Talk was that Sesel, of the Survivors of the Tel, was still intrigued by the mysteries of the abandoned and sealed off Sixth House manor inside the Great Spire of the Attine Klackons on the northeast slope of the Tel. He had engaged "Ix", a free-Klackon warrior in a number of sparring sessions over the last weeks, and though his one purpose seemed to hope for training from the warriors of her Clan, it was no secret that he continued to conjecture about the other secrets and treasures that might be hid within ... and what lay behind the scarred doors?
After their most recent bout, Ix was heard to tell Sesel, through the interpreter Torkol, that from what she understood, the Sixth House was especially known for their curiosity and learning--dangerous things for Klackons, and no doubt the cause of their doom!--and thus their palace must hold an extensive library, including works on metallurgy translated by them from the Barcid Collection at the Migdol of the Dyers and Fish-Fermenters, among other textual treasures.
Thirst for adventure thus reinvigorated, Sesel gathered fellow-Surivor Avin, and new-come adventurer Persephone to his table at Cothon-Under-Star to plan another expedition into the Spire. They were then seen heading out from the Gate of the Fishermen along the beach, leading a small party of hirelings:
- Sesel (fighter 2)
accompanied by Barabajagal (psychic) - Avin (magic-user 2)
accompanied by Vlana the Bard (magic-user 1) - Persephone (fighter 1)
accompanied by Warda the Rose (likely lass)
This same crew returned to Cothon-Under-Star unscathed, with mysterious cats' grins, a handful of gems, a bundle of knotted silk lengths recognized immediately as Klackon "texts" by both Torkol the interpreter and the local Klackon patrons, as well as a mysterious long bundle wrapped in cloth, the identity of which as a sword of some kind was revealed in an inadvertent falling-away of its wrappings from the hilts, forged from a strange black-greenish metal. They also carried an ichor-crusted short sword of Klackon make, which was turned over to Master Alchemist Aljadd for further study.
While the local Xoldine Klackons and Torkol quickly identify the four "word-strands" retrieved from the Spire, a quick trip to the local jeweler by Avin and Persephone is able to convert the gems into cold, liquid cash, to be easily split amongst the party and its hirelings.
Before taking her winnings, Warda expresses an interest in taking up a sword to be a real fighting-woman like Persephone--"Maybe then Stark would notice me! Maybe a man like that doesn't need a lady to woo, but a she-devil with a sword!"--but the girl ends up distracted by the use of her new money before she can quite commit to any real mentorship.
Barabajagal and Sesel, meanwhile, head off to a dark corner under the Mother Whelk to drink of "cosmic truth" and eat of "ancient fungal memories", while Vlana takes her earnings out to the city night under the swiftly-coursing stars, to spin tale of their adventure. During her rounds at the smaller watering holes, she tells of a chance meeting with citizens of the Mother of Cities on the slopes of the Tel, of sneaking into the Great Spire and slipping into the sealed Sixth House cantonment in the central cathedral-space. Mention of the strange society within is quickly forgotten because of bewilderment at her claims that Barabajagal and Sesel were able to subdue enemies merely with the power of their minds. "That cosmic quack! Unbelievable--now I know you're spinning yarn," they say.
Last Vlana was seen was at the Kantor Kabljauhof engaged in conversation with an impressment agent, offering to write the "Epic of Telman" if she were allowed to join his Akho-hunting expedition, and word is that she invested what little she had in the coming expedition.
Treasure
- 6 gems of various type and value (500, 250, 200, 100 x3) = 1250 gold
- an ichor-crusted short sword, turned over to Master Aljadd, 25 gold
- four silken lengths, intricately knotted and tasseled, identified as Klackon "texts":
-- In the Dungeons of Spiff the Inimical, a pulp adventure story involving escape from a Pirate Lord's secret island stronghold (10 gold)
-- The Meditations of Nixaxhuitcha, a series of short poems about various subjects (25 gold)
-- The Trials of Xa'achex, a long narrative poem thematically insisting on the truth of the Klackon truism "it is better to do one's own task poorly than to your neighbor's well" (50 gold)
-- what seems to be a collection of individual note strands, gathered into one larger account, on the topic of "biochemistry"; there are references to "recent discoveries", "mutagenic potentialities", and other abstruse things, it would take some time to research thoroughly - an estoc-type two-hand sword made of an exotic material, retained by the party
Experience Earned
- 1360 from treasure
- 450 from Klackon guards x 4 (100 ea. + hp)
- 327 from Newborns x 2 (150 ea. + hp, granted because of the encounter as a whole)
- 200 to each character for deeper exploration into the 6th House and negotiations with its inhabitants
The Cut
- 912 xp to each character (456 to Vlana)
- 370 gp per character (176 gp to Vlana, 36 gp each to Barabajagal and Warda)
- the collection of Klackon research notes
- the strange two-hand sword of exotic note
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