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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Lars Frehse" data-source="post: 487156" data-attributes="member: 1674">Eve of the Taurosphinx - part 1It was the first of Tanot in the year 151, exactly one  year after they had left Durrover, when the adventurers were finishing their negotiation in Mullis Town on behalf of the Gravelfist Orcs. Niklas and Jan were there to give the merchants a guarantee on behalf of the city of Mithril, so that the orcs were able to purchase much needed goods on credit, and Ben, Torn and Trepat served as middlemen. After all, the merchants, who were mostly humans, felt much more comfortable doing their business with an elf, a halfling or even a halforc, than with Orcs.It was a warm afternoon, and the sun was shining brightly in a sky that was as blue as the sea as they settled down for  dinner with Donnangar. They sat down in front of their inn on wooden benches and ate outside, watching the busy pedestrians and carts on the street, as a young human approached them.He was grinning happily and as he arrived at the table, the friends recognized him: It was Eochaid- the Vigilant who had, in the previous summer, handed to them the Serpent Amphora, a leaden vessel, that held some of the essence of Mormo and which was protected by the seal of Chardun. When they had first met, he was on the brink of death from Asaathi poison, but Ben's herbs and medicines had saved him. Together, they had brought the Amphora to Lave, the capital of Vesh, all the while hunted by Belsamites, Ratmen and other agents of evil.It was a cheerful reunion, and soon they were drinking wine and telling each other what had happened in the year since they last saw each other. After a while, Eochaid explained why he was there in Mullis Town: "Originally, I was sent to deliver a message to Mithril. But as I had just sattled my horse, and was about to leave Lave, I was stopped by Home Commader Kelemis Durm himself."He told me that I would find you here in Mullis Town, leading negotiations for an Orcish tribe, and that I was to deliver letters to you."And with that he pulled out five identical looking letters from his bag, which he had put in front of his chair. They opened the letters, and read them:My friends,Please forgive the suddenness of this message. It is imperative that I speak with you, since a situation has arisen that demands action, but I fear that my vigilants are hampered- quite frankly, they are too well known. We need someone of strength and dedication of the kind which you have shown in the past.I would ask you that you come as quickly as you might to the Hall of Command in the Veshian capitol of Lave. Present yourself to the Majordomo there, a man named Trophion. Time is of the essence.I thank you.With kind regards,Kelemis Durn,Home Commander of VeshAfter they had read the lettters, all of them were silent. Each of them thought back to his own part in the adventure that had revolved around the Serpent Amphora. The good cheer that had prevailed just a few minutes earlier was gone, and they all felt sobered up.Five days later, they were in the sun room in the Hall of Command. It was a large and beautiful chamber  with huge picture widows that transformed the sunlight into beautiful golden rays which were bathing the room in a warm golden light. With them were two Vigilants and one priest of Tanil. There was Kelemis Durn himself, his lieutenant, Amra Varith, a young woman with a face that was both stern and sensual, and Erem of the Huntress, a scholar who served Tanil.After they were formally welcomed and Kelemis had thanked them for coming on such short notice, Erem cleared his throat, and with a shy and nervous smile he handed out some scrolls to the heroes."As you will see", he started," these scrolls are copies of an account of Lilliandel, a legendary archer-bard who had fought for Tanil in the divine war. She reports about how the gods fought Mormo. Apparently, Chardun pulled out the witch queen's heart and afterwards, he had captured parts of her essence in a leaden amphora which he sealed with the powers that he commands as the god of binding."Kelemis nodded towards the scholar and continued:" This vessel is the Amphora which you have taken from the Titanspawn and brought here last summer. Ever since, titanspawn activity has gotten much stronger in Vesh- especially servants of Mormo, Asaathi and Slitheren are found deeper and deeper within the borders of our realm. It looks like the servants of Mormo have gotten stronger and bolder in the past, and they seem to crave this vessel that holds the essence of their mistress. Now we intend to send you and and three other groups, some of which you had met on the way in here, on four seperate missions with the goal to learn as much about the serpent amphora as it is possible for mortals. Before I continue, I need to know one thing though: Will you accept this mission?".Without any hesitation, they all agreed. Not only had the Vigilants proven to be grateful employers with good intentions in the past, but they, too, were curious just what the true significance of this artifact was.He smiled contently:" Very well, then. I want you to go to Hedrad. The city of The Lawgiver is also home to the most extensive libraries and wisest sages in this part of the world. There, you should be able to find more information about the amphora. Meanwhile, small parties of known vigilants, complete with false amphorae, will try to draw out Mormo's forces in the open."When they were finished in the Hall of Command, and after they had said goodbye to the two vigilants and the priest, they went to the market to buy provisions. After all, a long journey to the city in the east lay ahead of them.Then, as Niklas was talking to a shopkeeper on the market, he felt something tugging on his backpack. Turning around, he stood face to face with a scrawny brown haired human, who was just pulling his hand out of Niklas' backpack. Seeing that he was caught redhanded, the thief turned around and ran down the market, with Niklas in hot pursuit.</blockquote>

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