Saving the World, Part {I can't count that high}

12 Dravago, 994 YK

Those bandits had no idea what hit them! We cleaned them up and decided to rest in our new place of refuge. During Donaar's watch, a bunch of corpse eaters came out to play. Of course we were too tired to pile the bodies outside of camp. I guess the gods like to remind us of our failings. Well they start to attack us and they climb all over the tall folk. I had to blast one off of my "master's" shoulders that decided to suckle on him. I also took one off of Wabnuc, I'm not sure he's the same after getting carpeted.

We decide to head back to town since there is no sleeping here with all the critters. We decide to take all of the loot , and the lone surviving ballista. Our plan is to give it to the guards to mend our relationship with them. I don't know why. I agree with Donaar that they are sorely incompetent—just the way I like them.

When we return to town and drop off the ballista, the guards seem confused and unsure what to do with it. I'm not sure that they really know how to use it...typical. We then run off to the merchant's guild to collect our ransom for returning their stolen goods. They claim that all of the goods are not there. Hello, we took the loot back from bandits! I'm sure they already divvied some of it up and spent it on hookers and beer. They grumble about it and only pay us some of the reward. This is why I don't do things for strangers.

We head back to the inn and find a letter waiting for us telling us that we are dumb as doorknobs and that we need to seek our answers in the forest. Although I resemble that, I can't keep from feeling somehow insulted. We climb the obelisk and I take another look around. I don't see anything but one of the mages casts a ritual and we finally can see the locations of two other buttons. I resist the temptation to press the button on the obelisk again, and we climb down and seek the other buttons. One is underground and we decide to go down. I slip down into the tunnel and am on point. I sneak ahead and signal the coast is clear. When the team loudly follows, they wake the dead and stuff literally flies out of the walls to attack them! They need saving again. So I come back and make all stabby-like.

After clearing the monsters, Rex Miles presses the button and has a hallucinogenic dream about the other buttons. We decide to check out the other button in a field and that's when Donaar decides to push all three. No way I am going all loopy of magic buttons so I watch as he pushes all three. Once he hits the third one, he finds a hedge mage. We follow him to an area of the forest and he disappears in front of our eyes walking into a tree. I close my eyes and attempt to do the same and end up with a sore nose and a bruised ego.

It doesn't seem like Donaar is coming back for us any time soon, so the rest of us decide we need to press all the buttons to gain entry. We circle back a third time and press all the buttons. We can see the maze too! We climb into the tree and end up in a spirit world with a huge shrub maze. I'm not sure where it came from but I hear a far off voice calling "Here's Johnny!" It makes my spine chill. We end up getting through the maze and to a garden Portia would love. It is a puzzle of course. We end up solving it and the fairie dragons and Nerine end up being there! We try to give Nerine her staff, but she says we need it still. Apparently red dragon's blood is needed but it has been thinned over time. I'm not sure what to do now.