Shadows of Greatness, a Forgotten Realms campaign UPDATED February 1, 2008

Fun in the Sun

As the shadowy minions of Set amassed to storm the barge, Liadan called our small company to her side and said a prayer to Lathander to imbue our weapons with his righteousness. The golden godlings had advised us that though Set's forces would assault the barge all throughout the twelve hours of night, the first onslaught would be most crucial to withstand, for it was then that the demons would attempt to wrest control of the barge from the gods who steered it.

Innumerable snake-like and reptilian creatures began to fall upon the solar barge like a rain of evil. The lesser of such creatures burnt up when they met the fiery orb surrounding the vessel, but their ash left cooling spots in the flaming corona. The golden godlings rushed to clear away such debris with their long-handled implements.

Suddenly something struck the barge that was heavy enough to make the vessel tremble. I turned to see a large monster of serpentine form, its six arms each bearing a weapon, alighting upon the deck near the stern. I shouted out "Brimstone!" and the blade of my borrowed sword burst into flames. As I ran toward the creature I called upon Corellon Larethian to bless me and give me his aid.

The creature menaced Kherp, the captain of the barge. I struck upon a strategy of moving rapidly about it, striking with both of my blades at once. This did not permit me to escape the blows of its many limbs. But I did not lose heart. I was determined to prevent it from harrassing Re-Horakhty, the hawk-headed god who operated the tiller of the barge. Strangely this deity appeared oblivious to the battle that raged around him.

Now and again as I circled the many-armed horror, I caught glimpses of my friends engaged in their own struggles with similarly frightful creatures. Rock had been about to join me at the stern when a fiery creature alit beneath the canopy at the center of the barge. He turned to deal with it. I saw Erim being menaced by a swarm of repulsive snakes. Liadan fired off blasts of searing radiance at a woman flying overhead astride a fiery creature with the semblance of a horse. Once my dwarven friend had dispensed with the flaming thing beneath the canopy, he turned to face a huge metallic creature that had somehow managed to pinion Nekaya on the spikes protruding from its armor.

Despite the efforts of the lesser gods Kherp and Her-Heken, and my own feeble efforts, the six-armed creature managed to advance upon Re-Horakhty and strike him. The god did not react to the attack on his person except to swing the tiller sharply to one side, causing the barge to tilt dramatically. Strangely this did not affect anyone on the deck; had I not seen him shift the tiller I should not have known there had been any change to the vessel's orientation. I can only presume that the god behaved as he did in order to avoid some obstacle in the vast chasm we now traversed.

I gave up my strategy of keeping in motion and positioned myself between the tiller and the six-armed monster, slashing at it in a frenzy of whirling blades. Brimstone's flames appeared to have little effect upon it, but I felt that the measure of Lathander's righteous energy that now filled my weapons was somewhat more efficacious.

Then to my surprise Re-Horakhty took action of a sort. The hawk-headed deity emitted a piercing cry of such purity that it was almost painful. Yet at the same time I felt a rush of something I can hardly describe, powerful and fulfilling, and in that moment fully half my wounds closed. I renewed my assault upon my foe with a smile upon my lips and a prayer of gratitude in my heart.

At last the horror fell, and Her-Heken pushed its carcass from the deck with his long pole. It burned to a cinder in the corona of the solar orb. My friends too had been succesful in defeating their opponents and all stood weary but triumphant. More creatures still rained down upon the divine vessel, but their numbers were less and they were not difficult to defeat. We had survived the first major assault upon the barge of the sun.
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Quips & Quotes:

Hedrin: "You don't have to be Mrs. Righteous, you just have to be Mrs. Righteous Now."

Devo: "It slams into you and rocks back."
Zora: "Uh-uh - I Rock here!"

patv: "When you're helpless don't you drop stuff?"
Zora: "You keep hanging onto stuff."

Devo: "What spell is it?"
Hedrin: "Summon Pack and Herd."
Jubilee: "Summon Pakkin?!"

Journal entry 10/6/06

Well Pepa, it begins.

They are telling us that the first and last hours of the Twelve hours of Night are the hardest. And that Set and his minions will attempt to divert the barge to prevent the sun from rising again.

I determined to set myself near the rudder, to prevent anything from diverting the barge from its course. However, we were called up front briefly by Liadan to receive Lathander’s righteous blessings upon our weapons.

That is of course when the attack started. Cursing myself for abandoning my post for something that initially seemed minor, it would eventually turn out to be my saving.

So many horrible things dropped through the sun’s corona it would be near impossible to describe all of them, so I won’t try. Most were burnt to some degree passing through the corona itself, but it would seem the same positive energy the barge emits also affected our enemies, healing their wounds as rapidly as ours.

I immediately headed towards the rear of the barge, where an enormous monstrosity with six arms holding 5 weapons landed and made it’s way to the rudder, where Re-Horakhty and Captain Kherp stood. Telemnar joined me, proving the quicker of the two of us. As he engaged and I was about to, a fiery elemental of sorts landed on the barge and started chanting in the middle of symbol of the sun engraved in the deck. I turned and rushed it in an attempt to stop whatever magics it might be attempting to produce. I assumed that much like our rune circles, this symbol might enhance whatever magics it used. I could not allow that.

After striking it a couple of times, another terribly large monster landed near the front of the barge: a cadaver collector. Liadan yelled in pain and both she and Nekaya faced off against it, while Liadan was attempting to strike at a nightmare-mounted woman flying around the barge. From their cries, I could tell they were hurt. And seeing Telemnar deftly dancing around the multi-limbed creature to the rear, I went to the aid of Liadan.

It would soon be Nekaya that needed the help. I just prayed to Dumathoin that I would not need to be using the burial rites she had just taught me so soon.

Truly Grandfather, I was afraid of the collector. It slammed into us with mighty force, but after my initial strike, I could tell it was made of non-living materials. ‘Tis a shame I had to forego my hammer in favor of the adamantine axe I carry, but you’ve always told me “It’s okay to prefer one weapon above others, but don’t forget that all weapons have their uses. If they didn’t everyone would be carrying around battleaxes.”

This is when I truly appreciated Lathander’s blessings upon our weapons, as the axe chipped away at the collector, and the righteous blessing allowed it to dig deeper than it normally would have. It grabbed Nekaya and stuck her on the spikes on its back, where she struggled helplessly to escape. I re-doubled my efforts and put everything I had into it before it could grab me and add me to its “collection”. Eventually I was able to destroy it and free Nekaya, and some timely healing from Re-Horakhty kept us all standing.

Yes, Re-Horakhty actually spoke where we could truly hear it. It was a glorious sound that was almost more than we could bear. But it healed some of our wounds and Captain Kherp stated that the first part was over, whilst random smaller things attempted to assault the barge, but were easy enough for us to handle.

Nekaya has just informed us that the last hour of night is an actual battle with Set.

I’m not looking forward to that.

End of Night

Our battle was far from finished, but for a time our foes were fewer and less troublesome. I was able to meditate and to see to Aratan. I said a prayer to Corellon Larethian, though in that place I could not determine where the moon lay. When I had rested and prayed I took up position amidships to aid the golden godlings in repelling those demons that sought still to board the barge.

Our hosts informed us that after we passed through a vast cavern known as Respite we would come to the end of our journey - and to the most difficult struggle of the Hours of Night. There the sun god's barge must face his eternal foe, the dark god Set, who would seek with all his might to forestall the rising of the sun.

Respite proved to be a cavern of such immense proportions that Set's swarming minions appeared as ants to my vantage. But all too swiftly the barge traversed that great space and I could see ahead a rift in the cavern wall, swirling with shades of brown and green. My companions and I assembled beneath the canopy to once more be blessed by the righteousness of Lathander, and my friend Rock also gave to me a potion he carried that would arm me against any poisonous venom of Set's minions.

The cleft loomed before us, and now it became apparent that bright sky could be seen beyond, a sight I found heartening until I recognized what formed itself around the opening. Set himself lay in wait there, a serpentine form so large that even the great barge seemed small by comparison. Only my faith held my heart from sinking at that sight.

At the bow of the barge I saw a spider the size of a horse land and threaten both Nehes the navigator and Nekaya, who had taken up a position to defend him. The spider's bloated body seemed to be made entirely of squirming snakes. Then my gaze was drawn away as a serpentine creature landed upon the deck before me. I cut it to ribbons in two slashes and prepared to move toward the bow when I felt something so large land behind me that the entire vessel shook.

I turned to face a huge reptilian blue monster. The beast landed near the center of the barge and let forth a bellow of such fearsome quality that I was left trembling for the space of several breaths. Once again I placed my faith in Corellon and darted in to slash at the beast with both my swords. Rock, too had turned to face the creature. Out of the corner of my eye I saw an armored woman astride a fiery steed land upon the deck, but I determined that the blue horror was the greater threat.

My surmise was confirmed when Rock rushed the creature and it stopped him in his tracks. I rained as many blows on it as I could, but the wounds I made began to close almost as soon as my blades left them. Corellon forgive me, but I felt a touch of despair then.

Then I heard Nehes shout, "It is the End of Night!" and caught a glimpse of a white figure fighting on the wall of the cavern. I could see little more, for my view was obstructed by my terrible foe. The blue beast carried a sword longer than I am tall and swung it at me but I was able to leap over it. Rock determined that thought we could not harm the creature, perhaps he could relieve it of that weapon and struck the monster's blade a mighty blow.

The beast turned to swing at me again and this time I was not quick enough. I was knocked from my feet and sent tumbling across the deck. It was then I saw that some of Set's minions had managed to get into the hold. Little did their efforts avail them, for they were now fleeing the wrath of Pekuah and Califax, and I was proud to see my own Aratan just behind them.

Before I could regain my feet I saw Nekaya leap astride Pekuah and charge across the deck, vaulting over the side into the fiery corona. Califax pursued her with a might bound. Once beyond the solar flames both horses began to fly as though they had grown wings. Then I scrambled to my feet and faced the blue beast once more.

Rock shouted to me, "The sword! The sword!" and I recalled that Brimstone could do more than cut. I exclaimed the command and a ray of flame shot out of the blade to strike the beast. This seemed more effective that stabbing or slashing, but sadly the blade could only perform such an act once each day.

I had observed the monster turning to the woman on the fiery horse more than once, seeming to communicate with her. Surmising that perhaps she commanded the creature, I determined that it might be more effective to eliminate her. Rock appeared to have come to the same conclusion. She attempted to stop him by summoning a hand of magical force to knock him from his feet. I saw that my friend did not look well and moved to aid him when I heard a strange voice pronounce the words, "Re-Horakhty, heal this vessel" and felt my wounds closing. A moment later Rock also seemed recovered.

As Rock and I moved to flank the woman, the blue beast came to assault me once more, sending me off my feet for a second time. The woman chanted some foul spell and Nekaya, who had landed once more upon the barge, suddenly tumbled from Pekuah's saddle to land prone beside me. Her face was pale. I climbed to my knees and quickly administered a healing potion I had carried.

I made to rejoin the fray, but the woman had now called all of the creatures in the area to her side and I could not reach her through the crush of writhing bodies. I saw one of Liadan's rays of holy light sear her, and then she cast the same evil spell she had used a moment earlier, dropping Nekaya near death. I rushed to administer another potion to our brave paladin.

Liadan called on Lathander's power once more, and this time his light dropped the sinister woman to the ground. When she fell the huge blue creature ran to the bow and vaulted off into the cavern. As I caught my breath and turned to follow his retreat, I saw clearly the awesome form of Set looming over the vessel. I could not see how we mere mortals could defend against such a terrible creature. Surely he could consume any of us as easily as we might consume a morsel of food.

Then suddenly a huge figure of a woman with the head of a cat sprang over the barge and began to claw and bite at the serpent god. As they struggled the barge passed through the opening and emerged under the bright sky of day. The godlings called out praises to the goddess Bast for her timely aid.

Gasping in relief, I turned to find that Califax had also landed on the deck safely, and that a man in white was now astride him. It took me a moment to realize how strange this was, for in the past Covenant's steed would scarcely suffer anyone other than his master to touch him, let alone sit astride him. More amazing still was the revelation that this man was Shahu-Se, the End of Night - but he was better known to Nekaya as her former master, Re-Hoten, who had been slain by the wizard Nethimil before ever Nekaya met the rest of our company.

Califax has left us to serve Shahu-Se in the lands of the gods. I am sorry to see the great steed leave us at last, but it was heartening to see him restored to a semblance of his old self, full of strength and beauty. He will serve the End of Night well. This meeting has meant that Nekaya no longer need feel sorrow at the loss of her master. Now she knows that he continues to fight for good even beyond his mortal life.

When Nekaya and her master had said their farewells and Shahu-Se had given Nekaya his blessing, one of the godlings turned to my friends and I and remarked to us that mortals had seldom traveled so long on the barge of the sun. He then asked where we should like to be taken. Nekaya replied that we wished to go to the city of Calimport, our destination before we were carried off to Mulhorand from Havin's keep.

We had no more time than it takes to blink before we found ourselves elsewhere with all of our possessions and mounts. One of the horses let a cry of fear, and I looked around me in awe to realize that we stood upon a winding stair leading up the outer wall of a tall, narrow tower, overlooking a great city.
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Quips & Quotes:

Zora: "If it's an hour per level then we're set."
Devo: "If you're Set then you should be out there."

Devo: "You're not considered large. It's the army that makes you look that way."

Devo: "The nightmare is snorting smoke."
Jubilee: "But did he inhale?"

Devo (puts a mini on top of a salt shaker to represent flight): "She a-salts the ship."

sniffles: "He Rocked her world."
Devo: "That staggers her."
Jubilee: "Does staggering provoke an attack of opportunity?"

House of the Rising Sun

As I stood gazing about me in shock, I realized that I was not alone upon the spire where the godlings had deposited me. The tower was not large enough for its winding stair to accomodate all of our party, but Nekaya and I had arrived on the same tower along with our steeds. The remainder of my friends had each landed separately upon other towers, accompanied by their own mounts. The temple had eight towers in total. As we arrived the faithful were singing a welcome to the dawn, but their voices faltered when they noticed the strange occurrence of our appearance.

Many in the courtyard full of worshippers below began to gawk and point at our predicament. I wondered how we would descend from the towers, for horses are not made to climb down stairs, and some of the mounts faced in the wrong direction for descent. Each tower had a small platform near the summit, but such were too small to permit a horse to turn around.

As we stood wondering what to do, we found ourselves approached by a number of people. One man rode up to Rock aboard a carpet similar to the one we had employed in our assault on Brimstone Keep. A priest climbed the stair up the tower Nekaya and I occupied and began to speak with Nekaya, who stood lower down the stair than I. I caught a glimpse of a man simply flying without visible support toward Erim's vantage.

The flying man must have offered some magic to Erim, for within a few moments both the young mage and his horse had flown down to the courtyard below. The priest with whom Nekaya spoke had descended to seek assistance, and now the flying man approached us. He offered to cast a spell upon both of us and our steeds in return for a few gold coins. Nekaya readily agreed and made at once to pay him. I reflected that had I the ability to aid someone in a similar situation I should not seek remuneration, but I did not reject his offer.

Fortunately Pekuah is as wise as a person and I have sufficient command of Aratan that he would step off the stair at my direction, else we should have had to blindfold them to persuade them to step out into space without visible support.

In the meanwhile the man with the flying carpet had returned with several companions and a much larger carpet. Rock had been busily paying out lengths of rope from the magical spool and using them to lower all of the equipment carried by Filthy Beast to the ground. With his mount and pack pony relieved of their burdens, he was able to lead them onto the carpet and they were lowered safely to the ground.

Once Nekaya and I had reached the courtyard ourselves, Nekaya offered gold to the flying man to go and rescue Liadan. Within a short while all of our party were assembled, though only Pakkin and his wolf had managed to descend the stairs of their own accord.

The man on the flying carpet seemed quite fascinated with us as a result of our peculiar arrival at the temple, and insisted that we must dine with him that evening. He introduced himself as Remmao al-Ka. After a but of discussion with the priests, who were also impressed with us, it was determined that we should remain at the temple that night and visit with Remmao on the following evening.

It was as we led our horses to the stabling the priests offered that we noticed a singular peculiarity about our mounts: with the exception of Wolf-ogre, Pakkin's mount, all of the steeds were floating a tiny distance above the ground! On closer examination it was discovered that all of the horses now wore golden horseshoes that prevented them from touching the earth. We can only assume that this was a gift from the gods of the solar barge.

Those divinities had also given us another gift, in the form of a finely crafted wooden box. Once we had seen to the horses and been shown to accomodations of our own, the box was examined. On a velvet cushion within lay a gold ring marked with symbols of the Mulhorandi gods. A loop of satin ribbon on each side of the cushion indicated that it could be lifted out of the box. But when Rock removed the cushion, he found a second cushion beneath that filled the interior of the box as thoroughly as had the first pillow!

In a split in this cushion we observed a golden amulet or talisman that appeared to be attached to a cylinder of some sort. Two more tabs protruded from the sides of this cushion. A third cushion appeared beneath that, this one containing a rod of gray metal. Below that lay a fourth cushion with a gold scarab resting in a depression at its center.

The box continued to disgorge more cushions than its exterior seemed capable of containing, for under the scarab we found yet two more. The next held a pair of very finely made leather gloves neatly folded into a slot in the center. The last cushion had two gold cylinders tucked into its depths, which proved to be a pair of bracers when withdrawn. We observed that the bracers sunk deeper into the cushion than seemed possible without some magical aid, and that encouraged us to draw out all of the other items to examine them more closely.

The gold ring and scarab were as they appeared, but all of the other items were larger than should have been able to fit into the box. The talisman was in fact the head of a staff that stood my height in length, decorated with a sun symbol. The gray metal object was a short rod of the sort that wizards sometimes employ to contain their spells. Once we had removed all of these items it was discovered that whatever enchantment had permitted them to fit into the box no longer functioned.

After examining these items we retired to our rooms to make ourselves presentable and then made our way to a special chamber where the priests had offered to treat our wounds. We had already learned that this temple is a temple of Lathanul, which is the name by which Lathander is called in this part of the world. The priests were most kind and respectful of us, though it was Liadan who used most of Lathander's mercy to cure our hurts.

We were introduced to a chief priest called Habbath, who asked us to tell him our story. He was most interested in Liadan, having observed the symbol of Covenant's house that she wears. Thus it was she who took the lead in explaining to him all of the events that have befallen us since we first met Covenant's company in Cormyr. Habbath was aware of Covenant's quest for the Gauntlet of Dawn, but he did not appear to place much weight on it.

It was explained to Habbath that our company had sought to visit Calimport in order to learn more of what Covenant intended, so that we might either locate our missing friends or perform some action to aid them in their quest. Habbath then told us that the person most likely to know was Covenant's greatest friend, a man named Osaze Mumbai. He further explained that Mumbai would be difficult to find, but that if we sought another man called Madu el Barake he would likely be able to locate Mumbai. The priest sent out messages to seek this el Barake on our behalf.

We then sought the priest's help in determining the use of the items from the box, as well as other enchanted objects that have lately come into our possession. I neglected to mention earlier that Rock, determined to strip her body of anything of value, had simply thrown the sinister woman we had fought aboard the barge across his pack saddle and she had been transported to the temple along with us. She wore a fine suit of plate armor that Liadan had determined to take possession of once she had purified it of any lingering evil.

We were told a great deal of news from the rest of the world while we relaxed in the temple. Oddly none of us were the slightest bit weary despite our many hours of battle. Among the items of information we learned, we found that the Shades had fully emerged in Anauroch and were reportedly making war on the Dalelands and Cormyr. Liadan immediately began to prepare to use one of Lathander's blessings to contact her family on the morrow.

According to reports, the Shades were also spreading to the west, and rumor held that they might have launched an attack as far away as Waterdeep. I felt concern for my homeland and said prayers to Corellon that Evereska would stand firm against the threat. We also learned that it was fortunate we had passed through Chessenta when we did, for now the neighboring land of Chondath had declared war against Chessenta, seeking to restore its ancient empire.

There was also a disheartening report of a 'cleansing' war in Halruua, where they evidently sought to eliminate sorcery in the fear that all sorcery held some evil connection to their ancient enemies. This of course concerned us greatly, as our dear friend Phaele is a sorcerer by nature and has only just returned to her homeland. We must use the magic book Erim carries to contact Sandrue in Arrabar and see if he can reach her.

Also of concern to us was news that a magical plague had struck the people of Amn to the north of Calimshan, and as a result the citizens of Amn have turned against all use of magic. We have not made any definite plans to travel to Amn, but that is where we last heard of our former companion Fallon Nightstar, and we had entertained thoughts of seeking him in person to learn why he left us and how he returned to his native land.

Once the wizards had been summoned to examine the items from the box - which they did free of cost to us, as those items had been given us by a god closely associated with Lathander - we distributed those items among ourselves. I find myself in possession of the gold ring, which allows one great freedom of movement such that one cannot be held. It is unfortunate we did not have such an object when Nekaya and Rock met the huge creature on the barge that pinned Nekaya to its body.

I have also been given care of Brimstone, as my friends feel it is best suited to my skills. It occurs to me that I may wield it at the same time that I wield my Cormyrian blade. I will not be as effective with a longsword in my off hand as I would be with the shorter blade Nicos gave me, but that loss should be offset by Brimstone's other powers. With practice my ability to wield two longswords should improve.

With the gifts the gods have given us we are now well equipped to meet many foes. The staff, which Liadan has taken charge of, is capable of healing many injuries and even of bringing the dead back to life. The enchanted rod can absorb the magical energy of spells. The golden scarab offers arcane protection to the bearer. The gloves give the wearer greater alacrity and grace, and Liadan has taken them also to offset the cumbersome new armor she acquired. The golden bracers give protection to the wearer. I should in some ways have liked them, but the bracers given me by the dwarves are of equal use.

Among the other items we acquired prior to our journey on the barge, we found a sword capable of holding spells within it, of greater power than the enchanted blade Erim carried. He has taken charge of the new sword and given the older weapon to Rock, as either Erim or Liadan can still store spells in the blade and anyone who wields it can release the spells with the proper command.

I do not know why I am enumerating all these items in such detail. Perhaps it is to distract my mind from concern over my homeland. I shall say further prayers to Corellon for its safety, even as I pray that soon my beloved Erendis and I will be reunited.

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Quips & Quotes:

patv: "Is he in disguise?"
Zora: "Well, sure, he's the sun god. He's in de skies."

Zora (when the golden horseshoes were revealed): "They're Air Harakhty!"

Devo: "You can borrow Pakkin's pants."
sniffles: "Is he Pakkin pants?"
Devo: "No, he's Pakkin heat. A slow, spreading warmth."

Journal entry 11/03/06

Dearest Grandfather,

The final hour of night was upon us. Almost cursing my keen eyesight, I could see many, many dark shapes crawling along the walls of the immense cavern we travelled through.

Even from afar, I could see Set's monstrous serpentine shape writhing around the exit of the 12 hours of night. My vision carried to me the much longed for hours of day that I saw just beyond Set's form.

And we were still quite a ways off from that.

That's when the last assault began from Set's minions. Things bigger than our horses leapt from the cavern walls and suffered the heat of the corona to attack us and the barge. Nay, not us. The Barge. We were but insignificant players upon a stage we had no right being on. But Re-Horakhty's grace allowed us passage and we were honor-bound and blessed to fight beside Him and the godlings, no matter the outcome.

The sorceress astride the nightmare returned, along with some blue monstrosity called a Godslayer. He stopped me in my tracks and we fought furiously back and forth, with Telemnar occasionally darting in to relieve him of some of his flesh. I decided to attack his weapon of choice since I was having a difficult time getting close to him. Turned out to be the wise choice. After striking a terrible blow to his sword and nearly cleaving it in twain, he decided to keep it out of my reach. Upon seeing the sorceress attempting to slay Liadan, I launched my hammer at her mount, causing it to flee abruptly and toss her from its back.

Now on the deck of the barge, the sorceress summoned all of her allies to her side. At this time, I
could hear Nekaya cry out that she could see Shahu-Se, the End of Night. As it turns out, this was to be her former mentor, Re-Hoten. It was he who was opposing Set's minions and helping the Lost to board the Solar Barge. Somehow, the mighty Pekuah had broken free of the hold with Califax in tow, and Nekaya leapt astride her mount and they both charged off of the barge! Califax close behind, and changing once he went through the corona. It seemed as if they were flying, but Shahu-Se mounted Califax and they jumped back to the barge.

Meanwhile, the sorceress was proving a most troublesome opponent. After drawing her attention, she managed to strike me down. As I was starting to slip into the dark, wondering what would happen to my soul, Re-Horakhty spoke and for the second time I could hear his words. They were words of healing to all those aboard the barge, renewing our strength. Feeling almost completely healthy, I renewed my attack on the sorceress. The sorceress managed to down Nekaya, and I doubled my efforts to draw her attention to me. It worked, and she cast some foul magics that allowed her blade to suck the life from me and heal her. Still, I continued pressing the attack to keep her attention when Liadan struck her repeatedly with her holy light of Lathander, felling the witch.

The battle was over.

Now we came upon the time where we would have to face Set.

Suddenly out of nowhere came the cat-headed form of Bast to claw and bite at Set, allowing us to pass freely. We were back into the hours of Day.

I finally got the chance to look upon Shahu-Se -or Re-Hoten- and see that Nekaya's former mentor was a human of strong character. Testament to this was the fact that Califax was actually allowing him to ride the proud steed. Shahu-Se is on a mission to bring about an end to Set's assaults on the Solar Barge.

I hope he succeeds.

The godlings then thanked us for our assistance and asked where we would like to be returned. Still a bit shaken from the prospect of facing Set, I didn't quite understand the question. So when my friends said "Calimport" I didn't think twice, as that was our eventual destination.

As we started to disappear, to my dismay I remembered the armor the southern dwarves were forging for me that I was to pick up on the way to Calimport! Seems I may not get to see their handiwork for awhile.

However, as we appeared, we have found ourselves on the tops of some very tall spires with our mounts!

My thoughts of dwarven-made armor are soon supplanted with concerns of how we are to get down...

Journal entry 12/01/06

Dearest Grandfather,

We appeared atop the minarets of the temple of Lathanul, who is Lathander in this part of the Realm. Our sudden arrival caused some distractions amongst the faithful down below, for which I am truly sorry. To keep my mind on task, I used our newly found magical spool of rope to lower all of my supplies to the ground, unburdening Filthy Beast. To their credit, I believe they were more calm about our predicament than I was.

At some point, a well-dressed man flew up to me and asked if I wanted to buy a potion of flying from him to get down from there. When I pointed out that my animals would still be left up here, he reconsidered and flew to another tower where some of my other friends were placed. Not coming up with much for a solution, I decided to play out a bunch of lengths of rope from this wonderful device, thinking that if I had enough, I'd be able to lower Filthy Beast and Spirit to the ground.

Shortly thereafter, a wealthy-looking gentleman flew up on a rather large magic carpet, flanked on
either side by apparent bodyguards on small carpets. He offered to help me and my animals to
the ground. I thanked him for his generosity and accepted. His name is Remmao al-Ka, and he
seems to be a respected nobleman or merchant of some sort. After getting the three of us to the
ground, he offered my companions and I to dine with him tonight. The priests insisted we stay
at the temple, so I offered a compromise of dining with him on the morrow, after we've had a chance to rest and get our bearings.

On our way to stable our mounts, we realized that all of our mounts with the exception of Wolfogre were walking ABOVE the ground, and not on it. It turns out that they all have golden horseshoes, obvious gifts of the gods. Speaking of gifts of the gods, we were gifted with a box that held some of the most wonderous items I have ever seen.

More on that later.

After putting our stuff into our rooms, we met with a priest by the name of Habbath, who was clearly interested in hearing our story and knew a little about Covenant in return. Whilst he knows of Covenant's quest for this gauntlet and this sword, he clearly doesn't hold much stock in it. He did give us the name of Covenant's closest friend, who might have some more insight or information.

We have also learned some distressing news about the world at large. It seems great uprisings are taking place, from the Shades who have reappeared after their long absence, to Chondath attempting to restore its former glory, to Halruua, where a purging of sorcerors is taking place. I am concerned for Phaele, who had gone there last time we saw her. I hope she's okay. If not, I know that my friends and I might have something to say about it.

After all of this, the priests kindly offered to help us figure out what some of these magical treasures we acquired might do. For posterity purposes, I will only mention the things we received from Re-Horakhty, as they deserve to be noted. We received a gold ring that allows Freedom of Movement; a golden staff with a sun symbol atop it that is a Staff of Life; a dull gray metal cylinder that is a Rod of Absorption; a golden scarab pin that is a Scarab of Protection; 2 finely crafted leather gloves that enhance the wearer's grace and dexterity; and a set of golden bracers that give protection equal to plate armor.

We each took one of the gifts, as it seemed appropriate that there were the same number of gifts as companions. Erim declined however. I just do not understand his reasoning. Even I, and how I feel about my previous behavior regarding such things, would not turn down a gift from the gods. What an honor. Whilst many of them held my interest, I chose to choose last, giving my friends first opportunity. I accepted the golden scarab, as it is small and unobtrusive. And who would not want protection from the gods? No one seemed to want the rod, which could absorb spells directed at the holder, and the stored energy usable later. I think it too useful to sell or part with, so agreed to carry it for the group.

Pepa, I forgot to mention that I have been given the haversack that holds many things in addition to the spool of neverending rope. Due to this honor, a few other things were bestowed into my care. I've always heard of these haversacks, and had been looking to purchase one awhile ago. Now that I have it, I have been thinking long and hard about retiring Filthy Beast. He has served both of us well, Pepa. I believe he should have the chance to rest.

We have also sold some of the other items found and are using some of that money to purchase a Teleport spell so that I may go to the southern dwarves and retrieve my armor.

I have also had the luxury to come into possession of a magical statue of an elephant, the previously mentioned sword that holds a spell -I convinced Telemnar to take possession of Brimstone, as he is much more proficient than I with a sword, and I think I've shown that while it takes some practice, wielding two weapons of roughly the same size can work, a cloak of resistance, and a darkwood buckler.

I've always held to the belief you instilled in me that you're only as good as your mind and body. I know how deeply the loss of your axe affected you, and I won't let myself fall into that trap. I do feel that with the rope, haversack, and the sustaining ring I am ready to take on the world. I feel I have come into my own as an Outwarden and that these are just the right tools for my job.

Just between you and I Pepa, I've always wanted to try out your boots of speediness ever since I could walk. Maybe if I'd stuck around longer after your passing, I might've inherited them. But I'm sure father scooped them up.

Even amidst all the splendor of this city and all of our adventures…I miss you.

I think this is the first letter from Rock that's revealed that his Pepa isn't alive, or am I mistaken?

Also, I don't know if it matters to anyone but me, but Pakkin replaced his pony, Wolfogre, with a wolf when we were in Anhkapur. He named the wolf Sacred.

/ali

House of the Rising Sun (continued)

Calimport is by far the largest city of Men that I have visited in my travels, much larger than Ankhapur and also far older if the structures within are any gauge by which to judge. The aged buildings are covered in white plaster that all but glows in the brilliant sunshine. It is no surprise that the people here should venerate Lathander for his association with light.

It is also very hot here, so much so that I have taken the risk of leaving my chain shirt in my room at the temple of Lathanul. I have been wearing only the enchanted bracers the dwarves bestowed upon me for protection in the oppressive heat.

There seems a wider gulf between wealth and poverty here in Calimport than I have experienced elsewhere. The rich cover themselves and their possessions in gold and gems and dwell in vast palaces, while the poor huddle in the streets, sheltering in doorways with nothing to shield them from the sun but a few miserable rags. I shall have to seek out a temple that gives alms to the poor and make an offering. I fear that handing out coin in the streets could only lead to trouble.

Liadan has performed a ritual for each of us that will cause a contingency enchantment to activate should we be seriously wounded. As yet we have encountered no threats here, but we cannot become complacent.

In a few days' time the armor Rock requested of our dwarven friends will be prepared. As they will not reach this area for some while yet, or perhaps they are not coming here, I am uncertain, Rock has arranged with a wizard to cast a spell that will allow him to travel to them in but an instant. He has invited me to accompany him. It will be another new experience, similar in some respects to the portal that brought us to these southern climes or the divine enchantment that carried us to Calimport, but as yet I have not experienced precisely this form of travel.

Nekaya has found that there is a temple to Elishar here in the city. She reports that it is still active, though it has only a tiny group of faithful worshippers. I think that despite this she is most pleased to at last have found other worshippers of the lost god.

The high priest of this temple told her a tale of the lost god that included mention of a sword that "shall be a dreadnaught". This leaves me wondering if perhaps the Sword of the Dreadnaught which Covenant ultimately sought to locate might in fact be the lost god's sword. I hope that Covenant's friends here may be able to further enlighten us.

Liadan has also found the House of Covenant, which is no surprise as this city is Covenant's home. In contrast to Nekaya I believe she is somewhat disappointed in the House here, for it does not appear to focus so much on providing new beginnings as on gathering wealth. Nonetheless she is glad to have spoken with the leader of the organization, a man called Radagast.

Last evening we dined with Remmao al-Ka, the merchant who aided us in descending the temple spires. He is a dealer in such enchanted carpets as those he employed to assist us. He sent carriages to carry us to his mansion and provided a sumptuous repast, for he is a very wealthy and prominent citizen of this city.

He was most inquisitive about our adventures and our unusual mode of arrival in the city, but courteously sought a different subject when we demonstrated reluctance to share all of our secrets with him. In the course of the evening, when it was mentioned that we should be dining with Madu el Barake, he told us a most edifying story of Covenant's great friend.

According to Remmao's tale, Madu was once a man of immense evil and a feared rival in business to Remmao and other merchants. But Covenant's dearest friend, Osaze Mumbai, was able to convert Madu to the way of light. Madu el Barake is now respected as one of the kindest and most righteous men in the city. By this tale I could also see that Osaze Mumbai must be a righteous man, for he forgave Madu for holding him prisoner and torturing him, and the two are now such dear friends that Madu has given Osaze an entire wing of his palace in which to dwell, though Osaze is seldom in residence.

Remmao also explained to us that we were most fortunate to be able to meet with Madu so soon, for he has only just returned from a voyage to the jungles of Chult, where he regularly travels to return slaves to their homeland and freedom.

----------
I have only just returned from a most edifying visit to the temple of Elishar. Having no errand of import to keep me, I had accompanied Nekaya, Liadan and Rock to the temple. Nekaya had gone to participate in the dawn ceremonies there, and Liadan wished to see the temple for herself.

I met Sutan, an elder who is the high priest there, and also his son Horus and his granddaughters. One of these children is called Nekaya, much to Nekaya's surprise. Even more peculiarly, she has silver hair like Liadan, though Liadan tells me it is not the natural shade of this Nekaya's tresses. Our Nekaya remarks that she observed several women with silver hair from the temple towers, though of course we were too high to see if their hair color was natural. Perhaps it is merely a popular fashion here.

The kindly Sutan spent some little while discussing with us the history of Elishar as we told him of the ruined temple we had discovered in the Cloven Mountains of Sespech, and of the curious murals in the Chamber of Dawn. Naturally Sutan was most interested in our discoveries. In return he told us that the temple had been constructed by four brothers, known as the Soldiers of Light, who had spread the faith of Elishar throughout Faerun upon their arrival in this realm.

Nekaya shared with him the strange prophecy recited to her by the old man with glowing eyes who had aided us against the Shadows in Arrabar. Sutan did not wish to speculate on the interpretation of the prophecy, but his son Horus was less circumspect.

Horus surmises that the light of Elishar is needed to combat the Shadows that will soon oppress the world. He believes that the Shades who have arisen in Anauroch are the Shadows spoken of in the prophecy. The ancient tales known in the temple also speak of a defender of light who must die to recover Elishar's lost sword.

According to the lore of the lost god, one of the Soldiers of Light or some other personage captured all the light of the world in his hand for one day and night. During this time Shadows emerged from the darkness to plague the world. A duke of Hell, who may have been a dragon, took the gauntlet containing the light and secreted it away.

This gauntlet holding the light of the world sounds very like the Gauntlet of Dawn Covenant left us to seek, and the duke of Hell in the story may very well be the dragon with which he sought to treat for possession of the gauntlet. Covenant had also indicated that the gauntlet was necessary to locate the Sword of the Dreadnaught. Though Sutan does not wish to consider all this as fulfillment of the prophecy, it seems very likely to me that we are correct in seeing the sword and the gauntlet as the items spoken of in the ancient lore.

Nekaya has also made an impressive discovery regarding the temple: it contains a portal such as the one we employed to reach the Cloven Mountains when first our company formed. But we do not know where the portal exits, and thus far Sutan would permit only Nekaya to enter the inner sanctum wherein the portal lies.

It is to be hoped that Madu el Barake will be able to acquaint us with Osaze Mumbai, Covenant's bosom friend, who may possess a copy of Covenant's journal containing details of his quest. I pray Corellon give us aid as we come nearer to finding our lost loved ones.

____________________________________________
Quips & Quotes:

Devo: "And for some of you, your asses float a couple of inches off the ground."

Zora: "It's hot. Calimhot."

Devo: "There are stone pews in their pewy place."

Zora: "Don't quit your dye job."

Devo: "They're dressed like priests, but very old-school style."
Jubilee: "That's so 1,000 years ago."

Zora: "Well, he travelled through the desert with no name."
sniffles: "No, that was his horse."
Zora: "That was his Horus."

Zora: "You light me, you really really light me!"

Hedrin: "The paladin-cam. It's black and white."

Journal entry 12/15/06

Dearest Grandfather,

Amidst the splendor of the city and our newfound wealth, I have been untrue to myself. I have just spent more money on a bottle of wine and some incense for a magic spell than I would ever have thought possible. True, I have donated to the Covenant House in reparations for what I owe Covenant himself. But more can be done.

Although I can never truly repay the debt owed to him.

We had dinner with Remmao al-Ka at his expansive estate. It was for him that I purchased the wine. A gift for helping us –out of the kindness of his heart- down from the temple’s spires. He regaled us with a story of Covenant’s closest friend Osaze Mumbai and another friend Madu el Barake, who both have had their own new beginnings with the help of Covenant and Lathander.

As fate would have it, Remmao’s family business is making flying carpets. In fact, it was one of his grandfather’s that Pakkin and I used to assault Brimstone Keep. I complimented his family on excellent craftsmanship, as it did what we needed, even whilst battered and tattered.

On disheartening news, there is an active slave trade here in Calimport. Whilst I find it not to my taste, I understand different cultures have their different beliefs. It has heartened me to hear that Madu el Barake makes trips to Chult to return freed slaves. If I had the resources, that would be a worthy enterprise. Alas, my heart aches to return to Camber to help with the rebuilding. That is first and foremost of my desires. Once we come to a completion of our quest to find Covenant and his companions, I will make haste to return.

Nekaya has found that there is an active temple to Elishar here in Calimport. It has only a handful of attendants, but it exists nonetheless. It is some disrepair, and while Nekaya and the rest were studying the history for clues to her lost god, and a connection to Covenant and his quest for the Sword of the Dreadnought and the Gauntlet of Dawn, I have made a list of supplies needed and work that can be done with myself doing the work. I believe Telemnar will pitch in, as bighearted as he is.

I find that while the sustaining ring is truly a blessing, I have had more than the normal allotment of time to think and ponder the world. I am worried about Camber, and Serrah, and my friends there. My thoughts go to my family, most notably my brothers and sisters. Regrettably, every time I think I should spend money on a Sending spell to contact them, I am afraid of their response and their feelings towards their eldest brother. Do they hate me? Did they get my letter? Have I shamed them more by leaving than by staying?

I also long to talk to Serrah and hear how she’s doing. Dumathoin keep her safe.

Will write more later, as I need to go buy supplies to refinish this temple. As you’ve always said: “Busy hands create a clear mind”.

Jubilee said:

I think this is the first letter from Rock that's revealed that his Pepa isn't alive, or am I mistaken?

Also, I don't know if it matters to anyone but me, but Pakkin replaced his pony, Wolfogre, with a wolf when we were in Anhkapur. He named the wolf Sacred.

/ali

Click to expand...

Sorry Jubilee, I didn't see your response. Yes, you are quite observant AND correct in that this is the first time it's ever been mentioned that his grandfather has passed.

He has been writing letters in a journal to his dead grandfather.