"As it turns out, there is a task that you could help us with."

Maeve proceeds to outline what the P.A.R.T.Y knows of the Ironwood Band to Gilbert.

"Even if you're unable to actually obtain the Band, any information on its location, any wards surrounding it, would help immensely."

She eyes the imp doubtfully.

"Unless of course you think you're not up to the task.  I'm sure we could find something easier for you to do. . . ."

In reply to Maeve Hassan (msg # 14):

"Easier? Easier?!" the imp squawks, appalled. "I'll find your stupid ring, you see if I don't. Of all the ungrateful, indecent, pessimistic..."

His litany of complaints is drowned out by the blast of sulfur and flame that signals his departure from your company. For now.
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:23, Mon 04 Aug 2014.

"Well that was...resourceful. I wonder if he can actually pull it off." He looks at the rapidly dissipating cloud of smoke dubiously. I'm sure we won't come to regret this in any way...

Zuriel rummages in his pack, extracting an old sheaf of parchment. This he hands to Boreas. "This map was in the book written in Sylvan from the Feyic Vault. I don't know how dated it is, but the major landmasses shouldn't be any different. Let's see if we can figure out where we are. If you need me to, I or Keef can probably fly up to get a better look at our surroundings."

[Private to DM: Zuriel falls silent, directing his mind toward the Everstaff. Well, I suppose this is it. A trial by fire, Longshank. Can you control yourself amidst such vibrant life, I wonder? I would strongly advise against consuming any of the life force here. The locals would probably take very unkindly to us if you made your nature known.]

Boreas looks over the map, engrossed in the features of Fey'driel.  His tongue sticks slightly out of his mouth, making him look for all the world like a little boy poring over an adventure story.

He smiles slightly, looking up.  No need.

He motions to a vibrant red bird perched on a nearby tree limb.  Come here, friend.  I should like to talk with you.  He produces some seeds from his pouch.

[Wild Empathy 27]

The bird flits over and lands on Boreas' hand.  He listens intently to a series of brief chirps.  Nodding his head to the bird, he asks politely, Can you fly up and tell me what you see nearby?  Look for anything very large, even in the distance.

After nibbling some more seeds, the bird flies up in the air.

[OOC]I'm basically having the bird "aid" me on my Survival check, if that works for you.[/OOC]

As the little bird flies back down, it tweets to Boreas what it saw.  Taking another mouthful of seed, it departs.  Boreas nods in thanks.  He turns back to the map.

[Survival 15]

Lyriel sighs in relief as the imp vanishes. His voice grated on her nerves, and she felt uncomfortable in its presence.

I know we had wanted to visit the wild elves first, but I think maybe we should stay here and make the best of the situation. If my magics are no longer reliable, who knows where we could end up if we try to shift again? I think we should try to find a stable portal...

The priestess furrows her brow worriedly as she runs through their options. I had hoped we'd have Cassie as a guide. But maybe...that's still a possibility.

While Zuriel and Boreas pore over the map, Lyriel makes preparations to begin casting Sending. Before she can start the ritual, however, she is interupted by a hard lump of stone pushing into her shoulder. She turns around in surprise, and her face lights up in happiness.

Stony! But how? - That's so strange. Something must *want* us here... If the revelation disturbed Lyriel, she was comforted by the act of petting the stone pony affectionately. At least, as far as one could pet a statue.

After spending a few moments showering her pet with attention, to which it seemed to respon as any horse would, Lyriel returned to be business of casting.

[Sending > Cassie: Teleported unexpectedly to Fey'driel. Could use a guide. Somebody who can hear nature. We wanted to bring you; do you have a means to come?]

Zuriel looks around, taking a sip of tea and enjoying the sights while Boreas chats with the bird. Taking a look at the map on his own, he attempts to ascertain where exactly they are. His amber eyes gaze off into the distance, looking for landmarks, and he checks the angle of the sun.

[Survival: 24]

In reply to Zuriel Silendril (msg # 19):

Keef looks around, mostly in knot holes of trees and the like.  He then goes about drawing arcane symbols in the dirt with a stick, consulting books every now and then.

In reply to Keef (msg # 20):

It takes Lyriel ten minutes to complete her magical transmission, which is about as long as the rest of the P.A.R.T.Y. takes ascertaining their location or (in Keef's case) frolicking about haphazardly.

[Private to Lyriel Vesper: Cassie -> We maintain but one access point to Fey'driel, and the way is dangerous. How can I help?]

The bird flutters around in the skies for a while before swooping back down to make its report to Boreas.

[Private to Boreas Highwind: "There's the Rushing Sheets far to the north," the bird chirps, more intelligently than you would have expected. "Where the river empties into the valley. Forest goes east and west for miles, all the way to the horizon, and of course the Brambles begin just a short flight south."]

Boreas nods at the bird's report and turn to help Zuriel plot their position on the map with a reasonable degree of accuracy -- if the map is accurate in and of itself, that is.


This message was last edited by the GM at 14:15, Tue 05 Aug 2014.

Boreas looks up from the map, gathering his bearings.

I think Zuriel and I know about where we are.  But let's not go to Du'driel.  I don't like the sound of it.

In reply to Boreas Highwind (msg # 22):

The bird chirps some more.

[Private to Boreas Highwind: "It was founded upon the ancient ruins of Brohan, you know," the bird chirps. "Nice place, actually. Need anything else?"]

In reply to DM (msg # 23):

Boreas smiles at the bird.  No, thank you friend.

"Agreed.  Du'driel sounds. . . . .ominous at best."  Maeve watches Wes frolic like a colt in the green grass.

"Where to then?  The Lonethorn looks promising.  As does the Basin of Wishes."
This message was last edited by the player at 15:02, Tue 05 Aug 2014.

Zuriel examines the map, frowning. "Honestly, I have no idea where we should be heading. I assume a population center would be the best bet for us finding a symbol of Le'lothriel, but beyond that I'm lost. I was hoping we'd have some guidance. I can ask the Book tonight, but it seems like regardless we probably want to start moving north. If we head up to the falls, we can follow the river around to wherever we want to go."

In reply to Zuriel Silendril (msg # 26):

I've just heard back from Cassie, apparently there is only maintain one access point, and the way is dangerous. She asked how she could help. Lyriel looks to the others, what do you think?

"If the way is dangerous, we could always travel to wherever this access point is to help her across," Maeve says.  "Or if she'd rather not risk the trip, we can communicate via Sending.  It's not ideal, but it's better than having nothing to go on."

Zuriel voices his agreement with Maeve. "She lost her ability to wield nature's magic. Any crossing would be dangerous for her. I can ask the Book of Answers where the portal will lead her, and as Maeve said, we could potentially help her cross. Until then though, I think we had better work on the one thing we have to go on - finding a settlement, and from there, Le'lothriel's followers. We can keep in contact via Sendings until we know more."

That sounds like the best course of action.

In reply to Boreas Highwind (msg # 30):

Agreed, so I'm going to tell her we're working on figuring out where the portal leads so we can potentially meet her, I'm also going to see if she knows how Wildheart is faring. Lyriel pushes up the sleeves of her robes and focuses on the sending.

[Sending> Cassie: We are finding where the portal leads to possibly meet you. In the mean time how is Wildheart's condition?]

"Well, let's be off.  If not a population center, we can at least find a place to camp.  Zuriel, can you summon Shahara?  We'll move faster on horse."

Shahara appears in a flash of light, looking disoriented.

So...now we've clearly left the Hells. It's hard to keep up with you, little one. When you call I have no idea to expect swamps, grass, or devils.

The charger prances around a bit happily. This is much better than any of the other places. The grass here is sweet. Where are we?

Zuriel laughs, watching Shahara and Wes frolic. Even Stony seemed...upbeat, somehow. If a statue could show emotion. This is Fey'driel. Realm of Life. And I agree - altogether an improvement.
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 18:40, Tue 05 Aug 2014.

Once the horses are done with their frolicking, Maeve gives Keef a leg up onto Shahara's back to ride double with Zuriel.

"It. . . .it seems best to have Keef remain close to you," Maeve murmurs to the paladin.  "Where you can keep an eye on Longshank.  I don't know what you said to it, but I know that you two spoke.  I only hope that Longshank has taken whatever you said to heart."

From behind her, Maeve can hear Lyriel and Boreas exchanging heated words, the gist of which seems to be whether or not the P.A.R.T.Y's resident woodsman's smell precludes him from accompanying the priestess on Stony.

In reply to Maeve Hassan (msg # 34):

As the P.A.R.T.Y. sets off on horseback, Keef regales Zuriel with stories about being other animals and random musings on what sort of horse, real, celestial, stone or other, the Marquis de Peleanor likely would ride.

In reply to Keef (msg # 35):

The P.A.R.T.Y. quickly decides, as it ambles along a meandering trail that weaves its way around the less horse-friendly aspects of the forest, that it's the climate of Fey'driel that they like best. The temperature is not too hot and not too cool, and the humidity is thoroughly pleasant -- a far cry from the harsh winter back in Aeryis or the infernal heat of the Hells.

The journey toward the rushing sounds of cascading water takes the better part of the day, with the P.A.R.T.Y. reaching the edge of the falls just as the sun's lowest point has begun to kiss the horizon.

The Rushing Sheets is a sight to behold, as water from the feeding river to the north loops lazily to the west before thundering hundreds of feet into the valley below. The river seems to pool around a small island that seems to be at least a few miles from the churning rocks beneath the falls, then continues onward to the west toward parts unknown.

Of particular interest is the island itself, upon which a strange structure appears to have been erected. One might call it a drum tower, if such things could spring forth from the earth like a shrubbery, for it appears to be the appropriate size -- though all of wood, and adorned with branches, leaves, vines, and the like.

The forest extends to the south (from whence you came), east, and north (where it is joined by the river). The path west, however is blocked by the waterfall itself and would require a steep climb or aerial maneuvering to descend. The task looks doable, if difficult, for the P.A.R.T.Y. itself, but impossible for the horses.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:00, Wed 06 Aug 2014.

Zuriel, Shahara, and Keef stop near the bank of the river, gazing in awe at the waterfall.

"It's glorious!" Zuriel says reverently. "I've never seen anything like that before."

His gaze turns to the tower far out in the current below the falls. "I wonder who built that? Exploring seems like it would be difficult. We'd have to be able to fly somehow. It's the first sign of civilization we've seen; do we want to investigate?" He turns to the the two mages in the PARTY. "What magic do you two have that could get us down there without having to leave the horses?"

Looking up at the sun, he adds, "at any rate, we should make camp here for the night either way."

Hmm. Lyriel considers the problem before them. Well we don't want to split up. And we can't leave the horses here. That means our options are either polymorphing into things that can carry the horses, or simply flying.

The priestess turns to Keef inquiringly. Keef, what spells do you have that can help us fly?

[OOC Mass Fly would be ideal, but three castings of regular Fly, or some combination of Fly and Polymorph would also work.]