They arrived there around noon. Immediately they realized that an extensive security system had been put into place - the entire road up to the cabin, and much of the forest around it, had been turned into a minefield of both physical and magical hazards. They slowly began making their way through the forest towards the cabin, being careful not to trigger them. Fortunately they did not have to get too far - when they were less than 100 feet from the building, Tselem was able to use a scrying spell to peer through the walls and see what they were up against. He saw that there were two people in the front room who did not appear in any way to be expecting visitors.
Tselem opened a dimensional portal, and the party stepped through into the front room. They immediately attacked the surprised men on the couches. Their first attacks went wild, but then Azeri let forth a blast of a new power she'd just learned, and burned them to dust!
At the sound of this commotion, three men came down the stairs, two with swords drawn. The third man appeared to be in charge, and when he reached the bottom of the stairs, he appeared to recognize Azeri. Then, to the party's own surprise, he told his guards to put their weapons away. The party said they were looking for Caraas d'Deneith, and the man replied that it was him.
Tselem demanded the guards leave the room, and Caraas grudgingly complied, to the guards' astonishment. Caraas asked to know what they wanted, and Tselem said, "I think you already know." After a measured moment, Caraas revealed his bare arm, the arm where he should have had a Dragonmark. "You're responsible for this aren't you?" Tselem confirmed that they were, and delivered the party's ultimatum: House Deneith was to show greater restraint and compassion, or they would do this again, and again.
Caraas agreed, and asked for his Dragonmark to be restored. Tselem informed him that it would take at least a year to do that. At this Caraas became extremely agitated. He said that he would never be able to maintain control of the House for that long without his Dragonmark, that they had ruined him, and that he would have to step down. Tselem and the party gave the equivalent of a shrug, saying they were just as happy to deal with his successor, so long as the ultimatum was passed on. Caraas stomped around in impotent rage, then collapsed on the couch himself. Defeated, he agreed, and Tselem could tell that he was so thoroughly cowed that he would comply.
Azeri wanted to know how Caraas knew her. Caraas simply said, "Do you really think I don't know who killed Zelian?"
Their work done, the party exited back through the portal and the safe path they'd charted through the woods. They then made their journey back to Korth, arriving in the evening. They treated themselves to a grand celebratory dinner - they had accomplished the object of their design, the thing they had traveled the length and breadth of Khorvaire and literally died and come back for! Azeri felt a little guilty for how thoroughly they'd destroyed Caraas' position, but was mollified by the fact that Korth has an excellent library.
Rewards
- 6,000 XP each
