Save or Die: Outcasts: Episode 21

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==Synopsis==
As Auguste and Grau travel after the clerics they are meant to be escorting, Grau has visions from Nadinis of a ceremony. After speaking with a cleric of Voraci the pair head away from civilization and into the grasslands. In the grasslands they encounter a horserider that Auguste has previously let go free.
The party eventually make it to the place the dream was trying to pull them. A funeral for someone connected with the god of suffering. Nadinis seems to want Grau to go into the tomb.
==Recap==
===Dreams on the road===
October 1513. Auguste and Grau are on the road to Autumn's Tower, 6 days behind the clerics they were supposed to be escorting. Grau is in a bad mental state because of his recent capture as well as failing to find out the truth about himself from The Fireflies. His frustration over not knowing his own origins is getting to him. Auguste encourages Grau not to give up, and that party supports him.
Grau goes into bear form, and the two continue down the road. Auguste talks about his own doubts on returning to Vantis to challenge for the throne. 
On the third night out from Holy City Ember Stone, Grau has a dream. The scent of someone else's fear. Fear like the spell from a cornered deer. Grau's thought turn towards the goddess of nature, Nadinis. The dream becomes more clear. It isn't just fear. It is fear and blood. As well as something less violent, idea of warm richness. A smell that reminds Grau of the feelings of Renatus and Auguste.
In the morning Grau conveys the dream to Auguste. Auguste theorises the dream is about the origins of all 4 party members before coming together. Grau isn't sure what to make of it.
The next night Grau has another smell-based dream. There is a new spell in addition to the others. The smell of something roasting or being cook. When Grau talks about it the next morning, Grau thinks the feelings aren't directly connected to Ren or Auguste, but just similar to it. Grau will keep trying to commune with Nadinis. The party continue traveling, passing though the village of Lorkin.
In the night Grau again dreams, this time more visual, not just smells:
: You are awash in new senses. Now you can actually see the woods around you. You can you're not just aware of the concept of being in woods, you see trees, branches, and birds. You can smell the fear of something that's just out of view, just beyond the hill or down the the valley a little bit. You can smell the fear, and the blood associated with the same creature. Something else is sizzling like a big feast, like the the smoke of a a large camp. There's also the smell of freshly turned earth and freshly broken stone. That other smell, the rich luxurious one, comes to your mind sharply; now you remember this smell in the temple of Martha when you were looking about that into that that donkey that gave birth, it's the smell of incense, it's the smell of like ceremonial richness.
Grau gets the feeling he gets when he gets spells from Nadinis. It doesn't feel like a memory perhaps something that will happen soon. He tells Auguste he feels there is a Nadinis ceremony taking place soon. Auguste has no leads for Grau. The party keep traveling.
The next night, same exact dream except the visuals are not clear. The images are being sucked into a whirlpool. Smells are unaffected. He hears voices and sounds in the dream. In the morning Auguste has a few suggestions, but nothing solid.
The party stop into Springview. There is a priest, not a cleric. Grau goes ask about possible ceremonies taking place. Grau also talks about the dreams he had. The priest finds the dream unusual, but has no ideas of what in particular Grau's dream could be about. There will be a large local ceremony for the marriage of Lord Stell in a week.
Grau wonders if they should stay in village and make sure nothing bad happens during the wedding. Auguste says there is no way knowing if the visions are about this place or a different town or village.
The pair rest in the village overnight and there is no dream this night.
===Visiting the Voraci Temple===
Auguste and Grau decide to check around the local villages to see if there is more they can find out. They backtrack to the town of Coraton. This town is large enough to have its own cleric, a cleric of Voraci (♀ human, eldery). This Voraci cleric doesn't look like one of the militant clerics that are in the Army of Voraci, but a more traditional cleric of Voraci.
: It is a sombre part of the temple, it has the trappings of death around, but it also has people who have left flowers recently at some stone markers. There's a a group of people all gathered around a very sick an enfeebled person laying on a stretcher, out in front of the actual altar itself, saying their final goodbyes.
: The Temple is fairly large, there's a big golden statue of Voraci on the back, it's definitely a new one now that the Empire has taken over, they've come and like built a beautiful statue of the goddess. Voraci is wielding her sword and her shield with a stern face and a helmet of war, but that's not the the vibe you get from the temple that feels like a a new addition to the place. You get more of the last stop on your road trip sort-of-vibe from this Temple.
Auguste encourages Grau to speak with the cleric. The cleric says the gods are guides throughout life. She says Grau should trust the direction a god is trying to lead him. Grau has the feeling it is to put him in the right place at the right time. The cleric of Voraci doesn't know where Grau is to go to given what he saw in this visions. When Grau brings up Nadinis, the clerics points out how anti-social Nadinis is, and how she is out with nature and away from society. This gives Auguste the idea that they have to be looking for clues away from civilization.
===Trip though the Wilds===
The party go into the grasslands to the east. After heading east 3 days, they turn south. The dreams start up again.
As the pair walk though the grasslands they see a cloud of dust a mile away, caused by 8 horse riders coming towards them. The party try to hide in the grass, but Schnickelfritz the horse is much harder to hide. Grau, as a bear, tries to commune with Nadinis for guidance. The horse riders have their spears lowered.
The riders surround the party. Auguste then recognises one of the riders, Mickey, from Episode 9. Auguste calls out to Mickey, and he realises who Auguste and Grau are. He sighs and tells everyone to stand down, since he owes Auguste his life. The riders let the party go.
The party continue southward. Each night the dreams grow stronger and more vivid. The voices in the dream seem like chanting.
===The Ponos Camp===
The party travel south until they reach the forest near the edge of the Devouring Marsh, someplace between Burnth and Pipari. When they reach the road, Grau can smell cooking meat. Grau leads Auguste in the direction of the smell, into the woods. =
In the woods the party come across a very-large camp where a ritual is taking place on top of a freshly constructed tomb. There are around 90 people at the camp. There is a older bear in a wooden cage with a group of clerics standing around it. They appear to be all clerics of Ponos, the god of suffering. One cleric harms the bear with a heated poker, while the other clerics pray to Ponos. 
: "Ponos, god of suffering, we offer you this bear. We bring his pain for all to see so that you may witness the passing of one of your greatest disciples. Ponos let the pain of this creature guide you to our rites."
The party spot a pile of dead animals who had previously had this treatment from the clerics. In the audience are knights and nobles among commoners. No sign of any Army of Voraci presence.
Grau turns into Orc form. Grau wants to help, but Auguste points out the massive crowd would make it hard to escape with the bear. Grau returns to bear form to spray to Nadinis for guidance. 
Nadinis reveals to Grau he isn't hear to save the bear. He is here for the person being buried in the tomb. A person who has caused great suffering to the creatures of Nadinis. The swirl in the dreams was the sigil of Ponos.
Grau turns into a gnome and tells Auguste the objective Nadinis gave him is inside the tomb, not the bear outside.
The four guards at the tomb were allowing people in and out. The party want to blend into the group of people but they don't even know the name of the person who died. The agree to come back later tonight when less people are awake. While waiting Auguste goes to the nearby town of and leaves Schnickelfritz in a stables there.
In the night they see the dead animals are being served to the people, some of them very raw. There are 50 mourners, 20 performers/cooks/servants, 10 foot solders, 3 knights, 8 clerics. The ritual continues before climaxing with the lead cleric letting a snake bite them. The ceremony ends, with people dispersing.
The party sneak towards the tomb at this point. The tomb only has one guard at this time. The tomb door has been sealed. 
Auguste goes up to the guard at the tomb. He claim to be a noble's son who has been asked to guard the tomb, as a rite of passage. The guard doesn't fully trust Auguste and keeps the tomb keys, but lets Auguste take guard. Auguste, not getting the key, tackles the guard to the ground.
The guard breaks free of the grip and draws his sword and shout out intruder. Auguste goes to flee. Grau runs into the situation as bear form to cause a distraction for Auguste. The 2 party members flee into the night.
===Interrogating Nobles===
The party make it to the village of and rest.
Grau, now in Orc Form, wants to go back, but Auguste points out how unsafe it is to go there now, and they should wait until later. Grau thinks Nadinis needs him to go there now.
They ask the local innskeep and find out the funeral was for Father Hinton. He was once the head interrogator in this area for the Empire. He died a couple months ago of old age, and the tomb was just finished.
The two decide to head back to the tomb. On the way they encounter a group of 4 people heading away from the tomb on the road. Auguste asks them about viewing the tomb and the 2 nobles look down on Auguste for even asking about it. Auguste wants to start a fight, but Grau stops him.
Liear
The 2 arrives back at the camp outside the tomb. There are far less people here now. Other than the guards and knight, the people there are taking down the temporary buildings and tents. Grau and Auguste arrive but are told the tomb is now sealed.
The party walk off to the side and decide to ambush a cleric on the road for information before killing them. Then they will try raiding the tomb together as a full party. 
As they wait, they ambush a pair of nobles on the road, Lord and Lady Leier. Auguste captures them and escorts them into the woods and ties them up. The nobles try to resist, but Auguste overpowers them. Grau acts menacingly in bear form.
Auguste interrogates Lord Leier about what traps are inside the tomb. He doesn't know anything about the traps, but knows that High Priestess Geneva has the key to the tomb. 
Auguste asks about Wattis Thresh, the person who cursed him and Renatus. Lord Leier explains they are the Arc Mage of Valesburg. They usually aren't in Valesburg and deployed to keep the locals in check. Wattis Thresh used to be good friends with the late Father Hinton. Wattis Thresh would use magical power for force compliance, Father Hinton would use torture for compliance for the Voraci Empire.
Grau decides they will let the nobles go free. Auguste wants to kill the nobles, but agrees to go along with what Grau wants. Grau heals up the wounds from the interrogation and the nobles are released.
Grau and Auguste decide they will meet up with the rest of the party before dealing with the tomb.
==Experience==
No experience given this session.
Category:Save Or Die: Outcasts Episodes
Category:Save Or Die Episodes
Category:Save Or Die: Outcasts