Session 3 - Shadowbringers

The call to adventure did not precisely find our potential heroes wanting, but it did find them a bit hungry, and more than a bit confused. After Orrey accepted Cid Tantalus’s offer of a mysterious airship key, he and his newfound potential friends discussed what exactly to do about this, before deciding together to give the second Syd, the rather stern moogle purporting to be part of a secret police organization, the runaround.
The five of them decided to at least go to Bernier Station together, and upon disembarking (with one potential prophet, Ingrid Augurelt, in tow), found themselves a touch stranded.
Linnet found herself orbiting a new star, a star with crystalline blue hair, an eager energy, and a magnificent telescope. Perilune joined the group for dinner and attempted to recruit them as Astrologians, though Yves’s stumbling anxiety took over the second half of the meal.
Isa offered her services as a guard for the high price of 1 gil, and our group of seven went back outside to head to the Valles Estate in preparation for a book auction and a lantern return.
The sun had set, the stars streaked across the sky, the shadows stretched across the brick sidewalks, flickering under the streetlamps…
…at least, most of them did.
The strange, masked shadow, bleached bone and drained ruby embedded in the forehead of the fragmented skull, hovers between the seven of you and Perilune’s telescope.
Orrey’s eyes widen as he takes in the figure. He flips to the next page in his sketchbook and starts drawing without really realizing he’s doing it.
Yves takes one look at this and does not wait for a second, heading straight back inside. Perhaps it’s to make sure everyone in there is safe, one could allow, if one was feeling charitable.
“Um, Perilune, I assume you don’t know this individiual?”
Perilune’s eyes are wide as saucers as she takes a pair of steps back, mouth moving but nothing coming out.
That’s good enough for Linnet, who moves protectively in front of Perilune and calls on full Wind Sylph Threat Pose, floating about six inches into the air, spreading her hands, and whipping her braid (and her dangling sleeves) threateningly behind her. A strong current springs up out of nowhere.
Isa pulls her sword back into a close right guard, eyes locked on the mask despite the rising winds.
Bast growls, not taking his eyes off the new…face…on the scene: “Does anyone know what this is?”
Orrey’s quick sketch of the shadowy figure sits on the page next to the charcoal lines of a pensive and tipsy Yves, with some slight similarities — a skull sloping up, indicating rising ears — but the size of the skull in the shadow is much smaller. Orrey’s art conveys a sense of… loss, of fear, of panic.
It’s really quite good.
The figure flickers, and for a split second it’s alongside Orrey, looking down at the picture.
Empty sockets stare into his.
Then it’s back under the lamppost.
Orrey blinks, holding back a scream that doesn’t quite have time to erupt.
Perilune’s breath catches in her throat. “We have to subdue it! However you can! Please!”
“That’s nice,” Bast grumbles. “How? What do you know about this?”
“Bast! Watch your tone! Don’t interrogate the civilians!” Linnet is either glowing or just projecting some really, really angry green eyes.
The shadowy figure takes an interest in Bast, dipping low to the ground to be level with the moogle. Skulls shouldn’t have the ability to raise their eyebrows.
Bast squeezes whatever he’s got in his fist more tightly, ignoring Linnet, standing up straighter and staring back in the figure’s empty eye sockets.
Shudder and shake—and then it MOVES.
The shadowy figure snaps forward, little trails of dark matter fluttering in its wake as it rushes toward Bast. The edge of the inky darkness would catch the moogle if not for Isa moving to intercept, the weight of the darkness a cold, uncomfortable thing as it impacts her harmlessly.
Linnet zaps it with a feeble burst of lightning, but it’s a start. She hears a slight squeak from Perilune and resists glancing backward.
Isa launches forward as if a trigger’s been pulled, dropping the sword down into a thrust as she moves. After the impact, she snaps back into a partial crouch, sword low in one hand and her armored right hand held higher, palm-open, waiting.
Orrey mutters under his breath, trying to remember all of the steps in sequence. He focuses on an image of the grandfather clock in his house, watching the hands circling around, willing them to slow. A purple glowing dot expands out in front of him into a silhouette of a clock the size of a chocobo and then launches itself at the figure. The hands of the glowing clock slow down more and more till it’s barely ticking, then the image fades.
Bast, seeing the thing barreling at him, leaps to the side – away from both its path and Isa’s charge.
Shadowy tendrils slide past Bast as he dodges, the increased number of targets seeming to confound it, though nothing confounds it quite as much as the small fiery explosion that erupts inside its… chest, let’s say.
It makes a sound, a scythe across glass, and the fractured gem in its forehead glows with a brilliant light before cracking further, a ruby sheen surrounding the shadow for a moment.
Linnet’s Thunder crackles through the air, but the ruby sheen intercepts it, sparks flashing across the edges, until the lightning bolt is reflected off into the lamppost, popping the lights and sending a shower of sparks down across everyone.
The sheen dissipates.
Linnet flinches. “Oops.”
A few leftover arcs of lightning wriggle across the plates and rivets of Isa’s gauntlet as she drives it forward into the shadow’s mask, lifting it up and then bringing it down, hard, onto the curb.
The ruby tumbles out of the mask, leaving flecks of itself on the road as the mask fractures. The shards of the gem itself sit very close to Bast.
With a glance to make sure Isa still has a good hold, Bast ducks down to the ground and sweeps up the shards with his left hand.
Orrey: Rubies factor in heavily in Saroni’s worship, as the Ruby Light reflects the nature of a person’s heart back to them. A curious thing to remember now, since chokeslams don’t factor in quite so heavily.
The gems fit perfectly in Bast’s hand, just like the crystal fits perfectly in his bag.
And then Bast is alone.
Darkness flows out of the creature Isa has pinned to the road, and then swirls around Bast, surrounding him in a roiling shadow.
The rest of the group vanishes into it, though for an instant you think you can see Orrey saying something.
The mask, cracked on the ground, forms back together, fluttering in the air, limping on a breeze Bast cannot feel.
It tips to the left fifteen degrees, the right forty-five degrees, the left a thousand and eighty degrees.
And then it… sniffs the air, drawing closer to the pouch on his belt, the pouch holding the crystal Bast took from the Seventh Dawn.
And it looks at Bast, the sockets wide, open, and… despairing.
Perhaps a foot off the ground now, leaning in, little bits of shadow trailing off the back of the broken mask.
Bast reaches into the pouch and withdraws a fist tightly closed around the crystal, letting a mere glint of red peek through his fingers as he holds it up in front of the reformed mask. His other hand grips the oak walking stick more tightly. Just in case.
The mask snaps to attention, hopping back in surprise and excitement, and then hopping forward, slowly, carefully, gently leaning in to sniff at the crystal, flicking its attention up at Bast repeatedly during this.
Then it… settles down.
“What are you?” Bast asks quietly, looking at the strange mask.
The shadows draw in around it, tucking it into a cozy little ball, a flicker of green rushing through it, tall, tufted ears glittering through Bast’s vision for an instant, and then Bast is back, looking at Isa pinning a shadowless mask against the ground, Linnet protecting Perilune from the beast (and perhaps also Linnet), and Orrey looking at him like he saw the whole thing.
Because of the group, Orrey is the only one to ALSO have seen this.
(Linnet has dropped the “ALL SHALL FEAR ME AND DESPAIR” pose and is hugging Perilune with one arm while finger-combing her hair with the other, staring distractedly at Bast.)
“Are you ok, Bast?” Orrey asks.
The shadows are gone, though the lamp is still blown.
Perilune watches Bast carefully, while also attempting to soothe, perhaps, Linnet.
Isa’s grip on the mask is tight to the point of crushing it if necessary, but she stands and picks it up off the curb. “Can anyone even pretend to explain that?”
Bast shoves his left hand into his pouch; it is empty when he withdraws it. “Yeah?” His whole posture seems to be telling Orrey that nothing out of the ordinary happened and there is no reason to suspect he might not be okay.
Perilune gently disentangles herself from Linnet. “I might be able to.”
“Well then give it a go.”
Perilune looks up at the sky, and then to Bast, and then to Isa. “The stars are going out. We don’t know when it started. The records on it are… full of gaps, let’s say. But the stars are going out. I’m here to find out why.” She runs a hand through her crystal-blue hair and looks back at her telescope. “A week ago I saw one start to flicker. A little green star, high in the sky here above Caerwyn. I came as soon as I could. I’ll have to check my charts to be sure, but I think it’s gone now.” She looks very uncomfortable.
Orrey looks up at the sky. “But what does that have to do with what happened here?”
Isa tilts her head towards Orrey while keeping her eyes on Perilune. “What he said.”
“Because that doesn’t look like academic competition,” Bast says.
“Did that thing…come from the stars? Do you think it eats them or something?” Linnet thinks. “Is that a dumb question? That feels like a dumb question, but it’s hard to tell.”
“When a star disappears into darkness, a shadow falls here in Ducorde.” Perilune walks over to her telescope and checks it for damage as she talks. “And those shadows can be incredibly dangerous.”
“…like that one, I take it. But I’ve never heard of this…how did you know about the shadows? Have you seen them before?” Linnet asks.
Orrey looks up at how many stars are up there. “If that’s true, people are going to need a lot more swords around.”
“And…Bast, I have to assume you did more than glare at it…” Linnet looks uncomfortable at requesting more details.
Perilune is watching him very closely, like she’s just waiting for confirmation.
Bast glances back at Linnet. “Pretty sure it was Isa’s tender mercies that finished it off.”
“Subdued it,” Isa supplies.
Perilune gets more of his attention. “You said they are dangerous. So what’s happened with these before?”
“One burned down three acres of forest in Cardia. Another destroyed a temple in Machanon two months ago.” She meets his gaze. “Those are the two I’ve witnessed.”
Deep in thought, Orrey starts pondering to himself out loud: “Is Yoshuelje warring with Turon?”
“So they’re destructive, and there’s probably more coming. Great,” Isa says.
Perilune presses him. “Did you do anything special to defeat it? That one wouldn’t have been able to attack, but it still shouldn’t have been defeated so easily.”
Isa shrugs. “I think I surprised it.”
“Whose temple?” Orrey asks.
“Looked to me like it was attacking just fine?” Bast muses.
Perilune goes to answer Orrey, but hesitates at Bast’s comment, before pushing herself to continue. “A temple to Yinha. Just a small village. Fortunately, no one was hurt.”
“Was anyone hurt in any of these…occurrences?” Orrey asks.
“Four people injured at the temple. No one killed, fortunately.” She looks up at the sky again, and sighs. “It was two weeks between the last and this. I hope they do not speed up any further.”
“Isa…you knocked the gem out. Did the other ones have gems as well?” Orrey asks. “Or…Crystals. That wasn’t a Crystal, was it?”
Perilune starts to break down her telescope. “No, the forehead gem was just a gem. The Crystal shouldn’t be around here,” she mutters, distracted, as she tries to get the lens off safely.
Isa turns the mask over in her hands, trying to see if it’s an actual skull or just a mask shaped like a skull.
“THE?” Orrey exclaims.
Bast shakes his head slightly. “Anyone want to translate for the rest of us?”
Perilune has her mouth firmly shut now.
Isa, the mask is a mask, though you don’t know by touch what material. It’s not actual bone.
Linnet kneels beside Perilune and helps to pack away the telescope. “You mean you’ve been tracking these things alone for weeks? Have any of them gotten particularly aggressive at you before? How do you defend yourself?”
Orrey is used to everyone keeping secrets by now.
“At least what you mean with the gems-not-crystals thing? I thought every gem was a kind of crystal.” Bast sounds vaguely plaintive.
Perilune smiles gratefully. “I’m fine, really. This is the first time I have been this close to one, and only because it took me by surprise.”
“Crystals like job crystals, Bast,” Orrey says.
“Only a little more important, I assume, because ‘The Crystal’ sounds suitably ominous. THE CRYSTAL,” Linnet repeats in her best Booming And Important Voice.
Perilune rewards that with a giggle.
“Like the original Great Crystal of Alterna,” Orrey says.
“Enh, it’s alright,” Isa quips.
Perilune nods to Orrey. “That’s the difference. Gems are just that; gems. Some creatures have them as part of their biology, like Ca… coblyns. Then there are the Crystals, or what you’d know as Job Crystals, which were part of the original Great Crystal in Alterna before it shattered.”
“Of course, the Crystals now aren’t part of the Great Crystal,” she says, very matter-of-factly, “which is why the original shards of the Great Crystal are still so valuable, if they have any power left. I’ve been trying to find passage into Alterna to search for more, but it’s hard to find anyone who wants to take on a charity case into the most dangerous place on Ducorde.”
Linnet glances at the rest of the party with Intent.
“Cacobblins?” Orrey repeats. “I haven’t studied wildlife ecology.”
“Coblyns. They’re small crustaceans that bond to crystal fragments, and usually end up strongly elementally-aspected.”
“You’d need to find someone with an airship and a need to go there, probably.” Isa tucks the mask away, and looks back towards the tavern. “I’m going to go tell Yves it’s safe for him to come out,” she announces, and proceeds to head off to do just that.
“Do those shards have something to do with the stars disappearing, too?” Bast asks.
“I believe so.” She finishes packing up her telescope and stands. “Well, it was very nice meeting you all, and thank you very much for keeping me safe — and for dinner, Linnet. Good luck at your auction!”
Bast looks at the walking stick in his hand, as if just remembering it, and leans it against the wall.
“Wait…” Some hurried small talk and a means of keeping in touch are exchanged between Linnet and Perilune. It might involve birds.
Perilune looks up at the sky again, but this time furrowing her brow as she grapples with some internal quandary. “Here,” she says finally, reaching into her back and pulling out a small blue crystal (the same color as her hair, our artistic Orrey would notice). “If you want to reach me, you can activate this by speaking my name to it and then no more than a hundred words after. I can respond, once a day — I have my own, it’s linked.” She takes another moment to look at Linnet. “So if you see a star cross the sky, keep me in mind, hmm?” she says with a smile.
This is most certainly unlike anything any of you have heard of before.
“And if you happen to find a songbird on your windowsill, think fondly of me.” Linnet winks and tucks the crystal away, giving Perilune a quick, shy hug.
A returned hug later, and Perilune is off to another one of the estates, wherever she has been staying, leaving the rest of you outside of the Velvet Sundown.
Within the hour, you make the trip to the Valles Estate, are shown to your guest quarters — a mansion in their own right, an expansive pair of buildings with more than enough space for all of you to stay, and friendly staff ensuring you have everything that you need.
Available Menu Options:
Talk to Ingrid Look at Crystal Look at Mask Talk to [Party Member] Sleep It’s easy to get someone alone in here, since you’re pretty sure you could live here without seeing another soul for weeks. Orrey does not have much trouble getting a moment with Bast.
“So…do you think the gem will call the shadow creature out?” Orrey asks with no preamble whatsoever once he’s sure there’s no one else around.
Bast shrugs. “It’s broken. Maybe if you put it back together and reattached it to the mask? I don’t think I’m curious enough to test that, myself. What were you talking about, back there? Turon?”
“One of the twelve, God of Moons and Stars. Yoshuelje, the god of winter, sometimes referred to as the god of the empty sky.” Orrey thinks. “But Yinha’s temple getting hit, and a forest burning…that could involve a lot more than just two of the deities.”
“Okay, sure. But…war? And what do you suppose the Great Crystal has to do with any of this?” Bast asks.
“She didn’t say Great Crystal,” Orrey points out. “She said THE Crystal. I don’t think she meant them to be the same thing.”
“Probably not – what was it she said…’shouldn’t be around here’? I’d think so, what with it breaking up back in Alterna. So – something that might at least conceivably be expected around here?”
“I don’t know. It’s all a little weird.”
Linnet wanders into the room carrying a bottle and reading the novel from the train. She narrowly avoids walking into the doorframe and doesn’t appear to notice you two.
Bast’s eyes flick over to Linnet without turning away from Orrey, then deliberately meet his again, in a silent comment on everything being a little weird.
Orrey whispers “We can keep the gem between us.” Louder, he says, “Hi, Linnet. Recovering a bit?”
Linnet appears to be mightily distracted – and a bit red around the ears – and almost walks into a side table. “Huh? Oh, hi, guys. Sorry, I got a little wrapped up in, uh, this. It’s tremendously smutty, but sometimes you need something a little less academic for your brain. Like mental junk food. Speaking of which, they leave their wine cellar unlocked. Care to join me?”
She holds up the bottle – it fizzes slightly – and smiles awkwardly.
Orrey shrugs. “I don’t usually…but I think I’ve seen enough tonight to warrant it.”
Bast looks slightly askance at Orrey after that last remark, but lets it pass as Linnet enters the conversation with a bottle and a suggestion. “Well, we are here as your party. Lead on, fearless…librarian, was it?”
“And book shopper, right?” Orrey adds.
“Close enough,” Linnet says to Bast, “and, right on the money,” to Orrey. “Here’s to old books, new friends, and weird shit in spades.” Linnet has apparently forgotten to bring any glasses, but she pops the cork anyway.
“Do you know which titles you’re looking to pick up? I’m here to verify the authenticity of several of the books at the auction,” Orrey says.
“Something with an incredibly boring title. The Green Mile? The Green Lantern? No, wait, sorry, Yves had the lantern. The Green…something or other that has very little to do with green things, apparently.”
“That’s not enough for me to figure out what book it is…” Orrey says after a bit of thinking.
“Did it have a green cover?” Bast asks.
“We’ll know it when we hear it. Does someone suspect forgeries among the estate’s library? And, honestly, I doubt it, that would make too much sense. You know how academics get in the later decades of their careers. Absolutely inscrutable.”
“Forgeries?! What? WHY? No,” Orrey exclaims in sequence.
“I’ll take that as a yes. Any idea where the originals wandered off to?” Linnet has curled up like a cat in a large armchair and is looking very cosy indeed.
“Oh, that kind of forgery. Right. Yeah, they’re worried about THAT. That’s why I’m here.” Orrey nods and smiles and doesn’t quite breathe a sigh of relief.
“…what kind of forgery were you thinking of?” Bast asks.
“Orrey, is someone coming after you with sharp things? Because we’re here to help. That’s kind of what companions are for,” Linnet says.
“Uh…the kind where people, you know, um…fix the writings of the past.., yeah, to make them better…” Orrey pauses. “No one is coming after me.”
“Shitty translation? Historical revisionism? BOWDLERIZING?” The wind picks up slightly, rustling the pages of every loose book in the room.
“Exactly. Wait, what’s Bowdlerizing?”
Bast carefully takes a couple of steps back.
“Ham-handed censorship for the purpose of Moral Rectitude. And one of my biggest pet peeves.” Linnet glances at her hands, only now noticing the wind, and takes a deep breath to settle herself and her surroundings.
Orrey looks affronted. “That is just WRONG.”
“I KNOW, right?” Linnet shakes her head. “…so, if they’re not coming after you, what has you so skittish? Did the old man with the key rattle you that much? I still have the key, for the record.”
“It’s not him. It’s complicated, and I hardly know you guys, and you could be working for them for all I know. Not that I really think that right now, since why would they send so many of you?” Orrey sighs. “Politics. Avoid it at all cost.”
“I’m reasonably certain you’re not on the run from the central university library in Saine, and that’s the only ‘them’ I’m working for right now. Just for the record.” Linnet tries for a disarming smile. “Just…if you know something’s coming, warn us so we can charge up? There aren’t that many things I’ve found yet that a fistful of lightning won’t at least make stop and think twice.”
“Yeah, you all seem fairly…competent…in that area. The blasty slashy stuff. Not my forte,” Orrey says.
“You point, I’ll punch.” Linnet winks.
Orrey grins back at her. “I might take you up on that.”
Bast raises the bottle that Linnet has ignored in the flow of conversation and takes a long sip.
And with that… End Session 3.