Guillermo's Gambit and Surviving - Barely

 Characters

• Harold - Raven – Kalashtar - Samurai/Ninja
• Alex - Terentus – Garlean - Barbarian
• Holden - Manson – Warlock/Sorcerer
• Jocelyn - Ahna - Wizard (Divination)

Session Notes: 2024-10-17

We were still in Kit Kat, sitting around the fire relaxing that night. Pluck and Renalla hand out drinks and propose toasts to the future. I even took a sip. In the past I would not have participated in something like this, but my time in the Spirit Realm had shown me that I needed to enjoy what life had to offer, not just simply exist. It didn’t mean that I was going to be like Manson, but I was going to enjoy the parts of life that I had avoided as unnecessary or distractions.

As we were sitting there, I noticed Ahna looking at Kenzo who was doing something with his Tarot deck and that he had pulled out a Tarot card - the Death Card, and heard him mutter, “That’s not good, I’ll have to see what comes of it in the morning. 

A Vision - Guillermo’s Treachery

Guillermo waited patiently for Meerkan to come bursting through the door. hollering at the revelation of Guillermo's indecency and the damage done to HIS Tiberias...Though this hasn't been Guillermo's home for the last decade, not as he remembered it.

Sure enough the magnificent bastard stormed into the room in a flurry of robes. Stopping as he noticed the anti-magic field activate as the door closed. Locking just the two of them inside. 

"Explain yourself immediately!" Meerkan roared towards Guillermo who simply stayed seated. 

Amused at how red the Wizards face has gotten from anger. "Care for a drink? Old friend?”

"I've learned of your misdeeds Guillermo.... Siding with the giants? Razing that village? I knew you'd done some dirty deeds but nothing like this... " 

Guillermo sighed and opened his desk, retrieving his bottle and placing it into the table. Slipping another object into his vest. "I presume you learned of this from our sons? Hehehe... There isn't much more undoing than they."

"You know you're going to prison for this. I cannot vouch for such behavior and simply put I won't. I've fought for you for years and now you've gone and done this? I have to admit I'm beyond disappointed in you." 

Guillermo lifts himself up and pulls the object out of his pocket. Revealing a single bullet pistol with Ixada's judge logo to Meerkan and pointing it to his former friend. "To be honest I'd have preferred the recent bombings to have gone without a hitch and for our dear friend's child to have taken the fall. It would've been easier then to have lost another I was fond of. But here we are."

Meerkan froze, realizing the kind of weapon pointed towards him. "Guillermo.. you wouldn't.." 

"Wouldn't what? Destroy a founding Archmage's work whilst mine fades into obscurity, watching this visage I've been so meticulously building crumble in an instant because of our brats. Come now, we both are only human. And we are a very ambitious species. No, but this will serve a purpose as did that village. As did the countless others I've raked over the coals that lit the fire of progress. Your death will serve as the starting fires of war. As threats come from beyond our worlds and stagnation leads to damnation. Without conflict we barely make progress in our weaponry, in our research... Your death will spark a war across Tormoa and from it TRUE GODS of battle will be forged. A shame you and I won't be here to see it."

"This will only destroy the peace I and countless others have fought so hard for! You're not thinking clearly!" 

Guillermo cocked the gun, priming the mage killer bullet, "I'd have preferred to have used this on one of the Majini archfae, but this will do plenty." 

"GUILLERMO! ST-" BANG.

"I'm done with the games, find them all...

- The six of you take what soldiers you feel you need and put an end to this. 

- You, go take care of Olin and his fiance.

- You three, find the airship and drag it to hell alongside anyone on it. 

- You two go deal with my former son... If you feel like you won't make it out at least try to take out one of the Majini with you... 

- I'm going to activate the Foundling and be done with this wretched disgrace that once was my home.. it's time we carve anew..."

Preparing for the Worst

We all gathered on the mess deck of the airship and discussed what we had seen. I asked Manson if he still had the Flame Tongue that I had traded to him for Decapinator and if I could borrow it? He smiled and pulled it out of his bag of holding, then passed it to me, then told me I could have it.

As we were talking, time seemed to stop as Pluck and Manson received another vision.

"Manson, Hana....I don't have much time left.. I've warned the Majini's and your friend Olin. Guillermo's sending his men in full force to deal with everyone associated or knows of the Ygg project that isn't on his side. 

He's likely sending some of his generals to find you and the group you're with, I have some gifts being sent to your location to help out. 

I told everything I knew about the project. His lifelong project is going to crumble beneath his very feet. It won't make up for the things I helped do but.... looks like they've found me. Manson...I'm sorry but I'm not likely going to be able to do that duel with you after all. 

Keep them safe for me okay? Please...tell Cassia her dad did love her."

Almost immediately, we all “see” Raydon fighting for his life and protecting one of the Majini children who ran back into the mansion. He relaxed slightly and the two he was fighting backed off a short ways and before he could attack, they cast spells of frost and lightning toward him over and over again. 

We see Raydon laying on the ground dying, but with a smile on his lips as we saw what he was seeing.

The vision of his daughter as she was before she died and then pans out to see her as an adult in her 20’s and smiling and laughing with her sisters. As Raydon sees that we hear him murmur, “I’m proud you’re going to make it out okay, although I’m not going to be there for you. I hope your other father is a better man than I was. At the very least I get to say, I’m going to die a better person than I was before I met him. He attempts to stand and lets out a final war cry and the vision fades to black.

Seeing that vision disturbed us all, I saw a tear fall down Pluck’s cheek, Manson became steely eyed and looked around at us all. Nobody said anything for a few moments. I thought to myself even though I didn’t have the fondest memories of Raydon and his past, he died attempting to become a better person. Raydon died an honorable death. I know without any doubt that we are judged by our actions and if we don’t act with honor, it does affect us in the afterlife - as I have experienced.

Seeking Allies

After the party sorted through the emotions that the vision of Raydon’s death brought to us all, we began planning what we needed to do to prepare for the attack that would be coming our way that Guillermo had ordered. Pluck, Manson, Terentus and Ahna decided to talk with Kenzo first, since he seemed to be the one that was most allied to the group. I went to talk with Amanifus.

Terentus later told me that they went to Kenzo’s room and discussed the visions. He ponders what he too has seen and pulls out his Tarot card deck, shuffles it and again pulls out the death card, but there are two more nodes on it. He seems to go into a short trance and tells us, “You have three hours before they arrive, do you need help?”

Of course, the answer was, yes. After a brief discussion, it was decided that Kenzo would take the kids and maids to a safe place that none of us knew the whereabouts of. Manson and Kenzo offer to have him take either or both Pluck and Renalla with him to protect the children. Both look around the room and at one another and vehemently disagree. They both want to stay and fight against Guillermo and pay him back for all the misery he has caused for their families and themselves. 

Then Terentus told me that he and Kenzo talked briefly and both apologized for not talking sooner. Terentus told Kenzo that when Raydon falsely accused him of killing his husband that he went into a shell. Kenzo told him thank you and that if everything turned out at the other end that they would talk again then. 

While they were doing that, I went to talk with Amanifus offering to become his warlock if he helped us, but was told that my body wasn’t capable of doing that and refused my offer. However, he did seem open to helping us when we talked about the children, the ship that he could be using and many of the Majini family servants that were on the ship as well. He showed me the ones coming to attack the ship: Morgan, a Goliath Woman dressed in Ninja garb, an Air Genasi, who wielded a Shiranui Katana. 

Manson showed up at the door and was listening…Amanifus told us that there would be a Zonai who had been abused by Morgan and that he wanted us to keep her alive. If we agreed to those terms he would take care of the other airships that would be coming or anyone who was outside of our airship. That we would need to defend our airship ourselves and take care of any of the invaders who got aboard.

Then Manson and I went to the daisy field where we were pretty sure that we’d find Donkey and Theren. Manson explained what was going on and when Donkey heard that we’d be protecting children, he was all in. Theren smiled sadly and just nodded his saying he would help as well. They came with us back to the airship.

After we got back, I asked Manson if there was a way for Chi’hara to ask if the Mukade had been able to complete the rebuilding of my father’s Shiranui blade? It would be needed for the battle ahead. He asked the Oni and the Oni looked at him, nodded, then disappeared. When it returned he was holding my father’s sheathed Katana and he placed it in my hands saying, use it well. Then it looked at Manson, “I will offer you my strength, but you need to feed me the blood of all three with the runes, who must die, especially Morgan’s. If you don’t, you will be punished.”

We went into Kit Kat and got provisions, I got 2 potions of speed and 4 potions of healing. The others stocked up on what they needed and we headed back to the ship. 

At that point there was nothing to do but wait, so I sat quietly and put my father’s sword on my knees and attuned to it. It took me to our old home at the Oshiro Compound, where my father was sitting waiting for me. I knelt before him and we talked for a time (time flows differently in the spirit realm) and at the end he put his hand on my shoulder and told me he was proud of me.

Which left me feeling good about the choices that I have made, though I believe he would have preferred that I had continued advancing as an Oshiro Samurai. I could tell that he didn’t always agree with what the Mukade required of me or my becoming trained as a Ninja. Just knowing that he understood the reasons for me pledging my loyalty to them helped me sort through many of the feelings that I have had. His being proud of me took a huge amount of pressure and stress off my soul and freed me from some of the guilt that I had about things that I had done since joining the Mukade Clan.

They were necessary to get me to where I am now.

The Battle

Manson offered to let Kenzo’s two guards for the children leave the ship, they refused saying that Kenzo hadn’t released them and with what I know now, it was as good thing

Battle started - Morgan comes on deck all pompous and ready to take us down. He had the Zonai girl with him and there was a Shield Guardian with her, along with four others. He warned the girl to do exactly as they had planned or that she would “pay” for it later.

Terentus shows off his new abilities by raging, then grappling and throwing two of the others off the ship, another was quickly destroyed, I attempted to get the Zonai girl, but was “held” by the Guardian, so I had to communicate with her telepathically that I was attempting to rescue her. She didn’t trust me, but didn’t have the Guardian attack me, so that was a start. The Zonai cast a healing spell that affected all of us, not just Morgan and I wondered if I had gotten through to her.

Manson went straight for Morgan, then Donkey raged and attacked him as well. While Theren seemed out of sorts and instead of attacking Morgan, used his bow to attack the blackguard in the back. Then Ahna cast Vortex Warp that moved the Zonai girl all the way back to her, over a hundred feet from Morgan and the Guardian. At which point the Guardian began to move to protect her and released me from being held.

As it went by Terentus, he grappled it with one hand and then grappled Morgan with the other. One of the most amazing displays of strength that I had ever seen. He held the Guardian, while smashing Morgan’s head into the deck of the ship. Then we pounded on Morgan some more. He nearly escaped when he teleported 30 feet towards the Zonai, but Terentus let the Shield Guardian drag him up to where Morgan was. Manson was already there, and smacked Morgan prone with an Eldritch Smite. Terentus grappled him once more to keep him there, while the rest of us caught up again. We beat on him there as he threatened the Zonai, who was being talked to by Ahna, telling her that we were not the enemy, that we would kill her abuser, Morgan.

That was the turning point of the battle, when Ahna was able to convince the Zonai that we were not her enemies and were attempting to kill Morgan. Though we could hear sounds of battles raging on the inside of the ship, where gunshots rang out regularly and flashes of light from Eldritch Blasts from the bridge. I could see that Manson was a bit indecisive about whether to stay and help finish off Morgan or to go help either Pluck or Renalla. He stayed to finish the fight, that was his first priority, since it seemed that the other fights were continuing without him there.

Then without the shield guardian and the others Morgan had brought with him, it was simply a matter of keeping him in place, waiting for the rune to completely restore him, then continue to hit him with everything we had. I had heard stories of Donkey’s battle prowess, but to see him, Manson, Theren, and Terentus fight like they were was pretty amazing. Finally, Theren ended Morgan’s horrible existence and called over Manson. I could see his Oni sword drinking deeply from Morgan’s body. Manson without saying a word, decapitates him. Stuffing the severed head into his bag of holding.

Then we looked up to see a shadow flitting between the other airships causing them to crash into one another and how Amanifus seemed to be amusing himself while keeping his word to take care of things beyond our airship. 

The others started running towards the areas where battles were still going on, when a werewolf suddenly burst out of the door with a blackguard in his claws, he began feeding on the hapless enemy, and someone yelled it was one of Kenzo’s guards, and to leave him be.

While that was going on, I quickly looted Morgan’s body with Donkey drooling over, getting a ring, hatchet and some other things.  Then, I destroyed Morgan’s body completely, by burning it with the Flame Tongue sword, I stood there until he was nothing but ashes. 

Donkey, Theren, and the Zonai’s Guardian commanded by her, headed for the bridge where it seemed Renalla was doing her best to stay alive. Manson, Terentus, Ahna and the Zonai, headed down towards the gunshots inside the ship. After finishing what I had to do with Morgan, I headed for the bridge.

Helping Pluck

Looking back, I don’t know if Manson choosing to go to Pluck’s aid before Renalla will have any long-term consequences for their relationships, but that is the choice he made and one that I feel is the correct one for him. He is not the same person that he was when he was with Renalla, before his village was destroyed by Guillermo. I have a feeling that both of them at some point will realize that. How this will all work out, still remains an interesting “something” that I will watch closely.

Later, I got the story from Pluck about how she had barely been holding off the Ninja Goliath and her allies with the help of Kenzo’s guard. When Manson showed up with the others, the battle went on for a couple of minutes, but there wasn’t any doubt of the outcome. Manson nearly killed her himself. While she was weakened, he held her head in his hands to keep it steady and he yelled to Pluck, “Shoot her!” Pluck wasting no time at all, she did.

Helping Renalla

While they took care of the ones lower on the ship, we headed for the bridge. We saw Renalla, doggedly casting Eldritch Blasts, while Kenzo’s other guard was holding off the attackers. Donkey waded in to hit one of the enemy while Theren and I went after the Air Genasi, who was dual wielding. I hit her for some serious damage, Donkey was whacking on the other one and then suddenly both Theren and I were incapacitated and couldn’t move. A monk ran up to Donkey, stunning him as well. Suddenly Jack showed up to our aid and immediately began painting spells. The Genasi, Harko said something to her ally and they jumped out of one of the bridge windows and escaped.

We got a vision of what happened next.

Harko chuckled as they let the winds take them. Floating towards the ground freely whilst they looked around the sky. Trying to find any of their ships. It wasn't supposed to be difficult but it was amusing how quickly her coworkers perished. Turning towards where the runic ship should be. All Harko saw was a cloud of darkness heading towards them. "You had a better chance staying on the ship, little cloud..."

Amanifus took his time tearing Harkos apart, she had no need for those limbs anymore, no need for an idea of escape. No need to cry anymore or beg. It would fall on deaf ears. Not that they could sing anymore. With lungs filled with ink and their blood being forced to remain in the body, the only thing keeping them alive as long as they have now was because Amanifus didn't want them to die yet... He had killed the others so quickly. It had been some time since he enjoyed the hunt. He had forgotten how much better it tastes when his teeth pressed into flesh that still pulsed and ached. He couldn't kill her yet, she wasn't his to kill. He'd let them have this one. So long as the girl was handed to him without issue.

Settling down onto the deck with the one called Harko in his mouth. He set her unto the deck and telepathically beckoned out to Manson "You missed one, little Oni..."

I've kept my end, now for you to do the same." Amanifus extended out his claw to the lower deck, "bring her to my room and settle her in, if she leaves... Well it won't end well... I will return by the evening." Licking the blood off his bony maw "She won't have the need for the guardian anymore. Keep it for the ship or your allies..."

Manson attempted to question Amanifus on what would happen to the girl, while at the same time knowing that he needed to keep Amanifus as an ally. Without him, this battle may have had a very different ending. But I could tell that giving the girl to Amanifus still tugged on his conscience. Though I knew it was a necessary decision, I hoped that Joseph’s fate was not to her’s. She had trusted us, but we had made a deal with the Archfey and needed to pay him, his due.

Then Amanifus spoke again, "You're wrong on that front. You mortals should always be open to asking questions regardless of if you feel you would get an answer or not. Just be prepared to hear answers you may not desire. As for what will happen to her. If it eases your mind she won't be killed."

"Now if you have no further inquiry, I'm off to feed a different kind of hunger." looking down at his Intime Verhailen mark glowing "I'll return when I'm sated, she is to be in my room when I return. I don't feel that I need to remind you of who will be punished if she isn't there. Enjoy the hard won spoils."

"Th-thank you for helping me" - Le Noi to Ahna. As we escorted her to Amanifus’ room. His words eased all of our minds about what would happen to Le Noi and I had a feeling that Ahna would sit there with her until Amanifus returned. The rest of us would go about cleaning up the mess created by the battle, collect whatever loot there was to collect off the bodies of the dead enemies. 

Then prepare for what would happen next. I’m sure that Guillermo is not going to simply let us go about our merry way.