Sentinel Fortress At Last: Game 12

General Summary

The Company of the Furies: Eumenides finally reached Sentinel Fortress after escaping from a white dragon and frost giant rider; staying the night with, and then being ambushed by Carthain and his gang; and passing the ruined, "Rear Fortress."

Key Learnings

Carthain operates a gang of bandits, that disguise themselves as prospectors. They do not appear to be allied with Yarlzedd; however, they are definitely taking advantage of the chaos in an effort to enrich themselves. Grond Silverstar, a dwarven priest of Moradin from Hammerfast has long standing connections with Cathain and the bandits, but he could not tolerate Cathain murdering the The Company of the Furies: Eumenides. The Rear Fortress had been sacked and destroyed, but a rump guard remained. Sentinel Fortress itself is strong, well stocked and in good spirits (as much as can be possible for the dour Katheroi). Etienne's purpose has been revealed. The research of the mages of Sentinel Fortress, Jeanne Tour, Shubi Danso and Deval de Navarate, under the direction of Lord Raymond Ilios, Marquess of the Reaches and Lord of Sentinel Fortress have discovered the secret to ultimate victory. Their research demonstrates that the only way to stop the second The Rise of the Undead is to slay the undead necromancer Yarlzedd and his dragon Calastryx. The way to kill the great undead lord and his worm servant is to shot them with arrows of slaying. With Etienne's help, the mages can make Arrows of Dragon, Demon and Undread Slaying. To do so, they must use the blood of an unborn fetus as the essential magical component of creating the Arrows of Destruction. Not just any unborn fetus, but that of a faithful Katheroi mage, believed to be Jeanne Tour, and the a child of a fallen member of the Ilios family. And not just any member of the Ilios family, but a man who has impregnated both a demon and dryad. Etienne has impregnated the succubus Pencheska Natyssa and, while it was not known whether she was pregnant, Etienne spent the best nights of his life with the dryad Oyfenen when the Company stayed at Oyfenfen's Home. The copulated sufficiently to impregnate the dryad multiple times. The prophecy appears close to fulfillment.

Carthain's Gang

After the Lich's Ambush: Game 11, the party continued its slow travel at about 10 miles per day because of the very rugged train and trails. Close to evening, the Company noticed that there was a cliff area in which two people were hiding and watching them. The Company pretended to set a camp, and then went to spy investigate. Their plans were interrupted by the arrival of great white dragon and frost giant rider, and the party raced to safety. The two lookouts brought the party to the hideaway of Carthain, who informed them that they were prospectors. Carthain's his main followers are the halfling Serlek Undertoe, the warrior Judith Egina, the priest of Ohgma Ossian, the young bard Amira Foukal, and the hunter scouts Guiscard and Roul. Carthain and his gang attacked the Company in the night. However, the Company discovered the bandits' plans before they were hatched, and a great fight started. The battle was ultimately stopped by Grond Silverstar who was working with Carthain in some fashion, but could not watch the bandits attack and murder the travelers, especially after a plea from Morain for help.

Rear Fortress

The Company continued on their travels, passing the damaged and ruined Rear Fortress that was still garrisoned with 10 warriors and Redmont Ilios, a Ranger, the Master of the Hunt and nephew of Lord Raymond Ilios, Marquess of the Reaches and Lord of Sentinel Fortress, and Thane Rivos, a young Ranger with an adventurous spirit.

Arrival at Sentinel Fortress

The Company was greeted at the lower gatehouse by Sir Roland Ilios, a fearsome paladin that is the nephew of Lord Raymond Ilios, Marquess of the Reaches and Lord of Sentinel Fortress, Piere Bois, a soldier priest who has the rare honor of being allowed to wear the color red, and the mage Jeanne Tour. Etienne and Guilhem could tell that it was a very warm welcome, but to the rest of the party, it seemed like a remarkably indifferent welcome.
The Company was brought up to the main halls, passing the wide open area between the main castle and the outer walls with lush fruit trees and other crops somehow enchanted to bear fruit in the mountain winter. The Company was met in the main courtyard by Dame Agnes Ilios, the Fortress Steward and heir apparent to the title of Marchioness and Lady of Sentinel Fortress, her wife the former Nubian princess Odera Nakuru Ilios, and the Nubian warrior Ekon Obin. Dame Agnes Ilios meet them warmly (for a Katheroi of Sentinel Fortress), and after a brief conversation and introductions, she led them up five flights of stairs to the dinner hall. The Company joined a standing, silent meal that was presided over with a prayer by the aged priestess or Perfecti Claudine Peronne. The meal was plain and bland, but nutritious. Then the party was lead to throne chamber, in which the throne itself was not used. The egalitarian Katheroi only use it for the rare official visit by a representative of the Imperial court, which expects that the Lords of Sentinel Fortress pay proper respects to the traditions and customs of Fultar and the Fultonian Nobility. Here in the throne room, the Company finally met Lord Raymond Ilios, Marquess of the Reaches and Lord of Sentinel Fortress himself, and Lady Ramona Ilios, Lord Raymond's sister, who is the mother of Dame Agnes Ilios, Sir Roland Ilios and Redmont Ilios. Also, in the throne room the Company met the Nubian fire mage, Shubi Danso, who is maybe the only outgoing, vivacious and talkative woman at the Fortress, and the ambassador-mage Deval de Navarate. Jean Tour, Claudine Peronne, Ekon Obin and Odera Nakuru also joined everyone in the throne room. The Company discussed its past adventures passing on key information about Yarlzedd, the foiled fire giant invasion, the defeat of the king of the frost giants of Glacial Rift, the rescue of Seeker's Reach, the sack of Julkoun and the siege of Kidwell. The Company learned the true purpose of Etienne's existence and how he will help create the Arrows of Destruction, and they quickly discussed that they would put Etienne and Jeanne to "work" that evening in the initial steps of creating the great Arrows of Destruction. They talked about Etienne and Jeanne like they were a stud and mare horse to be bread for the benefit of the community.

The Company also learned that there remained a great army of fire giants, gnolls, orcs and bugbears, with their families encamped close to Sentinel Fortress. These giants and humanoids had captured many of the settlements, but had not yet sacked the town of Grahluk. Lord Raymond would like the aid of the Company in defeating these evil forces, but that discussion will wait until the morrow.

Reactions and Investigations

The arrival at Sentinel Fortress was a personal experience for each member of the party. Guilhem de Quéribus, the Katheroi paladin, the arrival at Sentinel Fortress was less than his expectations. As can be read in greater detail in the summary of Sentinel Fortress, the Katheroi residing at the end of the Empire have had to make compromises because they have chosen to both live within the structure of the Fultonian Nobility and survive in dangerous world by being in a constant state of martial vigilance. While they appear to be less pure than other Katheroi, he is impressed by their ability to survive and, for the most part, Guilhem feels at home with his people for the first time in his life. Despite the constant threat of destruction by being at the edge of civilization, there is no threat of persecution, which allows him a certain sense of inner peace he has never experienced. However, learning that the mages of the Fortress have been researching Arrows of Destruction that will use the unborn fetus of a Katheroi mage impregnated by Etienne tests the limits of his faith. Yes, the Katheroi tradition of exposing the weak and infirm is at last non inconsistent with his faith, but there seems to be something different in creating life, just to kill it. Etienne, returned home to his austere family, and for the first time earned great "praise" from his father Lord Raymond in a private conversation. Lord Raymond previously made it no secret that he wished he had abandoned Etienne to the elements naked on a mountain top. The unique traditions of the Katheroi of Sentinel Fortress follow the ancient Fultonian practice of exposing damaged or diseased children. This ancient Fultonian custom has been abandoned in Fultar proper as being sacrilegious by both the mainstream priests of Fultar and most, but not all, of the Katheroi. The only others in Fultar who still frequently practice this ancient rite of infanticide are the worshipers of Hecate, especially those living in the hinterlands like Northern Fultar. However, exposure is not allowed after the age of one year, and Etienne's lack of Katheroi faith did not become apparent until later in life. Now, for the first time, however, Lord Raymond stated that he was no longer believed that Etienne should have been exposed and his disappointment in Etienne was not as deep or profound as it had been in the past. The Company has yet to do much exploring or having many interactions with the people of the Fortress. However, Etienne had a good conversation with Ekon Obin learning that he may not have a deep devotion to Mithras and the Katheroi faith, but he humbly and faithfully follows all religious rules and never speaks in anyway inconsistent with the tenets of the religion. Ekon seems disturbed by the idea of using dead unborn children to create magical arrows, but that is par the course for many of the strange and bizarre rituals and beliefs of the Katheroi. Regardless, Ekon's is completely loyal to Odera, the former Nubian princess. The Company spent its first night at Sentinel Fortress. Etienne spent the night with Jeanne Tour. The Katheroi sleep segregated by sex in large dorm rooms, and are woken several times in the night to pray. Married couples, however, are allowed separate rooms with their children. While not married, they make an exception for Etienne and Jeanne Tour. Jeanne is dutiful in her new task and refuses Etienne's offer of healing balms for her rashes, but discovers a whole new part of life under the gentle yet passionate lovemaking of the master lovemaker. It is not his first time teaching a young woman in her first time, and he does everything he can to make it an earthshaking experience for her. And he exceeds expectations. Etienne then begins an effort to understand if she truly believes in her mission, and potentially to convince her to leave the heretics with him. The rest of the Company is provided one medium sized room to stay in. While there is a definite sense of peace and security, the Company also feels oddly out of place with a community of persecuted heretics that have been able to forge a new world for themselves at the end of the world. Other than Guy, the Company is viewed suspiciously and they are definitely not welcomed as the heroes they are. However, the frosty reception does not seem to be anything more than what they would provide any non-Katheroi. And behind the austerity and aloofness, it clear that there is a strong feeling of brotherly and sisterly love between the Katheroi as well as compassion and charity towards the Company. You are not invited, but are cared for and welcomed, to the best of their ability. The core tenet of their faith is kindness, and they are opening up their home in a genuine effort to be consistent with their values. A prayer, water, course bread and hard tack may be austere and not the Company's idea of a welcome feast, but it is heartfelt act of welcoming love and kindness.