Tyranny of Dragons Campaign Log - Hero Checkpoint - Return to Greenest

The battle in the cave was tough, The Heroes faced many perils and they vanquished many foes and powerful adversaries. But what do these events mean? And more importantly, what new secrets have been revealed?

The walk back to Greenest was slow going. The Adventurers tending to their own wounds, trying to process what they had witnessed. The journey was made, deep in silence and thought as Chard, Dafnae, and Torsion each tried to digest these events. The silence was interrupted by the ambient sounds of wildlife and the gentle breeze rustling the leaves and tall blades in the fields by the main road with the occasional grumble from Torsion as he muttered to himself. And so the three walked back to Greenest to report to the team there.

Torsion's grumbles came from him remembering his days scouring through ancient tomes and manuscripts in the Great Library of Candlekeep. He was entrusted a task by his mentor Ontharr Frume to learn what the Cult of the Dragon was up to. He studied those pages for years after joining the Order of the Gauntlet and he wanted to make his mentor proud. 

And so he studied and studied. Learned about the different types of Dragons and the ancient legends, many of which became bedtime stories to frighten children to behave for their parents lest the Mother of Dragons would come to terrorise them. But, these legends all had some shred of truth in them and this is what his task was - to decipher the fact from fiction. 

He preferred the solitude and quiet of the Library, the books being his companions. They were less frustrating than the people around him. He was frustrated by how cruel people could be and he detested the suffering of the poor and weak, those unable to defend themselves. And he could not understand why people could behave in such detestable ways. 

Indeed he had found evidence that the Cult of the Dragon was becoming more and more active and this was a reason for grave concern. What were their aims and ambitions. But he could not make rhyme or reason from it amongst all these pages. So once the letter from his mentor came that he should travel to Greenest to investigate, he was eager to start his journey to further uncover the truths.

Now, having made it out of the Cave and witnessing what he had witnessed, what did it all mean. And to have seen a real Black Dragon egg and to destroy the vile creature growing inside before it could begin wreaking havoc on the people of this world was a most fortunate event. And to have a chance to not only challenge, but to best that villainous Half-Dragon Cyanwrath was a separate benefit - while he was not happy to admit it, he was grateful for his new companions and their help to defeat him. 

Torsion was not entirely sure what to make of Dafnae and Chard. One he felt was hiding some secret from him and the other he was worried was starting to go a little mad, but what else could be expected from someone of Fiendish descent. But he did feel he could trust them, at least to some degree, because they did fight valiantly and their aims were aligned, at least for now.

And so he marched on, thinking of those many pages he read, wondering what Frulam was doing, what their next steps were, and who this new Talis person was. He was eager to report back to Ontharr but he was more eager to continue digging as he felt this was merely just scratching the surface of what true sinister plot the Cult of the Dragon was going to hatch.

Chard paid no mind the Dwarf's grumblings as they walked back to Greenest. He was used to people behaving strangely around him all his life - people giving him strange looks, people whispering under their breath to each other when he walked by, mothers picking up their babes, holding them tighter and scurrying away, women and men alike either being afraid or strangely attracted to him. It didn't bother him - he had bigger things to occupy his mind.

These dreams he has been having. What did they mean? Why was he having them? 

They started several months ago while he was stationed at Beregost. He never thought about how he was able to climb the ranks so quickly within the Flaming Fists but perhaps he left a good impression on Ulder Ravengard. Sometimes that happened. 

These dreams haunted him. It was always the same. Destruction followed by 5 pairs of eyes glowing from the darkness. Was this destiny? Was he meant to stop it? Or cause it? Or was this part of his devilish ancestry? 

And what was the strange pull to this Greenest place? It must be something to do with the Cult of the Dragon. But there was still too much unknown. And he had to find out more. 

He had always wanted to be a Mercenary and he was generally aloof to all matters of the world but he felt a sort of dislike for the suffering of those that could not defend themselves. So as the events began to unfold and he found himself alongside the Elf and the Dwarf, he enjoyed the thrill of battle and the rush as each enemy fell around them. Perhaps he could find the answers in their demise. 

The most recent dream though did bother him more. Why was it different? And is his lineage now having an impact? He would have to find out. He wondered if he should seek healing from the Dwarf but he somehow felt that such healing was not meant for the likes of his kind and he had to bear this curse himself. Or was it not a curse after all? 

And the Elf. She seemed to somewhat accept him as she had not given him the same type of strange looks as others did. The Dwarf did, but seemed to Chard that he gave the same look to everyone. Maybe these two he could consider as friends? Could someone like him have friends? Maybe Why not. It would be fun, at least for a while. And he did enjoy fighting alongside them. Maybe they could help him uncover the truth behind these dreams........

With each step, Dafnae was running through every word contained within those letters they found in Frulam's desk. What was Talis doing? How could her friend do this?

She thought back to when they first met. They had been mere children. She was on the streets having been orphaned when her parents were killed. Talis on the other hand grew up in a proper High Elf household. They met when Dafnae helped save her from some thugs in the back alleys when Talis has snuck out in the middle of the night. From that point on, they would meet regularly and quickly became friends. Talis first took pity on her but she remembered that this quickly almost felt like it turned to envy - almost as if Talis was jealous that Dafnae could do as she pleased and was not bound by High Elf customs and sensibilities. 

At first Talis snuck her extra food, but that soon turned into the two of them running around the backstreets of Lower Baldur's Gate, hiding in alleyways, pinching food or trinkets, and having adventures. They taught each other what they knew - street smarts and how to be unseen in one direction and how to behave in the high courts and sophistication in the other. Talis was more gifted than Dafnae early on with magical abilities but Dafnae wanted to learn more. They enjoyed their adventures. 

And so their friendship grew as they joined up with the Shadow Thieves. They became very close friends  but as they got older Talis spent more and more time studying her magic but they agreed to still stay in contact and used their special way of communicating to make sure they could communicate safely without other prying eyes knowing.

And in those notes they would agree when to meet in the Low Lantern Tavern, roughly every Ten Day. They would catch-up and discuss the different happenings around the city. But as time went on, Dafnae would notice that on those days they would agree to meet, Talis would meet with a stranger after they would be finished Dafnae would ask about it but all that Talis would reveal was that this was someone helping her with her magical studies. Dafnae thought it strange as they would share everything else and so her caginess was a bit unusual. 

So it came as a surprise when a few years ago Talis mentioned to her that she was moving away to learn more about her magical studies. Dafnae was sad to see her friend go, but she didn't want to stand in her way. But they did agree to continue their encoded communications. 

The letters continued for a while but then they stopped about a year or so ago. This worried Dafnae and so she asked around for some information. It took a while to eventually learn that the last time she was seen she was having an argument with some strangers. That argument became physical and they saw her escorting Talis away. During the argument, her source mentioned hearing the following phrases - Greenfields, Cult of the Dragon, Power, and She will rise. 

And this is what lead her to journey to Greenest to try to uncover what happened to her friend. The events that have happened since she and her new companions were most alarming. What has Talis gotten herself into? How could her friend get in league with these madmen? 

So, with each step, she was trying to see if there was a coded message in those missives she sent to Frulam. She would need to study them in more detail. She didn't want to tell Torsion and Chard yet what she knew until she worked it out for herself first. She normally did things on her own, but with the major threats they were facing, Dafnae was happy to have some companions, even if they were a Dwarf and a Fiend, because to save her friend, she will need all the help she can get.

And so the three Heroes walked together, in silence, lost in thought, working very hard to decipher what was going on and more importantly, what would happen next. Whatever that would be, they would find the next clues in Greenest and see where the adventure takes them next.