Friday, January 26, 653 AU, continued

• They learn from the innkeeper of the Destrier, nearby inn, that The Oaken Table is another inn in the Rose District—it’s one of the most expensive inns in the city. They head there immediately.
• The town guard is already at The Oaken Table to investigate Lady Aliatha Omanys’s murder. Leading the investigation is Amphion Teladus. He is immediately suspicious of the Dawnbringers, and doesn’t want his case compromised by letting the Dawnbringers interfere, especially since Valya is a friend of the victim.
• They wait around in The Oaken Table to see if anything seems suspicious. There’s a dwarf, sitting alone at a table, who is pointedly not looking at the Dawnbringers. Valya sits down at the table with him, making him very nervous, and pays him 1 gp for information. His name is Findret Berylbrew—his patron, Lord Peyton Cloudfang, sent him here to meet with Aliatha to work out a deal on displacer beast fangs. She sources them in Thamior and trades them in Castalia, mostly to the Mortar and Amaranth. The party isn’t that surprised she trades in more than just art. Lord Cloudfang has only been in direct contact with Aliatha recently.
• Findret confirms that he’s seen another dark elf with Aliatha once, but he never spoke and he didn’t catch his name. He also mentions that Aliatha has a long-time friend in the city, the noblewoman and art appreciator Namys Keasandoral. She has an estate on the northern edge of the city, near the coast.
• They ask Findret if they can set up a meeting with Lord Cloudfang, but Findret says Lord Cloudfang doesn’t take requests—if Lord Cloudfang takes an interest in the Dawnbringers, then the Dawnbringers will be invited to his estate. He is an eccentric, known for throwing lavish galas and for his extensive collection of curios and artifacts from across the world.
• Findret also mentions that Lord Cloudfang is currently hosting “The Seer”, a prophetess who arrived in the city recently and has a few followers.
• Valya asks Findret to tell Lord Cloudfang that the Dawnbringers have an ancient tablet with instructions for creating a spelljammer helm, if he’s interested in taking a look at such a thing. Findret says he’ll pass it along, and leaves. Aurelia admonishes Valya for revealing that information; “Men like that don’t just look at things, they want things.”
• They rent rooms at The Oaken Table, despite the exorbitant 1 gp per person per night.
• They get a sending from Aetheris, who had gone ahead to the Shining Citadel while they were in Telmir. She says to meet them at the Mortar and Amaranth.

⁂

• Aetheris has been talking with the proprietor of the Mortar and Amaranth, Bardric Heath. He was part of an adventuring trio with his wife and a childhood friend, but on their final adventure they were ambushed by a remorhaz (he describes it as a giant millipede) and only he made it out alive. He returned to Castalia and eventually opened this shop in the Shining Citadel, using his contacts in Thamior to import rare ingredients. He has known Lady Aliatha Omanys for years, and had been told by her that, if the Dawnbringers stopped by, they should meet her at The Oaken Table at their earliest convenience. He had no idea that she had just been murdered.
• Aetheris had learned from Bardric that the largest library in Castalia is The Emerald Library. The Emerald Library is paid for via a personal endowment from the royal family. It’s run by Terra Fentris, one of the queen’s younger sisters. No one is allowed to browse the shelves, for fear of damaging the thousands of ancient volumes—instead, you pay a sage a weekly rate and they will research your topic for you. Bardric says it isn’t cheap. Aetheris wants to infiltrate the library to find information about the Sleeper and the Seven Blasphemies, fearing that if they try to use a sage as an intermediary they might not get a truthful reply. Aurelia suggests they could also find a sage they trust, like one who works for the Church of Soleil.
• Bardric had also told Aetheris about his last adventure. He says they were exploring Ing-Sa-Treng, a vast temple complex buried in the snow at the southern end of the world. No one knows who built it, and a lot of it hasn’t been explored yet. At the center of one of the largest buildings in the complex is a floating pale pink crystal that gives off its own light. No one has been able to figure out what it’s for. The ruins are very dangerous, though, and home to worse creatures than remorhazes.
• They return to The Oaken Table. Aetheris wildshapes into a small spider and sneaks into the concierge’s desk to read the guest ledger, and finds Aliatha’s check-in, but she doesn’t see Lucan’s name anywhere.

Saturday, January 27, 653 AU

• The next morning, they’re questioned by Amphion Teladus. He questions them about their relationship with Aliatha, their knowledge of Lucan’s whereabouts, and any information they might have about a dagger that Lucan might be interested in. The Dawnbringers don’t give Amphion any information about the dagger. Amphion then leaves.
• Valya casts clairvoyance to spy on the room where Aliatha was murdered, but finds that whatever evidence was there has not been moved, along with the body.

⁂

• They head to the Church of Soleil, which is made of gleaming white stone and has many spires. They are met by Olivia Morningdew, the high priestess of Soleil. Olivia, a halfling, is very energetic and no-nonsense, and invites them to her office, where they have coffee. She questions them about their travels. “Liches? Vampires? Strange goings-on in Cymosa? I heard you spent some time in the Shadowfell. That must have been a horrible experience.” She is worried about the disappearances in Telmir, the rumors of Pamona the Eternal, and believes that Neesha is behind all of it. She is unaware of any extraplanar activity, and doesn’t seem to believe there is any enemy but Neesha. “Aurelia, what happens outside of our plane is not our concern. That is the domain of the gods, and they protect us from outside influences. It is here, in our world, where the battle that matters—the great battle between light and darkness—is fought. There is the Shadowfell, yes, and the Feywild, but whatever goes on beyond that, we needn’t trouble ourselves with it.”
• Aurelia also tells Olivia about her vision of Beatrice, but Olivia isn’t sure that her vision wasn’t a trick by Neesha, or misinterpreting a warning about Pamona the Eternal. “It is difficult to hide an army of undead, Aurelia,” says Olivia. “It’s possible they are mobilizing in the Shadowfell,” says Aurelia. “Lord Desmond can create crossings between the two realms.” “Yes, Shadow Crossings… Vaeri told me that’s how you exited the Shadowfell,” says Olivia. “I don’t know if I quite believe your vision was truly about Beatrice, but an army of undead amassing in the Shadowfell… We here at the temple will decide what must be done next. Regardless, please return here before sunset. We will complete your pilgrimage, and then we will lay Beatrice’s bones to rest.”
• Before they leave the temple, they run into Vestan. They catch up on what has happened since they last met. Vestan is impressed that Aurelia has already met the queen. Vestan mentions that one of his friends is a sage with access to the Emerald Library—a half-elf named Renward. Aetheris asks Vestan what happens to the bodies of murder victims in the Shining Citadel. “Wow, you’ve wasted no time getting into something here.” Vestan says the bodies are kept at the nearest guardhouse, and that the Church traditionally handles the body and performs autopsies if necessary.

⁂

• After they leave the temple, Aurelia is shot in the shoulder by a sniper on a nearby roof, and several people in the crowd rip off their cloaks to reveal black armor. They appear to be assassins. “Don’t feel too bad,” says one. “Usually it takes a month in the city for adventurers to get a hit called on them. You already have two!”
• The assassins are tough, and they’ve prepared for this battle with potions of fire resistance, but the Dawnbringers are able to control the battlefield with a well-placed wall of fire from Aurelia and a hunger of Hadar from Valya. Qhask climbs up the façade of the church to countersnipe the sniper, and Valya teleports up to the sniper to kick her off the roof and into the hunger of Hadar.
• Before they can kill or capture the three toughest assassins who appear to be in charge, they snap some objects they pull from their pockets and immediately teleport away.
• Some guards, too late to join the battle, tell the party that the assassins were from The Veiled Hand, and that they are a scourge on the city. The guard has never captured one of their members alive, and they refuse to talk through speak with dead.

⁂

• The Dawnbringers give the guard a rundown of what happened as they accompany them back to the guardhouse, where they ask if they can see Aliatha’s body. The guard takes some persuading, but they are given a few minutes to pay their respects.
• On their way, they pass an evidence room, and Valya senses the thoughts of someone going through a box of evidence about the Aliatha Omanys case, and thinking that there’s not enough evidence there to convict anyone of anything.
• In the autopsy room, they cast speak with dead.

“Who killed you?”
“Lucan… I don’t understand…”

• Valya gasps, but Aetheris points out the answer is a little vague.

“What do you know about the last known location of Grieving Edge?”
“Cal has it, for safekeeping.”

• Aurelia asks the others if she means Prince Calvin, but Valya thinks she means the scholar and friend of her family Cal Aerendir, who is somewhere in Castalia—he had talked to Cara Virren before the Dawnbringers did.

“Where is Cal right now?”
“Heading to Gemra Empire…”

“Why were you traveling with Lucan?”
“Fate of world hangs in balance… need the dagger…”

“Why hasn’t Lucan reached out to Valya?”
“Doesn’t know if he can trust her…”

• They inspect the wounds—they’re clearly from a sword, not a dagger. Feeling that Aliatha has a lot of information that they need, they decide to resurrect Aliatha right then and there. Plus, it would confound Amphion Teladus.
• The resurrection is successful. Aliatha is initially disoriented and distraught, but says she has much she needs to tell them, and probably should have told them sooner.
• At that point, the door opens, and a lizardman wearing robes of Soleil enters. “By the light of Soleil, we have been blessed!” says Aurelia, gesturing at the body. The lizardman blinks, stares for a moment, then says “Fine. Less paperwork for me. Good job,” and walks out.
• The guard who enter moments later are shocked and confused, and Amphion Teladus initially refuses to believe it, sure that the Dawnbringers are pulling some elaborate trick. Eventually, Amphion is forced to release Aliatha and her belongings, but says there is still a murderer on the loose, and that just because the victim is now alive doesn’t mean the murder was never attempted. He is more suspicious of the party than ever.
• They return to the Oaken Table. Aliatha says Lucan arrived and suddenly stabbed her for no reason. The party assumes it was a doppelganger.
• Aliatha says the dagger is in the collection of Lord Cloudfang, but that she and Lucan weren’t able to get into the estate. Before she was killed, Lucan had written Aliatha a note:

You were right; we’ll need my sister’s help after all. Our “friend” has come to suspect our interest in the dagger is not so casual as we have endeavored to make it appear, and he will not relinquish it cheaply. Perceptive bastard! Where bargaining fails, we must resort to subterfuge or force. For better or worse Valya is a celebrity and could easily gain access to the collection. I only hope she understands what we are trying to do.

• Valya asks Aliatha why Lucan has never contacted her. Apparently, Lucan doesn’t remember what happened during the night of the tragedy either! Lucan woke up with Grieving Edge, which was covered in blood, and didn’t know what had happened. He thought Valya was dead—she was lying on the floor with the others. Lucan fled. Valya breaks down in tears. “I didn’t kill them!” But she also wonders if she really was dead, and Neesha brought her back. Aliatha says Grieving Edge has a will of its own, and Lucan didn’t trust himself with it anymore, and asked Cal to take it away from him.
• Valya asks Aliatha why the dagger is so important, but Aliatha says she’s sworn to secrecy. She knows there is cursed knowledge, but is not subject to it herself—Lucan and Cal are cursed, however. They say the dagger is part of a plan to prevent whatever is going to happen from happening.

⁂

• They decide to check out the Square of Heroes, as they’ve been told of an old museum dedicated to Raymond’s adventures nearby. On the way, they argue over Valya’s use of hunger of Hadar. They also pass a madman raving on the street, who claims to have once been a diviner but has seen “them”. At the Square of Heroes, they see the statues of Raymond, Azakon, Meriel, and Tashklon. Aetheris finds a note stuffed into a crack in Tashklon’s boot—it gives an address, with the cryptic remark “Raymond knew!” They aren’t sure whether the note is a trap by the cult of the comet, or if it’s a resistance movement of some sort. The museum is closed, so they decide to check out the address.
• Aetheris makes a joke about Thilros giving his life to protect Raymond for the curse: Why doesn’t Neesha do the same for them? Valya hears Neesha whisper in her ear, saying “She has no idea what I endure.”
• The address is on the outskirts of the city, and turns out to be an old abandoned warehouse. Inside, there is a tentacled humanoid waiting for victims to enter through the door—definitely a trap by the cult of the comet.
• They attack the cultists with a fireball, but they awaken an alien mass of tentacles half-buried in the floor. It screeches and floats toward them, totally unaffected by gravity. It continually probes the party’s minds and attempts to compel them to grovel, and successfully charms Aurelia into not attacking her.
• Valya tries to break into the creature’s mind, but it’s too much for her mind to take. She sees flashes of the starry void and tentacled creatures, but also sees glimpses of certain places she has visited; Kyasha’s geode beneath the Pool of Tears, Caranthiax’s lair, and elsewhere. She also hears a voice in her mind: Your hand, sacrificed for nothing. Your gods, sacrificed for nothing. We bled the shards dry. The blasphemies fed on their sustenance. Soon, the main course shall be at hand.
• The party appear to be getting the upper hand, and the creature begins floating away into the sky. Aetheris tries to throw rocks at it, but misses, and it vanishes into the evening air.

⁂

• They return to the Church of Soleil, where Aurelia formally finishes her pilgrimage in a ceremony on one of the courtyards overlooking the city. Olivia gives a speech.
• In the crypts beneath the temple, they attend a ceremony to inter Beatrice’s bones. Everyone is nervous—the acolytes assigned to prepare the bones said they were icy cold to the touch. During the ceremony, Olivia sprinkles the bones with holy water, and the water turns into steam. Everyone in the room hears a voice: “Fools, all of you! To protect the world, I will have to follow my own path.”
• The room is in confusion and panic. Olivia rushes through the rest of the ceremony, and the bones are placed into a niche in the wall. Olivia is ready to believe Aurelia about Beatrice’s fall. They explain that they are under a knowledge curse, and Olivia calls Renward to join them in her office. Renward knows much about nothics, but they’re worried if they ask him to research the comet cult, he’ll fall under the curse or go mad. Instead, they ask him to research the Ashen Peaks. Valya muses that the library, being owned by the royal family, must have a collection of books of cursed knowledge that the regular sages don’t have access to.
• Additionally, Olivia says that Aurelia is probably ready to enter the Order of the Radiant Dawn, but that traditionally one must undertake a difficult quest to prove oneself. She and the other temple elders will devise a suitable quest for someone of her caliber.

⁂

• The Dawnbringers go to a bar with Vestan to celebrate the completion of Aurelia’s pilgrimage.

• Valya, still thinking about the “shards”, searches the city for a temple of Neesha. She finds one (and also discovers Aetheris has been following her as a cat) and speaks to Zandrik, a dark elf priest.

• Zandrik has been expecting Valya, saying he was told to pass along some information. First, “seek the shards”. Second, a poem that Zandrik doesn’t understand, but which Valya recognizes as coming from The Maw in The Sky:

The Seven Blasphemies were ancient laid
In secret Cradles, where, on Ichor fed,
They grow, while with a cunning void-forged blade
False gods their Faithful butchered, hanged, and bled.

And when the Dream is loosed upon the Earth
And when the Sleeper’s vessel mars the Sky,
The Seven in their strength shall prove their worth
And wake the Sleeper, and the world shall die.

• Valya wonders why Neesha wants her to hear that again, but Zandrik has no idea, so Valya meditates in the temple for a while while Aetheris sleeps nearby. She sees more flashes: the monastery of Kixist, the dungeons beneath the Sarlana estate, a green gemstone in a mountain.
• Meanwhile, Aurelia and Vestan are getting drunk. Vestan is regaling Aurelia with weird heresies the Neesha cultists believe, like that the moon came first before the sun, or that Neesha is the god of the void, which is so much vaster than the sun, or that the minor deities were the shards of the sun that broke off when Neesha formed the moon. They also discuss the several resurrections Aurelia has been performed, Vestan’s modesty preventing him from progressing, and Laelyn. Vestan begins talking about events that Aurelia doesn’t remember—good memories of Laelyn, which Aurelia insists didn’t happen.
• When Aurelia returns, drunk, to the Oaken Table, she starts telling Valya about the weird heresies Vestan had mentioned. They realize something… Could the shards be the minor gods? Were they eaten by the blasphemies?