In response to Velon's query, the dragon simply states, "I have not decided yet."

At Perry's request, he snorts, a bit of frosty air threatening to blow the tiefling and those around him back a step. "I don't seem to recall asking for opinions on the matter. All of this was found within my territory, be glad I'm not taking every bit of it."

If there are no further objections, he picks up a few last items, stuffs them down his gullet after the others, and laboriously turns around to launch himself off of the castle wall. There is an audible creaking sound at his massive wings open to catch his bulk and set him on a glide off to the west. It looks like he took perhaps a quarter of the items that were not marked as his.

Seeing the avarice in the ancients eyes as he “taxes” the remaining goods, Lawrance waits until he leaves the compound, shakes his head and says “Dragons.” 

“Oh, well. Let’s see what he’s left us. And then get some rest, at least for me. “

 Poljen comes forward and says, "Agreed.  And maybe when this is all over, we can come deal with this one as well.  But before we get the sleep we need, we should tell Poppo and the others what course to set.  I will feel safer once we are clear of the dragon's territory."

Perry panics a bit as Old White Death snorts in his general direction. It is cold.

Once he leaves, Perry slowly turns towards the party and says, "Well...I gave it the old college try. At least we're alive and not icicles, or dragon food, or even icicle dragon food. All right, so where to next? Are we heading towards Cratol's home? Whatever we do, I think we all deserve a little rest."

Perry lets out a groan, "I am so tired you guys. I need a long nap, and probably a bath. And then probably another nap after recovering from the previous one. Maccath, do you need anything else? Food? Water? Wine? A book? I can show you to an extra room to rest and we can all talk more in the morning."

When Perry mentions deserving a little rest, Velon asks "why would you say that?" He winks at the bard and smiles, as he tends to do.  As the bard describes being tired Velon continues his playful sarcasm and says "will you be ok?"  "I myself have not been a fan of long naps lately."

Velon goes to meet Maccath briefly and welcomes her to the castle, saying they will talk more once they have both had some proper rest.

"Wiz..ah..Lawrance, any idea what we have for treasure here?  Funny how little such things excite me now, amidst the wealth we've already obtained, oh and dragons, undead, and death.  Still, hopefully some of it will be useful in the battles to come."

Once the paladin wraps up talking to the others he gets ready to depart the common area and asks Lia "how are you doing, my dear?"

  Lia looks on in awe at the great drake soaring away. " That went relatively well I must say.  " She looks at the others with a tired smile on her face. 

  The young wood elf gazes at Velon as he speaks.   " I am doing well my love. How are you feeling now? " The exhaustion almost overwhelmes her.   She used all the divine energy that she could handle today. Lia does her best to hide this from Velon. 

 Mari grins happily.   " Time to get some rest. Being a turtle really exhausted me for some reason.   Perry, will we be seeing Shadowsnacks again soon?" 

Cratol will head to his rooms to sleep as everything that has happened of late just makes him more tired.  As soon as his head hits the pillows he is out for the night.

The men stay on high alert until Old White Death is long gone, soon enough the castle resumes its course, speeding south out of the old grouch's territory before he changes his mind.

Maccath accepts the offer for rest, she doesn't seem to be up to talking at the particular moment.

As you rest and recover from the ordeal, the question comes, what is next?

Velon enjoys the rest during the trip to Cratol's home, especially as they get further and further from a potential return from Old White Death accusing them of stealing from him or some other senile logic.  He tends to his wounds with repeated use of his own divine magic and a healthy appetite for Poppo and Mama Niko's various treats.  He thanks Lia several more times for saving him, and contemplates his mistakes and the surprising support for him as some sort of leader.  Within the first twenty four hours or so of their return the castle and his resurrection Velon decides to inform Irdeith, Chasorth and the dragons of the latest news.  He of course invites Lia and the rest of the Blaze to join him, certainly remembering Perry in case the baby dragon makes an appearance.  He tells their allies of the status of the horn and Maccath, and of their experience with OWD.  He encourages them to spread the word that if Old White Death ever makes an appearance to not instantly assume he is hostile, but rather that he is unpredictable, a bit senile, and is likely to take issue with the cult rather than the good aligned dragons despite being an ancient white.  Lastly he asks for any news, if the dragons have been scrying for any of the other masks including the blue, and if Irdeith and Chasorth have any additional missions for them.

After the first few days of rest Velon starts feeling better and visits Sinternal in the dragon playpen.  He tries to talk to her in draconic and get to know her a little, and asks her if she'd like to train in combat with him.

As the castle moves southward Cratol will rest up.  During the mornings before breakfast and the evenings after dinner he will be on the ramparts working out.  He does spend time in the courtyard training those who wish to learn the basic moves of a monk so that they may practice them and get more agile as they improve their strength and stamina while they continue to practice.  He looks forward to seeing his home once again.

Poljen sleeps deeply during the start of the journey.  After recovering from the weakened state inflicted by the shades, he is glad to feel himself once more.  He practices his fighting skills and spends time with Morgaine, as well.  He listens in when Velon speaks to the metallic dragons.

  Mari is her usual self and continues working on her sword play.  She feels as if she has made a breakthrough in hdr technique.  The young half elf seems to walk with a little more swagger than before.   

Lia is withdrawn while they travel south.  Velon dying wont leave her vision.  The horrors of the maze haunt her dreams.  She must learn more about death and how to fight it. Much of her time is spent on the battlements thinking  about ways to keep the group alive.   She would not fail them or Velon again. Lia smiled grimly as she thought of an option she had.  

After the last glimmer of white scales in the sky has long gone, Lawrance breathes easier, his concern for the families and friends in the castle abating. After dealing with the remaining gear and found objects, he heads back to his room and slips into a deep, exhausted sleep. After the night passes (hopefully uneventfully), he rises and calls for his two apprentices, eager to get back to the spell he's been working on in the hopes that it will provide a much-needed defense against the foes they face. "Dragons everywhere, these days. Dead dragons, ancient dragons, green dragons - all the more reason for us to complete this spell and help shield us better!"
His mind sharper than ever after his brush with death, he is determined to do all he can to provide better protection for his fellow questers, and some of his studies may provide the needed answers and spells.
Spending a bit of time going over ideas and research with all four of his helpers, he also finds time to add a couple of new spells to his book, the results of older research and references he had been gathering over the past few weeks. Studying the crystal carefully, within proper safeguards and protective wards, he tries to determine the location of it's owner, using MacCath's mention of an Aboleth as a guidepost to it's source. As a side item, he follows up on the items Silas had been repairing to see if those were complete as well, researches the new and unusual items they've acquired and recharges his Ring.

Given a moment to study the items required, Lawrance finds it to be quite an ecletic mixture. Based on what he was able to glean from Maccath's notes, the being running that place had an interest in divining interesting ways to... twist existing magic. Thanks to her prior study, determining what the remaining items do is not an issue.

Many of the items prove to be of limited use for the Silver Blaze, a portable bazaar, a compass that glows and points towards the nearest goblinoid if any are within a mile. Perhaps the most interesting of these is a plow blade that seems to be made out of gold. It is intelligent, though it mostly just grouses about not having had any soil to till for decades.

Other trinkets include a tome which summons a cat if opened, said cat lays down on the tome and interferes with attempts to read it. A comb that will shape the users hair to any style they wish within a few moments. A monocle which lets the user read obscure languages. A lamp with a strange sort of oil, when lit, darkness fills the area that even darkvision cannot pierce.

Of particular interest would be a particularly beautiful silver bracelet encrusted with white opals. Healing spells channeled through it bathe a large area in radiant light. It is also apparently capable of forming a temporary shield of pure divine energy, one that the user can form around anyone they wish to protect.

Other useful items are present as well.

---

The castle soars its way south and east, towards the nation of Cormyr. The village of Redcliffe lies nestled in the mountains there. Its a fairly typical mining community, based around a single iron mine. In the cliff of red stone that gave the place its name, someone ages past carved likenesses of Lathander and Kelemvor and some of their deeds, together representing the cycle of life, death, and rebirth. The place is only lightly fortified with a simple wooden wall, the village's remoteness serves as its principle defense.

Stormcaller Manse is fairly humble as a Baron's dwellings go, but well built and designed to take advantage of the views found here.

During the next group meeting in the dining hall, Lawrance brings out all the studied magic items, laying them onto the tables with little attached file cards in Common containing all the details he's discovered. "Lia, this bauble is detailed meticulously in Maccath's notes, yet even she was able to unlock all it's secrets. It apparently is an artifact of power, with threads of divine magic that lead to Sune. You should see what your own abilities could tell you about it. The rest of this stuff we acquired is mostly standard magical items, although some are a little interesting, if a bit magically perverse. Take a look and let's see what we can put to better use than shelf displays. As for my own interest, the Ring has definite benefits for my research times, so that would be my first pick. "

Later on, he discusses with SIlas the cursed and unusual objects. "Do you think any of these seemingly worthless items can be turned to something better? That book with the cat makes me think it originally was a guardian spell for a wizard's book, and the monocle and compass seem strangely limited. "

-------------

At the Baron's lands, Lawrance doesn't bother going down, eager to spend more time on the spell he is frantically trying to complete. If needed, he will join the main group, but he will be more interested in the next destination. Before any of the group departs for the Baron's Manse, he will cast Telepathic Bond in order to keep in touch. 

The next morning, Perry wakes up and releases a giant yawn. He fixes himself up in front of the giant mirror in his room then immediately heads out into the courtyard. Once outside, he goes to the center of the courtyard and whistles a whistle that seems to echo out into the halls of the castle. Suddenly, a loud neigh is heard from above as Perry looks to the skies with a smile. 

It's Shadowsnacks. The pegasus lands and Perry goes up to embrace him as he says, "Oh my friend, I'm so happy you're back. You did well in there. A lot happened while you were away so let me catch you up." Perry then takes a few moments to recount what had transpired since Shadowsnacks disappeared.

"Wow Perry," Shadowsnacks replies after hearing the tale, "That sounds terrible, Perry. But you did the right thing, see. You protected the team Perry."

Perry looks unconvinced and dejected at the wise steed's words, "But I could have stopped what happened to Velon...I wasn't there in time."

Shadowsnacks goes up to him and gently nudges him, "No Perry, listen to me, you can't save everyone all the time see. All we can do is do our best in this world Perry. And from the sounds of it, you did yours Perry."

---

Later, at the team meeting to discuss the items. Perry's eyes light up at the mention of some of them. "Oh. My. Goddess. These are amazing, these are all amazing. Think of what we could do with this jug alone! Wine, water, MAYONNAISE!? This is incredible. And the bazaar, oh the bazaar. This is going to be wonderful for the next shopping expedition! And the comb is incredible as well. Lia, let's test the comb out! Come here."

He motions for Lia to come here.

  Mari is happy to notice that Shadowsnacks is back.   " We have missed you Shadowsnacks.  You should be proud of Perry.  He stood to the bitter end with us.   " 

    Lia holds her silver bracelet aloft and smiles as it sparkles in the sun. " This is truly a blessing from Sune.  Wearing this i feel closer than ever to her.   " She studies it closely wondering what all it is capable of.   Lia glances up as Perry calls her.   She walks to him.  " Be careful Perry.   I better not end up bald or something.   " 

Chasorth answers the call after a minute or two. She listens to your tale, nodding with sympathy at the trials endured. "My mate is still hunting up north, I have not heard from him in a few days. There is some news from the Harpers. They've managed to reach a deal with the Zhents concerning the white mask. The price reached was... exhorbitant, especially since they were well aware the Cult would be a very competitive bidder, but the knowledge that they'd like what the cult would do with the mask as little as the rest of us helped."

"They want the exchange to be made in a week's time on neutral ground. A small village on the island of Moray. The lycans who run the island are unpleasant to say the least, but would have no interest in the artifact and take no sides in anything, and the fisherfolk of the village just live their lives as best they can. I can think of worse places. In any case, I was asked to pass along a request from the Harpers for you to be in attendance, providing security. As far as we know the Cult doesn't know about this, but that means nothing these days. And then of course there's the Zhents themselves. Much of the better items promised to them are long term contracts, easily rescinded should they try something, but they may see benefit in reneging on the bargain anyways. Are you willing and able?"

Once the castle gets over Stormcaller keep Cratol will take Sylmae down to his home and introduce her to the staff and everyone so they all meet her.  He will plan a nice dinner for that evening for all of the companions to enjoy now that they have had time to rest and recoupe.  Once the plans are made and all is roceeding he will send a message up to the castle inviting all the companions down for a feast.  He will spend time going over the books to see how his Barony is doing and make sure all is well.  before the dinner he will go into the courtyard where the Stormcaller staff is and remove it.  He will go up to the battlements and practice with it to get a good feel for the staff while he still wonders what it exactly does. 

After the dinner and hearing about what the Harpers have found out he will go over to Velon.  "I think it is prudent that we go make sure the White mask is given over and secured from the hands of the Cultists.  I know they may not have any word about this deal but I am sure that they have their own spies in the Harpers or the Zhent.  Either way I would not be surprised to see them try to get the mask somehow for themselves."

"Of course, we will be there, Chasorth.  Unfortunately I think we need to assume Hoondarrh could attack any any moment going forward, although I'm not sure what more we can do to be prepared for that.  If you have any friends who'd enjoy fighting an ancient red, they are always welcome at Skyreach Castle."  Velon thanks Chasorth and asks her to send Irdeith and their child all the best from the Silver Blaze.

To Cratol Velon replies "indeed, I have no doubt that the cult will be there in some form, perhaps hidden in the shadows, or perhaps clad in red dragon scales."  "We are sure to find out."

At some point on the journey Velon asks Lia in private "my love, what is wrong?"  "You have not seemed like yourself since Old White Death said his goodbye."