Quartz 4

Session 20

19 min read

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Spending the night in Lycoris

Julian joins the party!

  • IT IS LATE AFTERNOON
  • Standing in Camille’s burned-down home, Cordelia stands face-to-face with Julian Devorak
    • Julian is:
      • Wearing full plate mail with the Clover insignia on it
      • Covered in burn scars (ALL OVER). There’s one prominent one that starts at his left cheek and down his neck
  • Upon hearing her name, Cordelia doesn’t turn around
    • She whispers to Camille, asking if Julian’s right behind her (yes)
    • They gently turn her around to face him
  • Cordelia and Julian Conversation
    • C: Hiiiii… how are you?
    • J: I’m, well, it’s been a week. how are you?
    • C: Going well, as always.
    • J: What are you doing in Lycoris?
    • C: New mission! I’m actually not allowed to talk about it
    • I CAN’T KEEP UP :(
      • Julian speculates that we’re being assigned a mission by The Keeper, and that we’re enroute to Diamond (correct)
  • Cordelia: You look… pain… ful?
    • Vallen steps in and says we have places to go
  • CAL IS LIKE “VALLEN ARE YOU GONNA LET HIM STEAL YOUR GIRL”
    • VALLEN AND JULIAN ARE LIKE!??!?!
    • OH MY GOD
    • GIRL
    • GOOD GOD GOOD GRIEF GOOD FUCKING GOD
  • Cal pulls a knife out and is like ARE YOU REALLY JULIAN???
    • Camille asks him who Cal was drinking and eating eggs with at the bar on “the ship”
    • He correctly says that he was with gnomes/dwarves
  • JULIAN’S BEEN HAVING DREAMS OH MY GOD
    • CORDELIA GRABS HIM BY THE SHOULDERS AND IS LIKE WHAT KIND?? (the same kind as ours)
    • He knows about the Pyramid and the Orb, but not about their nature
  • Julian confesses that he knows a little about our mission (through the grapevine — the army talks)
    • HE CONFESSES TO NOT TRUSTING CLOVER ANYMORE
    • He says he’s willing to abandon his post
      • Cordelia says that’s blasphemy — his father wouldn’t be happy about that
  • Camille says that Julian didn’t have the same guidance as we did, so figuring out everything must be really scary
    • They ask him what happened to him during the battle against OSIRIS when he got bamphed away — he doesn’t remember (thousand-yard-stare tea)
  • Julian asks what the deal with the Warforged is
    • We confess that the Warforged might be splitting from Diamond
  • Camille tries to contact The Curator to ask for him to rope Julian into our little dream group
  • Julian asks to come to us. He has a shield an axe, and is a paladin of Lathander
    • JULIAN SAYS THAT LATHANDER’S NEVER SPOKEN OF VALLEN
    • JULIAN PRAYS TO LATHANDER. HE SAYS “LATHANDER DOESN’T KNOW OF YOU” (to Vallen)
      • VALLEN’S LIKE ???
      • CAMILLE THEORIZES THAT VALLEN’S REAL GOD (WHO GIVES HIM PALADIN-ISH SMITE POWERS) IS KANCHELSIS
        • VALLEN SAYS THAT KANCHELSIS IS AN EVIL GOD SO HE DOESN’T HAVE ACCESS TO DIVINE MAGIC LIKE THAT
        • CAMILLE IS LIKE ?? WTF DO YOU KNOW HOW GODS WORK HOW CAN YOU SAY FOR CERTAIN
  • We all spout secrets
    • Cal pissed himself until he was 14
    • Kaya’s best friend abandoned her
    • Camille refuses to share anything
  • Julian asks if he can join us again
    • Camille asks Cordelia if she’s okay with this — they’ll back her up. She says that she fears she doesn’t have a choice, and that this is fate
  • Cordelia shares her first dream — Julian’s had the same one!! He thought the figure in the sky was OSIRIS
  • Julian shares the last dream he had (last night) where he was trapped in a desert and wandered for days
    • We talk about our dreams not being synced up
  • Julian officially joins the party!!
  • Camille says that they’ll be back to cast Tiny Hut in roughly 2 hours
    • Everyone’s like ??? but then they’re like “I’m gonna visit my brother’s grave and I don’t want anyone to see me cry”
  • Julian goes to bed alone
    • He’s like “I don’t want to see any of you in my dreams” and then is like “…except for one of you”
    • CORDELIA WINS!!!
  • As they get ready for bed:
    • Kaya carves a hand with the middle finger sticking out
    • Cal tinkers with shit

Camille goes into the woods

TL;DR: THEY TRY TO DIG UP THEIR BROTHER. I DIDN'T TAKE THOROUGH NOTES BCS I WAS LOCKED IN BUT IT'S REALLY FUCKED UP

  • They grab a fallen tree branch and venture into the woods, walking for some time before the path narrows, becoming little more than a small shelf jutting out of a cliff face. Crossing it requires shuffling sideways.
    • The shelf is collapsed partway through, and Camille uses the tree branch to safely skid down to the bottom of the cliff
  • Camille pushes through flowers and leaves and vines - plants so abundant and lush that they could only have been grown magically - before reaching a small tree with a small stick buried partway between its roots. It’s a grave marker.
    • In front of the stick is a smooth rock, upon which is inscribed: “Here lies my beloved brother: Mimi”
  • They sit in the dirt, speaking to the grave as they apologize for not visiting. They tell the grave everything about their and the party’s adventures thus far.
  • Once the story concludes, they apologize again, saying that they “have to try” before pushing a diamond into the dirt and trying to cast Revivify. Nothing happens.
  • They apologize for a third time as they use the tree branch to start digging. Once they hit the makeshift coffin at the bottom, they stop and hesitate before pushing it open.
    • They see “exactly what [they] expected”, and have to run and throw up
    • When they return, they gingerly press the diamond to the body itself. There is a brief glimmer of light, but once again, nothing happens.
  • They spend the next hour sitting in the dirt and crying before re-burying the body and returning to the campsite to cast Tiny Hut.

We dream (separately)

Cal’s Dream

  • He awakens in a fog-covered place, upon smooth ground. He knows it is the Shadowfell
  • He walks for a while. Then he hears another set of footsteps behind him.
    • Turning around, he sees nothing.
  • He keeps walking, then hears footsteps directly behind him again
    • He keeps walking, not looking back. But he slows down a little
    • The footsteps slow down in tandem
  • Cal starts walking faster, but the footsteps sound just as close to him
  • When he turns around this time, he sees The Raven Queen
    • She asks him why he’s here
    • SHE’S LIKE “YOU’RE ACTUALLY HERE. LIKE YOUR SOUL IS HERE.”
      • Cal is like “idk man 🤷‍♂️”
  • She’s “talked to a friend of [hers]”, and that she’s decided that it’s about time that he gets what he’s been asking for
    • From here on out, he’ll be able to summon a copy of his contract
    • When he summons his contract, a blob of dark emerges from his hand, unfolding into a LONG-ASS scroll that rolls past him
  • The Raven Queen asks him to leave the Shadowfell, and says that he isn’t welcome here yet (as much as she would like him to stay)
    • Cal’s like ?? idk how
  • He blinks, then he awakes

Kaya’s Dream

  • Kaya finds herself in a bedroom — it looks like the bedroom of a royal palace
    • The fancy blanket that she has? Yeah. There are like 4 of them
    • She tries to jump for joy, but as she puts her hands up she sees a toddler’s hands
      • Kaya realizes that she is currently a child
  • There’s a knock at the door, then a maid walks in and up to her
    • The maid greets her good morning, picks her up, and starts getting her ready for the day (brushing her hair and shit)
    • For some reason, this feels familiar. But she doesn’t recognize the maid or anything in the room
  • She blinks, then she flashes foreword. She’s holding someone’s hand, walking through a royal capital
    • Not like Clover’s capital — it’s different
    • She looks up at the person whose hand she’s holding: it’s a male tiefling, wearing royal garb. His skin is a darker shade of green from hers
  • Another flash forward: she’s sitting at a large royal dining table
    • A royal-looking woman leans over the table, trying to feed her. The woman is of a blue shade
  • She blinks again, and she wakes up.

CORDELIA GOES TO HELL

  • Based on her studies, she opens her eyes and realizes where she is: the first layer of hell
    • She looks down, and sees a long beard. This isn’t her, but someone else.
  • The man’s hand reaches into his pocket, and pulls out a set of Tarot Cards
    • He starts throwing cards out, and she sees spells that she’s never seen or studied before in her LIFE
    • Also he’s in front of like, a sea of demons btw
  • He pulls out another card, and a Fireball begins to form — except it just keeps on growing
    • It keeps growing, and growing, and growing, until it destroys the entire first layer of hell

Camille’s Dream

  • They wake up, and find themself sitting in a void of space
    • It actually looks like the ruins of a temple
    • THE SAME TEMPLE IN WHICH THEY SPOKE TO Avandra
  • A blue light appears, and speaks to them in both a man and woman’s voice
  • CAMILLE ASKS IF THERE’S AN AFTERLIFE. THEN THE TEMPLE GLITCHES??
  • “My little Changeling… You are quite interesting, interesting indeed.”
  • THINGS HAPPEN
  • QHWAT THE FUCK
  • SOMETHING SOMETING “ARE YOU ONE OF US OR ARE YOU AN OBSTACLE ON OUR PATH TO GREATNESS”
  • The same glitch effect happens, and they wake in a cold sweat with tears in their eyes

CJ’s Speech Transcription

  • “Ohhhhhhh my little changeling… you’re an interesting one.. aren’t you?”
  • “Oh this? This is nothing, Divine magic is.. simple to bypass when you understand it down to the fundamentals..” “Dear child… why do you search for purpose when you are given one?”
  • “You’re a changeling. Not a tiefling, not a human, not an elf…. A changeling…”
  • “A being of lies, deception, and yet… you despise lies you despise deception… it’s interesting to me, you despise the very thing that you are..”
  • “You walk around as Camille yet you are not him, you work with Clover yet they are the enemy, you walk around with this high and mighty outlook yet you are… nothing.. at least without your god that is…”
  • “Speaking of… you’ve had this itch in the back of your head… ask yourself out loud… do you serve the wrong god?”
  • “You serve a god, who let Camille die… and you do not possess the power to bring him back.. do you?”
  • “Your god can bring him back but will not… why? Because there’s a higher purpose? Because there’s meaning in his death?”
  • “No… the gods want to toy with you, the gods want to watch you struggle…”
  • “The gods want nothing more than for you to stay in your lane, watch from the sidelines as the world passes you by so they may continue being worshipped…”
  • “You do have a higher purpose… Quén, you do have the opportunity to be what you want, to GET what you want..”
  • “There is a god, willing to help, willing to give you that power… you need only ask.. you need only prove yourself to him”
  • “The god of lies… awaits you… awaits your next move..”
  • “The coming days will prove if you’re really one of us… or if you’re just another obstacle on the path to greatness.”

The Aftermath

  • We all wake up to little gifts next to our bedrolls!!
    • Cordelia: a vial of perfume + nice fountain pen
    • Kaya: a nice soft silk pillow, embroidered with a K + playing card deck
    • Cal: smith’s tools
    • Camille: cook’s utensils (just kinda set out in front of their tent)
  • Everyone’s FREAKING it
    • Cordelia’s crying thinking that she’s going to hell
    • Cal is yelling
    • Kaya is pretty happy tbh — she mentions maybe having parents??
    • Camille is subdued
  • Vallen comes in, dragging a deer. He comments on us waking up late
    • He tries to talk to Cordelia, learns that she went to hell but not what circle
    • He talks to Cal, who tells him that he “has some reading to do”
  • Vallen offers to help read stuff
    • Cal pulls out his contract, which rolls all the way onto the ground (Vallen: “Holy shit”)
    • Vallen asks if it’s a contract (yes). He asks for what (Cal says “it’s all right here”)
  • Julian rolls up to Cordelia, who’s starting to calm down
    • He asks her if she’s okay :( she had a very intense dream — “it’s been a very long month”
    • He apologizes to her for how terrible things have been, and pats her on the head reassuringly :]
  • Kaya quietly pulls out a handkerchief, and passes it to Camille
    • They dab at their tears and thank her, before saying breakfast is ready
  • WHAT VALLEN FINDS ABOUT CAL’S CONTRACT
    • He can:
      • Cast Eldritch Blast!
      • Speak to ravens!!
  • Vallen asks Camille why they’re crying
    • They WERE crying, but they’re not anymore
    • They say they were talking to their god, but then she disappeared and then there was a “man” there
    • Vallen asks if the man made them cry — they answer inconclusively
      • He says that if they ever want to talk about it, they can

Going to South Haran

Traveling!

  • Julian walks next to Cordelia
  • Camille falls back to walk next to Vallen, and tells him that they think they met The Father (Maybe) in their dream
  • Cal switches places with Camille, and asks them to review the contract
    • Investigation: 11
      • “The Raven Queen in allegiance with The Outsider gives his abilities for vengeance and justice.”
        • “The Outsider” is specifically listed as a third party
      • “In exchange for his powers, he hopes the interested party uses them for vengeance until the contract is expired.”
        • They don’t find anything pertaining to when the contract might terminate
    • They suggest that Cal speak to the Raven Queen about this next for clarity, but then rescinds that suggestion and instead says that he should speak to another god
      • Lathander maybe?? They pass him the amulet they’ve been carrying around with his symbol
    • Kaya also tries to read it!! (Guidanced Investigation: 11)
      • SHE FINDS THE EXACT SAME THING. GOD DAMNIT
    • Cordelia’s handed the contract by Camille, also tries to read it (Guidanced Investigation: 15)
      • What she finds:
        • “Serving ‘till death”
        • “The interested party is granted longevity so he can never grow old or tired, but he can still die of natural causes.”
      • CORDELIA FINDS A CLAUSE ABOUT STRAIGHT SEX:
        • “The interested party may never have sex with another woman again.”
        • CONSEQUENCES FOR HAVING SEX WITH A WOMAN:
          1. “Death”
          • THAT’S IT LMAO?? RIP TO THAT GUY (LITERALLY)
  • Julian’s like “You signed a contract with The Raven Queen [you can’t have sex with anyone]”
    • THERE’S TALK ABOUT CAL DYING OF PUSSY
    • Camille’s like you can have sex with someone who’s not a woman.. you wanna try with Cal?
      • And then they’re like nvm you probably shouldn’t do that, you’re engaged to Cordelia and that’d make her sad
      • THEY’RE LIKE UUHHHHHH WE’RE NOT ACTUALLY ENGAGED W/E. EMBARRASSED AS HELL.
  • We all try to figure out who Cal can have sex with
    • THE GOTH BADDIE FROM THE BOAT
    • Julian seems to recognize her when Kaya describes her — he doesn’t know her name, but he doesn’t know her biblically
      • Apparently she’s a covert operative?? And Cordelia’s father told her about a group of servals
      • SHE OUTRANKS JULIAN

WE FINALLY MAKE IT TO SOUTH HARAN

  • GROUP PERCEPTION
    • WE REALIZE JULIAN’S IN HIS FULL PLATE WITH CLOVER INSIGNIA
      • CAMILLE THROWS THEIR CLOAK OVER HIM
      • CORDELIA THROWS HERSELF IN FRONT OF HIM
      • CAL TRIES TO GIVE HIM HIS CLOTHES
    • Julian puts his hand over the insignia, and somehow melts the insignia off — burning a hole into Camille’s cloak
      • They’re like “it’s ok🙂 ! so many bad things have happened that this is water under the bridge”
    • We also see a few Warforged patrolling — people make way for them
      • There are a few small ones, but no big ones
      • The ones that are walking around look EXACTLY like
      • Camille shares what we saw at the Hillford mithril mine of Warforged fighting each other over what to do with the mithril
        • Julian reports that there are whisperings of the same thing happening at EVERY mithril mine in Clover

Drinking time!!

  • We roll into a local bar
    • People turn around and look, and after a moment, turn back to their own business
      • Camille clocks that they were checking if we’re Warforged, and they share with the gang that Warforged might have a bad reputation in town
  • We decide to drink, but agree to keep a low profile since we’re in Diamond
  • Julian’s like “so let me get this straight”:
    • Cal: under the influence of the Raven Queen
    • Cordelia: engaged to him
    • Camille:
      • “I’m just a normal guy!”
      • “No .”
    • Kaya: royalty??
  • Camille tells Julian about the doors and vaguely how they work (we can pass through them twice a day)
    • They message Foo and ask him how to find the doors. In response he says “Camille! Those doors will reveal themselves when necessary”
  • Camille asks Julian to go away for a bit so they can tell the gang about their dream
    • EVERYONE discovers that Vallen doesn’t like Julian 😶
      • He doesn’t like the fact that he just kinda showed up and asked to join — suspicious as hell
      • Cordelia BEEFS with that perspective, apparently 👀

Camille shares their dream

  • it was BAD
  • Cal says that if the gods won’t help them, maybe the party can help bring him back!!
    • Cordelia theorizes about manipulating souls using arcane magicks in the same way that Warforged (theoretically) do
    • Camille reminds the gang that Dr. Pope has a lab in Iron Forge, as mentioned by Garrett
    • Cordelia says that their paths intersect, since she’s seeking out Balthazar in a nearby town
  • The gang talks about potentially taking a detour to Wigson to visit Balthazar
  • Vallen says that both Cordelia and Kaya are nobles/royalty, and that their first instinct is to turn their backs on their kingdoms
    • CORDELIA AND VALLEN START ARGUING OMG
  • Where do our allegiances lie?
    • Cordelia’s lies with Clover, since her family is there
      • She also mentions that The Keeper seems to be unwilling to share his intentions and plans, and she’s irritated by that
      • Vallen’s known The Keeper for YEARS. He trusts him. He admits that that might not be enough for the Party, but the kingdom one is born and raised in is the one which gives one the opportunities and adventures they go on. He also talks about how the Keeper is the most powerful person in Clover, and that his keeping the Shapes of Paracausality will keep things as they are
  • Cordelia asks why the Keeper doesn’t tell us everything, and why he puts so much trust in the Keeper when he doesn’t seem to turst US
    • He’s like “yeah I don’t trust you, even though I follow you to dangerous places ”
    • “My god knows me not. My party knows me not. So I will trust the Keeper more than you. I will keep you safe, because that is my job. But no-one is keeping ME safe. So I will place my trust in the man who has kept me safe for years.”
      • VALLEN TALKS ABOUT HOW NOBODY EXCEPT FOR CAMILLE ASKED
    • KAYA DECLARES THAT WE WILL DO WHATEVER WE NEED TO TO EARN HIS TRUST. THEN SHE GOES TO FIND HIM SOME RAW MEAT/BLOOD IN THE KITCHEN!!!
  • We talk about Vallen’s connection to Divinity (Lathander and Kanchelsis specifically)
    • Lathander’s basically disowned Vallen, and doesn’t respond to Camille’s prayer
    • Camille still theorizes that Kanchelsis is giving Vallen his smiting ability and now powers — even though Kanchelsis technically isn’t a god, divinity can be circumvented, as The Father has shown
    • Cordelia suggests that another god holds Vallen’s soul - Lathander or Kanchelsis or not - but she thinks that she can speak for everyone when she says that we prefer the Vallen that has traveled with us all this time — regardless of whether or not he aligns himself with the Keeper or the party
      • Vallen admits to speaking in anger when he said he trusts the Keeper more
  • Cordelia tells Vallen that he’s as much a part of the group as the rest of us, so he has a say on what we do with Julian
    • Vallen says that we should let him travel with us
    • Camille suggests that we can let him travel with us, but we don’t have to tell him everything
  • Camille mentions that we can cast Zone of Truth to get Julian to tell us the truth about his deal, and casts it
    • LITERALLY EVERYONE AT THE TABLE FAILS 💀
    • Julian comes back and willingly fails the save upon Camille’s request
      • HE ADMITS TO NOT BEING EVIL
      • When asked “What do you think of Cordelia?” he says that he’s gonna marry her one day 🥺
    • Camille asks Kaya what she thinks of the party
      • SHE’S SO SWEET AND SAYS THAT IF ANYTHING HAPPENS TO THE PARTY SHE WILL KILL PEOPLE
      • SHE MAKES THEM CRY
    • Camille asks Cal what he thinks of us
      • WE’RE LITERALLY HIS BEST FRIENDS. I LOVE FRIENDSHIP!!!
    • Julian asks Cal why he’s called the “egg master” or some shit
      • CAL PULLS OUT HIS MINI EGG FRIDGE AND A ROTTEN ONE. WHICH HE EATS IMMEDIATELY
    • Julian asks Kaya and Cal which one of them’s stronger (THEY ARM WRESTLE)
      • KAYA GETS BUFFED BY CAMILLE (Guidance and Enhance Ability) WHILE CAL TRIES TO SABOTAGE HER BY SUMMONING A ROTTEN EGG BETWEEN THEIR HANDS
      • KAYA STILL WINS THO!!!
  • Julian and Kaya arm wrestle
    • JULIAN WINS BY A LANDSLIDE
  • Julian and Vallen arm wrestle
    • VALLEN SWEEPS THE FLOOR WITH JULIAN. HE LITERALLY YAWNS AS HE BEATS HIM!!!
    • Cordelia is like 👀

OUT OF CHARACTER: we discuss which town we’re going to next (during next session)

  • URINE VS BRIDGETON
    • We agree to go to Bridgeton, but also we MIGHT go to Urine as a treat

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