A/N: And here's the then chapter! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Dungeons and Dragons. I only own my original ideas.
Chapter 68: Interpretation
The journey back to the Greenhall Academy was free of any troubles. Upon arrival, Verrax flew out the meet us.
"You're back!" said Verrax, "what have you uncovered?"
"It was strange," I said, "the forest was unnaturally dark, the skies seemed to be constantly overcast, and the air tasted wrong".
"Intriguing," said Verrax, "tell me exactly what you encountered".
I went on describing every last detail of the valley, and what we encountered there. Verrax listened in rapt attention, and replied only once I was done.
"Yes, from the sounds of it, the rituals performed by the Naga you encountered were warping the land, slowly converting the region into a demi-plane. Those strange spirits, they were likely the Naga's victims. Speaking of which, you say the slew the Naga… are you 100% sure it's dead? From the sounds of it, you encountered a Spirit Naga, which are know for being particularly vengeful," said Verrax.
"It's dead," I replied, "I assured that… I Wished it true".
"You," said Verrax examining me closer, "perhaps… did you by chance encounter a certain deck of cards in the past?"
"Yes, and I keep the Deck safely stored away," I said, "I know how lucky I got with it".
"What else did you find?" asked Verrax.
"These books, we didn't take the time to examine them all fully" I said.
As Verrax saw the book we brought, I could see the deep-seated draconic greed behind his eyes. He shook his head, and regained his composure.
"Ah, pardon me," said Verrax, "I shall need some time to examine these tomes fully. Thank you once more for you assistance. Please, if any of you need anything, feel free to avail yourselves of our services".
Verrax lifted the books up with magic, and levitated them away. My companions went about their business at the Academy and the nearby town, returning later with their new acquisitions. Krisyra and Lydratir had purchased new armor, while Charles and Narcrath had replenished our supplies for future journeys.
The next morning, Verrax had finished examining our finds. He flew over to tells us what he'd found.
"Thank you once more for aiding us," said Verrax, "most of the books you've brought seem to be a variety of tomes on divination and prophecy. Many of which I've seen before, but some are particularly rare tomes. a couple of the books you've show us had been of particular interest. This one, 'Treasures of the Fire Lords, the book itself is blank.
"Are you serious!?" I asked.
"Completely, we determined the spell cast upon this tome was a Glyph of Warding, as if set off, it would make the book explode right in the face of whoever tried to read it. This spellbook you found, it is clear that its owner was of decent skill, and I'm sure someone will be interested in studying the spell schema this Wizard used. Then there was this one".
Verrax indicated that thin book bound in humanoid flesh.
"What did you find in that one?" asked Krisyra.
"I believe this was the personal jornal of the Naga you encountered," said Verrax, "Lurinax was its name. Within, I found that Lurinax had researched the attempt to discover when the world will end. It got as far as divining the season. If I'm reading this correctly, Lurinax believed that the world will come to an end during a lunar eclipse on the night of the Winter Solstice".
"That doesn't tell us much," said Lydratir.
"True enough, but that's the issue with prophecy," said Verrax, "take it from someone who specializes in Divination: a portent can only carry you so far. Just because I predict that someone, somewhere will have bad luck today, doesn't mean I will encounter this person".
"So what now?" asked Narcrath, "it doesn't seem like we have any leads involving the void dragons we encountered".
"Thinking about it, I do recall a story of a human tribe that used to reside the the forests south of here," said Verrax, "the tribe is said to have been blessed by a powerful Shaman. However, the tribe was also said to have been troubled by a powerful green dragon. The legends say that the Shaman and the Dragon vanished 100 years ago. In truth, I've been meaning to investigate the area for some time, but things kept coming up. Now though, I have the time available".
"I see," I said, "go on".
"The legends say that the Shaman went to confront the Dragon, and as a result seled them both away," said Verrax, "It's certainly a long shot, but perhaps the shaman will know something. If nothing else, we'll find the remains of an old dragon's lair".
"You said 'we'," I said, "does that mean…"
"Yes, I believe I shall accompany you on this endeavor," said Verrax, "It's been too long since I've gotten a chance to practice my skills in the field".
"Glad to have you along," I said, "where are we going exactly?"
"An area deep in the forest near a rock formation called 'The Dragon's Maw', because the river there when viewed from above resembles a dragon's head," said Verrax
He showed us a rough map of the area, and he war right. The waterfall was the open mouth, several jutting rock formations formed the 'teeth', while a small island above the falls resembled an eye.
"When can we set out?" I asked.
"Whenever you and your companions are ready," said Verrax.
I looked at my conpanions, and say that they were fully prepared.
"Well, in that case, let's get going," I said.
Verrax flew over and landed on my head, and we set off down the road. The forest soon surrounded us, and for a time we saw nothing but small animals and birds. That changed when we crossed paths with another traveler. It appeared to be a human in simple traveler's clothes, plus a beautiful feathered cloak. The feathers were red at the bottom of the cloak, and gradually shifted through the rainbow to indigo near the shoulders. However, something about this person seemed strange. They didn't seem like a threat, but there was still something off.
"Ah, others wandering the myriad roads of life," said the man, "perhaps you could assist me?"
"What with?" asked Charles.
"I'm looking for an old friend of mine," said the man, "I heard he might be somewhere in this area. He's an older blind man, goes by Xitlal".
That definitely didn't sound like a human name, at least from any couture I was familiar with, but I suspected this 'man' was more than he appeared to be.
"We haven't seen anyone matching that decription," said Charles, "but we'll keep an eye out".
"Thank you," said the man, "if you come across him, tell him Cozca is looking for him. Safe travels to all of you".
With that the man departed, leaving us to continue on our way after this strange encounter.
A/N: And there we go! A small piece of new information, and a new objective. As well, the party now has it new, temporary member, Verrax the Pseudodragon Wizard! What might the find on their journey? only time will tell. See you then!