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Message: <blockquote data-quote="the Jester" data-source="post: 2624259" data-attributes="member: 1210">Into the Elf-RuinsThe goblins have been informed that their gorge is available to them again.  Lazy days swim by.  Spring is in full bloom by the time our heroes find the flowers that Lord Whitewater dispatched Goer to recover from the hills to the west of Whitewater.  With Dahlia’s aid- for her knowledge of plants and nature surpasses any other member of the group’s- they recover a large bundle of them from a field in the foothills and easily return them to the knight, who turns them over to the nurses for preparation for his ill wife.  During this time Cara realizes that she is pregnant, but as of yet she tells nobody.  She decides to wait to tell Sir Cedric until they are married; after all (it seems to her), it would not be seemly for him to know that his seed has taken root until they have undergone the ceremony.  Alas for her, Sir Martin (Cedric’s father) has meanwhile told his son that the marriage will not take place until they are certain that Cara is fertile.  Though the furrow has been ploughed, until the first shoots show they will remain engaged.The group spends weeks in the spring training.  They know that they must seek out the elf-ruins from which the flaming horror came; they must ensure that there is nothing else that will come forth from it, and both Kyle and Dahlia seek any knowledge about the elven portion of their heritage.When the group is almost ready to depart, some month and a half after casting down the cyst, Cara, Sir Cedric, Dahlia and Kyle encounter a trio of gnolls.  Though Cara calls for peach, the gnolls attack; but our heroes have little trouble dispatching them.  Afterwards, they backtrack the gnolls to a campsite, checking for signs of more of them.  They find nothing. Had they only tracked the gnolls another few days, they certainly would have; but time will tell them about the invasion.Soon the group is en route to the elf-ruins that await them beyond the gorge.  One night along the way, Cedric brings down a large buck deer.  The group feasts that night; Sir Cedric cuts off and roasts the buck’s phallus, sharing the “thucculent thweetmeatth” with Cara.  Dahlia grimaces in disgust, but Kyle watches thoughtfully, considering the reputed aphrodisiacal properties of such cuts of meat.  However, he puts the thought of using such things for seduction aside when Cara suffers a bout of nausea in the morning.  (Little does he realize that this is a symptom of her pregnancy.)When the group moves through Goblin Gorge they find that the goblins are rebuilding.  The goblins, though not exactly welcoming, are helpful enough to allow them passage, and our heroes move through the gorge quickly and beyond, into the Ashen Valley beyond.  Soon they have spotted the elf-ruins along the side of one of the lower mountains flanking the valley.  The fire-thing’s trail of burnt vegetation is growing over rapidly with the season, but for those with an eye for tracking or nature, it is still evident.  So it is that the party arrives at the elf-ruins upstream of the Goblin Gorge.  It takes about 14 hours of traveling past the gorge to reach the final ascent, a mountain trail that ascends to near the top of a low peak.  There, an arch shaped from the surrounding stone by ancient elf-magic leads into a beautiful series of elven ruins.   All of the ruins have the same fluted architecture, full of willowy extensions and impossible-looking craftsmanship; clearly the place was made with the aid of sorcery.  Though many of the rooms have partial roofs, most of them are open to the sun and natural light. Slowly our heroes move through the ruined complex, examining one dusty area after another.  There is no evidence of recent habitation, and the fire-beast was released long enough ago that the tracks of whomever let it loose have been obliterated by time.  The party explores a gallery of sculpture, depicting elven achievements, elves and dwarves together in amity, a wave caught in motion and more; from there they find a dining area, with the table and the chairs shaped from the surrounding stone, but cleverly, so that they can move along tracks in the floor.  Moving on, the party finds an overgrown garden, with a collection of hardy plants that have overgrown their former containers.“This place is very interesting,” Dahlia comments, musing to herself at the different plants present.  Kyle feigns interest, but most of the party is a little bored by the place so far, as there has been no sign of further trouble, nor has there been a clue as to who released the fire-monster.  Then group’s interest grows much more intense when one of the vines abruptly lashes out, squeezing around Jorgen’s neck.  His sudden croak of “Help!” catches everyone’s attention.  His eyes bulge and his face starts to turn purple.Whoops!Next Time: Our heroes continue to explore the elf-ruins, and they hear something odd and interesting!</blockquote>

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