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--- bards_tale [2026/05/27 15:28] – [Session 98: According to Plan] spiffgent
+++ bards_tale [2026/07/09 16:04] (current) – [Session 101: The Smiths] spiffgent
@@ Line 1079: / Line 1079: @@
 Orion healed the injuries of the man he de-handed, and he immediately acted in shock and distaste at his fellow passengers. When the Abyssduer returned from the locomotive, to cheer their Daki and hail their victory, Percival requested that he be allowed to take the pilgrim with him. Norbert informed him of the ancient rights he was treading on, and the captain both refused the request and asked in turn that they make the rest of the journey on foot. They could not risk leading Vale to Stone Enclave Drachma, and they needed to repair the train to boot. The party obliged, and Sylvie was able to lead them very directly to the area around Drachma, with the city itself visible behind enormous stone walls. Also nearby was Crescent, and the small group of pilgrims she had rescued so far. She and Percival embraced, and the party rested for a while before setting out to Drachma.
+While Vadaenlar spread his unique brand of persuasion to the mostly-listening pilgrims, Percival heard how Crescent washed up after the attack by a river, and had slowly met these other pilgrims: however even the suggestion that Vandire had appeared to the party was enough to earn her ire and convince her that Percival was still trying to turn her against the Prophet. In frustrated silence, they walked to the doors: it was clear the party was holy, and Tachy convinced the stone elementals at the gates that they needed his mechanical skill to help the Abyssduer, extending protection and xenia to all. Immediately at a brass market stall, the party met Calcite, a snarky giant who nevertheless led them to Ziggurat, the guardian, temple, and goddess of Drachma.
+It became clear that these elementals were reverent not just of her but also of Ahm: indeed, Ziggurat once stood against Ahm, a mistake that she considers foolish. She had since dedicated Drachma to serving Ahm and Their Plan. Their specific purpose was guarding a fragment of Yeenoghu himself: while the other Vaults of Ahm had straightly released demonic power into the world's heart, the elementals of Drachma had managed to contain such a piece instead within a Daourbrass assembly, and made a vigil of it. Prince Morion appeared, and confirmed that they believed that the Shadowless planned to unleash this fragment. Prince Morion, in his previous position as Prince Phos, had seen the Shadowless approach Mt Realtik and coordinated the devastating attack on the pilgrims.
+The party shared too that Vandire sought the forges of Ahm, within Sestertius and King Farron's realm. The elementals despaired at this news, for the consequences of Vandire getting such a power would be dire: but Orion's insight taught him what Ziggurat wanted to hide, that every time the forges had been used before, the results had been dire. The party settled, eventually, on a plan: to use this Daourbrass, with its elemental-binding magic, as a weapon against the Shadowless Vandire, undoubtedly soon to return. The metal would be gained by leading an attack on Vale herself. This plan was bold but Ziggurat declared it the next part of Ahm's plan, and so they set out to attack the Dark Salvager herself. Calcite offered them supplies and protection for the pilgrims, but Crescent was insistent that she would come too — an offer Percival was happy to oblige.
+Even to Sylvie's expert senses, Vale's whereabouts were inscrutable, and only with Tachy's magic compass did they stand a chance, but the nature spirit's skills did not fail, and soon they found an Abyssduer automata bound to an iron stake. Although it glowed red, Tachy convinced it they were friendly and was allowed to repair it some small amount. To everyone's shock, the machine spoke in Common, in faltering bursts, asking if they remembered how they had killed it not too long ago. Percival realised it was Bren, his old friend, whose blood may now rest on his hands.
+===== Session 98.5: Disregard for Doubt =====
+Quickly Bren became agitated, and only Tachy's quick knowledge of the machinery stopped him alerting others to the incursion with a siren. Orion quickly ascertained Bren's anger at the betrayal but also his confusion and shame, and asked Percy to step aside while he calmed Bren's soul. The great source of his distress, in the event, was his fear of having failed Ahm at the key moment when one of the squabbling forces of Leurut could have been made holy: a fear exacerbated by his slow conversion into Abyssduer, being cut off from Ahm's light. Orion and Sylvie allowed him to make peace with his fate, and he asked for Percival's presence and made him swear that Bren's sacrifice would not be for nothing: even if Percy did not believe the Prophet, when Ahm's will became undeniable, the Whiteshield would fight for it. This he swore, and Bren's spirit passed over the Kfen, expressing regret that he had not died under the sky.
+As the party solemnly progressed, Crescent asked Percival if there was any chance that she could come into conflict with her brother in the same way. He began to talk of duty and danger and worth, but his equivocation clearly terrified her. Percival decided to hold fast, and swear also that he would never come into conflict against Crescent.
+Sylvie picked up the trail of one of Vale's machines, and it led them to a great, seemingly bottomless, precipice within a tunnel. At its edge was a thin, bound elemental named Black Opal, being read his rights by the enormous Granite and the loud Amethyst: his crime was encountering Vale and not having the good sense to die outside the boundaries of enclave Drachma. The party instantly recognised he could be an ally, and used Percival's divine authority to ask for his custody. With permission, Orion and Sylvie interrogated Black Opal. It quickly became apparent that he was not to be trusted entirely: Black Opal had apparently killed other stone elementals, and sought Vale's head to prove his worth once more. Still, he was the party's best lead. The two inquisitors were reticent, and Percival's command only won over Amethyst: his invocation of Ahm enraged Granite, and he was forced to defend himself against the boulder. In the scuffle, Orion and Tachy led Black Opal out of the danger while Sylvie trapped Granite in roots and led them to a successful escape from the pair.
+Once clear, Black Opal revealed Vale had no base, but made a circuit around various locations within her domain. He knew several ways in, the shortest being through the Ash Winter, and the safest being to a strange waypoint with a legendary, but as yet unknown, way of reaching into Vale's cloud. It didn't seem to be a Vault of Ahm, by Black Opal's description, and so the party decided it was the safest option to pursue — with Black Opal leading the way, refusing to share exactly how he had killed his previous Enclavers.
+===== Session 99: The Big Bad Wolf =====
+He led them to a cavern with a large stone mount within it — Black Opal had expected something more. Otso quickly revealed an invisible object that Orion revealed as a length of tree trunk. Sylvie tried to channel magic through it, but once again a flow of arcane energy overtook her. A barrelling and great life elemental, calling itself Blaidd Dhrug, barged her out of the way and admonished her for her inexperience. It claimed to be on a mission it would not share, and Black Opal clearly had some reason to be afraid of it. With some persuasion, he allowed Sylvie to accompany him inside the illusory mountain, stepping through the stone to start climbing the spire that lay within. It did not take long for Vadaenlar and everyone else to follow, as Black Opal told of a group of elite life elementals acting as Ahm's personal soldiers: the Entguard.
+Sylvie and Blaidd Dhrug climbed the spire and investigated two of its caves, with the Entguard bluntly informing her that the probation she considered herself under was over. He allowed Sylvie to use his charm to identify the secret door, and was somewhat impressed at her skill. Behind the stone lay a small room, like that of a Vault of Ahm, with eight automata inside in a state of disrepair. Blaidd Dhrug smelled Shadowless taint in the room, and revealed to the Knight of Green that his mission was to investigate for Ahm why this small foundry had ceased working. One level up, Sylvie did not have such luck with the magical charm, and accidentally destroyed it while trying to channel magic through it. Blaidd Dhrug was merely impressed that she had thought to make the attempt however, and asked why Sylvie was alone in the Stone Plane. Upon hearing the story, he gently raised that, if her teacher was not to return, she could possibly set along the path to becoming an Entguard herself. He destroyed the door, revealing a darkened chamber covered in candles, repairing not automata but the body of a man: one that Sylvie recognised as Osman Fallon, from a story Percival had told her. She assented to the Entguard destroying his form with his glaive, and the revenant crumbled to dust.
+Vadaenlar tried quickly to exit the black fog that befell them all when the ground started rumbling, but only succeeded in getting lost as a fire elemental began to toy with them in the shadows. Orion fled immediately, remaining outside the fog for the whole fight. It revealed itself to Vadaenlar, who effortlessly dodged its clumsy swings, and was able to draw the burning form closer to the allies. Tachy attempted to deceive it, receiving only a blow to the face for his troubles, but that offered the Monk the chance to throw a stalagmite into the Forgelord's eye, causing it to shriek in pain and retreat. Tachy gave chase, but quickly deduced he was walking into a trap, and stopped just short of Forgelord's counterattack along with Vadaenlar. He unleashed a grenade filled with a foam, that coated him but also extinguished Forgelord's flame entirely.
+===== Session 100: Race To The Top =====
+The party reconvened, and were led by a holy sign given to Orion out of the illusory mountain — having been convinced by Vadaelnar to pick that route over one that could lead further into danger. Percival led Crescent in a scrying ritual, attempting to see Sylvie's process up the spire, which required the pair to wrestle Otso into place. Through the magic mirror that appeared on Percival's shield, they watched Sylvie and Blaidd Dhrug reach a ruined holy site atop the mount. The Entguard's final objective was to restore Ahm's small forge to its proper working order. This task he entrusted to Sylvie as another test: she filled a basin with the water extracted from traces of moss around the summit, summoning golden sigils of Ahm and the spirit of Bonli himself.
+Bonli seemed convinced that Blaidd Dhrug's real mission was to lead Sylvie to this place, and was optimistic about her chances of succeeding. The Dwarf God even pointed out to her where her fellow travellers waited at the bottom: this allowed Vadaenlar and Tachy to triangulate Sylvie's position within the illusion, and Percival and Vadaenlar made a panicked start towards the mountain, having already worked out what the golden writing of Ahm's own voice said. Bonli revealed it belatedly to Sylvie too: it was a command from Ahm themself for someone to arise, seize the armies and the forges, and bring order and a Golden Age to the Planes, crushing all who would stand in their way.
+Sylvie hoped it was simply a message from the past no longer of relevance, but Blaidd Dhrug was unconvinced; and it was certainly discomfortingly similar to Prophet Vandire's current plan. Through Vadaenlar's mystic agility, Percival and the monk sprung to the top of the summit extremely quickly. Tachy used an experimental and terrifying digging machine to reach the summit too, with Orion, Crescent, and Black Opal in tow. Otso's great pace slowed down Blaidd Dhrug enough to buy time for the rest of the party to reconvene atop the mount. Sylvie refused to use the basin's power to restart Ahm's forges, and so Blaidd Dhrug charged for it himself after cutting Tachy's blunderbuss in two: and when Percival disarmed him of his weapon, he sucker-punched the Paladin to clear a path to Ahm's power.
+His armour was immense and his speed made him utterly untouchable. Orion summoned a divine light that seared his feet while Percival apparated a radiant spear inside him to pin him to the ground. While he scrambled for his glaive, Vadaenlar snapped it in two permanently and avoided the acidic retaliation, forcing Blaidd Dhrug to rely on his fists: as the melee was unfolding, Sylvie made a dash for the basin, and was able to redirect its power into destroying the forge instead. Once Blaidd Dhrug realised what happened, he made attacking Sylvie his top priority, almost killing Percival in his charge. While Orion healed Percival from his miraculous recovery‚ the Entguard demanded Sylvie undo her spell. The forest sprite stayed firm, and was knocked out by Blaidd Dhrug before Vadaenlar took advantage of the distraction to rip the butterfly wings off his armour. He attempted to retaliate, but had ignored the presumed-dead Percival, who drove his greatsword through the gap in his plate, and smote Blaidd Dhrug, sending him and his zealotry back to the Plane of Life, before rushing to Sylvie's body.
+===== Session 101: The Smiths =====
+Orion's prayer healed both Sylvie and Percival: Tachy noted that the latter's blade had been stained with Blaidd Dhrug's ichorous blood, marking him as one who had slain an Entguard. Before they could truly catch their breaths, the fire elemental returned, having been left by the party earlier. Vadaenlar immediately reacted with a shuriken, and Forgelord stopped in amazement that the party remained alive. Seeing the Entguard's body, he expressed a tentative desire for a truce. Sylvie quickly established that he had nothing to do with the forges of Ahm (and in fact had no idea of their existence). Instead, his name was from the forge within Vale's land that he had escaped from. He was convinced by the party to lead them back into that dangerous terrain in exchange for them helping free his master: the legendary smith Masamune.
+Hauled by Forgelord across the tunnel in a rickety brass carriage, Percival talked to Sylvie and, in the wake of both of their near-deaths at Blaidd Dhrug's hands, shared their experiences of mortality. Orion wondered at how to interpret Ahm's writings and how best to live in response to the warlike command. Crescent too wondered how much of a justification of her own beliefs the text was, being unswayed by the parties attempts to bring up long-lost lore and claim temporal irrelevance.
+The train reached a red-rock, enormous sprawl within a huge cavern, with ruined stone towns and castles visible in between the dust-churning packs of tens of Abyssduer vehicles. Foreglord led them to one ruined castle, but one of the myriad crawling machines saw the party then scuttled away, ensuring that they would eventually come to Vale's attention. Inside the ruined keep they found Masamune, a towering and tubby stone elemental with golden skin and golden manacles, enslaved by Vale, happily tinkering on a regular-sized sword to occupy his mind. He greeted them gladly, and offered to make their Vandire-slaying weapon if given enough brass (Tachy had thoughtfully brought the tram with them, but it was unlikely to be enough). While trapping him was an option, permanently killing an immortal elemental would weigh heavily on them, as it weighed on Black Opal. While the party couldn't decide with entombing or inhuming was preferable (with Percival advocating for a final end), a tentative plan was outlined to steal the power of the storm from Vale and create a scalpel to excise Vandire's unholy power.
+Interested in the shackles, Vadaenlar and Orion threw their heads into the smoking abyss, witnessing a vision of Yeenoghu destroying Leurut and claiming such a fate was preordained. It shook the two deeply: Percival immediately clocked what was happening, and was able to quell Orion's faithlessness, but not Vadaenlar's. At that moment, Crescent ran in, warning of an incoming fleet of Abyssduer. Percival led the party to the top of a ledge overlooking the castle, and observed an enormous host of eighty vehicles bringing scrap into Masamune's workshop, and emerging with an enormous armoured gorget. They watched as the Dwarves loaded their vehicles and left, led by a presumed lieutenant of Vale's named Drebenan, electing not to do anything against the overwhelmingly larger force.
+Masamune told them that Vale had made him create many disparate pieces: their larger purpose was unknown to him, but Sylvie began to fear that Vale was constructing something utterly fearsome. Still, the party intended to free him, and while his golden chains resisted flat attempts to break them even from Tachy's mountain-destroying drill, Vadaenlar theorised that a key or other magic escape lay with or near Vale. The party departed the forge, aiming to track the rapid fleet with Sylvie's attuned senses.