Picking up where we left off
- Vallen is looking like he’s having an existential crisis
- We remember that he visited his grandson, and his grandson DID exist
- Cordelia is reaching to put a hand on his shoulder, and reminds him that we met his grandson and that his family is real
- Vallen questions what kind of purpose he might serve as an undead, and why he was allowed to live for so long
- Quén says that whatever purpose he’s used for is probably not a good one
- Cordelia says that we’re probably dealing with the gods.
- Vallen sighs and is like “ugh the gods”
- We muse over how old Dr. Pope ACTUALLY is
Speaking to The Father
- As we talk about Dr. Pope, we hear a snap, and reality seems to split diagonally
- We all freeze in place — this has happened to us once before, when we were kidnapping a vampire after Dagen’s Masquerade
- Through the split in reality, the Father walks through
The following notes for this section were taken by Lily (thank u pookie <3) with some minor additions by Izzie
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The Father looks at Vallen, time is frozen, the father looks at Quén
- The Father taps him on the shoulder, and Quén is free to move.
- He offers Quén a proposition. Quén says release my friends. He says “I did not ask you to speak.” (Aura)
- Essentially offers Quén the same deal as before, but offers the pieces of the shapes he has—then his face melts, and he is Amadeus. (Also Aura)
- Everyone is free, time is frozen. Vallen remains frozen. (Symbolizing him.. not being a true member of the group?)
- “Why are you so desperate for our help?” Quén says.
- Quén rolls insight, sees that he has his own motives.
- He offers Quén a deal for information that will ‘Help them in the next few hours’ In return, we find Ihys and when we do, we will drop EVERYTHING and give her to him.
- Everyone is silent while we ruminate on this deal. Delia’s eyes are flicking back and forth between the father and Vallen. Kaya says “Quén the choice is yours”
- Quén says “I have yet to hear the opinion of someone I truly care about” and looks at Vallen.
- He says “Oh, Vallen.. His story is fascinating.”
- He then essentially goes “If you take my deal, I will sweeten the pot and provide you the information about what is to come.” I.E. Delia’s cards, Kaya’s backstory, and whatever shit Cal has going on.
- Delia asks if Quén is the only one able to make the deal.
- Quén goes to take his hand, so does Cal. Delia stops Quén’s hand and says “I’ve learned myself before, I’ll do it again.”
- Cal asks if he can take the deal. Quén and Cal have a strength battle. Quén wins. Takes the deal. They receive the pieces of the orb. He tells Cordelia her cards are made of Ihys.
- He initially says that the cards are made from her skin, and when the party balks at the idea she says that it’s “metaphorical” (whatever that means 💀)
- The Father begins to tell the information that will help them in “the coming hours.”
- There will be a boat with Thraxxus And Erin Thorne
- Cal tries to swing, and he falls.
- He tells Kaya she is a “World Shaper, and that she shouldn’t tell Thraxxus
- It’s implied that she shouldn’t tell him because of Thraxxus’s title as the “World Breaker”, and that the title of “World Breaker” means something
- He then essentially dips
WE WAKE UP
I CAN'T REMEMBER WHERE THIS HAPPENED, BUT IMPORTANT NOTE:
- The Father, while talking to Cordelia, said “There will be trials and tribulations… and losses.”
- When he said “trials”, he looked at Kaya
- When he said “losses”, he looked at Cal
The Aftermath
- Cal theorizes, saying that Dr. Pope might be the “Father Time” that the Father mentioned
- Vallen leaves to inform FAFO of what is going to happen
- We agree to leave FAFO’s pieces of the Shapes where they are, since they’re relatively well-protected under his care
- We can simply return here once we have all the pieces of the shapes
- Quén says that we have a few hours to prepare, and leaves. As they leave:
- They say that we need to get weapons from here
- They contact Captain Seamus via sending stone, telling him that enemies are approaching within the next few hours, and that the ship should be docked somewhere safe and hidden as soon as possible (in response, they get the answer “yep”)
- Cordelia also leaves, heading to the woods
Quén looks for a blacksmith
- It is pouring rain
- They walk up to a warforged cleaning up their forge (under a canopy)
- They ask for weapons made of “Axio Steel”
- The warforged seems to freeze, despite its face being emotionless
- The warforged asks how they learned about the name
- They say that they were meditating on a way to fight against the true changelings, and it came to them in a vision of sorts
- Upon hearing this, their body language relaxes
- They’re willing to part with a piece of Axio Steel, but implore Quén to not let FAFO know, since FAFO is the one who oversees Axio Steel
- They dip into their shack, locking the door behind them. A few moments later, they emerge with a single dagger
- Item get! Axio Steel Dagger
- Quén ventures into the woods and tests the dagger on themself by cutting their palm open
- It burns in the same way that silver would burn a vampire
- The wound turns necrotic, and dark ichor drips from it and sizzles on the ground
- They hiss, saying “This is good, but feels bad”. As they walk back into the town, they squeeze their wounded fist tight, focusing on the pain rather than on their deal with The Father
Cordelia walks
- Cordelia leaves the room, the building, and subsequently, the town.
- She walks deep into the woods, hood up to protect herself against the rain
- She starts setting her Tarot Cards down around her in a circle, one by one, before sitting in the center of them
- She looks up at the sky
- “Mystra… I don’t know if you can hear me, or if you’re there, but if you are, we need to talk.”
- The wind picks up, sending violent ripples through the grass around her, but her cards remain untouched
Cal
- Cal seeks out a private room with a door (he’s already in one, as everyone’s left FAFO’s room at this point)
- He sits cross-legged on the floor, closes his eyes, and says “Mistress… I need your help.”
- After a few moments, his eyes crack open, and he realizes he’s sitting in the Shadowfell
- Cal sees a stone near a tree — the Raven Queen is sitting on the stone (not reclining on a throne of vines and aurafarming like she did the last time he was there)
- The Raven Queen comments on how their last encounter left “something to be desired” 💀
- Cal STRUGGLES to ask for help. Mans chokes on his words (quite literally)
- The Raven Queen comments on how it’s been about a year since Cal’s last spoken those words
- “I need… to be able… to stand toe-to-toe with a god.”
- IN THIS EXTREMELY SERIOUS MOMENT. THE RAVEN QUEEN JOKES AND ASKS HIM “VERTICALLY OR HORIZONTALLY” 💀💀💀
- Cal confesses that he’s never felt so powerless as when he was frozen by the Father and unable to put the powers and abilities the Raven Queen bestowed unto him
- The Raven Queen tells him that - before his story concludes - she will die
- 💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥
- THE RAVEN QUEEN TELLS HIM THAT THE FATHER IS KILLING HER???? “INATVERTEDLY”???
- THIS IS THE REASON WHY SHE OFFERED HIS CONTRACT TO THE OUTSIDER
- The Raven Queen reminds Cal that, a long time ago, she required him to “make the right decision”
- The next time Cal sees The Outsider, all she needs him to say is “yes”
- At the moment, she looks like she wants to say something else, but doesn’t.
- The Raven Queen says - almost whispers - “I’ll see you again.”
Kaya speaks to FAFO
- Considers going mining (the time limit prevents her from doing so)
- Instead, she goes to catch up with Vallen
- Vallen is MARCHING!!
- He’s a man on a mission — he mainly wants to inform FAFO that there is a ship of individuals set on killing us and potentially the Warforged
- Kaya says that we could probably use ourselves as a distraction
- Vallen rhetorically asks if there’s anything else he missed while he was out
- Kaya begins to tell him that “our friends are set on sacrificing themselves”, but Vallen says that his question was rhetorical and that she can tell him later
- They come upon FAFO helping pack up and tie things down ahead of the storm
- Kaya tells him that we will leave him with the pieces of the Shapes, and that she trusts him to protect them under the best of his ability
- She informs him that Thraxxus is inbound, and that we’ll probably try and skedaddle to lure him away from Parallax Reach
- FAFO asks if he should be preparing for an invasion
- Kaya is unsure if Thraxxus is targeting US or the pieces of the Shapes that FAFO holds
- FAFO says that he would be willing to part with the Shapes that he currently has, and would be able to operate without them for a short amount of time
- FAFO seems to urge Kaya to remain on the island and face Thraxxus HERE rather than using ourselves as bait
- FAFO takes Kaya and Vallen back to his abode, where Cal is
- Kaya informs FAFO that there are only a few more hours until Thraxxus reaches the island
- FAFO says that they can warn the residents of Parallax Reach to retreat to their shelters
We Regroup
- Quén receives a message from FAFO, requesting their return ASAP
NVM WE’RE NOT REGROUPING. CORDELIA SPEAKS TO MYSTRA!!!!!!
- Cordelia receives a message from Vallen, requesting that she return to the group
- As she begins to pack up and leave, she mutters under her breath something about Mystra being “finicky”
- SHE LOOKS UP AND THE MOST BEAUTIFUL WOMAN IS STANDING BEFORE HER!!!
- Cordelia asks about the Father
- Mystra is annoyed, asking Cordelia if she called her down to the material plane to ask about someone else
- Cordelia comments on how Mystra still came, and comments on how Mystra probably dislikes her (and how the feeling is mutual)
- Mystra is like ???? bitch I don’t dislike you. I think you’re being disrespectful, but you practice magic and seek to expand its boundaries
- Mystra is like “Balthazar’s an asshole” and Cordelia is like “I fear I’m set to follow in his footsteps”
- Mystra says that Cordelia IS, in fact, set to follow in his footsteps, but not in the way that she expects
- Mystra admits to not knowing much about the Father, and that the gods aren’t omnipotent
- THEY’RE BITCHING AT EACH OTHER!!!
- MYSTRA REMINDS CORDELIA THAT SHE VOWED TO KILL HER LMAO
- MYSTRA CALLS CORDELIA A CROTCHETY CHILD
- MYSTRA SAYS THAT SHE PROBABLY MISJUDGED CORDELIA
- “The magic you cast is from me. The cards you use, are not. Do you want to keep your fucking magic?”
- Mystra says that she didn’t have a problem with Cordelia, but “If you’re going to be a little bitch, we’re going to have a problem”
- CORDELIA IS LIKE “I DARE YOU” AND IN RESPONSE, MYSTRA SNAPS HER FINGERS
- CORDELIA ASKS IF MYSTRA “DOES THIS WITH EVERYONE”
- THE ANSWER IS NO. ONLY WITH TAROT USERS, WHO ALWAYS SEEM TO THINK THEY’RE BETTER THAN MAGIC
- MYSTRA DARES CORDELIA TO CAST MAGIC NOW
- CORDLEIA CALLS MYSTRA A CUNT!!!
- MYSTRA DISAPPEARS
- Cordelia attempts to call upon Balthazar, requesting that they speak immediately
- Balthazar is initially like “No” (word for word) but then Cordelia tells him that she called Mystra a cunt to her face
- Balthazar: “I’m starting to like you.” “But I’d apologize if I were you.”
- Cordelia gets another message from Vallen
- “So… you coming?”
We Regroup fr
- Cordelia walks in the room, and as the only other magic caster in the party (who isn’t a warlock), Quén can immediately tell something is different with her
- THE GANG IS BAFFLED!!!
- Cordelia stands on business and says that she once said that we should kill on the gods, and she still believes that
- Quén is like :(? and Cordelia is like “not you. all the other gods that think they’re better than us”
- CORDELIA AND VALLEN FIGHT. OH MY GOD.
- Vallen asks what the consequences of her calling Mystra a cunt are. Cordelia refuses to answer.
- Cordelia tells Vallen that she “knows [his] life is hard rn”, to which he snaps back and tells her that she’s not allowed to tell him that — she hasn’t just had her entire world turned upside down and her friends making enemies of gods. He tells her that she doesn’t get to belittle him like that.
- It gets quiet. Then we reorient and refocus on the task at hand (preparing for Thraxxus and Erin Thorne)
- We discuss with FAFO what to do
- FAFO will inform their people
- We will meet Thraxxus and Erin Thorne on the beach, and attempt to distract/redirect them from Parallax Reach
- Kaya asks Vallen what Thraxxus’s job is
- Of the 5 meetings he attended, Thraxxus was ordered by the False King to kill someone in 3 of them.
- Cal asks FAFO how many warforged reside in Parallax Reach (2,343)
- Kaya admits that it’s an odd time to ask this question, but she asks why some warforged are more “human” than others
- FAFO says that, while they don’t necessarily have human souls, their personalities and jobs were all based off of something, even if they don’t know what that something is
- FAFO reminds Kaya that the warforged were made from the Pyramid
- FAFO muses that, around the Pyramid, people lose all logic, and around the Orb people tend to lose their emotions
- Quén asks FAFO if there’s anything they can lend to us in terms of aid
- They can lend some hands to help prepare some traps, scrounge up some rations, and some weapons
- FAFO says that they have steel weapons and a mithril sword
- Vallen has lost like, both swords he used to have 💀 so he agrees to take the mithril sword
- As Vallen charges off, Quén holds the party back to speak with them
- They request that the rest of the gang don’t tell Vallen about their deal with the Father — at least not yet
- The gang questions how we’ll tell Vallen about the shapes WITHOUT telling him about the deal
- Kaya agrees to not tell him today, but they should tell him tomorrow
SIDE NOTE: QUÉN GETS A GUN FROM FAFO!!!
Preparing for Thraxxus and Erin Thorne
- We head down to the beach!
- A storm brews on the horizon — lightning strikes and rain falls. In the distance, about a mile out, is the outline of a ship
- The beach isn’t the sandy type: it’s closer to a coast, with grass and rocks rather than sand. Water sloshes over the rocks as it surges with the storm
- It is currently in the late afternoon
- Our ship is out of the way (so the enemy will choose either to chase us or head to Parallax Reach) but isn’t entirely hidden. The enemy most likely sees us 💀
- Cal pulls out his periscope (used in the fight against False Cal) and tries to look at the enemy ship
- Quén uses their cleric ability to give Cal a +1d8
- He sees someone in the crow’s nest, seeming to hold a periscope
- Cal requests that we get some cover, and Kaya pulls up a smokescreen
- Cal tells a short story about some lizardfolk he fought that didn’t need to breathe all the time, and were able to conceal themselves in the earth to ambush his party. He suggests that we do the same thing with a handful of warforged.
- We’re able to hide 2 warforged before the smokescreen clears
- Cal looks back at the ship, and notices:
- Two figures standing at the front of the ship (one smaller than the other)
- People busy running around the ship
- Where their canons would normally be - the holes are boarded up. So they’re unable to engage in long-range combat at the moment
- What is our game plan?
- Draw them into conversation (lure them into a false sense of security)
- Get as much information as possible
- Draw them away from the town with the Shapes we have, and escape as best as possible (we might lose in a 1x1 combat)
- We have firepower on our ship, while they don’t
- Quén radios the Captain, requesting that he prepare the canons in case we need to use them
- Who will do the talking??
- Kaya??? It IS her family after all
- Quén assures her that - even though she’s afraid that Thraxxus might immediately attack her - she will not be dying on their watch
- Quén casts Death Ward on Kaya
Thraxxus Arrives
- The enemy ship approaches, and eventually slows to a stop
- PARTY PERCEPTION
- Kaya sees two individuals standing at the front of the ship, one of which is Erin Thorne. His arms are crossed, looking out at you. He nods at Cal in greeting.
- Someone FLIES off the enemy ship and lands on the shore
- The earth comes up to meet him as he crashes down
- “Prepare for my arrival, worm.”
- “Merril. I heard you were alive, so I came looking.”
- Kaya sighs, saying that it’d be a pleasure to meet him (but she’d be lying)
- He’s like “so you DO know who I am”
- Kaya’s like “I don’t wanna give you that satisfaction”
- “I am here on accordance of the Father’s empire. This is an unauthorized gathering of unauthorized individuals. Eldorians and warforged. Eldorians will come with us… and the warforged will die.”
- Kaya: I don’t think that’s going to be the case
- Thraxxus: Good… I don’t want you to resist. I’m not here to save you. I’m not here to spread the greatness of the Father’s empire. I’m here because I enjoy this.
- Fire ignites in Thraxxus’s hand
- See, to me, there’s no greater pleasure than feeling the warmth of my fist drenched in blood.
- The fire begins to rise from his hand, revealing a flaming sword.
- Thraxxus looks directly at Kaya.
- World-shaper. This is your end.
COMBAT BEGINS
- WE ROLL FOR INITIATIVE
- Cal: 26
- Quén: 21
- Kaya: 18
- Cordelia: 17
Round 1
- Cal
- “All right nippledick, are we doing this or not?”
- Thraxxus tells him to step aside, and forces Cal to roll a DEX saving throw
- Thraxxus just BACKHANDS Cal, dealing 15 points of damage to him
- Kaya’s smile DROPS
- Cal goes FLYING. A green portal opens behind him, and as he passes through it, the portal closes and he disappears
- Quén
- Tells Kaya that we need to get out of here ASAP, and that they will try to buy us some time
- They reach their hand out, and as it descends they snap their fingers, casting Banishment on Thraxxus
- Thraxxus, seeing Quén casting a spell, goes from standing still to SPRINTING AT FULL SPEED
- The moment before he reaches them, they snap, and he dissipates into mist
- Cordelia
- Pulls the Justice card
- Her next attack deals extra necrotic damage
- We get the ship going, and as we do Quén feels the Banishment wear off
- We hear a guttural YELL in the distance
- As we do, we see Thraxxus LAUNCH himself off of the shore. Fire erupts from his hands as he basically jetpacks towards us
- He lands in the water right behind the ship, and as he disappears he rises once again in a column of water
- Pulls the Justice card
- Kaya
- In the back of her head, she hears a voice she cannot place: You don’t command with the tide. You MOVE with it.
- She holds out her hand, and as she does, Thraxxus’s column of water dissipates and he falls into the water
- So… you started listening.
- After he disappears from sight, we see Thraxxus jump towards his own ship, which begins to turn towards us
Round 2
- Cal
- He teleports onto Erin Thorne’s ship, and finds himself face-to-face with Erin Thorne
- He’s also held at spearpoint by like, 6 different people