The adviser appeared to be Wavian, not Migdarian, by birth, and wore a goatee. It was the adviser that greeted the heroes and asked for their report. He said the Prince was in mourning and wished not speak to anyone directly. Roland reported that they had located the murderer and had acquired a magical scepter to prove the murderer’s guilt. A wizard with the right training could determine if the scepter and the golem that killed Prince Adam were made by the same person. Becklynn noticed that Prince Benjamin was holding a scepter that looked identical to the one the heroes had stolen in Ranzot.

The adviser thanked the heroes and asked them to deliver the scepter and golem head. Suspecting something was not right, Cas was sent to go get the items from the ship; even though, the scepter and head were already in Roland’s possession. Roland rambled on about their journeys, trying to buy time to figure out what was wrong. Cas returned with a rock and a stick.

The adviser was clearly upset. During the audience, the Prince said nothing to the heroes, but he would whisper things to the adviser. The adviser thanked the heroes again, and directed several guards to escort the Becklynn, Cas, and Roland to the docks. The guards were instructed to return with the head and scepter.

Sergeant Terrius and five other palace guards escorted the heroes to their ship. Terrius approached Becklynn and asked her which side she was on. Becklynn indicated that she was loyal to the king. Terrius told Becklynn that the creature sitting on the throne was not Prince Benjamin. Terrius placed the rock and stick in a chest and instructed his men to carry the chest back to the palace. Before leaving, Terrius asked the heroes to save Migdar and find him at the Green Dragon Tavern if they needed him.

Becklynn, Cas, and Roland quickly set sail, but they did not travel far. Once they were over the real ocean, they closed their grendel blood tanks and drifted down through the mist to the water. After hiding for a couple of days, they returned to Migdar. Docking on a walled portion of the city, Cas and Roland climbed up the wall and snuck in without being seen. Becklynn flew over the wall and was spotted; however, Becklynn simply flew away before the guards could stop her.

The heroes arrived at the Green Dragon Tavern shortly after sunset. It was not long before Sergeant Terrius entered for a meal. Terrius led the heroes to a private room in the tavern before speaking. Terrius told them that he had been punished for failing to recover the scepter. Instead of being a palace guard, Terrius was now a dock worker.

Reasoning clues out with Terrius, the heroes determined that the grendel who killed Prince Adam, the Ranzot wizard, and Prince Benjamin were all golems. They suspected that the real Prince Benjamin had been kidnapped and an imposter created in his place. The clues seemed to point to the adviser as the murderer.

Becklynn, Cas, and Roland decided that their next mission would be to rescue the king. They suspected that the king was being held in the castle and poisoned regularly to keep him sick. As long as the king was alive, the Migdarian nobles were unlikely to challenge the rule of Prince Benjamin. The heroes determined that they needed help from a noble to rescue the king, but they were not sure who they could trust. They decided that they had to find and rescue the real Prince Benjamin. After thinking through different possibilities, the heroes decided that the prince was likely being held somewhere in Spera.

The next night, they set sail for a Migdarian trade dock about seventy miles away. While sailing, Roland spotted a dark ship approach. Becklynn hid in the crow’s next. Cas hid on the foredeck. Roger manned the helm, and Roland stood by him, sword and shield ready.

As the ship approached, the heroes could see several goblins wielding large axes. They could not see the two grendel wizards who were staying the deeper shadows. Grappling hooks were thrown by the goblins, and pulled tight to bring the ships together.

The goblins boarded the ship, but they did not last long. Roland slashed them down with his sword. Cas fired his repeating crossbow. Becklynn threw bolts of lightning. After only a moment, the lone surviving goblin was fleeing.

The next moment, bolts of lightning struck out from the pirate ship at Roland. Luckily, they both missed. Roland charged forward, switching to his great sword. With Cas firing crossbow bolts, and Becklynn hurling lightning over Roland’s head. The grendel wizards were quickly defeated.

Becklynn, Cas, Roger the Goblin, and Roland decided to keep the pirate ship and sail it to the next Migdarian sky dock. They split into two teams and Becklynn navigated using the stars. The two ships sailed across the dark mist without further incident.

Once they arrived at the dock, they sold the extra ship. They heard rumors that the King of Migdar was very ill, and his second son, Prince Benjamin, was taking over the daily duties of the king. Their ship would not float during the day; so, they set out once again at sunset for Migdar. Unfortunately, Becklynn confused a pair of constellations. When dawn came, Migdar was nowhere in sight.

As the sun rose, the grendel blood keeping the ship above the mist lost its magical power. The ship sank deep into the mist. Hundreds of yards deep, the ship settled into an actual river. A thick forest lined the river on both sides. After sailing down the river a few miles, Cas spotted a castle on the southern bank.

Cas dressed in one of the grendel wizard robes they had captured the day before, and set off to scout the castle. Becklynn, Roger the Goblin, and Roland remained on the ship. Cas found the castle had a small gate facing the river. It was guarded by a single grendel who stood about nine feet high. Cas pretended to be an adolescent grendel who had stayed out of the castle passed curfew, and was admitted easily.

Once inside, Cas saw the castle was full of grendels busy preparing for bed. Some of the grendel youth were having vicious fights for fun. Cas found a group of young wizards and joined them. Cas showed them that he could turn invisible. One of the grendels showed Cas that he could make Cas become visible again.

The next spell was one to locate nearby humans. Cas quickly made his excuses and headed for the gate. A moment later, the young grendel wizards were chasing him. Cas dashed for the ship. He made it on board, and the ship slowly began moving down the river.

The grendel wizards launched spells at the human sailors, but a giant wall of water emerged from the river and blocked all of the attacks. The grendels fled. A trio of marefolk were lifted from the river by water and set on the deck of the ship. Upon seeing Roger the Goblin, one of the marefolk cast a quick spell and disintegrated the goblin.

The marefolk spoke with the heroes briefly and offered to escort them down the river to Migdar. With the marefolks’ protection, no other grendels bothered the ship that day. By nightfall, the ship had reached the real ocean. With the setting sun, the grendel blood once again lifted the ship up through the mist to rest on top of it.

In the distance, the heroic crew could see the lights of Migdar. They were only a few hours away from reporting their findings to the king.

Becklynn, Cas, and Roland entered Ranzot from the dock. After wandering for a few minutes, dressed in royal Migdarian Armor, a goblin approached them. He introduced himself as Roger, and offered to serve as their guide in Ranzot.

Roger reviewed the sketch of the Speran woman from the night of Prince Adam’s murder. Roger said he knew of a wizard who looked like the woman in the sketch. More importantly, Roger knew of a dark sylvan wizard who hated the Speran wizard.

The dark sylvan wizard studied the severed grendel-golem head. He said that if the heroes could “acquire” a sample of the Speran wizard’s work, then it could be confirmed that they were made by the same wizard.

In the center of the tower of Ranzot, was a large opening, allowing access to many of the local wizard apartments. The Speran wizard’s apartment was among them with a barred window facing the opening. Becklynn flew Cas up to the window.

Cas turned invisible and held tightly to the window bars. Cas spotted a wooden box containing magical scepter. Cas attached a rope to a quarrel, and fired it into the box using his crossbow. Cas then carefully pulled the box to the window and took the scepter.

Once they had stolen the magical item, Becklynn, Cas, and Roland decided it was best to leave Ranzot as quickly as possible. Roger begged to be taken with them, and was granted his wish.

The heroes and goblin set sail for Migdar to report to the King.

In the castle, the king informed the group that they were charged with treason, conspiracy, and murder. This was because they were the last ones with Prince Adam before he was killed by a grendel near Triticus. The king offered them a way to prove their innocence: they could find the real murderers. The three adventurers quickly agreed. They were given royal plate mail, and the use of a small ship. The king also gave them the head (in a jar) of the grendel who killed the prince, and a sketch of the woman who had led the prince to his death.

Becklynn, Cas, and Roland decided to begin their quest in Triticus. They discovered that the mystery woman had not been seen entering or exiting the city. They suspected that she had used magic; such as, a ring of traveling. They also learned that the woman was not Migdarian, but most likely from Spera. A local citizen suggested they go ask grendels about the severed grendel head. Before leaving, Cas and Roland purchased some cargo to trade in Rilfen.

The team debated where they should go next, and decided on Rilfen. One night while sailing to Rilfen, goblin pirates attacked the small ship. Becklynn blasted them with lightning and flew into the air. The goblins tried to retreat almost immediately. Cas and Roland pursued the goblins onto the pirate ship. The only surviving goblin leapt from the pirate ship into the mist.

In Rilfen, they sold their cargo for Rilfene coins. Besides being a city among giant trees, there were wood golems everywhere doing chores for their sylvan masters. The adventurers discovered that all transactions of magical items were stored in records in the Library of Rilfen. The librarian helped them gain access to the records, but it quickly became apparent that finding someone who had purchased a ring of traveling would not prove anything.

The librarian was familiar with the story of the murder and looked at the grendel’s head. The librarian informed Becklynn, Cas, and Roland that the head was not from a real grendel. It was a flesh golem, and a poorly made one in the opinion of the librarian.

The team learned that the Tower of Ranzot was also home to a large number of wizards like Rilfen; however, the motivation to murder Prince Adam seemed more likely present in a Ranzot wizard. Ranzot had declared its council the rulers of the world, and they were responsible for the dark cloud that covered most of Trimatris. After purchasing additional goods for trade, Becklynn, Cas, and Roland departed for Ranzot.

The team reached the docks of Ranzot in the evening, and were denied access to the tower until morning. The Tower of Ranzot is about a mile in diameter and made of black stone formed with magic. The team decided to sleep in their ship that night. Becklynn was on watch first. A dark figure quietly approached the ship. Before Becklynn spotted him, the dark figure launched a lightning bolt straight at Becklynn, hurting her badly. Cas and Roland woke up quickly and attacked the figure. Roland cut the attacker in half on the docks with one mighty swing of his great sword.

Becklynn was healed, and the adventurers finished the night in peace. The identity of the dark figure remained unknown, and his body was lost in the mist.

As they became less disoriented from their dimensional travels, they saw Prince Adam of Migdar being killed by a grendel. They rushed to his aid, but they were too late to save him. Roland used the prince’s jeweled sword to severely wound the grendel. Cas, possibly recalling the regenerative abilities of grendels, smashed the grendel’s head with a rock.

They heard human voices approaching, calling out the prince’s name. Becklynn was covered in the prince’s blood; so, she flew (using magic, not wings) into a nearby tree. About a dozen soldiers arrived and brought the prince’s body, Cas, and Roland back to a large fortified farming community called Triticus.

Inside the walled city, the Duke of Triticus questioned Cas and Roland about the prince’s death. The Duke did not suspect Cas and Roland because they were unarmed and had grendel blood on them, not human blood. Cas used his invisibility magic to deliver new clothes to Becklynn outside the wall. Once she was no longer covered in the prince’s blood, Becklynn approached the gate and was admitted into the city.

The group heard rumors that the prince had been lured out of the city by a beautiful woman. She was now missing. Many in the city suspected that the woman was involved in a plot to murder the prince.

The next day, Becklynn, Cas, and Roland decided to take jobs on an escort ship. The captain, Maximus, was impressed that the group had slain a grendel and hired them immediately. Maximus had steady work with a shipping company; so, the small convoy immediately departed for Migdar.

That night, goblin pirates attacked. The first mate, Jareth, was navigating the ship while the captain slept. Cas and Roland manned the two loaded cannons facing the approaching pirate ship. Becklynn launched a lighting bolt across the sea of fog, setting fire to the pirate ship. Cas and Roland fired a destructive volley into the ship as it neared. Cas loaded another cannon ball in record speed and fired again. This ball ripped through the middle of the ship, destroying it.

One goblin had managed to board the escort ship before Cas’ shockingly destructive shot. With three against one, the goblin pirate did not last long. The captain was not even roused and later commended the crew for their good work. Maximus also doubled their pay for the trip because of the attack. Roland now armed himself with a large axe recovered from the pirates. Cas acquired a small crossbow and leather armor in Migdar.

Becklynn, Cas, and Roland stayed on with Captain Maximus for several more days. One night, while Becklynn was on watch, another goblin pirate ship attacked. This time, the pirates were able to board the escort ship, named Angeline, before they were discovered. With four goblins aboard, Becklynn launched lightning across the deck, hurting the pirates badly. Cas and Roland fought valiantly. Roland seemed to be using an excessive amount of luck, and became fatigued.

After another lightning bolt from Becklynn, one of the pirates grabbed his unconscious shipmate and fled back to the pirate ship. The three remaining pirates followed suit; however, the crew of the Angeline did not let them escape. Roland jumped to the pirate ship just before it moved away from the Angeline. Cas continued firing his small crossbow at the remaining pirates. Becklynn, now flying above the Angeline, launched another lightning strike.

The last pirate made one last attempt at escape. He closed the lift covers on the grendel blood, the only thing keeping the ship above the Dark Cloud. The pirate ship plunged into the thick fog. Without a visible target, Becklynn and Cas ceased fire. Becklynn flew over to the falling ship in preparation for saving Roland.

Roland opened the lift covers causing the ship to start to rise. The goblin attacked Roland once more, but missed due to Roland’s good luck. Roland fought back with his axe, and the goblin fainted from the wound. The ship continued to rise until Roland was visible, surrounded by slain goblins.

The captain was roused. The goblins were thrown overboard, never to wake again. Jareth, the first mate, went over to the pirate ship to sail it back to Migdar with Roland. Once both ships were safely back in Migdar, the spoils were divided amongst the crew. Cas used his share to buy chain mail and a large crossbow. Cas also had his seamless robe treated with grendel blood; so, it would float on the Dark Cloud and act as a life preserver. Roland also acquired chain mail, but opted for a great sword to replace his axe. Becklynn also purchased chain mail, but chose a shield and small crossbow to use in addition to her magic.

Jerry sounded nervous and looked like he was expecting to be attacked at any moment. Venus Corp had contacted Jerry. The same company that the team had attacked only a few days earlier now wanted to meet with them. The meeting was scheduled for Wednesday (the next day) at 3 PM. The location was Venus Corp’s corporate headquarters in Scottsdale. The team agreed it was unlikely Venus Corp wanted them dead; otherwise, Venus Corp would probably have already killed them all.

Jerry loaned the team his car again. Damanta pulled up some information on Venus Corp from the matrix and obtained a copy of the building’s floor plan, just in case. The next day, Ranse, Damanta, and Cue Ball drove to Venus Corp headquarters. Damanta left her Smith Panther in the car, but Cue Ball decided to carry his Grim Grouch. A pair of security guards, armed with Smith Hummingbirds, stopped the team and asked their business. Ranse replied that they had been requested to meet with someone. The team submitted to a search. Cue Ball decided to leave his Grim Grouch back in the car.

Once inside, the team approached the reception desk. They were expected, and a moment later an attractive brunette woman in a stylish executive suit came out to meet them. Without introduction, she led them to her office on the seventh floor. An armed security guard followed closely behind the whole time. Once they reached the executive’s office, she motioned for the guard to close the door and wait outside.

Margaret DeMille, the Venus Corp executive, introduced herself and asked for their names. Ms. DeMille said she thought their work was a bit sloppy, but they showed potential. Venus Corp had trailed them with an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) after the team’s last mission. Venus Corp was offering them $5000 for the documents they had stolen from the laboratory, and $30000 to recover a pair of stolen prototypes. Ranse managed to persuade her to increase the reward to $33000.

Ms. DeMille said that George England and the Order of the Green Dragon had stolen the cyber gun and cyber blade prototypes. The team was instructed that a set of the prototypes probably existed in the England Trucking warehouse on 51st Avenue between Buckeye and Lower Buckeye. They were also told that a dojo for mystic squires in the Order of the Green Dragon was located inside the warehouse. The final instruction was that “it would be best” if all of the items had to be brought to her office by Noon the following day. Ranse asked what that meant. Ms. Demille answered, “It means that if everything is not here by Noon tomorrow my superiors will be upset, and if my superiors are upset, then we will have to consider other actions.” The team left without incident and began to plan how best to proceed.

Damanta took a deep breath and logged back into the matrix. Dances-In-Air headed for the stairwell at the end of the hall. The team was in a Venus Corp laboratory and had one remaining objective: escape alive. After considering a few options, Dances cast an illusion over the three doctors (DR, disposable resources) inside to make them appear like the unconscious guards. Ranse cast a view spell and checked the stairwell and the floors above and below. Venus patrol teams were ready and waiting on the second and fourth floors. Hondo, Ranse, and Dances were too badly injured to risk a direct confrontation with either or both patrols.

Dances-In-Air asked Damanta to locate a low-security lab with a window, preferably one near the parking lot. Damanta quickly provided the data and then moved onto protecting the team. With incredible force, Damanta locked the elevator in place. Any guard movements would have to be using the stairs. The three team members inside moved quickly into the laboratory designated by Damanta. Large, plate-glass windows covered the far wall. Hondo offered to open the window using his Grim AR-7. The mages agreed that using telekinesis would be the preferred method. Ranse Lemuel rolled up his sleeves and concentrated on moving the large plate glass window with magic. He tried three times, unsuccessfully. Dances moved closer; in case, Ranse dropped the glass. Relying on luck, Ranse succeeded on his fourth attempt at telekinesis.

Dances-In-Air cast a view spell to check their surroundings. The parking lot looked clear, but both Venus Corp patrols were in the stairwell, quickly approaching the third floor. Damanta started Jerry’s black sedan and drove quickly toward the building. Dances looked at the 21-meter drop to the ground, “Let’s send Hondo out first.” Dances used telekinesis to float Hondo down a few meters, then Ranse’s telekinesis spell took Hondo another 16 meters. Hondo fell the last meter, onto the top of the moving sedan. Ranse’s spell also carried Dances and himself most of the way down. While they are falling, slowed by Ranse’s spell, Dances cast another telekinesis spell to land them safely on top of the car.

Damanta slammed on the breaks. Hondo rolled to the side and slid into the passenger seat. Dances-In-Air looked like he should have been named Flails-In-Air and rolled onto the pavement. Ranse didn’t seem to notice the car stopping and managed to fall badly enough to knock himself unconscious. Dances quickly loaded Ranse into the car, and Damanta accelerated as fast as the battered black sedan was capable.

Venus Corp magical security followed the car for awhile, but gave up the chase as Damanta sped North and then West on Loop 101. The team eventually circled back to George and Dragon where Jerry the Fence was waiting. He congratulated them on a job well done and paid them the promised $18,900.

The team quietly walked to the laboratory door which led to the cyberware prototypes. The matrix security in the door was very strong. Damanta wore herself out as she first hacked into it, then unlocked the door and disabled the alarm. The team moved into the dark room.

Hondo closed the door and stood behind it, waiting with his Grim AR-7. Dances and Ranse blasted the combination lock on the prototype cabinet. Once the cabinet was open Ranse and Dance (Razzle Dazzle) destroyed the prototypes quietly, using magic. Dances-In-Air picked up some papers that looked related to the prototypes.

Outside in the hallway, a three-man patrol was walking toward the lab door. Damanta watched through the security cameras as they walked past the door. Then a voice, inside the Matrix, asked “What are you doing here? Identify yourself.” Damanta began to stutter a reply, then simply sent a message over the team radio: “I think my cover’s been blown.” A bright blast slammed Damanta’s matrix persona. She disconnected from the matrix completely, just escaping a trap program.

Damanta was now badly stunned in the parking lot. The team could no longer look through the security cameras. A moment later, the team could hear the security patrol run past the lab door, heading toward the elevator. Ranse moved to the door, and opened it slightly. Ranse saw a fully-armored security guard run around a corner. Dances cast an invisibility illusion over the team. Now invisible, Hondo followed the guard around the corner. Ranse and Dances stayed at the corner for a moment.

Standing at the elevator were three guards. Two wore full armor, and one wielded a short sword and wore an armor vest. The one with the sword wore a green band on his arm and forehead, obviously a mage squire. One of the armored guards was a mage. The mage pointed at Hondo as he cast an illusion spell, “There he is!” The illusion made Hondo visible to the other guards.

Ranse poked his head around the corner and cast a blade storm spell on the three guards. Hondo began to unload his Grim AR-7 into the mage squire. The mage squire, barely alive, fell to the gorund. The third guard, wielding a Smith Hummingbird, blasted back at Hondo. Dances-In-Air poked his head around the corner and blasted the remaining two guards. The mage dropped as he air around him exploded. The guard with the submachine gun staggered, but was still on his feet.

Hondo drove the car over to St. Francis Cemetary, where Mr. Doe was waiting. This Mr. Doe was invisible. He informed the team that he wanted the prototypes for a cyberblade and a cybergun destroyed. The prototypes were in a Venus Corp laboratory at Banner Desert Medical Center. Venus Corp was working on reverse-engineering the cyberware; so, they could produce and sell it. Mr. Doe also asked the team not to kill any mage squires. The reason for this request remained unknown, but Dances-In-Air negotiated an extra $500 to buy non-lethal ammunition.

It was about 11 PM at night, and Hondo drove the team into the quiet parking lot outside the laboratory. The team waited while Damanta used her hacking skills to do a little scouting. First, she looped the external cameras and unlocked the front door. In the virtual matrix world, she was cutting through the laboratory’s network security like soft butter. She used the internal camera system to locate the lab with the prototypes, and then started the cameras on the team’s planned route to loop. She hacked into the elevator node, and then healed herself while waiting for the team to get ready.

Hondo had left the bar to find his old friend Lachoneus, a skilled sniper. Lachoneus was soon en route to Avondale, but Hondo had other business to take care of.

Anthony and four Ork thugs were loitering outside a large electronics store. The team drove by for a closer look while pretending to look for a parking spot. Dances used a view spell to see that Anthony was protected by a magic shield. The team parked about 20 meters away from Anthony’s gang. Dances and Ranse boosted their magical abilities and Damanta’s agility. The three stepped out of the car. Meanwhile, Lachoneus was driving in the parking lot toward the store.

Anthony immediately noticed the two armored mages and drew his Grim Grouch, but didn’t aim it at anyone. Two of his thugs followed suit. Then Damanta pulled her Smith Panther out of the car. Ranse focused all of his energy on a powerful wind spell, tearing the thugs apart and collapsing Anthony’s magic shield. One of the Ork thugs climbed to his knees and crouched behind a concrete pylon while drawing his Smith Woodpecker. Dances-In-Air cast a black cloud spell on Anthony and the two conscious Orks thugs, killing the two thugs instantly and hurting Anthony badly.

Lachoneus leaned out of his car with his sniper rifle. Damanta fired her assault cannon into Anthony knocking him unconscious and against the wall. The mages started healing each other. Lachoneus slowly pulled the trigger of his rifle and ended Anthony’s life.

Damanta climbed back into the car as two corporate security guards ran toward the entrance from inside the store. Dances-In-Air and Ranse quickly climbed into the car. Lachoneus also dropped back inside his car. The guards came outside and began looking around, but all they saw was a bunch of scared people trying to flee the area.

The team returned to their usual bar at Arcadia Crossing. Jerry was waiting there with $17,100 for them. The team decided to take a couple weeks off and relax. Ranse Lemuel and Dances-In-Air both had Cranial Accelerators installed. Ranse replaced his bulky armor with dermal plating, and Lachoneus bought a new Venus racing bike.