[HF]: Even More of Things to Come (6/2018 - 7/2018)

[Judas D'arc]

Summary: After Trinsic's recent political chaos, a new Governor is elected to lead the City of Honor. Meanwhile, the disappearance of a local noblewoman heralds the arrival of a new and otherwordly threat, as well as the end of the Knights of the Holy Fist.

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6/8/2018:

Following the demise and overthrow of Governor Ine Dir'ath, and the deaths of Lords Carver and de Hugh of the Trinsic Council, Lord Haxley of Britain, a recent transplant to the City of Honor, campaigned for governorship unopposed, promising to restore tradition and order.

Soon after his election, the new Governor summoned Knight-Marshall Piper Swift of the Holy Fist to meet. He informed her that one of his clients was the de Hugh family of Trinsic, and that Lady Elwina de Hugh had requested Piper attend the funeral of Everett de Hugh, who perished in the Socialist riots following Ine’s death. Piper agreed and journeyed to the de Hugh estate.

Piper was invited to remain there for a few days, both before and after the funeral. The only members of the de Hugh family present were Elwina, her surviving son Frederick, and his sister Regan. Her eldest daughter, Frieda de Hugh, was noticeably absent. It was obvious that something besides the death of Everett troubled the family, and on the last night of the Knight-Marshall's stay, a drunken Lady de Hugh confessed that she believed her family to be cursed, and asked her guest if she felt any obligation to the memories of her dead husband and son. Then, she quickly changed the subject. The next day, before Piper returned home, Lady de Hugh told her that her family required a favor, and Haxley could tell her more.

6/9/2018:

The mysterious and masked woman known as the Emerald Empress visited True Magincia, "John" (Chanticleer's) family estate north of New Magincia, to speak alone with Piper. The Empress warned the Knight-Marshall that if she pursued this de Hugh matter, it would be to her own detriment, yet also benefit Chanticleer. His birthday was soon, and the Empress was not certain how much longer the magics protecting his existence from changes to the timeline might last. She then asked Piper if she planned to aid the de Hughs, and Piper stated that she did.

6/15/2018:

Piper paid a visit to Governor Haxley to discuss the favor mentioned by Lady de Hugh. He then informed her how Frieda de Hugh, Elwina's eldest daughter, had been missing for a few weeks, and they wanted the Knight-Marshall to search for her. According to Frieda's diary, the deaths of her father and brother troubled her deeply, arousing her interest in magical resurrection.

The first of the leads she was exploring was a mage who allegedly practiced a form of spellcraft unknown to others. Known to have visited the Lycaeum, he wore red robes and practiced pyromancy.

The second of the leads was alchemy. After her father's death, Frieda spoke to the elven merchant Nalenia of Trinsic, who proved helpful. However, Nalenia left Trinsic after the machinations of the late Lord Carver caused her business to failed. She relocated Trinsic to sell off the rest of her goods and pay respects to Ine's place of burial.

The Governor also arranged for a portrait of Frieda to be sent to Piepr, so she would be able to identify the missing noblewoman if they crossed paths.

6/20/2018:

Piper traveled to the Lycaem to ask about the red-robed mage mentioned in Frieda's diary. There, she met Orrin, a would-be librarian, who was familiar with this individual. This red-robed mage was attempting to contract an artifact to focus flame spells, butseemed surprised by the Lycaeum's lack of a pentagram. He spoke of having once been a prisoner, and complained about bowel-related complications. Other mages, both good and bad, were also looking for this individual, as well as an elf hat matched Nalenia's description.

6/22/2018:

Piper shared what she learned with "John" of the Holy Fist, and they discussed how the red-robed mage could be another escapee from the Bowels of Lithos, as the magic he practiced seemed like Pagan sorcery. Both Sir Danforth and the Torax farmer freed by Jolicia were discussed as possible candidates.

6/29/2018:

Deep within the City of Wind, the sorcerer Renthar met with his apprentice and lover, the mage Jolicia. She updated him on recent events in Trinsic, including the Holy Fist's final battle against the Healer of the Broken Ankh. He informed her that in addition to the unseen force that was trying to thwart his plans, he had become aware of a new presence, something foreign and powerful that had recently entered the world. The sorcerer then tasked Jolicia with investigating it.

6/30/2018:

In Vesper, Piper found Nalenia at the Bubbling Brew, selling off the stock from her failed shop. Initially hostile due to their past interactions in Trinsic, the elf became more cooperative once she learned it was about Frieda, and she was uncharacteristically sympathetic about the missing noblewoman. According to Nalenia, it was weeks since they last spoke. While they had discussed methods of alchemic resurrection, they were either unlikely to succeed or crossed lines neither were comfortable with. Instead, Frieda decided to focus only on magical methods. That is why the Nalenia had searched for the red-robed mage at the Lycaeum, she was worried about her. But after bribing an elven student there for information, all the former merchant learned was that the mage in question was called Morgaelin, and he was last seen boarding a ship for Buccaneer's Den.

[Judas D'arc]

7/1/2018:

Next, Piper journeyed to Buccaneer's Den in search of Morgaelin.  At the Pirate's Den, she encountered a local who said he knew of the sorcerer, claiming that he was hiding inside the tunnels below the island.  He offered to lead her directly to him, and she accepted. However, once they entered the tunnels, her would-be guide turned on her and attacked.   Piper lost their fight, and he stripped her of her clothing, armor, and possessions, and tied her up.  This local then informed the Knight-Marshall that he planned to sell her to the infamous pirate known as Hairy Bastard, Captain of the Mondain's Member, who paid well for new additions to his harem.  He revealed he had no idea about Morgaelin's whereabouts, but that she  was not the first to look; some "noble bitch and her Jhelom mercenaries" had also asked after the sorcerer.  If she was alone, her captor lamented, this noblewoman, whom Piper inferred was Frieda de Hugh, would have fetched a high price from the Hairy Bastard. 

They were then joined by his partner, an archer who called her captor Lucian.  The archer was left to watch the captured Knight-Marshall while Lucian went to make arrangements with the Hairy Bastard.  But Piper was eventually able to convince the archer, who had discouraged Lucian from molesting her, to release her by telling him who she was.  She also warned him about her friends in Trinsic, and what might happen to him if she was not released.  The archer agreed to do it, and he brought her to help steal Lucian's boat so they could flee to New Haven instead.  Lucian discovered their escape, but they were able to evade him and sailed away from the island.

Upon reaching New Haven safely, Piper's possessions were returned to her, and she allowed the archer to leave in peace. She then traveled to Trinsic and updated Governor Haxley on everything that had occurred.

7/4/2018:

After a few days, Piper visited  the Horse's Head tavern in Jhelom, where she encountered the mercenary Rorik of the Library of Scars.  She asked if she knew anything about any mercenaries recently hired by a Trinsic noblewoman.  Based on her description of them, Rorik speculated they were from either the Brothers in Arms or Hand of Death guilds.  He offered to investigate the matter further, but only if she agreed to a duel. 

The terms he proposed were as follows: if Piper was the victor, he would provide the information for free; if he won, she would sexually pleasure him.  But she refused, and so he modified his prize, and stated the Knight-Marshall must promise that neither she nor the Holy Fist would pursue him or Dorian Beckett for their recent work as Governor Ine's bodyguards.  She consented and they dueled.  After a lengthy fight, Rorik won, and he stated that he would contact her soon with the desired information.

7/5/2018:

Governor Haxley held his first meeting as Trinsic's governor. Numerous people were in attendance, including Governors from other cities. Among the items covered during the meeting, Haxley announced his hope that the Holy Fist, under the leadership of Knight-Marshall Piper Swift, would continue as Trinsic's official protectors, and operating directly under his authority. On behalf of her order, Piper accepted this honor.

07/08/2018:

A few days after her visit to Jhelom, Rorik contacted Piper to inform her that Frieda de Hugh of Trinsic hired a group of Hand of Death mercenaries to protect her during her search for some elusive mage.  None of the mercenaries have returned to Jhelom, and their last report indicated that they were headed to the Meer city of Lakeshire in Ilshenar.

Upon visiting Lakeshire, the Knight-Marshall met a cooperative Meer girl named Kosha, who told her a group fitting the description of Frieda de Hugh and her mercenaries recently visited in search of a red-robed mage called Morgaelin.  According to Kosha, Morgaelin had previously visited Lakeshire, looking for aid in reconstructing a magical focus, but after realizing the Meer were unable to help, he went to the Mushrooms Cave south of Lakeshire, to investigate reports of strange lights witnessed coming from there.  Frieda and her men were given the same information, and presumably traveled there as well.

Next, Piper entered the Mushroom Caves,  where she witnessed the following:

The northern wall of this part of the cave was covered in strange, numerical writings that resemble complex mathematical equations and indecipherable code.  The cavern floor was covered in assorted pieces of machinery -- gears, clockwork assemblies, and power crystals.  Some were broken, while others were organized as spare parts.  Of particular note were a set of schematics for a golem-like creature, and a map of the Lost Lands with the entrance to the dungeon Khaldun circled.  Three corpses were strewn about the mushrooms in the southern part of the room, all male, young, physically fit, and wearing ringmail armor and blood red sashes indicating membership in the Jhelom’s Hand of Death guild.  All three were killed by blunt force, their bodies crushed and bones broken.  A fourth corpse floated in the shallow end of the body of water in the southern part of the cave.  Young, blonde haired and a torn, fancy dress, her death appeared to be caused by a stab wound through the chest.  But her face was unharmed, and she was easily identifiable as Frieda de Hugh.  Besides traces of blood, the water was contaminated by a dark, thick liquid.

At the center of the scene was a dark-robed figure, his face and skin covered in tattoos displaying mathematical equations, and next to him stood a large golem.  He accused the Knight-Marshall of disturbing him and ordered his golem to attack her.  A battle ensued, he fled and she pursued, their fight stretching across the immediate vicinity of Ilshenar.  Eventually, however, he escaped her.

Afterwards, Piper returned to Lord Haxley with news of Frieda de Hugh's death.  The governor thanked her for all her efforts, despite the unfortunate outcome, and promised to inform Lady de Hugh of the news.  He seemed troubled by her description of the scene at Mushroom Caves, but did not elaborate any further.

[Judas D'arc]

7/12/2018:

A few days later, Governor Haxley asked Knight-Marshall Piper and the Holy Fist to follow-up on what Piper found in the Mushroom Cave by searching the dungeon Khaldun for clues. Piper, "John," and Ezekial of the Holy Fist were joined by Aila, Dagda, Eban, Faeryl, Jolicia, Matyas, Okami, Roberto, and Thea Caine. Inside, the group discovered walls covered in various writings depicting mathematical equations, as well as a discarded journal that contained a different series of numbers, as follows:

260614 9255

75414 8385

584719 93723

244114 585523

1673114 1210823

1270514 250623

A copy of this journal was provided to the Governor, who indicated that he was acquainted with a numbers scholar who might be able to decipher it for them.

7/14/2018:

At the Keg & Anchor, Governor Haxley of Trinsic approached Piper, Ezekial, "John," and Sergio of the Holy Fist, as well as their allies, Aila, Eodain, Faeryl, Jolicia, Matyas, and Okami, to follow up on the discarded journal found in Khaldun. While none of them had been able to decipher the sets of numbers inside the journal, Haxley stated the numbers scholar that he hired was successful -- they were all coordinates for the following places:

- The entrance to the Mushroom Caves in Ilshenar
- The interior of the Mushroom Caves in Ilshenar (Where Frieda de Hugh was discovered)
- The entrance to the dungeon Khaldun
- The interior of Khaldun (The Tentacles of the Harrower Room)
- The entrance to the dungeon Hythloth
- The interior of Hythloth (The Balron Room on the Third Floor)

Since the group had recently visited the first four locations, they decided to examine the last two. Sergio recognized the final one as the site some of them fought the Harrower a few months prior. This was done on behalf of Colin Stark, a former prince of a fallen northern kingdom, who was using the distraction of their battle with the Harrower to divine the identity of the mysterious Voice from another world he had spent years investigating. In the Balron Room on the third floor of Hythloth, they found more numerical wall writings, a crude map of Britannia with a pair of oddly-shaped eyes drawn above it, and more sketches of a large, humanoid golem. A thorough search of the rest of the dungeon, as well as other sites listed, revealed nothing further of either Piper's black-robed assailant, or the whereabouts of the red-robed sorcerer, Morgaelin.

7/21/2018:

As a crowd of people, both locals and visitors, gathered at the Keg & Anchor, Governor Haxley burst in and warned that the city was under attack. Rushing to the west gate, they were assaulted by four huge, powerful automatons, and a brutal battle ensued. Once these mechanical monstrosities were destroyed, a figure in dark robes appeared. Before vanishing into black smoke, he spoke the following speech:

"New Britannians, consider this your only warning. Some present serve those who brazenly harmed our beloved Prophet. Our demand is singular. We hold hostage your Meer allies in Lakeshire. They will be annihilated if the mad sorcerer and the masked Empress do not head there for an immediate surrender."



Though somewhat confused by their demands, the group journeyed to Lakeshire to investigate further. There, they encountered another black-robed individual, a woman surrounded by Meer corpses. Upon their arrival, she shouted, "Typical Britannian treachery! An equitable offer was proposed, yet refused. You will now perish alongside your Meer!"

The would-be rescuers soon found themselves facing an army of robed fanatics, enslaved gargoyles, and more mechanical monstrosities. After a long struggle and numerous injuries, they were triumphant.



The black-robed woman reappeared and said, "Fools, this was but a small percentage of our strength. His Eminence’s tormentors will not escape us! Logic and order will prevail!" And then she disappeared in the same manner as her cohort at Trinsic's west gate.



Following the conflict, the group was approached by Kosha, a Meer of Lakeshire that some present were acquainted with. She confirmed the invaders had used Lakeshire as bait to force them to hand over the 'masked Empress' and 'mad sorcerer' that they hunted. According to Kosha, strange red and white lights to the west preceded their attack, and these lights resembled the ones seen near the Mushroom Caves a couple of weeks prior.

"John" of the Holy Fist then informed everyone that he had clashed with their foes before, when he was trapped on another world. According to him, they called themselves the Technocrats and served a half-machine version of King Blackthorn known as the Techno-Prophet. In appearance, he strongly resembled Exodus' simulacrum that had invaded this Britannia many years ago, before being slain by Dawn of Yew. He also identified the invaders' quarry as the Emerald Empress (a masked and mysterious ally of the Holy Fist) and Renthar (a mad sorcerer from another shard of Sosaria, he was also 'the Voice' in Khaldun that the Fist had previously investigated for Colin Stark). On this other world the Technocrats originated from, the Empress and Renthar were responsible for the kidnapping and torture of the Techno-Prophet, so "John" speculated that they sought revenge for this.

With no leads as to their foes' current whereabouts, the Holy Fist and their allies decided to remain vigilant, and to find the Emerald Empress, in the event she possessed further information or needed protection.

7/26/2020:

After the Lakeshire attack, the Emerald Empress met with Piper and "John" (Chanticleer) to discuss a number of matters. She confirmed that the Technocrats were from that other world, known as Everywhere, and were hunting her and Renthar for arranging the kidnapping and torture of the Techno-Prophet, so that the sorcerer could steal certain information from him.  Even though he was eventually freed, some of his followers now sought revenge.

Next, she told them that the Technocrats' arrival was merely the latest in a series of events slowly developing over the past few years: the time shade manifestations; the Voice from beyond that was secretly Renthar; the would-be Time Lord and the Sextant of the Ancients; Piper getting stuck in time; and the changes to history that threatened Chanticleer's continued existence.  She also implied that Governor Haxley was involved somehow, but admitted she could not share everything that she knew.  

Lastly, the Empress asked about their future intentions.  With the threat of the Broken Ankh apparently finished, the ranks of the Holy Fist were reduced to Piper, Chanticleer, Ezekial, and Sergio.  Despite Piper's agreement that they would continue to protect Trinsic, the Empress presented a counter-offer. In order to address all of these threats, she proposed that they reform the Emerald Fist, under Chanticleer's leadership and with the Empress' guidance, similar to the arrangement she had with the group's previous iteration in Everywhere.

Chanticleer accepted the Empress' proposal, stating that it was time to become more proactive.  He informed Piper that he wished to resign from the Holy Fist, conceding that he was never much of a knight to begin with.  He also invited her to join this new version of the Emerald Fist, but Piper said she needed to speak with Haxley first.  The Empress soon departed, telling them she would be in contact once certain measures were in place.  

In the days that followed, Governor Haxley, Ezekial, and Sergio were all informed of the Holy Fist's disbanding, and the order that had defended Trinsic for the past year and a half was not-so-suddenly no more.