Chapter Seven: The Stalemate At Loton's Cove

Were we supposed to check back in with the Heirophant and maybe let them know what happened to Gethro?

Does anybody really want to stop back at Hazard to report on Gethro's fate? I'm sure the Hierophant and his staff would appreciate it, for whatever that's worth to the party.

None of you feel good about leaving Martjan to her choice, but what else is there to be done? With little left to be said, she watches in silence as the party prepares to leave. "If you see Zora again..." she starts to say at one point, but never finishes the sentence.

The weather turns foul as the party makes their way out of the mountains, cold rain pouring down in hard, relentless sheets. One upside of this is that it helps to conceal you from orcish scouts in the hills.

Back in rain-soaked Hazard, you find a city whose mood is even more gloomy and brittle than when you left it. The taverns murmur with talk of the orcs moving south from their forgotten hideways, as well as news that the armies of Gurmar have captured the Three Beryl Cities, a sign that their avaricious intentions may turn toward Hazard once they've beaten Gaad into submission.

Perhaps the most foreboding of all is the idea taking hold in the city that the answer to these and other woes is to sacrifice the Hierophant in the Innocent's stead, abolish the office, and crown the Innocent as King, who--unable to father children of his own--would then adopt his elder brother Valo Cron as his heir. This radical and detailed plan was first articulated by the popular philosopher Balner the Younger in a public speech; he was perfunctorily arrested for it, but the damage had been done and by the time the party arrives back in the city, the public speaks openly of the merits of this plan without fear.

So it is that your meeting with the Hierophant takes place under guard and secrecy, in the cellar of an ancient tea-house in the Old Temple District. You sit on bare stools at a heavy rustic table with only the Hierophant and Lendras present.

Will you tell them everything that happened during your excursion, or an edited version?

Do you guys have any questions for them or any other things you want to do in Hazard while you're here?

Hope that arm gets better soon!

Following Domarc's lead, the party mostly speaks of what happened at Solyhill and with Gethro; they cautiously mention going further to ascertain that Gavrel's fortress had been effectively abandoned for now. Finding a moment alone with Lendras proves a challenge, but Domarc manages to relay Gethro's words when the Hierophant steps away to give some instruction to his guards. She reacts mildly to her mentor's last words to her, acknowledging them with a businesslike nod.

"Gorham is to the east, near Sthombo," the Hierophant tells the party. "My spies have confirmed this. We believe he may be encamped somewhere north of the city, along the coast. I have entreated with the House of Cron to put aside their differences with me and endorse military action against this vile magus, but their only concern right now is how they can use the present political moment to their benefit. I have hired assassins, but I do not expect them to succeed. It seems that the Sphere may at last be within Gorham's grasp, and we shall all see whether he is able to work wonders with it or not."

Lendras glances over at the party. "Hire them, Reverend Master. They have pursued Gorham and his cult longer than anyone. They know his ways. Give them the resources to succeed in this charge. They may be our best hope to put an end to this."

The Hierophant makes a dismissive snorting sound. "Perhaps. Every time we think we have seen the last of them, they return to us -- empty handed, as it were, but unbroken. Very well, Lendras, we'll try it your way. If these mercenaries bring me Gorham's body, I will pay each of them his weight in gold." He raises an eyebrow. "Does that appeal, then? Will you take this commission? If you return to this place tomorrow morning, we will furnish you with armaments, supplies, and funding for your journey."

Will the party accept the Hierophant's offer and return here in the morning, or will you go your own way without the Hierophant's sponsorship?

Anybody around this week?

The party puts up at the Glittering Cobweb, an upscale inn nearby. In the common room, a bard plays an elaborate citole and sings a song about a young boy who is forced to accept kingship as his destiny when the gods forsake his land. You suspect the song has been freshly whipped up to capitalize on current events; some of the rhymes are quite forced.

The next morning, you return to the tea house basement where you find Lendras with a few porters and bodyguards. Several trunks and cases have been laid out.

Zangua receives:

* A fauchard with a pole made of smooth red wood and a blade of folded steel. Lendras identifies it as a Sienese weapon that various city-states in Bload have been re-exchanging as a diplomatic gift for decades. This is a +2 polearm.

* A golden brooch shaped like a grotesque face with uncut emeralds in its eye sockets and mouth. Lendras says this was made in Felboc and is designed to protect you from Gorham's sorceries. This is a Brooch of Shielding.

* A dried, stoppered gourd containing three doses of a healing potion.

Other party members, check in to claim your gear! The final dungeon awaits.

Domarc receives:

* A quilted tunic into which various charms, coins, and amulets have been sewn Though worn and a bit stained in places, this is Glamoured Studded Leather +1. This had been seized from the infamous burglar Sly Milmer after his capture.

* A 300 year old Jermal hunting sword made of iron. This is a +2 rapier.

* A dried, stoppered gourd containing three doses of a healing potion.

Leth receives:

* A pair of bracers made of dark, polished wood and leather with a curious texture. They look brand new. These are Bracers of Archery.

* A bow fashioned from a branch cut from the Yew of Longsorrow, a tree highly venerated by the druids of Engol. This is a +2 longbow.

* A dried, stoppered gourd containing three doses of a healing potion.

Felor receives:

* A heavy bronze mace with a head shaped like an inverted pyramid. Strange, intricate glyphs are etched into each side. Lendras thinks this came from a very old tomb in Mez, but the provenance has been lost. This is a Mace of Disruption.

* A pair of thick, furred boots made from white bearhide. These are Boots of the Winterlands.

* A dried, stoppered gourd containing three doses of a healing potion.

Lendras informs you that fresh horses and more mundane provisions await you at a ranch just outside of the city. "Do what must be done," she says by way of farewell. "This city has many enemies. It has always survived on the sacrifices of people unseen and unheralded. I don't know what will await you here should you return, but please -- kill Gavrel Gorham and bring an end to this cult."

With that, she falls in step with the porters and departs.

Mordred, catch up when you can and collect your swag! Unless anyone has any last minute questions or business here, we will proceed shortly to the next location.

It's six days ride to Sthombo and a little further to the cove, and you make good time on the robust brown and golden horses Lendras acquired for you. The party follows the roads laid close to the river, passing by the old farms and damp marshes you traversed months ago when you were trying to find Zora.

The troubles of Hazard are of little interest to those outside the city's immediate vicinity; at the inns and taverns along the way the only talk is of the war to the south, the savagery of the Gurmarine shock troops, and the sacking of the Beryl cities. One night, in a roadhouse that floated upon the swamp on a platform of logs, Zangua marks the halfway point of the journey with a bottle or four while Domarc plays music to the crowd. There is a darkness to his choice of song and the manner of his playing which some of the drunken revelers don't seem to like, but a few youths stay and listen to him all night, occasionally swaying or dancing jerkily to the melodies.

Outside, Felor sits beneath and old willow tree, praying to Fjorgyn, reciting the her hymns from memory, and trying desperately to form a connection with the spirit of the land. He can almost feel it, trapped beneath the surface and unreachable, like a boil beneath the skin that grows ever angrier but cannot be drawn out without a chirurgeon's needle. He can feel Fjorgyn's presence, almost--looming over him, watching him fumble for answers, but unwilling--or unable?--to lend him the fullness of her strength the way she did, at times, in the mountains of Jerma.

A white owl lands silently on the branch of a stripped trunk nearby. It swivels its head to face Felor, hoots once, and takes flight again. The worst kind of omen: unmistakably a sign, but completely inscrutable. He returns to the warmth of the roadhouse feeling as unsettled as ever.

As the night stretches on, Leth helps Zangua to his room and rolls him on his side to sleep.

To be continued...

A day out from the floating roadhouse, the party encounters four dead men, shorn of limb and hanging upside down from the sheer face of a hill beside the road. "DESERTERS" is written in white paint below them. None of you can tell which army they might have deserted.

A couple days later, the walls of Sthombo are within your sights, but you take a smaller road that veers north, then forks off into a dirt trail that takes you out close to the coastline. It is warm and windy on this day, and the air carries the pleasant if pungent scents of the bountiful sea.

Leth ranges ahead to scout the area. Late in the afternoon, while the party is preparing supper under the cover of a thicket of oak trees in a sheltered valley, he returns with the news you have all awaited. Just ahead, at an abandoned farm, he spied a pavilion tent, cookfires, and a few smaller tents. For a long time he waited watchfully, observing a number of people coming in and out of the tent. He heard strange music, and at one point, many voices chanting. Already certain he had found Gorham's camp, he lingered a bit longer and observed as one person floated up into the air and flew away to the east. At that point he returned to the party as swiftly and quietly as he could.

The camp is about an hour's walk to the north and the cove should be just a few miles to the east of it. Leth estimates that there were between forty and sixty people there.

Arrived at your destination. What's your move?

Open fields surround the camp for a good distance on all sides, making it difficult to approach unseen.