Session 34: To Vathirond! Report

General Summary

The group begins in the train, en route to Vathirond. The group is introduced to Senra, joining the group, sent by the Fairhaven HQ to be their blaster. She inspects everyone's surface thought to get a first impression, noting Astara's sour mood, Nina's shyness, Trajan's perplexity and confusion at the scales and Merta's aloofness and animal care, but nothing for Eavaan.   At arrival, the group finds itself outside a large city, but with half of it being crumbled beyond hope, and segregated by a large metal gate. The city being large enough to hide some of the space behind it, and the full of the opposite horizon. On the right, in the distance, is a gated camp of sort, and from it comes a boy or man, malnourished and in a panic, chased by guards. It is revealed that he is Kalashtar, rambling like a bit of a lunatic. The guards mention he's not the only doomsayer, and many spirits broke from stress and the effects of the Mournland's proximity. The man mewls that no one will dream again, that the nightmare is already here, that the invasion began in Sarlona. Connecting with Eavaan, he calms a bit, but leaves a last, large warning to "protect the door"!   Recovering, the whole group heads to the information booth at the entrance. Senra gets a map of the city. Astara, Eavaan and Trajan ask for introductory information, learning there is a clinic inside, and an epidemic of amnesia. Mainstreet has shops and the Mounrning Inn for a place to stay. There is a townhall and tower to view the Mournland. The City has a curfew, and the group can use their Foundation membership pass to gain access to the gates. They try to ask for more, but the attendant breaks into letting them know he earns minimum wage, and doesn't know EVERYTHING about the city, just the standard visitor's package.   The group then goes in. Astara and Merta purchase gas masks and talk. The rest heads to the clinic. Eavaan talks to the staff, and Senra uses the distraction to slip in one of the rooms. Together they meet gnomish doctor Zarna, and learn that victims are fully blank of memory except the recent coming too. It's not happened within the city walls, but people of any age seem to be susceptible. And it is spreading in the neighboring towns. Senra confirms it's not the same as her issues. The half elf who's thought are read, seem to have lost their memory in a berry patch of sort. Eavaan filled forms to gain access and do mind reads on record. This will take time.   Research is then done at the local archives, finding general information about the town, and it's being ancient (268 years old). Half is gone, the main attraction at the time with House Cannith's engineering house at the time. The town once played a key role in the train's establishment. Little is known of the Mournlands themselves, but that there was a boom, and then the place was as it is now before end of day, spreading very fast. Theories are plenty. For warforged, known as engines of war, they were created by House Cannith for the purpose of the war. Once the war was over, those that remained gained self awareness and took on independance. They aren't popular for certain, and Vathirond has orders to eliminate them on site. They do have a power core, and would need electricity to function.   The group then retreats to the local Inn, shares tea and pie before heading to bed. The night is odd, with gasps and moans coming from the Mournland through the night.   GAME BREAK   After their rest, Senra goes to see over the wall, using very poor parcour skills to reach the wall, and then misty step to the top. There, she gets a full view of the Mournlands, that smoke wall looking like bubbling ghastly faces, stopped there, just in reach. Astara follows, hidden, with parcour just as poor, then climbs up as a spider. They watch the wall, then returns in the morning to rejoin the others as the curfew lifts. They all get to the gate and prepare: Aid is cast, rope is acquired and used to tie everyone together, the group takes a high alert to keep a group perception of 16.3 on the trek.   The gates open and they cross. All can see the Mournland... and Trajan becomes affected. Seeing the Mournland, Trajan plunges into himself, in a sense that seems to pull from two opposite direction. An old dream replays in part…turning around to see the silhouettes as the dust cloud reaches them. You go to run their way but the lady instantly reaches a hand out "TRAJAN NO!" and you stop. Their golden hands lace together and they smile your way. "He made it..." they say, in a gasp. Your eyes locked to hers, a tear dripping from her pink eyes. Unable to keep looking to her face, so beautiful, such love, you look down to their entertwined hands as the smoke covers them, turning their golden scales into black charcoal.   Your vision fades and you find a man, a silhouette in the cloud… but the cloud is still now, and the land barren of noise… except for a whisper in the void.. "I'm waiting for you…." the husk male voice fades, and you see lodged in the ground, a gleam of pulsing purple light.   The vision cracks and the image rubberbands back, and you flash through as if expulsed of the Mournland, fast vision of rocks, desert, fog, more fog, grass, clouds, light, fast buildings, people wizing buy and you are propulsed up… and you recognize Vathirond from above, as you pause for a few moments, suspended high in the air. Suddenly you flash forward, to the abandoned building at the top of the hill, passing through grates and wizzing through brass pipes so fast you can barely see, just a blurr of teal lights, cogs and gears.. and then you stop, in a hall full of tools and lab gages, as the image distorts, at the sound of a blood curling scream.   He then returns to the group, and has a breakdown, trying to find the source of the words and the hurt. Eavaan comforts him, while the family and new members stay close. After some ponder, the point that he lab and the Mournland are linked is set, and Trajan gets back up to move forward. Astara turns into a cat to act as a covert support animal for Trajan. They step into the district separating them from the lab, above the clifftop. In the streets, they find tar-covered silhouettes, and a mass of black tar covered in debris that seems to move, a good ways away from them.   END GAME

Character(s) interacted with

• Crazy kalashtar
• Darren (Guard - Gate)
• Dr. Zarna (gnome)