July 26, 2018
- The party parts ways with Daphne, Meletis, and Takis. Daphne and Meletis head towards the AshKel. Takis heads back towards the plains.
- Calliope returns with the party to Titan’s Reach.
- The party stops in at the Serph Inn and discovers Celendriel is ill. Mauritius and Aiya go to see her. Mauritius attempts to heal Celendriel (by sticking his finger up her nose).
- Meanwhile, Venayo takes Calliope along with him to go see Dolores. He fills her in on all the dynamics of the town on the way. He informs Dolores that they have the supplies and that they will need to travel that direction anyway to deal with Mauritius’ brother, Axe.
- When Mauritius and Aiya return to the common room, there is a tall dark figure waiting for them. He is wearing a hood, black mask, two black coats, and a flanged mace hangs from his belt. He challenges Mauritius to a duel. His name turns out to be Hellsteve Woe Reaper.
- Mauritius doesn’t draw his sword. Hellsteve misses with his mace a couple times. Mauritius punches him in the chest. Hellsteve hits Mauritius with his mace. Mauritius falls down and yields. Hellsteve is very confused and disappointed. He demands another duel. Aiya casts “fear” and Hellsteve runs off.
- He promptly returns and demands a rematch. He removes his edge lord garb to reveal his gangly teenage self. He turns his mace into a wand. Mauritius gets hella frustrated and they start fighting with magic as well as weapons. Hellsteve fells Mauritius with several cones of fire.
- Calliope heals Mauritius. Turns out she is now a paladin.
- The party goes to talk to Torvar to see if he knows anything new. Something is remodeling the area under the ruins. Parts of the ruins are crumbling leaving holes. The party decides to go into the ruins to reconnoiter..
- Venayo “cuts a promo” wrestling style to shame/persuade Hellsteve Woe Reaper to join the party to go down into the ruins.
- Calliope decides to stay to keep an eye on the town, not go down into the ruins. Aiya weaves a friendship anklet for her. The magic is in the sentiment.
- Aiya goes to bring a crow Doctor charm to Anthony Ito. He is grateful. He has already made arrangements for Aiya to receive a very nice dress. He seems at peace. He asks her to be with him when he passes, if she can.
- The party sets out to the ruins the next morning with Hellsteve. The woods are even darker and more forbidding than the last time they passed through them.
- At the edge of the ruins they encounter the wargs that Mauritius and Venayo encountered previously. Banter ensues.
- The party chooses to enter via the chapel where Torvar indicated the curse seems weaker. It is also the chapel where Mauritius and Venayo fought an ogre and the wargs. The floor of the chapel has collapsed. The party picks their way down the rubble.
- In the rectory, the party discovers that this was a chapel Erzulie, goddess of black magic, cats, spooky witch shit, and curses. It is likely people were sacrificed to appease her.
- The party discovers a huge set of broken warded double doors behind which is a spiral staircase going down. Hellsteve tripped down the first 15 feet of stairs. A voice below asks, “There’s someone there, isn’t there?” Mauritius replies, “well, yes, obviously.”
- The party proceeds to the bottom of the stairs. There is a large forge. There is a glow coming from the ceiling. There is a nude male form (by which Jim means no genitals or belly button) hanging chained from the ceiling. There is a dim white halo around his head.
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