarven friend better. So far this has not worked out as I had hoped. He just grunts when I talk to him, if he even bothers to respond at all. I bet if you looked up “taciturn” in a dictionary there’d be a drawing of Sparna next to the definition. I started talking to the oxen instead, which is some improvement although Sparna’s eye tick has become more pronounced.

Moonday, Kuthona 31, 4712 near midnight
Caravan

The old year is just about to die. For some followers of Groetus today is a special holy day of sorts. I find it more symbolic than anything, and my little mice friends and I shiver through the cold as we watch the stars wheel across the sky, oblivious to the notion of a calendar.

When I think back on my life as it was exactly one year ago I am in awe of all of the changes I have passed through since.

Toilday, Abadius 1, 4713 mid morning
Caravan

We began to notice them an hour after breaking camp. Now the ever present sound of our rolling of wheels over the hard ice and grunt of oxen is joined by the creaking, popping joints of ice skeletons and the moans of wights and other undead abominations that are chasing after us.

They are not fast, and we can keep ahead of them, but obviously they will overtake us as soon as we stop to rest. Already I can tell that their number has increased since we first noticed them. Katiyana’s threat appears to have been more than an idle one.

Toilday, Abadius 1, 4713 afternoon
Caravan

Ulf has a plan. Sort of. We will reach Dead Man’s Dome in a few hours, and while the tower is a ruin the hill itself offers a tactical advantage in combat. It also has a road that spirals up where the wagons and beasts can be protected by those of us who will first face the undead.

We have augmented Ulf’s idea with our own details. The undead we have seen are fairly mindless, and will simply pursue and attack their nearest foes. We will use walls of flame to funnel the approaching creatures into a kill zone before the base of Dead Man’s Dome.

Once we arrive we will jump off the wagons, which will continue up the hill, and we will take up a position among the rubble near the base of the dome and attack the undead as they approach.

Toilday, Abadius 1, 4713 evening
Caravan

Everything went almost exactly as we had planned. Ivan created massive walls of fire that prevented the horde from flanking us. Their direction of approach now being fixed Kali was able to create several storms of falling rocks to cascade down upon our enemies, damaging many and hindering all who passed through the resultant field of rubble. I used a spiritual ally to hammer the undead while the rest of my companions used ranged weapons and spells to take them down.

And then something unexpected occurred. Not unexpected bad, but unexpected good, and anyone who has survived a fair amount of combat can tell you just how rare that is.

The first wave of undead had passed the initial hurtles and fell upon us as a tall ghostly figure rose up from the earth. It wore ancient armor and wielded a a great sword, which it promptly used to slice a wight in half.

The “Dead Man” from Dead Man’s Dome had arisen and come to our aid!

The first surge of creatures had been defeated and the second approached. I decided to get more personally involved with this group and took to the air, flying over clumps of the foul things and radiating bursts of positive energy.

Our combined efforts were very effective, and the entire army of undead perished before us. As the last wight died a loud cackle of hysterical laughter filled the air. But it soon changed into a wail that faded in the darkness.

Our ghostly ally bowed before us, and then walked up the hill as we followed, curious as to where he was going. Kali rushed off to bring Ulf and the others from the caravan to meet our unexpected defender.

The Dead Man pointed at the rubble and after moving about some stones I found a terracotta figurine of a warrior that radiated magic. He then saluted us and faded back into the ground.

[431] figurine of terracotta warrior: a symbol of good

  • once per day the bearer can reroll an attack roll
  • once a day the bearer can summon a spiritual ally

Although he was a bit reluctant at first, Sparna agreed to bear the figurine.

Ulf was beside himself with wonder. It turns out he only half believed the story he had told earlier. “Make no mistake about it but I have a great yarn to tell once I return home, not that many will believe me!”

 

Character: Kali

Kali’s Journal, Kuthona 22, 4712 – Abadius 1, 4713

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Kuthona 22, 4712 (evening, The Storm Tower)

Ameiko and Koya wanted to see the tower that was at the center of all this turmoil, so we obliged. I mean, why not? We had cleared it out so it was safe—aside from the sludge—and it was completely alien in design and construction, unlike anything any of us had ever seen or were likely to see again. Ultimately, this journey is about restoring Ameiko’s rightful place as heir to the empire of Minkai but it is also about traveling far away from home and seeing the world outside of Avistan, and all the strange and wondrous sights it has to offer. A piece of that world was staring at us right here, right now. When we would have another opportunity?

Ameiko seemed just as interested in the remorhaz as the ancient, basalt spire. I understand the appeal, especially after having stood in close quarters with two of them. They have a reputation in this part of the world that is, frankly, well deserved. And, Sparna offered what I thought was a pretty good idea, inspired by the talisman that Ulf carries. We could fashion a few of our own from their scales and use them in much the same way as Iqaliat. When we arrive in Tian Xia we may need a system for identifying who we can trust, and fetishes of our own may be the answer. That, and trophies made from remorhaz scales kind of send a message about who people are dealing with. I have little patience for convincing others to take me seriously and I suspect Ameiko has even less, so why not make that first impression count?

Ulf wants to pick up the Path of Aganhei again and according to him the best place to do that is at Dead Man’s Dome. I imagine this has a lot to do with the fact that it’s one of only a handful of identifiable landmarks around for literally hundreds of miles. Once we clear the Alabastrine Peaks, Ulf says we turn right and head south. Though just about everything is “south” from where we are, so I’m pretty sure that “head south” was meant as a gag.

I almost wrote “We leave at first light”, but of course there isn’t one and there won’t be for several more weeks.

Dead Man’s Dome used to be a fortified tower of some sort, an outpost along the Path of Aganhei that extended the protection for travelers onto the Ice itself. A couple hundred years ago, though, it was attacked by a small army of giants and frozen dead while several caravans were sheltered there. It threatened to be more of a slaughter than a battle, but a soldier whose name has long been lost to time mustered a brilliant counterattack that shattered the attacking formation. As the giants regrouped, the surviving guards and caravans managed an escape, but that one, lone soldier stayed behind and lured the attackers into the tower before collapsing it on himself and them. It is a seemingly fantastical story that, as near as I can tell, is absolutely true, and it hasn’t even been embellished.

Ulf says that, according to legend, the ghost of the Dead Man protects the dome to this day. Six months ago I would have scoffed at such a notion, but not now. Etayne and Koya would be pleased.

We’re going to try and speak with Katiyana’s corpse before leaving tomorrow. It’s become a disturbing ritual, but it has to be done, right?

That’s what I keep telling myself.

Kuthona 23, 4712 (midday, The High Ice)

Katiyana’s essence was about as cooperative as I’d expected. She (it?) gave circular answers that told us basically nothing, though that may have been in part because we didn’t know what to ask. This spell seems to work best when you are seeking to confirm that which you already know or at least suspect. The more general or vague you are the less likely you are to be satisfied.

One of our questions was answered with a threat of sorts.

“Who are the others you were working with?” Qatana asked.

“I was allied with felled creatures of the frozen north, raised from death”, she replied in that hollow, lifeless voice we’re used to from this spell. And then she laughed. An eerie facsimile of a laugh, but a laugh nonetheless. “My allied creatures may yet thwart you.”

So that is something to look forward to.

She also implied rather strongly that she wasn’t associated with the oni of the Five Storms. As she put it, she served “the Frozen Lord who shall return.” Uh huh. Good luck with that. It’s reasonable to assume that she was working alone up here until very recently, and Tunuak seems to have been a lucky break rather than part of any kind of master plan. He was probably the only one of her victims that was useful to her alive, and I doubt that hoarfrost spirits and whatever other undead she’d created from the rest served as anything more than brute force. Sithhud is going to have to get used to disappointment.

Kuthona 24, 4712 (evening, The High Ice)

I talked to mom and dad today. I actually tried last night but it didn’t work, or rather, not all of it did. I could see mom and even hear her, but when I tried the spell that would let me talk to her? Nothing. All I could do was sit there and watch as she worked in the office.

I actually did that for a while—watch her as she worked. I couldn’t let the image go. And then I realized how voyeuristic it was. As much as I wanted just to see them again, doing it this way suddenly felt horribly wrong, and I let it go.

Tonight, though, I got through.

“Mom.”

There is a difference between knowing something might happen and actually having it happen. She and dad knew what to expect because I’d made these plans with them that day back in Magnimar, but she still nearly jumped out of her seat. I mean she literally jumped. So I guess I surprised her.

“Kali! Thank the gods you’re OK!” There was a pause, then a look of concern on her face as she looked around reflexively. “Are you OK? Where are you?”

“Near the north pole. Yes, I’m OK. We all are.”

It took a couple of minutes—precious time I didn’t really have with this spell—for her to find dad and get back to where they could talk privately. I was treated to a short tour of the office, though I could only see a small bubble around her as she walked. Unsurprisingly, it hadn’t really changed since I’d left.

“We received the letters,” dad said. “There were three?”

“Yes.”

“They gave us quite a scare. What happened up there?”

I was more or less expecting this question and had prepared an answer. “We guessed they’d be watching for us and they were. They’ve been there for decades, patiently waiting in case someone from Amieko’s family turned up. They’d formed a small criminal empire of sorts using a trading guild as a front. Like the Sczarni in a way.”

Mom spoke up then. “We’ve heard rumors of a guild coming into trouble with the king there.”

“Yes. That was us. And them. You won’t hear our names, though. The public face of it is an Ulfen merchant named Lute Haggersly. If you are looking for new business contacts up there, by the way, he’s someone to trust. He’ll remember my name.”

We didn’t have much time so I quickly recounted the highlights from Kalsgard to points north. More surprises, more alarm, especially after I got around to Iqaliat.

Dad interrupted this time. “A dragon?! Kali—”

“It was a small one. If that helps.”

“Kali…” He paused, and I got the sense he changed what he was planning to say. “We are both immensely proud of what you are doing, and what you have accomplished. Both you and your friends.”

But.

“But, we worry that events continue to escalate.”

Mom spoke up, then. “So far you’ve been able to handle it. But it feels like things are on the verge of spiraling out of control. How will you know if…?”

She trailed off, not able to put the question into words. It didn’t matter though because I knew what she was asking me. And I didn’t have an answer for it. Not one that would satisfy them, anyway.

“You might be right. I—I know that’s not what you want to hear. I can only say that we’ve all agreed not to take needless risks. That this isn’t worth our lives. I know that’s not much, but…it’s the best I can offer. We learned a lot from Kalsgard.”

They asked how Ameiko was doing so I told them. It was an abrupt and awkward change of subject, but I get it. In their position, I would have wanted to do that, too.

I am probably making this conversation sound like something of a downer. It wasn’t like that, really. It was just honest. But it’s not something I’m used to doing with them, and if I feel and sound a little numb I guess that’s just me coping with it.

“When will we hear from you next?” dad asked.

We had just a few seconds left and I could feel the spell coming to an end. The image of them in front of me was starting to fade.

“We should reach Tian Xia in a month, plus a week or two to get through the mountains.”

“Take care of yourself, and your friends,” he said.

“We miss you and love you. And we want you to come back to us.”

“I miss you and love you both. I will make it back. That is a promise.”

The uncomfortable truth is that this isn’t a promise I could really make. I mean, how did know that I could keep it? We didn’t know what really lay ahead of us. But the point is that I meant it. They knew that, too, and that’s what mattered.

I managed to hold my composure until after the spell expired.

Kuthona 28, 4712 (night, The High Ice)

For the last several days we’ve had clear weather that would qualify as pleasant if it wasn’t so cold. I was beginning to think we might actually make it to Dead Man’s Dome without incident, but tonight as we were making camp word started spreading that there was a figure of some sort just out beyond our light. A woman walking alone in the freezing darkness. Naturally, this put everyone on edge because, really, how could that possibly be what it appeared? Olmas rode out on Kasimir to investigate, with Qatana and Ivan close behind.

The short of it is: it wasn’t a woman. Surprise. Not a living one, anyway. She was a malevolent spirit of some sort, and was trying to draw people away from camp. Mostly it was the others that dealt with it. There just wasn’t much I could do to contribute. This has me rethinking some decisions I made about which spells I have chosen to learn. Each one takes precious time, and of course money in special ink and fees, so when I was starting out these decisions were difficult to make. Now that money is less of an issue, and time is something we have far too much of, I don’t have to make tough choices. The problem I have now is even more frustrating: no resources. I can manage a couple of news spells on my own as my skills grow, but that is about it for self study. It could be weeks before we are in a suitable town or city.

I am a little surprised we haven’t attracted more attention. Our caravan is putting out a lot of light. We knew we’d be crossing the Crown in the dead of winter, and that we’d be going a couple of months without the sun. If we wanted to see by we’d have to supply our own light. Qatana, Ulf, Ivan, and I made up plans for a couple of bulls eye lanterns for the covered wagon that Sandru drives, and regular lanterns to go on the others. Each one is lit by a magical flame that Qatana produced. It was expensive—each casting consumes a small ruby—but they never go out unless magically extinguished. We can see as far as 100 feet away in all directions, and even farther in front due to the head lamps. We’re a very visible beacon, one that can be seen for miles and miles in the darkness. Not everything up here is blind.

Kuthona 31, 4712 (mid-day, The High Ice)

The Silver dragon flew over us again while we were stopped for lunch. I assume it was the same dragon, anyway. How can one tell? It was big, it was silver, it was a dragon. That was about as far as I could get on distinguishing features. It didn’t stick around, either, which I assume is a good sign. No news being good news, and so on.

Other than that, it was shaping up to be an uneventful day. And then we broke camp.

Vankor, one of our drivers, was pretty visibly shaken. I remember thinking he looked a little nervous this morning, but didn’t think much of it at the time. After only a few hours he was clearly doing much, much worse. He wouldn’t go near any of the wagons, or rather, the musk-oxen that were pulling them.

Both Ulf and Koya are sure it’s Howl of the North, a form of madness that comes from being without the sun for weeks on end, and I agree.

His brother Bevelek said, “I noticed he’d been a little slow to get moving in mornings. Reluctant, even.”

Sandru nodded his head. “I had, too, but I didn’t want to give him a hard time. I just figured…I guess it was getting to him, only a lot more than I realized.”

Qatana pulled out some of our diamond dust and tried a restorative spell that works on these sorts of things. It produced some results, which is encouraging, but it didn’t cure him completely. We may give it time, or we may try the spell again.

For now, Sparna will take his position as driver, and Koya will watch over him. That meant we needed someone to perform the divinations for the caravan, and I think just about everyone was shocked when I said, “I’ll do it.”

Koya looked at me skeptically for a moment—Yeah, I would doubt me, too, I thought—but then she smiled, nodded, and said, “OK. Come with me.”

Why am I doing this? I guess I’ve come around. Koya is no charlatan, and I’ve learned to respect that there is real magic at the core of what she does for us. That, and if we were counting debts, I’d be in hers many times over. This seems like a step towards balancing those scales.

New Year’s Day, 4713 (mid-day, Dead Man’s Dome)

Our scouts tell us that a large group of undead are trailing us, and I can just barely make out a handful of figures lumbering behind us at the far reaches of our light. The first skeleton was spotted early this morning, just a few hours after we set out, but as the day drew on more and more undead were seen converging on our flanks. It doesn’t appear that they can get ahead of us, but they really don’t have to: we and our animals have to stop and rest at some point, and they do not. We’re going to have to pick a time and place to make a stand.

Ulf has suggested doing that at Dead Man’s Dome. It’s where we are headed, anyway, and we should arrive in a couple of hours if we just continue on. The Dome will gives us some defensive terrain which sounds much better than trying to do this out here in the open. Plus, the longer we go the more likely we’ll be to draw them all out and get them following behind us instead of converging from all around.

That doesn’t mean this isn’t tense. I’m told there are at least a couple of dozen of them out there, now, and I have no doubt that more are coming. A few skeletons, wights, and even hoarfrost spirits are not a threat to us, but a few dozen is a different matter. And, it’s not just us: it’s the wagons, the animals, Vankor who is essentially helpless, and our provisions. It is on everyone’s mind and the wait is not helping. We also don’t have much of a margin for error. If another wagon axle breaks, if we wander off the path and get stuck, if anything slows us down at all… We have to be ready to face them at a moment’s notice.

We are fortunate that the weather has been good, and the packed ice and snow here has been fairly level and smooth. It was not easy, but I was able to spend the last 20 minutes or so memorizing some spells, filling the reserves I had held back for the day. There are some spells we’ll want that I do not normally prepare.

Thank the gods I have fallen into that habit.

(evening, Dead Man’s Dome)

The ground below us is littered with the shattered and charred remains of the undead. I am, frankly, stunned by the combined destructive power that we can bring to bear. We have obliterated some three or four dozen of them in a matter of minutes, and much of that time was spent preparing for the second wave of the attack.

Granted, as Olmas and Sparna would say, this was probably the best possible scenario for us. We had the higher ground. We more or less knew what we were up against. We could define the encounter. They had limited capacity to plan or respond. We had more resources at our disposal, from abilities to weapons to magic. And, most importantly, we had time to prepare.

I am beginning to understand why powerful spell casters are as often feared by the common man as they are revered. I am also more than a little frightened by my own potential. Since this began, I have spent most of my energy and efforts supporting the others, either through direct action or by hindering our foes, giving us small advantages wherever possible. Actually participating in a fight directly has always been a last resort, when there was nothing better for me to do. This time, direct action was called for, and I rained down earth and fire, over and over again after the aurochs had flattened the front lines.

Granted, these creatures were undead and no one will mourn them, but what lies ahead of us? How often will I be facing living, breathing beings? I’ve done it a few times, and it has never sat well afterwards. Mom and dad are worried that we may face a situation that is beyond our abilities. I guess my fear is different: I worry there will be a day when it no longer tugs at my conscience.

The biggest surprise of the day came from Dead Man’s Dome, itself. Just as the first wave began its assault, a ghostly figure rose from the ground ahead of us and took a place in our defensive line. It did not take long for us to understand that this was the spirit of the Dead Man, himself. I did not get a close look at the manifestation, but it reminded me of what we had seen back in Brinewall: energy given physical form, only protective instead of destructive. As it stood there waiting for the second wave, someone quickly brought Ulf down to see. I understand that it was quite a shock.

Later in the evening, after we had made camp and the Dead Man had sunk back into the earth, we were sitting around the campfires, eating and talking. Just on a whim, I asked Ulf what he thought about what we’d witnessed.

“By the gods, do I have a story to tell! No one will ever believe me, but—You know, I had my doubts about leading you fools across here at this time of year, but this here made it worth it.”

I decided to let the “fools” comment go.

Character: Olmas

Annals of the Order of the Dragon

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as written by the cavalier Olmas Lurecia, himself.

Starday, 22 Kuthona

The machine now silent, the group moderately weakened (at least spellwise), and with yet another floor above us, Kali asked for time to recover 3 spells.  Radella continued playing with the controls, and while it could not be said she mastered it, she could get it to do what she wanted about, I don’t know, half the time.  It was apparently pretty complex, even for her. A couple of others slowly recovered from a touch of idiocy that the little glass scorpions had bestowed upon them.  When you’ve been touched by idiocy, time is your friend.

Kali then announced she was going to do some recon.  She summoned a small air elemental to (easily) go up the still-windy center and report back on what it found up there.

It reported, and I’m paraphrasing here, that “there was a great tumult of wind in the center, the room held many frozen dead, the room had gems with lightning passing between them.” Kali concluded that the only thing lacking was a fireball, so from the edge of the shaft, she sent up a fireball to complete the scene.

Kali sent up another surprise: two earth elementals who were told to push any undead down the shaft.  Then we quickly arranged for us all to have cold resistance (Suishen supplied it for me) and prepared to head up ourselves.  Before we could summon the platform, we did see two bodies fly down the shaft so apparently the elementals were following instructions.

Ivan gave us Hide from Undead, and Qatana put a circle against evil on me, and all the fighters got fly or air walk.  Upon arriving at the next level, a quick glance filled in the details the air elemental had not been able to provide. Six equally spaced gem circled the outer wall, with great arcs of lightning going from them up to the ceiling, where they converged in a giant blue all of energy.  Also on the outside edge, 4 platforms rose from the floor to the level of the gems – at least fifty feet – with each ending near an open window.  Standing on one of the platforms was a blue-skinned woman: Katiyana.

As we arrived she looked down upon us and produced an energy burst which seemed to affect some of us worse than others. I did not escape damage, but seemed to fare better than some  of my companions. Kali hasted us all, and I started airwalking my way up to the sylph.

Then the sylph started som intense chanting that seemed to take way longer than a regular spell. Kali yelled, “Summoning!” and I closed the distance to to try to attack her. But the wind from the center blew me against an outer wall as I stopped moving, so I used the ring of ram to try to smack her – and missed. Little did I know that that broke the hide from undead spell for everybody; I had thought as long as I left the undead alone the spell would hold.  Oh well. Qatana successfully inflicted a touch of idiocy on Katiyana, but below us suddenly the undead noticed Ivan and Kali and began attacking them.

Allowed to finish her spell, Katiyana did indeed summon a demon, but because of my circle of protection, it was forced off the ledge and dropped 50′ to the ground.  That did not start off its involuntary visit to the material plane on an up note.  In a quicker move, she also conjured a being of pure force using a spell that Qatyana recognized as spiritual ally, and she briefly warned me that I could not attack it physically.  It, of course, would have no trouble attacking me.

Below me, it turned out, the demon was looking at an easy, paralyzed target named Ivan.  Kali, however, created a pit underneath it and it dropped another 20′ and could no longer reach Ivan.  Welcome again to the material plane.

I, however, was learning a big difference between air walk and fly. The latter allowed for the possibility you might be able to reach a point and hold it, even in a strong wind.  Air walk, however, was an automatic fail – if I wasn’t walking, I was being pushed by the very strong wind. Another attempt got me blown right next to one of the arcing crystals and almost out a window.  A thought occurred to me – if I can’t get to the sylph, perhaps I can get the sylph to come to me.  I turned and attacked the crystal, which terribly vexed Suishen, who wanted me to attack living creatures. That would make me happy too, but I’m working with what I’ve got …

Radella finally made it to the demon, and smacked it so hard she splattered whatever constitutes demon blood all over the walls. Welcome to the material plane.

In general, our resistance to cold was helping a great deal with the frozen undead.  However their ability to paralyze us we had no defense against, and once held in place we were easy targets.

The sylph did seem annoyed at my attacks on the crystal, which by now was greatly diminishing its arcing contribution to the ball of lightning. It was not yet destroyed, but clearly significantly damaged. The battered demon swung at Radella and missed, but Radella returned the favor with a powerful swing and sent it back from whence it had come. Thank you and please don’t visit again.

The crystal I’d been hacking on finally shattered and electricity ceased to flow from it. I (air) walked down to the ground but as I did so, the wind suddenly stopped. I looked up and Kali had flown up and blocked the input somehow, so now there was no downflow. I could walk to and attack Katiyana again!

But I was too late. The rest of the party had been slowly but steadily diminishing the frozen undead, and I’d seen at least one tumble into the shaft when the platform disappeared.  And the sylph had tried to impudently walk pasr Sparna while he had a weapon ready, and he simply struck her down as she passed.  How ignominious.  Or desperate.  Maybe it was just a cry for attention.

From her body we collected

[424] scroll of cleanse
[425] magic breastplate +1
[426] MW buckler
[427] headband of mental superiority +2
[428] spell components
[429] unholy symbol of Sithud

and just in case they should prove useful,

[430] crystal shards

We took the time to destroy each of the crystals, and as we suspected, the ball of lightning faded and finally disappeared altogether, and when it did, the wind stopped.

Returning to the ground floor, it was apparent that it was not just the central shaft that had lost the wind. The surrounding area was no longer suffering the effects of storm. In fact, the clouds had cleared and we could see stars.

There was still the mushroom room on the ground floor that we had not inspected, and in the interest of being thorough, we decided to go there and encounter the invisible carnivorous fungi.  Using my last favor from Suishen today, I asked for see invisible and I was able to strike some down as well as direct others in their battles and spells.  Whenever the man-sized fungi attacked they became briefly visible, so we knew they were real 🙂 For our troubles, upon defeating the four of them we were able to harvest a modest amount of (allegedly edible, according to Qatana) mushrooms to add to dinner.

Character: Qatana

Qatana’s Journal for Kuthona 22, 4712

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Starday, Kuthona 22, 4712 noon
Storm Tower

“You never listen to me — you should have killed her!” Star fumed.

“I took the best action available given our situation, and the sylph was killed more quickly because of that,” I replied.

This argument had been going on for some time, and I was already weary of it. Sending Radella up to attack Katiyana had been the tactically wise thing to do. Radella was much better at melee than I, and we needed to take the sylph down as quickly as possible.

I would have joined Radella and Sparna in pressing the attack had Katiyana not died so soon after two of our primary fighters got their first real chance to engage her.

But Star was beyond reasoning with, and I noted from their silence that some of my other friends had taken her side. Only Huffy and McLovin tried to calm her down, but they had always been the most reasonable of my cadre. Something needed to be done or I’d never hear the end of it.

“How about this,” I offered as a compromise, “we’ll spend more time practicing and improving our fighting techniques from now on.”

There was a moment of silence followed by a reluctant, “As long as you really mean it” from Star. The others relaxed, sensing that the most bellicose of them was standing down.

It had really been a tough battle, and was a hair’s breadth away from ending in disaster (for us).

From the tower’s mid level Radella had experimented with the control panel, figuring out how to send a platform up to the top level with a covering to protect us from the terrific wind that howled down the center shaft.

Kali sent up an air elemental to scout up above, and it reported back that their was a great tumult of wind with lightening arcing out from large gems. Frozen undead were walking about.

By this time Radella was fairly confident she could summon the covered platform, and so Kali detonated a fireball and sent two earth elementals up to wreak as much havoc as possible. She was rewarded a few moments later when a pair of bodies fell down from above.

The rest of us prepared for combat with a Magic Circle Against Evil, Protection from Energy spells (for both cold and electrical damage), and Ivan cast Hide from Undead upon all of us. I then cast Fly upon myself and used a wand to confer the same on Kali, Radella, and Sparna.

We took the magical platform up.

Stepping off I could see six large blue glowing gemstones set high in the walls about us. Bolts of lightening zapped from them up and out a thirty foot hole in the ceiling, above which hovered the enormous swirling blue ball of energy. Beneath each gem was a small platform at least fifty feet above the floor.

Hoarfrost spirits were shambling about, and a winged blue skinned woman was leaning out from one of the platforms above. She released a spell in the midst of us, but I could not sense any affect, although some of my companions looked alarmed. This was obviously Katiyana, whom Tunuak had so idolized.

The plan seemed obvious: slay the sylph first and then mop up the undead.

Kali cast haste upon us as the woman hit us with another spell, and a sphere of color exploded about us.

Radella, Sparna and I began the arduous task of flying up to Katiyana, battling the hurricane force winds. Olmas had earlier asked Suishen for Airwalk, and he too began to climb up, but as soon as he stopped the winds slammed him against the wall near the sylph.

I assumed we would all fly up, but for some reason Kali and Ivan remained on the floor, trusting in the Hide From Undead spell. Surely they realized that the spell would end once we attacked. Ivan had to know, right? And Kali was smart, she must know. I returned my attention to Katiyana.

Olmas whacked at Katiyana as I moved in and bestowed Touch of Idiocy upon her. Radella landed nearby and hit her hard.

She was not a happy sylph.

With Hide from Undead now cancelled, the hoarfrost spirits shuffled towards Ivan and Kali. I saw them close in on Kali, but so had Sparna who swooped down to her aide, thus freeing the three of us next to Katiyana to focus on her.

Unfortunately for us she summoned a red daemon. Unfortunately for her Olmas had been the focus of the Magic Circle Against Evil spell, and as the daemon appeared it was forced off the platform, plunging fifty feet onto the hard stone floor.

Later I found that this was not as fortuitous as it could have been. Ivan was standing directly beneath us, and had been paralyzed by the touch of an undead. The daemon landed next to him, and while injured it was still alive, and seriously pissed off.

Sparna had faired no better, and he too was paralyzed, standing rock still next to Kali. Those of us above were oblivious to their plight.

Katiyana flew away from us, but whereas we had to struggle through the wind, she flitted about as if it were dead calm. In her place appeared a daemon made of pure force.

“Hurray! Pookie called out.

“No, Pookie, that one isn’t ours.”

I chased after the sylph and touched her with Bestow Curse, as Beorn cackled loudly (it being his favorite spell). Radella joined me, carving deep gashes in our foe.

Katiyana was even less happy now, and she dispelled Fly from Radella, who drifted dow to the floor.

Katiyana’s force daemon flew over to harass me, giving the sylph the perfect opportunity to use Hold Person.

“Move, move, move!” my friends chanted. But I was held firmly in place.

Olmas then tried to Airwalk into combat, but the winds threw him across the room into another wall. Realizing the futility of trying to move about in this fashion he climbed up to the nearest gem stone and began to smash it.

Clearly this had been the right thing to do, because Katiyana sent her force daemon to stop Olmas. Katiyana flew to another platform, and Sparna, who had since recovered from his paralysis, flew up and bashed the crap out of her.

“Bitch!” shouted Badger.

Down on the floor Radella wasted no time in pulverizing the daemon, which vanished with a pop! and a cloud of greasy black smoke.

Kali had not been idle all of this time, and suddenly the wind in the room ceased. She had flown up to the ceiling and used a spell to summon a structure of force, which blocked the wind.

I broke free from the Hold Person effect and briefly pondered my course of action. “Kill her! Kill her!” screamed Star. Yes, this clearly needed to be done, but how to do so as quickly as possible?

I flew down toward Radella, with Star screaming shrilly all of the way, and touched her with the wand of Fly. “Go, kill her!” I yelled, pointing up at Katiyana.

And as quickly as that it was over. Radella grievous wounded Katiyana, and when the sylph tried to flee Sparna and Radella put an end to her.

We next focused on the undead (with Star spouting obscenities the whole time), and once they were gone we flew up to the gem stones and smashed them all.

The lightening stopped and the glowing maelstrom above soon dissipated. The winds stopped.

It was dead calm, and some of us flew out the hole in the roof to gaze at the silent star lit landscape surrounding the tower.

Down below we stripped Katiyana’s corpse and flung her into a bag of holding.

[424] scroll of Cleanse
[425] +1 breastplate
[426] masterwork buckler
[427] Headband of Mental superiority (+2 INT, WIS, CHA) (Radella)
[428] spell component pouch
[430] shards of blue crystal (from the walls)

We descended to the base of the tower via another magical platform, and wondered if there might be a basement level and began to search. We moved into the previously unexplored mushroom side of the tower.

Mixed in with the small edible mushrooms were much larger, invisible fungi that wanted to eat us. They would appear briefly just before biting, and then vanish.

Suishen had granted Olmas the ability to See Invisible, and with his direction we were able to kill the fungi. My inability to consistently hit the creatures did nothing to improve Star’s mood.

Image by Jeff Deuchler

We collected bits of the aggressive dead fungi, which turned visible shortly after perishing, and I harvested a good number of the mushrooms for cooking.

We have rested a short while, and I have taken this opportunity to write a journal entry and sooth an irate battle mouse.

Character: Kali

Kali’s Journal, Kuthona 22, 4712

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Kuthona 22, 4712 (afternoon, Storm Tower)

Stupid, stupid, stupid! I need to stop making little mistakes like this before they get someone killed. The speed with which one bad decision can cascade into a crisis is alarming. It is basically my fault that both Ivan and Sparna ended up in danger—I could have dealt with it if it was just one of them, but both? How do you make that decision? Gods, we got lucky.

How did all this happen?

I summoned a small air elemental and sent it up the core to just scout around for us, and it told us about the winds, and the frozen dead aimlessly wandering about. The former were strong and would hamper our flight, and that meant we couldn’t ignore the latter. After discussing it with the others, we tried a simple, opening salvo to thin their ranks: a fireball sent up the bore to detonate in the room, followed by earth elementals to push one or two down. This mostly worked. Two bodies flew down the central shaft, one crashing onto the floor we were on and the other dropping all the way to the bottom. When we ascended, we saw the burned corpses of two more.

Almost nothing went right after that. Before we even stepped off the platform we were hit by something—a spell of some sort. My air elemental hadn’t scouted the whole room—I needed it to survive or the scouting would do us no good—so naturally it didn’t see Katiyana. She had just announced her presence.

She flew through the air as nimbly and gracefully as can be. It was like the wind wasn’t even there, and yet it was all around us like some raging storm. It was a spell, obviously, and I felt my stomach sink. We’d had access to it, with the emphasis on had. Tunuak’s staff carried it, but we sold it in Unaimo. It never occurred to me that we might need the thing, or that traveling to a place called the Storm Tower might involve, well, storms. It was foolish of us.

Here’s the thing: they count on me to think about stuff like this. If I can’t make these obvious connections, then what purpose am I serving?

I watched from the ground as Olmas was literally blown into the walls by the winds. The others were struggling against them as they flew up to meet Katiyana. It was a losing battle from the very start, with her tossing spells at us at her leisure and us unable to respond. I stayed on the ground too long, moving undetected among the frozen dead thanks to Ivan’s spell. Then someone finally got a shot at her and the spell collapsed, and I was suddenly surrounded.

Ivan called out to me. “Are you OK?”

And I wasn’t OK, but I shouldn’t have said so. Ivan came down to help, and then he got hit and went down. And then Sparna did the same. And I couldn’t help both of them. It was an impossible choice. I did what I could, trying to get the demon Katiayana had summoned away from Sparna while I engaged the frozen dead to protect Ivan, but it was only delaying the inevitable. Then, miraculously, Ivan broke free of whatever magic was binding him and we just barely turned it around before killing blows arrived. It was that close.

And that’s the other thing: they count on me to tip the scales in our favor, and I can’t do that if I am occupied saving myself, or worse, salvaging some debacle of my own creation. We lost valuable time—time that needed to be spent eliminating Katiyana’s advantage over us.

When that time finally came, it took me a couple of tries to get it right. I’m not going to be hard on myself on this one: it was not an easy problem. How do you stop gale-force winds blowing down out of a 20′ hexagonal hole in a ceiling with lightning arcing through it? On the second go at it I had an idea that worked. Those platforms Radella had managed to operate? The one leading to the third floor? Sometimes she was able to create one that had a dome covering it. It looked an awful lot like a spell I had picked up but never had occasion to use.

It’s mostly a camping spell, but I am told that some wizards use it for defensive cover because it creates a dome that you can see out of while those on the outside can’t see in. It doesn’t block spells or weapons, but what it does block is wind—just like the little platforms we used to go up and down in the Storm Tower blocked the wind—because when you’re camping, who wants the wind blowing in your face? And that dome? It’s not actually a dome: it’s a sphere. It just looks like a dome when you use it on the ground.

That spell was my answer, except for the small detail where I hadn’t prepared it for the day. So I pulled that trick Eudonius had taught us, morphing a spell I had into the one I needed. (What would he think of how often I’ve been doing this? I’ve certainly felt the toll it takes on me. I don’t think I’ve done it lightly.) In an instant the winds stopped, and I looked down to see my friends converge on Katiyana in the air. If only I could have done this sooner.

Katiyana was a sylph, a being connected to the plane of elemental air. They are genie-kin, born from the mating of a djinn and a human. How a sylph ends up in the service of Sithhud, though, is anyone’s guess. I am sure it’s fascinating story that we’ll never get to hear.

Of more immediate concern is whether she was working alone or had help, and we’ll take a shot at getting some answers to that tomorrow. The Tower itself had no obvious living quarters, and there are no other structures for hundreds of miles that we know of. So if she wasn’t living there, then where? And if there is a somewhere else, is there a someone else to go with it?

For the immediate future, at least, it seems our problem has been solved. As soon as the sphere collapsed on itself the weather broke overhead. It’s been positively pleasant, with stars shining on us through clear skies.

Or maybe it’s not. A few days ago, before we even got here, I overheard Ivan talking with Koya around our nightly campfires. He’s been having these recurring dreams about being surrounded by frozen undead. In those dreams, I send a ball of fire into the advancing hoard, but the spell he manifests is strange and ineffective. Dreams are like that sometimes, but what troubles me is not his distress over his spell so much as the whole setting. I didn’t used to put much faith in dreams as omens or as being somehow prophetic, but my time with Etayne has taught me not to be so dismissive. It could just be coincidence that we found ourselves on the third floor of the Storm Tower surrounded by hoarfrost spirits, or it could be that his dreams really are a warning of sorts about the road ahead. We are only half-way across the Ice, after all, in the winter season when unknown dangers abound.

I said earlier that my friends rely on me to think ahead, and to make connections that might otherwise be missed. Is this one of those?

I think it is. The question now is, what do I do about it?

Character: Ivan

Ivan’s journal Kuthona 22nd, 4712

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Kuthona 22nd, 4712

Today we extinguished the storm tower. I just have to hope that these creatures never make their way down to Iqaliat.  I have never seen beasts like this before it was truly an experience to remember.

The wind was howling to the extent that using my longbow was not even possible in parts of this tower. There were times during the assault on the tower where the others didn’t really need my help and I was wondering if they even needed me here at all.

After fighting undead at the entrance of the tower we found a tree that tried to kill us. This was a vicious tree that grabbed Qatana and then kind of spit her out in some type of pod. While the others were working on killing the living tree I ran over and started cutting Qatana out of the pod. I later found out that it was using acid to finish her off.  After the tree was dead I think they said something about the tree being carnivorous. I am not sure if I will every look at trees the same way after this.

We found a control panel and Radella spent some time trying to figure out how to make it work. She was finally able to get it to work well enough to get us to the second floor. The worms on the second floor were vicious. I spent the entire battle running from or trying to escape from the worms. Both worms ended up dead at the hands of the others but I really couldn’t tell who killed which worm from the vantage point of inside one of the worms. Upon the death of the worm holding me I was thrown out and made a perfect landing but I was still invisible so no one witnessed my great feat.

We found another control panel that even Radella couldn’t figure out. Luckily for us Qatana had a spell that could cut holes into stone.  These fascinating crystal creatures inside used some type of teleport magic to move around and attack us. One by one we destroyed these crystal creatures but they also had the ability to cast the spell—

“Qatana what was the spell those crystal creatures used on Olmas and Sparna? It’s for my journal. “

“Tooch of idiocy”

“How do you spell that?

“Oh you said ‘touch’. Thanks”

Touch of idiocy

Qatana, Kali, and Sparna figured that these crystal creatures were somehow have been keeping this

“Qatana what did you call that blue crystal thing in the room? ‘Machine’, right.”

Machine running for hundreds or maybe thousands of years. It only took Qatana and I about 40 minutes to pull all of the crystals out of the walls. 4 of the crystals radiated magic.  Kali seemed most concerned with the two that could cause blindness but there were also two crystals that will protect us from the extreme cold.

In the meantime Radella was working to get the platform to go up to the third floor. I am not exactly sure how she figured this out as it was very complex. Before going up to the third floor Kali sent an elemental up to see what was up on the third floor. With the information that there were undead she sent a fireball up to the third floor that exploded with boom. She next sent up some earth elementals and less than a minute later two of the undead bodies went flying by.

With resist energy from the wand providing electric and cold plus my hide from undead we head up to the third floor on the platform. We all moved off the platform. There was a blue female creature with wings up on a platform 50 feet in the air.

“Qatana what was the name of that blue woman?”

Oh guess since Qatana isn’t here anymore I will have to just refer to her as the ‘blue woman with wings’.

The blue woman with wings looked tough and everyone but Kali and me flew up to engage her. This is the first time I have ever used hide from undead so I did not realize that as soon as someone attacked the blue woman with wings that it would break the spell. I suddenly found myself unable to move after being hit by one of the undead. From my vantage point I watch as Sparna flew down and vanquished one of the undead before he himself was unable to move. Things got worse as I heard a thud to my right. I wanted to turn and look by I was just not able to clearly see what it was, It definitely didn’t look friendly.

I was able to break free from the paralyzing hold this creature had on me and dashed over to Kali and Sparna to recast the hide from undead spell. This provided us with some time. I was able to free up Sparna and watched as Kali headed to the celling and surprisingly blocked the strong winds.

The battle finally turned in our favor as Sparna and Radella converged on the blue woman with wings and ended her reign of terror.  Once all of the undead had been allowed to pass onto the next life those that could fly smashed the blue crystals bring calmness to the tower of storms.  Clearly this is no longer the tower of storms.

We looked over the gear and her headband looked really nice. Qatana, Radella, and I all had interest in the item but in the end both Qatana and I kind of decided that it may not be the right item for us so Radella will be the one buying this from the party.

After some time Radella figured out how to make the platform go down. Seems like we could have saved time by just jumping. On the first floor Radella wanted to check out the control panel more and Olmas wanted to pick mushrooms. As it turns out the mushrooms byte back, well at least the invisible ones do. Olmas was showing off when the sword granted him the ability to see invisible. It must have been funning to anyone watching us swing at nothing. A few minutes after killing a mushroom creature it became visible. Parts were gather and we headed back to the caravan.

Since leaving Iqaliat I keep having the same dream. I am looking down at a group of undead. Right after Kali casts her fireball I cast this mysterious spell. As the spell goes off all of undead are attacked by pastel light pink and blue butterflies with imagines of stars, suns, and moons upon their wings.  In what sounds like Koya’s voice I hear

“Desna’s wrath affects those farthest from her the most while those deemed worthy will be spared her wrath. “

So clearly the spell that I asked the gods for is not the one they chose to give me.  Koya just tells me to trust in Desna’s wisdom and that I should have let her dance at the wedding. Turns out people in a small town can’t keep a secret.

Sesi when you read this I admit that your suggestion that maybe we should wait for my friends to return would have been the correct thing to do.  After watching everyone go through the struggles of adjusting to the high ice I can see where a party would have been good for them.

Character: Ivan

Ivan’s Iqaliat adventure Part II (family is everything)

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Day 5 evening

Sesi quickly led me through the streets up to the door of her home. Inside an old woman started to dish up what looks like stew.

Sasi said “Ivan this is my Grandma”

I replied “Nice to meet you”

Grandma said “Oh Ivan we met on the night of the party. There were a lot of people there so I am not surprised that you don’t remember.”

Grandma said “come eat while it’s hot and tell me about your family”

For a couple of hours this woman grilled me for every detail about my family. I tried to change the subject a couple of times but she just kept politely bring me back to talking about my family. At one point I looked over at Sesi who was washing the dishes.

Sesi just smiled and said “Grandma won’t stop until you tell her everything”

Grandma in a convincing voice somehow persuaded me to keep talking about my family. Unfortunately she played on the fact I have a close bond with my family so it is too easy for me to ramble on about my family. I haven’t even shared this information with the group of people I am traveling with yet I spilled everything to these two.

Grandma said “Well Ivan I am glad to meet a young man with such deep a connect to his family. Now help an old lady up. I want to move over to my chair.”

Grandma limped over to the chair and sat down.

I said “Are you ok”

Sesi said “she hurt her leg but won’t go see the healer”

Grandma said “I will be alright in a few days”

Before Grandma could refuse I said while casting healing “Here I can help with that”

Grandma said “That does heal better. You hunt and you can heal. That’s interesting”

I said “Well I should be going”

I felt a tug as Sesi pulls on my arm as she said “Nope, Grandma is going to tell a story now”

Sesi guided me over to an oversized chair and sat me down. She went into the kitchen area and returned with a drink for Grandma before climbing into the chair with me. I kept waiting for Grandma to tell me to watch were I put my hands but she just started telling stories about Sesi’s family.

Hours later Grandma finally finished. She got up and proclaimed “I’m off to bed, Ivan you can stay in the first room at the top of the stairs.”

Sesi said “Good night Grandma”

Grandma replied “Good night”

Sesi yawned and said “I’m really tired”

I replied “I should go then”

Sesi cuddled in closer and just said “nope”.

A few minutes later Sesi was asleep. There was nothing for me to but to lay there and enjoy the moment.

 

Day 6

The morning started with the door opening and Atana walking into the house.

Sesi just turns her head towards Atana and said “Good morning Atana”

Atana said “I was going to ask you about Ivan but”

Atana continued to speak “I was hoping to get use of Ivan to help carry fire wood out to the other hunting site. His bag holds a lot of fire wood so we won’t have to make several trips.”

Sesi replied “That will be a lot more fun than helping Anuun move barrels.”

Atana said “meet me at the gate in 30 minutes”

I gathered up my stuff and met Atana and Eska at the gate. The trip to the hut was an easy walk even at the fast pace being set by Atana. Even the weather was nicer than the first trip. We quickly stacked the wood and then sat for a quick break before returning.

Atana said “Ivan the weather is really good maybe we should stay and hunt for a day or two. What do you think?”

Eska interrupted with “I have to get back. We should start heading back”

Atana replied “what if we hunt for the rest of the day and then head back first thing in the morning?”

Eska replied “I guess that would be ok”

Atana replied “Fine then it is settled”

Atana and I spent several hours hunting before returning to the hut. Again I had to wait around while Atana and Eska get enough sleep.

Day 7

Eska has been complaining about having to sleep in the hut since last night. We started to pack up when all of a sudden he yelled “Keep your hands off Atana” while attempting to hit me. I didn’t know what to say.

Eska continued “You can’t take her away from me.” While again trying to hit me.

Atana grabbed Eska and pulled him outside. They were out there for about 5 minutes when Atana return.

Atana said “Eska is worried that once I experience you” while hand signaling the double quote sign for experience.

I replied “That’s crazy. Didn’t you tell him that we don’t have a connection like that?”

Atana replied “yes, but..”

I replied ”but what?”

Atana continued with “I don’t really find you attractive. Basically I think of you as just a friend.”

I replied ”but what?”

Atana replied “just a minute” as she heads outside.

A few minutes later Atana opened the door and walked back into the hut.

Atana in a monotone voice said “I don’t find you attractive but I have this compelling urge to be with you. So let just get this over with so I can get on with my life with Eska”

I was still trying to figure out what she had said when I noticed that Atana was halfway undressed.

I replied “wait no. we are not going to do this”

I picked up my pack and headed out the door. I glanced over at Eska and said “Go take care of your woman”

After a few minutes Atana and Eska emerged from the hut ready to head back to town. For the first several hours none of us said anything. About 45 minutes from town I saw Eska trip and fall breaking the silence with “shit I hurt my ankle”

Without saying a word to either of them I walked over and cast cure wounds on Eska.

I said “Can you walk now””

Eska replied “Yes, that feels better”

We made our way back to town without any further words between us. Eska quickly headed off towards his work and Atana just stopped.

Atana in that same monotone voice said “It’s not too late you can still have me“ as I walked past her.

I headed over and checked on Sparna and he was working on the armor. I started to walk to the defacto meeting place “The tavern” but I decided to try Sesi’s house first. I knocked on the door and a few minutes later her Grandma opened the door.

Gandma said “Ivan you don’t have to knock, just come in side. Sesi is over helping Anuun move some barrels. You should go over and help them”

Following Grandma’s instructions I found my way to Anuun.

I said “hey Anuun how can I help”

Anuun replied “Atana, Eska, Sesi, and Ulva are working over their so let just have you go with Sedna on the wagon to help her unload.”

I said “Hi I’m Ivan”

In a gruff voice Sedna replied “Yes. You are the outsider”

After about 15 minute riding with the quiet Sedna we arrived at the destination.

The man gruffly said “Why is he with you”

Sedna replied “Anuun sent him to help unload. I guess Anuun couldn’t find something useful for him to do so I got stuck with him”

The man replied “Oh. Just make sure he doesn’t drop any of the barrels”

I quietly worked to unload the barrels and then waited on the wagon as the woman finished up talking with the man. Once we finally made it back I tracked down Anuun.

I said “Anuun I don’t think it is a good idea for me to work with Sedna”

Anuun replied “Oh gosh I forgot about her dislike for outsiders. I don’t suppose her husband was any friendlier. Wait here a minute”

Anuun headed off out of site and a few minutes later I see Sesi round the corner.

Sesi in a sassy voice said “I here you have woman troubles”

I said “So does that mean I am in trouble with you?”

Sesi again in the sassy voice said “It depends”

I replied “Depends on what?”

Sesi again in the sassy voice replied “It depends on if I have to sleep in the chair by myself again tonight”

I replied “Is that an offer”

Sesi replied “Of course”

We continued working together for the rest of the day. Once the work was done Sesi and I agreed that this might not be a good day for me to visit the tavern. We headed over to her house and spent a pleasant evening that included stories of grandma’s father. I was surprised to learn that grandma’s father was an outsider before marrying her mother. Once again we fell asleep together in the chair.

Day 8

The door opened and Ulva stepped in out of the cold. Ulva looked over at us still cuddling in the chair and said “Is she awake yet”

Sesi replied “Yes”

Ulva replied “Good we need to talk”

Ulva continued with “My sister is still obsessed so I was thinking that we could take Ivan out for a couple of days of hunting”

Sesi replied “That’s a great idea. I have missed out on the last few hunts so it would be great to get away. I can be ready in an hour so get your stuff and me us back here”

Ulva replied “Ok, be back in just a little while”

A little while later Ulva and Anunn arrive all packed for the hunting trip.

Ulva said “Ivan I stopped by and told Sparna that you will be out hunting for a few days”

I replied “thanks”

We made our way through the streets towards the gate. As we passed by the general store Ulva said “Wait I want to get something”

Sesi replied “I’ll go with you”

From behind us we heard “We don’t like outsiders that treat our women poorly”

I turned around and said “Just relax. We don’t want any trouble”

I figured they were like the others in town that openly don’t like outsiders but I was wrong. The first hit from the clubs they were carrying felt like this guy was channeling Sparna or Redella. I attempted to dodge out of the way but the other two landed solid hits on me as well.

I heard Ulva yell “Hay stopped that. He is not hurting anyone”

Sesi replied “Ivan please don’t hurt them”

I heard footsteps behind me that I was really hoping it was Sesi and Ulva.

The fourth thug was holding a club up to Anuun’s face and said “Stay out of this Anuun. I don’t want to hurt you”

I simply stepped back without any weapons in hand and healed myself. Why did the gods decide at this moment to give me the least amount of healing as possible, there must be a lesson?

I felt the contact of some more maces. Everything started to get fuzzy. Everything was fuzzy but I am pretty sure that at least one of the two Ulva’s must be real. I heard talking but I just could not make out what they were saying or who was talking. There was something just in front of me but I could not clearly make out who it was. Oh it’s the ground and then the world goes completely black.

A strange voice said “Ivan”

I replied “where am I”

The strange voice said “That’s not important right now”

The voice continued “The real question is not where you are but why you are here”

I replied “I don’t understand”

The strange voice replied “Of course you don’t and that is exactly why you find yourself here right now”

I replied “Who are you?

The voice replied “That is the right question. Now don’t make me do this again.”

Day 9

The darkness began to fade being replaced by a view of a blurry room. At first I could hear talking but I wasn’t sure if it was real.  Soon everything becomes clear.

Sesi said “Oh finally you are awake. Grandma wasn’t sure how long it would take for the healing herbs to take affect”

I replied “how long have I been out”

Sesi replied “Since yesterday”

I said “help me up”

Sesi sternly said “No Grandma told me you needed to stay here and rest”

I replied “can you at least let me sit up. It is easier to cast healing while sitting”

With a bit of effort and pain I was able to sit up. The first cast of healing felt so good and after the second healing spell I felt like normal again.

I said “ok I have healed myself can I get up now”

Sesi replied “No. You have to rest until Grandma says that it is ok”

Looking over at Sesi I noticed she was not wearing her normal boots and said “Nice boots”

Sesi replied “I’ll give them back once grandma says you’re ok:”

Sesi said “So just a few minutes ago before you woke up you were talking like someone else was here. At the same time this symbol started to glow”

On que Grandma entered the room and gave me a quick look over. Grandma said “What’s this about glowing symbols”

Sesi replied “That one was glowing and then this area started to glow and as you can see he now has the symbol of the wind spirit”

Grandma replied “That is the symbol of Cayden Cailean. Very interesting. So does this happen often”

I replied “No, as far as I know it has never happened before”

Grandma replied “We should keep this to ourselves for now.”

I said “Can I get out of bed now?”

Grandma replied “I’m not stopping you” as she walked out of the room.

Sesi stood up and said “Today you are going to rest. But I see no reason that we can’t have you rest in the chair downstairs”

We spent the rest of the day and night cuddling in the chair.

Day 10

The door opened and Anuun walked in with Eska in tow. An obvious look of nerviness shown on his fact and be spoke “Ivan I am sorry for going crazy, I just was so jealous.  I didn’t even think they were listening when I was complaining in the tavern”

I replied “I don’t blame you for the actions of those that were just looking for any reason to go after any outsider”

Eska said “I can you guys talk to Ulva for me?”

Sesi jumped in and said “Let’s me later at the tavern. All of us”

Eska responded in a shaky voice “ok but you’re going to talk to Ulva first right?”

Anuun responded with “I’ll talk to Ulva”

On the way to the tavern we stopped in to talk with Sparna.

I said “Sparna I need a special shortsword. Something like this can only be created by someone that I would consider like family. The sword has to have these 4 symbols on the blade and the symbol of Torag on the hilt.”

Down at the tavern everyone seemed happy. I didn’t even hear any stray comments about outsiders. Everyone was friendly and I heard stories and legends about creatures that live on the high ice. It was nice to have all 7 us once again showing each other that we are still friends.

Sesi suddenly stood up and said “It’s time to go dance to the wind spirits. What do you say Ivan are you ready to try it again?“

I replied “You’re very brave while wearing those boots aren’t you”

Sesi replied “Yep”

I casted endure elements on the rest of us and we ran off to the cliffs once more, this time with clothes on. At the cliffs we laughed and danced for hours before everyone headed off home.

Day 11

The door opens and two figures of Anuun and Ulva enter. Sesi just lifts her head slightly to greet the two “Good morning Ulva, Anuun”

Ulva replied “You two are always in that chair. “

Sesi replied “It’s our spot”

Ulva said “So we never got that hunting trip in. How about we head out today. Anuun and I are ready to go.”

Sesi replied “Ivan is always packed. He is always hopeful that we are going hunting. Come on you can help me pack.”

After a few minutes they returned and we headed out. This time we made it past the gate and onto the trail.

I said “Oh wait I didn’t tell Sparna”

Ulva replied “Anuun and I stopped by the forge on the way to the house and told Sparna”

After several uneventful hours we made it back to the ice hut. We split into two group Sesi and me in one group and Aunuun and Ulva in the other. After several hours Sesi and I had all of our traps in place. It took Ulva and Anuun quite a bit longer to get all of their traps set so they return to the hut about an hour after us.

Anuun said “sorry I am not really good at trapping”

Ulva said “I actually asked him along so we could spend some time together”

Sesi said “oh Ivan likely doesn’t know that you guys are now engaged”

I must have had some kind of strange look on my face because all three of them just started laughing.

Anuun said “Ivan relax. Sesi and I both know about your fling with Ulva”

Ulva said “It was fun but my heart as always belong to Anuun. You were my last fling”

I replied “That’s ok. It has always been the story of my life”

Sesi said “What do you say are you ready for her to be your last fling as well?”

I said something like “ah ah ah ah. But grandma said it was important for me to finish helping Ameiko!”

Sesi replied “Yes my husband will have to go off and save the world. But then you will return home to me”

I replied with “ok then I will just stay here and let the others continue on with Ameiko”

Sesi replied “The wind spirit symbol that showed up while you were hurt was a clear sign. The wind spirit was telling me that I have to let my husband go off and save the world unless you really don’t want to be my husband”

I replied “ok but I think it would be better if my companions don’t know about it just yet.”

Ulva said “So just keep your friends out of the tavern and we should be ok. I will let the chief and heartmistress not to say anything. Although there is usually a party when we have weddings so that might be hard to hide.”

Sesi replied “If we hurry back to town so the party is done before his friends return then it might be possible. Most of the people don’t like to talk with outsiders anyway.”

Anuun said “What about Sparna?”

I said “I’ll just ask Sparna to not share this. There is no way we can have a party without Sparna showing up to talk with the people.”

Ulva replied “true. Besides even some of the people who don’t talk with outsiders have been talking with Sparna?

We hurried back to town to arrange the details. We stopped by the house to tell grandma.

Sesi said “Grandma were going to get married right away.”

Grandma replied “Ok, let me go tell everyone that the party is a go for tomorrow”

Sesi and I just stood there looking at each other as we watch grandma head out the door. I clasped Sesi’s hand and gently pulled her over to the chair.

Sesi said “Well we might as well get comfortable”

Day 12

We awoke to grandma handing us each a drink. Grandma excitedly said “drink up its going to be an exciting day”.

As grandma scurried off Sesi said “Maybe we can just run off and get married”

I replied “Nope. Grandma would kill both of us”

We made it through the rest of the day. Luckily Ulva and Anuun decided to get married at the same time so at least we were not the complete focus of everyone.

Day 13

The door open and Ulva entered the room. Looking at the two of us she said “You know that you are married now so you don’t have to sleep in the chair”

Sessi whispered “I think we decided that we were too drunk to make it up the stairs. It’s all kind of fuzzy.”

I began to cast delay poison to help myself but my own loud voice hurt so much that I couldn’t complete the spell.

In a low voice Ulva said “So I think we should skip hunting for today”

Sesi whispered “If either of you make me move I will kill you”

I imagined that Ulva was likely finding this funny but I couldn’t focus my eyes enough to actually see her.

Day 14 Return of the Caravan (Neth 8th)

The others returned today and over a pint at the tavern my new friends were properly introduced to my traveling companions. One of the thugs from a few nights ago walks up and said “here Ivan I didn’t get a chance to buy you a drink Ah the other night.”

Ulva smiled and said “He was stubborn but with the help of Sparna he now has a new respect for outsiders”

 

 

Neth 10 evening

Sesi and I have spent the last couple of days at the ice hut hunting and spending time together. I told the others that she was teaching me how to better hunt on the ice, which is truthful.

Our first argument was over equipment and money.

I said “So I will feel better if you keep the boots so I know that you are protected from the cold”

Sesi replied “Absolutely Not. These boots are going to make sure you get back home to me safely. You can give them to me when you get back home”

I replied “I’m not going to win on this one am I”

Sesi sassily responded “No my love”

I replied “Ok then here is one of my extra bows, and I will get another masterwork shortsword. Since you are not going to take the boots then I insist that you take one of the campfire beads.”

I pulled 50 gold out the small bag and put the rest in the pile of stuff for Sesi.

Anger shown on Sesi face as she said “I am not some helpless woman that needs to be taken care of. I am not asking for your money”

I replied “I just decided to leave most of our money here at home. Is it ok for me leave stuff at home?”

Sesi replied “Oh, I miss you already.”

Sesi handed me a brand new shirt and said “Here I bought you a new shirt”

I replied “But this shirt is fine”

Sesi picks up my perfectly good shirt off the bed puts the shirt on. I guess that shirt is staying here.

Neth 11

I said my goodbyes to Sesi and we headed down the road towards fate.

 

Character: Qatana

Neth 9, 4712

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Fireday, Neth 9, 4712 midnight
Iqaliat

“Wake her up already! I don’t want to miss it.” Beorn squeaked angrily.

Startled by the cry Qatana sat bolt upright from her sleeping roll and looked around. Seeing the eight little ghostly figures before her she cocked an eyebrow expectantly.

“They’ve begun,” said Badger, “and we need to go now or we’ll be too late.” The other seven chirped excitedly and pirouetted around one another in anticipation.

With a sigh Qatana quietly rose and dressed before stepping out from the wagon into the bitter cold. The mice raced before her and over the small hill to the south of the caravan. Qatana was still half asleep and followed slowly, but as she crested the top she gasped and a cloud of frozen mist settled on the tiny figures at her feet.

The northern crown was high overhead, glittering like diamonds in the black velvet sky. Red Algol shown brightly from the center like a ruby, but it was not the brilliant constellation that made her gasp.

Streaks of palest white whisked about atop the snow below, making it look dull by comparison. There were perhaps a dozen, and they appeared to be dancing in the starlight. Qatana sat down beside her friends and watched.

For perhaps an hour the small figures whisked about the snow and ice, twirling around one another, darting to and fro. Presently they ran off into the darkness, one by one until a solitary dancer remained. It too prepared to make its exit, but then glanced up to where Qatana and her friends sat.

As quick as the wind the long tailed weasel flew up the hillside and stopped motionless for a moment, whiskers twitching. Qatana reached down and gently touched its forehead, quietly uttering words of gratitude and thanks to the little creature.

It bobbed its head once and then winked cheekily at her before sprinting away into the night.

 

Character: Ivan

Ivan’s Iqaliat adventure, part 1

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Day 1 it’s time to party in Iqaliat

To Kali’s dismay the town held a big party to celebrate the death of the dragon and their very survival. This community has a strong bond and I heard story after story about the people killed by the dragon. This party was in part to celebrate the life of those killed by the dragon. Walking through the crowd listening and talking with the people I was a little shocked to truly comprehend how many people died at the claws of the dragon? So many people have lost loved ones to the dragon. With the closeness of this community it is hard to understand how the shaman could betray his people and bring so much death. I can’t even begin to imagine the pain these people are going through. It seems like everyone has lost someone to the dragon and a few stories recounted entire families killed by the dragon.

As I was walking between groups a man that looked maybe the age of my companions approached me. He didn’t look as drunk as most of the other people and approached with purpose. I immediately prepared myself to take on a co-conspirator of the shaman. My thoughts jumped to way would he approach me in this crowd instead of waiting for me to be alone. I relaxed when I noticed a drink in one hand and some bread in the other hand. Quickly I decided to keep on guard but see how this plays out. He approached and just started talking.

The man said “Your Ivan right? My name is Anerk. I think that it such as great thing that all of you have done for us. Such bravery is hard to find these days. I myself would have gone but I hurt my knee and that is such a long trip for someone like me with an injured leg. Are you having fun??

I replied “Yea I guess”

Anerk said “Great. So you know Kali really well right? I am sure that her bravery was a shining inspiration to someone as young as yourself. You’re so lucky to have the privilege of traveling with a fantastic woman such as her. The brown eyes of hers are so dreamy and I am sure you would agree that her figure is as dreamy as her eyes. Do the other women get jealous of her beauty? I would love to be traveling the world with Kali.”

Anerk pauses looking like he expects some type of response.

I replied “Yea I guess”

Anerk continues to talk “So you’re her friend, how can I get to know her better. Maybe you could introduce me and tell her what a good guy I am.”

I replied “I think it would give a better impression if you introduced yourself. It is not my place to get involved with Kali’s personal relationships.”

Anerk replied “Ok with your encouragement I think I am ready to talk to her. Do you know where she went?”

I replied “Ah no”

Anerk wandered off looking for Kali. I am not sure what to say when Kali questions me about Anerk. I did try to stay out of it. As I turned to put some distance between Anerk and myself I bumped into someone.

A voice said “Hi my name is Piquana. I saw you talking with Anerk. He is going through a tough time losing all of his family. He is normally a good guy and obsession with your friend is the first thing he has shown any interest in since the dragon killed

his parents and sisters.”

Paquana continued speaking “So are you enjoying the party? I still don’t really understand why after so many years this dragon suddenly decided to start attacking us now. Normally we take care of ourselves but I guess everyone some time in their life needs heroes.”

Paquana paused to take a drink and then continued to talk “Even with you taking care of the dragon there are still some that don’t trust outsiders. “

Paquana paused to finish off her drink and then continued to talk “It looks like I need to get another drink. Winter is coming and soon you won’t be able to see anything. With all of the dragon attacks I just hope that the hunters have gather enough to last through the darkness. Well I really need another drink.”

Paquana stumbled as she walked away pausing a moment to say “Tell Sparna my forge is always open for him to use.”

From behind me a female voice said “Hey Ivan do you want to have a drink with us?”

Turning around a small group of teenagers are sitting at the table. One of the guys motions for me to come over and sit with them. I accepted the invitation.

He started talking “I am Anuun, this is Eska, this is Ikiak, this is Sesi, and twins are Ulva and Atana. Here have a drink, I think you need it after Anerk and Piquana.”

Over the next couple of hours we shared stories. I told them about growing up on a farm in the south and I learned a lot about each of them. The families Anuun and Eski handle brewing and tavern in the town. Ikiak works in the general store with his family. Sesi, Ulva and Atana are hunters, both families have a deep tradition of hunting. Like on the farm people tend to follow the family path but at least here it is up to each person.

After the long evening of getting to know my new friends Ulva stands up and said “I’m ready”

I said “ready for what”

Anuun replied “Just a little run through the town. I hope you don’t get too cold”

On the way over to one of the now empty houses they explained that as part of my initiation into their little group we would be streaking up to the cliff’s and then back to the house.

Anuun said “We normal go up to the cliffs during the warm months and dance in front of the spirits but this time of year it can be dangerous. Once we get up to the cliffs the blowing wind get frightfully cold. “

Sesi speaks “Oh Anuun it won’t be that bad. It’s a warm night and we can all run back and stand in front of the fire.”

We made it to the house and waited around for the fire to get good and warm.

Eski said “Ok the fire is warm enough. Everybody get ready. Ivan we do this only wearing boots and nothing else”

I said “I will switch boot as wearing these boot would be cheating. They are magic and keep the wearer warm.”

Ikiak said “Glad we can trust you not to cheat”

Without the boots the night air was very cold. It must have looked bizarre to anyone watching the seven of us run for the cliffs. As we headed into the tunnel on the way to the cliffs several of us collided and I hit the wall and almost fell down.

Someone I think Eski said “wait Ikiak I think fell down”

We paused and then I heard Ikiak “no I am fine” as he runs past.

We all made up to the cliffs and there was a moment were my brain was telling to stop and cast endure elements. I pushed through and followed the others back to the warm house. With the help of a warm house, hot tea and warm blanks we were able to finally get rid of the chills from our run.

Ikiak said “So now you are one of us. It a brutal run but now we can just sit in front of the fire and get a good night’s sleep.”

I said “I think we should do it again!”

Anuun, Eska, and Ikiak almost at the same time said “What are you crazy?”

Atana speaks up “Spoken like a true hunter but the cold can be very dangerous”

Ulva said “Up here you need to know when to stay out of the cold”

I replied “I’m going and this time I plan to dance to the wind spirits. I have a plan do you trust me?”

Sesi said “Oh sure”

I replied “This time we are going to use magic to stay warm.”

I proceeded to cast endure elements on everyone.

I said “This spell will help keep everyone warm. Let’s go”

At that we headed out the door and back up to the cliffs. The run to the cliffs was a lot more pleasant this time. At the cliffs we began a dance to the wind spirits. It took a little patient instruction from the others before it started to at least look like I was doing the dance correctly. We danced to the wind spirits for hours before returning back to the house to sleep.  I had forgotten what it was like to not act like an adult.

Day 2 Let get some hunting in before the dark night

I awoke surrounded by my new teen age friends. It will be hours before they get enough sleep so I move quietly to not disturb there sleep.  As expected Sparna is over at the forge working on one of his projects. It looks as if he is working to improve his Urgosh, Odd I thought we was not working on the urgosh. I barely convinced Sparna that we should see our companions off as they head to get supplies. After some time helping get everything packed up I watched as the caravan headed out for their 12ish day supply run.

With last night’s party I expected people to be getting going late today but as we walked past the tavern they were opening up for breakfast like any other day. Neither Sparna nor I really needed food so we just walked past. I headed back to the house and quietly investigated the other rooms of the house and discovered damage to the roof likely from the dragon, with a little bit of magic the whole in the roof was fixed. I quietly wandered around the house using magic to repair some of the little things that were in disrepair. Repairing the outside used up a little more time but there were still a few hours before the others would be waking up. Walking through the area checking the other homes for damage took long enough that I could head over to the tavern and get breakfast for the group.

Over at the tavern/inn the woman cheerfully put together the “to go” package of steaming hot food. As she hands me the food she said “Well it looks like your Dwarf friend is finally going to enjoy a good hardy meal.”

I replied “This is not for him this is for the Anuun, Eski and friends”

Woman replied “Well you tell my son Eski that we need help this morning and to get right over here. Anuun’s father was looking for him. The two of them are supposed to be down moving the ale casts. Make sure they eat a good breakfast first”

The smell from the food seemed to bring them out of there slumber. I relayed the message to Eski and Anuun who quickly eat and headed out along with Ikiak. Sesi, Ulva and Atana took more time to eat and make plans for the day.

Ulva said “Sesi are you still coming hunting with Atana and I?”

Sesi replied “I wouldn’t be able to leave until tomorrow. Why don’t you take Ivan?”

Ulva replied “What do you say Ivan you up for some girls showing you up?”

I just responded “Sure. Sesi can you please tell Sparna that I am out hunting”

Atana said “It’s settled. We need to grab our stuff and get moving. Ivan are you packed?”

I replied with “Yep. I am carrying everything I own.”

Less than an hour later the three of us were on our way. Although I wonder if they really wanted me long or if they really wanted the endure elements. We head out along the wall for 3 to 4 hours before they just stopped.

Ulva said “Were here. We just need to chip away the ice around the door. You and

Atana work on the door and I will go set out the traps”

Atana replied “FINE, I CAN DO IT MYSELF I DON’T NEED IVAN’S HELP”

Ulva replied “Ivan why don’t you come with me and I will show you how we set the traps on the ice.”

I followed Ulva and once we were clearly out of earshot Ulva begins to speak “Sorry about that. My sister had way too much to drink and I think it has caught up with her. Normally it is me that she is pissed off at so this is kind of refreshing. Watch out. When she is like this she bites, hits, and kicks. Atana should be fine after she sleeps it off.”

I replied “I could try some healing magic to help”

Ulva replied “Did you forget about the part where she bites, hits, and kicks?

I said “how do you feel? I can try the healing magic on you”

Ulva replied “Like someone hit me in the head with a mace. I won’t bite you for trying”

Casting my spell I said “Here let’s try this and see if it at least makes you feel better. This is not a cure and will only last for 7 hours.”

Ulva replied “Oh that feels better. As promised I didn’t bites, hit or kick you”

We finished setting up the last of the traps and slowly headed back to the cave/ice hut. Ulva and I checked the traps later that evening and to my surprise we were already catching prey. We spent some extra time gathering up some of the worms Skygni had told me about. This is an area rich in the worms and that is what attracts the game here during the winter months. On the way back to the ice hut Ulva reaches over, takes my glove off and bites me.

Ulva said “I didn’t want you to get the impression that I am a domesticated woman that doesn’t bite.”

The rest of the night went ok and luckily today Ulva was the only woman to bite me.

Day 3 Every day is a good day to hunt

I watched as Atana woke from sleep and began to put on her boots. Heading towards the door she looked at me and whispered “Sorry. I am going out to set traps you should get some more sleep”.

I replied “wait should you be going alone? Would you like endure elements?”

Atana replied “My sister will be mad at me for going out on my own and yes Endure elements would be nice”

I replied while casting my spells “Here is endure elements and this is my beacon spell that will allow me to keep track of you. This way you can be alone but we can find you if something goes badly wrong”

As I touched Ulva with the same Beacon spell she groggily said “what is it”.

I whispered “Hush it is just me casting a spell on you”

Ulva groggily replied “Ok Ivan I trust you”

It wasn’t long after Atana left that Ulva fully woke and I explained that I was tracking the both of them with magic. I explained that she is fine and said she would be back in a few hours. Ulva and I waited around in the ice hut until Atana returned. After she had rested the three of us spent the rest of the day and most of the night out hunting.

Day 4 foggy day

We were supposed to head back to town today but thick fog started moving in so we spent the last few hours hunting before it reached us. Once the fog got thick Atana and I made one more trip out to check on the traps. It may not have been smart but with the beacon spell on Atana and Ulva we would at least be able to make it back to Ulva in the ice hut. The fog was so thick that it was hard to see the traps just feet from the ropes. We check about half of the traps when we decided it was just too hard to find the traps. We made our way back to the ice hut.

Atana said “Well it looks like we will just have to stay inside and find some games to entertain ourselves with.”

Ulva said “Ivan why don’t you tell us about all those symbols on your body?

I explained how they just appeared when I first learned about magic. Ulva and Atana examined the symbols and exclaimed that their symbol was missing. After hours of discussing the different symbols on me we called it a night and got some sleep.

Day 5

After a couple of hours I awoke and put a piece of wood on the fire. The only problem with only needing two hours of sleep is having to wait for other people to get enough sleep. I stepped outside to check on the fog and discovered that the fog was gone. I considered going out and collecting the remaining animal traps when the door to the hut suddenly opened.  A groggy Ulva grabbed my arm and pulled me back into the hut.

Ulva said in a groggy voice “No going out and being stupid. Promise me you won’t go out while we sleep.”

I replied “ok”

Moments later Ulva was sound asleep again. I spent the hours working some of the hides to keep busy until Atana and Ulva awoke.

With the fog gone Atana and Ulva easily lead the way back to town. We dropped off the supplies.

Atana said “Ivan, we will be celebrating a successful hunt tonight at the tavern. You should join us.”

I replied “Again with the drinking. Should I be worried tomorrow?”

Atana replied “I am not going to drink that much. And for the record I wasn’t that bad”

Ulva just started walking down the road as she said “See you tonight Ivan”

I headed down the street towards the forge to check in on Sparna. Inside I found Sparna working with Piquana closely watching. She startled when I entered the room.

Sparna approached me and started telling me that his urgosh was somehow different.

Brushing bits off the Urgosh I said “Ok let me take a look. This looks like some enchanting material. Let me check for magic”

After casting detect magic I said “Wow this is magic now. Looks like you put magic on both sides of your weapon. Nicely done Sparna.”

Piquana rushes over bumping against Sparna. She said “Sparna that’s is incredible. The way you use your hands to work the metal is amazing.”

We spent the next several hours discussing the process of creating magic weapons. Unknowingly Sparna followed the same process for creating a magical weapon that I learned. The whole time I kept waiting for Sparna to notice that Piquana was being overly suggestive and using any reason to make contact with him. I decided that anything between Piquana and Sparna was none of my business.

From the doorway I heard the familiar female voice of Sesi say “Piquana do you have Anuun’s new hinge done”

Piquana replied “Ah no I have finish it yet”

Sesi approached me and in a calm voice said “Grandma said that I should fetch you for dinner”.

Before I had any chance to respond Sesi moved forward and started kissing me. She paused long enough to whisper “Grandma insisted that I convience you to have dinner with us”. I tried to respond in agreement with dinner by it is not easy to talk while kissing.

On the way out of the forge I looked back at Sparna and said “later Sparna” but he was already back completely focused on working the armor. Sesi and I headed down the street to meet grandma for dinner.