Session 104 - The Slowest Rapid Response Unit In The Realm
27th June 2025
In-game timeline: Start of session: 1490DR Mirtul 17. End of session: 1490DR Mirtul 19
Our "Heroes" reconsider the wisdom of camping just outside a cave system, close to an enemy camp - an enemy who is quite likely to shortly discover they had recently exited said cave system, with a sought-after treasure. They decide to press on through the night instead to find a safer place to camp. Before resting in the early hours of the morning, Iwee messages Yakaryn, the dragonborn who had gone in search of Pristis, and receives a worrying reply, saying that Pristis was not there, and asking for them to hurry to help.
Thinking that Pristis was perhaps held captive in the enemy camp, they send Pacino back to the valley to fly around, and into, the camp to search for any sign of Pristis. Pacino II does not return. Ever.
At this news, and in response to Yakaryn's desperate plea for help, our "Heroes" rest for the night in an impenetrable tent near to a crossroads. A worrying, but ultimately uneventful, night passes. In the afternoon they awake from their rest, recuperated and rejuvenated, and only 8 hours later than the call for aid.
Another message to Yakaryn shows that she is still alive, though Pristis is still not with her, and she fears she and Pristis' father, Gemrik, are being watched. She wonders where the party has got to - she had pretty much given up hope that they would arrive, and was planning on trying to persuade Gemrik to return with her to the Nakshatra village.
The brave and determined "Heroes" decide to head to the edge of the Hullack Forest, where it is getting late and a little dark so they decide to rest again. As an Emergency Response Team, they are sorely lacking.
After a hearty breakfast, they casually head into the Forest, where Pristis was thought to be living with his parents. Iwee persuades a crow to scout for them, and Caw sees Yakaryn and Gemrik arguing. He also spots some people apparently watching the house from afar, in hiding.
Heading in, they tread carefully and slowly, expecting an ambush. Pacino III is sent out to scout the area and spots some potential enemy humanoids. He also sees the two dragonborn leaving the house and heading in this direction. Our "Heroes" decide to hide and wait for them to arrive. Unfortunately Iwee didn't hide very well, and she is spotted as soon as the Dragonborn get closer. After another poor attempt at hiding in a thick wood, the party decide instead to just escort the pair out of the woods.
Unfortunately as they get close to the edge of the woods, they realise that others are better at hiding than they. A poisoned crossbow bolt is shot out of the shadows of the woods, hitting Derrick between the gaps in his armour. He gasps in surprise as the poison flows around his body, causing him to double up in pain.
The party legs it. It's every man/woman/alternative race for themselves as they run as fast as they can towards the edge of the woods. Derrick, who is still reeling from the crossbow bolt, casts blur on himself to make it harder for anyone attacking to actually hit him. Unfortunately for him, he is still hit, but the blurring does ensure the hit is not so painful as the first one, and he does manage to continue running, his own blood leaving a trail behind him.
They all manage to get to the main trail at the edge of the forest and, with Sully and the horses there to carry them, they think they have successfully escaped any pursuers. The group, with Yakaryn and Gemrik, ride quickly to Arabel the closest town to find safe harbour. At the town they find a safe place to settle and then and only then, they have the time to ask Yakaryn and Gemrik what has happened.
They discover that members of Neverember's army visited Gemrik and his family about a week ago. The ruffians tried to take Pristis away from his family, and seemed very prepared to kill anyone who tried to stop them. In sheer desperation, Acean - Gemrik's wife and Pristis' mother - prayed openly to the Raven Queen to save her son. Whilst they were not devout followers of the Raven Queen, the proximity of their home to a portal to the Shadowfell (which apparently leads so somewhere close to her domain), they hoped the Queen would help save him. And this she did - a cloud of ravens appeared and surrounded the boy, When they dispersed, Pristis was gone. Acean was murdered, but the bandits, with Pristis gone, left Gemrik alone in his grief. He has spent the last week burying his wife and wondering if there is any way of getting his son back - he feels there is little hope, as although the Raven Queen is not necessarily evil, she is also not good, and would likely see Pristis as hers now.
The party retire to decide what to do next…