Mission to Dreadhold (Naomi)
From Toosigma
| Title | Mission to Dreadhold |
|---|---|
| Author | Philip Mann - Naomi |
| Campaign | Convergent Threads |
| Session | Mission to Dreadhold |
| Posted | |
| Game Date |
A stranger came into the Eyrie and I took little notice initially. In fact, it was not until he was seated with Maerin that I had any curiosity at all. With a little prodding from Maerin it became clear that Hero had not fled the city after faking his death. No, he came back in the guise of a taller human who would likewise persist on games of vagary. After fetching an order for them and a couple of minutes of discussion, I began to wish that Hero's fears of his grandmother had indeed taken him from the city. Instead, I chose not to persist in the foul mood he seemed to want from me, and I thought to the evening ahead...
Once at the gala, I could see Kayli's eyes widen for a moment at the wealth on display. I imagined, however, as I saw her shift slightly into her “performer” guise, that she had seen many of these people before. Indeed, I would not be surprised if some had been backstage visitors that she had spoken of from time to time. Mayhap some had in mind to make her the next “Mrs. ir'Somebody” or such, and the idea that she stays with me in spite of such possibilities made me smile even as she became involved in a discussion about the theater and became separated from me for the moment.
I spoke with Celyria briefly and she mentioned that the article was the catalyst for Thea's beating. She explained that Thea's father was a very reactive man who had done so more than once because he perceived his daughter to be an embarrassment. When I mentioned that I thought he was a bully and that it was only a matter of time before he was at the other end of it, Celyria asked if she had heard me correctly. To that, all I could say was that I had no gift of subtlety and that Thea was well worth protecting from those who would harm her. With that, the Lady ir'Tain told me that she hoped it would not come to that, and that she hoped I would enjoy the party.
The next person I talked to was Merrix d'Cannith. He made it known to me that Azarius had mentioned my work to him, commenting on how I had helped his business grow over the last several months. Merrix seemed to want to let me know, personally, that he knew of me though for reasons I could not fathom. Mayhap his motives will be clear in time but, as Celyria mentioned months ago that he had mentioned me to her, it may be months or years from now before I learn of what is really behind his kind words. I hate to think like that, but if I have learned just one thing from my brief associations with those who dwell in this layer of society, it must be that the motives of the wealthy and powerful can be hidden behind layers of misdirection and false pretenses.
It was not long before I found Kayli again, passing Maerin who seemed to be engaged wonderfully with a young lady I had not met. I rejoined Kayli, but I almost as quickly made eye contact with Lorisryn. I found time to speak with him, but I almost regretted that I had almost as soon as I opened my mouth. I asked, no, pleaded with him to leave my family alone. He seemed to take an amount of glee, knowing that he had certainly captured my attention and was in no doubt planning to exploit it to the maximum. As he smugly walked away, I silently lambasted myself for giving him the assurance he wanted before mentally returning to the event.
All was not as I left it, however, as I saw Celyria speaking with a man who seemed to want an argument more than a civil discussion. Once I got closer, I vaguely recognized the man as the Tain family patron, but his identity as Thea's father became clear as he raised his hand as if to strike the older woman. I intervened by asking Celyria if she required any assistance and imposed myself into the path his hand would take should he let it fly. He did not, however, and stormed off in a huff while Celyria took her leave the opposite direction.
Askin was there, looking rather uneasy, as he asked to see Maerin and I. I went with him toward the balcony and asked Kayli to find Maerin and send him this way. They both returned and Askin questioned the conduct of our business with Kayli present, but I assured him that she could hear anything he would tell me.
He outlined another artifact that he wanted, while also saying that he did not know where it was but someone in a prison cell in Dreadhold knew. He said that, if we could get there and interrogate the prisoner successfully, he would be able to identify the location of the next statue. We agreed, for the standard fee, and then we finished up the arrangements including passage that he had brokered for us aboard an airship that could leave as soon as we were on board.
We parted, and I finished the evening with Kayli. She was very understanding about the fact that I had to go away again, but I could sense that she did not welcome the surprise departure. No, it would be fair to say that she was tolerant of my job rather than welcoming of it. She was wonderful, however, and did not let her feelings color the rest of the festivities. We danced and talked, and generally had a wonderful time together even as we walked home from the nearest place we could reach solid ground below the floating heights of the ultra-rich.
The group boarded the airship without incident and we departed straight-away. All was routine until we hit some severe weather a few days into the trip. The ship diverted from our course to Rekkenmark for repairs and, as my offer of assistance with the repairs was not taken, Maerin and I decided to wander around a bit. Unexpectedly, however, we ran into a gnome who was fleeing some soldiers. He quickly told us that he had been unjustly accused of spying and, as Lorisryn was among the soldiers, I found his story to be believable. Maerin and I concealed him and took him back to the ship. Maerin purchased passage for him and we asked a few questions before ultimately buying his story completely. In fact, our suspicions were not raised at all until he was gone on our departure, but even then I imagined only that he had decided to find another way out of the area. I'm sure Hero would have a dozen theories about how I had been duped, and I decided to just be silently grateful that he kept them to himself.
When we arrived at the prison, nothing seemed to be out of order. We were asked politely to surrender our magical items and to wear marker devices that would, we were told, distinguish us from the prisoners. Nothing at all seemed amiss, even as the guards escorted us down the hall and into a room with several other prisoners to find the one we were supposed to converse with. Only when groups of prisoners began to advance on us, to separate and corner us, did it become very clear that we had been trapped. Guards did not intervene, in fact I imagine they had plans to be quite amused should the prisoners succeed in what appeared to be an attempt to violently impose their will on us.
I dodged and ran around to try to separate a group of them away from the other two. I knew well that, unarmed and with no access to their special powers, neither of my companions could last indefinitely against such numbers. I spun beneath the first arm that reached for me and drove a fist into his thigh causing him to tumble to the ground in front of his cohorts. Spin...kick...punch...leap...spin...slam... assailant after assailant fell to the floor clutching one battered body part of another. There was blood too, but not from us for which I was thankful, but I should have shown more restraint.
Kahlin Jakar, the pirate that Askin had sent us to question had watched the whole display without participating and was quite impressed. Impressed with our skill, yes; impressed with the fact that we had been so easily trapped in this prison, no. He explained that we had been tricked and that he that he knew where the statue was, but he did not seem very confident that we would get out of the prison to retrieve it. I tended to agree with him in that so long as Hero and Maerin could not access their abilities, it would be left to me to literally pound through the walls, which could take a while.
Hero, however, immediately thought of a gruesome way to recover our abilities: remove the arm that had the binding device attached. Unfortunately, I knew right away that I would have to be the one to go first as neither of the other two had the strength to carry through on their own. If it did not work, however, we would be in a worse position than we were presently. With a brief prayer to Fate, I placed my bound arm beneath my legs and ripped it from the socket. The pain was excruciating, but it washed through me as quickly as it came for Fate held me close and took the discomfort away. It was her desire that I experience it, but not that I be forced to endure it throughout the hours ahead.
Next came Hero's arm, which he offered without hesitation. I could not simply pull it off, so I locked his arm in place beneath my remaining limb and delivered a sharp kick to his torso. My hope was that I did not crush his ribs as well, but my immediate need was to stop his bleeding. It was of little surprise that, once the bleeding was stopped, he relished the return of his power so much that it pushed any lingering pain from his mind. Unlike him, however, I was not willing to part from my dismembered limb, so I brought it with us as we fled the prison.
When we got to where we had been brought in, beyond the barriers from the prison proper, all of our belongings were gone. We began to consider where they could be, but Kal'ryu contacted me and told me that he had procured our things and was waiting. With enough direction, I was able to tell Hero what he needed to know to affect our escape...
Aboard the Lady of Storms, Syria d'Lyrandar explained that our efforts have all been directed at retrieving the separate pieces of Shalel en Tanath, the artifact that Maerin came to Khorvaire to find. It seems that the artifact is actually a weapon that can be used against the Quori, and that the next piece would be found far to the north in Frostfell. I could sense that we were no longer searching for ambiguous pieces of some puzzle, but in a race to recover an ancient weapon before it could be destroyed or used to the detriment of Eberron...
