Intrigue in Al’ean and the Fall of House Nevroti

Life, Identity

After nine days of travel, Warren arrives in the grand city of Al’ean alongside Captain Kaylor, Casden, and Cassidy Nevroti. At the city gates, they are greeted by Baron Oswin Nevroti, who welcomes his children home and rewards Warren with a generous sum of gold and an invitation to a noble gathering in three days' time—a chance to mingle among Al’ean’s elite.

But something is amiss. Cassidy, ever sharp-eyed and intuitive, voices growing suspicions about her father’s motives. Why send them to Azmar so suddenly? Why act as if he expected their safe return, despite no rescue ever being dispatched? Warren begins to share her concerns, suspecting deeper political games or dark dealings at play. Casden, ever loyal, refuses to speculate and focuses instead on hosting the coming celebration.

While in the city, Warren visits the Church of Valindria, where he meets I’na Brightstar, the legendary Phoenix Knight, and her sister, Ly’ra Brightstar, the church’s High Matriarch. The women share sobering news: Rikar Alder’s body lies in stasis at the church, rescued from the brink of death during a battle against the notorious necromancer Black Mage Mesuli. Though alive in form, Rikar’s soul was ripped from his body by unknown magical forces and may still be trapped. I’na vows to continue the hunt for Mesuli and promises to alert Warren when the villain resurfaces.

On the night of the noble gathering, Warren attends the celebration at the Nevroti estate. Midway through the festivities, Baron Oswin slips away, raising Warren’s suspicions. Fearing for Cassidy’s safety, Warren slips away and sneaks into the estate under cover of night. Inside, he finds Cassidy, who agrees to help him investigate. The two quietly explore the manor and uncover Oswin’s study, where Warren finds two damning letters:

• A farewell letter from the Baron to Cassidy, revealing that he had sent his children away to shield them from an unspecified war brewing in the shadows.
• A second, mysterious letter from a “P.”, referencing disturbing magical experiments involving “power words” and a subject who is being manipulated through magical inscriptions.

Before they can flee, a crossbow bolt rips through the air—Cassidy is struck and collapses, dead. A firfolk woman, cool and cruel, steps from the shadows, stating Cassidy was not her target, but "she will have to do."
Warren, overcome with grief and rage, engages the assassin in a fierce battle. But the killer is skilled, using the fight to cause noise and rouse the Nevroti guards. As they arrive, she casts polymorph, transforming into a bat and escaping into the night, leaving Warren to take the blame.

In desperation, Warren grabs Cassidy’s body, hoping to reach the Church of Valindria for healing—but the guards intercept him. In the chaos, Warren accidentally kills one of them, and as the reality of what he's done sinks in, he breaks down, overcome with anguish. He is chained, arrested, and thrown into a holding cell on Nevroti grounds.

When Baron Oswin arrives, he says nothing—not a word of comfort, only a shattered silence. With tears in his eyes, he takes his daughter's lifeless body, and disappears into the night. The following day, Warren is handed over to city authorities, transferred to a prison at the city’s center to await trial, his fate uncertain, and his name now whispered as a killer in the halls of nobility.