PBEM Orlantia

The Story So Far
Chapter 033

PBEM Orlantia: A Mass Of Healing.

The stone pews of Moonstone Temple were not the most comfortable of places to sleep, but the constant upward draft in the chamber was warm, and so, too, were the stone pews. On the whole, though not a bed, the pews were more comfortable than the floor, the ground, or the caves where they had most recently slept.

Looking up from his tome, Mystir stretched his neck muscles and pondered the matters at hand. He wasn't sure where or how, but he knew there was more magic there than had met his eye. Yet he also knew, or at least suspected, many such relatively minor niceties as the heated, circulating air were so innate to the temple's construction, that even if he found the source, it doubtlessly could not be carried away - at least not easily, if at all. So far, any glimpses he had about magic in the area were done in combat or eminent danger, and had hardly been thorough. There might be a few more items he could have easily missed. Joree's jeweled dagger, for example, came to mind as he looked over at Afyanna's meditating form. The dagger had been concealed under Joree's arm, and on a much brighter magical source - the altar itself. It might be magic. A lot of things around there might be magic. He made a mental note to recheck everything more thoroughly with a Detect Magic spell before he finally quit the temple for good.

Sef brooded as he paced back and forth in the temple, wondering about the man in the purple robe. How had he died here? Why was he there at all? If it were the same man from town, then he had come looking for the secret of Wrath's wine and had ended up there. It was pretty close to the catacombs. He had been on the right trail, then. But what happened?

The man was surprisingly lacking in gear and equipment. It had been said he carried a thyrsus staff, but the pinecone tipped walking stick could not be found. Still, the fact he had had it meant he was probably a worshiper of Dionysus. The spellbook they had discovered meant he was likely a wizard, too, even if it was odd they had found only one volume instead of a more extensive set of tomes. And it only made sense a follower of Dionysus would be highly interested in wine. But what had happened to him? Sighing, the ranger concluded he might never know the answer, and this angered him more than a little.

A more thorough search of the temple, pantry, and catacombs would have to wait. The truth was, they were too injured to really do a good job searching, and if anything bad happened in the current state, they could easily die. Besides, there would be time later on.

Happily, Moonstone Temple was still consecrated and was therefore considered holy ground to his Lord, Larethian.

Holy men and women had greater communion with their gods when upon holy ground, and the typical limitations of reacquiring one's divine spells were somewhat relaxed while upon such ground. This effectively meant that they had all rested eight hours, and prayed or studied an additional hour, now that night had fallen outside, the party was regaining some of its magical power.

Of paramount importance were the healing spells. But of those who remain conscious, only Afyanna would regain any. Alana might, given that the temple was friendly to her lord as well, but she was down. Valin, Bebe, and Mystir, while all of them had a divine calling of sorts, were not sufficiently aligned with that temple's power to regain their spells early, and would have to wait for morning and their usual communion with their gods.

Thus, it was decided, all efforts had to go toward healing Alana. She had effectively rested already, and if she could be roused, a scant hour would reclaim her spells, too.

"I'm ready," Afyanna announced. She knelt beside Alana and laid her hands upon the monastic druid, feeling the power of her lord work through them. Luckily Mystir's innate healing skills had done some of work already, just after the battle - in fact, slightly before it had been over. But it hadn't been enough.

Afy looked down, disappointed the laying of hands had been insufficient. But she still had three orisons she had prepared. One after the other, she cast them, each one healing the druid just a little bit more. But her wounds had been severe. When down to her last orison, Afy prayed harder than ever, and once again chanted the now familiar sounds that rose to the arches above.

"Mmmm, Oooooh," Alana stirred, her eyes flickered for a moment, and then she opened them and looked around. "What happened?" she asked, though if she had taken a moment, she might have guessed.

"Glad to see you, too," Afyanna smiled at Alana. The druid sat up and looked around.

"We won, I'm happy to say. It's already been nine hours since the battle. And now I've used all my powers to bring you up. How are you feeling?"

"Honestly, I feel like crap," she confessed, and she did look a fright.

"I want you to pray to your lord for healing spells - everything you can manage. If we're lucky, you can heal Tyrulf. He might have some power left, or if not, he could get some tomorrow morning."

Alana understood, and did not waste any time once she saw Lucian curled up on a pew.

An hour passed as the druid prayed, and then she finally stood up and gingerly stretched her aching muscles. "OK, I think we may proceed," she said.

Casting her most powerful spell upon Tyrulf, all could see the divine power imbue the dwarf with life's energy. Almost startled, Ty bolted upright and rolled to one side, then quickly regained his feet and found himself in a fighting stance. The look of bewilderment was clearly upon his face as everyone began to laugh. The joyful sound made him relax his guard, and as he looked around, he also began to laugh.

"WE'VE DONE IT, THEN!!!" he shouted.

"Do you have any spells?" Afyanna asked him.

"Umm, yes."

"Healing spells?"

"No. Well, actually, I can sacrifice one I have for a minor healing favor. It won't do much."

"Then please do so, for your dwarven cousin awaits."

Nodding his head, the hill dwarf loomed over the fallen sea dwarf and began chanting, imploring his lord to accept his unworthy sacrifice and heal his friend.

Alana joined him, casting her own minor orisons, one after than other, much as Afyanna had done to her an hour earlier. And just as before, it took each spell and all the power they had just to barely bring the dwarf up.

"Ayyyee, whot hit me, Ah kinna giss. Ah feel as ef Ah'm fit for haggis stuffin'," he said.

The temple roared with laughter, all of them smiling at one another, quite pleased at what they had accomplished.

Everyone was at least conscious again. Against all hope, they had managed to revive the fallen before the night was two hours gone.

"We can come back here tomorrow, or even the next day, but right now we must return to Joad," Afy told them. "We have a date with a statue."

"I'd love to go, but I'm staying here with Brambles. You'll just have to tell me all about it tomorrow," Bebe told them. Of all the magic healing they had had, there had not been enough for even a single spell for her poor wolf. And as she was now, Brambles would never make it home in her condition, and carrying her might aggravate her injuries.

"I'll just stay here with Brambles and comfort her, and pray. I promise I won't do any exploring or anything dangerous. I'll just keep an eye on things here until your return, shall I?" she asked.

Afy knew how much Bebe had wanted to see the statue, but she knew her love for Brambles was even stronger. Besides, it might be wise to leave a guard behind, and Bebe was still in fairly good shape.

"See you in the morning, then," she smiled. "Let's go," Afy said back to the others, her quickening pace already leaving them behind as she ascended the stairs.

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: A Long Walk

All together again - save Bebe, who remained behind to act as a solitary guard - the party left Moonstone Temple and headed back to Joad. Their progress was slower than their arrival, and silent curses and groans emanated from almost everyone as they climbed the boulders and aggravated their various wounds. It would have been much worse, trekking through the brambles at night, had the newly acquired Continual Light rock not illuminated the way with amazing brilliance. Maybe too amazing, in fact.

*The darn thing must look like a beacon in the distance,* Sef thought. *Better make sure we keep it covered most of the time at night,* he decided, *or we might invite all sorts of unwanted guests. A campfire would pale by comparison!*

Yet for the moment, the light was proving to be an invaluable aid since hardly any of them could exert themselves without much effort, and fighting the darkness too was simply too hard right now.

*Alana and Tyrulf's work is not yet finished,* mused the ranger.

Their pace quickening across the vineyards, the group began to approach the village. Sef fell in step with Cosher and Afyanna, who were towards the front of the group, and they all fell into an earnest discussion about what to do next. Each had their own thoughts and ideas about lines to follow, but fell into broad agreement over one thing; Moonstone Temple deserved a closer look.

"I'm still puzzled by this purple mage," continued Sefarlain. "I think he must have somewhere else he was staying or something. Did you notice how little he was carrying? When we return, I think I'll search outside the temple to see if I can find where he might have stayed. Maybe Horton will know?"

Sefarlain's idea was simple enough; if the wizard wasn't carrying all of his belongings with him, then most likely he had left them somewhere else. That might or might not be even on this plane of existence, let alone somewhere near the temple, but it was certainly worth investigating further. Not only were they about to revisit the statue, but also the ranger wished to have a few words with the elder of the town about their mysterious wizard.

"I picked up this in the temple," began Afyanna. "I think Joree wouldn't have minded me carrying it."

She produced the jeweled dagger and allowed the others to look. The workmanship was truly wonderful and Sefarlain was glad that another Holy Warrior Of Larethian would carry such a weapon in His name.

"I can examine it for enchantments, if you like. My uncle taught me a small incantation," offered the ranger. Afyanna nodded in agreement, and after warning the others, Sef began to murmur the words that formed part of his Detect Magic cantrip.

"WAIT!" Mystir warned him. The ranger halted before he had gone too far, a questioning look on his face. "It might be better to wait until we reach the statue," he explained, always thinking how to squeeze efficiency out of his own limited powers.

"Oh, OK," the ranger admitted, and so all continued to walk back toward town.

- Justin (Sefarlain)

PBEM Orlantia: Dark March To Joad.

"I've been trying to think of a way to get a high priest to the temple," Afyanna said, while stepping over a clump of grass.

The holy warrior didn't face her comrades as she spoke, so as to avoid ruining her night vision by looking directly toward the light stone.

"We need to get someone, and perhaps several people, here as soon as possible to revitalize the temple," she added.

"Why all the rush?" asked Cosher.

"As you saw, the vault entrance is now damaged, and very obvious," she said.

"Not a soul will be able to miss it," agreed Valin.

"Right," Afyanna said. "And besides us, both Andrew and Horton now know of the location of the Moonstone Temple. How soon do you think before that knowledge spreads to the people of Joad?" Afy asked rhetorically. "And with spring upon us and their wine trade resuming - how soon before it spreads further?"

"And even if neither Horton or Andrew open the vault themselves," Sefarlain said, "it won't be long before someone tries."

"Exactly," Afy said. "And that cannot be allowed." The holy warrior thought for a moment and then continued. "But besides the vault, a thriving temple is essential for the survival of Joad and its livelihood." Another pause. "And then there's the matter of two bodies that need burial - and soon."

"Who will ya contact?" asked Cosh.

"I don't know yet," Afy replied. "I'd have to word the message so that they understood the magnitude of the find and its urgency, but not give it away to anyone who happened upon the message. But more specifically, I'd first need to find out to whom to even send such message."

"It may be easier tae go yerself," the sea dwarf said.

"It might indeed."

*So many things to take care of, and so little time!*

The party marched several more yards in silence. Bobbing back and forth, the light stone threw odd shadows against the dark trees and grass, which was both good and bad, Afy knew. Although it might attract the unwanted attention of a few undesirables to the party that might not otherwise have noticed their presence, it would be exceptionally difficult to look directly toward the party to take aim with the light so bright, or so she thought it perhaps might be so. Later on, she decided that was not the case when looking at the light rock from a distance. It was bright and obvious, sure, but not blinding from 30 feet or more out. If anything, it might aid enemy fire and help them target the well-illuminated individuals within its sphere of illumination.

*Mixed blessing,* she decided, and made a mental note to be cautious with its use.

"I've been thinking about the wine in the pantry," Afyanna said, breaking the short silence.

"What about it?" Alana wanted to know.

"Well, if half is truly ours by church guidelines, then I think I am going to donate my portion back to the temple."

That brought the party to an abrupt halt.

"You're what?" stammered a stunned Cosher.

"Do you have any idea the value of even one bottle of that wine?" asked Mystir.

"Yes I do," she replied.

*Well roughly, anyway,* she thought.

"But getting the temple fully organized, the repairs made, the enchantments laid, the housing and provisions for the priests and attendants, and all other manner of things that I cannot even think of, will be incredibly expensive. I want to do my part."

While the others could definitely understand the enormity of the costs involved, that still didn't make it their business.

"Oh," Afy added sheepishly, when finally gauging their expressions. "I'm not suggesting you are under any sort of obligation to do likewise. Your share is exactly that - your share, to do with what you please. This is just something I want to do with mine. Besides, I don't see how I could even transport 'my' portion." Afy considered a moment before adding, "though I may keep one bottle for Sage Shereef. He seemed to be an expert of sorts on wine."

The party continued their trek toward Joad and the statue of the Holy Warrior of Wrath. Soon they would be before the stone tribute to the woman whose body they had just left. And the height of the holy day was fast approaching.

Rick (Afyanna)

PBEM Orlantia: Suspicions.

"I'm not sure your generous gift would be the best way for you to serve your lord," Valin finally said, after pondering what Afy planned to do with her share of the wine and considering its merits.

"And why not?" she demanded of the Cleric of Hermes.

"Well, perhaps I'm wrong, but a holy warrior's service is more in deeds like the one we just carried out. It might be better to use your share to better equip and train yourself first before you start to give it away to other causes, no matter how worthy. After all, what service would it have been to anyone had we died here due to a lack of equipment? None, that's what," he answered his own question. "Besides, what would the church do with its half? Probably pay for all the things you suggest, that's what." He walked on.

"No matter," he quickly added, changing the topic. "If anyone can keep a secret, it is apparently the people of Joad, or at least its leaders. I think they already realize the magnitude of the importance of keeping all this secret. True, I think you should arrange for a new steward as soon as possible, but I don't think there will be a rush due to any concern whether or not Horton or Andrew are going to blab. I mean, the magical illusionary facade is still up, and the path to even see that much is quite difficult, and even that is out of the way. It's remained hidden for centuries, and probably will continue to do so, unless people start pointing it out to everybody. I doubt Horton or Andrew would do that. And I hope none of us will blab about it," he said, looking around at everyone.

"Besides," he chuckled, "if anyone deserves a bottle of that wine, I think it's Sir Eric Ornatep. Where would we be without his gifts and generosity, or without that magical weapon salve? Shereef is a great guy, don't misunderstand me, but he was well paid for his services. I just hope he doesn't talk to others."

"Others?" Alana inquired.

"Yes, other people interested in Joad or Wrath," he ventured, then instantly stopped short, and a faraway look crossed his visage. "You know . . . do you recall what Shereef's uncle Fess said? He told us about a wizard asking him about Wrath and the wines. Do you recall? Then he said the wizard rode off - he heard him shout something and then ride off into the night. You don't suppose that wizard may have been the purple robed wizard we found dead here, do you?"

Mystir, always good with numbers, spoke up. "Well, that conversation was last summer, if I recall, and it was about then that purple clad follower of Dionysus showed up in Joad asking all those questions. The timeline fits, anyway. It might be the same guy - lured here by his curiosity of an exceptionally fine bottle of very old wine from Wrath that he happened to find in Alodar. Recall the bottle Lucian found. The lush probably drank it while he searched the countryside for the secret, finally tossing the bottle aside."

"And what does all that tell us?" Afyanna asked him.

"Well, that a wizard came here for the secret of Wrath, and died trying to obtain it. The Timber is part of an old story, and I think we know it, more or less. But the nightmare was something new, a different story, and a more recent event. The vault of iniquities was intact, so I don't think it came from there. If it's just a magic item, maybe the wizard brought it with him."

"And you think it killed its owner?" Ty wondered.

"Why not? Exceptionally powerful magic items imbued with the spirit of something so evil might get out of hand. I've often heard of stories, more like the Timber or other golems, getting out of control and turning on their masters, or of summoned creatures getting out of hand and attacking the summoner. Something may have just gone wrong. We just don't know what. Or maybe this line of thought is all wrong. We have so few facts, and darn few ways to confirm our suspicions," the wizard noted.

Whatever the case, everybody quieted down then and pondered what had just been said as they continued their way toward Joad.

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: Sought Reasons.

"Lucian, we've done it," Alana whispered to the purring cat.

She had been very pleased to learn the world was finally rid of the hellish beast. Some of their comrades had looked terrible, and she, too, could still feel the effects of the blow she had received. But, her lord be blessed, they would all live. The beast had not been able to claim another from their party. Though, according to the tales she had heard from the others, it had tried till the very last.

"It really was a very evil creature," Alana said to her furry companion. Lucian just blinked and continued purring.

She felt sorry for Brambles, but no spells had been left for the wolf. Alana was glad Bebe was there to take care of her.

When the conversation came on the prize they'd won, the druid kept mostly out of it. She was still a bit dazed about that particular outcome. At the moment she had no idea whatsoever what to do with her share, and she intended to think long and hard about it before she decided.

But when it came to the origin of the nightmare, Alana listened very interested.

"He must have had a reason," she said after a bit of silence. "The wizard, or whoever summoned the nightmare, must have had a reason to summon it. Even if something went wrong, he must have had a reason to activate it. Perhaps he felt threatened or angry."

"Unless it got activated by accident," she added, after some thought.

"That thing we found," the druid continued, "can it be used to summon another nightmare? If so, we should be very careful with it. Even destroy it, perhaps, if that is possible."

- Wilma (Alana)

PBEM Orlantia: Unknown.

"I am not sure," the wizard said in answer to Alana's question. "It is possible the statuette can summon the nightmare, as I mentioned earlier, but it's too hard to tell here and now."

Truthfully Mystir doubted if he would be able to clearly identify any properties the object, even if it were magical. There were spells to determine such qualities, but he had not studied them. The recovery of the pearl from the robed one led the boy to believe the wizard had such a spell in his tome of first order spells.

*If only I could get hold of his other books,* he thought.

The idea of missing anything in the temple tugged at Mystir's mind. There had been so much going on while he was casting that he very well could have missed anything.

*I need to examine that place better,* his mind was a flurry of thoughts. *I need to check every room, under every pew, and every possibility needs to be examined.*

He had planned on searching the temple better, and took the opportunity of rest to prepare such spells in his mind. But that was for later. For now, not a single member of the group knew what to expect from the statue that night, so the wizard saved a few spells for battle, just in case.

- Kevin (Mystir)

PBEM Orlantia: A Stony Smile

Sefarlain listened to the others talk around him. Valin, in particular, mentioned many things he had considered himself. It was good that they were all thinking along similar lines.

He chided himself about nearly wasting his Detect Magic orison, and was glad of the reminder from Mystir. It would give him a chance to look at the figurine as well; at present that was their only clue to the origin of the nightmare.

The party arrived in Joad soon after, the village looking silvery in Scepter's quarter crescent moonlight. It was quiet now that the oppressive threat of the nightmare had gone, but without the villagers it still had an eerie quality. Sef looked around him but could not hear or see any sign of Horton.

*Perhaps he is still in the caves,* he mused.

They approached the statue with some trepidation and gathered around the figure's base.

"What now?" whispered Sef.

- Justin (Sefarlain)

PBEM Orlantia: Jumbled Thoughts.

Tyrulf had awoken with a start, thinking - *Nightmare!* - as he jumped up into the fighting stance Bothvar drilled into his head.

The amused expressions on his comrade's faces had told him before any words were spoken.

*The foul beast is dead.*

Tyrulf recalled having laughed with the others. It was nice to be able to laugh after such a horrible incident. After a short while it had been decided that the group, or at least most of the group, would go to town to see whatever might be happening on the holy day.

The swinging of his axe at his side reminded Ty of picking it up and inspecting it for any major damage after the battle. He had been satisfied at its condition, and hooked it onto his belt without thinking where it now rested.

Thoughts of Bebe filled his mind, recalling how he had waved at her as the group left. He hoped she be all right. Ever since Tyrulf had walked up the stairs and through the magic illusion that protected the temple opening, his thoughts had been a whirlwind. They had managed to destroy those foul beasts, although not without taking heavy damage, as Ty could attest. He could remember some remnants of a dream - a dream that was familiar, yet not. It seemed that his blood was speaking to him again. It would take a fair amount of time to figure out how to utilize his new, burgeoning sorcerer's powers.

Shaking his head, Ty brought himself back to the there and then. The group was talking about what they were going to do with their share of the wine. They were also talking about the nightmare, and the statue they were on their way to then. Mystir and Alana were discussing the statuette that had materialized after the nightmare disappeared.

"Well, although I have heard of summon spells as well as creation spells going awry, I don't think we could accidentally summon another nightmare if that is what you are worrying about. Perhaps the man in the purple robes did accidentally trigger it when he was in a drunken state of mind. It seems that he might have had the knowledge to use it properly when sober, but perhaps a lack of judgment of when to use it caused the creature to rebel. It's very frustrating; we seem to have more questions than answers by a great number."

A short time later the group arrived in Joad. *Well, I hope this amounts to something. I have only one Detect Magic spell, and not much else. Hopefully that spell will help me see something interesting.*

The group stopped at the statue, looking around and seeing nothing at first. Then everyone heard Sef ask, 'What now?'

- MJA (Tyrulf)

PBEM Orlantia: Departing Spirit.

The party arrived back in Joad and first came upon the statue in the deserted town square. The Holy Warrior Of Wrath, a fixed and frozen stone work of art, stood before them, deceptively lifelike in the intricacies of its workmanship. But it was just stone - cold and hard to the touch.

The silvery moonlight shown down upon it, but this frosted look was washed out in the sunny glare of the Continual Light rock. Under such excellent illumination, even at night, its features were laid bare before them in surprising detail. Considering its reported age of 258 years, the fact the statue showed no discernible signs of weathering seemed quite remarkable. Normally, such a thing would have been impossible for a mundane object. And yet, the statue had not radiated of magic when last checked. But that was not upon a Holy Day of Corellon Larethian.

"Well," began Mystir, "I think I should cast a Detect Magic spell again. No sense everyone who can cast that spell doing it just yet, and I do have more experience with this sort of thing," he offered in the way of an explanation just before casting his spell. He didn't bother to explain there were also subtle differences between the divine and archaic versions of that same spell. Nobody looked like they were in the mood for a lecture.

The spell complete, the young wizard looked once more at the statue, and this time he saw an unmistakable dweomer upon it. What's more, the statue's face seemed alive and appeared to be looking at him, thoughtfully.

"Can you hear me?" Mystir asked the statue.

It smiled, or rather, she smiled at him.

"Yes, I can hear you," she said. Everyone heard that and was amazed a stone statue was speaking to them.

"For hundreds of years since my battle with the Timber, and ten years hence the dedication of this statue, once each scepter part of my soul has been allowed to stray from my self made purgatory and gaze upon the village I had come to love; upon its people and their children, and their children, and their children, for generations now. Normally, you understand, I would never dare speak to anyone during these times. There were too many secrets, and too much at risk. But the opportunity my lord afforded me here gave my lonely soul some small measure of peace and companionship while I awaited a champion to finish my work."

Everybody looked at one another, each bursting with questions, but none daring to speak just then.

"But now you have come, and you have done what I could not do alone. Thank you, truly, I thank you kindly. I can never repay you. And even more, working together, you have faced greater adversary and emerged victoriously and in His name. But now, almost sadly, even after so many years, my time has finally come. When Scepter sets a couple hours from now, my soul, all that remains of me now, shall go on to communion with my lord, as it should have all those years ago. My work here is finished. But before I go, I bet you have some questions of me," she laughed a light, lyrical sound. It was odd to hear so much warmth and emotion emanating from a cold, unmoving stone statue. Only her eyes and her lips moved at all, and they, very little.

"Afyanna, is it? You have gathered these fellows to you, and in answer to my prayers, together you have vanquished the evil abomination and scourge of Wrath, that horrible nightmare. It was in utter torment that I endured its presence, knowing it was using my power, my own love, to further its evil, and there was nothing I could do about it, save pray. But I had been praying for release for centuries, and our lord did not send aid. I felt it might be hopeless to pray more and, I admit, I began to despair. But now, in reflection, I think what made the difference were my prayers were perhaps selfish before now - pleading for my own release and my own comfort. It was only when this new calamity befell Wrath that my prayers became more . . . worthy - prayers for the very lives of others. I thank Corellon Larethian they were finally answered, for the good of all who dwell in Joad, and the lands around here for miles. And again, I also thank you, Afyanna. I thank all of you here."

Afyanna wasn't sure what to say.

"Please, some of you must have questions. This will be the only time, in these last hours before Scepter sets, that we may speak. What is it that you desire to know?"

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: A Burning Question.

Joree's thanks brought tears to Alana's eyes. To think that the holy warrior had been watching over Joad for all those endless years, and then having to endure seeing her beloved people harmed without being able to fight back.

"Do you know who summoned the nightmare?" the druid asked.

- Wilma (Alana)

PBEM Orlantia: The Nightmare Revealed.

The eyes of the statue moved slightly toward Alana, but it was difficult to tell whether or not the old holy warrior could see her, so Alana moved over to come more in line with the way the statue was facing to make certain Joree could see her.

"Yes, I know who summoned the nightmare," the statue began. "It was that crazy, drunken wizard. He tricked me. He had heard the rumors of when my statue might come to life and had been waiting for me. Naturally, I paid him no heed. I just listened and said nothing as he drank and ranted and raved about how much prestige he'd gain for the secret of Wrath."

"How did he trick you?" Alana asked Joree.

"He startled me when he said he already knew about the temple, and that he was going there. I thought it had remained safely hidden, even from him, so I was surprised to learn he had already discovered it. But it was a trick. He hadn't. But so much was riding on that secret, my expression gave me away and, I'm afraid, that confirmed to him I was alive and aware of him, and there was a temple that still existed. I was so stupid to be taken in like that. Once he confirmed my presence wasn't some mere rumor, he used further magic and discerned the weak, silvery connection from the statue leading back to the soul field. You can only see it with magic, and only on a holy day like now."

Mystir frowned, "It's a holy day now, and I can't see anything leading back to the temple," he said.

"Of course, my dear boy. The soul field is gone. The connection is gone. All that remains of me now is here and not in two places. But you understand how he discovered the temple now."

"Then what happened?" Mystir wanted to know.

"Then he went to the temple and soon discovered the soul field. And like most wizards, he started to study things, always trying to figure them out - as if they had a right to know everything!" she snapped at no one in particular.

"And then?" Alana whispered.

"Well, he used a magic item of his - a Figurine of Wondrous Power. I had seen him with it when he first arrived, but he had no idea I was watching. It was an ordinary horse then. He dismounted, said 'Spirituous Release,' and the horse became a little figure. After he tricked me and found the temple, he took the item out again. I heard him cry the command word, 'Spirituous Mount,' and he summoned the nightmare. From experience, I'd wager that item could summon several forms of mounts, but that time he summoned a nightmare. I don't know what else it might do besides horse or nightmare. That's all I ever saw, just those two forms."

"Why would he summon such an evil beast, and one he couldn't control?" Alana demanded to know.

"Such a thing is not normally so difficult to control, and the right sort of person could control it safely enough. He wanted its particular power to skirt the ethereal and astral planes, for he wanted to examine the soul field from those vantage points as well. He told me as much as he spoke to the soul field, but I could not answer him there - only listen and see what he did. Then he went astral. What the fool didn't count on was the soul field was much larger on the astral plane than on the prime material plane. When he went astral, he intersected it, nightmare and all, and . . . well . . . there was an unexpected effect. The power of love, my power, interacted badly with the nightmare and the magic item from which it came. He lost control. They fought each other a good long while on the astral plane, but he was alone and unprepared for such an event. Despite his abilities, he eventually lost, but only just. He had almost manage to regain control of it again, and had mounted it again where it could not attack him, but the thing returned to the temple and bucked him off. While he was stunned, the nightmare trampled him to death."

"So that's how he died, eh?" Sef muttered.

"And worse, the darn thing seemed to instantly realize it could gain independence from his master at the same time. It gleaned too much information when it touched me. It learned as long as it returned once a day to touch the soul field, it could remain in continuous activation, even getting fully healed if it had been damaged, since that's exactly what happened to it. Normally the thing may not be active for more than a day, or so I gathered from studying it these last months."

"You mean he didn't set it lose on purpose?" Valin asked, trying to take in the consequences of what was being said, and seeing all the speculation of an evil mastermind behind the mystery begin to fall apart.

"No, he was not an evil man - not really. Oh, not good, probably, and a bit selfish and greedy, but not truly evil. It was just an accident. And the spirit of a nightmare that came to inhabited the magic item that time took control, and bypassed one of its inherent limitations by utilizing the power of the soul field - my power. It grieves me to say, given its nature, it only used the opportunity for evil and self preservation, and I was powerless to stop it."

"Self preservation?" Mystir inquired.

"Yes. Its continued life depended on the soul field, so it began to systematically drive away any who might discover it, and kill all without mercy. The spirit that imbued it that time was a hate filled monster. I think you could see that for yourselves. The moment you dropped the soul field, the nightmare had less than 24 hours left before it would have reverted on its own. I'm sorry, but I couldn't tell you that. There was no way to covey that information to you at the time."

"Is the magic item still dangerous," Mystir asked next.

"Probably not, but I'm no sage or wizard. Chances are such an accident would not likely befall you."

"And we may summon a nightmare, too, but control it?" he went on.

"I'm not sure. How well one may utilize some magic items depends directly on how powerful they are themselves. If this is so with this item, you may not be able to summon a nightmare for some time. Who knows? Maybe you can't even summon a horse. Doubtless you will want to study it," she scoffed at the wizard, though Mystir knew she didn't mean it personally. She just wasn't that comfortable with wizards. Many weren't, so he was pretty used to such a reaction.

"Perhaps that answers many of your questions then?" Joree asked Alana. "What else may I tell you?"

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: A Riddle Solved

Sefarlain moved into the statue's line of sight and bowed very low. He felt honored to address someone who had saved so many lives with her sacrifice.

"Joree," he began, "may I ask you a further few questions? Firstly, did the purple wizard leave any of his possessions on the astral plane to your knowledge? It's just that we cannot locate many of his other artifacts that he was carrying, and he seemed to have no abode that we can find."

"Secondly, may we ask what you know of the drow's incursions? We do not know why they stopped or when, nor anything of their history."

"And finally, what can you tell us about the temple, and more specifically the vault of iniquities? Do you know if anything still lies within? We are worried that its secrets could have been exposed by the nightmare, and that the temple may still need our protection. The altar seems to be blessed in some particular way." The ranger finished, before realizing he had forgotten the most important question of all.

"And Joree, what is your wish for your earthly remains and your possessions? We carry your dagger with us, but will gladly follow your wishes in this respect." He paused and then looked directly into the statue's eyes. "It is the least we could do for your sacrifice."

- Justin (Sefarlain)

PBEM Orlantia: Sef's Questions Answered.

"The purple mage? His name was Corbin, or so I heard. I think that was his first name, though," Joree began to speak after pondering Sef's string of rapid questions. "I'm sorry, but I can't see too much from here, so if he had things somewhere in Joad, I'm not sure. I can tell you, though, he had some equipment, weapons, a staff, and a few other things with him in the temple, but they were scattered on the astral plane during his battle. They've been drifting away for months. Even if you could go astral right now, I'm not sure what, if anything, you could find."

Sef had half expected that answer, given what Joree had already told him, but he didn't like the answer all the same. It meant items of value were probably forever beyond their reach.

"The drow hailed somewhere from the Dark Wood. Once they discovered the elves living nearby, they began their typical raids upon them, stealing children and babies, for whatever foul reasons they may have had. At first the people of Wrath hired mercenaries, but it was a losing proposition. Many died on both sides, and their coffers ran low. It was about that time my lord sent me here. I was, well . . . considerably better than the quality of mercs they had been hiring, and soon I put a stop to most of the raids. But the evil drow did not let it rest, and used what dark resources they had to build the Timber and set it upon the good people here. Before I could stop it, it had destroyed the temples in Valentee and Purplish. I couldn't defend all three of them, but made my stand here, in Wrath. I think you know what happened after that. At least it seemed I may have won, but the people here packed up after my demise. They couldn't afford more mercs, and didn't feel it was worth risking their children for the land. So they left - well, the pureblood elves did, anyway. The drow had little interest in halfelves or humans or dwarves. After that, the drow stopped coming since there was nothing left for them here. It's all very sad, really."

After a moment's reflection, Joree continued.

"As for the temple, well, it was generally believed to have been destroyed along with the other two. But it wasn't. Despite the collapse of the outbuildings and entrance, the actual temple remained intact. And the power within the altar that holds the blessings for the land - and the secret for the their fertility - remained. It still needs protecting, but that job is best left for a high priest, as well as the vault of inequities. I'm not sure exactly what's inside, but I know the priest here feared what it held. Luckily, nothing seems to have disturbed it, and I hope none of you have any ambitions to open it. It is best left alone. Other than that, I can tell you no more about the vault."

Sef had been hoping for more, but it looked like he had reached the end of that line of inquiry, at least as far as he was prepared to take it.

"As for my remains, my body may be fresh yet, having remained within the stasis, but my soul has been parted from it for far too long. Even if you had the power to raise the dead of a newly fallen comrade, it would take magic more powerful than that. I have made my peace with that long ago. I can think of nothing better for my body than to end up in the catacombs here. And of course, you are welcome to any of my things. I would be proud if my dagger were to once again be used against the forces of evil, and I'm happy for you all to have it."

"What can you tell us of it?" Afy asked, holding it up so Joree could see it again.

"It's actually a bit gaudy, but then it was mostly ceremonial. I'm not sure what it would be worth in the market today. A master craftsman made it, and it's magic. In combat it is only of minimal value, but its pommel contains a pink pearl, which is worth more than the whole dagger. It may help heal any wounded individual, but it only works once a day. I had used it earlier in my fight against the Timber, so it could no longer aid me in that respect. I'd have fallen even sooner, though, if it hadn't been for the dagger."

She stopped speaking then, apparently having answered all the questions she could remember that had been laid before her. Then she added, "I'm here until Scepter sets a few hours from now, so take your time. Just know after tonight, I'm gone for good. The statue will lose all its magical qualities and my soul will travel on toward the outer planes. Even on the holy days in the future, this statue will only be a statue, as it was intended by the people of Joad when they built it tens years after my death. It was only then that my lord 'arranged' for me to spend part of my time here, so I could at least see how the people I had died protecting were getting along. I must say, on the whole . . . I'm pleased. So then . . . what else?"

- JimGM

PBEM Orlantia: Questions and Answers.

"Wow," Mystir said to himself. The revelations that Joree had laid upon them were eye opening. His mind was eased when she informed them that there was no one else involved in the summoning of the beast.

Nevertheless, his mind was a whirl of thought. The day's events were just so intense, so exciting. They had freed the soul of Joree, savior of Moonstone Temple. Then they killed the Timber, which she had sacrificed herself to trap. They then unsummoned the nightmare - although he was a bit miffed to learn that would have happened on its own 24 hours after dropping the soul field. Killing it had been no easy matter. And at the day's end, the newly formed group could finally be assured they had saved scores from an untimely and brutal death. He took solace in the thought that even the last battle may have prevented another needless death or two, for the nightmare might have easily continued its killing spree if they had not occupied its attention. And worse, when it was over, who knows where the figurine would have ended up? On another plane? In some distant woods or glen? It might have been anywhere. So perhaps it had been worth the battle, after all.

In the process of exploration they had uncovered a wealth of knowledge, wine and magic. Throughout the week's events, Mystir was confident that each of them would return home with the knowledge and an eagerness to expand upon themselves. He was certain to return for continued mentoring from Hearche. The bottles found in the long-forgotten catacomb were likely worth millions of gold, but those belonged to the people of Joad. The few bottles in the pantry, however, were still worth something, and even if they only got half of them, as Afy said would probably be the case, that would amount to something worthwhile. And then there was the magic. The stone from Joree, the figurine and spell books, and the holy warrior's jeweled dagger. All of them were righteous and awesome in their own right.

Expanding his ability and knowledge of the arcane arts was the wizard's ultimate goal. The stone of light and the summoning figurine were nice, but Mystir wanted the ability to perform those actions of his own accord. Then, and only then, would the boy be able to craft such awesome items on his own. But that was a long time off. Still, even the longest journeys began with a single step, Hearche had always told him. It just irritated him that only one of Corbin's books was recovered, but now he had an idea of why that was.

Mystir had just about asked Joree some questions when Sef broke the silence. Apparently the two were thinking alike; Mystir also believed that the purple Wizard's belongings were located on the astral plane - probably adrift and lost for all time, until some lucky individual happened upon one of them by chance. Oh well.

As Sef continued with his questions, Mystir moved toward the center of the group. After the ranger asked about the holy warrior's possessions, the boy placed the illuminating stone on the ground a few paces in front of the statue. And as Joree continued with her answers, the halfelf placed his cloak upon the ground, and then sat down facing the statue.

*What else do we need to know?* he wondered, as he absorbed the knowledge Joree was revealing to them.

- Kevin (Mystir)

PBEM Orlantia: Anlashok?

Afyanna felt great warmth within her body and soul. Joree's words had clarified that she had indeed completed her quest for her lord Corellon Larethian. A great weight seemed to lift from her as the realization that she had in fact been worthy of His trust, and that she had not failed Him.

Afy listened intently as Joree explained the dagger and its use. Her thoughts momentarily flitted to Bebe and Brambles hiding alone in the temple.

*If we had known about the dagger, Bebe could be here to share in all this.*

The gnome had so much wanted to witness whatever the statue had to offer. With the healing powers of the dagger, they could have helped Brambles and all could have been there.

Afyanna placed the jeweled dagger back into the sheath at her waist. They would decide later what to do with it. Once secure, she removed the bundle containing the priest's journal from her pack and held it where both Joree and Mystir could see. The wizard would be able to determine if there was any magic within its pages.

"Is there anything you can tell us about Priest D'armus L'see Anlashok?" Afyanna asked. "His journal mentions that he spent a great deal of time in the temple catacombs, though doesn't say what he sought. It also says he did much to hide the temple, including the illusion and briars."

"Also," Afy continued, "do you know what the enchantments upon the land were and how they were tied to the altar? We plan on getting a high priest back to the temple to revitalize it, and the information may help them."

- Rick (Afyanna)

PBEM Orlantia: Anlashok Revealed.

"Anlashok? That old ranger? Yes, he was a bit of a priest, too, but mostly he was a warrior of nature. I know so much of him, and it's sad that he never knew much of me. I guess he thought it better to leave well enough alone when it came to the soul field. But he lived for many years off and on in the rooms within the temple - I can tell you that. I gather it was his home away from home, wherever that might have been. He seemed to have two priorities while he was there. First, to ascertain his ancestors' whereabouts. Sadly, I cannot tell you how successful he may have been at that, or even which families of Wrath, if any, he eventually decided were part of his personal family's history. He spent a great deal of time working in secret performing maintenance on the holy grounds, of course, laboring in the catacombs and caring for the dead, and perhaps even speaking to them with magic."

Afyanna wondered at what it must have been like to talk to the dead - or rather, the departed spirits of the dead. Most people would never even consider such a thing possible, but then most people didn't have the deep and personal relationship with the gods that most priests had. Ironically, it didn't really occur to her that she was currently engaged in much the same activity, speaking to a dead person, since somehow she didn't think of Joree as dead. Her spirit seemed so alive with vibrant exuberance. Besides, Afy had cast no spell to achieve that affect, so this also mitigated in her mind the fact Joree was actually dead and made it almost natural to think of her as a living person.

"His second priority was his sense of responsibility to the church. He never really learned how I longed for him to free me, or even that I was still there, so I cannot really blame him that he had higher priorities. Besides, he was alone, and no matter how powerful one may think they are, it's folly to fight alone when you can avoid it."

Afyanna knew that all too well, but said nothing, simply nodding her agreement with such wisdom.

"He felt it incumbent upon himself to insure the safety of the temple, and its enchantments. Long ago, you see, when Wrath was being settled and before all their troubles with the drow began, there were several elders of power here. They had gathered their resources and their strength, and sacrificed much to bless the land. But to make such a blessing permanent, they needed to enlist the aid of many fertility spirits. I don't know all the details, but I did learn the temple's altar was of such unusual stone - said to have fallen from Scepter itself - and they learned by enchanting it, it would attract and encourage these spirits to roam the lands in its vicinity, naturally enhancing the land's productivity. As long as the temple's altar remains consecrated, the enchantment will endure, the fertility spirits will remain nearby, and Wrath's lands will prosper."

So that was it. And it seemed true no living soul in Joad currently was aware of that fact. They took their land's abundance as a natural blessing, having forgotten long ago what their ancestors had accomplished.

"Naturally, the Timber had been stopped for the time being, but Anlashok didn't have the time or resources to do more than clean the place up and make sure it remained hidden until one might come who could do a better job. You have defeated the Timber, so that is well. He had no idea about the nightmare, of course - that wouldn't be a problem for centuries, so he couldn't have know how difficult the ordeal would be to take care of both at once. But I think he knew someday, one would come to take care of the temple properly. He just knew in his restless, wanderlust filled soul that it wasn't him. So all he could do was to ensure the safety of the temple, and that was best accomplished by hiding it even better than it already was. You, too, can do no better for the nonce. But I hope you will take it upon yourself to inform the church of the situation. Let them deal with it, in their own time and in their own way. As long as it remains hidden for now, I think it will be all right."

Afy had already decided to do much of what Joree asked, so again she simply nodded.

"And the catacombs? Well . . . you know elven traditions? They feel it almost a crime to bury wealth or beauty with the dead, and it only tends to encourage grave robbers to plunder it anyway, so for many reasons, all that the catacombs hold are the bones of our ancestors, and maybe their history, if you're shrewd enough to dig it out with magic, and assuming it's important enough for you to do so. I can't imagine why you'd want to, though. So, other than the fact that about 50 years ago, Horton began to stockpile Joad's wine there, there is little of importance about the catacombs."

"Why did he do that, and how do you even know about it? The catacombs are far removed from the soul field."

"He did that to age the wine, just as our ancestors did, but most halfelves have so little patience to do that, and humans have so little time. But Horton knew it would take sacrifice for many years, even decades, but after a time, Joad might sell not the current year's production, but the production of 50 years ago, which would command a much better price. His plan was really rather ingenious, and I must admit, quite insightful for a halfelf. Of course I couldn't see any of that from the temple, but you'd be surprised how often a few of the elders might talk in the town square when they think they are all alone. It happened enough on holy days that I learned a great deal of what they've been up to these past 50 years."

And that answered that. Everything made sense to Afyanna as the mysteries faded and the answers seemed almost obvious to her now as each piece of the puzzle cleanly snapped into place without needing to be forced.

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: Loose Ends.

Joree had finally been able to give the answers to mysteries that Sef had thought would lie unanswered forever. Perhaps it may not have affected their future course, but he knew he'd sleep easier that night anyway. The thought of another party or an evil person lying behind those attacks had worried him for quite some time.

As Joree finished, the others seemed equally satisfied, for none spoke for a moment. The ranger stood forward again; the soul in the statue would be there for a couple hours, and one could ask a lot of questions in that time, so he began to ask anything he could think of that might help.

"Joree, do you know what brought the wizard to Joad in the first place? Did he ever reveal his motives, or if he had a companion or someone who was aware of what he was doing?"

"Afyanna and the rest of us are also planning to return to the temple. Is there anything we need to prepare for or be aware of?"

- Justin (Sefarlain)