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Message: <blockquote data-quote="shilsen" data-source="post: 2821197" data-attributes="member: 198">Written by AviLazar:Session 20 - January 14, 2006We continue on our journey, everything seeming quiet as Captain Bly and the Sahuagin go through their routine to ensure our safe passage.  Finally, after a long trip, we reach the shores of Stormreach on the 24th.  Stormreach is not what I expected – I thought I would see a hovel of a village, but it is quite an expansive town with a lot of infrastructure.  The people who built Stormreach have done a great job into making this a town.We navigate our way through the town, following Dala, and enter the Bloody Giant inn.  Dala goes and speaks with the proprietor to confirm our room reservations.  Looking around, I decide to head out to house Sivis and from there I send a message to Lalia – informing her of my safe arrival.  This message, apparently, will not get out for a few days as the house has a lot of orders.  I travel around Stormreach a bit more, exploring the area and later that evening I head back to the Bloody Giant.Inside the inn I see two people, one of which is wearing full-plate with symbols of the Silver Flame.  I walk over, and introduce myself to him.  He introduces himself as Thrane, and his friend – who has a prostitute with him – is Cedric.  They invite us to sit down, and Six and I do so.  We talk for a few minutes and at this point I learn that Cedric is also a follower of the flame, not to what extent, but I have this feeling he is a brother to arms – though he does not dress or act like those I have met before – not many, but still a lot by most peoples standards.  I then give my full-name to Cedric and Magnus, realizing I was rude to only give my first name.  Cedric mentions his last name, Galan, and I remember a story of a Brelish paladin – who is well known against the Lords of Dust.  I piece his name with the feeling I get from him, and this man who has a prostitute on his legs is brother – a fellow paladin of the Silver Flame.  At this point Nameless strolls in and upon learning who Cedric is starts shaking his hand and seems quite happy to meet him.  Cedric then leaves, at the urging of his prostitute, and he invites me for drinks at the Welcome Wench.We then see Dala come back with two other people and she introduces them as some more companions who will travel with us.  The first of which I notice is a half-orc in, behind him is a tall gnome who goes by the name Arrok Doone.  We begin to discuss what we should expect, and apparently Arrok has a lot of experience in this profession – about fifteen years, and he has been spending the past five or so planning this trip.  Knowing this now, I think we have a good chance of surviving this expedition – which apparently nobody has ever taken before.  According to Arrok, others have heard of this place but it is supposed to be a myth.  Arrok then asks us if we would like to take this expedition, and we agree.  He then leaves and comes back with a drow by the name of Urden, who wears a mithral chain shirt and wields two scimitars on his back.  Nameless’ scrutinizes Urden and breaths a sigh, why I am not sure – I highly doubt Nameless has met this person, but who knows what secrets reside in Nameless’ head.Urden tells us of a story, how he was banished from his home – this island we are going to – and although he should have died at sea on a small skiff, he managed to stay alive by the food and water his mother snuck to him before he left, and pure luck of being picked up by another ship.  Once in Xen’drik, Arrok worked as a servant, and eventually a guide and sell-sword.  An interesting tale, and his experiences should prove invaluable.  Everyone turns in for the night, but I take my leave and head over to speak with Cedric.Upon going to the Welcome Wench, the place Cedric is staying in, I am greeted by a guard who instructs me to leave Kizmet by the cupboard.  I instinctively touch Kizmet, but am not about to leave it lying around – especially not in a place like this.  I am saved an argument when the owner, Katryna, comes down and says I am expected guest and can retain my sword.  Katryna walks me upstairs, and I speak with her briefly.  She tells me that Cedric comes here every now and again, paying – in excess – for their services and providing healing to any of the girls who need it.  We enter the room, where Cedric has three women with him, and he is telling them of one of his adventures.  Katryna takes the girls out of the room so Cedric and I can speak in private.Cedric and I speak on many topics, mainly how we view the world, drinking whatever concoction he hands me.  It is interesting, this Cedric Galan, he holds many views that I do – and definitely the call of the Silver Flame – but he is uncouth.  He has great honor, but his diplomacy is about as refined as Luna’s.  I like him though – he is honest, and considering how many liars, thieves, and tricksters I have been dealing with lately – it is refreshing.  Cedric and I part company, as he walks downstairs asking how he can get a hold of me in the future when he stops by Sharn.  I tell him I will look forward to meeting him again, and I will meet his friend Flamebearer Mazin Tana at Coldflame Keep.  I head back to the inn, with a little too much drink in me and go to sleep for the night.Waking up in the morning, with a massive headache – I pray to the Silver Flame, and add in a bit about getting some help from this hangover.  I think this is why I was taught to not drink.We have breakfast, and Captain Bly stops by the inn to give us 2,500 Galifars for helping with the Merry Celestial.  This was the reward money for the items and information we recovered.  We go about, doing some shopping, and I buy a couple of potions for the trip – particularly in areas where I cannot help – poisons.  We spend most of the day shopping and relaxing, and finally this hangover leaves me.  Six is curious about this feeling, Luna tells me I deserve as much, and Nameless just laughs at me.  The only sympathy is from Corven, but even that came with a lecture about drinking too much.That evening, we have a good dinner – probably the last good dinner for a while – and head down to the docks where we board a ship named the Sea Sprite.  We meet the captain, a Sovelon d’Lrandar and the ship leaves pre-dawn.  We travel and by the next morning a huge fog bank was spotted.  We traverse inside of this fog and eventually come close enough to land where we use canoes to travel to shore.  As we do travel, the mist – all of a sudden – just ends.  This mist is magical to say the least, and it is confirmed when Luna and Nameless casts a detect magic spell; however, as they does so, it starts to putter in and out.  Nameless has slightly better results then Luna, but his field of view is narrowed.  I do not try, deciding to save my spells for later use, but I figure I will not be too better off then they will.We dismount from the boats and our porters – who are fairly well armed – start carrying the boxes on poles.  After walking for a bit, we are walking in a path between cliffs…I feel like this would make for a great ambush, and this brings me worry.  I keep Kizmet at the ready – as always – and then odd looking wolves appear on opposite sides of the cliffs.  Their eyes are white and their skulls are misshapen as the rest of their bodies.  Everyone prepares for the oncoming attack, and the creatures try and emit an affect fear to stun the group.  The Silver Flame protects me from such tricks, but some in our group are not so lucky.  The battle ensues, and spells start to fly – Nameless casts slow on a small group of these creatures dramatically reducing their effectiveness.  Nameless screams these things have sort of displacement ability.  Realizing that hitting them is not due to armor, but pure luck if their displacement kicks in, I start to attack with all the power I can muster, and miss the first couple of times.  Finally these things are taken out with the combined effort of the group, and the remainders flee.  We heal the group, and then continue on our trek.Walking for a while longer we bypass the cliffs and enter a forest that Luna says is not natural.  Urden tells us to expect this because it happens often here.  We see a trail in the distance and some huts with canoes.  Urden comments this is what he was sent off in – for banishment.  After seeing the canoes, banishment is just the way these people execute their members without calling it that.  Corven then see’s two draw running in the distance and Urden tells us we are more likely to get a curious reaction then a violent one.  I am glad; I do not want to fight an entire tribe because they are xenophobic.  We walk a little bit further, and twelve drow come up towards us – most of their equipment is crude, but two have high quality steal weapons and a shield.  They speak to us, in an ancient form of elven, and ask us to go to their village.The village is not far, about ten minutes away, and we get there unmolested.  The village is strange.  It is crude, which is what I expected, but what makes it strange is that some of the buildings are supported by gigantic pieces of equipment.  One hut uses a ten-foot high steel shield as part of the wall, and then there is a large spear with an adamantine blade to hold the roof of another.  This land was once roamed by giants.We meet a woman, Rezan, who is the shaman of the village. She speaks with Corven and he tells us she would like to touch our faces – she thinks we are painted this color.  Apparantly, she has never seen anyone with our complexians before.  Corven tells her where we are from, and she takes us to her hut.  We sit there, outside the hut, and begin to speak.  Rezan tells us we should not lie to her, she does not believe that we came from beyond the mists as there is no such thing as a world beyond the mists.  Taking her story, Nameless, Corven and Collus relate it to the history of the dragons of Argonessen and the destruction of the giant civilization.  We tell Rezan of our desire to cross the wall, but she tells us it is forbidden to go there and it would be bad if we do.  Corven calms her and tells her we will not cross the wall.  Rezan tells us we can stay in the village as long as we would like to.We rest up in the village, and Luna sneaks off to explore the surrounding forest.  She comes back a bit later, and tells us of some of the things she has seen.  Luna tells us that she has seen some dinosaurs, and has spoken to a squirrel which said it has seen two legged creatures with yellow skin that kill various animals for food.</blockquote>

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