The Maelstrom Campaign - Chapter One

Escape from  Khon Rhahild

Skaemon, Skye, Jessica, Teleran, & Coil

647 Post Maelstrom

Skaemon arrived in the city of Khon Rhahild in the morning of the first day of the Sunrise Festival. He was searching for the other mages that betrayed him and had a lead they might have been in the city.
Jessica and Teleran arrived in the dwarven city of Khon Rhahild in the late in the first day of the summer festival. Teleran was looking for other worshippers of the Niius, Brother of the Moon, but was so far unfortunately unable to find anyone at the festival.
Skye arrived in the city about the same time as Jessica and Teleran. She was there to party at the festival and to get lit as fuck.
The day was turning to night and the bustling trade shifted more towards parting and nightlife. When unexpectedly everyone heard an explosion near the main gate of the city. Jessica and Teleran began heading for the explosion and, unbeknownst to them, Skaemon proceeded to do the same. Together the three of them discovered and engaged a mysterious shadowy creature. They were able to defeat it, but saw many more coming in the distance. The majority of the people nearby saw this and began to flee in fear causing the festival to break apart as people poured into the city or out into the desert away from creatures.
The city erupts into chaos as other explosions go off inside the city and in the palace. The stars are blocked from sight behind thick clouds of black smoke leaving the city in complete turmoil as people blindly scramble for the airship field. Skaemon broke away from Teleran and Jessica and ran for the airship field, meeting up with Skye on the way. They tried to board an airship with the other refugees, but they were quickly filling up and taking off.
Teleran and Jessica searched the chaos in the city and found there was also a group of black cloaked figures attacking the city. Through the smoke they saw when of these cloaked figures wearing a crown over his hood. He disappeared before they could find out more. They found one of the city guards that was trying to get to the palace, but he was just as confused as they were, and he needed to get to the prince to get him out of the city the back way. Jessica and Teleran let him go on his way and headed to the airfield as well to escape the city.
Luckily some new cargo ships were just making their way into the city for the festival and were able to pick up additional refugees. The party were all able to board one of the final airships and take off just as the shadow creatures reached them. One of them was able to grab the foot of the guardsman next to Jessica and he fell backwards, but Jessica was able to catch him and saved his life.
After the stressful take off Jessica and Teleran investigate the refugees. They realize there is one of the black cloaked figures on the ship. Jessica and Teleran apprehended him and question him. He tells them the attack was planned, but he wasn’t allowed to know much. He only knew what he was supposed to try to kill the prince, but was swept up in the crowd so he concealed himself to stay alive. The party take the cloak off of him and investigate it with magic. The cloak possesses strong magic, but is made out of cheap material and made poorly as though mass produced. Teleran and Jessica decide to turn him over to the guards on the ship. They hand him over and he is taken to the brig by the guard on board that Jessica just saved.
The airship flew away from the city out into the desert, but one terrible situation leads to another and they were caught in a terrible sandstorm. The ship was hailed by blasts of wind and sand causing it to veer sporadically. They ship clipped the top of a sand dune tearing off the lower section of the ship, taking the guards and brig with it, and damaged the engines severely. The remainder of the ship crashed in the Golden Sandsea desert miles away miles from any city. Sheltering in the wreckage of the ship they waited out the storm.

* * *

Coil was travelling through the desert to the Sunrise Festival in Khon Rhahild. He camped out for the night to wait out the sandstorm. There was a loud crashing noise just over the sand dune that Coil camped near and in the morning, Coil travelled over the dune. He stumbled across a crashed airship in the desert that was already partially buried from the storm, the source of the crashing sound. While investigating Coil accidentally woke up Jessica who in turn woke up her compatriots. After realizing they were all friendly and informing Coil of the state of Khon Rhahild they decided to travel together away from the destruction.
They travelled to the city of Camador with the rest of the shipwreck survivors, except one guy that refused and stayed in the desert.
Arriving in the city they realized that this one was also under attack from the dark cloaked figures. It didn't seem to be going well and there was fighting happening in and around the city. They saw someone else fleeing from the city nearby. Abandoning the other airship survivors to fend for themselves in the besieged city the party decided just to bail on the whole situation and headed for Oresh.
The party now arrives in Zandajin Jungle. Heading deeper they reach into the jungle they reach the city of Zandajin. The city was also attacked by the black cloaked figures, but the jungle clan reptilkin were able to hold them off and had already secured the city. After a resupply the party decides to leave for the city of Radanha to try to discover the fate of the city as Zandajin had no contact with them after the attack.
The party rests up in Zandajin, but don’t waste much time getting on the road. The trip through the jungle is mostly uneventful. After exiting the jungle, they begin to cross the large savannah land of that takes up most of Oresh. The party arrives at and rests in the first imperial crossroad outpost they pass on the road to Radanha…