Evidence

October 13, 2011

Pelenois sees some kids playing with a wand and it is magical.  Intrigued, he finds out that someone has so many, he's giving them away!  He pays them twenty gold for it and asks where they got it.  They say a man named Kendric gave it to them.  Pelenois goes and finds this Kendrick.  Kendrick seems to be celebrating.  Kendrik is obviously Illuskan, although a bit shorter than normal but fair haired and skinned.  Kendrick says that he and his group, the Crimson Dragons, just got back after a long search for treasure.  They hail from Port Llast and he won a treasure map in a card game.  They spent the summer searching for it and were about to turn back when they found it.  It was a rich cash with some coin and lots of treasure, including the elven wands, some chain which he sells for a few thousand in front of Pelenois.  Very cheap, Pelenois thought! 

However, there is something about Kendrick that Pelenois doesn't trust.  His answers are a bit too polished and quick.  And for wanting the good things in life, his clothes are thread worn and he's drinking the cheaper wine.  When asked about it, Kendrick gets defensive, saying that he has been to the tailor and the new threads are on order.  Further, he likes this wine so why change what he drinks?  Still, there is something about it.  Pelenois thanks him and leaves. 

When Pelenois tells the group the rest, Elthieren wants to go after the elven stuff right away.  Even though they told Lady Ralee they would go to the house for more evidence, Elthieren wants to deal with this right away.  So, once again they track down Kendrick.  He's not at the tavern but someone did see him at the theater.  And then Pelenois wonders what the heck is going on.  They find him practicing a play at the theater and no one has heard of the Crimson Dragons. 

Elthieren goes back to look in his room while the others try and distract him.  Elthieren finds a chest filled with elven stuff and grabs some of it but takes too long to get into it.  Kendrick and the other actors wonder about him being back there so long and go to check it out.  Again, the others manage to distract them but Elthieren kicks something and is noticed.  They ask about what he has and the fact that he took some stuff.  Elthieren claims that he was reclaiming things of his elven heritage but Kendrick won't have it.  Says that's not how things work here.  The group tries to use their papers to say they have authority but Kendrick says they don't have authority to hand over his property.  He wants a magistrate!

The group again tries to divert him but it won't work.  So, guards arrive and take them to a magistrate.  When questioned, Elthieren admits he went into the room and stole it, and the magistrate has no choice but to hand over the items to Kendrick.  The group leaves but Elthieren isn't happy. 

Not being able to do much else, they decide to head out to Lady Crystil's manor to search it.  The rumors are that she's trying to get her trial pushed up and so if there is any evidence out there, they need to find it and fast.  Auril's touch has come to the area, though, and it snows for most of the trip to the manor.  It's not a lot of snow but it's enough to keep a chill in the air.  They don't have any encounters to the manor this time.  When they get there, they start a fire in the main area but start searching.  It takes them the rest of the day to find the secret door.  It was in the study and it leads down to a secret worship area of Asmodeus!  Further, there are more rituals and rites, including human sacrifice and other notes about a demon's forge and the seeds of Asmodeus as well.  The group takes it all and heads back immediately.  They look toward Bane's Keep but don't go there.  They heard rumors that people were staying there for winter instead of going to the city.  However, nothing about it indicated that it was forced, so not much they can do. 

They get back in time for the trial and present all of the evidence they found.  Being Knights in good standing, even with nobles speaking up for her, she is found guilty and sentenced to be executed.  The group figures it would be in poor taste to offer to carry out that punishment.  Lady Crystil seemed resolved and almost okay with the situation.  The group watches over the next few days, watching the nobles that spoke up for her, but there is no attempt to free her. 

Lady Crystil again seems resolved, if not a bit happy or maybe drunk, at her execution.  She faces it quite well, walking herself up to the axeman.  The sentence is carried out. 

<something, something> And they are camping.  Pelenois wakes up and thinks something has happened.  They search their gear and find there are some dragon eggs, three of them, in the camp now!  Before they can do much, the angry red dragon mother shows up and wants them back!  She does breathe on them but the group manages to talk her down.  They give her the eggs and she says that she will find those who actually took them.  The group is willing to help, so she offers them a thousand gold per head of the drow who took them.  The red dragon takes them back near her lair and they start tracking down the drow.  They find a group of them and attack!  They take more than half of them out before the rest flee. 

940 xp

GM Notes

• Hmm.  Can't remember what happened to get us to the end point of the fight with the drow.
• Some good role playing again with Kendrick and the rest of it.  I didn't expect them to go after the rest of what he said he had.  But it was fun!  
• Kendrick did offer to sell them the map but I don't think they took them up on it.  
• The seeds for some future things are there but now I have to remember them and use them at the right time!  

BACK