Dramatis Personae
Alizander Carmelizzia - Human (Varisian) sorcerer
Boecca – Half-orc inquisitor of Erastil
Carlos Santiago - Half-orc (Alkenstarian) wizard
Nagiphax – Cyclops-kin rogue/barbarian
Slavé/Jancen – Tiefling (in guise as a human) rogue/assassin
Tavo Dechirent - Human cleric of Pharasma
Vaeden Corleone - Human rogue
Toilday, 14 Calistril, 4709 A.R.
Jancen and Boecca manage to come to a truce of sorts, and agree to deliver Aberian to the authorities. They convince Aberian that it is in his best interest to turn himself into the dottari, and the Lord-Mayor (still in Boecca’s shackles) agrees to accompany the two Returners. Jancen has other plans in mind, however, and leads Aberian through the city and into the Rego Crua (the northern ruins), where, much to Aberian’s dismay, he is handed over to Pontia and the Order of the Scourge for questioning.
Meanwhile, Carlos scouts over the blasted ruin of the Lord-Mayor’s estate, both invisible and flying in order to avoid detection. He notices little activity, beyond several dottari guards at barricades blocking entrance on foot into ground zero, but does get a closer look at the deep crater left behind by the explosion. While in the crater, a growing sense of dread and fear builds until a panicked Carlos finds he cannot stay in the area any longer, and makes his way back to the rest of the Returners, whom he finds talking with a dottari lieutenant at one of the barricades.
Vaeden, Tavo, Nagiphax, and Alizander speak to the dottari, questioning the guards and the lieutenant about activity at the ruined estate. The dottari lieutenant is vague on details, muttering something about seeing several small, fire-shrouded devil-creatures wielding tridents entering the Rasdovain gatehouse just north of the ruin. Vaeden and Tavo sense something off about the distracted lieutenant, and determine that he may be under some sort of enchantment or compulsion. With the help of Carlos, they manage to remove the charm effect from the lieutenant, and learn that he was recently attacked and dominated by a lanky, feral-looking man who called himself as Jerusen and kept referring to the “Master of Shadows”. The Returners suspect that the Master of Shadows may be Ilnerik Sivanshin, the half-elf believed to be in possession of the Totemrix, twin to the Morrowfall and the other half of the Aohl artifact. The lieutenant is grateful to the Returners, and warns them to be on the lookout for Jerusen, who is surely aware that the lieutenant is no longer under his control. The lieutenant grants permission to the Returners to enter the area, and appoints one of the other dottari as commander of the barricade guard while he heads to a dottari guardhouse to make his report and seek protection.
Jancen and Boecca return and join the rest of the Returners at this point. Jancen and Vaeden decide to enter ground zero first and scout the area from the shadows. They avoid the raging tornadoes of fire that surround the crater, finding they give off almost no heat whatsoever until they approach within ten feet or so. The two rogues notice something lurking in the rubble as they near the still-standing east-wing of Aberian’s Folly. Unfortunately, the figure has also been watching them, and suddenly takes flight. A lithe and beautiful female form rises into the air on a pair of glistening black-feathered wings. She wields an ebony bow tinged with flecks of fire, and strikes an imposing silhouetted against the backdrop of blistering hellfire tornado and smoky night sky. The erinyes devil brings her bow to bear, and just as she readies to fire at Vaeden, Boecca lets loose an arrow from his vantage point about 200 feet away. The arrow flies true and strikes the erinyes at a critical joint where her wing meets her shoulder. Pain lances through the devil’s body, stunning her momentarily and sending her plummeting to the ground below. The rest of the party, still waiting behind the barricade, witness the event and rush into the area. The erinyes invokes the darkness and torment of hell in an effort to keep the Returners off of her, but the wound in her shoulder proves too great, and she falls under the attacks of the Returners. Before she succumbs, she manages to scream for aid from a being named Nyxervex – a name several of the Returners recall from their excursion into the Asmodean Knot several months ago. Nyxervex soon reveals himself, stepping from the Rasdovain gatehouse just north of the crater. The imposing 9-foot tall bone devil joins the battle, striking at the Returners with its skeletal claws and poisonous stinging tail.
Experience Awards
· Story award (delivering Arvanxi to the authorities) – 4800 xp
· Story award (removing enchantment from dottari lieutenant) – 3000 xp
· Isavenda (erinyes devil) – 4800 xp
· Total – 12600 xp
· Per PC (7) – 1800 xp
· Fame Points (for delivering Arvanxi to the authorities) - 1
Current XP Total per PC
· Alizander, Carlos, Slavé, Vaeden – 34,545 xp each
· Boecca – 31,790 xp
· Nagiphax, Tavo – 30,800 xp
· Total Current Fame Points – 15
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