"You rescued the Vahnatai creature from Akhronath. I have no idea where the others are. I cannot help you."
"To get the crystal soul from Akhronath, you will need to things. You will need to be able to pass the fort's wards, and you will need a way to pass the magical barriers you will find there."
You tell her what you learned from Athron. "Akhronath! Of course! A powerful and deadly place, and I know much of it. It may at last be time for that fortress to fall."
"I know not where a Crystal Soul is, but I believe the dragon Athron does. He is west of Mertis. If he asks who sent you, tell him 'Redmark.' He knows and respects me, and may let you in. When you learn what he knows, return and ask me of crystal souls."
She shakes her head. "We are not yet ready to embark upon any further missions. I am sorry."
You show your blue pass to the commander. She takes it away for an hour, then returns it to you. "Thank you very much! I will send word to the Castle of what you have done for us! Hopefully, they will reward you with a higher clearance."
"I still haven't been able to find a blue pass. If you find one, bring it to me."
"The Empire can get small groups past us - we don't know how. We, in turn, want to send spies west. To do this, I need to see a Blue Pass, so I can make forgeries. Bring one to me, and I will try to earn you a promotion."
"I'm sorry. We don't have anything for you at the moment."
You hand Mayor Radner the plans. She eagerly searches through them. "Wonderful! This will be invaluable in dealing with them!" She fetches you a large sack of gold, and takes some notes down. "I will tell the Castle what you have done!"
"In the caves west of Fort Remote is the fortress Kothtar. There, the Empire carries out bizarre magical experiments, many involving giants. Go there, sneak in, find records explaining what they were doing, and bring them here. I will reward you."
"Well, I gave my boy the medicine, but it came so late that it is taking much more time to take effect. I am still hopeful, though. Thank you again for your help - without he, he would have surely died."
Malka describes the package, and you show her the box you found. She almost faints with joy. "Thank you!" She opens it, and, indeed, it contains three small bottles of medicine. In gratitude, she takes a ring from her hand and solemnly hands it to you.
She shakes her head sadly, and look up at you with anxious eyes. "Medicine was being sent from Formello for my boy. My family sent it. But the package never arrived. I don't know what could have happened to it. If you ever find out, let me know."
"The charm has been taken to safety. Our more hostile brothers will not own it again. Thank you again for your aid." He again gives the instructions for casting Protection, to make sure you all know them.
You hand Pathass the charm, and he bows deeply in thanks to you. "In return, I will teach you one of our most guarded and powerful spells." He patiently instructs you in a new magical ritual. You now know the spell Protection.
"Our people in these caves have a holy artifact - an amber charm of a lizard, ancient and very valuable to us. We are sure some of our people in these caves have it. Return it and we will reward you. There is a ritual I can give you to help you."
He nods. "Landren told me what you did you us. Such skill and strength should be rewarded." He teaches you the Dispel Barrier spell.
He shakes his head. "We're not supposed to let other have that spell, unless absolutely necessary. The barriers are too useful to let slip how to get rid of them too easily."
He shakes his head. "Eh. What's left to do is take care of the rest of Limoncelli's troops. That's our job. But thanks for offering."
He grins. "I hear you slew Limoncelli! As a reward, track down Beadle. He's around here somewhere. Ask him about the dispel barrier spell, and he'll give it to. And I'll send word to the Castle of what you did. Good work!"
"I want you to go kill Limoncelli. Find a way to his fort, get in, and slay him. Do it, and not only will I try to get you a promotion, but I'll tell one of my mages to give you the dispel barrier spell. And that ain't easy to get!"
She shakes her head. "This sad story has ended. There is little more to say."
She stands, and give Bruce's body a vicious kick. "That is for betraying me!" The body is carted away.
She reads the paper. You turn to look at Bruce, and see he has a knife in is hand. Before he can leap, however, a guard's spear pins him to the wall. Vicky says "Thank you. You will be rewarded. I will tell the Castle of the service you have done for me."
You show her the burnt piece of paper. He looks at it, and shakes her head. "No, this could say anything. I can't do anything because of this. Keep searching."
You tell her what you have found, and she shakes her head. "No, none of that is useful to me. Keep searching, and you will be well-rewarded."
"Now that my traitorous assistant is gone, I may continue my work. However, I have nothing else I need you to do. Thank you for your help."
"I will be brief and clear. Blosk has a spy within its walls. I want you to unmask him, her, or it. Ask Bruce about it - he can tell you more. And when you have evidence of the villain's identity, let me know. I will do nothing without proof."
"No more ingredients are necessary. But thanks for offering!"
You give a dose of graymold salve. "Now I can create my potion! Thank you!" She gets a flask from her desk and gives it to you. "Here's another, quite powerful potion. Also, I will send word to the Castle letting them know how useful you were."
"I need some graymold salve. It's difficult stuff to find, but if you could get the toadstool, you could get the salve. Good luck!"
You hand over a borgia toadstool. He accepts it gratefully. "That is the first ingredient I need. Now I need another."
"Ah! You'll help? Wonderful! The first thing I need is a borgia toadstool. They're very rare - they only exist in the lower caves. Perhaps some grow in Vahnatai lands. It's worth a look."
She grins. "The cell door had a magical lock to keep me and Aydin from breaking free. Now that it's broken, we'll be gone soon. Thank you!"
He smiles. "Now that you've broken the cell, I can take Josie and teleport away. Thank you for freeing us! We'll be gone soon."
"I speak of the Empire. It has been dealt several savage blows. And now, thanks to your help, and with courage and skill, we may defeat them. And I, and Exile, thank you."
"I speak of Garzahd, archmage and leader of their forces in Exile. I am looking for a way to have him assassinated. Dishonorable, I know, but we may have no choice."
He makes some notes in a thick ledger, and hands you a small pouch of gold. "Here's your allowance. Spend it carefully, now, and do us all proud!"
He grimaces. "I'm afraid that's all the allowance we can spare for a while. Try coming back later. And spend more carefully!"
Gilda shrugs. "You have Royal clearance. Can't beat that. Good for you. Now, if it's OK, I have a lot of work to be doing..." And she settles down to work.
Gilda looks at her records. Then she looks at them again, checking and rechecking her figures. Finally, highly surprised, she says "Amazing! You've reached Royal clearance." Then, with a brief burst of paperwork, you get a scroll stating the fact.
Gilda shakes her head. "Magi clearance is one thing, but Royal clearance - that's really tough to get. You haven't quite made it yet. Sorry."
Gilda lurches to the counter and summons up a flurry of paperwork. After a few minutes, she pops up from a cloud of airborne scrolls and hands you a small certificate. "You are now of Magi Clearance. Congratulations!"
Gilda smiles condescendingly. "No, you aren't ready for a higher clearance yet. Go do a few more missions, and we'll see."
"I have heard you have gained the blade. Use it well - Garzahd masters many of the creatures it was designed to slay."
Micah nods. "Your honorable deeds done for the Vahnatai people in the name of Exile show you are a worthy bearer of the blade Demonslayer. Go to Rone and ask him of it. He will tell you where it may be found."
Micah thinks hard, then shakes his head sadly. "No," he finally says. "It is too precious a prize to risk losing it to the Empire. But ..." He thinks more. "Restore two of the crystal souls to their proper places, and I will grant you Demonslayer."
She looks at you warily, and asks you why you said that. You tell her, and a look of profound relief crosses her face. "If you see Elspeth again, say 'Labris' to her. It's a code word we made when the war started. And thank you."
He shakes his head. "I'd love to tell you what we've found out about the statues, but I can't. You know how it is."
O'Rourke collects the statues from you. "Excellent!" He examines them. "Yes, this is a very strange material - it may have valuable properties. and, in fair trade..." He removes a shiny helmet from his desk. "Here you are!"
He examines an icon you recovered. "Yes, this is one of the icons. We want all three, though - they may be a set."
"Giants we've questioned have said that they have three icons, very ancient, made of a strange gray stone. They're owned by giants living to the north. We'd like to get them, to examine them and break giant morale. Bring them to me and be rewarded."
"I have no missions to give at this point."
Mairwen nods. "Well done! You have done far better than expected!" She hands you a heavy pouch of gold. "I have also sent word of your deeds to the Castle. You should go there soon - you may have a higher clearance!"
"This mission is a dangerous one, indeed. To the north of here is an Empire tower, filled with mages, led by an archmage named Elderan. We need him dead, and have been trying to find a small band to infiltrate his tower and slay him."
The statue nods, and you hear a soft chiming noise. "That is a name I know. If you must speak with Sixus, search to the north to find how. Beware. He will not want to see you."
"Nah, I can't git' ya' the boat if you ain't got the cash!"
"Nope. Got no more boats fer ya'. Bummer - I could use the cash!" He graces you with a gray-toothed smile.
He takes your gold and hands you a scrap of paper. It's a deed, stained and torn. "Thanks, buds! Yer' boat's out at the dock!"
"Hmm. Don't have any jobs that call for adventurers. Sorry."
Bevan looks profoundly relieved when you say what you did. "Wonderful! His services will aid us greatly! I'll let the Castle know right away, and..." Has an aide fetch you a large bag. "Here's silver. A lot of it. Fair reward for what you've done!"
Bevan shakes his head. "It's sad. He was a friend of mine, once. Now he's gone. Well, at least he won't do any harm through his madness." He takes some notes down. "Word of your deeds has been sent to the Castle. Thank you. Goodbye."
Mayor Bevan begins to look very somber. "One of our more unstable mages, who went by the name 'Sixus', suddenly started to believe we wanted him dead and disappeared."
"Not much for you to do here now. Just head out there - there's no shortage of things that need killing."
You report what you did. He grins viciously. "Well done! That'll show those worms to oppose us!" He has you brought a bag of gold. "Here's your bounty, and, on top of that, I'll even send word to the Castle saying what you did. They'll like that."
You report what you did. "Hmm. You need to kill a lot more of the creatures in their fortress than you have. Go out and kill more. If you can't find their hidden lair, ask around."
"Yes, I do have something for you. Somewhere to the west, to the north of Cotra, some sliths, some of the hostile kind, have a hidden lair. Find it and kill a whole bunch of them, and you'll be rewarded."
She sighs. "I can't go there yet - it's too dangerous. Too many enemy patrols. But at least we know where the other is." Her brows knit in anger. "Curse the Empire! Will it never stop ruining our lives?"
You say 'Labris' to Elspeth, and then tell her where you met Nance. She seems beside herself with relief. "I'll go there as soon as I can! And, in thanks, something I saved from my shop..." She gives you a small, wicked looking dagger. "Thank you!"
"Nance is my, uh, friend. We came to Exile together, and lived in Cotra. When the town was sacked, however, I lost track of her, and haven't heard from her since" She looks very upset. "If you meet her, please mention my name to her."
"Fortunately, things have been pretty quiet. Nothing needs doing that we can't handle ourselves."
He stands and shakes your hands. "I've heard that you led a success revolt. Well done!" He shows you a scroll. "I'll send this to the Castle. This will help you gain a higher clearance. On behalf of Exile and the Nephilim, I thank you."
He explains the mission. "We've been working on a peace treaty with the Nephilim tribes, uniting against the Empire. We're close to success, but first they want help from us. They want us to free a bunch of Nephilim slaves from a band of Nepharim."
"Don't have any missions now. Sorry."
She nods and takes some notes. "Well done. I'll pass news of your deed on to the Castle, and it'll count towards you getting a higher clearance."
She smiles. "I'm glad you asked. There's a bunch of bandits hiding in the Honeycomb. They have some sort of mage helping them - we can find their lair, but we can't get in. Get in there and wipe them out and you'll be rewarded."
He shakes his head. "Things have been rather sedate here lately. I don't have any missions to give you right now."
Kelner nods happily and begins writing a letter. "I am now writing the Castle to tell them of your bold deed. You should go there soon and see if you are now qualified for a higher rank. Thank you for your bold deed."
"There is something you can do. There is a serpent cult situated to the northeast. If you can slay its high priest, report back to me and I will put in a word to get you a higher clearance. It is the best I can do. Alas, we know little about the cult."
"The experiments are going well, thanks to your help. Are you ready for your bargain yet?"
You hand over the egg. She looks it over, and smiles. "All right then! Whenever you want to learn Mindduel, ask me for a bargain!"
She suddenly gets a wily look on her face. "I need a fire lizard egg for my experiments. A drake egg won't do, I need an actual fire lizard egg." She thinks. "I'll tell you what - if you fetch such an egg for me, I will teach you Mindduel at a discount!"
"I have no more to say on the matter. I am resting now, in preparation for later battles. All I can say is that you have done Exile a mighty service. Thank you."
She smiles. "I heard of your deed. Well done, well done indeed! I have been authorized to give you this ..." She pulls a staff out from under her desk. "... as a reward." She give it to you. It is a beautiful, polished oaken staff.
You discuss the problems. "We know where the teleporter is and how to destroy it. All that remains is to do the deed. A small, dedicated group is, at this point, our only hope." She looks at you hopefully. "If you do attempt it, good luck."
You discuss what you learned. She nods. "You need to find the onyx scepter - I can't help you with that. For now, we also need to find where the teleporter is. Fortunately, I can help. I know that the Empire has a certain tower north of Fort Dranlon."
"First, we need to know how to destroy it safely - portals are very unstable and powerful things. Alas, Pyrn was our expert on such things, and he is away and hidden. However, I can help you with his discovery. Ask him about the teleporter!"
She looks hopeful. "If you are truly serious about destroying this dangerous teleporter, I will help you as best I can. Return occasionally to ask me for help, and I will tell you what I have learned and what I think you can and should do."
"The gates will open for you. Go on in." She shakes her head. "Never thought I'd say that to a human."
"The gate is open."
She looks at your orders through the narrow window. She looks dubious at best, openly hostile at worst. But she does make a hand signal. You hear a click from the door.
She seems ready to blast you with a spell at any moment. "We will not let you in. Go now, before we kill you."
"OK! OK! I give up! You can get to Sastor now! Just stop saying that!"
He stumbles back. "Please stop saying that!"
He winces. "Don't say that!"
He slaps his hands to his ears irritably. "Ow! Stop that!"
He continues to prepare. "You have your reward. Good luck to you."
He nods, smiles, and pulls a Soul Crystal out of his pack. He hands it to you. "You are now the first humans to be able to use our magic. Power to you." He begins to prepare to enter the caves.
"These icy caverns to the north are occupied by a huge hydra nest. The alpha nestlings are two ice hydras. Kill them, and the nest would begin to disperse, and we could sneak in. Kill them, and I will give you a Soul Crystal."
"After working so hard to help us, you deserve a reward. Come here and kneel." You do. It speaks to you of magical incantations to fill oneself with holy power. It is fascinating and helpful.
(You now know the spell Avatar.)
"She is pleased at the revenge on Garzahd, but has not stopped devising ways to avenge us further on the Empire. We expect great things from her." Prossis gives you a chilling smile. Great things indeed.
"Rentar-Ihrno is determined to help destroy Garzahd in any way she can. Go ask her about an assault. She may desire your help."
"She is the greatest of our mages. She created the barriers in your lands, and she constantly looks for ways to defend our people and assault our enemies. She is difficult to control at times, but she is truly our greatest strength."
She shows you the tome again. You read it, and refresh your knowledge of the spell.
She grins, the first friendly gesture she's shown you. "There is no need. The job is done. And very satisfyingly as well."
"You have my consent already. Stop wasting time. Go to Garzahd's fortress, and I will come to you there."
She nods. "I will help you. I savor revenge against that surface worlder fool who dared insult us. Go to Garzahd's fortress. I will watch you. When you get there, I will go to you and give you aid."
She looks at you with disgust. "Why should I lift a finger to help you with anything? It is simply not the time."
She takes the tome and nods. "I am a being of honor, and your reward is here." She passes her hands over the tome and shows it to you. You read it. From it you learn the secret of Quickfire. She takes the tome. "Should you need to see it again, return."
"First I require the tome. You can recognize it easily - it is several bound sheets of mica, left there since before the Resting. Bring it, and the spell is yours."
"Yes, I can create quickfire. You could too. But I can control it, and you couldn't. But, if you want to destroy yourself... To the east and then far to the north, there is a ruined fort. There is a magical tome there. Bring it, and the spell is yours."
He smiles nastily. "The Council was watching as you went the river, and felt you was being inept. You must be doing all three tests, of Strength, Speed, and Mind."
"You do must two of three tests, and which two you do is your deciding." He shakes his head. "Must now be seen if humans can stand our tough testing."
"You need being one test done. Do that and Council sees you."
"You have done enough testing. The Council sent word they would be seeing you. For what it matter."
He shakes his head. "Don't have any missions now. Maybe later."
He listens to your description of what happened. "Well done!" He starts filling out forms. "This will count towards your getting a higher clearance. You apply for higher clearance at The Castle. Thanks for your help!"
He thinks. "Well, there is someone that needs killing. To the west, there's this cult in the ruins of an old Nephilim fort. All we know about them is - they make undead. We don't know how. Destroy whatever they use to make the undead."
"The eggs were still healthy, and the baby spiders will soon come forth! Thank you again for the goodness you have done us! We all think you're really neat!"
It bounces up and down and shouts for joy, a shout that is soon picked up by the all the spiders in the tunnel. "You brought our eggs to us!" It has some spiders clear out the barrier in the nearby tunnel. "Thank you, cute people! Thank you!"
"They stole some egg sacs and took them to their lair to the south! If you bring them back to me, you can have the stuff in that cave there." It points at a tunnel to the northeast. "We took the stuff from some silly people from the surface world!"
"Yeah. Help me with the door?" You help him open the door. He passes through, and turns. "Good luck to you. You'll be a hell of a distraction. I'll slip away while they chase you. Thanks..."
He moves to leave.
"No more have come after them, and a good thing too. I don't have no more rewards to give."
"Thanks for your help. I got something for you. We in the Gunston house remembers those that help us." He disappears into the next room, and returns with a delicate necklace for you. "This'll turn many a blow away."
"Our larder's not quite cleared out. When you kill them both, I got something for you."
He shakes his head. "Not long ago, a mated pair of salamanders broke in here. We tried to drive them out, but they hid in our larder, and we can't get them out. They're eatin' our stores. Kill em', and I'll reward you best I can."
"Fortunately, we haven't had any more troubles that require your assistance. But thanks for offering!"
When you hand her the head she smiles, and gets a sack of gold coins from her desk. "Well done, adventurers! You've earned ten times this for the service you've done for this area. This ends your work here. Good luck to you."
She shakes her head. "You were brought here for a task. No advances on your reward. You'll get all your money when you kill the Nepharim chief, and not one coin before that."
"Five hundred gold if you can kill their chieftain, a fierce Nepharim. He's somewhere deep in their fort. If you can find the rear entrance, though, you might get close to him. Should you succeed, come ask for your reward."
