The Biscuits	Gimar - Fighter 8th Level (PC) Jaron - Paladin 4th Level (PC) Nicola - Cleric 4th Level (PC) Wed - Mage 4th Level (NPC) Little John - Fighter 4th Level (NPC)
Locale	An anteroom in the Palace at Chendl
Date	22nd of Readying, 585 CY (Common Year)
Time	Mid-morning

That morning the Biscuits who had not done so yet were brought into the Inner City on a sturdy flat-bottomed punt. The palace that stood in the very center of the Inner City was a majestic building of gold-veined white marble, and must have been quite beautiful indeed before the ravages of war. Now several of the walls were cracked or charred with fire, and even the glassteel dome covering the exotic garden had been mostly shattered.

The beauty of the palace was also marred somewhat by the sharp teeth of it's defenses. It was unknown to the party whether these were put in during the war or sometime before it, but they were formidable. Atop each of the walls were tall spikes whose edges gleamed in the sun. All of the palace windows were barred, and each entrance was guarded by four of the King's House Regiment.

Those wards were not much of an impediment to the Biscuits, however, as they were led straight through the palace. They whirled past many of the minor functionaries and were deposited in an anteroom to await their audience with the King.

Gimar	Those are very spiffy clothes you have there, Nicola.
Nicola	Thank you Gimar, and you look pretty polished yourself. Are you nervous about meeting the king?
Gimar	Only a little. I hope I can find a way to bring up the plight of my gnomish friends.
Wed	If you like, I can do a search on those monster descriptions in the wonderful library here.
Gimar	If you are volunteering research time, I would like to find out more about those will o'wisps we found.
Jaron	It seems to me that those magical missiles might be the best attack. Perhaps if Wed had a magical wand to use.
Nicola	I found a wand of magical missiles in the marketplace yesterday for 12 thousand gold pieces.
Little John	You need to invest money to make money, or so they say.
Jaron	Who care's about the money? Those wisps are a chaotic evil that must be destroyed. Can you imagine what would happen if even one of those got loose in a town?
Nicola	Say, have any of you seen Rheaphlyndar?
Jaron	Probably arrested, and deservedly so. It's too late now, though.

Jaron pointed over to the wall, where a plush carpet led up to two chambered doors. Those doors began to swing open and the Biscuits were led into the august presence of his pious majesty, King Belvor IV.

The king was a tall man of regal appearance, with short light brown hair, blue green eyes and a prominent jaw. To his right, considerably cleaner but still possessing haunted eyes, was Prince Thrommel, once Grand Marshall of Furyondy and Provost of Veluna.

Jaron	(Bowing) Your majesty, may I present my adventuring companions and myself. Gimar?
Gimar	(slightly startled) Ah, Your majesty, I am Gimar Axewielder, son of Morthim OrcSlayer.
Belvor	I met Morthrim once in the Lortmils. You hail from there?
Gimar	(smiling) Correct, your majesty.
Wed	(bowing slightly) I am Wed Booth of Sterich.
Belvor	The land overrun by Giants during the war. Did you have family there?
Wed	My close family were all travellers, your majesty.
Nicola	(bowing) I am Nicola Machiavelli of Dyvers, your majesty.
Belvor	Ah, lovely town, I must get back there soon.
Little John	I am John McClane, also of Dyvers.
Belvor	Hail and well met, warrior.
Jaron	(bowing) I am Sir Jaron Yhanovaar, steadfast in Service to Pelor the Healer. I bear you the greetings of Lord Baron Garrus Ullricht of Keoghland.
Belvor	(bowing slightly) I trust you will bear my good wishes back to your liege lord, holy warrior.
Jaron	I shall, your majesty.
Belvor	First of all let me thank you for rescuing my only son from that evil Temple. He has told me of your deeds and of your harrowing journey here and I want you all to know that I appreciate the part you have played in this. I also know of your plans to return to vanquish the Temple, and I wish your party good fortune in this quest. Gimar Axewielder, I want you to know that I have spoken with the gnomes of Claw Gorge and have sent a patrol of Veteran Warriors to help them out. They will report back to me in a month's time, and I shall relay their information directly to you. Since the war, my training grounds have been underused, and as a token of my gratitude I wish to offer you free training through Growfest, which is approximately a month and a half away. I know there is one other member of your party, and I have made a similar arrangement with a friend of mine for his training if he agrees to it. I regret I have no money to offer you, but I feel the repair of the city is of prime importance. While we have signed a peace treaty, there are still skirmishers and fiends to deal with.
Thrommel	(standing) Which leads nicely into my thanks. First of all, though, let me apologize for my behavior over the last month. Those twelve years have been very difficult for me to deal with, although with Heironeous' guidance I will put this all behind me. From my personal keep I have brought forth these magical items which I believe will help you battle any further fiends you should encounter, within our borders or within the Temple of Elemental Evil. Nicola, for you I have found a powerful and magical mace. Wed, I believe you are most interested in new magical spells. Here is a book which was left to me by an old adventuring companion. Little John, you are already a fearsome fighter but let me give you this cloak which shall make you fearless as well. Gimar, you are a natural leader of this group, so this ring is especially appropriate. It was crafted for warriors, and so it's leadership properties should work for you. Perhaps, Gimar, you could also do me a favor and hold onto this cloak for Rheaphlyndar, along with these instructions for it's use. And finally, for you, Sir Jaron, I give you the magical sword Scather. It is a copy of my own Fragarach, although slightly less powerful. Use it until you find your own Holy Sword, good paladin. Thank you all for helping me to escape that accursed place, and know that no-one will be happier when you destroy its last monster than I.

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