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Session 147: Day 19 of Saedan (7/19)

There is a soft enchantment on the house to keep the air cool in the rooms. As Az leads them outside, the hot air hits them all with a nose-prickling heat. Striog is an intense dry heat.

Az leads them through a rocky garden space filled and blossoming with desert plants. There’s cacti and succulents and aloe plants amidst the sun-bleached white stones and brick red earth.

The tower is a crumbling overgrown thing. Az never really understood why nothing was ever done to it, but it has the same shimmery sheen that he noticed before, like a heat mirage rippling the landscape.

Many in the party have a moment where it feels like they can see the vines blossoming and moving before it flickers back to disrepair. They recognize the mirage-like movement as either the thinning of a space between planes or a tear between planes.

Yolov asks Hava about Evie’s reaction to the tower. She asks Evie if she noticed anything strange, and Evie asks if she means the tear between the planes. When Hava says yes and relays that, Az is startled and asks what they’re talking about.

They point out the tower and Az says that he didn’t remember a tear here before when he was a kid. Yolov theorizes that it could have gotten bigger since he left home, and after Az explains it’s where he first talked with his patron, Audacity says it’s probably been there since at least his mom, since she was his patron’s warlock.

Audacity thinks of Archie claiming that closing the rift would cost him his powers back in Tessvar and wonders if doing the same would harm Az here. He remembers how Az’s patron seems to reach him anywhere and suspects that it won’t harm him now because of the pact.

The only entrance big enough to house a person is the remains of a front door. They can step right past it. It’s ten foot by ten foot, with pock-marked scars where stone is missing. They can see sunlight coming down and catching the motes of dust.

There is a wooden spiral of stairs that goes up. Az leads the way. As he steps over the threshold, expecting the stale heat and baking sensation of the tower, instead he feels an almost cool breeze carrying the scent of fresh grass and water.

The sun beats down on him as he takes in a wide area filled with a riot of flowers and a rushing river cutting between two sandy shoals. He turns around to see if he can still see the rest of the party. He doesn’t see anyone, but instead more trees of pinks and purples and blues and the faint shimmer and flicker of a doorway.

He looks around for any towers or other presences around. He can see there are two hunched tanned figures with graying whiskers crouched near a bush, clothed in red and whispering to each other. He doesn’t understand what they’re saying to each other.

There is a fallen tree that makes a bridge across the water. He studies the figures and realizes they are redcaps, born out of bloodlust. He hastily walks away towards that flickering doorway.

In Striog, the rest of the party see Az disappear for a few seconds. Before anyone can do more than draw their weapons and take a step forward, he reappears. They ask him what happened, and he explains where he’s been and the redcaps he saw.

Audacity asks if the tower connected to his patron’s prison before and Az says it does. Yolov asks if that means the redcaps can come through and Az says he doesn’t think so, they would have come through already if they could.

Audacity points out that people in his city are making some terrible deals. Az says that those deals are with humanoid people and Audacity counters that they don’t know that for certain. Audacity steps through the door and finds himself in the same place, stepping back out of the tower to the rest of the group.

Diana does the same and snatches some Feywild grass before she returns.

Audacity says that he doesn’t think they should keep this rift open. Az argues that he wants to keep it open because he needs a way to find his patron. Yolov says that it doesn’t seem safe to him and worries about the safety of Az’s family, pointing out that they can figure out other ways to get to the Feywild.

Az holds out the bracelet he found in the attic and explains it belonged to his mother and was from their mutual patron. He says he wants to talk to his patron and see what they want from him before closing any rifts.

Hava says she thinks he should do what he thinks is best.

Az focuses and finds himself in the teahouse with his patron in full stickbug form, who tells him that it’s been a long time. Az says it doesn’t feel like it before he asks if their connection to the tower has felt different lately.

The patron says not really, except that things feel a little more vibrant here now. They point out Az’s bracelet and say they see he found his mother’s gift. It was a wedding present.

Az looks outside the teahouse and sees that this is the same sort of area as the one they stepped into via the tower. He can feel his patron’s attention focused on him and explains that he and his friends found a rift near a Feywild river.

Their patron says his name and rises to their feet, their stick-leg form transforming into a narrow and thin humanoid shape, very tall and wearing floor length dark robes that go all the way to their bandaged fingers and a hood shrouding their face.

Az can’t see past the hood’s darkness as the patron steps closer and says there’s an entrance and that Az smells like spring. Az says that there’s an entrance near this area. He’s trying to convince his friends to keep it open, but there’s other ways to get into other planes.

His patron says there are always ways to get into other planes but this one feels like fate. He smells like spring, his patron repeats.

Az says he thought it felt important too. The tower is where they first met, the patron reminds him, and orders him to describe what he saw. Az does his best, describing the river and the redcaps.

The patron grabs his shoulders and tells him that he’s so close. Az says he knows, but he and his friends have other things to do. The patron asks if he is at the base of the tower and says that the Feywild should be trying to get to them. The Feywild tucks in on itself and it sounds like it’s interrupting the pathway to their prison.

His patron tells him to keep going through the doorway. His patron grabs him by the front of his shirt, the blackened claws hauling him closer. Their breath smells like the sweet pungent smell of rotting flowers and moldering wood. If you leave them here, they warn Az, they will rend Az atom by atom.

His patron asks him if he understands. They will claw their way out of this prison and make him wish that his mother let him die.

Az just nods shakily.

His patron reminds him what they’re promising. He will rule beside them or suffer like them.

Az says he didn’t forget. He knows. He reaches out in an attempt to comfort or calm down his patron. Their shoulder feels a little like half-rotted wood under his hand.

They let him go and he plops back into himself in front of his friends, who see his shredded shirt. Diana asks if he’s okay and Az says that his patron is very excited at the potential of an entrance and he had to remind them that the Hooligans couldn’t go barging in to rescue them right now. His patron thinks that spring is trying to get to them.

He looks down at his shirt and plucks at the damage, saying he’ll have to replace it. Yolov reaches out and casts Mending as Diana studies Az and tries to figure out if this is similar to Az trying to downplay his facial scars.

Az had been obviously emotional coming down from the attic, but he looks mostly intimidated now after his conversation with his patron.

Audacity asks him to rephrase the ‘excited’ part. Az says insistent, but he explained that they needed to close it, and they didn’t object to him closing it, though he wants to keep it open.

Audacity kneels next to him and says that every time his patron interacts with him he comes off worse for the wear. He doesn’t deserve this for his loyalty. Az tries to argue that his patron is in prison and being tortured and it’s understandable that they’re angry.

Audacity points out that Galowen is going to kill his dad’s murderer and doesn’t hurt anyone.

Az looks guiltily towards Galowen and then says that he’s fine. He will let them know when he needs help, he will. Hava asks what he means by that and he says it means exactly what it means and walks off.

Diana follows after him as the rest of the party look among themselves and discuss closing the rift without his permission.

They ultimately decide against it, with Yolov not wanting to destroy Az’s trust in them, but they settle on dealing with the Sons of Kane first before revisiting the Archfey question. They all agree that Az’s patron doesn’t have his best interests at heart and they might have to deal with them, with Yolov saying he does want to free the two other Winds of Change Archfey from their prisons if they can.

Az gets to the house, realizing he can’t explain to his father why he’s angry, before he turns to go back to the group, almost running into Diana. She tells him that they need to talk. He cannot give up his life in exchange for the whims of someone who wants power.

Az says he’s fine. If he has to free his patron on his own, he will.

Diana switches to Gnomish and says that won’t go well. His friends won’t leave him high and dry. She just wants him to know as someone who has been on the tail end of something that’s kind of like this, she just doesn’t want him to feel stuck in a position he can’t get out of.

Az asks why everyone thinks he’s trapped. Diana asks him what would happen if he chose to leave. Az says he won’t, he likes having these powers. When she tries to ask him as a hypothetical, he cuts her off and insists that it won’t happen, he’s not going back to being powerless.

Diana bites her tongue and swallows back what she was about to say.

Az doesn’t press.

Diana says she’ll be with him, and Az says he appreciates that, before Diana adds that if he ever yells at her, she will throw him. He says he won’t but he’s sure that she would.

Meanwhile, Audacity leans against Galowen back at the tower. They debate on what they should do next, talk to Senator Togworth about the Sons of Kane or go to the Sons of Kane workshop under the guise of getting Mastery a prosthetic tail. They decide to ask Az which he thinks is best.

They all gather together to discuss who they should talk to first, with Az saying that they should speak with the senator first, and then go to the Little Cog at Arlin’s invitation before going to the workshop under the excuse of investigating a prosthetic tail for Mastery.

Az knows that the senator would likely be at the law library in the senate hall. This is a study space for local educators and law students. Togworth tends to give after class tutoring sessions. Even if he wasn’t there, he would be in his office.

The fastest way to the senate hall is to take the tram to the top of the hall. It’s dizzying to be up this high as it carries them all higher and higher, the city getting smaller beneath them until everyone looks like tiny bugs and the carriages look like toys.

It comes to a stop at the busy section. Galowen is nauseous. Everyone else is moving around, used to the wonder of the artificer magic. The Hooligans see signs written in Common, Gnomish, and Orcish in the center of this platform that leads down into the senate hall. Most people are going from one tram to another, half-orcs and half-gnomes making their way through.

It’s a cramped, loud space with magically modified voices calling out directions to the trams and warning about closing doors.

Az leads them down the center walkway. A few people are going down as well, either because they live closer to the senate hall or they are going somewhere in the senate hall. The library is on the first floor, so he leads them down the nice, well-polished brass stairwell and a dark red rug.

The stairs pass through well-polished, well-kept floors, one where the senate offices are guarded until they reach the first floor. There are polished floors and art deco ceilings. Everything is shone and cleaned to the point of reflection.

Az has vivid memories of seeing his reflection beneath his feet as he walked the senate halls even as a child. It’s always been well kept and gorgeous. The entrance to the library is a few yards inside the front door. They have to go through a column rimmed walkway to a pair of polished brass doors that also have smaller doors for gnomes to use.

There is a sign in Common, Gnomish, and Orcish that says “Law Library This Way” with an accompanying arrow. Az leads them inside. There are solid wooden bookshelves with dusty law books and ladders that people can use to get to books. There are mahogany tables and nearby an ancient gnome is sitting with half-moon glasses and a high-necked cardigan.

She looks up at them with beady eyes and welcomes them to the law library. She introduces herself as Glitterfitz Springwheel. Az recognizes her as the front desk librarian since he was a child. Everyone calls her Glitter.

She squints at Az, recognizing him as he greets her and tells her she’s as sharp as ever. He endures her patting his cheeks and tells him that he’s getting thin. She offers him the candies he supposedly used to love as a kid.

Az desperately tries to get her to tell him where the senator is as she fishes in her drawer for the canvas bag and gives two pieces of candy to each of the party. Only then does she say that if he’s looking for the Master Tinkerer she believes he’s finishing up a tutoring session.

She holds up her tiny wrist which has an enormous clockwork watch dwarfing it and says he’ll be available in about five minutes. She pulls out a map and then points them at a room about fifty feet away. He’ll be available in five or six minutes.

She reminds them to bring any books to the desk. The rest of the party drifts away from the desk but Yolov stays to get a Striogian library card, which is a magical metal card that can alert him when he has a book overdue. He rejoins the group, looking pleased.

A few minutes later, an exhausted looking and haggard group of students leave the study room, having done this study session after their eight o’clock session. One of the last ones is a white-haired older gnome who is gesturing wildly and explaining to a haggard student that in order to create the extremely niche clockwork organ or prostheses that you would need to construct it under a series of microscopes. He would be happy to let her use the workshop whenever she asks.

The woman he was speaking to thanks him and says she’ll take him up on that.

Then Togworth turns and greets Az. Az says it’s a pleasure to see him again and Togworth teases him for being so formal, he’s known Az since he was young.

He tells Az to introduce his friends and immediately asks them a million questions about themselves, asking Yolov about the Colma and his thoughts on artificial life, Audacity about Kastvar and his travels, Diana and Galowen about Kelfemma, and Hava about Alu’dar and her goddesses.

When he asks Hava if she’s homesick, Hava hedges and he says that maybe her friends can take her down to the water one of these days. Then he looks back at Az and says he’s certain they didn’t come by just to say hello.

Az says they were hoping to ask him some questions about the artificer guilds in the city, but perhaps it would be better to speak in private in his office.

Togworth agrees and starts up towards the stairs, giving them the historical tour. He concludes his story with pointing out the offices changed up about four generations back over arguments over windows. His room has the least amount of windows which he prefers. It makes it harder for people to spy on him and besides he has his own workshop down below.

He opens the door to a very cluttered office and half-built inventions scattered everywhere, scrolls, blueprints, a half-built golem in the corner. There’s a chair piled high with scrap metal and one wall is an enormous mouse tank with his mice scurrying around.

Togworth snaps his fingers and pieces of scrap metal come together to form a vaguely human-shaped figure that moves things around to clear the two available chairs. He snaps his fingers and the scrap metal falls apart again.

Az tells him that they’re here to ask about the Sons of Kane and their business practices.

Togworth says there’s not much to say about them. The members have always been a little bitter that they never win any government contracts. They just don’t have the drive and have been floundering.

Az says they seem to be making quite a niche for themselves, explaining about the change in leadership and the expensive prices of the prosthetics. Togworth’s expression drops and he says the senate will have to deal with this.

Audacity asks for a day to handle it themselves. He explains that he’s concerned that the prosthetics will be turned off and also that something might happen with the necrotic runes.

Togworth tells him that this cannot wait. Striog has never believed in barring knowledge and education from anyone. This technology that they have and keeping the information proprietary so that they can make a profit goes against everything Striog stands for.

Hava says that it is very nice, but it doesn’t really matter who just wants to make money and on a more complex level see people suffer.

Togwoth says he understands that, but as a member of the Striogian senate he cannot stand idly by when something is happening that goes against Striogian tradition and ethics.

Audacity points out that he has been standing idly by, telling him that people have been suffering on his watch.

Togworth tells Audacity that the only reason he hasn’t had them escorted out is because Az is the son of a very dear friend.

Az asks him for twenty four hours and Togworth tells them that they have five. That is how long it will take Togworth to call an emergency session of the Senate and how long it will be before Admiral Zorax comes to the Little Cog and handles things themself.

As Audacity stalks out, Yolov asks if he needs any evidence for the Senate, and Togworth says he wants an example of the prosthetic to study the runes. He then tells them that Audacity isn’t good at politics and they should keep him on a tighter leash.

Hava says she wouldn’t want Audacity any other way.

As Az ushers them out, he sees a flash of frustration on Az’s behalf from Togworth that he doesn’t know what to make of. Outside Audacity is standing stiffly near the Grand Matron’s door and sees Togworth march over there, knock on the door, and speak to her quietly before going inside.

The group looks at each other before beginning to head towards the Little Cog.