Lubella tried to get Lorelu's attention with her scimitar.
Sidius says, "You attacked us when we came back, fool.", but despite his tone and anger, he carefully takes a step back and casts his healing spell again -- this time, grounding the energies on himself.
”Fine! Be that way. “
She turns her attention back to the others in the room once Sidius steps out and cures himself.
Lubella draws her attention with a slash from her blade
”Hey! And to think I thought we would be best friends too! “
— Round 3--
19+ Lorelu(-26)
18- Lubella(), Talvek(-2 STR), Arcos(1+6 images), Sidius(-17)
Lubella replied to Lorelu, "I was going to play the game with you, but I can't stand by while you attack my friends!"
”What kind of friends would not want to play a game together? I did you a favor by attacking them. “ she replies with a smirk.
"You have a VERY strange concept of friendship, ghost," replies Talvek, staring in disbelief at the spectral halfling. Her twisted ideas only distract him for a moment before he moves to attack her again.
"And I'm doing you a favour by sending you on, I suppose."
Talvek stabs and meets resistance of incorporeal flesh to cut, causing further injury to the ghost.
”Ouch. You are reading getting annoying! “
— Round 3--
19+ Lorelu(-30)
18- Lubella(), Talvek(-2 STR), Arcos(1+6 images), Sidius(-17)
Arcos tries again with his magic bolt of lightning.
vs touch
and manages to barely hit her.
With a small gasp, the halfling ghost has to decide who now poses the biggest threat. She turns to Lubella.
While the smallest, you seem to be the most FEISTY. she makes a sudden move trying to catch Lubella off-guard.
vs 10+BAB+Wis=13 SUCCESS!
She then reaches out to Lubella with her off-hand.
vs FF-touch , hits?
DC17 Fort for half
— Round 4--
19+ Lorelu(-32)
18- Lubella(-31?), Talvek(-2 STR), Arcos(1+6 images), Sidius(-17)
I wouldn't be much of a friend if I didn't respect their..", Lubella started to reply, caught off guard by the treacherous ghost's feint.
She stepped back and cast a spell, causing several confusing images to spring up to confuse her foe.
"Let's play another game: which one's the real me?"
Arcos lashes out at the ghost with some more lightning.
Sidius begins to cast a summoning spell, Let's get her a new playmate, since she's having so much fun...
Lubella steps away and duplicates herself with flickering images.
The many Arcos's lash with a lightning mote and hit the ghost for a bit of damage.
Sidius begins a summoning spell in the hallway.
— Round 4--
19+ Lorelu(-32)
18- Lubella(-15 images), Talvek(-2 STR), Arcos(1+6 images), Sidius(-17)
Lorelu looks at Talvek as her next tasty treat. :)
Talvek continues to attack the ghostly halfling, hoping to put an end to this quickly, before his friends were drained of life entirely.
Lorelu easily dodges the rapier
”Aw, that was a good try though. Would have been better to have played my other game. But we can do this dance. “ she jokes with a sneer
She reaches out to Talvek with a glowing hand.
for
But despite excellent aim, Talvek slaps her hand away at the last moment and follows up with a stab of his own
”Ow!!! You are really on my nerves now! “
Sidius finishes his summons.
— Round 5--
19+ Lorelu(-37)
18- Lubella(-15 images), Talvek(-2 STR), Arcos(1+6 images), Sidius(-17)
Lubella resumed her attempts to harry Lorelu. She felt bad for the lonely ghost, whose long isolation had clearly unhinged her.
"Am I? Which ones, exactly? I have a passing knowledge of anatomy," Talvek needles Lorelu, figuratively and literally as he goes for another stab.
A lantern archon appears and fires a pair of rays of pure light into the creature.
for
for
Sidius begins to cast the same spell, this time to bring in a pack of lightning elementals.
A storm of blades and light beams pummeled the small ghost from all sides. She shrieks but rather than retreating, her face contorts into pure anger.
— Round 5--
19+ Lorelu(-51)
18- Lubella(-15 images), Talvek(-2 STR), Arcos(1+6 images), Sidius(-17), archon()
A storm of blades and light beams pummeled the small ghost from all sides. She shrieks but rather than retreating, her face contorts into pure anger.
”I AM VERY UPSET AT YOU ALL!!!“
— Round 5--
19+ Lorelu(-51)
18- Lubella(-15 images), Talvek(-2 STR), Arcos(1+6 images), Sidius(-17), archon()
Lubella told the ghost, "You've been trapped in this lightless place for far too long. What can I do to ease your suffering?"
Lorelu pauses her seething for a moment, to consider the question turning to the other halfling. It looks as if she is recalling a very long lost memory.
"It's been a long time that I've been here, hinged in undeath. I miss the sun. I only wish for the dawn to kiss my bones one last time." “
But just as quickly she turns to Arcos with a snarl. ”But why would that matter to any of you? “
Lubella replied to Lorelu, "I think I would die without feeling the warmth of the sun. I pray to the dawn every morning; I would be honored to share the sunrise with you." She lowered her blade and smiled, feeling Sarenrae's warmth in her heart.
The ghost lowers her hand...the expression of anger relaxed if only a little.
You...you'd do that for me? Such kindness from those I would likely have counted as prey in life. I miss the sun so much.
Is...is this even possible? Or is this a cruel trick?"
Talvek relaxes his grip on his rapier, if only a little. "If it is possible, yes, she would do that for you, because she has the biggest heart of anyone I've ever encountered." The tiefling sighs deeply. "We could have avoided all this pain if only you would have let us help you from the beginning. We don't want to fight you, so tell us how we can help you pass on peacefully."
Lubella pulled her holy symbol out from under her tunic, "I worship the sun-goddess Sarenrae, so your plight has special meaning for me."
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Lorelu relaxes and a wave of exhausted relief washes over her expression.
If you are willing to do this for me, I would be grateful.
She backs away, pointing to her remains.
I was going to trade some information with you on the game.
But giving me a last look at the dawn certainly earns you something.
She pauses in thought on what might be helpful.
“Some of the more tenacious acolytes of the pipe
linger on, their hunger for oblivion replaced by hunger
for flesh, but you seem to have taken care of them already.”
Again...
“The river runs below us now, and its dark
currents have brought in new visitors below our feet and secret treasuries of the Guild may be yet unspoiled.
I am but one of three guildmasters.
Baccus met his fate below. Which you may have discovered.
He is the one that used a binding spell to hold
Shurshogot the devil in place to guard the tunnels.
Of Guildmaster Hei-Fen, she escaped the vile Order of the Torrent,
but I am not where she lives now, or indeed if she does still live.".
She stops chattering and changes her tone.
So when do you think we could leave...I mean you with my remains to find rest?
A trio of lightning elementals appear, but Sidius holds up a hand and says, "Hold" in Auran, causing the summoned creatures to stop and wait.
Sidius asks, "Have we any reason to believe this is true, rather than us freeing her from her haunt to be able to spread her evil?"
Lubella told Lorelu, "I believe we found the remains of Baccus, and also banished the devil. We saw no sign of the one you call Hei-Fen; these vaults have been sealed for many years."
She wrote down the name of the third Guildmaster, intending to follow up on that later.
"I think that it is likely daytime outside at the moment. We can go now, or we can wait a few hours if you wish to observe the moment of the sunrise."
She replied to Sidius, "My heart tells me that seeing the sun one more time is of great importance to her. As a devotee of Sarenrae, I feel compelled to honor her wish."
Lubella gathered the remains as respectfully as she could, in preparation for the return to the surface.
The elementals appear and stand ready at Sidius's command.
As it was still early morning for this bit with the ghost, the sun is still rising, and she would deem it satisfactory.
If you but do for me as you say, I will be released from this place and you may do with it as you will. May it serve you better than it served our ill fated guild.
You know you would still need to take the remains to the surface and out the southern gate (as the closest) but it is less than 20mins walk.
As the ghost nods and re-merges with her corpse, there is a sense of calm that had not been present for many days while down in the basement of the Lucky Bones.
Octavio and the Order of the Torrent look down the hall.
What happened? Did you survive? The howling has stopped.
He stands ready with halberd in hand. His team still working with the sea elves, who long to return to their home off the coast.
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Lubella raised her hand to reassure Octavio, "Everything is under control; please give me some space."
After she was satisfied that she could properly carry the remains without dropping them, she walked slowly and carefully out to the surface. As she walked out into the sun, she started to sing softly in kelish: a song about the hope of a new day.
Once outside, she explained to Lorelu the necessity of covering the remains, so that curious guards would not interfere with her bones. After confirming that the arrangements were acceptable, she respectfully placed the remains in a suitable receptacle, and made sure that she understood Lorelus's wishes. She packed the receptacle into a handy haversack, and set out with the rest of the party towards the southern gate.
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The procession of the halflings remains to the resting place is not interrupted at the southern gate .
As the remains are placed at the Dawn turns bright, you faintly see the outline of Lorelu first blinking at the brightness, then a faint smile of remembrance,
With a nod to Lubella and each one there, she then closes her eyes one last time, basking in the warm rays. She fades from view and a feeling of peaceful blessings washes over you.
Talvek stands in silence for a few moments, eyes closed, face turned towards the rising sun, letting the warmth wash over his skin. "I am so happy that we managed to resolve that, and thank you Kyda for persisting in your kindness even though she was so nasty. I felt bad for her, but I'm glad that she is at rest now."[b]
He opens his eyes, shaking himself a little. [b]"Well, now that the Lucky Bones are as safe as we can make them in the short term, shall we see about our other affairs?"
Sidius nods, "Agreed, this is a much more... gratifying... end to that situation. I am glad that my concerns about her intent were misplaced."
Lubella found herself overcome with emotion. "Farewell, Lorelu; I will remember you," she said softly.
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You return to the Lucky Bones with mixed emotions. The sadness of saying goodbye to the ghost who finally found release from her torment, but the excitement of knowing you now have a larger, more defensible base for the movement.
Searching through the gaming room, you find the remaining gear of Lorelu, which she said she no longer needed and donated to your cause, which she identified as:
Her magical treasures and coins remain: 240 gp,
119 pp, a bejeweled silver ring worth 1,500 gp, a Small suit
of +2 shadow leather armor, a ring of protection +2, a circlet of
persuasion, and a partial deck of illusions containing only
the eight spade cards
Octavio, as the senior member of the supporting teams bows in silence with his Hellknights, as your infiltrators. He has assembled all the teams at this milestone achievement for the rebellion. The Order of the Torrent snaps to attention as you enter the room.
All honor and praise to the New Ravens!!!
Smiles can be seen on the many faces of the other teams. Tuck and the halfling burglars (ahem thieves), Aava and the rescued sea elves as potential spies, Master Crow and the small band of freedom fighters and your original team of now merchants. All look to you for guidance. All look to the Silver Ravens as the future of a free Kintargo.
Your team's efforts for the past couple weeks have garnered a large number of new supporters, the treasury has almost reached 300gp and you are known as Sentinels (rank 9).
*** End of Book Two ***
Lubella told Ovtavio, "I'm sorry that you didn't get a chance to meet Guildmistress Lorelu. She seemed to harbor a great deal of animosity towards the Order of the Torrent, so it didn't seem wise to get her worked up. Being trapped in the dark for so long took its toll on her, and she seemed unstable.
"She expressed a desire to feel the sun again. Taking her remains out into the sunshine eased her spirit, and allowed her to finally be at peace."
"When you have a moment, we should get together and discuss outfitting your Armigers. I want to make sure that they have the equipment they need to be effective."
Later she held a meeting with the Aquatic Elves, "You're going to need equipment. Let's make a list of what you need."
She took out a notebook and wrote down a detailed list of things to acquire.
Octavio makes a dismissing motion at the comment.
I cannot blame her, but her guild was breaking the law and my order was attempting to uphold it. Unfortunately, my Order took extreme measures, and was not something I am proud. I am glad she seems to have settled in peace.
Aava nods to Lubella.
We will forever be in your debt. Any equipment you can provide will be helpful. Leather armor, spears or tridents. Or even a simple dagger for each of us five would be expensive, but help. Sharkskin armor I am certain you will not find here in the human city.
Octavio raises an eye at the mention of equipment, as his team has their own needs. However, their equipment is much more expensive than the simple weapons asked of the elves. He looks as if to mention something, but then refrains with a 'not now' glance back to the others.
***
During the week, while out in the city, Talvek and Lubella are approached by the Captain Cassius’s Lieutenant, the gun-slinging sailor, Elia Nones.
She hands you a bag and a note.
Please find the requested funds. This request was sooner than I had expected, but understand the need is great. I have secured a loan from Marquel Aulorian, to aid the cause. May this help secure the fate of your mission and the future of Kintargo.
Sincerely,
C.S.
Within the bag is a mix of silver and gold coins worth 2000gp.
She smiles and states with concern before departing.
Your cause is indeed worthy, but do not over-extend your asking of favors.
The captain's resources are limited and he is willing to help to a point. Sadly he has his own political enemies in the city.
Talvek reads the note, nodding at Elia in thanks. "And how is your captain's friend? I trust he is well?" He lets her remark pass without comment, as the political situation of the Silver Ravens was difficult enough without them getting tangled in even more complications on behalf of other people. "And trust me, we would not ask unless we really needed it. Hopefully we will be in a stronger position in the near future and we won't need your captain's help, or not as much."
Lubella thanked Elia Nones saying, "This will be very helpful."
She followed up with a question,
"What do you know about the aquatic elves of Acisazi? They were imprisoned in the cells we discovered. We will want to speak with their leaders; what is involved in sailing to their village?"
Nones stops to think.
”I do not know much of the elves, as they tend to avoid our Chelish ship. But I do know where their village lies and the captain can transport you there or other local towns like Vyre. Just let us know a day in advance, since we need paperwork to depart. The Thrunes have regulators are everywhere it seems. “
Hetamon Haace, during the week passes Sidius in the streets and asks.
So, how were those...um, special materials I provided? Did they serve their intended purpose. I certainly hope you found them to be of the proper dimensions for your event.
He says with a wink, obviously referring to the pump parts he supplied a week or so ago.
Feel free to stop by my simple tailoring shop if you should ever need to discuss other alterations or fabrics in the future
The tiefling tailor flashes a holy symbol of Milani under his vest just briefly where only Sidius could see it.
Sidius nods, "Indeed, in the end, they allowed us a perfect fit, thank you," he smiles, then adds, "I was considering a few adjustments, and deciding whether to replace or repair a few pieces. I'll stop by later today, or early tomorrow."
Hetamon nods to the Sidius.
Very good. You and your friends are always welcome, especially after all you have accomplished in the past few months. May the smile of the Everbloom shine upon you.
The tielfling tailor slips away, silently whistling a tune of Milani.
***
Assuming Sidius eventually travels to the Red Roof district, Hetamon will greet him warmly as a customer but usher him into a back room.
Greetings again. I have spent time in devotion to our patroness since our meeting.
She has guided me to aid your mission and a few donations to the cause. I have placed a pair of caches where your cause may find them in time of need.
He lets that sink in for Sidius.
The first can be found in a loose brick at the Longroads Coffee house in the north part of the city. The brick is marked with the sign of the Everbloom (*).
Minor Cache (3): Potions of cure light wounds (6), potions of
lesser restoration (2).
Likewise, there is a flagstone in the back patio of the Tooth and Nail similarly marked with the sign of Milani.
Elixirs of hiding (4), potions of
invisibility (4), scrolls of silence (2).
Now, thank you for letting me finish. Are you in need of any new garments?
Sidius smiles at the offer, "That is most generous... I am quite certain that we will have occasion to make use of these caches." He pauses for a moment, allowing to Aerie climb out from her hiding spot to his shoulder, and asks, "We were wondering if, mayhap, you knew of a fellow trustworthy practitioner? Someone Aerie could learn from - or, hopefully, exchange information."