Watch and Tower

We watched as Theo helped the Idradan shaman paint a giant circle, and runes, and place the items to ready for the ritual. Theo spoke the necessary words, and soon a spectral copy of the Living Gate wrought itself into existence in the middle of the sigil.
 
Then the shaking started, rocking the ground beneath us. Screams could be heard from outside, from Indrada -- whatever the ritual was doing was most certainly scaring everyone.
 
But when the shaman pulled a scryer's bowl to look he confirmed the news for us: the space surrounding Narithai was void of magic and energy. "It is vulnerable," he muttered. Theo promptly sank to the floor, greatly exhausted. But with enough time he got back onto his feel and looked at the watching Vanguard.
 
Theo's eyes are now tinted gold.
 
It was the giant shaman's turn to sink to the floor -- this time falling flat with a boom -- as Theo projected some magic onto Murg that held him in time. In time: frozen in time.
 
 

Time Unwasted

As we left to seek Ciarsias, Murg paid out to Jojen. It was the most gold the masked monk had ever seen in one place at one time.
 
The dragon greeted us well, and we took to the skies. Steel sketched out work to be done at; Theo hastily scribbled in needed spells; and Murg compared his new sun blade with his gavel and practiced with the two. Jojen watched over this all, meditating in contemplation.
 
Two days -- stopping at a safe mountaintop for the night -- and the Vanguard reached Last Watch (once Fort Richter). It was a metropolis almost, a mix of all ways off life clumped into the stone walls and in a tent shantytown outside.
 

The Last Watch

The Vanguard of Veradin (per Murg: "Saviors of Ibrithil") landed in a grand show, Ciarsias hovering to display power before allowing the people to dismount.
 
Alexia Ducati competed with them in grandiousness; she walked out the gates of Last Watch flanked by royal guards from Arcadia. Words were spoken, and all reentered the fort.
 
"I hate all of you immensely." Ducati caught herself, "There must be a zone of truth on one of you." For the sake of honesty she pulled up her sleeve to reveal a tattoo: a XYZ.
 
And Murg did the same.
 
 

Induction to the White Tree

Whatever the tattoo meant, Alexia was sure to get our consent and make us understand the gravity of the group it represented. The rest of the Vanguard held out their arms, and the tattoos of Alexia and Murg wrapped around to cover the arm and shoulder of all in attendance.
 
"Welcome to the Order of the White Tree."
 
Alexia explained that Murg was inducted when he (accidentally) discovered information on Lawrence and his condition. Between Ducati and the High Auditor, several decisions were made that included inducting Murg in secrecy.
 
Lawrence was a member of the order -- a necromancer. He is from one of the original familys of Arcadia, and possibly one of the nation's founders. As such he positioned himself in a seat of power but erased records of the rest of his kin, so they would be left alone by politics. She looked to Theo.
 
"Those relatives are known today as the family Hornraven. Lawrence Hornraven is your ancestor, and the one who resides in Narathai as we speak." Ducati continued: Theo's uncle Gaiten, who has lived unnaturally long at the cost of his sanity, was a victim (so to speak) of Lawrence. He had snippets of Lawrence's life, which is how Ducati (and therefore the Order) learned of all of this.
 
"When this is over I will give you all a boon: the choice of what to do next [post-Ibrithil]. The weight of your decision cannot be put off forever."
 
Ducati closed with one last note: the White Tree's greatest enemy is Asmodeus, and his return is fated to come soon.
 
 

Down and out at the watch

Alexia shared a drink and a smoke with Murg and Jojen (who produced a pipe of remembrance to project old memories [e.g., Kane's battle]). They discussed the current status of the Veradin Vanguard Caravan Company.
 
She gave an update on the war between the Accord and the Confederacy. An armistice was currently in place, while Ibrithil is in crisis. The Bladelands are notably not in ceasefire, feeling betrayed by Bezia and all the rest. The city is under heavy threat, especially since the elves have retreated entirely back to their own lands.
 
In light of this situation, for her valor (as well as for political power) Sapphire was made queen regent now. Like a true member of the Tired Sands, she hates the roll but does what she can.
 
 

Little time

Theo and Steel each had their own work do to.
 
Steel took five days and a forge at First Watch to craft. The Claw, now the Sapphire Claw, had been given a significant upgrade. Earrings of whisper and rings of power were made and distributed to the rest of the Vanguard as he geared himself up with more tools.
 
As the Vanguard left, surrounding Ciarsias to fly to Narithai, the dragon reared its head back to roar out to First Watch: "My name is Ciarsias. I was once the guardian of Hrothamari and his observatory. Know that I and these four before you go to face a foe who threaten us all. I ask you now to call to them -- your heroes -- and to receive them now as you will receive them when they return victorious!"
 
 
 

Assault on Narathai

It was on the second day atop Ciarsias that we flew over the ink-black sea laced with tentacles from unseen creatures. The Dragon flew high enough to avoid the monstrosities. We took rest on the night of the second day, Narithai a black shadow against the sky of Ibrithil.
 
Winged creatures surround the tower, fiends and beasts unknown. We could see and hear them from far off. The dragon warned that they would prevent us from leaving the tower once we entered -- as we had planned for.
 
One of the flying monstrosities dove for Ciarsias' neck. As he rolled to dodge the attack all held on for dear life. But Theo couldn't find anything to grasp, and began to fall. It was Murg who reached out to save the wizard, nearly breaking Theo's wrist in his gigantic bugbear arms.
 
Another beast, a fiend, swung around the back of the dragon and unleashed a gout of black fire. Steel conjured a wall of flame to protect himself; the rest were not so lucky
 
Theo ran down Ciarsias' back, and in tandem with the dragon conjured shards of force to fill the air. The beasts wheeled off, and the party continued through the air.
 
As the dragon dove the tentacles below thrashed, tempted by Ciarsias' descent. Seeing a change Steel turned and took a shot -- "Just like the saddle" -- blinding a fiend and sending it earthward. Seaward; the tentacles fought over the beast as if it were food (and nothing more).
 
"Now!"
 
Ciarcias lunged towards the tower, and all of the Vanguard leapt off courageously to land on the alcove. The group was met in the blink of an eye by a swarm of black things: bats or something worse. "Abadar!" and Murg called forth a shield of shimmering numbers and outstanding debts the creatures owe to none other but the Lord of Civilization. This was enough to buy the Vanguard a moment, and in that span Ciarcias lent them his dragonfire to clear the way. "I will see you on the other side, brave ones!"
 
And they were off. All of the Vanguard sprinted inside. Jojen took point, and upon noticing irregularities in the stone chambers willed his eidolon-self to assist. Leaping and swinging, twisting past Narithai's defenses, a streak of light -- Jojen's spirit self -- lingered long enough on each spot for the rest of the Vanguard to follow Jojen's steps.
 

Within the black tower

The group crossed a threshold in the tower, the pathway narrowing before them to a large (closed) door. Behind us the path behind darkened, smoke billowing to obscure vision. Then something was perceivable beyond it -- a stone wall, now blocking the group's entrance.
 

Doors

 
The door was covered in thin vines with unsettling eyeballs sprouting from their stems. They did not meet at the center of the door, where a metal ring hung. Undeterred Murg simply knocked, and a dark tone rang throughout the room. The vines slowly began to twist and converge, growing into a spot above the ring. A bud sprouted, then blossomed: a human head opened its eyes and mouth to speak (from whatever foul magics birthed it).
 
Murg responded when it spoke. The face had only dark words to repeat: the blood and corpses littering the floor were those who had previously tried. "But I think that Lawrence, the Gate-Keeper, has not forseen what you hold. You will find the master at the center of this place, past many horrors."
 
The flower, and face with it, began to wilt before crumbling into black soot.
 
The next hallway held a similar-looking door, not covered in vines but with a large indent in the center. To the left of the door a semi-transparent door, a blue gossamer, blocked passage westward to a large spiral staircase. To the right, a chest, but between it and the Vanguard several of Narathai's protecting tentacles prevented normal passage. So Jojen took a breath and a skip and leapt at one of the walls, impossibly scrambling up and over as he ran up and over the hazards to land next to the chest. One of his astral arms came down on the chest, and Jojen retrieved the chest. He brought it back the same way, taking a tentacle slap to the back as he did.
 
The chest held a black stone, onyx and semi-transparent with what looked like a shattered flame within. Embyrieon was the one to speak, appearing as the stone was examined. "Fire from the elemental plane itself."
 
The onyx stone fit into the slot on the door we had found, lighting itself and a fifth of the door up. "Fire down, four to go."
 
Next was the left wall: Theo understood it to be a wall of alarm, and Murg was the one to reach out and dispel it -- creating a hole slightly larger than a bugbear for us to skirt through. We looked at the staircase, winding up and down, and wondering what Lawrence Hornraven had in store for us.