Age of the Dragon: Chapter 1

## Blood and Silver

   **Starting Date:** 13th of Hisimer, 1953

### Vendermunde

Our story begins in the early morning, as our heroes, a group of mercenaries working for the Crimson Axes had just reached the town of Vendermunde within the Imperial County of Freyenkuste. They were greeted at the gate by the Lord’s chamberlain, Sebastian Drachfeld. The chamberlain explained the situation to the party regarding the Crimson Axes’ guild hall that had been burnt down as well as the recent string of murders.

Following on the leads given to them, the party met with the coroner that had been overseeing the autopsies. Taking time to examine the corpses, Chulz could not shake the feeling that they were being watched. With the bodies examined they headed off towards the remains of the guild hall, still unable to shake the feeling that someone was following them. Breaking off from the rest, Reyna noted that a diminutive figure did indeed seem to be close behind although she lost sight of him soon after, as he seemed to duck into an alleyway and disappear in the sewers.

Reaching the guild hall, they continued their investigation, looking through the ruined floors until they finally descended into the basement that seemed to be the origin of the explosion. Here Thomas discovered a few drops of orange fluid running along the side of what seemed to have been a cask of Vardmensfal Red. Meanwhile, Rojer noted that there seemed to be a grate leading down into the sewers, potentially to serve as a drain in case of flooding. The rest of the party descended soon after, with Reyna identifying the fluid as unrefined aether, a liquid form of arcana that was very much common back in her homeland of Zenria. Khetakar however, found a small golden coin with a ruby inlaid in the centre amidst the rubble, a coin that he recognised from his own past.

Believing that the perpetrators were using the sewers to travel, the party descended down into the depths and followed the tracks beneath the guild hall and through an outlet leading out into the wilderness, here the party recognized the tracks belonged to kobolds. Continuing after their leads, the party passed through the slums outside the city, noting all the while that many of the vagabonds who littered the streets seemed to be keeping a close eye on them.

Meeting with the court wizard, Thomas took the time to examine the properties of the unrefined aether as the rest of the party spoke to the wizard, with Khetakar noting that he seemed to know more than he was letting on. After this, the party decided to follow on their final lead, as Chulz spoke to a person that witnessed some of what happened, an elderly woman that claimed to have seen goblins burn down the guild hall. Thanks to her description, the party reached the conclusion that she was unknowingly describing Kobolds. Retiring to the Exiles’ Rest for the night after a very fruitful day, the party began drawing up a plan in order to counter any possible attack during the night, setting up watches atop the inn in order to monitor the surrounding area for movement.

It was during the second watch that Khetakar and Thomas noticed an individual slinking into a nearby alleyway. Flying overhead, Khetakar followed this individual and noticed a dead body slumped beside a well. Descending downwards to examine, he noted that it was in fact a decoy, as seven robed figures quickly surrounded him. In response to this, Khetakar immediately took off only to be shot down by three kobolds that had been hidden on the rooftop.

Seeing this, Thomas used one of his contraptions to warn the party, who were quick to respond as they attacked the cultists from the tavern’s rooftop. Chulz rushed through the streets in the hopes of saving Khetakar, he was too late however, as one of the cultists looted a coin from the dying cleric and rushed into a nearby building. Soon after Chulz found himself overwhelmed as Thomas moved to flank the enemies.

Thankfully, a group of guards had been on patrol nearby and with their help the party managed to slay the cultists, although it was too late as they found that Khetakar had bled out during the fight. Seeing this, a resolute Thomas rushed after the cultist who had escaped, followed closely by Reyna as Rojer and the remaining guardsmen tended to the fallen, carrying the unconscious Chulz back to the Exile’s Rest. Managing to follow the cultist’s tracks, Thomas and Reyna descended into the sewers.

There Thomas overheard a conversation between the cultist and a white kobold who was garbed in an almost regal cloak and wielding an ashwood staff, the cultist gave the kobold the golden coin that they had stolen from Khetakar after which the kobold disappeared. Sensing his opportunity, Thomas interrogated the cornered cultist who tried to plead for his life but to no avail as he revealed that Vincent Krom was leading the cultists and that there were at least two dozen more before Thomas finished him off. Looking through the corpse, he found a silver ring depicting three dragon heads; after which he and Reyna returned to the inn, as the guards carted off the dead bodies and promised to send the guard captain to speak to them.

What followed was a mostly restless night of sleep, after which the party was met by the guard captain, Willard, who thanked them for their help and discussed the ongoing issue that they were faced with. When asked to provide them with black powder from the town store however, he was hesitant claiming that they needed to provide a signed document from the chamberlain although he would be willing to put in a good word for them.

After he left, the party split up with Thomas confining himself to his room in order to tinker on a few projects as the rest went to the coroner. Here they cremated Khetakar's ashes and noted that the kobolds seemed to possess a mark on the back of their head depicting three spiraling dragon heads. After this they spoke to the chamberlain who hesitantly decided to give the party permission to take a bit of black powder from the store. Chulz and Rojer returned to the inn with the keg whilst Reyna paid a visit to the court wizard regarding any potential chance of learning magic. The wizard seemed somewhat reluctant to share any knowledge especially when she broached the possibility of this being done illegally.

After this she decided to spend some time exploring the town where a performer caught her eye as she saw copper scaled dragonborn performing various acrobatic feats within the town square. Upon seeing her, he gave a sly wink and she decided to approach the individual after he was done. In the meantime, Thomas began working on constructing a makeshift bomb. He was, much to his dismay, joined by the easily bored Rojer who did not take long to break the quiet that the goblin enjoyed. Meanwhile, Chulz decided to spend the day drinking below enjoying a few drinks alone and occasionally noting the figure of Artemis playing a few rounds of dragonchess. One such game seemed to be leading to violence as Artemis’ opponent loudly shouted out threats of violence. Chulz quickly stepped in and defused the situation much to Artemis’ gratitude and the two enjoyed a game, all the while engaging in conversation. It was here that Chulz learnt a bit more about his opponent and was offered the chance to find a cure for his condition.

As this was going on, Reyna approached the dragonborn who led her out of the town and into the slums in order to meet his mentor. It was here that he revealed his true colours, as he berated her and tried to kill her. Quickly realizing that she was outmatched, Reyna attempted to escape as she found that two more cultists stood in her way. Rushing past, she managed to make it to the tavern blood still pouring out of her wounds. It was at this point that it truly dawned just how isolated they were, and how deadly their enemies were.

Their mood was not helped by Chulz’s confession that he had promised to meet Artemis alone the following night. And the situation was made even worse when he revealed that he was indeed a lycanthrope, a fact that he had kept hidden from all of them. Desperate to find a way to control his condition, he explained how he would meet the merchant in order to hear what he had to say but he would appreciate it if they could cover him. Reyna and Rojer reluctantly agreed, and when the time came, the two of them took cover on the rooftop of the inn so that they could survey the meeting. Artemis greeted Chulz with his usual jovial tone, as he led him out of the tavern into the cold night.

In the drizzling rain, Chulz used his divine sense and realized that the merchant was in fact a celestial. Artemis noticed this as he clapped his hands together and time itself seemed to grind to a halt. The streetlamps were engulfed in shadows as he took Chulz to the Black Emporium, a large hexagonal tower, each floor lined with rows upon rows of shelves, all of them stocked with a variety of items. It was here that he revealed that he had been keeping an eye on Chulz for quite a while and offered him the chance to tame the beast, after all he only had 13 days left before the change would take him again. He only required a favour in return, this left Chulz somewhat confused and requested time to think on it, time that Artemis was more than willing to give. Returning to the street, Chulz now found himself alone and the duo of Reyna and Rojer were left confused as to what happened. Following this they all reconvened inside where Chulz discussed what had happened during the meeting, after this they decided to rest, still anxious as to what was happening in the town.

The next morning the party, still somewhat tired from the previous days' events were once again met by the guard captain Willard who introduced them to the triton warrior, Okeanos. The triton introduced himself to the party and seemed to be a fitting addition to their ranks. In addition to that, Willard also informed them that kobolds attempted to attack the black powder storehouse during the night, however, the guards had managed to fend them off. One of the kobolds had escaped running off into the sewers.

Following this lead, the party waded through the sewers eventually finding the half dead kobold just outside the city. After a few minutes of intense interrogation, they learnt that the kobolds had a hideout to the northwest of the city a bit less than a day’s journey away. They also found out that the kobolds had set up ambushes and patrols along the path. With this knowledge in hand, the party set off, making sure to keep the kobold, Gruk, well in hand as their guide and prisoner.

### Vardmensfal Wilderness

They eventually came across one of the aforementioned ambushes and thanks to both Reyna’s keen eye and Gruk’s information managed to go around, catching the ambushers off guard. A bloody battle ensued, however, by the end of it the party had slain the kobolds some of whom had attempted to escape. Heading on forwards, the party eventually reached the kobold hideout, a cave that had been carved into the side of a hill, noting the presence of a few entrances, Thomas took his newly constructed bomb and made his way up along the side of the hill, dropping the explosive into the heart of the outpost.

A few seconds later, a massive explosion rocked the entirety of the countryside as flames erupted out of the hill bathing the surrounding terrain in a variety of colours. After a few minutes, they began to die down allowing the party to enter the now charred and unstable interior. Stepping over the burnt and still very much colourful corpses of the kobold defenders they made their way further into the outpost until they finally reached what they assumed to be the inner sanctum.

However, much that could have helped in their investigation had been destroyed by the explosion. That being said, a few treasures seemed to have survived, chief amongst them an ornate helmet depicting various draconic designs and a small opaque globe. The party had little time to savour their victory however, as they were suddenly attacked by a massive kobold, one that had survived the explosion. Another battle ensued, one that almost claimed the lives of Chulz and Okeanos, however, the party survived and managed to make their way out of the collapsing caverns. Setting up camp, they took a short breather dividing their treasure and taking the time to examine the helmet and globe. Discovering that one of them was a helm of comprehending languages and the other a bozza (driftglobe).

The following morning, the party decided to follow their leads regarding the local noble Vincent Krom, who oversaw the manufacturing and distribution of Vardmensfal Red. They began heading south towards the village of Kaperstein and thankfully enough the journey was a quiet one, the wilderness eventually giving way to a more urban environment the further south they headed with them eventually coming up to the mostly unimpressive village.

### Krom's Estate

Krom’s estate loomed at the top of a hill to the west of the village. Making their way quietly across the countryside, they stumbled across the gruesome scene of a battle, its only survivor, a halfling acolyte of the burning claw. The bloodied halfling seemed to have been ambushed by a group of cultists, and although she had managed to defend herself, she had been heavily injured and could barely move. She was initially suspicious of the party, however after Reyna managed to convince her that the party meant her no harm, she relented continuing to tend to her wounds as the rest of the party converged.

She introduced herself as Cheryll Valstett, an acolyte within the Order of the Burning Claw, that had been investigating the Lord Vincent Krom alongside her sister as they believed that he was guilty of illegally practising magic. She informed the party that her sister had gone to confront Vincent against Cheryll’s better judgement, and she had yet to return. The party offered to help as they have a common enemy, she hesitantly accepted, sharing what little information she had. She had seen some dragonborn enter the estate but no kobolds and had also noted that whilst the front of the estate was heavily defended by mercenaries, there seemed to be an abandoned wing near the back. Learning of this the party decided to rest for the day planning to infiltrate the estate during the night.

Under the cover of darkness, the party made their way up along the side the hill, climbing up into the ruined wing and descending into what seemed to be an abandoned section of the estate. The party was locked inside this section and as they made their way through the dust-filled rooms and corridors they were ambushed by a cluster of giant spiders. A harrowing battle ensued, however, the party managed to triumph although they were now far more anxious as to what awaited them here. Opening the path out of this wing, they made their way into a section that seemed to have been recently inhabited as torches lit the various rooms and corridors, following the path they reached a large chamber filled with various torture implements as well as a variety of mutilated corpses, all seemingly subjected to those gruesome torturous implements. Among them the party spotted the corpse of a halfling, who they immediately recognised to be Cheryll’s sister, her naked body covered in cuts and bruises, as it was sat upon a spiked throne.

Giving Cheryll a moment to mourn, the party headed further inwards coming upon a caged troll, hurriedly backing away, they heard footsteps coming from behind them as they saw the five more cultists accompanied by the Lord Vincent Krom. At first, Krom attempted to bargain with the party, however, it quickly became apparent that they were not interested as another deadly fight ensued during which Vincent released the troll that began making its way towards the party. Seeing the encroaching threat, Rojer acting on Okeanos’ plan attempted to befriend the troll using his psionic abilities. Surprisingly enough this worked as the troll turned on Krom and his allies. With the tide turning in their favour, the party managed to defeat the cultists and few animated sets of armour that Vincent awakened, and managed to knock the lord out cold as he attempted run away. Tying him up, the party interrogated him regarding Barb-Tail’s goal in the mining village of Voralsdum, learning that he was searching for an artifact deep beneath the mine, although Krom had no idea as to the nature of the artifact. After the party was satisfied with the answers, they fed him to the troll which then lumbered off towards the abandoned wing of the estate.

Following this, the party began looking through Vincent’s office where Reyna found a book that contained various spells, as well as various letters and correspondences which Vincent had been involved in. There was a lot of evidence of the lord’s less savoury activities as well evidence of his work with Barb-Tail. They also found an unexpected piece of evidence, a note from Krom detailing how the court wizards of Vendermunde, Kraft, had come to him by order of the Lord Sigmund himself, in order to discuss the possibility of summoning demons. An incriminating letter that left the party at a loss about what they would do. As they were about to leave, they noticed a small chest in the back corner of the office, inside which were a set of silver robes similar to the ones that the other cultists wore but far more ornate and beautifully decorated.

As Rojer, prepared to tuck them into his pack, the mask began to hum as his surroundings faded away. He found himself in what seemed to be a circular cave, its walls lined with various mirrors, he immediately dropped the mask in the hopes that he would return but it was to no avail as he instead saw two yellow eyes staring back at him through the darkness. Beyond he saw the gargantuan outlines of the figure shift as the creature’s voice boomed and echoed all around him. Before anything could happen however, the cave vanished and he found himself back in the office, at a loss for words as the party rushed out of the dungeon. Rushing out of the estate the party decided to head back towards Vendermunde to conclude their deal with Sebastian.

### Vendermunde

Arriving there at about midday, they received their payment and had a short conversation with the man, after he opened up to them regarding some personal doubts. The conversation was a short one however, as the party was disinterested in this. Hearing this, the chamberlain immediately gave them a new contract. They were told to investigate the mines as they had lost all communication with the inhabitants.

After discussing their payment, they spent the night at the Exile’s Rest where during their watch Rojer and Okeanos had a discussion regarding their pasts and possibly the party’s future. During their conversation however, Rojer felt an invasive presence burrow into his mind, using powers that seemed to be similar to his own psionic abilities, however he managed to resist it and the effect vanished.

### Vardmensfal Wilderness

The next morning, the party set off towards Voralsdum, the first day of their journey was a quiet one, as they travelled through the countryside, passing by farmland and eventually setting up camp with the treeline of the Schwarzwald in view. The following day was spent travelling along the dirt road within the woodland. They reached the mining village of Voralsdum late in the evening. The sight that awaited them was a grim one, as they found the town in ruin, its streets littered with decaying corpses all of which showed signs of what seemed to be a fungal growth as a layer of this white, dust like substance coated many of the bodies. The area was devoid of all other life, as even the wildlife seemed to have dispersed.

### Voralsdum

As they picked their way through the street, Rojer saw various figures flitting through the shadows, although they seemed to disappear whenever he turned to look. Reaching the top of the incline, the party faced off against a group of kobolds that were looting the upper town. Easily managing to take them out they continued their investigation with Rojer continuing to see more and more figures flitting through the shadows.

All of a sudden, the party were caught in an earthquake that lasted for but a few seconds but served to accentuate the fact, that their time was running out. Here Thomas also recognized what seemed to be a hastily constructed vydren mausoleum, fearing that their heirlooms and trinkets would be looted by the kobolds, he gathered as many as he could before the party entered the mine.

Here they once more encountered kobolds, as they fought a grueling battle within the claustrophobic halls and labyrinthine passageways. The battle eventually culminating at a wooden bridge as kobold dragonshield tried to destroy the supports. At the end, the party managed to pushed through, flanking the kobolds and establishing a foothold. Managing to fight their way through, the party decided to take a short rest, during which Rojer was once more assailed by visions as he saw a female as clear as day beckoning him onwards. He ignored her, although the experience left him visibly perturbed.

Following their short rest, the party began their descent down a crude crevice. As they did so, the earth once more shook all around them, Rojer who stood at the edge of the crevice, managed to just barely hold on. As he let out a sigh of relief however, he looked up, just in time to see a towering figure with red skin and two curled horns, push him off the edge and into the darkness below. Thankfully, Reyna quickly reacted by casting “Feather Fall” and slowing down his descent, potentially saving his life. It was at this point, that the madness began to spread to the rest of the party as they all began to see shadows flitting through the darkness and hear a constant whining sound.

Heading deeper into the mines, they noticed that the walls seemed to have also been covered by that same white dust. As some of them, to their horror noted that their skin was also turning a pale white. Descending deeper and deeper they came across a large cavern, split down the middle by an immense chasm. Beyond which they saw a large stone gatehouse, its architecture unmistakably dwarven. A massive stone bridge connected the two sides in the centre of which amidst a pile of kobold corpses stood a familiar dragonborn figure. The same dragonborn that had attacked Reyna, his blades bloodied as that same white membrane began to creep up along his fingers and down the side of his face. He stood there muttering to himself whilst the party quietly advanced.

The party observed as another copper dragonborn emerged from the gatehouse clearly in a panic. And as the two discussed the party learnt their names, Brutus and Flavius, respectively. As Flavius pleaded with Brutus to follow him out, taking out a small silver amulet, and beginning to tap it, Thomas immediately recognising it as the same amulet Barb-Tail used to teleport. Brutus finally seemed to relent just as Thomas let off a shot and blew off Flavius’ fingers.

A battle ensued as the maddened Brutus rushed towards the party whilst Flavius began hurling spells in a panic as he attempted to bargain with the party. Seeing that they would not be dissuaded Flavius unleashed a fireball that incinerated Thomas. The battle continued as Flavius and Brutus were pushed further and further back. On his last legs, Flavius’ seemed to recall something and mere inches away from death he grabbed Brutus’ silver necklace and the two of them teleported out of the mines.

The party, now battered and beaten, driven to exhaustion grabbed Tommy’s corpse and travelled deeper into the mine seeking to put an end to Barb-Tail’s plan. Once more they were assaulted by visions of various silhouettes, one of which resembled the late Tommy. Reaching the end of the mine they came across a large square chamber, it had been split down the middle with a sea of stars flowing through the cracks. On the other side stood Barb-Tail in the middle of casting a ritual directed towards a mural. The mural depicted an alien being clutching what seemed to be an octahedron, as the inscriptions that surrounded it, constantly shifted and changed their meaning. The party moved up to defeat the kobold wizard who noted that they were carrying around their fallen comrade. Pleading with the party to not interrupt the ritual lest they release the guardian, he promised to help bring him back as he explained that the octahedron could help change fate itself.

Seeing a chance to bring Thomas back, the party relented and agreed, so long as he disposed of his amulet and they would do the same as a gesture of good faith. Barb-Tail seeing no alternative accepted their terms as both parties tossed their amulet into the chasm. And so the wizard continued, although the party kept a close eye on him ready to attack at a moment’s notice.

The ritual finally came to an end as the octahedron floated into Barb-Tail’s clutches, meanwhile the alien being manifested, shifting its gaze between the party before its single red eye settled on Rojer. Its gaze lingered on him, as its body began to disintegrate before finally turning to ash. Amidst the ash, Rojer noticed what seemed to be an amethyst shard, noticing that Barb-Tail had not taken notice used his psionic abilities to cover it in ash. The resurrection ritual took quite a while, and unlike other resurrection rituals seemed to involve reconstructing Tommy's body as the damage was slowly but surely reversed.

After a while, the ritual came to an end, as the party noticed that Thomas was breathing again. Seeing this, Barb-Tail took a step back as the party concluded their deal and stated that as far as they were concerned, they'd kill him the next time they meet him. Barb-Tail seemed somewhat amused, stating that he hoped that the Silver Tyrant would grant them the clairvoyance necessary to repent for their heresy, before finally revealing a recreated silver amulet and teleporting out of there.

Thomas awoke shortly after, confused with what had transpired, as Rojer made his way towards the pile of ash. Here he claimed the crystal and noted that it seemed to almost resonate with him. Exhausted, the party began to make their way out of the mines, noting that the madness seemed to have come to an end, and as they reached the upper village and decided to rest in one of the cabins.

Although for one member in particular, this rest would be anything but restful, as Chulz was plagued by a horrifying nightmare, a sign he had grown used to during the time he had spent as a lycanthrope, a sign that his transformation was close at hand.