I'm havin' a bit of a Conundrum..

2nd month of the year - Starday -  5th day of Readying (for most - Elves it is the month of Yellowillow)

The Fellowship awoke from restful sleep, for some of the stalwart band, it had been many days they had last slept in a comfortable bed and room.
Walking down the grand staircase, all smelled the enticing smells of bacon, sausage, pancakes, eggs and more wafting up from the kitchen.
The twin chefs made a splendid buffet for the Fellowship. Many questions and conversations brought up a number of current events:

• There was to be a the seasonal winemaker guild meeting in 2 weeks - 13 days. The Duress estate needs a master, or none can attend. This is a critical  meeting for both the continuing business and life of the estate, advised Trust the butler.
• In recent months, one of the formerly best vineyards (giving the famous Duress Ice Wine), was sold off to the Crakin estate. This was to cover costs and taxes etc. This allowed the Duress Vineyards to survive a little longer. Trust advised privately to the Doctor and the Fellowship (after Doc vouched for them) that they would run out of moneys to support the estate in little over a month 
• Crakin brothers - as the Fellowship know 1st hand - have been seen riding on Duress lands quite often every week.
• The latest news of the various fronts:
• Black Runes - The capital city of Tringlee has been taken by the Black Runes as a major headquarters for their forces. Black Runes continue to move westward, into Keoland and Southwest along the coast
• To the North the hordes of Iuz the Cambion Daemon Lord fight south and East, engaging the Overlord Romack's armies north of the Kron Hills and near Verbobonc
• It seems that Iuz and the Black Runes have a peace agreement or alliance (?) of sorts as there is no current hostilities between the two empires
• There was further discussion of the large monster that was rumored to have taken the head winemaker and possibly defeated Doc Holliday's father. Gothi was ready to head out and track and capture the monster, looking at a variety of traps as she planned , to do this, whereas the rest of the party, Doc fingering his pistol, rather thought to kill it.
• Discussion of an heir for the Duress estate brought up the will, Trust advising it was probably in Master Duress' study.
• Visiting the city of Wayberry as well as Doctor Holliday's family orcish camp up in the hills were discussed as well

While Kantif, Graxus, Doc and Thograa went up to Master Duress' study, accompanied by Trust, Gothi decided to go start doing some tracking of the monster, eager to capture it or at least find some sign of the beast.
Entering the now unused study, they found a grand room, lined with book shelves as well as a large OOC: one of the common phrases of the day was: "Wish we had a wizard to identify items!" )

fireplace and large windows overlooking the estate. Asking Thograa to detect magic, they started searching. While at the large oak desk, they came upon a variety of information, and some possible magic items, as well as elvish armour, helm, shield and weapons that stood on a manikin  (
Graxus found a secret passage behind then fireplace and a narrow small passage descending down into the darkness.

Meanwhile, Gothi had with the assistance of the dwarf gamekeeper, Runthyr, had came upon the tracks of the massive bi-pedal beast. Each foot was over 2' long, the ranger estimated. Realizing this monster may be too much to overcome, especially with its pack of dark hounds it ran with, Gothi and

Runthyr returned to the estate.

Upon her return, she followed the lizard-man sorcerer into the dark passage - Graxus cleverly having secured a rope and tied it around his waste. Meanwhile Kantif and Doc searched the desk and Thograa was scanning a variety of tomes.

Graxus and Gothi both needed light so torches were prepared. Descending downwards a step was depressed by Graxus and the stone door at the fireplace closed... darkness. They decided to move onward, coming to an area where there were stepping stones in a flooded area of dark brackish water.
Jumping from stone to stone, a slip and Graxus fell in. Feeling a spiked tentacle around his leg! Battle was engaged, then Gothi fell in as well.
Some crafty spell-casting by the sorcerer and fighting by the ranger allowed the two to escape back to dry land, both gasping for breath and wounded. Retreating the two found the secret pull-chain and were able to exit back into the study.

A painting on one wall showing a blasted alien landscape -which seemed to continually change - held a safe behind it with some interesting books and scrolls as well as a heavily enchanted case.
The books one in an unknown language had 667 pages, another was called: "All-Seeing Tale of
Inscrutable Rituals - bound in some strange hide. One scroll was an agreement between Chromatic Dragonkin and the Master of Duress, allowing the summoning of twenty Dragon-kin knights for battle. The final of the scrolls was the deed to the Duress estate and mentioned a cousin in Wayberry - a 1/2 elf whom may well now be the Master of Duress. going under the name of the Dralos Seensar (assumedly his mother's name)

Placing most of this back in the wall safe and securing the painting - touching the 2 moons (which now were near the horizon) sealed the area.
The Fellowship geared up, having decided to visit Doctor Holliday's family tribal camp. Going out to JawBone. He was trying to figure out if he could make it more fearsome than the monsters already double row of teeth..
the stables, Nalin it looked to have b=moved into the unused smithy and was already hard at work. He took a few orders from the party including creating a possibly strange mouth piece for Gothi's shark-hound,
Heading North into the hills, the Fellowship saw more evidence of the Crakin brothers, the boundary
markers chipped and punched through with musket ball holes. Doctor Holliday knew these lands well and with both his guidance and the excellent tracking skills of Gothi they made good time.
Finally, they saw the telltale signs of the Doctor's tribe. Then further up a path, the stream along one side nearly overflowing with spring melt, they came upon a body. A dwarf in black leathers.
All of the Fellowship went on high alert as they moved forward. Then ahead the camp was seen as well as the high watch, normally never lit, but now with 2 lanterns.
All the party prepared weapons, Doc Holliday checking his pistol. Moving forward they saw a single dwarf with a crossbow at the gate to the camp. Overcoming his first instinct to shoot, they moved forward. After a few words, the grinning dwarf motioned the group to enter. It seemed there was a parley going on.
Entering the camp, 4 dwarves with crossbows on the walls all watched the adventurers, while 3 more spoke with a tall orc further into the camp.
Doctor Holliday stopped, swings down from his horse "Hey fellas, I'm having a bit of a conundrum here.. I only have 4 bullets and there's more than 4 of you.. what do you suggest?"
There was a moment that lasted it seemed for some to be an eternity and then, the crack of pistol fire,
With incredible skill and speed, 3 dwarves' crossbows fell to the ground while the 4th dwarf coughing up blood slumped over and fell to the ground from his perch. It seemed battle was engaged. A firebolt from a cough from Graxus' mouth took another of the dwarf crossbowmen down. Then a yell from the other side of the camp, the tall orc running over waving his arms.
It seems there was a misunderstanding.. these dwarves originally thought to be Black Rune dwarves,
were NOT.. they were grey dwarves, a group of merchants from the Underdark.
The Fellowship pulled up weapons and then under the watchful eye of the orc - Jankin - and the dwarf leader, they all dropped their weapons. Reparations were made, the revivification of the 2 just dead dwarves using the sorcerous power of the circus master Graxus, as well as a figurine of wondrous power.
The Grey dwarves appeased - for now - headed off to do more trading. Jankin spoke to the party and they learned of the current status, most of the warriors out hunting and watching to the North for forces of Iuz and to the East for the forces of the Black Runes. The Duchy may have surrendered, but that did not include the tribe.

The party was invited to meet with Doctor Holliday's grandmother, but the 1/2 orc was determined to find his grandfather first.
They decided to head down into the chambers of the dead - the hall of warriors.
Kantif looks at the tomb before him as he hears the whispering. “This place is pretty creepy, no offence Holiday. I never expected I’d be in someplace like this.”
Sigmund's raven flew off his shoulder and right through the massive doors to the chambers. They could hear the echo of her call even as they entered.
The halls were dark filled with blackest night. Even torches only shed a small circle of light around

the holder. The party explored down into the halls, taking in the number of dead, it seemed that this was once a mighty empire. Then the skithering of voices hit them all, it was hard to understand, over powering in some cases. Concentrating it seemed the fallen orcsih heroes all were telling their stories over and over again.
At first Doctor Holliday wanted to listen to them all, but then realized there were hundreds if not more fallen and entombed warriors both female and male here.
As Sigmund listens carefully to the stories of an ancestor. "If only you could hear this. Ill write it down and translate it later. When this is all over and we have peace im going to write all of their stories down in a grimoire of some sort."
Venturing on, they came into a massive room, the torches finally glowing out to far off walls. 15' statues of orcish warriors and generals lined both walls, grimly looking down upon the party. Raven feathers were engraved into the cloaks of most of the statues.

Then a rumbling jarred the Fellowship of RedWater. A crack opened up in the floor and boiling stinking fog spewed out dark as blackest night. a massive scaled hand sunk clawed fingers into the
floor pulling itself upwards revealing a massive demon. Grinning, drool spilling down from rows of teeth, burning holes into the stone as grating voice cut into the heroes' minds. "Hellooo pretties...."

Until next game..