Havakhad replies wearily, "They were so blatant because of desperation, not confidence. Matters are coming to a head, and the time for subtlety is clearly passed, in their estimation. Their plans are advanced, but clearly the knowledge held by Goshasanan's spirit is dangerous to them.
"I am sorry we could not be more use in battle. You have risked much for us, and we are more grateful that you could know. But our people are poor, and our homeland is under constant threat. Those creatures were the Horned Legion - elite inhuman troops dedicated from birth to the Inspired. Might warriors such as yourselves struggled with them. Our intervention in battle with them would have been brief and pointless. Fortunately, they are few, or Adar would be no more."
"What kinds of stuff can you two do with your... mind powers? Teleport? Mind control?" Kazadar asks of the kalashtar.
Selkatiri looks cynically amused at the question but Havakhad answers, "We can communicate with one another, and others if they let us and the distance is not too great. I can create a minor field of force to deflect weapons and tricks like that. Savants of our people can perform much greater feats - Nevharath, whom you met, is one of our particularly gifted. But most of us have very minor powers, if any - some of the stories told about us are quite over-exaggerated."
“We don’t know what we might face when we get out of here,” he says. “Best to be prepared. We kinda botched that last fight … those Horned Legion guys are tough. Havakhad, is there anything you can tell us about what abilities Janosz’ girlfriend Helkashtai might have? And what about Goshasanan's spirit? If it has information that we can use against her … I do apologise if we’ve already been over this, I lose track sometimes, but is there anything we can try to get that info?”
"Ah, I must have heard the exaggerated stories then."
"Trying to obtain that information is why you have retrieved the shards in the fist place," growls Selkatiri before she is hushed by Havakhad.
He continues, "Helkashtai is clearly a senior member of the Inspired. Her abilities are as you would expect - impressively lethal. We were lucky to survive, and only did so by your skill at arms and magic, and your quick thinking.
"As for Goshasanan's knowledge... The shards will have to be returned to Adar. Our elders will know of a way to reconstruct his spirit from the fragments here. Obviously, whatever that is that his mind contains frightens the Inspired and their quori masters."
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Havakhad looks around inside the tent, looking in wonder at canape he has taken from a tray proffered by Slave, the golem butler. "This place is quite remarkable," he says.
"Sparkling wine, sir?" says Slave.
Selkatiri looks cynically amused at the question but Havakhad answers, "We can communicate with one another, and others if they let us and the distance is not too great. I can create a minor field of force to deflect weapons and tricks like that. Savants of our people can perform much greater feats - Nevharath, whom you met, is one of our particularly gifted. But most of us have very minor powers, if any - some of the stories told about us are quite over-exaggerated."
"Two things. First of all, I never liked you very much to begin with." He nods matter-of-factly at Selkatari. "Reconsider that smirking-teenager b&*!*$$~ if you want to make it out of here with your face still attached to your head. You're in our house now."
"The second point is more important. When talking about assistance, I wasn't really thinking of money or physical backup. I'm tired of being constantly surprised by the Inspired mind-magicks. I want to know if byeshk or silver defeats their shields. If the Horned Legion goons are allergic to garlic or ghost peppers. Or if Helkashtai has an opium habit and a proclivity for banging goblin man-whores and thus can be found chasing the dragon in Cornerstone or down in Dragoneyes. Seriously, y'alls gotta know something about these guys that we don't. Rumours, facts, old stories, anything at all."
"Forgive my friend's foul mouth. He gets unsettled when we almost die. Had I my proper armaments, things would not have become so dire."
"However, he does bring a valid point. Is there any information you can provide us regarding Helkashtai?"
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Selkatiri just glares coldly at Janosz.
Havakhad sighs at the exchange between Janosz and Selkatiri, but answers Haladon, "We typically avoid the Riedrans if we can - our nation, Adar, is at war with them, so we do not have cordial relationships. We were aware of Helkashtai at the embassy but the extent of her powers is... remarkable.
"The Inspired tend to be very disciplined. The quori who inhabit them from time to time require an orderly mind. Their bodies and souls are dedicated to the schemes of Dal Quor, which typically allows no outside interests. Sadly, they rarely have foibles to e exploited. Instead, they must be out-thought and out-fought.
"The Horned Legion are simply tools to be used and discarded. They are raised from birth to fight for the Inspired. they are very powerful, with innate magical powers of flight, invisibility and cold, which you have experienced. However, the elite troops you have just met are few and far between. They have a minor vulnerability to fire, but little else. This is the first time the Horned Legion have been seen in Khorvaire, which is an unwelcome development."
"My knowledge of geography and travel routes is ... rusty, friend Havakhad. How would we go about getting to Adar? And ... can I presume that the Inspired would pre-empt such a move and have the most obvious means or routes of travel watched?"
Janosz gets up, swipes a drink from Slave and starts pacing the room. In between sips, he addresses Havakhad again.
"So... You talk about the Inspired being inhabited 'from time to time'. Mechanically, or maybe metaphysically - how does that quori possession work? Does the host take on some of the characteristics of the abomination possessing her? That would explain a lot; Karile, Ikar and now Helkashtai were unnaturally strong, tough and resistant to damage, and that could, I guess, be a result of them becoming more like their puppetmasters."
"The quori takes complete control over the host, and it can use their abilities as its own while also being able to use some of its own. However, I suspect that Helkashtai would be formidable even without an occupying quori spirit."
Ezreal thinks it Lady Desdamora's proposal for a moment without saying anything. "The Commander may not appreciate a group link, but he may have questions that only the kalashtar can answer. It may necesary." The mage unfurls the tent and pulls aside a flap to calls in to the entry hall, "We have arrived."
While waiting for them to emerge, Ezreal uses the crystal ball to establish a link.
Lady Desdamora looks on as the group file out of the tent. She peers through the flap to discover the halls stretching away, shakes her head, and then clicks her heels and greets the newcomers with the casual poise of the well-bred.
"Lady Desdamora ir'jarvik, Military Attache to the Karrnathi Consulate in Sharn, at your service. And you, I understand, are Rodergo's Reavers. Might I say how charmed I am to make your acquaintance."
Ezreal turns to glance at the others while the orb begins to glow. "I am opening a link to the Commander. This is not a meet and greet so contain yourselves. I will introduce you, but let me make the report. He may have questions and you all, particularly the kalashtar, may have further information about the shards and the Inspired."
"Kazadar Soranath, Speaker of the Sovereign," Kazadar replies to Lady Desdemona, before remaining quiet and paying attention to the meeting about to proceed.
The helmet of his nigh-comically large armor is currently off so that his face may be seen, but the armor is mostly covered in dried blood -his- from their earlier ordeal, except where it has been scraped off by weapon impacts.
Lady Desdamora looks on as the group file out of the tent. She peers through the flap to discover the halls stretching away, shakes her head, and then clicks her heels and greets the newcomers with the casual poise of the well-bred.
"Lady Desdamora ir'jarvik, Military Attache to the Karrnathi Consulate in Sharn, at your service. And you, I understand, are Rodergo's Reavers. Might I say how charmed I am to make your acquaintance."
“Lady Desdamora, how lovely ... to meet you,” enthuses Rodergo, taking the woman’s hand and executing a courtly bow. “And not a blue giant in sight. I am Father Rodergo Xativa, at your service. I’m Thranish,” he adds in a conspiratorial undertone, “but please don’t hold that against me. Ezreal, thanks for getting us out of there, that last party was getting a bit dicey. And when have you known me not to contain myself?” He winks at Lady Desdamora, but shuts up.
"Ma'am." Janosz nods at the Karrn captain. "So we're at the Karrnathi embassy? Or is this some top-secret military installation somewhere else?"
The captain twinkles as Rodergo before replying to Janosz, "No, this is the consulate."
"Lady Desdamora," Haladon nods at her. "I believe I have some items to be returned to one of your Orders and they have one of mine that I would appreciate returned."
"Sir Rolund," Lady Desdamora greets him coolly, "Or whatever it is you call yourself these days."
Meanwhile, Ezreal opens the channel the his superior officer: Commander Malakar, of Karrnathi Naval Intelligence. His image of him sitting at his desk floats in the room above crystal ball. The commander is a solid-looking man of middle years, his hair grizzled and his blue eyes cold.
"Farlowe. So you've returned from the Mournland. Report." He sees the other standing behind Ezreal. "If you are free to speak, that is."
"I have the full team here with me as well as two representatives of the Kalashtar here in Sharn. Their further input may be necessary in this report. Janosz Frogshanks and Rodergo Xativa you will remember from previous reports. Matilda is about in Sharn and will be joining us here eventually. Kazadar, priest of the Host, has joined us for the time being but bears witness to recent events. Havakhad and Selkatiri are here to offer further information on this report."
"And then we have Rolund. The Thranish compulsion I reported to you previously had different roots and results than I originally understood though the result is largely the same. We should speak further on that later."
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"We found the Cannith facility. The aberrant warforged were the project of a renegade artificer involved with the cult of the Dragon Below. He was given three Khyber shards containing the trapped souls of planar refugees from Dal Quor, lost for millenia to the shards, and began secretly imprinting them through the creation forge. They discovered his unsanctioned work and shut it down, but he escaped and it seems the Day of Mourning ended House Cannith's effort to recall the corrupted warforged."
"This begins to explain resistance that we have run into since we first took an interest in these unique warforged and the project that created them. How familiar are you with Dal Quor and the Quori?"
"Dal Quor, the Realm of Dreams, goes through epochal cycles of destruction and creation. Along with the realm, inhabitants are destroyed and reshaped in the image of the new paradigm. The previous cycle reshaped the vast majority of inhabitants to the monstrous Quori we know now ruled by the Dreaming Dark. The kalashtar we know today are the descendants of refugees Quori who did not bow to the Dreaming Dark. I have not understood exactly why, but the Dreaming Dark are willing to go to great lengths to end the existence of those original sixty seven kalashtar and their expanded lineage. Obtaining the shards would enable them to end three of them outright."
"On the one hand, at this point this would seem to be a minor dispute between planar creatures that has little to do with the interests of Karrnath. On the other, we have learned that the Quori have been engaged in a centuries long breeding project allowing them access to our plane through host bodies. Beyond that, they are currently constructing a monolith here in Breland across the river from Sharn. As construction nears completion instances of nightmares, sudden psychotic episodes, and other inexplicable behavior and occurrences are on the rise. All signs point toward the Dreaming Dark working toward an eventual planar invasion. It may be that after 40,000 years their world is ready for another cycle and they are looking for an escape. The last time they tried that the Giant Empires of Xen'drik threw their entire plane out of alignment with Eberron, but it destroyed Xen'drik and ended the Age of Giants in the process. I think it is time to consider the Dreaming Dark an existential threat to the stability of Khorvaire. If you have any of the Inspired working as consuls, ambassadors or advisers it is time to reconsider their motives. Not half an hour ago, we were attacked personally by the Riedran Under-Secretary to Sharn and a squad of ogre magi intent on reclaiming those shards. Her level of psychic ability was unlike anything I have encountered previously and the six of us, who have traveled extensively through Droaam, the Mournland, and the heart of the lich necromancer Gath's tomb were lucky to make an escape and teleport here."
"As you know, my field of study was the Giant conflict with the Quori of another age and lost magic from the height of their empire. The expedition to Xen'drik has been long postponed, but that ancient conflict seems to have found me here in Khorvaire."
Malakar scribbles notes as Ezreal speaks. When he comes to an end of his account, the Commander asks, "I see. Do you possess these shards? And why are they so important?"
"We do. We understand that one of the shards contains the spirit of a philosopher and tactician, adviser to the original leader of the Kalashtar. Due to his capture in a Kyhber shard he never found a host to become a kalashtar like the original Quori refugees. This Quori would be a repository of information lost to the millenia. He was also a theorist in what triggers and how to control the cycles of Dal Quor. Generally they will want to destroy all three, but especially this one they see as a threat to their plans."
"Do we know what information this shard contains? And are we able to extract this information?"
"We know only the name and reputation of one of the personalities and some hints as to the other two based on the corrupted warforged they were imprinted on. It seems that the Kalashtar had plans to extract the trapped souls within the shards, but we were all attacked before they could elaborate. I should mention the Quori are tracking and spying on us through our dreams. I think now would be a good time for our Kalashtar friends here to explain their intentions." Ezreal turns to address Havakhad, "What exactly were your plans for the Kyber shards?"
"The shards must be returned to our elders in Adar. They will know what to do," says Havakhad firmly.
"Your elders will be able to extract this information?" asks Malakar.
Havakhad nods. "Yes. We have... Ways. They are hard to explain, and I am not fully aware of the details. But they will be able to project the souls trapped in the shards into an environment where they can manifest.
"But I believe that Master Farlowe's assessment is correct. The grand cycle in Dal Quor is turning and the quori wish to escape it, invading this plane. But they are creatures of unremitting evil. It would mean slavery, or worse, should they succeed. Only the kalashtar have the means to avoid this."
Malakar nods slowly, completing his notes for a few seconds. "Very well, this will need to escalated. In the meantime" - he focusses on Haladon - "please explain yourself, Sir Rolund."
Rodergo tries to pay attention, but he's distracted by Lady Desdamora, and trying to come up with a good line about 'repairing Thrane / Karrnathi relations'.
He's suddenly interested when Malakar addresses Haladon though. He likes the new 'Rolund' but is curious about how this change from Karrnathi Boneknight (back) to paladin of the Silver Flame is really all going to pan out politically.
"I will not be able to explain fully since some of my memories have been lost."
"I am no longer Rolund ir'Kraal the name I was given by the same knight who raised me after my exile. I am Haladon ir'Tarravan. To me, the life of Rolund was but a dream. One that I have now awakened from."
"If this change has caused problems, be at ease. I seem to have lost the memories of your secrets regarding your bone knights."
"You may be doubtful of my claim but know that I have my faith once more. I am a champion of the Silver Flame once again. I cannot lie."
"Hmm, you spent plenty of time lying about who you were over the last few years. This is not the end of this matter," says Commander Malakar acidly. "Very well, I will need to consult with my superiors. This is clearly a critical situation. You will all remain in the consulate, with these shards, until you receive further orders."
Malakar cuts the connection.
"Very well," says Lady Desdamora. "This room is somewhat incommodious, so please follow me to some more comfortable chambers where you can wait."
Lady Desdamora leads to the group to a comfortable sitting room. Two guards are posted outside the door. A few minutes later, a gnome in the livery of House Sivis arrives.
"Well, this is by far the nicest and most comfortable prison I've ever been in," comments Rodergo cheerfully.
"A far cry from Dreadhold, that's for sure.."
The gnome straightens the cuffs of his coat. In a miffed tone, he says, "True seeing really does spoil a lot of my fun. She didn't even let me string her along for a moment, just tossed me in the velvet dungeon with Rodergo's Reavers."
Looking around appraisingly, he continues, "I'm glad everyone appears to have made their escape. I wasn't sure if my leaving through the other door would help divide their attention or not, but it seemed worth the chance." In Cassandra's voice, he asks Ezreal with a twinkle in his eye, "Have you reported in with the commander, then?"