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Current Situation
- Still seated in Nightstone Inn the Trollmates realize this may be an advantageous time to resolve their questions about The Nightstone, while the town is still busy pondering the incident with the dragon, and before Velrosa Nandar returns to her people.
Session Summary
- Dhann sends to Erky, asking if he can check Fala Lefaliir is able to meet with Ely on the 12th of Nightal instead of the 10th for learning how to brew nonalcoholic moonshine. As it's late at night, there won't be an answer from Fala until the next morning, but Erky will get back to the group with her reply.
- The next morning, during breakfast at Nightstone Keep, Erky does let Dhann know to let Ely know Fala is agreeable to the change in appointment date. The group also spends some time discussing what to do about the Nightstone, and the upcoming Summit and a few concerns about it. They then sit for a time, waiting for Lady Nandar and Mirt to arrive. Z checks out the loom in the keep, getting some weaving done. In the room is a tapestry of Lord Nandar and the founding of Nightstone, and Z spends a bit of time admiring it.
- Elyana, Barrett, and Dhann also hang out in the loom room, and compare the sample of Drezlin's handwriting to the Per Historia Arcandor Materia, its copy, as well as the three missing pages. Some notes appear to be in his hand, in the original Historia, but there are no full entries in his hand, as if he never had full possession or access to the book itself. They also study the three pages:
- On the Cyrinishad, the notes are choppy and there isn't very much detail. The book is dangerous to be moved, and the book must be closed prior to moving. It also needs to be bound in some sort of flesh-made wrapping, such as a leather belt. "Any sort of flesh will work." The book itself only ensnares those who read it "with the hope of gathering information." Those seeking to learn more from the book are the people at risk of mental entrapment. There are different chapters of the book that do different things. (As an example, there is mention of "The Chapter of Binding," which, upon reading it, the reader is physically entrapped, somehow.) There is a small note on the page that says "learn more about other chapters." Whoever was doing the research on the Cyrinishad, it's apparent, based on the writing, that this is secondhand information and the writer did not actually have access to the Cyrinishad itself. Legend, rumor, but nothing explicitly concrete.
- On the Creation Stones: it is clear there is a Sunstone, also called the Moonstone at times, and a Nightstone. They are referenced clearly. There is also mention of a Shadowstone, which seems to be synonymous with a Dawnstone/Duskstone. it is unclear how many full stones there are. When it refers to the Shadowstone, it is also called the Dawn or Dusk stone, depending on the context. The impression is gotten that the Shadowstone is actually made up of both a Dawnstone and a Duskstone. While there are drawings of four stones, each time, there's the impression the Shadowstone is comprised of two separate stones. So in reality, while the illustrations always show four stones, there are only three final stones: Sun/Moonstone, Nightstone, and Shadowstone (made of Dawn/Dusk). It occurs to Z that a lot of the markings on the Nightstone now make much more sense, seeing all of these notes.
- On Dunamancy: the stones were used to create a sacred vault, in which Mystryl (Mystra) stored and locked Dunamancy away. This is not mentioned anywhere in the book, but the group wonders if she also locked away Shadow magic, or someone else was responsible for that task. Dunamancy of all the magics, while Shadow can be dangerous, Dunamancy is the only magic that can control, negate, and move other magic types. The Creation Stones page is echoed in another sketch on the page. It's unclear where the image is supposed to depict, but the image is essentially the same. The runes, however, are not included on this newly acquired page.
- There is mention of using the stones to lock or unlock the vault, and using the stones must be done "in the space or place between sunlight, moonlight, shadow, and darkness." It reminds the group of the carving Z saw of the phases of the sun, in Sara's cave. The page doesn't say if this is an actual place, or a state of mind, or something else.
- Who has the stones. Sun/Moonstone was entrusted to Selûne, the Nightstone to Elminster Aumar, and the Shadowstone to Shar. Shar is a bit of Selune's enemy, with the idea they, being somewhat enemies of each other, would never join together or share their stones' power. The group remembers that Shar put the Shadowstone into the primary weapon of her defender, Damian Krale, making the whereabouts of the stone, and who holds it at present, unknown.
- With this new knowledge, specifically that there are only three main stones, rather than two, perhaps it's best to restore the Nightstone now - that way, only one stone may be left to find - the Shadowstone. Selune is a solid lead for the Sun/Moonstone. Dhann sends to Elminster to double check if they should, now, do this. Elminster responds to use caution, and best of luck. Z is all for using his paws to combine the pieces of the stone.
- Given the presence of the fog, and the recent happenings, it's decided to reunite the pieces of the stone now, taking advantage of the oddness in the town to help cover whatever might happen with the Nightstone's pieces being joined again.
- Elyana suggests Seeming to cover the actual identity of the group. Z is torn at the idea of being hidden, but also not being witnessed interacting with the Nightstone and something incredible happening. The group discusses their options as they walk to the town center. "You have three blocks to convince Z that stealth is wise." Dhann casts Death Ward on Z as they walk. At the Nightstone, the fog is quite thick and makes visibility difficult. The door of the Inn, about fifteen feet away, is barely visible. There's really no one about. Dhann then casts Death Ward on himself, so that should something terrible occur, he's up to heal others. Ely then casts Seeming on the group, but catches the group off guard by changing everyone to look like Tabaxis.
- Due to the fog clouding everyone's vision, the group ends up all staying close to each other to maintain line of sight, just in case. Ely is next to Dhann and Rascal - Rascal being about ninety feet away by the Windmill) stays to the south, Barrett on the north side, Z on the west with Dhann behind him, ready to pull Z away from touching the stone if things seem to go wrong.
- Z notices that even in the fog, the Nightstone is shiny, and beautiful, but viewing the stone up close, it has intricacies he hasn't noticed before. It almost makes him feel hopeful. Barrett casts Shield of Faith on Z, and Dhann gives him Guidance before the Bard attempts joining the pieces. Z pulls two stones out of his Astral Locker, the Nightstone shard, and his lucky throwing rock, giving it a kiss for good luck. In his radiant paw, the shard begins to vibrate so intensely it almost has a hum or ring to it, very pleasant. It almost feels painful, because the vibration is so fast.
- Getting really close, Z cinches the stone in as closely as possible, and begins to feel heat in his paw - and then he pushes the stone in. There's almost the sound of crystal against crystal, as the shard vibrates itself into the Nightstone, slowly, and returns to its proper position within the bigger stone. The humming is almost hypnotic, and everyone can hear it, but only Z can see what's happening. The cracks in the stone are healed, the shard is flush and seamless into the stone, and then a magenta glow flares, and then disappears.
- All of them, then, feel a tremor in the ground beneath their feet. It's disconcerting, and they realize the Nightstone itself is pulling itself from the ground, rising into the air. The whole thing rises, hovers, and begins to rotate, becoming a black blur. Spinning, spinning, rising fifteen feet into the air - the tinkling sound, no longer a hum, becomes separate sounds like a massive windchime, and then an explosion blasts everyone back. Z is slammed into Dhann and he's barely able to keep his own feet as he catches the Bard, while Barrett and Ely are flung to the ground with the percussive boom that the Nightstone expelled. Even on the ground, they are pushed back a good five or ten feet. The fences rattle, a few boards being flung. The shockwave makes buildings rumble and trees tremble.
- The tinkling music has stopped, now, as the wave continues out, clearing all the fog out of Nightstone entirely. All of this has happened within an instant, and looking back, the stone is gone. There's just a massive hole in the ground. Every door is beginning to open as the people of Nightstone come to investigate. Z is the only one of the group who still looks like himself, and Ely hurriedly crawls over and casts Greater Invisibility on Z.
- Morak Ur'gray approaches the group of Tabaxis and asks if they're all okay. Elyana bluffs and says they have no idea what's just happened, as they only just arrived in town. Invisible, Z glances into the hole and sees a little glint of something in the sunshine. He scurries down to see what it is. As he approaches, he sees that it's, in fact, the Nightstone - much smaller, winking blackly in the sun. Scooping it up, there's almost a static shock in his whole hand, and for a second, he feels like he saw his hand light up with a bit of radiant energy. The stone then falls dormant. Z wraps it in a scarf and tucks the entire bundle into a pocket, and scampers out of the hole in the ground.
- While Z is doing this, unbeknownst to the group, the group tries to figure out what to do without arising any suspicion. Seeing the drawbridge, Dhann sees the bridge is about to be raised. No way out that way. Ely and Dhann begin a hissed argument about plans and whiskers while they all make their way as nonchalantly as possible back to the Keep. Closer to the Keep, Ely drops Seeming, but none of the guards on duty notice the change in appearance, and neither do any of the townspeople.
- Ely tells the guards something odd happened at the Nightstone, and they take up defensive positions, but the group is allowed, no problem, back into the Keep, if they wish. They stay outside, but near the Keep. Z examines the Nightstone, and shows it to the group. It's not inert, clearly. He can tell it's very powerful. While wielding the stone, one can hear the musical vibration of it. One also has advantage on all saving throws against magical spells, and if they fail a saving throw against a necromantic effect, he can choose to succeed (3 times a day). Z, holding the stone, feels more protected than he did before.
- Dhann sends to Elminster that they have the Nightstone, and Elminster expresses that that's very good news. Don't lose it, it's important, and it's powerful.
- The townspeople are all examining the lack of the Nightstone and the Trollmates decide to go "investigate" what's happened so as to avoid suspicion if they don't join the crowd. They overhear Melantha Xelbrin interrogating Morak on where the Tabaxis may have gone. A few folk begin to look for them, but of course they don't exist. It's essentially townspeople pandemonium and Morak is clearly glancing over at the Trollmates, hoping they may take control of the situation.
- A carriage then pulls into the courtyard, with Mirt driving and Lady Nandar inside. Given the amount of dust on the outside, they clearly hurried on their way. Mirt immediately sees the stone being gone, and helps to spread stories about the stone, taking the attention of the people off of the gang. He essentially vocally manhandles the entire town into Nightstone Inn and the tavern. Lady Nandar comes over and asks if the group knows anything about that, and asks for an explanation if they have one, and Z says they have much to share with her. As they walk, Z explains a bit of what's happened. She says they had no trouble traveling from Mirt's Hunting Lodge and nothing happened on the way.
- Lady Nandar heads to the Keep while the Trollmates go back to the Library. There is no sign of Mrs Rengar. After a few minutes, Lady Nandar enters. The place has been swept roughly and is looking cleaner but is still much in disorder. Z explains that the fungus, the fog, and the nightmares were caused by some animated dragon skeleton upstairs. The group explains that Drezlin Nandar's research may have taken him a bit too far. Lady Nandar is clearly working to process what's going on with her dead-but-not-gone husband, and Dhann finds her a chair. He then asks if Drezlin ever had any sort of plans for being there "for always," and Lady Nandar sits for a moment. She tries to play it off, but then with a pause, looks directly at Dhann and asks, "It's not possible - is it?" And he replies, "The dragon wasn't supposed to be, either."
- "He couldn't have been telling the truth," Lady Nandar says. She explains that he told her once that Drezlin "made plans" but she assumed he meant about their future, but things about him, at that time, scared her and then the term "for always" became more of an endearing phrase than scary. She didn't think he meant literally, but she always wondered. Elyana, studying Lady Nandar's face intensely, can't catch any lie, or withholding of information. If anything, she seems more scared about what she knows. In regards to the urn upstairs, it was just a gift from her, based on what she thought Drezlin's plans were, and Ely asks if it was just the urn, "Nothing additional to it?" Lady Nandar says no. There is no mention of the smaller urn on the inside, and it doesn't seem that the noblewoman had any idea of that item within the larger urn.
- "We discovered this dragon, not dead, was the cause of your torment," Z starts, and explains that the group had to release it, under the circumstances of finding it, to end the torture of the town. He goes on to explain about Drezlin perhaps playing some part in bringing the intelligence to the skeleton, or resurrecting it in soul, at least. But Drezlin and the dragon's existence are certainly linked. Lady Nandar, as Z finishes, looks absolutely defeated, as if a small suspicion she always held was finally confirmed.
- Mirt enters, then, and goes to her side, seeing her distraught. Z further explains, with Mirt there, why they released the dragon. Mirt thanks the group, and makes a small Mirt joke, "I wonder if it's still called Nightstone?" with the Nightstone gone. Lady Nandar rallies herself, showing her leadership qualities, orders guards to begin clearing out the library. When she's out of earshot, the group lets the Mirt know that his and Durnan's hunch about a Lich was well founded, and Mirt calls to Lady Nandar that perhaps the emptying of the second floor should wait a bit. She turns to look at him, and it's the kind of look that doesn't need words, and it's clear, then, that these two are very much together.
- Mirt tells her they'll have to take it slow, the cleaning up of the library, and talk later that evening, at which she challenges that that wasn't really Drezlin, the one she knew, and Mirt responds that it's a Drezlin that not even Drezlin most likely expected. Gesturing at the Trollmates, indicating their willingness to help, he says, "And with Elminster's help, I think we can end Drezlin's suffering - because he is suffering, and no one wants that." At that, Lady Nandar wrests the heavy sword from one of the nearby suits of armor, and it would be comical if not for the sadness of the situation as she declares, "I'll kill him myself, again if we need to - no one is going to bastardize my husband's memory!" and bursts into tears as Mirt takes the sword from her and embraces her.
- Elyana glances over at the group and mouths to Dhann, "Should we tell her about the stone?" as Mirt leans over to the group and whispers, "Have you checked the tomb?" Z responds, "That's, ah, we wanted to talk to you about the tomb." In response to Ely's question, Dhann nudges Z and shakes his head no at Elyana.
- The group explains that they found a phylactery, and they say it's crumbled to dust, and Mirt admits this magic is beyond him, but there's something about a soul in a phylactery needing to be fed, and if it can't be fed, it will perhaps destroy itself, but he's not sure. The group may have found a book (the green book) with more information about Lichs but they haven't had a chance for further inspection. Plus, exploring the tomb is probably more important at this time. Mirt offers to come, but it's probably better for him to stay with Lady Nandar. The group declines, but asks if he knows any more details about it. The crypt is large, meant for family, but the Nandars never had children. Besides Nandar, his aunt is interred there. There are five sarcophagi, one for Lady Nandar, four for relatives, there are some benches, but that's about it. It's big, though, almost the entire underground area beneath the graveyard. Magical torches, easily accessible, that's it. Mirt will fetch the key, and the crypt is theirs to investigate.
Next time on...
Deciding to take a short rest to attune to items, swap others, and otherwise prepare for entering the Nandar crypt, the Trollmates head back to the Keep. What will they find within the subterranean burial grounds? Before the day is over, they'll know for certain.