Session 098 - Codas and Crises

General Summary

35th Planting - contd.

Dreford - MIH - Ritual Cave

Exhausted and heartbroken, Denye wrote missives to Karobark, Secret of the Bluff, Aubergine, and even the Avium. For most of them, the wizard gave a short rundown of the situation and asked for help. To the Avium, she simply said, “if you want to see what we are facing, come now!” Mechanically she went through the steps to cast Teleportation Circle, burning in the sigils she had sent to her mentors. With these tasks finished, she pulled out her Ring of Homesteading. Warning the others that people might show up at any time, she wearily climbed the ladder and collapsed on her cot.
The others had settled into a sketchy sort of camp, unwilling to leave this magical nuke. Ell was able to create a fire, and Tear was more than willing to whip up a snack and pot of tea. The plucky goblin even had some raw meat for Ha’aash. After the meal, Ell volunteered to head back out and let Rimes and the Watch know that things were over. Both Tear and Ranunkel decided to go with him, but Jilken decided that she would trance for a while as well. Leaving Ha’aash to keep an eye on things, the trio headed back down the tunnel to where they found the anti-magic candle had burned down and the acrid flame burned once more and the bubbling acid leaked into the blood channel. Ignoring that for now, Ell lead them back to the secret door. It was closed, but from this side it was simple to trigger the latch and the secret panel swung back, startling a pair of watchmen stationed at the foot of the spiral staircase.

MIH - Big House - Basement

The watchman had raised their swords but relaxed when they saw it was part of the team. They were relieved but also surprised to see them and informed Ell that Rimes had left word that he wanted to see any of the party who turned up. Looking around, Ell noted that the other door was open and tables and things looked as if there had been a fight. Rather than ask, the young man headed up the stairs to speak to the Commander.

MIH - Big House - Main Level

Things are a mess from the earthquake. There are another pair of guards at the stairs who will point the party toward the front hall, where Comm. Rimes is standing over one of the desks looking over some papers smoking a thin cigar. The grizzled fellow was pleased to see the trio and asked where they had vanished too. Ell explained that they had found a secret entrance and managed to stop the Ministry from completing a ritual that would have had disastrous effects on the entire city. Rimes asked some more questions, but eventually admits that whatever is going on is probably better in the party’s hands. He goes on to say that the enclave has been secured and the golems neutralized. They hadn’t found any people and only a few dozen animals survived.
While they were talking, Tear had moved over and picked up one of the books. After flipping through a couple of pages, he asked Ell if he could read it. He could indeed read the strange writing that looked sort-of like Elvish. The burnt book seemed to contain names and lists of “activities”, gossip and/or blackmail. Ell was instantly interested, although many of the names seem unlike any of the various elven races. Rimes asked the young man if he could read it and he temporized saying he could make out a bit, but suggested that he take all three books back to Denye and the others for further study. Rimes was hesitant at first, but eventually agreed. He did ask if the young man could read the burnt scraps of paper that had been recovered from the fireplace in the dining room. The sharp jagged scrip was clearly Abyssal and Ell was able to make out, “...rash. Now you must..oper alignment, still with enough powe….. wo already lie broken, three will give the Mast….unsuccessful, help her find the orb of undea…”
Ell explained that it was the warning that the fire portal had failed and the Ministry should accelerate their plans for the ritual that the party had stopped. That seemed reasonable to Rimes, although he was disappointed that there wasn’t a name of who had written to warn them. The only other item of note that the Watch had found was a small wooden box (6x12x3) taken from the magic room. There is not an obvious lock but it will not open. Ell examined it closely for any hidden latches but quickly realized it was held in an Arcane Lock. Annoyed, Ell admitted that he couldn’t open it, but suggested that Denye might be able to do something. Now curious Ell took a look at the other two burnt books. One was the same not-Elven and seemed to be more of a workbook or journal containing a lot of magical jargon and abbreviations. The third book held an even greater surprise. The text was more pictographic than actual letters and Ell was shocked when his gift of translation failed to activate.
Satisfied, Rimes asked if the party still needed the aid of the Watch. Ell assured him that things were in hand and emphasized that there was no further danger. The Commander nodded and told the trio that he was going to be here for a bit longer, but they were wrapping up their investigation. Rimes also asked that the party check in with him before they leave town. Ell was hesitant, being unsure of the team’s next steps, but promised he would do his best to make sure it happened.

MIH - Big House - Basement

On their way back downstairs, the trio ran into Jilken. It seemed that Karobark had replied to Denye’s message and would be here soon, but he hadn’t specified how he was coming and Jilken was on her way upstairs to let Commander Rimes know. Tear volunteered to take the message to the officer, before cheerfully bolting back up the stairs.

Dreford - MIH - Ritual Cave

Denye had vanished into her workshop, and while she was drained, all she could do was stare at the ceiling. Occasionally her eyes would dart over to the table where her message tube lay but she always returned to their vigil…staring at the ceiling, but not really seeing it. When the tube did begin to vibrate, the wizard leapt to grab it and discovered it was a reply from Karobark. It wasn’t quite the rousing response but at least someone was on their way. After climbing down the ladder and asking Jilken to pass on the message that some wizards would be coming soon, she went back and collapsed onto the cot, finally falling into a fitful sleep.
Janora likewise was having a hard time falling asleep. Still feeling concerned and unsettled, she decided to pray, hoping if nothing else to draw the attention of the Raven Queen to this dark ritual. What Janora got was more of an audience with the goddess, finding herself held in the palm of an enormous hand. The Matron was quite disturbed to hear that someone was trying to break the chains of the Chained Oblivion and charged the witch with discovering more of this cult who would do such a thing. Returning to reality, the witch dropped into a dreamless sleep.
Jilken, Ell and Ranunkel returned to find Forest and Ha’aash keeping an eye on things. Settling in to wait for these newcomers, Ell pulled out the first book and began reading through with interest looking for anything he could use. Jilken settled back down to finish her trance and Ranunkel pulled out a chisel and his latest project.
It was a couple of hours later when Ha’aash leapt to his feet and turned to stare at the circle Denye had sketched out. There was a *pop* and suddenly there was an elderly tabaxi and three half-orc wizards standing within. As Ell was rising to his feet, Denye appeared on the ladder and threw herself at the nearest Karobark in tears. She drew up short in confusion at seeing three of one of her mentors. One of the others, dressed in a different colored robe, stepped forward and held out his arms. The Corva wizard leapt into his embrace, weeping. Secret of the Bluff stepped forward and was about to greet Ell when he spotted the body of Laycie Sparspray and he rushed over with a cry. It took a bit for things to calm down, but it did manage to wake Janora. The two simulacrum were also not idle during that time, moving directly to the magic circle and the Chain. Once she had calmed a bit, Denye gave Secret Laycie’s diary and explained that the four of them found something in the Abyss and got taken over in some way.
That sobered the conversation and Karobark asked them to give them a more detailed explanation of what happened. That took a while and led into some deep arcane discussions, the conclusion of which was that if both circles were broken the Chain would return to its own mytho-potential. Unfortunately, doing so will expose the entire chamber to the proto-magic which would denature all organic materials. Karobark solved the problem by suggesting that his doubles could stay and break the spells but that they best be on the other side of a stone wall. Secret stopped to remove a small spyglass necklace from around Laycie’s neck. Ha’aash and Forest led the way back to the secret door and the basement beyond. Karobark, who had been counting under his breath threw a wall of force over the entire wall just before there was a flash of blinding light that outlined the door and left behind afterimages. Returning to the secret chamber they found that all of the blood and bodies were completely gone…so was the Chain and any sign of the circles that had held it. So was the mini portal with the flame and acid.

Dreford - MIH Enclace

Exhausted the party, including Secret and Karobark, headed back up through the house and outside into open air, where they found that night had fallen. The large statue had fallen, it’s large wings wrecking the tannery and washhouse along with part of the stockade wall. There were also golems, many of which were smashed, although a few were whole, prone and unmoving. Secret conjured a pair of mage lights to float above the party as they made their way through.
As they did so, Janora noticed a glint within the remains of one of the golems. She stopped to look and realized that the golem had golden bones…but more importantly they appeared to be perfect replicas of human bones. The witch asked Ranunkel to help remove the bones from the stone and he did so with ease after shifting to his rocky form. She was left with an almost intact human skeleton. Shaking her head she gathered the golden bones and tucked them into her bag. Apologizing to the others, Janora and Ranunkel caught up with the others at what was the left of the gate.
As the group made their way back to the city gates, Ranunkel came to a sudden halt and went stiff in shock. A moment later he muttered something under his breath before looking around. In a rush explained that he had to return home, there was family trouble. He might return but he wasn’t sure if it would be possible. The others said goodbye, promising that he would always have a place in their secret hideout.

Drefore - Three Bells

A thick fog had started to settle in by the time the party arrived at the inn. There was more to discuss but everyone was tired so after securing rooms for the visiting wizards everyone eventually found their beds…everyone still exhausted from the fight

Report Date

14 Jun 2024