Session 53
Go all the way to the tower...
We leave the small town near Chearge in a seemingly abandoned motor carriage we found on a street. We then discuss means to enter the city and abruptly cancel our plans to sneak in disguised as local people since we don't have any papers to support our identity. So we switch to our beran identities as Senor and Senora Fernandez. Kasvarina agrees to turn invisible as soon as there is trouble on the horizon, and we just have to hope that her magic remains strong enough in this null-magic zone to do so.
As soon as we reach Cherage, we see that the city is very much blocked off and secured, just like we thought. Amira and Hector approach the front gate and are instantly rebuffed and ask to wait for sunrise when the gates open for those who wish to enter or leave. As there are already several more people waiting outside, we return to Kasvarina and tell her about the situation. So she turns invisible and we return to the gates as soon as they finally open.
The guards at the gate ask us where we're headed and we tell them the name of one hotel as we're tourists who wish to see the splendors of mighty Cherage. The guards write down all we said which leaves us with no choice but to rent a room in the hotel we just mentioned. Meanwhile, Kasvarina follows us in silent invisibility.
Inside the hotel, we chat a bit with the locals and learn that many of Cherage's citizens have joined the Danoran forces as “volunteers” as they fear an imminent attack of Risur. What is really strange though is the fact that these recruits are being sent to Methia and not to a fort near the coastline.
We reply that this sounds strange indeed as the Risuri won't just sneak into the Danoran mainland to attack one ruined city. But then we are being told in hushed voices that Methia is a prohibited military area and also features a military training ground. So it would be a potential target, albeit not a likely one.
We exchange mentally about this strange concentration of forces and discuss whether this might just be a distraction to seemingly normalize the growing military presence at Axis Island. And once our minds are drawn to Axis Island, we both get the gut feeling that going straight to that place might maybe be our best chance to disrupt the Obs with their ritual preparations that are obviously already in motion. Still Kasvarina's knowledge might be crucial in being able to understand and stop the ritual for good.
So we and Kasvarina walk through Cherage in search for her memory. Fortunately, we score a hit just when we walk past by a tavern called “Amielle's Gun Shop”. Amira and Hector laugh in silence at the obviousness as we're pretty sure who we'd be seeing there.
We wait till all of the staff take a break for lunch and sneak into the barroom. Kasvarina dons the Arc and the room turns to an actual gun shop where Amielle, still alive at that time, meets with Kas and Nicodemus in yet another body. Both Kasvarina and Nicodemus ask Amielle to help Risur with their witch problem in Flint so they can become aware of the powerful and ever-evolving danoran technology. Amielle agrees and the vision ends. And now we know the true reason why Amielle came to help King Lorcan in the first place.
“Not sure it worked like they planned”, Auryn says, pointing out that the Fey and their pact had a much larger part in defeating the witches than Amielle. Even if it was a nice gesture.
As we haven't learned anything substantial, we agree to dare take a look at Methia and what the Danorans might be up to. Especially as this is the place where something really dramatic had happened to Kasvarina and Miller. Problem is that the place appears to be guarded really well, which is why we'd need a good plan on how to get there.
We take the rest of the day to gather information and accumulate opportunities from both the Dockers and the odd member of the Familia. We learn that military and food supplies are being shipped upstream while new recruits are carried there by either boat or motor carriage. So we ask the Familia to find a way for us to get to Methia and they offer to get us three uniforms of danoran soldiers and fake marching orders. This way, we could play new recruits and get shipped to Methia.
(We kind of forgot we could call in favours all over the globe at that point. Previously, we had only used them in Risur. Tiz gently pointed out that with our knowledge, we could easily spot a Docker or maybe even Bravura down at the docks)
We gladly take the offer and tell the Familia that we'll make sure our dear friend in Flint will be told about their good deeds.
Joining the recruits isn't as difficult as we thought and once the officials see our marching orders, they make sure that we'll end up in the right place. It takes quite a while to get to Methia. But when our carriage finally halts, we are surprised to see that the place is very much still a ghost city that appears to be half crumbled and half intact. We hear gunshots and realize that they use the urban environment to practice a partisan war in an urban environment. Which gets us really alarmed.
The more experienced soldiers welcome us all, give us a short introduction and also point to the famed “Lance of Triegenes”, a formerly gigantic tower of the Clergy that's now half collapsed. Every now and then we hear the sound of controlled explosions. And when we ask what they'd be mining there, the others just talk about a huge machine that fires bullets with the size of dogs. Which raises our alarm level even more as we fear that all of this might be just one big training ground for an all-out invasion.
We take a bit of time to get accustomed to this place and find the best places to safely search for Kasvarina's memories. But neither do we spot many openings nor does the Arc tingle. Just when we come to the conclusion that we might have to climb that forsaken tower after all, we feel one massive earthquake shaking the ground. And this time, our fellow danoran comrades are worried as well.
More and more seismic waves hit Methia and we soon see the source of all these earthshaking events: We see Borne approaching the city slowly but steadily, each step leaving a heavy impression on the ground. We're quite confused why and how he could have left the Dreaming, but once he gets closer, we see that he is quite translucent and somehow walking barely on the other side of the mirror plane. Needless to say, the other rookie soldiers panic while the more seasoned try to rally a defense against the walking Colossus.
Kasvarina remembers Borne, and we get the gut feeling that it could be her he is looking for. Still we need to seize the opportunity to get closer to the tower with all the panicking going on. After the vision, we all agree, we would leave in hope to lure Borne away from the city.
So we move closer to the island on the river where the Lance of Triegenes is located and find that it is still heavily guarded by soldiers and the metal tech monster with the dog-sized bullets. Meanwhile, Borne moves closer to the same river while still being behind the veil. He stops right before the river and we feel and see why: We have now entered a total dead-magic zone where maybe the Dreaming doesn't exist at all.
While we search for a good spot to get to the tower, we see a fast carriage approaching Borne. It stops close to him and, to our surprise, Lya Jierre and a group of Porteurs du Mort leave emerge from inside. We all agree to hurry as Lya might spot and identify us despite our efforts. So we sneak upstream, jump into the water and let the current do the rest. This way, we get carried over to the island and move around to be completely out of Borne's and Lya's sight. Then Auryn hurries to the tower to climb the first wall and throw a rope for the rest. But she's way too wet to get a good hold and falls down immediately.
(Nat 1 on a climb. Ouch. Auryn is good at climbing, but not that good.)
Carlyle realizes this mistake and he takes the time to get out his grappling hook to assist the climb. This way, we manage to get up to the outer stairs of the tower.
(And this is when I was getting anxieties thinking about the poor people who used these really dangerous stairs. Like with all these scifi or fantasy shows where they have these bridges and walkways over seemingly endless chasms and somehow did not build a balustrade or railing for some reason. They just want people to fall down... and I'm terribly afraid of too large heights with seemingly fragile security measures. Looking at you, StarWars!)
We walk up the stairs until we come to an entrance blocked by a long-collapsed door. But before we can start thinking about ways to clear the path and look into what may be behind, the Arc resonates and the tower reacts strongly to its magic. But unlike all other instances where the Arc of Reida simply provided Kasvarina insight into events of her past, this time the tower appears to be rebuilding itself without drawing Kasvarina into a memory.
We all are a bit surprised by this strange magical resonance, but take the opportunity to walk further upstairs. After a short walk, the spirit of Nilasa appears all of a sudden in front of us. She smiles at Gabriel and Auryn and thanks them for their help. She then says that she cannot stay much longer and that “the others” won't be as kind as her. Then her spirit fades away again.
Kasvarina is very much confused seeing somebody totally unknown to her. We tell her that Nilasa was someone whose true cause of death we helped uncover and guess that the Arc must have some effect on our memories as well. Without worrying too much, we all continue our climb.
A few steps further, two other people from our past appear pout of thin air. This time, it is the Dragonborn arsonist brothers we arrested when they were trying to set fire to Sechim's factory. They unleash their fiery breaths, but we all are quick to dodge the attack. Then they vanish as quickly as they manifested.
“So they were executed for their crimes after all. We've never checked up on them after their arrest...” Gabriel mumbles, which is enough of an explanation for Kasvarina.
We advance further and the tower appears to repair itself just as we're getting higher upstairs. Then the next spirit manifests in the form of Cillian Creed who is fully covered in Witchoil. He then transforms into the monstrosity that confronted us atop Cauldron Hill before he explodes and leaves a puddle of Witchoil. We feel sorry for the man as we believe that all he did was follow Macbannin's orders.
“I'm glad that we could at least save Macbannin.” Auryn says. Kasvarina rubs her head and says that something is tingling in her head and that she might have known someone with that name, but she cannot really remember who he was. We quickly tell her that Macbannin was the mayor of the Nettles who was being misled by the Obs, died to save his home and form a barrier to the Bleak Gate, then was resurrected by the Obs, played the role of the Ghost council's cruel lackey before he revealed his true colors, killed Vicemi Terio and hopefully dissolved the Ghost Council resurrection circle. All before being reinstated as mayor of the Nettles and Guardian of the Hill. Kasvarina is very much impressed by this biography.
A bit higher up, we meet the next haunt of our own past: Lady Saxby. Who commits suicide in front of our eyes. Her death is yet another tragedy, albeit a self-induced, we explain. Auryn adds that Saxby was maybe the first time that she was being misled by the true nature of someone who appeared to be like a Matriarch while Gabriel mentions that he somehow never liked her and her elitism. Which sounds strange coming from someone like him.
(That is some really strange Arc magic for sure. But is was also a sweet recap of our past Shenanigans)
Before Kasvarina can ask any more question, the Arc's magic suddenly works the usual way again and draws us all into a vision of one of Kasvarina's memories. She walks inside on of the tower's interior rooms to meet with Han Jierre and Nicodemus. They appear to be doing an inner-circle Obscurati meeting where they discuss the progress of the different Obs cells. Kasavarina reports that Bergeron will soon have found the last Ziggurat and therefore seal so they will have all the needed information in their hands.
Han Jierre talks about his niece Lya and lauds her as a really bright and smart student who he's going to initiate very soon to lead the golden cell. Regarding the development of the lantern, he explains that his researchers have encountered some difficulties. He is fully aware that the lanterns will be crucial for focusing the ritual, so he will increase their efforts in R&D.
Then Kasvarina tells the other two about the progress in Borne's construction and training. She mentions Alexander Grappa and his seemingly emotional connection to the golems. She is worried about the lessons he's giving them. After all, the golems are tools for saving the world and have to know exactly how to act in which stage on top of being utterly loyal to the Obs and their cause. Which would leave little room for free thinking and their own personalities.
Lastly, all three of them discuss the potential threat of the King of Risur as he might be the biggest obstacle for their plan's success. They appear to know quite a bit about his special powers and guess that he might be able to resist the effect of the ritual and with him, the whole nation of Risur might also be unaffected. The trio discusses on how to deal with him and suggest either abducting him, brainwashing him or killing him off entirely. Which would be easiest, but they'd also risk having a successor and no effect at all. But should Risur prove to be too much of a problem, then they could either remove all that pose a threat to the Obscurati in Risur or invade the nation altogether.
(wow... that is some machiavellian scheme here. And before you ask: No, we were not given the Stanfield hint. I guess Tiz was afraid that we'd find means to warn Flint in advance and prevent much of the hassles of the upcoming plot. Which has some really awesome moments in itself
Not like we haven't suspected Stanfield to be an Ob before...)
Go all the way to the tower...
We leave the small town near Chearge in a seemingly abandoned motor carriage we found on a street. We then discuss means to enter the city and abruptly cancel our plans to sneak in disguised as local people since we don't have any papers to support our identity. So we switch to our beran identities as Senor and Senora Fernandez. Kasvarina agrees to turn invisible as soon as there is trouble on the horizon, and we just have to hope that her magic remains strong enough in this null-magic zone to do so.
As soon as we reach Cherage, we see that the city is very much blocked off and secured, just like we thought. Amira and Hector approach the front gate and are instantly rebuffed and ask to wait for sunrise when the gates open for those who wish to enter or leave. As there are already several more people waiting outside, we return to Kasvarina and tell her about the situation. So she turns invisible and we return to the gates as soon as they finally open.
The guards at the gate ask us where we're headed and we tell them the name of one hotel as we're tourists who wish to see the splendors of mighty Cherage. The guards write down all we said which leaves us with no choice but to rent a room in the hotel we just mentioned. Meanwhile, Kasvarina follows us in silent invisibility.
Inside the hotel, we chat a bit with the locals and learn that many of Cherage's citizens have joined the Danoran forces as “volunteers” as they fear an imminent attack of Risur. What is really strange though is the fact that these recruits are being sent to Methia and not to a fort near the coastline.
We reply that this sounds strange indeed as the Risuri won't just sneak into the Danoran mainland to attack one ruined city. But then we are being told in hushed voices that Methia is a prohibited military area and also features a military training ground. So it would be a potential target, albeit not a likely one.
We exchange mentally about this strange concentration of forces and discuss whether this might just be a distraction to seemingly normalize the growing military presence at Axis Island. And once our minds are drawn to Axis Island, we both get the gut feeling that going straight to that place might maybe be our best chance to disrupt the Obs with their ritual preparations that are obviously already in motion. Still Kasvarina's knowledge might be crucial in being able to understand and stop the ritual for good.
So we and Kasvarina walk through Cherage in search for her memory. Fortunately, we score a hit just when we walk past by a tavern called “Amielle's Gun Shop”. Amira and Hector laugh in silence at the obviousness as we're pretty sure who we'd be seeing there.
We wait till all of the staff take a break for lunch and sneak into the barroom. Kasvarina dons the Arc and the room turns to an actual gun shop where Amielle, still alive at that time, meets with Kas and Nicodemus in yet another body. Both Kasvarina and Nicodemus ask Amielle to help Risur with their witch problem in Flint so they can become aware of the powerful and ever-evolving danoran technology. Amielle agrees and the vision ends. And now we know the true reason why Amielle came to help King Lorcan in the first place.
“Not sure it worked like they planned”, Auryn says, pointing out that the Fey and their pact had a much larger part in defeating the witches than Amielle. Even if it was a nice gesture.
As we haven't learned anything substantial, we agree to dare take a look at Methia and what the Danorans might be up to. Especially as this is the place where something really dramatic had happened to Kasvarina and Miller. Problem is that the place appears to be guarded really well, which is why we'd need a good plan on how to get there.
We take the rest of the day to gather information and accumulate opportunities from both the Dockers and the odd member of the Familia. We learn that military and food supplies are being shipped upstream while new recruits are carried there by either boat or motor carriage. So we ask the Familia to find a way for us to get to Methia and they offer to get us three uniforms of danoran soldiers and fake marching orders. This way, we could play new recruits and get shipped to Methia.
(We kind of forgot we could call in favours all over the globe at that point. Previously, we had only used them in Risur. Tiz gently pointed out that with our knowledge, we could easily spot a Docker or maybe even Bravura down at the docks)
We gladly take the offer and tell the Familia that we'll make sure our dear friend in Flint will be told about their good deeds.
Joining the recruits isn't as difficult as we thought and once the officials see our marching orders, they make sure that we'll end up in the right place. It takes quite a while to get to Methia. But when our carriage finally halts, we are surprised to see that the place is very much still a ghost city that appears to be half crumbled and half intact. We hear gunshots and realize that they use the urban environment to practice a partisan war in an urban environment. Which gets us really alarmed.
The more experienced soldiers welcome us all, give us a short introduction and also point to the famed “Lance of Triegenes”, a formerly gigantic tower of the Clergy that's now half collapsed. Every now and then we hear the sound of controlled explosions. And when we ask what they'd be mining there, the others just talk about a huge machine that fires bullets with the size of dogs. Which raises our alarm level even more as we fear that all of this might be just one big training ground for an all-out invasion.
We take a bit of time to get accustomed to this place and find the best places to safely search for Kasvarina's memories. But neither do we spot many openings nor does the Arc tingle. Just when we come to the conclusion that we might have to climb that forsaken tower after all, we feel one massive earthquake shaking the ground. And this time, our fellow danoran comrades are worried as well.
More and more seismic waves hit Methia and we soon see the source of all these earthshaking events: We see Borne approaching the city slowly but steadily, each step leaving a heavy impression on the ground. We're quite confused why and how he could have left the Dreaming, but once he gets closer, we see that he is quite translucent and somehow walking barely on the other side of the mirror plane. Needless to say, the other rookie soldiers panic while the more seasoned try to rally a defense against the walking Colossus.
Kasvarina remembers Borne, and we get the gut feeling that it could be her he is looking for. Still we need to seize the opportunity to get closer to the tower with all the panicking going on. After the vision, we all agree, we would leave in hope to lure Borne away from the city.
So we move closer to the island on the river where the Lance of Triegenes is located and find that it is still heavily guarded by soldiers and the metal tech monster with the dog-sized bullets. Meanwhile, Borne moves closer to the same river while still being behind the veil. He stops right before the river and we feel and see why: We have now entered a total dead-magic zone where maybe the Dreaming doesn't exist at all.
While we search for a good spot to get to the tower, we see a fast carriage approaching Borne. It stops close to him and, to our surprise, Lya Jierre and a group of Porteurs du Mort leave emerge from inside. We all agree to hurry as Lya might spot and identify us despite our efforts. So we sneak upstream, jump into the water and let the current do the rest. This way, we get carried over to the island and move around to be completely out of Borne's and Lya's sight. Then Auryn hurries to the tower to climb the first wall and throw a rope for the rest. But she's way too wet to get a good hold and falls down immediately.
(Nat 1 on a climb. Ouch. Auryn is good at climbing, but not that good.)
Carlyle realizes this mistake and he takes the time to get out his grappling hook to assist the climb. This way, we manage to get up to the outer stairs of the tower.
(And this is when I was getting anxieties thinking about the poor people who used these really dangerous stairs. Like with all these scifi or fantasy shows where they have these bridges and walkways over seemingly endless chasms and somehow did not build a balustrade or railing for some reason. They just want people to fall down... and I'm terribly afraid of too large heights with seemingly fragile security measures. Looking at you, StarWars!)
We walk up the stairs until we come to an entrance blocked by a long-collapsed door. But before we can start thinking about ways to clear the path and look into what may be behind, the Arc resonates and the tower reacts strongly to its magic. But unlike all other instances where the Arc of Reida simply provided Kasvarina insight into events of her past, this time the tower appears to be rebuilding itself without drawing Kasvarina into a memory.
We all are a bit surprised by this strange magical resonance, but take the opportunity to walk further upstairs. After a short walk, the spirit of Nilasa appears all of a sudden in front of us. She smiles at Gabriel and Auryn and thanks them for their help. She then says that she cannot stay much longer and that “the others” won't be as kind as her. Then her spirit fades away again.
Kasvarina is very much confused seeing somebody totally unknown to her. We tell her that Nilasa was someone whose true cause of death we helped uncover and guess that the Arc must have some effect on our memories as well. Without worrying too much, we all continue our climb.
A few steps further, two other people from our past appear pout of thin air. This time, it is the Dragonborn arsonist brothers we arrested when they were trying to set fire to Sechim's factory. They unleash their fiery breaths, but we all are quick to dodge the attack. Then they vanish as quickly as they manifested.
“So they were executed for their crimes after all. We've never checked up on them after their arrest...” Gabriel mumbles, which is enough of an explanation for Kasvarina.
We advance further and the tower appears to repair itself just as we're getting higher upstairs. Then the next spirit manifests in the form of Cillian Creed who is fully covered in Witchoil. He then transforms into the monstrosity that confronted us atop Cauldron Hill before he explodes and leaves a puddle of Witchoil. We feel sorry for the man as we believe that all he did was follow Macbannin's orders.
“I'm glad that we could at least save Macbannin.” Auryn says. Kasvarina rubs her head and says that something is tingling in her head and that she might have known someone with that name, but she cannot really remember who he was. We quickly tell her that Macbannin was the mayor of the Nettles who was being misled by the Obs, died to save his home and form a barrier to the Bleak Gate, then was resurrected by the Obs, played the role of the Ghost council's cruel lackey before he revealed his true colors, killed Vicemi Terio and hopefully dissolved the Ghost Council resurrection circle. All before being reinstated as mayor of the Nettles and Guardian of the Hill. Kasvarina is very much impressed by this biography.
A bit higher up, we meet the next haunt of our own past: Lady Saxby. Who commits suicide in front of our eyes. Her death is yet another tragedy, albeit a self-induced, we explain. Auryn adds that Saxby was maybe the first time that she was being misled by the true nature of someone who appeared to be like a Matriarch while Gabriel mentions that he somehow never liked her and her elitism. Which sounds strange coming from someone like him.
(That is some really strange Arc magic for sure. But is was also a sweet recap of our past Shenanigans)
Before Kasvarina can ask any more question, the Arc's magic suddenly works the usual way again and draws us all into a vision of one of Kasvarina's memories. She walks inside on of the tower's interior rooms to meet with Han Jierre and Nicodemus. They appear to be doing an inner-circle Obscurati meeting where they discuss the progress of the different Obs cells. Kasavarina reports that Bergeron will soon have found the last Ziggurat and therefore seal so they will have all the needed information in their hands.
Han Jierre talks about his niece Lya and lauds her as a really bright and smart student who he's going to initiate very soon to lead the golden cell. Regarding the development of the lantern, he explains that his researchers have encountered some difficulties. He is fully aware that the lanterns will be crucial for focusing the ritual, so he will increase their efforts in R&D.
Then Kasvarina tells the other two about the progress in Borne's construction and training. She mentions Alexander Grappa and his seemingly emotional connection to the golems. She is worried about the lessons he's giving them. After all, the golems are tools for saving the world and have to know exactly how to act in which stage on top of being utterly loyal to the Obs and their cause. Which would leave little room for free thinking and their own personalities.
Lastly, all three of them discuss the potential threat of the King of Risur as he might be the biggest obstacle for their plan's success. They appear to know quite a bit about his special powers and guess that he might be able to resist the effect of the ritual and with him, the whole nation of Risur might also be unaffected. The trio discusses on how to deal with him and suggest either abducting him, brainwashing him or killing him off entirely. Which would be easiest, but they'd also risk having a successor and no effect at all. But should Risur prove to be too much of a problem, then they could either remove all that pose a threat to the Obscurati in Risur or invade the nation altogether.
(wow... that is some machiavellian scheme here. And before you ask: No, we were not given the Stanfield hint. I guess Tiz was afraid that we'd find means to warn Flint in advance and prevent much of the hassles of the upcoming plot. Which has some really awesome moments in itself
Not like we haven't suspected Stanfield to be an Ob before...)
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