Session 33 - I Spy

13/06/5-10

With the gemstones gathered, the party discussed the fact that the Elemental had tried to feed Cassini to the hole. Shiek proposed that maybe this is part of the Atanasoffs' deal with a Devil. Perhaps part of it included feeding the crystals blood or some other sacrifice. Valeyo argued that the Atanasoff's story could still be true, since Elemental Rifts behave weirdly and could cause the green crystal's glow. Still, the fact that Diane hired them and Ruben had specifically avoided it was odd, as she herself had pointed out.

Something stood out to Shiek while observing the hole - it contained nothing but blood, no clothes or tools carried by those thrown in were to be found. This meant that none of Cassini's clothes could be seen either. Valeyo grabbed a nearby stone and dropped it in. The group watched it land at the bottom of the pit 15 feet down, before melding into the stone. At this point Otto cast Detect Magic and felt the whole floor up to the seam, emitted magic. This was the most powerful aura Otto had ever seen. He warned the group and they decided to leave as there was not much they could do there now.

Ascending back up the lift, they knocked on the now sealed door to the mine. A few minutes later, the head of the fort and some others greeted them, looking concern. He seemed relieved the party had lived. They said that the mines were clear and he was thanked them. Valeyo asked about the glowing pit at the bottom of the Jeweled chamber. The man referred to it as the Well, a rift to the elemental Plane of Earth. When asked if monsters often come out of it, he said the last time it happened was 10 years ago, which was before his time. He asked them the favour of delivering a letter to any of the Atanasoffs. Valeyo took it and had one final query about the Well - did the crystals always spin if something was inside it? The man explained that they are explicitly told not to put anything in it, as it is what he assumed set the creatures on the other side off.

Shiek wondered if the mines were guarded round the clock and the man confirmed that since they run 3 shifts there are always people about. Some more questions were listed, from which they found out that the Atanasoffs rarely visited and never in person. They asked for the survivour, but were told he headed to town. He could however get them his address and they thanked him.

14/06/5-10

In the evening, the party finally reached Stendolin. They entered through the north-west gate and immediately went to the Town Mansion. Valeyo asked the party not to mention the letter and Shiek proposed reading it an resealing it, but Valeyo refused. This was the party's first time walking through the Underhill. They reached a wooden gate built into the hill. Going through it they were in a large subterranean area of Stendolin carved into the mountain, with houses and shops built into the stones themselves. It was quite a buys area, especially at night. Surprisingly, the population included a lot of Dragonborn, more than anyone else they had seen on Ikoval. The group went past a large tavern called the Underhill and eventually reached a second gate, leading out. A few minutes later, they reached the Town Mansion and knocked on the door. After a moment, Joanna let them in.

While waiting Valeyo expressed his interest in the Dragonborn enclave, intending to visit tomorrow. He asked if dragonborn were rare here and was told that they are often discriminated against by the locals. Soon Joanna returned and ushered them to wait in the room. Left alone for a few minutes, the party had a look around. All evidence of Diane's previous husband were gone. While there were paintings of her with Tomo and her brothers, there wasn't a single one of her parents. Many locals landscapes and vistas also adorned the walls. Otto used detect magic, while Valeyo looked for any books that might indicate association with the I.C.M. He found some that he had read, but also others, heavily supportive of the monarchy. Besides, the magical lighting, Otto saw a small flicker of Divination coming from the table. Soon after, Joanna opened the door and Diane entered the room. She was surprised they were back so soon. She asked for proof of their job and they showed her gems. Valeyo asked about the Well, but she had never been there herself preferring the clean air. Valeyo asked if this was the mine that grows the gems and she nodded enthusiastically, saying that there is another, but this was the one her father had bought. She insisted that she mostly dealt with people, while her brother oversaw the business, which is why she prefers it in town.

Valeyo apologized for waking her, but she said that she was dancing with Tomo, one of their hobbies. He runs the tavern during the day, but they had a deal stipulating he couldn't be there all the time. Valeyo asked about Vincent's real name Enreldus and she explained that all of her father's children were named approximately after gemstones. Soon Joanna returned with the chest, which Milivoj picked up noting its weight. Looking at Joanna now, he realized she is probably also a bodyguard, given how easily she carried it. The party said their goodbyes and left. They returned to the Golden Road to leave their gold and meet with Ysomir and the others. They opened the chest and found a letter resting on top. They opened it and saw it was written in Dwarvish and the first line was "Do not read this aloud.". Skimming it Otto, could tell it was signed by Diane and mentioned the words "unaware", "fey" and "companion". The full contents of it were:

Otto scribbled it quickly into common and the note to Valeyo. He acknowledged it and checked on Ysomir, who was physically fine, but had a vacant stare. Valeyo asked if anyone will join him in town, but Shiek was the only one who took him up on it. The two headed over to the Dragon Slayers. Valeyo tried to mingle and gather information on Tomo, while sowing some dissent against the crown and the First Boyar. From what he found, Tomo had been there, as long as anyone could remember, even before this tavern exited. He used to be a laborer, working in construction and helped build the tavern. Some people scoff at him for not being the man of the people, after marrying into the wealthiest family there is. Still, he is reasonably well-liked and there was mention of some friends visiting periodically and that he has a back room for special guests. People assume that because he is now rich, he is wheeling and dealing in illegal goods in the back. His reputation, means people don't fuck around in his place and the one time someone did, they were taken up and thrown out of a window. What surprised Valeyo more were the stories he heard of the First Boyar. He was widely considered a good guy, who did his best for the town, until the Church got involved. The older people think if he was still fully in charge like the old days, this business with the giants wouldn't have happened, but the church is strongarming him and slowing things down. After that conversation, Shiek noticed a man who had been listening in, head out of the tavern, in a suspicious manner.

Shiek followed him out, eventually seeing him enter the temple. He decided to send Valeyo a message telling him about the informant and warning him, that he is about to enter the Temple. Valeyo told him to return to the Golden Road after he was done, as he will be heading back himself soon. Shiek pretended to be a worshipper and entered the foyer. From there he could see the large central room, still fully lit. Entering it, he could see a perpetual Daylight spell cast on the top of the dome, making the entire room as bright as a summer day. The man Shiek had followed entered one of the side rooms, but due to the difference in light, he couldn't make out what was inside. He decided to wait for the man to come out and after a few minutes was approached by an elderly human woman. She said it was a lovely night and wondered why he sought the day. He told her that he had good fortune recently and was there to seek Avandra. She asked where he had travelled from and he told her he had been all over the country recently. She told him she expected him to be all over and asked what his favourite place was. He told her it was Almanat and went to head towards the door, she gently grabbed onto his robe. She looked at him and told him there was something about him. Shiek asked what this was, what she wanted and the woman said that the light touched him in a strange way, as if it can't touch him. She asked if he was okay and he began laughing, asking if she was okay, since she just walked up to him and started talking. The woman frowned, saying he looked like he needed help and she had been a member here for years. He pointed at the door and asked where it went, she quickly whipped his arm down to stop him pointing and she looked concerned at his action. She told him not to bother the Emissar, as he was very busy. She then told him to enjoy the night and went to usher him out. The door suddenly opened and the man Shiek had seen walked out with two fully armored knights. The knights turned to the door and spoke to someone before going to head out of the temple. Shiek warned Valeyo to leave and he did so, opting to take the long way back to the Golden Road. The woman touched Shiek's forehead and cast Bless, before heading off.

Shiek and Valeyo returned to the Golden Road and Valeyo noticed something with he See Invisibility spell. Sat on a perch a small fairy creature, dangling its legs and looking at the group. Deciding to ignore it for now, Valeyo sat down, before he and Shiek shared their stories, noting that the guards were not Boyar, but one working for the Emissar. Shiek explained about the woman who warned him to leave and avoid the Emissar. Milivoj stated that the church having soldiers would be unusual back where he was from, but Dragomir has been giving them more power. He recalled meeting an Emisar once, an exceptionally high-ranking priest, serving directly under Dragomir. They don't take any shit and don't stay in one place for a long time, usually sent to deal with trouble. Milivoj was sharing his information, when Valeyo suddenly looked at the faerie and Suggested it made itself visible, sit down and shut up. They captured it and then Valeyo cast the Suggestion to compel it to answer their questions. They took it upstairs and negan questioning it.

The fearie said she needed assurance that she would fly away free. Shiek was confused at it willing to trust them, but they all promised. She said she didn't want to give her name as it was personal and they didn't know each other well, but Valeyo retorted, stating it had followed them for a month so it must know them quite well. The creature shrugged, before saying its name was Axi and it worked for the Unseelie, at least currently. It had been following them since they got out of the sea with Nikoletta. She reports to the person on the other side of the Hungry Twin, one of the Queen's generals called Midnight. Her main mission was there to keep an eye on a Fey relic, pointing at Shiek. From what she had learnt of the politics, Midnight was an asshole who is going for a power grab and she needs Dirlagrauna's help. When asked which side she was on, she said neither, saying that messing with the Queen was suicide. Axi explained that she had lived in the material for 70 years, since the Fey Realm is crazy and she gets paid. Shiek offered paying her off, but she said that what Midnight offers they can't compete with, since the food she gives her is what keeps her young in this plane. She wondered how Valeyo caught her and he said he was being wary. She offered to stick around get paid and the party could decide what information she leaks, at least this way there won't be another one sent. Valeyo asked about the Sky Stone and who wants that, but from what Axi knew, it was the Queen personally, who took interest in that, not Midnight.

Ultimately, the party agreed to keep Axi around and potentially use her as a spy for them. With that Valeyo headed to bed and the others soon followed. In the middle of the night, Shiek decided to grasp hold of the dagger in his chest and focus on it, trying to reach out to Dirlagrauna. He closed his eyes and after a second, heard the sound of purring. He open his eyes and found himself in a dark abyss surrounded by displacer beasts, above him stood a gargantuan displacer beast, about 30 ft tall, which looked down upon him, with its huge golden eyes. A sense of unease and dread filled his mind as a loud omnipresent voice said "We get to talk at last.".