The next morning you break camp. The weather is again mild and wet.
"Let's go east," suggests the dwarf, "Over the Mississippi, and make camp in the woods east of there."
You mount off and go trundling into Derextar West. Reaching the main intersection, you pause to read the signpost located there -
The Northern Road: N: To Monza City, Omaha and Jazbar.
S: To Derextar.
The Great Western Road: E: To Derextar, Derextar East and Tav'm.
W: To Adford, North End and Hobbitown.
You continue eastwards.
For the first little bit you travel through dense forest, then it thins out a bit and you start to see more ruined buildings. These are mainly concentrated to the south of you. Now and then you pass trails leading off amongst the ruins...all that is left of the major streets of Derextar.
"How long has this place been deserted? I wonder what happened here?" wonders Illyana.
Finally, you reach the west bank of the Mississippi River. To your right are ruined wharves and docks, for Derextar was once a major trading port, along with crumbling warehouses and other buildings.
It is what lies ahead of you that catches your attention, though.
The Mississippi is about 1 1/4 miles wide at this point, and a great bridge spans it. The bridge is clearly ancient, but it has stood up to the elements well, and is in good condition. On the far side of the river you can just make out another ruin: Derextar East, a small walled town.
McTavish brings his wagon to a halt at the beginning of the bridge.
For a long time he stares down at the waters before him, deep in concentration. Then, he closes his eyes, and seems to utter a prayer.
Suddenly he opens them and lashes his mules.
"Geeyap, dammit!" he says...and the wagon goes trundling out onto the bridge at a quick walk.
This is not fast enough for McTavish, and he lashes the mules harder, goading them on in a nervous voice.
The rest of you follow.
The trip across is quiet...until you reach the three-quarters point.
Suddenly there is a rumble from below...and a giant wave shoots up out of the waters below!
"AAARGH!" shouts McTavish, as it strikes him and nearly washes him off the wagon and into the river 100' below. "Move, damn you!" he says to the mules.
The mules actually break into a trot...and you reach the east side without further incident, though McTavish is pale and shaking.
Before you is Derextar East, a ruined walled hamlet.
McTavish is in no mood to loiter this close to the river, and hurries you through and out into the woods beyond. The road is running east-northeast at this point.
Once ten miles or so are behind you, you pull off the road and into the woods for a quarter mile, before finding a defensable place to make camp. It is noontime.
Illyana needs to train...
"I need to train, but I also need my share of the loot to train" Pillar then says "What is my share?".
Aldarin looks at McTavish with wild eyes, "What the !!!!! (heck) was that all about back there????"
"McTavish, what was that wave and what caused it? Trolls? Water elementals?"
"My damned god playing tricks on me again," replies the dwarf. "He scares the daylights out of me whenever I go near a large body of water.
"The last time I tried to cross the Mississippi he teleported me to another world..."
"Farad, could you begin showing me some of you techniques with the long sword, I would like very much to begin using it as my primary and only weapon (ie specialize in it)". says Aldarin.
"When I finish my training with Raz, I will have also finished learning an ability that I think can transport me and two others to any other location we might wish. If any of you wish, perhaps I could take you to Sandas and you can train there. The method is not fool proof, and it might take more than a day, but that might be faster than waiting to find someplace along the route."
Farad details the ability, called Probability Travel. With it he can transport himself and two others to the astral plane. There we will appear next to a color pool which represents the gateway to our world. Farad can try and force the pool to view Sandas. If he fails it will view some random location and can't be changed for a day, although it can be moved slowly about the area it now views.
"But I can only take two of you."
Farad will train to 5th level under Raz, and assuming anyone wants to will use Probability Travel to attempt going to Sandas via the Astral as described earlier.
Aldarin: "What will everyone else do while you are gone? Won't you have to return to this very spot from which you left, or can you locate the group at a different location? I am also ready to train in my warrior skills and would very much like to before we set out again, but I can do that with either you or Illyana, although I was hoping you could train me in the long sword to a higher degree (specialization), if not I would travel to Sandas with you if the group is going to be here when we return."
"You would have to stay here. I do not know if I could locate you if you moved. Its not a perfect solution, but at least the three of us that wish to go can train. Later on perhaps I can take two others."
Raz looks about at the others, "Well, I'm ready for some training myself...ahh..hmmm...excuse me..but I'm afraid I lost track of the happenings over the past day or so...exactly how much treasure did we manage to obtain and what would my share of it be...I hate to ask...but I do need money to train."
Raz offers to train Farad and Aldarin after he has completed his own training.
Farad looks worried.
Seeing Farad's distress, Raz smiles and says, "I am quite capable of training myself thank you."
"Alright then. I'll see if I can figure out what each of us gets money wise right now. But you should have plenty for training."
"Is McTavish keeping track of the money in his cart? I have to grab some of it to let it float." says Illyana.
"Naw...I ain't got a head for money," McTavish replies. "Why don't you donate some of this unclaimed magic that I've been carting around? The gods ain't picky."
"Anybody got any objections? Or has someone been keeping track of the loot?"
Humphrey: "Well I'll volunteer to go to Sandas for training, since Aldarin is training himself. It would also be nice to see dad again."
Then Humphrey hits his head:
"Oh sorry, my mistake. It's Farad who is able to train me. Farad are you able to train me now?"
"Well I believe that I would like to try out Farad's method of travel" Kelar says grimicing. "Unless anyone here can use a scimitar? And Raz can't teach me magically so that leaves Farad."
"I don't suppose Farad would be willing to teleport everyone around then?" asks Illyana.
"Its not teleportation, but a somewhat hazzardous form of planar travel. We leave this plane, and enter it at a different position."
"I can only take two of us at a time, and unless I go searching for another color pool, it would take a day to attempt to return. Possibly longer if the pool resists altering its view and shows something other than I intended."
Farad looks up from his abacus.
"Ok, money time:
Gold Treasure equivalent Found
5 gp = 1,000cp 500 gp = 1,000 ep 5,000 gp = statue 1 @ 5,000 gp 18 gp = 36 ep 45 gp = 900 sp 300 gp = 300 gp 375 gp = 75 pp 24,000 gp = pelts 4 @ 6,000 gp 1,000 gp = pelt 1 @ 1,000 gp 5,000 gp = 5,000 gp 625 gp = 625 gp 30,000 gp = gems 30 @ 1,000 gp 114,000 gp = jewelry 19 @ 6,000 gp -------------
180868 gold.
Everyone thus gets 18,000 gold worth of treasure (9 people including McTavish, plus a party fund share). We have enough variety that this is easy enough to make sure everyone gets exactly that amount.
The party fund will get an equal share of 18868 (also giving it the change) putting it at 30105 gold. Enough to get three of us raised if need be and almost enough to pay for a wish if things get really tough.
Now the unclaimed magic items we've found:
ring
scroll (ventriloquism, tenser's floating disk, read magic)
short bow
scroll (protection from lycanthropes)
scroll (druid spell)
scroll (protection from magic)
scroll (clerical: darkness)
potion
amulet (with dove engraving)
flail ring mail (D)
dagger
military pick"
Britan Says: "If anyone goes to town to train such as Raz or Farad using that Magical means I would like to request to go because no one here is capable of training me to Fourth level Cavalier."
Humphrey: "Please see if the short sword if magical. I would appreciate it. Whenever that portal can be opened to Sandas I would be interested in going."
The short sword is not magic, it turns out.
You see a huge smile on Raz's face as he scans the bounty that the group recently accumulated.
"Wow", he says, "I suggest we take what is useful here and donate the rest to the gods above. I don't see anything off hand that is of interest to me yet...are all of these items magical...if so I think it might be worth are effort to determine their function."
Laughing evilly PIllar grabs his loot and says "Soon everyone shall know my might, MUAHHAHAHAHAA. All who mocked me shall fall and be ground to dust under the wrath of my GOD!" giggling to himself Pillar stares at the sky.
"TUONI" he yells.
There is a rumble from below in reply...and suddenly the ground at his feet splits open!
The stench of rotting corpses comes oozing out of the crack...then suddenly a black fire shoots out of the fissure...engulfing Pillar as he stands laughing!
For a moment he stands there, transfixed...then the fire is sucked back into the crack...leaving the cleric apparently unharmed...though there is now an even brighter fire in his eyes.
Raz looks quizzically at Pillar, shakes his head and then takes his share of the money.
"Easy Pillar...easy", he says in a calming manner.
The fissure closes with a final crack.
"The gods are listening and watching today..." mutters McTavish, as he backs slowly away.
"Do we want to use party funds to have the items identified? Certain ones anyway?" asks Illyana.
Raz nods slowly. "I think it would be worth it", he says.
Britan pulls up squatter rights next to a tree and sits and says "Can either Raz or Farad or any other of you spell hurlers identify any of this stuff? If not I would think it would be cheaper and more to our benefit to use party money or have everyone chip in and see if they can buy the spell or spells and what ever you need to do this deed because in the long run it will end up cheaper and more convenient."
"Good suggestion...I think that might be the best option too", replies Raz
"Someone cast detect magic. I think some of this might not be magical"
The items listed above are magical.
"As for travelling back to Sandas, some things to remember. Those who self train will take twice as long to do so. Four weeks. Also the cost will be twice as much. So ideally Raz should train me first. Then I can take the two people who have the highest skills or more than one trade to learn, saving us some money and time."
"Does anyone here need to train in more than one craft? And who is the most highly trained here? (other than McTavish of course)"
"I can train any nonspecialised fighter," replies McTavish. "I'll even do it for free."
"When I'm in Sandas I believe I can purchase a spell from the mages guild or Ray Jay. I'll see if I can obtain the indentify spell. However, from what I have heard, its too late to identify any of this. That spell must be cast within a few hours, or a day or two at most, of finding it." says Farad.