It's dangerous knowing so little Report

General Summary

1489 DR - Summer - 12, Eleasis (8) - Sword Coast - Blasingdell, Khundrukar, Baldur's Gate, Candlekeep  

• The crew help load up everything that can be salvaged from Blasingdell into the carts and begin a caravan toward Khundrukar, their intended new base of operations.
The Road to Knowledge
• Yasen, Huden, and Oudman diverge south and begin to travel toward Candlekeep on horse back, refreshing horses regularly at towns and inns and using magic to bolster their endurance, intending to stay on the main road and avoid trouble. It is a 25-30 day journey to Candlekeep by fresh horses and magic, and the team intends to search for another book on their way to gain all three passage.
• The road is remarkably empty considering the time of year, but this could be due to increased military activity as the most common goers are Zhentilar troops and trade caravans.
• Traveling through Waterdeep only briefly (to avoid any incidents from their previous escape) and through Daggerford, the team gets to the unpopulated stretch of road known as the Trade Way, and then further on to Baldur's Gate.
• In Baldurs gate they enter the town and begin looking for the best way to find a book. The Noble district reportedly has a modestly unique library, but they are not permitted access. Huden hatches a plan to woo some nobles with his performing skill while Yasen sells him to a noble bidder.
• The group locates a fine tavern with a unique conical playhouse and elite clientele near the noble district, but the host says that those who wish to perform must go through a trial by audience, where only the best applause will earn the crew the right to keep their tips, and permission to play in the fancier taverns in the city. Huden signs up while the crew grabs a table.
• Huden begins a performance of history telltaling, but the crowd is bored to tears, and he ends up turning the story of Cyric and Mystra into a complete farcical love story with Bane as a goofy villain and where Mystra commits suicide in her lost love for Cyric, plunging the world into the Spellplague and mocking Banes foppish advances. A table of Zhentarim look on in open hatred and defiance at the story.
• Oudman uses some magical tinkering to increase the applause level by getting the silverware, cups, plates, and table to joining in the applause.
• Even forgiving the rough start the tale begins to erupt in uproarious laughter at Banes expense, and the crowd is wowed by the lovers tale. Huden is awarded a small silver Harper Pin that will signify he is allowed to perform in the hall for tips, and is gifted his food and drink for his table for the night.
• Yasen scouts the audience for a mark and finds some dainty nobles that are willing to hire Huden for a private performance. They accept and meet him by the entrance when they are ready to leave.
• The group follows them to the noble district, negotiating Huden's interest in historical books as his motivation and compensation, while also asking about the library itself and hearing that it contains a collection of tomes on the Blood War, peaking everyone's interest.
• Huden performs while Oudman makes fancy colored light shadows on the wall to the stories and Yasen shmoozes the crowd. Afteward they are thanked and allowed access to the library for the evening with the house servant escorting them and locking them inside.
• They search the library for anything interesting, and while there are many nice books and it is a great collection, nothing seems to stick out as Candlekeep worthy, and the collection of Blood War tomes seems to have been recently removed or stolen from it's dusty location in the tower.
• The only interesting find is a book on what are called 'Spelljammer' ships, but other than that it seems to be a purely fictional work talking about the strangest ship designs the crew has ever read. Huden makes two copies as best he can in one evening.
• The three then leave the library and the city of Baldur's Gate in the early morning, heading for Candlekeep. They arrive on the 6th day of Eleint, 23 days later, and are greeted by a monk scholar who accepts their tribute but must verify they are not bringing any interlopers.
• Yasen and Oudman scan, but Oudman is given a very strange doubletake, but is still accepted.
• In Hudens head, Abigor screams "Don't let them SEEEE, hide me!" and begins to try and stall the viewing. While the scholar is distracted, Abigor passes to Yasen, and Yasen is subjected unwittingly to Abigors madness, and his visual expression tells this story clearly. Abigor then fights Yasen, realizing he is some kind of a celestial shell, and takes momentary control of his body while Yasen is fending him off and reeling in shock in his own mind.
• Huden successfully distracts the scholar, is scanned, (and again given a strange look like he is somehow tainted) before Abigor jumps back into his head, nearly losing his mental battle with Yasen, who is now keenly aware of what resides in the back of Hudens mind.
• A librarian is then brought to them to meet with the crew, and he says that he knows their intentions and that they are granted temporary access, due to one of these book not being the best copy they have seen. If they can locate a better copy of the last book they will be granted a more permanent access, but until then are allowed only this visit, for no more than a week.
• The three split up and begin to scour the library for information, and what they seek seems to be few and far between with only scant references to their questions documented below:

1. No references to a tenth lord anywhere, but they do eventually find information on a banished Arch-Devil named Gargauth, whose documented symbol vaguely resembles what they found. He has only minors cults across Toril.
2. Keezor is not found in any reference in Toril, but a book with some kind of alternate history lists famous magicians from another world. In one such entry is the story of Vecna, which mentions two rival lich figures Vecna, and Keezor, that fought over Keezor's Castle in the sky. Vecna won, and imprisoned Keezor in his castle. Vecna was later slain by his lieutenant Kas, breaking the spell on Keezor and causing his castle to fall towards the land! The inhabitants of the land below the castle were saved by a group of celestial mages who banished the castle from the realm at the last minute using a massive gate. Keezor was named the Forsaken thereafter and not referenced further.
3. A different reference is found related to Spelljamming (per the strange book they found), and it contains a small epic travel diary of a journey on some form of flying Ship outside the crystal spheres to free a trapped lich called only The Forsaken, performed inside the floating body of Moander, the dead god of decay. The ritual succeeding in earning The forsaken's freedom, by ending his lichdom and resurrecting the Forsaken to life, after which the diary ends and has no more entries.
4. Research into the Blood War shows that Dreadlords were the prime material plane chosen of the hordes of the abyss, princes and Lord's, empowered demigods and material deities set to incarnate their Avatars and hosts on the realms to collect souls, create outposts, and lead assaults against the Nine Hells in the Blood War. Most Dreadlords had further organizations of cults (led by several 'Heralds', notably Graz'zt's Heralds of Pain) that drove these missions creating a near turning point (this was all pre-time of troubles) in the blood War. Only intervention of legendary heroes and anti heroes aligned succeeded in assassinating or imprisoning each of the dreadlords.
5. Further research into the Heralds revealed some known as the Heralds of Strife that existed before the time of troubles and were leaders in the blood war for the now defeated Demon Queen Louhi. These Heralds are also noted to have been slain by the god Bane, his queen Loviatar (who took the Pain mantle from Louhi) and his followers in defense of Toril. The heralds were know as The Lady in White, The Corpse, The Fiend, The Man in Rags, and the Frogmouth.

• After a week of research, the three prepare to leave, and exit the library to meet their compatriots in the fields outside of Candlekeep.

• Llewellyn, Lucyan, Sabyn, Zul, Damien, and Xifor lead the caravan from the dead city of Blasingdell up the mountains toward Khundrukar, spread out among the many wagons and horses to defend from wild things and lead the carts. Fortunately the area has been scoured and there are scant living things about still after the orcs were slain in the fortress.
• After days of travel Sabyn comes to Lucyan and says there is something vital she has to attend to off to the east, but that he should continue leading the crew to the new base, and start setting up the location. She passes him the sending stone and leaves quietly with Zul.
• The four remaining lead the carts to the main entrance of Khundrukar, and enter through the main entrance past the arrow defenses. The place has changed though, and while still as silent as the grave, the doors are shut and there is a hush in the air.
• Lucyan spots a Duergar spying out from within the arrow slit, and is asked what they are doing here. Lucyan doesn't take kindly to his tone and summons spiders to kill him, prompting a volley of crossbows from the defenses to assault the party.
• Damien whisks into the hallway behind the duergar and begins slaying them, The main doors open with monstrous Steeders assaulting the crew, only to be blown apart by Xifor in cackling fire.
• Lucyan and Llewellyn find themselves facing an enlarged Namira and her wizard companion, who summon more Steeders and fight with abandon against them in the hallway.
• The crew eventually slays the duergar through tenacity and spells and Namira retreats while invisible.
• The crew gives chase with Llewellyn tracking the blood trail, that leads to a dead end, and they feel they have lost Namira. She taunts them somewhere in the shadows.
• the crew discusses terms amidst Namira's threats of night time throat cutting, but is ineffective at convincing her to stand down.
• Lucyan casts a locate creature spell and instantly knows where Namira is, and points Xifor toward her with another fireball ready. She surrenders, and agrees to discuss terms.
• After some debate she agrees to stay below in their forge and give up the top floor, but on terms that the Duergar will remain contractors for the top to be paid to build out the defenses.
• The crew begins laying out the defenses and plan and finds many improvements have already been made to the locks and doors in the fortress. Sabyn returns and straightens out the agreement with Namira. Who slinks off paler than normal to the lower levels.
• After a few weeks, The Gazer ship arrives and lands outside Khundrukar, and Lucyan, Llewellyn, Damien, and Xifor board, while Sabyn and Zul plan to stay behind to finish defenses at the new base of operations.
• They board the ship and depart, arriving at Candlekeep roughly one month from when they departed the shell of Blasingdell.