Oshuamp - Episode 16: Predators and Prayers

### Recap

Ritora’s owl, Juniper, descends towards the party, with a small rodent in her mouth, and her claws blackened by frostbite. A telekinetic power removes the portions of the rodent from her mouth, but pieces of sinew and intestine remain in Juniper’s mouth. Ethir notices that sections of the rat are patchy and the fur has fallen out, potentially indicating an illness. Ritora covers her hand and removes the remaining pieces from her mouth, and they recoil as maggots crawl out from within. Nesgrim stomps the fragments with his boot, and Ritora cleanses her hands in the snow.

They journey over to Growlers and watch as a disgruntled group leave, dismayed at being told the tavern is closed for the evening. After waiting until they left the street, they knocked and were permitted entranced by Luna, and chose seats a long trio of tables dragged together, nicely decorated and overflowing with a bountiful feast. Luna continues to provoke and jest with Nesgrim, and then calls for her friends from the back to join everyone.

A pair of eccentrically dressed and appearing women, an elf and a human, walk through the door behind the bar, and gracefully walk over. Luna yells at everyone for not standing before they are seated and the crew stands as the first pulls a chair at the head of the table for the other sit, before joining her at her side. The elf introduces herself as Fae, and calls the other Grace. The women thank everyone for taking the time for the meeting and offer them to enjoy the feast. She tells them that the food was specially created by Leo, and that he possesses a powerful method of creation for foods.

As the crew begins to eat, they ask Fae of her knowledge of Widow’s Wail, her relationship with Corrin, and the experiences she has had in the city. She details her research on Widow’s Wail and her understanding of its various functions. Corrin collected the blooms of Widow’s Wail from the Mausoleum in Slums North because of the individuals who died in that area, as many of them are Peculiars.

Their conversation includes details about Adrian, and his life before he owned a shop in Slums West. He previously worked in the Etarast, the elite area in the center of the city, and was involved in herbalism and apothecary work. However, he was dismissed from his position because of his fanatical obsession with the Occult. Fae confesses that her family is a wealthy one, and operates a business with Herbs in the Etarast, and she, during her studies at the Academy in the Inner Sanctum, may have accidentally divulged information to Adrian that motivated his obsession.

Her family is invested in the ritualistic uses of Widow’s Wail, and has discovered that its effects are directly correlated to the individuals who died in the area, and that it requires more than just blood, or flesh. Ethir posits that it could be leeching the soul from the recently deceased. As he discusses his rituals, Fae makes the connection to the similar actions of Adrian, and his nihilistic perspective on life and death. When Ethir removes his vial that possesses the herbs he uses, she informs him of their names, and of their uses. Ethir realizes that he has been using substances, that though his Shamans taught him, are potentially dangerous. Adrian utilizes similar herbs and flowers, but some of them are unfamiliar to the crew. She warns them of the dangers of their use. As they discuss the use of the Widow’s Wail, she reveals that there are individuals who abuse the potential that may be brought based on the person who imbues the Widow’s Wail with their essence. When the party asks who may be doing this, she asks only, “Can you think of no one?”

Their conversation about Corrin reveals that he is a Paladin, and that Oath was what permitted him to heal people, and that his essence imbued the mound of earth in the basement, and why it was able to restore Nesgrim safely after the vampiric bite. Neither she nor Corrin were able to discern why his powers were able to be imbued into the Widow’s Wail, because he has already died and does not have a soul any longer. Ethir believes it may be because of that, and the possibility that his unique state gives him the ability to manipulate the forces of life and death. Fae proposes that it may also be because fragments of his soul linger in his body. Yahlumlo recognizes that Adrian’s frequent use of the word “transaction” is beginning to feel more appropriate based on the information they are learning.

Adrian, while still in the Etarast, concentrated his work on his rituals, and attempted to find like-minded souls. His research and studies became focused on discovering more about the Defiled, and he came to consider himself a prophet of it. As Nesgrim detailed his recollections of his two visions from his near-death and death experiences, she informs them that all she knows of the Defiled is that it was rumored to be an ancient monster that plagued the areas near Oshuamp. Some scholars believe that Ostador’s crusade was as much against the Orcs as it was against the desecrated earth. The Reclamation of Ostador resulted in the City of Oshuamp being retaken from the Orcs, but the city that the crew resides in is not actually Oshuamp, but a city built on top of its ruined grounds and uses the name.

Ethir opens up about their experiences in the areas below the Orphanage, making the connection that the Cathedral they explored must have been a ruin from Oshuamp. As they talk about their adventure and the statue in the Chapel of Ostador that opened to the staircase, Fae wipes her brow and removes the magical illusion that hides her own marking of an O, signifying her own time at the Orphanage and her banishment for behavior. Her time at the Orphanage was at the conclusion of Sabrina’s service, and tells the crew that she looked up to Sabrina greatly and believed her to be a kind and loving woman. As Fae worked to assist with the younger children, Sabrina came to trust her and behave more as a Mother, and was very affectionate. Fae confided in her about her parents’ ritualistic performances, and her concerns with the abuse of Widow’s Wail and the hunting of children that possessed an affinity for magic, or Peculiar bloodlines. Sabrina, distraught over the possibility of a connection to the Inner Sanctum based on Fae’s story and her parents’ connections, promised Fae that she would go to speak with Officials at the Cathedral.

Sabrina never returned to the Orphanage, and Isabel took over Directory, having been temporarily placed in power by Sabrina before she left. They convey their fears that Sabrina is connected to the woman they fought that had striking sinister features like Corrin, and Fae tells them that they are called Vampires. Nesgrim shows the puncture wounds, Yahlumlo procures the locket from his pocket, and Fae is distressed that Sabrina, missing for so many years, is possibly connected to this Vampiric group. After telling her that they slew Sister Amber in the Cathedral, they are hesitant to reveal the writing on the Statue, but tell her that the appearance of the Statue was similar to the visual of Sabrina that they know. Fae is further upset by this, and Ethir changes the subject of the conversation.

Nesgrim believes that little Nina, at the Orphanage, may be different, and is an Aasimar as far as he has perceived. Fae further admits details about her parents’ employment, and that Nesgrim himself, as an Aasimar, would have been pursued treat to develop into a powerful poultice. Adrian, while still in the Etarast, would procure herbs to assist Fae’s family in creating the potions, and the Peculiars who were brought to them were delivered by an unknown source. She assumes it may be related to the Guards.

They also inquire about her time in the Orphanage and what other Sisters she may have known, and only Desielle is a familiar name. She also tells them that the children who were to be delivered to the Orphanage are typically held by the Guards at their respective Guardhouse.

Nesgrim asks more about the visions of Adrian and if they are reliable and trustworthy. During her youth, some of her studies included Shamans who performed similar rituals and she believes they may be true experiences. Ethir relates his visions to Adrian’s and Fae discusses the other herbs that Adrian uses. They are horrified by the sounds and connections of their names, and the danger of their use. The herbs are in potentially dangerous locations, and they are opposed to talking to Adrian to buy them from him.

As Nesgrim talks more of his visions, the mention of a Seraph causes Fae to warn Nesgrim of its meaning, and his connection as a blessed creature himself. In an effort to replicate the guttural language he heard in his nightmarish recollection of his death, Fae is mortified to equate the sounds to Abyssal, a language used by Fiends and other Demonic creatures. The Defiled was speculated to be a creature of that origin, and fearfully informs them that the Defiled’s true name and appearance has been long lost, the only remaining fragment being the Black Claw. When they ask if they could meet with someone who could translate the sounds in Abyssal, Fae tells them that only Adrian, and possibly some scholars in the Inner Sanctum may be able to. Worship in Oshaump, and in most other parts of the world, is practiced carefully as the Faith in the Nameless, because it empowers the recipient of the Worship.

Nesgrim is terrified because of the Black Claw that burst through the dirt of his mother’s burial mound. Adrian considers himself to be a Prophet of the Defiled. Ethir talks of his visions from the Orc skeletons in the Cathedral, and tells Fae of the golden coins in their shaking hands. Fae believes the Orcs may have been from the era in which they controlled Oshuamp before Ostador’s Crusade, and Ethir tells her the phrase he found on the walls, “Oshuai Wampu.”

She tells everyone that was the name Orcs used for the City, and that the Reclamation simply shortened the name for convenience. Ethir fears that it may be the true name of the Defiled, but Fae disagrees, saying it does not mean something that would be akin to a name. When Ritora asks what the phrase does mean, Fae tells her:

“Haunted Gold.”