Zarb Zarba is out of his element.  Having been raised by an aristocratic Holderness family, Zarb was used to a much more lavish lifestyle than the tattered, leafy, dirty rags he that cover him these days.  It was only very recently, actually, that he himself was a member of the Holderness elite.  Through his diligence in the arcane studies and his personal commitment to use his powers to preserve harmony and flow in the universe, he managed to impress the Magus Superior at his academy enough to obtain a highly prestigious responsibility -  assisting Mell su tu Vokh, a famous and revered sorcerer of formidable power.

Mell su to Vokh was, at the time, leading an effort to summon enough clairvoyant power to locate a target – a “grave foe of the city-state of Holderness.”  This “grave foe” would in turn be descended upon by the royal soldiers and assassins of the Kingdom and return his soul to the Underworld.  This “grave foe,” however, turned out simply to be the brother of tu Vokh, Mell su Detok, with whom he was fighting for power within the academy and who had disappeared weeks prior.  The academy, after all, had many enemies, and in this case the target had been kept secret from the assistants – the interns, if you will.  Upon learning of the real motive, however, Zarb realized that it was purely political; besides, Zarb knew that su Detok was no less virtuous that tu Vokh.  Eventually, su Detok learned of his brother’s intended power play and reacted by casting a rain of Arcane Blood upon their fortress of sorcery.  This destroyed all in the building save for Zarb Zarba, who by some stroke of luck was caught in the field of teleportation that Mell su tu Vokh, his mentor, had created for himself.  Zarb awoke in the woods with nothing but his tattered rags, his staff, and the faint memory of Mell su tu Vokh losing his life before his eyes under the psionic force of su Detok.  “He made no effort to save us!” Zarb thought to himself.  “And for what? Power.”  Zarb was frustrated and jaded, though he did take pleasure in being AWOL.  “I’ll find my fortune on my own.  I will harness all the arcane energy within me, and I will channel its destructive energy towards only those that stand in the way of reason and good faith.  I will vanquish Mell su Detok, take control of the academy, and bring reason, progress, and intellect back into our sorcerers’ culture.”

Big dreams.  Until now, Zarb had been wandering for weeks, hunting and gathering like a savage, until he happened upon a group of merchants bound for a caravan.  These merchants were impressed by Zarb’s story and asked Zarb to join them.  He did so, and ultimately arrived upon the campsite where we begin our journey…

After the attack on the caravan which Zarb had somehow slept through he has decided to travel to the city Brix. After renting a room in the singing spirit Zarb meets up with his former companions. The coincidence is profound!

The evening streets of Brix give some small comfort to Zarb. While the “city” is no where near as grand as Holderness at least it has some semblance of comfort. Watching some children harass ravens roosting on the rooftops near a shrine for the dead, Zarb sees a vaguely familiar face walk out of the macabre shop adjacent to the shrine. The runes scribed door denoted a prayer to We Jas. “It’s the old-blood from the caravan. An odd place for the high elf to be”

Zarbs share of the coins from the hoard wont last long.  Still if one is to buy new robes then it only makes sense to have them be acceptable to wear in any occasion, including formal affairs! Still it may be wise to be somewhat frugal.

The town is in a fervor talking about the “dragonborn and the elf who brought a small dragon through the gates. This bit of celebrity will not make things less difficult.

Brang is not hard to find or follow at least. He seems to be visiting many shops and is quite liberal with his purse while gathering what may be components for some great ritual.