Session+Seven

The party traveled for just over a day, arriving in the small town of Helvarya. Noticing how close (relatively) Spiritwood is, Lia decided to take a bit of a detour, and Dunin joined her, leaving Kaiden, Jen, Arion, and Kirin to travel on their own. The now smaller party ventured on, making it nearly to the next town, Blue Grove. Here, they were distracted by a male voice calling for help from with in the woods. Kirin and Jen remained with the horse and cart (which stood no chance of being driven off of the road and into the woods), while Kaiden and Arion pushed into the heavy growth to see who was calling. A man by the name of Uher Jibb, as the group later finds out, had been caught in a net, and rigged about ten feet up in the air. While Arion tried to puzzle out a way to bring the man down with out sending him crashing to the forest floor, Kaiden swiftly climbed the tree and hacked apart the ropes holding up the net. Jibb was unhurt by the sudden fall, but remained something of an emotional wreck. He is a Phastian merchant with a generously round figure and balding head. He had managed to loose his supplies, his food, his horse and cart, and his dog. (And was he ever distraught over it!) Arion mentioned that it would be alright if the beady-eyed peddler traveled with them until they reached the town, and Jibb quickly agreed. Blue Grove is literally a town built into and out of the giant trees surrounding the area. Uher Jibb insisted on taking Arion, Kaiden, Kirin, and Jen in for lunch to repay them for their kindness. Not being ones to pass up a free meal, the party accepted. Arion played a bit at the tavern while Kirin helped himself to over a half dozen bowls of stew before passing out, and Jen, Jibb, and Kaiden chatted with another woman who introduced herself as Zyren. Zyren and Jibb certainly seemed to hit it off well from the start, the former being interested in a party and the later being very drunk. Jenica, in a somewhat random show of possession interrupted the would-be advances of Zyren toward Arion by claiming to be his wife. It was also mentioned that Kirin is their child. Arion, not really wanting to deal with the explanations that would come with a denial decided to play along. If Jen’s fiancé, Carter should happen to come by this place, we can only hope that he does not encounter the rumor that his betrothed is already married with a child! The PC’s and Kaiden opted not to remain in town. There was plenty of daylight left to travel by, and so they pressed onward. That night, though they were once again visited by the night mare creatures they encountered in Oriscina. This time, though, Eliana wasn’t there to send them away. Kirin, in a flurry of wild swings and grabs managed to knock one of the creatures out of the sky. He then tried to pummel it while it is still trying to right itself, but to no avail. Jen, thinking quickly, cast light directly on the creature, causing it to shriek and writhe in pain. Kaiden then tossed the unfortunate being into the fire, where it was reduced to nothing within minutes. The remaining bat-like monsters flew off in fear of the light, and the fire. The group presseed ever onward. Eventually, after nearly a month of travel, they arrived at the Athalan city of Illrya. The city is quite the sight to behold, winding in, around, and on the giant trees themselves, and glowing faintly with the iridescent light of a lichen species that favors these trees. Kaiden lead the PCs right to the heart of the city, and into the Bright Tree itself, not slowing until he entered the chamber of the Queen. The PCs were a bit stunned to hear the Queen refer to their guide as ‘son’, as he explained that the group has come to the city in search of the Gift of the Veils. She explained that those in search of the gift must pass a test. Many have tried to retrieve the relic; and all have failed. Kirin was not deterred one bit. He jumped at the chance to prove himself even before Arion had a chance to announce that he was ready to try. Jen, feeling quite lost as to what is going on muttered her agreement, commenting to Arion that they ‘need to talk’. Kaiden showed the weary travelers to some very lavish rooms, where they cleaned up, and in the case of the young monk, rearranged the furniture into a pile of mattresses, pillows, tables, chairs, and desks that he proudly called a fort! After cleaning up, the group headed to an elegant establishment known as the Blue Falcon. Here, Arion told Jen, Kaiden, and a rather inattentive Kirin about the relic he is searching for, and just who it was that sent him to retrieve it. Kirin, easily bored with the conversation decided to go in search of something to eat, and in doing so ran directly into Dunin! As it would turn out, Lia and Dunin decided Spiritwood was too far to travel. They figured it would be best to return to the group and add their assistance and protection as best they could. Cold glances were exchanged between Dunin and Kaiden. Those glances quickly turned into heated words of contempt as something very close to a fight erupted between the two. The confrontation ended with Dunin storming out of the building (after Kirin landed a swift kick to the back of his knee), and Kaiden apologizing to the PCs and leaving as well. Eventually, Kaiden returned and asked Jenica to a dance. The two had a bit of a discussion, and Jen learned just why it is that Kaiden holds no love for the other ranger. During the course of the evening, Arion and Lia also had a dance and a bit of a conversation themselves. The two, who previously did not see eye to eye now have a slightly better understanding of each other. Lia was eventually overcome with emotion, remembering painful events of the past. She left the rest of the group in tears. The others took the opportunity to enjoy what is left of the night. If the queen was to be believed, then it could very well be their last.

What is it that has Kaiden so upset where Dunin is concerned? What sort of test will the group encounter when trying to retrieve the Gift of the Veils, and can they overcome it, or will it be their end?

Session Eight