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-----From the northwest, there comes the sound through the trees of riders approaching. As the heroes brace themselves for whatever is coming, they see about a dozen mounted men heading toward them. They wear chain mail covered by surcoats decorated in the green and white colors of Hearthorn. A man dressed in dark blue robes and a cloak leads them. A tall hat in the same color as his robes adorns his head. As the riders stop in front of the party, the man in the tall hat dismounts.
-----Lifting a staff from his saddle, he turns and faces the heroes. The man has long brown hair and his middle-aged face is lined with a short beard. His blue eyes radiate intelligence and something more . . .
-----"You are Raven," the man warmly says as he looks at the ranger. He then acknowledges the others, nodding to each one, "Sol Herron, Rand al’Thor, Zentil and, of course, Thalog." A smile flashes across his face, but it is quickly replaced by concern as he asks, "but is not my daughter among your number?"
-----The man then looks beyond them seeing the dark globe left by the High Priestess Devlin. "Oh," he mutters as if he recognizes what he sees. With a wave of his right arm in a fanning motion, he intones, "Mana dis Pa!" A bluish glow pulsates momentarily from his open palm. The inky black of the globe lightens somewhat and takes on the same blue hue of the man’s palm. The entire globe then begins to dissipate, revealing Sarah squinting into the overcast daylight.
-----Sarah squints a few times in the riders’ position. 'No...can't be...' she thinks. Suddenly a wide smile breaks across her face. She bolts towards the rider and once he is dismounted, jumps into his arms. "Oh Destine, I'm glad to see you!" She says, smiling warmly, still holding him tight.
-----Sol gives a quick smile at Sarah's reaction, before once again registering concern. "Nice to meet you...um, sir..." He mounts his horse, "Excuse me, unfinished business." With that, Sol takes off after Devlin at a gallop.
-----"Was there any doubt you would not be seeing me?" the man says with a relieved smile as he welcomes Sarah into his arms.
-----"Forgive my rudeness," the man says to the heroes as he hugs Sarah, "I sometimes forget my manners where my family is concerned. I am Zepharon, Lord Wizard of Hearthorn."
-----The wizard watches with an amused grin as Sol leaps into the saddle. As the young man rides off, Zepharon turns to the mounted guards and says, "Six of you ride after the young gallant! Make sure he is safe and follow him as if he were your captain! We shall wait here and return to Hearthorn before the sun sets!" Six of the guards then ride off after Sol.
-----Upon Sol dashing off, Sarah smiles and leans her head on her father’s shoulder. "He's always doing that." She says, in a way of explanation. "He's soooo brave." She sighs and smiles after the departing figure of Sol.
-----The Lord Wizard turns back to the others. "Are any of you hurt?" he asks. He then looks over the clearing that had been bleached a dull color by the Darkness. "What manner of evil did you vanquish here?" A blue glow begins to grow in his eyes as he examines the surroundings with interest.
-----Raven offers his hand to Zepharon and says, "Thanks for saving our skins. Your timing was perfect." Raven motions towards Sarah, "Thanks to your student, we were able to stop some dark force that was locked in a huge gem. The evil power was spawning undead and was just being a general pain in the arse. One of the dark ones that just rode off have the gem now."
-----Raven sees Sol ride off, "Are any of your men trackers? I would hate to have that dark hearted scum get away."
-----Sarah drops her arm around her father’s waist as the two walks toward the party. She responds to him, "Some parts of it were awful. Did you see what happened to Gabe? I've been blasted with magic, cast into darkness and charmed by evil. It’s been really hard." Sarah pauses, "But it’s also been really fun! We've saved countless people from undead and abominations and priests of Noctura! Or...at least they did. I tried to help as much as I could."
-----Zepharon enthusiastically grasps Raven’s hand in his own. "It is truly an honor to meet you face to face, Raven," he says with admiration, "Truly an honor to meet all of you. It is also good to see you again, Thalog." The wizard nods toward the young mage.
-----Zepharon turns back to Raven, "Yes, some of the guards are scouts. They assisted me in locating you here."
-----The wizard smiles broadly at Sarah and says, "My daughter is more correct than she perhaps realizes. There has been great evil at work in the surrounding countryside since before the beginning of the New Year. The majority of that evil has been foiled due to all of you. Though some evil ones remain in the aftermath, I feel their activities will soon be silenced."
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