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The group does some studying in the University Library. Since the librarians see the high priestess robes of Evangeline, they pull books from all sections for their search. Each of them find information that they are looking for:
That evening, as the rest run their own errands, Evangeline visits Kilmoc’s office. She finds more information about Vilkaris. This is an ethereal realm where ghosts, banshees, and other similar creatures dwell. The ruling beings are the spirits. Though the realm is free, when rulings must take place, typically the spirits will banish the culprit to another realm. Evangeline also checks her book about the ancestors' names and discovers five names in relation: Curros, Hanakri, Devinkri, Valad, and Suzalad. She learns Curros was a leader in Idris and the 2nd Designer of the orreries, and Valad was a great warrior who fell in the Battle of Far Brohn. She then finds an amulet hidden among the books. She identifies it as a Life Stone. After a night’s rest, Kadath teleports the group to Astaria and finds themselves in the lower level of the main dock house. Through some exploration, they discover this houses the dockmaster’s office, a tavern for the crews, and some resting quarters for the captains of the ships in port. In the office, they found general ledgers, but hidden in a secret drawer was another logbook. This one contained names going back 80 years with the most recent entry only 5 days earlier. Evangeline noticed the correlation of the dates next to names as dates that The Feather was in port. Kadath also pointed out magical ink that Forsythe read to be values listed next to each name. Inside the main hall, they discovered a thriving tavern for the crews of the docked ships. Fix focused and found Andrew, the only member of the Jagged Dream present in the city. Andrew shared he was a crewman of the Blue Shark and later shared information on the ships and their captains with Fix:
The group also learned that The Feather and her crew ran into trouble on their last journey. They seemed to have encountered the giant sea beast that guards Salachia, a prison in the middle of one of the twin lakes. The group decides they must continue to the Twisted Spire and look into this further at a later time. They take an evening’s rest at the Blue Dolphin and head out of the city the next morning.
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At the Citadel of the Iron Saint Fix, with the aid of Evangeline, repairs the orrery and as he watches through the narrow entry he sees the web of energy begin to spread. Evangeline takes a moment to investigate the room and finds a panel where behind are three books.:
The group makes their way out of the orrery camber and across to the Ancestors just in time to find Retton Balen (aka Leoros) arriving. Evangeline talks with Retton who shares with her that he has always felt like part of him was missing. That fact led him to Hidden Naresh where he ran into trouble and then to the Order of Truth who aided in his recovery. Upon his joining he tells her he feels complete. The party discovers upon talking with the Ancestors and their hosts:
Fix and Evangeline spend much time in debate about the intent of the Ancestors after Evangeline views Kri entering an infant at birth. Kri and Zavarina, his host, confirm that Kri has bonded with the family and they have been his host for multiple generations. After much discussion the decision was made and agreed upon by all that the Ancestors would remain watching and let the party know if any other of their kind entered. The party headed to Qi to find a solution to getting to The Twisted Spire for the next orrery to be restarted. In Nihliesh, Evangeline picks up more ink from Gallago. He offers to pay for their evening at the Platinum Spoon in hopes to reconcile with Evangeline for manipulating her to speak with his daughter on their previous visit. Before bed, they all do their nightly routines. As they begin to lay down for sleep, a song begins to play. Through some investigation, they realize the sound is omnipresent.
Forsythe takes to the air and discovers it only reaches so far. He then begins to look around for possible sources and finds an invisible stone. He takes the stone to Kadath that sees additional enchantment magic. Believing this to be a source, they wake Evangeline and travel to what appears to be the governmental building. A guard answers the door and informs them their leader is currently sleeping and he has no intention of waking her. After some convincing, the group is allowed in where they question the guard. He discloses that the song was enacted by Mada-liviss to ease tensions and fighting. The guard concedes to let her know of a breakfast appointment with the group and sends them off. Most of the group wait for the song to end at midnight before returning to bed. In the morning, the group met with Mada-liviss to learn the song was enacted also to stop any night time ritual that may be performed by the Fahat. To aid in Fix’s understanding, she shares her peace talk schedule with the religious group and through some compromise, agrees to have this matter resolved in three weeks time and to cease using the stones. As they leave, they talk with several townsfolk to discover many of them are okay with it as a temporary law and have discovered benefits to this sleep. The group then travels to the Citadel of the Iron Saint and discovers four people sitting around a sphere of energy meditating. Forsythe makes contact with them through telepathy and they agree to meet him at their home. Once they arrive, they are surprised to see others waiting there as well. Through several questions, the group learns the four are part of what they call the Soul Court and they are looking for a fifth to join them. Their ancestors built the home in the fourth age and they have been watching people ever since. Those they watch are chosen depending on their lives, interests, influence and influencers. When asked about the group, they share that they were seen at a distance and were protected. As Evangeline writes in her book about these watchers, the youngest, Zavakri, watches and is able to read the book. At times, Zavakri seems to communicate with the others telepathically about what she sees. Further questions reveal they are hosts to their ancestral spirits or souls. Some accept this willingly, one was born with the ancestor being passed from their mother. When asked about the orrery, they teleport them back to the stone they were meditating on. The group discovers the hole beneath the sphere and with the aid of magic, get themselves into the large room holding the orrery of this ancient city. The group begin to head back to Thriest and witness what looked like something tearing through the land. Through Forsythe’s flight, they realize the extent of this new “scar” being over 100 miles long and at least 15 miles at its widest point. We they arrive in Thriest, at the temple, Tatra meets them at the stairs saying:
Across the land devastation spreads Second to be the city of four heads Shield the land by orreries old Activate one new into the fold Tatra then hands Kadath a star sapphire. Tatra leaves as the group discusses the possible implications of the new riddle. Many ideas come up about the identification of the city of four heads with no definite conclusion. As they begin to realize the city is in commotion, they find out the river was disrupted and there is damage to the city. Forsythe quickly jumps in to attempt to create a spillway for the river, now flowing in the wrong direction. Kadath and Fix are sent to Ephremon to collect Zybella and ten druids she was able to gather on short notice. Evangeline heads to the Amber Pope to discover that he and Meus were already getting the merchant ships and the fleet of the City of Bridges underway to aid in however was needed for those traveling the river. By the time evening arrives there is a good start at mitigating much of the damage that could affect the economy of Thriest. Kadath heads to the pool of blood and enters to commune with the Raven Queen. She confirms that the cities without shields could be in danger of Velsharoon’s new approach to the material plane. She also shared that all the gods contributed to the cards, but it was Ao that determined what would be revealed and many of the gods do not agree with this course of action. She warns that the group may be called to a reckoning. Evangeline also communes to receive direction. She lays out all the cards as well as her book and crystal ball opening up her commune to any of the gods willing to share. When she asks about their presence, all the cards give a brief flash. Evangeline sees within the orb the shields that cover the Steadfast and the Beyond, toward the center is Rarmon. The cards flip over except for the Library and he shows her that the order does not matter but that they all need to be activated. During the night, Fix has a dream of being pulled above the land by Gond. He can see the network of the shields that create a circle around most of the Steadfast and the Beyond. Watching, the center begins to fill from Rarmon, and Shaji joins. Filled with a sense of pride, he hears Gond whisper, “My greatest work.” In the morning, the group heads to Rarmon knowing the orrery there can shield the city. When they arrive, Garrot leads them to the lower level under the orrery where they find an unpowered machine that could be designed to be part of the network of shields for the land. They place the sapphire into the machine and it begins to emit energy. When they go outside, they can see the iridescent network above the city and that it seems to stretch further south toward the Foundation Stones. As they prepare to leave Thriest, they also begin to notice the shield stretching toward the north as well. Philethis contacts Fix to let him know that his task is complete and he is going home. The group travels as clouds to the city of Nihliesh. The group finally made it back to Thriest and while there, Evangeline takes time to attune to the spine they pulled off Gaera, Kadath checks in with his order, and Forsythe meets up with Kosha. As the night continues, Merril let Kadath know that there was a man who had come back from the cabins and dropped into a catatonic state. He had planned on gathering a group to go check it out, but since the party was in town asked Kadath if they would look into it.
Fix stays the night with Zybella in Ephremon. Early in the morning, Zybella was called to the council chambers. After a failed attempt to keep Fix in her room, she invites him to come along. They meet a follower of Savarus who passes information about her vision. She saw an eruption of the land in the Steadfast, but was unsure of the exact location. When the group reunited in Thriest, they visited the catatonic man. While Forsythe uses his telepathic abilities to pull him out of the perpetual state of fear, Evangeline consults her crystal ball to see what happened. She saw some fiery creatures that she later looks up in her book to discover they are devils from the Nine Hells. The group travels to the cabins to inspect the area and see what has happened. Kadath collects the glowing embers from each of the cabins and realizes they do not emit any heat. He dumps them into the river. This triggers some fiery creatures and the group quickly dispatches them. Though the group was offered accommodations for the evening at the Sanctuary of the Eye, they decided to head back to Qi instead. However, Trever does provide a copy of the training manual for the drake riders to Fix with the understanding that it stays within his family. While waiting, one of Trever’s men, Cameron, does disclose that the drakes do not speak to them but rarely a black drake is born that seems to be more closely related to the dragons of old and can communicate.
Once home, they have dinner and disperse for the evening. Evangeline records what has happened and checks on her nanites. She eventually decides to draw with her ink and reveals an old cabin. Looking closely, a rocking chair begins to move, but nothing else seems to come to life. Kadath goes to visit Cedric at the Order of Balance and shares what they have done. A startled page invites Kadath to weapons class. Fix goes into the office to begin organizing and connects with Zybella. After some time, the sound of broken glass draws Fix’s attention and he finds that the servants broke his mother’s full mirror when she was startled by something at the window. When Fix investigates, he notices Funae crossing the gardens coming to the house. He alerts the others and meets her in the foyer. Funae shares that she has visited other timelines where she has met various versions of Fix and the others. When looking for herself, she did not find any other versions and only stumbled upon Gaera in one. As Funae begins to share that she doesn’t think she belongs even in this timeline, Evangeline shares what she remembers of the vision of Gaera taking the infant to the shadowfell. When asked about how Gaera had lived so long, Funae shares about the paintings of future and past events. She had never passed through the pictures, but Gaera did frequently. Fix shows her the two paintings he has and she recognizes Lord and Lady Bhaka. The group also learns a bit more about Philethis and how his services were won by Rodendis, leader of the Jagged Dream, in a game of chance against Gaera. Philethis was then bound to serve the leader of this organization until such a time that Laira has greater needed of him again. She also shares a bit of history, and that she knows Philethis now serves Fix. An offer is extended to Funae to join and she accepts. Evangeline decides to commune with Denier and confirms that Funae did die in the destruction of the castle, but then it got changed to something more unclear. She also learned that Funae is in a better position to be trusted now. She also shares with Funae that she saw her pages as blank and untainted. Evangeline then speaks with Savrus to see if the other timelines would have any influence with each other and receives from him that it is possible. The picture of the cabin is shared with the rest of the group once they are alone. Kadath recognizes the cabin as strongly resembling the one Erwin had taken him to when he was younger. It had been a place of peace away from the city. Studying the picture, they recognize a clock that is stopped at the 1:00 hour and an overturned salt bowl. Evangeline uses the orb to confirm Kadath’s past in relation to the cabin. Kadath, Forsythe, and Evangeline teleport to Thriest for the evening, while Fix teleports to Ephremon and plans to meet up with them in the morning. In Yosh-ul, the group takes the evening to relax before heading back to Qi in the morning. Prior to leaving, Evangeline pulls out the cards. The Throne card is complete and the backs seem to make some kind of image. However, she does notice there are about 7 holes to complete the picture. A little of the picture does seem to show a purple forest which only aligns with the Ausren Woods. After contacting Funae to request speaking to her, they head out.
When they return to Qi, the group sees that Philethis is not present, but the servants do not seem to notice. They mention nothing to the staff and continue on to meet the Amber Pope, Kilmoc. Evangeline leads them into the Durkhal and through the portal to his office in the City of Bridges. Upon their arrival, Kilmoc informs them of a card that he discovered in relation to the Angulan Knights and had already reached out to his contact, Knight Council Trever, and sets up a meeting. The group use a teleportation circle to arrive in the Sanctuary of the Eye where they meet Trever and two members of his unit. He shares with them that Grand Knight Castillian has been pushing the boundaries of what the knights do by sending some beyond the Black Riage Mountains and was beginning to lose the confidence of many of the knights. They arrange a meeting with Castillian and eventually kill him. Through some quick thinking, Evangeline injures herself and spins a believable tell that he had attempted to attack her and the others jumped to her defense. The two members of Trever’s unit witness the event, but backs up Evangeline’s account when Trever and the Lord Knight Justin arrive. The group head back to Qi with the knowledge that the Lord Knights vote on who will become the next Grand Knight with Trever’s commander being the most likely to take that role. When entering the jail, the king shares that he does know J’hara as being wanted for selling palace secrets. As J’hara left, she whispered quietly to the king, causing him to pale. When asked, she shares that she was asked to provide the same for Prince Porter as she had with the king. Fix tells the king that neither he nor any of his descendants shall have the throne again.
While the others discuss their next steps, Evangeline uses her crystal ball to look toward the castle. Forcing it to focus on the gates, she finds them open and Hervan and Diel (along with a band of villagers) enter to converse with the guards, looking prepared for confrontation. She also sensed a rapid heartbeat pass by overhead which she later confirmed was Forsythe. The vision in the crystal ball then shifted to the throne room where the mage activated a device on his chest. An image of the king appeared, they had a brief conversation, then it was deactivated. Once she pulls back, she shares all that she saw with the group. Meanwhile, Forsythe took flight and headed to the castle. Once over the castle, he watched as Hervan and Diel speak with the guards. The outcome was peaceful, so he landed on an upper balcony and entered through the second floor. Inside the castle he could hear Hervan and Diel informing others of the change in leadership. Forsythe decided to follow the sound and found them with his family in the throne room. He escorted his sister to the dungeon and released another prisoner being held for treason. Fix rushed to the central square and discovered J’hara giving groups of people directions and watching them disperse. An elderly lady generously gave J’hara a cloak which she put on immediately and continued in her mission. He searched over the mage, confirming his death and checking on the circular device on his chest. As he stuffed the mage into the bag of holding, J’hara was asked to send two trusted men to the jail to guard the king. He then went back to the jail to wait. When the two guards arrived, the group headed out. They decided to head toward the castle, however they were met on the road by Hervan, Diel, Forsythe, and Forsythe’s parents. Having already been encouraged to leave town, they quickly decided this was the best course of action when Fix tossed them the bag of coins intended to pay J’hara for her services. This only left one loose end, the Prince. Evangeline sat and focused once more on the crystal ball pushing it until finally seeing a young man near a lake. After a moment, the man shrugged and walked away, beyond the town. The group decided to follow and catch up to the man that evening. After some questions, they discover he was the Prince and he left under the advice of J’hara. He also shares his lack of desire to be king. While at the campsite with Porter, Evangeline checks her crystal ball and sees Gavyn in battle with drakes and his fall to the ground. She shares the vision with Fix and the group gathers themselves to teleport directly to Gavyn. They arrive outside of Yosh-ul next to him, in full view of aerial combat. Forsythe gives him a quick healing and takes to the air. They aid Arias in battle, ending it quickly. The group learns these were the Angulan Knights who were est. 5th age to bring order and remove the mutants causing chaos. They stand on a “humans first” platform combating and removing any non-human or mutants, and are often hired by the Order of Truth for their fighting force. The knights are led by the Grand Knight who resides at the Sanctuary of the Eye in Ghan, located on the northern cliffs, and can only be seen from an aerial approach. The group enters the throne room at Selascor Castle where they find a guard and what looked like a mage standing at the ready next to the seated King Humi. As they approached, Forsythe and Fix realized the king was an illusion, a projection of himself. They announced the killing of the beast within the mines and strongly encouraged a celebration within the town be planned. Kadath, with his intimidating presence, commanded the king to finish any business that would prevent him from attending in person. Fix stated the hour for the celebration and the group departed.
While awaiting festivities, the group met with Deil and Hervan to set up the plan. J’hara included herself in these plans to draw out some of the guards that were sure to be present. When the time arrived, she did just that. When she was spotted, two of the guards from the town square followed to arrest her. Once much of the town was gathered, the king arrived with his guard and mage. He welcomed the people and announced the group who had killed the beast, making the mines safe once more. Fix and Forsythe told the story of the event aided by illusion. Then turned back to the king stating the group did this at the behest of the people, not the crown. The guards began to take aim and converge upon the stage. People began to scatter as a few drew weapons to aid the group in overthrowing the king. The group killed the king’s guard and mage, then took the king to the jailhouse for the people to decide his fate. There, they excused the two stationed there and released some of the prisoners. They then took the king to the back and discovered J’hara, waiting casually within one of the cells. The group goes into the mines and eventually gets to the tunnels with less use. TTC scouts ahead with Forsythe closely behind. As they go deeper, they begin to hear a rumble and eventually pick up on some light. Forsythe senses that nature has been influenced by multiple planes and warns the others.
They make it to a huge cavern and discover the creature they had been sent to kill. The group quickly engages the evaclast taking some large hits and depleting some resources. Eventually they dispatch the creature and see a rift open within the cavern. A dog-like black creature is thrown through by what appears to be Ordeith. As Forsythe shatters the obsidian creature, the rest begin to question those on the other side of the rift. Zybella, Ederic, Kosha, and a living Ordeith seem a bit confused at the sight of the group. Ederic, however, recognizes Evangeline asking why she was not at home. Fix telepathically communicates with Zybella to discover she is not the one he knows. Kosha smiles softly as she recognizes Forsythe once he takes on his halfling appearance. Through some discussion, the group concludes this is an alternate timeline. Sharing some images of the items connected to Velsharoon, Zybella commands Fix to stop. She then communicates telepathically to all of them that they will guard this information closely as it could alter their own timeline. Ordeith and Zybella then close the rift. Fix and Evangeline watch closely to learn how to do the same should the need arise. When they turn to leave, they see a door next to the tunnel they came through. After investigating, they learn this is a piece of the Feywild, a glen known as “Dave.” It seems to provide anything they ask for from tools to drinks. Here, in a small library, Evangeline discovers the Throne card. It depicts a woman sitting upon it with an arrogant air of authority. They are encouraged to rest as time works differently there, and when they awake, they discover only an hour has passed. They leave the glen and head out of the mines. When they step out, they find several guards and miners have gathered. The captain agrees to escort them to see the king, but the group decides to travel by cloud instead of the teleportation circle they are led to. Once they arrive, they are allowed entry into the castle walls and led to the doors of the keep. |
AuthorDungeons & Dad Jokes Archives
February 2025
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