Post by Bandgoat on May 19, 2017 11:16:12 GMT -6
Lamashan 12, 4708 – Early Evening
Dearest Love,
Let this day be remembered as a day of celebration and thanksgiving for the vanquishing of evil. Let it also serve as a warning of how close our world and our way of life came to oblivion. Let us be ever mindful that to protect this realm from those who mean it harm comes at a great cost – for some heroes, the ultimate sacrifice.
Last evening, we had defeated the lamias defending a great golden globe of teleportation. We decided to consult the Peacock Spirit on this object using the quill-like artifact we confiscated from the madman beneath Sandpoint before our venture into Runeforge. It confirmed our suspicions that we would at last meet Karzoug the Claimer on the other side of the portal. We also learned that there is a demi-plane beyond the portal, presumably created by Karzoug himself with similar magical wards as Xin-Shalast preventing many modes of magical travel. The portal functioned in only one direction and could not be destroyed from this side. There was an additional effect attached the portal that Soril surmised would strip us of any temporary magical bolstering we might place on ourselves before entering. However, the Peacock Spirit could neither confirm nor deny this assertion. Despite this risk, we decided we would use our weakest and longest lasting support spells before entering the portal and save our best for when the fighting starts. We planned our resource allocation for the assault and rested for several hours to recover our strength and magical abilities.
In what we figured was the morning, we followed our plan and fortified ourselves with magic and leaped into the portal, hoping to see our homelands again once our job was done. Two by two, we entered the swirling golden orb. Gorm and Ryll went first, followed by Tolgun, who counts as two people. As their bodies touched the slow-moving flames at the top of the portal, they were instantly consumed by fire to the point where nothing of them remained. There was no choice but to follow. As I climbed to the top of the platform above the sphere, I became overwhelmed with a sudden sense of vertigo and double vision. Another view, superimposed over my current one, began to manifest, though I could not make out any of the figures on the other side, though powerful magical presences could be observed. I remember the disorienting feeling remaining until I leaped into the swirling vortex. I jumped with Lai’Ki by my side and Blackthorn in my hand, Soril and Nala still to follow. The passage lasted but a moment, but as I regained my composure, I instantly knew our preparatory spells had been taken away.
The place in which we found ourselves was akin to a large cave, with normal gravity and atmosphere. To one side, the cave opened to giant, leaping flames. We stepped out from between two immense pylons, between which rippled what appeared to be a window looking out over the city of Xin-Shalast. A moment of study confirmed that this view would duplicate what one might have enjoyed looking out from the face carved into Mahr Massif. The rune-covered stone surfaces on which we stood extended down to a lake of fiery molten gold 100 feet below. Numerous red-hot pillars of molten gold rose from the fire below, suspended by obviously magical means. They ran from the floor to the ceiling, 150 feet above and emitted enough light for us to see our surroundings plainly. Two platforms on either side of the cavern appeared to be held aloft by chains attached to the molten gold pillars. The shear surfaces around us had the texture of polished obsidian, making climbing a challenge. A grand staircase stood before us, leading up to a high platform and throne room. Sitting upon a metal scaffolding before the throne, a rather large lens seems to focus some kind of energy onto a small pool of what appeared to be molten gold. Hundreds or thousands of books filled bookshelves dozens of feet tall cramming the back area of the throne room along with work tables full of magical and alchemical items and raw materials. Upon the opulent throne sat our long sought after adversary: The Runelord Karzoug, whose visage we had seen throughout Xin-Shalast. He and his minions, several giants and an enormous blue dragon, looked none too pleased with our arrival.
Somehow, I was able to react the quickest to the change of surrounding and drank a magical potion allowing me to see invisible creatures. Finding none, I cast haste on our group and enchanted Blackthorn to unleash her magical potential. However, before we all had a chance to bring our arms to bear, Karzoug proved that he could not only manipulate space and our surroundings, but also time itself. He cast time stop, somewhat altered to speed his delivery of the spell. The next thing we noticed, Karzoug was covered in creeping tendrils of frost while simultaneously sheathed in flames and his complexion had taken on a stony look. Unfortunately for us, Soril was also enclosed inside a prismatic sphere, while Karzoug hit us with a severe case of horrid wilting. I knew then that we would be in for a protracted and bloody battle. Lai’Ki cast gravity bow to make her attacks hit with more impact and moved away from our close formation, lest Karzoug strike with another area of effect spell. The rune giant at Karzoug’s right, armed with a greatsword of pure energy, moved to a defensive position at the top of the stairs. Tolgun eyed the sphere imprisoning Soril, but wisely realized he had little hope in dispelling it, trusting Soril to affect his own escape. Instead, our Dwarven cleric used a magical pearl to give us resistance to electricity, which would come in handy against the blue dragon. He then proceeded upon the arduous task of climbing the grand staircase toward our goal, Karzoug having taken the precaution of placing himself at a great distance away to stall our melee fighters. However, the glowing runes carved upon the floor turned out to be magical traps of lethal cunning. As Tolgun approached the first set of stairs, he triggered the symbol of death, damaging Ryll and nearly killing Lai’Ki who were nearby. Gorm drank a potion of heroism and moved up the stairs after his cousin. Nala threw a flask at Lai’Ki and, to my surprise, restored her life energy. Two storm giants, one on either balcony overlooking our position, shot at the Dwarves as they climbed the stairs, hitting them hard through their thick armor. Ryll cast greater angelic aspect on herself and told me to move toward her. I quickly complied, while also turning myself invisible. Ryll then called down a mighty divine aura, allowing all of us to strike at our foes with the help of Sarenrae. Before we were able to use this power, though, Karzoug again manipulated time to stop us in our tracks. When normal time resumed, The Claimer was surrounded by a vortex of swirling air and had grown to enormous proportions. He then summoned a few wooden golems to attack us at the base of the stairs. Thus, our final battle began in earnest.
Though Karzoug was a formidable spell caster, Lai’Ki was able to disrupt many of his magical abilities by perfectly timing her arrow shots as she inched up the stairway toward the throne. Once Tolgun and Gorm handled the wood golems, they marched up the stairway to engage the rune giant who had taken up a defensive position to Karzoug’s right. As they and Ryll progressed up the path of stairs, they came under attack by storm giants on the balconies above, raining arrows of armor-piercing energy down upon them, inflicting great harm. Unfortunately, the rune giant was also armed with a magical sword that cleaved straight through Ryll’s and the Dwarves’ armors, dealing massive amounts of damage with each successful strike. It also sprayed our allies with a greatly damaging spray of fire and acid. The rune giant proved to be a powerful opponent, at times taking Ryll and Tolgun to the brink of death, but they persevered. Being trapped under Karzoug’s prismatic sphere, Soril was forced to cast protective spells on himself to escape. This delayed his entry into the fray, but eventually he immerged, transformed into an enormous dragon. Nala finally proved himself indispensable by using his alchemical talents to keep the party alive with several well-timed and well-placed healing draughts and projectiles. The blue dragon, able to fly about the area, harassed our fighters from their flanks while deftly staying out of harm's way, at least for a while. While our foes were busy keeping our heavily armored fighters at bay, I chose to attack Karzoug’s left flank, while doing my best to match Karzoug’s destructive power with my own offensive and defensive spells. At one point I tried casting the spell I had researched while in Runeforge, conjuring an image of his greatest rival, Alaznist, along with several magi warriors, but Karzoug was too crafty and was able to see through the illusion.
The magically trapped runes on the stairs proved to be a most cunning and galling defense. They negated my invisibility, weakened our defenses, distracted us with intense pain, and finally turned Nala’s muscles into goo, effectively taking him out of the fight.
Karzoug himself was able to take a toll on us with a vast array of spells at his command that were not disrupted by our archer. Though many of his transmutation spells were negated by our Runeforged weaponry, we had no such defense against his impressive use of necromancy, sapping our strengths with negative energy. Because Lai’Ki was interrupting his more powerful spells, Karzoug focused his attention on our half-human ranger. Once he had depleted Lai’Ki’s Runeforged bow of its protections, she was left vulnerable. Lai’Ki was hit with a spell that transferred some of Karzoug’s wounds to her every time he was injured.
It was then that Soril finally emerged from his trap as from some kind of draconian cocoon, transformed into an enormous black dragon, turning the tide of the fight as he came. The blue dragon turned his attention to Soril and that fight drew my attention, as the sight of two dragons fighting each other in the midst of our battle was a rare and awe-inspiring image to behold. However, Soril quickly broke off the melee and focused his attention on the rune giant and was eventually able to dispel the enchantment on its sword, giving our armored combatants a much-needed reprieve from the giant’s onslaught.
It was at this point, with Karzoug’s other defenders otherwise engaged, that I was able to move directly against the runelord. However, another of Karzoug’s dastardly runic symbols was triggered by my approach, dropping me to the ground in a pile of completely useless musculature. Soon afterwards, Lai’Ki was dropped to the ground by a well-placed arrow from one of the storm giants. Nevertheless, we had bought enough time for Tolgun, Ryll, and Gorm to finally finish off the rune giant so they could quickly heal themselves and make their way toward Karzoug as well. With the death of the rune giant, its control over the storm giant archers faded and Ryll was able to enlist their help against the remaining two foes, but not before Nala was torn apart in the blue dragon’s massive jaws. Obviously displeased by his dwindling number of allies, Karzoug hit Soril with a powerful spell, instantly dropping his dragon form to the ground, but Tolgun was handy and some how brought Soril back to fighting stature. Ryll rushed passed Karzoug and was able to restore my strength so I could stand and resume the fight. The storm giants soon were able to kill the blue dragon. As Karzoug was now surrounded, the fight neared its eventual conclusion, but his spell on Lai’Ki continued its damaging effects and soon Lai’Ki was killed after Gorm attacked the runelord. Karzoug was soon on his last legs, but as a final act he sprayed everyone with hideously burning acid, killing Tolgun. I made some deep cuts into Karzoug’s knee, dropping him to the ground in pain as Ryll heroically severed Karzoug’s spine, finally putting an end to the Claimer’s return. For good measure, I plunged the dagger I had carried since your death, Illya, into the runelord’s skull and marked his bloody face with an arcane rune as a warning to those who would threaten the people of Varisia.
In the aftermath, Ryll was able to bring Tolgun back to life and he, in turn, was able to resurrect Lai’Ki. There was nothing we could do about Nala, or so we thought. Our newfound allies, the storm giants, explained that the realm we now inhabited was called the Eye of Avarice and had been created by Karzoug as a refuge from the cataclysm of Earthfall and a defense against would-be assassins (like us). They said the lens device in the center of the throne room was a focusing point for all of the soul energy Karzoug had been collecting from the material plane. With a few good whacks from his axe, Gorm made short work of the device. As soon as it was broken, a blast of soul energy issued forth, immediately healing us all of our wounds and debilitating conditions, going so far as to bring Nala back from death.
When the brilliant flash of strange light cleared, the air seemed to grow thin and cold and the smoky walls of the palace begin to vanish. We decided to leave, rapidly. The molten gold in the well froze in place and began to emit a powerful aura of conjuration magic, leading us to believe we should use it as an escape portal. We grabbed everything we could, including as many books as we could carry – books filled with amazing histories of the Thassilonian Empire and the Azlanti people as well as spell books and arcane research that will take scholars decades to unravel. Unfortunately, much had to be left behind, lost to the inter-dimensional void. When we jumped into the Runewell as the extradimensional plane began to collapse in on itself, we found ourselves back in the top of the pinnacle spire. The aura of indestructibility around the giant golden sphere disappeared and we were able to destroy the portal so there could never again be a threat brought by Karzoug the Claimer.
With some intuition, we decided to take the teleportation device that led directly to the base of Mahr Massif and back to the ruined city of Xin-Shalast, where we were finally able to sit and relax after a harrowing day of battle and over a year of dread leading up to this day. We took in our surroundings, with jewel-encrusted buildings and gold-clad cobblestones that seemed to have faded slightly since our journey up to the spires. Apparently with the death of the rune giants, their domination of the other giant inhabitants of the city was lifted, leaving the make-shift society in chaos. It seems that dragons and giants will remain a dangerous threat to those who come after us to explore, study, and hunt for treasure. Having defeated such a powerful foe as the Runelord of Greed, we all felt more capable and able to take on just about any challenge, though my eagerness to do so has faded now that the death of my husband has ultimately been avenged.
I now know not what I will do with myself. I suppose I could follow up on things such as the disposition of giants near Jorganfist or see how Sandpoint is faring now. Runeforge seems a tantalizing distraction at some point in the future. However, I believe it is time for me to return home, to the life I left behind so many months ago. I should collect the letters you sent me concerning this adventure and the copies I made of the ones I entrusted to the spirits for you. Perhaps others will find some use of them for adventures of their own.
Forever Yours,
- Epshi
P.S. – One thing keeps gnawing at my mind: If Karzoug was in the process of returning, what of the other six runelords?
Dearest Love,
Let this day be remembered as a day of celebration and thanksgiving for the vanquishing of evil. Let it also serve as a warning of how close our world and our way of life came to oblivion. Let us be ever mindful that to protect this realm from those who mean it harm comes at a great cost – for some heroes, the ultimate sacrifice.
Last evening, we had defeated the lamias defending a great golden globe of teleportation. We decided to consult the Peacock Spirit on this object using the quill-like artifact we confiscated from the madman beneath Sandpoint before our venture into Runeforge. It confirmed our suspicions that we would at last meet Karzoug the Claimer on the other side of the portal. We also learned that there is a demi-plane beyond the portal, presumably created by Karzoug himself with similar magical wards as Xin-Shalast preventing many modes of magical travel. The portal functioned in only one direction and could not be destroyed from this side. There was an additional effect attached the portal that Soril surmised would strip us of any temporary magical bolstering we might place on ourselves before entering. However, the Peacock Spirit could neither confirm nor deny this assertion. Despite this risk, we decided we would use our weakest and longest lasting support spells before entering the portal and save our best for when the fighting starts. We planned our resource allocation for the assault and rested for several hours to recover our strength and magical abilities.
In what we figured was the morning, we followed our plan and fortified ourselves with magic and leaped into the portal, hoping to see our homelands again once our job was done. Two by two, we entered the swirling golden orb. Gorm and Ryll went first, followed by Tolgun, who counts as two people. As their bodies touched the slow-moving flames at the top of the portal, they were instantly consumed by fire to the point where nothing of them remained. There was no choice but to follow. As I climbed to the top of the platform above the sphere, I became overwhelmed with a sudden sense of vertigo and double vision. Another view, superimposed over my current one, began to manifest, though I could not make out any of the figures on the other side, though powerful magical presences could be observed. I remember the disorienting feeling remaining until I leaped into the swirling vortex. I jumped with Lai’Ki by my side and Blackthorn in my hand, Soril and Nala still to follow. The passage lasted but a moment, but as I regained my composure, I instantly knew our preparatory spells had been taken away.
The place in which we found ourselves was akin to a large cave, with normal gravity and atmosphere. To one side, the cave opened to giant, leaping flames. We stepped out from between two immense pylons, between which rippled what appeared to be a window looking out over the city of Xin-Shalast. A moment of study confirmed that this view would duplicate what one might have enjoyed looking out from the face carved into Mahr Massif. The rune-covered stone surfaces on which we stood extended down to a lake of fiery molten gold 100 feet below. Numerous red-hot pillars of molten gold rose from the fire below, suspended by obviously magical means. They ran from the floor to the ceiling, 150 feet above and emitted enough light for us to see our surroundings plainly. Two platforms on either side of the cavern appeared to be held aloft by chains attached to the molten gold pillars. The shear surfaces around us had the texture of polished obsidian, making climbing a challenge. A grand staircase stood before us, leading up to a high platform and throne room. Sitting upon a metal scaffolding before the throne, a rather large lens seems to focus some kind of energy onto a small pool of what appeared to be molten gold. Hundreds or thousands of books filled bookshelves dozens of feet tall cramming the back area of the throne room along with work tables full of magical and alchemical items and raw materials. Upon the opulent throne sat our long sought after adversary: The Runelord Karzoug, whose visage we had seen throughout Xin-Shalast. He and his minions, several giants and an enormous blue dragon, looked none too pleased with our arrival.
Somehow, I was able to react the quickest to the change of surrounding and drank a magical potion allowing me to see invisible creatures. Finding none, I cast haste on our group and enchanted Blackthorn to unleash her magical potential. However, before we all had a chance to bring our arms to bear, Karzoug proved that he could not only manipulate space and our surroundings, but also time itself. He cast time stop, somewhat altered to speed his delivery of the spell. The next thing we noticed, Karzoug was covered in creeping tendrils of frost while simultaneously sheathed in flames and his complexion had taken on a stony look. Unfortunately for us, Soril was also enclosed inside a prismatic sphere, while Karzoug hit us with a severe case of horrid wilting. I knew then that we would be in for a protracted and bloody battle. Lai’Ki cast gravity bow to make her attacks hit with more impact and moved away from our close formation, lest Karzoug strike with another area of effect spell. The rune giant at Karzoug’s right, armed with a greatsword of pure energy, moved to a defensive position at the top of the stairs. Tolgun eyed the sphere imprisoning Soril, but wisely realized he had little hope in dispelling it, trusting Soril to affect his own escape. Instead, our Dwarven cleric used a magical pearl to give us resistance to electricity, which would come in handy against the blue dragon. He then proceeded upon the arduous task of climbing the grand staircase toward our goal, Karzoug having taken the precaution of placing himself at a great distance away to stall our melee fighters. However, the glowing runes carved upon the floor turned out to be magical traps of lethal cunning. As Tolgun approached the first set of stairs, he triggered the symbol of death, damaging Ryll and nearly killing Lai’Ki who were nearby. Gorm drank a potion of heroism and moved up the stairs after his cousin. Nala threw a flask at Lai’Ki and, to my surprise, restored her life energy. Two storm giants, one on either balcony overlooking our position, shot at the Dwarves as they climbed the stairs, hitting them hard through their thick armor. Ryll cast greater angelic aspect on herself and told me to move toward her. I quickly complied, while also turning myself invisible. Ryll then called down a mighty divine aura, allowing all of us to strike at our foes with the help of Sarenrae. Before we were able to use this power, though, Karzoug again manipulated time to stop us in our tracks. When normal time resumed, The Claimer was surrounded by a vortex of swirling air and had grown to enormous proportions. He then summoned a few wooden golems to attack us at the base of the stairs. Thus, our final battle began in earnest.
Though Karzoug was a formidable spell caster, Lai’Ki was able to disrupt many of his magical abilities by perfectly timing her arrow shots as she inched up the stairway toward the throne. Once Tolgun and Gorm handled the wood golems, they marched up the stairway to engage the rune giant who had taken up a defensive position to Karzoug’s right. As they and Ryll progressed up the path of stairs, they came under attack by storm giants on the balconies above, raining arrows of armor-piercing energy down upon them, inflicting great harm. Unfortunately, the rune giant was also armed with a magical sword that cleaved straight through Ryll’s and the Dwarves’ armors, dealing massive amounts of damage with each successful strike. It also sprayed our allies with a greatly damaging spray of fire and acid. The rune giant proved to be a powerful opponent, at times taking Ryll and Tolgun to the brink of death, but they persevered. Being trapped under Karzoug’s prismatic sphere, Soril was forced to cast protective spells on himself to escape. This delayed his entry into the fray, but eventually he immerged, transformed into an enormous dragon. Nala finally proved himself indispensable by using his alchemical talents to keep the party alive with several well-timed and well-placed healing draughts and projectiles. The blue dragon, able to fly about the area, harassed our fighters from their flanks while deftly staying out of harm's way, at least for a while. While our foes were busy keeping our heavily armored fighters at bay, I chose to attack Karzoug’s left flank, while doing my best to match Karzoug’s destructive power with my own offensive and defensive spells. At one point I tried casting the spell I had researched while in Runeforge, conjuring an image of his greatest rival, Alaznist, along with several magi warriors, but Karzoug was too crafty and was able to see through the illusion.
The magically trapped runes on the stairs proved to be a most cunning and galling defense. They negated my invisibility, weakened our defenses, distracted us with intense pain, and finally turned Nala’s muscles into goo, effectively taking him out of the fight.
Karzoug himself was able to take a toll on us with a vast array of spells at his command that were not disrupted by our archer. Though many of his transmutation spells were negated by our Runeforged weaponry, we had no such defense against his impressive use of necromancy, sapping our strengths with negative energy. Because Lai’Ki was interrupting his more powerful spells, Karzoug focused his attention on our half-human ranger. Once he had depleted Lai’Ki’s Runeforged bow of its protections, she was left vulnerable. Lai’Ki was hit with a spell that transferred some of Karzoug’s wounds to her every time he was injured.
It was then that Soril finally emerged from his trap as from some kind of draconian cocoon, transformed into an enormous black dragon, turning the tide of the fight as he came. The blue dragon turned his attention to Soril and that fight drew my attention, as the sight of two dragons fighting each other in the midst of our battle was a rare and awe-inspiring image to behold. However, Soril quickly broke off the melee and focused his attention on the rune giant and was eventually able to dispel the enchantment on its sword, giving our armored combatants a much-needed reprieve from the giant’s onslaught.
It was at this point, with Karzoug’s other defenders otherwise engaged, that I was able to move directly against the runelord. However, another of Karzoug’s dastardly runic symbols was triggered by my approach, dropping me to the ground in a pile of completely useless musculature. Soon afterwards, Lai’Ki was dropped to the ground by a well-placed arrow from one of the storm giants. Nevertheless, we had bought enough time for Tolgun, Ryll, and Gorm to finally finish off the rune giant so they could quickly heal themselves and make their way toward Karzoug as well. With the death of the rune giant, its control over the storm giant archers faded and Ryll was able to enlist their help against the remaining two foes, but not before Nala was torn apart in the blue dragon’s massive jaws. Obviously displeased by his dwindling number of allies, Karzoug hit Soril with a powerful spell, instantly dropping his dragon form to the ground, but Tolgun was handy and some how brought Soril back to fighting stature. Ryll rushed passed Karzoug and was able to restore my strength so I could stand and resume the fight. The storm giants soon were able to kill the blue dragon. As Karzoug was now surrounded, the fight neared its eventual conclusion, but his spell on Lai’Ki continued its damaging effects and soon Lai’Ki was killed after Gorm attacked the runelord. Karzoug was soon on his last legs, but as a final act he sprayed everyone with hideously burning acid, killing Tolgun. I made some deep cuts into Karzoug’s knee, dropping him to the ground in pain as Ryll heroically severed Karzoug’s spine, finally putting an end to the Claimer’s return. For good measure, I plunged the dagger I had carried since your death, Illya, into the runelord’s skull and marked his bloody face with an arcane rune as a warning to those who would threaten the people of Varisia.
In the aftermath, Ryll was able to bring Tolgun back to life and he, in turn, was able to resurrect Lai’Ki. There was nothing we could do about Nala, or so we thought. Our newfound allies, the storm giants, explained that the realm we now inhabited was called the Eye of Avarice and had been created by Karzoug as a refuge from the cataclysm of Earthfall and a defense against would-be assassins (like us). They said the lens device in the center of the throne room was a focusing point for all of the soul energy Karzoug had been collecting from the material plane. With a few good whacks from his axe, Gorm made short work of the device. As soon as it was broken, a blast of soul energy issued forth, immediately healing us all of our wounds and debilitating conditions, going so far as to bring Nala back from death.
When the brilliant flash of strange light cleared, the air seemed to grow thin and cold and the smoky walls of the palace begin to vanish. We decided to leave, rapidly. The molten gold in the well froze in place and began to emit a powerful aura of conjuration magic, leading us to believe we should use it as an escape portal. We grabbed everything we could, including as many books as we could carry – books filled with amazing histories of the Thassilonian Empire and the Azlanti people as well as spell books and arcane research that will take scholars decades to unravel. Unfortunately, much had to be left behind, lost to the inter-dimensional void. When we jumped into the Runewell as the extradimensional plane began to collapse in on itself, we found ourselves back in the top of the pinnacle spire. The aura of indestructibility around the giant golden sphere disappeared and we were able to destroy the portal so there could never again be a threat brought by Karzoug the Claimer.
With some intuition, we decided to take the teleportation device that led directly to the base of Mahr Massif and back to the ruined city of Xin-Shalast, where we were finally able to sit and relax after a harrowing day of battle and over a year of dread leading up to this day. We took in our surroundings, with jewel-encrusted buildings and gold-clad cobblestones that seemed to have faded slightly since our journey up to the spires. Apparently with the death of the rune giants, their domination of the other giant inhabitants of the city was lifted, leaving the make-shift society in chaos. It seems that dragons and giants will remain a dangerous threat to those who come after us to explore, study, and hunt for treasure. Having defeated such a powerful foe as the Runelord of Greed, we all felt more capable and able to take on just about any challenge, though my eagerness to do so has faded now that the death of my husband has ultimately been avenged.
I now know not what I will do with myself. I suppose I could follow up on things such as the disposition of giants near Jorganfist or see how Sandpoint is faring now. Runeforge seems a tantalizing distraction at some point in the future. However, I believe it is time for me to return home, to the life I left behind so many months ago. I should collect the letters you sent me concerning this adventure and the copies I made of the ones I entrusted to the spirits for you. Perhaps others will find some use of them for adventures of their own.
Forever Yours,
- Epshi
P.S. – One thing keeps gnawing at my mind: If Karzoug was in the process of returning, what of the other six runelords?