Present Party: Keviks, Lupan, Nana, and Wren.
Setting: The town of Riverside, briefly, but mostly the southern port city of Lanti, in Midita. This is Wren's hometown.
After making their decisions about what to do with the staff they found, the party opted to leave Riverside quickly, and continue to Lanti, knowing that they needed as much time as possible to figure out the Erdians' plot.
On the way, Nana received a very short message via Sending from Boomer, the Warforged Wizard from Finch's adventuring party. He informed her that Jack - the Erdian prisoner they'd captured - had escaped the church of Heimdall. He said that there was a search party looking for him, and that he would keep her updated. As of the end of session 16, they've heard nothing.
Lupan also took the time to ask their new staff (who I'll refer to as "Axel" considering that's the name of the legendary hero who is possessing the staff) a few questions, specifically about his upbringing in Alfheim: the land of the fey. Lupan's tribe in Isverden had a very strong connection to Alfheim and Lupan had always wanted to go. Overall, Axel seemed to have mixed feelings about Alfheim, and there was a lot Axel couldn't say, simply because of his limited communication. Axel could not speak. He could only make illusory projections of people, things, or places. The party had discovered later that he could create parchment and conjure words on it, but Common was not Axel's first language, and his reading and writing skills in the language were not very good. However, enough of the party understood either Draconic or Sylvan, which he was much more comfortable with.
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| Midtia, and its surrounding countries The party has just arrived in the city of Lanti (Map made by me, using Inkarnate) |
On the evening of Freysin 1st, they arrived in Lanti. Being the second largest city in Midtia, even this late, there were people out and about. Shops were in the process of closing, people were heading back to their homes for dinner. Despite the late hour though, music could be heard in the streets and on their way to their destination, the party spotted multiple buskers, playing instruments on street corners. The city itself had brightly colored flags that were strung across the streets for decoration, some even bearing the Midtian crest.
Wren's family - the Mulcasters - had a large estate on the west side of the city. She was invited to attend her older brother, Orion's, engagement party on the 7th. He was marrying an Erdian woman, who was the daughter of an Erdian general that Keviks knew from his time in their army. They debated staying there, but wondering how safe it would be and wanting to keep up appearances, the party opted to go to their original destination: the Cromdor Estate.
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| Mirabelle Cromdor Human, age 20 (Art by Svetlana Tiaga on Artstation) |
- Mirabelle had written to Fang a month before his 18th birthday, and told him that she might not be in the Selection anymore. He had assumed that she might be getting engaged soon, and she said...
- Apparently, her father had been in talks with the Mulcasters regarding a potential marriage to Orion. However, they didn't really pan out, and she claimed not to know why.
- She'd met Vekea - Orion's fiancée - only a couple times, in passing. She'd seen them interact, and she was sure that they weren't in love.
- She expressed some slight concern about Orion: that he hadn't been the same since the engagement. Overall, he seemed so much more tired.
While the rest of the party took some time to pick out clothes for the engagement party, Nana wanted to check in with the Horizon Walkers Guild, thinking that there would be a job available to help the party acquire some more funds. The guild did have a job available, but it was a rather dangerous one, involving two fiends - a Cannoloth and a Merrenoloth - that were out in the bay. The party considered taking on this job, but were a bit too concerned about what the Erdians might be plotting.
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| Finnegan "Finch" Pomeroy Human College of Whispers Bard (Art by Claparo-Sans on DeviantArt) |
Rather than stay at the Cromdor Estate, Wren made her way to her family's home. One of the servants informed her that they would let her family know she'd arrived, and that she would be able to see them at breakfast, given that most of them had retired for the night at this point.
On her way to her room, she stopped in her tracks. Coming from another hallway, intersecting paths with her, was Alaion Eleneth - a known member of this invasion force. He was dressed in some kind of uniform: black with small silver epaulettes and two rows of buttons down the center of his jacket. There were vertical red lines along the side of his trousers. He stopped as well, but only for a moment before continuing on his intended path. Wren attempted to follow him, and walked into one of the spare rooms that he waved her into. When the door closed, she was enveloped in darkness, but only for a moment before she cast Dancing Lights.
Alaion stood before her with his hands up, requesting to talk and offering information. Most of the information he gave her were things Jack had already told Keviks, however there were two other key pieces.
- Orion wasn't well, at least not physically, and Alaion did not know why. He also mentioned that Orion had been helping the Erdians, but he also didn't know why he was doing that either. He'd only been here since this morning.
- Jack got the message to Xade that Keviks was allegedly on their side, but "When we contacted The Boss, we were told that Keviks had to have been lying." Their one potential point of deception had just been closed.
Alaion Eleneth (aka Terrowin
Haelond)
Half Elf
Member of the Midtian Riot Guard &
Erdian Army Lietenant
(Made by me, using Heroforge)
Wren asked him why he was giving her this information; what did he want?
Alaion shook his head, and said, "I need to speak to Keviks."
Wren assured him that she would be able to arrange that. They could meet at noon tomorrow on the south side of her estate. Alaion agreed, and left the room through one of the servants' doors.
Wren went to sleep that night, knowing that devils slept in the same walls.
~~~~~
The next morning, Wren woke to have breakfast with her family. Quickly before that, she sent a note to Keviks to inform him about Alaion and his desire to meet. Then, she made her way to the dining room.
Her parents - Baron and Lady Mulcaster - were very happy to have her home. Her younger sister Cassandra, another Selection candidate, and Cassandra's twin brother, Sebastian, seemed just as eager to have her home.
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| Baron Reginald & Lady Eloise Mulcaster Wren's Parents (Art by Djamila Knopft) |
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| Cassandra Mulcaster Human, age 18 Wren's younger sister (Art by NibelArt on DeviantArt) |
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| Sebastian Mulcaster Human, age 18 Wren's younger brother (Art by Charlie Bowater) |
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| Vekea Keenstalker Orion's fiancee (Edited Art from "Fire Emblem") |
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| Nithea Keenstalker Goliath General of the Erdian Army (Art by Steve Argyle, for D&D 4e) |
Wren informed her parents that Crown Prince Fang would likely be attending the party, since she was part of the Royal Selection party, and her parents were honored to host him.
When breakfast finished, Orion asked Wren if he could speak to her regarding a performance during the party itself, and she agreed. They went to a parlor by themselves, where they spoke. Throughout the whole conversation, Orion was twisting the ring on his right hand. It was a silver ring with a blue gemstone. He claimed that it was his engagement ring, and told Wren that she could look at it but that he wouldn't take it off.
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| Orion Mulcaster Human, age 25 Wren's older brother (Art by Tina Yeh on Art Station) |
She did, and attempted to cast Dispel Magic at 4th level. She felt as though the spell worked, but the ring almost... repelled it. She could tell that the ring was magic; if it wasn't the spell wouldn't have failed in the way that it did. She just had no idea what it could do. Judging from several things though, it wasn't good. Orion was visibly tired. He looked as though he'd lost weight. When Wren took his hand, she noticed tremors that hadn't been there before. Looking in his eyes, she had the overwhelming feeling that he wanted to tell her something, but... wouldn't or maybe couldn't.
Wren guessed that Orion was in some type of hostage situation.
~~~~~
Meanwhile, the rest of the party set about their own mornings.
Fang talked to the party about including Mirabelle on what the situation was. He said that he trusted her, as a long-time friend, and that it couldn't hurt to have more allies. The party agreed, but cautiously.
Keviks and Nana went to get some supplies at the local magic shop, which was run by a deaf human gentleman, Oscar, who made a lot of good quality custom magic items. They picked up several scrolls, a bag of holding, and gauntlets of ogre power for Lupan. Nana had charged these items to the Royal Treasury, which was within her power, but not encouraged. With the money she spent, she's aware that she might not be able to charge the treasury again anytime soon.
Keviks got Wren's message, and made his way to the Mulcaster Estate to meet with Alaion. He sent Kindred, his wolf companion, with Nana and he gave her the staff as well, in case Alaion ambushed him. Nana also had her familiar Mond (invisibly) follow Keviks for the same reason.
Nana met up again with Lupan, to inform him, and found him having very productive dance lessons with Mirabelle and Fang. Lupan even invited Nana to dance for a moment, and they had a good time before quickly going to catch up with Keviks at the Mulcaster Estate. Due to Lupan's overzealousness, Nana wasn't able to check in with Keviks.
~~~~~
Wren allowed Keviks inside and walked him around the gardens for a bit, to make his presence seem less suspicious. She said that she would watch from another room, if she could.
Keviks was accosted by Alaion, wearing the same uniform Wren had seen him in, and he admitted that he wanted to help. He reminded Keviks of their meeting in Kystad, at his home. Alaion did hate Erdia, but his pregnant wife and two-year-old daughter were still in the city of Kystad, and he knew that they were in danger there. He claimed to be willing to spy for the party and relay any new information directly to them but he needed his family's safety ensured first. He could offer them some information now, but he couldn't do much more than that.
- There was going to be a meeting tonight at 10:00 pm where Alaion and Xade, who was also staying with the Mulcasters, would be informed of the plan. Alaion said that normally, Xade had the ability to see invisible things with his bow, but Vekea was forcing him to leave it behind and deattune to it.
- Alaion also knew that Spymaster Ego and Captain Eli Hawks were both traitors to the royal crown. No matter what, they couldn't be trusted.
- Ego was not currently in the palace. He's in Kystad, and he's looking for something. Alaion isn't sure what, but it worries him.
Beyond that and helping them get into that meeting, he couldn't do much - not with his family on the line. If the party could ensure their safety, he'd be able to do more. He and Keviks made plans to turn Mond invisible again later tonight, and have Alaion take him into the meeting so Nana could watch through Mond's eyes. Wren would give Mond to Alaion in her room, where he assured Keviks he could enter and exit unseen.
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| Xade Omiryn Drow Assassin (Art by ArtlessMaroon on Twitter) (She's also Wren's player!) |
Wren forced herself to be polite and keep up an act, but she found it to be difficult. She discovered he was going by "Lieutenant O'Malley." He'd asked Cassandra for a dance as Wren ushered her away.
She found herself back in the ballroom with her mother, where she was given the list of people to talk to and things to do on the night of the party, as per her high status and being a member of the host family. In all this party planning, which was causing visible stress to Lady Mulcaster, Wren couldn't help but notice that Vekea was absent. She seemed to have no part in planning her own engagement party, which was very odd, especially from a cultural perspective. Wren also received a copy of the guest list and seating chart for the party.
Wren made sure to check in with Keviks again not long after that. They went to leave the house just as Lupan and Nana were arriving. Now that the party was back together, they whisked themselves away to a tavern to talk about what they'd learned and go over the guest list. They learned several things from that list.
- Jack was going to be present at this party, and his last name was Fenwick.
- Charlie Valentoise and his older sister, Anabelle, from Kystad were going to be at the party.
- The full alias Xade was using was "Xavier O'Malley."
- Alaion was using the name "Alaion Eleneth" rather than "Terrowin Haelon" which was how Erdians had been addressing him.
- Vekea was from an order of knights that Keviks was familiar with - The Order of the Drake. They were very powerful, and served directly under Turnuroth, the leader of Erdia who was also potentially a reincarnated red dragon. Two other knights of that order would be in attendance.
- The guildmasters of both Hero's Way and the Horizon Walkers would be attending.
- Lindsey Woods, the receptionist at Hero's Way, who had several Simulacra that worked at every guildhall, had the title "Heroine of Civanta, Slayer of Lich King Heorot."
- Wren recognized the names of a few local high-end escorts that were attending with nobles coming from out of town. "Asmodel Friggson" and "With Cloves and Spices" were the two that she'd seen at several parties before.
- A knight of the crown was in attendance: Sir Confidence Milton. Nana had attended his knighting ceremony, and he'd been knighted for slaying many dragons. Lupan recalled that Fang's young cousin from Dragon's Valley, Flower, had trained under him for a short time.
- A woman by the name of "Delphine Brasidio" was in attendance, claiming to be "the legacy of Dragon Lancer Tylfine." Quest and Axel claimed that their party member, Tylfine, didn't have kids, but she had an older sister. It was still odd though. Last they remembered, Tylfine had been disowned by her family - prominent nobles from Joinam - when she joined their party.
- There was a small company of Erdian soldiers attending, one of whom Keviks recognized because they had joined the army under the same circumstances: Cleel Eraik. He was also an aarakocra.
- There was one Erdian lord in attendance - Ulair Sultasar - who had the title of "Slayer of Fey." Keviks had heard of his reputation; this man had killed an archfey. Between Lupan and Axel, the party learned that an archfey - The Lord of the Howling Wind - had been killed several centuries ago. The archfey was considered to be evil.
- Lord Sutasar's wife was also in attendance, and she was an Erdian councilwoman.
Right now, the party didn't know who had already arrived and who would be on their way. That was something to figure out at a later date.
Wren seemed to be very concerned about Orion, and she wanted to figure out what was going on. The party decided to go and meet him, and make the excuse that they would stay for dinner. Prince Fang accompanied them, both to stay in the loop and try to stay courageous in the face of danger.
They returned to the Mulcaster estate, where Fang, accompanied by Castilian for protection, went to meet with Baron and Lady Mulcaster. The rest of the party found Orion in the courtyard where the baron told them he was getting some air. They engaged in polite conversation, and Orion seemed especially interested in Nana being the court mage. He extended his right hand - the hand with the ring - to shake and she cast Identify.
The ring was part of a pair. The person wearing his ring had given up part of his free will to the person wearing the other - Vekea, presumably. She could give him any verbal order and he was required to carry it out. He is aware that he's been charmed, but cannot tell anyone, as Nana would quickly learn using Detect Thoughts. According to his thoughts, he'd been like this for two and a half months and no one had noticed. She also learned that the Mulcaster family were under threat of death, and that Orion, when asked any question by Vekea was required to tell her the truth. Nana took the time to inform Wren while Lupan and Keviks walked ahead with Orion to dinner
This knowledge was terrifying, but now at least they all had a better idea of the situation, and who or what they'd be dealing with moving forward.
~~~~~
ART LINKS
https://www.artstation.com/artwork/qArgRe
https://www.deviantart.com/claparo-sans/art/Edricane-547043882
https://twitter.com/djamilaknopf
https://www.deviantart.com/nibelart/art/Olivia-FFXIV-Com-792159212
https://www.instagram.com/charliebowater/
https://www.artstation.com/artwork/4blGw4
https://twitter.com/artlessmaroon
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