Those Aren't Tears (storyline)/Saved posts
Those Aren't Tears - Our Story So Far
Topic: Mist Harbor
Message #: 1891
Author: GS4-QUILIC
Date: 12/09/2018
Subject: Those Aren't Tears - Our Story So Far
Our Story So Far:
A mysterious individual going by the name Nazhor took over ownership of the pawnshop in Mist Harbor from Cendadric. Since then, Nazhor has been seen skulking about town, while Cendadric has been acting as if nothing is amiss. Elspie (a recently retired Imperial Drake fresh off the Demonwall) and her husband Brannogh moved to Mist Harbor, and commissioned their retirement home on a brand new Cay, which they named Sunset Cay. Retirement was short-lived, however. Shortly after they arrived, bandits arrived in town. Snatches of their conversations confirmed they were looking for 'something'. Brannogh came running, and the bandits pounced, putting quarrels into him from the shadows. The projectiles were not instantly fatal, and Elspie arrived shortly after. She located the assassin and crushed him with a spell, then dragged Brannogh away to their cottage. She did her best to heal him, calling in favors, but it was all for naught. Brannogh died within 24 hours, and Elspie buried him in the garden of their new home.
During the small memorial service Elspie held, noises were heard inside the cottage. When the attendees investigated, they found the home ransacked, and a safe in the wall of the bedroom lay open and empty. Elspie collapsed, completely overwrought, at the sight. The attendees attempted to console her, and finally got her to breathe, and think, a little bit. She resolved to go to the First Sergeant, in an attempt to do things properly. When she and the attendees located the Sergeant, there was another individual already there, calling herself Duvainiel. As Elspie attempted to explain to the Sergeant that her home had been burglarized, and her suspicions that the death of her husband might be related, Duvainiel mocked her relentlessly, driving Elspie into more and more of an outraged state of mind. The Sergeant seemed to dismiss Elspie's claims, and did nothing to dissuade Duvainiel. Finally, Duvainiel suggested that Nazhor might know something, and Elspie charged off to the pawnshop.
At the pawnshop, the group found Nazhor, along with the First Sergeant. Nazhor smoothly denied everything, keeping his tone mild and not a little mocking. Elspie finally snapped, against the advice of the adventurers accompanying her, and attacked Nazhor. He easily grounded out her spell and flung her back against a wall, stunning her. He then prompted the Sergeant, who arrested Elspie on charges of unprovoked assault, and led her away. Nazhor remained, smugly taunting the adventurers, with the help of Duvainiel, before taking his leave.
Town Administrator Ilsola, the titular head of the Mist Harbor government, called an information-gathering meeting so that she could be brought up to speed on what had happened. During the meeting, the First Sergeant acted more and more strangely, seeming to have periods of lucidity mixed with obviously false memories. He swore that he hadn't arrested anyone in some time, and was unable to provide any useful information about the whereabouts of Elspie, or Nazhor. During this time, various members of the group heard fractured whispers from someone believed to be Elspie. The whispers encouraged the group to disbelieve what the Sergeant was saying, and to pursue Nazhor. Ilsola became frustrated by the Sergeant's prevarication and dismissed him, instructing him to await her at her home so that they could discuss his conduct. The group suggested that Cendadric might be a good person to interrogate, and they made their way to the pawnshop. Once there, they found Cendadric acting in much the same manner. He spouted demonstrably incorrect information, seeming to believe it to be the truth, and his story kept changing. Duvainiel arrived once more and riled up the crowd before taking her leave. Ilsola, getting angrier by the minute, explained that the First Sergeant was to be relieved of his duties, and his second in command would be taking his place. She also asked that everyone keep their eye out for either Elspie or Nazhor, and if they were seen, to notify her immediately.
A couple days later, Ilsola received a message from someone she believed to be Elspie, asking that she gather as many as would come to receive a message at a particular time and place. Ilsola spread the word, and a small group met on the dock of Sunset Cay. Elspie's message came via a series of whispers, wherein she explained that she was locked away in a magical cell, but that they had underestimated her abilities, and she was able to get past the wards to a certain degree, but only when Nazhor was not present. She revealed that she had been able to listen in, and that Nazhor, Duvainiel, and others had been discussing their plans. They were in possession of her necklace, a powerful magical item she received from her commander in the Imperial Drakes upon her retirement, and was putting it to some use. However, he required another item of great power, and had dispatched Duvainiel to locate it. He had given her a token that would assist her in locating the item, and Elspie claimed she had been able to decipher the spells he used, and duplicate the essence of them. However, Elspie claimed that she had managed to pervert the spells for her own use, and that the tokens she would distribute to the group would locate the item of power, but once they had done so, they would reinforce the protections on it, and keep it hidden from Duvainiel and Nazhor. She explained that the only clue she had overheard Nazhor delivering to Duvainiel was his belief that the item was near water, and his suggestion that she concentrate her search on docks. With that, Elspie managed to move enspelled coins onto the dock's surface, for the group to use. She urged the group to find the item and protect it, for Nazhor's plans were nothing less than the destruction of Mist Harbor, and she feared he had no intention of stopping there.
The group brainstormed, and it was remembered that Nazhor had been seen in River's Rest, and had some interactions with Trader Mazorn. The group made their way there to begin their search, but when they arrived they found Mazorn's Warehouse closed. They convinced him to let them inside to look around, and then convinced him to step outside, as Elspie had warned that the protector of the item must NOT be present when they used their tokens, as he or she would immediately reinforce their own protections, keeping Elspie's spells from attaching themselves to the item. Mazorn grudgingly agreed, and stepped outside. When he did, the members of the group used their tokens, and a cerulean light layered itself on a rectangular-shaped empty space, covering it completely in Elspie's protections. At that moment, Duvainiel arrived, mocking them all. She explained that Nazhor had known all along that Elspie was able to communicate, and insinuated that she had unwittingly coerced the group into doing all the hard work for them, in locating the hidden item. Duvainiel utilized her own item, from Nazhor, and it covered the revealed object in blackness, then all traces of the object disappeared. Duvainiel departed soon after, taunting and mocking the group for their gullibility. In the aftermath, it was suggested that the former First Sergeant might be able to be forced to reveal more information, but Ilsola admitted at that point that the man had apparently hung himself in his holding cell the night before.
Ilsola, disconsolate and angry, has asked all to keep a close eye out for Nazhor, or Elspie. She has vowed to contact Elspie's commander from the Drakes and enlist his assistance in tracking her down, questioning Cendadric, and providing information about the retirement 'gift' given to Elspie.
(OOC Note: These are broad strokes, but provide the backbone of the story to this point. If I had to guess, I'd imagine that there's likely to be some developments in roughly three days. On Wednesday evening. Probably around 8pm. But that's just a guess...)
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