Quote from Chris Henson on May 10, 2025, 5:45 pmAfter escaping the Elflawvin of the Sabelite monastery, Mrsabo's two wagons took a southwesterly track, cutting across more open land to gain distance from the Elflaw. The goal was to make their way to Ashalash, a village marked on their map of the region.
Along the way, the group interrogated the manacled Elflawvin who had previously attacked them while riding his rahkeel mount. No one in the caravan spoke Eldraath , except for Renfold, so he served as translator. In the beginnng, the Elflawvin was reluctant to give up any information, that is, until Zungar cut off his little finger. While this served to loosen the prisoner's resolve to talk, it also shocked the rest of them members of the caravan.
Regardless, through translation, the Elflawvin explained that his name was Sharnalon Dalin ("Sharn"), and that he was part of the Nellrimm Canon. Apparently, the Elflaw is divided into a number of "canons", each with their own beliefs or agendas. Sharn explained that members of the Nellrimm Canon had been attacked and mind-controlled by the Elfawvin the caravan had seen standing across the river with the antlered helmet. That Elfawvin's name was Adanda Zan, and he and his crew belonged to a dark and powerful group called the Black Canon. Ultimately, the caravan took Sharn's armor (which Murtagh immediately put on), and let Sharn go on foot.
That night, Zungar and Kharos shared a dream in which they were each driving one of the wagons in a mist-drenched landscape, with a distant clicking noise somewhere behind them. In this dream, the beds of the wagons were covered in dark sand, which seemed to be coming from a floating hourglass somehow tethered to the back of the wagons. Kharos tasted the sand in his dream, and declared it to taste slightly sulphuric, like bad eggs. When Zungar and Kharos awoke, they shared the dream with the rest of the group. They checked the wagons, but there was no sand. However, in the light of the moon, and at the right angle, the notch where the Elfawvin arrow that had stuck into the side of the wagon did appear to have the silohuette of an hourglass.
The wagons continued on toward Ashalash, now angling to make for easier ground near the river and make better time and less wear and tear on the wagons. On watch durng the evening, Ja'Kear noticed Renfold huddled under the cart, writing in his journal and on the inside of the spokes of one of the wheels of the cart. He asked Renfold what he was doing, and Renfold explained that he believed that they had found and were followng something called "Meerchim Radiants" -- lines of power something like leylines, but that connected coincidences and fates across the land. He told Ja'kear that he was writing the coordinates on the wagons as a backup, showing him that he was transcribing them in his journal as well.
The next day, after checking the integrity of the wagons (and looking to see if there was sand or any other weirdness), the caravan continued to the riverbank and swung south. Not long thereafter, they heard loud cracka and yelling coming from the river beyond the treeline. They rushed to the water's edge to see that a boat had broken itself upon a large rock in the deep part of the river, and pieces of broken wood and flotsame were floating down the river. On several of these pieces, were the bodies of the ship's crew or passengers. None were moving, but it was hard to tell if they were still alive or dead. From the main portion of the boat came more yelling and screaming, and an aftershadow node had formed over the area -- spellcraft at work.
The members of the caravan swam out into the river, assessing the bodies and trying to quickly gather whatever loot or goods they could before it was washed away. While on the flotsam, they were attacked by water-soaked noderats, nasty vermin drawn by the active node, and slightly empowered by its energy. While most everyone grouped up in a small boat that was still in tact as part of the wreckage and fought off the noderats, Murtagh made his way to the main wreckage of the ship, which was quickly taking on water and beginning to sink. He made his way into its deepest hold -- and came face to face with an oversized Direbeaver, grown significantly larger by the power of the Node, and just in time to see the beast take the final bite out of the last of the boat's occupants.
Murtagh fought, and was joined shortly by Zungar (meanwhile Renfold directed traffic from the top of the ship, yelling to the others to let them know what was happening). Yet, even with the two of them, the creature was fearsome and incredibly hale -- and as the ship took on more water and dipped deeper into the river, the two made their decision to break off combat. Now bloodied and angry, the direbeaver followed in pursuit, busting its way through the ceiling of the lower level. Ja'Kear made his way from the smaller boat to assist the pair's escape, and held the beast's attention while the others dove off and swam to safety.
As the boat dipped below the current, Ja'kear disengaged from the creature and dove off as well. The direbeaver reared up on the last bits of planking, gave one final roar, and then swam down into the depths.
After escaping the Elflawvin of the Sabelite monastery, Mrsabo's two wagons took a southwesterly track, cutting across more open land to gain distance from the Elflaw. The goal was to make their way to Ashalash, a village marked on their map of the region.
Along the way, the group interrogated the manacled Elflawvin who had previously attacked them while riding his rahkeel mount. No one in the caravan spoke Eldraath , except for Renfold, so he served as translator. In the beginnng, the Elflawvin was reluctant to give up any information, that is, until Zungar cut off his little finger. While this served to loosen the prisoner's resolve to talk, it also shocked the rest of them members of the caravan.
Regardless, through translation, the Elflawvin explained that his name was Sharnalon Dalin ("Sharn"), and that he was part of the Nellrimm Canon. Apparently, the Elflaw is divided into a number of "canons", each with their own beliefs or agendas. Sharn explained that members of the Nellrimm Canon had been attacked and mind-controlled by the Elfawvin the caravan had seen standing across the river with the antlered helmet. That Elfawvin's name was Adanda Zan, and he and his crew belonged to a dark and powerful group called the Black Canon. Ultimately, the caravan took Sharn's armor (which Murtagh immediately put on), and let Sharn go on foot.
That night, Zungar and Kharos shared a dream in which they were each driving one of the wagons in a mist-drenched landscape, with a distant clicking noise somewhere behind them. In this dream, the beds of the wagons were covered in dark sand, which seemed to be coming from a floating hourglass somehow tethered to the back of the wagons. Kharos tasted the sand in his dream, and declared it to taste slightly sulphuric, like bad eggs. When Zungar and Kharos awoke, they shared the dream with the rest of the group. They checked the wagons, but there was no sand. However, in the light of the moon, and at the right angle, the notch where the Elfawvin arrow that had stuck into the side of the wagon did appear to have the silohuette of an hourglass.
The wagons continued on toward Ashalash, now angling to make for easier ground near the river and make better time and less wear and tear on the wagons. On watch durng the evening, Ja'Kear noticed Renfold huddled under the cart, writing in his journal and on the inside of the spokes of one of the wheels of the cart. He asked Renfold what he was doing, and Renfold explained that he believed that they had found and were followng something called "Meerchim Radiants" -- lines of power something like leylines, but that connected coincidences and fates across the land. He told Ja'kear that he was writing the coordinates on the wagons as a backup, showing him that he was transcribing them in his journal as well.
The next day, after checking the integrity of the wagons (and looking to see if there was sand or any other weirdness), the caravan continued to the riverbank and swung south. Not long thereafter, they heard loud cracka and yelling coming from the river beyond the treeline. They rushed to the water's edge to see that a boat had broken itself upon a large rock in the deep part of the river, and pieces of broken wood and flotsame were floating down the river. On several of these pieces, were the bodies of the ship's crew or passengers. None were moving, but it was hard to tell if they were still alive or dead. From the main portion of the boat came more yelling and screaming, and an aftershadow node had formed over the area -- spellcraft at work.
The members of the caravan swam out into the river, assessing the bodies and trying to quickly gather whatever loot or goods they could before it was washed away. While on the flotsam, they were attacked by water-soaked noderats, nasty vermin drawn by the active node, and slightly empowered by its energy. While most everyone grouped up in a small boat that was still in tact as part of the wreckage and fought off the noderats, Murtagh made his way to the main wreckage of the ship, which was quickly taking on water and beginning to sink. He made his way into its deepest hold -- and came face to face with an oversized Direbeaver, grown significantly larger by the power of the Node, and just in time to see the beast take the final bite out of the last of the boat's occupants.
Murtagh fought, and was joined shortly by Zungar (meanwhile Renfold directed traffic from the top of the ship, yelling to the others to let them know what was happening). Yet, even with the two of them, the creature was fearsome and incredibly hale -- and as the ship took on more water and dipped deeper into the river, the two made their decision to break off combat. Now bloodied and angry, the direbeaver followed in pursuit, busting its way through the ceiling of the lower level. Ja'Kear made his way from the smaller boat to assist the pair's escape, and held the beast's attention while the others dove off and swam to safety.
As the boat dipped below the current, Ja'kear disengaged from the creature and dove off as well. The direbeaver reared up on the last bits of planking, gave one final roar, and then swam down into the depths.