Mister_Whisker Presents: Chronicles of the Accursed

The massive heavily tattooed goliath places the girl on the floor, giving her a pat on the head for cooperating so far, then taking off his large backpack to rummage around for something edible, finding some cookies and dried fruit in there, gently offering them to the boy and the tiefling in his massive palm along with what would pass for a goliath smile. 

"What is down in the caves? What was Lar looking for?" He asks after a little while, looking between the girl and the tiefling.

The girl swallows nervously, but looks like she's calmed down a little bit. Meanwhile, the boy greedily takes the cookies like someone who hasn't eaten in a week (which... might actually be the case, all things considered).

But the tiefling answers the question first as she takes some dried fruit from Thorgath's hand.

"Sir, there is a tale told that, below Milord's manor, the caves contain a bound efreeti queen. It is said that her name is Gamra. She was promised freedom if she would help destroy a great evil, a mad dragon queen known as Sserah. But she was betrayed by the heroes known as the Dawnwardens and locked away in the crypts instead of freed from bondage. It is said that her rage has turned the caverns into a burning inferno... I have not been there myself, but all I have heard has said to me that the story is likely true."

Dhamila sighs inwardly with relief: Michael and his nanny are apparently fine—at least well enough to recover and forget everything soon. She brings the two food from the hall below, where the dead bandits are no longer able to enjoy it. Since she is invisible, the food seems to materialize out of nowhere in front of the tiefling and the child, while a cheerful voice (also out of nowhere) invites: "There's enough for both of you, there's no need for either of you to wait!"

'And to think there are those who connect us Tieflings to the Lower Planes...' the Creepy Girl finds herself reflecting. 'This poor Tiefling was ready to sacrifice herself for the child—while Lar, human (at least in appearance), wasn't behaving much better than the Demons in the stories my mother sometimes tried to scare me with...'

And speaking of stories, the Runaway Tiefling grows more and more interested in the famous lamp Lart was looking for. Once her companions are back on their feet, it might be worthwhile to retrieve it... if only because Lart and company might have disturbed some warders who might pop up at the most inopportune moment and devour the boy and nanny in one bite. Plus, let's face it, that poor Gamra does not seem to deserve to stay imprisoned down there for for eternity...

“Here, have something to drink. Eat slowly… you might choke.”

Balthathar offers wine and fruit juice from the great hall as he listens to the tiefling nanny’s story.

“Hm… a betrayed efreeti queen? I wonder what part of that tale made Lar think she’d reward him with riches.”

He lets out a quiet snort.

“More likely, once Gamra is freed, she’ll burn this entire town to ash for imprisoning her. We should investigate the cave—just in case one of those fools tampers with the enchantment.”

He pauses, frowning slightly.

“Luckily, we have someone familiar with true hellfire… oh?”

Balthathar looks around, puzzled.

“Speaking of which… where is my familiar?”

---

Meanwhile, Robin is having WONDERFUL time in the great hall.

If the others haven’t already looted the bodies of Lar, the gnome wizard, and the fallen bandits… she has.

Everything is gone—except their underwear, and what little dignity they had left.

She even helps herself to the baron’s silverware.

“I need a Bag of Holding! No—dozens of them! And a mule! And a carriage!”

Speaking of looting...

The fallen mage had a headband of intellect, and Lar had a rapier, +1

Abishai spends a few moments mending the groups cloths after the previous few battles while they talk with the Baron's son and his nurse maid. 

"Hmm... not good, not good. Two mad queens... Like as not Balth is right. This Efreeti was bound for a reason. I'd like to learn more about these... what did you call them? Right, Dawnwardens. Do you have a library in town perchance?" Abishai asks without stopping the work he's doing.

"For a reason?" Dhamila's voice replies from nowhere near Abishai. "She's been betrayed... Do you know how often that happens in C4rceri? And the reason, if there is one, is rarely good or right... I think we should help her."

"After we've recovered, of course" the Runaway Tiefling takes care to specify.

[[ OOC: She could make good use of both the Rapier and the Headband... But if someone needs more, no problem. ]]

[[OOC: Brynja could use the rapier but prefers her hammer that matches  her armor. It's not magical, but she''s more familiar with hammers. Besides her role isn't dishing out damage, it's taking it. The headband would change her INT penalty to an INT bonus, but she doesn't have any int skills, so no point to it. She's fine with others having those items.]]

Thorgath would take a seat at the floor by the boy, trying to rest while watching the boy eat. His reasoning was simple, betrayed or not, the efreeti queen sounded quite dangerous and should not be released upon the world unless they could somehow make certain she would not destroy it. He had never backed down from a good fight or challenge but fighting an efreeti queen with his bare hands sounded a bit stupid, even to him.

The tiefling nursemaid, whose name turns out to be Averine, shows you some guest rooms where you can rest and recover from the fight.

"The Master has a library," Averine tells Abishai. "Lar and the others had little interest in it. There should be plenty of information there."

In the library, there are several historical tomes. As you open one particularly dusty tome, a note falls out. Picking up the parchment, you see the following:

“Five were bound to end the night,
Five who bore the dragon’s spite.

One was chained in borrowed flame,
Beneath a lord who speaks her name.

One in iron, standing still—
A fortress frozen by its will.

One where rests an iron hand,
Now broken bones beneath the sand.

One who saw through every lie,
Now lost where mirrored truths deny.

And one who reached beyond the veil…
And found that power always fails.

Find them not for what they were—
But for what remains of her.”

The poem feels extremely relevant... but it's hard to decipher exactly what it means. Flipping through the dusty tome, there is a footnote... it mentions five heroes who once fought against an ancient Black Dragon known as Sserah Nightsbane. The entry doesn't have a lot of details, but it sounds like the Dawnwardens all met unpleasant fates shortly after the destruction of the so-called Mad Dragon Queen.

The party is able to get in a long rest, undisturbed. Averine settles Michael into bed in the nursery and dims the lamps with a soft smile. You get a good night of sleep and wake up fully refreshed.

“The truth is, Dhamila… pain and betrayal can change people. One bad day can drive good people mad—and the wicked even worse. And Gamra… she’s spent decades in a prison.”

Balthathar lets out a quiet sigh.

“We can’t predict what she’ll do.”

For a brief moment, his thoughts drift to Robin. That crazy creature is almost certainly causing trouble somewhere—but there are more urgent matters at hand.

“Girl…”

He turns to the young mage.

“We know Lar sent people to the cave. I don’t know how they managed it—did he give them anything to withstand the heat? Protective charms… or something crude, like soaked clothes?”

The girl pauses a moment to think.

"Lar didn't have much... he was sending people down in soaked clothing, but that was the extent of preparation. I... I don't think the crypts are fully engulfed in flame, but I was never sent down there."

[[ Intellect is Abishai's only real relevant stat but I'm easy and won't fight over it. It would only add another +1 so no big deal.  =) ]]

[[Does Abishai share what he found in the Baron's library?]]

Most of the party sleeps peacefully.

Not Balthathar.

It’s not because elves don’t sleep—no, it’s because he finds his familiar in the great hall, sitting atop a pile of loot, busily wrapping it in a tablecloth.

“What have you done, you little rascal?!”

“The things you should have done before leaving the hall!”

“That’s the baron’s silverware—and the candlestands! Put them back!”

“NOOO! I found them! They’re mine!”

The little girl puffs up, hissing like an angry cat as Balthathar reaches for the bundle.

“You—hey! You bit me! You animal!”

“Mine! All mine! Mine! Mine!”

After a chaotic mix of shouting, scuffling, curses, and even a stray Eldritch Blast, the two finally reach a truce.

Robin begrudgingly gives up most of her “treasures,” keeping only Lar’s fine clothes and a few strange trinkets from the gnome wizard.

Scratched and thoroughly exhausted, Balthathar returns with a headband of intellect and a +1 rapier for his companions.

“The rapier will suit Dhamila. The headband… I think it’s best for Abishai.”

He rubs his face, marked with fresh scratches.

“Now, if you’ll excuse me… I’m tired.”

[[ Dhamila has several relevant stats... It's perfectly fine to give the Headband to Abishai. And it's fine for her to keep the Magic Rapier, in case she needs to go melee. ]]

Dhamila, still invisible, instantly makes the offered magic blade disappear: "Thank you very much! Covering your back with a magic weapon will be more exciting!"

The Runaway Tiefling then resumes the conversation about poor Gamra: "So, if I understand correctly... Gamra was betrayed. She might not deserve the eternal prison she's got. But since that might have angered her... should we just shrug, walk away, and leave her to her fate?"

"Now, I can't claim to be an expert on how things should be done... And I'm certainly not the wisest among us... Nor even the most knowledgeable..." the Creepy Girl's voice has a determined tone. "But I do know something about unjust imprisonment. My father suffered it, before my mother managed to free him. So I'm going to at least talk to this betrayed queen. Isn't anyone really willing to come with me?"

Brynja agrees, "It does sound like something we need to investigate. If she's held unjustly, she should be freed, but only if she isn't going to cause widespread damage in retribution. So talking to her called for. Unfortunately, my armor won't protect me from heat, just the opposite in fact." 

Upon receiving the magical headpiece, Abishai again bows in respect and appreciation, "I thank you, sir. I always appreciate learning more about magical baubles."

Abishai thanks Averine with an exaggerated bow before he exits to the Master's library. Upon finding the poem, the Red Dragonborn reads the text out loud to himself. "Hmm... that's interesting and feels relevant, but I can't quite put my claw on how..." He ponders for a bit as he continues to search for answers among the text.

After concluding his academic foray, Abishai returns to the group to share what he's learned. "Look here, I've found an interesting bit of lore in this poem..." Handing it over to the group, he continues, "...and read about who I believe to be the Dawnwardens."

Responding to Dhamila, "I will go! I have resistance to fire. Though I don't know how helpful that will be. We may need to get creative."

 After a complete retelling of what the tinker discovered, Abishai asks to borrow Brynja's warhammer and heads back to his workshop wagon and put together some magical plans he'd been working on. "Can I borrow your weapon, Ma'am? I have some ideas on how it can be improved."

[[OOC: During the long rest, Abishai creates a warhammer (+1) and a Bag of Holding. Also swapping Fire Bolt for Elementalism. ]]

After the long rest, Abishai gives Brynja her warhammer back to her, showing her the improvement. "Look here, I've infused it with a arcane stabilizer!" The tinker is clearly happy with his workmanship.

Getting  her hammer back, Brynja takes a few practice swings, then says, "Thank  you Abishai. I don't know what that means, but it does seem easer to use now."

As you discuss your next moves, a single loud knock on the door of the manor.

Standing outside is a figure you have all seen once before... the stranger who once held his hand out to you and told you a riddle... a riddle that you have seen a second time written on that parchment in the Baron's library.