Through the Forest into Falon

General Summary

When we last left our heroes, they were escaping the collapsing tower from which they’d just freed the treacherous Princess Euna de Falondis. The Princess and her fiancé, Rhaegal Liadon, the self-named “Duke of the Ragged Tower,” had destroyed the Dragon Keep that had served as the Princess’s prison for several months just before fleeing the scene, presumably to the capitol city of Falon.   Unharmed, but certainly seething with anywhere from a desire for revenge to mere annoyance, our heroes set off toward the city. As they traveled through the forest, a group of goblins with their wolf companions caught them unawares, springing an ambush from the trees. A bloody fight followed, during which Allenia was flanked multiple times by the wolves and suffered grievous injury, Juniper caused a goblin to explode as he attempted to flee, and The Huntress took the final goblin attacker prisoner.   The goblin, who the party took to calling Little Goblin Boy, or Bill, due to his unpronounceable goblinoid name, suffered their questioning and suspicion, insisting that his raiding party had only happened upon them by chance, attacking opportunistically, as goblins are wont to do. Unconvinced and unwilling to allow Bill to return to his goblin family, the party forced him to come along on their way to the city.   Notably, during her watch one night as they traveled, The Huntress witnessed a gnoll warband migrating through the forest. Thankfully the party was not seen, or else they would have surely been slaughtered.   Upon reaching the City of Falon, our heroes found the gates flung open and a festival in full swing. The city appeared to be celebrating the return of its beloved Princess. The city guards informed the party that they could not bring their Little Goblin Boy into the city alive and the crown only paid bounties for dead goblins. And so they freed Bill the Goblin, who was promptly shot from the ramparts as he attempted to flee back into the forest.   As they entered the city, our adventurers found the festivities in full swing, with citizens singing and dancing in the street, colorful banners flying from the balconies, and gossip abounding. Caelwin and James immediately set to work playing for the crowds, gathering rumors, as the others searched for lodgings. The bard and rogue plied their shared trade on the streets and in the tavern they chose to stay at for the evening and learned several gems of information. The Princess had indeed returned to the city with her heroic savior fiancé, immediately sending the regent, Prince Edmund de Falondis, on a quest into the Feywild to find a suitable marriage gift for her bridegroom. How does one enter the Feywild? Oh, a druid can send you of course! Another tidbit of juicy gossip: Princess Euna had fired her father’s magic advisor as soon as she returned, prompting rumors that he had something to do with her imprisonment!   Hoping to gather more information and scout out possible allies in their crusade against Princess Euna, James disguised himself as his noble father, Lord Victor Gaspari, and went out into the city. Allenia accompanied him as an exotic elven… companion, which was a habit the lord was well known for. Together, the odd pair made their way to the temple district, noticing a preponderance of deep red banners flapping in the breeze.   While the two were gone, Juniper was struck with a mystical trance. Her vision consists of mysterious lights, boxes opening, and a path winding out in front of her. As the light fades and box in her vision closes, she returns to the waking world, confused, with far more questions than answers.   James and Allenia came upon a particular temple that was bustling with activity; scaffolding climbed its walls and there were a greater number of deep red banners flying from the doorways. They approached the man who appeared to be in charge of directing the construction, who was wearing similarly colored robes clasped with a golden triple triangle symbol. The priest “recognized” Lord Gaspari and cheerfully informed them that before them stood the newly blessed temple to Asmodeus, which was replacing the temple of Bahamut that had formerly stood there. He invited Allenia in particular to attend mass on Saturday to learn of the glory of their lord.   As they spoke, a guard approached, visibly confused and addressed James as his father, stating that he had just seen him… in a completely different part of the city. James attempted to cover for the slip, but was only mildly successful, so he and Allenia retreated to the tavern with alacrity, leaving a suspicious guard and priest of Asmodeus in their wake.   The party gathered in their tavern room, discussing the possible next steps, when something suddenly slammed into the window, cracking one of the panes. Startled, the party also noticed the sound of feet pounding up the stairs. Another CRACK and the window shattered, blowing glass into the room, just as the wooden door was slammed open to reveal two acolytes in deep red robes and the priest James and Allenia had encountered earlier. As the fight began, two imps Imp-5e.jpg climbed their way into the room via the broken window, and a spined devil flew dangerously around the heads of the combatants, sneaking pot-shots and generally being annoying.   As our heroes prevailed, the priest muttered a parting shot about “My Lady” and promptly died. The devils followed soon after, leaving our heroes wounded, but alive, wondering what horror would be assaulting them next.   Our heroes fled the city and its devilish patrons. They are left outside the walls of the capitol, wondering at their next move to combat the evil overtaking their land.

Missions/Quests Completed

Basic reconnaissance of the City of Falon in the wake of Princess Euna's return.

Character(s) interacted with

• First Acolyte Adrax