WitW - Session 11
The party exited the mausoleum to a noticeable chill in the air. They headed back to the dohwar outpost with Fontaine. Horace and Fontaine prank Sidon pretending his daughter is dead, and tears of sadness quickly turn to tears of joy. Snow fell and winter had begun in Exurbia.
Deckard was surprised to hear they killed the entire outpost including "Sinkhole." Deckard asked them to stay the night and honored his guests with some fine spirits. Jeatz stepped outside and communed with nature to hear "You're close my son" on the wind.
The next morning, Deckard presents Bull to the party as a temporary steed, but Bull should be turned loose after he's served his usefulness to the party and he'd find his way back to the Dohwar. Deckard left them with a telepathic message saying "Wherever there are Dohwar, you'll have a friend." Fontaine comes out and sincerely thanks the group giving them a little favor.
They set out for Nestleton with little happening on the road over their 3 days of travel. They arrived at Nestleton, an ever-fruitful community that is always generous with their goods. Until recently.
The village has become barren unexpectedly, and Jeatz, eager to find out more finds himself at the Laurant's house, but Elaine shooed him off telling Jeatz to find his father, the new town Shephard, at the town hall. On the way to the hall, Horace asks if he's being taken to his death, to which Jeatz could not answer.
Jeatz enters the hall alone. His father greats him somberly telling him the story how Magnus's heart was stolen 2 season ago. An elderly elf took advantage of the village's kindness, stealing the heart and killing the prior Shephard. The Elder Fey's heart is what provided the village with it’s bounty. Before parting to grab the rest of the party- Benny shares a memory with his son, that his mother said "the children of Endring has paid their debt"
The party is told that Magnus's tower is not to far away and Benny asks if they could try to speak to Magnu, asking how they may repay their mistake. They stay the night and head out to Magnus's tower first thing. They arrive at the tower to a closed front door. They wait until invited in which comes in the form of a firm breeze blowing the door open. They sit in the atrium waiting their host and have some tea- already hot. The tea indicates they need to investigate the blank canvases, which they discover to be a spot the difference puzzle. Once discovered, they are teleported to the next floor- surrounded by plants. A locked door blocks their progress, but someone disturbed the toothy vines and they were ambushed. Dealing heavy damage per round, the party barely fought them off. They discovered here were secrets hidden in the soil of the pots- a key, crystal, and a root.
The next floor presented an arcane laboratory that appeared unused for centuries. A visage presented them with a riddle- a recipe for. Magic ring. Nearly immediately they figured out the recipe- the mundane ring, crystal from the vines, and the combined shadow-fluid with the dew drops. They created the ring of fey step, but its first use brought them to the top floor- Magnus's abode.
Magnus greets the party kindly. He explained his history- saying he was a prankster turned philanthropist after another stole his love away. He is angry with the village fir letting such a sacred thing slip away. Magnus puts his hands on Jeatz an Ka's face causing their bodies to change under his touch.
Magnus said he remembered something - an old story. He would tell it if he gave up the Treetwig's heart. Jeatz obliged and Magnus told his story. An age ago, before the courts existed, there existed a powerful fey. Endring. Said to be the mother of changelings and a daughter of Exurbia herself. Endring died, and upon finding of her daughter's death Exurbia's sorrow created a magical ripple that caused all writing to fade and memories of the outside world to be forgotten. Most fey are jealous like their goddess. Magnus states he was no different and teleports the party to a large cell, standing opposite of Red-Eye himself.
