18 - 12/1/21 : Fly by Night

In-game date: 20th-21st of Freyrmond, 3521

“Enjoy the gold. I hope it’s worth dying for.” - Yalah Gralhund

The party continued their fight against the simulacrum, choosing to fend off his spells while attempting to reach Orond Gralhund in the southern guest room. Yilani managed to get Hrabbaz up with a healing word, allowing him time to escape and regroup with Yalah Gralhund. Meanwhile, Brooke took the stairs back to the first floor, while Reilly and Megumi fought Yorn the half-orc in front of the guest room door.
Yorn was killed in the fighting, allowing Reilly, Megumi, and Yilani to break down the door and rescue Orond Gralhund. With the last Gralhund alive, Reilly broke a nearby window and used feather fall to get down to the street level to begin their escape.
Brooke found and retrieved a Dagger of Venom dropped by Urstul Floxin on his way out, holding on to it to give to Megumi. Once he met up with the party, they took a moment to catch their breath but were interrupted with an attack from additional, unknown pursuers. The party quickly took to the streets to shake the figures tailing them.
While making their escape, Brooke was nearly struck by a throwing dagger of strange design. They were able to collectively dodge their way through the obstacles of the city, and were eventually confident they were no longer being followed. As they looked in the direction of Gralhund Villa, they saw a plume of smoke rising from the burning manor.
The party turned their attention to the Stone of Golorr. Realizing that they couldn't keep it at Troll Skull Manor, they deliberated on whether to give it to the Masquerade or to Solauvaire for safekeeping. Megumi advocated experimenting on the stone, but the rest of the party persuaded her to abandon this line of thinking. Eventually, they settled on bringing the mysterious stone to Solauvaire.
As they tried to cross the barrier into the Tower of the High Dragon's extradimensional interior, they found the Stone of Golorr resisted entering the interior. Reilly and Brooke decided to hang back while Yilani and Megumi fetched Solauvaire.
After giving a bewildered Solauvaire an account of the past few hours, the Red Spirits allowed Solauvaire to inspect the Stone of Golorr. Reilly and Solauvaire both found that the spell Identify was useless in learning anything about the Stone; all they could see was an inky blackness enshrouding it when looking at its magical aura. Solauvaire concluded that the Stone possessed the property of Primacy, confirming the hypothesis of Victoro Cassalanter; the Stone was constructed in an age predating the current laws of magic, and thus was immune to most spells of the modern day.
Solauvaire offered to have the Stone stored at the House of Wonder under the purview of High Priestess Rydia Margaster, to which the party agreed. He theorized that the Stone could not be magically contained, but it could perhaps be stored in a mundane object that could then be magically enhanced. After handing the stone off, the party returned to Troll Skull Manor to rest from their exhausting night.
As the party made it back, they were greeted by Zug Zug, Vowyn, Fala, and Raeziel. Zug Zug had spent most of the evening helping to clean up the debris from the fireball attack, and Vowyn kept an eye on the manor while the party was gone. Fala had spent most of their time tending to Renaer, and demanded to tend to the party's condition as well when given the chance.
Renaer, able to speak despite still being in some pain, informed the party that he had spoken with some of his father's spies, who were deserting en masse after what happened to Dalakhar. He was able to learn that Dalakhar had acted as a plant in the Xanathar Guild and stole the Stone of Golorr from them, intending to bring it to Dagult Ambermantle in Oceanus. However, with mounting pressure from his pursuers in the Xanathar Guild and the Scions of Black Hearts, Dalakhar attempted to flee to Troll Skull Manor and entrust the party with the task, having heard of their heroics in The Targe after they saved Renaer.
Fala attempted to learn more about the situation, but Reilly assured them that it was in their best interest to not get involved. Fala disagreed stubbornly, stating that they cared for the party and refused to just let them get into danger without them helping. After a bit of arguing and protest, Fala backed down, but swore to help the party in their own way if they were able.
Raeziel called the party downstairs to meet with some late night visitors; Yalah Gralhund and her bodyguard Hrabbaz, both of whom escaped from the manor alive. Yalah, with her typical attitude of superiority and self-righteousness, thanked the party for saving her life, and offered to give them all the information she was privy to. Though the situation was tense, especially with Reilly's mounting anger, the party allowed her to speak.
Yalah explained that she had long schemed to achieve the rank of Masked Lord, and made contact with the Scions of Black Hearts in order to help her achieve this goal. She eventually became acquainted with Veszaltyrr himself, who let her in on the plot to acquire the Stone of Golorr in exchange for allowing the Scions to use her home as a staging ground and teleportation port for their operations.
Yalah explained that the Stone of Golorr was the key to finding the lost embezzled gold of Dagult Ambermantle, a sum that supposedly added up to just over a million gold coins. However, the Stone was currently useless, as it was missing its three gemstone-like eyes. With the red, blue, and green eyes inserted into the Stone's recesses, it would give the wielder the location of the lost gold.
The locations of two eyes were known to Yalah; she said that the green eye had been stolen from Renaer Ambermantle's mourning locket, which was the reason he was kidnapped before his fateful encounter with the party. The blue one was, to her knowledge, possessed by the Xanathar. The party knew that the Rat Catchers had actually come into the possession of the blue eye during their spat with Obliteros, but gave it to the mysterious half-elf woman they met in exchange for curing Jenks, whose location and affiliation was unknown. The red eye was missing, and not even Veszaltyrr knew where it was located, though he had some theories.
Finally, Yalah stated that she thought she would be able to out-maneuver Veszaltyrr himself by getting her purchased nimblewright to assassinate the Stone's carrier and steal the stone itself. Even in the event of something going wrong, she figured that she would be able to scapegoat the attack on the Sea Maiden's Faire, from whom she purchased the nimblewright. Her gambit went awry, however, when Scion agents caught up with the nimblewright and led them back to her home, leading to the attack the party had stumbled upon.
Reilly announced her intent to detain Yalah until she could be delivered to the watch for the crime of abetting the fireball attack perpetrated by her nimblewright. Yalah snapped back by threatening Reilly with the full consequences of the Code Legal, which harshly punished those who assaulted or physically impeded nobles of the city, even those guilty of crimes. Reilly finally relented when Yalah assured them that even in her ruthlessness, she did not want others to die in the attack. With her information imparted, Yalah and Hrabbaz departed under the cover of night, intending on fleeing Revelmoore forever with Orond and the two young Gralhund daughters.
The following day, the party checked on the Rat Catchers to see if they were doing alright following the attack. Jenks still seemed quite traumatized, and appeared to have sworn off of doing magic out of guilt for what happened to Renaer. Squiddly spoke to the party in an aside and asked if they could get Jenks some sort of magic-based gift to break him out of his poor mood. The party swore to bring those behind the conspiracy to justice in the meantime.
Unable to shake suspicions about the nimblewright, the party decided to return to Gralhund Villa's ruins in the morning after finally getting some rest. The compound was swarming with city watchmen, as well as Barnibus Blastwind of the Watchful Order of Magists and Protectors. After being made invisible by Brooke, Megumi was able to enter the compound and sift through the ruins, stuffing the nimblewright's remains into a bag of holding purchased from the Nine Tail Magi-Shop.
Inside the Magi-Shop, Reilly quickly surveyed the insides of the nimblewright. She was surprised to find a Seeker Prism at the automaton's heart; a magical crystal that sent all information gathered by the nimblewright's optics to an unknown repository. At Troll Skull Manor, the party was visited by Bonziel Ramrider. Bonziel, still in the process of being initiated into the Masquerade as a double agent, was visiting Renaer to bring him and the party the news of chaos in the ranks of the Xanathar Guild. Apparently, the theft of the Stone of Golorr had thrown the beholder crime boss into a fury, and the Undermountain was an even more dangerous place to be as a result. Bonziel also reported a surge in popularity for the Arena of Blood & Fortune, the Xanathar’s premiere bloodsports arena, thanks to the meteoric rise in fame of an amnesiac gladiator known as the Azure Knight.
Asmodeus’ words echoing in her ear, Megumi surmised that this knight was in fact Eula, her wife, adding another avenue of investigation to the party’s list.

Portraits

The Red Spirits

Reilly Springs - A young, anxious satyr artificer and inventor, who has fashioned for herself a magic suit of armor that grants her impressive combat capabilities. Now free of the debt that hounded her, Reilly is committed to supporting her friends as she sets down roots in Revelmoore. She has taken to spending time with Fala Lefaliir, the serene gardener and proprietor of Aelbwynn’s Crown.

Brooke Acropora - A charming water genasi and a native of Revelmoore, who supports the party with his keen intuition concerning the fanciful and fascinating goings-on of the city. Brooke moonlights as a contributor to The Targe, a broadsheets publication that seeks out the most interesting and sauciest news scoops of the day. Currently, Brooke is focused on ensuring that Troll Skull Manor becomes an unforgettable spectacle to its visitors, but part of his mind continues to be occupied by his tryst with the mysterious Zelem Corvo.

Megumi Sakane - A diminutive kitsune rogue and a traveling merchant, who has fallen in with the party during her quest for wealth in the City of Splendors. Kind-hearted but quite avaricious, she uses her small size to her advantage as she sizes up individuals for valuables and wealth. She has revealed to the party that because she made a deal with Asmodeus to save her wife’s soul, she must ritualistically offer 500,000 gold coins to the archdevil by the end of the year, or her soul will be forfeit. She has invented a new persona for herself; the mysterious masked thief, Karma.

Yilani Deniz - A severe, perceptive Yuan-ti Pureblood druid who once masqueraded as a human refugee from Khemit in order to gather information on the wealthy and powerful of Revelmoore on behalf of a Yuan-ti cult of Aapep. After coming to love the city and her new friends, Yilani has turned her back on her people and helped to drive them out of the city before their nefarious plans could be enacted. Yilani has resolved to prove the loyalty and dedication of her new self to her friends, and exemplified this in her dream-talk with Veszaltyrr Oussndar.

Lackadaisical - More commonly known as “Lacky”, this charming young tiefling woman is the daughter of the famed ex-adventurer Fomalhaut the Financier. She moonlights as a lawyer and represents members of less-than-legal enterprises in Revelmoore, including members of the Black Network. Along with Yilani, Lacky has joined the Black Network, and has also aligned with Solauvaire’s newly named Revelmoore Rangers.

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Renaer Ambermantle - The estranged son of Dagult Ambermantle, the previous Open Lord of Revelmoore. A skilled fighter, an agent of the Masquerade, and a man of noble standing. Renaer faces scrutiny because of his father’s legacy, but still retains friends in high places. He has befriended the party and spends most of his time fraternizing with them. He was grievously wounded by a fireball aimed at a spy working for his father, but he managed to survive with only burn scars on his face.

Violet - A strange purple cat that was purchased by Brooke at the Old Xoblob Shop. For all intents and purposes, she seems to be a completely normal cat; save for the fact that her fur is a deep shade of violet. She told Brooke her story, revealing that she was once a human adventurer that was polymorphed into a purple cat by Halaster Blackcloak, the Mad Mage of the Undermountain. She appears to be more than happy with this situation.

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Nat - A mute human girl and the ‘fighter’ of the Rat Catchers, an ‘adventuring party’ made up of three homeless urchins. Nat cannot speak, and communicates through an invented sign language made up of broken Thieves’ Cant symbols and gestures. She is dedicating her time to comforting her friend Jenks.

Jenks - A human boy and the ‘wizard’ of the Rat Catchers. Jenks carries around a stuffed owlbear ‘familiar’ and keeps a bag of ‘spell components’ on his person, and is fiercely protective of his ‘spellbook’. He was nearly struck by the fireball that hit Troll Skull Alley, but Renaer saved his life. He seems to have lost his passion for spellcraft, at least temporarily, due to his brush with fire.

Squiddly - A tiefling boy and the ‘rogue’ of the Rat Catchers, as well as their fearless leader. Squiddly bravely leads his companions out of trouble as often as he leads them into it. Squiddly wears a fake eyepatch, which doesn’t help his aim with his bow. He is making it his mission to make Jenks feel a bit better and overcome his rough experience.

Solauvaire Oussndar - The current archmage of Revelmoore, having assumed the position after his predecessor’s death four years ago. Having revealed the truth about his parentage and the absence of the Fang of Aurniax to the party, it is clear he places much trust in them. The party returned this trust by giving him the Stone of Golorr for safekeeping, which he in turn had stored in a secure place in the House of Wonder under the watchful eye of High Priestess Rydia Margaster.

Veszaltyrr Oussndar - The mythic founder of the Black Network, who was thought to have disappeared over three-hundred years ago. An imposing, well-spoken dark elf with a left arm made entirely of brass, he radiates magical might even in visions. The party has discovered that he alone was responsible for the splintering of the modern Black Network, and he now leads the Scions of Black Hearts sub-faction that seeks to return the organization to the old ways. He sent a simulacrum of himself to lead the attack on Gralhund Villa, which survived combat with the party.

“Istrid Horn” - The cover identity of Raeziel Ramrider, who is lying low and posing as a waitress at Troll Skull Manor. A duergar rogue and loan shark, who works as the Doom Raiders’ Master of Coin. She loaned Reilly a sum of gold at an exorbitant interest rate, but the debt has finally been paid off. Now a wanted fugitive thanks to Skeemo Weirdbottle’s betrayal, she is now hiding in Troll Skull manor under an assumed alias.

Urstul Floxin - A grim-faced fire genasi with connections to the Black Network and the Gralhund noble family. He was once one of the Doom Raiders and a close associate of Raeziel Ramrider and Davil Cedarfall. According to Raeziel, he was the one who appeared to lead the secession of the Scions of Black Hearts from the rest of the Black Network, but it is now known that he secretly answers to Veszaltyrr Oussndar. After escaping from the destruction in Troll Skull Alley, he acted as Veszaltyrr’s vanguard in storming Gralhund Villa, but was defeated by the party before being teleported away.

Yorn - A half-orc agent of the Scions of Black Hearts, previously encountered by Lackie in the Skewered Dragon. He was found by the party trying to break down the door to Orond Gralhund’s room, and joined the fight to protect Veszaltyrr’s simulacrum. He was slain in the process by Reilly.

Yalah Gralhund - The lady of House Gralhund. Though technically only a member by marriage to her husband Orond, she is nonetheless the brains of the house’s operations. She was revealed to have purchased the nimblewright implicated in the attack on Troll Skull Alley in order to steal the Stone of Golorr from Dagult Ambermantle’s agent, Dalakhar. After divulging important information regarding the Stone to the party and revealing her collusion with and following betrayal of Veszaltyrr, she departed the city with Hrabbaz and her children, hoping to never return.

Hrabbaz - Lady Yalah Gralhund’s bodyguard. He is gruff, soft-spoken, and fiercely defensive of Lady Gralhund. He was found just after his defeat at the hands of Veszaltyrr’s simulacrum barely clinging to life, but was spared and given another chance of escape by the timely intervention of the party. He disappeared along with Lady Yalah.

Orond Gralhund - The lord of House Gralhund. He is the head of the house by birthright, but is an incompetent businessman and lets his wife handle most of the house’s affairs while he enjoys the perks of nobility. He was narrowly saved from death by the party and fled after being made invisible.

Vowyn Marblewander - A studious young gnomish girl, oft accompanied by her ferret familiar, Skittle. She is still getting the hang of doing complicated magic beyond Find Familiar, and has trouble controlling more complicated spells. To pay for her studies at the House of Wonder, she is now working as a waitress at Troll Skull Manor. She is the grand-niece of Xalys Marblewander, former High Dragon of Revelmoore.

Zug Zug - A hulking behemoth of a man, standing at well over 6 and a half feet with the strength to match. Zug is a full-blooded orc, which is a rarity in the civilized lands. He hails from the deserts to Revelmoore’s native, and came to Revelmoore to seek a more peaceful profession after tiring of the bloodshed practiced by his people. He has found work as a manual laborer at Troll Skull Manor, as well as an admirer in Yilani, who pines for him quite openly.

Fala Lefaliir - A serene wood elven individual and the owner of Aelbwyn’s Crown, a multifaceted store that functions as a florist, apothecary, and greenhouse. They have befriended the party, especially Reilly, and gladly helps them when asked. They are growing increasingly concerned over the party’s predicament, despite Fala’s insistence that they not get involved.

Barnibus Blastwind - A gnomish member of the Watchful Order of Magists and Protectors who responded to the fireball attack with the city watch in tow. With his right-hand-man Saeth Cromley, he surveyed the crime scene and questioned the party on what they saw.

The Stone of Golorr - A greyish-green ovular stone, about six inches long from end to end, with three empty recesses running vertically down its length. It is covered in a thin layer of ever-present mucus. Although it sports a substantial magical aura, it is currently inert; save for calling out the name of whoever holds it.