A Tale of Two Dragons

[Rae ArdGaoth]

As the party moves along the road back to the village, a man with a torch and pitchfork is seen travelling up from the other direction, from the village. "Ah! You must be the "bandits" and "thugs" that young John was speaking of. I see you've got our boys there, they look alright. Ol' Sal told me that you've all got rooms in her inn, I'll guide you there. Boys, go on home now, it's damn late, and you bet your buttons your fathers'll be givin' you both a bit o' scoldin'. Now git!" The boys run off in opposite directions, one almost crying and the other, the one who was dangled, beaming and glancing back at the odd band every few strides.

The man from the village guides everybody to the inn. There are enough rooms for everybody, even an extra large bed for the dragonspawn. The man offers to take Regalclaw to the stables, though he hesitates and chuckles as he admits, "I uh... don't really know what to do with such a magnificent creature, to be honest." The rooms are clean and comfortable but simple, with only a bed and a night stand in each. The night goes by uneventfully.

In the morning, everybody wakes up to a sharp rap on their door and a shrill, woman's voice calling, "Breakfast! Breakfast! Get it while it's hot, mates!" The tavern is almost empty now, except for a few women in a corner knitting and chatting together. When the stranger members of the party enter the tavern from the rooms upstairs, their conversation stops for a moment but picks up fairly quickly. The meal is good, any special needs are taken care of, to an extent. The same woman who called everybody down also serves breakfast and makes small talk with a few people, pausing for long periods of time at the women's table in the back of the tavern. When everyone has finished, she and a younger girl, perhaps 12 years old, clean up the eating ware and retreat to the kitchen.

It is bright and early, about an hour after dawn. Skies are partly cloudy with a low chance of rain.

 

[Harvey]

Penthar Danadin, Aglarondan Griffonrider

Penthar lands Reglaclaw and greets the willager with the pitchfork cordially, introducing himself and explaining to the man the events which have transpired. He follows the man's lead back to the village, making small talk along the way.

Penthar leads Reglaclaw to the stables alongside the man. "I uh... don't really know what to do with such a magnificent creature, to be honest."

"Fear not, for Regalclaw can take care of himself" he says with a chuckle in his voice. He then lays out some feed for the griffon, and wishes him a good night.

Penthar turns in for the night, removing his armor and placing it with care on the nightstand next to him. He sleeps well, and is awoken by the wrapping at his door. Hearing that breakfast is served, he stomach growls in anticipation. He utters a word, and his armor, which was lying on the nightstand beside him, now appear on him fully fitted. He dons his sheath, inspecting his trusty sword Shatterspike before placing it back in the scabbard. He pulls on his gloves, and, making sure everything is right where it should be, kneels on the ground for a short prayer before breakfast.

Penthar joins the group for breakfast, stopping along the way and asking the older woman if Regalclaw gave them any trouble during the night. He sits down to enjoy some breakfast, and takes some time to study his fellows. They seem like worthy allies against the red dragon, but still, I have doubts of our success. We will need to learn of each others' strengths and weaknesses, and learn how to fight well together, if we are to be successful.

Over the course of breakfast, Penthar starts up various conversations, hoping to spark discussion amongst the group. In no particular order, he asks each of the others the following questions, hoping to learn more about them:

For Zithran: "I did not get a chance to say it before, traveller, but you showed great courage in wading into Nick's web to save the child. Do you have anything up your sleeve for easy travelling to Narfell?"

For Raena: "I apologize, I do not believe we have been formally introduced, though from last night I take it you are a schooled shadowdancer. I am Penthar Danadin. And you are...?"

For Brak: "I've been meaning to ask... what exactly was it that our dragon host served you yesterday at the bar? That ale looked like it could melt a morningstar! Do all the dwarves in your clan have such strong stomachs?"

For Hareka: "A dragon-kin is indeed an awe-inspiring sight. My apologies, but you are the first of your kind that I have met. How did you come to leave the world of dragons to join us?"

For Nick: "Quick thinking, your use with the web. You mentioned you were from the Heartlands? Is that where you learned the arcane arts?"

For Faelar: "An intersting group, wouldn't you say old friend? What do you make of our quest?"

OOC: Throwing out questions to get everyone into some RP. Any takers?

 

[Lefferts]

For Zithran: "I did not get a chance to say it before, traveller, but you showed great courage in wading into Nick's web to save the child. Do you have anything up your sleeve for easy travelling to Narfell?"

Zithran answers the question posed to him, "I generally walk to my destinations, so I'm afraid I can't help get us there. Most of my prayers deal with life and death."

 

[WampusCat43]

Moe gulps down his food (his manners are not the best) and tries to carry on a conversation between mouthfuls. "Yes, I'm from the Heartlands. Corm Orp, to be exact. You've probably never heard of (crumbs fly) it. It's north of Asbravn and east of Hill's Edge, not far from Darkhold." He prpnounces the last word dramatically. "My family owns a small vineyard there. That's about the town's only export, other than halflings and halfling pottery."

He washes down the last of his meal and says, "And you? Familiar with the area?"

 

[Harvey]

Penthar Danadin, Aglarondan Griffonrider

To Zithran: "Well, I would say hold onto your prayers, for if we are to eventually face a red dragon, then we are going to need them. In the meantime, we should investigate an easier way to travel to Narfell. Hey, Faelar, can those portals of yours in the Yuirwood help us out?"
Penthar says, with an heir of not knowing anything about the portals...

To Nick: "This area... no. Our eventual destination... yes. We will be passing nearby my homeland of Aglarond. Narfell is to the north of my homeland, though it is still quite a trek. We can approach Narfell from either the Great Dale, from the south, or from Damara from the west. The Great Dale is a vast wilderness that separates Narfell from Thesk and Aglarond. I have not ventured that far north before, since my responsibilities lie in defending Aglarond's border, but I'v heard that the Dale is home to may half-working elves and humans. I know little to nothing of Damara, save it shares a border with Narfell... Perhaps we need to learn more of the lay of the land before venturing into it."

 

[WampusCat43]

"Perhaps there is a sage around these parts, who could help us with this information," Nick said in response. "Does anyone have any ideas?"

 

[Harvey]

Penthar Danadin, Aglarondan Griffonrider

"Possible, Nick... or, we could find many a sage in Aglarond. My home kindgom is along the way, provided we're travelling by sea. I was half hoping we could find a more direct route to Narfell, but stopping by my homeland might have other advantages. Not only could we use it as a resource to gather more information, but we could alert the Aglarondan Army about possible invasion from the Thayans or from these hobgoblin hordes the great dragon mentioned."

As he speaks, Penthar looks to Nick and the others in the party for their opinion.

 

[Kaitlin]

For Raena: "I apologize, I do not believe we have been formally introduced, though from last night I take it you are a schooled shadowdancer. I am Penthar Danadin. And you are...?"

Raena stares blankly at Penthar for a moment, her dark eyes showing the only expression on her face. She seems almost surprised that someone is actually interested in her and knows of shadow dancing, and even a little offended or angry at the notion. Finally, after a long pause, she says, "My name is Raena, I come from Baldur's Gate. I am not 'schooled' in shadow dancing, I developed my Art on my own. I wasn't even aware it was widely known. In Aglarond, there are many shadow dancers? And have they abilities like mine, moving from shadow to shadow with a thought? If this is the case, I for one wouldn't mind traveling through Aglarond."

 

[Harvey]

Penthar Danadin, Aglarondan Griffonrider

Raena stares blankly at Penthar for a moment, her dark eyes showing the only expression on her face. She seems almost surprised that someone is actually interested in her and knows of shadow dancing, and even a little offended or angry at the notion. Finally, after a long pause, she says, "My name is Raena, I come from Baldur's Gate. I am not 'schooled' in shadow dancing, I developed my Art on my own. I wasn't even aware it was widely known. In Aglarond, there are many shadow dancers? And have they abilities like mine, moving from shadow to shadow with a thought? If this is the case, I for one wouldn't mind traveling through Aglarond."

"My apologies, Raena, I did not mean to jump to conclusions. For in Aglarond, and in other nations I've visited, there are rumors of those who are taught how to interface and manipulate the Plane of Shadow. They say that there are some, like the clerics of Shar, that can weave shadow into their spells, while others speak of a..." Penthar pauses, making sure not to offend his new ally "... a great theives guild in Amn whose members are said to come from the very shadows themselves to, shall we say, procure items from others. And once, a squad of our ground troops fought a worshipper of Shar in the Underdark that could conjure shadows for its defense, much like you did with your shadow scout yesterday."

"And, while I myself have not seen one, I have heard others in the ranks speak of those that can jump from shadow to shadow. It was always my assumption that they were schooled in their ways by the followers of Lady Shar, or even by Shar herself. Though if you taught yourself the ability to jump from shadow to shadow, then you are truly a marvel, and I mean you no disrespect." He holds his hands up, palms towards Raena, in a gesture of peace.

"But if we do visit my home on our way to Narfell, I would be delighted to introduce you to my brethren-in-arms that spoke to me of these shadowdancers, or the ones who fought the... what did they call it?... the shadowcrafter under Aglarond."

 

[Lefferts]

Zithran speaks, "I would not mind stopping by Aglarond, if we decide to travel by sea. I have not visited that great nation in my travels, but I respect them for opposing Thay. My god views Thay with distaste."