Session 109 - The Awakening Of Kastril And Pacino Saves The Day!
9th September 2025
In-game timeline: Start of session: UNKNOWN. End of session: 1490 Mirtul 21
Our "Heroes" ponder their next move. Faced with an unknown threat below, a patrol which continues on, and an escaped creature who could be warning all and sundry, along with already diminished resources of spells, potions etc, Derrick thinks the best option is to run down all weapons swinging and kill everything they see.
Luckily the others dissuaded him from this plan.
They consider their available abilities. They discuss. They plan. They think through consequences and options. Is this the same group of "Heroes" we know and love? Apparently so.
The first thing they want is to get a better idea of what is below. Derrick summons Pacino and he flies down the hole to scout out, with Derrick seeing what Pacino sees. Sensing danger, they rethink the plan and try again but this time with Pacino invisible. Below there seems to be a short corridor that opens out into a large room. Within this room are a number of undead, including a strange, glowing dog, and the thing that is obviously the Big Boss - an undead with three skeletal heads. He sits at a desk and is glaring at what is obviously the Conspirators Visage before him, seemingly cursing it. The enemies look powerful, and worrying.
More discussion. Eventually they come up with a plan. And - brace yourselves - it is a good one.
Karoshi casts Darkness on a pebble, masking the darkness by wrapping it in a piece of cloth. Derrick heads to the far side of the room in the upper level, in order to be able to zone in to Pacino when he reaches the Big Boss sat at the desk in the room beneath. He then casts Enlarge on Pacino to boost his strength. Iwee continues to concentrate on keeping Pacino invisible. Jaxii waits by the hole, ready to hit anything bad with her greatsword.
The plan is explained to Pacino and everyone hopes that he understands it.
The enlarged and invisible owl picks up the wrapped pebble and flies back down the hole. He is unused to being significantly larger than he normally is, and his flying is not smooth. Luckily he is invisible, but he still seems to attract attention, distracting the enemies below and alerting them to "something".
Luckily Pacino seemed to understand the full plan.
He flies over to one of the minions and drops the rock on him, causing it to fall from the cloth and a sphere of darkness appears in that area of the room. This proves to be a major distraction, allowing Pacino, still invisible, to fly over to the desk and grab the Visage - his larger size and strength enabling him to lift it with ease. As he flies away with it, his flying is still awkward, and one of the enemies, sensing something, fires a necrotic bolt in his approximate direction, luckily missing the large owl. Pacino escapes the room, flying back to Derrick with the mask!
Part 1 of the plan having been successful, they now need to escape. They run. Fast. Whilst the enemies below realise the mask has gone, and start to give chase, though they don't know what they are chasing, nor exactly where to go.
This delay enables our "Heroes" to get a head start. As they run past the hole, Derrick throws down some ball bearings and Karoshi launches some holy water at the ladder. These do serve to slow down most of the pursuers, though the Lich Hound, being able to fly, is able to give chase. It is, however, further slowed when Derrick Catapults a vial of holy water at it.
But Jaxii is already at the first door, opening it quickly to allow the others to run through. She closes it immediately after her as they all run to the next door - the entrance door. The Lich Hound is able to somehow pass through the first door, but is now quite a way behind them.
They run out of the Keep and start to head for the tree line. The patrol, already warned of their presence by the escaped Allip earlier, see them and also give chase. The adventurers have a head start, but the Allips - two of them - can fly faster than them, and are catching. Derrick stumbles, and turns to face them. Iwee is slower than the others and is falling behind, but Derrick touches her as she passes, Enlarging her and giving her extra speed so she can catch up with the rest. In return, Iwee turns and manages to Slow the two Allips, allowing Derrick to regain his footing and run with the rest of them.
They reach the tree line and manage to disappear into the swamp ahead of their pursuers. They have escaped!
Relieved, but not out of the woods yet - literally - they continue to run. Karoshi telepathically calls Sully to meet them, bringing Mrs Rhubarb with him, and they manage to meet up and mount, ensuring they fully get away from any pursuit from the Keep.
Plan. Done. Objective. Achieved.
They continue on through the night, exhausted but unwilling to stop and rest, and eventually emerge at the border of the Raven Queen's realm without further incident. They cross into her lands, and are quickly met by Drake, who is able to create a portal to transfer them to the Courtyard of Empty Desires.
There they meet once more Markella, who is able to channel the Raven Queen.
The Queen thanks them for their successful recovery of the Visage, offering each of them a boon of their choice.
Jaxii regains her memories of recovering her mother, and her sense of style, as these are the most important things to her, though she still has no memory of meeting The Hunter (including no memory of the survival training that The Hunter gave her).
Derrick asks for greater power and abilities, and is able to Level Up!
Both Karoshi and Iwee ask for the return of Pristis - Iwee wanting to make sure this request is granted and not wanting to ask for anything that could be considered selfish whilst Pristis is not with them.
The Queen grants them their requests, and as Markella's channelling ends, Pristis appears at the gate at the edge of the courtyard. He is unharmed, though missing his Mum and Dad.
The group is granted a night's undisturbed rest before being taken to the portal back to the Material Plane. Iwee takes a drop of blood from Pristis to activate Yegmir's Arm, and then gives the now activated Arm to Jaxii, as she senses that the Arm needs to be in the hands of a Dragonborn.
Awakened, the soul of Kastril with Yegmir's Arm communicates with Jaxii, and with Kardreth via Iwee. Over the night, Kastril becomes fully awakened and aware of the current situation, revealing a little more about the Chosen Ones to Jaxii in the process, including the fact that there must have been 4 previous groups of Heroes chosen in this generation, but all must have somehow failed in their attempt to recharge the Lock. Not only that, one member of the last group chosen was none other than… Dagult Neverember!
In the morning, they are returned to the Material Plane and head back to the Nakshatra Clan, where Gemrik, Pristis' father, is staying. Karoshi communes with his God, Moradin, who grants the paladin more knowledge (he Levels Up!) as a reward for surviving without him in the Shadowfell. They reunite Pristis with his father, and settle back in the knowledge that they have found, and activated, two of the three parts of Angel's Fury. Only the Eye of Kronos to go.
The Heroes Of The Land take a well-earned rest…