"Somehow, I doubt it will be that easy. And I expect he'll be a lot less reasonable when my spell wears off..." Crest says, answering Eleanor.
As he hears the results of the interrogation, Lotham frowns, his ears droop and twitch, and his brow furrows. "This is troubling. Very troubling. We should hear what the dwarves have to say about this, but I agree that we cannot take the prisoners there and we should keep this scepter away from there."
"Perhaps it would be best to make a base of our own and keep these as captives there. That ogre cave might work. From there we could try to intercept additional parties and hopefully learn more."
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The group discusses what to do now with the prisoners as they have delved deeper into the underlying reasons for this fight, and begin to see that the waters appear to be a bit murky.
"Anybody know what this 'Ragnarok' the giant was talking about is?" Mlinzi wasn't sure about it, but he had a suspicion that it might not be as pleasant as the giant made it sound.
"Well, assuming I can't convince you all to stay in the lake, I suppose the cave is a good second choice. Shelter is important-- could make us a target though, so we'll need to be careful." Crest replies to Lotham.
"The real question is what do we do while we're out here? I'm not suggesting the Giants are justified in seeking anyone's complete destruction, but if what Shaggorak says is true about this stolen Fellhammer, aligning with the dwarves and stopping the Giant's efforts to reclaim it are not better alternatives..."
Crest is clearly working hard not to arrive at any conclusions without a complete picture, but his distaste for oath-breaking shows through a bit, and his desire to actively seek out and impede Giant groups has waned considerably.
"Lotham is right though, we need to hear the Dwarves out. I'm sure they have their own version of history."
"Ragnarok"...he also mentioned a "Surtr". His god perhaps?
None of you are history buffs, but most of oyu have a solid grasp of religious tenets and legends and know that for the giant races Ragnarok is basically their end of the world scenario. If this Fellhammer is involved in that somehow, and is accurate rather than just fancy legends talk, then it adds a very very troubling twist to the things. More resaerch into the exact details might be required.
It is the middle of the night more or less at this point. Everyone is yawning and shuffling about bleary eyed.
"We should rest and discuss this more in the morning."
"I've had an easier day than the rest of you. I'll take first watch."
What is the plan to deal with the fire giant. He is unsecured currently, but once the magic and so forth wear off he will be surly.
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The giant protests somewhat when you go to tie him up and doesn't understand why you are doing that. Ultimately you have to club him into submission. You make it to the next morning.
The group wakes late in the morning and then spends some time resting and reflecting on the night's battle, discussing plans and options until almost noon, when they break camp, and together with the other group decide what to do with the prisoners. There was talk of setting up a base or using the ogre caves as a location. The ogre baby is also a concern, and the other group is willing to handle the prisoners, who are very surly right now, as well as the newborn.
"We must continue on brothers and sisters. Let them take the prisoners and the baby back. We'll have to trust our family back there to make the case for humane treatment of them. Tolheimia can deal with the dwarves. They need to know about these scepters. We'll keep this one with us and study it to see what we can learn about it. Have them ask about the Fellhammer and let them know the giant's plans. We'll try to collect more of the scepters and see what else we can find out. I wish we could communicate better with those back at the fort."
Day 13 - Morning
Prar, along with the other NPCs from the other group, move the prisoners along. They will have to move slow to hunt while they move to feed the new mouths, but they estimate being back in about a week.
Your group of six remains and after reflection and lunch, you start your day a bit late, but stronger, wiser and with a better idea of what exactly is going on in this war. However, it has brought to your mind many more questions. As you all stand on the shore of the lake, you ponder exactly how to get those answers.
"Safe Travels, all." Crest wishes the others, as they depart. Despite the dangers, they've faced, he's actually quite excited to be out in the unknown, and pleased that he was able to stay, rather than return to Cliffort.
During the resting time, Crest spends a great deal of time examining the scepter with his magic.
As they begin discussing traveling further out, Crest makes a suggestion:
"We'd noticed before that a some river connects with the lake and moves to the North. Perhaps we could travel in that direction, along the river?"
Crest starts to puzzle over the scepter, trying to identify its properties, but it proves to be rather difficult on his first inspection. Perhaps tomorrow.
"A source of fresh water never hurts," Mlinzi put in, deciding that Crest's suggestion made good sense to him. As he was new to this group, though, he wasn't sure if they might have another agenda.
Nathan takes some time to look at the scepter as well.
When they discuss their path Nathan says, "I think we should head north around this lake on the east side and then follow the river to the north or north east. We need to see if we can find another scepter and confiscate it."
"I agree with Nathan. I am not sure we should slay any more of these folk, but we do need to stop this Ragnarok thing from happening."
Lotham also takes a turn studying the scepter.
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"I agree with Lotham. I am no longer so keen on fighting in this skirmish. Certainly we must learn about the truth of the giant's claims about the Fellhammer. Preventing this Ragnarok with w minimum of bloodshed should be our first priority. Perhaps we can create a peaceful resolution... Although that may be wishful thinking."
Overnight, Nathan and Lotham each take turns at trying to understand the scepter. It has a combination of divination, necromancy, evocation and conjuration magic. Neither are able to discern any command words or figure out any of its powers however.
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Ellie voice no argument or objection over the groups desire to uncover the truth of things.
"It's as good as any other direction." Eleanor says following along with the others.
"Perhaps before we leave, or maybe while you all start walking, I should take a look in the lake. You never know what we might find. If you stay along the shoreline, I can find you if anything does merit more attention."
"Of course, brother Crest."
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"Better him in the water than me."
Day 13 - Midday
The group begins moving along the lake, skirting the edge, while Crest slips into the water to take a look beneath the surface. Travel is steady for a few hours and Crest begins swimming out further. The lake is somewhat deep at the center, and his deepsight pierces the water as he swims down further.
At one point he notices an odd something half buried in the muck at the lake bed. Thinking it an old log or something the was stuck he swims close barely interested at first. Upon getting closer, he has as sense of dread and unease wash over him. He notices he has not seen any fish or sign of life in the area. The strange object seems to be some sort of obelisk, smoothed and covered in barnacles and other underwater life. Fighting to overcome the feeling as he approaches it, he takes a quick look. In his mind he sees a glowing rune. He falters a bit and blinks his eyes as the vision is mental as opposed to an aspect of his sight. Closing his eyes he sees the rune again, morphing and taking on different forms. The vision is overwhelming and the power of the rune makes him wish to flee. Opening his eyes, he moves away from the obelisk and ponders what just happened. He is unable to recall the many forms of the rune, but might be able to remember the initial symbol.
He swims swiftly back to shore and meets the rest of the group as they plan to circle around the lake as evening draws in. (progress about 10 miles through the wilds in about 5 hours)
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Crest returns after a time, visibly shaken but otherwise unharmed. As he describes what he saw to the others, he picks up a short stick, clears a small patch of earth, and scratches out the rune as best he can remember.
"Does this look familiar to any of you? Either way, I think this bears further investigation..."
None of the group recognize the rune as anything arcane or magical. Clearly there is some magic going on here, but the rune is more likely a symbol of something. Some of you have heard of the powerful Symbol spells, and this seems like perhaps something like that, but altogether different. You wonder the signifance of the obelisk at the bottom of the lake.
"Well, we know we're looking for a temple, and the landscape could have changed quite a bit since Father Goodwin knew it. Perhaps this is the place, and it's very well protected, or else has been corrupted?" Crest offers to the group.
"That could be. I think this deserves more investigation. How big is this obelisk? Could you bring it up here to the surface?"
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"I suppose I could try, though I'd feel much more comfortable returning if I had some assistance. And it might be safer to look at it before disturbing it."
The obelisk looked to be about 8 feet tall, possibly more it was partially submerged in muck. You couldn't tell if there was a base or how much else was beneath. Even at that size it will be quite heavy. The aura of unease around it may also affect your capabilities.
"This definitely seems like a good sign that we might be in the vicinity of the temple," Mlinzi agreed. "Perhaps with a second look we might be able to identify the enchantments that have been placed on the obelisk. I wish we had some way of identifying what this rune means, though..."
"We should investigate. Some of us will need more help though as we are not adapted to water. Does anyone have any water breathing spells?"
"I've got an idea, but I don't know how much you all will like it..." Crest starts, eyeing Greebins in particular.
"Is anyone familiar with aboleths? I'll spare you the worst details, but they're an ancient, evil race of ocean slavers. Suffice to say, they're smart and very dangerous. They confer water-breathing on their slaves, at the price of their air-breathing. Anyway, I'm aware of a spell that mimics this, but it's not a spell my spirits have ever gifted me with, which I'm actually quite fine with. Maybe your Dawnflower can help though..." Crest trails off, anticipating quite the pushback.
"I think we should investigate as well. We will need someone here I think to guard our backs. I think Greebins would be best for that. The rest of us can go down for a short time and see what we can learn. I can request Air Bubble spells and we can go down for a short time. Does that sound good to you Greebins and everyone else?"
"Perhaps I can 'convince' one of these trees it would rather be a raft. Might help if we find anything worth bringing back." Crest adds.
"These are wise plans."
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Greebins hair visible smooths down, and he replies, "Yes, I think that would be a good plan."
Mlinzi nods. "We shouldn't pass by this opportunity to learn more, even if it does mean getting a little wet."
The group readies themselves to investigate the strange discovery on the lake bed. Will you go tonight or in the morning?
Crest works on creating a raft, grabbing a bunch of driftwood into a heap, and applying his magic to create a small size raft that will make a functional kickboard for one of the large races (+2 to swimming rolls) or a raft for someone medium or smaller.
"Well, first thing in the morning then. It's a good ways swim to the obelisk, so we'll want as much time as we can to get out and back."