The Windhovers' Call

Frandal rises when he does and nods to him when he leaves-

"Well, I am relieved. " he says when Ardavi is gone " Now we will get the chance to talk with Sariel that we haven't done before"

(If there is enough time left to go to the Donnybrook, talk to Garrett, then go to the chancellor's residence, she will do this. If not, she won't.)

"Excuse me, I have a short errand to do. I will join you again later at the Chancellor's residence."

She then runs off through the rain, to the Donnybrook. Once she arrives, she looks around for Garrett Goodbarrel. 

"Hello Garrett! It's a pleasure to see you again!"

Arissa:  

Garret smiles and offers you a warm welcome. "Good afternoon, Arissa. A very wet afternoon, of course! What's next for you and your friends, now that the tournament is over? For me, I'm heading back to Greyloft with Mithro and Huck in the morning. Hopefully, the rain will let up." He doesn't look very hopeful, however. 

"What's next you say?" She leans in close and whispers in his ear. "We have been asked to dine with Sariel herself, although don't tell anyone, it's a secret." She goes back to talking normally. "Well, if you're going back in the morning, I'm glad I caught you today. Have you earnt enough in the tournament to pay for the way back, as was your plan? If not, I would happily give you some of my winnings."

Arissa:

"Meeting with Sariel?!" Garrett says softly to ensure that no one will overhear. His face reveals his mild astonishment at what you have just told him. "That's quite a surprise. I wonder what it's all about..." he then stares at the table for a moment, as if the answer to his question might be found there. He then looks up and says, "Arissa, I didn't win one dirty piece of copper in the tournament, but that's no complaint. The past few days have been a great experience for me. I've traveled to Talisten for the first time in my life, and I did so with two great friends--Mithro and Huck. I was able to spend some time with my sister, my nieces, and my nephew. I was able to make a few new friends. Thank you for your offer, but my sister already forced me to take a handful of gold from her to cover my costs. Sometimes having an older sister isn't all bad!" 

He then asks you to give his regards to Kurt and Ozum. "I wish you all the best! If any of you ever make it to Greyloft, I promise to give you a king's welcome!"

While ( or when once Arissa is back ) they all are in the table, Frandal snaps his fingers as is he was remembering something. He searchs in one of his pockets and produces one set of cards and one little rust bag.

"Here, I won this during the tournament, but I don't think I could really use them. I thought that maybe you could use this " he pushes the bag towards Ozum " and this could fit you well " and he pushes the deck of cards towards Arissa. He left both objects in the table. "This way we all enjoy the prices of the tournament as we all do our best to win them!"

He leans back to his chairs and smiles.

"Well, I thank you for the good times we have had together. I hope our paths will cross again. My companions are probably waiting for me now, but surely they can wait a little longer. There's something I'd like you to here you." Arissa stays with Garrett until it is time to go to the meeting, then a few minutes longer. She then goes up to the owner, and asks if she may play some music for the Donnybrook's patrons. 

Arissa: 

Pom, the proprietor of the Donnybrook, is pleasantly surprised by your request. "Well, a bit of music might brighten things up nicely! Of course.." --and he grins ear to ear as he continues--"...I'm assuming you can really play one of those instruments, right? " He then steps back, crosses his arms, and keeps his attention focused on you as he expectantly waits to hear what happens next. 

Arissa takes out her Cli Lyre, tunes it up, and casts minor illusion (or major if that's not enough) to complement her playing. She plays a hauntingly beautiful song, perhaps not quite as joyous as Pom would have liked.

 After finishing, she returns to talk with Garrett. She stays until it is time to go to the meeting, and then a few minutes longer. After saying farewell, she runs off, hoping not to be late. 

Arissa: 

Pom, as well as the guests in The Donnybrook, thoroughly enjoys the song. You see that most people halt their conversations and their meals so they can give their fullest attention to your musical performance. As you finish, the inn is filled with applause, and a few patrons politely ask for an encore. Garrett Goodbarrel comments, "How many people can be a grand prize winner in the Tournament of Talisten AND be an entertainer at a local inn in the same day?! Well done!"

A few minutes later, you say your farewell to Garrett, and, then, you find yourself scurrying through the rain and over wet cobblestone streets as you make your way to south Talisten to the chancellor's residence. 

"This is a very great gift Frandal, your generosity is too much." Ozum says as he hands him the rust colored bag. After some time passes Ozum will look around quizzically, "I suppose Arissa said she would meet us there, perhaps we should leave soon." He will then cast druidcraft under the table to see if the rain will let up soon.

Ozum:

The Druidcraft spell seems to indicate that the rain will continue through the night but then dissipate sometime early in the morning.

“Indeed we should. Just give a couple of minutes.” Frandal will go to his room and change clothes putting his fine clothes set, made of fine elven silk of grey and blue patterns. 

(Similar to Thandruil’s in the Hobbit) 

You approach the chancellor’s residence, a stately manor almost entirely surrounded by tall, magnificent oak trees. The path from the road to the manor is illuminated at regular intervals by torches placed in sconces atop stone pillars. The rain remains steady but is insufficient to extinguish the torchlight. Not far off the road, you encounter two guards, one of whom greets you with the words, “Good evening. Follow me, friends of Syndaris.” He leads the way toward the chancellor’s home while the other guard remains behind. After climbing a broad set of stone stairs and passing through a pair of tall wooden doors, you enter a well-lit antechamber where you can hang your wet cloaks. From this antechamber, you walk a short distance down a broad hallway before turning left and passing through an ornately carved set of double doors. You then enter the main hall.

The main hall is furnished with two large banquet tables, each sufficient to seat a dozen guests. A large fire warms the room, and several candles spaced around the room emit their flickering light. The primary source of light in the room, however, comes from a pair of long swords that are attached on opposite sides of a stout wooden beam that runs from the floor to the ceiling of the room. It seems obvious that some sort of magic is at work on the swords, which glow with a soft white light that bathes the room. You can see that one of the banquet tables is set for nine; you assume that means the five of you will be joined by four others.

At that moment, a set of doors opens on the opposite side of the room and in walk four people. You recognize the Chancellor of Talisten immediately, for he was the one who announced the grand prize winners at the conclusion of the tournament. The Chancellor is followed by a dwarf, whose age is apparent by the extensive streaks of grey in his long dark beard. (Frandal and Ozum, you recognize him as Kempis, the former Windhover who is now the proprietor of The Dwarven Stout tavern). Behind the dwarf is Sariel Sunshimmer, and, lastly, someone enters the room who is unknown to all of you: a large male dragonborn with copper red scales. His height causes him to tower over the others who just entered the room, and he wears dark blue robes trimmed in silver.

The Chancellor of Talisten begins, “Welcome to my home. Arissa, Kurt, Xellos, Ozum, and Frandal, I am Hadrus Mirrashan, Chancellor of Talisten, and it is my pleasure to host you this evening. Let me introduce Kempis the Ironfisted..” –at this point the old dwarf steps forward and bows slightly—“…Sariel Sunshimmer…”—Sariel nods and smiles--- “and Bharash Shestendi.”

Bharash scans all of your faces and says, “Greetings. Thank you for coming tonight.”

Hadrus then asks everyone to be seated and comfortable.

After everyone has settled in, Sariel Sunshimmer begins, “Arissa, Kurt, Xellos, Ozum, and Frandal, on behalf of the Windhovers, I wish to thank you for your presence tonight. Before I go any further, I want to make certain you know just who it is that sits with you at this table. The Chancellor, of course, you know.” She gestures to her right as she mentions him. Sariel then looks to her left and says, “Kempis is a former Windhover. He wielded Everal’s sword for nearly sixty years.” Immediately to Sariel’s left is the dragonborn. “And next to me is the current wielder of Findric’s staff; this is Bharash Shestendi, both a great wizard and a great friend.”

Hadrus then interjects, “Surely there will be much to talk about this evening. As we do so, please do not hesitate to eat and drink your fill.”  Bread, cheese, wine, fruit, and nuts are currently displayed on the table before you, but the smells in the dining hall indicate that other items will soon be arriving from the kitchen.

Sariel then picks up where she left off. “No doubt your minds are filled with questions, but allow us to explain why we have asked you to be with us tonight; that may provide many answers.” She then looks at Bharash, and you can see a momentary glimpse of worry in her face as she does so.

Bharash says, “Simply put…we are asking for your help. Rather than four Windhovers sitting at this table tonight; there are but two. Of one who is not among us, we have word that he has been attacked and narrowly escaped death. Of the other we have heard nothing whatsoever.”

Sariel continues, “Yes, we believe the time has come to ask for help. The Chancellor, Kempis, Bharash, and I have discussed—and argued—this matter extensively, and we believe the wisest course of action includes seeking the aid of a few skilled, reliable adventurers. Your actions over the course of the past few days have convinced us that you might be the best people to answer our call for help. Three of you—Kurt, Frandal, and Arissa—demonstrated your skill in the Tournament of Talisten by finishing as grand prize winners.  Furthermore, during the tournament, I learned that Kurt and Ozum intervened in a disagreement between two men, preventing the violence from escalating.”

Bharash now speaks. “And later that same day, I watched Xellos and Frandal as they masterfully handled a situation with one of Talisten’s street thieves.”

Sariel adds, “And, then, this morning, Talisten’s captain of the guard informed me that Arissa and Ozum rescued a young woman from the ill-intentions of a man who now sits in Talisten’s jail.”

There’s a brief moment of silence before the Chancellor comments. “In the past few days, it almost seems as if the five of you have been auditioning for the job.”

“True,” responds Kempis, who has said nothing until this moment.

Sariel speaks again. “To be wholly honest with you, each of us—to some degree—believes that we are taking a chance by asking for outside help. Considering the nature of what has happened in Syndaris recently, however, we have agreed that we have no other option. Let me explain”

She takes a drink of her wine before continuing. “Five days ago, I was at the foot of the Corvus Mountains, near the shores of Duskin Lake, and I came across something wholly unexpected: a band of skeletons and wights. They were completely unaware of my presence; so, I had a distinct advantage as I fell upon them and destroyed them. But I can say to you with near total certainty—there have been no recorded sightings of the undead on Syndaris in over two centuries.”

“How many did you say?” asks Kempis.

“Five skeletons. Two wights,” responds Sariel.

Bharash then explains what they have learned about Thoradin Brokenhammer. “At sundown yesterday, a messenger arrived in Talisten with news from Greyloft. Thoradin had been traveling through the Wyrwood between Greyloft and Findric when he was ambushed and nearly killed. There are no eyewitness accounts, only Thoradin’s confused ramblings about what took place. He’s feverish and, therefore, not always coherent. Who or what sought to destroy him, we do not know, but Thoradin has been heard saying words such as ‘fiend’ and ‘skeleton’.”

“And our third source of concern is the unexplained absence of Ro Venna, the fourth Windhover. We have heard nothing from her, and she would have sent word to us in advance if she had planned to be away during the festival,” explains Sariel.

Bharash then summarizes, “Sariel encounters a group of undead; Thoradin lies at death’s door after being attacked; Ro Venna is missing. And all of this has taken place in the last week. Is it coincidence? That seems unlikely.”

“Very unlikely,” agrees Kempis.

Sariel continues, “Arissa, Kurt, Xellos, Ozum, and Frandal, the Windhovers believe that Syndaris is under some sort of attack. By whom or what, we are unsure. For what reason, we are equally unsure. We would like to take action as follows: Bharash and I will travel to Greyloft to speak with Thoradin and determine what attacked him, and, hopefully, hunt it, or them, down. Kempis will remain in Talisten, keeping an eye on things here in the city and remaining in close contact with the Chancellor and the captain of the guard. All of you, if you are willing, will travel to the Isle of Woe and see what can be learned at The Keep, Ro Venna’s home.”

She sips her wine again and then explains, “We have a rough sketch of the timeline all of this may follow, and we’ve agreed to reconvene in Findric in four days. That will allow Bharash and me the necessary time to travel to Greyloft and do some investigating in that part of Syndaris. It should also be sufficient time for you to travel to The Keep, gather information, travel back to the main island and on to Findric. We have worked out some specifics of your travel that we can cover later.”

She then hands you a map of Syndaris and says, “You’ve now listened to a great deal of information. Surely you have some questions. We are asking you, potentially, to face danger on our behalf; so, you have every right to ask what you wish.”

“First and foremost” says Frandal “ Let me say that I feel honored by your request, and that we “ he talks of him and the eagle,moving his hand to include her, not wanting to put the rest in some akward position “ will do our best to help you in this dangerous times. “ he takes a sip of wine. “ Second, I would like to apologize to both of you, Sariel and Kempis, for jumping over you last night. I was at the Singing Fire and heard that Thoradin was missing. Then we heard the rumors that he should have been opening the Tournament... by the end of the day we were worried enough to try to talk to you, Kempis, about it. It was pure coincidence that we saw you both leaving the inn and we tried to catch with you to talk and offer our help. It wasn’t appropiate, but we didn’t know how to proceed. Please excuse us.” He says explaining and apologizing. 

He bows a little bit. 

“Now, I have some questions. Bharash. The rest of the Windhovers seems to had face attacks on them. Hadn’t you encountered any danger? “

Kempis is the first to respond. "Apology accepted, Frandal. I had just learned of Thoradin's condition when you and Xellos interrupted my conversation with Sariel. A rather tense moment. I'm sure you understand."

Sariel then speaks. "Your words of concern and offer of help last night did factor into our conversation and decision, elf friend. Thank you."

As Kempis and Sariel speak, two servants bring in platters of potatoes and roasted fish and vegetables. Bharash then speaks. "I have not faced any trouble here in Syndaris, Frandal, for I have been elsewhere, visiting an old friend for the past few weeks. I did not return to Syndaris until yesterday. Upon learning of Thoradin and Ro Venna's absence, I have been altering my appearance since my return. This allowed me to remain hidden if indeed there is some sort of threat against all of us Windhovers. Additionally, it allowed me to roam about Talisten freely to see if anything were out of the ordinary here in the city. I am happy to say that all seems completely normal in Talisten at this time. I wish to keep it so."

"It will be an honour to serve you. Could you tell us more about the Isle of Woe and Ro Venna, please?"

Sariel  speaks up to be the first to answer Arissa's question. "The Isle of Woe is the second-largest island of the Syndarian realm, and it lies to the east of us, in the Bay of Fyth. I'm sure you noticed it as your ship approached Talisten. The island received its name as a result of the many lives that have been lost in the treacherous waters off its eastern coast. Crystana is the sole town on the island, and it's nearly half the size of Talisten. A few miles north of Crystana is The Keep, a small fortress that has been the home of all the Windhovers who have wielded Everal's sword."

Sariel pauses, looks at Kempis, and says, "Kempis, would you like to tell our guests about Ro Venna?"

Kempis nods as he swallows the food he's been chewing. "Ro Venna is the ninth person to wield Everal's sword. I was the eighth. Over thirty years ago, she placed her hand upon that sword and took the Windhover vow." He smiles as he reflects further. "She's as witty, generous, and charming as they come, I tell you. She's also a deceptively dangerous swordsman. I had no doubt that she was the right one to replace me as a Windhover, and she's done nothing but shine in her role for the past three decades."

Kempis' voice trails off; so Sariel offers some more information. "The Keep, as you've heard, is a small fortification. Ro Venna keeps a few people in her service--a stable hand, a cook, and a housekeeper. The Keep has a substantial armory, in case the citizens of Cystana would ever have need to take up arms in defense of themselves and their city. But in all the years of the Windhovers, there's never been any such need. Despite being somewhat disconnected geographically from the rest of us because she lives on a separate island, Ro Venna has been faithful to maintain contact with the other Windhovers. She often travels to Talisten, and she regularly extends invites for us to join her at The Keep. The last time any of us saw her was roughly a month ago. Thoradin had been invited to give the opening blessing over the new priest at the temple in Crystana. Ro Venna, of course, seized the opportunity to have Thoradin spend a few days at The Keep. Ro Venna is the most senior Windhover and Thoradin is the newest. She was eager to share her knowledge and experience with him. I know this because I spoke with Thoradin at Crow's Nest just three weeks ago after he returned from Crystana."

Frandal just waves his hand when Kempis explains their reaction at their interruption. “Please I understand. It was our fault. Let’s forget it.” 

He nods at Bharash words “ That’s reassuring and a good thinking Lord Bharash. Lady Sariel, once you destroyed that undeads, did you found something that could identify them? Or where they could come from? That could give us a lead about who created them. “

He then listen to the information the Windhovers are providing them.