Episode 16: Always Gloomy in the Gloamwood
General Summary
Let's see, where were we? Ah, yes, the Pit of Despair. As the Bedlabot's meteors fell, the forest itself began to quake as the trees themselves uprooted themselves. As they staggered shakily to life, something seemed to be falling off of them. Something that the party could see through the gloomy smog beginning to fill the purple air around them, that began to get up and run towards them.
Have you ever wondered why you've only met two wood elves of Arborea?
Pressing against the bark of the animated trees, scrambling as if they were trying to get out, were the pained, terrified, and screaming blighted faces of the creatures that used to be the wood elves of Arborea. Turning to flee, the party sees that the path behind them is beginning to fill with the figures as well. Jules and Valan take off, but Charles and Tyra notice something: Callisto, the wood elf of Arborea that you've met that hasn't turned out to be a dragon, is currently on his knees, watching the blights charge him, a look of placid, abject horror on his face. You can see his left eye twitch a bit as the first blight passes him.
Ơ̧͟͜’̵͡ ̛̛͘͜͝M̢҉̢u̵͘͘s̕e̴͢͝,̸̀͢͡ ̴̡͢͡s͏̴͞i̸̕ǹ͡g̛̕͠͠ ̀̀̕͘t̀͟ơ̡̛͟ ҉̢̕m̕҉e̶̕ ̶̡̛͢n̴̴͞o̵͝t̶̵͢͞ ̶̷́o̷̸̶̡f̸̡̨ ̵̡̛́t͞͞h͢͜͠͏ȩ̵́͡ ́̕͟͠t̷̶̸́͘o͟r̸̨̛͞m͘͜e̴n̨͡͞t̴̀͘͟͠ ̨o̵̵͘͠f͟͠ ̨͡͞t̸̛̀́h̷̀͢҉é͢͝͝ ̷̷̨̢̛Ń͟͞͞͠i̛̕͝n̶̴͘͜é̶͢͡͝.
Charles and Tyra reached him at the same time, preparing to flee with him. As they did so, a beast alight dark wings passed overhead Jules and Valan as they ran, and Olette noticed something interesting. The creature wrapped strong arms around Tyra, Charles, and Callisto, and with another powerful beat of its wings flew them back to the road. In its wake, the blights fell to dust, leaving the path clear for Jules and Valan to return to the road. Standing in front of Tyra, Charles, and Cal was a towering figure of nine feet, dark draconic wings, dripping in shadow spread out behind it, a halo of brilliant orange fire alight above its hooded head. It held a great black sword aloft, but as it heard Jules and Valan returning to the road, it disappeared with another great gust of air. Olette noticed something else interesting.
That night, as they made camp, Valan met the Distortion when it crawled out of his deck of cards. Thought it was just a creature at first, shot it, then it swapped psyches with him and everyone shot it, then it turned into an egg and suctioned onto his Book of Shadows. Tyra used their Divine Sight on Charles to discover the cure for the Dark Blight, which is monumental worldwide, but only shared some of the many details. It was an eventful night.
On the sixth day, they saw lights above the trees, almost mimicking sunlight. But Iravek told everyone to stop, and put his fingers to his lips. This is the first time he had been seen to act this way, almost scared, and so everyone listened. The lights danced a ways along, swirling around each other, looking like sunlight shining through to the deep ocean. In the path ahead, a small deer scampered onto it, pausing to glance at the party, revealing half of its face to be contorted in writing tendrils of muscly sinew and the diseased mass of the Dark Blight. From one of the lights above, a column of radiant sunlight promptly pierced the veil of tree cover, atomizing the infected deer.
"Sun elves," Iravek said matter-of-factly before moving on. Before exiting the forest, the party was treated to several more paths of light burned into the canopy.
On the final night, the party could hear whispers coming from a ruined tower in the distance. To many heads shaken in discouragement, Charles went to investigate. In a clearing, he found a figure wrapped in red robes with blue and gold accents, its face a mirror through which unfolded many worlds. It was the creature from Iravek's cautionary tale, which Charles did not remember. It beckoned him closer, offering an exchange of knowledge. From around the ring of ruin surrounding the Librarian, ragged creatures with a singular bulging eye and chitinous mouths stared down at him hungrily.
First, Charles asked what his next step should be. Where should he go. The Librarian showed him the way to the Baerwood, where his Dark Blight could be cured. In exchange, the Librarian took his proficiency in the guitar. Knowing this, Charles asked another question, w͟ḩic̷h̕ ̸̸I҉ d̢͜o̶ n̨ot ͏ŕ̀em͜e҉̶m͘͠bę͠͏r͏ ̷̡͜be͠c̷̛a̛͢͡u̷sè̀ ͜i̷̡t̶͝ ͞ẃa̧͏s̨͞ ̕͝i͡҉n̛͘s̶i̸͠ģ͟͠n̸i҉f̶̢i͢c͞à̛́nt͏ ̛á̢͠n̶d̢̛ ̕i͘͡lļ-a̸d̨́v͢͞is̢e̸͝d̵̵͠. Finally, Charles asked how to kill the Darkness. Now, the Librarian is a fair entity; it abides the law of equivalent exchange. So it took everything. All of Charles' knowledge, syphoned into this creature, turning him into a Nothik, one of the creatures that had watched him enter the clearing. Tyra found him in this state, and relieved him of his equipment, most importantly Stormdancer. They also noted the reappearance of the strange tri-mark symbol.
P̵̡͢͠ļ̷e̢̛͝à̸̛͢͞s̛͢͟a̷̵҉n҉́͟͡t̴͠ ̸̧́͟n̵̷͠ơ̕͢t̵͘h̵́i҉̵n̷ģ͏̵̴͢s̴͘͟͟͞,̴̀͟ ̴͞͞i̛͠͝n̴̡s͝͠͡t̸̢̢͠e̸͟͠a͏͡d̵̶̀͟,͏̧̛ ́̕͏҉͢w̧̛͢h̀͟i҉͜͠s̴̷̴p̶̡̕e҉̷̵̸r̕͡͞ ̨̧̀҉u̴̵̢͟ņ̷͠͞t̶̢̛o̕͝͠ ̸̧̀m̷̕͜͞é̡̧̧̛.
They returned with the sad news to the group. Everyone would have been sad, b́u̴̶t̢ w͠è ̷͜a̸͟͠l̵͞l ķ̧͟n͘͏ę̴̨w͘͟͠ ̧̢o͏͘n̡͡c̵͝e ̷͜C͏̴h̷͏a̡̧̢r̸le̵̢s̴͘͝ ̕g̵o̴̷t҉ ́͟th̨́e ̢D͘̕a̛r҉k͝͏̶ B͏̶͞lig̨h̸t̕ ̀h̛́e͞ ̀͟͢w̴̵͟aś ̀a͟s ҉̶̨g҉o̴͘͢od͡͞ ͝a̶s͘͜ ̶͝de̛à͟d̵.̷͘͞ They moved on quickly.
On the seventh day, they escaped the clutches of the forest, entering territory under Nixian control. They were promptly ambushed. The attack started with a lightning bolt that caught the caravan off guard as they were placing the illusion collars back onto their gray renders. The bolt was followed by a charge of six drow artificers armed with thunder gauntlets that attacked the party. Most of them were dispatched in a single turn by Olette. They were backed up by eldritch cannonfire, but the battle smiths were similarly dispatched.
The combat ceased when Dahlia Dreux stepped out of the underbrush, apologizing profusely for the confusion. Dressed in sleek scaled battle armor with vents up the arms and legs for her scales to breath, she hugged Tyra and gave Callisto a spirited punch on the shoulder which sent sparks dancing across his chest. She did a head count, and was about to ask about Charles and Valeria when two Pillars of Retribution, gondolas piloted by sun elves and powered by the sunbeams flowing out of their hull.
Combat was short, with Olette again flashing her unique arcane abilities, and Pharos demonstrating his battleworthiness, but the monks which piloted the gondolas showd some unusual abilities of their own. When a spell was cast within a certain range of these monks, they appeared to be able to harness its power, causing the spell to go wild. While this didn't hinder Olette in the slightest, it did lead to some interesting victory conditions.
Dahlia invited the rest of the party to join her and her mother for a dinner once they reached Arcanus, this is where Iravek and Co. parted ways. For most of the party, this was their first time seeing Arcanus. A single grand bridge extends across to the island the city is situated on, separated from the mainland by a great chasm which seawater pours into ceaselessly. Aside from the grand bridge, several smaller docks support aircraft that fly back and forth between sides. Blimps and larger zeppelins ferry passengers and supplies across while smaller personal craft zip alongside them.
The City itself, Arcanus, rises in the distance, towers of pearlescent silver stone dominating the technocrat skyline, all surrounded by the Tree of Silver Night. Some of the party, seeing it for the first time, realize it’s less of a tree and more of a membranous forcefield, shifting constantly, with its trunk taking root in the tallest tower at the city center.
H̵̷́͞e͞҉̸à̡͝r̡̢̀͜͡ ̶̡̢̕̕m̡͘͜ỳ̢ ̷̨̛s̵̴̛i̡͡ǵ͟ḩ̴̷̢́ş̵̨͘͟ ̸́e͘̕͢͢ć̡̨͟ḩ͘o̴̵̸͞͞ ̶̧́͢t͏̸ḩ̸̕͝r̛̀o̸̕͡u̸̷͡g̸̴̛͘h̵͞҉ ͡ý̡̨ò̀͠u̶͝ŕ͘͠ ̵̷̡ẃ̷̵̨͟i̢̨͠n̸͜g̵͠҉͡ş̷.
Dahlia told the party to quit gaping and join her on a sturdy looking blimp decked in the silver and royal purple accents of House Dreux. The party caught up with her on the ride over, each party filling the other in on what had happened. She was saddened by the loss of Valeria and Charles. Two in one week, that's pretty rough. She had been fighting her own war with the sun elves. She isn't sure what they fight for, but her mother insists upon it, and Dahlia is beginning to think she is quite mad.
Crossing to the other side, Dahlia leaves the party for a time to prepare her mother, telling them to meet her and her aid in the tower at nightfall.
From where the party docked, it was immediately obvious to oobserve that this is the nice section of town. There are several vendors stocked up to the top of the line linens and silks peddling their wares. The architecture is beautiful, a melding of swirling elven arches that mimics the grace of nature covering the whirring hum of electricity and rumbling gears.
Many small constructed beings skitter throughout the streets running errands. A regal mechanical cat sat upon an eve ledge examining the party with a lavender eye as they passed. Many market goers are giving the Bedlabot mad side eye, suggesting that warforged are not a common sight in Arcanus.
After a brief stint in the Arcane Sanctum the party went to the Infinite Tempest, the bar where they found the Pathfinder. The bartender filled them in on yes, in fact they do not see many warforged in the city, as they believe the gnomish methods of creation barbaric. While warforged are welcome in the city, the artificers of Arcanus instead prefer to make the small constructs the party has seen skittering about rather than purchase a slave. The bartender did give Jules unlimited drinks, however, as he did want to see if he could get drunk. The party then went to meet the Matron, a little rough around the edges.
E̶̛̛͡m̶̧̛͡͝b̸͠r̷̢̢͟͝a̷̸̕c͏̀͢҉é҉ ̧̡̨m̵̴̨͝e̡͢҉̧ ̛͏̧ą̶͢͢͜g̴̢̕͏a̴̸̕͢i̸̡̧̛͞n̕.
When they went to meet Dahlia, she and her aid Adelaide were waiting for them. Adelaide was a young human who guided them to the bathhouse floor as Dahlia went up to her private quarters to freshen up, telling them she would meet them on floor 23, the grand dining hall. Adelaide, dressed in a sharp tailed blazer and blue and white stripped slacks, lead them each to a private bath, bidding them dispense their weapons with the constructs provided and assuring them they would be returned their weaponry when they took to their rooms later that night.
Naturally, everyone who could keep a weapon on them did. Mostly the Gun Buddies Valan and Jules, as Valan kept the Mercurial Mind in ring form on his finger and Jules kept Melody in his wrist. Tyra begrudgingly gave up Stormdancer, threateningly shaking their fist at god should it be taken from them.
The baths were divine. Everyone was offered their own private suite and waited on by a staff of small constructs offering champagne, hors d'oeuvres, and back massages. Naturally, the steaming bathwater is perfumed with lavender and there is a construct to dispense perfumed soaps and oils. The bath themselves were beautiful, with latticework arching up the far wall offering a beautiful view of the city.
Night has come, and the Aurora Totalis shines through the boughs of the Tree, sending twinkling, almost water-light reflections drifting across the cityscape. When the party leaves the bath, assisted by constructs to dry them, dress them, and do their hair, they were all wowed by how stunningly attractive they all were once the three layers of dirt from eight months on the road were washed off. Even Callisto was dressed well, his burnt auburn hair pulled back neatly so you could actually see his fiery green eyes.
In the elevator, Adelaide warned them to be on their best behavior in the meeting. Several important people would be there. Dahlia, her sister, her mother, obviously, but Lady Olette Bouclier and Grand Inquisitor Olivier Deveraux would be there as well. Olette is Valeria's mother, and Olivier is there to deliver the funerary rites. Olette (of the party) disguised herself. Olivier controls the Silver Scales, the church which oversees the worship of Arctiax and the justice of the city.
L̵̴̨͘͟o̶̕v̧͠͝e̴̢͝͠͞r̨̨͞ ̷̧͜m͟͞i̡n̴̨͜e̵̡.
Entering the room, the table was situated perpendicular in the great hall, with Dahlia, Vyra, Lady Sonilyth, Lady Olette, and Sir Olivier sitting opposite open seats on the far side of the table. Behind them, a great archway opened to a grand balcony that overlooks the entire city, dancing in the aurora light. Valeria's coffin sat upon the balcony, waiting.
The party seated themselves Olette, Tyra, Callisto, Jules, and Valan respectively. There was some tense dinner conversation to begin, Olivier asking everyone a few too many questions while scanning them with eyes that seemed to have silvery backing. The Matron also asked questions, of the Vagabond, the Winter Queen, their journeys, and occasionally exchanged looks with Olivier. Lady Bouclier did not appear to want to be at this dinner.
After the dinner was over, the funerary rites were held. The High Inquisitor opened, asking if any of them wished to speak for the dead. Valan said a few words, and Dahlia did as well. When all were done speaking, Olivier stood at the head of the coffin, placing his hands upon it. As he did so, it slowly began to lift off the ground, levitating upwards, passing the next stories until reaching the canopy of the Tree of Night. Upon touching the boughs, the coffin burned up, sending a rippling wave like a firework reflecting across the city and refracting to the city limits and back.
I̢͘͢͢’̸͠l̵͘͡l̢͏̵̢ ̨̕͟͠m̸͝i̷̸͜͜s̴̸͘̕s̨̡ ̧͟͞y̷̧͟o̸͜͏u͞.
Slowly, across the entire city, you see more ripples of silver light illuminate the night as the citizens of Arcanus lift up stones, coins, or other bauble to the tree of Silver Light to honor a fallen soldier.
Afterwards, Adelaide again lead the party to their rooms where their luggage had been packed away. For some of them, this is the first proper warm bed they've seen since they left the Accords eight months ago. Outside, rain began to fall against the dome, sending a cascade of silver light across it. Dahlia stood alone on the balcony of the grand dining hall, rain sizzling against her scales as she raises one last toast to fallen friend.
A̵͖͍̩̯̼͚̖̜͍̗͔̕ĺ̵̸͖̟̳͙͔̘̲̭͚̹̜͉̪̩̖̝̳̫͝w̵̵̵̭̝͕̜̮̬̼̝̭͔̯̮̠̭̗̭͜ͅa̸̮̺̰̙̗̲̼̞̜͓̘̳̬̭͠ͅy̧̨͈͓̥̤̲̹s͡͏̨̛̝̣̙̲̰̬͚̱͚̟͘.
Have you ever wondered why you've only met two wood elves of Arborea?
Pressing against the bark of the animated trees, scrambling as if they were trying to get out, were the pained, terrified, and screaming blighted faces of the creatures that used to be the wood elves of Arborea. Turning to flee, the party sees that the path behind them is beginning to fill with the figures as well. Jules and Valan take off, but Charles and Tyra notice something: Callisto, the wood elf of Arborea that you've met that hasn't turned out to be a dragon, is currently on his knees, watching the blights charge him, a look of placid, abject horror on his face. You can see his left eye twitch a bit as the first blight passes him.
Ơ̧͟͜’̵͡ ̛̛͘͜͝M̢҉̢u̵͘͘s̕e̴͢͝,̸̀͢͡ ̴̡͢͡s͏̴͞i̸̕ǹ͡g̛̕͠͠ ̀̀̕͘t̀͟ơ̡̛͟ ҉̢̕m̕҉e̶̕ ̶̡̛͢n̴̴͞o̵͝t̶̵͢͞ ̶̷́o̷̸̶̡f̸̡̨ ̵̡̛́t͞͞h͢͜͠͏ȩ̵́͡ ́̕͟͠t̷̶̸́͘o͟r̸̨̛͞m͘͜e̴n̨͡͞t̴̀͘͟͠ ̨o̵̵͘͠f͟͠ ̨͡͞t̸̛̀́h̷̀͢҉é͢͝͝ ̷̷̨̢̛Ń͟͞͞͠i̛̕͝n̶̴͘͜é̶͢͡͝.
Charles and Tyra reached him at the same time, preparing to flee with him. As they did so, a beast alight dark wings passed overhead Jules and Valan as they ran, and Olette noticed something interesting. The creature wrapped strong arms around Tyra, Charles, and Callisto, and with another powerful beat of its wings flew them back to the road. In its wake, the blights fell to dust, leaving the path clear for Jules and Valan to return to the road. Standing in front of Tyra, Charles, and Cal was a towering figure of nine feet, dark draconic wings, dripping in shadow spread out behind it, a halo of brilliant orange fire alight above its hooded head. It held a great black sword aloft, but as it heard Jules and Valan returning to the road, it disappeared with another great gust of air. Olette noticed something else interesting.
That night, as they made camp, Valan met the Distortion when it crawled out of his deck of cards. Thought it was just a creature at first, shot it, then it swapped psyches with him and everyone shot it, then it turned into an egg and suctioned onto his Book of Shadows. Tyra used their Divine Sight on Charles to discover the cure for the Dark Blight, which is monumental worldwide, but only shared some of the many details. It was an eventful night.
On the sixth day, they saw lights above the trees, almost mimicking sunlight. But Iravek told everyone to stop, and put his fingers to his lips. This is the first time he had been seen to act this way, almost scared, and so everyone listened. The lights danced a ways along, swirling around each other, looking like sunlight shining through to the deep ocean. In the path ahead, a small deer scampered onto it, pausing to glance at the party, revealing half of its face to be contorted in writing tendrils of muscly sinew and the diseased mass of the Dark Blight. From one of the lights above, a column of radiant sunlight promptly pierced the veil of tree cover, atomizing the infected deer.
"Sun elves," Iravek said matter-of-factly before moving on. Before exiting the forest, the party was treated to several more paths of light burned into the canopy.
On the final night, the party could hear whispers coming from a ruined tower in the distance. To many heads shaken in discouragement, Charles went to investigate. In a clearing, he found a figure wrapped in red robes with blue and gold accents, its face a mirror through which unfolded many worlds. It was the creature from Iravek's cautionary tale, which Charles did not remember. It beckoned him closer, offering an exchange of knowledge. From around the ring of ruin surrounding the Librarian, ragged creatures with a singular bulging eye and chitinous mouths stared down at him hungrily.
First, Charles asked what his next step should be. Where should he go. The Librarian showed him the way to the Baerwood, where his Dark Blight could be cured. In exchange, the Librarian took his proficiency in the guitar. Knowing this, Charles asked another question, w͟ḩic̷h̕ ̸̸I҉ d̢͜o̶ n̨ot ͏ŕ̀em͜e҉̶m͘͠bę͠͏r͏ ̷̡͜be͠c̷̛a̛͢͡u̷sè̀ ͜i̷̡t̶͝ ͞ẃa̧͏s̨͞ ̕͝i͡҉n̛͘s̶i̸͠ģ͟͠n̸i҉f̶̢i͢c͞à̛́nt͏ ̛á̢͠n̶d̢̛ ̕i͘͡lļ-a̸d̨́v͢͞is̢e̸͝d̵̵͠. Finally, Charles asked how to kill the Darkness. Now, the Librarian is a fair entity; it abides the law of equivalent exchange. So it took everything. All of Charles' knowledge, syphoned into this creature, turning him into a Nothik, one of the creatures that had watched him enter the clearing. Tyra found him in this state, and relieved him of his equipment, most importantly Stormdancer. They also noted the reappearance of the strange tri-mark symbol.
P̵̡͢͠ļ̷e̢̛͝à̸̛͢͞s̛͢͟a̷̵҉n҉́͟͡t̴͠ ̸̧́͟n̵̷͠ơ̕͢t̵͘h̵́i҉̵n̷ģ͏̵̴͢s̴͘͟͟͞,̴̀͟ ̴͞͞i̛͠͝n̴̡s͝͠͡t̸̢̢͠e̸͟͠a͏͡d̵̶̀͟,͏̧̛ ́̕͏҉͢w̧̛͢h̀͟i҉͜͠s̴̷̴p̶̡̕e҉̷̵̸r̕͡͞ ̨̧̀҉u̴̵̢͟ņ̷͠͞t̶̢̛o̕͝͠ ̸̧̀m̷̕͜͞é̡̧̧̛.
They returned with the sad news to the group. Everyone would have been sad, b́u̴̶t̢ w͠è ̷͜a̸͟͠l̵͞l ķ̧͟n͘͏ę̴̨w͘͟͠ ̧̢o͏͘n̡͡c̵͝e ̷͜C͏̴h̷͏a̡̧̢r̸le̵̢s̴͘͝ ̕g̵o̴̷t҉ ́͟th̨́e ̢D͘̕a̛r҉k͝͏̶ B͏̶͞lig̨h̸t̕ ̀h̛́e͞ ̀͟͢w̴̵͟aś ̀a͟s ҉̶̨g҉o̴͘͢od͡͞ ͝a̶s͘͜ ̶͝de̛à͟d̵.̷͘͞ They moved on quickly.
On the seventh day, they escaped the clutches of the forest, entering territory under Nixian control. They were promptly ambushed. The attack started with a lightning bolt that caught the caravan off guard as they were placing the illusion collars back onto their gray renders. The bolt was followed by a charge of six drow artificers armed with thunder gauntlets that attacked the party. Most of them were dispatched in a single turn by Olette. They were backed up by eldritch cannonfire, but the battle smiths were similarly dispatched.
The combat ceased when Dahlia Dreux stepped out of the underbrush, apologizing profusely for the confusion. Dressed in sleek scaled battle armor with vents up the arms and legs for her scales to breath, she hugged Tyra and gave Callisto a spirited punch on the shoulder which sent sparks dancing across his chest. She did a head count, and was about to ask about Charles and Valeria when two Pillars of Retribution, gondolas piloted by sun elves and powered by the sunbeams flowing out of their hull.
Combat was short, with Olette again flashing her unique arcane abilities, and Pharos demonstrating his battleworthiness, but the monks which piloted the gondolas showd some unusual abilities of their own. When a spell was cast within a certain range of these monks, they appeared to be able to harness its power, causing the spell to go wild. While this didn't hinder Olette in the slightest, it did lead to some interesting victory conditions.
Dahlia invited the rest of the party to join her and her mother for a dinner once they reached Arcanus, this is where Iravek and Co. parted ways. For most of the party, this was their first time seeing Arcanus. A single grand bridge extends across to the island the city is situated on, separated from the mainland by a great chasm which seawater pours into ceaselessly. Aside from the grand bridge, several smaller docks support aircraft that fly back and forth between sides. Blimps and larger zeppelins ferry passengers and supplies across while smaller personal craft zip alongside them.
The City itself, Arcanus, rises in the distance, towers of pearlescent silver stone dominating the technocrat skyline, all surrounded by the Tree of Silver Night. Some of the party, seeing it for the first time, realize it’s less of a tree and more of a membranous forcefield, shifting constantly, with its trunk taking root in the tallest tower at the city center.
H̵̷́͞e͞҉̸à̡͝r̡̢̀͜͡ ̶̡̢̕̕m̡͘͜ỳ̢ ̷̨̛s̵̴̛i̡͡ǵ͟ḩ̴̷̢́ş̵̨͘͟ ̸́e͘̕͢͢ć̡̨͟ḩ͘o̴̵̸͞͞ ̶̧́͢t͏̸ḩ̸̕͝r̛̀o̸̕͡u̸̷͡g̸̴̛͘h̵͞҉ ͡ý̡̨ò̀͠u̶͝ŕ͘͠ ̵̷̡ẃ̷̵̨͟i̢̨͠n̸͜g̵͠҉͡ş̷.
Dahlia told the party to quit gaping and join her on a sturdy looking blimp decked in the silver and royal purple accents of House Dreux. The party caught up with her on the ride over, each party filling the other in on what had happened. She was saddened by the loss of Valeria and Charles. Two in one week, that's pretty rough. She had been fighting her own war with the sun elves. She isn't sure what they fight for, but her mother insists upon it, and Dahlia is beginning to think she is quite mad.
Crossing to the other side, Dahlia leaves the party for a time to prepare her mother, telling them to meet her and her aid in the tower at nightfall.
From where the party docked, it was immediately obvious to oobserve that this is the nice section of town. There are several vendors stocked up to the top of the line linens and silks peddling their wares. The architecture is beautiful, a melding of swirling elven arches that mimics the grace of nature covering the whirring hum of electricity and rumbling gears.
Many small constructed beings skitter throughout the streets running errands. A regal mechanical cat sat upon an eve ledge examining the party with a lavender eye as they passed. Many market goers are giving the Bedlabot mad side eye, suggesting that warforged are not a common sight in Arcanus.
After a brief stint in the Arcane Sanctum the party went to the Infinite Tempest, the bar where they found the Pathfinder. The bartender filled them in on yes, in fact they do not see many warforged in the city, as they believe the gnomish methods of creation barbaric. While warforged are welcome in the city, the artificers of Arcanus instead prefer to make the small constructs the party has seen skittering about rather than purchase a slave. The bartender did give Jules unlimited drinks, however, as he did want to see if he could get drunk. The party then went to meet the Matron, a little rough around the edges.
E̶̛̛͡m̶̧̛͡͝b̸͠r̷̢̢͟͝a̷̸̕c͏̀͢҉é҉ ̧̡̨m̵̴̨͝e̡͢҉̧ ̛͏̧ą̶͢͢͜g̴̢̕͏a̴̸̕͢i̸̡̧̛͞n̕.
When they went to meet Dahlia, she and her aid Adelaide were waiting for them. Adelaide was a young human who guided them to the bathhouse floor as Dahlia went up to her private quarters to freshen up, telling them she would meet them on floor 23, the grand dining hall. Adelaide, dressed in a sharp tailed blazer and blue and white stripped slacks, lead them each to a private bath, bidding them dispense their weapons with the constructs provided and assuring them they would be returned their weaponry when they took to their rooms later that night.
Naturally, everyone who could keep a weapon on them did. Mostly the Gun Buddies Valan and Jules, as Valan kept the Mercurial Mind in ring form on his finger and Jules kept Melody in his wrist. Tyra begrudgingly gave up Stormdancer, threateningly shaking their fist at god should it be taken from them.
The baths were divine. Everyone was offered their own private suite and waited on by a staff of small constructs offering champagne, hors d'oeuvres, and back massages. Naturally, the steaming bathwater is perfumed with lavender and there is a construct to dispense perfumed soaps and oils. The bath themselves were beautiful, with latticework arching up the far wall offering a beautiful view of the city.
Night has come, and the Aurora Totalis shines through the boughs of the Tree, sending twinkling, almost water-light reflections drifting across the cityscape. When the party leaves the bath, assisted by constructs to dry them, dress them, and do their hair, they were all wowed by how stunningly attractive they all were once the three layers of dirt from eight months on the road were washed off. Even Callisto was dressed well, his burnt auburn hair pulled back neatly so you could actually see his fiery green eyes.
In the elevator, Adelaide warned them to be on their best behavior in the meeting. Several important people would be there. Dahlia, her sister, her mother, obviously, but Lady Olette Bouclier and Grand Inquisitor Olivier Deveraux would be there as well. Olette is Valeria's mother, and Olivier is there to deliver the funerary rites. Olette (of the party) disguised herself. Olivier controls the Silver Scales, the church which oversees the worship of Arctiax and the justice of the city.
L̵̴̨͘͟o̶̕v̧͠͝e̴̢͝͠͞r̨̨͞ ̷̧͜m͟͞i̡n̴̨͜e̵̡.
Entering the room, the table was situated perpendicular in the great hall, with Dahlia, Vyra, Lady Sonilyth, Lady Olette, and Sir Olivier sitting opposite open seats on the far side of the table. Behind them, a great archway opened to a grand balcony that overlooks the entire city, dancing in the aurora light. Valeria's coffin sat upon the balcony, waiting.
The party seated themselves Olette, Tyra, Callisto, Jules, and Valan respectively. There was some tense dinner conversation to begin, Olivier asking everyone a few too many questions while scanning them with eyes that seemed to have silvery backing. The Matron also asked questions, of the Vagabond, the Winter Queen, their journeys, and occasionally exchanged looks with Olivier. Lady Bouclier did not appear to want to be at this dinner.
After the dinner was over, the funerary rites were held. The High Inquisitor opened, asking if any of them wished to speak for the dead. Valan said a few words, and Dahlia did as well. When all were done speaking, Olivier stood at the head of the coffin, placing his hands upon it. As he did so, it slowly began to lift off the ground, levitating upwards, passing the next stories until reaching the canopy of the Tree of Night. Upon touching the boughs, the coffin burned up, sending a rippling wave like a firework reflecting across the city and refracting to the city limits and back.
I̢͘͢͢’̸͠l̵͘͡l̢͏̵̢ ̨̕͟͠m̸͝i̷̸͜͜s̴̸͘̕s̨̡ ̧͟͞y̷̧͟o̸͜͏u͞.
Slowly, across the entire city, you see more ripples of silver light illuminate the night as the citizens of Arcanus lift up stones, coins, or other bauble to the tree of Silver Light to honor a fallen soldier.
Afterwards, Adelaide again lead the party to their rooms where their luggage had been packed away. For some of them, this is the first proper warm bed they've seen since they left the Accords eight months ago. Outside, rain began to fall against the dome, sending a cascade of silver light across it. Dahlia stood alone on the balcony of the grand dining hall, rain sizzling against her scales as she raises one last toast to fallen friend.
A̵͖͍̩̯̼͚̖̜͍̗͔̕ĺ̵̸͖̟̳͙͔̘̲̭͚̹̜͉̪̩̖̝̳̫͝w̵̵̵̭̝͕̜̮̬̼̝̭͔̯̮̠̭̗̭͜ͅa̸̮̺̰̙̗̲̼̞̜͓̘̳̬̭͠ͅy̧̨͈͓̥̤̲̹s͡͏̨̛̝̣̙̲̰̬͚̱͚̟͘.
Character(s) interacted with
The Librarian
Notes
You get inspiration and a common healing potion if you can tell me what Charles' question was (wrong answers only).
Report Date
20 Nov 2021
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