Session 6: FourthDay - 1 day to opening

General Summary

Starting Gold

The Stoutheart Inn:	0g
Ola	8g5s
Flip	30.33g
Bronte	0g
Anakami	134g5s
Ros	9g
Bert	4g

A Good Night's Sleep

After a long day's work of renovations, the Stouthearts piled into their living quarters above the kitchen and finally laid their heads down for a good night's sleep. Anakami slept in the kitchen, the first she's ever really had. The doors all closed and locked this time, both with deadbolt and barred shut. Everyone could rest easy.
Ros was woken early. She felt a pressure on her chest, a hand over her mouth, and a blade to her throat. An unfortunately familiar position for a pirate. But on opening her eyes she saw nothing - despite the moonlight streaming through the window making everything plain to her dark adapted eyes. Whomever was on top of her was invisible.
"Push back your grand opening. I can't have you interfering," a female voice hissed quietly.
Unable to speak, Ros looked out the window at the shed and raised her eyebrows. After moment's pause, the voice hissed: "That doesn't matter." But Ros heard the recognition in her voice.
"I won't be kind twice," the voice whispered, almost pleadingly.
Ros kicked the invisible form off the bed and rolled to the ground. She shouted that there was an invisible person in the room. All the others awoke with a start. Ros rushed to the door and held it open for them to escape. Bronte cast spiritual guardians, and silvery, wispy birds of prey filled the room. Ola cast faerie fire and lit up the room to find invisible creatures. Bert grasped around for his trident which was not to be found. The cats scattered off of Flip, and he rolled into a position ready for battle. Anakami rushed out of the kitchen and up the stairs, only to feel a slight breeze pass by her, and she heard the kitchen door slam open behind her. She rushed into the tavern common room only to find the front door wide open, the bar placed to the side.
The Stouthearts fanned out around the inn, looking for a sign of someone but found nothing. Bronte ran outside and grabbed her nightcloak as a cape, running around to try to catch the assailant in the area of her spell. Quinn, the night guard came around the corner at that time only to silently watch Bronte running around outside the inn, cawing into the dead of night. When her spell faded, he shook his head and went back the way he came.
Someone had gotten in and delivered their message. But maybe didn't get the promise they wanted. Flip mentions that Lefty recognizes the smell of the interloper.
Everyone headed back in for a fitful rest.

A Beautiful Morning

Anakami awoke first, excited for her first full day in a kitchen, despite the danger of the previous night. She walked outside to breathe in the morning air. The city was already busy at this early hour. Anakami looked up at the tower of necromancy that normally reflects the sun, only to see dark clouds behind it. And with that cue, thunder rolled across the valley. A raindrop splashed on her cheek. And within seconds, the entire sky opened up for a massive thunderstorm.
She rushed inside and hurriedly cast druidcraft to get a sense of the weather tomorrow. It came up rainy. She sighed, but brightened up as Mantrell made the first delivery of the day, along with Kékal and Daïda, two hobgoblin women. Mantrell heard how well things went with the Reborn, so he thought this would work, too. Anakami found some extra gloves and protection for the particularly hairy hobgoblins.
Brontë went outside to control the storm to protect the delivery from the rain. Confident from her past, she summoned the lightning down to catch it in her hand and commune with Aerdrie, her god of storms. Lightning streaked downwards, but her god did not choose to make it anything more than a normal lightning bolt.

An Early Start

The Stouthearts had a quick conference and everyone then headed off to do their day's tasks:

• Ola headed out back to build a fighting pit out of reclaimed bedposts and linens.
• Ros wrote a message to Nian & Altair to advase ASAP Stoutheart Inn tenant. The halfling boy messenger was particularly cheeky, charging 10x the cost for the weather, and demanding a kiss as well! Ros then set about putting the final touches on all of the different rooms.
• Anakami headed right into the kitchen with her two helpers, and got right to work preparing for the big day.
• Flip had a conversation with some of the cats, and then started in on his brewing.
• Bert & Brontë headed out into the rain to see what they could find out about this "Watchful Eye" flier, where it may have been printed, and who may have sent it out. The headed off to the town crier's office.

The Lifewardens

With everyone busy, Ros was left in the common room straightening up. The door swung open and in strode three figures wearing all white, with a rising sun emblazoned on their left chest - the recognizable garb of the Lifewardens, sworn to protect the realm necromancy and the undead. In front was a very old, but still very elegant, silver haired elf, and behind him were a leonin with a scar on her face, and an inquisitive tabaxi whose eyes darted all over the room. Their names, you would later learn were Selenius, Helena, and Suajadin, respectively.
Voice dripping with disdain and boredom, Selenius notified Ros that they were here to follow up on the rumors of possible necromancy in this establishment. Ros fetched Ola who also struggled to communicate with Selenius. Selenius showed a mild curiosity around whether or not someone actually tried to give a corpse to someone other than the Carter's Guild, but that soon passed and he seemed to be more interested in having you say that you understood that all corpses were to be passed through the Carter's Guild, and that you would never make this mistake again. Once that was half out of Ola's mouth, he directed his two companions to search the area, and he sat on the very edge of one of the chairs to wait, albeit with ramrod straight posture.

The Paper Trail, Part 1

Bert & Bronte rode through the rain to Speaker's Forum, where the offices of the town criers could be found. Inside they met Lessen, the halfling clerk, who informed them that unfortunately she didn't know anything about that flier. Looks like one of the conspiracy rags that sometimes gets printed. They tried to shut down places like that in the past, but they shut down and pop up so fast that it was a waste of their time. She was very frustrated by them.
She did give over one clue: it was probably printed at one of the local printers, and not a handmade flier. The big ones are some in Octata Inspirata, in Speaker's Forum, and in the Park - you could ask them.
Before they left, Bert & Bronte paid over 1g2s to blanket the four segments around the inn with the following message on SelfDay: ""Stoutheart Inn: Completely above board, no dead guys, whatsoever. No nearly dead guys either. Come today for food and fun!"
That should fix it.

The Lifewardens, Part 2

Outside, Ola continued her work building a fighting pit. She noticed Suajadina, the tabaxi Lifewarden, exploring the area. Both Helena and Suajadina had been repeating the same gesture as they looked about. Suajadina stopped by the renter's shed and the area around it, especially to the east, along the road. She stopped several times and finally smelled the air deeply. Suajadina turned around and hurried into the inn - and Ola followed.
Inside, Suajadina conferred with Selenius, who told her to bring Helena inside. Eventually, the Lifewardens stood before the Stouthearts and Selenius spoke, though it sounded like it was an incredible imposition for him to do so.
"I'm sure you're aware that necromancy is banned, and yet we have detected a necromantic aura in the area around this inn. Have any of you been casting necromancy spells within the past week?"
"No, WE haven't casted anything. But not all of us are here," was the reply.
Selenius let out a long, impossible sigh. "Very well, we can wait until they return." Helena and Selenius posted themselves outside and Selenius sat back down on the edge of the chair.

Blessings of Song

A satyr, drenched with rain, burst through the Stoutheart Inn doors and sang loudly: "Cheapest Ale in the Caldera, at the Stoutheart Inn!" He took a deep breath, and shouted: "Whoever came up with this wonderful jingle? I simply must know!"
Ola, keen to be recognized, fluttered next to him and proudly declared herself as the origin. "How wonderful!" the satyr cried, in a musical voice. He introduced himself as Nidar wondered if Ola would be willing to donate the song to the church of Milil, the goddess of poetry & song. You can of course license it back if you want to continue using it. Ola declined, but was willing to donate 4g for a blessing. Nidar was happy to oblige, and pranced around the entire place singing a song, finally disappearing out into the rain.

The Trap

No sooner had everyone gotten back to their chores than in walked a small, hunched older man with greying hair walk in, flanked by a hobgoblin man on one side, and a small halfling man sporting a topknot. Ola recognized them right away - this is Top and the other two Shadow Blades who jumped her in the alley!
"Just came by to see the place-" started the older man, but he didn't get a chance to finish as Ola threw herself at him, punching wildly. It took a few tries for the blows to land, and the older man seemed to greatly exaggerate his reactions to the wild, if somewhat ineffective, frenzy. He cried out in mock agony, fell to the ground, leaned into punches, and made himself available. Attempts to stop Ola were ineffective.
"Oh, why am I, an innocent man humbly minding his own business, being suddenly attacked without any provocation whatsoever??" he cried in mock fear.
Anakami cast Zone of Truth and insisted loudly that he would only be able to tell the truth. The elderly man sneered, and shouted so all could hear: "The truth? The truth is that I am an old man minding my own business and just came by to see how the inn was being treated, and how preparations were going, and I was suddenly, and without warning, assaulted by this fairy who seems intent on harming me repeatedly!" Others tried to join their voices to the cry, realizing that he was probably doing this to claim for witnesses.
Laughing, elderly man stood up, and the three Shadow Blades left the building. Ola, insistent, cast Vicious Mockery on him, wounding him badly - but he maintained his composure, and continued to leave. Anakami spotted him taking a small object from his pocket, perhaps a stone, flipping it up in their air, and catching it back in his pocket. He patted it and the Shadow Blades laughed uproariously. Whatever they were up to, they succeeded.
The Stouthearts faced down Ola, insisting that she needs to manage her temper. She could go to prison! We know that Sondron is vile - maybe her actions could cost all of them the inn! Ola, furious, stammered a type of apology and went outside into the pouring rain for a walk to cool off. The Stouthearts took a deep breath.
A small cough came from the edge of the common room. The Stouthearts turned to face Selenius, the imperious Lifewarden, still sitting with perfect posture on the edge of his seat. "Interesting," he whispered.

The Second Shipment

Mantrell arrived not long after with the rest of the materials. Ale, wine, and the meat. He also brought with him a reborn crew to build the privies and hang the chandelier. The chandelier was an interesting build - not quite like anything anyone had ever seen before. The orcs headed outside, grumbling about they always get stuck with the awful job. Anakami, overhearing this, went outside in the rain to give them some food and drink. They were very appreciative.
"Aren't you lucky!" he proclaimed. "All this rain will keep people indoors today. That means twice as many people out and about tomorrow! You're sure to be bustling!"

The Paper Trail, Part 2

After some searching, Bert and Bronte found a print shop named "Peter's Printing". In the window were various commercial flyers, festivals, announcements for balls, concerts, and other artistic tours. Inside, Bronte asked to see an example of the paper stock one could use. He brought up a large book, and Bronte went through them thoroughly. Seeing the difference between the expensive and cheap paper, she realized that her paper stock would be even cheaper than what Peter had to offer. She asked if he had anything more affordable, and he suggested they head to one of the fly by night shops in Bloodbottom.
The two looked at each other, realizing that the shop may only be steps from their inn. They sighed and headed back to the inn as a stopover on the way to explore Bloodbottom.

Blessings of the Raven Queen

The door of the Stoutheart Inn opened quietly, and a small cough captured Ros' attention. The ancient & slow-moving dwarf was instantly recognized as a priest of the Raven Queen. Dripping with water, he introduced himself as Ulym, priest of the Raven Queen, goddess of the dead. Selenius stood up at this and bowed deeply, holding his bow for several seconds.
Anakami came rushing out of the kitchen & pressed a gold piece into his hand. "Can you pray for a friend of mine? Her name is Ellariel, and I don't know where she is, but I hope she's safe. She is somehow involved with the Raven Queen." Ulym was surprised but agreed - and that he didn't need the gold for the prayer, but he will donate it to the church.
"I was hoping I could bless this establishment to help bring peace to the dead, and keep the unquiet spirits at bay," he asked. "The previous tenants would not allow me to do so, and the dead underfoot need to be brought to the lands of the dead." He explained how most people forget that the Caldera is in fact a giant graveyard, with millions of dwarves (and others) dead & buried beneath their very feet (and within the sky around them on the floating islands). "No payment," he said, "for our work is too important to be held behind money. But if you wish to donate to the church, it will help us to continue doing this important work."
Ros, who understood the need of respecting the dead, and was moved by the dwarf, paid 1g to donate to the church. With Anakami and Ros' agreement, he went ahead and began the ritual - as fast as his old body would carry him. Selenius accompanied him to help him with his work.

The Lifewardens, Part 3

Eventually Bert & Bronte returned to the inn, soaked to the bone after having ridden to Speaker's Forum, Octata Inspirata, and then eventually back to the inn. They stabled the horses, dried them off, and then entered the inn. Selenius excused himself from the blessing ritual, coughed quietly, and waited for his Lifewardens to enter. "Is this everyone then?" he asked. The group nodded.
Selenius began the same explanation as he head before. Seeing Bert stammering several different replies, he explained further: "We know someone cast Toll the Dead here 3 days ago. If it was not one of you, then we have to continue the investigation. When no more information was forthcoming, he sighed, sat himself down, and motioned to Suajadina.
"Look, we don't care about small potatoes like this. We really only care about true necromancy: raising of the dead, undead armies, the activities of the lich queen and her other liches strewn about the world. But we have to explore every rumor in order to stay on top of it. Unfortunately this means we investigate a lot of very small, innocuous events. But we have to complete our report thoroughly, because you never know if you miss something, and you need to be able to see potential patterns emerge. So, with that in mind - knowing nobody's going to get in trouble for this, and keeping in mind that we are trained experts in seeing through lies & evasion - did any of you cast Toll the Dead 3 days ago?"
Bronte sighed in equal parts as Selenius, and began to ponder the meaning of spells. Ros, Ola, and the other Stouthearts began to redirect their suspicions onto the tenant instead, as to why they're so suspicious, the pressure from Nian Borowal to postpone their grand opening, how the shed was too clean, and so on.
Selenius sighed and motioned Helena forward. "This sounds like a matter for the Shield, not for us," she said angrily. "Are you making an accusation of necromancy against your tenant? I warn you that too many people have tried to use us as a personal army against their own enemies, which wastes our time from matters that truly require our attention. The penalty for a false accusation is very high."
The group continued to try to redirect attention onto the tenant. Suajadina asked "Are you filing an accusation of necromancy?" Bronte indicated she was. Suajadina nodded and said "Very well, we will consider a report filed." They took the name of the agent to speak to her.
Selenius sighed, stood up, and stated: "It seems as though this matter cannot be closed today. So we will have to return."
And with that, the Lifewardens finally left the inn. The Stouthearts went back to work, and Bert & Bronte left for Bloodbottom. Ros and Ola mounted the horses to report Ola's assault & the evening's intruder to the Shield.

Message for Anakami, from Altair!

A man dressed in Caldera City uniform entered the inn and shouted "Message for Anakami, from Altair the barrister!" Anakami took the message which read: "Please ignore all previous messages. If new messages arrive, please send them away and do not listen to them. Please don't tell anyone about this message." She sent a reply: "We haven't received any messages ..."
Anakami, worried, cast a sending spell to speak to Ros, who replied but continued on to The Shield. Soon after, a small messenger child came through the door, shouting "Message from Anakami, from Altair!" Anakami took the message and read: "Forget about the fountain, maybe a fireplace?" Bewildered, she went back to the kitchen, and another message came: "Never mind, I don't seem to have any." She sent a reply to Altair: "Is everything ok?" Shortly after that, three more messages came in. "No, let's do the fountain, it's too warm for a fireplace." "Are feathers still in fashion?" Anakami sent a reply "Yes, absolutely, feathers are timeless." and "Can you reserve a very nice table? I don't know what that is ... is there a fountain?" And Anakami sent the last reply: "Don't worry, we will have something wonderful for you."
In order, the messages read:

• "Are feathers still in fashion?"
• "Never mind, I don't seem to have any."
• "Can you reserve a very nice table? I don't know what that is ... is there a fountain?"
• "Forget about the fountain, maybe a fireplace?"
• "No, let's do the fountain, it's too warm for a fireplace."
• and then, from the city clerk: "Please ignore all previous messages. If new messages arrive, please send them away and do not listen to them. Please don't tell anyone about this message."

Anakami cast druidcraft again, only to see that it would be sunny at this time tomorrow - their grand opening would be able to be outdoors after all!

The Paper Trail, Part 3

Bert & Bronte continued their hunt around Bloodbottom. After some searching, they came across a shop that had a hastily written sign that just said "Printing" on it. In the window were flyers for various conspiracy rags, diatribes against the government or other people, and some birthday cards for kids. Thinking this was the place, they entered.
Inside a dirty half-elf named Niyaz with sunken eyes grunted a greeting at them, and when asked about paper stock, pointed them to a thin binder with the cheapest of the stock from Peter's Printing, and some much cheaper stock still. Bronte found the paper that she was certain was the same paper as what they had received. She sized him and the place up, and realized that this man was down on his luck - barely making ends meet. She would need to provide something of value to him to get him to confess.
Bert decided on the direct approach instead, and the half-elf caved right away. Bronte showed him the letter, and he admitted to having printed this, but wasn't sure why they were so upset. Bert told him they were from the Stoutheart Inn, at which point he sunk even further into himself and apologized, but they had to understand that although he hates printing this stuff, he is so desperate for money! Bronte reasoned he was probably a refugee from Amon-Ra, like so many others.
Unfortunately he doesn't know who it was who hired him. There was a bag of gold for a rush job - 25g, all of which went to pay his debts - and a flier that he was to copy & leave outside that same day. The Watchful Eye is well known around these parts as they all know it's shlock but they pay so well. He was honestly really happy when it happened, what a windfall! He had to think back, and could only remember one thing - when he got it, and after he collected himself from his excitement, he rushed outside to see who might have left it. It was a busy back alley, and he recognized about half the people. He did see one odd thing, which he just ignored, since it's an alley in Bloodbottom and you ignore everything if you know what's good for you. There was a hobgoblin and a halfling with a topknot walking side by side near the end of the alley. He only remembers it because the height difference was so odd - do you think the topknot is the halfling's way to make up the height difference? No offense intended!
Bert & Bronte softened on him and invited him to the Grand Opening, ale on the house. He was taken aback, but agreed. He was very sorry, again - hopefully it doesn't harm their business, and he's glad they are understanding.
With that information, Bert & Bronte headed back to the Stoutheart Inn, cursing the Shadow Blades once again.

Are You Here to Turn Yourself In?

Ros & Ola came across a Shield patrol and waved them down. "Are you here to turn yourself in?" asked funny-dragonborn Thedd. "Yes!" declared Ola. "For what?" asked Thedd. "Breaking hearts?" Ola melted and flirted right back to Thedd. She eventually remembered what she was here for and actually turned herself in for assaulting the elderly man. And Ros told Thedd about wanting to file a report about an invisible assailant in the night, that nobody else saw. Thedd's demeanor changed as he realized they were serious, and sent along one of his guards to take them back to the Stoutheart. One of the Shield from that segment would be along to take their reports. "Do you feel unsafe in your home?" he asked. Ros admitted that yes, she feels like she is still in danger. He instructed Officer Sesharra to stand post until she was relieved. Ros tried to convince them to continue on to see Altair as that was another stop of hers, even trying thieves cant along the walk. But she found herself painted into a corner and returned back to the inn with the guard.

Inn for the Night

Eventually, Ros, Ola, Bert & Bronte made their way back to the inn. All the Stouthearts were once again under one roof and unlikely to go out into the rain for the rest of the evening. A number of the returning members noticed that the chandelier, now raised to the roof, was different somehow - it looks like it would move. That the different levels would rotate somehow. But nobody could figure it out. Ola lit candles and placed them in the chandlier, which lit up the room brightly but cast dark shadows, creating a stark contrast within the inn.

Blessings of the Thief

A small halfling woman entered the inn and welcomed them all to the area. She was familiar with this inn - very familiar. Knew the previous inhabitants well. And started asking about how they are protecting themselves - do you have a safe? Do you know your wait staff? You should know that skimming off of a wait staff's intake is usually a two person job.
Eventually, the woman introduced herself as Cutter, a priest of Mask, god of thieves. Mask is a reasonable god, and can be bought. A sizeable donation to the church - say, 15g - and he would encourage his followers to look elsewhere. Don't be offended, it's just business. Anakami put 5g into her hand and thanked her very much. She pocketed the gold, and told them that they're now only 10 short. Anakami asked if she could pay her the 10g later, and Cutter replied that she absolutely could, and that protection would start once she got the full 15 gold.
Ros started a conversation in thieves' cant, hoping to convince her to take the 5 gold and the promise of more later. She found Cutter to be on the up and up - a straightforward business deal. Pay some protection money now, and the thieves will leave you alone. Eventually, the two agreed to 5 gold, plus free food and drink for Cutter and a few of her friends. Cutter began the blessing, and Ros found herself a new friend!

The Inspection

Xethenia arrived and greeted everyone warmly. She had not a single drop of water on her, and her hair looked perfect. Ola took her into the companions rooms to show her what was built. "Very good," Xethenia stated, "but have you considered bringing in a bard to sing gently within the rooms? It helps to sing over some of the ... background noises ... when you have only a single room like this," she said. Ola promised she'd look into it. "You might want some guards, perhaps 1 or 2, to have control over who comes in and out," Xethenia offered. Ola promised that she'd provide at least one.

Backstage Prep

Fenir arrived, soaking but with several bundles that were guarded against the rain. "Where is my backstage?" he cried. "I need to begin preparations!" After some confusion, the group eventually showed him to the brewery where Flip had been working all day. "This will work wonders!" he cried. Anakami asked him for some feathers, and he graciously provided some. "I don't even know why I brought this!" he said.

The First Dinner with Guests

Anakami shouted out to the whole inn that everyone in the inn was welcome to stay for dinner. She gathered everyone around one of the big common tables and her, Kekal and Daida started serving dinner - not just samosas, but a real meal with pies and bread and meats and cheeses and vegetables of all kinds. Everyone, including Xethenia, Fenir, Cutter, Kekal, Daida, and the orcs who built the privies - and who also graciously fixed up your stables at no extra charge! - dug in and had a wonderful meal under the light and shadows of Jurak's chandelier.

End of the Night

Full with a real meal for the first time since they arrived in Caldera City, the Stouthearts went to their living quarters to turn in for the night. Flip let the cats know that they all had to be in by midnight, at which point they were going to close the window. Everyone got changed and got into bed - some with weapons within arm's reach or within the bed with them.
A small cough was heard from downstairs. "I've finished with the ritual." Ros and the others ran downstairs to see Ulym, the priest of the Raven Queen, who had continued the ritual through dinner and only now finished, late at night. He thanked them and blessed them, and left into the dark, rainy night.
The Stouthearts locked and double barred all doors & windows, and turned in for the night, facing what was undoubtedly going to be a fitful sleep - both eagerly awaiting the Grand Opening the next day, and worried about another possible nighttime encounter from their invisible assailant.

Campaign

The Inn at the Crossroads of the World

Protagonists

Anakami of Tree Home

Report Date

11 Sep 2022