Do I Know the Significance of Swans? [Session 39]

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Current Situation

• Having re-deaded the undead guarding the dead in Nandar's tomb, the party decides to find out where the mysterious tunnel leads. As it turns out, the tunnel leads to ton of new information. Lots of answers and even more new questions.

Session Summary

• Z makes a sketch of Drezlin's arrow for future reference, while Dhann examines it more closely.
  • The arrow is made of ash but, it seems unique. It has been hardened by flames and then the designs were scratched into it. The scratches are then smoothed over to give an almost satin finish. Most arrows have a bit of a spring to them which helps them fly truer toward their target but may not plunge as deeply. This arrow is very heavy and has almost no bend. It is either very old and somewhat fragile or it was constructed to be handled by a very skilled archer and to deliver a killing blow. Or, possibly, both.
• Dhann wonders if the arrow was used like a spell scroll, not magic itself, but as a one-time deliverer for a spell before becoming just an arrow, albeit unsettling in its appearance. Barrett comments he's heard of things similar, like arrows used for one purpose and only once, as in dragonslaying. The group doesn't know if they should take the arrow or not, so while they mull it over, they decide to take a short rest while investigating Drezlin Nandar's sarcophagus. Barrett sits to regain some ki points while Z and Ely mosey over to the High Steward's coffin. The seal is cheap and falls away easily from beneath Z's paws, leaving the lid able to be moved. The Bard and Cleric, death warded, are the two who decide to heave open the coffin. Dhann digs in his hands and manages to haul the lid up about eight inches, giving Z the ability to peak inside. Even though he's able to lift it, the lid is extremely heavy.
• Z and Ely look within, seeing the dry remains of a human male. Z asks Dhann if it smells like death, and if it smells like evil, and Dhann, concentrating on not dropping the lid on his friends, comments that it just smells dusty. He then shoves the lid forward, further opening the remains for viewing. Drezlin is dressed in formal armor, but not much. Lord's armor, really, not dressed for war. The clothing is old, aged within the coffin, and it's clear the body has just been sitting in here, decomposing naturally, tucked away as it was.
• Elyana is able to notice that there's a necklace of some sort on the body, laying on the chest. Drezlin wasn't buried with it. It's dusty, but looks like silver. It ends in a small pendant, maybe two inches wide. The item looks out of place. Ely points it out. It's a little silver swan, with an irregularly shaped natural pear within its crafted wings. The pearl is a pure, shining white. She pulls out the little sandstone swan from Draena Fillensong's coffin, and she says she thinks it's odd they both have swan imagery in their coffins. Barrett searches his memory and recalls to the group that swans often symbolize pairs and being coupled for eternity. Dedication and loyalty also come to mind. Elyana picks up the chain to view the pendant more closely.
• Dhann examine's Drezlin's remains a bit more closely and pulls down the collar of the Steward's shirt to see if he can locate an old arrow wound. Ely and Z also peer after, looking as well. The Cleric does locate an old injury that is very much evidence of an arrow having entered the neck, scratching across the clavicle and hitting the spine, killing the man. Dhann points out the marks to the group, and while it may or may not be Drezlin, this evidence certainly lines up to be the body of the formerly living Nandar. Ely notes that there is a signet ring, and a few pieces of modest, lordly jewelry. Z comments that none of his jewelry, especially this seemingly significant pendant, matches Velrosa Nandar.
  
• Z and Dhann manage to push the lid of the sarcophagus, shutting away Drezlin's remains. As this is the first time Z has pushed this lid, it occurs to him that this lid is significantly heavier than the one with the tunnel leading underground. Z mentions he wonders if there's lead, and Dhann, looking underneath with his little mirror, sees that the underside is certainly scratched up lead - someone's opened this sarcophagus before, and this coffin was designed to block, or contain, magic.
• Z Identifies the necklace with the swan, and it reveals itself to be a Talisman of Pure Good and Z attunes to the item, and it feels quite lovely - the pendant shows itself to be able to sense if someone is good or not. The group wonders why someone would place such an object with Drezlin within his coffin. The group decides that this item may help them in ending the current version of Drezlin, and the group also decides to ask Velrosa if they may be able to borrow this item if she allows it.
• At this time, Ely also looks at what items Rascal stole off of the bodies at Mirt's party gone murder bonanza. Within a few bits and bobs is a little box with a dried herb in it that smells something like ginger. She asks Dhann if he recognizes the herb at all, and after a blank look at it, he knows it's definitely a dried plant, and it smells something like ginger. She also has a couple of pearls, which she gives to Z.
• Before exploring the tunnel, Barrett stows the arrow that killed Drezlin within his quiver. The group will ask Velrosa about this, as well.
• Secret tunnel time! Z goes first, lighting the poi to see the way. It's a narrow space, not a long term usage kind of dig. One person at a time can fit down. It's crumbling and roughly hewn, as if it's been here for a while and beginning to collapse. The group has to duck down within the tunnel and slowly make their way deeper into it. It goes quite a ways, and Barrett is able to gauge that the smells of breakfast from before are quite strong to the point of the scent of dirt being undetectable. Almost like this leads straight to the Nightstone Inn, considering this is what the food from there smells like. And as the tunnel reaches an end, it's definitively leading to that tavern.
• There's a wooden stop, and from beyond it, a small sliver of light, and the sounds of rummaging through boxes, which sounds like it may lead to a cellar or a storage room. Ely, peeking through the sliver, sees a pair of arms digging through some boxes, and she makes a small mark with Prestidigitation on the other side of the space, so that the gang can locate where this exact blocking panel may be, if they can get to the cellar in the inn within the next hour.
• Going back the way they came, the Trollmates climb back into the crypt and have to leave the crypt in its post-combat state for now. First, there's a certain dwarf that needs to be talked to. On the way out, Z grabs his ropes from the statues. When he has the energy for it, the group agrees it's a good idea for Dhann to Stone Shape Drezlin's coffin shut.
• Sitting down in the Nightstone Inn, they order breakfast and while they wait, they see a 17-18 year old serving lad, and Elyana recognizes him as the one that was in the cellar a little while ago. Breakfast is indeed sausages, and bread pudding with dates - exactly what the tunnel smelled like.
• Elyana calls over Morak Ur'gray and asks if they can speak with him, and he amiably agrees, and pulls up a chair. The Warlock compliments him on breakfast, and then mentions casually that Morak's been in Nightstone for a while. He agrees, and she asks who may have worked for him in the past several years. He mentions Trod - the serving boy - and says he, Morak, is the owner and has only ever been the singular owner. Ely questions him about whether or not he has any...extra ways out of the inn and he mentions main exits that are quite useful, and when she asks about the cellar, he says nope, nope, nope. He's tough to read, but if he knows about something in the cellar, he's not admitting to it. But he doesn't seem to be denying it, either. But all in all, it's hard to tell. Ely mouths to Dhann, "Do I tell him?" and Dhann nods a yes. Ely brings up to Morak that they found a strange tunnel "somewhere else in town" and that it butts up against his tavern, and if he knows about it. "A tunnel? Into my tavern? I don't think so." Elyana mentions she made a mark, and he still denies, saying there's no tunnel.
• At this point, Dhann speaks up with the observation that out of everyone in town, Morak has been the only person to express any sort of concern about Drezlin "coming back," and how he might in the first place, and that there absolutely is a tunnel from his tavern, to the Nandar family crypt. At this, Morak grows from jolly to very quiet, and then solemn, Elyana staring at him for answers. The dwarf then becomes much more open with the group about his former beloved friend, Drezlin Nandar:
  • Morak dug the tunnel, shortly after Drezlin was buried in the crypt. Drezlin was sure that he would come back after his death, and wanted to do anything to prevent that. Even so, there were secrets he didn't want Lady Nandar to know about, and so he asked for Morak's help.
  • He asked Morak to get the Talisman of Pure Good placed on his corpse, without Velrosa knowing. He also gave Morak a tincture to put on his head for three nights, and then leave the pendant. "It doesn't seem to have worked."
  • Drezlin never told Morak was the tincture was but that it would "prevent him from rising." Doesn't seem to have helped in any way, unfortunately, even with Morak following all of the instructions perfectly.
  • Drezlin had been alive "for a very, very long time" and his story is one of evil and redemption. His ultimate fear was rising from the dead.
  • Morak asks if they "met his aunt," and Z replies, "You could say that!" and Morak mentions that he avoided conflict with Draena Fillensong due to having a little stone swan from Drezlin. By showing her the swan, Morak was allowed safe passage in the crypt.
  • Draena was born "a long time ago," and her memoir is in the Nandar library. When she was young, she was turned into a vampire. After a time, she left her home, and became a full vampire, living their undead ways, eventually deciding to return home to visit her sister. The latter married outside the family, and Draena intended on killing her sister out of jealousy, but instead met Drezlin when he was eleven, followed him throughout his life, and eventually the two of them became lovers. Somewhere along the way, they both got involved with Cyric who was still a mortal at the time, a man with ambition. They also met and befriended a man named Demiryn Lagustin and the four became inseparable.
    
  • Cyric seems to have "assisted" Drezlin in giving him long life so he could be with Draena forever. After a time, though, Draena became unsettled by how much power, and how evil, the three men were becoming, and begged Drezlin to stop, and to leave the group. At some point in their lives, Drezlin did marry another woman and settle down, but when she became horribly ill, Drezlin begged Draena to turn her into a vampire to cure her and so he and his wife could be together. When the woman woke after being turned, however, she attacked Drezlin and Draena tore her to pieces, and then swore to never let anyone rise from the dead again. Even as Drezlin found a way to prolong his life, she found a way to end hers. Cyric had done enough damage, and she was going to kill him, or die trying.
    
  • Much later, Drezlin met Lady Nandar and he vowed to give up his dark ways and eternal life for her, but there was only one way to kill him, and would bring him back regardless. And so, Drezlin enlisted Morak's help in hoping to keep him dead, when he finally did die.
  • The Talisman was to hopefully protect him from any dark beings that may try to bring him back, and his coffin is definitely lined with lead. So while it seems to have kept his body from rising, it doesn't seem to have helped any in keeping his soul within the realm of the dead.
• Morak closes with saying he wouldn't have told any of this to the group if they hadn't been there for their specific purpose. Dhann suggests that perhaps Morak and Lady Nandar could talk together about what each of them know, and perhaps could find some sort of closure in their similar secrets and sorrows. Morak mentions that Draena's memoir is in the library, and they thank him for the information. He also goes to fetch the little swan trinket that he has. Bringing it to the table, it looks identical to the one Elyana has. It seems, upon closer inspection, that the two are a pair and were intended as a male and female matched set.
  
• Seeing Morak's sorrowful mood, Z, at Ely's suggestion, performs a little tableside show of music and dance. Cheered somewhat, Morak apologizes for his mood and Z reassures him not to worry at all, and that a bit of lightheartedness is good for them all. They finish breakfast, and Elyana also buys some ale from him for a platinum for his troubles.
• One last stop at the library is decided, before concluding all business in Nightstone. They do locate Draena's memoir, and it's a mostly red book with black embellishments, a diary after the fact. All handwritten.
• Books the group picks up:
  • The Memoir of Draena Fillensong
    
  • Simple reader in Draconic
  • Beginner's language book for learning Draconic
  • Parkour Like a Squirrel Vol 1 - If there are surfaces (walls, trees, boulders, crates, statues, railings, dragons, etc.) to bound off, you may use Dexterity rather than Strength when calculating jump distances and use Dexterity (Acrobatics) in place of Strength (Athletics) for climbing checks
  • Parkour Like a Squirrel Vol 2 - If there are surfaces (walls, trees, boulders, crates, statues, railings, dragons, etc.) to bound off, your initial melee attack on your turn gains advantage if the target is within jumping distance.
    
• After finding the rest of the books they needed, the group makes sure to leave the library as securely as they can. Dhann pulls the rope ladder in the throne back up, shuts the chair, and then moves to the sliding bookcase in front of the red room, to the place in the wall he Stone Shaped. He breaks off the wooden trigger book that would originally move the shelf to reveal the door, so hopefully no one can access or find that room again without difficulty.
• They return to Nightstone Keep for a short rest. It's been an eventful morning, certainly. The Trollmates spend the four hours studying and resting until dinner with Mirt and Velrosa Nandar. The latter is very much in her leadership mode for the most part but is still a gracious and generous host. Mirt gives a toast to "friends near and far, present and past. Thank you for all you have done for us today."
  
• At dinner, the talk grows a bit more serious as the Trollmate let Mirt and Velrosa know what they've learned. The group doesn't tell Velrosa anything Morak told them, but kindly suggest to Lady Nandar that Morak may be someone she may find comfort and information in talking to, and that he might like to speak to her. If she approaches him, as a friend as well as the leader of Nightstone, he may be more able to talk about things Drezlin asked his secrecy of. The Trollmates tell her everything else, though, as there doesn't seem to be any reason to lie or hold back anything besides what the dwarf revealed to them.
• Surprisingly, Lady Nandar seems to already have known most of this news, even if she never let on until now. She also informs the group that the The Nightstone was an item Drezlin felt might keep him safe, from something, as if it was some font of magic that could help protect him. She even knows of his deal with Cyric for longer life, and comments she didn't even mark Drezlin's age on his tomb as she never knew it. She turned down his offer of immortality, and at that point, Drezlin didn't want it either. Until his death, he spent most of his time researching how not to come back from the dead, when he finally did die. Velrosa thanks the group for all of their help and assistance in this venture and if Drezlin is indeed back, the Drezlin she married would want him gone. And so does she.
• The Talisman of Pure Good brings tears to her eyes and she says the group can have it. She knows it was created by Drezlin "for her" a long time ago, and Lady Nandar prefers not to dwell on the matter. Lady Nandar also allows the group to take the arrow.
  
• Velrosa also says that Drezlin was told "he could only be killed in one way, but he was gauranteed to come back," even though he tried to thwart this in many ways and protections. It seems the arrow was the end all be all for his life's conclusion.
• It seems that the evil research happening on the second floor has been the work of the current Drezlin.
• Dhann asks if Drezlin ever wore any rings, and Lady Nandar says no (thinking of the Ring of Mind Shielding, and whatever gold ring mentioned as well)
• It seems that when Drezlin was killed by the arrow, his lich form first manifested in the second floor of the library, near the phylactery in the larger urn.
• Barrett then asks if Lady Nandar knows why Mrs Rengar seems to have vanished, to which he receives the reply, "that she comes and goes as she pleases."
• Lastly, the water in Nightstone seems to have begun growing cleaner and pure again with the exit of Deldreg from the town. The zombie deer are also re-dead with the dragon's leaving.
  
• The group finishes dinner, and plans to head back to Waterdeep in the morning.

-

As everyone shuffles out of the Nightstone Tavern, Barrett takes a deep breath.  The air is definitely clearer now without the unnatural fog.  His mind immediately drifts back to the Misty Isle (one of the many names for the Roaming Isle) and the morning mists that fill the valleys of the island’s interior.  Those mists were always sweet, leaving behind life-giving moisture and not necrotic mushrooms. Thoughts of home remind him of something he hasn’t been able to do yet. “Dhann, do you have any spell wind left in your sails today?  Do you think you can send a message to Friar Stardust for me?”

"Hm? Oh, yes-" Dhann takes the Pearl of Power out from his component pouch and holds it up. "I can send one message. And," Directed at Ely, this time. "Thanks again for this. I'll send and give this back. Keep the ring as long as you'd like, if you think you could use it."

Barrett thinks for a moment. Twenty-five words. You've died, spent years in a place where time has no meaning reviewing your entire life, made decisions that will have repercussions for possibly your entire afterlife...and you are supposed to sum that up in 25 words? Luckily, during one of his voyages, he served as the ship's semaphore master. He knows how to be concise. "Send this, please: Barrett alive. Returned from afterlife to aid mission. Requests loan of Yelqen's Bow-Staff and best Dragonhide Belt from armory. Send to Trollskull in Waterdeep.  Blessings."

Elyana nods in response, not wanting to interrupt Barrett's message, only mouths a "Thank you" and taking the Pearl of Power back from Dhann. She stores it in one of the pouches on her hip and then looks at the ring, curious if it would  maybe be better for someone else.

Having sent the message, it's almost immediately that Dhann's brows quirk and he nods to himself. "Alright...she says that's a great surprise...hopes you're well, and," His eyes look up as he listens, "To give her a tenday or so. She'll put together a few things for you."

“I wish I had a word left to thank her, but I’ll simply thank you, and you,” Barret says, nodding to Ely, “instead.

"Why are you thanking me?" Ely asks confused.

"Message editorial services are available on request," Dhann grins, "Let me know if I can help in that way if you'd like, in the future. You're very welcome."

“Because you lent Dhann the pearl that made the message possible,” Barrett answers Ely.

“Oh for that. You’re welcome then. Anything to help.”

-

Next time on...

Business in Nightstone conlcuded after several action packed days, the gang prepares to head back to Waterdeep...and preparations for the Summit looming just on the horizon.