Session 17: Suuth'Kallos 3 - This time, it's personal

General Summary

Session nr.17 12&14/04/2022
Tuesday, 12 April 2022 20:06
While Finn was inside, Elthé is looking at Markys. She looks a bit out of it, then heads out to the courtyard where a few of The Everglade monks are practicing. She picks up a staff and casts immovable object on it, making it only movable by herself. She then places the staff against a fence and wanders off. One of the monks walks over and tries to clean it up, but he notices how difficult it is to pick up. Elthé, somewhat hiding behind a bench, looks on as another monk comes over, and they try with all their might to move it.
As Finn, Nariko and Sylveras exit Wisteria's room, Finn asks Zula and Markys where Elthé had gone. He then informs them they were requested to leave immediately, and tells them to meet at the exit as he still has someone to meet. As he heads off, he runs into Elthé, who asks where he's going. He tells her he needs to receive something from someone here. Finn allows her to go along, and after asking the same man on the bench where he can find Merr (which makes him flinch for a moment), they are pointed towards a waterfall. As they reach it, Finn walks straight through it, withstanding the force of the falling water, whereas Elthé uses her magic to stop it, walking underneath with no effort.
Behind the waterfall, at the end of a hall, stands a woman overlooking a pool. Finn gets her attention, saying he is looking for Merr. The woman turns around and reveals that she's the one he's looking for. Finn tells her of his quest to find all the keys, and presents how he already has the others. Merr understands and gives him the final key, but then asks why he's doing this quest, instead of running to safety. Finn explains he'd rather live a short life of fulfilment, rather than a long life of hiding. She asks how Snowcake has been, and Finn tells her according to Silvio, it is still standing. He then shows her the claw he had traded with 234 all the way back in The Founder Ruins. Seeing as she herself was a former Founder, he asks her if she knows how it works. She does as she made it herself, and explains he must plunge the hook into his own wrist, after which on the other side shall appear. This side must be plunged into the thing one wishes to link with. Finn thanks her for her time, after which Elthé who was standing behind him, claims to have a question as well. She asks who would win, 100 duck sized horses or one horse sized duck.
Making their way back up, they leave the cavern and are back into the windy cold of the north. Nariko attempts to bond a bit with the Anrar. They decide to continue on a little bit, before setting up another camp. As they walk, Ukbran and Nariko speak up again after Finn reiterates he wishes to travel to his old home further east, which happens to bring them closer to Suuth'Kallos. Ukhbran demands Nariko helps release him from Suuth'Kallos' prison, however that if she has no intentions to do so yet, he doesn't want them approaching the mountain. Finn asks the book what he'd do, if he were released. He claims he will simply take over again. He claims that before, his biggest issue was Dhool (aka Harbour'dhoolkrensilkikkun), and that Mechston is ruled by a being called Mechanus. Elthé then surprises Ukhbran again by knowing the current rulers of Dhool. She points out there are two actually, a Green Eye and a Blue Eye.
As camp and the tiny hut are set up, Finn and Nariko head out to hunt. After scoring themselves a rather sizable stag, they are approached on the way back by a man. The man introduces himself as Uhren, and claims he has been watching Finn and the rest for a while. He congratulates him on getting this far. Nariko asks him what his deal is, where he is from, why he is watching them, etc. The man however can't answer any of these questions. Not because he doesn't want to, but simply because he can't. With that, the man dissapears. Ukhbran offers Nariko his powers, and as she's about to Finn grabs her hand and tells her to rethink her actions, as the book has caused problems between his old travelling companions. Nariko says she doesn't need his input and is fully capable of making decisions herself.
She places her palm on the book, and gains the memories of not only The Teacher, Ukhbran's first wielder, but also those of Ruyi. Upon seeing that, Nariko shows compassion to Ukhbran for having needed to travel with someone so depressing. Finn, who had mind linked with Elthé before they left to hunt, asks her to keep an eye out for Nariko if she starts behaving any different. As they return, Elthé makes an attempt to contact another plane, to offer an answer to any questions the party members might have. She fails however, and is unconscious for a little bit. Ukhbran instead asks if anyone has any questions, and answers a few. He calls Finn boring for not having any questions.
At that point, Sylveras' raven begins to speak to him, demanding a map. He walks over to Finn, and asks for it. He asks why, and the raven flies over to tell them he has three locations up ahead that Sylveras must investigate. According to the voice coming from the raven, there are undead there that are causing harm to civilians. In addition, they must go there as soon as possible. Finn looks at the locations, and agrees to help Sylveras seeing as it is on the way back to the main path from where they are now. He takes the map back, and the raven turns back to normal.
The next day while travelling, Finn notes how things are colder than they used to be. They find an oddly placed cabin, and Elthé chooses to enter it. The rest follow suit. Inside is a rather cozy looking shop, with a friendly looking merchant behind what could be described as a bar, but isn't. He introduces himself as Neut, and is part of a group of travelling merchants. Though his location is odd, it was the only one open for him at the moment. Elthé wishes to purchase a few things, however they are of a high price so she begins to haggle. Neut even takes souls instead of gold, but none are willing to sell theirs to him. After purchasing a sending stone for Zula and Nariko buys a new spellcasting focus, Elthé promises to return for a box of random items, which happens to cost 20,000 gold.
After more days of travelling, the party reaches The Valley of Suuth'Kallos. Finn recognises the area, and begins to retrace his steps. Slowly but surely, he is able to find specific spots he had been to before, and at the end he finds what must have been his village, or at least what's left of it. The place is snowed over, with the rooftops of some huts visible here and there. He begins to dig out one, as Elthé spots and investigates a bit of dried up blood and signs of struggle. In yet another change of personality, she easily deduces the blood is from 8-9 months ago, thus concluding it has been here for a long time. Finn emerges from the snow, and claims this must have been his village, as the architecture of the huts do not resemble The Brjalao's way of building. Furthermore he has found a Brjalao blade. Elthé shares her discovery, noting how there are no signs of a trial out of the village. Nariko brings up how strange that is. It is as if they just dissapeared into thin air.
Finn looks towards the mountain, and claims he now knows where his people are. He tells the party he will climb the mountain, which is going to take a few days. Sylveras refuses to go, claiming he must find the undead his raven mentioned as soon as he can. Nariko chooses to go with Sylveras naturally, and Zula too says she has no time for this and needs to go to Furanei. Markys is going with them too. Finn nods his head, then gets on the Anrar. Elthé chooses to go with him instead. With that, the party splits, and Finn and Elthé travel up the mountain. As they travel, Elthé personality changes again. She mentions how she can't let him die, which catches Finn off guard for a moment, until she turns back into her old self. She however does let out that she knows a lot about his brother, someone Finn had never mentioned up to this point to her. His focus on saving his tribe, Finn does not investigate.
After a few days, they reach the mouth of a cavern. Finn claims it has "returned", and they enter. It is pitch black, but they prevail. Hearing grumbles and roars up ahead, they carry on quietly. Eventually they reach a corner, where the sounds are the loudest. Having mind linked before they entered, Finn, who can't see in the dark, requests Elthé to take a look. She however, does the opposite and pushes the lizardfolk around the corner, where they now stand face to face with a large ice dragon fighting two thin skeletal beasts. Behind them is a wall of shadow. Not wishing to join the fight, Finn runs past the colossal fighters and attempts to break through the shadow wall. Elthé just manages to scrape past the beasts, catching a few strikes here and there. She uses her magic to hold the Dragon, causing it to stop moving, as Finn repeatably strikes the walls. On the sides, two creatures seemingly made from the sludgy shadows come out, face the dragon, and begin charging some breath attack. At that point, with support of Elthé, Finn manages to crack the wall of darkness.
Inside, he sees the same beast he saw all those months ago, as well as the one that showed up in his visions. The beast turns to look at them, then looks at the colossal dragon behind them. It raises it's mantis-like arms, and charges past them outside, fighting the dragon. Overwhelming the dragon, who just took out one of the skeletal beasts and caused the other to flee, now too runs out of the cavern in fear of the beast. Seeing his chance, Finn plunges the Founder hook into his wrist, withstanding the pain. As Merr told, another side begins to appear. The beast turns to face him, but it is not looking with malice. Instead, it extends its arm, out of which a more humanoid looking hand appears. Finn plunges the other end into the arm, and after a flash of light, Finn feels the gem on his ring break.
The next moment, they are surrounded by blue lizards and white dragonborn, all speaking in languages Elthé does not understand. In front of them stands a tall woman, wearing a black carapace-like set of armour. Finn asks who she is, and she explains she is the Queen of the Errano. Recognizing the name from Måne's story, he takes a knee. The Queen however tells him that is not necessary. Elthé walks over asking what is going on, and she places tongues on her, so she can understand the tribe's language. She reveals the ring Finn has been carrying all this time is a founder relic, an item that detected whenever a large conflict were to happen. Once detected, it would absorb all living beings in the vicinity, essentially trapping an entire army within. The Queen however was trapped in it for an even longer time. When the Brjalao invaded the Yfirge tribe's home, the ring had activated and trapped them all, aside from Finn, his uncle, his cousin and of course his brother. Although trapped, they were all able to witness Finn's journey. They know what happened to his brother as Micheal told Finn, however his cousin and uncle are still at large. Elthé asks the queen if they can be rewarded for rescuing her, asking for 20,000 gold. The Queen, surprisingly, accepts. However, Elthé will have to wait some time before getting paid.
The Queen explains the Errano she ruled are an evolved form of Drathkeer (Qulvo), and that she will need to seek them out in order to retake her throne from the king that rules them now. First however, she shall lead the Yfirge tribe, as well as the Brjalao tribe safely to Snowcake. While in the ring, she had managed to have them hold a truce. Finn's father, Yfirge'Eldi, approaches him, asking him if he truly does not remember them. Finn says that unfortunately, he indeed does not. As they exit the caverns, some of his tribe members tell him of his past. Strangely, Finn does still speak his tribe's language. Once back outside, the Queen asks if Finn and Elthé will travel with them, but they tell them they must continue on before anything else. With that they part ways, and as Finn and Elthé mount the Anrar, Finn tells her he now knows who he was. Elthé looks in her book and nods. His full name, Yfirge'Finn.

Report Date

25 Apr 2022