Session 09

## Tustle in the Tavern

The session began with the party shaken after their underwater encounter. With Salibar exhausted, they decided to make for “The Jade Lyre,” a nearby tavern, to rest for the evening. Lilliana ordered a drink from the pink tiefling innkeeper, and the group paid for two rooms.

However, upon heading towards their rooms, the party saw a man and three bugbears enter the tavern. When the group's leader demanded the innkeeper put her money in a bag, the group realised a robbery was taking place. Ciarán magically boomed his voice and tried to distract the thieves, while Salibar made the lights flicker to frighten the group. Combat ensued, and the party quickly overcame their foes, gaining a gold each (Ciarán refused) for their services, and food on the house. In addition, they found a small amount of gold on each of the bugbears but no emblems of affiliation. The group then helped to carry the unconscious thieves from the tavern. While the rest of the group retired for the night, Ciarán offered to stay on the ground floor and keep watch for any other opportunists.

## An Eye Opening Encounter

In the morning, two robed figures, a woman and a man appeared in The Jade Lyre. Salibar immediately recognised these figures as members of the Order of the Eleventh Eye. The newly arrived Dior Evergreen also spotted these figures, but in a strange scene, saw both the robed figures and Ciarán, Salibar, and Lilliana snap out of existence.

From the party’s perspective, however, the time around them had stopped. The party recognised this as a "Time Stop" spell from their experience in Clean Falore’s vision.

The figures demonstrated knowledge of each party member but revealed that they were there for Salibar. Introducing themselves as Ostirus Crex and Iphaen Merebelle, the pair expressed that they had been searching for Salibar due to his direct contact with the Magus. According to Ostirus and Iphaen, the Magus had disappeared thirty years prior. They inquired about Salibar’s contact with the Magus, and he detailed how he had first seen and been drawn to the Magus when he appeared to the tiefling wreathed in knowledge. He described his earlier escape from death and showed the pair the letter signed “S”. They revealed that the letter was written in his own hand.

The pair also inquired about the party’s dealings with Titus Kiyth and provided additional context on his goals. They revealed that Titus was excommunicated from their ranks after he attempted to reconstruct the Mirror of Kathepis, the powerful magical artefact the party previously glimpsed in Clean Falore’s vision. According to the pair, Titus is obsessed with retrieving the shards of the Mirror and is seeking to reunite the pieces. Ostirus and Iphaen detailed how the Mirror was forged from a beholder’s central eye. According to some accounts, the artefact is capable of not only collapsing the Weave but also granting the ability to cast 10th-level spells. When the party inquired about the Mirror’s use in the fight against the Horned King, the pair seemed curious about the party’s knowledge and revealed that the last-known use of the Mirror was at the Fall of Arcadia. Shortly after their predecessors defeated the Horned King, the order destroyed the Mirror using the ten staves constructed from the beholder’s other eyes. The Staff of Alchemy, wielded by Ostirus and the Staff of Dreams, wielded by Iphaen, are two of the ten staves needed to destroy or reconstruct the Mirror. In probing to see the extent of the party’s knowledge, they also noted that after the order used the Mirror on the Horned King, “She” was born.

They also revealed that each member of the order possesses a tattoo that can be discovered under magical light. These tattoos allow specialist spells to be cast against former or current members. For their safety, Ostirus and Iphaen also encouraged the party to seek out churches if Titus confronted them. Titus, they revealed, cannot enter places where the Magus is worshipped.

[***I can’t exactly remember what quest they gave us. Was it to find the tree? All I know is that we received the items after these huge lore drops.***]

During this conversation, the pair brought Dior into the Time Stop and insisted that the party would need their help. They gifted the party several items, including a letter for Dior, spell material replacements for the party’s spellcasters, and a scroll to prevent Ciarán’s visions for 24 hours.

The two then vanished, and time resumed as usual.

Following this encounter, the group introduced themselves to Dior. Lilliana seemed slower to trust Dior. Ciarán introduced Fiontánn to Dior, and the tiefling introduced their own familiar, a large cat, to the party. Unfortunately, the young dragon and the cat did not get along.

Having gathered and discussed their objectives, the party determined to set out and find some way of getting to Misclap, deciding to inquire about a job listing from a “Legless Jim”.

## Legless Jim

The party questioned the innkeeper at The Jade Lyre about Legless Jim, and she directed them towards a pair of muscled halflings in the corner of the room. When the party approached and inquired about Jim, the pair conversed in halfling before offering a deal: they would speak with them if Salibar could beat them in an arm wrestle. In a feat of strength, Salibar overcame the halfling, and they were thrown from their chair.

The common-speaking halfling revealed the location of Legless Jim and gave the party the password to enter the building, but not before testing the party with an ostensible offer to burn down an orphanage. Ciarán, deeply offended by the offer, released a beam of radiant energy at the halfling. They apologised and revealed that the orphanage quest was only a test. The halfling gave the party one piece of advice for their encounter with Legless Jim: “Don’t mention his legs”.

On their way to the marked location, the party saw a group of orphans playing in the street. When the party approached, the orphans whistled, dashed past, and (unbeknownst to them) nicked a few gold from each party member.

Having located the building indicated by the halfling, the party gave the password and were ushered inside, descending underground into a thieves’ den. They found themselves in a room with windows replaced with doors and rows of archers dotted along the walls. The party also spotted the group of orphans they had seen earlier. At the end of the room, in front of a pile of gold, was the hulking figure of a goliath: Legless Jim. Ironically, for someone with the epithet “Legless,” Jim seemed to have two functioning legs.

During their conversation with Jim, Lilliana gleaned some information about her family. Jim was familiar with Lilliana and her sister, Arianna, and he revealed that Arianna had recently paid him 150 gold for his discretion about her movements. Lilliana attempted to bribe Jim with five and later ten gold for information, but Jim laughed, asking for no less than 300 gold to reveal Arianna’s location. Lilliana learned that Arianna was looking for something and that she didn’t want to see her sister.

He also offered the party some jobs, with two primary ones: the first job was to help a known monster hunter named Van Helsing to take down several vampires in the city. The second job would see the party travelling to Misclap and involved finding and talking with a figure named Thrush the Great Orc (a ship captain previously in the employ of Jim), assassinating Nimbin the Nose (a cannibal and brutal murderer), and “silencing” a figure known as Foxx Rouge. According to Jim, Foxx had some knowledge about an accountant named “The Magpie”. The party would be provided passage to Misclap, and Jim’s connections with figures in the city would allow them to be safely “arrested” and put in prison, where they could locate their targets. Lilliana and Salibar enthusiastically accepted the Misclap job. Ciarán obstinately refused to participate in the assassination job; however, after Jim framed the Nose’s murder as “saving the lives of his future victims,” Ciarán tentatively agreed to the assignment. While Ciarán and Salibar agreed to take the Van Helsing job, Lilliana refused, evincing some familiarity with Helsing. Having taken both assignments (with varying degrees of enthusiasm), the party left Jim’s den. The goliath left the trio with some passing words, reminding them that failing to fulfil their duties would result in death.

## Van Helsing

In preparation for their meeting with Helsing, Ciarán offered Lilliana a “Disguise Self” scroll to change their appearance, but she refused this offer.

Entering “The Squeaky Floorboard” tavern, the party saw Helsing, an older-looking man, and a woman seated to the side. The party noticed an “aura of oddness” around the young woman. Lilliana recognised this woman to be her sister, Arianna. Luckily, however, both Helsing and Arianna did not recognise Lilliana.

Helsing explained that they were hunting a group of vampires. He was unsure how far along in their transformation the vampires were but assured the party (well, mainly Ciarán) that they would spare the vampires if they could be saved. The party agreed to join Helsing and Arianna. At one point during this conversation, Lilliana attempted to speak, but something silenced her and prevented her from speaking. Helsing confirmed that something had cast a “Silence” spell upon her.

As an aside, Helsing also asked Salibar if he was feeling well, seemingly concerned about his health. Ciarán performed a medicine check on Salibar and found that he had lost significant amounts of weight and his skin had dullened. Helsing followed this check by using a kind of bloodletting device on Salibar, which revealed nothing unusual save for Salibar’s slightly devilish blood (courtesy of his tiefling lineage).

The group then began to leave for the location indicated by Helsing. On the walk over, Salibar cast “Divine Sense” on himself and found that he had become undead. He decided to keep this fact from the party.

The party came upon a room filled with vampires. One vampire appeared to be attacking a painting on a wall. A fight then ensued. Unfortunately, in Ciarán’s attempts to ward off the vampires by casting “Turn Undead,” Salibar found himself turned by the spell and terrified by his companion. In a moment of calm, Ciarán was able to console Salibar. At this time, Lilliana, having noted the magical aura around Arianna, cast a spell to remove the presumed charm effect that was active on her sister. Arianna began to attack Helsing, revealing tentacled arms and some kind of aberrant nature. Fortunately, the party was able to pick off the vampires individually before engaging Helsing.

In a last-ditch attempt to fight off Arianna, Helsing fired a magical bolt at Lilliana’s sister, causing immense damage and knocking her unconscious. Soon after, Helsing dashed out of the room, realising Lilliana’s true identity. Lilliana attempted to bring him back in, but Helsing slipped away. Helsing then dashed oil on the floor and lit the ground on fire. By expelling the water from her bag of holding, Lilliana sent Helsing flying 20ft, dousing the flames and causing him to drop his bag. Without his bag and with no defence, Helsing surrendered.

Lilliana, presumably enraged by the harm done to her sister, lit a bonfire under Helsing, mercilessly burning him to death.

In the meantime, Ciarán and Salibar attempted to stabilise Arianna, but Helsing’s attack had torn a hole in her torso that was causing her to bleed out. Salibar revealed that a lesser restoration spell or any spell of similar effect would stop her bleeding. Ciarán had begged Helsing to offer any aid, but the man refused, mockingly remarking to Lilliana: “*It’s a shame when good people get hurt. The consequences of your own actions”.* Nevertheless, Ciarán ultimately stabilised Arianna with a Superior Healing Potion.

Lilliana could only briefly talk to her sister before she passed out from exhaustion. In this brief conversation, Arianna revealed that Helsing knew the name of the being that “did this” to them.

Having dragged themselves outside, the party was met with a confronting sight. A large ship had arrived, and Flotsam was filled with clerical women bearing the symbols of the Merciful Mother. One woman, giving a rousing speech before the Flotsam locals, proclaimed, “May the mother have mercy upon you, for we will not”. Upon declaring this, several ships appeared simultaneously, and bird-like humanoid creatures began to fire ttacks on the town. The party found themselves amidst a chaotic scene.