DAY 250 (16 Uktar)(November) cont...
For a while I was rather stunned and did not take in that we had just slain such a powerful dragon and that we had done everything that we had set out to do.
As we got our breath back the people in the cages called to us weakly and gathering my senses once more we then set to releasing them.
There were twenty in all, all very weak but alive. We ushered them out of the chamber as quickly as we could. Someone had noticed that the sphere of darkness in the middle of the room had started pulsing and it was defiantly time to leave.
Still, I wasn't going to pass over such a taxidermist's dream and together with Sylvia, Shump and Drashnag I dragged Despayr's corpse out after the released prisoners.
The sphere sort of imploded behind us with a strange series of noises and disappeared. The interference the dragon had been carrying out on the shadow weave stopped in that moment as well.
While not being an expert on these things I did go back and take a look at the chamber and I had
a feeling that the weave was now repairing itself.
We made our way back to the 'dragon proof cave' and got food and water organised for everyone and a nice lie down in a magic bedroll for the worst cases.
I spent the rest of the day, easily twelve hours, skinning and preparing Despayr's remains. I will not go into technical detail in my personal log (see my Taxidermist's log!) but there is a technique that can be used to preserve the hide using the creature's brain oils that I put to good effect now. I managed to get the skin all off perfectly and bundled up all the bones into bags for
transportation.
Interesting organs and other dragon bits I wished to study further at home I put into specimen jars.
DAY 251 (17 Uktar)(November)
After a good nights rest all of us were fully healed and ready to return to the Material Plane. Everyone wanted to leave as soon as they could. Everyone but me, that is!
I knew I was annoying them all, but I really wanted to get some books out of the library. I went and read the spines of all of them and made a note of all the ones I wanted to take.
With some of the others reluctantly waiting at the west entrance incase it all went wrong I then cast Stone shape around all the skulls, bunged the twenty odd books I wanted into a sack and then cheesed it out of the library!
The plan went well and we left the black rift without further molestation. At the monastery we took stock of the food and water situation. We had a few rations left and enough mushrooms for a few days. Plus everything that myself, Basil and Sylvia could summon we would have enough to keep all thirty-one of us going, if not fully satisfied.
At the riverside we made a raft big enough to hold everyone from the boat we already had and all the furniture from the monastery. It was an ugly thing, but secure enough and with poles and oars we set off after lunch.
We travelled by water all night, while half of us rested, the other half pulled oars and kept watch.
DAY 252
Today was an uneventful day of travel. I spent part of my shift flying around above the river in eagle form but the Plane of Shadow was quiet. It was no pleasanter to look at then it had been though, this realm has little to recommend it.
When it was my rest time I sat and chatted to the wife, Sylvia and Shump for a while. We all wanted to get home as soon as we could now. The released prisoners from Weyloon were subdued and did not say much. Irritator sang a kobold rowing song that grated on everyone's nerves.
DAY 253
Another day of travel. In the afternoon we arrived at the Shadow Citadel and tentatively entered the shadow gate thing back to the Material Realm.
I was happy to see the Sharptooth Clan were fully settled in to 'Wisphaven' now.
They threw us a big celebration to show their gratitude for saving the Vast Swamp.
DAY 254
With rather fuzzy heads we set off for Weyloon. Even Basil and Irritator came with us. Everyone that went to the Plane of Shadow is quite rightly due a fairly large sum of gold from the sale of the treasure we collected there.
DAY 255
Another day of travel through the Swamp. For a druid it is a very pleasant nature ramble. Some of the others do nothing but complain about the heat, the damp and the mosquitos.
We were attacked by two nagas, but they didn't last long against such veterans as ourselves!
DAY 256
We arrived at Weyloon.
Lord Readbeard and the other big wigs greeted us and he took us back to his manor. Even Turnister Dranik turned up, the cleric that had contacted father and set this whole escapade in motion.
And thus - dear reader! - we come to the end of the interesting bits of my trip to Cormyr. After we had gone, after about a week, I am lead to believe a company of war wizards arrived to finish mopping up the followers of Shar and Cyric.
Once I was back home and had reported all to my father I thought about perhaps going back and setting up a colony at Wisphaven. Myself and Lavinia already had experience of this sort of thing, but it would take a bit of planning.
Word trickled back to us, via magical means, that the Sharptooth's had started trading with the people of Cormyr and it looked like the Swamp may become a little less of a wilderness, which is a shame I think, as a druid. Good for the lizardfolk though I suppose.
Also, it was good to hear that we had become favoured with the War Wizards of Cormyr and the Clerics of Mystra! All jolly good of course, but I have no intention of going back to the Plane of Shadow any time soon!
No comments:
Post a Comment