- Tossing the cell We split up their shit.
Keto looks apprehensive. He doesn’t have a lot of love for these fellas, but we also just showed up and kicked ass and a lot of other shit happened.
We still want him to navigate to the center.
Bran: The threat of the elementals is contained. The Sun King is no friend of ours. (she’s very persuasive.
K goes up to the deck and agrees, he’s convinced we have things under control. We feel the ship turn toward the center of the lake.
Storr and Blaz go explore Copyn’s room. It’s a captains quarters. There is a desk and a table and a cot off to the corner. There’s another unlocked door.
Behind it, there’s a table, a chest and a bed.
Storr rifles through the table. On the bedside table, there’s a book, an inkpot and a quill pen. The book has strange writing in it that neither of them recognize. On the desk, there’s a large pearl, an emerald, and a blue jasper gem.
Storr tosses the bed. Storr unlocks the chest with a nearby key.
In the chest, is some clothes (not 5 sets worth), some sort of personal effects, tobacco pouch, and pouch with 500 gp in it. Oilskin.
On the desk is a stone bowl filled with water. The bowl has no markings, its rough hewn, a carved out stone. The water is not black.
Most of the paper in the drawers it appears to be a ledger. Balz could say it looks like accounting books, possibly Keto’s.
There’s another chest that is locked and Storr does not have the key.
Storr tosses the cot. On the table are a couple of place settings. A rack on the wall has some food and supplies.
Storr summons the Keto to make sure they’re not going through too much of his stuff.
Branwen takes a look at the book with strange writing and utilizes her “Eldritch Invocations”. It seems to be a set of instructions. Hand gestures and sounds. Shorthand, so it’s not super clear. It’s the description of some sort of action to achieve an end.
- Questioning the a-holes Questions for these A-holes:
Who is the Sun King? What other names does he go by?
What do they know about Balthazar’s transformation?
Why are his men in Nyth, what is thier mission?
Whats in the middle of the lake? What’s going on with the voices?alking about the lake, but Copyn wants to know
Copyn: He doesn’t know anything about Balz’s transformation. He keeps eyeing Balz. Very uncomfortable about it.
Who is the Sun King? Only knows him by that name. He is a man who will bring about the end of death.
The mission? The SK is trying to conquer and bring Nyth to order theers various places he’s found.
He’s not sure what’s in the lake. He’s apprehensive and intrigued. Laden makes big eyes when the center of the lake comes up.
Who is the Sun King what is his provenance? Doesn’t know. He came from a place with death and rose to power with promises to banish death. Many are drawn to an end to death.
Why seek The Black Water? Copyn doesn’t know.
Why torture? Great gifts require sacrifice. Not sure why you were chosen, or anything about your old bones - but he’s very interested in those bones.
Were they looking for US in particular? They get hesitant and don’t answer. Storr threatens them, successfully. They were told to look for a man of Balthazar’s description, and take him back to the city to see the Sun King.
Copyn calls the city, “The city of voices”.
Copyn has heard stories of a foundling, of someone from long ago who is destined to return.
Kevnis: Wasn’t that one of Mons’ sons?
BranL The shining prince.
Capoyn: I don’t know that one.
What’s your deal Copyn?
C: He was always someone that was trying to see into the nature of things., He was approached by a man and a woman whom he had never met who suggested to him vaguely that they could give him access to a knowledge that he otherwise would not have ther ability to find. He readily agreed and followed them on a long journey where it felt like he stepped out of time and saw some strange and wonderful things. They brought him to the court of the sun knong and offered him a chance to serve as a wizard as someone trying to see into the deeps of things and he and a few others have learned things that were long forgotten.
Bran: You’ve been in the presence of the SK?
C: yes.
Bran: What does he look like
C: he described a middle aged man, tall , strong, well kept beard, flowing hair, gold crown, dresses in gold where he can, cerfemonial armor. Sits on a carven stone throne.
Silas: Where is his kingdom.
Copyn: Far away, you wouldn’t understand how to get there.
They travelled through deep channels that are always changing. He mansplained it to us - as he used the channels on purpose, while we got here…with ZERO EFFORT.
(Sounds familiar)
What are ther SK’s intentions?
Copyn: I’m not in on all the discussions. SK is gathering strength, and his honor and justice wherever he goes draw people to him. We will do what is asked of us.
Storr: What is this place? What do they know of it?
Copyn: It’s one of the worlds
Balz: How many?
Copyn: Many. (We get a sense that he’s hedging
Silas: 7 faced man?
Copyn: (he looks) Yes, he is an ancient being that we do not understand.
Silas: Has the SK ever search for him
C freezes up.
Balz: Why is he called the 7 faced man? What would SK want with him?
Cop is unwilling to talk about it. He’s afraid, hungry, not gonna talk about it
Balz horn starts vibrating again.
It says: “They’re close by” “We’re searching” “Are the paths still open? Are they still passable?”
Balz asks C if he recognizes these voices
C can’t hear them. Only Balz can hear them
Balz: What would your people mean if they said “Are the paths still passable?” The strange paths that we’ve encountered? Why would they not be passable?
C: thinks. Gears turning. Maybe a smile. He says: “Those paths shift and move…”
Blas: “send more to follow?
C: Once one person has walked a path, it’s easier to foloow intheir steps than to find their own way.
Ba;z: Who is the SK’s biggest adversary?
Copyn Death itself.
Balz: Doesw it have a form? Is it a concept or a bineg?
Copyn There are stories of a God of Death.
B: If the SK is just, why didn’t they just receive him?
C: There are fools everywhere that don’t know what’s best for them?
Balz: But why this city?
C: He;s gathering strength. The city refused to submit.
Storr: How is he gathering strength by seiging cities?
C: He;s spreading the message and bringing people into the fold.
Balz: What’s the message?
C: What more do you need than the end of death?
Balz: Why do people believe that?
C: I’ve met him and he convinced me.
Bran: How do you feel Balz about going to the city?
Balz: I would be interested in confronting him. They may be onto me though that I have strayed and am not working for them anymore. We could take a tac similar to that, entering the city under the guise of Balz reporting in on his mission.
Storr nicks Copyn’s face with a blade and takes a shadow point.
We release these two to Keto, and he places them in the quarters under guard.
In the night we hear chimes, some loud, some melodic. Wind picks up, there is some chop as the ship sails through the cloud. Feels like sailing into a super thick mist - no visibility at all as we enter.
Keto has folks spotting rocks and such, as he can’t see shit. Lots of sounds around us.
An island appears.
A large tree, with all 4 seasons in its branches, surrounded by stones. The colors on the tree are shifting. The blossoms were on the right, and are now behind it. The seasons are rotating through the tree..
No obvious animal life.
Storr expresses hesitation about approaching the island.
Keto drops sail, everyone takes in the sights. Lots of color - kind of super-saturated color palette.
We row the dinghy up to the cove. A large flat stone juts into the water that we can hop up onto. A big stone walkway/staircase goes up towards the stone circle and the tree. Tree is about 15 to 20 feet across, towers into the sky. Stones are very large. Inner surfaces are flatten, outer ones are not. Vary in height and shape. There’s a weird groove at about shoulder height, vertical, look like they’ve been worn. We’re watching the tree as the seasons move around. Ot is an apple tree . Apples are growing, bees swarming around the flowers and move with them. A snow drift that moves across the island in a slow circle. It takes 25 or 20 minutes for the seasons to make a full circuit around the tree. Stone at the base of the tree is large and flat and has a symbol carved into it. A harmonius grouping of three lobes and cradle in the middle. The carving has colors, they’re not painted and static, but they’re there, there’s some moisture, some moss, some light getting caught. Two or three feet across. Tucked into a hollow between tree roots.
We think on the coloraton of the symbol. Black and purple seem to speak to both Mon’s follower’s garb, but also the palette of Mabnoss and Branwen. The three lobes could represent the children of Mog: Mons (black and purple), Ceridwen (green, nature) and Torval (red, fire (and blue, ice?)).
Storr bites an apple. She feels youth flowing back into her. Silas also takes a bite, and returns to his previous age.
- The 2nd Fight with Copyn Storr offers an apple to Copyn. He’s looking a lot more spry now. Copyn bends down and picks up a branch. He starts muttering to himself.
WE FIGHT
- We hit Copyn a couple times, then he disappears and a water elemental shows up.
- Branwen throws on Cricket’s cloak, but can’t see the wizard anywhere
- Copyn reappears across the island
- Silas tries to paralyze a bunch of water and it does’t work for some reason
- Branwen’s commands Copyn to move closer
- Storr takes out Copyn, yea-fatally.
- Silas gives his new bronze shortsword a try, but then says fuck it and bears out, managing to hold onto his beechstaff
- Branwen smashes a column of water with Gale with a crit
- Silas whacks the water with his stick a few times, takes a serious beating, and loses his bear HP
- Storr takes out a water elemental solo with amazing bronze katana rolls