RPG Campaigns

Giraine Summaries

The battle against the Uzelu was at a pivotal moment, with the sea-trolls losing heart and numbers. You'd suffered great wounds but were encouraged to press the battle. It went well. It wasn't long before your two front lines converged, leaving heaps of mutilated troll bodies across the foyer floor, and you caught the few uz that tried to flee and cut them down. Ahappi had now counted ten Uzelu slain by his magic spear, and the rest of you had helped hold your defensive lines or weaken the trolls with powerful magics. These sea trolls clearly were not ready for your might!

But there were disturbing moments during the battle that left you thinking. Time stopped for one troll and for Fraud Shaven for a few seconds, for example; the air seeming to distort around them, as if space was wrestling with time.

You rushed to regroup, secure the foyer (closing the laboratory doors, which Oh the Butler said should contain the Uzelu), and find Maugis. Ahappi also found a silver badge of Seshnegi status (Zzaburi, Maugis reckoned) that might be a key to how the Uzelu got into the tower; and an enchanted old-Seshnegi halberd that would rent bleeding wounds (this went to Jacobus, who uses such a weapon).

Maugis was poring through one of the wizards' chambers across the hall, near double-doors that you soon learned led to the stores. He had found a remarkable bronze arm that served as a scroll-holder, and a rolled-up bronze scroll inside, which he figured out had Zzaburi formulae inscribed on it for learning an exotic magic, but he didn't know what that spell was yet. You took what little time you felt you had to inspect this chamber further; amidst the mouldering bed, desk, shelves and prayer-posed corpse of the Zzaburi itself, you found an ivory (Ouori-tusk) scroll case holding another scroll, which you didn't manage to decipher yet. Judging that you'd looted this room, and with Cataldo anxiously urging retreat, you hurried back to the Nivla after a brief farewell to Oh.

As you left the tower, a vision overcame you: you again looked from afar at a coast; at a huge wave that surged toward a port city. It was old Giraine and thus Arvononess of the Second Age, you finally were sure. And your view was not from swimming in the water, but through the porthole of a strange vessel.

As you were dragged back to your minds and bodies into normal-time, your perspective rotated and you caught a dim, brief glimpse of that vessel: it was the nautiloid-thing that had followed you for years now. Reflecting on this, your strange slips through time now and then when at sea had begun when you'd visited the Mostali “sunken castle”/ship, and that's when you eventually gained the first view of this nautiloid thing. So it was a construct/machine/vehicle of the God Learners that had managed to transcend time and space, or at least survive six centuries, and it was drawn to you… But where was it and what were its objectives?

The return to the surface was quick and rough, propelled on magical jets of water that shot the Nivla back up to the waiting ships. What a vessel!

You convened with Jett aboard the Nolosian trireme and he quizzed you about your mission's outcomes. You told him much of it and he was pleased, but you held back details of the Gloomshark connection for the Baron's ears to hear first. He was fine with this. Once you were more cleaned up of gore and took off your gear, he made an outburst of surprise as it dawned on him that you all had aged, maybe a decade! Presence in the ancient city that defied time had come with a cost. Return visits were needed, but the cost-to-come was foreboding. You were now all approaching middle age [PC sheet notes: you should all have been around 25 yrs old, give or take a bit, and now would be around 35+- I will give you leeway to choose within reason].

You left the trireme for the Baron's galley, finally had the rest you sorely needed [and some healing! You're all fully healed now via Regeneration blessings], and met with the Baron in his hall back in St Thosos. Baron Ron was in a good mood, having had an initial briefing from Jett. He had his servants lay out a fine feast for you in the hall and you told him what had happened. Evakranem the Zzaburi watched in his awkward way from his chamber door, seldom speaking except to say that he'd research what could be done about the ageing effects on you.

Ron of course was deeply concerned about the Gloomshark's chaos taint buried under the Zzaburi tower of the School of Penetrating Radiance. It helped explain how the sea trolls had grown so strong there, so corrupted, and well-equipped from looting the city and local sea traffic. Clearly that taint must be destroyed but it would need a heroquest of extreme deadliness. Ron looked at Shaven and told him that his Arkati faith might give clues to this, but it would take time to find out. You agreed that your first priority must be to return to Arvonesse as soon as you can, and venture down once more before the sea-trolls adapted or responded to your raid. Your view was that the Cathedral must be your aim, not the military building, even though the great church must be the toughest target. Cataldo spoke out to vigorously praise your heroism and teamwork, and you responded likewise.

Finally, Maugis and the two Nolosian Zzaburi had inspected what artifacts you'd brought back from Arvonesse. They were impressed. There was (more study may reveal more about some things):

1) an iron dagger (+50% AP & HP, 2x penetrating damage vs. trolls and Uz; enchanted so it does not degrade magic on its holder) that holds the Venom spell, which the user might learn to cast. For now, Fraud has that but he did not like the magic– and his Uz-friends would not love him holding anything iron! Ron is trying to have Ahappi's iron sword reforged into a falchion, but would Fraud use this and incur Uz ire?

2) the Ouori-tusk scroll case whose contents were still to be understood (Boamund has it); and the bronze arm w/scroll that Maugis has.

3) the halberd and the dead Star Tip crystal that the thaumanauts have.

4) Boamund has a black bottle of acid (2d6 instant damage)- yuck!

5) Miguel has a silver necklace chain with a hammer pendant that holds the sorcerous spell to Sculpt Bronze. He can learn to use that when he has time; it may not take long.

6) Boamund has a golden bracelet with a Magic rune and ruby inset, which allows the casting of Fireblade and Firearrow to some extent. It may be an old token from the Seshnegi order of St Gerlant Flamesword; still a vibrant inspiration to Western soldiers. He is very pleased with this! But he needs time in silent prayer to learn it.

7) Ahappi has the iron circlet that bound a Haunt (Zzaburi's insane ghost) to it, and he likes wearing that.

Baron Ron said that the deal with the Duke/Doge of Nolos was that such treasures should be shared evenly at some point, but for now it was a matter of convenience that those recovering them held onto them, to maximize their utility on your next mission. There was no time to delve into the remaining mysteries of the items, except maybe once on board the galley back to Arvonesse's locale.

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