Much has transpired in the lives of the Heroes of Daggerdale of late.
The threat to Jacen's love Karla and the Eye of Ashaba has been ended; the demi-
lich Gothyl and her allies have been slain, and the curse on the Sword of the
Dales has been lifted. Peace has been restored to the common folk living near
the keep, and Karla has undertaken the construction of a hospital as atonement
for her body's actions while under Gothyl's control. The Heroes, newly recovered
from various injuries (including petrification and skeletal destabilization),
nevertheless found themselves on the road once more, this time accompanying
Nexus and Khelendros on a holy quest. Nexus recently discovered his link to
Tempus had been lost and he was no longer gaining spells; checking in with his
superiors at the Abbey of the Sword in Battledale, it was learned that the god
Tempus had been displeased with Nexus' performance in the final battle against
Gothyl (he abandoned a winnable battle against a foe who threatened the
innocent, leaving Gruun the kobold to strike the final blow). In a communion
ceremony involving a painful impalement by a ceremonial sword, Nexus received
his cryptic mission for atonement: "Find your charge in the Forest Kingdom."
Believing the "Forest Kingdom" to be the nearby nation of Cormyr, Nexus and
Khelendros set out at once to restore Nexus' favor with Tempus, pausing only to
rejoin their companions at the Eye of Ashaba. The journey to Cormyr was largely
uneventful, though evidence of the recent war which ravaged the land and cost
Cormyr its beloved King Azoun was evident all around them. Along the way
they encountered several wood-elf patrols as well as a young gold dragon named
Faelenon, who warned them of a young black dragon named Regeanar, who had
suddenly appeared in the area and was preying on travellers. Reaching the
great walled city of Arabel, newly-reclaimed from goblin invaders and in the
process of being rebuilt, the Heroes were approached by Lady Kirsta Tellari, the
Tymoran cleric who had performed the marriage of Jacen and Karla and who had been
Jacen's first employer as an adventurer years earlier. Lady Kirsta explained
the turmoil facing Cormyr and her plan to help alleviate it: if the Heroes of
Daggerdale could find and recover the lost hoard of the slain dragon Nalavara,
Cormyr's regent could rebuild the nation's military forces and stabilize the
economy, enabling Cormyr to resist foreign invaders as well as the new crop of
noble insurgents determined to topple the Obarskyr Dynasty. Of particular Lady
Kirsta warned against the Freedom Warriors, a loose confederation of nobles who
claimed to be acting in Cormyr's best interests but were secretly planning to
overthrow the monarchy and put one of their own on the throne. The Heroes
agreed to this quest, and after putting down a minor threat from the Freedom
Warriors set out for Eveningstar to meet the man who would provide them with a
map to the dragon's lair.
In Eveningstar they met with the retired General Gurrand, who informed them of
his terrible mistake. Two days earlier another adventuring group approached
him bearing a copy of the signet ring Lady Kirsta had given the Heroes as
proof of their identity; believing the impostors to be Kirsta's agents, Gurrand
entrusted them with the map. Gurrand then told the Heroes of a mountain man
named Valan of the Peaks who could be hired to lead them to the lair; they
were to seek him out in the village of Tyrluk, which lay in the foothills
of the Storm Horn Mountains. On their way out of town, the Heroes were
approached by a band of youths who wanted to join in the quest. Quickly seeing
their complete lack of experience or ability, the Heroes gave them some words
of advice and sent them back home to contemplate their adventuring careers. One
of them, a girl named Tiff, showed some promise in woodslore, so Kheldar
offered to take her where she could be properly trained as a ranger or
druid when the time was right.
En route to Tyrluk, they were attacked by a band of wights, who had been a
Purple Dragon squad in life; they quickly dispatched the undead lest they
pose a threat to innocent refugees (such as the group of stragglers they met
shortly thereafter). Tyrluk itself consisted of the ruins of a dozen buildings
and two which were damaged but still standing; tents and cookfires attested to
the resilience of the villages residents. Also present was a haughty woman with
strange blue eyes, who wore the robes of a wizard but also carried an ornate
sword; she appeared to have command of the village but the Heroes did not seek
her out. Instead, they ventured to the Old Man's Face inn, one of the only
buildings left standing after the war, to seek out Valan. Valan proved to be
as surly as everyone else in the shattered village, though somewhat more helpful;
he agreed to lead them into the mountains in the morning for twenty platinum.
That night, Khelendros attempted to study his growing wild-magic talents, to
disastrous effect; a simple spell intended to alter the temperature of the inn's
fireplace also summoned a ferocious shadow mastiff, who attacked and killed the
inn's owner. In the chaos that ensued, the owner's wife and the other guests
all pointed the centaur out as the summoner; the Heroes had to do some fast
talking to calm the populace and restore the peace. In the end, Rennek flew in
eagle form back to Eveningstar to summon the high priest of Lathander who lived
there. The priest, using powerful magic of his own, flew to Tyrluk, raised the
slain innkeeper from the dead, and began his return trip before Rennek could
even return to Tyrluk with news the priest was coming! With all set to
right once more, the Heroes returned to bed except for Khelendros, who slept outside
the village in contrition.
The next morning, the Heroes set out with Valan into the mountains, passing
several small settlements along the way; many of these were abandoned and silent,
victims of the invading armies from the north. In time, they reached the cave
Valan told them about; after inspecting the entrance for traps and signs of
passage they were ready to enter. No sooner had they set foot inside, however,
when a fireball exploded in their midst, accompanied by a battle cry: "Freedom
Warriors, attack; death to the tyrant!"
