First, I must comment again on last nights dreams, which seemed to be a continuation of the previous two nights' dreams. As my dreams began I watched as the terrible generals in their vast wastelands marched their armies through portals. The portals were like missive walls of flame, with blood dripping around their edges. After watching these armies enter these portals for some time, the visions shifted and I finally saw what looked like a world similar to my own -- perhaps it was my own. There stood the same portals -- four of them -- and the armies were marching forth from them and entering into a great battle.
I saw combatants of every species and race I can think of or have heard of fighting against these invaders. Humans. Dwarves. Elves. Haflings. I believe I even saw some orcs. The fact that all these races could put aside their differences to come against these invaders should emphasize just how terrible these armies were.
In the background of this battle, I saw a giant rock -- as if a piece of the earth itself had been torn out of its space -- floating in the sky with a great citadel perched atop it. Anchored into the stone was a giant chain, whose immense links led all the way to the ground below. Many of the invading creatures had made it to the chain and were making their way up it. Defenders of all races had taken perch upon many of the chain's links and were attempting to turn back the onslaught of climbing invaders. Many of those defenders were great warriors, clad in golden plate armor. And yet, the invaders continued to climb.
Eventually, the vision shifted again, and I could see the area near the citadel, where the chain was anchored to the floating chunk of ground. There stood more of the warriors clad with golden armor who shot exploding arrows into any of the invading creatures that reached the top of the chain. Behind those warriors, powerful wizards worked their art, sending bolts of lightning and their own fiery explosions into the relentless enemies.
From here, I could see the top spire of the citadel, from which a beacon shone brilliantly, clearly visible even during the brightest hours of a cloudless day. Surrounding that were four large turrets, which fired it's ammunition into the clusters of gathering enemies. Above each turret, an orb about the size of a stagecoach hovered, crackling with lightning. If any enemy approached too close by air, one of these orbs would let loose a bolt of lightning which would turn the the flying invader to ash.
I cannot begin to fathom the kind of power that would be required to actually maintain the defenses I saw in this vision, and find it hard to believe that so much power exists in our world. I again find myself wondering whether these visions are of the past, omens of the future, or something else completely.
After I observed this battle, my vision changed again and I found myself once again on the earth. The citadel spire was destroyed, and the whole floating fortress and the rock it was standing upon came crashing to the ground with much force. There was a bright flash of blue and a swirling blue vortex was formed. The vortex itself seemed to be made of water, and creatures that also seemed to be made of water rushed forth from it. These new invaders joined the battle and soon the defenders of this world found their numbers quickly dwindling.
After some time, the vortex collapsed and the water that made it up splashed to the ground, only to quickly form a forty foot tall tidal wave. A gigantic face with azure eyes formed in the leading wall of this great wave. It spoke with a booming voice. "Finally, the Lord of Elemental Water has found a way into the material plane and the world of Faerûn. I am here to rule!" With that, a giant arm made of water extended from the tidal wave, holding a massive trident in its hand. The arm struck the ground with the trident and watery mud-like creatures began to emerge from the ground everywhere. These creatures were around fifteen feet tall and enveloped everyone on the battle field, smothering and drowning them.
At that point, I awoke gasping and sputtering, as if I was one of those being suffocated by those massive creatures. I performed my morning exercises to clear my mind of these visions and focus on the business of the day. Once that was done, I put out the remnants of my fire, packed my gear, and resumed my travels. I reached the beaten path that leads to the northern edge of the Troll Mountains by mid-day without incident, though I kept constant vigil.
I chose to keep ten feet between myself and the actual path as I followed it to the mountains. It led me directly to a cave entrance. I carefully made my way into the cave. As I explored the cave, I began to run into what I believe were fire beetles. Except these fire beetles were as big as I am. I realize I'm a small halfling, but normally even I seem like a colossus when compared to a typical fire beetle. These creatures were definitely out for blood, so I found myself dispatching them with a combination of thrusts from my shortsword and martial arts blows. Eventually, I found and destroyed a couple of clusters of eggs and discovered that these creatures were feeding human flesh to their larval young. Fortunately, those watching over the egg clusters and larvae did not notice me, so I was able to kill more than a few of them with my sling before having to switch to up-close combat. I destroyed the larvae and the eggs once their guardians were gone.
I eventually found a tunnel that led upwards, I followed it and ran into an even larger beetle and what I assume was a queen in a chamber beyond it. The beetle in the tunnel was a bit stronger than the others in addition to being larger, so it took a few more blows to end its life. That left only the queen and the eggs she had just laid in her chamber.
I admit that this is the point where I made a grave error in judgement, and am fortunate that error did not end my life. The queen was too large to leave her chamber and I could have easily dispatched her with my sling from a distance where she could not have fought back. However, I decided to face her in face-to-face combat. She turned out to be far more powerful and harder to kill than any of her offspring, and she nearly ended my life a few times. If it hadn't been for my now nearly-depleted collection of potions, I would be dead for sure. I was eventually able to wound her enough that she succumbed and gave up her life, however. I set about to destroying the rest of the eggs she had laid. I'm hoping this will put an end to the attacks and carnage that Monty told me two nights ago. I don't know if there are any other lairs where more of these creatures live, but I cannot seek them out.
In my weakened state, I looked around for the artifact that Lakmere had told me about. I eventually noticed a dull red gemstone with three white stripes embedded in the head of the queen beetle. I do not know if this is the artifact that the wizard referred to, but I pried it loose and brought it with me. I was too tired to look for anything else, so I made my way back out of the cave and up to the trade route again.
I found this campsite. The fire was already going. I called out to see if anyone was nearby, but got no answer. I do not know who lit the fire, but I am too tired and weak to question it. So I gathered some more brush to make sure I can keep the fire going for the night and sat down to write this account.
I find myself wondering if I need to return to the cave in the morning to verify that there is no other artifact that I missed, though I am inclined to merely start my journey back. I feel like I need more answers. Plus, I would like to discover if I can find news of Bleak, the man who attacked me under some sort of enchantment my first day out from Berdusk.
I will have to decide if I am returning directly to Berdusk or making a trip to the monastery first. I see good arguments for both choices. I would like to find out what happened with Bleak as soon as possible, which suggests Berdust would make a good destination. And yet, I feel like seeking counsel about my dreams and their potential meanings is also of high importance, which means going to the monastery. Besides, if I am going to renew my supply of healing potions, going to the monastery would allow me to collect some giant lotus petals that I could then use to get the money I need. I am leaning toward going to the monastery, but will make my final decision in the morning when I my head will hopefully be clearer.
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