MMC Summary: Session 30 - The Prince of the Sea

Present Party: Keviks, Lupan, Nana, and Wren.

Setting: The Xandan Sea, aboard the Midtian Navy's flagship: Idredia. The party is on their way to the island town of Aincour.

With Admiral Cromdor's assurance that the shifty tabaxi cabin boy was new to being directly under his command, the party grew more anxious. The admiral quickly produced the boy's file. His name was Seven Mice in the Wall - or more succinctly: Seven. He was ten years old. The party knew, because of Keviks and his backstory, that Erdia frequently made use of child soldiers. They also worried he wasn't a child at all; the look that Keviks described wasn't childlike.

Cromdor suggested that the party find another cabin boy - a special case, he called him, who the admiral fully trusted. His name was Rome, and he's an elf. He knew everything that was going on with those boys. Nana, Lupan, and Wren went to look for him. Keviks, Castilian, and Fang decided that they would keep eyes on the kids and note passing, just to see if anything changed.

Rome
Archfey Warlock of Lady
Sunshine, member of the
Midtian Riot Guard
(Art by Skunkyfly on
DeviantArt)

They found Rome tucked away in the corner of a lower deck, untangling rope, and recognized him immediately. When they were boarding the ship, one of the cabin boys had bumped into Fang and apologized, and this was that cabin boy. He looked to be around twelve or thirteen years old. He knew all of their names as well, right away.

When the party implied that he was in charge of the cabin boys, Rome insisted he wasn't. He just... knew a lot of things. In order to tell them what he knew, Rome had to explain why he was on the ship to begin with. Rome was in the navy, but he's also "an adventurer" and one with a mutual friend of the party's: Alaion, the former Erdian soldier turned spy for the Selection Party. They had reason to assume then that he, much like Alaion had been, was a member of the Midtian Riot Guard - a secretive order of adventurers that operated to keep Midtia safe. Rome even claimed to have trained Alaion. Right now, he was working for someone named "Pembrooke," who lived in Aincour and was also an "adventurer."

Rome had joined the navy two years ago, at the behest of Pembrooke, who was afraid that Erdian spies were infiltrating the kingdom. He'd been suspecting this for nearly a decade. Rome had actually been trailing Seven as a potential spy for the two years he'd been in the navy. Then, Alaion came to him and asked him to protect the party. Luckily, both Seven and the Selection Party were on the same ship. The admiral knew of Rome's identity, but not his mission; he was not allowed to ask.

When he was made aware of the notes, Rome sent a small ball of golden light with butterfly wings to inspect the children's things. If there were notes stashed anywhere, it would be with them. He also admitted that bumping into Fang had not been a ruse. He put a protection charm on him, and asked that the party not tell the prince. Now that they knew who he was, he didn't need more people knowing. He was a spy, after all. His job worked better when people didn't know that he was present.

Nana asked him, "Are you aware of another ship circling Jarna and Aincour that's flying the Erdian colors?"

Rome blanched and then sighed, putting his head in his hands. "Nope... That's... That is very not good. Especially considering that Saspar hates Erdia. They wouldn't just let an Erdian ship circle their capital city."

That was definitely very concerning.

Rome also mentioned to Lupan, "By the way, I just wanted to let you know, your sister says hello, and she loves you."

Lupan was shocked. "How do you know my sister?"

Rome offered for Lupan to sit across from him as he explained, "Your tribe has a very strong connection with the fey. So do I. I have my boss, Pembrooke, but I also have... another boss. And it is her job to bring people joy. She noticed that... your sister was grieving for you recently. She was upset, so my lady brought us together in the Dream Realm so I could help her. I do this a lot, it's very normal for me. I knew who you were at the time, but I... didn't say anything because it's not really my place to do that."

"Is she doing well?" Lupan asked. "And what about my mother?"

"Well, she seemed to be doing better after I spoke to her. And I don't really know about your mother. We didn't talk about her; we talked about you. Or more... she talked and I listened." He smiled. "Your sister is also in a unique position. She's being contacted by many creatures as she grows in power."

"Creatures?"

"Yes. Like my lady. They all want her."

"For what purpose?"

"The same purpose my lady has me for," Rome declared. "I'm a warlock. And they want her to be one too. She grows stronger and stronger every day." Rome extended his hands to Lupan. "Here."

When Lupan took Rome's hands, he watched them glow with golden light. Rome blinked, and his eyes too began to glow. Lupan felt a warm pressure over his shoulders and on his back, as if someone was leaning on him. There was even the feeling of a chin on his shoulder. There was no one there, but a deep part of Lupan knew that it was her. He cried, sitting there in the hold of this ship with his friends behind him. Rome moved so he sat beside Lupan, still holding his hands but now also leaning against him.

After several minutes, the pressure and warmth faded, and Lupan looked at Rome. "Thank you..."

"Of course. My lady brings joy, and so must I."

Lupan nodded, and as they were leaving, he called back to Rome, knowingly, "Tell Lady Sunshine I said thank you as well."

Rome beamed at Lupan. "I will."

~~~~~

Keviks kept a watchful eye on Seven, and noticed that he spoke with two younger children: a half-orc boy and a triton girl. After that, he passed another note, and then nothing else. Keviks had the idea that Seven knew he was being watched.

Royal Custodian Castilian
Nana's Eidolon
(Art by Danila Kalinin on
Art Station)

Nana's eidolon Castilian watched the note passing on the upper deck, and noticed that the notes always went through two people consistantly: a human boy, somewhere in his teens, and a half-elven girl who couldn't be older than nine or ten.

Lastly, Fang reported watching one of the kids carrying the notes, and he saw them give it to Lysander Soriena - the lieutenant in charge of the party. He'd also helped the party kill the yugoloths in the sea just outside of Lanti. Up to this point, they'd considered Lysander an ally. His older sister was even in the Selection.

As the party came back together to report their findings and talk about their next moves, Nana cast Detect Magic, to ensure they weren't being watched. As it turns out, they were. She could sense divination magic in the room, behind the admiral. She asked everyone to leave the office, and found that it was following them, specifically Prince Fang. She sent a quick Message to Wren, who used Dispel Magic, and the effect disappeared. Once it was gone, they discussed who on the ship might be able to do that - scry on them. They discussed the possibility of it not being anyone here at all, but as it turns out, the Master Shipmage had access to spells of a similar power. The admiral was willing to launch an investigation into his loyalty as well, in all this. He also said that it would be best to wait and do anything until the Prince of the Sea arrived on board and they rescued the naval ship that had been sunk.

Fang asked, "Why are you so insistent on waiting for him, this Prince?"

"Your Highness, he is the prince of the sea." Admiral Cromdor gestured out to the water surrounding them from the upper deck, and that realization dawned on the party. "He is very powerful. Nothing would dare attack this ship while he's on it - not creature, not pirate, not sailor."

They also discussed the potential of a different destination, either before or after Aincour. An Erdian ship circling their mortal enemy of Saspar's capital city was definitely a great concern. Not to mention, Saspar had the potential for being good allies, and they had access to a lot of information on magic and constructs. Aincour might also hold other traitors that those on the ship could talk to, but if they were detained before they hit land, then it is no longer a problem.

Crown Prince Steel "Fang"
of the Mountain
Tabaxi, age 18
(CUSTOM ART by
@WtfdoIdraw on Twitter)

Fang made the final decision: "Right now, I think we should go to Aincour. When we get to the sinking ship, we'll be closer to there anyway. Once we get on land, if everyone who we have suspicions of is detained, then we can consider ourselves safer there than here. When it comes to leaving again... we'll discuss that later. If we want to go to Jarna afterwards, I'm all for it. If the admiral says it's best to wait for the Prince of the Sea... then we wait."

~~~~~

In the meantime, the party kept a close eye on the crew. 

Wren had a brief conversation with the tabaxi captain of the marines on board, who didn't have much to do. They were there for protection of the ship. The captain had sailed with the admiral before. Wren inquired as to why his men seemed less enthusiastic than the sailors were about her performances.

The captain simply said, "Better that they're not distracted. We're the ship's fighting force, after all. If they're off listening to music, then they're not paying attention. No offense to you or your talent of course, milady."

Lt. Lysander Soriena of the
Midtian Navy
Wood Elf, age 102, physical
age 18
(Art by @Sonnet_Form on
Twitter)

Nana kept an eye on Lysander and even snuck Mond, her raven familiar, into his room one night. Inside was a bed with a drawer underneath and a small desk and chair. An attempt to open the drawer under the desk didn't work very well. From what little part of it Mond could open, Nana could see extra clothes and shoes inside. On the desk were several letters, mostly unfinished, to family and friends. There was one, tucked behind the others that was addressed to him, and smelled of roses.

Mond was able to hide under the desk without being noticed by Lysander when he returned. Lysander spent most of the time writing. He seemed to finish several letters, and then when he did, he sighed deeply. There was the sound of crumpling paper, and one letter was thrown across the room. After that, he climbed into bed.

Once he was solidly asleep, Mond pushed the letter under the door to Nana. It was the rose-scented letter she'd seen before. It was from a woman who seemed to miss Lysander very much. Her name was Roseanne. Other than that though, there wasn't much else to see.

~~~~~

The next evening, Idredia found the ship it was looking for: a navy ship that was still up above the water, but only by magic. Otherwise, it was completely inoperable. Around fifteen sailors were rescued, and they'd only been kept alive at this point due to the kindness of the merfolk. The sea around this area was glowing a bright pink color.

Levistoren, the Prince of
the Sea
Merfolk Archfey
(Art by loopsinthesky on
Tumblr)

The pink glow coalesced into one glowing spot on the port side of the ship. From this spot, a merman leapt into the air. He had pale skin, a slender body, and his tail had four fins near the top of the torso. The tail was also glowing, as well as the tips of his curly brown hair. While in the air, the fins on his tail seemed to move up to his back, and they turned into fairy wings. He lowered himself to the deck gracefully, legs replaced his tail, and magic wove a bright pink, glowing gown on his body.

Behind him leapt another figure, much larger. This merman was toned and muscular. He carried two scimitars, one in each hand. His tail was long, black, and pointed at the end. His hair was short and black, and his face was incredibly stern. When he landed on the deck, his tail also changed to legs, and magic wove him a black garment around his waist.

Kyla, the mermaid who'd been guiding the ship to this location, approached the Prince of the Sea, and he placed his arm around her. He began to make his way to the admiral, but stopped when he noticed Lupan. Lupan had dropped to one knee, out of respect.

The Prince beckoned Lupan to look at him, and when Lupan did, he noticed that the Prince's eyes, too, glowed a beautiful pink. He seemed amused, and delighted by Lupan's gesture. He continued on his way, and the party followed. The admiral took the Prince's report of what happened: pirates. Not any of the local pirate - Leo Bluffs, a.k.a. Captain Damned's - people though. The Prince assured the Admiral that this ship's passage, from this point forward, would be peaceful.

Fang was also introduced to the Prince of the Sea. No one dealt in names when it came to merfolk and fey creatures, so the Prince of the Sea granted Fang the title of "Prince of the Lion Ships," given that the Midtian flag was that of a roaring lion. In greeting, the Prince kissed Fang's hand.

"Lachlan"
The Prince of the Sea's
silent bodyguard
(Art by KKKKITTI on
DeviantArt)

Kyla left the ship, while the Prince and his mysterious guard stayed behind. Wren sang the mermaid shanty she'd learned from Kyla to him, and he was quite impressed. Lupan and Nana spent some time inquiring about merfolk in general, and about some things in the area. They learned the "name" of the Prince's bodyguard: Lachlan, and that Lachlan couldn't speak, at least outside of telepathy.

The Prince of the Sea had known Lupan for a very long time, or about him at least. He knew what he was meant to do, which surprised Lupan. Apparently news travelled fast in Alfheim, but the Prince corrected him.

"It's not that news travels fast. It's that time is either slower or faster. The first time I heard of you was two hundred years ago. And the last was mere hours before."

Lupan felt as though it would be useless to try and comprehend how fey time rules worked.

Nana also asked about the extent of the Prince's power. "Can you see everything that goes on in your sea?"

"No, my power is more... raw. I could destroy cities in my sea, or bordering it, if I wanted to."

The party was suddenly more aware of why no one tried to sink a ship with the Prince on it.

Nana asked about the ship they'd heard about, and the X they'd seen on the map, in the sea.

"The X you speak of is one of our cities."

"And how does one get there?"

"Do you breathe?" he asked, looking at her metal form.

"No."

He smirked. "Then jump."

In terms of his opinions on the ship, he had very little. The merfolk were always cautious about new ships in the water. When the flag of the Erdian navy was described to him, and knowing that this new ship had that flag on board, it didn't change his opinion. In no uncertain terms, the Prince claimed that his people didn't work with the Erdian navy at all.

Additionally, the Prince granted them a benefit, if they were so worried about sailing this sea with this ship around: "If you find that you need help, my people are friends of the Lion Ships. And I like you. I'd hate to see you die."

He walked to Lupan, since he had the strongest connection to fey and Alfheim in the party, and told him, "While you are in my waters, you may speak my name once and I will come to aid you." He leaned in, and whispered, "Levistoren."

He pulled away, kissing Lupan's cheek as he did. The party now had a powerful oceanic ally.

~~~~~

ART LINKS

https://www.deviantart.com/skunkyfly/art/The-rising-sun-740985654

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

https://twitter.com/wtfdoidraw

https://twitter.com/Sonnet_form/status/1074747966949224448

http://www.wysp.ws/locks/

https://www.deviantart.com/kkkkiti/art/Merman-478236627