Date At Start Of Game: 10/22/206

[Author’s Note: This is the log for the 20th session. Note that the order of the events in this record may not be in the exact order that they occurred during play.]

The Temple – High Temple

After felling Malotoch/Kai, Po and Oren approach his body carefully. Po uses his spirit sight to look for anything magical. He finds a magical juju bag which helps for Nombrian magic and another Dark Lord tile (i.e. the one that infected Kai). Cillian searches Narduhl and finds some small gems but nothing else of any value. Searching in Malotoch’s room reveals a small chest with a bundle of loose paperwork tied up with string. The paperwork is from two different sources. One describes how to create a cursed shadow coin and the other talks about a spell that makes people forget about the caster. Both have handwritten notes from Malotoch. Also in the chest is a communications amulet like the one the PC found on the Black Fly Kin shaman long ago in the glacial lair. When Po wears the amulet he finds the following recorded entries:

Red Door
[Shows a room lined in red silk. On one wall is a mosaic that shows The Dark Mistress with her hands over a fire and blood leaking out.] “In another few days I will have enough blood to complete Crimson Tears. At first I had some fear that the drugs I have given Ember Firenose might be fading but that is not the case. With it’s power we will be able to fell armies! Hail the Dark One and his high priest.”

Blue Door
[A ceiling of black crows with glowing eyes comes into focus.] “You have done well Scorpion. Fallen soldiers will provide fuel for Anselem’s Necromantic magic…slay one army then create our own from the corpses. Lovely.” [Snickers.] “Anselem is also working on another spell to turn vast numbers of people into Rooks. If this can be accomplished we will have even more ways to quickly grow our numbers. This is working out well. My only fear at this point is from an obscure group of Dolphin Kin from the southeast. They call themselves Keepers Of The Light but what they really do is safeguard the secret of Nombrian magic. Guess they didn’t do too good of a job huh!?” [Hehehe.] “The Dark Lord burns in your spirit Scarlet Scorpion.”

The Temple – The Forge

After examining the high temple the PC return to the forge room with the intent of destroying the tiles and Crimson Tears. Oren examines the forge and finds a strange flue that does not appear to do anything. He then questions Xander and offers to leave the wall partially pulled down if he cooperates. Xander explains that when the flow is started a strange mixture of tar and bones will pour down through the open flue. This “goo” magically stokes the forge. He does not know how the Rooks start the flow but knows that the switch is in the room above. Xander also warns the PC about a trap on the door to the room.

On the first floor of the temple the PC open the trapped door and see the disgusting pool of tar and bones that was described by Xander. Below the lip of the landing Po finds a round tunnel that bores in the rock. Po investigates and finds a strange mechanism that appears to release flow of the tar into the flue. Bilby and Po wait in the room with the mechanism while Kanga waits above on the landing. Cillian and Oren go back down to the forge with Crimson Tears and the tiles.

When Cillian and Oren reach the forge they decide to try and break the tiles without the tar. After two good strikes on each tile Oren is able to break them. This sends waves of relief to Po and Cillian. Next Oren pulls out the Crimson Tears that Bilby was holding. After sticking the blade into the forge he feels the weight shift and starts to see it smoking. Something is wrong…this is not Crimson Tears! It is a normal sword with an illusion over it! Oren is upset when he realizes that Po must be at fault. Cillian then pulls out his normal looking sword and explains that it is really Crimson Tears with an illusion over it. Oren sees through the illusion then calls for Po to start the tar flow. After heating the Granite Head Forge hammer he prepares to take a ferocious blow on the sword. Before swinging Cillian puts his Great Tree necklace on Oren then backs away. Oren summons all of his power and skill and sends a mighty blow down on the blade. A hairline fracture appears then the sword splits in a cacophony of Nombrian energy! The energy is devastating and throws both Oren and Cillian away from the anvil. Without the Great Tree amulet Oren may have suffered potentially life threatening wounds. As the sword shatters Po and Cillian feel better but they both realize that to their dismay they are still infected. Most of their taint has subsided but they are still infected.

A few minutes after starting the flow Kanga sees a huge tar creature emerge from the pool! It notice him then heads down the pipe! Kanga beckons to Po and Bilby who race to hide. Po casts a spell on a blanket so that it looks like the rock wall then stealths against the wall using the blanket as a cover. Bilby takes to the shadows on the ceiling. When the creature enters the room it scans around not seeing the pair! The creature stops the tar flow then slowly returns to the pool. After waiting a few minutes Bilby and Po leave the cave and return to the forge room.

At this point the PC search some of the remaining rooms. In rooms that belong to Anselem they find some intricate models, a hidden cache of books, and a magic bag. The books detail several Necromantic spells. They are very detailed. The bag has some magical clay. By shaping the clay it can be made into items or various types that stay in their current form for several minutes.

Epic Tale #8 – Hook, Line, And Sinker

After leaving Granite Head the PC briefly speak to the Once Romu father and son. They tell them of their accomplishment then start their long trek to the east. The stick is leading strongly to the east and Po believes that the source is very far away.

After roughly 5 weeks the PC reach Torin City on the east cost of the main continent. At Torin City they try to book passage to Tokaji. While waiting for their ship to be loaded they are approached by their old companion Bishop! Bishop is dressed in a hooded cloak. He seems upset and wants to speak with the PC in private. Once in a private room Bishop tells the PC that he has detected that Po is “infected” then asks the PC what they know about the “condition”. Po then explains Nombrian magic and the sickness. Bishop is not happy when he hears this information. He then asks the PC if they are the only ones who know about Nombrian magic or if there are others. The PC mention that Anselem, an evil Necromancer, has the knowledge as well. Bishop comments that he must be stopped. He then beckons for Nessa to appear. When the ghost of his sister appears he forcefully asks if she was the one who leaked the information to this Anselem person. Facing the other way with her arms folded Nessa explains that she got heavily into debt. She got into so much debt that the gambling establishment wanted to make her an indentured servant. Not wanting to be a slave Nessa offered up information on a “secret source of magic power”. A nearby magician who she would later find out was called Scarlet Scorpion offered to not only pay off her debt but to reward her handsomely for the information. At that point Nessa gave out the information and was reimbursed as promised. At this point Bishop practically screams at Nessa for being so stupid. He rants about how many deaths releasing this information has caused…including his killing her. Bishop then tells the PC that he and Nessa were born into a pod of Dolphin Kin who are pledged to safe guard the secret of Nombrian magic. He discovered that Nessa had leaked the information and was told to take her life and that he would be branded a traitor and banished. Bishop then tells the PC where the secret lair of the Keepers is located. It is in underwater caves not too far to the southeast. He also warns them of monstrous guards that they use to defend the caves. According to Bishop the Keeper Of The Light are likely to be the only ones who know how to cure them of the Nombrian infection. With that the PC talk about their next course of action…

Date At End Of Game: 12/23/206