"I think not" replied the witch curtly to Eirik's suggestion. "So long as Jostyn requires our cooperation in order to remove this magical geas that has been placed upon him, I think it behooves us to use it to our advantage for as long as possible."
   "Spoken like a true enemy of the state" shot back the undead Thayan. "I would expect nothing less from one such as you, a child pretending at playing the role of would-be Hathran." His sneer snuck in at the end, turning his tone from bitter to belligerent. The zing struck a nerve in Bergdis, who turned her masked face on him with a suddenness that belied her setthing hatred of all things Thayan.
   "Tell me, scourge, why is it that only you were burdened with the questing spell that provides for life after death? Why was your charlatan not also so provided for? Why not your whole troupe, considering what you would have us believe about the potency of your Red Wizards." She posed the question quickly and succinctly, but failed to ctach the knight offguard.
   "Who knows the plots of my masters and their masters?" Jostyn shrugged noncomittally. "I can only say that I am grateful for the opportunity to serve them one more time, and hope that they can see my loyalty from afar and take steps to either raise me to serve again, or ensure that my slumber is a peaceful one."
   "Spoken like a true slave" jibed the witch, taking a cue from her enemy's own former retort.

   Vicril continued to observe the glowing pulsations of the magical stone in his grasp, unconcerned by and uninvolved with the conversation going on nearby.

Eirik sighed, long and loud, apparently from his exertions. Trust a Witch to delay saving her land to have an argument. And he didn't like what she seemed to be suggesting. He didn't like Jostyn, but respected him as a fellow warrior. To die in battle would be a more honourable end, not as a slave and undead mockery.

He pushed himself to his feet, and staggered a bit as his head shook and his legs tried to support his weight. He used his greatsword as a crutch. "Witch, we're Rashemi." he reminded sternly. "We don't keep a man a slave bound by spells, dead or not. We're not Thayans."

Then he jabbed a finger at Jostyn. "Every moment that cadaver stands here, he is a danger to us, and to Rashemen. Let's be rid of him now, by blade or by the Stone, then fix the damage his people have done... Vicril, give me the Stone."


OOC: Sense Motive on Vicril: 7
Sense Motive on Jostyn: 14

"Eirik's right, Bergdis," calls out Cecania, deciding that if she didn't step in, the baiting and taunting between the witch and undead warrior could carry on indefinitely.

"Let the damned warrior put himself to rest, so we can finish this quest and get back to town already.  The sooner that stone and the wand are destroyed, the better."

   From his new vantage point Eirik could see now the restrained emotion that Jostyn held in check. It was clear in his eyes - but was it fury...or desperation? Perhaps a little of both.
   "The stone shall not be destroyed." Vicril's proclamation was given with the same hardness as the magical earthen item he still cupped in his hands. He spoke it without moving, yet such was the suddenness of his voice that Harto actually jumped a little.
   "Nor shall the wand, I daresay" added Bergdis with a sidelong glance at Cecania that made the latter feel like an un-housebroken dog being scolded. "It has been sent away to the safety of my sisters, and hopefully they will be able to enlist the aid of the Old Ones themselves to unlock its mysteries."
   She moved one step closer to the druid, which had the added effect of taking her one step further from Jostyn, who merely stood by silently and watched with clenched fists.
   "Come, man of nature. It is time for me to put right what this rogue Thayan wizard has wrought with his ill temper and evil plots. Let me have the Stone of Erudion and we shall put an end to this quest for salvation of our lands." Again she thrust out her open hand toward Vicril.
   "No!" The druid's vehemence was fierce. He had lost - given in, actually - in his argument about the Gemstone wand, and allowed her to take it from him. This time would be different. "Yours is not the hand of guidance. Yours is not a soul in balance. Yours is not to demand." Vicril stood defiantly against the witch, the stone now clutched tightly to his chest. Beside him, Tarnin's lip curled slightly, though no growl issued forth.
   Yet.

The barbarian scowled, like a black thunderstorm brewing. The druid had always been a strange fellow, and difficult with the two Witches. But now he seemed like a man drunk, or obsessed. Was it some curse on the stone? Or just plain power? Damn magic.

He took a step towards Vicril, putting himself not between him and Bergdis, but half a pace closer. Gods, he was tired, and didn't need any more of this crap. "And yours is not to stand in the way of the healing of this land." he echoed Vicril, hoping that he could get through to the druid with talk of nature's suffering. "Look, every moment we wait, the earth drinks the river, and the land starves. Please, let us use the Stone to undo the damage it's done." Eirik held out his hand.

Relgar sat in the ground, watched and listened. He then stood calmly and watched the druid's and his animal companion's behavior. When Vicril said witch is not worthy hold the stone Relgar then asked; "Then who is worthy using that stones power Vicril? Me, you or Eirik? In truth no one of us is worthy to hold such potent and dangerous stone which can cause much more harm than good.

Also I agree with Eirik that Jostlyn deserves his final rest, do you plan sit by and accept his existence as undead? A unnatural entity without giving him proper rest? Your nearing in breaking your own druidic oaths if you do not allow Jostlyn touch the stone so the vile spell breaks in him."

---

OOC: Sense motive 13 on Vicril.

   Of all the people talking [and yelling] at Vicril, Relgar's words seemed to have the most sobering effect on the druid. With a firmly set jaw and a hard look in his eye, Vicril slowly uncurled his arm from its clutching position and held out the orb-like stone to the witch.
   "Here, then" he said in a harsh whisper. "Become the self-appointed saviour of our lands. That *is* how you see yourself, isn't it?" His voice held the undertones of mocking, and Bergdis sensed it, but did not bite. She needed his support as much now as before, and for some reason didn't feel that the time was right yet for him to be allowed to leave the party.
   "I am what I am, nothing more." It was a surprising revelation for the woman to make, given all the things she'd been taught to think, feel, and say in the presence of her people. Fortunately, the mask hid her momentary surprise from the others.
   Taking the 'Stone firmly in her two hands, she turned and walked solemnly from where the group stood to the river-side of the hole in the ground. Concentrating, she willed the stone to reverse the damage that had been done by the summoned elementals. She visualized the ground healing itself in reverse of the way it was harshly tunnelled out, with the end result being the river diverting back to its normal course of flow.
   Nothing happened.

   Frowning behind her mask, Bergdis willed the magical item to summon another of the elementals, that it might do her bidding and manually reverse the necromancer's ill will. Again, nothing happened.
   Reaching deeply into her reserves, the witch searched the stone itself for a trace of its hidden powers, for some clue as to how or under what circumstances it might be used to affect the changes she desired.
   She felt nothing. It continued to glow, faintly, but aside from that bit of arcanery, she detected nothing at all from, or within, the Stone of Erudion. Could it have been used up? Was it a limited-charge item? Is that why it had so easily fallen into their hands at the end?

   "Let me know when I can be of assistance" commented Vicril drily, quickly turning his back on them all and walking off the snowy section of terrain toward the grassy lowlands from which they had come. A keen observer would notice that his face bore a cheerful smile as he did so, and a low, lively tune was being whistled.

   "Perhaps we should wait until the morning. Jostyn, you mentioned that the stone can summon those earthen beings only twice a day...?" The undead Thayan nods his head, but otherwise remains silent.

Well, that was a bit of a let-down. Eirik moved to stand a bit closer to Jostyn, adjusting his grip on his sword as he did so, not in a threatening gesture, but ready to swing at the first sign of treachery. "So, Jostyn. Are you ready to pass on now? You said you needed to lay hands on the Stone, right? Do they have to be attached?" he asked bluntly.

Cecania watched Vicril's smug departure, and then Bergdis' failure with the orb.  Biting her lip in concentration, she looked back and forth between the two of them...something suspicious had just occurred, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

Relgar shrugs and says; "Maybe stone has run out of power, anycase let Jostlyn touch it Bergdis. I doubt stone needs have power init to make Jostlyn's oath done and so get him proper rest."

   "No",/blue> she said, somewhat more softly than before but still bearing the decisiveness that her station demanded. <blue>"Despite your noble intentions, ranger, we cannot trust that contact between the orb and the flesh of an unliving creature won't have a similar effect as when it was held by the Scarred One himself. No, we shall wait until all our own tasks are complete before we bless this Thayan" she says with a look in the direction of the stoic knight, "with the gift of a lasting death." She apparently considered the discussion complete at that point, and turned on her heel to follow Vicril down to the treeline below, the better to sleep on soft grasses, rather than hard snow.

   The foursome left behind simply looked at each other, then at Jostyn, who could only shrug at this point. "I'd be a fool to think she - or you, barbarian - would leave any sort of opening for me to grab the orb tonight. The snow doesn't bother me half as much as that cold bitch's heart, so I think I'll just stick around up here and pass the time alone." He turned and meandered away on a path that would take him around to the far side of the frozen pond.

   Seeing no other course of action open to them, short of jumping Bergdis and stripping the stone from her forcefully, the rest of the party gathered their things and moved off to set up camp just south, and below, their most recent scene of battle.

---

ooc: again, I'll be updating XP for this fight and all the good roleplaying I'm getting in this dialogue/interaction with the Thayan and the witch...after the issue with the Stone and the damage to the land has been resolved. :)
   I'll give you guys a couple days to post anything you might want during camp and the following morning, then proceed with the interesting events that will occur after breakfast....

He stared blankly at Bergdis's back as the Witch stalked off. It was said that the mind of a Witch was as difficult to change as the mountains, as hard to turn as a charging bull. He didn't like her decision, nor agree with it, but had no choice but to abide by it. Such was the word of a Witch. He wondered if Navarra would have ruled the same way.

As the others walked off, Eirik stayed where he was on the snowy plain, standing all alone. Finally, he walked back to the huge pit, standing a few safe feet away from the edge, and stared deep into its black heart, into the place where he'd nearly died. Having prepared himself for death, he felt a bit purposeless now at the sudden extension of life. Strangely, he almost regretted it. No songs would be sung around the Lodges of the warrior who'd almost died to save his land.

He sighed, then drew the enchanted sword. He examined it closely; the blade, the sharp edge, guard, hilt and pommel. Then, he raised it high and thrust into the snow and earth. Eirik knelt down in front of the sword and whispered "Thank you, sword. You saved my life, and the Witch's. I name you Rockeater." He had to honour the spirit inside. Rockeater would do, anyway, at least until it changed its shape and power again.

Eirik stood, dragging Rockeater up from the earth. "But then, if you hadn't, you'd have been lost at the bottom of that pit forever, never to be wielded again." he mused.

Cleaning and sheathing Rockeater, Eirik went after the others. "We should check out the site of the Scarred One's tower, see if he left anything behind there." he suggested.

   Harto agrees with the barbarian [adding a sly smile and a quick wink of his own] and soon thw two are tromping back across the thin layer of snow and ice to get to the site of the former tower. The pair picks the ground clean for the better part of an hour, but are unable to find anything more than what they already have...which is to say, perhaps, everything.
   Harto holds up the small, four-inch statuette of the tower. Even in its miniaturized form, the obsidian walls and crenellated tower were still quite foreboding. When it had been shrunk to its current size, the halfling had landed on top of it, blocking it from easy retrieval by the necromancer who, in his haste to escape the battle in mist form, had simply left it behind on the ground.
   "Sure do wish I could've heard what the command word was" breathes the halfling softly. No telling what sorts of treasures he's got in the rooms inside this thing once it goes back to full size!"</blue>

Cecania went back to her spellbook, trying to relax and clear her mind.  She still didn't know if the wand was fully corrupted - and even if it were not, if it was worth trying to convince the stubborn Rashemani to give it to her.

She also wanted to see the stone destroyed, partially out of a sense of duty but mostly because she wanted to see the Thayans thwarted again.  And most of all she really just wanted to get away from the insufferable witch, Bergdis.  As fascinating as the witches' elemental magic was to Cecania, the woman reminded her far too much of her spoiled Cormaeril cousins and aunts.

And just like her family, Cecania couldn't understand how the witch's mind worked, which made it difficult for her to talk to her.  She kept her mouth shut for now, knowing that if she tried to convince the witch of anything it would only drive the stubborn woman deeper into denial.

Still, she didn't trust the witch or the druid to destroy the stone on their own, and it was possible that with the stone's power either of them could become more powerful than the rest of the party without her.  So until Eirik or Relgar came up with a sensible solution, it looked like she was stuck with them.

"Why do I always get involved in these situations..." she muttered grumpily, rubbing her eyes and trying to re-commit the words to a summoning incantation to her mind once more.

   Cecania finds it no less difficult to study her spells in the crisp, cool mountain air than if she had been sitting in a comfortable inn with the window open; the light lasts a fair bit longer up here on the southwestern slope of the range, and the pine branches Relgar has trimmed and set out for them to sit upon are really quite cozy.
   Bergdis seems to make her own preparations for rest and recapturing some of her expended spell power. Harto returns from his jaunt with the barbarian and, after preparing a quaint meal of nuts and breads given collected at the witches' hut, quickly falls asleep on his fir bedding.
   Relgar and Vicril split the first watches, then get Eirik for the next. The warrior is attended by Tarnin the wolf for much of his turn, and by the time the sun is brightening the far horizon, the small camp is beginning to stir. Jostyn returns from his self-imposed exile from the party, a scowl upon his face.
   "I had to fend off a crow last night. Really...!" He sounds exasperated, waving his hand over his head for effect. "You'd think a moving body would present a more formidable scarecrow than your usual farmer's clothing-on-a-stick, but what do I know." He stared at Bergdis for a moment but with neither pity nor consolation forthcoming, he shuffled his feet and backed away from the camp a few feet again.
   It wasn't long before the witch roused herself from her preparations and moved again to the great gaping hole in the ground. Still the river flowed down into it, and still the visible rut in the earth heading south marking the former path of the river sat empty. One could only imagine how, in the lowlands, the soil was already beginning to dry and crack and erode.
   Again the witch raised the Stone of Erudion in one hand, concentrating and focusing her power, commanding it to cease the flow of water. Reverse the damage done. Bring forth an elemental from its native plane to this place, to serve her until the required task was complete.
   And again, nothing happened.

---

ooc: I will post again tomorrow night, giving the second half of this event. You may post if you like, but none is necessary and don't feel bad if you miss the window. :)

   "By the Old Ones' bones!" Bergdis cursed loudly at her repeated failures with the Stone of Erudion. Twice before and now for nearly a half hour this morning she had tried and tried - and failed - to coax forth even a whisper of the power she *knew* was contained within the magical lump of earth she held. Had it not been so vital to their cause, she might have hurled it then and there right down the shaft she was trying to hard to seal shut. She stamped he foot in the crusty snow, the eyes behind her mask darting left and right to quickly scan the faces of her group. Her group.
   She was the leader of this expedition, empowered with that mantle by the party's previous leader, another of her order, a witch of some small successes but no great history herself. Bergdis was the leader now, and had nothing to show for it save a corpseless victory over a nameless Thayan enemy who had left behind a powerless artifact in her helpless hands.
   In short, she had failed.

   "Having a spot of touble are we?" Jostyn's upbeat jibe grated on her nerves, causing the witch to spin on her heels, her shoulders heaving slowly as she fought to contain her anger and frustration.
   "Silence, snake. You are in no position to wag your tongue at me, or anyone among the living." Bergdis was not taking her situation well.
   "Oh?" The Thayan knight tilted his head coyly. "Pray tell me then, great sorceress, how much longer shall we stand here waiting for you to show us your greatness? Shall your brutish bodyguard and I go and hunt a herd of deer and plan for the Turnfeast two fortnights hence?"
   "That will not be needed" interjected Vicril, who until now had been standing quietly nearby, but chose this moment to intercede and place a hand upon the Stone, still clutched firmly in Bergdis' grasp. At a touch from his hand, it glinted in the morning light. "I think it is time for you to learn, instead of lead." Stunned at the druid's boldness [bordering audacity], she released her grasp on the magical artifact and stepped back.
   Vicril's response was swift and decisive. He thrust out the arm bearing the Stone, closing his eyes briefly and clenching his jaw shut. A few heartbeats later the ground before him rumbled slightly, sending faint, shuddering vibrations through the soles of everyone's boots. The ice cracked, the snow shuddered, and an instant later a blocky, humanoid shape made entirely of stone arose from the earth, towering over Vicril in a menacing way - not entirely unlike the way Eirik had faced one the day before.
   The druid dipped his head toward the well-shaft and the elemental sank back into the ground without a word. Within minutes a deep roaring sound issued from the hole, growing louder and louder, forcing the party members back from the vicinity. Suddenly the water geysered upwards and outwards in all directions, then just as quickly settled back into the former riverbed it had followed for centuries.

   Vicril crossed his arms and smiled, content.

Eirik had stood by waiting as Bergdis fiddled with the Stone, sharing her growing sense of despair that they had failed, that maybe the Scarred One had taken the key to his doom. Occasionally he would offer suggestions, like "Is there a magic word?" or "Do we need the Gemstone Wand?" sensible themselves, but probably they'd already occurred to the Witch.

***

As another elemental of stone burst from the ground, Eirik swore and Rockeater leapt into his hand, ready to do battle with it once more. But he held back as Vicril directed it, and watched in awe as the river returned. Rain fell briefly from the sky, and Eirik tasted its life-giving sweetness on his lips, glad to see the land being restored.

Ah...the land restored properly, and Bergdis put down by a druid.  Did it get any better than this?  Cecania watched quietly as the waters of the river returned along their original path.

Relgar watched how the stone was no effect used by Bergdis, and then successfully used by Vicril. Then Relgar snapped his fingers and said; "By Mielikki's boobs of course! Nature magic! It is not directly related to divine magic of deities nor raw arcane energy! Naturally druid can command elements of nature! So the artifact works only in hands of a druid.....but does it mean Scarred One was a druid? Hard to believe that consider what serious crime he did to the land and to living."

"Aye, I think Shaene said something about him being a fallen druid. I guess druid's aren't so perfect after all." he mused.

He rounded on Jostyn. "Right, now it's your turn." he stated.

   "Indeed." Bergdis seemed anything but pleased at the outcome of Vicril's display of power, despite the ultimate success it generated in the completion of their mission at this site. fortunately, it was only her voice that gave away her underlying emotional state - the mask fulfilled its purpose exceptionally well, masking the otherwise visual cues the party would have had about just how bitter and jealous she was at having been upstaged just now.
   "If what you relay about the wizard Shaene's statement is true, then this poses an even greater mystery about the legacy of this Scarred One." Bergdis turns to face her guardian barbarian, the top of her mask sliding slightly to form wrinkles upon her brow. "For a being to slide so utterly into the grasp of evil, and to have at his command the powers of darkness and undeath - yet still maintain an ability to utilize the most powerful relics of balance in the realms....well, this does not bode well for enemies of Thay."
   "I am sure he was a singular entity" Vicril stated flatly, his gaze lingering over the rushing waters of the newly re-directed river flowing swiftly past their group. "The Balance can never truly be understood by those of us who are land-bound. The grander picture can't even truly be seen by those borne on wings of flight." He turns to face her, the Stone of Erudion hanging loosely in his hand at his side. "Perhaps the Scarred One's incursion into this land restored the balance that was missing-"
   "Blashpemy!" shouted the witch with a force in her voice that screamed of pent-up rage and power.
   "...and maybe our defeat of him was the tipping point on those universal scales." The druid continued on, unfazed. "Constant struggle. Constant change. Constant growth. Eternal balance. These are the milestones of our existence - daily, annually, and throughout our lifetimes. To place value or importance on any one action or viewpoint alters that balance."
   "Fortunately, I am unconcerned with balance" replied Bergdis with disdain. "My sisters and I are tasked with the protection of our land and its people, as well as the preservation of our lives and lifestyle from the predators who encroach upon our borders almost constantly. It is a struggle that can know no balance; either we win and are rewarded with success by defeating our enemies, or-"
   "...or you win, and are rewarded with more lands, more income, more responsibilities in your borders' expansion...and *become* your enemies." An arched eyebrow and arms crossed over his chest, and the druid falls silent.
   "AHA! HA!" Jostyn barks his approving laughter in the brief lull between traded barbs from the spellcasters. "So it *is* true, then? Rashemen seeks only to expand her own power through the subjugation of others and the defeat of bordering nations? Ha! Not only could the victor gain the spoils, but it seems victory could actually spoil your fair country? How delicious!" The corpse grinned and clapped his hands. An icy stare by Eirik, accompanied by a flexing of his tanned muscles, shuts the Thayan up immediately.
   "Only if the words of a lunatic tree-hugger are to be belived" scoffed the woman behind the mask. She shook her head as if clearing it of cobwebs or bad dreams. And then - had an epiphany.
   In way, Vicril was right.
   Not in the expansionist theory of governmental dominance. Rashemen wasn't governed by a strong enough central governmental body to have such grand plans as global or regional conquest, nor was it the Tiugan horde, driven by the insatiable need to plunder and crush an enemy - any enemy, even an imagined one.
   But the sisterhood. The schism of Hathran and Durthan. Constant struggle. A balance that must be maintained. To eradicate the Thayans, the Durthan, the whole of those opposed to the living Rashemi, would be to doom their own people to the ignoble end of becoming nothing more than farmers and herders. To strip from the people their very need to hunt, to train, to come together for mutual assistance and defense. Even the spirits of nature who dwelt all across the landscape would have no further need to remain, if there was no enemy to protect the land from. All that they now knew, all that the Rashemi people held dear, both in love and in fear, would cease to have meaning and purpose.
   And that would mean an end to her own reason to be.
   Emboldened by this insight, Bergdis could only nod her head quietly and place a hand upon Vicril's shoulder. "A lunatic from whom we could all learn a lesson" she added with a hoarse whisper and a smile...one which was mirrored by the man of nature. "Come, let us finish our task to the southeast, then rid ourselves of this troublesome cadaver."

---

   The summoned elemental was able to create a large, flat area upon its back for the party to stand on while it rode through the topsoil of the lands they crossed. For obvious reasons their mounts were left behind, but none could deny the passage of distance was much greater, aided as they were by the outsider bound to the Stone. Scenery practically flew past them as their improvised 'steed' cut a shallow swath through the landscape, then zippered the ground behind him seamlessly so that almost no sign of their passage remained.
   Soon they reached the original river that had been diverted, the one north of the now-abandoned village of Hogh, where the first meeting of the group of collected heroes, now subtly altered by fate and consequence, had taken place. Just in time, too, as the elemental's enforced time on this place was coming to an end. Vicril thanked it for its service and released it, then summoned the second of his allotment for the day, tapping into the power of the Stone again.
   Shortly the second river had been returned to its original path, though all knew it would be quite some time before the land's fertility was restored to its once-healthy luster.
   "Now is it time for me to go?" An exasperated Jostyn stood by, edgy and impatient. Though it had only been a few hours since the last such argument, the undead Thayan's body seemed to have accellerated its descent into decay. The rent in the skull had puckered with rot and discoloration, and the muscle tone of his exposed arm and leg was all but nonexistent. A deathly pallor infused his skin, and rightfully so, considering his own life's ending some three days prior.
   A chorus of assenting voices greeted his question. Most seemed eager to rid themselves of the noisy, crude, and rather smelly unwanted companion they had collected on their adventure, and having the means at their disposal to literally dispose of him as well seemed to make their choice even easier.
   "Very well then, we release you from whatever bondage your former masters have used to hold you from a welcome death." Bergdis motions to Vicril to produce the magical rock. "Let the fallen knight touch the stone - and *only* touch it - that his curse may be lifted and he may finally know peace."
   "Er...actually, I believe the curse was designed to be removed in the presence of one of my masters. I am sure they have safeguards in place to ensure that those not blssed with the power of the dragonborne cannot so release me." He flickered his gaze from the druid to the witch.
   "Really." Bergdis sighed wearily, but acquiesced. Holding out her hand, she took the Stone from Vicril, who for whatever reason didn't protest as he had before. Turning to face Jostyn, she found that the Thayan had already moved to her side, seemingly eager - even happy - to be at the end of his journey. Perhaps *too* happy.
   "I admit I have an incomplete picture of what will happen to me when this is all over. Will I be slain outright? Reborn? Destroyed utterly?" He placed his hand upon the top half of the stone as he spoke, holding his breath for a moment before letting it out in a rush when nothing immediately happened. Bergdis frowned.
   "Ah...none of the above. Perhaps I need to complete some magical phrase." His grin widened as he leaned slightly away from the woman holding the stone with him, then placed his other foot behind him as if to regain his balance. Bergdis, not immediately sensing what was occurring, moved that fraction of a foot with Jostyn, taking them a fraction further from the next closest party member: Vicril. Eirik, however, was not so lulled by the man's voice or actions, and strode forward, hand on his hilt, prepared to stop whatever was about to happen.
   "Atactruis Deumin Noasimuus!" A hemispherical force field sprang up around the pair holding the stone, stopping the barbarian cold in his tracks. A punch, a kick, and a sword-smash all had the same non-effect on the dome of shimmering energy, and even Relgar's arrows ricocheted off the bubble. Apparently, though, sound certainly seemed to travel through it well enough.
   "What a prize I'll get when I return both the stone *and* a Rashemi witch! I admit I never thought you'd let me touch the stone and activate the contingent teleportation I have within me, but as always your kind belives in doing good, even if that means putting the soul of an enemy to rest. Hahaha-owtch!" Bergdis, though trapped within the bubble herself, was not without teeth, and cast an undead-disrupting spell that severely burned the Thayan's arm.
   Without wasting time on further gloating, Jostyn spoke the single word of recall, and the interior of the force-shell swirled in a rapidly accelerating pattern of multicolored lights.
   At the same time, Vicril called out to his elemental servant. In the blink of an eye it obeyed his mental commands, rising from the ground to swallow the druid whole, then receding back into the ground only to resurface a dozen feet away...inside the dome of protection!
   An instant later the dome collapses, and all four are gone!

   Bewildered at what had just happened, and stunned at the further redcution of the group through a loss none could have seen coming, the party stands in muted silence for a long while before finally deciding to finish their journey once and for all.

---

   The villagers were of course ecstatic to learn of the return of their river, and preparations were made immediately to repopulate their old homes the following spring. A great feast was held for the party, and a night of wine drinking and merriment was had by all.
   The trek to the Valley of Eternal Spring was somewhat less enjoyable, though no less uneventful, and once there the ghost-witches released Harto from his geas, as well as rewarding the group with magical foodstuffs and worthy praise.
   Their cabin was also a good place to rest and await the next crisis that required their assistance.

---

---

OOC: Each character receives the following rewards, in addition to the XP that will be placed on their charatcer sheets tomorrow...
1) 50 coin-sized meals, magically condensed but of equivalent nutritional value as a normal dinner at an inn
2) Any single normal item from the villagers, or a 50% discount on any [mundane] masterwork item...no theives tools or platemail, but a weapon, tool, etc can be received
3) 350 gp [or equivalent in gems] from the ghostly witches' stash
4) a free mount, or the retrieval of your original if it held special significance to you :)

   Vicril and Bergdis can now feel free to remain out of the loop for as long as necessary, and upon return to the RoA community can write/tell almost any grand tale they want concerning their teleportation to Thayan lands and their subsequent adventures in freeing themselves from almost certain bondage, torture, or death. :D
   Harto can travel to any realm as he sees fit. :)

   Thank you all again for letting me have fun and write till my fingers fell off, several times. :P

Eirik listened to yet another argument between the druid and the witch. Such grand and airy notions as this mystical balance were beyond him. The land itself had been broken by the Scarred One, and nearly died - surely the druid couldn't be supporting that? Balance be damned, it was better to live and survive and let fate decide what may be. But he held his tongue, knowing better than to get between a witch and a druid.

Thereafter he rode across the land on the stone elemental's back - a weird way to travel, he decided. Rockeater seemed to shake slightly in his scabbard, but maybe it was just the rocking, swaying motion of the elemental. He sat silently and regarded the wasted land that passed by, hoping that it would eventually heal and recover its former spirit.

He wondered too about his own future. This grand quest was nearly at an end, and one day tales would be sung about him around fires in the lodges, about how he dove into the pit to slay the wizard and climbed back out. But what he would do next was another matter. Should he continue to journey with these people he'd met, native Rashemi and good-hearted foreigners? Or should he seek out Navarra again and find out if there really could be something more between them than a mask? Or he could go home to his village, and settle down after his dajemma. Or just take to the road again, and perhaps see if the beautiful water-nymphs had anything more than suggestions. He'd been prepared to die in that pit, and perhaps he'd been fated to, so now choosing his path was difficult.

---

Eirik swore as the treacherous Thayan unleashed his trap, and with a bounding step he swung Rockeater down on the bubble, and magical energy burst out from their collision. He hacked and thrusted the sword at the arcane shield, and punched it and kicked it for good measure, crying in a wordless rage. No! They'd come so far and so long, they couldn't be cheated of victory now!

The bubble burst and those inside were gone. Still attacked, Eirik stumbled into the vacated centre, and cursed and kicked the earth where they'd been. "All the gods damn it!" he yelled. "I knew I should have hacked that bastard Thayan's hands off when I had the chance." But between Bergdis, Vicril and an earth elemental, he was confident that the rotting zombie of Jostyn wouldn't stand a chance. But the druid and the witch, lost in Thay or wherever, would need all the help they could get - dealing with eachother, at least.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:12, Fri 07 Aug 2009.

Relgar was relieved that druid and witch could reach somesort peaceful agreement and start get work done; to restore the land. But when Thayan revealed his dirty trick Relgar took his bow and fired! But his arrows were deflected effortlessly! Relgar growled and cursed and said; "Damn it! I smelled something fishy was going on! I should had trust my instinct just deliver the dammed undead to it's proper rest by steel once task was done!" After while Relgar calms down, turns to Eirik and asks; "What now then? Go Thay search for them or report to nearest witch about the situation? The thayans could torture her to reveal secrets of rasheman or worse!"

The barbarian huffed, frustrated and angry. "We tell another Witch, I reckon. They need to know what happened here, and would probably know how to find Bergdis and Vicril. Thay's a big place, and that damn spell could have taken them anywhere." he guessed.

OOC: Is it not time close this adventure then?

---

With agreement Relgar nods and both him and Eirik head out to next larger rashemen settlement where they could find a witch to inform what has happened here and hope a rescue party is assembled for the missing witch.