Rise Log #14: Air Apparent

Season: Spring, 1223 to Fall, 1223

[From THE ROLLS OF DRAGONS RISE]:

Full Members:

Adric of Jerbiton			Chancellor		(Kevin)
Fabricatio of Verditius			Lab Worker
Flamma of Tremere			Head Protector		(Eric)
Muris of Verditius			Head Lab Worker		(Donald)
Selwyne of Merinita			Faerie Envoy		(Chris)
Tolas of Tremere			Leader
Verdan the Seeker			Lab Worker		(Shannon)

Head Mundanes:

Manual					Head Ship Captain	(Billy)

Mundanes:

Abruzzo, Silver Grog			Guardian of Selwyne
Iago, Copper Grog			Guardian of Tolas
Luke					Son of Flamma & Tolas
Nickoli					Story Teller		(Eric)
Tiano, Silver Grog			Guardian of Adric

Other Creatures:

Tara					Dragon

				* * *

[Dramatis Persona]:

Air Dragon				Elemental
Baby Gryphon #1				Gryphon
Baby Gryphon #2				Gryphon
Luke of Jerbiton			Magus
Polyphemus				Cyclops
Ravino of Flambeau			Magus
Viator					Sage

				* * *

[From THE DICTATIONS OF ARKUM : Spring, 1223]:

The council meeting of Spring, 1223 was a time of reunions.  Nearly
all of Dragon Rise's wandering members have returned, bringing
interesting stories of their travels.

Meles spent the majority of last year helping the starving people of
Sardinia.  Now that that crisis is over, and crops of the land are
starting to return to normal, he is ready to resume his studies.  With
him, Meles brought another named Luke of Jerbiton, who had also been
helping the Sardinians.  Luke is an old friend of several of the Rise
magi, and they spoke joyfully with him for a time.  His tales of the
Tomb gave many of the magi some cause for worry though, for he spoke
of it becoming a darker, less friendly place since the death of
Certus.  Still, even this was not enough to spoil the jovial
atmosphere.  It was a sad parting when Luke headed once more for the
catacombs below Rome.

Flamma's journeys last year carried her to every covenant in the
Order.  She said that she had done much to spread the word of
friendship across all of Europe.  Additionally, Flamma reported that
she had successfully found a master for her gifted son, Luke.  He will
be apprenticed to Exhiliratus of Literatus.

The last person to return to Dragon's Rise during Spring was our
dragon, Tara.  Like Meles, she had spent the previous year helping the
people of Sardinia.  We were all quite surprised when Tara poked her
head into the Council room, for she is usually quiet and keeps to
herself.  Tara said that the placement of our newly-created third
tower might be problematic.  Apparently, two magical lines of power
cross over our hill, creating the aura that allows the existence of
our covenant.  According to Tara, our three towers are placed in such
a way that they will focus the magical power, just as the stone
circles of England and France do.  She worried that this might cause
instability.  If Tara is correct, something will happen within the
next few years.

Many plans to deal with this problem were discussed.  Some wanted to
destroy the third tower, while others wanted to build several more.
Eventually, it was decided that we would wait and see what happened.
The magi are confident that their powers are great enough that they
will be able to deal with any problems that could arise.

Although pleasant conversation continued for several hours more, at
this point the Council Meeting was officially called to an end.

				* * *

[From THE JOURNAL OF ADRIC OF HOUSE JERBITON : Spring, 1223]:

Flamma of House ... whatever is back.  I have heard that she plans to
join every House.  An interesting hobby.  I don't know what house she
is currently in and I'm afraid to ask.  The magi here say that she is
a new woman but I have heard of her blowing up churches and torching
impertinent young magi.

				* * *

[From THE RISE LOGS OF TOLAS OF TREMERE : Summer, 1223]:

Last night, I had a vision.  I am sure that it was born of the magical
apples that I have been eating for five years now, so I have recorded
it here, for future study.

In my vision, I was surrounded by mist.  It was so thick that I could
not even see the ground below my feet.  Slowly, it began to clear, and
a giant was revealed to me.  The giant was sorely wounded, and I
wondered at his ability to continue on.  In his right hand, the giant
clutched a griffon.  As I watched, he slowly lifted it to his enormous
maw, swallowing it in one quick gulp.  And, miraculously, the giant's
wounds began to heal, until he was whole once more.  As the giant
completed his meal, the mists began to close once more.

When the mists cleared the second time, a great island was revealed to
me.  Cliffs rose high above me.  They were topped by walls of bronze,
which made the heights even more daunting.  A great rope dangled all
the way from the wall down to the sea.  One by one, my magi tried to
climb this rope.  As each neared the top, a great dragon, made
entirely of air blew, pushing the magus from the rope.  And then, the
mists again gathered, and I woke.

I find it very likely that this information is related to something
the fox recently told me.  A few weeks ago, Arkum approached me with a
bit of information he had found hidden away in one of the books
originally from Vardian's Tomb.  It was the account of a knight who
had met a blind prophet upon Sicily.  From the prophet, he heard an
odd tale of a great temple, where powerful air magics could be
learned.  I originally ignored Arkum, for the health of the island has
lately weighed heavy upon my mind.  Now, due to my visions, I feel
that we must investigate.  At the Fall council meeting, I will plan an
expedition to find the seer that the book told of.  If he still lives,
he will direct us to the temple of air, and whatever magical knowledge
lies within.

				* * *

[From THE DIARY OF VERDAN OF BONISAGUS : Fall, 1223]:

After we had finished making Adric and Selwyne Full Members of
Dragon's Rise, Tolas told a most interesting tale.  He talked of
writings he had found which spoke of a great magical temple to be
found near Sicily.  Tolas wished to seek this temple out, and Selwyne
and Adric were quick to volunteer their aid.  I desperately wanted to
help too, for it sounded very much like a quest worthy of a Seeker.
However, Viator has returned, as he had promised he would, and is now
ready to teach the Lore of the Seekers.  Reluctantly, I told Tolas I
would not be able to accompany him.  I believe that the information I
will learn from Viator will make the sacrifice well worth it, though.

				* * *

[From THE JOURNAL OF ADRIC OF HOUSE JERBITON : Fall, 1223]:

I am journeying with Tolas and Selwyne to Sicily to investigate
rumours of hidden magical knowledge.  At our covenant meeting, Tolas
said he was going to Sicily.  Then he told Selwyne and me to accompany
him.  A decisive covenant leader like Tolas is an asset to any
covenant.

After a couple of days on a small ship with Selwyne, I realize that I
don't like him much.  Selwyne is part fairy which partly explains why
he is so annoying.  If not for the Code, I think that all magi like
Selwyne would have been destroyed long ago.

				* * *

[From THE RISE LOGS OF TOLAS OF TREMERE : Fall, 1223]:

The journey to Sicily was thankfully a quick one.  I praised Manual
for what he had learned of Fairy, realizing that it saved me several
days of having to listen to Selwyne.  If he were not my son-in-law, I
think Selwyne would have been destroyed long ago.

The place that Arkum had said the blind prophet lived was a strange,
secluded one.  As we neared the east coast of Sicily, great mists
began to surround us.  It was just as I had seen.

As we grew close to shore, and the mists began to clear, I became
depressed.  Gazing upon the easten coast of Sicily, it seemed a
wasteland.  As far as I could see, every tree had been destroyed.
Only wild grain grew in this land.  I was a bit uncomfortable as
Manual brought us close to shore, for I was vividly reminded of the
destruction which had so recently been wrought upon my own Sardinia.

Looking about, as we disembarked, I wondered where this blind seer
could lie.  I pictured some wizened old man, crouched in a stinking
cave, and thus I began walking towards the slight hills that rose to
the West.  When I first spotted the huge cave, I was a bit surprised
by the size, but was at once sure that we were at the right place.

And then, the blind seer emerged from his cave.  He was a huge man, or
more correctly a giant.  As I looked upon his face, I knew at once
where his name came from.  Where once there had been a single eye, in
the middle of his face, now there was a ruined mess.  As I gazed upon
this great creature which we had come to see, I began to look about
me, worriedly.  I wondered which of my magi I would need to feed to
this beast in order to obtain the information which I desired.

				* * *

[From THE JOURNAL OF ADRIC OF HOUSE JERBITON : Fall, 1223]:

As we stepped foot on the barren shores of Sicily, a cyclops came out
to greet us.  Selwyne and I ran in fear but Tolas bravely walked up
and talked to the vis supply.  Polyphemus, the cyclops, had been
blinded long ago by some passing hero.  He wanted us to get him a
gryphon's eye to replace his lost one.  In exchange, Polyphemus will
tell us the location of the temple we seek.  When we agreed,
Polyphemus told us where a group of gryphons lived, just on the south
of Sicily's volcano.

On the way to the gryphon's lair, we met a magus from Mercury's Fire,
the covenant that resides in Northern Sicily.  Ravino wanted us off of
their island.  Tolas took care of Ravino.  He certamened the kid into
unconsciousness.  We moved on.

We passed through a town and approached the gryphon's lair.  Four of
the beasts charged out of the skies and attacked us.  Our grogs fought
a holding action as Tolas threw pilums of flame at them.  I created an
illusion of a warrior to distract the gryphons from our grogs.
Selwyne seemed to disappear during the battle.  Eventually we cut down
the two big gryphons and the little ones fled.

We followed the remaining gryphons to their lair.  The two of them
were rather young.  Tolas offered them a home at our covenant.
Obviously moved by Tolas' rhetoric, the gryphons agreed to accompany
us home.

				* * *

[From THE RISE LOGS OF TOLAS OF TREMERE : Fall, 1223]:

As we approached the gryphon's lair, I made sure that the various body
parts that we had collected from the two young one's parents were well
hidden.  Then, making sure that I was well surrounded by expendable
warriors, I advanced into the lair.  Not surprisingly, the two
children were hidden away in the back of their dank cave, fearful of
my wrath.  Putting a false smile on my face, I began to speak soothing
words.

Fortunately, gryphons are as dumb as dirt.  Within a short time, I had
the two beasts convinced that we had not killed their parents at all,
but rather were kind patrons, come upon them in their time of need.
At first, one of the creatures threatened to jump up and down on my
house.  Finally, though, the gryphon that Manual had hurt agreed to
come with me, back to the covenant where I promised him a good home.
The other beast quickly followed the intelligent one's lead.  When I
am done with this matter, I plan to make the bright gryphon into my
familiar.

Having finished negotiating with the gryphons, we returned to
Polyphemus' cave.  After making sure that the gryphons were both upon
the Ballerina, well out of sight, I advanced to speak with the
cyclops.  He was quite pleased to learn that I had found him an eye,
and popped it straight into his empty socket.  Within seconds, he was
blinking, and saying how beautiful it was to see again.

Afterwards, Polyphemus proved that he was a trustworthy fellow.  He
gave me the exact location of the Temple of Air that we sought.  It is
just off the Southeast coast of Sicily, cloaked by some form of magic
which has kept it hidden for millenia.  We are now heading back to my
covenant.  As soon as we have dropped our new pets off, we shall make
our final voyage, to the temple that we have been seeking.

				* * *

[From THE JOURNAL OF ADRIC OF HOUSE JERBITON : Fall, 1223]:

The covenant behind us, we sailed to the Temple.  It was a quick
journey, though Selwyne again made the time drag slowly.  When we
arrived at the Temple, it was quite a relief.  The Temple stood on a
small island with cliffs all around.  A wall of bronze topped the
cliffs.  We went up to the wall and perdo terramed a hole under it.

Inside the compound we saw fields, a mansion, and a small building.
We entered the mansion and searched it.  The dining room in the
mansion was interesting.  When I sat, food magically appeared.  It was
quite good and still filling even after the sun had set.  Eventually
we found the Temple inside the mansion.  Unfortunately, there was an
air dragon inside the Temple and only one magus could go in at any one
time.

Selwyne impressed me by going in alone to talk to the dragon.
Unfortunately Selwyne didn't talk about anything useful so Tolas went
in to get real information.  The dragon said that only Aeolia had
defeated him in three thousand years.  We left since we didn't want to
kill the beast.

				* * *

[From THE RISE LOGS OF TOLAS OF TREMERE : Fall, 1223]:

When we finally discovered the temple of Air that we had been seeking,
it was somewhat anti-climatic.  The entire area tingled with the magic
of the temple, but there was a great creature guarding it, a dragon
made entirely of air.  He affirmed that great air magic indeed could
be learned within the temple, but also said that one could study
within the temple only if they first defeated him.  I was ready to
march all of my magi and grogs in, to utterly destroy him, but soon
discovered that only one of us could enter the temple at a time.

So, I was forced instead to talk.  The dragon seems to think much of
himself; whenever a magus entered the room, he began to apologize,
saying that he was afraid that he would kill them if they stayed.
And, I could convince none of my magi to remain with him, to test the
truth of what he said.

After we finally despaired of gaining entrance to the temple, we
searched the rest of the island.  Behind the mansion, we found a small
house that protected an entrance into a crypt.  There were thirteen
tombs within the crypt, although the largest was empty.  Written upon
the empty crypt were the words 'Here lies Aeolia.'  For a moment, I
was worried at this fact, for the air dragon had said that it was one
named Aeolia who had defeated him.  I was able to push my fears away
though, and we began to loot the crypt.  As we stole various articles
from the other twelve tombs, the skeletons within tried to pull us in,
to share in their eternal rest.  Fortunately, Iago was on hand, and
able to deal with them readily.  Two magical amulets were recovered
from the crypt.  We will have to study them soon.

				* * *

[From THE JOURNAL OF ADRIC OF HOUSE JERBITON : Fall, 1223]:

So, we now return home.  Overall we accomplished our goal of finding
the magical knowledge.  Eventually a more prepared expedition will
return to deal with the dragon and search the Temple properly.  I'm
pleased that I was able to contribute with my modest magical
abilities.  Now, I look forward to going to Rome next year to visit my
friend and get away from our small and rather boring island for
awhile.

				* * *

[From THE RISE LOGS OF TOLAS OF TREMERE : Fall 1223]:

So, now we return home.  We accomplished our goal of finding the
temple, but were mostly ineffective beyond that.  Eventually, I hope
to convince one of the fools in the covenant to test the mettle of the
air dragon.  Then, we will either have one less fool, or be able to
search the temple properly.  Next time I go upon such an expedition, I
shall have to remember to choose my helpers more carefully.  It was
quite frustrating to have to do everything myself.  Now, I simply look
forward to returning to my island.  I did worry about it in my
absence, although I know that it has done fine without me for
thousands of years.

				* * *

[From THE DIARY OF VERDAN OF BONISAGUS : Late Fall, 1223]:

Viator has left once more, wandering out again to seek knowledge.  I
was sad to see him go, for in the last season, he has taught me much.
I almost feel like a proper Seeker now.  To Viator, I am extremely
grateful.  With his aid, I now believe that I shall eventually find
the Old Ones.  I have told Viator that if he ever needs a favor, I
will be happy to help him.  I hope that this promise is one that I may
one day fulfill.