The following is a Temple quest journal:

Eowyna Rohanna



Joined: 09 Dec 2005
Posts: 53
Posted: Wed Dec 21, 2005 6:44 pm Post subject: Lathe en'Coia (The Tree of Life)

DAY ONE

They stepped through the spirit gate into Ilshenar, the gear and supplies they carried minimal at best. Seven days spent in honor of Labelas Enereth, seven days to contemplate time and the extension and renewal of life. A quick trip to the Weald to pick among the abandoned loot improved their circumstances somewhat, but one misstep into a patch of thorns convinced Eowyna that a raid upon the bandits to obtain boots and warmer clothing was in order. Then ratmen for gathereing arrows, reagents, and food; and a farmhouse to briefly shelter from a thunderstorm.

The day of exploration progressed rather well, and as they moved into the forests beyond Mistas, the challenge rather more difficult. Maddux was bold, fearless and agressive in his movement through the forest, and she was greatly impressed by his ability to manage so well with such meager equipment. Did he know, she wondered, how often she sheltered behind the power and skill of his bow?

It soon became apparent to her that she'd best be more conservative with her spell-casting, as the reagent supply dwindled. As luck would have it, however, they soon stumbled across a travelling salesman. "This one sells reagents." Maddux said, and with a smile "Shall I kill him?"

"No!" exclaimed Eowyna. "No, we have enough looted gold to buy his wares. Perhaps, if you let him live, he'll wander by again when we are in need!" Maddux reluctantly lowered his bow, and she quickly purchased the salesman's meager stock of reagents. There were not many, but enough to get by for a while yet.

By late afternoon, they found themselves standing atop the roof of an abandoned tavern, the dense surrounding forest alive with bird call and the faint sounds of small ground life. It felt peaceful and very isolated indeed. "There is a tree--a wonderous Tree of Life," he said quietly. "It grows in a hostile place where you wouldn't expect to find such a thing. This tree can restore life, perform the great spell of ressurection. I'd like to show it to you."

"Yes," she said. "Such a tree must surely be blessed by Labelas Enereth, himself, if it can perform such a miracle. I would like to see this tree, a'maelamin."

"Then," he said, "it will be the goal of our quest--to find this tree and make an offerring there to Labelas Enereth." She nodded in agreement and leaned against him as they stood. She was tired and needed to borrow a bit of his strength.

After a short rest and a meal from their looted food stores, they entered the dungeon below the old tavern. Their exploration was eventually halted by an encounter with a combination of demon, blood elemental, and a few nasty golden things, and only his stealthing ability allowed them to recover their gear.

They emerged from the dungeon into falling twilight. It was time to seek shelter for the night, so they began the journey back to the Twin Oaks Tavern. But it was the small pool to the south of the tavern that beaconed irresistably. Eowyna cast the little charm to warm the waters and, shedding her battered armor, entered the pool. She glanced around, but he was no where to be seen. "Strange," she thought, "where had he got off to? Stealthing perhaps?"

Then suddenly, he was there again, dropping his gear beside the pool. She watched him lower himself into the warm water, close his eyes, and relax. He'd been generous, kind, patient with her mistakes, attentive to her every need and watchful for her safety. There was much more to this man than most believed.

Mornin'elamin.

Maddux



Joined: 05 Dec 2005
Posts: 113
Posted: Wed Dec 21, 2005 8:37 pm Post subject:

Day One
Sometimes I wonder how I found myself caught up in some quest for Labelas Enereth. Was it the promise of untold wealth and riches, no this time a beautiful elven seer named Eowyna has me sitting outside the Spirituality moon gate with her. Granted, she did not have to bend my arm, being as beautiful and having my heart as she does. Wearing nothing but the bare essentials, we were both wondering where to get more equipment. In Felluca, this would be a very simple, matter with a simple solution. That solution being, kill someone and take their stuff. Taking a moment to think to myself, what would that Fey legging wearing paladin do? Edalim would go to Twisted Yield and loot the slain Swoop corpses. Someday those poachers will drive that bird into extinction. I will have to figure out a way to save that bird someday, so I can get some points in with the council. ”Eowyna, Mela en' coiamin perhaps we should travel to Twisted Yield and see what we can find in discarded equipment?” Eowyna replied “That sounds good”
In a matter of no time, Eowyna and I were both equipped and ready to begin looking for shelter and reagents. During many a battle with the bandits, and rat men I have learned that as beautiful and caring that Eowyna was, she was more than the capable spell caster who slain many a foul beast without hesitation. I must add that I had a hard time taking my eyes off her new armor and less concealing garments. At certain points in battling paragon rat mages, I would almost swear she was an avatar, and I must say that Labelas Eneroth had protected me from the pixies and unicorns; otherwise they would have slain me for my less than paladin like karma. If I could only get Labellas to bless my business operations, I would be very rich elf. After a spending the day, learning our way around Spirituality, we decided upon staying at the Twin Oaks Tavern Before resting for the night, we stopped by the pond. Eowyna said a few incantations and the water begin to warm to a comfortable level. With Eowyna, distracted I left a ¹rogue’s mark on a nearby tree. Quests, A'maelamin Eowyna, what more can I want.

Maddux

¹ rogue’s mark – an unnoticeably mark to any passerby, but very noticeable to Rogue and carries a special meaning.

Eowyna Rohanna



Joined: 09 Dec 2005
Posts: 53
Posted: Thu Dec 22, 2005 12:34 pm Post subject:

DAY TWO

SPIDERS !!! Why did it have to be spiders? And VERY LARGE ones at that! Nasty, creepy, crawly eight-legged abominations against the beauty of nature!! She'd rather encounter a cave full of skeletal dragons than a tunnel occupied by spiders! Well, she wouldn't let Maddux see her cringe, that was for sure!

So she wandered away from him a bit to hide her terror. At first, it wasn't so hard. The unicorn could handle it, and she didn't have to get too close. But then, a golden terathan crept into view. She quickly sent the unicorn to hold it off, and stepped backward in a rush. But she hadn't accounted for the uneven surface of the cave floor and stepped right off the edge of a shallow ledge. She landed hard on her backside. Ouch!--there'd be a nasty bruise there tomorrow for sure. Warily watching the terathan, she gingerly stood up and dusted herself off, tugged her skimpy armor back into place (whatever were Brittanian tailors thinking when they made this female stuff--not enough here to protect ANYTHING !!), and rubbed her backside all the while keeping an eye on the unicorn. The unicorn, being young, needed her assistance, and she stepped forward to heal.

It was then that she received that telepathic message that we all dread--Maddux was down! -- somewhere in the next tunnel. Her first instinct was to grab a handful of ressurection reagents and race toward his location. Leaving the unicorn to battle on her own, Eowyna dashed into the next tunnel only to be spied by the very same golden spider to which he had fallen. "An Lor Zen!", but she was nervous and her targeting was off. The now-invisible stalactite next to her was NOT going to be helpful. And from the corner of her eye she saw that the brave unicorn was desperate. "In Vas Mani!" and the unicorn was still standing, but she had her own worries now.

Energy Vortex, NOW, in spite of her low reagent stock, but golden pincers knocked the reagents from her hand, and, at the same time, the unicorn succumbed to poison. Eowyna swallowed hard. She stood eye to eye with two golden eight-legged creatures from the pits.....and there were more of the black ones advancing down the tunnel toward her. At this point there was only time for a quick prayer to Labelas Enereth that this was not their time to fade, and a fervent hope that Rebinil, the Heartwood healer, was correct in her advice. Then the black. WHY did it have to be SPIDERS?.....

Maddux



Joined: 05 Dec 2005
Posts: 113
Posted: Fri Dec 23, 2005 3:56 am Post subject:

Day 2

It was well past midnight, as I sat in the shadows near the Rogue’s Mark, scanning the terrain for any sign of movement. It wasn’t long before I spotted someone’s shadowy shape highlighted against the night sky and quickly took aim with my short bow. The shadowy shape quickly became identified as Dip and I relaxed my aim.
Using ²Rogue’s Sign, Dip and I were able to communicate with one and another without making any noise. Once Dip smiled, I knew he understood what had to be done. Darien Rex and anyone with him would be dead soon. I enjoy my time with Eowyna, but business still had to be conducted, and the best opportunity to do that was when she was asleep and under the cover of darkness. As quickly as Dip appeared, he disappeared once his orders were received and authenticated and I stealthfuly crept back into bed with Eowyna.
Later in the day, I watched Eowyna gracefully tame a unicorn and it was a beautiful and impressive sight to watch her ride the unicorn. We traveled west and soon found ourselves in a forest full of spiders and webs, but dauntlessly we continued on till we were outside a cave. Was it bravery, or foolishness but we both ventured into the cave, and soon found us being overwhelmed by a golden Terathan and many warrior Terathans. I remember going down, lying on the cave floor motionlessly seeing images flash before my eyes. It was then when I realized, that I had violated the quest with meeting Dip this mourning, and now I am paying for it to Labellas Enereth. I said a prayer, and asked for another opportunity to finish this quest with Eowyna. Then everything faded to black.

²Rogue’s Sign- a language spoken by rogues using ones hands to communicate to one another without making any noise.

Eowyna Rohanna



Joined: 09 Dec 2005
Posts: 53
Posted: Thu Dec 29, 2005 10:42 am Post subject:

DAY 3

Early morning hours before dawn:

She roused a little from deep sleep, wondering vaguely what had wakened her. She was cold, and, out of habit, reached for him. Nothing. But then, quite suddenly, she felt him beside her. Her mind playing tricks on her, no doubt, must be exhaustion from the difficult day yesterday. She drifted back to sleep.

Afternoon:

"You see," he whispered. " I told you--a tree that ressurects. It had to be brought here by the ancestors. No one but elves could have conceived of such a wonderous thing as a tree which can grant the renewal of life."

She'd never before seen such a thing. The tree grew in a barren, rocky cleft in the surrounding mountains. The earth surrounding the tree was devoid of life--not even a blade of grass. Yet there, in the midst of desolation, grew a tree of large size and dense green foliage, bark tinted a rich hue of reddish-brown. But more than that, this tree was surrounded by a glittering aura of magical light. Eowyna approached the tree and tentatively placed her hand on the bark of the trunk. She could feel the electrical tingle of magic on the palm of her hand. Quickly, she drew back. She, herself, could perform the great spell of ressurection with relative ease, but this was magic greater than she'd ever witnessed.

Labelas Enereth, the master of the passage of time, the god who oversaw the long lifespan of the Elven people and who controlled when the people should flourish and when they should fade. Surely his power was here. The power to extend, prolong, and renew life when body had been separated from spirit. The living power of Labelas Enereth himslef, in the natural form of a great and powerful tree, was humbling to behold.

She felt overawed and priviledged to see this. They placed what little they had to offer at the base of the tree--she, a plate of cookies; he, a bottle of ale. Inadequate to honor a god, but it was, literally, all they had. Silence, except for the crackling energy of the tree's magical field. After a time, she bent upon Maddux a long gaze. "Thank you," she said quietly, and took his hand in her own. "Thank you for bringing me here. I could not have made the journey alone, you know that."

Maddux



Joined: 05 Dec 2005
Posts: 113
Posted: Fri Dec 30, 2005 3:09 pm Post subject:

Day 3

Carefully, leaving the bed without disturbing Eowyna, I carefully made my way to tree, where I was greeted by Dip. Speaking with Rogue Sign, Dip was able to let me know that Darion Rex and Judas are dead. Our power scrolls are stock piling at an alarming rate, currently 500 and growing at an alarming rate. I rogue signed my next set of orders for Dip and we parted ways.

Sneaking back into the Inn’s Presidential Suite, without waking Eowyna was a very difficult task. I almost had a heart attack when I saw her arm searching for me in the bed, but I had managed to get into bed before she opened her eyes. In my heart, I know Labelas helped me here in this instance. No other way I could have not disturbed Eowyna or her Unicorn, unless a god helped me.

Traveling southwest from Humility Shrine, through the swamps and past the undead and lizard camp we finally made it to the entrance to the Tree of Life. With so many fire elementals and efreets blocking the way, it was a very difficult task to reach the Tree of Life. Eventually we made it, and we both amazed at the sight of the Tree. It had surprised me that Eowyna had not known of the Tree of Life, but I was happy to lead her to it.

I had first found the Tree of Life, while trying to evade the Knights of Justice who were trying to bring me to justice. The Knights are accusing me for a small killing of their Guild Master Dupree. Eventually, all the monsters and hazards took their toll on the Knights and I was able to evade them. Sometimes, good guys don’t always win, or survive the swamp.

I stood there with Eowyna, and watched her place a plate of cookies before The Tree as an offering. The only thing I had was a bottle of ale and I placed that beside the cookies. Neither of us had much else to offer. She held my hand and we both looked at The Tree in amazement. I can honestly say I was happy at that moment.

Eowyna Rohanna



Joined: 09 Dec 2005
Posts: 53
Posted: Sat Dec 31, 2005 4:41 pm Post subject:

DAY 4

Eowyna woke to bright daylight streaming through the windows of the Twin Oaks Tavern. The sun was already high. She was alone, but could hear Maddux moving about downstairs. It was difficult to believe she could sleep so late and still be so tired.

They were critically low on supplies. There were few reagents left, and they had little remaining food either for themselves or for the unicorn. And arrows, of course--more of those were needed as well. So today they would raid the ratman village to replenish these necessary items. That had already been decided. She glanced at the battered armor lying in a pile in the corner. The thought of pulling it on was less than appealing. Instead, she fed the last bunch of grapes to the unicorn and settled on the soft fur of the bear rug in front of the fireplace. What they'd yet to decide upon was the final goal of their quest--that they'd need to do today as well.

The sound of movement from downstairs had ceased without her paying much attention, and she startled as the door suddenly opened and he appeared at her side. Shaking her head in amusement, would she never get used to the stealth? Silently, he handed her a rather stale piece of bread. Eowyna looked up at him. "Diola lle, a'maelamin. I am sorry. I've overslept......"

Maddux



Joined: 05 Dec 2005
Posts: 113
Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2006 5:22 pm Post subject:

Day 4
I had an early mourning rendezvous with Dip and Swift at a dilapidated blacksmith forge near Spirituality. Over a map of Felucca Magacina, I gave the operations orders for the takeover of the city. Dip and Swift understood what must done and were willing to carry it out. Dip and my men will conduct overt hostile operations against any Faction Forces whether it Council of Mages or Minax Faction. Swift and his elves are to secure the town sigil and establish local government and commerce. Magacina was importance it is the Stronghold for the Council of Mages. It’s a risky venture, but one that will be very profitable. I wished everyone luck and parted ways, for I had to return back to Eowyna.

Lucky for me, Eowyna is not an early riser. My attentions for Eowyna and getting up in the middle of the night are beginning to take there toll on me. One does not build a kingdom without sacrifice, but I’d prefer someone else’s sacrifice over that of my men. Eowyna is always a beautiful sight to see, and this mourning was no exception either. I am truly blessed to be here with her.

Eowyna and I formulated a plan for our final goal of the quest. That goal was to get a cutting from The Tree of Life and return it to Heartwood. This task has never been done before, and Eowyna and I were the first to try. We agreed we would need fertile soil, healing potion, and a lot of luck. All of these items we can find from the Ratmen at their ruins and at cave behind the ruins.

We were successful in getting supplies and the items we needed for our goal. It was rather easy getting these items, so I was a little worried that what Labelas gave us today, he might take back in the mourning. Hopefully he is on our side in the taking of Magacina and completing this quest.

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