Uzrivoy's Masters


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Part 2

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E'lan's Journal Entry 16 (Continued)-

These are the events as they were related to me, for I had taken somewhat ill from the exhaustion of driving the boat almost non-stop from Thera. In Throal, Cirrock and the party were brought before the King and his advisors. Cirrock told of the Theran plans for the impending invasion that he knew of. He had difficulty getting them out, which the party believed was based on fright at the importance of the audience, but was actually the triggering of a spell that had been placed on him while a captive causing him pain and internal injuries. The party gave him medical attention when this came to light, but was unable to save his life, only prolong it so that he could give all the information he knew and request that his sacrifice be put into song and spread by troubadors across the land. The party fulfilled his last request by hiring some troubadors who were told the story. The penned a fitting tribute to Cirrock, although they called the group the Jezulean in the song, which was incorrect on their part. It was this that lead the group to get into an discussion/argument about a group name when it came to light. Several names were suggested and shot down until the group agreed to Uzrivoy's Masters, because we predicted that such a vessel as the Uzrivoy would figure in our further adventures.


E'lan's Journal Entry 17 - In which I burn down a bar


Dai is still recovering from this illness/poisioning but has talked to us. He is leaving with Almendra to retire to a cottage away from Throal to retire from adventuring for awhile, maybe forever. The Questors of Garlen say that it may be years before he recovers fully. As the group returned to Throal, we learned that while we were away a big scandal had surfaced about some of the guards being accused of spying for foreign powers. J'kar had known the men accused and didn't think they would be guilty of such a thing, so we took some time to check out what was happening. It turns out that the men accussed were the most honest men on the force. The refused to retire, and it seems that more guards with less moral character and possible ties to Iopus are being hired. Since there is a guard shortage, they have to go with what the can get, but the good guards are leaving in droves because they don't like the things that are going down. After much searching we get refered to a bar that is a known hideout of who we think are the ringleaders of the movement to frame the innocent guards. After entering as a group, I and Maryk leave because the patrons are obvious elf-haters. We stake out the place down the road and watch the comings and goings. The execution of the guards is to be that evening, so we aren't filled with hope about being able to find evidence to free them. The rest of the party continues trying to get information inside, but I know without my rapier wit and intelligence that they don't have much hope. When the bar starts to clear out to head to the hanging, with the party members looking glum and in tow, my suspisions about the lack of the rest of the party's inquiries are confirmed. Maryk and I hide as the group passes, then make our plans to try to find information to free the men inside the bar when it empties. All the doors are locked however, so neither of us being able to pick a lock (Where's Relina or Aldoina when you need them?) we decide to borrow a page from the Dai school of tactics and try a frontal attack. After beating on the world's strongest door for several minutes with spell and sword, we finally gain entry to the bar. We are immediately welcomed with a rain of crossbow bolts from the upper floor. Maryk starts to great leap up there but is knocked back by a bolt while I fling spells at our attackers. Then, one of them takes a torch and lights a bottle of oil and throws it into the bar area where all the liquor is kept.


Boom! The whole place is now on fire as Maryk and I battle up the stairway to the retreating Iopans. We finally drive them back to the back office, but they manage to shut the door and lock us out. While the hair on our backs get singed, we once again blow through the door. The office is empty, all our prey having escaped through a secret back door. To make matters worse, there are no files to free the guards with. So with the place starting to collapse we beat a hasty retreat. My delight as having been indirectly responsible for buring the place down is counterbalanced by the failure of our mission, and the fact that all the Iopans got away. The guards are hung. We retire to our inn to regroup and heal our burns and have J'kar file the story of the Iopan spies. E'lan's Journal Entry 18 - In which we get taken by Chorrolis

The group then split up to do some training, and Jerris managed to weave to the Talisman of the Uzrivoy allowing him to also captain the vessel if I was unavailable. After training, during which I reached 5th Circle myself and learned a potent fireball spell, the rest of the group got together.


They decided to explore a cave at the request of J'Kar. J'Kar is the envoy of Throal assigned to work with us. He is a flying T'skrang illusionist. I'm somewhat fuzzy on the details as I stayed at the ship to research the spells the Jezulean books had contained. According to the groups account, in the course of their exploration they released some kind of Black Fire Demon, which trapped them. The passion of trade and commerce appeared and a negotiation for which side the party would take arose, as it turns out the passion was responsible for putting the entity into its prison. The group decided to side with the passion, mostly due to the fact that the passion threatened them if they didn't, and agreed to give the passion the Original Book of the Prophecies of the Jezulean if they ever came into the books possession. (The book we had in our possession was merely a copy and could not be written in.) The group defeated the black fire demon and were given a boost to one of their attributes such as strength or could have the anwser to a simple question. Most took the attribute gain. They then returned to me to tell me the story. The encounter left a bad taste in Daerlin's mouth, as she really didn't like meeting her favorite passion in person.

E'lan's Journal Entry 19 - In which I regain that which was lost

I am puttering around waiting near the entrance to the cave the group went to explore due to my concern for their well-being. Without my calming influence, they tend to get into all kinds of trouble, and this was no exception as they arrive battered and world-weary. I try to cheer them up, and soon they recount their battle tale with me. So taken am I with their story I fail to hear a merchant offering The Robe of the Great and Powerful Elementalist E'lan for sale. Luckily some of the group aren't paying as much attention to the story as I am and quickly poke me in the ribs. I tell them it must be some kind of con-artist, but they nag me to investigate. To get them off my back I agree and we go investigate this merchant's wares. To my surprise he does indeed have a robe of orange that I had possessed when I was taken captive by the slaver Juvias and releaved of all my possessions, including the spell book given to me by my father, my most valuable possession. The group wants to beat the source out of him but I put up a hand to stop them. Pulling bright gold coins from my Bramble robe I quickly pump the man for all the information he has about the source of his wares, as well as purchase my robe for a steal, considering the great artistry that went into it of course. Our informant tells us of a bar that sells 'used' goods. We go to investigate this little bar and meet the propriator. After my coinage fails to get the information on his source, I let the group threaten to rough him up. I also tell him that if he doesn't comply, this wouldn't be the first bar I burned down this week. The little man is tough however and apparently didn't fear death, so Maryk parts with some of her used death cheats to get the information. It is a warehouse near the original place we were taken slaves. We quickly advance there, fearing the little weasel would warn them given the time, and bust through the world's second strongest door right into a trap of falling crates. There are no slaves here, but there are signs of them having been kept here recently. In their zeal, our warriors kill the lone ork left to guard the place. We take him back to the city watch and administer a last chance salve. We then pump him for information, agreeing to spare his life for in return for what he knows. Luckily, he knows quite a bit. A group of Therans are meeting a convoy full of slaves, but more importantly to me, the convoy has in their possession my spell book. It seems after freeing Cirrock from Vivane the Therans have taken an interest in my pattern items and offered a reward for them or of course any pieces of me. We rent horses and quickly follow because the meeting is soon and we haven't time to go get the Uzrivoy.


E'lan's Journal Entry 20 - In which I get beaten upon by a warrior


We start off after the slavers following their trail. Around the evening we see dust in the distance so we take up ambush positions. We ambush the two slavers bringing back some crates that the slaves were kept in. We quickly subdue then and get infomation out of one in exchange for his life. The slavers have split into two groups. One group is going to rendevous with the Therans (with my spellbook) and the other is going to an troll village not too far from here to capture the town at dawn because the warriors are away at some kind of contest or trollmoot. We send J'Kar ans Maryk to warn the village and continue after the slavers with the slaves and my book. Riding hard for several more hours we slowly catch up to the slavers. They have seen us however and are trying to make for a pass in the mountains to defend themselves. They send some riders back to harass us, and although we deal with them easily, they accomplish their task of slowing us enough that the main group has time to rally the wagons and set up positions. They have blockaded the pass with the wagons filled with boxes of slaves, and set up behind them. We attack, or at least some of us do. The group is somewhat divided over whether to snipe at them with bows and spells or go for a full frontal attack. Unfortunately we don't come to a decision and go half and half. Kor charges in while I and Daerlin fire at targets of opportunity. Unfortunately for Kor, there is a high circle warrior, perhaps around 5th or 6th, leading this group. Kor engages him with blatant disregard for his own life and gets pummelled. I then move up to help and manage to blind the warrior with suffocating paste, and I move in help Kor. Unfortunately for me, right as I arrive Kor is knocked unconscious as some mage in the back dispels the paste on the warrior who sees me standing right in front of him. The battle is joined. It quickly becomes apparent that this warrior has several items that increase his magical defenses because I can't seem to affect him with any spells. Meanwhile he is cutting big gashes in me. I fall. Next thing I awaken to see is Daerlin pouring a potion down my gullet. I quickly fall back while Daerlin and Jerris take the abuse from the warrior, who finally falls when Kor rejoins the fray just in time to save both of their lives. We still have to finish off the two casters in the back, and a bunch of dogs with monsterous mantle on them, and the assorted archer who is still around sniping at us. We finally accomplish all this just as the trolls heading back to the village are announced by a big dust cloud in the distance. It was a very close battle as the whole party is on the brink of unconsciousness, mostly from the warriors blade. J'Kar arrives with a message for the trolls, and we all head back to the village, including the freed slaves.


<---- I recover my grimiore!!

We get the items from the fallen foes including thread chain for me off one of the casters. Jerris will hold it for me for a week so I can get the name. We aren't going to make it to the village as the sun starts to rise and we still have an hours ride ahead.

Humorous line

Kor to the warrior - " I challenge you ! "
Warrior - " To single combat? I accept."
Kor - " No! All of us against you! "

E'lan's Journal Entry 21 - In which we prove ineffective against large ships.

We arrive at the troll village to see the slavers loading the last few groups of slaves into a large flying slave ship. We and the trolls attack, but the town is surrounded by a moat with only one bridge. By the time we can get to the ship, it is taking off. Jerris and Kor manage to snag it with their grappling hooks, and climb towards the deck as the ship sails off. The slavers notice one of the lines, and it quickly becomes apparent that two adepts aren't going to be enough to fight the whole ship. As the ship nears a peak, the two jump during the brief window this allows for them not to die from the fall. We console the trolls briefly, then head back to Throal to heal.


E'lan's Journal Entry 22 - In which I get a flower


Back in Throal we seperate to do our own things for a while, like train and research. We are all staying at the same inn. On about the third night I have a nightmare.


I am back in the Badlands fighting the swarms of Invae again in the nightmarish escape from the ruins of Fisten. Our scouting party decided to investigate the old city the kaer was built for after we left the Kaer. The ruins of Fisten had new inhabitants, like the Insectoid Horror that attacked us. Half of us are dead so quickly.. We run from it... Run Anna! I snap her out of her shock at watching Telin get skinshifted and we run....My master Drexel is throwing fireballs, Anna is hacking a path with her sword, and I with my earthdarts. The smell of burning insect flesh and smoke is all around me as charred bugs fall like gentle rain. The master's fire elemental is clearing a path back for us... but he is changing....warping...becoming corrupted by the horror we flee from. The elemental fires turn from red and orange to green and purple as he turns and attacks my friend Ysren in the lead. Then Ysren is burning, flesh running like water. I start to turn to help him, but Anna pulls me forward and we continue to flee. The smell of smoke is everywhere. I feel the heat of the elemental coming for us on my back. So much smoke.. Cough. Cough.

Cough. Cough. I wake up, but I still smell smoke and feel flames licking toward me. As I groggily turn I notice the room is on fire. Aaarg! The room is on fire. I yell for help as I rush to the window. Wrong way stupid, the windows are barred. I look for the culprit through the window as I see a smashed bottle of oil near the window, and I glimpse a shadowy figure running away. I start towards the door, and as I move there it splinters as the party chops through it coming to my rescue. I can't speak with so much smoke, so I run outside for air. I don't see the figure anymore so I catch my breath.

After that we have a meeting and move to the barracks. Our sources think it was probably the Iopans trying to get me back for their bar. I feel safer staying with guards around me, and J'Kar has helped us get bunks there. I return one day to my bunk and there is a red rose on my bed. I pick it up carefully, but it's just a plain rose. I ask if anybody saw who left it here, but nobody did. I cast plant talk and talk to the rose. It said a tall woman who smelled of earth left it here. Not terribly helpful, but then more than I get out of most plants. I put it in a vase in some water and go shopping with the group, but I don't feel quite as secure in my bunk as I did earlier.

While shopping the group sees a familiar figure down the street. I don't see her that well due to her cloak and hood, but Daerlin says that it is Relina and runs after her. Of course when we turn the corner there isn't anyone there. I tell Daerlin she must have been mistaken but she insists and then says that we should go and tell the guards. I try to talk her out of it, but she is stubborn as a mule. We go tell the guards, and I go to try to provide a counterview to Daerlin's belief that Relina is evil. Where she gets this stuff I have no idea. I am beginning to worry that I seem to be alone in most of my viewpoints lately. Is it a sign that the horror is doing something to me? Twisting my views of reality? Isn't it a sign of madness when you think the whole world is mad and you are the only sane one? I don't know. But then I look on the bright side. I'm not half as paranoid as I was several months ago, and with people trying to kill me in fires as I sleep, a little paranoia on my part is definately justified.

We are quickly rushed off to see some big-shots advisors as they view Relina a threat to the kingdom or something. What is going on? Everyone is acting like she's the whole Theran army or something. We are told that we must go to Dragon Valley to confirm that Relina is still confined there. Is Relina wanted in Throal for more than what we have said about her? They won't tell me. I say that I don't really want to go, as I haven't found anything to help her yet. They say that we can either go, or be locked in the dungeon as traitors. I don't like that at all, and luckily the rest of the group shares my opinion in this matter. J'Kar quotes the Counsil Compact saying that to force us to do something was like treating us like slaves and that is wrong. It is a good try and a good approach but that also doesn't work, so he resigns his position. I don't think any of us are going to do any missions for Throal from this point forward without major compensation. So doing what any wise elf would do in the situation I start negotiating. The valley is hidden, and we only found it by luck and on foot. It will be difficult to locate from the air, perhaps impossible if the dragon doesn't wish to be found. We end up getting plenty of potions and 5000 silver each for the guiding the ship on the non-volunatary trip. We also get a Questor of Mynbruje to accompany us. If Relina is still there, I feel better letting the Questor decide her fate that this group. I'm a pretty good negotiator. I think about going to get Va'oosh and bringing her, as the dragon might be able to help her. I also think of giving the Talisman of the Uzrivoy to to be held for Dai since this may be a dangerous mission. Jerris tells me to take it with us since he is woven to it and doesn't want it out of his sight. But they won't let us get anything, we must leave immediately with some commandos. I tell them that dropping in on a dragon uninvited is not something that is conductive to living a long life. Our presence has been specifically requested they tell me. This makes me feel even worse about going. We board the ship and sail uneventfully to Dragon Valley in the mountains north of Vivane.


E'lan's Journal Entry 23 - In which secrets become revealed


The journey's less than a week, so too short to train anything with the group. The commando's treat us like 'cargo' staying seperate. The 'Questor' is also staying quiet and separate. I'm not sure the young girl is indeed a Questor at all, and neither does the group. I spend the voyage there transfering spells that I acquired since I lost my original spellbook into it. So I now have two spellbooks. Perhaps I will give one to Kor later. We arrive at the valley, but something is definately going on there. There is a large stone airship in the middle of the valley, with some smokey creatures flying around. The commandos's jump to set up a landing area, and J'Kar jumps with them since he can glide down. As the ship goes in for a landing I can see that the shapes are demi-wraiths. Yikes. The captain disembarks with a contingent, and I decide to accompany him since the ship can't leave without enough rowers. We approach a contingent that emerges. It is Tzila, the Jezulean who got away, and also Relina. It takes me a second to recognize Tzila, as she has replaced both eyes with blood magic crystals. They make an exchange, the Counsel Compact, which someone recently borrowed from Throal, in exhange for bringing us here. The commandos then move back, making clear that their job is done. No help there. I begin to worry that we have been sold out. I take a closer look around. The little squirrel like creatures the dragon populated the valley with are around in little pieces. Speaker, the windling mouthpiece for the dragon, is nowhere to be seen. There are three graves behind them to the right, which I presume belong to the bounty hunters charged with bringing Relina here. Good, I didn't like them anyway. I had warned them earlier in the Dream Realm that Relina was under my protection and they should leave town. People should really listen to me more. The only thing reasuring me is that Relina might have warned me if this was a big sell out. I turn on the charm. "Tzila, what a pleasure to meet you again. I apologize for the outcome of our last meeting. That's what comes of letting hotheaded warriors speak for you." If the rest of the party attacks, this could end badly. It is clear that Tzila controls the demi-wraith contingent. Tzila's turn to speak, and we get a good deal of revelation. Callistus, the Jezulean who cursed us (his death curse we thought at the time), is still alive. Even more, he has the Master copy of the Prophecies of the Jezulean, and he's been writing in it. Those that have tied their patterns to the Uzrivoy should suffer. The writings, while cryptic, have described our recent encounters and lack of good luck. One more set of strings and puppetteer for me, just great. Tzila has no love for Callistus either. He had written that the other Jezulean eyes should never see the light of day, a prophecy that Tzila got around by replacing her eyes. So it seems we have a common enemy, the reason we were brought here. She wants us to get rid of Callistus, who is in league with Iopos plotting the demise of both Throal and Thera. I probe to see how much information she has. "If we defeat Callistus, you would feel comfortable with us holding the Master Book of Jezulean Prophecy?" But she knows that the group has promised to give the book to Chorrolis, or a questor of his. It appears she has all the cards. "And what of the dragon and Speaker?" It seems Speaker met with an unforutanate accident, and without him the dragon doesn't have much power, being disembodied and all. The Questor speaks with the Dragon's voice and says that while he is alright, he can't help us, but Tzila has promised to leave the valley after this exchange. And what of Relina? She is free. But I'm sure she's paying her own price for freedom. As we conclude our business saying we'll look into stopping Callistus, Daerlin steps forward. "The next time we meet our meeting shall not be so cordial. You will die.", she says or something to that effect. Great, making threats to someone with a small army of demi-wraiths behind her. We brace. My mind races, should I save her from her own stupidity should Tzila try to kill her? Not a smart thing to do threating her, I'll have to have a talk with her about diplomacy if she lives. Luckily, Tzila just smiles and nods. I let out my breath and herd the group quickly back toward the ship before someone else can get us in trouble.


<----- Daerlin shoots Tzila a nasty look as we leave.

As we lift off I turn to the Questor/Dragon and ask if there is anything we can do for him, but she looks at me blankly as she snaps out of her trance. Great. As we head back to Throal the group has the air of defeat around them. I try to cheer them up telling them how we are the true winners. We recovered the Compact, got information on who was manipulating us and behind the Iopan treachery, and got paid for it all. (And Relina is Free!) Win-Win baby! They don't share my point of view however.

How did Tzila find the valley? I wonder on about the next day heading back. She wasn't with us when we came through, and Relina was on her way back before we encountered Tzila. There is only one explanation, Labael. Drek! I had had the mayor of Schilf promise to send some people and funds back to rescue or help her. Apparently they had failed to protect her from meeting Tzila. I hope she is alright. I'll have to ask Tzila about her next time we meet. Maybe I'm just making up things to worry about. Tzila seems to have a web of intelligence when it involves us. I'll just have to wait and see.




Epilogue - As the ship sails over the fields and forests of Barsaive towards Throal I am left pondering over our most recent encounter. I've talked to Daerlin regarding her threat to Tzila. While I still think it endangered us, I can understand her reaction. She has some pretty vivid and painful memories of Tzila from her gem experience. She won't discuss it with the rest of us, but whatever it was wasn't pretty and I believe it has scarred her and embedded itself into her psyche. While I am able to access the memories for the two gems I used, I am also able to see those memories as apart from myself and not allow them to affect my personality. It is clear that Daerlin doesn't have the willpower to do the same, or that her experience was sufficiently traumatic to overcome those barriers. Let me go back to the conversation that has drawn all the threads we held into a coherent tapestry. The recent bad luck we have been encountering since we arrived in Throal is due to the probability altering Affects of the book of prophesy, of which we have a copy. The minor book, which we possess, continues To be a mirror of the major book, although the minor book cannot be written in by any means I have attempted and Is more resilient than a normal book, leading me to believe it is a pattern item of some type. In it, Callistus has written passages about how we will fail in our endeavors. My group now has a new mission, to kill Callistus. I don't think I will be accompaning them on that one. I think they can and must handle that one on their own. Their strength has grown sufficient to do the job. I am one of the two people tied to the Amulet, so my accompanying them can only harm their cause by alerting Callistus of our presence. In my pocket I have found a note from Relina asking me to join her, and informing me Labael is safe. I belive I will do that, and see what I can learn from Tzila. Our goals are aligned for the short term, and she might still possess knowledge of the dragons and their memories that may prove useful. It is clear I must acquire all the strength and knowledge I can muster to survive in this world, and my current companions lack the caution necessary to walk through dangerous dark places I must soon tread. I am no longer the bright eyed and hopeful elf I once was, I have grown darker and see things you would not believe. I will cut these puppet strings attached to me, and regain what I have lost, or die trying. So ends my adventures with the group, and this journal.








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