More of Cora's thoughts and observations regarding Balance

Dyro Dduw dy Nawdd;

Ag yn nawdd, nerth;

Ag yn nerth, Deall;

Ag yn Neall, Gwybod;

Ac yngwybod, gwybod y cyfiawn

Ag yngwybod y cyfiawn, i garu;

Ag o garu, caru pob hanfod;

Ag ymhob Hanfod, caru Duw.

Duw a phob Daioni.

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Grant, Divinity thy protection
And in Protection, Strength;
And in Strength, Understanding;
And in Understanding, Knowledge;
And in Knowledge, the Knowledge of Justice:
And in the Knowledge of Justice, the Love of it;
And in the Love of it, the Love of All Existences;
And in the Love of All Existences, the Love of Divinity.
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The first word of the prayer is "Grant" so this is about asking for a boon, a gift. And the root gift from which everything else flows in this prayer is Protection. Protection is a first order need which must be met in order to allow "understanding" to flower.

What follows is a series of "one thing leads to another." 

The seed of protection opens and blossoms into... strength. Each subsequent gift flows from the one before, like a series of water bowls positioned one above the other so that the one above pours into and fills the next below and so on. 

Or perhaps we could think of them as concentric ripples on the water's surface: Protection at the centerpoint, the others flowing outward, each still partaking of Protection, but each gift like a different crest of that pattern of waves...

And in Protection Strength...

It might give us strength of body, of course, if we think of how peace and safety are the roots of a productive life, necessary for raising healthy food and attending to our bodies. However, it seems to me particularly to suggest strength of character, a spiritual strength that permits us to grow, the inherent strength of the Oak tree rising tall toward the Sky, delving deep in the Earth, drawing up the Waters of the Land to transform them into Life.

Strength can also be thought of as the basis for life and survival. It is our fundamental sense of security -- that first order need. But it isn't only security, it is also activity. Strength is set off here as distinct from Protection, and so, we receive the gift of divine protection that allows us to develop in such a way that we can protect ourselves and go forth into the world to slay our dragons. 

Strength is often thought of as a warrior virtue. The Warriors - such as Shalev, for example, are the elite and their strength was not only the bodily strength of the farmer and smith. It joined those two strengths into bravery - the ability to face danger and challenge unflinchingly and persevere. 

And in Strength Understanding...

Again, the verb operating throughout the prayer is "Grant" We are granted the boon of protection, which leads to strength, and now this strength gives birth to understanding. Both of body and of character with skill and training to be fearless. Strength, thus prepares us for anything, it is the prerequisite to all kinds of training, and training is the remarkable thing that sets us apart. We are like the beasts in being born with certain abilities and talents, but we can also be trained, educated, and our skills honed far beyond what comes naturally.

One doesn't usually think of strength leading to understanding. But here again, I think the former lays the foundation for the next. Strength is physical and moral strength, the ability to act, to stand up for oneself and one's principles, to engage the world and wrestle with challenges. -- nobility might be another word for it -- the ability to be powerful and to use power wisely and with justice.

So, in Strength [grant] Understanding. What exactly is understanding and why does it come before Knowledge? This puzzled me at first. Doesn't one accumulate Knowledge and then arrive at understanding of how things work?

Understanding is like another sort of Strength. Built upon strength of body, mind, and character, this new power is the power of reason, insight, intuition -- the ability to see patterns in the world around us, to solve problems, to see cause and effect, to envision complex systems. Creating meaning out of the raw materials of experience. We reason create discourses to explain to ourselves the meaning of what we perceive, and what we imagine. 

And in Knowledge, the Knowledge of Justice...

What is Justice anyway? Sometimes we think of it as punishment, or the doling out of punishment to wrong-doers. But the flip side of that notion of Justice is that Justice, were it to rule everyone's heart would result in no wrong-doing. Were Justice to prevail in society as an abstract spirit of god (rather than as a secular system or institution of courts and judges), we would administer it to ourselves before we did any injustice. 

Judgment in this sense means perception, and when guided by wisdom, brings about harmony and balance - that is, I'm not making choices that are extreme or inappropriate when I'm aware of the balance of things. This the middle path of balance between the extremes.

Justice also means I may choose to accept the duty to work for justice and fairness - balance, harmony - for others, for the environment, etc. Justice thus will mean service, doing for others, for the earth, to bring about fairness and harmony. Doing service to others is only helpful for them and a growth process for me when I do it willingly and with commitment and free choice, not out of guilt or feeling 'I should do it" - freely given.

To seek balance is to seek a personal code of ethics. To strive for it, think and meditate about it and most of all, to try and apply the conclusions of the search in everyday life. 

When I conceive of 'justice' as 'balance', and then look at nature, I see that the cycle of life - birth, growth, renewal/conception of new life, and finally, breakdown, leading to death/destruction - is the balance of nature. Is the breakdown and destruction justice? do we find it positive in it? It's surely a natural part of life, basic in nature. 

 Judging people harshly just because they annoy your or you are angry, is not really the sort of justice we want, even if it is technically "just". 

Knowledge of justice to me means knowing that actions have consequences and accepting this, of knowing that we each impact the world around us by simply being here and that we must understand and accept this and attempt that influence to be in the best possible way. 

The love of justice...of balance... is to be completely accepting of this, to love it for what it makes us do and say, to love the world around us because we constantly care for it and to love that which creates this sense of justice within us. 

To realize that by embracing justice we embrace the idea that we are responsible for our actions, that we are not controlled by fate at this level but that we choose what to do with our lives and must accept and bear the consequences of that. 

Wherein Ishmael earns the name Dragonbane

We watched the old man for a while to ascertain that he meant himself no more harm, and continued to talk to him to keep him calm. He relayed to us all that he remembered of his ill fated fishing trip, and told us all he knew - rumors mostly - about what lay at the heart of the swamp. There was a moment then, where he grew pale and balked at taking the party out into the swamps.  We continued to speak gently with him though, and he reluctantly agreed once again to take us out on his raft and act as a guide through the swamp to the tomb. We made certain that the surplus of our supplies were secured safely and what we DID choose to carry with us was as water tight as we could make it, then we followed the old man out to the edge of the swamp where he had anchored his raft.

It was a large, sturdy structure that had a single bench where the old man sat to steer the craft. We all managed to get aboard, and the old man pushed off. We traveled south, against the current, for some time following the shoreline. Travel was slow, but any offer of help that we made was rebuffed by the old man, who told us his name was Stephen.

After several hours of laborious movement through the murky swamps, Stephen pushed the raft slowly away from the shoreline and turned the craft toward a large island off to the left. He grew noticeably more reticent and watchful the longer we stayed out on the water, and maintained that this was a "bad place."

I have to agree with him there. The water here is dark, cloudy, and full of unknown creatures and terrors. The air is dank and heavy with moisture and a very real sense of oppressive dread. Even the trees, the cypress knees and towering trunks of the forest that so recently developed here are foreboding. Everything about this place seems off to my senses. There is no balance here. It is a place full of evil, and I do not like it. As reluctant as he was about being our guide, I am quite relieved that Stephen is here with the party, as we would undoubtedly have been lost several times over by now in the myriad of twists and turns and ever shifting land masses here.

Darkness fell quite suddenly over the swamp, and Stephen dropped the anchor of the raft bringing it to a halt between two ominous islands to each side of us. He warned in whispered tones that we had to stay in the center of the raft, and that we should not go into the waters. The party grew tense and expectant, instantly on guard for whatever might arise, and we saw the islands to either side of us begin to writhe with ghostly forms. Stephen quietly murmured that these were the shades of all those who had died in the swamp, but that the undead should have no reason to cross the waters unless you were a holy man.

The party shared a horrified glance then, as nearly everyone of us radiated faith of one form or another, and we all turned our backs to the center of the raft as the shades began to creep towards us. We warned Stephen that we were in for a fight, and that he should stay as still as possible.

Osman asked if one of us could ready an arrow, and I showed him my already knocked bow. He nodded and said something like a prayer over the arrow then asked me to fire it into the center of the larger group of advancing shades. I raised an eyebrow and did as he requested, but to no obvious effect.

KelLyn then tried casting a spell, but as usual, she lost her control, and the spell went awry causing wooden ramps to appear leading out of the waters towards the raft.

Shalev muttered a curse to himself under his breath - that I'm sure he didn't think I could hear, and am honestly surprised that he knew - and began to audibly pray to Ma'at, using his brooch to cast a mass dispell undead. Ma'at heard him, and answered, and the spell that he cast managed to destroy twelve of the ghosts.

Osman then summoned and deftly controlled an elemental of air - something that I took alarmed and wary note of. I knew that Lan could do this, but then she is fae. To have another party member try to force order into the chaos of elemental magic makes me distinctly uneasy. But, control it he did, and he commanded it to destroy the closest shade. He was able to do this twice more, which showed a remarkable amount of control for someone appearing so young. Perhaps KelLyn should take note of this new party member and learn from him?

KelLyn attempted then to cast a spell that would affect the whole area, and managed to succeed this time, turning the remaining shades to dust.

No one was wounded, and Stephen remarked that travelling with us was both more frightening and more reassuring than traversing the swamps alone.  We spent the rest of the night in peace, and the next morning, Stephen raised the anchor to the sight of eight large crocodiles sunning themselves happily on the wooden ramps near the raft. The party wisely decided to leave them alone - even Amit was staying well away from the fanged reptiles - and we continued on through the marshes.

We took note of several large birds standing along the shore of a nearby island, and we decided to hunt a few of them to replenish dwindling stores. Amit bounded off to hunt on his own, and Tobias, Fife, Osman, and I each manage to kill a few of the birds. Osman's skill with a bow is remarkable, and I suddenly realized why he seemed familiar to me. He is of the Edabali family, and he himself is a renowned archer in the areas near home. I asked him quietly who was teaching his students while he was out adventuring, and he looked at me with surprise, then wryly answered "another student." I smiled and then offered to teach him some survival skills in exchange for some archery tips. He agreed, and I look forward to being able to augment my ability.

Once the hunting was done, we made a camp along the shore of another island, and dressed the fowl for meals and rations. Amit returned from his hunt, obviously successful, and while still quite grouchy with the party, he is also noticeably in better spirits and healing well. He looked at the birds we had caught - and I could swear that I saw amusement in his eyes at our attempts to hunt - but then he made a sound of distress about eating them, and it was enough for Shalev to cast a purify spell over the meat with some obvious affect. I thanked Amit for his care, and though he still growled at me when I approached, it was less menacing and more long-suffering in nature.

We took the quiet opportunity to rest well, and then continued our trek through the miasma. After another four days of  easy travel, Stephen warned us that we were in another "bad area." We encountered nothing adverse though, and after a short space of time, Stephen offers to teach us how to fish with sticks and strings. It is an odd way to catch fish, as it seems to rely on tricking them into biting the hooked piece of metal at the end of the string. It is far safer, however, than venturing into the murky waters. Even Lan refused to fish in her usual seal-form. There was a decent amount of humor in the learning process, and I for one was glad for the brevity. The swamp is oppressive, and I can feel the weight of the darkness here like a constant threat. It weighs heavily on me. None of us were very successful at this new form of fishing, save for Shalev who brought in a very large water turtle. Stephen warned that the turtles here had a nasty bite, but no injuries were suffered in bringing the catch in, and he poled the raft over to another nearby island so that we could make a camp for the evening.

Amit went out to hunt on his own again, and he returned some time later carrying an extremely large snake. He dropped it in front of Shalev, and made it clear that the kill was for us. He waited for Shalev to accept the gift, then Amit collapsed with a groan. I moved over to check on him and discovered that he had been sorely wounded by the snake. I chided him gently about biting off more than he could chew - even for us - and he allowed me to gently run my hands through his fur as I healed him. I was able to successfully cast a druidic spell to heal the worst of the damage, and I convinced him to swallow a healing potion to take care of the rest.

Osman at that point cast a spell that created two haunches of goat, which he gave to Amit. The great cat immediately devoured the meat, and then fell into sleep. I checked him again as he rested to make sure that the healing had taken effect, and the rest of the evening passed without incident.

The next morning, Stephen told us that we were getting very close to the temple, so we took some time to clean off the muck and mud, and refresh ourselves. KelLyn offered to create water for our ablutions, and when she cast the spell she discovered a line of power nearby that augmented her spell considerably.

As we were getting clean, Fife was attacked, taking an arrow to his shoulder. Osman and I retreated to the center of the raft to begin picking the attackers off with arrows. Fife, being wounded, also joined us on the raft and displayed considerable skill with a bow. The attackers return fire with arrows, but we all manage to dodge out of the way and avoid further injury.

KelLyn cast a spell then, and caused the earth to begin quaking. We all manage to hold our balance, and Fife asked KelLyn to create a fire spell around his arrow. Something went wrong with the spell, and when the arrow hit, a gate opened to the outer plains.

The form that emerged was a demon prince, stepping right out into the center of the horde of enemies that had been attacking us. The demon began negligently slaughtering the hobgoblins, and our party retreated with great haste. KelLyn frantically attempted to close the still open gate, using her wand with success to do so. Once the hobgoblins were taken care of, the demon prince turned towards the party and said that he had business with a mage on the other continent. He asked KelLyn pointedly if she could aid him in getting there, and in a stroke of destructive mischievousness, she opens a gate to the central room where the group of mages that had been scrying on her specifically for so long resided. The demon stated then that this was better, and told KelLyn that in way of thanks for aiding him, she had earned a "god-like" power. He hummed something in Fyrewerian then, and stepped through the gate, closing it behind him amid the terrified cries of the surprised mages in the room.

KelLyn immediately repeated what the demon had told her in Fyrewerian, and created a small gem which contained power. The demon had taught her the ability to create power nodes for use in the creation of magical items. This is an ability that has been lost for generations, and I can't help but think of Ma'tron in the cursed elven city, with her and her husband's adventures to find magical items and recreate them.

After making sure that there were no additional attacks coming our way, we decided to continue moving on. A day or so later, around noon, we saw an island that looked considerably different than all the others we had encountered. This area was very dense, with the trees crowding close, and the earth mounded up to form the bulk of the island. There was a stone platform going into the mound on the north side, and a very large decorated wall near the rear of the structure. The whole area radiated unholy magic, and all of us were extremely cautious as we approached.

As Stephen poled the raft closer to the dock, we saw nine skiffs tied to the edge. He said that he had no wish to stay here, and would leave after we had disembarked. He was adamant, but did make a promise to return in two days, and then again in nine, should we survive.

With that promise in mind, we all climbed off of the raft. As we did so, Shalev noticed a body face-down under the water. He hooked it with a grapple and pulled it to the surface. It was the body of one of the count's men, with a crossbow bolt in the back. It looked as if the man were fleeing toward the skiffs when he was shot. The rest of the party looked around cautiously, but saw no signs of where the attack might have come from.

I noticed that the wall towards the back of the structure shimmered oddly, and pointed out that that it did not appear to be a solid wall. I looked closer, and saw that it was not a wall, but a curtain made of tightly woven seashells. Osman walked up to the curtain-wall and touched it, only to be immediately shot with three crossbow bolts from behind the screen. Shalev rushed over to provide aid, and managed to drag him out of the line of fire to heal him. Ishmael then went over to the screen to mark the spot where Osman had touched the screen when he too was shot with crossbows.

Shalev grabbed Ismael's shield at that point to cover he, Ishmael, and Osman while they got to safety. He managed to glance back through the screen to see three rows of humanoid figures wielding crossbows. He retreated behind the columns of the main area of the temple, casting a spell to dispel evil as he ran.

Osman turned then to see Stephen, who had been instantly killed in the flurry of crossbow fire, fall slowly into the waters of the marsh. He ran to the edge and dove in after him, in an attempt to save him, but it was too late. Stephen was gone, and Osman was left to try to make his way through the waters back to the dock.

KelLyn attempted to cast a spell to catch the strings of the curtain on fire, in an attempt to remove the obstacle from our path. Her first attempt to ignite the curtains failed, but thankfully with no ill effect. The humidity in the air was making the strings nearly impossible to ignite. So she made a second attempt, this time using a different word in Fyrewerian. This time, it worked, and her flames ignited with an indescribably beautiful detonation. The color was well beyond any normal flame, and the very air vaporized in a thunderclap of deafening sound. The force of the impact pulled Kellyn into the room just as I used the scroll of fireball that we had picked up in previous adventures to create and throw a fireball into the crowd of crossbowmen.

The scroll also detonated with an enormous backlash, and three water creatures emerge from three stagnant pools in the room, screaming with agony at the killing heat.

KelLyn was severely wounded from the backlash of the thunderclap, burned by the fireball, and appeared to be completely unconscious and exhausted. Shalev fearlessly waded into the middle of the bowmen to engage them all, keeping their attention firmly fixed on his deadly blade and giving Ishmael time to rush in and drag KelLyn away to heal her with a potion, saving her life.

At that moment, the large statue behind the curtain of shells shifted open, and a resonating voice rumbled out a question of who it was that had disturbed his rest. Lan looked back in time to see the head of a black dragon emerge from the corridor revealed by the shifting statue. She began casting a spell, and screamed out to the rest of the party as the dragon attacked her with a shot of acid breath. She released the spell she was casting in order to use one of the draughts of pure healing to counteract the terrible damage done by the acid. As her spell released, it warped into something purely wrong. The spell that she cast was an abomination of Destroy Animal, and it resonated against every aspect of nature. It hit the dragon square in the chest, and the dragon looked shocked for a moment, not understanding what had happened.

Upon seeing the dragon, my heart went cold in my chest. Here was the destruction of the druids. The reason I was the only one in living memory. Unnatural and unearthly, and utterly evil. I began to pray, at that point, for some guidance on how to deal with what I faced.

The dragon then cast a charm spell on the party, which affected everyone save Lan, who was not human, and Ishmael, who had quietly made his way over behind the dragon and had begun to climb the scales of it's neck and was out of range of the spell. Lan summoned a small fairy who took one look at the dragon and squealed in fright before tossing Lan a weirding stone and vanishing entirely.

The dragon, confused by why his spell had no effect on Lan, then stated "Ah, but you are fae. Sacatha said nothing about a fae. Interesting." He failed to notice Ishmael continuing to deftly climb the scales of it's neck toward it's head. Lan put the stone into her mouth, turned into her seal form, and dashed into the water to swim away from the dragon.

This confused the dragon even more, and he lowered his head into the water to try to find out where she had gone. This allowed Ishmael to slide down the dragon's neck to behind it's head- still unnoticed - and prepare to attack it with his mace. At that point, the dragon turned to me with the statement that it must be I who was the magic user. I wondered at why he could not tell who the magic user of the party was, but I was still held fast by the charm spell and could only watch with growing terror as the dragon opened his great mouth and brought his head forward to snap me in half.

I was only saved by Ishmael, who in that moment, swung his mace with all of his considerable strength into the dragon's eye. Ishmael, hanging by his mace from the dragon's eye socket, quipped "I am NOT the mage", and then stabbed it in the other eye with the bronze spear that Shalev had given him to study. The dragon was caught completely by surprise and bellowed with pain, but managed to keep hold of the charm spell that held the rest of the party immobile.

Ishmael continued his attack, and made another successful hit with the bronze spear, which had begun to glow with heat. He noticed then that there were words that had appeared on the handle of the spear that said "Flame Strike". He read the words aloud with a little confusion, only to have to hold on for dear life as the spell went off directly into the dragon's eye with white hot fire. Ishmael then, realizing what the spear and the spell did, repeated the words over and over and over again. Three times the flame strike spell went off, each time piercing the dragon's head.

This was enough to destroy the dragon's formidable concentration and release us all from the charm spell that bound us. KelLyn then, picking herself wearily up off of the floor, walked over to the dying dragon and stated calmly "I AM the magic user" before casting a spell to draw the essence of the dragon into one of it's scales, causing it to finally fall over dead.

We took a moment to stare in awe at Ishmael who seemed not to realize just how profound a deed he had just accomplished. He shrugged it off with some embarrassment, and we all sat there for a moment in sheer relief that we were all still alive. Lan took that moment to hop up out of the waters, and turn back to her human form; and Osman also finally managed to make his way back out of the murky deeps. We took a moment to search the area to discover that the three stagnant pools held a small trove of treasures:

• a solid gold brooch
• a solid gold necklace
• a pin made of a strange gemstone
• a platinum bracelet
• a pin made of a soft green stone
• a gold pin set with a garnet the size of a robin's egg
• a woman's tiara set with three rubies and carrying the imperial crest
• a cache of platinum coins
• a potion with a Fyrewerian word written on the bottle (polymorph self, duration 1 month) 

and then we turned our attention over to the entrance of the chamber where the dragon had emerged, only to have our breath taken away by the sheer amount of treasure to behold. The room was full of gems, coins, and several kingdom's worth of wealth. 

The party went out to the main columned area of the temple and built a rudimentary camp in order to rest and recover. There is a hoard of treasure to go through, and who knows what we will find there in the piles of wealth. I can already see Shalev planning to send a chest or two somehow back to his mother. His pending marriage weighs heavily on his mind, and in sending a portion of this treasure to the care of his mother, it is his thought that he may improve his lot enough to put his mother ahead of the game in the negotiations for his wedding.

I will caution that, while we are indeed deserving of a portion of the treasures here, there is way more than we could possibly carry with us. I know that Shalev is neither greedy, nor shortsighted, and would not take it all as he is from the desert and has learned well that we only keep what we can carry with us. I do worry that he reaches too high at times, and can forget that money and wealth can occasionally cause more issues than it solves.

He is discussing telling the count where the treasure is, with the stipulation that the divination priests receive a portion of the money to cover the cost of providing answers that the party members may seek. This is a wise plan, as the diviners can provide some much needed information regarding the quests that we still have before us to complete.

He was also considering trying to hire one of the diviners to serve in the court of the Oasis for a time, but I do not know if that will be possible. The desert is a different culture, a long way from here, and alien to these people. But if he can convince them to aid him in his quest to raise his status among the peoples of the desert, I will not stop him.

There is a country that has been rife with desolation and destruction, and so it would be my thought that the lion's share of this go towards rebuilding and reestablishing trade and commerce here in this area. The easiest way will most likely be to leave the bulk of the treasure here where it lays. That is for the count and the people of this country to do, however. We can start the process to restoring Waycam to it's glory, but it will ultimately be their choice on how to continue from here. 

Stephen is dead, poor soul. May he finally find the peace that he needs. I am sad that we were not able to protect him, and I worry now that we have lost our guide. There is still much to do here, and I believe that what we face is only going to be worse than this. For what can command a dragon? Sacatha was not the dragon we faced today. His tomb is located here in the heart of the swamp, but whether it is further in, underneath this temple somewhere, or otherwise hidden we still have yet to discover. 

May the god and goddess go with us here, watch us and guide us. Protect us however they may, for we will need their help. 

The eighth man

After the battle with the giants, the party decided to rest and recuperate for a day as we waited for the effects of the Slow spell to wear off of Amit. While we rested, Ishmael used the down time to practice his craft, and he made several tubes of varying sizes out of the metals he carries.

The next day we broke camp and traveled on. Shortly up the road, we came across a very large oak tree that had been recently split by lightning. At the base of the tree lay a man in obvious distress, and a second man was there tending to the injured person. The second man stated that his name was Osman, from the desert area. He spoke desert common in a dialect that Tobias, Shalev, and I all recognized, and seemed quite taken aback when Tobias offered him a formal desert greeting. He returned the greeting somewhat timidly, and then told the party about how he came across the wounded man, and had been tending to his wounds.

As he conversed with the rest of the party, I went over to check on the oak tree to see what could be done. I was able to determine that the tree was still alive, and I attempted to cast a basic druidic spell to help heal the tree. There was no visible effect, but I felt like I succeeded to some degree. Perhaps my spell was able to give it the strength it needed to sustain itself during the regrowth process? Only time will tell, but I could not just leave it there without trying something.

I came back over to the party to see Shalev check the wounded man, and then give him a healing potion. As he regained consciousness, we asked him gently who he was and what he could remember. He said that his name was Bartow, - this is the man that the Count tasked us to find - and that he faked his death in order to discover what happened in the area, but was unfortunately captured anyway. He managed to escape, but was wounded in the process and that the last thing he remembered was collapsing by the great oak tree.

Bartow went on to describe the enemies he faced in great detail – including verifying that the old man did in fact seem to be a harbinger of attack. He described the old man to us as being short of stature and wearing nondescript brown and green rags. He told us of the prisoners that were lead behind the Inn at Waycam, and warned that he did not know what else we might face.

 He seemed confused and still weak from his ordeal, and Osman chimed in at that point telling his side of the story – How he found Bartow gravely wounded, and took cautious steps to care for him during his time of need. Osman then stated that he is a scholar from the desert areas with some knowledge of the lizard folk and that he had ventured out to enhance his knowledge of the creatures. This struck the entire party as rather foolish, as Osman appeared to be neither armed nor armored, nor did he carry any supplies with him. He mentioned quietly that he knew some few spells that he had used to keep himself fed and mildly protected along the way, and I wondered then at how much more there was to this new stranger.

Fife and KelLyn both quipped with wry humor that the peoples of the desert seemed to be everywhere. I wisely kept my opinions to myself on the matter, but took small note of the nature of the gripe. Given the infighting that has gone on between the other party members to date, there might be concern for the mentality of “us vs. them” which, while not the case in the slightest, could cause trouble later on. It’s worth keeping a watchful eye on anyway. I have come to admire or respect each of the party members in their own way, and am loathe to see any rift between them grow.

As Bartow was still obviously weakened, and in no shape to guide us forward, Shalev equipped him with a horse and enough supplies to get him to the Robin’s Breast in safely, then sent him on his way with his word of honor that he would inform the count of our promise to find him, and of our continued progress to restore Waycam and clear the Evil out of the Swamp.

Since Osman had some small knowledge of the lizard men that we faced, and we could provide first-hand knowledge of the creatures, we agreed that he could join the group and travel with us; and after sending Bartow on his way, we gathered our small caravan and continued on for another few hours.

During the third watch that evening, Fife heard voices that forewarned “They’re not moving. Kill them now!”  He immediately threw a spear towards the voices and shouted to KelLyn to wake the party. The monsters attacked Fife, and he again relied on his skills with the spear and his extensive knowledge of boar hunting to kill one of the creatures with his first hit to the face.

Tobias and Shalev were the first to awaken fully, and they also immediately engaged the remaining monsters, only to see two additional foes appear just over the ridge about 60 feet away. Fife then shifted his attack to the new foes while Shalev and Tobias closed with the ogres that were attacking Fife.


KelLyn, having woken the rest of the party, then engaged and cast a spell on the end of Fife’s spear which turned it white-hot. Fife’s aim was true, as it always appears to be, and the spear exploded against the ogre’s face with a shower of molten metal and slag. Fife reacted to the explosion like a child with a new toy, and promptly urged KelLyn to do it again. As she prepared a new spell, Tobias and Shalev took down the two ogres that they battled, and the others turned to flee.

I managed to get a shot off at one of the running ogres, and shortly after that KelLyn's spell goes off.. predictably badly, causing a deafening cone of sound to detonate off into the swamp to the right. Shalev called for Amit to catch and kill the remaining running ogre, and Amit took off like a bolt to attack. Amit used his magically enhanced claws to rake the back of the fleeing ogre, and slowed it down long enough for Ishmael to smash it in the foot with his mace to take it down entirely.

With all of the enemies taken care of, we search their remains to discover more of the embroidered money pouches, this time with 50 silver in each. We check the party members for injuries, and discover that Amit was radiating an evil aura because of the effect of using the magical ability of his claws. Shalev was alarmed by this, and cast dispell evil on Amit, thinking it would cause the aura to disperse. Unfortunately, it caused a grievous wound to the great cat instead, and Amit collapsed. Shalev managed to get a healing potion into him quickly, and the wound was terrible enough that even with the effects of the potion, it took an hour for Amit's wounds to close and knit.

Amit was understandably distressed, and was very wary about letting anyone near him for quite a while after that. Only Lan and KelLyn were able to approach him and they fed him some of the salmon we had in our stores. They managed to get him to calm down enough to allow me to approach him - though with a deep warning growl - and I was able to cast a simple healing spell on him. It felt as if it were successful, and I thanked the god and goddess that he was well, and asked them to add some small blessing to Amit to help aid his recovery.

Shalev was heartbroken that he had caused such unintentional harm to his friend, and he spent quite a long time in prayer to Ma'at. I do not know what it was that she said to him, but after he emerged from his meditations, he asked for a goat so that he could perform a specific rite. She appears, for the first time, to have answered him directly, and that intimate conversation seems to have had some effect on Shalev. Perhaps his goddess has started him on the next steps of his path as a Paladin to her name? Time will tell there, I think. Though he has gained a measure of confidence with his position, he still appears to have some reservations about how he should proceed in some cases. I am concerned that he seems to gravitate towards rigid law, as opposed to the sense of balance that Ma'at represents.

I will pull him aside when I get a moment to gently remind him that balance is not necessarily about always doing the good thing or the right thing, but that maintaining balance can sometimes mean allowing something bad to happen as well. This will be one of his most difficult lessons, I fear, and I hope that I can guide him with what little advice I can give.

On an interesting note, it appears evident that Osman is also a cleric or a paladin of sorts, as he emerged from his tents radiating a sense of faith and power. This would explain his lack of equipment or weapons when we found him, and it bears not only noting, but some careful observation as well. We know little about this new party member so far, and it will be interesting to discover more about him.

Later that afternoon, after the party had rested a little while, we continued down the road and eventually came across the remains of a ravaged village. Fields were burned, houses destroyed. The only remaining structure of any stability was the Inn. The Inn was also gutted and deserted, save for the innkeeper, who was trying to rapidly pack what belongings he could in preparation to leave. The innkeeper informed us that this was, indeed, what was left of Waycam; and he went on to describe the enormous flying creature that came out at night, as well as the crazy old man who squatted on the northern edge of the ruins here. He recalled that the road through here went north to the mountains, or continued straight to the desert, then went on to say that we could keep what wine we found in the inn, for he was leaving and didn't care much what else happened here.

It is possible that he was originally party to the destruction of the village in the first place, but we will never know for certain. After he left, we spent some time searching the remains of the inn, but found nothing remaining of any value. We then continued warily to the north, towards the old man, recalling the warnings that he was possibly some form of harbinger to attacks. We found the poor wretch to the north, in a semi-livable hut, singing to himself about others that had been carried off to the "bad lair". His rambling sing-song told us of Sacatha the great lizard king, who would come to rescue all and renew his kingdom. He knows how to get to the bad place on his raft, but that he would not go there. that he was to remain behind and bear witness to the destruction of all.

We managed to get him to agree to take us out to show us his raft. We left the horses at the stables near the inn, and agreed to hide the bulk of our supplies under the floorboards of the inn to retrieve should we return from the swamp. KelLyn promptly threw a hissyfit about her books, but finally stated crossly that as she did not trust any of the other party members with her things, and agreed to wrap them in oil cloth and hide them with the rest of the supplies. While KelLyn was arguing about her possessions, and angrily muttering about having to choose what to bring with her, Lan discovered that the old man was actually cursed with madness. After several more moments, and some more angry diatribe from KelLyn about being interrupted, Lan managed to convince her to see if she could help remove the curse from the old man. KelLyn reluctantly agreed, and drew a circle on the ground to call the power she needed to break the curse. She was successful, and as soon as she had completed the spell, she went back to sorting through her belongings.

The old man - who was now quite lucid - told us that he remembered fishing, and then being captured. That he was supposed to watch the people to see where they burned. The realization of all he had borne witness to sank in with a shocking realization, and the old man wailed at what he had done. In shock, and wounded to the soul at what had happened here, he tried to kill himself. We were unfortunately not fast enough to stop him from wounding himself, but we succeeded at removing the dagger from his chest and healing him completely before the wound could complete his desire. We promised him gently that he would have a chance to make things right. We sat him down carefully, wrapped him in a warm blanket, and gave him a little food and water to help calm him down.

He wearily told us that the tomb is actually real, and he made the offer to take us there on the raft. At that point Shalev boldly stated that he would destroy the evil, or die trying. Osman and I looked at each other in alarm, as we felt a clerical spell discharge, and we realized that Shalev had managed to geas himself to the task; quite possibly geasing the entire party to the same quest.

I do not think that the rest of the party was paying close enough attention to realize what Shalev had done. It alarms me that he made such a broad statement of intent, and that such a statement carried such a powerfully binding effect. He is still very cavalier with his own life, and it is my quiet thought that perhaps I should remind him that he is both a valued friend to me, and an essential member of the group. I do not know if the binding effect of the geas affects only Shalev, or will affect the entire group.  I fear what may come of this, but I promise to see it through to whatever end may come.

A Balance Druid's Mantra

There is only Nature

I will do what I must to keep the balance.

The balance is what keeps me together.

There is no good without evil, but evil must not be allowed to flourish.

There is passion, yet emotion

Serenity, yet peace

Chaos, yet order

I am the wielder of the flame, the protector of balance.

I am the holder of the torch, lighting the way.

I am the keeper of the flame, soldier of balance.

I am a guardian.

More than they bargained for...

"How would you defeat them?"
"With a stick, while they slept; but when they are awake, aware, and working together? They are unstoppable."


.oOo..oOo..oOo..oOo.

While the party was preparing to continue the hunt for the bandits, we took the opportunity to ask Ahkmar and his clerics about various subjects that held importance to each of us.

Tobias asked about any information that they might provide us regarding the enemy that we hunt. Unfortunately, the only thing that they were able to tell us about that was that they always had difficulty scrying them. This is still useful information for us though, as it lets us know that they are somehow protected from such attempts.

Ishmael took the opportunity to ask them about the city of glass - where he found the Flames of Prometheus. He was told that the name of the city was Medina Muscaloon, which in old desert means "city of merchants."

I also took the opportunity to ask a question, though knowing that the chances of an answer were slim. I asked about knowledge regarding Sacred Druidry, and the fate of those druids of long ago. They confirmed what I had read in my book, that the druids were destroyed 2000 years ago, by a mage. They told me also that old forests with established guardians would be my best chance of learning more; and they were able to give me the location of the two forests that they knew about. One located to the East of a mage's tower, and the other located in the valley between two ridges to the north. That one, they warned, was enchanted to always exist but had also been warded to bar any and all elves. I wonder if that is an all encompassing ban, or if I might be permitted to enter? It is worth checking into, for certain.

After we had conversed with the paladin and his clerics, we gathered our supplies and made preparations to leave the next morning. We awake to a steady rainfall, and depart the farm house to continue on the road. We notice the giant ants off in the forest - most likely confused by the sudden disruption of their normal hunting grounds. We wisely leave them alone to explore their new surroundings, and continue travelling onward. The forest thins out after about a day or so, though we continue to be wary of potential attacks.

The next morning we break camp to an extremely dense fog. It reminds me of the mornings at home in the deep desert.. where the fog rises with the sun and blankets the area. Heavy mists like this are always oddly secluding. Sounds are muffled, sight is limited, and it's very easy to lose yourself in introspection. Because our sight is so limited, we are extra alert as we travel.

Ishmael hums his songs that he learned for quenching as we travel, and discovers that the songs affect ALL water. Including the moisture in the fog. As he hums, the fog behind us turns to snow, much to everyone's surprise, and Lan's enthusiastic delight. She frolics in the snowfall, and we continue on in the oddly muffled silence.

During last watch that evening, Fife wakes everyone as a small group of bedraggled looking soldiers approach the camp. It's obvious that the didn't want any encounter with the group, but we stopped them and manage to talk them into giving us some information in exchange for some supplies. They tell us that we are about a week's travel from where they were attacked - although probably much less since we travel by horse. They are wearing the armor and markings of the count's men, and Fife suspects that they may be deserters. The weary soldiers tell us of the attack, and then interestingly that they felt an overwhelming fear in facing such sheer numbers which caused them to run. The fact that they ran is the only thing that kept them alive.

This reaction is an odd one from seasoned soldiers, and we contemplate the fact that there may be a fear spell and some form of illusion to deal with on top of everything else.

The soldiers tell us also that the brigands that attacked them did so with the express purpose to destroy - not to rob, as the caravans and merchants stated. They say that the Robin's Breast Inn is about a half day ahead, and we heal them, give them the promised supplies, and send them on their way. Since we were already all awake at that point, we decide to break camp and make our way to the Inn.

It's a lonely little structure, the Robin's Breast. A two story house off to the left side of the road. Not too many people there, understandably enough, given the current state of the merchant traffic and the constant fear of brigands. We tie the horses, and Fife stays with them as we go inside to see what information we might be able to gather. We find the bard over by the fire, and the inn keeper over at the bar.

Tobias inquires about a bottle of elven brandy, and he and the innkeeper bargain for an agreeable price for the treasure. It's hard to say who came out ahead in that discussion. The innkeeper certainly got his money's worth and then some, but Tobias managed to acquire the brandy, which he gleefully shared with me.

We ask the bard about any stories he can tell us regarding the current problems, but the farmers all begin to grumble suspiciously, fearing that the telling of the thing will make it worse.

The bard begins his song anyway, and the farmers all leave the inn with a good bit of grousing about not wanting to borrow trouble.

The song the bard sings with rather mediocre talent is the Legend of Sacatha's Tomb. According to the legend, Sacatha was the king of the lizard men who ruled his people with fear. His reign was supposedly aided by a ring that perpetuated the fear. Sacatha was slain by The Count [unnamed by the bard] in the great battle of Waycam, and his people secreted his body away to a sepulcher in the middle of the marshes. It is said that he will return to exact his vengeance on the count.

As difficult as it was to listen to the ill-told story, it does ring suspiciously accurate given current events. The Evil in the Swamp, the lizard men that we ourselves encountered on the road, the theft of children, the scrying attempts on the parties sent out to combat it, the spy in the count's inner court, and the raiding of supply caravans. The facts point to something gathering power, and that something - whatever it is - IS located in the swamp.

The bard laughs our statements of with naive nervousness, playing them off as simply part of the legends for stories that are told to scare children. Even so, we take note of the legend, because even legends are born in truth.

After paying for our meal, and compensating the innkeeper for the fact that all of his other customers for the day had been run off, we pay a few silvers to the bard for his story and gather our supplies to continue on. We make it several hours ride past the inn, when we are attacked by a trio of ogres.

They are very large creatures, ogres. They attack us with boulders, and one of them strikes the horse that I am riding, killing the poor beast immediately. I managed to roll safely out of the way, and the other horses bolt in fear. The party retaliates, and we enter the fight. These creatures are difficult to wound, and it is a game of trying to figure out how not to be crushed by them.

Ishmael and Lan try to gather the horses and keep them calm, and Tobias manages to do some minimal damage to the lead ogre. I attempt to cast a spell to entangle their feet, but it fails - thankfully with no ill effect. KelLyn also casts a spell that goes awry, but she manages to disarm one of the brutes.

Fife uses his expertise with spears and boar hunting to bring down the lead ogre, and Tobias uses his incredible speed and dexterity to run up the second ogre's back to brain him with his mace.

The other two ogres turn to attack Fife, as it was he that felled the leader, and Fife spends several moments dodging their attacks.

KelLyn casts another spell in Fyrewerian  - Fire this time - on the ogre that Tobias climbed, and this time she succeeds, catching the hair of the ogre on fire.

Shalev attacks the remaining ogres with the layan claymore that Ma'tron gifted to him, and discovers that the great sword is enchanted to do additional damage to giants. His attacks succeed, and he also discovers, somewhat pleasedly that in killing the ogres, his brooch and symbol of Ma'at gains a charge.

We dispatch the ogres, retrieve the horses, and redistribute the items from my horse onto the remaining animals. The ogres don't carry any items on their bodies, save a finely wrought money bag with the common lettering "GR" embroidered on the face. The money bag contains 100 gold pieces.

The markings on the bag look remarkably familiar for some reason, but none of us can remember where we might have encountered it. Shalev mentions that it is very odd that the ogres would be carrying that much gold, and I hold on to the thought that perhaps the brutes were paid to attack.

It is not a foolish thought, though it is somewhat concerning to consider - given all that we are currently facing. It looks like everything that has been happening here is connected somehow, although how exactly, we have yet to determine.

After the fight with the ogres, we rest for a time to regain strength. Thankfully no one was badly hurt, and we are able to continue travelling quickly.

After another 4 days or so of uneventful travel the road runs up along the river Arda, and we see a bridge about 300 yards or so ahead of us. We stop briefly to discuss crossing the bridge, and to check our progress, and it is here that we are attacked by brigands.

It is a large group of 20 bandits, and they attack en masse. Shalev instinctively casts Dispel Evil, and three of the bandits flee in absolute terror. The rest of them split into three separate groups, and they shout "It's the mage we want, kill the rest!"

We all pull up in front of KelLyn, and prepare to fight. The group with swords as weapons rush to attack Tobias, the group with clubs attacks Fife, and the group with javelins attacks me. Tobias and Shalev both take great offense at the fact that I am being attacked, and Tobias rushes the group with the javelins to brawl with them.

Fife deftly dodges the attacks aimed at him, and KelLyn casts a Slow spell using one of her star gems to concentrate the effect. The star gem turns black, and the spell goes off - affecting the enemies, and unfortunately affecting Amit as well. Ishmael and Shalev engage the group armed with swords, and I spend several moments simply dodging out of the way and making it more difficult for them to hit me.

Lan summons another chaotic fairy, but then when it states that it could not do anything here in the fight, she sets it free instead of returning it home. Setting it free was probably a mistake, as the chaotic fae are capricious at best, and I hope that we will not have to handle much in the way of mischief that it may cause.

The rest of the fight continues quickly, and with the bandits being affected by the slow spell, we are able to take them down. KelLyn intimidates the rest, causing them to flee, and Fife spears one of the fleeing bandits. We search the bodies, but find nothing other than their weapons. Fife takes several of the spears to replace the ones that he lost in the fight, and Lan questions one of the bodies with a spell that she knows. She asks why they were after the mage, and the bandit replied "Because the king told us to" before falling back into death.

We check the area further, but there is nothing to be found, giving us more questions than answers. Amit is still being affected by the slow spell, and KelLyn crassly jokes that we can just leave him behind, which draws a promise of violence from Shalev. I assure him that we will not leave Amit behind, and we agree to make camp just on the other side of the bridge. There are no other injuries to any of the other party members, and I can't help but feel like this was only a test.

They were ready for us, that is certain, and they were somewhat organized. But they were poorly equipped, and fell easily, which contradicts the stories that we heard from the soldiers and the merchants. This feels more like a first push against a wall to test it's strength, and I wonder if we succeeded in giving the enemy yet more information about us. Among us, KelLyn is the only one who has protection against scrying, which may be why she was a target here. She is the only one they know nothing about. It makes me anxious, and supremely wary moving forward.

These bandits certainly ran into more than they bargained for, but I would be foolish indeed to think that was the worst of what we face.

And Suddenly a forest. ..

There is a phrase out in the world:
"You should be careful what you wish for."

Especially when there is a Paladin of Law and Justice involved.

.oOo..oOo..oOo..oOo.

After the failed attempt to kill the Count - and the party along with him - we gathered all of our supplies and provisions with additions by the Count's blessing, and we set out on the road toward Waycom.

Although wary, and on the alert for further attacks or scrying attempts, we traveled without incident. There are several little towns and hamlets along the main road here, and Vendare was the first that we reached. The river Arda flows to just to the south, and Vendare boasted some river traffic, but not much.

We entered the little town uncontested, and used the down time to refresh and scout for rumors of the brigands we hunted. The road has been...quiet.. so far, and although we remain vigilant, there has not been any sign or hint of attack.

Shalev and Fife set out to discover what news they could find, with the cover story that Shalev was in search of new trade goods and potential waypoints for said trade for his family. Fife cautioned him in a quiet aside that while setting himself up as a traveling noble was perfectly fine, that he should be more wary with flashing money around,as most of the people we will be dealing with will have never even seen a gold piece, much less know what to do with one, and that making it openly known that he carries such riches negligently would paint a particularly tempting target on his back.  Shalev agreed to the caution, and pointed out he was going to get more silver from the count, but was unable to do so, as the audience with the Count resulted in a swift departure. He further pointed out that as he was arranging things and paying for them out of his own pocket, suggestions would be more useful then complaints, and Fife offered to pay when needed.

Fife, interestingly enough, seems to have taken to his role as bodyguard rather diligently, and also seems to relish the task of acting as a go-between for Shalev.

After a night in Vendare, and no news to be found, we set back out on the road to Waycam.

The second night on the road, during my watch, I got the distinctly uneasy feeling that we were being watched. I turned quickly, but there was no one behind me. It was then I realized that what I felt was a scrying attempt. -Is this a new ability of mine? I have never been able to discern being scried on before now. Is this a new ability in my growing presence as a Sacred Druid, I wonder? It bears looking into.-

I quietly notified Tobias of what I felt, and we woke KelLyn as it was her turn on watch anyway. She cast a dispell to stop the scrying, but was uncertain if it went off successfully. It apparently did, or whatever ...whomever..was scrying made no further attempts that night.

The following day, we arrived at the next little hamlet on the road - a place called Arth. We made a very brief stop to purchase some sheep to feed Amit - much to the wide eyed disbelief of the inn keeper. We decided to continue on without stopping, however, and after another 4 days, we reached Newcom.

Despite Tobias' extreme dislike of horses, I must admit that having them with us, and being able to travel via horseback has been efficient. These are sturdy animals - built for hard work and farm labor more than speed - but they still are quite convenient for traveling on the road as we have been.

Newcom was much the same as the towns before, and we agreed to spend an evening at the inn, to do some scouting and information gathering as before. The news was that trade was extremely slow due to the constant attacks by brigands and bandits, but oddly enough, we are still unable to discern any further information about the matter.

After another week of easy travel, we come across a lonely inn, off to the side of the road. Here, at last, we are able to gather some new information. Rumors of flying  monsters that come in the night. Again, the evil in the swamp is mentioned, and the terrible confirmation that these flying things are making off with children. The innkeeper there also directs us to the Robin's Breast Inn which is about another week's travel down the road. He says that there is a somewhat average bard that plays there, but that it would undoubtedly be a better place to find the information that we are seeking.

So we set off further down the road. A few days later, we encounter an old man wandering the highway. All of us are instantly alert, as this was one of the warnings we heard from the survivors in the Count's court. That an old man always preceded the attacks. 

We approach the old man with caution, and he tells us that he is searching for his family - his son Merc, and his daughter-in-law Anna - who left Waycom months ago to get away from the growing evil there. This confirms the rumors that we have been hearing, and he gives us little more information other than the city is basically unguarded and that anyone there who is out after dark is never seen again. We manage to get him to agree to travel with us to the inn, where he could rest and regain some of his health.

That night, we are scryed on again, at second watch; and again, I am the one who feels the attempt. This time we woke Shalev who immediately cast a dispel evil - which caused the attempt to cease abruptly.  

The next day, as we continued along the road, we came upon a large colony of ants the size of small dogs. The colony was quite active, and the ants were extremely vicious looking, although they seemed to pay no attention to us as long as we left them alone. As we started to move on, Tobias spoke up and said he wanted to grab a few of the ants to eat.

We all warned him profusely that it was not a wise idea, but he was insistent, saying that seeing the ants made him homesick for a taste of desert food. So we asked him to allow the party to travel down the road for several minutes to put distance between us and the ants before he riled them up. He agreed, and we traveled further ahead. He returned cheerfully and somewhat out of breath, a few minutes later, with a large ant carried on a spear. He laughed and said that was exhilarating fun, and even I had to just smile and shake my head. I forget, sometimes, how very young he is. I think it's part of what endears him to me. He still has the capability to be impulsive.

Later that day, we run upon a straggled group of refugees traveling the opposite direction on the road. We agree to stop and do what we can for them, and they confirm stories from Waycom about flying monsters, evil in the swamp, missing children, and the terrible state of the now failing town. It seems that they are one of yet many groups that are trying to make their way to safety while they still can. Women, children, only a few men. We build a second camp for the group, and set about to refill water skins, cure ailments, and share what food we can spare with them.

I was able to successfully cast a spell to increase the amount of grain that they carry with them. It's not much, but it will hopefully allow  them to stretch their supplies until they can reach the next town, where the five gold pieces Shalev gave them should help them resupply as much as the town will permit. I  also do a small blessing on the party to help protect them as best I can. We warn them of the ant colony - now undoubtedly riled up from Tobias' antics - and they also agree to let the old man travel with them.

A day or so further down the road, on a whim (or perhaps divine inspiration) Shalev casts a dispel evil. We startled into battle-ready alertness when, upon completion of the spell, a group of 12 bandits jumps up screaming and running away. Fife spears one of the fleeing bandits, and Amit brings it back to the group. It was humanoid, but with a lizard's head, tail, and skin. It reeked of evil, which is why Shalev's spell made them bolt. We were unable to find any discerning marks, or identifying paraphernalia on the body though, nor were we able to find anything among the blind where the group was hiding.

Two days later along the road, we surprised an extremely large boar - who immediately charged  the party. Fife warned us all to move out of the way, and that he knew how to handle this; then he deftly speared the animal and killed it. After the boar's death throes were complete, I quietly thanked the animal for it's life to sustain ours.

As we began the long task of butchering the animal for transport, a group of farmers ran out of the brush as well. Obviously they had been chasing the boar, and were awe struck that we... that Fife.. had killed it. They offered us their hospitality, and to help us with the animal carcass, and we readily agree.  

They lead us to their farm, a modest plot of land that had, unfortunately, recently been raided and rampaged through. Fife, Shalev, Ishmael, and the farmers set about butchering the boar - over a ton of animal - and as they work, Tobias takes vigil against attempted attacks and oncoming bandits; and I pull KelLyn and Lan aside and ask for their assistance in blessing the farm to do what we can to bring it back to rights.

I ask KelLyn to attempt to help with the earth, but her spell doesn't work - thankfully with no ill effect - and Lan's spell also only marginally succeeds, giving her only a few kernels of corn.

I took a breath, and focused on the effect of the ritual that I wanted. As a Sacred Druid, I am still quite the fledgling, so a lot of the rituals and spells that I have done have been gut instinct to do so. I follow my heart, and the laws of balance, the feel of the nature around me. So far, it has worked with surprising success.  

I ask Sylvana for a blessing of prosperity on the farm. To allow the crops that still remain to be abundant and healthy. The ritual goes off successfully, but surprisingly with enough power that it completely exhausts me. I collapsed to the ground, and the last thing I remember is Tobias's gentle embrace as he carried me back to camp.

I awoke some time later to the sound of Lan trying to summon a fairy, and I make my way wearily over to the house - and far away from her, remembering her last ....violent success -  to check on the small herb gardens and crops nearer to the house. 

Lan successfully completeed her summons, and a hob... The Robin - Harbinger of Chaos appeared. Apparently Lan had a craving for fish - understandable being the sea creature that she is. However, she goes to strange lengths to get  the fish sometimes. She agreed to marry the hob for a day, in exchange for some fish, and the hob sends his minions out to complete her request.

I performed a brief, gentle check on the crops to find that they were, indeed, in very good health, and I asked Shalev and Tobias to inform the farmers to expect a bountiful crop this year, despite having been raided. They looked at me with surprise. I also shared a small bag of salt with the family there, and some seedlings and cuttings of the herbs that I have. The wife of the farmer shyly offered me a beautiful piece of lacework in exchange, but I desired no gifts in return, and bade her keep it there as a memento of our visit. She named it "Cora's Lace" and laid it across her mantle with pride.

Ishmael came up at that point, and said that he had completed his work at sharpening tools, repairing pots, and improving a stil that the farmers had built for brewing an alcoholic beverage made from the corn. It smelled very much like a weak version of elven brandy, but I had no desire to try it for myself.

Then Robin - Lan's momentary husband - reappeared and his minions began building a one-ton barrel which they then promptly filled with salmon from the nearby river. Once this was done, the minions disappeared, and Robin thanked Lan for allowing him to live - as being married for that day was the only thing that kept Lord Oberon from killing him once a year. He then also faded back into the wilds, and the farmer's wives all murmured to themselves and started doing the rituals that rustic folk  often do when encountering fae folk. Shalev dispelled evil once again, to add his powers to their simple charms, and the hob's minions promptly fled.

Shalev then asked the farmers if they had any barrels, as he was interested in the pungent corn-alcohol that they were making; and was informed that there were no trees, as they had all been cut down long ago to clear for farmland.

KelLyn, Lan, and I shared a look, and a thought, that if we were able to combine our power, that it might be possible. We agreed to make the attempt, and we went across the road to the fallow field there. KelLyn created a circle in the ground, and drew her power, along with the word "Tree" in Fyrewerian. I drew my power, and suddenly Leilanna herself appeared in my mind. She told me that SHE was and is the goddess of reforestation, and that the word I want was not "tree" it was "FOREST".

I take a breath, and say the word aloud. The power that flowed out from that circle was... awe inspiring. For miles and miles, oak trees suddenly grew and flourished. An old-growth forest where previously there was nothing but barren fields. I fell to one knee with the force of the power that coursed through me with the spell, and thanked both Leilanna and Sylvana for the gift. 

I sadly was not able to remember the word that Leilanna spoke to me, but the knowledge that my goddess and she are able to work together in such harmonious concert has given me a shining ray of hope for saving the sylvan tree.  

We emerged from the new - old - forest, and went back over to the farm and the awestruck farmers.. and the wide eyes of the rest of the party members as well.  Lan had, as she does as Leilanna's avatar, fallen over dead when Leilanna had appeared in my mind, and had not yet come back to her body.

As the party  members checked on her, and made her comfortable until her return, we saw three clerics approaching on the road.

They approached the farm warily, and asked who the cleric responsible for the forest was. I stepped forward, flanked by Tobias and Shalev, and said that it was a joint effort to restore the area. They didn't understand me, but they understood the gesture. They blinked at me, and then at the translation that Shalev provided. They then stood aside, and revealed Ahkmar - the paladin that traveled with them. He offered his extreme gratitude and asked what they could do in return for such a monumental deed.

We point out Lan - who had still not returned to her body - and he did a laying on of hands for her. When she returned, she informed us that we were far more successful than we had ever dreamed of being. The oak forest stretched for seven days ride, all the way down to the swamp, and then continue on into the swamp as a cypress forest. She also informed us that there was indeed a great evil in the swamp.

Ahkmar said that he had also heard of the evil, and we asked him and his clerics to tell us what they could about Waycom, as well as the evil plaguing this area.

I tasked the farmers, with Shalev's translations, to care for the forest, and to replant the acorns. I taught them about reforesting, and the 10 year cycle that it would take to maintain the health of the forest. Now that the forest was there, game would return, hunting would be better; but it would also be easier for bandits and brigands to hide, so they would need to take precautions. I said that it was fine to use the trees for lumber - they could build a house with wooden walls instead of mud and wattle. Fences for their fields, and of course, barrels for their liquor; but that they must maintain a respect for the forest that provided such bounty to them.

Shalev, surprisingly, pointed out to KelLyn that these priests of Divination might be able to provide her with information regarding the pieces of her lost staff. I say surprisingly, because of the urgency that I know he still feels regarding the death of his father, and finding information regarding the matter. That, and the recent animosity between the two, coupled with the fact that she very rarely shows him thanks for things like this, made me raise an eyebrow in silent query. But they provided her with the answers she sought nonetheless. The answers were vague descriptors, but it is a far cry more than what we knew before. I wonder if she will rein in her tendency to snipe at him for a time, as a way of thanks?

He then asked Ahkmar if it would be possible to discern information about his father's death. They agreed to also look into it, but warned him it would take some time. The farmers agreed to let them stay as long as they needed, as having them there would ensure the safety of the farm for a time.

As oracles, I am interested in talking to them as well, for a multitude of reasons. They might know of someone who can help further my studies and abilities as a Sacred Druid. They might also know of a way for me to breech the block in my memories to recall who I once was, who I am still.

We do plan to return to this farm, as they have been good to us, and Shalev has an interest in setting up a trade agreement for the corn alcohol that they make. Amusingly enough, in every group that we have encountered so far, there was someone who knew him - or knew OF him, or his family - a point which made Fife display mock aggravation. This farming community is no exception, as the cloth that the farmer's wive was weaving into lace was from Shalev's family. 

Shalev seems bemused that his reputation precedes him, and has made the decision that this new found fame of his means that he need always be on his best behavior. He does honor to his position as Paladin of Ma'at, I think, as he errs on the side of quite literal truth in everything he says.

In the mean time, there is the growing evil to contend with, and the spells we did here are likely to sound as beacons of forewarning to whatever is there. It knows we are coming, and now it knows that we are powerful. 

A question of want..

I do not know what keeps our party together.

some sense of loyalty perhaps? Or maybe simply the knowledge that it is dangerous to travel alone.

Even I know the wisdom of traveling in numbers, and the quests that we have undertaken certainly can not be completed on an individual basis.

That being said, I find myself wondering - more often than not of late - about why our party remains together. When given motivation to do so, our party does work well together, and can be devastatingly powerful when we focus our intent. There's a certain amount of squabbling and in-fighting to be expected among any diverse group of adventurers to be certain; but nothing to explain the current level of animosity between us.

Kellyn seems to want nothing more than to pick fights, and becomes irrationally angry when things do not go her way. She constantly takes jabs at Shalev, and ignores advice when it is presented to her, unless it furthers her own needs. She is young, temperamental, and has much to learn about respect, I think. She is powerful, and she seems to think that being powerful excuses her bad behaviors. It does not. It pains me that she has decided to lash out at me directly in this last outburst though, and I do hope that she realizes that her actions, attitudes, and singlemindedness are only hurting herself in the long run.

Lan is as indecipherable and flighty as ever, and I can not begin to fathom what she thinks or why. She seems indifferent to the party, and has often shown little thought towards her actions.

Ishmael seems more comfortable with the group, and has taken on the role of protector and melee fighter; but he still seems almost resigned to his fate.

Fife has proclaimed that he is a bodyguard, and in it for the money and adventure. He is fair, though, and works well with the party as a whole. He is a neutral party though, when it comes to the in-fighting that has been occurring among the others.

Shalev has given himself the role of provider - constantly thinking about supplies and travel concerns, lodging when we are in cities, and resupplying when necessary - and as protector as well. His efforts are rarely appreciated though, and I can't help but feel his frustration at being taken for granted. How long would they last without his careful preparations, I wonder? He is dedicated to me, as my student and my friend, and has proven that he will walk through fire for me. He also trusts me not to abuse that trust

Tobias... I would hope Tobias travels with us for more than just the adventure. He still feels the need to prove himself to me, despite sharing my bed for all this time. I do not quell his attempts, as this is something that he feels he needs to do. He expresses his care for me, and I would hope that he would continue to travel with me should the group decide to split.

The quests that we have undertaken are difficult, to be certain, and there are things that need to be done before others can be completed. I just hope that our party can put aside differences long enough to finish what we've set our hands to do. I do not think the party will split up, but there are moments where I feel like that might, in fact, be an inevitable and necessary outcome.

Time will tell.