The Search for Toph, Part 1
General Summary
9 Marpenoth, The Year of the Duplicitous Courtier (1496 DR)
City of Elturel, Elturgard
Fesumi Downsoar, a dragonborn acolyte from Twel’velor Academy of Arcana in Elturel, begged the guard standing on the dais near where Khabhoom, Mordecai, and Jade sat to let her speak to them regarding an urgent matter. The three served as Lords and Lady Protectors, respectively, after Grand Duke Ravengard of Baldur's Gate proclaimed that the members of Wink's Warriors be given stewardship of the city for the remainder of their lives for saving the city from Avernus. Lady Protector Jade, a tabaxi from the fabled lands of Kara-tur, noticed the dragonborn insisting on seeing the three despite Captain Elmoarin Calmwind's insisting she wait until the Lords and Lady Protector had finished the day's duty of hearing the many complaints brought to High Hall by both the common and noble citizens of Elturel. Quite bored from the day's duty, Jade rose from her seat and walked over to where the Captain and the acolyte stood. When she asked the Captain what the matter was, Elmoarin said the acolyte was adamant about speaking to the three. "What is your name, young acolyte?" Jade asked. She had the dragonborn step to the side to speak to her privately. The acolyte bowed respectfully. "My name is Fesumi Downsoar, my Lady," she said. I am from Twel’velor Academy of Arcana. My mentor, Archmage Heinrich Minuu, sent me here to bring you the information he said you needed to know." "What is it, Fesumi?" "My mentor says he has recently come upon information that Toph, a member of Wink's Warriors who had been killed in Avernus, may in fact be alive." "Alive?" Jade asked, surprised. "I personally had not met Toph since he died before I came to join Wink's Warriors. However, I had heard of his bravery and skills. But as I was told, he died when he triggered a trap that teleported him outside Elturel while it floated above the hellish plains of Avernus. Toph fell from a great height above the River Styx and is presumed to have drowned in it since his body was never found. Recovery was not an option due to the inherent dangers of touching the river's waters." "That is true, my Lady," Fesumi continued. She went on to tell of how Archmage Minuu spoke of meeting with an oracle in The Reaching Woods. Kellanos, an all-powerful seer, told Archmage Minuu that Toph may still be found and rescued. Kellanos would know more, and they should seek him in his home in the woods. Jade said she would speak to the others and relay what Fesumi had told her. Jade thanked Fesumi, who bowed and left to return to the Academy. The next day, the three met at Jade's lavish estate. Brimsdall was away on a personal journey. Before leaving, he said he would be flying on Wink, who was now a red dragon, to Candlekeep. When pressed why he was traveling to Candlekeep, he would only say he needed to learn more about something he had been pondering since they left Avernus. Gorn Huntley was also busy, along with Skylar Kiltrim. Both had traveled to Scornubel, the Caravan City, with a small group of Hellriders to try and convince the current Lord High Advisors to rejoin Elturgard and streghthen the two city's alliance. Jade, Khabhoom, and Mordecai decided they would have to meet with Kellanos without the others. The following day, the three flew to the Reaching Woods on the backs of Hippogriffs. Captain Calmwind and six other Hellriders flew to protect the Lords and Lady Protectors. Although the captain doubted they needed much protection, considering they had survived a quest to rescue the city of Elturel in Avernus. But protocol dictated that he do his sworn duty and would do so to his dying breath. Nestled within the heart of The Reaching Woods lay the lair of Kellanos, a place as enigmatic as the oracle himself. As the group from Elturel approached, they smelled the incense and the earthy musk of tomes long undisturbed. The oracle's lair was inside a cavern, its entrance flanked by towering stone columns carved with faded runes, beckoning those who seek wisdom to enter. Inside, flickering torches cast dancing shadows across walls with shelves of ancient scrolls and strange objects. At the center of the cavern, beneath a large opening in its ceiling, a pool of still water reflected the blue sky above. The atmosphere within the cavern was one of timeless knowledge, a sanctuary of the sacred and the arcane, where the boundaries between the past, present, and future blurred. Thanks to Jade's Robe of Eyes, she saw in the shadow the enigmatic, blind figure of Kellanos. The ancient oracle turned to the visitors with a toothless smile. "Come, children," he said. "We have much to discuss." Days later, aboard the ship Uncivil Serpent, the three members of Wink's Warriors and seven Hellriders were bound for the gateway to the Underworld. Captain Rhonda Thunderbell and her crew were approached by Elmoarin Calmwind, who claimed that Captain Thunderbell knew the Sea of Swords better than any seafaring captain in the Realms. The oracle, Kellanos, had given the group answers on how to rescue Toph through riddles. The ancient oracle warned everyone that drinking from the cavern's pool was the only way for them to investigate the fate of the dead. Doing so would allow each to ask Kellanos one question. He added that drinking from the pool was a dangerous task. All three agreed to drink despite the danger. Only Mordecai suffered any ill effects from drinking the pool's water. After drinking from its enchanted waters, he felt a gradual erosion of his wisdom, robbing him of clarity, leaving his mind clouded and his once-sharp perceptions dulled. Bound together by the pool's water, each had asked their question and received their answers in the form of riddles which they solved. They learned that Toph was trapped in the Underworld, which was ruled by the god Hades. To reach Toph, they must first find the entrance to the Underworld, which lies somewhere in the Sea of Swords. They also learned that Toph's soul was trapped in the Underworld due to the party’s continued defiance of death since leaving Avernus. Finally, they learned that lies will only anger Hades. Undeterred by riddles or any effects from drinking the pool's water, the members of Wink's Warriors were willing to make any sacrifice necessary to save one of their own.
Fesumi Downsoar, a dragonborn acolyte from Twel’velor Academy of Arcana in Elturel, begged the guard standing on the dais near where Khabhoom, Mordecai, and Jade sat to let her speak to them regarding an urgent matter. The three served as Lords and Lady Protectors, respectively, after Grand Duke Ravengard of Baldur's Gate proclaimed that the members of Wink's Warriors be given stewardship of the city for the remainder of their lives for saving the city from Avernus. Lady Protector Jade, a tabaxi from the fabled lands of Kara-tur, noticed the dragonborn insisting on seeing the three despite Captain Elmoarin Calmwind's insisting she wait until the Lords and Lady Protector had finished the day's duty of hearing the many complaints brought to High Hall by both the common and noble citizens of Elturel. Quite bored from the day's duty, Jade rose from her seat and walked over to where the Captain and the acolyte stood. When she asked the Captain what the matter was, Elmoarin said the acolyte was adamant about speaking to the three. "What is your name, young acolyte?" Jade asked. She had the dragonborn step to the side to speak to her privately. The acolyte bowed respectfully. "My name is Fesumi Downsoar, my Lady," she said. I am from Twel’velor Academy of Arcana. My mentor, Archmage Heinrich Minuu, sent me here to bring you the information he said you needed to know." "What is it, Fesumi?" "My mentor says he has recently come upon information that Toph, a member of Wink's Warriors who had been killed in Avernus, may in fact be alive." "Alive?" Jade asked, surprised. "I personally had not met Toph since he died before I came to join Wink's Warriors. However, I had heard of his bravery and skills. But as I was told, he died when he triggered a trap that teleported him outside Elturel while it floated above the hellish plains of Avernus. Toph fell from a great height above the River Styx and is presumed to have drowned in it since his body was never found. Recovery was not an option due to the inherent dangers of touching the river's waters." "That is true, my Lady," Fesumi continued. She went on to tell of how Archmage Minuu spoke of meeting with an oracle in The Reaching Woods. Kellanos, an all-powerful seer, told Archmage Minuu that Toph may still be found and rescued. Kellanos would know more, and they should seek him in his home in the woods. Jade said she would speak to the others and relay what Fesumi had told her. Jade thanked Fesumi, who bowed and left to return to the Academy. The next day, the three met at Jade's lavish estate. Brimsdall was away on a personal journey. Before leaving, he said he would be flying on Wink, who was now a red dragon, to Candlekeep. When pressed why he was traveling to Candlekeep, he would only say he needed to learn more about something he had been pondering since they left Avernus. Gorn Huntley was also busy, along with Skylar Kiltrim. Both had traveled to Scornubel, the Caravan City, with a small group of Hellriders to try and convince the current Lord High Advisors to rejoin Elturgard and streghthen the two city's alliance. Jade, Khabhoom, and Mordecai decided they would have to meet with Kellanos without the others. The following day, the three flew to the Reaching Woods on the backs of Hippogriffs. Captain Calmwind and six other Hellriders flew to protect the Lords and Lady Protectors. Although the captain doubted they needed much protection, considering they had survived a quest to rescue the city of Elturel in Avernus. But protocol dictated that he do his sworn duty and would do so to his dying breath. Nestled within the heart of The Reaching Woods lay the lair of Kellanos, a place as enigmatic as the oracle himself. As the group from Elturel approached, they smelled the incense and the earthy musk of tomes long undisturbed. The oracle's lair was inside a cavern, its entrance flanked by towering stone columns carved with faded runes, beckoning those who seek wisdom to enter. Inside, flickering torches cast dancing shadows across walls with shelves of ancient scrolls and strange objects. At the center of the cavern, beneath a large opening in its ceiling, a pool of still water reflected the blue sky above. The atmosphere within the cavern was one of timeless knowledge, a sanctuary of the sacred and the arcane, where the boundaries between the past, present, and future blurred. Thanks to Jade's Robe of Eyes, she saw in the shadow the enigmatic, blind figure of Kellanos. The ancient oracle turned to the visitors with a toothless smile. "Come, children," he said. "We have much to discuss." Days later, aboard the ship Uncivil Serpent, the three members of Wink's Warriors and seven Hellriders were bound for the gateway to the Underworld. Captain Rhonda Thunderbell and her crew were approached by Elmoarin Calmwind, who claimed that Captain Thunderbell knew the Sea of Swords better than any seafaring captain in the Realms. The oracle, Kellanos, had given the group answers on how to rescue Toph through riddles. The ancient oracle warned everyone that drinking from the cavern's pool was the only way for them to investigate the fate of the dead. Doing so would allow each to ask Kellanos one question. He added that drinking from the pool was a dangerous task. All three agreed to drink despite the danger. Only Mordecai suffered any ill effects from drinking the pool's water. After drinking from its enchanted waters, he felt a gradual erosion of his wisdom, robbing him of clarity, leaving his mind clouded and his once-sharp perceptions dulled. Bound together by the pool's water, each had asked their question and received their answers in the form of riddles which they solved. They learned that Toph was trapped in the Underworld, which was ruled by the god Hades. To reach Toph, they must first find the entrance to the Underworld, which lies somewhere in the Sea of Swords. They also learned that Toph's soul was trapped in the Underworld due to the party’s continued defiance of death since leaving Avernus. Finally, they learned that lies will only anger Hades. Undeterred by riddles or any effects from drinking the pool's water, the members of Wink's Warriors were willing to make any sacrifice necessary to save one of their own.
Notes
After drinking from the Pool of Fate, Mordecai failed his saving throw (DC 19 Con save). He lost 3 points in Wisdom permanently as a result.
Kellanos the Oracle
Report Date
03 May 2024
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