A master's request

Early in the morning, just before sunrise, a servant wakes Fix to inform him of a visitor. Ralet, High Priest of the Order of Balance, has arrived for Kadath. He shares with the group what is needed in order to create an item that could protect its wearer from dominating blood magic rituals: Distransit blood and Carcerian horns. Learning that these creatures are not native to the material plan, Ralet shows where there are rifts to other planes.

Fix and Kadath later travel to Finnel’s to see if he will send a message to Minoverin, the planes walker from Shaji. Finnel is able to connect to Minoverin and he arrives shortly afterwards. He shares that Distransits get caught between planes and can blend into the environment surrounding a rift. In order to get their blood though, they have to be alive. He also confirms the closest rifts are in the Black Riage Mountains: Mt Zanlis and Hidden Naresh.

The group meet up at the Crown’s Tavern and check in with Gidna. When asked about the scarab, Gidna admits she would be willing to take it back, however, after some discussion, she tells Fix to hold onto it for now.

While waiting for the evening to come, Evangeline decides to draw another picture with her special ink. As she finishes up, the image has a strong resemblance to Kadath, though a bit older, no scar on the face, and carrying a dark-bladed twin to his sword. She moves in closer and gets a very good look at a skeletal hand on his shoulder and feels some really negative energy from the black horns at his feet.

When they return to the estate, they gather in Fix’s quarters and pull out the storm painting. One by one they step through the frame and find themselves inside a carriage house. A violent storm is picking up momentum just outside causing an extreme amount of noise and chaos. With TTC as a guide, they sneak through the side entrance and get a brief layout of the keep’s first floor. They decide to affix one of Kadath’s crystals onto a chandelier inside the throne room and make their way out quickly. Just as they get back to the carriage house, the northwest corner of the keep collapses. Ignoring all the cries, they step back through the portal and into Fix’s room.

Episode 73