Session 4

Inside the waterfall hideout, the group was, in a way, surrounded. A snarling black wolf with a sword in front of them, and a long-horned ram behind. They realized that, as the tension in the hallway grew slowly grew, that they didn’t really know anything at all about their host beyond his religious pontificating. Although they could talk to Glowkindle through the spell cast by his medallion, the wolf was another story. Luckily, Vireya had maintained her ability to Speak With Animals, and struck up a conversation.

After some tense assurances that the group wouldn’t betray the location of the hideout, the wolf, named Silf, assessed each member of YFPB individually. Harlan he accused of smelling like salt and blood despite his supposed adherence to the God of Light. Vireya was accused of smelling like wholly forbidden death magic despite her whimsical nature. Lorien, the wolf conceded, did not smell of deception like the rest; only of a naive curiosity that could prove even more dangerous. Irene did not even receive a vocal evaluation. Instead, the wolf’s hackles raised and he proclaimed that, could he win the fight, he’d strike her down immediately.

Glowkindle finally spoke up at this point, guaranteeing Silf’s safety. The wolf then stepped back to allow the adventurers space to truly enter the small cabin. Glowkindle announced that they were safe for the time being and magically warded from detection. The group settled down in the kitchen area to share a quick, cold meal to recover some of their senses. Pooling their resources, they discovered that only Harlan had packed for a long journey with several sets of rations. The others, namely Irene and Vireya, had successfully gathered some smaller goods, including a couple carrots,  a tin of preserved fish and some Schmoranges (though Vireya had mistakenly believed she had gathered a single “6 schmogles”).

The group also discovered that they were capable of giving each other items at this point, and Irene bought a single schmorange from Vireya for a gold piece. Joyfully, they also tried to give each other their Pact Weapons, but for some unknown reason they were unable to un-bound their likely demonic soul weapons. Glowkindle, in between shoving his face full of rotten tomatoes, told the group that he had brought them there to find his Divine Weapon, a piece of which was locked inside his study. He began to say something more, but mentioned that there was loot upstairs in addition to the key to his study, and thus half the group sprinted upstairs without another word.

Skipping the second floor, Irene climbed a rickety ladder up to a small, hidden loft with a fireplace and a few piles of books. After sifting through the ones with the most interesting covers, she found a pair of banded metal earrings bookmarking a page in an account of magical artifacts. They were Echo Earrings, artifacts that allow two bonded users to telepathically communicate over any distance after they swear an oath to each other. Vireya immediately sauntered towards Irene, reminding her that they share a kindred spirit of amnesia and femininity. Rather than succumb to the urge to pit her teammates against each other for profit, Irene acceded and gave the other earring to Vireya.

Hands clasped together after slicing their palms, the two recited a commitment to each other to have each other’s back in a world dominated by non-magical men. Their oath sworn, their earrings grew warm and the connection was made. After heading back downstairs, each person entered a different room so as to cover as much ground as possible, like ants devouring a larger corpse. Vireya discovered a staff in the bedroom, but it appeared wholly unmagical. Harlan discovered a Book of Infinite Knowledge, but its creepy voice and face caused him to avoid asking an actual question. He then made the mistake of asking the rest of the group if they had any questions they wanted to ask, to which the Book replied “...no…” before crumbling into dust.

Irene discovered an arcane room dedicated to housing a large summoning circle with some chalk. Harlan and Irene tried to recreate the graffiti they’d seen in Tomara, but couldn’t remember any of the finer details. Irene paused for a moment, and then started drawing again. She drew something vaguely resembling the graffiti, or at least a specific piece of it. She drew with more assurance than someone drawing from an offhand memory, and upon completion one of the small circles in the drawing began to glow dully. Seeing no other reaction, she wiped the slate as Lorien entered. For his part, Lorien had been rooting through Glowkindle’s writing desk, searching for information. What he found surpassed even his optimistic expectations. Inside one of the draws lay a journal that he would never mistake for another: it was the daily journal of Astrid, his missing companion. He flipped through the pages in a rush, but was dismayed to see that they were all empty save for the inside cover. On the first page, a strange symbol of overlapping circles was painted in two different colors. Lorien was certain that Astrid wrote in this journal constantly, so its lack of contents was both concerning and enticing.

In any case, Lorien was pondering this symbol as he entered on Irene and Harlan playing with chalk. He attempted to draw the symbol from the journal, but it was either incorrect or wholly unmagical. After the lack of reaction from the summoning circle, the group turned towards the two remaining rooms. Vireya began sorting through rotten supplies in a small closet while Harlan and Lorien explored the adjacent workshop. Next to a series of woodworking equipment, Harlan found a used but good quality set of thieves’ tools, to which he gave to Lorien.

Vireya found enough unspoiled food to form a ration bag with, but more importantly discovered a small bag with green dust inside. The dust was a famous low-potency drug named Goblin Gas, which she snorted the second she found it (she didn’t even aerosolize it like most do). She felt fine, better than fine, even. Her eyesight and senses felt sharpened. And yet…the world around seemed to become…green? Vireya returned to her teammates, who questioned her about her newly green eyes. Vireya proudly proclaimed her proclivities, then asked the rest of the group if they had any more drugs to give her. Rather than enable her habit, the group returned downstairs.

Lorien tested out his new lockpicks on the trapdoor that Silf and Glowkindle were gathered around, but failed to pop the refined mechanism. Glowkindle then directed him to the study, reminding YFPB that the key to the study was the reason they had gone upstairs at all. Rather than return to find the key, Lorien attempted to lock pick a second time, to great success! Bursting into the room, Vireya flopped onto the nearby couch as a small fireplace crackled magically without maintenance. Harlan, who actually surveyed the room, found no Essence Cards for the Divine Weapon, but instead found a glossy black cube split into four connected segments. Admitting defeat, they returned to the stone room to give Glowkindle the bad news.

Although he was disappointed, Glowkindle assured the group that Divine Weapon Dispositor would still function without the cards, simply weaker. He then launched into a long explanation of what YFPB was seeking in this hideout. He first explained the concept of Essence: that the magic in Serulea is the interaction between the spiritual (souls, gods, celestials) and the physical (the planet, the body). Divine Weapons were weapons created by master Arcane Blacksmiths that channel Essence from divine entities. He also again explained the three types of gods: Old, New, and Ascended, and warned that Ascension was no mere procedure. The only person to have ever Ascended successfully became El, the God of Everything. However, Noke, who turned Glowkindle and the rest of his workers into animals, was attempting to connect the 8 Arcane Forges present throughout Serulea. Glowkindle didn’t know if Noke’s intention was to Ascend, but even in amassing so much power Noke risked destroying the continent. He desperately asked the group to acquire his Divine Weapon and defeat Noke.

After a moment of silence, Irene asked the sheep what he would do if the group simply took the Divine Weapon and left. Dismay evident on Glowkindle and Silf’s faces, Harlan jumped in to assure them that YFPB have already committed to upholding the natural order and would help them regardless. Vireya supported Irene, though, and wanted to know what their reward for helping would be. Glowkindle informed the group that they could keep the Divine Weapon after the mission was complete. In reality, the group would have to keep the weapon regardless, because using it requires a bonded Soul Sphere, which links the lifeforce of the user to the weapon. Glowkindle also warned the group that a previous group of adventurers had ventured into the dark caves below a year ago and never returned.

Glowkindle then reminded the group of the two zombies they’d seen in Archmage Ullic’s basement: one of arcane origin and one of diseased origin. He informed them that there has in fact been a recent outbreak of a third type of zombie: a fungal zombie that spreads its control via its spores. Resolute, the team descended into the darkness. In the pitch black, Harlan realized that his lamp was out of oil, so Vireya lit hers, revealing a vast, rocky cave that smelled strongly of mold and decay. The group spotted an infected human (dead for months, most likely) and a Fungal Zombie on opposite sides of the cave, and began their extermination.

After killing the first Infected Human at range, Lorien, Irene, and Vireya moved to put space between them and the zombies. But the extent of the infection became more clear as two Infected Humans revealed themselves from behind rocks and began attacking the squishier party members. Harlan barged through to decimate one in a single blow, and Vireya managed to disengage from the one in front of her while sustaining minor injuries. After Vireya and Irene sliced the Infected Human between them into several pieces, Harlan challenged the Fungal Zombie behind them, easily brushing off its attempt to grapple him with a classic mogging.

A second Fungal Zombie appeared and utilized a ripped-off piece of his own flesh, threw a sawblade-like mushroom cap at Irene, scoring a deep cut through her shoulder meat. She backed away to hide behind the rock as Harlan and his Fungal Zombie began contesting their strength against each other. Unfortunately, a third Fungal Zombie revealed itself and knocked Irene unconscious against a large rock with its undead strength. Lorien did not hesitate to dump the contents of his health potion into her mouth, and she managed to revive in time to avoid a killing blow. Lorien, Irene, and Vireya dedicated their attention to finishing off the last Infected Human to give themselves space, leaving Harlan to battle his Fungal Zombie alone.

After gaining some breathing room, Vireya and Lorien appeared on either side of Harlan to assist him, Lorien inspiring the paladin and Vireya Hexing the Zombie. Irene snuck from the shadows to burn the Zombie on its weakened side. The second Fungal Zombie, who had failed to hit anything after its initial blow against Irene, continued to throw fungal blades ripped from its body despite the clear damage it was doing to itself. Harlan, now at the front of the battle, successfully deflected several fungal blades, including one headed directly for Vireya with his shield. This chivalrous act prompted some swooning, and the group together slaughtered the remaining zombies with aplomb (and faerie fire).

After crushing one of the fungal zombies, a silver-striped orange mushroom on its back popped into a large cloud of spores. Harlan, having breathed in a significant amount, ingested something he felt was worrisome. His body failed to reject the spores, but he suffered no other adverse reactions. The party breathed a sigh of relief after the surprisingly difficult battle, and then collectively scoured the cave for loot. There was very little treasure to be found, however, and they quickly became exasperated. Harlan then spotted a shiny piece of metal peeking through a pile of dirt in a collapsed tunnel, and the group quickly gathered to dig it out.

The piece of metal was in fact Divine Weapon Dispositor, only missing its Essence Cards and its Soul Sphere. With almost perfect coordination, the group decided that the gun should go to Lorien, who had been a fantastic support up to this point but was lacking firepower of his own. After delving his hands into the well of glowing blue liquid on the other side of the cave, he felt the divine energy within the weapon reach out to him. He felt in it a kindred spirit, a curiosity and a yearning for answers. With little resistance the two connected and intermeshed, and he managed to pull out from the well a perfectly synchronized Soul Sphere. Attaching it into its slot in Dispositor, Lorien was officially bonded to the group’s first Divine Weapon.

This bonding changed Lorien fundamentally. As he turned to his teammates, they were shocked to hear that his accent had changed from a French to a Southern American one. He also became more violent, cradling his gun and expressing a desire to use it. Before they could investigate the strange fungal growths in the cave, they heard a loud and aggressive banging from upstairs, followed by shouts demanding the release of someone named Arenea. Glowkindle added his voice to the chorus, begging the adventurers to return upstairs.

Back on the first floor, the banging resumed as YFPB found Glowkindle and Silf watching the front door. Irene looked through the peephole and was greeted by a tall, thin man wearing a long red robe and a golden mask. The figure was flanked by two knights wearing maroon trappings. She didn’t recognize the figures specifically, but the uniforms were clearly foreign. Backing away, she considered running, and Harlan took a defensive position. But Irene steeled her nerves and stepped forward to open the door.

As she did, the house went dark. Every member of the group noticed a change, a gutting of their senses. Harlan could no longer feel his god. Irene could not pull the dark energies she used to shoot blasts and could not summon her spear. Vireya felt the same loss, but she had luckily kept her scythe summoned from the zombie fight. Lorien felt his lyre grow hollow and quiet. The lights in the house were gone, the fireplace empty. Even Lorien and Vireya’s darkvision was heavily limited. Somehow, with some “kill switch”, the entire hideout cabin had been silenced.

The banging resumed again, this time more confident now that the protective wards had been shut down. The group with their remaining time chose to make a stand rather than hide, boldly facing the threat before them. The doors caved in, and from both the front and back doors several armor-clad knights and the robed figure entered. Hemming the group in, the soldiers stood steadfast with their hands on their swords. The robed figure again demanded the release of Arenea before recognizing Irene in front of him. He demanded her return to the Torvani Ascendancy to stand trial for desertion, but she refused.

As the conflict escalated, the soldier nearest to Irene noticed the scent of magic, and alerted the robed figure. The figure, who claimed someone named Inquisitor Aques had specifically sent their extraction team to find Arenea, was aghast that Irene had been using magic. Declaring her a traitor, he commanded that her team be slaughtered and Irene arrested (but specified that Irene remain unharmed). The soldiers drew their swords, Glowkindle and Silf fled upstairs, and the team prepared for battle. As they drew their weapons, Irene and Vireya realized their earrings still work

Vireya slid past Lorien to slice into the darkness, catching one Torvani soldier in the shoulderblade. He reacted in pain, calling her a bitch. This misogyny fired up the rest of the team, and they began their assault. Harlan bodyslammed the guard in front of him down the hallway, and Irene attempted to stab at the guard in front of her with a backup dagger (she missed). In retaliation, the robed figure stabbed two obsidian daggers at Harlan, slipping one past his magical shield and into his ribs. The soldier that Vireya sliced grabbed her by the arm and threw her with a spin into the rack of vintage wines, shattering the bottles. Lorien responded by shooting the soldier in front of him point blank with his rifle.

The soldier was blasted backwards through the door on the other side of the room into the storeroom, crashing into boxes and crates. The soldier in front of Irene attempted to grab her, but she squirmed out of reach. The fighters were getting antsy; they felt like they were running out of time. With a brutal display of violence, Lorien finished off his soldier and ran back into the hallway in time to see Irene get successfully grabbed by her soldier. He sliced the soldier’s wrist with his dagger, freeing Irene who in turn attempted the soldier (and missed again). The robed figure was pragmatic enough to recognize that the fight was lost.

He chuckled, said “for the corona de siete azahares,” and snapped his fingers. And the hideout exploded.

When the team came to, they saw Silf dragging a burned and unconscious Glowkindle out from the rubble of the hideout. The Torvani soldiers were nowhere to be seen. The group watched as the hideout burned in the dark night against the waterfall.