Idolators Under Inzet - Episode Three

## **Synopsis:**

Inzet, the capital city of Mowen's Borderlands province. The city had welcomed labor and entrepreneurship from all walks of life, and as with any large undertaking, unfavorable individuals came to cause trouble. Local authorities believed a cult of idolators of Veyis, the first Lich, had set up in the sewers, with a horde of undead reportedly gathering in the undercity.

Dushah Uloreen's attention was ever-focused towards keeping external threats at bay, such as the Dread Hounds from the east. With no help from him available, officials sought a small band of mercenaries to discreetly assess and handle the situation. The Whispering Cutlass answered this call.

This is the third adventure in the Idolators Under Inzet Arc.

In this adventure, the party clashed with the law, undead, and fiends, while one member had an out-of-body experience.

## **Mercenaries:**

* Bandin Volward Deepburrow - Deep Gnome Rogue / Wizard (Sponsor: House Stars)
* Elric Dawnflame - Kalashtar Bloodhunter
* Kiwarden - Firbolg Paladin
* Nwalmë Shadhavar - Shadar-kai Rogue (Sponsor: House Shadhavar)
* Ro'Keer - Tabaxi Ranger
* Tar'ren r'Eehp r'Eehp - Frogfolk Warlock
* Xeithne Aladur - Bugbear Monk (Sponsor: House Stefarni)

## **Adventure Summary:**

### **"Raccoons" in the "Attic"**

Earlier in the day, the party managed to get a lunchtime appointment with Constable Baldrick. In order to kill time before that appointment, the group split up, taking care of different projects.

Kiwarden and Xeithne went to investigate raccoons apparently infesting someone's attic. When they arrived, they quickly realized the house had no attic. On guard, Kiwarden knocked on the door while Xeithne eyed the street, making sure it wasn't an ambush; but an old and angry Aarakocra answered, glad for the help with the raccoons but eyes glazed.

When Kiwarden and Xeithne followed him into the house, they were surprised to see that a large tree stood where a support beam should have been. Based on what the Aarakocra said, they discerned that he didn't see it as a tree—he saw a support beam and an attic.

Kiwarden activated his divine sense and reeled back at the necrotic energies pouring from the tree. He passed the word to Xeithne. The two pledged to try to defeat whatever evil was coalescing in that tree. Kiwarden wanted to check the ceiling above the tree to see if there was a trapdoor to an attic. While Kiwarden as a kid used to competitively race climbing trees, as he got older and bigger, he also got much slower and was not as good as he used to be; as such, he suggested Xeithne take her woodaxe and cut into the tree to create a foothold.

Xeithne nodded and stepped forward, but Kiwarden grabbed her shoulder. The Firbolg dipped his thumb into some holy water and wiped his thumb across Xeithne's forehead, whispering, "Protogere." A holy glow poured over Xeithne, a Protection from Evil and Good spell.

Xeithne was taken aback, not used to people "blessing" her, especially since she realized that Kiwarden was sacrificing the chance to bless himself in order to protect her. But she shook herself and nodded solemnly. Braced for an attack, Xeithne swung at the tree while Kiwarden ran forward to climb.

But Xeithne wasn't quick enough to notice the branch-like vines snatching her axe to hold the strike back. Kiwarden couldn't stop his momentum and rammed into the tree, which writhed with vines that revealed the bound undead at its center.

The tree did another strike at Kiwarden, but Xeithne stepped in the path and absorbed the blow, blocking it with her arms. With the protection from Kiwarden, she came off without damage. However, the tree then sprayed toxins at them. Kiwarden choked and nearly fell, though Xeithne was able to hold her breath through it. The Bugbear called for a retreat, striking into the tree before hopping back out of range. But Kiwarden drew his glaive and smote into the tree with his holy power, ripping through the bark.

Unfortunately, the tree whacked Kiwarden with a series of branches, dropping him to the floor, senseless. Xeithne cursed and ran back into the fray, fruitlessly attacking the tree with both axe and a kick before brushing her knuckles over Kiwarden, restoring his life with a transfer of ki.

Kiwarden got to his feet and did a spinning swing with his blade, smiting the tree once more.

Xeithne taunted the undead, daring it to throw something at her rather than stabbing her with its branches. It took the bait and grabbed a couch, hurling it at her. She bent over backwards, easily dodging the attack.

While both warriors were heavily wounded, they made eye contact and nodded. Both launched into a coordinated attack, attempting to finish off the tree before it killed them and the Aarakocra man. But though Xeithne executed a triple strike, none of the blows hit their mark; and while Kiwarden drove his blade deep into the bark and poured his holy light into it, the power was not enough. The tree began to grow as it hurled toxins over them once more. This time, they both fell, choking as they neared death.

### **Spirit Swap**

Meanwhile, intent on finding one of the magic amulets used to open secret passageways, Elric and Ro'Keer set up a stakeout near the citadel and found a mason checking the walls for cracks; but they quickly realized that the hour was too early and few nefarious acts would be caught. They instead answered the bounty board task of claiming a scary doll. Elric hated dolls, and toys in general, because they were the most common thing to get possessed. Every time he saw one, he would stare at it to see if it moved, ready to stab it. He figured that if anyone would be up to the task of dealing with a scary doll, it would be him.

When they arrived at the house, they heard a child crying within and carefully entered, seeing what appeared to be the child hunched in the back corner. Wary, the mercenaries drew their weapons even as they tried to comfort the child.

But the child's head turned 180-degrees to stare at them with bright blue eyes. It was the doll possessed by a fiend.

Ro'Keer became entranced by the crying and bounded towards the doll.

Elric yelled at the Tabaxi to stop, then bit into his own finger and painted his crossbow with blood. The crossbow glowed, but the light didn't stop at his weapon—White veins decorated Elric's skin as a brilliant mist poured over his body. He aimed at the doll and fired, the bolt punching into the doll's body. The doll began to glow itself, but with a malevolent aura as it let out a mind-splitting scream.

Ro'Keer skidded across the floor, knocked unconscious by the scream. While Elric marked the doll with a curse and shot again, the doll floated to Ro'Keer.

Light enveloped the two, and when it dissipated, the doll was limp on the ground.

Elric hesitated and looked between the two. "You better not have…"

Ro'Keer's eyes flashed open, but they were now blue. "Ah, much better. That body was so cramped."

Before Elric could react, the body of Ro'Keer jumped to its feet and raced out of the house. Though Elric didn't know it, the fiend had swapped bodies, placing Ro'Keer's spirit in the doll.

Yelling at the fiend to get back in the doll, Elric scooped up the doll and shot at the fleeing body, dubbed Faux'Keer, and pursued his target. He hit Faux'Keer, but shooting a weapon in the streets of Inzet brought immediate attention from three nearby guards. They ordered Elric to halt, who cursed and raised his hands in surrender.

"Okay," Elric said, "this looks bad, but there is an explanation."

The guards grabbed Elric and said there would need to be an investigation. He argued, telling them to stop Faux'Keer, saying he was possessed. The guards thought Elric was drunk or otherwise inhibited, but after Elric swore that whoever Faux'Keer killed would be on their hands, they sent the third guard to try to chase down the Tabaxi.

### **A Court Date**

While that was going on, Bandin and Tar'ren had been researching the cultist's spellbook, discovering two minor cantrips. After visiting the library and learning more information about Veyis, they were on their way to the constabulary just in time to see two guards escorting Elric, who appeared grim.

Sensing an issue, Bandin dashed forward, trying to get ahead of them before they reached the constabulary; but though he had learned the streets well enough, he wasn't able to outpace them and watched the door thunk closed as they entered.

Tar'ren jogged behind him, in no hurry to catch up. He wasn't used to working in a team, the trip to Inzet being both the first time he'd not been scrounging for scraps in ages, and also his first team mission. His other missions with the Whispering Cutlass had been solo, all feeling very much like trials to make sure he was competent. Virgil had seen his capability both for magic and for getting the job done and had trusted him to accompany the mission to Inzet.

Not waiting for Tar'ren, Bandin took a deep breath and entered the constabulary. Elric sat manacled in a waiting area, guards filling out paperwork at the front desk.

The bloodhunter waved.

"I know you have a meeting," Bandin said, "but you weren't supposed to be escorted."

Elric was in no mood for jokes. "Listen carefully: The doll was haunted, and it's inside Ro'Keer." He told how Faux'Keer was last seen heading down Wyvern Street as if a devil were on his tail. "And I'm starting to think that's literal. I thought it was a spirit, but my Rite of the Dawn didn't do anything special. Only other possessor would probably be some kind of fiend, like a demon."

Bandin cringed at the thought of possession. For over half of his journey in the Endless Divide, he had been in possession of a haunted magic item. He had no idea, continually getting weird dreams but not knowing where they had come from. Eventually, the spirit took over his body, and he only awoke after one of his teammates, Brutus, killed the spirit. It was an uncomfortable experience, though it did cause Brutus' weapon to absorb the magic in a non-cursed way and become quite a fun magic item.

The Gnome asked if Elric knew how to undemonize Ro'Keer, but Elric scoffed. He was a hunter, not an exorcist. He hunted.

A listening guard started taking notes on the conversation.

Tar'ren had entered by then and, seeing Elric's personal effects on the counter, noted the doll. He asked if he could see the doll, but was scrutinized. He introduced himself as a party member of Elric's, planning to do a bounty on a doll together, though Elric had clearly gone ahead without him and Bandin.

"Yeah," the guard said, "he got ahead of you, shooting in the streets! Probably a drunken rampage." He said to Elric, "Lay off the hops, yeah?"

Elric insisted he was a bloodhunter of the Ghostslayer Order. He was not drunk.

The guards had never heard of such an order and said a courtroom mage would administer an alcohol test soon.

Staring at the doll, Tar'ren noticed that the doll was made of porcelain, no scratches or dents besides two crossbow bolts having pierced it and a few hairs torn off. If ordinary things weren't hurting it, it had to be magic.

While Tar'ren had the guard's attention, Bandin whispered to Elric, asking if they might pay off the guards. Elric didn't know since bribery wasn't his thing.

Seeing that there wasn't going to be an easy solution, Bandin decided to fetch Nwalmë. He turned to Tar'ren and said, "I never planned to join the meeting anyway, so I'll snag the others."

### **Firing Squad**

Nwalmë, meanwhile, had been having a successful morning. First, he had found the famed fletcher Roni Wusah and purchased specialized arrows; then he had learned more of the history of his bow, Sagrid's Gamble, by consulting with Bandin before the Gnome left for the library. But after stepping out of the Riot House to leave for the meeting, he heard a fair deal of panic coming from the north. Whispers in the streets rumored a live fire, civilians fleeing, and someone found murdered in their home.

Paired with the rumors was an organized flood of evacuating civilians moving towards a guard station to leave that section of the city.

Nwalmë used his grappling hook to climb to a rooftop, escaping the crowd. He moved closer to the guard station to hear what was going on.

As he neared it, a huge pulse of violet and black energy in the shape of a skull mushroomed up from the ground and into the sky. It was in the distance to the south, but he could tell that it was an evil-looking tree.

Archers moved along the district walls in response to the threat. Nwalmë cautiously passed them without their notice, going from roof to roof. He cast False Life on himself as a precaution, nearing the tree which continued to grow, bark twisted to resemble a face. It had taken the place of a house, roots growing out of the foundations and windows, walls knocked aside. It was not a singular tree, but rather a multitude of dead vines twisted over each other. In the midst of the branches, near the center, was a chained figure who appeared desiccated.

The archers weren't attacking yet, but were ready to let fly once ordered. Nwalmë positioned himself for good aim at the tree, lit a torch to burn beside him, and pulled out Sagrid's Gamble. He tied an alchemist's fire to an arrow, nearly sparking it in the process, but he managed to not ignite himself.

Nwalmë aimed and fired two arrows. One missed, but the one with the alchemist's fire hit its mark. A rain of fire washed over the tree, and then a ghostly spectre rose as Nwalmë sent out his Wails of the Grave attack to hit the desiccated figure, which cried out in pain.

At the same moment, the Shadar-kai shouted, "Fire," and the archers immediately attacked. The volley plunged into the tree, chipping bark and slicing vines.

The tree faced Nwalmë, clearly enraged. Its vines wrapped around a chunk of roof and slung it at him, crushing him.

While Nwalmë struggled to get out from under the rock, a second volley hit the tree. Several vines snapped off as dead husks to the ground, the desiccated corpse definitely more exposed. It appeared to be chained, the chains slightly glowing. Each cuff of its manacles had a small chunk of onyx.

Nwalmë believed that either the tree was drawing sustenance from the corpse, or else the corpse was piloting the tree. He lit two arrows on fire and struck again. The arrow sank in, fire creeping up vines to burn them to ash. The structure toppled, leaving a thrashing zombie bound with two large manacles and dragging chains behind it.

Nwalmë hopped down into rubble. Staying out of range, not moving straight up to the zombie, he stowed his bow and pulled out his dagger and blademended shortsword. But the undead shambled about blindly, and Nwalmë quickly put it out of its misery.

Taking a blanket from his pack, Nwalmë grabbed the manacles and noted the onyx. He wrapped them and tucked them into his backpack.

Looking about, Nwalmë saw a second corpse, that of an Aarakocra crushed under the rubble.

As the rubble settled, all was eerily silent. Nwalmë went onto the streets, heading north, and saw the archers maneuvering in his direction.

"You're the one firing from the rooftop?" a guard asked.

"No, it was this hero right here." Nwalmë pointed to a green-looking guard, who appeared shocked, but didn't argue. The guard was immediately promoted as the others saluted him and questioned where he'd gotten firebomb arrows.

On the other side of the city, Bandin had stepped aside to look for Faux'Keer, shimmying onto a rooftop to stay away from the evacuating crowd. Reaching Wyvern Street, he saw it cordoned off with crime scene tape, cleared out. Two guards and a coroner were further down the street, bringing out from a house a body with a cloth draped over it.

Bandin returned south, searching for Faux'Keer as he went, but saw no sign of him. As he went, however, he saw a burst of flame in the distance.

He moved nearer to the southern crossing station just in time to see Nwalmë on his way back to the Riot House. They met up, Bandin telling about Elric's law troubles and Ro'Keer's loss of a body. It was a lot to process.

"So … do you think we should find Ro'Keer?" Nwalmë asked.

Bandin shrugged. "Do either of us know how to undo a possession?"

Nwalmë wrinkled his nose, but then his face lit up. "I bet Kiwarden can."

"Wasn't he and Xeithne doing a job?"

The two ran to the Riot House. Nwalmë started ripping bounties off the board trying to find the flyer for the raccoon job, which he knew Kiwarden was interested in. But the flyer was gone, taken by Xeithne when they left.

Thankfully, Bandin took a moment to mentally picture the bounty board and was able to remember the exact street to which the bounty directed. They both left to find their allies.

But as they headed south, a sickening feeling rose in Nwalmë's gut. His fears were confirmed when they arrived on the street filled with rubble from the destroyed evil tree.

### **Saved By an Ally**

Xeithne didn't know how much time passed while she fought death. Eventually, however, she felt a sharp pain, then dozens of bandages tightly binding her wounds. She looked up with hazy vision to see a seated figure murmuring, "Don't go dying on me now. Hang in there."

Kiwarden stirred then, similarly bandaged, and realized that the tree was nowhere in sight. In fact, they were in a different house entirely. He looked about and saw the figure watching them, but unlike Xeithne, Kiwarden recognized the face: "Cousin Yendell! How did you—What happened?"

Yendell, Kiwarden's contact in the city, grinned at them and rejoiced in their being alive. He explained that he had been on his way to go shopping when a huge tree burst out of a roof. He had cowered at first, but then saw Kiwarden and Xeithne in the rubble. Plucking his courage, he'd dragged them to safety. "So hi, cousin," Yendell said, "I didn't know you were in town."

Kiwarden gave a sheepish smile. "We've been here two days now. I was going to try to find you but we've been … busy with a few messes."

"Well that's underselling it," Yendell said. "You're not getting into more of that, are you?" He pointed to their ravaged bodies and the toxin-stained bandages.

Kiwarden asked if Yendell knew what was going on in the sewers. Immediately, Yendell's face lit up. He ran to another room and came back with mounds of books, notes, and sundry research about Veyis and their cult. He had a list of theories about what was really going on with Veyis and the veracity of legends.

Both Kiwarden and Xeithne expressed interest in reading the notes. Xeithne especially found all the book knowledge a refreshing change of pace. She had come from a poorer family and worked on the docks early in life; her education came more from the streets than from the schools. She picked up one of Yendell's notebooks and started perusing.

Kiwarden explained that he and his party had arrived from Abishot, hired to clear out the sewers.

"Yes, the sewers have been on public notice," Yendell said. " 'Don't go in the sewers unless you like being skewered.' "

"Well that kinda has a ring to it," Kiwarden said. He asked his cousin how long he'd been in the city. Yendell answered that he had arrived two months ago and worked the night shift at the library. It wasn't very interesting, but at least it was a library.

"Good for you," Xeithne said.

"I'm happy you're doing well," Kiwarden added.

Yendell mentioned that he and Kiwarden were similar, as they were both black sheep of the family. At least neither of them had become warlocks.

"Not yet, anyway," Kiwarden said. Xeithne added that there were warlocks in the Whispering Cutlass, so it's not like being a warlock is inherently bad.

"Oh," Yendell said, "that reminds me, something happened on the lake three nights ago." He didn't know what caused it, but a red pulse came from the lake. The higher-up mages had sailed into the lake to investigate, maybe searching for a monster.

"Did Uloreen go?" Kiwarden asked.

No, Uloreen was busy with the Dread Hounds. He'd been doing a good job dispelling any stigmas against magic. One courtroom mage said he'd even gotten magic approved for general court room use.

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

"Should I get it?" Kiwarden asked.

"No, bed rest for the both of you." Yendell left to answer the call.

He found a Shadar-kai and a Gnome standing on the welcome mat, both appearing anxious and one gripping an axe. It was Nwalmë and Bandin, having found Xeithne's woodaxe in the rubble and the signs of people being dragged down the street towards Yendell's house.

Yendell, leery of the axe, asked if he could help them.

Bandin stepped forward. "Did you drag our friends' bodies in there?"

From beyond Yendell, Xeithne called, "We're fine."

That immediately set them all on ease. "Oh you know each other!" Yendell grabbed their hands and shook them, explaining the situation and inviting them inside.

Nwalmë walked up to Xeithne and flipped the woodaxe, offering her the handle. "Tree's dead, we'll talk about that later. Have you seen Ro'Keer?"

"More importantly," Bandin said, eyes on Kiwarden, "you know how to perform an exorcism?"

Kiwarden cringed. "Oh Gods, are you possessed?"

"No, but Ro'Keer might be."

As a paladin, Kiwarden's knowledge on the subject of exorcisms and dealing with spirits was expansive. He knew about a spell, a magic circle that warded against evil. He knew holy water would damage the spirit. He knew the Protection from Evil and Good spell might help, but they would have to get close enough to touch Ro'Keer's body. A Ceremony spell might help, and though Kiwarden wondered if his ability to turn the unholy might rip the spirit out of the body, he thought it more likely that the whole body would simply run away.

### **Bargaining for Freedom**

At the constabulary, a courtroom mage cast a ritual of Detect Poison and Disease on Elric. "Well," the mage said, "you're not drunk. Though you do have a small bout of dysentery, you might want to get that looked at."

Tar'ren asked if he could assist at all, but the guards said he would need approval from the constable and become certified as a courtroom mage. One person handed him a stack of paperwork to fill out.

Elric asked if the courtroom mage knew about possessions, but he didn't. Elric seethed at the ignorance of the law keepers, who had no knowledge of anything in which he specialized.

Tar'ren asked if the doll was enchanted. The courtroom mage said he could check and began another ritual.

Just before the ritual was complete, however, the doll's eyes opened. Instead of being icy blue, however, they were a bright green.

Ro'Keer awoke to find himself in an evidence bin, laying beside a crossbow nearly as big as him. "What's going on?" he asked.

The voice came from the doll.

All looked at the doll and freaked out.

Elric explained, "You're in the doll, the doll is in you. You swapped, apparently."

"I'm a doll?" Ro'Keer looked down at himself in horror. "Can we fix this?"

Elric shook his head. "They don't believe a word I say, they think I'm drunk or—"

"Public nuisance," the mage interjected. "We've proven you're not drunk."

After another minute of debating Elric's crimes, Tar'ren managed to calm the room and asked Ro'Keer what it was like being a doll.

"My Arms and legs feel short. I… I can't move my tail!" Ro'Keer struggled and strained. The doll started morphing, changing in appearance from that of a little Human girl to an orange-striped Tabaxi.

Suddenly, a gentleman in a tall pike hat and three other guards shuffled into the room from deeper in the constabulary. The pike-hatted man, named Ewan, looked over Elric. "We're going to have to take you in for further questioning about the body found in the home."

Elric explained about the bounty, how the person really wanted to get rid of the doll. "We presumed it was cursed, entered, the doll attacked after trying to trick us into thinking it was a scared little girl with an unholy nightmare scream. We didn't notice a body because we didn't have time to notice a body."

The gentleman looked to Elric's equipment. He then pulled out a knife with blood on it from behind his back. "Looks familiar?"

"No, my equipment is on the table," Elric said.

"And my equipment ran off with my body," Ro'Keer, dubbed Plush'Keer, said. Tar'ren had picked him up and now cradled the small porcelain doll.

"Yes," Ewan said, "your equipment is on the table. All except for the dagger you used to kill an innocent!"

After more arguing and referring to Plush'Keer as a doll, the doll had a fit, saying, "Stop calling me a doll, I'm a proud Tabaxi ranger."

Ewan said he was going to have to put Elric on a charge, but he may be willing to waive it if they stopped the wild "doll" and brought back proof of their claims.

Elric explained that if it can swap bodies, they wouldn't risk letting it live.

The gentleman would have none of that. "We need to interrogate the murderer."

"That sounds like a bad idea, given it can swap bodies," Elric reiterated.

"You should be able to handle it," Ewan said, "given you're a ... 'bloodhunter of the Ghostslayer Order.' "

After making Tar'ren the warden over Elric, the gentleman marked Elric's forehead. If Elric went further than 100 feet from Tar'ren, or tried to leave the city, or harmed a civilian, the mark would activate and curse Elric.

"Happy hunting," the man said. "You're free to go, thank you for your cooperation. Otherwise—" He handed Elric a ticket. "—here's your court date for further investigation."

Tar'ren celebrated that parole was better than a jail cell.

Before they left, Tar'ren learned that the constable's timetable was all messed up because of the chaos happening that day. Their lunch appointment was cancelled.

### **To Catch a Thief**

Nwalmë meanwhile led his group, including Yendell, back towards the constabulary in order to meet with the others. Xeithne and Kiwarden patched themselves up as best they could, Xeithne taking special note to use one of her Woundbind Poultices on the paladin.

Nwalmë asked if Xeithne or Kiwarden had any magical weapons to break through a spirit's defenses if possible. As neither did, Nwalmë offered to lend his blademended shortsword. Kiwarden thought the weapon would work best in Xeithne's hands, so the monk accepted the aid.

As they neared the Riot House, the group encountered Elric and Tar'ren, with Plush'Keer hanging onto Tar'ren's back. Elric's forehead had a faint white mark from the dormant curse.

After the party caught everyone up, Bandin asked if they wanted to reschedule their appointment with the constable or find Faux'Keer. There was a lot going on.

"Funny you should say that." Nwalmë pulled from his pack the onyx-studded manacles. "These bounties are definitely involved with the cult."

Tar'ren said that Baldrick was probably too busy for appointments because of all the craziness. He asked Bandin if he could identify the manacles and doll.

Bandin took the doll, and with his knowledge of magic, figured out the process of body exchange. Tar'ren recognized the mechanics of it and realized that Faux'Keer was a devil.

"Sorry for being thick," Nwalmë said, "but what separates a devil from other fiends?"

Elric could answer that. He stated that most demons were tied to Vilithk while most devils were tied to Avadon. Additionally, a rare metal called devil's bane was very effective against devils.

Kiwarden asked Yendell if he knew anything about devils or exorcising them, and Elric jumped in to ask if Yendell knew where to find devil's bane. Unfortunately, Yendell had no clue, knowing more about Veyis' undead than Avadon's fiends.

Xeithne suggested going to a temple and having them help return Ro'Keer to his body. Kiwarden said that was a smart move, but they needed to get Faux'Keer first. During the discussion about how to do that, Kiwarden suggested breaking the doll that was Plush'Keer. However, everyone else thought that was a bad idea.

Plush'Keer added that he had gained a deep distrust for dolls.

Xeithne told everyone to calm down and think. They knew it was a fiend, specifically a devil; some of them knew how devils behaved; they knew which direction it had been heading; it wasn't a lot to go on, but they could try to predict a likely location for the evil creature to go.

After a few moments, the group realized that if Faux'Keer were to go directly south from Wyvern Street, he would reach the local Vanguard tower, which most likely held rare and powerful items to help in the fight against the Dread Hounds.

All looked at each other. Without speaking, they all ran.

As they neared the Vanguard tower, Tar'ren told everyone to take care not to piss them off. These Vanguard members were the Hellions, a fierce group not to be messed with.

Plush'Keer said he might be able to persuade them, gesturing to his doll form. Bandin added that he knew of some Hellions, having crossed their paths during his trip through the Endless Divide, and might be able to name-drop sufficiently.

While the main group went straight for the tower, Nwalmë climbed the roofs, aiming to get a different vantage point. He'd always had an affinity for rooftops, liking to sneak away to one and plot out the constellations whenever he had a rough day. It calmed him to find which ones he knew, and he was always looking for Orthos the Serpent, his favourite. That was how he found what little inner peace he could. It was his hope that he would be at his sharpest there, on the roofs, to help his allies.

Outside the tower was a guard station manned by two guards on general patrol. Kiwarden took the lead and asked if they had seen an orange-furred Tabaxi running about.

The guards looked at each other. "Nope."

"Can you contact us if you do?"

The guards agreed, and Kiwarden left them his sigil and told them to send a messenger to the Riot House. Elric whispered to Kiwarden to ask if the Hellions had any devil's bane.

"That's confidential," a guard said. "Why do you need to know?"

"If we tell you, will you lend us some?" Kiwarden asked.

The guard drew up to his full height. "If there's a devil, tell us where it is and we'll handle it."

Kiwarden cringed. "See, the issue is it's not in a place, it's in a body."

"My body," Plush'Keer said. He still sat on Tar'ren's shoulders.

The guards immediately pointed their weapons at Plush'Keer.

Kiwarden explained that the devil had swapped bodies with Plush'Keer and asked the Hellions not to kill the devil or the body, since they needed the body for Ro'Keer and the devil for a court case.

The guards looked at each other, doubtful. "I don't know what the captain will say, but we'll try our best."

Plush'Keer looked off to the west, and to both his horror and glee, he saw a suit of leather armor hidden under some bushes outside the guard wall. It appeared to be his armor. He tapped Tar'ren and pointed it out.

At the same time, Nwalmë on a roof looked away from the meeting and at the tower directly. To his surprise, he saw someone climbing out of a high window, rappeling down the wall by a rope. The figure was 350 feet away, but given the somewhat orange color of the person and the unlikeliness that a Hellion would be sneaking out of their own tower, he whistled at the group and pointed out the person, assumed to be Faux'Keer.

Without waiting for the group to react, Nwalmë pulled out his shortbow and aimed at Faux'Keer's rope. The shot was beyond his normal range, so he nocked one of the longshot arrows he had bought from Roni Wusah. Nwalmë let fly.

A second later, the rope snapped as the arrow struck its mark. Faux'Keer fell eighty feet to the ground, landing on his feet with a sickening crunch. It was a blow that would kill most non-Threadtouched and heavily maim plenty of talented people.

But Nwalmë watched in disgust as Faux'Keer stood and looked in his directions, his legs jelly-like as he wobbled forward. A malevolent aura surrounded the fiend.

By then, the rest of the party had sprung into action. The group pushed past the Hellion guards, declaring that the devil was already there. Kiwarden, Elric, Bandin, Xeithne, and Tar'ren all dashed through their physical feats and magical abilities, covering an impressive distance in merely a few seconds. Plush'Keer hung onto Tar'ren's shoulders, the wind nearly whipping him off. Elric activated another rite, drawing power from his blood.

Yendell spat out a series of sundry facts about devils, most of which wasn't useful, but Kiwarden latched onto a few nuggets of tactical wisdom.

Seeing that Bandin was faster, Plush'Keer hopped off of Tar'ren and hobbled his stiff porcelain legs to run to Bandin, asking to be picked up. Bandin grabbed the doll, moved within range of Faux'Keer, and cast Sleep at the same time Plush'Keer marked Faux'Keer as his prey. The combined magical assault dropped the devil to unconsciousness.

"Don't hurt him," Bandin shouted.

With only a minute to spend with Faux'Keer asleep, the party set to work. Kiwarden commanded Bandin to throw Plush'Keer at Faux'Keer, hoping that the contact would swap the spirits.

Plush'Keer indignantly refused to be thrown. "What's with all the throwing?"

Tar'ren asked the trailing Hellions if they had anything to draw an anti-magic circle, and if so, to please grab it. Seeing that the mercenaries knew their stuff, the Hellions agreed and redirected to the tower.

The group surrounded Faux'Keer. Bandin pulled out a glass dagger, holding it over the body, just in case.

Plush'Keer, standing beside his prone form, remembered that he had the ability to cast Protection from Evil and Good. All of this could have been avoided, had he just remembered.

Tar'ren stated if he had some powdered silver, he could cast an Atonement Ceremony, their best chance of forcing the two spirits to swap bodies. As Kiwarden had mentioned a similar spell at Yendell's house, Yendell had brought with him some powdered silver and handed it to the Frogfolk.

Plush'Keer waited by his body and asked for rope to tie up both Faux'Keer and his doll form. He thought about swiping rope from Faux'Keer's pack, but the rest of the group hollered at him not to wake up the devil. Xeithne pulled out her rope, having both silk and hemp. Bandin bound and gagged Faux'Keer, nearly awakening him, but the Tabaxi body merely snuffled and snorted.

Unfortunately, the Ceremony would take an hour, and while Kiwarden could bestow Protection from Evil and Good on the body and Plush'Keer to help spur the transference, Tar'ren would be without protection for most of the spell. However, it was a risk he was willing to take.

As Tar'ren began the Ceremony, the Vanguard members arrived and drew the anti-magic circle to contain Tar'ren, Plush'Keer, and Faux'Keer. Tar'ren trusted the group to yank him out if things went south.

Faux'Keer awoke, growled, and shimmied his way out of his bonds. He tried to run, but slammed into the magic circle as if against an invisible wall. The Tabaxi screamed at Tar'ren and Plush'Keer. Plush'Keer gritted his teeth and made it through the psychic assault relatively unscathed, but Tar'ren took significant damage. Nevertheless, he kept his feet, his chant not slowing down.

A Hellion jumped into the circle and tackled Faux'Keer, putting him into a headlock. Though Faux'Keer struggled, he was unable to get free.

The hour neared its completion, and the closer it came, the more nervous Tar'ren was. While he appeared confident, internally he cringed, unsure if the spell would have the intended effect.

Nevertheless, he trusted in his magic. He finished the spell and struck Faux'Keer with a call for atonement.

For a second, it seemed as if nothing would occur. But then there was a pulse of power, and all those nearby with a knowledge of sailing had a brief moment of nostalgia, as if they were back on the sea. Ro'Keer's spirit and the devil's spirit flowed from the bodies and swapped places.

Ro'Keer's eyes popped open, he felt over his body, overjoyed that he was restored to himself. The next moment, however, he wailed as the pain of his shattered legs overtook him. Thankfully, they were clean breaks that would be able to be set and mended without issue.

The fiendish doll, meanwhile, writhed in anger as it transformed back into a wraithlike form with flowing blond hair. Tar'ren motioned to the Hellion to pull Ro'Keer out of the circle. The doll took a swing at Ro'Keer on the way out, landing a solid punch.

While happy that Ro'Keer was back, Xeithne wanted to know what Faux'Keer had been doing in the Vanguard tower. As Ro'Keer calmed down, he realized that his pack was heavier than he remembered. He pulled out a foldable staff and asked if it belonged to anyone.

The nearby Hellion's eyes widened. "Put that down very carefully."

Ro'Keer immediately put the staff down gently and as far away from himself as possible. Bandin recognized the item as a Staff of Minor Curses. He was glad they were able to stop Faux'Keer before he got a chance to use the nasty object.

## **Outcome:**

Both the constabulary and the Vanguard were pleased that such a dangerous criminal had been brought the justice. The constabulary didn't know how they would try a fiend, but they would certainly try. Elric received seven pieces of gold as a reward for catching the criminal.

Yendell and Xeithne combined their knowledge of medicine to set Ro'Keer's bones, then let a cleric heal him up.

The group set up an appointment with Constable Baldrick to meet with him the following day. They were thanked for their patience.

## **Adventure Rewards:**

None.

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