The Prophet of Water

Pharast 22, 4713, part 2

With combat already engaged and with the wall of force blocking their escape from the throne room, the Coopers have no choice but to pursue their attack against Thurl Merosska and cultists of the Howling Hatred. Ruddy fires an arrow from his crossbow, and Thurl is blinded. Earl strikes one of the Feathergale Knights down to the ground, while Thorne lands several blows on the other Knight. Struck by a cold ice strike, Naga uses his vampiric touch ability to heal himself.

Now blinded, Thurl teleports away from the battle. As the knights fight back and the priests casts spells, Earl crushes one of the knights' skull in. Naga casts fireball, blasting all of the enemies along with Thorne. Whalerider and Daryle attack the other wall of force that blocks the staircase and manage to break through. At the same time, Thurl's delayed blast fireballs explode, killing the remaining Howling Hatred members and severely injuring Thorne. 

With the battle now over, Earl picks up the great horn hung on the wall behind the marble throne. He blows in it, which calls forth the djinni Daryle and her sister Darelle had previously encountered. The djinni is clearly unimpressed with a new master summoning him, and he inquires as to which favor his master would like to see accomplished. Earl looks at the djinni, and immediately wishes that the djinni would grant him the ability to free him. The djinni tells him what words should be said to free him, and Earl utters them. The djinni, visibly relieved, bows low to the monk, then departs the Material Plane in a puff of blue smoke.

The party takes a breath before discussing what to do next. Should they return to Red Larch to check on the threat of releasing an orb of destruction Aerisi's minions had made? Should they pursue their exploration of the tunnels leading either towards the Black Earth or the Crushing Wave? Should they continue investigating how Thorne and Dhukhean were transported away from Tyar-Besil?
 Coopers decide to head towards the section of Tyar-Besil controlled by the Crushing Wave, the only of the four cults they have yet to overtly confront.

Once again they pass through the heavy iron door, and enter a residential section of Tyar-Besil.After about two miles of travel through endless ruins of houses that have been thoroughly looted over the ages, the party finds itself in front of a similar iron door. This one is covered in graffiti left by Howling Hatred cultists. Thorne takes a quick look at the heavy lock, grabs his tools, and picks the lock opened. Carefully pushing the door, they come into a short tunnel leading to another commercial area of Tyar-Besil.

This area is well traveled here, and Daryle easily finds footsteps on the floor leading away from this room. Thorne enters one of the rooms, and is ambushed by bugbears wearing uniforms of the Crushing Wave. He attempts to convince them he's from the Crushing Wave, but he accidentally insults them, and they slash at the rogue. He runs away back to his party, closely followed by two of the bugbears. Seeing the large group, the lead bugbear yells to the others behind him to get reinforcements.

As the battle rages, a large bearded man with lightning shooting out of a missing eye joins the fray with six other cultists. Earl yells that it's all a misunderstanding, that he and the party are agents of the Crushing Wave who have infiltrated the Black Earth and were reporting back. The fighting subsides, and Thorne is eventually able to convince Morbeoth to take them to the Crushing Wave leadership.

Accompanied by heavily armed guards, the Coopers cross two bridges and enter a large room currently converted into the Temple of Elemental Water, where a religious service is taking place. Darelle, Naga, Ruddy and Daryle recognize one of the men at the front of the room as Joliver Grimsaw, the man in charge of Rivergard Keep.

When the service concludes, the party is escorted to the altar, where they are confronted by Gar Shatterkeel, prophet of the Crushing Wave. Grimsaw recognizes them as agents he sent to attack the Eternal Flame earlier in the year. They report their exploits and how they destroyed the tower, only to find themselves underground in an epic struggle with the Howling Hatred. Thorne mentions that the cultists of the Howling Hatred have captured a dwarf and are bleeding him in their ultimate redoubt.

After a lengthy conversation, Gar Shatterkeel agrees to outfit the Coopers and provide them with shock troops and directions to infiltrate the Howling Hatred once again, free the dwarf, and bring him to the Crushing Wave. The Coopers begin their preparations...

Fighting the Howling Hatred

Pharast 22, 4713, part 1

After a restful night spent in the Great Hall, the Coopers wake up and prepare a hearty breakfast. Now healed and ready for more adventure, they take the barricade apart and pursue their exploration of Tyar-Besil. They return to the marketplace, looking inside every doorway to make sure enemies are not waiting for them. Ruddy returns to one of the doors they haven't yet opened. He carefully listens, but hears nothing. Slowly, the gnome pushes the door open, revealing the forge. Rubble covers most of the floor, and all that remains are an anvil weighing over 800 pounds, and a set of large bellows broken beyond repair. In one of the corners, he spots Thorne covered in chains and gagged.

Having disappeared a few hours earlier, the rogue is bloodied and exhausted. After his long trip to the sacrificial stone where he last saw Dhukhean tied and left bleeding to death, Thorne was transported back to this room by several cultists who discussed among themselves Aerisi Kalinoth's plans to release an orb of destruction in Red Larch. Though the thugs were whispering among themselves, Thorne was fairly certain that this was all a performance directed at him.

Ruddy ungags the rogue. Thorne tells him about Aerisi Kalinoth's plans with the orb of destruction. The gnome is concerned, but, with Thorne's assessment, assumes the threat was made to get them to leave Tyar-Besil. Nevertheless, Ruddy shares this information with the rest of the Coopers. After a short conversation, the party decides to continue their exploration.

Entering a large room, they find that an enormous purple worm once chewed its way through the floor, but was felled by dwarves. The dead worm's skeleton remains lodged in the ground, providing access to a tunnel heading further underground. Earl and Naga climb down the tunnel, and walk for over six miles, slowly dropping deeper into the earth, until they make the decision to return back to Tyar-Besil.

Continuing their exploration, Daryle and Darelle come upon a djinni carving a stone pillar. He looks mightily displeased to be here, but appears to be performing an assigned task. He tells the sisters that finding the horn will grant him his freedom.

At the same time and pursuing by now a patented Cooper policy of exploring multiple areas with significant distances between them at once, Whalerider  heads towards a tunnel heading north, only to stumble upon a patrol of bugbears wearing the livery of the Black Earth. He makes an expeditious retreat, meets up with Ruddy, and the two of them quickly dispatch the bugbears. Returning from their exploration, Daryle suggests building a barricade in the tunnel to prevent access to Black Earth patrols. The Coopers quickly do so, and proceed to return near their original entry point into Tyar-Besil.

Carefully walking into a hallway heading east, they arrive near another door. Ruddy listens to the door, hears nothing. Whalerider listens and hears stone on stone grinding. The catfolk opens the door quietly, and takes a look. Inside are two large wheels being spun by eight Howling Hatred initiates, who in turn are being whipped by two Howling Hatred priests. A quick conference among the Coopers, and they determine not to enter. Daryle spikes the spinning door shut, and the party moves on.

Returning from their escapade in the tunnel, Naga and Earl come across the body of Whalerider's dead cat. It has been slain by several arrows, and Naga recognizes the fletching as being Daryle's. They track the Coopers down, and encounter them as they stand by a heavy iron door barred on their side. Whalerider listens to the door, but he hears nothing. He attempts to pick the locks, but fails miserably. Thorne steps up and uses his great tools, but he too fails and breaks his favorite lockpick. Ruddy smashes the locks, but notices that there are traps placed on the door. Earl goes through the door and doesn't trigger the trap. On the other side are several signs displaying warnings that this is Howling Hatred territories, but they have been angrily defaced. Earl returns to his side and reports what he saw. Naga angrily returns the arrows to Daryle. The ranger is confused as to how her arrows could have killed the cat.

Returning to the Great Hall, they are confronted by none other than Thurl Merosska and his Howling Hatred accomplices. The battle begins in earnest, with a similar strategy once encountered by the Coopers on the previous day when the Howling Hatred priests used walls of forces to effectively split the party apart. Can the Coopers survive such a concentrated assault?

Of shops and cultists

Pharast 21, 4713, part 3

The Coopers enter the great hall and find no trace of the enemy they sought to surprise. Instead, they find carbon scoring on the ground and the outline of a toasted dwarf, but no trace of their dwarf friend Dhukhean or of the rogue Thorne can be found. Ruddy scoops up some of the ashes on the ground and bottles them with the hope that he can eventually return them to Dhukhean's dwarven clan. He then urinates on what' left of the ashes. Regrouping, the Coopers say a short prayer for the fallen dwarf, and after an appropriate moment of silence, they exit the great hall and continue their exploration of the Howling Hatred's underground lair.

Returning to the statue of Moradin where Ruddy and Darelle were attacked, the party take the opportunity to explore the area. They find themselves in what were previously shops, but now stand only as ruined spaces that have been thoroughly looted. The party splits up, and search various of the shops. Naga enters what once was a jewelry store and finds a large dwarven golden brooch the size of a fist with an inlaid sapphire the size of a large egg. Daryle enters the bakery and discovers a cast iron bread pan among the rubble. The pan is surprising light and appears to be in excellent condition despite the years since the collapse of Tyar-Besil. Ruddy opens the door to what was the tailor's shop. He is immediately surprised to see a cloaker rising from a fresh cadaver. The cloaker launches itself at the gnome and attempts to affect him with stupor, but Ruddy runs out of the room and takes position by the door, ready to ambush the creature as it comes out. More interested in feeding, however, the cloaker returns to his victim and continues to feed.

Heading west, Naga enters a large cavern with numerous above-ground stone graves, all of them inscribed with elaborate dwarven relief carvings showing scenes of daily life and heroic deeds. His arrival attracts the attention of seven very hungry ghouls and rush the tiefling. To defend himself, he casts fireball and incinerates all of them, leaving only ashes behind. Quickly searching the area, he finds the mostly devoured corpse of a Howling Hatred cultist.

Exiting the cemetery, Naga retraces his steps and finds Ruddy in a fighting stance. Ruddy explains what he found inside the tailor's shop, and it takes very little convincing for Naga to follow the gnome back inside, making quick work of the cloaker. Ruddy then examines the dead corpse, which is dressed like a pirate and not like any of the cultists they have encountered so far. He finds a finely crafted purple wood tobacco box, with very fine smelling tobacco inside of it. He pockets it. Then both he and Naga notice heavy purring coming from above.

Watching through a large hole in the upper wall, Surmont Whalerider and his cat observe the scene carefully. Whalerider and his acquaintance Paul, both of them sailors, found themselves in Red Larch when they ran into the Coopers at the Swinging Sword Inn. Recognizing the Cooper sisters from a previous trip they had taken aboard his ship, the Last Song a few years back in the River Kingdom, he decided to follow them around and see what they were up to. Tracking them to the Shrine of the Tender Oath, they sneaked inside the monastery a few minutes behind the Coopers, located the secret access point to the staircase descending to Tyar-Besil, managed to follow the Coopers through it before it closed and without any of them noticing, then down the stairs and through through the first battle with the featherbeaks, only splitting away when the wyvern and its rider came out to battle. Paul and Whalerider ran in the opposite direction, managed to avoid all of the cultists guarding the dungeon and the other members of the Coopers, and sneaked into the tailor's shop, only to be ambushed by a hungry cloaker. Paul was immediately stunned, but Whalerider and his cat managed to escape and climb up to the second floor of the leather goods shop next door. He'd been pondering what to do when Naga and Ruddy showed up. Now his cat has betrayed him by purring loudly.

In the hallway next to the leather goods shop, Daryle also hears the purring. The entire facade of this store has collapsed in a pile of rubble, revealing the interior. The ranger pulls out some jerky from her backpack and calls the cat to her. The kitty jumps from the second floor and comes to the ranger. It bats at the jerky once, before taking it in his mouth. Realizing that he is in a precarious position as Naga climbs the wall in the tailor's shop, Whalerider hides in a corner. Naga walks right by him and reaches the edge of the shop's second floor. Spotting Daryle, Naga comes down and pets the kitty. Ruddy also climbs the wall, but he is more perceptive than the tiefling and he spots a humanoid cloaked in darkness in the corner. He throws three daggers in the stranger's direction. Hiding his face behind a cloak, and with his eyes glowing, Whalerider performs a panache by blocking Ruddy's attack, and lands in the hallway a floor below. The Coopers pull their weapons out and assume a fighting stance.

Whalerider removes his cloak and reveals he's a catfolk, triggering Ruddy's cat allergy. Whalerider explains that he acquired his name because his family were fresh water fishermen. When he was old enough he joined a fishing crew, but he wanted to explore more than the region around their home. He joined a seawater fishing crew and headed out to sea. On one of those voyages, he spotted a whale, swam to it, and rode it by grabbing on to it with his catfolk claws, thus acquiring his name. The pirate explains that he and his friend Paul were following the party because they wanted to join them.

Reluctantly, the Coopers agree to let the swashbuckler join them in their exploration of the Howling Hatred's base. Looking into the remaining shops, Whalerider finds a magical loom which has clearly not been affected by the passage of time. Large piles of broken weapons and debris indicate that many have attempted to break it apart but have all failed.

Entering the Hall of Feasts, Naga is surprised to find five cultists and two priests, all wearing the distinctive clothes of the Howling Hatred. The priests had heard the commotion in the hallway, and had prepared an ambush. Naga is attacked, but he manages to alert the other Coopers. All of them enter the room from the many doors and engage the cultists. Darelle is paralyzed by a priest who manages to escape, but the remaining cultists are killed by the party. With the threat eliminated, the Coopers regroup and return to the Great Hall. They barricade the doors, and ready themselves to spend the rest of the night so they can recuperate..

Who knew a jar of cloud would be so helpful?

Desnus 6, 4712

Early in the morning, Darelle meets Dr. Mordel and informs him about their adventure at the Hunters' Lodge the previous night. She describes to him the type of demon trying to break through a crystal barrier. Mordel tells her that he's not familiar with this type of demon, but without knowing more details, he still thinks that if the demon had been powerful enough it would have already broken through the barrier. It's unlikely that the demon will manage to break free any time soon. Darelle tells him that the miners seemed to just have reached the crystal, and with the rubble standing in front of the crystal even if he breaks through he will be slowed down. Just in case, however, Mordel gives Darelle a metal glove and tells her it is called a hand of banishment. He instructs her on how to use it. Darelle also asks him about her jar that she discovered. After carefully examining it, he looks impressed and tells her it is a jar of cloud.

After an early lunch, the Cooper sisters head back to the Hunters' Lodge. They peruse the building again and discover a set of keys that can be used to secure the space. They head back inside the mine through the basement, and find that the demon still hasn't broken through the crystal barrier. Daryle places the hand of banishment against the crystal. They then return to the ground floor and secure the Lodge as best they can, before returning to Fort Inevitable.

That evening, Darelle and Daryle meet with Gerald at his house for dinner. He has managed to remove most of his unwanted guests and is now sharing his house with one family of seven, which is a vast improvement on the 15 other people who moved inside his house following the devastating fire that destroyed much of Fort Inevitable. During dinner, Daryle mentions the spellbook she had seen Gerald carry away from Abernard Royst's residence. Daryle voices her suspicion that Nissa might have been impersonating him, and that if it were in fact Nissa she was stealing a book again, hoping that Gerald would get caught. Gerald is indignant that his sisters would accuse him of stealing. After all, he's nothing like Thorne (examples here, here and here).

With this issue settled, Gerald reveals what he has discovered about the missing lumber. A vast quantity of lumber has been taken by unscrupulous caravans to Mosswater, a city well known to the Coopers. The cargo wood is unloaded early in the morning, after the monsters that dwell there have retired for the day, and the caravan swiftly leaves. The next caravan that follows, a few days later, repeats the process. The wood is always removed by the time the next delivery comes. Gerald reports to his sisters that his investigation has led him to a series of ships, which ply the West Sellen river. These ships, all commanded by notorious rogues, are removing the wood and taking it down river. He has been unable to track where the wood is unloaded, however, so he has devised a plan, and Roscoe has agreed to see it through. Gerald has arranged for another cargo of wood to be delivered to Mosswater. Since the shipments have only been stopped for two weeks, it is unlikely that all ships involved in this illicit trade are aware that the Hellknights have suspended deliveries.

His investigation indicates that the Last Song, a ship owned and commanded by Elloise Drake, will pick up this wood and deliver it. He suspects that Elloise Drake is in fact the notorious Lady Wavedancer, a remorseless pirate captain. She has a well-knit crew, which means it is nigh impossible to join as a crew member. Thus, Gerald proposes that Daryle and Darelle smuggle aboard the ship on its stop prior to Mosswater in a specially designed crate. They are then to remain hidden until the wood is loaded and delivered. Gerald provides them with a letter of authority signed by Roscoe allowing Drake's arrest for piracy. Thus, the goals are two-fold. First, locate where the wood goes. Then, take custody of Drake. If possible, the Cooper sisters are to accomplish both tasks. If not possible, tracking the wood is more important.

The crate Gerald designed is large enough to accommodate both sisters. It possesses two secret doors, on either end, that can only be opened from inside. The crate contains food, drinks, blankets and pillows, reading material, a source of light, as well as  a self-emptying chamber pot. If the crate is opened, it will appear to be full of china thanks to an illusion created by Abernard Royst.

Daryle asks him how long he thinks this will take. He replies that it is his understanding that the Last Song will head down the Sellen River to Cassomir at the mouth of the river by the Inner Sea. Gerald surmises that the wood will be unloaded along the way. The sisters agree to this scheme, and immediately depart for the small village of Warren, the Last Song's last stop before Mosswater.

Desnus 7, 4712

The sisters arrive in Warren early in the afternoon, in time to hide in the container before it is delivered and loaded aboard the Last Song. As Gerald expected, the container is opened, but the crew is tricked by Abernard's illusion. Along the way, Daryle plans on stopping in Daggermark if time allows. Over the course of the evening, Darelle and Daryle are able to ascertain that the ship possesses a crew of thirty humans. They also notice Drake and her tall bodyguard and second in command. A monk in appearance, he presents a fearsome figure and is likely to make ranged combat difficult, if not impossible. Aboard the ship is also a strange catfolk sailor who loves to demonstrate his skills with the rapier any chance he gets. The Cooper sisters overheard other sailors call him Whalerider.

The remaining cargo aboard the Last Song consists of fine clothes, barrels of Zelnaux wine, and seven boxes labelled "nails." A large empty space sits below the hatch doors. This seems to be the space where the wood will be placed as it is loaded aboard the ship. That night, in a plot reminiscent of their encounter with the giants, the Coopers decide to poison the crew's food the next night, and repeat the process over the next couple of nights so that the crew is not sick enough to be unable to sail, but miserable and tired enough to not put up much of a resistance if the need arises for the sisters to commandeer the ship.

At night, once everyone but the night watch has been sleeping, Darelle, disguised as Short Mike, one of the sailors she saw earlier in the day, leaves the safety of the crate. She explores the kitchen and poisons the gruel by dropping a powdered substance of her own concoction in it. In the storeroom she discovers that there is a large quantity of liquor on board. She reports her findings to her sister, and Daryle speculates that the ship probably also acts as a floating casino along the river.


Desnus 8, 4712

Midday, some of the crew begins to show digestive issues as the frequency of trips to the heads increase. That night, Darelle repeats the poisoning process in the gruel. As she sneaks around the ship, she once again notices Whalerider practicing his swordsmanship atop one of the mast's booms. He looks down and winks at her. There's no way he saw, her, did he?


Desnus 9, 4712

The ship pulls alongside the main dock in Mosswater mid morning, and the crew begins to load the wood aboard the ship. Darelle takes her potion of invisibility and climbs to the deck to see who is loading the wood in Mosswater. Only the crew is present, confirming what Gerald said. It takes three hours to load up the cargo, and the crew appears very skilled, as if they have done this very thing a number of times. During the loading, Darelle disembarks the Last Song. She finds a abandoned building with a small courtyard. She plants a sapling of the rainbow star flower she harvested in the Pleasure Gardens.

That night, Daryle comes out of the container and marks the wood "Property of Fort Inevitable." Darelle ventures out to the galley and poisons the gruel. Whalerider is once again practicing his swordsmanship, this time on the forecastle's railing. What a strange catfolk, she thinks to herself.


Desnus 11, 4712

The Last Song docks in Daggermark in the afternoon. Some cargo is unloaded after customs inspectors visit the ship, and new cargo is taken aboard. The wood is not moved and remains on board. Throughout the night the Coopers see a steady stream of civilians come down to the crew room and gamble the night away. Daryle was right in her speculations. Unfortunately, Darelle is unable to poison the gruel that night.


Desnus 12, 4712

The last of the gamblers depart the ship at dawn, leaving their earnings behind. The Last Song sails from Daggermark soon afterwards. Darelle poisons the gruel, but almost runs into Whalerider, who was coming out of the ship's head. He looks straight at her for a brief second, before continuing to his destination. Did he see the sneaking ranger?


Desnus 15, 4712 

The Coopers are awaken by the sounds of hushed rushing. The crew is in a hurry and all men are carrying weapons. Darelle comes out of the container and looks out a porthole. The Last Song is hot on the trail of another ship, and soon the sounds of cannons reverberate. The Last Song closes in and the crew boards the other ship. Quickly the other ship is pillaged, and new cargo is lowered into the hold, blocking most of the paths. The containers are labeled Albury of Woodsedge, which happens to be the Last Song's next stop. Daryle surmises that this might become awkward if a customs agent searches the ship when they pull into the harbor.

That night, along with poisoning the gruel, the Coopers discreetly rearrange the cargo so there is more room for them to move around the hold. For once, Whalerider is nowhere to be seen.


Desnus 17, 4712 

The Last Song arrives in Woodsedge. Evidently a bribe is exchanged because the customs inspector does not come to examine the cargo hold. A few items are unloaded, then the ship quickly departs. The sisters reason that the delivery point must be getting closer. Darelle ups the dosage and poison of the gruel. Whalerider is once again seen practicing his skills, this time atop the crow's nest as he passes the time as a lookout.


Desnus 21, 4712 

The Last Song arrives in Bellis, transfers some cargo, and departs the same day. Daryle discover that this area's favorite drink is known as the Forester's Special. The sisters are getting sick of this trip, and they have now read every book aboard the container. They're getting sick of encountering Whalerider in various places around the ship at all times of the night, always practicing his skills. Every time, it's almost like he can see them for the briefest of instants.


Desnus 24, 4712 

The Last Song arrives in Cassomir and unloads much of its cargo, except for the wood and the Coopers' container. No other cargo is loaded. The crew moves noticeably slower and their efficiency has been reduced dramatically due to the poisoning. Many civilians come on board that night to play in the ship's casino.


Desnus 25, 4712 

The Last Song departs Cassomir at high tide. Gerald had intimated that Cassomir was the last stop on the ship's route before returning north, but clearly this is not the case as it enters the Inner Sea and continues to head in a southwesterly direction.


Desnus 27, 4712 

Out at sea, the weather has deteriorated. The sea gets choppier and the sisters are soon sick. A bell rings, and the crew activates, as much as possible with most of the members still sick with food poisoning. Darelle smuggles out of the container. A large warship looms in the distance, and the Last Song is closing fast. Darelle is worried that the crew might try to attack the unsuspecting warship.

This proves not to be the case, however, as the Last Song approaches then ties in with the other ship. Soon the crew begins to transfer the lymber from the Last Song to the warship. Darelle uses her potion of invisibility to sneak around the ship. The warship is named Unbroken, and she spots Hellknights on the bridge, including one who served in Fort Inevitable last year. Darelle manages to board Unbroken and stealthily reaches the captain's quarters. There, the Hellknights are discussing the lumber's arrival and what it portends. They have heard the rumors that lumber would no longer forthcoming from Fort Inevitable, and they were about to give up their vigil. Now they plan on remaining here for another two weeks and see if more lumber arrive. In two weeks, they will sail back to their homeport of Westcrown. They also discuss the news of Duke Mosley's injuries, and they worry aloud that were he to die it would be a dire news for Cheliax.

As the lumber is transferred over, it is clear to Darelle that this ship could hold the equivalent of four times the lumber carried in the Last Song. Meanwhile, back on the merchant ship, Daryle secures everything in the crate and packs their bags in case the sisters must perform a hasty exit. Darelle returns to the ship and reunites with her sister, filling her in on developments aboard the Unbroken. Darelle sends one of the birds of the tree token to notify Gerald of what has happened.

In the evening, the ships separate and the Last Song turns around and heads north, though they can't see him, the Coopers feel that the solitary figure looking back in their general direction as the ship slowly disappears over the horizon is Whalerider. At night, Daryle rummages through the clothes and finds several sets of fine clothes and appropriates them. Darelle takes food and places everything inside the chamber pot portable hole. The sisters then leave the Last Song by riding a piece of cloud from the jar of cloud. They hover above the Unbroken for the night, but when it is clear the ship will not move, they depart at dawn, and head east towards Westcrown.


Sarenith 10, 4712

For two weeks the sisters float eastward in their cloud castle. At dusk, they arrive above Westcrown. A short investigation does not reveal any information about the Unbroken or the ultimate location of the lumber delivery, but the Coopers do come across several signs that tensions are brewing in the former capital of Cheliax, and that a civil war is possible in the near future.

During the Coopers' absence, Dr. Mordel discovered that the poison dropped in Fort Inevitable's water supply was an alchemy blend of dark reaver powder, paraffin and extract of hoya carnosa. This poison, when diluted, affects a person's Constitution and can cause death. Those who do not die suffer as if they have a a terrible flu but manage to recover within a week. They can, however, contract another bout if drinking contaminated water.


Sarenith 11, 4712

The Cooper sisters employ Darelle's blue pegagus and accomplish what took them nearly a month and a half by ship and cloud in a single day.  month-long trip from to Fort Inevitable. Daryle and Darelle think that the time has come to create a new Hellknight command structure. They will talk to Roscoe about it tomorrow.