Grandfather Tree

Year: 1491, Month: Mirtul, Date:17th

I rise as usual with the dawn, and give praise to Tyr, whilst the others still sleep.  Captain Zook is still at the helm of the Airship.  I wonder if he ever sleeps?  We are traveling over the High Forest.  Its still early morning, and in the distance a huge oak tree, towering above the rest of the forest slowly comes into view.  This must be the Grandfather Tree.  As we get close, as Captain Zook looks for a suitable place to set us down, he estimates it must be over 350 feet high.  Below us around the great tree are two rings of raised earth, with a great oak tree at each point of the compass, much smaller than the great Grandfather Tree.   There's a gap to the south east where we could climb down from the Airship.  Captain Zook finishes manoeuvering the Airship, and hands the helm to one of the Dragon Cultists crewing the ship.  He throws the rope ladders over the side, and we climb down the ladder, and head to the trunk of the tree.  The trunk itself must be fifty feet in diameter, and huge roots snake their way all around the tree.  Leo finds several areas where we might be able to make our way through to get to the core of the tree, and heads in closely followed by Captain Zook.

As Celery and I begin to follow our companions, from the east, I hear some speech in a language I don't understand .  Celery must have heard it too, as we both pause to look in the direction of the noise.  Out of the oak tree drops a creature with golden skin the color of sunlight, and texture of very fine bark, resembling a dazzling, female elf.  Her dress is made of woven leaves, as is her cascading hair.

She is pointing at Celery and speaking very fast.  She sounds angry, but I don't understand a word.  If she is an elf, then I do not recognise her dialect.

A moment later a second creature comes from the tree in the north.  It also seems angry,looking at us crossly with it's arms folded across it's chest, but doesn't speak.  Celery says in the common tongue, "I don't speak Elvish".  She brings her shield up in a protective move before trying to speak with the creatures again, "Hello, do you speak common?" but neither creature responds.  Celery seems to be battling something in her mind, before giving the first creature a hard stare, "I would have been friendly anyway, you didn't need to do that".  Captain Zook and Leo haven't noticed the new arrivals, and continue making their way through the tree roots towards the centre of the tree.  I stop and wait to see what happens next.

Celery is holding her shield up at the first creature, which suddenly seems to become enraged, and begins shouting at us once more.  She is repeatedly pointing at the Grandfather Tree and then gesturing for us to move away.  "She wants us to move away from the tree", says Celery as she moves away from the tree to the earthen ring.  An old gnarled club appears in the hand of the second creature, which then appears to get sharper and smoother as the creature weaves its hand over it.  She holds the club threateningly, but does not attack.  I pray to Tyr to protect me and a shimmering field appears all around me, as I draw my sword and wait to see what unfolds.

A third creature makes an entrance by the eastern tree, jabbering rapidly to the first creature which nods it head.  A Centaur joins the first creature, speaking to it intently, at the end of which it nods again.

I feel a power trying to force my feelings towards the creatures to change, but I utter a prayer to Tyr to protect me, and I shake the feeling off.  The second creature moves to Celery and makes a crude swing at her with its club.  Celery raises her shield between her and the creature. The sun seems to dim for a few moments before a bright light bursts from her shield.  The shock wave of light moves through the creature and me.  I come to no harm, but the creature seems to be burnt by the light.  As I move to the creature attacking Celerity, I hold the sending stone and think a short message to Leo, "Celery has antagonised a bunch of yokels.  Help".  The last creature to arrive also moves to Celery,  casting an incantation.  I watch as a second gnarled club becomes smoother and sharper, and is swung with some force and intent at Celery. Celery manages to interpose her shield and the blow reverberates throuogh her shield and up her arm.

The Centaur rushes in and attacks Celery with a long pike, evading her defences while she is distracted avoiding the attack from the elven like creature.  It follows the attack by attempting to rake her with its hoofs but Celery side steps quickly and the hoofs flail harmlessly in the air.

The first creature (I must ask Leo what they are) wiggles her fingers at Celery, but nothing seems to happen.  I see Celery whispering and once again bright balls of light, much brighter than usual, appear in a sphere all around her, darting in and out, fizzing as they come into contact with her enemies.  The elven like creature that just struck at Celery collapses to the floor.

I hear in my head, "I think I'm close, I will come quickly". I guess Celery and I will deal with this ourselves!

I attack the Centaur vigorously and manage to evade the pike it is waving about in defence and strike it twice.  The creature close by looks to what I presume is its leader and says something in a panicked voice and begins to retreat back towards the oak tree from where it came.  As it steps back, Celery takes the opportunity to attack with her Mace of Lathandar and the second creature goes down.  The bright balls continue to whizz around and strike the Centaur and one remaining creature, and both succumb to the their incessant bites.

I sheath my sword and rest momentarily against the wall.  Leo appears suddenly with Captain Zook held by the scruff of his neck, "What took you so long, there's no problem out here now".  Leo surveys the scene and say the dead creatures are Dryads.  Dryads usually act as guardians and most often try to beguile people with spells and enchantments to get them to do their bidding.  That must have been the strange sensations I fought off during the brief combat.

Celery spends the next eight hours trying to justify her executions.  I tell her to take it up with Lathandar.  I will intercede with Tyr on her behalf, as they did attack her first.

For the next two hours, Celery and Leo debate (I mean argue) about whether to find a friendly Dryad, or just go and find what we came for.  Eventually, Leo tires of the debate and decides to go and find what we came, disappearing back into the tree's root system.

He returns a little later, and throws ten small leather bags at me one after the other, which I catch.  Each feels like it is filled with some gemstones.  Leo is also carrying an Electrum Torque, too big for a human, etched with Giant runes.  This must be the relic we came for.

We return to Captain Zook's Airship, and set course for the next burial mound at Stone Stand.  I tip out the contents of each leather bag, and find gemstones of many colours - blue, yellow, red, green, and black.  I recognise two very large gemstones as diamonds.  

Captain Zook says it will be another ten hours to get there, but we agree to take our time so that we can arrive in the morning when the sun rises.