Game 26

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\*We run into Bishop Bruckwell in the abandoned derelict of the Temple of Tyr

Otto, Brohain, and Aziola:

Inside a temple with columns and stained glass. The red wizards of Thay appear. A red skull-like face wizard appears and asks if anyone would like to play backgammon. There is a man in a black coat unlike the red wizards but wears a shimmering red golden pendant. He walks with a cane. One of the red wizards asks “do they have the sickenss?” “we can see varying states but these appear different. They have the inoculation”.

The man in black: Have you come to seek the inoculation? I am Bishop Bruckwell.

Otto casts Fog cloud.

Bishop Bruckwell: We can help!

Otto: What, like you helped with Rowan?

Bruckwell: Who?

Otto: Run!

The three run. The go back the way they came and run into sick people waiting in line for the inoculation. They look like Rowan. The group asks them about the Listener but are unable to get any information. They ask the people why they all look like Rowan but get rushed by the people so they run to safety. As far as they can tell, no one has followed them. (Bishop Bruckwell has been mentioned since Otto's arrival in Silverymoon).

Otto: Sorry about that. That was a little more involved than I was expecting.

Brohain: Aye, I don't think any of us were. I thought they just ran a chain of crappy magic stores.

Aziola: What makes you think they were going to harm us?

Brohain: Well, when something doesn't have a nose, you think maybe it's not a great situation.

Otto: To be fair, we entered there to find our companion and sensed he's not in the best of health.

Brohain: That guy looked like a resurrected corpse! eck!

Aziola: I wanted to ask them what caused the disease. but oh well.

The group decides to not go back to the temple. The Church of Helm is involved, The red Wizards of Thay may be playing both ends of this game. Wait, what did the group drink? Almost all of the group took the inoculation yet we still have the disease? Why is everyone infected turning into a deformed Rowan? Otto remembers something Rowan told him about his past. While Rowan was training, he encountered shadowy versions of himself. Otto, Brohain, and Aziola head back to Luckier Ned's. They do not find Damien nor David. They head over to the Zatzi Brother's place on the north side of town. The invitation was for dinner but the Zatzi bros agree they will meet them now. Marvin Zatzi arrives and everyone exchanges pleasantries. Shieldbitter apparently arrived before the group and put the word out about looking for D. Marvin seems smitten with Aziola but she does not notice. She feels that the Zatzi bros know more about the blight than they let on. The group and the Zatzi bros plan for a better time where the rest of the group may join for dinner. The group leaves. They stop by the Temple of Thay. They notice helm has similar stained glass windows they've seen before. The stained glass windows: there are 8 windows with 8 symbols. The eight schools of magic. This temple is very old. The group decides to split up. Otto decides to goes to the temple of lethander and is joined by Aziola, which hangs out in a tree outside.

Aziola communes with nature to check on how far the blight has spread. She reaches out, she feels plants reaching back, feeling the presence of wood near silverymoon. She senses something wrong and twisted. Instinctually she wants to pull back but she does not, for she feels a pull to go further as well. She is standing at the edge of a cliff. She hears soft whispers urging her to be careful, nudging her to step away from the darkness and back into the forest. She begins to walk forward, stepping over tree roots which change into an oily slickness of goo. Her feet begin to be pulled into the oily muck making it difficult to continue. She finds herself getting stuck in the muck and decides to turn back before its too late. as she struggles, she sinks deeper and deeper into the oily black sludge. She begins to panic but then centers herself by thinking of Honeysuckle a flower which guides her. She begins to feel the black sludge bubble . She is shown the roots. The roots all lead to the father tree. She is snapped out of her trance, a bit dazed, a trickle of black oil dripping from her nose.

Brohain heads back to the tavern. He senses that he is being followed and decides to take side streets to lose his tail but hears footsteps behind him. He quickly turns around and confronts.... nothing. Nothing or no one is there. He hears a disembodied voice: "If you want to live, give me all your money". Dang, he is getting mugged. the dude grabs Brohain's pouch but spills its golden contents onto the ground. Brohain pins the man to the wall using his ice knife. Brohain gets his property back and gives the thief some gold. He drops the ice knife to melt.

\*David and Damian consider what to do. Go to Thay shop. It is closed. Go to Temple of Helm. It is closed.

David and Damien:

An old man (thief) is following them. They catch him and intimidate him to leave them alone. The old man turns pale and runs away. They go to the Red Wizards Shop but no one is there. They go to the temple and no one is there. They decide to steal from the Red Wizard shop. Damien casts invisibility on himself and david.

\*Rowan wakes up. HIs whole body hurts. Inthe opposite cage is his friend Tanden.

Every part of his body hurts and he feels a dull ache in the back of his head. He awakes, a dull groan escapes his lips; his vision blurred. He sees some sort of wooden lattice work which he is caged in. He sees a stone wall behind him and a reddish wall that leads to a small door. The lighting is dim but he is able to see another cage beside his. In it, a figure in lavender lays on the floor, unmoving.

Rowan: Hey! Wake up!

The figure groans and stirs. Rowan recognizes their face. It is Tandon.

Tandon: Where are we?

Rowan: Tandon is that you?

Tandon: Rowan?

Rowan: yeah

Tandon: How do I know you are the real Rowan?

Rowan: I guess you don’t, I am just kindof locked in here with you.

Rowan checks himself and finds that he only have the clothes he is wearing.

Tandon: Do you know where we are?

Rowan: No. Last thing I remember is being outside, where I saw Mira.

Tandon: Mira…..We have to help her.

Rowan: What happened between you two?

Tandon: What do you mean?

Rowan: How did she get the way she is? The third eye

Tandon crosses her arms. “You tell me”.

Rowan: what do you mean? I have not been here in years.

Tandon: well, where did you go? Its been 3 years.

Rowan: Not for me, its been weeks.

Tandon: What do you mean?

Rowan: After you and Mira were taken, I left the same way we came but whenever I was ejected 2 to 3 years later, I last saw you 4 weeks ago.

Tandon: I gave you an object. What was it?

Rowan: It was a moonsword. You told me to bring it back to you. I’ve been trying.

Tandon: So, if you are the real Rowan, why didn’t you use the moonsword? When activated, helps bridge and fix a place in time.

Rowan: I don’t know about that; it just lets me push stuff.

Tandon: Do you know what the sword is Rowan? It allows me to find you. But you were missing; displaced from this realm. I could not find you. Wherever we are now, I sense it. Have you bonded with it yet?

Rowan: yes

Tandon: good.

Rowan: how close is it?

Tandon: Very close. You should be able to call it to you.

Rowan: What?

Tandon: Surely you could feel the resonance of the sword and focus on it. Its called Selune’s Resurgence and the sword is a part of you now.

Rowan takes a moment. He tries to focus on the sword, to feel it, 10 heart beats. Closing his eyes, listening, he feels…..

Tandon: no, listen to the vibrations of yourself, not the sword.

Rowan remembers Aiden’s words. “A man’s heart is like an instrument”…. The sword appears in Rowan’s hand. It worked!

Rowan uses the sword to hack at the wooden cage and breaks free. He then goes to Tandon’s cage and tears it apart. Rowan finds his stuff but it is also caged. He eventually opens it.

Tandon: Will you help me find Mira?

Rowan: Of course.

Tandon: I haven’t been forthcoming with you. I am Mira’s protector, her sworn sword, her Velatho. She is a dream of Titania, of the summer court. Help me find her and stop whatever corruption has tainted her mind. Do you know how Mira got this way?

Rowan: I have some idea. It has something to do with the sickness. I will explain later.

Tandon: In the meantime, I would like your word, that you will swear to save Mira.

Rowan: very well, I will do everything in my power to save her. I have some allies in the city that can help us.

Tandon takes Rowan’s hands and places it on the sword. The sword glows blue.

Tandon: This is yours now. It will resonate with your heart. It is one of the resurgence of Selune; leftover from the dawn war.

Rowan and Tandon move to another room and see several people muttering to each other incoherently. There are two kolbalds in cages with visible tumors on their bodies. Their features are bathed in a pale blue light. A massive green cylinder in the center of the room, reaching 100 feet high. Inside the cylinder is a large blue dragon, which seems to be in a state of stasis. Rowan recognizes familiar features of the creature but…its not true. He wasn’t there. (Maybe its the same dragon he fought in Greenest?) On a table next to the cylinder, a book catches Rowan’s eye. Rowan quickly backs out of the room, not disturbing the people within it. Rowan walks up some stairs. The building and its structure seems familiar. Rowan steps on a platform and instinctually hits a lever. The platform takes Rowan up. Rowan looks into a portal and talks to his father Merrick, which also happens to resemble Rowans face too.

*Merrick: Ah! 37! I see you’ve come home! Planning to stay a while?*

*Rowan: No.*

 *Merrick: That’s a shame.*

 *Rowan: Who are you?*

 *Merrick: I’m you’re father Rowan… how do you feel? Where is Aiden? He took something very important from me. Other than you.*

*Rowan: I don.t know.*

*Merrick: You’re lying. It’s pointless. I’ll have the Eyes rip out of you.*

Merrick refers to Rowan as Number 37. Merrick calls the sick ones the eyes of Merrick. Rowan teleports to a white office room. Using the ala within the moon sword, it stops him from being displaced when traveling between realms. The ala is in the hilt of the sword, a white pearl.

 (Want to make a note of which stained glass windows pertain to the wells/8 symbols of magic.)

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