Journal - Kelditch's Staff

An Ambush of Our Own

The large cave that Amur had brought us to was like a basin within the mountain, with most of the people in smaller caves around the edges. The large space at the centre seemed to be used as a place to meet and train rather than live in. It was clear that the people had been here for a while, but that it was not meant to be permanent. We waited in the central area for Amur as he went to find Farouk, although he returned alone and apologised, saying that we would need to wait a little. He instructed his people to erect a tent, similar to when we were first welcomed by him.

It wasn't long, though, before a large, athletic warrior approached us alone. He was wearing a strange helmet which had the horns of one of the creatures we had seen "red pants" fly on mounted upon it. He went straight to Falcor and invited us to join him for water, entering the tent. We went through a similar ceremony of pouring water and then passing it to each of us in turn, saying "we drink water". When that was done we were given a smaller cup each to drink freely and Farouk relaxed, sprawling on the floor and saying "we are friends now". His Common was much better than Amur's, and his greeting as "friends and warriors" seemed genuine.

There was some talk of our exploits on the journey here, but when we tried to explain that we wanted to intercept an item of Kelditch, and I revealed the part of the staff we already had, he was taken aback. Apparently he could sense Kelditch's aura upon it, and would not speak of the Gods without his shaman being there, and he sent someone to find and bring them. While we waited, Falcor and Farouk started comparing weapons like typical men so I zoned out for a bit, just enjoying a refreshing drink. Eventually the shaman arrived, wearing slightly more ornate robes and not carrying weapons, but otherwise similar in garb. Farouk called him "Affiah".

He was taken aback by the power of the staff as well, as well as hearing that we had been to the temple on the island and spoken with Kelditch. We then described having traveled to the land of "Itlak Alna'a"; they spat at the mention of the name, calling them the "lord of dust and nothing", but said that it was his influence that was changing their land. Kelditch had set them the task of closing the portals to that realm in the mountains, but they had been driven back and we knew there were many now. On a positive note, they pledged to aid us in stopping the other part of the staff from falling to their foe, recognising the power of their lord in the part I had, and how terrible a loss it would be if the enemy took it.

We also learned that "Soldar" was the other brother of Kelditch (as well as Kraldar of course) that was able to leave Treddar. It seemed that he was able to do so without even a fight because he was so different from his father that they both just wished to be apart. Affiah related tales that said in Soldar's land the Gods do not trouble the people and the people do not trouble the Gods... sounds interesting - perhaps I should try to reach this place? It was far to the west they said. I remembered that Kelditch had mentioned a "lost uncle" and asked if they knew who this way, but this seems to cause great offense to Affiah, so I had to apologise as I hadn't meant to. Apparently they do not speak of the "lost Gods". They also knew of the dark elf prince and the warped blade he wielded, but they had learned to avoid him as he was very dangerous.

Before we could plan an ambush I had to check to see where the staff was now, and I asked if I could be taken to a nondescript place that wouldn't reveal our location to any observers. I had sensed another mind watching before, so I was wary and didn't want to bring trouble to this place. Farouk said that he would "persuade" one of their mages to come with me to detect any attempt to scry as well. Some of the warriors took us to a sheltered rocky spot and I focused through the staff on it's sister part as before. I could see that it was surrounded by at least a score of giantkin, and that they trekked beside a parched river bed that was no more than a stream now. That was on the right, and the mountains were ahead, no more than a day or so march I guessed. Dry scrub was to the left. I had learned enough, so I withdrew and sensed that a mind was following me as I did so. I was able to mentally "slam the door" in their face, though, and it felt quite satisfying to know that I could return to my body safely. The mage had noticed that something tried to connect but hadn't reached us, and it was good to have it confirmed.

I returned to Falcor and explained where I had seen the staff and what we might be facing. We would have to leave quickly if we wanted to intercept it on foot, and we could not allow ourselves to be delayed in enemy territory. Falcor was worried about this, and produced a scroll that he could not use, but that might allow us to travel quickly and intercept them at a point of our choosing. I could understand the scroll, so I believed I could use the power within it to transport us... but only the two of us; no others could travel with us. It did mean we had time to rest, though, and even a day to kill with some training, the people here interested in our ways of fighting compared to their own.

We had determined to meet the foe as they entered the mountains, away from the territory of the dark elves, and the scroll allowed us to turn translucent and misty and be carried along on an arcane wind at great speed. We saw the occasional roaming band of giantkin, but were easily able to avoid them and go unnoticed on our journey. When we reached the northern side of the mountain range we found a sheltered spot between rock outcrops and stopped to check on the staff's location. The dweomer allowed us to return to our corporeal bodies over about five minutes, and then I could focus on the staff once more. I had another clear picture of where the band of giantkin were... we were close! They were walking up a path on a nearby mountain, and it would be easy for us to get up ahead of them from where we were. We used the last hour or so of the misty travel to ensure we were ahead and then made our way along the path to a likely ambush spot where we would be above them as they passed by. I drew from my usual power source to gain extra strength, but was surprised to find that power seemed to flow from Falcor himself and the effect was magnified; I had never felt so strong before! Falcor turned us invisible as the giantkin party drew closer, assuring me that we would be able to attack without revealing ourselves, but that it would be fairly short in duration.

The enemy party lumbered up the path and started to pass us by, probably more than a score now, and then Falcor threw a fireball into their midst, killing four of them instantly and burning some others. We both started to move, using our telepathic connection to keep track of where we were; I went down onto the path and headed towards the centre of the pack where the largest giants were, whilst Falcor kept above them. He then dropped an iceball on the rear of the group, killing a few more and causing more injuries. The giants begin to run, scattering to either side of the path so that they weren't clumped together. This was handy for me as I was able to run down the path they had cleared in the centre. Falcor kept moving too, jumping down behind them and sending a lightning bolt streaking through a line of the foe from the rear, killing two more.

More importantly, Falcor had seen the staff, sending me an image of the giant carrying it, and I closed on the target as quickly as I could. Falcor sent another lightning bolt into the foe, and I had a rueful memory of Meglar and his despair with the destruction he had caused when he lost control. Would I ever see him again? He had always come back before, but this time I wasn't sure. Falcor picked up on the thought, thinking that I was criticising him. He flashed an image of the giantkin destroying an ancient forest with fire, but that just made me sad; we should try not to become that which we hate. Back to Falcor, I said that it was just a memory, but two more of the giantkin had fallen dead, smoking. I fought back the sick tension in my stomach and concentrated on the staff - as soon as I had it we could leave.

I closed with the giant that had the staff, but it was stuck between its armour and its body, high up on its back. Without climbing I wouldn't be able to reach it... I could cut it down to size, though. I drew my swords and struck, landing one blow but finding it odd to fight without seeing my weapons. There was a bellow of alarm and those closest started trying to strike at me, but they couldn't see me and only one came close, scraping my armour. Falcor sent a ray of dweomer into the staff bearer, making him weaker, and then I was able to land several blows in quick succession, killing him. Many of its fellow giantkin had converged on me, though, and I was surrounded. I slashed another foe, already wounded, and he fell, then turned my attention to the staff.

I sheathed my swords and grabbed it with both hands, yanking it free and jumping down from the body I had stood on to get it. I was struck heavily in the back as I did so, though, falling forwards against the cliff edge where I was able to steady myself and tuck the staff under my cloak. Falcor dropped another ice ball behind me, catching some of the giantkin moving towards us and killing another three or so. Falcor then attacked with his mind, confusing one of the larger creatures. With the staff behind my back out of sight, I used my free hand to draw Amarat and cut down one of my attackers, making a gap to escape through. I ran before the gap could be closed, slipping through and moving back up the path towards a bit of slope I could run up.

Falcor became visible again, and bravely shouted out to try and distract the foe that were chasing me, but only one took the bait. He was hit painfully as the creature closed with him, but Falcor responded at once and skewered his attacker, dropping him instantly. We both ran up the slope, and I became visible on the way just after we had converged on each other, with the giantkin still chasing. Some of them were getting tired and fell behind, and then Falcor grabbed me and instantly transported us about two hundred yards up the slope with a word. We were able to catch our breath for a minute and then continue our escape, the giants falling farther behind as they exhausted themselves.

Rest and Experimenting with Portals

Once we had lost ourselves in the rocky slopes a bit higher up, we were able to make our way more carefully back to the home of the Red Clan to inform them of our success, and to get some much needed rest. We ended up spending a month with the people here, learning from them and teaching our own techniques. Their shaman were particularly interested in teaching me the method they used to close portals, which no longer worked for them because Kelditch's power was denied to them for some reason. I promised to try it for myself, not knowing whether it would work or not as I had no idea where my own powers came from.

Falcor also explained more about his quest to relight the Forge of Karmana, and why he had come seeking me. I apparently carried an ancient soul within me that was a key part of the process to restore the Forge. Falcor had another, there were a couple of Elves (not the bad kind he said) and an Elvrahum (whatever that was). That left just one undiscovered, apparently the essence of intelligence. This led us to talk about the gateway to the Dead, and that made me pay attention. It seemed that the natural gateway between Karmana and the Dead had been closed for some time, which would explain how Kraldar was able to trap the souls of the dead and draw on their power. Unfortunately if we were to open it, whilst it would allow souls to return to Karmana, it would also allow the hordes of undead to invade the world as well. There was also a "Queen of the Damned" trapped somewhere, imprisoned by the Sarn. It was a bit much to get my head around, to be honest, but I said I would help if Falcor would take me north to my mother's clan and vouch for me there. He agreed, once the Forge was alight, and said he had to travel there anyway so our paths would align.

When I was sure I had mastered the technique of the ritual to close a portal, we set off on foot to see if we could affect the portals to It'lak Alna'a's realm. We traveled north first, and then tracked west along a ridge towards the area we knew would have portals open. The ridge was quite sharp in places, but at least we only had to watch one direction for threats (on the ground at least). It was mid-afternoon, when we were drawing close to the journey's end, that we met trouble. We were approaching another peak where we could turn south or north to traverse it, when we saw something at our level on the southern side just coming into view. We stopped and watched, seeing five humanoid shapes in total, probably about a mile ahead of us. There was a taller one at the back, wearing clothes of some sort. As they drew closer it was clear that they were giantkin, but of a type we hadn't seen in the mountains before. A couple of hundred yards away the taller one stopped and started chanting as the others ran towards us. Falcor flashed an image of the smaller ones attacking a great forest, so he had seen some of these before and they had evil intent.

Falcor sent a lightning bolt crackling through the runners, obviously causing them some pain, but their mage at the back disappeared from view. I conjured a shield, wary of dweomer being hurled at me, and prepared to meet the charging giantkin in melee. Falcor, though, sent another lightning bolt arcing through the line and they all writhed in agony, most falling and only one left moving forward. Horrified, I moved forward to quickly slit the throat of the last one, putting it out of its misery. The smell of charred flesh made me gag, and brought back unpleasant memories. I tried to concentrate on finding the invisible foe, but a lightning bolt flashed the other way this time, striking me. The pain was intense, but thankfully short-lived although it left an odd taste in my mouth.

Falcor turned invisible and told me he was moving forward, passing by me on the ridge. I moved forward as well, but we had seen nothing so far. A web suddenly appeared stretched across the ground on the path ahead, presumably conjured by Falcor, and there was some disturbance in the far corner where he might just have snagged something. I tried to irritate the mage using dweomer, as it affected a small area. It should either slow him down or could keep him occupied for a little while. But then Falcor just opted for more destruction, causing a fireball to explode in the area engulfing it all in flames and combusting the web almost instantly. There was just a flash of the giant caught within the blast... an absence of fire more than anything else... before the flames were gone and we lost sight of him again.

Falcor conjured a flashing pattern of lights, and tried to warn me not to enter. Like I couldn't work that out for myself! I didn't want to talk to him anyway, he was just destroying everything, did he have no control?! I moved forward again and shouted, half at the invisible mage and half at Falcor, to "just stop this; it's pointless"! Falcor conjured a stinking cloud anyway, roughly where the mage had been, and I used dweomer to protect myself from fire... if Falcor could create a fireball then so might the foe! We were not attacked, though, so perhaps at least one person had listened to me. Falcor jogged down the path, trying to put as much distance as possible between us, and I matched his pace a little behind him. We reached the peak and decided to move around to the north (the opposite side to where we had seen the giantkin come from).

Once we were starting to turn the corner I stopped to check behind us, not detecting anything evil there, so I tried to reassure Falcor that nothing was following us. We moved up towards a blind corner and Falcor looked around to see what lay ahead. Unfortunately there was another party of giantkin, the same as before - one mage with a bunch of fighters carrying large hammers. I moved ahead to block the path as Falcor put an arrow into the mage, and I was quickly surrounded by foes; at least there was only room for three of them on the narrow ledge. Lightning engulfed Falcor, but at the same time he seemed unaffected by it and he put a second arrow into the mage. I struck one of the foe several times, but his hammer crunched into my chest leaving me breathless and fighting back the pain... they hit hard!

The mage disappeared from view, not unexpectedly. Falcor put an arrow into the back of the injured giant instead, and it stiffened and fell off the cliff. I engaged the next in melee, landing some good hits. Fire exploded behind me, but Falcor ran through it just as I cut down my opponent and he was able to leap over the body to engage another. I mean it looked good, but it was spoiled slightly by the hammer smacking into his side as he landed. Unperturbed, he responded with powerful blows that cut deeply into his attacker and they fell dead in but a minute. I had struck my own opponent several times, and Falcor was able to skewer it from behind quite easily leaving us seemingly alone. We knew the mage was close, though, unless they had decided to flee.

We were close now, though, so I moved on ahead. We could see that there were more giantkin near what looked like a portal on the plateau ahead, although they were more like the kind we had encountered before. I used dweomer to restore some health and aid me in the fight, moving forward again to the edge of the plateau. I had deliberately made sure that I had the enemy's attention, and they started moving towards me. There were a couple of small groups, half a dozen in total, and as they closed up they bunched together enough that Falcor was able to explode a fireball amongst them. Two fell writhing and then burst into flames, eventually falling still, but the rest kept going and closed quickly on me. They were so focused on me, though, that Falcor was able to attack from the flank, striking one heavily in the side.

I finished off the largest foe, but took a hit in return as I was surrounded by this stage. Falcor cut through his opponent, quite literally as they were almost cut in half! I killed one of the smaller ones and that evened things up nicely, leaving just one for each of us to take on. They were not a match for us one-on-one and we were both splattered in blood as they fell quickly. I noticed, though, that the portal had started to glow slightly; could more be coming through? Falcor ran ahead as I pulled my sword from the body of the last foe, and I followed behind. He stopped, though, and started casting just as one of the red-pant creatures stepped through the portal. This new arrival's demeanor was quite casual until he saw Falcor. He reached back to touch the portal, appearing to shout through it, and a moment later it's beast emerged - much bigger than the one we had seen before. Red pants leapt on its back and they took to the air, and Falcor let his spell fail so as not to engage them. Now I was even more confused about his willingness to make others suffer or not!

I had moved closer than Falcor by this stage, focused on trying to close the portal. The first step was to add elemental water, knowing that the portal was linked to fire and dust; this was supposed to increase the chances of successfully closing it. I conjured a LOT of water, getting drenched in the process but catching some in a waterskin. I didn't mind being wet, though, as there had been plenty of fire around recently. I started the ritual the shaman had taught me, including throwing the water through the portal, and focused my concentration on forcing it closed. This time I deliberately didn't use Kelditch's staff so that I could see if the power I channeled would work. It did! It was strange, though, it felt right like no other dweomer I had used, and I had a sense of inner peace like never before. There was also no sense of power coming from anywhere else, which was odd and different; normally I could sense the energy flowing into and out of me, but this time it just happened... almost like it was my own doing instead of another's. I would have to reflect on this.

Having confirmed that the ritual worked, we started the return journey. Thankfully this time it passed without incident and we were welcomed back. Affiah was particularly excited to know whether it had worked or not, but I was wary of talking too freely in public and asked if we could have a private conversation just for the shaman to hear. Falcor went off to drink and celebrate with Farouk as Affiah took me into a cave that had clearly been set aside as a temple. I confirmed that the ritual had worked for me, but this seemed to sadden him as he interpreted it as meaning that it was their faith that had failed them and not that Kelditch's power was cut off in some way. I tried to suggest that the power might have come from somewhere else, which is why it might have worked for me, and that I knew Kelditch did not have a direct link to the land any more. Affiah seemed suddenly happier, and wondered if "the sleeping God had awoken". I agreed - Falcor had suggested that he was awake not, and Affiah at once seemed to know what to do. Apparently this happened regularly, if infrequently, and if Treddar had awoken then it was normal for Kelditch to withdrawn. He said that he would take his people into the desert to seek shelter, as Kelditch would not be able to give them the power to protect the mountains.

This was all going quite well, but then I made the mistake of over-sharing and saying that the power I had used might have come from myself. Then to explain that, I told him I was related to Kelditch by blood. He became quite agitated when I said Kelditch was my uncle, angry even. He demanded to know which of the brothers I claimed was my father. When I told him that my father was Kraldar he lost it completely, seemingly completely oblivious to the hypocrisy of at the same time revering Keldith, the son of Treddar, whilst condemning me, the daughter of Kraldar as a "daughter of Death". Clearly father and offspring are not the same!

He could not be reasoned with, though, and ordered the guards to draw swords on me, running off - presumably to seek the aid of the Farouk. I offered no resistance, but after a few moments it was clear that they had no intention of attacking me, instead looking nervous and happy to wait for the return of Affiah. I wasn't content to wait, but I also didn't want to hurt them, so I used the ability to transport myself that I had learned from Falcor, instantly appearing in the chamber where I had last seen Falcor. I surprised some warriors there, although they recovered quickly. I had to take a minute to recover my senses properly after such a sudden shift, but I asked as calmly as I could where I might find Falcor. One of the warriors happily offered to take me there.

A Quick Exit and a Strange Journey

As we walked casually through the cave, I was shouting telepathically to Falcor, who thankfully acknowledged me. I quickly gave him an image of Affiah being enraged and suggested that we might need to leave in a hurry! Falcor made his excuses to Farouk and jogged out towards a larger chamber we had both crossed earlier. Unsurprisingly, he entered as Affiah was striding across it, and when the shaman saw him he ordered the half a dozen or so in sight to stop Falcor. Falcor ran quickly, getting away from the shaman and his followers, who seemed to struggle with their fitness; and the warriors whilst they were asking him to stop seemed confused and didn't want to use force. I had been following my "guide" but as I heard running feet approaching I turned and ran towards the main cavern, seeing Falcor not far behind me as I looked back. We were able to make good on our escape, mainly because the warriors didn't know what was going on so nobody tried to stop us. We were sure that it wouldn't be that easy once Affiah had spoken to Farouk, though, so we kept going into the night until we were forced to rest by a combination of exhaustion and the danger of injury from moving through the rocky landscape in the darkness (well for Falcor anyway).

Falcor was understandably upset by the sudden need to leave, and apparently had been enjoying a pleasant evening with some wine until I messed it all up. Fuck my father, and all the Gods and their ignorant "believers"! Falcor refused to talk about it, so I just tried to get some sleep, eventually managing a fitful slumber, although it was surprisingly late in the morning when I awoke. Falcor was brooding, and when he noticed I was awake he asked into the air "what now?" before stalking off in a strop. I couldn't do much about that, so I started meditating to regain some of my power in case I needed it.

Unbeknown to me at the time, Falcor had sought out a quiet place to commune with Malada. He was transported to her garden, and they spoke of me. The Goddess seemed genuinely shocked that I was Kraldar's daughter, and asked if Falcor was sure that I was the one he sought, which he was. Despite Falcor speaking for me, which I would have been grateful for if he had told me, Malada stressed that I would not be tolerated in her realm. Apparently to invite someone like me in would give me the power to come and go as I pleased, and she was not willing to grant such a thing. There had been only one other, her lost brother, that had been there other than Falcor. She also noted that my use of Kelditch's staff was probably not as it seemed, saying that the power came from within me, and that the item could amplify it but it would not allow me to directly use Kelditch's power. Despite not being able to help Falcor return to the Forge, she restored him fully in mind and body saying that it was the least she could do for him instead. After that he returned to his senses, once more sat in the mountains where he had begun his meditation.

Falcor returned to where we had slept, finding me still meditating. He left me be despite the time, but an hour and a half later he caught sight of the giant bat we had encountered what seemed like an age ago on our first journey to the cave settlement. It was lazily flying in the distance, but would come close, so Falcor woke me to warn of the danger and we hid amongst the rocks, keeping still until it had passed. I started to meditate again, hoping that it would not come back this way, but annoyingly it did just that, even closer this time. We blanked our minds as we felt a scan from the beast, and thankfully it passed harmlessly over and out of sight again. It was clear that we needed to move, though, so we headed southeast away from what seemed to be the thing's hunting grounds.

After we had traveled for a little way, Falcor produced a wondrous-looking feather from somewhere on his person. He concentrated on it for a minute and it started to glow slightly; in fact I could feel the energy pulsing from it, so it was clearly no simple feather. Shortly afterwards a winged creature that Falcor called a Pegasus, and he called it by his name, Aerganion, appeared in front of Falcor. I would say that Aergarnion was even more wondrous that the feather, which would be true, but at that time it wasn't the first impression that I had... instead he came crashing into the ground beside Falcor, his feathers and body badly burnt and still smoking. He was flanked by two other pegasii, also wounded but not as badly, that seemed only to seek his protection, looking around warily at me and the rocky landscape.

Aergarnion shared an image of him and his followers fighting in a realm that had no land, just air, but was filled with creatures of fire that were almost overwhelming his folk. We got the impression that he was grateful Falcor had called, as it had provided a way for him to escape from a place that had become two realms merged into one: air and fire combined. At that point he slumped into unconsciousness, overcome by the pain of the burns he had suffered. Falcor rushed to his side, clearly concerned and an old acquaintance of this being of Air. He used his mental gifts to heal Aergarnion, and then searched for a potion that could aid him further. Aergarnion regained consciousness after Falcor's aid, but was still weak. The potion, though, that Falcor encouraged him to drink quickly and visibly restored him to full health, feathers regrowing, ash falling away, and a deep inner radiance returning. He threw himself into the air with joy, crying out that the "Guardian" was fated to help him and his realm, and had restored him in his time of need.

I tried to offer my aid to the other two pegasii, but they shied away, nervous of a stranger perhaps, or sensing my father's taint more likely. They accepted Falcor's aid, though, and soon they were all restored and ready to travel again. Aergarnion explained that the Lord of Fire sought to expand his realm into that of Air, and that he had been caught unexpectedly in a place between places. Falcor's call was a saving beacon that allowed him to escape, but he would have to return to fight for his people. Falcor immediately offered his help, which was admirable, but Aergarnion insisted that he had already helped, and that his quest was more important that the fight between Air and Fire. Falcor acknowledged me for the first time, saying that I could help to close portals between realms, but Aergarnion explained that the two realms had crashed together, so there was no simple gate to close. He thanked me, at least, for the offer of help, but instead asked only that we take the fight to those that serve fire whenever we could so that their strength was weakened and diverted.

Falcor spoke of his need for us to travel to the Forge, and Aergarnion at once agreed to take us as far as Borarla. I mounted one of the Pegasii, Aergarnion took Falcor of course, and almost at once I sensed that we had left Karmana and entered somewhere else. There was no time to take this change in, though, as we were almost immediately set upon by creatures of fire! I just got the sense that the world was sort of rushing past below us, despite hardly moving at all in relative terms to the other creatures here. We were in the air, but also in a strange place between worlds.

I was able to use the other part of Kelditch's staff to control one of the fire creatures, convincing it that I was an ally. The unburdened pegasus attacked one foe, summoning hailstones to pelt it, but it didn't have any noticeable effect. Fireballs exploded all around us, and I could see why Aergarnion had been so badly burned! Falcor managed to cast a spell somehow, and ice exploded around the fire creature farthest from us, not once but twice. The fire that made up its form sputtered and died, the black remains within tumbling out of sight rapidly. A ring of fire appeared around Falcor and Aergarnion, but they were able to fly through without damage. Fireballs once again exploded around me, causing more damage, but thankfully not yet setting us on fire.

Aergarnion climbed above the fire, sending intense cold forking into a foe like lightning. Falcor summoned missiles of ice to strike at the same foe, and it too sputtered and died, leaving just two. It seemed that being repeatedly attacked had served some purpose, though, as the one I had controlled earlier rushed to my defence; she crashed into the other foe and they both disappeared leaving us free to fly onward. It seemed like just a moment later that we shifted from the strange rushing motion to being within a forest, my mount flaring its wings to land on the soil. We had arrived in Borarla, the forest Falcor had told me had suffered fire and devastation at the hands of the giantkin.