Chapter 8

In-game Session Start Date: ?, Barrakas 4 998YK (Wednesday August 4)

Main Points

• Characters provide testimony to guards on the lightning rail, which is backed up by a Zone of Truth spell cast by Todd.
• As they pull into Sword Keep the rail lurches and they find out that the pilot has lost control of the two elementals pulling the train.
• Tarius goes to the cabin and talks down the one elemental, getting it back under control and behaving normally. The second elemental is infuriated and breaks free of his confinements, materializing on the roof of the cabin forcing a battle.
• Tarius strikes the elemental with an Ice Dagger, and summons skeletons to attack it while Centerleft holds the raging fire elemental back with his tower shield. His summoned Owlbear Skeleton destroys the elemental with it's cold-charged swipes, and then Tarius takes the still-burning coals of it's remains to use as a future spell component.
• The rail stops in Sword Keep for 2 days to repair and refit. The party is given quarters in House Orien's compound. Centerleft is referred by some old army compatriots to an artificer named Gallin d'Frin after telling his story about reviving himself on the battlefield. Gallin finds am unusual positive energy current running through the Warforged's body, something the Docent remarks at being attracted to, and then Gallin is shocked when he taps the Docent in his chest with his tool. Gallin states that he will look into his books to try and determine the cause or purpose of the energy current and urges Centerleft to come back for a bit longer sometime soon so that he may study him again.
• In the morning House Orien presents them with their new quarters, a complimentary First Class cart reserved solely for them. Buzz is beginning to be generated by the local populace and other rail passengers, calling the party members the "Protectors" or "Defenders".
• The rail continues on, stopping briefly in Marketplace for a quick cargo exchange; the party members disembark briefly for supplies, while keeping Orion onboard with Tarius to avoid incidents.
• Coming up on their last stop, the train puts in at Passage for the night. House Orien thanks the party for doing so much for them, and gives them a voucher for a free 2000 mile ride on any House Orien lightning rail, each. That's enough to cover almost anywhere on the Western Line, very valuable indeed.
• As the players are thanked by House Orien, they are also approached by a very straight laced paladin of the Silver Flame requesting that they accompany him to the local Silver Flame temple for some important questioning. They ride seperately, divided between two carts, and are brought down into the lower basement of the Temple.
• The party is questioned all together by the notorious Captain Landas d'Medani, an intense and devout paladin from a long proud line of Lycanthrope hunters. He has some questions about the rumours of a bandit witnessing a werewolf eating a dead body. Any rational law enforcement official would discard it as being crazy rubbish spoken by a crazy and desperate criminal, but Landas takes claims of Lycanthropy very seriously, deadly serious.
• He questions the party, and at a few points raises an eyebrow with interest. He excuses himself near the end of his questioning to say a quick prayer and light his silverburn candle, an excuse to confirm his suspicions about the group. When they boy cringes slightly, Landas licks his lips with anticipation, and just as he is about to yell for guards and take them into custody, Landas is knocked unconcious by the guard behind him. Mendis, Thrash's changeling friend, had assumed the form of the guard to keep an eye on them.
• The changeling helps the party quickly escape the temple, using a magical device to erase recent memories from unconcious guards as they have to subdue them. They meet at the docks, where they are told they must covertly board a ship, as their airship has been siezed. They ca not reveal their true names or destination, lest Landas get a headstart on tracking them before they reach Wolf's Paw.
• A few days go by on the boat before they reach Cree, then they quickly jump aboard a waiting wagon and ride to Wolf's Paw, arriving there late that night. On the trip the changeling admits his name is actually Dis and he is a spy-for-hire employed by Ferrel ir'Vadalis as back-up.
• The group speaks with Lundragon and Halden, they explain the situation, and Halden explains the purpose of Wolf's Paw to them. He asks that the group stays in Wolf's Paw for one week while Orion decides what his fate will be.

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Notes

Party is given an advance level, and allowed to level to Level 5. It would have only taken a bit more experience to reach the next level, and the next session would certainly provide that.