Unfortunately, he can still make neither heads nor tails of the book he got in his travels. It's language seems slightly more clear, but is still quite incomprehensible. He can only understand that it is phrased in a manner inconsistent with normal written language.
Taglio also approaches Rhune. "Rhune, what was the meaning of that tune I sang in the cave?"
After taking care of her own horse, though every moment she takes on her injured leg brings a wince of pain to her face, Rhune goes over to sit down next to Asif and take a look at it. She is hoping that Augustus can do something about it and soon. Looking up at Taglio, "The song in the cave? hmmmmm.....oh that one. Well it means," she proceeds to tell him what it means.
Tag continues, "Asif and Ullar mentioned that you had a blue tube which was important somehow to our quest. May I have a look at it, perhaps I could shed some light on its mystery?"
"Yes I do. I got it at a meeting I was at in Florence. It is supposed to contain something that will help fight whatever is influencing the Catolics," she replies pulling out the blue tube from her backpack. "We have not been able to open it. Someone said that it is magically sealed." She hands him the tube. "Can you make anything of it?"
Taglio looks at the tube after Rhune hands it to him. He sees, as have the others, that it is shut tightly, impossible to open or even budge the stopper. It has several inscriptions on it in a very strange language, that Taglio finds equally vexing to the one in the book, though it is clearly not the same. Frustrated at his inability to decipher any of it, Tag returns it to Rhune.
Nodding to the young bard, "That is alright. We have some leads on to who might be able to help us with it but as of yet we haven't been able to act on them. Perhaps we will," Rhune replies as she puts the blue tube safely away once more.
Xania spends some time reading from the spellbook in the afternoon, trying to take her mind off her wounds.
Once outside and the group are ready to rest and settle Dakath kisses Xania.
"I'll be back in a moment, I want to ask Forte something. Keep the blanket warm won't you?"
Xania stammers slightly, "um, Dakath, well, I won't be able to do that today. My chest is too burned."
Dakath manages a weak smile, "I didn't have that in mind, it'd be nice to crawl under a warm blanket, that is all."
At this he wanders over to Forte and sits next to him "Well?" he asks him "Did you see something.....back there in the tombs? Did the elven spirit speak to you?"
Forte's eyes begin searching the ground at his feet intently.
"No," Forte pauses a few seconds, then lifts his head and looks at Dakath squarely in the eye. "But it showed me things. I remember seeing a raft, with a woman on it, drifting away from a shore. There were men watching from the shore, and they had pointy ears, so I think they're elves. And I saw some men, one even larger than me, fighting a little short man with a cross."
He pauses a few seconds before continuing. "Then, I think, I saw two men...familiar men but I can't remember who...walking through a forest, but the trees were made of stone! Have you ever heard of trees of stone?"
Without waiting for a reply, Forte finishes up his recollection of the vision. "And I saw small green *things* pushing a red-haired man somewhere...toward a tower, but half of it was in ruins," Here, Forte's voice gets a little more excited and animated. "And I saw those things we fought! And they were fighting some kind of magic-user, who was wearing black robes. Oh, and the wizard did some spell and then ran away really quickly."
"Things we fought? Do you mean the shadows Forte, or some 'things' from before I joined?" Tag asks, barging in rudely on the private conversation.
"The elven-ghost-things that nearly killed us in the tomb," Forte says. "They were the ones I saw in my vision."
Dakath tries to say something but no words come out, he coughs to clear his throat.
"The two spirits we released were....are called Esineth and Gailor. They were brothers and died during a dark elf incursion 600 years ago."
He shakes his head, "You don't even want to know how I know this."
Dakath looks on at Forte an almost haunting lost look in his eyes. "I know who the wizard is. 600 years ago there was a small Elven settlement not far from here, they had just established themselves and were trying desperately to remain hidden from prying eyes. However, this black robed wizard Frankkru sold their location to a drow scouting party, in exchange for his life. The settlement was set upon during the night and it's residents slain in their beds. Esineth and Gailor were the only two who survived."
Dakath sighs, "The two brothers managed to waylay one of the Drow warriors and learnt of their betrayer. They traveled to confront the wizard but alas he was too strong for them...." he seems to be listening to something before shaking his head. "Needless to say they didn't prevail and the unfortunate outcome was to become trapped."
He looks at Forte and Ullar, "Esineth just told me," he says whilst running a hand down his face. "I need some sleep."
Forte's eyes look up as he searches for more memories. "That's it. I mean, for the things I saw. Maybe not in that order, but that's what I saw. I'm sure of it. And I'm also sure of one more thing. We will see all these people again. I don't know why, but we will. I'm sure of it."
He pauses a few more seconds, before asking Dakath, "What did the spirit tell you? Did it show you anything?"
"These elf spirits, they are talking to Dakath, Si. The miracles will never cease. Do they wish any service Dakath? What do they say about searching the last tomb?" Tag interjects.
Dakath turns to Tag and shrugs, "I don't know, I heard its voice in my head but know there's nothing there. They mentioned that we had already performed a service by releasing them from their prison. As for the last tomb, I'm not getting any reply, perhaps it's gone?"
Ullar keeps a close eye on Dakath as soon as he rises. The gladiator is not really at ease with the whole situation, and finds Dakath´s behavior rather disturbing.
When he moves over to Forte, Ullar follows the nearly lost conman but keeps a distance, to ensure their privacy.
As soon as the opportunity arises, he addresses Dakath once more.
"Dakath, what happened to you? My knowledge of the spirit world is not really good, but when I was a guard at the temple of Mercury, I heard the stories of the transfer of knowledge by spirits. Somehow I have the strange feeling that this happened to you as well and I'm curious like hell about it."
Dakath looks around at Ullar and frowns, "Even now the memory of what happened is fading, I found myself gazing upon a beautiful elven spirit, it thanked us for releasing it and told me that it was not my time."
He grins for a moment "Other than that there was nothing there no blackness, no light, no feeling of location. I've never experienced anything like that before. There was no Heaven and no Hell awaiting poor ole Dakath."
He pauses for a few moments, his eyes are sharp and focused on Dakath´s face, ready to absorb any reaction of the nearly-fallen comrade.
"Tell me, my friend, is there any information you can give to me?"
Dakath shrugs, "That is all I can tell you."
"It's still quite impressive," says Ullar, sighing from relief.
"Did the spirit address you in common? Or did it speak elvish? Just curious, you know..."
He frowns as if trying to remember the answer to Ullar's question. "Communication went beyond simple language, we just communicated."
And now Ullar has a look in his eyes which can be translated as: "DUH!"
Later, when the party rests as Tag suggested, Ullar starts a conversation with Amibar.
"Hello mister Gnome. I'm wondering, would you like to continue to accompany us? We are currently on a mission to find Stephen, who was taking hostage or prisoner by goblins. And next to that, we have some magickal tube which holds a mystery yet to reveal."
"If you are interested, I'd like to propose your stay to the rest of the group, but I doubt there will be any objections. We even have a horse for you, if you like, to ride upon."
Ullar brings him to his former horse, which Rhees rode upon; standing next to Ullar's own warhorse Zephyr.
"This is her," he says, while patting the horse on it's back. "A fine horse she is. I enjoyed riding on her, but I was a bit too heavy. Now Zephyr can carry my burden," he adds with a smile, stroking Zephyr's neck.
"If you have never practiced horse-riding, don't worry, there are more amongst us with this problem," he continues, with yet ANOTHER smile.
Amibar is quite befuddled by this offer. All his life he was shunned and rejected by his own people, feeling an outsider within his own community. And here is this band of men and women, who he had only met the night before, and yet they have treated him kindly, shared their fire and food with him, called him "friend".
And now they offer him to join them... True, it is this warrior Ullar who has offered, and he has to consult the group, by his own admission, and they might say no after all... Still, the harrowing experiences of the last days - the wolves, the lion, the spirits - all suggest he is ill equipped to brave the wilderness on his own...
He raises his eyes shyly to meet the taller man's. "I would be happy to join you, Ullar, if you will have me... And so will Natasha." He opens his pack, and takes out a ferret, who nuzzles his cheek with affection. "But I fear riding is out of the question," he looks apprehensively at the horses. "I am too small to control such a big animal..."
"Great!" says Ullar, slapping Amibar friendly and gently on the back, careful not to hurt him in the meantime!
"I'll suggest it to the others, but I doubt they will object to it."
"And what a cute animal is that! Can it do any tricks?" he says, while pointing to the ferret.
When everyone is eating, Ullar starts talking about his proposal to Amibar.
"Friends. Without consulting you first I've asked Amibar to stay with us. I think, now that Rhees has left us, we can use all the people we need and our food-supply hasn't changed. I'm sure Amibar will be a valuable asset to the group!"
Rhune looks over at the gnome, "Welcome to the party, Amibar. I am Rhune Morthaine," she says with a smile of welcome though it is a tired smile.
"Has anyone objections against him joining our team?," asks Ullar, seeking eye-contact with each group member.
The warrior continues. "Then there is one more thing, Amibar is not 'suited' to right a horse, am I correct?" says Ullar, looking over at Amibar.
Ami fidgets under his gaze, clearly still uncomfortable at being in the center of attention. "That's right," he answers quietly.
"Is there anyone who will allow him to ride with him. He is always welcome to sit at Zephyr, but if there are more people who can provide Amibar a lift, he can choose for himself where he feels safest," Ullar continues.
Afterwards, Amibar comes up to Ullar again, tentatively. "You mentioned a magical tube. Can I see it? I have some knowledge of such things," he adds almost apologetically.
"Ehm...sure," says Ullar, "...but you'll have to ask Rhune, as she is the one currently carrying it".
Amibar approaches Rhune. "Umm, Ullar said you have the tube. Can I see it, please?"
Last, Ullar tries to speak to Forte, curious about his experience with the spirit world as well.
"I saw things. Things I've never seen before," Forte then recounts his vision to Ullar, much the same way he told Dakath was he saw.
After Forte and Dakath's story, Ullar speaks once more:
"A red-bearded man? Could that be Stephan? And a wizard in black robes? Could that be the one who sold out the elven village long ago? I may not be the brightest, but I think we've found a major clue in what direction we have to search for Stephan...we have to find that tower 'in ruins'."
Forte waits for Ullar to get all his questions out, and then begins responding to them. "Well, if this Stephen you're looking for has red hair, I suppose it could be him. And I'd bet the wizard is the one who sold out the elves. I mean, the elves were fighting him...the same ones who fought us as undead creatures...but they were alive and not undead yet," Forte pauses a second before adding, "Did Petr say anything about ruins near here? I can't remember. If he did, maybe those are the ruins from my vision."
"I don't recall it...anyone else?" Ullar responds.
"Ha!" says Ullar, really enthusiastically, "...and if we find that wizard, we might persuade him to open the tube for us, as I'm sure some of us can work on his guilt-feelings in this matter," says Ullar, with a sarcastic smile towards Augustus and Taglio.
The night passes relatively uncomfortably. It is almost impossible to sleep, as most of the group are bothered by intense nightmares, particularly Asif, Augustus, and Tag. The only ones unbothered by them are Forte and Dakath, who sleep like babies.
----As Asif wakes from his nightmares, Rhune is woken as well. She attempts to comfort him as much as possible, but her own nightmares don't help any. So between them she gets very little sleep and is rather muzzy and tired the next morning.
In the morning, as the camp is breaking up, Augustus approaches you all, clearly very uncomfortable, "I have regained my healing abilities. Which of you is in most dire need?" After that is done, Augustus tells you all that he will not be going into the third tomb if that is your choice. He fears that he will lose his mind if the nightmares get any worse. In fact, whatever the group does, he is not staying here another night. Clearly he was terribly shaken.
"Nightmares?" asks Forte. "What sort of nightmares did you have?" He looks over at Dakath. "I didn't have any nightmares. Did you?"
"Not I," he says simply.
"I did," Xania says softly.
"As I said before.. I did too," Ullar says, in a low voice.
"I have had nightmares here as well. Last night's didn't seem any worse than previous ones though," Rhune says just a little sleepily.
Dakath doesn't look up from what he is doing and speaks to Augustus. "Don't be a fool, those spirits we fought yesterday, we released them from their torture, I was told so. We're going to explore the third tomb and we need your abilities to put these poor souls to peaceful rest."
He looks over at Augustus, "Wouldn't you disgrace your God by not going...." he looks as if he is about to say something else, but instead he frowns and looks around as if searching for something. With something akin to shock on his face he falls back to the ground, he sits there almost dumbfounded.
Augustus shakes as Dakath speaks, and appears even more set in his ways, but does not speak.
"I can understand your fears, Augustus. I've experienced some bad dreams as well. But remember, those were only dreams and dreams are necessary to release the tensions of real life. However, they mixed up a little bit too much with the reality right now."
"But," says Ullar, taking a little pause, "...I'd like to investigate the third tomb as well. Perhaps we can find out what has happened in this sad place in the first place. As Dakath told me, we did the spirits a favor by releasing them."
"I suggest you use your healing powers on those that are going to visit the third tomb with me, or assist us with your healing powers when we return."
"And...let's agree on the fact that we are not going to spend another night at this scary place. Anyone objecting to continue our travels this afternoon towards the place where faeries have been spotted? If I remember correctly, Augustus, you did not believe they existed."
Tag turns to brother Augustus. "Brother I can see why you do not wish to approach the last tomb, but these nightmares may be caused by the spirits of the last tomb and a trick to scare us off Si. Like our lord when he fought the Dark one alone. The father of lies has many tricks, Si. If you will not come brother, will you wait until we are finished? We may have sore need of your services after the expedition."
Augustus dully nods.
Looking around at the others, "I think Xania needs some of your healing powers, Augustus. She was burned by one of those globe things and then if you can I could something on my leg," Rhune replies in tone of voice that clearly suggests she is exhausted. "And I don't blame you for not wanting to check out that final tomb. Not sure if I want to either. We could just leave it and come back another time when we are feeling better and a little more well equipped," she says as she tries to eat some of the left over game.
"Ah, don't be a spoil sport. Now that we have the schizophrenic mace of evil and/or cool elven spirits, what could possibly hurt us?" asks Forte sarcastically. Wincing in pain from the previous day's injuries, Forte gets serious, adding, "Well, if you have any left, I could use a bit of healing before we investigate the other tomb, at the very least. That is, if we decide to do it today. If we're just gonna travel today, I can wait until later."
"Heal the warriors first," Xania says. "I am not as likely to go into battle. Except in tombs," she adds.
Looking over at Ullar, "I would like to go with you to examine the tomb, but I think maybe we should just leave and return another time. We could go visit the faeries and see what, if any, information they possess," Rhune replies to the big man.
"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'd like to go, too," responds Forte. "Who knows when we'll get a chance to come back here. And we can always run if some other undead creature appears!"
Rhune smiles at the big warrior, "Yes we can always do that can't we?"
As it looks like most want to go to the tomb Rhune sighs and gets her sword ready and goes along.
"It seems to me that most of our group is ready to do the last tomb as well. And to be honest, Rhune, I'd rather finish our business here and never return. Those nightmares are pretty much frightening, yes, even to me," Ullar says, while rubbing his chin and remembering some nasty details of his previous nightmares.
"Then let's go. I am ready to finish," Rhune replies getting her sword out just in case.