Session 044

Session Date: 08/12/2024

Spiders skitter down the stairwell before us, but only stare at us. Bosch greets the spiders and says hello, we’re just making our way in. He pushes through the rubble and as he takes a step in, the spiders take a step back. They’re observing us. We continue in, but Carver’s knees give out on him as he starts to enter. He thinks the shadows may be too deep for him, maybe he’s been in this too long. Zinag tries to wriggle away, but Carver still doesn’t let him. Mary apparently tells the steed to stand guard with the entrance, which he seems agreeable to.

Tabby and Faylen have their weapons out, ready to fight. Mary and Faylen notice that the darkness here is deeper in a more organic way, as if something is there. Mary does see a suggestion of a person in the shadows hanging in the darkness. Once she sees it once, she sees it repeatedly - she realizes that the inhabitants have been brought here, and are in the shadows of this temple structure. Mary points this out to Faylen, and he recalls the city is build out of itself + shadows, so everything’s being changed to fit the new scheme of the city, and the people are vastly more complex than stone. The people are currently alive, but suspended in this darkness. He has a nasty feeling that once this is finished, more biological processes will happen, and it might start soon.

Bosch jumps straight up and all of the spider eyes look at him, and all of the shadowy figures stop. Bosch is excited that got their attention. Faylen notices the way the two of them reacted in the same way, he suggests that maybe the spiders are the people? Mary takes a closer look at the spiders are some of them are dream spiders - normal animals, perhaps brought by Argent or the cult - while others are shadowy spiders that are part of the defenses here.

We start to climb the temple and go up. As we continue, we find ourselves at a resplendent door: something a person with taste, or money, would want. The door opens and we realize we are high over the city and we are on an overlook. There is a small desk. Either this has not changed by the process, or it’s the first thing that was built. There are plans on the desk, and there is a drowish man sitting at the desk. There is something wrong with how he looks.

Tabby and Faylen can tell that the man is working, seeming to make notes. His movements are very stiff like he is wearing something rather heavy. Mary can tell that what is too heavy and uncomfortable is his own flesh: he is in the process of becoming something but she is unsure if he fully understands this. There is a similar piece of the Seal of Infinity on the desk, but it seems to be inert in a way our shards are not.

Bosch tries to get up on the desk and put his foot on the Seal. A small wyvern (like the size of a small dog) shows up and bares its teeth and hisses at Bosch, which Bosch returns. The wyvern whimpers and goes back under the desk.

Mary addresses the Drow and says he needs to reverse what he’s doing here, and who we presume is Argent asks why he would do that, as it’s going perfectly. Bosch hooks his foot to get the piece and clacks the two pieces of the Seal together to try to get them to merge. Argent tries to look angry, but his face no longer works correctly. Bosch tosses the pieces to Faylen to figure out how to make it work, and Argent comments that we work as a team and it’s unique because the others do not.

We explain that this is not how it’s supposed to be, and he explains that he’s seen the world consumed by darkness, and this is where it starts. Bosch explains we know a more powerful shadow wielder (Kaymanth) who doesn’t think this is how things are supposed to be, and he asks if we mean the false prophet? We don’t know who he’s talking about, but Bosch explains it’s a “big dragony guy”.

The time for talking is clearly over and Argent reaches up and grabs his face to start pulling his flesh off. Bosch says to warn him before doing that in the future.

The man that was once Argent laughs, which seems familiar to Bosch, and he places it as the immortal of comedy thinking he’s funny. We have an audience.

What remains of Argent is this greyish torso - hands and head and just something of a ribcage, looking as if a veil was covering it. Bosch scrambles back to avoid touching this thing, staying adjacent to the desk, but staying away from this guy.

Faylen has been investigating the two pieces of the Seal of Infinity and whatever happened to the shard was an immense feat of magic and willpower. The piece of the Seal he had needs to recharge (which will happen faster with our big piece) but it is not currently useful.

There is something very cold about that which was once Argent - it’s on the other side of light and simply exudes cold at this point.

Combat:

• That Which Was Once Argent (Owb)
  • AC: 26
  • Notes:
    • Persistent cold damage
• Wyvern
  • AC: 15
  • This is basically a chihuahua it died in 2 character attacks lmfao
• Dream Spiders
  • AC: ⇐ 16
  • Notes:
    • Definitely have venom
      • DC 16
      • Failure = Stupefied 1

Faylen tries to channel the magic of the Seal into his Spellstrike and a few things happen:

• The shard from Argent is recharged and fuses with the Seal of Infinity
  • When this happens we get a flash of light and see more people sitting around pieces of the Seal
    • Hobgoblin woman atop a pyre holding a piece of the Seal covered in blood
    • Nondescript man in very rich clothing holding a piece of the Seal cast in gold
    • Kincaid is talking to someone tied up in a basement, taking a piece of the Seal
• Some of the energy from this is regenerated and funneled into Faylen’s Spellstrike

Upon defeating Argent, the process has stopped, but not reversing. The party encourages Faylen to go ahead and try to reverse what Argent did, and Faylen begins to focus with the Seal of Infinity. He realizes that he can do this, but it will leave him quite drained, and it could take hours or even days for him to do on his own. He stops focusing and explains this to the party, to which Bosch is surprised that it’s not as simple as waving his hands, as that’s what Faylen does the rest of the time and it works. The group discusses whether he should do it alone, and Mary suggests that maybe everyone can help, as she doesn’t want to ask Kaymanth for anything. They all sit down and begin.

Everyone works together to run the ritual to reverse the effects of the spell that was reorganizing the city. Faylen is the one that is having to weave much of this ritual and Tabby is focusing too hard on everything, thinking about individual bricks, and the two of them lose consciousness during the ritual - the ritual holds the two in place, but both of their minds drift to Kaymanth’s realm. There’s no frills, there’s no jokes - just a cold, damp lair, and the enormous dragon.

Kaymanth throws his temper tantrum and says that he’d hoped talking to the druid - the only adult in the group - would give reprieve. Faylen can tell that Kaymanth is absolutely furious, and that it is very, very personal toward Faylen. Faylen doesn’t necessarily feel like he’s in danger, the anger is more of a friend scolding a friend.

Kaymanth looks at the two of them and breathes heavily, saying the ritual will work and he won’t take that away from us. He says that they might - probably won’t die, if they keep going - or we can use the boon granted by him to soften the idiocy a bit. Faylen starts to pile on the respect as he would appreciate the help as it was clear Faylen took on too much with this ritual and Kaymanth is offering the free boon to lessen the drain of this ritual, though there will be no more free boons after.

A few hours later we realize we are sitting atop a hill and there is light back. Faylen and Tabby are coming to as if waking up from sleep: they had just talked to Kaymanth. We realize that we’ve rebuilt the city brick by brick. People are all around us, laying on the hill. Standing above us is Carver and the horse.

We finally get to see Shelmourn as it was. Mary helps heal some of the townspeople, and Tabby and Faylen sit in the sun.