The trip to Elturel from Greenest was uneventful for our heroes, as they witnessed the brilliant light of Amaunator's Gift once they entered Elturgard on their way to the city. Situated on a rising, defensible hill that falls away in a rocky cliff on the south side to the Chionthar River, the city of Elturel is a beacon of safety in the midst of the fields of the dead. The light of Amaunator's Gift is painful to the undead, keeping the region more or less safe from these dangerous aberrations.
Although the entire city opened freely to the Chionthar waterfront, the landward sides remained guarded by a stout stone wall with only two gates for travel and commerce. Upon entering the city with the intention of locating Ontharr Frume, to their surprise, the adventurers were greeted almost immediately by Leosin Erlanthar who was previously expected to have been traveling with the cultist caravan.
While leading the group to The Black Stag, a local pub and haunt of Ontharr, Leosin spoke to them in a low and conspiratorial voice, "I was tracking the cultist wagon train along the Trade Route, but once we reached Berdusk it became apparent the cultists knew they were being followed. Then, after the assassins came for me, I knew the cult has eyes everywhere. We've seriously underestimated them."
By this time, the group had seated themselves comfortably in the common room and Leosin stopped to examine the room thoroughly before continuing his story.
"Even here, it is not safe. The cult seems to have spies everywhere! I left you an invitation to meet with Ontharr Frume, and for good reason - he leads the Order of the Gauntlet. But you'll have to be careful. As powerful as the cult has become, we don't want to draw their interest. Frume is invested in the Elturel Grand Race, so we dare not interrupt the event. It would create too many questions. There's a series of races taking place over the next two days. You can compete if you'd like - in fact, I recommend it. The cult might lose interest in you if they think you're just traveling for the event.
"Honestly, I don't know if the cult has taken notice of you yet. They certainly should have. You've dealt a blow, but you've also maintained some secrecy. Both Mondath and Cyanwrath are dead, you say, which means Rezmir might not even know who you are yet. The only one who has observed you for certain is Lennithon. I doubt he cared enough to remember you.
"Frume isn't the most trusting these days. I've spoken highly of you, so he will be watching you closely. Play the games and join the races if you want him to see what you're made of. You can use this as an opportunity to win Frume's trust. My trust was won the moment you saved me from continuing my plan to stick with the cultist camp - a plan that I realize now would have soon had me killed. In fact, let me help you get into the races. I will provide 50 gold to buy a cart. If you enter today, you can still join the wildcard tournament."
Having little else to do, the party sought out some merchants to resupply some of their wares and then registered for a spot with the races Leosin had told them about. It was surprisingly easy to take a spot among the more serious professionals competing in the Downmere Racing League which ran the local races and, specifically, the Elturel Grand Races. Shay, Unka and Seraphina took Leosin's gold and established themselves as a racing team under the name "The Effective Defect Detectors" while Tross and Rilos put up their own money to establish their team as "The Singing Anvil."
Almost immediately after registering and confirming their roles on the team, our heroes began winning the thrilling races of the wildcard tournament to determine their standings for the races the next day.
Although the entire city opened freely to the Chionthar waterfront, the landward sides remained guarded by a stout stone wall with only two gates for travel and commerce. Upon entering the city with the intention of locating Ontharr Frume, to their surprise, the adventurers were greeted almost immediately by Leosin Erlanthar who was previously expected to have been traveling with the cultist caravan.
While leading the group to The Black Stag, a local pub and haunt of Ontharr, Leosin spoke to them in a low and conspiratorial voice, "I was tracking the cultist wagon train along the Trade Route, but once we reached Berdusk it became apparent the cultists knew they were being followed. Then, after the assassins came for me, I knew the cult has eyes everywhere. We've seriously underestimated them."
By this time, the group had seated themselves comfortably in the common room and Leosin stopped to examine the room thoroughly before continuing his story.
"Even here, it is not safe. The cult seems to have spies everywhere! I left you an invitation to meet with Ontharr Frume, and for good reason - he leads the Order of the Gauntlet. But you'll have to be careful. As powerful as the cult has become, we don't want to draw their interest. Frume is invested in the Elturel Grand Race, so we dare not interrupt the event. It would create too many questions. There's a series of races taking place over the next two days. You can compete if you'd like - in fact, I recommend it. The cult might lose interest in you if they think you're just traveling for the event.
"Honestly, I don't know if the cult has taken notice of you yet. They certainly should have. You've dealt a blow, but you've also maintained some secrecy. Both Mondath and Cyanwrath are dead, you say, which means Rezmir might not even know who you are yet. The only one who has observed you for certain is Lennithon. I doubt he cared enough to remember you.
"Frume isn't the most trusting these days. I've spoken highly of you, so he will be watching you closely. Play the games and join the races if you want him to see what you're made of. You can use this as an opportunity to win Frume's trust. My trust was won the moment you saved me from continuing my plan to stick with the cultist camp - a plan that I realize now would have soon had me killed. In fact, let me help you get into the races. I will provide 50 gold to buy a cart. If you enter today, you can still join the wildcard tournament."
Having little else to do, the party sought out some merchants to resupply some of their wares and then registered for a spot with the races Leosin had told them about. It was surprisingly easy to take a spot among the more serious professionals competing in the Downmere Racing League which ran the local races and, specifically, the Elturel Grand Races. Shay, Unka and Seraphina took Leosin's gold and established themselves as a racing team under the name "The Effective Defect Detectors" while Tross and Rilos put up their own money to establish their team as "The Singing Anvil."
Almost immediately after registering and confirming their roles on the team, our heroes began winning the thrilling races of the wildcard tournament to determine their standings for the races the next day.