Ryner moved through the docks with a purpose. He was tired of shady dealings with the Jacks. Tonight he would find Curthain and Kira, and maybe a few of the other friends he knew. The jacks were going to-- was that Rhius?

The dragonborn had just glanced down an alley when he spotted the dark elf, trying to escape some hooded and robed figures. He had a pronounced limp, probably from dealing with these characters. Ryner sighed to himself, "It pains me to help him," and quickly leapt up onto the rooftops.
From his vantage, Ryner could make out more of the scuffle. He even recognized their gear, "The Keyholders... Interesting." The white keys on the rooftops responded to Ryner's intrusion by knocking him backward, off the roof, "hnn...Well, at least I can rule out diplomacy."

Down the alleyway, Curthain was moving to speak to a drunken Duggin when he, too, saw the dark elf attempting to evade his pursuers, "If anyone's killin' him, it's going to be me!" Before he could rush in, however, Kira slipped into view and lit up a torch, "Be wary, one of them mentioned something about an abomination." Curthain smiled, "Heh, looks like the band's getting back together". Mord came up on his flank, "You could say that." "Mord! Good to see you, now get fightin'!"

The leader of the keyholders was surprised to see these mercenaries coming to the aid of his prey, "This is official business of the church! By order of Hokalas, The Riftmaster, I order you to stand down!" Behind him came a contingency of rhiln, startling Duggin, "Run! They're on'ta us! They'e gonna find out wha' we did!"

As Kira blasted a few keyholders off the roof, she ordered a fast retreat, "The Keyholders likely have immunity here! We do not need an incident with the rhiln! Run!" Curthain looked at the dark elf, "I don't know who you are, but I don't like them. Come with us."

Once they were safely away from their attackers, Kira turned to the drow, "So, what is it that they want?" The dark elf sneered, "Don't call me an it, I have a name. Call me Saeryn." Ryner stepped in between the two, "My kin, the Servants of the Swift Sword, once had the ability to judge a man's soul by simply looking at them," he turned to Saeryn, the golden patch over his missing eye flared, "Unfortunately, that skill was lost to us in a previous age." Saeryn sighed, nervously. Ryner continued, "I know something of the Keyholders. They work to keep magic in balance. When they called Saeryn an abomination, they didn't mean his skin," he turned to Saeryn, again, "You are a sorcerer, are you not?" The drow smiled, "Perceptive."

The dragonborn's glowing eye dimmed, "By the oath we swear to The Swift Sword, I cannot allow harm to come to an innocent. Being born is not a crime," before Saeryn could interrupt him, "Please, do not make me regret this burden."


As the heroes approached Ryner's orphanage, they spotted a figure on the porch. "Jacks...", Ryner surged forward, sword in hand, when he heard the figure scream in terror, "Noo! I am looking for Ryner! I need his help!" Mord chuckled, "The big one, there, is Ryner. You better talk fast." The woman pulled back her hood, "You do not know me, but you know my husband, Fordril Senden. We were assaulted earlier this evening by a crazed halfling woman. She told me not to go to the rhiln. I came to you, hoping you could do something." Ryner sheathed his blade, "My apologies, please, step inside."

Norlel explained that she and Senden had just returned from dinner with her parents when their doors and windows burst open by a powerful blast of wind, "She stood in the doorway, angry and cackling. She knocked Senden unconscious and took him away. I didn't know where else to go. Please, you must help find him." Kira questioned her on the magic the halfling seemed to posess, "Did she have any identifying marks..maybe an amulet or..." "A Symbol, yes...of a.. hammer. With lightning bolts." "Weyyel, The Storm Lord. That makes sense."

Norlel continued, "She said he was to be sacrificed tonight for his crimes. I don't know what he could have done to deserve this." "Sacrificed," Kira interrupted, "That sounds more like Ill Luck. The two are closely related, though. We could be dealing with a theurge, a priestess of two gods. They're rare..and dangerous."

Using some of Kira's contacts, the heroes were able to locate a cave that the halfling was probably using. It was, however, nearly 40 feet down a cliffside. As the heroes descended, Saeryn slipped. He would have fell were it not for Curthain's quick action. He leapt out of the cave, grabbing the falling dark elf and the rope simultaneously, swinging them both inside the cave mouth. Kira lit a torch and Ryner woke the magic in his shield. The ground was solid, but covered in water. The water looked tainted; likely from a sewer drain depeer in the cavern. As the tide rose, so did the water in the cave. Mord offered up a sense of urgency, "If we're not quick about this, we'll all drown. Well, the armored ones, anyway."

Inside the cave they found the halfling standing behind Senden's unconscious body, tied to a stone slab. There was religious imagry of both The Storm Lord and Ill Luck covering the walls. The halfling cackled, madly, "As I expected! My minions, destroy them!" The wind in the cavern came to life, as small tornados formed and moved to strike.

It was a strange battle, the halfling was less intent on killing them as she was looking for someone. While the heroes cut down her shardstorms, she called out for one of their fallen friends, "Where is the halfling!!?!? Where is Nolan?!" Hearing the name of his friend, Curthain flew into a rage, "He is dead! Fear not! You will meet him, soon!" The halfling dodged the insane strikes of the barbarian, if only slightly, "noononnnono! I need him! He cannot be dead!" In between singing, Kira's curiousity was piqued, "Why would you need him?"

"They stole it! Don't you understand!!?!? They stole the child of the storm!", the halfling half screamed, half pleaded, "I tried to get it back from the Bastion man, but he was too powerful!! I need the thief!!"

Kira's mind raced, Child of the Storm. Old sailor's talk of apowerful relic of The Storm Lord that, if posessed, could control the seas, themselves...So that's how the Golden Alliance is doing it,"Give us Senden and we will retrieve the child for you." Mord was confused, "Who has this child?" Kira was irritated by Mord's interruption, "Not a person, Mord. A child of the sea, a pearl." The halflings eyes widened, "Yes! Yes! You know of the child! You get it for Skorka, then Cosolen is not destroyed by Noala!"

With that, she slipped under Curthain's legs and ran off into the sewers. Mord looked down at the water level quickly rising to his waist, "Remember that urgency I spoke of? GET MOVING!" The heroes rushed through the sewers, moving through the darkened tunnels by Saeryn's sight and poor sense of direction. More than once, they fell into shit smelling foulness one can't even imagine, but kept together and eventually located a storm drain. They ascended into one of the eastern markets in the dead of night. A group of rhiln were patrolling the area and spotted the heroes.

As the rhiln approached, Curthain recognized the leader. Rhilnd Dolnel looked them over, "Strange night this is. One would normally question why a group of armed men are climbing out of a sewer... But, I'm sure Founder Senden here would confirm you were assisting him with some repairs, correct?" Curthain looked puzzled, but smiled, "Yes...Repairs." Dolnel then locked eyes on Saeryn, "I am under orders from Keyholder Minon to find a dark elf criminal. Unfortunately, I don't know what a dark elf looks like. If you see him, please report to me right away. Let's go, men". With that, the rhiln moved on out of the market.

The party cleaned the shit off their clothes and armor back at the orphanage while they tried to decide what action to take.

They were called heroes. The adventurers had set out from the Harken in hopes of gaining information on the orcs in P'Bapar pass. Unfortunately, with little time and no reinforcements, it was up to them to stave off the orc horde. They soon found there was an even bigger threat to the people of Cosdol, for within the bowels of the Legasa Peaks slept an ancient earth titan of unfathomable power.

Stonefang had been trapped by the dwarves long before Brandobia was formed. The orcs disturbed the binding ritual and stole the body parts that bound him. The heroes took on this charge, as well. And in the end, they were victorious--though at great cost.

Nolan Kapran, the sly cutpurse was killed in the halls of P'Bapar. The swordmage, Aldus Colden was also slain while battling the orcs at the citadel outside the pass.

The Archduke E'Dos Kalanasi II, of P'Bapar, personally thanked the warriors for their brave efforts, including a monetary reward of 500 gold pieces. They were royalty within the walls of P'Bapar. Armors were cleaned, weapons were sharpened, and the wine poured like the falls above the pass. Fame is fleeting, however, and the city soon went back to work, with the orcish horde having been disbanded. The heroes decided it was time to head back home.

They hitched a ride with a trade caravan headed for Cosolen and tried to enjoy a nice, quiet journey home. The dwarf, Duggin, decided to come along. With his first, Serka, now dead, he had no home to head toward. The ranger, Mord, was only heading along in hopes of securing some good work as a caravan guard. And so they headed out, all save for Kira, who elected to stay behind and seek study with the eladrin, Shifryn.

Back in Cosolen, life returned to normal. Curthain found that the ring he procured for Tiberio was, in fact, not the ring he was sent for, causing much undo stress in their relationship. Ryner found he had new troubles, as well. The Jacks were leaning heavily on him for payment, and were now expecting Ryner to pony up to Nolan's debt. Zandi, Nolan's uncle had been beaten severely and his shop burned down. Hurrel, for his part in helping Nolan, had lost an eye and was hobbled. Iola had taken them both in under her protection, making the Jacks even more angry. Adding Daggo, Ryner had many mouths to feed and a growing debt with the orphanage.

Meanwhile, Duggin struggled to find work, as his reputation for being a follower of the Overlord had impared his ability to find employment. Being a decent tactician only helps put food in one's belly during war. Mord suffered a similar fate. While he could pick up work on the docks, or doing other menial labor, few Brandobians trusted the half-orc.

Kira, on the other hand, fared quite well. Shifryn was, by all accounts, a savant with magic. Whether it be his swordplay, singing, or study of spells, the eladrin was a master. He helped Kira fine tune her voice, showing how the vibrations worked in harmony with her blade. While she was still a novice, her skills would greatly improve under his tutelage. Unfortunately, Shifryn was called to his home in Doulathanorian, ending their studies for the time.

And so continues our stories in these Simpler Times.