Session 3: Council

The first to arrive after Jini was the Prince's Chancellor, Godfrey Shelvey. An wiry old man in his sixties, Godfrey had never gotten along well with Jini, and often disapproved of her antics and influence on Meriel. After Jini began to display magical talent and an affinity for necromancy, Godfrey was one of the loudest of her critics. When he saw her sitting at the table, he gave a small huff and turned to his papers.

The next to arrive was Gareth Sevier, the Captain of the Guard. A large man with broad shoulders, a booming voice, and deep black hair, Jini had always admired Gareth. He was a true "man of action", always ready to take on any challenge if it would protect the city and its people. Although he was certainly hot-headed, Gareth was no fool, and had a brilliant mind for tactics. When he entered, he looked unusually tired, and had clearly come straight from the walls. He immediately began his report to Prince Beleret.

Meanwhile, Gerrart came in and immediately walked over to sit next to Jini. He patted her gently on the shoulder and leaned over to whisper in her ear. "Glad to see you haven't picked a fight with old Shelvey yet."

Before she could retort, the final member of the war council entered the room. As breathtaking as always, Lady Corine LeBlanc seemed to glide into the study. Her brilliant golden hair was currently pulled back into a sensible bun, and her robe was a simple green without adornments, but she kept an air about her that would make her fit in with any noble gathering. Lady LeBlanc was famous throughout Khomand for her beauty, but also for being the most powerful magician anyone had heard of in generations. As Jini gawked, Corine caught her eye, gave a quick grin, and winked mischeviously. Jini grinned back and settled in, as she knew this would be an interesting meeting.

Prince Beleret called the meeting to order, and began going over the details of their supply situation and what had occurred over the last day. With some input from Chancellor Shelvey, he estimated that they had enough food and water to last for about one month under this siege. Captain Sevier reported that the men's morale was beginning to improve for the moment, although the sudden unexpected invasion and the unusual behavior of the monstrous horde had shaken them. Gerrart offered for consideration that any amount of time holding out wouldn't matter unless they could get aid from the outside. Prince Beleret asked Lady LeBlanc if she was able to communicate with anyone from the Brotherhood of Arcane Studies, but she had been unable to reach anyone. It seemed as though someone incredibly powerful was working a magic to cut off all scrying, telepathic communication, and any other means she had come up with for getting word out. After some additional discussion, Prince Beleret offered his evaluation of the situation. He identified three possible outcomes for the siege:

Predictably, this caused a massive uproar. The shouting and arguing carried on for quite some time before Prince Beleret was able to again take control of the conversation. He informed them that his plan was clear: he needed to get a few trustworthy volunteers to attempt to either break through or sneak through the enemy lines to get help. At this, Jini immediately volunteered her services, such as they were. Praising her greatly, Prince Beleret asked that she and Gerrart meet with him after they had prepared what they needed. He also asked Captain Sevier to find any additional volunteers from among the fighters who had been trained as scouts.

While Prince Beleret and his advisors argued over the remaining details of supply and positioning defenders, Gerrart and Jini left to grab their equipment and prepare for the mission. While he was venting his frustrations with the situation to Jini, Gerrart let slip that he recognized the creatures that Jini hadn't. He called them demons, and said that the remaining defenders stood no chance of survival without help. Jini was taken aback, because she had never seen him quite so frustrated or hopeless before. After reassuring him that they would be able to overcome any challenge together, Jini sent him to gather any supplies he needed.

Jini hurried to the room she had rested in, gathered up her few belongings, and headed out to search for Meriel. She found the young lady of the castle scrubbing dishes with the scullery maids. Jini found she was unable to resist teasing her friend about her sudden change in interests. She told Jini that she was going to be attempting to sneak out and get help, and that she'd be gone for a while. At this news, Meriel began to panic, but some timely comfort and a quick hug from Jini diverted the crisis. The friends tearfully said their goodbyes, and Jini headed out.

Jini then stopped in at the armory to see if there were any supplies she could get. She asked if any healing potions were available, but the quartermaster informed her that healing potions were reserved for members of the guard, by order of Prince Beleret. Slightly frustrated, she then asked about trading her mace, leather armor, and some gold for a couple of daggers, some rations, and a leather brigandine. At first, the quartermaster wanted more gold than she had available, but Jini was able to strike a bargain with him in the end.

Finally, Jini joined Gerrart and Prince Beleret outside the Prince's study. The prince informed them that there was a secret passage leading out of the castle, that once had led into the surrounding woods. Over the generations, Corslia had grown further and further outward. Now, the passage fed into the sewers under the city. Prince Beleret estimated they would be able to secretly travel underground through about half the city, but had no real suggestions for getting the rest of the way out. Jini was very worried about moving forward without any healing potions for emergencies, and began to speak out when Prince Beleret presented them with a few rations, healing potions, and crossbow bolts. With this, the companions were ready to venture forward...