Prisoner offloaded, the party mount their Wyverns and take to the skies heading for the town of Altand, deep within The Misty Forest. Soaring through the air with the greatest of ease, Wyvern really was turning out to be the most preferred method of travel, free from roadside ambushes or random attacks from forest creatures. All that was missing was some buxom wench delivering refreshments and possibly a small pillow that could be placed around the neck.
However, on the second day that all changed. As they soared through the sky at normal Wyvern cruising altitude, to the party's surprise, swooping out of the sunlight above, came two ferocious, green, half-dragon creatures. Only Sigrid was immediately aware of the danger diving towards them. Before the heroes could react the creatures unleashed a flurry of attacks on the Wyvern carrying Beef. It screeched in pain as blow after blow cut at it's scaled skin. Sigrid's eyes glazed over as she called upon a storm of lightning, a shocking blue bolt arced it's way through the air and struck the tail of one of the half-dragons but it seemed to only anger it further. The creatures attack Beef's Wyvern once more, tearing at it's flesh, it's cries of pain suddenly stop and it begins to plummet to the ground below taking a surprised Beef with it. Thinking quickly, Lucien utters words of power and Beef's appointment with terra firma is delayed as his decent is slowed by the Wizard's spell. Turning in his saddle Finn takes careful aim with his crossbow and fires a bolt at the creature swooping behind them, hitting it in the chest, it lets out a howl of pain. Sigrid calls upon the powers of the lightning once more but it narrowly misses the creature.
Guiding his Wyvern towards one of the winged beasts, Farraine transforms into a whirlwind of sharpened steel, slashing at the creature with furious anger. It howls in pain as blow after blow slash at it's flesh. In retaliation it turns to attack the Wyvern carrying Farraine and Finn but the blows it suffered hamper it's attempt and merely skim off the Wyvern's scales. From beneath the battle, a gently floating Bard takes a deep concentrating breath, surely a devastating Eldritch Blast is incoming, a ball of blue energy trickles from his palm and drips to the ground below, the other blast erupts with the vigour of a teenager in an empty house and with a batch of fresh socks. The ball of energy streaks across the sky and smacks into the Half-Dragon causing it to howl of pain. It banks to the right and swoops beneath the Wyvern of Farraine and Finn, as it passes under the belly of the creature it slashes at the bindings holding the saddle. Finn manages to hold onto one of the Wyverns spines as the saddle begins to slip but Farraine has more adventurous ambitions in mind. As the saddle moves beneath him he quickly gets to his feet and leaps of his mount, soaring through the sky he lands on the Half-Dragon.
It is at this point that it is important to understand which half of a Dragon a Half-Dragon actually is. A magnificent beast of 120ft in length and a wingspan of 100ft with the head of a man these were not. These particular Half-Dragons were just dangerous dudes with wings and the sudden addition of a fully laden fighter had a rather significant effect on the thrust to weight ratio of the creature. As the two of them plummeted towards the earth the other Half-Dragon fires two shots at Lucien but he manages to deflect one of the attacks with a hastily cast shield spell, but it is not enough to stop the other bolt as it hits him in the shoulder and blood starts to pour from the wound.
Finn, seeing his best friend falling to his doom, tries to guide his Wyvern to swoop down to perform a daring rescue but his wishes are not granted and the Wyvern stubbornly flies onwards. Instead, Finn takes careful aim at the beast grappling with Farraine and fires a bolt straight into it's chest. It cries out in in pain as the bolt plunges deep into it's chest, drops of blood fall upwards as the two of them continue to tumble towards the terrain below. Sigrid rises from her saddle and utters words of power, filled with a desire to see if pigs really can fly whilst hoping against hope that they indeed cannot. Unfortunately the beast is able to withstand the spell and continues to soar behind her as she leaps from her Wyvern.
Farraine and the other Half-Dragon are locked together as the ratio of ground to sky on the horizon gets larger and larger. Farraine punches the creature in the face as a smile creeps across his face an acceptance of his inevitable fate etched in his cheeks.
Lucien once more is subjected to a vicious attack from the other enemy but manages to remain mounted and retaliates with a devastating spell, obliterating the beast and sending blood and body parts to the ground below. Beef gently touches down on the lush green grass and looks up to see Farraine and the Half-Dragon in a death spiral, he casts polymorph and Farraine suddenly changes into an eagle, wings spread, trying desperately to halt his momentum before it is too late. But the enemy's grip is too tight and the two of them smash into the turf with a sickening thud. A plume of dust, dirt and feathers erupt from the impact, silence fills the air as Beef watches in horror. After a suitably dramatic period of time a shadow rises from the cloud and Farraine walks toward Beef, brushing the dust off his armour, a smug look on his face.
Another victory for our intrepid heroes, Sigrid, now in Eagle form flutters to the ground, followed by the Wyverns piloted by Finn and Lucien. Beef rushes off to find the body of his fallen mount and grabs a scroll from within his backpack, reading from it, the animal begins to stir and life returns to it's heart once more, Beef, with a look of relief, embraces the creature lovingly. Looking around the glade in which they landed Finn and Farraine look for any possible loot the Half-Dragons may have been holding and discover nothing of any worth. They do notice that each of the creatures has the sigil of the Dragon Cult tattooed on their forearms, the two of them exchange a knowing look and are soon in possession of two sigils of the Dragon Cult and a couple of extra hands.
After taking a rest the party take to the skies and resume their journey to the village of Altand keeping a careful eye on the skies above. After another day's travel they see the village approaching and land in a small clearing on the outskirts so as not to alarm the locals. A deep mist rolls through the trees as they walk towards the village, it appears that despite all their grace, Elves are not that original when it comes to naming things. Finn and Sigrid notice shapes moving within the tree line and a group of Wood Elves emerge from the fog, bows drawn, arrows pointed at the party members. Finn bids them a friendly hello. "Keep your hands where we can see them" one of the Elves replies. The party reassure the elves that they mean no harm and are searching for the Warden of Altand. "Follow us" they reply.
As the party are led through the forest they are soon met by a wonderous yet disturbing sight. The village, once a marvel of Elven engineering, lies in ruin. The group are led up into the tree tops and enter a large room, where a battle-weary warden sits. It transpires that the Warden the Party were tasked with seeking out fell in battle during a devastating dragon attack and his replacement Galin now sits before them in his stead. He tells of the horrors of the attack, how many of his kin have been slain and how they were lucky that they managed to fight them off when they did. Our adventurers tell Galin of their quest to end the rise of the Dragon Cult and request any help that can be provided. Galin casts an illusion on the table before them and a map of the Misty Forest is revealed in detail. On the map the various settlements are shown. He explains that many of the villages to the South East have been subjected to similar attacks as Altand.
Finn detects that whilst the Elf speaks the truth there is something that he is not telling them. Taking the Warden Galin, to one side, Finn engages in a rather impressive display of roleplaying and learns that Galin made a terrible pact with the cult to spare what remained of the village in return for information of other settlements within the Misty Forest. Finn understands that Galin had few options available to him and is wracked with guilt over the deal he made. Finn assures him that his confession will go no further and that whilst he currently holds the position of Warden, Finn will contact the King and seek a smooth transition of authority to someone else in a way that will allow Galin to maintain his dignity. The Elf thanks Finn for his kind words and the two of them return to the rest of the gathered party members.
Galin tells them that there is a supply market in a nearby treetop and one of his kin, Alagarthas, camped in the northern end of the village should be able to provide further assistance in tracking down the Cult.
After a brief shopping trip the party make their way to the camp of Alagarthis where Beef explains the quest that lies before them. When he mentions that the Green Wrymspeaker is none other than the former Prince, Alagathis is visibly shaken. It was believed that his brother was dead after being banished years ago. He offers the services of a scout to take them to the outskirts of the Dragon's lair and hands them a loyalty card for the Altand's Supply Market. "I knew we should have come here first" whispers Finn. On their way out of the village the group of heroes stops to speak with the Elf Illwin who is perched high up in a tree, seemingly conversing with the birds. She notices them as they approach and she descends gracefully to meet them. She warns them that death surely awaits them and they need to use their wits to survive. Finn and Sigrid exchange a worried glance at each other, Finn mouthing the words "we're doomed". Illwin hands each of the party members a flowered garland that should hide them from prying eyes until they reach the heart of the Dragon's lair and a number of loaves of Elven Bread. Thanking her for the gift the adventurers hang the garlands around their necks, place the bread in their backpacks and head off into the forest, led by their guide.
After a forgotten amount of time travelling through the Misty Forest the scout finally bids them farewell as they approach a large pool of water fed by a cascading waterfall. The party gaze in wonder at the majesty of the falls and think of their next steps. There is a sudden pop in the air over Finn's shoulder and a small, red creature appears out of nowhere. "What the hell is that?" screeches Beef. "Er, guys, this is Binky" replies Finn...."Kinda.....I think you might have pissed him off the last time you shattered him to dust..."
The party are somewhat taken aback by this new addition to the clan but soon see the benefit when Binky suddenly disappears once more and returns a few moments later and tells them of a secret entrance hidden behind the waterfall ahead. "Sweet", says Finn, "I've always wanted to find a secret thing hidden behind a waterfall". The party walk around the edge of the pool towards the waterfall and notice a pathway leading behind it. Following it carefully they find a hidden tunnel leading steeply downwards into a darkened cavern. Farraine jumps down the steep slope and Beef jumps also, only better and with a lot more style. Finn and his new familiar make their way down the slope as Sigrid turns into a snake and slithers down to join the others. Lucien, having witnessed the Bard's athletic demonstration tries to do better but slips and tumbles towards the ground, only a hasty spell saves the wizard's blushes as he manages to land softly on his feet at the foot of the slope.
Our heroes gather together to discuss the plan of action and once more the services of the petulant Binky are called upon. Reluctantly Binky vanishes from sight to explore the cavern beyond. Returning a few moments later, Binky tells them that the cavern appears to be guarded by 3 elves and contains a large pool of water with a central island. There is also a raised area to the south that looks decidedly suspicious. Armed with this fresh reconnaissance, Beef and Finn cast an invisibility spell as Binky sits creepily on Finn's shoulder popping out of sight once more. Making their way silently through the cavern they notice a small tunnel leading off to one side and decide to investigate further. As they move down the underground passage they notice an unpleasantly pungent odour emanating from a cavern ahead. As they move closer the smell gets stronger and stronger and they hear voices. Whoever, or whatever lurks beyond is engaged in a game of sorts and an accusation of cheating is being fervently discussed. Carefully, the invisible trio edge into the room and see a couple of large Ogre-like creatures with 2 heads arguing with each other. Silently they pass along the wall of the cavern and enter another tunnel ending in a small wooden door. Beef checks the door for any possible traps before gingerly opening it and walking out onto the raised platform Binky had earlier mentioned. There is a group of Elves stood looking out over the cavern below but something is amiss. Finn observes them cautiously, looking to see if they bear the tattoo of the Cult of the Dragon but no trace is found. As Beef and Finn ponder what to do next a there is an audible puff and Binky appears, "cough...Oi!...cough" before disappearing once more. The Elves turn around quickly "Who goes there?"
Beef reappears bidding a friendly hello to the Elves, it appears that they are not here by choice. Beef tells them of the plan to kill the Green Wrymspeaker and is told of a secret entrance under the lake below and to beware of the cultist members to the north of the cavern's main entrance. Beef thanks them for their help and advises them to escape whilst they can. The elves are relieved and quickly make their way out to safety. Remaining invisible Finn makes his way back to the lake and lays a sneakily hidden trap in the passageway to the north of the lake should any Cultists decide to pursue them into the lair. Sigrid, still in snake form, slithers into the cold waters of the lake and notices that the waters are very deep for such a small body of water.
Back at the raised platform Binky pops back into existence uncomfortably close to Beef's ear and says "You're next buddy" before scurrying over to the nearby statue where he proceeds to dry hump it in a most disturbing way.
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