Session 18

=July 19th, 2018 - The Gates of Ironbay=

Double Homicide
The session began on the morning four days from Ironbay, as the party sat around their normal campfire about to eat breakfast, the halfling Jemna came to sit among them. She grabbed Rufus’ bowl of oatmeal and poked through it with her dagger. After a few moments she pulled out on the tip of her blade what she said was a curled up bone sliver. She went on describing in gruesome detail how it would go down without notice, and then unfurl sharp needles that would cut you up from the inside. She warned the rest of the group not to eat their breakfast, and that they could talk later that night.

She promptly left.

That night, she comes and sits at the parties campfire, introducing herself fully as Jemna Gleamsilver. She says they are on the same side following these dragon cultists, but not working for the same people. She then tells the group that the black robed monk she has been following is actually a Night Wizard, named Azbara Jos. She questions why the Night Wizard’s are chumming it up with the Cult of the Dragon, only knowing that can lead to bad things. Two days later, now two days out from Ironbay, the camp awakens to a commotion, as there was a double killing in the night. About fifty feet from the main grouping of tents in the woods, the crowd gathered around the two nearby bodies.

Barlo lay with his neck slit amid a pool of dark blood, and one of the cultist travellers was right next to him with a blade wound in his chest. A bloodied shortsword lay near Barlo. The remaining cultists immediately accused the party, and as the situation got rough and full of shouting, it was the black robed Azbara Jos who tried to calm the situation. For almost the first time any had heard him speak, he calmly stated how there was no witnesses, and any number of events could have occurred. What appeared to have happened may not be the case.

Most of the other travellers in the caravan wanted to move along, as their destination was so close now. Reluctantly, without causing a scene the party allowed the situation to defuse and prepared to move along. First, Cadmus took the belongings from his half orc friend, and they gave the bodies a proper burial. Later that day, the party tried to get close with Jemna, as they suspected she murdered at least the cultist. After some slight prodding she indicated that was indeed the case. The group theorized the cultist attacked Barlo in the dead of night when he was relieving himself, and after witnessing Jemna silently dispatched him.

The Gates of Ironbay
As the caravan made the final approach through endless farmland towards Ironbay, Rachen described the layout of the large city for the characters who had never been. Rufus in particular wanted to know of a tavern where he could find the happenings of the local underbelly. Rachen indicated he could likely find what he sought at the South Ward pub the ‘Cracked Goblet’, near the Docks Ward. It was infamous in the guard. The group officially arrived as they pulled into the moderately sized town of its own accord just outside the South Gate, known as Southton.

The sprawling town of Southton, as well as the cleverly named Weston outside the West Gate, were signs of how truly crowded the city was. The caravan pulled into one of the larger campgrounds and began to disband. Most members all thanked each other and then began to go their separate ways. Most guards and teamsters went to the nearby Merchant’s Guild to receive their pay. Rachen’s patron Syliva paid him and, along with some other merchants, would take their wares to the central Trade Ward. Other merchants would go to the Docks Ward, and others yet still would head to the North Ward to prepare for north bound caravans.

The cultists and their wagons, along with Azbara, immediately headed into the city with the rest of the merchants. The group could not find Jemna as she appeared to have already slipped away into the crowds. Cadmus, Rufus, and Rhogar wanted to follow the cultists stealthily, while Rachen planned to head to the main army barracks in the Castle Ward to report in. Thia stayed at the campground with their wagon and Elysian, pitching another tent, and Lachlan stayed with her. The group decided to meet back up at the campground eventually to inform Thia and Lachlan of the next steps.

As the four entered the large and impressive South Gate of Ironbay, Rachen was recognized by one of the army guards, calling out to him, “Hey, Sergeant Rachen!” While Rachen stopped to briefly talk with the guard, at least informing the first person of his arrival, the other party members continued to follow the cultists. Cadmus and Rufus slipped into the city streets and began tailing the cultists. Before Rhogar could get much past the gate and follow his compatriots, he too was recognized, this time by Leosin. Leosin began talking with Rhogar until Rachen finished with his old friend, and then joined their conversation. The master monk had been waiting here for the parties arrival the last few days, after he and Ontharr travelled to the city by sea.

As promised, Ackyn Selebon had sent the pair a messenger bird detailing the parties next moves after Black Landing. Ontharr was indeed in the city, but waiting at the establishment of a city noble lord that wanted to talk with the party about the cult. Before they met with this noble, Leosin told Rufus and Rachen to have the group assemble and meet him at the place he was staying, the Come On Inn. Then they could all travel together to the location. They thanked him, and parted ways to conduct their business, with Rhogar being not so stealthy as he ran down the streets trying to catch up to the cult wagons.

Cadmus and Rufus travelled down side streets as they tailed the cultists passing through the heart of the city down the main Coast Way boulevard. The cultists did not veer off towards the Docks Ward, nor did they stop in the central Trade Ward. Instead, they continued through the length of the city towards the North Ward, finally stopping at one of the caravan campgrounds just inside the North Gate. The pair watched as the cultists began breaking down and setting up a camp, while about half of them, including Azbara, went to a nearby inn building. Rufus just watched discreetly, and Cadmus tried without being seen by cultists to go up to another camper in the same campground and ask about their journey.

The camper said this site was for a new caravan that was to leave the day after next towards Windhaven. It was evacuated earlier that morning by a caravan that just departed. Around this time Rhogar decided to take a more direct approach. He had caught up and followed behind the cultists down the Coast Way, not seeing his companions until they loitered around the North Ward campground. While Cadmus was finishing his conversation, Rhogar walked right up to one of the cultist tents and began asking them questions. He was trying to find information about their connection with Azbara, and was only being met with increasing hostility.

When the scene looked about to turn to bloodshed, Cadmus cast a Fog Cloud throughout the area. The cloud gave Rhogar an opportunity to steal from the cultists and flee safely down side streets, where the three met back up. There, Rhogar told them of Leosin and the meet at the Come On Inn. Cadmus and Rhogar decided to head that way, knowing they had a full day in the city before the cult departed, but Rufus first wanted to do another errand. After he parted ways, Rufus went off towards the South Ward asking directions for the Cracked Goblet.

While the rest of the party had their run in with the cultists, Rachen made his way just east of the North Ward to the main army barracks in the Castle Ward. He was easily allowed entry showing his Writ of Authority as a Lord’s Accord Agent. He told a guard posted there to inform the watchmaster that he had arrived and was looking to debrief. When the guard asked Rachen where he could be found, he told them the Come On Inn. Satisfied he had done his duty to report in, Rachen then head off to find this wretchedly named Inn. Lastly, Rufus found this Cracked Goblet, and after making some inquiries he too made his way to the Come On Inn.

And that is where the session ended, with most of the party assembling at the Come On Inn, with Thia and Lachlan still at the campground outside the city walls in Southton.

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