Of Rats and Ruin

In the season finale, Sebastian, Veo and Pluto decide the fate of Drakkenheim in one final battle.

## Synopsis

### The Queen Folds

Exhausted after their battle against the demonic appendage, Veo, Sebastian, Pluto and Elias Drexel take a moment to collect themselves. The heroes look out to the castle windows to see the grounds teeming with ratlings. The group briefly see Minozaurond, the bronze dragon gargoyle, lashing out against the ratlings but barely making a dent in their ranks. The minotaurs too can be seen falling to the rats.

The angel Mikada, having exhausted her summoning time, returns to her home plane after healing the party. The party resolves to meet the trapped steward Johann Eisner and empower him to command at least a few of the remaining defenses. They telepathically contact Eldrick, who notes that he and the others have barred themselves in a room for protection from the oncoming rats. They agree to rendezvous at Eldrick's current position on their way to Johann. The heroes pick up the crown of Drakkenheim, which has been freed from the clutches of the sibriex.

The Queen of Thieves appears again, taunting the heroes for their chosen course of action. She notes that it seems like none of the heroes get what they want: Veo's father will remain trapped, Pluto's nephew will not gain control of the city, and Sebastian will not use the power of the throne to rescue Mouse. Sebastian angrily replies that she is also not getting what she wants, and they're simply buying the time they need to make things better. She gives them one last chance to join her in controlling the throne of Drakkenheim. The heroes refuse and, after one last round of insults, the Queen retreats. She does not harm the heroes but notes that she will pick the badges off their corpses once the ratlings finish with them.

### The New King

As the Queen leaves, the ratlings enter. The Rat Prince, adorned in a fancy purple cloak, enters the room with Supreme Seer Squeaks and the bookkeeper ratling Scritches. The Drakkenforce attempts to redirect the ratlings against the Queen's Men and the oncoming Elyrians, but they are too frenzied to be controlled. The ratlings are intent on crowning the Rat Prince king of Drakkenheim. Veo worries to the party that while George Jackson might resist the evil from the planar rift, the Rat Prince will embrace it wholeheartedly.

The Rat Prince states that "The Rat God" has revealed their deception as "The Three Ghosts" and they have been unwittingly doing his bidding for some time. Sebastian drops all pretenses and offers the Rat Prince an ultimatum: take all the ratlings and leave the castle, or die. The Rat Prince refuses, stating "is my castle. Is my altar for Rat God!"

Combat begins as the players audibly regret not killing the Rat Prince in Episode 1. Pluto briefly uses his class feature *Know Your Enemy* to scout out the Rat Prince's capabilities, revealing an AC lower than Pluto's but a greater health pool. The party kills a chunk of the oncoming horde but eventually decide to retreat. Sebastian and Veo sacrifice their Immovable Rods to bar the doors and secure their retreat.

### The Steward and the Queen

The party makes their way to Eldrick, creating a distraction using a *Bag of Tricks* and a *Deck of Illusions* (the resulting ape and succubus are torn to shreds by the ratling horde). Sebastian seals the way behind using a door from his *Robe of Useful Items*. He also pulls a pit from his robe and leaves it as a trap under the door. The party reaches the others: River, Eldrick, Queen Lenore, and a few other unnamed NPCs. The head downstairs and, after a brief confrontation with some ratlings, reach the crypts.

As they enter, Johann is still trapped in the pillar, but his resolve is visibly stronger than before. He promises to use the power of the badges to be the jailer of the damned. Veo promises to return and free him eventually. Johann absorbs the power of the badges and, reconnected to the city's eyes, urges everyone to flee from the ratlings. Lenore decides to stay with Johann. Realizing that the world means nothing to her and the surrounding delerium will sustain her, she resolves to guard him as he once guarded her family.

With Johann in control, the mages are now able to teleport out of the castle. However, Eldrick speculates that the ratlings could still use the throne to wrest control of the castle from the trapped steward. The rats above are therefore a clear and present danger to the city.

### Regicide

> "Pluto, the bomb kills everything"
> "So do I."
>
> Sebastian and Pluto discuss using the bomb

The party discuss the merits of using the Delerium Bomb to destroy the throne room. Eldrick notes that while this would likely protect the crypts under the rubble, their personal chances of survival would be slim due to the bomb's magic disruption effects. Eldrick also notes that they may escape using the magical portal rift into the other planar. They ultimately decide to use it as a last resort.

The heroes have a short rest. River and Eldrick store what spells they can in the party's rings of spell storing. Lucretia provides a small blessing to heal the party. Their resources exhausted, the other spellcasters teleport out. With Elias and a small complement of other NPCs, they head back upstairs. Johann's influence animates the castle's golems, who clear clear a path to the throne room.

As the party enters combat outside the throne room, the Queen of Thieves and her retinue can be seen fighting off rats. She wins initiative and attempts to cast *Mass Suggestion* to enthrall the Drakkenforce. Sebastian casts *Counterspell*, which Deceit attempts to counterspell. Pluto counterspells Deceit using a stored spell and the Queen's suggestion ultimately fails.

Veo shoots the Queen, who apparently drops dead. The party is not fooled, and Sebastian activates his magical goggles to see her climbing a rope on the balcony. He attempts to use his *Hound of Ill Omen* Reaper to attack her, but she appears unfazed by the hound. The queen escapes while her men provide a distraction.

A thundering sound from the neighboring room signals that there are bigger problems. Supreme Seer Squeaks is communing with the rift from a floating shard of delerium in an attempt to crown the Rat Prince. Sebastian fires off one last spell against the Queen's Men before turning his attention to the Rat Prince. The Rat Prince tangles with Veo as Pluto rushes into the room. Pluto hurls his Javelin of Lightning at Squeaks and pushes her off the platform. In retaliation, she casts *Banishment* on Pluto. Pluto fails his save and is banished from the field.

Veo uses *Misty Step* to leap past the encroaching Rat Ogres and takes aim at Squeaks. She is ultimately unable to break the cleric's concentration. Sebastian helps clear the room with a casting of *Synaptic Static* while Elias Drexel and the remaining Hooded Lanterns cut down a Rat Ogre. Veo again fires at Squeaks and is able to break her concentration, returning Pluto to the field.

With the tides turning, Sebastian casts *Animate Objects* on some of the rubble, but misses an improbable number of times. He is still bloodied by the few that hits, and attempts to flee in fury. Using an *Action Surge*, Pluto teleports on top of the Rat Prince and is able to strike him down. He throws the Rat Prince's body into one of the nearby portals, and with one final "*no no no...*" the Prince is no more.

Supreme Seer Squeaks and Scritches cry out in despair and leap into the portals after the Rat Prince. The remaining rats' demeanors change to one of fear, and they flee the castle.

### The Spreading Shadow

With the battle won, Castle Drakken has been emptied of foes. The Queen's Men are gone, leaving nothing but a deck of playing cards on the balcony. Sebastian dramatically shakes his fist at the Queen and cries out for revenge.

Elias Drexel notes that the Hooded Lanterns still have their work cut out for them, as many monsters still lurk in Drakkenheim. Worse still, the Haze has been begun showing up in places outside of Drakkenheim. The heroes return to Eckerman Mill and celebrate their victory. They reflect on the work they have yet to complete:

* The abyssal rift above Castle Drakken is held shut, but not closed
* The crater is not yet explored
* The Queen of Thieves is still at large
* A demonic presence must be confronted
* Mouse and Johann are still trapped
* The Elyrian army is still marching on Drakkenheim

Sebastian suggests that they begin recruiting more heroes to deal with the spreading threat. River agrees, citing an incident at a small town called Tierhaven. For now, though, Veo, Sebastian, and Pluto take a well-deserved long rest.