A Darling Rescue

Exposition

Our heroes first met when they investigated the same contract from the village of Ravenmanor. Edgar Crowley, the local lord of Ravenmanor, was offering 1000 GP to whomever can rescue his darling daughter, Edna, from the clutches of a fearsome dragon turned kidnapper. When the heroes learned that they were following the same lead, they decided to join forces and split the wealth five ways.
Enter our cast of characters: Anraed Maethmag, the ragamuffin Halfling rogue with a heart of gold and a perchance for manually redistributing wealth to the workers; Ka'tan Iyjoh, the wandering Dragonborn warlock who still has as much to share about her proud tribe from the Klatch Desert as she has to learn about the people of Vern; Faraward, the traveling monk who is working on his magnum opus, a compendium of the local religious traditions of Vern; Dahlia Summerhaven, a fierce human fighter with strong opinions on cocktails and female empowerment; and Elrhatir Barbedaxe, the dwarf bard who turned to the adventuring lifestyle after his home was taken from him by a catastrophe involving wild elementals.

Leads

Edgar appeared more impatient than grateful that someone responded to his contract. He directed the heroes to speak with one of his guards who claimed to have seen the dragon fly away with Edna in its claws, and then shooed them away. As the adventurers departed from their meeting with Edgar, one of Edna's personal servants pulled them aside and offered up another lead--Edna's long-time friend and mentor, Ebenezer, a mysterious old wizard who, beyond his contact with Edna, keeps to himself. The servant also asked that the party not mention Ebenezer to Edgar, as Edgar dislikes Ebenezer and all things magical. Unfortunately, the servant knew nothing about Ebenezer's location.
The adventurers first followed up with the guard, Claude Hollowbrow. It took some effort, but the party managed to pry some information from him. His testimony did not quite match up with Edgar's story, as Claude swore to the Seven Gods that he saw Edna riding on the dragon's back, not in its claws. The dragon absconded to the north.
While in the manor, the party also decided to drop by Edna's room for clues. They found a bag filled with an odd menagerie of things, including dead fireflies, some sulphur, and more. Ehlratir successfully identified it as a bag of spellcasting components.
From there, the group departed for the tavern to ask the locals about Ebenezer. The party learned the most information from Wymdill Hollytrap, a wandering trader, who is familiar with the outskirts of Ravenmanor. He informed the heroes that Ebenezer the Eccentric lived in a tower due west from here, and that the only known structure to the north is an abandoned fort. He cautioned the party not to travel to the north unprepared, as he spoke with another trader that encountered goblins in the area. Anraed harbored suspicions as to why a simple trader knew so much about the lay of the land, and decided to casually drop some Thieves' Cant into the conversation. Much to everyone's surprise, Wymdill responded in kind.
Equipped with this intel, the party departed for Ebenezer's tower. Fortunately, the wizard was in and tentatively welcomed the visitors into his domain. When first confronted, Ebenezer played coy and refused to share anything with the others. Eventually, however, the party convinced Ebenezer that they were not there to stir up trouble, but to help Edna.
He swore them to secrecy before confessing that he had spent the last ten years tutoring Edna in the arcane arts, and that she was an apt pupil. Furthermore, as she was terribly lonely in the manor, he had gifted her a soon-to-hatch dragon egg to keep her company. The two of them had been caring for the dragon in secret for many years. Ebenezer also informed them that Edna had come by a week ago to say goodbye as she was running away. Edna did not tell Ebenezer where she was going, but Ebenezer was confident that Edna would be safe if she departed with her dragon. His concern lay not with her safety, but with her troubled relationship with her father. Fearing that the strained relationship may turn Edna, now a fledgling wizard, to cruelty and evil, Ebenezer cast Scrying on the abandoned fort to the north, confirming that Edna and her dragon had fled there. The party set forth.

The Abandoned Fort

After encountering some resistance, the party arrived at the fort in one piece. After dispatching some gray oozes who were camping in the unlit main hall, they stumbled upon the armory and set about looting the place. Little did they know that Edna had set an Alarm spell for intruders. She and her dragon confronted the party and demanded an explanation for their trespassing. It took lots of effort to convince the two of them that the party was not there to turn her in, but to keep her safe. Edna then introduced them to her dragon, Smokey.
Edna confessed her reason for fleeing to the party. When she was a child, her mother Alice ensured that she had access to the finest tutors that you could afford in this rural area. However, after her mother passed away, her father exchanged these tutors for suitors despite her reluctance to be wed. Her dream was to study in the Spellweaver's Circle located in Vern, and she feared that marriage would preclude her chance. Her fears became reality when her father caught her studying in the manor and forbade her to practice ever again. It was then that she decided to flee the manor.
This story struck a chord with Dahlia, and the two shared a heartfelt moment. Dahlia convinced Edna to try to reconcile with her father, and regardless of the outcome, to follow her dreams. As the two talked, Edna's alarm went off once again. The party prepared to get the drop on the intruders and listened to their conversation. Convinced that the heroes had struck out, Edgar hired a band of ruffians to bring her back. Naively, he paid them half up front. Now, they were here to kill the dragon, steal its horde, and ditch the village. Our heroes worked with Edna and Smoky, making quick work of the intruders.

Conclusion

Edna returned to Ravenmanor and begged her father to give her leave to study in Vern. Edgar was moved and apologized for how he had treated his daughter, admitting that he did not want to fail her like he felt he failed Alice. He agrees to let Edna travel to the Spellweaver's Circle in Vern to continue her studies.

Plot type

Chapter