A Dragon's Wail and a Shattering of Knight

Word comes from the Belt of strange happenings - some say they saw a silvery-blue dragon burst from the trees into the sky and then fall like a stone, others saw darkly clad folk milling around up to no good, and still others describe the carnage wrought upon Rauthauvyr's Road near the path to Oaknoll.

Harun of Elversult, the handsome bard famed around Battledale was reportedly escorted north to Essembra by adventurers - his usual companion, the red-head Morressyn nowhere to be found, yet Harun himself was covered in blood. The common folk whisper and wonder what could have happened?

Adventuring folk now speak the name of the Cult of the Dragon and blame them for dark happenings - particularly the recent theft of Thraxata's bones from Lord d'Edoras of Feather Falls, the kidnapping of Morressyn the Bard, and now the murder of innocents and defilement of a holy shrine! For yes, indeed, the Shrine of the Red Knight at the turn to Oaknoll was attacked and bloodied, the alter smashed, and defilement writ upon its holy stones. The priestess Baranya is reportedly livid!

After returning from Feather Falls and hearing the news from her companions, Eryka spends a while in conference with her companions Lerin and Vari over the developments of the previous night.

Vari agrees to seek out Baranya for her aid, and also a mysterious figure in Blackfeather Bridge for possible leads on the Cult and their doings.

The druid Lerin heads off to find their friend, the Ranger Amyvain, possibly to use their skills to track the Cultists from the site of the abduction.

Eryka meanwhile, leaves word for Lyssariel at the Inns around Essembra, to join her at the Watchful Eye if she is able. She rests and commits a new Vow to Bahamut: to rescue the bard Morressyn from her captors. When this is done, she makes for the Watchful Eye herself, to see if she can arrange a meeting for the two Paladins with Harun of Elversult - who is reported to be staying there.

When the next morning breaks, the Bleth sisters, a few of Dahlia's employees, and a gaggle of hired Six Sisters regulars ride out along Rauthauvyr's Road to where the shrine to the Red Knight stands.

They cover and wrap the bodies of those poor travelers and traders they'd met the night before, along with the hooded and the dragonblooded. They arrange them for transport back to the inn, where they can be buried in a peaceful field far from the desecrated ground.

The group fixes up the ambushed wagon and hitches it to their horses for the journey back. Dahlia herself avoids most of the manual labor, though it's rumored that she took it upon herself to wipe the shrine clean and arrange the broken stones in something resembling a flat slab. She also has one of the taller fellows clean the old rotted sign for Oaknoll.

They don't even add beware the webbed feet, this time.