Conjunction of Planes

Previously, Neamhan found out from Wynn that she had received the Mark of the Heretic from the custodians, and Luca helped Blackstar to feed, at the cost of his good standing with his patron. Chakuq arrived in Kingsport and found a welcome at the Careless Wanderer, just in time to listen to Falka’s lecture to the heroes on the history of Epidemius and his Book of Woe.

Second Day, Second Ride, Autumn Twilight, 1262

(Silvermoon is in high sanction, Bloodmoon is waning, Darkmoon is waning)

The conversation about Epidemius was still continuing at the Careless Wanderer. Chakuq, the newest guest at the inn, was a veteran hunter and had decided to offer the heroes his advice. All the while, Céleste was contemplating her worries at the bottom of a wine glass at a different table.

The heroes decided that direct confrontation of Epidemius was the best route forward, but they would need a lot more allies if they were to succeed. Falka would speak to Jan and the custodians, not just about the accusations against Neamhan, but also about help against the fiend. Astrid would try to find Brandomiir to enlist his services, and Neamhan would fly to the Seat of Friendship to speak to the druids that protected the tree at the Seat. Quentin, in the meantime, would write a letter addressed to his lord father, and visit the Forgewright Arms to see whether Dagran could fashion him a ring of steel to accompany the letter. The significance of this was lost on the rest of the heroes, but after getting quill, ink and paper from Falka, Quentin said down to write his letter.

Chakuq asked whether the heroes had the right tools to their disposal, recalling a hunt on a hag, a supernatural creature, which required silvered weapons to take it down. The heroes assured Chakuq that they were confident that they had the weapons necessary, and could even extend some of the weapons they had gathered over time to him, should he decide to stand with them against Epidemius.

Neamhan suggests that when she has reshaped herself into a fierce beast, she would be confident that her claws, talons and fangs would work against the likes of Epidemius. When Emrys asked her why she would not just sling spells at a distance, she remarked that being in the thick of melee was more “fun.” Astrid’s face darkened in response and Neamhan realised that she had crossed a line with the northerner that she did not quite understand.

Getting increasingly more worried about his inability to access his powers, Luca felt the urge to visit the Cathedral of the Platinum Father. Before leaving, he asked Quentin whether he could check with Dagran Forgewright whether it was possible to socket more lyrium crystals into weapons in preparation for the confrontation with Epidemius.

Luca stood before the cathedral and ascended the steps towards the intricately carved double doors which allowed entrance into the hallowed halls. Inside, he walked down the nave to the transept where he found the cracked altar. The pebble that St. Benedict had used to sunder the altar was still laying there. “…it takes but one to start a landslide with the casting of a single pebble,” Luca remembered. It was the last time that he had seen Aurion.

Turning into the chapel of St. Aureus the Golden One, a figure as legendary to the Silver Crusade as St. Catherine of Dunagore, Luca lit a candle and began to pray. A dimness overtook Luca’s sight, as if he had been lost in heavy concentration, and slowly he felt the presence of Aurion emerge. Eventually, the heavy voice of his patron filled his thoughts. It was not an easy conversation for Luca, but at Aurion was not refusing to answer his call. Aurion reminded Luca that chose to walk the path of order, and that strict control of Blackstar was a consequence of that pact. Luca was remorseful for taking the man’s life and letting Blackstar consume his soul, but showed no remorse for disobeying his patron. Aurion required only one thing; obedience. Luca was going to have to prove himself to his master before his obediences would return to him. Luca was once Aurion’s favourite and most promising servant, but that was slowly changing, Aurion warned.

After Aurion had left him, Luca spent some time in contemplation, and then in conversation with Sartinius, a young cleric devoted to Paladine whom he had seen at the cathedral before. He spoke of devotion, of reverence and of different prayers that Luca could use to strengthen and show his devotion. Sartinius often prayed to St. Catherine because of how relatable she is when compared to St. Aureus the Golden One, and how her sacrifice resonated with a lot of people because devotion often requires sacrifice. Luca decided to reflect on that, and what sacrifices he had made, and would need to make in the future, in order to be obedient to Aurion.

Back at the Careless Wanderer Neamhan was getting ready to travel to the Seat of Friendship to find the druids there. She asked Lauryn to help her by closing the balcony doors behind her as she took on the shape of a falcon. She flew out over the city, leaving a dumbstruck Lauryn behind. As she climbed higher and higher, she saw that two griffons were patrolling the skies above the city.

It took Neamhan about two hours of flying along the coast before the enormous tree of that marked the Seat of Friendship came into view. The oak stood much taller than the surrounding trees, and still retained all of its leaves, spectacularly coloured from light yellow to deep purple. It’s canopy was dense and its trunk was thicker than any tree Neamhan had ever seen.

Underneath the boughs of the great oak, Neamhan found travellers resting on a blanket of think moss that covered the ground, surrounding a fire which was being carefully tended to by a trio of druids. There were travellers of all stripes; commoners, merchants, noblemen with their guards, and there was a group of szygani sitting outside a colourful wagon.

After observing the people in the glade Neamhan identified the leader of the druids, a burly man with a grizzled beard wearing a red and black tartan, a sheep’s fur, and a black hood adorned with bits of deer antler. He was going around the glade, speaking to each of the travellers, making sure that they felt welcomed. Neamhan eventually hid behind the wagon of the szygani and turned back into her elven shape, revealing herself to be a traveller that had just arrived.

When Neamhan revealed herself, the druid introduced himself as Ciarán and offered her a seat at the fire, and a cup of warm brew that the szygani were sharing. She accepted and found that it was an interesting mix of sage, rosemary, cinnamon and cinnas-fruit. Neamhan took a gamble and addressed Ciarán in the shared tongue of druids, which he understood. It was clear that his accent was different than hers, but that there was enough of a common base to have a conversation.

After Ciarán disappointed Neamhan desire for help from the druids in the fight against Epidemius, she tried to convince him that Epidemius posed a threat to the tree, which Ciarán referred to as Gheolgothis. The druid did not seem concerned and claimed that the tree had survived much worse than the likes of Epidemius. Neamhan was intrigued asked whether she could commune with Gheolgothis. Ciarán offered her a seat among the thick roots of the tree.

When Neamhan reached out, she found a voice as old as time, which sounded like the rumble and groaning of the timber framework of a galleon. Eventually she started to make out words and phrases, and she learned that Gheolgothis considered itself eternal, but that it understood that it could burn, that it could end, only for something new to regrow from it when it was gone. It made Neamhan feel comforted. When Neamhan asked whether Gheolgothis felt safe, it did not understand the concept of safety, much like an advancing glacier did not understand mercy for the things it crushed in its path.

 

Before thanking Gheolgothis for its time, Neamhan asked it how far it reached. It seemed to struggle with the question, and then answered that it reached as far as the “Oakfather”, which Neamhan in turn struggled to understand as an answer. The tree seemed to fall back into a slumber after Neamhan’s goodbye.

During the remainder of her conversation with Ciarán, Neamhan discovers that he is very old for a human, rivalling her in age, and he has the ability to turn his skin into bark. He is part of the Circle of the Land, and managed to eventually guess Neamhan’s affiliation as a Circle of the Moon druid. They had a brief conversation about the origins of druidic magic, but Neamhan was disappointed to discover that Ciarán attributed his power to Silvanus, the Oakfather. (This also put Gheolgothis’ answer to her question about how far it reached into perspective.) Ciarán went to invite her and the heroes back to the Seat of Friendship, and that they could use it as a “place of power” any time they needed to strengthen a ritual.

When she finally bid her farewell, Neamhan assumed the shape of a falcon again and started flying back to Kingsport. She would likely arrive in the early evening.

When Falka left to go and talk to the custodians, about the situation with Neamhan and about help with Epidemius, Quentin left for Forgewright Arms and Chakuq joined Luca and Emrys as they were heading towards the Circle of Magi. They stopped at Steward’s Square and walked Chakuq through what they knew about Epidemius’ first appearance.

On the spot where the fight took place Chakuq found some old, faded blood stains, and a little further down he noticed some miniscule crystals, the size of grains of sand. They glittered kaleidoscopically in the dying light of the late afternoon sun. Luca explained what he knew about the crystals, and where they came from. Chakuq continued to walk around the square to familiarise himself with the layout, with the buildings, and with any vantage points, while Luca and Emrys visited the Circle of Magi.

Arriving at the Circle of Magi, Ólafur opened the door and welcomed Luca and Emrys into the lobby. There were students milling about and when Ólafur learned that the heroes wanted to speak to the head archmage, he nervously ushered them into the private room he had adjacent to the lobby. Reluctantly, the custodian of the Circle went to inquire about an audience with Réonan. When he returned, he lead them to the rear of the lobby, through a set of double doors into a stairwell with a large, winding stairway that lead up and along many statues, banners and other curious items that were collected into the top of the tower they ascended.

Ólafur brought them in front of a large statue of a winged lion inside a vaulted alcove, which they had stood in front of before. “Great Prayanti, Guardian of the Scarab Temple of the Great Sand Sea of Noth, grant us access,” Ólafur said, and with the sound of dry stones sliding across one another, the walls turned to reveal the head archmage’s inner sanctum.

Previously, the heroes had aided Neamhan in her attempt to break the curse that rested on Quentin, placed there by a bargain he struck with the Good Sisters at the grove outside of Blackbough. Unfortunately, the grasp of the sisters on Quentin proved too strong and they rebuked Neamhan’s attempt.

Second Day, Second Ride, Autumn Twilight, 1262

(Silvermoon is in high sanction, Bloodmoon is waning, Darkmoon is waning)

Neamhan awoke from her reverie as she often did, very early in the morning, before the Careless Wanderer awoke. With the possible exception of Lauryn, that is. She had failed to break the curse and was considering what to do next. When she heard the telltale sounds of crystalline windchimes Neamhan knew that Wynn was nearby.  He revealed himself soon after and told her she carried the Mark of the Heretic, left on her the previous day during the confrontation with the custodians. Wynn blew a cold breath upon the back of her hand to reveal a glyph of sorts, and told her that as long as she carried the mark she could not leave, and that the custodians would always find her.

Wynn also gave a confusing explanation about his role at the Careless Wanderer, which he referred to as the domain of “Blind Magda”, presumably referring to the owner of the inn. Blind Magda was a signatory in the “accords” and Wynn was representing the “winter court”. He also explained that the inn was considered accorded neutral territory, which is why he had to tolerate the presence of the dragonling, which Wynn went on to explain was a representative of the “summer court.” He was helping Neamhan because the custodians had broken the laws of hospitality when they decided to confront Neamhan, who was under the protection of Blind Magda. It was because the inn had a “weak threshold” that the custodians could even get away with what they did, he reasoned.

Neamhan asked a few cursory questions about the Feywild and how to get there. She learned that there were many ways into the Feywild, in places Wynn called “crossings”, “as many as there were doors half ajar”, he claimed. He also told Neamhan that there were still elves that lived in the Feywild, after telling her that all elves had fey-touched ancestry.

Wynn departed soon after. Neamhan heard Luca leave his room down the hall, walk downstairs and head out of the inn. She peeked out through the shutters to see him heading out into the early morning snow.

Luca had awoken early with a throbbing presence coming from Blackstar that made his vision blurry. Concentrating, he pushed the staff’s incessant intrusion away, and decided that it was time to give the staff what it wanted. He got dressed and headed out into a city covered by a snowy sheet and tenebrific blanket.

Luca wandered the streets of Kingsport, looking for a suitable place to feed Blackstar. The city was dark and quiet, with the only sounds coming from the waking seagulls that were harassing fishing boats about to set sail, and the crunching of the soft blanket of snow under his feet. Luca made his way to The Salt, a ward just off the docks filled with people he deemed expendable.

Wandering the narrow lanes of The Salt for a while, he found a suitable alleyway that was sufficiently hidden from view. It took but a moment before a suitable sacrifice presented themselves in the form of a middle-aged man, dressed like a stevedore, well past his prime and without the demeanour that suggested he had a lot of dependents waiting for him at home. An easy lie and a quick charm got the man to follow Luca into the alleyway where a vicious ray of purple, ruinous energy from the void crystal at the top of the staff took the man’s life. A jolt of familiar pain shot through Luca’s arm, quickly followed by a rush of invigoration, as some of the man’s life energy was funnelled into Luca’s body.

Luca felt strong when the rush faded moments later. His plan to use an illusionary mask to disguise himself as Dick, James’ childhood friend and well-known ruffian, was foiled as Luca found it impossible to access that magic. Troubled by this, he tried to make his way back to the Careless Wanderer without drawing any attention to himself. Which, considering he was dressed in purple robes dotted with moons and stars, might not be as easy as it sounded.

While Neamhan and Luca were starting their day, a newcomer was waking up. Overlooking Kingsport from the coastal cliffs of the gulf to the east, Chakuq was starting his day. He had never seen a city of this size before and it left him awestruck and trepidatious. Somewhere in that city the College of Bards could be found, and some said all of the songs known to the Verdant Kingdoms were known there. While Chakuq doubted it, he was hoping that he would learn more about the songs of the lost tribes.

Chakuq followed the road to one of Kingsport’s enormous gates and found his entrance into the city. He had spent enough time away from his tribe to know how to familiarise himself with a new settlement. He got a feel for the city and its layout, and found out where he could pay for a bed for the night. He decided to look at the lodgings he was suggested, and found that one of them had a sign over the door of a minstrel playing a lute. He liked it, and decided to enter the Careless Wanderer.

Inside he found a warm and welcoming tavern room. A jovial dwarf worked the bar and introduced himself as Durham. When Chakuq asked for some breakfast, a burly cook brought it from the kitchen and excitedly asked him to try some sweet pastries he had been developing. A friendly elf called Lauryn oversaw the running of the inn.

There were only a few guests at the end, and Chakuq’s eye fell on a group of them who seemed very familiar with one another, and equally familiar with the inn. After some quick introductions, Chakug decided to observe them for a while, as they seemed absorbed in the preparation of a great undertaking that did not immediately become clear to him.

The heroes had all woken up and gathered in the tavern for breakfast. Quentin had taken a bath in the basement of the inn, Emrys had come down and Astrid was digging into the food that was on the table. Falka had joined as well, and was spreading out several parchments of notes on the table, ready to share more information on Epidemius with the heroes while they enjoyed breakfast.

Just before Falka started her history lesson, Céleste Deschamps of L’eau Célestes walked into the Careless Wanderer, dressed elegantly. She looked around the tavern until her eyes fell on Durham behind the bar. She approached him and spoke to him for a long time. Quentin made an attempt to overhear the conversation, which seemed to be about buying any surplus stocks of wine the Careless Wanderer still had. Quentin quickly lost interest and started focussing on Falka.

Falka started by explaining her credentials; she had grown up on Dunagore Mount, a tidal island off the coast of Dunashire which was the home to the Order of the Shield, one of the three orders of Lyrian knights. She had been working for the Knight Chronicler of the order since an early age, and was sponsored by the order to study at the Bournemouth academy where she ultimately became an accomplished historian.

The reason why Falka felt her credentials were relevant to the subject is because the history of Epidemius and the Order of the Shield were intertwined as it was in a battle with the Order of the Shield where Epidemius lost his Liber Bubonicus, the Book of Woe.

Falka explained again that Epidemius was one of the seven Proctors of Pestilence. She listed them all; Epidemius, Lord of Decay, Virulencia, Lady of Plagues, Vormiter, Lord of Waste, Malignance, Lady of Disease, Typhorius, Lord of Infections, Antharix, Lady of Poison, and Pestor, Lord of Vermin. All of the proctors were underlings of Baalzebul, an archdevil and ruler of the Seventh Hell, also known as Maladomini. They were responsible for overseeing, advancing and encouraging the development of all manner of diseases, plagues and infections.

The story about how Epidemius came to lose his Book of Woe that Falka told was not a simple and straightforward story.

A demon lord named Lamashtu, also known as the Mother of Monstrosities, had been convinced by Pazuzu, another demon lord, to attack the Order of the Shield. There were several stories about why and how Pazuzu convinced Lamashtu, but the most compelling was that defeating the order would clear the way to raise a monstrous creature from the deeps of the Jagged Shore.

Unseen, Pazuzu slipped into the Nine Hells, found Mephistopheles, Ruler of the Eighth and Lord of Cania, and struck a deal with him. Pazuzu traded the knowledge and details of Lamashtu’s attack for a circular tablet from the archdevil’s personal vaults.

And so it came to be that when Lamashtu’s monsters fell upon the Order of the Shield at Kinbrace Bluff, Epidemius and a small group of his fiends were invited by Mephistopheles to observe the battle and catalogue any new and interesting ways in which wounds festered, infections spread and diseases ravaged. But the forces of Mephistopheles betrayed Epidemius and used him as bait to lure Lamashtu and her monsters out. The demons overstretched themselves and got caught between the hammer and anvil of the infernal forces of Mephistopheles, and the knights of the Order of the Shield.

Epidemius lost the Book of Woe, which fell into the hands of the Order of the Shield when the recovered it after the battle. Epidemius was banished back to the Nine Hells and began the slow and arduous task of climbing the ranks and regaining his station.

Falka shared a passage of old writing she had found which supported the story:

Lo, the pestilent fiend was rent asunder by the monstrosities and sank back into the ground leaving behind its Book of Woe. How the other fiends cackled as one their own was mercilessly sacrificed. They stepped aside as the knights bore down on the demonic horde’s flank, driving lyrium tipped lances, filled with His holy fire, into the heart of chaos.

The Mother of Monstrosities cursed and spat and swallowed whole a dozen of her children and tore open a rift to retreat back to the abyss. The heavens opened and His light shone forth, illuminating the Book of Woe and protecting it from the greed of the other fiends, allowing the Just and Righteous to secure it.

– Teachings of Prior Arturian of Pholtus, First Abbot of the Monastic Order of Apothecaries

According to Falka, a rift was created that day, not just between Baalzebul and Mephistopheles, but also between the Calabim, of which Baalzebul was a member, and the Belseraphs, of which Mephistopheles was a member. This animosity has lead to tension and hostilities between the two bands of devils ever since, while Takhisis sat her throne, fanning the flames of strife.

Falka quote from the Book of the Enemy, a religious text within the Church of Deus, which said;

How the vestments of Maladomini shook with the anger of Baelzubub. He brought indictment against Mephisto, vowing the destruction of the Liar. But the indictment was cut short. The vestment of Maladomi cracked, and the foundations of Cania sundered, as both archdukes were cast down by Asmodeus. Baelzubub for believing a Balsaraph, and Mephisto for conspiring with chaos.

— Book of the Enemy, Church of Deus

Falka continued her story by telling the heroes about what happened to the Book of Woe after the Battle of Kinbrace Bluff. The book was inspected by the order’s Knight Chronicler and their assistant and both went mad from reading the book. The Senhadrim took the book away to a remote part of Dunagore and built a small monastery meant to keep the book guarded and safe. The monks formed the Monastic Order of Apothecaries in the worship to Pholtus, the God of Light and Healing.

Many of the monks fell to madness, disease, temptation, and corruption before they established the rigorous training necessary to safely consume the pages of the book. What the monks learned from the Book of Woe became foundational to a lot of modern healing techniques. They established clinics as part of all major temples to Pholtus. The order’s relevance waned considerably over the ages, but their legacy of clinics survived.

The heroes discussed the Book of Woe, about it supposedly being held by the Order of Apothecaries, while Epidemius claims the Upright Man had possession of it, indicating that it should be still in the vault’s library.

Chakuq, who had been sitting and listening to the lecture by Falka, felt himself growing interested in the discussion and politely joined in, offering his insights as a hunter.