When last we left our heroes, there is a bit of correction to the written recollection of last week’s adventure. They had not yet left the party, the festivities continued after receiving their gifts and blessing, but were interrupted by a massive, earth-shaking rumble. Carvacus is continuing to awaken under the mountain. Unsettled, the various clan members begin to clean up the party for the night. AND THEN, the Derailers pile back in Patience and Tinker Mountainroot’s home for bed in their usual places.
Overnight, Ryker notices something ominous to the south of the tree-covered valley. Upon waking, he asks Wander to retrieve one of the Elders. She finds Bear, and Ryker informs them both of the glowing eyes he saw. While Bear and Wander go to talk to the rest of the elders, Ryker plans to go scout with Arunak. Seemingly as attached to him as he is to her, Havayla demands to travel with them, along with Aurora. Doffing her noisy plate armor in favor of stealth, they travel southward, taking a sending stone Wander found in the bag of holding.
They quickly discover evidence of a recent prowling dragon and very shortly after run afoul of said beast. Ryker uses the sending stone to notify Wander of the situation as he narrowly avoids becoming dinner, just as Yevin catches up with the group. So begins the battle with an adult red dragon who speaks of allegiance with Carvacus.
Meanwhile, Wander is working with the elders to speed preparations for the clans to both migrate and evacuate to the feywild. The portal isn’t ready yet, it won’t be for another 5 days unless something drastic happens to speed it up. She receives the message from Ryker and in a panic, sends a message to the glass dragon from the draconic council asking for help. “Oh a red dragon? That’s Narlgratha. You’re probably going to die.” No help from the dragons then. Wander quickly tracks down Nahtan and Zezu to send them as support. Nahtan eagerly climbs aboard his new wolf and takes off, pursued quickly by Zezu, after handing Spark off to Wander. The clan elders, now hearing the dragon’s roars, ready their fighters for combat, with elder Moss transforming into a giant eagle and flying to join the fray.
The battle is not going well with Narlgratha. He is a formidable foe and easily shrugs off slung spells and instills fear with a roar. Arunok and Ryker become aware of distant howling; dire-wolves. And that means orcs aren’t far behind, likely attracted by the sound of battle. This skirmish is about to become the front line of protection for Mountainroot, and there’s currently only 4 members of the Derailers present (and Aurora the Unicorn).
And then there were 6 as Nahtan and Zezu rush in. But the Dragon has taken to the sky and is unreachable by melee. Zezu climbs a tree and is able to hit it with a few thrown daggers. Moss arrives and is quickly knocked out of the air (and beast form) by a blast of fire. Nahtan heals him (twice) and drags him to safety after casting Beacon of Hope to aide his party. Arunak has a run in with two dire wolf forward scouts and starts to see the encroaching orc army. Things are not looking good…
Back in the village, Wander springs into motion, helping direct fighters to the southern border and preparing for anything that makes it close to their homes. Tinker, Query, and Cindy finish up the automaton. As it whirs to life and takes the command “protect,” Tinker tells Wander to join her friends. Cindy follows as Wander pulls out the Serpentine Owl figurine and activates it, transforming it into a giant owl. The Owl picks up Cindy and they all continue to travel towards to sound of combat.
The party is looking rough and this battle feels unwinnable; never mind the fact that right behind the dragon is a hoard of orcs. And there is an entire village of people depending on the Derailers to protect them. The Derailers are running out of time and the Dragon is about to bolt. Suddenly, with a flip of his cloak, Ryker disappears, reappearing on the dragons back, bow drawn. A shot to the back of his head and the beast is felled, amongst weary cheers. As Wander and Cindy continue to run towards their companions, the dragon’s body settles into the dirt. But there will be no rest, as orcs, wolves, and battle machines break through the underbrush.
And that’s where we left off. Will the Derailers crush the incoming army? Can they give Veinyard enough time to open a portal? What will happen next?! We’ll find out next time…