Told by SyfIt's sunset. Of course I don't know what day it is. We're here at some town near the sea and two women at a well on the outskirts of the fishing village see us. I can't understand what they're saying although it seems as if they have taken Elven and Dwarven and some other languages, added syllables and put them together backwards. We tried to get their attention but they ran away. When I flew down into the village and tried to ask an old woman who was knitting for help for Elrika but she didn't understand me either and swatted at me, screaming in confusion. Half of the village appeared to be made up of dwarves with orcs and a few scattered humans comprising the rest.
Gairten did some pyrotechnics while standing near the well by lighting his sword on fire and shooting a flame up in the air. Many townspeople became upset and a small contingent of them, led by a hairy dwarf with no shirt on and a battle axe, began to march towards him. Gairten seemed to be able to talk to one of the women who was at the head of the group along with the dwarf. The woman convinced the townspeople to go about their business again. They helped us down the stairs that had been chiseled into the cliff the well was on, down to the main village and into an old woman's hut.
I hope she is a healer or a questor, but she seems to be helping. I still don't understand what these people are saying. The dwarf, whose name Gairten told me was Tarhoun, said something to me - I could have sworn he wanted to eat me. He doesn't seem to be threatening, though, maybe I misunderstood him. The woman seems to know what she's doing. She covered our sunburned bodies with a strange green paste, set Gairten's broken bones and put Elrika to sleep, bandaging her face.
Valdara, who was the tall woman that helped us into the village along with Tarhoun, came back with the in the morning, and told Gairten that the elements don't work for Gairten because they are stronger here but also more damaged from the Scourge. The other elementalists have had trouble with their magic in this land as well, although there are none in this small village. The river also dried up during the Scourge, its name is Athas. Raurin was the name of this place before the Therans came, although the Therans are fairly new here. There is a Theran city, Rancara, which is five days away. We let them know that we are not Theran by any means, and Valdara tells us that Barsaive is many months travel to the north, as is Vivane. Valdara says that even the sun is not a reliable guide in this place, and that Jackal-men roam the desert attacking many unwary travelers.
Gairten explained the fire he was in that shot up from the desert sands and the other fire with the charred bodies although Valdara didn't seem surprised. I don't want to be here, not with these fires out there. Gairten attempted to do his karma ritual but it didn't work very well for him and he was disappointed. I did my own karma ritual again and all seemed well for me.
Such a strange town, but I guess they must think I'm strange since most of them have never seen Windlings before. Astral space is clear here, although it seems warped from the heat. I noticed locusts buzzing in astral space, but they seemed normal for all of them were visible.
The headman wants us to leave. Valdara said we should buy camels and offered to be our guide. Gairten thinks we should be able to pay her going rate of 8 silver pieces a day for the two and a half months it should take to get back to Barsaive. Considering our experiences in the dessert alone, I think it would be safer if we had a guide this time.
Valdara asked Elrika about a black praying mantis. When I looked at it in astral space I saw something noticing me looking at it. It had been looking at us through it. When Elrika took the black mantis and tried to befriend it, it ran away too quickly from her hand and disappeared. Something bit Elrika seconds later and I made a Lightbearer Circle, pushing the dozens of black insects which emerged away.
Valdara used whale oil and fire to kill and scatter the insects around us. Then there were screams from different places in the village and we ran out into the center of the town after. We immediately saw a boy clutching at his face. I made another circle and forced a scorpion out of his mouth. Gairten set Tarhoun's battle axe on fire and killed the scorpion with a flame. At the edge of the water there were two more creatures: a large Mantis-like one and an oversized Junebug insect. One of them tried to carry of the boy but Gairten hit the thing with a huge flame which instantly killed the insect but unfortunately hit the boy, killing him. Moments later, the boy burst into flames, stood up, and said to Gairten, "That's no way to treat a friend." I wonder if it wants the gem. Gairten started walking backward as the flaming thing approached him, letting lose a huge chain of ice which wrapped around the flame creature, knocking it back but it still came forward. The flame-boy set Gairten flying against a building, covering him with flames (again!), but we finally succeeded in killing it. In the end, ten villagers had been killed and many more were missing before we could stop the insect creatures.
We purchased two camels with the lump of previously molten gold Elrika picked up from the sand dune flame pocket, but when we returned to the healer's house, she was missing. In her house was a plaque of a woman with eight arms. It was broken upon its finding. Determined to get back to Barsaive, we set out that night. Finis
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