02. The Bloody Diary
Date: 2019-02-05
Players: Chris, John, Tim
Summary
Characters: Arladon, Bard, Roenick
Other Personas: Kali Azra (innkeeper), Ali Azra, Talas (farmers), Toras (dead son), Hana (Toras' best friend), Hana's mother, Yamira (grey wizard), Danyla (priestess of Nephythys)
Background Information
The conflict between the White Shield (supporters of the Queen) and the Red Shield (supporters of the Emperor) is escalating. The Red Shield controls the castle, the diamond, the arena, the bridge and main gate, while the White Shield has taken over the House of healing and the Bazaar. The Green Corridor is supposedly neutral territory, but most nobles are in fact supporting the Red Shield (who seems to be winning).
After discovering what happened to the boy Toras, the company of Arladon, Roenick and Bard are back in Telstar, worried about the boy's family and the girl Hana. Bard's struggle with the bottle is getting worse.
Harmony 13, Year 810
- The three companions (Arladon, Roenick and Bard) make their way to Talas' farm to assist to Toras' funeral. It takes place on the top of a hill at the back of the property. A small crowd is present, as are both of Toras' parents (Talas and Lia), as well as his five siblings (3 brothers and 2 sisters). A bravador of Tyr leads the procession. After the ceremony, the group meets with Talas, who thanks them once again and give them their reward. They accept only 2 of the initial agreed upon gold pieces. Talas shares his concern for Hana, the little girl, who was not present at the ceremony.
- At Hana's house, Roenick and Bard notice that the symbol drawn in the dirt by Hana three days ago is as pristine as if it had just been drawn, although it is raining. They don't have paper, but make a mental note to remember the symbol to copy it back in town.
- Arladon finds the front door locked. He pick the lock and goes in. A strong smell of garlic and herbs assail him, but nothing look out of the ordinary in the main room. Then, he opens the only door to a bedroom to find a body on the floor, throat cut: Hana's mother. Without more information, the group decides there is nothing more to do. Hana could be anywhere... Worried, they head back to Telstar, planning on meeting again in 2 days at the Inn of Ali Azra.
Harmony 15, Year 810
- Before the sun is up, someone knocks at Roenick's door. To his surprise, it is Hana. The child is dirty, has a bruise on her forehead and has obviously been starving. Roenick invites her in, but before he can offer her food, she falls into deep sleep. He lays her down in his bed, where she sleeps for most of the day. In the meantime, Roenick invites Arladon and Bard over to his place.
- Around supper time, Hana appears at the bottom of the stairs. The group, seated at the kitchen table, is glad to see her up. She is hugging a bag close to her chest and takes Roenick's chair. He offers bread and cheese, which she eats in big bites. Bard asks her to tell her story, to explain how she found Roenick.
- Hana explains that after she parted ways with them, she continued to go to Talas' house, not able to push Toras from her mind. Then, two days ago, she returned to her home late at night to see three silhouettes leave. Scared, she made her way to her house and found her mother. Knowing the figures were most likely after her, she left and started looking for Roenick. She sneaked into Telstar by hiding in a cart, and got his address from the innkeeper at the Inn of Ali Azra. When asked why she thinks her mother's murderers were after her, she puts her bag on the table and takes out a bloody diary. "Because of this," she announces.
- The group instantly feels there is something wrong with the diary. Still, Arladon opens it, but the writings are illegible. Roenick performs a spell and confirms that magical ink has been used, thus hiding the meaning of what is written. Out of food, Roenick invites the others to continue the discussion at the Inn of Ali Azra, their initial meeting place. The group agrees.
- At the inn, Bard asks Kali Azra, the innkeeper, his opinion on the diary and what they should do next. After hearing their story in more details, Kali guides them to a back room, and asks them to wait. In the meantime, food and drink are on him. The elven stalagma wine is particularly exquisite.
- Almost an hour later, the door slides open and a large man comes in: Ali Azra himself. The man is old and walks slowly, but he seems sharp and interested in their story. He introduces himself to each in turn, including to Hana. Then, looking at the journal, he states that this looks very much like someone is performing some kind of dark rituals. He offers his help and his establishment to the group (it is his son's establishment, really, but Ali still seems to have a word to say). Roenick mentions that Yamira was someone he was interested to talk to (he found her name in his mentor's notes). Ali confirms that he knows her and ask Kali to invite her to the inn the next day, when she is schedule to return to Telstar.
- The group finish eating and then decides to stay together for the night, each one in their own room (Hana stays with Roenick, for whom she seems to have developed trust).
Harmony 16, Year 810
- Yamira joins the group at noon. She is a grey robe of the Synod of Magikas and walks with an imposing staff in her head. Because she was asked by Ali, she wastes no time in starting to decipher the diary. "This started more than two years ago," she states almost instantly. "The first entry in two years old." Hana stays at Yamira's side, while the others gives Yamira some space. Bard keeps an eye on who's at the inn, worried some of those pursuing Hana may appear. He notices no one out of place.
- Mid afternoon, Yamira reconvenes the group and shows them a map she found in the journal. She is extremely worried about the nature of the ritual and says she'd like the group to investigate the map. It may provide a clue as to the origins of the journal. The group agrees. She warns them not to do anything rash and to turn around at any sign of danger they can't handle. In the meantime, she will continue working on the journal. Hana stays behind with her.
- Using a note from Yamira, the groups approaches Danyla, a priestess working on the grounds of Nephythys. She helps them find the centaur statue mentioned on the map. The groups goes underground and as warned by Yamira, sticks to the map. In a large room, they are attacked by five giants bats, which they dispatch. The fight left Bard injured and bruised, as he took most of the brunt of the bats' attacks.
- The group continues in a side tunnel, they notice light. They decides to ignore it and stay on the path of the map. They finally reach what seems to be the inside of a well, with a ladder going up. Arladon goes first.
- To his dismay, when he reaches the surface, it is to discover that the well is located in the backyard of his parents' house.
Main Quests
- The Bloody Diary ( COMPLETED): Find the origin of the bloody diary.
Side Quests
- The Mentor's Secret (Roenick): Investigate Saldoras' life, more specifically the nature of his visit to Shalème and the reasons why he would not join the Synod of Magikas.
- Symbol in the Dirt (Roenick): Research the strange symbol drawn by Hana in the dirt in front of her house.
- The Ranger (Bard): Find out what happened to the ranger who had a camp east of Hana's house.
- The Family Signet Ring (Bard): Find out the history behind Cilia's family ring, as well as its powers.
- The Land Owner (Arladon): Find out what Arladon's father did to the farmers to make them hate him so.
Rewards
- All: +50 XP for completing "The Bloody Diary"
- All: +5 XP for defeating giants bats.
- All: +5 XP for defeating feral foxes (from mission 1).