As we journey towards Adelaine, Dina and Zarek point out that there are an unusual number of Dwarves traveling away from Adelaine. Dina amazes me at her perceptiveness sometimes, and while Zarek's interests are often simple, his knack for observing the slightest details has saved us in a number of our forays while back in Granmere.

A series of brief discussions with various traveling folk lead us to understand that the Dwarvish citizens of Adelaine have been forcibly removed from their homes, and the city itself! Apparently it is the belief that a Dwarvish assassin killed my King, in his own chambers, possibly using a poison. I do not understand such a ruling against an entire people! Would this have happened had a human been suspected? An Elf or Eladrin? In any case, if their had been an assassin, a professional would have left town as quickly as possible. If the assassin had been a long term plant, evicting all of these Dwarves would give him more cover than if he had just disappeared from the King's Court after the King's death. It's almost as if someone were trying to aid the assassin! Assuming there is one to begin with. The assassin theory does not seem to hold sway with the members of the guard that we met upon arrival in Adelaine. It also seems possible that, if a force had infiltrated the King's Courtiers, that the might also make effort to break the relationship that humans and dwarves have built over time. For the amount of time it takes to construct a bridge, it takes little effort to destroy it, and often double the time to rebuild. We should investigate this matter further, to find the assassin, or to ascertain if their is indeed an assassin at all. With the destiny that we have been given to forge, I fear that I may begin to see conspiracies around every corner. Truth be told, I would hope that these events are conspiratorial in nature, and that the Kingdom is not being ruled by one who would willingly break an alliance with one of the civilized races.

Upon further reflection, Iliyana comes to mind. While I do not feel as though I have treated her unfairly, I must confess that in my heart and mind that I have not fully trusted her . . . by virtue of her birth. It would seem that even those of us trained in the arcane mysteries are not above certain human frailties. I shall endeavor to change my thinking on this, and to be firm, yet compassionate to those who cannot see past their own fears.

Once we discharged our warning of goblin invasions to the King's Guard, we made effort to find the Tower of Adelain. Our search was quickly rewarded when we found the Temple dedicated to Erathis. My companions and I casually searched the temple to see if we could find the remains of a tower hidden within the temple. I did not hear her say it, but Andina's eyes told me that we would likely find her in jail later this evening for violating the temple, if we did not find something useful soon. I cast out my senses, thinking that a tower of this magnitude and import must surely have some magical resonance within. I'm not sure what happened, but it is as if Erathis herself wanted me to find the tower. My senses were sharpened beyond anything I've experienced before, and immediately guided me to a magical presence *below* the temple. Sensing impatience and frustrations from my companions that might land us in jail, I did the first thing that came to mind, a mild obfuscation that has aided me in the past. I claimed my status as a scholar to the first priest I could find, and explained to him that I was traveling the kingdom gathering lore about the various church buildings and their history. The Priest immediately asked if I wanted to see the Tower! As it turns out, they give tours to the ruins from time to time, and sensing my professional interest, being more than mere casual curiosity, the Priest agreed to give me a tour after the temple closed for the day. I managed to get my friends included on this tour, but under the ruse that they are my protectors. Often this is indeed the truth, though I think my companions chaffed under the implication that the were mere hirelings. I will apologize for this later, but for now, this gets us into the temple, quietly, without much observation, possibly to complete one portion of our mission. I do not care for lying, and surely Erathis would loathe such a violation of community. However the dangerous nature of our mission necessitates that as few people as possible know what we are trying to accomplish. For their safety as well as ours. I pray Erathis and Ioun would forgive this trespass, for deception of any sort does not aid their causes.

Once we have finished our business in the Tower, I will discuss with the party the possibility of obtaining an audience with the new King to see if we can use our skills to re-forge the relationship with the Dwarves, for surely in the future the unity of our peoples will be necessary to turn back the onslaught of evil. If we desire, and if time permits, my master may be able to provide introduction via letter to the king and his court. I am uncertain how far his influence reaches.

The last several days have been quite a blur.
We arrived in Ossel, a town not unlike Granmere, in time to deliver our counsel before the goblin roaches had attempted to infest this small town. The Mayor heeded our warnings, and began taking precautionary measures. He also sent craftsmen to Granmere to aid in reconstruction, and fortification, I hope.
Afterwards, we visited Andina's uncle, who then sent us off on a quest to discover Dina's destiny. I must confess, a part of me hoped that this was some elaborate ruse constructed by the halfling family to discourage such a young child from taking up the adventurer's mantle. Dina is a warm and convivial youth, and I would see her grow to womanhood in more mundane circumstances that might allow her to mature, marry, and have her own family. It is already unfortunate that she is familiar with warfare at all, if nothing else I would have chosen to save her that burden until adulthood.
Sigh.
My newfound companion insists that at this point I should mention how remarkably attractive Andina is. He also refuses to be quiet until I do so. I have done so, and now he (it?) will allow me to continue, though he insists on balking at the uninterested manner in which I describe her.

Alas, such a ruse was not to be found. While I regret the burden this places on young Dina, I rejoice that Ioun has seen fit to deliver us to a source of information about our destiny! A Deva, no less! Apparently, there are three artifacts, all from the days of the Tiefling Empire, that the villain of our story is attempting to collect. His goal is to become a deity, after which surely evil shall reign for a thousand years, and the civilized races shall know only slavery, death, and destruction. While we all agree that there are several fronts on which to confront our villain, the most obvious course of action is to collect the artifacts and ensure that they do not fall into his hands. I am certain we will be required to kill this man at some point in the future, for even if we keep him from his demonic artifacts, he is still a powerful agent of evil, and requires redress in his own right. If the legends and history I have collected are to indicate any truth, it is that rarely do men so dedicated to evil ever
reform. I do not wish to include any further details of his plot, for surely if my companions and I fall, it will be to some form of evil. Evil has enough creative force of its own, it shall not have my journal to inspire it further.
After we departed the Cave of Destiny (pardon my lack of poetry, but I do not know what else to call it), we returned to Ossel, where we were able to turn back a force of orcs that had organized and decided to attack the small town. Thanks to our forewarning, and our timely arrival, the orcs were turned back with minimal damage to the town. Unfortunately, Andina's uncle paid the ultimate price for our knowledge. It would seem that he had been working with The Enemy for some time, procuring some knowledge regarding the artifacts and the prophecy. It is not entirely clear whether he was acting as a spy during his service, or if his conscience and love of family turned him towards the light. Regardless, The Enemy's agents, creatures of necromantic origin, stood about his house, searching for information and summoning the uncle's spirit for questioning. We were able to turn
back the fiends, and allow his spirit to rest. A little more searching turned up more information about the nature of the three artifacts, one of which little is known, though it is apparently the most important of the three, as it may allow the user to ascend to godhood. Again, I will not enclose details of these artifacts for fear of delivering information to The Enemy in this, or a future age. Perhaps, as time passes, and opportunity permits, I will place a more complete record of events into the hands of the Priests of Ioun for safekeeping.

Sigh. Yes, I was just getting to that part.
In preparation for our journey, I chose to visit my counterpart in Ossel, a man I've never met personally, but have exchanged correspondence with, as well as traded goods with, through Andina's family: Mr. Holmeswood. Mr. Holmeswood has a reputation for having a fine collection of ritual magic, and I wished to avail myself of the opportunity to peruse his shelves. Among other purchases, Mr. Holmeswood insisted that I accept as a gift a rather morbid curio: a human skull carved with arcane writings. Mr. H made claim that he had little understanding of the object, and that it mostly served as a object to promote, as he called it, "The Atmosphere of Mystery" that a magic shop should have. I am certain I do not know what Mr. H speaks of. He also expressed a desire to know what purpose this skull with it's peculiar lettering might serve, and hoped that I might discover this on my journeys. In the interest of cordiality, and I must admit, a certain amount of curiosity, I accepted the gift. It would be several days before the nature of the gift made itself apparent. I had thought that Mr. H and I got along well. Perhaps I was mistaken. I shall have to recall our dealings in the past to ascertain if I have unwittingly offended Mr. H, or if he truly did not understand that which he gifted me with. The skull is possessed by a spirit. A spirit of knowledge to be sure. And while I have learned a number of historical points of interest, I have also learned about the creatures carnal interests. He, I assume for no genitalia are apparent, thank Ioun, seems to have no prejudice towards race, creed, or culture, as he has expressed his appreciation for every single female member of my companions (why he insists on chuckling slyly whenever I mention the word "member" is beyond me. . .). Still, in spite of his obsessions, he does seem to genuinely want to help me in my endeavors, though he doesn't exactly know what our goals are at the moment.
We continue our journey towards Adelaine. I pray Ioun will provide guidance in our mission once we arrive.

I am working on a full-featured copy of Andina's Uncle's diary. So far, I have written material on the artifacts and on the ritual that Iosef wants to use. All of this is from the Uncle's point of view; this is information that he has gathered over the years, bits and pieces of rumors and snippets of truth that was hard won and ultimately cost him his life.

We have saved most of the children, though one I fear was lost. The parents in the town were all very thankful for our efforts in saving the children. This town will have much recovery to do, but I think they'll make it.

Nerantha has suggested we warn the other towns in the area of the organized attack. Everyone in the group has agreed to help put an end to this. There is an unspoken understanding that this is more than just a group of messengers. Something darker is at work here and we will do what we can to stop it. Though our mission as stated to the town is to warn others, we feel the power/creature behind this could be linked to towers from the Tiefling empire. We don't really know what to expect when we arrive at these towers, but it's our best chance at answers to what's going on. This new found tie to Tieflings brings even more questions about Iliyana than I had before. There is more to this tiefling than she shows to the world and her tie to these events is undeniable.

The journey has been thankfully uneventful thus far. Tonight is the second camp we have made since leaving Granmere and should be our last stop before arriving in Ossel tomorrow. When we arrive in town I plan to have a messenger deliver a message to Nimeti for me. Though I'm not sure where he currently is I know his parents always have some way of getting in touch with him. If anyone else has noticed events similar to these surly Nimeti has. Perhaps he will have some more information to help shed some light on all of this. I'm sure he will be very interested to hear about this unlikely group of adventures I now travel with.

I had the dream again last night. It was slightly different this time; I feel like I gain a little more insight every time I see it. Like always, Moradin appears before me, radiantly shining with the fires of righteousness, his hammer glinting in the light that he is casting off. This time, he says "Come, child. See what only you can be strong enough to see." Then, he takes me by the hand and we are standing with our backs up against the wall, watching as a man in a deep, red cloak stands in front of a stone altar. The sky is just starting to brighten, but it is still pre-dawn. There is something on the altar, but I cannot make it out; maybe I just do not want to remember. The ground is covered in a fine, white sand that has many runic symbols drawn in it. Most of them make no sense to me, but I do recognize the runic representation of Vecna. The man is speaking a language that is unfamiliar to me. I see him slowly raise a stone dagger into the air and prepare to bring it down onto the poor, unfortunate soul on the altar. I lurch forward, trying to stop him, but Moradin holds me tightly in place. "You cannot stop the beginning of things, but you may be able to change the ultimate outcome," he says. As the sun finally crests the wall and falls on the altar, the man brings the dagger down and a blast of dark, crackling energy erupts from the altar. The man turns and faces me, the same dark energy highlighting his eyes, and speaks to me in a voice as dark as the abyss itself. "You are not strong enough to change things now that he has left you!" I turn and Moradin has gone! The man grabs my shoulders and I struggle to get away.

At this point, the dream is at it always is. I see this man in red start to change. He starts to grow larger and scalier, huge red wings erupting from his shoulders, his face transforming into that of a dragon. He lifts off into the air, carrying me with him, and starts flying across the land. As he reaches a few hundred feet into the air, he drops me towards the ground. As I fall, he apparently grows larger and larger, his enormous wings covering the land in darkness where once the sun shone. I slam into the ground and everything goes dark.

I pray that Ioun would give me the wisdom to recognize the truth in my writings.

My master was correct in sending me to this part of the kingdom.
Today my companions and I invaded the goblin fortress and were able to defeat the roaches within. But not without cost. We recovered 5 of the children taken from Granmere. By our accounting theire were six missing. I fear that in our delay to rest, we may have inadvertently sacrificed one of the children. Especially if Iliyana's dreams are to be given any credit. The fight was difficult however, and I do not think we would have survived the attack had we charged in at night. This will be cold comfort to the family of the missing child.

Iliyana dreamed of bloody sacrifices before a red cloaked wizard. In the night the warlocks and I felt a tide of magical energy wash over the land, as if some very powerful working had released it's energy into the world. Upon arrival at the goblin camp today we found a sacrificial altar, covered in the blood of it's victims, and traces of a necrotic spell that their lives no doubt powered. It would appear that I may have been correct. Someone is organizing the goblins of the area, and only Ioun knows what other manner of creatures that hide under the mountains and in the depths of the forest. I suspect the workings of a necromancer. Theirs is a kind of power that filth like these goblins would respect and fear. It could organize them into units, and give them the structure to build encampments such as this. I must remember to destroy the altar before we leave. Certainly Eartha will assist in this matter.

I feel certain that it is no accident that the Eight of us have met in this small town on the borderlands. I believe I shall share with Nerantha my purpose here in Granmere. She seems. . . eager to prove her worth, and I am certain that I can provide that oportunity for her. If anyone can lead our group into the dangerous territories I believe necessary, it is her. Though asking her and the others to pick up and leave their lives behind will be difficult. Several of us have grown up, or are still growing up, in Granmere. I must begin making arrangements for someone to run my shop. I should also look into sending word to my Master of our discovery, in case we should find ourselves in a situation that we do not return from.

May Avandra guide and protect our travel tomorrow, and The Raven Queen watch over our lost soul.

Dear Diary,

Bran fell off a wall today. I was on the other side already, so I missed it. It sounded like it would have been really funny, though. Sirideain also made a funny face when he *tasted* a pile of dirt. I just don't get him. I did get bracers, though. And a bag of holding, so now I can put all my adventuring gear in it - including this diary! - and hide it somewhere my parents won't find it. I'll have to put some thought into that. I guess I'll also have to come up with an excuse for why I didn't sleep at home last night.

Oh, and we broke into a goblin encampment, shot a bunch of goblins, and found some kids. We missed one.

Stupid, stupid, stupid. Attacking Granmere during the night of the Winter Solstice festival was obvious, yet I only thought of it after goblins first attacked us at the farmhouse. The halfling child practically realized it before I did.

I knew Vargas would be drunk. I knew the defences would be ill-staffed in my absence. Yet I hared off at the first hint that my time in Granmere might involve more than guard duty and endless drills. As if I needed the excitement. As if I needed the chance to prove myself in combat to anyone.

As if I needed yet another reminder that poor decisions take lives.

My only consolation is that the fire of combat is forging a strong fighting force out of the ill-kempt lot of us. I had found so few promising fighters among the recruits that I had considered abandoning my plans. Nala and Zarek both showed hints of being more capable than their comrades, but they are focused on offense. The three of us do not a balanced group make. And none of our other soldiers were worthy of pairing with Nala and Zarek.

How, then, did I miss the talent hidden in the town's civilian population? I can hardly say who was most surprising. The human whose polished merchant exterior hid notable arcane power? One of my fellow Eladrin who is more than a little Fey, and yet who can focus his eldritch abilities when the need arises? The teen-aged halfling who is impulsive and foolhardy and one of the quickest blades I've seen since I left? Even the tiefling whose news led to our departure has begun assuaging my worries about her allegiance and her motives.

We have pursued the goblins who stole the town's children in our absence, foolishly pressing on when a well-timed rest would have benefited us greatly. We compounded our error when we let Andina, the halfling, scout ahead and draw a guard contingent down upon us. Mistake after tactical mistake, all avoidable. We have persevered, but how long can we pay luck's coin? At what point will we look down to discover the ground beneath us has fallen away?

I cannot focus solely on the needs of the moment. What of tomorrow, and the day after that? For now we fight together for Granmere, but we are better than that. We cannot stay in this backwater. Can we remain united if we do not have the town to focus on? We must, though I do not yet see the best way of doing so.

We were to late. When we returned to Granmere it had already been attacked. Many soldiers lay dead or wounded clearly caught by surprise during the festivities. The goblins had come in force and raided the town, though they didn't linger. It was the children they wanted and after taking their prize they moved on. While in town we found another traveler Eartha, a Paladin, helping to revive as many of the wounded soldiers as she could. She agreed to help us find the the children which was great news. Reports of the size of the goblin horde vary but they all agreed there were many more than typical.

Though I thought it best to rest after a day of traveling many in the group insisted we push on in hopes of catching the goblins as fast as possible. The tracking of the group wasn't terribly difficult with several of us working together to follow their trail. Nala is surprisingly agile as she was often found climbing tress to look for signs of the goblins. Serideon seemed to consult his imagination, though he produced results. Once we neared the encampment we discovered they had settled down in a fortified camp for what seemed an extended stay. The discussion of resting again arose as many in the party were not ready to deal with such a large camp of goblins. Though we might be able to avoid some fighting, I felt it best to not rest here vulnerable so close to the camp. Not long into the conversation my concerns were verified as Andina was noticed by a goblin patrol.

Luckily we were all still combat ready and rushed to aid her. Several goblins with a pack of wolves were chasing Andina. It was clear the group was completely taxed. We were sloppy to say the least. Nala and Nerantha lead us in an odd strategic conga line of blades and fur, which eventually overwhelmed the patrol as they tried to flee our deadly dance. Andina, to me was the surprise of the night. Though she accidentally brought a patrol to us, she handled herself well and wasn't as timid with the wolves as she was previously with the goblins. Either she's becoming more confident or she feared Nala's threats of using the next person to throw a shuriken as her own personal throwing weapon. Come to think of it, she very likely could throw Andina a good distance. Either way, that young halfling posses skills with a dagger that suggest she isn't just a merchant's daughter.

We have returned to an abandoned goblin strong hold several hours from the camp to rest. Though I fear our presence is no longer a secret, as a whole patrol going missing will be discovered eventually. We can only hope the goblins decide to remain where they are. I do believe we are safe in this camp as goblins aren't known for superior tracking (or intellect) and we are far enough away a simple search will not find us.

Tonight I pray for the luck of Avandra, as tomorrow we stand against evil.

May Ioun guide my hand and mind as I write.
Today started as many other holidays start, early. Nothing seemed particularly amiss, business was going well as the townsfolk purchased the assortment of goods they would need to celebrate this holy day to Pelor. In fact, the income today was enough to afford me a few days in the woods searching for some of the more unusual herbs that my spells require. I had also hoped to acquire a few small birds for the mailing system that the mayor likes to maintain. Such concerns seem trivial now.
Then the demon arrived.
To be fair, it is an accident of birth, not choice, and Illyana has more than proven her valor and worth to the good townsfolk. All the same, it does not bode well when one of the demon blooded enters town on the evening of the holiest night of the year. She was good enough to bring news of burned farmhouses on the outskirts of town, and to aid in the investigation. Two members of the watch, Nala and Nerantha were the Mayor's official representatives. I went along, because I know most of the townsfolk through my business dealings, and Zarek, being a relyable bodyguard and occasional watch member, came as well. We picked up two straglers along the way. A young halfling girl by the name of Dina and Serideon, a local . . . hermit of sorts.
When we arrived at the house, I remembered that Jim Carter and his kin (Jenni his wife, and his 5 little ones Angie, Franklin, Nolin, Sean, and William) hadn't stopped by to pick up their supplies for today's festival. They had placed the orders for their incense as well as an assortment of spices that Jenni likes to use for the spiced cider that she shares at the festival. Although I know there is little I could have done to prevent the following slaughter, I still feel responsible for whatever may happen to the Carters. I will not give an accounting of the ensuing violence that we brought upon the goblin filth that had taken up residence in the Carter household, save that it was swift, and just, and that my companions showed surprising skill. Even the halfling child, Dina, showed more skill at violence than most guardsmen and many soldiers. I worry for her, the life that she must lead to be so skilled at killing.
Ioun's light shone upon us this evening, and we were given signs enough to determine that these goblins had a plan, to invade the town. Though to what purpose none of us could fathom. I only ask that the light of his wisdom would shine more brightly upon us, that we may yet repair the damage caused by this goblin clan.
We quickly returned to town, but not before the goblins had visited their havoc upon the town amidst our friends' drunken revelry. It was then that we encountered Eartha, a Dwarven Paladin of Moradin, healing our injured and dying townspeople. It took little discussion to convince her to join us in tracking down the villains who had all but destroyed our town. We spent much of the night tracking the goblins through the countryside to their lair. We have chosen to rest in a collapsed goblin stronghold for the night, to rest and renew our vigor before smiting these foul creatures in their nest. I hope that our friends can hold out for another night.
My studies have given a number of possible reasons why the goblins would steal children. Among the more fanciful tales, some folklore suggests that the goblin race is a race of children stolen from their families, and transformed through foul rituals learned from Beyond. I think this story is highly suspect, and more likely a fairy tale told to children to keep them from wandering too far from home. Of course, these children hadn't wandered far from home at all. I fear that they may use them as a weak, easily transportable food source. Oddly enough, I find myself hoping that they are to be sold into slavery, at least then the roaches will want to keep them somewhat healthy and alive, and that gives us time.
While there is no doubt that such an attack on a holy day is most inauspicious, it comforts me and gives me hope that there are so many strong people in our small town to join together to fight against the creatures. We are eight in number, which seems to be a good sign. While certainly there is strength in numbers, we also carry with us four practitioners of the ars magicka, one for each of the four elements, and four who are skilled in the martial arts, one for each of the winds. Our numbers also represent a variety of the races of the civilized world, in a town as small as ours, this surely is no coincidence.
It also seems strange to me that the goblins would be this organized. While our town holds no special defenses, and wouldn't stand long against an assault against a disciplined army, our defenses are more than enough to ward off the small bands of roaches that show their faces now and again. I suspect something may be guiding them, or controling them, or at least driving them to desperation.
May Bahamut and Kord favor us in the morning.