Wiki of The Dungeoneering Crew

This page is read only. You can view the source, but not change it. Ask your administrator if you think this is wrong.
Session 2, A Map to Arowain

Coins End 

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

Session 2 – 2023-09-09

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

==== Summary ====

The group examined the map while at the grave. If this was a map, it was like no map they had seen before. There were sketches and a paragraph and a bunch of words, like names, with associated dates. They could make no sense of It so they buried Aturr Dairoo again and headed back to town, to Veoden. They arrived at his place before dawn. Brandy knocked. After a couple of tries, Veoden finally answered the door. They went in and showed him the map. It perplexed him as well but the images seemed familiar to him. He suggested that they talk to Girion. He was a guide and a bit of a historian. They would be able to find him at the Thirsty Hound this evening. He described him and at least Pyreece remembered seeing a man matching that description the night before.

They rested at Veoden's, on the third floor, that day and woke around 4ish. Veoden had spoken with Girion earlier and told him about the map. Girion suggested that the words were from the old language. He was expecting to see the group this evening. They left and went to the Thirsty Hound. They gathered at the big table and Pyreece invited Girion to join them. They showed him the map. 

Girion looked over the map, studying it. He said the paragraph at the top left was clearly a reference to the Dairoo curse. "Haanex" was the old name for this town. It was a village used by people that had migrated from across the sea and from the east. The name was changed to Almraiven as the coastal people moved east and became more predominant. Whoever made this map had to be one of the natives or had a keen appreciation of their language. Jeb Dairoo was a noted linguist and a student of his father. He then said that if Jeb created the map, then the dates don't make sense. Oglesby told him that they'd thought the dates didn't make sense either. "One of the dates was a date well after Atuur passed and only 13 years ago.", he said. Girion started going over the phrases and the pictures.

"Doowar Feanteai" with the little square tombs, that translated to "Dwarf Tombs". He pointed out the area on the map where those could be found, just south of he Marching Mountains and west of the River of Ice. They marked their map where he pointed. There are several dozen flat stone buildings with doors no more than 5 feet tall.

"Adear Loafar" means the Sodden Copse or the Sodden Woods. It was in the southern most end of the Forest of Mir. Just north of the Spider Swamp. It's a forest yes, but the grounds are very wet. It's more swamp than forest. It's full of dirty ponds and pools. Lots of smell of rotting earth and stuff like that. The swamp acts as a filter for the eco system. The waters come out of the mountains and flow into the swamps which filters it before it goes into the sea. There they would find lizard folk. 

"Neer Rool" is the Spider Swamp, also known as the Black Lake. There are several large pools in there but the largest is called Black Lake. It is more directly a swamp or a delta. It's mostly filled with spiders of all sorts. It is a very unpleasant area. 

"Oodum Waif" or the "Mud Flats" are west/southwest of Almraiven and east of the Spider Swamp. The ground is wet and thick but soft like pancake batter. It's an area that is difficult to move through. People who go there late in the evening have seen lights in the area. 

The "Oogiir Heut" means "Ogre's Here". That area is just north of the Dwarven Tombs as you would move up into the Marching Mountains. There are tribes of ogres that live there. They are a little bit small for ogres, as ogres go. He said they lived in the caves in the foothills of the Marching Mountains. 

They continued marking the areas on the map.  

The "Dai Dirounai Heekean" or the "Dark Woods" is home to the "Diread Oosooka" or the "Evil Obelisk". They are in the northern part of the Alamir Mountains. The woods consist mostly of Oak Trees. 

The "Dai Weenoo" means "The Mounds". They were north and slightly west of Almraiven. It's a wide valley perpetually covered in low lying mists which sports three large mounds, each 100 feet across and 60 feet high. They are perfectly round and appear to be man made but have no entrances or other features. It a place known for heavy mists that form and a place where people disappear. Many people have gone there and are never seen again. (Ravenloft?) Sometimes at night, you can hear noises like beating drums or like a heartbeat throughout the valley. Explorers never find anything.

The "Dai Dirounai Ieelio" or the "Dark Hills". It is on the north side of the Marching Mountains, northwest of "Oogiir Heut". The Dark Hills is the place where, in the legend, the meteor crashed. He marked the area on their map. The land is very steep, treacherous, and dangerous. With crevasses, dark gullies, and deadfalls. The collection of leaves and debris make this place even more hazardous. There are goblins, trolls, and ogres. There are very few trolls and ogre but they are there. 

Brandy asked about the dates on the map. Girion didn't have an answer for that. He suggested that the date of Atuur's death being written with the Dark Hills stood out to him. He suggested that maybe these were areas that Atuur visited or planed to visit. The dates don't line up with that as some of them were outside of his life span or happened beyond his death. He came back to not knowing what it meant. He thought that maybe all of these other names and dates were a way to disguise the maps true destination. Someone who is not familiar with the area wouldn't be able to make the connection to pin point the location of the meteor. This way this document looks like a crappy map of the area and that would be it. They all agreed that the Dark Hills was the location of interest and the rest were simply to confuse anyone seeking the meteor.

They asked Girion how would he get there if he were going? He marked a path on the map to follow. It would allow them their best chance of getting to the location with the least chance of any encounters. They discussed Arowain and his trip into that area. The decided that Veoden was right. There best chance to find him is the destination and not searching for a trail. If he made it, he may be there when they got there. He told them that the trip he marked would take them about 4 days to complete. Pyreece asked him, as a guide, would he be interested in making this trip? He suggested that his price would be too steep. Kipp seemed to think that with the map, he could get them there. Elenor bought his meal for him and they thanked him for his help.

They picked up a couple of rooms, including one with a bath, cleaned up, and turned in. The next morning they had a big breakfast and picked up some food supplies and headed out. They made their way north, using the map he marked, and turned toward the forest. Just before entering the forest, they stopped and camped for the evening. It took about 4 days to get there. The night passed without incident. 

They set out into the forest and moved through it that day. It was a beautiful peaceful journey. As they exited the woods, it was late so they set up a camp and rested again. The night passed without event. In the morning, in the distance, Pyreece saw smoke from fires in the area that Girion had told them would hold ogres. 

They set out on a more northerly path, avoiding these camps keeping their distance from the mountains. They turned west and made good time. By the time they were ready to camp, they were at a point to turn and go up into the mountains.

They set up camp and a watch for the night. During the evening, Oglesby, who was on watch, heard voices. It sounded like an argument. He couldn't make out the language but the voices were big. He woke Kipp who listened. The voices were about a mile away. They woke up Brandy and she and Kipp took the next watch. After a bit, it seemed the voices were getting closer. They woke everyone and put out the fire and hid. An ogre came out of the woods arguing with himself. He stopped sniffed and listened. He asked himself what he had heard and answered himself. Then he started calling himself stupid. After a moment they heard a wolf howl and he took off after it. They stayed hidden in the dark and rested the remainder of the evening. The next morning they set out up the mountain.

It took them most of the day but they finally found the meteor. It was in a crater about 50 by 100 feet. The stone stood some 3 feet high and glowed. There was a goblin guarding it. Brandy tested his attentiveness by throwing a rock on the other side of the boulder. The goblin responded and checked the area. Seeing nothing, he returned to his spot. Brandy and Kipp tied off a rope and climbed down on the western end of the impression. Brandy made it down easily but Kipp slipped, made noise, and then reached the bottom. The goblin heard something and looked in that area and apparently saw Kipp. He shouted an alarm just before Brandy stuck and arrow through his neck. Guarding a cave on the eastern side was two goblins. They came out to the stone to see what was going on. As they reached the stone, one of the goblins took off running back to the cave. Audra did a Brandy and hit the other goblin in the throat and ended him. 

Brandy noticed a figure behind her and to the north. The figure was disappearing into the woods. She point him out to Kipp and they both moved over and worked to scale the muddied wall. It took several tries for both but Brandy finally made it up the wall. She threw down a rope for Kipp. They looked into the woods and saw light in the distance. They had heard a horn several times. The goblins in the cave were obviously upset. There was a sound of a larger goblin group to the north, northeast. They motioned for the others to come across and they did.

They made it through the woods and spotted a simple hut. Oglesby checked it and once sure they were save, he  motioned the rest forward. He heard humming inside. He knocked and the humming stopped. He knocked again and heard a questioning, "Enter?". They did and found the person inside was Arowain, whom they had been looking for. He was chained to a stone in the fireplace. He explained that he had been captured. The rest of his party were killed. He was being forced to make this evil thing. He held up a silver coin he had just pulled off of the forge. It was still red hot. As he was explaining this, a gust of wind entered the hut along with a slender young lady with long black hair. She demanded to know who they were and why they were disturbing her. Brandy politely answered and then went on her list. The woman, seeing the coin, exclaimed it was hers and reached for it, magically pulling it to her. Before Arowain could stop her, she captured it and screamed as it severaly burned her hand. He also tried to tell her that it was not finished. She didn't care to hear that but was focused on killing Brandy. She cast a spell which sent out a dark bold of energy at Brandy. I told you she was on her list. Arowain jumped between the bolt and Brandy and took the hit.

The impact blew off his arm and destroyed it. Black energy and blood poured out of the injury and he began to writhe in pain. The woman cast another spell and disappeared. Arowain could not be helped. He explained that to touch him would kill the person doing so. He told them that the coin had now become a part of Daresh and her a part of the coin. Neither could be destroyed without destroying the other. They needed to have another coin made. A man named Halaam could help them as he knows the secret to making a coin of power just as Arowain did. He told them to seek out Hallam and that Veoden would be able to help them. They also discussed the goblins in the cave and getting some of the mythral. He told them that they send out patrols from time to time and that there would be fewer in the caves then. He also said Daresh had killed their leaders and led them now. Also, items his team had been carrying were in there. He also told them that getting the mythral would be a slow process. It would take a lot of work just to get a little bit.

He finally took his last breath and collapsed. They searched and found one little notation that said., "It's as if the coin destroys the soul along with the body!". They buried Arowain and discussed going to the goblin cave.

That's where it ended!

Start the recorded. 

==== Detail ====

The group studied the paper they had retrieved form Aturr Dairoo. The discussed combined their thought on it but still found no sure pattern except that the pictures on the map might have been drawn in the order from bottom to the top. Oglesby had determined that Haanex  appeared to be Almraivern. The tower near the sea seemed to suggest that. They searched the coffin and found a gem incrusted stick pen. They estimated it to be worth about 50 gold pieces. They found nothing else in the coffin but scratches on the inside of the lid. Apparently he had been in this state since his death. That brought up the next concern about the other graves. Are all of the other Dairoo males that died from the curse also in their graves in this state. They really didn't have a lot of time to deal with them right now. They decided that they needed to get this map to Veoden to see if he could make since of it. They returned the body to the grave and refilled it. After that, they left the cemetery and headed back to Almraiven. 

It was very early in the morning when they reached the town. They went straight to Veoden's tower and though it was early, they knocked. It took a couple of attempts but he finally came to the door. They were invited in and he noted how dirty they were. Pyreece told him what happened with the skeletons and then with Atuur's ghoulish state. That they had to fight all of them. They showed him the map but commented on the fact that it really didn't look like any map they'd ever seen. He agreed that it was a strange parchment. He recognized a couple of the images as places in the region. The Evil Obelisk in the Dark Wood was in the top right corner. Haanex would appear to be Almraiven. Then body of water to the left of Haanex could possibly be the Spider Swamp. He told them that he'd only been in this region for a couple of years. He knew next to nothing of the background or the history. He did suggest a gentleman who knows a lot about the history of the area and was even a guide. He told them that the man usually frequented the Thirsty Hound. He described him to them and said his name was Girion. As he described him, they remembered a man matching that description sitting on the southeast corner of the place.

They asked about resting at his tower until later that day when they might find Girion at the tavern. Veoden was fine with that and showed them to the third floor. Pyreece used her last cure light wounds spell on herself before they began their rest. They each found places to rest. Later that day, the woke and before setting off for the tavern, Veoden told them he had spoken with Girion a little earlier and that he would be expecting them at the tavern. He told them that he had told him a little about the map they'd found but not necessarily where they'd found it. He told Veoden that it sounded like it was something written in the old language of the native people that were once here. Like "Dai" means "the". He did tell him that they were using this to try and find the meteor crater. He told them that Girion was fairly knowledgeable about the area but he'd never seen the spot where the meteor hit. They thanked him and took off to the Thirsty Hound.

They arrived at the Thirsty Hound and entered. The place was pretty busy. They entered and most of them went to the big table on the north side of the room. Pyreece went over and introduced herself to the gentleman in the corner that fit the description Veoden had given them. He was Girion and she invited him to join them at the bigger table where they could spread out and look at the map. He did join them. Brandy went on an eating binge. Girion looked over the map, studying it. He said the paragraph at the top left was clearly a reference to the Dairoo curse. "Haanex" is the old name for this town. It was a village used by people that had migrated from across the sea and from the east. The name was changed to Almraiven as the coastal people moved east and became more predominant. Whoever made this map had to be one of the natives or had a keen appreciation of their language. Jeb Dairoo was a noted linguist and a student of his father. He then said that if Jeb created the map, then the dates don't make sense. Oglesby told him that they'd thought the dates didn't make sense either. "One of the dates was a date well after Atuur passed and only 13 years ago.", he said. Girion started going over the phrases and the pictures.

"Doowar Feanteai" with the little square tombs, that translated to "Dwarf Tombs". He pointed out the area on their regular map where those could be found, just south of he Marching Mountains and west of the River of Ice. They marked their map where he pointed. There are several dozen flat stone buildings with doors no more than 5 feet tall.

"Adear Loafar" means the Sodden Copse or the Sodden Woods. It was in the southern most end of the Forest of Mir. Just north of the Spider Swamp. It's a forest yes, but the grounds are very wet. It's more swamp than forest. It's full of dirty ponds and pools. Lots of smell of rotting earth and stuff like that. The swamp acts as a filter for the eco system. The waters come out of the mountains and flow into the swamps which filters it before it goes into the sea. There they would find lizard folk. 

"Neer Rool" is the Spider Swamp, also known as the Black Lake. There are several large pools in there but the largest is called Black Lake. It is more directly a swamp or a delta. It's mostly filled with spiders of all sorts. It is a very unpleasant area. 

"Oodum Waif" or the "Mud Flats" are west/southwest of Almraiven and east of the Spider Swamp. The ground is wet and thick but soft like pancake batter. It's an area that is difficult to move through. People who go there late in the evening have seen lights in the area. 

The "Oogiir Heut" means "Ogre's Here". That area is just north of the Dwarven Tombs as you would move up into the Marching Mountains. There are tribes of ogres that live there. They are a little bit small for ogres, as ogres go. He said they lived in the caves in the foothills of the Marching Mountains. 

They continued marking the areas on the map.  

The "Dai Dirounai Heekean" or the "Dark Woods" is home to the "Diread Oosooka" or the "Evil Obelisk". They are in the northern part of the Alamir Mountains. The woods consist mostly of Oak Trees. 

The "Dai Weenoo" means "The Mounds". They were north and slightly west of Almraiven. It's a wide valley perpetually covered in low lying mists which sports three large mounds, each 100 feet across and 60 feet high. They are perfectly round and appear to be man made but have no entrances or other features. It a place known for heavy mists that form and a place where people disappear. Many people have gone there and are never seen again. (Ravenloft?) Sometimes at night, you can hear noises like beating drums or like a heartbeat throughout the valley. Explorers never find anything.

The "Dai Dirounai Ieelio" or the "Dark Hills". It is on the north side of the Marching Mountains, northwest of "Oogiir Heut". The Dark Hills is the place where, in the legend, the meteor crashed. He marked the area on their map. The land is very steep, treacherous, and dangerous. With crevasses, dark gullies, and deadfalls. The collection of leaves and debris make this place even more hazardous. There are goblins, trolls, and ogres. There are very few trolls and ogre but they are there. 

Brandy asked about the dates on the map. Girion didn't have an answer for that. He suggested that the date of Atuur's death being written with the Dark Hills stood out to him. He suggested that maybe these were areas that Atuur visited or planed to visit. The dates don't line up with that as some of them were outside of his life span or happened beyond his death. He came back to not knowing what it meant. He thought that maybe all of these other names and dates were a way to disguise the maps true destination. Someone who is not familiar with the area wouldn't be able to make the connection to pin point the location of the meteor. This way this document looks like a crappy map of the area and that would be it. They all agreed that the Dark Hills was the location of interest and the rest were simply to confuse anyone seeking the meteor.

They asked Girion how would he get there if he were going? He marked a path on the map to follow. It would allow them their best chance of getting to the location with the least chance of any encounters. They discussed Arowain and his trip into that area. The decided that Veoden was right. There best chance to find him is the destination and not searching for a trail. If he made it, he may be there when they got there. He told them that the trip he marked would take them about 4 days to complete. Pyreece asked him, as a guide, would he be interested in making this trip? He suggested that his price would be too steep. Kipp seemed to think that with the map, he could get them there. Elenor bought his meal for him and they thanked him for his help.

They picked up a couple of rooms, including one with a bath, cleaned up, and turned in. The next morning they had a big breakfast and picked up some food supplies and headed out. They made their way north, using the map he marked, and turned toward the forest. Just before entering the forest, they stopped and camped for the evening. It took about 4 days to get there. The night passed without incident. 

They set out into the forest and moved through it that day. It was a beautiful peaceful journey. As they exited the woods, it was late so they set up a camp and rested again. The night passed without event. In the morning, in the distance, Pyreece saw smoke from fires in the area that Girion had told them would hold ogres. 

They set out on a more northerly path, avoiding these camps keeping their distance from the mountains. The turned west and made good time. By the time they were ready to camp, they were at a point to turn and go up into the mountains.

They set up camp and a watch and turned in. Oglesby took the first watch with Kipp set to take the second watch. During the first watch, Oglesby heard some sounds from very far away. It sounded like an argument. The voices were deep and gravely though he couldn't make out any words. He moved over to Kipp and woke him saying, "Listen!". Kipp listened hearing the same thing. There was too much echoing to make out words or even the language. He determined that it sounded like two creatures but they sound the same. He guessed they were a mile to two away. Oglesby woke Brandy to help watch with Kipp. Oglesby turned in. Brandy and Kipp set up on opposite sides of the camp to increase their range. After a while, they noticed that the voices were getting closer. Kipp could finally make out that the voices were ogre. He heard words like, "Dummy! You lost him!" and "Must find!". Brandy moved to kick dirt over the fire. While Kipp began waking everyone and telling them to hide. They moved to a nearby tree and used the shadows around it to hide. Brandy climbed the tree into the lower branches. Brandy and Audra pulled ranged weapons and sat prepared.

After they hid, Kipp heard the voices getting louder. He heard two ogres call each other stupid. One of them claimed the other one lost him. A large figure came into view about a hundred yards away. He suddenly stopped and said, "Hush!". He sniffed the air and continued listening. The Ogre then asked, "What you hear and smell?". He started making his way towards the doused campfire. He got closer and sniffed around some more. Then he said, "Me hear something!'. Then he said, "What you hear?". Then he answered himself, "Me not know!". Then he said, "You sure Mudge hear something?".  Then he said, "Descrot, Mudge hear something?". Then he said, "You're stupid!", followed by ,"No you're stupid!". It appeared there was one ogre and he was arguing with himself. Then they heard the distant howling of a wolf. Then the ogre yelled, "THAT BE HIM!". Then he turned north and ran off. There was a little discussion amongst the group as they each recognized that the ogre appeared to be nuts. They spent the rest of the night resting in and under the tree. 

The next morning, they set out into the mountains. It took most of the day to finally find the place that appeared to be the place where the meteor came down. Storms were coming in as dark clouds cresting the mountains. It was getting dark with flashes of lightening and the sound of thunder. They found a bowl shaped valley, 50 yards across. The depression was about 20 to 25 feet deep with a 3 foot tall irregular shaped boulder, that glowed a little bit, in the center. On the eastern side of the impression they could make out cave openings. The other side had a higher rim which was the beginning of the deep woods again. There was a muddy bottom with large puddles throughout the impression. Near the boulder there stood a creature that looked like a goblin. Near the caves on the eastern side were two more humanoid creatures. The bulk of the group stayed mostly out of sight, just peeping over the edge from a distance. 

Brandy moved up behind a rock to get a better look. She watched the goblin near the boulder as he was chewing on something. Then she reached down and picked up a rock and threw it to the other side of the boulder. The goblin heard it and moved to investigate. Everyone stayed down and hidden, watching his reaction. After a moment, Brandy backed up and came back to the group to tell them what she had seen. Kipp and Brandy talked about what to do next. They searched for a good spot to climb down. They moved to the western most side of the impression. Under the cover of the storm sounds, they tied off and lowered down into the impression. Brandy went down first and made it down without issue. Kipp followed and slipped, knocked a few rocks down, but he made it down okay. The goblin came around the boulder to check on what made noise and saw Kipp. He let out a cry and pulled out a bow. Brandy got a shot off and dropped it. Everyone else got ready with their ranged weapons.

Pyreece started down and had issues as well knocking loose some rock and dirt. She took a spot behind a rock. Oglesby and Audra took up positions with their ranged weapons on the rim of the impression. The two goblins from the cave came out to see what was going on. They had their bows out. They called out for Otook. After a moment, one of them shouted to the other and that one ran back to the caves. Audra shot the remaining one and dropped it. From the mouth of the cave, they heard horn sounds like an alert was going out. Elenor move to a position here she could cast from. Brandy heard a noise from the rim of the other side of the impression. She glanced up and saw a cloaked figure that had turned and began walking back into the woods. The figure was much larger than a goblin, more like human in size. She motioned to Kipp and pointed up toward that rim. Kipp moved over and looked for a way to climb it. He tried to climb the side and made it up about half way before he slipped. He managed to grab a root and keep from falling. He tried to recover and continue up but kept slipping and swinging there. After several attempts, he finally picked a spot and jumped back down.

Brandy had moved over there already to be there to assist. After Kipp came back down, she climbed it, slipping a couple of times but finally made it up. Once up there, she pulled out her bow and looked around to see if she could see anybody. As she looked around, she saw a little light through the woods. She leaned over the edge and let Kipp know. Brandy got a rope out and tied it off, dropping it to Kipp who started climbing up. In the distance, from the cave area, they heard the bugle sound again. Kipp made it up and looked at the foot prints. Pyreece moved back to the other side and climbed back up to wait. Kipp found a trail. Brandy motioned to the others to come across. They all climbed down and moved to the other rim and climbed back up. They started hearing woots coming from the woods to the north and northeast. 

As they move through the woods, they spotted a structure with a little bit of light seeping through the cracks. Oglesby and Brandy quietly moved up to the structure. There were a few steps leading up to a door. Oglesby checked it for traps and found none. He moved up the stairs then. He moved up to the door to listen. He heard humming from beyond the door, like humming a little tune while working on something. He motioned everyone else to move up. Once they did, he gently knocked on the door. The humming stopped. With no answer, he knocked again. Then he heard a shaky, "Enter?". He opened the door and everyone began moving in. There were several candles and a fire in the fireplace that illuminated the room. There was a short man with curly grey hair in the center of the room. He wore a cap and over his rough clothes, a leather apron from which out of the pockets jutted several pieces of chalk, small tools, and a long piece of charcoal. A chain connected him to a large stone in the fireplace. I tiny silver piece glowed in coals of the furnace. There was a large forge bellows and two barrels of a dark liquid stand near the fireplace. Three tables covered with lab equipment, paper, scrolls, and books almost fill the room. The stench of sulfur, chemicals, blood, and smoke weighed heavy upon the place.

The man was standing there with tongs, pulling this silver coin like thing out of the fire. He welcomed them in. Oglesby said, "We don't mean to interrupt but we were looking for a friend of ours and happened to see your light. Are you chained in here?". The gentleman said, "Oh yes! ", then he asked, "Who are you?". Oglesby introduced himself and then Elenor followed suit. He looked at her knowingly saying, "Elemor?". She then recognized him as Arowain. He looked around at everyone, they were a little older than he remembered. They all greeted each other. He asked how they came to be here. Before answering him, Audra asked, "Why are you chained up?". He said, "It's a long story but I came here looking for Mythral. In my journey's I was captured by a wizard and she placed me here. First she took some time interrogating me. Her name is Daresh.  She spent time interrogating me about my background and asked me if I knew how to make this!", and he held up the tongs with the red hot silver coin he held in it, and I'm ashamed to say that I do know how to make this!". Elenor asked what it was. He said, "It's quite the evil thing!". Elenor asked, "Why are you making it if it's evil!". He answered, "Because she is forcing me to!". Elenor asked, "And where is she?".

It was at this time that the wind rushed into the hut as the door flew open, blowing out all of the candles. Standing in the doorway illuminated by the light of the fire and forge stood a slim woman with long black hair. …trimmed with silver on white cuffs and a silver sash, loose and hanging almost to her feet, girds her waist held by a round golden clasp. A golden amulet hung from her neck. She asked, imperiously, "Who are you and what is this disturbance?". Brandy spoke up and said, "Well, I'm Brandy and this is my friend and we're here to rescue him.". She saw him holding up the coin and said, "That is mine!". She reached out and suddenly the coin flew out of the tongs and into her hand!". Pyreece took a swing at it with he mace as it passed but missed it. As the coin hit Daresh's hand, she let out a scream, obviously in great pain from the heat of the coin. It released a hiss and a puff of steam from her closed fist. She stumbled back against the door jam as the storm broke outside and rain began to pour out of the sky, lit with flashes of lightening and more thunder. 

Arowain was surprised and yelled, "No no no, it's not finished yet! The last formula!". The woman glared at them, her eyes squinting in pain. She struggled to say, "The pain!", almost below their hearing with the storm raging without. She craddled her right hand and said, "What have I done! You disfigured me! YOU BASTARDS!". She pointed her closed fist at Brandy and muttered, "You will die first!". A black bolt of energy began to fly from the coin and as it did, Arowain shouted, "NO!", and threw himself between Brandy and the black bolt. It struck him on the shoulder. His arm was torn from it's socket and exploded into hundreds of pieces of flesh while black tendrils of crackling power danced across his body. Arowain was writhing in pain and his skin seemed to tighten on his withering frame. Blood burst from the cloven shoulder and seeped from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth. He fell to the ground with a sickening splat!. Daresh then muttered some sort of incomprehensible thing and then she was gone.    

Pyreece ran over to the choking and coughing Arowain. Brandy reached down to try and help him. Arowains body was withered and covered in blood. He gasped again and with one claw like hand reaching up, he said, "Don't touch me! Don't touch me or you will die to!". He mumbled, "She took the coin too early. She is linked to it now. The final sacrifice was to be blood. And the blood becomes part of the coin.". He continued as he coughed, "She took it too soon! They are one, she and the coin! Neither can be destroyed unless the other also is.". He closed his eyes, blood dripping from them like grotesque tears. He continued, "She was very powerful and now her power can enslave nations when she learns to control that coin. After she masters it, none can stand against her, unless. No!". Elenore asked, "Unless what?". He continued, "Unless another has the same skills I do and can make another coin of power!". Elenor asked for the recipe for it. He said, "There is one who can make it! His name is Halaan. I have not seen him in years but he too knows the secret of creating a coin of power. It is a long lost secret. It was forbidden but we found it. Find him! Make another coin! You can stop her.". 

Arowain added, "Do you know, in Almraiven, there is a wizard named Veoden?". Elenor told him that yes, we knew him. Arowain said, "You must tell Veoden what happened. He can help!". The black energy kept withering his body. No magic they used helped him at all. He was on deaths door. Elenor asked if there was anything here that we needed to take with us to complete this quest. Arowain said, "She took everything I had. Except these chemicals.". Brandy asked, "Where do we get the metal?".  He said, "The Mythral! In the ravine just east of here, there is a great stone where a meteor crashed here. It's what brought me here in the first place. Mythral is contained within and can only me mined out in small pieces and takes quite a bit of work to get even a small amount. And there are goblins and a goblin cave. They have some items of power that they have been able to obtain. They are controlled by Daresh. I don't know if they would have anything in the caves that would help you, but possibly.". 

Ge added, "Daresh slew their leader and now they do her bidding. They send out patrols on a regular bases so the caves are not always fully occupied. That would be the time, if you wanted to explore them. I don't know what they have. Obviously, I have not been in there, but I know some of he things our party had been carrying went with them. They were all slain except for me, because I could do this. I can't tell you enough, how important it is, how dangerous this coin is.". Audra asked, "How many goblins were down there. Arowain did not know. He continued to gasp in pain, "It burns! My whole body burns! Pyreece aked if there was anyone to contact for him. He only said, "You must find Veoden!". With that, he winced one more time, and collapsed with his last breath. Pyreece said, "Rest easy my friend.". 

DM noted, "Halaan is another alchemist who learned this forbidden process for making this thing called a coin of power.".

Brandy started going through looking for any notes or writings or anything to take with them that might be of interest. Oglesby searched the place to. The notes on the table were not very useful. Arowain had been forced to burn any pertinent information about how to build his creation. They found one little notation that said., "It's as if the coin destroys the soul along with the body!". They searched but didn't find any hidden compartments or secret places. They took his body and buried him. Oglesby suggested that they go after the goblins and see what they have in the cave. "Also, we need to figure out how to get some of this metal.", he added.

They stopped there.  

250 + 12 experience points earned.

Start the recorder!