Chaos Revealed - Entry 6

Entry 12

The next morning we wake rested and healed from our confrontations the previous day. After checking the goblins and distributing the various weapons we find. The Dwarf tries to insist I take a +1 magic short sword we find, but I refuse, being more comfortable with my matched pair long and short sword. Tristan supports my decision saying he has seen me use the pair and am very proficient with them. I blush slightly at the praise.

After finishing stacking the Goblin bodies and sorting their gear for later retrieval, we move to check the other wing of the basement level.

There we find a wine cellar. The majority of the group moves into the room while Crystal and I again take up guard positions.

Without warning, the door slams shut, forcing the newest cleric to join our party, Clon out of the room. He tries to force the door and I unable to open it. Crystal charges the door and while it bows slightly she also fails to open it. I retrieve a potion of Bull Strength from my pack and give it to Crystal then return to my guard position. Crystal quaffs the potion and again attempts to force the door. Again, she fails. On her third try, she is finally able to wrestle the door open, she struggles to keep the door open as it continues to try and force itself closed. As she struggles with the door, several of our companions make their way out of the area. After several minutes, the door manages to close itself again this time trapping Crystal inside.

The Dwarf immediately begins hacking at the door with his great axe. Three powerful swings and the door is splintered. Sabin immediately sprints out of the room and collapses. He looks to be in the worst shape of the party – followed very closely by Tristan who was drug out by the dwarf when he initially exited the room. I glance around the group and note Crystal and Clon are not with us. Shouldering my bow, taking a deep breath, I draw my swords and entered the smoke filled wine cellar.

Listening carefully, I locate Clon and Crystal in the far back corner and move to join them. A figure is in the corner and she calls forth a globe of fire and hurls it at us. She misses and on of the wine bottles on the rack behind us bursts and the alcohol catches fire. The figure then moves past us down the hall, I again listen carefully and follow her. I am able to take one strike at her as she passes hitting her with my short sword. I can tell that she felt the blow, but it wasn’t enough to put her down. Crystal and Clon follow me. Clon charges past Crystal, grappling with the creature and preventing Crystal or I from taking clean strikes at her for fear of hitting him. After a moment, she calls forth another globe of fire and hits Crystal with it doing minimal damage. The creature moves past us and down the narrow hall between the wine racks and I follow – telling the others to follow me. We corner the creature in one of the nooks and Crystal is able to finally dispatch her with her Bane sword. Grabbing the body, we exit the room as the smoke begins dissipating.

Around the corpses neck is a gold pendant with four pictures; the Duvall children. The youngest one matches the girl from my vision. The party takes the time to rest and heal the wounds they received before we plan our next move. I approach Sabin, who is being healed of his wounds by Jorell to find out what happened in the room.

“As we entered the wine cellar I move to the far corner on the wall with the door and begin a search of the wine racks and the area. The others begin moving out to search other areas of the cellar.

As I was searching, a thick black cloud of smoke began engulfing the area. Our sorcerer’s hawk appeared out of that cloud and landed beside me. I also heard what I believed might be the door to the cellar closing. Straining my ears, I listened carefully, trying to distinguish where my companions were and what might be going on. I heard movement in various areas of the room, but could not pinpoint anyone in particular. A sudden flash of light filled the room and I heard Tristan yell some thing like “Where did that come from?” he then added that someone moved past him before coughing loudly. I drew my rapier and took a guard position. I did not wish to move into the smoke and was uncomfortable with the idea of fighting in the dark when I could not clearly see my opponent or more importantly my allies.

As I waited for the right opportunity, the smoke filled the area where I was and I could feel my lungs and throat constricting and burning as I fought its effects.

I was finally able to locate our opponent, I hope, in the nook across the narrow hall from my nook and I moved into a position where I could attack if the opportunity presented itself. I noticed the Hawk finally moving out of the area and I hoped his master was able to protect him. Listening carefully, I thought I heard some of my companions moving out of the room.

I joined one of my companions at the entrance to the nook and noticed the creature as she called forth a ball of fire and hurled it at me. My neck and arms burned as the fire struck me. I retaliated and managed to deal a weak blow to the creature. The person I was next too, Tristan I think, reached out and grabbed another person, pulling him into the nook before he retreated out of the area. The new person, Clon, I believe, raised something and it began glowing. A turn undead spell. The symbol dims and his hands drop slowly as if he was fighting against some unseen force.

The smoke continued to damage my lungs as I tried to breath. I again attacked the creature again causing minor damage. She again hurled her globe of fire. I finally realize I could not stay in the room any longer and moved toward the door, which I hoped was open. I passed someone in the hall, but was coughing too hard too see who it was. I reached the door and realized it was shut and collapsed against one of the wine racks, my strength fading.

A crack appeared in the door and I said a silent prayer that someone would get through the door so I could escape the smoke. Finally, the door splintered and I sprinted out of the room, barely dodging Thorlien, the dwarf, and collapsing on the floor.

Shortly after I left the room, I saw you coming out of the room followed by the others, carrying a body. The rest you know.”

As soon as the party was healed, those devoted to Athena began to cleanse and bless the area. The rest of us moved out of the house and onto the chapel.

The outside of the small building in lined with beautiful windows and the doors are carved with draconic runes. Outside the hall we have been joined by another adventurer. He wears the clothes of a Druid and is accompanied by a wolf. My mind reaches for my memories of Shadow and Smoke and I ask Dwycia and Frayrith to watch over my companions until I can get home. Our new member translates the runes:

“Here is a temple to one of the houses that has served Athena so well for so long. All Hail its Lord. All Hail its God.”

Inside we find ourselves in a small foyer with two sets of stairs leading up. We take the stairs and find ourselves on a small balcony overlooking the main temple. In the center of the balcony is a suit of plate armor. Looking down at the temple there is a woman’s body on the altar and several other bodies scattered between the pews. I look down and note two depressions/scratches on the floor. My gaze goes from the scratches to the suit of armor and back. At this moment, the armor begins to move.

We surround the armor and defend ourselves. The druid notices a specter hovering at the ceiling as it moves toward us. It casts a spell and touches the armor. The Druid casts a spell also and some force flies past me. He is a wizard also!

The fight takes a long time as we slowly make progress against the armor, fortunately it is not intelligent and does not seem to plan its attacks. After we defeat the armor, we move to the main floor. The bodies belong to goblins. The woman is the Lady of the House. We encountered her spirit when we first entered the manor. The cleric, Derek Venteric, apologizes for the automatic defense and offers to assist as he can in our quest to cleanse the estate. We now have a place of security and healing that we can come to.

He gives us several items to help our cause. He also gives us a bag of gold that had been the family’s gift to the church of Athena to pay for his services at the wedding. I pledge to pass the gold on to one of the clerics in our party so that it will still be given to the church where it belongs. He seems pleased by my pledge.

He tells me that the eldest son killed him first. Somehow, his spirit was trapped here. He tells how he watch Rinehart bring his wife’s, Nisa, body here and lay her out on the alter then return to the house. He also tells us that Alsendra committed suicide so her spirit could continue to protect the house and thwart the plans of the eldest son.

We thank him and head back to the house.

Stepping outside, we realize that the Druid has vanished. For a moment, I wonder if he was sent to aid us in the temple by one of the Gods of this land.

We meet back with the rest of the party and proceed to speak with Alsendra again. We inform her of our progress so far and she tells us that Creed Lawton was not killed by her grandson and may have been laid to rest by the destruction of the stable. She also tells us that the tutor’s locket may provide some protection from the various spirits wandering the grounds.

I ask her about Rhineheart. He was the last to die in an area below the basement – entrance can be found through the kitchens or basement. She also reminded us that we have not completed clearing the house, as we have not explored the kitchen/dining hall or library.

After a brief discussion, we decide to find the tutor’s body and remove the locket. When we return to the wine cellar, we find the damage has been repaired and the body is back in the corner where we originally found her. We pick up the body and carry her to the abandoned cemetery, there the cleric blessings the body and removes the locket without a recurrence of the smoke.

Tristan identifies the pictures in the locket as Melissa – the youngest daughter / Lorissa – the eldest daughter and one getting married / Kristen – his father / Mykel – the eldest and the apparent perpetrator of this horror.

From the cemetery, we proceed to the Hedge Maze. The entrance is overgrown and a canopy of vines covers the path, blocking much of the light creating an artificial twilight. At the entrance is a weathered sign greeting the guests and announcing a contest of sorts for the wedding. I carefully check the ground for tracks and find no signs of human passage. Being a Ranger, I take the lead as we enter the maze.

Foolish me, I don’t think to cast my Detect Traps and Snares spell until I fall into a pit created by a group of centipedes digging under the path. I get out without injury and we proceed along a different path.

The spell, designed for natural pits and snare doesn’t warn we about the assassin vine that drops on me. I’m getting a little tired of assassins, whatever their form, in this world. I quick battle with the assassin vine and the rest of the growth in this part of the maze and we are able to proceed.

A few dead ends and another pit and we find ourselves in an open area with a large statue of a female figure. Her eyes are gazing off into the distance behind and to the right of us – toward the center of the maze. We press on.

Around several turns, we hear the sound of dogs, or other canines in the bushes tracking us. Presently we come to another alcove with another statue along with a pile of rubble. Without warning the statue moves and attacks us – it is a gargoyle. As we battle the gargoyle, I hear the distinct sound of growling coming from the back of the group – the dogs are attacking us also. I move toward the back of the group, leaving those with magic weapons to battle the gargoyle so I can see what is happening with the canines.

When I get there, I see two misshapen creatures that may have once been dogs, probably mastiffs, but now, they have been corrupted, changed by the evil that is infecting this place. It with sorrow and compassion that I dispatch them after our mage casts a sleep spell over them.

The battle with the gargoyle completed, we regroup and continue on our way.

The rest of the trip to the center of the maze is uneventful. Uneventful that is until we get there. The corridor opens up a bit and the paladin and I lead the way into the center. As we step forward, I am struck by a spell of cold, Crystal and the others seem to be unaffected, perhaps it is an area spell, I take another step and the bitter cold still surrounds me.

In the far corner lies the body of a young girl, Melissa, the youngest daughter of the family and the girl I saw in my vision. Next to her is a large dog, his body decaying. Suddenly the plants in the area, begin growing, and entangle spell has grabbed us. Vines reach out and the large dig grows even larger as they fill in his body.

Against all common sense, our mage steps out into the clearing to face the dog and in immediately struck down by three spikes the dog flings at him from his back. Crystal charges in and grabs the mage’s body and pulls him out of clearing, then heads for the maze only to be stopped by a wall of thorns growing up before her.

I fight against the entangle spell as Sabin, the Dwarf and Tristan move into the clearing. I watch helplessly as I struggle against the plants holding me. Without warning the plants before briars, scratching and cutting as we fight against them.

Tristan suddenly flings himself across the body of Melissa, calling her name softly. The dog turns to attack him and stops, frozen, his teeth only inches from Tristan’s neck.

As Tristan cradles the small body, the entangle spell fades and the rest of the party moves to engage the dog protecting Melissa. It takes several blows, before the creature falls, but we manage to defeat it. As I examine the body, I see that nothing of the original creature is left, it is now nothing more than a plant construct. A well preserved collar still encircles its neck and radiates of magic. I remove the collar and place it in my pack.

The dwarf picks up the body of Melissa and we carry her to the chapel and lay her with her mother.

Thinking about our next move, we head back to the house and consult with Alesander’s spirit. We tells us that Melissa was the first member of the family to be betrayed by her brother. Nissa was the second. She then tells us that the third place Mykel attacked was the servant’s quarters, which was burned to the ground, followed by the Guest Quarters.

We thank her and head back to the chapel to rest. Before we leave the house, we see Nissa’s spirit standing at one of the large windows, staring out toward the maze. Tristan asks her what she is looking for and she tells us she is waiting for her daughter Melissa. She says Melissa likes to play in the maze at night.

With heavy hearts we tell Nissa that her daughter has died. She nods her understanding then asks us where her body is. We tell her we carried her to the chapel. Nissa’s spirit accompanies us back to the chapel, and joins with her daughter’s.

Chaos Revealed - Entry 5

Entry 11

We wait until light to investigate the visitors. The tracks I find belong to Worgs. It would appear a pair visited us and they were carrying riders. After circling the camp, they left in opposite directions, at right angles to the Duval estate.

We enter the abandoned grounds and survey the area. In front of us is the large manor house. To the left is the stables/carriage house. Just behind the stables is a large pile of ash, a building that burned to the ground. Surprisingly, there is nothing growing there. Continuing around the outside of the manor house behind the right corner is a guest or servants house, then set further back; what appears to be a hedge mage and set well away from and to right of the manor is a small chapel.

Tristan wants to immediately enter the manor, but Crystal and I both agree that we would feel more comfortable if we could secure the perimeter by clearing the out buildings first. No one argues with us so we head for the stables. The main door is locked and we check the remainder of the building. The chute to the grain silo is open as is a window in the hayloft. There is another door that is cracked open.

Our Sorcerer sends his familiar to the hayloft to look around. Suddenly he is in half a panic as his familiar is caught in some type of web. We calm him and tell him to instruct the hawk to remain as still as he can. The message is successfully relayed.

The dwarves climb the silo and Xander and Ariel follow them. Crystal, Sabin, Hermoine, Gandalf and I go back to the door that is ajar and enter there. We carefully check the stables and find nothing.

There is a ladder to the hayloft, and Sabin climbs it. He is attacked by a giant spider and gets bitten. We are able to defeat the creature and it falls to the ground at mine and crystals feet. Fortunately, it didn’t land on anyone.

Xander has gotten caught in the web trying to free Gandalf’s hawk and the dwarves are finally able to free him. Sabin tries to work his way over to Ariel along the narrow beams but falls. He is uninjured by the fall and Ariel jumps to the floor to heal him from his poisoning.

Our party now back together and the Hawk freed, we continue to check the stable. We find another door. Hermoine listens cautiously at the door and reports that she something that sounds like a fire. Crystal and I enter the room, the others follow.
This is the old carriage room. There is a large buckboard and two ornate carriages in the room. Down one hall is another series of stalls. Near the back wall is a small forge, probably for use by the blacksmith of the estate. It has been stoked and is burning.

Crystal casts her detect evil and notices a distinct increase coming from the hall. We head in that direction.

From two of the stalls a pair of skeletal horses step out followed by a man in robes carrying a scythe. Behind us one of the carriages and the buckboard have come to life and now block that end of the hall.

The hooded figure demands to know why are there. I indicate that Tristan should talk to him.

We learn that the figure was once Creed Lawton the stable master of the estate. He tells Tristan he is surprised he is there, as he would have expected his father to come. He then directs us to go to the house as Tristan’s uncle is waiting for him. Lawton then steps back, opens the barred door and leaves.

The buckboard and carriage attack the members at the rear of our party and battle ensues.

While Ariel, Crystal, one of the Dwarves and I take care of the two horses, the rest take care of the buckboard and carriage.

Once the horses are taken care of, we have an exit out of the stable. Crystal leaves to follow Lawton and is followed by Sabin. I too exit the stable and check for tracks. Lawton headed around the building at a run. I glance at Crystal as I relay this information and we both think the same thing. He’s trying to come in behind us. The three of us follow the tracks.

The two dwarves have now joined forces against the buckboard and carriage. Xander has somehow managed to end up behind the two vehicles and attempts to exit the stable the way we came in. He is met by Lawton.

Sabin is the first to reach the doors of the stable and calls out to Crystal and I to ready our ranged weapons. I hesitate, then drop my long and short swords and ready my bow, Crystal readies her crossbow. When we reach the door, we both take shots at Lawton, who apparently has seriously injured Xander, now on the ground. Ariel is joining the battle from the other side.

My arrow strikes Lawton in the neck and it only seems to give him a moments pause as he looks at me.
By now, the others have Lawton surrounded and I can no longer safely take a shot with my bow. I shoulder the weapon and go to retrieve my swords. When I return, Crystal has destroyed the undead creature and Ariel is tending to Xander. She looks up and slowly shakes her head. She was unable to make it to the Druid in time.

Crystal says a benediction for Xander then we begin a careful search of the stables.

Sabin locates several compartments in the undamaged carriage, retrieves a crossbow, and bolts along with a tube containing several scrolls.

Hermoine, Gandolf and the dwarves begin a check of the first of two rooms we find still secured. Crystal and I check the other.

Inside the second room, I find the ghost of a horse that has been dead for at least the twenty years this estate has stood empty. The stallion’s body lies in a corner covered by his blanket and untouched by time.

Crystal picks up the barding and approaches the horse, which only backs away. I pick a handful of grain and approach. I have always gotten along well with animals, particularly horses and I try to project an aura of calm and friendship as I approach. The ghost approaches me slowly then begins nosing at my hand as he tries to eat the grain.

Crystal steps out of the room leaving me with the horse and I move to examine the blanket.

On it, I find what appears to be a holy symbol of some sort as well as a few names. Rinehart and Riker.

I step to the doorway to ask Tristan to come in and look at the blanket.

I find two new arrivals in a stand-off with Crystal. Tristan comes up and is able to calm things between them. The first is a cleric of Athena, the Goddess that answered Crystal meditations. It would appear he was sent by the Goddess to join us. The other appears to be a half-Orc. They are also accompanied by the elf I met at Kressen’s cabin.

Once the situation has settled down, I ask Tristan and the Cleric to step into the large stall. The cleric identifies the symbol as the symbol of Athena. He states this was the mount of a Paladin of Athena. I examine a cut across the horses neck. It is obvious that whoever killed this horse was known to it, and was not seen as a threat until it was too late.

Tristan identifies the names as Rinehart – his grandfather and a Paladin of Athena / Riker was the horse’s name.

I give the ghost of Riker a final pat and we leave the stall. Neither the Cleric nor Crystal know any method to put Riker’s spirit to rest at this time. I hope that if we succeed in removing the evil that haunts this estate, that will allow Riker to find his rest.

Sabin suddenly calls out that a fire has begun spreading through the stable and we leave hastily.

We watch for a moment as flames engulf the stable, then silently head for the door. The front door will not open and I nudge Tristan forward. As I suspected, it opens easily for him.

We enter a large hall, apparently still decorated for a party. Around the room hang various weapons and pictures. Gandolf casts a detect magic spell and states that several items begin glowing.

(Ariel/Dwarf/Gayland no longer part of group)

To either side of the entryway stand two suit of armor. One full plate and the other half-plate. The full plate appears to be made of mythril.

The half-Orc and one of the dwarves begin to inspect the mythril armor while Crystal looks at the half-plate. Gandolf moves to look at a bastard sword hanging over one of the mantels and Hermoine is drawn to a beautiful group of musical instruments. The other thief reaches up and takes down a silver sword.

Sabin moves around the room checking for other doors. He calls me over when he finds a couple of doors under the large staircase.

As we are inspecting the doors, a ghostly figure moves down the stairs. She approaches the Half-Orc and the dwarf and stand looking at them almost like a mother who has caught her child raiding a cookie jar. They quickly replace the armor on the stand.

Tristan attempts to speak to her calling her Nissa, but she ignores him.

A few seconds later, the bastard sword Gandolf had retrieved flies back into its place above the mantle. I notice the other thief and Hermoine have replaced the items they had taken as well.

After making a circuit of the room, magically clearing away all the dust. The apparition stops at the piano and begins to play. I approach and offer an apology, but I too am ignored.

The spirit finishes the piece it was playing and begins to move toward the stairs. Tristan sits down and copies the musical piece note-for-note. The ghost turns back to face him and begins to speak silently. Tristan studies her face and relays several things.

She was killed by her son, Mikyl.

She points to a dark stain on the carpet as being the spot were she died. Crystal offers a benediction for her spirit.

Tristan explains that we are there to cleanse the house if we able and asks for her help. She allows us to choose one weapon from the hall. After a moments debate we take the bastard sword. Crystal has one other magical weapon in her pack and gives the new sword to the dwarf and her other magical sword to the half-Orc. She keeps her bane sword.

During this time, it appears the Cleric and the Elf thief have left the party. I really wish the group would stay together. The rest of us check the remainder of the downstairs area. Nothing is found. While doing this, we hear crashing upstairs. We finish our check before going upstairs.

We find the Cleric and the Elf attempting to up a door. Once again Tristan is the only one able to open it. Inside a small room is the body of another woman. Tristan identified her as Alesandra, his great-grandmother. Her spirit talks to Tristan and the Cleric and directs us to go to the chapel, she also says that there is history we will need in the other wing of the upper house. She warns us that we must follow the trail in the proper order or we will encounter an evil we will not be able to overcome.

Apparently she comes from another plane as well and a book a great power was taken from her by Mikyl.

Tristan thanks her for her advice and asks if there is anything in the room that might aid us. She tells him what is in the room is for the living—in essence giving us full permission to take what we want.

I find a book under the bed and open it. A spirit snake attacks me and I avoid its strike. The words are nothing but gibberish to me and I correctly assume them to be magic. I pass the book to our sorcerer.

The Cleric checks the body and finds a small quartz amulet containing a single hair. He carefully removes the talisman and places it around his neck. A concerned look crosses his face and he removes the gem. He asks Alesandra what the amulet is. She explains that it an Amulet of the Diviner. It focuses her skills as a Diviner, but at the cost of a –1 point to her strength. The negative effects goes away as soon as the amulet is removed. It also gives a +5 bonus to search and sense motive.

He thanks her and pockets the gem.

We proceed to check the rest of the rooms in this wing, finding very little. In one of the rooms, apparently a woman’s dressing room, we find the bridal gown and another fine gown. On a small vanity are two different earring and necklace sets. This would appear to be the room where the bride and her mother where to get ready before the wedding.

We move to the other wing. As we are crossing the balcony, I hear a door open and close in the downstairs area. Crystal takes up a guard position by the stairs and I move to the corridor leading to the rooms. From here I can see Crystal and keep an eye on the party.

The group splits up this time. In one of the rooms, the cleric finds a packet of letters from Wilheim Terissian that concern the wedding agreements as well as the promised dowry. It would also appear that an agreement was struck that Wilheim and Larissa would be named as the only heirs to the Duval estates. This would have cut the other children out of the inheritance.

The elven thief finds numerous jewels and quickly pockets them.

The cleric also finds two sets of ledgers that show several debts to the Duvals marked off, but not actually paid. These debts were owed by the Usenders. The same family as the major of Duvshire. It also appears Mikyl was skimming money from the family accounts.

Hermoine closely checks a chest she found in Mikyl’s room and finds a false bottom, unfortunately she unleashed a stinking cloud that overcomes several of the party as well as a pack of zombie and skeletal rats.

Most of the creatures are beaten in the room, but Hermoine makes her way out of the room with two of the beasts still clinging to her. I grab one and Sabin grabs the other. Together, we beat them against the wall then drop and stomp them.

I move back away from the rooms to check with Crystal and she calls out that a goblin just vanished through a doorway under the stairs. I glance at Sabin and we both remark, “the center door.”

I relay the information to the group that there would appear to be goblins in the house in a basement area. We all agree that we cannot leave this threat at our backs and immediately proceed down the stairs.

Crystal and I lead the group down the basement stairs. We move see movement behind some boxes and quicken our pace as we have to cover to use. The little bastards greased the stairs and we both slip and slide down the stairs, dislodging several of the boxes. Fortunately none fall on us.

As we are recovering, more goblins are discovered behind some barrels flanking the stairs. Our party fans out to confront the creatures.

We make short work of them, although four manage to move away. The dwarf moves out of the light and reports movement in the shadows to the right of the stairs behind us. Seems the battle is not over yet.

The elven thief and the cleric move to an open hallway and begin down it. Sabin and I move to keep watch on the area now behind us, where he saw several of the Goblins vanish to and heard the sounds of movement. Crystal joins us and Gandalf and Hermoine move behind us with Tristan.

From the hallway, the sounds of battle can be heard and Morg and Thalin join Jorell and Daymen. Crystal and Sabin move toward the hallway and I hold my position.

From a hidden door to the right of the hallway, two large Worgs and their riders emerge. Crystal engages the first while the second on moves toward me.

I immediately engage the Worg dealing it two serious blows. He is able to strike me with his claws. A shadow moves behind the Worg, Sabin is moving to strike. I strike at the Worg again, again wounding it. This time the Worg sinks both its fangs and claws into me and I fall.

I lie on the ground, my blood flowing like a crimson river and I shudder as my heat bleeds off into the stone. I hear Sabin yell as he attacks the Worg and rider, I also hear Crystal yell out to me to hold on. A moment later, Tristan is kneeling beside me, placing himself in danger as he cannot defend against an attack from the Worg or its rider. I cough as he pours a warm liquid down my throat. I feel a slight warmth go through me as the healing potion stops the bleeding and I feel a some strength returning. Tristan grips my shoulder and picks up his blade. I grasp both my blades and roll away from the battle seeking the shelter of a group of crates.

Sabin and Tristan take down the Worg rider, the Worg takes off, followed by the second creature and it’s rider.

Sabin moves to check the hidden room and announces that it’s clear. He then vanishes into the room. A large group of goblins comes out of the darkened area blocking Sabin into the room. A remain where I have some protection and immediately open fire with my bow. Gandalf casts a sleep spell rendering most of the goblins helpless. The two Worgs return, the one that attacked me has a new rider guiding him.

With a concentrated attack, we are able to defeat the Worgs and their riders. The sounds of battle continue to echo in the hallway. While Hermoine delivers the killing blow to the sleeping goblins, we move toward the hallway.

Jorell and the others have managed to defeat several goblins, including a Shaman in another large room. While they were finishing them off, another party has entered through a back door into the basement of the manor. A backdoor that it appears was never spelled to limit access to members of the Duvall family only.

Another Cleric of Athena has joined us – following the rumors that another member of his order came to the estate following a Paladin who claimed Athena as a patron; yet one he had never heard of.

Between the use of our healing potions, Crystal’s Healing Touch and the Clerics spells we have recovered most of our strength before settling down for a rest.

Checking both of the rooms we have cleared, we find an altar – dedicated to some evil deity in one. Crystal is adamant we will not rest in that room, so we move to the other.

As everyone is settling down to rest and I prepare to take the first watch with Sabin, I spend some time trying to meditate. I have been in this world too long and away from the familiar gods and goddesses Rhysia. My soul misses the quiet whisper of Frayrith in the forests. I reach up and stroke the pendant of natural armor I found, shaped in the form of a Unicorn, the holy symbol of Frayrith. I close my eyes and drop my hands to my lap, my left thumb resting lightly on the silver tattoo on my right wrist.

As I sit there, I let my mind drift back to the clearing I had claimed as my own before Frayrith visited me. The soft rustling of the trees and grasses fills my ears. I hear squirrels chattering and Smoke snorting softly. The musky scent of Smoke mixes with the smell of Shadow’s coat and with the warm perfume of the flowers and earth.

My mind casts about for a name and I think of Frayrith and Artemis. Artemis; the name given to me by the Elven Assassin stalking Tristan and I. A name I can’t truly prove or disprove as belonging to a comparable goddess to either of those I follow.

In my concern about the assassin and this mission, I never exercised any common sense in researching Artemis and her affiliations. Still I focus on the forest and woodlands I know and hope to reach a sympathetic ear. It has been too long since I have done this, I feel an emptiness in my heart that longs for the woodlands and my home.

As I reach deeper into my memories and feelings, I see a shadow move in the trees. Presently, a young woman steps toward me. She is carrying a long bow and is surrounded by several different animals. Her long blonde hair is pulled back in a ponytail, yet is untamed as wisps of it escape from their confinement. Her smile is warm as she kneels down in front of me.

She holds out her hands and takes mine in them. “My Blessings on you Daughter of another world. I have felt your loss and I want you to know you are not alone in this world. I am Artemis, and my sister in your realm has asked me to accept you as one of my children while you are here.”

I bow my head and mutter my thanks. She reaches out and lifts my chin so that I have to look directly at her. With care, she kisses me softly on my forehead then stands. The gray wolf at her feet trotted over to me and touched his nose to my left wrist and a silver tattoo of a wolf appeared there.

Artemis looks around and her gaze seems to rest on someone or something that is not visible in the clearing. She smiles again and turns back to me.

“Kyrianna, do not let those who hurt you in the past cloud your perceptions of the present,” she said before vanishing.

As the vision fades, I see a small child, a girl running between the hedges of the maze. Suddenly she vanishes into darkness and all that is left is her scream.

The echoing scream brings me back to the world around me. I take a breath as I look around. Sabin is watching me; it is time for our watch to begin.

As he is removing his armor to inspect it, I notice the unusual tattoo on his arm. He explains that it is a slave brand and only the Gnome knew about his past. I promise to keep his secret. He then promises that he will not fail to protect me again. I am uncomfortable with this pledge, as I believe he is wanting more from me than I am willing to offer. I remind him that he has his own future to think about and he pauses then says he hasn’t thought much about his future, that he has been a thief and a smuggler most of life, primarily concerned where his next meal and coin were going to come from.

I start at the mention of his being a thief, instinctively I knew he was a rogue, but I had ignored that fact prior to this. With reluctance, I ask if he is a member of a guild. He states he is the head of the Thieves Guild for this region. The Head of the local Guild! I can’t believe what I’m hearing. I turn and walk back to my gear.

I hear hurt in Sabin’s voice as he asks me what’s wrong. I ignore him. He becomes insistent and reminds me that he told me about his past. I think about the last thing Artemis told me about not letting my past cloud what I think of those I come to know in the future. I tell him about what the Thieves Guild did and how my mentor set me up so they could gain leverage over my father. For several minutes, he doesn’t reply. When he finally does all he says is, “I understand.” I turn my attention to repairing my gear, and mutter a quiet “Thank You.” The rest of our watch passes uneventfully.

Chaos Revealed - Entry 4

Entry 10

The next morning, before we can begin our journey, we are joined by two dwarves, who drop out of a portal. Apparently this is much the way Crystal and our other companions also entered this world.

We are fortunate in that nothing bothers us during this first leg of our trip. As night is falling, we finally decide to set up camp within sight of the Duval estate, but we do not push into the night to enter the grounds.

During the third watch, I am awakened by Sabin who reports that something was moving outside the camp. He believes there were two creatures circling the camp and he may have heard something, possible Goblin being spoken.

Chaos Revealed - Entry 3

Entry 9

The next day, I confer with Tristan and Crystal. Tristan asks if Crystal would be willing to join us on the quest to rid his home of the evil there and she agrees. He asks me to allow him to represent her. As he is a noble of this area, I agree.

Tristan convinces the mayor to allow Crystal to go with us and use the results of our mission to judge her. The mayor agrees, with the stipulation that if she returns to the town without Tristan, she will be judged as having failed and under sentence.

With the Inn gone, we set up camp at the edge of town and begin making preparations for the journey.