Order Up

General Summary

After celebrating the Feast of Saint Paloren, the party continued sailing down the Aiberrun River towards Kassoth. Lethe continued decoding spells from the recently-acquired Book of Misspells. On the second night, Ciana had a disturbing nightmare. In it, she was transported to a mysterious temple made of marble and gold, adorned with iconography of the moon and the statue of a female elvish figure. Standing in the doorway to the temple was a figure clad in red and gold robes. As she began exploring the temple, it burst into flames and ruin. The figure shouted at her to run as it began fighting off a horde of strange creatures. A whirlwind of visions flashed through Ciana's head before she awoke in a pure white void, a glowing figure standing before her. He identified himself as the reason she was able to cast magic, and as the voice she had long heard in the back of her mind. He granted her an astral familiar and told her he would be in touch. Ciana then awoke from her dream and went topside to reflect on what she had seen.
The next day, the ship was attacked by a pirate sloop. The party was able to fend off the boarding, and Lethe in particular distinguished himself through the inventive use of the Web spell. The captain of the ship thanked them profusely and offered them whatever accommodations they desired for the last leg of the journey.
As the ship pulled into Derokesh, Weltread was not at the docks. The party waited for him in Port of Call, and after a few hours he arrived. He explained that where they were going was a closely-guarded secret, and as such they should wait until night to travel there. The party decided to pass the time by engaging in the town's nightlife. Weltread led them to an underground fighting ring where Precision fought and defeated the local champion Bashir Baztab, with help from Lethe's unseen servant. After collecting their earnings, Weltread led them down a remote alley, where he revealed a magically-hidden passageway. Once inside, he revealed himself as a member of the Order of the Doleful Aspect, and introduced the party to his superior, Garen of Font-Pelier.
Garen explained to the party that the Order's ultimate goal is to undo the Obviation and restore magic to the world. He explained that the original Arcaltium Monolith created during Augustin's Rebellion was not the only thing keeping magic at bay; its power had weakened over the years and so the Eloqui Order created a series of lesser cairns, each situated over a nexus of magical energies. The Order has learned the location of one of these monuments, but lacked the capabilities to destroy it until the ring was discovered. He offered to have the Order's mages enchant the ring with the capability to destroy the monoliths, and the party agreed. As the mages began work, the party was given lodging in the Order's dormitories for the night.
The next morning, the ring was returned to Lethe. Garen told the party that two missions needed to be undertaken. The first, destroy the Earth Cairn located beneath Serpent's Redoubt in Aufmar. The second was to sneak back into the Great Arcaneum of Alcaster to recover the Eloqui Order's codex, which could possibly reveal the locations of the other Cairns. The party elected to return to Alcaster first, and Weltread said that he knew a smuggler who could get them in under the radar. He offered to escort them to Crimsonhold on the other end of Kassoth to meet with Captain John Foote.

Characters Interacted With

• Precision fought and narrowly defeated the cocky warrior Bashir Baztab

Chapter Four

"Order Up"

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Previous Chapter: Shippin' Up to Roselawn

Next Chapter: Draven the Hunter

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Ingame Date: 20-22^th of First Bloom, 1855
Real-Life Date: March 25, 2020
Protagonists:

• Ciana
• Precision
• Lethe Argie
• Erevan

Featured NPCs:

• Kristofer Weltread
• Garen of Font-Pelier
• Bashir Baztab

Locations:

• Sheep's Bay
• Derokesh