AGELESS CAMPAIGN, Episode II, Part VI.

Posts #1-70 = CM thread V detour A played 12/31/12 to 1/10/13

Posts #71-176 = CM thread V detour B played 5/24/13 to 6/06/13

Thread VI begins with Post #177 on 9/19/13


This PBP uses D&D3E Rules. There is a "Story Hour" here on ENWorld detailing our first module and the first two Parts of this one.


September 13, 1882, 3:45AM, Zakazik Grand Hotel, Zakazik, Egypt.

The group of Lawrence Cantrell, George Eastman, Abigail Marsters, Wilamina 'Mina' Parker, Benjamin 'Fish' Trout, and Constance Grace 'Ruby' West have arrived a short while ago by dirigible from Cairo in search of Princess Neferka, heir to the Egyptian throne.

Ruby, Mina and the Princess's ogre bodyguard Mengesha have checked the Princess's room, concluding that she was smuggled out by French wizards a few hours ago. The Norse warrior Freya, whose armor allows for a Black Dragon transformation, has flown back to report that the smaller dirigible the French escaped in has returned. It has gone to the nearby town of Tel El-Kabir, where the Egyptian Rebel forces have prepared to do battle with the British forces at dawn.

Lawrence, Abby, Fish and George have just met with Maurice Beaujoulais, an American of French descent currently working as a British spymaster. He leads a spy team that includes Scottish boy Henry Jones, British physician and alchemist Henry Jekyll, and Callum Stuart, a British nobleman (and former boyfriend of Abby). He has speculated that the French took the Princess to Herakleion, site of an ancient Egyptian and Greek city along the Sea, which sank in the 12th century.

George, Mina, Ruby and Abby are currently in the hallway discussing their next move.

Ruby whispers quietly, "I don't know if we should trust this spy giving us information. He could certainly have his own reasons for leading us astray. So friends, we must decide, do we follow the Frenchman's dirigible or do we listen to Maurice and try Herakleion? My instinct tells me to follow the dirigible but of course, magic could have been used to move the Princess to another site and we'd have no way of knowing. I'm not convinced of either site at the moment."

Mina says that she has a history with Beaujoulais and could ask him questions that only he would know, if there is concern that he may be one of the French wizards in disguise.

"That is an excellent idea Nana! That is definitely one of my concerns, with all the actors and disguises and possible magical controlling going on around here."

Mina says, "Well, I can prove that he is Boujoulais, who would never work for the French Wizards that killed his parents, but he could still be under their magical control. George, what do you think?"

Back inside the room, Fish engages Mr. Beaujoulais in conversation, Lawrence continues to check the bedrooms. He finds hidden between the bed cushions a tightly rolled up scroll with a very thin dagger tied to the inside.

"OOhhh what is that?" Ruby asked with her ever present curiosity. "May I see it Lawrence?"

Silver Moon said:

Mina says, "Well, I can prove that he is Boujoulais, who would never work for the French Wizards that killed his parents, but he could still be under their magical control. George, what do you think?"

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"Yes, I think that at this point it is prudent. Would detect magic detect if he was under some manner of control or enchantment? But yes, vett him while I check out that dagger." whispers back George

Lawrence hands the scroll and dagger to Ruby and George as Mina gestures for Lawrence to accompany her back into the other room with Fish, Abby and Beaujoulais.

They unroll the scroll which has magical writings in Atlantian script. The dagger itself is lightweight and casts a thin shimmer of golden light.

Willamina Parker approaches Beaujoulais and says, "Maurice, I would like a word with you." She approaches him, with Abby, Fish and Lawrence also present.

Mina says "There are some concerns among my colleagues as to your true identity. Their apprehension is justified, given the number of French imposters already encountered and the fact that you are here in their rooms." Gesturing towards Lawrence she says, "The French wizards would be unaware of when you first crossed paths with Lawrence and myself. Would you care to fill us in?"

He smiles and says, "Absolutely, although to this minute I was unaware that anybody except your husband James knew that it was me. It was on the night of Saturday October 8th of 1864 in Richmond, Virginia. I was part of a British spy team operating on a parallel mission as the American team comprised of you, Mr. Cantrell, Mr. Parker and Doctor Crane.

The Confederacy was in very poor shape. Lee's army was under siege for the winter in Petersburg, Virginia while the Union Army's General Sherman had just burnt Atlanta to the ground and was marching to coast. Confederate President Davis was desperate for something to quickly change the tide of the war and had made arrangements with the King of Spain to obtain a large cache of magical artifacts to break the siege and then march to the District of Columbia, preferably before the November 8th election. Should Washington fall, it would have ushered in an almost certain victory for the Democratic candidate McClellan over Lincoln.

Prior successes of both your team and mine meant that absolute secrecy was maintained about the pending arrival of the magic, and the only place to obtain that information was from Davis's own files. So while you Mrs. Parker played the role of a Southern Belle, with Doctor Crane as your slave, and distracted the night guards, Mr. Cantrell and Mr. Parker searched President Davis's office.

The two found the information but were then nearly captured, due to the untimely return of President Davis and his own executive guard detail to the office. If not for the combination of a clumsy janitor spilling a large bucket of wash water on the President and his party, simultaneous to the passing by of a wagon filled with linens that the two American spies jumped from the 3rd floor window into, all would have been lost." Turning to Lawrence he says, "Mr. Cantrell, I was that janitor, and another member of my team was driving that wagon."