Set in Stone Report

General Summary

After stumbling into the domain of a Gorgon the Five Fingers of Dorwine find themselves attempting to sneak away from the great bull-like beast. Unfortunately a stumbling Badalona Ailendogs draws attention to the heroes and they find themselves charged by the Gorgon. They also find themselves fall victim to the petrifying breath of the Gorgon when Mehmen Ashid, Thomas Marchant and Badalona are all turned to stone.   With Marble back at Marsahurst, Alok Ravaralei finds himself forced to find a solution and, at the same time, avoid becoming a victim of the creature himself. Luckily Uriel's Tear was not petrified with the rest of the party and Alok is able to recover the gem as Striker provides a distraction. By smashing the golden jewel Alok is able to restore his companions and the party flees with the gravely injured hawk.   After sending Striker back to Marsahurst to fetch Marble and their horses the remainder of the five Fingers endure a nervous wait. Marble arrives the next morning but without any further aid, Sir Egangrodh Waelvor deems it too dangerous to desert the village to help. As heavy rain pelts the party they are forced to give up pursuit of the gnolls and, instead, they continue their journey to the Ashen Hills.   As the day comes to an end the party encounters a plume of smoke rising from a small stand of trees. Alok investigates to discover a strange, ramshackle hut and its equally strange inhabitant. Tall, gangly and cloaked the stranger claims to know "Aniel, the fairy princeling." This turns out to be Thomas. He enters the hut for tea with the odd woman, accompanied by Alok.   Within the woman reveals her name is Nanny Irongums and she knows a secret about Thomas' ancestry. But he must enter a deal with her to secure the information. Thomas must surrender his voice from either sun-up to sundown or sun-down to sun-up. Impulsively Thomas signs a deal, giving Nanny Irongums his voice every evening. In return she reveals that his true father is the archfey known as The Briar King. Thomas is a bastard of the King who left him with human parents to raise and later engineered him to join his ambassador Alexander Face’s Travelling Circus & Menagerie to be educated and to have his fey gifts developed by the eladrin and the elven woman Shanyrria Elro. Nanny Irongums assure Thomas that this knowledge could be used as a point of leverage by rivals of the Briar King or even as a way for Thomas to take his own place as part of The Briar Court.