"Yup. Just a few demons and a magic rock. Now, let's get what we can, double check everywhere we've been... I know there was a box. Any idea what the source of evil spell is now? I wasn't down there with everyone when you may have been looking things over." Ary says, "Or did you already check the box?" she looks to Isilme, then realizes that checking boxes was a very 'Li'an' thing.
"I can check it, yes, if that's what is desired," Isilme replies. She walks over to inspect the chest, giving it a once over.
Isilme walks into the ominous room and inspects the chest.
Quednys stays quiet while they talk. "This seems... dire. Is Prelate Hulrun directing the Crusades?"
After inspecting the chest, she digs out her set of Thieves' tools and begins working on the lock. It's clear she's not an expert, as she spends time laying them out and looking them over before beginning to work on the lock.
Val glances over at the aasimar working on the lock. "Errr, I have two more keys from Faxon that we haven't checked," she says. "You know, if you can't get it."
"Prelate Hulrun is dead," Ehren says grimly, "The Storm King killed him when the attack first began."
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"Prelate Hulrun is dead." Markus says, getting ready to go by grabbing a few containers and beginning to load them with books. "I watched him die, struck down by Khorramzadeh."
"A half-orc woman named Chevalier Irabeth, a human Guardian named Holton Albright and an Inquisitor named Liotr seem to be in charge back at base. Most of the higher-ranking Crusaders in Kenabres are dead or missing."
Isilme finds that it is beyond her means to unlock. The mechanism is bronze - matching one of the keys Valaria found on Faxon.
So Valaria opens it. She finds it is filled with money. The chest itself is heavy, but not too unwieldy for a single person to carry.... it weighs 162 lbs in total.
- 2,310 cp, 759 sp, 3,122 gp, 11 pp
- Five silver holy symbols of Iomedae (5 lbs)
- A masterwork longsword (4 lbs)
- 2 masterwork scimitars (8 lbs)
- Fine silverware and table settings weighing 5 lbs
- A tiny box containing religious scripture of Iomedae. The box is affixed to a leather cord and tied around the forehead, worn so that the box sits upon the wearer's brow. The leather cord is broken.
Isilme turns noticably red when Valaria mentions she probably has the keys after she fails to open the lock. Wordlessly, she gets up and moves out of the way, wrapping up the kit as she goes.
"Quednys... Can you help identify these? I have no idea what they are."
Val's eyes go wide at the contents, but a grin spreads across her face. "Hello lovely," she said softly. "We've got weapons and coin here," she calls out to the group. "Look like we're going to need to divide it up and carry it back in pieces, or let at least two of us carry it back together. Which may be a little tough if we're bringing prisoners with us." She quickly begins scoping up coins and pouring them into her backpack and shared money pouch starting with the platinum and gold, leaving the bulkier items for later.
"I... see." Quednys frowns. "It seems we don't have time to waste, though. Once you are ready, we should return to the crusaders. I am familiar with Chevalier Irabeth. She has a good heart." He turns to Markus. "I have a few cantrips left in me. I will have to re-create my spellbook anew, I'm afraid."
He heads upstairs and looks at all of the prisoners. "How do you intend to transport these people?" he asks.
Ary also begins moving around, collecting the books (is there anything like bags for us to carry things in?).
She eyes the holy symbols warily, as she looks at the box. "Be careful... they had some of those poisoned in an alchemist's shop we raided." Ary said with a frown.
Val nods. "You have a point. I think this was a personal stash, not a trap, but you're right." She gives the items a once over before continuing to pack the coins to make sure she's not touching anything dangerous.
Quednys glances over the items.
"Well, it's iron, so I bet it was made by a paladin," he remarks on the wand.
"It's a religious phylactery. It is used to help the faithful understand the teachings of their gods."
Mollified, Val quickly finishes packing the coins and grabs the holy symbols too while she's at it. "Alright, so who feels like carrying some actually rather top notch weaponry? Or some fine silver. They must have looted quite a bit, but I wonder where the rest of the thing they took are. Probably other places, or moved from the city."
Ary also begins moving around, collecting the books (is there anything like bags for us to carry things in?).
Thinking about the situation as they pack, Isilme speaks up again. "In regards to the prisoners, perhaps we could leave all but Faxon here bound and request that the crusaders send a group over here to claim the remaining three?" she asks. "Certainly there's a chance they'll wake and escape, but if we're quick about the trip back they can probably send some crusaders over to bring them back before they wake up."
Val reluctantly realizes that it's easier to carry the chest rather than trying to fit the coins into her backpack. She pours the coins back in, along with her small purse holding the rest of their reclaimed wealth.
She hurries over to the unconscious tiefling and quickly gets the rope from Ary.
She ties him up as best she can. "It's a risk, but Faxon's the one who's likely to know the most. Risky, but we need to get him back before anything else."
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"That would speed things up quite a bit. But... it feels... wrong to do something like that. Because then they could go off and warn others... which is very much something everyone else was less willing to do before, and I was outvoted... odd." she says, thoughtfully.
"But... yeah. Besides, you have the keys, Val... and there's a desk and several bookshelves to make it harder to get out if we barricade them in their room of evil."
"There is risk involved no matter what we do," Ehren says with a sigh, shaking his head. "But leaving them in there would be the fastest way of getting things done. The sooner we get back to Defender's Heart, the sooner we can send the others here."
"Yeah. And I think the least risk is bringing them all down here and barricading them in the room, then heading back to the Crusades." she nods, beginning to prepare to shove bookshelves and the desk in the way of the door, once they'd moved the people in, by moving them closer to said door.
She'd just have to hope the front wouldn't fall off.
Markus moves to help with moving and carrying whatever it is that he can.
Satisfied, Isilme does what she can to help Ary move things into position, although like Li'an she's got little upper body strength to speak of.
The group opts to bring only Faxon - who is actually rather small and light-weight - while barricading the other unconscious prisoners inside of the shrine to Baphomet.
With their new information in hand, they make haste to return back to Defender's Heart with Quednys Orlun, as well as a large amount of valuables, books, and weaponry.
The group arrives back at Defender's Heart. It is still night time, though it has become cloudy, obscuring the stars. They are greeted warmly by Anevia and the Eagle Knights - who immediately send out a small cavalry contingent to gather the remaining prisoners. After each person in the group is scanned for any obvious signs of possession - they are ushered into the war room with Commander Irabeth and Inquisitor Liotr.
Liotr smirks, his intense stare flicking over Faxon with interest. "Interesting, you've succeeded. Congratulations, you have performed an utmost adequate job."
Commander Irabeth in contrast, is genuinely pleased to see the heroes again. "It seems that you've had a successful night. What is your report?"
Not wasting any time, Isilme recounts the sum total of what she'd heard the others discussing in the tower. "There are apparently papers detailing a plot to corrupt the wardstones. The plot revolves around Areelu Vorlesh, who apparently was originally responsible for opening the world wound, bringing a Nahyndrian crystal here from the Abyss to turn them against us. She'll be here by the 25th to complete the ritual it seems."
Val simply rolls her eyes at Liotr, not even bothering to acknowledge his jab. "Things went off more or less without a hitch," she says, setting the chest aside for the moment and sitting on top of it. "I have something here you'll want to get a look at." She pulls out the documents they took from Faxon's desk. "Troop movements, lists of names, that kind of thing. I think you'll need these. Oh, and the message describing the plan. It's... extremely worrying."
"Also you should send a squad to retrieve three more prisoners from the tower as soon as possible. They're unconscious, bound, and barricaded downstairs as we couldn't afford to risk bringing them with us," she adds after Valaria finishes.
Isilme's succinct tale gives Irabeth, Anevia, and Liotr a reason to pause and think. A moment passes by in silence, and Irabeth and Liotr flip through Valaria's papers with interest.
"Now this is something interesting... most of these people aren't accounted for but I see a few names stationed here!" His eyes light up. "There are also people stationed in Nerosyan? Most interesting..."
Commander Irabeth nods. "Useful, but finding cultists is not what is important now. The contingent from Nerosyan will not be here in time for Vorlesh's arrival. We need to act now."
Inquisitor Liotr scowls. "What are you talking about? They've already destroyed the Kenabres wardstone, along with the entirety of the Kite."
Irabeth corrects him, glancing at Ehren. "Apparently not. Seems the young druid had the right of it."
Commander Irabeth looks at Quednys. "And your name is Quednys, correct? From Blackwing? How do you fit into all of this?"
Quednys gives a respectful nod. "Yes, Commander. These soldiers rescued me. I was captured a few days ago. I... think I can offer my help, if you'd have it."
Commander Irabeth motions to Anevia. "Anevia, please go retrieve Aravashnial from his room. It is urgent." Anevia nods and heads off on her crutch.
Liotr grabs Faxon roughly. "No need to ask. The pleasure is all mine. I'll be back shortly with whatever this foul creature knows." The Inquisitor leaves for the cellars.
Val shivers as Liotr leaves. "He enjoys his work entirely too much."
She turns to Anevia. "We still down for drinks tonight?" she asks, trying to lighten the mood a bit. "I think that we have more than enough to pay for us to get blackout drunk." She pats the chest with a grin.
Ary looks to Irabeth, "May I have permission to follow after Liotr and observe? It's been pointed out that... I don't really know what I'm doing when I turn people over to an inquisitor... and that doesn't sit well with me."
Anevia returns with Aravashnial and grins at Valaria.
"You've got it - I'll buy every single one of you a round on the evening of the 25th. When we're all celebrating wrecking this Vorlesh b*~%+'s foul plans!"
Quednys immediately moves to Aravashnial's side. He is disheveled, having been awoken from sleep. "Aravashnial! I am so glad you're al right."
Commander Irabeth shakes her head at Ary. "No, Bishop, I need you here, with your squad right now. We don't have much time, and we need to make some decisions quickly. I'd rather you be here for that, right now."
Val grins wider. "Damn right. We'll drag the b*tches plans through the mud and kick her entire army out of Kenabres head first."
She sits back, letting her grin fade as the seriousness of the situation creeps back in. "What are we dealing with then?"
Isilme walks over to Aravashnial and places a hand on his shoulder, her hand trembling slightly. She whispers in his ear "Amin sana lle anna en' lasta iire lye, Ai'sintar, caela coiasira leitha"
"I will take you up on your offer of an ear, Ai'sintar, when we have some free time."
Quednys Orlun is an aged and angular human with an eagle's talon tattoo on his cheek.
"My name is Quednys Orlun and I am the founder and head librarian of Blackwing. I am also a riftwarden - I have pledged my life to protect the planes. I was captured by Xanthir Vang, a member of the Blackfire Adepts - an arcane group that exists in opposition to the Riftwardens. Xanthir Vang attacked Blackwing, and I believe he stole a number of our most important books and scrolls and fled immediately. I was then transferred to that cultist, Faxon, who intended to send me to the Grey Garrison - which appears to be the cultist's seat of power in Kenabres."
"That makes sense," says Irabeth. "The Grey Garrison is a resilient structure - and it is in Old Kenabres. We already know that there are still large numbers of both demons and cultists on the highest rise."
Commander Irabeth takes a moment to fill Aravashnial in on the newest developments - the information in the letter from Minagho, most crucially.
Aravashnial looks... exasperated. "So if the entire purpose of this is to corrupt a wardstone - why not go after one of less secure stones along the western border of the Worldwound? Demons..."
Aravashnial continues - "Nahyndrian Crystals are the essences of slain demon lords," he explains. "Within the Abyss the various demon lords are at constant war - one with many casualties. When a demon lord dies in the Abyss, its life essence can be harnessed and crystalized to prevent regeneration....though if demon lord's faithful servant has a crystal, they could possibly resurrect a demon lord. That is powerful magic, and also portable! But I imagine it is hard to procure. That explains why the demons haven't already acted."
Commander Irabeth sighs, slowly beginning to formulate a plan. She steps to each of the heroes in turn. "I just wanted to let you know that I am thankful for all you've done so far. You brought my wife safely back to me. You've saved a number of lives already. So let me preface this - there is no dishonor if you want to step back now. But if you want to help Kenabres some more, then we could use your help."
"Alright, so we have demons and cultists holed up in one of the most secure buildings still standing in the city, ready to use the essence of a fallen demon lord to corrupt a captured wardstone and possibly take over the entire field. Alright. If you think I'm leaving now, you've gone mad. So what's our angle?"
"Given the stakes, there is no stepping back. If we hesitate now, there may be nothing left to defend. Not Kenabres, not Nerosyan, not anything." Isilme looks more certain as she continues to speak, as if she'd found something she'd lost. "There are too many stories yet untold, paths yet unwalked here to let that happen," she says with conviction. "That's right, it's been so long since I'd been alone I'd almost forgotten why I wandered to begin with."
While the heroes talk, Aravashnial and Quednys are mostly silent. Finally, Aravashnial speaks up. His voice is grim, but he never loses his penchant for the dramatic.
"Well, as horrific as these past few days have been, it seems that we've all come to the realization that they were, in fact, just a prelude. The razing of the Kite, Terendelev's murder, and the assault and countless deaths from the city of Kenabres are nothing more than opening gambits. The Worldwound is on the march in a more concentrated assault than has been observed since the fall of Drezen. It is fair to say that the Lord of the Locust Host is finally making his move. The end of this hundred-year war is upon us."
"So, it falls on us to ensure victory," Commander Irabeth cuts off his dire premonitions. "I've kept eyes all throughout this city. The Templars of the Ivory Labyrinth have been scattered in pockets throughout the city - we've found that the cultists of Deskari have sequestered themselves in Old Kenabres. What we've managed to gather is ominous - the cultists have been waiting for something, and based on what you're saying, it sounds like they were referring to that vile witch Areelu Vorlesh's arrival in Kenabres. So, explain what she is intending to do?"
Quednys explains, "When the wardstone was destroyed in the initial attack by the Storm King, it exploded and destroyed the Kite. But... you're saying that the wardstone is not destroyed?"
Aravashnial nods. "The druid described it as still faintly calling out to him. A significant fragment must still exist, still tethered to the ley line. I assume the Grey Garrison is where they have sequestered it. It is not far from the ruins of the Kite. It appears that they are essentially using our greatest defenses against us as a devastating weapon. Perhaps they intend to reverse the wardstone field? Regardless - I think I understand now."
"The attack on Kenabres had a predictable result: causing the crusade to gather at the border to defend it. So why haven't the demons attacked in stronger numbers? I believe that the enemy has been counting on the Crusades massing along the border, and that once they corrupt the wardstone field, they can strike a devastating blow against the entire army at once. In effect, we are all lambs lined up for the slaughter," he adds, darkly.
Commander Irabeth looks distant. "We do not have the time or resources to evacuate everyone from the border. In any case, a true crusader would not give up the defensive line even if they knew what the demons were planning. But... we can still stop this from happening. Old Kenabres is infested - there is no way you could walk through it on foot. But if I assembled what forces we have left and march on Old Kenabres - we could hopefully absorb the brunt of their own. That would give a small team enough time to infiltrate the Grey Garrison, locate the wardstone fragment, and destroy it." Her eyes fix on the heroes'. "I hope you can follow where my line of thought is going, yes?"
"You launch the assault and give us enough time to infiltrate the Grey Garrison," Val finishes, knowing exactly where this is going. "But it's going to be tricky. You don't have a lot of people here and the fighting will be brutal. We may have to capture the entire building in one shot on our own if we want this plan to work. Otherwise the prolonged battle will cost your men far too much to stand and fight anymore."
"It is risky, without a doubt Valaria, and we'll certainly have to take it in one go. But what choice do we have?" Isilme says. "It is, very likely, the best plan of action we can hope for. They will give their all, and we'll give ours, and The Great Dreamer willing, we'll somehow pull out ahead."
"I wasn't saying I thought it was a bad plan. But we're going to have to put every drop of sweat and blood we can spare into it if we're going to win. And we're going to need every speck of luck the Lady of Spheres is willing to part with."
"It would be a suicide mission. You have two hundred soldiers, Commander," Aravashnial says.
Commander Irabeth frowns. "We'll make it seem like we're moving to retake the city. Distract them from guarding the wardstone" She looks at Valaria. "Yes, I believe we'd only have one shot."
"And how do you expect to destroy the wardstone? Do you understand how powerful a wizard you'd need to dispel even a fragment-" Aravashnial continues.
"We have a rod of cancellation. It will probably take all of the power in the rod, I'd assume. The loss of the Kenabres wardstone will create a weak link along the border....but that should be better than whatever this is they have planned." says Irabeth.
Quednys brightens up. "That... that could do the trick!"
Aravashnial does not seem convinced. "It is the only option."
Commander Irabeth, now having fully explained her plan, turns to the heroes. "So are you with us? You will need your rest. We will march once you are ready. Remember, we don't have much time."
The road before the group is clear. But after all they've been through, this past week, they are ready.