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[TheBiggerFish]

"Ach, 'tisn' t much, really.  Y'r welcome.  An' th' less said about it, th' sooner I'll ferget, eh?

Ye know me already, but 'tis nice t' meet ye prop'ly, Milo."

[Dwarmin]

It was telling of her personality, that Johanna decided to keep that small ball of useless metal in her possessions from then on, as a personal reminder. She was discomforted...nothing excused failure, and no thing short of perfection could ever be tolerated. She already felt she had failed her teammates, blaming herself for the departure of Sweetpea, and now Mirella-and she had not been able to save everyone in the town...nor find as much as on the cult as she would have wished, as so much remained a mystery. Johanna had never been quite able to tolerate her perceived weakness, always judging her self harshly...

She decided a short time of reflection could still her mind-generally, worshipers of Lathander tended to pray for strength and guidance in the morning, at the dawning of light when his powers were strongest, and his will was most generous...but, those who felt in need of his forgiveness prayed at dusk-when Lathanders powers had begun to wane, asking not for his blessings or guidance, but offering their strength and supplication.

Action: Johanna has an extra 30 minutes or more before dinner (She forgot her teammates took the other magic items when they left the campaign), and decides to spend the time in prayers to Lathander at the local church, asking for penance for perceived wrongs.

[FelixSparks]

Arwen whistled at the high prices. "Wow, that's quite a bit. How about just two of each?" That was quite a bit more than he was expecting! For now, he'd just buy a few, in case of emergencies. Magic is expensive....

[My Name is Immaterial]

Adrik:

"Well said, sir! Perhaps another drink will help it along!"
After a few more drinks, and the halfling idly chattering along, he stops for a moment, and considers his drink.
"I've a business proposition for you," he says, putting down the mug, and picks up his ragged little book. "I'm a playwright, and I'm currently working on a serialized play called 'Underbough Abbey'. It's a drama about the aristocratic Underbough family and their serving staff. It's a big hit in the cities, but it's not what I want to do. I'd like to pen a play about your company's adventures. What do you think?"


Johanna:

Dusk was two hours ago, so few people are out on the streets of Greenest, and the temple is even quieter. Eadyan and Mirella are in quiet meditation, so Johanna finds her way silently to Lathander's altar by the light of candles lit around the room. It's next to the much larger Chauntean altar, but still large and finely detailed.
She kneels at the altar, closing her eyes, and clearing her mind to ask the Morninglord for penance. Going over every life she snuffed out, every life she saved over the last few days, everything she created, she sets the account for the Commander of Creativity to balance.
If she was looking for a response, one does not arrive.


Arwen:

"Alright, that'll be ninety gold for the healing philters, and another hundred-eighty for the water breathing ones, sir, two-seventy in total, after a 10% discount." She pops into the back as Arwen counts out his coin, and comes back with four potions, one type a deep aqua, and the other a burgundy molasses. "Anything else I can do for you, sir?"

[TheBiggerFish]

"I don't see why not.  Although you'd have to ask the others, too.  Though if you're going to be following us around...Can you handle yourself in combat?"

[My Name is Immaterial]

Adrik:

"Oh-ho-ho, no, no, no! You misunderstand! I wouldn't be joining you, I would just occasionally exchange letters with your company, and meet with you when you return to civilization. I've had enough of spending time in caves and dungeons, thank you."

[TheBiggerFish]

"I don't see why not, then.  I think this is best brought before the group, however."

[Dwarmin]

Action No more changes for today

[FelixSparks]

Arwen shakes his head. "Not as of yet.... I'll come back if we need anything else." He lays the coin on the counter, pockets the bottles, and heads out.

I'mma study after lunch!

[My Name is Immaterial]

Adrik:

Adrik shares a number of drinks with Miro (on the halfling's coin), passing the hours by with idle chatter. Miro at one point even has Adrik read over his script for the latest installment of Underbough Abbey, but Adrik can't make heads or tails of it, thanks to a few too many. Before he knows it, it's dark. If there was anything else Adrik would like to get done today, now would be the time.


Johanna:

((We'll get to dinner as soon as everyone is ready: it's not just pointless fluff, I promise! ))


Arwen:

Arwen focuses his second dive into books into the mysteries of his odd and sudden powers.
(Intelligence Check: 20+2)
The primary records of blue flame come from the Spellplague, so Arwen reads up about the incident that swamped the face of Faerun a century ago.

Spoiler: Totally not copy and pasted from the wiki (click to show/hide)

The Spellplague was a disaster that struck Realmspace on 29th Tarsakh, the Year of Blue Fire, 1385 DR, and was caused by Mystra's assassination at the hands of Cyric and Shar. With the goddess's death, the Weave, the universal structure of arcane forces, convulsed. It continued for a decade, leading to the Wailing Years, during which arcane magic ceased to function and the planet of Toril was transformed.
The diviner Yaphyll had a vision of the event:
"The white queen is troubled but can't say why. The black queen hates the white and gives the assassin a black coat. The assassin steals upon the white queen. She can't see him gliding through the shadows. The sword screams. The white queen falls. Her city falls. Stones fall in the cavern to crush the soothsayer. The tree burns and thrashes in agony. Branches break. Branches twist and grow together..."
In her vision, Yaphyll referred to Mystra as the white queen and to Shar, goddess of the night, as the black queen. Cyric, god of murder, was the assassin, Savras, the god of divination, was the soothsayer, and the city, cavern and tree symbolized the ordered structures of magic crumbling into chaos.
The breakdown of the Weave could be felt by all wizards across Faerūn.
The storm began over the Mhair Jungles west of Halruaa and quickly grew to a massive size, with blue flames visible in the sky. It laid waste to Halruaa due to the heavy wild magic activity in the area, and Sespech, the Golden Plains, and the Nagalands were transformed into an unpredictable and surreal place, dubbed the Plaguewrought Lands. Almost every part of Faerūn was affected by the Spellplague and certain areas were eliminated entirely, while others were created anew. Thousands of mages were either destroyed or went insane due to the collapse of the Weave after Mystra's death. In Cormyr, a third of the War Wizards were either killed or driven mad. Those who survived were forced to learn martial combat as a result of the disappearance of arcane magic. Despite the efforts, with the structure of magic out of balance, many spells failed or produced unreliable results. Most permanent magic items, were left intact at the end of the Spellplague but charged magical items were either destroyed, warped, or simply ceased to function. Items with dormant magical qualities, which were manually activated, were largely unaffected by the Spellplague.
The Spellplague affected the landscape, making the ground rumble and heave up and down like the surface of the sea. Curtains of blue flame swept the landscape, reshaping the land by cutting crevasses or lifting and sculpting the plain into hills and ridges. Shards of earth wrenched themselves free and became earthmotes, while waves of azure fires appeared everywhere, killing whatever they touched. The Misty Vale was devastated by blue fire, though the wild elves that occupied it survived. Areas of Toril still affected by the Spellplague were referred to as Plaguelands.
By 1395 DR, the majority of the effects of the Spellplague had come to an end and most arcane magic had returned to a semblance of normality, with a handful of major changes to the way spells are cast.

[TheBiggerFish]

I don't think Adrik has anything he'd like to do, no.  Except talk with the group.

[My Name is Immaterial]

Dinner that night:

Again, numerous important citizens of the town are present tonight, but the atmosphere is more relaxed and quiet. Halfway through, the governor quietly passes Johanna a letter, marked from Leosin Erlanthar, the monk you rescued from the cult..

Spoiler: To Johanna Stonethrow and Co. (click to show/hide)

You've already done far more than you ever needed to, but, if you want to help more, or if you want answers, come to Elturel. They may have eyes everywhere, can't say too much now. I have arranged horses for you with Nighthill. Please be here within two weeks.
-LE

It's scrawled in a poor hand, explaining the curt nature of the message: Erlanthar clearly isn't used to writing.
Elturel, the town in question, is a large city, 6 days ride to the north. It's not the size of the major cities on the Trade Way, like Baldur's Gate and Neverwinter, but it's sizable in its own right.

When Arwen asks Nighthill about his old company, the governor launches into storytelling mode:
"So there we were, a priest of Chauntea, a warrior-monk of Selune, a professional thief, and me, a noble's son, head full of dreams of making it big with a writ of venture from the Lord's Alliance. This was post-Spellplague, you see. We were to help restore order where the spellfire had burnt it away. I was our tactician, and made plans that Borin Ironshaft, the thief, disregarded," he recalls, grinning widely at the memory. "Alodia Rhodes, the martial-devote of Selune, she kept the group together through thick and thin." His face falls a little at the memory, but quickly fades, as he moves on. "And you've already met Falconmoon!"
He details their adventures, from fighting twisted bandits, to undead cults, to a climactic battle with a white dragon atop an icy mountain that ending in the dissolution of the adventuring party.

[Dwarmin]

Later, speaking with Party privately

Johanna showed everyone the letter.

"...I intend to follow this lead. My mission is still to gather information on cult activities...and, until the Lords Alliance gives me a new set of orders, I'll continue doing that.

The question is, are both of you still with me? If you're not going foward, I won't hold it against you-but, we can't afford to discuss anything with someone who isn't part of the group. It'll put us all in more danger." She asked of Adrik and Arwen.

[TheBiggerFish]

Adrik curtly nods assent.

[Dwarmin]

((OOC: Didn't wanna move on without everyones 'agreement', but Felix hasn't been on for about 24 hours and I don't really feel like waiting for him. Pass. ))

"Good!"

She rolled out a map of the Western Heartlands on the table, and pointed from Greenest to Elturel.

Spoiler: Johanna's Map (click to show/hide)

Greenest bottom left corner

"Obviously, we could ride straight there along the road-take about six days, I reason.

Or, we could head straight Northeast, to Berdusk-should only take three days. Trade in our horses for coin, if need be, then book a ship down the river, straight to Elturel, no stops. We might even hire on as guards, take care of whatever problems rise up on the way-should take a day and a half or less with a fast ship, I reckon, save us a bit of time and effort. We'll also avoid any surprises, at least on the roads.

What are all your thoughts?

I wouldn't mind taking a ship. I figure speed will be better than stealth, at this point. Helps to have a crew at hand, that can help us with whatever comes up. Incidentally, I...we'll all have more time to do research on the way. I've got some projects that could use my finer attentions, said attentions not being sent pitching a tent in some smelly swamp, or riding a horse for twelve hours...

Incidentally, Berdusk is a member of the Lords Alliance, of which I am an junior agent-whatever we need to find there, I'll have a good chance of getting whatever we need, even if it's just a place to sleep without getting stabbed in the dark. Still, I wouldn't want to linger...otherwise I'm apt to briefing the High Lady and all her Lords and Dukes over Berduskan dark about the events going on."

((OOC: Btw, I'm just arguing for arguments sake Either way would be fun-the road will be entirely 'combat oriented', while Berdusk will be more 'Diplomacy oriented' to start, followed a river suspiciously full of monsters for all our combat needs. Tho the gold we spend might get use more downtime days while we sail.

Also, ironically, Arwen is going back home-assuming he didn't loop around any, this is the same road he must have taken to be walking to Beregost when our characters first met. The adventure likely took him right back in the same direction he came from. We even have time to go visit them!))