Tairn

Play date: August 25th, 2009
1533.2.13 – Cleaning out the Temple
Everyone is ready to get out, but Banic discovers the hole in the ceiling has been re-sealed. Everyone awaits Keddicks arrival. Meanwhile, the bodies of the four fighters are thoroughly searched. Six dead young women (teenagers perhaps) are found around the altar where Ithran’s body is. Their blood covers the altar. The weapons and armor of the fighters are stripped and tattoos are of the symbol of Talinoman are found on their chests. Someone theorizes this might be the flash of light that was seen as each of the warriors became more wounded. The three not in demon armor have nice longswords and armor as well as pouches with a little money. The demonic armor has a powerful aura. That man is also wearing a ring, an amulet, and some boots that are of note.  Everyone settles in for the night. After a few hours of waiting a noise is heard in the main room. It turns out to be Andre, Calum, Gwynneth, Keddick and a couple of other Hands as well as Kendall, the proprietor of The Lucky Silver, another members of the Defenders. There is discussion of the night’s events. Calum and Gwynneth heal the wounds of the group, and Andre looks around. He comments on the evil aura of the armor. The Hands and Serk move into the spider’s den and easily dispatch it with coordinated blows. It gets only a single chance to bite someone but misses the tasty exposed flesh of Serk. Calum says he will send people to fill in the temple. He commands the Hands to stay the night and guard against the return of the priestesses. Everyone leaves.
The following day, Keddick identifies the ring as one of deflection of the weakest sort (+1 ring of protection), the amulet as one that toughens the skin of the wearer (+1 amulet of natural armor), the boots as ones that increase the speed of the wearer (boots of striding and springing), and the armor as incredibly powerful abjuration with claws that inflict disease on those that are harmed. Everyone discusses giving the armor to the Temple of Andreja for disposal. Malperder claims the boots, and Jack and Serk claim the ring and amulet. All others take their shares in coin.
Varende inquires at the dome for something to help him climb, but the slippers offered are a bit out of his price range. He says he will be back.
Everyone continues training.
The dwarves talk to Thorgar.

1533.2.18 Midday
Snow starts falling. Some rush to the palace to confer with Attalus espousing the belief that the snows herald the coming of the giants. Attalus assures them it is being addressed. By nightfall the snows have stopped and the air has warmed. Varende journeys to Kinspa Forest and discovers the snow ends only a short way from Lysoria. He warns the Elven colony about the giants and returns home early the next day.
1533.2.19 Summoned to the Temple of Andreja
Everyone save Jack gets a summons to the Temple via a Sending. They meet in the Defenders room with Calum and Traver, another Defender. Traver has been watching Caertan. Recently he went into the city and discovered huge piles of dirt and rock outside the Keep. It was coming from within the Keep hauled out by Ogres and Hill Giants. He felt it was significant enough to return to Lysoria. Calum wishes for your small group to go with Traver in the morning to Caertan and investigate. With the loss of Caertan, the Order of Darius has researched the area for anything that might be of value to the giants. References were found to a King Cormon the Wise who was a border King before the Coming of Andreja. He was reputed to be interred near the mountains. There were also words of a powerful artifact he had in his possession. It was his Crown of State. He was a powerful warrior but always viewed as just and good. Calum wishes for the group to investigate the digging and if the giants are attempting to retrieve the Crown of Cormon, to get it and return with it to give to King William. He says Keddick is being used for something by Arch Magister Adrone, but Adrone will supply another arcane wielder to help the group against the giants. Calum says they can bring Jack if they wish. They should come early the next day. Keddick will create Phantom Horses for each of them to ride to Caertan.

1533.2.20 Back to Caertan
Keddick creates steeds for everyone. The last of the group to arrive is the dark-skinned Clarisian Kordis. He greets his former companions and meets Serk. Kordis is not a Defender. Traver and the six ride away to Caertan and arrive near dusk. Traver leads them through the woods behind Caertan and up the hill in the dark to the back of the old wall. He throws a grappling hook and everyone scales the wall. Banic casts Iron Silence to quiet Dwarven and Barbarian armor. Traver leads everyone slowly through the streets to the back of the keep and again scales the wall. Kordis makes everyone invisible (except Traver) and they move as quietly as possible into the courtyard, past the well, through the broken double doors and shattered wall of stone (put there by Adrone) into a room where two sleepy hill giant sentries stand by a huge pit. The pit has four giant ropes leading into it. Two seem to be meant for climbing and two are attached to pulleys anchored into the ceiling meant for dragging up debris. By torchlight below the quiescent figures of two more hill giants are visible at the bottom of the eighty foot pit. Varende whispers he is going down and begins climbing. The bottom of the whole is forty by forty and it has a 15×15 rough hole in it going down into another room. A crushed table can be seen below the top of the pit. Another rope leads into that pit.
Everyone climbs down and is quiet enough not to disturb the sentries. They move into the room below. Large oak tables can be seen by the dwarves through this long hall. One end of the hall is out of their vision and the other ends in a large double door.

<We will pick up with the description of the hall next time>