So we somehow manage to safely escape the Drakespire, and are headed back towards Brix (I assume; unless someone has a better idea).

Luke is gloomy and taciturn for about a day after we get away from the Drakespire.  Eventually, he seems to brighten up just slightly, and says:

"Everyone, thank you for going on this journey with me and risking your lives.  I wish the whole thing had been better planned, or led, or thought through... mainly I wish we hadn't walked right into that trap at the end.  I should have seen that coming.  Why would a bunch of Bugbears who followed Grankhul be serving a cultist of Hextor?

"All I can say is I'll try to think things through a bit better next time.  As for this time, I'm glad you're all alive, and at least that bastard didn't get the ransom money.  Here, split it up among yourselves -- consider it your fee.  The church in Brix obviously doesn't need it back."

Luke tosses to Nadarresh a pouch containing ten platinum pieces.

"And wherever we go next is up to you -- any of you who's got a plan or a quest in mind.  Especially if I get to slay something."

"I have nowhere imparticular to go. Though I do believe you should not consider this a failed undertaking until we have learned everything there is to know. It could very well be that you were set up to be the fool by the very church that sent you." Brent slaps Luke on the back as he says, "But any case, let us be thankful that we are alive after seeing such a horrifying monster."

"No... Arageth believed in what he was sending me to do.  I can't imagine otherwise.  No reason to send that amulet to the Drakespire if he didn't think he was really sending me to deliver a ransom.

"But I'm sure he expected I'd react a bit better, when something happened that we didn't expect.  The rest of you did pretty well -- Stitches was bleeding quite a bit by the time he flew off -- but I could hardly stand up."

Luke shakes his head. "I guess I'm going to find out what Arageth is made of.  If he's not the kind of man he should be, he can probably blame the whole thing on me.  Put me back to hiding my face everywhere I go."

After catching a few hares that evening, Aerandis is at work straightening arrow shafts and repairing fletchings by the fire.  He is frustrated by having an enemy slip out of his grasp. 

"I'm not sure if I can rest easy with a madman flying around the countryside on such a terrifying creature.  In some ways, we contributed to this by bringing the amulet straight to him.  If I had my way, we would track him down so I could finish him with an arrow through the heart." Aerandis stabs one of the arrows he's working on into the fire.

"Luke, I don't think you should have to hide again, especially after you've proven your worth and intentions to Arageth.  I have a special arrow for anyone who would cast doubt on your good name."

Coming back to Brix

Knowing how little food he has left, he spends several hours gathering food for the party and stocking up as best he can.  He knows that drying or smoking the food would take time so he does his best finding food for himself and the party.  (Nature trained +9 three hours of looking for food.)

“You know I wish I had moved faster and killed that evil bastard before he could fly away on that…what was that anyway?!  I have heard tales of skeletal dragons known as Draco something or other…very powerful and created by powerful magic, I don’t know how that one amulet could have created something so fast?”  he says, in obvious awe & anger about the events of the past days.

“Luke, Arendis is right, nothing you did was wrong, that evil priest knew long ago what he was doing or is controlled by someone who knows what to do.  Even if there were twice as many of us, I doubt we would have been able to stop him.  You saw how those dozen bugbears ran away.  We stood before the evil and live.  We did not defeat it today but we will!  Worry not my friend.”

As they came into town, Nadarresh was enjoying how the people seem happy now that the food from the caravans has finally come into town, Nadarresh is pleased that their efforts have helped the people.  As he walks tall among them he catches snippets of conversation, trying his best to hear what the people are saying, a little prideful as he walks past the shops...many keep speaking about Omas Bood.  The name is not familiar but the many times he hears it he decides to tell the others when they get together again.  He is a little hurt that his group seemed not to be mentioned at all, despite it was he and his friends that stopped the caravan attacks and told the city where the caravans could be found.  Politics…

He notices one of the small corners where the shops are that housed magic, Rosemary’s,  there he sees what potions of healing he might be able to purchase.  As he moves towards the store, he reaches for his belt pouch under his cloak and recalls that he forgot to give the others their share of the platinum/gold that Luke gave him.  (each of us should have 250gp, Luke gave it to the four of us to split up, Nadarresh though divides it five ways so each of us will have two platinum pieces each when next he sees them.)  So he checks the prices, hoping it does not exceed his funds of 275gp total. (50gp for potions of healing, plus 10%  =55 each so he buys 3 totaling 165gp)  He considers selling the dagger as it has been nothing but bad luck.  It’s power is great but the pain that he went through last time might be too much to bear again.  He’s going to check with Dayereth first to see if it could be better used in a ritual or something magical.  Also, he would like to keep the dragon head he has but he has cleaned it as best as he knows, this is his first Dragon Trophy after all.  He will ask at Rosemary’s to see what if anything he could get for it or at least a way to preserve it better.  He cleaned it well, drained the blood and all but it still is a decaying creature.  He has so far kept it wrapped up like he does the smoked meats and food that he acquires on long trips.  So far it has not begun to smell or decay much.  With only 110gp left, he moves off to find the others so they’ll be able to make use of the money as well.