19th Vult, 999 YK
- The party wait for the remaining delegations to get called, and observe the Talentans work out what to do with their dinosaurs. It seems they will ride alongside the wagons.
- They also observe the Zil delegation, and their strange warforged.
- The convoy begins their journey towards the Great Crag, and there is much small talk. Drego Sarhain flirts incessantly with Nyrielle Tam, and bonds with Terfel Glas over their shared loved of tailoring.
- The Brelish bodyguards are no fun.
- The Gnolls of the Znir Pact give some background on their culture. They explain that they were created by an entity called the Wild Heart, who forced them to fight. Eventually, they questioned their purpose and found another path. They dragged their idols to Znir, and smashed them, declaring that they would never again be yoked to gods or masters. They are mercenaries, and the Daughters of Sora Kell contract fully half their number at all times.
- They also learn that the gnolls take trophies from everything they kill, believing that they honour the dead by doing so. They believe that if you fail to honour those you have killed, you will be devoured in the next lands.
- Terfel asks the gnolls about "Kell Knights", and learns that the Daughters of Sora Kell sometimes invest power in individuals, similar to a paladin oath or warlock pact. Sora Teraza gives abilities similar to what Terfel can do. He also returns the Myrnaxe he took from the gnolls in the Shining Valley.
- That evening, they make camp and each delegation has its own area. Oargev ir'Wynarn sits with the Brelish and they discuss what's going on. Nyrielle asks if anyone has actually met any of the Daughters of Sora Kell. Beren ir'Wynarn has met Sora Maenya before, and he tells the story of his encounter. Chilling.
- Warden went to speak to the warforged accompanying the Zil delegation, who doesn't speak. Alidan Lorridan Lyrris introduces the warforged as Ember.
- Lozaal Daashor went to speak to the Valenar delegation, and speaks to Saer Vordalyn, who is sharpening his scimitars. He is itching for a fight.
- Lozaal Daashor and Kalshana go to speak to the Mror Holds delegation, and speak to Brulri Tordannon, Hjolmund Toldorath, and Tazgwyn Kolkarun. They exchange stories, and Kal claims to have met Dyrrn, the Corruptor. The dwarves explain that they've been fighting with Dyrrn for almost a century now. Brulri recites Dyrrn's Promise: "You have drawn the gaze of the Overmind. You walk the Foul Labyrinth. Everything will change."
- Warden went to speak to the delegations from the Eldeen Reaches and Talenta Plains, who are sat together. He is introduced to Lathon Halpum Abramam, who represented the plains at Thronehold, and Elder Faena Graymorn, who administers Greenheart. Both groups support sovereignty for Droaam, and the halflings struggle with the idea of land ownership. Faena is a member of the Wardens of the Wood, a different druidic culture to the Gatekeepers. Warden also speaks to Halpum's bladetooth, Reka. She's nice.
- Dax' Athla went to speak to the Thrane delegation, and caught up with Drego Sarhain. She informs them of the situations in Salvation and Fallen, and asks why they aren't helping. She receives an explanation that the Church of the Silver Flame is limited in its capacity to act outside of Thrane since they became a theocracy, their mission has become mired in politics. They can't dispatch forces into Breland without the express approval of Breland, or it could start a war. They also seem to lack the resources to do so, as the faithful in Breland and Aundair don't listen to Flamekeep.
- Dax doesn't seem to understand the problem, and expresses disapproval at the Church's lack of action in these cases. She requests that they talk to Breland about the issue.
- Drego offers to accompany her to Fallen when she goes to deal with whatever is happening there, as he has greater autonomy than the other Knights Templar.
- Dax warns the Thranes that she suspects something big is going to happen at the summit, and that they be ready to band together. She also requests that Luala speak to the other diplomats and prepare them.
- Dax then goes to speak to the delegation from New Galifar, and is introduced to First Minister Alzia ir'Kesslan and Mozikth Na'kala Flamebrow of the Trothlorsvek. She is the first Masvirik'uala they have been able to effectively communicate with, and she explains the danger of removing the dawn and dusk shards from Q'barra. Alzia will take this information back to King Sebastes ir'Kesslan, but the miners are not subjects of New Galifar. They will need to be convinced to cease their activity.
- Dax then exchanges stories with Mozikth, and compares the differing viewpoints of the Trothlorsvek and the Masvirik'uala.
- Dax expresses that she thinks something big is going to happen at the summit, and requests that the New Galifarans and Mozikth be ready to band together to face whatever happens.
- Lozaal gets drunk with the dwarves, and tries to proposition them. Tazgwyn cockblocks, explaining that they are on the clock and need to avoid entanglements with agents of other nations.
- They all go to bed, ready to face the next day of travel.
Beren's Story
"I met Sora Maenya, once, when I was just a lad. I was stationed at Lherenstan, one of our keeps along the northern Graywall mountains. We were fools to try and settle that land, and worse to try and hold it during war time. Breland's too big as it is, and we were too far from home. There were always tales of gold and dragonshards beyond the Graywall though, and greed has outweighed common sense for as long as people have existed."
"My father wanted to keep me away from the fighting with Thrane, and petitioned Boranel to find me a job signing documents or washing dishes. I wanted to fight, though, and petitioned Boranel to go against my fathers wishes. The old bear tried to please us both, and so I was stationed on the western frontier. It's funny, because I think it would have been safer for me to fight Thrane"
"Months would pass with no trouble at all, and then every now and then somebody would cross a line. Ogres would raid the villages we'd settled and we'd be deployed to drive them off. It was Zarantyr, 972, when she came to the gate of the Lherenstan. She was a refugee, she told us that her husband and children had been killed by trolls. I'll never forget her, tall and thin, black hair like a raven's wing, just as ragged. Her skin was perfect beneath the dirt and grime, and her eyes were as dark as her hair. Her spirit is what impressed upon me the most, the determination that had carried her from Sharn or Wroat to the western frontier, that caused her to seek us out after the destruction of her family"
"She said she was hungry, that she hadn't eaten in days. The fort's commander ordered some food made for her, and allowed her to stay the night in the fort before continuing her journey east into Breland proper. I didn't stay for the evening meal though, Cainan and I went out on a scouting mission to search for the lady's village and try to track down these trolls that had destroyed."
He falls silent for a while.
"There was no trail to follow. It was Zarantyr, and it had been snowing, so there were no tracks save our own but...the snow was stained with blood. There were no signs of a struggle, no smashed doors, no burned buildings. We found the village, utterly undisturbed save for the bones of twelve settlers, picked clean and stacked neatly next to the village's well. No skulls though, those were missing."
"We returned to Lherenstan as quickly as we could, but it was past midnight by the time we got back. I'd spent the journey calling on Dol Arrah, begging the Sovereigns that the woman had been a ghost, a restless spirit who'd simply wanted her remains to be found by someone living. I knew what we were going to find, though."
"Thirty two soldiers were garrisoned at Lherenstan, including myself and Cainan, most of them veteran soldiers, tempered fighting the monsters of Droaam or elsewhere. All that waited for us when we returned to the fort were their bones, picked clean and stacked neatly on the table in the great hall, where we dined every night. Their skulls were gone."
He lets out a strained chuckle.
"She did tell us she was hungry, but we didn't understand. Cainan...broke, he couldn't comprehend what had happened and he lashed out. He tried to kill me, but he failed. I fled and thankfully managed to make it to the nearest supply post before collapsing. I don't know if they ever re-garrisoned Lherenstan. It would be over a decade before I returned to the Graywall to fight at Kalnor Pass. I still dream of her even today, of those dark eyes boring into my soul. Every night at the Kalnor Pass I was convinced I'd wake up to find her waiting at my bedside, ready to take my skull and trap my spirit until the end of time. Sometimes I still wake up in the night, in a cold sweat, and swear there is a figure at the foot of my bed."
"I keep telling myself I was the right person for this job, but to be honest with all of you, I am afraid. I keep trying to forget who we're dealing with, what we're dealing with. The Daughters of Sora Kell aren't women, and they aren't even really just monsters. I could handle that, I think. They're the children of one of Eberron's first evils, the hag Sora Kell, spawned by Khyber itself. They've destroyed heroes, outwitted the greatest minds of Galifar, and soon we'll be at the negotiating table with them. I don't think any of us are ready for that, not really."