Session Fifteen: Dude, where’s my Vence?
General Summary
The Music Room Emir and Cissa never went to sleep. At first, they spoke in hushed tones of over a sleeping Mia. Cissa was trying to explain why Corvus was upset, without explicitly mentioning Jurian. And how they would need to handle it. When it was clear no sleep was coming that night, Cissa moved them into the Music Room for a more private conversation. Tired of all the lies between them, she brings up Talia, the person she had sent on the trail of Lucinia and who Emir talks about…and who never mentioned Emir. She talked about a “Thaen”. Cissa is suspicious of Emir as he knew things that only Thaen would, amongst other tell tale signs. Finding out about Vence helped her fully connect the dots. Emir remains evasive and pushes her on what Talia had said to her. Cissa says “Thaen” “was a person who can change their shape”. While Emir never quite says who he is he does shift shape into another person briefly for Cissa to confirm her suspicions. He doesn’t show Thaen’s form. For the rest of the evening, he remains as Emir…though does mimic Cissa’s voice at times. As the night goes on, Emir asks her more about her life and Cissa learns some of ‘Persona Protocol’. Stories that were never shared as they both previously kept their lives separate from their friendship. Cissa mentions Hawk a few times, even playing a bit of the song, but only reaches half way through the second verse and she never goes into full details of his story. When asked about her short hair, she mentions that a paladin named Aria de Caradas inspired her to cut it. When talking about personas having trouble with Molly, she jests about her old tortle friend who struggles to get past Molly too as he needs to give her every name he’s ever had. They also talked about the nature of pranks and Cissa made it very clear she never approves of ones where both parties don’t see the humour in it. Emir(?) seems to think differently, but says it sounds like she is referring to Corvus. On this, they start discussing the next steps on what to do about Corvus. She explains that, as Corvus always studies in the early hours, he’ll probably be in the Spire of Knowledge. They decide to go meet him there together. The Glowing Sword Cane Having gone to bed quite early though, Corvus wakes up in the early hours of the morning after just having experienced one of the most amazing trances he’s had since arriving in Khorvaire. She smiled. Corvus gets up and goes to find his Sword Cane. Upon locating it, he sees the gem on its handle is glowing. The pebble that he left on the windowsill is gone. Very elated, he leaves the palace for the Spire of Knowledge. At the Spire, Corvus uses Minor Illusion to show Molly a projection of Vence and asks her if she can identify that person. She says no. Corvus then asks whether Molly can tell him who left the Spire before he did the day before. She says no. He then asks about a book Jurian recommened: “Unsung Heroes”. She directs him to section 3b. Corvus locates the book (it’s quite thin and has a lot of pictures). He finds the page about General (The Starling) Keya but his mind dwells before he could start reading it. It Hurts Like Hell Meanwhile, Cissa and Emir get dressed. She scribbles a message to Mia in the (unlikely) event that she’d wake up before they get back. She then grabs the letter that Emir gave her and they head downstairs to the front desk of the Spire of Inspiration. Cissa asks Emir if he wants to go past Molly alone (in case he was not yet comfortable with his real name being said in front of Cissa). He tells her that he’s fine with her joining him and, as they pass Molly, he is greeted as Thaen. Before leaving the Spire of Inspiration, Cissa hands Molly the letter and asks her to put it in a particular vault. The two head towards the Spire of Knowledge. At the desk, Emir asks Molly if Corvus is around and she replies with: “Yes, in section 3b”. Inside the Spire’s library, they hear a viol echoing through the halls. Emir doesn’t know the melody but Cissa blanches, whispering that this is her song. The viol stops playing and a soft male voice starts to sing. (See It Hurts Like Hell). She takes Emir’s hand and casts Fly on both of them, shooting up into the air and following the sound of the voice. They find Corvus in a small study area in section 3b. A book open but he’s not reading it. Instead, he’s looking at a projection of Cissa, singing this song at the same time as he is. Her eyes are pleading. She casts Major Image, creating a white void around them with white feathers floating in the breeze. Corvus finally notices that she’s there. She finishes the song and disperses the white void. Corvus hugs her and tells her that he’s starting to understand this particular song better. “Flying is hard.” Cissa agrees. He then looks over her shoulder and then bluntly asks why “World Famous Bard, Emir” is there. She explains that she had wanted to introduce the two for some time now. Then pointedly mentions to Corvus that he probably knows Emir means a great deal to her and that she sometimes shares things with him because she trusts him. Corvus frowns and points out that Emir shared Cissa‘s information with Vence. She pointedly looks at Emir and he tells Corvus that, as a famous bard, he needs to be in disguise when he travels. His fans are a little… overbearing… at times. He reveals that he is actually Vence and uses Vence’s voice for a moment to prove it. He explains that Cissa didn’t know this either. Emir emphasizes on how delicate this secret is. Not many people know it. Corvus is glad to hear this information. He says that he felt Vence was one of the reasons why they survived Windshire and he really wanted to trust him. However, he explains that Emir might not understand what he nearly sacrificed in Windshire. To which Emir shows Vence’s scars that he got in WInshire and says that he understands sacrifice. Cissa chimes in and tells Emir that that is not what Corvus meant. Corvus goes on to explain how protecting the one he loves is the most important thing to him. He sacrificed that to try to save Windshire . He then reveals that the “puppy” Cissa referred to was, in fact, Prince Jurian. When things got dire, he alerted Jurian by taking his bracelet off. Jurian then went and told Cissa about the mission so that they can figure out how to help Corvus. She didn’t know about the mission before that point. But she had to tell Prince Wrogar she did in order to protect the two. That threw Corvus under the bus with as he then felt Corvus cannot be trusted with sensitive information. To make up for everything, Emir suggests to perform a private concert for Prince Jurian. Corvus loves the idea and suggests to have the whole group join too. Emir suggests he and Corvus extend their conversation about Windshire at another point. They agree to keep each other’s secrets. Corvus hugs Cissa one more time, telling her that as she protected his puppy, he’ll protect hers. With everything seemingly solved, Corvus goes on to read his book and Cissa and Emir go back to the Spire of Inspiration to finally get some sleep. Malak’s Dream Malak is standing on a very high cliff about 10 feet away from the edge. The mountain he is standing on is jagged and rocky. But as he looks beyond the edge, he sees a beautiful green valley. On a large outcrop within this valley, there is massive a city. One he’s never seen before. Multiple colourful Spires and Towers glisten in the sun. The wind in his ears is roaring. Or is it the wind? The wind subsides but the roaring continues. But is it actually roaring? No. It’s voices. Thousands of voices. All yelling. Or screaming. Then he hears… him. His whispering drowning out everything else: “Malak-ah. You are… progressssing. The ssssong hassss been ssssung. Sssspeak with Mia.” He wakes up. Through the curtains he can see the dim light of dawn. It’s around 7.30am. Against his chest, he feels something warm. He looks down and sees a long, delicate silver chain. There are a few larger links on it. And attached to one of these links is a charm in the shape of a feather. Exasperated, Malak says, “But Tula, she can be so difficult”. The comment is not answered. Malak then cleans up and heads to the Spire of Knowledge. General Keya (the Starling) Malak asks Molly if Corvus is there. She directs him to section 3b. Corvus is pleased, but surprised, to see Malak this early. Malak explains that he wanted to just make sure he properly thanked Corvus. He truly appreciated that Corvus decided to forgo his reward and gift it to Malak. The information is very valuable to him. Corvus tells Malak that he’s reading something very interesting. Malak might find it interesting too. He firsts asks Malak what he might know about the Flameless, other than that it was the regiment Myranna was part of. He mentions the name Keya but Malak doesn’t know it. He shares the text of General Keya. General (The Starling) Keya For about 60 years, the mighty Firborg barbarian, Keya, had shown great bravery, dedication and compassion as a warrior of Thrane. In her early years, she fought on the front lines and then worked in Flamekeep. After bearing witness to the event known as the “Lighting of the Torch”, Keya returned to the war. As she grew within the ranks, she joined a new regiment known as “the Flameless”. In her final years, she became its general, and lead them valiantly alongside her second in command, Captain Myranna Ishim and an Elven bard named Luscinia. At the mention of the “Lighting of the Torch”, Malak recalls something. He tells Corvus that the Lighting of the Torch was a celebration that marked the first day of the festival of Solaris. No one was completely sure what this ceremony was and they never used an actual torch for it. Until one year, when Keeper Jossea Mer acquired a sacred torch to light with the Silver Flame. This event somehow triggered a possible encounter with the Shadow in the Flame. It was during this event that Baxon Hawk sacrificed his life to prevent this from happening. Some stories involved a firbolg but Malak never understood how that was possible as that would be unusual for the Silver Flame to involve one in such a story. Corvus explains that the “Song of Myranna” is actually a repurposed version of the “Song of Hawk”. Cissa used to perform it using projections from Major Image to show exactly what happened. In her telling of the story, there was a firbolg, half orc and even a tortle. There was also two humans and a very, very, very, very old Elf. He goes on to describe this Elf, which has Malak realise that he’s actually met this Elf before. They then discuss the feather in Keya’s hair, as shown in the illustration. Corvus is getting a bit frustrated with all these different people wearing this feather. To which Malak replies by showing his new chain with a feather charm attached. Malak also notices that the gem on Corvus’ Sword Cane is glowing. Corvus then tells Malak he is no longer pursuing Vence. He realises Vence was an asset and could become a very good ally. Malak is glad that this hatchet is being buried. The two decide to go for breakfast at the palace. Nesza and Conrad Around this time, Nesza wakes up. He heads to the front desk and asks Almentash if he knows whether Vence is awake yet. Almentash explains that he hasn’t seen Vence since yesterday. Nesza then decides to skip breakfast and head to the Glasshouse (the barracks) to find Captain Conrad Mer. After being guided there by one of the soldiers, Nesza is let into Conrad’s office. They first discuss the food that was promised to George. Conrad explains that he received word that George is with Tatalla on the “Silver Bird” and the first month’s provisions will be sent there. Conrad then addresses the delicate situation around talking about George in public. He explains that Nesza really needs to be careful outing his friend as a Goliath. In the meeting with Wrogar, the Prince feigned ignorance when Nesza talked about it as Conrad had already briefed him on the situation. But the crown cannot be involved here. Nesza says that he finds this very difficult as George was always with him on his travels and they never encountered problems before. He then asks how much it would cost to have trainee of the guard watch over George for the time being. Conrad sympathizes but he works for the crown. Meaning that any of his trainees would too. Aas explained, the crown cannot be involved with affrais between different Houses. Having a Aundarian Royal Guard on a Lyrandar vessel, protecting what could be considered a Cannith asset, could cause massive problems for both House Lyrandar and the crown. However, Conrad does have another idea. The warforged that are in his care will be transported soon by a very close friend of the family. That friend will ensure the warforged are taken somewhere safe. Perhaps it’s an idea for George to go with them. He’s currently out on business but should be back tomorrow Conrad gives Nesza a letter that he can take with him to House Orien. To speak with Elijah d’Orien. A man his family trusts with their lives. April and Silmer April wakes up with a start and goes to find the hotel’s complementary stationary. In her chaotic state, Silmer wakes up. Having found something to write with, she tries her hardest to remember the formula that her grandfather burned the night before. Unfortunately, she could only partially remember the formula: The part regarding cold. Silmer tries to calm her down by asking if there’s anyone else who could help figuring that formula out again. April assumes that her grandfather would but she currently does not want to see him. April then says that she needs to speak to Vence sometime in the day. She wants him to make a forgery of her forged artificer licence. That way she can return the one forgery to her grandfather to make up with him but still be able to make use of her own skills. She then explains to Silmer that she’s a little freaked out in general. Her grandfather had warned her that she should not show her artificer skills around humans in case House Cannith (in April’s interpretation) abducts her and ties her to a bed for breeding purposes. She has NO IDEA who to trust right now. Except Silmer because obviously he’s not a human. Silmer tries to calmly explain that this is probably not exactly what her grandfather meant and that perhaps they need to look into this further. April recalls that Nesza suggested that she read a book on House Cannith, which could perhaps help them out. April also copies the names from the list. She and Silmer cannot figure out who they are but names look strange. The two of them decide that the wisest thing to do is to go to the Spire of Knowledge after breakfast. They first head to the reception desk and ask Almentash about whether he has seen Vence. He explains that he hasn’t seen him since yesterday. The two then go for breakfast. Mia’s morning It’s around 9.30 am and Mia wakes up. Emir is still sleeping but Cissa has already had her four hours rest and is currently writing some things down at her desk. Mia gets up and cleans up. Cissa freshens her up a little with some Prestidigitation. Mia blows her a kiss and says she had fun. She decides to head to the Golden Dragon Inn. At the front desk, she asks Almentash if Vence is in. She feels a little guilty for leaving him hanging the night before when they had agreed to go out drinking but she never showed up. Almentash is thoroughly confused and explains that Vence, like her, didn’t come in yesterday. But also that she had not collected the key to her room. He hands Mia a key, much to her surprise as she always sleeps in Corvus’ room (Wrogar, who arranged this, of course did not know this). He explains her money is there too. Mia happily heads to her bedroom, grabs the chocolates on the pillows and anything else that could be considered “complementary”. She is also delighted by her money. She then decides to head to the Palace for breakfast. Breakfast at the Palace At the breakfast table are Malak, Corvus and Jurian. Malak and Corvus greet her warmly. Jurian is visibly uncomfortable with Mia being there. As a gesture of goodwill, Mia gives Jurian the hotel chocolate.He pockets it. Corvus tells the group that “World Famous Bard” Emir has offered to perform in a private concert for Prince Jurian, whom is very excited by this. He always adores Emir’s performances (Mia makes quips in between about just how “good” his “performance” can be). The conversation then shifts to the events in Windshire. Corvus explains his actions in Windshire. Slapping Carey was due to Carey asking him to so that it would not expose her helping him to the Sicklemen The Heat Metal torture was not supposed to kill anyone but he could not break character as a “Fabulous Sky Pirate Gone Legit” at that moment, otherwise he’d expose Carey. He really does regret the outcome though Jurian tells Malak that he realises Malak watched over Corvus for him… at nearly the cost of his own life. That was not what he meant when he asked Malak. Malak is also his friend and he would be devastated to lose him too. Corvus mentions that Mia was a real asset to the group and she protected them all. Jurian takes Mia by the hand and, for the first time ever, looks her in the eyes properly. He thanks her for everything that she did. Then does the same with Malak. Mia is very uncomfortable with this exchange and doesn’t respond. Malak then tells Jurian he was not completely honest with him. He gives him the information that he’s shared with Mia and Corvus. That Myranna has the Sickness and is currently in stasis. Jurian asks Malak how he managed to create this stasis. Malak doesn’t quite know how to reply but finally manages by saying it was done by someone else as a favour. Jurian then asks if this can be done for more people and Malak replies “unlikely.” Jurian tries to press on again, interested in the possibility to save more lives. Corvus stops him and says that sometimes these kind of things can come at a great cost. Malak agrees, saying that his cost his soul. Corvus goes on to explain to Jurian what that could mean but he snaps back that he understands what that could imply. Malak says that, luckily, he is on to something. Perhaps there is something more that can be shared. And pointedly looks at Mia. Corvus turns his attention to Mia and presses the point. Mia, already a little put off by this breakfast exchange, is fuming for being put on the spot. She tells the two of them that this is the second time they’ve done this to her and she REALLY doesn’t appreciate it. Mia gets up and leaves. Corvus Misty Steps to stop Mia, giving her a hug and apologizing for pressing the matter. Mia says that she really wants some time for herself right now and leaves to go on a pub crawl. Nesza, George and Tatalla Meanwhile, Nesza decides to go visit Tatalla on the “Silver Bird”. He sees George working on the ship, who greets him warmly. The Goliath explains that he is enjoying being there and they are treating him well. He likes food. Nesza give him a fresh goodberry. Nesza asks if he knows where Tatalla Captain’s Quarters are. He has no idea so Nesza navigates his way there himself, with George following behind him. Tatalla invites Nesza into her quarters and asks George to go “do the thing at the place”, and he wonders off. Nesza and Tatalla then talk about what to do about George. Nesza is really at a bit of a loss. Everyone is resistant to protecting him. Tatalla gives him some herbal tea and recites a mantra similar to that of Silmer to calm him down. She tells Nesza that it’s not that she doesn’t want to help. She really is growing fond of George. But House Cannith is powerful. By protecting him, someone who has no affiliation with House Lyrandar, she would be putting her entire family in danger. That would include both Silmer and Mia. It’s a choice she simply cannot responsibly make. (She recites the mantra for herself too). Nesza then mentions that Conrad had made another suggestion but he wasn’t sure if that was a better option. A man from House Orien, who Conrad trusts with his life, would be willing to transport George somewhere safe. At the mention of “d’Orien” Tatalla changes her tune. She will NOT have her family’s COMPETITORS show them up by helping. She strongly advises against going to see Elijah. They can figure out how to protect George. Meeting Management It’s midday. Cissa has arranged some brunch for her and Emir, who has just woken up. Emir sighs in exasperation when he realises she has ordered Bacon and Eggs without toast… again. She emphasizes that this is a legacy dish and she will never order toast with it. She admits that Aundair does not make it exactly right though. If ever he goes to Flamekeep, he needs to visit the Lazy Bull to have the proper dish. Emir asks about the song Corvus sang. He assumes Cissa wrote it for Hawk. She explains that Hawk already had a song. And it pleased Her. But She was not as pleased with this song. It was the last time Cissa ever performed for Her. But this song was never meant for Khorvaire. The two then discuss Talia’s viol. Cissa really doesn’t want Emir to keep using it. The viol is very unique to Talia and using it can expose him to the wrong people. It had drawn Cissa‘s attention and she wasn’t even looking for him. Emir explains that the fact that Talia’s viol creates illusions makes it difficult for any other changeling to duplicate his performance. Cissa understands but then she insists that he use hers. She opens her viol case. It is of a wood Emir has never seen before. With elven designs embossed in bronze. She explains that this is bronzewood and is very rare in Khorvaire. Made by Atratus. It’s one of a kind. No one would be able to duplicate it. Those who know who this viol belongs to will know to STAY AWAY. She then asks Emir about whether Vence has considered her offer to train him. Emir shifts into Vence, who takes offence with the thought that she thinks he needs training. She explains that she wants to teach him the “Song of Hawk”. But to do so, she needs to be sure the song is safe in his hands. She’s only heard him play once and Emir is of the opinion that he’d benefit from her assistance. Vence is annoyed by this assumption and says he’s capable. He was also given “Talia’s version of the Flight of the Silver Bird”. Cissa asks him what he means. Vence takes her viol and starts singing the version of the song that Mia sang to Cissa the night before. She is unsure what to make of this but sings the second verse in response regardless. She asks why Talia taught it to him. Vence shifts into Thaen, who tells her Talia didn’t teach it to Vence, she taught them. This is first time that Cissa actually met Thaen. The conversation about the song drops immediately as Thaen introduces themselves. She is a bit on edge with the sudden exchange. Thaen asks whether they should be calling her Cissa or Magpie. She tells them that strangers do not call her Magpie. She asks Thaen why they have shown themselves to her. Thaen explains that they needed to discuss the matter surrounding her relationship with Emir. They tell her they have specific priorities that Emir would adhere to as well. One being the finding of Talia. They are aware Cissa knows more than she’s letting on. They ask her when Talia came to see her. Cissa explains that Talia came to see her three years ago. She sent Talia on the trail but does not know where Talia is now. Thaen asks how one is selected and Cissa explains that they are given a feather. She does not make the selection though. Thaen asks why she hadn’t told Emir the whereabout of Talia. She retorts that Emir was a closed book for three years. He was aware Cissa would share things whenever he did. The moment he revealed himself, she started sharing with him. On the subject of Talia, Cissa explains that she is aware Talia is their priority. She doesn’t know where she stands in that equation but she already told Emir that she will step out if her involvement with Emir gets in everyone’s way. If there is ever a choice, she’d rather them be happy with someone they can grow old with. This confuses Thaen. They explain Talia disappeared in the night seven years ago. What they felt for her back then is not the same as now. They suggest everyone will have to wait and see how this works out. Regardless, they do not see a reason to interfere with Cissa and Emir. This puts her at ease somewhat. With that, they shift into Emir and he gets ready for the day. He agrees to give Cissa Talia’s viol and use hers viol instead. Cissa promises to put it in her vault. The two agree to meet that evening again. He also thanks her for teaching him how to fly. It means he doesn’t need to go via Molly every time he visits. After a kiss goodbye, he shifts into Vence and flys to the Golden Dragon Inn. The Book on House Cannith April and Silmer go to the Spire of Knowledge. Silmer asks Molly about the the House Cannith book and she directs them to section 12C. The book is VERY thick so April decides to read certain sections. She first reads about the House Cannith bloodlines. The book explains that House Cannith searches for talent (both male and female) from noteworthy homes. It then goes into explaining a whole process where the families are introduced and suggested matches are made. When they find a correct match, the new members are welcomed into House Cannith. (Nothing like what April thought it would be.) Secondly, April reads about Warforged. There doesn’t seem to be a specific chapter on them but they are mentioned in many parts of the book. It is said these are the inventions House Cannith takes most pride in. They provided Warforged to all nations during the war (and whomever paid the most, got the most powerful ones). IWarforged were mindless killing machines. It doesn’t explain HOW they are made though. April and Silmer decide this is enough for today and will discuss the Warforged topic with Nesza when they see him again.
