Session 22

Fact Sheet: Is Moon Mommy Still Mad?

Players present: Ecchima, Meinhart, Tuur and Vinnie. Dins was our DM, Marty was excused.

Date: 10-05-23

Date in-universe: Friday night for the ceremony, Saturday and Sunday spent travelling, on Monday morning we meet 2 travellers

Major developments:

We learnt some more background (mainly from Gladiola and Saumi):

• About Eluviel and Eluvelon, who spent 100 years at the human Rosarian court as colleague-envoys
• About the war between Kharkhorin and Rosaria 50 years ago, instigated by an Elvish mage Nargyle in Kharkhorin
• About other gods beyond Soliman and Lunaire

We participated in Damanhour’s attempts to re-consecrate their temple. When we offered a personal item as a gift during the ritual, Lunaire blessed each of us with a tiny black crystal of the Void, granting us the cantrips

• Druidcraft
• Thaumaturgy
• Prestidigitation

El(drin) gave the most personal item: a token from their parents in Thalm Samut. Aqueel gave a pearl from his hair and Hali a pearl from one of her adventures since she left home, Gladiola a sapphire from her personal collection, Ezra some of her embroidery and Storm a ribbon from his performances. Fyllion offered up 10 minutes of respectful silence, which appeared to call down Lunaire…

Previously: session 21 It’s a peaceful morning in the village, and you’re a horrible beast

Next up: session 23 A gilded blade in the dark

Notes

As we hear Gladiola’s voice ever clearer, we figure she’s approaching the dry moonpool and the stairs spiralling down. El(drin) and Ezra quickly reassure her & try to stop her from going down, mentioning we’ve found the crime scene of a robbery, covered in blood. Surely she wouldn’t want to sully herself by walking into a place of desecration?

Gladiola gives a little breathless laugh and confidently explains that the gods know we’re not perfect. Just seeing blood and crimes won’t tarnish her in the eyes of Lunaire. Luckily Hali had picked up the orb that fell from the forehead of the envoy guarding the temple, so when she starts ambling down the stairwell in the light of one of the mysterious compacts hanging from her chatelaine, we let her.

Hurriedly, Hali and Aqueel create water, and the rest of us try to mop up and scrub away as much of the blood as we can!

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As Gladiola steps into the crypt, she pauses… despite our warnings, she’s a bit shocked at the amount of blood, but soon she’s arrested by the looming statues and the haunting paintings behind them. As an educated woman, she's clearly interested what they depict. Ezra notices she flinches away from the fourth painting with Eluviel's war crimes. Ezra sidles up to her to ask some questions about the war…

Flustered, she replies that she was barely 40, so not even an adult yet. Her political acumen and her historical awareness weren’t on point yet… She can confirm she recognizes Eluviel and Eluvelon. The envoys for Lunaire and Soliman were always together at the humans’ Rosarian court. They were a bit weird when she met them a few times when she was allowed to accompany her family to court, but isn’t that to be expected? They spent, like, a century in the mortal plane as the only Celestials in the Hammerhead Coast… Like, she’s only had Chalcy for 15 years, and if anything happened to him, she’d kill everyone in this village and then herself!

She adds Eluvelon was a paladin, so when Kharkhorin invaded the Bay of Beasts and then quickly stormed towards the Rosarian capital in The Perch, he joined the front lines… She’s iffy on the details of why and how and where, but Eluvelon got killed.

As Gladiola muses about the harshness of death, Ezra does notice that Chalcedony is still remarkably fit and hale, especially for a breed that’s known more for being dumb as a rock rather than their longevity.

Ezra confirms we don't know much about everything present in the cavern:

• Aashvi didn't want to teach her offspring about this history
• Storm figures there's bias in what he’s been taught in Royal Rosaria
• El(drin) grew up far from the Bay of Beasts & Thalmiria wasn’t involved anyway
• Etc.  

Probably none of us have the well-rounded education that an upcoming young lady from the Faraday family got… Can Gladiola expand on why Kharkhorin attacked Rosaria so viciously? Half flattered and half gloomy, Gladiola reminds us Rosaria is regarded as the blessed land of Soliman and Lunaire. The Elven population felt this region should belong the Elves. They were displaced when the humans arrived, and with their shorter lifespans and shorter childhoods they overtook the Elvish population. Uncouth people even say humans breed like bunnies.

With all of that in mind, the Elvish mage Nargyle managed to obtain the ear of the Kharkhorin king, a human named XXX and convinced him to conquer Rosaria.

The Rosarian Elves found themselves sympathizing with both sides: as a more magical race, they understood why their Kharkhorin peers would want to return to Rosaria, but at the same time, they felt some loyalty to the communities where they were living… Those are probably the reasons why Rosarian Elves didn’t participate nearly as actively in the war.

Even disregarding the magical and religious aspects, Rosaria is a fertile land of milk and honey, so it just made economic sense for Kharkhorin to conquer their neighbour.

Fyllion nods sagely, he was just about to give the same explanation, but Gladiola acquitted herself well, a credit to her teachers! Storm grins he’s just a lying liar: none of us are older than 30! Affronted, Fyllion points out that he grew up in a secret place in the Fey Wild! Who knows how time passes there?? Humbled, Storm admits that Reinzinger’s Swan Lake does contain a passage set in the Fey Wild… this lyrical scene is a favourite of Storm’s, because it’s so dream-like and mystical.

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Gladiola comments on El(drin)'s mask, and wonders if they should be wearing a holy relic like a trendy pair of sunglasses…? El(drin) mentions they received the gods' blessing for the mask, as well as a sacred mission with regards to the war and the horrendous impact on the people who received divine gifts…

Out loud El(drin) muses they will probably have to kill a few power-hungry meddlers soon, as a way to prevent bigger loss of life later on. When Storm interjects “that’s what we said about Saatia, remember?”, El(drin) side-eyes him pretty hard, while Gladiola is side-eying El(drin) pretty hard.

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Eager to leave both the crypt and this conversation, Fyllion uses minor illusion to make El(drin) think everything is clean. As we wend our way back to the surface, Fyllion notices Virgil activates the totem in his water pouch: “Who in the name of Daddy’s realm is this Santiago you and your crew have been blabbing about? I was certain Eluviel kept the opal he received from Lunaire on his person! Why would this Santiago steal it, and how did he know where to find it??”

Fyllion sends a mental reply, repeating what we know. In a sarcastic thanks for the info, Virgil repeats his offer of warlock patronage, even though Fyllion keeps throwing it in his face by jumping into these life-threatening situations & still refusing to grab the power Virgil offers… He finishes with a sarcastic “If you need me, scream hard”. Not to be out-done, Fyllion chortles back “If YOU need ME, just keep burbling under water”.

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Once we’ve closed the moonpool once more, we try to re-consecrate the space. El(drin) starts a prayer: they feel the resonance of Lunaire's presence. Alas, they feel how the god’s attention stings like pins and needles. It’s no surprise, El(drin) is wearing the mask of Lunaire's most infamous traitor…

Moved by their efforts, Gladiola starts reciting a prayer of her own, leaning into her connection to Lunaire as a moon elf. Inspired by their susurrations, Storm sketches an entre-acte from Bourbonville’s Midsummer Festival ballet. The series of repeated gargouillades evoke a gentle fawn stepping into a crepuscular clearing in the woods, under the moonlight. Fyllion’s contribution is based on reversed psychology, challenging Lunaire with “If you don't need this sanctum anymore, can I keep it for when I ascend? Do nothing for yes”.

Slowly, in the deepening gloom, we notice the night blooming jasmine opens. Slowly, gently, its rich and powerful floral scent permeates in the air. From the flowers’ stamen, tiny magical little embers seem to float up into the air, both mirroring and illuminating the crystals embedded in the walls everywhere. Ezra quickly wipes away the bloody handprint from the Gemini constellation.

We feel the blessing of a cool presence in the heat of the day. Still, the magic is quite weak & more will be needed to bring back this temple to its full grace.

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As we exit the temple, Gladiola remarks to Ezra that she’s rarely felt the divine this directly… is that how Ezra feels all the time, when they play or work with Taurillon’s gift? As Ezra’s blank stare, Gladiola nods to their sand snake, you know, as an emanation of their connection to the land? We see Ezra grin in understanding, with, like, ALL of their teeth: yes, of course, Baaloo and  Taurillon! So gift, much wonderful, many close!

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El(drin) is the last to leave and bows to take their leave. With a NATURAL TWELVE on a D100 after their prayer, El(drin) doesn't get a vision. They do seem to intuit that the mask is laden with so much history that wearing it constantly might not be the best idea for their mental health. The built-in shades protecting their eyes do feel wonderfully soothing in the glare of the sun.

Aqueel whispers he thinks it's a little scary but with his limited common, he can’t fully convey his sentiments.

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During the walk through town, back to Sharm and Mohsine’s home, Gladiola remarks she has heard the name Fyllion from the Fey Wild so often, she's surprised he doesn't have any temples already. Fyllion tries to find out where she’d read about him, but El(drin) ribs him that it was probably on a most wanted list, and Storm joins in that a bathroom wall seems more likely… Channelling their inner Captain Magpie once more, Ezra admonishes us to stop being mean, and to behave, because we’re nearing the villagers crowding around Saumi.

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In the centre of a crowd, the mayor Saumi is being cared for by his wife Hasjra and Sharm. Shop keeper Ridwan rushes over to us to ask to confirm Saumi’s incredible tales: was there a monster, was there a secret room, was it Santiago?!

At first, none of us react. Why didn’t we set our stories straight before returning…? Suddenly we start babbling all at the same time: devotion takes many forms, not all polecats are bandits, wouldn’t a god stop a thief if that was their will, an ocean of blood doesn’t necessarily indicate a crime…

In an unfortunate lull in the babbling, everyone in the crowd hears Storm’s indignant hissed whisper at Ezra and Fyllion: are we really telling random civilians about Santiago stealing from the gods, and running around Breheima with Eluvelon's opal just dangling around his neck??

As the crew gapes in disbelief at Storm’s indiscretion, El(drin) jumps in to try and convince everyone that their friends are just joking around. We’re a travelling group of performers, after all: inventing tales is what we do! Secretly, everyone (including Storm) is relieved at El(drin)’s quick thinking & the tiny blessing of Storm misspeaking about whose opal Santiago stole (it’s Eluviel’s, not Eluvelon’s).

Ridwan is sad that Santiago moved on from pranks and petty theft to robbing strangers & stealing from the gods. He wonders if the rumour about Santiago being a Thamyrian spy is true after all. Thalmiria is supposed to be allied with Rosaria, with a focus on maritime trade in the Breheiman Sea… Still, it makes no sense: why would a troublemaking kid from a backwater village in the Sand Velt at the edge of Thalmiria work with the hoity-toity fashion lady who’s rumoured to be a Kharkhorin spy…?

It looks like El(drin)'s plan worked: Ridwan and the villagers look thoroughly confused. Gladiola is disgusted with our antics and speed-walks away. She feels deeply insulted that Storm spilled the beans to the villagers and none of us even told her!

Ezra is looking as sheepish as a tiger shifter can. How does Captain Magpie deal with all of this? And when will he be back to relieve Ezra from this role??

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We accept Sharm's offer for rest and recovery, since Ezra and El(drin) got hurt too. As we rest, Saumi explains they'll re-consecrate the temple tonight, with a more emotional version of their habitual celebration. He invites us to participate. El(drin) stables Madonna with Mohsine's brown mare. After a few pats, she acknowledges El(drin)'s efforts.

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Ezra checks out Ridwan's shop for reading material about the gods. All he has, is a Taurillon seal: it’s a woodcarving of vine plants forming a Celtic knot. He's not an Elf who worships this god, but perhaps Ezra will have more luck in Yaruda, the next town over. Ezra negotiates well & gets it for 2 silver

Storm tries to sell the salamander swords (his & Fyllion's) with the argument they’re pockmarked but that'll just intimidate your enemy. In the end, we manage to convince him, so Storm gets the alchemist's fire at a cheaper price, as well as 1 empty glass vial.  

Before we leave the shop, Ridwan shares that Madonna looks like she’ll be an invaluable asset for the next leg of our journey: as a young hardy camel, she’ll cope just as well with the wooded routes to Yaruda as she worked with us in the desert.

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When we all meet up again outside Sharm and Mohsine’s house, Gladiola stares angrily at Storm and demands we have a private conversation in her cart. Right before we start, Fyllion detect thoughts on Gladiola. She demands we explain what’s going on.

We keep lying and don’t tell her anything about our direct involvement, nor about our memory loss. We just explain we feel called to help either El(drin) or the gods with this whole mess of war and strife and unexplained attacks on temples or holy cities…

Fyllion knows the right questions to draw her out & deftly guides the conversation. In the conversation, we confirm:

• Eluvelon was the last Celestial Soliman sent to the mortal plane as his envoy. It makes Fyllion’s cloak of featherfall rare, and precious, and inexplicably confusing how it wound up in a little shabby shop in Koh’Shar. We still don’t tell her that the shop owner is Sampson, whose father built Lunaire’s temple here in Damanhour, where several relics were hidden…
• The forehead gems are what the Faradays call “god stuff”. At its smallest, one of these crystals can hold a glimmer of magic for a single use. At larger sizes, they form the seat of an envoy’s power, and can even hold their sentience, their soul so to speak…
• To use the divine power stored in the crystals, you can typically embed them in an object and then use them as an arcane focus. That’s how El(drin)’s ominous sword used to work, but the stone powering the sword appears to be missing, or maybe it got burnt-out during a feat that exhausted its magic…?
• During her training as a lapidarist, she’s seen how her mentors worked with void stones, which contain Lunaire’s gifts. From the paintings in the crypt, she deduced Soliman preferred opals to store power and magic… and Fyllion picks up that she has a vague notion that a third type might exist (see images)

El(drin) suggests we look for this thief of this divine artifact. Gladiola refuses immediately, she wants to get to The Vale & that's what she hires us for. Jumping off of that, Ezra reminds us Santiago appeared to head to the south: we're way behind and have no way to find him. They swear to El(drin) we will follow any leads we can find, but our word is our bond and we should honour our deal with Gladiola. It’s what Captain Magpie would want!

Fyllion notices Gladiola is panicking about us being mad and dangerous. We're even on a first name basis with this thief. He reassures her we'll take care of her, and won't involve her in danger! Thankfully, Fyllion also manages to soothe her ruffled feathers, so she doesn’t revoke her decision to employ us & travel with us.

Is it a ruse to wrap up the conversation, or is he genuinely fishing…? We don’t know, but we observe in stupefied amazement how Fyllion flirts a little with Gladiola! He can pick up she does find him attractive, both as an arch fey and as a guy with the body of a god (potentially). He must concede her thoughts don't feel particularly sexual, it's more an artistic appreciation.

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As Gladiola hustles us out of her cart until it’s time for the ceremony in the temple, Ezra channels "speak with animals" through the statue of Taurillon and both Chalcedony and Baaloo respond to this natural divinity.

E : hello

C : what do you want

E : I’m just making conversation. Lady Faraday said you're 15 years old, but you still look great.

C : the sun goes up and down, I get older same as you, there's not much else to it.

E : you don't look your age, you're amazing, really a good boy!

C : well thanks for your compliment, even though you seem more of a cat person (not that I'm speciesist).

E : that's my family, we're interested in big cats hehe.

C : I could smell that on you.  

E : I get that, that's why I buy so much perfume, glad my scent and my perfume don't bother you.

C : appreciate the effort & sorry I didn't join the fight.

E : you're also our client, so understandable, have a good day!

C : if you want anything sniffed that your cat nose or polecat nose can’t manage, just give me a holler, if you must.

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El(drin) takes leave of the group & goes to find Saumi, Lunaire's shepherd of the local religious flock. They’re looking for a prayerbook to learn more about the traditional religious practices honouring Lunaire. They want to make sure they keep their connection to Lunaire, even as their divine mission takes them in strange directions… Moved by this heavy burden on his fellow devotee, Saumi offers to gift El(drin) a family heirloom. It’s a hand-sewn prayerbook which Saumi uses to show them how to pray for Lunaire’s attention. It's written in celestial, but El(drin) notices they can read it as long as they're wearing the mask!

It contains

• prayers for food, before sleep, etc.
• several symbols and sigils : a line spiralling into a void, an intricate drawing of a moth with a human body and most prominently the symbol of an eye with the moon as an iris

As they’re bent over the prayerbook, a quiet conversation spins out. El(drin) manages to extract:

• About a year and a half ago, or maybe a little longer, Sampson passed through and spent a day and a half alone in the temple, which was the original purpose of the temples, when they were built long ago…
• 6 months ago, again: worried and hurried, carrying something. Is that what was left there & what was now stolen?  

Godefroy was a half Elf, born and raised in Damanhour. When he obtained magic, he built Damanhour’s temple as thanks. He probably used magic to do it, and the community felt it added to their worship to commune with their favoured god in such a space. His son Sampson was also a half Elf. He grew up in Damanhour, fought in the war between Rosaria and Kharkhorin (despite being a Thamyrian citizen) and after the war moved to Koh’Shar, where the trade in magic items and services allowed him to make a better living. He even took on an intern, even though naughtier neighbours say it’s rather a clueless boy who didn’t even make the cut for the conscription six months ago…

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Ezra spends a while reading up on regional religion in a book they borrowed from Gladiola's library. They’re amazed to learn about:

• Taurillon, a god embodying the living planet, whose worship seems focused in Yaruda, a tiny hamlet on the route we’ve charted. A handful of druids (both wood Elves and Eladrin Elves) live there to keep the Fey Wild influence limited to the area of The Vale rather than letting those exotic animals run rampant in the mortal plane
• Clíodhna, a mysterious goddess inhabiting the border between life and death. Some say she’s the goddess who sews the veil between planes. This is the god the Saree family originally worshipped, according to the stories Ezra vaguely remembers

Ezra closes the book and contemplates this information, about their family roots and about their sandy companion…

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Storm practises some more Aquan and Common with Aqueel and Hali.

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After another dinner with Mohsine and Sharm we change into nicer clothes & join Gladiola and the villagers in the temple. When we get inside, El(drin) respectfully takes off the mask & puts it in their backpack.

Saumi is helped onto the podium by his son. Another guy opens the aperture over the moonpool. It's not a full moon yet, but the water reflects the light, augmenting the gleam from the stones in the walls. Saumi starts reading Celestial sermons. When he starts a song, everyone eagerly joins in. We kind of hum along, the melody is simple enough.

As the egregor swells through the space and crests over the villagers focussing their faith, at random moments, people come forward & drop an offering in the moonpool or at the feet of the statues. Given the importance of this night’s ritual, they’ve taken special care with their gifts, as have we!

• Sharm and the other workers in the fields took special care to pick the prettiest and most fragrant flowers for garlands for the statues
• Gladiola steps forward to offer a sapphire she cut herself
• Mohsine drops a handful of sea salt into the moonpool, a precious ingredient so far inland
• Shyly Aqueel follows Hali to the moonpool: they both offer a pearl, Aqueel one that grew in his ‘hair’ and Hali one that decorated her choker as a token from one of her first adventures when she left home
• Some of the villagers offer home made gifts, infused with intention, like a wind chime or a carving of moth wings…
• Ezra had used a sleeve left over from Nasser’s tunic to make a handkerchief they’ve embroidered during the quiet hours of our travels
• Storm drapes one of his ballet ribbons among the flower garlands, with a quiet sigh over the many performances he used them in
• El(drin) dithers for a while, in their hands a small amulet. It’s a memento their parents gave them as a token of their love, but now they feel they need to move forward, away from their childhood. It sinks in the moonpool with nary a ripple…
• Fyllion makes eye contact with himself in the reflective surface of the moonpool. With a charming grin, he offers Lunaire ten whole minutes of silence on his part, so the god has time to make their will known!

Just as Fyllion steps back to his seat, the candles flicker. Suddenly they sputter higher, with an eerie black flame, that somehow still illuminates the space! The jasmine once again spreads embers of magic… as shadows swirl through the crowd towards the dais, 7 tiny pitch-black crystals materialise. In the awed silence, everyone hears  Gladiola’s gasp that Lunaire has favoured the ritual with 7 tiny void stones!

Saumi figures Lunaire smiles on us & intends these crystals for us. As he gathers them in his hand, El(drin) stands up and joins Saumi in front of the congregation. When Saumi hands over the crystals with the admonishment to divide them among Aqueel, Ezra, Fyllion, Gladiola, Hali and Storm, El(drin) offers a homily: pray, not for safety; but for deliverance from danger, and for the endurance to bring the vengeance necessary.

The villagers are in awe over the miracle they’ve just observed, but they’re also worried El is talking about vengeance.

As they're filing out, El feels a vision overtake them once more:

Their sword is wreathed in flames, as El(drin) sees how their hands bore it through a familiar golden mask. When the mask splits under the violent assault, Eluviel’s pain-filled face is revealed, with Eluvelon's opal in his forehead. The opal is now cracked, its glow fading as El(drin) sees how their hands twist the sword through Eluviel's skull!

Within El(drin), two emotions rage: a dark tempest of rage and sorrow and a deep-rooted feeling of betrayal… but just when it threatens to swallow them whole, a strange, warm glow which pulls El(drin) back from the edge of these towering dark emotions.

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Upon inspection of the crystals, Gladiola confirms they’re too small to hold any sentience but they're god stuff, that'll probably allow us minor magical feats. She reckons we can use them as an arcane focus for the cantrips of

• Druidcraft
• Thaumaturgy
• Prestidigitation

Gladiola offers to embed it in a jewel for us, eager to work with these void crystals as her mentors showed her. El(drin) wonders if she could put it in their sword. She explains she’s not a blacksmith, so don’t hold her to her assessment, but in her opinion, the single shard would be too small to fully restore the sword anyway. The crystal would be consumed and the corruption corroding this sword would barely slow down…

El(drin) figures they’ll have to earn a bigger crystal to restore their mysterious sword. There’s but one thing for it: they commit once again to help enact Lunaire’s vengeance! Gladiola remains worried of meddling in divine affairs…

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As an Elf, Gladiola need less sleep than humans, polecats and shifters (and maybe baby Elves like Fyllion), during the night she manages to set the crystals for us: a tiny pendant for Ezra’s bandana, a simple cameo for Hali’s chokers, basic rings for the rest of us…

After expressing our thanks, which she magnanimously waves away, it being her pleasure to work with void crystals no matter how small, we pack up and travel on! Goodbye, Damanhour!

Images

God stuff in 3 variations