Joining In on The Fun and Games

This is where Dolgrim and Grolnir join the party. Then they all head off to meet with Princess Helena at the King's palace. There is a bit of stuff that happened between when The Merchant killed off Bluebelle and Theren and the party arrived at the Inverness Magic Academy that will be clarified in a forthcoming post. Both Dolgrim and Grolnir had been in the room when they hauled Donkey in for healing and had left the healing room for a short time while something else happened.

We went back into the healin room and I asked if the Minotaur was gonna be okay. They nodded and said that he was gonna be fine. Then I asked if their names might be Varrin, Donkey and Verdehile. They told us they were with expressions that signified they wondered what was going on? 

They explained that they had just lost two of their party members Bluebelle and Theren, and the same one almost killed Donkey - that Minotaur layin on the healin table. They just called the one that kilt their friends, the Merchant and told us how they barely escaped with their lives to the Academy thanks to Varrin using his Amulet of the Planes.

Varrin explained that they were attempting to stop Moonscar from becomin immortal and then releasin The Horned King who would reap chaos and destruction across both Crannogs. He also told us that one of their party by the name of Bluebelle had managed to become one of the Chosen by Natasha, but that when The Merchant killed her, that it would randomly go to someone else.

I looked at me Dolgrim and we both just nodded.

It seemed that our destiny was intertwined with their’s goin forward, so we did the only thing that would be right and proper, we joined ‘em. We introduced ourselves and let ‘em know we’d like to join up with ‘em. They all agreed to let us both join ‘em and see where it leads.

Afta conferrin for a bit, it was decided that we needed ta go ta King Garland’s Palace and let ‘im know what was goin on. Since it seemed likely that the Witchin Hour would be startin soon. This is where Dolgrim’s abilities are right handy and as soon as Donkey was able we’d go ahead and teleport to the Palace. We got ta talkin and decided that I probably should go ahead and warn them that a party was comin in, with all the commotion that the Witchin Hour was causing. We’d been around the palace a few times and were sorta known there.

We went on down to the Teleportation Circle and I keyed it in and ended up right where I planned at the palace. Although things were different to say the least there weren’t no Donovan up on the ramparts throwin knives between me feet. Instead there was this Knight in Purple Armor who had his sword drawn and ready to battle me. With that kind ‘o greetin I knew things was different, but me mouth runs before me brains all too often and I laid into that Knight with some mighty strong words. He weren’t happy, but stood down and I told him we had a party coming through to see the King with some important information about the Witchin Hour from the Inverness Magic Academy. 

He responded like a Knight with a stick stuck up where the sun don’t shine. Saying that I needed to identify meself and when I told him I was Gralnir and a professor who’d travelled to the Palace many times before and never been treated this way. He didn’t seem too impressed and told me to go over by some structure to wait for the rest of me party. I went over to the other corner and I could see him just sorta sigh. He finally let me know that they’d been attacked 5 times over the past few hours and were a bit touchy about people coming through. I just told him, why didn’t ya say so and I went ahead and moved over ta where he told me to go the first time.

Then the rest of me party came through and he asked their names and business. I could see a bunch of archers and crossbowman up on the wall ready to let loose and realized just how close I’d come to bein a pincushion. One of ‘em looked down at me winked and smiled then made a motion with his hand to stay calm before getting back to lookin all serious. Donovan was just lettin me know to behave meself, otherwise this Purple Knight was going to be a royal pain for me.

The Knight sent the rest of ‘em over to the structure where some people were fixin some food and then all of sudden one of them Lady Elves came running out towards Varrin and wrapped ‘im in a big bearhug. It seems they’ve known one another for a bit. She was glad to see him and they both started talking. She got to say her story first. It seems that someone called Baldur had kidnapped her daughter Jeanine and that she had been brought to the Palace by the Princess for her own safety. 

She wanted her daughter back and Varrin promised that we’d do our best to bring Jeanine back safely to her.

After a few minutes of waitin the Purple Knight came over and told us he was escortin us up to the inner Palace as royal guests. It seems that the Princess thought highly of Varrin, the rest of us accordin ta him were just tagalongs that he didn’t agree with taking upta the Princess. Though I kept runnin me mouth at the Purple Knight who just rubbed me the wrong way with his condescendin attitude. By the time we got through them big gates I tend to believe he really wanted to take me apart, because he took off his gauntlet and showed off his nails to us. Ah well, I gotta learn that I can’t woo everyone with my wit and charm.

We are escorted by several other guards to the inner keep and brought before Princess Helena. Who accordin to what Varrin said, later on, that she looked very different from the person he knew back in Seasonal. She was sitting there playing Dragonchess against no one - at least I didn’t see no one. 

The sword beside her thrummed with power and I noticed that it had three distinct colors dancing around it. She pointed it out to Varrin and said your friend and mine Landriss’s consciousness is within that sword. He doesn’t like or trust the one you call Verdehile who is an evil Necromancer and is an anathema to what we stand for. So, if he attempts to do anything stupid in here, he will die quickly and the rest of you will be thrown in chains.

Not a great way to start a conversation with the Princess ta say the least.

Dolgrim asked where King Garland was and was told that he was away - busy, and that she was in charge of the Palace for now. That sounded rather ominous, and I wondered if she'd gotten rid of the King? Then Varrin started tellin her everything that had happened, and in short order had her complete attention. After he finished talking, she started talking about the Witchin Hour and how they were going to play by her rules, not Natasha’s. That six of the twelve originally chosen by Natasha were no longer part of the game and that she was attempting to eliminate all of the remaining ones to thwart Natasha’s plans and have random people be drawn into this particular game of thrones, which she was playing to win for both Crannogs to remain as they were before Natasha returned.

She likened eliminating those chosen ones to being like wiping out a plague. Donkey blanched a bit and she said to him “I know you were one of the original twelve but you were safe once you voluntarily gave up your place. He sighed with relief. All that are left are 1, 6, 10, 11, and 12. Number 11 or 12 seems to have the best shot at winning this gambit besides myself. 

She thanked Varrin for the update on Normundy and Bluebelle, and for the information that Hassan has been destroyed, that will be a relief for my guardians here. They were worried that he would attempt to eliminate me and were surprised that he has not shown up as yet now we know why.

I went back through the journal a little later and copied in the original list of the twelve Chosen so it would be fresh in our minds:

1. A Harengon - Jax - a toy once - Still alive

2. A Minotaur (Donkey) who doesn’t know or remember his own name - Voluntarily gave up his place

3. Sephera of the merfolk - Gone

4. Helena - daughter of Garland - Still alive

5. The batfolk named Normundy - gave up place to Bluebelle who was killed a short while ago

6. Hina Mantis - Still alive

7. Valen the hobgoblin - Gone

8. Drast - Yuan-ti - Child of Natasha - Not sure

9. Pallidia - The Owl Witch - Gone

10. Gapranth the Behenny - The Lost son - Still alive

11. Moonscar - Child of the Black Moon - Still alive

12. Alterra - Lilly of the Valley - Still alive

If you want to really help eliminate this problem, I’ll give your group three choices:

1. Go to Unvail and help King Garland eliminate both Alterra and Natasha. He is there with Merlin and an army to take them out.

2. Go find Jax and kill him, he is stealing children and their families by using a circus that pops up at night to lure the children and their families in and then they are not seen again.

3. Go after Moonscar, who has Baldur as one of her knights to be - Donkey and Varrin I can tell that this is what they really wants to do, especially with Varrin's promise to the Elven Woman down in the courtyard with them amber eyes. But me own mind tends to think we'd be in rather over our heads with those two at this point. Varrin adds in the Princess that Baldur’s weakness is Mistletoe and that Moonscar can be killed by this Planes version of Excalibur which is located in the Brushwag Forest, but you will need to enter the water than pass the trial before being given it. She thanked him for that vital information.

We discussed things for a very short while and it sounds like we’re going to find Jax and put an end to his reign of terror. Varrin and Donkey were torn between their hatred of Baldur and knowing that the party wasn’t ready to tackle him and Moonscar. 

It was at this point that she told us that we had to make a choice and begone from the Palace until we succeeded or were all dead. She had little time to spare for us at this point, but appreciated our effort to help Crannog survive this version of the Witchin Hour.