The Order of the Dawn

Vikesh teaches the party how to do the ritual, then leaves to spend some time with Aurora.

In the meantime, Loric makes preparations to make an attempt to reforge Penumbra.

Beforehand, Fredrick casts Foresight on Loric, and hands over a Tome of Wordly Knowledge to Loric.

They have a heroes feast, and cast a variety of spells.

Then they go in Fredrick's Rod of Security.

First attempt at ritual :failure, at a point that allows him to retry again,

Second attempt: success

However, the sword takes over and Loric's alignment is changed to evil.

And the party notices a change in his attitude...

party chaos

then atonement is cast

 by fredrick which unattunes Penumbra

then

comes back to normal alignment

then they leave the rod of security place

and

then the party talks to figure out what to do maybe destroy penumbra maybe not etc

loric wants to keep it

rickard thinks it should be destroyed

as rickard

leave

aurora comes back because she's learned from vikesh that he told them how to reforge

shes not quite happy but she let them decide

but she decides its time for vikesh to go see selune

so the party accompanies him for moral support

eventually  the party is invited to meet with selune

and as a token of appreciation she grants them some powerr ( see sess log)

Rickard takes the items off the body to prevent them from using them, just in case.

Then Loric gives the diary to Fredrick,

and they try to summarize the events to Fredrick,

and after discussing, the party goes back inside the HQ.

The party runs into Alexander and Aydan, leading a group.

They say they came to serve as back up for the party just in case, but that Vikesh was nowhere to be found.

The party contacts Aurora who says Vikesh told her everything and that they're gone so that Vikesh could ''start to make things right''.

She seems less chipper and less happy than usual.

But she says that she has some things to do with Vikesh then that they can meet at Loric's keep,

The party goes to Morden's room and Cassie's room, they find some more items.

The party initially keeps Cassie at the Watch, then make arrangements with the temple in Waterdeep the House of the Moon for her to be kept and watched there for the time being.

For now, Morden's body will be kept at the Hall of Vigilance under gentle repose.

Fredrick gets a better summary of the events.

Aurora comes back with Vikesh eventually and meets with the party

They learn Aurora asked of Vikesh to destroy Penumbra.

and that she asked for the party to list what they need for reparations from Vikesh

Vikesh agrees to revive Anthony Edward O'Neil at the request of the party

and the party convinces Aurora to let them decide the fate of the sword, so Vikesh gives them the hilts.

Vikesh also agrees to meet with Selûne as a part of first steps to his redemption.

Meanwhile, the party tries to decide what to do with the swords and every member gives their opinion, but defer to the party.

Eventually, Vikesh comes back with Anthony Edward O'Neil after reviving him and having a discussion with him.

He will eventually meet Alexander and Aydan later on, but not for now.

The party asks Vikesh to explain what Penumbra does, and he does.

He also asks them if they wanna reforge the sword, and the party says to be considering their option but hasn't made a decision yet.

Vikesh tells them that if they accompany him to Ysgard when he goes to meet with Selûne, he will tell them how to reforge the sword.

Cassie crashes the meeting with Vikesh alongside Morden

Fight ensues

Vikesh kicks everyone out

They fight

super battle

daniloth does the plan and only 2 persons show up in the bag of holding chest...

Fredrick shows up with the rest of the order of the dawn

Cassie goes crazy and tries to kill Fredrick

the party wins the battle

They Kill Morden and his body flows down the river

they render Cassie unconscious.

They notice Morden's body is floating down the river, so they go to get it before it's too late...

And then the party will have to see what they want to do!

summari

Meeting with Aydan and Alexander

They agree to wait for the party to meet with Vikesh and see how it goes, agreeing to not attack Vikesh for now.

Gareth shares he's rceived news from elena and kay: they went to Ysgard and met an angel named Hala, and they said something about an empyrean named vikesh having strong ties to selune.

Then the party tells the Order about what happens minus Elena and Kay

In the meantime, Rickard goes to find Aurora william and buddy who went for a walk, and talks to Aurora about her and Vikesh, and learns more about how she views Vikesh.

Loric wants to tell Aurora the truth about Vikesh, but Rickard suggests not to tell her for now, that she should know, but that she should learn it from Vikesh and that it woul dbe more ehlpful to their cause if she learns it that way, and that no matter what happens, if she does learn it that way, she will do the right thing, even if VIkesh attacks the party.

The party makes a plan:

People coming along:

Loric, Rickard, Ophelia, Xanthus, Keedin, Aurora/Alba, Danilothwill go to meet Vikesh

Daniloth learned Speedy Courier (funded by Ophelia)

The others will remain on stand by to await for the chest to be summoned, they will jump into a portable hole and Hunter will send the chest over to Daniloth (speedy courier) if the party needs reinforcement.

the party gets to vikesh

Aurora rushes to vikesh and vikesh is stunned by her presence and that she remembers

and Morden is by him

and tells him to not trust the party

went in the place

copied information

took the pallid flute

exchange with Myriad

Got the book

Went to the RQ

Aurora got her memories back

the party met with Alex and Aydan

The party is at an impasse

Myriad's assistant (girl with bandages covering her body and a hooded outfit)
Gives a box

with the message from Myriad:

The item I seek is a small flute made out of bone.

Given your skills, it should be quite simple for you to find it.

I have been researching this bone flute for some time now, and I believe I have found its location. I believe it to be in a crypt buried deep underneath the Calim Desert. After some research, I have excluded a large portion of the desert, so while the crypt's specific location has yet to be found,  I trust you will be able to locate it easily.

My assistant is in possession of an item tied to the general area in which I believe you can find the crypt, she has also delineated the area  on a map in which I believe the crypt to be. Feel free the item for teleportation purposes.

What I need you to do is to locate the crypt, get inside, and bring me back the flute, then I shall give you the book in exchange.

I shall not give you more information on this item for it would be detrimental to you in this endeavor.

I shall also not be cryptic like all those damn quest givers usually are and I will give you an important and clear warning:

Under no circumstances should you try to learn anything regarding this flute, or attempt to identify it.

I say this to protect you, not to tempt you. Any knowledge such as this would be too much to bear for your fragile minds.

Thanks do the research done by Sonder, Blackjack and other members of the Order of the Dawn, they were able to discover a ritual that would allow the party to suppress the Paleblood Curse afflicting Hunter Callahan.

The party traversed the Village of Broken Dreams. Ophelia D'Vespere had already been there before. She was able to tell the party about the Curse of Evergloom that exists there due to the influence of the Shadowfell and the closeness of the village to the Fortress of Memories. In order to be able to resist the curse better, Ophelia D'Vespere instructed the party to find a touchstone, an item that would remember a person who they really are.

Touchstones for the party:

Ophelia: The Keyfinder, to remember that she stands by her friends as they stand by her.

Xanthus: A broken clockwork amulet, because it reminds him that he isn't just a working cog in the machine with no other purpose, and that he does things his own way: by finding the simplest solution to a problem.

Loric: A ring of protection given by Fredrick. It reminds him that he was saved by his friends, and how he made it through darkness thank to them.It is tied to his bond ''sSomeone saved my life on the battlefield, i would never leave a friend on the battlefield.''

Rickard: His jacket that reminds him of Blackjack,  a man whose life is so intertwined with his that he would be lost without him.

- - -
Traveling through the village, the party went through strange areas before being able to make it to the gates of the Fortress of Memories. Ophelia D'Vespere surmised the Raven Queen was testing them throughout their journey in the village.

The Park of Forgotten Fears is a park within the Village of Broken Dreams. There, Keedin Scalesinger was taken away and transported in the middle of a maze of Mist that struck a great resemblance to the Ravenloft Mist. Rickard, true to himself, chose to leave Keedin Scalesinger behind, as he doesn't care much for the kobold. Xanthus, as one would expect, rushed into the mist without thinking twice and Ophelia D'Vespere and Loric Aloro, although they knew the potential risks, still decided to go in along Xanthus because they wouldn't leave a friend behind. In the mist, a shadar-kai was holding Keedin Scalesinger who was unscathed, but terrified. As the party moved aggressively towards the Shadar-Kai and as Rickard came back through the mist to know what was taking the party so long, the Shadar-Kai disappeared in the mist, and the mist lifted afterwards. The party had saved Keedin Scalesinger.

The Terrace of the Hopeless is a place where some Shadar-Kai who lost touch with who they are wander prior to reaching their final destination: the Plaza of the Lost. There, the party notice a barren garden and a table full of expensive looking items in the likeness of flowers, vegetables and fruits, as well as a painting representing the same location, but with a luxurious garden and an empty table, with a group of shadar-kai full of passion. A group of shadar-kai, wandering aimlessly, stood in the terrace, taking no heed of one another. The party was able to light a flicker of emotion in one of them, just long enough to learn a little bit of information about this place, and to learn the direction they should go to reach the gates of the Fortress of Memories. They were indicated to find Markella, the Arbiter of the Raven Queen.

The Garrison of Traumas Past, is a place where shadar-kai prepare themselves for battle against the enemy of the Raven Queen. There, the shadar-kai where passively preparing for the next battle, and as the party approached, it became clear the group of shadar-kai wanted the party to help in the preparations. The party helped with the preparations and where eventually allowed to go, and were direct to a path leading to the gate where a woman was watching the garrison and giving order via ravens.

Once the party reached the gates, they saw a shadar-kai woman, with long black hair and a face painted in a deep purple hue, petting what look to be some sort of shadow mastiff. Her name was Markella. The party told her they were seeking audience with the Raven Queen so that she would restore Alba/Aurora's memory. Upon this, the party had a vision:

Markella was happy to help with the interpretation of this vision.

The party figured the vision had to do with Theodore Dupois-De Lyon, Myriad, the Far Realm and a strange book that would seemingly be tied to Theodore and Myriad somehow. The party understood that if they brought that strange book to the Raven Queen, she would help restore Alba/Aurora's memory.

The party went back to Hawthorne and fortuitously found Theodore Dupois-De Lyon who was able to tell them about the book Awaken he had written and given to Myriad.

With a ring of spell storing given by the party, Theodore was able to contact Myriad, and Myriad agreed to give the book back with the condition that Theodore (or anyone Theodore would hire for the job) would complete a mission for him: find something that would help him fend off against the highly morphic nature of the Far Realm. Myriad said he would send an envoy to give more information on the mission.

Currently, the party is playing the waiting game.

The party followed Buddy's lead. It led them throughout the caves and corridors until they found three glowing lights the party identified as will-o-wisps. They followed them and it led them to an undead little girl who was sitting on a stack of life sized dolls... who looked extremely realistic...

The little girl asked for the party to play with her, and she said that if they did, and she liked it, she would show them a place of treasures, and if not... well they'd have to stay and play until they found something she thought was fun enough.

Ophelia D'Vespere decided to play a card game using a deck of illusions. The little girl won and asked Ophelia to play again. Ophelia agreed, and the little girl cheated to win, and Ophelia let her get away with it. The little girl wanted to keep playing, but Ophelia asked that she showed them the place. The little girl didn't want to because she wanted to keep playing, but agreed to show them the place if Ophelia gave her her deck of illusions. Ophelia agreed and the little girl sent ''Wispo, Wispy and Wispette'' to show the party where the secret location of the treasure was. The party found the secret door, and went through it.

There, they found a strange place arranged in a manner that suggested someone of Small sized lived there before, but the place seemed abandoned.

At the back if this area was a large chest. In front of that chest, the party found a small handheld mirror. They pocketed it without much thought, and gathered the content of the chest into a portable hole without looking too much at it. They figured they'd review it later.

Afterwards, the party continued to follow Buddy's trail and found  a group of zombies. The party killed them all, including one that looked more ''alive'' than the others. Upon studying the body, Loric Aloro , Gareth Hastings and Ophelia D'Vespere figured the elf they killed had been alive.

They revivified him, and tried talking with the man, but he was pretty apathetic, and strongly believed he was dead. His names was Corëllor Tarendil He was convinced he didn't have a brain and simply said that he was annoyed by the fact he couldn't explain how he could move and talk while being dead, not having a brain, and not being undead.The party attempted to cast protection vs evil and good in case an intellect devourer had taken over him, but that wasn't the case. Nothing seemed physically wrong with the man. The party surmised he had succumbed to some form of delusion. They requested he follow along, and he did so, saying he didn't have anything better to do, since he was dead.

Afterwards, the party stumbled upon a badly hidden secret door, and entered it. Upon entering, they were greeted by a young looking kobold, with sharp fangs and who didn't have a shadow. He happily greeted them as if he knew them and told him about this grand picnic he was having. Although the party wasn't too friendly - Rickard having tried to shoot him just moments before, the kobold didn't really seem to take notice, and went on to introduce them to his friends, which were in fact just toy puppets. Eventually, he looked to  Loric Aloro's shiny armor, and got really scared. he ran away to hide in his coffin. Ophelia D'Vespere asked Corëllor if he knew about the coffin, and he shrugged and said his thoughts were muddled, but that he recalled his mission being related to some vampire kobold, but that, since he was dead now, he didn't care much about the mission. Ophelia D'Vespere decided that she was going to try to attack him by planting a stake in his heart. The little kobold tried to fight back, but the party just killed him. After they killed him, they were a strange voice whisper ''I always knew you were weak, brother'' and as it happened, the treasure they had found in the cave earlier disappeared.

The party then cast gentle repose on the body of the kobold and buried him outside the cave. Then, they began marching again, in hopes to find the Fortress of Memories or someone that could lead them to it.

Eventually, they came across a shadow dancer who was fighting a cultist of Vecna. He defeated his enemy, then the party accosted him. The party nicknamed  him Strider. He agreed to lead them to the Fortress of Memories if they gave him a trinket with a strong memory attached to it. Ophelia D'Vespere gave him a shrunken goblin head in a tiny wire cage as an item she had gotten in an adventure which reminder her of the nostalgia and a sense of the thrill when Ophelia had faced off against a powerful death tyrant.

The party followed Strider until they reached the Village of Broken Dreams.

The group followed the raven, which led the party to tress where a body was hanging
There was a dog
They got him to follow
They went in a nearby cave where a raven flew

They went in a cave

They found a hidden room
With bird people, but they were simulacrums

....

Found three dead bodies

TBC

Ophelia gives a helm of telepathy to Alba (Aurora as a petitioner), and suggests for the party to use Encode Thoughts to show her what they know in order to make her remember her past that she's forgotten after becoming a petitioner.

- 1st thought strand: About what was seen in the pools in Vikesh's section of the Brotherhood of Shadows HQ.

Alba says she recognizes the man (Vikesh), that she's seen him before and that he was a bit odd. She also thinks the girl looks like her a bit.

- 2nd thought strand: Ophelia shows her strange dreams that she had as well as what she's heard about the other party member's dreams

Alba finds all of this is a bit cryptic.

- 3rd thought strand: Summary of conversations they've had about Aurora in relation to Vilkesh.

Alba says that even if she looks like the girl, she doesn't remember any of it.

- 4th thought strand: The memory of the battle when Ophelia was inhabiting Thorhilde in a vision of the past.

The party asks for Gareth to cast greater restoration on Alba, but it has no effect.

The party decides to go to the Shadowfell and find the Raven Queen for assistance, since they know she might be the best entity in the multiverse to help.

The party brings Daniloth and Gareth, Daniloth teleports them to the Lerwick Outpost, and they wait until sunset to go to the Old Lerwick Graveyard.

They leave at sunset and it is about half hour walk to get there.

They get to the graveyard, and its been changed following the attacks of the titan.

Keedin is reluctant to go through, but doesn't want to be left alone, so he follows the party.

The party hears ominous whispers beckoning for them and Xanthus suggests to follow it.

They follow it and are led to a void of pure darkness that Ophelia recognizes as a shadow crossing that seems a bit more ominous than the shadow crossings she's seen before.

They cross the portal together... and find themselves in the Shadowfell.

They find themselves in Darkendle.

Rickard goes to talk to a vampire and a skeleton and learns that the Fortress of Memories isn't anywhere near here.

Rickard asks a vial of blood to Alba, Ophelia uses the syringe from gauntlet of transfusion to take some blood from Alba.

Then, Rickard decides to spend some time getting to know Xanthus because he seems really depressed  and talking about different timelines. Rickard manages to somehow make him laugh in the Shadowfell.

Afterwards, Ophelia draws Tarokka cards:

1- Ghost

2- Myrmidon

3- Beast

4- Abjurer

5- Darklord

1- As always, the first card is the 'Subject' of the reading.

Ophelia's interpretation:

The reading seems to be talking about Vikesh, as an old enemy that has resurfaced. In the past, he was defeated by a group of heroes that had gathered to face him, and in his return in the present, his heart is filled with malice. The tools necessary to resolve the matter with Vikesh are available, but the answer is concealed and requires attention to detail to uncover, such as with Alba. If things proceed as they are without intervention, then Vikesh will be an extremely powerful individual whose heart is filled with darkness and whose existence and actions will have far reaching consequences.

Upon exiting the tavern, Loric noticed a black colored bird flying away.

The party decided to follow it.

Aruna doesn't remember anything.

Loric attempts to show her to Commune to see if she can remember how to commune

He communes with Helm, and learns from him that a Greater Restoration would fix Aruna's memory.

The party goes back to Boldersong Keep with Keedin using the TP Helm.

They meet with Gareth and Daniloth.

At the party's request, Gareth casts Greater Restoration on Aruna who recovers her memory and urges the party to go back to completing the ritual with her.

The party goes back to the Sanctum of Daylight.

Gareth casts Forbiddance twice to cover the area.

Aruna begins the ritual with the help of Gareth.

The party notices the Forbiddance was successful in preventing more shadow creatures to creep in.

They successfully cleanse the temple, and then proceed to clean the temple and bring it back to its former glory.

Daniloth casts Unseen Servants to help and Keedin sing an amazing song to motivate the party.

Lyrics: ''We are in a temple, we are cleansing it, we are in a temple with the doll, we are cleansing the temple, we are in a temple.''

After the cleansing and cleaning, Aruna asks the party to step forward together to receive Lathander's gratitude. The Charm of Renewal is bestowed upon them ( see session log).

The party goes back to Hawthorne, and Aruna tells the party she has other duties for now on the material plane, so she flies away.

Aruna seems to have warmed up to the party a little bit.

Then the party takes a short rest, and talks about their options.

They decide to cast Sending to Aruna for help.

Aruna comes to meet them, but tells them they will have to help her in return.

The party asks for a way to meet with Aurora, so for a way to the reach the Upper Planes.

Aruna says that she will talk with Lathander to see what she can do and that in return she asks for the party to be on the lookout for a worthy priest or priest to oversee the Sanctum of Daylight, because that her the current mission.

The party agrees and Aruna leaves.

The next day at Dawn, They meet with the angel Alba who appeared in the dining room.

Keedin didn't want to share his breakfast food, so Ophelia painted more food for second breakfast.

She tells the party Lathander sent her to help them on their quest to ''purify the heart of a tainted being''.

It is the middle of the night, Nightal 11

Shar Fountain Puzzle

They learn more information on Vikesh.

The group goes into Vikesh bedroom and read the War of Light and Darkness.

They also discover an elegant ornamented box containing a navy blue gown with scintillating stars and a beautiful pendant with the design of a circle of seven stars with a crescent moon in the middle.

Loric takes the items and the love note accompanying them, and instead leaves a note:

''You've taken a long trip down the wrong path. One day you will find your way home. I've taken these to help aid you in discovering the road back.

fight the big shadow guy

The party met with Aydan and Alexander. They shared information, then decided that they would cleanse Lathander's temple 'tomorrow at dawn' as the Deva suggested, so that they had enough time to go to the BoS HQ to learn more about Vikesh.

They decided to disguise themselves as new members of the Brotherhood of Shadows and accompany Aydan and Alexander inside the headquarters. They waited at night so they could sneak to the warded area where the entrance to Vikesh's room is.

The party was able to solve the runes puzzle allowing them access to Vikesh's room.

The party explored the area, the left side of the area seemed to be dedicated to Selûne and the right side to Shar while the middle seemed to be some sort of in between.

A room on each side contained a strange pool. The party was able to activate the one on the left side, and saw the memories of Vikesh:

- Memories of a woman, Aurora who was Vikesh's lover and all the amazing time they seem to spend together.

- Memories of Vikesh battling alone against undead, demons and devils or other evil creatures.

- Memories of Vikesh battling alongside Aurora against those same kind of creatures

- Memories of Vikesh meeting with Lathander and receive the sword called Dawn as a token of gratitude for his good actions and assistance.