Burn that tower!

Calistril 19, 4713

Shoalar and Grimsaw finish their meeting and announce their plans to launch an attack against the Eternal Flame. They propose to send a team to Scarlet Moon Hall and lay waste to the Eternal Flame's outpost. Volunteers are solicited. All of the workers and cultists take a step back, and the Coopers find themselves in the middle of the yard. Sholar and Grimsaw thank them for stepping up, and invite them inside the keep.

Grimsaw unrolls a map of the Dessarin Valley and points to the location of the Hall. He gives them rough directions, and agrees to  provide them with three potions of cure critical wounds each, and directions to a small cave where two ice trolls working for the Crushing Wave currently hide. He also draws them a map they can take with them. He tells them that on foot, it should take them about seven days to get there. He therefore expects them to report in a fortnight with a vivid description of their success. The Coopers thank Grimsaw and depart Rivergard Keep. They trek away from the keep for a few miles. Darelle then summons her cloud and the Coopers travel in style above the snowy hills of the Dessarin Valley.


Calistril 21, 4713

After two days of travel, the Coopers see a large stone tower emerge in the cold but sunny morning, surrounded by a ring of ruined walls. Large bonfires burn in the middle of several tent sites scattered around the base of the hill upon which sits Scarlet Moon Hall. Humanoid figures huddle around these fires, evidently preparing meals. From these campsites a small trail crisscrosses the hill to its summit, which is surrounded on three sides by sheer cliffs. The stone tower itself is under repair, with several sections of wooden scaffolding reaching 50 feet up to the tower's roof. Rubble litter the inside of the ring, showing that the tower's renovations are in their early phase.

The Coopers' cloud stands out like a sore thumb as it is the only one in the sky, and, despite the wind, it remain stationary above Scarlet Moon Hall. Individuals on the ground have noticed, and a messenger is sent from one of the camp sites to the tower to report. Dhukhean propose to bluff their way into the tower by pretending they are from Feathergale Spire. Naga suggests that they drop fireballs on the structure. The Coopers discuss several ways to infiltrate the tower, but their plans are interrupted when a human clad in fire appears on the cloud. The Coopers all land blows on him and manage to kill him before he's able to deliver an attack. Now aware that their enemy knows they are here, the Coopers prepare for attack.

The cloud lands at the top of the stone keep while Thorne searches the body of their dead opponent. He finds a pouch of granite and diamond dust, as well as a wand of fireballs containing four charge. Thorne fires the wand at the roof, and it ignites. He unleashes all but one of the remaining charges into the structure. Despite the intense heat from the large amount of timber inside and surrounding the structure, the stone tower remains standing, but the inferno caused by what is effectively a giant chimney reduces everything else around it to ashes. Using her ring of protection against heat, Darelle plunges inside the tower, looking for survivors or a tunnel leading down, but finds neither due to the debris.

As the Coopers clear the structure, they decide to head down to the campsites. Perhaps they will find answers there. Carefully making their way down the cliff, they find that all campsites have been suddenly abandoned by their occupants. Dishes, meals being cooked, and bedrolls are spread everywhere, indicating that the camp has been abandoned quickly. Ruddy enters one of the tents, while Lawrence searches another one. They discover bedding, clothes, and various camp items, along with several drawings of a large wicker figure. Thorne takes a few of the drawings. The remaining camp sites contain similar items. There is no evidence on the hill of large groups of people heading up or down in the snow or on the path, so the Coopers are curious as to where they all went.

They return to the cloud and float around the mountain. On the backside of the mountain, Darelle notices a few inconsistencies in the shape and colors, and she realizes that it is an illusion. Darelle maneuvers the cloud in place and allows Lawrence to use the last charge on the wand of fireball, while the ranger creates a slide out of the cloud. The ice trolls slide down and disappear through the illusion inside the cave. Naga quickly follows them in.

Entering the cave, Naga finds a large wicker man fully engulfed in flames. Lawrence's strike hit it square in the middle. But instead of burning, the wicker man glows red, and begins to move. Next to the Burning Man, a large red dragon stands, and he releases a stream of fire that consume the ice trolls. Upon the dragon sits a rider, who warns Naga that the Crushing Wave just made its final mistake. Naga turns and flees the cave, transforming into a bird.

The man and his dragon then emerge from the cave. Darelle jumps down the slide and enters the cave, and notices the carnage. She also sees the Burning Man starting to move towards the cave's entrance. As the dragon engages the Coopers remaining on the cloud, the Burning Man crosses the illusory barrier and falls down the side of the mountain, almost crushing Ruddy. The Burning Man gets up and begins walking away, inflicting massive damage on Dhukhean in the process. Naga plunges down and rescues Lawrence and Thorne, and flies away towards Red Larch.

Darelle sends a tree token to Grimsaw and Shoalar telling them about the burning man and the dragon but the stronghold has been destroyed. Returning to her cloud, Darelle follows the Burning Man, and realizes with horror that it is heading to Red Larch as well, trailed by the red dragon and its rider.

Somehow, despite the lack of a plan, all three Coopers survive the encounter with the dragon unharmed, while their friends all suffer painful wounds. With the Burning Man on his way to their current base of operations, what will the Coopers do?