Upon passing through the ornately carved wooden doors depicting stars and astral symbology, Thadraes, Lilandra, and Morthos would arrive in the observatory where three individuals had already gathered.

Immediately recognizable to all would be the Baron himself. Elias Vanderos was still a young man in his mid thirties, whose kind and valiant heart had not only earned him many friends and the respect of his people, but also his noble title to begin with. On this night however, the nobleman’s usual warm disposition was replaced by a much more somber demeanor. His light brown hair was disheveled, his eyes raw from lack of sleep. He was wearing his favorite overcoat which had been a gift from Morgan’s father, a long lightweight sheepskin coat with a fluffy fur collar and thin, beautifully engraved metal plates from the Amcathra smithy running along the left arm.

Lord Vanderos was greeting another well-dressed man stepping down from a platform engraved with a magic circle by gripping his shoulder. “Morgan. I can’t thank you and Regnet enough for heeding my call for aid in this dire matter. It is truly good to see you again, you appear to have grown stronger since last we met. I just wish our reunion was under better circumstances.”

Also present in the chamber was a woman slightly younger than then baron. Everyone present would know her to be Iridessa Vanderos, his wife and prominent spellcaster. Equally well known would be her reputation. Iridessa had been the apprentice and right hand of Vanderos’s predecessor, a foul wizard who’s tyrannical rule over the barony resulted in a bloody rebellion a decade ago. Although having payed a crucial role in the former baron’s downfall, many who remember the old regime still regard her with suspicion or outright contempt.

Dressed in short-sleeved magenta robes with long black gloves and a large pointed hat, Iridessa sat with excellent posture in a unique, well-crafted chair. The furnishing could be described as a wooden throne with small wagon wheels in the back.

 [HISTORY CHECK - ANYONE]

“Thank you, commander,” she stated imperially to Thadraes after the dwarf entered with the others. She lifted up one hand with fingers spread wide, and the doors to the observatory swung shut.

With everyone assembled, Lord Vanderos moved to stand beside his wife and address the group.

“Friends all, I dearly apologize for the lateness of the hour, as well as the nature of the task for which you have been summoned. Please know that it is not my wish to burden any one of you, but rather that you have proven to be among the most trusted and capable individuals I know, and that being here on this night in our time of need is a sign of our deepest respect.”

He rubbed a hand over his neatly trimmed beard in an anxious way as he continued, growing in discomfort as he approached the subject at hand. “I… we…”

Iridessa gently reached over to take his hand in hers. She then looked to the group with a steely gaze.

“Our beloved daughter Caelia is gone. Abducted by force for reasons unknown. She must be safely recovered at all costs, and it is for this we turn to you.”

[I know for in-person games I would call for skill checks as necessary, and will continue to do so here, but to speed things up I’ll also have you the players include any skill checks you think might be relevant to what you’re doing in your posts (for example adding a Perception check when entering new areas, or various interpersonal skills during social interactions, or if you want to climb something include an Athletics check without waiting for me to ask for one, etc), and if needed I’ll take them into consideration. I’ll also try to tailor my initial descriptive language of things based on Passive Perception, so there might be more to some places/things than initially described.]

"Thadraes..." Morgan says in greeting as he sees who is entering the chamber. Standing well over 6 foot (6 foot 8 inches,) and 225 pounds - without armor or gear, Morgan is an imposing warrior. The ebony surcoat he wears is clearly tailor-made to fit his powerful body. He gives the other noble a full nod of greeting, acknowledging a peer.

Morgan's eyes move over the other two, recognizing that they are most likely commoners, but also that they could be useful in the coming task. He gtrants both of them a slight nod of his head, more a flick of the gray eyes than anything else, and then turns his attention back to his father's friend.

"Do you have any leads for us to start with?" He asks, his mind already wondering if the girl is well beyond what a group of adventurers might do to aid. He does not speak his concern about her being dead already, but hopes that someone is looking for a ransom or such. "Has there been any requests for ransom as of yet?" He asks, speaking this last thought out loud.  He slips his hand up to his greatsword's hilt, caressing the pommel as he thinks.

Morthos is shocked to see the Baron in such a state. The proud, valiant man was now hunched before him, stuttering. But now he understood why, and he knew he had to do something about it. 

Morthos says, "Baron Vanderos, I have come from distant lands to answer your call. I know these are trying times, but I assure you, I will do anything in power to bring back your daughter. Even if it means putting my life in danger. For without your help, I would have never lived at all." Morthos bows his head and turns to the rest of the group. 

"I'm sure my companions will do the same." Morthos glances at the Baron's wife, Iridessa. He didn't know much about her, but her reputation preceded her. He tried to wrack his mind to see what he remembered. 

History:10

Thad bows his head to the baron, "Ya know that yer've always got my hand, me lord. Anythin' ya know ta help us would be much appreciated. Yer daughter feels as much me own as I've protected her as she's grown. I'll rest at nothin' ta bring her back to ya."

Morthos could recall the general idea of what he had heard of the baron’s wife, if not the specifics. Iridessa had hurt and even killed many people in service of her master, the previous baron, and was initially a sworn enemy of Vanderos before falling in love with him and eventually joining his revolt. In the final battle of the rebellion she had received a grievous injury leaving her crippled, but apparently not before giving birth to their child.

“No, there have been no demands,” Lord Vanderos replied to Morgan with a solemn shake of his head. “If only it were that simple. But we do have some account of what happened. This past evening Caelia wanted to have dinner at a popular establishment here in town, so one of our servants accompanied her. Witnesses there claimed nothing out of the ordinary and said she had a good time. Afterwards however, we’re told that she was accosted in the street by a small group of strangers who demanded she come with them. Naturally the watch was called, but they, the servant, and even some brave and loyal townsfolk who rushed to her aid were all slain by the villains, who seized our daughter and disappeared.”

Morthos glanced at Iridessa upon remembering the information, but then quickly averts his gaze. He wasn't sure what to make of her. She may be a strong presence to support the grieving Baron...but crimes like that are not so easily washed away. Does she have anything to do with the disappearance of her daughter? Morthos tries to determine if Iridessa may know more than she's letting on to the group, or even to her husband. 

"Iridessa, you are a prominent spellcaster. Can you not divine the location of your own daughter?" Morthos is quite suspicious of her, and he wishes to prevent any deception on her end. Using his Cutting Words ability, if Iridessa attempts an opposed ability check vs. his Insight, he will use a reaction to expend a use of Bardic Inspiration and subtract the die from her check. 

Insight: 19 

Morthos then turns back to Lord Vanderos. "Where can we find these villains? They may be able to slay some untrained commoners, but we will hunt them down and make them pay for what they have done. Your daughter will be rescued. Where do we start?"

Morgan narrows his eyes as Morthos speaks to the baroness. His jaw clenches as his gray eyes grow intense on the other man for a long moment, but he seems to manage to win some internal conflict as he glances to the woman and back to Morthos. His hand, having gripped his greatsword hilt, looses and he gives Morthos a grim nod before turning to the baron again.

"This man..." he nods to Morthos, "does have something correct there. We will hunt down these people and get your daughter back from them. Do you have any more details on the people who took your daughter, or should we instead go and talk to some of those who survived or witnessed the struggle?"

[In person I would roll anyway regardless if she's actually up to something or not to make the result more ambiguous, so here we go.]

DECEPTION CHECK - IRIDESSA:  10

[Guessing you won't need that Bardic Inspiration die, eh? Results forthcoming...]

(That's cool. Here we go).

Cutting Words: 5

(Do I have to roll the dice? Ability says I can do it after the roll, but before result).

[No, you don't have to. You can save that for another time. Unless of course you want her to get an impressive -1.]

(That seems like overkill. Let's see what she's hiding! Probably nothing, but it doesn't hurt to check...)

“We do indeed have details regarding the culprits,” Vanderos said to Morgan, but before elaborating he added, “Of course while you may speak to the witnesses yourselves should you fancy the need, understand that hardly any of them should be awake at this hour. Moreover, we have not been idle in this crisis. The information we pass to you now was gathered by speaking to them myself during my own frantic search this entire night. I very much doubt they’d have much more to offer.”

At the same time, Iridessa’s face deeply reddened and she immediately grew flustered at Morthos’s words. Perhaps the stress of recent events had taken more of a toll on her then she let on, for the dignified air of control she usually put on crumbled far easier than Morthos may have predicted. Or perhaps his sharp tone merely hit a personal nerve regarding her divination skills.

 “W-what? Of course I can! And that’s precisely what I did the instant we got word of what happened, obviously! Hmph! Idiot!”

Her response didn’t even sound offended, more embarrassed and sensitive. She looked away from Morthos as if he had physically hit her. Probably would have moved too, were she not confined to her seat. There was something about the way her amber eyes darted and how she bit her lip that suggested to the bard’s intuition there was indeed something she wasn’t saying…

Morthos takes a deep breath. He hadn't expected such a reaction, and he didn't want to upset her and the Baron. It seems like his suspicions were confirmed, though. Morthos knew he couldn't push Iridessa any further, not now anyway. He hoped he didn't just make a powerful enemy. 

"I'm sorry for offending you. You are dealing with hard times and I apologize for pushing you. I know that you are doing everything in your power to find your daughter."

Persuasion(to diffuse the situation): 23

Morthos then glances at his companions' faces, seeing their reactions. Otherwise, he stays silent and lets the others talk. 

"Well then my lord, was there any more that the witnesses alluded to? 'Haps the direction that yer daughter was taken away from the city?" Thad gave a sideways glance at Morthos, but didn't say anything outright. "I think you'll agree that we need ta be on our way as soon as possible, sir."

Lilandra is shocked to hear the news about their daughter Poor Caelia she mumbles to herself. 

She will listen to the others speak and look down after seeing Iridessa’s reddened face , trying to hide that she saw it to prevent any wrath from Iridessa. She will exchange glances with Morthos afterwards but will not say anything about it yet. 

My lord, this does not seem like a random event. Someone targetted Caelia. Was there anyone who knew she would be there beforehand? 

She pauzes, unsure if she should ask. 

Also, is there anyone you had troubles with recently that could incur this cruel act?

Morgan glances to the others as they spoke, and looked to the baroness as her pose crumbled to a shocking degree. He frowned then, wondering just what she was hiding. nobles of their rank did not just break down like that without reason after all. The others seemed to have good questions, but Morgan still waited for the Baron to elaberate on what information he had discovered already.

"It would be good not to waste time speaking to witnesses." Morgan agreed with the baron. His gray eyes on his father's friend. "Can you tell us what you have learned, so we can get your daughter back as quick as possible?"

The arcane baroness coughed into her fist dismissively and appeared to relent, apparently more receptive to the disarming approach.

“Ahem. Apology accepted, Morthos. Indeed I should be the one apologizing. It isn’t like me to lose my composure like that – “

“Heh,” Lord Vanderos snickered. “Yes it is.”

“Wha- Elias!”

With Iridessa embarrassed anew, Vanderos let out a warm, playful laugh at his wife’s expense, revealing a glimpse of his usual self. And after a moment, it could be seen that Iridessa’s eyes visibly softened while looking at him, and she covered her mouth to let out a chuckle of her own. It was quite possibly the first mirthful moment the two had shared since this whole ordeal began.

Soon however, the grave business at hand inevitably resumed.

“Yes, commander,” Vanderos said to Thadraes. “The owner of the establishment is a friend of mine from the old revolution days. He’s the one who called for the watch when the commotion started outside after dinner, and he provided a good description of the perpetrators. Please, this way.”

He motioned with a sweep of his hand to a small pool in the center of the observatory directly underneath the dome. The interior of the pool was painted a deep matte black, resulting in the water inside the pool to resemble an ebony pit of ink of uncertain depth. A wide border around the pool shared the same black color, inside which was inscribed a ring of golden arcane markings.

The baron then moved behind Iridessa’s wooden throne, and while grasping a pair of handles behind it, gently tipped the seat ever so slightly backwards. Now balancing on its hind wheels, he rotated the furnishing and pushed it into a new position at the pool’s edge much as one would push a wheelbarrow.

While doing so, he considered Lilandra’s comments. “You’re exactly right. The kidnappers demanded her specifically, and the fact that they did not kill her outright suggests they have some unknown purpose for her. As for anyone with prior knowledge of Caelia’s outing, it would seam the idea was a spur of the moment whim of hers. The only ones who knew of her intention to go out would have been Iridessa when she asked for permission to go, and the late servant assigned to escort her.”

[HISTORY OR INSIGHT CHECK – LILANDRA]

Once everyone had gathered together at the pool’s edge, Iridessa crossed her arms in front of her chest.

“Observe,” she instructed. She then uncrossed her arms, sweeping them palms-down over the pool. The water began to agitate, catching the starlight from beyond the dome which shone and twinkled in the ripples. “Three enemies were described by eyewitness reports of Caelia’s abduction. One of them we were able to identify.”

As the water settled and became still, the image of a figure formed in the pool. It was that of a blue-skinned male tiefling, one larger and more imposing than any the party had seen before. All he wore was loose, baggy white pants tucked into leather boots, and a pair of metal bracers covering his massive forearms. The rest of his body’s bulky musculature was on full display, broad and defined as if chiseled from stone, with multiple scars visible all over. His head was shaved bare, and he had pair of wide, knobby black horns that angled down and forward. Noticeably orange pupils burned within glaring eyes, and his mouth sneered with a fierce predatory smile.

“His name is Dakara,” Iridessa said. “He’s a mercenary of sorts, infamous for his love for battle and feared for his savage unarmed fighting style. They call him a demon of fists and feet.”

(Lilandra insight 18)

Morthos felt uneasy as he looks into the divination pool. The swirling black water turned into the image of a fierce tiefling, a hulking brute. And this was only one of three kidnappers. They must be powerful to fight off so many and evade capture.

Morthos wasn’t much of a warrior. He preferred to duel with words, not weapons. Yet, glancing at the heavily armored Thaedren and Morgan, he felt a bit better to have them at his side. Perhaps they could face the tiefling in head to head combat. Morthos knew he certainly couldn’t. 

Quietly, the half-elf spoke out. “Those bracers he wears...what do they do? Are they magical?” He leaves the assessment of their chances against such a foe up to the true warriors. 

Ever since her fist encounter with the girl playing in the forest just outside town, Lilandra would know Caelia to be very sweet and polite. In fact she would visit Lilandra’ls parent’s shop from time to time to pick up alchemical supplies for her mother, sometimes upon request due to Iridessa’s condition, sometimes completely unprompted as a gift. Hearing that she would ask permission before going out sounded very much like something she would do.

“From what it sounded like, Dakara did seem to display some limited offensive magic,” Lord Vanderos replied to Morthos. “Whether those bracers were the source is unclear. Apparently he used them to block sword strikes. Regardless, reports unanimously claim he was responsible for the most deaths during the incident, four of the seven total, a number not seen in one event since we deposed the old baron. The inclusion of such a fearsome fighter in all this worries me greatly.”

“The other two captors don’t seem to be publicly known,” Iridessa continued along. “We heard there was someone tall wrapped in a black hooded cloak. Limbs covered in some kind of armor. They apparently had strange feet and may have had more than two arms. And lastly there was an unknown type of humanoid, female, covered in hides and tattoos. Witnesses swear she may be an elf, except no known elves have green skin, nor do they fight like a feral animal. Curious indeed.”

She waved a hand over the pool once more, and the image of Dakara and his violent grin faded from the dark water. With that, Lord Vanderos directed his attention to the group as a whole.

“When news of what happened reached us, I immediately hurried to the scene, but by that point all I found was carnage. Fortunately, Iridessa quickly located Caelia with a scrying spell and was sending me messages to guide me in the direction the kidnappers were taking her. I rode heedlessly into the northwestern forest, trying desperately to catch them, but it was ultimately to no avail. All three of them possess inhuman levels of speed and physical ability, and between their head start and the difficult terrain it pains me greatly to admit I simply couldn’t catch up. Ever since, I’ve been investigating the abduction site, talking to people, and trying everything I could think of to piece together a solution to this dire situation. We both have.”

He looked over to his wife, and Iridessa nodded in confirmation. “For my part, I’ve sent servants out into town to gather information, and ordered them to have witnesses report here to the keep for my husband and I to interview together, and I’ve been keeping careful record of everything we’ve learned. And by now I’ve expended nearly all my energy using magical means to help as well.”

With a heavy sigh, the baron spoke up once more with an apologetic expression. “I know this is a lot to take in, and for that I do apologize. We just felt it best to make sure you know all the details of the situation, because while under any other circumstances I would continue the search personally, I… can no longer. That’s why I, we, need you. To finish this in my stead.”