"Again, for the record, if we do this, the best we can do is pick a random set of tracks and see where they lead. There's no way I can nail down Sepoko's prints specifically. I mean I'm good but I ain't superhuman. Close," he explains with his thumb and forefinger just about an inch apart, "but not quite. I'm nearly there but it's gonna take just a bit more time," he says with a wry grin, winking. "Anyway, just wanted to throw that out there before we decide on what we want to do."
You settle back on the carpet and follow Kriger on his broom. Remaining low, the ranger is able to track a small group of Boggards, while avoiding having to deal with the watery ground. The mosquitoes, however, redoubles their efforts on your group as you can't move fast enough to deter them.
After three hours, you reach a small group of Boggards, a family, from the look of it. They croak as they recognize you.
"I cannot communicate with them. I do not know Boggard and have no spells readied to talk to them. I am not sure that this path has any utility to us at this point." Oberlin says looking at the poor Boggards.
"If we have any gifts to help them, we should give them and depart. The boggard tribe is fractured and scattered, there will be little that they can do until they have come together. Likely though, they will need to move. The area of the swamp where they made their home is destroyed and polluted. They may need to relocate the tribe entirely, and will need time, possibly years to re-gather their strength."
Malaswyn takes 15 minutes to prepare share language and casts it on whichever boggard seems most amenable. They learn common.
Malaswyn is sombre, "The dragon, what happened?"
The oldest Boggard invites you all to move to the shade, all the while keeping a worried eye to the skies above: "The Black Horror descended upon us and unleashed its fury for hours, chasing us in all directions, toying with them. We heard cries of anguish, pain, and worse, until late in the night, then it all fell silent. The next morning, we heard further cries. I think it waited for survivors to return, then fell upon them again. We stayed away and kept moving away... There's just the five of us. Do you think it's now safe to return? Have you killed the dragon?"
Kriger with a somber look about him can only shake his head. "No. It's not safe. You all need to find another place to hide out. The dragon is still out there. Until we can find it and end it, you're going to have to remain in hiding. I'm sorry but that's just the way it is right now. You can go back if you want but you'll be doing so at your own risk. Don't suppose you know which way your king fled, do you? If you do, I might be able to guide you to him if you can give me some form of direction of where he went off to."
Malaswyn makes a gesture of sorrow, "Are any of your group injured? I can help them." Then he nods at Kriger's words, "Or at least let your leader know that we have not forgotten you. A message perhaps?" He looks expectantly at Kalsgrim.
"We do not know who survived and what happened to them. We've been praying to Gogunta, and she has kept us safe, provided food on our path, but this is the greatest test she's had the Boggards face! We are not injured, just worried about our tribe and our 'nursery'."
The Boggard, in pretty good Common, translates back and forth with his companions and you, then answers: "As far as I know, the nursery is very hard to move. There are times in the cycles when it is easier, they say, but the nurses know when and how to move it. As to the state of it, the truth is that we do not know. It is not in an obvious place, but it can be found. We all fled for our lives, so we don't know if some guardians stayed, and we don't know if the dragon has found it..."
The Boggard translates, then asks: "So the dragon is still around, hunting us?"
"Then we'll stay here, hidden, until Sepoko calls us back." The Boggard doesn't say 'if he's still alive,' but the way his sentence trails makes the condition clear.
Malaswyn nods, "We do not know if the dragon is still prowling. We do know that its lair is not in these lands."
"And Sepoko yet lives." The elf describes where he saw the boggard chief to the boggard he has enchanted.
"We will do what we can to solve this puzzle. There must be a way to overcome the dragon."
"I think staying hidden is the best idea. Like Mal said, the dragon is still out there and we've got no idea where. But don't worry, we'll find it... eventually."
The Boggard says to Malaswyn: "I don't think this is any place I'd know. I wouldn't be surprised Sepoko knows this land better than anyone else... And he's probably the first item on that dragon's menu..."
Resigned, you bid farewell to the bugged out Boggards and fly off west. The trip is uneventful. You leave the marshland and its loving mosquitoes behind as low hills start rolling underneath you. Humidity soon gives way to fresh dryness, which then turns bitter cold as you coast just south of the Glenebon hills. If you were to continue due west, you could reach Numeria that way, but you need to find your way through the Brandthlendt Mountains.
But Pitax is just a bit south and you adjust your course accordingly, leaving the hill north of you instead of crossing through them. As you see them in the distance, you recall your recent battle against the Tiger Lords and their giants, as well as the battle with the possessed Armag and his three witches. That thought in turn brings back the treachery of your former Master Spy Davor.
Finally you reach your destination by nightfall. The Rushlight Festival grounds are located north of the town of Pitax. You can make the lights surrounding the tents, far in the distance. You could arrive within the hour, just after sunset, or camp here and arrive in the morning.
"What do you think, Chief? Should we camp here or make our way in now? We could make it in probably less than an hour. Personally I say we just head on in but I got no idea what kind of protocol is suppose to take place and all that but I'll do whatever. We can camp here for the night and roll in tomorrow morning if you like. Either works for me, Chief."
"It would be practical to get settled in as soon as possible. However, if Kalsgrim is looking for a duchess, it might be better to polish his armour and fly in with the new sun."
Malaswyn looks over at Kal, "Practical or dramatic?"
"Come in with the dawn. If we come in early, the Duke will likely get the attention he deserves, rather than skulking in like a pauper." Oberlin suggests, observing the lights of the city in the distance.
Kriger nods emphatically at Oberlin's suggestion, grinning as if he just drew the right card to win it all. "Now I gotta say I'm liking that idea! That would be quite the spectacular entrance. The sun at your back as you make your entrance and your shadow just dominating anyone within it. Oh yeah! It's all intimidating like! I love it!"
You make camp and spend a quiet, if cold night, just in sight of the tournament site.
A glorious morning starts to peek just below the horizon as the sky turns from darkness to deep purple.
The sky slowly brightens as you make ready when Kriger spots, a cloud of dust rising in the distance. Riders, about a score, the ranger guesses. They are not coming from the tournament grounds.
Narrowing his eyes toward the unknown guests, "Heads up, fellas, we got company. And there's near two dozen of them and they aren't coming from the fairgrounds." The ranger then retrieves his axe, preparing for the worst. Or - as far as Kriger might be concerned - possibly the best.
Malaswyn nods, "The duke should be serene, trusting in his host."
Then he looks at Kriger and Marcel, "The Duke's personal bodyguard, however, will be respected for doing their duty."
Then the elf looks over at the horseback riders and shrugs, "Also, we have advantages..."
He steers the carpet 10ft into the air.
"It would be wise to prepare ourselves to shield the Duke. Assassination would be advantageous to many parties." Oberlin says, eyeing the oncoming group with suspicion. "I will send my Arcane Eye forth to see if I can discern anything about the oncoming group."
Malaswyn says a quick prayer.
magic circle against evil
The riders continue their progression as Oberlin's sensor swiftly moves towards them.
In the distance, you see all but four riders halt and rest their horses. Still far, the lot of them becomes hard to see from that distance as they no longer lift any dust. Yet Kriger can make that they have dismounted.
The remaining four riders continue, but their speed increases dramatically, no doubt the result of magic. Oberlin's sensor catches up to them and the wizard sees one dressed as a nobleman leading three other riders that look like bodyguards of sorts, for their attire and attitudes are of a lower station than the leader.
Malaswyn casts Eagle's Splendor and Enhanced Diplmacy on Kalsgrim.
Kriger keeps close to the paladin, his axe just ready to cut into some smart mouth know-it-all who's just stupid enough to be looking to pick a fight.
The riders approach and dismount before reaching you. The lead riders gives his horse to one of his retinue and walks up to you, the others staying a respectful distance behind.
The man turns out to be an older man with greying blond hair. He looks tired and drained. His clothes are refined, but worn, heavily worn.
He moves up to Kalsgrim and says: "You are Kalsgrim, Duke of Frieland. Welcome to what used to be my country. I am Lothaire Liacenza. Until recently, I ruled with my brother Berengar over Pitax. I am a hunted man. If Irovetti finds me, he'll deal with me like he dealt with my brother... I came here to tell you to head back while you can. Irovetti will find a way to lift your duchy from underneath you. That, I am sure of it!"
Having asked the herald to wait, you can figure out the following:
-Pitax is the northernmost kingdom of the river kingdoms.
-It is located just south of the territory you've recently annexed (so south of the west part of Frieland).
-The kingdom is a hub for trade in the River Kingdom.
-Founded by the famous brigand known as the Silver Fox, Pitax was long recognized as a haven for thieves and smugglers, but
-King Castruccio Irovetti's efforts have turned the kingdom away from chaos and mayhem and towards culture and higher learning. It boasts an Academy of Grand Arts. That being said, Pitax is best described as striving for culture and higher learning, at least by River Kingdoms' standards.
-The kingdom is not entirely unified and several factions are known to vie for power.
-The ways by which Irovetti took power remain shrouded in mystery. The tale is that he won the land in a game of card.
-The main cities/towns in Pitax are Mormouth, Pitax, and Sarain.
Oberlin looked towards the Duke, curious as to Lothaire's motivations and knowledge of their arrival, but unwilling to ask questions before his liege set the tone of their discussion.
The riders approach and dismount before reaching you. The lead riders gives his horse to one of his retinue and walks up to you, the others staying a respectful distance behind.
The man turns out to be an older man with greying blond hair. He looks tired and drained. His clothes are refined, but worn, heavily worn.
He moves up to Kalsgrim and says: "You are Kalsgrim, Duke of Frieland. Welcome to what used to be my country. I am Lothaire Liacenza. Until recently, I ruled with my brother Berengar over Pitax. I am a hunted man. If Irovetti finds me, he'll deal with me like he dealt with my brother... I came here to tell you to head back while you can. Irovetti will find a way to lift your duchy from underneath you. That, I am sure of it!"
"HA-HA!" Kriger bursts out. "No way I'd ever allow anything like that to happen much less our very own Duke of Frieland! The only thing that's gonna be lifted is his head straight from his shoulders if he dares to try anything like that; I promise you that," he vows, giving a confident nod.
Lothaire says: "The whole city has heard of your arrival, Duke. You are quite the sensation in these parts. Perhaps a new River Kingdom, some say, but I'd wager Irovetti has invited you to swindle you out of your legacy the same way he has swindled my family out of the throne of Pitax. All I know, is that my brother and I entered a high stake game of card, with this fairly new comer. The next thing my brother and I knew, we had abdicated in favour of Irovetti. A coup! An arcane coup! I came here to warn you, that's all."
Malaswyn leans forward ever so slightly and raises an eyebrow, "An arcane coup?"
"How else would you call it? That bastard didn't come with an army. He came with a smile! And after a night I don't- I can't remember, there he is, with the royal deed granting him the rights to the throne, with our signature at the bottom! We should have killed him right and there... But no, we didn't. Plus, he is not without muscle with him... And this country... It doesn't just follows you because you're the king, or the son of the king. We have our system, and it's about deeds and debts; commerce really..."