Post by Judas D'arc on May 1, 2020 20:23:59 GMT -5
Summary: The Emerald Fist commence their search for the captive Renthar, unaware that rescuing him requires them to unravel of a series of interconnected mysteries that involve some familiar names and faces.
1/10/2019:
At Emerald Town, the Emerald Empress organized a meeting. Among other topics, they discussed the fate of Renthar, who had been captured by the Technocrats one month prior, on the night the group celebrated the fifteenth anniversary of their original disbanding. Although most of the Fist despised the strange-eyed sorcerer, they agreed to honor their alliance with him and attempt a rescue.
With the acquiescence of Renthar's apprentice, Jolicia, the group decided to request help from the elder gypsy Miriam. She tried to divine the sorcerer's location, but she was only able to learn that he was surrounded by a sea of rocks and under repeated interrogation about information that his captors sought.
1/20/2019:
Next, the Fist turned to the gypsy Aila. Similar to Miriam, Aila's scrying efforts were met with obstructions, but she discovered that Renthar was being held in a small, confined space, and experienced deep suffering.
1/21/2019:
After encountering him a few times in and around the City of Britain, the Emerald Fist invited Edgar Craigen, a former knight of the Order of the Silver Serpent who had recently returned to the kingdom after years spent in Delucia, to join their ranks. He accepted the offer, becoming their first new member in months.
1/27/2019:
Finally, the Fist arranged for both Aila and Miriam to combine their gifts to search for Renthar. Together, they were able to learn that Renthar was somewhere on their world, questioned by a man called Stavros. They also experienced a three-part vision relating to freeing the sorcerer from his predicament:
1) A man in dark and purple who rode alone and carried a war hammer, he had a sensation of hatred and horses about him;
2) A woman, both alive and dead at once, who struggled with deception;
3) A simple phrase, fearfully spoken: "Mourn once, not twice, and gain understanding, eternally."
The two gypsies also "saw" that Ezekial and Piper of the Emerald Fist, as well as the mercenary Gauf Guthvigoff, were all involved somehow in untangling this matter.
Based on this, the group was able to identify the first of the three visions as relating to Tyler, a former member of the Emerald Fist, and the second of the three visions as relating to Schrodinger, a thief who was both alive and dead at the same time. Not coincidentally, both of these individuals were recently broken out of the Yew prison by the Technocrats. On the other hand, the meaning of the third of the three visions remained a mystery.
1/30/2019:
Next, the Fist and their allies decided to question Schrodinger. She was currently a guest of Ezekial, who was trying to cure her of her strange condition that caused the simultaneous existence of both her living-self and her corpse.
The thief could not identify the strange phrase from the vision, but she felt it was familiar. She also reiterated what she had previously told them about Tyler, they were both freed from the Yew Prison by Sister Niva of the Technocrats, but their interaction at the time was limited. However, she also revealed a new piece of information. Both Schrodinger and Tyler previously worked for a mysterious figure known as Montague, a middleman for those seeking various illegal services. This individual also had connections with the families of Old Magincia and Nujel'm. Unfortunately, she was unable to provide the group with any information regarding Montague's true identity or present whereabouts.
2/3/2019:
The Fist then sought out Erollisi Stower of the Riverwatch Rangers because Lady Alionna Arroway, her predecessor as head of the Stower family, was known to have dealings with Montague. In a search of family records, Erollisi discovered numerous payments from Arroway to this mysterious broker. These payments were over the course of decades, with the final one occurring approximately four years ago, with the notation: BB. The ranger also informed them that her debaucherous uncle Oswin, who might know more about their family matters, could be found in Nujel'm.
The group journeyed to Nujel'm and questioned Oswin at the Silver Bow tavern. He told them how 'Montague' was the assumed name of an individual that the Stowers used to hire their mercenaries. All of their dealings were through intermediaries, but Arroway and Montague had a falling out shortly before Alionna's death. Oswin was unsure of the cause, and he believed that Montague was no longer in business. However, he did recall that Cripple Crow, one of the middle-man's former agents, now headed a new band of mercenaries that operated out of the Counselor's Guild in Felucca Vesper.
In Felucca Vesper, the Fist encountered Cripple Crow and his men. When asked about Montague, he explained that their offers of work had dried up since he beat the Hairy Bastard at a game of Nim, and they needed practice. So he would only answer their questions if the group could beat his men in a fair fight. After the Fist defeated the mercenaries, their leader shared the following. For a dozen years, he was employed by Montague, who was actually a woman, but they only met a handful of times, and he was ignorant of her true name. Four years ago, she became angry with Alionna Arroway after the noblewoman's plans caused the deaths of the Bloody Blades, some of the broker's best agents. When she demanded compensation, Arroway retaliated by bribing Montague's top henchmen, including Cripple Crow, to betray their employer. She was then turned over to Arroway, who experimented upon her as part of some magical ritual that the Stowers were trying to perfect. Cripple Crow later learned from another former henchman of Montague's that their employer managed to survive this torment and still lived.
For an additional fifty thousand gold pieces, Cripple Crow agreed to arrange a meeting between the Fist and this other former henchman and stated he would soon be in contact.
2/4/2019:
In response to Jolicia's request for his aid in locating her kidnapped lover, Morgaelin visited Emerald Town. The former sorcerer of Pagan had no means of tracking the missing Renthar, but he did ask a favor. He needed help in traveling to the home of the thaumaturgist Mythran in the ethereal void. Morgaelin believed Mythran's library might hold the means of enabling him to return to his native world.
The Fist agreed and escorted him to Mythran's floating home. There, Morgaelin told them the reason for his original exile, something he had previously only shared with the Meer Kosha of Lakeshire. Once a member of the Sorcerer’s Enclave in Daemon’s Crag of Pagan, he discovered a terrible secret: Lord Pyros and his fellow Titans were actually servants of an unnamed, far more powerful being. When he reported this to the Master Sorcerer, Morgaelin was banished from the order and sentenced to the Bowels of Lithos to silence him from spreading this information to others. Despite Britannia's recent defeat of the Titans, Morgaelin wanted to warn the Fist that their master might still threaten the Fist's shard-world.
********
1/10/2019:
At Emerald Town, the Emerald Empress organized a meeting. Among other topics, they discussed the fate of Renthar, who had been captured by the Technocrats one month prior, on the night the group celebrated the fifteenth anniversary of their original disbanding. Although most of the Fist despised the strange-eyed sorcerer, they agreed to honor their alliance with him and attempt a rescue.
With the acquiescence of Renthar's apprentice, Jolicia, the group decided to request help from the elder gypsy Miriam. She tried to divine the sorcerer's location, but she was only able to learn that he was surrounded by a sea of rocks and under repeated interrogation about information that his captors sought.
1/20/2019:
Next, the Fist turned to the gypsy Aila. Similar to Miriam, Aila's scrying efforts were met with obstructions, but she discovered that Renthar was being held in a small, confined space, and experienced deep suffering.
1/21/2019:
After encountering him a few times in and around the City of Britain, the Emerald Fist invited Edgar Craigen, a former knight of the Order of the Silver Serpent who had recently returned to the kingdom after years spent in Delucia, to join their ranks. He accepted the offer, becoming their first new member in months.
1/27/2019:
Finally, the Fist arranged for both Aila and Miriam to combine their gifts to search for Renthar. Together, they were able to learn that Renthar was somewhere on their world, questioned by a man called Stavros. They also experienced a three-part vision relating to freeing the sorcerer from his predicament:
1) A man in dark and purple who rode alone and carried a war hammer, he had a sensation of hatred and horses about him;
2) A woman, both alive and dead at once, who struggled with deception;
3) A simple phrase, fearfully spoken: "Mourn once, not twice, and gain understanding, eternally."
The two gypsies also "saw" that Ezekial and Piper of the Emerald Fist, as well as the mercenary Gauf Guthvigoff, were all involved somehow in untangling this matter.
Based on this, the group was able to identify the first of the three visions as relating to Tyler, a former member of the Emerald Fist, and the second of the three visions as relating to Schrodinger, a thief who was both alive and dead at the same time. Not coincidentally, both of these individuals were recently broken out of the Yew prison by the Technocrats. On the other hand, the meaning of the third of the three visions remained a mystery.
1/30/2019:
Next, the Fist and their allies decided to question Schrodinger. She was currently a guest of Ezekial, who was trying to cure her of her strange condition that caused the simultaneous existence of both her living-self and her corpse.
The thief could not identify the strange phrase from the vision, but she felt it was familiar. She also reiterated what she had previously told them about Tyler, they were both freed from the Yew Prison by Sister Niva of the Technocrats, but their interaction at the time was limited. However, she also revealed a new piece of information. Both Schrodinger and Tyler previously worked for a mysterious figure known as Montague, a middleman for those seeking various illegal services. This individual also had connections with the families of Old Magincia and Nujel'm. Unfortunately, she was unable to provide the group with any information regarding Montague's true identity or present whereabouts.
2/3/2019:
The Fist then sought out Erollisi Stower of the Riverwatch Rangers because Lady Alionna Arroway, her predecessor as head of the Stower family, was known to have dealings with Montague. In a search of family records, Erollisi discovered numerous payments from Arroway to this mysterious broker. These payments were over the course of decades, with the final one occurring approximately four years ago, with the notation: BB. The ranger also informed them that her debaucherous uncle Oswin, who might know more about their family matters, could be found in Nujel'm.
The group journeyed to Nujel'm and questioned Oswin at the Silver Bow tavern. He told them how 'Montague' was the assumed name of an individual that the Stowers used to hire their mercenaries. All of their dealings were through intermediaries, but Arroway and Montague had a falling out shortly before Alionna's death. Oswin was unsure of the cause, and he believed that Montague was no longer in business. However, he did recall that Cripple Crow, one of the middle-man's former agents, now headed a new band of mercenaries that operated out of the Counselor's Guild in Felucca Vesper.
In Felucca Vesper, the Fist encountered Cripple Crow and his men. When asked about Montague, he explained that their offers of work had dried up since he beat the Hairy Bastard at a game of Nim, and they needed practice. So he would only answer their questions if the group could beat his men in a fair fight. After the Fist defeated the mercenaries, their leader shared the following. For a dozen years, he was employed by Montague, who was actually a woman, but they only met a handful of times, and he was ignorant of her true name. Four years ago, she became angry with Alionna Arroway after the noblewoman's plans caused the deaths of the Bloody Blades, some of the broker's best agents. When she demanded compensation, Arroway retaliated by bribing Montague's top henchmen, including Cripple Crow, to betray their employer. She was then turned over to Arroway, who experimented upon her as part of some magical ritual that the Stowers were trying to perfect. Cripple Crow later learned from another former henchman of Montague's that their employer managed to survive this torment and still lived.
For an additional fifty thousand gold pieces, Cripple Crow agreed to arrange a meeting between the Fist and this other former henchman and stated he would soon be in contact.
2/4/2019:
In response to Jolicia's request for his aid in locating her kidnapped lover, Morgaelin visited Emerald Town. The former sorcerer of Pagan had no means of tracking the missing Renthar, but he did ask a favor. He needed help in traveling to the home of the thaumaturgist Mythran in the ethereal void. Morgaelin believed Mythran's library might hold the means of enabling him to return to his native world.
The Fist agreed and escorted him to Mythran's floating home. There, Morgaelin told them the reason for his original exile, something he had previously only shared with the Meer Kosha of Lakeshire. Once a member of the Sorcerer’s Enclave in Daemon’s Crag of Pagan, he discovered a terrible secret: Lord Pyros and his fellow Titans were actually servants of an unnamed, far more powerful being. When he reported this to the Master Sorcerer, Morgaelin was banished from the order and sentenced to the Bowels of Lithos to silence him from spreading this information to others. Despite Britannia's recent defeat of the Titans, Morgaelin wanted to warn the Fist that their master might still threaten the Fist's shard-world.