The Royal Subterfuge

The party follows Mirabel Pan to their meeting with Endolynn at the Oeble Castle. Before they leave Black Sheep Inn, Kalena tells Kilijan to meet at midnight in the Star Garden. They arrive in the courtyard of the throne room and are asked to wait. The courtyard resembles a garden with two big marble statues and four lush green trees. Around the garden, pavilions lead to other parts of the courtyard. Guards are casually patrolling the premises of the garden while the party examines it and waits. Lorkhan talks to one of the trees. The tree introduces herself as Vir and speaks mostly about the virtuous properties of the wind and how she enjoys it feeling it breezing through her canopy. When Lorkhan questions her about Endolynn, the tree responds by praising her gentle nature in taking care of the trees and plants of the palace. Realizing that the conversation doesn't go anywhere, he approaches a much older seeming tree on the other side of the garden. Mycha wanders about the garden and examines the architecture, realizing a blend of common Border Kingdoms styles of reliefs on the walls with an extremely aristocratic touch to them. "Very expensive material", he concludes. Weneon tries to spot possible routes in and out of the castle, but lacks the vantage point to do so. He contemplates at one point climbing on one of the statues, but decides against it when he realizes that the risk-to-reward ratio is too high. Kilijan sits on one of the park benches and starts writing down his dream of the nights before. A suspicion starts to emerge in him that his dreams foreshadow catastrophes in real life. He remembers most of his dreams being about mechanisms and gear wheels. Lorkhan speaks to the oldest tree in the garden, who introduces himself as Bar. Bar is much more talkative, although not as gentle as Vir. When Lorkhan asks him about Endolynn, Bar tells him that he remembers Endolynn when she was just a kid, playing hide and seek with her human friend in the garden. She always seemed to Bar as being very cheerful and good-spirited in nature. As Lorkhan is about to end the conversation, Bar asks him for a favor. A court druid named Sven Kolin is constantly peeing on Bar at night. Bar asks Lorkhan to take of it and he would tell him more about Endolynn. Lorkhan agrees and makes his way to Kilijan on the bench. Throne Room Garden Mycha finishes examining the garden, stands in front of the throne room door, and waits. Weneon looks into the flower pots around the garden, hoping to find something of value in them. He only finds a pot full of urine in one of them near Bar. A white chicken approaches Weneon. He is drawn towards kicking it, but one of the guards from the side cautions him to never kick the chicken more than three times, or else... Weneon gives up on that idea and approaches Mycha, who offers him a sip from his wine. As Weneon smells the liquor, he has a flashback to the night before and Rychain's torture. Weneon suffers some psychic damage due to that flashback and refuses to drink from the wine offered. Kilijan speaks to Lorkhan, who asks him about a possible electric trap that could be laid around Bar to prevent someone from peeing on him. Kilijan suggests not to do that, since it might be suspicious to lay trap as guests in a garden. Kilijan then tells Lorkhan about his dreams and about the strange creature he saw in them: a one-eyed golden construct with a golden plate where his stomach is. Just about as Kilijan was to finish his story, the voice of Severin Dauther echoes through the garden, asking them to prove their worth. The sides of the garden are suddenly guarded off by electric walls, and the guards retrieve to the inside of the castle. Above the entrance door of the garden, a black portal opens, through which tentacles start to emerge. A Balhannoth appears and attacks the party. They fight it off and manage to stay alive long enough for Severin's to echo once more in the garden: "Congratulations. You passed!"

After defeating the monster in the garden, Severin lowers the wards on the sides of the garden and emerges from the throne room door. With his hands behind his back, he approaches the party and greets them, kindly apologizing for the test, saying that they cannot be too careful these days about who is visiting the castle. Kilijan makes Severin aware of his wounds he got during the "test". Severin immediately orders guards to help them with healing potions and restores their health. He apologizes once again and praises the party for their braveness in facing such a creature from another reality without fear. Throne Room Oeble Severin and the party talk, and they ask him what the meeting with Endolynn was about. He tells them that he does not know and that it is above his pay grade to know. He has other responsibilities to look after. Kilijan wants to ask him about a possible chat about religion, but Severin kindly refuses and invites the party to follow him into the throne room. A strong smell of lavender is noticed by all of them as they enter. As they start walking, he tells them that he is aware of them being the ones who sabotaged the hanging a few weeks back. He bluntly informs them that he will have to square these unpaid debts, but that it is the subject for another time and place. They walk down a long corridor with murals depicting the history of Oeble. It is not hard for the party to discern that the story told is about how the Old Oeble was obsessed with technology, but morally they were corrupted to the point of no return. One mural depicts Old Oeble conducting experiments on children and how the Light of the Old came to save them from sin. The last mural depicts Endolynn's silhouette, and the party realizes her being of elven descent. As they reach the throne room, a big room with four pillars in the shape of horses and an extremely well illuminated glass dome, they are instructed by Severin to wait for Endolynn, who will arrive shortly. Severin then leaves to the eastern exit of the throne room. Mycha examines the pillars and realizes, undoubtedly, that they depict the Ataman, a type of horse exclusively found in the Free Barony of Felshroun. Weneon also looks at the pillars, but is more concerned with the spears of its riders pointing towards them. He then remembers a night in Emrys when he heard about something similar. Safwalyn and him just finished a wave of successful pickpocketing in town and arrived at the Flying Xo, a tavern in Emrys, to have a drink. Sfawalyn asked him, as they were drinking, if they paid the children too much for distracting their targets, to which Weneon said that they have to eat too. They talk a bit more about what they've been through and laugh about their misgivings before being approached by Rokah, a brute half-orc rouge with no sense of tact or manners. He starts berating them for not wanting to start a thieves' guild with him. Safwalyn tells him off, to which he grabs her under her arm and drags her up from her chair. Weneon jumps with a glass bottle towards him and smacks him over his face with it. Safwalyn uses the opportunity to punch him in his crouch. They start running towards the exit while Rokah crumbles from pain to the ground. Weneon flips a gold coin towards the barkeep, who yells after him: "Three more of these, and we're finally square!" As Weneon and Safwalyn run down an ally, they come across Zenbai, a drunk pandaren peeing on the alley wall. When he notices them, he starts wailing about his job without stopping his stream. Zenbai yells about how he had to clean the swords on the statues in the palace, and how the swords only have the function of feeling the guests intimidated. Weneon and Safwalyn, however, continue down the alley and arrive at the river. Safwalyn produces out of her second-hand bag of holding a small bottle, and they drink looking at the river. Safwalyn asks Weneon what his plan is for the future. He starts telling her about travelling beyond the Border Kingdoms; even beyond the continent, maybe to other places never before dreamt of by anyone. Safwalyn listens to his voice and imagines the places he talks about. A couple walks by them holding hands and Safwalyn tells Weneon: "But, I think we need some cash for these trips you are talking about", and points to the couple. She then whispers: "Plan 4B." Weneon nods and gets into position behind a building wall waiting for his queue, as he hears Safwalyn approaching the couple and saying: "Please help me, I think my kid went missing." Weneon is snapped back to the throne room in Oeble Castle by the west wing door opening and Endolyn arriving, apologizing for the long wait.

Endollyn Redstream, a female elf with white hair tied into a messy bun, approaches them in cloths that seem costly, but resemble more of a casual look than royal garms. She introduces herself as Endolynn. Mycha bows and tells her that he is honored to meet the lady of Oeble in person. Endolynn begs him not to bow and not to use these titles, as she is self-conscious about them. They talk a bit, and she notifies them that she was quite delighted when she heard about how they saved the Underways Water Dam from the terrorist attack. As she talks, she approaches the middle of the throne room and places a spell storing stone onto the ground, activating it. The stone starts to produce a dome of light around them, trapping all sounds inside of it. Shielded from the rest of the room inside the dome, she finally tells them why she summoned them. A conspiracy to get rid of her is afoot, and she needs outsiders to help her determine who it is. She tells them that she is the last of her lineage and that the power she yields has attracted a lot of power-hungry individuals. When asked by Mycha if she suspects Severin, she nods and says that he is on her list as well. Kilijan asks who else is on the list, to which Endolynn gives him a notebook of clues she gathered with schedules of everyone she suspects of being in on the conspiracy. She then explains to the party that she cannot act directly with them, since that would cause suspicion, but that she can assist indirectly in their effort to find out who wants to kill her. Endolynn then entrusts them with instructions to a safe house of her childhood friend Binka and gives them 100 gold pieces to don't pursuit this matter for at least the next ten days, as to not cause suspicion. When asked if they can freely wander the castle, she tells them that this is not possible, as she cannot explain why she suddenly lays so much trust in strangers. The party asks her why she trusts them, and she explains that it seems to her that their morality aligns. Mycha tells her about Severin and his vow to get back at them for freeing Marla from hanging, to which Endolynn says that this act of courage confirms to her that she chose wisely. She also adds that she has never seen a real adventure party, and only read about them in books and old lore of old. She immediately, however, makes a point of her ability to order their execution in case they betray her or in any way jeopardize the mission by revealing their connection with her. Mycha starts asking her about his sister and the Brahms asylum. Endolynn is confused by her question and tells him that she does not know about the asylum nor about his sister. Mycha tells her that his sister is now the warden of the asylum. Still confused, Ednolynn mentions to him that she will do all she can in that matter once the threat to her life is successfully taken care of. Mycha then starts talking to her about how Marla is not to be bothered by the guards and that Mirabel should be punished. Endolynn reacts aggressively to this and asks the rest of the party if Mycha will be a threat to the mission by talking too much too random people about random subjects. Kilijan assures her that they will keep him in check. Before they end their conversation, she instructs them with a final plead not to kill any of her guards, even if involved in the conspiracy, as this would be against her principles and could endanger the mission. Weneon asks her about a possible city festival or holiday coming up, to which she tells him that the Day of the Quick Dawn will be held on 1. 10. 867. Lorkhan makes one final request, asking Endolynn to take care of Sven Kolin urinating onto the big tree in the garden. Endolynn is a bit confused by that request, but then says to consider it done, and thanks Lorkhan for bringing this to her attention. Endolynn the turns off the divination shield and continues a casual conversation, praising once again their courage in sabotaging the plot of the terrorists. She then leaves them in the throne room. Severin arrives a few moments later and escorts them outside. Kilijan asks him once again to talk to him about religions in the Border Kingdoms. Severin tells him that his schedule is full, but that the general population can always talk to his clerics of the Church of Found Light regarding these matters. Walking through the garden towards the exit, Lorkhan talks quickly to Bar, telling him that everything is taken care of in regard to the peeing druid. Bar is thankful and tells Lorkhan how Endolynn and Binka used to play hide and seek here in the garden, but that they were not the only children. He then tells him about Sain Redstream, the brother of Endolynn who went missing after one of the royal hunting trips. At the entrance of the garden, Mirabel Pan dressed in her royal guard garms greets them and escorts them to the bridge towards the city. Kilijan asks her about John's rifle she is carrying. She tells him that she had to cut it off a bit, as it was made for an elephant, not a real sharpshooter. Kilijan scoffs and the party starts crossing the bridge. Mirabel aims her rifle at them and mimics shooting them. Mycha mimics falling to the ground, but Mirable already returned inside the garden.

The party arrives at Binka's Home and finds a crew of carpenters already at work renovating it. Weneon recognizes the carpenter as it is the same one that made Andre's coffin for him. The carpenter informs them that the work they paid for will be done in two days, so the party decides to stay in a nearby inn called Goved Inn. As they arrive, they are greeted by a one-eyed female dwarf named Gisel, the owner of the inn. She takes their orders and prepares the meals. While they eat, another younger female dwarf (also with an eye missing) joins them. She is Elisa, Gisel's 40-year-old single daughter. She takes a liking to the party of "young gorgeous men", as she describes them. Not only that, but she plays her lute and sings songs trying to seduce them, to no avail. As they finish the meal, they retrieve to their rooms. The room numbers are weirdly ordered, and the party makes sure to lock their doors, as they see Elisa brushing her teeth in the hallway and looking at them lustily. Star Garden and Goved Inn The party gathers in one of their rooms and starts looking through the notebook Endolynn gave them. They soon realize that it is written in code and that they would need to spend eight hours straight on each chapter to decipher one of them. Lorkhan and Wenon stay in the room to start deciphering, while Mycha and Kilijan decide to go to the Star Garden and meet with Kalena. On their way to the garden, Mycha and Kilijan talk about what happened during the day. Mycha is not really focused on the conversation and wants to chase down a couple walking in the park, as he is suspicious of them. Kilijan stops him, and they start arguing with each other about how Mycha behaves and gets them into dangerous situations by talking to strangers and acting irrationally. They arrive near the top where the observatory is stationed and Kilijan sees Kalena. Mycha waits as Kilijan and Kalena start talking to each other. She asks him about what happened to Jaida when they split, but Kilijan seems not willing to talk about it, confused at times to gather all the pieces of events into a coherent timeline. Kalena tells him that Grenn went away when they docked in a port to gather supplies, and that she did so too, cursing the sea and never wanting to step foot on a ship ever again. Listening to Kalena, who urges him to show emotions, Kilijan is unable to rationalize why she would meet with him. She then yells at him, telling him that she just wanted to see him and that this is what normal people do: sometimes they just want to hear someone's voice for no particular reason. Kilijan does not seem to understand and informs Kalena that he does not function like that. She, in return, starts yelling at him that she knew, and she saw how he was capable of that when he told her the story of the lake. She starts crying and Kilijan gives her a handkerchief. She is about to return it to him, but then decides to put it in her breast pocket instead. Before Kalena could explain herself further, Mycha arrives and grabs Kilijan by the hand, interrupting the conversation. Kilijan yells emotionally out: "You ruined everyithing!" Kalena, seeing that Mycha can provoke a human reaction out of Kilijan while her attempts failed, turns around and leaves. Kilijan starts yelling at Mycha, who in turn says nothing and did not seem able to explain why he interrupted their conversation. As Kilijan starts to leave, the earth starts trembling in front of them, and a corpse flower uproots itself from the ground and attacks them. Meanwhile, Lorkhan and Weneon try to decipher Endolynn's notebook when they hear a sudden shattering of glass. They run outside in the hallway and see two rouges attacking Elisa in her room. As they fight them off in the Inn, Kilijan and Mycha deal with the corpse flower in the Star Garden. Lorkhan manages to kill the second thief, and Weneon and him start to wonder what to do with the corpses. Lorkhan is for calling the authorities, while Weneon is for hiding them and waiting for Kilijan and Mycha. In the Star Garden, Mycha delivers the final blow to the corpse flower, and Kilijan starts walking down the path towards the exit of the park. He notices a necromancer in the treetop and shoots him down with a magic missile. The necromancer falls into the pond and starts crawling, trying to escape. Kilijan easily catches up with him and knocks him unconscious after he refuses to talk. Lorkhan stabilizes the unconscious Elisa, and Weneon finds a dwarven locked box with an eight key self-destroying mechanism in the thief's pocket of one of the infiltrators. They both then try to bring the dead thieves to the bathroom, but as soon as they enter, they notice the bathtub being full of red water. As Lorkhan submerges his hand into the water, her fishes out the slain head of Gisel from out of it. Weneon immediately tells him: "Get the guards." Lorkhan rushes to the streets and alarms three guards to the situation. Kilijan asks Mycha in the park what to do with the necromancer. Mycha, unable to talk from exhaustion, says nothing. Kilijan is tired of his antics and leaves the unconscious necromancer with Mycha, telling him to do whatever he wants to with him. Kilijan then sprints back to the inn. The guards arrive at the inn and instruct Lorkhan and Weneon to stay in their rooms. Lorkhan goes into Kilijan's room and pockets Endolynn's notebook. Kilijan arrives and sees a swarm of guards investigating the crime scene. He informs them how he is a guest in the inn. They tell him that the owner was killed by thieves and that they are currently investigating. Kilijan waits infront of the inn. At the park, the necromancer gains consciousness and sees a passed out Mycha. Instead of killing him, he takes all of his belongings and leaves him on the bench, throwing only the handkerchief Kilijan gave to Kalena on him.