We spotted the galleon listing eerily in the estuary of the small nameless river that fed into Lake Arya.

Malador kept asking me why I had sailed Menolly’s sloop so far down the eastern coast of the island, while he and Sirak were asleep.  He knew very well why I had not tried to sail into and down the Ostrel River.  The sloop would have been turned into a pile of splinters on the shore of Lake Ostrel (Kleine was the lakes only port city) once we went over the colossal waterfall we called The Plunging Cataract.  While this was certainly a consideration, a proper but sad fact was that I had avoided Kleine, my hometown, for almost a decade; and there was only one reason:

My father lived there.

And yes, I suppose I could have made sail for Raven’s Ruin but I could not bear to see what Rilo’s son, Cloten (and I cringe to call him my cousin) had done to that once majestic city.  My father had installed Cloten as Mayor there ten years ago, after my dear Uncle Leo’s death…No!  I will call it what it was!  Murder!

My primary goal in returning to Thunder Rift was to see my cousin Revlis take his first vows to become a Paladin, so this route would avoid contact with Troven (as I have taken to calling my father), and be the shortest corridor to reach the Temple of Kord.

We were now close enough to see the placard proclaiming the galleon’s name as The Cymbeline.

“Look! The wheel’s been tied off on both sides and the sails are belayed!”  Malador pointed out.

This meant that the sails had been secured with rigging lines both port and starboard, forming a huge upside down ‘V’.  I also noticed that apparently the crew had tried unsuccessfully to keep the lanterns lit in what must have been a torrential rain but only the gigantic torches fore and aft had remained ablaze.

“Those seams aren’t going to hold very much longer.”  Sirak speculated.  “I’d say the old girl is done for.  She’ll be sunk by the morning; if not sooner.”

I maneuvered the sloop closer to the once beautiful vessel.

“You’re not thinking of boarding her are you?”  Malador asked cautiously.

“We have to see if anyone’s still alive up there.”

“That’s not our responsibility.”  He argued and Sirak seemed to concur.

“It’s the right thing to do.”  After a short heated discussion the two of them agreed to accompany me onto the ship.

The deck of the galleon was extremely weather-worn, frayed and splintering in places. We heard the normal creakings all ships make and the occasional toll of the captain’s bell, ringing of its own accord as the craft rocked to and fro.  I could tell all three of us found these things comforting but off putting at the same time.

The ship seemed deserted.

“Well shall we check below decks?”

“This is your show Tarm…..Sorry…Gerard.”  Said Malador

“Old habits die hard.  Believe me, I know.”

 

We all took lanterns from the railing and lit them before descending the steps that led down into the hold.  There was a sudden gust of wind that extinguished our lamps; and in the few seconds we were fumbling to re-light them, I heard a piercing scream and then a sliver of light appeared emanating from a slat in a doorway across the chamber.

 

“That must be the cargo hold.  Someone must be in there.”  Said Malador.

 

We crept cautiously to the door.

 

“Is anyone in there?”  I asked through the slat..

 

There was no answer.

 

I grasped the door knob and slowly pushed the door open.   A very old man was sitting on the floor holding another one of the lanterns above his head.  He was encircled by what appeared to be 8 to 10 statues.  The statues were all depictions of huge severed hands, all holding an eyeball.  I couldn’t say if I was the only one to notice, but there was another unlit lantern at his feet.

 

He looked around at me and then spoke:

 

“Ah I am pleased to make your acquaintance, Gerard of Kleine and yours Alfonse Malador and Ood Sirak.

 

“How do you know our names?”  Malador wanted to know.

 

“I know many things and I think that is what has kept me alive in my current circumstance.”  He got to his feet and stepped out from the statues.

 

“Forgive me.  I failed to introduce myself:  My name is Plinth but most people here on Thunder Rift simply refer to me as the Mage.”

 

This was the Mage of Mage Isle?  When I had told Jerro his first night on the Crimson Hawk that little was known about him, I was telling him the truth.  Very few people had even seen him.  I had to wonder what had drawn him out of seclusion.

 

“Was that you we heard screaming just now?”

 

“No that was my final companion here on the ship.  She and all the rest of the crew are gone now.’

 

“Gone?”

 

Plinth took a sidelong glance at the statues.  “Perhaps we should continue this exchange on the deck.”

 

We had no idea what the Mage was talking about, but we had no real desire to remain in the dank hold so when he ascended the steps upward (for some reason he kept his eyes on the circle of statues) we followed the old man up to the deck.

 

“Make sure you secure that door.”  Plinth told Malador.  “The statues are symbols of Vecna, the god of secrets.  If they catch you, they transport you through either time or space and feed of the energy caused by the transition.”

 

“Catch?  How can they catch you?  They’re made of stone.”

 

“Ah yes but this is special stone, mined by the followers of Vecna.  The statues can only move if no one was looking at them.”

 

“No one’s looking at them now.”  Sirak pointed out.

 

“Yes, and that is why I have very little time.”

 

The Mage went on to tell us that he had left his little Islet and booked passage on The Cymbeline to investigate a disturbance he had detected several weeks ago in the area around Lake Arya.  They sailed from Lake Ganif up the Torlynn River, past the town of Torlynn , docking for a short time where the Torlynn and Grakken rivers crossed to pick up cargo from a group of orcs (The leader had red hair, but this would not be significant to me until much later).  They then sailed east down the Grakken until they came to Lake Arya.

 

“It was on the Grakken leg of journey that the crew started to disappear.”

 

We were so mesmerized by his story that we failed to observe that he was moving ever closer to the railing. Then with a nimbleness that belied his age he jumped up on the railing, cut the line I had used to secure Menolly’s sloop and dove into the water.  I saw his head break the surface and then swam to and quickly boarded the tiny boat.  As he piloted the craft away he yelled back over his shoulder:

 

“Sorry to leave you like this but don’t worry.  Your cousin will make a fine Paladin but his wish has….”  His voice trailed off as he sailed farther and farther away.

 

“Uh Gerard, you need to take a look at this.”  Malador was saying.

 

Somehow the statues had gotten out of the hold and were circling us on the deck.

 

“Remember what he said, they can’t move if we keep our eyes on them.” 

 

We never saw them move but hours would pass as they drew closer and closer to us.

 

When I woke up…Or I should say the next thing I remember was walking through the hills on the outskirts of Melinir.  Menolly was with me and the group I had met on the Crimson Hawk:  Grizzlegar, Pax and Jerro.  Malador and Sirak weren’t there.  I had a vague impression that we (Menolly, myself, and the others) had just been through some kind of ordeal, but try as I might I could not remember what it was and something told me I shouldn’t ask.  So I didn’t.

We were returning to Melinir so Menolly could give her father, Malek the ruby dagger he had asked her to retrieve.  She told me she had found the hilt on Crag Island and the blade itself in Blingdenstone on Mantol-Derith.

As soon as we walked through the front door of Malek’s house I could sense something was wrong, but I seemed to be the only one.  Menolly was telling the others to get settled while she asked the servants to set up dinner.

“Father!?”  She called.

There was no answer.

And when we went outside we found out why. 

Malek was tied to a chair in the center of the courtyard which was infested with orcs, all carrying daggers.  The orc leader standing behind Malek’s chair stood out from the rest with his bright shock of red hair.  He stepped forward; confident he had the upper hand, and addressed Menolly:

“Ah, so you must be the daughter!  Come in, Come in!  Was your mission successful? Do you have the ruby blade?” 

“I certainly do!”  Menolly assured him.

“Then give it to me and I will give you your father.”

“As you wish!”  She pulled the blade out of her backpack with her left hand. And when Red reached for it she flipped it to her right and tried to stab him through the heart.  But as soon as it touched his breastplate; there was a red flash; then blackness.

“Wake up Bub!”

Grizzlegar was standing over me.

“What happened?”  I asked blearily as I got to my feet.

“When Menolly attacked the orc leader her blade exploded.”  Said Grizzle.  “You and Sally over there were knocked cold.”  Jerro gave the gnome a dirty look.  The wizard stood up then set back down in the nearest chair.  “Me and Pax were paralyzed.  Red had his goons collect the pieces of the dagger and somehow he was able to knit them back together.  Then they took Menolly and her father and left.”

“And there was nothing you and Pax could have done?”

“Like I said, we couldn’t move until just a few minutes ago and I can tell you I’m wicked hungry.”

“I suppose I could find you something in the kitchen.”

“Really?  Your girlfriend is kidnapped and all you think of is food?”  Now it was my turn to give the gnome a dirty look.

“Well, we won’t get far on an empty stomach.  Let’s go to The Sarcastic Goat and get some dinner/breakfast.  While we’re there we’ll keep our ears open for any clues as to where Red and the crew may have taken Menolly and her father.”

“The Sarcastic Goat huh?”  Repeated Grizzlegar.  “Sounds like my kind of place.”

“Doesn’t it though?”

As we were leaving the courtyard Jerro noticed something on the ground and picked it up.

 

“Hey guys, look at this.”

 

It was some kind of medallion or pendant and I recognized what it represented immediately.  It had the likeness of a severed hand holding an eyeball.

 

“Vecna.” 

 

“What?”  Asked Grizzle.

 

I quickly told them the story of what had happened on The Cymbeline.

 

“God of secrets huh?  I don’t know anything about that, but orcs?  I know how to kill them.”  Declared the barbarian.

 

On the way to The Sarcastic Goat Jerro told us that he had examined the Vecna pendant and found that it contained a real human eyeball..

 

Namens was seated at his usual table far back in the corner.  I went to talk to him while the others found us a table of our own.  Namens was the proprietor of The Goat but he thought of himself first and foremost as a scholar.  He was a devout follower of Ioun, god of knowledge.  While he had inherited the inn from his family, he did not like the trade; he tolerated it only because it afforded him the opportunity to spend his days lost in his books.    

 

“I see you’re back among us Gerard.  I haven’t seen Menolly in about a week though.  She’s usually here most nights playing for us.”

 

“She’s been on a mission for her father.”

 

“Ah.”

 

“Listen Nam, have you heard anything about any suspicious orc activity in the area?”

 

The scholar shook his head, and then he did seem to remember something.  “There was an orc group in here about three days ago. The only reason I remember is because one of them had the brightest red hair I’ve ever seen, at least on an orc.”

 

“Do you remember anything about why they were here?”

 

“Not really.  You might ask Kiley though…There she is.”

 

I turned in the direction he had pointed.  Kiley was at our table taking orders.  I had known her for years, but I suddenly realized there was reason for concern.  Kiley was a Drow.  I quickly said my good byes to Nam and headed over to the table.

 

Kiley was heading for the kitchen by the time I walked up.

 

“We told her we were with the famous Gerard of Kleine and she said she’d bring you your usual dish.  Now ain’t you special?”  Asked Grizzle.

 

“What can I say; this is my adopted hometown.”

 

“And, I’ll have you know, I was on my best behavior.” Piped up Jerro.

 

“Well, at least you didn’t get us sent to the brig this time.”  I told him.

 

“Please knock on wood when you say that!”  Demanded Grizzlegar.

 

We all thumped the table several times.

 

After our meal, we took a trip to the market to stock up on supplies, and then headed out of town in the direction of an orc village Killey was kind enough to tell me about. 

 

As soon as we came through the gate dozens of orc children surrounded Jerro and started shouting “Wahmahn”  which is the orc word for wizard.  I suppose his cloak gave him away, but Grizzle couldn’t help noticing how much the word sounded like “Woman” and began to egg the kids on.

 

“Yes, he is a Woman.”

 

I took advantage of this distraction to talk to the locals.  I was wearing the Vecna pendant Jerro had found and pretended to be a follower looking for the Harvest Ceremony that Kiley had told me about.  One of the orc children’s mother said that the Ceremony was taking place in the mine east of the village.

 

We made short work of the wardens guarding the mine and took their cloaks and pendants as well as a hand axe.  As we entered the mine we noticed strange moving writings on the wall.  Jerro tried to read them and was psychically attacked for his trouble.  He was elected to play the prisoner, while the rest of us dressed in the wardens’ cloaks and donned their pendants.  Someone (though I don’t remember who) had the foresight to grab one of the torches on the wall.

 

Grizzlegar rushed us through a long corridor and we ran straight into more wardens and Vecna fanatics guarding the chamber where the Ceremony was taking place. I could see that Menolly and her father were tied up on the floor and Red was standing over them waving a dagger and chanting.   Our ruse with Jerro as prisoner worked, but as soon as one of the wardens started leading us into the chamber, Grizzle turned around and attacked him.

 

Jerro tried a spell to slow the movements of our opponents but it only worked on one of the fanatics.

 

Red, alerted by Grizzle’s attack, turned around and pointed his dagger straight at me.

 

“Stay where you are or I will carve out her eyes!!!...Unless you have something I want.”

 

“We have your warden’s daggers.”

 

“Pah We have plenty of daggers.”

 

“How about this hand axe then?”

 

Red instructed one of the fanatics to take the axe from me and as soon as I handed it over he swung at me with it.  I was ready for it and dodged but I still took some of the blow.  I was already bleeding from a skirmish with wardens after Grizzle’s attack, but I was able to evade the fanatic and charge straight up to Red yelling:

 

“Leave her alone but take my eyes if you must!”

 

One of the wardens stepped between me and Red and knocked me to the ground where I passed out.

 

Pax somehow got close enough in to heal me but she put her finger to mouth meaning I should stay still.  To my horror I saw that while I was out Red had been able to open Vecna’s Eye on the wall and Menolly and her father were now held tight by the eye lashes that were more like tentacles.

 

The battle raged on around me and I could see it turning in our favor.  I finally saw my chance, jumped up and slit the throat of the warden who had been guarding me.  Red too could see that he was losing the conflict.  He let out a guttural scream and jumped into the Eye which closed around him.  He had made his escape.  The eye lashes dissolved and Menolly and her father dropped to ground.  We pulled their bodies to relative safety but saw that they had tentacles growing out of their arms and legs.  Grizzle started hacking at them.

 

“Stop you’re killing them!!!”  I shouted.

 

“Look over here!”  Pax had found a fountain in the next chamber.

 

Grizzlegar and I looked at each other for a moment .

 

“You don’t think?”

But it was true.  Once we place Menolly and her father in the fountain they were healed and the tentacles dissolved.  The rest of us jumped into the fountain and it had the same effect.

 

Menolly slowly opened her eyes looked up at me and smiled then after a moment the smile faded.

 

“Where’s the dagger?”  She asked concerned.

 

I realized that Red had taken it with him.

 

“We have to get that dagger back!”