Episode 60
General Summary
Returning to the Dawnmire estate in the dead of night, Collective Action wake Alexis from a well-earned slumber. With the mystery of Eryndor Dawnmire still fresh in their minds, they bring him to the forgotten, dust-covered room where the strange door had rattled earlier. They question him about the disgraced paladin, but Alexis dismisses the stories as childhood nonsense—family myth spun into ghost stories. To put their fears to rest, he invokes his divine sense, sweeping the room for undead presences. Nothing. The room is still. Silent. Lifeless.
Satisfied—if not fully convinced—the group retires for the evening. The day ahead promises to be a spectacle.
As dawn breaks, guests begin arriving in a slow but steady stream. Nobles, dignitaries, merchants, and socialites from across the country filter into the estate, each arrival grander than the last. With the engagement party looming, Alexis asks Collective Action to lie low until the main event. He intends to end the engagement publicly, definitively, and on his own terms.
With time to kill, Meepo and Groban slip into full sleuth mode. Their investigations lead them to the cellar, where they discover a narrow passage used by the servants—likely forgotten by most of the estate's residents.
A surprise guest arrives not long after: Kristoff Jameson. The young cleric has apparently invited himself as a noble from Colere, claiming he's here to keep an eye on Alexis. But it becomes clear his attention is fixed elsewhere—namely on Roan. The two eventually find one another in the crowd, and Kristoff nervously asks her to be his date for the evening. Roan, amused and intrigued, agrees. The result is a lot of awkward smiles and stilted small talk.
As the sun sets and lanterns flicker to life, the party begins in earnest. Guests are announced with fanfare. Champagne flows freely. Conversations bubble with flattery and venom in equal measure. It’s everything a noble gathering should be: glamorous, performative, and teetering on the edge of chaos.
Eventually, with a drink in hand and resolve behind his eyes, Alexis steps up to the stage. It’s time. He opens his mouth to speak, to profess his love, to defy tradition—only to sway, stumble, and collapse mid-sentence.
Gasps ripple through the crowd. Collective Action leap into action, as do Marcella and both sets of parents. A quick diagnosis reveals the unthinkable: Alexis has been cursed. He now slumbers beneath an enchantment that can only be broken by one thing—true love’s kiss.
The Dawnmire parents, shaken but composed, order the guards to carry Alexis to his rooms. There, the adventurers, family, and Marcella gather once again. With tensions high, Barnabus casts Zone of Truth, prompting everyone in the room to declare their innocence. One by one, they all deny involvement.
Choosing to keep the nature of the curse quiet for now, Collective Action convinces the others to give them space to investigate. Once alone, Barnabus reveals the truth. Kissing attempts begin—some earnest, some awkward—but none wake Alexis from his enchanted sleep.
Just as the party begins to question who Alexis' true love might really be, the room shifts.
Heavy footsteps echo down the hall.
Steel scrapes stone.
Through the door, a ghostly figure appears: an armored spectre. It speaks in riddles—fragments of memory and warning—before phasing silently through the far wall.
Silence follows.
The party looks to one another.
The mystery is only just beginning.
Report Date
16 May 2025
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