The team try to get the the needed resources together to travel to Alexandria. Amon & Grimmaz have to call in a few favours and spend a bit of money to get this set up. The rest has to help organise the whole expedition. Salapane & Reolus get pulled in more due to events that are to come. Anselma seems to be untouched as yet but likely to be pulled in... somehow.
Amon gets dispensation from the Church as there is strange goings on in Alexandria and needs to check out what is going on. He's given the paperwork to allow travel by ship over the Mediterranean to Egypt, along with a pass through Venice.
Grimmaz is able to take 5 Burgeaters, and Mikhael Aldorf gves him a letter to use in Wien to allow for the recruitment of 7 more troops including a scout as well. He can use his contacts there to get horses, wagons, travel rations, and some general goods if they can sell in the markets & to the merchants in Alexandria. This he can get from Burgomaster Ewald Odila & Hundi Gunthr.
All will need a stipend and/or payment, mounting to 2,000 gold to cover it.
Next is the travel. It would take roughly 2 weeks of travel with mininmal stops, and at least six events may happen, even when in Alexandria:
- A bandit or Strgio / Sturge or Dragonnel attack may occur in the wilds when far away from towns & cites. This can happen anywhere.
- A Chinese assassin may try to kill Salapane. If left alive and 'questioned', they may reveal that elements of Salapane's Clan want her dead to stop her returning or contacting her family in the Far East.
- A Yuan-Ti Pureblood may try to hold them up by misdirecting them or disrupting their supplies.
- A letter is recieved by Reolus states 'We know where you are' or 'We know where you are going'.
- Anselma may recieve a similar letter saying: 'I hope you well, and I hope we cross paths again soon, signed D.L.'
- Grimmaz may recieve word that a number of small insurrections have been put down, including in Eschbach with attacks by different Undead & Saxon forces.
They can take this any way they want and can only take indirect action.
When they arrive in Vienna in Italy, they can board a ship with the sailors remarking that it is going to be a terrible voyage and it's cursed. If asked, they will say it's because women are aboard.
When travelling there is the risk of a storm of 25%
1d100 and there is the chance of damage to the ship or losing
1d6 guards / Burgeaters overboard, and the same roll for sailors. The rest of the sailors may mutiney and needs to be quelled. If they are killed or thrown overboard, the team may find they end up drifting and crashng somewhere wher they don't want to. This will add a few days to the travel if they survive, and there is always the risk of drowning if they don't make it to safety.
If successful, they will arrive in Alexandria and start to work out where to stay and off-load some unnecessary gear. They will find that there is Tabaxi & Loxodons present too, and their horses are struggling. The latter is because of the heat, and the presence of camels, as well as the Loxodons. The team will find that the vast majority of the populace cannot communicate with them. The locals are able to speak, read & write Coptic Egyptian, and Arabic. A few here & here of high enough status will know some type of European language, Latin, old Greek or some other language.
They're able to find lodgings due to contacts within the traders area that have contact with Europe. They also find that it is far hotter than what they are used to. There is a risk of becoming dehydrated if not careful, and alcohol is also severely limited. At the same time a squad of Abyssad soldiers will faollow them, watch them etc. Rumours are rife at this time about the freezing of the sea around the port and damage to some lower levels of the Library. At the same time rumours are aboud of more active undead around Luxor & the Pyramids of Giza, as well as other sites. Assassinations have happened here and there, and smuggling operations have also increased leading to the authorities cracking down more.
Going to the Library can be harder than what the team think. Abassd soldiers are present everywhere with regular checks made. Bribes can work if carefully made, but if caught it may turn into a fine or worse.
When they arrive at the Library, they will find that the Librarians will try to get information & stories out of them to help fill the library. If Amon asks the right questions he might find what he is looking for. Also, there is the chance of a couple of pages of the Book of Eibon. It will describe the Star Gods, especially Azathoth (referred to as Mana-Yood-Sushi) and the sound of discordant drumming & fluteplaying. It will say that these try to slip into reality through the physical essence of materials & bodies made in the birth of the universe that contains a spark of their own essence. These are weak normally, until fed with the spirits of their follows & spells that strengthen them. Then they may rise. If a permanent link can be made to their domains in the Far Realms (such as Star Spawn) can be placed in the Material Plane, then they can push through more easier.
At the same time, the library is in upheavel due to the damage below. They are warned not to go down there. The way in has an arch with Ancient Egyptian writing on it saying: "Below you will find pleasures & knowledge on a cosmic scale not for the faint of heart. Enter not if you are weak of spirit."
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