Vaeru's Journal 3

13 January 2012

As I walk to our weekly briefing I think on the almost eight months since we landed upon this island; we have been prosperous and for that I am grateful to Alexi's leadership and to the colonists hard work. Without them we would have perished to the very last thing I would wish to die from, starvation. I have used this time to practice my swordsmanship and to work with my guardsmen in improving theirs. At first I had no idea how to train the mage, Lavinia, who was part of the guards as I have very little knowledge of magic. After consulting with Arranis as well as Lavinia and the rest of the guards we began training in formations that if it came to combat would allow her to use her spells to the greatest effect. The captain of the ship had attempted to sound the depths but after letting out a league's worth of rope and finding no bottom he abandoned trying. Finally I reached the door to Alexi's manor and stepped inside to join those already seated at the table. Alexi was at the head of the table as usual, Vyse was toying with his dagger and Arranis was late which wasn't unusual for him. The seneschal, Rolf, was also seated as well as the representatives of the guilds. We discussed the upcoming harvest festival and Alexi assigned the minstrels guild some of the preparations and said he would go over the rest with the priestesses. Throfinn, of the miner's guild, mentioned that the mines were going to be shutting down as they had found glass. Alexi asked him why and explained that he had heard some of the reason why finding glass was a reason to stop digging but not all of it. Throfinn told us that it was a long story but he'd be glad to tell it at the tavern tonight at the harvest festival if we still cared to hear it. After a little more business, Alexi dismissed the meeting and I went to go through some sword forms at the barracks while some of the others went to prepare the harvest festival. Later, that same evening, I went to the tavern for some coffee and to take Throfinn up on his promise to tell the story. Once there, I found him Alexi, Arranis, and Vise already the bar. I ordered some coffee and after some pleasant conversation Throfinn launched into a tale that his grandfather had told him that his grandfather's grandfather had told him. It was about a miner that kept digging after the glass and found that demons put silver in the rock to lead miners down to the depths and to a man who wanted to suck out their soul. As Throfinn was finishing his tale we heard a crackling from outside. I and the others got up and went out to see firebats causing havoc and leaving with several of our goats. Alexi sent a messenger to tell people to stay in their homes until this had been dealt with. I sent some guards to protect the goats. We decided to head to the mine with Throfinn as guide since that's where the bats were heading.

Within minutes we had reached the mine. Throfinn led us to a fork in the mine and told us the right passage led to where the miners had run into glass. I noticed that the further into the mine we got and especially when we made it clear we intended to go all the way down the shaft with glass the more uncomfortable Lorfin seemed. Alexi must have noticed this too and told Throfinn he could go if he wanted. Within a few minutes we came upon the charred and stinking remains of the goats that the fire-bats had taken. We continued to go down the rather steep incline deeper into the mine when a light flashed at us from farther down the tunnel. The light continued to flash as we approached the end of the tunnel and when we reached it I realized it was the light we had been using to navigate the tunnel. In front of me there was a kind of pit with glass walls. The hole was too small for me to fit through but I thought the rest of our group would probably fit. Arranis had another plan though, he pulled out his mirror which began to hum. Then he faced towards the hole and there was a shattering sound as it made the hole much larger. Arranis was a too tired from focusing his will through the mirror to do it again but he gave the mirror to Alexi for him to do the same.

After we had broken through to the other side I was blinded as Arranis' magelight placed on my helmet shone back on me from a mirrored ceiling. I found myself standing on a metal grate and we began looking around the room. In the middle of the room was a large tube with two slots on its top at the other end, on closer examination the slots were labeled in a language I didn't understand. I asked Alexi to come over and see if he could read it for us and it turned out the first slot was labeled 'lens' and the other labeled 'mirror'. We also found a table with a sextant, some other gadgets, and some extremely worn leather. On the opposite side of the tube from where we came in there was a ladder which we climbed down to enter a dark room with walls made of a kind cloth and a great many pinpricks of light shining through. In the center of the room were two half columns with black orbs embedded in the top of them. On closer examination of the cloth walls they seemed to be on rails at the top of bottom but they did not move when I tried to pull them aside. Alexi went over to one of the orbs and put his on it and then looked as though he were focusing on something but then he took his hand off. Then he went over to the other orb and at his touch the curtains began moving. Then I noticed a double door that looked to be made of wood but felt like it was made of metal. Alexi pointed out that the floor in here was covered in muddy footprints and Vise said that he couldn't hear anything on the other side of the door. Alexi then put his hand on the first orb again and asked what its password might be, I suggested 'Caiphon' as we kept running into the name. When Alexi said it though the pinpricks of light grew brighter and became orbs and out of the orbs came shadows that attacked. With a swing of my sword I dispatched many and Arranis' thunder blast took out just as many. Then the real fight began as one of the shadows seemed to take control of Vyse and a different one vanished suddenly. We battled desparately on as the shadows alternately bound, blinded, and controlled one of us but in the end we came out victorious.

After the fight we noticed a slime in the room from a creature that was probably worm-like and had many legs. Alexi took out a sunrod to look down a slimy ladder in one corner of the room, as soon as had put the light down there we heard a skittering and decided to go out the door instead. Outside there was vast darkness but with a little light we made out a gravel path with water on the sides. Along the sides we found posts with small dials near chest level which we found that when turned the top of the posts lit up. After a while we came upon a great statue with a scepter held imperiously and hummingbirds on its shoulders, but where the head should have been there was a blackened stump. Around the statue the gravel path circled and split off to become several different paths. On the opposite side of the statue we found a small lever which I pulled. There was shhh sound and then a thunk as four holes opened up around the base of the statue and a sucking noise was heard. We decided that rather than try to fit in those holes we would go down the left path where we eventually came upon a barracks with flag flying in front. Alexi recognized the flag as that of Hlyn's and we went inside after breaking through an old door. Inside we found a small room with another door leading into what must have been the sleeping quarters. There we saw two ghosts with cloaks, and then we heard a keening as the cloaks flew off and attacked us. As Vyse and I fought the ghosts, Arranis was enveloped in one of the cloaks and was shut into the other room. We soon realized how much more dangerous the cloak creatures were and began attacking them instead of the ghosts. Eventually we managed to escape the cloaks and kill both them and the ghosts. We explored the room a little and found a belt that Arranis said the enchantment on was intended to keep its wearer alive and gave it to Vise. Then we moved to the blocked stair which Arranis blasted a path through for us. At the top of the stairs we found the armory. There were many rusted swords and some broken armor but I didn't think that after however long these things had been left to rot down here there would be anything worthwhile when Alexi found some fancy gloves he said would help him heal. Determining there was nothing else here we returned to the statue.

15 January 2012

At this point we decided to go back and explore the under level of the observatory. When we got there I went down the slimy ladder first and upon turning around was met by a large many-legged insect. With Arranis light behind me I also saw behind the large insect many small blue spheres that all popped releasing what must have been hundreds of tiny chittering copies of what was already standing before me. I heard Vise sliding down behind me as Arranis materialized in a corner near me while I had begun fighting the monstrous insect. Then the swarm dissipated a little as many of them jumped onto me and began biting. It was extraordinarily painful but the survival of my friends and I depended on continuing to fight until these things were dead though I couldn't help but be slightly incapacitated at times. At some point in the fight I fell but I quickly awoke to healing glow to fight again. Eventually after going out a second time I awoke to Alexi's healing and many dead insects.

As soon as Arranis recovered he sent a bolt of lightning at the eggs from which the swarm had hatched in vengeance of the pain they had caused. In a continuation of the insect room we found several boxes which Vyse opened to reveal three glass disks ensconced in velvet. In another box we found mirrors in the exact same setting, with one missing and another broken. Apparently though we already had the missing one, the Harr Mirror, and the other mirrors were the Utan and Jord. Alexi picked up the Jord mirror as we heard a humming from another room. Inside that room we found a six foot tall golden perfect circle with a small hole in the exact center. Around the rim Alexi was able to read 'OBSERVE CAPITOL LOCK' and said it reminded him of the gold circle that he had seen in Kobold hall. Weary from our adventures we made our way back to Arginmarl to rest.

20 January 2012

After resting I sent a message to my guards about what we found and to be wary of further attacks by creatures from the mines. I also let them know that they could stop guarding the goats for now. After meeting up with everyone else we came to the conclusion that we should also send messages about what we had found to the miners' and cartographers' guilds before we headed back in. When we had returned the statue we took the path counterclockwise from the one that ended in the barrack of Hlyn. After some time we came upon a place where the road dipped into the water for about forty feet. We decided to wade through it as we stirred up what appeared to fine white sand that wouldn't come off after we'd exited. I also noticed as I continued to walk that I was feeling at peak and that my companions had grown a bit paler.

At the end of the road we reached a row of houses against a rock wall with the last across deeper body of water than the one we had waded through earlier. I began to try and smash in the door of the first house in order to have a look inside since there were no windows; however, the door put up a surprising amount of resistance. In the meantime, Vyse swam across the the third house and Arranis joined him to see if there was any difference in between the third house and the other two. I began to feel light headed as the door began to splinter under my blows until it finally broke with a rush of water as I was almost knocked over by the torrent that had suddenly been released. The strange white sand was washed away by this water as was I when felt a bite on my armor and saw a creature rising below me with a long lizard-like head. I looked around for my companions and saw another head rising towards Vyse. Vyse, seeing this, shouted at Arranis to make some ice as a platform for us which he did as the final six heads of a beast I had heard tales about from my time with dragonborn emerged from the water. We began to fight the hydra when with a loud crack that must have been the disintegration of the building holding the water back the water began to drown us. Vyse and I immediately began swimming for the statue of Banikon hoping that the lever we had pulled earlier would be able to suck away the water so we could breath again.

Just when I reached the statue Vyse pulled the lever and the current became irresistable as I was sucked underneath the statue. When I finally had gotten a little sense of wear I was I began heading towards a light that the current kept pushing me from but I eventually emerged onto a coarse sand beach hacking up the water I had breathed in as I had made my final gasp to the surface. Once I had recovered a bit, I found that the beach formed a circle and that an ancient barnacle encrusted boat was on the other side of ring of water from me. Fungi on the walls surrounding us were lighting the place as we gathered and Arranis showed us a ring he had found on the statue's finger as he was sucked under it. We went over to search the boat and I found I had to stoop to get inside. There we found an arm that was half halfling and half of something that was scaly, green, and had webbed hands. We left the boat and Alexi went into a hole, then with a burst of light he came back out, informed us he had just rid the world of a few more zombies and that that way led to a dead end. He mentioned that it had been rather vile in there as we went through the other hole to find a tunnel filled with a faint silvery light. Further on the floor became slick with blood and ended in a chain leading down a drop off. I looked down to see a bluish liquid as I grabbed the chain and began to slip down its slick surface as my hands got torn by spikes on the chain. I saw movement below and fearing some foul creature I pulled out my sword and as I hit the water I sliced the creature in half. The creature had been a helpless halfling struggling to not drown. Saddened by the life I had just ended I found everyone else except Vyse safe and sound at the bottom of a sort of slide. We waited awhile until Vyse eventually came down having been overly cautious considering our past experiences with a similar device.

We continued on and the further we went the brighter the silver glow became until finally we reached an arch. Just inside was a silver tree on a silver floor with buckets of silver hanging off of it. Below the tree was a small frog looking creature, clothed in disgusting rags with webbed feet and hands. It was almost the exact scene that Throfin had described to us in his story.

27 January 2012

With a quick glance I noticed that the thin film of silvery liquid created a five foot square around each of us as if avoiding us and that the tree looked like an oak with the exception of its silvery color and the silvery drops that came from its leaves. I charged the creature and as I came close to it I felt a sort of madness tugging at the edge of my mind. I ignored it as it burbled and continued to cut it down with my sword. A shout from behind caused me turn my head for moment to see the silvery liquid reassembling the mangled halflings. Having cut down the creature, I rushed to help my friends against the halfling puppets as Arranis warned us that the silvery liquid was water super-saturated with chaos. With each stroke of my sword against these things I became continually frustrated as the chaos reassembled them to fight on. In a short lull in the fighting I looked around to see that Arranis had almost faded from view and then with another strike from the creatures he vanished completely. I do not know who first shouted to hit them with the marmaron we carried but when I did hit one of the creatures it crumpled. Then Alexi called to us to push our enemies into an area that he had put a piece of marmaron into. I hauled the one I had punched with my ring into square formed by the marmaron just as the silver was about to reassemble the creature. With continued application of our strength we managed to separate all of the bodies from the silver and were finally able to take a breather.

Worried that if we left the bodies the chaos would just reanimate them and come after us we dragged them uphill in a passageway. The chaos infused water inched after us but we would have some time before the chaos could cross the hundred feet or so it would take to reach us. Ahead there was an orange glow which Vise reported was due to a fire that the strange green creatures were throwing buckets of silver into. Arranis vanished and seconds later we heard thunder and then a screech. We rushed in to find one of the creatures struggling to escape the flames and a few more moving to attack Arranis. After dispatching the creatures and tossing all of the dead into the flames to burn beyond reassembly by the chaos we went down a corridor that sloped down into a room filled with water and that began in shallows and ended in unusually dark water. In the center of all this water one of the green creatures was wearing a contrivance of bone on its head that I took for a crown but at the site of us it went underwater. No matter what Arranis did he could not get light to show up in the depths so I began wading into the water. As soon as I was waste deep in the water I was hit by something that felt like a battering ram. It was shark that had chomped down on me. As I struggled with the shark I noticed that Vise had gotten into the same position only he had managed to grab hold of its fin and was stabbing it in the gills and eyes. That was the last I saw of everyone as the shark dragged me to depths and our fight continued. Five seconds past, ten seconds past and I kept fighting the shark. I felt water disturbances near me and lashed out to hit the other shark. Then, as that shark suddenly died and began floating up I continued my fight and just as I was running out of breath a stroke of my sword killed it. I began swimming up but my lungs were beginning to give out. I gasped as I reached the surface and pulled myself onto one of the small floating islands that were in the room. After I had caught my breath, Alexi informed me that the creature had escaped out another door. We began to look closer at the room and Alexi made the discovery that one of the islands was a model of Arginmarl which led us to believe that this room was some sort of map. Alexi began drawing the place out as the rest of us continued to rest.

3 February 2012

With the map drawn out, Vise went through the gate after cautiously checking it for traps and the rest of us followed. A few feet in and I was able to touch the bottom but only barely and I, along with the others, began to swim walk our way forward. A little further in an arm of the Kuo-ta we'd been fighting floated up to Vise. We continued into a room with several crabs of different sizes. There were many smaller crabs, two medium sized ones, and one gigantic one in the center of the room away from the water. Around the room I could see swords and maces, some of which were snapped in two. Each crab had one claw disproportianate to the other claw except the giant crab who's claws were both massive. In the room there was also some grass which I thought was just that until Vise warned us all against stepping in it since it was actually grab grass. The crabs attacked and I engaged the large one as everyone began to get out of the water. Arranis, who had managed get behind the large crab while attacking the smaller ones noticed that the strange glowing stuff on the underside of the crab was actually covering broken shell. I was then grabbed by the crab but then Vise stabbed the crab in its weakspot and it exploded in a shower of powder that sparkled blue and green. When this powder landed on the surviving crabs they all grew to the size of the large crab Vise had just killed. Then Arranis used his ice hand to smash into the weakness of one of the two remaining giant crabs and that one exploded as the one before it had. The final crab became a gargantuan monster that grabbed Alexi, a quick stab from Vise caused that one to explode too though and Alexi was launched into the air. First he smashed into the cieling and then he came right back down and smashed into the ground.

While Alexi healed himself and the rest of us Arranis identified the dust as residuum and gathered quit a bit of it. I found several intact magical swords and packed them away as well. The next corridor was lit by a light that seemed both blinding and dim at the same time and with minutes of walking we reached its source. It was a spherical rock on pedestal with a golden band around it in the center of the room. Around it there was a shark head as well as a headless dravon. At the back of the room we could see sharks in the water. The floor also seemed to have patches of ice but Vise identified it as actual glass and that the glass became purer as it got closer to the pedestal. Further examination of the dead dravon revealed that he was more of shark-dravon as his left foot ended in a shark flipper, around his neck was a silver symbol that Alexi told us was rumored to be associated with a shadow organization known as the Irken guard. A closer look at the pedestal revealed some script on the rock. I approached and copied it down for Alexi to read but some of the inscription seemed to go under the rock. I also noticed that although I felt slightly pushed away from it at first as I got closer I felt pulled to the stone. After I had given Alexi the inscription he read "And lo they feasted on the fruit of heaven...". I went to flip the rock to get the rest of the inscription but as I did, I felt as though I had suddenly been suspended in a void but the feeling vanished as I felt myself surrounded by water, which strangely enough I could breathe. Then I noticed that I had fins and green scales instead of skin, it was clear that I was no longer human. I swam out and found myself in the pool where the sharks had been and my friends readying weapons. I shouted at them "Wait, it's me!" and they put them down and began asking me questions as to what I was and how this had happened. I noticed that my left shoulder burned and as I lifted my armor a bit to see my left shoulder I saw my scar had turned a bright red.

Having resolved that it was still me, though I was now clearly a different species, we continued down another tunnel that gradually sloped up and seemed to have been formed from something superheated as the walls were mostly glass. Eventually we came into a cavern overgrown with grass so tall we could not see over it. We began pushing through the grass but as we did we heard rustling to our left and right. We stopped and deciding to we needed to know what was ahead had Vise get on my shoulders where he reported a statue and a lamp post about 200 feet ahead with a large object near the statue. Alexi shouted out, "who there?" but got no response. When we began moving again, the rustling began again and when we varied our speed the rustling grew or decreased with it.

Just as we exited the grass I noticed a wire around my foot, I picked up and gave it hard pull. Two boards came flying out of the grass and smashed together with a clap and released a gout of flame. The field instantly caught fire and burnt out almost as quickly as there was nothing that burnt long enough to sustain it. Vise crept up to the hulking mass next to the statue and reported it was the hydra we had fought earlier that had been decapitated when the statues holes had closed.

We then marched on to the observatory where Arranis decided to toy with the telescope. He used the symbol from the dead dravon to somehow unlock the machine and with even more fiddling managed to get the room to hum and the mirrors surrounding the room to go transparent to reveal...rock. Unsurprising given that we in the middle of a mountain. I wanted to return to town and said as much but Arranis continued toying with the telescope. Suddenly there was an incredibly bright flash and blinded I heard rock crashing around me. My vision cleared and I was able to see the sky and as it turned out Arranis had used some combination of the mirrors and lenses to blow the mountain apart. I looked down upon a rockslide smashing the lighthouse into the sea. I hoped that the lighthouse keeper had not joined the long list of Arranis' casualties but I doubted anyone could manage to survive that.

Arranis and Alexi pulled the mirrors and lenses out and we exited what was left of the mountain. At the bottom we came upon the lighthouse keeper and the only member of the cartographer's guild here on the island, Toll. He had survived the destruction because we had asked him to be here to give him our rough maps and to task him with making better ones. Alexi had to explain that the strange shark creature standing beside him was actually me, the captain of the guards but after that he was able to give the cartographer what he drawn earlier.

We returned to town and I went to my quarters for a much needed rest.

17 February 2012

I awoke to the itch of dry scales and after a quick jump in the lake I set out for the council chambers. I arrived to join in the discussion on how to close the dangerous parts of the vault we had uncovered. It was decided that after a final exploration the tunnel would be collapsed by the Miner's Guild. I joined Alexi, Arranis, the miners, and priests of Hlyn later that day as we returned to the site of our recent adventures. In the vault, Vise gathered some mushrooms and Arranis wanted to go pick up more residuum but couldn't make it past the room with the stone so Alexi, Vise, and I all went and collected as much as we could. It was tedious work as we didn't have a broom and the task was similar to sweeping a house. On our way out after the dwarves had collapsed the tunnels Alexi said it would be best no one could open the statue and fall through to the silver tree area so I broke the lever.

The next day Arranis told us of his observations of the purple star. He said it was actually a purple nebula with a shadow at the center. There was also something that looked like a purple comet heading in this direction. After he told us this he offered to make the enchantment on my sword stronger and to give my guards enchanted armor and weapons. After this had been done I was approached and asked to tell my story at the festival tonight and I agreed.

That night the harvest festival started with wood piled and ready to be lit and a large sheet covering something near the wood. Then the artisans revealed a massive silver throne with our adventures inlaid around it, simultaneously Arranis lit the bonfire with a fireball and the throne gleamed in the gold light from the fire. Then a bard began singing of our adventures as Alexi awkwardly went to sit on his throne. Then eladrin and elf girls made a path as they passed tossing petals and after them came Vise with crown of flowers with a beautiful eladrin maiden on his arm. I was told afterward that this was part of the autumn eladrin's tradition for the harvest festival. Then they began to judge the pies that everyone had made for the festival. There was pecan pie, apple pie, and tons of pear pie. Vise and the 'queen' chose apple pie as the best and it was the popular choice as well. I also noticed Xeriope sitting next Arranis and they were clearly getting along amicably. When there were dances Xeriope and Arranis danced. Vise and many danced since he was obligated to accept but I did not, my new appearance may have had something to with that. After the dances though I couldn't find Arranis or Xeriope around anymore when it came time for the stories. The first story was something about a kid, a dragon, and evil brother and redemption. It was a story that I'd heard a hundred times in a hundred forms. In time I told my story which I've mostly catalogued here in this journal. Then there were more stories and eventually the stories ended and I was approached by an elderly elf who asked me "What was the name of your tribe again?" I replied "the Lelyaie" "I thought that was what you said but it can't be. My grandfather was the last of the Lelyaie, I remember his stories and I can't believe that you are that old. I just want to know where you're from." He didn't seem upset just curious, and I answered him "that may be, but I remember traveling with the Lelyaie as a child". At that he began walking off as it was late and everyone was tired I didn't go after him. As I went to rest though, what the elf had told me kept echoing in my mind. How was it that the last of the Lelyaie had died seventy years ago but I remembered leaving them only about eight years ago. I decided to go find the elf tomorrow and ask about the stories he had mentioned.

Morning came and I rose to find the elf that had spoken to me yesterday. Unfortunately, I didn't have his name and everyone was still resting in their homes after the festivities. Eventually, I ran into Alexi who was beginning the preparations to sail on the freshwater current that had been discovered in the sea. Once he had seen to what provisions were to be supplied I returned to the guard house to drill the guards. When that was done I returned to the ship to familiarize myself with what had been stowed aboard. Satisfied that I knew the manifest and where everything was placed, I returned home to rest.

I awoke once again with the objective to find the elf that I had spoken to the night of the harvest festival. I was finally successful in finding him as everyone was finally up and about evidenced when I saw Alexi and the Hlynn priests head for the vault, no doubt returning to the barracks we found there; and Vise searching the ruins of the lighthouse for his things. When I found the elf I asked him about the stories he had mentioned and he told me of his grandfather traveling with the Aspen shifters and how they had lovingly taken care of the trees where they traveled. He finally told me of the great tragedy when all but his grandfather had died in forest fire. From the stories, I gathered that this had happened even longer ago than I originally supposed. The events he described must have happened over a hundred years ago. My confusion only grew at this even larger discrepancy between how old I was and when these things were supposed to have happened.

After my meeting with the elf, Alexi called a meeting to explain where he and the rest of our party were going and to leave others in charge. He put Rolf in tempory command while he was gone and I put Lavinia in charge of the guards until my return. With the ship fully ready we prepared to depart.

2 March 2012

Before we had left we were stopped by the priestess of Ximena as she told Alexi about a broken piece of marmaron in the temple. With no further clues as to what had happened we assumed it to be some sort of accident and left to board the ship.

On the first day, curious as to what the taste of this freshwater current was Vise tasted some of it. He said it tasted like honey which Alexi said was associated with Thane. The rest of the day passed uneventfully much as the rest of the voyage did bar the appearance of some sharks.

We returned to Arginmarl where I noticed that the stonemason were making excellent progress in making stairs to the vault. The priestess of Ximena ran up to Alexi to inform him that Xeriope had been missing for about a week. Once we figured out that Arranis had been the last to see her and we searched his place for any signs of where she had gone he noticed that his marmaron was gone. We then came to the conclusion that the accident with the marmaron wasn't an accident at all, but an incident. Xeriope must have used the marmaron to make a portal but even with Arranis' arcane knowledge and the information he had gleaned from the book he found in hell he couldn't figure out where the portal had taken her. With no way to follow her we decided that we should make another voyage. I suggested that this time, we voyage for three weeks and see if we couldn't make it to another island.

The next morning we began preparations to leave, and Arranis informed us of his observations of the purple star. He said that last night he had noticed arcane energy in the form of motes drifting toward the nubula from Mondevai and that occasionally, the nebula itself would coalesce into a symbol we were all familiar with, the same symbol that had formed around the detonated grandstone in Thundermarl. We began to suspect that this purple star was the dawnstar that had been referred to in the cultist's journal. With this new information we decided that Lavinia should take over the observations while Arranis was with us on this next voyage. I met up the guards to appoint another temporary captain as Lavinia would be occupied. Then we set out upon our second voyage on the freshwater current.

Except for some sharks the voyage was uneventful until we came to an island on the sixth day. The island was low and covered in jungle and as we approached we went through a red stain originating from one of the sharks we had seen before pierced by a great many tiny spears. In order to get closer to the island we boarded a small boat and as we reached shore we saw five humans surrounded by Kuo-Toa. The humans seemed primitive as they were only clothed in skins and bones and we noticed a large squid moving toward us from the water. Vise and Alexi tried to talk to everyone but Kuo-Toa ignored them and the humans ran in fear at Alexi. While the squid destroyed our boat, I had engaged what seemed to be the Kuo-Toa's leader when Arranis sent a sphere of blood streaking into the Kuo-Toa. It burst and as each Kuo-Toa was struck it splattered into blood. The few remaining Kuo-Toa fled and the humans thanked us for our help. Finally able to take a good look at the humans I noticed their party was made up of shaman who was older than the other three, one woman, and two men, who all looked to be in the prime of their lives. The chief, on seeing me excitedly asked who I was and if I was sent by the gods. After a quick reply we were able to gather that they were here to complete a ritual involving sacred insects in order to gather more friends to their cause. They explained that their resources had been depleted after having to fend off the Kuo-Toa that had come about a month ago on giant squids. We asked the chief if we could help with their ritual and after they explained that we had to summon and subdue some sort of insect queen to take her king which apparently grew with the sharks and made them their friends. We began to head to where they thought the inland shrine was. As we began to take up our usual marching order the chief and the rest of the humans looked horrified that we were standing so close to each other and asked why we invited misfortune. We realized that they referred to how chaos gathered around humans without the effect of marmaron to keep it at bay. Once we explained that a few of our party was carrying marmaron they understood and we continued our journey into the interior of the island.

19 March 2012

The shaman explained further that the altar to Salvulcian had to be lit in order to knock out the insect when Alexi interupted him to ask if anyone else had heard a crashing in the underbrush. Before anyone could reply a massive fury creature, roughly humanoid, and with four arms, burst out of the underbrush. I got into a fighting stance but the creature rushed past flailing its arms. Vise asked if anyone knew what it was and someone mentioned it was a gorillan. Then, in the direction the gorillan had come from we heard an ominous hum. Then Vise yelled "Stirges!" as four large insects came out of the woods. The two in front were angrily buzzing while the two in back were swollen and drunkenly flying about. Arranis sent a drop of blood springing from his hand to blast blood at them. Then leeches dropped from the trees and started to go after him. Arranis attacked but instead of the usual effects there was a quiet low crackle as of thunder far away. Then there was a deafening rumble as an explosion went off where Arranis had been. Alexi, Vyse, and I after being stabbed and bled by the leeches and stirges managed to defeat them and started to look for Arranis. Alexi tried using the knowledge of magic that he had to figure out where Arranis had gone but to no avail. We shouted for him but after we started to go hoarse we gave up looking and the shaman consoled us by saying, "sorry about your friend, his magic failed him".

We continued walking towards the center of the island when Alexi noticed glints through the trees and Alexi realized it was water. We soon reached the lake that he had glimpsed and found it to be roiling in the center. We didn't have to wait long to find out why. What looked like a giant stirge burst from the water followed by several Kuo-Toa. The queen as we started calling it flew off into the forest and the Kuo-toa followed, then we went after the Kuo-Toa. At first it looked like we might catch up but after stumbling over pitfalls and smacking into inumerable branches we lost them.

When we stopped to catch our breath we realized we were completely lost. I climbed a tree and then helped Alexi up. I couldn't see anything but when I helped Alexi higher into the tree he saw a grey building off in the distance. It took us a half hour to get to the building, I saw two symbols over the portal. The first was for Dravic territory, the second was for the house of Illaca. We entered it to find two dead Dravon and around twenty dead Kuo-Toa. We dragged the bodies out but just as we finished Vyse yelled "We've got company!", when a giant iron golem started circling the house. Alex tried to order it to stop but it didn't respond. It couldn't enter the building though so we stayed inside and continued looking around. At the end of a hallway we found a barred white door and through it we found a tranced eladrin sitting against one of the walls. It was Arranis! He explained that he had been captured and that the only thing that had foiled his escape was that the door was barred and locked from the other side.

Down another hall we found another door with a lock that Vise casually picked when Arranis warned us that the door had a lightning trap on it. Vise found the wire and snipped it to deactivate the trap. Inside we found what looked like a typical dravon office. There were also some strange pictures that Arranis and Alexi were able to determine were actually portals that let one see the dravon capital, Valmark, where there was rioting. There were also logs in dravon. Alexi and Arranis began examining them and then Arranis cast some sort of ritual that let me and Vise understand the books as well. We began reading for things Alexi instructed us to look for. Damn boring book if you ask me, it spent page after page on Salvultian's travels in a boat. (26 April 2012) Once we were finished with the books we snuck out past the golem where we found a large steel cage with a clear coating on the bars. Dead Kuo-Toa surrounded the cage and every one of them was blackened as if burnt. The door to the cage was broken and on closer inspection the cage seemed to be rubberized in some way or other. Vise also noticed some large tridactyl footprints but none of us could place the creature that they belonged to. Then, out of nowhere, we were ambushed by Kuo-Toa. One launched a globe of water into Alexi's mouth, practically drowning him until he recovered. Another threw a trident, crackling with lightning, at me; which I dodged. Then the golem charged me and suddenly I was 100ft in the air. Alexi managed to command the golem away but it was only a temporary solution as I came smashing down and Alexi went up. We fled the golem when we found our attacks did no damage at all. Eventually we met up in the woods, completely winded from our flight. During that time we introduced ourselves to Minuialwen who had helped us out in our fight with the Kuo-Toa and the golem. None of us could pronounce her name right so when we figured out that her name in common meant 'Dawn' that's what we decided to call her. During the conversation Vise interupted to tell us that about what looked like one of the queen's larvae heading through the underbrush. However, instead of following the trail we decided it would be best to have Dawn lead us back to her tribe. We arrived to find two tribesmen sitting next to a grey shrine who told us that we needed to lure the queen to shrine somehow. We asked for advice but since they'd never done this either they had none to give. We decided to head to the lake where we found the queen, the stirges, and some strange glowing rocks. Curious as to what the rocks are and whether they could be used to lure the queen, I swam out to them only to find out that they were actually a Behir, as it swallowed me. Inside the belly of the beast, I began stabbing it and doing anything I could think of to make it throw me back up. Eventually I managed to trigger it's gag reflex and escape its belly only to knocked out by its attack as it caught up to me. I awoke to Dawn rescuscitating me in the water and together we began swimming back to the shore. After we had reached the shore I noticed an adventuring kit come bubbling up from the depths. It turned that the Behir had stayed away from Dawn and I because it was trying to digest Arranis and apparently his adventuring kit didn't go down too well. When Alexi noticed he began a prayer which the Behir burped during. Saddened at the lost of our friend Dawn tracked the queen back to the altar where the shaman called her over and showed her how to cut a tadpole from the queen. Then the shaman threw each tadpole like creature into a pouch full of water and we began our trek back. As it was getting late we headed back to the gray stone building with the Irken guard to rest. There we got Dawn to make a map of the area and Alexi found the golem's control switch on one of the Irken guard. We rested without any interruptions that night thanks to golems patrol. The next morning, we headed for the shore. Once there the shaman through dust into the water and soon a great number of whale sharks had gathered. The shaman waded into the shallows and then stabbed one in the head and deposited one of the "kings" inside along with a piece of black marmaron. Although I was initially taken aback when the shaman stabbed the shark in the head, his use of the "king" and the black marmaron let me on to what he was doing. When he was finished we asked him if he would take us back to our ship and he had just agreed when he suddenly had a spear sticking through him. The Kuo-Toas had ambushed us again but only to their detriment as not a single one escaped us alive. Between Dawn and the remainder of her tribe they were able to ferry us back to our ship where we discovered another difficulty in having lost Arranis. We'd lost the person most capable of steering our ship. While Alexi was trying to figure out how to get us back with his limited magical knowledge Vise found the shaman's bag somewhere. He looked through it to show us some herbs and black marmaron. When Alexi had gotten down the rudiments of steering the ship we began to head back. A day out from Arginmarl I noticed that the comet that Arranis had always been so obsessed over had vanished from the night sky and the next morning one our sailor's found that the 'river' we were sailing on which used to be sweet was now bitter.

28 April 2012

When we reached Arginmarl the sailor who had found that the 'river' was bitter was dead. It turned out that the river was poisonous and so Alexi assigned Vise to look into the matter. Alexi also announced that there would be a meeting tomorrow before he announced his plans to us of using the black marmaron from the shaman to reactivate the portal back to the continent. I went to go see my guards who were practicing the usual drills, while Alexi went to go see Toll, our cartographer. I practiced my sword work among my guards for a while when Alexi sent a messenger informing me to meet him and Vise in his den. During the meeting we discussed several current issues but eventually the conversation turned to Arranis. I suggested that we should add a plaque to the telescope memoralizing him since that is where he spent most of his time on the island since its discovery. We agreed it was good plan and the discussion continued on until Alexi informed us that Count Illaca had come to him in a dream and told him about the reason for the unrest in addition to announcing that he would be touring Arginmarl. The unrest was because the confederacy of the scale was falling apart over doctrinal issues. Alexi also informed us that Illaca had not looked well and seemed to trying to hide it with the way he dressed. We also established that our two dragonborn were to come immediately to me for safety if there were any problems during Lord Illaca's visit. At this point Alexi began discussing things of significantly less interest to me until he asked what could be done in case the conflict spread here. I informed him that there really wasn't much we could do besides guard the portal and be cautious in our outside dealings. Alexi then assigned Rolf to prepare for Lord Illaca's arrival and stated that when the time came he and Lavinia would open the portal. Then with Rolf's help Alexi determined what the icon of the colony would be and what our contribution to the empire would be. After the long discussion had finished Alexi sent for Kalas and Lavinia to join us at the vault where Alexi intended to get the portal working. As soon as we arrived Alexi put the marmaron in the center of the ring and with the sound of a bell chime it began to spin as its center glowed green. Alexi and I walked through to no effect. Then we tried stepping inside, again to no effect. Then Alexi muttered something and vanished only to reappear instantaneously. I assumed that he had said the words engraved on the portal and that those were the keys to using the portals. He later explained this confirming what I assumed he done. Alexi also mentioned that the gold ring underneath the ice in Szartharax's cave that they had found had an identical function to this one. Alexi spoke to Kalas and got him to agree to register this vault as soon as the portal was operational. The next day I awoke and headed to the guard house to discover that we had new uniforms for the ceremonies involved with Lord Illaca's arrival. Outside I found Alexi's house well decorated; the streets impecably cleaned; and the innkeeper, his wife, and Rolf looking exhausted. Alexi then had Rolf, me, two of my guards, and Kallas join him in heading to the vault portal. Shortly after we arrived two Dravon dressed completely in black showed up with their hands on their broadswords. They winked back out and then twelve guards in scale mail and armed with broadswords winked in. I had my guards greet them as four dravon in cloth two with staffs and the other two the scouts that had come before winked in. Finally, Illaca himself winked in. Alexi and Illaca began to talk as one of the dravon blinked out and moments later blinked back in. This became a constant as the wizards continued to blink in and out throughout the time Illaca and Alexi were meeting. Illaca asked about the room below which began a tour of the vault that Alexi gave Illaca. As we continued walking around I heard muffled explosions and turned to see the mages leveling the area for easier entrance into the portal room. After the tour had finished we retired to the village for lunch. In the village, groups of citizens cheeried Illaca's arrival and Illaca complemented Alexi on the city's appearance. When we had arrived at Alexi's residence and settled around the table Illaca pulled out a massive stack of papers, handed them to Alexi, and explained that he would need to get his servants or head of house (Rolf) to fill out the documents. With that meeting out of the way we went back outside where I saw 200 empire horsemen in the steets. Illaca and Alexi went with them while I staid behind.