Thirty-Eighth Session - Captains, Bishops, and Priests

PREVIOUSLY ON TRAITOR'S KEEP, Alana was summoned to the desert city of Azkaresh by an old connection named Janith in response to a mysterious problem, at the same time the rest of the team was sent there by the Crown to deal with a threat in the catacombs. After a perilous desert crossing and a day of errands, the session began with the Keepers returning to the Crownsguard barracks to find out about their mission. At this point, the party has reached LEVEL 9.

They are summoned to the presence of Captain Villenue, an officer foreign to Azkaresh who is sweating both the weather and the rash of mysterious disappearances centering on the catacombs. Of note is the fact that the Crownsguard barracks is much more austere than the massive Starred Guard Academy the Keepers visited last session, indicating an imbalance in power between the two forces.

The catacombs are a massive 'City of the Dead' and are sometimes used for smuggling. Everyone who dies in Azkaresh and the surrounding desert is interred there, there are a thousand years of dead down there, as the catacombs predate the Raithir Empire. A shrine to the Lady of the Lasting Embrace (LOTLE) is supposed to be in charge, but contact has been lost and people sent down there haven't come back.

The symbol of the Dream Devourers has been found at the site of each disappearance and the Captain believes it is dangerous to depict, as the person who was studying it also vanished. All who have vanished came from the upper-class 'ground floor' of Azkaresh- in this city, the best homes are downward and inward of the rocky ring the city is built into. Of particular note is that Governor Rashid's son (Hepatian, 16 years old, curious nature) went missing recently, and there is a 5,000 gold reward for his safe return or 1,000 for retrieving his body.

The Captain cannot spare any personnel as backup, but hands out magic gear.

1. Ishaq: gets Cloak of Billowing from Alana, and also a Headband of Intellect
2. Alana: Boots of Elvenkind
3. Max: Goggles of Night
4. Celia: Cloak of Protection
5. Alice: Periapt of Wound Closure
6. Markoris: Wand of Magic Missiles

Items may be kept if the party is successful, but the Captain is frank that she expects the Keepers to perish. She suggests going to the temple of LOTLE or the city's Pantheon for a map of the Catacombs.

Briefing concluded, strategizing begins. Max suggests using location magic to search for Hepatian. Alana reveals she has spells that could help and she can turn into tracking animals, and Celia now has access to Scry. Markoris suggests seeking underworld knowledge of the smuggling routes down there, revealing he has connections to the black market in Azkaresh.

Fortified by Ishaq's Inspiring Leader speech, the team splits up to pursue the two leads. Markoris leads Ishaq, Max, and Alana to look for information from the underworld, while Celia, Alice, and Raul visit the Pantheon.

Aided by Ishaq, Markoris guides his group to a tavern called Nolan's Wind in the sleazier part of the city, higher up, on the outer edge of the ring, and more exposed to the desert elements. Max notices them getting attention and spots messages in Thieves' Cant confirming that Nolan's Wind is where to go for this kind of business.
Inside the tavern is a loud scene with a musician being bood and a rough-looking crowd of patrons. While Max keeps an eye out and Ishaq gets flirted with right in front of Alana, Markoris buys a drink and asks to the 'The Bishop.'

The party is admitted to a shadowy back room.
In the back, a man in his early twenties enters. Markoris doesn't recognize him, but realizes this is the son of the Bishop he knew, and his own reputation is still recognized here. The Bishop confides that his organization has been losing people in the catacombs for the past 3-4 months, and  confirms he has seen the symbol of the Dream Devourers in the tunnels even though he doesn't recognize it. The party offers to clear the place of peril in exchange for the information needed to find their way about down there- even though the Bishop, too, expects them to die. At Max's query, the Bishop says that rewards are available for retrieval of goods and peoples that have been lost by his organization.

The Bishop informs that the catacombs are built like a wheel, with tunnels radiating out from the temple of LOTLE which is the central hub. He provides a parchment with a hidden map of the catacombs- activated with a special quill and saliva - with smuggling routes on it and symbols marking crossroads. He also reveals that smugglers down there have a triangular symbol tattooed on their arms, revealed in a similar manner as the map.

Information obtained, the party thanks the Bishop and makes to leave. On the way out, the Bishop stops Ishaq and advises him that the Host Radiant symbol visible on his hands has been seen around town on people showing a dangerous lack of discretion regarding their beliefs and allegiance.

On the way out, Markoris spots that they're being shadowed. Aware that things will go badly if the smugglers follow the party back to the Crownsguard barracks, he diverts the group to a pub crawl and tries to lose the tail.

Meanwhile at the Pantheon, Celia, Alice, and Raul observe blotted-out figures of pre-Raith gods on the side of the building. Celia prays to LOTLE, and receives her Blessing for the next 24 hours. The priest of LOTLE present is less helpful however, and is alienated by Celia's criticism of his traditions. He does confide that LOTLE doesn't get many worshippers around here, that the catacomb temple has been closed to the public, and that a backlog of bodies has built up aboveground due to fear of what lurks in the catacombs. Their business done, Alice and Celia go drinking together near the barracks and talk body disposal.

Back at the impromptu pub crawl, Ishaq encounters three of the outspoken, brightly-dressed Host Radiant members the Bishop mentioned. He disguises himself as a merchant member of the sect, says his name is Max Power, and engages them, learning their names are Bartholomew, Lezlo, and Omai. They tell him they're on a religious pilgrimage to study Ishaq's own life and philosophies, specifically tracing his matrilienal ancestry to Azkaresh, and that they are hopeful for a new dawn for the Host Radiant. They seem to show no fear of the Crown cracking down on them. Ishaq gives them some gold and does his best to convince them to be more subdued in their displayed allegiance to a banned sect.

The session ends as Markoris, checking the outside of the bar, verifies that the tail is gone and that they can safely rejoin the rest of the party.

END OF SESSION