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[howandwhy99]

Brother Ben stood up and moved towards the infirmary door. With his back towards the group he said, “An elder elemental god… Kayla is the obvious choice for learning this information.” Quickly, Kayla pointed out the book entitled “Flora & Fauna” was written by Marevak and had his handwritten notes in the margins about the caves and his musings concerning Zelligar. “There are many illustrations of plants and animals, but only the one map of the caves. There are no drawings of any globular idol.” The rest of the party talked over what they knew of Elemental Gods. None had even heard rumor of them before. There were no stories told to frighten little children; no references from Ben’s studies. They were simply unknown in the county of Margrave.

Kayla pondered, “Marevak and Elian are the only people I have ever heard make reference to Elder Elemental Gods. I haven't even actually seen a picture of the idol. I've only read a description. The author of the book was an elf...and the only other being to mention the elder elemental gods was Elian to Darius.” This thought gave Brother Ben pause, but before he could speak up Dram’s deep voice sounded. “The Outpost, and only the Outpost, has been pelted by an unnatural storm continuously for the past several weeks. Couldn’t these Elder Elemental Gods be behind it?” The group sat in silence.

Originally quoted by Brother Ben and Darius
Once again, Ben raised the idea that Elf-friend Elion may not have as pure of motives as the rest of them. “He is advising Lady Devereaux, but he is also looking for his brother Marevak who once worked for Zelligar. It sounds like Zelligar may have joined with or become one of the Lords of Chaos. In my view, while Elion's intentions may be currently in line with the County's plans, they may not stay that way.”

”I asked Mirel to watch Elion because of these potentialities. The aforementioned ‘messaging’ that Elion is casting may likely be his conversations with Lady Devereaux. We still need to confirm that he has contact with her, and possibly her motives for staying out of sight from visitors. If Lady Devereaux is missing (or playing some other game), it might be best for the troops not to learn of it. Their morale is low enough.”

“I agree that the great treasure we have been unable to find still lies in Quesquaton. But I fear that we may lose control of it shortly. I also know our current plans have been to disrupt the Giant's forces and stop whatever is causing the unnatural storm. But because of our last foray into the Chaos Caves the manbeasts will likely attack us in reprisal. We left clear tracks back to our hilltop cave. And Quesquaton has no power to keep anything from passing through the archway. Whatever we must find in Quesquaton may have to be found as soon as possible. Spending even a few full days in Quesquaton could pay off enormously.”

Then Brother Ben asked that all information be shared in the group in the future. “As the current crisis grows, our small band has shown itself to be trustworthy for the most part. I swear that I am willing to divulge any secrets I knows at all, saving those the church requires me not to tell.

Darius: "I hardly call that a fair exchange, Brother Ben. You keep secrets as dictated by your church, but when my commander asks me to keep something a secret, I am supposed to come running to you and let you know?"

Ben: I understand that being in charge is difficult and that the challenges we face are both great and mainly unknown. I would be willing to share secrets of the church with you, Darius, as you are obviously a passionate devotee of Thor. My belief is those in command may not have the best interests of the County at heart; that we are still acting in the dark with most things. Truth brings the light. Sharing information with the group instills trust and helps strengthen us and defeat our foes. I trust in our group as we have faced several battles and defended one another without duplicity. I still has misgivings about some members, but we all are still learning who each of us is.”