The Cradle of Souls - Epilogue: One Down, The Future To Go
From Saratta
- Some people can go all their lives without getting a taste for adventure. Their lives are simple, with ups and downs, but ultimately calm. But for a true adventurer the trials are never really over; retirement is not an option. You might try... perhaps by building a shack by the sea side and try to spend the rest of your days fishing and hunting, but it will never quite be enough. Adventuring is something akin to disease, and once you have been infected you can never go back to a normal life. Someone will come calling for your experience or to try and best you with their skills.
- A simple life can be far from simple, for there is always another journey; a carrot to dangle before you. We can dismiss it for a time, but eventually you will want a bite.
- - Altothar Krozban
- They had survived, even with the odds against them. The power of the Xirisz Phasygn had been thwarted, and while their journey was not yet at an end, the hardest challenges were past them. They rested for a short time, and then prepared to depart from the temple and journey home. Meru Terk, the Arch Druid of Qu'an Re Sool ordered the bulk of her druids to leave with them. The Temple had been cut off from communications with the Tree of Presence (the last stronghold held by the druids) and knew they would need to muster all the help they could. The druids were to assist in getting the group out of Resonn and then spread the word to the Druids of the World who would come to assist them.
- After the group succeeded in breaking out of the Planar Prison, the Waters of Evwayalla began to flow again, slowly but gradually. Meru Terk and another of her Order stayed behind at the temple grounds to make sure the waters were protected, even though the protective barrier around them was eroding. The return of the Waters only masked the return of a greater threat though, for the means used to circumvent the Planar Prisons security managed to shatter the failing barriers power (a crack in the barrier was caused by the overwhelming power of the Thorn of Spite – the metal object beneath the tree. With a crack in it, the prison began pulling things in, including the Waters of Evwayalla). Iszgara was now free from the prison and she immediately began planning her revenge on the world that had trapped her.
- The journey back to the Kingdom of Brend was easy going. The druids got the group safely past the Guardian Forest and then departed ways. Bad news greeted their return. Fighting had broken out three weeks earlier between Barrier Hold and Dantis. The Arambashians currently had the upper hand, but old rivalries were starting to flare up between the kingdoms threatening to destabilize the effort.
- Ulias decided to throw a celebration regardless and convinced the Shal'tan to reward the adventurer's for their efforts in saving his life and Altherton's. They did not have to, but chose to do so. The Shal'tan handsomely rewarded them, drawing riches from the Kingdom's reserve to pay them (40,000 gp). In addition to this, the women aiding the group were named Ladies of Brend, a title reserved for noble women, and a place of honor among the noble houses. While none of the groups women were of noble descent, the honorary title elevated them to that status.
- They finally got the chance to rest and ply their trades. Many set their eyes on the land of their friend Arden Krueler and began developing it. He would not mind in his absence, and having a solid home might prove to be worth their while.
- Their time of rest was to be short. Adventure has a way of finding you even when you don't seek it, and their next one was tip toeing right around the corner... but that is a tale for a different time.
- Fin.