A Whole New Fellowship.

The frustrated mage shut his book and stared toward the morning sun. A smile crossed Garathel's face as he felt the warmth. Little things like that, he had forgotten during his captivity. Tendays... at least three of them that he could remember. In the dark... powerless. Waiting to die... or worse!

His fantastic brain had tried multiple scenario's to escape... but nothing had worked. Until his rescuers had come. He looked back to the strange folks who had given him a new lease on life. Yet another, had joined their growing pack. A young elven woman had wandered in just past dawn.

It was time to get to know these people... Very little conversation had transpired yesterday. The young mage had dove headfirst into his spellbook and barely come up for air. After such a long time without any meaningful food, he found it... interesting where his true hunger had manifested. Though he hadn't turned away any of the friendly dwarf's grool either... Most of his companions had been the same way. Eager to once again touch the weave and feel the power within them... even their rescuers had seemed to be casters of one variety or another eager to replenish... Even the Tressym!

Peculiar creature... he'd have to study that in detail to be sure.

Once the dragon was defeated... He couldn't beleive he'd actually fought a DRAGON!! The folks back home would never have believed that... But once they were repelled from the plane of shadow, the others had gotten very quiet. He realized then that while he was overjoyed to free, their adventure had not ended as well... Two of their own had fallen in that dark place.

Still, that was no reason for himself to be rude. It was time for introductions! They had defeated the dragon, but it sounded like it was simply a cog in a wheel... not the finale! And it sounded like whatever it's purpose was would affect him personally. He looked down at the drab, black robes he wore and shuddered. He couldn't possibly allow THIS monstrosity to exist any longer!

For that matter he was in an unfortunate situation. He was without food, or weapons, or gear of any kind. Nothing but his spellbook and these disgustingly boring robes! With a wave of his fingers, he felt the dirt and grime lift off him and plop into the swamp below. A poor excuse for a bath, but it would have to do. The shave he refused to even try without a mirror handy. Anger simmered as he realized he was out in the world and didn't even have a mirror!

A second quick incantation and a pleasant tingle ran through him as he embraced the power of the weave. The robes, spun and twisted and shifted. Color changing in the appropriate places and finally coming to rest in as close an approximation of the latest Halruan style. He spun his head looking for any more adjustments, but it was the best he could do. The robes were still substandard material... and all of his magical gear and accessories were lost to the illithad and Shar captors... but at least he was 'presentable'.

"Good morning, fellow travelers... " he said as he rejoined his new companions. "I would like to thank you again for your assistance yesterday. I'm sorry for your loses... if there is anything I can do to be of assistance, you need only ask. My name is Garathel. A wizard of some small stature late from the city of Halarahh. From Halruaa... "

"Ah, yes, forgive me..." The genasi rolled up the parchment listing the roll of years of the Black Chronology and stuffed it away for the time being. Standing, she tugged at the bottom of her black satin vest to straighten it. The circles under her eyes were only a shade darker blue than that of her hair, and it didn't take much to surmise that she didn't actually sleep during those hours of darkness.

"It's just been a difficult...well..." She cleared her throat and started again, not willing to travel that path just yet. "I suppose it's high time we all introduce ourselves properly, isn't it. My name is Saedda," she said addressing Garathel as well as the rest of the group, "also a practitioner of the arcane. I've traveled enough to say that I can call no place home, but was born and began my training in Calimport."

A random breeze seemed to whistle as she bowed to all of the new faces. And there were many... Two humans, a half elf, and a halfling that had been released from their cages yesterday, a wild elf that literally swam out of the swamp this morning, and even Raziel a githzerai they'd met a few days ago, wandering alone in the Plane of Shadow!

She'd fought with the man in a number of battles and even swapped some spells with him, but circumstances being what they were in there, there hadn't exactly been time for a leisurely conversation... Saedda hoped to remedy that in the future. Once they got to some semblance of civilization of course and maybe with a large mug of ale in hand.

Or two...

"I cannot say how grateful we are for all the assistance in putting down that wretched dragon. He was involved in some kind of scheme on what is likely a grander scale than what it seems on the surface, and we can only hope that whatever the servants of Shar and Cyric are up to, that perhaps the beast's death might have thrown a kender into their plans.

"At any rate, it's good to meet you all, and good to see a helpful wild elf out here as well!" Saedda nodded to the deeply tanned woman. "Your assistance through the swamp will be most welcome, as our former companion that used to lead us through the mire is no longer..."

She cleared her throat again and just left the gesture hang there, unfinished but understood.

To her left she heard the rumbling of a small landslide and turned to see Glanen sitting on the damp earth, gazing mournfully at an enormous blade that lay out in front of him. He worked at it still this morning, as he had been all throughout his watch last night, doing his best to scrub every spot of noble blood from the weapon.

”I think I might be able to swing this one.” Ari’an’pyoro thought to herself as she sized up the group of adventurers she had stumbled across that morning. ”They all seem like decent folk, none too hasty or too curious. I should be able to ‘lead’ them to the ‘settlement’ without anyone of them detecting my disguise.”

The elf focused her attention on the ones introducing themselves. The man from Halruaa seemed to be too full of himself to be a danger to her and the blue-haired female, called Seadda, was too distracted by something weighing heavy on her mind. Something that might have to do with whatever she had been reading before she introduced herself.

”I suppose now is as good a time as any to assure them that I am what I appear to be.” Ari’an thought. She stood up from where she had been sitting, just on the outskirts of the group. Close enough to hear everything but far enough to keep from attracting attention-the perfect spot to blend in. “Oralell. Wild elf. Hullack Forest. Seeking adventure.” Ari’an stifled a smile as she thought through her cover story. ”There is some truth there…”

“As I said before, my name is Oralell.” The elf said with ease, her eyes open and honest as if she had nothing to fear and nothing to hide. “I grew up in the Hullack Forest just north of here. Recently I have grown tired of my life of solitude,” she dropped her sweet voice for a moment while she dipped her head sheepishly. Then, painting on a smile of suppressed excitement she raised her eyes once more. “I am now in the business of seeking adventure!”

The sorcerer listened to the conversation, only half interested. It wasn't that she meant to be rude, and she knew she was being so, she was just so overwhelmed by the events of the past day. So much uncovered and so much lost.

First Mirelda. Now, Willow. Sir Tobias. These feelings of loss were starting to feel familiar, and she didn't like it. She still felt Mirelda's loss and she had only known her for what, a day, two at most? Sir Tobias had been her first real contact of those from the group. He had always put up with her bumming a ride when she tired of flying. Crazy man. And Willow. The poor girl never found out who she was. Bisera realized with a start that there was the fellow that Willow had been enamored on. He would be waiting for her to return. Right then she vowed to do something about that... whenever this Mystera vs. Shar mess was finished anyway.

"Meow." She said as she stretched and stood up taking to the air in a gentle leap. She flew over to the center of where the group was gathered.

"Do not be alarmed." She mind talked to the newcomers, then including everyone she continued. "My name is Bisera. I also use the weave, but not as most do. For me it is a natural ability. I am speaking to you in your mind, it is how I communicate. I am a Tressym from Cormyr. I am looking for an elven woman (as she thinks these words she shows the image of herself in elven form) and have reason to believe that a priestess of Shar has her. If you have seen her in your captivity please tell me! Anything you may know could prove helpful." She hoped that one of them might have seen her. If only she could remember what the illithid named the priestess. She was fairly certain it began with an E or A or I...

"It is a pleasure to meet you all. Thank you so much for your assistance with the dragon!"

Raziel had only been with the group for a few days but already she felt like she had been fighting beside him for ages. How odd. Well, she hoped that the other two would fit in as well as he had.

"I am sorry Bisera," Garathel answered after a quick glance revealed his fellow captives as confounded as he was. "Our time in those cages... It was dark, we were starved... But of all the elves I've had the pleasure of meeting, your master was not one of them. Though it looked like there were cages in with Despair... I didn't have time to look in them."

The tressym intrigued him, but more for it's personableness then it's physical appearance. He'd seen tressym before, but never spoke to one... and certainly never seen it cast spells! An abberation to be sure. The loyalty of this familiar was also astounding. He looked forward to meeting this elf woman and discussing exactly how she'd made the cat. Some people in Cormyr had tried to tell him that they were 'natural' creatures... but he knew that was rubbish. He'd seen more than enough mix-and-match animals back home to know better! If they were natural creatures... that merely meant the wizard that made them was truly astounding... It was difficult to get Abberations such as them to be capable of breeding.

But THIS cat threw spells... To meet HER creator, THAT intrigued him greatly.

The whole group was unusual. They actually had with them a... Githyanki! Or was that a Githzerai? He knew of them by legend only and that they were quite rare and solitary... Considering that he hadn't tried to kill him yet, He would put money on Githzeraii.

...

Ehhh... which ever were the less antagonistic ones from Limbo.

What was one of them doing in the plane of shadow?? For that matter what was any of them doing there??

"Again, I'd like to thank you for the rescue. I'm quite embarrassed at the manner of our meeting. Even more, I'm frustrated at the manner of my abduction. I've done little planewalking in my time, and would have loved to experience that exciting place." Annoyance twisted his face into a scowl.

"Instead I spent about a month in a box and don't even remember the journey." He sighed and his eyes sparkled with hope. "What of you? What brought you to such a place as that? Did you see much of the Plane itself??" His voice took on an excited ramble that didn't seem to phase him in the least. He was used to it.

You mentioned the Starrynosis?? Were you abducted as well? How did you escape?!"

Raziel begans to speak from his seated position around the fire. Gesturing to the four newly freed captives, Raziel intones "I joined with this band only several days earlier than you did. I was part of a hunting party that was sent to determine what the Illithid was doing, and to bring back the trophy. However, though we departed Limbo together, we did not arrive that way in the Shadow. I had been looking for the other members of my band for days before encountering this group. After observing them for a short while, and running low on food, I announced myself and let them know that they were heading toward the general location of my prey. They had no idea that and Illithid was was working with the Shadow Dragon...just as my group had no idea a Shadow Dragon was working with an Illithid.

Even with the extra help I did not complete my task, and I gather my original band will also fail. I have no desire to return to Limbo having accomplished nothing of import, so I would greatly appreciate being allowed to accompany you for the time being. Although I do not have much to contribute in the way of lighting or massive force (nods to the Genasi and Tressym) I was trained for stealth and infiltration, and I believe I can be of service." He bows lightly from the neck and turns silent.

"Well, I would like for you to continue on with us, Raziel!" Saedda spoke up and pulled her ostentatious black hat from the Haversack, tipping it to the githzerai mage after adjusting it upon her head. "You've proven yourself to be a resourceful ally and I hardly think that killing Despayr was nothing of import," she widened her eyes as a small smile played at the corners of her thin-lipped mouth. "It's too bad that we weren't able to retrieve that black dragon's brain, or to help you get the illithid's brain...yet...but if the creature has some role to play in all this, perhaps we'll meet him again. Next time he won't be so lucky, I can assure you of that...

"Same goes for that priestess of Shar," she added, turning her gaze to Bisera. "We'll find her one way or another, and get that lovely elf woman back to her lovely tressym as soon as possible!"

The genasi, indeed none of them were in any position to make such promises right now, but after the recent events she just felt they were all in need of a little encouragement. With any luck they'll get the chance to pull themselves back together and regroup at whatever settlement lay a few miles off to the west out there through the swamp.

"As to your question, Garathel, our path started at the same place yours did... At the "new temple to Mystra" in Wheloon. We managed to uncover the truth of what was happening in there and deal with Starweaver Fembris and his cronies as well as secure the Starrynosis so it couldn't be put to further dark use. There was also an ancient, broken gate to the Demiplane of Shadow down there," she stated, looking around the group. "It's likely they were trying to repair it and that's why they chose that location for the temple, but the Purple Dragons have been made aware of that threat.

"Anyway, we'd found a map down in the dungeons of the temple that led us along the same path that you no doubt took while under the influence of the Starrynosis. It seems that the Sharrans there were Dominating magic users and sending them off in that direction. We traveled into the swamp, directed by the Sharptooth lizardfolk tribe, to a stone warren known as the Lost Refuge. The forces at work there were corrupting and subjugating the lizardfolk in the area and turning them into what they're calling 'Shadowscales'. Nasty lot... Sucks spells from memory..."

Saedda shuddered, daring to hope that they'd seen the last of those things!

"The Lost Refuge holds a Shadowgate as well," she continued, "except that gate is active! Already there were strange beings, such as the shadar-kai, a race native to the demiplane, that were beginning to take up residence with the promise that soon they would find themselves a comfortable home on OUR plane!

"We managed to defeat the trouble there, including a half dragon female that led them...the daughter of Despayr, as it turns out. Ugly beasts, half dragons," she remarked with a grimace.

"The gate led to a shadowy reflection of this place. We even appeared through the gate into a crumbling version of the Lost Refuge..." Saedda lifted her eyes to Garathel. "I'm not saying that the journey in the Plane of Shadow wasn't...interesting, but I wouldn't call it pleasant. No day, no night, no wind... Such a dismal place! Wouldn't want to build a summer home there or anything.

"We continued following our map that we'd gotten at the temple, toward a place referred to in a note we found on one of Shar's altars, as the Monastery of the Ebon Dome. Took awhile to find it, but when we did, it was infested with followers of Cyric... Yeah," she nodded when she saw a few eyes widen at the implications. "In the Monastery we came across a parchment listing our roll of years, and it's shadow! Apparently the Sharrans' Book of the Black, has it's OWN roll of years that prophesy what they call 'Shar's greatest work'. This year is listed as the Year of the Unraveling by their chronology... When we reach the settlement, we'll have to sit down and go over all the notes and parchments and books that were found along the way. It's information that I have a feeling will pertain to all of us if something isn't done about this plot.

"From the Monastery we followed a path that led us to Raziel here, and then to the chasm where we found the rest of you with the exception of Oralell," she nodded to the wild elf with a smile. "I hope I've not left too much out, but that's what brought us to this point at least.

"Despayr the black dragon, the Sharrans, the Cyricists and apparently illithids were 'using' those dominated by the Starrynosis in some kind of ritual in an attempt to tear a hole in the Weave over the Vast Swamp, creating a magic dead area where only Shadow magic would function. Maybe we're lucky enough to have delayed those plans for a time, but I've no doubt they'll be trying again," she sighed. "More than that...from some of the notes and the Black Chronology we found, it seems that this plot is far bigger than a just a little tear over an obscure swamp..."

Saedda again remembered those foreboding words from the note found in the Lost Refuge.

Keep your secrets safe. Their weight will one day bring the Mysteries to an end.

"Whatever those dark gods and their followers are up to, could prove to be a threat to the entire Weave. This may simply have been a trial run..."

“Well... “Garathel answered enthusiastically. “That’s certainly an adventure you’ve had.... My own seems downright boring in comparison... Well, you know... except for the cage and all! But you can’t base a whole life’s journey simply on where you sleep...”

This group seemed an interesting and good natured lot, and it sounded like they were going to keep going after their common enemies. That thought intrigued him. When he’d entered Wheloon, he’d had quite the number of magical trinkets to augment his own magical abilities. Since the abduction he had nothing! He felt downright naked, and very... very vulnerable.

It had been a month or so since he’d been taken. The odds of recovering anything of his was low. Lower than worth mentioning... He’d have to start all over again. Still if he could be thorn in the side of those evil thieves . Disrupt their plans for the world.... He was all for that!!

Something this ‘Saedda’ said tickled the back of his brain. Something familiar.

“Black book., Book of the Black... Little black book?!? No... Book of Shadows? No... Blackstaff?! Absolutely not... Book of the Wind... Maybe...

“NO!!” he called out, suddenly breaking his random babble. “SONG of the Wind!!”

He grinned widely as the pieces fell into place. “I’ve heard of this ‘Book of the Black’ before.... It once resided in the fabled city of Myth Drannor. I’ve never personally seen this book, but it was referenced in ‘Songs of the Wind: The holdings of Windsong Tower.’ It was a comprehensive index and catalog.

“There have been many different indexes for places such as Windsong tower...” Seeing confusion on a couple of faces, he elaborated. “Windsong was a very exclusive tower of some of the finest mages to exist this far north... Before the city’s destruction, it was possibly one of the closest northerners could ever get to seeing the wonders of Halruua!”

“Regardless... This old text caught my attention, because it was written by none other than Elminister of Shadowdale! It was an old book, and I’m not sure how useful the knowledge is, but at least 800 years ago, we know where the Book of the Black was kept!”

He stopped pacing suddenly realizing what he’d said.

“We of course, if you allow me to accompany you in this quest. I’m not really the type to go in for revenge, but I’d like to teach these people a lesson or two... And the whole ripping holes in the weave.... That doesn’t exactly fit my goals for the future!” He gave his winningnest smile.

Saedda blinked her slanted blue eyes twice at the Halruuan mage, then jerked one of the scroll cases from the side of her pack and began rifling through it.

"There was a note," she mumbled, thumbing through various sheets of parchment. "It was attached to the Black Chronology that I mentioned, written by a priestess of... Aha! Yes here!"

She pulled out a crisp scrap of parchment and flicked it once with her forefinger.

"It was written by a very recently deceased priestess of Cyric. She believed, that..." The genasi lifted her eyes up to the group. "Let me just read it so we're all on the same page here."

"Most honored Watchful Skull, Blackwill Akhmelere,

Greetings from your bloody hand, Skull Servant Ethar. 'She's the dead one...' As expected, the Sharrans hide their secrets well, but I did discover something that might lead us to understanding their ultimate plan. We aid them in their ritual to create a field of dead magic over the Vast Swamp. Obviously, this is to their advantage as only Shadow magic works within these spaces, but claiming the swamp as a base of operations seems foolish. This incongruity bothered me, and I prayed to the Black Sun to grant me knowledge of their plans. I received no vision, but while living here in one of their old monasteries I discovered the piece of parchment I've attached with this letter, praise be to... 'blah blah blah...' I believe it to be the writings of a monk that once lived in the Monastery of the Ebon Dome.

It seems the Sharrans have a secret Roll of Years. Of its origin or accuracy, I can say nothing, but some names seem uncannily close to the history we have witnessed - perhaps even more so than those penned by the Lost Sage, Augathra the Mad. You can see that the Black Chronology seems to span a mere 34 years, but perhaps there is more not revealed by this scrap of parchment. Reading the 'Book of the Black' might explain more and tell us what the Sharrans truly plan.

I could not find more writings like this one despite a week of searching. I made subtle inquiries with the Sharrans and Despayr. Despayr seemed to know nothing, but with his kind, it is always hard to tell. The other Sharrans said they did not know what I meant, and talked about how the monks at this monastery went mad - but I sensed some wariness in their postures.

I think we need to find this Book of the Black and....'AAaaaarrrrghhhhhh....'"

"Okay, that last bit isn't written here but I'm pretty sure that's where we came in." Saedda smirked and rolled the note up before popping it back into the scroll case.

"Reading this over again, I'm forced to agree with the Skull Servant on this one point... To discover what the whole business with the Weave-ripping over the swamp is actually about, what their game plan really is, we might need to find this 'Book of the Black.' Now I think our chances of actually finding the book are admittedly pretty slim. Sharrans cling tighter to their secrets than they did to their mommas' teats...if they even have mommas...jury's still out.

"But anyway," she said, stressing the word to pull herself back on track, "you, Garathel, might have just given us the next best thing! Knowledge of someone who has not only seen the book, but likely even read it himself!"

She was fidgeting with excitement now that there was a possibility of some lead...a lead to a lead anyway, where they might find some explanation of these strange and foreboding events. Saedda began pacing, touching the mucky ground with just the tips of her toes to keep her body moving forward while levitating.

"What if we went to find him and speak with him about all this? Elminster! Provided he's on this plane of course," she added with a tip of her head. "But, he might well be able to tell us more about the book and would undoubtedly have some additional insight into what the Sharrans might be up to! As a Chosen of Mystra, I have to believe he'd be pretty interested in hearing about this ritual to tear holes in the Weave."

"What do you think?" She asked of the group. "Should we seek him out once we get the chance? I've heard he lives somewhere in the Dales, but that's a pretty large area..."

Saedda peered around, looking for any that might find merit in her proposal, when her gaze fell upon the mage who had previously spoken.

"Oh, and in my opinion, Garathel, having been brainwashed and held in a cage by the Sharrans and an illithid, you most definitely have a stake in all of this and also have more than proven yourself in the battle against Despayr. For my part, I certainly would take no issue with having you accompany us on this quest!"

Bisera listened to the group discussing their plans. The tressym washed her paws as she sat half listening. Her mind was processing things very quickly. What if the mage suggested was true? Had her body been in one of the cages that the dragon was sucking magical energy from? She tried to remember. She hadn't really been paying that close of attention to them.

What was that? She quirked up an ear. Saedda was reading a note she had found. Ethar... was that the name of the priestess that the illithid had given her body to? That could mean that her body HAD been in the room with the dragon! Why hadn't she thought to look there! Well, she had been pretty busy not being killed by the DRAGON!

She might have just flown right by her body. How would she ever get it back now if that were the case!

"Garathel pointed out that my elven lady could have been in those cages with the dragon. Did anyone get a good look at the people in there? Did any of you see her? If she were there, how would we rescue her?! Raziel you had been in that room a couple times trying to rescue the prisoners, did you see her?" Bisera mind spoke to them all.

Raziel paused in contemplation, recalling what he had seen in each cage while swooping by looking for Willow. His training allowed him to definitively reply: "I am sorry, though I saw two elven prisoners within the cages, both of them were males. Although, that may be good news for you, as the bodies were being drained to fuel their nefarious ends."

"Drained, yes..." Garathel pondered aloud. "But drained of what?

"What were we actually seeing in there?" He asked his new companions in the same tone he'd heard from so many instructors. "Obviously something was being drained... or taken from those poor unfortunates, but what?

"It wasn't their 'magic'. Of that I'm fairly certain. As most of you MUST be aware of, Magic isn't something inside you... it's something you know! Learn! Devote untold hours to studying... The more you study, the more powerful you become... It's not something your born with... like Infravision to an elf."

He glanced at the flying cat and tilted his head a moment.

"Unless your one of those sorcerers... THEY may be able to be drained of their powers... But that doesn't fit the pieces. I can't believe that everyone in those cages could be inborn magic users... They would have had no use for me were that the case... And the four of us were being kept safe to replace any who fell in the ritual...

"Well......." He corrected himself reluctantly. "I suppose there's a little spark in the average mage. Channeling that power through your body and all... but nothing drain-worthy! Certainly no more than you could get from a few minor trinkets, and THEY'd be easier to get than people!!

"Unless it was STORED spell energy!!!! THAT has potential.... " He shook his head in frustration... "Except we didn't HAVE any... No... Without the rest and study, even mages of Haluraa have as much magical potential as a scullery maid."

A slight grin crossed his face as he thought of home and quickly added "Less even..."

Quickly shaking his head he started pacing back and forth in an excited manner. "NO, it HAS to be something else..." He stopped suddenly with a look of amazement.

"What if... " He stated uncertainly. He spoke so fast the others barely had a moment to get a word in edgewise, even if they had the notion to. Didn't matter. It had become obvious, his questions were mostly rhetorical anyway.

"What if... We weren't watching their magic leave them... but their life?!!? Their Souls?!?" He shuddered at the implications... "We keep using the term 'tearing the weave'... That may be true in it's own fashion... but the note Saedda read didn't mention anything about 'destroying'... it mentioned 'creating'! Creating an area of Dead Magic, may be more than just destroying the true weave in the area.... It could be some kind of Anti-magic shell, made permanent... But no... How BIG Could they make something like that?? Truthfully, THAT wouldn't be so hard... if they only.. No, Back to that later...

"Something to cover the vast swamp... that's huge... it's massive... it's just... " He was quiet for just a moment as the scope of something that large and the casters needed to complete something like that sunk in...

"What if... Ohhhh YES!!!! What if it was some kind of Circle magic... Similar to the High magic of the Elves... or even the lost magic of fabled Nethril?!?!" He nearly quivered as he imagined what he was saying, but continued on with the conjecture. "In the old days... when entire cities flew and Mythals were raised... Archmages ruled this world. But power that great... was ALWAYS dangerous... ALWAYS had a cost....

"To touch magic that pure... That RAW... A mage would often lose his life in the weave. Not such a bad way to go really... If you have to go... But since it's always better to enjoy the fruits of your labors, mages would form circles of cooperative magic... they would SHARE the price of the magic... It may still take SOME of their life... but rarely all...."

"What if... This Dead magic they are creating... is merely some kind of MASSIVE spell... one that's drawing on the life force of all the mages casting it... All that weave energy... Whether in the form of a mythal or a shell... doesn't matter... THAT may have been what we saw... Reweaving a shell... a mythal... whatever. A place where only their magic works!!!

"After all... why not?!? They're making the rules, I heard the elves tried to put that in their mythals... no magic except for elves, I've an uncle who has rules like that set up in his house... but this... THIS is bigger... At least thirty or so mages were forming this circle... and the spell was STILL killing them...

A grimace scrunched his face as he saw a hole in his theory. "Hmmm.. Why would they cast the spell though? They must have KNOWN it would kill them, and quite possibly destroy what all mages love the most... NOPE! Doesn't fit...." he sighed heavily and defeated.

Suddenly his eyes lit up. "Of course... they don't call them 'Mindflayers for nothing!!! They have a reputation for making people do what they would never CHOOSE to do..."

Ari'an'pyoro listened intently as Saedda told the story of how they came to be right here on this adventure. She had to remind herself a couple of times to keep her countenance inquisitive instead of relaxing into her normal stoic, calculating stare.

They were a motley crew, not just for the fact that their only fighter seemed to be the dwarf sitting in the mud trying to clean a sword much to big for his short arms to swing. True, that was strange enough but what was stranger was the vibe she felt throughout the whole group. Something was uneven in the way they all reacted to each other, as if they had not all traveled together for very long. The dwarf, genasi and tressym all shared a deeper connection then the rest. Garathel and the other three in rags all seemed to orbit outside the connection of the previous three as if feeling indebted to them in some way.

The githzerai was different though. His connection with the dwarf, genasi and the tressym was stronger than the other four even though he only had known them a mere few days more. There was a bond of trust there that usually developed over a significant amount of time, or life changing events. What had happened in those few days?

And how had they managed to fight and kill a dragon, and a half-dragon before that? Their tactics must be amazing to defeat foes of great strength with so few front line fighters. And yet, they didn't appear to be that well organized... Maybe they got lucky. Maybe... But looks can be deceiving. How well Ari'an knew this fact.

So, they (at least the "they" that belonged with Saedda, as she seemed to speak for her group of companions) were on a mission to save the Weave from deadly peril involving Shan and Cyric and all sorts of fun people. Ari'an pondered if she wanted to get mixed up with something that dealt with two of the most vile, greedy gods (goddesses) and seemed to have far reaching consequences. If she played it safe and kept her hands out of it then the whole of Faerun would have no reason to blame her if they lost their beloved Weave. But when had she ever played it safe? At least an adventure like this would keep her from getting bored.

Ari'an waited "patiently" for Garathel to finish his long winded ramble. When he was done she turned her eyes, wide with wonder, toward Saedda.

"You killed a dragon, a half-dragon, traveled to the Plane of Shadow and back, stopped a hole from being ripped in the Weave and lived to tell about it." Ari'an tried to portray herself as naively star-struck as possible without being annoying. "You must be great heroes! And now you are off the meet with the Great Sage! You must be famous!"

Ari'an swallowed quickly to feign nervousness for her listeners. "I know that I am young and I have a lot to learn, but," Ari'an swallowed again, for good measure, "would you mind if I followed you on your quest to find the 'Black Book'?"

Circle magic...

The genasi pondered the idea that Garathel had put forth. She knew little more than rumors about the power of high magic, but this human from Halruua would certainly have a better idea of what was possible!

The circle magic she was familiar with, always had a circle leader...the primary caster of the massive spell, and she didn't recall seeing anyone fitting that description in the room but there was a lot going on in there that defied immediate explanation... Also, if she remembering her studies correctly, the participants would be casting a spell to be consumed by the circle and boosting the power of the master spell being cast by the circle leader. It was possible that such spells were cast when the participants were locked in their cages...

What she saw in those cages were people being slowly drained of their life forces, as Garathel also noted. She'd believed that the magic that was being worked there was of the Shadow Weave, but could that directly effect the True Weave? A carefully worded Wish spell could tear a hole in the Weave, though it would certainly bring down bloody wrath from Mystra in one form or another, but could a spell from the Shadow Weave actually unravel the Weave??

Maybe that's why they were using Weave casters. Perhaps they were needed as the 'components' to whatever dark magics were being employed to tear open that hole...

Oralell's words brought her back to their present predicament. Getting out of this blasted swamp!

"We didn't all live to tell about it, I'm afraid," she sighed as she adjusted the pack on her shoulders. "I can't rightly imagine that we'd be turning away any help in this endeavor, but it's not my place to make decisions for the party. We're not the same group we entered the Plane of Shadow with... We need to get somewhere to rest and regroup and decide who 'we' are now and what our next move is."

Looking back up at the wood elf, Saedda appraised her with a raised eyebrow. She'd heard that the wild elves were a reclusive lot, yet this one seemed so eager to see the world around her! As an air genasi, she could appreciate that pull for adventure and travel! A kindred spirit perhaps?

"Oralell?" The genasi asked tentatively, pulling the ends of her blue ponytail out from the collar of her cloak. "How do you feel about ale?"

Ale is the nectar of the gods, Ari'an thought to herself. She did not say it out loud for fear of becoming inconsistent in the character of her disguise. A little ale never hurt anyone, much less a wild elf... But if I say I am in favor of it I must be careful not to let my guard down as I drink.

Ari'an looked Saedda in the eyes and grinned. "I must admit, I am a fan."

Glanen, grumbling as all dwarves are wont to do (whether they knew what it was to be a dwarf or not), had risen to his feet and stowed away his gear in preparation for the journey. The sun was climbing ever higher in the sky. It was nearly time to be on their way. Besides! Saedda suddenly had even more of a reason to find a respectable tavern! Or...if not a respectable one, then at least a serviceable one... After the insanity of the last few days, she'd take what she could find!

With her thin lips pulled back into a genuine grin, the genasi moved over to the elf and laying an arm over her dark brown cloaked shoulders, she began a little tune she learned during her time aboard the Scurvy Sea Hag on the Sea of Fallen Stars.

"I CANNOT eat but little meat,
My stomach is not good;
But sure I think that I can drink
With she that wears a hood.
Though I go bare, take ye no care,
I nothing am a-cold;
I stuff my skin so full within
Of jolly good ale and old.
Back and side go bare, go bare;
Both foot and hand go cold;
But, belly, gods send thee good ale enough,
Whether it be new or old."

"Very well met, Oralell! It will be my pleasure to drink with you," she smiled again and took a step back, bowing with a flourish of her green feathered hat.

"Now! I believe there's a little village a few miles distant that would appreciate some of our coin!"

"EXCELLENT!" The young mage exclaimed. "Toasts all around to our new-found acquaintances... May we quickly become fast friends and save the world... and all sorts of other stuff!!!" He grinned widely.

"I'm always interested in seeing new things... Adventures as miss Oralell put it so delicately... and since on day one, I helped kill a dragon... I have little doubt that adventure will come our way in droves... So by all means... Lets get to the tavern and get know each other a bit... a.. bit..." His rant trailed off, and his face fell as Saedda's words sank in.

"Coin... Right... I umm... Yeah, I don't have any of that at the moment. Nothing but the robe on my back... Which I might add is TOTALLY unacceptable... We DID after all kill a DRAGON!!! By all rights we should be wealthy beyond measure right now... " He turned his head and looked out over the swamp they'd come from.

"You don't suppose there's a way to get back do you?"

Bisera didn't know about these circles or even much about the weave. She tried to follow what the young mage was saying but much of it was beyond her and she had to admit she was preoccupied.

Raziel hadn't seen her body. And he seemed fairly certain of it. Far from being dissappointed she was elated! Even if she didn't know where it was, at least it wasn't dying in a cage in the shadow realm.

The tressym's stomach rumbled. Food.

She alighted then at Saedda's suggestion of heading to the village. Swooping in the air she came to stop beside the Genasi's shoulder. "Murr!"

"I'm guessing the gate at the Lost Refuge is still functional, and that the lizardfolk are still guarding it," she responded to Garathel, "but I'd vote to stay out of that place if at all possible. We've already lost two friends there, and even if we were to find Despayr's lair, I don't think a pile of gold would be worth the risk of losing more."

Saedda tipped her wide brimmed hat up on the tressym's side as they walked, to give the winged cat a place to rest on her shoulder if she wished.

"That said... If we discover that Bisera's elf female is still being held somewhere within the plane, then I'll be among the first through the portal.

"We'll find her for you, my dear," she whispered as she scratched the feline sorceress behind the ear. "Don't worry... We'll find her."