The Story So Far VII

VII

2nd day, Greenheart the 2nd, 1845

To

1st day, Greenheart the 8th, 1845

The fire turned out to be a ruse set up by the evil knights of Moondown. Soldiers from Moondown were waiting outside the city gates and set fire to the wooden gatehouse and two buildings as soon Kassos, Pramon, and Aval rode out the gate. As the party dealt with these soldiers and the city guard (along with volunteer citizens) tried to quench the fire, kidnappers had abducted Monnene (the mayors daughter) and made away with her. Mayor Evaloix Arandire begged the party to help and they set out after the men from Moondown. The mayor sent a contingent of town guards with them and supplied the party with horses.

The party chased them along the southern edge of the Ironstorm Mountains with the help of Galifynakus’ tracking skills. They were assaulted by two of the knights (Pramon and Aval) from Moondown and a group of soldiers, which they defeated. In this fight Svarnos’ magic proved invaluable as he first used his Sleep spell then Charm Person to gain an unlikely ally. The knight Pramon! Pramon under influence of the spell joined the party in the hunt for his comrade Kassos.

Next, the party came across a trio of insidious harpies. They used their “captivating song” and almost the whole company was charmed including the horses. Luckily, Svarnos, Lono, and Fionulla resisted. Lono snuck up behind the singing creature and stabbed it in the back thus breaking its charm song. The company was free to deal with the harpies and only one escaped with its life. They noticed Kassos’ group had also met with the harpies, as there were the bodies of Moondown soldiers in the foul nest of the monsters.

The company continued to track Kassos and his men along the tempestuous peaks of the Ironstorm Mountains for some days. The adventure finally culminated in a horrific battle with an unexpected enemy, one of the most dreaded monsters of the Ironstorms, a Wyvern! The creature had attacked Kassos and his group and all but the evil knight were slain. The wyvern had snatched Monnene and it had taken her up to its lair in the side of a hill overlooking the scene of battle. Svarnos told Pramon that Kassos was a traitor to the knights of Moondown and the charmed knight believed him! He charged his former comrade along with Galifinakus and Gjord. The rest of the party, with Martijn in the lead, went to rescue Monnene. Pramon was slain by the hand of his fellow knight and Martijn dealt the killing blow to the Wyvern after a terrible fight where he was almost slain.

Gjord took the wyvern’s head as a gift to Garam at the Wyvern’s Watch. Sometime after the battle they slew Pramon, as he broke free from the wizards charm spell, (much to the chagrin of Martijn and Fionulla). They took some pity however, and gave him a decent burial. Kassos was left for the vultures.

Monnene was saved and returned after some days to her father. The adventurers were now considered heroes in Wychton. The party was rewarded and the mayor and his daughter would be eternally grateful.

2nd day, Greenheart the 9th, 1845

To

3rd day, Greenheart the 17th, 1845

The party decided to finally bring peace to the spirit of the elf-maiden Casruil. They had to go to Sulthe to see if they could find her father Rumil and return her bones to him and let him know what happened. Before they set out Svarnos hired use of a conjuration room at the wizard Gilac’s shop to summon a familiar. Gilac’s Curious Goods is a sturdy stone structure with iron-shuttered windows on its second floor. The proprietor, Gilac, is a fat blond bearded wizard with an aloof and gruff personality. Svarnos summoned a black cat with strange icy blue eyes that he christened Jasper.

The party set out on the road south then west to Valord Castle, home of the Malavonian Knights of the Sword. They were warmly welcomed here due to the fact that they traveled with the Elnarran knight Martijn. They stayed at an expensive inn called the Stalwart Castle Inn and were shown around the castle grounds by a knight named Ulstrand. Ulstrand is a knight-lieutenant and he wanted to test Martijn’s combat prowess but the Elnarran knight declined, as the party had to get to sleep and be away in the morning early. Ulstrand warned the party that a band of gnolls had been attacking travelers on the road to Sulthe and to be careful.

The adventurers then traveled to Sulthe (pronounced Sool-thay). They went to two inns trying to find information about Rumil. The first was a small cozy inn called the Laughing Ogre run by two sisters Beruna and Leanna that are known to be witches of some skill. They knew the story of Casruil and Rumil as a local legend but nothing more. The party then went to an inn called Wyrlos Rising run by a harried gnome named Noldin. He actually knew Rumil once and said that he still lived on the outskirts of the farmlands that surround Sulthe. He told the party that Rumil spent all his fortune looking for his missing daughter and was no longer working as jeweler as he had lost his business. He now lived on a small rundown farm raising goats.

With this information the party found the old elf and told him of their encounter with Casruil’s ghost and returned his daughters bones to him. They held a funeral for her and the elf was very sorrowful but grateful to have closure. Casruil was finally at rest.

Rumil wanted to reward the party but he had nothing to give. He instead told them a story about a wizard named Gormoon. The wizard once had a tower stronghold in the northwest region of the Ivy Forest. Gormoon came to Rumil’s shop one day and showed him a wondrous uncut sapphire about the size of a man’s fist. He asked Rumil if he could finish and cut the gem and Rumil said he would love to work on such a fine gem. Gormoon said that he would consider it and return in one week. Unfortunately, that week, the Shadow Dragon came to Sulthe with his evil horde. The city was overrun and Gormoon’s Tower was also destroyed. When Rumil and his daughter returned to Sulthe after the dragon was driven away they never again saw Gormoon.

So, Gormoon’s tower was swallowed up by the Ivy Forest and almost forgotten. When Rumil’s daughter was abducted he thought that maybe some lingering evil at the ruin was responsible and he hired mercenary adventurers to investigate it. They all reported the same thing, a ruined tower guarded by monstrous creatures and no sign of Casruil. Throughout the years Rumil always wondered if there was more to the ruin. The mercenaries never spoke of a dungeon and none ever spoke of finding a sapphire. Perhaps the sapphire was still there in some deep hidden vault.

Rumil offered the party this. If they found the sapphire, he would cut it for them, as reward for finding out what happened to his daughter. The adventurers left their horses under Rumils care and headed under the eaves of the Ivy Forest.