Session 8: The Stormy Road Ahead

General Summary

Omori had gathered the horses and our heroes found themselves standing at the edge of the Red Shores Gardens. Lady Akamay stood with her massive bodyguards and servant Lao, bidding them safe travels. Aatavi was approached by Trufan, a young man whose life he had saved weeks before. Trufan’s wagon was laden with goods bound for Aatavi’s friend in Delvingshore. Young saplings, seeds, and fruit that would ripen on the journey. While Aatavi hugged him close and bid him a good journey, Aaura was approached by her grizzled mentor Elias. He had a special parting gift for her, a white cloak and cowl trimmed in gold. This was a Shieldwarden’s Mantle, and he explained that it would identify her as a fully-fledged warden of the Circle of Aquorra. The rest of our heroes watched as Elias shared a few more words with Aaura before embracing her. As he did, his own wings materialized to enfold his celestial pupil. Unlike Aaura’s wings of vibrant white and blue, Elias’ wings were blackened and decrepit looking, as if their magic had somehow spoiled. It was an unnerving and peculiar sight, but only Faelyn looked away.
  A few tears shed, some kind words said, and our heroes were on the road moving away from Lasthome. As was discussed the day before, Shadow took the lead horse and moved the party southwest. Across the continent lay the free city of Damarask where her people lived as refugees. Summer was running short but if they made good time they would be able to reach Damarask before winter took hold.
  The minutes turned to hours, to days, and weeks as our heroes camped under the autumn sky.
  A comfortable routine was established early on and fine-tuned as the days wore on. Once deciding to camp for the night, Shadow would use her keen eyes to find a defensible position. Aaura would send her owl familiar into the sky and look through its eyes to gauge any potential danger, while her magical unseen servant helped collect rocks to build a campfire. Faelyn would use mage hand to remove debris from the campsite and set bags and bedrolls to their proper place. Keokan , aided by Thor, would range away from the campsite, hunting and foraging for food. Aatavi tended to stay close to the site, driving in tent stakes and performing any tasks too cumbersome for Faelyn and Aaura’s magic to handle. It also allowed him to keep a closer eye on the vulnerable Aaura as she looked through her owl’s eyes above. Omori tended to the horses, of course.
  A watch schedule helped our heroes adjust to the hardships of the road. Faelyn typically took first watch, followed by Aatavi, then Shadow, Keokan and Thor were next, waking Aaura with the first sign of the Dawning Crescent for the final watch. Aaura kept the daybreak to prepare her spells, looking into the future and divining things yet to pass. Oftentimes her magical focus was interrupted by Rocky, who crowed with the first light of morning.
  For weeks the heroes traveled to the southwest, traversing the Boundless Steppes and skirting the edge of an arid region known as the Barren Reach. It was just as the climate began to shift a bit when Aatavi felt the first signs of a storm. Behind them, almost imperceptibly, a line of black clouds stretched the horizon.
  “We must be ready” he said as he relayed the information to his friends. “Saademarraa comes.”
  A little over a day later, the tempest was upon them. For days the heroes travelled in driving winds and rains. Clouds blotted out the sky and lightning crackled overhead. Every inch of their clothing became soaked to the bone, the horses’ hooves slogged through the mud, and camping became nearly impossible. At times the rain would abate, allowing a brief respite, only to pick up once again with thunder and fury.
  Keokan was keeping watch the second night when, in a flash of lightning, he saw a hulking humanoid silhouette stalk into their camp. Its heavy footfalls muffled by the driving rain, it sniffed out Aaura, fast asleep in her bedroll. A thick black tongue licked its chops in anticipation as it grabbed the sleeping Aasimar by the ankle.
  Aaura had passed out, exhausted from the relentless storm when the thing picked her up. She awoke to its large and leering face - green skinned and stinking as it croaked out, “You smell dee-licious!”
  Luckily for the wizard, Keokan had sent Thor to rest with her and provide extra warmth throughout the night. As the green skinned monstrosity lifted Aaura into the air, the wolf was instantly up and attacking. With powerful jaws Thor clamped down hard on the monster’s wrist. With a mighty tug the wolf shifted the giant’s momentum, causing its feet to lose purchase on the muddy ground and sending it down with a crash.
  Keokan shouted to his friends, raising the alarm in the dead of night. They quickly rose their feet, watching as their massive assailant struggled in the mud with Aaura and Thor. It clambered back to its feet and bellowed in defiance – and then the DMs computer crashed like never before –
  <<>>
  … In slightly more than a lightning flash, we returned.
  Keokan moved quickly upon the monster, and soon realized that this foe was more dangerous than any the party had encountered yet. With furious violence it tore through the goliath, dropping him with its slashing claws and gnashing teeth. When Aaura’s flaming chromatic orb spell went wide, the troll lifted her into the air and bit down hard on her mid-section, cracking her ribs and sending her back into unconsciousness. “Just as I thought” it snorted, licking the blood from its lips, “Deee-licious!”
  Standing close to the beast Faelyn watched as some of the wounds it had received began to close up, healing themselves in the storm. This phenomenon triggered a childhood memory in the half elf; a recollection of old fairy tales that identified this monster as a troll. Quickly remembering that trolls have an aversion to fire, Faelyn mouthed a magical phrase and sent a gout of flame at the monster. The flames danced around the feet of the troll, and it howled in fury before turning its ire upon Faelyn.
  The talons on each of the troll’s hands pierced into both of Faelyn’s shoulders. Lifting him off the ground, the troll bit hard around the sorcerer’s head and shoulder, grinding its teeth in an attempt to tear a chunk out of the half elf. Its face soon twisted into a snarl of disgust as it spit and drooled. “Bitter…. Sooo bitter! Disgusting!” it choked out, dropping Faelyn’s limp body to the muddy earth.
  Aatavi stood strong, Saademaara’s rage upon him, lightning playing along the surface of his Mysati harpoon as he tried to hinder the troll’s rampage. But thrust after thrust was turned aside by the troll’s thick skin and its long flailing arms.
  Surely the party would have met its end this stormy night had it not been for the actions of Shadow of Fire. As each of her companions went down, she sprang into action; stabilizing them with healing energies and laying paws upon them to get them back into the fight. First Keokan, then Aaura, and finally Faelyn were all brought back from the brink of death by the quick thinking tabaxi before she turned her full attention on the troll.
  The troll was staggered by blows from Aatavi, Thor, Keokan, and Faelyn when in another flash of lightning Shadow leapt upon its back. Her tabaxi assassin’s gauntlet flashed in the night sky as she reached around the troll and tore its throat from its neck. The giant stumbled a few steps, a gurgling wheeze escaping from the wound before it fell dead on the ground.
  Aatavi was not to be fooled. Having seen himself the monster’s wounds close up he remembered the tales of “Skrags”, horrible ogres that dwelt in sea caves and devoured sailors. Only fire could stop their wounds from regenerating. “Fire! Vee must use fire!” he shouted.
  Having risen to her feet, muddied, bloodied, and denied a good night’s sleep, Aaura’s eyes burned bright. “I just want to burn this mother fucker!” she cried before letting loose a firebolt into the troll’s massive corpse.
  Even in the falling rain, the heroes watched as the fire seemed to spread on the troll’s body. Not as a blaze but as a great wilting under the skin. A soft glow seemed to branch and spread from within, causing the skin to pull back and the tissue to dissolve from underneath. Pockets of hollowness seemed to spread throughout the beast, causing large withering chunks to fall into itself before moving no more.
  Wounded and exhausted, our heroes looked to the sky, rain washing the blood, sweat, and tears away.