Session 32: Leaving Roshona
General Summary
It was late afternoon by the time everyone arrived back at the estate. Jasper greeted the party as they returned.
“I heard the news. I’m sorry for the situation, but I have taken the liberty to draw everyone a hot bath and prepare dinner.”
Whisper and a few others resigned themselves to the baths, while Shiro found a bottle of wine.
Archibald fumbled in the background with a tea set-up, doing his best to put cups out and set the table neatly. Jasper turned to admonish the incompetent help.
“Again. Do it again, until you get it right,” Jasper scolded Archibald.
Shiro was into his second bottle of wine as the others returned downstairs.
Andy sat down at the table and rested his head on his hand. “That thing was in pain its whole life, a creature created for destruction. Yet, it felt divine in some way. Scary as shit. It was created specifically to attack us using you, Shiro, as a beacon. The only instructions given were to make sure it continues to wane. I figure that means the moon?”
“Yes. That would mean the moon staying dark. What would be after us?” Drezzin pondered.
“But neither moon is waning right now,” Shiro commented. “Maybe it meant something else.”
“The creature nodded at Shiro, with a sense of acknowledgement.” said Whisper. “That has to mean something. Whether you recognize it or not, it recognized you and clearly had some sort of connection.”
“It did seem to acknowledge me,” Shiro affirmed.
“And it didn’t attack you,” Hacket added.
“Perhaps we should hold off on the consecution until this is dealt with, otherwise they’ll keep coming through,” Whisper suggested.
“Well, I want my consecration,” said Hacket. “I deserve it.”
“Yes, you do,” laughed Shiro, pouring himself another glass of wine.
“We could go through with it and just not have Shiro attend,” Andy said.
“Assuming he’s still the only one with some form of a connection to whatever is behind the core spawn,” Drezzin countered.
“We should just go and finish this deal with Sir Ret. I want that behind us. He is nothing but bad news, and I don’t like any of his business at all,” said Whisper.
“But if we die out there and we aren’t consecuted that would be bad,” Andy argued.
“It would be no worse than it would have been yesterday, and the clock is still ticking.” Whisper argued back. “There’s no saying what Sir Ret is capable of. Right now he just seems to want the two of you and your families. It’ll be no time before he’s after all of us. I just want this business done with.”
“So what’s the plan then? Maybe we should study the map,” Drezzin said as he pulled a map from his side pouch and laid it out on the table. “Look, the safest way would be to go south to Charis, and around, or up north to Jigow and then take a boat around.
“Why not just return the way we came? We know the route, and that gives us an advantage.” suggested Whisper. “Further, we have allies in Asarius. We can take the Hallowed Path to Asarius, resupply, spend a night indoors, and then head south back to the Many Hosts of Igrathad. This would let us also see any updates on the situation there as well. Then, we can push further to the south. If we go directly south we can skip Charis altogether. The river crossing would be easier at those islands, marked here,” Whisper pointed her finger to the mpa. “Then it wouldn’t be too much further to the Ruins of Draconia and then through the Dreemoth Ravine south to Xarzith Kitril.”
“Hmmm,” Drezzin said, contemplating Whisper’s plan. “It seems pretty sound. But we’d need horses, or something to speed up our travel. It’s just too far on foot. But for now, Jasper can you let the queen know we’re on a mission of great importance and that we’ll be back in a months time, or so?”
“Where would we get horses?” Andy asked.
“At a stable?” Whisper answered, puzzled.
“Horsetopia,” Hacket stated matter-of-factly.
“What?” asked Whisper.
“Horsetopia. It’s right down the road. You can buy wagons, horses, and supplies. Anything you need, really.”
“And how do you know this?” Whisper asked.
“Because I’ve walked the neighborhood?” What does it matter? We just need to go and purchase our supplies.”
With that there was little left to say. They took the evening to rest and at first light everyone headed to Horsetopia. The store was right where Hacket had said. It was a humble looking stable from the outside, as far as humble went in the Firmaments, but the second one stepped inside it was as if one entered into another realm altogether. Everyone found themselves in a giant well-lit warehouse with aisles upon aisles of horse tack and supplies. There was an entire wall of riding saddles from inexpensive starter saddles to ornate saddles that must have cost thousands of gold. There were bedrolls, camping equipment, and every imaginable sundry one would need for life on the road. Andy spotted an entire aisle of horseshoes, and even further still blacksmithing equipment. In the back of the store there was a giant open air lot with rows of wagons for sale and just beyond was the stable, stocked with what seemed to be a hundred horses of various breeds, all for varying purposes.
Andy immediately began inspecting each and every wagon. Whisper wanted a simple wagon with hoops and a canvas top, so that they would appear to be simple travelers, but Andy insisted on purchasing an ornate blue vardo to be pulled by two large workhorses. Shiro purchased a warhorse and all the equipment to ride solo. Whisper and Drezzin purchased a riding horse each, and outfitted them fully with quality saddles and tack. Rations were purchased, as well as a basic supply for the horses.
After they were done shopping, and the animals and wagon were delivered to the house, the party loaded up, said their respective farewells, and started out of the city towards Asarius.
—
Upon breaking free of the magical darkness of the city the party took a moment to bask in the sunlight and breathe in the fresh open air. They rode north along the Hallowed Path. To the west lay the Barbed Fields and to the east was the cursed Vermaloc Wildwood where few dared venture far in. Timber crews worked the outskirts of the forest, their camps maintained on the edge of the forest, so they could harvest the best trees without venturing far in.
Whisper paid little mind to the forest, instead letting her eyes linger longer than they should have on the Barbed Fields. She recalled the many months she spent out there as a member of the Aurora Watch where her scouting patrol would spend countless nights camped under the open sky, tracking the movement of monsters, and fighting bandits who sought to claim relics from the age of the Calamity.
She touched her fingers lightly to her neck and felt the jagged scar, the last remaining vestige of a near fatal wound from her time spent on the Barbed Fields. For a moment she was there again and could clearly see the eyes of the pit fiend who nearly killed her staring right through her. It felt as if it was yesterday. She blinked and brought herself back to the present moment as a single tear fell down her cheek.
During the month of downtime the Bright Queen had fulfilled her promise to send clerics to the house and perform a restorative surgery on her vocal cords so that she could once again speak in her own voice without the need for magical illusion. However, Whisper had requested they not remove, nor heal, the scar. She did not want to ever forget the lessons learned out on those unforgiving fields. Moreso, she did not want to forget the lives that were lost; lives of her squad, her friends, all of whom she considered family.
The journey to Asarius took a little over a week and was largely uneventful aside from an incident along the Vermaloc Wildwood where the party ventured too close to a field of flowers that nearly knocked them all unconscious from their poisonous pollen spores. The event served as a reminder that there were more threats than beasts out here and for all to stay vigilant at all times.
Drezzin recalled the stories that had been told of Yasmine’s experimentation in the forest, specifically in regards to the giant spiders, and quietly wondered what had become of her. Sure, they had killed the one in Asarius, but they knew that she was many. They had not encountered her in Rosohna as expected, but she most certainly was still somewhere, if not in multiple places.
On the eighth day of travel, on the twentieth of Dusar the party arrived in Asarius. They could see the familiar city rising on the hill in the distance. The sky was cloudy and overcast, but did not obscure the sight of the massive spire that marked the city center. As they drew closer the familiar smells emanating from the multicultural communities of goblins, bugbears, and other species of so-called monsters who lived in the ever expanding city of tents outside the walls hit them at once. Spices on cooked meats, garbage, smoke from cooking fires, and refuse all mixed and wafted in the wind creating a greeting that was distinguished. Repulsive to some, familiar to others. Asarius, the city of beasts, was like none other in this regard.
Whisper was the first to sense something off. She had spent many months in Asarius, not enough to call it home, but long enough to know that something wasn’t right. She scanned through the encampments and almost immediately noticed that not only was the city repopulated, but that the new arrivals were not the normal species, but those of humans, halflings, and dwarves. In fact, she had never seen so many humans in a single space. She had lived her life being an outlier, always intensely self-aware of how different she was. Here, it felt like she was entering a community of her own kind. She rode close to Drezzin and nudged him. Drezzin had already taken account of the situation and motioned to Hacket, who brought the wagon to a halt.
“Look. The gates to the city. They’ve been blown apart,” Whisper noted quietly. “All these people. Do you think that the incursion overran the Kryn?”
“It seems quite possible,” Drezzin noted.
“We should not enter the city until we know what’s happening around here. Is it possible to rent space in one of these villages?”
“Let’s ask that goblin over there,” Whisper suggested. “Goblins are mostly welcoming if there’s gold to be made.”
“That was not at all a racist comment,” Andy scolded Whisper.
“Perhaps. But it is also a factual statement,” Whisper defended her comment. “The goblins of Asarius have occupied this area outside the city for generations and they are known to be entrepreneurial, and gracious hosts if you are polite and respect their privacy. If you want to camp with the bugbears, be my guest.”
As Hacket moved the wagon towards a goblin encampment Andy spotted a patrol of human guards walking nearby. He subtly cast detect magic on the group of them, moving from one to the other. He quickly discerned that their internal monologue was in common, with some halfling mixed in. He caught a simple thought from a gnome. “I miss Humperdook. The weather was so much better there.” As he moved along from guard to guard he could hear a human thinking “You put down one revolt and now you get sent out here to play games. This is bullshit.” And then another, “This shithole makes me miss the Mudtop Ward.”
Andy then lingered on the guard who mentioned the Mudtop Ward. This was a specific place he was not familiar with, but perhaps those thoughts might give them more insight into who these people were, where they were from, and why they were here.
As he probed deeper Andy discovered the guard was some kind of Dwendalian soldier and quite proud of it. He could see a flash from a memory where the solider was part of a battalion that suppressed a revolt in the Mudtop Ward, a place just north of Rexxentrum, the largest city in the Dwendalian Empire. He could sense that most recently the solider was part of a large unit whose job it was to push through the mountains and to take over Asarius, and be as quiet as possible about it. Andy does see the name “High Officer Yasmine Dalith”
The moment Yasmine’s name cut through his mind he dropped concentration on his spell and nearly fell back in the Vardo. He quickly regained his composure and telepathically spoke to each party member. “The empire took over Asarius. These are Dwendalian soldiers who took over the city.”
“I literally just said that to Shiro,” Whisper said. “It doesn’t take a genius to…”
“Just shut up Whisper. I think Yasmine is in charge of everything. The guard referred to her as High Officer Yasmine Dalith. I am so fucked. I’m fucked. Dammit,”
“Just calm down, Andy,” Whisper replied telepathically. “We’re going to find a camp outside the city and we can then figure out our next moves.”
“But what if they recognize us?”
“They’re not going to recognize us. These soldiers have never seen us. Further, we appear to just be traveling merchants. We’ll keep our head down and figure it out. Just breathe.”
By this time Hacket had found an empty camp lot and was greeted by the goblin who maintained the space.
“Looking for a space for the night? A few nights?”
“Yes,” said Hacket curtly but not impolitely. “How much?”
“Five silver for a night. Twenty-five for a week.”
“We just need the space for a night,” Hacket said, handing the goblin five gold pieces.
“Oh no, I said five silver not gold.”
“Consider it prepayment.”
“I don’t like the sound of that. Of what?”
“Just make sure that we are left alone, is all.”
“Okay…” said the goblin. “I don’t know what that’s about. But fine.”
Whisper dismounted and approached the goblin. “Place looks a bit different from the last time we came through,” she said casually as if making small talk.
“It’s not. It’s all the same,” the goblin said somewhat nervously.
“I lived here for a short bit. Perhaps I remember things differently than you?” she looked him in the eye.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. It’s always been like this.” the goblin said, growing annoyed.
“It’s fine,” said Whisper. “Just keep in mind what Hacket said. We value our privacy and don’t want to be bothered. It’s been a long journey and we would very much like to rest in peace and quiet.”
“I can’t promise quiet. The nights here are always rowdy, but you’ll be left alone. I’m going to go now, if that’s okay.”
Whisper nodded and the goblin scurried off.
“We need to get the fuck out of here,” said Shiro.
“We need to get word out,” Hacket said.
“And how will we do that? Can anyone communicate magically? I’m not going back to Rosohna. If you all haven’t forgotten, the clock is ticking with Sir Ret. We can’t handle this and him. We couldn’t even handle this on our own if this was all we were tasked with,” Whisper argued.
“Don’t they have sending stones in Broonbobah?” Hacket recalled.
“I believe the chief had one, yes,” Whisper confirmed.
“We could ride south as planned and have him message the Bright Queen.”
The group continued to quietly argue the pro’s and con’s of how to get word to the Bright Queen while also maintaining their mission until they found themselves over tired and going in circles pointlessly.
“This is getting us nowhere. We should get some rest, just a few hours, and then ride out while it’s still dark. Just get out of here and we can continue this argument from the safety of the road on our way to Broonbobah. That’s my vote.”
“It sounds like the most reasonable plan we have,” Drezzin agreed.
With that, Hacket cast alarm, Drezzin cast the tiny hut for added protection. The guard dogs were set out and the party settled down for a rest. Each of them falling asleep with the knowledge that the stakes weren’t just high for them, but for the entire Kyrn Dynasty.
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