Session 18 & 19 Report

General Summary

After the situation at the haunted lake, the party headed back to Hindarskjall to have a conversation with the Jarl and the Bluecloaks they were supposed to meet. The Bluecloaks came in a group of four; Marley as their head, Aslak, an ex-slave in the mines of Rannalla and two others who mostly kept their mouths shut. The Party learned some things about the current situation in Rannalla, the Duke apparently has enslaved a large portion of the population that was not killed during the sacking of the city. He now rules the place, alongside his apprentices and the tribal chiefs, though his rule seems to be absolute. It also turned out that the rumors concerning an Inquisition deserter were true, apparently one of the previous mission sent to the city turned on her companions and now serves the Duke.
It turns out that the Claws of Uthengar have made an arena of sorts in the city, where they pit slaves against each other and sometimes other creatures for sport. Marley said that this was probably the one option a slave has to make it out of the infamous mines of the city, where the captives would be worked to death. 
The party offered to help the Bluecloaks, and in exchange they would give them information whenever they could. Marley told them of an informant in Rannalla, a man named Timur, who would most likely hang around one of the city's taverns.
The party decided that they wanted to go to Stormkeep before heading towards Rannalla, so headed out the next day. The road was fairly quiet and the party came to the halfway point, in the middle of the forest that the Emperor's way ran through, without much trouble. Here they encountered a small hunter's village, that appeared to have been abandoned. It suited as a place for rest as well as any other, so they slept inside one of the cottages.
During the night however, the party spotted something stalking the surrounding woods, that then quickly ran away. A few hours later they became besieged by a group of Gnolls that saw the party as easy prey, trapped inside the small house. The Gnolls were easily dispatched of however, and in the morning the party continued their journey to Stormkeep. 
Arriving at the gates halfway through the gate, they showed their Inquisition symbols at the gate and were let into the city. Though the city appeared rather large, it is mostly a military establishment and its main denizens are Imperial soldiers, the Inquisition and the Templar Order. They went to the local Inquisition headquarters to find that the Lord Inquisitor, Victor Garrus had gone south to Bragun's Fast on some urgent assignment. In his stead, another senior officer took over his duties for the time being. He gave the party 500 Gold that they were still owed for the assignment in Hindarskjall. They were also supplied with a list of names of the party that were sent to Rannalla before. Two of the people on that list could be the defector in Rannalla. They were also supplied by a new contract to hunt down rumors of a mage that was reported in a small village called Whiteridge to the east.
The party made a quick stop at the Templar monastery to see if they could get some additional information about the area and the north in particular, but no one really knows what is going on that makes the inhabitants of that place so aggressive of late. 
To close off the day, the party visited a local tavern and were greeted by a scholar that was promptly abandoned by his mercenaries. He said that he studies giants and their culture and is planning an expedition to The Wild North to search for a lost Giant city made by both Stone and Ice Giants inside a glacier. However, no one is brave or insane enough to take him there, so he remains in this tavern until someone will take him there. He said that if they find the city (As it most definitely exists!), his protection can take all the riches they find for himself. He cares little for it, but only wants to see the city firsthand for his studies. After some talking, Nafikta took the High Elf scholar for a ride on a fresh tavern bed. In the meantime, Yerin gambled some of his money away at a dice table.
The next day, the party departed for Whiteridge which was supposedly situated next to the Aqueduct leading into the city, and after half a day of travel, they arrived. The village was little more than a collection of farmhouses and the surrounding fields. The people were hard at work due to it being harvest season. A singular house in the center of town was burned down. 
The party interrogated the village elder, a woman named Barbara, about the incident. She said that a man had appeared in the village a few weeks back that threatened the townsfolk, and when they wouldn't give him their money, he torched the building and then left. It was quickly determined that she was making the story up, and that some extra investigation was needed. 
The family that the house belonged to was currently staying at a neighbor, and the party visited them together with Barbara. They found the parents at work, but their child, a boy of 8 named Steyon was there alone. TT took him outside to play with Fluffy the dog and question him subtly. Eventually he said that he was not supposed to tell anyone what really happened that night, but that there was no other man. He promised to meet her behind the Aqueduct in a little while.
Out of sight of the village, Steyon showed TT that he could burn flocks of grass in the air if he concentrated hard enough. He said that he did not mean to burn his family's house down, but that it just sort of happened. In the night a few weeks ago he saw a star that was falling to the east and he suddenly just knew what to do. When he tried it, he burned the house down by accident. 
The party debated on what to do with the child. Though he is a mage, they decided not to kill or imprison him. They figured it would be safest for them in Hindarskjall, where the boy could perhaps be trained by Calder and the other children of the Jarl. Grohim sent a Sending to the Jarl with the message. However, they realized that sending a family out on the roads alone would likely be suicide, as they themselves had already been attacked by Gnolls on the way here. Eventually, they came to the conclusion that the family had to be hidden away. Barbara arranged a hunting lodge about 30 minutes from the village where the family could hide out until the party came back for them. 
They continued their journey east until they came to the settlement that Nafikta found on the old map she found in Hindarskjall; Oppor Kryss. The area felt strange. The party felt a strange stillness in themselves as they approached the village and quickly came to the conclusion that their magic did not work in the area. This must be why people say that the place is haunted.
They camped outside of the dead magic zone for the night and the following morning, they wandered in to the town.
The stillness was not the only strange thing about the town, apparently. Though all the stone and metal work still stood in the place, anything made of wood, cloth or other organic material was mysteriously missing. The party also spotted the burned shadows of townsfolk in the stones of the buildings and road underneath. It was like the people were obliterated in seconds and their silhouettes were still visible burned into the stone.
After some time, the party found the epicenter of the magical anomaly, a basement in the large house in the center of the fort. The large steel door in front of the basement bore 3 locks, and a suit of rusted metal armor was on the floor beside it. The party lit a torch and entered the dark dungeon beneath. 
They came into a stone room with a rune drawn in blood and a small runed brazier on a pedestal in the far edge of the room. Nafikta recognized the brazier and tried to light it. Nothing special happened however. It seemed that the bloody rune on the floor was the cause of the dead magic zone. 
After spending a little effort trying to break the rune, the flames in the brazier lit up and a pulse of energy burst out of the room, followed by loud shrieking and maniacal laughter. "Finally! I am Freed!" The burned in shadows of the stones of the room came to life and sprouted into a strange abomination with 4 arms and 2 clawed hands, which immediately attacked the party. From the brazier, the party heard "Shra-tak Cor'mezra .. Oh fuck." 
The demon was quickly dealt with by the party as they found that their magic had returned to them and they ran outside to spot a snake-like creature with humanoid female torso slithering towards the water. TT shot an arrow at her, upon which the creature turned around, asking who would be so audacious. The monster then smirked and said that she would deal with her later and then dissapeared in a cloud of fire and smoke.

Rewards Granted

500 Gold pieces, the other half for completing the Hindarskjall quest.
XP previous total: 11020
Meeting the Bluecloaks: 50 XP
Day of Travel to Stormkeep: 30 XP
Defeating Gnoll ambush: 350 XP
Arrival at Stormkeep: 50 XP
Information about Giants: 30 XP
Sexcapade: 10 XP
Travel to Whiteridge: 30 XP
Finding underage sorcerer: 100 XP
Arrival at Oppor Kryss: 30 XP
Releasing demons: 100 XP
Defeating maddened spirit: 1000 XP
1780 XP, new total: 12800 XP
XP to level 6: 1200

Report Date

06 Sep 2020