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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Wraithdrit" data-source="post: 751646" data-attributes="member: 10820">Session 2 (Cont)Tanerus rolled off his dog and into the brush so quickly and quietly it was near impossible to see him, even though Durgaden and Will saw him move off. Sure enough, some 90 feet away, a figure wearing chainmail, carrying a sword, led a horse through the less denser portions of brush. As Tanerus crept forward he could tell that the figure was actually elven, a moon elf at that. He slipped in behind the moon elf about the time the moon elf saw the rest of the party and decided to hunker down behind some brush. Try as he might though, the elf couldn't get his steed to be very stealth."Oi! No use hidin'. We done already seen ya!" Durgaden's voice rolled through the trees. To the elf it sounded like boulder's crashing against a hillside. So much noise from one so little."Yes, but I don't know you and you don't know me." The elf's reply made a bit of sense. "Besides that, you are travelling with a giant." "Eh him? He's blind. We are just gonna help him. Come closer sos I don't hafta yell so much!" The elf thought anything was preferable to the dwarf continueing to yell so he moved up closer to them."We be ye? I'm Durgaden Alepounder, and this is Will." "My name is Amador." "What are you doing way out here?" "I have business out here, I am in the service of my diety, Corellian Lorethian." He stood a bit taller at the mention of his diety's name. Durgaden grumbled to Will, "Wonderful, not only a pansy eater, but a damn holy pansy eater." A bit louder so that the elf could hear, "Headed south?" "Aye, you as well?" The elf seemed hopeful, he hadn't had anyone to talk to in a long while and this group seemed on the up and up, at least he was not getting any negative feelings from them."Aye. We be headin' to me mines. The Mines of Tethyamar... could use a healer." To himself and Will, "Even if he munches on daisies and hugs trees.""Wonderful. I accept." Amador started to stride forward when Tanerus walked past him. Amador started and looked back behind him where the halfling had come from. His saddle bags seemed undisturbed."You should pay more attention." The halfling's voice seemed distant, but Amador was too startled by the whole thing to realize that the small creature had just spoken in his mind.The party made camp a short while later, following directions by Amador on where a good nearby camping spot was. Amador used his healing powers on everyone, including the giant (much to Durgaden's chagrin)."I swear to all that is short and holy, if you heal that damned giant one more time, I'm gonna take out your knees." To himself he continued, "Fool elf."The next morning Will successfully dispelled the giant's blindness. He and Amador were both rewarded with gems. "Now be off with ye, before I take my axe to ya!" The giant looked down at Durgaden and smiled, "Little dwarf, my blindness is cured. I have no more need of taking your insults, I shall be on my way, because I chose to be. You'd best think again before insulting me further. I have no quarrel with you, but if you make me angry I will kill you." The entire party bristled. Durgaden's mouth gaped open, disbelief at being spoken to so. Before he could say anything though, the giant turned its back and began to walk away to the north. Durgaden shook his head, and gruffed, "Eh... good riddance... giant. Sheesh."Soon the party was on the road... a road that seemed to be getting more and more... cramped. The party halted and the Tanerus went to scout ahead. As he moved forward he pulled his magic cloak out of his bag and slipped it around his shoulders, all but concealing him from view. He dodged up towards where the trees branches had landed, knowing it would be easier to scramble through there than up and over the massive trunk. On the other side of the tree he found a figure, laying on its stomach, covered in a huge volumous cloak. A gauntlet female hand was visible from one side. The figure moved as if hurt, moaning softly and trying to sit up again and again but failing to push itself up for long. Tanerus whispered, his sword out, just in case. "Are you okay? Do you need healing?" The figure spun quickly, faster than Tanerus was really ready for. She thrust out a hand crossbow, loaded with a bolt, pointed at him. Her silvery hair flowed from the hood of the cloak. Her black skin was marred with dried blood and dirt. Her spiderwebbed armor was dented and smashed with many holes all through it."Kinsith tilianoc?" Her language was foreign to Tanerus, and he really didn't relish the thought of being shot, so he leapt at her, trying to kick her wrist. His boot slammed into her wrist, the crossbow went off and Tanerus cried out as the bolt sunk into his thigh. She fell over from the attack, seeming to give way to her exhausted state. Tanerus cursed, lifted his blade to attack her, then slumped forward, victim to the poisonous bolt's effects. Hearing Tanerus's cry, Durgaden lept out of the brush and started toward the tree. Amador was quick behind him. Will however stayed back, eyes narrowing, glancing around, waiting for an ambush.Durgaden lept up on the tree, saw the drow woman beneath him and Tanerus sprawled out in front of him. He jumped off the fallen tree, landing shield first on the drow woman. She offed and half came up at the attack, her eyes shot open, though little clarity was in them. Durgaden headbutted her for good measure. She slumped back into unconsciousness.Amador quickly checked out Tanerus, and began chanting a spell. Tanerus' eyes fluttered open just as Will arrived. "Ow," the halfling muttered, holding onto his thigh. Seeing what they had the party quickly stripped the armor and weapons of the drow and tied her hands up. A quick minor heal spell from Amador and her eyes fluttered open."Who are you? And what are you doing here?" Will asked."Chinikallia forsoon. Tikala mitaka." "Do you speak common?" Will asked slower in common."Or elvish? Or ...""I... I speak your common." She frowned, obviously still in a lot of pain. "Just kill me and end it so I might be with my mistress.""Lolth?" asked Durgaden, gripping his axe tightly."Of course... rockbiter." She hissed her words, sneering a bit to add to her own venom. Will intercepted, "What are you doing here? Who attacked you? Talk to me, we can help.""You can not help. You are nothing compared to the power of this nightmare.""What nightmare? Tell us something and we will -""Will what? Let me go? Right... I am already good as dead, so you can not threaten me with that. And when you are done with me, I will die anyways, so why should I tell you anything?"The group could tell by the look in her eyes that she did not fear death, but welcomed it. Something had rattled the faith of this priestess, but they had no idea what."Just kill me and get it over with." Will started to say something, but Tanerus' blade slid through her ribs and found her heart.Everyone looked at Tanerus. "She wasn't going to tell us anything. We can't take her with her, and we can't let her go. It was the only way."Once again they laid the fallens gear out and Will cast a quick enchantment. Other than some empty potion bottles, the only thing she had that was still magical was her amulet. A spider shaped amulet with intricate web working, it looked silver at first, so Durgaden picked it up, placed it against the fallen tree and smashed it with his axe.Or at least he tried to. The axe didn't even marr the surface. "This isn't silver." The axe blow had knocked some of the corrosion and dirt off. "Its mithril."Will whistled. "She had a magic mithril holy symbol? How high up on the priest ladder was she?" Not having anyway to answer that the party decided to keep the amulet for now. Durgaden wrapped it in cloth, wrapped that in leather, then put the whole thing a bag which he then placed inside his magic backpack.Tanerus looked around, "We should get out of here.""Agreed."Soon the forest was behind them and ahead of them....The party looked around for any sort of ambush and Will sent his owl circling up to look for anyone around. When the owl returned with an all clear the party moved forward to investigate. Durgaden stomped to lead at the urging of the party, to 'check it out'. He started kicking aside the wreckage."I don't see anything here but some old hard tack and some-"A ball of fire erupted from in front of Durgaden and engulfed the party. Durgaden screamed in anger and pain, Will doubled over and stumbled back. Amador threw up his shield and was a little less burned than the others. Tanerus managed to duck behind Amador and peaked out, unharmed."- cloth." Durgaden looked down at the now over burning wreckage and grumbled, "Send the dwarf forward." He retreated to where Amador was patching himself and Will up. Soon everyone was healed.Will frowned, "That had to be meant as a warning sign, someone doesn't want to be surprised by us coming to visit them."Tanerus fidgeted a bit, "We need to get out of here. That blast will call attention to us quickly." Everyone agreed and the party hightailed it out of there. Well as fast they could... Durgaden's mule had perished in the blast. As they walked the party began discussing things they knew so far. "Okay so we know that there is someone at the mines. Someone who has apparently allied themselves with a demon tainted sorceress." Will was trying to put pieces together. "These same people seem willing to both work with monsters, and to take them out. They worked with the ogre outside the city, but were attacking the giant."Someone who is powerful enough to set a fairly hefty fireball trap. We also have a mostly dead fairly powerful drow priestess of Lolth in the area, without her guard. Priestess of that power never travel alone. So what hurt her so bad, caused her to use up all her magic, and left her with no entourage?"Add to that they seem prepared, with traps and ambushes." Will scratched his chin a bit. "Something is definately going on around here."Tanerus added, "Don't forget the fresh wagon ruts. They can't be very old. So someone has been using these roads, and fairly recently.""Sounds like someone is trying to mine me mines! We need to get a move out, no one can have me ore!" Durgaden quickened his pace. For a dwarf he had incredible stride and seemed to nearly leap with each step.The party stayed perched at the edge of the city, taking it all in. No one could easily control all of the ruins of such a large area. They looked a bit closer at the larger tent grouping. A single flag flew over one of the large tents. The flag of the Zhentarim.</blockquote>

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