𝔞 𝔠𝔬𝔩𝔩𝔢𝔠𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫 𝔬𝔣 𝔡𝔫𝔡 𝔢𝔫𝔱𝔯𝔦𝔢𝔰...
This is for the places, characters, lives, and futures we shape. To the victories and losses. To those we save and to those we must leave behind. To the hearts we mend and to the ones we break, m...
Outrunning karma, that boy He's such a charmer, all the Bugs and their larva follow Him out to Colorado Ten-dozen hearts in a bag Their bodies lyin', he'll drag Them down to Colorado A modern desperado
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So! I'll try and make this somewhat shorter (also because my memory is failing more bc it's been like an eternity since this session).
The party is taken from the dungeon once they wake up to the grand hall where the Duchess is expecting them. They are lead by a few guards and eventually they see the Duchess standing in front of the throne in what almost looks like ceremonial garb, and standing around her in a sort of semi-circle is a group of older looking men and women with blue robes. These people are the Council.
As the Duchess begins to explain what she has arranged, the Council immediately cuts her off, almost in an angry way, and they all speak collectively and tell the compromise. They will be allowed to go find the Duchess' husband, but if they return empty handed or do not return, they will be hunted and taken by force to be thrown back and jail and given a steeper sentence. The party agrees, but then they are faced with another choice: someone in the party must stay in jail in Emeria. This begins a long debate in a different room about who should go, and everyone sadly but collectively agrees that Nico must stay in Emeria. Shrugging it off with a smile, Nico accepts and heads back to the Duchess and Council to loudly declare that he will stay.
Eventually the party, including Mortimer, is ushered to the gate of the castle and they are given a few gifts from a soldier sent by the duchess: a bag of holding with a couple of magical items stored inside from her days of adventuring. Along with the bag is a note from Elaina telling the party all the information needed to try and find her husband along with a prayer of safe travels for them.
And out into the world they go traveling to Arden!
Outside of the city the party spots an approaching group mounted on horses approaching. Lorelei, to her horror, recognizes the banner they hold: a black banner with a winding silver serpent. The crest of the Bittermans. She quickly disguises herself with magic to appear as a different human woman before the group approaches them. A human man by the name of Captain Luther introduces himself and his reason for coming to Emeria. The daughter of Viscount Alric Bitterman has gone missing, possibly kidnapped, and the reward for her safe return is 2,500 gold and a personal meeting with the viscount himself for further reward. After a few decent deception checks, the captain and his men ride off to Emeria.
Yadayada, there's some travel dialogue I can't really remember, but the group walks for some time and comes across a bridge they need to cross that is guarded by two trolls named Gabba and Gabb'ii. There are several refugees and travelers stuck on both sides of the bridge without any way of getting across. Battle ensues and the party manages to get rid of the idiot trolls (but Mortimer went down at least once). Once across the bridge, an extremely handsome elven man with beautiful blond hair and ocean blue eyes approaches them. He introduces himself as Eladrin, a simple bard traveling and learning stories. The party really wants nothing to do with him after he kind of insults Mortimer for being a half-elf and he tries flirting with the girls, but he invites himself into their group for his own safety claiming that traveling in larger numbers is much safer than him traveling alone.
While on the road the next day the party stumbles across a goblin merchant with his large trade wagon. After a quick excursion to see his wares, they travel on (not after Lorelei tries punching Eladrin for pranking her) and they travel for a few more days and eventually reach the outskirts of the region of Arden. It is night by the time they arrive to the small village named Ruwen...a town that happens to be in ruin from the civil war raging across Arden. Wary, the group stealths into the town and quickly hears a battle. Quickly, Mortimer casts a spell to protect them as some sort of boulder is shot at the party from some giant machine that they can barely see through the fog that wraps around the village. Eladrin, they realize, has yeeted out of there and is nowhere to be found.
Freaking out, the party searches for an escape from the fighting and suddenly a young girl carrying a small lantern with a sort of green fire appears from the ruins of a building and she urges them to follow her. They rush after her and they are lead to the top of a building threatening to crumble, and they look down to see a sort of sink hole. The young girl jumps and they hear a splash wayyyy down below. Calypso yeets in first followed by Lorelei and Mortimer and eventually Cedric. Everyone but Cedric manages to swim out, and he begins to drown in his armor, but he suddenly feels what seemingly is an army of small bodies dragging him from the pool of water. Coughing, Cedric opens his eyes to see a large band of dirty children watching them all with wide eyes. The lantern girl from before stands beside a boy around the age of sixteen, supposedly the leader among the younger children, and he introduces himself as Ian and the girl beside him as Delilah. he tells them that they are welcome to hide in the tunnels with them for the time being, but adults aren't exactly wholly welcome around most of the other kids.
Settling by the edge of one of the tunnels, the party tries drifting off to sleep. Cedric suddenly feels a cold prickling along his skin and he jumps as he realizes a small and gaunt boy is sitting near him, almost white eyes trained on him intently. Before Cedric can ask the child to, you know, get tf away because he's freaked out, the little boy speaks:
"Cold, burning, almost like ice in flesh. The tree? So many sick—coughing, screaming, bleeding—gone. Eyes amber, orange—gone. Something snapped, something left, but what? The mix was so powerful, so potent. Wanting to vomit it all—guts scalding, twisting, sizzling. Death, it was the verge of death, but I made it. If I can make it, they can. Death...fire...It wasn't your fault. You tried to save them. They couldn't handle it."
Cedric trembles slightly. "Please leave me," he whispers. Concerned, the boy moves away and drifts to Calypso who curls up on the ground for rest.
"Heat. The hearth, they tried to burn you. Demon, demon, where did you come from—who brought you here? Running, legs aching, you fled. You ran, ran far from everything they tried to make you be—human. They were afraid of you. The rats rats biting, gnawing, scratching. Somehow, they brought...comfort? No, no, but the ship. It was dark, not even you could see. The alleyway...knives, ropes, chain. Burning screaming, claws—they cut you. They cut you! Cold, cold chains... 'You are so beautiful. Who wouldn't want a slave with a tail or such beautiful white hair?'"
Terrified and angry, Calypso screams at the child to leave her and never talk to her. Frightened, the child rushes away and slowly approaches Mortimer.
"The blankets were always so warn, just like Mother's laugh. The scribbling of father's quill in his book—my book. But then there was coughing, wheezing—you were ushered away. They both kissed you. Tears, sickly hot, burning, amber—gone. The letters faded, ink stained with water—burning tears. Feet aching, sore, crying for rest—no rest. No stop, always moving. Until her. She was home, she was comfort and rest. But rest was always in the dark. And then the chase, the shouting—faster, faster—but you can't run. He took you inn... Nothing, worthless—you are not worthless. you are worth something to them."
Tears well in Mortimer's eyes and he sinks to the ground. The boy finds Lorelei.
"Lonely. Empty halls, aimless, but quiet. Never too loud, never smiling, always watching. Mother's voice is shrill, but her palm strikes hard. Father's eyes shimmer with something unknown, what does he want? What does he want? Fearr, screaming, darkness but one lantern. You were so young. He hurt you. He deserves to be hurt back."
Lorelei finds herself in tears. She is confused like everyone else—how could this child know what was so deeply written in their souls? But before they can ask who or what he is, the boy vanishes.
