Protectors of Golarion (Wrath of the Righteous AP)

Game Master Sensen

Elliot nods and motions towards Faxon's bound and unconscious form. "Let's be off here, then. Nothing else to be found here it seems, not without being able to get to the sealed off second floor. We should get the prisoners and the letter to Irabeth right away!" he says, and turns to leave, intent on returning to the defender's heart.

"We want to take the cultists back as prisoners, but we cannot exactly expect Merixia to sling three full-grown people across her shoulders at one time like sacks of flour and carry them back to base. Even with the ant-haul spell, I would estimate these three plus her own armor, weapons and what we have found here will be too much weight to reasonably carry for an hour's walk*. And dragging their bodies the whole way is impractical because of how much uneven ground there is to cover, where we would have to actually lift them over obstacles, to say nothing of how slow it would be, or whether that might exacerbate their injuries or kill them. No, I think to get all three back to the Defender's Heart, we will have to make them walk in front of us or behind us, which means healing them to consciousness. Merixia, everyone, what do you think? And let's be sure their bonds are what we want them to be, in any case." Verene quickly outlines her plan for the others, seeking their opinions - especially Merixia's, as she would be responsible for implementing most of it.

*See post in discussion.

Merixia winces at the thought of trying to carry three human-sized adults all the way back to Defender's Heart. "Yeah, we're going to have to make them walk. I might be able to carry one if I had to, but three? Not even with Verene's spell." She looks down at Faxon's unconscious body, frowning. "I'm not an expert in knots, but I'll do my best to tie them securely." Her father had taught her a thing or two after the Gray Corsairs accepted him for training, but that was years ago. Hopefully what she remembers of his lessons in nautical knots will hold.

"I can try to assist with securing them before we wake them. Binding their feet with enough slack to walk sounds like a reasonable plan, but we also may want to include a lead on the binds we use on their hands. This will help us more easily control their movements despite the restricted range of their legs. I would suggest we split the leads between us to help minimize their ability to overpower one of us."

Thesius tries to think of how far out they are far the ravine they crossed earlier.

"Would binding them leave us with enough rope to scale the wall next to the ravine from earlier?"

Muffled cries come from above. It appears that the cultist that Verene had knocked out was awake now.

Dragging the unconscious Faxon along with them the heroes make their way back to the first floor. The woman thrashes against her bonds, though she is quite obviously unable to break them. She hisses and growls at them, but is unable to even curse them with the gag covering her mouth.

As they ascend, Thesius addresses his own concern, "Thankfully I believe I recall some places that would make it easier to traverse the ravine from this side. So it's probably best we address it once we get there. The longer we linger, the more chance we have of others coming across us."

Thesius looks to the captive and realizes the danger they face in trying to bring prisoners with them. Calmly he approaches them and states simply, "Would you prefer to go to your god now or later? If the latter, I suggest you be quiet and cooperate."

Intimidate: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (16) + 6 = 22

The cultist shivers, bobbing her head swiftly.

Verene nods briskly in approval of Thesius's calm approach with the conscious cultist, and makes sure Faxon and the male cultist — Jerah? Arin? She isn't sure which is which — are gagged with twine and cloth in the same way as the woman. Once they're tied up in the way in which the group intends to transport them, and Merixia has restored them to consciousness, she allows the other two to struggle against their bonds long enough to realize they aren't breakable.

Then she helps haul them bodily to their feet, looks each one in the eye and says calmly, "Walk, or we will drag you. She is strong enough to do it." She indicates Merixia, bristling with all the weapons, armor and treasure taken from the hideout, and showing absolutely no sign of visible strain. Does Verene need Intimidate for this, when she absolutely means it? I sure hope not, but go ahead and roll it for her if she does. :)

Verene lets her eyes travel over all three, then adds very gently, "And on the way, if I were you, I would think about who your friends are. After all — it was one of you who let us in."

Same for Bluff as for Intimidate — she didn't tell an outright lie, but would certainly like to sow suspicion among them. Ready to head out here!

Ah, it's intimidate the bad guys time! Excellent. Merixia gives them her most bloodthirsty, sword-happy grin. "She's right, I can and will drag you over the rubble outside if I have to." The cleric pulls her coat open enough to reveal her holy symbol. "For those unfamiliar with my holy symbol, I am a priestess of Ragathiel, the empyreal lord of duty and vengeance. Since the Iomedaeans want to question you, I will allow you to live for now." She leans closer, red-scaled tail twitching. "But if any of you decide to try and fight back, I will be more than happy to enact Ragathiel's vengeance on the spot. You will be much better off with the followers of Iomedae than you are with me. Do we understand each other?"

The hell of it is, Merixia isn't even lying. Although she'll claim that she was if any of her friends ask. Good people aren't supposed to feel the rush that fighting a truly evil enemy gives her. And they certainly ought to be more conflicted about killing said enemies.

...She should probably pray on this, shouldn't she? Gods, how she misses Father Darian. He would know just what to say.

Since Thesius rolled so well on Intimidate, consider this just some RP. Ready to roll!

The cultist struggles to get to her feet as best she can, but with her arms bound, she's not making any progress. Merixia pulls her up roughly, and the companions set off with their new prisoners. They make their way carefully through the cracked and broken streets of northern New Kenabres, retracing their steps and dragging the two unconscious cultists along with them.

It takes some doing, and the use of one charge of the cloudwalking scale, but they make it back to the Defenders' Heart unscathed, albeit somewhat later in the day than they might've hoped. The guards are both human this time, both men. One grips a glaive and the other a sword and shield - a Shelynite and an Iomedaean, no doubt.

"You've brought prisoners?" The Iomedaean asks. "Arodar, go grab a few others. We'll need to take these to some cellar or another." The younger man bobs his head and darts inside.

The remaining guard looks at the heroes, squinting in the sunlight. He lowers his voice. "Just... try not to bring us too many. We don't have too many places to safely store them."

"We will keep that in mind, but cannot make any promises," Verene says to the Iomedaean guard. Irabeth had said taking even the maddened crusaders prisoner and helping them would have been the right thing to do, and she privately agrees, although yesterday, without their cooperation or the ant haul spell, it would have been close to impossible. The late-morning sunlight has done little to temper the chill of the breeze, and her face feels slightly numb with cold. "The Knight-Commander is expecting these ones, however, and I hope will have made arrangements to keep them secure. They all have some kind of magic, so they may require extra measures."

Mostly to the others, she adds, "We should speak with her before we leave again. I want to tell her about those Ashen Ravens mercenaries. Perhaps she will think my impulsiveness in giving them the password is enough to warrant changing it."

Okay, so Merixia didn't ever channel to heal, and we dragged them as they were? That's fine if it's what you want, Merixia, but I am making a note now to get Verene's remaining HP damage healed from the clerics at the Defender's Heart before we leave.

"...I don't think their leader, Faxon is someone redeemable," Elliot says to the guard as the prisoners are led away from the group. "However, we read a note that suggested his demonic masters considered all but him expendable, and were already planning to sacrifice all of them for something. Perhaps that is enough to make one reconsider their stance on things - eventually."

He glances at Merixia and Azira. "Though something tells me there will be enough righteous retribution to limit the amount of prisoners we'll bring in anyway."

"I wonder how much Lady Sarenrae would expect us to do, in these circumstances... if we cannot even hold prisoners, and one traitor can spell disaster. Say, Righteous Eclipse? How did your former master handle matters of mercy and redemption here? I believe she fought in circumstances not much less dire than these."

Azira remains quiet as the others decide how best to handle their prisoners, and on their way back to Defender's Heart. She had her own opinions, certainly, but she was still feeling out this new group and didn't want to risk upsetting the dynamics unless it was over something that she felt strongly about. If she were completely honest with herself, she might have to admit she was also keeping these new friends at arms length to defend herself from the kind of pain she'd felt when she'd been separated from her close friends just days ago, but she wasn't nearly prepared for that sort of introspection yet.

When Verene suggests speaking with the Knight-Commander, she finally breaks her sullen silence to say, "Good idea. Even aside from any questions about the password, our leaders will need to know what players are on the board and where they are positioned."

Nodding, Elliot looked at the remains of the Brazen Head Azira had attempted to destroy. "Let's take that to the priests here on the way there, too, so they can fully dispose of it," he suggests.

Technically the head is worth 6500 gp... so if basic logic of good guys spendng gold to buy and destroy evil artefacts applies here, we could afford some items for the group from selling it.

Back at the cultists' lair

Once the cultists look properly cowed, Merixia beckons to her companions. "Gather round, everyone. It's healing time." She holds up her holy symbol, focusing on her link to Ragathiel. "Ragathiel, grant me your healing light!" Familiar fiery gold light fills the room.

Channel Healing: 2d6 ⇒ (1, 4) = 5

At Defender's Heart

He glances at Merixia and Azira. "Though something tells me there will be enough righteous retribution to limit the amount of prisoners we'll bring in anyway."

Merixia smiles sheepishly and looks away. Yeah, Elliot is right about that. "So, who do we see about evil artifacts? Even with Verene's magic, this thing is heavy. And having it so close is making me twitchy." She gestures to the battered brass bull's head on her back. Ever since she ripped it off the wall, it's felt like someone is staring at her. Someone hostile. Merixia may not have Azira's sense for evil, but it doesn't take a paladin to feel the dark magic coming off the brazen head when she's carrying it.

Thesius nods his agreement to the others' sentiments.

"It would be a good time to get Irabeth up to speed and find out anything new they might have to tell us."

He keeps his words few as his thoughts feel a bit skewed at this point in time. Is he finally coming to terms with the loss of life associated with removing evil from this world or perhaps he's feeling numb once more from the overwhelming circumstances. Regardless, he was glad he took the time to instill the willingness to cooperate into the cultist earlier, but the thought that he felt ready to carry the threat through worried him.

The heroes meet up with a small collection of clerics and paladins who are more than pleased to take the brazen head off their hands, while some other crusaders take Faxon and his crew away. I forget if you get half-price for the brazen head, but I think that's the case, so it's 3250 gp.

The idea to speak with Irabeth is quickly made into deed, as the paladin-commander arrives shortly thereafter, Anevia lagging slightly behind her. "I heard you got back. What news do you have?" Her expression is grim - ready for any news, but expecting bad.

Merixia smiles sheepishly and looks away. Yeah, Elliot is right about that.

Back to his normal form now, the emberkin chuckles. "Don't worry about it, Meri. It's part of your charm - and the gods know we have a *lot* of fighting left to do, regardless."

His cheer fades when Irabeth asks for an update not too long after. Not missing a beat, he hands her the note that had been burning a hole in his pocket this entire trip. "Well, commander Tirabade, I don't know how to put it gently. So... I'll give it to you straight. Judging from this, the demons plan to corrupt the city's Wardstone into some sort of doomsday weapon capable of wiping out all life around here, or such. It's... ah, quite something . And there's a lot of prolific figures involved, too."

Gathering his nerve, his mouth dry, he then adds: "Personally, I think that we'll be forced to try and retake the wardstone before they finish. Um, do we have enough forces to attempt such a thing?"

Verene glances around to make sure no one is listening in — aside from any concerns about spying, they don't want to cause a panic — before tempering Elliot's summation. "We don't know exactly what Vorlesh wants with the Wardstone. But added to the first cultist letter, this makes it seem that whatever it is, she has not done it yet — that is, it refers to something other than the explosion at the Kite five days ago. Elliot is right: trying to stop her may now be the most important thing any of us can do, for Mendev and for the world. You would know better than we would how possible that is under the circumstances." If she is already here in the flesh, I don't need to ask. A mage as powerful as she reportedly is could level this building with all of us inside it in about the same time it takes to sneeze.

"In less pressing news, the Templars of the Ivory Labyrinth had cleared out the secret basement of Topaz Solutions sometime before we got there, leaving only a few traps for crusaders behind. However, they were still active at the Tower of Estrod, so we took all three Templars we met there prisoner. There was an unhallowed shrine to Baphomet in the basement, with that brazen head overlooking it. They also had collected a fair amount of stolen treasures and other materiel, as you can see." She gestures to Merixia. "I hope you can glean something useful from the hoard. I am sure Merixia will be glad to set it down before going anywhere else, anyway." Did Verene find any other documents she thought were worth taking to give to Irabeth, GM?

"Lastly, we have not yet visited Nyserian Manor. And..." Verene takes a deep breath before continuing. "At Topaz Solutions, we ran into some mercenaries, or former mercenaries, for the Crusade called the Ashen Ravens. We are confident they weren't in league with the demons, and they did not attack us, but they did not seem interested in joining up with other survivors either, and they moved on shortly after we got there. I told them that if they did decide they needed help, they could find it here, with the password 'Silverstrong.' But then it was pointed out to me that they also did not seem trustworthy, exactly, and perhaps they are even unscrupulous enough to sell other people out to the demons if it is in their self-interest to do so." She pauses and adds, more quietly, "I just didn't want them to be turned away."

“It was an act of compassion, certainly,” Azira offers reassuringly.

Turning back to Irabeth she continues, “I hope it goes without saying but I’m prepared to be part of whatever plan seems best. Do you have any intelligence on what’s going on at the Kite?”

Thesius listens to the summation his companions give. Not finding much to add, he nods his head in agreement before a thought occurs to him.

"Faxon, the tielfling we brought in, had a scorpion familiar we were unable to dispose or capture. It might be pertinent to keep that in mind."

Finally, he asks another burning question, "How have things been here? Any new happenings we should be aware of?"

Irabeth looks over the note Elliot hands her, her expression darkening. "Ah. We've heard mention of these crystals before and I fear that they are tied to something far worse than what's already happened to Kenabres - and perhaps even the plans mentioned here."

The documents Verene found were mostly "here's what we found and how much it's probably worth." There're a few notes that refer to where looting parties were headed, but that's about it.

Irabeth holds up a hand. "Patience." She turns to one of the nearby crusaders. "Jaryl, could you go fetch Master Orlun?"

The young man nods, walking off to find the wizard in question as Irabeth turns to answer the others.

"Hm. Well, I'm not surprised that Topaz Solutions, at least, was emptied out. It wasn't a terribly central location in the city, and it's not like they need to lie low any more." Irabeth rubs her chin.

Anevia, who has arrived in the meantime, frowns at the mention of the Ashen Ravens. "I've investigated them before. They never struck me as terribly pleasant people, but I never saw any sign of them being demon-worshippers. Cruel a#@+$~%s, some of them, but they never quite broke the law when I was watching them."

"I'll let the others know to keep an eye out for them." Irabeth agrees. "It's not something I'd like to risk, but... we'll have to be careful." She turns to Thesius. "Thanks for letting us know. It might be important... though hopefully we'll notice it if it comes running."

"As thanks for the aid you've given us, I do want to reward you with what we have available to us." Irabeth says with a brief, tired smile. "Talk to the Abadarans - they're our current paymasters, so to speak. I need to confer with Master Orlun, see if I can figure everything out... especially in regards to the Kite. I'm not sure we can hold the Kite, you see, and the wardstone isn't mobile. There may be some solution I'm missing, and he'd be the one to know it."

Her yellow gaze turns to each of the heroes in turn. "Why don't you take a quick break, maybe resupply, and head out to see if there's any way to cut off potential reinforcements from Nyserian Manor?"

"And try to get back Irabeth's sword. Please." Anevia adds, though Irabeth looks ready to object. "If it hasn't been 'corrupted,' as they intended to do with Radiance, I want to get it back." She turns on Irabeth. "And don't you object. This isn't because I regret your choice, it's because he turned out to be a cultist!"

You get 1000 gp for each safe house you've cleared, for a total of 2000 at the moment.

Merixia nods crisply and salutes Irabeth. "Understood, Knight Tirabade." She turns to Anevia. "Can you describe the sword in question?" After all, they've taken so many weapons off of various cultists. It would be nice to know what the paladin's missing sword looks like.

"Honestly, not really." Anevia says drily. "It's fairly plain. Enchanted, though - it cuts demons better than anything else."

It's a +1 evil outsider bane longsword, if you examine it with detect magic.

"It was an act of compassion, certainly," Azira offers reassuringly.

Verene casts Azira a quick grateful glance, though her worried look remains.

Irabeth looks over the note Elliot hands her, her expression darkening. "Ah. We've heard mention of these crystals before and I fear that they are tied to something far worse than what's already happened to Kenabres - and perhaps even the plans mentioned here."

Irabeth holds up a hand. "Patience." She turns to one of the nearby crusaders. "Jaryl, could you go fetch Master Orlun?"
[...]

Anevia, who has arrived in the meantime, frowns at the mention of the Ashen Ravens. "I've investigated them before. They never struck me as terribly pleasant people, but I never saw any sign of them being demon-worshippers. Cruel a!&!!@!s, some of them, but they never quite broke the law when I was watching them."

"I'll let the others know to keep an eye out for them." Irabeth agrees. "It's not something I'd like to risk, but... we'll have to be careful." She turns to Thesius. "Thanks for letting us know. It might be important... though hopefully we'll notice it if it comes running."

"As thanks for the aid you've given us, I do want to reward you with what we have available to us." Irabeth says with a brief, tired smile. "Talk to the Abadarans - they're our current paymasters, so to speak. I need to confer with Master Orlun, see if I can figure everything out... especially in regards to the Kite. I'm not sure we can hold the Kite, you see, and the wardstone isn't mobile. There may be some solution I'm missing, and he'd be the one to know...

Verene smiles slightly, in part relieved at the idea of bringing in a more experienced planar expert, and in part at how the women take the risks of the Ashen Ravens and the scorpion seriously but in stride. Irabeth and Anevia seem to work well enough as a team to practically finish each other's sentences, and she is glad once more that they were able to reunite the spouses. "If anyone here would know what a Nahyndrian Crystal is or what it might do, it would be Master Orlun. And maybe Master Aravashnial. I'm sure he would be happy to be asked, anyway. I hope they have answers that will help you decide what to do next. And we will certainly be on the lookout for any enchanted swords at this Kandro Nyserian's manor. Speaking of which—"

She looks at the others seriously, tucking her hands into her sleeves. Merixia seems to have fallen easily into treating Irabeth as a commanding officer, and her requests as orders. Verene likes Irabeth, but she is not a crusader, and neither are Thesius and Elliot. It would not do to forget that the lady knight's requests are just that: they do not owe her the military obedience of subordinates, or taking on this risk if they feel it is too much. "After a brief rest, as Lady Irabeth suggests, are we feeling up to the task of heading out to New Kenabres again today? I have a few of my spells remaining, and thanks to Merixia's kind offices, I feel physically as good as new, so I am in favor." She smiles gratefully at Merixia, whom she regards as far more responsible for healing her than the distant Power from whence her gifts originally came.

Elliot nods and readjusts his belt and the position of Eclipse's scabbard. The sword didn't feel like talking, and that was fine he supposed, so long as it continued to support the group when it mattered. "I'm also good to go. Don't think I was even injured aside from one hit of that plant, and our healers really helped me out there." He nods gratefully to Merixia and Azira. "Let's see if we can barter for something useful to aid us and be on our way. Those cultists aren't going to clear out themselves! But I sure would like to see that, once..." He adds, wistfully, and heads out to concerse with the Abadaran clergy.

If they were anything like their reputation, bartering for a good deal would be a much harder fight than the actual demon opposition thusfar!

Moving us onwards. If you want to have some chats with the Defender's Heart protectors, do so in spoilers, please.

Having purchased all that they require, the heroes make their way out of the Defender's Heart, and are faced with a choice - whether to go south through the Gate District and circle through the southern gate into New Kenabres, or retrace their steps north and through the ruined gate, before heading south. The former would've been longer, back before Armasse, but the latter would take them into unexplored territory, which might be yet more devastated than anywhere else they've seen.

Before they leave...

Thesius responds to Verene, "I am okay to continue on after taking some time to peruse the Abadaran's wares. I would prefer something a bit more useful to have on us than gold." After which, he'll take the time to go about seeing if anything jumps out to him as useful for their future endeavors.

I'll take a look and update respond with what I'm looking to buy.

[bigger]After...[ /bigger]

Thesius thinks about their choices and speaks up to the group, "While I would like to see what the rest of the city looks like, I think it's better we take the route we've explored already since time is of the essence. So through the Gate district is my suggestion."

Suggesting they head South through the Gate district.

Merixia nods to Verene. "I've hardly used any of my spells, and only one channel. If you feel that you still have enough spells left for another fight or two, then by all means, let's continue." She walks over to the Abadarans, not sure what (if anything) she wants to trade her share of the loot for. Maybe she should start saving up for magic armor? Or perhaps trade her shield for a magic buckler. A full sized shield is proving to be more of an encumbrance than Merixia anticipated.

After they leave

"A sound plan, Thesius. Who knows what's lurking on the other route?" Of course, there could be people in need of aid there... but they really need to clear out Nyserian Manor before the cultists hear about their raid on the Tower of Estrod and move.

After accompanying the others to see the Abadarians, Azira listens to conversation about which way to go thoughtfully. “Do we have enough uses of the cloudwalking scale left to go by the same route again?” she asks with some concern. “If we use the final charge for the day to get over the wall again and then get stuck out there we may find ourselves having to take the unknown route anyways just to try to get back here.”

Sorry, I’ve been busy. I’ll post any additional shopping that I did on this trip tomorrow (hopefully tomorrow morning).

As they go:
"Yes, if you think through the Gate District will be a safer route, by all means," Verene answers Thesius absently. There is a new line between her brows, and her face is as grim as it has been since the first day of the attack. Thamyris is not in his accustomed place on her shoulder, but is closely pacing the group by flitting from one roof or tall bit of rubble to the next along the side of the road as they walk.

With the group agreed, they head southwards through the Gate District, traveling roads whose new states they have become unfortunately familiar with. As they go, they pass through a plaza, at the center of which is a large pile of bodies. The bodies look obviously gnawed, and several mangy fiendish dire rats scuttle nearby. The overlarge and corrupted rodents don't seem too interested in attacking the healthy-looking party members, especially with such a feast before them.

You can try to shoo them off/kill them if you want, otherwise we can move on.

Azira stops for a moment and stares unhappily at the fiendish rats feasting. "I know we can't really stop all the vermin in the city from gnawing on the remains of the fallen, and we probably should reserve some resources in case we encounter resistance at Nyserian Manor, but should we maybe at least try to get descriptions of their faces as we go by so that they might be identified by someone later on? Do any of you have keen enough eyes to make out their faces from here?"

Azira really wants to kill the rats, but understands its not a sound tactical decision, so she'll go along with whatever the group decides.

"We may not be able to stop all of them, but we can stop these ones," Verene says practically, already bringing up and checking her crossbow. As with most of the horrific sights they have seen in the aftermath of the fall of Kenabres, she seems to take it in stride, but is clearly trying not to look too closely at the gnawed corpses. "It will not add much time to an already-long journey, and just as with the dretches yesterday, each one we kill is one that cannot hurt anyone else."

A vote for trying to kill the fiendish dire rats here. I know it takes more real-world time to resolve that way, but in-character I think Verene would feel it is the right thing to do, even if all we accomplish is driving them away until we move on. She won't use spells or other limited resources besides the cold iron bolts.

Merixia grimaces at the sight of the enormous rats. "Even normal rats spread disease. Kenabres is going to have enough problems with that in the future, given both the number of bodies and the presence of demons. I vote we kill them. Who knows what kind of Abyssal diseases they're carrying?"

Elliot draws his sword and takes a step in the rats' direction, then stops."Honestly... I'd rather we left them behind now. We're on a clock until Areelu Vorash and Minagho finish corrupting the wardstone and finishing us off. Not to mention, this fight could weaken us as we are. We still have to clear out both the mansion and potentially the cultist's alleged stronghold later. We can probably leave the rats until we've retaken the city."

I'll vote against attacking the rats. However, I don't think it matters. Regarding votes, it's one neutral leaning to kill, kill, kill, leave and one undecided. I guess that means killing them wins regardless. Onto initiative!

Thesius understands both sides, but he can only nod his head in agreement with those siding to take out the rats.

"While we may not have the time to seek out dangers currently to eradicate them, these stand before us. I find it best we don't leave them hear to injure others and I would feel better knowing we did not leave an enemy at our backs," he says as he tightens his grip upon the pommel of the morningstar.

I'm good for taking them out before we move forward as well.

Since I doubt they're any threat to you all, and don't want to get overly bogged down with this, I'm just going to fiat the fight away and assume you win without resource expenditure.

As the heroes massacre the fiendish dire rats, an all too familiar cry goes up to the west - a howler, if not two, must be lurking in that direction. Unfortunately, it sounds too far away to easily reach before the Abyssal beast finishes whatever it's pursuing, even as the party quickly finishes the rats.

Thus, the journey through ruined Kenabres continues, as they pass through the gash that carves through the eastern parts of Southgate. They pass by piles of bodies, though some look distinctly charred - as though they are funeral pyres that never quite took.

Ultimately, they make it to the southern gates between the Gate district and New Kenabres. Fortunately, these gates aren't as ruined as their northern counterparts, though they do lie in splinters in the gap between the walls.

New Kenabres was clearly hit hard, however, just as much in the south as in the north. Several times they have to turn back, circling around a vast crevasse that likely leads back down into the tunnels below. Another shallow scar runs through the area, as well, forcing them towards a more circuitous route, but ultimately the heroes arrive at the area where they're pretty sure that Nyserian Manor should have stood.

Should have, because while it was once probably a fine manor, now little remains save a pile of rubble and a gouged trough of ruin.

"Well... so much for getting any information here." Merixia scowls at the rubble. This was not part of the plan. "What now?"

"I mean... we could check if any underground sections of it fared any better..." Elliot says, clearly doubtful on if there was anything to really gain from such an exploration.

Still, he begins approaching, wary for danger, sword drawn and looking around the ruined area.

After putting an end to the rats, the distant cry of another howler makes Verene flinch and tense, dreading a repeat of yesterday's persistent hallucinations; but fortunately, it must be far enough away that she is spared.

Their travel through the worst-off part of the southern Gate District and then New Kenabres is exactly the scene from one of her nightmares, down to the burned bodies and gaping wounds in the earth. The broad main avenue Verene had walked most days as the most direct route between home and the Blackwing in Southgate ends in a deep crevasse only a few hundred feet past the splintered gate itself. The quiet Soldier's Rest tavern Sibylla had favored of an evening is simply gone, along with all the other businesses and homes that had lined the avenue past that point: Goody's Goodies bakery, where she bought bread and sometimes breakfast on days when she was late; that general store the Crate and Nail, owned by the same Hallit man who lived above it and who always wanted to stand talking to old Arthek for what seemed like hours.

Verene stands there for a time, at the edge of the crevasse, and holds up a hand to shade her eyes, looking vainly north and trying to judge if Sibylla's home would have been in its path; but it is no use. To the west, it seems the commercial and warehouse district, where the goods that come up the Sellen to Kenabres are first lifted into the city on the cliff by the great cranes, is also half flattened or crumbled into the abyss. Eventually she turns away and continues on with the group, saying nothing.

When they reach the rubble that was once Nyserian Manor, she is silent for a moment. Then she scrubs her sleeve quickly over her face and says, "I will check it for magic. We promised Anevia and Irabeth to look for the sword. Then I want to go to Sibylla's. It isn't far. North and a bit west of here, near the fountain." The flatness of her voice makes it clear what she expects to discover.

Verene will move all around the site, examining the rubble with detect magic as well as she can. If she finds no auras, she will want to move on.

"Agreed, it may still be worth taking a look to see if we can find something of worth from it since we are already here," Thesius says as he goes about joining the others. He brings up his own detect magic cantrip after Verene mentions doing such herself.

He nods his head in understanding to her wanting to check in upon the other abode while they are already up here.

The mansion appears well and truly ruined - nothing of note remains, at least visible. it's possible that there are buried sections that have valuables or information there, but if so it is impractical to access them.

Verene's magical scan of the ruins reveals no sign of any auras - not even the lingering sorts, though if any were still around it would be from fairly powerful magic, so that's probably a good thing.

If we don't get more ideas before this evening my time, I'll send you off towards Sibylla's.

"I don't sense any magic," Verene reports quietly. "The sword could be buried under all the stone and dirt, which would hide it from my senses. But it seems more likely that the cultist took it with him elsewhere, and that he was not here when the house came down. More's the pity."

Ready. When we do go on from here, Verene will do her usual refresh of message on everyone and then detect fiendish presence concentration. Forgot to declare this before.

After the rats are dealt with, Azira checks the bodies they were chewing on. She doesn't want to admit to herself that she's mostly checking to see if her best friends are among the dead, so she checks each one's face and clothes carefully and tells herself that if she can describe them later perhaps someone will be able to identify them, and maybe it will provide some closure for someone.

She travels through the city in silence, checking every body they pass and periodically scanning for evil auras. She checks again as they look over the fallen remains of the manor. Once Verene has made her report on magical auras, or the lack thereof, she finally breaks her silence to report on the evil auras as well. Then she adds, "Let's check on Sibylla, and then if anyone else can think of any other places worth checking out while we're here we can keep going, or start looking for signs of demons or survivors as we make our way back."

"Nothing to it, then. Let's head back and share the news. The upside is that none of us got hurt on this outing, at least," The now magus grins and assumes a position near the front, but it fades quickly when he sees Azira searching through the bodies for the purpose of identification at a later time - assuming they survived. "Good idea. If it helps, I can list some of the features of those we come across, and their location. It's not much, perhaps, but it's something for any of their surviving kin."

"Mom, dad, sis... where did you go?"

His only comfort in this endless mantra was that if they happened upon their remains, Verene would surely recognize them, and maybe Merixia would recognize his sister from their meeting at the performance. Gods, that seemed like ages ago now, in another life perhaps. Technically, it was.

"Sounds like a plan. Maybe we should head back via the other route. See what we find along the way. We're already geared up for a fight, might as well kill some demons while we're out here." Merixia sighs, running a gauntleted hand through her hair. (And then wincing as a few strands get caught in the armor joints. Oops. This armor will take some getting used to.) "I hope your friend's home fared better than this, Verene."

The heroes make return to the streets of Kenabres, heading northwest toward Verene's friend's home. As they go, the streets become notably less devastated, and the buildings almost look unharmed - though many have windows broken and a handful are burned out.

The paths are steady, but there are still piles of corpses - many of which are already chewed away or missing pieces - strewn about. Here they seem to have been left where they died, as opposed to gathered anywhere. Abyss-tainted vultures and dire rats scatter from the party's path when they approach - perhaps smelling the blood of their fellow Abyssal beasts.

A few blocks from the fountain, however, the corpses stop appearing. When they arrive at the fountain plaza it becomes swiftly clear why. The bodies have been piled around in, and atop the fountain, while their congealed blood has dried and cracked at its base. Bare remnants of what looks to have been a ritual linger around the fountain, though the markings (blood, of course) have faded and cracked as well.

The houses, at least, appear to be in relatively good condition.

Thesius works to fight back the bile rising in his throat at the scene. His stomach feeling as if it was doing cartwheels once more at the monstrous sight before them. At first he turns his eyes to their surroundings looking for danger, but slowly works to take in the sight once more. This was an atrocity, but it felt likely not to be the last. He needed to learn to control himself in the presence of such acts.

As quietly as he can, he invokes his cantrip to look for magical auras. His mind trying to think of anything useful at this time.

Detect magic and feel free to roll any knowledge checks you feel are appropriate for Thesius.

Verene's face as the group progresses closer and closer to her home of the past few years grows steadily whiter and more strained. The need for closure compels her to look fully at the bodies in this area as they pass, and there are more and more she recognizes by name or face.

"Roland, the butcher's boy. Edeline, from across the street. The two little boys Eithne plays with sometimes. Oriel. Nelka. Pious and Emeric—" She realizes she is whispering their names aloud and abruptly goes silent the rest of the way.

They reach the fountain plaza and Verene stops dead. She covers her mouth with one hand, her eyes glassy. After a time, she forces her legs to move her closer, still in silence.

Does Verene recognize any of Elliot's or her own named NPCs, either on the streets or in the remnants of the fountain ritual, GM? For ease of reference, they were discussed and described here, here, here, and in Elliot's NPC block here.