Session Date: 4/16/2023
I was gone for session 11.
Arythas wakes with Soldos having a projection-message for him. He recommends that I seek out and open a dialogue with the Crimson Legion and try to get them to help the Bloodsoaked Banner in their cause. I’ll have to ask around for the Oceanscar leader of their order, the title is called Centurion. Soldos learned about this a few hours ago. There is rumor, too, that the Centurion there has another one of Bahamut’s weapons.
For reference, the Crimson Legion is an organization of tieflings. They’re generally paladins and warlocks that worship varying deities of light — some worship Pelor, some Bahamut, a few worship Bane. The warlocks may have pacts with fiends that are aligned against Asmodeus. Their goal is to destroy Asmodeus, but for now they fight evil doers and fiends. They wish to change the king of the Hells.
He instructs that Siege and Inali will join me on this mission. Once the message is over, we all pack up and go to the Crimson Legion camp that is set up. It is built like a small fort. It is small but dependable.
We meet Taheer to Optio Natari, where Optio is the rank. Her superior — Valtar Diahas — is the one with the weapon. It is Orgalla’s Fang.
Orgalla is the mithril dragon, a leader and battle tactician.
Arythas helps Inali and Siege grease things so they can keep up on the diplomacy, then he heads back to the Bloodsoaked Banner’s post, finding a note and some apple tarts that Inky made. He eats them and then heads to the soiree.
At the soiree, Dia is in the gym with Valtar, Hamir, and a goblin. Inky and Iskra are in the library with a disturbed elf boy, a morbid harengon, and Szotszi. Rohan met an aasimar and after some flirting, the aasimar is going to steal from one of the sisters hosing the event, with Rohan chasing them out. After Arythas steps out of the elevator, the level that we are all on goes on lock down and the four sisters that were hosting the party have the aasimar beaten in another room. The sisters are the ones matching the name of who ordered the tainted wine from the Abbey of St. Cuthbert.
Dia requests to talk to General Ogmog in private and they go into a room — it happens to be one of the “private” rooms, lined in red velvet, meant for swinging. Dia doesn’t recognize what it is at first, but as the realization dawns on her she becomes quite flustered. The general is apologetic for the less than ideal setting, but she brushes it off and begins to explain that there is a plot to kill the king and to harm his people. She explains that the incoming wine from St. Cuthbert’s is tainted and does her best to explain information about undeath and necromantic magic related. The hobgoblin general sniffs Dia out and can tell that she is stressed, but she is not lying. She lets him examine the wine sample that she has and admits that she doesn’t know how much on would have to ingest to be turned undead.
She explains that the abbott was made undead and summarizes they events that transpired at St. Cuthbert’s. The general tries the wine. He tastes it, then spits it out as he notices that the taste of it is amiss.
Dia explains that she wishes to gain an audience with the King of Oceanscar to explain all of this, and for us to be empowered to investigate everything going on at this time. The general appreciates that she is only asking for access and not demanding resources. The general will do his best to help us, and then they turn to try to find allies trapped in here.
Inky and Iskra are currently in the library. They are dealing with Lufir: a disturbed elf boy who believes himself to be some sort of orcish messiah. There is also Yugurda the Psion, who is twisted and observing his emotions, and, of course, Szotszi.
At this time, Iskra is trying to be alone in a corner where he can smoke his fey weed in peace and be with his wolf.
Inky is ready to go and walks out, running into Arythas and quickly discussing the turn of events. They decide to go to the trophy room to try to find anyone in the party. There are weapons, armor, and taxidermied animals: an owlbear, a large bat with a woman swinging from it. There is Captain Caoimhe Kearney (Captain Kearney) inside: a red-headed woman that appears to be human (Iskra knows that she’s a seawolf werewolf) that is the captain of the ship named the Sea Bitch. There is some conversation back and forth with her, but Arythas isn’t fully sure if she’s a pirate or not.
Rohan, meanwhile, is trying to be sneaky by pretending to be a last partygoer. He finds golden flakes creating a trail to a door, which was where Kestrel St. Clair, the aasimar, was likely being kept. Rohan opens the door and finds a small pile of the gold there, with flecks of blood scattered through, and Kestrel tied to a chair with his eyes closed. Upon closer inspection, it is clear that Kestrel is not actually bleeding. Rohan cuts him loose of the chair and Kestrel explains that the sisters are behind something: they have everyone trapped here to kill them, or do something else, and they very much do not like the king.
Kestrel does have one request of Rohan: stab him in the heart and kill him. He explains to Rohan that he will resurrect once he’s dead and he will be outside of here, so he can get help. Rohan super doesn’t want to do this, but does it. He’s found out and encouraged to leave the room.
Dia leaves the swinger room after her conversation. Someone notices her as she flattens her skirts, though she’s unaware of this. The general has promised us aid in getting before the king.
Dia goes to Valtar and asks to speak to him privately, and they also end up in a different swinger room. She explains she would like help with something, but that she can’t share much in the way of details. She allows him to look at the wine and there is a moment where Valtar’s eyes roll into the back of his head, and when he comes back he explains that the “others” are quite mad about all of this. Dia then explains all of this without directly saying what all is going on and she expresses hope that he will help. He says he will consider it.
Rohan, upon leaving, stumbles into the trophy room. He’s splattered with blood and clearly in a panic. He explains that the entire party is a trap of some kind, and Dia expounds that she is the only true royalty here and no big decision makers are here. That is: nobody of any real importance is trapped down here. Dia leads the way to the elevator and we find that it is locked. She uses detect magic and finds a strong trace of defense magic on the doors that are acting as a seal, locking us all inside.
As she examines the elevator, Rohan and Iskra notice something is wrong with the “windows”: one is a rolling hills sunset with an army marching towards the window. The soldiers are automatons, possibly clockwork, and then the doors to the room close.