Session 14
With the revelation that the spider cultists were likely hiding amongst the Fatoran populace, our heroes needed investigate immediately. So they started in the only logical place they could think of, the garrison and the Captain of the Fatoran guard.
Sam Calas had been to the garrison to train before and so lead them through the gym facility to the captain's office. The captain was a Hobgoblin named Chanor (Pronounced Ky-Nor) and dispensed with the formalities, preferring to keep things practical and to the point. He bluntly asked why they were here, to which they explained that they were here to seek information about the scouts that went into the tunnel. Chanor gave them a list of names which then prompted other questions.
Oryim asked if any of them were pale, a question that cause Chanor to look confused before telling them that yes, there were a couple of pale guardsmen. Namely a man named Thompson and another man named Anthony. When asked where they were, Chanor explained that Thompson had recently take long service leave and that Anthony should be on duty in the flats. The party thanked Chanor for their time and went on their way.
It wasn't hard to find Anthony in the flats, as they were the only pale person around. Curiously enough, he wore the same necklace that now hung around Kalydin's neck tipping them off that he was, in fact, involved. A haphazard plan was hatched and poorly communicated as Oryim slung on a disguise and called for help. Anthony sprung into action asking what was wrong, to which Oryim responded that there was an assailant in the alley adjacent.
Anthony looked unconvinced, so Kalydin decided to double down and run out of the aforementioned alley claiming that some random guy was swinging a sword in there. With the story corroborated, Anthony ran into the alleyway. Seeing no-one he called back to the pair asking for a description. Without skipping a beat, Kalydin began to describe Sam Calas who, at this stage, was trying to get to the other side of the alleyway. Kalydin's description however, included a necklace which caused Anthony to pause just long enough for Liaden O'Legal to notice.
As Sam rounded to the corner to get to the other side of the alleyway, Anthony turned to see him. Seeing as Sam matched Kalydin's description, he ran to confront the man, claiming that he was under arrest for disturbing the peace. Before the confrontation could get violent, Oryim and Kalydin explained that they knew this man, and that he was not the assailant due to his bare neck.
With the mood settling, they party decided to start asking Anthony questions about himself under the guise of researching "cool tattoos" for their book. Anthony, convinced by Kalydin's deception, responded by showing them his own tattoo of a large spider on his forearm. When asked he said it was just a spider, but that his friends back home in the mountain all had one. Sam's anger began to rise, he signaled to Liaden that he wanted to punch the man, but Liaden tried to keep him calm by pressing Anthony further.
It wasn't much longer before Anthony realised that they were asking very pointed questions about his involvement with the mountain scouting operation, which lead him to break the conversation off and return to his duties. Sensing that they had Anthony on the backfoot, our heroes hatched a new plan, one that would pincer him into action.
Kalydin and Oryim remained in the flats to tail Anthony, while Liaden and Sam would return to Chanor and inform him that they suspected him of obstructing justice. Liaden and Sam's plight, while not entirely successful, was also not entirely fruitless. Their claim placed enough suspicion onto the guardsman that Chanor decided to observe his activity more closely. In the flats, a disguised Oryim and Kalydin tailed and watched Anthony. They noticed that as people with the same necklace wandered past him, he would slip a note into their pockets. Oryim instructed Kalydin to wander past in hopes that it would result in them getting a tip off to their plan. This would prove fruitful and worked like a charm.
The note said simply, "Emergency Meeting: Tonight." When the party reconvened at the gatehouse, they began planning their next course of action. Kalydin would attend the meeting, disguised as Wilma while the others observed from nearby. After a few hours the party approached the Crucial Carp, the tavern the cultists were holding their meetings. Anthony was the first to arrive soon followed by the disguised Kalydin. When questioned about their promptness, Kalydin expertly deflected, stating that he was "testing the necklace."
It wasn't long before others arrived, making six cultists in total. Anthony probed about the others' whereabouts to which an armoured cultists responded that they were making the necessary preparations. With the six of them there, Anthony warned them of our heroes who seemed to know too much. He proceeded to describe the party as he remembered them.
After spreading his warning, Anthony offered to get drinks for the cultists giving one an opportunity to slink next to "Wilma." The cultist pressed them for information, claiming that it was all a little too coincidental that two days after they gave Wilma a necklace, some randoms seemed to know about them. Trying his best to keep cool, Kalydin made up some story about being stalked by a bunch of wierdos and that Rakroth had hired them. The cultist was still suspicious and called over one of the armoured ones.
The armoured cultist cast a spell to detect magical auras, which resulted in Kalydin lighting up like a torch. This prompted him to drop the disguise and launch the tavern into chaos as a brawl ensued. The fight was bloody and long, causing Oryim to fall unconscious as the room was plunged into magical darkness. Sensing the desperation in the air, and feeling like they were on the back foot, Sam tried beseeching the spirit guide within him again, like he did in the Priory garden in Wrain's Hall. However, this time, anger did not consume him. Instead, time seemed to stop as the rain formed a river that brought forth a cloaked boatman that halted adjacent to him. The present being was felt within Sam and he knew that it was Death, the Thirteenth. It stated that their deal was yet to be fulfilled, and that Sam must deliver on his end of the bargain.
Time started again, and his blade produced a serrated edge as he carved into the cultist before him. As the blade dragged across their flesh, Sam caught a glimpse of the cultist's soul screaming in terror. With the tide of battle turning, the cultists made to flee, with one escaping and one finding Oryim's knife buried in their back. And as the darkness cleared and our heroes stood victorious, the fact remained; one had escaped...
Sam Calas had been to the garrison to train before and so lead them through the gym facility to the captain's office. The captain was a Hobgoblin named Chanor (Pronounced Ky-Nor) and dispensed with the formalities, preferring to keep things practical and to the point. He bluntly asked why they were here, to which they explained that they were here to seek information about the scouts that went into the tunnel. Chanor gave them a list of names which then prompted other questions.
Oryim asked if any of them were pale, a question that cause Chanor to look confused before telling them that yes, there were a couple of pale guardsmen. Namely a man named Thompson and another man named Anthony. When asked where they were, Chanor explained that Thompson had recently take long service leave and that Anthony should be on duty in the flats. The party thanked Chanor for their time and went on their way.
It wasn't hard to find Anthony in the flats, as they were the only pale person around. Curiously enough, he wore the same necklace that now hung around Kalydin's neck tipping them off that he was, in fact, involved. A haphazard plan was hatched and poorly communicated as Oryim slung on a disguise and called for help. Anthony sprung into action asking what was wrong, to which Oryim responded that there was an assailant in the alley adjacent.
Anthony looked unconvinced, so Kalydin decided to double down and run out of the aforementioned alley claiming that some random guy was swinging a sword in there. With the story corroborated, Anthony ran into the alleyway. Seeing no-one he called back to the pair asking for a description. Without skipping a beat, Kalydin began to describe Sam Calas who, at this stage, was trying to get to the other side of the alleyway. Kalydin's description however, included a necklace which caused Anthony to pause just long enough for Liaden O'Legal to notice.
As Sam rounded to the corner to get to the other side of the alleyway, Anthony turned to see him. Seeing as Sam matched Kalydin's description, he ran to confront the man, claiming that he was under arrest for disturbing the peace. Before the confrontation could get violent, Oryim and Kalydin explained that they knew this man, and that he was not the assailant due to his bare neck.
With the mood settling, they party decided to start asking Anthony questions about himself under the guise of researching "cool tattoos" for their book. Anthony, convinced by Kalydin's deception, responded by showing them his own tattoo of a large spider on his forearm. When asked he said it was just a spider, but that his friends back home in the mountain all had one. Sam's anger began to rise, he signaled to Liaden that he wanted to punch the man, but Liaden tried to keep him calm by pressing Anthony further.
It wasn't much longer before Anthony realised that they were asking very pointed questions about his involvement with the mountain scouting operation, which lead him to break the conversation off and return to his duties. Sensing that they had Anthony on the backfoot, our heroes hatched a new plan, one that would pincer him into action.
Kalydin and Oryim remained in the flats to tail Anthony, while Liaden and Sam would return to Chanor and inform him that they suspected him of obstructing justice. Liaden and Sam's plight, while not entirely successful, was also not entirely fruitless. Their claim placed enough suspicion onto the guardsman that Chanor decided to observe his activity more closely. In the flats, a disguised Oryim and Kalydin tailed and watched Anthony. They noticed that as people with the same necklace wandered past him, he would slip a note into their pockets. Oryim instructed Kalydin to wander past in hopes that it would result in them getting a tip off to their plan. This would prove fruitful and worked like a charm.
The note said simply, "Emergency Meeting: Tonight." When the party reconvened at the gatehouse, they began planning their next course of action. Kalydin would attend the meeting, disguised as Wilma while the others observed from nearby. After a few hours the party approached the Crucial Carp, the tavern the cultists were holding their meetings. Anthony was the first to arrive soon followed by the disguised Kalydin. When questioned about their promptness, Kalydin expertly deflected, stating that he was "testing the necklace."
It wasn't long before others arrived, making six cultists in total. Anthony probed about the others' whereabouts to which an armoured cultists responded that they were making the necessary preparations. With the six of them there, Anthony warned them of our heroes who seemed to know too much. He proceeded to describe the party as he remembered them.
After spreading his warning, Anthony offered to get drinks for the cultists giving one an opportunity to slink next to "Wilma." The cultist pressed them for information, claiming that it was all a little too coincidental that two days after they gave Wilma a necklace, some randoms seemed to know about them. Trying his best to keep cool, Kalydin made up some story about being stalked by a bunch of wierdos and that Rakroth had hired them. The cultist was still suspicious and called over one of the armoured ones.
The armoured cultist cast a spell to detect magical auras, which resulted in Kalydin lighting up like a torch. This prompted him to drop the disguise and launch the tavern into chaos as a brawl ensued. The fight was bloody and long, causing Oryim to fall unconscious as the room was plunged into magical darkness. Sensing the desperation in the air, and feeling like they were on the back foot, Sam tried beseeching the spirit guide within him again, like he did in the Priory garden in Wrain's Hall. However, this time, anger did not consume him. Instead, time seemed to stop as the rain formed a river that brought forth a cloaked boatman that halted adjacent to him. The present being was felt within Sam and he knew that it was Death, the Thirteenth. It stated that their deal was yet to be fulfilled, and that Sam must deliver on his end of the bargain.
Time started again, and his blade produced a serrated edge as he carved into the cultist before him. As the blade dragged across their flesh, Sam caught a glimpse of the cultist's soul screaming in terror. With the tide of battle turning, the cultists made to flee, with one escaping and one finding Oryim's knife buried in their back. And as the darkness cleared and our heroes stood victorious, the fact remained; one had escaped...
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