UC 327, Shetuun, still in the 1st Ride of Spring’s Light. by Demitrri
After a long battle with snakes, medusas and other foul cave dwelling creatures, we left to return the remaining dwarves from stone to flesh. Thorgrimm showed us where the guardian was. The guardian’s responsibility is to protect the southern passage from would-be intruders. The moonstone dragons were granted unfettered access to the said passage. After parting ways with Thorgrimm, we headed south of Chalise Ishtishia to the Earthlord’s Heart Temple where we got to speak to a patron of Grumbar upon executing a ritual. I asked the patron 1) am I being a good disciple and 2) the location of the Lion’s Claw so we can be better equipped to vanquish evil. The patron indicated the claw was located somewhere to the south. Once we were done searching the area, we traveled north to Xulin.
Upon our arrival to the area, we came in contact with the wall of energy again…this time I was prepared and used my stone shape spell to create a door for us to pass through. Once inside, I summoned a shadow from the shadow plane to give us information about the area. I’m ticked that I didn’t get its name! We moved forward hoping to find the source of the problem, but the further we moved in the more exhausted we got. Ardel and I eventually lost access to our spells—likely because they’re divine in nature. Shellan seemed to not be affected by any planar effects so he directed us where to go and kept us moving. We encountered demon dogs, but took care of them rather quickly. Shortly thereafter, we ran into a couple of vampires. These creatures pulled every trick in the book from teleporting to attempting to charm us to coming back to life. This fight was a defining moment for us because we were severely handicapped. Tiewaz was throwing and spitting acid left and right. Ardel and Lancelot were charging and mauling every chance they got. Shellan doing damage from range. Me on the other hand…I didn’t land a lot of hits but when I did, my enchanted club did its job. I had to remind the group to burn the bodies after they were downed because they tend to come back with a vengeance…my father told me a story about vampires once, but I never really thought that I would encounter one this soon. After a drawn out battle, Shellan eventually got us out. It felt so good to be out of that plane, but the experience just made me more curious about planes and how they work. We sent a message to Dragon’s Den to give them the report of our findings. We ate, slept and returned to Villika to tell Thorgrimm of our findings and get re-equipped.
When we returned to Villika, we were invited to Stone Keep where Lord Stonehearth thanked us for saving his people. Afterward, we bartered for better equipment. I got a Belt of Priestly Might and a Sylvan sword. Shellan is having a rapier crafted to pick up later. Ardel was on some aristocratic mess talking about having an admantine, jewel encrusted, tiger tooth, hound archon tail necklace because he’s a priest of Alana. There’s only a few times where I’ve laughed harder than this. Tiewaz didn’t want anything because he’s a dragon and has everything he needs.
UC 327, Shetuun, 6th day of the 2nd Ride in Spring’s Light, by Ryukane
After resting for two days in the Moonstone Tower, resupplying and refitting, we prepared to move South into the mountains as planned. While leaving the gates to our tower, a Dwarven messenger from the Stonehearth clan arrived with a message from Lord Stonehearth. He bid us to come see him before we left. As we arrived within the Dwarven stronghold Lord Stonehearth greeted us and shared some good news. Apparently, his message to the Dwarfs of Earth Home had been received and a family of Dwarfs would be dispatched to help repopulate and settle within the Stonehearth lands. This was good news indeed. He had also received a missive from Dragon’s Den, requesting they look after us while in the region. On a more somber note, an orcish raiding/scouting party had been found in the mountain passes to the Southwest. Lord Stonehearth requested we be wary in our excursion as nothing had been present for centuries to abate the Orcs growth in the region. We bid Lord Stonehearth farewell and headed on our way to the mountain passes. Traveling the day, we came across nothing and set-up for our evenings rest.
UC 327, Wotuun, 7th day of the 2nd Ride in Spring’s Light (Still Ryukane)
By late afternoon to early evening, we came upon the bodies of the fallen orcish band. Ardel followed the tracks of the Orcs and after a small while, we came upon a gorge spanning over 30’. No bridge or ropes were present between the two edges and more than 40’ below was a rushing river. The sharp eyes of Ardel noticed across the gorge were trees that showed signs of multiple arrow strikes, while on our side of the gorge, hidden to the side, were two deeply buried pitons in the blackened face of the rock wall. I was able to surmise that the Orcs would somehow cross the gorge to our side and shoot arrows back with ropes as a means to traverse from one side to the other. For their return, they would burn the ropes after crossing back, thus removing the possibility for them to be followed. Being that it was late in the day, we backtracked to a defensible position and bedded down for the night, planning to cross the next morning.
UC 327, Yutuun, 8th day of the 2nd Ride in Spring’s Light (Still Ryukane)
With Ardel leading the way, we headed back towards the gorge. “ARROWS!!!” Throwing himself to the ground as he yelled his warning, Ardel dodged one arrow as two more lodged into his large frame. Immediately, Demetri cast a spell upon himself as I absorbed the Bite of the Wererat from him. Springing to action, I ran across the path to a closer vantage where I was able to spot two Orcish archers on the road across the gorge and one more in each tree. Yelling back to the group so they could prepare, I drew Ōkubēn (Orc Bane) and prepared to fire. For some reason, Ardel screamed for Tiewaz to tie a rope to him. Even as I write this, I wonder why Ardel was so obsessed with having the rope around his waist while we fought.
Tiewaz, with a look of disgust, peered around the corner and flicked his fingers in direction of the Orcs. A small glob of acid sprung forth, whizzing unerringly across the gorge, melting an Orc in shock. His screams gurgling in his throat. Ardel decided to tie the rope around his waist on his own as Demetri charged the corner and surprised me with his action. Bracing his paws and throwing back his arms he let loose with a roar that shook the very mountain pass itself. The sound caused the very air to ripple as the sound waves projected across the gorge. The effect was not unlike the shimmer one sees in the air above a roaring flame. The impact across the gorge appeared to kill two of the orcs, blowing the one in the tree into the distance along with at least half the needles from the tree. Peering around the corner, I noticed the remaining orc retreat back to another Orc I had not spotted before who was obviously its leader. Feeling confident I fired an arrow at the “leader” just as Ardel tossed the rope at me, hitting me on the shoulder, “Tie off tha roupe!”. Seriously Ardel?!?
Hedging back behind my cover, I was unable to make out who killed the running Orc, but I did see Ardel charge the gorge. Looking around the corner to make sure he hadn’t lost his mind, I watched as Ardel leapt into the air. Calling upon the power of Elanna, Ardel hurled himself across the gorge as a wind rose up through the gorge, buffeting Ardel to land safely upon the other side. Striking his chest with one hand and pulling his fist down from the sky, a storm cloud and rain descended around Ardel. Still trying to assist in the battle I fired two arrows at the leader, striking him once. This apparently enraged him and the Orc called upon his own magic, growing in size and appearing as if he was melting or oozing a type of ethereal material. In a flash, the creature flew past Ardel to our side of the gorge to face us in combat. Our blows appeared to harm it very little as it struck at us, clawing at us. Lancelot thundered to the front, picking it up in his mighty paws and with a load roar, ripped the magicked Orc in two! Impressive to say the least but VERY messy.
Searching the bodies, we found a good measure of treasure and determined the magicked Orc was a Blight Druid, drawing his powers from Grumbaar, the same God that Demetri follows. I’m guessing the elemental Gods are less concerned with the ways or lives of men. Not really a positive thing but for them being Elemental gods, ultimately fair. On the magicked Orc we found a scrap of paper which Tiewaz translated from Orcish reading, “move up and ambush any who try to cross”. The paper was signed “Garl”. With the help of Ardel and his rope, (now his intent was discernible) we crossed the gorge and continued on the path.
By late afternoon we had reached a branch in the road. Along the Western path wall, scrawled in Orcish, was a warning “avoid bears”. After a quick discussion we decided to travel the Eastern path. As Ardel had pointed out, if the bear clan were down the Western path, his sister would not be with them and that was his primary goal. If we met an overwhelming contingent of Orcs, we could always back track to the Western path. Camping for the night, we had Tiewaz identify multiple magicked items we had gathered from the encounter at the gorge. Divvying these amongst the party, we settled in for a very quiet evening.
UC 327, Eltuun, 9th day of the 2nd Ride in Spring’s Light (Still Ryukane)
Traveling along the Southeast pass for half a day, we came across a three-way branch in the road. The tracks were most prevalent on the paths to the Southwest, and South-Southeast, while the Southeastern path bore almost none. For a short time, I had to debate with Ardel as to which direction was actually Southwest. For some reason he was mentally confused, purposefully arguing with conviction, that West was East. I actually had to point at the sky and remind him the pathway of the sun. Choosing the Southwest path, finally, we continued our way for another half a day. By the beginning of the evening we reached the end of the mountain pass. The pass opened into a vast valley with very sparse woods, and in the distance, what was likely an Orc city. We had obviously reached our point of return. Setting up camp just before the path exposed itself to the valley, Ardel placed a small spoon trap near the bottom of the switchbacks. Hopefully it would warn us if something made its way up the path.
UC 327, Vatuun, 10th day of the 2nd Ride in Spring’s Light (Still Ryukane)
In the middle of the night, while on guard, I noticed a warband that had been camped out about an hour’s distance away, began to break and head our direction. Had the warband been smaller we may have attempted to eradicate them. When they broke camp, we had counted at least 22 fires, putting their numbers well into the hundreds and we can’t face that many. Sending Ardel to retrieve his trap, we quickly made our way back to the initial branch with the Orcish warning. We traveled all day, pushing ourselves hard, until we had gone at least an hour down the branch. Hiding amongst the rocks on the trail that evening, I kept watch as the others dropped in exhaustion. During the night the warband could be heard passing the branch. Their steps echoing down the pass and trembling the rocks on the path. Thankfully, none came down the pass and my brothers were able to rest. With a sense of foreboding though, I realized our path to the Stonehearth clan would be closed us and the good dwarves would soon be in a more dire situation than we.
UC 327, Artuun, 1st day of the 3rd Ride in Spring’s Light (Still Ryukane)
For the rest of the previous night and in the morning the pass was silent, as what little life in nature had gone to ground or perched on high to avoid the Orcish warband. Tiewaz sent out little Navi to scout the pass behind us, spotting ten Orcs left as a rear guard at the split. With our options depleted, we continued down the pass to where we hoped to find Ardel’s clan. After almost a day of walking, we came to an opening that was divided into two paths by a massive pillar of rough stone. Behind the pillar the opening gave way to a glade-filled forest. Along the walls of clearing were various cave mouths, some at ground level, some reachable by ladders.
As we approached the woods, two large bears and one incredibly large hybrid werebear approached us. Ardel rightfully moved to the front, switching into hybrid-form himself, to show the obvious werebears we were no threat. In hindsight, an ironically quaint thought. Introducing the party and our purpose in the area, the monstrously huge hybrid transformed back to his humanoid form. To our surprise, we faced a large half-green orc! We were directed to wait as the guardian went into the temple to consult the elders. After a brief moment, the guardian came back out and said the bear-man, meaning Ardel, was to stay while the rest of us had to step back to the other side of the pillar. Once we moved, the guardian told Ardel he had to prove himself in combat and immediately changed into hybrid-form. Ardel, not dropping a beat, flipped into full bear form and charged the guardian! Ardel struck two massive blows and wrapped him in his grasp, trying to wrestle him to the ground. No shame towards good Ardel, but the guardian didn’t even bat an eye. If he had transformed into a full bear, the guardian would have dwarfed Ardel as easily as Ug from Dragon’s Den. As Ardel strained to down the guardian I believe he whispered in Ardel’s ear, “You fight ok.” With a flick of his arm he tossed Ardel off as if he were brushing off the grasp of a toddler. The guardian then delivered a blow that, had he given another, would likely have laid good Ardel to rest.
After Ardel’s trial of combat, we were allowed to enter the Temple of Elanna and presented to Clan Chief Canuum. Ardel spoke for the party, introducing the Moonstone Dragons and telling of the Chief of the woes of the land. This troubled the Chief and the Oracle of the Clan went to “consult the bones”. The Chief invited us to stay in one of the caves near the mouth of the glade to rest until evening. That evening we joined the Chief, his Oracle, and the guardian, now known to us as Halluk. Chief Canuum told us of the paths and the Orcs who roam the mountain passes. Of the three branched paths, the mid-path was where a group of humans had taken residence in support or control of a contingency of Orcs. They described the humans as “sneaky” and “quick”. A Fallen of Elanna, one of their clan named Rarek, associated with these humans and the Orcs. At this news, Ardel involuntarily let loose a low growl of inner rage, which Halluk mistakenly took as a possible threat. Bowing his head in submission, Ardel and the party continued to listen. Something in my mind, possibly a whisper by the Rune Sword, led me to ask if any of the humans was known to be in possession of a golden sword. Almost as soon as I had asked, I felt a sense of dread. Chief Canuum confirmed such a blade was in a human’s possession, somewhere in that region. The wielder of the blade had taken many of the lives of his clan. Many. The rest of the conversation and evening was a haze. My cousin Sho Jurou, the killer of my family, had not been satisfied with the decimation of my kin. He now willfully dishonored the family name, our lineage, and the sanctity of Kogane No Hono. Biding a good evening I had to remove myself as my pulse raced and my vision clouded with images of Sho dying by my hand or bow.
Pacing in internal rage that evening, Ardel approached me and shared a blessing he had received. During his prayer with Elanna he had been called by her to be a Blood Moon Hunter. I did not, nor could I at that time, understand the meaning of that admission. It was noticeable however, that the silver moon symbol on his chest now bore a red tinge. Half listening to him I continued to pace as he mentioned something about our vengeance being “divine” or something. I honestly could not fathom his meaning or intent but he stopped me in my tracks. “Cha bhi susimhneas aig eucoir, no seasamh aig droch-bheairf” (Wrong cannot rest nor ill deed stand). Looking up at Ardel, trying hard not to show my hatred or rage in my eyes at him as he was not the source. Grabbing my hand, Ardel placed a smooth rock in my hand and repeated, “Cha bhi susimhneas aig eucoir, no seasamh aig droch-bheairf”. A look of friendly loyalty and empathy upon his face, he patted my shoulder and let me continue to pace.
UC 327, Batuun, 2nd day of the 3rd Ride in Spring’s Light (Still Ryukane)
After feeling as if the evening would never end, the dawn arose and the party began to rise. My pack was all ready and I was almost out the cave entrance when everyone decided to rest a day in preparation. My usual self-control and analytical mind cracked again and my mind lost focus. Dropping my pack in place, I went to the woods and began firing arrow after arrow into a tree. Each time Ōkubēn sang my mind would scream DIE!!! Each time an arrow sunk in the bark I envisioned the trunk as Sho’s chest, his eyes, his hands, his throat. With each shot I prayed to Rune Sword for vengeance, to bring Sho down, to redeem my family and our honor.
Hours later I returned to the cave where everyone else had resupplied or spoke with various clan members for whatever they needed to ask them. I could tell Ardel had read some books as they were piled around him as well. With all of this completed, again I would have to stay awake with my own mind to keep me company. It’s during these times I see the curse in the power of not sleeping.
UC 327, Ixtuun, 3rd day of the 3rd Ride in Spring’s Light (Still Ryukane)
Finally we left the Clans glade and made our way to the triple branch. At the Orcish warning we found the remains of ten orcs spread about the pass. Halluk had cleared our way during the evening. I could tell I was being reckless because I didn’t hesitate when we reached the three-way pass. We continued down the path with determination. After about two hours, we crested a corner to a wider area and saw a double door built into the wall of the pass. About nine feet up the wall, windows flanked each side of the doors. Ardel said he had spotted someone in one of the windows so we prepared for action. We prepared ourselves through arcane and divine means and made our way to the door. Searching the door, I made sure it was free from traps and spells before leaving Demetri, Tiewaz and Lancelot to storm the bottom floor. Ardel and myself were to climb the wall and enter from the 2nd floor. Had I been more level-headed, I would never have agreed to splitting the party. In my current mind set though, my acceptance for risk seemed higher.
I can only assume the carnage Demetri, Tiewaz and Lancelot laid on the bottom floor as I could only make out some of the sounds as I followed Ardel up the wall using the rope he trailed behind him. Once I entered the window, I saw one body on the floor. Ardel had already done some of his handiwork! Within the shadowy room, five darkly clad bodies moved like smoke, positioning themselves around us purposefully. Within the space of a breath, shuriken flew at Ardel, imbedding in his fur, as he closed with the figures. “WHERE’S MY SISTER!?!?” Ardel charged and dispatched one with a swing of his arm. Swinging up Ōkubēn I shot one through the throat, Sho’s throat. The fire of battle overtook me and everything became a blur of speed and slow-motion stills. One of the figures waved his fingers and threw three flaming discs at Ardel, striking him at least once. The smell of burnt fur filling my nostrils as Ardel rushed the group and left his back exposed to possible attack. Not wanting my friend to suffer a disadvantage, I moved up quickly to protect his back. Spinning, I buried three arrows into another. In my mind’s eye, three feathered shafts protruding from Sho’s chest. Ardel had crushed another while the remaining figure side-stepped and cut deeply into Ardel’s side. Back and forth the dance of battle went as Ardel struck once for every miss.
This more experienced figure decided he needed some room to maneuver and ran from the room. As we began to give chase, another figure in the adjoining room struck me with a Darkbolt, dazing me in my steps and leaving Ardel to face two of these shadowy figures. In my fugue, I was unable to fire Ōkubēn or help Ardel in any way. Every moment I felt I might regain my senses that damn ha no nai hebi (toothless serpent) would strike me with another Dark Bolt! I could see the figure casting another spell and the smell in the air changed, got denser. Then a burst of lightening arced across the room striking Ardel. To my surprise, the electricity then jumped to me. Thankfully I was able sidestep some of the blast. But it again shifted back towards Ardel. This repeated again, and I could feel my muscles clench and spasm from the jolts. I could only imagine Ardel suffered much more from the impacts. By this point Ardel had been wounded severely and had to duck around a corner and change into his full bear form. As soon as he changed, he charged the corner and immediately wrapped up that spell-slinging bastard in his grasp. I was able to break free of my fugue and charged around the corner to kill the thing in his grasp. My eyes still had motes of light and the ground seemed to tilt under my feet still. I would have to say this is the reason my bowstring slipped from my finger, arrow still in hand, as it stung my wrist causing me to drop my bow. Of all the times to be empty-handed! Thankfully, I saw Lancelot, followed by Demetri and Tiewaz storm up some stairs in the back of the adjoining room. These Hiretsuna unchi (cowardly sh*ts) were going to get it now!
In the back of the room, Lancelot charged the figure in the back and began swinging mercilessly. Tiewaz sidestepped the landing and spewed a jet of flame from his hands, burning the figure with malice in his eyes. I could see the wounds of battle on my friends and I know they had not had an easier time of it downstairs. With the other figure burned and beaten, the foe in Ardels arms appeared to become more desperate. Slipping Ardels immense grip, it sidestepped back and winked out of existence. He had teleported away. Looking across the faces of the party, we all had a grim anger at the events. Each of us feeling robbed of the vengeance we sought to exact on these.