Episode 20: Ripples
General Summary
I'm going to be real with you. I waited too long to write this summary and now I'm a little stuck on where to go from here (this is Liam speaking, not the Narrator. I'm a fool). Spent too much time hyperfixating on the Andali to Il'Daan reveal and not enough on the note taking.
P̲̼̱̹̟ͮ̃͑ͣ̊̀ͅͅā̢̺̥̖͚͚̫͈ͫ̄ͭͩͫͦ̚͘͘iͧ͞͏̖̮̺̝͔ͅṉ̋͗̑̄̎̈ͫ͡͡f͈̹̫ͯ̔ͣ̆ͬu̢̹̮̘̮͇͓͕̅͑̆̾̽ͥ̌ͧl̖̟̯ͮ̾̒̈ͤ͌̌́͝ ͓̜̰̪̺̫̖̯̍̊h̷̘̪ͣͤ͂i͚ͦ̃ͯ̈́͊̽́́͟͢s͕̞̥ͤ͜͢͠tͥ͊ͩ̍͢͏̭̪̼͖͞o̢̟̳̊̄r̵̲͇̙̿̇y̶̡̲̬͙̗̟͛ͫ
We began the session in the Apocrypha, where Jules helped run through a list of things that are on the party's plate right now, first and foremost being house Nightbringer's sudden and aggressive rise to power, appearing to have somehow escaped the clutches of Astronomea and set about going to their next target: the Divine Armament of the Wanderer, Respite. Also, Jules had a couple concerns about his memory, but he was willing to put that on the backburner because of the pressing issues at hand. But he does eventually want to go to the Red Mountains and ask some questions. After sorting out the various letters they had recieved over the course of the past few sessions, the team decided it would be best to go "suit up" so to say in the Red Mountains, and perhaps try to get their ship back from Captain Eamonn McGreggor. There was also a small earthquake.
̳̮ͦ͛̌ͮ̒ͬ̈́͡ͅE̷͖̮͚ͧ͗̅̏͊ͮ̐͗̎̕͡u̖̝̓͗ͦ͒ͩ̀p̠̪̮̫ͫ͌̄̆̀̚h̛͇̺̰̟͙̾ͥͩͣ́͆ͥo̸̸̶̪̘̽͌͒̍ͪŗ̝̹͇̍̈́ͪ͋̄ͦ̂͒̀͢i̡̠̭̳̫͈̰͉̯ͯ͆̓̀͊̔c̻̱̗̜̭̮̈͗ͭ̓͗̕͝ ̨̘̱͍̪̼̝̹̀ͯ̀ͅͅe̤̗̥͈̍ͦ́͒͊́s͉̫̰̟̳̥͍̈̂̀͡c̸̢̳̫̮̠͍͑ͩ̇ͪ͛ͦ̚a̵̛̩͓͉̘̮͗ͥ̂̓ͩ͂͝p̛̬͍ͬ͗̄͢ě̱͎͓͍̬̝͎̮̔̑ͬ͐́̕͢
Then, the crew rolled up on the Arcane Sanctum, trading for new goods. Tyra asked some questions of Beedle about the lands south of the Aurelian Empire, and the whole gang asked a lot of questions about the head in a jar that they found, and whether or not it could be brought back to life with Reincarnation Dust. Vanderlith spent three hours setting up his initial loadout, and something happened to one of the bags.
̨̻͕̱̰͚͔̌ͬͦͪ̇ͩ̃͗ͫR̤͎̓́͘ë̻̗̤̼̣̲̳́̂ͫͩͣs͔̩̗̥̐͌̆̓͞c̢̬̤̳̪̎ͩ̈͋͟ü̵̢̺̰̣̥͊͒͂e̺̳͇͓̦͙̭̎ͨ̉͒̌̋̃̚ͅd̘͓͕̱̭̆͌̔ͯ͜ ̸͇͙̲̠̮̳̉̑̏̀b͕̯̳̝͛y̨͎̼̜̽ͯ́ͯ̔͝ ̨̨̎̽ͣͥͯ҉̲͓̩͉c̋̑͝҉҉̥͎̲̩̩̱͕h̨ͪ̉͝͏̻̥̱̭͍̰a̗̦̰͖̱̞̋̚n̯̱̩̰͐̀ͭ̕͟ç̴̷̰͎̙̂̓ͪ̌e̻͒̈̉̑͌͑͘͟
After exiting the Sanctum, the party found that, while they hadn't experience it inside the Sanctum, outside had suffered a minor earthquake. Then, they went to track down the fomorian that they had released upon the lower city. After a brief tracking period, where they found a cartoonish hole in the side of the Baron's manor, they found the Fomorian pounding on the column of the city that would have lined up with the Apocrypha above, where they had stayed.
ͨ҉̸̤̻͇̝̦Ṉ̸̟̙̖̬ͭ͋ͯ͊͑̀͒̽̽ͅȩ̶͓̻̀͂̎ͨ̇͟v̹͕͍̣̇̽ͅe͇̻̟̔̍̀ͯ̎̿̇͊͞r͍̙͖͎͈̳̘̈̔̍͑͢ ̞̉̃ͬ̔̓͜͠͠f̙̺̒͛̓o̡̱̗̱̓̉̌̕̕r̷͓͎̻̰ͤ̔̈́͆̃͡g̴͎̠̪͙ͫ̍̅ͫ̆̈́̓͂ͫ͘o̢̟̮͒ͩ͛t̸͕̤͍̲̺͙ͮͤ͛̐͐̓ṱ̨̰̯͐ͩ̓͠ę̠̥̰ͬ̋͊̾́̓͌̽͡ͅń́҉̫̲̘̬̘͓͖͇͝ ͧ͆̄̑̌҉̯͖̯̜͞a͖͚̦͚̒̊̂g͆͌̐̓̃҉͓͙̞͡ͅá͔͉̓͛į͔͎̭͙̞̺̓̓̐͌̒ͮn͕̺̞͓̹̟ͫ̋̀͐͗̈ͫ͐ͫ
In the fight that ensued, every time a blow from a Divine Armament landed upon the fomorian, small, silvery maggots seemed to drop away from it. When Tyra landed the "killing blow" with Stormdancer, the party was shocked to find that inside the fomorian was a naked man, tattooed with a crisscrossed ouroboros on his chest and back. After saying "The High Nephilim rises," he exploded into the silver larva which quickly burrowed into the ground and ran away. Olette captured one in a vial and held onto it.
Afterwards, the party had a week off to rest and recuperate.
Vanderlith spent some time in the Hanging Gardens of Arcanus where he had a bittersweet moment with a young girl who reminded him of his time back in the Feywild that he couldn't quite remember.
̵̷̢̺͇ͥ̈ͧ̃̀ͥE͈̗̹̲͔̜̳̟̼ͭͯ͗n̶̵̫̩̘͆̄́͜d̃̑͐ͤ̊ͪ̽̒҉͉̹̳͚l̷̘͇̩̊̅̇ͫ̊̆ͤ̃è̪͕̖͉͔͍̹̞̕s̴̢̬̗̹̾̒͐͐̐̍ͦ͞s̵̹̩̺͕̥͇̫̉ͯͨ̋̍ͭ͝͞ ̸̣ͦ͒ͣͥ̏ͫ̊́b̺̱̖̟̜̘̈́͆͐̐͐͡o̟̞͇̰̻̱͓̓̽̃̏ͭͤ̐̈́͟ͅn̵̈͊͏̺̪͜d̛̬̼̺͌̉ͬ̃͑͢s̵̨̤͎̳̗ͮͬ̓̀̽̕ ̵͙̖̦͚͓ͯ̐ͧ͊ͮͣ̆͐͘ơ̸̡͚͙̦̘̜̩ͭ͗̍ͮͩ͐̉f̺̱͉̪͚͓̿͆͐̆̿̒ ̶̻̰̝̩͓̻̣̼͖́̄ͨ́b̠̤͖̗̘̟͓̾̓͗ͭͤͫ̿͡r̳̬͈͌̃ͥȏ̡̠̬͇̣̤̦ͪ̇͢͜k̬̻̰͒̈ͭͬe̤̳̠͎̹̣̘͈̥ͦ̍̍̀͒͂̇n̷̝̝̫̥̦ͨ͐ͯ̋ͪ́͟ ̶̯͎͈͓̦̖͋͊͜t̵̨͖̥̫̻͖̹̭̰̒́̎̍r̭̩͇͇̮̤̖ͫ̄u͎̹̤̬̪̻ͧͬ͐͛̍̍̓̓s̛̯͔͖͓̞̯̣̤̲̈́͡t̳͖̺̩͎̼̆͌̊ͨ́̋̃
Valan went to Vaeris' shop where he purchased some instruments and met up with Aengus to get lessons. After returning from the shop, he passed on the Mercurial Mind to Olette, feeling that she could get better use of it than him, and that he felt it wasn't quite something he needed.
Tyra, Olette, and Dahlia go to the Infinite Maelstrom where they bond together, Tyra and Dahlia commiserating over their disparaged childhoods that they wish could have been spent anywhere else, and Olette listening intently. They got a little drunk, and had a great time budding out together.
̸̛͚̣̮͓͔͎̟̂ͦ̐͛ͣͬͭ̉L̼̪̳̖̣̦͕̦̂̂ͣ̽͛i̶̮̪͔͇͔͆̉̑ͥ̊̽ͧe̯̠ͤ̔͌́̀͞s̗̲̼̳̲̭͕̞ͮ̄̕ ̡̱̞͓̔͆̈͒͆ͮ̄̀̀ā̶͖̭͕͖̺̥̪ͦ̓ͦ̅̆̀̾͞c̵͈̝̖͓͛ͮ̌̏̇r̅͏͉̼̮ͅơ̟̹̬͍͖͚̜ͤͦ̽̂̈́̋ͨ̍ș̵̬͓̇̓ͥs̘̮̘̺̲͖̮̑̂ ̸̠̰̥̳̯͉̳̍͋̈́ͥͥ͜c̨̱̝̜̠̥͚̟̉̊̌͑ͩ̓́̀ơ̺̬̞ͪͮͤ̍̈́ͧ̈́͠͝nͯ̎ͫͧ҉̡̖͖̭̜͟ẗ̼͖̟̜̥́͊̊͒͘i̡̝͉̲̙̙̙͒n̶̡ͥͦͨ̔̽ͫ͗͏̝͙̟̳ĕ̛̜̦̟̜͆̽n͙̠͍̠͈͇̞͉̎̈́̌̈́͞t͊ͩ̑͗ͤ̅͗͠҉̪̯͉̪ä̷́̄̾̂͗̏̀ͮ̔͏̞̳̼͢ḻ͇̤̪̲͎ͫ̔͒̚͞ ̶̯̼͉ͭͮ͜͡l̘̣̮̹ͥ̿ͮ͋̉ͨ̀ͅī̛͉̹͉͙̔̈́̊̊͡͝n̷̲̣̙͎̗͔̊̈́ͨ͂ͅę̷̜̘͍̐ͧ̈ş̶̟̺͔̣̳̖͆ͫ̎͆͆̋̀
Callisto and Valan are also taking some time in the Infinite Maestrom, separated a little ways off of the upper mezzanine, and while they were having a good time, their conversation was a little more serious. Valan revealed to Callisto his true name, Jarren, and his identity as a changeling. Callisto took it in stride, and in turn revealed a small bit about his own passed. While he said he could not say much, he did say that he has been in a position similar to that of Valan's when he confronted the Powers, and that he was glad that Valan had cut the bargain short before the connection grew too strong. Callisto had lived a past life and was still treating the wounds that came from being burned by his own power. While they were talking about this, they received drinks from the Pathfinder, still seated a ways off from the bar, who raised a toast to them.
̟̰͔̐͢Ḯ͚̣̘̟͖͓̤͆ͅn̶̸͔̍ͧ͆ṫ͍̜̘̗̣̹̪͂ͥ̅̃͋̒͑e̴̘̻̗̲̥͔ͯͥ̍̉͛̀͛ͫ͢r̸̢̨̟̫̿ͯͤ̏w̧̳̭̰̣ͯͭ̄̑ͪ͑̇͒͝o̶͒̉҉͉̦͙́ͅv̧̱̦̣̻͙̒̎ͪ̓̇̍̚͠e̔̾͊̓ͯͪͥ̃͏̶̢̼͉̭͕̘͚̜̞n̘̦͖̼͇̍ͭ̿̒ͧ̒̈͊̑͠ ͤ̆ͤ͒̄̒̚҉̮̠̲̗̥͉W̧͓̖̻̪̠̿ͬ̎͒͒̃͑e̴̮̓̄̽̔͒̓́̚̚͝b̮͕̟̻̹̜̒͐̍͛͂̈́́ ̭̼͙̆ͮ̈́̌̄̋́̈́̀r͙͙̲̻̭͂͜͝ė̳͚̜̣̘͕̫͎́̀͌̎̅͘͞s̶̜̟̗̑̃̾̈̊̐̀͐̕͝t̴̸̪͍̺͖͉̣̙ͯ͛͆̇͌̆͢r̨̥͖̗̰̝͚̜̩̪͒̀͗ͥ́ͧ̿͆a̅̑̈̇҉̣̰į̗̻̬̘͙̰̦͉͕ͨ̔̄ṅ̶̛̺͉̳̱͕͍̭ͬͧͧ̍̃̽͡s͇̲͖͈͉̾͋̍͛̓̌͜
At the end of the week, they regrouped with the goliaths and had a bit of a party. Tyra and Iravek made out, Jules got Callisto too drunk, Valan and Aengus enthralled the party with melodies that made the Call itself shimmer in the air around the campfire. Tyra taught Vanderlith beerpong.
And through all this, Olette watched from a distance, taking in the scene, before slipping away. Venturing beneath the city, she wound through the streets until she arrived before an unassuming door at the end of an alleyway. Knocking upon it, a peephole slid open, revealing a set of tired grey eyes that widened at the sight of her. A woman threw open the door and embraced Olette before quickly reassuming a stoic, almost military stance. Her blue robes and blond hair were disheveled, but the discipline drilled into her by the Scribes held fast. She brought Olette into the safehouse, and the two of them debriefed on the state of the Order.
All agents are scattered to the wind, but the Mind has been returned, and the High Nephilim is sending tremors through the Call. Olette has been unable to confirm their identity, but has triangulated their position to be one of the Unchosen. Olette handed the wriggling larva over to Maria, who promised to analyze it and report back. The Nephilim will rise.
̘̹̥͈̿͋̓̓ͫ̑ͯ̇̎́Sͥ͑ͩ̐͐ͤ̽͂͏҉̭͚͚̣̱̫̭̬̬͠ű̯̮̊̓ͬ̑̚f̧̛̳̏ͩ̔ͤ̉́̄ͦͅfͦ͋́̈͆͗̋͏̯̯̲̻̞o͎̬̩̝͍̠̠͋͗̿̾ͩͭ̂ͭ͛͝ͅç̶̹̿ͧ̀͑̿̏ͦͣ͡ă̬̳̘̠̭̼̕͠ͅt͆ͨ̎͛͢҉͉̪̘̖̭̺̠̜i̻͈̰̳̽̉̐͑̑ͩͅͅǹ̡͎̏̑̆͝g̵̡̞̺͈̰̋̅̆ͫ̚
Notes
For extra credit, go look at the Andali Detailed Map, and pick out a region you would like to explore. Text it to me, and get inspiration.
Report Date
29 Jan 2022
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