Session 18.5 Report

General Summary

Ava and Huugar are heading to the Tinker's Guild with Yemtoc. Along the way they stop at a food stall briefly, looking around Yemtoc is no where to be found. Not able to find him right away, they decide to head back to the Arcane Apothecarium, since they figure Yemtoc can take care of themselves. Entering the store, they are approached by Malakar Starcaster. Huugar asks for a pair of sending stones, and is able to procure them from the store. As they walk out of the store Huugar notices Seraphus, Priest of Moradain, frantically searching around. Approaching him, they learn that he has been searching for them. Nori, the acolyte who had accompanied them into the catacombs has fallen ill, and he asks them to come back with him to the church. The main doors of the church are closed, and they are led into a side path.Entering the church they find Nori struggling to breathe, eyes bright red, writhing in pain. Huugar attempts to detect poison and disease, and realizes it is not a natural disease. The clergy mentions they have tried several methods, and mention they have closed off the church for fear of plague. Healing potions appear to bolster his constitution for a short period, but do not fully heal him. They ask Huugar and Ava to go back into the catacombs and explore to see if there is a source of the affliction.   They head down into the catacombs below the church. In the catacombs, Ava begins to wonder about if the mushrooms she fed Nori could have been the cause. They stealthily head through the catacombs. As they travel the catacombs, they hear sounds of people all around them. Traveling farther along, eventually they come across a couple in mourning and a priestess overseeing them.   Approaching the priestess they question if she has heard anything strange. She offers words of support, ensuring Ava and Huugar that the catacombs, while spooky, are safe. Asking her about removing curses, she offers to help if they are aflicted. After some clarification of their purpose for being in the catacombs, she mentions that she has heard of more movement than usual in the catacombs near the Lord's Manor, though she is not sure which temple has been making use of the space below the manor. It sounds like there has been a lot of coming and going near the Lord's manor. She lets them know, if they need anything to come to the Moon Temple.   Huugar explores the hallway that stretches towards a private, gated off section of the catacombs that looks to be a much finer worked area. Reaching out his senses, he can sense the concecration of the entire catacombs, but down the hall it begins to feel twisted, and contorted, not an absence of concecration, but a desacration. Ava summons a small fey creature to help explore the space. The pouting creature is able to push open the gate to the funerary chamber. The more innate structures are present. Exploring the gravesites, they see that the caskets belong to the von Falken line. Exploring the inscriptions, the last casket was laid to rest nearly twenty years ago. Ava notices her fey spirit keeping a wide berth of the back wall of the chamber. Huugar tosses a stone at it, and the sound of a stone clattering down a set of stairs is heard. Following the stairs down, Huugar begins to recognize the sounds of people digging stone. The two of them move quietly into a wide hallway. As they peer around the corner, they spot a drow standing facing the corner. Huugar is able to sneak up behind the individual, he grapples the individual. Speaking to them in undercommon, Huugar asks what is happening here. He is told they are here to find 'what is sought'. He mentions that the powers in the area are strong and strange, though no one is sick among them. He asks Huugar who he serves. Ava can see a lit room with another pale elven figure watching the adjacent room. He says that "we seek the power to bring our master back to this world". He has been ordered to watch the chamber, but he will be greatly rewarded. Huugar casts sleep on his captive. He is able to successfully put his captive to sleep. Ava and Huugar investigate the room. They see a group of manacled people excavating something. A few humans, an elf, a dwarf are chained. Ava changes into a spider and begins to explore the room. They see three drow, and one much heavily armed drow watching the chained individuals excavating an obelisk. Ava is able to notice carvings that encircle the exterior of the obelisk. Ava remembers that before the war, large scale magics and spells were often used. To do so networks of towers were built across the land to act as foci for the energy. The writing on the obelisk is unreadable for Ava. She is able to memorize the shape of two letters. Examining the guards, she sees the one who is most heavily armed wearing leather armor, carrying a sword, shield and crossbow. She notices that the individual is wearing a round black patch, with red stitching in the shape of an abstract scorpion. While she has been doing this, Huugar goes invisible and sneaks into the room. Ava sneaks back out of the room. Huugar stays with her as she leaves. Ava returns to herself and explains what she saw. She draws the two symbols she saw on the obelisk on a sheet of material. They decide to head back to the temple of Moradain to bring them the information they have found and get some guidance. Seraphus, Priest of Moradain meets them as they enter the temple. Showing him the symbols, he identifies the symbols as being Abyssal. They let him know that they found about the illusory wall behind the Lord's internment plot. Huugar lets them know they saw several enslaved people being made to excavate an obelisk, and Ava explains where exactly the symbols they saw were found. He explains that monuments like this are often tied to the gods and were used during the war and usually for healing or protection rather than attack. He is genuinely concerned that there would be abyssal script on one of these. With only two symbols, it is impossible to identify. He thinks it is likely the cause of Nori's affliction. They will spend the night healing Nori, and will inform Duke Gaius von Falken the next day. Seraphus sends a message to Yemtoc for them, who tells them to get back ASAP, that there is a lot to talk about, and to pick up lots of sweets if they can. Returning to the Garrulous Cauldron Ava and Huugar are able to get an assortment of sweet treats. The session ends as Huugar and Ava appraoch the inn.