Archmage Ally

Things keep getting more and more interesting. Not that I expected different, but it's getting hard to keep up with some things. Picking up from last time...
 
It's a good thing I write this journal in cipher, because that egg hatched into a perfectly normal red dragon. That fact alone would make us a target to most magical talents, whether they wanted to take the dragon for themselves or kill it. That said, I'm not about to let them do either. The dragon may be a bit pushy and strong-willed, but she's got a thirst for knowledge (especially knowledge about magic) that I can certainly respect. We've decided that the five of us (Jaaski, Tanebi, Hestan, Jorlan, and myself) should be the only ones who know about the dragon. It's not just random wizards or cultists that would be after us; if Gracklstugh found out about our new addition, they'd take her for themselves, and that whole cycle would start anew (not to mention they'd want us dead for taking the egg).
 
Besides that, we got some rest and went back the next day to sort out the rebuilding and what we could collect from the dragon's remains. With Jaaski's help, I was able to collect the draconis fundamentum and a good amount of blood, along with three claws and five fangs. The eyes were no good, though that was to be expected; even a dragon has certain parts that decompose quickly, and that's without whatever Abyssal corruption was rampaging through its body. Speaking of, I was a little bit worried about that when all of us were altered by the dragon's death throes, but it seems that the magic that it expelled was untainted by demonic essence. So far, at any rate.
 
After that, we decided it was time to continue on toward the library of Gravenhollow. We determined that it would be a shorter trip from Gauntlgrym than Mantol-Derith, so we returned to its teleportation circle so that we could begin the journey from there.
 
During the first week, one of our number went missing for a time (we ended up finding them, having fallen down a short crevice and being knocked out), and we fought a trio of barlguras. We triumphed, but to my great worry, the last one did not dissolve into ichor like the others. That does not bode well for the Underdark; my assumption is that it indicates the demonic incursion is slowly warping the place to be more like the Abyss. In a worst case scenario, the whole of the Underdark might very well be absorbed into one of the layers of the Abyss...
 
Anyway, the second week started off much better; we managed to find Amarith Coppervein, a missing member of the Emerald Enclave that Sladis had been looking for. She'd gone a bit mad thanks to the demonic influence, making her own zoo with a rust monster, fire snake, and winged kobold. We managed to restore her sanity, and get her to let the "exhibits" go free (though only after we made very sure that the rust monster had enough iron to keep it from following us). She decided to accompany us until we made our next trip to Gauntlgrym.
 
The week was not to end without incident, however; one of our group was grabbed by a shadow demon. Upon pursuing it, we were led into a trap by other shadow demons; we managed to overcome them, but again there was something left behind by the demons. This time it was only one of their horns, thankfully, but the fact that it wasn't a unique occurrence is very troubling.
 
Only two days later, we managed to find a small cottage just sitting in the middle of a moderately-sized cavern. Its occupant, who appeared to be a Floof like Jaaski, came out to greet us, and during the course of conversation asked if it could travel to Gravenhollow with us. We cottoned on quickly that something was off, and we were able to out the individual as an arcanaloth; a type of fiend that belongs to the yugoloth category. It attempted to force the issue by surrounding us with a contingent of undead servants, but we still refused, and a fight ensued. We won (and the yugoloth dissolved into ichor, which could be both good and bad in the long run). We decided to toss the cottage, and found to our amazement that the interior was far larger than the exterior; after all, it had two basements underneath it. Though we had to contend with a few trapped spellbooks, we were able to collect a large amount of loot both magical and mundane, and resumed our trek to the library.
 
Three days out, Ghazrim's ring began to glow, and a number of Giant runes began to float around it. One of our number was able to translate; they read "Only the light of knowledge may illuminate the truth." This was a good sign, but the best was yet to come. On finally catching sight of Gravenhollow itself, with its massive columns and stone doors, the crystal that we'd been gifted by the Stonespeaker Hgraam began to shine with a weak grey light, and its whole surface became covered with Giant runes. These read: "In ages past, we spoke of the Dreamlands. Long have I been waiting for you, and hoping. Now, my dear friends, you will understand, and the circle may close at last."
 
At first I didn't understand those words. But the "Inner Circle" (the same group who keep the secret of our red dragon companion) was invited in, and we explored the place. Now, let me state that I have seen a few libraries in my time. Some were small caches of secret knowledge, while others were vast storehouses of information. Gravenhollow could have held every library I've ever known and more within its halls; unlike the cottage from before, this truly was a place whose interior far outweighed its exterior. And as we explored, we saw echoes. Echoes of all the visitors of the library. Some who had visited long ago, or some that had yet to visit. For Gravenhollow knows those who enter its halls regardless of time, and the past can meet with the future. Hgraam had come to the library as a young man, centuries ago, and had met with our echoes. Then, when we entered, we met with his echo, closing the circle of information.
 
Suddenly I understood. I understood why Hgraam had looked at us like old friends when we first met him. I understood why Grazzt had sent us away, unharmed and uncorrupted, from his Palace of Pleasure (for we met his echo in the library as well). You could imagine my unbridled terror when we met with an echo of me, unsure of what I should ask or what I should say. The other me said nothing, and winked at us, but...something seemed different about her. Me. I don't know.
 
In our studies, we found lots of information, and witnessed several visions of what had caused the demonic incursion. I'll get into that more next entry. The more pressing matter is that while at the library, we met with a drow archmage called Vizeran DeVir, closely followed by his death slaad bodyguard. He said he wanted the same thing we did; to banish the demons back to the Abyss and prevent the Underdark from becoming lost to demonic madness. And so, we decided to hear him out, traveling with him to his mage's tower.
 
We'd been in the library for the better part of a week, but mere hours had passed for the rest of our group outside. Talk about disorienting. Regardless, Vizeran teleported us near his tower, and we went in to discuss the terms of alliance. Since this entry is getting rather long as is, I'll pick up there next time.