Silver Insanity

The tunnel network grants you safe passage out of the city, despite all the wanted posters. The day is cold, and windy, and wet, and muddy - ideal conditions for avoiding Lillith's minions.

However, Lillith's minions are not the only things around worth avoiding - as you discover when the backside of a giant hyena looms out of the rain ahead of you. It snarls angrily and charges... forwards to attack some target still out of your sight - having apparently not noticed you at all. Sounds like it had friends, too.

Odd. There are no tracks leading up to the creature's location, though it left normal tracks as it went away...

Maya and pack will give chase to the hyenodons, staying to the shadows and staying downwind as they do. Informed by Fang of a gnoll in hiding she'll inform the pack to hold and attack if they see any allies of the gnoll springing to the rescue.

She'll then move into attack and informed by Fierce and Kerberos that she's seeing only an illusion she'll pause mid stride and let loose a very low and angry growl.

A few moments later, both the clearing ahead of you and the area you're in are engulfed by flames. Most of your pack is able to simply dodge, but Fierce is fairly badly injured by the attack.

Ahead of you, tendrils of shadow boil out of the ground, concealing the rest of the combat. You and your pack are outside the area of the shadows, though.

Fierce will blend into the shadows and heal herself for a bit.

Kerberos is sent to check out over the cliff for any sign of magic users.

Fang and Maya go the other way looking for magic users or other targets.

Continued in Chapter XVII.

And continued from Chapter XVII.

The weather stays fairly miserable* for the first few days of your travel. Rain in the valley, snow on the mountain, shifting to freezing rain when you get down into the next valley.

The kingdom of Arthen does not appear to be in particularly good shape - crops lie frozen in fields, and at least a third of the farms you pass have been abandoned entirely.

The sections of forest you find are faring no better; ice coats the trees, and some of them have fallen.

It is in one such fall-generated clearing that you find a most peculiar traveler...

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* At least by human standards; your pack is only inconvenienced by the reduction in visibility.

A peculiar traveler, indeed (and a more peculiar name, even). Though mostly obscured with a heavy cloak, the clearly half-dragon traveler appears to have wings under the cloak to anyone particularly observant. (Differing from a chromatikin by the presence of facial hair, among other things.) He is holding a map (Apparently unaffected by the rain, though it appears to be made of paper). Rolling it up and putting it on his belt, Hatcher says to himself, "Well, im not that far off, though i think even my half-sister would postpone her outdoor wedding with this weather."

Spying Maya(unless all humanoids in her party are hiding, in which case its random passerby #1). "'ello There! Name's Hatcher, Storyteller and retired* adventurer. Strange weather we've been having."

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* Retired, at least, by his definition, which means no more slaying evil beasts bend on world domination/destruction or giant undead armies, small tasks are fine, however.

[EDIT: Grammar slightly less terrible, and a link!]

[prior to Ubiguitous Post] Maya upon spotting Hatcher and conversing with Fierce decides to approach him and see if he is perhaps of fey origin and thus of possible assistance. She tells the pack to remain hidden, and approaches him in the open.

[post to Ubiguitous Post] "A storyteller huh? Well tell me a story about the wings beneath your cloak, you don't appear a heavily deformed hunchback, and draconic wings would settle differently."

"Aye, it's a short story, " says Hatcher as he reveals the delicate butterfly wings under his cloak "It merely shows that i am of fey blood, as my mother was a fey noble. I have them obscured under my cloak because it is less uncomfortable than having them ice over. You seem an observent type, might you have an explanation for this strange weather? Having my half-sister cancel her wedding would be a mighty inconvienence, and I would like to try and avoid that, if i could."

"This area has ties to the Winterwyld, which could account for this weather. You being part fey, however, I'd assume you'd know that, so I'm not sure. Speaking of which, do you of them well enough to take me to them? I'm am in this area seeking to mix words with them."