Astvanor Session 98 (12/30)

[cinaed]

Session 98: 12/30 (Day 17 of Veksdan)

Loren is hovering over Hava. Already a pale man, he is ashen from shock. He asks if she’s all right. She says she is and he says that she should sit, which she does, sitting carefully down on the floor.

Loren asks what happened, and Az explains that Maviana was replaced by this genasi who apparently mind-controlled him. Yolov adds that they were enlisted by Professor Dailiir to find the leak and learned that it was Loren, inadvertently. This seemed like a long-term plan of the Sworn Edge’s, with the woman masquerading as Maviana before she eventually killed Loren and took his place.

Az asks if Loren recognizes the tattoos. Loren studies them, crouching and examining them closely. He says that they’re similar to the Sworn Edge tattoos, though it’s hard to get the exact tattoos on water genasi.

Az asks if the tattoos differentiate between hierarchy within the Sworn Edge and Loren says unfortunately they don’t know much about the inner workings of the group. They do know that the tattoo signals loyalty to the Sworn Edge. Though he adds that it doesn’t necessarily prove true loyalty. The party realizes he means Daveena, who spied within the Sworn Edge ranks.

Yolov tells him what they learned about Marion, and Loren asks if they’ll come with him. Yolov delays just enough to check that there’s nothing useful on the genasi’s body before Loren helps Hava to her feet and leads the party to his private library.

He leaves briefly and returns with a large genealogy book. It’s about the Avisian nobility, similar to the book the party read that uncovered the connection between Valen Traevala and Iaevisian Daveena. Loren explains that there haven’t been many recent chances of people being denied masks. Most people had successors, but there is the position of the Shade, which is currently unoccupied.

The party recognizes this as the name the Sworn Edge used when trying to recruit Diana. Loren explains that the Shade was a young woman named Movia and her death was unexpected. The Shade is a position where they watch and investigate the other archivists. Movia’s family weren’t high ranking but they worked for the Crestiana family, which Yolov recognizes as an old noble family that mostly lives off their investments and have a donated wing in the Colma. They’re a quiet, secretive family, though there is a lot of gossip around them and their friendship with the Avisian crown.

Yolov knows that the eldest son Victor Crestiana is an advisor to the queen, while his twin sister Veronica was finishing her last year when Yolov started at the Colma. She now teaches as a private instructor to the rich, and there is a rumor that she teaches the Previdian princess.

Loren says that the Shade position has been unfilled for about fifteen years because the Archivist vetoed the potential successor. There is also the empty position of Archmage, but that has been empty for centuries because it is a lineage thing. The woman who created the Library split her powers into two masks for the Archmage and the Archivist, her daughters, though the Archmage line has since died out.

He says that someone came and spoke to Sae’var, but as his position as Phoenix was to record the history of the Archive, he was told only that someone attempted to take the role of the Shade and was denied. All Loren remembers was dark hair and a perpetual snarl, but the man was wearing a self-made mask that was a perfect replication of the Shade’s mask.

The man was furious at everyone during the meeting, but especially Juniper, the Tender, who he seemed to blame for the Shade’s death. Az theorizes that they have met many siblings lately, perhaps Marion and Movia were related. Loren isn’t sure, but he does know that they both had dark hair.

Yolov asks if Juniper seemed to know why Marion was angry, and Loren says that the Tender was meant to care for the archivists, and is an easier target than the illness that killed Movia. The man in the mask interrupted the Library’s memorial ceremony for the Shade and demanded an audience with the Archivist.

Loren says that Movia’s employers might know more, but he doesn’t know how willing they would be to speak with outsiders. He rubs the back of his neck and adds that they shouldn’t tell them that he sent them, since his name isn’t well respected among the nobility.

Hava nods in understanding and then puts a hand on his shoulder. She says that they think that Maviana is buried here. Loren asks where and Hava says in the garden. She would like to try and find where she is buried. Loren says he would appreciate seeing her properly buried.

Yolov protests a little, not sure that this should be a priority. They should be thinking up questions to ask the dead Sworn Edge. Loren and Hava point out that Speak With Dead doesn’t mean that she has to tell the truth to them, which dismays Yolov. He agrees that Speak With Dead would be pointless then.

Az suggests that he and Yolov go investigate Maviana’s room while Hava tries to find Maviana’s body with the others. Galowen quickly gets distracted by a cat wandering the garden. The rest of the party quickly discovers a spot near a walkway by an abandoned pond where it hasn’t been particularly disturbed but there are small, fat looking corpse beetles clustered there.

Hava kneels down and says that she thinks there’s a body down there.

They find the shovels the gardeners used the day before. While Hava sits and rests, holding her still bleeding wound, Galowen and Audacity begin to dig.

Inside, Loren leads Az and Yolov to a decent-sized bedroom. It has an attached washroom and a vanity. It’s bubblegum pink and lacy. The vanity has a small collection of a nice hairbrush and product and fur tonic. There’s a nice well-made bed and clothes tossed over a chair.

Yolov and Az investigate the room. There are definitely signs of someone else living here, different clothing styles. There’s nothing especially telling, the Sworn Edge woman has been careful, but they do find in the far back of the wardrobe a small box of very heavy winter clothes not made for a satyr, with boots. The boots have rocks in the treads and clearly were used outside recently.

They head outside with Loren to join the others as Audacity and Galowen uncover Maviana’s corpse, wrapped in a pastel pink bed sheet and buried seven feet under ground. Az asks them to study the boots and see if they can figure out where the disguised Sworn Edge was recently.

Diana rubs the dirt between her fingers and tastes it. Judging by the dirt patterns, the woman talked on ice long since melted and in a very wet, cold area. When she tastes it, for a moment it tastes like something perfumey and sweet before it tastes like rot. She spits it out and still smells the distant memory scent of rot. She realizes that this was obviously from the mountains and likely the dragon’s lair.

Az theorizes that there must be a way to teleport up there since Loren didn’t notice Maviana disappearing for days at a time. Loren admits there were many days where he was gone on business and assumed Maviana was at the house. Az sighs, realizing that means they’ll have to travel by foot.

Hava directs Loren’s attention to Maviana’s body. When he says that he’ll have to get a priest, Hava asks if he wants to speak with her. Loren says he wouldn’t know what to say. Yolov asks if she had family and he says no, she was alone. He begins to blame himself for not realizing she’d been replaced, but the others remind him that the Sworn Edge was very good at her job and that this had been planned very carefully.

Hava casts Speak With Dead. In the minutes that follow as Loren doesn’t ask any questions but simply talks quietly to Maviana, the party can see that Loren knew Maviana for many years. She was at his side when he was at his very worst, and was probably his only friend. Her death and her being taken over by someone else, the reason the Sworn Edge was so successful as the mole, was because he trusted Maviana more than he trusted himself. She’d watched him change after meeting Molly and encouraged him to change for the better, changing from the bitter man Professor Dailiir described to someone willing to give up his money and name for love.

When the spell fades, Loren looks at Hava with tears running down his face and thanks her as he puts his arm around her while she weeps as well. He offers them rooms at the house, but Hava says that they can’t stay, they have things to do. She casts Ceremony on Maviana’s body and asks if Loren met the mercenary group.

He describes Maeve as blue, very strong and a very commanding presence. He asks if Hava knows her, and when she explains that’s her sister he begins to apologize. She waves it away. Yolov asks about the route of the missing caravan. He is told that they wouldn’t have taken the dwarven roads, but gone westward out of the capital.

Loren says that the mercenary group left in a rush.

Az and Yolov know about the Kastvar Mountains, where the dwarves had settled long before Avisrune was settled. They have a sprawling complex underground city-state Khavran. The dwarves consider themselves Kastvarian first, and Avisian second, and have refrained from joining the Council of Seven.

Those who live and stay in the mountains are very protective of their own monarchy and system. It’s not particularly common knowledge, and it’s only recently that the dwarves have even started to mingle with Avisians and have their own trading center in Radiscune.

Yolov knows there are ongoing discussions of the queen wanting an advisor from the dwarves to advise her on dwarven politics and trading with Khavran. He knows that they don’t need permission to take the main dwarven roads, but wouldn’t be allowed to go into certain sections.

Hava asks when the group left and is told three weeks ago. Yolov asks if they left in a rush because they wanted to get the job done, or because they needed to leave the city quickly and this was killing two birds with one stone. Loren says that he doesn’t know, but he and the Little Hen didn’t know about the Stormriders taking a second job. He just knows they left so quickly that they didn’t want to make a copy of the caravan’s map.

Yolov, hearing that there is a map, quickly copies it.

Leaving Loren, most of the party goes shopping for cold weather gear in preparation for the mountains while Az stares longingly at a sleek, expensive looking robe before purchasing something more sensible.

Yolov already has winter clothing from his years in Radiscune, but Hava purchases a knitted cap for him. She puts it on his head and gives him a hug. She says that she’s sorry that Dailiir is still in danger. He admits shakily that today isn’t the day he imagined. Hava asks what he imagined, and he says that he thought he’d get to show them the library and treat everyone to dinner. She asks about the dinner, if today is special, and he says he doesn’t want to talk about it, he doesn’t want to distract everyone when they get distracted easily.

She tells him that he can tell them whenever he wants, realizing that the Puppeteer implied that Dailiir was planning on Yolov being her successor and that Yolov has no idea. Yolov promises her he will once Dailiir is safe.

The party drops Tommy and Raleigh off at Genesis’ tavern. There is no sign of Counter, and Genesis claims not to know who the party is talking about.

Az quickly realizes that Genesis is fucking with them. He explains that they saved Tommy from the dragon and the kids have been helping them. Now they want the kids to have somewhere warm to stay while the party goes up into the mountains. Tommy protests, saying that they’re the Hooligans’ bodyguards. Az kneels down and says that they have to leave the city, but they’ll be back.

Audacity adds that Genesis can teach them many cool things.

Tommy asks if they promise to come back, and Az assures him in Orc with a pinky promise.

Genesis agrees to watch the kids.

Yolov asks Genesis if they were at the Shade’s funeral. They say they were, though they weren’t there as an official member of the Archive yet. They offer to show the party what the man looked like who interrupted the memorial.

Genesis cycles through several guises, first Hava and then Audacity, much to Hava’s dismay.

Genesis offers an exchange of information. The party tells them about the fake Maviana being the leak, and they shift into a young-looking humanoid man who is human or half-elven. The figure has short, messy dark hair and pointed features and a perpetual scowl under his mask, one designed to appear as though shadows drip off of it.

Genesis mimics the voice of the man from Rhys’ memory. They explain they weren’t there as a mask wearer, but supporting his friend Kyras, the former Walker. The man only seemed interested in yelling at the Tender and demanding an audience with Solray. When Az asks why Solray even entertained him, Genesis says Solray is a politician first.

Genesis asks if they want them to transform into anyone else and Hava turns and asks Az, seeing that Genesis is trying to flirt with Az. As Az blinks at her, Audacity promises to drop him off at Genesis’ when they get back to the city. Genesis says that they appreciate that and tells Az they’re a very good cook.

The party goes to Juniper’s next. She asks if the truth serum was handy, and they tell her that they haven’t had the opportunity to use it yet. Audacity asks her about the last Shade.

Juniper says that when Movia was sick, she wanted to talk about people she cared for. She talked a lot about her father, a very talented academic sort. He wasn’t magically inclined. She didn’t know much about her mother, but she had some half-siblings from her father’s previous relationship, but she was the youngest child.

She was very sweet and didn’t give out their names, not wanting to put them in danger, but said she had two older brothers and an older sister. Juniper knows that Movia’s sister lives in Stonerun, and that her brother and the father work for the Crestiana family. The father is the research librarian.

Yolov tells her about Maviana and that Juniper might want to go speak with Loren and check on him. Juniper says they know about the memorial then, which she hated. She doesn’t like being the focus of everyone’s attention. She hadn’t brought poison with her to the funeral, thinking it rude.

Juniper says he was very angry, that he blamed her for not doing more, that she should’ve protected the lost ones, whoever they were. She explains that healers and clerics had investigated Movia’s illness, knowing it wasn’t a curse but no one able to find a cure. She just seemed to get paler and weaker until she died.

Az asks if Movia was a warlock, if it was similar to the Shadow Broken breaking their pacts and some dying.

Juniper says no, Movia was a very talented sorceress. She hesitates and then says she’s trying to lie less, but Movia had scars on her shoulders and down her back that she wouldn’t explain. They looked like runic scars, and all Movia said about them was that they were old and she’d done it years ago.

Juniper says she’s seen scars like that before, they were similar to Solray’s, when someone does too much magic at once. Yolov knows these scars only happen with older mages or people like Solray who overextend their magic.

The party warns her that she might want to lay low. Hava, knowing that Esrani has a crush on Juniper, suggests that Juniper visit the Puppeteer, which makes Juniper go red and mumble that she might bring him dinner and check on him.

Hava tells her that sounds like a nice plan.