11: Evereska Reborn

Heroes of the Day

As we huddled around each other post battle, the elven leader weaved through his soldiers, checking their health and giving them the reassurance of a job well done. We stood in awkward silence, slinking backward towards the shadows when another patrol appeared. A raven-haired woman, garbed in clothing of high rank or station spoke with the elven man leading the first group of soldiers. She reached out to comfort the man and smiled as she spoke, though the conversation was too quiet to overhear. In an instance she and her soldiers were off again and the man turned his attention on us.

As he approached, Bhodi donned his hood and stepped behind the rest of us. The elven man introduced himself as Sergeant Sorian. I could only surmise that this man was Bhodi's father, given the odd behavior my friend was displaying in his presence. 

"What's going on here?" he said. "Where did you all come from and what are you doing here?"

I nudged Carrick forward to explain the situation. He begrudgingly answered.

"This may sound a little out there but we travelled through time to stop an evil wizard from using this battle as cover to steal the Mithil."

"I see," Sorian replied with a look of trepidation on his face. "And this wizard, is he gone?"

"Yes. He and his minions are gone," Carrick said as he pointed to the bodies strewn around the base of the Mithil.

"Do you guys smell that," I interjected. "Smells like smoke..."

"Your pack!" Bhodi shouted and ripped it off my back. 

The strange device inside, the one that Agoron (Teletestin) gave me, had started to crackle and spark which ignited the cloth on my backpack. 

Great. Now I'm going to have to buy a new pack.

The strange device exploded and a brilliant flash washed over us. Our forms, almost ethereal, seemed to float as the landscape around us morphed into something else. Blue leaf trees sprung up around the Mithil. Buildings that were shattered reformed. Bridges that had collapsed, righted themselves. The mists faded away.

Finally everything stopped and our bodies reconstituted in the exact spot we'd been before. Only now, the surrounding area was renewed, changed into a lush, vibrant, unblemished space. The Mithil, now undamaged, seemed to be fully restored. 

Carrick softly spoke, "The Mithil was originally constructed to regulate weather patterns in and around Evereska as well as grant immunity to disease and poisons. It was also said to grant the ability to fly within the borders of the city. And undead...well they were repelled from the borders by its powers. When it was damaged, the city lost all of that and crumbled into ruin. With it now restored...I don't know, we have changed history. We have changed Evereska. I never thought I'd see this day."

"Hey, you there, HALT!"

We looked up to find a group of elven guards surrounding us. Damaia quickly shot up her hands and Norah stepped forward.

"We want no trouble," she said. 

"I'm Alvis, leader of this patrol. What are you doing down here. This area is off limits."

Carrick betrayed a hint of recognition on his face but gave nothing away. I looked back and Bhodi told him it was time for him to talk to these people, his people. He agreed and stepped forward, dropping his hood. In the distance, a crowd slowly gathered behind the guards. All manner of people were descending down to the platforms near the Mithil. 

"My father is Sergeant Sorian," he said. "I am from this valley and these are my friends."

A murmur swept across the group of guards. Alvis peered to the man next to him and said, "He has the face of the walker, doesn't he?" The man nodded in agreement.

"The Walker?" I said quizzically.

"There is a creature known as The Walker in the Mists that roams the valley in which Evereska is seated. And it wears his face," Alvis replied and pointed to Bhodi.

Suddenly, the crowd began to part and an elf in elaborate clothing stepped hurriedly in our direction. The confusion on our faces was evident. This walker wearing the same face as our friend? His mother and father in the middle of this battle? The city no longer in ruins? Not much was making sense. 

"You are here!" the well-dressed elf said. "You are the ones! Where have you been? How did you get here?"

"It's a long story," I replied. "I'd surely like to discuss it over some ale. And you are?"

"My apologies. Forgive my impetuousness. I am Erian Durasar, leader of Evereska. Your coming here is unprecedented. It's been a great many years since the battle to protect the Mithil. Your contributions have become something of a legend for our people."

"Well for us, it happened only moments ago. Something happened after the battle. This device, I'm not sure what it is, started to catch my bag on fire and then bang, we are standing here," I said and handed the broken device to Erian. "Maybe you can figure out what it was. It's a little outside my wheelhouse. How about that ale? And what is this Walker that has my friend's face?"

"I see," Erian spoke with excitement in his voice. " Well, you are all heroes. You saved this valley and its people from certain doom. This Walker you ask about is a guardian that was created to patrol the valley and protect us. It bears your friend's face as tribute. Anestra Shelandalan created the Walker and imbued it with the face of the man who saved her son, Sorian, from certain death during the great battle. The tale of how he jumped headlong onto that creature and slayed it still rings our ears to this day."

"You want to tell him, Bhodi?" I smirked at him and urged him on.

He returned my smirk with a wan smile and spoke, "Sorian was my father. I actually grew up near here. Surely, you know my family."

Erian was momentarily speechless. 

"It's OK," I said. "We are as dumbfounded as you."

"Of course I know your family," he said as he shook the shock off. "They will be happy to see you, I'm sure. I trust you know your way to Cwim?"

Bhodi nodded, "It's been some time since I've been home. I'd like to freshen up and maybe get a gift before I go see them."

"Very well," said Erian. "Alvin can show you to the Halfway Inn. You can find shops near there. Ask for Marei once you get to the Inn. She can give you the lay of the land and help you get whatever supplies you require. Take these as a token of respect." Erian reached into his robes, pulled out a handful of small amulets and gave them to us. "These will allow you to fly within the bounds of Evereska. They harness the power of the Mithil and give you this ability."

"One more question," I said as I took the amulet. "What's the date?"

When he answered my mind started racing. We'd arrived here three months after we'd entered Maravak's lair. Three months gone and a world changed forever. I started to churn on the implications. Where is Maravak now? What happened to Erdrich? Is Maravak still a threat? What about Norah's aunt? Did they make it where they were going? So many questions still unanswered. My thoughts were interrupted by Erian's booming voice. When I looked up, he'd turned to address the crowd gathered behind him.

"Good people of Evereska. We welcome home our heroes, the great saviors of Evereska. They have traveled through time and space to be among us. In three days time, we will celebrate their coming with a great feast. Set to your tasks, for we owe these heroes our best. Go now with this, the greatest of days in your hearts."

Erian glanced back at us with a nod and smile, then motioned Alvin to step forward and take charge of us. The crowds meandered off, back toward the surface, dispersing as quickly as they'd arrived. 

As Alvin was explaining the finer points of flying to us, I leaned in and asked Carrick if he had family here, since he'd seemed to recognize Alvin from the start. He only answered me by summarily avoiding a conversation about it. I managed to get a very short 'I don't know where my parents are' out of him and left it at that. He didn't seem to want to talk and I felt it best not to pry. And incidentally, I should have paid more attention to how to fly. Those first few minutes were rough.

Once the flying lesson was over, Bhodi turned to us. "I've changed my mind. Let's go see my family."

Family Reunion

As we arrived at Bhodi's house, I saw the look of nervousness wash over him. The quaint cottage home was nestled in a copse of trees far as the eye could see. Carrick, still excited at the prospect of flight, flittered into the treetops, perched on a branch and waited for Bhodi to work up the nerve to knock on the door of his childhood home. The remainder of us stepped back and urged him onward, toward the door. 

Bhodi hesistated for a moment and then finally knocked. The door opened with a slight creak and revealed a familiar face; one we knew as Sorian. 

"Hello, Father," Bhodi said as he wrung his hands. "I have returned home."

"It was you! I knew it!" Sorian flung his arms around his son and whispered in his ear. "You saved me. I knew it all along."

As Sorian released the embrace, he noticed us waiting in silence and blushed. 

"I'm sorry. Where are my manners. Do come in. Mother, Look who's home. And he's brought guests..."

No sooner than we made it past the threshold, an older elven woman barreled into Bhodi, nearly knocking him over. She said nothing, not a word, but held her hug for a long moment.

"Do you see, mother?" Sorian said as he paced. "His is the visage I described to you when I returned from the battle. Its him that you carved into the face of The Walker. He is the one who drew us from the grasping claws of the Phaerrim."

"Indeed, it is," Grandmother said as she broke away from Bhodi. "My grandson, the hero. Please, all of you, sit. I shall prepare some food for you. A welcome to you all."

As she hurried into the kitchen, we all sat across from Sorian in a somewhat awkward silence. Bhodi spoke first, attempting to piece together the time travel we'd experienced and explain the why and how of our actions to save the Mithil. It came out as strange in his voice as it sounded in our heads. He explained that the last time he'd seen his parents was when he'd left to train with Master Chen - in a time when the city was nothing more than a ruin. He explained that he'd eventually been bound to our little band and that chance encounter had led to the state of things as they were now. Sorian simply listened in stunned silence. 

At the end, Bhodi asked about his mother. He had noticed she was not there and seemed quite bothered by that fact. Sorian simply sighed in reply.

"Your mother returned from the far east not long ago," he said. "She came with unsettling news about a group of monks in that region, a bad lot, that she had fought. These monks have made their way to the Sword Coast. She left in haste to seek out Chen at the monastery and warn him of these monks, known as The Skeletal Serpents. I have not seen her since."

"What do you know of these monks," I piped up and asked.

"Well," Sorian cleared his throat and spoke."From what Bhodi's mother told me, they are a group of death monks, dabbling in arts forbidden by our people for generations. They were thought to have been wiped out centuries ago. However, when she went to the far east, she found that this was not the case. They'd made a resurgence and now they are here, in our lands. That's really all that we know at this point." 

Bhodi's grandmother broke in with trays and plates of food for all of us. "Yes, Bhodi, you remember where Chan's monastery is? You trained there after all. Many children are trained there. Two days north of here, in the foothills of the Grey Peak Mountains. Of course the fastest way to get there is to travel through the Forgotten Forest. I'm sure she would be very happy to see you."

As we all consumed the delicious meal, Bhodi pressed about his childhood to learn that his mother had left for the far east when he was just a year and a half old. His parents were married soon after the battle for the Mithil and Bhodi had come along shortly after that. He'd spent the majority of his childhood being raised by his father and grandmother. It had been nice to hear a bit about his family as I inhaled the food before me. 

With an empty plate and full stomach, I eyed the others. Finally, I suggested that we leave Bhodi with his family for the evening and go find the Halfway Inn to take refuge ourselves. It would do him some good to have some quality time with them, alone. We needn't be involved in that. The rest of my companions agreed and we said our goodbyes, thanked Bhodi's family for graciously hosting us and headed out the door into the open evening air. 

Sleep & Social Discourse

As we entered the Halfway Inn, we were met by a lanky High elf who introduced herself as Ash. Carrick stepped to the front and asked her for 5 rooms. She nodded, stating they were the last 5 she had available. Norah dropped Erian's name and told her that the bill would be covered by him as we were honored guests in Evereska. She looked at us quizzically and said that she would have to verify such a claim. If true, she would honor it, she said.

The accommodations were much nicer than I'd expected. I'd guessed they were much nicer than any of us expected, given the look on the others' faces as they surveyed the digs. As for myself, I wasted little time falling into a deep, sonorous sleep. Norah cracked a window a lit some incense, I can only surmise to unwind and possibly speak to her god. Who knows if she ever gets an answer. I may have to ask her about her god and how she came to be a believer in such things.

We woke early. My eyes cracked open to the soft murmur of Norah thanking her god, Khati, for the beautiful sunshine breaking through the windows of our room. As Norah, Damaia and I head down to the common room for breakfast, Bhodi stepped in with a long piece of wood in his arm. We converged on the same table, hot breakfast being laid out as our butts hit the chairs. It wasn't long after that Carrick and Miresta joined us.

"Looks like your story checked out," Ash said as she appeared out of thin air. "Everything's on the house."

We thanked her with a simple nod. As she turned to go, Norah stopped her and asked that she deliver a letter to Ofiera and her Aunt Melia in Water Deep. Ash gave a small curtsy, took the letter and shuffled away.

I turned back to the table, and my food, but noticed that Miresta was speaking with Carrick in secret. I only made out the words "spoken" and "mentor" and "here." He simply shook his head no in response. Who knew what that was about. That Miresta is so close to the vest. I believe in our closeness, but that one's got secrets. I only hope in time, she feels safe enough to trust all of us with her secrets - not just the other elf in the group.

"So...I have a theory," I piped up. "This whole death monk situation seems like the work of Maravek. It's right up his alley and I have a hard time believing he's any different in this new timeline than he was in the old one."

"I agree," said Miresta. "I think routing out these Skeletal Serpents will lead us to Maravek. I think this should be our top priority. It all seems too convenient."

I saw in everyone's face that they agreed, reluctantly, that this was a problem that needed attention. After some debate among us, we settled on a plan. We would leave Evereska and head to Chan's monastery in search of information related to Maravek and these monks. But first, we had to respectfully decline Erian's offer of celebration in our honor. 

We made our way to the main hall and were immediately granted admittance to speak to Erian. As was decorum, we entered the room and gave respects and salutations to the leader of Evereska. He greeted us warmly and asked what he could do for us. We collectively pushed Carrick forward to speak for us.

"If it please you, sir, we believe we must respectfully decline your invitation to celebrate in our honor," Carrick spoke as eloquently, politically correct as he could make it. "You see, we have reason to believe that an old foe may have become accessible to us once more. And we have needs to dispatch of this foe with haste, before he can do any further damage."

"Oh?" Erian replies in surprise. "And who is this foe, that you would so urgently dismiss our favor toward you?"

"Maravek. An elf that had us in a compromising position at the start of our journey."

"Yes, I know of him."

"Well, tell us if we are even close. We believe that he may be plotting to do harm to the other races of this world, that there is some sort of eleven supremacy that he is after."

Erian paused for a moment, contemplating the implication of Carrick's statement. His eyes wizened as he squinted momentarily.

"Yes," he replied solemnly. "We do have certain factions that don’t agree with our stance on relations with other races. Human expansion is a concern but Evereska has provided a bastion for elven culture. They will not move us. Not everyone agrees with allowing non-elves into the various forests that exist in this area. Elves have reasonably allowed others to use the forests but not everyone feels the same and they are quite militant. Maravak is one such that remains in his militant state."

"Would you happen to know where we can find Maravek?" I asked.

"No, small one, I do not." he replied. "But I will set my spymasters to task. They will find him, of that I am sure. In the spirit of your request, I shall abandon the open celebration on your behalf. It appears that it is necessary for you to make haste."

We graciously acknowledged his acquiescence and turned to go...

"Wait," he spoke sharply, stopping us in our tracks. "I had hoped to discuss another matter with you. One that does not necessarily concern us here in Evereska, but may concern you."

We spun around to look at him, dumbfounded. There's more?

"You have our attention, sir."

"Given that you have missed the events of the past few months," he said. "I have news to pass along. A few weeks ago, the city of Seacomber has, well, just plain disappeared. There is nothing left of it but a smoldering pit of smoke and ash. Witnesses say that it was swallowed by a mass of green flames. Similar happenings have been noted. Towers and landmarks in the region have fallen to the same green fire. Strange entities have been seen roaming the landscape around these sites. Nobody knows what they are or where they came from. Leaders are meeting in Elturel and have plans to defend that city. The Companion, a second sun that graces the skies, is currently protecting the city. The only common thread we can find in all of this is that it seems to be regional."

My mind raced as soon as I heard the word 'Elturel.' It's the city I'd sent Erdrich to after our departure from Greenest. It seemed I'd sent him headlong into danger. Damaia did not seem to be happy about this either. Another memory tingled. When we found Carrick, he was walking out of the rubble of a tower, Durlag's Tower, that seemed to implode in the same way Erian had just described. What does this have to to with Carrick?

"And what will the elves of Evereska do to aid in this?" I asked more tersely than I'd meant.

"Of the Evereskans, I ask nothing to be done. We are unconcerned with matters outside our regions. We only act in the interests of ourselves. In that, we are fortifying this region from such events as I have described."

"We must send a delegation," Miresta said with fervor. "The only way for Evereska to properly fortify itself against this is to learn about it, learn what is causing it and seek to destroy the cause before it ever reaches the borders of these lands. We cannot sit idly by and hope our preparations are the right ones. And we most certainly cannot isolate ourselves. We must show the rest of society that we, elves, are part of it."

"You're right," Erian replied. "And I know just the delegation to send. You. You can be Evereska's delegates in this matter. You have proven yourselves heroes and I trust that you can speak on our behalf."

I looked around dumbfounded. Miresta gave a tight curtsy and smiled. Everyone else was hard to read. I wasn't sure if they wanted to do this or not but it seemed we were in it now. A halfling as a delegate for elves, what would my father think.

Just then, Sorian burst in through the chamber doors behind us. He was breathing as though he'd just run a marathon. He drug a trunk behind him, no doubt scratching the floors of the main hall. 

"I'm glad I caught you," Sorian said. "Bhodi, I forgot to give this to you. I wanted to make sure you had it before you left. Your mother left it for you before she went to the monastery. It rightfully belongs to you."

Bhodi's eyes went wide in recognition. He went to the trunk and dropped to his knees, carefully opening the lid. Inside, an ornate sword shone against the light of the room. The only words that came from Bhodi's mouth were 'Tsen Tanto' followed by a soft whisper and a kiss of the blade. He looked up at his father in sheer joy and appreciation.

"Ah yes," Erian said. "That reminds me. Since we will have no celebration in your honor. I have gifts for you, offerings as a sign of Evereska's thanks for your actions.  For you, small one, a mighty warhammer molded to your special grip. And for my elves, one must keep his oaths so this rod is meant to see you keep them and the other must have quick feet to match her keen mind so these boots will do just fine. You, Damaia, an outcast in most circles, a tiefling is blessed to have found such friends. May this special bag help you carry the burdens of your adventures and this amulet keep your heart true. And to the young cleric, belief is a power beyond compare. This ring shall have you glide across the waters as the gods do."

We offer our thanks in our own little ways. There is much to take in and I could tell we were all in disbelief of these gifts and the news that came with them. 

"We, The Delorians, bind ourselves as delegates of Evereska. We will go and seek the leaders of Elturel. We will bring your aid and honor to them." Bhodi spoke clearly and for all of us. 

"And I shall give you my treasury and my time to do so," Erian said.

With as much reverence as we could muster, we made our way out of the hall and huddled up for a brainstorming session. What to do? We have the issue with these Skeletal Serpents and Maravek. We have been elected as delegates to meet with the leaders of Elturel and help discover what is happening with these disappearing structures. Are they related? What do we do first?

In the end, we decided to go to the Monastery and find Chan and Bhodi's mother. They were the closest link to reliable information. So we left. Straight away. In flight, to the edge of Evereska - as far as those little medallions would let us fly...

Confirmations

We landed in a forested landscape somewhere on the outskirts of Evereska, the Forgotten Forest I presumed. An eerie sound was echoing across the woodlands, a soft pentatonic of evil. 

"Do you here that? It sounds like chanting," Carrick said.

"I'll go check it out," Damaia replied. 

She disappeared into the treeline and reappeared moments later.

"There's a clearing up ahead," she said in a haste. "Looks like four people. They are surrounding a large tree with mold and black splotches all over it. They are chanting and there are some wierd rods in the ground around the tree."

"That chanting," Carrick spoke to himself more than to the group. "I recognize it. It's the same chant we heard during the ritual we broke in the Caves of Chaos."

Coincidence? I think not...

"Let's do this, then," I said. "We have the element of surprise here."

With that we all posted in the treeline and rushed the four individuals at the same time. The tree, it appeared, had Bhodi's face. It was the Walker. What were these people doing to that thing? What was this all about?

I smashed flesh with my hammers as Bhodi tested the mettle of his new blade. Damaia worked her daggers from the treeline, hidden with distance and cover on her side. Carrick threw his arcane blasts at them in tandem with Miresta's arrows. Norah conjured some sort of hellish looking magic that seemed to lay waste to their visage. Three of them went down quickly. The fourth we kept alive for questioning.

As Miresta tied up the last one, I removed the strange sticks in the ground. The Walker looked in both directions after they were removed and simply walked away from us. No thanks or acknowledgement. It was as if it was programmed to just walk...and protect.

I saw Carrick step out of sight for a moment and walked over to where Miresta had pinned the last person down. My hammer made a nice 'thunk' as I dropped the head of it on his chest. 

"You've got some explaining to do," I said to the prisoner. 

Suddenly Maravek walked out of the tree line, only it wasn't Maravek. It was Carrick. I'd gotten his game now. These are death monks, Skeletal Serpents. I realized it only just then, when I looked at their clothing which was similar to what I'd seen other monks wearing. Only this clothing was darker, more ominous.

"Oh you're in trouble now. Here he comes," I said.

As "Carravek" approached the monk, his eyes went wide. He recognized the face. His bulging eyes betrayed him at that moment. 

"This was a test and you failed. What was your mission here," Carrick said.

"You sent us here to capture The Walker...to use it against the monastery. We were to bring it to the camp outside the monastery. Per your orders."

"And to what end. Be clear in your answers. I wish to make sure you understand the ramifications of your failure here."

"My liege," his voice was quivering now. "It will delay the ritual you have set upon the masters of the monastery."

"And what ritual is that?"

"The ritual you gave to me. The one we must not speak of."

The monk's eyes went dour. A sudden realization came across his face. He'd been played. This hadn't been Maravek at all. He'd given up too much information already. I saw it on his face, the anger. The sudden will to fight resurging in his body.

"He knows too much now," I said. And with the stroke of my hammer, I smashed his head into the ground.