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Message: <blockquote data-quote="TerraDave" data-source="post: 5440717" data-attributes="member: 22260">Buckthorn thanks Oronotor, the masked Mage of Saruun, for the great reward and Buckthorn fondly admires his newly enchanted bow.  "I think I will need to test my skills, with this new, fine bow."  Before he takes his leave of the mages, he tells them of the crystal orb that he found in Paldemar's study and the vision he saw when he touched the orb.  He describes the Skull.  "I do not know what  this means, though it seems an ominous sign.  Do you know what this vision may mean?  Hopefully it is a sign of something in the past and not a portent of things to come.  I've had enough of dungeons and wizards... for the time being at least."They do not know, but feel that a portent it may very well be. Buckthorn helps to make arrangements for the party's fallen comrades - Rafa and Zhuva. They are given a proper burial and respects are paid."I think I am ready to take my leave of these halls now... I am ready to see some green fields and deep woods again."  After spending a bit more time at the Halfmoon, Buckthorn guides Noldo back to their village to reunite him with the rest of Buckthorn's kin who had been kidnapped.  Forge: Forge spends his time here and there in the Seven Pillared Hall, regaling all he can of his recent deeds while trying to sniff out some more adventure. But the offers of routine caravan guarding just don’t seem all that appealing or lucrative now that the dwarf has so much gold in his pockets and has seen the strange happenings in the Well. Forge gets pretty bored. Lucian is talking of leaving to some nearby city, maybe he could join him. One mildly interesting person does arrive, and actually takes some interest in the various happenings at the Well and the Hall. Forge is not exactly sure what he is, but the new comer seems to have traveled widely, known other dwarves, survived a fight or two, and, lets be honest the real reason for Forges interest—besides the fact that he listens to his stories, says he can and has healed with divine and some kind of natural power. Forge knows how handy that is. Know if only he had need for it. Lucian: Great hopes aroused by this strange under town and its wizard overlords have slowly faded. Oh sure, plenty of odds things are up, but nothing that will let the teifling take a long trip, if you know what I mean. Lucian is just about ready to go back to Northall. While nothing compared to his home town, it seems to be the closest thing to a real city that these yokels know about. And beneath it all, somethings are bugging him about recent events. Especially Bart the disappearing wizard and his book obsession. Lucian first met Bart and Rafa (and the first two of various paladins and clerics) in the midst of a horrid ritual to bridge through the shadow the living world and that of the dead.   A book was there, clearly part of the ritual. Bart's obsession? The book, rites of an extra-planar nature, the rising shadow…Oh well.  At least the dark rituals and strange places confirm that there are some interesting things on this rock. Ghen-Uia Nis was glad he spent so much time listening to Klag. It was from Klag that he learned the “common” tongue (which turned out to be different then the dwarven tongue…). It was from Klag that he first heard of the human lands, dwarven holds, and mighty cities. And inspired by Klag, Ghen-Uia began his great journey. He avoided the Shadow Coast, were Klag had sought other dwarves but found only sadness, but visited Norvosk and Borivostok,  the human lands of Ostmark and Westland, the ancient elven forest of Aldannor, and the one remaining great dwarven kingdom: Barukar.Ghen-Uia realized that most dwarves weren’t like Klag. They didn’t go on great journeys, and they didn’t think much of strangers, unless they had gold to spend. Other settled people, human or halfling, could be almost as bad.  As he traveled the land and got into one kind of trouble and another, he slowly realized that there were others like Klag, and they could be men,  or dwarves, or halflings, or something else. Adventurers.  A whole underworld of adventurers. Sometimes they would stab you in the back, or get themselves killed. But they might be who he was looking for. Of course the spirits didn’t leave him, and could keep him company. And there was a new one. An angelic, elemental being that would occasionally seem to appear, and keep pushing him West. And so Ghen-Uia kept going over the months, crossing the great rift that Klug told him was made by the gods when they destroyed the first kingdom. In another big city—Northall—he met Melora, who seemed to take in outcasts and wandering priests as a specialty. She him reminded that the first dwarven kingdoms were in this new continent, and told stories of recently discovered statues of minotaurs that came to life in a great underground labyrinth. She said there were adventurers there that might need a healer. But she also said that his destiny would be a wandering one, and that the death he had known had marked him deeply. Ghen-Uia found a road leading into the labyrinth, and to a town deep in the earth. The Seven-Pillared Hall, which had races he had never seen before, and an inn run by halflings! Here he met another dwarf. Not as wise as Klag, but wiser then his sometimes braggart persona let on, Forge told in great detail about the bronze minatours, and other wonders of the labyrinth, and Ghen-Uia had enough insight to realize that much of what he said was actually true. While deep in the earth, something about this place was reassuring. But Ghen-Uia also had the feeling he wouldn’t be here long.</blockquote>

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