Session 6: Confronting Shiksu

General Summary

Aboard the Airship

• The echoes of the battle with the fiend subsided, with nothing but silence remaining. Nayries immediately apologized for his actions against Viribus, but Viribus was understanding of where the fault of Nayries' actions lied - in the magic of the fiend.
• There was a hurried talk about what was to be done, and the necessity of even finding Shiksu discussed - perhaps with a bit of desperation, as most of the party members were nearly depleted of resources. The decision was made to continue upwards and at least inspect the skycoach platform to see what it might offer, and besides, according to Ashpin, "the boss monster is always on the top floor."
• Upon reaching the platform with a swift Nayries kick through the door, the Crew encountered something rather peculiar. Not another demon, or unholy eldritch abomination, but soothing lounge music, and an elderly kenku poring over a large book in a booth in the center of the comfortably-decorated room.
• Upon conversing with the old kenku, he told the party that Shiksu had left hours ago on the lightning rail, but that her airship was scheduled to leave very soon to meet her at Wroat, not Thronehold, the destination Alden had told the party. The kenku, who the party learned was named Puffer, seemed exhausted and rather frightened of Shiksu, but glad the party was going to take care of her. He asked if there was anywhere that they knew of that he could go, and Ashpin gave him the business card for Sigmund's Therapy Practice.
• The party boarded the humming airship, which was much larger than the skycoach that they had ridden with "Torfe". The upper deck was rather modest, with scattered crates and a ballista, while below deck was designed for luxury. Coolers, fine wines, soft sofas and chairs, portholes with magnificent views - and two male orcs in tight slacks and no shirt.
• At first, they merely acknowledged the entrance of N'nchyk and Viribus, but as more and more Crew members appeared below deck, they grew curious, eventually striking up a conversation with the five who were there. The Crew said they were on lucrative business with Shiksu, while the orcs smoked cigars and told them stories about women with money and power and how much of a bitch they could be - especially in their line of work. Dooturr and N'nchyk cottoned on, since having to cook meals for an angry woman would certainly be difficult.
• Eventually, the five met up with Ashpin and Philip above deck, who were conversing with Capitaine, the anxiety-ridden warforged pilot in charge of the airship. He wanted to know what the party was planning on doing, and was incredibly fearful of what Shiksu might do with seven additional members of undocumented cargo. But, there was little he could do as several of the Crew members bore down on him imposingly.
• Afternoon was hardly starting to set in, but the exhausted party nonetheless settled in for rest, while Philip wrote a letter to Theobald. He said he had not been fulfilling his duty in telling Theobald what it was they were up to, and wished to avoid any further misunderstandings. Maleakos huddled into the corner where a puff of smoke eventually emerged, and he began coughing vigorously. Viribus couldn't identify what it was, but N'nchyk approached him and talked to him about it. The orcs, Bulge and Rip, settled in as well, citing a sleepless night the day prior.
• Viribus inspected some of the storage cubbies below deck, finding a bluish potion whose effects he could not recognize, and a mysterious arrow in a fancy case that he recognized as an arrow. Upon the waking of the college student, Maleakos blearily mumbled that he needed coffee, while exactly identifying the effects of the arrow (magical bonus to hit, dealing extra lightning and thunder damage, and possibly deafening those in the area). Dooturr eventually took the arrow.
• Returning to above the deck, the Crew had a huddled meeting as far from Capitaine as they could. Ashpin pointing out that waiting until they arrived at Wroat could be dangerous, as her and the artifact could easily slip away. They began to formulate a plan to surprise her while the lightning rail was still moving, but they needed the help of the pilot.
• While some party members began to go back to talk to Capitaine, Rip emerged from below they deck - after being bonked on the head by the trapdoor - giving them all a polite nod and retiring to the back of the airship. Nayries and Viribus approached Capitaine, while N'nchyk and Ashpin heeded the advice of Philip as to the nature of their plan. He thought it was smart - dangerous, and rather badass, but smart - but that they must consider the presence of civilian lives, and to be careful.
• Capitaine was hesitantly on board, while Rip gave a great roar of appreciation at the notion of destroying Shiksu. Bulge, who had just emerged from the trapdoor, roared as well, probably just because Rip did. After filling Bulge in, he volunteered to man the ballista, while Rip suited up with whatever gear he could. The party prepared themselves, steeling whatever nerves there were, as the airship began to descend upon the glowing blue lightning rail below.

Battle Atop the Lightning Rail

• Midnight had set in, and with it, a new day. Capitaine, as it turns out, was not overstating his piloting skills, as he managed to maneuver the airship almost perfectly steadily in line with the moving lightning rail. One by one, each character managed to hop onto the roof of the lightning rail - Rip with a roar of excitement - except for Ashpin, who bonked his head several times as he slipped off the side. He managed to catch himself, and with a heave, managed to drag himself onto the roof with the others.
• The wind was whipping past, the surrounding scenery a blur, and the shuddering of the rail deafening, as the party began their hunt for Shiksu and the artifact. Rip described Shiksu as human with red hear, a cloak, and over-the-top fancy clothes. The first car was filled with sleeping people, none of which matched the description Rip gave. The second car was the same, with the exception of two individuals, who saw the motley crew of characters on the roof and looked absolutely shocked.
• Some of the party, including Maleakos and N'nchyk, descended into the cars themselves to search. Eventually, as the party made their way atop the third car - which was decorated much more lavishly than the others - a massive creature uncloaked itself and bounded atop the car. It had rippling muscles, black fur, and an orange glow around its maw that illuminated the surrounding sinew. Mounted atop this creature was a woman matching the description given by Rip. She had a bit of a smirk on her face as she said, "I’d usually offer to pay you to fuck off, but you’ve been just a pinch too annoying to not put down." Whatever hopes there were for surprise quickly dissipated.
• The lightning rail continued to zip along the tracks as the battle commenced. The beast exhaled waves of fire as Shiksu ruthlessly and quickly struck blow after blow, managing to immediately render Dooturr unconscious. Shiksu glared at Viribus and told him to "embrace the rage", as his irises flickered red and turned his puppeteered arms against the immediately adjacent Ashpin, landing a critical blow. Rip hardly managed to get a single swing of his axe in before being cut clean in half from shoulder to waist with one stroke of Shiksu's sword. The steed fell rather quickly, with the help of deafening shots from the ballista, courtesy of Bulge. Maleakos and giant frog N'nchyk engaged an orc and two skeletons inside the car, with N'nchyk managing to leap over his attackers and approach the conductors of the lightning rail. Maleakos sparred with one of the skeletons, alternating between flourishing thrusts with his rapier and inspirational stanky legs. Nayries fought with bravery and vigor, choosing to attack Shiksu head on. Ashpin also took to the front lines - after skewering a tiny green demon on the edge of his glaive - but both frontline warriors fell several times, Nayries barely managing to hold onto the edge of the lightning rail. Viribus fought with both sword and sorcery, though his attempt to paralyze Shiksu as he did the warlock on the lift seemed to have absolutely no effect on her. Dooturr, once restored to consciousness with healing magic, exploded another green demon that was threatening Philip into little more than a puff of green mist. Afterwards, he shot several arrows at Shiksu and eventually joined the fray with his long kukri. Philip remained towards the back, making sure each of his allies stayed as conscious as possible.
• Eventually, N'nchyk was successful in reaching the conductors, and the lightning rail began to slow. The orc and remaining skeleton managed to join the fight on the roof, but it was too late. The heroes were too numerous and too effective, as blow after blow rained upon the three remaining enemies. Finally, against the previously expressed wishes of Ashpin, Nayries approached the severely weakened Shiksu and, with a sweep of his greatsword, decapitated the anger-filled lieutenant.

The Aftermath

• The skeleton was quickly disposed of with a perfectly-placed Dooturr arrow, while the remaining orc looked around at his defeated allies and decapitated lieutenant and ended his own life with a spear to the heart. The lightning rail screeched to a halt, and Ashpin immediately stormed over to Nayries. Unpleasant words were exchanged, deeply insulting Nayries' actions and bringing up his deceased family members once again.
• Seeing the rage flicker in Nayries' eyes and watching him raise his greatsword against Ashpin, a wide-eyed N'nchyk paralyzed Nayries quickly with Hold Person. Nayries failed to resist its effects, and after Philip told Ashpin to calm himself, Ashpin disgustedly kicked the stiff Nayries of the side of the lightning rail. N'nchyk and Philip hurried down the side to make sure he was okay, while Maleakos, Ashpin, and Dooturr went to speak with the conductors. Viribus searched Shiksu's cabin, finding a dark, smooth metal case wrapped in chains and locks.
• The three in the conductor's car found three remainign conductors, while one lay dead in his seat, his head still barely attached to his body through a viscerally deep cut through his neck. The conductor was frightened and confused, saying he only knew that Shiksu was a wealthy noble and nothing more, but expressed relief that she was destroyed. Meanwhile, N'nchyk released the paralysis spell on Nayries, who gave a hard look at N'nchyk and Philip, and immediately began to depart in the other direction. Philip looked on solemnly as N'nchyk hobbled after him, eventually catching up to him at the tail end of the lightning rail.
• Dooturr joined Viribus in Shiksu's car, and managed to discover a chest, which wielded several magical items and no small amount of wealth. Dooturr tried his skeletal hand and picking the lock of the metal case, but his lockpicks simply melted, much to his dismay.
• Meanwhile, the other Crew members began to berate Ashpin, who gave the defense that information from Shiksu could have been incredibly valuable, and now all that remained of her was her head - which was no longer that of a human woman. It eventually faded into what looked to be the head of a tiger - with golden fur and long, predatory teeth. The airship began to descend, and after Nayries boarded it alone, the rest of the Crew also made their way over. Philip conversed with Ashpin, saying that while Nayries may have made a mistake, the words Ashpin chose and the emotions he toyed with were rather unsavory and not at all what he expected from him.
• Back on the airship, Nayries immediately pinned Ashpin to the side of the airship, and criticized his oath as a paladin. Philip urged them to apologize to one another, but Nayries simply released him and stormed away. Meanwhile, Bulge hurried over from the ballista with a huge grin on his face, which quickly subsided when he learned what happened to Rip. Yet, he was still glad to hear that Shiksu was destroyed.
• After brief deliberation, the party instructed Capitaine to return to the airship platform at Shiksu's mansion as the party settled in for another airship ride back. Viribus made to discuss the fate of the mansion waiting back at Sharn, while Ashpin wanted to discuss a strange dream he'd had. The Brelish wilderness passed below as the brisk air whipped through the airship, and the golden Ring of Siberys twinkled above in the clear night sky. The journey was yet completed, but Shiksu had been defeated, and the artifact recovered.

Rewards Granted

• Gold from Shiksu's chest
• Cloak of Billowing
• Several potions and spell scrolls
• Wildroot

Missions/Quests Completed

• Defeated Shiksu and recovered the artifact

Character(s) interacted with

• Capitaine, the warforged pilot of Shiksu's airship
• Bulge and Rip, the easygoing orcish escorts of Shiksu 
• Shiksu 

Date begun:
4 Zarantyr, 998 YK
Date ended:
5 Zarantyr, 998 YK
Party level:
4

Report Date

19 Jan 2021

Primary Location

Sharn

Related Historical Events

• 998 YK
  Defeat of Shiksu