Zoom 2021-06-24 21:00

Xps awarded: 487

## After the fight:

The Watch sergeant remains to keep a close eye on the assassins body. The party is not allowed to search or touch it – but there are no signs of it regenerating. The party have a decent pre-breakfast (including the sergeant) and then the spell casters (and others who need it) get some kip and relearn spells.

The party is back up to full strength and fully healed by lunchtime. At about 12:30 the Captain of the Watch returns with 8 fresh guards and a cleric. He tells us that the Elves (Kilan, Sereph and the Dark Elf) have left town, but have left parcels for F. and U. at the Citadel.

The Cleric begins a ‘speak with dead’ spell while the party tell the Captain about Bez Drock’s comments about Solaran assassins using soul ‘stealing’ (ie holding) daggers – at which point the Cleric immediately abandons his casting of the spell – and the Captain does the equivalent of a car mechanic sucking air through his teeth while taking a sharp intake of breath. This is above his pay grade – and certainly above the grade of the Cleric he has brought along. They will take the body back to the citadel – but first invites the party to say if there is anything that the wish to claim from it later on.

There is nothing magical – but lots of daggers and an ‘open test tube’ type contraption. The party decide to use a Salve of Divination combined with a Det Magic and determine that the assassin has a Runic (non)magic ring on it. This is duly noted. The Captain invites us to come and collect the stuff from the Citadel – but asks that we wait for him to get some decent rest first!

**Afternoon Activities:**

The party investigate the ‘tug’ from the SiA (Sapling in Amber). F. experiences a slightly lesser tug than Q. does – but Brokev experiences a stronger tug. (J. doesn’t try given his current ambivalence to Wyldwood.) We assume that the closer one is to being a Cleric of Wyldwood the stronger the effect. Neither Bazin nor Wun (or any other party member) feel any kind of aversion to it, in the way that they would to another religion’s avatar. Later on, we get a more exact direction by using the SiA as a compass needle (not sure if Br. just needs to use the device, or if we need to suspend Br. while he holds the SiA) – it points towards Ghoulagabba or Willston (or StarStorm).

## Out and about town – party members always going out in groups!

* Bazin goes to the Sands of War to acquire his Avatar. He will sacrifice his +1/+1 axe for it. He is also given the ‘Necklace of Spell Success’ to wear so that the 24 hour attunement period is ready for him to cast Auguries when he gets back.
* Garaf goes off to complete his spell learning.
* Caradoc has further chats with the street urchins and keeps them on the payroll.
* Q. and J. speak more to the Herbalist. He has discovered a lot about the Meldorian Dust, and is just a day or two away from being able to manufacture it himself:
	+ Each dose requires about 8gps of ingredients.
	+ Given a suitable ‘blow-tube’, it can be dispersed into a cone 30’ long.
	+ Any creature that is invisible due to spell or ability (but not Hide in Shadows) will be revealed and be effectively Faerie Fired, and will take D8 damage for 2D6 rounds. (A successful Dispel Magic or removal of the Invisibility effect will stop this – but not an anti-poison effect.)
* Continuing on to the Halls of Song, we meet up with Hjiim. He gives us some info on Solaran assassin (Darrell has sent further details):
	+ Tend to operate in groups of 4: One high level assassin, 1 novice, and 2 ‘journeymen’.
	+ Their soul ‘holding’ daggers can prevent a soul from ‘departing’ for two weeks
	+ They are trained to ‘blind-fight’ - and use smoke bombs, darkness etc – and a lot of poison.
	+ Some have an inherent ‘mind blank’ effect.
	+ Use of magic is strictly controlled – and certainly use of overtly magical items is avoided (hence the Runic items.) However, there seems to be a plenty of rule bending when ‘expedient’.
	+ Solarans seem to tolerate Orcs and Maratasen – but not the other humanoids.
* Hjiim’s research: He was particularly interested in how ‘Clearsighted’ people seem to have had their ability clouded when they came to White Beach. (Not sure if he is/was clearsighted himself.) Also interested in Elven magic – explains how the Elves always flamboyantly over-egg anything they did/do magically.
* Phinon: He was excited by something he learnt from Q, J or the Tree – but Hjiim doesn’t know what. Phinon was a bright guy and a good researcher – he also had a big ego and enjoyed the adulation of the masses. They will probably try to get a resurrection on him once his soul is freed.

## The next day:

We go to the Citadel and speak to the Captain, and U. and F. collect their parcels from Kilan – they each contain a ring.

We are allowed our ‘salvage’ from the the assassin’s body comprising: Daggers, Poison vial(s), a ‘Dagger sheath of poison dispensation’ (ie application, not forgiveness!), 40gp and the Runic ring.

The Captain tells us that they couldn’t get any info from the dead assassin, but he probably **was not** the person who killed Phinon, but **was** involved in his death. He believes that the assassin’s two surviving accomplices (the other was killed by the Elves) probably left the city about 4 hours after the incident (a group of 6 people were recorded leaving when there should only have been 4).

The party decides to take advantage of the offer of a Safe House for when we leave the DF – Wun secures a place for us for 4 days. It has no magical security, but is ‘mundanely’ defensible and most importantly, within close proximity to the Watch. We will be responsible for any damage.

There is clearly a lot of activity occurring in the Citadel, and something is going on in Far Haven but we are unable to glean any further information.

Francis goes to the Alveran consulate: he can get no further information from them – the aerial courier network is down – and they are now using despatch riders.