Session 6: A Traitor Unmasked session report

General Summary

A crumby trail

After reconvening at their bunk house, the friends of Lookout's Landing decide to follow the bread crumbs of the acid-etched dagger used to backstab the guards during the orc raid.

• A gnome alchemist named Primyra (from Primium Contents) tells them the acid was sold to Milo Morin, a Bastion. She definitely won't tell anyone about the acid (Relic thinks she definitely will).
• They tell Brevin about Milo, and he confesses he doesn't know what to do or who to trust. He sends his dogs out to find Milo while he sends the team to the South to find Badraa.
• They find Badraa yelling as she comes out of a southern watchtower. Milo hasn't shown up for his shift and gets stony faced to hear that Milo may be the traitor. She gives the group directions to Milo's house and blows a cadence on her warhorn to call the Bastions to report.
• At Milo's house, things are sparse. There is a footlocker with his belongings - clothes, a spellbook, a sewing kit and the like. Gnarles finds a loose floorboard with a hand-sewn two-headed doll inside. The doll has a few drops of blood on it and feels desecrated to Xabu. Badraa's horn starts sounding again.
• Back to Badraa, the group explains what they found at his house. The rest of the Bastions are lined up there and one of them (Kerchak) explains that he saw Milo heading south into the jungle late in the morning. He thought Milo was patrolling. Badraa asks the heroes to track down Milo because she doesn't know which of the Bastions she can trust (they shuffle uncomfortably at this).
• They go into the southern jungle, tired but determined to get answers into the dilemma of the traitor at Brevin's Gap...

Break!

An Evil Unmasked

As the group travels South toward the same cave they saw the mutilated baboons, Althea sends Seowin ahead to scout the area. The familiar sees nothing outside the cave, but eventually hears a voice inside. Seowin goes closer to investigate, She sees two bodies on the ground of the cave behind a standing figure in a robe and hood. The figure hears Seowin and looses two bolts of eldritch energy, killing the familiar.

The party approaches the cave, with Gnarles and Relic leading the way. At the edge of their vision, a robed figure with orange glowing eyes says "This island belongs to Demogorgon!" and a chorus of gross monkey sounds begins from behind him. The sound is from 5 zombified and mutilated baboon corpses that proceed to attack our heroes! The sound of two chattering and maddening voice rises in our heroes minds, making Xabu and Stumps reel in madness for several moments. Gnarles and Relic hold the line with the zombies, until Milo pulls back his hood, smiles, and throws a fireball at the group! Althea and Stumps both get thrown to the ground unconscious. A fierce and bitter battle ensues, ending with Milo being trapped in the back corner by a gust of wind from Dances on Stumps and an angry Gnarly Toes. Milo goes invisible and attempts to sneak out of the cave, but Gnarles had cleverly cast see invisibility before the battle, and clubs Milo against the back wall, unconscious.

The party reels after the battle, and discover:

1. The bodies are two townspeople, Arlahn and Charis
2. Arlahn has a scar on his side in the shape of a two-headed humanoid, and was stabbed in the heart.
3. Charis' throat was slit and looks surprised. She is wearing the dress Stumps made for her and does not have a scar like Arlahn
4. There is a bottle of half-drunk liquor outside, with two disheveled bedrolls.

They rouse Milo and question him. He vaguely threatens them and doesn't seem to care about his fate. He does say that he "has seen Xabu in a dream." and claims to know that Xabu kills him. He says that he was told about the glory of "his prince, Demogorgon" by a yellow-eyed scion in his dreams. He calls both himself, Arlahn and Charis, and the orcs 'pawns' in Demogorgon's game. He also promises that it doesn't matter what happens right now - you can't change what is already done and that he will be back even if he is killed.

Before he says any more, Stumps walks up to him and slits his throat. Milo sputters and chokes, the corner of his mouth curling in a smile as he looks at Xabu while he dies. The team goes back to Brevin's Gap to report to Brevin and Badraa.

Three Masks

Althea tells the group of her appointed meeting with Usalea regarding the thieve's guild at Brevin's Gap, and Dances on Stumps secretly tags along. Althea Goes to the Norward Gaze and finds two masked individuals who ask for damaging information from Althea as an act of trust. They remove their masks as a sign of goodwill, revealing that one of them is Usalea and one of them is Maeral of the Bastions! Althea tells them embarrassing stories about herself, but Maeral insists on something juicier... about Lookout's Landing. As Althea flounders and bluffs about how strong the Landing is and could never be attacked, Usalea waves Maeral off and says "that's good enough, Trig."

Althea learns:

• There are two ways to get to the orc camp, one through the forest to their main camp, and a tunnel by the water (which is where the captives were taken).
• Usalea knows of three orc deities. Gruumsh the leader is god of hatred and slaughter. Luthic is god of fertility, healing, females and servitude. Ilneval is god of tactics and warfare.
• A member of the masks was taken by the orcs, and the Masks want them back. Recognize them by tapping three fingers to your temple.
• The Masks do not believe in the system currently in place in Brevin's Gap, and will help their own get out of the lottery if they should so wish.

Althea is disappointed that she didn't learn as much as she wanted, and walks away from the group with a Mask of her own. As she goes back to the bunk house, she is tackled by Stumps who accuses her of selling out Lookout's Landing.

Missions/Quests Completed

Fate of Charis discovered   Identity of the traitor discovered   Demogorgon introduced.