[Session 72, cont'd]
Kit sends for Aunt Cecilia and the redactor as she arrives. Aunt Cecilia confirms that Kit looks like she bathed in chaos, and the redactor rips it off her.
Bishop Waters reports that the bishop will likely not survive, even with a redactor and skin and healing. He says that the Council needs to take his report, and final unction, which of course Bishop Waters can provide. Kit offers to take the report, so he doesn’t need to speak.
Dame Brionna gets a report—they came in on a merchant voller, with a shipment of cloth from Zest’qua. Dame Brionna dispatches a detection squad to search that ship, and then she worries about securing the artifacts. She has no difficulty finding the artifacts very carefully packed and stored. And written in the bishop’s elegant hand, there is a copy of a ritual that is supposed to go with them along with a sealed note addressed to “His Most Excellent and Puissant Archduke”. She places the artifacts and the scroll in a plain knapsack, and then tucks it in her cloak, and waits for her pegasus to bear her to the palace.
Alistair joins Kit with the Bishop.
Kit contacts him mentally. “Are the artifacts safe?”
“Yes. There was an attempt to stop me before I left—a Borsh’troan anti-paladin. He regretted my mace hand.”
“It was some sort of a plot—it undergirds all of the ones you have faced. You have queered all of them, as far as I can tell. But it originates with the Great Wyrm of Borsh’tro—one of the Council. When I started gathering the artifacts, I found that the artifacts were not enough. I need to find the ritual. But the books had been tampered with. I am one of the Scholara of the Temple, I recognized the change in hand. I searched out the originals and found a group of cultists who had taken them. I turned the cultists over to the local authorities, which may have been a mistake. The leader of the group bragged about the plan, and cursed the Archduke’s name for his role in causing it to fail. But they were clearly servants of the Wyrm—they attained the Skin of the Wyrm in combat. My library has more information, but when his Grace meets with the Glorious Light he should ask. I should have known from the layers—almost none of the demon lords layer their plans that deeply. Orlodu was known for his connections to some of the demon lords, but the Ram was not known to be connected—he was viewed as a wild card.”
He asks if his nephew could perform his requiem.
He confirms that the artifacts are real, and can undo the curse.
The local investigation was headed by the Inquisitor General of Tarsh, assisted by one of the Blood Counselors.
"It is without question that the Queen of Chaos was involved—she has never bent her knee to anyone. It would be playing with fire for Orlodu to be involved with her, even to release her from her prison. The other absolutely certain to be involved is an old rival to the Queen of the Succubi. She had followers among the cult, but the current Queen had no followers—highly unusual. My books are in my study—they are as complete as holy writ permits. I believe you should know your rivals."
The Council sends Bishop Waters to him. Bishop Waters performs final rites.
The other ship took on a bunch of workers at its last port, apparently innocently, and brought them right over.
[End session 72; the DM clarified that the attacker who jumped expected to transform into a giant worm when he hit the ground, but could not because the land is bound to Alistair, so died messily instead]
Kit sends for Aunt Cecilia and the redactor as she arrives. Aunt Cecilia confirms that Kit looks like she bathed in chaos, and the redactor rips it off her.
Bishop Waters reports that the bishop will likely not survive, even with a redactor and skin and healing. He says that the Council needs to take his report, and final unction, which of course Bishop Waters can provide. Kit offers to take the report, so he doesn’t need to speak.
Dame Brionna gets a report—they came in on a merchant voller, with a shipment of cloth from Zest’qua. Dame Brionna dispatches a detection squad to search that ship, and then she worries about securing the artifacts. She has no difficulty finding the artifacts very carefully packed and stored. And written in the bishop’s elegant hand, there is a copy of a ritual that is supposed to go with them along with a sealed note addressed to “His Most Excellent and Puissant Archduke”. She places the artifacts and the scroll in a plain knapsack, and then tucks it in her cloak, and waits for her pegasus to bear her to the palace.
Alistair joins Kit with the Bishop.
Kit contacts him mentally. “Are the artifacts safe?”
“Yes. There was an attempt to stop me before I left—a Borsh’troan anti-paladin. He regretted my mace hand.”
“It was some sort of a plot—it undergirds all of the ones you have faced. You have queered all of them, as far as I can tell. But it originates with the Great Wyrm of Borsh’tro—one of the Council. When I started gathering the artifacts, I found that the artifacts were not enough. I need to find the ritual. But the books had been tampered with. I am one of the Scholara of the Temple, I recognized the change in hand. I searched out the originals and found a group of cultists who had taken them. I turned the cultists over to the local authorities, which may have been a mistake. The leader of the group bragged about the plan, and cursed the Archduke’s name for his role in causing it to fail. But they were clearly servants of the Wyrm—they attained the Skin of the Wyrm in combat. My library has more information, but when his Grace meets with the Glorious Light he should ask. I should have known from the layers—almost none of the demon lords layer their plans that deeply. Orlodu was known for his connections to some of the demon lords, but the Ram was not known to be connected—he was viewed as a wild card.”
He asks if his nephew could perform his requiem.
He confirms that the artifacts are real, and can undo the curse.
The local investigation was headed by the Inquisitor General of Tarsh, assisted by one of the Blood Counselors.
"It is without question that the Queen of Chaos was involved—she has never bent her knee to anyone. It would be playing with fire for Orlodu to be involved with her, even to release her from her prison. The other absolutely certain to be involved is an old rival to the Queen of the Succubi. She had followers among the cult, but the current Queen had no followers—highly unusual. My books are in my study—they are as complete as holy writ permits. I believe you should know your rivals."
The Council sends Bishop Waters to him. Bishop Waters performs final rites.
The other ship took on a bunch of workers at its last port, apparently innocently, and brought them right over.
[End session 72; the DM clarified that the attacker who jumped expected to transform into a giant worm when he hit the ground, but could not because the land is bound to Alistair, so died messily instead]
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