The EARTH story - May 12, 1372
During the night the clouds move in from the northeast, but the weather remains warm, and you continue your march in the morning with a light breeze at your backs.
At around midmorning, though, you hear the distant sounds of hoofbeats approaching from ahead of you. Evidently some mounted riders are coming down the road towards you, though they are not yet in sight.
"Everyone off the road. We don't know what is happening in this area and would be better off if we had surprise on our side," says Kelar, moving off the road and behind some bushes.
Brennon dashes from the roadway, following Kelar.
Sharone also finds a safe viewing point back from the road, checking her flail and shield, just in case.
Ayazin steps into the underbrush, but stays close enough to see the road.
It does not take long for the riders to crest a low rise a short distance ahead and come into your view. There are nine of them, all on horseback, with a few spare mounts trailing along behind. You see a mage, clad in a black robe adorned with a stars and planets pattern, and topped by a pointy hat. Beside him rides a warrior, clad in plate mail and carrying a gleaming shield. Next in line come two more warriors, one also in plate and shield; the other - a woman - unarmoured but heavily armed. Next come two clerics, also in plate and shield; and bringing up the rear are a fourth warrior and a third cleric.
Leading the group is a beautiful young woman in leathers and with a shield, and carrying a scimitar. She has a feral look about her; her long brown hair is wild and unkempt, her blue eyes darting back and forth as if she is searching for something.
Around her neck is the holy symbol of an evergreen...just like the one that Ayazin wears. You also note that the three clerics also wear the same symbol.
They continue to approach, evidently not having noticed you.
Sharone puts her weapons away, but decides to stay out of sight until she sees a friendly reaction from the riders. She hopes the riders are what they appear to be. She prepares a hold person just in case.
"Ayazin, do you recognize the rider?" Brennon asks.
Mumbling to himself, "Well they look friendly enough," Kelar steps out in the road in front of them.
"Hail, friends. I seem to have a problem and was wondering if you all could help," asks Kelar.
The riders reign to a stop, the warriors drawing their weapons.
"Who are you?" asks the woman leading, "And what were you doing hiding in the bushes?"
"An elf..." you hear one of the men murmur, in an almost awed tone.
"Perhaps we should help Kelar before things get out of hand," Brennon says to Ayazin. "They seem to bear the same symbol as yourself, are they friends of yours?"
Ayazin steps empty-handed from the bushes and nods slightly at the druid woman, though he keeps his mouth shut for now.
Following Ayazin's lead, Brennon also steps from the bushes to stand next to Ayazin empty handed.
She spots his symbol immediately.
"A fellow follower...and a wolf!" she exclaims, smiling. "What is your name, friend?"
The warriors relax visibly.
"Arf!" says the wolf, and wags his tail.
Ayazin, however, seems to be tongue tied at the moment.
"What is the problem that you are referring to, young elf?" asks the mage of Kelar.
"Well, after your friend's comment, I think you have answered my first question," says Kelar with a frown. "We seem to have been teleported here and we just don't seem to know where here is."
I was hoping that you could at least tell us what world we are on. That might help with at least starting to find our way back home and to our friends," adds Kelar hopefully.
The mage smiles.
"You are on Earth," he informs you, "In West Nolthen, which, like all of Nolthen, is under the sway of the Wizard Imrimil. To the north and east of here is his heartland, a decayed land of evil. Several days to the south, down this road, is the former free town of Riverdale, fallen under Imrimil's grip only recently. It lies on the Sohio River. To the west of here is the Mississippi Forest, and the river of that same name. Beyond it are the Western lands, held by most in these parts to be wild and uncivilised.
"Where are you from? Are you of Earth? Where were you teleported from?"
The lady says, "We are bound for Riverdale. If you are going in the same direction then perhaps you might wish to travel with us, for this land can be dangerous."
Sharone steps forward. "Greetings, I am Sharone, Priestess of Idun "
"We are from Earth also...we were in Oerth, though." says Kelar with a grimace.
"What or where is Oerth?"
"Your offer is fine by me, being lost in Nolten is not a happy situation. But I fear we have no horses to allow us to travel at your pace. "
"That sounds like a good idea. Maybe some of our friends were teleported to around here and will make for the city also. Could you give us some news...the last time we were here it was getting kind of grim," says Kelar with a grin.
"War and tidings of war are everywhere," the mage replies, as you turn about and begin to walk with them. "Last year Imrimil invaded Riverdale, for no apparent reason. Soon he was moving thousands of troops into the town. There, they were met by many ships which he had apparently been assembling in Lac Olith - upstream - for a long time. The troops boarded the ships and set sail down the Sohio to the Mississippi, bound for who knows where. Meanwhile, last December, the Emporer of Saltar was assassinated, throwing the Empire into civil war. That war still rages."
Ayazin says, "Oh dear -- we have been adventuring too long. With the Empire in civil war, they'll be too disorganized to stand against the Wizard."
"Fortunately, his attentions are diverted elsewhere," the mage replies.
"Then, In the dead of this past winter, a dwarf lord - long thought dead - reappeared out of the night in the kingdom of Kludar. That dwarven land had long been beseiged by Imrimil. Lord McTavish - heir to the throne - rallied his people, and in late March the dwarves invaded Nolthen, catching Imrimil by surprise. It seems that the black Wizard had sent most of his armies south down the Mississippi, and in an act of supreme overconfidence had left his own lands badly underdefended."
"Hooray for McTavish! I'm so glad to see that he made it home."
"You know him???"
"Yes, he is a good friend...some of us helped him on his way home. It is good to hear that he is doing good. Almost wish we could have stayed with him. Sounds like he is having fun," says Kelar with a grin.
"The dwarves advanced quickly, taking Yorkk by late April. The last we have heard is that they continue to advance. They may well be at the eastern shore of Lac Olith by now. Imrimil has been unable to stem their advance. They sweep his few remaining legions of demons and humanoids aside easily. Perhaps the dwarves will finally be the ones to end Imrimil's 600 year long oppression of these lands."
"If anyone can stand against Imr-- um, the Wizard, it will be McTavish."
"Our task lies south of the Sohio River, however," the druid woman adds, "With the civil war in Saltar showing no signs of ending, the land is suffering."
Ayazin nods gravely. "How sad it is that the land is always the first casualty of war. Tell me of the troubles, and how we might aid you."
"The people of Saltar have a cavalier attitude towards nature even in the best of times. To them, it is something to be conquered, tamed and exploited. But since the Empire collapsed six centuries ago their lands have become more and more depopulated, and so the lands have recovered. Now, though, the rivals to the Throne are busily burning forests and meadows, destroying crops and murdering animals, in an attempt to hit each other in their most vulnerable place: their stomachs."
"You say the Saltarians treat the land poorly, Faya?" says the mage, "Compared to Imrimil's folk, the Saltarians are a race of druids!"
"True, Kaboom, true," the woman admits. "The undead hate all living things."
Sharone tries to keep up with the history lesson, struggling considerably, but at the mention of McTavish, says, "Oh.. the dwarf with whom we travelled for a time. Trying to return him to his homeland. He taught me to speak some basic dwarf."
"The town we are travelling to, is it likely to be friendly? for I fear our group now split is less able to look after itself."
"You have companions?" Kaboom asks.
"Yes, but unfortunately separated by some teleport device. Do you have a means by which we can scry the 'plane to locate our friends?" asks Sharone, a hopeful look on her face.
"Yes, we do," says the mage. "Tonight when we camp we will look for them."
Sharone claps her hands with joy, a smile appears on her face and her mood rises considerably.
"That would be wonderful."
She sets off down the road with renewed vigor.
She trudges along the road, her mind trying to produce a solution that will reunite the group.
"That is going to be of great help," says Kelar with a wide grin, "I can only hope that our other friends have met up with some nice people as yourselves."
Brennon follows the others, remaining quiet as he tries to comprehend the total amount of information that is being said. Realizing he is far away from his home, he wonders just what is going on there.
"Well, Riverdale is definately a long way from Sandas, but we might be able to find some more people to help us. I think that we need to get back there and see if Ray Jay is in," says Kelar to his friends.
Turning back to the others as they continue to walk, he asks, "You didn't say how Riverdale is now that Imiril has been and gone. Is it back to normal or does he still have some control of it?"
"He rules it still. It is not a place to let down your guard," the mage replies.
"Not that it ever was," grins one of the warriors.
The rest of the day's walk is uneventful, and that evening you arrive back at the stream and ford where you first appeared, yesterday. Faya the druid leads you off of the road and upstream perhaps a quarter mile, and you make camp. After dining on a meal dried meats, breads and wild roots cooked over a small fire, Kaboom the mage produces something out of his backpack.
It is a small orb of some clear crystal, which sparkles in the firelight. It is perhaps 6" in diameter, and when he hands it to Sharone, she is surprised by the coolness of its surface.
"Hold it in both hands," the mage instructs. "Stare into it and concentrate on one of your other companions."
"Well doesn't this look familiar?" Brennon comments, looking about the roadside.
Turning to Kaboom, Brennnon comments, "I was wondering if you could tell me a little about the city to which we are travelling, I am new to this area, my homeland is far from here. I am in need of some training in the mystical arts, and am curious if such facilities might be available there. Or if you might know of someone who is need of an apprentice."
"Riverdale is only a village," the mage replies. "Fewer than a thousand people live there. You will find no one there to train you, unless Imrimil has brought some minions in, and you would be wise to avoid them."
He pauses and looks at Sharone, who has yet to respond to the crystal ball in her hands. He reaches out and takes it back from her.
"I am seeking an apprentice, if you wish," he says, and hands the ball to Brennon. "Let us begin right now. Look into the ball, and see what you can see."
"Sounds easy enough," Brennon says with an edge of caution. Thinking about the others from the group, he tries to focus on their thoughts to see where they might be located.
Brennon stares and concentrates into the crystal ball. Faint, murky images form after a time, but nothing else happens.
"Stop thinking about your other companions as a whole and focus on one of them at a time," suggests Kaboom.
"Try and find Farad....not probably my favorite choice, but he will be able to help us find the others quickly," says Kelar with a grin.
Farad seems like a logical choice as Brennon listens to Kellar's comments. Trying again at staring into the crystal ball, he focuses his thoughts on Farad and trying to locate him.
An image forms after a moment.
You see Farad. Nearby are Jo-owrn, Aldarin and Mikodin. They appear to be in a smallish cave (perhaps 30' X 40': 30' ahead, 10' left, 20' right; opening in far corner into another chamber). It is lit by several glowing stones.
In here are also two giants, plus a grizzled looking dwarf. The giants are about 12' tall, grey skinned, grey haired, with steely eyes. The dwarf stands back, holding a large piece of parchment.
Another person stands in the doorway on the far side of the chamber. This one is a man, middle-aged, dressed in the robes of a magic user. The robes appear to be of high quality. His hair is red, tinged with grey, as is his beard. He wears spectacles, and peers at your friends through them intently.
A conversation seems to be in progress.
All of the people, strangely enough, almost seem to be floating in the cave; their feet barely touching the floor.
"Well, it looks like those guys are in good shape, so far," says Kelar. "Try looking for some one else."
Still focussing on the image, Brennon asks Kaboom, "Can they hear us if I try to talk to them?"
"No." replies Kaboom.
Sharone finally snaps out of her trance, amazed at the workings of the crystal ball.
"There are some people missing from your image. Can I suggest you think about one of the others? Just to make sure the whole group is OK."
Ayazin nods gravely in agreement.
"Who do you suggest?" Brennon asks Kelar.
"Try seeing if you can find Beth or Humphrey." says Kelar to Brennon.
"Do you happen to know these others?" asks Kelar as he points out the people he doesn't know in the crystal ball.
Kaboom takes a look over Brennon's shoulder, but shakes his head negatively.
Brennon next concentrates on Beth.
The image wavers, then reforms. You see Beth, walking down a busy city street. Raz is with her. You do not recognise the city. They appear to be looking for something...or someone...their companions, perhaps?
Next, Brennon looks for Humphrey. However, all he sees is static. Not a good sign, you suspect.
That leaves only one of your companions unaccounted for: Jon. Brennon sets his sight on the elf. After a bit an image forms. Jon seems to be alone. He is in a dimly lit room, just opening a door. When the door opens you see him looking into another, smaller room. There are three drow elves in there.
Jon turns and runs away. The surprised drow jump up and go after him.
Ayazin gasps in dismay. "Oh dear, it doesn't look good for poor Jon. It looks like Beth and Raz might be the easiest to locate, but Farad of course has the best chance of gathering us together, with his traveling abilities. Perhaps we should try to find Beth and Raz, and hope that Farad and the others can make their way to us. Jon appears to be the only one still in the Underdark, perhaps he never entered the teleporter. I think we can only hope that he does so soon, because he won't survive long down there by himself, and it could take days or even weeks to find him."
"He did enter the teleporter...I was the last to go through. I pulled poor Humphrey through with me. It doesn't look like it was to kind to him, though," says Kelar with a frown. "Kaboom do you have the ability to teleport?"
"I am afraid that I am not yet powerful to cast that spell," the mage admits.
"Well that takes care of that thought." says Kelar.
"And for locating Beth and Raz, if we can't find what city they're in, maybe we should head toward Sandas. Certainly, that's what we would do if we were all together, in order to report to Ray Jay and learn more about the war."
"Maybe, we should find Farad first. You said this person would be our best chance to gather us," says Kithus. "We should search for a while. If we can't find him, we go to Sandas. What do you think?
"Yes and no. He has the a unique ability among our group but is only able to take a couple of people with him at a time...I also think he has to know where he is in the first place, which is probably why he is talking to those others. The person I am worried about the most is Jon. But I don't think we have much choice in helping him at this point," says Kelar with another frown.
"As far as going to Sandas, we need to get to somewhere that we can get magical means of transport. We are probably something like 600 miles away. It would take months of travel to get there by normal means....if my memory serves me," Kelar tells them.
"I have never heard of this place called Sandas," says Faya the druid. "In what land does it lie?"
"Guess we are farther than I thought." says Kelar thoughtfully.
"Oh, and this is Kithus," says Kaboom, by way of introduction. "He joined us at the start of our journey, in Black Gate. He's a ranger."
"Nice to meet you Kithus. I am Kelar and these are my friends Sharon and Brennon," says Kelar to Kithus. Turning back to Kaboom, he asks, "How long do you expect it to take to get to Riverdale?"
"Glad to meet you as well." says Kithus with a grin. Then, he turns to Kaboom and listens.
"Perhaps a few more days," replies the mage.
The druid bows slightly. "I am Ayazin, son of Ayazin, druid of the Blackwood and sworn enemy of the evil Wizard who threatens this land with his poisons. Glad to welcome you."
"Greetings, Ranger." the mage says, his crimson eyes staring intently into the crystal ball. Looking up at the ranger he says, "I'm Brennon."
"Pleased to met you, master Brennon," says Kithus.
Sharone bows deeply. "Priestess of Idun, I am most pleased to make your acquintance."
She then turns to the others. "We did have a teleport scroll. Who was carrying it?"
"Not I," says Ayazin.
"I didn't acquire it, either," Brennon comments.
"My guess would be Beth but I don't remember and I don't have it. Farad might but I doubt it or he would have used it...impulsive as he is," says Kelar with a grin.
"Perhaps it would be best to trek to Riverdale then, we might be able to at least come and find someone who might be able to get us back to Sandas," Brennon continues.
Concentrating on Beth again, Brennon asks Kaboom if the city she is in is familiar to him.
"It is not," Kaboom replies, after squinting over his shoulder for awhile. "They are far away, though, for it is daytime there."
It is evening where you are.
"Can we continue to check each of the groups? We may see a clue that will enable us to reunite our party."
"I think that we have already done that....unless I have forgotten someone. And all that has done is make it more difficult for us yet," says Kelar with a frown.
"Ayazin do you have any way to contact Farad? Use the force? "
Ayazin chuckles. "Unfortunately the 'force' is not so flexible. While Farad may have that ability, I do not."
She then sits and busies herself with preparing tea and a hot meal before moving off to start her nightly pray session.
"Pleased to make your acquaintance," says Kithus with a half bow. When he stands straight again, he says to everyone, "So, where do we go, anyway? We are just wasting time by standing still."
"Actually I think that if we don't have any other questions for our hosts I will go to sleep. If we have another two days of travel before we even get to a small town we will need our wits about us, not to mention our strength," says Kelar to Kithus's question. "Once we get to Riverdale we may have some more options."
"I see," says Kithus. "Should we start to get going now or stay here for the night? According to Kaboom's description, it is far away from here. I think we should get going, so we'll get there sooner."
"As good an idea as that is," the mage responds, "I do not relish travelling the wilderness at night. Whatever city Beth is in can not be reached in a few hours travel, and we are likely to reach Riverdale first. I suggest a good nights rest and then continuing at first light."
"Maybe, that would be prove wise," says Kithus thoughtfully. "Then, we would better rest. We might have a long day ahead of us."
Sharone looks up from her dinner preparations. "Food and a nights rest will serve us better than charging off into the night. Come and eat."
"Thank you," says Kithus, "Don't mind if I do."
Kithus walks toward the food.
While you are eating, Brennon continues to scry. Beth and Raz continue their trek around the city, visiting pubs and inns, and apparently making inquiries of the patrons of those places. He checks back with Jon, and to his surprise now sees that Farad, Jo-owrn, Aldarin and Mikodin are also present there.
Finally he tires, and returns the crystal ball back to Kaboom.