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Story Hour
From the Diary of Doorag Marzipan
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<blockquote data-quote="cthulhu42" data-source="post: 6582029" data-attributes="member: 6792361"><p>Grwfst 7 </p><p></p><p> Today began on an dangerous and unsettling note. </p><p> We spent the morning gathering our supplies for the journey ahead and arranging </p><p>stabling for the mounts that Griff, Happy, Caribdis and Mardath had brought along.</p><p>The horses would not survive the frozen waste that awaited us, so our four riders</p><p>paid handsomely to have them sheltered. </p><p></p><p> I let Caribdis eat a bit of breakfast to take the edge off of his hangover before I</p><p>gathered the crew around a table in the Inn. I took out my scrolls of notes and</p><p>unrolled them. </p><p> </p><p> "As I told Griff last night, Nivin has given us leave to follow our own instincts.</p><p>We are on our own until we return to Havilah. Mardath, Nivin assures me that</p><p>another crew will be dispatched to secure land for your people." Mardath nodded. </p><p></p><p> I carried on. "I spent several hours in the library and came away with a pretty</p><p>good idea of what we’ll be facing, though I have a feeling that Acessiwall is an</p><p>exception among his kind. You see, there are many varieties of dragons, as you </p><p>already know. We fought a young red way back when, and I’m sure you all</p><p>remember how tough that was. Trust me when I say that Acessiwall will be a far</p><p>greater challenge. The red we faced was barely a hatchling. It was still a long way </p><p>from its ultimate power, while Acessiwall, if I understand things correctly, has</p><p>already surpassed the apex of power that most whites dragons reach."</p><p> </p><p> "Let me break what I have down for you point by point: White dragons are </p><p>generally considered one of the weakest of the species, both in terms of raw power</p><p>and intelligence, no offense, Taigel."</p><p></p><p> "Go on." the half dragon said stoically. </p><p></p><p> "Physically Acessiwall will be very strong and he will command many attacks.</p><p>His jaws, claws, wings, and tail can all be used to devastating effect. We also have a</p><p>breath weapon to worry about; a cone of frost which can freeze a man in his tracks. </p><p>He should be able to use it about once every ten to thirty seconds, give or take a</p><p>few." I noticed Caribdis growing a bit pale as I described the beast we were to take</p><p>on, but I paused only for a breath. </p><p></p><p> "Apparently whites can also make surrounding ice extremely slippery. You’ve all</p><p>seen me use ’grease’ spells, so we’ll have to figure out a way to combat that. Then</p><p>there’s the matter of their innate spell like abilities. I still have a bit of research to </p><p>do, so I’ll fill you in on that later. Lets see, what else... ah yes, Acessiwall will be</p><p>extremely tough to hit. I’m imagining that it will take a weapon with an</p><p>enchantment at least as powerful as that of Griff’s sword to make a dent in this </p><p>thing. Fortunately, I believe Caribdis can see to that. As far as spells go, dragons of</p><p>all ilk’s are extremely hard to affect. Acessiwall will have spell resistance that will</p><p>stymie much of what I’ll try to do, not to mention their abilities to simply shrug off</p><p>or avoid most spells. I get the idea from my research that spells that require an </p><p>opponent to dodge to avoid their effects will be the most useful, as they are</p><p>extremely resistant to mind affecting spells, and it should be obvious that things like </p><p>’polymorph’ will be next to useless against him. On top of all that, we can expect</p><p>him to be able to cast spells in much the same way as Caribdis, that is to say,</p><p>spontaneously, and last but not least, there is the matter of an aura of fear that all </p><p>dragons manifest. Griff can attest to this all to well." Griff scowled at me, but I</p><p>ignored it. "All in all, we are outmatched. We must find out what the amulet given</p><p>to Taklinn does, for it may be the only thing that gives us a fighting chance." </p><p> </p><p> We talked for awhile longer, but at last decided to get underway. The journey</p><p>would be a difficult one, for most of us had no steeds. Fortunately Taklinn could</p><p>provide us with comfort from the cold via his clerical magic, and Caribdis would be </p><p>able to raise his Leomund’s shelters when we rested. Still, I foresaw a long and</p><p>arduous journey, though I, of course, planed to ride my firebird. To that end, I</p><p>stepped into the street while the rest gathered their supplies and began the casting. </p><p>They gathered near me as I brought the bird into being. It immediately melted the</p><p>snow beneath it.</p><p> </p><p> No sooner had I summoned the firebird than we were attacked! Flying in low, </p><p>they came over the rooftop of the tavern and landed not twenty feet from us. There</p><p>were two of them; skeletal creatures made of ice, some nine feet tall with nasty</p><p>claws at the ends of long arms. They plodded toward us with uncanny speed. </p><p></p><p> But we were not slow either. Mardath, already carrying his bow, loosed an arrow</p><p>that I had earlier enchanted with a ’shocking bolt’ at one of the skeletons, but he</p><p>missed. He drew his sword as Taklinn stepped forward, holy symbol raised high, </p><p>commanding them to flee. They ignored him, and I got the feeling that these were</p><p>not undead.</p><p></p><p> None of us had yet closed with them, so I took the opportunity to hit them both </p><p>with a fireball which seemed to scorch them badly. Ah, I thought, they don’t like</p><p>fire!</p><p></p><p> Taigel drew two swords, one long and one short, and rushed at one of the </p><p>creatures. He lashed at the thing, but his blade merely glanced off of those icy</p><p>bones. Both of the skeletons fell upon Taigel, scoring hits and nearly downing our</p><p>new guide. Long stripes of blood appeared behind their claws as they ripped open </p><p>Taigel’s flesh. Griff was right behind the half dragon and threw himself at one of the</p><p>skeletons, but he missed as well. </p><p></p><p> Caribdis raced by me, running up behind Taigel and shouting out a rhyme as he </p><p>touched the half dragon, healing many of his wounds, while at the same time Happy</p><p>let loose with a pair of daggers. But these things were very well armored. She</p><p>missed as well! </p><p></p><p> Mardath finally managed to land a blow from his greatsword. He had dropped his</p><p>bow and charged. His steel bit deep, shattering several rib bones on one of the</p><p>creatures, though it still stood in the wake of his attack. </p><p></p><p> Taklinn, having seen the damage my fireball did, summoned the power of</p><p>Clangeden and brought forth a pillar of flame that engulfed one of the skeletons for</p><p>a brief second. When the fire had disappeared, the skeleton was gone as well, </p><p>leaving behind only a few icy bones and a pile of glimmering stones where it had</p><p>stood. I added still more fire of my own with a well placed ’scorching ray’ that hurt</p><p>the remaining skeleton. Taigel slashed away at it, hurting it still further, but not </p><p>before it landed a pair of furious blows on him that nearly downed him again. But</p><p>the skeleton was near death now, and a two handed swing from Griff shattered it</p><p>into pieces. </p><p> </p><p> "What the hell was that all about?" I wondered aloud. </p><p></p><p> We found a surprise in the spot where one of the skeletons had been. A small</p><p>scattering of diamonds! Eighty in all, each valued at around one hundred gold!</p><p>Most fortuitous, though I was still more concerned with what they were and why </p><p>they had attacked us. After examining their few remaining bones, I ascertained that</p><p>they were probably constructs. </p><p> </p><p> We could find no more clues as to their origin, and it was obvious that the people</p><p>of Finch were now more anxious than ever for us to depart their village. We</p><p>complied, and within twenty minutes we could no longer see the town behind us. </p><p> </p><p> I flew, the rest walked, and before long the only view for as far as the eye could</p><p>see was an expanse of white. The snow formed an unbroken blanket that seemed to</p><p>stretch to the very edge of the world. On top of that, the weather plotted against us. </p><p>Toward midday Griff said that there was a storm coming, and though it looked calm</p><p>to me, I didn’t argue when he suggested we get out of the open. Caribdis cast his</p><p>shelter, and we settled in. </p><p></p><p> Within an hour, Griff was proved right, for even as I write in my log our shelter is</p><p>being pounded with winds the likes of which I have never heard. A peek outside</p><p>reveals blinding snow and nothing else. We are in the middle of a blizzard, with no </p><p>way of knowing how long it will last. Taklinn has conjured food for us, and his</p><p>spells keep us from succumbing to the cold, but the shelter is small, we are</p><p>cramped, and I hope that the storm ends soon. We are all eager to be off. </p><p></p><p></p><p> Plntng 1 </p><p></p><p> Marvelous. Less than ten miles from Finch and we’re caught in a bloody blizzard!</p><p>The wind still howls outside, and is a vortex of snow. </p><p> </p><p> I had not noticed before just how small Leomund’s shelter is, but now that there</p><p>are seven of us, and going outside is practically an act of suicide, our cramped</p><p>quarters is only too apparent. </p><p></p><p></p><p> Plntng 2</p><p> </p><p> The blizzard finally died down around noon today and we did our best to make</p><p>some time, though getting through the fresh snow proved a challenge and we</p><p>probably only made a few miles. Happy was forced to ride on Griff’s shoulders, </p><p>though he didn’t even seem to notice her weight. </p><p></p><p></p><p> Plntng 3 </p><p></p><p> Another day of this hellish expanse of snow. Our progress is painfully slow.</p><p>Taklinn cast his own ’firebird’ today, but near the end he elected to dismiss it and </p><p>walk with the others, since he cannot ultimately go any further than they can. In the</p><p>end, my own mount is good for little more than a means for me to not have to be</p><p>carried by a taller member of the crew, and to scout ahead. </p><p> </p><p> We are probably only making about ten miles a day thus far. At this rate it will</p><p>take us a month to get to the mountains. There must be another way! I can only</p><p>teleport myself, and even between the two of us Taklinn and I cannot cast enough </p><p>firebirds for all of us to ride. I will have to give it more thought.</p><p></p><p></p><p> Plntng 5 </p><p></p><p> No entry last night. The days here have quickly fallen into a routine of slogging</p><p>through the snow. We spend the nights in the shelter, perpetually on top of one </p><p>another. Caribdis and Taklinn appear to be especially grating on each other.</p><p>Caribdis continues to drink each night, and here in these cramped quarters it’s</p><p>impossible not to watch him methodically plow through a full cup of hard spirits,</p><p>get sloppy drunk, and pass out. Taklinn has tried to breach the subject, but has been </p><p>told, more or less, to sod off. Caribdis took great offense tonight at Taklinn</p><p>referring to him as ’Boy.’ Caribdis is adamant about his having achieved manhood, </p><p>and demands the title that accompanies it. </p><p></p><p> His hygiene leaves something to be desired too. I understand that we are on the</p><p>road, and certain concessions must be made, but Caribdis has become a bit lax </p><p>altogether, if you take my meaning. </p><p></p><p></p><p> Plntng 6 </p><p></p><p> We were attacked today! I think, deep down in us all, when we spotted the huge</p><p>wolves we were secretly glad for the opportunity to take them on. Anything to </p><p>break up the tedium; the endless view of the tundra, was welcome at that point. </p><p> </p><p> They came bounding across the snow. Three of them; huge wolves of pure white,</p><p>nearly twelve feet long, lips curled back into a snarl, breathing clouds of frigid </p><p>breath as they closed the distance. </p><p></p><p> But it proved to be a difficult battle. Happy was at a distinct disadvantage due to</p><p>her height, and she struggled to move into strategic position after she leapt from </p><p>Griff’s shoulders. </p><p></p><p> I spurred my firebird upwards to hover for a second at thirty feet before veering</p><p>around in a tight circle to drop a fireball onto them. Again I found that creatures of </p><p>this land are susceptible to fire, for the wolf I hit yelped and faltered for a moment</p><p>before catching up to his brothers. </p><p></p><p> They closed. Mardath hit one twice in its broad flank with a pair of ’shocking bolt’ </p><p>arrows. Caribdis roused our spirits with his verse, and let fly his own volley of</p><p>arrows which disappeared to the fletching in another wolf.</p><p></p><p> One of the wolves leapt at Taklinn while the other two flanked Griff. They </p><p>breathed cones of cold before tearing at our friends with flashing teeth, grabbing</p><p>them, shaking their huge heads and tossing them aside like rag dolls, only to pounce</p><p>again. Griff, knocked off his feet, slashed at a wolf muzzle and drew blood, nearly </p><p>cutting the wolf’s nose off. </p><p> </p><p> Taklinn cast ’diamond dust’ before closing with his wolf. Happy saw that Griff</p><p>was in trouble, and ran to his aid, only to be nearly bitten in half. I rained fireballs </p><p>and scorching rays upon them, doing terrible damage, but these wolves could take</p><p>the punishment. They just wouldn’t go down, and Griff and Taklinn were swiftly</p><p>being bled to death. Neither of them could seem to keep their feet long enough to </p><p>put together a solid attack. Taigel hacked away again and again at one of Griff’s</p><p>wolves, while Happy crawled away, bleeding badly, turning to hurl a dagger over</p><p>her shoulder. </p><p></p><p> And then Taklinn went down, as his wolf grabbed him in its jaws, breathed his</p><p>cone point blank, and tossed him to the bloody snow. Mardath charged in, trying to</p><p>drive it away from Taklinn while I unleashed two scorching rays directly onto its </p><p>back. It was burnt and cut to ribbons, but it still stood. </p><p></p><p> And then Caribdis began his fear verse. It radiated from him and affected half of</p><p>us and half of the wolves. What followed was a chaos of our own crew either </p><p>fleeing along with a winter wolf or two, and then turning to rejoin the fight as</p><p>Caribdis would end his effect and begin another one, starting the process all over</p><p>again. </p><p> </p><p> It was an odd, frustrating, but ultimately effective tact, as it gave us a bit of much</p><p>needed breathing room as the wolves broke off and fled for precious seconds. The</p><p>wolves, already terribly wounded, were finally brought down with spell and arrow </p><p>as they tried to charge back in at us. </p><p> </p><p> I landed quickly as Mardath checked Taklinn. "He lives." The barbarian said</p><p>simply. We brought him around with a potion, and he climbed to his feet, still</p><p>wobbly, looking for his wolf. </p><p></p><p> Griff stalked back to where we were, very wounded himself. "I hate that!" he</p><p>snarled at Caribdis. Griff had shared the fear effects of Caribdis’ verse, and I doubt </p><p>there is anything Griff hates more than running from a fight against his will. He spat</p><p>in the snow and went to look after Happy, who was barely standing. </p><p> </p><p> Taklinn and Caribdis healed, and we decided to take a short side trip. It was easy </p><p>to track the wolves back to their lair through the snow, and not a mile from where</p><p>we’d been attacked we found an empty den with a few choice treasures there. Two</p><p>diamond rings and a winged shield that glows of magic made the trek worth it. </p><p></p><p> From the den we set out again, putting a couple of hard miles between us and the</p><p>wolf bodies before turning in for the night. </p><p></p><p> I have formulated a plan to speed us up a bit, but I don’t know if it’s going to </p><p>work. I shall have to broach the subject at dawn. </p><p></p><p></p><p> Plntng 7 </p><p></p><p> My friends are humoring me, I think.</p><p></p><p> This morning I discussed my plan to speed up our travel and was met with mixed </p><p>reactions. More or less, my wish is to summon as many firebirds as I can, and then</p><p>‘polymorph’ at least two of us into rideable flying mounts. However, I</p><p>underestimated the mistrust which some of my companions view magic. Only </p><p>Happy would let me transform her into a small dragon. Mardath, Taigel, Caribdis</p><p>and Griff flatly refused, and though I grumbled a little, it was at last decided that</p><p>Taklinn, Mardath, Caribdis, and I would ride firebirds; Griff would ride Happy in </p><p>her dragon form, and Taigel would fly under the power of his own wings. This all</p><p>seemed a reasonable plan, until I realized just how slow Taigel flies. He is clumsy</p><p>in the air, and I find us still able to go no faster than our slowest companion. True, </p><p>we have nearly doubled our former rate of travel, but it is still a comparative crawl. </p><p> </p><p> I suppose it can’t be helped though. At the very least we may circumvent some of</p><p>the dangers on the ground. Unfortunately this mode of travel exhausts the upper </p><p>reaches of my spell repertoire, and I fear I will be ill prepared should trouble arise. </p><p></p><p> </p><p> Plntng 8 </p><p></p><p> Another blizzard, and we are snowed in again for another long day. How in the</p><p>world can it snow so much! </p><p></p><p></p><p> Plntng 9</p><p> </p><p> The weather cleared late last night and we were off again at dawn, all of us</p><p>gliding in slow circles around Taigel, his wings rapidly pumping to keep him aloft</p><p>as the ground crawled by beneath us. He is exhausted now, and lies in his cot trying </p><p>to recover from the exertion. I feel for him, but I do wish he’d just let me</p><p>polymorph him. I suppose I can’t blame him. He does hardly know me, after all. </p><p> </p><p></p><p> Plntng 10</p><p></p><p> Yet another day forging through the air. We spied another pack of winter wolves </p><p>below us today. They padded along beneath us for several miles, waiting for us to</p><p>land, but they gave up and broke away at last. </p><p> </p><p></p><p> Plntng 11</p><p></p><p> Well, I suppose we can’t stay in the air forever! </p><p></p><p> Another hard day of flying over this ocean of snow brought us a few more</p><p>precious miles toward our goal before we landed for the night. It was dusk, and I </p><p>was just about to dismount, when suddenly a massive snow bank erupted! A furred</p><p>worm of incredible scale, with monstrous mandibles reared back on its coils like</p><p>some monolith serpent, and I recognized it from my studies. A frost worm! </p><p></p><p> I pulled back on the reins of my bird franticly, willing it to lift me into the air and</p><p>out of reach as I hurriedly tried to remember what I knew of these things. The crew</p><p>were already in motion, and though the worm dwarfed them, they bravely hurried to </p><p>meet it with drawn swords and knocked arrows. Griff and Mardath both drew long</p><p>slices in it’s flank, and Taklinn plowed through the snow to get a shot at it as well.</p><p>But the worm seemed not to even notice. It’s huge head swayed back and forth, </p><p>preparing to strike. </p><p></p><p> Then I remembered. </p><p></p><p> The terrible thing about frost worms, aside from their awful attacks, is that even </p><p>when slain they are not through wreaking havok. According to what I could</p><p>remember, once killed, an internal combustion occurs within the body of the worm,</p><p>resulting in a massive explosion! I screamed this information towards my friends, </p><p>yelling at them to flee from it, though I knew they could not possibly out run it.</p><p>Desperately I tried to answer the dilemma, and came up with only one solution. I</p><p>had just one ‘polymorph other’ left, slated to turn Happy back to halfling form for </p><p>the night. It was a long shot, but I would have to hope it worked. </p><p></p><p> Banking my firebird around, I activated my wand of Greater Magical Flow</p><p>Enhancement and felt heightened awareness and power surge through me. Diving </p><p>straight down towards the melee, I saw Taigel stab the worm twice, and Happy snap</p><p>at it with her dragon jaws while Caribdis drew back his bow. Before he could let fly</p><p>his arrows, I held my breath and cast. </p><p></p><p> By all rights, the worm should have easily ignored my spell. Perhaps it was the</p><p>Enhancement, perhaps I just got lucky. Whatever the case, I released the energy at</p><p>the worm, willing it with all my might to change... </p><p></p><p> Into a turtle. </p><p></p><p> I franticly twisted in my saddle, pulling my bird around so that I could see below</p><p>me. The worm was gone, and as I sailed lower I could see that, in its place, was </p><p>indeed, a small turtle. It had worked!</p><p></p><p> “Don’t kill it!” I yelled over the wind, landing my bird clumsily and sliding off</p><p>into the slush. I hurried to where my bemused companions stood around the small </p><p>reptile. </p><p></p><p> “Leave it alone!” I cried again, “Don’t kill it!” I ran to pick it up, gingerly. “This</p><p>thing is still a bomb waiting to happen! Kill it, and it blows us all to kingdom come! </p><p>I’ll get rid of it!” I dropped the turtle into my haversack and remounted the bird,</p><p>willing it into the air. I set a course several miles from our camp and landed once I</p><p>was safely away. I set the turtle down in the snow, releasing it and remounting to </p><p>fly away. Something, I thought, is likely to get a nasty surprise when it bites into</p><p>that turtle! I chuckled to myself. </p><p></p><p> Once back at camp I had to give Happy the news that I had used my last </p><p>‘polymorph’, and that she would have to remain a dragon throughout the night. That</p><p>meant that she could not enter the shelter, and though Taklinn’s spells would</p><p>protect her from the cold, it did nothing for her comfort, and she glowered at me. </p><p>Not willing to let her suffer alone, Griff and I both elected to spend the night</p><p>outside with her.</p><p> </p><p> ***</p><p></p><p> Ye gods, will these monsters never cease to harrier us? No sooner had I drifted off </p><p>into a snooze than Ambros woke me with a warning. He smelled wolf. Sure enough,</p><p>I just had time to cast a fly on myself and rouse Hap and Griff than they came. </p><p>Three of them, launching themselves through the darkness. One was upon me</p><p>before I could react, taking a deep and painful bite out of me before I was able to </p><p>lift off to a safe height. Two of the wolves busied themselves with Griff and Happy</p><p>while the third tore open the shutter to the shelter and poked its nose through, trying</p><p>to bite at those inside who were now awake. I believe that Mardath gave him a </p><p>snoot full of arrows for its trouble. </p><p></p><p> In a split second both Griff and Hap were severely wounded. I mustered my fire</p><p>spells, pelting the wolves with fireballs and scorching rays that would have killed </p><p>dozens of men, but left the wolves still standing, burnt, but alive. </p><p></p><p> Just as it looked as if Griff would fall, Caribdis exited the shelter voicing his fear</p><p>verse. This time it worked as he hoped, and only the wolves were effected. All three </p><p>of them broke and ran, but I was not willing to let them go just to return later. Two</p><p>more fireballs and a scorching ray later, they were all dead.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> Plntng 12</p><p></p><p> I have decided that using all of my most powerful spells to facilitate flight is </p><p>simply too dangerous and puts me at a disadvantage should events like the ones last</p><p>night occur. I will no longer force the issue of flight. Instead, I’ve tried a different</p><p>tact. This morning I cast my allotment of lower tier spells to create enough ‘tensors </p><p>floating disks’ for all to ride. I then polymorphed myself into a dragon and loped</p><p>across the tundra, the disks following me. As it turns out, we actually make better</p><p>time this way. Still not as fast as I’d like, but nearly the road speed of a riding horse, </p><p>and I still have plenty of powerful spells to draw from should I need to.</p><p></p><p> </p><p> Plntng 15 </p><p></p><p> Bah! I have not even bothered to make entries in my journal over the last three</p><p>days other than a few arcane notes to myself. All entries would look much like </p><p>this…</p><p></p><p> “Snow, snow and more snow!” </p><p></p><p> Why belabor the point?</p><p> </p><p> Today has been fraught with some danger and at least some change in Caribdis, </p><p>so it warrants an account.</p><p></p><p> Toward the end of our traveling today Griff sniffed the air and announced that yet</p><p>another blizzard would soon descend upon us. I groaned at the news, but resolved to </p><p>put at least another mile in the books before we broke for the night. Alas, it was not</p><p>to be. No sooner had Griff made his prediction than we spotted two figures flying</p><p>toward us, closing fast. As they drew nearer I could see that they were two more of </p><p>the icy skeleton constructs. I wasted no time in unleashing a fireball at them while</p><p>Mardath and Caribdis did the same with arrows. The pair slowed not a whit. </p><p></p><p> The two skeletons landed in our midst, one of them striking Taklinn who replied </p><p>with a devastating blow from his axe. The other joined in battle with Griff and</p><p>Taigel, it’s gangly arms flailing about and tearing flesh with sharp talons. Caribdis’</p><p>voiced his bardic encouragement above the fray as both he and Mardath attempted </p><p>to use their bows to good effect. As for me, I had, two days earlier, decided to</p><p>Empower a ‘scorching ray’ for just such an opportunity. I let fly with it, striking</p><p>Taklinn’s foe with twin rays of devastating fire. Steam boiled off the skeleton and </p><p>several bones dropped away. It still stood, but barely. </p><p></p><p> We fought in fine unison. Griff, Taigel and Happy bore down on their enemy,</p><p>surrounding it and bringing it down. I attempted a ‘magic missile’ on Taklinn’s, but</p><p>as I suspected, the spell merely fizzled. The failed spell had little bearing on our </p><p>victory however, for Taklinn bashed the thing again and again with his axe, sending</p><p>splinters of freezing bone flying. At last, it fell to the snow with a clatter, leaving </p><p>behind it’s pile of diamonds. Taklinn touched his wounds and made them disappear</p><p>before tending to the others. </p><p> </p><p> “If I didn’t know better, I’d think someone was out to get us!” Happy said with a </p><p>wry laugh as she went to investigate the piles of diamonds left behind. </p><p> </p><p> Caribdis had produced a green bottle from his pack and began drinking deeply</p><p>from it. I could sense the ire in Taklinn before he even said anything. </p><p></p><p> “Drinking already, boy?” our cleric asked in a disapproving voice. “Maybe you</p><p>should lay off that stuff until we’re safe for the night!”</p><p></p><p> Caribdis screwed up his face and took another exaggerated quaff before unloading </p><p>on Taklinn. “I’ll drink anytime I damn well please, cleric!” He spat, with venomous</p><p>emphasis on his last word. “Your not my father, so quit acting like it! And</p><p>furthermore, for the last time, I am not a BOY! I’m a MAN!” </p><p> </p><p> This was too much for me. I had been keeping quiet about Caribdis’ behavior</p><p>throughout this trip, but I could contain myself no more. </p><p> </p><p> “Then quit acting like a spoiled child, Caribdis!” I snapped. “Look at you! Drunk </p><p>half the time, throwing tantrums, letting your appearance go to pot; need I remind</p><p>you that you are a representative of Havilah. The least you can do is conduct</p><p>yourself in a manner becoming of such a title.” </p><p> </p><p> Caribdis rolled his eyes and assumed a much put upon visage. “Ah, to hells with</p><p>the lot of you!” he cried, and stormed off across the snow. Taklinn watched him</p><p>walk away, seething. </p><p></p><p> “Let him go.” Griff said. “He’ll be back.”</p><p></p><p> But he did not come back. An hour passed and we saw no sign of him. Griff</p><p>predicted the blizzard within only a couple of hours, and we began to worry. </p><p>Taklinn, who had been pacing with worry, at last made to follow his tracks, only to</p><p>be stopped by Happy.</p><p> </p><p> “Not you!” She said firmly, “You’ve done enough!” </p><p></p><p> “What does that mean?” Taklinn replied indignantly.</p><p> </p><p> “You treat him like a child,” Happy pointed out, “You’re the reason he’s gone off</p><p>out there, and he won’t follow you back. Griff and I can get him.” </p><p> </p><p> “Like hell you will!” Taklinn fumed, and I could tell that his anger was very near</p><p>the surface. </p><p> </p><p> “Oh for the love of… I’ll go get him!” I said, exasperated. I still had a polymorph </p><p>spell on myself, and assumed the form of a large eagle. I quickly flew off</p><p>low across the snow, following Caribdis’ tracks. </p><p></p><p> I found him less than a mile from the party, struggling gamely through a snow </p><p>bank. I landed in front of him and changed to my normal form. </p><p> </p><p> “What do YOU want?” He sulked. </p><p> </p><p> “Caribdis,” I said gently, “I have come to apologize and to ask you to return with </p><p>me. Griff believes that another of those accursed storms is on the way, and we can’t</p><p>have you caught in it.”</p><p> </p><p> Caribdis stood before me, his face twisted in frustration. “I’m not a boy!” he </p><p>cried. “I’m a man! I’m tired of Taklinn speaking down to me all the time!”</p><p></p><p> “I know. And I know that I am guilty of it too. You must forgive us Caribdis, for</p><p>we, especially Taklinn, think of ourselves as your guardian, an extended parent of </p><p>sorts. And like any parent, it is difficult to let go. Also it is hard to watch you do</p><p>harm to yourself with that bottle night after night and say nothing.”</p><p> </p><p> “Griff drinks all the time!” </p><p></p><p> “Griff is another matter. He chose his path a long time ago. You are still at a</p><p>crucial fork in the road. And besides, lets face it, Griff’s constitution allows him the</p><p>luxury of alcohol.” </p><p> </p><p> Caribdis stood for a moment, shaking with unfocused anger. “I am a man!” he</p><p>shouted at last. </p><p></p><p> “Yes, you are.” I replied.</p><p></p><p> “I am!” he shouted again, as if to convince himself.</p><p> </p><p> “I shall endeavor to treat you like one.” </p><p></p><p> A moment passed and the rage seemed to flow from him, replaced by weariness.</p><p>With a sigh, he turned and followed his own prints back towards the crew. I</p><p>followed him as best I could through the snow. </p><p></p><p> “Doorag,” he said after a moment, “I’m not so sure I like it.”</p><p></p><p> “Not sure you like what?”</p><p> </p><p> “The responsibility!” </p><p></p><p> “Ah, you mean back in Havilah.” I nodded.</p><p> </p><p> “Yes. I mean, I got everything I wanted! I got the girl, I opened my own bar, I</p><p>bought a house, but I’m not… it’s not what I expected.” He lapsed into a brooding </p><p>quiet.</p><p></p><p> “Caribdis, you may be a man, but you are still a young man. You have taken on</p><p>an enormous amount of responsibility because it is what you thought you wanted. </p><p>So perhaps it turns out that the chase was better than the catch. Perhaps living the</p><p>sedate life is not what you really want after all. Who knows? What I do know is</p><p>this: Freya and all of your responsibilities are a long way from here. It has done you </p><p>absolutely no good to dwell on them thus far. We have a mission to accomplish, and</p><p>my advice to you is to forget Havilah for now. These matters will keep, and time</p><p>away from them will give you perspective. For now, focus yourself on the task at </p><p>hand. We are on the road, headed into the jaws of a dragon. For all we know, we</p><p>may all perish and your worries will be moot. Why waste time on concerns that may</p><p>never come to pass?” I offered him a reassuring smile, and for the first time in many </p><p>days, he replied with a genuine smile of his own. “And now, if you don’t mind, I’m</p><p>going to transform myself into something more suitable for traveling across this</p><p>bloody snow! I could become a horse if you’d like to ride?” </p><p></p><p> “No,” He said, “I think I’ll walk.”</p><p> </p><p> I shrugged and polymorphed into a wolf, padding across the snow next to our</p><p>bard in silence until we reached the others. The sky had already begun to boil with </p><p>clouds full of snow, and Caribdis quickly cast his shelter. </p><p></p><p> It is now late, and the winds outside are terrible. Gusts rattle the shutters and find</p><p>their way down the chimney, sending clouds of ash and snow all over us. Caribdis </p><p>has not touched his green bottle tonight, and sleeps now without the aid of alcohol</p><p>for the first time in weeks. </p><p> </p><p></p><p> Plntng 16</p><p></p><p> Caribdis, usually the last to roll out of bed, was up with Taklinn and I this </p><p>morning. We watched, saying nothing, as Caribdis neatly laid out fresh cloths,</p><p>cleaned himself as best he could, shaved, and combed his hair. Our bard whistled a</p><p>tune as he got himself ready for the day, and I marveled at how quickly this young </p><p>man’s mood could turn. </p><p></p><p> We set out again. Taklinn decided to cast his firebird today and fly instead of</p><p>riding a disc. Most of the day he would fly on ahead, scouting out our way, then </p><p>come back to circle us for an hour or so before taking off again.</p><p></p><p> Toward late noon he soared back, landing his bird within several yards of us. He</p><p>dismounted, and I stopped, thinking we were just taking a break. </p><p></p><p> “We’ve got a situation ahead,” He stated, “Maybe three miles on. Four trolls, if I</p><p>recognize them correctly. Big ones. They’re guarding a pass into a mountain range</p><p>we must go through, and they are demanding a toll of one-hundred gold per</p><p>traveler. </p><p></p><p> “A toll?” I laughed. “You can’t be serious!”</p><p></p><p> “Right,” He answered without humor, “A troll toll. And they seemed serious </p><p>enough to me that I wouldn’t take them on alone.” </p><p></p><p> Griff spat on the ground and Happy hummed softly as she picked her nails with a</p><p>dagger. “Let’s go see about this toll.” Griff said flatly, remounting his floating disc. </p><p></p><p> We sped on, Taklinn flying above us, until I spotted the trolls; four big fellows</p><p>bundled in fur and hides against the cold. They stood staggered out across our path</p><p>into the foothills. I stopped about fifty feet from them, changing into my own form. </p><p>Taklinn landed beside us, and soon our two groups stared each other down. Though</p><p>we out numbered them, the trolls seemed not at all afraid. </p><p></p><p> One of them, the largest, stepped forward. “Ah! You’se back!” he hollered at </p><p>Taklinn in broken common, “You’se have brought your fellas to pay da toll, no?”</p><p> </p><p> I’m sure that Taklinn was about to say no to that, but before he could, Caribdis</p><p>began to rhyme in a sing-song voice. He spouted some ribald poem about a jester </p><p>and the queens handmaiden. His timbre and rhythm were such that I could almost</p><p>see the eyes of the trolls glaze over. They stood, utterly transfixed, fascinated by</p><p>him. He took a few more steps toward the trolls, and we followed him cautiously. </p><p>“No spells or attacks,” he said, inserting instruction for us smoothly into a new</p><p>series of limericks, “Or the gig will be up!”</p><p></p><p> “Dat sure is a funny poem!” One of the trolls yelled, clapping his breastplate with </p><p>glee.</p><p></p><p> “Ya! Ya! His leader agreed. “But you’se still gotta pay da toll!” he added, still</p><p>smiling at Caribdis. </p><p> </p><p> “What now, maestro?” Griff growled. </p><p> But Caribdis seemed not at all worried, and I noticed a subtle shift in the pitch of</p><p>his voice. I recognized his ‘suggestion’ at work. </p><p></p><p> “Listen now good trolls, and you will see! We simply should not pay your fee!”</p><p>Our bard rhymed. </p><p> </p><p> The troll leader seemed to consider this for a moment, then brightened. “Ya, dats </p><p>true!” He grunted, “You’se don’t gotsta pay!</p><p></p><p> Caribdis bowed low and ushered us ahead. Still not fully trusting in our bards</p><p>ability to con our way past this lot, we were cautious in our approach. The three </p><p>other trolls, though still hypnotized by Caribdis’ verse, looked a bit troubled at the</p><p>thought of letting us pass. Still, they would not challenge the word of their leader,</p><p>and we managed to nearly get beyond them before Caribdis decided to up the ante. </p><p>Still rhyming his way through a new tale of royal debauchery, he began to insert</p><p>another suggestion directed toward the troll leader. </p><p></p><p> “At last we’ve passed without tax or toll, perhaps, good sir, you should give us </p><p>YOUR gold!” </p><p></p><p> I gritted my teeth when I realized what Caribdis was up to, and Taklinn had to</p><p>visibly restrain himself from wringing his neck, but to my astonishment, the troll </p><p>agreed!</p><p> </p><p> “Ya!” He crowed happily, “You’se a mighty fine fella! You’se kin have da loot!”</p><p>With that, the troll trotted into one of two nearby hide tents and returned in seconds </p><p>with a bulging sack that clinked of coinage. He made to give it to Caribdis, but this</p><p>proved to be too much for the other three trolls. </p><p></p><p> “Bah!” One of them cried, “Tag’s done gone ‘round da bend! He’s gonna give </p><p>‘em da loot!” With that, the three trolls forgot all about Caribdis’ rhyme and</p><p>bounded toward us, filthy claws and tree trunk clubs brandished. </p><p> </p><p> “Aw, screw this!” I heard Griff mutter. I heard his sword leave it’s sheath, and </p><p>that was enough to break Tag, the troll leader from his own fascination. The big</p><p>fellow shook his head and looked down at the bag of gold, surprised to find it there.</p><p>With a bellow, he dropped the bag and raised his own club. </p><p></p><p> Things happened very quickly. I had already cast a ‘fly’ on myself, and so bore</p><p>straight up to a height of thirty feet. I looked down to see Caribdis take a heavy </p><p>smack across the body from a gnarled tree trunk held in the hands of a troll. Taklinn</p><p>and Mardath intercepted another. Taigel drew his blades and took a third by himself</p><p>while Happy and Griff flanked the leader. I made to pelt Taigel’s troll with a </p><p>‘scorching ray’, but changed my mind at the last minute, electing instead to save</p><p>Caribdis’ life with a ‘hold monster’. The dim witted troll froze in his tracks.</p><p>Caribdis winked a thanks at me and drew his bow, launching a series of arrows to </p><p>aid Taigel. </p><p></p><p> To be sure, we were more than a match for the remaining three trolls, even though</p><p>I was unable to overcome unexpected spell resistance from the lead troll. But even </p><p>that did not save him from Happy and Griff. The two of them spilt his guts over a</p><p>five yard span. I had better luck with the lesser trolls, finding them easy marks for</p><p>scorchers and magic missiles. Taklinn waded into the threat range of his troll, his </p><p>axes slicing green flesh and cracking bone. Mardath pincered the troll with Taklinn,</p><p>his greatsword hacking into it again and again. As they downed theirs, Hap and</p><p>Griff raced to help Taigel, and the last troll soon fell into a heap. There was still the </p><p>matter of the held troll, and Caribdis killed it with a single arrow to the forehead.</p><p></p><p> “Don’t stop hacking them!” I cried, “They regenerate! We need fire to keep them</p><p>dead!” I flew into one of the tents, hoping to find oil or other combustibles while </p><p>our warriors continued to stab the bodies. </p><p> </p><p> “Humph!” Taklinn grinned. He had just the ticket. He led his firebird to a troll</p><p>body and had the creature sit on it. Within seconds there was little left but a mound </p><p>of putrid flesh. He repeated the process with the remaining three bodies, and at last</p><p>the threat was over.</p><p></p><p> “Caribdis, why?” Hap moaned, her eyes rolling in exasperation, “Why did you </p><p>have to push them for their gold? We could have walked right on by them!”</p><p></p><p> Caribdis grinned and pushed a lock of hair from his boyish face. “Well, we</p><p>couldn’t just leave them here to rob other travelers,” he said, “And besides, they </p><p>might have a few goodies we can use.” He could barely conceal his mischievous</p><p>smile as he went into a tent to have a look around.</p><p></p><p> As it turned out, Caribdis was right. The trolls had apparently had good luck </p><p>fleecing hapless travelers, even in this desolate waste. Their tents were ripe with</p><p>some very select treasure. Not only did we find a substantial sum of gold, but</p><p>several items of magic as well, not the least of which is the armor that Tag, their </p><p>leader, wore. This cache is good enough that we have decided to stay here an extra</p><p>day so that I can identify our finds in hopes that they can help us against the dragon.</p><p>I must rest now, for tomorrow will be a long day for me. </p><p></p><p></p><p> Plntng 17</p><p> </p><p> An arduous eight hours after sunrise I was able to shed some light as to the nature</p><p>of the magical treasure we’ve found. These trolls were rich by any standards, and I</p><p>am now quit happy that Caribdis would not be satisfied to simply let us circumvent </p><p>them. Of course he did have a point with regard to not leaving them behind to</p><p>harass other travelers, but from a standpoint of pure greed, I can’t help but admit</p><p>that I’d have been loath to leave such treasure behind. The armor alone would have </p><p>been worth the battle! My voice shook a little with excitement when I told the</p><p>others what it was. </p><p></p><p> “I wouldn’t be surprised if it has a name,” I said, holding the studded leather, “But </p><p>I don’t know what it is. What I can tell is that it holds a maximum enchantment,</p><p>much like the bracers and ring we found on Melesandre. On top of that, it provides</p><p>spell resistance!” </p><p></p><p> Beyond that, I ‘identified’ a ring of warmth, several potions and scrolls, a picture</p><p>frame that can hold a small illusion permanently, and a wand of silence with several </p><p>charges left in it. No wonder they had no fear of magic! </p><p></p><p> I also tried to identify Taklinn’s amulet, but I met with limited success. All I</p><p>could get was an esoteric clue that it can ‘trigger an unquenchable rage in a white </p><p>dragon’. I sense that there is much left to uncover within the amulet, but it will</p><p>require a much stronger dweomer than a simple ‘identify’. I have thus decided to</p><p>cast ‘analyze dweomer’ on it at the first opportunity. It’s a spell that I have only </p><p>recently learned, and until tonight had not even possessed the material component</p><p>for. I announced that I would be making another teleport jaunt to Havilah to pick up</p><p>the component, and within seconds I was gone. </p><p></p><p> The lens I needed was expensive, but I deemed further knowledge about the</p><p>amulet worth the cost. I also decided to treat the crew to a fine dinner that night, and</p><p>after my shopping I went to The Golden Crow, one of Havilah’s finer eateries, and </p><p>had them crate up a smorgasbord of delectable dinners, complete with roasted boar,</p><p>bisque, fruit, fresh bread, wine and pie for dessert. I teleported the whole affair back</p><p>to the shelter with me and we dined in style that night. Happy looked at me agog, as </p><p>if she had only just understood the potential of ‘teleport’. </p><p></p><p> “You just blipped back to Havilah?” She asked, mouth open.</p><p></p><p> “Well, yes.” I replied. </p><p></p><p> “And brought all this back?”</p><p></p><p> “I’ve done this before, Hap…”</p><p></p><p> “And you can do this anytime you want?” </p><p> </p><p> “Well, technically speaking I can only teleport so many times per day, but</p><p>basically, yes. Understand though, teleporting is not an exact science. There is a</p><p>slim but very real possibility that I could end up far away from my intended </p><p>location. I have to be quite careful, and it is always wise to have a back up teleport</p><p>in case I need to try it again.”</p><p></p><p> Much of my explanation was lost on her. She still seemed utterly awed by the idea </p><p>of instant transportation, and I think it was just dawning on her how powerful</p><p>wizards can be. </p><p></p><p> “I don’t suppose, umm, maybe you could pick up one or two things for me next </p><p>time you go?” She asked, somewhat shyly. </p><p></p><p> “Of course!” I laughed. “I’d be happy to, though I don’t know when I’ll be going</p><p>again. I don’t like to press my luck, but if I do, make me a list and I’ll take care of </p><p>it.”</p><p></p><p> After dinner I approached Taklinn. </p><p></p><p> “Ah, Taklinn,” I began, unsure how to phrase my request, “Do you, er, happen to </p><p>have an extra holy symbol of Clangeden on you?”</p><p></p><p> He looked at me, surprised. “Yes, I have one. Why do you ask?”</p><p></p><p> “Well,” I said, “I was wondering if I might wear it, unless you think it might be in </p><p>some way sacrilegious.” </p><p></p><p> He looked quite perplexed. “No, it would not be. But why, Doorag? Are you</p><p>thinking of converting?” </p><p></p><p> “No!” I laughed, “Not at all! It’s just that, well, Clangeden has healed me more</p><p>than a few times, and while I have little use for the gods, I would be the last to deny</p><p>that I’d most certainly have been dead ten times over if not for him. I merely wish </p><p>to show my gratitude by wearing his symbol.”</p><p></p><p> Taklinn nodded in understanding. He produced a simple symbol of unassuming</p><p>steel and placed it around my neck. “May his strength and wisdom guide and </p><p>protect you, my friend.” He said. </p><p></p><p> I write now with a belly full of The Golden Crow’s finest, though I am terribly</p><p>tired. We have elected to march on to Latona, a small city supposedly located only </p><p>two days from here, before I attempt to ‘analyze’ the amulet, as the spell is most</p><p>taxing. </p><p></p><p></p><p> Plntng 19</p><p> </p><p> I have been sitting here for an hour looking at the blank page, unable to write the</p><p>truth. My pen has dried up three times. To scribe the events of the day is to make</p><p>them real; permanent. </p><p> </p><p> Caribdis is dead. Swallowed by a rhemorez. Only hours from Latona, nearly</p><p>within view of it’s walls. Senseless. Meaningless. My heart feels like dead stone</p><p>within my chest. </p><p></p><p> Caribdis is dead. </p><p></p><p> </p><p></p><p></p><p> Plntng 24 </p><p> </p><p> I am in Havilah. Ostensibly the reason for my being here is to craft a few items; a</p><p>pair of gloves of strength for Griff, a periapt of wisdom for Taklinn, and a belt of </p><p>many pouches for Hap. A more oblique reason, though probably more important, is</p><p>that it has given me an opportunity to immerse myself in work; to clear my mind of</p><p>the shock of Caribdis’ death, or at least to work out the emotional tangle it has </p><p>instilled within me. </p><p> </p><p> I have tried several times over the last five days to relate the events of his death,</p><p>but I have been unable to do more than stare numbly at the page. I have resolved to </p><p>try again.</p><p> </p><p> It was the 19th.. We had been traveling most of the day and by our reckoning</p><p>Latona should have been only a few hours away. We were all eager to make the </p><p>city, to finally have some relief from the endless miles of ice and snow. </p><p></p><p> I was in the form of a small dragon, making steady progress across the snow with </p><p>the rest of the crew seated on their disc’s behind me.</p><p></p><p> We never saw them coming.</p><p></p><p> The ground directly before me suddenly heaved and burst open. A horrific and </p><p>huge head burst from the earth. Heat radiated off of it in terrible waves, and it’s</p><p>mandibled jaws snapped at me before I had a chance to even think about reacting.</p><p>The mandibles tore into me and I reeled back, near death. The head was followed </p><p>by a centipede-like body. The thing, which I instantly recognized as a rhemorez,</p><p>scuttled from it’s hole with a speed which seemed impossible for something so big.</p><p></p><p> Two more of them burst from the snow on either side of us. </p><p></p><p> The crew leapt from their disc’s, weapons flashing. Happy hurled a dagger into</p><p>the flank of the one on our left. Taigel charged for the same rhemorez and sunk one</p><p>of his swords into it to the hilt. He pulled back nothing else, as the metal of his </p><p>blade simply melted away. </p><p> </p><p> The rhemorez to our right scuttled forward into our midst. It towered over</p><p>Caribdis, who had yet to react. With a single terrible bite, it struck, biting him </p><p>around the waist, hoisting him upward and swallowing our bard with apparent ease.</p><p>One minute he was standing there, the next, he had vanished down the things throat.</p><p></p><p> Taklinn screamed in anguish. He and Griff reached the rhemorez simultaneously, </p><p>Griff with his sword and Taklinn with a spell. But our luck was still bad. Griff</p><p>overdrew himself, falling against the creature, and I could hear the sizzle of his</p><p>flesh against it’s body. He grunted in pain and pulled away, leaving charred skin</p><p>stuck to it’s hide. Taklinn reached out and touched the rhemorez, casting his spell. </p><p>Even through his gauntlet the heat seared his hand. He commanded it to die, but the</p><p>rhemorez ignored him. </p><p></p><p> Knowing that I could not withstand another bite, I pumped my wings and flew</p><p>straight upward until I was out of their reach. Unfortunately I could not cast in</p><p>dragon form. I concentrated on changing to my own form as I invoked a contingent </p><p>‘fly’ upon myself.</p><p></p><p> By the time I had shifted to my true nature, it was over. The rhemorez are vicious</p><p>and can mete out tremendous damage, but they can take little of it themselves. </p><p>Taigel and Mardath took down one. Griff and Taklinn hacked the one that had</p><p>swallowed Caribdis furiously. It died from a long gash in it’s flank cut by Griff.</p><p>Steam and lava-like ichors gushed from it, and I saw a booted leg jut from it’s belly. </p><p>Griff followed through with the same sword slash to finish the last, which had</p><p>already been wounded by Happy. Even as the final rhemorez collapsed, Taklinn</p><p>was dragging the charred body of Caribdis from the rhemorez carcass. In shock, I </p><p>landed next to his body. I did not even have to ask if he was dead. His cloths were</p><p>burnt away, his jewelry melted, his bow immolated. Taklinn clenched his fists in</p><p>rage and sorrow and raised them to the sky as a scream of impotent rage tore from </p><p>his throat. He looked at me with stricken eyes, touched Caribdis’ body, uttered a</p><p>word, and disappeared. He had taken our dead friend with him. </p><p></p><p> Stunned silence followed. The attack, the death of Caribdis, even the knowledge </p><p>that Taklinn could somehow teleport; it all combined to send us into utter shock.</p><p>Mardath, in his simple barbarian logic, did not seem to comprehend the gravity of</p><p>what had happened. “Too bad about the dandy fellow.” He said, blithely. “At least </p><p>he died a fine death!”</p><p></p><p> A rage tried to well up within me. I wanted to tell Mardath to shut up, to tell him</p><p>that he had no right to speak of such a death with frivolity, but shock and sorrow </p><p>overwhelmed all other emotion, and I could do nothing but stare at the melted slush</p><p>where his body had lain.</p><p></p><p> A tiny voice of logic still spoke in the distance of my mind. I knew that there were </p><p>magic’s that could bring Caribdis back. I knew that Taklinn possessed such</p><p>magic’s, but I also knew that the spell must be cast within a very short time of</p><p>death. I had to assume that Taklinn had not prepared the spell, and had somehow </p><p>shifted himself and the body to a place where it could be done. I had been</p><p>considering teleporting Caribdis to the temple of Clangeden in Havilah in a</p><p>desperate bid to get him to a powerful cleric there before Taklinn had gone, but was </p><p>beat to the punch. A tiny glimmer of hope blossomed within me. Surely Taklinn</p><p>would know what to do. Surely he would get Caribdis’ body to a worthy priest in</p><p>time to have the ‘raise dead’ cast. Surely he would return with our friend, a little </p><p>worse for wear, but still alive. I held onto that small glimmer, though I dared not</p><p>voice it to my friends, lest I give them false hope.</p><p></p><p> Griff was grim, his face ashen, but he was ever pragmatic. “We should be on to </p><p>Latona.” He said. “This place is not safe. We will have to hope that Taklinn can</p><p>somehow contact us.” </p><p></p><p> We did not argue with his logic. Wordlessly we picked ourselves up and began </p><p>the last leg of our journey. </p><p></p><p> Within an hour we sighted the city walls. Taigel made an announcement. “I will</p><p>not enter the city.” He said. “They are very prejudiced against my kind there, and I </p><p>would not be allowed entry. I will wait for you here. Don’t worry, the cold will not</p><p>affect me.” </p><p></p><p> I didn’t like the idea of leaving him to fend for himself, and told him so. “Stay </p><p>here until noon tomorrow, then take your ring off and I’ll scry you. I’ll come and</p><p>get you when we’ve found an inn. I can make you invisible and we’ll get you</p><p>inside.” He nodded in agreement and sat down to wait. </p><p></p><p> The rest of us made our way to the city gates. As we neared them I received a</p><p>‘sending’. The voice of Taklinn spoke in my mind, “Use the bracelet. Bring me </p><p>back. No Caribdis.”</p><p></p><p> I returned the message. “Soon. Take your ring off.”</p><p> </p><p> I was referring, both in Taklinn and Taigel’s case, to the rings of non-detection </p><p>that they wore. Earlier we had wondered about the separate attacks by skeleton ice</p><p>constructs. I hypothesized that Acessiwall was somehow scrying his son (though I</p><p>had seen no sensors), so Caribdis had given Taigel his ring, reasoning that </p><p>Acessiwall had not seen him, and therefore would not scry him. </p><p></p><p> Latona is a rough and ramshackle town, filled with mostly humans, all of them of</p><p>hardy stock to live this far north. We were allowed entry by suspicious guards who </p><p>told us of a decent inn not far away. We made for it and purchased rooms as fast as</p><p>we could. Once inside, I drew forth my crystal ball and scyed Taklinn. </p><p></p><p> I found our cleric in a tomb carved from living stone. Torchlight from two </p><p>sconces on the walls threw back only a little of the shadow on his face. Behind him,</p><p>another dwarf dressed in clerical garb passed my line of sight and disappeared</p><p>through a door. Taklinn sat in silent vigil over the body of Caribdis, now covered </p><p>with a blanket and lying atop a stone slab. I hung my head and the rest of the crew</p><p>watched as I reached into a pouch and withdrew the Bracelet of Friends that I had</p><p>crafted in Havilah. Around it’s length hung seven charms, each keyed to an </p><p>individual. Taklinn was one of those. I pulled his charm loose from the bracelet, it</p><p>seemed to melt into nothingness in my hand, and then he was there, standing in the</p><p>room with us. He looked as if he had aged several years, and his armor still bore the </p><p>stain of battle, an unheard of occurrence for our fastidious friend. He looked around</p><p>the room at our faces, saw all of the questions that we could not bring ourselves to</p><p>ask. He spoke. </p><p></p><p> “I did not have a ‘raise dead’ prepared.” He said with unusual quiet. “I used a</p><p>‘word of recall’ to transport Caribdis’ body and myself to my mountain home, into</p><p>the temple of Clangeden that lies there. I knew that there would be priests there </p><p>capable of casting the spell, if not from memory, then from a scroll. At first they</p><p>refused. Caribdis is…” He stopped, drew a ragged breath, and started again,</p><p>“Caribdis was not a dwarf, and my brethren felt no compulsion to raise him. </p><p>Precious time was wasted, but I was most insistent. At last, they complied, and the</p><p>spell was cast in time.” </p><p></p><p> Taklinn walked to the table and poured himself a cup from the bottle that Griff </p><p>had left out. He drank deeply before continuing. </p><p></p><p> “When an attempt to return one to life is made, the spirit of that person is</p><p>contacted and invited to come back. The spirit has free will to accept or refuse the </p><p>offer.”</p><p></p><p> “Caribdis declined.”</p><p></p><p> My jaw dropped. “What? Why!” </p><p> </p><p> “I do not know.”</p><p> </p><p> “But… but…” I sputtered, “Why!”</p><p> </p><p> “I do not know.” </p><p> </p><p> Happy slid off of her chair. “I need a drink.” She said, tersely, and slammed the</p><p>door behind her as she left. </p><p></p><p> Taklinn sighed. “You are still wounded,” He said. Indeed, all of us still bore </p><p>wounds from the rhemorez. I, myself, could barely stand. Taklinn reached toward</p><p>Griff, voicing a healing spell that we can repeat almost as well as he can. </p><p></p><p> Griff cut him off. “Don’t touch me.” He spat. “Keep your god, Taklinn. I don’t </p><p>want Clangeden’s help.” His words were measured, quiet, and hard as steel. Taklinn</p><p>looked stricken, as if Griff had slapped him in the face. Griff stood and left the</p><p>room without another word, still bearing his wounds, and a rage that was almost</p><p>palpable. </p><p> </p><p> Taklinn looked at the rest of us helplessly, cut deeply by Griff’s words. “Perhaps</p><p>Happy is right,” He said, “Perhaps a drink is in order.” He left for the inns common </p><p>room, and presently, Mardath followed him, shrugging at me as he left. I was alone</p><p>in the room. I spoke a word, and disappeared.</p><p> </p><p> ***</p><p></p><p>I appeared inside the stone chamber I had scryed earlier. Caribdis still lay on the </p><p>stone slab and the torches still flickered, but the tomb was otherwise empty. I</p><p>climbed up on the slab and sat cross-legged on it’s edge, next to his body. He was</p><p>still horribly burnt. His hair was gone, and most of his features were badly </p><p>disfigured, but I could still make out face. </p><p></p><p> Why?</p><p></p><p> Again and again I asked the question. Why, Caribdis? Why did you not come </p><p>back? </p><p></p><p> Finally, I just sat there with him. I was not disturbed, and three hours later, I</p><p>teleported back to the inn. </p><p></p><p> I did not sleep that night, but no one returned to the room and I was disinclined to</p><p>leave. It was not until late morning that I discovered what had become of my crew </p><p>that night. Happy, Taklinn and Mardath had gotten deep in their cups. They drank</p><p>until the alcohol overcame them and they slept in the common room. </p><p></p><p> Griff had apparently stalked the city streets until he found a fight of some kind. </p><p>The details are unclear, but the city guard was involved, as was a small fine and a</p><p>night in the Latona jail. At noon I scryed Taigel and went to find him. I had still not</p><p>memorized my spells, for my night had been less than restful so he had to agree to </p><p>being polymorphed into a human as a disguise to enter the city. He was not pleased</p><p>with the idea, but it was preferable to spending the long nights hidden on the tundra. </p><p></p><p> A short time after, we had all gathered again. It was late noon, and we were seated </p><p>on floor, chairs and bed in one of the rooms we’d rented. I looked at Taklinn, his</p><p>face was motionless, but his eyes bore an expression of profound guilt and sorrow.</p><p>Griff was stone faced. Happy busily ran a stone over one of her daggers. </p><p></p><p> Taigel was the first to break the silence.</p><p></p><p> “Caribdis is dead. I am sorry. He seemed a well intentioned lad, and you were all</p><p>obviously fond of him. I grieve for his passing. Yet we still have the question of </p><p>Acessiwall to contemplate. We are one less now, and we grow nearer to his lair. I</p><p>believe we are only a hundred and fifty miles, give or take, from his mountain. Are</p><p>you still confident that we can take him?” </p><p></p><p> I groaned inwardly. It seemed almost blasphemous to already be talking about our</p><p>mission in the recent wake of Caribdis’ death, but Taigel was right. </p><p></p><p> “I don’t know.” I answered honestly. “Caribdis was not only a hell of an archer </p><p>and a great combat healer, he also made us better at what we did. His verse was</p><p>indispensable. I don’t know that he ever realized how important it was. It will be a</p><p>tough go without him.” </p><p></p><p> “Furthermore,” I said, “I’d still like to do some more research on dragons,</p><p>specifically Acessiwall. I would like to try to determine his age if I can. That would</p><p>give us a much clearer picture of what we’re going up against. He has been referred </p><p>to as ancient, but I hope to narrow that down a little. But before I do that, I want to</p><p>try to ‘analyze’ the amulet. I am hoping that it somehow holds the key to</p><p>Acessiwall’s defeat. To that end, I will need space, quiet, and time. I intend to retire </p><p>to the next room and rest, after which I will begin work. I should be casting by nine</p><p>o’clock, and the spell will probably take up most of the night, if not much of</p><p>tomorrow. Once I have determined the amulets powers, we will be able to better</p><p>gauge our chances against the dragon.” </p><p></p><p> Taigel considered this. “Very well then. We should post a guard outside your</p><p>door. We will reconvene when you have more information for us, Doorag.” </p><p></p><p> I went into the next room and shut the door. I suddenly felt incredibly tired, and as</p><p>my head touched the pillow I fell into a hard slumber. </p><p> </p><p> ***</p><p></p><p> Exactly eight hours later I awoke. It took me a moment to remember where I was</p><p>and what had happened. I realized once again that Caribdis was gone and felt that</p><p>sharp sorrow anew. Sighing, I went about my morning ritual. In due course, after a </p><p>bit of breakfast delivered by Mardath, I asked Taklinn for the amulet. I locked</p><p>myself in the room with no other company than Ambros and went to work. </p><p></p><p> ‘Analyze Dweomer’ is a potent yet taxing spell, and like ‘identify’, takes a fair </p><p>amount of time to cast. In the end, I had to cast it twice in a row. The whole process</p><p>took nearly twenty hours, and by the time I stumbled out of that small room I was</p><p>exhausted, but flush with knowledge. </p><p></p><p> I gathered the crew about me and explained what I had learned. </p><p></p><p> The amulet had several functions, at least one of which still eluded me. I was</p><p>quite frustrated by that fact, and hoped for one more opportunity before we met the </p><p>dragon, but I had uncovered much. The results were less than promising. </p><p></p><p> The amulet can be used against white dragons and half-white dragons. Apparently</p><p>it was crafted specifically to deal with Acessiwall, for it requires either his blood, or </p><p>the blood of one of his descendants to activate. As I had hypothesized before, a very</p><p>small amount of blood is required. As to what exactly it’s function is, the amulet</p><p>will drive the targeted dragon into a frenzy of rage, similar to that of Mardath when </p><p>he is in battle. The down side of this is that it actually increases the dragons</p><p>physical strength, as well as a few other factors. The supposed up side is that the</p><p>dragon cannot flee and will fight until either it’s death, or the death of the amulets </p><p>wearer. </p><p></p><p> Finding out the amulets secrets did not give us much hope. All it appeared</p><p>capable of was to insure that Acessiwall would not flee while making him all the </p><p>more strong! </p><p></p><p> But Taigel reasoned that it may prove valuable. His father was a spell caster, and</p><p>as such, would certainly use magic to escape at the first sign of the battle going </p><p>against him. I was still doubtful. The odds were heavily against us actually turning</p><p>any such confrontation in our favor, and I had hoped that the amulet would</p><p>somehow be the key to doing that. </p><p> </p><p> Taigel delivered still more bad news when he told us of at least one ally of his</p><p>fathers that he knew about. A wizard of no small power named Helious is in</p><p>cahoots with Acessiwall. I groaned at this news. Not only a dragon, but a wizard as </p><p>well? </p><p></p><p> On a hunch, I scryed first Acessiwall, then Helious. My chances of finding them</p><p>were slim at best, given only their names, but luck was with me. My first scrying </p><p>revealed a sheet of white scales. As my sensor pulled back, Acessiwall came into</p><p>view and I gaped. He was massive. With an irritated gesture he dispelled my sensor,</p><p>but not before I caught a glimpse of his lair. I was also able to find Helious, though </p><p>he dispelled my sensor just as easily with a wand. </p><p></p><p> My next order of business was two-fold, I explained to the crew. One, I would</p><p>return to Havilah to research more about Acessiwall and dragons, and two, I would </p><p>pick up whatever gear we felt we might need. Happy gave me her list, and in a short</p><p>while I was gone.</p><p></p><p> Unfortunately my research revealed little. It was near impossible, given my </p><p>limited information, to narrow down the age of Acessiwall. I found only one</p><p>reference to him in an old tome, a poorly written account of his attack on a caravan</p><p>many years before that left few survivors and was particularly brutal, even by </p><p>dragon standards. It was of little value. After a frustrating day in the library, I</p><p>shopped for Happy, then returned to Latona with the seed of another goal in mind. </p><p></p><p> I explained to the crew that we were obviously outmatched in this coming</p><p>confrontation, but that perhaps we could even the odds a bit given the judicious</p><p>application of a few magic’s. I volunteered my services as an artificer once again, </p><p>explaining carefully (especially to Griff) that I could craft items which would</p><p>enhance them. In the end Taklinn, Griff and Happy parted with enough gold to</p><p>facilitated the items they needed made, and the following day (the 23rd) I ported</p><p>back to Havilah once again and got to work. </p><p></p><p> I heave an inward sigh as I write this, for had my friends taken me up on this</p><p>same offer during our seven month sojourn in Havilah, not only would the items I </p><p>could have crafted been far more powerful, they would not have cost me my</p><p>personal essence. Still, I feel that the need for them is worth the cost to myself. I am</p><p>crafting Griff a set of ‘gloves of ogre power’, Taklinn a ‘periapt of wisdom’, and </p><p>Happy a ‘belt of many pouches’. They have recompensed me with gold, which is</p><p>always desirable. </p><p></p><p> The crafting process will take several days. I can only hope that my friends can </p><p>stay out of trouble. I also hope that Taklinn and Griff can somehow work things out</p><p>between them. Griff still refuses Taklinn’s healing touch, and I can sense a great</p><p>strain on their friendship. </p><p> </p><p> As I began my work today I thought more of Caribdis. Why? The question keeps</p><p>up it’s incessant nagging in the back of my mind. Why did he elect not to return? I</p><p>cannot overcome this desire to speak with him one last time, to ask him that </p><p>question. I fear that I have become slightly obsessed with it, and to that end I have</p><p>begun some research into the area of communication with the dead in what little</p><p>spare time I have. </p><p></p><p> I have also resolved to go to Freya tomorrow and break the news of Caribdis’</p><p>death to her. No matter what Caribdis’ final disposition towards her may have been,</p><p>she has a right not to hear it from the mouth of strangers.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="cthulhu42, post: 6582029, member: 6792361"] Grwfst 7 Today began on an dangerous and unsettling note. We spent the morning gathering our supplies for the journey ahead and arranging stabling for the mounts that Griff, Happy, Caribdis and Mardath had brought along. The horses would not survive the frozen waste that awaited us, so our four riders paid handsomely to have them sheltered. I let Caribdis eat a bit of breakfast to take the edge off of his hangover before I gathered the crew around a table in the Inn. I took out my scrolls of notes and unrolled them. "As I told Griff last night, Nivin has given us leave to follow our own instincts. We are on our own until we return to Havilah. Mardath, Nivin assures me that another crew will be dispatched to secure land for your people." Mardath nodded. I carried on. "I spent several hours in the library and came away with a pretty good idea of what we’ll be facing, though I have a feeling that Acessiwall is an exception among his kind. You see, there are many varieties of dragons, as you already know. We fought a young red way back when, and I’m sure you all remember how tough that was. Trust me when I say that Acessiwall will be a far greater challenge. The red we faced was barely a hatchling. It was still a long way from its ultimate power, while Acessiwall, if I understand things correctly, has already surpassed the apex of power that most whites dragons reach." "Let me break what I have down for you point by point: White dragons are generally considered one of the weakest of the species, both in terms of raw power and intelligence, no offense, Taigel." "Go on." the half dragon said stoically. "Physically Acessiwall will be very strong and he will command many attacks. His jaws, claws, wings, and tail can all be used to devastating effect. We also have a breath weapon to worry about; a cone of frost which can freeze a man in his tracks. He should be able to use it about once every ten to thirty seconds, give or take a few." I noticed Caribdis growing a bit pale as I described the beast we were to take on, but I paused only for a breath. "Apparently whites can also make surrounding ice extremely slippery. You’ve all seen me use ’grease’ spells, so we’ll have to figure out a way to combat that. Then there’s the matter of their innate spell like abilities. I still have a bit of research to do, so I’ll fill you in on that later. Lets see, what else... ah yes, Acessiwall will be extremely tough to hit. I’m imagining that it will take a weapon with an enchantment at least as powerful as that of Griff’s sword to make a dent in this thing. Fortunately, I believe Caribdis can see to that. As far as spells go, dragons of all ilk’s are extremely hard to affect. Acessiwall will have spell resistance that will stymie much of what I’ll try to do, not to mention their abilities to simply shrug off or avoid most spells. I get the idea from my research that spells that require an opponent to dodge to avoid their effects will be the most useful, as they are extremely resistant to mind affecting spells, and it should be obvious that things like ’polymorph’ will be next to useless against him. On top of all that, we can expect him to be able to cast spells in much the same way as Caribdis, that is to say, spontaneously, and last but not least, there is the matter of an aura of fear that all dragons manifest. Griff can attest to this all to well." Griff scowled at me, but I ignored it. "All in all, we are outmatched. We must find out what the amulet given to Taklinn does, for it may be the only thing that gives us a fighting chance." We talked for awhile longer, but at last decided to get underway. The journey would be a difficult one, for most of us had no steeds. Fortunately Taklinn could provide us with comfort from the cold via his clerical magic, and Caribdis would be able to raise his Leomund’s shelters when we rested. Still, I foresaw a long and arduous journey, though I, of course, planed to ride my firebird. To that end, I stepped into the street while the rest gathered their supplies and began the casting. They gathered near me as I brought the bird into being. It immediately melted the snow beneath it. No sooner had I summoned the firebird than we were attacked! Flying in low, they came over the rooftop of the tavern and landed not twenty feet from us. There were two of them; skeletal creatures made of ice, some nine feet tall with nasty claws at the ends of long arms. They plodded toward us with uncanny speed. But we were not slow either. Mardath, already carrying his bow, loosed an arrow that I had earlier enchanted with a ’shocking bolt’ at one of the skeletons, but he missed. He drew his sword as Taklinn stepped forward, holy symbol raised high, commanding them to flee. They ignored him, and I got the feeling that these were not undead. None of us had yet closed with them, so I took the opportunity to hit them both with a fireball which seemed to scorch them badly. Ah, I thought, they don’t like fire! Taigel drew two swords, one long and one short, and rushed at one of the creatures. He lashed at the thing, but his blade merely glanced off of those icy bones. Both of the skeletons fell upon Taigel, scoring hits and nearly downing our new guide. Long stripes of blood appeared behind their claws as they ripped open Taigel’s flesh. Griff was right behind the half dragon and threw himself at one of the skeletons, but he missed as well. Caribdis raced by me, running up behind Taigel and shouting out a rhyme as he touched the half dragon, healing many of his wounds, while at the same time Happy let loose with a pair of daggers. But these things were very well armored. She missed as well! Mardath finally managed to land a blow from his greatsword. He had dropped his bow and charged. His steel bit deep, shattering several rib bones on one of the creatures, though it still stood in the wake of his attack. Taklinn, having seen the damage my fireball did, summoned the power of Clangeden and brought forth a pillar of flame that engulfed one of the skeletons for a brief second. When the fire had disappeared, the skeleton was gone as well, leaving behind only a few icy bones and a pile of glimmering stones where it had stood. I added still more fire of my own with a well placed ’scorching ray’ that hurt the remaining skeleton. Taigel slashed away at it, hurting it still further, but not before it landed a pair of furious blows on him that nearly downed him again. But the skeleton was near death now, and a two handed swing from Griff shattered it into pieces. "What the hell was that all about?" I wondered aloud. We found a surprise in the spot where one of the skeletons had been. A small scattering of diamonds! Eighty in all, each valued at around one hundred gold! Most fortuitous, though I was still more concerned with what they were and why they had attacked us. After examining their few remaining bones, I ascertained that they were probably constructs. We could find no more clues as to their origin, and it was obvious that the people of Finch were now more anxious than ever for us to depart their village. We complied, and within twenty minutes we could no longer see the town behind us. I flew, the rest walked, and before long the only view for as far as the eye could see was an expanse of white. The snow formed an unbroken blanket that seemed to stretch to the very edge of the world. On top of that, the weather plotted against us. Toward midday Griff said that there was a storm coming, and though it looked calm to me, I didn’t argue when he suggested we get out of the open. Caribdis cast his shelter, and we settled in. Within an hour, Griff was proved right, for even as I write in my log our shelter is being pounded with winds the likes of which I have never heard. A peek outside reveals blinding snow and nothing else. We are in the middle of a blizzard, with no way of knowing how long it will last. Taklinn has conjured food for us, and his spells keep us from succumbing to the cold, but the shelter is small, we are cramped, and I hope that the storm ends soon. We are all eager to be off. Plntng 1 Marvelous. Less than ten miles from Finch and we’re caught in a bloody blizzard! The wind still howls outside, and is a vortex of snow. I had not noticed before just how small Leomund’s shelter is, but now that there are seven of us, and going outside is practically an act of suicide, our cramped quarters is only too apparent. Plntng 2 The blizzard finally died down around noon today and we did our best to make some time, though getting through the fresh snow proved a challenge and we probably only made a few miles. Happy was forced to ride on Griff’s shoulders, though he didn’t even seem to notice her weight. Plntng 3 Another day of this hellish expanse of snow. Our progress is painfully slow. Taklinn cast his own ’firebird’ today, but near the end he elected to dismiss it and walk with the others, since he cannot ultimately go any further than they can. In the end, my own mount is good for little more than a means for me to not have to be carried by a taller member of the crew, and to scout ahead. We are probably only making about ten miles a day thus far. At this rate it will take us a month to get to the mountains. There must be another way! I can only teleport myself, and even between the two of us Taklinn and I cannot cast enough firebirds for all of us to ride. I will have to give it more thought. Plntng 5 No entry last night. The days here have quickly fallen into a routine of slogging through the snow. We spend the nights in the shelter, perpetually on top of one another. Caribdis and Taklinn appear to be especially grating on each other. Caribdis continues to drink each night, and here in these cramped quarters it’s impossible not to watch him methodically plow through a full cup of hard spirits, get sloppy drunk, and pass out. Taklinn has tried to breach the subject, but has been told, more or less, to sod off. Caribdis took great offense tonight at Taklinn referring to him as ’Boy.’ Caribdis is adamant about his having achieved manhood, and demands the title that accompanies it. His hygiene leaves something to be desired too. I understand that we are on the road, and certain concessions must be made, but Caribdis has become a bit lax altogether, if you take my meaning. Plntng 6 We were attacked today! I think, deep down in us all, when we spotted the huge wolves we were secretly glad for the opportunity to take them on. Anything to break up the tedium; the endless view of the tundra, was welcome at that point. They came bounding across the snow. Three of them; huge wolves of pure white, nearly twelve feet long, lips curled back into a snarl, breathing clouds of frigid breath as they closed the distance. But it proved to be a difficult battle. Happy was at a distinct disadvantage due to her height, and she struggled to move into strategic position after she leapt from Griff’s shoulders. I spurred my firebird upwards to hover for a second at thirty feet before veering around in a tight circle to drop a fireball onto them. Again I found that creatures of this land are susceptible to fire, for the wolf I hit yelped and faltered for a moment before catching up to his brothers. They closed. Mardath hit one twice in its broad flank with a pair of ’shocking bolt’ arrows. Caribdis roused our spirits with his verse, and let fly his own volley of arrows which disappeared to the fletching in another wolf. One of the wolves leapt at Taklinn while the other two flanked Griff. They breathed cones of cold before tearing at our friends with flashing teeth, grabbing them, shaking their huge heads and tossing them aside like rag dolls, only to pounce again. Griff, knocked off his feet, slashed at a wolf muzzle and drew blood, nearly cutting the wolf’s nose off. Taklinn cast ’diamond dust’ before closing with his wolf. Happy saw that Griff was in trouble, and ran to his aid, only to be nearly bitten in half. I rained fireballs and scorching rays upon them, doing terrible damage, but these wolves could take the punishment. They just wouldn’t go down, and Griff and Taklinn were swiftly being bled to death. Neither of them could seem to keep their feet long enough to put together a solid attack. Taigel hacked away again and again at one of Griff’s wolves, while Happy crawled away, bleeding badly, turning to hurl a dagger over her shoulder. And then Taklinn went down, as his wolf grabbed him in its jaws, breathed his cone point blank, and tossed him to the bloody snow. Mardath charged in, trying to drive it away from Taklinn while I unleashed two scorching rays directly onto its back. It was burnt and cut to ribbons, but it still stood. And then Caribdis began his fear verse. It radiated from him and affected half of us and half of the wolves. What followed was a chaos of our own crew either fleeing along with a winter wolf or two, and then turning to rejoin the fight as Caribdis would end his effect and begin another one, starting the process all over again. It was an odd, frustrating, but ultimately effective tact, as it gave us a bit of much needed breathing room as the wolves broke off and fled for precious seconds. The wolves, already terribly wounded, were finally brought down with spell and arrow as they tried to charge back in at us. I landed quickly as Mardath checked Taklinn. "He lives." The barbarian said simply. We brought him around with a potion, and he climbed to his feet, still wobbly, looking for his wolf. Griff stalked back to where we were, very wounded himself. "I hate that!" he snarled at Caribdis. Griff had shared the fear effects of Caribdis’ verse, and I doubt there is anything Griff hates more than running from a fight against his will. He spat in the snow and went to look after Happy, who was barely standing. Taklinn and Caribdis healed, and we decided to take a short side trip. It was easy to track the wolves back to their lair through the snow, and not a mile from where we’d been attacked we found an empty den with a few choice treasures there. Two diamond rings and a winged shield that glows of magic made the trek worth it. From the den we set out again, putting a couple of hard miles between us and the wolf bodies before turning in for the night. I have formulated a plan to speed us up a bit, but I don’t know if it’s going to work. I shall have to broach the subject at dawn. Plntng 7 My friends are humoring me, I think. This morning I discussed my plan to speed up our travel and was met with mixed reactions. More or less, my wish is to summon as many firebirds as I can, and then ‘polymorph’ at least two of us into rideable flying mounts. However, I underestimated the mistrust which some of my companions view magic. Only Happy would let me transform her into a small dragon. Mardath, Taigel, Caribdis and Griff flatly refused, and though I grumbled a little, it was at last decided that Taklinn, Mardath, Caribdis, and I would ride firebirds; Griff would ride Happy in her dragon form, and Taigel would fly under the power of his own wings. This all seemed a reasonable plan, until I realized just how slow Taigel flies. He is clumsy in the air, and I find us still able to go no faster than our slowest companion. True, we have nearly doubled our former rate of travel, but it is still a comparative crawl. I suppose it can’t be helped though. At the very least we may circumvent some of the dangers on the ground. Unfortunately this mode of travel exhausts the upper reaches of my spell repertoire, and I fear I will be ill prepared should trouble arise. Plntng 8 Another blizzard, and we are snowed in again for another long day. How in the world can it snow so much! Plntng 9 The weather cleared late last night and we were off again at dawn, all of us gliding in slow circles around Taigel, his wings rapidly pumping to keep him aloft as the ground crawled by beneath us. He is exhausted now, and lies in his cot trying to recover from the exertion. I feel for him, but I do wish he’d just let me polymorph him. I suppose I can’t blame him. He does hardly know me, after all. Plntng 10 Yet another day forging through the air. We spied another pack of winter wolves below us today. They padded along beneath us for several miles, waiting for us to land, but they gave up and broke away at last. Plntng 11 Well, I suppose we can’t stay in the air forever! Another hard day of flying over this ocean of snow brought us a few more precious miles toward our goal before we landed for the night. It was dusk, and I was just about to dismount, when suddenly a massive snow bank erupted! A furred worm of incredible scale, with monstrous mandibles reared back on its coils like some monolith serpent, and I recognized it from my studies. A frost worm! I pulled back on the reins of my bird franticly, willing it to lift me into the air and out of reach as I hurriedly tried to remember what I knew of these things. The crew were already in motion, and though the worm dwarfed them, they bravely hurried to meet it with drawn swords and knocked arrows. Griff and Mardath both drew long slices in it’s flank, and Taklinn plowed through the snow to get a shot at it as well. But the worm seemed not to even notice. It’s huge head swayed back and forth, preparing to strike. Then I remembered. The terrible thing about frost worms, aside from their awful attacks, is that even when slain they are not through wreaking havok. According to what I could remember, once killed, an internal combustion occurs within the body of the worm, resulting in a massive explosion! I screamed this information towards my friends, yelling at them to flee from it, though I knew they could not possibly out run it. Desperately I tried to answer the dilemma, and came up with only one solution. I had just one ‘polymorph other’ left, slated to turn Happy back to halfling form for the night. It was a long shot, but I would have to hope it worked. Banking my firebird around, I activated my wand of Greater Magical Flow Enhancement and felt heightened awareness and power surge through me. Diving straight down towards the melee, I saw Taigel stab the worm twice, and Happy snap at it with her dragon jaws while Caribdis drew back his bow. Before he could let fly his arrows, I held my breath and cast. By all rights, the worm should have easily ignored my spell. Perhaps it was the Enhancement, perhaps I just got lucky. Whatever the case, I released the energy at the worm, willing it with all my might to change... Into a turtle. I franticly twisted in my saddle, pulling my bird around so that I could see below me. The worm was gone, and as I sailed lower I could see that, in its place, was indeed, a small turtle. It had worked! “Don’t kill it!” I yelled over the wind, landing my bird clumsily and sliding off into the slush. I hurried to where my bemused companions stood around the small reptile. “Leave it alone!” I cried again, “Don’t kill it!” I ran to pick it up, gingerly. “This thing is still a bomb waiting to happen! Kill it, and it blows us all to kingdom come! I’ll get rid of it!” I dropped the turtle into my haversack and remounted the bird, willing it into the air. I set a course several miles from our camp and landed once I was safely away. I set the turtle down in the snow, releasing it and remounting to fly away. Something, I thought, is likely to get a nasty surprise when it bites into that turtle! I chuckled to myself. Once back at camp I had to give Happy the news that I had used my last ‘polymorph’, and that she would have to remain a dragon throughout the night. That meant that she could not enter the shelter, and though Taklinn’s spells would protect her from the cold, it did nothing for her comfort, and she glowered at me. Not willing to let her suffer alone, Griff and I both elected to spend the night outside with her. *** Ye gods, will these monsters never cease to harrier us? No sooner had I drifted off into a snooze than Ambros woke me with a warning. He smelled wolf. Sure enough, I just had time to cast a fly on myself and rouse Hap and Griff than they came. Three of them, launching themselves through the darkness. One was upon me before I could react, taking a deep and painful bite out of me before I was able to lift off to a safe height. Two of the wolves busied themselves with Griff and Happy while the third tore open the shutter to the shelter and poked its nose through, trying to bite at those inside who were now awake. I believe that Mardath gave him a snoot full of arrows for its trouble. In a split second both Griff and Hap were severely wounded. I mustered my fire spells, pelting the wolves with fireballs and scorching rays that would have killed dozens of men, but left the wolves still standing, burnt, but alive. Just as it looked as if Griff would fall, Caribdis exited the shelter voicing his fear verse. This time it worked as he hoped, and only the wolves were effected. All three of them broke and ran, but I was not willing to let them go just to return later. Two more fireballs and a scorching ray later, they were all dead. Plntng 12 I have decided that using all of my most powerful spells to facilitate flight is simply too dangerous and puts me at a disadvantage should events like the ones last night occur. I will no longer force the issue of flight. Instead, I’ve tried a different tact. This morning I cast my allotment of lower tier spells to create enough ‘tensors floating disks’ for all to ride. I then polymorphed myself into a dragon and loped across the tundra, the disks following me. As it turns out, we actually make better time this way. Still not as fast as I’d like, but nearly the road speed of a riding horse, and I still have plenty of powerful spells to draw from should I need to. Plntng 15 Bah! I have not even bothered to make entries in my journal over the last three days other than a few arcane notes to myself. All entries would look much like this… “Snow, snow and more snow!” Why belabor the point? Today has been fraught with some danger and at least some change in Caribdis, so it warrants an account. Toward the end of our traveling today Griff sniffed the air and announced that yet another blizzard would soon descend upon us. I groaned at the news, but resolved to put at least another mile in the books before we broke for the night. Alas, it was not to be. No sooner had Griff made his prediction than we spotted two figures flying toward us, closing fast. As they drew nearer I could see that they were two more of the icy skeleton constructs. I wasted no time in unleashing a fireball at them while Mardath and Caribdis did the same with arrows. The pair slowed not a whit. The two skeletons landed in our midst, one of them striking Taklinn who replied with a devastating blow from his axe. The other joined in battle with Griff and Taigel, it’s gangly arms flailing about and tearing flesh with sharp talons. Caribdis’ voiced his bardic encouragement above the fray as both he and Mardath attempted to use their bows to good effect. As for me, I had, two days earlier, decided to Empower a ‘scorching ray’ for just such an opportunity. I let fly with it, striking Taklinn’s foe with twin rays of devastating fire. Steam boiled off the skeleton and several bones dropped away. It still stood, but barely. We fought in fine unison. Griff, Taigel and Happy bore down on their enemy, surrounding it and bringing it down. I attempted a ‘magic missile’ on Taklinn’s, but as I suspected, the spell merely fizzled. The failed spell had little bearing on our victory however, for Taklinn bashed the thing again and again with his axe, sending splinters of freezing bone flying. At last, it fell to the snow with a clatter, leaving behind it’s pile of diamonds. Taklinn touched his wounds and made them disappear before tending to the others. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think someone was out to get us!” Happy said with a wry laugh as she went to investigate the piles of diamonds left behind. Caribdis had produced a green bottle from his pack and began drinking deeply from it. I could sense the ire in Taklinn before he even said anything. “Drinking already, boy?” our cleric asked in a disapproving voice. “Maybe you should lay off that stuff until we’re safe for the night!” Caribdis screwed up his face and took another exaggerated quaff before unloading on Taklinn. “I’ll drink anytime I damn well please, cleric!” He spat, with venomous emphasis on his last word. “Your not my father, so quit acting like it! And furthermore, for the last time, I am not a BOY! I’m a MAN!” This was too much for me. I had been keeping quiet about Caribdis’ behavior throughout this trip, but I could contain myself no more. “Then quit acting like a spoiled child, Caribdis!” I snapped. “Look at you! Drunk half the time, throwing tantrums, letting your appearance go to pot; need I remind you that you are a representative of Havilah. The least you can do is conduct yourself in a manner becoming of such a title.” Caribdis rolled his eyes and assumed a much put upon visage. “Ah, to hells with the lot of you!” he cried, and stormed off across the snow. Taklinn watched him walk away, seething. “Let him go.” Griff said. “He’ll be back.” But he did not come back. An hour passed and we saw no sign of him. Griff predicted the blizzard within only a couple of hours, and we began to worry. Taklinn, who had been pacing with worry, at last made to follow his tracks, only to be stopped by Happy. “Not you!” She said firmly, “You’ve done enough!” “What does that mean?” Taklinn replied indignantly. “You treat him like a child,” Happy pointed out, “You’re the reason he’s gone off out there, and he won’t follow you back. Griff and I can get him.” “Like hell you will!” Taklinn fumed, and I could tell that his anger was very near the surface. “Oh for the love of… I’ll go get him!” I said, exasperated. I still had a polymorph spell on myself, and assumed the form of a large eagle. I quickly flew off low across the snow, following Caribdis’ tracks. I found him less than a mile from the party, struggling gamely through a snow bank. I landed in front of him and changed to my normal form. “What do YOU want?” He sulked. “Caribdis,” I said gently, “I have come to apologize and to ask you to return with me. Griff believes that another of those accursed storms is on the way, and we can’t have you caught in it.” Caribdis stood before me, his face twisted in frustration. “I’m not a boy!” he cried. “I’m a man! I’m tired of Taklinn speaking down to me all the time!” “I know. And I know that I am guilty of it too. You must forgive us Caribdis, for we, especially Taklinn, think of ourselves as your guardian, an extended parent of sorts. And like any parent, it is difficult to let go. Also it is hard to watch you do harm to yourself with that bottle night after night and say nothing.” “Griff drinks all the time!” “Griff is another matter. He chose his path a long time ago. You are still at a crucial fork in the road. And besides, lets face it, Griff’s constitution allows him the luxury of alcohol.” Caribdis stood for a moment, shaking with unfocused anger. “I am a man!” he shouted at last. “Yes, you are.” I replied. “I am!” he shouted again, as if to convince himself. “I shall endeavor to treat you like one.” A moment passed and the rage seemed to flow from him, replaced by weariness. With a sigh, he turned and followed his own prints back towards the crew. I followed him as best I could through the snow. “Doorag,” he said after a moment, “I’m not so sure I like it.” “Not sure you like what?” “The responsibility!” “Ah, you mean back in Havilah.” I nodded. “Yes. I mean, I got everything I wanted! I got the girl, I opened my own bar, I bought a house, but I’m not… it’s not what I expected.” He lapsed into a brooding quiet. “Caribdis, you may be a man, but you are still a young man. You have taken on an enormous amount of responsibility because it is what you thought you wanted. So perhaps it turns out that the chase was better than the catch. Perhaps living the sedate life is not what you really want after all. Who knows? What I do know is this: Freya and all of your responsibilities are a long way from here. It has done you absolutely no good to dwell on them thus far. We have a mission to accomplish, and my advice to you is to forget Havilah for now. These matters will keep, and time away from them will give you perspective. For now, focus yourself on the task at hand. We are on the road, headed into the jaws of a dragon. For all we know, we may all perish and your worries will be moot. Why waste time on concerns that may never come to pass?” I offered him a reassuring smile, and for the first time in many days, he replied with a genuine smile of his own. “And now, if you don’t mind, I’m going to transform myself into something more suitable for traveling across this bloody snow! I could become a horse if you’d like to ride?” “No,” He said, “I think I’ll walk.” I shrugged and polymorphed into a wolf, padding across the snow next to our bard in silence until we reached the others. The sky had already begun to boil with clouds full of snow, and Caribdis quickly cast his shelter. It is now late, and the winds outside are terrible. Gusts rattle the shutters and find their way down the chimney, sending clouds of ash and snow all over us. Caribdis has not touched his green bottle tonight, and sleeps now without the aid of alcohol for the first time in weeks. Plntng 16 Caribdis, usually the last to roll out of bed, was up with Taklinn and I this morning. We watched, saying nothing, as Caribdis neatly laid out fresh cloths, cleaned himself as best he could, shaved, and combed his hair. Our bard whistled a tune as he got himself ready for the day, and I marveled at how quickly this young man’s mood could turn. We set out again. Taklinn decided to cast his firebird today and fly instead of riding a disc. Most of the day he would fly on ahead, scouting out our way, then come back to circle us for an hour or so before taking off again. Toward late noon he soared back, landing his bird within several yards of us. He dismounted, and I stopped, thinking we were just taking a break. “We’ve got a situation ahead,” He stated, “Maybe three miles on. Four trolls, if I recognize them correctly. Big ones. They’re guarding a pass into a mountain range we must go through, and they are demanding a toll of one-hundred gold per traveler. “A toll?” I laughed. “You can’t be serious!” “Right,” He answered without humor, “A troll toll. And they seemed serious enough to me that I wouldn’t take them on alone.” Griff spat on the ground and Happy hummed softly as she picked her nails with a dagger. “Let’s go see about this toll.” Griff said flatly, remounting his floating disc. We sped on, Taklinn flying above us, until I spotted the trolls; four big fellows bundled in fur and hides against the cold. They stood staggered out across our path into the foothills. I stopped about fifty feet from them, changing into my own form. Taklinn landed beside us, and soon our two groups stared each other down. Though we out numbered them, the trolls seemed not at all afraid. One of them, the largest, stepped forward. “Ah! You’se back!” he hollered at Taklinn in broken common, “You’se have brought your fellas to pay da toll, no?” I’m sure that Taklinn was about to say no to that, but before he could, Caribdis began to rhyme in a sing-song voice. He spouted some ribald poem about a jester and the queens handmaiden. His timbre and rhythm were such that I could almost see the eyes of the trolls glaze over. They stood, utterly transfixed, fascinated by him. He took a few more steps toward the trolls, and we followed him cautiously. “No spells or attacks,” he said, inserting instruction for us smoothly into a new series of limericks, “Or the gig will be up!” “Dat sure is a funny poem!” One of the trolls yelled, clapping his breastplate with glee. “Ya! Ya! His leader agreed. “But you’se still gotta pay da toll!” he added, still smiling at Caribdis. “What now, maestro?” Griff growled. But Caribdis seemed not at all worried, and I noticed a subtle shift in the pitch of his voice. I recognized his ‘suggestion’ at work. “Listen now good trolls, and you will see! We simply should not pay your fee!” Our bard rhymed. The troll leader seemed to consider this for a moment, then brightened. “Ya, dats true!” He grunted, “You’se don’t gotsta pay! Caribdis bowed low and ushered us ahead. Still not fully trusting in our bards ability to con our way past this lot, we were cautious in our approach. The three other trolls, though still hypnotized by Caribdis’ verse, looked a bit troubled at the thought of letting us pass. Still, they would not challenge the word of their leader, and we managed to nearly get beyond them before Caribdis decided to up the ante. Still rhyming his way through a new tale of royal debauchery, he began to insert another suggestion directed toward the troll leader. “At last we’ve passed without tax or toll, perhaps, good sir, you should give us YOUR gold!” I gritted my teeth when I realized what Caribdis was up to, and Taklinn had to visibly restrain himself from wringing his neck, but to my astonishment, the troll agreed! “Ya!” He crowed happily, “You’se a mighty fine fella! You’se kin have da loot!” With that, the troll trotted into one of two nearby hide tents and returned in seconds with a bulging sack that clinked of coinage. He made to give it to Caribdis, but this proved to be too much for the other three trolls. “Bah!” One of them cried, “Tag’s done gone ‘round da bend! He’s gonna give ‘em da loot!” With that, the three trolls forgot all about Caribdis’ rhyme and bounded toward us, filthy claws and tree trunk clubs brandished. “Aw, screw this!” I heard Griff mutter. I heard his sword leave it’s sheath, and that was enough to break Tag, the troll leader from his own fascination. The big fellow shook his head and looked down at the bag of gold, surprised to find it there. With a bellow, he dropped the bag and raised his own club. Things happened very quickly. I had already cast a ‘fly’ on myself, and so bore straight up to a height of thirty feet. I looked down to see Caribdis take a heavy smack across the body from a gnarled tree trunk held in the hands of a troll. Taklinn and Mardath intercepted another. Taigel drew his blades and took a third by himself while Happy and Griff flanked the leader. I made to pelt Taigel’s troll with a ‘scorching ray’, but changed my mind at the last minute, electing instead to save Caribdis’ life with a ‘hold monster’. The dim witted troll froze in his tracks. Caribdis winked a thanks at me and drew his bow, launching a series of arrows to aid Taigel. To be sure, we were more than a match for the remaining three trolls, even though I was unable to overcome unexpected spell resistance from the lead troll. But even that did not save him from Happy and Griff. The two of them spilt his guts over a five yard span. I had better luck with the lesser trolls, finding them easy marks for scorchers and magic missiles. Taklinn waded into the threat range of his troll, his axes slicing green flesh and cracking bone. Mardath pincered the troll with Taklinn, his greatsword hacking into it again and again. As they downed theirs, Hap and Griff raced to help Taigel, and the last troll soon fell into a heap. There was still the matter of the held troll, and Caribdis killed it with a single arrow to the forehead. “Don’t stop hacking them!” I cried, “They regenerate! We need fire to keep them dead!” I flew into one of the tents, hoping to find oil or other combustibles while our warriors continued to stab the bodies. “Humph!” Taklinn grinned. He had just the ticket. He led his firebird to a troll body and had the creature sit on it. Within seconds there was little left but a mound of putrid flesh. He repeated the process with the remaining three bodies, and at last the threat was over. “Caribdis, why?” Hap moaned, her eyes rolling in exasperation, “Why did you have to push them for their gold? We could have walked right on by them!” Caribdis grinned and pushed a lock of hair from his boyish face. “Well, we couldn’t just leave them here to rob other travelers,” he said, “And besides, they might have a few goodies we can use.” He could barely conceal his mischievous smile as he went into a tent to have a look around. As it turned out, Caribdis was right. The trolls had apparently had good luck fleecing hapless travelers, even in this desolate waste. Their tents were ripe with some very select treasure. Not only did we find a substantial sum of gold, but several items of magic as well, not the least of which is the armor that Tag, their leader, wore. This cache is good enough that we have decided to stay here an extra day so that I can identify our finds in hopes that they can help us against the dragon. I must rest now, for tomorrow will be a long day for me. Plntng 17 An arduous eight hours after sunrise I was able to shed some light as to the nature of the magical treasure we’ve found. These trolls were rich by any standards, and I am now quit happy that Caribdis would not be satisfied to simply let us circumvent them. Of course he did have a point with regard to not leaving them behind to harass other travelers, but from a standpoint of pure greed, I can’t help but admit that I’d have been loath to leave such treasure behind. The armor alone would have been worth the battle! My voice shook a little with excitement when I told the others what it was. “I wouldn’t be surprised if it has a name,” I said, holding the studded leather, “But I don’t know what it is. What I can tell is that it holds a maximum enchantment, much like the bracers and ring we found on Melesandre. On top of that, it provides spell resistance!” Beyond that, I ‘identified’ a ring of warmth, several potions and scrolls, a picture frame that can hold a small illusion permanently, and a wand of silence with several charges left in it. No wonder they had no fear of magic! I also tried to identify Taklinn’s amulet, but I met with limited success. All I could get was an esoteric clue that it can ‘trigger an unquenchable rage in a white dragon’. I sense that there is much left to uncover within the amulet, but it will require a much stronger dweomer than a simple ‘identify’. I have thus decided to cast ‘analyze dweomer’ on it at the first opportunity. It’s a spell that I have only recently learned, and until tonight had not even possessed the material component for. I announced that I would be making another teleport jaunt to Havilah to pick up the component, and within seconds I was gone. The lens I needed was expensive, but I deemed further knowledge about the amulet worth the cost. I also decided to treat the crew to a fine dinner that night, and after my shopping I went to The Golden Crow, one of Havilah’s finer eateries, and had them crate up a smorgasbord of delectable dinners, complete with roasted boar, bisque, fruit, fresh bread, wine and pie for dessert. I teleported the whole affair back to the shelter with me and we dined in style that night. Happy looked at me agog, as if she had only just understood the potential of ‘teleport’. “You just blipped back to Havilah?” She asked, mouth open. “Well, yes.” I replied. “And brought all this back?” “I’ve done this before, Hap…” “And you can do this anytime you want?” “Well, technically speaking I can only teleport so many times per day, but basically, yes. Understand though, teleporting is not an exact science. There is a slim but very real possibility that I could end up far away from my intended location. I have to be quite careful, and it is always wise to have a back up teleport in case I need to try it again.” Much of my explanation was lost on her. She still seemed utterly awed by the idea of instant transportation, and I think it was just dawning on her how powerful wizards can be. “I don’t suppose, umm, maybe you could pick up one or two things for me next time you go?” She asked, somewhat shyly. “Of course!” I laughed. “I’d be happy to, though I don’t know when I’ll be going again. I don’t like to press my luck, but if I do, make me a list and I’ll take care of it.” After dinner I approached Taklinn. “Ah, Taklinn,” I began, unsure how to phrase my request, “Do you, er, happen to have an extra holy symbol of Clangeden on you?” He looked at me, surprised. “Yes, I have one. Why do you ask?” “Well,” I said, “I was wondering if I might wear it, unless you think it might be in some way sacrilegious.” He looked quite perplexed. “No, it would not be. But why, Doorag? Are you thinking of converting?” “No!” I laughed, “Not at all! It’s just that, well, Clangeden has healed me more than a few times, and while I have little use for the gods, I would be the last to deny that I’d most certainly have been dead ten times over if not for him. I merely wish to show my gratitude by wearing his symbol.” Taklinn nodded in understanding. He produced a simple symbol of unassuming steel and placed it around my neck. “May his strength and wisdom guide and protect you, my friend.” He said. I write now with a belly full of The Golden Crow’s finest, though I am terribly tired. We have elected to march on to Latona, a small city supposedly located only two days from here, before I attempt to ‘analyze’ the amulet, as the spell is most taxing. Plntng 19 I have been sitting here for an hour looking at the blank page, unable to write the truth. My pen has dried up three times. To scribe the events of the day is to make them real; permanent. Caribdis is dead. Swallowed by a rhemorez. Only hours from Latona, nearly within view of it’s walls. Senseless. Meaningless. My heart feels like dead stone within my chest. Caribdis is dead. Plntng 24 I am in Havilah. Ostensibly the reason for my being here is to craft a few items; a pair of gloves of strength for Griff, a periapt of wisdom for Taklinn, and a belt of many pouches for Hap. A more oblique reason, though probably more important, is that it has given me an opportunity to immerse myself in work; to clear my mind of the shock of Caribdis’ death, or at least to work out the emotional tangle it has instilled within me. I have tried several times over the last five days to relate the events of his death, but I have been unable to do more than stare numbly at the page. I have resolved to try again. It was the 19th.. We had been traveling most of the day and by our reckoning Latona should have been only a few hours away. We were all eager to make the city, to finally have some relief from the endless miles of ice and snow. I was in the form of a small dragon, making steady progress across the snow with the rest of the crew seated on their disc’s behind me. We never saw them coming. The ground directly before me suddenly heaved and burst open. A horrific and huge head burst from the earth. Heat radiated off of it in terrible waves, and it’s mandibled jaws snapped at me before I had a chance to even think about reacting. The mandibles tore into me and I reeled back, near death. The head was followed by a centipede-like body. The thing, which I instantly recognized as a rhemorez, scuttled from it’s hole with a speed which seemed impossible for something so big. Two more of them burst from the snow on either side of us. The crew leapt from their disc’s, weapons flashing. Happy hurled a dagger into the flank of the one on our left. Taigel charged for the same rhemorez and sunk one of his swords into it to the hilt. He pulled back nothing else, as the metal of his blade simply melted away. The rhemorez to our right scuttled forward into our midst. It towered over Caribdis, who had yet to react. With a single terrible bite, it struck, biting him around the waist, hoisting him upward and swallowing our bard with apparent ease. One minute he was standing there, the next, he had vanished down the things throat. Taklinn screamed in anguish. He and Griff reached the rhemorez simultaneously, Griff with his sword and Taklinn with a spell. But our luck was still bad. Griff overdrew himself, falling against the creature, and I could hear the sizzle of his flesh against it’s body. He grunted in pain and pulled away, leaving charred skin stuck to it’s hide. Taklinn reached out and touched the rhemorez, casting his spell. Even through his gauntlet the heat seared his hand. He commanded it to die, but the rhemorez ignored him. Knowing that I could not withstand another bite, I pumped my wings and flew straight upward until I was out of their reach. Unfortunately I could not cast in dragon form. I concentrated on changing to my own form as I invoked a contingent ‘fly’ upon myself. By the time I had shifted to my true nature, it was over. The rhemorez are vicious and can mete out tremendous damage, but they can take little of it themselves. Taigel and Mardath took down one. Griff and Taklinn hacked the one that had swallowed Caribdis furiously. It died from a long gash in it’s flank cut by Griff. Steam and lava-like ichors gushed from it, and I saw a booted leg jut from it’s belly. Griff followed through with the same sword slash to finish the last, which had already been wounded by Happy. Even as the final rhemorez collapsed, Taklinn was dragging the charred body of Caribdis from the rhemorez carcass. In shock, I landed next to his body. I did not even have to ask if he was dead. His cloths were burnt away, his jewelry melted, his bow immolated. Taklinn clenched his fists in rage and sorrow and raised them to the sky as a scream of impotent rage tore from his throat. He looked at me with stricken eyes, touched Caribdis’ body, uttered a word, and disappeared. He had taken our dead friend with him. Stunned silence followed. The attack, the death of Caribdis, even the knowledge that Taklinn could somehow teleport; it all combined to send us into utter shock. Mardath, in his simple barbarian logic, did not seem to comprehend the gravity of what had happened. “Too bad about the dandy fellow.” He said, blithely. “At least he died a fine death!” A rage tried to well up within me. I wanted to tell Mardath to shut up, to tell him that he had no right to speak of such a death with frivolity, but shock and sorrow overwhelmed all other emotion, and I could do nothing but stare at the melted slush where his body had lain. A tiny voice of logic still spoke in the distance of my mind. I knew that there were magic’s that could bring Caribdis back. I knew that Taklinn possessed such magic’s, but I also knew that the spell must be cast within a very short time of death. I had to assume that Taklinn had not prepared the spell, and had somehow shifted himself and the body to a place where it could be done. I had been considering teleporting Caribdis to the temple of Clangeden in Havilah in a desperate bid to get him to a powerful cleric there before Taklinn had gone, but was beat to the punch. A tiny glimmer of hope blossomed within me. Surely Taklinn would know what to do. Surely he would get Caribdis’ body to a worthy priest in time to have the ‘raise dead’ cast. Surely he would return with our friend, a little worse for wear, but still alive. I held onto that small glimmer, though I dared not voice it to my friends, lest I give them false hope. Griff was grim, his face ashen, but he was ever pragmatic. “We should be on to Latona.” He said. “This place is not safe. We will have to hope that Taklinn can somehow contact us.” We did not argue with his logic. Wordlessly we picked ourselves up and began the last leg of our journey. Within an hour we sighted the city walls. Taigel made an announcement. “I will not enter the city.” He said. “They are very prejudiced against my kind there, and I would not be allowed entry. I will wait for you here. Don’t worry, the cold will not affect me.” I didn’t like the idea of leaving him to fend for himself, and told him so. “Stay here until noon tomorrow, then take your ring off and I’ll scry you. I’ll come and get you when we’ve found an inn. I can make you invisible and we’ll get you inside.” He nodded in agreement and sat down to wait. The rest of us made our way to the city gates. As we neared them I received a ‘sending’. The voice of Taklinn spoke in my mind, “Use the bracelet. Bring me back. No Caribdis.” I returned the message. “Soon. Take your ring off.” I was referring, both in Taklinn and Taigel’s case, to the rings of non-detection that they wore. Earlier we had wondered about the separate attacks by skeleton ice constructs. I hypothesized that Acessiwall was somehow scrying his son (though I had seen no sensors), so Caribdis had given Taigel his ring, reasoning that Acessiwall had not seen him, and therefore would not scry him. Latona is a rough and ramshackle town, filled with mostly humans, all of them of hardy stock to live this far north. We were allowed entry by suspicious guards who told us of a decent inn not far away. We made for it and purchased rooms as fast as we could. Once inside, I drew forth my crystal ball and scyed Taklinn. I found our cleric in a tomb carved from living stone. Torchlight from two sconces on the walls threw back only a little of the shadow on his face. Behind him, another dwarf dressed in clerical garb passed my line of sight and disappeared through a door. Taklinn sat in silent vigil over the body of Caribdis, now covered with a blanket and lying atop a stone slab. I hung my head and the rest of the crew watched as I reached into a pouch and withdrew the Bracelet of Friends that I had crafted in Havilah. Around it’s length hung seven charms, each keyed to an individual. Taklinn was one of those. I pulled his charm loose from the bracelet, it seemed to melt into nothingness in my hand, and then he was there, standing in the room with us. He looked as if he had aged several years, and his armor still bore the stain of battle, an unheard of occurrence for our fastidious friend. He looked around the room at our faces, saw all of the questions that we could not bring ourselves to ask. He spoke. “I did not have a ‘raise dead’ prepared.” He said with unusual quiet. “I used a ‘word of recall’ to transport Caribdis’ body and myself to my mountain home, into the temple of Clangeden that lies there. I knew that there would be priests there capable of casting the spell, if not from memory, then from a scroll. At first they refused. Caribdis is…” He stopped, drew a ragged breath, and started again, “Caribdis was not a dwarf, and my brethren felt no compulsion to raise him. Precious time was wasted, but I was most insistent. At last, they complied, and the spell was cast in time.” Taklinn walked to the table and poured himself a cup from the bottle that Griff had left out. He drank deeply before continuing. “When an attempt to return one to life is made, the spirit of that person is contacted and invited to come back. The spirit has free will to accept or refuse the offer.” “Caribdis declined.” My jaw dropped. “What? Why!” “I do not know.” “But… but…” I sputtered, “Why!” “I do not know.” Happy slid off of her chair. “I need a drink.” She said, tersely, and slammed the door behind her as she left. Taklinn sighed. “You are still wounded,” He said. Indeed, all of us still bore wounds from the rhemorez. I, myself, could barely stand. Taklinn reached toward Griff, voicing a healing spell that we can repeat almost as well as he can. Griff cut him off. “Don’t touch me.” He spat. “Keep your god, Taklinn. I don’t want Clangeden’s help.” His words were measured, quiet, and hard as steel. Taklinn looked stricken, as if Griff had slapped him in the face. Griff stood and left the room without another word, still bearing his wounds, and a rage that was almost palpable. Taklinn looked at the rest of us helplessly, cut deeply by Griff’s words. “Perhaps Happy is right,” He said, “Perhaps a drink is in order.” He left for the inns common room, and presently, Mardath followed him, shrugging at me as he left. I was alone in the room. I spoke a word, and disappeared. *** I appeared inside the stone chamber I had scryed earlier. Caribdis still lay on the stone slab and the torches still flickered, but the tomb was otherwise empty. I climbed up on the slab and sat cross-legged on it’s edge, next to his body. He was still horribly burnt. His hair was gone, and most of his features were badly disfigured, but I could still make out face. Why? Again and again I asked the question. Why, Caribdis? Why did you not come back? Finally, I just sat there with him. I was not disturbed, and three hours later, I teleported back to the inn. I did not sleep that night, but no one returned to the room and I was disinclined to leave. It was not until late morning that I discovered what had become of my crew that night. Happy, Taklinn and Mardath had gotten deep in their cups. They drank until the alcohol overcame them and they slept in the common room. Griff had apparently stalked the city streets until he found a fight of some kind. The details are unclear, but the city guard was involved, as was a small fine and a night in the Latona jail. At noon I scryed Taigel and went to find him. I had still not memorized my spells, for my night had been less than restful so he had to agree to being polymorphed into a human as a disguise to enter the city. He was not pleased with the idea, but it was preferable to spending the long nights hidden on the tundra. A short time after, we had all gathered again. It was late noon, and we were seated on floor, chairs and bed in one of the rooms we’d rented. I looked at Taklinn, his face was motionless, but his eyes bore an expression of profound guilt and sorrow. Griff was stone faced. Happy busily ran a stone over one of her daggers. Taigel was the first to break the silence. “Caribdis is dead. I am sorry. He seemed a well intentioned lad, and you were all obviously fond of him. I grieve for his passing. Yet we still have the question of Acessiwall to contemplate. We are one less now, and we grow nearer to his lair. I believe we are only a hundred and fifty miles, give or take, from his mountain. Are you still confident that we can take him?” I groaned inwardly. It seemed almost blasphemous to already be talking about our mission in the recent wake of Caribdis’ death, but Taigel was right. “I don’t know.” I answered honestly. “Caribdis was not only a hell of an archer and a great combat healer, he also made us better at what we did. His verse was indispensable. I don’t know that he ever realized how important it was. It will be a tough go without him.” “Furthermore,” I said, “I’d still like to do some more research on dragons, specifically Acessiwall. I would like to try to determine his age if I can. That would give us a much clearer picture of what we’re going up against. He has been referred to as ancient, but I hope to narrow that down a little. But before I do that, I want to try to ‘analyze’ the amulet. I am hoping that it somehow holds the key to Acessiwall’s defeat. To that end, I will need space, quiet, and time. I intend to retire to the next room and rest, after which I will begin work. I should be casting by nine o’clock, and the spell will probably take up most of the night, if not much of tomorrow. Once I have determined the amulets powers, we will be able to better gauge our chances against the dragon.” Taigel considered this. “Very well then. We should post a guard outside your door. We will reconvene when you have more information for us, Doorag.” I went into the next room and shut the door. I suddenly felt incredibly tired, and as my head touched the pillow I fell into a hard slumber. *** Exactly eight hours later I awoke. It took me a moment to remember where I was and what had happened. I realized once again that Caribdis was gone and felt that sharp sorrow anew. Sighing, I went about my morning ritual. In due course, after a bit of breakfast delivered by Mardath, I asked Taklinn for the amulet. I locked myself in the room with no other company than Ambros and went to work. ‘Analyze Dweomer’ is a potent yet taxing spell, and like ‘identify’, takes a fair amount of time to cast. In the end, I had to cast it twice in a row. The whole process took nearly twenty hours, and by the time I stumbled out of that small room I was exhausted, but flush with knowledge. I gathered the crew about me and explained what I had learned. The amulet had several functions, at least one of which still eluded me. I was quite frustrated by that fact, and hoped for one more opportunity before we met the dragon, but I had uncovered much. The results were less than promising. The amulet can be used against white dragons and half-white dragons. Apparently it was crafted specifically to deal with Acessiwall, for it requires either his blood, or the blood of one of his descendants to activate. As I had hypothesized before, a very small amount of blood is required. As to what exactly it’s function is, the amulet will drive the targeted dragon into a frenzy of rage, similar to that of Mardath when he is in battle. The down side of this is that it actually increases the dragons physical strength, as well as a few other factors. The supposed up side is that the dragon cannot flee and will fight until either it’s death, or the death of the amulets wearer. Finding out the amulets secrets did not give us much hope. All it appeared capable of was to insure that Acessiwall would not flee while making him all the more strong! But Taigel reasoned that it may prove valuable. His father was a spell caster, and as such, would certainly use magic to escape at the first sign of the battle going against him. I was still doubtful. The odds were heavily against us actually turning any such confrontation in our favor, and I had hoped that the amulet would somehow be the key to doing that. Taigel delivered still more bad news when he told us of at least one ally of his fathers that he knew about. A wizard of no small power named Helious is in cahoots with Acessiwall. I groaned at this news. Not only a dragon, but a wizard as well? On a hunch, I scryed first Acessiwall, then Helious. My chances of finding them were slim at best, given only their names, but luck was with me. My first scrying revealed a sheet of white scales. As my sensor pulled back, Acessiwall came into view and I gaped. He was massive. With an irritated gesture he dispelled my sensor, but not before I caught a glimpse of his lair. I was also able to find Helious, though he dispelled my sensor just as easily with a wand. My next order of business was two-fold, I explained to the crew. One, I would return to Havilah to research more about Acessiwall and dragons, and two, I would pick up whatever gear we felt we might need. Happy gave me her list, and in a short while I was gone. Unfortunately my research revealed little. It was near impossible, given my limited information, to narrow down the age of Acessiwall. I found only one reference to him in an old tome, a poorly written account of his attack on a caravan many years before that left few survivors and was particularly brutal, even by dragon standards. It was of little value. After a frustrating day in the library, I shopped for Happy, then returned to Latona with the seed of another goal in mind. I explained to the crew that we were obviously outmatched in this coming confrontation, but that perhaps we could even the odds a bit given the judicious application of a few magic’s. I volunteered my services as an artificer once again, explaining carefully (especially to Griff) that I could craft items which would enhance them. In the end Taklinn, Griff and Happy parted with enough gold to facilitated the items they needed made, and the following day (the 23rd) I ported back to Havilah once again and got to work. I heave an inward sigh as I write this, for had my friends taken me up on this same offer during our seven month sojourn in Havilah, not only would the items I could have crafted been far more powerful, they would not have cost me my personal essence. Still, I feel that the need for them is worth the cost to myself. I am crafting Griff a set of ‘gloves of ogre power’, Taklinn a ‘periapt of wisdom’, and Happy a ‘belt of many pouches’. They have recompensed me with gold, which is always desirable. The crafting process will take several days. I can only hope that my friends can stay out of trouble. I also hope that Taklinn and Griff can somehow work things out between them. Griff still refuses Taklinn’s healing touch, and I can sense a great strain on their friendship. As I began my work today I thought more of Caribdis. Why? The question keeps up it’s incessant nagging in the back of my mind. Why did he elect not to return? I cannot overcome this desire to speak with him one last time, to ask him that question. I fear that I have become slightly obsessed with it, and to that end I have begun some research into the area of communication with the dead in what little spare time I have. I have also resolved to go to Freya tomorrow and break the news of Caribdis’ death to her. No matter what Caribdis’ final disposition towards her may have been, she has a right not to hear it from the mouth of strangers. [/QUOTE]
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