Once again the High Mage has relaxed himself to hear what the three of you have to say, but he eventually adds to the conversation.
"Well there’s no doubt this group has its fair share of spirit! I feel ashamed that I can not provide a better explanation of what Harbromm wants. The gods alone know how much time I've spent trying to figure out the way that dwarf thinks, but I'm afraid we'll have to make due with what we have. He wants an envoy to physically travel from Silverymoon to his Citadel and beyond that things are unclear.
One thing that does seem obvious to me is that Harbromm is looking for reasons to ignore our delegations, and we will be best served by erring on the side of caution in this situation.
Turning his attention directly to Cassandra he continues and for the first time, a hint of frustration appears in his voice.
"And I must say that I'm surprised by your attitude in this situation. A follower of Sune is what I was told by my friends in Waterdeep, and a champion of freedom by those in Sundabar who you freed from enslavement by the drow. Yet here you stand in Silverymoon, a city most recognized for these two things: our culture and love of the arts, and our relatively enlightened view of society that promotes personal freedom and fights against oppression.
Now this city, and the Silver Marches altogether, risk losing these virtues because a dwarven king, angry that he was not given absolute power over the confederation upon Alustriel's death, decided to leave us in a fit of rage. Old enemies rise up to face the north, and if the League does not survive, war will no doubt return this land to it's former state. Tell me, what freedom will the people of this land have then? What prayer will you make to Sune then to explain that the gem of the north has become nothing more than a pale stone, and partly because you weren't wiling to help it survive? If you truly cannot see the good of restoring our common defenses and promoting the welfare of the Silver Marches, then perhaps I did a poor job of judging you. Just to show you how strongly I believe in freedom, I will remind you that you are under no compulsion to listen to me further and if you don't think this task is worthwhile, you need not undertake it.
Since it does seem that you're taking part in the planing, I'll hope that you are on board with the others and I'll move forward."
The High Mage visibly calms himself and its clear that he was more aggressive in his speech than he originally planed. When he is calm again he pulls out a map and begins to speak again, but his words are clearly meant only for those who are willing to undertake his task.
"Before you leave, there are two more things I can tell you about this trip. First is the simple fact that several paths lead to the Citadel, and you can choose which one you prefer. The most simple would be to follow the trade roads east through Silverymoon Pass to Sundabar. From there you can head east till you reach the fork, as it is called, where the Adbar road will lead you north to the Citadel. This path would probably be the least dangerous, but would take the greatest amount of time.
A second option would be to take this same route, but to head straight north after reaching Sundabar, following the dead orc pass through the Rauvin Mountains. This path will be more dangerous, but would most likely be the fastest way to reach the Citadel.
The most dangerous option, but one that would favor you if you do wish to travel in the dark, would be to head north to Felbar and use the underground caravan route to reach the Citadel. Traveling this path would be faster than the normal roads, but not as fast as dead orc pass. Truly though, the underground has been especially dangerous since the patrols from Adbar stopped going much further than their own gates, and I'm afraid of what troubles might lie that way."
Taern rolls up the map, which has all three possible routes outlined, and sets it on the table in front of the three of you.
"The second thing I wanted to tell you before we part company regards the bandits that have been attacking of late. Several reports from merchants who have survived or guards who have tried to chase the bandits, have given suspiciously similar descriptions of them. We don't know enough at the moment, but it may be the case that part of an organized group, something rare for the north indeed if it is very large in scope.
If you are attacked by bandits and have the good fortune of capturing one of them without killing him, it would be good to try to find out any information on the situation. There may be nothing to this after all, but if you have the chance, it wouldn't hurt to into it. Now, have you any more questions?"
