Fifty-First Session - the Dragons of the Desert

Session resumes with the Keepers deciding to return to Azkaresh from Roe’s Estate by boating against the current of the underground river, aided by Alana’s Control Water spell. Markoris hears a scurrying ratlike sound up ahead. The Warden advises the party to avoid it, warning of escaped and mutated pet rats that have a taste for brains. Celia, thinking quickly, casts Silence on the boat, enabling the party to pass a shared stealth check and return to the underground dock without incident.

As they return toward LOTLE’s temple, Ishaq chats with the Warden about the Hive. The Warden shares that the Hive usually stays hidden and hunts brains subtly, and mentions an old war 500 years ago between topsiders and peoples of the Underdark, the latter led by Drow. Both Raith and Drow claimed victory. According to the Warden, his settlement is a splinter from the main, larger Hive, based around the underground river.

Ishaq, rolling a natural 20 on a Religion check, recalls and describes the Drow worship of the Dark Lady: historically, the Drow are monotheists who deny and disdain the divinity of other gods, but some sects may (to an extent) consider LOTLE as a mere aspect of the Dark Lady -- LOTLE herself is a newer god compared to the elder, primordial divinity that is the Drow-exclusive Dark Lady. Ishaq also explained that the Dark Lady holds dominion over the Underdark. Celia to a lesser extent is vaguely aware of the Dark Lady. Max is briefly paranoid that the party now Knows Too Much about the Hive, but the Warden convinces him they’ll only be killed if they spread it around.

The party bids farewell to the Warden for now at LOTLE’s temple, then heads to the magic-warded Archive to discuss their next moves in privacy. They obtain a number of books and a private room, and Celia gives her name as Romaine Lettuce. The librarian is immediately skeptical, but Ishaq artfully deceives her into compliance with a succinct lie. Leona is left in the lobby. Ishaq requests history on the Raith-Underdark war, wanting to find mentions of a gold dragon. Ishaq, Max, and Alana talk about Roe’s apparent hostility toward Sarashim’s Gate/Key being so close to Azkaresh.

Markoris talks about the deal they’ve made and mentions it may not be in the best interests of the local underworld to unseat the Governor when Max asks whether the Bishop might help blackmail the current leadership. Markoris also asks Ishaq, who has insight into dragon matters given his heritage, what the policy of a draconic ruler might be towards the local crime scene. Ishaq discusses how draconic perspectives can lead to viewing mortals as lesser tools to be discarded, something notably in contrast to the Host Radiant teachings, and that dragons tend to be considered semi-divine in their own right. This allows for their arrogance, which can in turn be manipulated.

Max points out that now the party is acting as the dragon’s tools. Alana expresses that she doesn’t trust Roe’s rulership, and isn’t comfortable with playing kingmaker. Ishaq insists that Roe is invested in the city and can be swayed to a more kind approach, and that his ascension would be good for Azkaresh and bad for Raith, and that Roe's reasoning is at least partially anchored to his ego. His arrogance can be used against him.

They begin researching. Markoris finds that the Governorship of Azkaresh used to be a Princedom - it has been an unbroken line from the original Princedom. Many of the bylaws of AZK has to do with the Governor’s position. The Governor is the final arbiter of judgement in the city, and doesn’t answer to Raith in court matters.

Most importantly, there is a special ritual conducted when the Governor is lawfully appointed as Roe seeks to be, cast by regional Ministers. It grants the new Governor the ‘keys to the city’ and the ability to enchant certain things.

Ishaq looks into the war between Raith and the Underdark around Azkaresh. He finds an obscure reference of a pair of gold dragons who had a hoard in the desert near the city, this legend far older than the Raithir occupation. The city paid tribute to them but the arrangement was generally benign: the dragons enabled the place to flourish during famine and drought, due to the implication of some magical artifact. Ishaq posits that Roe, one of these two gold dragons, once had a mate who has been held captive by Raith for centuries or that this mate was killed and its hoard stolen for use of the Governorship, and this is why Roe has been subdued up to this breaking point.

Research concluded, the party cuts Leona loose as she has fulfilled her end of the deal. She flirts with Max one last time before she goes. Max remains unmoved. The party then goes to talk to Celus, but he’s on duty until midnight. The team splits up in the meantime to find more information that could help quietly reshuffle Azkaresh’s leadership in Roe’s favour. Max and Markoris go to talk to the Bishop, while Ishaq, Celia, and Raul investigated via gathering ‘word on the street’ intel about the Governor.

Markoris asks the Bishop about underworld-Governor relations. He’s told that the Governor tolerates the underworld as a part of the city and doesn’t try to eliminate them. The Governor partly tolerates the crime world because they have the power to make life \*very\* difficult for him. His power rests on controlling the flow of wealth to Raith. There are rumours that he hoards magical creatures and ancient artifacts.

Meanwhile, Celia adopts her human disguise as they descend onto a market place. The rest of the party talks to Raul about what he’s been reporting to the Crown about the party’s activities, and Ishaq inquires after their former guards, Sol and Talith. They then start striking up conversations with local citizens for the sake of understanding public sentiment regarding the Governor, and quickly realize that the vast majority of Azkaresh citizens view Raith as an occupying force, and that the Governor is a collaborator who steals local wealth for his own Raithir prestige. People start ranting about Raith and how terrible it is whenever the Governor is mentioned, and there are rumours about Hypatian’s parentage, especially his mother, which hold less credulity but are nevertheless fuel for an anti-Raith fire.

The party reunites and compares notes. It appears most of the populace doesn’t like the Governor, particularly Raith’s taxes, and how the Governor seems to care little for their local population. The Governor only cares for maintaining his own position, which carries with it a hoard of personal wealth which may include a Druidic artifact linked to Alana’s circle (I missed this because the notes crashed during session). Jainith will be consulted on this to find out more.

Celia plans to ask LOTLE three questions in Commune:

1. Is anyone spying on the party?

2. Is the Governor a dragon?

3. Is Roe’s mate still alive?

Session closes as the party discusses whether Commune should be cast before or after the meeting with Celus.