Balifor Bay - Arrivals, Introductions, and Tracking

 22nd Gildember 348 AC

"Everyone better thank Shadow! He spared you from my warming embrace!" Grotto chuckles. "And who ever had day old lobster farts, sleeps in the cold tonight!" Grotto says with a grin knowing he was the culprit. "So, let's get back on track! With any luck we can find their path again!"

Arthur walks about trying to warm his chilled bones he stops and takes in his surroundings, listening for any animals or any creatures.

Once Ra'ziir teleports them in, Raven will begin searching for signs of the party's quarry. He will search for tracks on the ground, broken branches, claw marks on tree trunks, anything that might give some sort of indication that a creature or group of creatures have passed by. He makes a slow sweep of the area, checking high and low and, after close to a minute of looking for signs, he finds a single red thread stuck on the thorn of a blackberry bramble. He crouches, then drops to all fours and makes his way slowly along the ground, and about 30' later, finds a scuff mark on the ground beneath some leaf cover that hasn't been coated in ice. He rises, hand on Nightwatcher's hilt, "I have found a trail," he announces to the party.

Kysek paces somewhat impatiently, he knows the same storm that slowed us would have slowed our quarry as well. He states with a grin, “I’ve heard of places where it literally rains lizards after an abrupt temperature shift to the colder.”

"Maybe we'll get lucky and the one we are following will do that for us! We're going to have to be careful. I don't want a giant lizard to fall on My head," Cassidy says with the gravest expression Kysek has yet seen on the Kender’s face.

Raven looks over, sees the little bard, and asks, "And who is this?"

Cassidy turns, smiling, and extends a hand, "Cassidy Greenleaf, at your service!"

Raven's brow furrows and he extends his hand to shake with Cassidy but Ornforithalas stops him. "I wouldn't do that. Kender are exceptionally light-fingered. You may find yourself missing a ring or even some fingers of your own if you give him even the slightest chance."

Cedron tries to do what he does best. The minstrel-priest wakes from his brief rest and begins looking to the others’ needs. He sees that they’re parched from last night's drinking and determines that everyone would appreciate some fresh water. Although the Minstrel-Priest has not been able to establish a divine connection, he tries to tap into the divine power from the prayers he had memorized before arriving in this realm, and invokes the minor divine spell of create water.  He brings out a few containers from his cloak and ties to fill them with fresh water but, as with his other priestly magic, nothing happens.

Cedron quickly realizes that he needs to adjust his methods. He swiftly begins grabbing pieces of ice dome formed by the hut and breaks pieces into the containers, placing them by the smoldering remnants of the fire. “My magic has made me a bit lazy. I seem to have forgotten there’s more than one way to prepare some fresh water. Drink up.” says Cedron to the others.

Shadow recommits his flight spell to memory and casts it as soon as it is ready. He rises into the air and begins to look around. As he passes above the tree tops, he notices that the frost and ice from last night's storm only extends maybe two, two and one-half miles in a circle around the party's location.

Romulus sighs. "Alright. Let me prepare some spells and I will be on my way." He pulls out his spellbooks and commits "Sending", "Scrying", and "Teleport" to memory. He uses Sending to contact Shadow and lets him know that he will be scrying the dark elf's location in preparation for joining the group. In a little over an hour, he teleports in from Wayreth Tower.

"Alright, so what's so important that the research I have spent the last week and half carrying out can suddenly be put aside?"

The rest of the party brings the halfling archmage up to speed, introduces Cassidy once again, and prepares to set out. Romulus eyes Cassidy, "So, this is a Kender... I don't see the resemblance."

Once the group has gathered, Raven begins following the tracks left behind by their quarry. Even moving slowly so he can look for spoor, the group reaches the border of frozen area left behind by last night's storm. The line of effect is starkly delineated. As the group passes out of the affected region, the last thing they see is an elm  tree, frozen on one side and the vibrant, colorful leaves of fall on the other.

The trail of the creatures become obvious and Raven pauses, "We are tracking two different types of beast. One large, and perhaps a dozen smaller ones - all are reptilian in nature."