Previously: Chapter 65: It Came from Below
A Proper Supper
After Dandelion and Penny has returned with Argus and Ira they meet up with Kal, Relic and Arin who is waiting at home, just passing the time. Rod immediately hops up on the lintel to get close to the owls, who he in a very short time has gotten close to, as they are some of the first creatures to show him a semblance of kindness. The rest of the party watches them as Rod lays down between them, falling asleep.
Kal proposes casting a Legend Lore on Rumblejaw, hoping to learn more about what the creature’s history is, and how it got so much larger than the average purple worm. Penny uses her creation powers to make some incense, enough to do the ritual, and so Kal sits down to cast the spell. The smell of burning incense fills the room, as Kal once more enters the trance-like state, allowing her to read the past and knowledge of the spoken creature.
Instead of a poem, or a cryptic saying, she instead gets a vision from the point of view of Rumblejaw. Burrowing through the underground, she can feel her body digging through solid rock, eventually bursting out of a cave wall. In front of her, a large city in the underdark, filled with dwarves with gray skin, duergars, who sound the alarm at the sight of the enemy. The purple worm attacks the city, feasting on the dwarves, but is eventually driven back by spells, catapults and strong axes. Forced away, the purple worm travels upwards, towards the surface. As it bursts through, it finds itself in a vast plane, and in the distance sees the ruins of a city, which Kal recognizes as the Ruins of Swellingstrum.
The purple worm takes refuge beneath the city, burrowing out tunnels at an incredible speed, and eating the occasional adventurous spirit who dares enter the city looking for riches. Kal feels the time passing, and in the end seven or eight years passes, before she sees a tiny halfling druid, Tamsyn, encountering the purple worm and running away. During the entire vision, Kal feels immense power coming from somewhere within the worm. A power similar to one she has felt before, yet slightly different. One of the divine shards.
Coming out of the trance-like state, she tells the others what she saw, and they realize that the reason Rumblejaw is so massive must be because of a divine shard enhancing her physical body. Could be a powerful boon in the fight against Vuthul, but first they have to defeat it.
Afterwards, Dandelion decides to take a flight as an eagle around the city to look at the preparations. It appears that the whole city is getting ready, with the arena preparing for a jousting tournament, which Dandelion finds rather barbaric, but other than that, the city seems to be filled with just decorations and various stalls of people who are getting ready for the bustle of people the next day. The road leading from the castle to the temple of Azuna is clearly more distinctive, with banners following it the whole way, while the temple itself seems to be hoisting the colors of the coming queen, turquoise and white.
In the bay, nine warships lay docked, eight of them bearing the emblem of the Akstan Kingdom, while one ship has an unknown emblem on its sail. When she gets closer to one of the Akstan ships, she sees that they appear to have noticed her, and are discussing amongst themselves if it is a druid in disguise or not, considering the weird coloration of the tips, as her wild shapes tend to be green in hue in the fringes. She quickly tries to convince them that she is not by taking a shit on one of the soldiers, hitting him squarely in the face. He decides to retaliate with a crossbow shot, but misses. She then flies over to the other warship, and finds a group of tanned looking soldiers, probably from somewhere in the south. Satisfied that there seems to be no obvious threats against the coronation in the morrow, she heads back home, and shares what she has seen.
Relic thinks that the ninth warship might come from the Emirate of Khetam, especially considering that people have mentioned Hasan al-Khetam, the ruler of said country. It lies directly to the south of Rexendell, in the most northern part of the continent of Krawdoth, and is referred to by many in Moroxia as the great south.
As the evening comes to a close, the party discusses how to prepare for the morning, fearing that such an important event has to be interrupted somehow by the forces of evil, and so Kal decides to use one of the two bowls Penny encrusted with jewels to make a Heroes’ Fest for the entire household, Arin, cat and owls included. They eat themselves full, with Arin remarking that it is incredibly tasty, and says that if Kal exerted herself, she could probably make as good food without magic, trying to compliment her cooking, but fails. Kal understands what she means however, and thanks her. Afterwards, completely stuffed, the party goes to their respective beds to sleep. Rod scratches on Dandelion’s door during the night, asking to sleep in her room.
Coronation Day
The party wakes up bright and early to the music emanating from the city. Seems the festivities have already begun, with the whole city joining in. When they come downstairs, Arin is already making breakfast, dressed in her finest, ready to go out, saying she is meeting Jen, the nice neighbor she has gotten close to, to go see the coronation. After saying goodbye she runs outside, where Jen is waiting down the road, and they go into the city arms in arms.
Kal has spent the previous night, before going to bed, making her armor presentable by polishing it as good as she can, and has donned it, along with the Vestments embroidered with the symbol of Udall, looking quite presentable for the occasion. Dandelion is dressed in her normal clothing, whilst both Penny and Relic have donned their finest as well. They decide to stuff all their weapons into the bag of holding, with the exception of Penny’s instrument, which she carries on her back.
As they leave, the owls trail them from overhead, and they follow the flow of people heading into the city. It’s not long until the coronation starts, so they decide to hurry. Reaching the city gates, Kal gets stopped, as she is wearing heavy armor, but Armitage appears and tells the city guard that they won’t make any trouble, considering they are the reason there even is a coronation at all today, having saved the princess. They exchange a few words, with Armitage seemingly being stressed about everything going as planned, so he tells the party to enjoy the day, and that Thervan was looking for them. Supposedly they have reserved seats for the coronation itself. They decide to wander towards the temple of Azuna to find Thervan.
Security is tight, and they can see city guards from Ravenforge, but also some donning the emblem of Elvenroth, having been pulled in for extra security, following the attack a month previous. The rooftops are also littered with guards, hidden by magical cloaks, keeping watch over the crowd below. As they walk, Kal overhears a few older ladies talking about how they heard that the princess is the one who ordered the attack on the king, just so she could finally take her place. Kal decides to intimidate the ladies, shutting them down. The ladies give a disapproving look, and walk away.
Reaching the temple of Azuna just in time, Thervan spots them and gestures for them to come to the front next to him, waiting for the princess to arrive. In the waiting crowd there are several dukes, duchesses and royals from far and wide, even the queen of the Akstan Kingdom, Alynna Venra is here, flanked by Delphine who is barely recognizable, wearing a beautiful dress and having done her hair up. They don’t have to wait long, as they soon hear the applauding crowd and spot an approaching carriage on the road in the distance. Most people toss flowers to her, but a few troublemakers try to toss tomatoes at her, but are quickly escorted away by the guards. Maelyn Infernas, the head priestess of Azuna, is standing by the entrance along with the priestess Liora Silverdew, waiting for the princess to arrive. When she does, Maelyn walks over to the carriage, helping her down, exchanging a few words. Dandelion, who can read lips, sees that Satine seems to feel unprepared for the responsibility. Maelyn leads the princess inside, followed by the rest of the nobility and guests.
The party finds their seats along with Thervan, and the temple soon fills up with both nobles and common folk, as it seems the princess wanted the event to be open for everyone, not just the elite. As everyone has found their seats, Maelyn makes a short speech about why they are gathered here today, to crown a new queen, and a brighter future for the country. Satine follows her que, and approaches Maelyn, kneeling down on a stool, with Liora bringing forth a grand crown resting on a velvet pillow. Maelyn picks up the crown, and puts it slowly and carefully on the princess’ head. The ruby on the front gives a subtle glow, and a magical energy flows from it into Satine. The crowd explodes in applause, with the queen rising from the chair, smiling at the crowd. She then holds her hands up, waiting for the crowd to settle down, before making her first speech. The voice carries itself into the streets, enhanced by magic.
“Esteemed citizens of Moroxia, brave souls of Ravenforge, and all gathered here today, I stand before you, not as a mere successor to a throne, but as a custodian of our collective future.
Today, as I accept the crown, we remember not just the legacy of my father, King Triston Bouchard, but the tapestry of our history, woven through times of turmoil and triumph. We are reminded that the path to today was paved with both valor and shadow, a history marked by conquest as much as by courage.
The throne upon which I am to sit was not always ours. Centuries ago, it belonged to another, a truth that time has whispered through the ages. We, the Bouchard lineage, emerged as rulers not solely by right, but by might, a reality that history neither forgets nor forgives. And while the past cannot be undone, it can guide us towards a more honorable path.
In this moment, I find myself at the helm of our great kingdom, not by choice, but by necessity. Moroxia stands at the brink of darkness, threatened by forces that seek to unravel the very fabric of our society. It is a time that calls for unity, for strength, and for a leader who, despite reservations, will stand at the forefront.
I do not don the crown in blind celebration of conquests past, but in solemn acknowledgment of the responsibility it entails. The weight of this crown is a reminder of the burden of history, of the lives altered in our rise. It is with this awareness that I vow to lead not as a conqueror, but as a guardian of our people's future.
Moroxia, our beloved land, is a mosaic of diverse cultures, a testament to the strength found in our differences. Let us remember that power is transient, and the throne I occupy today may one day pass to another. But it is not this day. Today, we stand united, not under the banner of conquest, but under the shared hope for a peaceful and prosperous future.
As we face the encroaching darkness, let us be reminded of the resilience that runs through our veins. Our unity will be our beacon, our compassion our guide, and our collective strength our shield.
In honoring my father and the lineage that precedes me, I embrace this role with a heart committed to the well-being of all Moroxians. Together, we shall forge a path forward, one that respects our past while courageously facing our future.
Long live Moroxia! In our unity, we find our might; in our diversity, our strength; and in our shared vision, a light that shall never dim.”
Kal notices that Thervan seems to be a bit thoughtful at parts of the speech, but doesn’t comment on it. After the speech, the crowd gives a respectful applause, with the queen bowing to her people, before walking out to her waiting carriage to bring her back to the castle. The two bodyguards, Alaric Blackthorn and Lyria Moonshadow, follow close behind.
A Distraction
Now that they have some time to kill, Relic decides to head to the castle in order to see how the research is going. Dandelion, Kal and Penny decide to spend the time in the city doing some people watching, while Penny plays a song she has written, warning people to stay away from Swellingstrum, and the purple worm within. It seems to be a hit, and a few people walk away from the performance still whistling the tune. By a street corner, they spot some shady looking individuals who seem to be in a hurry. Penny moves closer, using her detect thoughts to see what they’re up to, in case it is something about the queen.
“Raam says we don’t have much time, we have to hurry.”
Penny tells this to the others, who decide to trail them, maybe they can learn something useful. Dandelion wild shapes into a seagull, while Kal and Penny use magic to disguise themselves as a couple, trailing the hoodlums from behind. They follow them to the docks, and see them walking into a warehouse, owned by the “Azure Tides Trading Co.”. Penny recognizes the name as the group that was handing out emergency rations to people in need after the attack.
Thinking quickly, Penny turns her familiar into a spider, and sends it inside to see what they are up to. Unfortunately, the warehouse within is large, filled with boxes, and the sound bounces around, so the familiar is unable to find where the hoodlums went, all she hears is a heavy metal door closing. Distraught, Penny sends the familiar back outside, and tells the others what she saw. The party realizes they cannot intervene without risking Penny’s soul, but now at least they know where Raam and his men are holed up.
Meanwhile, in the castle, Relic meets up with Ansgar Cain, who leads him inside to the research room, telling him to lock the doors after himself, as Ansgar has to go freshen up with new robes. Relic looks at the research material and deduces that there seems to be a teleportation circle hidden amongst the notes, and the group is trying to piece it together. They are making good progress, but it will be at least a few more weeks until it is completed. Satisfied with this, he exits the room, and returns to the courtyard to wait for the others.
The Banquet
As night falls, the trio in the city makes their way to the castle, going once more with the flow of people hoping to get a seat. When they get there they are led inside, and has been placed at a round table next to the main table, seated with Ash and Ethalyn whom they rescued from the orcish tribes. As the room fills up with city folks, Satine enters the room, met with applause and cheers. When she spots the party she gives them a courteous nod, happy to see them there.
Hundreds of servers, most looking identical to each other comes out with a plate of food in each hand, serving the entire gathering in less than five minutes, standing by next to each table getting more food for people when needed. The food is delicious, and anyone can get whatever they desire from the selection. The party looks around at the gathered people, finding a few familiar faces, with Thervan and Bertram Honeypot seated at the queen’s table, along with the nobles from neighboring countries, as well as the dukes, thane and duchess of Moroxia. Delphine sits at a nearby table a bit further away from the queen, along with a few of the entourage of the regents, giving the party a nod when they make eye contact.
Penny decides to take out her monocular, granting her truesight, and scans the room. The walls seems to be covered in arcane runes, the protection Thervan mentioned in his letter. Across the room, sitting at a table near the queen, a red dragonborn is eating his dinner. When Penny looks at him, she can see that he appears to be a massive, ancient bronze dragon. He doesn’t seem to notice her looking at him, so she continues scanning the room. Several of the nobles appear to have freshened up and enhanced their looks using magic. When Penny looks to the ceiling, she thinks she sees the figure of a person, but is unsure. She tells this to Thervan through a message spell, who in turn goes to talk to Delphine. Delphine stares intently at the ceiling, and appears to suddenly start to concentrate. The party figures she must have cast a spell subtly, but it appears she cannot see anything dangerous. Might just be a trick of the light confusing Penny.
With only a few seconds left of the truesight, the visions begin to fade. Penny uses these last few seconds to look at the queen. Behind her, a figure is standing, holding his hand on her shoulder. King Triston Bouchard, looking pleased with his daughter’s coronation, but invisible to any but Penny. As the spell ends, he disappears, and Penny tells the others what she saw, apart from the king’s ghost.
After a few hours of eating, feasting and drinking, the queen stands up, and clinks her glass, asking for the attention of the gathered people. Thervan gestures for the party to approach, and they do. The queen makes another speech, addressing the guests.
“Loyal subjects, esteemed guests, and brave champions of our realm, today, as I stand before you, crowned and anointed as your queen, I am reminded of the weight of this crown and the responsibility it carries. As my first act as queen, it is both my honor and duty to recognize those who have shown unwavering courage and selflessness in the face of grave danger.
In the darkest of hours, when chaos descended upon our beloved city and the life of my father, King Triston, was cruelly taken, it was these valiant souls who stood against the tide of darkness. They fought bravely, risking their lives in an attempt to save our king. Their actions, though tragically unable to alter the course of that fateful night, demonstrated a heroism that embodies the very spirit of our kingdom.
Today, we gather not only to mourn what we have lost but to celebrate the strength and bravery of those who continue to defend us. It is with great pride and gratitude that I commend [Names of the Players/Characters] for their heroic deeds. You have shown yourselves to be true protectors of Moroxia, and your bravery will be etched in the annals of our history.
Let this commendation serve as a testament to your valor and a reminder to us all that even in the face of overwhelming darkness, there is light to be found in the courage and strength of those who stand in its defense.
As your queen, I vow to lead with the same courage and determination you have shown. Together, we will face the challenges ahead and emerge stronger, united under the banner of hope and resilience. Long live Moroxia, and long live the heroes who defend her!”
As she speaks, Bertram comes walking out from a side chamber, carrying a pillow with four broches in the form of a raven’s head. The queen walks over to the waiting party, and puts a brooch on each of their lapels. She gives a sincere thank you to the party once again for saving her life. Kal replies with a blessing from Udall. “May your rule be long and good.”
Suddenly, everyone stops moving, the colors of the room mutes, and the flames die out.
An Uninvited Guest
From among the crowd they hear a sarcastic sounding clapping. Penny has a hard time moving, but the rest of the party manages to resist. Malice stands among the crowd, applauding the party. They all let out a collective groan, saying she is not welcome here. Malice says that she only wants to talk, and that they cannot hurt her, and she cannot hurt them. She has a proposal for the party.
The party has nothing left over for Malice, telling her the rudest insults they can think of, but she just shrugs it off. She says that they have been interfering in her plans, and plan to interfere further by completing the key, which she will not allow. The party retorts by saying that she is insane, brainwashed, as she wants to destroy all magic in the world, but Malice just walks over to Penny who is partially restrained, and runs her finger across her chin, laughing at their insults. Relic tries to say that she is condemning races that rely on magic to die, pointing out that elves need magic to live. She gives a rebuttal in that he is mistaken, and must have severely misunderstood how magic works. Nobody has to die, but it will be a hard readjustment for most people, yes.
She claims that she just wants everyone to be equal, and without magic, everyone can be. Nobody will have an unfair advantage, everyone will be on the same level, and the oppression can end. They point out that the drow cannot be trusted, as they attacked the dwarves when they encountered one another, but Malice claims that it was in fact the dwarves who attacked first. The drow were just defending themselves. Relic doesn’t believe her, saying that she nearly decimated his people. Malice shoots back that their kind, the surface dwellers, have done far worse things than the drow ever did, slaughtering the drows to near extinction.
The party calls her a hypocrite, as she uses magic herself, even now, to speak to the party, pointing out that she will lose the power if she manages to succeed, but Malice tells them that she is more than willing to make that sacrifice if it means reaching their goal. In the end, Malice has a proposal to the party. She knows they are looking for the key, and demands that they give it over to her, so that she can complete her task. If they refuse, and force Malice to take from them, she will destroy all that they love, their families, friends and homes. But if they hand over the key, she will make sure that they are spared in the coming calamity. The party rejects her, but she begs the party to at least think it over, as she doesn’t expect an answer now. She drifts back into the shadows and disappears, while the party feels compelled to return to their original positions when they were pulled into this state. The colors return, people start moving again, and Satine looks back up at the party, smiling.
What Comes Next
The party keeps their composure, accepting the cheers and applause from the gathered people, thanking Satine once more. Penny then walks over to Delphine and tells her everything that happened. She looks concerned, saying that she shouldn’t have been able to pierce her wards, meaning she must have used some extremely powerful magic, maybe even a fabled tenth level spell. Penny didn’t think that was possible, and is told that the gods took those away a long time ago. Delphine then goes over to tell Thervan and Ansgar what Penny told her, and they all make their way out of the chamber to talk.
As Satine also retires to her chambers, Armitage walks over to the party afterwards, saying he is relieved that nothing disturbed the festivities, and everything went as planned. The party gives him a dry look, but decides against telling him about what happened, wanting him to have a “win”. They briefly debate whether to spend the remaining hours of the heroes’ feast from the night before to confront Rumblejaw, but instead go to speak to Thervan and co.
They find them in the research chamber, and knock on the door. They all stand around the table looking grim. Thervan asks the party exactly what happened, and is concerned, but doesn’t think Malice could have used a tenth level spell as Delphine theorized, but it is powerful magic indeed. They all agree that Malice’s warning must mean that they are getting close, and agree that the priority should be to complete the key, so that they can take out Vuthul once and for all, before Malice and her group have a chance to free him. Delphine looks to be in deep thought, and then speaks up, saying that when they are going for the final part of the key she will come with them, in case Malice decides to cause trouble. The party thanks her, and agrees.
Suddenly Bertram comes bursting in, demanding to be let into the loop, as he had been completely busy with the banquet, and wondered where everyone went off to. They update him on the situation, telling him about Malice’s interruption. He seems to be rather annoyed at this, telling them that Malice is a real “boil on his arse”. He tells them that ever since Ansgar and the gang stopped the Black Prince they have realized that the Forgotten One have been stepping up his intrusions on the plane. The party looks at him, puzzled, and so he updates them on a vampire who tried to attack the western coast about a year ago, but was stopped by Ansgar, Ash and Ethalyn, as well as a dwarf which later passed away. He also says that Lucretia, the vampire under the city which the party defeated, was his sister. Small world he says.
Penny asks them if they have any tips against a purple worm, but learns nothing they didn’t already know. When Kal tells the elders about the familiar power she felt during the vision from the legend lore, Bertram theorizes that it might be the Shard of the Thief, as it supposedly makes whoever carries it more agile. In either case, after being told about Tamsyn, they agree to have a care package prepared that they can take with them to give her when they decide to confront the purple worm in the morning.
Finally, they ask about the feywild, saying they have to go there in order to find the Edenflower to save Gleamshroud. Relic suggests using banishment to quickly get back to the material plane, and so Thervan brings his spell orb, allowing him to learn the spell. He also promises to provide them with a few scrolls of banishment to use to quickly get back home when they decide to go. He also helpfully shows them a feywild crossing close to where the Summer Queen resides.
Considering the time might pass differently for them when they return from the feywild, Penny asks what would happen if magic were to disappear in their absence, if Malice were to win. Thervan says that it would probably not be good, with entire planes possibly collapsing. If they are lucky, they might just be gone for a few seconds, at worst, years will have passed. They will probably have to get into the good graces of someone powerful in the feywild who can send them back in time. Relic suggests that maybe Penny can offer the summer queen a song, and Penny says that is a good idea, and that she has already had that in the back of her mind.
Thervan asks what their plan is going forward, while they wait for the deciphering of the teleportation circle leading to the key, mentioning that they also have to find the blade. Kal, not trusting Delphine, quickly says that they are looking for vestiges, artifacts of creation, and the blade is for Dandelion. Thervan picks up on the deception, pretending to agree. Kal says that they are going for the lute first for Penny, and then the blade for Dandelion. Delphine looks puzzled, and also very tired, and decides that she has nothing useful to provide to the conversation anymore and leaves. Thervan looks at the party, puzzled, asking what that was about, with Kal telling him she doesn’t trust her completely. Thervan points out that she is an elder archmage, and although she is fierce and ruthless when needed, he believes she is on their side. In either case, the party wants to keep these cards close to their chest.
But first of all, they have a purple worm to kill, and decide to head back home to get a good night's rest before departing for Swellingstrum in the morning.