Tag: Recap

The Khazra Skull

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Previously, the heroes had prepared to depart Kingsport in order to bring Jeanne to the Sheridan estate. The trip was dreary and wet and when they arrived they were greeted by Lord Marcus and Lord Destan, who agreed to provide Jeanne with a job and a home.

The lords informed the heroes of a stone statue that was retrieved from the catacombs below the estate, as well as about the possession and subsequent exorcism and death of Robart in Pinefall that they were informed about by way of a letter.

Eighth Day, First Ride, Autumn Red, 1262

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

After the evening came to a close and the heroes were given quarters to rest in, the night passed by uneventfully for all but James, who tossed and turned and was haunted by nightmares. After waking up in the morning, he quickly wrote down everything he could remember of the trouble dream.

You are running down the dark, vaulted corridors of an ancient waterway. The only light you see comes from the phosphorescent moss that clings to the dirty walls arched around you. Your feet splash noisily through the sewage as they are trying to escape the dreadful mare that has been chasing you since you jumped through the cracked, marble gate at the top of the Crimson Tower into the terrifying realm of Old Llygad.

You know how this will end; the flaming hooves will thunder down on you and you’ll fall and watch as your own blood mixes with the sewage and spills down the drain. You decide to stop running. You turn around and draw your weapons, steeling your nerves and managing your adrenaline.

You see a set of fiery eyes in the darkness ahead and hear steady, deliberate hoof beats splashing into the sewage as they are coming towards you. With every splash, you hear a sizzle as the flames of the hooves are briefly extinguished in the filthy muck, only to be reignited when pulled free. Thick columns of dark smoke, like that of a tar fire, rise up from the mare’s angry hooves.

The smoke rapidly fills up the corridor around you until the only thing you can see are the burning eyes and the occasionally igniting hooves. You work up the courage to strike. You leap forward and your daggers flash through the thick smoke, hitting corded muscle and rugged hide. The acrid smoke fills your lungs and you feel your strength waning. Your agility fails you as the hooves thunder down on you once more; snapping the bones in your shoulder, cracking your skull and shattering your spine. You collapse into the filth of the waterways.

As the smoke subsides, you watch your blood mix with the sewage and flow down a drain, you notice that same, strange eyestalk rise up from the drain and peer at you. It extends to your paralysed body and you watch in horror and disgust as it touches your face and slides across to your left eye and starts to push its way inside your socket. You don’t feel any pain, but you do feel your eye burst under the pressure.

As the last of your life escapes you and your remaining vision grows dim, you see the eyestalk retract and disappear back inside the drain.

Once everyone got up, Jeanne was introduced to the rest of the servants at the estate and she seemed to be integrating well. She was given clothes and was taken to get instructions on her new work.

The heroes went to have breakfast with the two young lords, during which Lord Destan revealed from a pouch a small, round, conical statue of about the size of a man’s forearm, narrow at the bottom and wider at the top. It was made of stone and had an engraving of an eye in the top of it. James judged it to be quite old, as the stone was weathered and eroded, despite being made of hard stone; multiple hundreds of years old, at least.

The nature of the object was discussed; whether it was one of the beacons that Atilesceon mentioned in his journal pages, or perhaps a key to a vault, like the one that the orc warlord had found in the Elder Foothills, according to the orc scout that they had found lurking outside of the Sheridan estate.

The orc had told them that a warlord had found an eye in a ruin in the Elder Foothills, which lead to the warlord finding a vault with a pair of gruesome axes in it. She had speculated that her warchief might be interested in going down into the catacombs to retrieve an eye as well.

Luca was reminded of the symbol of Ioun when he saw the eye at the top of the stone object, and in a conversation with Destan was reminded that Tharizdun was sometimes referred to as the “elemental eye”, which this might also be in reference to. During a conversation about performing certain divination magics on the stone object, Destan explained that he was not a Circle trained mage, and that he’d rather not get too many people involved in order to keep knowledge about the object contained.

After breakfast was over and James had made sure that his mother would be alright, the heroes decided to head back to Kingsport. For several hours they travelled on horseback through rain and wind, unable to enjoy the countryside of Northshire slowly turning shades of yellow and orange in the autumn.

It was a little after midday when the heroes arrived back in Kingsport; cold and wet. They gave their horses into the care of Wojciech the stablehand at the Wanderer, who explained that he would stable them at the Kingsport Manège due to a lack of space in the stables. It seemed that it was busy inside.

After paying the stablehand handsomely for his effort, the heroes went inside to find it packed with visitors. Much to his surprise, James noticed a familiar face sitting by themselves at a table in the back; Randall, Blackbridge captain of the guard.

Quentin was keen on finding some time with the owner of the Careless Wanderer, Magda, and he found her chatting with an elderly gentleman, but eventually managed to get her attention. She invited Quentin up to her private quarters and they sat together.

Quentin wanted to know more about the encounter the heroes had in the Feywild. It seemed almost like a dream and Quentin hoped that Magda would be able to tell him more about what he saw and what it meant for the heroes to be touched by and in debt to the seidhe. Unfortunately, Magda was not as forthcoming as Quentin had hoped. It appeared that while she had been in touch with the seidhe, she had never been to the Feywild herself and couldn’t attest to what it was like there, but it was obvious that she was aware of the strange rules and laws that governed interaction with the seidhe.

Somewhat disappointed, Quentin said his goodbyes, but before doing so asked Magda, without too much of an explanation if she had ever come across the mention of swans during her interactions with the fey, to which she said that her only recollection was that of the story of the princess and the swans.

Meanwhile, while James was keeping an eye on captain Randall from afar, Luca decided it was time to walk up to him and say hello. The captain recognised Luca and immediately apologised for how he handled the situation with James those months ago in Blackbridge. Randall explained that he had been asked to accompany Callum the Diviner in his endeavour to help resolve the mystery of the queen’s illness.

Eventually, Randall made sure that the heroes had a chance to speak with Callum, who Luca noticed had been reading a book on flora and fauna of the swamplands. Callum explained that it was Emma’s suggestion to Dr. Arkenward and Lady Annabella to get him involved to investigate the origin of the goat’s head that seemingly was the source of the queen’s illness.

Callum further explained that the head was that of a khazra, a bipedal, half-man, half-goat creature that was part of the fabled servitor races, and that the horns were inscribed with arcane runes radiating in strong necromantic energy, most likely a curse. The nails which had been driven into the eyes of the khazra were enchanted with a powerful ward which disallowed Callum from analysing the curse. In order to have a chance at breaking the curse, he would first have to find a way to break through the obfuscating enchantment.

He continued to explain that the enchantment was one woven from very old magic, deeply occult and steeped in folklore. Having come to the end of his ability to divine anything, Callum had begun to use mundane methods of investigation and he had found traces of a rare orchid on the nails and in the khazra’s eye sockets. The flower was called a ghost orchid and he had found that it only grew in very specific conditions, tracing it back to an area between Eastmarsh and the Worthwilde.

When Callum said that he could use some stalwart people to go to the area he mentioned in order to find out who had been harvesting the ghost orchid, which could lead to understanding how had cast the enchantment that prevented him from getting to the curse. Luca seemed interested to take up the mission, but James was not so keen on leaving the city on just a conversation with the old sage and convinced the others that it would be best to field further inquiries.

The situation was an odd one. There were so many unanswered questions. Why was the queen cursed? Who brought the head of the khazra to the queen’s antechamber? Why had the steward been diverting the attention of the priests of Pholtus away from the queen’s care and to finding a cure for his wife’s infertility?

A Mother and Son Separated

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Previously, after bringing Kalina back to Kingsport dead, James managed to parlay for his mother’s freedom. Unfortunately, she horribly injured and very exhausted. She was rushed to the clinic of the Temple of Pholtus where she was treated by Father Devon. She lost an eye and a strange slug-like parasite was retrieved from her wound. The Heroes of the White Eye would have one night before having to take Jeanne away from Kingsport, conform the agreement with the day master.

Sixth Day, First Ride, Autumn Red, 1262

(Silvermoon in high sanction. Bloodmoon in waning. Darkmoon is waxing.)

Having returned to the Careless Wanderer together with James and his mother Jeanne, the heroes remained in their luxurious room, choosing to stay away from the public in order not to offend the day master bu reminding him that Jeanne was still in Kingsport.

Quentin had still been holding on to the two letters that he had written the evening before; one to his Lord-father, and one to his bethrothed; Gwenaëlle. He asked Lauryn who he might turn to for a delivery to Beauclair and she directed him to Fast Feathers Rookery, just up Quayhill, no more than a few minutes away from the Careless Wanderer. He was to ask for Toruviel; a name which surprised Quentin to hear. H was determined to to convince Emrys to come along the next morning.

Seventh Day, First Ride, Autumn Red, 1262

(Silvermoon in waning. Bloodmoon in waning. Darkmoon is waxing.)

For a second night in a row Luca had spent more time than he possibly should have reading through Kalina’s prayer book; The Disciplines of the Dark Queen. As a result he woke up significantly exhausted and not much the wiser. The rituals or secrets he had hoped to find eluded him, but he was getting a better understanding of the ethos.

During breakfast James decided to talk to his mother about the next steps. He turned to the confusing jargon and cant of the guild, one that he knew his mother was familiar with. He laid out the day master’s demands that she leave Kingsport, and the options that had come to him; either see if he could secure her a position as a servant at the Sheridan estate and allow her to stay close, or bring her to the grass plains of Silesia where she could start anew. She chose to former, opting to stay close to Kingsport and her son.

Meanwhile, the rest of heroes sat around, eating their breakfast, trying to pick apart the complicated coded language the two were speaking. Giving up, Quentin asked Emrys to join him in his trip to rookery, to which Emrys agreed.

After breakfast James decided to take stock of all of the things he had been storing inside of the magical bag he had been given by the day master; including some of the items they had retrieved from the Reaverhaunt caves that he never got a good luck at. These included the following:

  • A wooden, lacquered jewellery box
  • Silver necklace with a teardrop pearl pendant
  • An assortment of five different silver rings
  • An assortment of four different golden rings
  • A finely embroidered doublet studded with golden buttons
  • A silver triangle figurine, held aloft by two angelic figures
  • A golden coin pendant depicting Tymora surrounded by clovers

Luca took a few minutes to prepare a ritual in which he could sense if any of the items were enchanted, which he found they were not. The careful conclusion was that these were mundane items that the bandits had collected during their raids around Northshire.

The heroes decided that they would attempt to depart at noon so that they could make it to the Sheridan estate before sundown. Before that they would run some errands.

James and Luca headed to the Silver Cross, the tavern in the Lace where Jeanne had been working and James had made his home for a long time. On the way there, James noticed that they were being tailed by a revolving tail of guild affiliates; different people paid off by the guild to keep an eye out.

When the two heroes arrived at the Silver Cross they found Samuel the Carcerian bartender standing out front. He gave James an uncharacteristically long hug and whispered into his ear that it was not wise to stay for long; the guild was watching the Silver Cross as well. James darted in and out of his mother’s room and picked up only the necessities.

Once they had departed, the duo headed to the Circle of Magi where they hoped they could purchase any potions or ointments that could help them stay safe and healthy in the next leg of their journey. When they arrived, they found entrance to the college obstructed by brother Shakeslocke and the red-robed monks protesting the supposed corruption in the institution. Unfortunately, Olafur, the custodian at the college was not tending to the herb garden out front and could help them inside.

Luca suggested heading out of the city and visiting a man who supposedly sold herbs, salves and ointments. They walked down the Elysian street and out of the similarly named gate. Then, in the shadow of the Bastion of Restraint, they found a cabin surrounded by a fragrant garden of different herbs and plants. A gruff Kaedwyni man who introduced himself as Ecgbrith was found out in front, tending to the garden.

James and Luca found him to be somewhat reluctant at first, but he became a lot more willing to deal once Olafur happened to come walking up. The Miðgarðurian was obviously a frequent patron of Ecgbrith and helped smooth the way. Eventually a deal was reached for several potions. Expensive though they were, Ecgbrith threw in a mysterious potion which he said would help clear the mind.

Luca, having been interested in plants, herbs and fungi ever since getting some strange mushrooms from a guard in his home village once, asked whether Ecgbrith could help him to a herbalism kit. The herbalist put together a small satchel with some essentials that would help Luca cut, harvest, dry and preserve herbs properly and gave him a quick overview on how to use it. It would take Luca quite some time to become adept at what the Kaewyni had told him, but at least he’d have the tools once he did.

The two walked away with three vials of healing liquid as well as a concoction that would “clear the mind,”  as well as a herbalist’s kit. It had cost them a significant sum.

On the way back to the Careless Wanderer the two had a conversation about what the best course of action would be once they had visited the Sheridan estate. Should they go to the Tiverton glades to help the Lady Commander’s family stave off the orc invasion, or should they stay in Kingsport and investigate the illness of the queen?

In the meantime, Quentin and Emrys followed the directions that Quentin was given by Lauryn to Fast Feathers Rookery located at a small but luxurious manse near the top of Quayhill. This walled establishment had several small towers and aviaries in the garden around the building where people were tending to ravens. Emrys noticed that there was a peculiar banner on the outside gate, on the building and on the towers; quartered, with the banner of House Waxley, a turtle on a field of green, taking up the first and fourth quarter, with a black bird carrying a parchment on a field of blue taking up the second and third quarter.

When inside, they found several people behind small lecterns transcribing letters to and from thin strips of parchment fit to be carried by their ravens. After asking about Toruviel Fast Feathers, they stood eye to eye with a slender elf with silvery hair and a tight restraint on his face. After a brief exchange Toruviel explained that they could send letters to Beauclair and that, if properly addressed, the letter would find its way to the correct recipient.

Quentin found it easy to send the letter to Gwenaëlle, watching Toruviel transcribe the letter onto a small strip of parchment with swiftness and ease, but he hesitated with the letter addressed to his Lord-father, Dorian of House Morvrayne. He eventually relented when he was convinced of the elf Toruviel’s discretion.

During this exchange, Quentin asked Toruviel about his name and heritage, and Toruviel explained that he was one of the Aen Gwynt, or Sky Elves, from the mountain range of Ard Thoradun. He explained that Toruviel was one of their great ancestors and a hero among his people. He carried the name to honour their ancestor. During this time, Quentin kept an eye on Emrys, who stood almost motionless, listening, with his hand on the hilt of his blade. Later, when the two had departed the rookery, Emrys thanked Quentin for bringing him.

Just after midday it was time to depart. As people were saddling up and getting ready, Wojciech, the Wanderer’s stablemaster, came to say goodbye to Jeanne. The travel out of Kingsport was done under an overcast sky and soon after departing the city the weather turned sour. It took several uneventful hours to get to Lynnecombe and the heroes were soaking wet when they arrived at the estate.

Lord Marcus and Destan received them in the dining room of the manor and made sure that the servants brought towels, dry clothes and lit the fire in the hearth. Wine and food was brought, though not nearly as lavish as the feast they had received the last time they were at the estate.

A quick conversation about Jeanne’s predicament was settled quickly as Lord Marcus assured James and Jeanne that there would be a place at the estate for Jeanne and that she would be able to earn her keep. It was decided that she would take the place of a stable hand who had recently gotten gravely injured when several bandits had set upon their stables in an attempt to steal the family’s horses.

James revealed to Lord Marcus that the staff had been infiltrated by Steady Hand spies who were interested in books and artifacts coming from the catacombs beneath the estate. While Lord Marcus seemed aware of Harrick, he had not been aware yet of Beatrice, so he was grateful for James’ revelation. He assured James that no harm would befall Jeanne from the Steady Hand spies.

James mentioned that he had learned about the artifact of a small statue which had been retrieved from the catacombs and that he’d be interested to see it. Lord Destan said that this could be arranged in the morning.

Once that had been settled, the conversation turned to a letter that the Sheridan family had received from Pinefall;

To Lord John Sheridan of House Sheridan,

My lord, I hope this letter finds you and your sons reunited and good health. I am sure Lord Destan has explained everything about your lands in the southern Silverpine Hills, including the unusual events of the last few months. There are, however, things that the Lord of these lands must be made aware of.

Since the departure of your Lord-son, one of the villagers of Bristlecone (a little settlement in Pinefall) fell prey to an evil spirit. Robart, the man in question, accompanied Lord Destan on his “voyage” and returned having quite literally lost his mind. We were instructed by your Lord-son to care for him as best we could; it was the least we could do in the wake of his sacrifice.

Several days after your Lord-son’s departure some of the crusaders left your lands; some for Gryphon’s Roost, some for their ancestral lands, some for parts unknown. As luck would have it, some of them stayed behind, deciding to wait out the winter. It was to them we turned when Robart was possessed.

The local wise woman, Isobel, claims that Robart having lost his mind left a vacuum that was easily filled. She, together with the crusaders, managed to force the demon to vacate poor Robart. I will spare you the profane and grotesque details, but the process was disturbing. Unfortunately, poor Robart was not strong enough to survive the ordeal.

Isobel and the crusaders have speculated that the demon must have been able to travel between Old Llygad and Pinefall, much like the crusaders did. It does mean that we have to remain vigilant, for others might follow.

Your servants,

– Gregor of Bristlecone
– Isobel of White Fork
– Ser Gregorian Longshadow

A Mother and Son Reunited

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Previously, the Heroes of the White Eye had managed to capture Kalina and separate her from the rest of the bandits she was hiding out with, only to come under attack from a group of shadowy creatures as they regrouped at the Scatterfoot farm. While the creatures were defeated, the Silesian bandit was killed by one of them. The heroes took her body and returned to Kingsport, preparing to bring the body to the day master together with what they had learned, hoping that it would be enough to liberate James’ mother from captivity.

Fifth Day, First Ride, Autumn Red, 1262

(Silvermoon in high sanction. Bloodmoon in high sanction. Darkmoon is waxing.)

While Astrid and James had taken the cart carrying Kalina’s body to an abandoned shack in an anonymous part of Kingsport, Luca, Quentin and Emrys arranged for one of the luxurious rooms at the Careless Wanderer. Astrid and James eat their last remaining rations and shared a bottle of Pinefall brandy, and the others ate Ramsey’s wonderful food.

Astrid and James fell asleep in their clothes, warmed only by a small fire. Luca sat a small writing desk and read and studied Kalina’s prayer book. Quentin sat cross legged in front of the fire while he cleaned his blade while meditating; softly reciting the litanies and oaths of knighthood, slowly becoming one with the blade and the complicated spirit within. Emrys enjoyed the luxury of a four-poster bed, with his eyes closed; vast asleep.

It was deep in the night before Luca fell asleep, slumped over the writing desk he had been studying at. Before succumbing to fatigue, he had learned that the prayer book, written almost completely in the infernal language of Ba’ator, the lower plane of devils. It was called The Disciplines of the Dark Queen, which described all matters of worshipping Takhisis.

Sixth Day, First Ride, Autumn Red, 1262

(Silvermoon in high sanction. Bloodmoon in waning. Darkmoon is waxing.)

After Astrid and James woke up, took a piss, and left the shack together with the horses, cart and morbid contents, they spent some time wandering the streets around Steward Square, finding some food for breakfast and enduring the weather.

Luca, Quentin and Emrys woke up and enjoyed breakfast in their room while they spoke about what Luca had learned from The Disciplines of the Dark Queen. One of the remarkable things that Luca had noticed is that besides the religious iconography of Takhisis, occasionally, the hooked pentagram of Asmodeus showed up; the adversary in the monotheistic religion of the Daerlan empire, Mazuria and most parts of Silesia.

At noon, when the pale sun stood highest in the dark, cloudy sky, Astrid and James made their way to the Careless Wanderer. Astrid stayed with the cart while James went inside to look for the others. He found the Wanderer was busy, but not rowdy, with many people still visiting for the angling competition which was about to commence. Durham, the friendly barkeep, directed James up to the rooms when he noticed the young elf looking around for his friends.

A quick plan was made to take the cart and transport Kalina’s body to the butcher shop on Fleet Street and negotiate for Jeanne’s release. Luca would come with James while Astrid, Quentin and Emrys remained outside, ready to either make a fast getaway, or be prepared to storm the shop in force. James would remain in contact with Quentin using Lauriel’s Earrings of Whispers.

On their way across town, while crossing the river at the Queensbridge, James spotted the reddish-haired town crier, Goodman, who hailed James. James stopped briefly and crier Goodman shook his hand, telling him it was good to see him again. During that exchange he surreptitiously passed James a note. As they rode on James read it; “Sold the horses, still in town,” it read, a note from Dick.

As they got closer to Fleet Street, the conversation became more detailed and intense, and people wanted to know just how dangerous the situation could become. It was clear to James that while his companions were all familiar with violence, they had no experience with the level of violence that an criminal organisation like the Steady Hand could bring to bear. In fact, he never had to deal with it, considering he had never stood in opposition to them. It took everything ounce of his acting ability for James to not let his discomfort and fear show.

When they arrived at the butcher shop, a corner store on Fleet Street, between the Street of Spices and the river, there were many guild members about, keeping an eye on the place. Inside, civilians were doing their groceries. James and Luca, who were disallowed from bringing their weapons inside the shop, carried Kalina’s wrapped corpse through the shop to the back. They were directed down the stairs into the basement and through a door, into a mostly empty room.

The day master was there with two of his guards, and James found his mother still tied to a chair, still in her filthy underclothes. Her skin was dirty and she was carrying many shallow wounds and bruises, and she had a bandage on her head which covered her left eye that hadn’t been there before. While the bandages were new, they had already been soaked through with blood and sweat, and it was hiding a grotesque swelling.

When Kalina’s body was unwrapped, the day master was dissatisfied and demanded an explanation. James explained everything that happened, and made it a point to recite, word for word, the conversation that he had heard Kalina had with her mysterious father back in the caves; a conversation he had not even shared with the rest of his companions.

Kalina: Father, are you displeased with me?

Unknown: Glasya, your attempt to draw the guild master out has not been successful. To say that I am pleased would be a lie. The only thing which comforts me is knowing that you understand how important it is to expose the Upright Man and to find his vault. You also understand that I can only keep your failure from the Dark Queen for so long before she will find out. I can only impress upon you that you must try again before she does.

Kalina: He exposed himself when he killed Lydia…

Unknown: Yes, but you were not there to capitalise on it, and from what you told me not much of her remained behind. Your attempt to have the day master assassinated also failed. You better think of another way to find the Upright Man! I MUST GET INSIDE HIS VAULT.

Kalina: But father…

Unknown: Silence! Do not disobey me *daughter*, or else you will be Xazax’s next victim.

Kalina: Father? Father!?

There was something about this conversation that seemed to rock the usually unflappable day master. James suspected that it was the revelation that Kalina and her father knew about the Upright Man being responsible for the death of Lydia, the dangerous leader of the Sunken Knuckles. There was more here, but James had other priorities.

While James explained the rest of what happened at the Reaverhaunt caves, Luca inspected James’ mother and her injuries. The day master still had a few questions about Kalina’s allegiance, if it wasn’t to the night master and the rest of the guild. Luca and James explained that the jewelled daggers were used by assassins who had been striking throughout eastern Lyria, which was something the day master had heard of, and that it likely had something to do with the Upright Man being in the possession of a a set of ancient tablets that this cult was after.

The day master seemed satisfied with the explanation and dismissed one of his guards to arrange for a meeting with a certain John for that evening. James knew that to be John Sharpe; also known as the night master. If the Upright Man was the leader of the Steady Hand, then the day master was his left hand, while the night master was his right hand.

The day master instructed to take Kalina and his mother, but pressed upon James that his mother was to leave Kingsport and never return, which James took in stride. Luca and James took both and walked through the front of the shop, through a wave of curious patrons, out the door.

Astrid gave Jeanne her cloak since she was barely clothed and the weather was miserable. Emrys drove the cart while James gave him directions to the Temple of Pholtus. On the way, James applied some of father Devon’s healing ointment to the most trouble parts of Jeanne’s skin, which immediately started to heal up. Her head wound was too grievous and would abate.

Once at the clinic, Jeanne was carried inside and father Devon was called for. He immediately took charge and called for several nurses to help out and for Mother Superior Arwyn to be called. James made sure to let father Devon know that no expenses should be spared, and the holy man told James to make an appropriate tithe at the temple. Which he did while the followers of Pholtus worked on healing his mother, leaving one of the gems he had received from the Sheridan estate in the tithe bowl.

When father Devon finally came to speak to the heroes he explained that Jeanne would be okay, but that she was still recovering. He showed a small ceramic jar in which he showed a curious slug with multiple eye stalks extending and retracting all over its body. He claimed that he had removed it from Jeanne’s eye, where it had lodged itself like a parasite. Unfortunately, it meant that Jeanne had lost her eye. She would recover, but it would take a little while.

James take his mother in his care once again when she was able to be moved, and the heroes went to the Careless Wanderer. They stayed in their luxurious room, deciding to stay away from the crowd downstairs and not draw any attention to themselves and allowing Jeanne some much needed rest. She had remained quiet and shell shocked, and had fallen asleep on the bed.

While Jeanne slept, James recalled what had happened in the basement underneath the butcher shop that afternoon. He also revealed that he had been holding on to one of Atilesceon’s journal pages which mentioned the Upright Man;

None of our agents has been able to get close to the Upright Man for a very long time. The last time anyone of ours got close they disappeared… but not before confirming that they didn’t have one, but two of the tablets in their collection of antiques. It has proven nigh impossible to get anyone close to the situation since. If I can get close to one of their underlings, however…

Luca started theorising that likely Melchior, the man he thought was Kalina’s father, had likely retrieved tablets from Kalauranthalasis’ hoard, since Atilesceon wrote the following about the dragon in his journal;

That poisonous wyrm has been taken prisoner by those fanatics, and word has reached us to confirm that it was in possession of two of the Tablets of the Elemental Eye. If it wasn’t for my experiments here, I would seek them out to swell the collection of the Dark One. Perhaps there are those willing to compensate me for this information?

Not for the first time the heroes felt out of their depth; not knowing what it all meant, what to do with with what they thought they knew, or how to move forward. As they had done before several times, they decided to put it to rest, feeling small and powerless in the face of it. Astrid turned the topic to more practical matters; what was James intending to do about his mother, to which James responded that it was up to Jeanne to decide what it was that she wanted, but that he could ask House Sheridan to give her a place among the staff at their estate.

With that, they had a plan for the following day and their attentions turned to what to do afterwards. Quentin reminded everyone that he had given his word to the Lady Commander of the Crownsguard, Dame Miranda Ravensbourne, that he would find his way to her ancestral lands to see about helping her family deal with the orc invasion.

Bringing in a Bounty

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Previously, the Heroes of the White Eye found their way into the Reaverhaunt caves, the old hideout of Admiral Dapperfang, where Kalina and her crew of horse thieves had been hiding out. They confronted Kalina and pursued her when she was trying to make a run for it, all the while being harassed by a strange, winged shadowy creature whose attacks withered and crippled. Eventually they captured the Silesian bandit and brought her to the Scatterfoot farm for interrogation but before the heroes had the opportunity to question her the farm was attacked by multiple shadows lead by the winged shadow creature. The heroes beat them back, but in a last act of aggression, the winged shadow creature attacked and killed Kalina, turning her into a shadow, which the heroes ultimately also struck down.

Fifth Day, First Ride, Autumn Red, 1262

(Silvermoon in high sanction. Bloodmoon in high sanction. Darkmoon is waxing.)

After the fight with the shadows came to an end the group decided they would need some rest. It was decided to move Kalina’s withered body out of sight by wrapping her in in blankets this exposed that Kalina had a tattoo of a crescent moon on her chest, just below her left collar bone. Quentin vigilantly stood watch, while Dick, James’ enormous friend, stayed awake to keep him company.

In the following two hours, the wind and rain picked up, pouring in places through the leaky, thatched roof of the farm house, but people managed to get rest. The strength draining withering the shadows had inflicted on the heroes had subsided and especially Emrys, who could barely keep himself from collapsing under his own weight, felt infinitely better afterwards.

It was Quentin’s turn to sleep while it was James’ turn to sit watch. Dick came to sit with him to ask what the plan was, clearly out of his depth and trusting his friend to think his way out of the situation. James wanted to go back to the caves, wagering that the shadows that showed up at the farmhouse were those ripped from the bandits in the caves by the winged shadow that seemed to be leading the assault on the farm. He hoped that it meant that the caves were free to explore and that they would be able to find some incriminating evidence on Kalina that would help exonerate his mother. If not, perhaps he could buy his mother’s freedom with something valuable, or perhaps rescue his mother, but that would obviously mean that he could never return to Kingsport.

Dick tried talking to James about his time away from Kingsport. James casually deflected his attempts and kept bringing the conversation around to the present. The only thing that James would let go was that he’d been to hell and back, which Dick took to mean figuratively. When James impressed upon him that he meant it literally, Dick obviously didn’t believe him, and was disappointed and a little sad that James wouldn’t be straight with him.

When the morning came and Quentin was rested as well the conversation again turned to what the day master might accept as a payment in return for Jeanne’s freedom. James said it could be anything of value, particularly books, ancient magics or similar antiquities. Quentin also raised the possibility of letting Dick guard the Reaverhaunt caves so that guild member could come to inspect them and see for themselves what Kalina had been planning.

Shortly after, the heroes confirmed that indeed the caves were now empty as they thoroughly inspected the areas that they hadn’t been to yet. They found the bandits in a dark room, some having tried to flee, some having been killed in their cots, each of them withered looking, with skin as thin as paper, their face a terrifying death mask. The room they were in revealed some personal belongings as well as a door leading to a chamber that was used to store valuables. They found a locked and trapped chest which held many items of value, including a lot of coins. James decided to blindly take all of the valuables but leave the coins behind.

Once the heroes were satisfied that they had discovered all tunnels and chambers in the cave, they went back to the room where they’d found Kalina. They searched it thoroughly and James even went to dive into the pool that connected the chamber to the tunnel beyond to make sure they hadn’t overlooked anything. Initially nothing could be found, but when asked, Luca shifted his gaze and tried to perceive any magical energy. He found none, but he did notice that there was a vaguely lingering aura of magic on the bloodstained, copper scrying bowl that had been laying on the floor.

It seemed as if Luca was mumbling to an unseen person, which most found a little unnerving and strange, but James had seen this before, when Luca had been talking to himself, outside, at night, on the road at the Inn at the Crossroads. It was as if the voice he was talking to helped him find Kalina’s prayer book, which she had carefully hidden on the bottom of one of the cots.

It was a small, black, leather-bound book with strange, curious scribbling which Luca recognised to be the infernal script of devils. It held the teaching of the Dark Queen, and on the inside cover, it read; “To my daughter Kalina. May the Dark Queen teach you the way. Forever your father, Melchior.”

The heroes returned to the Scatterfoot farm and gathered their things. It would take half a day to get back to Kingsport. Dick took his horse and lead the bandit’s horses behind him. He was clearly not so comfortable in the saddle yet, but he managed. Astrid rode with Luca, which allowed him to investigate the shield that Quentin had taken from Ser Fulton, the dagger that Bran had won from Kalina, as well as the identical daggers that they had taken from her after the fight. It turned out that the dagger that Bran had won was not magical, but the other two held exactly the same properties as the Tooth of Thalasis that James carried on him since they helped Alfred Barnaby in Bournemouth; the same dagger that got him in trouble in Blackbridge.

Ser Fulton’s shield seemed to have some curious properties as well; it was capable of temporarily summoning the vipers on the shield to aid the wearer in combat. It could do so three times every Night of Violet Eyes, when the Bloodmoon and Darkmoon stood at high sanction together.

Late in the afternoon, cold, miserable and drenched by rain, the heroes arrived back in Kingsport. Entrance into the city was made easy by Quentin’s presence; the crownsguard waved the nobleman and his companions past without inspecting the cart they brought or wandering why they had so many horses with them.

Dick split off from the group and decided take the horses directly to the Kingsport Manège to be sold. He didn’t know what the next few days would bring, but he suspected he might have need of gold.

Astrid and James decided to take Luca’s cart, together with Kalina’s body, and hide out in the city that night. This would allow them to keep a low profile away from the rest of the heroes. They agreed to meet up again at noon the following day.

Quentin, Luca and Emrys left for the Careless Wanderer where they found a place by the hearth and sat together, drinking wine and eating supper. Quentin wanted to speak to the mistress of the inn, Magda, but did not see her around. Instead, he spent his time writing a letter to his father, about the coming of a new conjunction, sharing something about his struggles. He also shared that he wanted to be the herald of the new Silver Crusade, to bring honour to his name and his house.

The young Beauclairois knight told Emrys and Luca about his ambition. Speaking it out loud would make it real, and would allow him to gauge how it sounded by seeing the reaction on his companions’ faces; whether they would think it foolish or sagacious. Emrys smiled and told Quentin he would want to be there as a witness, and be the first to write a ballad about it. Luca merely nodded gravely, with a mad glint in his eye.

Quentin also wrote a letter to Gwenaëlle, the contents of which he kept to himself.

Kalina’s Ladder

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Previously, the Heroes of the White Eye found themselves at the Scatterfoot farm where they met Dick, James’ childhood friend who helped them find the Reaverhaunt caves, the hideout the bandits were using to lay low. Aided by Emrys’ arcane abilities, the heroes had explored the caves and had found a well-stocked armoury, a large cave with a bunch of resting bandits, and a separate room where Kalina had been hiding out. When discovered, Kalina had attacked and grievously wounded James before escaping into the darkness. Meanwhile, a strange apparition made of pure shadow had been following the heroes, keeping out of the light, but had since attacked Emrys and drained him of most of his strength.

Fifth Day, First Ride, Autumn Red, 1262

(Silvermoon in high sanction. Bloodmoon in high sanction. Darkmoon is waxing.)

James opened his eyes and felt the fog of unconsciousness receding together with the burn of the poison which had turned his nervous system on fire. He quickly assessed the situation and realised that Kalina had made her escape. Astrid had wasted no time to bolt into the darkness to follow the fleet-footed Silesian bandit, but James heard her gasping out a strangled breath that told him his Helmarker friend was in trouble.

Once James had regained consciousness, Luca spoke an arcane command and opened a portal that allowed him to travel small distances in the blink of an eye. He put his hand on Emrys’ shoulder and pulled the sorcerer through with him. The two teleported through the dark portal, eerily reminiscent of the portal through which the Skaven had poured into the catacombs underneath the Sheridan estate. The instantaneously reappeared at the mouth of the cave, and if it wasn’t for the fact that the two immediately stood face to face with the dangerous bandit, they would have noticed the unstable flickering of the portal through which they came.

Despite the strange, ethereal jaunt through the unstable portal, Luca and Emrys reacted swiftly and unleashed a barrage of enchantments on Kalina designed to restrain her; including the most difficult of magics; polymorphism. Emrys turned Kalina into a sheep, which could easily be leashed.

While Luca and Emrys easily subdued Kalina, James and Quentin rushed to Astrid’s aid and found her being attacked by the strange shadow creature. Like Emrys, Astrid was severely weakened. Between the three of them, together with the help of a torch, they managed to drive the shadow creature off and deeper into the cave, towards where the bandits had been spotted.

Once everyone had reunited a decision was made to lead the still polymorphed Kalina back to the Scatterfoot farm, intending to take the horses and head back to the abandoned mill near the Sheridan estate.

Dick was happy to see the heroes returned in relatively good health. Emrys reverted Kalina back into her normal form and James decided to strip her down to her skivvies  and take all of her gear, in case she had any more tricks up her sleeve. When he went out to find Stubbs’ body in order to have Kalina change into his clothes, he noticed more than half a dozen shadowy creatures slowly descending down upon Scatterfoot farm.

Rushing back inside to inform the others, the heroes started to look at ways to keep the shadows at bay; torches, lanterns, candles and anything that could be improvised. Dick wasted no time to smash up one of the old, wooden tables and turn it into kindling. The farmhouse was old and the wooden walls and thatched roof was full of creaks and holes, but the light would hopefully drive the shadows off.

For a few hours the shadows, which were distinctly different from the shadowy creature which lead them, could be seen moving in and out of the light, prodding and probing the heroes’ defences. During this time the heroes rested and bandaged their wounds. The strange withering which the shadowy creature had inflicted on Astrid and Emrys had faded and they felt much better.

But deep in the night, when the moons disappeared behind stormy clouds, the shadows came for them, creeping through the cracks in the walls and assaulting the door, which had been guarded by Quentin. The fight was very chaotic, with shadows coming at them from all sides, draining their strength from their body and proving to be very difficult to defeat. Kalina, though bound, was causing trouble for the heroes as well. Luca shot bolt after angry bolt of eldritch energy, but found that he was hit by vicious feedback from Blackstar.

When the shadows started draining one of the heroes of their strength, it appeared almost as if a new shadow was trying to separate itself from the very essence of the person that was being drained. As if a dark version of their souls was angrily thrashing, trying to escape the bonds of the hero’s body.

Kalina was pummelled into unconsciousness so that she could no longer prove a problem, but while the numbers of shadows were dwindling, the shadowy creature who lead them swooped into the house and set upon Kalina, draining her until she withered and expired. As the shadowy creature tried to escape through the gaps in the thatched roof, Luca ran outside and threw bolts of eldritch fire at it until it dissipated.

Having lost Kalina, James wasn’t sure what the next steps should be to get to the bottom of the situation, or what to tell the day master.