Glog chose to contact Peacelord Grim. While he knew a spymaster would have more information, he also knew that a true spymaster monitors the leader of his people as well as outsiders.
Once in contact with Peacelord Grim he would say “I am Glog of Or’lur, requesting permission to search a part of your lands to find the drum of a Drummer of the Thunder Gods who has been held as a political prisoner and was recently released into my custody.”
A message was returned. “An escort will be provided to help you. Part of the their job will be to make sure that you do not disturb any local archeological sites or take any atrifacts other thatn the ones you have claim to.”
Arriving at the location, the escort appeared to be running late. The pair were alone in the snowy wasteland with the dragon, Shaterwing. Hopefully the escort would catch up. Now the pair began their search but it seemed obvious she could not find where she burried it. She turned towards the Darmag Rider and said, “It has been thousands of years…the land looks so different. Any ideas how to find it? Any suggestions?”
Glog allowed the Leyas to flow through him, letting it fill his sight and searched for either a strong point of air leyas, or the oldest looking remains with a jaw.
If the remains are found first he will ask the escort if he may question that creature, and if given permission will use Flesh and Spirit Dweller to question it.
An Earther approached the two explorers. Walking up, They notice that this being is dressed only in a reddish tunic and breeches. As he nears, he calls out " Hello, I’m looking for a Mr Glog. I was sent to be his liason for an exploration or something. So what seems to be the situation."
The Drummer explained that they were looking for the drum as Glog’s eyes looked around the snowy landscape.
An Earther might describe these lands as Glacial Wastes. But they were far from lifeless wastes. Glog saw the auras of Tsoga hidden in the snow, and watched as one was able to catch a Talon Bat in its maw as the Talon Bat swooped down to catch an insect.
This was a place of life and struggle like all others. And as he watched he could easily make out an area that had more than its fair share of olgog remains piled into it in a way only Earthers did with mass graves. There were a good thirty bodies in there, and they were old, incredibly old. They were ancestor bones to some Olgog group he supposed.
“I found what looks like a small burial sight, maybe thirty gogs. They are old bones. I hope they may easy our search.” Looking right at the Earther Glog asked, “May I question them in the ways of the Gor’ab?”
[With no reply from the Escort, Glog would have to decide if he went ahead with the ritual, or simply stole one of the skulls to question later]
Glog would take the silence as granting permission as the are not moving or removing any historical items. as far as he knows it is not a historical site.
Glog reached down and dug out the skull closest to the surface. The bone was only a few shades darker than the white snow, and had the obvious bite marks caused by Olgog on Olgog violence.
As Glog began to use his skill over Flesh and Spirit, the skull began to speak. The voice was one of a young Olgog female and spoke with pride and ferocity.
She said, "I am Gornatla of the tribe of the Hobtla Mag’ol. When I was but a cub we came to these lands at the order of the great Hobtla Mag’ol. My parents were tasked with cleansing this region of the Gogs who served the Drummer Aufder. Drummer Aufder spoke long and at length about overthrowing the Great Hobtla Mag’ol. How could these Gogs not understand that the Great Hobtla Mag’ol saved us from being slaves of the Darmagtlas? That to overthrow Hobtla Mag’ol would leave us slaves of the Darmagtlas or the evil Sea Kings?
My parents served well, and the presence of the Drummer Aufder was finally snuffed out. But they found the Drummer Aufder was not the first to use his drum, it was a drum of an older sect of their faith. And its power was great, even able to call upon a Volcano to consume his enemies.
My father and mother fought over the Drum. One wanted to keep it secret and rebury it for future generations. One wanted to report it to Hobtla Mag’ol so that the Drum could be used against our enemies.
One tried to hide it, and the other came back with the full forces of the Hobtla Mag’ol to find it. They clashed and we all died.
But that was not the end of the Drum, it was taken from here…but to where is unknown to me.
The last I heard two messengers fled during the attack. The first fled to the west to Mt. Sandspire or to the Frozen Homeforge.
The second messenger fled to the lands where the Great Skychariots once landed (it seems she is talking about a location inside the Jemison Post city limits)."
Now Glog found himself with a challenging choice. Did he travel to the west to the lands controlled by PeaceLord Nuria and seek clues there? Or did he travel north a few miles to the Market of Jemison Post in hopes buying more information there?
The earther looked at Glog, “I’m ya want to head to the market I can gove ya an escort, else I am free to accompany ya wherever else ya might be headed in these lands. This bein your quest, the choice be on yous shoulders.”
“The market would be best. It’s within this territory.” Glog said as he replaced the skull and left the sight as they found it.
Flying onward on Shaterwing, Glog, Gornatla, and the Earther escort who had not yet introduced himself, they reached the lands of Jemison Post proper.
Once inside the rapidly growing city, Gornatla was impressed because no city had ever graced these ice fields before. The snowy ground was hard, and the blizzard fell all around them as the trio trecked into the Marketplace.
Only one quarter of the tents and shops were open, as most shuttered their doors during Blizzards. But luckily the Banking Guild office was open despite the terrible weather.
While Shaterwing hunkered down in a nearby Caravan depot, the trio met with Guilder Muin. The Banking Guilder looked at them in a cold and calculating way that made the temperature in the room get even colder than the outside blizzards.
Guilder Muin said, "Gentle Travelers welcome to the Markets of Jemison Post. I am Guilder Muin. Here all are welcome, but you have arrived in the middle of the all too common storms here. Most shops are closed and most folks trying to keep warm at home.
What is it you seek brave travelers? What brings you to Jemison Post?"
Gornatla smiled a toothy grin and said, “Guilder Muin, I search for a lost artefact of my tribe.”
She described it, and Muin’s eyes lit up. He smiled for the first time and said, "That is something I am quite aware of. It was recovered from one of the many dig sites around Jemison Post as we were expanding these locations under the leadership of PeaceLord Grim and Spymaster Lurtor.
The location it was unearthed from was a pit burial. It seemed to be a fight between the Pit Mongrels of the Cult of Ayx, and the White Furs of Hobtla Mag’ol.
Muin continued, "The Winners were neither side. It seems they were frozen to death by IceWryms. But during an excavation of the site, Jonas Kelpir, one of the expedition workers found the Drum. He began playing it so much, that the Foreman actually fired him.
He is probably either at the Cold Draft Tavern where he is known to drink himself blind or out at the old Cloning Facility owned by Captain Oliver and policed by the OtO and Lurtor clones…"
Gornatla asked, “Why this Jonas at the Facility?”
Muin seemed unsure saying, "He was hired on to play for the amusement of Captain Oliver. But I hear tell he isn’t very happy working there. So two locations that Jonas could be but I don’t know which one he will be at right now…
Did you have any other questions?"
[Questions for Guilder Muin or do you choose to leave an head for either 1) The Cold Draft Tavern or 2) The Captain Oliver Cloning Facility.]
“Guilder, do you know who leads these digs into the ruins? I ask as though olgogs are here none seem to know those trained to speak with the dead. The site we came upon was more than your description.” Glog would then discribe the interaction at the site and the information they had gained.
Guilder Muin said, “That doesn’t surprise me. The Hobtla Mag’ol predate the age of the Gor’ab in the Goblin Lands. In fact I hear tell that Emperor Hobtla Mag’ol himself won’t even allow his followers to learn the art of the Gor’ab, since it was taught by the Falosini Sovereigns to the Olgogs.”
Glog didn’t know about all that, he was under the impression the Gor’abs developed the technique themselves while under the leadership of the Falosini during the K’ias Wars. But it did explain why none of the White Furs knew how to talk to their ancestors.
Muin said, "The site you describe was a different site than the one that Jonas found the Drum at. It sounds like the site you found was a massacre further south, and the survivors moved north with the Drum until they were killed off by the Ayxian Pit Mongrels at the site that Jonas found the Drum. As for whom is leading the expeditions, I used to lead them myself.
I was there when Jonas pulled the Drum from the ground. My actual goal was finding a Key the Pit Mongrels allegedly stole from the Frozen Homeforge, but the Drum, the pottery and all the art objects were just an added bonus. "
Muin stopped and said, “I hope that helps?”
“It does. Thank you for your time. If you are in need of help with your digs, either someone to question the dead or Darmag to reach a site Or’Lur has myself or one of my students who can be called upon.” Glog said with a bow. From there Glog would seek out the Tavern, still having issues with “cloning” after Bartsport.