Heritage of Dragonsreach (UPDATED September 4, 2007)

[sniffles]

Risen Bones

Xiao Lu is going to have a surprise when she returns from Mezro - although I have no doubt she already knows what has transpired here. But knowing about the new arrivals and meeting them are quite different matters.

The decision was made to use the token Rose's mother gave us to seek the aid of her family. It quite literally summoned them to us. I hope we didn't disrupt their plans too badly. Judging by their colorful costumes they were in the midst of some sort of performance.

The villagers were naturally a bit startled when a caravan of wagons suddenly appeared in their midst, but they've welcomed the halflings graciously. There was a bit of a party atmosphere developing, in fact, once the halflings got over the shock of finding themselves so far from their starting point.

My friends and I didn't have long to enjoy the mood, however. Kyril suddenly stepped through one of her portals and announced, "There's danger on the border." A little further questioning from Roland revealed that she'd seen walking skeletons nearby.

Latan had already returned to the jungle to continue looking for allies and weapons, but the three of us followed Kyril back through the portal to investigate.

Two steps later we emerged into a cluster of ruins. Kyril didn't remain with us, but stepped back through her portal. As my gaze followed her I realized that wherever she was going, it wasn't back to the center of the village where she'd met us. The brief glimpse I got of her destination was somewhere altogether different.

What a fascinating ability. If I had such a Blessing I'm sure I'd be tempted to visit Candlekeep far too often.

I scarcely had time to note that the ruins resembled Arty's architectural creations before I took cover with Roland behind a tumbledown wall. We could see several fleshless skeletons emerging from the undergrowth. I murmured a quick incantation and surrounded myself with an aura of arcane energy to make myself more difficult for my foes to strike. I followed that with a second spell to transform my blade into a heavy mace for smashing bones.

Loud crackling sounds heralded the arrival of something much larger than a man-sized skeleton. I peered over the wall and observed what had once been a dragon, its bones now as void of flesh as the others. Judging by its shape, I suspect in life it was a green dragon.

"Direct your attacks against the large one!" Roland shouted for Hedrin's benefit. I frowned, thinking quickly of a new strategy. I'd been about to use my Blessed quickness to approach the man-size skeletons and employ my magic, but I realized this would be useless against the undead dragon.

Roland began an inspiring speech. Though the skeletons had no eyes nor ears, I could see them all turn their attention toward him. They were much quicker than I expected. They marched right up to us without hesitation.
[sblock]
sniffles: “Are the skeletons moving unusually fast or slow?”
Zora: “They’re moving very Harryhausen.”
[/sblock]
But the skeletons weren’t our only foes – from the jungle canopy emerged three unusually large spiders. I was disturbed when I realized that at the fronts of their thoraxes these spiders seemed to have man-like skulls! Some necromancer has a very twisted sense of aesthetics. How disgusting.

In the meantime the skeletal dragon was still approaching us. I could hear it snapping off branches that caught between its naked bones. “This is looking a bit challenging,” I remarked to Roland.

Hedrin disappeared into one of the half-ruined structures and several of the skeletons attempted to climb up after him. The others moved in on Roland and myself. So did the horrible skull-spiders. The spiders opened their skull-mouths and spat a sticky web-like substance. Luckily for me the broken wall caught the first web.

Then the dragon roared. It seems ridiculous that a creature without lungs could emit a roar, but it did. Fangrim yelped and fled into the jungle. Poor Hedrin. At least Istanil was safely ensconced in my scribe’s pouch. But if she had run away I could catch up to her much faster than Hedrin could catch Fangrim.

Feline yowls heralded the arrival of Latan’s tressyms, swooping into the ruins. By some quirk of fortune Latan had been not far away and had been pursuing the skeletal dragon. Heartened, I turned my attention to the spiders.
[sblock]
Jubilee (talking about Zora's cat): “Maybe it’s those manly love handles.”
Zora (coming back into the room): “Hey! The GM comes into the room to be appalled.”
sniffles: “The GM comes into the room to be insulted.”
[/sblock]
Roland emitted a piercing whistle that I had come to recognize as his call for Beloved. As I glanced toward him for a moment, one of the skull-spiders spat some of its webbing on me. I was still threatened by two skeletons and struggled to fend them off while covered in the sticky stuff.

Then another spider spat webbing on me and I was immobilized. “Ah!” I shouted, “Help me!” I looked about desperately for my friends, hoping perhaps I could use my magic to exchange places with one of them. But Hedrin had clambered down from the ruined building and gone to face the dragon with Latan, and I couldn’t see Roland from my present vantage.

I felt myself being lifted from the ground and realized that Isaura was picking me up. The skeletons clawed at me as she flew up with me in her grasp. Roland called for a retreat, then shouted my name. “Help me get free! I have a spell to help against the dragon,” I shouted back. “Regroup!” he replied.

I felt despair for a moment then, thinking that I was helpless to aid my friends. But the Lady is always with us. “Please, take me to Roland and Hedrin,” I asked Isaura. I began struggling to tear myself free of the webbing. Within a few heartbeats I had succeeded. “Let me go,” I said to the air elemental.

Hovering over the battleground, I could see when the dragon snatched up Hedrin in its jaws. Isaura set me on the ground nearby as I’d asked, though when I made my request the dragon hadn’t been quite so near. Latan called out, “Begone!” at the dragon and I saw shards of bone splinter off the skeleton.

Hedrin began to snarl and pummeled the dragon with his fists in a frenzy of rage. I could see his eldritch energy discharging from his hands. I darted past the dragon and summoned the healing Blessing I received to channel healing energy at the dragon, recalling that such energy harms undead creatures. To my disappointment, nothing happened. Frustrated, I swung my mace with both hands and was rewarded with a resounding crack.

Roland had been attempting to lead our retreat, but he now came racing back toward the dragon, shouting with great volume a word in the ancient draconic tongue. For a moment his image was overlain by a ghostly image of a silver dragon as he slammed into the skeleton. The skeleton fell back and dropped Hedrin, apparently stunned by the force of Roland’s attack. Roland’s draconic image then clawed and snapped at the skeleton, even slapping it with an ethereal silver tail. When he was done, he had reduced the skeletal dragon to a heap of shattered bone.

“Oh, praise the Lady,” I breathed. I ran to Roland, who had reverted to his ordinary appearance and was panting with exhaustion. I channeled my healing power into him to relieve his fatigue, then trotted to Hedrin to look after his wounds.

It was disturbing to realize that the undead creatures must have been sent as an advance force by Lerner’s army. Whose burials had been desecrated to provide the skeletons – or had Lerner’s necromancer ally slain some poor villagers to acquire his unliving foot soldiers? And Latan believed that the dragon had been controlling the other skeletons, had perhaps even created them. It is terrifying to think that we could be facing enemies who can raise the corpses of our dead and turn them against us.

When we had recovered ourselves, Latan sent Isaura to scout the area for any remaining undead creatures. In the process she discovered that some creature was running away from us at speed, heading in the direction the skeletal dragon had come from. It was not Fangrim but was apparently a skeletal dog. There was no way for Latan to direct Isaura to attack it, and the elemental chose not to follow it further. We could do nothing to halt the skeletal dog’s journey or catch up to it. Our only consolation was that the dog would not be likely to be able to communicate intelligently with its master, unless its creator had made it much more clever than such things usually are.

We decided to return to the village and ask Kyril if she could intercept the skeleton dog. As we walked, I remarked on how impressive Roland’s display had been and discovered that he wasn’t entirely aware of what he had done. “For a moment I thought Percy had returned to us,” said Latan.

“I don’t think it was me,” Roland responded. I reflected that this wasn’t the first time Roland had manifested this facet of the Lady’s power.

We made our way back to the village to find that Latan’s tressyms, terrified by the skeletal dragon, had taken refuge in a loft – and Fangrim had managed to join them there! And Grizzen the wolfen had set himself as guard outside, perhaps more for Fangrim than the tressyms, I think.
[sblock]
Devo: “It’s the familiar clubhouse.”
[/sblock]

 

[sniffles]

New Arrivals

Perhaps an hour after our return to the village, Kyril returned and we reported to her what had befallen us. She was appalled to hear of the dragon skeleton, which she hadn’t seen before going to fetch us. When she asked how we defeated it, I replied, “It was a blessing of the Lady that she extended to Roland.” Roland attempted to downplay this, I noticed.

We determined that we should return to the area and dispose of the fallen skeletons with respect, for the persons whose remains had been used thus had never asked to be treated so. And a dragon is a creature deserving of respect in any form.

As I remarked to my companions, it is at times like this that I wish I had chosen to follow my Naneth’s example and learn the ways of wizardcraft earlier in life. Then I might have had a more useful arsenal of arcane lore at my disposal.

But as I’ve said before, the Lady is with us in our time of need. Latan has received word that Ladyheart is on her way to the village.

And the fairies have brought Percy to join us!

I was simply crossing the center of the village when I caught a glimpse of the most startling sight: Latan’s two little doubles were fluttering along with Percy between them! Percy, in his ordinary human guise.

Hedrin went racing across the intervening space, shouting “Percy!” and enveloped our retiring young friend in a hug. A moment later the rest of us had surrounded him with equal enthusiasm.

“How did you get here?” exclaimed Hedrin with wonder. “These two brought me,” Percy replied, sounding a little bewildered. Then Antla and Nalta began to babble out an explanation of how they had helped Percy escape from Dragonsreach, speaking so rapidly I could hardly understand their words.

“So where is this place?” Percy asked, looking around at the village. Latan quickly gave him a brief explanation of what the village is, and I added, “It’s a bit like Dragonsreach, but without Heritage.”

Latan was questioning the fairies as to how they had managed to get Percy out of Dragonsreach, and at last was able to determine that they had achieved this feat by somehow making him not a dragon. Whether this is a permanent state is still uncertain.

Percy said little himself, but Antla and Nalta explained that he had been effectively held prisoner by Father Merrick, who seemed to be trying to learn something from him or about him. I detected a trace of anger in Percy’s few comments as he elaborated on the fairies’ tale. I’ve never had cause to doubt Father Merrick’s faith or his honor until now. I can see no reasonable explanation for him to hold a scion of the Lady against his will.

When we had discussed that a little, Percy then asked about what he’d heard of an army, and Roland explained to him how we expect Lerner’s army to attack the village within a few weeks’ time. Percy, loyal as ever, immediately offered to do whatever he can to help.

I crooked my arm around Percy’s elbow and we escorted him around the village and introduced him to everyone then, taking care not to introduce him as any special personage since it was clear he didn’t want to be set apart. During the tour of the village Roland made it a point to tell him how many unique people live here, so that he would know he need have no fear of being outcast among these people. If anything the folk of the village are even more accepting and tolerant than the residents of Dragonsreach.

Not surprisingly, the two fairies attracted a good deal of excitement, which clearly relieved Percy somewhat since he didn’t want to be the center of everyone’s attention.

I noted that while Percy seemed essentially unchanged since we last saw him in human form, he appeared somehow more regal than before – and the bicep in my grasp was more muscular than I recalled. The fairies had of course brought Tamber the tressym along as well, and though Percy showed no sign of his true nature, Tamber still demonstrated draconic features.

Later, Hedrin remarked to us that Percy’s scent had changed – it continually fluctuated between the scent Hedrin had been accustomed to before Percy’s transformation and another aroma. He suggested that perhaps this was because Percy’s true nature was contesting with whatever magic the fairy twins had used to disguise his draconic quality.

Hedrin also suggested the possibility of taking Percy to see Armetis, to see if the mage could divine anything about what magic the fairies had used to suppress Percy’s nature.

While we went on showing Percy around the village, Latan took the fairies to meet her parents. That, too, had a most interesting result, as she confided to us later.

According to her tale, the two mechanical fairies began to hum and seemed entranced by the entwined trees. As this happened, the trees separated, leaving a space between them perfectly sized for Latan to fit inside.
[sblock]
Zora: “If you were wooden right now you’d make one big tree. Family tree, so to speak.”
[/sblock]
Then she heard the sound of something metallic striking the stone floor and realized that the fairies had fallen insensible to the ground. They seemed to be asleep as best Latan could determine, though that is quite curious when one considers that they are arcane constructs.

The two fairies were then transported to Armetis. It was no surprise that he found them fascinating. Latan had of course told him of them previously, but he’d found the tale almost too outlandish to believe.

Because of their partly fey nature and that they are both constructs and living creatures, he found it difficult to read them with his peculiar mage-sight Blessing. But what he was able to sense was that their magic essence had been somehow depleted.

When Latan told him how the trees had reacted to the fairies’ presence, Armetis nearly panicked. He ran outside and looked up at the dome of energy that cloaks the village, as if to reassure himself that it was still there. He’s one of the few people in the village who know about the trees and how they support the village.

The fairies hadn’t awakened by this point, so Latan decided to bring them back to him again the following day for further examination.

While we were absent from the village, Artie had been busy exercising his Blessing. He’d made some new structures of a different design than his previous creations. He’d also made a fountain out of the village well – he can cause the earth to keep moving continuously to push the water up through the fountain!

After we admired his latest work, Roland asked him if he’d construct a home for us so that we can have both a residence of our own and a headquarters for our activities here. He seemed quite excited by the prospect of creating something to Roland’s specifications.

With that thought in mind, I decided to ask Istanil to obtain some information for me regarding fortifications that would be usable here in the jungles of Chult. I hope I can provide some information for Artie to use in creating defenses for the village.

When I opened her pages to ask her this favor, I found that there was a sketch of Percy there, along with some detailed notes about him. I thought it odd but didn’t remark on it until later, when I discovered that the drawing and notes were gone. At the same moment, I noticed that one of her pages had been bent over, as if to mark a place! As I hadn’t done any such thing myself, I peered between the pages with curiosity.

I recognized Ada’s handwriting at once and spread the pages further apart to read. It said, Daughter, I hope all is well. If you have your friend with you now, do not put anything in this book regarding him. I realized that she must mean Percy. At that instant I recognized that there must be more of a connection between Istanil and my mother than I had first thought. I’d only assumed that Ada had created her, but now I think that perhaps some of the information I’ve acquired through her has been sent to me by my mother.

I wrote quickly on the page below her message, All are well. I miss you. Then I set Istanil down to let her finish her work, feeling both pleased by my discovery and wistful for my mother’s presence.

When Istanil had done transcribing the information I requested, I remarked to her, “Thank you for removing the information you had earlier.” In response she wrote back in a very small, tight script, I was told to remove it. I gave her covers an affectionate squeeze and told her, “It’s alright. You didn’t know. From now on it will be our secret.”

I told my friends as soon as I could of Istanil’s special advantage, but Ada’s secrecy made me realize that she must fear she is being watched.
[sblock]
Jubilee: “I think it’s time for Lerner to be sent to the Lady for judgment. Possibly punishment.”
Zora: “Possibly with barbecue sauce.”
[/sblock]
Percy has confided to us more of what he experienced while being held captive in Dragonsreach. I find it hard to accept that Father Merrick would do such a thing, but Percy’s tale is compelling evidence. Percy tells us that he thinks the Lady is unaware of Father Merrick’s actions. He sensed that some of the other priests were uncomfortable with Merrick’s directions. He also overheard a portion of a heated discussion that he suspects was between Merrick and his brother Breonne, who must have traveled all the way from Candlekeep to remonstrate with Father Merrick.

I wonder if Brother Breonne knew when we visited him that Percy was a child of the Lady? And why did his abilities appear to everyone else as Blessings rather than as his inheritance?

I’m afraid our welcome of Percy was perforce rather brief. We have so much to do in preparation for the army’s arrival. But at least with Percy’s arrival we’ll be very well fed!

In between practicing my Ancient Draconic, I’ve been busy scribing spells into my spellbook from the spellbook and scrolls we obtained from the goblins prior to our arrival here. Some of them were damaged in the fight, but I’m preserving what I can. I’ve also been teaching my friends how to meditate elven-fashion, and training any of the villagers who have spellcasting ability in the use of their magics against our approaching enemies.

My friends are all occupied with their own group of villagers for whom they’re responsible. Hedrin is training with both the villagers and the wolfen. Roland is coordinating with the goblins. And Latan is busy finding more allies in nature.

I never imagined that we would be responsible for forming an army of our own. But we have so much that Lerner and his followers can never have. May the Lady smile on our efforts.