Session 283: Mission Special - Praise the Sun! Played on the 24th of July 2020! Present: Cedrych Brightbough; Sidhelien Rogue, lvl 10 (Adam B) Glenn Sturgis; Rjurik Cleric, lvl 9 (Spynx) Sithric Sidhefriend; Hanner Sidhe Fighter/Rogue, lvl 9 (Depraved Lunatic) Jannis The Red; Brecht Fighter, lvl 7 (Physh) Nils Ullstein; Brecht Paladin/Warlock, lvl 7 (Simon D) Hen; Awnshegh Fighter, lvl 5 (Hazelchan84) Green Knight; Fiend (Hats4Cats) The days had been getting shorter, and the nights colder. Winter would soon be upon us, and I had some unfinished business that needed to be addressed. So I reached out to my most trusted companions at the Cohort; Darvius and Glenn. I am always happy to have Glenn at my side on a mission, but Darvius had pressing council business and could not attend; they keep him quite busy these days. Sithric was there, of course, nipping at my heels as usual. I will give the boy credit where credit is due; since his brush with death at the hands of the Vampire a few months ago, he has actually started to grow a spine. Perhaps I’ll make a proper sidhelien of him yet. A few other junior members answered the call as well. I have had little experience with Jannis, but knew he was a capable fighter. Surprisingly, Nils managed to tear himself away from the crystal in the temple of Elil long enough to join us. Hen was also on hand, which did complicate things slightly. No matter. There was also a strange new addition: a tall brawny figure clad head to toe in green plate. He introduced himself as the Green Knight, and was strangely quiet. When he did speak, his voice was strangely familiar, although I couldn’t place my finger on it. I was intentionally vague with my explanation. I worried that the more the group knew about the plan, the more difficult it would be to keep secret. Of course, there were no objections to this; everyone was eager to follow Cedrych Brightbough, the Vampire Slayer on another of his legendary escapades, regardless of the stakes. We set out for Innishiere and made good time. With three legendary Heroes of Innishiere amongst our ranks, we were immediately granted an audience with the Faerie Princess Niobhe. I inquired if her research in the Vampire’s Tomb had yielded any fruit, and she remarked that they had made progress on that front. Her arcanists had managed to find a way to contain the portal to the shadow world that lay within, and the Princess encouraged us to go see it in person. Investigating the portal was part of my plan, but first I needed to speak with the Princess in private. She agreed to a private audience, but needed some time to finish her court proceedings. We said out thanks and left to investigate the Tomb while we waited. As we approached the place where the Vampire’s Tomb lay, it was impossible to ignore the massive hedgerows that had grown around the perimeter. Surely this was part of the containment that the Princess spoke of. Guards were stationed at the entrance, and it was clear that none were permitted to enter. But such pedestrian rules do not apply to heroes of the realm, and we were admitted without issue. We made our way through a maze of hedges to a central clearing. There was an obelisk of white marble visible, and upon closer inspection a fresco depicting our triumph over the Vampire. Front and center was none other than yours truly, valiantly stabbing at the Vampire’s heart while the others fought off a wave of fanged monsters. The details were a little off, but most importantly they got my moustache correct. In addition, there were vases depicting each of us, individually, and even one for Biscuits. When Glenn saw this, he broke down in tears. I reassured him that we would find a way to redeem Biscuits. The monument was built on top of a great pit. Looking down perhaps thirty feet or so, I could barely make out the portal to the Shadow World that was inside the Vampire’s Tomb. The entrance proper must have been somewhere else in this cave. We debated going down to investigate, but I thought better of it. If my plan were carried out as intended, we’d be headed down soon enough. With some time left before my private audience with the Princess, we turned to shopping. Nils and I looked rather fruitlessly for a place selling blade oils. All we could find was an old woman selling South Snake Oil, which would turn our attacks venomous. Jani went off to drink on his own while Glenn and the Green Knight looked for an armorer. It wasn’t long before we were summoned before the Princess, so I gathered the group and we headed off to meet her. We were summoned to the Princess’ personal private garden. It was a verdant place, and unseasonably warm. Obviously a great deal of druidic magic was sustaining it. I left my comrades and followed the Princess deeper into the grove to speak in private. She hopped nimbly from rock to rock as we spoke. I told her of my plan… Britter Kalt, the Vampire, had been destroyed. But we had learned that not all vampires perished with him. In particular, Blood Sister Alkava and her brood had claimed Vampire’s Hold as their own. We had also learned of something called “the Rule of Two”, an ancient pact that dictated there must always be one Vampire Master and one Apprentice. While details on this rule were scarce, I believed that Alkava was Britter’s former apprentice. This was more or less confirmed when we visited her at Castle Harlech. Though she put on a brave show, she admitted that finding a successor was of utmost importance to her. She vowed to stay out of the affairs of the elves until she had accomplished this. This was enough for most of the Sidhelien leaders I had spoken to: Galanohel, Waymuun, and now Nailo. The immediate threat that Britter posed had been dealt with, and they now turned their attention to more pressing matters. But, I was unconvinced. Alkava had mentioned that she was holding a tournament to determine her successor. A series of challenges involving combat, tests of skill, and diplomacy would yield a single victor; all other competitors would be destroyed. And this winner would become her new apprentice during a ceremony that could only occur on the Eve of the Dead. If Alkava were permitted to anoint a successor, we would be right back where we started. All the work that we had done, all the blood lost to cleanse this world of Britter and his ilk would be for naught. The New Vampire would retreat into her hold and regrow her forces, and in time she would become every bit as dangerous as Britter had been. Now was not time to sit idly by and watch history repeat itself. Now was the time for decisive action. With the Eve of the Dead fast approaching, my plan was simple. We would lead a group of Innisherian warriors through the Shadow World and into Castle Harlech. I handed the queen a map detailing the path from the portal in Innishiere to the one in Vampire's Hold: Alkava is powerful for certain, and without knowing where her heart was, we could not hope to destroy her. But, if we were able to disrupt or delay the ceremony, she would be forced to wait another year to try again. In that time, perhaps we could find the secrets to destroying her for good. The Princess listened intently. I could see she was running things over in her mind. It was a dangerous plan, that I would not deny. She seemed averse to risking the lives of so many of her people. I could not fault her for that, but it would be a price worth paying to see the blight of the Vampires stricken from these lands once and for all, the forested lands of Vampire’s Hold returned to sidhelien hands. She told me she needed time to decide, to consult with her advisors. I took my leave and returned to my companions. We spent the night in Adwyth Tallagh to await the Princess’ decision. Glenn, the Forest Knight, and I found an armorer. They seemed keen to purchase new shields, and Mailse Ui Eidirsceoil was one of the finest craftsperson that Innishiere had to offer. She didn’t seem particularly fond of the Green Knight, but tolerated him due to the presence of Glenn and Myself. I commissioned a custom bracer that could hold a potion surreptitiously under my clothes; you never know when something like that would come in handy. In the morning, we met with the Princess again. She would not risk the lives of her soldiers on this errand. But, she still wanted to offer assistance as she could. Nils posed a poignant question. The lands of Vampire’s Hold are shielded by a supernatural fog, so thick that it blocks out the sun. This allows the vampires to operate with impunity within their borders. If there was a way to disrupt this fog it would make the prospect of combat with them much more palatable. As an experienced druidess, perhaps the Princess knew of the means to accomplish this? It seemed to elude her power, personally. But the goddess, Avani, would be capable of doing such a thing. If you had her blessing, you could pierce the fog at least temporarily. She gave us a necklace, mundane but beautiful. It had belonged to the priestess Avani before she ascended to godhood. Somehow, it had gotten into sidhelien possession, and the Princess was convinced the Church of Avani would pay handsomely for its return. We thanked the Princess for her help and took our leave, chartering a riverboat to take us south to Ariya, where the church of Avani was strongest. The journey there was long but uneventful, and after nearly a week, we laid eyes on the city. I had been here before some time ago on an errand for the Cohort, and I admit I never fully adapted to the heat. Nils took the lead from here, as he spoke the language, and lead us to the Tower of the Morning to speak with the Oracle. I couldn’t understand their conversation, but Nils showed the girl the necklace and she gave him a puzzled look. She didn’t recognize it, but suggested we speak with the Emir. Leaving the tower, we made our way through the palace to the Hall of Lions and the Thousand Jeweled throne. Such an opulent display of wealth, and all of it just sitting there doing no one any good. Nils offered a gift, a scrap of fabric that he claimed was a Vos pennant taken from his first kill. The Emir responded in kind, presenting Nils with a fine scimitar in a snakeskin sheath. Evidently, this was Ariyan custom; a gift must be met with something of greater value, lest the Emir lose face. Again, Nils spoke, and produced the necklace. Unlike the Oracle, the Amir clearly knew what this was. At first he thought it was a forgery, but after analyzing it closely and hearing how we acquired the item, he was convinced. Such an artifact was valuable to the church indeed, and the Emir offered us a gift in return. He produced an ornate chest containing a large piece of amber and explained that it held the light of Avani. By smashing it on the ground, the sun would be strengthened and could pierce through cloud and fog. However, it would only function during the day time and outdoors, or at least where sunlight would be able to reach. Such a tool would be put to good use against the Vampire, and Nils thanked the Emir. Lastly, the Emir offered a ceremony of investiture to Nils and anyone else who would accept: take Avani into your hearts and be born again in the light. Nils accepted, and after the ceremony was complete, his eyes glowed like amber itself. We celebrated long into the night, and the Emir permitted us to stay in the Primary Servants Quarters. I noted that they were much more ornate and comfortable than the rooms the Cohort keeps for us back on Fabrica. In the morning, with our primary goals accomplished, we set off to look for work. We met with Fethiye Kalhat Hawwat Nishtun Burumbini al-Hufuf, the Junior Deputy Assistant Vizier. Nils procured some blade oils, and at my behest asked about “light arrows”. These people seemed unnaturally obsessed with the sun, and if anywhere would have such a thing, surely it was this place. The Junior Vizier produced a small ornate box containing an Arrow of Avani. Its fletchings were made of pure light, and the arrowhead was a broad semi-circle, carved to look like the rising sun. When he heard that we intended to take on the Vampire, he offered the arrow as a gift, but insisted it only be used in the most dire circumstances. Lastly, he produced a few magical tomes that could teach us to speak Basarji. In exchange, Sithric, Glenn, and myself donated three-hundred gold pieces to the church. We would need to speak the language for the job we had to do. The Junior Vizier informed us that there were certain accounting irregularities surrounding the Temple of Celestial Pillars, one of the major temples to Avani here in the city. Money had been going missing from caravanserais, and every time that happened, a donation was made to the church of a corresponding amount. In fact, some Cohort members had already spent time trying to catch one of the thieves. Clearly, this was the work of an amateur; any thief worth his salt knows that goods need to be fenced and not sold directly to help obfuscate the trail. Nonetheless, we agreed to help investigate. We would go undercover as Acolytes of Avani and assist at the Temple. The High Priest Hassan was the primary suspect. We were to discover where the money was coming from. The following morning, we arrived at the Temple in the pre-dawn light. Hassan was deep in prayers when we entered, but after some time he began tasking us with chores. The temple was one large, long room, and the High Priest asked that we help set up cots for the sick and poor who would visit the temple during the day. We made short work of this, and it wasn’t long before the temple began to fill up with beggars and the poor. As the sun rose, Hassan tasked us with another important job. He opened a simple, heavy lockbox containing a suspiciously large stash of coins. It was unusual, even an ornate temple such as this, for the clergy to have so much coin on hand. Hassan counted out fifteen gold stallions, and asked us to take it to Corina the baker. She would have hundreds of loaves of bread ready to feed to the hungry. I grew tired of such menial labour, and made myself scarce as a few of the others took this task. I was more concerned with the contents of that lockbox. As the day wore on Glenn and Nils offered their clerical services to those in need while I was relegated to cleaning bedpans and changing bandages. Jani soon returned with a donkey laden with loaves of bread, and we began handing them out. Though they tried to hide it, it was clear to me that there were gold coins baked into the loaves, a secretive way of redistributing the temple’s wealth. Glenn was determined to get to the bottom of this and had a private conversation with the High Priest. While he was distracted, I tried my luck with the lockbox. The mechanism was simple enough, but one of the temple clerics spotted me before I could get a good look inside. I told her that the High Priest was busy and had asked me to retrieve some coin from the box. And this girl, she couldn’t have been more than fifteen, had the audacity to question me in front of everyone. I mean, it was a lie, of course, but nonetheless! I bit my tongue so hard that it bled. After a while, she turned her ire toward the High Priest and I slunk off into the shadows, worried that I had blown our cover. I could hear the girl yelling at the High Priest from across the temple in their rapid-fire tongue. After a while she quieted down, and I was just beginning to think I was in the clear when someone tapped me on the shoulder. It was Glenn, and he told me that the High Priest wished to speak with me. I thought about making a break for it, but what could one old man do against the likes of Cedrych Brightbough, Vampire Slayer? With Glenn close behind, I hurried over to speak with the High Priest. Our cover was indeed blown, but I’m not convinced it was directly my fault. Even here in the south they had heard the tales of the great heroes that slew the Vampire, and when three men matching those descriptions conveniently showed up as would-be acolytes, the High Priest knew something was afoot. He did not deny that the money had been stolen, but argued that it was being taken from those who could afford to lose it and given to those that had nothing. As one who often finds himself on the wrong side of the law, I could offer no rebuttal. The group gathered to determine what to do about the situation. Most of the party agreed that this man was doing good, and very few objected to his method. Nils was a tough sell, but after some private words with the High Priest, he too agreed to keep his secret. As the sun set, we returned to the Junior Vizier, informing him that we had discovered nothing of note at the Temple. He seemed to accept this, but insisted we take a new posting and bounty back to the Cohort to be posted on the Board of Fate. We did so. Upon arriving in the Cohort, Sithric and Glenn asked for an audience with the Kallanon. They made their case that we should *not* accept the Junior Vizier’s new posting, as it would cause great harm to the poor of Ariya. The Kallanon, as always, was dreadfully impartial. He summoned Lyla, who had been on one of the previous missions to investigate the theft. He asked her if the people of the caravanserai were suffering due to the thefts, and she explained that many of the staff and guards were angry because their salaries had been reduced. The Kallanon then offered this: either we accept the financial burden of the Church ourselves, or we post a mission ourselves to investigate the details of the theft more clearly. The Kallanon needed more information before he could judge whether or not the mission was worthy of the Cohort’s Time. In the meantime, he would delay posting the Junior Vizier’s new request for one season. Sithric, the poor chump, stepped up to accept this burden. Still too much heart in that one, I see. Not to worry. I’m sure I’ll be able to set him straight.
