... loose lips sink ships ...
Our band continues to be...
Kalik, halfling initiate of Avoreen;
Vesper, (NPC) human fighter, henchman of Kalik;
Milik, halfling sorcerer;
Kendradell, female half-elf bard & initiate of Lydia <absent
this week>;
Nikolai, suloise human acolyte of Lendor;
Marcus, half-elf acolyte of Hieroneous;
Tarqualan, high elf mystic <absent this week>;
Paul Denton, human sorcerer-initiate of Boccob (Veluna);
and introducing;
Nubo, gnome thief-psionicist (Greyhawk City).
[4th of Fireseek, 579]
(Minor backtrack; since Naazi's player desired to change characters, it was decided that his character had pursued the final fleeing soldier and disappeared over a hill while the rest of the party attempted to rally the house guard and rescue other members of the staff from the growing blaze...)
After discovering the frozen form of Maerdan of Tharizdun still safely
concealed in their wagon at the stables, the party began taking stock of
what resources had been saved from the fire. A pair of house guards sent
to inspect the grounds soon returned with a struggling bag of gnome, whom
they had found poking about the body of Naazi on the edge of the estate.
Nubo introduced himself, and shortly recognized the names of several of
the longer standing members of the party as having been
friends of his uncle Sabian (the gnome who left the group sometime
around Richfest 577). Though warned by Kalik that joining their band almost
certainly spelled his doom, Nubo was adamant that it certainly beat returning
to his father's carpentry shop, as he craved adventure.
Not knowing how to contact Naazi's church, he was buried on the grounds of Danu's estate, with honors. Danu, former high priest of Lendor, was taken back to his temple where funeral services were held by his second, Brannard. Brannard also took possession of the frozen priest the party had spent so much time lugging about the Flanaess, vowing to see to it that proper care would be taken of it.
While Nikolai spent time in the temple praying and casting divinations, Marcus accompanied Kalik home to his village near the Celadon, meeting his infamous grandfather and charming younger sister. As time grew nearer for Arvoreen's High Holy Day, Marcus confided in several of Kalik's family members that while Kalik was certainly the most loyal hobniz he had ever encountered, that his friend's attitude had lately taken a decidedly fatalistic turn. By the time came for them to depart, however, Kalik seemed to renew his love of life and became once more the boisterous, talkative hobniz Marcus had grown to respect.
While other members of the party spent their days training or relaxing,
Nikolai spent his waking moments researching what he could learn of the
various factions they were facing, and using his divinations to great effect.
Through these means he learned of the death of the necromancer they'd known
only as "the Dark One" at the hands of Capt. Elias, seemingly at a meeting
of some importance. The Dark One, Capt. Elias, the Hooded Sword-Priest,
and another man whose face was partially obscured by a silver insect mask
all raised their glasses in a toast and seemed at peace until Elias drove
a strange barbed sword into the
necromancer's belly, at which point a grand melee erupted. Amidst the
fighting, he spotted a figure he recognized as being an ally of Mirella's
steal three of the gems that the necromancer held and escape with them.
Milik, for his part, suffered through an intensive interview about his past before being admitted to the Ancient Cultures section of the Lendoran archives, where he learned much lore concerning a people known as the Meyanar, who long before the rise of the Suloise had ruled the lands in these parts. The Meyanar, what little was known of them, had seemed adept at dealing with the Host, and had seemed to be making plans at effecting their release when war with another race that dwelt in the north distracted them and eventually caused both races to vanish shortly thereafter. Since Capt. Elias seemed quite likely a pawn of the Hierarchs, it seemed a possibility that whatever means the Meyanar had developed to unlock the Infernal Gates might now be in the possession of those most able to make use of them.
As the group made plans to pursue Elias back to the Horned Society (which other divinations revealed to be his current goal), Nikolai offered the group a choice; with his uncle dead, and the tide of events turning more martial in nature, his older brother Piotr would soon be arriving to pay his respects to their uncle - if Piotr was willing, and the group agreed, would he not serve their cause better by remaining behind to do further research while Piotr accompanied them north? Finally it was agreed that Nikolai would remain behind and that his brother Piotr, a brawny sell-sword, would accompany the group in their next adventure.
After taking a swift galley north to Critwall, the party learned that Elias and his men (or almost all of them) had already departed the city. One soldier however, had gotten drunk and had been beaten in a bar brawl and then arrested, and currently languished in the local gaol. Marcus interrogated him, learning little more than the name of the fortress that was likely Elias' goal, namely Vasten, a keep on the banks of the Veng River. He also learned that the prisoner was a follower of Baalzebub, one of the Powers revered by the Hierarchs.
Meanwhile, Piotr and Kalik combed the local taverns and inns looking for other leads, and were eventually invited to a secret meeting for a new cult that was slowly spreading through the underclass of the city; known only as the Sword-King. Nubo tried to keep up with the pair, but lost them when their escort took them down under the docks. Once at the meeting Piotr and Kalik heard much about the plans and aims of the Sword-King's cult, but Piotr, being somewhat new to the group, did not know enough to silence Kalik when he began interrogating the 'leader' of the meeting. Kalik was soon knocked unconscious and the rest of the assembled seekers were bade to leave (Piotr had enough sense to distance himself from Kalik when it became clear where the conversation was going) and when last we saw Kalik, his unconscious body was being placed in a simple burlap sack and hustled out of the meeting hall....
[6th of Coldeven, 579]