Lady of the Knight

Helena picking apples in Hazelstump

Lady of the Knight is the ninth session of Campaign 1. In the session, Arine of Riveryew, Lord Darcy Hall, and Orion Brightward compete in the first round of The Tournament of the Silver Knight and devise a plan to meet with The Mayor of Pontoporea.

The following contains spoilers for the Tale of Locksmith's Bane.

## Plot

Feast Day 17 Chauntoro 1021 TE

As Arine and Orion awaken and enjoy a hearty breakfast in The Windy Way (Inn), Darcy prepares a tasteless omelette for Sandra. She politely compliments his meal, and agrees to watch him compete in the first round of the tournament, giving him a hint that there is usually a temporal element to weed out the slower competition. He then leaves to join his companions, at which time Orion jokes that Darcy may be too "sore for the fight", much to his chagrin. The trio discuss their evenings, with Arine excited to them the boys of her trip to the museum. They fain interest. Before long, the group head to The Castle's Keep, and The Amphitheatre of Pontoporea, before 9am.

There, a friendly guard informs them that they must wait in room 14 until their round. Inside, Sir Cygnus waits for them with fruit. Arine discovers sets of dice within the draws of a table, and the group play a game Darcy had previously seen others enjoy, in which the highest roller asks a question to the lowest. In the first round, Orion asks Darcy about the previous night, hoping to embarrass his companion once again. Darcy replies that he spent the night with Sandra and that it was a silly question...

Orion continues his high rolls, asking Cygnus why Goose is so named. Cygnus explains that when he came into the possesion of Goose, as a young horse, he noticed the white diamond shape on his snout, which made him look like a goose, thus the name. Darcy asks Cygnus a third question, about his love life. Cygnus replies that he never really had a love life as he is aromantic and never found himself all that interested in love, joining the church of Ilmater instead. The fourth question is Darcy's once more. Looking to Arine, Darcy asks her what her biggest regret has been in her life, to which she responds with emotional information surrounding the death of her father. He had died rather suddenly, thirty years ago, preventing her from having a final goodbye, arguing beforehand over a subject so unimportant that she cannot even remember.In their fifth question, Arine turns the tables, asking Darcy of his riches. Darcy responds that his father, and the house of Hall, owns land near Duirith. Finally, Arine asks Cygnus of his tears for Witteger's opera the other night. Cygnus declares that his love for Witteger comes from his late mother, a violinist who would perform Witteger often.

During their conversation, a blue hue appears upon the room's wooden gate, shielding the space from the sounds of the arena outside. After some time, the hue dissipates, and the roaring crowds return. In a panic, the group prepare themselves before the gates open. Recalling their intense training the previous day, ready for what lies before them. They witness the arena, covered in hey, with two locked safes on twenty foot poles at either end. In the centre, sits a small reconstruction of a farmer's barn. Locksmith's Bane are introduced by Soregn, the host of the games, before they meet their opponents: The Barbarian Brothers; Edhron the Mighty, a well-built High Elf, and Fentos the Cruel, a barabarian of orcish decent. Soregn then explains the rules of the first round:

The Combat of Fire. In the arena stand two towering safes, containing flames. The aim of the round is to extinguish the flame of one's opponent before they extinguish yours. The key to the other's safe lies somewhere within the heystacks. Contestants have up to one hour to complete the task.

As Soregn declares the start of their time, Edhron and Fentos run straight towards the adventurers. Arine ponders the map, in charge of the game's puzzles. Cygnus readies his sword to protect her. Darcy contemplates an eldritch blast. Before anyone can act, Orion steps forward. He lowers his axe, and reaches out with his arm. As he closes his eyes and recalls his paladin oath, drops of water begin to drip from the brothers' safe. Fentos continues to charge the adventuerers, leaping over haystacks. Edhron halts in his tracks, turning to witness water flooding out of the safe. It bursts open the door, releasing it from its hinges. It falls to the ground. Edhron is drenched in cold water from the safe, as Fentos stops. Cygnus, Arine, and Darcy pause in confusion.

The crowd is silent.

A farmer steps out of the barn, followed by a sheep.

As Orion opens his eyes, two men saunter out from a side door, one carrying a twenty-foot ladder. He places it down as the other slowly walks up to the safe. Popping his head in the box for a few seconds, the gentleman raises his arm, giving a thumbs up to Soregn. They declare Locksmith's Bane as the victors of the fight and the crowd slowly forms a confused, stadium-wide round of applause. Edhron stumbles over to the group, dripping down the way. He threatens the adventurers, for they have not seen the last of the Barbarian Brothers. The group, static in disbelief begin to laugh in the brothers' faces, before they exit the arena humiliated. Soregn tells the victorious Locksmith's Bane to return through their doors and enjoy their victory, and that they will certainly return for the first round tomorrow. They exit.

After their fifteen second victory, the four discuss their plans for the rest of the day. Orion brings up the trio's aquisition of two dragon eggs. Which Cygnus informs them are highly dangerous, should not be sold for the good of the world, and are highly illegal. Although Arine attempts to convince Cygnus that they only have one egg, he pushes them to reveal that they are in possesion of two. He tells them that their blue dragon egg should be destroyed. The conversation drags on to the point that the guard has to enter and remind them that they are free to leave their room and enjoy their day. The group conclude that they should speak to the Mayor of Pontoporea as he would have frequent meetings with Lord Rosen and is likely to be up in the high seats with Soregn and Sir Edwin Dennison. Furthermore, in response to the mention of Gargoyles, Cygnus makes the plan to send a messenger to Hunter, who had been searching for them.

As they leave, they find Sandra waiting for them alongside Helena and Céline. Helen runs up to Orion congratulating him on his victory and planting a kiss upon his confident face. Céline watches on in disgust. Sandra congratulates Darcy, yet notes of his lack of involvement. Helena asks for their plans, interested in spending some time with Orion today. Arine wishes to go to the library to learn more of the dragon eggs and how they might be sold. Darcy thinks up a plan to get into the upper seats. He suggests that he disguise himself as Lord Jimothy Strayth. Orion agrees to act as Darcy's bodyguard, hoping to hide from Sir Edwin. Helena agrees to join them, posing as Darcy's date in order to spend time with Orion. Meanwhile, Cygnus and Arine will take Céline to the local library. Sandra says an awkward goodbye to Darcy, reminding him of his coat.

Darcy transforms and offers his arm to Helena as they are followed by Orion around the amphitheatre. They find themselves at the entryway for the upper floors, before another city guard. The guard is confused as to why Lord Strayth had arrived when he had denied an inventation, wishing to remain in Xan. To check availablity, he goes inside. As the three wait, Sir Edwin Dennison exists the door, removing his helmet to reveal centrally-parted, golden locks. He gives Darcy's Strayth a big hug, welcoming him before noticing Orion as a knight of his father from yesterday. Orion deceives the knight as a "guard for hire". Darcy then introduces his 'date', Helena, as 'Lady Merredith Sackville'. Sir Edwin is confused at the existance of a 'Merredith Sackville', but believes them, inviting them up to their seats. On the walk, Helena asks to go out with Orion, just the two of them. Upstairs, he moves some of the nobility, asking for them to donate their seats to those from the Strayth and Sackville houses. Orion is also granted a seat.

Meanwhile, Cygnus, Arine, and Céline head into The Lady's Library, a particularly old and large library in the Castle's Keep. There, they meet Fownai, a friendly wood-elf librarian who shows Arine the facility's large rolodex, in which she searches for dragons, finding them in the arcana section. The trio head to the section. As Arine searches for dragon books, Céline finds one with sketches of the creatures, gesturing for Arine to give her a gold dragon. She seems particularly fond of their whiskers. Arine shows her the brass dragon, but Céline doesn't care for it. Showing her the blue dragon, Céline is scared. Cygnus finds a book on the sale of dragon eggs throughout Thorn. He gives the book to Arine, but they find little helpful information on how to sell the eggs.

In the upper seats, the adventurers watch contestants fight, destroy haystacks, and be attacked by the sheep. Sir Edwin talks with Darcy, but he excuses himself to speak with the mayor, Theodore, and his husband. Theodore is delighted to see Jimothy, having not seen him since he was a boy. Darcy attempts to organise a meeting with Lord Rosen, but the mayor insists the effort would be futile. Darcy then asks to write a 'get-well-soon' letter, to be presented to the Lord, and the mayor offers to deliver it himself. During this conversation, Helena, in coded message, sets up a date with Orion at six o'clock, to which Orion barely understands and agrees. Returning to his seat, Darcy ignores Sir Edwin, writing his letter quickly, wishing Lord Rosen the best of health, explaining the war, and signing under the names of Cygnus and Jimothy. Passing the note to the mayor, his husband takes the letter to ensure that Theodore does not have a nosey peek.

Arine returns to Fownai, asking in a particularly friendly manner, where they may find information on previous tournaments of the silver knight. Fownai points her and the others downstairs. Céline tries to read a book of Pontoporean taxes, before Arine finds her one with coloured graphs to catch her attention. It doesn't. Cygnus finds a book of Pontoporean economics. After some searching, Arine manages to discover a text on the tournament, familiarising herself with previous years' puzzles. Afterwards, Arine ditches her companions, heading to Fownai for information on Tzermir. He informs her that she would most likely find more in the academic Riverstream Library, connected to Riverstream College. However, as that is hard to get into, he could certainly help here. Fownai manages to finds three texts for her on the wizard, from which she discovers some information:

In 'Great Men of History': "First accounts of Tzermir come from his greatest achievement; running into the castle grounds of Duirith, ordering King Tinneus, then Lord Tinneus, to build the fort of Northolde. By now, Tzermir was an older man, who had developed a taste for magic. After the Thornish success in The Battle of Northolde, Tzermir's requests for wizarding material and a seat as The Wizard of Northolde were granted."

In 'The Wizards of Thorn': "Tzermir became the wizard advisor to the crown, instructing all arcanic decisions. He would serve this post past King Tinneus' death and advise King Tinwen I also. During this time, the wizard moved to Duirith to establish the unssuccessful 'School of Chaos', a minor wizarding school of study, interested in magic as a primordial animator of life. He would leave the school on an unknown quest to Tyrnia, and pass it on to his successors Icaron and Sorveen."

Finally, in a section on Darkstone in 'The Establishment of the Towns in Western Thorn': "Darkstone, named after its namesake rock, was established by Tzermir, advisor of Kings and first wizard of Northolde, in 22 TE. In legend, it is said that as the wizard left for his final quest, he wished to grant one favour to a village on his way, touching a stone to make it as dark as a shadow, for all to flock to see."

As she reads, Arine is greeted by Cygnus and Céline, before the knight leaves to send the messenger to Hunter. Fownai shows Arine and Céline to the children's section.

Back in the amphitheatre, a city guard approaches Sir Edwin, Darcy, Helena, and Orion, asking to take Lady Merredith aside. Darcy, as Jimothy is appalled, as is Edwin. They each demand reasons for this. To be discreet, the guard and Sir Edwin have a word inside the hallway. Scared, Darcy and Orion agree to take Helena and run, she remains quiet in fear. As they open the door, they see Sir Edwin, the original guard, and four others blocking the exit. The guard repeats the demand, as Darcy yells that "SHE'S A LADY!". The noble audience turns to notice the ruckus. Sir Edwin has a private word with Darcy. Orion stands in the way of the guards and Helena. Darcy looks past at Orion, who asks his companion what they should do. Darcy tells him to let the gaurds take them *as long as* they ensure that she comes to no harm. He speaks with Helena in her mind, startling her, but ensuring her safety. Sir Edwin agrees to go with the guards and Helena, and Orion steps out of the way.

Helena turns her head as two guards escort her outside.

She calls for Orion.

He doesn't respond.

After some time, Orion and Darcy return downstairs, and Darcy returns to his regular form. He explains to Orion that the guards picked up on Merredith Sackville not being a real person, and that they were afraid that she was attempting to steal money from the Sackville house. Moreover, Sir Edwin was concerned about her taking money from 'Jimothy'. Orion and Darcy then take a moment to tink about how they might solve their conundrum. They question whether to reveal Helena as a 'Lady of the Night', but Orion concludes that he doesn't wish to give Helena this name. Simultaneously, the pair agree that Orion, the guard, is in fact the lover of Jimothy, and that Helena was an actress, there to conceal their love. With their plan at the ready, the couple head to the Silverhall Guard Tower, via an entryway in the Castle's Keep.

They make it past the guards, and are assisted by a receptionist who guides them to interogation room B. Outside, Sir Edwin sits with a guard. Shooing the guard away, Sir Edwin speaks privately with Orion and Darcy. Darcy explains their plan, which Sir Edwin believes, having been suspicious of Darcy's involvement with the lady. Darcy suggests 50 gold pieces as enough to silence the matter, and Sir Edwin agrees. They knock and enter the interogation room to find Helena surrounded by guards, seemingly safe, but emotionally warn. It seems she has managed to keep up the ruse. Darcy speaks in her mind once again, explaining the situation, and asking her to admit to being an actress. Out-loud, he encourages Helena to speak. She explains the situation, in tears, deceiving the guards. Sir Edwin hands the money to the guards, and they leave. Sir Edwin gives Darcy's Jimothy an intense stare, holding his hand as he says that he intends to visit him shortly.

Sir Edwin returns to Silverhall. Helena, having been silent asks of the safety of Céline. Darcy agrees to bring her back to the Windy Way as Orion escorts her there. On the way, the two are silent. Entering the tavern, Orion ignores Wolandar, who asks about the tournament, and brings Helena back to her room. Helena sits on her bed, stoic. Orion sits beside her. She asks him what happened. He recounts the events and the guards' reasoning as she hints that that is not what she was referring to. He asks what she means, but she says it doesn't matter. Orion tells Helena that she shouldn't have been put in danger like that, and that perhaps it is not best to go on their date this evening.

With watery eyes, Helena looks up. She states that she has been in many dangerous situations in her lifetime; positions where she had to leave. But this time. This time, she never thought that would be the case. She maintains her composure, looking away from Orion, and asks him to leave the room. He does so, returning to his own.

In the library, Darcy is directed to Arine by Fownai (who agrees that she is a 'cute elf'). Darcy makes Céline jump and ultimately laugh by popping up in front of her book. He chooses not to inform Arine of their troubles in front of the child and they leave after telling Céline that they will take her back to the library at some point. He holds Céline's hand outside. Arriving at the Windy Way, Arine and Darcy speak with Wolandar who notes the odd way in which Orion went upstairs and Darcy hints to Arine that things didn't go well. Esrafin asks the adventurers of their quest, and they recount their epic fifteen seconds. Cygnus then arrives to greet the pair, telling them of his messages and his plans to check in to the Windy Way, having moved Goose into the stables next door. He goes to speak with Wolandar as Darcy and Arine take Céline to Helena, who had obviously been crying. She thanks Arine for looking after Céline.

They then pop next door to Orion, who is smoking on his bed, staring at the ceiling. Darcy worries that he will hurt him, but Arine pushes the duo to have a conversation. Orion asks Arine to wait outside. She agrees but loudly sits on the floor outside the door, casting a shadow beneath it. Orion and Darcy begin to speak about the day. Orion is not upset with Darcy. He is upset with the situation, putting Helena in danger. He reveals that he called off whatever his relationship has been with Helena. The discussion heats up.

Darcy opens the door. Arine falls backwards in the room.

As each of the boys states their feelings on the matter, Arine agrees with them, declaring that they both make 'good points'. The two still cannot see eye to eye, eading to Darcy delcaring that Orion had clearly been losing interest Helena anyway and is using this as an excuse. They hear footsteps outside. Fortunately it is revealed to only be Cygnus, having secrued the adjacent room from Wolandar. She heads back downstairs as Cygnus checks his room. Arine attempts to lighten the mood, asking if the boys would like to hear about the puzzles.

Cygnus returns, is informed of the situation, and sees the tension between Orion and Darcy. He attempts to diffuse it, with no success. However, Darcy and Orion soon change the topic to their shared isolated pasts. Arine joins in crying at never having friends. Before their discussion ends with a crying session, the group decide to spend the reminaing hours of the day training for tomorrow. As the guildhall would be closing in thirty minutes, the team head to the river, between Brannagh's Town and Upper Porea. There, Orion and Cygnus train in their divine blows as Arine and Darcy test their cantrips against each other.

In the evening sunset, Orion's warhammer and Cygnus' blade strike one another, as a huge burst of light illuminates the river. Standing at distance, the warlock fires his eldritch blast as the wizard casts her firebolt. As they meet, Darcy's blue cloud absorbs Arine red bolt, to create a magnificent scene: as with an electric storm cloud, the firebolt races around the blue mist before they both fade into the night. A crowd gathers, and an audience member calls out the name of Locksmith's Bane in a glorious cheer. The session ends there.