Orhan 3 Day 48

Imre takes us to the Trade guild where we find a job listing for Wezmer's Trade Emporium, who needs a party of adventurers to run an errand.

Wezmer's Trade Emporium turns out to be a knick knack shop. A heavyset guy with a goatee is behind the counter.

It turns out to be a complicated story. A man named Guff came in a couple of weeks ago. He sold Weamer some odd stuff, that he's been trying to trace the source of. Weamer needs us to find him and figure out where he found the stuff. He shows us some odd metal, but Oathar is a stone expert so we don't know anything.

Unfortunately, Wezmer knows that Guff is a wanderer, and has probably left the city, though he did say he was going to the Redheaded Lady to get a drink before he left. Wezmer offers us 20 gold each to find the guy and get a map of where he found the stuff. He'll also reimburse anything we have to pay Guff directly.

He pays 5 gold each up front.

We head off to the Redheaded Lady while Imre tells us the story of her abduction and rescue by the proprietor.

As chatting up barmaids is Jack's specialty, he decides to ask the barmaid. But, he gets scared and asks the bartender instead, while the rest of us sit down. He starts by ordering a drink, and pays for it with a gold coin while asking about Guff. The bartender says he's a regular. The bartender says Guff was going to head up North. (There's a string of villages that go up the river.)

Finally, Jack gets up enough nerve to chat up the barmaid. He offers her a drink too and makes a flubbed attempt at seduction, getting slapped for his efforts as she pours her beer down his shirt.

Jack buys a horse, since he can't walk as fast as D. Jack spends 8 Orlini on his horse, as does Kyrik.

We start heading upriver. There are indeed a string of small villages. Asking around, we find the Guff has come through, so we keep going.

Orhan 3 Day 49

More villages

Orhan 3 Day 50

More villages

Orhan 3 Day 51

We finally come across what appears to be a deserted camp. A trail of footprints leads to it, but a set of horse tracks leads away, heading away from the river. (Several horses arrived and left, but the man arrived with no outgoing tracks.) Following the horse tracks, they head inland and hook up with a large road. The tracks lead NNW. Imre starts looking odd.

A series of wayside inns and small villages. Reasonable inquiry indicates that Guff and a band of adventurers (4) came through here.

We keep going and travel North and North and North. People ask Imre why he's so uncomfortable.

Orhan 3 Day 52

Imre get even more nervous.

Orhan 3 Day 53

Imre get even more nervous.

Orhan 3 Day 54

Imre starts looking green.

Orhan 3 Day 55

Imre get even more nervous.

Orhan 3 Day 56

Imre get even more nervous, as we arrive in the village of Tharp. We are told that a band of adventurers were arrested last week by the local militia. They were apparently accused of theft crossing the street in front of the mayor, causing the mayor to be jostled.

We are told to ask at the Justice Hall. It's the biggest building in town, and the only one of stone construction. D. talks to the attendant. He tells us that the prisoners are kept in a secret location. To talk to them, you need permission from the mayor. The mayor is supposed in room 8. The rooms are strangely numbered, but we find room 8. Knocking, we hear a voice telling us to come in. It's a little room with an old man in an antechamber. He's grumpy. D. charms him up and asks to see the mayor. "Mayor doesn't want to see us." "Mayor only speaks to logger-men or militia members."

After some verbal fencing, we hear, "To become a logger-man or militia-man, go to room 2." We head to room 2.

Inside are three men standing around a table with a map. They are the logger-men commission. D. signs up. She lies about her name. She is given something to take to room 4.

In room 4, there is an attendant and a few militia uniforms. He says to "sign here". D. signs in the book as instructed. "OK, you're a loggerman."

We go back to room 8. "I'm a loggerman, I'd like to speak to the mayor."

D., being the only loggerman, has to go in alone. She asks him about Guff. "They were accused of theft, and freeing him would be a big favor, for which he would need a favor in return."

"My advisors has visions of a great black finger pushing out of the northern swamp. I need someone to explore the area and see if it's true or not."

Meanwhile, Haeraan and Oathar ask Imre about his nervousness and he says he "has a past" up North. They conclude they shouldn't go any further north and Oathar seems sure we don't want to encounter Imre's past, whatever that may be.

D. comes out and says we should scout few days North.

This obviously disturbs Imre, so after some talking and stuff we decide to head towards the swamp.

D. says "Three days of scouting, not counting travel time."

Mayor says, "OK, when you get back, I'll give you an official letter and you can go to the place Guff is and free him. I'll throw in supplies for a week and a half, if you stay for five days."

Brother Rola in room six is the vision having advisor. We go to room 6. There's a small chapel to Kuor in there. A cleric asks to help us. We explain the situation. He tells of his vision from Kuor.

"A dark vision extending from the swamp."

We wait till morning. There's a small little Inn. We have watches, but D. says she might not be around for hers. We don't know why.

Orhan 3 Day 57

We head North toward the swamp.

Orhan 3 Day 58

We head North toward the swamp.

Orhan 3 Day 59

We get to the southern edge of the swamp. It sure is a swamp. We start scouting. Imre consults some rat entrails but they say nothing. During the thrid watch that night, D. who is up anyways, notices an ambush by six lizardmen. They have spears. We all get up before they arrive.

The lizard men basically attack us one each. Vallandra chops a guys arm off and he goes down. Haeraan takes one out with a head shot. Oathar lights up the area. Imre eviscerates one of them. Kyrik takes one out. Haeraan takes two more. Jack finishes off the last one.

Orhan 3 Day 60

We move camp a little, Jack naps some more. We spend the rest of the day looking around and find nothing.

Orhan 3 Day 61

Searching around, we find nothing again.

Orhan 3 Day 62

Vallandra says, "Let's go back to the previous place." We go back there and notice an oddly squarish object in the swamp. A tall thin structure of some sort. As we get closer, we discover it is an obelisk. Not really like a navigator obelisk. It's 15 feet tall, and as we get close we feel a low pitched humming. It has a smooth surface but with some writing. No one recognizes the writing, but if you stare at it, the writing changes.

Vast channeling. Haeraan thinks it is associated with Kesh'ta'kai.

Oathar casts cancel channeling and then reads the rune. He then gets blasted as if his cancel wasn't even there. Oathar get a vision of Charon and dark black tunnels that are oddly enticing, but then he snaps out of it.

We notice a path leading away from the obelisk. It goes from the obelisk into the Northwest swamp. Imre recognizes the signature of the path and panics and we flee!!!

Imre admits that "her" name is Xin Baza'an the Cruel, the sorceress. My mom! Arrgghhh! D. cheers Imre up before bed with her unspeakable talents.

Orhan 3 Day 63

We flee some more.

Orhan 3 Day 64

We flee more and get back to Tharp that afternoon. Haeraan gives a copy of our report to the priest (Brother Rola). D. gives the report to the mayor, who hands her a form for the release of Guff. He's being held at a logging camp. We need to go to room 2 to get a map. Camp 7 is about a days march north of here. We stay in the Inn that night.

Orhan 3 Day 65

We head out to the logger camp. We get there in the evening. D. gives them the paper and about half an hour later, they bring up Guff. We tell Guff about Wezmer's questions. Guff refuses to talk until we leave so we start leaving. Jack casts on him and he suddenly becomes helpful.

"I was picking my way through the hills to the west, and there was an abandoned mine. I discovered the thing in a rubble pile." He offers to draw us a map as we sit down over dinner somewhere.

At dinner, Jack casts at him again. Jack is a bad man. He draws us a map.

Orhan 3 Day 66

We head back to Norek.

Orhan 3 Day 67

We head back to Norek.

Orhan 3 Day 68

We head back to Norek.

Orhan 3 Day 69

We head back to Norek.

Orhan 3 Day 70

We head back to Norek.

Orhan 4 Day 1

We arrive at Norek. We go into Wezmer's store. Imre, who arranged this whole mess, talks to Wezmer. Imre thinks Wezmer looks nervous. "Can I help you?" "Yes, we're looking for Wezmer." "You should go now. I can't help you." Oathar asks Jack for presence. It doesn't reveal anything helpful.

D. tells him where we are staying. Jack points out that a sentinel was watching the shop. We go to check in at our inn, "The Knight's Dream." A squad of six sentinels and ten Norinth (Highman elite fighters) intercept us. They say, "Please follow us."

Imre says follow them. We follow the fools. They march us to the council hall. They bring us to Councilor Dunna Revin (Imre says the Chancellor of Magic). We go in. It's a nice office. She's attractive. Her office looks like an average magic professor's office. We sit.

She tries to put us at our ease. She wants to know why we're here. Haeraan tells our tale. She claims the metal is of strategic importance to the city as a whole. She, as representative of the council of Norek would be grateful if we'd go check the purity of the site. She'll send along a metallurgist. We'll get paid 25 gold each (15 up front since that's what we're owed.)

We talk her up to 35 per person, plus the gratitude of the council. We get 15 up front. The metallurgist is named Fram, and we'll meet him tomorrow morning.