The Keys of Telku / Into the Fire pt. 1 / Von the 11th through the 19th, 3593 CE / 4-25-21

In the aftermath of the battle with the Coven, the swampy waters of the hags' compound run red with the blood of enemies and allies alike. Having slain or driven out the last of the Coven's dark fey forces, the Druids of the Glade, lead by their dwarven High Father, turn their attention to Rhangyl, the mastermind behind the Witch War. She lies defeated before the Adventurers, who are in the process of interrogating her. Despite the apparent victory, John is concerned how much damage may have yet been done. The party observed both of Rhangyl's hag sisters ascend as Witch Riders, powerful servants of the dark patron they call the Witch Mother. Rhangyl cries out in frustration that she herself appears to have been forsaken by both the Witch Mother and Dormenxha, the elder god with whom she struck a dark bargain, though what exactly she promised him she still will not say. The druids take Rhangyl and her daughter Florina/Anya into their custody, promising that given time the truth will out. John tells them that he will aid them should more witches present themselves. Soon the party finds themselves saying goodbye to many of their allies. Maelarth the fey bear must report back to his sovereign, the Stag Lord, but he thanks the party for "all the excitement." Roisyll, now stuck in frog form, decides to return with her fellow druids to the Glade, and Blur likewise expresses a desire to explore Greenwood further now that the Coven's power has been broken. Sonya will return with her fellow druids as well, though she does ask Adrienne what became of Nari and Jozu, expressing a desire to perhaps one day repopulate the raptors of Greenwood. And Henry decides to ride south with Coron to visit the great city of Ur, legendary home of the Church of Accuris. The party now consists of only Adrienne, Moss, and John. They set out across the Tanlin Marsh and by the next day find themselves crossing into the fertile fields of the kingdom of Amarath. But their excitement at the prospect of returning home is short-lived when they are intercepted by a troop of Amarathian knights, who insist that they are under arrest by order of the king. When the party demands to know the charges, the knights reveal that the party has been branded traitors by Tarrus the One-Eyed, Lord of Liem, and are now criminals in Amarath as well due to that nation's treaties with Liem through the Council of Kings. Moss produces the writ provided to the party by Lord Fitzgrey, the king's former huntmaster, and the knights, taken aback, agree to deliver them to King Tharin himself for a royal audience in order to plead their case. When the party arrives in Lidea, the capital of Amarath, they are taken to the royal audience hall, and marched to the front of the line, much to the chagrin of some of the other assembled supplicants. They discover that Tarrus has charged them with seeking to recover the Keys of Telku for themselves in order to use the artifacts for dark purposes. After hearing their case, the King requests a private audience with the heroes. He likewise does the same for the two Adventurers who present themselves right after, a human named Rados from the distant land of Niopus who is requesting aid against a tyrannical regime that has taken hold in his country, and a tiefling physican and hotelier named Marrow who wishes to have the freedom to build fortifications in the small town of Brochaire. The motley group of five are taken to a private chamber, where King Tharin reveals his intentions; a favor in exchange for granting their boons, or, in the case of Adrienne and Moss, having them declared dead in order to lift the warrant against them from Lord Tarrus. King Tharin tells them that he is the last of his line, with no real prospect for generating an heir, but a clue has surfaced that his uncle Lomaran, thought lost at sea for many years, might still be alive. 30 years ago, when the king's grandfather was still alive, his eldest son Lomaran traveled across the sea on a diplomatic mission to Deidre Isle. But the ship never reached it's destination, and after years of searching, Lomaran was presumed dead, with the crown passing first to Tharin's father, and then himself. But 10 days ago, a badly injured knight of Amarath, Sir Ruger, returned from an expedition up Mount Galadea clutching a tarnished silver necklace emblazoned with the royal seal, a necklace belonging to Lomaran and which, should by all rights be at the bottom of the Anorian Sea. Sir Ruger, who died from his wounds before he could reveal where he found the necklace, was part of an expedition of seven of the kingdom's greatest knights. None of the others returned at all. The king asks the party to track the missing expedition's trail in order discover where the necklace came from. And he then reveals one more startling fact: Prince Lomaran had been taking one of the legendary Keys of Telku with him on his expedition to Deidre Isle, and therefore, whatever circumstance brought his necklace to Mount Galadea may have brought the Key as well. All assembled agree to the King's terms, but Moss argues that he must honor the original charges, and volunteers to remain the king's prisoner. The others spend the next couple days, shopping for provisions, resting, and training. The last night before they are to set out, Adrienne requests a dungeon cell of her own, knowing that it is time once more for her transformation into a gill-wolf, though she finds herself able to resist actually transforming, despite the influence of the black moon in the night sky. As the party prepares to set out the next morning, they find that Rados has slipped away on his own and disappeared. And so now only numbering three again, the Adventurers set sail aboard a royal barge stocked with soldiers sent to reinforce Fort Silan, where the dead Sir Ruger had been stationed. Travelling up the Lystra river, they reach the fort the next day, and meet with its commander, Sir Yuri, who tells them that Sir Ruger's body was actually delivered by a pack of strange, grey-skinned gnomes. Marrow recognizes these as svirfneblin, and argues this could mean drow are involved in the matter. The party sets out the same day. As they make their way up the foothills of Mount Galadea, following the route given them by Sir Yuri, they encounter a day patrol of soldiers from Fort Silan. While making friendly conversation with the soldiers, one reveals that they had encountered another party of Adventurers making their way up the mountain a couple days ago. After hours more of trekking through the rocky wilderness of the foothills, the party encounters a wandering half-elf bard named Liscales, who claims to be seeking inspiration from a lonely trek through wilds of the mountain. Their meeting is interrupted by a trio of stone giants, who have grown tired of hearing Liscales' songs, and demand the party leave immediately with the bard in tow. John agrees in exchange for information, and they learn that the giants observed all seven knights from the expedition pass by on horseback twenty days ago, but only saw Sir Ruger return, injured and on-foot, ten days later. With Liscales in tow, the party makes their way through the Roaring Pass, but the noisy bard triggers a rockslide, and the party just manages to avoid being buried under a pile of loose slate.