TPW Summary: Act III, Scene v - Sessions 7 & 8

Act III: The Olden Days and the Next Generation

Scene v: The Grandmaster's Election

Present Party: Athena, Nytra, and Sylyeras.

Setting: The city of Jarna, capital of the kingdom of Saspar. Very briefly: the port city of Sevord in the kingdom of Stovald, across the Northwest Sea.

After receiving Nytra's mysterious gift, Sylyeras contacted his ship, and asked if they could make haste to the port of Delasta in Saspar. It'd take them 3 days from where they were in the Xanden Sea to the west, but it was possible. Sylyeras knew that Harry needed to leave as soon as possible at this point, as much as it broke his heart to admit it.

Puck
Satyr, Archfey Warlock of
The Green Lord
(Art by phil-cho on
DeviantArt)

Finn returned the next morning with a satyr friend of his from the Feywild that the party had met before: Puck. He knew his way around many plants, which could prove useful if the party intended on making some kind of antidote to the poison that the Dusk was using. 

He was able to completely replicate samples of these plants. He informed the party that he'd have no clue how to go about making an antidote. A poisoner would though, especially one who was familiar with these plants and methods, but really anyone would do.

"Do we have any poisoners we trust?" Nytra asked Finn.

Finn shook his head. "It's a bit difficult to find a trustworthy poisoner, and I don't have many connections to those types of people."

With samples that Puck enchanted to last, they at least had somewhere to start.

Ego LaFontaine
Gnome Arcane Trickster / Wizard
Lieutenant of The Dusk
Candidate for Grandmaster of
Saspar
(Art by Mike Peterson)

This next day brought Pharius's first match against Razura Montague: a half-orc artificer. With the help of the scroll of Heat Metal the party had given him and the training he'd received from them, he won pretty handily. Unfortunately, the Dusk's candidate, Ego LaFontaine, also won his next match. Finn had been waiting to hear from the retiring grandmaster and his former party member, Simon, about Ego's status in the election. He was a cultist; the party was hoping that the bureaucracy would win out. Only Nytra and Athena went to the duels. Sylyeras opted to stay at the house with Harry, just in case.

During the series of matches, the party noted that they were being watched. Five people in generic adventuring gear were nearby, taking note of them. Through telepathy, they made a plan to exit quietly, split up, and then try to either find somewhere else to stay or make their way back to the house without being caught.

Athena managed to duck into a store and make some excuse about an ex-boyfriend following her. The shopkeeper was more than happy to help her sneak out the back, and she managed to lose her pursuers.

Nytra didn't appear to be being pursued at all. One of the duelists had caught her attention: Kelryn Sequestriel, a drow swarmkeeper ranger with a swarm of spiders. He also appeared to have caught the attention of several people who'd seen the duels. Nytra found a like-minded fan, an elf named Rowan who was a student at the Premiere Academy, and the two of them set up plans for a good night together. Nytra even went to find drinks before hand, and also came across Kelryn. It took some convincing, but she also managed to convince him to join her and Rowan that night.

~~~~~

Pharius Veladorn
Drow War Mage Wizard
Odette's Father & Candidate
for Grandmaster of Saspar
(Art by Shinyno on Tumblr)

In the morning, the group had reconvened back together for breakfast. Pharius had even joined them, to give them updates on the tournament. His only match today was against Northina Selezi, a half-elven bard. Nytra would meet up with Pharius's girlfriend, Minnie, and the two of them would make sure the tournament ran smoothly.

The party wanted to check on the status of Ego being in the election, and would send Finn and Sylyeras to do so. Both of them had been present when the Dusk killed many Midtian nobles and three royals. Sylyeras had even fought Ego briefly alongside Boris before he escaped. Athena would take care of Harry while Sylyeras was gone.

Sylyeras was introduced to Grandmaster Qlark, an owl-like aarakocra. He was the retiring grandmaster, and seemed to know Finn fairly well. The updates he'd given about Ego weren't promising though.

"He's a Sasparian citizen, and he's being backed by two very powerful families here in Jarna," Qlark explained. "One of them is even the founders of the Sasparian Star. I can get you the names of the backers and you can talk to them if you want."

They both agreed to that, and then Sylyeras asked, "How much would a witness testimony hold up? I've fought this guy; I saw what he did in Midtia."

"Well, one testimony could be falsified... but several might prove a better case. And, of course, hard evidence will never hurt either."

With that information, and with Finn unable to use his fast methods of communication, it was thought that using Puck as a teleportation guide could be helpful. If Finn could collect testimonies from Midtians and bring them back, it could help a lot.

Sylyeras also asked Qlark if he could peruse his library. The grandmaster agreed, as long as Sylyeras didn't take any books without asking first.

- He looked for anything regarding Eldath, the goddess of peace, hoping to learn more about her. However, it seemed the grandmaster's library was more focused on the arcane sects of magic, rather than the divine.

- Sylyeras also looked for books about Cthulhu and his "kin." He'd done research like this before, but now he had a special interest in seeing if anyone else had ever been possessed as he was now. He found nothing that he didn't already know, and a short book of accounts of encounters with Old Ones. Flipping through that, he didn't find much in the way of knowledge or comfort. Just more affirmations that he might go insane if this keeps up.

- He also stumbled across a book called Piracy Through the Ages: 7th edition by Cornelius Robuston. The book was a history of the pirate lords, with the most recent addition being Captain Astra: Ariel's former captain.

- When Sylyeras asked Qlark about this book, he said that Cornelius was actually a good friend of his. He'd been writing about pirates for decades. He was out now actually, working on the newest edition of his book.

- Upon request, Syl was able to take the book back to the house with him. 

~~~~~

Horace Undersong
Halfling Celestial Warlock
Candidate for Grandmaster
of Saspar
(Art by d-torres on Deviant
Art)

Meanwhile, Nytra and Minnie watched as Pharius won his second match. Ego's match was after his, and he was up against Horace Undersong, one of the more popular candidates. He was a halfling warlock. The two of them fought and it was very close, but then...

Ego lost.

Minnie, knowing the situation with the Duck, was shocked. "He's not going to make the top eight..." 

Nytra was immediately worried. "If he's not going to make the top eight this way... then he's going to find a way."

The two of them went immediately to Pharius. Luckily, he was alright and recovering from his match. He was concerned, however, about Northina Selezi - his opponent.

"She still hasn't woken up. I didn't think I hurt her that badly..."

Unfortunately, Pharius couldn't go back to the house with Nytra and the others. He was going to dinner with his family, celebrating that he'd gotten into the top eight. Pharius was able to get a message to Athena and Finn, telling them what had happened.

Harry
Human Death Cleric of Bhaal
Former lieutenant of
The Dusk
(Art by AnnaHelme on
DeviantArt)

Around that same time, it seemed that Harry had received a message from The Dusk via Sending. Up to this point, he'd been lying and covering for where he was. Now though, he didn't know how to answer when Ego chewed him out for not being there to help him win. He looked to Athena, terrified and unsure of what to do. He was so sure he was in danger. Athena also made sure to contact Sylyeras and Finn.

Everyone went back to the house. Pharius had assured Nytra that he'd use Arcane Recovery to get some spells back, so he could contact the party if needed. Much to Sylyeras's dismay, it seemed like the best course of action was to try and get Harry out of Jarna as soon as possible. Athena contacted Puck, and he arrived shortly. He couldn't take Harry to Zenika, but he could take him to the city of Sevord, across the sea. It'd take Sylyeras's ship about the same amount of time to get there; they'd just have to adjust course south. Sylyeras would go too. At this point, they were a day and a half through their journey. Another thirty to forty hours, and Harry would be on Sylyeras's boat. Safe, or as safe as he could be anyway.

Puck teleported Sylyeras and Harry to a cozy cottage in Sevord. Once there, he put up a couple wards to keep them safe.

Harry admitted, "I'm worried that you came, because I don't want you caught up in this... but thank you. Because I don't think I want to be alone right now."

Sylyeras also made sure, while he was out in Jarna with Finn, to grab more diamond dust and a pair of Sending Stones for them. Harry was ready to go when the pirates arrived.

~~~~~

Back in Jarna, Nytra, Athena, and Finn discussed their next move. They also roped in Finn's friend, Simon, for an extra pair of eyes and ears. Finn got his hands on a copy of the afternoon paper, which displayed the top eight who were sure to move to the next phase of the election. Now, the tournament was all about boosting popularity, rather than winning to move on. There was a scoring system in all this as well. So far, the leaderboard was promising:

1. Pharius Veladorn (War Mage Wizard): 32.9

2. Horace Undersong (Celestial Warlock): 32.8

3. Tide Graynil (Aberrant Mind Sorcerer): 32.3

3. Kelryn Sequestriel (Swarmkeeper Ranger): 32.3

5. Divia Vakume (Echo Knight Fighter): 31.6

6. Arcana Isoldune (Clockwork Soul Sorcerer): 31.2

7. Amarius Mallory (College of Eloquence Bard): 30.8

8. Northina Selezi (College of Lore Bard): 30.2

9. Ego LaFontaine (Illusion Wizard): 30.0

With Ego in ninth, all he'd have to do is eliminate someone in the top eight. The party reasoned that the two at the bottom were the most susceptible. Unfortunately, Northina's condition had also made the front page; she still hadn't woken up after her match with Pharius. The party wondered what would happen if Northina died. It wouldn't look good for Pharius at all.

Northina Selezi
Half-Elf College of Lore Bard
Candidate for Grandmaster of Saspar
(Art by @gigi_avila on Twitter)

Amarius Mallory
Tiefling College of Eloquence Bard
Candidate for Grandmaster of Saspar
(Art by Ernesto Irawan on Art Station)

Nytra and Simon went to the Mallory household, and claimed to be there for security purposes. They were admitted in, and assured Amarius that right now, it was more for precaution than anything. 

Athena and Finn had to fight their way through reporters to get to Northina, who was with her grandmother at the moment. The poor woman definitely seemed worried about her granddaughter but Athena could tell there was more to it than that. Athena attempted Greater Restoration, which seemed to help Northina immensely. Athena determined that she'd likely been cursed. Now, however, she was cured.

Athena and Finn escorted her and her grandmother back to their home, explaining the security concern. They were also allowed into their home for the night, just in case.

Northina even asked Athena, briefly, about Odette, if she was her daughter. Athena simply nodded, and left it at that.

In their respective houses, Nytra and Athena set up watches with their Chroma Conqueror companions. The night had been suspiciously quiet.

~~~~~

ART LINKS

https://www.deviantart.com/phil-cho/art/Pan-NeOlympus-commission-696338054

https://studio12point.blogspot.com/2019/07/d-character-art-halfling-rogue.html?spref=pi

https://shinyno.tumblr.com/post/168555192674/commission-for-stelera-of-their-dd-oc-cropped

https://www.deviantart.com/d-torres/art/Rayet-the-Blue-435076910

https://www.deviantart.com/annahelme/art/Rikko-858753094

https://www.artstation.com/artwork/noe9E

https://twitter.com/gigi_avila/status/1275117539534782464