Perilous beauty

After slaying the Giant Spiders and Ettercaps and fulfilling their assignment, the adventurers return to Daín Quinra to ask for assistance from the Lyari Yathaenae in finding a hidden artifact before an unknown but probably not benevolent organization does. The Master of the Hunt, Aranwir Carfaren, seems impressed that the adventurers held their promise and seem to have easily dispatched of the giant pests and subsequently grants the party the aid that they requested. They are furthermore guests of the Lyari for the time being.

Cerebrin, the Shepherd of Voices, is consulted regarding the terms and names in the journal entry. He does not know of a Keeper Nedenirth nor a Sister Lierin. Also the name Darkbarrow does not seem familiar. He suggests though that the heroes dissect the individual lines of the verse for it's meaning. Together they conclude that they may need to be at a certain place at a certain time (namely shortly before dusk) and need to attain a certain state of mind to traverse into the Darkbarrow. Possibly the Keeper and the Sister are landmarks and not people. Cerebrin suggests that the party seeks out the Faba Myrna, a powerful and wise being. The Lyari regularly bring her gifts to ensure her benevolence as the Faba Myrna is unpredictable at best and dangerous at worst. But she is incredibly knowledgable and can possibly aid the adventurers in matters occult. Cerebrin agrees to let the party be the bearers of the Lyari's presents to the Faba Myrna and additionally supplies them with a map of the region. Equipped with a small wooden chest containing a vial of a clear liquid, a spool of incredibly thin-spun silver thread and a swatch of almost liquid-like emerald silk, the party sets out to seek the wisdom of the Faba Myrna. Cerebrin leaves them with the following advice:

"Do not be presumptuous. Do not be brash. Be respectful and demure. Be wary for the Faba Myrna is old and powerful. She could snuff your lives out like the flames of a candle if she so wishes. She is mercurial in her moods and probably will be entertained by the thought of helping you. Or torturing you until you would be begging for death's embrace. I wish you luck in your endeavour and hope to see you again. May the Gods watch over you."

After a day's worth of travel the adventurers come to a brook and are supprised to find a beautiful young human woman sitting next to the water. She seems in thought and is humming to herself. Her voice is as sweet as her long hair is golden. As the party approaches, the woman looks up with a smile. She is clothed in a simple light dress and is not wearing any jewelry. There is nothing manufactured or otherworldly about her beauty. But her beauty IS striking. She greets the party and waves for them to step closer: "Adventurers. What a delight." Upon being asked if she knows about the whereabouts of the Faba Myrna she answers: "You have found her." Being handed over the gifts from the Lyari, the Faba Myrna is delighted to invite the adventurers to her hut. She seems jovial and genuinely friendly but just as rhetorically skilled. The heroes are instantly aware of the Faba's keen whit and penchant for rhetoric jabs and misleadings. They need to tread carefully... The Faba Myrna serves refreshments and clear water from a well as the party sits on the grass in front of the hut. She then asks the unusual bearers for the Lyari why they have sought her out. The party does well to not try to deceive the Faba Myrna and asks her for her possible assistance with the journal verse and what she can make of the terms in it. A whole lot it seems. Gladly she gives her input: She does not know of an artifact or what lies within the darkbarrow. But she does know of a place that fits the description and it goes by the old elvish name of Ki'iron Erberos. Having correctly deduced that the party needs to be somewhere at dusk, the Faba Myrna describes the location of Ki'iron Erberos near the Le'orin waterfalls, Sister Lierin, and a mountain peak casting its shadow in the late afternoon, Nedon Irtheni, Keeper Nedenirth. Ki'iron Erberos is partly of this world and not. It is accessible by traversing the thinned veil between the plains. A risk worth taking if the party wants to recover the artifact. Thankfully the Faba Myrna can help.

She will need the adventurers to gather certain ingredients to manufacture a potion and a paste that will enable the party to shortly traverse the veil:

• Oil from the body of a Bagiennik, living in a nearby swamp

• A small slab of slate from a certain mountain range

• A handful of cavelight moss

• A gall organ from a large sweet water mussel

When asked what's in it for her the Faba Myrna waves her hand dismissively and mentions the Bagiennik from the nearby swamp and how this creature begins to occasionally encroach on her lands. She wants it gone. The party is handed suitable containers for the ingredients to be gathered in and soon they are off in good spirits, this being the perfect sunny afternoon to go gathering for the Faba Myrna. Before long the heroes will spend more time in shadows than they would like....