Session 95: Old Bones
General Summary
After a month of work, we reconvene to go over the information we've all collected. The Tenth Circle hasn't been heard of in a few hundred years, at least publicly anyways. While they had ties to organizations all over the Caelsimil and Teme-Rasadar region, they considered themselves independent. While some viewed them as a cult, the Tenth Circle was primarily treated as a guild. They took their work seriously, even in spite of any setbacks caused by outsiders who didn't approve of their methods. As far as anyone knows, beings of time and fate never went after the Tenth Circle, but any confrontations the guild was involved in were kept secret. Even interpersonal conflict never became public knowledge.
The Tenth Circle truly believed that they were the only beings competent enough to wield magic. Magic was viewed as inherently dangerous and as such, they sought to gain mastery over several forms of it. They wanted to find other sources of magical power besides the divine and arcane. The order was even researching mythic power, which could prove incredibly useful to our group. In the end, the order was able to achieve their goal of mastering powerful magic. Halanni, a sphinx Elathera speaks to often, believes that the order is still active to this day. We go over the maps Rikius researched and he points out several locations of interest. Elathera theorizes that the order created a spell powerful enough to keep their island hidden from all and I can't even get any information about it from Iolond.
We travel to Trieste in order to speak with Aizen Umber, the current head of the Umber estate. We're given a letter from him that says he's willing to meet with us in two days, but Industria isn't happy about that. Come the next morning, she takes us along with her to deliver a message directly to Aizen. When his guards try to stop us, she tells them that the matter is urgent and can't wait any longer. Minutes go by before we're finally invited inside and Aizen's already nervous. Due to his family's history and association with the Order of the Tenth Circle, our questioning is making him uncomfortable. Eventually, he cracks and admits that he's stressed out because his wife has fallen ill within the past week. He believes she was poisoned, but when he describes her unending thirst, Industria realizes this is a curse.
Aizen reluctantly allows us to see his wife, who's unconscious and withering away in bed. I inspect her body and find severe bruising on her arm. When I hop into her mind for answers, I'm pulled into the memory of her and Aizen at a ball, celebrating the opening of a local business. As they dance and switch off partners, somebody grabs his wife aggressively and cast their spell. I'm not able to get a good look at the attacker, so I leave her mind, and Industria lifts the curse. We have no idea who did this to her and why, so Industria wants to go through with a fake funeral in the hopes of finding the assailant among the mourners.
I'm teleported back to the lodge in Florence with Aizen's wife. Her name is Viola Marguerette and I recognize that her family name belongs to some of the original pilgrims in Caelsimil centuries ago. This adds another angle to the situation as it's possible that the Remnants of Bones are involved. Back in Trieste, Industria modifies Aizen's memory so that he believes that Viola has passed. Elathera has crafted a body double of her and both promise Aizen that they'll find out who's responsible for her death. Industria will perform Viola's last rites and once Aizen agrees, our plan can truly begin.
Character(s) interacted with
Report Date
29 May 2022
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