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Message: <blockquote data-quote="xnosipjpqmhd" data-source="post: 2680543">Tales of the Bloody HellBook One: Long Live the Tirshata Session 3 (from 13 Sep 2003)Vidian and his comrades, eager to test the Bloody Hell's newfound speed, rocketed into the sky in pursuit of the Farad. Soon they spotted the windship hovering above the ruins of the city of giants. Here it had let down its payload of mercenaries to pillage for treasures among the enormous stones.The heroes were loath to make their presence known, lest this raid be only a brief stay in an otherwise longer journey. But other events forced their hand. From the east came an army of araqs mounted on land dragons. Tarriod and his men immediately began to retreat to their ship, loading what treasures they could with great haste. But the dragons belched fire, and many men perished.Without further delay, Vidian positioned the Bloody Hell on the far side of the windship, away from the threatening fires of the dragons. Gann, Motar, and Maylek sprang into action, boarding the ship and killing many men in the confusion. The poor mercenaries were beset by two enemies and were overcome. Tarriod and Silva were soon captured by the heroes. Then Vidian landed his skiff on the deck of the larger ship, removed the crystal from the engine, and sped across the planks to the helm of the windship. With much struggle he turned it away from the marauding araqs and flew away from the battle.The ship was found to contain crates of empty scrolltubes, an Kharakhan knife of ancient and unknown origin found hidden near the merchant's bed, and a map marked with both the ruined city of giants and a location somewhere within the Sinking Land. Both Tarriod and his slave refused to shed light on the mystery, claiming that the Sinking Land was never their destination, but the heroes remained unconvinced. Tarriod denied any knowledge of the Kharakhan blade.In need of rest, repair, and supplies, Vidian turned the ship toward the forests of Tamaranth where the Ariane dwelt, nestled in their black-stoned maze city of Altan. Here the heroes were addressed by representatives of the griff, who bade them peace. During a brief respite within the city, the heroes attempted to learn all they could of the fabled Sinking Lands and of the Kharakhan knife.The Ariane recounted the legends of Elonde, the city of four winds, that was rumoured to float above the Sinking Lands. They also imparted the knowledge that the Kharakhan blade was over 1,000 years old. Its curious etchings were of an ancient speech, now spoken only by the Dhuna. Furthermore, the previous owner of the knife had been a woman, and it had been used in a recent murder.After the heroes made ready to leave, Vidian flew toward a darkening sky, raising the windship ever higher to pass above the surrounding mountains. Yet the large ship was much slower than the Bloody Hell, and Vidian became fatigued. As he attempted to set the ship down in a small area of flat stone, the ship careened to one side and was sorely damaged. Luckily the Bloody Hell, tied to the larger ship's masts, suffered little. Tired, despondant, and clueless about their quest, the heroes were at a low point. Nothing more could be done except to return to Carantheum with what little they had gained.The return to the desert city was anti-climactic. Tarriod was turned over to the dockmaster as part of Vidian's agreement, but no further light could be shed on the Farad's schemes.TO BE CONTINUED</blockquote>

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